DIRTY DOZEN

This was the worst effort the Patriots have mustered this season. There were so many mistakes, bad blocks, bad cuts, poor pickups, crappy tackles, and the dropped passes, my God, the dropped passes!

Yet despite themselves - along with the cheering of Don Shula and Torny Kornheiser in the ESPN booth - the Patriots came out on top, improving their record to 12-0. This is the first time in franchise history that they have reached 12-0.

The first drive of the game saw the first of many miscues by the Patriots. After getting the ball to the 1 yard line, the Pats were forced to settle for a field goal. On 1st and goal, Ray Lewis made an amazing play to dislodge the ball from Ben Watson's hands. On 2nd and goal, Heath Evans was dragged to the ground for a 2 yard loss. On 3rd and goal, Brady was able to avoid pressure with a few smart steps, found Watson open in the back of the end zone, threw the ball, and Watson dropped it. Instead of a quick 7 point lead for New England, Baltimore got a moral victory with a goal line stand.

The Ravens didn't do much with their next drive, neither did the Patriots. On 3rd and 11 from their 29, the Ravens pulled off a big play. Boller threw a 53 yard pass to Devard Darling. The play was one of those plays that is inches away from being a big play for the other team. Adalius Thomas and Jarvis Green had Boller on the run. Thomas missed an arm tackle, and Boller got the ball away down the field. Samuel dove for the pick and was just late. Darling then tooled Brandon Meriweather and ran down the field before Sanders stopped him.



After some McGahee runs, the Ravens got the ball to the New England 4. On 3rd and goal, Thomas was once again close to making a big play. Adalius was right about to slap the ball out of Boller's hands when the Baltimore QB threw a bullet to Derrick Mason. 7-3 Baltimore.



The Patriots went three and out in response. McGahee was the center piece of another Ravens drive, but the Patriots held Baltimore to a field goal. 10-3 Ravens.

The Pats made two big adjustments for their next drive: they went to a no huddle shotgun, and Kevin Faulk was given the ball.



The Ravens countered by never letting go of Randy Moss, holding him, knocking him down, hitting him in the face. They were only called twice for it, but there was clear interference/holding on three occasions.



The Patriots were able to get down to the 1, and Evans punched it in. 10-10.



The Ravens went 3 and out, then the Patriots went 3 and out, then the Ravens went 3 and out.

The Pats had the ball and 3 timeouts at their 36 with 1:04 on the clock in the 2nd. Brady threw deep down the right to Moss, who had beaten double coverage. The pass, however, was underthrown. But Ed Reed's shot to Moss's facemask was thrown properly. Reed had his back to the ball, and basically jammed his hand in Randy's face. The ball fell incomplete and no flags were thrown. It seemed like a clear case of defensive pass interference, but it was not called.

The next play was one of the most bizarre you'll see in the NFL. Brady dropped back, and threw to Wes Welker. But Welker was being held before and after the ball was released. This allowed Ed Reed to step up and pick off the pass. Reed returned it up the field where he met Mister Kevin Faulk, a.k.a. Troy Brown II. Faulk laid a PERFECT tackle on Reed, clasping his arms around Reed's waist, and dragging him down, simultaneously stripping the Baltimore safety of the ball. Watson was able to fall on it and the Patriots got a new set of downs. It was, without a doubt, the best tackle any Patriot made all night.

The Patriots ran out the clock and went into the locker room tied 10-10.

Baltimore came out in the 2nd half with more Willis McGahee, who had 5 carries for 31 yards on a 63 yard TD drive. 17-10 Ravens.



The Patriots running backs responded with an impressive drive of their own. Maroney rushed 4 times for 11 yards, and had a massive 36 yard reception. Faulk contributed with 3 carries for 10 yards. Brady eventually found Moss in the end zone to tie the game at 17.



Once again, the Ravens marched down the field with more Willis McGahee and another touchdown. 24-17 Baltimore.



The Pats went three and out, thanks in large part to back-to-back sacks. I'm pretty sure this was the first time Brady has been taken down on two consecutive plays.





Yamon Figurs returned the punt 33 yards, and after a penalty, the Ravens started their drive from the New England 26. They were only 26 yards from putting a nail in the coffin. Instead, Kyle Boller's true colors shone through. Boller threw a dumb pass seemingly intended for James Sanders. Funnily enough, it appeared as though Sanders was covered by Rodney Harrison underneath and Asante Samuel over the top. Sanders ran back the pick for 42 yards.

The big play of the ensuing drive was an outlet pass to Maroney that turned into a 43 yard gain. Unfortunately, the Patriots were unable to put the ball in the end zone. Moss had a ball bounce off his fingertips, and Kyle Brady dropped a pass. Gostkowski hit a field goal to make it a 24-20 game.

The Pats D finally stepped up and stopped McGahee, forcing a three and out.

A late hold call stalled the Patriots drive, and with 5:33 on the clock, were forced to punt.

The defense once again remained strong, stopping McGahee a yard shy of getting a first down.

The Patriots' last drive was a crazy one, to say the least. They got the ball on their 27 yard line, needing a touchdown in the 3:30 remaining.

Brady hit Watson at midfield for a 23 yard gain. Faulk dropped a ball, then caught one for 9 yards. On 3rd and 1, Brady snuck for 2 and a 1st down.

After a pair of incompletions, Brady hit Faulk in the middle. Kevin did something very strange. Even though it was 3rd and 10, and he was well short of the first down line, he ran almost directly for the sideline. Had Faulk dove, he would have gotten the first down with ease. Instead it would be 4th and 1.

