Blue Jackets look to build on last season's momentum

The Columbus Blue Jackets shocked most of the NHL a season ago when the team came out of nowhere to earn its first playoff spot in franchise history simultaneously shirking the somewhat dishonorable distinction as The Only NHL Team to Have Never Made the Playoffs.

The Jackets tallied 92 points last season, the most in the history of the franchise, despite playing in arguably the toughest division in hockey with the likes of Detroit, Chicago and St. Louis.

As the seventh seed in the Western Conference Playoffs the Jackets drew the unenviable task of playing defending champion Detroit in the first round and were promptly swept away by those puppy-kicking, cookie-thieving, no-good-girl-scout-strangling Red Wings.

Unfortunately for the Jackets and their fans the team expounded nearly all of its energy during the furious late-season push to make the playoffs.

Now, as the 2009-2010 season looms expectations in Columbus are nothing short of dizzying. The team has clearly shown a commitment to winning and the recent signing of guys like Antoine Vermette and Derick Brassard to long-term contracts serve as proof.

Vermette, acquired in a mid-season trade from Ottawa for goaltender Pascal Leclaire and a second-round draft pick last season, was signed to a five-year extension earlier this week; he netted seven goals and dished out six assists in just 17 games for Columbus last season.

A few days prior to the Vermette deal, the club agreed to a four-year extension with Brassard. Brassard scored 10 goals and added 15 assists in only 31 games last year before his season was cut short with a dislocated shoulder that sidelined him for the remainder of the season.

Having Vermette and Brassard for a full season coupled with stars like Rick Nash and defending Calder Trophy Winner Steve Mason make the Blue Jackets a legitimate threat to seriously compete in the Western Conference.

Even the well-written and insightful NHL Examiner Chris Morgan thinks the Jackets can seriously compete in the gauntlet that is the Central Division.

Columbus has received some national media attention, too.

Columbus will begin its regular season at home on Saturday, October 3 against Minnesota, it will mark the third time in four years the Blue Jackets have begun their season Nationwide Arena.

Ohio State Buckeyes torch Toledo Rockets, 38-0

Contrary to popular belief, #11 Ohio State's season did not end with that defeat-from-the-jaws-of-victory loss to USC last Saturady night.

In fact, the Buckeyes still had one more non-conference hurdle to jump before the team begins Big 10 play next week and football fans in Columbus and out wanted to know how the Bucks would react when they met up with the upset-minded Toledo Rockets at Cleveland Browns Stadium Saturday afternoon.

More specifically, would Buckeyes Head Coach Jim Tressel, whose playcalling was the subject of much media criticism during the week, open up the offense against a grossly overmatched Rockets defense that starts three freshman in its secondary and surrenders 500 yards and 45 points per game?

The answer to that question came on the third offensive play of the game for Ohio State when quarterback Terrelle Pryor took a third-and-eight snap from the shotgun and fired a 74-yard touchdown pass to receiver Dane Sanzenbacher who was streaking down the left side of the field.
After a Toledo three-and-out the Buckeye offense wasted no time extending its lead.

The Buckeyes drove the ball efficiently down the field and Pryor capped off the 12-play, 68-yard drive with an 18-yard touchdown pass to Sanzenbacher to give Ohio State a 14-0 advantage.
The rout was on.

Daniel 'Boom' Herron would add a four-yard touchdown run and kicker Aaron Pettrey added a field-goal as time expired in the first half to give the Buckeyes a 24-0 lead heading into the locker room.

Ohio State would add a pair of second-half touchdown to polish off Toledo, 38-0.

All told, Pryor completed 17 of his 28 attempted passes tallying 262 yards and though he did toss a pair of interceptions, he also threw three touchdown passes.

Pryor wasn't just torching Toledo with him arm, either.

Carrying the ball 12 times, Pryor racked up 110 yards rushing with a touchdown; 45 of his 110 rushing yards came on an impressive third-and-five scamper that saw the quarterback shirk a number of Rockets defenders as he gracefully glided down the field.

Brandon Saine added 45 yards on nine carries for the Bucks as the team continues to struggle in its attempt to forge any semblence of a running game.

