NETWORK TELEVISON EXECUTIVES ARE STUPID
ABC recently announced that they were giving a new Alyssa Milano project a no-go.  Awful decision, but the same network that continues to squeeze every ounce it can out of crap like America's Home Videos.  They fail to realize there's millions just like me who would watch Alyssa Milano ice cakes for an hour if it was on.  Since ABC won't give us any Alyssa, I will.

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OUR VETERANS ARE GETTING THE SHAFT

Happy Veterans's Day to our veterans. To those of you who have served and to those still serving, you have my deepest gratitude.  Hopefully you're being given the respect you deserve every day, but especially today.

Sadly, you're not.  You're getting the short end.  We have three days "patriotic" holidays.  Men and women we've lost in battle get Memorial Day in May.  Our country's birth in celebrated is July.  Both are months everyone loves.  Show me someone who doesn't like May or July and I'll show you a Communist.

Veterans, however, get November.  No one likes November.  It's dark at 5:00.  It's too cold for parades.  There's not even the great American pastime to help us commemorate the work of our veterans.  Our men and women who've sacrificed deserve a June.  At least an April.  Hell, September would work.  August has zero holidays.  Wouldn't a nice August celebration of our nation's servicemen and women be great?  Veteran's Day get sandwiched between Halloween and Thanksgiving.  It gets completely lost in the mix and that's a shame.

Maybe Barack Obama can work on this.  This should be a priority. Not likely.  Anyway, to our men who have served, including my dad, grandfather, and father-in-law, you have my deepest respect.  Here's a little something from Salty Milk I think you'll like.  To our women who've worn the uniform, all I have to offer is this, but your sacrifices are just as much appreciated.

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ANGELINA JOLIE DECIDED TO BE HOT AGAIN
Which is good of her.

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DIDN'T MICHAEL VICK MAKE FALCONS FANS SUFFER ENOUGH?
Rooting for the Falcs just became lame.

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COLLEGE HOOPS.  AND NOT A MOMENT TOO SOON.
Believe it or not, the regular season has already begun.  Duke played Presbyterian and since Presbyterian isn't coached by Bob Huggins, Duke managed to win.  Looking for what games are on where?  Check out this cool site, sent to me by listener Doug, which tells you which games might be available.  Also, with the UC/NKU not on radio or TV, you can follow the game here as I'll blog from Fifth Third Arena.

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UC/WEST VIRGINIA. RELIVE IT.  IF YOU FEEL THE NEED.
Or be like me and just skip to the 7:00 mark.

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THAT'S NO WAY TO TREAT A STUFFED ANIMAL
My guy Nat at Uncoached has just an outstanding blog.  There's this (carve out some time), this, and best of all this collection of parents who should've filled out an application before procreating.

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KELLY KELLY GALLERY GALLERY
Yesterday marked the blog debut of Kelly Kelly.  Based on the feedback I've gotten, she was quite popular.  Anyway, I now know who she is.  She's a professional wrestling valet, which sounds interesting, though I refuse to acknowledge the existence of professional wrestling since 1990.  Anyway, Kelly Kelly surpasses Duran Duran, Mister Mister, Boutros Boutros Ghali, Duany Duany, and Tony Toni Tone, as my favorite person with repetitive names.  Anyway, here is some of Kelly Kelly's finest work, which is one tremendous portfolio.

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SOMEONE TELL KATY PERRY HALLOWEEN IS OVER
Ever get the feeling that this chick is trying just a little too hard?

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TUESDAY.
-On a Monday after a number of good NFL games, with solid NFL storylines, in an NFL city, I don't think there was one call to this radio station on the NFL.  It was all college football, mostly UC but some other teams mixed in as well.  Is the belief that Cincinnati isn't a good college football town a myth?  I could legitimately throw out questions about who should be in the BCS title game, which team will emerge from the Big 12 South, and debate the merits or lackthereof of every major conference in the country and have a good discussion, but if I threw out the question of will will win the AFC East, no one will have an opinion and no one would care.  We have two ranked teams within 100 miles of each other, and a very competitive team in the SEC.  Is this a college football town, at least more than we care to admit?

-Hamilton County is in economic dire straits.  They're cutting jobs, law enforcement, if the snow is bad this year, they might not have salt for the roads...By the end of this over 1,000 Hamilton County employees may be without gigs.  The county is millions of dollars in debt, and many are wondering if the county is going to be on the hook for GABP improvements.  I'm trying to round up someone from the county to discuss who pays for unnecessary renovations.

Email from County Administrator Eric Sturkey:
Both projects (Club 4192 renovation and video/scoreboard upgrade) would be considered “Reds projects.”  Basically, the lease permits the team to make facility improvements at their expense with the approval of the County.  Both projects are being finalized by the Reds who will then seek formal approval by the County.  This will likely happen in the next few weeks....In neither project would the County be spending general fund tax money.  We are working with the Reds to help facilitate both projects.  Once we receive the formal request, we should be able to give more details.

Now we know.  I guess.

