I read about this. The reason is in HS football there is a rule, something to the effect of in some situations the defense gets the ball not where the LOS is but where the kick goes out of bounds. So I guess instead of punting from their endzone and possibly getting it blocked or giving up a long kick return, they decided to attempt a FG and it went OOB at their own 25 and the other team took over there.
This is definitely about stratifying college football even further into haves and have nots. Blueblood programs have been trying to do this for at least 50 years, why wouldn't they try to achieve their goal?
If you think that the gap between Power 4 and G6 programs is wide now, it will g et wider. What makes me scratch my head is why are there programs below Division I?
I'm trying to be open about it. The concern is that it will devalue the regular season. But for Cal, it might result in more meaningful regular season games, no? In my lifetime, no Cal team would have made a 4-team playoff, and we only would have been in the mix for a 12-team playoff three times ('91, '04, '06). But we've been in the top 25 many times, and a Cal team playing in November for a chance at the playoffs is much, much more compelling than such a team playing for a slightly better pre-New Year's Day bowl.
I dunno. Next year, when the SEC and BigTen get like 16 of the 19 at-large bids because of "strength of schedule", that'll only encourage the ACC's potential defectors to bounce. UNC, FSU, Clemson will all feel like they've been relegated by being in the ACC, and they'll try again to get out.
I definitely have become convinced that the world is on a mission to break everything I ever liked about sports. Stealing the A's, stealing the Raiders, moving the Warriors to a more corporate arena out of Oakland, obliterating the Pac-10/12, changing a perfect March Madness for no good reason, and now this. Great job, everybody.
continuing saga of me realizing how different parenting is in the current moment as well as in TN. although this might be more my individual experience since our kids didnt do any of the "standard sports"
i took 8 yr old to there weeknight soccer practice. about a 30 min drive for a 90 min practice so there was no real option other than to stay there.
the venue was a dedicated soccer/lacrosse/horse riding/tennis complex. there must have been 100's of kids and coaches at all different level practicing for these travel teams.
the amount of time/effort/money that goes in the kids athletic achievement was pretty staggering. i am sure this is on infinite repeat all over the country in an effort to get kids ready to play competitively in HS.
gone are the days where you play these sports for fun. or so it seems ...
Totally. Club/travel sports dominates, which means your family has to be at least middle class to participate. If your family can't afford to put you on a club team, you simply aren't going to make the school team. We're cutting out a massive slice of potential athletes.
Travel ball has been the worst thing to happen to rec leagues, at least in baseball. Parents think that their kids have to play travel ball to succeed so you have lots of teams that have like 4 good kids (coaches kids) and then fillers. Which means that rec league players are way down compared to even just 10-15 years ago when my kids were going through it. I bet a lot of the little league WS teams play on the same travel ball team outside of rec ball to prep them for the LLWS.
I suppose on the plus side, I love tournament weekends for travel volleyball. The other parents are pretty fun and it's sort of a nice mini-vacay where I don't have to do any chores around the house. I get to eat out a bunch and maybe have a drink or two at the hotel bar. And my wife sometimes doesn't want to go, so she credits me as "helping" when I do. Win/win/win.
I am less knowledgeable about basketball, so I'm keen to hear others' opinions. I read somewhere that basketball is less about having a superstar who can score for you than about avoiding having weak point(s) that contribute less in the 5-on-5 aspect of the game. If you got a good sixth man, you probably have a very good team. I also read that the creation of the Valks was very much a Frankenstein approach of a team of good players, some who are stronger at certain aspects of the game, buying into the coaches' system, plus a bit of luck with the strongest teams getting upset in the earlier championship rounds.
The Valkyries had the best bench in the league. During the regular season, they played more of their bench for longer minutes than any other team by far. This continued into the first two rounds of the playoffs, but, interestingly, not the finals.
That other Golden State Team, in their great seasons not too long ago, also played their bench a lot more. Their Strength in Numbers motto was adopted by the Valkyries.
I don't know how true this is for the MNBA (the men's side) because every champion in our lifetime has had at least one star, if not a superstar. I can't think of a single exception.
I'd argue it isn't true for the W, either, because Gabby Williams is absolutely a star, as HSB points out.
yes, that is about right. the superstar certainly helps in those crunch moments but overall they say "defense wins championships" which is a team sport.
also, the Valks didnt really have a true superstar even though Gabby Williams sort of developed into one along the way.
That's the thing, I think they needed Gabby to develop into that or else they don't win the title. You need both: a strong top-to-bottom roster (or at least a strong rotation of 6-8 players you can rely on) and a reliable star who can take over when needed.