The Patriots tried a quick snap sneak and were apparently stopped, but the Ravens had called timeout before the play. Then Evans got the ball on a fullback dive, and was tackled for a loss, but the play had been whistled dead due to a false start. On 4th and 6, Brady was given a huge hole, and he scrambled for a 12 yard gain. A 5 yard defensive holding flag put the ball on the Baltimore 18.

Faulk ran up the middle for 5 yards. A pair of incompletions brought about 4th and 5. Brady's pass to Watson in the end zone was tipped for an incomplete, but Jamaine Winborne was flagged for illegal contact. Winborne held Watson from the snap to the whistle.

On the next play, Brady hit Gaffney in the corner of the end zone. 27-24 New England.



A couple of personal fouls brought about the rarely seen kickoff from the receiving team's 30 yard line.

The Ravens had 0:44 and 1 timeout. Boller used the middle of the field, and got to their 45 yard line. They then took two shots at the end zone. The first was dropped by Meriwether, even though it hit him right between the numbers. The second was caught on the 2 by Mark Clayton (after Asante Samuel was tackled by a Ravens receiver), but Eric Alexander brought Clayton down to end the game.

Some might say that the Patriots were lucky, or that they benefited from the officiating, or that beating a 4-7 Baltimore team by 3 isn't much of a victory. To these people, I say "Shut up!" The officiating went against the Patriots for the first three quarters. I challenge anyone to show me a bad call in the 4th quarter that benefited the Patriots.

The Patriots played like crap and still won. And when it came to a head in the 4th quarter, the defense made big stands, the offense made big plays. Meanwhile, the Ravens were too busy holding Randy Moss, and throwing flags around to win the game.

That being said, the Patriots cannot play like this against Pittsburgh and expect to win.

If the Patriots beat the Steelers next Sunday, they will clinch a first round bye. If the Pats win, and the Colts lose, they will clinch home field advantage throughout the playoffs.

BC GETS SCREWED...AGAIN

It's amazing how in college football, one game can completely change a season. Had Boston College won the ACC title game, they would be in the Orange Bowl, probably facing Kansas (which is a very winnable game). They could go on to be Orange Bowl champs, and maybe finish in the top 5 after everything is all said in done.

Instead, BC played like crap, racked up tons of penalties, squandered multiple red zone opportunities, had kicks blocked (and returned), went away from running the ball, and generally played horribly. This caused a loss to Virginia Tech. And now, BC finds themselves in the Champs Sports Bowl.

For those of you who might not know, college bowls are almost all associated with conferences. The ACC has several affiliated bowls, and there is a hierarchy to them. Here is what the hierarchy looks like:

1. The Orange Bowl: A BCS Bowl played in Miami since 1935. The Orange Bowl has doubled as the national title game twice, and is one of the most prestigious bowls in college football. The Orange Bowl will be on Fox this year.

2. The Gator Bowl: A Major Bowl played in Jacksonville since 1946. Along with games like the Cotton Bowl, this is one of the most coveted non-BCS bowls. It is played on January 1st, which is the most coveted date for a bowl game (except, of course, playing in the Championship Game). The Gator Bowl will be broadcast on CBS.

3. The Peach Bowl: Played in Atlanta since 1968, this game pits an ACC team against one from the SEC. This often leads to two powerhouses squaring off. Last year, Georgia played Virginia Tech. The year before, LSU played Miami. ESPN will carry the Peach Bowl.

4A. The Champs Sports Bowl: This game has been played since 1990. It's been played in two different cities (first Miami, then Orlando), and has had 8 different names, and 6 different major sponsors. It is not a prestigious bowl. Only recently has it been played after Christmas. This game is on ESPN.

4B. The Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl Presented by Bridgestone: This Nashville bowl game has been played since 1998, and has already been affiliated with four conferences. The ACC just recently became connected with this game. ESPN carries this game.

6A. The Meineke Car Care Bowl: This game has been played since 2002, and is already on its second title sponsor (it was once the Continental Tire Bowl). It's played in Charlotte and features teams from the ACC and Big East that were bowl eligible (over .500) and not much else. BC has won this game twice. This is another ESPN game.

6B. The Emerald Bowl: This game has been played since 2002 in San Francisco, but not in a football stadium. It's played in AT & T Park, home of the Giants. Both teams share the same sideline, split down the middle at the 50 yard line. BC has won the Emerald Bowl, but so have teams like Navy and Utah. The Emerald Bowl is on ESPN.

8. The Humanitarian Bowl: Who doesn't want to spend December in Boise? This bowl turns 10 this year. It's played in Bronco Stadium, which holds 30,000 fans. Bronco Stadium, by the way, is a campus stadium for Boise State. This game is best known as "that game on the blue field." ESPN 2 covers this game.

So why did BC go from a possible berth in the ACC's #1 bowl, to an invitation to the #4 bowl?

The Gator Bowl passed on BC because the Eagles just played a game in Jacksonville (and not too many BC fans showed up). Before the ACC title game, the Gator Bowl announced that it would not take the loser of the ACC title game. Virginia (ranked 20th) is going to the Gator Bowl.

The Peach Bowl decided to take Clemson. Clemson's campus is only 125 miles or so from Atlanta, so this makes a lot of sense.

So BC fell to the Champs Sports Bowl, which will be played Friday December 28th at 5 PM, right before the Texas Bowl and the Emerald Bowl. The Eagles will be playing the Spartans of Michigan State. MSU was 7-5 this year, and finished eighth in the Big Ten.

