The Vig

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and b) name-calling. But overall, I think it was a good thing. I’m still waiting for someone to explain to me what Columbus and Salt Lake City have gained with their MLS franchises that Portland is missing. Each has one “major league” franchise in town besides their coveted MLS franchise. What benefits have they received that Portland is missing out on? Please to explain.

On to matters of greater import:

Winter Hawks: I guessed attendance Saturday night would be sub-5,000. Looks like I missed. 5,268 is still pretty abysmal especially considering it was a Saturday night against Seattle. The Beavers had a bye and the Ducks were out of town. And it was Mascot Night. I keep waiting for the marketing effort to commence. Guess I’ll keep waiting. One last off-ice gripe. Why were none of the much ballyhooed flat screen TVs over near the food court tuned to the Ducks game or the ALCS? They instead featured the in-house video between periods. I had to get updates from my PDA. That ain’t no fun.

On the ice things continue to improve. Mucha was spectacular for about 55 minutes on Saturday night. Then the fight, which Dylan correctly figured out was premeditated, put the cap on a bad third period. The team didn’t look near as discombobulated as they have in the last few weeks. As I said, there’s improvement. I do wish though that we could clone about five more Luke Walkers and a few more Radim Valchars would be nice as well.

Oregon Ducks: They’re #5 in every poll this week. There are few things more annoying than a Duck with an inflated self worth. Starting this Saturday, they get USC and Arizona State back-to-back. I realize it’s at home, but still. If they get through that gauntlet untouched, then I’ll be impressed. Rolling up 108 points in two weeks against I-AA opponents doesn’t do a lot to get me excited. That said, where will Chip Kelly be coaching next year?

Changes On The Fan: I got it sort of close. I understand the thinking behind adding the fourth hour of Cowherd but I still don’t like it. It’s just my personal reference. Messing with what is essentially a West Coast show to add a fourth hour of East Coast programming doesn’t sit well with me. That, and I’ll take Rome over Cowherd any day of the week. I know I’m clearly in the minority with that opinion. So the majority rules. I also suspect ESPN required adding the fourth hour of Cowherd as a concession for whacking Screamin’ A. As for Rome, he left The Fan once before, although under much different circumstances, and I bet he’ll look to jump again.  Reading between the lines of Glasgow’s announcement and hearing him on the radio Friday afternoon, I’m guessing it’s already in the works.  I still believe KXL would be a fantastic spot for him.

Man City: They’re still undefeated at home and still solidly in the top-four in the table. Next Saturday’s match at Stamford Bridge will either propel them into permanent contention or draw them back into the field. Chelsea are 4-1-1 since the Mourinho ugliness and they need these points to claw back into contention. With so much on the line, this match had better be on Fox Soccer Channel.

UFC: I didn’t get to see any of the card this weekend. The biggest news didn’t happen in the ring anyway. The biggest news of the weekend was the signing of Brock Lesnar. Is it a gimmick? Yes. An overreaction to the Couture mess? Yes. But do not underestimate Lesnar. Aside from being a monster, he’s a diligent worker. Smart. I certainly won’t be betting against him.

Southern Oregon University:  Do they seriously only have three home games? How in the heck did that happen?

Arizona Cardinals:  I’ve found a bar I kind of like up on Highway 99 that has the NFL Sunday Ticket.  I wandered in this morning to find I had the place to myself.  Before I sat down, the bartender had a Diet Coke in my hand and the Cardinals game on the big screen.  Try getting that kind of service at Big Al’s or Players.  Warner was back and playing with some sort of Barry Bonds thing on his left elbow.  Through three quarters it didn’t help.  The Cards couldn’t get out of their own way.  Penalties killed them and Warner threw two picks that had me screaming.  Add to that two absolutely asinine delay-of-game penalties (one immediately followed a TV time-out between the third and fourth quarters…there’s NO excuse for that) and it’s a wonder the team managed to keep it close.  That task was left to the defense who allowed just 160 total yards on the day.  The Cards got it to 21-19 (did I mention the blocked extra-point?) and missed the two-point conversion.  I left the bar, The Icehouse, if you’re curious, immediately afterward.  It wasn’t until I was nearly to the Interstate Bridge before I found out we’d recovered the onside kick and were driving.  Holy crap!  I got home and turned the TV on just in time to see the winning field goal sail wide left.  Bah!  I did, however, get a small amount of satisfaction from screwing up Isaac Ropp’s “lead pipe lock of the week” which was Washington -8.  The Cards have a bye coming up next week and then a cream puff schedule the rest of the way.  That said, I’m not betting on anything over 7-9.