"Defense wins championships" is true. There's another corollary observation/cliche - you're only as strong as your weakest link. That applies to defense far more than it does to offense. I would argue that superstars are superstars because they are remarkably good both on offense AND defense.
And yet, the fate of a team over the course of a season is likely in the bench.
I had started to write a response above that the weakest link can definitely be exposed. I thought about 2018 Warriors Rockets when Steph kept forcing Ryan Anderson to switch onto him and making him go in circles. D'Antoni wanted RA out there for 3 point shooting because that's what they wanted to go along with Harden. But the Warriors just kept spamming Steph vs RA all the way to a victory.
California Women's Tennis sophomore Laura Cilekova qualified for the 2026 NCAA Singles Championships following her strong performance at the ITA West Sectionals this weekend in Los Angeles. Cilekova advanced to the quarterfinals of the singles main draw and won her playoff match to secure her spot in the national championship field.
The California softball team announced its 52-game schedule for the 2027 campaign Monday, headlined by the grand opening of its brand-new stadium.
The Golden Bears, led by head coach Steve Singleton in his second season, will face 11 opponents that qualified for last year's NCAA Championship and seven that finished the season nationally ranked. Cal will compete in three tournaments to begin the 2027 campaign, including two at home in its new stadium.
The 129th rendition of the Big Game between California football and Stanford will kick off at 4:30 p.m. PT at Databricks Field at California Memorial Stadium on November 21. The rivalry matchup will be aired live on the ACC Network.
Ugh...I'm flying to NYC on the red-eye that night so I was hoping for a 2:30 latest so that I could go home for a little bit before flying out. Now I'll probably just bring my stuff and go to the airport and hopefully just enjoy the lounge.
Interesting article. Seems to me that the NHL has gotten more and more niche. It's like the way Jerry Garcia once described the Grateful Dead: their music isn't for everyone, but the people who like it, REALLY like it.
The NHL has diehard fans but not many casual fans, even here in the Northeast. This means they're counting on the same people going to dozens of games each season. And then they priced those people out from doing exactly that, so empty seats are what happens.
Move necessary due to Gardner Minshew out for season with elbow problem, Tommy John surgery. I suspect the Cards will have him rehab for a year, throw short toss off flat ground, move him to the mound on a limited pitch count, before moving him up the minor leagues. Next man up is Carson Beck, who has yet to debut in an NFL game.
We have school bus cameras here in New York State. They're fine. People know they're supposed to stop for school buses. There's kids crossing the street.
The Asset. (13/19 WB, Netflix). A Danish series on Netflix that is about a police cadet is recruited by a state organization to infiltrate a drug dealer's family. Not a bad series at all.
I'm watching Disney's "The Dropout" in the wake of seeing A24 "You Can See Everything". There are obvious dramatizations of things that would never happen in real life, but the fact that Elizabeth Holmes hasn't sued the pants off Disney is telling that a) the major plot points in the series are probably true and b) Holmes has way, way more skeletons in her closet that would come out in discovery if she did. Again, I saw the You Can See Everything and was absolutely gobsmacked by what an obvious sociopath she was, but almost nobody else could see what I saw. Psychopaths generally don't have tells because they are living their reality. Sociopaths do have tells because they are trying to live a life that isn't theirs.
I'd like to think the Calgorithm, specifically people who are active on this site, is partly responsible for suing people now, which is Jordon's full-time job.
Analog observations
High school goes viral after attempting a 104-yard field goal
https://share.google/zY7wQf0xdPOBZ0SjA
I read about this. The reason is in HS football there is a rule, something to the effect of in some situations the defense gets the ball not where the LOS is but where the kick goes out of bounds. So I guess instead of punting from their endzone and possibly getting it blocked or giving up a long kick return, they decided to attempt a FG and it went OOB at their own 25 and the other team took over there.
this is me being out of touch. what is a "prominent grommet"?
see at Planet Fitness in Franklin TN today
Dress Code
Jeans or pants with prominent grommets, open-toed shoes, and clothing that includes lewd or offensive messaging are prohibited.
Thank You!
https://photos.app.goo.gl/Dy5kMufqxX8hF3K68
Maybe workout gear that shows too much?
the jean w/ grommets i saw on the internet dont look so bad
COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF EXPANSION
How do we feel about this?
This is definitely about stratifying college football even further into haves and have nots. Blueblood programs have been trying to do this for at least 50 years, why wouldn't they try to achieve their goal?
