49ers Get Roasted On Turkey Day

The San Francisco 49ers, playing a Thursday Night Thanksgiving Day game at home, were exposed and embarrassed by the Super Bowl champion Seattle Seahawks.  After two earlier Thanksgiving Day game blowouts (Eagles 33, Cowboys 10; Lions 34, Bears 17) I was ready for the highly hyped defensive battle that pitted the teams who met in last season's NFC Championship game. The match-up would save the day for the NFL.

Oh well, so much for saving grace performances in professional football.  The Seattle Seahawks played like champions while the 49ers clearly looked like 2014 pretenders.  I waited for the Niners to make that game changing play that would turn their night and make it a competitive affair.  The game changer never came and the Seahawks would walk off the field with a decisive Turkey Day victory (Seahawks 19, 49ers 3).

This day after finds sports talk radio fielding calls from irate Niner fans trying to wrap their heads around what's wrong with their team. CEO Jed York apologized to 49er fans for an unacceptable performance by his team. Now it seems the Niners, now longshots to make the playoffs, are in total disarray.  Folks are blaming everything from the head coach to the new pristine home stadium and its fair-weather fans, for the Niners drop in performance.  Its hard to believe that a team with such individual talent, coming off a super bowl appearance sandwiched by two championship games the past three years, can fall to failure so fast.

Is it possible that as a team they just aren't that good anymore?  If you ask Seahawks cornerback Richard Sherman; the Niners offensively were never that good.  Who am I to argue with Sherman, the player with two interceptions in the game, seen eating a victory turkey leg while fielding questions during the post-game interview taking place atop the 49ers logo at midfield. Sherman, always a showman, bit into that turkey leg like it was the meat of sweet victory. It was!

The 49ers come to Oakland Coliseum for their next game. They'll have plenty of time to lick their wounds and try to regain the respect of their fans.  The Raiders, coming off their first win of the season, take on the St. Louis Rams this Sunday. Should the silver and black come out victorious in St. Louis, they'll be pumped to get back to the bay and attempt to stretch their winning streak to three games. Even should they lose in St. Louis, the battle of the bay is a game that needs no incentive. Never has the Raiders moniker "Just Win Baby" meant as much as this battle of the bay, where they can put a dagger in the Niners playoff hopes. Who knew that it could be the Raiders playing in a trap game this weekend, as they lick their chops looking past the Rams for a chance to take their bay rivals down a notch.

Just Win Baby!

Curry Connects On 8 Three Point Shots

The Golden State Warriors and Stephen Curry were in Miami taking on the Heat.  Miami led 62-61 at half-time. Then came the second half and a surge by Stephen Curry doused any chances for the Heat to win the game. Curry was on Fire with a scorching 40pts as he led the Warriors to their sixth consecutive victory.

We knew that the Warriors would be contenders this season just by the way they performed in last seasons' playoffs.  But who knew that new head coach Steve Kerr would have them playing some of their best basketball Ever!  

The Warriors are tearing through NBA teams top to bottom, like they're in a race to reach the playoffs and revenge past season failures.  They've given notice to the league, as well as us fans, that they're not to be taken lightly this season.  

If they ended last season with a spark, then you can say coach Kerr has begun this season with a mountain brush fire blazing underneath this Warriors squad. There seems to be a burning desire by this team to go out every night and not just beat the opponent, but torch'em to a crisp. Tonight, Steph Curry set flame throwers to full blast, scorching everything in his path not wearing Warriors protective gear. So get your Hazmat suits ready, the Warriors have come out to play.

Final Score
Warriors 114
Heat 97

Top Performers

Golden State		Miami
	Curry Points: 40 Reb: 6 Ast: 7 Stl: 3 Blk: 1		Bosh Points: 26 Reb: 9 Ast: 1 Stl: 0 Blk: 1

Flame On!

Happy Raiders Thanksgiving

Nothing beats a win before the Holidays.  The Raiders rollicking win over the Kansas City Chiefs last Thursday night was enough to carry my sports appetite through to Thanksgiving.    It was a great win that Raider Nation is still savoring the juicy flavors from.

The Oakland Coliseum was louder and prouder before, during and after the game than they've been in years. This win, anticipated by all Raiders fans, allowed us silver and black soldiers to let out all that frustration we've endured through the losses.  It gave us a national platform to roar and show exactly why we stick through it all with the Raiders; win lose or tie, you don't abandon your family.

One such family member came blustering into the coliseum on autumn winds to be honored for his 2014 induction into the NFL Hall of Fame: Ray Guy, first punter inducted into the HOF. 

With other Raiders HOF'ers underneath umbrellas cheering him on, Ray showed enduring class, poise and pride accepting his HOF ring in a downpour of rains. It was a special night, and the family just wasn't going to be denied anything. Congratulations Ray!

As for the Raiders on the field of play, when players wearing silver and black play bad, the uniform looks bad, but when they play good, there's no better looking uniform sweeping past defenders for a 90 yard touchdown in the NFL. Thursday night, with their silver helmets glistening under pouring rains, the Raiders looked knightly.

