January 9, 2020
LSU, SAINTS AND MUCH MORE!
ArrestedDevelopmentMediaGuides offers media guides. programs and baseball cards. Please visit JonFineProductions.com and click on icon to get to the store. Check out a full array of New Orleans Saints media guides and LSU media guides and programs and publications from much of the entire sports world. Over 6,400 publications listed.
WE THANK YOU FOR DOING YOUR UTMOST TO PATRONIZE SPONSORS OF OUR PROGRAMMING. THIS HELPS US TREMENDOUSLY IN SUSTAINING OUR WEEKLY LINE-UP AND WILL ASSIST US IN ADDING MORE PROGRAMS IN THE FUTURE. KINDLY MAKE AN EFFORT TO LET SPONSORS KNOW YOU HEARD THEIR BUSINESS MENTIONED ON OUR BROADCAST(S)
THE WIZARDRY OF OS
These new age Saints fans just don’t understand what old school Saints fans knew and I hinted at last week. Sunday’s gumbo was destined for disaster. Sunday was the organization I grew up watching.
This is the organization that made the playoffs for the first time and got throttled by the Vikings giving up a Hail Mary before the half. The same one that made the playoffs and didn’t just lose to the hated Falcons at home, but the Falcons were led by the quarterback who is known today as the father of the Who Dat Nation and a receiver that grew up in New Orleans.
Of course, the Vikings were going to play their best and be led by a former LSU Tiger in Danielle Hunter. Of course, the Saints were going to play one of their worst games of the year. The offensive and defensive lines looked like they did in the losses against the Rams and Falcons. I don’t have an answer as to why these aspects of the team were a B+ in most games, but D- in these three games.
The post Super Bowl version of this organization where the team is actually good adds in a special ingredient where the NFL is going to pour some tabasco in any open wound. I am left simply shaking my head. The same league that basically gave the Saints the death penalty for a year over player safety didn’t see anything wrong with the hit on Alvin Kamara. In the next game, Clowney leads with the helmet on Wentz, giving Wentz a head injury and the league says what??? What for it… the hit was not intentional and therefore legall!!! Since when did intent become part of player safety in the Roger Goodell NFL that cares about player safety?!
For those Saints fans that were hoping for redemption this playoff season, we got the opposite. We got a combination of the awful endings of the last two years. We lost to the same team that received a miracle two years ago and the last play will be remembered by officials turning away and ignoring pass interference yet again. My view of the pass interference and the Clowney hit are just not me talking, that is Mike Pereira who is the most highly thought of officiating expert not employed by the NFL today.
Before you even think about it, the quality of the Saints play has no bearing on how the game should be officiated. So don’t start with the thought that the pass interference call didn’t matter because the Saints didn’t play well and didn’t deserve it. Or you don’t think the Saints would have won anyway. I want to watch a league that is committed to getting the call right regardless of how much time is left in the game and regardless of who is playing well.
Since the league I am referring to, is clearly not the NFL, don’t expect for me to comment on any of the games left in the playoffs this year. Like last year, I will find other things to do with my time.
Fortunately, there is another kind of playoff where I think the rules and systems in place have the best chance for the teams on the field to decide who wins the game. Most amazingly, it will be the fourth time this century I can watch LSU play for a national championship and all have been in the Superdome.
I am once again confident that LSU will move the ball against Clemson like they have against every other defense this year. Clemson has a few great players on defense that might take away a few of LSU’s favorite options. Isaiah Simmons is the number one player on that list. But, the good news is that this offense spreads the field to where one Isaiah Simmons type player cannot overcome the safeties and linebackers that aren’t as good in coverage.
Clemson’s answer on defense is normally to bring pressure. Last year they could pressure Tua without blitzing and that is why they were able to shut down the Tide. Clemson can’t do that this year because they don’t have 4 defensive linemen that will be picked early in this year’s draft.
Throughout the year, defenses have tried almost everything to stop LSU. Texas and Alabama blitzed in the second half. Auburn and Georgia dropped 7 or 8 in coverage. I don’t know what Oklahoma was trying to do. Yet, nobody has tried to mix it up. Most teams have had one plan and stuck with it no matter the result.
