So long, farewell

You didn't think I had a "Sound of Music" reference it me, did you?

It seems strange that less than a month after being at one of the most exciting college football games in years, Georgia Southern fired their football coach, Mike Sewak, for failing to meet the program's lofty expectations.

National championships aren't wished for at Georgia Southern. They're expected. Coaches who fail to meet those expectations become former coaches who failed to meet those expectations. You see, the Eagles have won six national titles in the past 20 years. That's 30 percent, for those of you who are math-impaired.

Making things more difficult for Sewak is that he was following a legend in Paul Johnson. He came to Georgia Southern in 1997 and proceeded to win 62 of the 72 games he coached for the Eagles. He won the national championship in 1999 and 2000, finished second in 1998, lost in the semifinals in 2001 and in the quarterfinals in 1997. So of his 10 losses, three were in the playoffs and another two were against 1-A teams. Johnson left in 2001 to accept the head coaching position at the Naval Academy.

More than his success on the field, Johnson restored the "fear factor" to GSU. The Eagles were feared in football circles. Following a narrow 48-41 win over Oregon State, then head coach Dennis Ericson (formerly of the vaunted Miami Hurricanes) told his athletic director to never schedule GSU again. Oregon State, by the way, had an additional 22 scholarships and one year later went on to defeat Notre Dame 41-9 in the Fiesta Bowl.

Under Johnson, the Eagles never lost more than three games a season. Under Sewak, The Eagles lost at least three games a season every year. While Sewak's career record is pretty good (35-14) and his conference record isn't bad either (23-7), it wasn't up to the sky-high standards Eagle fans have grown to expect. Even being named Southern Conference Coach of the Year in 2004 wasn't enough.

For most schools, a winning percentage of .714 warrants a contract extension. At Georgia Southern, it gets you a pink slip.

This isn't the first time the Eagles have let go of a very successful coach who didn't quite measure up.

Sewak's firing is eerily reminiscent of GSU Athletic Director Sam Baker's first splash at the school a decade ago.

Baker came to Statesboro at the beginning of the 1996 calendar year to a program that had recently finished 9-4 with a loss in the playoffs to eventual champion Montana. That team was coached by Tim Stowers, who had the unenviable task of following Erk Russell. Russell was the man who resurrected the GSU program and led the Eagles to national titles in 1985, 1986 and 1989. Keep in mind that when Russell was hired in 1981, the school had to scurry across the street to Kmart to buy a football for the press conference. In other words, he had success faster than Brad Pitt at a high school prom.

Stowers inherited the program in 1990 that was coming off the first 15-0 season in college football history. In fact, the Eagles were one fumble away from being back-to-back champions, having lost the 1988 title game 17-12. (Even though I bring it up 17 years later, I'm not bitter.)

He proceeded to start 1-3 before reeling off 11 straight wins en route to the Eagles fourth title in six years. Things were looking better for the Eagles than a Catherine Zeta-Jones look-alike contest (and yes, that's an excuse to post a photo of the lovely Ms. Zeta-Jones.)

Unfortunately, Stowers never could live up to the expectations set by Erk Russell. Fair or unfair, he was judged against the success of the early Eagles. Despite winning a title in 1990, being named Southern Conference Coach of the Year in 1993 and a career 51-23 record (a .689 winning percentage), Baker fired Stowers in March of 1996.

Stowers did have several things working against him. Despite his success, the offense (the spread option, Georgia Southern's calling card) had become predictable and boring. Attendance was hovering around 12,000 fans a game, down considerably from the Eagles heyday in the 80s.
Things hadn't deteriorated to that point yet for Sewak, but there was growing skepticism among many Eagle fans about Sewak's ability to lead the Eagles back to the promised land. Several fans on GSU's unofficial message board had been calling for Sewak's firing for quite some time (ahhh, to be a fan in the age of the Internet where you can post your thoughts and feelings as fact.) Surprisingly, firemikesewak.com was still available as of yesterday morning. However, firethenextguy.com was taken.

Where do the Eagles go from here? I really don't know. There aren't many coaches knowledgeable in the style of offense the Eagles run, but we've recruited players who fit in that system. Any change in the offense would require patience among the Eagle faithful and, to borrow a phrase from Stephen A. Smith, quite frankly I don't think Eagle fans are willing to wait.

