For me, it doesn't get much better than NFL Gameday. Waking up late, games all day (and night), eating pizza and the Fox NFL robot. It's like Christmas - 17 days of Christmas. I already can't wait for next year, when hopefully the 16-game season is extended to 18.
College football is great, don't get me wrong, but it does little to assuage my professional football withdrawal. It's just a little teaser - like the one present your parents let you open up on Christmas Eve. You just want to open more.
Watching Virginia football, on the other hand, almost has an opposite effect. Rather than leaving me itching for another fix, it's like a bad drug trip - a shock to my football system. Sure, like any addict, I'll be back for another hit next week, but I know that it's a tough road to endure. And I still worry about the occasional, hallucinogenic flashbacks that I may experience.
If any of you have played EA Sports' NCAA Football 10, you'll understand when I say I may have found a way to enjoy the atmosphere of Scott Stadium from the pleasure of my own home. From the awesome new jumbotron, to the "Good Old Song," to the hill packed with drunk students and discarded airplane liquor bottles, all the way down to the orange Virginia sweatshirt worn by our fearless coach, it's all there.
As a side note, am I the only one who finds it a bit odd that Al Groh is already wearing a sweatshirt in the 90-degree heat? Maybe it's just wishful thinking that he will still be coach when it's cold outside.
I was watching my roommate play as Virginia in this game, and I was finally sold on its realism when his kick returner muffed a punt on his own 10-yard line and turned it over to the other team. That's the team I know. Then again, the real version of the Cavaliers probably can't score 77 points in 10 minutes, so who am I kidding?
Come Sunday, though, I have something to soothe my jangled orange and blue nerves. As hard as it is to believe, I look to - believe it or not - the Redskins. When Osi Umenyiora returns a Washington fumble for a touchdown, I may fly at the TV like Serena Williams at a line judge, but the yelling, no doubt, means I still see some signs of life. With our football team, though, you'll hear a sigh instead of a scream. I'm getting used to disappointing Virginia football the same way I'm getting used to Kanye West's award show temper tantrums. The Redskins, however, still surprise me from time to time. For example, the fake field goal in which Redskin punter/holder Hunter Smith scampered for a touchdown at the end of the half. As shocked as I was by the play, I was more confused by the stat that appeared on screen. Smith: second career touchdown. What? Let's see a replay of the first one!
But my continued fascination with NFL football extends far beyond the Redskins, as that fake field goal actually was only the second-most surprising play of the weekend. The first was an audible the Bears' long snapper called with Chicago lined up in punt formation on 4th and 11 from their own 26-yard line. When he hiked the ball to running back Garrett Wolfe, I think Wolfe was just as surprised as I was that the Bears were going for it. In the fourth quarter. Up just two points. With 11 yards to go. Deep in their own territory.
Of course, bone-headed plays like that one are almost rendered irrelevant when a team's quarterback throws four interceptions. Just ask the Panthers, whose quarterback, Jake Delhomme, has now thrown at least four picks in each of his last two games (extending back to the 2008 playoff against Arizona). When are they going to cut him? When he throws more interceptions than Drew Brees throws touchdown passes? That could be a while. Speaking of quarterbacks, am I the only one that is secretly hoping that Donovan McNabb has a slow recovery so Michael Vick, whose suspension only lasts one more game, can take a few snaps? And now that Jeff Garcia is back under center for the Eagles, I'm a little bit worried he might lead them to the playoffs again. Maybe if Philadelphia works at it, Kevin Kolb will be 35-years-old before he finally takes the reins at quarterback.
All in all, it was a disappointing week for my three teams: Virginia, the Redskins and whoever was playing the Patriots. But, as any NFL fan knows, Christmas comes more than once a year: four days and counting. Time to go home and listen to the "Good Old Song" as I score dozens of touchdowns with my virtual Cavaliers' new spread offense.
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