Guess Who is back?

The hiatus is over… Your favorite bloggers favorite blogger has returned. I will be taking topic suggestions on my twitter @georgewrighster . I will be a voice for fans and players here. I want/need your comments.   Join the discussion whether you agree or disagree.

Week 4: Winners and Fantasy Top 5

I had a nice blog all done for Week 4 filled with witty banter and great write ups on this weeks games. I logged on to post it and it was gone, erased and nowhere to be found. I’m very upset right now so I’m just posting my picks and fantasy players. I went 7-9 last week which puts me at 24-14. That sucks but I will return to form this week.

WINNERS: 
JETS, BENGALS, TITANS, SAINTS, PACKERS, SEAHAWKS, FALCONS, RAVENS, TEXANS, COLTS, EAGLES, CHARGERS, GIANTS, PATRIOTS




QBS: Carson Palmer, Vince Young, Matt Shaub, Peyton Manning, Kyle Orton
WRs: Chad Ocho Cinco, Austin Collie, Brandon Marshall, Desean Jackson, Brandon Lloyd
RBs: Chris Johnson, Arian Foster, LeSean McCoy, Darren McFadden, 
TEs: Dustin Keller, Jermichael Finley, Dallas Clark, Antonio Gates
Def: Jets, Packers, Bengals, Colts

Spirit Airlines

Spirit Airlines is now charging fees up to $45 for people bringing carry on bags that are too big to fit under the seat or in storage bins. Are they kidding me? This is robbery, but Spirit says it’s to save time. They want to charge you a fee for everything. What’s next? A seat belt fee, a breathing air fee, or maybe a bathroom fee. There is one fee I wish they would charging, a $50 farting fee. If you fart and stink up the plane, you should have to pay. lol.

What happened to Onterrio Smith?

Countless people have asked me “What happened to Onterrio Smith?”.
I have heard every “Wizzinator” joke possible. They were funny to so many people, but not to me. Onterrio was my college roommate, good friend, and one of the most talented football players I have ever seen. Now, he is a legend in Sacramento High School football, and infamous for his fall from grace. His is a story we have heard many times, but its different because he is MY friend; star athlete with everything it takes to be a professional athlete falls victim to violence, drugs, or tragedy.
If you ever wonder what football coaches dream about I’ll tell you. They dream about players who are fast, powerful, elusive, strong, hard-working, tough, quick, mentally strong, with great hands, understands the game, leader, and a passion for being the best. They dream about Onterrio Smith. He was the best running back in the 2003 draft (even better than Willis McGahee), but slipped from a high 1st round pick to the 4th round because of “character issues” stemming from drug use. Mike Tice, former Minnesota Vikings head coach and current assistant coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars, said Onterrio was the best running back he had ever coached, and that he could have been great. That is high praise coming from a man who played in the NFL for 14 years and has coached for longer than that.
Onterrio came from a broken home in the projects of Sacramento to be a football star at Grant High School. After an illustrious High School career he accepted a scholarship to attend the University of Tennessee. It was clear from his first day at school that he was a star both socially and on the field. The Volunteer fans only got to witness his amazing abilities for one season before he was kicked out for marijuana use.
Onterrio then transferred to the University of Oregon where we met. From the moment everyone met him they fell in love with his magnetic personality. “O- Smith” would light up the room with his smile. He is one of the most likable, giving, caring, and charismatic people I have ever met, and quickly became a loyal and trusted friend. His fall hurts me so much because I know how he grew up. I know his family, his kids, and his story.
I remember the day I realized everything had changed like it was yesterday. Onterrio returned home after being gone for 3 days wearing the same clothes he left in. That same day I got a phone call asking if he was ok because the night before he had been waking up in cold sweats. Something about those events and his behavior just didn’t sit well will me, so I asked both ‘Terrio (as we called him) and our other roommate about it. They both told me I was trippin’, but in my heart I knew I wasn’t. Ladies and Gentlemen, that was the beginning of the end.
Addiction has no socio-economic or cultural bias. It can happen to any family. It can happen to people who may seem to be on the top of the world and have everything to live for. Darryl Strawberry, Stanley Wilson Sr., Ken Caminiti, Michael Irvin, Eddie Griffin, and Len Bias are a short list of athletes who have been victims of addiction. O-Smith, who had the potential to be one of the best running backs in the NFL, is another sad example of how drugs can ruin a life and career.

