Run for the roses in the Civil War tonight

The Oregon State Beavers and Oregon Ducks meet tonight at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, in the 113th edition of the Civil War. And for the first time in the storied rivalry between these two long time rivals, a berth in the Rose Bowl goes to the winner.

The Beavers are looking for their first trip to the Rose Bowl game since 1965, when they lost to Michigan 34 to 7. The Beavers lost the 1957 Rose Bowl game to Iowa 35 to 19, and beat Duke in the 1942 Rose Bowl game 20 to 16. The 1942 game was played in Durham, North Carolina, due to concerns about security after the Japenese attack on Pearl Harbor 3 weeks earlier. It is still the only time the Rose Bowl game was played someplace other than Pasadena, California.

The Oregon Ducks are looking for their first New Year's Day trip to Pasadena since 1995, when they lost 38 to 20 to Penn State. The Ducks lost to Ohio State(This year's Rose Bowl participant from the Big Ten) 10 to 7 in the 1958 game and beat Pennsylvania 14 to 0 in 1917.

Kickoff tonight is set for 9:00pm EST. You can hear the game at http://www.kpam.com/ and the Beaver Sports Network. Tonight's game will be televised live on ESPN.

Monday Morning Meissnervations

It's Monday again. Here we go....

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The Montreal Alouettes took advantage of a too many men penalty on the final play of the game yesterday, negating a missed field goal and then getting a 33 yarder with no time left from Damon Duval to defeat the Saskatchewan Roughriders 28-27, in the 97th edition of the Grey Cup, in front of 46,020 fans at McMahon Stadium in Calgary, Alberta.

Montreal came in as 9 1/2 point favorites, but it was the Riders who controlled the game from the start. After forcing a 2 and out, Saskatchewan took the lead with 6:57 left in the opening quarter, on a 45 yard field goal from Luca Congi. Then, later in the first, Als quarterback Anthony Calvillo fumbled deep in his own end. Tackle Keith Shologan picked up the loose ball and ran it to the Montreal 8, where Darian Durant hit Andy Fantuz with an 8 yard touchdown pass on the next play. Congi converted and, with 1:17 to go in the first, the Riders were up 10-0.

The Alouettes got on the board early in the second, continuing a drive that started in the closing moments of the first. Duval's 28 yard field goal with 12:47 to go in the half, cut the deficit to 10-3. Saskatchewan got the three points back on a 45 yard Congi field goal with 1:32 remaining, then got another point on a single on the ensuing kickoff by Louie Sakoda. Then, with time winding down, Durant hit Jason Clermont with a deep ball down the left side at the Montreal 2. The officials initially ruled both no catch and no time left, but the play was overturned on review, allowing Congi to kick a 9 yard field goal on the final play, pushing the Rider lead to 17-3 at the halftime break.

The Als closed to within 7 to start the third. After holding Saskatchewan to a 2 and out, Montreal marched deep into Rider territory. On the 9th play of the drive, Calvillo found Jamel Richardson for a 9 yard touchdown. Duval kicked the point and with 7:47 left in the third, the Alouettes trailed by just 7, at 17-10.

Montreal threatened to tie the game at the start of the 4th, but pressure exerted on Calvillo by Rey Williams forced an Alouette punt. A Duval punt single was negated by a penalty, but Duval repeated the feat on the next play and with 1:42 gone in the fourth, Montreal was within 6, at 17-11. Saskatchewan reassumed control on their next possession, driving fromt their own 35 deep into enemy territory, where Durant finished things off with a 16 yard scoring scamper. Congi booted the convert with 10:32 left, sending the pro-Rider crowd into a frenzy, as the Saskatchewan lead grew to 27-11. The Alouettes didn't panic however. After returning the kick out to their own 36, they moved quickly into scoring position. Avon Coubourne, named the game's Most Valuble Player, bulled his way in from 3 yards out, then Calvillo hit Kerry Carter with the 2 point conversion pass and with just 6:46 remaining in regulation, the Rider lead was down to 8, at 27-19. On Saskatchewan's next possession, Durant rolled to elude pressure and missed Andy Fantuz with a pass that Montreal intercepted. The Als drove the field, culimating in Calvillo passing to Ben Cahoon, the game's Most Valuble Canadian, for an 11 yard touchdown pass. However the 2 point conversion pass fell incomplete, leaving the Riders on top by 2, 27-25, with 1:45 left. After failing to gain a first down and hold on to the ball in an attempt to run out the clock, Sakoda boomed a 59 yard punt that was fumbled, then recovered by Montreal at their own 34. The Als worked their way into Saskatchewan territory, but Duval's field goal attempt from 43 yards sailed wide right, sending the Rider bench onto the field, believing they had won the game. However, Saskatchewan was penalized for having too many men on the field and Duval, who shanked two punts in the first half, got another chance from 33 yards away. His second attempt went right down the middle with room to spare, stunning the Riders and their fans, giving Montreal the incredible comeback victory, 28-27.

For the Alouettes, Anthony Calvillo was 26-of-39 passing for 314 yards and 2 touchdowns, Avon Cobourne had 16 carries for 85 yards and 1 touchdown, Jamel Richardson and Ben Cahoon had 1 receiving touchdown each, and Damon Duval kicked 2 field goals, 1 convert and 1 single. Darian Durant led Saskatchewan with 17-of-29 passing for 201 yards, 1 touchdown passing and 1 rushing, with 2 interceptions. Andy Fantuz caught a touchdown pass, Luca Congi kicked 4 field goals and 2 converts and Louie Sakoda had a kickoff single.

Montreal, which went 15-3 in the regular season, won the Grey Cup for the second time in 7 tries since 2000, while the Riders, who finished the regular season at 10-7-1, winning their first West title since 1976, were denied a second title in three years.

