Last Saturday I watched college football.  I may have watched too much of it.  When I woke up Sunday morning my eyes hurt.

My dear wife, Carrie, my brother-in-law, Stevarino, and I watched every play of the 7 overtime night game marathon between Texas A&M and LSU.  No, this is not a basketball score.  A&M outlasted LSU 74-72 in 7 OTs.  It was epic.  We’ll be hard-pressed to see another one like that.  Overtime, yes, but 7?  I watched Eli Manning in his sophomore year quarterback the Ole Miss Rebels in a 7 OT game against Arkansas.  The Hogs won 58-56 was it?  I think it was.  I don’t want to look it up.  It was sad enough the first time.

Of course last Saturday started with Indiana and Purdue.  IU lost in a stadium that was filled more than I expected on a Thanksgiving Saturday weekend.  The IU Football experiment still has a long way to go.  Some attitude adjustments are in dire need in that athletic program.  I suppose it is still a confusing place since the fall of Bobby Knight.  I heard more folk talking about an ESPN 30 for 30 show to air this past week about Coach Knight getting fired over 18 years ago than I heard about the Purdue-Indiana game.  Some things simply never change.

Purdue.  The talk of Coach Jeff Brohm leaving Purdue for Louisville was in full force this week  until Coach Brohm put the squash on the story.  He is staying at Purdue.  He mentioned loyalty to Purdue.  That was refreshing.  I think he did the right thing.

Louisville fans lamented.  One Card fan likened his spurn of Louisville as the opposite of Coach Bear Bryant going back home to his Alabama to coach when he, like Brohm, was 47 years old.  Coach Bryant said “Mama called”.  And he answered.  My Louisville friend was disappointed because Brohm turned down “Mama”.

Me, I think Jeff Brohm,(I was in old Cardinal Stadium one day he came in relief of Browning Nagle in a Louisville blowout win), didn’t want to deal with a second dumpster fire this soon.  When he arrived at Purdue the Boilermakers were Boilercrud.  In the four years before Jeff Brohm got to Louisville, Purdue had a 9-39 record.  The last two years under Coach Brohm have improved so far to 13-12 with a bowl game this month in all probability.  This is still a team learning how to win.  What do I mean?  This season they blew out Ohio State, beat a ranked Iowa team, and the suffered a butt-whipping at Minnesota.  Don’t forget early grown pains against Eastern Michigan.  At that point one might think the dumpster got another match thrown into it.  Not so.  But you better believe knowing 8-4 was “right there” had something to do with Coach Brohm saying no to “Mama”.

There is an amazing old school feel to Louisville’s passion to get the guy there.  Where else would you find such adulation for a player turned coach when, in his playing days brought only 38 touchdowns and 28 interceptions in a career that featured just two starting seasons?  I know there is family history.  That is easy to find in many schools.  But I think it may be the magical carry over from one Howard Schnellenberger. Some of us remember when he showed up at old Cardinal Stadium when the football program was on life-support.  It almost didn’t make it.  3 dollar tickets were easy to find at Convenient Stores in the early 1980s.  Now there is a palace to play in.  And I think Card fans from there to here still believe in the mantra “We’re on a crash collison course with a National Championship and  the only variable is time”.

Jeff Brohm may be the man to do just that one day and I hope it does.  The pipe smoker saved football at Louisville and made it a much more popular sport all over the Commonwealth.  The Governor’s Cup?  Howard.  New Stadium?  Pipe Dream to Pipe Smoke rising.  National Championship?  I hope I can see that one day.  Driving east on I-64 where all those hideous billboards dot both sides of the road next to the Ohio River, there will be one featuring Howard and his national championship saying.  That would be cool.

THE PICKS for this week.

I was 10-5 last week.  Thought it would be worse.  I need to double check the numbers and tally the season.  I have been pleased.

South Carolina beats Akron…a game rescheduled because of the Hurricane.

Texas beat Oklahoma in the Big 12 Champ Game….Oklahoma gives up too many points and their offense may turn the ball over today.  Texas-sized game in Texas -sized Jerry’s World Stadium and winning this game can make you a legend in that state and help your future employment prospects for life.

Iowa State beats Drake…What is a Drake?

Stanford beats Cal…Seems hokey to have a game after the PAC 12 Championship was already played.  Sadly, it was too smoky to play this game when it was originally scheduled.