I watch a show on A&E called Intervention, which is a video documentary about addicts and their struggle with addiction. A camera crew follows alcoholics, drug addicts, and people with OCD, eating disorders, and other addictions. Those featured on the show do not know that they will soon face an intervention by their family. After the intervention, the addicts must either elect to enter a treatment facility immediately, or face alienation from those they love. It is a great show but it’s very sad to see how addiction affects not only the addict, but the toll it takes on their families and loved ones as well. Addiction has struck in my own family, but somehow Onterrio’s struggle hurts worse because unlike my family, I witnessed it happening. I talked to him, prayed for him, and helped him through rehab, but it feels like I failed. One thing I learned from this is for an addict to get clean he or she has to want to do it more than anything else in the world.

No one wants to be a drug addict. People like using drugs and alcohol because of the feeling they get from it or to escape their problems, but no one wants to be like the people on Intervention. Those featured on the show are at rock bottom or near it. When people begin using drugs they never think they will end up meth, ecstasy, crack, heroine, cocaine, prescription pill or alcohol addicts. After watching Intervention, seeing famous people fall victim to addiction, and watching my friend’s life and career tailspin out of control, I have but one thing to say: Just say no!!! However cliche it may sound, fact is that making one bad decision can shatter your dreams, ruin your life, and/or kill you.
One day I hope I can update this story with one of triumph, redemption, and recovery.

The Not So Civil War




Breaking news: It is being reported that Oregon State head football coach Mike Riley will only be able to dress twenty players for the Oregon game. The rest of the players will have to get dressed by themselves!!

Eugene and Corvallis are separated by one highway, but the separation between the Green/Gold and the Black/Pumpkin Orange is much greater. In Eugene we have a saying, if you see a Beaver with a Championship ring, call the Police, He’s a thief!!

The Civil War, Ducks vs Beavers, is not so civil!!! There couldn’t be bigger differences between the two schools that are only about 47 miles apart. The rivalry is like Big Brother vs Little Brother, the Haves vs the Have-Nots, or the popular vs the unpopular kids. The Beavers look at themselves like blue-collar, hard workers who are the meat and potatoes of this country. They feel they earn everything they get, but we get everything handed to us on a silver platter. So when the Beavers play the Ducks they have a big chip on their shoulder, because they live in the humongous shadow of the “O”. If the Beavs feel the Ducks look down on the kids that play for Corvallis, they should. We do! OSU is a team to be respected and never taken lightly, but Duck players and fans feel we should never lose to “little brother”. The guys from Corvallis take our hand-me-downs and left-overs. We didn’t want Orange so they took it. We get the newest uniforms, they get what is left. We get nationally televised games, they get the occasional regional broadcast plus radio. The Ducks are striving higher for National Championships while the Beavers are trying to climb fast to where we currently are.


Why is my disdain for the Beavers so great? Simple. I’m a Duck. During my four years at Oregon the Beavers beat us twice!!! That includes a 45-24 Shellacking in Corvallis my last year at Oregon. Until 3 days ago I had blocked that memory out of my mind. Honestly until I was reminded I really thought we won (I’m blocking, I know lol). It still haunts me. So yes, when we get a chance to knock off the Beavers for a Pac-10 championship and a Rose Bowl Bid, I’m going hard.

Classic Civil War story: One time during the week of the civil war Samie Parker, Onterrio Smith and I were in Red Robin and I saw TJ Housh “Your daddy” (OSU wide receiver) sitting there with his wife and daughter. I had our waitress deliver him a note that said we were gonna beat the breaks off of him. TJ is a friend of mine now and a great guy. I was talking to him about that before the season started and he said, “man, I thought I was gonna have to fight ya’ll with the family there”. LOL, it was all done in good fun. TJ got the last laugh tho, Oregon State won the game.

What makes the “Un”-Civil War so great? You never know who is gonna win. What’s on the line in this game? BRAGGING RIGHTS! Two great programs competing with their whole heart and soul to represent the state of Oregon. If you win no one can say a word to you, if you lose you have a year of heckling to deal with. Both schools alumni have so much pride and love for our perspective schools that a loss is devastating. In addition, we want to be the team to represent the Conference of Champions (Pac-10) in the Rose Bowl.

This is the Biggest game in recent UO/OSU history. Winner goes to the Rose Bowl. The Ducks haven’t been to the Rose Bowl since ’95 (We did go to Fiesta Bowl in 02′ though). The Beavers haven’t been since 1965… That’s a long time for both schools. And the intensity in Autzen Stadium will be nothing less then ELECTRIFYING!!!!

The Giants Go Green…Size Matters

So many actors have gone to hybrids and are spokespeople for conservation and clean efficient living, but us athletes have been slow to get on board. I’m here to inform you that we at the New York Giants are “Going Green”, or at least one of us has. Danny Clark is a 10 year veteran and he loves his smart car!!! It looks small (ok it is small), but you have just as much room inside as you would have in any two seat sports car. I commend Danny for getting out of the trap of “Bigger is Better” but it’s funny. He is a big guy in a little car! He has rims, custom lights, it’s convertible and has a Brabus kit on it (“they 10’s, but he keeps ’em clean though”…LOL). All for a recession special… under 20k.

