dasox24

Book: Inside Delta Force Album: DMB, Live from Folsom Field (Boulder, CO) Movie: Rudy TV Show: ER (Season 1) Person: My Brother

1) James Taylor - How Sweet It Is 2) Tom Petty - Won't Back Down 3) The Young Rascals - Good Lovin' 4) New Radicals - You Get What You Give 5) Aerosmith - I Don't Want to Miss a Thing 6) John Cougar Mellancamp - Rocking the USA 7) Daniel Powter - Free Loop 8) The Beatles - Twist and Shout 9) Ingram Hill - Closer 10) Blessid Union of Souls - I Believe Bonus) Nat King Cole - L-O-V-E

Well, the Tennessee-Cal game was unbelievable. It was my first UT game, and what a game to have as my first! We just absolutely stomped them. The only points they scored was when we put in a lot of our backups on both offense and defense. 35-0 when both had their first strings in the game.

My first week of college life was awesome! All I did was go out and party every night, and go to class of course. That's one thing I'm definitely gonna do: go to class. I'm gonna try really hard not to fall into the trap of missing class. Classes have gone really well so far, though. I feel pretty good about all of them. But, anyway, I've just had a lot of fun w/ my roommates and just hanging out being able to do whatever I want. And, rush week starts today, so we'll see shortly if I'll be joining a frat or not. Oh, and we play Cal this week, so I'm really excited about that game. It should be a blast.

Yeah, I'm a big fan of the "Call on Me" music video. Actually, my brother spent some time in Japan last year, so when he got back he showed me this video b/c it's huge in Japan. He said he saw this video being played all over the place.

I will say that while I don't mind score keeping at a young age, I also wouldn't care if they didn't have it until kids were in about 4th/5th grade or so. This day and age there's WAY too much emphasis put on winning when kids are still really young. IMO, not until 7th grade should winning matter. I think that's a good age to start learning to compete to win b/c by high school, wins really do matter, in more ways than one. The past two years I've coached the same elementary school basketball team (when they were in 5th and then 6th grade), and I've personally had to deal with overwhelming, overbearing, etc. parents that b**** and complain b/c I didn't play their kid enough. However, when I say I didn't play their kid enough, it's not b/c I didn't play their kid, but rather that their kid didn't play the whole game. i.e. The PG on my team was our best player, but his mom b****ed me out after one game b/c I only played him about 80% of the game, and since we ended up losing the game, she thought we'd have won if I kept him in the whole time. Look, these kids are 11 years old, and they all deserve to play. At that age, the children are too young to know who'll end up being a good player or not in high school, which should be a main reason for having little leagues: developing kids for the future. Some kids grow more than others, and others who are already big develop into their bodies and gain hand-eye coordination that they might not have when they're younger. So, it's my job to try to teach the fundamentals the best I can, and prepare these kids for basketball when they're older. I also reward the kids who give it their all every practice with playing time in games. I don't care if the kid isn't very talented. If he works his tail off and dives on the floor for balls, etc., he's going to play if I'm coaching him. On a side note more about coaching than the topic of this thread: Another thing that I did was run man to man defense even though it's harder for kids at that young of an age to play it very well. I hate zone. I mean, we ran a zone at time when it was to our advantage, but man to man is the defense that is overwhelmingly played at higher levels, and these kids should learn to play it now. For you coaches our there, stop babying them by saying, "Just watch this area and don't worry about anything else." That won't make your players better in the long run, though it may help you and your "Win Now" focus. I should end this by saying that while winning shouldn't be the only thing, I do like winning. I mean, I'll deal with loses as long as my guys show improvement. That's all I can ask for. I will say that if you teach the fundamentals, the basics, etc., you will be better off even by season's end. My team steadily made improvement all year. At the beginning of the year, we played a team who beat us by 28. Then, we played midseason and lost by 12. We played a 3rd time in the semifinals in the end of the season tournament, and won by 2 after scoring with 4 seconds left. There wasn't a time when I felt more proud of my guys than at that moment. After the game, the opposing coach told me how he wished his guys were as disciplined as mine and that I ran a helluva team. That was pretty sweet to hear, but it was all b/c I didn't fall into the trap of letting the kids' parents dictate what I did, and I also didn't let the loses at the beginning of the season bother me. I stayed on tract with my plan, and followed thru to season's end. Anyway, this all happened when my players were in 5th grade. Last season as 6th graders, they continued their development and became the best team in the league. It was quite a change in only 2 years' time. I must say that while the parents on the team were always offering me "advice" on what to do against this team or that team 2 years ago, they didn't say squat last season b/c they knew that as a 17 year old at the time, I knew more about coaching than they ever will.

