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Once again, ND’s defense let them down and they lost another close one. You can’t say their games this year haven’t been thrillers. But from 6-2 to 6-6 (and you know what I think about 6-6 teams going to bowl games…they shouldn’t). It looks like ND is nowsearching for a new coach…with a LOT of READ MORE

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As a Penn State alum and a Steelers fan, usually I watch the same brand of football. Solid running game, strong defense, good special teams. Um. Strike that last one for the 2009 season—for both teams. Penn State’s big weakness this year has been its special teams unit. And today, for the fourth time in the last READ MORE

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Wallace Ignatius "Bucky" Williams was born on December 15, 1906, in Baltimore, the third of Mathilda and Joe Williams' eight children. When he was a baby, his family moved to Formosa Way in Homewood, sending him to Holy Rosary and Crescent Elementary schools.br /br /Williams will be given his final send-off where he started, at Holy Rosary, on Saturday. He died earlier this week, at the age of 102. With him goes a throwback to local baseball history. br /br /Back in the day, Williams was a shortstop/third baseman for both the a href="http://oldbucs.blogspot.com/2009/02/pittsburgh-crawfords.html"Pittsburgh Crawfords/a and the a href="http://oldbucs.blogspot.com/2008/02/homestead-grays.html"Homestead Grays/a. It's said that he may have been the last living Negro League player left in the city.br /br /Only one Negro League player remains that has more years under his belt than Williams did. Emilio "Millito" Navarro, who just celebrated his 104th birthday on September 26th, was the first Puerto Rican to play baseball in the Negro Leagues. br /br /Williams first took his place on the diamond at Homewood Field, now Willie Stargell Field. He played for one of Pittsburgh's early black teams, the Keystone Juniors, in 1921, and in 1925 wore the uniform of the Pittsburgh Monarchs.br /br /Not very fleet afoot, the infielder was more noted for cranking out singles and doubles. But hey, that was enough to land him a gig on the bench for both of the City's storied Negro League juggernauts.br /br /He joined the Crawfords in 1928, and within a couple of seasons, they were drawing hundreds and sometimes thousands to Ammon Field in the Hill District.br /br /Williams played for them through 1932, long enough to see Gus Greenlee buy the club and put them in their own ball yard, Greenlee Field on Bedford Avenue (now the Bedford Dwelling projects).br /br /Williams disappeared from the Pittsburgh box scores for a spell after that. The big names may have been under contract, but the lesser lights got by passing the hat, and taking home $10-15 after a game was a big deal.br /br /Still, he kept playing, jumping to the Cleveland ABCs in 1932, the Akron Grays in 1933, and Edgar Thomson Steel Mill team until 1936.br /br /That year, he was married to Marjorie Carey, and got back into the Steel City swing of things, joining the cross-town rival Homestead Grays and spending his days at West Field. br /br /Williams recalled getting his first - and only - hit off of Satchel Paige that season; that and throwing out Cool Papa bell on a bunt were the two plays he most cherished. He returned to the Crawfords in 1937, and stayed with them until they folded their tent in 1939.br /br /As a member of the Crawfords and the Grays, he played with greats such as Josh Gibson, "Cool" Papa Bell, Judy Johnson, Buck Leonard, Martin Dihigo, Oscar Charleston, Buck O Neil, Leroy ��Satchel �� Paige, and "Smokey" Joe Williams. br /br /Hey, if you're going to come off of the bench, it might as well be because only the best were ahead of you.br /br /Next it was off to ET full-time, where he lined ladles and played ball for their black mill team, while moon-lighting with the Monarchs in the early forties. In fact, one of his greatest memories is of his Edgar Thompson team defeating the Grays in an exhibition game.br /br /Bucky claimed an overall lifetime .340 batting average, a pretty sweet stick, no matter what the level.br /br /He moved from Swissvale to East Liberty, when his boy, David, turned into a baseball brat. Williams donned the blue suit and became an umpire for the East End Little League Association.br /br /Marjorie died in 1977, and Bucky went to Penn Hills to stay with his son and his wife, Sheila, leading the quiet life of a steelworker's retirement.br /br /But in the nineties, baseball took to its roots and rediscovered the black players of the Negro League. Williams took his first plane ride to Kansas City for a celebration bash at the Negro Leagues Museum in 1995. He was named an honorary member of the Negro League Legends Hall of Fame.br /br /And every year, he was a regular at the Josh Gibson Foundation's Black Tie Gala event. The NLLHOF honored Williams during its annual Negro League Hall of Fame Week in early September, calling it an early birthday party. If they only knew... br /br /(Bucky William's obituary is a href="http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/09322/1014304-122.stm"here/a, written by Kevin Kirkland of the span style="font-style:italic;"Pittsburgh Post-Gazette/span.)div class="blogger-post-footer"img width='1' height='1' src='https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/tracker/6207200414495313452-3801347622650179053?l=oldbucs.blogspot.com' alt='' // READ MORE