With any luck, Scott will write something about the Sewak firing. He's got a wealth of knowledge about GSU football, having covered it for several years for the Statesboro Herald.

The Thanksgiving Song

Don't blame me for today's title. It's not my fault Adam Sandler didn't give his Thanksgiving song a better name.

We didn't set out to start a tradition. I guess no one does. But 15 years ago when my friendds and I were looking for something to do the Friday after Thanksgiving, we did what any pre-teen boys would do. We got all the kids our age in the neighborhood together and started a football game.

After a short while of playing in someone's front yard, we decided we'd be better off if we got one of our parents to drive us up to the local high school field and we'd spend the afternoon playing there. Near the end of the game (which was played on the full 100-yard field, despite the fact there were, at best 10 total people playing), someone dubbed the game the Turkey Bowl, and thus a tradition was born.

Over the years, the cast of players has changed. Only my two brothers and another set of brothers remains from the early years. But despite the turnover, the game continues. When I was in high school, the game would last three hours or more. Last Friday's game lasted less than two.

A few years in, the annual field goal kicking contest was born. For years, 40 yards was the record. Even though many of us played soccer, no one ever could break the 40-yard barrier. More than likely, it was psychological. Several people would kick a 40-yarder with plenty of room to spare, but when we backed up five yards, we couldn't come close. That was, until a few years ago when someone drilled a 51-yard field goal. This year, no one broke 40.

The traditional has not been without it's kinks. For the past several years, we've had to wait for the team to leave for their state playoff game before we could play. (For some reason, the coaches don't want random people tearing up their field in the event they might need it next week.) One year, a guy brought his girlfriend back from college to play. Being the nice people we are, we gave her the ball near the goal line to let her score and feel like she was a part of the game. Unfortunately, someone tackled her (did I mention we play tackle . . . it was a good idea when we were 11 and 12, not so good when you're 26 and out of shape, anyway, I digress . . .) someone tackled her and broke her arm. Oh, she was visiting from Texas.

Another year, we couldn't play at our normal field, so we all loaded into our cars and drove the three miles to the nearby soccer fields to play. On the way over, two people got pulled over by the police for speeding, making it the most expensive Turkey Bowl ever.

At this point, the game is really an excuse to get together and catch up with everyone's life. For example, I learned a guy I went to high school with is now a teacher in Louisiana. If not for the Turkey Bowl, I'd have no idea what he was up to.

Phone calls are no longer made to set up the game. It's known that at 2 p.m. on the Friday after Thanksgiving, it's Turkey Bowl time. One of these years, I'll actually be in shape again and won't be sore for the three days after playing.

Georgia Southern Update: Leading 35-16 with 4:20 remaining in the third quarter, things were looking good for Georgia Southern. Unfortunately, I think the Eagles loaded up the bus and headed back towards the airport without finishing the game as Georgia Southern collapsed to lose 50-35 in the first round of the 1-AA playoffs. The loss ended the Eagles season at 8-4. The grumblings on the Georgia Southern message board is that the head coach needs to be fired. An altogether unsatisfying end to the season.

Fantasy update: I've generally tried to avoid using the same person as my fantasy girl, but when news broke Thanksgiving morning that Jessica Simpson was back on the market, well, there was only one choice for this week's Fantasy Girl. Jessica, if you're reading, Yes Dear and I have discussed it and she'd grant me a divorce to marry you and she'll marry Nick. It might be a little awkward around the holidays, but we'll get though it. In other fantasy news, the Fighting Squirrels are limping towards the end of the season, trailing in both leagues with little chance of winning. Despite that, I've sewn up a playoff spot in one league and will need someone to change the laws of mathematics for me to make the playoffs in another league.

Weekend update: For the first time since late August, I didn't have to work late on Friday night. To celebrate, Yes Dear and I went out to dinner with some friends in nearby Savannah. It was a lot of fun. Saturday, we watched Georgia Southern lose Sunday was laundry day. I've got to make better use of my weekends. Any suggestions?

