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Sidelines
Kalani Simpson
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Save some for the Hawaii Bowl
WE probably won't find out the answer to this question tonight -- I think Hawaii will probably score at least 42 points and Louisiana Tech not more than 17 -- but is UH peaking, or is UH playing Utah State?
Probably both -- UH has been superb, lately. But there's a reason they call it a peak, a reason it's a zone, it's a streak. It's hard to maintain this level. It's a cliché, but it's true -- coaches talk about taking it one game at a time because to stay at a high level week after week is a staggering task. Impossible, really. Doing it once? Doable. Then the next week do it once again. And again. And again. That's really the only way.
Is Hawaii peaking? Probably. But there's a reason they call it a peak, a zone, a streak. There are four games left. You hope you don't use up your best mojo against Utah State.
» Speaking of which, UTEP is consistently competitive now -- bowls the past two years and still in the hunt for another after last night's win. UTEP is no longer in the WAC. Tulsa is good now. Tulsa is no longer in the WAC. SMU is on the brink of being bowl eligible. SMU is not in the WAC.
Oh, well, I guess neither is UNLV.
» Maybe I'm in the minority on this -- and I'm sure the e-mails will let me know -- but when two ILH schools are in the state final, in anything, my level of interest drops.
» Lance Armstrong said after finishing the New York City Marathon on Sunday, "That was, without a doubt, the hardest physical thing I've ever done."
Hmmm. I can't think of any reason why Lance would have an easier time completing the Tour de France. Can you?
» I would comment on ESPN canceling its San Jose State-Boise State telecast today because Boise State couldn't change a day for TV in a future game -- but, you know. It's ESPN. They could probably make me disappear, too.
(This brings to mind an incident in 2004, when the Justice Department talked to the Western Athletic Conference about an investigation into the "business practices of ESPN." Commish Karl Benson said then, "It's hard to turn away from ESPN," in making deals -- sparking the best line I have ever written: "I'm not sure what Benson means, but ESPN president Don Vito Corleone had no comment.")
» Rutgers' monumental win over Louisville this week was one of the great moments in college football this season. One of the worst was that -- this is from published reports, this is true -- Rutgers fans were singing Bon Jovi songs on the field after the game.
Cue Triumph the Insult Comic Dog.