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My weekend of sports started out good. Michigan beat Iowa 20-6. I would have preferred a more dominate win, or a less nerve racking one, but a two touchdown win works. I was frustrated that the Wolverines insisted on running the ball when Iowa was stacking the line. In the end, however, Hart broke through for 126 yards and two scores and they won the game. The Ohio State game on November 18 looms ever larger. #1 versus #2 right now in the BCS. I think Ohio State has the edge on offense and Michigan on defense. If Mario Manningham can get healthy in time for the game and be at full speed that should bring a boost to the Michigan O. Henne is looking pretty sharp and Arrington and Breaston are picking up the slack just fine, but they don't seem to be able to go deep like they did with Super Mario. Both teams face a series of losing teams before their meeting in November. That game could very well kill me. Heart attack, nervous breakdown, aneurysm, you name it.

College football continued to be good to me, as I managed a perfect record on my ESPN College Pick 'Em entry. Alas, the pro game was not so kind. First the Steelers lost to the Falcons in OT, 41-38. That's right, the Steelers scored 38 points and lost! Ben Roethlisberger was knocked out of the game but Charlie Batch hung in there and brought them back to tie the game. The defense holds and the Steelers get the ball back with time running out. With eight seconds to go, and in field goal range, Nate Washington is called for a false start which results in the clock being run off. The Falcons win the toss and march down and kick the winning field goal. !@#$$!#!

Football weekends are starting to develop a pattern: a strong Michigan win followed by a heartbreaking Steelers' loss. Last week it was a huge Michigan win at Notre Dame and a heart breaking 9-0 Steelers' loss to the Jaguars on Monday night. This week Michigan comes out strong in the second-half to beat Wisconsin 27-13 and then Pittsburgh comes up short in a 28-20 loss to the hated Bengals.

Let's start with the good. Michigan's defense is clearly a different animal this year. With a new coordinator and a new attitude they look like the defense Wolverine fans have been hoping for these last few years. They stuffed the run and harassed John Stocco all day. The Badgers only had three sustained drives and the D held them to field goals on two of them. This team got stronger as the game went on instead of giving up late points to lose games like they did last year.

On offense Manningham continues to be the star with seven catches for 113 yards and two touchdowns. Henne looked good at times, but did have three picks. He has to cut out the turnovers. But he and Manningham are a dangerous tandem. Henne dropped one in beautifully to Mario to break upon a 10-10 tie in the third quarter. Hart was typical Hart: tough, smart, and elusive. Hart finished with 91 yards on 23 carries and a touchdown. Not spectacular but solid.

If the offense can continue to find their rhythm and the defense is this tough, it could be a nice season for the Wolverines. But they need to take it one game at a time and just focus on the next opponent, because a let down could ruin a beautiful season.

The Steelers are a perfect example of that. In losing to a divisional rival, the Cincinnati Bengals, the Super Bowl Champions blew a chance to prove they are still the team to beat; and in the process put themselves in a hole to win the division.

I am still basking in the glow of the Michigan game this weekend. I am not sure you can understand the psychic healing that game involved for Michigan fans. It was like Christmas and your birthday wrapped into one. It is hard to remember a more important win for this program in many years. I was unlucky enough to be out of the country for Michigan's last Rose Bowl win so perhaps that year's win over Ohio State would be the last game where I felt Michigan had that much on the line and won.

Drubbing Notre Dame in South Bend was exactly what this program needed. Carr has a pretty strong record against highly ranked opponents but the team has struggled in the rivalry games of late. Coming into Saturday UM was 1-4 against both Ohio State and Notre Dame. Michigan hadn't won its opening road game since the mid nineties. Most fans would love to have a team as consistent and tradition laden as Michigan. But with that history and tradition comes responsibility. A decent winning record and a bowl game just doesn't cut it.

What Michigan need was a big game to show that it belonged in the national conversation. Saturday was just that. The defense look aggressive and stayed that way. They created turnovers and dominated the game. Chad Henne finally seemed to get his accuracy issues settled and was dropping gorgeous passes into the hands of his wideouts. Mike Hart was Mike Hart. Man that felt good. To look at the team and feel the dominance was practically indescribably good.

I am watching the Buick Open while I play around with the various blogging tool I am testing.

Should be pretty interesting.  Right now Vaughn Taylor is leading by a stroke over Mike Weir and Bret Quigley and by two strokes over Tiger Woods.  Jim Furyk and Vijay Singh are three back.

