Patterico's Pontifications

2/3/2008

Super Bowl {Second Half} Thread

Filed under: Current Events — DRJ @ 5:03 pm



[Guest post by DRJ]

Final Score: 17-14 Giants over the Patriots.

1 second left — Giants hold on. Bill Belichick is leaving the field. What’s with that?

If the Giants can hang on … The happiest people will be the Giants’ players and fans and the ’72 Miami Dolphins.

30 seconds left — Now we’ll see the Patriots hurry-up offense.

35 seconds left — Manning completes a slant-and-go to Plaxico Burress in the end zone for a Giants’ TOUCHDOWN. Extra point good. 17-14 Giants.

45 seconds left — Manning to Steve Smith for a first down on 3rd-and-11.

50 seconds left — How many players touched that incomplete pass?

51 seconds left — Giants have to use their last time-out after Manning is flushed out the pocket for no gain.

1 minute left — I’m back. Manning escapes a sure sack (I’m amazed they didn’t call him “in the grasp”) and heaves it downfield where Tyree makes a spectacular catch at the 25. Giants’ fans must be going crazy.

2:30 left — We’ll see what kind of 2-minute game the Giants have. I’m going to watch, too, so I won’t be posting these last 2 minutes.

2:42 left — Brady completed a wide-open touchdown pass in the end zone. The Giants’ defender fell down. 13-10 Patriots. Extra point good. 14-10.

2:49 left — High drama. The Giants defense is tiring and a Giant is going out with an injury on almost every play.

2:49 left — Brady to Moss in the end zone, but it was high & a little outside.

3:12 left — Patriots have a 1st-and-goal inside the 7.

4 minutes left — Patriots rolling. Brady to Faulk at the 13 for a first down.

5 minutes left — Welker again … and again. Patriots have a first down inside the 30 and Texas Tech Red Raider fans everywhere are going Guns Up.

Under 7 minutes left — Patriots run outside (left) and pick up 9. That’s the first good outside run I can recall.

8 minutes left — Brady throws complete to Welker on first down to the 35. Welker has been the one bright spot in the Patriots’ offense tonight.

Still 8:30 minutes left — Bud Light and Will Ferrell. He’s a riot.

8:30 minutes left — Missed a first down by that much. Fourth down.

9 minutes left — Manning scrambles out of a sack on second down and overthrows a wide-open Plaxico Burress. Can you say adrenalin?

10 minutes left — The Giants’ Madison (I think) broke up a Brady pass and the Pats had to punt. It’s really physical out there. The Giants’ return man put a good move on the blocker at the sideline and made 9 extra yards on the return to the 29.

11 minutes left — Brady to Randy Moss for 17 yards to the 28. The coverage was good but Moss has the height and reach that often makes the difference.

What does it say about the Super Bowl commercials when the movie promos are the best part?

11 minutes left — Giants kick off to the Patriots … and there’s a flag on the play.

12 minutes left — TOUCHDOWN New York, Manning to David Tyree. 9-7. Extra point good, 10-7. Manning used at least 4 receivers on that drive and each one had a big play.

13 minutes left — Giants’ ball at the 35. Manning “slings it” over the middle to Steve Smith for a first down at the 15. Two excellent passes in a row. The announcers are right. Manning isn’t playing like a Super Bowl rookie.

15 minutes to go — Manning to Boss for a long pass to the 35. It followed a shot of Peyton Manning in a skybox.

(Near the) End of the 3rd Quarter — Per ESPN, the Giants have 167 total yards and the Patriots have 202 184.

1 minute left in the Quarter — I missed several plays but I did see a good run up the middle and then Wes Welker catching another pass over the middle. It seems like I’ve seen Welker do that a thousand times.

**I have to take a slight food-related intermission.**

3 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — Giants have to kick but pin the Patriots at their 10. Did I mention it’s still 7-3?

4:30 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — Toomer caught another 1st down pass at the 45. He’s made 2 tough catches. Then Manning went for it all in the end zone to Plaxico, who got his fingers on it but couldn’t hold because the Patriots had him triple-teamed.

6 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — Manning threw to Toomer for a quick first down around the 50.

7:20 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — The Giants’ Strahan coming around the right side sacked Brady on a 3rd-and-7. It seems like Strahan has been in the Patriots’ backfield all night.

9:30 minutes left, 3rd Quarter — Patriots have the ball 3rd-and-long at the Giants 35/40 and complete a pass over the right side for a first down.

