Week 13 NCAA Prediction Recap (6 - 2)

After the mayhem that was rivalry week, I've gotta say I feel pretty lucky to escape with a 6 - 2 record.

I was worried about Noel Devine and West Virginia going into the Backyard Brawl, and his 134 yards and 1 touchdown performance only confirmed those fears.  Pittsburgh finally showed their real selves when down 16-6 with about 10 minutes left to play in the game as they scored 10 unanswered points to tie it up 16-16, but it was too little too late.  Tyler Bitancurt won the game, hitting a 43 yard field goal as time expired.

Alabama somehow managed to sneak past Auburn despite going down 14-0 in the first 5 minutes of the game.  It's even more incredible when you consider that Alabama's run-heavy offense is not built to score a lot of points, especially when they have to come from behind.

Florida handled the Seminoles in a game whose score I was actually fairly close on.

Bedlam:  A scene or state of wild uproar and confusion.  Yep, that just about sums it up.  All I can say is Oklahoma St. left me at a complete loss for words.  They proved me very wrong and Skyler very right.  Shut out?  Playoffs?!?  Be serious Cowboys.

No surprises in the Commonwealth Cup.  Virginia is a BAD football team (then again, so is Georgia...crap!)  Oh, and speaking of which, later Al Groh.

Memo to LSU:  Get your act together.  I know Arkansas has one of the best offenses in the SEC and Lou "I'm nuttier than a fruit cake" Holtz claims you have one of the worst offenses in the entire nation (forget just the SEC), but squeaking by the Razorbacks at HOME???  Sh'mon now.  You're better than that.  Or maybe you're not...

BYU, thanks for making me look smart.  I predicted you would beat Utah by 3, and that's exactly what you did.  Loud sustained applause.

USC, you are almost as cool as BYU.  I guess I overestimated UCLA with the Victory Bell on the line...  At least I didn't pick UCLA like Skyler did here.  "Glitz and glam" my ass.


My Week 13 Picks:
The Backyard Brawl
Prediction:  (9) Pittsburgh 27 - West Virginia 21
Actual:  (9) Pittsburgh 16 - West Virginia 19

The Iron Bowl
Prediction:  (2) Alabama 24 - Auburn 10
Actual:  (2) Alabama 26 - Auburn 21

The Sunshine Showdown
Prediction:  Florida St. 14 - (1) Florida 28
Actual:  Florida St. 10 - (1) Florida 37

Bedlam Series for the Bedlam Bell
Prediction:  (12) Oklahoma St. 37 - Oklahoma 21
Actual:  (12) Oklahoma St. 0 - Oklahoma 27

Commonwealth Cup
Prediction:  (14) Virginia Tech 24 - Virginia 10
Actual:  (14) Virginia Tech 42 - Virginia 13

The Battle for the Golden Boot
Prediction:  Arkansas 20 - (15) LSU 27
Actual:  Arkansas 30 - (15) LSU 33

The Holy War
Prediction:  (21) Utah 28 - (19) BYU 31
Actual:  (21) Utah 23 - (19) BYU 26

The Victory Bell
Prediction:  UCLA 23 - (20) USC 30
Actual:  UCLA 7 - (20) USC 28

The Longest Inch, Episode #11

Episode 11 is a special Thanksgiving edition of The Longest Inch for your listening pleasure. We discuss the MLB MVP awards, continue our look into the top 50 MLB Free Agents, chalk talk the Rivalry Weekend in College Football, tell people to Be Serious, and Stump the Skyler. They call us 'Carwash,' cause we're automatic.

My Week 13 Picks:

The Backyard Brawl:
(9) Pittsburgh  27
at
West Virginia  21

The Iron Bowl:
(2) Alabama  24
at
Auburn  10

The Sunshine Showdown:
Florida St.  14
at
(1) Florida  28

Bedlam Series for the Bedlam Bell:
(12) Oklahoma St.  37
at
Oklahoma  21

Commonwealth Cup:
(14) Virginia Tech  24
at
Virginia  10

The Battle for the Golden Boot:
Arkansas  20
at
(15) LSU  27

The Holy War:
(21) Utah  28
at
(19) BYU  31

The Victory Bell:
UCLA 23
at
(20) USC 30

Random Musings

Tripping.  The act of impeding or catching of a person's foot so as to throw the person down, esp. in wrestling.