UCF beats Memphis in the American Championship Game….UCF keeps rolling.  Very impressive…but Memphis has some power too on both sides of the ball.

Bama beats Georgia in the SEC Championship Game…Bama has beaten every time by more than 20 points I saw this week.  Go ahead and give them the trophy and let someone else keep playing so we can watch interesting football.

Fresno State beats Boise State…Coach Tedford has the Valley boys back.

Clemson beats Pitt…You know how I get heart ahead of my head sometimes?  This is one I am holding back on.  Rooting for Pitt.

Northwestern beats Ohio State…So I seem oxymoronic here compared to the last game.  Here’s the thing:  Northwestern is a physical team and they are a smart, well-coached bunch.  After their victory over Ohio State tonight, the Michigan faithful will tell Coach Harbaugh to keep the team home and work on beating Michigan instead of going on field trips here and yon.

NC State beats ECU…in another Hurricane moved contest.  Talked to some folks down on the coast of NC this week.  Insurance claims can take a long time to get moving and in some cases rebulit.

Marshall beats Virginia Tech….Is there a better spoiler scenario?  Hokies give the Herd this game and 300 thousand samolians and a home and home as Tech tries to improve to 6 and 6 and bowl eligibility.  Go Herd!

Speaking the rights as we near noon kickoffs.

Danny Johnson

My dear wife, Carrie, and I have seen a great deal of this country of ours this year.  We have been blessed with schedules and resources that have allowed us the opportunity to get around a few times in 2018.  I turned 50 this year.  That would probably have a thing or two do do with some of our sight-seeing, particularly last weekend.

In June we went to Lake Placid and saw the Arena where the Miracle on Ice played out in 1980.  That was a thrill.

Carrie and I walked over The Brooklyn Bridge.

I never thought we would do that.

We met up with my sister in New York and went over the The Berkshires for a visit.  That was fantastic.

We saw Allison Krauss at Tanglewood.

In August Carrie and I saw Justin Hayward sing in Ohio and got to spend time with our friend Julie Ragins who sings with Justin.

Last month we our fall break meant time with Jarrett and Cody in South Florida, a place Carrie and I had never been together.  Jarrett is heading back to the Iraq Embassy tomorrow for another hitch there.  Cody is selling his house and looking to move to the tropical climate of South Florida.  Who could blame him.

And of course, last weekend I kicked a couple of balls through in The Rose Bowl.

And Carrie and I visited the other coast for the first time.

I have been blessed with a forward thinking spirit, I think.  There is always another adventure and a point of reference that can be found.  I am blessed to be able to share these things with young people I get to work with.  When a youngster is talking about going to a college in another area, their eyes get fixed when I say something about the area they are talking about and I can give them pointers on what to see when in that area and where to find a good plate of vittles.  It makes things real for them.  There is a quality of validation that comes through to a certain degree, pending on how much they want to hear and know.

My fearless travelling spirit was passed on to me from my paternal grandmother, Flo Johnson.  She visited something like sixteen countries and was unfazed by any circumstance.  She looked for solutions.  She found them.

Granny died four years ago today and I miss her very much.  But each time Carrie and I go for another excursion, I have a private little conversation.  I tell Granny she would have loved to have seen this or that.  For all of these things, I am thankful.

The spoon collection was passed on to us and we have added to it.

On Thanksgiving Day I still look back intently on the old Hines Family Reunions we had in Forest, Mississippi when I was a child. Playing football with cousins in Uncle Bob and Aunt Nell’s front yard was a treat.  Those were good times.

That is me on the far right.  How I wish we had cameras then like we do now. As hazy as this picture is, it is still as clear as ever in my mind and I am so glad I was there.

Today Carrie and I will host the Thanksgiving meal for our family.  We will have a great time.  There is always plenty to eat and many things to laugh about. We will watch the Detroit Lions play the Chicago Bears for sure. Thanks be to God.

College Football Predictions Week #13

Picked 10 winners against 3 losers last week.  I was pleased with that.

Pure sadness sets in as the last weekend of the regular season of college football plays out.  How does it all go say fast, ask each other.

