Good bye 2007.

Cotton Bowl Seeks BCS Inclusion - Cotton Bowl officials hope to secure BCS status by 2011. Jerry Jones' new 80,000-seat stadium in Arlington, Texas gives the Cotton Bowl needed leverage.

Here's this writer's take: The Cotton Bowl should have been a BCS game from the beginning.

Media reports say the Cotton Bowl is considered a cold-weather game because January weather in Texas is cold. That makes sense, but on the other hand, we are talking about a football game. Aren't late-season football games supposed to be cold?

It seems like all of the NFL playoff games are played in much colder weather than the Cotton Bowl.

The Cotton Bowl is a venerable tradition, one of college football's original bowl games. The Cotton Bowl should have been included in the BCS to begin with, regardless of the weather or the stadium.

Harry Potter Perhaps? - Since I rolled through Playing for Pizza so fast, I think I will opt for a longer, bigger book to read next. Needing a new book to read every month or so is inconvenient. I might tackle Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone.

I haven't read the Harry Potter series. The books seem daunting. I want to read them all, but the task seems like it would take forever. It's like perusing through the whole Beatles catalog. It won't happen all in one year. Reading Harry Potter from front to end, novel to novel will take a long, long time. I wish I had jumped on the bandwagon early and read them as they released. Oh, well.

I did try reading Sorcerer's Stone once before, but I bogged down near the beginning and put it down. I had seen the movie and I already knew what was going to happen.

I probably should have kept reading.

The Patriots Go 16-0 - New England just went undefeated in the regular season, beating the New York Giants 38-35 in East Rutherford, N.J. The Patriots had to rally from a 12-point deficit to win.

Tom Brady threw two touchdown passes to reach 50 for the regular season. That is an NFL record, eclipsing Peyton Manning by one pass. Randy Moss caught his 23rd touchdown pass to get the record for most touchdown receptions. Jerry Rice held the previous record, catching 22 touchdown passes in a strike-shortened season.

This season is truly magical for the New England Patriots. Everything goes right for them. They seem like a team of destiny. Should they meet Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts in the playoffs I will not root for them, but I will not root against them either. It would be a shame if the Patriots got this far and didn't win it all. Does anyone really want to see that?

Dallas fans might. I like Dallas myself, and I like Jerry Jones. If the Cowboys and the Patriots meet in the Super Bowl, I will have to root for the Cowboys. Still, it would be nice to see someone really run the table, really do the thing everyone talks about each season until every team in the league has a loss. I think most everyone wants to see it. Next month is going to be interesting for the NFL.

My Signature Drink at Starbucks -

Grande
Iced Mocha
With Soy
No Whip

Clout Wins Out - Boston College is playing Michigan State right now. The fact that Boston College is playing now while the Arkansas Razorbacks are slated for the Cotton Bowl on New Year's Day makes me wonder why the Hogs get preferential treatment. Boston College had a better season than Arkansas by far, yet the Hogs are playing on New Year's Day and the Eagles are not.

Granted, the Razorbacks have a strong relationship with the Cotton Bowl. The game attracts a lot of Razorback fans, which means money. Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl ensures a successful Cotton Bowl. Oklahoma and old Southwest Conference powers like Texas and Texas A&M could do as well or better. LSU would fare well, especially now. Nebraska would draw well. But Cotton Bowl organizers like the Hogs too.

It isn't fair, but money and fan support supersedes a good season. Good old capitalism puts 8-4 Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl while teams with better seasons play earlier. And don't overlook the influence of the SEC, which wants the Cotton Bowl's big payout. Cotton Bowl money translates to SEC money. All of the SEC's teams enjoy equal distribution of bowl proceeds. Still, I believe Boston College deserves more than what they got, especially when an underachieving team like Arkansas is playing in the Cotton Bowl against 11-2 Missouri. It isn't fair, but clout wins out.

