I Want To Believe The Bengals Will Beat The Browns Sunday....

And I think they've got a legitimate shot to pull it off. But a lot of things have to go right for the Bengals. It starts by getting off the field on third down, defensively. The Bengals had trouble doing that last season. But in this year's pre-season games, the Bengals did a better job at third down defense. Cleveland will almost certainly try to pound Peyton Hillis. That's their game, or at least it was under Eric Mangini. New head coach, Pat Shurmer may have other ideas. But Hillis has been their horse. Last year, in the game played at Cleveland, Hillis ran for 102 yards on the Bengals defense. Just as important, he helped the Browns control the game clock. When the two teams played again in Cincinnati later in the year, Hillis wasn't so successful.

The Bengals will have to counter with Cedric Benson, for the same reasons as the Browns will try to run. Benson is the security blanket for rookie quarterback, Andy Dalton and new offensive coordinator, Jay Gruden. Benson can help manage the game for both. And, the Bengals offensive line is more adroit at run blocking than pass protection. So a lot of what will go down Sunday in Cleveland will come down to which team has the better defense against the run. That's where I think the Bengals have the edge. They demonstrated in this year's pre-season games they've tightened things up defending the run. If that was any indication of what the regular season may hold, advantage Bengals Sunday, and a real chance at winning their opener.

Here's another reason why the Bengals may have an edge: the Browns are 1-11 in season opening games, since returning to the NFL in 1999.

Other random thoughts on this random night.....

Great, and I mean great opening game for the 2011 NFL season. 76 points total and a game that went right down to the last play. And what a debut for former University of Kentucky star, Randall Cobb. The Packers' second round pick in this past April's draft caught a touchdown pass from Aaron Rodgers. And then, Cobb returned a kickoff for a touchdown....108 yards! Kickoff returns may not hold the drama they have in seasons past, due to the new rule placing the ball on the 35 yard line for kicks. But Cobb's return may be an indication that every once in awhile, you get that kind of magic.....

I like the Steelers, Falcons, Bucs and Chiefs Sunday, for what that's worth....

Can UC pull of an upset at Neyland Stadium in Knoxville Saturday afternoon. UC senior running back Isaiah Pead said this week "we're going to shock the world". Tennessee isn't a top tier team in the SEC this season. But road teams not named Boise State traditionally have trouble in SEC stadia, any of them. Like to think it will happen. Tough to think it will....

I don't know about you, but I've had enough of Ramon Hernandez and Edgar Renteria this season. If I'm Dusty Baker, I was through playing each a long time ago. Nothing against either, particularly Hernandez who could, in a certain set of circumstances wind up back here next season. But there is no excuse for not playing the future now. That would be catcher Devin Meseraco, third baseman Juan Francisco, outfielder Yonder Alonso and short stop Chris Valaika. Honestly, no one other than the players involved cares about individual 'goals' like winning a league earned run average or scoring a set number of runs. To give the team it's best shot of contending again in 2012, we need to get beyond those kinds of things.

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Nothing wrong with Bengals quarterback, Carson Palmer. That's the diagnosis from head coach Marvin Lewis on the day after Palmer struggled again. Lewis got testy in his weekly news conference when the questions about his quarterback and his struggling offense continued. Lewis as much as said if the line of questioning continued, he would say little more this season and would instruct his player to say less.

If you watched any of the three games so far this season, you could make a strong case for this being wrong: Palmer's protection from his offensive line isn't so hot. It's no secret, this is a line that run blocks a lot better than it pass protects. Maybe it's given Palmer reason to have 'happy feet'. Maybe it's just a case of the Bengals passing attack, so dependant on timing routes, not having having enough time to allow pass routes to develop. But there is something wrong with the way it's going about it's air attack. That Carolina defense isn't bad. But it's hardly one of the elite 'D's' in the NFL.

Like a lot of us in the Tri-State, we're tracking the Cardinals against the Pirates tonight in St. Louis. Part of me wants this thing to be over with, sooner the better. But on the other hand, better the Reds simply win Tuesday at GABP and let their fans share in the celebration. The last thing anyone wants is for the race to drag on deep into the week. Clinching sooner, rather than later, will allow Dusty Baker to set his playoff pitching rotation and let some of the ailing starters heal. Brandon Phillips, Orlando Cabrera, Jay Bruce and Scott Rolen all have nagging ailments that could use a day or two of rest. It can't be much more than that. The Reds need to keep winning and secure that second seed, guaranteeing them home field advantage in round one.

I never believe in "moral victories". You either win or you lose and deal with the aftermath. But UC playing Oklahoma close at Paul Brown Stadium Saturday night should set the Bearcats up for a decent run in the Big East conference. UC should handle Miami easily, when the MAC school comes to Nippert Stadium two Saturdays from now. The Big East looks like it's down this year. West Virginia appears to be the only team in that conference playing well. This certaily won't the kind of season that UC football has given us the past two years. There probably won't be a BCS bowl bid. But a strong run through the conference will set things up nicely for Butch Jones next season. Make no mistake about it, Jones didn't inherit a championship team. Mark Dantonio did the heavy lifting for the last two seasons, under Brian Kelly's leadership. But the recruiting for this current year of 2010 left a lot to be desired and a lot of holes on the UC offense. Jones is a good coach, if not the pied piper that his predecessor was.

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Like Loverboy rhapsodized all those years ago...Everybody's working for the weekend.....