QUOTE(SoxAce @ Aug 14, 2006 -> 03:55 AM) I really hope Long will turn it around next season. He has really disappointed me. I really think he will. He has way too much talent to suck at such a low level of competition.

Hey, man, in May I broke up with my GF of over 3 years, so while our situations are backwards, I'd still like to say something: Being Single is not bad at all. In fact, I love it right now. There's no other person that you have to look out for or anything. You can do whatever you want, whenever you want, and with whomever you want. It's great. Look, obviously, you really like her, but if she breaks up with you, try not to mope too long. You're young, and there's plenty of other people out there. It's easier said than done, but believe me, you'll see my reasoning once you're out with "the boys" and don't have to worry about her at all. You can even mack on other girls then, lol. Last night I went bowling with some of my buddies (who aren't going to the same college as me, so we thought we'd have a guys night), and surprisingly there were 3 really hot girls bowling a few lanes down from us w/o any guys, so I went over to them, and told them a lane was open next to us if they'd like to bowl there, and even though I got shot down, lol, I still enjoyed being able to do that again b/c for 3 years, I was tied up.

My personal Top 20 would look something like this: 1) Fields 2) Sweeney 3) Broadway 4) Whisler 5) Tracey 6) Cunningham 7) McCulloch 8) Russell 9) Logan 10) Harrell 11) Stewart 12) Haeger 13) Carter 14) Getz 15) Liotta 16) Omogrosso 17) Owens 18) Phillips 19) Lopez 20) Cassel

Agreed. I don't always catch it when it's on, but when I do it's hilarious. I also really like how FX replays shows, like Rescue Me and It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, later in the week, so in case people miss them, they have another chance to watch.

QUOTE(CWSGuy406 @ Aug 9, 2006 -> 07:33 AM) If Sweeney continues his improvement throughout the rest of the season, though, I think he might be in the mix to be the starting LFer next year. Tom, or anyone else who has seen him live -- I thought I remember you guys saying that Sweeney would be an above average LFer. Can someone describe his defense? I assume he's doing a pretty damn good job out in left for Razor to be putting him in CF some (most?) days... Well, I haven't seen him play live, and I know you asked for someone who has, but I would like to point out that (IIRC) he has a cannon of an arm, which is a big reason he's projected to play RF. When we drafted him, he was also a very good pitching prospect, and even pegged by some teams as a player that would pitch if he had been drafted by one of those teams. Anyway, I'm not sure about the type of range he has, but like you said, he has been playing some CF in AAA, so he has to be pretty good defensively to be able to play there more than just once or twice.

QUOTE(juddling @ Aug 8, 2006 -> 08:17 PM) A Top 10 list of Will Ferrell's funniest SNL skits (with video) Not exactly my top 10 but there was one or two i hadn't seen before. Actually, any of his Jeopardy skits had me rolling. OH God! The Old Prospector/Gus Chiggins skit is great! Too bad they never actually aired it on TV; it's only shown on the special features of the Best of Will Farrell DVD. And here's an FYI for everyone, the "Get off the Shed" skit was something Farrell used in his audition to get on the show, and it was so funny, they actually made it into a real skit.

One of my fav's that is the Bill Clinton-Warlord skit back before Clinton was prez. Another one that I remember really liking, though I never see it on TV, is the Saddam Hussein skit w/ Will Farrell (actually, there may have been more than one, i don't remember) as Saddam. It was about the UN guys searching Iraq and they find Saddam's diary, and it talks about how much he loves the UN guys and how he's missed them, etc. I remember thinking it was really funny, but the last time I saw it was a few years ago now.

Shelby and Cassel are both really getting on a role in Great Falls. I know, I know, it's just rookie league, but I still think it's good to see them do well anyway. Also, I had no idea Fields had 20 SB's this year. That's pretty solid, especially for a 3B.

QUOTE(Flash Tizzle @ Aug 6, 2006 -> 02:38 AM) There was the intial Chelsea goal which wasn't (have no idea why it didn't count) and the hustle from MLS goalkeeper to BARELY save a loose soccer ball. Two great moments. Yeah, I think you may be refering to when the Chelsea player who scored was offsides. It was close, but upon replay, the ref made the correct call. And, yeah, I'm with you that the World Cup really heightened my appreciation for the sport as well. I've really just become a fan of the sport in the last 2 months or so. I'm not sure why I never liked soccer at all before, but I find it exciting now.