-----

Arkansas' Newfound Clout - The Razorbacks didn't always have the clout they have now, in sports or otherwise. In the 1970s and '80s, there was a perception in Arkansas that the national media didn't really respect the Razorbacks. The state didn't get a lot of respect either. Arkansas was a poor state full of barefoot hillbillies in the minds of many.

A lot of those negative perceptions changed with the rise of Wal-Mart. Sam Walton became the richest man in the world, a billionaire whose personal worth hasn't been duplicated since, not even by Bill Gates. No one could have imagined someone from northwest Arkansas achieving such a feat. Walton's success seemed surreal to many.

Then Bill Clinton ran for President of the United States. Clinton had modest goals with his candidacy. He didn't expect to win. He was merely trying to get his name in the public eye to set up a more serious run in the next election. A lot of people won't remember that. Kids might never know.

His victory over George Bush was a windfall for Arkansas. The state gained credibility. Suddenly, Arkansas' movers, shakers and Friends of Bill became prominent nationally. Jerry Jones bought the Dallas Cowboys, and an ex-Razorback won the PGA Championship. Hooray for John Daly!

Clinton's presidency drew a lot of attention from celebrities. In turn, those celebrities piled into Little Rock for his election wins. The state received more help than usual from government programs. Locals got White House jobs. Clinton's presidency helped his home state directly and indirectly. For a while, it was cool to be an Arkansan. It still is, and we all enjoyed a nice eight years whether conservative Arkansans will admit it or not.

Around the same time, Nolan Richardson built his powerhouse basketball program with Todd Day, Lee Mayberry and Oliver Miller. The Razorbacks basketball team started winning more. They had credibility, respect, lofty seeds in the NCAA Tournament. Richardson's success continued with Corliss Williamson and Scottie Thurman. They won the 1994 national championship.

Nowadays the football Hogs are beating No.1 LSU on the road while floundering in games it should win. The athletic department is also stumbling through coaching searches and drawing harsh criticism when it finds someone. Despite the sniping, ESPN will remain infatuated with the Arkansas Razorbacks.

In politics, it's the Hillary/Huckabee show. Everyone expected Hillary to run for president, but when Mike Huckabee announced his candidacy I suspected the nation would be faced with an all-Arkansas final in the general election. Matters look to wind up that way. Arkansas will likely have someone with Arkansas ties in the White House once again. This blog is betting on Hillary.

The state stands to reap rewards for sure, assuming either candidate wins. I have no doubt about this after seeing what occurred with Bill Clinton. The state's run of luck will continue. The perception nightmare of the 1970s and '80s is well over.

Jon & Kate + 8 = Good Television - One show that has caught my attention lately is Dirty Sexy Money. But that's not what I'm blogging about in this post. Jon and Kate Plus 8 is surprisingly interesting. The reality show, which is about a Pennsylvania couple with twins and sextuplets, airs on The Learning Channel. All of the children are under eight years old. Wow. I couldn't handle it.

Jon and Kate Plus 8 stars Jonathan and Kate Gosselin and their children: Cara and Madelyn, Alexis, Hannah, Aaden, Collin, Leah and Joel. Cara and Madelyn are the twins. Madelyn stands out most among the kids because she complains a lot. She is definitely the perfectionist of the bunch. She is also opinionated, and she will tell you when she is unhappy with something. That is usually every episode. But I digress. Aaden seems to draw a lot of attention too. I can't explain why. He just stands out.

The shows take place wherever the Gosselins are. Sometimes they are at home. Other times, they are at Disneyland or a national park. Conflict arises when Jon and Kate tend to the needs of their brood. Naturally, the children want either the same thing at once or eight different things at once. Life is never easy in the Gosselin household.

The show documents the planning and the strategy that goes into caring for eight children simultaneously. Organization is critical. Sometimes the Gosselins' organization isn't ideal, which leads to some pretty funny scenes where Kate browbeats her husband over things like shoes and jackets. Like Madelyn, Kate Gosselin can be demanding. In her defense though, she has to be. After all, she is responsible for eight kids.