I don't think the University of Cincinnati has the horses (or the riders) to beat Oklahoma. But I don't think this game Saturday night at Paul Brown Stadium will be the blowout that a lot of national pundits are predicting. UC is having a hard time blocking people and it's secondary was shredded by North Carolina State last week. But the Bearcats will get a little 'juice' from the hometown crowd and OU doesn't travel all that well. But I don't see a lot of scenarios where teh Bearcats come out with a "W".....

I'm embarrassed by what the Ohio University mascot did on the field at Ohio Stadium last Saturday. While a lot of the country found it amusing, I found the 19 year old inside of that costume, Brandon Hanning, to be nothing short of an idiot. He claims that he took the job as team mascot, over a year ago, just for the opportunity to tackle the OSU mascot, Brutus. In a number of other areas of life, that would be tantamount to stalking with serious implications. What's worse is that the Ohio University athletic department allowed a non-student (Hanning has since transferred to nearby Hocking College) to continue in the role of playing the team mascot. In a number of other businesses, that would be cause for dismissal of someone, in this case whomever was charged with assembling cheerleaders and mascots. I'm still waiting to see something like that from a guy I admire a lot, school president Dr. Roderick McDavis....

I fielded a lot of phone calls after the Bengals beat the Ravens last Sunday on 1530 ESPN and the Bengals radio network from fans who are convinced the real problem with the Bengals offense is Carson Palmer. Callers insisted that either Palmer was over rated, or his elbow is still bothering him or that he was running scared from his knee injury five years ago and those were the reasons why the Bengals offense has been non-existant so far this season. Here's some breaking news: the problem isn't Palmer. It's his line. It can't pass block. Further, the Ravens defense will make a lot of good quarterbacks look bad this season. So will the Steelers defense.

Palmer isn't an elite quarterback right now. He's a top 10 quarterback, but not among the top three or four. He could still get there. But the problem with the Bengals offense isn't its quarterback. You'd want Jordan Palmer playing instead? Arnold Palmer might be better than that.

Good wishes to Mark Dantonio, who like me, just found out how mortal we all are. Dantonio's heart attack after his Spartans beat Notre Dame last Saturday night resulted in doctors placing a stent in one of his veins. Dantonio will heal and be back coaching soon. Trust me, it gets better. But watching him pull a play out of Brian Kelly's book to beat Kelly's Irish had to be particulary gratifying for Dantonio. Kelly won at UC, largely, on Dantonio's recruiting. Kelly's first BCS bowl team, the 2008 squad, was heavily populated with Dantonio recruits.

Imagine how UC fans had to feel watching that MSU-Notre Dame game, with both of their former head coaches competing against each other on national television. No disrespect to Butch Jones, who may someday be in Kelly and Dantonio's league, but the sight of those two slugging it out in East Lansing with UC sitting at a very shaky 1-2 had to be tough for Bearcats fans.

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Good Morning!

Here's what you gotta ask yourself, if you're University of Cincinnati Athletic Director, Mike Thomas: do you really want Brian Kelly coaching your team in teh Sugar Bowl IF he takes the head coach's job at Notre Dame. I have a one word answer.

No.

Think about it. If Kelly is leaving for his dream job, why keep him from it any longer than necessary? If it's fervent wish to coach the Irish, give Kelly your blessing and send him on his way. Thank him for making UC football relevant again and move on. Do you really want Kelly and a part of his soon to be in South Bend staff hanging around UC, a school they'll be in competition with for future players (a lot from the Greater Cincinnati area) on the recruiting trail?

Years ago, when then Cincinnati Bengals offensive coordinator Lindy Infante signed a future deal to coach in the upstart USFL, Bengals owner Paul Brown booted him from the Spinney Field premises. Brown simply said, "I don't want a fox in my hen house", knowing that the USFL had been poaching away a lot of NFL players.

I'm not saying Kelly is disingenous. I'm not saying he'd do anything unethical. But letting him coach a team he's decided he's better than is simply bad business.

Do you think it's been bad for UC fans, having to endure Bob Griese, Kirk Herbstreit and the myriad of faceless play by play guy speculating on Kelly's future as the Bearcats marched to a perfect season? Well imagine what the Fox Sports Sugar Bowl coverage would be like, when everytime Kelly's face is flashed on the screen, the talk immediately turns to what he'll be doing at Notre Dame.

It would be a four hour commerical for the Irish at the Bearcats expense. Sorry, if I'm Mike Thomas, that's not the show I'm looking for.

The question then becomes, who coaches if Kelly leaves? Do you hire a head coach within the next ten days and charge him with getting a team he's completely unfamiliar with ready for the biggest football game in school history? Doesn't seem like a good idea.

Do you take someone from Kelly's current staff, name them interim head coach with the promise of full consideration for the job permanently when the Sugar Bowl is over? Maybe. But what kind of deal is that for the coach? Unless Thomas works out a deal with Notre Dame that the interim coach can join Kelly's staff at Notre Dame should he not get the gig here in Cincinnati, that option makes sense for no one. Besides, we all remember how it went for Pat Narduzzi, when Dantonio split. He wound up at Michigan State, after his dignity and resume took a 'hit'.

If you're Mike Thomas, as you shop for your next head coach, these are things you have to be thinking of. There is no good answer. Except for this one: you can't let Kelly coach the Bearcats in the Sugar Bowl IF he's leaving for Notre Dame.

You stand to lose more than a game if you let that happen.

Big shows this Sunday, both on 700 WLW and WLWT Channel 5.