Sanznebacher snagged five balls from Pryor, totalling 126 yards and the aforementioned touchdowns.

Ohio State's defense continues to impress, too, holding Toledo's potent offensive attack to zero points, 11 punts and a pair of turnovers.

Entering Saturday's game, Toledo's offense had scored a total of 85 points in its previous two games, including a 54-point outburst against Colorado last Friday.

The Buckeyes will begin conference play next week when Illinois pays a visit to Columbus. Kick-off for that game is slated for 3:30.

Exhaustive college and professional football analysis from someone who's only marginally qualified to speak intelligently on the subject

I've been working on this bad boy for the better part of the last week. I hope you enjoy it, I do. Whether or not you loved it or hated it, comment on it. Really. Whether it's here or on Facebook via text, email or carrier pigeon let me know what you think.

I got a text Saturday afternoon just as Ohio State was pulling victory from the heart-wrenching jaws of defeat that read, "Please tell me why I have any reason whatsoever to feel good about our chances against USC next week."

For my predictions/thoughts on tomorrow's Showdown in the 'Shoe, please refer to my post on August 18.

It should be noted, however, that our entire fan base grossly overlooked a quality Navy team heading into Saturday's game. For crying out loud, we were 27-point favorites against a team that has won eight or more games in a six consecutive seasons.

Don't get me wrong, I'm guilty of that, too. While I said all along there was no way we'd cover the spread against the Midshipmen I thought we'd probably win by a couple touchdowns, at least.

Navy deserves a ton of credit. They threw the ball a lot more than our defense was prepared for and its defense made some big plays against our offense in the second half that helped propel the comeback. Mix in the novelty (and brilliant execution of) Navy's triple option offense and the writing was on the wall for an absolute dogfight Saturday, as fans we just chose to ignore it.

By comparison, The Trojans-enz played a team that has not eclipsed six wins in three consecutive seasons and has only two winning seasons in the last seven.

Speaking of competing against teams that possess scarcely a shred of respectability in major college football, Michigan and Notre Dame each posted blowout wins at home against mid-major conferences over the weekend.

Michigan routed Western Michigan 31-7 in Ann Arbor, at the same time Notre Dame was mopping the South Bend Kentucky Bluegrass with Nevada, 35-0.

Those scores disappointed me on a couple of different levels. First off, I was really hoping to be treated to a pair of humiliating defeats of the Two Teams I Hate Most in All of College Football, but what made matters worse was when I couldn't even enjoy ESPN's college football scoreboard show the rest of the night because I had to listen, time and again, to Rece Davis drivel on and on about how impressive those teams looked against their respective opponents and how that somehow again makes them relevant.

In my opinion, this just proves how far those two former powers have fallen.

Five years ago when Notre Dame and Michigan actually mattered and wins against those schools actually meant something blowout victories against the likes of the Nevada Wolfpack and the Western Michigan Broncos would have been little more than an afterthought on the highlight shows. Now, after a couples years of relative obscurity those two disgraced programs earn double-digit victories and it's newsworthy.

Looking to your right, does that look like the kind of guy that can lead a program to a BCS National Championship? The only thing Charlie Weiss is leading is the march to the local Dunkin' Donuts.

The Irish and Wolverines match up this Saturday, I hope Notre Dame wins the game 2-0 after the Michigan long snapper, on a punt attempt, snaps the ball through the endzone for a safety.

This weekend will definitely be an emotional roller coaster because of regardless of what happens Saturday night with my beloved Buckeyes the turnaround must be rapid because the Bengals open their regular season Sunday afternoon against the Denver Broncos.

I've been looking forward to the impending NFL season since the Reds dropped 10 of 12 immediately after the All-Star break in mid-July.

At this point, I'm like a single-mother in her 30's desperately seeking a young, hot stud to sweep her off her feet for a five-month passionate love affair complete with a weekend getaway to Miami in early February for the 2010 Super Bowl!

It's been so long since a favorite sports team of mine has competed seriously for a championship in anything that I longingly anticipate that nervous, butterflies-in-the-stomach feeling associated with watching your favorite team play in a big game.