The good news is that BC should keep their streak alive. Boston College have won their last 7 bowl games in 7 years. Of course, all these bowl games have been those meaningless ones that you watch for 6 or 7 minutes until new shows come on the other stations at 8:00 PM.

BOSTON COLLEGE ENDS 23 YEAR DROUGHT AGAINST MIAMI

On November 23, 1984, two very special things happened: I was born, and Doug Flutie led the BC Eagles to a 47-45 win over the Miami Hurricanes.

Yesterday's 28-14 victory was nowhere near as exciting, nor nearly as well played. I doubt that in 23 years, some blogger will be boasting about being born on November 24, 2007: The day BC won a sloppy game against a dreadful Miami team. But a win is a win. And a win against Miami is a satisfying win, no matter how bad the 'Canes are.

The Eagles turned the ball over 4 times, were below average on 3rd down conversions, lost the time of possession battle, and allowed nearly 300 yards of offense. To be fair, this was an early game coming off an emotional victory in Clemson, SC. This game didn't mean too much, especially compared to last week's "Win or Die" game.

At the same time that BC beat Miami, Virginia Tech defeated Virginia 33-21, winning the Coastal Division. BC will play Virginia Tech in Jacksonville next Saturday to determine the ACC Champion.

Here's what the win against Miami does mean:

Boston College will probably be ranked 12th tomorrow, behind Missouri, West Virginia, Ohio State, Georgia, Virginia Tech, Florida, Oklahoma, USC, LSU, Hawaii, and Kansas.

Even if BC loses to Virginia Tech in the ACC title game, BC will most likely earn a berth to the Gator Bowl in Jacksonville. Although not a BCS Bowl, the Gator Bowl is one of the major bowl games. It's played on New Year's Day. The last time BC played a major bowl game was the Cotton Bowl on January 1, 1985. BC would probably play a team from the Big XII in the Gator Bowl, but a Big East opponent is also a possibility.

No matter what, BC will finish the season with at least 10 wins. Considering the fact that the Eagles started the season unranked, this is a major accomplishment.

Elsewhere in college football, UMass beat Fordham 49-35 in the first round of the Division I-AA playoffs. New Hampshire nearly beat top seeded and undefeated Northern Iowa. The UNH Wildcats went ahead 35-31 with 1:16 left in the game, but the UNI Panthers scored a touchdown with 0:07 on the clock to win 38-35.

LOWELL IS STAYING

The most popular chant at the Red Sox Championship parade was "Re-Sign Lowell." At least, that was the most popular chant on the north side of Tremont Street. Theo and the Sox apparently heard us.

Another popular mantra was "Don't Sign A-Rod." The Yankee villain opted out of his already gargantuan contract in search of more money. Scott Boras's initial demands of 10 years and $350 million were soundly ignored by the Yankees and the rest of Major League Baseball. The evildoers, however, were able to reason with Rodriguez and they settled on a "modest" contract of $275 million for 10 years. Of course, a 10% raise over what was already the biggest contract in baseball history is nothing to sneeze at.

Lowell and the Red Sox agreed on a 3 year, $37.5 million deal that will keep the 2007 World Series MVP in hitter friendly Fenway Park until 2010. Reports say that the Philadelphia Phillies offered him $50 million for 4 years (same salary, one additional year). Lowell's decision to stay with the Sox despite the better offer demonstrates two things.

#1 Lowell likes it here in Boston

#2 Lowell does not want to play in Philadelphia. Who would?

Unlike the 2004 Championship team - which saw the immediate exits of Pedro Martinez, Derek Lowe, Bronson Arroyo, and Orland Cabrera; as well as the eventual departures of Johnny Damon, Bill Mueller, Keith Foulke, Alan Embree, Kevin Millar, and Mark Bellhorn - the transition from 2007 to 2008 will see much more of the team stay intact.

It isn't even December and the following starting positions have already been determined:

C - Jason Varitek
1B - Kevin Youkilis
2B - Dustin Pedroia
3B - Mike Lowell
SS - Julio Lugo
LF - Manny Ramirez
CF - ???
RF - JD Drew
DH - David Ortiz

SP - Josh Beckett
SP - Daisuke Matsuzaka
SP - Curt Schilling
SP - Tim Wakefield (this could change)
SP - ???

What remains to be decided is what to do in center-field. The impressive late season performance of Jacoby Ellsbury almost ensured that Coco Crisp will be traded. The question mark in the rotation is due to a multitude of candidates to fill the spot as opposed to a lack of pitching. Bucholz, Lester, and Tavarez are all possibilities. And don't be surprised if Papelbon's name gets mentioned in the starting rotation mix.

The big load of question marks are for the bullpen. Papelbon is the closer, Okajima will set-up, but the Red Sox need to add more depth in this area. Manny Delcarmen has yet to emerge as a reliable set-up option. He had spurts of brilliance last year, but these were followed by stretches of mediocrity.

A healthy Brendan Donnelley should help to deepen the bullpen. Before getting injured, Donnelley had a 3.05 ERA and a 1.16 WHIP in 20.2 IP.

Moving Wakefield would also be a benefit to the relief corps. As it is, Wakefield doesn't promise to give us too many good innings as a starter. His knuckleball could prove to be an excellent change of pace from hard throwers like Beckett, setting up for another hard thrower in Papelbon. Tim's pitched out of the pen before with varying success.