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In the NFL, week 11 ended last Monday, with Tennessee beating Houston 20-17. Week 12 started Thursday, with Green Bay beating Detroit 34-12(What a turkey), Dallas rolling past Oakland 24-7(More stuffing and cranberries please) and Denver stuffing the Giants 26-6. On Sunday, Tampa Bay let a win slip away, losing at Atlanta on a late touchdown, 20-17. Buffalo beat Miami 31-14, Indianapolis stayed unbeaten with a 35-27 come from behind win over Houston(The Colts won their 20th consecutive regular season game and also clinched the AFC South) and the J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets beat Carolina 17-6.

Seattle beat St. Louis 27-17(Lowest crowd in Rams' 15 years in St. Louis watched their team slip to 1-10), Cincinnati topped Cleveland 16-7(Bengals remain perfect against AFC North opponents), Philadelphia tipped Washington 27-24 and San Francisco plastered Jacksonville 20-3.

Tennessee won their fifth straight, beating Arizona 20-17, Minnesota pounded Chicago 36-10(Brett Favre was 32-of-48 for 392 yards and 3 tds), and Baltimore beat Pittsburgh in overtime, 20-17.

This week's Monday Night game has 10-0 New Orleans hosting New England.

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The Lightning played three games this past week. On Wednesday, they lost at home to Toronto, 4-3. Niklas Hagman scored twice for the Leafs, and Matt Stajan scored the eventual game-winner late in the second period. Tampa Bay got goals from Andrej Meszaros, Vincent Lecavalier and Ryan Malone. The loss was their first at home in regulation this season. Toronto goalie Jonas Gustavsson made 28 saves, six of those in the third period. Antero Niittymaki had 31 saves for the Lightning. Attendance was 15,333.

The Bolts rebounded for a 5-1 win over the New York Rangers on Friday. Kurtis Foster scored twice for Tampa Bay, who got singles from Steven Stamkos, Steve Downie and Paul Szczechura. Mike Smith made 26 saves. Ryan Callahan scored for the Rangers, who got 26 saves from the goaltending duo of Steve Valiquette and Henrik Lundqvist. Attendance was 17,608.

Tampa Bay hit the road to Dallas Saturday, losing to the Stars in overtime 4-3, on a goal by Tom Wandell at 2:12. Steven Stamkos and Jeff Halpern scored 47 seconds apart for the Lightning in the third to tie the game 3-3 and force overtime. Paul Szczechura scored a second period goal for Tampa Bay. Dallas got power play goals from the Stars, the first two 71 seconds apart in the second period from Stephane Robidas and Jere Lehtinen. Brendan Morrow scored in the third period for Dallas, who got 25 saves from Alex Auld. Mike Smith had 34 stops for the Lightning.

Tampa Bay is 10-6-8 for 28 points, third in the Southeast, 1 point behind second place Atlanta and 8 behind first place Washington. The Lightning host Colorado tonight at 7:30pm, travel to Boston for a 7:00pm game on Wednesday, play at New Jersey at 7:00pm on Friday, at the Islanders at 7:00pm on Saturday and host Washington at 7:30pm next Monday(All times Eastern). All games can be heard on 620 WDAE Radio and seen on Sun Sports.

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The biggest game in the 113 year history of the Civil War takes place in Eugene this coming Thursday, as the Oregon State Beavers meet the Oregon Ducks. For the first time ever in this series, the winner takes the Pac-10 championship and a berth in the Rose Bowl against Ohio State on New Years Day.

The Beavers, who lost to the 'ucks last season 65-38, are 8-3 overall, 6-2 in the Pac-10. They have won 4 straight and 6 of their last 7. Oregon is 7-1 in conference, 9-2 overall.

Thursday's game kicks off at 9:00pm EST and can be heard on http://www.kpam.com and the Beaver Sports Network. ESPN has the telecast.

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Bad enough Jimmy snatches stuff off Daddy's desk. Now, with the Christmas tree up and decorated, the next four weeks are sure to be busy, trying to keep him from pulling off all the dcorations and toppling the tree. Perhaps an extra helping of dog food daily will convince Snoopy and Smoke to guard the tree.

And my wife Kim and I are still looking for work. Wish us luck!

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That's it for this week. See you next Monday. Go Beavers!!!!

Monday Morning Meissnervations

Computer problems at home have forced a bit of a scramble to get everything together. So here, in catch-up mode, is what's happening.

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This year's Civil War football game, the 113th edition, will feature something it never has before: The winner goes directly to the Rose Bowl game on New Year's Day. The Oregon State Beavers did their part Saturday, dismantling the Washington State Cougars 42-10 in front of just 16,167 frozen fans in Pullman, Washington while in the desert, the Oregon Ducks beat the Arizona Wildcats in double-overtime 44-41.

The Beavers rolled to their win, scoring touchdowns on their first three possessions. Damola Adeniji caught an 11 yard touchdown pass to start the scoring 4 minutes into the game. Pat Rooney got Washington State on the board 3 minutes later with a 29 yard field goal, then Jacquizz Rodgers scored on a 10 yard run with 1:41 left in the opening quarter. Justin Kahut converted both times, putting Oregon State up 14-3.

Joe Halahuni stretched the lead with a 10 yard touchdown catch, with Kahut adding the PAT 4:53 into the second quarter, putting the Beavers up 21-3. The Cougars took advantage of some undisciplined OSU play, scoring with 14 seconds left in the half, on a 1 yard run by Dwight Tardy. Rooney's PAT cut the Beaver lead to 21-10 at the half.

Oregon State regrouped and dominated in the second half. Markus Wheaton scored on a 10 yard run and with Kahut's PAT with 2:10 remaining in the third, the Beavers led after three, 28-10.