More commercials: Bud Light still rules (“Wheel suck”) and Bridgestone is, well, I’m not sure. I’ll have to think about it. (Was that a deer, Gene Simmons, and Richard Simmons?)

Commercial break: You have to see it to believe it: Shaquille O’Neal as a jockey. Who would have imagined that the commercials with NBA stars are among the best good?

Wes Welker (Go Tech!) catches a pass over the middle on 2nd down and pays for it, but the Giants hold on 3rd down.

Barely in the second half and the Patriots make a hard-fought first-down on 3 plays. The Giants are only rushing 3.

Second-half kickoff — Giants kick off to the Pats who move it back to the 20. Nothing there. (Welcome, Marv!)

The Daytona 500 commercial makes me want a muscle car and I’m not even a muscle car fan. That’s effective advertising.

Halftime — Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers. I like them but is this the trend in Super Bowl entertainment, to bring back aging rock stars? My family’s theory is that today’s rappers and other stars are too prone to profanity and wardrobe malfunctions to risk putting on.

End of first half — This is fun even if I am the only one here. (Update: And Scott Jacobs! Thanks, Scott.) In the second half I’m going to add to the main post with the oldest entries on the bottom and the newest ones on top.

— DRJ

Super Bowl {First Half} Thread

Filed under: Current Events — DRJ @ 4:20 pm



[Guest post by DRJ]

My version of a Super Bowl live-blog:

The Giants took an early 3-0 lead but the Patriots came back to score a touchdown (short run up the middle) following a 43-yard return and an interference play in the end zone. So the score stands 7-3 at the beginning of the second quarter.

Manning threw a “Hail, Mary”-type pass to get the Giants inside the Red Zone. The Patriots brought a blitz but the Giants line held and he completed the pass to Toomer, who somehow managed to keep his toes in bounds.

I didn’t realize this but the Giants lead the league in delay penalties and dropped passes. And they are showing it today.

Patriots intercepted to stop the Giants’ drive. It was tipped off the receiver.

I’ll put the rest in the comments.

[Edited to make this a “First Half” thread.]

— DRJ

“Law and Order” in Texas

Filed under: Crime,Law — DRJ @ 3:08 pm



[guest post by DRJ]

Last week, I saw the rebroadcast of a 1999 episode of Law and Order entitled Disciple where a “rebellious child dies during an unsanctioned exorcism ceremony” in which the “defendant claims that St. Michael instructed her to perform it.”

Apparently life does imitate art:

“A 60-year-old West Odessa man charged with killing his wife told deputies he was attempting to remove a demon from her when she died.

Jan David Clark told investigators he was holding Susan Kay Clark’s face down on their carpeted master bathroom floor in their 3547 Ferguson Street home when she died, according to a probable cause statement. When authorities arrived at the residence, they found the woman’s body wrapped in a bed sheet. A cross and a sword had been placed atop the body. Clark also told deputies that the demon entered his body while he was holding her down and caused him to kill his wife.

Sheriff’s Sgt. Gary Duesler said the sheriff’s office went to the home about 4:30 a.m. Friday after being told that Clark had called a friend and said his wife was dead. Clark gave the investigators permission to enter the home when they arrived at the modest tan house. While it’s uncertain exactly when Susan Clark, 59, was killed, investigators believe the death occurred sometime after 11 p.m. Thursday.

Clark was charged with murder on Friday. “

As I recall, the defendant in “Disciple” was found guilty. If so, I suspect life will imitate art in that respect, too.

— DRJ

No on 93

Filed under: 2008 Election,General — Patterico @ 12:39 pm



Armed Liberal: No on 93.

I agree.

ABA Accreditation will Require 75% Bar Passage Rate

Filed under: Law — DRJ @ 12:15 pm



[Guest post by DRJ]

Via the Instapundit, TaxProf Blog reports that the ABA will impose a 75% bar passage requirement for law school accreditation standards:

“Interesting article in next week’s National Law Journal: ABA May Tighten Rule on Bar Exam Performance; Controversial Move Has Drawn Sharp Criticism From Minority Groups, by Leigh Jones:

Amid pressure from the U.S. Department of Education, the ABA is poised to tighten a rule that requires law schools to show that they are graduating students who can pass the bar exam.

The ABA is expected to approve the controversial measure at its meeting in Los Angeles from Feb. 6 through Feb. 12, when its House of Delegates will consider a recommendation from the ABA’s legal education section.