The Red Sox could use a situational lefty. We could use a guy to get difficult left-handed hitters out in crucial situations. Javier Lopez SUCKS as a situational lefty. I'm sorry, but he's not that good. His ERA might have been 3.10, but his WHIP was 1.33. This season, left-handed batters hit .293 against him. That just won't cut it as a lefty reliever. Of course, teams don't NEED a situational lefty in order to win. It's just a nice thing to have.

The Sox have offered a 1 year deal to veteran Mike Timlin. If Timlin doesn't decide to retire, I'd say there's a 99% chance he will stay with the Red Sox. I can't imagine him leaving town for what is almost sure to be his last season in Major League Baseball.

For the first time in 10 years, Timlin had fewer than 60 appearances. He's no longer the work horse that he was for us in '03, '04, and '05. But he has settled into a role as an occasional set-up man and mop up pitcher.

With Timlin aging into his last year, and Okajima wearing down at the end of the season, it's apparent that the Red Sox need another set-up pitcher. As it is, here is how our bullpen might look:

Closer: Jonathan Papelbon
Set-up: Hideki Okajima
Set-up: Manny Delcarmen
Set-up: Brendan Donnelley
Mid-relief: Mike Timlin
Long-relief: Julian Tavarez

That's not a bad bullpen, but Delcarmen still has question marks surrounding him, Okajima wore out and is another year older, Timlin might not even make the 25 man roster, we've yet to see what Donnelley can give us, and Tavarez might be the biggest wild card in baseball. Adding a top set-up man will alleviate some concerns, and give Francona a multitude of late inning options.

It doesn't appear as though the Red Sox will make any massive moves this off-season. Certainly they will be involved in the trade talk surrounding Johan Santana. But I wouldn't expect any big free agent signings like we saw last year.

This doesn't mean that the team is not looking to improve. However, the best way to improve will be for the players we currently have to perform better. JD Drew and Julio Lugo are two candidates for such improvement. Dustin Pedroia will look to have a full season of success, as will Kevin Youkilis. Jacoby Ellsbury might just pan out to be the leadoff hitter we've needed since the departure of Damon. Matsuzaka will start 2008 with a full year of Major League experience under his belt. And young pitchers like Bucholz are on the verge of busting into the rotation.

2008 should prove to be an interesting year in Red Sox Nation.

PATRIOTS LAY WASTE TO BUFFALO

When was this game over? When the NFL released this year's schedule.

This game was as close to perfect as one can get. A couple of dropped balls and an intentionally grounded pass were the only glaring mistakes made by anyone on the Patriots. The Bills had one touchdown drive, but that was helped a great deal by a fortuitous broken play.

The Pats scored touchdowns on their first 7 drives, finally punting the ball in the 4th quarter. And to all the haters out there who claim that this team drives up the score in an unsportsmanlike manner, that one punt on 4th and inches should disprove that notion. Moreover, the heavy use of Eckel and Evans to end the game should also keep the haters quiet.

The Bills defense simply had no answer for the Patriots. It appeared as though they were in some sort of set-up intended to confuse the offensive line, but they wound up confusing only themselves. With an injury plagued defense like Buffalo's, full of young and inexperienced players, scheming too cleverly can be disadvantageous.

The Patriots put up 510 yards of offense, compared to Buffalo's 229. The Patriots were 8 of 11 on 3rd downs, and 2 of 2 on 4th downs. They had 30 total first downs.

Brady had another Heisman-esque performance with 373 yards passing, and 5 touchdowns. He is on pace for some ridiculous numbers. At this clip, he'll throw for 60+ TDs this season, and only 6 interceptions. He already has 3,059 yards passing, the first QB this year to surpass the 3,000 yard mark. Brady also leads the League in Completion Percentage (74.0%), Yards Per Attempt (9.50), Touchdown Percentage (11.2%, next highest is 8.6%), and of course, QB Rating at 134.0. Only three other QBs have ratings over 100.



Here are the single-season passing records that Brady is threatening to break:

Highest Passer Rating: 121.1 - 2004, Peyton Manning
Brady is at 134.0, so if he keeps everything going the way it has gone, he will beat this record. The key to this stat is TD passes and interceptions. The "bonus" rating points for TDs and the "penalty" points for INTs are huge swaying factors in QB Rating.

Most Passes Completed: 418 - 2004, Rich Gannon
Brady is on pace to complete 400 passes. If he completes 168 passes in the remaining 6 games (28 per game), then he will tie this record. However, Brett Favre is already on pace to complete 416 passes this year, so 418 might not even be enough. The 400 completions Brady is on pace for would be enough to tie the Patriots' record, set by Drew Bledsoe in 1994.

Highest Completion Percentage: 70.55 - 1982, Ken Anderson
Brady is already on pace to claim this record with a 74.0% rate of completion. However, this percentage can go down very easily with one bad game, or even one very good game. Completing 3 of every 4 passes is an immensely difficult task, even with Randy Moss and Wes Welker being receiving options.

Most Yards Gained: 5,084 - 1984, Dan Marino
Brady has an outside chance to break this record. He's currently on pace for 4,894 passing yards, which would be good enough for second place in this particular category. In order to tie Marino, Brady would have to throw 337.5 yards per game for the remaining 6 games. For any man to do that would be amazing, and with winter upon us here in New England, it would be close to inhuman.

Most Touchdown Passes: 49 - 2004, Peyton Manning
This is the record that all Patriots fans want Brady to not only surpass, but shatter. And that is precisely what he is on pace to do. Brady is averaging 3.8 TD passes a game, which puts him on a pace for 60.8 TD passes. Brady is only 11 shy of this record, and could conceivably break it within the next three weeks. But even if he is limited to two touchdowns per game for the remainder of the year, he will break the record and become the first QB in NFL history with 50 TD passes.