Sure we fans and some players celebrated boisterously like we'd just won the friggin super bowl, its been that long and that painful a losing experience. Now we move onward with a winning swagger, a villain to teams we'll face who are looking to seal playoff berths.  In the infamous words of Mr. T, "I pity the fool" coming to play the Oakland Raiders without bringing their A-game.

Final Score
Chiefs 20
Raiders 24

The Autumn Wind is a pirate

Blustering in from sea,

With a rollocking song, he sweeps along,

Swaggering boisterously.

His face is weather beaten.

He wears a hooded sash,

With a silver hat about his head,

And a bristling black mustache.

He growls as he storms the country,

A villain big and bold.

And the trees all shake and quiver and quake,

As he robs them of their gold.

The Autumn Wind is a raider,

Pillaging just for fun.

He'll knock you 'round and upside down,

And laugh when he's conquered and won.

Thursday Night NFL - Raiders Gonna Win

Gotta go see my Raiders pull out their first victory of the season. The Kansas City Chiefs are coming to town after defeating the super bowl champion Seattle Seahawks in their last game.  

The Chiefs are tied for first place in the AFC West division and carry a five game winning streak heading into tomorrow night's showdown with the silver and black.  I say that the Chefs are ripe for the pickings and I'll be there to see the Raiders pick them apart and get the job done. It ain't rocket science; just play some damn football.

The icing on the winning cake will be a Silver & Black Ray Guy Hall of Fame Tribute.  The former Raiders punter will be presented with a hall of fame ring at half-time. Nope, won't wanna miss that. go Ray!

MLB - Just For The Record

Because the New York driven sports media find it hard to look back on the amazing accomplishments of the 2014 San Francisco Giants championship run, I post it here. We SF fans must remember that the Giants 1958 exodus from New York will never be forgiven in that northeast metropolis.  Too bad, they're missing out on some historic big league baseball.  Could be worse, they could be hatin' on the San Francisco Yankees!

There is one other reason for the media hatin' so on the Giants; viewer ratings. The Giants brand of baseball takes a baseball fan's knowledge of the game in order to appreciate the full package. Even seasoned fans see things during a Giants game that they've never seen before.  Based on articles like this one in Forbes Magazine (Boring San Francisco Giants Threaten World Series Ratings - Again!) viewers want a barrage of home runs, dominating starting pitchers and circus-like outfielders climbing walls to steal home runs in every game. Well as a Giants Fan I only got one comment to all that: NoT Up In Here!

Lest they ever forget the 2014 postseason, here it is in all its Giants glory:

WILD-CARD GAMES

All times are ET.

AMERICAN LEAGUE	NATIONAL LEAGUE
Tuesday, Sept. 30 Kansas City 9, Oakland 8 (12)	Wednesday, Oct. 1 San Francisco 8, Pittsburgh 0

DIVISION SERIES

Best-of-five.

AMERICAN LEAGUE	NATIONAL LEAGUE
* = if necessary
Thursday, Oct. 2 Baltimore 12, Detroit 3 Kansas City 3, L.A. Angels 2	Friday, Oct. 3 San Francisco 3, Washington 2 St. Louis 10, L.A. Dodgers 9
Friday, Oct. 3 Baltimore 7, Detroit 6 Kansas City 4, L.A. Angels 1	Saturday, Oct. 4 San Francisco 2, Washington 1 L.A. Dodgers 3, St. Louis 2
Sunday, Oct. 5 Baltimore 2, Detroit 1 (BAL wins 3-0) Kansas City 8, LA Angels 3 (KAN wins 3-0)	Monday, Oct. 6 Washington 4, San Francisco 1 St. Louis 3, LA Dodgers 1
	Tuesday, Oct. 7 St. Louis 3, LA Dodgers 2 (STL wins 3-1) San Francisco 3, Washington 2 (SF wins 3-1)

LEAGUE CHAMPIONSHIP SERIES

Best-of-seven.

AMERICAN LEAGUE	NATIONAL LEAGUE
* = if necessary
Friday, Oct. 10 Kansas City 8, Baltimore 6 (10)	Saturday, Oct. 11 San Francisco 3, St. Louis 0
Saturday, Oct. 11 Kansas City 6, Baltimore 4	Sunday, Oct. 12 St. Louis 5, San Francisco 4
Tuesday, Oct. 14 Kansas City 2, Baltimore 1	Tuesday, Oct. 14 San Francisco 5, St. Louis 4
Wednesday, Oct. 15 Kansas City 2, Baltimore 1 (KC wins 4-0)	Wednesday, Oct. 15 San Francisco 6, St. Louis 4
	Thursday, Oct. 16 San Francisco 6, St. Louis 3 (SF wins 4-1)