Consequently, I spend much of the off-season, training camp, spring training, whatever, trying to drum up a sense of sincere, unbridled anxiousness for the return of my favorite team de jour and the best way to do that is to totally manipulate myself into believing that we can seriously compete for a championship.

"We really did have a decent draft. Our defense is going to be much improved over a season ago. Carson Palmer will finally be healthy for an entire season. Chad Ochocinco will finally prove himself to be a legitimate star receiver in the league. WE CAN WIN THE SUPER BOWL!!!!"

But, here's the thing.

Everything I just told you was absolutely correct. With the glaring exception of selecting Andre Smith or as I like to call him, An Offensive Lineman's Ryan Leak, over Eugene Monroe we really did have a decent draft. Rey Maualuga will certainly add depth to an already pretty decent linebacking corp. and getting a healthy Keith Rivers back this season was like having another draft pick after he was lost for most of his rookie campaign when Steelers receiver Hines Ward broke the linebacker's jaw in week six.

I think the efforts of Carson Palmer will merit Comeback Player of the Year honors as he will have a fantastic season thanks in no small part to guys like Cedric Benson, Chad Ochocinco and Chris Henry.

Of course, it's entirely possible my pot is laced with something and I am completely full of crap; if that's the case, I'll be eating crow by week three because we're going to know early on how good this Bengals team actually is as we have an absolute gauntlet to run in the first five weeks.

The season opens up inncocently enough at home against the Denver Broncos. This is an important game early for the WhoDeys. It's not that we're going to be able to put a ton of stock into a week one victory over Denver as most pundits predict the Broncos to win only six or seven games this year.

I feel like I should mention that right now somewhere near the greater Denver area there is a 23-year-old aspiring sports columnist posing as a freelance writer typing away on his laptop into blogger a column outlining why the Broncos will be better than everyone thinks this season. This is why sports are such a wonderful thing; every new season brings all new hope.

Most pundits only forecast five or six wins for us this season, too. This means, of course, most everyone thinks Denver and Cincinnati are pretty similar on paper.

Therefore, if the Bengals this season are going to be better than a 5-7 win team, they have to beat other 5-7 win teams consistently.

Maybe I've just had too much coffee this morning.

Either way, our season opener is very significant, a win will leave me feeling like a 16-year-old boy who's girlfriend just let him undo her bra during a drive-in movie, but a loss will leave me spending all of next week in the fetal position watching "The Notebook" 12 times in a row and wishing I were Ryan Gosling.

Week two sends the Bengals to Lambeau Field for what is probably our toughest out-of-division road game all season. We'll probably walk into those hallowed grounds as underdogs, by 5-8 points, regardless of what happens in week one.

To round out the month of September the Pittsburgh Steelers come to town for week three. There are few professional sports teams I harbor more disdain for than the Pittsburgh Steelers.

No, no that's not quite strong enough. There are few things I hate more in this universe than the Steelers. Honest to God, the Steelers are right up there with famine, disease, poverty and Bill O'Reilly as Nouns I Disdain Most in This Universe.

Speaking of Bill O'Reilly...

To this day, my bitter abhoration for the entire Steel City is the only thing I have in common with Browns fans.

That said, my goodness did they look strong against the Titans last night.

Losing Troy Palamalu for the better part of the next month will leave the defense a bit vulnerable, but they are still stingy against the run, those outside linebackers can rush the passer like few others and Ben Roethlisbooger (Oops. that's not how you spell it!) is borderline flawless, especially when he gets time in the pocket to throw the football.

Finally, to close out the every Friday blog from now until the end of the regular season, I'm going to pick three games a week against the spread. You know, just in case they ever legalize gambling.

Minnesota (-4) at Cleveland: The Browns didn't even name a starting quarterback until earlier this week. I told you August 21 the Vikings were the team to beat in the NFC, at least while Brett Favre is healthy. I was truly shocked when I saw the line on this game earlier in the week. Four is much too low for the Vikes in this one, even on the road.

Vikings: 24 Browns: 13

Browns fans, look at it this way, I think you'll score an offensive touchdown in this game.