I don’t think it will matter and LSU will certainly find something that works and keep attacking. Meanwhile, the most effective offensive plan against LSU was not the Ole Miss game plan. Ole Miss was down 31-7 at the half. The best plan was from Dan Mullen who actually had the lead on LSU in the second half. The best defense is an offense that keeps the ball away from the other offense.
The Vikings did that to the Saints. The Saints only ran 22 plays in the first half and 57 in the game. Alabama waited until the second half to unleash Najee Harris. I hope Clemson makes the same mistake, but my concern is that they come out determined to run the ball with Etienne and Lawrence. If Clemson is able to establish the run early, they have the big body receivers like Texas and Florida to extend drives on third down. That’s the formula that concerns me going into Monday night.
Watch the line of scrimmage, especially when Clemson has the ball and watch what happens on third down. Lawrence can make plays that Hurts, Fromm, and Mond didn’t against LSU.
I expect a great game. These are clearly the best two teams in the country this year, because they have the best two quarterbacks. I think we are in store for a classic game similar to the Clemson and Alabama title game with Deshaun Watson. I am hoping LSU can make the plays in the end as the team with 1-2 more weapons than Clemson.
No matter the result, I am determined to enjoy this moment. GEAUX TIGERS!
HEY REF COLUMNS 1 AND 2
I wrote the following column last week but due to computer problems it didn’t get printed. The “problems” I’m referring to were actually operator error on my part. So, to start 2020 the right way you’ll be getting two for the price of one. Seems this old dog still hasn’t learned any new tricks and for that I do apologize.
First off let me wish everyone a very Happy New Year. This week I’ve taken time off to do a little deer hunting in west Texas. I was lucky enough to drop two nice white tales and I hope the time away will recharge my batteries so to speak. I know everyone back home is concentrating on LSU and their date with Clemson on the 13th. But about the only thing that matters here in Big “D” is when will Cowboys’ owner Jerry Jones make up his mind on who will be Dallas’ head coach next season.
Jerry’s decision is about the only thing you read about and/or hear about. It’s like a circus and as you can expect it’s taking up most of the space in the newspapers and TV shows here. Today I read probably the most outrageous thing that’s ever been written about this situation. Jones is making up so many reasons (I call excuses) as to why he hasn’t cut the current coach, Jason Garrett, loose. The headline in today’s Dallas Morning News states the delay is because of LOYALTY!
Sorry Jerry you and loyalty don’t belong in the same universe much less the same planet. Let me remind my readers of how Jerry rewarded LOYALTY to the man that held the job of head coach when he bought the team. This man gave 29 years of his life in making the Dallas Cowboys America’s team. A simple, very professional man named Tom Landry.
If you look in the dictionary under PROFESSIONAL there you’ll see a picture of Tom Landry. There will NEVER be another man in this profession that could, as was so profoundly said, carry Tom Landry’s jock strap. In the 29 years that Landry held the position of head coach there wasn’t a single instance of wrongdoing or a hint of scandal.
When Jones signed on the dotted line and bought America’s team Tom Landry had just one year left on his contract. Sure, in the final few years Landry coached the Cowboys the rest of the league had caught up to his style of offense and the Cowboys were in a decline as far as the won-lost record went. Many of the other owners at that time approached Jones to allow fans league wide to honor Landry as he made his final stop in their stadiums. As the NFL celebrates its 100th birthday there’s only one coach equal to Landry and his name was Vince Lombardi.
You couldn’t have written a better end to Landry’s career than to have a “Tom Landry Appreciation Day”. All the owners and teams that Dallas would visit that final year knew a good thing and knew the football world would’ve filled each and every stadium to honor Coach Landry for all the sacrifices he made in making the NFL brand what it’s become.
But new owner Jerry Jones would have nothing to do with it as he said many times “It’s my team and nobody will tell me how I’m going to run it”. So, he dumped Landry, sent him packing without as much as a Thank You. This whole dirty thing is why I’ll never be a fan of the NFL. The NFL has regressed to one in which many of its players are nothing more than criminals and glorified entertainers.
This new version of professional football lacks respect and professionalism. Everything is done for the almighty dollar. So, when I hear the word LOYALTY and Jerry Jones in the same sentence I’m shocked anyone would put the two together. Jerry wouldn’t know LOYALTY if it hit you between your eyes. You know nothing of LOYALTY and respect since the only things you’re loyal to are your bank accounts.