Two more scores in the final period wrapped it up for Oregon State. Jacquizz Rodgers blew through a hole up the middle for a 39 yard touchdown run with 12:20 left, then Jovan Stevenson scampered in from 4 yards out with 6:31 to go. Kahut kicked two more PATs and Oregon State had the win, 42-10.

Sean Canfield led the Beavers with 22-of-29 passing for 231 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception. Ryan Katz, in mop-up duty, was 4-of-7 for 53 yards. Jacquizz Rodgers rushed 24 times for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns, Jovan Stevenson and Markus Wheaton added rushing touchdowns and Damola Adeniji caught 5 passes for 89 yards and a touchdown. Justin Kahut kicked 6 points after. For Washington State, Kevin Lopina was 15-of-32 passing for 133 yards, Dwight Tardy rushed 10 times for 37 yards and a touchdown, while Pat Rooney kicked a field goal and a PAT.

Oregon State, now ranked #16 in the AP poll and #18 in the USA Today Coaches poll, had 31 first downs, were 7-of-12 on 3rd down, 2-of-2 on 4th down and rushed for 283 yards. The Cougars had 13 first downs, were 3-of-14 on 3rd down, 1-of-1 on 4th down, rushed for just 59 yards and passed for 133. The Beavers had the edge in total offense by a huge margin, 567 to 192.

Oregon State improves to 8-3 overall, 6-2 in the Pac-10. They have won 4 straight and 6 of their last 7. Washington State falls to 1-10 overall, and 0-8 in conference. The Cougars have lost 8 straight, have allowed 40+ points in 5 straight games and have been outscored 173-6 in the first quarter. WSU has not led a game in regulation this season and in their only win this season(September 19th against SMU), tied the game with 28 seconds left in regulation, then won with an overtime field goal.

The Beavers next play on Thursday, December 3rd in Eugene, against the Oregon Ducks. Kickoff is set for 9:00pm EST, with the game being heard on http://www.kpam.com/ and the Beaver Sports Network. The game can be seen on ESPN.

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The Saskatchewan Roughriders are headed to the Grey Cup in Calgary next Sunday, after beating the Stampeders in the West Final yesterday, 27-17, in front of a sell out crowd of 30,945 at Mosaic Stadium in Regina.

Calgary built a 10-0 lead in the first half. Sandro DeAngelis kicked a 47 yard field goal with 3:14 gone in the first. Then, with 11:18 to go 'til the half, Joffrey Reynolds scored on a 17 yard run, with DeAngelis adding the convert. The Riders then found their offense, scoring 10 points of their own. Chris Getzlaf caught a pass from Darian Durant on a backside screen and went 11 yards for the major score. Luca Congi converted with 6:48 left, then added and 18 yard field goal with 2:19 remaining, tying the game at halftime, 10-10.

Saskatchewan, plagued by big troubles in the 3rd quarter all season long, put this one away in the third. Durant hit Andy Fantuz on a slant pattern for a 10 yard touchdown and Congi converted, giving Saskatchewan a 17-10 lead with 2:36 gone. The Stamps responded and appeared headed for the tying score. However, the drive stalled and DeAngelis came on for a 47 yard field goal attempt. The kick missed, but the Riders conceded the single point and, with 7:33 left, they led 17-11. Saskatchewan took the ball and drove for the back-breaking score on a 6 play, 71 yard drive. Rob Bagg did the honors, catching a 17 yard touchdown pass and with the Congi convert, the Riders led 24-11 through three quarter time.

In the 4th, Congi added a 43 yard field goal with 2:04 gone, putting Saskatchewan on top 27-11. Calgary would come back to score on a Henry Burris to Jeremaine Copeland 4 yard touchdown pass with 1:21 left. The 2-point conversion pass was intercepted and the Riders ran out the clock, clinching their second Grey Cup appearance in three years, with the 27-17 win.

Darian Durant led Saskatchewan with 18-of-25 passing for 204 yards and 3 touchdowns, Ryan Getzlaf, Andy Fantuz and Rob Bagg caught touchdown passes, Luca Congi kicked 2 field goals and 3 converts, Rey Williams had 10 tackles and James Patrick intercepted 2 passes. For the Stampeders, Henry Burris was 22-of-34 passing for 278 yards, 1 touchdown and 3 inreceptions. Joffrey Reynolds rushed for a touchdown, Jeremaine Copeland caught a touchdown pass and Sandro DeAngelis kicked a field goal, a convert and a single.

The Riders will meet the Montreal Alouettes in the Grey Cup game next Sunday at McMahon Stadium in Calgary, Alberta. The Als earned their 7th Grey Cup berth since 2000, by pounding the BC Lions yesterday, 56-18. In their previous six appearances, Montreal's only win came in 2002. Saskatchewan beat Winnipeg to win the 2007 Grey Cup. The Alouettes have beaten the Riders twice this season, 43-10 in Regina in week #3, and 34-25 in a week #8 matchup in Montreal. Kickoff for the Grey Cup next Sunday is 6:30pm EST. You can hear the game on http://www.620ckrm.com/ beginning at 5:30pm EST.

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The NFL took the field for week 11 action yesterday. Baltimore wrapped up week 10 last Monday by blanking Cleveland 16-0. Week 11 started on Thursday with Miami beating Carolina 24-7.

In yesterday's action, Philadelphia beat Chicago 24-20(How you Bears fans like Jay Cutler now?), Oakland beat Cincinnati 20-17(Bruce Gradowski 2 TD passes in his first start), New England beat the J-E-T-S, Jets, Jets, Jets 31-14 and San Diego blasted Denver 32-3(San Diego now leads the AFC West while Denver has lost 4 straight, after starting 6-0).

Arizona held off St. Louis 21-13, Jacksonville topped Buffalo 18-15(Jags scored 8 in 4th to win), Green Bay beat San Francisco 30-24 and the New York football Giants ended a 4 game slide, by beating Atlanta with an OT field goal, 34-31.

