The Man Behind the (face)Mask

Last night ushered in a new era for Green Bay Packer fans across the nation. Now that the drawn-out saga between the Packers organization and Brett Favre has come to a close, we can now focus on what it's all about - football!




Aaron Rodgers made his first career start last night, and I couldn't be more pleased. He didn't show the mistakes one would expect from someone who had only taken 59 snaps as an NFL quarterback. Some things stood out from his performance:
1. He showed that he can take a hit. He's didn't just run out of bounds or throw the ball away to a defender, nor did he fumble in the pocket. He showed poise, and that's exactly what we've come to expect from a starting quarterback.
2. He showed mobility. This is something we haven't had in the past few years. Though Favre could move if he had to, he had lost a few steps over the years. Good to have that back.
3. Rodgers' passing was SHARP. He didn't throw any ducks, only sailed one pass, and his throws were accurate. Favre was the hardest throwing quarterback in the NFL, so we need Rodgers to maintain the accurate passing game. Rodgers wasn't limited to one or two options on a designed drop-back passing play, he was able to look downfield for the 3rd or 4th option. Granted, the Cincinnati defense isn't the best in the league by a long shot, but Rodgers had ample protection allowing him the necessary time to throw. He didn't panic.

The majority of Rodgers' passes were high, recievers being forced to catch the ball at their helmet or above. This is mechanics, and as they discussed during the game last night, this is something the coaching staff has been working on w/ Aaron this summer.

Final stat line: 9-15 passing, 117 yds. 1 TD, 1 INT.

He could have been 12-15 passing, the recievers dropped 2 of his passes that should have been caught, and his lone interception should have been called pass interference. The reciever was leveled prior to the ball arriving. All in all, a great first start for our new quarterback.

My only complaint has nothing to do with Rodgers' performance, rather the observations made by color commentator Tony Kornheiser. His show on ESPN "Pardon the Interruption" is one of my favorites, I watch it every day. He had formed his opinions on Rodgers before the game began, not giving him a chance at all. Comparing him to Favre. Saying that he has the most pressure on him in NFL history, as he attemps to replace Favre. I'm glad his performance shut Kornheiser up, because he was getting annoying.

Olympic Girl of the Day

Today's Olympian is 30-year old Kim Gevaert from Belgium.


She is an accomplished sprinter for the Belgian olympic team, most recently earning a bronze medal at the European Championships for her work in the Women's 4x100m relay. She is a specialist in the 100m sprint. Her best time is 11.04s. Her personal best sprint of 400m is 51.45s.

She also does a bit of modeling in her spare time. She is a big fan of Omega watches..




...as well as being a HUGE fan of cheese...





Yes, that is an advertisement for cheese. They get away with so much more in Europe...it's a huge shame. My Wisconsin roots are yearning for better advertising in the United States.

Note to Self: Run For President

Supposing someday, I run for president and win. Here's the top 10 best things about being President of the United States:

10. Leader of the free world.
9. Drop bombs at the push of a button.
8. Issue new currency, put my face on every bill and coin.
7. No more illegal immigrants, English declared "official language".
6. Get my own library some day, become humanitarian and diplomat.
5. See the world for free.
4. Push my own moral and religious agenda through legislation.
3. Define the word "is".
2. Free tickets to any sporting event in the world...forever.

And the #1 best thing about being President of the United States of America...

YOU GET TO HANG OUT WITH HOT WOMEN!

Check out our fearless leader, ambassador of the United States and leader of the free world, showing his support to Team USA...in his own, special way.



Here Mr. Bush is hanging out with Team USA Women's Beach Volleyball members Misty May Treanor and Kerri Walsh. No doubt, they are discussing an exit strategy for the war in Iraq.



Here we see the President verifying the sponsor of the May/Walsh duo...he's pretty sure it's the Nike "swoosh", but staring for a few more minutes should help.



Apparently, Misty got a little bit of sand on her lower back, and Mr. Bush, being the generous and caring man that he is, offers to reach that spot she just can't reach.

Seriously...later in the day, we see him with Laura Bush watching Micheal Phelps swim for gold in the men's 400m Individual Medley, and they are nothing but smiles. They must have some great pillow talk at night.

Oh, to be President....

Olympic Girl of the Day

Today's olympian is 36-year old Magali Di Marco Messmer of Switzerland.

Messmer competes in the Triathlon. This is her 3rd Olympic Games. At the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, she took home the bronze medal in Triathlon. She will compete for the gold medal this year on day 10 of the games, August 18th. She will certainly be in our prayers.


Apparently, in her free time she finds that modeling helps her relax from her strenuous training regimen. Now, let's celebrate with the Swiss gals at the Sydney olympics once more...



If you look carefully at this photo, there are trees in the background. It took me about 10 minutes to notice this.

Olympic Girl of the Day

Today's featured olympian is 22-year old Romina Armellini of Italy.


Armellini is on the Italian Olympic team for the third time, last swimming at the Athens games in '04. Featured event is the 200m Backstroke.

She will be swimming for the first time in these games on August 10th during the 200m backstroke prelims. She finished 8th at the European Championships this year.

Have You Seen This Man?

There isn't a day that goes by, I don't yearn for another "House Party" movie. In the same vein as the modern-day buddy films that litter the big screen, House Party (um, 1-4) gave us laughs, some poor slapstick, and of course, teen angst relieved through boomboxes, hot girls in hot colors, and cheap beer.

Ok, that's a total lie. I never liked the movies, but like any celebrity that has their ups and downs, some reappearing on sitcoms, soaps, or B-films, I wondered what ever happened to Christopher Reid (aka "Kid", aka "Kid Coolout").

It's been bugging me for the longest time, and today I finally figured it out.

He went missing in the mid-90's, and hasn't been seen since. Apparently, some knew where he was. He was going to high school in California. He then attended the University of Miami, starring in baseball.

Last summer, he was called up in May to join the big league club, where he excelled. He finished his first Major League season with a .324 batting avg. He belted 34 HR's, drove in 97 runs, and stole 15 bases, all in only 113 games.

Your favorite "Saved By The Bell"-era hip hop artist has returned to the spotlight...

His actual name is Ryan Braun. He is actually a white dude (not that anyone ever doubted that). He braved the dangers of the early world of hip-hop, crossing the color barrier, and paving the way for white rap artists such as Rob VanWinkle, Darrin O'brien, and later on Marshall Mathers.

2008 Summer Olympics

Deciding to move my thoughts to this forum - less of a "social networking" scene, more of a discussion and intelligent conversation area.

On that note, let's start off on the right foot - I am a huge fan of the Olympics when they come around every 2 years. Although I prefer the Winter Olympics, the Summer games afford us the opportunity to...appreciate more of foreign athletes.

And so, I will post my "2008 Olympics Girl of the Day" each day during the games. This series will highlight the accomplishments of one athlete from a foreign nation. In no way is this meant to be seen as a sexist account, rather an appreciation for sport and those that excel in their field.