Dallas (-6) at Tampa Bay: I've heard a couple different pundits claim the Bucs may be the worst team in the NFL this season. I don't know about that, but first-year coach Raheem Morris will have his hands full this year, and the headaches have already begun when Morris canned the offensive coordinator earlier this week. The Cowboys, meanwhile, are notoriously fast starters and I think the offense will roll in this game.

Cowboys: 27 Bucs: 10

The Cowboys offense will have to carry that momentum all the way through the season.

St. Louis (+8) at Seattle: The Rams were positively dismal a season ago, and despite a coaching overhaul probably won't be much better this season. Seattle struggled last season, too but a healthy Matt Hasselbeck and the signing of T.J. Houshmanzada (yes, I had to double-check the correct spelling of his last name) has many thinking the Seahawks are primed for a Miami Dolphinsesque turnaround.

Seahawks: 21 Rams: 6

Despite a comfortable win, Seahawks will have to wait until their team plays someone noteworthy before they begin predicting a division title.

So, here's to another great season of professional football. Have a fantastic, safe football-filled weekend cheering on your favorite team.

GO BUCKS....GO BENGALS!

A drive-thru blog for your Wednesday morning

This edition of the Pressbox will last only as long as my last couples bites of cereal and few sips of coffee. I guess you could call this a Pressbox Drive-Thru.

Fear not, we'll never mess up your order and my fingernails are always clean.

Here's a shoutout to my good buddy Alan for giving me a heads-up on the latest Sports Illustrated. The August 31 SI has an Outstanding (big O) feature on the '75 Reds including some fascinating personal features on guys like Morgan, Rose and Bench. Even if you're not a Reds fan, this is still a great read.

I saw the Dodgers in person over the weekend and I've got to tell ya, they are awfully good and awfully deep. What's more, in the last three days the Dodgers have acquired infielders Ronnie Belliard and Jim Thome as well as pitcher Jon Garland.

Belliard and Thome will likely be used off the bench.

Can you imagine being Brad Lidge in Game 5 of the NLCS, nursing a one-run lead and with two on and two out in the ninth and the Dodgers are running Jim Thome out there to bat for the pitcher?

The move I really, really like by the Dodgers though is Jon Garland, who came over from the White Sox with Thome and here's why...

The only real question mark on this Dodgers roster is the starting pitching. By and large, the rotation is pretty good, but it definitely lacks substantive depth. This point was validated on Saturday when they ran out rookie knuckleballer Chuck Haeger against the Reds.

No, Garland is not Cy Young, or even Tim Lincecum or C.C. Sabathia. But, what Garland is, however, is a guy that gives you a decent, strong start everytime out. If you're a Dodgers fan, this move isn't going to pay off dividends in the immediate future, rather you'll see the benefits begin to manifeset themselves somewhere around the second week of October.

That said, I want you to remember me, Dodger Fan, when Garland goes 6+ three earned, scatters seven hits and strikes out five in Game Four of the championship series, while also enabling Joe Torre to bring staff ace Chad Billingsly back on regular rest.

What're you doing Saturday?

If the answer to that question is anything other than, "spending the day watching college football, dawning a beer dispensing helmet, with the remote taped to my hand while my free hand is tucked slightly down my pants" I pity you, because that's precisely what I'll be doing.

No, I have no shame, just ask Kate.

There are a myriad of outstanding college football games on the tube Saturday afternoon beginning with the Bucks at noon, continuing with Georgia and Oklahoma State at 3:30 and ending with a couple blockbusters in the evening like BYU at Oklahoma and Alabama at Virginia Tech.

A quick note, if you're like me and live in Big 10 country, you likely won't see the Georgia, OK State game because Western Michigan plays Michigan at the same time on the same network.

Of course, I'd submit to you that watching the Western Michigan Broncos beat the holy hell out of Meechigan Saturday afternoon may be the most fun I'll have all day.

That said, a lot of people in Stillwater, Oklahoma think the Cowboys are more than capable of pulling out an upset against Georgia and I'm not inclined to disagree. If that Oklahoma State offense is anywhere near as good as it was a season ago, the 'Dogs may be in for a long day.

Speaking of long days, I'm due for one myself. Enjoy your Wednesday afternoon and please, please tell everyone you know about the literary brilliance contained inside this white space so I can finally start making money doing this.

I told you I had no shame.