Sunday morning on 700 WLW, my guests included national best selling writer, John Feinstein. We'll discuss the BCS, in light of an article John just wrote for the Washington Post. Jarrett Bell from USA Today will join me, as well to discuss the Bengals vs Ravnes game and other things around the NFL. And from the nationalfootballpost.com, Aaron Wilson will check. Among Aaron's many jobs is covering the Ravens. We're on from 9am-11:30am. If you don't live in the Midwest, you can always listen on-line, at www.700wlw.com.

Sunday night on WLWT, or there abouts depending on how long Sunday Night Football runs, we'll be join by 700 WLW's Lance McAllister and former Cincinnati Bengal, Eric Thomas. Maybe a surprise of two along the way.

I've just posted my latest Broo View Podcast to the front page of my web site, www.kenbroo.com. My guest in this current episode is the national college football writer, Jay Christensen. He's got some interesting thoughts on the BCS and the UC Bearcats.

The latest Bengals Report Podcast is also on www.kenbroo.com. Bengalsinsder.com's Marc Hardin and I break down the first seven games of this season.

Some random thoughts on this random Friday...

I think Ohio State loses at Penn State this Saturday, but comes back to hand Iowa its first loss of the season a week from now.....

The official line on the UC-Connecticut game is UC minus 17. That's about right. I don't care how many close games UConn has played this season. They haven't seen any offense like the one UC will toss at them Saturday night...

Florida coach, Urban Meyer should know better. His top defensive player is caught on tape trying to gouge the eyes out of an opponent and Meyer only suspends the kid for one half of one game. That's a great message to the rest of your team, and the sporting world, where your priorities are. I don't know if it was Brandon Spikes idea to suspend himself for a full game, but it's a good idea. Maybe it was a way for Meyer to save face. But somebody that Meyer answers to need to sit him down and have a long talk about priorities....

There are a lot of bad teams this season in the NFL. I can't remember a year when we've had this many bad teams. Browns, Bucs, Titans, Seahawks, Bills, Jags, Chiefs, Raiders. Which team is the worst? It's tough to pick against the Browns, a team that's both bad AND dysfunction. But that Tampa team is plain awful....

The 2009 World Series drew great TV ratings and it was fun to watch. But by the seventh inning of game six, I began to get depressed. The Reds will never, under current structure, be as good as either the Yankees or Phils. If the threshold of competing is the $100 million per year payroll, small market teams like the Reds are doomed. You can build your farm system and win with your own players. But eventually, those players, if they're good, will cost too much to keep. So they're dealt, or allowed to walk, to the big market teams furthering the disparity.

You can always follow the blueprint of the Twins and Rays. But you'll only capture 'lightning in a bottle' every so often. The Twins have been to the playoffs five times in this decade, a very successful number. But they haven't won a World Series in 19 years.

I heard Buster Olney, an ESPN "insider" say this week that the situation for small market teams will get even worse in 37 days, when arbitration eligble players must be tendered offers. Olney predicts, rather than offering arbitration, a lot of small market teams will simply let their players walk.

Best new show on television is "Flash Forward". It's shot well, good character development and a story line that's both creative and frightening. And it's written very well. Good writing trumps everything else in the world of entertainment.

And I'm done writing for now. Have a great weekend!

Good Monday Morning!

There’s a prejudiced out there about the Big East. Which is funny, because the sports media is always accused of having an East Coast prejudice. Tune into any of the ESPN shows, radio or TV, and you get a lot of Yankees, Red Sox, Giants, Patriots. I’ll give you a good reason why: a lot of the talking heads on ESPN and the over the air networks are from the East Coast, or have lived in New York so long, they’ve developed an New Yorker’s view of America. You even seen one of those maps, a New Yorker’s view of the USA? Seven-eighths of it is consumed by New York, New Jersey and Connecticut….the rest of the country is squeezed into the final one-eighth of the map. Funny, but in a lot of ways true.

Here’s why a lot of the national media isn’t taking the Big East seriously: it has only eight teams that play football. It has a ninth team that plays football, but won’t play a Big East schedule and has its own television network. It’s a conference where it’s biggest stars play basketball and it’s celebrity coaches wear Armani and work winters. Except Huggins and that monstrosity of mustard he likes to dust off every now and again.

Dave Gavitt and Mike Tranghese after him, were magicians. They were the smart guys, the first commissioners. They took a lot of smoke and mirrors and a little bit of carnival barker and created an aura for the Big East. Georgetown’s basketball team and Virginia Tech’s football team didn’t hurt the cause either. Tranghese elbowed his way into the same room as the big boys, the suits who run the Big 10, Big 12 the SEC. He almost single handidly helped the Big East survive the major poaching the ACC did to his conference five or six years ago. It was good work. But it wasn’t enough. The Big East isn’t the Big 12. It’s just a step or two ahead of the Mountain West and Conference USA.

And that’s why today, after winning eight straight, with the most charismatic coach this side of Lou Holtz and skill players Urban Meyer would kill for, the Bearcats struggle for national love. Brian Kelly likes to say his Bearcats need to prove what’s going on right now isn’t a one year deal.

That tradition will take care of a lot of what the “Cats are battling right now. But this is a guy who knows the score.

In a month, there’s a very good chance the UC football team will be standing on the turf of Heinz Field in Pittsburgh with a Big East trophy, a perfect season and a resume with enough glitter to rightfully claim a spot in the BCS Championship game. There’s an even better chance it won’t get within a thousand miles of Pasadena. It’s not the team. It’s the conference.

Cincinnati could be at the epicenter of the BCS implosion. Because, if UC finishes the season as the only, or one of two undefeated teams from a BCS Conference and DOESN’T go to the title game, than what’s the point of belonging to a BCS Conference. You play in a certified BCS conference, you run the table and it still isn’t good enough? The system implodes.