Clear Thoughts for the Cloudy Minds Check out sports betting community for NFL Power Rankings Week 11 betting tips & picks, free nfl picks at www.betrepublic.com Cincinnati took a big jump in the standings and is now one of the AFC favorites to make it to the Super Bowl, along with New England, and Indianapolis. The Steelers without Polamalu is like a day without sunshine. Gloomy and dark. Your number one team in the NFL is. The New Orleans Saints. No. two, is Peyton Manning and the Colts. They are undefeated unless New England gets them tonight, then the Colts drop two spots, and New England goes up one to two positions. No. three position is held by the Minnesota Vikings ar 8-1. There is no explanation here. They have the third best record in the league against some quality teams. No four are the Cincinnati Bengals. A big win over Pittsburgh, sweeping that series, and a 7-2 record that should in all reality be 8-1. This team is all about the W. Deep breathe here now. Relax. Clear your mind of all barriers and let the truth flow. Hang on not to past dreams, but today�'s reality. Denver has lost three in a row. Dallas got shut out in Green Bay, who can't beat Tampa Bay. No one else is eligible for this number five spot so welcome back Patriots the the top five of professional football. Fear Bill Belicek and Tom Brady in the playoffs. Currently the New England Patriots are in the number five spot with maybe a 7-2 record if they can knock off no. two Indianapolis. The Colts could fall as low as number five with a loss, or hold steady at number two with a win against New England. No six is the Pittsburgh Steelers at 6-3 for the season. They have to win a few down the stretch now, and see who can trip up the Bengals. A third play-off match up is very interesting. It is very very hard to beat a team three times in one season if they are evenly matched. No. seven are the Arizona Cardinals who keep showing up week after week. Now at 6-3, the offense is explosive with Warner and his receivers. No. eight are the San Diego Chargers who would be oh so much better with a defense. No. nine are the Denver Broncos, now the proud parents of a strapping eight pound three game losing streak and San Diego knocking at the door. No. 10 are the under achieving Dallas Cowboys who get shut out, by the team the Tampa Bay Buccaneers beat for their only win. No. 11 belongs to Atlanta, outside looking in at the big boys playing in the yard. This may be a little rough for you, youngsters. Better wait til next year when you are bigger and stronger. The once mighty New York Giants are now in the No. 12 position and needs some wins now, No more excuses, Execute and move up. Struggle and miss the playoffs. Get it together G-Men. Houston is now hovering in that zone of maybe making the playoffs. 5-4 and hope springs eternal. Better get some wins too, Texans or you'll be with the Giants. One game short. The San Francisco Forty-Niners, or the little train that could, are at No. 14. Mike Singletary must get something up his sleeve to get a win in Green Bay. The surprising Jacksonville Jags are at 5-4 and are at an astonishing record for this season so far. They can beat Buffalo and actually be at 6-4. Wow! Good job with the three name dudes. You need some more of those. No. fifteen is your reward. Baltimore who still has some hope for the playoffs, after Cincinnati beat the Steelers is currently in number 16. They should win next week, because they suddenly have to, if the playoffs are to follow this season. The Packers are number 17, and moved up after beating the Cowboys. Next week, can they do it again beating number 14 ranked San Francisco? A big game for both teams motivation for this season. Philadelphia is falling off the charts with this win one, lose one pattern.8-8 will not cut it, guys. Now at number 18 and going to angry Bears that are wounded at home next. The Dolphins are at No. 19 and it does not look good for playoffs to be in Miami's future this season. The Panthers are at 4-5 now and have made a nice recovery from the 0-3 start. No. 20 and number 19 play next week. 5-5 to the winner. The Bears are at No. 21 and really need a miracle to catch anyone to make the playoffs. The Jets are not that much better and need a lot of things to happen, jst to go 8-8 this season. Again, this team will not make the playoffs. No. 22 to the Jets. Tennessee is number 23 now with three wins in a row. Hooray!!! Seattle is at 3-6 and going no where fast. Number 24 to the Seahawks. Washington is the best of the bad teams, beating Denver and staying out of everyone in the NFC East's way, 3-6 and No. 25. Buffalo is also 3-6 and No. 27. Maybe you should put T.O. in your game plaqn, a little more. The man can catch dummies. No 28 is Kansas City who beat the Raiders in Oakland. 2-7 and a brownie point. No 29 are the inept quarterbacked Raiders. Who finally sat Russell, I hope, forever. No. 30 are the Buc's, who are somehow, improving, week by week. Number 31 and slipping fast, are the Detroit Lions, who need another win, next week against....... you guessed it, No. 32, and worst team in the league Cleveland Browns. Oops, I forgot the Rams. I skipped a number after Washington. Ok, Number 31 1/2 to the Rams. Enjoy your week and watch key power match ups next week as No. 11 Giants host the No. 12 Falcons. San Diego at No. eight takes on No. nine Denver in Mile High Stadium. Both teams desperately need to win and this game will rock. Baltimore must find a way to slow down Peyton Manning and the Colts if they want to play in there post season. The Colts travel to Baltimore in firm control of their own playoff destiny. For More Football Betting Tips & Picks and Sports Betting Information at BetRepublic.com.

