Movie Plug for "The Fifth Quarter"

Continuing the theme of college athletics, if you weren't aware of it yet there is a new movie coming out entitled "The Fifth Quarter", which is the true life story of a Wake Forest football player, Jon Abbate, who had to deal with the sudden, tragic death of his younger brother Luke played for a team that went on to win the ACC Championship over my beloved Georgia Tech team in 2006.

His story though is more then the story of a football team winning a championship but is instead the story of how tragedy can be turned to triumph. The Abbate family live in the metro Atlanta area which just adds another layer into the story. After his younger brother is killed in traffic accident, Jon Abbate makes the tough choice to return to Wake Forest, changes his jersey number to 5 in memory of the number his brother Luke wore and the family creates a tradition of raising 5 fingers at the start of the 4th quarter of the game in memory of their dead son.

This film looks to be this years "Blindside" and like that movie is about more then football.

Of course with all of the local connections I may be a little biased but it is still a ray of light and inspiration in these times when life can be so tough for many of us.

This is the extended trailer for the movie that you won't see on tv. At one point when they are raising the 5 fingers you may notice that some of the folks are wearing GT shirts. That is because as Jon said in a post game interview the Tech fans are a class act. Georgia Tech is located in Atlanta and as such the people were aware of the Abbate story.

Obama Justice Department Refocuses on Nation's Top Priority: College Football

Let's not accuse Grand High Exalted Mystic Ruler Obama of not having his priorities in order. Facing massive unemployment and losses in the Congress and Senate this fall, Dear Leader and his Justice Department are finally getting around to tackling the most important issue of our times: The desire for a college football playoff system. In bipartisan fashion, he's even got one GOP pinhead involved.

Forget health care and terror, President Obama is tackling an even bigger problem -- the legality of the college football Bowl Championship Series.

The series has garnered loads of criticism over the years because teams are chosen to compete in the championship game by a subjective rating system, rather than by a series of playoffs games.

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-Utah) has been a leading critic of the BCS after his state's university was left out last year. He has gone as far as to say that the BCS violates antitrust laws.

Yesterday, the Obama Justice Department sent the senator a letter saying it feels his pain.

"The administration shares your belief that the current lack of a college football national championship playoff with respect to the highest division of college football . . . raises important questions affecting millions of fans, colleges and universities, players and other interested parties," Assistant Attorney General Ronald Weich wrote.

Weich also said pursing an antitrust case is not the only option.

"The administration also is exploring other options that might be available to address concerns with the college football postseason," Weich wrote. Those include asking the Federal Trade Commission to review the legality of the BCS under consumer-protection laws.

Just a hunch, but it appears Obama is well on his way to being, at best, a mediocre one-term president.

One More Bowl Game To Add To Your Schedule

There is one more bowl game to add to your schedule this year. On January 9 it is the All-American Bowl sponsored by the US Army. If you want a chance to see the faces of some of the heroes from Iraq and Afghanistan this is a must see event. This game is different because instead of involving two separate colleges, this is a game showcasing those high school football players voted to the All-American team.

I came across this because of the involvement of a local man in the ceremonies involved with this bowl game. There is an entire week of activities leading up to the game itself and at one of the events several members of the military who have received either a Purple Heart, the Bronze Star, and/or Silver Star will be honored.

Given the option of returning home to recover from his injuries, Graham chose to remain in Iraq.

“As a leader of soldiers, sometimes it’s not just about you,” he said. “I have soldiers that depend on me. I felt like I needed to stay and I did heal up. Military doctors and the plastic surgeons we have are the best in the world. You can hardly tell now (that I was injured).”

SGT Ben Graham's injuries included a bullet that deflected off his weapon penetrated his face at the corner of his nose where it meets his cheek, entered his nasal cavity and lodged in the roof of his mouth.

Another round went into his ribcage.

SGT Graham's acts of heroism are not merely limited to being the unlucky recipient of ricochet to the face. The sergeant was also awarded a Bronze Star with Valor following his second deployment to Iraq. Graham, who is EMT certified, received the medal for his decision to assist a unit whose tank had been blown up by a road bomb during an ambush in June 2007.

In total he has two deployments to Iraq and one to Afghanistan.

Go Army! Beat Navy!

It is that time of year again, the annual Army - Navy football game is once again upon us. I had hoped Army's fortunes would have turned around last year after Georgia Tech stole Navy's head coach away, which gave me all the more reason to be a huge Tech fan, but alas it was not to be as the Army lost yet again last year. But hope springs eternal in the heart of this Army vet and like a Chicago Cubs fan hopefully after tomorrow I will not have to once again say, "Wait until next year."

H/T to Blackfive for the video and here is hoping they show it to the cadets who are on the team. C'mon guys, the Army has taken some real kicks in the gut lately, do something for them.



The game will be on CBS starting at 2 PM EST.

Two College Teams to Root For

This is sweeeeeeet! Two college teams are going to be wearing military camouflage style uniforms this weekend in honor of the military and recognition of Veterans Day.

Maryland and South Carolina will wear uniforms with camouflage designs during their games Nov. 14 to honor military veterans and promote the Wounded Warrior Project.

The black with tan camouflage uniforms, designed by Under Armour, will have a Wounded Warrior logo on them. Instead of players' names, the backs of the jerseys will have words such as courage, loyalty, integrity and service.

I'm a big Georgia Tech fan but I guarantee you I'll be rooting for South Carolina to beat Florida and hoping Maryland can overcome Virginia Tech.

Oh, and curse you ESPN for not allowing embedding of your videos. Visit here for a video explaining how this came about.

Senate Prepares to Tackle Really Major Issue

I guess things will be really slow around Washington next week. Seriously, there isn't anything more pressing than the college football BCS?

The Senate plans to hold a hearing next week looking into antitrust issues surrounding college football's Bowl Championship Series.

It will be the second hearing on the BCS held on Capitol Hill this year, following a contentious one in the House in May.

The Senate Judiciary Committee Web site says the hearing will be next Tuesday in the committee's subcommittee on antitrust, competition policy and consumer rights.

Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, the subcommittee's top Republican, had sought the hearing. His office did not immediately return telephone and e-mail messages.

Not that the geniuses at the NCAA who run the BCS have got it running smoothly, but I have more faith they can run their sport than the U.S. Senate can.

Senator Hatch ought to find something more constructive to do with his time than continue whining that the University of Utah was unfairly denied a spot in the BCS Championship last year.

Matt Ryan Wins the Heisman

If you missed it last night, Boston College quarterback Matt Ryan all but wrapped up the Heisman Trophy with his remarkable performance in Blacksburg, rallying the Golden Eagles to a stunning 14-10 victory over Virginia Tech.

It was probably easy to miss, since Boston fans were otherwise occupied. If you get a chance, catch some video of his late game heroics. It was absolutely magnificent.

It will be difficult for anyone to beat Ryan out now, especially if surprising BC keeps winning.

For the first 56 minutes of last night's game at Virginia Tech, it appeared Boston College's dreams of dancing to Bourbon Street for a shot at the national championship were going to die.

Matt Ryan's hopes for the Heisman Trophy looked shot, too.

But, the Eagles persevered through a tough, rainy environment at Lane Stadium and got a little luck in what has become a magical season with an improbable 14-10 victory over the No. 8 Hokies.

Ryan threw for two touchdowns in the final 2:11, including a 24-yarder to running back Andre Callender with 11 seconds left, to silence the sellout crowd.

Ryan could probably start for at least a dozen NFL teams right now. He'll likely be doing so this time next year.