Detroit edged Cleveland 38-37(Who thought this would be the most entertaining game of the weekend, with these two sad sacks combining for 75 points and 912 yards total offense?), New Orleans beat the daylights out of Tampa Bay 38-7(Bucs drove 95 yards on their first possession to grab the lead, then proceeded to suck), Kansas City got an OT field goal to Beat Pittsburgh 27-24(How often does a team get 512 yards total offense and lose?), Indianapolis stayed unbeaten with a 17-15 win over Baltimore, Minnesota rolled over Seattle 35-9(Brett Favre 22-of-25 passing for 213 yards and 4 touchdowns) and Dallas tripped Washington 7-6(The whole country was saddled with this bore-fest).

The Monday Night game this week is Tennessee vs Houston(The second game this week between one city's team, and the team that city used to have).

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The Tampa Bay Lightning split two games over the weekend and went 1-1-1 to end their road trip, losing Thursday at Anaheim in overtime 4-3, Saturday at Carolina 3-1 and winning on a Steven Stamkos overtime goal in Atlanta on Sunday, 4-3.

Teemu Selanne scored at 6:25 and Ryan Getzlaf (PPG) at 18:12 of the first for Anaheim. Bobby Ryan scored (PPG) at 6:52 of the second, then the Lightning finally got untracked with second period goals by Joel Halpern at 7:23 and Steven Stamkos 18 seconds later. Marty St. Louis tied the game with a power play goal at 1:38 of the third, but the Ducks won on a Scott Niedermayer goal 52 seconds into overtime. Mike Smith had 27 saves for Tampa Bay, Joel Hiller 24 for Anaheim.

Marty St. Louis scored a power play goal at 15:18 of the first Saturday, but Carolina responded with goals by Tuomo Ruutu(PPG at 2:35 of the 2nd), Joni Jokinen(at 13:46 of the 2nd) and Chad LaRose(15:37 in the 3rd). Mike Smith had 27 saves for the Lightning and Manny Legace made 21 saves for the Hurricanes.

On Sunday in Atlanta, the game was scoreless after one. Stephane Veilleux scored at 5:45 of the second and Ryan Malone at 19:36, putting Tampa Bay up 2-0 through 40 minutes. Tobias Enstrom scored for the Thrashers (at 5:29) and Kurtis Foster (at 9:20 on the power play) to leave the Lightning's lead at 2 goals, 3-1, halfway through the third. Then, Vyacheslav Kozlov scored at 15:37 and Evander Kane at 17:29, tying the game 3-3, forcing overtime. There, Steven Stamkos' team-leading 15th goal of the season at 2:56 won the game for Tampa Bay. Antero Niittymaki made 28 saves for the Lightning, Ondrej Pavalec 40 for Atlanta.

Tampa Bay is now 9-5-7 for 25 points, second in the Southeast. They trail Washington by 6 points, and lead Atlanta by 2, Florida by 3 and Carolina by 10.

The Lightning stay busy to close out November. They host Toronto Wednesday at 7:00pm, the Rangers Friday at 7:30pm, travel to Dallas Saturday at 8:30pm and return home to host Colorado on Monday at 7:30pm. All games can be heard on 620 WDAE radio and seen on Sun Sports, except for the Dallas game, which airs on WTOG, CW44.

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And Jimmy's new word this week: "Hi!"

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Have a great week everybody!

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Lecavalier, Smith lead Lightning past Phoenix

Vincent Lecavalier scored twice and Mike Smith made 30 saves, to help the Tampa Bay Lightning to a 4-1 road win over the Phoenix Coyotes, in front of 9,503 at Jobing.com Arena in Glendale, Arizona on Monday night.

Lecavalier slipped home a backhander at 5:59, Alex Tanguay wristed home a power play goal at 14:44 for the Lightning and Adrian Aucoin blasted home a goal for Phoenix at 19:20 in the first period, and the Lightning found themselves up 2-1 after one.

Martin St. Louis scored on a wrister at 4:30 of the second, and Lecavalier scored again at 11:46 of the third for Tampa Bay, who rode Smith's broad shoulders to the victory.

The Lightning cruised to the victory, despite being outshot 31-19. Jason Labarbera made 15 saves for the Coyotes. Phoenix was 0-for-2 on the power play, while Tampa Bay was 1-for-6.

The Lightning are now 8-4-6 for 22 points, second in the Southeast, 8 points behind division-leading Washington. The Coyotes are 11-9-0 for 22 points, tied for third in the Pacific with Dallas, 6 points behind second place Los Angeles and 8 points behing first place San Jose.

Tampa Bay continues their road trip on Thursday against the Anaheim Ducks. Faceoff is set for 10:00p.m. EST. The game can be heard on 620 WDAE radio. There is no TV.

Monday Morning Meissnervations

It's another Monday. Let's take a look at what's happening.

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The Oregon State Beavers stayed in the Pac-10 title race Saturday, with an impressive 48-21 win over Washington. Sean Canfield threw four touchdown passes and the Beaver defense harrassed Washington quarterback Jake Locker all game long. Jacquizz Rodgers ran for 159 yards on 18 carries with 2 touchdowns, Joe Halahuni caught 2 touchdown passes as did James Rodgers, while Justin Kahut kicked 6 extra points and 2 field goals.

The Rose Bowl race is fairly simple now. If the Beavers win their final two games(This Saturday at Washington State and Thursday, December 3rd at Oregon) and Arizona loses once, the Beavers are in.

No TV from Pullman this week, so you can catch the game at http://www.kpam.com.

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Yesterday was week one of the CFL playoffs. BC, the cross-over team from the West, beat Hamilton in overtime, 34-27 in the East. Casey Printers made a triumphant return to Steel Town, passing for 360 yards and 1 touchdown, while rushing for a score himself.

