Pig Skin Pay Off
By BA “no more 80’s clichés” Antisdel
Think you know the teams to beat?
Play our Pig Skin Pay Off and find out!
The NFL is in full swing, as the opening weekend has started to wind down. We had some of what we expected, like defending champion Pittsburgh Steelers winning at home and Adrian Peterson going off for like a thousand yards. We’ve also had some serious head scratchers, like Jay Cutler throwing more picks in his first game as Bear than he’d ever had in a single game as a Bronco. As an unabashed Bears fan, I feel like Amy Poehler is sitting to my right giving my weekend update screaming, “Really, Really?!” As for those of you playing in the official Cityview Upickem group, several are still in contention for our first week’s winner, at least at the time this has gone to press. The Monday night games will decide the winner. Check online and wait for next week’s article for the official announcement.
Looking ahead, here’s hoping for my own pride that we have a much better idea of what’s to come. First, welcome home Kansas City! Chiefs fans have to feel better, having given Baltimore all they could handle in Week One with a backup quarterback who many had wondered would even make the team. Life will be much easier in Week Two, as the NFL’s dysfunctional family, the Oakland Raiders, come to K.C. to officially start the Cassel & Haley house warming. The only other definite lock is Green Bay at home once again. They will roll the Cincinnati “we still have professional sports in our town?” Bengals.
Several storylines will have lasting effects on this season and should be watched this week. Donovan McNabb wanted Michael Vick in Philly, and it looks like he’s readily willing to give him his starting gig. McNabb broke a rib a week too early though. Who’ll be the man for Eagles on Sunday, and what will Vick look like the following week? And, lastly, for the love of all things holy, show up this Sunday, Cutler!
Schedule
Sunday Sept. 20
Carolina at Atlanta 12 p.m.
Minnesota at Detroit 12 p.m.
Cincinnati at Green Bay 12 p.m.
Houston at Tennessee 12 p.m.
Oakland at Kansas City 12 p.m.
New England at NY Jets 12 p.m.
New Orleans at Philadelphia 12 p.m.
St. Louis at Washington 12 p.m.
Arizona at Jacksonville 12 p.m.
Tampa Bay at Buffalo 3:05 p.m.
Seattle at San Francisco 3:05 p.m.
Pittsburgh at Chicago 3:15 p.m.
Baltimore at San Diego 3:15 p.m.
Cleveland at Denver 3:15 p.m.
NY Giants at Dallas 7:20 p.m.
Monday Sept. 21
Indianapolis at Miami 7:30 p.m.
NCAA Game Day
College previews
Arizona (2-0) vs. Iowa (2-0)
Kinnick Stadium, Iowa City
Sept. 19, 2:35 p.m.
Don’t kid yourselves, folks. When Iowa dismantled Iowa State 35-3 in the Big Game Part 50-Something, it wasn’t a case of one team being 32 points better than the other. Show us a team that can commit six turnovers — such as Iowa State did — and win, and we’ll show you our undefeated, one-legged, ass-kicking contest champ we’re raising in our basement on a steady diet of grapes and ink. Point being: We don’t have such a freak, and neither do you. Iowa State fans, already as bored as a pacifist’s pistol, sprinted toward the exits and back to their bottles of Mad Dog in the third quarter before being subjected to yet another errant Austin Arnaud offering. So, although ISU got squashed, it was more self-inflicted than it was Hawkeye induced. Things get ramped up considerably this week for Iowa, who return to Kinnick Stadium to face an undefeated Arizona team. Just as the Hawks are 2-0, don’t read too much into the Wildcats’ unblemished mark either. Wins over Central Michigan and Northern Arizona don’t count. Or at least they shouldn’t. Head coach Mike Stoops hasn’t been setting the desert on fire out there, and is looking for that corner-turning victory for his program. He’ll have to wait another week.
Iowa 27, Arizona 14
Iowa State (1-1) vs. Kent State (1-1)
Kent, Ohio
Sept. 19, 6 p.m.
Iowa State’s road contest against the Kent State Golden Flashes this week is ripe with opportunity. First and foremost, it’s a golden shot at a win. The ‘Clones won a hard-fought game against Kent State last year and are confident they can do it again in ‘09. But it’s also a golden shot at extending a 17-game road losing skid, the longest in the nation. Pitiful? Yes. Reason to abandon ship? Hardly. Game Day saw some positives come from the ‘Clones loss to rival Iowa last Saturday, 35-3. The cheer squad performed admirably and looked fine in those white stockings (or so we were told), and stadium officials got to see first hand that the renovations over the past couple of years have given them versatile exits that can be used not only after the game, but during it as well. On the field, that’s a different story. That’s two subpar performances in a row. Not exactly the kind of momentum that’s going to stop even Kent State. Sorry, fellas.
Kent State 31, Iowa State 21