In summation, it is possible for Tom Brady to finish the year with 5,000+ yards, 60+ TDs, a 130.0 or so QB Rating, and a 74.0% completion percentage. He could set single season records for touchdowns, completions, completion percentage, yards, and QB rating.

But Brady isn't doing this all by himself. He's always been a great QB, but he's never had the eye popping numbers of an all-time great until this year. A big part of that success is thanks to Mister Randy Moss.



Randy leads the NFL in receiving yards with 1,052. He's on pace for 1,683 yards, and there is an outside chance that he'll break Jerry Rice's all-time record of 1,848 yards. He would have to average 132.67 yards per game in order to do so, but if he has a few massive games, like 200+ yard games, he will have a good shot to accomplish the feat. Moss is also four 100 yard games away from tying Michael Irvin's record of eleven 100 yard games in 1995. Furthermore, Moss is on pace to break Jerry Rice's record of 22 touchdown receptions in a season. Moss already has 16, and only needs a TD catch per game to tie Rice's mark.

As a team, the Patriots have scored 46 touchdowns. That puts them on pace to score over 73 TDs, which would be enough to break Miami's mark of 70, set in 1984. The Pats are also within striking distance of the single season record for yards gained per game, which is 7,075, set by St. Louis in 2000. The Patriots are currently on pace for 6,989 YPG. They'd have to average over 450 yards of offense for their remaining 6 games in order to beat the Rams' record.

The Patriots have scored 411 points and are on pace to score 658. That would obliterate the current record of 556, set by Minnesota in 1998. If the Patriots score more than 24 points per game for the rest of the year, they will break this record.

This team has scored 84 more points than any other team in the NFL. They've also allowed a mere 157 points. Only three teams have allowed fewer. The Pats have outscored their opponents by 254 points. Only six teams in the NFL (including the Patriots) have scored a TOTAL of 254 or more.

Since Bill Belichick is evil, we all know the number of points he is shooting for. If the Patriots average 42.5 points per game for the rest of the year (hardly inconceivable since they've averaged 41.1 to this point), they will reach 666 total points.

Next week, the Patriots can clinch the AFC East. If Buffalo loses to the 7-3 Jaguars in Jacksonville on Sunday afternoon, the Patriots will take the field that night having already clinched the divisional title. If Buffalo wins, the Patriots still clinch with a victory over the Eagles. In order for the Patriots to not win the division, they will have to lose every game, and the Bills will have to win every game. It is fairly certain that the Patriots will once again be AFC East Champions.

If the Patriots win their next three games (Philadelphia, @ Baltimore, Pittsburgh), they will clinch a bye in the first round of the post-season. If they win their next four games, they clinch homefield advantage throughout the AFC playoffs. All of this is regardless of what Pittsburgh or Indianapolis do.

In the past few years, we've expected nothing less than Super Bowl Championships from this team. We currently see the regular season as a struggle for homefield advantage, not a struggle to get into the playoffs. But we should not forget that this was not always the case.

This is only the 15th season of 10 or more wins in Patriots history. Six of those 10+ win seasons have occurred since 2001. Since that year, the Patriots have been over .500 for 7 seasons. Before 2001, the Patriots only had 23 seasons at or above .500. Before 2001, the Patriots had 10 post-season appearances. Since then, they're on the verge of making it 16 total appearances. At the beginning of this season, the Patriots were a single game above .500 all-time at 350-349-9.

This team, and this franchise is now something special. What we're witnessing this year may turn out to be the culmination of greatness in American sports history. Would any accomplishment be greater than a 19-0 season in the NFL? Could any team in any sport match that? The 1972 Dolphins went undefeated, but that was before the salary cap and their competition that year was below average.

We're all anticipating, even expecting a 19-0 season. None of us can imagine another team defeating the mighty Patriots. But it is important that we realize that winning the Super Bowl is the ultimate goal, not winning every single game. Obviously, winning 19 games automatically results in a Super Bowl win, but even if we lose a game, that does not mean that this team is a failure.

By the way, when the Patriots score 84 points against the Jets in a few weeks, that will be an NFL record.

SOME SOX WIN AWARDS, SOME DON'T

I know that most of the news that will be discussed in this post is not very new at all, but I've been awfully busy working at BC and Gillette Stadium sporting events. Apologies for the lateness.

Let's start off with the good news, which is the awards that Red Sox players have been honored with since the season ended.

Kevin Youkilis won a Gold Glove at first base. He had no errors playing first base for the entire regular season. He also saved errors from guys like Lugo, who have difficulty throwing with accuracy. This is Youkilis's first Gold Glove, and his first major award.

Coco Crisp seems to have gotten screwed out of winning a Gold Glove. Gold Gloves are funny awards, in that they're usually rewarded based more on reputation than performance. Moreover, all of us in Red Sox Nation saw Crisp everyday, and were impressed with his defense. We didn't get much of a chance to see Torii Hunter, Ichiro Suzuki, or Grady Sizemore. All three of whom are great outfielders. But we all knew before the season began that Ichiro and Hunter would win Gold Gloves, so long as they were healthy.

Surprisingly, Coco Crisp has never won a Gold Glove.

David Ortiz won his fourth straight Silver Slugger Award as a DH. This ties him for the all-time lead in Silver Slugger Awards at that position. He is tied with Edgar Martinez and Paul Moliter. Papi also underwent arthroscopic surgery, which was said to be a success. He played with a knee injury all year, which may have caused a reduction in power. His 35 homers was his lowest total with the Sox since 2003.