Over in the West, Calgary held off an Edmonton comeback to win, 24-21. Henry Burris 19-of-32 passing for 264 yards and 2 touchdowns to lead the Stamps.

The CFL playoff finals are next Sunday, with BC at Montreal, 1:00p.m. EST in Olympic Stadium. The Saskatchewan Roughriders host Calgary at 4:30p.m. EST. Listen links for both games are on the right side of this blog.

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In the NFL, play this weekend opened on Thursday, with San Francisco beating Chicago 10-6(In a game most people didn't see on the NFL Network). Yesterday, Carolina topped Atlanta 29-18, Miami, propelled by a bizarre call, beat Tampa Bay 25-23(Bucs still had a ways to go, but held the lead until the last few seconds, as Josh Freeman gets his sea legs under him), Minnesota beat Detroit 27-10(Lions might be just as bad as last year) and Jacksonville beat the Jets 24-22.

Cincinnati slipped past Pittsburgh 18-12(No word on whether or not Ochcinco did anything stupid again this week), New Orleans stayed unbeaten by getting by St. Louis 28-23(Rams were surprisingly tough against sloppy Saints), Tennessee won their third straight, beating Buffalo 41-17, Washington beat Denver 27-17(What's happened with the Broncos?) and Kansas City knocked off Oakland 16-10(Two of the worst teams in the history of the NFL).

Arizona beat Seattle 31-20(Fans in St. Louis might want to swap their current team for the one they used to have), Green Bay smacked Dallas 17-7(I really would like to see a game in Lambeau Field one day), San Diego beat Philadelphia 31-23 and Indianapolis edged New England 35-34(Colts still unbeaten).

Pittsburgh beat Denver last Monday 28-10 to end week 9, week 10 ends tonight with Baltimore at Cleveland. Week 11 begins on Thursday, with Miami at Carolina.

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The Tampa Bay Lightning split two shootout games this past week. They got a Ryan Malone goal with 14.7 seconds left in regulation last Thursday, on their way to a 4-3 win over Minnesota. Then, on Saturday, a goal with 1:40 left in overtime was amazingly disallowed for goaltender interference(even though replays show it shouldn't have been) and Los Angeles capitalized to win 2-1.

The Lightning are now 7-4-6 for 20 points, second in the Southeast, 8 points behind division-leading Washington. Tampa Bay now heads into a very busy second half of November, with 8 games in 15 days to close out the month. On Monday, November 16th, the Lightning are on the road to meet the Phoenix Coyotes.

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Jimmy is busy growing up. He is discovering how to run, he loves stacking things, he's becoming better with Snoopy and Smoke(Less tugging, more petting) and his vocabulary has grown to 13 words. I was in the office, watching the Lightning vs. Los Angeles. Jimmy toddled in, looked at the TV and said: "Hockey?" I was sooooooo proud! Poor little guy, though. He's cutting more teeth and it's really making him fussy.











My lovlier-than-lovely bride Kim was told at work last Friday, that her services at the gulag, er, I mean her job, were no longer required. Bless her heart, she has a plan and is supremely confidant that we'll be okay. She leads, I follow. I'm not ashamed to admit that.











We consulted with a surgeon last Monday, in the continuing effort to find out what's going on inside me. He seemed surprised that the gastroenterologist sent me to him without a firm diagnosis, so they talked the next day, and decided I should have a Hida Scan on Friday. Hopefully, I learn the results by the end of the day today. If not, you can bet the phone in my house will be connecting with theirs at the first opportunity. What we're hoping for, is a definate diagnosis of something that will be easily fixable.

The surgeon was great. He listened, he asked lots of questions and really tried to figure out what was going on. He brought Jimmy a toy from his office to play with too. And, he claims to have remembered my wife from when he removed her gall bladder 11 years ago. I doubt he actually did, but the effort was appreciated. And if he did really remember her, then he's the guy I want working on me!

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Well, that's it for today. All y'all be good and enjoy your week, okay? See ya soon.

Lightning lose shootout game to Los Angeles

An overtime goal was inexplicably disallowed and the Los Angeles Kings accepted the gift, winning over the Tampa Bay Lightning in a shootout 2-1 Saturday night, in front of 16,612 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida.

After 40-plus scoreless minutes, Los Angeles took the lead at 7:20 of the third period on a power play goal by Drw Doughty. The Lightning tied the game at 11:39 on a wrap-around goal by Ryan Malone.

In overtime, Tampa Bay thought they had won the game with 1:40 left, but the goal was waved off, despite replays showing it should have been allowed. It was ultimately ruled that the goaltender was interferred with, even though replays showed the player was pushed into the goaltender by a defender. What made the play all the more baffling, was that while the goal was disallowed, no penalty for goaltender interference that normally would be called, was. That was as close as either team would get and the contest proceeded to the deciding shootout.

Anze Kopitar scored five-hole to start the shootout for the Kings, and that turned out to be the winner, as Vinny Lecavalier, Steven Stamkos and Alex Tanguay were all denied and Los Angeles won a game they should have lost, 2-1.

The Kings outshot Tampa Bay 30-29. Both goaltenders were outstanding, with Antero Niittymaki making 29 saves for the Lightning and Jonathan Quick 28 for Los Angeles. The Kings were 1-for-3 on the power play, Tampa Bay 0-for-6.

The Lightning are now 7-4-6 for 20 points, second in the Southeast, 8 points behind division-leading Washington. Los Angeles is now 12-7-2 for 26 points, good for second in the Pacific, 5 points behind division-leading San Jose.

Tampa Bay now heads into a very busy second half of November, with 8 games in 15 days to close out the month. On Monday, November 16th, the Lightning are on the road to meet the Phoenix Coyotes. Faceoff is set for 9:00p.m. EST on 620 WDAE Radio. There is no TV.

