Football Friday – The Season Begins

Broncos vs Ravens

And football season is upon us with a vengeance. Super Bowl champs the Baltimore Ravens paid a visit to the Mile-High City for a rematch. If you remember last year, the Ravens bested the Broncos in overtime to move on to the Super Bowl. Mind you, the NFL Channel never let us forget it – I have seen enough replays of the end of that game to last me a lifetime.

I would venture to say that Peyton Manning and the Broncos gave the Ravens a bit of “get-back” last night.

Yes, the first half was slow. A thirty-minute rain delay coupled with the slow saunter of the Ravens onto the field didn’t bode well for the Broncos, especially when it started to rain. When the Ravens drew first blood with a touchdown, Broncos fans may have thought that the Super Bowl champs were back stronger than ever.

However, Peyton Manning is Peyton Manning and despite the absence of Von Miller on defense, Manning more than compensated with his passing game. Wes Welker showed his total catching abilities with nine catches for a total of sixty-seven yards and two touchdowns.

In addition, Demaryius “Only winners get wings” Thomas and Julian Thomas (no relation) combined for 181 yards to push the Broncos over the Ravens.

The most exciting second half I’ve seen in a long time.

And thank goodness, football season has begun!!

49-27 ……Broncos

Note: Peyton Manning ties NFL record with seven touchdown passes.

Retro Saturday – Slow Jams

A party on Saturday wasn’t fun unless you brought the slow jams out. After the fast dancing, where you got sweaty, a slow song was just the thing to keep the heart rate up while the feet got a rest. Some of the time, that was when most people took a seat and you saw who the real couples were.

Let’s take a look at some old-school retro slow jams today. Maybe you can whip them out on your significant other later on today.

Enjoy!

Between the Sheets – The Isley Brothers

The Isley Brothers knew how to sweet talk a woman with their 1983 hit “Between the Sheets” . Though a little fast for a “slow jam” it still got the blood moving in the right direction with the smooth melody and sexy words.

Sade-Is it a Crime?

Sade, Sade, Sade…there’s more in that one name than anything else. She was the queen of slow jams and quiet storms over the nation. No matter who you were, you could name at least one Sade song.

DeBarge – “All this Love”

My laws, El DeBarge was the one! I saw him on an awards show recently and he still looked good. You can’t tell me that El didn’t bring it with “All This Love”. I still love this song.

The Stylistics – Betcha By Golly Wow

I know I’m reaching way back for this one, but it’s a good one.

Prince- “Do Me Baby”

Yes, Me’lisa Morgan had her version, but it’s Prince’s song. Nuff said.

http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x9ki4c_prince-do-me-baby_music

Leave your favorite slow jam in the comments!

Retro Saturdays – Crochet and Knit Patterns

My mother was an avid crocheter. There are bags and bags of yarn in the attic that can attest to this fact. She taught me to crochet, knit and do something called “broomstick lace” when I was a child and the yearning to create with yarn hits me on and off. I try to stay out of AC Moore and Michaels when they have the yarn sales, but sometimes the colors are too eye-catching to resist.
Which brings me to crochet patterns. My mother was not an idle crocheter, no. Everything she crocheted had a purpose, whether it be a hat, scarf or, dare I say, funny looking sweater. She used to have a subscription to a magazine called Workbasket, and when I was at her house a few weeks ago, I found some old issues. Take a look at these totally retro crochet outfits.

photo courtesy of pioneerheritageshoppe.com

Crochet Wedding Dress…plus hat!

Crochet Set 1970 (Photo credit: libertygrace0)

The crochet bikini plus cover up.

Cute, but seems like it wouldn’t dry too quickly if you went into the water. All that soggy cotton….

Football Fridays – Father's Day Edition

Happy Friday everyone! My previous plan was to discuss the Tim Tebow and the New England Patriots situation, but that has already been done to death – I’m not going to add anything that isn’t already out there. So, with Father’s Day this Sunday, and given how many fathers love football, I decided to take a look at some father/son football families.

Howie Long, Chris Long, Kyle Long

Howie Long is not known for his rapping, but he’s known for being one of the most fearsome defensive lineman in his thirteen seasons with the Oakland Raiders, matching his career high of thirteen sacks in a season.

Chris Long, his oldest son is a defensive end for the St. Louis Rams and his middle son, Kyle Long was drafted by the Chicago Bears this year.

Oliver Luck and Andrew Luck

Oliver Luck spent five seasons with the now-gone Houston Oilers, drafted in the same year as Jim McMahon. Though mostly a back-up to Warren Moon, he did have modest success with the team.

Andrew Luck, a graduate of Stanford University, was chosen by the Colts as first pick overall, and went on to break several passing records for a rookie including:

Most passing yards in a single game by a rookie quarterback: 433 (vs Miami Dolphins) (11/4/12)
Most passing yards by a rookie in a single season: 4,374^[42]
Most 300+ yards passing games by a rookie QB (6)

(credit: Wikipedia)

Clay Matthews, Sr., Clay Matthews Jr, Clay Matthews III, Casey Matthews, Bruce Matthews, Kevin Matthews

26-Clay-Matthews-sack-celebration1 — Clay Matthews

This one was doozy! Not only was Clay Matthews Sr. a Korean war veteran and an Army paratrooper, he apparently could cough and spit out football players. Born in 1928, he was an offensive tackle for the San Francisco 49ers.