Got a few bonus games this week, in honor of the 2018 season wrapping up before championship games and bowl games to come.  Here goes…

Ole Miss beats Mississippi State…Won’t pick against the Rebels.  Not the right thing to do.  Hotty Toddy!!!  Hope the Rebs have practiced their tackling.

Ohio beats Akron…Go Bobcats.  Coach Solich is a winner all around.

Iowa beats Nebraska…The Hawkeyes have been up and down.  Unless they play Indiana, I always root for them.

Mizzou beats Arkansas…Poor Hogs.  They are just kinda pitiful.  Makes me not want to eat as much pork barbecue cos the pigs have had it tough enough already.

Washington State beats Washington… Clearly the most entertaining team with the most entertaining coach.  I wish the Cougars could find a way to the Top 4.  That would be entertaining.  Coach Leach attended BYU.  He got called on the carpet when he was a student and was told his hair was too long.  He asked the shame on you committee if they had seen the statue of Brigham Young on campus lately and seen how long his hair was?  My kind of guy.  Bases offensive play calls on how many defenders are on the which side of the center’s butt crack.  It can be that simple.  10-1 in Pullman in the PAC 12 tells us so. This is the only team that has a shot at beating Alabama.

Georgia beats Georgia Tech…Classic rival game.  Lewis Grizzard will enjoy this one.

Michigan beats Ohio State…I have to believe.  Then I have to believe Northwestern will beat Michigan in the Big Ten Championship game and clear the Big Ten out of the Title Game and save some embarrassment while helping Washington State’s cause.

Indiana beats Purdue…Man, the Hoosiers need this one.  For no other reason than some respect.  FOX called IU the University of Indiana last week on a graphic.  That is really actual fake news.

Duke beats Wake Forest…Duke needs to rebound after the whipping they took at the hands of Clemson.  The Dukies have had a good year.

Arizona State beats Arizona…This is one I may whiff on.  Just a hunch after looking at the desert from a airplane window last weekend.

Alabama beats Auburn…Yes, I want to see Bama brought down for the good of the cause.  But I don’t want it to be from Auburn.  I think Bama wins by 35.

Northwestern beats Illinois…The Wildcats, headed to Indy next week for the Big Ten Champ game, how ironic for such a game to be played in Indiana.  NW will rest some folks for sure getting ready for Michigan (I hope).  The sooner we don’t have to look at Ohio State the better.  Oh, and did I tell you how glad I am that Wisconsin lost some games this year?

Penn State beats Maryland…The ice cream is good if the football is not.

Kentucky beats Louisville…and wins nine games in a season for the first time since 1984 I believe.  That was the year UK beat Wisconsin in the Hall of Fame Bowl.  Al Toon was playing for the Badgers.  He was a great wide-out that played some time for the Jets.

LSU beats Texas A&M… This could be an entertaining game.

Notre Dame beats USC…USC needs to bounce back at home.  Will losing the Victory Bell to UCLA be too much for them.  I can tell you it was a back-breaker for some of the USC fans.  Their sparse attendance in The Rose Bowl last week made it the least attended Crosstown Rival game since 1950.  Only 57,000 and change showed up.  It was a great game.  I will be rooting for USC for sure.  It is the only way we can get a showdown with Washington State and Alabama.

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!  God Bless you and yours!

Speaking the Thankful rights…

Danny Johnson

I am glad my speaks with Mr. Bart Bigham’s 11th grade English classes will not happen until the spring.  If I stood in front of them next week, I would probably be rather emotional trying to convey my thanks to them for putting me and my dear wife, Carrie, inside a place I hold in the highest regard.  That place is The Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, California.

How it all exactly happens that I give Mr. Bigham’s junior classes the credit is something I won’t be able to explain in full until the time comes when I can share it with them.  And share I will indeed.

Two years ago I took my Dad to the Rose Bowl to see the USC-UCLA game. That was a special time.  The USC-UCLA game is the greatest rivalry on the west coast and ranks there with Michigan-Ohio State and Auburn-Alabama.  These games are historic.  Tomorrow, though I am writing this near midnight and this will probably post officially on Saturday and  it is nearly 9 PM on the West Coast as I type these words, Carrie and I will attend the UCLA-USC game.  I am glad to report that Carrie and I have already visited the Rose Bowl.  We did that on Thursday afternoon.

