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As I write this, I am sitting in an airport terminal- not unlike many others have been or will be this Thanksgiving week. Unfortunately, my circumstances are slightly different than most. Has our flight been cancelled? Not exactly, but this fate may be even worse. Our flight, originally scheduled for 5:50pm, has been pushed back more times than Baylor’s pathetic defense- at this point, it would be hard for Kendrick Perkins not to score on us (and for anyone who has seen a Thunder game the last two years, that’s saying something). Making things worse, our connecting flight from San Francisco to Eugene, Oregon has also been fluctuating departure times. Luckily, as of right now, the powers that be are fighting back- our flight has been bumped up to 9:30pm (it was set for 11pm as recently as fifteen minutes ago) and the flight from S.F. to Eugene has been moved back- hopefully allowing us to make the connection. Could this be a San Francisco “Giant”-sized comeback? Only time will tell (but I don’t see any Reds or Cardinals getting in our way either). In the meantime, I needed to find something to help me relax, hope, and pray in quiet. So here I sit, in a deserted airport terminal doing the only thing I could think to do in a situation like this- talk about sports!

(The empty terminal I sat in while writing this column)

This won’t be a column about a specific event or game or even sports- it will simply be a musing of my sports thought from the last exciting week.

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WHAT A WEEKEND IN WESTWOOD!

I’ll start with the best weekend UCLA has had this millennium. And yes, it was unquestionably the best weekend for the Bruins since the turn of the century. Upsetting top-ranked USC in ’06? Nope. Three straight Final Fours? Not quite. This past weekend was the best weekend of the 2000s in Westwood for one sole reason- it had an impact today AND for the future. Let’s start Thursday night, with the Beat ‘SC bonfire (which I, admittedly, did not attend). This is an annual tradition before the big rivalry game against USC. However, this year was different. These are many of the same players that got embarrassed last year in the Coliseum to the same USC squad; but they didn’t look like it before this game. They were ranked higher, yes, but most people still questioned their ability to compete with their ‘big brother’ Trojans. At the bonfire and around campus, starting with new coach Jim Mora, the entire team just gave off an aura that made it seem like not only did they think they could win- they thought they SHOULD win. And THAT- for anyone who has played sports- is a huge difference. Yes, the saying goes Any Given Sunday, but it takes a team that believes that this is their Sunday to actually pull it off (especially in a rivalry game). After the bonfire, the players and coaches had the entire city of Westwood giddy to see what would happen Saturday afternoon…

Shortly after the bonfire was lit, across campus in the beautiful brand-new Pauley Pavilion the baby Bruins (and I say baby Bruins because they are so young) were getting set to tip off against the unheard-of group from James Madison. They were supposed to win this game, but coming off of an OT victory over tiny UC-Irvine many people (and even a fair amount of ever-optimistic students) were worried that this UCLA team wasn’t quite ready to be compared to past great team to play on the legendary Wooden Court. However, a dominant display quickly made everyone forget about Tuesday night’s squeaker (highlight-reel dunks from Norman Powell and lights-out shooting from Jordan Adams can help do that). Needless to say, Thursday night ended with a lot of anticipation in Westwood…

Friday was supposed to be a down day before the big showdown at the Rose Bowl- but then something magnificent happened. After much questioning and investigation- as well as calls for his “freeing” from students and celebrities alike- UCLA prized recruit Shabazz Muhammad was cleared by the NCAA to join his fellow baby Bruins on the court- immediately! The consensus top-2 recruit in the nation- and highest ranked recruit UCLA has had in years- would finally be suiting up in Blue & Gold. What a magical way to kick off rivalry weekend! Muhammad wasn’t just a scoring machine in high school (and he was), but he brought everything UCLA seemed to be missing- firepower, hustle, work ethic, and most importantly leadership (from a freshman!). He would allow Kyle Anderson to play the distributing style of game that earned him a top-5 recruit ranking instead of having to carry a scoring load, he’d free up Jordan Adams to get more open looks from deep (as if he needed anymore, after becoming the first freshman in UCLA’s storied history to score 20+ points in his first four games), and he’d space the floor to open it up inside for the Ware twins, big Josh Smith (who actually seemed to be hustling this season for a change), and the last of the prized freshmen recruits Tony Parker. Obviously this team would not fall into place overnight, but that is sure how it felt once the calls to ‘Free Shabazz’ were finally heard…