And what does that say about the Big East?

So today, I’ve got a little homework lesson for the new Big East Conference Commissioner.: John Marinotto. It won’t help the Bearcats this season. But it might get his conference mentioned in the same breath as the “big boys”

Here’s the homework lesson: expand. Today, tomorrow, by next April. As soon as possible. And poach. Take teams from another conference and have no conscience about it. This is no game for the timid and your conference’s future as a BCS member is at stake. Don’t wait for the warning shots. Be preemptive.

Here’s two teams I’d look at today, right now. Kentucky. You’re laughing. Stop. As long as LSU, Alabama and Florida are in the SEC, Kentucky has about as much chance of winning an SEC football championship as you have commanding a spaceship to Saturn. Don’t think UK would be interested? Is the SEC a better basketball conference than the Big East? Not anymore. Don’t think John Calipari wouldn’t love coaching in that conference again? He may not say it publicly, wouldn’t be politically correct. But he’d love to.

Does UK have a better shot at winning a football conference championship in the Big East than the SEC? You already know the answer to that question.

Better chance of going to the NCAA Tournament in the Big East than the SEC if it doesn’t win the championship? Would UK be available? Maybe not today. But why not lay the ground work.

My other school to target: Memphis. It got left at the post when Louisville and UC jumped ship from Conference USA. But Memphis, continued to field competitive and sometimes, championship caliber basketball teams. The Memphis football program isn’t championship ready. But remember, recruiting big time talent to a Big East football team is a heckuva lot easier than it is recruiting talent to a Conference USA team. Kentucky and Memphis gets the Big East to ten. Two five team divisions and a playoff game and then, you’re on a more level playing field with the other BCS conferences and, most important, in the eyes of the people who vote for your teams in the polls.

Will it happen? It has to. It’s survival. It may not be UK and Memphis. It may be someone else. But if UC is standing on the turf at Heinz Field on December 5th, unbeaten, Big East championship trophy held high and on December 6th the final BCS poll has a one loss team ahead of them? Ballgame….for the BCS, for the Big East.

Random thoughts for a random Tuesday...

Forget about what the BCS poll says this week, the UC Bearcats will finish higher than 8th. The poll, historically, is volatile. Teams the Bearcats have beaten will beat other teams and enhance UC standing. Teams in front of the Bearcats will lose and fall. If UC beats West Virginia and Pitt, the 'Cats will be fine...

If you're wondering about the BCS title game here's what you have to root for: someone in the Big 12 to beat Texas. In the SEC, Florida or Alabama may finish unbeaten. But not both. They'll meet in the SEC title game, most probably. The BCS won't have a rematch in its title game. That means the SEC winner, if unbeaten is in. But, what if the Big 12 produces no unbeaten teams and UC runs the table. Would the BCS take a one loss Big 12 team over an unbeaten Big East team? If it does I predict the BCS implodes. And don't worry about TCU or Boise State. If UC runs the table, it will finish ahead of those non BCS conference schools...

Unless I'm wrong....

Yanks in six. They won't touch Cliff Lee, but they'll hit Cole Hamels....

By the way, the only thing you need to know about how bad the Cleveland Indians are is game one of the World Series. Former Indians starting pitchers Cliff Lee and CC Sabathia will most likely face each other. The Indians should have ponied up the dough to keep one, or the other....

The Reds will win 80 games next year. I don't see them being competitive in 2010, too many suspect bats in the "everyday 8" and no Edinson Volquez. Set the alarm for 2011.....

I get the fact that Sarasota wouldn't pay ball with the Reds and the team had to look for other venues. But I lived and worked in Florida for seven years. You mean to tell me there wasn't another town in that state that wouldn't have made a competitive offer to keep the team in Florida? Really?

So now they go out to Arizona, where it may make short term economic sense. But long term, I don't see how this is a winning proposition. How does that move help you sell tickets for the regular season? The 1p exhibition start times in Arizona will be 4p start times in Cincinnati. That means the highlights won't make it onto the early evening newscasts. The 7p start times begin at 10p Cincinnati time. That means not only will the highlights not get on the 11p newscast, the game results won't be in the next morning's paper. And this doesn't even take into account how many Cincinnati based Reds fans will have the money to fly to Arizona to see the team, like they did when the Reds trained in Sarasota. Spring break trips by college students? As Tony Soprano would say "Feg-gedda-boud-it"....

I don't see any Ohio Division I HS football team in this area of the state beating Moeller. Me thinks the Crusaders will be playin in the frigid air on December 5th in Canton....

Can Cedric Benson play EVERY game against the Bears? How come he didn't run that way against the Texans? Just wondering...

I heard Tony Dungy on a national radio show this week. And he was talking about how insignificant the Time of Possession stat is. Dungy’s rationale is that it doesn’t matter how long you have the football, it’s what you do with it once you get it. And if you were watching the UC-Fresno State game on Saturday, you saw exactly what Dungy was talking about. Fresno crushed the ‘Cats in time of possession. UC had the ball a grand total of 16-minutes and 18-seconds. But UC won the game, 28-20. So Dungy’s theory has some validation. But you can only play this kind of game once in a great while. All I could think of, after Tony Pike hit Marty Gilyard with the TD pass that made the score 28-17, was how short a time the UC defense had to catch its breath.