Also, a 10 yard penalty in the National Football League.  Does that seem off to anybody else, or is it just me?

You know what isn't a penalty in the NFL???  Beating the crap out of someone.  And yet somehow, tripping will dock you 10 yards.

Doesn't it just feel like something so irrelevant that it should fall into the category of general shenanigans?  Given the extreme violence and physicality of football, doesn't it just seem so minuscule that it's not even worth noting?  When I think of tripping, I don't think of a serious NFL penalty.  I think of Larry, Moe, and Curly...

"Coitanly! Nyuk nyuk nyuk!" [eye poke, slap]

I don't know, maybe I'm way off base here, but to me tripping seems like one of the lamest NFL rules... "Ok guys, I want you to go out there and hit each other with bone-breaking, concussion causing, paralyzing force!!!  But whatever you do, do not, under ANY circumstance, stick your leg out and trip someone!!!!"

To quote the Dude in all of his wisdom, "Who gives a crap about the marmot?!?!"  Who gives a crap about tripping?!?  Let's worry about penalties that actually matter, like excessive celebration.

Week 12 NCAA Prediction Recap (4 - 2)

All in all, my Week 12 picks fared pretty well.  I ended up 4-2, but I also predicted the exact team score for Stanford and Nebraska.  I was only off by 1 for LSU, 4 for Wisconsin, 5 for Northwestern, and 2 for Oregon.

If former Bear Jim Harbaugh didn't make multiple bonehead coaching decisions in the 4th quarter, perhaps that pick would've worked out (down by 3 and decide to go for it on 4th and 8 from your own 30 yard line with 3:30 and all 3 of your timeouts left?!?!? BE SERIOUS. PUNT THE BALL).

And if Les Miles and LSU had any clue how to manage a football game with 1 minute left, maybe I would've gotten that one right.  "I can only tell you that the management at the back end of the game was the issue," LSU Coach Les Miles said, later adding: "It's my fault that we didn't finish first in that game."

My Week 12 Picks:

Prediction:  LSU 24 - Ole Miss 17
Actual:  LSU 23 - Ole Miss 25

Prediction:  Wisconsin 35 - Northwestern 38
Actual:  Wisconsin 31 - Northwestern 33

Prediction:  Oregon 42 - Arizona 31
Actual:  Oregon 44 - Arizona 41 (2 OT)

Prediction:  Cal 21 - Stanford 28
Actual:  Cal 34 - Stanford 28

Prediction:  Kansas St. 14 - Nebraska 17
Actual:  Kansas St. 3 - Nebraska 17

Prediction:  Florida St. beats Maryland
Actual:  Florida St. beat Maryland

0 Days and Counting!!

The journey of a thousand miles really does start with the first step...or bite...or non-bite.

Walking into work today I saw this man standing at the intersection of Clark and Washington and I'm sorry, but I couldn't help but laugh a little.  Apparently, he has been on hunger strike since this morning.  Best of luck to you, random dude on the street doing a hunger strike for "JOB, Job, Job, Job."

The Longest Inch, Episode #10

Episode 10 marks yet another milestone for The Longest Inch... Double digits baby!!!  We preview the biggest week 12 college football games, discuss the NL Cy Young, MVP awards, and free agent, talk some "Cubbie Nuggets" (whatever those might be...), tell the Arizona Diamondbacks and ESPN to "Be Serious," Stump the Skyla, and we contemplate moving to Canada.  It's all there, so stop looking anywhere else!

My Week 12 Picks:

LSU Tigers  24
at
Ole Miss Rebels  17

Wisconsin Badgers  35
at
Northwestern Wildcats  38

Oregon Ducks  42
at
Arizona Wildcats  31

Cal Golden Bears  21
at
Stanford Cardinal  28

Kansas St. Wildcats  14
at
Nebraska Cornhuskers  17

Maryland Terrapins
at
Florida St.  (Florida St. wins because they are Skyler's team.  And because Maryland blows.  Maybe by as much as 3 td's.)