Players tell him they are gonna “pick his car up and put it in the back of their pickup trucks”. Osi Umenyiora, Justin Tuck, and Chris Canty all think they can not only pick up his smart car but if it were a running back coming through the hole they could tackle it. I know it’s not possible because it’s a car, but there’s a small piece of me that feels the same way.


I wanna be cool like Danny. I’m really thinking about getting one of these things.

Be a Blessing Tuesday

“Give and it shall be given unto you…”- Luke 6:38

Get ready for the inaugural “Be a Blessing Tuesday”! We know that there are millions of people that make this world a better place through their day-to-day actions. So starting next week, we will use each and every Tuesday to celebrate and bless people that use their time and energy to be a continual blessing to those around them. From parents, to co-workers, to kids; if you know someone that deserves to be blessed for their special efforts, we want to know about it!

Send an email of 200 words or less describing what makes your candidate so special, the ways in which they bless others, and how we should be a blessing to them.

Each Tuesday, we will select a different person that we can highlight and be a blessing to in a unique way. We look forward to hearing your wonderfully inspiring stories and thanks ahead of time for making “Be a Blessing Tuesdays” a success!

Email your candidates’ story to BlessingTuesday@yahoo.com. Entries must be received each Monday before 6p est.

Updates will made on twitter @curiousg87

“The one who blesses others is abundantly blessed; those who help others are helped.” – Proverbs 11:25 (The Message)

Hate is UGLY!!!

You know you are doing the right things when people are hating on you!!! The Lakers are the only NBA team that people just say they HATE, and for no reason. How do you get joy from seeing the demise of someone else? I don’t get it!!! The worst thing is people who don’t even have a team of their own and say “I don’t really have a team but I just want the Lakers to lose”. It is different if you have allegiance to one of our rivals. But to have no passionate affiliation with another team and just want the Lakers to lose is ridiculous. I just know that if so many people “HATE” the Lakers why does everyone watch them when they are on TV? Sounds like jealously of a winner!

Last year when we (Yes WE!!!) lost in the Finals it was amazing how many phone calls, emails, and text messages I got from people who I didn’t even know watched basketball and who had never cheered for the Celtics. Last year it was all these Boston fans who magically appeared when they got KG and Ray Allen. That number multiplied when they made the Finals.
 
This year it is even more incredible how wishy-washy people are. In the beginning of the the season they wanted Boston to repeat, then LeBron was gonna get it done, now they all say, “I been on the Orlando Magic”. LOL!!! Yeah Right!!! I like Dwight Howard, LeBron, Tim Duncan, Yao, Chris Paul, Carmelo, and the Birdman just as much as everyone else, but my allegiance is clear. I understand the hate because everyone wants to live in L.A. or a be Laker; the most important franchise in the NBA who consistently provides “SHOWTIME”.
ACT NOW!!! On behalf of Laker fans we are offering you a chance at redemption. It is time to first, ADMIT you have a problem with hating. Then realize you really wanna be a part of a big time winner. We are attaching extra room on the bandwagon for people to jump on. Face your fears and don’t look before you leap, we will be there to catch you! You will even get high fives at the parade!
 
I understand that one post by me cannot change those people with deep rooted Hater issues. We love you people, fuel for our fire! But those who are 1st generation Haters this is your opportunity to stop the cycle before you pass that ugly trait on to your kids, family, and even pets!!!

Video: I Destroyed Ramses Barden Bowling Yesterday

About a month ago Ramses Barden (Rookie for the NYG who also works out with Travelle Gaines) was popping off on Yardbarker with these allegations that he beat me bowling. Well, the rubber met the road yesterday and I have video evidence of the outcome. I will give Ramses some credit, he did win 1 out of 3 games. All day he had been bragging about an alleged 226 he bowled a couple days before, but it was no where to be found when the cameras were rolling.
This guy showed up fully equipped with all the equipment necessary to play in a PBA television event. He had a gigantic roller bowling bag complete with two balls, two pairs of shoes, towels, powder, and all kinds of other gadgets that only professionals know how to use. I will admit I do have my own bowling bag and balls but I didn’t have them yesterday, so Ramses was at a distinct advantage and I beat him down!!! I BEAT HIM DOWN!!!

P.S. Another NYG rookie Travis Beckum also beat him down!

The sun came out!!!

Today I awoke to heaven!!! 80+ degrees and sunshine! I love it. I’ve been in NY for 2 weeks and today is only the second sunny day. Time to put my space suit on and go exploring NYC.




I’m just sitting outside getting educated. Check me out! You can catch me with a book, it’s going down!!! Until the game comes on.