The proposed change has drawn sharp criticism, especially from those representing minority law students’ interests. But it is one that the ABA hopes will appease the Education Department, which grants the ABA authority to accredit law schools. …

In general, the change would create a quantitative rule requiring law schools to demonstrate that 75% of their graduates passed the bar exam or to show that their pass rates were within a certain range compared with other law schools in the same jurisdiction. …

Under the current rule, the ABA does not require law schools to demonstrate a specific pass rate, but instead to show in general that they are preparing students for admission to the bar and maintaining a rigorous academic program.”

Like undergraduate admissions, the details of law school admissions are closely guarded secrets. However, this change may make the LSAT even more important in law school admissions since studies have shown a correlation between LSAT scores and bar passage rates. (See this study and the studies noted on page 2, footnote 6.) That would almost certainly have an adverse impact on minority admissions.

— DRJ

Super Bowl Sunday

Filed under: Sports — DRJ @ 10:56 am



[Guest post by DRJ]

It’s almost time for Super Bowl XLII between the New England Patriots and the New York Giants. I don’t know who will win or whether this will be a close game, but I bet there will be a Senate investigation.

One reason why are new allegations that the Patriots spied on the Rams before Super Bowl XXXVI:

“An unnamed source has claimed a New England Patriots employee secretly videotaped the St. Louis Rams’ pregame walk-through the day before Super Bowl XXXVI, the Boston Herald reported Saturday.

According to the report, an unnamed source close to the team during the 2001 season said that following the Patriots’ walk-through at the Louisiana Superdome, a member of the team’s video staff stayed behind and taped the Rams’ walk-through
— a non-contact, no-pads practice at reduced speed in which a team goes through its plays.

The cameraman was not asked to identify himself or produce a press pass and later rode the media shuttle back to the Patriots’ hotel, the source told the Herald. It is not known what became of the tape, or whether the cameraman made the tape on his own initiative or at someone else’s instruction, according to the report.”

Reports have identified the employee as Matt Walsh who worked in the Patriots’ video department until 2003. It sounds like there will be a Senate Judiciary Committee investigation of the Patriots and the NFL about spying:

“The ranking Republican on the Senate Judiciary Committee wants N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Goodell to explain why the league destroyed evidence related to spying by the New England Patriots.

In the stretch of 12 days, from Sept. 9 to Sept. 20, the Patriots were caught filming the Jets’ defensive signals in violation of N.F.L. rules, ordered to hand over all tapes of illegal filming to the league office, fined $750,000 and made to forfeit a first-round draft pick.

Then the N.F.L. announced it had destroyed the evidence.

In a telephone interview Thursday morning, Senator Arlen Specter, Republican of Pennsylvania and ranking member of the committee, said that Goodell would eventually be called before the committee to address two issues: the league’s antitrust exemption in relation to its television contract and the destruction of the tapes that revealed spying by the Patriots.

“That requires an explanation,” Specter said. “The N.F.L. has a very preferred status in our country with their antitrust exemption. The American people are entitled to be sure about the integrity of the game. It’s analogous to the C.I.A. destruction of tapes. Or any time you have records destroyed.”

Mr. Specter first wrote Mr. Goodell about the tapes on Nov. 15. After more than a month passed without a response, Mr. Specter wrote to him again.

The league responded to Mr. Specter late Thursday afternoon. A spokesman said the letters did not reach the league office until late last week. The league added that it spoke to Mr. Specter’s office several times during November and December, but that the letters were never mentioned. Mr. Specter said the league had told his office last week it would not respond until after the Super Bowl.

Joe Browne, the N.F.L.’s executive vice president for internal affairs, said, “The irony is that we have been in contact with the senator’s office several times in recent weeks.” He added that “the issue of these letters was not discussed.”

Mr. Specter called Mr. Browne’s response “untrue.”

“It’s the same old story,” Mr. Specter said. “What you did is never as important as the cover-up. This sequence raises more concerns and doubts.””

The Patriots and the NFL deny the allegations. Nevertheless, this morning Sen. Specter told ESPN he would call Commissioner Goodell tomorrow to discuss what it calls Spygate.

That’s sports, folks!

— DRJ

A Very Neutral Poll

Filed under: 2008 Election — Patterico @ 10:12 am



If you voted for a Democrat, for whom would you vote: Hillary or Obama?

Would it make you more or less likely to vote for Hillary if you learned that dishonest pro-Hillary push polls were being used in California?


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