Jon and Kate Plus 8 is a wonderful, uplifting show, and you don't have to be a parent to enjoy it. This is a great diversion from another reality show I like, Real Estate Pros with Richard and Ginger. I can't wait to see the Trademark gang in action again. Go Trademark, and go Jon and Kate Plus 8.

Benazir Bhutto Assassinated - You cannot have free elections when the candidates are killed by extremists. Bhutto's death bears similarity to Robert Kennedy's assassination because both were running for their country's highest office.

The world should have free elections. The process of those elections should not be interrupted. Unfortunately, a few criminals got loose and killed a headstrong woman who wanted to lead Pakistan. There is a reason why the United States incarcerates more people than any other nation. Events like these underscore the need for more prisons around the world, not just the United States.

Extremism is on full display today, and every rational-thinking person can see what a step back it truly is.

Playing for Pizza - John Grisham's latest novel is rather light reading compared to the legal thrillers he wrote earlier in his career. I haven't actually read any of his legal thrillers yet, but I did see Tom Cruise in the film adaptation of The Firm. It was a good movie. One day I will read the book.

I have read The Broker and The Summons, and now I have finished Playing for Pizza. Playing for Pizza has what I call a soft ending. It is very open-ended without any definitive answers about the characters' futures. Like The Summons, this story just ends with no clear indication about where the characters are headed in their lives. Grisham does this all the time. It's not a bad idea, because if he wants to write a sequel, he can. He has options for a follow up on lots of his characters.

Playing for Pizza is about a journeyman quarterback, Rick Dockery, who throws so many late interceptions in the NFC Championship Game that he literally passes the Cleveland Browns out of the Super Bowl. Dockery suffers a serious head injury in the debacle and is hospitalized. Waking up from a coma, Dockery is told by his agent that he was put on waivers. He is a Brown no longer.

None of the 29 other NFL teams want Dockery, and Dockery won't play arena ball. Out of options, his agent finally lands him a starting job ... in Italy. The Italians have a club league. They play football americano on converted rugby pitches. Some of the fields are only 90 yards long. Dockery spends a lot of his time eating Italian food and chasing women. He also plays football americano. I won't spoil the ending, but I will say Playing for Pizza is a light departure from Grisham's harder work. At 258 pages, the book doesn't take long to finish, and the warm season setting is a nice departure from the cold realities of December.

Merry Christmas!

Skiles Out as Bulls Coach -

In this season of giving the Chicago Bulls gave Scott Skiles a pink slip. Merry Christmas! You're fired!

On Christmas Eve no less.

Nothing says Happy Holidays like a hard-core sacking!

Skiles said the timing doesn't bother him. He isn't destitute.

Now he is a good sport.

The Assisted Living Center Spot - I just saw a commercial advertising an assisted living center located here in lovely Sherwood, Arkansas.

The spot showed nice, well-dressed old ladies sitting at a table playing Bingo, or Canasta, or whatever. People were exercising. The interior of the place looked nice. It looked like a great establishment.

The spot didn’t show tenants stumbling around, out of it, mumbling to themselves about nothing that makes any sense. It didn’t show people hovering near the entrance with plans to “go back home.” Nobody appeared in a wheelchair. None of that made air.

You talk about rich. That is rich.

Putin is Time's Man - Apparently, Time uses their Person of the Year anointments to generate hype for their magazine. How else to explain Vladimir Putin, an accused murderer, as the magazine's Person of the Year?

Time lists Al Gore, J.K. Rowling, Hu Jintao and Gen. David Petraeus as runners-up.

J.K. Rowling?

Rowling is a fantastic writer. She might be this century's most important fiction writer. She is at least near the top for certain. But Harry Potter books shouldn't make someone Person of the Year. Why would Time consider Rowling? Person of the Year should go to a scientist that discovers an important cure to disease or a revolutionary surgical procedure. Person of the Year should go to a world leader that makes the world better.

