Roadside Assistance

Okay, this is just flat out dumb. A 59-year-old fugitive is back behind bars after make a pretty idiotic move. The man, who was wanted in Georgia for violating parole on murder and escape convictions, was traveling down a Wyoming highway when he ran out of gas. Now, let's pause for a second. What would you do if you were in his situation? One thing you probably wouldn't do would be call the sheriff for roadside assistance, right? Well, that's exactly what he did! When the highway patrol found out about his outstanding warrant, they took the man into custody where he is now awaiting extradition to Georgia.

Just like some of my other Oops Awards involving criminals, all I have to say is: wow!

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Whitney Houston

I had just gotten home from eating dinner and turned on ESPN College Gameday of all things. Rece Davis and the Gameday crew were at Vanderbilt for the Coomodores' game against Kentucky. Since the team was in Nashville, Rece talked about how music was a big part of the city and, with that, told everyone the tragic news of Whitney Houston's death. My jaw dropped. I was stunned just like the day Michael Jackson died. Such a powerful voice in music was gone, taken from this world, just like that. 

Houston has had an up-and-down career after being discovered by legendary music producer, Clive Davis. According to Wikipedia, Whitney earned 415 awards in her career including: 2 Emmys, 6 Grammys, 30 Billboard Music Awards, and 22 American Music Awards; making her the most awarded female artist of all time. She was the only one I knew of who could make the National Anthem a chart topper. Over her career, she sold over 200 million albums and singles worldwide. Houston always had some personal struggles that were very much public (including drug and alcohol abuse) but was staging a comeback before she died.

Without a doubt, my Weekly Salute goes to the one, the only, Whitney Houston. My prayers go out to all of her friends and family as well. That powerful voice which downright gave you chills everytime you listened to it and that beautiful smile will be missed by all of us.

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UNC/Duke Game Response

I know it's pretty late but I finally cooled off enough to actually write something on here without anything being offensive. I'll start off by saying that, of all of UNC's losses this season, this one hurts. I mean, at least with the UNLV and FSU games, it was a forgone conclusion that UNC was going to lose. This one just hurt, period.

First, let me talk about Austin Rivers. I'll give it to him, he had a great game. However, I do not like him at all, and it's not totally because he's at Duke. The first reason is back before he came to Duke, he said in a video that the UNC/Duke rivalry was not a rivalry.

The second reason I don't like him is he's a ball hog. All through the game the other night, he would basically take it upon himself to carry his team back. It may have worked for that game but one person cannot carry a team. It takes a team effort and, if he doesn't learn that, he'll have a long road ahead of him. Finally, I don't like his attitude. He's the cockiest player I've ever seen at Duke. Plus, have you ever seen him when a call doesn't go his way? He gets this creepy frown-like expression on his face like nothing is his fault. Well, I've got some news for you Austin: you're human. You will make mistakes. Live with them!

Third, the trash talking. I don't mind it, especially in a rivalry. However, when I see pictures like this...

That's where I draw the line. These kind of pictures are not funny. In fact, this makes me sick to my stomach! I would say that even if another team was in the picture. It's never a laughing matter when you joke about death and, whoever created this picture, should be ashamed. Not to mention, that this is a direct insult on UNC and the memory of Jason Ray, who was the Ramses mascot who lost his life a few years ago!

Finally, even though I'm a State student, I have a message for all of you Wolfpack fans: until you guys have won as many games, NCAA Titles, ACC Championships, and have gone to as many Final Fours as UNC and Duke, stay out of the rivalry. There's no room for trash talking about the UNC/Duke rivalry from NC State fans, period!

Revenge is coming March 3!

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Think Twice

If you live in or visit Los Angeles, you may want to think twice before you head out to one of the beaches with a football or Frisbee in hand. LA County officials have given the green light to a new ordinance that will dish out a $1,000 fine to anyone who throws a football or Frisbee on any beach in the county. The only exceptions will be if the ball throwing takes place in a "predesignated area," the person has a permit, or when playing water polo. The rules will be "relaxed" during the winter (off) season.

I can understand the idea behind this ordinance but, come on, $1,000? I think it's ridiculous to take away a beach going tradition from people. It just astounds me how governments can pass silly laws like this but can't get the important things done!

Read the full story here.

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Top UNC/Duke Moments

With part one of the big rivalry tonight, I decided to post my top five favorite UNC/Duke moments. Enjoy and GO HEELS!

5. The Comeback
This happened before I was born but I've heard about this game a lot. Carolina was down eight points to Duke with just seventeen seconds left in the game. The Heels came all the way back to send the game into overtime and, eventually, win it. What made this so great was this was before the three point shot came into play!

4. Getting Heated
Two (feisty) former players-turned coaches for UNC and Duke get into it. Matt Doherty and Chris Collins exchange words after Doherty sees Collins talking to Rashad McCants.

3. Posertized
UNC's Danny Green dunks on Duke's Greg Paulus at Cameron. Gotta love it!

2. The Strut
One of the greatest moments ever. UNC's Jerry Stackhouse dunks on Duke...and does a little strut to match!

1. Game Winner
UNC's Marvin Williams completes a Tar Heel comeback to beat Duke in 2005.

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Review: The Grey

I'm a big fan of Liam Neeson, so I knew his new film, The Grey, would be a good one. It definitely was but it had a few drawbacks.

What To Know

Stars: Liam Neeson, Dermot Mulroney, and Frank Grillo

Director: Joe Carnahan

Writers: Joe Carnahan and Ian Mackenzie Jeffers

Rating: R for violence, disturbing content, and pervasive language. Parents Guide

Plot: Based on the short story, "Ghost Walker," an oil drilling team in Alaska struggle to survive after a plane crash strands them in the wild. Hunting them are a pack of wolves who see them as intruders. 

My Review: Overall, I liked the movie. It keeps you on the edge of your seat throughtout because you never really know when the wolves will attack. Liam Neeson and his fellow actors give great performances throughout the film and the creative team does a tremendous job with the writing, special effects, etc. 

The end is very interesting as (SPOILER ALERT!) Liam Neeson's character finds himself in the wolves' den after thinking he was getting further away from it. As you'll see below, The Grey could've had a lot less language in it but I kind of knew that would be a theme of the movie due to its rating.

Family Friendly? Well, it's kind of obvious that I would say "no" to this question because it's rated R. Where do I begin? First off, all of the main characters curse like sailors. I think I heard every curse word in the book at least once in the film. Not only that, but there are numerous lewd comments from a couple of the characters. 

When you make a movie about a plane crash and wolves attacking humans, you know there's going to be a lot of violence and blood. For instance, we see multiple scenes where the wolves attack the men, one man severing the head of a wolf after they kill it, and even some gushing blood from wounds.

Should You See It? If your in the mood for a story of survival that will, honestly, leave you kind of depressed at the end then I would recommend it. The Grey is definitely not for the faint of heart or those with weak stomaches. 

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Letter Of Encouragement

This week's salute goes to Owen Shure, a kid from L.A., who wrote an encouraging letter to San Francisco 49ers punt returner, Kyle Williams, after the team lossed the NFC Championship game. During the game, Williams fumbled a return which ended up costing his team the championship. While some fans sent constant death threats and other hateful comments to Williams, Shure put everything into perspective.

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