Yes Dear Job Hunt update: Yes Dear is interviewing with Georgia Southern on Friday. (Initially it was supposed to be Tuesday, but some scheduling conflicts pushed it back to Friday.) She's been told she can't come to work on Thursday since the other candidate for the position she wants will be interviewing that day. (So if any of you are in Statesboro on Thursday and want to help me out, you can somehow sabotage the interview. It would really help us out a lot. Thanks.)

Next Update: Friday

Thanks for making the Nexus of the Universe a part of your day.

Truckin

Growing up, I lived about 90 minutes away from my grandparents house. Just far enough away that we didn't go that often, but close enough that all major holidays (Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter) we would make an appearance either that day or one of the days around the holiday.

One year, about two days before Thanksgiving, we found out one of my mom's cousins, who was a trucker working for a circus - I believe, was to be in the area for something going on that weekend. Since no one had seen him in a while (I, for example, had never met him), he was obviously invited to spend Thanksgiving at my grandparents.

Sadly, around Tuesday night, it started raining. It wasn't one of those severe thunderstorms that dumps an inch-and-a-half of rain in an hour and then moves on. No, this was one of those three-day rains where it's never raining hard, but it's just always raining. Not something you really want when you're on vacation from school.

Before we get any further into the story, you have to understand my grandparents have a pretty large back yard. Both of them were golfers and they would chip balls in the back yard. (They also had a golf cart, which was our primary means of entertainment there when we were little because they didn't have cable.) The house is up on the front of the property, so there's plenty of room in the back. . . now, back to the story.

Well, Thursday morning, we wake up and head out to spend the day with my grandparents, rain still coming down. We get there and mom's cousin has driven his 18-wheeler and parked in the back yard. We do the whole introduction thing and after we found out he's been on the road with some fairly large musical acts (Madonna is the only one I can recall with certainty, but there were other big names as well), he was deemed "cool" by my brothers and me.

After a full afternoon of sharing stories, reminiscing about old times and generally just having a good time, someone points out that it's been raining for a few days and mom's cousin may want to move his truck to the side of the road to ensure he can leave early the next day. (You see where this is going, don't you?)

Well, he gets in to move his truck and it's hopeless. He's stuck, sunk in the mud with no hope of getting out. So now we have to find a tow company that's open on Thanksgiving to get him out of the mud so he'll be able to get to his job Friday.

We find one (by the way, it's no small feat that we were able to find a tow company open on Thanksgiving. My grandparents lived in a really small town) and it comes out to help get him unstuck. Only the ground is drenched and as the tow truck is trying to get the 18-wheeler out of the mud, it becomes stuck as well.

So, we do the obvious thing and call another tow company. (Thinking back, I'm shocked there were two tow companies in the town, much less that they were open on Thanksgiving.) At this point, it's starting to get late in the day and light is starting to become an issue. The second tow truck arrives and . . . yep, you guessed correctly, it also gets stuck. Now we have an 18-wheeler and two tow trucks in the back yard of my grandparents. And it's now dark. And he's got to leave early the next morning to make it to where he has to be for his job.

There's comedy. There's high comedy. And then there's having three large vehicles stuck in the mud behind your grandparents' house.

We eventually eat dinner, realizing there's nothing we can do at this point. My mom's cousin is obviously tense, wondering what he's going to do and how he's going to explain his predicament to his boss if he can't make it to his destination.

Finally, my parents decide it's time to head home since dad has to work the next day. We leave not knowing how mom's cousin is going to get out or what will become of the two tow trucks in the back yard. On the way home, we even discuss driving back up there Friday to watch the festivities unfold again. However, mom called up there Friday morning and was told her cousin was able to get out early Friday morning and get to Macon on time.

As a post script, I guess I should mention we haven't seen or heard from him since.

Fantasy update: Although I've never seen more than two minutes of The O.C., I have watched enough VH1 celebrity countdown shows to know that Rachel Bilson is 1. on that show; and 2. is hotter than Mischa Barton (Despite the fact that Mischa seems to get all the publicity from the show). Sadly, Rachel hasn't called yet asking for me to be her boyfriend in the show. In other fantasy news, the Fighting Squirrels once again split this week, leading 86-38 in one league (barring a miracle, I'll improve to 5-6 and still in playoff contention) while falling 131-105 in the other league to fall to 8-3. However, I'm still in first place in that league and appear to be cruising to a playoff spot.