Games like the one the Bearcats played Saturday grind a defense down. Now, it turns out, Fresno State’s offense ran out of gas late in this game as well. The interception by Carey was big. And Fresno running back, Ryan Mitchell, just about unstoppable in the first three quarters looked ‘winded’ in the final minutes of that game. But when West Virginia, South Florida and Pitt pop up n the schedule in the next few months, UC won’t be able to play this kind of game. Its defense will need to take the ball away more than it did Saturday. It will need to get off the field on third down better than it did Saturday. Allowing Fresno State to convert third down on 12-of-20 tries won’t cut it against teams that are coming up.

But along the way to great seasons, good teams have games like the Bearcats did Saturday. UC fans don’t like this memory, but Ohio State had this kind of game at Paul Brown Stadium in 2002. In 2006, the year the Florida Gators won the national title, they played not go great on the road but won at Vanderbilt by six, the came home the next week and beat South Carolina only by one. So it happens. You don’t play all that well, but you find a way to win. UC did exactly that Saturday.

Hey, it's Tuesday. Go do something about it....

All three Bengals games so far this season have come down to the final drive of the game. So far, two wins, one loss. They could easily be 3-0 and just as easily be 0-3. It shows just how few plays are the difference in most NFL games and how close most of these teams are.

Even the cynic in the crowd would admit to the possibility of the Bengals going 5-2 in their first seven games. Who's out there that could stop them? Houston? Really? Da Bears? You think? The Browns? Get real. Only the Ravens look like a team that could handle the Bengals at this point. I know, I know, this team has done nothing, even in the last three weeks, to earn our long term trust back. But a month ago, nobody would have predicted how this season would have started. If you say you did, YOU LIE!

South Florida look good in its upset win at Florida State Saturday. This is the biggest opponent (and best) that UC will play so far this year. After dispatching Miami (which the 'Cats should be able to do without problem this Saturday) they'll have ten days to get ready for South Florida. It's a Thursday night game in Tampa. Give Brian Kelly ten days to get ready for any team and he could come up with a legitimate way to stop Florida IMHO.

South Florida has Jim Tressey as its defensive coordinator. He's there, after his philosophical fall out with Kelly after the Bearcats Orange Bowl loss this past January. He knows the Bearcats offense inside out. But Tressey isn't playing in the game, just coordinating the Bulls defense.

It's Friday!

Random thoughts on a random Friday.....

I've just finished engaging one of the OSU football loyalists at www.bucknuts.com. My mission was to state a case for the University of Cincinnati football team and how it would fare in a game against the Buckeyes. You can read the debate here. I think I held my own......

UC by 16, incidentally, against Fresno State Saturday. Illinois plays the Buckeyes a lot tighter...

Paul Brown Stadium will be awash in Black and Gold Sunday. My guess is 60% of the stadium will show up in Steelers colors. It's not a testamonial to the Steelers far reaching appeal (even here in Cincinnati) but more to Bengals ticket holders selling tickets for this particular game. They gave up hope long ago and used the money they got from selling tickets to this game to pay for the entire season.....

The Ravens are the best team in the AFC. Defense has always been there for the Ravens. But now, with Flacco coming into his own and the Ravens ability to run the ball effectively, this is the AFC's best team....

Best team in the NFC? New Orleans, just edging out the Giants. But the Giants are very, very good.....

You down six and you have the length of the field to navigate for the game winning touchdown. Who do you want quarterbacking your team? Brady? Peyton? Eli? Brees? Palmer? Brady's done it a lot. But Peyton has done it better. Peyton, for me....

I'm happy the Reds are playing well. But you have to understand, there's a large difference between winning when you're out of the pennant chase and without pressure and winning with the daily pressure of a pennant race. We've seen these late season heroics from Reds teams in the past and they've fooled us, cajoled us into believing that it's a sure sign the next season will be better. I'm sorry. I'm not buying this latest swell...

The Reds need a left fielder AND a right fielder next season. Jay Bruce can't hit a breaking ball and struggles with left handed pitching. At least for next season, he's looking like a platoon player.

If the Reds payroll is really going to be less in 2010 than what it was this year, I don't see them having the money to re-sign Jonny Gomes...

If the Miami RedHawks don't beat Kent State Saturday (a very real possibility) they won't win for at least another two weeks. Next up is a home game in Oxford against UC then off to the Chicago area to play Northwestern.....

So let me get this straight. Plaxico Burress shoots himself in the leg and gets two years in prison. Donte Stallworth kills a guy with his car and gets 30 days in the slammer? Really?

UC gave Mick Cronin an additional two years on his contract that now takes Cronin to 2014 at UC. Good deal, for both parties. Cronin inherited a mess and his team is just digging out of it. UC doesn't need to be shopping for a new head basketball coach anytime soon. One or two more bad losses by Notre Dame, and UC athletic director, Mike Thomas could be shopping for a new head football coach.

You heard it here first: UC will play for the Big East title on the night of December 5th (I predict ABC makes UC at Pitt it's primetime game that night) and the Bearcats will be undefeated going into the game....which means they may be playing for a spot in the BCS Championship game. Yep, I've devoured the Kool Aid....

I'm talking sports Sunday from 9am-Noon on 700 WLW. Among my guests, Don Banks from Sports Illustrated....

Have a great weekend!

I don't know if you subscribe to the web site www.bucknuts.com. It's a site totally dedicated to Ohio State University sports. But if you do, you can catch an on line debate I'm having with one of their writers about which team is the better team in Ohio: the Buckeyes or the UC Bearcats. I'm, of course, taking up the cause of the Bearcats. It's an interesting give and take and I'm told it will be posted sometime Thursday afternoon.

