Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Vidi Vici: Erin Andrews Spotted in UNC Dorm Room



With files from the AP



CHAPEL HILL, NC - Fresh off his herculean Pigskin Bowl victory over the previously undefeated Birdmen of St. Louis, the Tar Heels' coach Francisco was photographed with ESPN's Erin Andrews, buying wine among other things, at a liquor store off-campus. The couple then drove off in Andrews' 2010 Chrysler Crossfire, but were later seen pulling up to the men's dorm buildings.



You'd think that the trail would have ended when the couple entered the building. But you'd be wrong. The relentless photographer followed them inside, where he later captured some [ahem] candid shots inside Coach Francisco's dorm room.


(WARNING!! NSFW)


I have no idea what she's holding in this picture, but it looks to me like she has broken a piece off of the Pigskin Bowl, and is either using it to curl her hair or else .... nevermind. Let's stick with curling her hair.






Friday, December 4, 2009

The All-Time Teams: The Olympics' Team Russia

We must krush you

By Will-He-M

Despite the minor blip that Russians think of when they remember the Miracle On Ice, the Soviets enjoyed a decades-long run as the top team at the Olympics. They may not have won anything recently, but for all of time, I have to give the Russians the Gold Medal.



Line 1

LW- Valery Kharlamov
C- Sergei Fedorov
RW- Pavel Bure


Line 2

LW- Alexander Ovechkin
C- Vladimir Petrov
RW- Alexander Mogilny


Line 3

LW- Vladimir Krutov
C- Igor Larionov
RW- Sergei Makarov


Line 4

LW- Anatoli Firsov
C- Vyacheslav Bykov
RW- Boris Mikhailov


Def. Pair 1

RD- Vyacheslav Fetisov
LD- Valeri Vasiliev


Def. Pair 2

RD- Sergei Zubov
LD- Nikolai Sologubov


Def. Pair 3

RD- Vladimir Konstantinov
LD- Viktor Tikhonov


Goalies

1- Vladislav Tretiak
2- Viktor Konovalenko
3- Evgeni Nabokov


Taxi Squad

1- Alexander Maltsev- RW
2- Alexei Yashin- C
3- Evgeni Malkin- C/LW
4- Sergei Gonchar- D
5- Alexander Ragulin- D

The All-Time Teams: The Olympics' Team Canada

When I was a kid, I had a child-sized one of these. Mom .... what'd you do with it?

By Will-He-M

It's not that I don't think Team Canada is better now, but I had to hand them the Silver Medal, given the Soviet Union's historical dominance. Man, but you gotta get a load of this kick-ass Silver Medal squad:



General Manager- Sam Pollock
Head Coach- Scotty Bowman
Forwards Coach- Toe Blake
Defence Coach- Scott Stevens
Goalie Coach- Francois Allaire


1st Line

LW- Wayne Gretzky
C- Mario Lemieux
RW- Maurice Richard


2nd Line

LW- Joe Sakic
C- Steve Yzerman
RW- Gordie Howe


3rd Line

LW- Guy LaFleur
C- Gilbert Perreault
RW- Mike Bossy


4th Line

LW- Ron Francis
C- Bob Gainey
RW- Marcel Dionne


Def. Pair 1

RD- Bobby Orr
LD- Doug Harvey


Def. Pair 2

RD- Larry Robinson
LD- Ray Bourque


Def. Pair 3

RD- Paul Coffey
LD- Denis Potvin


Goalies

1- Patrick Roy
2- Terry Sawchuk
3- Martin Brodeur


Taxi Squad

1- Bobby Hull
2- Stan Mikita
3- Brad Park
4- Howie Morenz
5- Red Kelly



Line 1

The greatest playmaker, the greatest two-way centre and the original power forward. Gretzky and Lemieux with Richard would be an amazing sight to see. I really don't think theirs a defensive strategy in the history of hockey that could stop that line.


Line 2

I wanted this line to be a bit more defensively responsible, which is why I chose Mr. Hockey to be the RW over Mike Bossy.


