Pitt players are cognizant of their four straight losses to RU. The problem with taking that streak a little too seriously though is that it can become a mental block. This game has to be a business trip. If you pull a Blades, and put it on a pedestal, then any loss will hurt that much more. There's an interesting contrast though, with Rutgers a home underdog, and not getting much respect from the media. If anyone's interested, my Rutgers/Pitt answers are up today at Eye of a Panther.
Some tickets are still available for Friday's game (expected to be terrible weather), even though school officials are expecting a big crowd. I wonder how much of the visiting allotment was returned.
The new Schiano show podcast is up at the usual place.
Jerry Carino has a Q&A up with Coach Hill.
Cincy snapper Brad St. Louis had an awful game on Sunday, which opened things up for Clark Harris to join Brian Leonard with the Bengals. Rough break (literally) for Gary Gibson, as he broke his ankle on Sunday, and will miss the rest of the season on injured reserve. Now it's ok to hate the Rams again, who foolishly gave away a useful contributor in Brian Leonard. Per Football Outsiders, Leonard has an 88% catch rate, which is terrific. He has some of the surest hands in the NFL.
So long, nit wit: the Colts have parted ways with Penn State Ne'er-Do-Well Ed Johnson, which should create more playing time for Eric Foster at DT. Knock them dead, E.
Jeremy Ito landed with Hamilton of the CFL.
Eh, this West Virginia article about a supposed Big East football expansion doesn't really say that much, and people are reading too much into it.
There's a nice little story in the Philadelphia Inquirer today about the new Rutgers welcome center.
Lil' Jovi's parents should be arrested for child abuse. No excuse for exposing minors to a toxic, brain-damaging substance. Bon Jovi is a pox on good taste, and horrible for New Jersey's image. Besides, XTC's "Earn Enough for Us" covers the same subject matter as "Living on a Prayer, and manages to actually be a good song in the process. For shame. If you're stuck on New Jersey music, there are only about a million better choices.
I'm surprised this WSJ article isn't getting more play. One potential consequence of the rumored NBC/Comcast deal is a pairing between NBC and Versus. Could NBC look to expand its college football coverage beyond Notre Dame? The deal would probably have major implications for hockey too.
What is getting a lot of attention is the new Malcolm Gladwell article about football concussions. Reading that is one of about a zillion things I really need to get to soon.
In Man vs. Food, the Grease Trucks won.
Rutgers is leading efforts to clean up the Raritan River. Seeking more revenue, RU is looking to increase its percentage of out of state students.
The Atlantic Yards case goes before the New York Court of Appeals today. As Develop Don't Destroy Brooklyn's Daniel Goldstein tells it, it's hard to think of a clearer example of eminent domain abuse.