Nice mix of young upstarts and big names.  Everyone knows they will have to make birdies to win this one.  Hard to bet against the big guns, however, as Tiger, Vijay, and Jim Furyk always play well here and Tiger and Vijay are multiple winners on this course.  I know I will be watching on Sunday.

I have noticed something weird lately. I have lost interest in watching sports on television. When I was in college I used to watch sports religiously. I watched practically any sport known to man. I watched ESPN Sports Center every day. As I have gotten older I have noticed my interest in a wide array of sports diminish. I no longer watch Hockey (except in person on occasion). I don't really follow baseball until the playoffs or the World Series; and even then I often lose interest. I don't really watch the NBA except maybe the conference championships and the finals if they are interesting. Even with all the excitement of the Cleveland Cavilers I haven't watched any NBA playoff games this year. I still follow golf, but I will admit with Tiger on hiatus I have lost interest in that too. The only sport I still seem passionate about is football. But this is a pretty dead time for that particular sport.

As my focus on books has grown, and seeing how my TBR pile growth seems unlimited, I find myself less and less interested in TV. Throw in some nice weather and my 16-month old daughter and who really cares about sports on TV. I don't really have a team that I am passionate about in these other sports and so I lose interest. When faced between a choice of reading or spending time with Ella, TV is the loser. This isn't always easy, because my wife is still a fan of the boob tube. But for me, I can take it or leave. This weekend when I had a chance to watch the Cleveland Detroit game seven or the final round of The Colonial, I read on the couch instead.

This is not how I would have seen myself when I was younger. Perhaps this is maturity. Or maybe I am just a different person than I was then. Who knows. Anyway, just thought I would share . . .

In case you missed it in all the excitement of the NFL draft, I had another piece up at Sports Central. A week or so ago I wrote about the top ten AFC games I was looking forward to in 2006. Saturday I outlined the NFC games. Here is the list:

1) Sunday, September 10: Chicago @ Green Bay

2) Sunday, September 17: Arizona @ Seattle

3) Monday, September 25: Atlanta @ New Orleans

4) Sunday, October 8: Dallas @ Philadelphia

5) Monday, October 23: New York Giants @ Dallas

6) Sunday, November 5: Dallas @ Washington

7) Monday, November 13: Tampa Bay @ Carolina

8) Sunday, November 26: Carolina @ Washington

9) Sunday, December 24: Carolina @ Atlanta

10) Saturday, December 30: New York Giants @ Washington

Speaking of the draft, did you watch it? I watched the first 15 picks or so live. Pretty exciting! Here is my rapid fire opinion:
- Houston was stupid to pass on Reggie Bush and sign a defensive lineman to a $26 million six year contract.
- New Orleans is happy the Texans were stupid.
- I can't wait to see Vince Young play in the NFL and the Titans should have a good system in place to produce McNair v.2.
- Yes, Ohio State had a lot of players drafted in the first round. Bastards! Congrats to the Buckeyes and may their defense stink this year.
- Yes, my beloved Steelers moved up to take one (a Buckeye). Is Santonio Holmes worth it? Tough call. But I think the team is happy. They got the best WR in the draft and someone who can return punts. Despite his Buckeye status, I have always felt he has a lot of talent. If OSU had a more pass orientated passing attack he could have put up much better numbers. I look forward to seeing him develop.
- The Steelers also drafted the QB from my alma matter: BGSU gunslinger Omar Jacobs. I am not sure why Jacobs didn't come back for another year to perfect his skills and develop into a first round pick, but it should be interesting to see if they can develop him into a reliable backup for Roethlisberger.
- Cardinals coach Denny Green must still be smiling after he was able to get Matt Leinart at #10. He has two great young receivers and an all pro-running back and now he has a franchise QB to groom for the future.
- How do you think Jake Plummer felt when Denver moved up to take Jay Cutler? Of course maybe Javon Walker can help Jake win before Cutler takes the reins.

That is all for now, maybe I will write up a more detailed analysis later.

- They played some golf this weekend too. It was an emotional return to New Orleans for the PGA. Chris Couch made the end exciting as well, chipping in from 55 feet to win the Zurich Classic by one stroke. 49-year-old Fred Funk birdied the last hole for a 62, but had to settle for second after Couch's chip-in. Couch was lucky to be playing on the weekend after making the cut on the number.