And of course Dustin Pedroia won Rookie of the Year, becoming the first Red Sox player since Nomar to win the award. Pedroia is only the 6th Red Sox player of all-time to win the award.

Josh Beckett finished 2nd in the Cy Young voting, behind C.C. Sabathia. In case you couldn't guess, Cy Young voting is done at the conclusion of the regular season, before the playoffs start. Strangely enough, Sabathia did not finish atop one of the Pitching Triple Crown categories. He was 2nd in wins with 19 (behind Beckett), 5th in ERA (behind Erik Bedard, John Lackey, Fausto Carmona, and Danny Haren), and 5th in strikeouts (behind Scott Kazmir, Johan Santana, Bedard, and Javier Vazquez).

Now I'm not saying that Beckett deserved the Cy Young more than Sabathia, but when you look at C.C.'s numbers compared to other pitchers, they just don't amaze you. I think he won for three main reasons.

#1. He threw more innings than anyone else. He made 34 starts and pitched 241 innings. That's 7.08 innings per start, which is very good.

#2. His strikeout to walk ratio was very good. He struck out 209 batters and only walked 37.

#3. He was publicized. His team went on hot stretches late in the season, passing Detroit in dramatic fashion. Every game Sabathia pitched was important. His starts were highlighted by ESPN, and we either on national television, or were heavily documented the next day on SportsCenter. He also beat Johan Santana about 4 times this year. But with the Twins' offense, that isn't too difficult. Meanwhile, Beckett and the Sox never had a "must-win-game" in the regular season. There was no dramatic winning streak or playoff push.

Despite finishing 2nd in the voting, everyone in baseball knows who the best pitcher was in 2007...

BOSTON COLLEGE DISAPOINTS AGAIN

The Boston College Eagles went down to College Park, MD on Saturday night and embarrassed themselves once again. After losing to unranked Florida State at home last week, the Eagles were out of the national title picture, but were still very much in the race for the ACC Championship and their first ever BCS Bowl berth. But after losing 42-35 to the 5-5 Terrapins, Boston College can no longer afford another slip up. The hefty cushion they had built up for themselves is now gone.

Boston College MUST win at Clemson next week in order to win the ACC Atlantic Division and go to the ACC Championship in Jacksonville. The only visiting team that has won in Clemson, SC this year has been #10 Virginia Tech. And if someone could explain to me how 8-2 Virginia Tech is ranked 10th in the AP Poll and 8-2 Boston College (who beat Virginia Tech) is ranked 18th, I'll buy them a beer. On the bright side, if BC beats Clemson, then they clinch the ACC Atlantic Division, no matter what happens in the Miami game.

The fact that BC went from 2nd in the polls all the way down to 18th is not what annoys me as a fan. It is how and why we fell. Had the Eagles lost to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg, that would be understandable. Had they lost to Clemson on the road, that would be understandable. Hell, even if they had lost to Miami, it would be understandable, because we haven't beaten Miami in 23 years.

Had Boston College played their best and lost to teams that were simply better than them, it would be understandable. But they didn't play their best. In fact, Boston College seemed to save its worst play of the season for their most important games.

In the Florida State game, it was a complete lack of any ground game that cost the Eagles. Actually, there was no attempt to run the ball at all. Matt Ryan led the team in carries with 9. Andre Callendar and L.V. Whitworth combined for 11. Of the 74 offensive plays BC ran, 62 were all up to Ryan, who had an abysmal game. The Eagles were also penalized 8 times for 121 yards.

In the Maryland game, the defense completely collapsed. Coming into the game, Boston College's defense had allowed no opponent to score more than 28 points. They had also kept opponents to under 20 points in 6 games.

But Maryland was able to put up 472 yards of offense. The Terps were assisted by two huge Matt Ryan interceptions. Once again, BC went without much of a running game, gaining a net of 45 yards on the ground. But this time, they were on the comeback trail for pretty much the entire game.

What's really tragic for BC is that this was the most points Maryland has scored all year. They put up 31 against Villanova and 26 against Florida International. This was a mediocre football team that ran all over one of the best teams in the country.

But this isn't the first time that Boston College has let us all down.

Last year, the regular season ended on a sour note as Boston College lost 17-14 to a hapless Miami team (on my birthday). BC also suffered an embarrassing 17-15 loss on the road to NC State. But they recovered from that, crushing Virginia Tech on a Thursday night. Then they went to Tallahassee and beat Florida State. But their dreams of making it to the ACC title game were dashed when they fell to Wake Forest, 21-14. Matt Ryan threw for 402 yards in that game, but with only 1 TD and 2 INTs.

In the 4th quarter of that Wake Forest game, here are how Boston College's drives ended. Keep in mind, it was 21-14 when the 4th quarter began.

Drive #1: Missed 40 yard field goal
Drive #2: LV Whitworth fumbles at WFU 37 yard line, recovered by WFU
Drive #3: On 1st and 10 from the WFU 25 yard line, Matt Ryan's throw is intercepted by Patrick Ghee of Wake Forest at the goal line

Boston College played like crap and lost that game, just like they lost to NC State and Miami that year; just like they lost to Maryland and Florida State this year.

In 2005, Boston College finished with a 5-3 conference record, tied with Florida State atop the division. Of course, FSU held the tie-breaker, as they beat BC 28-17 that year. However, Boston College's 3 conference losses include a shocker. BC lost to Florida State, Virginia Tech, and...THE UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA!