Beavers pound Washington

Sean Canfield threw four touchdown passes and the Beaver defense harrassed Washington quarterback Jake Locker all game long, rolling to a dominant 48-21 Pac-10 victory in front of 45,274 at Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Oregon on Saturday.

Oregon State got on the board early. After a Johnny Hekker punt pinned the Huskies back at their 10, Keaton Kristick intercepted a pass to give the Beavers the ball at the Husky 17. James Rodgers ran the fly sweep to the 3, then Canfield passed to Joe Halahuni for the first TD of the day. Justin Kahut kicked the PAT, putting the Beavers up 7-0 4:35 into the game. Kahut thumped through a 44 yard field goal with 3:45 left, giving Oregon State a 10-0 lead after one.

Kahut's second 44 yard field goal of the game put the Beavers up 13-0 2:30 into the second, then, after sacking Locker twice on Washington's next possession, Oregon State took over at their own 30. Jacquizz Rodgers bolted 42 yards to the Husky 29 on the first play, which put him over the 1,000 yard rushing mark for the season. Canfield threw to Jordan Bishop at the 5, Jacquizz ran to the 1, then, after a penalty moved the ball back to the 6, Canfield threw over the middle to James Rodgers for a 6 yard touchdown. Kahut converted with 8:00 left and the Beaver lead was 20-0. The Huskies finally scored on a 4 yard touchdown pass from Locker to Jermaine Kearse. Eric Folk kicked the PAT, making it the score 20-7 Oregon State 2:45 before halftime. The Beavers would regain the 20 point lead in the final minute. Canfield rolled left and found James Rodgers just across the goal line from 10 yards out with 30 seconds left in the half, capping a 10 play, 70 yard drive. Kahut kicked the PAT and Oregon State went to the locker room with a 27-7 halftime lead.

The Beavers added two more touchdowns by Jacquizz Rodgers in the third quarter. The first was set up by his brother James, who ran the opening kickoff back 84 yards to the Washington 1, setting up a 1 yard scoring run on second down with just 45 seconds gone in the quarter then, with 7:45 left, Quizz spun off and carried tacklers on an 8 yard scoring run. Kahut kicked the PAT both times, giving Oregon State a 41-7 lead.

In the fourth quarter, after recovering a Canfield fumble, Locker found Kearse for a 3 yard touchdown. Folk kicked the PAT with 9:34 remaining in the game, the Huskies were down 41-14. Quizz went 44 yards on a direct snap out of the "Wild Beaver" formation down to the Washington 5. Halahuni caught a 5 yard touchdown pass from Canfield, Kahut kicked the PAT and Oregon State led 48-14. The Huskies finished the scoring with 62 second left, as Locket hit Kovario Middleton with a 26 yard touchdown pass. Folk's PAT made the final score 48-21 in favor of the Beavers.

For Oregon State, Sean Canfield completed 21-of-29 passes for 185 yards and 4 touchdown. Ryan Katz mopped up, completing 1-of-2 for 9 yards. Jacquizz Rodgers rushed 18 times for 159 yards and 2 touchdowns, James Rodgers caught 5 passes for 46 yards and 2 touchdowns, while Joe Halahuni caught 2 passes for 8 yards and 2 touchdowns. Justin Kahut kicked 6 extra points and 2 field goals and Johnny Hekker punted twice for a 39 yard average. For Washington, Jake Locker was 14-of-23 passing for 153 yards and 3 touchdowns, 1 interception and was sacked 4 times. Chris Polk rushed 19 times for 116 yards and Jermain Kearse caught 5 passes for 70 yards and 2 touchdowns.

The Beavers had the edge in first downs 22-12, were 6-of-13 to 5-of-13 on third downs, and had 374 yards total offense to 274 for the Huskies. Washington was penalized 7 times for 65 yards, the Beavers just 3 times for 15 yards. Oregon State turned the ball over once, the Huskies twice.

The Beavers won for the fifth time in the past six games, improving to 7-3 overall and 5-2 in the Pac-10, while beating Washington for the sixth straight time. The Huskies, losers of four straight to drop out of bowl contention, fall to 3-7 on the season, 2-5 in the Pac-10.

Oregon State has two more games on the 2009 schedule, both on the road. Next Saturday they travel to Pullman, Washington to play the Washington State Cougars. Kickoff time is yet to be determined. The game can be heard at http://www.kpam.com/ and the Beaver Sports Network. At this time, there is no TV scheduled. Oregon State closes the season December 3rd in Eugene against the Oregon Ducks.

Sports Saturday

It's Saturday and that means sports at Chez Meissner, although it's a pretty light schedule.

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The Oregon State Beavers continue Pac-10 play today with their annual Dad's Weekend game today against the Washington Huskies at Reser Stadium in Corvallis. Oregon State is 6-3 overall, 4-2 in the Pac-10 and have won 4 of their last 5 games. The Huskies are 3-6 overall(after going 0-11 in 2008), 2-4 in the Pac-10. The series between the two schools began in 1897(OAC won 16-0), with Washington holding a 57-32-4 advantage, hilited by a 25-2 record between 1975 and 2003, the last time that the Huskies have won(38-17 in Corvallis).

Since that game, the Beavers have won 5 straight against their rivals from Seattle. Last year Jacquizz Rodgers was the decoy, as James Rodgers scored three touchdowns, including runs of 33, 52 and 55 as OSU won at Husky Stadium 34-13. One of the most memorable parts of the game was the Beaver defense holding the Huskies out of the endzone on four downs from the 1-yard line in the fourth quarter. Only one of those five wins has come in Corvallis, 29-23 in 2007.