Line 3

Not your typical 3rd line checking line but they'd be the best 3rd line in the history of hockey.


Line 4

You know you're deep on offense when Marcel Dionne is a 4th line checker.


Def. Pair 1

The 2 greatest defencemen in NHL history as you're top pairing would be like waking up in heaven with 40 virgins waiting for you. Harvey's defensive mind set would allow Orr to pretty much become the 4th forward on the ice.


Def. Pair 2

2 more of the greatest defencemen in history as a pairing. This would be my personal shutdown tandem.


Def. Pair 3

Coffey wasn't my first choice but I felt compelled to ave him because of his offensive game. I kind of wanted Park here but decided to give it to Coffey for Power Play purposes only.


Goalies

This proved tougher then expected. I really couldn't decide if I wanted Roy or Sawchuk as my starter. Ultimately, it came down to Roy's clutch OT play in the Playoffs. In hindsight, Brodeur may be the better option simply because of the 3, he'd be the one who's used to facing a low number of shots but I'm sticking to Roy.


Taxi Squad

I know this may come as a surprise since I don't have Mark Messier anywhere on this team. Truth is, I couldn't find room for him. Theirs plenty of leadership and offense among the forwards that Messier becomes expendable. I could of had him as a reserve but I wanted 2 extra forwards and 2 extra defencemen along with the most versatile player in NHL history, Red Kelly., who can play both forward and defence.



The All-Time Teams: The Olympics' Team U.S.A.



By Will-He-M

It may be a little generous of me to give the Americans the All-Time Olympic Bronze, but those two Miracles On Ice do leave a lasting impression, especially when portrayed by Kurt Russell.



Coach- Herb Brooks
GM- Brian Burke


Line 1

LW- Joe Mullen
C- Mike Modano
RW- Pat LaFontaine


Line 2

LW- John LeClair
C- Doug Weight
RW- Brett Hull


Line 3

LW- Keith Tkachuk
C- Jeremy Roenick
RW- Tony Amonte


Line 4

LW- Dave Christian
C- Neal Broten
RW- Bill Guerin


Def. Pair 1

RD- Rod Langway
LD- Brian Leetch


Def. Pair 2

RD- Mark Howe
LD- Phil Housley


Def. Pair 3

RD- Chris Chelios
LD- Gary Suter


Goalies

1- Frank Brimsek
2- Tom Barrasso
3- John Vanbiesbrouck


Taxi Squad

1- Ken Morrow- D
2- Mathieu Schneider- D
3- Patrick Kane- RW
4- Mike Ramsey- D
5- Zach Parise- LW



Line 1

This line would be scary quick. All 3 players have the unique ability to pass, shoot and dangle and are just as good at those abilitie as an Canadian.


Line 2

This line is nearly perfect but unfortunately, the USA has yet to deliver an elite playmaker ala Gretzky or Lemieux. Still though, near perfection is still going to give team's nightmares. I originally had JR on here but figured Weight's passing ability would take advantage of the 2 best US snipers ever.


Line 3

A fairly gritty line, no star defensive player but all 3 have the ability to play in their own end and cause trouble for opposition forwards.


Line 4
Again, no star defensive forward but still 3 guys who are well above average defensively.


Def. Pair 1

The perfect combination of offense and defence, Langway's sound defensive game would perfectly compliment Leetch's offensive game


Def. Pair 2

I'd like to officially change my pairings, here I would have Housley with CRAIG LUDWIG, same reasoning as above.


Def. Pair 3

And I'd move Mark Howe here with Chris Chelios. This would be the Top Pair on most countries teams but this shows the depth Team USA has on defence.


Goalies

Anyone nicknamed "Mr. Zero" has to be a starter. Barrasso would be the perfect back up with Beezer being one of the better 3rd stringers ever.


Taxi Squad

The only problem with Team USA is their lack of depth up front, forcing me to choose 2 relatively unproven players in Kane and Parise. Don't get me wrong, when all is said and done, Kane and Parise could very well be Top 5 best US forwards ever.