UNC was 4-4 at the time of the game, and would finish the season at 5-6. Who else did UNC beat in 2005? Virginia, NC State, Utah, and Duke. But BC lost to them, and it not only cost the Eagles a chance to play in the ACC title game, it cost them a warm weather Bowl game. Instead, they had to go to the MPC Computers Bowl in Boise to play none other than Boise State.

Then there was 2004, Boston College's last year in the Big East. Coming into the last week of the regular season, all Boston College had to do was beat Syracuse in order to win the Big East Championship and go to a BCS Bowl. Syracuse was 5-5 coming into the game after their loss to Temple. That's right, Syracuse lost to Temple! Boston College was ranked 19th at the time, was 8-2, and had beaten the likes of #10 West Virginia on the road, and #25 Notre Dame in South Bend. The game was also to be played in Chestnut Hill. Coming into the game, Syracuse was 1-4 on the road, with that one win coming against Buffalo.

Syracuse crushed Boston College 43-17. Diamond Ferri, a 2nd stringer, ran for 141 yards and 2 TDs. He also had an interception returned for a touchdown on defense. What made this even worse was that Syracuse recruited him from BC's backyard. Ferri went to Everett High School, a mere 11 miles from Boston College. The Eagles also turned the ball over 4 times, and racked up 9 penalties for 89 yards.

Instead of playing in the Fiesta Bowl, BC was sent to the Continental Tire Bowl in Charlotte to play UNC.

The one bright spot to all these disappointments is that Boston College finished each of these seasons with a Bowl game victory. However, how much does a win in the MPC Computers Bowl really mean? It certainly doesn't mean much to the Boston sports fan. It helps for recruiting, but wouldn't a conference championship help even more. What if BC were able to make a BCS Bowl one of those years and pull out a victory? Wouldn't that lead to tons of recruits begging to go to BC? Wouldn't that mean more money? More exposure?

This phenomenon is not unique to the football team. The basketball team had a halftime lead over Georgetown in last year's NCAA tournament, but let that slip away. In 2006, Boston College lost the ACC Tournament Finals to Duke by a score of 78-76. They went to the Sweet 16 in the NCAA Tournament, but lost to Villanova 60-59. In both heartbreaking losses, the Eagles shot poorly at the free throw line. In 2005, BC was seeded 4th, but lost in the second round to 12th seeded Wisconsin-Milwaulkee. That was after starting the season with 20 straight wins, and then losing to West Virginia in the Big East tournament. BC lost 5 of their last 10 games that season.

The Boston College hockey team has also disappointed as of late. In 2006 they failed to win the Beanpot or the Hockey East Tournament, falling to BU both times. They then lost to Wisconsin in the NCAA Championship. In 2005, they won the Beanpot and the Hockey East, but were knocked out of the NCAA Tournament in the 2nd round. Since BC last won the NCAA Championship in 2001, there have been high expectations and very little results. They've only managed to win 1 Beanpot title, and 2 Hockey East titles. They've managed to get far in the NCAA Tournament, but have always fallen short of total victory.

So what's in the waters of the Chestnut Hill Reservoir? What is the explanation for this uncanny ability to reach the summit of greatness and, like a drunk mountain climber, plummet to the bottom?

Boston College, unlike most college sport powerhouses, has academic standards. Looking at the other D-IA football schools with academic standards, and one will see a list of mediocre and bad teams. Stanford, Notre Dame, Army, Navy, Air Force, and so on. In the BCS Top 25 this week, Boston College is the only school listed that has some semblance of academic standards for their athletes.

Academic standards inevitably lead to a generally poorer quality of athlete. It isn't that dumb people are more athletic, or that smart people aren't athletic, it's just that academic standards reduce your potential recruiting pool. In sports like basketball or hockey, teams can get away with this. Just look at Duke basketball and Cornell hockey. However, football requires a tremendous depth of athletes.

But the failures of Boston College are not due to athletic inadequacy, or facing superior talent. Losing to Maryland this year, or Wake Forest last year, or UNC the year before that, or Syracuse the year before that; those losses were all mistake ridden games. They were played poorly by Boston College. It wasn't as if the Eagles played their best and simply weren't good enough to win, it's that they played their worst and blew it. In sports terminology, this is known as choking.

It seems as though the athletic department at BC is content and satisfied with being competitive and above average. After all, Alumni Stadium sells out, Conte Forum always has at least 4,000+ fans in attendance for basketball or hockey, the school is on the map, and the school was good enough to be cherry-picked by the ACC. But as a sports fan, I for one want more. I want a conference championship for BC football. I want the basketball team to make it to the Final Four. I want the hockey team to become a dynasty. These are not difficult tasks for BC athletics. They have the talent, they just need the attitude of victors.

EVIL PREVAILS!

The New England Patriots cast all sorts of demonic spells, and summoned countless evil spirits in order to triumph over the angelic Indianapolis Colts on Sunday, in what some dubbed The Game of the Century, but I dubbed Armageddon. The Colts, for their part, were assisted by a herd of friendly zebras, who would throw yellow flags whenever they felt it would help Indy's cause of good and righteousness.

The first instance of questionable officiating came in the first drive. Manning threw a sideline route to Aaron Moorehead, who appeared to catch the ball with one foot out of bounds. However, two officials looking directly at the sideline both called him in bounds and ruled the play a completion. Belichick challenged, and the play was reversed. However, the whole incident cost the Patriots a valuable challenge, not even 3 minutes into the game. Perhaps the NFL should institute replay rules similar to those of college football.