If you think that the gap between Power 4 and G6 programs is wide now, it will g et wider. What makes me scratch my head is why are there programs below Division I?
I'm trying to be open about it. The concern is that it will devalue the regular season. But for Cal, it might result in more meaningful regular season games, no? In my lifetime, no Cal team would have made a 4-team playoff, and we only would have been in the mix for a 12-team playoff three times ('91, '04, '06). But we've been in the top 25 many times, and a Cal team playing in November for a chance at the playoffs is much, much more compelling than such a team playing for a slightly better pre-New Year's Day bowl.
RIP College Football
The only silver lining is that this probably does help slow down the realignment wave for a bit.
I dunno. Next year, when the SEC and BigTen get like 16 of the 19 at-large bids because of "strength of schedule", that'll only encourage the ACC's potential defectors to bounce. UNC, FSU, Clemson will all feel like they've been relegated by being in the ACC, and they'll try again to get out.
Sounds like this is going to eliminate most bowls. If the Sun Bowl is among the casualties, JimmyChitwood's gonna need a hug.
I definitely have become convinced that the world is on a mission to break everything I ever liked about sports. Stealing the A's, stealing the Raiders, moving the Warriors to a more corporate arena out of Oakland, obliterating the Pac-10/12, changing a perfect March Madness for no good reason, and now this. Great job, everybody.
Parenting these days
continuing saga of me realizing how different parenting is in the current moment as well as in TN. although this might be more my individual experience since our kids didnt do any of the "standard sports"
i took 8 yr old to there weeknight soccer practice. about a 30 min drive for a 90 min practice so there was no real option other than to stay there.
the venue was a dedicated soccer/lacrosse/horse riding/tennis complex. there must have been 100's of kids and coaches at all different level practicing for these travel teams.
the amount of time/effort/money that goes in the kids athletic achievement was pretty staggering. i am sure this is on infinite repeat all over the country in an effort to get kids ready to play competitively in HS.
gone are the days where you play these sports for fun. or so it seems ...
Totally. Club/travel sports dominates, which means your family has to be at least middle class to participate. If your family can't afford to put you on a club team, you simply aren't going to make the school team. We're cutting out a massive slice of potential athletes.
Travel ball has been the worst thing to happen to rec leagues, at least in baseball. Parents think that their kids have to play travel ball to succeed so you have lots of teams that have like 4 good kids (coaches kids) and then fillers. Which means that rec league players are way down compared to even just 10-15 years ago when my kids were going through it. I bet a lot of the little league WS teams play on the same travel ball team outside of rec ball to prep them for the LLWS.
I suppose on the plus side, I love tournament weekends for travel volleyball. The other parents are pretty fun and it's sort of a nice mini-vacay where I don't have to do any chores around the house. I get to eat out a bunch and maybe have a drink or two at the hotel bar. And my wife sometimes doesn't want to go, so she credits me as "helping" when I do. Win/win/win.
I agree with you, but our opinion would make us pariahs in certain circles.
TEAM
I am less knowledgeable about basketball, so I'm keen to hear others' opinions. I read somewhere that basketball is less about having a superstar who can score for you than about avoiding having weak point(s) that contribute less in the 5-on-5 aspect of the game. If you got a good sixth man, you probably have a very good team. I also read that the creation of the Valks was very much a Frankenstein approach of a team of good players, some who are stronger at certain aspects of the game, buying into the coaches' system, plus a bit of luck with the strongest teams getting upset in the earlier championship rounds.
https://www.espn.com/wnba/story/_/id/50319552/finals-2026-golden-state-valkyries-champion
The Valkyries had the best bench in the league. During the regular season, they played more of their bench for longer minutes than any other team by far. This continued into the first two rounds of the playoffs, but, interestingly, not the finals.
That other Golden State Team, in their great seasons not too long ago, also played their bench a lot more. Their Strength in Numbers motto was adopted by the Valkyries.
I don't know how true this is for the MNBA (the men's side) because every champion in our lifetime has had at least one star, if not a superstar. I can't think of a single exception.
I'd argue it isn't true for the W, either, because Gabby Williams is absolutely a star, as HSB points out.
yes, that is about right. the superstar certainly helps in those crunch moments but overall they say "defense wins championships" which is a team sport.
also, the Valks didnt really have a true superstar even though Gabby Williams sort of developed into one along the way.
That's the thing, I think they needed Gabby to develop into that or else they don't win the title. You need both: a strong top-to-bottom roster (or at least a strong rotation of 6-8 players you can rely on) and a reliable star who can take over when needed.