Weekend update: Yes Dear woke up early on Saturday (and by early, I mean 9:30 a.m.) and went to do some school work at school, so I watched ESPN's College Gameday. Then, when she got back, we went to watch Michigan/Ohio State with my brother, followed by watching more college football. Sunday, after church, I watched more football and did the laundry while Yes Dear took a nap.

Desperate Housewives update: Bree finally broke her engagement to the creepy pharmacist George, who proceeded to torch the car of an old boyfriend of Bree's. Meanwhile, Susan found out her father wasn't in the Merchant Marines, but is, in fact, a merchant in town. Lynette paid a coworker to kidnap her children to prove a point.

Thanksgiving plans: I'll be leaving Wednesday morning to spend Wednesday and Thursday morning with Yes Dear's family for Thanksgiving before returning home Thursday afternoon to spend the rest of the day with my family. Sadly, I've got to work on Friday, but not Friday night. My editor has promised me I don't have to work that night.

Georgia Southern Update: While you've read about the Eagles from time to time here at the Nexus of the Universe, Saturday you'll have the opportunity to see them for yourself. On ESPN2 at 3:30 p.m. (Eastern), the Eagles will face Texas State in the first round of the 1-AA playoffs. If you've got nothing better to do, why not check them out.

Posting update: I've got no idea when I'll be able to post again this week. Friday may be a slow day at work, so there's a chance I could do it then. I may try to give a quick update from the satellite office of the Nexus of the Universe outside of Charleston, S. C.

All I want for Christmas is you

Dear Mr. Claus,

Another year has gone by and yet again, this is the only letter I've sent you. I can't believe our friendship has been able to survive lo these many years when the only contact we have is one letter in November or early December and your surprise visit when I'm sleeping on Christmas Eve.

(You're probably wondering why I used a Mariah Carey song as the title of my letter. Well, since January I've been one of those "bloggers" that you've probably read about in the news. Part of my blog is that I title every entry with a song title. Also, it provides an opportunity to post a picture of Ms. Carey on here. As any good newspaper designer knows (speaking of that, how is the North Pole Gazette going?), you need to have pictures to break up the text.)

Like the past 25 years, I'd like to again appologize for not keeping in touch like I said I would. I know I promised to write you letters every other month letting you know how I was doing and how things were with myself and Yes Dear, and sadly, I got so busy during the year that I never got around to it.

In fairness to me, however, you really need to look into a new marketing coordinator. The only time people hear of you is during November and December. That said, I may have seen a few of your latest commercials in October, so maybe that marketing blitz I mentioned last year is beginning to show dividends. I'll write to you again in February to discuss that more. (Also, if you need a new marketing director, I think Yes Dear would be willing to relocate to the North Pole if the price is right.)

There's been something I've been meaning to ask you and it always slips my mind, but today, fortunately, I remembered. I know you have elves (is that still the PC term) make all the gifts you bring to the good little boys and girls, but I have to ask you about one major thing. How do you get around the copyright infringement laws? I know the past few years I've wanted DVDs or books and I can't imagine the companies being ok with your workforce manufacturing the exact same thing the companies are trying to sell. Do you have some kind of an agreement with them? I know you have a tight budget that you have to stay on, so there's no way you could afford to actually buy everything you distribute.

Also, do you ever feel wrong for deceiving so many children by hiring look-alikes to sit in shopping malls pretending to be you? When I found out they were only helpers and not really you, it was almost enough to make me believe you weren't real. Then my mother reminded me that if I didn't believe you were real, I wouldn't get any presents. But I wonder how you can expect children to be nice and not naughty when you, yourself, are perpetuating a lie on these innocent, naive children. Just something to think about. Perhaps you may want to put a disclaimer somewhere around your helpers to let them know they're not dealing with the real thing.

Anyway, I'm sure I've taken up more than enough of your time. You've got millions of letters to read and your midget workforce doesn't have a lot of time to process the requests and get everything ready.

