Three Things: FC Cincinnati, Good. Reds, Bad. UC Football, I Don't Know.
Every day there are three things, here are those three things.
There's lots of ways to say that the Reds aren't good now, and won't ever be until their starting pitching is at least decent.
Los Rojos no son buenos ahora, y nunca lo serán hasta que su lanzamiento inicial sea al menos decente.
I Reds non sono buoni adesso e non saranno mai finché il loro pitching iniziale è almeno decente.
De Reds zijn nu niet goed, en zullen nooit zijn totdat hun start pitching tenminste fatsoenlijk is.
Kırmızılar şimdi iyi değil ve başlangıç atışlarının en azından iyi olacağı zamana kadar olmayacak.
레즈는 지금 좋지 않으며, 그들의 선발 투수가 적어도보기 흉하지 않다.
و ريدز ليست جيدة الآن، ولن يكون من أي وقت مضى حتى نصب البداية هو لائق على الأقل.
Yep - lots of ways to say the same thing - just not many different things to say about this team, at least now. Or 3:00. Maybe I'll have something new by then.
(And yes, I've tried this gag before)
1) FC Cincinnati. Few wins this season have been as gratifying as FCC's victory at Louisville on Saturday night, in part because of the rivalry between the two teams, in part because of how good Louisville City has been this season, and in part because it left some of their fans so butt-hurt that they resorted to this kind of pretend outrage.
Can't imagine how long it's going to take for the HazMat crews to finish the cleaning that mess. Hope the Bats are temporarily displaced during the cleanup.
Anyway, those were a badly-needed three points for FC Cincinnati, and you got the sense that while he rainout in Miami on Wednesday was frustrating for those that made the trip, the time not playing a 14th match in 56 days was well-spent.
It'll be interesting to see how FCC handles the schedule ahead - five matches in 14 days starting on Saturday, including the international friendly a week from today.
A game that, yes, James Rapien and I will be pre-gaming for on our off-day.
Can't wait.
2) Predictions are dumb. There's a story today on Cincinnati.com about how Luke Fickell is handling some of the more dire predictions for his first team at UC with media day(s) upon us.
ESPN analyst Phil Steele predicts UC to finish tied for third place in the AAC East, while Athlon and Lindy’s Sports magazines both have UC at No. 4 in the six-team AAC East. Street & Smith’s picks UC to finish No. 6 (last) in the division.
Fickell is keenly aware of the Street & Smith’s prediction. To prove it, Fickell reached for his wallet during a recent interview with The Enquirer in the coach’s UC campus office.
“No. 6,” Fickell said, calmly but pointedly. “I have it taped right here to my desk, and then there’s one right here in my wallet.”
Fickell then pulled out a laminated copy of Street & Smith’s forecast. Roughly the size of a credit card, there is “6. Cincinnati” in the AAC East cellar.
“It’s the first thing I see in my wallet,” Fickell said. “It stays right here and I see it every day.”
I like the fact that Fickell is embracing these predictions guesses head-on, and I'd be lying to you if told you I'd thought long and hard about how the American Athletic Conference will play out (when that thinking does happen, it will be with a drink and cigar nearby, and no microphones in the same zip code), but I'd also be lying if I told you that I had huge hopes and expectations for the 2017 Bearcats. The quarterbacks that return leave a lot to be desired, and as interested as I am in how Mike Denbrook re-shapes the offense, I can't shake what it was like to watch the offense's overall malaise a season ago.
I'd love to be surprised.
Fickell and his staff have injected huge infusions of optimism throughout the fan base, and even as someone who doesn't follow recruiting with the same fanaticism of some, I'm excited over what I hear and read about UC's recruiting for the long haul.
In the short-term, I'll settle for the coaches and players simply cleaning up last season's mess, even if the wins don't come fast and furious.
3) I'm on Spielman's side. Former Ohio State star Chris Spielman is suing his alma mater....
The lawsuit takes issue with 64 banners hung in Ohio Stadium featuring players’ likenesses and a corporate logo for Honda on them, but it also mentions jerseys, photographs, signatures and more.
Spielman also said attaching his name to Honda puts him in a difficult situation given a separate sponsorship deal he has with a local Mazda dealership.
Spielman said he is fine with Ohio State using his name and likeness for non-commercial purposes.
“You can slap your name and logo on banners all you want,” he said. “But as soon as you slap a corporate logo on there, I have rights, in my opinion, to say yes or no, or to negotiate that.”
There's great irony here, because schools large and small are overly vigilant about how their logos, slogans, and various likenesses being used for profit by outsiders, and yet here you have a well-branded university on the defending end of a lawsuit based on their usage of a former player's likeness being used for profit by an entity unconnected to the former player.
Go ahead and try to make an Ohio State shirt with an official OSU logo on it, then sell it. You'll have a cease-and-desist in your mailbox tomorrow.
Wonder if Ohio State got one from Chris.
Recommended Link Of The Day: Roger Federer Is Unassailable Again
Radio Show: Speaking of Columbus, um, sort of. I'm in this week on 105.7 The Zone Monday through Thursday of this week. Big show today on ESPN1530. Reds. FC Cincinnati. UC football. Fun. Listen at espn1530.com/listen, starting at 3:05.
Reach me....