Anyway, Al Gore would have made a better choice than Putin. He isn't an alleged murderer, and he seems a whole lot more honest than Putin. Critics and conspiracy theorists allege that Putin bore responsibility for Alexander Litvinenko's murder. As we all know, Litvinenko was murdered in London, poisoned with Polonium-210.

The reporter Time sent to cover their Person of the Year, Adi Ignatius, apparently felt so creeped out around Putin that he felt compelled to describe the way Putin stared at him as chilling.

That's nice. What is Putin doing staring down reporters? Could you imagine an American president with a chilling stare? Our presidents don't have chilling stares. People with chilling stares would never get elected here. It is quite obvious that Russia doesn't have the kind of democracy America and Great Britain can boast about. Guys with thuggish, chilling stares don't make it in our political echelons.

Time's selection of Putin as Person of the Year is a bad choice. I thought last year's selection was a bad idea. I can only assume that "You," as in everyone, would have to include the rest of society's accused murderers, and confirmed murderers for that matter. You was a little too conceptual for me. I had hoped for a standard selection, someone who actually did all good and no bad and avoided controversy.

It's not that Putin is a bad guy. He might be, but the accusations against him aren't substantiated. The problem is Putin's role in the world. Putin, by the nature of his position, cannot avoid controversy. As Russia's leader, he will always butt heads with the U.S. on one policy or another. He will rankle Great Britain. He will rankle China. Sometimes China deserves it, and regardless, Putin will factor into that political blender that includes the Chinese, North Korea, South Korea and Japan.

Putin will never be considered a great humanitarian, a Mother Teresa or Ghandi perhaps. He will never be an Abraham Lincoln or a Winston Churchill. But he will always be Time's Person of the Year for 2007. Perhaps Time readers will get a more appropriate selection next year.

Put them boys on rock rock! Fergalicious!

I love this song!

James 33 - 21 Bryant --

Since LeBron James outscored Kobe Bryant 33-21 in their latest head-to-head matchup, I have to argue that James is the better player. There is no doubt here that James could win championships with Shaquille O'Neal. And could you imagine Michael Jordan allowing Bryant's situation happen to him? Never, ever.

I've saw a game once when Charles Barkley topped 40 while leading the 76ers past Jordan's Bulls. Jordan did not score 40, but there weren't comparisons between Jordan and Barkley. Anfernee Hardaway drew favorable comparisons to Jordan, but a game-shape Jordan never allowed Hardaway to upstage him the way James just upstaged Bryant. I say game-shape because Hardaway did manage that playoff series victory over Jordan en route to the Finals ... with Shaquille O'Neil ... interesting. Jordan had not made it back to full form for that series, hence the loss.

Bryant is a great player, but I think James stacks up well against him and gets my vote as the better player. He took his team to the Finals without Shaquille O'Neil. Who lately has pulled that off? No one.

The Stolen Picasso - Like espionage stories, art theft stories always have a special intrigue. Maybe it's because making off with paintings worth millions is unusual. Art thefts are like comet sightings. They don't occur every day. But when they do, people tend to pay attention.

And so, the world looks toward Sao Paulo, Brazil where the latest high-profile art theft took place. I don't normally associate high art with Brazil. I ususally associate Brazil with the beautiful game. Soccer is definitely Brazil's calling. Besides, art thefts in Europe seem even more intriguing simply because it's Europe. But this is still an interesting story.

According to reports, thieves stole Pablo Picasso's "Portrait of Suzanne Bloch" from the Sao Paulo Museum of Art. Picasso created the portrait during his famous Blue Period. The other painting, "O Lavrador de Cafe," was painted by Brazilian artist Candido Portinari. This painting depicts a coffee bean farmer.

I actually like the Portinari better. The subject matter reminds me of Starbucks!

These paintings should turn up again, but there's no telling where or when. Hopefully, they won't sustain damage.

Jamie Lynn Spears - The 16-year-old Zoey 101 star announced she is pregnant. Happy Sweet Sixteen!