-We do the Bearcat primer.  Also, Monday was about the euphoria of beating WVU...now the hard part.  Can this team win their last 3 league games?  Great that they won, but some massive shortcomings have been displayed the last few weeks...inconsistent O-line, sporadic running game, inexperience at QB, shaky coaching.  Can they win their last four?  I still have a hard time believing they can.

-Today is Veteran's Day.  Know any Vets?  Thank them.

-Speaking of, my boy Rich Walburg has a gallery of a quality veteran Cindy Crawford.  The Monica Belluci spot he has up doesn't suck either.

-Did you watch the Monday night game?  Let's rethink our mancrush on Mike Singletary.

-I don't watch a lot of Golf Channel, but I might start now.

-Why do I feel like the only one not too worked up about Andrew Whitworth's fine?

-Whatever happened to just making a guy run wind sprints?

-Here's a list of the top ten cheerleading scandals of all-time.

-My guys at Who Dey Revolution have this billboard going up across the city this morning...

The man in charge of my favorite Bengals site and "Project Mayhem" will join us at 9:30.

-Kenny Mayne from ESPN will be our guest at 11:45.

-When ya gotta go, ya gotta go.

-There's a damn good reason to watch the Sunday night game on NBC.

THE BLOG SUCKED TODAY.  I'LL MAKE IT UP TO YOU BY DOING THIS
Had like 9,000 things going on this afternoon.  None were as fun as blogging.  While you stew about how lousy the blog was today, enjoy this live blog from BengalsLine at Dickman's from 6-9.

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MONDAY.

-I don't know who Kelly Kelly is, or why she has the same name twice, but she's phenomenal.

-For the first time maybe ever, UC football is the water cooler talk today, if indeed anyone does stand around a water cooler. No one here does.  Anyway, if this is indeed the bandwagon city many claim it is, the Bearcat bandwagon has to be filling up today.  But how close were we to the Brian Kelly honeymoon being over?  Did you go?  If so, did you stay?  Did you pop the TV off or leave the bar early with a few minutes to go?  For those just jumping on board (who we welcome), can anyone offer a primer for the new fans?  Would this have been the biggest choke job in the city's sports history?  Do you agree with staying with Pike or should the gig go back to Grutza?  Who's going to Louisville? 

-While us UC fans are pumped about the team officially being on the radar, you know we'll hear from the people who just can't stand someone else enjoying something.  So we'll hear from the percentage of SEC hacks and OSU fans (who are not the majority by the way) who will take this opportunity to remind us that the Big East is not the SEC and that Cincinnati is not the program Ohio State is, as if we care.  These must be the same people who go to weddings, congratulate the groom, then remind him that his new bride is nearly as good looking as Jessica Alba.

-How'd you spend you Bengal-free Sunday?  I parked myself on the couch and watched actually compelling, interesting, and meaningful NFL games.  It was awesome.  Do you tune the league out when the Bengals don't play or get more interested?

-The Reds are making improvements to Great American Ballpark that fans of all economic backgrounds will be able to enjoy.  Just kidding, they're revamping a private club most people can't afford to get into.

-Heartbreaking loss for UK on Saturday.  I don't want to turn this into a UC v. UK shoutfest, and UC isn't there yet, but would you rather be a top tier team in the Big East or a middle of the road, yet still successful team in the best football conference in America if both are still BCS leagues?

-Terrelle Pryor might be decent, huh?

-This looks like it hurt.

-Three in a row.  Just sayin'.  Chris Duhon is exactly what they needed.

UC/WEST VIRGINIA POSTSCRIPT

Once again, I want to thank everyone who followed and participated in my live blog from the UC/West Virginia game.   I'll live blog the hoops exhibition Tuesday night, and the UC/Louisville game from Papa John's Cardinal Stadium on Friday night.

I don't have a ton of time when I do the blog for many postgame thoughts so I thought I'd take a few minutes away from a nice Bengals-free Sunday to peel myself on the couch to share some.  I also highly recommend two things from the trip to Morgantown....the Holiday Inn in Washington, PA for weddings or any similar type events, and Uncle Nicks Greek Fried Chicken from the Buena Vista in Warren Ohio.  Uncle Nick brought some bird to the Holiday Inn and I sampled some while I threw down some postgame Yuenglings. Best. Fried Chicken. Ever.

If we were calling last night's game the biggest one in UC school history, that had to be the biggest win.  If they win out (a very, very tall task) they are Big East champs.  It's a huge win, but a win over the Cards on Friday would be bigger.

-It took an hour to catch my breath.  Going from elation, to despair, to near orgasmic...all in about 15 minutes.  Just an amazing turn of events.  I root for some teams that either suck (Bengals, Knicks), choke (Mets), or are a ways away (UC hoops).  I'm not exactly an optimist when it comes to my teams winning a big game.  I was texting with a buddy of mine in OT, certain that they'd lose and after WVU went up three, I wrote "My teams never EVER win these type of games.  I quit sports."   Kazeem Alli and Tony Pike kept me out of the sports fan rest home.