He is the father of Clay Matthews, Jr., a linebacker for the Cleveland Browns and the Atlanta Falcons and Bruce Matthews, an offensive guard for the Houston Oilers and Tennessee Titans.

In turn, Clay Matthews Jr. is father to Clay Matthews III, the Green Bay Packer linebacker with the long hair, Casey Matthews, linebacker on the Philadelphia Eagles.

Clay Matthews Jr’s brother, Bruce Matthews has one son in the NFL: Kevin Matthews, who just signed with the Washington Redskins

Forget the Mannings. That, dear readers, is a football family.

Happy Father’s Day!

Football Fridays – Running Backs

Running backs, also known as halfback or fullbacks (this depends on the size of the player), is sometimes the most visible player on the field. Overall, they also may have the best physique (read: hot bods) in the NFL. Wide receivers are a close second.

From the Free Online Dictionary:

running back
n. Football

An offensive back, such as a fullback or halfback, who has the responsibility of advancing the ball by running with it on plays from the line of scrimmage.

Whenever you see the quarterback hand off the football, it’s usually to a running back. If you polled a hundred football fans and asked which was the sexiest position on the team, excluding the quarterback, I reckon most would say the running back. Good running backs are hard to come by and they wear themselves out quickly on the field. The position is a taxing one because it is the most prone to taking powerful hits in addition to the wear and tear on the body, especially the knees.

However, running backs are the ones that usually provide the most exciting plays on the field.

Emmitt Smith, of recent “Dancing with the Stars” fame was the first player in NFL history to rush for 1,400 in five consecutive seasons. He holds the NFL record in career rushing yards with 18,355, breaking a record held by Walter “Sweetness” Payton of Chicago Bears fame.

Adrian “All Day”, “Purple Jesus”, Peterson is a running back for the Minnesota Vikings, hence the moniker “Purple Jesus” because those legs have saved the Vikings a time or two. In his first pro season, he set an NFL record for most rushing yards (296) in a single game.

Peterson is what we think of as a running back. His lean physique and fast legs give him the ability to weave and move through the defenders on the field, taking off like a rocket when the coast is clear.

Stats: Height: 6 ft 1 in Weight: 217 lb

Peyton Hillis

If you like your running backs with a side order of grits and cowboy hats, Peyton Hillis is your man. From Conway, Arkansas, this Razorback running back honed his skills at the University of Arkansas beside Felix Jones (of the Dallas Cowboys). Pulling pickup trucks is a part of his workout routine.

Due to his weight (250 lbs on a 6’2″ frame) Hillis is more fullback than traditional running back. A fullback can either block for the faster, more agile running back or he can rush through the defense, using his weight to make short yard plays. Fullbacks don’t gain much yardage during games, so aren’t very good for fantasy football points (I learned this lesson last year, sadly.) Hilis is good-looking, but doesn’t give much points on the fantasy board.

Hillis has played for the Denver Broncos (227 overall pick in the draft), the Cleveland Browns and the Kansas City Chiefs. And, interestingly if my sources are right, he is the only white running He is currently a free agent (which is a nice way of saying he’s “NFL unemployed“). He was also the cover boy for Madden NFL 12.

Stats: Height: 6 ft 2 in Weight: 250 lb

Arian Foster

Considered to be one of the best running backs in the NFL, Arian Foster is one of the driving forces behind the Houston Texans’ offense. Signed as an undrafted free agent by the Texans in 2009, Foster made his debut against the Tennessee Titans as a member of special teams. He scored his first NFL touchdown against the Miami Dolphins (of course). His first career start was against the New England Patriots where he rushed for 119 yards and scored two touchdowns.

In a 2010 start against the Indianapolis Colts (and Peyton Manning) he broke the record for the most rushing yards by a Houston Texans in a single game in addition to securing the most rushing yards given up to a single player by the Colts.

Stats: 6 ft 1 in, 228 lb

Ray Rice

Rice hails from my home state of New Jersey – a graduate of Rutgers University where he was the starting tailback during his freshman year. A current Baltimore Ravens (drafted 55th overall), Rice earned his first Super Bowl ring against the San Francisco earlier this year. In a 2010 wildcard playoff game against the love-to-hate New England Patriots, Rice scored an 83 yard touchdown on the first offensive play, the longest play for the Raves that season, the longest rush of hi NFL career and the second longest rush in NFL post-season history. The longest rush record in the post season is held by Fred Taylor at 90 yards.

Stats: Height: 5 ft 8 in Weight: 212 lb

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There’s your crash course on running backs. Now that you know the positions (if you didn’t know before) which running back is going to smash records this year? Peterson came close, just nine yards shy of breaking Eric Dickerson’s record of 2,106 rushing yards during the regular season.

Broncos vs Ravens

49-27 ……Broncos

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