With that said, here's my list of things I'd like this year (providing you've got that copyright and licensing thing all worked out.) In no particular order:

Television Stuff:
1. Law & Order DVDs (while I'd like the original, the SVU and Criminal Intent ones would also be nice. Be sure to coordinate with Yes Dear, the parental units and the parental in-laws with this.)
2. Seinfeld DVDs (you'll recall I've got season 1-2, so the newest one's would be what I'd like)

Sports Clothing:
3. A new Cubs and Georgia Southern hat.
4. Cubs windbreaker
5. Aramis Rameriz jersey (preferably the alternate blue jersey)

Video Games (I hope I never reach the day when I'm too old to ask for video games)
6. Madden 2006 (I know, I should have this by now, but I don't, so can you hook me up?)
7. NCAA football 2006 (Again, I know I should have this.)

Books:
8. Last Night of the Yankee Dynasty By Buster Olney
9. Moneyball By Michael Lewis
10. Three nights in August By Buzz Bissinger

Dreaming Big:
11. 42 inch high-definition television

That, actually, is pretty much what I'd like. Sure, I know there's the clothes and shoes and other typical stuff I get each year (and I do appreciate it), but of the things I want, that pretty much covers it.

Thanks again for your time, Mr. Claus.

Misty Mountain Hop

I went. I saw. I went home.

That, in a nutshell, was my experience in Boone, North Carolina Monday and Tuesday as Yes Dear interviewed to be their new fitness director (maybe it's fitness coordinator. Either way, it's some exercising job.)

While she was off teaching aerobics classes, meeting with the Appalachian State University recreation staff, touring the campus and generally being treated like royalty, I was a mere commoner left to navigate the strange land on my own.

Unfortunately, my sense of direction was severely damaged by the tragic Mountain Dew overdose of 1994, so the idea of driving around a new town, even one as small as Boone, was nothing something I was looking forward to doing.

We got to ASU around 2:15 p.m. and checked in. Yes Dear then proceeded to practice her aerobics routine one more time while I flipped though the channels and remembered why I'm glad I have a day job. Around 4ish, she gets whisked away to teach her class and then go to dinner.

(Quick side note: App. State's transit system is called the AppalCART. I thought that was clever)

I, meanwhile, am left to fend for myself. Since I fear getting lost and dying in the streets of Boone with a map at my feet, I figure I'd better go get something to eat before it gets dark. Unfortunately, that's fairly early and I spend the rest of the night watching TV, grateful for Cable and a cable listings guide in the room.

Around 10 p.m., Yes Dear returns, excited about how things went and looking forward to the next day. Unfortunately, she's got to get up at 7 a.m. to be ready for her 8 a.m. breakfast interview. I, on the other hand, am hoping to sleep as late as possible since I've got another day to kill and have to be out of the hotel by 11 a.m.

After driving around downtown Boone for a little while Tuesday morning, I head up to the ASU football stadium (I'm a sports geek, but you should know that by now.) After realizing there's no parking near the stadium, I figure I'll drive around and look at some houses. After all, there's a chance I could be moving there soon. (Actually, unless you're only parking for an hour, there's nowhere to park in Boone at all. If you're a visitor, you're screwed if you just want to walk around.)

Well, after about 10 minutes, I realize I'm lost and I'm cursing that fateful night in 1994. After a short while, I see a highway I recognize from the map. I'm not sure which way I need to turn on this highway to get me back where I want to go, but I figure I've got a 50/50 shot of picking the right way.

I picked incorrectly.

After driving about five miles out of my way, I realize "hey, I'm going the wrong way." I find a place to turn around and head back to the hotel.

By the way, I should mention that the hotel is at the top of a very, large mountain. But, I'm young. I'm in shape. I figure it'll be no problem to walk from there to the bottom and tour campus (about six-tenths of a mile.)

About halfway down the mountain (DOWN), I realize I'm going to be screwed in my attempt to climb back up it. I'm not that young. And I'm definitely not in shape. But, at this point, it's either continue down the mountain to find something to do for five hours or sit in a hotel lobby watching FOX News for six hours.

For the next five hours, I wander around ASU, reading their student newspaper, watching their students throw the football around on their field, killing hours in their bookstore (and if it wasn't for my Mom's "you can't buy anything for yourself after Halloween" rule, - she's fearful I'll buy myself something she's buying me for Christmas - I'd have bought a book and been entertained.)