And congratulations, Jamie Lynn. In spite of your crazy sister, you had a chance to be the Next Big Thing. You don't have to worry about that anymore.

When your child is ten and you're only 26, still four years from 30, you can always look back and dream about what could have been. Nice job.

One can only assume that Nickelodeon execs have scores of young girls lined up to replace Spears. Perhaps someone new and fresh can show up on that network, live a better lifestyle and set a good example for kids.

Schilling on Clemens - Curt Schilling said Roger Clemens should return his Cy Young awards if he can't clear up the steroid allegations.

Shouldn't we all just let Major League Baseball address that?

The Mitchell Investigation - It is shocking that Roger Clemens, Andy Pettitte and David Justice are linked to steroids. Since I don't follow baseball closely, I had always attributed Clemens' stellar play well into his 40s to modern medicine, training and equipment. Despite my belief that Clemens and other baseball players are overpaid, I always believed they were great athletes. They still are great athletes, but a lot of their names are mud now. Reputations are destroyed. Hall of Fame inductions are jeopardized.

What a shame.

Baseball is every bit as tainted as cycling.

Clemens' denials sound so much like Floyd Landis' rhetoric that I really cannot believe him. How else to explain improved performance when his body should be on a serious decline? So much for modern medicine as an explanation. What is more disturbing is Jose Conseco's assertion that former Sen. George Mitchell's report is incomplete. Conseco said other star players, like Alex Rodrieguez, should have been included. I believe Conseco. If anyone knows about cheating, it is him, unfortunately. Poor ole Jose.

Newsweek on Huckabee - The magazine's Dec. 17 cover shows this statement:

"Holy Huckabee!"

"The unlikely rise of a preacher Republican."

Here is my response to this cover: Unlikely rise? Hardly. As I stated in a February post on this blog, Huckabee is a good speaker. Let me go past that statement and tell people what they still do not seem to realize. Mike Huckabee is a very, very, very good politician. He is lethal to other candidates. He can campaign well. He can speak well, and he can make people like him. This guy is Rudolph Giuliani's worst nightmare. He is stronger than Fred Thompson. He is not as stiff as Mitt Romney. Huckabee has the goods to win the Republican nomination. I thought he had a chance in February, and I couldn't believe he languished at 2 percent when Giuliani soared with 20 and 30 percent. Those numbers failed to make sense to me. Today's numbers make a whole lot more sense to me. The nation will likely have to choose between Huckabee or Hillary Clinton for president. Both candidates have Arkansas ties. I expect Clinton to win as I have all along.

Cindy Williams is 60 - Where has the time gone?

I just saw her on TMZ.com in one of those "Memba' Her?! Guess what she looks like now!" segments they like to post.

She was great in American Graffitti, and Laverne and Shirley, and I find it so cool that she read for the role of Princess Leia in Star Wars.

Madonna, Mellencamp Lead Hall Inductees - The Material Girl herself and John Mellencamp will headline the latest inductees into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Good for them! They deserve it!

For whatever reason, CNN.com posted a poll asking "Should Madonna be in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame?" Forty percent voted "No."

It is tough to imagine why that question was even posed, and the forty percent part is absolutely nuts.

Name Change in Order? - Maybe I should change the name of this blog to The Disputidier General since all I seem to do is dispute other people.

ESPN Bashes Petrino - Since snubbing Arkansas' Heisman-worthy running back, ESPN has moved on to other matters like bashing the Hogs' new coach. Writers for ESPN, including Len Pasquarelli and Pat Forde, are attacking Bobby Petrino's integrity simply because he wanted out of a situation he didn't sign on for.

They have called him a liar and a nomad. They claim he is disingenuous.

Since I have always wanted a winning coach at Arkansas, I am glad to have Petrino. He went 41-9 at Louisville, a remarkable record at a school known for its basketball. His resume indicates he can have similar success at Arkansas. If he decides to pack up and leave next season, I will not fret over it. The Razorbacks will find another high-quality coach.

