Random thoughts for a random Friday.

The happiest man on the planet today is Bengals holdout lineman, Andre Smith. He heard all he needed to hear Thursday night: Bengals allow six sacks in loss to Rams...

Smith better not get too giddy. He's still dealing with Mike Brown and daughter Katie...

Carson Palmer has all the mobility of a refrigerator. What do you figure his life expectancy is behind this current O-Line? .....

And let's not forget, the Rams aren't going to the Super Bowl this year, unless then buy their tickets in bulk....

The Reds have won four in a row? You mean the Reds who play in Cincinnati? Really?....

So they get hot now. We've been down this road before. Team falls out of contention in June, then gets hot in late August. Guess what? The games don't matter anymore. The heat has been off this team since June 1. Players play differently when there is no pressure on them. That's exactly the situation the Reds are in now. Major League Baseball is a whole different deal if you're involved in a pennant race.

Before you get all giddy about Reds pitcher Justin Lehr, remember these two words: Tom Shearn. Remember him? Came up from AAA late in the year a few seasons back. Great story, the guy had been living in a camper behind the center field fence in Louisville. Shearn was successful pitching late in the year (when the games didn't matter) and a lot of Reds fans thought he could win 15-20 the following season.

I like what career minor leaguer Lehr has done. But I also know reality....

UC signed a deal this week for a game against the University of Tennessee in football in 2011. It's a one game deal, no return match to Cincinnati. Think about how different this might have been, had Brian Kelly taken that job that was open in Rocky Top last winter...

BK, incidentally is my guest this Sunday morning on 700 WLW at 10:06am. He's also guesting with us Sunday night on WLWT's Sports Rock!

I hate what Michael Vick did with those dogs. But is there anything more hackneyed than animal rights groups protesting the Eagles signing him? Get real people. Everyone knows what he did and knows what he did was wrong. We get it. But here's what you don't get: all the protestation in the world won't make the Eagles dump Vick. And contractually, they'd have to pay him anyway. He went to the Federal 'Pen'. His job is playing football. You can't deny a man the right to earn his living after he's paid his penance....

But if ever tried to touch my dog....

Have a great weekend....updates when warranted.

Sorry, been idle here for awhile. I've been busy posting a bunch of new shows on my web site, www.kenbroo.com.

The latest episode of Bengals Report is up and running. It's a great preview of this Monday night's game at Indianapolis against the Colts. That should be one of the best games of the season. You can download the latest Bengals Report here, if you're in a hurry.

Also on www.kenbroo.com is the latest Broo View podcast. I've got some thoughts on where the Bengals are right now and how the playoffs are shaping up.

And, last but certainly not least is the latest episode of Broo v. Broo. There are some hot topics in this latest show, including who'll make the NFL playoffs, how ludicrous some of the arguments are against a playoff in Division I college football and some holiday gifts for the sports fan in your life.

It's all at www.kenbroo.com!

Some random thoughts on the last few days in the world of sports...Xavier is better than it played in the Crosstown shootout and UC is still a work in progress. The proof was in the Muskies win over Arizona State Saturday night and the Bearcats thrashing at the hands of Ohio State....Former Cincinnati high school standout Bill Walker plays his first college game Sunday for Bob Huggins at Kansas State. Walker is the same kid who was begging the Ohio High School Athletic Association for another year of eligibility only three months ago....The longer the University of Alabama waits to name a new head football coach, the more I believe it's going to be the Miami Dolphins lead dog, Nick Saban...Michael Vick voluntarily left the Falcons game against the Cowboys Saturday night with his team down 10, inside of two minutes and it had the ball. Vick apparently injured his groin but was lambasted, rightfully so, by none other than Deion Sanders for that move...

Ken