- In other golf news, Tiger Woods won't be playing in this weeks Wachovia Championship. He is on an extended break due to his father's illness. I understand Wood's need to take a break, but golf just isn't the same without him.

Greg Easterbrook's Tuesday Morning Quarterback column is back on ESPN. Today's column includes a true mock draft. I got a chuckle out of this one:

7. Oakland Raiders: Lucifer, frozen devil, University of Gehenna
To prevent a strike that might have torn pro football apart, Raiders boss Al Davis cooperated with the league, putting his own concerns aside to help save the NFL. At that moment Lucifer looked around and said, "Hey, did somebody touch the thermostat? It's getting cold in here."

Good to see TMQ and ESPN back together again.

- Duke just messed up my bracket big time! I had the Dukies in the final. I should have know better than to pick a team I hate to go that far At this point I have to hope UConn, UCLA, and Florida all make the Final Four to have any hope of a respectable finish.

- Tiger Woods is struggling to focus on golf with his father's health deteriorating. He shot a even par 72 at the Players Championship today and is seven shots off the lead. Jim Furyk and Davis Love share the lead at seven under.

- Michigan continues their NIT run beating Miami and running their NIT home win streak to 16-0. Who needs that NCAA tourney anyways?

Those odd one or two of you who have actually been reading this blog for some time might remember that I had ankle surgery last April to repair a torn tendon. Well, I have finally started playing indoor soccer again and today scored my first goal of the season. That's right, the old man still has a little something left.

Actually, it was a rather lucky goal. The player with probably the best shot on our team fired a hard one to the goalies right. The keeper barely got a hand on it. He reached out for the ball but was only able to knock it back toward the post where it sat spinning. I had smartly stayed around for a rebound and stepped in and fired the ball home for what turned out to be the winning margin in a 3-2 victory! This is the type of thing that makes the sore muscles and labored breathing worth it.

Funnily enough, my ankle feels fine but I still have a ways to go before I am in shape. Upward and onward . . .

Sorry about the down time around here. I got sidetracked and just didn't get anything posted. Allow me a little wrap up to get us back up to speed.

- The Cleveland Indians season ended with a heartbreaking slid that left them out of the playoffs. Particularly galling was getting swept by the Chicago White Sox at home. I think maybe the Tribe just didn't have any juice in the tank after making such an exciting run. At crucial times they just couldn't come up with a hit or a out. It was extremely frustrating to be that close to a win (needing an out in the ninth or having bases loaded) and not getting it done. Most years 94 wins would take the division, but it wasn't in the cards this year. Expectations will rise next year for sure. I hope the Indians can build on this group because it was fun to follow the team again.

- With their season on the brink at 2-2 Michigan managed to win in OT. Losing to Michigan State would have been a deadly blow so I was happy to see UM pull out the upset (yes, MSU was favored and ranked). I have been saying this since early last year, and it seems obvious, but I love me that Mike Hart. He just brings something extra to the game that always seems to make the difference. The whole offense looked better. Henne apparently got some coaching on his mechanics and is throwing better and Hart gave them a big spark. Not surprisingly the defense gave up some points to a strong offense but they made some stops and caused some turnovers as well. A couple of big plays really made the difference.

Speaking of turnovers. Others have noted this as well, but it was clear to me that the fumble that was returned for a touchdown should have been ruled an incomplete pass. No question in my mind. Luckily that didn't determine the game, but it did make it closer than it should have been. That missed field goal brought back many a special teams nightmare as a Michigan fan. Good he got a shot at redemption in OT. Next up Minnesota who is bound to be hungry after a whooping by Penn State.

- The Steelers had a bye week after a disappointing loss to New England. Now they face a surging San Diego team that roughed up the Patriots. I am nervous? You betcha. The Steeler's offense will have to put points on the board and the defense will have to stop LaDamian Tomlinson and Antonio Gates - no easy task. To me the key is generating sustained drives by converting on third down. If the Steelers can find a rhythm on offense it lets the defense rest and allows them to run their game plan. This team just works better if it is ahead and able to keep the ball.

- I managed to lose all of my fantasy football games last week. Poor planning on my part meant bye weeks for too many key players. My three teams now stand at 3-1, 2-2, 0-4. Nice blend, right? It is going to be a challenge to turn that 0-4 team around as I don't think I have the talent to win right now but in a deep league free agent acquisitions aren't easy. But hey, that is why they play the games. I will just have to get creative and hope for some hot streaks.

More on the NFL, college football, and fantasy game as the week progresses.