After exhausting every possible thing to do on campus, I proceeded to head back to the hotel. A 25-minute walk up the mountain left me breathless, sore and begging to be put out of my misery.

About 5:30, Yes Dear arrives back at the hotel. Sadly, this is about the same time the fog rolled in. I'm not talking about a light fog that causes you to slow down to five miles over the speed limit. I'm talking about I-can't-see-five-feet-in-front-of-me type fog. Yes Dear drives about five miles-per-hour down whatever mountain we were on, trying (and I stress "trying" to focus on the white line on the right of the road. Sometimes we could see it. Other times, we hoped we didn't drive off the side of the mountain.

Eventually we get out of the fog and decide if it's like that on a regular basis, maybe Boone's not for us.

(By the way, since we're talking about the weather here, I figure now's as good a time as any to tell you I feel cheated in my trip to Boone. Watching the weather Monday night, they said the city was experiencing near-record highs. That's not a true indication of what the city's like. Tuesday, the low was in the mid-50s. Wednesday morning, the lows were to be in the mid-20s. That's like being told you can date Lindsay Lohan, but instead of getting the "Mean Girls" version of Lohan, you get the crack addict version.)

Weekend update: GSU football on Saturday, NFL and laundry on Sunday. God I'm boring. Why are you reading again?

Fantasy update: Speaking of Lindsay Lohan, let's remember when she was pretty as the Fantasy Update girl this week. In other Fantasy News, the Fighting Squirrels are leading a charmed life, winning 47-45 in one league to improve to 8-2 while in the other league, I won 80-77 to improve to 4-6.

Work Update: As you may recall, last Friday was supposed to be the last Friday night I would be working. As you can probably tell from the fact that I used the word "supposed," there's been a change of plans. I feel like the guy from Office Space.
Ahh, I'm going to have to go ahead and ask you to come in on Sunday, too...
Not good times.

See you Friday for my Christmas list.

Running on Empty

I'd like to thank Jackson Browne for making this a hit and giving me a blog title tonight.

Sorry I missed Friday's scheduled post. And sorry in advance for missing Monday's.

Yes Dear has an interview at Appalachian State Monday and Tuesday and I'll be up there supporting her. (How I'll do that, I've got no idea. I don't think I'm allowed anywhere near her during the interview process, so I'll probably drive around Boone, get lost, ask for directions back to campus and stay in the hotel room most of the time. With luck, they'll have cable. If not, it could be a long trip.

I should be back Wednesday with a new post, complete with the Fantasy Update, Weekend Update as well as my experience in Boone. It's supposed to be rainy and cold the entire time we'll be up there, so if I come across as bitter on Wednesday, it's because I am.

Thanks for making the Nexus of the Universe a part of your day. With so many choices out there, we appreciate you choosing us. (Yes Dear said I should say thanks for choosing "me," but at this point, you all feel like you know her, even if she doesn't write anything, so on behalf of "us", thanks for reading.)

See you Wednesday.

Celebration

Yep, that's Kool and the Gang, for those scoring at home, or if you're by yourself.

Here it is, almost 48 hours later, and I'm still riding the emotional high that came from Georgia Southern's 27-24 win over arch-rival Furman.

Unfortunately, words fail me as I try, two days later, to accurately describe the atmosphere inside the stadium during the game. (And yes, I'm not the first Statesboro Blogger to write about this, see Scott and Stacey's blog for other, and probably better written, perspectives)

We (Yes Dear, Official Brother, myself and a few of Official Brother's friends) got inside the stadium about an hour before kickoff to get our seats near the 35 yard line directly behind the Georgia Southern band. (I apologize, "seats" is misleading as we stood up for the entire game . . . More on that later.)

With more than 20 minutes to go before kickoff, we were begging the football gods to speed time up for kickoff. There was a buzz inside the stadium that I don't recall being there for a regular season game since 1999 when Georgia Southern also played Furman.

When the game finally started, the crowd stayed in the game for all four quarters (a rarity at Georgia Southern where many of the students leave at halftime to go watch UGA play and the "old folks" side usually acts as though they're watching a golf match.)