The Bengals Antwan Odom was named AFC defensive player of the week Wednesday. This was more of a slam dunk than anything Kareem dropped in his NBA career. Odom had five sacks in last Sunday's game against Green Bay. You could have done a better job blocking Odom than the Packers' offensive line.

Ochocinco said today he's planning a "Spanish" celebration, should he score this Sunday against the Steelers. Perhaps Charo will be paying a visit to Paul Brown Stadium.

The Reds have scored 30 runs in their last three ballgames. Back in June 30 runs would have been about 12 games worth of scoring. All this is great. But has anyone noticed it's happening against the Pirates? If I'm not mistaken, the Pirates have season ticket holders that have a higher on base percentage than some of their players. I remain constant in my criticism of this Reds franchise: they make bad decisions at critical times. Examples? Signing Corey Patterson in 2008 for $3.5 million when no other MLB team would even look at him. Signing Willy Tavares to a two year, $6.8 million deal or paying $10 million to put a scoreboard in left field this winter (remember the ballpark was just six years old when that happened) rather than spending $10 million to acquire better baseball players.

And they wonder why most of their fans are coming to GABP disguised as empty seats these days.

Good Monday Morning!

OK, show of hands: who thought it was deja vu all over again (sorry Yogi) when the Packers recovered that on-sides kick? You, not rasing your hands YOU LIE!

Two very basic things won that game Sunday for your Cincinnati Bengals. 1: the ability to run the football on offense. 2: the defensive secondary's outstanding play.

The Bengals rush blocking was terrific. 141 yards on the day for Cedric Benson, 149 rushing yards total. That controlled the clock, kept the Packers offense on the sideline and broke the will of a very proud Packers defense

The play of the secondary, particularly corners Leon Hall and Jonathan Joeseph allowed the safeties to cheat up and play run defense. It was a big reason why Ryan Grant was ineffective most of the afternoon and a big reason why the Bengals Front 7 was so dominant.

It was only one game, but it sure makes this coming Sunday's game against the Steelers all the more interesting doesn't it?

Random thoughts, bouncing around in my head like a stray ping pong ball....

Did anyone else think it might've been a better deal if the Steelers had beaten the Bears Sunday? I can't envision Pittsburgh losing two straight. But, you never know.....

The Steelers offensive line is atrocious. Antwan Odom may have ten sacks this coming Sunday....

Best team in the game right now is the Giants. They got into a track meet with the Cowboys Sunday night and won. Good offensive line again for the Giants this season....

Is Rex Ryan, the new Jets coach expecting? Dude is one good prime rib dinner away from a coronary....

Isn't it amazing that Rick Minter, who is the longest tenured UC head football coach at least in the last 50-years had three current NFL head coaches as assistant coaches on his staffs? John Harbaugh (Ravens) Mike Tomlin (Steelers) and Ryan (Jets) all spent time assisting Minter when he was head coach of the UC Bearcats....

Are you taking note of a shift in power in the NFL through two weeks? The 49ers are 2-0, the Jets are 2-0 and the Ravens are 2-0....

UC is now 14th in the country, according to the latest AP Rankings. That's one notch below Ohio State and just two behind Southern Cal. The Bearcats should be 5-0 when they begin Big East conference play. Could they run the table? Health will be a mitigating factor. But now that South Florida has lost its starting quarterback, the only stumbling blocks may be at Pitt and a home game against West Virginia...stay tuned...

So why is Brian Kelly taking his team halfway around the world, again, this weekend to play a football game? Simple answer: the Big 10 is ducking him. Kelly says he wants as many out of conference games for his Bearcats against BCS teams. And the Big 10 has been more than reluctant to schedule Kelly in "home and home" series. The Buckeyes, the Boilermakers, the Wolverines would be more than happy to have UC come to their places to play. But return the trip to Nippert Stadium and it's 35,000 seats or a game at Paul Brown Stadium? As Tony Soprano would say, "Feggadaboudit".

No Big 10 school (or any legit contender from the Big 12 or SEC) would ever dare come to Cincinnati, where Kelly's offense would run them off the field and risk losing a game and incur the wrath of their fans. But Oregon State, the Bearcats opponent this week, is willing to do it because the Beavers are in the same boat at the 'Cats. They too are searching for quality BCS opponents to play.

Kelly said today he doesn't think his team will have a tough time adjusting the the time change. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:45pm Cincinnati time, roughly 45 minutes earlier than the 'Cats start time last week against Southeast Missouri State.

OK, so I've have about 48 hours to digest and break down that final play that Denver pulled off to beat the Bengals. Here's my take: the Bengals were simply out of position. You had three Bengals, two of which were safeties, converging on Broncos receiver, Brandon Marshall, the intended target. That's OK. What wasn't OK was that there was no Bengal playing 'centerfield'. There was no Bengals safety playing deep.

Here's what had to be done: a safety needed to be stationed at the Bengals 38 yard line. Because history told us that that was the furthest point from where the Denver place kicker could have successfully kicked a field goal. And in a 7-6 game, at that time, it would have been the difference.

Instead, the only other safety on the field, Chinedum Ndukwe was moving toward the pass from Kyle Orton, roughly on the Broncos 40 yard line even though three of his teammates are there to defend.

We all know by now that the ball was tipped by Bengals cornerback, Leon Hall (and if he didn't touch it, the ball would've sailed out of bounds) and into the arms of Brandon Stokely who took it to the house for the game winning touchdown.

At issue is field presence. The Bengals simply didn't have it Sunday and the Broncos stole a win away from them.