"Defense wins championships" is true. There's another corollary observation/cliche - you're only as strong as your weakest link. That applies to defense far more than it does to offense. I would argue that superstars are superstars because they are remarkably good both on offense AND defense.
And yet, the fate of a team over the course of a season is likely in the bench.
I had started to write a response above that the weakest link can definitely be exposed. I thought about 2018 Warriors Rockets when Steph kept forcing Ryan Anderson to switch onto him and making him go in circles. D'Antoni wanted RA out there for 3 point shooting because that's what they wanted to go along with Harden. But the Warriors just kept spamming Steph vs RA all the way to a victory.
DIGITAL DIVERSIONS
Worldle
I know exactly where the answer is but blanking. onthe name.
famous for momo's, yaks, and sherpas and tall mountains
#Worldle #1754 (10.11.2026) 5/6 (100%)
🔥 Current Win Streak: 2 days
🟩🟩🟩⬜⬜↖️
🟩🟩🟩🟨⬜➡️
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟨➡️
🟩🟩🟩🟩⬜⬆️
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩🎉
https://worldle.teuteuf.fr/share
Yes thank you. Not sure why I was blanking on it.
Quordle
🙂 Daily Quordle 1751
4️⃣5️⃣
7️⃣6️⃣
m-w.com/games/quordle/
Wordle
Wordle 1,970 3/6
⬜⬜⬜🟨🟩
⬜🟩⬜⬜⬜
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
WordleBot
Skill 89/99
Luck 78/99
Wordle 1,970 4/6*
⬛🟨⬛🟨🟩
🟩🟩⬛⬛🟩
🟩🟩⬛⬛🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
Wordle 1,970 3/6
⬜⬜⬜🟨🟩
🟩🟩⬜🟩🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
WordleBot
Skill 91/99
Luck 78/99
Kicking myself for not going with my gut in the 2nd guess.
indeed. that was close.
i was satisfied w/ 3 today
Wordle 1,970 3/6*
🟩⬛🟨⬛⬛
🟩🟩⬛⬛🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
WordleBot
Skill 94/99
Luck 76/99
Wordle 1,970 4/6
There were two words that it could have been after the second guess. I guessed the wrong one.
⬜⬜⬜🟨🟨
⬜🟩🟩⬜🟩
⬜🟩🟩🟨🟩
🟩🟩🟩🟩🟩
yup. that almost happened to me
CAL
[WTEN] Cilekova Qualifies For NCAA Singles Championships At ITA West Sectionals
https://calbears.com/news/2026/11/9/womens-tennis-cilekova-qualifies-for-ncaa-singles-championships-at-ita-west-regionals
California Women's Tennis sophomore Laura Cilekova qualified for the 2026 NCAA Singles Championships following her strong performance at the ITA West Sectionals this weekend in Los Angeles. Cilekova advanced to the quarterfinals of the singles main draw and won her playoff match to secure her spot in the national championship field.
[SB] Softball Unveils 2027 Schedule, Set For New Stadium Debut
https://calbears.com/news/2026/11/9/softball-unveils-2027-schedule-set-for-new-stadium-debut
The California softball team announced its 52-game schedule for the 2027 campaign Monday, headlined by the grand opening of its brand-new stadium.
The Golden Bears, led by head coach Steve Singleton in his second season, will face 11 opponents that qualified for last year's NCAA Championship and seven that finished the season nationally ranked. Cal will compete in three tournaments to begin the 2027 campaign, including two at home in its new stadium.
[FB] 129th Big Game Kickoff Time Announced
https://calbears.com/news/2026/11/9/football-129th-big-game-kickoff-time-announced
The 129th rendition of the Big Game between California football and Stanford will kick off at 4:30 p.m. PT at Databricks Field at California Memorial Stadium on November 21. The rivalry matchup will be aired live on the ACC Network.
Ugh...I'm flying to NYC on the red-eye that night so I was hoping for a 2:30 latest so that I could go home for a little bit before flying out. Now I'll probably just bring my stuff and go to the airport and hopefully just enjoy the lounge.
Go BEARS!
PRO
Raiders trade Kirk Cousins to the Vikings for a 3rd. Ladies and Gentleman, your starting Raiders QB: Fernando Mendoza!
younger child will be happy to have Cousins back to Vikings.
Shark's 19-year-old first-round pick doesn't get all fancy fakey with his shot. Just a wrist shot so hard that you can't see it.
https://x.com/SanJoseSharks/status/2120034813738680395
Sharks win in shootout, 3-2.
Previous 11 players on the shootout didn't score. I was rooting for the goalies to go against each other.