The Eagles fell behind early 7-0 and 10-7 before taking a 14-10 lead with 8:31 remaining before halftime. Just before the end of the second quarter, the Eagles appeared to have scored another touchdown that would have put them up 21-10, but the officials ruled quaterback Jayson Foster fumbled before crossing the goalline, despite video evidence to the contrary.

This lead to us spending the entire halftime complaining about "H", the head linesman who started to signal touchdown before changing his call and saying it was a fumble. We were less than thrilled at that time and felt it might be necessary to throw a rock at his house, Official Brother's cure-all for any perceived grievance.

Furman rallied after halftime to take a 17-14 lead before the Eagles responded with a touchdown of their own to go ahead 20-17 (we missed the extra point.) Furman scored 5:12 remaining in the third quarter to take a 24-20 lead, setting up the final quarter.

With 8:40 remaining in the game, the Eagles got the ball at their own 13. They proceeded to scare the living daylights out of us by converting on third and fourth downs more than my heart could take.

Facing a 3rd and 17 on the Furman 43, Foster found Chris Dickerson (I realize these names mean nothing to you, I really do) on a 35 yard pass that looked like a wounded duck when it was thrown.

Two plays later, the Eagles scored the go ahead touchdown with only 1:02 remaining, making the score 27-24. At that point, the crowd went nuts. Jumping up and down in the bleachers, high fiving complete strangers who, at that point were as close to you as your best man at your wedding. Guys hugging other guys with no fear of being labed as gay. It was euphoric. Again, words fail me here. If you've experienced that feeling at a sporting event, you know exactly what I'm talking about. If not, there just aren't words in the English language to adequately describe that moment.

But there was still over a minute to go and Furman has a history of coming back late to win games. However, on a first down from the Georgia Southern 30 (very close to being in range for a game-tying field goal), Georgia Southern's Terrance McBride intercepted an errant pass from the Furman quarterback to seal the win.

More euphoria. More hugging. More jumping up and down. More random high fives. It's those moments that I, as a sports fan, attend games for. You can't replicate those feelings in any other setting and just being a part of it makes it worth all the crappy games you sit though.

In college, most of my friends went to Georgia Southern games without fail. They were as big a fans as I was. Sadly, when they graduated, the moved away and only come to a few games. As we were leaving the stadium, I told Yes Dear "I feel bad for all our friends who didn't bother to come to this game."

Yes Dear was among those who would go to the games with us, but she never really got into the games. For her, it was more of an excuse to get together with her friends and talk while not being inside their apartments. Sure, they'd know if we won or lost, but they weren't ever that into the game. (It's like the book, "He's just not that into you.") She has a general disdain for football and the fact that I revolve my schedule around games irks her to no end.

But Saturday was different. I think, for the first time, she finally understands what it's like to be truly engrossed in a game.

In fact, she summed up everything Saturday night when she said "If all the games were like that, I'd like football."

Fantasy Update: Sure she dated Tom Cruise, but she was smart enough not to be taken in by his wacky Scientology friends. Add to that the fact that she's gorgeous and you've got all the makings of a Fantasy Update girl . . . one Penelope Cruz. In other fantasy news, the Fighting Squirrels had a decent week, winning 90-87 in one league (making me 7-2 and in first place, by the way), while winning 46-45 in my other league, but not feeling confident, leading to
What I'm hoping for tonight (not involving Yes Dear): I need Brandon Stokley to score the same number of points as the Colts' kicker. Things don't look good for the Squirrels, even with the hiring of Rocket J. Squirrel.

Weekend update: If Saturday was emotionally draining, Sunday was physically draining. Apparently I ate something my stomach was none to thrilled with Saturday night. Without going into much detail, my body spent Sunday ridding itself of anything and everything I'd ate or drank in the past 24 hours, including water. Not good times, but I'm better now.

Desperate Housewives update: There's no way Bree would be dating George this soon after her husband's death. And even if she did, they would not be going on a romantic weekend together. She cares too much about what other people think to do that and her friends certainly wouldn't approve of her moving on so quickly. Susan crying in a wedding dress in the middle of Wisteria Lane was good television as well.

