Nooz Now

February 18, 2022 Edition

🏈-I’m going to tell you a story, one I’ve never told before. I was chillin in the parking lot of a chicken place in Paterson, New Jersey. I can’t remember the name of it, but they were known for their fast food chicken meals and sandwiches.

So, I’m leaning up against the railing outside there talking to a guy I knew from work when all of a sudden this black Range Rover (it was either a Range Rover or a Land Rover) pulls into the parking lot. Antonio Pierce gets out of the vehicle and starts walking toward the front door of the chicken spot.

I guess if you weren’t a New York Giant’s fan you wouldn’t have known who he was, but I knew.

Of course, I called him out, “Yo Antonio! What’s up man!” Like I knew him for 30 years…

He was cool as hell, as most of the Giants were at that time (Ron Dayne and Ralph Brown used to frequent the night club I was bouncing at). He was like, “what’s up,” and continued walking into the store.

When he went inside to order his food, I went to my car to get the New York Giant’s hard hat I just bought for work. I was working as an estimator for a demolition company back then. Anyway, my friend and I went inside to talk with him.

I asked him if I could take a picture with him while I was wearing the hard hat (my arms were bigger than his); 🤣🤣 he just laughed and said okay. And then we sat down, and I asked him a million questions about the Super Bowl they were just in. It was the year they beat the undefeated Patriots.

It was a great day. We had a friendly conversation with a lot of laughter, but I really wish I saved the picture.

I just read an article posted on the Star Ledger Online (NJ Newspaper) that was really about Herm Edwards, head coach of the Arizona Sate Sun Devils and former coach of the New York Jets, that Antonio Pierce was on his staff as a defensive coordinator, but just left to take a job with the Raiders as their new linebackers coach.

That’s the story with AP. He’s a good guy-very personable.

Herm Edwards, om the other hand, is on the hot seat at ASU, but that’s only partly because of Pierce’s departure. Apparently, he lost his offensive coordinator, five other coaches, and his QB and most important player Jayden Daniels is transferring. If that’s not enough, there’s also an investigation going on there for some reason I’m unaware of.

People love Herm Edwards, but his coaching career has been mediocre at best. He’s 25-18 in fours seasons with Arizona State, he was 39-41 in five seasons with the Jets, and 15-33 in his three seasons with the Chiefs.

We’ll see what happens there. Herm might be the next one leaving town.

Big Bang Return; Happy New Year!

Let me begin this post by saying Happy New Year! It’s 2022, and I’m excited. I’m excited for the start of a brand new year, and I’m excited for the opportunity to be writing again. You wouldn’t believe how hard it was not to write.

I was driving on the evening of 12/30/2021 when I saw this truck next to me at the red light. I took as a sign of hope for the New Year. Spiritually speaking, the anchor you see there means voyage, rest, problems solved, and security.

Every day I’d look at my laptop, and have to fight the temptation to post. “We’re off until the 6th of January, I kept reminding myself-this is a break, it’s a break that’s necessary, deserved, and it should be enjoyed.”

And I think that’s how we should look at breaks or vacations in general. A lot of people feel guilty when they’re on break, but that time away is just as important as the work we do all year. If I could make a gym reference; some people who lift weights, usually the beginners, think they have to lift weights every single day of the week to get the results they’re looking for. And then one day they get tired and burn out. That’s when they research and discover the importance of taking a break and putting time in between their workout routines so they can recover and heal. The break is actually the secret that promotes growth. Getting in shape is 50% physical and 50% nutrition and rest.

In preparation for the upcoming year I treated myself to a full body-deep tissue massage for one hour. I went to Artisans, and it was absolutely amazing.

I won’t feel guilty anymore and neither should you!

Okay, lets look ahead a little bit. New year resolutions-do you have some? What would you like to accomplish? What do you want to change, preserve, throw out, or add to your life? Are you in a better position right now, January 5, 2022, then you were on this day in 2021?

“Be at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let every new year find you a better man.”
BEN FRANKLIN

On the basis of government’s role in America; If some of our Founding Fathers and early presidents were Freemasons, and Freemasons were at one time Templar Knights who were established to protect the innocent traveling to the Holy Land, then doesn’t it reinforce the establishment of our government with the purposes of protecting the people and promoting life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness? It does, but I never looked at this way until I started watching shows about the Templars.

One of our final posts of 2021, was very brief. It’s possible you scrolled past it and didn’t even notice it was there, but it was. “NCAA College Football Money Picks” We picked Alabama over Cincinnati with Cincinnati getting 13.5, and that covered. If you paid the one time subscriber fee, then you saw the second pick; We picked Michigan getting the points against Georgia, but Georgia clobbered the Wolverines and we were 50% against the spread.

During the next NCAA College Football season, we are going to pick 10 games every week. This is for those who love wagering up on a game, and trust me, we crush the spread. We’re going to give you our 10 picks for free for the first two or three weeks. After that it will be $10 per week (premium content fee) for our 10 BEST PICKS. Test it out, and take our picks. What do you have to loose? See how we do, and if you’re satisfied, stick with us. Let us make you money!

I was listening to Jimmy Church, he has a podcast called Fade to Black, and he said if you cover your house with 2,683 LED lights your house will be visible to the International Space Station! I thought that was interesting.