Like Taking Candy From A Baby

My Local Television Debut!!!

November 17, 2009, 9:00 PM:  Mikechop hits the scene making an appearance as an "uber-white guy" in an investigative report on discrimination by FOX Chicago News' Mark Saxenmeyer.  The rest, as they say, is history.

Be Serious, Bill Belichick and Co.

I actually only caught the last 15 seconds of the Sunday night Pats/Colts game as I was flying home and didn't arrive until right at the end (Wait, who predicted the Colts would win that game again?  That's what I thought.)

In any case, seeing the last 15 seconds and the ensuing drama/pandemonium was enough for me to catch this little gem:



Well done, random bald security guy #1, well done.  Oh, and just in case there's any question as to the identity of the pile-drive victim, a post here says that it was an NFL Films employee.  In other words, NOT a drunk Indy fan...  [Loud sustained applause]

Apparently it's not a good idea to ever film the Belichick in failure.  Respect the Belichick!!! 

It's All About the Benjamins, Baby.

Today marks yet another momentous occasion -- the 100th post in Mikechop history!

I figured what better symbol for Mikechop's meteoric rise to glory than a video of a chair floating up into space.

The Longest Inch, Episode #9

In episode 9 we recap Week 11 of college football, tell the MLB awards-people to "Be Serious" in a new segment appropriately named, "Be Serious," celebrate Dr. K being halfway to 90, and stump the Skyler.

It's all there for you to gobble up, you little turkey heads.

Don't Drink and Attempt to Ride the Subway

I saw this on the news today and even though it's borderline terrifying, I thought I should post it to show how the actions of those at the scene were able to save this woman's life.  It's truly incredible that the train was able to stop (just in time) and that the train operator was paying close enough attention to react to the people waving (and most likely yelling) for him or her to stop.  Thank God for those people who saved this woman's life.  If the woman who fell has a drinking problem, hopefully this miracle can wake her up to changing her ways.

The Longest Inch, Episode #8

In episode 8, Mike tries to be a good samaritan, the Yanks are kings again for the 27th time, we profile Joe Girardi's career (he is a gentleman and a scholar), give you our MLB dream team, and preview the week in college football that wasn't.

Ready, BOOOOOP.

Is Chivalry Dead? I Guess That Depends On Your Vantage Point

On my way home from work yesterday, I got off the "L" at Armitage and while walking along rocking out to some tunes on my iPod, I noticed the young woman walking in front of me struggling to carry about 5 boxes.  Being the good Samaritan that I am, I slid my headphones off and said, "Would you like some help with that?"

"Oh, well, could you just push the top one more onto the middle of the pile?" She replied, as the top box was starting to inch towards falling off of the pile.

"Sure, no problem." I said.  "Are you sure you don't want any help carrying them though?"

"Oh yes, but thank you.  They're actually really light."  She said.

And she was right, they were indeed very light.  I had noticed that when I moved the top box over.

And so I continued walking along, a smile on my face as it was almost the weekend.  No more than 30 seconds later, a group of about six Lincoln Park High School girls crossed our paths as they headed for the "L."  Just as they passed me I heard one of the girls say to her friends, "Now there's a real gentleman!!  Look at him just letting that woman carry all those boxes!"  I swear I am not making this up.

I could tell that she said this thinking I couldn't hear her since I had my headphones on, but fortunately I didn't miss this gem of a comment as I had turned the volume down and slid them slightly off my ears when I had asked the woman if she needed any help.

Without thinking, I found myself with my hands thrown up in the air, laughing out loud as I turned back to look at the girl who had just called me out.  The group of girls had all now stopped and were looking back at me with these priceless embarrassed, shocked, and confused looks on their faces.

"I JUST asked her if she wanted any help!"  I said while I turned and kept walking down the street, as an even bigger smile crept onto my face.

Pinback at the Bottom Lounge - 11/3/09

Got to see Pinback live Tuesday night at the Bottom Lounge in the West Loop and it was one of the weirdest, most unique, coolest concerts I've ever been to.