-Everyone is talking about Brian Kelly's decision to take a safety up 20-7 with 1:11 to go.  I think the criticism is valid.  Remember, UC took a delay of game penalty right before the fourth down snap, backng them up to the six.  If it's me, I snap it at the 11 and have one of the nation's best punters kick it away.  Make them score two touchdowns in just over a minute.  In the second half, UC had forced the Mountaineers into five three-and-outs, gotten a turnover, and forced a turnover on downs.  The D was playing great.  Plus, if you get good kick coverage, Pat White is going to have to throw it to get those two score.  I like my chances. 

The two things that could've gone wrong wouldn't have been back breakers.  If it gets blocked and they score, then you still have a chance to grab an onside kick (easier said than done given last night's adventures) and if there's a bad snap, Huber knocks it out of the end zone and it's 20-9, and you're still in the driver's seat.  But chances are, you get a decent kick and they've got it near midfield down by 13.  Play some D and get the win.

-Consider this...UC won a game on the road that saw them not only not score a point in the second half, but they only gained one first down.  The teams traded three and outs forever.  Great to get a win, but they need more from the offense.  Their shortest third down in the second half was third and six.  They've got to create some room for the running game and get time for Tony Pike to make throws.  Credit WVU for many of the struggles last night, but the offensive execution must improve.  And soon.

-Tony Pike certainly was not awful last night.  While the offense was stagnant, Tony never killed them witha a huge mistake.  He looks comfortable and I think armed with better protection he's the ideal guy right now to run the offense.  Grutza dressed and was a captain last night, and I know he may be ready for Lousiville, but Tony is still my guy.

-The defense was on it's heels when WVU came back to tie the game, but let's give them credit for a couple things.  First, what a great job on Noel Devine.  He came in averaging 6.9 a carry.  Last night, he averaged 3.1 and netted 58 yards.  Pat White was held in check until the final two drives, but was more or less a non factor on the ground most of the night. Second., there wasn't a sould who thought UC would win when the game went to OT.  Furthermore, WVU gets the ball, gets nine yards, then picks up a first down.  But the Bearcats held, and Terrill Byrd, who had a great night, made the play of the year sacking Pat White and forcing the Mountaineers to kick a field goal.  Give the defense, who had just ended regulation giving up back to back scoring drives, credit for getting it done at the right time.

-I didn't DVR the game (dumb) and I never saw the replay, but most everyone I talked to seemed to think the roughing the passer call on Sidney Glover was legit.  And give Pike and Dominick Goodman credit for hooking up for ten yards on the first offensive play after the Bearcats got the ball.

-Had they lost this game, it would've been a huge test for Brian Kelly to just get this team to rebound to go play on the road.  I can't imagine how awful that would've been.  You're up 13 with less than 2:00 to go and lose, it's a choke.  You give it away, and come back to win, it shows character.  They showed some.  But man, I can't imagine how I'd feel today had they lost.  I might have thrown the laptop I'm typing this on out of the booth.

-No Bengals today, maybe the memorable and exciting Bearcat win ever, and a big win against a rival on Friday night.  I can't imagine a day more ripe for Bearcat football talk.  Hope we can get into it tomorrow morning at 9:00.

STUFF YOU SHOULD KNOW
We've got a ton of stuff on the Sports Animal this weekend....

Tonight:  UK exhibition hoops v. something called Ouachita Baptist at 5:30.

Saturday:  UK football v. Georgia at 11AM then NKU Basketball v. Louisville at 6:30PM.

Sunday:  Actual NFL football....a tripleheader with Green Bay/Minnesota, Indy/Pittsburgh and the Giants at Philly.

Also, I'll be doing a live blog from the UC/West Virginia game in Morgantown.

That's all for now, I'll leave you with proof that Britney Spears in not back, and the new Bond girl's spread in Maxim.

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FRIDAY FUN!
The Cliff's Notes version of the show....

-UC/West Va.  Biggest game in UC history.  Even bigger if you're one of those who things the apocolypse is near if Brian Kelly leaves and if you consider what they're going to lose next year due to graduation.  Can the Bearcats slow down Pat White?  UC analyst Jim Kelly joins me at 9:30.

-Bengals free weekend.  How are you dealing with no Bengals on Sunday?  We don't often spend a lot of time talking about the rest of the league...should we more?  Should we do more national NFL stuff?  When the Reds aren't good, no one pays attention to the rest of MLB, when the Bengals suck, are people tuning out the rest of the NFL or are you more interested?  It might sound lame, but I'm kinda looking forward to parking my **** on the couch for 10 hours watching non-Bengals NFL games?

-Just absolute classlessness from the University of Louisville.  The short version is here and here.

-Should these kids have been suspended?

-How do you handle going out to watch a game with a couple who spends the entire day hanging all over each other?

-This Week in Ridiculous.

-Ray Small's dad needs to realize the warning signs were there and that the head coach can do whatever he want.

-Destiny is out for the next two weeks, so we'll be having different fill-ins.  Today, we'll be joined by Kim, who's work you can find in the legendary "Behind the Scenes" video.