As for the Petrino's integrity, I can hardly blame him for leaving the Atlanta Falcons. The Falcons organization is the definition of chaos. They are 3-10 because they lack much talent on the field. The talent they did have is in prison for dog fighting. Why would anyone want to waste the prime years of their career managing such a mess? What is so unethical about Petrino's decision to move on? The criticism sounds like a bunch of sour grapes more than anything. So, the ESPN guys can bash Bobby Petrino all they want. If Petrino performs well at Arkansas, the pundits' remarks won't matter on this site.

Petrino Introduced as Razorback Coach - The University of Arkansas held a 10:30 p.m. press conference for Bobby Petrino. Petrino accepted the head coaching job vacated by Houston Nutt.

Petrino said the phrase "national championship" three times at the press conference.

More Petrino - ESPN reports that Petrino spoke to the Falcons about a desire to return to the college ranks. Petrino wanted a chance to coach in the Southeastern Conference. Arkansas looked like a good fit.

I complained about this earlier after Jim Grobe backtracked to stay at Wake Forest. Grobe not only turned down Arkansas, he turned down an opportunity to coach in the SEC. The Razorbacks do not need a coach that shies away from that kind of situation. The upside on Petrino is that he is hungry, and he wants to coach in a tough conference. He has clearly examined the big picture. He realizes what the hardscrabble SEC can do for him. The SEC is a positive selling point, not a detriment. Plus, Petrino acts like he really wants to be at Arkansas, which is another pro for hiring him.

Bobby Petrino - Petrino has a stellar record at Louisville. He made the Cardinals prominent nationally. His record in the ATL is not stellar, but the Falcons did have the Michael Vick cloud looming over their collective heads. Besides, Atlanta rarely performs as a contender season to season. They always seem to be up and down. Petrino's record at Atlanta does not matter on this blog in the least. The Atlanta organization is in sad shape with or without Petrino at the helm.

It is exciting to welcome in a coach with a clean slate. The hire makes a lot of sense. Arkansas needs a guy who will jump into the meat grinder, face down criticism and try to make things work. I did not get that impression from Jim Grobe or Tommy Bowden. They acted like they wanted a nice easy time coaching football in a friendly, comfortable environment. There is nothing wrong with that.

Petrino, on the other hand, coached in the NFL, which is a buzz saw. Fans and media from larger markets are always harder on coaches and athletes. They are brutal. Despite working in such a brutal environment, Petrino had job security, no small feat on the pro level.

This guy seems tough enough to handle the strains of the Arkansas job as well as media types like Wally Hall and Tommy Smith. It is not that those guys are bad. They are great at what they do, and they seem nice. However, they will speak their mind. They will criticize Arkansas' football program. Petrino looks like he is up to that challenge as well as others. It is good to have a new coach at the UofA.

Petrino Resigns From Falcons, Headed to Arkansas - ESPN's John Clayton just broke this story, reporting that Bobby Petrino resigned from the Atlanta Falcons to be the head coach at Arkansas.

Hip, hip, hooray! The coaching search is over! The soap opera is history!

McFadden for First Pick in the NFL Draft! - Maybe they will give him this one.

McFadden Loses Heisman to Tebow - Peyton Manning did not get this award either. He got a Super Bowl instead. Darren McFadden is not the only "best player in college football" to lose a Heisman.

Tim Tebow's numbers are great, but I do not think he is college football's best player.

Bioshock Ads - Once again, let me reiterate. Television ads for the Bioshock video game misappropriate good music.

Not Just the Hogs' Problem - Some Arkansas Razorback fans have claimed that the coaching search is an embarrassment for the athletic department and the school. Apparently, several coaches have turned down a chance to coach Arkansas. Well, big deal. These coaching candidates also passed up a chance to coach in the Southeastern Conference. When an SEC head coaching job comes open and one can interview for it, one should jump at a job offer should such an offer arise. You don't turn it down. That is not wise.