Indy would drive down the field, penetrating as far as New England's 23 yard line. Kenton Keith was stuffed for a 5 yard loss by Richard Seymour. After a false start penalty and a surprisingly conservative Addai run up the middle, the Colts were forced to try for a 50 yard field goal.



When we didn't sign Adam Vinatierri a few years ago, a lot of people were upset. But Vinatierri is no longer a complete kicker. He simply cannot kick long field goals with accuracy anymore. His 50 yard attempt was wide left. It may have been tipped at the line, but I have my doubts. I've never seen a tipped field goal go as long as that one did.

Brady was sacked on the Patriots' first offensive play for a 10 yard loss. They wouldn't recover from that and were forced to punt. Chris Hanson would drop a beauty that was fair caught at the 9 yard line. It was the first time all year that the Patriots failed to score on their opening drive.

Indy moved the ball across midfield, then the referees helped them out once more. Asante Samuel had the audacity to touch Anthony Gonzalez and the refs called him for pass interference, moving the ball 37 yards forward, giving Indy a 1st and goal on the 9. The defense stood firm, however, and forced the Colts to try a field goal. 3-0 Indianapolis.

Hobbs had a nice 34 yard return, giving the Patriots good field position. A 13 play, 62 yard drive ensued, consisting mostly of Maroney runs, and short passes. On 3rd and goal, Brady hit Randy Moss in the back corner of the end zone. 7-0 New England.



The Colts once again drove to midfield, and were once again helped by the officials. Reggie Wayne tackled Ellis Hobbs with surprisingly good form, but it was Hobbs who was called for pass interference. After all, Hobbs was trying to play the ball and make an interception. That's simply too mean for the Colts, so the refs were forced to penalize the Patriots for 40 yards.

The Patriots once again stuffed the Colts on 3 straight plays, forcing another field goal. But the penalty still hurt. If Hobbs had not been tackled by Wayne, he may have made an interception in the end zone. Instead of the Patriots getting the ball back in a 7-3 game, it was 7-6.

Brady led a drive into Indy territory but underthrew a wide open Donte Stallworth. The ball was caught by Antoine Bethea at the 2. Had Brady led Stallworth, the play would have resulted in a touchdown. Instead, the turnover would result in a score for Indianapolis.



After moving the ball downfield a bit, Manning hit Addai on a check down pass. Thanks to some sloppy defense by the Patriots (namely Rodney Harrison pushing down Randall Gay), Addai was able to run 73 yards into the end zone to put the Colts on top 13-7.



The Patriots and Colts exchanged possession a few times to commence the second half. The Pats then drove from their own 9, all the way to the Indy 14. The most amazing play was probably Brady's 19 yard scramble, which was a season high, and the second longest of his career. It actually wasn't a scramble, it was more of a meander on an empty side of the field.

The Patriots would be stopped on 3rd and 1 as the overrated Bob Sanders corralled Maroney in the backfield. The Patriots were forced to kick a field goal, making it a 13-10 game.

The Colts punted on their next drive, then Brady threw an interception to Gary Brackett, who returned the ball 28 yards upfield. The play was bizarre. Brady's pass was underthrown, and tipped by Brackett as he went down. But Brackett maintained his concentration, and possession of the ball, before getting up and running upfield.

The Colts were stuffed on two running plays, but converted a huge 3rd and 15, keeping their drive alive. Eventually, Manning would sneak into the end zone, making the score 20-10.

The Patriots responded very loudly. After a few medium range passing plays, Brady hit Moss with a bomb. Moss was interfered with, but still managed to haul in the ball for a 55 yard gain. On the next play, Moss was called for offensive pass interference. It was one of the worst calls of the game. After guys like Dallas Clark and Reggie Wayne had flat out tackled New England's defensive backs, to call Moss for P.I. because he had a hand on a defender's shoulder was simply mind-boggling. But the Patriots scored anyway. Brady hit Welker, who brought the ball to the 3. Then Welker caught the next pass, hoisting the ball over the pylon for a touchdown. 20-17 Indianapolis.



The Colts deteriorated on their next drive. They received a holding penalty, a false start penalty, and fumbled the ball before punting.



The Patriots took the lead with a 3 play, 0:43 second drive, with a 33 yard pass to Stallworth as the highlight of the drive. Stallworth caught the ball behind his back shoulder, and secured it perfectly.



A 13 yard TD catch and run by Faulk put the Patriots ahead 24-20.



There would be no magical comeback for Peyton Manning, as Jarvis Green forced a fumble that popped out of Manning's hands into the arms of Roosevelt Colvin. The Patriots forced Indy to use their timeouts, and got a 1st down to end the game.



This was the toughest game of the season for the Patriots. It was also, in my opinion, their most impressive. This is the second time they've beaten an unbeaten team on the road, and this time they had to deal with a horrible officiating crew.

The Patriots made plenty of mistakes, and Brady had some inaccurate passes. The defense played well, but appeared slow at times. Then again, they made two goal line stops in the first half after two bogus interference penalties, forcing Indy to kick field goals.

There's also a very interesting story that's just now coming out. It seems as though the Colts might not be as pure and Godly as some have suggested.

Patriots accuse Colts of piping in crowd noise.

If this turns out to be true, it will be very interesting to see how the media reacts.

The Patriots head into their bye week with a 9-0 record. And as of this moment, they are undoubtedly the best team in the NFL.



Colts fans tried to be as evil as us, but they - like their team - just couldn't cut it.