School Update: Despite being done with her thesis, I still haven't seen much of Yes Dear as she's catching up on projects for her other classes. The good news: I've still got control over the television. The bad news: (It's to easy to make a joke here, so I'll let you come up with your own.)

Work update: I thought last Friday was going to be my last one working until midnight. However, Chief Bossman came in and told me he needed me to work again this Friday night. So once again, while you're out having fun and enjoying your weekend, I'll be sitting at a desk praying to the football gods to not let anything go into overtime.

I'm so excited

I know, a Pointer Sisters song? What am I thinking. Well, it's the best I could come up with . Sorry.

Georgia Southern.
Furman.

To fans of 1-AA football, there really isn't a need to say anything else. However, since I'm assuming most of the people who frequent the Nexus of the Universe aren't fans of 1-AA football, allow me to explain why I'm looking forward to this game more than any game in the past three years.

Normally Georgia Southern-Furman games are colossal in the 1-AA landscape. To say tomorrow's game is colossal does a disservice to the word. No, tomorrow's game is enormous. It's gigantic. It's. . . well . . . ginormous.

Georgia Southern is the most successful program in the history of 1-AA football. We've won six national championships. We've won more playoff games than any other school, despite the fact we were six years late getting to the party.

Furman is the Eagles' arch-rival. Dating back to the first two times the teams met in 1985 and 1988, there always seems to be something on the line. In those first two, a national title was at stake. In 1985 Georgia Southern came from 28-6 down in the title game to top Furman 44-42 to give the Eagles their first title.

Three years later, Furman returned the favor, winning 17-12 for the Paladins only championship.

Since that time, the Eagles and Paladins have squared of at Paulson Stadium in Statesboro several times, with the Paladins winning about as often as Rosie O'Donnel at a Tyra Banks look-alike contest.

This time, however, is different.

Furman comes in ranked number one in the country for the first time in the program's history. They're riding a six-game winning streak and are looking to secure the top seed in the 16-team tourament. Things are looking good for the Paladins.

Meanwhile, Georgia Southern is ranked 14th in 1-AA. Not bad, but their record sits at 6-3. One more loss would effectively knock them out of the playoffs. They need this game like a fat kid needs cake.

Add to the mix that the rumblings around Statesboro is that the Eagles head coach needs this win to keep his job and you've got all the makings for a fantastic day at the stadium.

(Cheesy anouncer voice): But wait, there's more.

At halftime, Georgia Southern will be honoring the members of the 1985 championship team (you know, the ones that beat Furman.) Making things more intriging is that Furman's head coach was the quarterback of the 1985 Paladin squad.

I haven't looked forward to a game this much since my last semester in school when the Eagles and Paladins squared off in the semi-finals. Georgia Southern jumped out to an early lead, but Furman stormed back in the second half to give the Eagles their first home playoff loss in school history.

(The week leading up to that game, word got out that the Eagles head coach would be leaving at the end of the season to take over as head coach at Navy. Did that play a role in the Eagles loss? I don't know. However, the next year, Furman faced the same situation when it was reported their coach would be leaving at the end of the season and the Palidins lost their next playoff game.)

For fans of either program, this is the game they circle on the calander. I know I did. And now, it's almost here.

My pick:
Georgia Southern - 27
Furman - 20

(Remember, all picks by the Nexus of the Universe guaranteed wrong or your money back.)

1999

So tonight I'm gonna party like it's 1999

Hello faithful readers.

I figured I'd give you a short midweek update and let you know Yes Dear successfully defended her thesis yesterday. (I think she took my advice of using a zone defense with a few blitzes.)

She still has to make a few minor changes and get it published, but she's been given the all clear to graduate in December. (Happy happy, joy joy.)

Needless to say, she was excited. Sadly, our town enacted an ordinance eliminating happy hour that morning, so she didn't drink as much as she planned.

Reader Poll:
Since my last post has generated apparent interest in the Fantasy Update girl (right now we're evenly split on whether Fergie is hot or not), this is your chance to submit your choices. Feel free to post a comment with who you'd like to see as the Fantasy Update girl and I'm sure I'll use a few of the suggestions.

Once again, thanks for picking the Nexus of the Universe as your choice to waste a few minutes of your day. You could have wasted them anywhere, but you picked here, and I appreciate it.