I wish Jones would do the league a huge favor and sell the team then get as far away from the NFL as possible. Many in Dallas feel Jones is keeping Garrett employed to keep him from taking another coaching job. It’s in the man to do something that hideous. The next coach Jerry hires will have to be another puppet as Jones expects to run the team from the boardroom.
We’ll see how long it takes for Jerry to find another puppet since any coach with any self-respect will stay far away from the lone star state… …
Till next week…
COLUMN 2
Looking for something to read about other than “THE BIG GAME”? I just don’t want the NFL adding my name to their list of companies that may be sued for using their trademark aka the “SUPER BOWL”. Sounds like I’ve got a mental disorder? Well, maybe but as crazy as this might sound if any business, any commercial, any type of advertisement or just simply using the words SUPER BOWL then you must pay a fee to the NFL for the “rights” to use their trademark.
I simply blew this story off as just being too far “out there” to be true. But after further review; it’s true! Take a closer listen to whenever commercials play in the buildup to the Super Bowl. If you use these two words side by side then you’re in violation of the law for using a registered trademark of the NFL and you shouldn’t be surprised when a lawsuit lands at your front door. Some companies that don’t want to pay the NFL for the right to use “SUPER BOWL” will use such catchphrases like “The Big Game” or “The Game”.
The NFL has drawn a line in the sand and you’d better not cross it. Some businesses have refused to be blackmailed and are finding new ways to try and cash in on super Sunday without ponying up to the NFL fat cats. I wish them well since there aren’t many businesses around that can afford to pay lawyers two and maybe three times what they’d paid the NFL in the first place.
It wasn’t that long ago when Stephen Colbert hosted a show bearing his name on Comedy Central; The Colbert Report. He along with his network were told he can’t use videos or uniforms in his skits unless an envelope hits the commissioner’s office. The NFL along with the NCAA can take away your right to free speech simply because those two entities are strapped for cash!
Both the NFL and the NCAA make billions of dollars selling memorabilia made in countries such as El Salvador, Honduras, Mexico, Vietnam and China to name a few. It’s been well documented the main factor if not the ONLY factor in deciding to continue doing business this way is simply to maximize profits. They along with most American companies enjoy closing United States manufacturing plants so that they relocate overseas so they can make more money.
The NCAA is by far the worst in engaging business practices such as this since practically all of their employees (players) can’t earn a dime while playing college sports. The NCAA forbids players from accepting meals, cloths, cash for living expenses, etc., etc. They claim by keeping players from receiving any rewards for all the work and sacrifices they make is to keep players registered as amateurs. What a load of bull!
On one hand you’ve got an enterprise of coaches and schools making mega-millions in salaries and such yet a player that wins the Heisman Trophy can’t get a short stack of pancakes at IHOP or the school gets fined. Yes, this writer is onboard with paying college athletes and have many times printed my views on what I call the largest slave trade going on in America, the NCAA.
Two weeks ago I saw in my local Wally World shirts, Tees, hoodies and other things with the LSU logo printed on them celebrating their SEC championship. When you look at where these items are made none are MADE IN USA! So, I’ll start the New Year off right by continuing to call on the NFL and the NCAA to start moving those plants from overseas back to the good ‘ole USA. Our people deserve the jobs!
Till next week…
DENHAM SPRINGS HS FOOTBALL RADIO BROADCASTS ARE A JON FINE PRODUCTION ON FAMILY RADIO, 91.9 FM, BATON ROUGE and JonFineProductions.com.
OUR EBAY STORE, ArrestedDevelopmentMediaGuides, SELLS SPORTS PUBLICATIONS. YOU CAN LINK TO IT BY VISITING JonFineProductions.com.
JON IS PROUD TO WORK AS A MARKETING REPRESENTATIVE FOR SPORTSRADIO-1310-KEZM-SULPHUR/LAKE CHARLES.
JON IS PROUD TO WORK FOR PAYJUNCTION AS A MARKETING REPRESENTATIVE AND HAMILTON RELAY IN FACILITATING CONVERSATIONS FOR THE HARD OF HEARING