Why ha$ NHL attendance dropped $o dramatically?
https://www.yardbarker.com/nhl/articles/why_has_nhl_attendance_dropped_so_dramatically/s1_15245_44532574
Interesting article. Seems to me that the NHL has gotten more and more niche. It's like the way Jerry Garcia once described the Grateful Dead: their music isn't for everyone, but the people who like it, REALLY like it.
The NHL has diehard fans but not many casual fans, even here in the Northeast. This means they're counting on the same people going to dozens of games each season. And then they priced those people out from doing exactly that, so empty seats are what happens.
Nacua to the IR
https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/50435879/rams-nacua-likely-hit-ir-mcl-pcl-sprain-turf-toe
They should sign Jacob De Jesus
Warriors squeak by the Pelicans by 51. Jimmy Butler dresses like the coaches as a gag
https://www.espn.com/nba/story/_/id/50439821/warriors-beat-pelicans-51-points-8th-straight-win
Game 11 wrap: (no spoiler title)
https://dubnationhq.com/p/game-11-wrap-no-spoiler-title
i watched the start of this game as a W's just kept adding to the lead and scoring easily. nice to see a low-drama W's win. pretty rare these days.
Journeyman
https://x.com/YahooSports/status/2119947057108566316
Move necessary due to Gardner Minshew out for season with elbow problem, Tommy John surgery. I suspect the Cards will have him rehab for a year, throw short toss off flat ground, move him to the mound on a limited pitch count, before moving him up the minor leagues. Next man up is Carson Beck, who has yet to debut in an NFL game.
https://www.cbssports.com/nfl/news/cardinals-gardner-minshew-feared-torn-ucl-could-out-for-season-report
Carson Wentz with the 2.3 QBR for the Vikes. Also, Keleki Latu scored his first NFL touchdown for the Bills.
https://www.espn.com/nfl/game/_/gameId/401873051/bills-vikings
Forgot to mention, Jayden Ott carried the ball 3 times for about 16 yards at the end of the Chiefs game.
Remigio had a 68 yard return called back due to a penalty.
Neither is listed as being from Cal, but we know better!
The fact that Ott made an NFL roster gives credence to the idea that OU was benching him to avoid paying out the incentives in his contract.
Man, what a mistake it was for him to leave.
after watching the Vikes play so poorly last night it is a wonder that they got off to a 6-0 start purely on the strength of a good defense.
the D kept them in the game for quite a while. they were only down 13-6 at half despite a zillion offensive mistakes (3 turnovers).
POLITICS
Went down to check this out on my run this morning.
https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2026/11/09/statue-mocking-trumps-bone-spurs-appears-national-mall-before-veterans-day/
Are we going to ignore Toey, the 6 foot tall bone spur mascot? Bone spur mascot suits ain't cheap these days.
Toey was not around when I went by.
"Am I so out of touch? No. It's the children who are wrong."
https://www.the-independent.com/news/world/americas/us-politics/mike-johnson-midterms-house-democrats-b3082093.html
So awkward
https://x.com/ktullymcmanus/status/2119878876436611289
Florida school bus/revenue generators about to go brrrrrrrrrttt...
https://www.techspot.com/news/114489-america-school-buses-becoming-ai-powered-ticket-machines.html
We have school bus cameras here in New York State. They're fine. People know they're supposed to stop for school buses. There's kids crossing the street.
DBD AV CLUB
The Asset. (13/19 WB, Netflix). A Danish series on Netflix that is about a police cadet is recruited by a state organization to infiltrate a drug dealer's family. Not a bad series at all.
I'm watching Disney's "The Dropout" in the wake of seeing A24 "You Can See Everything". There are obvious dramatizations of things that would never happen in real life, but the fact that Elizabeth Holmes hasn't sued the pants off Disney is telling that a) the major plot points in the series are probably true and b) Holmes has way, way more skeletons in her closet that would come out in discovery if she did. Again, I saw the You Can See Everything and was absolutely gobsmacked by what an obvious sociopath she was, but almost nobody else could see what I saw. Psychopaths generally don't have tells because they are living their reality. Sociopaths do have tells because they are trying to live a life that isn't theirs.
Sounds like you are speaking from experience with such folks?
ELSEWHERE IN COLLEGE
I'd like to think the Calgorithm, specifically people who are active on this site, is partly responsible for suing people now, which is Jordon's full-time job.
https://www.espn.com/college-football/story/_/id/50436013/belichick-ex-girlfriend-hudson-files-suit-ring-cam-video