If you can run the table in the SEC, you can run your way right into the national championship game. The problem Arkansas is experiencing is that no one wants to build a national championship program. It can be done at Arkansas. It was accomplished once. It can be accomplished again. Jim Grobe had a chance, and he blew it. Tommy Bowden had a chance. He bonked.

Can the Hogs help it nobody has guts these days?

Furthermore, this is not just the Hogs' problem. As for this so-called embarrassing situation, let me point out that Michigan cannot hire a coach either. Les Miles turned the Wolverines down, and now Rutgers coach Greg Schiano has decided to stay at Rutgers. Apparently he couldn't handle the enormity that is Wolverines football.

Miles' decision makes more sense. He is already in the SEC. He is already playing for a national title. At LSU, Miles has an excellent chance to play for another in future seasons. Turning down Michigan is not so baffling.

Staying at Rutgers like Schiano is? That is a little strange. Jim Grobe staying at Wake Forest instead of moving to Arkansas? That too is strange. These coaches do not want a national championship. They want moderate success with excellent pay.

Fine. If coaches like this make these kinds of decisions, then schools like Arkansas are better off. This coaching thing is not just the Hogs' problem.

Other big schools like Michigan are facing the same issue. Michigan cannot find anyone with the gall to coach their football team. Michigan and Arkansas will get fine coaches, and I predict more BCS schools will experience the same trouble these two schools are having when hiring a new coach. There is nothing embarrassing about it.

Bioshock - I do not know who the manufactuer is. I do not play video games anymore. And it is not like this game is Pac-Man or Space Invaders or Tomb Raider even. Bioshock is not an iconic game that anyone should be talking about a quarter century from now. I have not even played the game and I know this.

I base my views on the sad, sorry commericals I see for this apparent debacle. The ads feature shots from the game with big band music and Frank Sinatra, and they are truly annoying. I do not know what the ad people are trying to accomplish with this. I guess they are achieving a desirable goal by raising awareness and catching consumers' attention, but there is just one problem. I do not want to buy this game.

I do not care to buy Bioshock. I do not care to play Bioshock.

The commercials are so annoying that I am prompted to blog about how annoying they are. They make no sense. Frank Sinatra songs have nothing to do with men in spacesuits engaging in firefights with aliens, monsters, rouge machines, or whatever needs to be killed in Bioshock.

For this reason, Bioshock commercials are awful, dreadfully awful.

These ad guys and their pretentious, see-it-coming-a-mile-away bid for irony loses in a big way. I have seen irony before. I am familiar with it. These ads do not feature good irony. Irony, when applied to commercials, should be clever as opposed to clumsy.

This game needs a new ad agency. The existing ads do not work.

Grobe Backs Away From Arkansas Job - Well, nothing was ever signed. Jim Grobe apparently met with his players, and things became so emotional that he decided to stay at Wake Forest. He will not coach Arkansas, according to Arkansas News Bureau. Arkansas News Bureau also broke the story yesterday that Grobe had been offered the Arkansas job.

This could have happened at Nebraska just as easily. Heck, it practically did with Houston Nutt four years ago. I am certainly glad Grobe did not arrive on campus and go through an introductory press conference like Dana Altman.

The Hogs will find someone who wants to coach in the SEC. Why anyone would not is beyond me. I believe Grobe is making a bad career move, but it is his life and not mine. He might be much happier at Wake Forest, and there is nothing wrong with that. So long, Jim Grobe. We hardly knew ye.

McFadden Invited to New York - Razorback runner Darren McFadden received an invite from the Downtown Athletic Club in New York City as a Heisman Trophy finalist. His main competition is Tim Tebow of Florida.

Tebow was on fire this season and he deserves the invite, but I think McFadden should win because he finished second last year and improved his rushing stats this year in spite of two sub-100 yard rushing games. His offensive line failed him against Auburn and he finished with 43 yards. Ouch! Another reason McFadden's Heisman stock faltered was because of the Hogs' win-loss record. Hey, McFadden can't help it if the defense gives up fourth quarter leads in three consecutive SEC losses. He can't help it if the offense plays flat against Tennessee.