Now, the schedule has the Bengals off to Green Bay this Sunday, then home to play the Steelers, then at Cleveland and at Baltimore. There is a real possibility this team begins the season at
1-4. At that point, we can all start talking about UC and Xavier basketball.

Good Thursday Morning!

The melatonin hasn't kicked in yet....so some rambling thoughts from a sleep deprived mind....

Jeremy Mayfield flunked another drug test, for methamphetimines, again? Forget NASCAR ever, ever again. The next time Mayfield hears his name on a PA system it will go something like this: "Jeremy Mayfield, Jeremy, please report to the front of the store to assist with checkout..."

The Reds HAVE to do something dramatic in the way of player moves. 40 home games, half of their TOTAL number of home games for a season, remain to be played. Bringing up phenom Chris Heisley is the wrong move. A: he has just 202 at bats above single-A ball. B: Isn't this what the Reds did with Jay Bruce last season? And before he broke his wrist, Bruce couldn't hit a beach ball, let alone a 80 mile an hour breaking ball....

Are the Reds out of it? You say yes? You think they're saying the same thing in Atlanta and New York? The Reds and Mets have the exact same record. The Mets are 6 1/2 games out of first. The Braves are 6 games out of first, with one more win than the Reds, who are 5 off the NL Central lead.....

Sporting News just rated Brian Kelly one of the top 5 coaches in college football. Damn, he said, should've waited another month to sign that new deal....

What ever happened to former Bengals defensive end Alfred Williams? The "Condor" as my pal Dave Lapham called him.

Chick Ludwig is still writing for the Dayton Daily News. Good. Stay there, Chickster. We need your blunt and sometimes outrageous questions at Marvin Lewis' weekly media gatherings....

I'm addicted to Frasier re-runs on Lifetime. Never saw the show once when it ran on NBC, and I work for an NBC affiliate. The father, played by John Mahoney, is a TV character classic.

Anybody listen to audiobooks? I need a good one. I'm off on medical leave the end of next week and I want to listen to a couple. I listened to a Tom Clancy novel about ten years ago and loved it. What's good, and more important, delivered well? Let me know: ken@kenbroo.com.

NBC re-upped with the NHL for a couple of more seasons. That means my station, WLWT, gets to televise the Winter Classic again next January 1: Philadelphia Flyers at Boston, to be played at Fenway Park. The Winter Classic is the best hockey on television, as in ever.

I can't buy into all the hype that's building around the Bengals. Now, the respected Pete Prisco of cbssports.com picks the Bengals to make the playoffs this year. Really? With that offensive line? And despite what you've heard and we've seen, Carson Palmer has yet to test his right elbow. It's one thing to drop back and toss a ball without any pass rush. It's another thing to deal with that, having to throw the ball with your arm at different angles, avoiding the rush and tying to beat pass coverage. I hope his elbow holds up forever. But...

And the Bengals are going to beat out the Ravens, Titans, Jags, Jets, Dolphins and Bills for a wild card? Oh, they're going to win the AFC North then. Really? You honestly see eleven wins on that schedule? It will take eleven wins to make the playoffs in the AFC. New England won eleven last year and MISSED the playoffs.

But, I could be wrong.

Five Guys Burgers and Fries is GREAT, despite what my arteries are telling me...

OK, melatonin has kicked in...later

Just posted, my latest Broo View Podcast. This episode features an interview with Jerry Jones, not the Cowboys owner, the author and publisher of the NFL Draft Guide, "The Drugstore List". The topic: possible Bengals strategies in the upcoming draft.

16 NCAA Tournament games in the books. So a few observations. The only upset was Western Kentucky over Illinois. Butler put a scare in LSU and American simply ran out of gas or it would've sent Villanova packing. Other than that, only Memphis really had to sweat.

I hate 1 vs 16 games. Just hate them. They're always routs and neither team, nor the tournament really gets any thing out of them. I have a solution. What if the NCAA took the last 4 teams booted from the field of 64 and on the Tuesday before the Tournament begins, have the #16 seeds play the final four teams that were left out of the tourney? Two things would happen, I believe. One: a #16 seed might actually win a game in the tourney. Two: if one of the last four win these play-in games, it would make for a more compelling opening round game.

For example, Notre Dame didn't make the field. But, if the Irish were one of the last four 'out', they would get to play Morehead State with the winner going onto face a #1 seed in the first round of the Tournament. Would you rather see Morehead vs Louisville in the opening round? Or Louisville vs Notre Dame?

Here's another thought: give the automatic conference bid to the regular season champ. Use the conference tournament games to let the rest of those conferences build their tournament resume. Chance are, in the bigger conferences, the same teams would qualify. But in one or two bid conferences, the chances of the best teams getting left out of the NCAA Tournament are greater than, say, the ACC or Big East.

Sports Rock this Sunday night on WLWT in Cincinnati will feature an in studio interview with UC's versatile Connor Barwin, who ran a 4.47 40 yard dash in the pro workout day Thursday. Barwin, in some mock drafts, is a low first, high second round pick.

I'll be posting more info here as the day progesses, but I wanted to share an article with you on the UC Bearcats that was in the Washington Post earlier this week. It's a great read and more great national pub for what Brian Kelly is getting done. Here's the link.

Just posted, the latest edition of Bengals Report Podcast. Mark Hardin and I preview the Bengals upcoming game with the Baltimore Ravens this Sunday. Plenty of good 'sound' from Bengals players. The podcast is posted on my web site, as well as right here!