I have Darryl Dunn and Will Schnell to thank.  They were willing to help me out.  Darryl is the CEO/General Manager of The Rose Bowl Stadium.  Will is the Turf Superintendent.  These two men will be remembered as two guys that helped me help some North Harrison High School students.

I still get out and swing my leg from time to time.  Though there is considerably less pop in the old leg, I can still kick a football over a goalpost when I feel like doing so.  55 yard kicks have been replaced with 35 yard kicks.  And I don’t care about that.  I am just delighted I can still do it.  On Thursday I kicked on the greatest place to do so on the planet.

Lined only with five yard lines on Thursday, I was not the nervous wreck I thought I would be when I stepped on the lush grass carpet that is the field of the Rose Bowl Stadium.

Led to the field by Will Schnell, I felt like being there was the right thing to be doing.

Will and I talked Rose Bowl history.  An old Missouri boy, Will understood my Midwest fascination with The Rose Bowl.  The BIG 10 Champ traditionally plays in The Rose Bowl against the winner of the PAC 12.  The Rose Bowl is the Granddaddy of them all in college football bowl parlance.

Carrie and I standing together on the turf of The Rose Bowl Stadium was a humbling experience that I was glad to be able to share with her.

I thought it only appropriate that I wear a North Harrison shirt in The Rose Bowl.

Will Schnell was a gracious host.  Look at that field.  It is the most impressive thing I have ever seen in sports.  The man is an artist and The Rose Bowl is his canvas.

In earnest, I brought my kicking shoe and my cleats with me in the hopes of getting a hold of one.  I toted them onto the field in my old Brownstown Central gym bag that is over 40 years old and is still in good shape.

Though I had my kicking shoe, I was not about to get that shoe out and plant it into the turf of the finest football field on the planet. Will was appreciative of my respect for the field. So, I kept my Brooks on, tightened them up and put the ball on the tee a little past the ten yard line.

My first kick was true.  I never thought about the possibility of missing.  As I kicked I thought about Mick Rutherford and Kelly Samons and I wished they could have been there.  When I kicked in high school, Mick was the snapper and Kelly was the holder.  I could not have done this without them.  I also thought about my Dad and how we came out here two years ago and how he would have loved to have seen this too.

My second kick was true.  I had enough.  Two for two in The Rose Bowl was all I needed.  It was a wonderful feeling.

The PAC 12 logo.

The outline of the the script UCLA at midfield.

Sure hope the Bruins take care of business on Saturday.  I think they will.

More fun.

Carrie and I visited the Santa Monica Pier today and walked up to Venice Beach and back.  I know we walked over twelve miles today.

This is a great place.

Under the pier.

I gotta have a picture of the Hollywood sign, right?

Below is my photographic contribution.

This is the fountain in the courtyard of Pasadena City Hall.

Carrie took this one at Union Station in LA.  There is a great deal of beautiful architecture out here.  That and most places are VERY clean and tidy.  Not much trash on the side of the road or on the sidewalk or in the street.  And, most folks here are very kind and polite.

WEEK 12 College Football Picks….an abbreviated version.

Mississisppi State beats Arkansas

UK beats Middle Tenn

Northwestern beats Minnesota

Ohio State beats Maryland

NC State beats Louisville

Penn State beats Rutgers

Iowa beats Illinois

Purdue bears Wisconsin

Michigan beats Indiana

Ole Miss beats Vandy

Washington State beats Arizona

Arizona State beats Oregon

UCLA beats USC

Now this was speaking the rights!

Danny Johnson

The last high school football game I played in was on November 1, 1985.  Only recently have I looked at 1985 to feel like that was a long time ago.  It was, I suppose.

Last Friday I had the opportunity to hang out at a Regional High School Football Game between the Evansville Memorial Tigers and the Brownstown Central Braves.  My was it ever cold.  I had five layers of clothes on and I the wind chill in the 20s was not what I was hoping for when I realized that I would be attending this game.  Did I say it was cold?

I knew the Braves would have an uphill battle.  I did not expect to see Memorial to be as strong as they really were and are.  That was one of the most explosive high school offensive units I have ever witnessed.

What drew me to the game, of course, was my history with Brownstown Central.  Before the game I saw a few old friends, but during most of the game I was watching in  corner of the end zone one the Memorial side of the field.  I was there to watch and I was there to take the game in.  I did not feel a great desire to socialize.  That is why I kept to myself.

