An Early Tuesday Morning (11-30-10)

Good morning to all from the beautiful California coastline to the Mile High City of Denver to the oilfields of south Texas to the bright lights of New York City to the man-made oasis of the United Arab Emirates. (Yes, this does describe the geographic reach of those involved with the High Five.) 

UP HIGH!

5. I have to start by mentioning the outpouring of comments stemming from yesterday’s Hi5 and more specifically, the state of the Denver Broncos.  It was great/sad that there were so many intelligent/concerned fans out there.  I loved the insight that many of you took the time to put down into words, but I think I enjoyed one concise piece of Bronco-talk more than the rest.  I was in-and-out of courts during the afternoon, when Tim Franklin sent that little Romo-gem about if he was Coach, he would have spit on Todd Haley for not shaking hands.  The security guards at the City and County building were a little caught-off guard as I burst out laughing as I put my Crackberry into the security bin.  Again, great stuff yesterday guys.  And to think it was a JETS fan out in NYC that sent the first salvo that started it all…..

4. Quiet night for the basketball and hockey fans around the country.  In (combo) Northwest Division news, both Oklahoma City and Utah won, as well as the Calgary Flames and Edmonton Oilers.  Tonight, the Avalanches host a late game (but not on national television) against the Atlanta Thrashers.

3. Big news out of the Colorado Rockies organization!  Word is that today the team will announce a massive (10 years) deal with shortstop-extraordinaire, Troy Tulowitzki.  The Rox already had the Santa Clara (CA)-native locked up more for at least 3 more years, but this should keep Tulo around Coors Field for the rest of his playing days.  In other “young Rockie superstar” news, Scott Boras just requested a 7 year-$3 billion contract for Carlos Gonzalez.

Now, Monforts/Dan O’Dowd, sign Jorge De La Rosa, now, now, now!  Getting a long-term deal done for the young lefty is paramount, as he would be huge to go alongside the team’s stable of young righties.  MY ESMIL!?!?!

2. Not much going on around the college basketball world last night, with the only blip being Minnesota’s home loss to Virginia.  The Golden Gophers play at a place (Williams Arena?) dubbed, “The Barn,” which is one of the oldest in-use gymnasiums in the country.  I think I remember hearing that they are soon tearing down that place, though, meaning it might be a place I never get to scratch off the bucket list.  There are, however, some good contests tonight with Ohio State playing Florida State and my Gonzaga Bulldogs facing off against their neighbor to the south in Eastern Washington (Rodney Stuckey, anyone?)  The top two games of the night I will be watching closely, as Georgetown travels to face the Missouri Tigers and the UNC Tarheels are in the Land of Lincoln to meet Chuck’s Fightin Illini.

1. While I consider myself the MOST optimistic Bronco fan in these parts, I have one glaring issue with JMcD that has reared its head on multiple occasions, that being his fear of running and his need to punish runners that fumble.  To wit, in Sunday’s game, with just over 12 minutes left in the second quarter; the Broncos held a 13-7 lead and Knowshawn Moreno had 8 carries (and a couple catches) for just under 50 yards.  In the remaining 42 minutes of football action, he only got to carry it 4 more times!  Yes, his fumble was a killer, but why is fumbling by running backs the only errors that the coach deems necessary to adjudicate against?  Kyle Orton throws a pick, is he benched?  When Eddie Royal fumbles a return or Jabar Gafney drops a pass (as they both did in probably “bigger” situations on Sunday), are they pulled in favor of Lance Ball?  Keep in mind, though, that fumbling was the “public” reason that he dumped the beloved Peyton Hillis.

PS-Just going through some old things that I had written on SLAMonline, and here is some Blake Griffin-love I was spitting two years ago.

PSS-With no DWTS around to comment on, I naturally gravitated towards its “new half-brother,” Skating With the Stars.  A brilliant incarnation in my opinion, as it includes all the parts that make DWTS so popular (bootleg “stars”/slight athleticism needed/choreographed dancing) with the added bonus of impending ass-busting on the ice surface.  Seriously, this stuff is money.  While not the most “Boitano-esque,” I enjoyed watching Mötlëy Crüë’s Vince Neil sneak through into next week!

ONE LOVE and GIRLS, GIRLS, GIRLS!!!