I hope the Heisman voters give McFadden the benefit of a doubt.

Ohio State/LSU Prediction - Since I won't shut up about Jim Grobe possibly becoming the Razorbacks' next head football coach, I will digress for a moment and make a game prediction. I hereby predict that LSU will beat Ohio State for the national championship.

They are playing in the Louisiana Superdome, so it is like a home game for the Tigers. Moreover, LSU emerged from the rough-and-tumble SEC, college football's toughest conference. Had Ohio State played in the SEC this year, I believe they would have suffered more than one loss so far. The SEC is tough this year. I believe Missouri, who plays Arkansas in the Cotton Bowl, and Kansas and West Virginia would have had more losses too if they had to play in the SEC with the likes of Tennessee, Auburn, Georgia and Florida.

Warming on Grobe - Okay, the local television news programs have aired video of Jim Grobe. He looks like a football coach. Despite his so-so win-loss record, he might boost the program. I hope he can win the SEC soon. If the Hogs can win the SEC, maybe they can win everything!

Will Grobe Work at Arkansas? - There is nothing but positive press on the www regarding Jim Grobe. Wake Forest is a small private school in the ACC, and apparently the football facilities there are not as good as Arkansas'. That might be why Grobe's recruiting classes at Wake haven't been stellar. However, he seems to get the most out of average talent.

Assuming he is Arkansas' new football coach, hopefully he can work magic in Fayetteville. Grobe interviewed with Tom Osbourne for Nebraska's head coaching job. Osbourne hired Bo Pellini instead. Only time will tell what this Grobe fellow can do.

Jim Grobe - I do not know who Jim Grobe is. I understand he was the ACC Coach of the Year and the National Coach of the year. Jim Grobe is not awful. However, didn't Arkansans just lose an 8-4 coach?

When Houston Nutt left for Ole Miss, the goal was to hire someone better. Another 8-4 coach does not cut it. If new UA athletic director Jeff Long was going to go this route, he might as well have hired Reggie Herring, the Hog's defensive coordinator and interim head coach. If the result of this coaching search is an 8-4 guy, I would rather have Herring.

I would much rather have Herring and by a long shot. I do not want another 8-4 guy. We had an 8-4 guy. Do you know what he did? He went 8-4. That is not good enough.

Houston Nutt, the past 8-4 guy, was SEC Coach of the Year for 2006-2007, so the Hogs have already had a coach that has won coaching awards. I do not want a guy who wins coaching awards. I want someone who wins conference championships and national championships.

I really want to swear off the Arkansas Razorbacks football program for a while. Long should have hired Herring.

New Arkansas Coach? - Arkansas News Bureau reports that Jim Grobe will be the next Arkansas football coach. Grobe comes from Wake Forest. He had a 45-39 record there, going 8-4 this season. He compiled an 11-3 record for 2006-2007, taking Wake Forest to the Orange Bowl.

A contract is not signed as of this writing.

On Vader, Episode III - Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith is the most important film of the past quarter century because it answers relevant questions about cinema's biggest villain, Darth Vader.

I can't believe I haven't stated this on this blog yet.

I haven't stated this either. The silver screen has no villain bigger than Darth Vader. Not even Goldfinger rises to Vader's level, and he tried to rob Fort Knox. Tony Montana certainly doesn't, and Hannibal Lecter doesn't either.

None of these characters rode around a galaxy in a giant globe of death consolidating power through mass murder and intimidation. They didn't pick men up by the neck and throw them against walls. They didn't kill their subordinates simply because they came out of hyperspace too early. They didn't cut their own son's hand off. They didn't slaughter Tusken Raiders. They didn't slaughter younglings.

Vader is the king of evil in the world of film. His back story is also among the greatest origin stories ever told. His has to rank with the greatest comic book characters, characters like Batman, Superman and Spiderman. Every great comic book hero had a compelling origin. Vader, film's great anti-hero, has one too.