Today's game kicks off at 3:30p.m. EST. You can hear the game at http://www.kpam.com/. The game can be seen on Fox Sports Northwest.

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The Tampa Bay Lightning look to extend their unbeaten streak to 5 tonight, as the host the Los Angeles Kings.

The Lightning are 3-0-1 in their previous four games, after Thursday's exciting 4-3 shootout win over the Minnesota Wild. Ryan Malone tied the game with 14.7 seconds left in regulation, then Vinny Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos scored in the shootout. Combined with Antero Niittymaki's 31 saves, Tampa Bay improved to 7-4-5 for 19 points, good for a second place tie with Atlanta in the Southeast Division.

Faceoff at the St. Pete Times Forum is 7:30p.m. EST. Catch the game on 620 WDAE Radio and Sun Sports TV.

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Looking ahead to tomorrow, the CFL playoffs begin. BC plays at Hamilton in the East semis beginning at 1:00p.m. EST. You can hear that game at http://www.team1040.ca/bclions/ or http://www.900chml.com/. Edmonton is at Calgary in the West semis beginning at 4:30p.m. EST. Listen at http://www.620ckrm.com/. The BC/Hamilton winner plays at Montreal in the East finals next Sunday, while the Edmonton/Calgary winner plays at Saskatchewan.

The Grey Cup is in Calgary on Sunday, November 29th.

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Also tomorrow, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers play at the Miami Dolphins. The Bucs won for the first time last week, 38-28 over Green Bay. Kickoff at Land Shark Stadium is 1:00p.m. EST. 620 WDAE has the radio call, FOX has the telecast.

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That's what we're keeping track of this weekend. All y'all have fun, okay?!?!

Late goal leads to shootout win

A Ryan Malone goal with 14.7 seconds left in regulation and shootout goals from Vinny Lecavalier and Steven Stamkos helped stretch the Lightnings' unbeaten streak to 4 games Thursday night, as Tampa Bay edged the Minnesota Wild 4-3, in front of 14,530 at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Florida.

The Wild built a 2-0 lead on a first period goal at 16:53 by Benoit Pouliot and a power play goal at 3:47 of the second by Kim Johnsson. Tampa Bay got one back at 8:44 on a Steven Stamkos shorthanded goal, but Minnesota responded, getting a goal from Owen Nolan at 11:35, to lead 3-1 after two.

In the third, the Lightning began their comeback at 9:17 as Steve Downie banged home his second goal of the season. Then, late in regulation and with an extra attacker, Malone's power play goal tied the game 3-3 with 14.7 seconds remaining. The Wild outshot Tampa Bay 4-0 in the overtime, but were unable to score, sending the game to the deciding shootout.

Minnesota's Mikko Koivu was stopped in round one and Martin Havlat was denied in round two. The Lightning got goals from Lecavalier in round one, and Stamkos in round two. The scores were the first shootout counters for Tampa Bay this season and netted them the extra standings point, with the 4-3 win.

Antero Niittymaki had another solid game in goal for the Lightning, making 31 saves. Niklas Backstrom had 18 saves for the Wild. Both teams were 1-for-4 on the power play.

Tampa Bay improves to 7-4-5 for 19 points, tied for second with Atlanta in the Southeast, 9 points behind first place Washington. Minnesota is now 7-11-1 for 15 points, fifth in the Northwest, 12 points behind division-leading Colorado.

The short two-game homestand concludes Saturday night, when the Lightning host the Los Angeles Kings. Faceoff is set for 7:30p.m. EST, with the game available at 620 WDAE radio and Sun Sports TV.

Monday Morning Meissnervations

It's Monday. Here's what's happening.

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Before talking about anything else, please allow me to remember my Dad. He passed away one year ago this past Saturday at the age of 88.

This time last year was a three-day period I'd prefer to forget. On November 5th, I received a call from home, saying Dad was failing fast and that I needed to get home. In preparing for the trip that evening, I dislocated my right pinky finger shutting our front door, necessitating a trip to the emergency room. The next morning, on the way to the airport in Milwaukee(We lived in Central Wisconsin at the time), we hit the largest deer either of us have ever seen. My wife was driving(She has earned the nickname Killer. She's now ran over or into two oppossums and one deer since we've been married) with the cruise control set at 65 mph. It all happened in an instant, with a very brief flash of deer, then air bags in our faces.(The power used to propel the air bags doesn't smell good at all!) We were thankful that no one was seriously hurt, especially our Jimmy, who was just about 5 1/2 months old at the time. In fact, he barely stirred, then went right back to sleep. We returned home, I was able to rebook my flight for later in the day and I made it home to Portland, Oregon that evening.

As it was late, I planned to go see Dad the next morning, but sadly, he passed early the next morning. Arrangments were made, services were held and life went on. One of the best moments of the service was when, after I gave the details of Dad's life, friends were allowed time to comment. The son-in-law of Ray Williams, Dad's best friend from his days at Boeing, stood and talk about how Dad bragged about and was proud of his grandson Jimmy. After not being able to realize my plan to bring Jimmy for a visit to meet his Grandpa, that made me feel very good.

I miss my Dad. Maybe he wouldn't have won a Dad of the Year competition and maybe we didn't always get along like some sons did with their parents, but he was my Dad, and that's what counted. At the end of the day, we knew we loved each other.

I love you Dad. Thanks for all you ever did for me. I hope I can be as good to Jimmy as you were to me.

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First things first. The World Series is over. The Yankees beat the Phillies in six games. They won their first title in the first year of the original Yankee Stadium and they won #27 in the first year of the new Yankee Stadium. As long-time Yankee voice Mel Allen would say" How about that?"

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The Saskatchewan Roughriders beat the Calgary Stampeders 30-14 Saturday, winning their first West Division title since 1976. Darian Durant was spot on all night long, pretty remarkable considering how much he struggled in an embarrassing loss in Hamilton the week before.