Barry Hall and me in pregame.  Barry played for my Dad at Brownstown from 1974-1977.  I have written proudly about knowing and appreciating Barry Hall as a friend and as a man.  I am proud to know him.  In addition to being a coach for the Braves, Barry has two grandsons on the team.

Braves warming up before the game.

Historic Enlow Field was the site of the game.  1926 was the year the first game was played here.  It is a great football venue.  The Evansville folk I had speaks with were friendly and this is a place I would like to visit again.  I’d rather it be 65 degrees.

Brownstown Central on offense.

Of course I am always drawn to the kickers.

As the Evansville Memorial kicker warmed up on the side line, I thought I would try to capture a unique image or two or three.

Teeing it up.

Walked it off.

Putting it through.

Two plays later, I took this picture:

One of 8 extra points for the Tigers.  They defeated the Braves 56-14.  BC ended their season with 11 wins and 2 losses and not a thing to be ashamed of.

In an effort to motivate players, I heard the axiom that “the games you remember are played in November”recently.  I get it.  You do what you do to get guys going.

I am glad I played a high school game in November.  It was better left forgotten, much like the pasting BC took last Friday.  But I was glad to be there.  I have more fun thinking about games we won that season.  In 1985 Sectional play was introduced to Indiana high school football.  My team won our school, North Harrison’s, first ever sectional game in October.  I kicked a field goal in that one.  That is one I like to remember.

Speaking the rights…

Danny Johnson

I don’t have have much battery in the old computer and I have not looked around for a plug-in.  The important thing is…I am warm right now!

I found a plug.

I was in Bloomington earlier today filling up the gas tank after a meeting and I thought I was going to pass out.  It was cold and it was windy.

This week I took a few nice photos as I was walking in the mornings.  It helps with the time change to capture some nice images.

And this one out of my office window…

The BEST photo I have seen in a while is this one…

Carrie sent it to me today  I so regret that I missed our school corporation’s Veteran’s Day Program.  It is always first class and I can’t sat THANK YOU enough to the dedication our veterans have given all of us.  God Bless you all!  I know Carrie was delighted to see Jarrett and Cody, as she was not expecting them.  I wish I could have been there to share that.

At this moment I am in a McDonald’s across the road from Evansville Bosse High School where Evansville Memorial will host Brownstown Central for a Class 3A regional title in a couple hours.

Go Braves!

The picks…

Indiana beats Maryland…and I am in hope so stage.  The Hoosier season has been a disappointment this year thus far.  I don’t see it much better and I think as close to a bowl this Hoosier team will get will be in the locker room toilet.

Penn State beats Wisconsin…Can’t pick Bucky for anything.

Duke beats North Carolina…Duke is having a nice season.

Virginia beats Liberty…I need a cupcake too.

Kentucky beats Tennessee…They need this one in Knoxville.  Keep that Rocky Top noise to a minimum.

Michigan beats Rutgers…Cupcake #2.  I need two to survive the cold tonight.

Alabama beats Mississippi State…This may be the closest any team gets to Bama there is interesting history in this rivalry for sure.

Iowa beats Northwestern…Only cos the Hawkeyes are at home for this one.

Oklahoma beats OK State….I’m a man!  I’m fifty!

Purdue beats Minnesota…The loss Pete took against Eastern Michigan looks worse all the time.  At least THEY turned it around.

Georgia Tech beats Miami…RUN RUN RUN

Notre Dame beats Florida State…The project for Willie Taggart will take a while.

USC beats California…The USC-UCLA game next week needs all the wins it can get.  I hope they kickoff early in Pasadena next week.

Though I will be trying to act dignified tonight as I scribble about the game tonight, know I will be pulling for the BCHS team for sure.  And they sure have their work cut out for them tonight.

Speaking the rights…

Danny Johnson

The Fall.  It is my favorite time of the year.  The last couple of weeks have been very memorable.  Carrie and I saw a concert.  I played golf with my buddies.  Two weeks ago we saw Indiana play Penn State in Bloomington.

This was the kickoff two Saturdays ago as Indiana hosted Penn State.

I always enjoy a good field goal.