Well, it’s January 5th, and we are officially saying Happy New Year and this is our return and first post of 2022. It’s a little late, but we’re doing it right this year. Over here, this is what 2022 will be about; If you’re not a follower, and you have a hard time working or doing anything under the watchful eye and guidance of another, 2022 is about you stepping up and taking the reins. Whatever your issue is, 2022 is about you finally doing something to change it. Take the reins!

Have a blessed evening and a great day tomorrow.

Why Not Me?

I wrote that article about Ohio State on August 11th. If you scroll the internet you’ll see all the similar articles that came out a day or two later.

It’s clear when it comes to sports journalism, I’m the cutting edge and the source.

I just can’t figure how and why people with less ability, people who are less knowledgeable, and people with less love and passion for the game of football are getting paid to write, and I’m not.

A full-time job with a reputable magazine, news paper publication, or university; why not me? I’m qualified. I’m educated. I’m a professional with the skills and ability.

Why not me?

What Are Those Buckeyes Up To?

Ryan Day and the rest of the Ohio State coaching staff are working extra hard to prepare this 2021 Buckeye football team. In an interview, Day has used words like competition and camaraderie, which is a good sign. It means the team, with all the offseason changes and newcomers are coming together as a unit, and peaking at the right time we all hope. Well, us Buckeye fans anyway. Coach Day has also talked about physical and mental preparation and toughness.

He encourages his team to visualize, and visualization is no doubt important. You prepare for something, you visualize yourself doing it, and then you go out and execute. This season, coach Day will expect his team to prepare, visualize, and execute for the entire season-a 12-game season that ends in Ann Arbor on November 27th with a rivalry game against the Michigan Wolverines.

Ohio State didn’t play Michigan last season, and they didn’t play twelve games either. With all the real world issues going on that cut into my beloved football season, the Buckeyes only played five regular season games before meeting Northwestern in the Big Ten Championship.

In the regular season finale, OSU beat Michigan State 52-12. They beat Northwestern in the Big Ten Championship game 22-10, and those two wins basically set the stage for the Sugar Bowl showdown against #2 Clemson. The Buckeyes won 49-28.

Ohio State’s 2020 season ended on January 11th with a 52-24 loss to Alabama in the 2021 CFP National Championship game.

Winning is now an expectation at Ohio State so you can bet Coach Day and company are preparing with their eyes on the prize….and Michigan too. Like I said, there has been some changes and newcomers this offseason, but things seem to be coming together.

There’s a 3-way competition going on at the quarterback position, but it looks like redshirt freshman CJ Stroud is the frontrunner. Kyle McCord and Jack Miller are battling for playing time. Stroud’s redshirt should prove to be worth it now as the 6’3″ 220 pound Quarterback has four years to play!

Whoever gets the starting job at QB will definitely have help from the wide receiver position. Senior Chris Olave provides leadership, experience, and clutch-play-making ability, and junior Garrett Wilson can be just as good. Both are up for preseason awards. Senior TE Jeremy Ruckert is big, fast, and a real threat in the seams. He’s 6″5″ 250 and a preseason candidate for the Mackey Award.

Center Harry Miller anchors an impressive offensive line. Miller and OT Thayer Munford, a 6’6″ 320 pound senior, will provide plenty of push for a productive ground game.

Three names come up often when you start talking defense are Sevyn Banks, Haskell Garrett, and Zach Harrison.

Junior DE Zach Harrison is 6’6″ 272. That’s a big man! Outland Trophy candidate, Haskell Garrett, is next to him at tackle. CB Sevyn Banks is a senior and a leader on defense. He has the speed, and at 6’1″, he has the height to compete with those big receivers we often see. Banks is up for the Bronko Nagurski Trophy and Thorpe Award.

The 2021 Ohio State Buckeye Football season opener is on Thursday, September 2nd. They’re on the road travelling to Minnesota to play the Golden Gophers. Kickoff is at 8:00 PM.

I’m looking forward to a full 12-game season, and I know every other Ohio State fan is as well!

Wisconsin Nebraska Canceled

Not even a week after opening, the Big 10 is already cancelling. According to Nick Bromberg, a writer for Yahoo Sports, Saturday’s Big 10 football matchup between the Wisconsin Badgers and the Nebraska Cornhuskers has been canceled because of COVID-19.

Apparently, twelve people within the Wisconsin program tested positive for the coronavirus.

This is the reason why I was on the fence about covering college football this season, and having said that, I would really like to recognize even though I don’t remember who they are, but those NFL players who opted out for this 2020/2021 football season. In addition, the XFL as well. They get it.

Some people would rather beat their heads against a wall, and if you haven’t realized by now that we aren’t living during normal times, then you’re going to keep setting yourself up for a letdown.

Obviously, I’m straying from college football; even though I love football, and I played it at the college level, I’ve woken up to fact that football is a game within a larger system of life (911). There are things going on today that are not only challenging our way of life as it has been for the last one-hundred years, but also calling for us to live in unpredictable ways. That’s not a bad thing.

It’s like this- if you keep doing what you’re doing, you’re going to get the predictable result, obviously, you know that, and you want that, even though it’s going to require resistance, pressure, fighting, hostility, anger, and so on, or you could turn and go the other way for a nice easy slice of heaven.

🏈The Big 10 was only planning on playing conference games this season as way to reduce the risk and spread of the virus, and I hope they’re able to do so. I love football, I’m a fan of football, and I’d like to see those games get played-and frankly, so would millions of other people.

Have a good day. I love you.

🏈💕😊