The Riders receive a bye into the West final, to be played in Regina on Sunday, November 22nd, beginning at 4:30p.m. EST against the winner of this coming Sunday's West semi between Edmonton and Calgary. Both games can be heard on 620 CKRM radio, with the link to listen on the right side of this blog. The West semi is this coming Sunday at 4:30p.m. EST between Edmonton and Calgary. You can hear the game at http://www.620ckrm.com/.

The East semi is this Sunday also. With Winnipeg's loss at home to Hamilton yesterday, BC gets the third spot in the East as a crossover team. The Lions finished 8-10, while the Bombers(who seemingly didn't make a lot of friends this season) finished 7-11. Hamilton hosts BC this coming Sunday, at 1:00p.m. EST. You can hear that game at http://www.team1040.ca/bclions/ or http://www.900chml.com/ with kickoff set for 1:00p.m. EST.

Saskatchewan hosts the West final on Sunday, November 22nd at 4:30p.m. EST, while Montreal hosts the East final that same day at 1:00p.m. EST.

The 2009 Grey Cup championship game will be played in Calgary on Sunday, November 29th, with kickoff set for 6:30p.m. EST.

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The Tampa Bay Lightning should move all their games to Montreal. Two goals in the first, one in the second and outstanding goaltending by Antero Niittymaki led them past Montreal 3-1 on Saturday. Tampa Bay, which lost the first game of a four-game road swing, finished the trip 2-0-1, including Thursday's 3-2 overtime loss at Ottawa.

The Bolts are home twice this week, Thursday against Minnesota and Saturday against Los Angeles. 7:30p.m. EST faceoff both nights at the St. Pete Times Forum. The crowds haven't been great so far, especially for the weeknight games. But this is a hard-working team and you'll like what you see. Check 'em out and maybe I'll see you there.

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The Oregon State Beavers were pretty impressive Saturday in defeating the Cal Bears 31-14. Sean Canfield was first rate, going 29-of-39 passing for 342 yards, 2 touchdowns and 1 interception, while also rushing for a touchdown. Jacquizz Rodgers carried the ball 25 times for 67 yards and 1 touchdown, Joe Halahuni caught 6 passes for 128 yards, and James Rodgers and Jordan Bishop caught touchdown passes. Justin Kahut kicked 4 PATs and 1 field goal and Johnny Hekker punted 4 times for a 40.3-yard average, kicking 2 inside the 20.

The Beavers became bowl eligible with their sixth win of the season, while also improving to 4-2 in the Pac-10. Oregon State hosts Washington next Saturday, with kickoff on the Beaver Sports Network(http://www.kpam.com/) and Fox Sports Net set for 3:30p.m. EST.

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Just another week of fun and frivolity in the NFL this weekend. Last Monday, New Orleans ended week 8 with a 35-27 win over Atlanta. Yesterday, the Saints went 8-0 for the first time in team history, beating Carolina 30-20. Arizona rolled past Chicago 41-21, New England came back to beat Miami 27-17 and Indianapolis edged Houston 20-17 to stay unbeaten(318 yards passing for Peyton Manning).

The surprising Cincinnati Bengals beat Baltimore(I want to hear the Ravens marching band one day) 17-7, Jacksonville slipped past Kansas City 24-21(Chiefs released troubled running back Larry Johnson today), Atlanta beat Washington 31-17(Giving Sherm Edwards play calling responsibilties after calling bingo in a retirement center is really working out well, isn't it?) and Seattle beat Detroit(the cure for everyone's losing streaks) 32-20.

Tennessee won again, beating San Francisco 34-27(135 yards rushing for Chris Johnson), the New York Giants, after winning their first five, lost their fouth straight, going down to San Diego 21-20 and Dallas beat Philadelphia in the Sunday night game 20-16.

Saving the best for last in week 9, Tampa Bay brought Buc-o Brucie and the creamsicle uniforms out of retirement yesterday and beat Green Bay 38-28, winning for the first time this season. First round draft pick Josh Freeman got his first start at quarterback and while not looking real sharp a lot of the time, did guide the team to the win, with his biggest pass of the day being a late TD pass to Sammie Stroughter in the right corner of the endzone, where no one else could have caught it. Perhaps the team should have started him beginning in week one. The results might not be any different than they are now(1-7), but maybe the added experience would have put him further ahead. The Bucs might not be real good, but they do work hard. Tampa Bay plays at Miami next Sunday and another solid effort will give them a chance to win.

Week 9 ends with tonight's Monday Night game, featuring Pittsburgh at Denver.

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As Jimmy gets more upwardly mobile(meaning he walks more than he crawls), he gets more and more adventurous. Here he is, proudly carrying an air filter he pulled out of a closet in his bedroom. And now that he's starting to run as well, they'll just be no keeping up with him. And to quote that great American philosopher Aaron Tippin, we "wouldn't have it any other way!"











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Okay, women have the Chippendales Dancer, us men have the Lingerie Football League. (http://www.lflus.com/) What's kinda funny about the LFL is that, while the season started on September 4th, our local team, the Tampa Breeze, doesn't open their season until December 4th, when they host the Chicago Bliss at the St. Pete Times Forum. Whatever. Talk about a tease, eh?

My wife and I have reached a deal: She'll let me go to a game if she gets to hold up a sign that says "SKANK." I agreed, as long as I get to hold up a sign that says "That's a NICE tight end!"

Let's just say I'm not holding my breath of getting to see a game. But, if y'all put together a road trip to Tampa, I'll sneak out of the house and go to a game with you.

I'll betcha no one goes to the concession stands during play at these games!

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Well, that's all for this week. For me, it's a consult with a surgeon today and another doctor's visit tomorrow. Let the good times roll, huh?

See ya next Monday!