As usual, IU dropped the ball when it came to honoring the players of 1986, 1987, and 1988.  They were all Bowl Teams.  These guys were given a short mention and not enough time for us to appreciate their efforts.  IU should have given each team a proper mention at different breaks.  Instead, it was a scene right out of the movie, that came out in 1988, ironically, called Everybody’s All American.  Back to be honored by the old LSU crowd, the hero thinks the crowd is cheering for him during a halftime celebration, only to realize the crowd noise was for the team entering the stadium for the second half.  It was sad like that.  During the same timeout, the old bowl teams were a quick mention so they could play another on-field promotion.  It was just sad.

Carrie and I saw Boz Scaggs at The Palace Theatre this week.  Boz gets the award for the most well preserved voice of any singer I have ever heard.  He is 74 years old and it might as well have been 1977.  That is the year I was introduced to Boz Scaggs.  His 1976 release Silk Degrees was a Brownstown Central football locker room mainstay.  I call still hear the late Tommy Cockerham saying how he enjoyed listening to Boz.  Tommy was a running back and a kicker.

The fall of the year is always beautiful around here.

Out of my office window today.

The Jackson County paper ran a yesteryear photo recently.  This is the 1967 Brownstown Central Brave football team.  On our right, my Dad is on the back row next to Jim Blevins , the man the stadium is named after.

Last Saturday I played the 19th Annual Corner King Classic with these guys.  Left to right:  Kelly Samons, me, Mick Rutherford, and Gus Stephenson.

This week’s College Football Picks…last week was a season worst 7 winners and 6 losers.  It has to get better this week.

Clemson beats Louisville…The Cards are done.

Memphis beats East Carolina…The Tigers are fun to watch.

Michigan State beats Maryland…Sparty needs to rebound.

Ohio State beats Nebraska….Should not be close.

Ole Miss beats South Carolina…My couch will be a busy spot tomorrow starting with this one.

NC State beats Florida State…Still like Ryan Finley’s QB play for Wolfpack.

Kentucky beats Georgia….It may be UK’s time.

Purdue beats Iowa…It is at Purdue and should be a classic.

Minnesota beats Illinois…the Illini just are not that good.

Tennessee beats Charlotte…and Gus hears Rocky Top many times at the game.

Duke beats Miami...Don’t have it in me to go against Coach Cut.

Northwestern beats Notre Dame…My upset of the year.

Alabama beats LSU…Can’t call it against the Tide…though I hope LSU wins for fun.

Enjoy this wonderful November!

Speaking the rights…

Danny Johnson

And so it goes.  The last weekend of October is upon us and I have to say this may be my favorite weekend of the year.  Football season is in full flower.  The trees in Southern Indiana are looking beautiful.  The weather is cool but not cold.  The World Series is being played.  Do I need to go on?

It is indeed a special time in my neck of the woods.

Tomorrow I will meet up with Mick Rutherford, Kelly Samons, and Gus Stephenson for the 19th Annual Corner King Golf Classic.  Played in memory of our friend Malcolm “Corner King” Lincoln, the classic is a great deal of fun.  The golf is awful.  The fun is priceless.

Corner King Lincoln was a dear friend of mine.  He died in 1997.  I have written about it many times on these pages.  One of those things you don’t get over.  You just get through.  I still miss Corner King.  I think of him very often.  Twenty-one years have gone fast.  Too fast.

The Corner King and I look into the distance on my wedding day.  I loved this picture when I first saw it.  It soon meant more.

My annual golf competitors.

On to this week’s College Football Picks.

Heading into this week the season tally is 77 winners and 25 losers.  It could be worse.  I think it has been.

Clemson beats Florida State…Clemson impressed last week for sure.

Purdue beats Michigan State…PU has an incredible offense and a credible defense.

Wake Forest beats Louisville…When I made this pick I thought they were at Wake.  Sticking by it.

UVA beats UNC…Wahoos have impressed of late.

Colorado beats Oregon State…Buffs are looking good.

USC beats Arizona State…Trojans are improving as the season goes.

Maryland beats Illinois…This is going to be a tussle.

Kentucky beats Mizzou…UK will get the offense in gear.

Texas A&M beats Mississippi State…I never pick the Cowbell Ringers.

Notre Dame beats Navy….They usually do.

Georgia beats Florida…It should be a good one.

Texas beats Oklahoma State…Horns are improving.