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As a Steelers fan, I was hoping for revenge today. The Steelers lost to Cincy in the last minute several weeks ago. Now today’s game was at Heinz Fieldin Pittsburgh, the teams were deadlocked at 6-2 each, and I was hoping for a Steelers win and control of the AFC North. Could I watch? No, READ MORE

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Working on Sundays, I don’t get to see as much of the NFL as I’d like to. So, being a Steelers fan, seeing them beat the Broncos last night was a treat. I do admit that I was quite worried at halftime since, despite a 7-3 lead, the Steelers werequite deficient inthe yardage gained category. READ MORE

It's into the wee hours of Sunday morning here, so I'll keep this short and sweet.

Last week's record: 10-3. Season record: 82-34.

Falcons over Redskins: One of the more obvious locks of the week.

Bears over Cardinals: I'm predicting a nice game from Cutler. Hopefully Forte too.

Ravens over Bengals: Baltimore should build off last weekend's big win against Denver.

Colts over Texans: This one should be pretty close, but I give the edge to Indy.

Patriots over Dolphins: This also should be a good one to watch, but I sense a last-second New England win.

Packers over Bucs: The second really obvious lock of the week.

Chiefs over Jaguars: The "upset" pick of the week, though I don't see it as much of an upset.

Seahawks over Lions: Just what the doctor ordered for my struggling Seahawks.

Saints over Panthers: I really wanted to take Carolina here, but I'll go with Saints in a toss-up.

Giants over Chargers: New York's anxious to turn things around. It starts here.

Titans over 49ers: Last week has given Tennessee some momentum. They keep it going here.