Tomorrow, I'll have another Broo View Podcast ready for downloading. I have indepth interviews with UC football coach, Brian Kelly, as well as BCS expert, Jerry Palm. It should be posted sometime around 2am Thursday EDT.

More, later tonight.

Random thoughts on a ramdom Tuesday night before Thanksgiving.....

Carson Palmer will test his aching elbow on December 7th. If it isn't the size of a Buick on the 8th, he'll play the following Sunday against the Redskins. Here's a thought: why? Palmer says he's bored standing around the sidelines and watching the rest of the Bengals play. Bored is about as nice a word as you'll find to describe the Bengals these days. With nothing on the line (season wise and offensive line wise) it's absurd to put your $100 million quarterback on the field just to soothe his ego. My guess is someone in the Bengals front office realizes the folly of this and tells Palmer to cool it. But then again, these are the Bengals.....

The Bengals should hire the NY Giants' offensive line coach, just so he can tell them how he pieced together the best line in football.....

What happens if the Giants host the NFC Championship game and the Jets host the AFC Championship game. Has any smart 'suit' in the NFL office thought about that prospect?....

If the UC Bearcats beat Syracuse Saturday afternoon at Nippert Stadium, both the Sugar Bowl and the Orange Bowl will be possible destinations. In the BCS pecking order, the Sugar Bowl will get to pick first. This might come down to UC or Utah for the Sugar Bowl. If you're the city of New Orleans, which group of fans would you want spending dollars on Bourbon Street? Right. I think the Sugar Bowl is more of a possibility for UC than a lot of fans think....

BREAKING NEWS...foxsports.com is reporting that Browns quarterback, Brady Quinn is done for the year. His broken finger will make it impossible for him to continue in 2009. Meantime, our buddy Mike Florio at profootballtalk.com (WHO HASN'T RETURNED MY EMAIL MESSAGES IN THE LAST TWO WEEKS!) says Bill Cowher is indeed a possible replacement for Romeo Crennel in this latest video-cast.

Late this afternoon, the Browns' owner said he'll hold Crennel and GM Phil Savage accountable for this mess of a season....but only after the end of the season....

Our latest Bengals Report Podcast will be posted and ready to go by mid-day Wenesday. You can find it on my web site: http://www.kenbroo.com/....

Still piecing together my Sunday Morning Sportstalk show on 700 WLW here in Cincinnati. But among my guests, so far, will be Reds first baseman, Joey Votto and from the nationalfootballpost.com, Mike Lombardi. I should have some addition guests to announce by Friday. If you live outside the greater Cincinnati area, you can listen on line or on Sirius XM channel 173....

Found this on Sports By Brooks. It's some hilarious cheerleader mishaps (hilarious, I guess if you're not the cheerleader involved)....

And as I like to say....folks, you know that's gotta hurt!

Some things that have been rattling around in my head like a broken ping pong ball this weekend…is our baseball team still in business? The free agent signing period began Friday. I hear the Yankees are going to break the bank and sign CC Sabathia. I hear the Braves are hot after Jake Peavy. I hear the Reds think Ryan Hanigan is a good catcher…what?

Why do I think, if Brian Kelly walked into a dice game in Vegas, he’d let it all ride on the first roll? I love cavalier way he deals with the media. But up seven on the road and going for it on four and one from your own 30. and in the first quarter? Really? Same guy who called for a fake punt, with 30-seconds to go and up only five on South Florida last year? BK, I’m with you win or tie, but you almost lost me there brother…

I’m watching the UK-Vandy game last night, and I’m wondering: if Louisville can do it, if Ohio State can do it, if Pitt and UC can do it, why can UK have both a strong basketball and football program? I know UK has had some bad luck in recent years with injuries, but this is the best they can do?

And speaking of UK: VMI? Last year, Gardner Webb and this year VMI. What’s next year for Billy Gillispie, Slippery Rock?

None of the college football games I watched Saturday, none, held my interest. Ohio State toyed with Illinois, Georgia was never really out of control dealing with Auburn and I already told you about UK. But I’m already salivating over the prime time game next Saturday night: Number one Texas Tech at number five Oklahoma. With Pitt playing at UC for the right to go to the Orange Bowl, this time next Sunday I’ll be reporting to you with carpel tunnel syndrome.

And congratulations to Doug Ramsey and the Elder Panthers. They knocked off Colerain in double overtime Saturday night at Nippert. It was terrific high school football. Colerain is a young team, a surprise to even it’s coach, Tom Bolden. Next year was supposed to be a big year at Colerain. But this year was pretty large. If the Cardinals could have held onto the ball, they might be playing next Saturday night, not Elder. But Elder’s defense had a lot to do with Colerain’s turnovers. Elder can run and throw. And it’s a typical Ramsey defense: hit hard, attack the ball. With Anderson still alive, pursuing a back to back championship in division two and Elder in the state semi’s as well, in D-I, Thanksgiving weekend could be very, very large.

As always, I'm talking sports this Sunday on the 50,000 watt flame thrower, 700 WLW, this Sunday morning. Belterra Casino Sunday Morning Sports Talk airs from 9am-11:30am EDT. Among my guests: Bill Koch, the UC Bearcats 'beat' writer from the Cincinnati Enquirer, Mark Curnutte, the Bengals 'beat' writer and Larry Weisman, the national football writer from USA Today. If you have XM Radio, it's on channel 173.

No Carson Palmer against the Jets this Sunday? Yikes!

Bummer, because according to my hometown paper, the Newark Star Ledger, you can beat the Jets with passing.