Stanford beats Washington State…Hope I am bad wrong.  Go Cougars.

Have a good last October Weekend and when you get the chance, Speak the Rights.

Danny Johnson

Sad.  That is what I say… sad.  I mean it.  Sometimes we hear politicians say “sad” and they don’t know what the heck they are talking about.  I say sad and I do indeed know what I am talking about.

I am sad because we are this ALREADY this far into the college football season.  I can’t believe it.  It is sad.  I don’t want to see the college football season to go this fast!  College Football is so much better than pro, in my eyes.

I digress…on to this week’s picks.  I was 9-4 last week.  I did pick a few with my heart last week and I will do so again this week!  I don’t care.

Ole Miss beats Auburn….Hotty Toddy!

Iowa beats Maryland…Go Hawkeyes.

Michigan State beats Michigan…I’ll take D’Antonio any day.

Northwestern beats Rutgers…Not close.

Duke beats Virginia…Go Dukies.

Alabama beats Tennessee…One day this game will matter again.  Had fun there two years ago.

Washington beats Colorado….Huskies are tough.

Nebraska beats Minnesota…Finally, Coach Frost gets a Big Red W.

NC State beats Clemson…I am a Ryan Finley believer!

IU beats Penn State…My dear wife, Carrie, and I are going to this one.  The last time I saw Penn State, Joe Pa was the coach.  We were there in 1994 when Penn State came calling to IU the first time and Indiana ruined the Nittany Lions National Championship hopes.  Penn State finished 12-0 that year with Kerry Collins and KiJana Carter leading the offense.  But…they only beat IU 35-29.  That cost them and that is why we have the playoff we have now.  Well, partly.  That 1994 Penn State team was the best college football team I ever saw.  I have seen a few.  Am I partial with this pick?  Yes. The heart leads here.

LSU beats Mississippi State…Hail Tigers!

Kentucky beats  Vanderbilt…UK needs this one.  They will get it after a week to prepare.

UCLA beats Arizona…The Bruins picked up a W last week.  They need this one too.

I don’t know how time gets away.  It has been over a week since my last post.  Lat week my dear wife, Carrie and I were spent most of the time in Pompano Beach, Florida.  That is a long way from Harrison County.  We drove to Key West.  That is over 1200 miles from our home.

One night at Pompano Beach we went to a nice restaurant.

We had a great time!

I am a blessed man.

Speaking the rights…

Danny Johnson

This is my view as I speak the rights.  The pond ahead was once a par 3 golf course.  Apartment buildings are all around.  Pompano Beach, Florida, some four miles from “the beach” where the Atlantic Ocean can be seen.  My dear wife, Carrie, and I saw it and it is a beautiful sight.  There is a peace that one finds next to the water that I can’t begin to describe.

This week’s College Football picks and then some more sight-seeing.

Last week saw nine winners and four losers.  The worst week of the season until this week perhaps.  I got some iffy ones for sure.  In week seven, you can’t ignore your heart.  The season is too deep.  For the year the record stands at 59 winners and 19 losers.  We’ll see how things go.

Indiana beats Iowa…I wish I could be there.  Finally some football weather in Bloomington and the Hoosiers will respond.

Duke beats Georgia Tech…I know my love for Duke has little limitation.  They are the IU of the south during football season.

Auburn beats Tennessee…War Eagle and all that crap.

Northwestern beats Nebraska…I know folks are saying the Huskers gotta win sooner or later.  And yes, I do feel badly for Coach Frost.  But, he asked for it.

Boston College beats Louisville…I witnessed the game that put Louisville into the Fiesta Bowl in 1990 when BC came calling to Louisville in November.  BC wins this one.  The Card team is a mess.

Notre Dame beats Pitt…Health is on the side of the Irish.  A soft schedule can do that for you.  Then come playoff time, they get blown out.

Penn State beats Michigan State…Oh my.  This could get ticklish.

Miami beats Virginia…How can I not pick the Canes when I drove past their stadium yesterday?

Ole Miss beats Arkansas…I sure hope the hotel I stay in Saturday night gets the SEC Network.  It might be worth a call just to make sure!

Marshall beats Old Dominion…No offense, but am the only one that thinks that is a corny name for a school full of kids?