Waking up the next morning was a little ominous, as the forecast for rain cast some doubt over the UCLA-USC game at noon. Which team would the rain hurt more? Would the Trojan faithful use the weather as an excuse should they lose? Many questions abound before the game even kicked off. But then the game did kick off, and all the questions went out the window. Without a drop of rain falling yet, on the first play from scrimmage Matt Barkley dropped back and looked for his favorite target, sophomore sensation Marquis Lee. Instead of finding him, however, the ball sailed right into the arms of ‘Sticks’- the nickname for UCLA’s lanky DB Sheldon Price. Sticks had a shot to take it to the house, but stumbled for seemingly no reason. Not to worry, however, because Freshman phenom QB Brett Hundley would punch it in from a yard out just a few plays later. 7-0 Bruins, and they never looked back from there. They attacked early, building a 24-0 lead in the first half that they would never lose. USC had to play catch-up the rest of the way, and it took a bizarre defensive touchdown due to the pouring rain at the start of the second half for the Trojans to even get within one possession again. This wasn’t an upset where everything went right for the Bruins (a la 2006). If anything, things seemed to keep giving USC life and Mora’s squad kept overcoming the obstacles. That fluke defensive touchdown could have started a meltdown, instead the Bruins marched right back down the field and extended the lead. Throughout the second half, the rain seemed to pour when the Bruins had the ball and then miraculously come to a halt just long enough for the Trojans’ next possession (I’m not kidding- it was freaky. I know Lane Kiffin likes to cheat, but can he control the weather too?! Deflating balls is one thing, but stopping the rain?!). Still, the Bruins came out victorious (and watching the ‘proud’ Trojan fans- to put it nicely- sulk out of the stadium made up for years of torment). The best thing about the victory- this didn’t feel like an upset. It felt like it was supposed to happen; and with Mora at the helm these kinds of wins may just become the norm in Westwood…

(Jim Mora has led one of the biggest turn-arounds in the country at UCLA, culminating in a 38-28 victory over rival USC
http://www.fancloud.com/rumors/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/uspw_6757390-640x504.jpg)

Nothing that could happen in the following days, weeks, or months could take away these feelings Bruin fans shared- Shabazz was free and Bruin basketball was back, the monopoly of L.A. football was officially over (Neuheisel just got his dates confused when he proclaimed so in ‘08), and things were as good as they’d ever been in Westwood.

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CONGRATS TO WHO?/SHAME ON YOU

In a new segment, I’ll be dolling out congratulations to those who deserve it (often the unsung or previously unheard-of heroes of the week) while casting shame on those who disappointed despite their big names and fame.

Congrats to who? UCLA Football Fans- For years, the Bruin faithful have been a laughing stock of-sorts for their inability to fill up the Rose Bowl and quietness during games- making the Bruins lack a true home field advantage. But this weekend was different. From the first pick Barkley threw to the blocked kicked to seal the game, the Rose Bowl was a rockin’. I’ve been to many games in the Rose Bowl, both UCLA home games and actual Rose Bowl games (Oklahoma-Wazzu, Michigan-Texas, Wisconsin-TCU, and Wisconsin-Oregon just last year), and this Saturday against USC was arguably the most packed and loudest I have ever heard the place. The only game that comes close is the Michigan-Texas Rose Bowl game, when Vince Young put on a one-man show; which would set the stage for his encore a year later against USC in the National Championship. That one was deafeningly loud in the fourth quarter, but that was because of how close the game was and the incredible plays being made by Young, Braylon Edwards, and others. For an entire game, last Saturday was at a level Bruin fans should strive to reach every weekend if they want to be on the level of the Alabama’s and Oregon’s of the world. 

(UCLA fans finally showed up and got the Rose Bowl rockin' against USC. Even the rain wasn't going to keep the Bruins from celebrating their first victory over their rivals since 2006.)

Shame on you Alejandro Maldonado, Kicker, Oregon- It’s hard to single out one player as the reason for a team’s loss, but when you miss two crucial field goals two years in a row that cost your team a shot at a National Title you’re going to hear about it. Poor kid must be hearing that ‘clank’ of the ball hitting the goalpost in his nightmares, but I’m sure the rest of his teammates and coaches are too- not to mention the fans.

Congrats to who? Baylor Bears- What a performance! Robert Griffin III resurrected this program with his unforgettable play the last few years, but they’re fairing just fine without him. The offense is a juggernaut, their problem is they haven’t been able to stop a pee-wee team so far this year. That all changed Saturday, as the defensive coordinator deserves a ton of praise for coming up with a game plan to slow down dual-threat QB Colin Klein and the #1 Kansas State Wildcats. They didn’t just upset the ‘Cats, they embarrassed them- blowing them out and spoiling their ‘One Shining Moment’ atop the BCS. 