110th WORLD SERIES

Best-of-seven.110th WORLD SERIES

DATE	GAME
* = if necessary
Tuesday, Oct. 21	Game 1 -- San Francisco 7, Kansas City 1
Wednesday, Oct. 22	Game 2 -- Kansas City 7, San Francisco 2
Friday, Oct. 24	Game 3 -- Kansas City 3, San Francisco 2
Saturday, Oct. 25	Game 4 -- San Francisco 11, Kansas City 4
Sunday, Oct. 26	Game 5 -- San Francisco 5, Kansas City 0
Tuesday, Oct. 28	Game 6 -- Kansas City 10, San Francisco 0
Wednesday, Oct. 29	Game 7 -- San Francisco 3, Kansas City 2 (SF wins 4-3)

College Football Playoff Picture Gettin Horney (TCU)

I'm writing about TCU college football not because I'm a big fan of theirs and not because I think they're the best college team in the game today.  I'm not spiritually inspired by a team affiliated with the Disciples of Christ (Texas Christian University) and the color purple hasn't moved me since the singing artist Prince did the movie Purple Rain in 1984.

No, I'm writing about TCU football because they have one of the most ugly, yet unique mascots in sports; the Horned Frog. The horned frog, or toad as some call it, refers to the Texas Horned Lizard, a spikey-bodied reptile that is not a frog at all.  Its fierce appearance makes it ideal as a tough team mascot, though in reality its of small size (fits in the palm of a hand) and docile demeanor.  The prehistoric looking critter could fit right in with monsters from a Godzilla movie if you super-sized it, as most monster movies do.   

There have been some strangely named mascots in the history of sports, but I have to admit that this one caught my attention.  First time I'd heard of the TCU Horned Frogs was in 2011 when they won the Rose Bowl. If the lizard is as relentless as the football team was that day, then its no creature to be taken lightly. Here's what's written in wikipedia about the lizard's defense mechanisms:

Defensive behavior[edit]

Although its coloration generally serves as camouflage against predation, when threatened by a predator, a horned lizard will puff up and become very fat, which causes its body scales to protrude, making it difficult to swallow. The Texas horned lizard, along with at least three other species of the genus Phrynosoma, also has the ability to squirt an aimed stream of blood from the corners of the eyes and sometimes from its mouth for a distance of up to 5 ft (1.5 m). This not only confuses would-be predators, but also the blood is mixed with a chemical that is foul-tasting to canine predators such as wolves, coyotes, and domestic dogs. The blood can destroy habitats, and is very effective in defense.

Back to football.  The 2014 TCU squad find themselves ranked #4 and in the inaugural college football playoff picture.  There's more football to be played, but I plan on keeping an eye on this TCU team as they try making history by qualifying and winning the first college football playoff tournament.  I suspect they'll be puffing up to ward off would-be predators these next few weeks.  GoFrogs!

Statue In Front of TCU's Amon G. Carter Football Stadium

Raiders Still My Champion - Win, Lose or Tie

0-8 and still fighting & hungry for victory. That's my Raiders baby, and that's why I wear silver & black. 

Raider Nation isn't something you join to be cool; you can't just buy the jersey Sunday morn and feel all the love and pain by kickoff. You gotta be born into the nation through blood, sweat and tears. 

No Quarter Asked, No Quarter Given

Raiders fans are proud to have earned the right to be Raiders fans. The agony of defeat carves the way toward the thrills of victory for a Raiders fan. You earn your stripes in this here nation. Nothing easy. And the beauty of it all is it's never too early or too late to get baptized silver & black. Who loves you baby!

Kerr, Curry & Klay - Warriors Roll

Our Golden State Warriors are off to their best start in eons (20 years to be exact) as they move to 4-0 to start the NBA season.  New head coach Steve Kerr has the team playing like a contender early. They were exciting to watch last season, but something has changed to make them better.

Tonight the highly regarded Los Angeles Clippers visited Oaktown and the Warriors brought them down a few notches by dominating in every phase of the game. Stephen Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green, Andrew Bogut and practically the entire team showed up and showed off. Leading by 20+ pts from the second quarter onward, the Warriors seemed as if they were toying with the Clips and at times almost had a globetrotter look to them. 

Everyone contributed in the win and I have to say, if this is a preview of what to expect throughout the season, Golden State is in the championship conversation. I know its early, but I believe they've got a good shot at making it to the big show. Time will tell. The boys can shoot, defend and create open shots for one another, what more could you ask for in a young and hungry team?

If this team can stay healthy we are truly in for a treat.  Why not tune into them early in the season, especially since bay area NFL football looks bleak.  This is a NBA season no bay area sports fan should miss.

It's time to start wearing the blue and gold folks. The Warriors have come out to play.

Final Score
Clippers 104
Warriors 121

Coming To A T-Shirt Near You

Championship Clinching Footage (Thrilling)

The Thrill of Victory! 

Travis Ishikawa Thrill   Juan Perez Thrill   Michael Morse Thrill

Matt Duffy Thrill   Brandon Belt Thrill   Brandon Crawford Thrill

Gregor Blanco Thrill   Joe Panik Thrill   Hunter Pence Thrill

Pablo Sandoval Thrill   Buster Posey Thrill   Joaquin Arias Thrill

Thrilling!