In case you've never been, the Bottom Lounge is a pretty small venue, but very cool nonetheless. I'd guess there were about 150-200 people in the audience.  It has a small warehouse feel to it, and the opening barroom that one enters the main bar through (the concert was in back behind that in a separate room) is pretty open with a few tables and booths scattered throughout.  Basically it has the open feeling of a loft/warehouse place and when you mix that with the fun of a bar/concert venue it equals a great time.

But oh where to begin explaining this weird and awesome night...

First off, Rob Crow, one of the 2 main band members (singer/song writer/multi-instrumentalist), IS Zach Galifinakis' character Alan Garner from The Hangover.  It was scary and insane and awesome.  It was scarinsome, if you will.  Not only does he look EXACTLY like him, but he even has the same mannerisms!  More on that later.  For now, you be the judge:

I mean, can you even tell which is which??? In case you can't, Zach Galifinakis is on the left and Rob Crow is on the right.

The pure weirdosity (yep, that's a word) and blawshomeness (so is that) of this concert kicked off from the get-go, as we walked in the door at 8:15 PM.  Were we greeted with the sweet Bob Dylanish melodies (ok, maybe a stretch...) from the opening act of Joe Jack Talcum?  No.

Up on stage singing karaoke in front of about 40 concert-goers was a jovial, mildly frenetic, Newcastle-drinking, bearded man with a beer belly who bore a strange resemblence to Zach Galifinakis.  I'm just going to let that sink in for a minute.  Karaoke.  Delaware.

How weird is that?!?!

So this guy (who we later find out is Rob Crow of Pinback), finishes his song (some 70's or 80's chick song...so fitting) and asks the audience who's next.  As you can imagine, people were not chomping at the bit to rush up on stage and sing karaoke when they thought they were going to be listening to professionals.  I'm not going to lie, topping my list of recent regrets is the fact that I didn't get up there and belt something out with the lead singer of a friggin' rock band, especially with how bad the people who did were (A kid actually managed to completely butcher Journey's "Don't Stop Believing," which I didn't think was possible).

Karaoke struggles on without the help of Rob Crow's sick voice for the next hour til Joe Jack Talcum comes out and sings for an hour.

Meanwhile, while Talcum is singing, we intermittently see Rob Crow walking around carrying around....

....a baby!!!  I swear I am not making this up.  The resemblance to little Carlos from The Hangover (pictured above) was absolutely uncanny.  We wanted to sneak a picture of him, but A) we were too embarrassed to take a picture of a random guy, and B) we had no idea he was in Pinback, otherwise we would've asked to be in a picture with him.

Finally, at about 10:15, Pinback came out and got ready to play.  Rob Crow walked onto the stage carrying a bunch of Newcastles, and they started rocking out.  Throughout the course of the night, Crow was throwing down Newcastles like it was nobody's biznass.  It was truly something to be admired.  In between songs and if there was an instrumental that he wasn't involved in, he would take a huge swig or chug, and then bounce right back into the action without missing a beat.

His vocals were really cool too with a crazy range and a really interesting, unique sound, which was most definitely enhanced by the free-flowing Newcastle.  We also noticed that the three guys who sang all had very diverse voices, but the way they blended together was perfect.  They played a few of their more well-known songs like "Penelope," "Good to Sea," "Loro," and "Fortress" at a faster tempo than we had heard before, which kind of made it seem like they were rushing through them.

They played until a little after midnight, performing all the songs I love by them (except for "Crutch"), and a bunch of others that I hadn't heard that were pretty sweet.

Here are a couple of my favorites:









And also, if you have the means, I highly recommend checking out "Grey Machine."  Rock on!

The Longest Inch, Episode #7

In episode 7 we debate Charlie Manuel's decision to sit Cliff Lee in game 4 of the World Series and talk about one of the better baserunning plays in the history of the World Series.  Oregon and Texas impress, Boise St., TCU, and LSU heed Skyler's wise words while Cincy misses the memo, and the Big 10 continues to suck.  Everything you need is right here, in The Longest Inch.