Eagles over Cowboys: I like the Eagles in Philly. The Eagles might be the team to beat in the NFC East.

Broncos over Steelers: I think Denver bounces back at home against Pittsburgh.

I've got to stop forgetting to post these. My sincere apologies. Here they are though, if you're interested.

Last week: 10-4, Season record: 66-24

Packers over Browns

Chargers over Chiefs

Texans over 49ers

Colts over Rams

Vikings over Steelers

Patriots over Bucs

Panthers over Bills

Raiders over Jets

Bears over Bengals

Falcons over Cowboys

Dolphins over Saints

Giants over Cardinals

Eagles over Redskins

Another week, another set of picks. Let's get right to them.

Last week's mark: 11-3

Season record: 56-20

Texans over Bengals: I just have a hunch in this one. The Bengals seem due for a letdown.

Packers over Lions: Too much firepower for Detroit to stop.

Vikings over Ravens: I expect a decent game, but the Vikings are just too strong, especially at home.

Saints over Giants: This should be a great game. I give the advantage to New Orleans for being at home.

Panthers over Bucs: This should be the game that Carolina comes alive. We'll see though.

Redskins over Chiefs: I was THIS close to taking Kansas City here. Washington has to win this game though.

Jaguars over Rams: Jacksonville isn't anything special, but they will probably look it against St. Louis.

Steelers over Browns: Blowout alert. My goodness, this will be brutal.

Seahawks over Cardinals: This is a key division matchup that Seattle must have.

Eagles over Raiders: This would be a good week to take the Eagles in your suicide pool.

Jets over Bills: I actually think Buffalo will play the Jets close, but New York should pull this out.

Patriots over Titans: New England will bounce back. Tennessee will not.

Falcons over Bears: An entertaining matchup. Give the edge to Matt Ryan at home.

Broncos over Chargers: I'm still loving the Broncos. A win gives them a three-and-a-half game division lead.

Looking at the updated NFL power rankings from ESPN.com, CBSSports.com and various other NFL focused sports sites, the top four teams are all the same across the board and the teams in that group, who played in Week 5, reinforced their standing at the top.

Week 5 in the NFL featured a number of games that had online sportsbooks serving up double-digit favorites. Advice from sports betting handicapping veterans will often tell you to avoid NFL betting big favorites, but this season in the NFL, parity doesn’t seem to be ruling the league, as when you look at the bottom of the standings, there are truly some of the worst teams in recent NFL memory.

The BetRepublic.com sports betting TV program on Thursday and Sunday looked at all the games, giving out their top NFL Betting Picks of the week, and breaking down each of the big games, including these big favorites.

The New York Giants were favored by 16 ½ points, even with Eli Manning nursing plantar fasciitis, but had no problem covering against the Raiders. The online sports betting public didn’t blink laying the big points, as the Giants were one of the most wagered on teams of the week.

NFL Betting Picks - Teams

The team who were the biggest public favorites was the Minnesota Vikings. The Vikes went into St. Louis as 10 ½ point favorites and they easily covered the spread as well. Not to be outdone, the Eagles were listed as 14 ½ point favorites at home to Tampa Bay, a game that produced yet another cover for the heavy chalk. That left the Pittsburgh Steelers as the only double-digit favorite that didn’t cover the number, as they beat the Detroit Lions by eight points (28-20) laying 10 ½.

The Giants are as good as any team in the league and should have been limited to ten guys on the field against Oakland. If the NFL followed the lead of the English Premier League and promoted and relegated teams in and out of the league to different divisions based on team success, then the Raiders would start next season in the CFL West division trying to man up against the Saskatchewan Roughriders.

The Giants outgained the Raiders 483-123 total yards. In their previous games, the Raiders have only accumulated 165 total yards against Houston, 137 against the Broncos, and even in their win against the Chiefs they were outgained 409-166. The Raiders need a makeover like no other team has ever before gone under the knife.