Bama beats Mizzou…I heard in Tuscaloosa they polished up a new spot in the trophy case already, despite Nick Saban’s poor-mouthing about how weak the 10th string punter is.

Purdue beats Illinois…The Boilers are not a bad bunch to look at.

USC beats Colorado…The Buffs are better.  But beating USC?  C’mon man!

My dear Carrie and I drove down to Key West yesterday.  185 miles from where I type these words right now is how far the drive was.  Was it ever worth it.  Carl enjoyed the trip too.

Carrie and I are fortunate in that we have been a place or two.  Had our second home in North Carolina not been blown up by Florence so, we would be there now.  But we aren’t.  We are here in Pompano Beach with Cody and Jarrett and Jarrett’s lady friend Sarah.  We are all having a great time.

Yesterday was special in that Carrie and I got to discover and visit places we had never been.  To hang out at Sloppy Joe’s was a treat.  You hear about the place.  You read about it.  Being there was even better.  We all know it doesn’t always turn out that way.

Chickens are everywhere in Key West.  They run the place.

At Sloppy Joe’s our new friend, Brian, played a Moodies song for us.  He sang “Your Wildest Dreams”.  He did a fine job.  Justin would approve.

We did not go in, but I snagged a photo of Ernest Hemingway’s house.  We will tour that when we get back one day.

Along the way, we took a few photos.

The place was beautiful.

We got our photo taken by a nice man.  As south as you can go.

Today, Cody took us to a place south of where we are staying called Tree Tops Park.  You can climb this tower for a good look from the tree tops.

There were some great sights here as well.

This was one of them.

Back home starts tomorrow.

Say a few prayers for the folks in the Florida panhandle.  That was some unreal devastation they were handed.  They got what I feared for my beloved North Carolina shore…so I have a sense of how much hurt is there.  It is heartbreaking.  God Bless them and their resolve.

Speaking the rights…

Danny Johnson

Pompano Beach, Florida

On the way to Florida we made a stop at Moreland, Georgia.  It was an unscheduled stop.  It was a good stop.

Here is what happened.  Took a look at the map and saw the letters arranged together

A-T-L-A-N-T-A

I read T-R-A-F-F-I-C J-A-M.

We went around Atlanta to the west and along the way we found Newnan and Moreland again.  Many years ago I was on the local television station in Newnan singing a song i wrote called The Lewis Grizzard Highway.  Lewis Grizzard died in 1994.  I never met him.  I have read every word he published in book form.  He was a human interest columnist for the Atlanta paper for a number of years.  His column was syndicated to some 600 papers at the heighth of its popularity.  It did not run in the Courier-Journal.  The Bingham’s, I would say, had something to do with that.  Lewis spoke his mind.  He was a bit on the conservative side when conservatives had more sense than they do today.  Many of us whom were considered conservative back then have been left behind by a progressive movement we don’t recognize as being conservative.  Conservatives think for themselves I believe.  That is in short supply since State Television a.k.a Fox News has seemingly high-jacked so many minds with fear speech and division.  When this Republican deems Fox News worse than CNN, the country is in trouble.

I think Lewis Grizzard would still be hanging with me and others like me in the minority as we sit, watch, and wait (there are not enough of us to make a difference), and hope to live long enough to see America rally in the name of  Republic goodness instead of hearing about rallies where a president is making fun of people.  What good does that do?  Who does that help?  Hard to take for a guy who spent a dozen years telling elementary kids to “Be Nice!” And why are gas prices so high?

I digress.

Lewis Grizzard was 47 years old when he passed away.  He had heart trouble for a long time that caused multiple surgeries.  He did not survive the last one.

Moreland, Georgia was Lewis’ hometown.  In Moreland there is the Lewis Grizzard Bar-B-Cue Pavilion.

It is a nice little place.

I think Lewis would be proud.

In Newnan you will find Sprayberry’s, a fine bar-b-cue joint.  I ordered what I always ordered:

The Lewis Grizzard Special.  That and a glass of unsweetened tea and you got it made.

Lewis is remembered on the side of the Sprayberrymobile.

On the wall in Sprayberry’s.

Before we left for our trip, I grabbed a book not knowing we would be heading to the land of Grizzard.  It was a gift from Paula Lincoln when I graduated from college.

Speaking the rights…

Danny Johnson