I heard during the MLS-Chelsea game that there are rumors that Chelsea is looking to sell Hernan Crespo Btw, how 'bout the MLS All-Stars' perfermance today? I know this is preseason for Chelsea, but I still think it's pretty impressive. The MLS really played quite well. Plus, you've got to consider the MLS didn't have the likes of Landon Donovan, Eddie Pope, and a couple other all-stars.

Sweet, Cerb! Nice list you've put together there. It really goes to show what I've been saying all along: Trading prospects away has done very little to hurt the big league club, which is why I don't over-react anymore when we trade away our minor leaguers.

Yeah, this sucks. I hope he's alright b/c I'm expecting big things from Mr. Benson this year.

QUOTE(Palehosefan @ Aug 5, 2006 -> 04:18 AM) I'm interested to see how close you guys came to putting Edwards in your top 20's, his numbers have been improving as an 18 year old in rookie ball. Well, I wasn't able to attend the discussion b/c I had my wisdom teeth pulled out that day and was pretty out of it, but I would've prefered him over a few others who were down the list that I just don't like much. I like his potential a lot, especially after he matures into his body and adds a couple of MPH to his fastball. Anyway, I wasn't there, so I can't say much. The guys have their reasons for who they picked and I respect them, especially b/c of how thin we are... Btw, I think the only player who made it from this year's draft was KMac.

Good to see KMac with a much better start his second time around. Although, that first start was a little deceiving considering all the unearned runs he gave up b/c of errors. And Tracey had a heckuva start too! Good for him. I think he'll be a big help as a long reliever next year. I'd also like to add that if Shelby can keep hitting the ball well, he may turn into our only other real 2B prospect after Getz. Our system is so weak at that position, though then again, whose isn't these days?

QUOTE(Sonik22 @ Aug 5, 2006 -> 04:00 AM) I was searching a site called baseball cube and i found out that the sox drafted Both Mike Lowell and Eric Gagne. Thought that was kind of interesting. Hmm, I didn't know about Lowell, but I remember hearing that about Gagne. Also, I think we were close to a trade back in, like, '01 that would have brought us Gagne, but seeing as he was a starter at the time, I don't know we would have ever turned him into a reliever. Anyway, this sort of thing happens all the time, so no worries... We drafted Jeff Weaver back in the day too, and even though he sucks now, he was good 4-5 years ago, so it would've been nice having him back then... Another name to keep your eye on is Jordan Danks. We drafted him last year and did everything we could to sign him, but it was well known that he really wanted to go to college. And, after the way he played this year, I wouldn't be surprised to see him be a very high draft pick and most likely out of our reach in 2 years when he's eligible.

QUOTE(Jake @ Aug 5, 2006 -> 03:56 AM) There really isn't that big of a problem with debuting when you're 25. People these days act like someone might as well be 30 years old if they're 25. No, it's not a problem, but it's not exactly promising either. I wouldn't expect to see him make a huge impact, which is really the deal here. I mean, if he was still in our organization, would he help out the big league club? I doubt it. Therefore, I'm glad we traded him back in '03 since it at least meant we were trying to make a push that year. Edit: I messed up his age. He's only 23 (soon to be 24 in 2 weeks), but I still don't miss having him nor do I think he'd be much of a help on this year's team.

QUOTE(SoxFan101 @ Aug 5, 2006 -> 03:46 AM) There was a SP involved in that Carl Everett deal with the Rangers why didnt u mention him? If I remember right he had a chance to make the starting rotation this season but got injured I think. I think you're refering to Josh Rupe. I'm pretty sure he hasn't done anything great since leaving the org., so I wouldn't worry about him. He's just been so-so. Edit: Well, upon further review, it looks like he's had a few good games out of the 'pen this season in AAA and pitched 2 scoreless innings for the Rangers, but that's about it. Don't expect to see too much. Plus, he'll be 25 in 2 weeks and has just made it to the bigs. Not much potential.

Huh, so Morse is playing OF now? I know there were doubts about him playing SS, so I guess they just needed a place to stick him. Not surprising to see Young having a good season in AAA, but none of the others we've traded away (including ones you don't list) have done much of anything, so our track record in trades is looking pretty good right now.

QUOTE(SoxFan101 @ Aug 5, 2006 -> 03:00 AM) How old is Logan Williamson in Great Falls? He seems to be doing pretty good but I dont know how old he is if it really matters... Well, he has been in the organization for 3 years and is back in rookie league now, so unless he has a Boone Logan type turnaround, I don't see him doing much.