The Lions started to make their climb out of the basement by firing the coaching staff and ridding themselves of GM Matt Millen. The Raiders have the challenge of needing to get rid of its owner or at least his meddling influence.  Al Davis is one of the great NFL owners of all time, but maybe it’s time he headed off to the lawn bowling courts and left his team up to some savvy football minds.

There was some concern that the Vikings might have a letdown after getting two big wins against the Packers and 49ers. Letdowns are common in the NFL after big games, and teams that by all accounts would usually spank an inferior opponent, do well to squeak by with a win in this kind of matchup. The Vikings have covered in every game this season and were well prepared to play up to their talent and not the Rams.

The Rams have scored only one offensive touchdown this season and have given up at least 35 points in three straight games. The Vikings jumped out to an early 14-0 lead and cruised to a 38-10 win to easily cover the 10 ½. A bright spot for the Rams was Marc Bulger getting into the game in the fourth quarter after being out with an injury for the last few weeks and going 7-7 for 88 yards and a TD. Bulger will probably play next week in Jacksonville in a scintillating matchup.

The Vikings host the Ravens next week presenting their toughest test to date. The Bengals in Baltimore surprised the Ravens in a game to decide first place in the division. The Ravens were almost double-digit favorites with the line as high as 9 1/2.

The last second TD from Carson Palmer to Andre Caldwell could well have been a statement moment for Palmer. He is still trying to reclaim his status as one of the top quarterbacks in the league. He has now guided the Bengals to four wins in a ‘cardiac kids fashion.’ The Bengals have won their last three games by three points and have a penchant for last minute heroics. A bigger surprise than their defense or Palmer’s re-emergence is that running back Cedric Benson leads the league in rushing. The Bengals are for real having dispatched the Steelers and the Ravens and Pack on the road.

The Eagles got Donovan McNabb and Brian Westbrook back from the infirmary in time to torch the Buccaneers 33-14. McNabb finished 16 of 21 and his QB rating of 157.2 was the second highest in his career and also led the team with 30 yards rushing. If McNabb stays healthy, the Eagles will start to put up some big numbers in coming weeks. Philadelphia travels to Oakland next week in a game that you might want to keep the children out of the room.

All four teams that had a bye the previous week won their games in Week Five with the Panthers downing the Redskins 20-17, the Falcons throttling the 49ers 45-10 and the Cardinals hanging on to beat Houston 28-21. The Panthers were the only team that didn’t cover the line as they were posted as 3 ½ favorites. The Saints, Bears, Packers and Chargers had a bye this week and should be considered as good opportunities to win in Week Six.

The Denver Broncos still continue to stun the NFL after its last minute and overtime heroics against the Patriots. Josh McDaniels might not get a sniff at coaching in a lot of high school programs because of his age and relative lack of experience and yet he and his Broncos are the leagues biggest surprise and will be a force to be reckoned with before all is said and done. The Broncos should have had to play with leather helmets to match the pre-WWII uniforms. No matter what they’re wearing, McDaniels schooled his mentor and has surged to the front for Coach of the Year honors.

Jacksonville and the 49ers were both exposed this week suffering blowout losses. All is good in Seattle with the return of underrated QB Matt Hasselbeck. He threw four TD’s and looked in complete control against the Jaguars. The embarrassing loss by the 49ers to Atlanta allows both the Seahawks and Arizona back in the race in the West. As long as Seattle can dress Hasselbeck they have a shot at the division title.

The Colts and Peyton Manning finished off the Sunday card, putting on a clinic in their win over the Titanics. The only good news for the rest of the league is that Manning tweaked his knee. The bad news is that it isn’t serious and he has a bye week to fully recover. The Colts will get some starters back after the bye including Bob Sanders, just in time to face off against the Rams. Any bets on Manning getting his 6^th straight 300-yard game?

The season is rounding into form and it’s starting to shape up like a Manning versus Manning Super Bowl. Let the hype begin.