Entries Tagged 'Other' ↓

By: T. Love

Since this is my blog, I am going to devote this post to the tiny school in the foothills of the Appalachian mountains. A campus that is so beautiful, liberal welcoming to anyone that it encourages you to be “Yosef”. A university that takes pride in its athletics programs. A team that former Ohio State Buckeye and now ESPN analyst, Kirk Herbstreit, so eloquently stated that despite its success in Division I-AA, it was a cupcake game and the No. 5 Michigan Wolverines would roll over as a tuneup.

No. 5, meet No. 1!

Big congratulations to the Appalachian State Mountaineers, my alma mater, who went up to Ann Arbor, Mich., to open the 2007 college football season and these kids absolutely did work. 34-32 Appalachian victory in front of 109,218 at the “Big House”.

Riding a 14-game winning streak, back-to-back Southern Conference championships, back-to-back national titles and the No. 1 ranking in the 2007 FCS polls, the mighty Mountaineers proved on Saturday that speed kills, the BCS is shit and the men from Boone, N.C., are a forced to be reckoned with.

From the outset of the game, Appalachian was able to spread the field and dissect the Michigan defense with its speed. Sophomore QB Armanti Edwards is ready to set the bar higher for his career after passing for 227 yards and racking up four touchdowns (one rushing). It’s hard to imagine what Edwards could have done for an encore after leading the Mountaineers to a national championship as a true freshman. He not only gave a strong encore, he let the rest of the FCS and the Southern Conference that ASU is not about to give up its spot at the top.

What I love most about this victory, is not the fact that we probably pulled off the greatest upset in college football history. Not the fact that Lloyd Carr is going to lose his job over this. Not the fact that I can say “F” the Big 10/11. It is the fact that all the jackasses at ESPN have to eat their crow on national television. Kirk Herbstreit, Chris Fowler, Lee Corso, Mark May just to name a few. None of you guys gave us a chance and now all you do is hate on Carr to squirm out of the fact that you didn’t know what you were talking about. Give credit where credit is due. Appalachian State kicked Michigan’s ass.

The Appers have won 26 of their last 30 football games and have boatload of distinctions to their name right now. Appalachian State came to this game not to please the media, serve as a tuneup for a “BCS Contender” or collect a $400,000 check (thanks for the money suckers!!). The Mountaineers went to Ann Arbor to win a football game. And that is what they did.

Michigan is the all-time winningest program in NCAA history, so it is easy to perceive why everyone would write off Appalachian State. But winning is an attitude, not prestige and at “The Rock” 3,333 above sea level, that is what the Mountaineers do. Win.

The victory against Michigan was especially sweet for the fans, alumni, students, faculty and anyone else who loves Appalachian State.

But as Cory Lynch alluded to, this team expected to win and needs to put this game behind them because there is still a big season ahead.

Next Saturday, the Black and Gold take on Lenoir-Rhyne. The first opportunity for the Mountaineer faithful to watch the defending champs at Kidd Brewer Stadium this season and the second step to winning No. 3!

Give ‘em hell Apps!!!

By: T. Love

On Atlanta’s sport radio 790 the Zone this afternoon, the “Zone Topic” of the day was Are Atlanta Falcons’ fans entitled to a refund on their season tickets? Since the entire Michael Vick fiasco went down, I have often joked and said that I want a refund on my tickets. Now that I think about it, if a fan wants a refund I think they should get it.

For the second-straight year, the Falcons melted down in the last half of the season to finish at 7-9. In an effort to “get in line with the NFL average”, Arthur Blank raised ticket prices once again. That is a pretty bad business move in my opinion to raise prices after your team failed to reach expectations for a second time.

Luckily this season, the Falcons have two Monday Night Football games and will take on the defending Super Bowl champion Indianapolis Colts in the primetime game on Thanksgiving Day. This coupled with the chance to see the leagues most dynamic player was a weak, but understandable justification to raise ticket prices.

A simple concept called supply and demand.

Tickets were sold with those factors and now one of those selling points is gone. None of the tickets have been used since the Falcons have yet to partake in a home game and if a fan no longer feels they are getting an equal return on their investment, a refund is in order.

King Artie is already having a tough time selling tickets this season which is evidenced by the single-game ticket advertisement during preseason contests and the disappearance of the 30,000 plus waiting list for season tickets.

If you think this doesn’t have anything to do with Vick, you are kidding yourself.

It is already evident that the demand for Falcons tickets is no longer there. In the NFL, fans are forced to pay full price for two preseason games and eight home games prior to the start of the season. Well, if in two months the value of my investment has decreased and the product has yet to be used, then you should have the option to get your money back.

What do you think?