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Shame on you Chip Kelly, Head Coach, Oregon- Was it his fault his Ducks lost in overtime to the Cardinal (by the way, when the hell are they going to fix that mascot? A color as your team name is pretty bad, but having your mascot be a dancing tree is just plain embarrassing)? Of course not, he’s a football genius and has done so much to have Oregon even in the position they were in. However, you’d think with all those great athletes they’ve been able to recruit that they could find a slot on the team for a half-decent kicker. It must be heart-breaking to know a position so often taken for granted has cost you a spot in the National Championship game in back-to-back years. After that, I wouldn’t be surprised if he signs three kickers to his next recruiting class- and frankly, I wouldn’t blame him.

Congrats to who? Colin Kapernick, Quarterback, ‘Niners- Wow! Did you see this kid play Monday night? Oh, and that was the vaunted Bears defense out there, not the University of Hawaii anymore. He’s come a long way since he was tearing WAC opponents up out of the pistol at Nevada. The dirty secret about this kid that no one seemed to know was he can freaking throw the ball! He was dropping deep corner routes on the dime like Justin Verlander pitching against little-leaguers- the defense didn’t even have a chance to stop it. So you’re telling me this whole time the ‘Niners have had a fast, athletic quarterback they’ve been saving for designed run plays who can actually throw it better than their starter, they just haven’t wanted to show everyone how good he is yet? Uh-oh. The rest of the NFL better watch out- if that defense gets a playmaker like that a QB the ‘Niners are going to be terrifying. The rest of the league, you’ve just been put on notice.

Shame on you Matt Ryan, Quarterback, Falcons- Has a player ever went from MVP front-runner to not even in consideration as fast as Ryan just did? After looking mostly amazing through the first eight games of the season, Ryan and his Falcons lost their unbeaten record last week. How’d they bounce back this week? They saw their QB throw five picks against the struggling Cardinals (now there’s an understatement). That wasn’t a typo, by the way- he really threw 5 picks!! To put it in perspective, a quarterback hasn’t thrown 5 interceptions in a game without a touchdown pass and won in over 50 years! Now you could say it shows the character of the team that they still managed to pull out the victory, but that would be like saying the glass is half full and loaded with nutrient when, in fact, it’s just a bottle someone pissed in on the car ride. Getting the victory had nothing to do with the Falcons and everything to do with the incompetence of Cardinal quarterbacks.

Congrats to who? Aqib Talib, Cornerback, Patriots- Well that’s one way to get your new home fans to like you- just pick off rookie sensation Andrew Luck and run it all the way back for a pick-six. If he does nothing more the rest of the year, he still may be the best DB on the Patriots this season. The Pats’ secondary has been atrocious, and adding a player of Talib’s skill and athleticism was a much-needed upgrade (although he comes with a ton of off-the-field questions; but for the Pats this season, he was worth the gamble). 

Shame on you Georgia, Florida, and Alabama- Georgia Southern? Jacksonville State? Really? These are the teams you schedule while Oregon is out battling Stanford and K-State has to face Baylor? I know the others faced their cupcakes too, just earlier in the schedule. But still, it seems unfair that they get the week off essentially while the other top teams face their toughest tests. 

Congrats to who? Jack Taylor, Shooting Guard, Grinnell College- The shooting guard from Grinnell College (Division III) set the NCAA record Tuesday night with 138 points in a win over Faith Baptist Bible. You read that right, he had 138 points!!! What’s even more incredible is that he hadn’t been that high of a scorer coming into the game. Somehow, he amassed an incredible stat-line that included shooting 52 for 108 from the field (yes, he took 108 shots. I don’t understand how this is even possible, but it happened) and draining 27of 71 from long-range. This feat is mind-boggling in and of itself, but add to it the fact that he was just 6 for 34 from deep coming into the game and this seems like a script from a Hollywood movie- and I doubt any producers would find the story believable enough to even make it to the big screen. Oh, and he only made seven free throws on the night! One-hundred and thirty eight points and only seven on freebies? That deserves a huge CONGRATULATIONS!

(Would you believe me if I told you this kid scored the most points in a single game in NCAA history? Well believe it! He dropped 138 (yes, 138 points!) in a game earlier this week for Grinnell College in Iowa. http://www.gannett-cdn.com/media/USATODAY/USATODAY/2012/11/21/11-21-2012-jack-taylor3-3_4_r560.jpg?f061b7ce9937c38b702e6f308816ac2a14e2a4ec)

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I hope you enjoyed reading! If you have any questions, comments, or other suggestions on how to improve the column or any other topic feel free to contact me at my email address [email protected], on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/adam.colman.9 or on Twitter @AdamRColman. 

Thanks for the support!