Those of you who know me well and read my blogs know I have written on a couple of different blog sites. On the other one some of you have told me it is harder to comment unless you are a member of the site. I know this blog is a little easier to comment on and I get some comments from other people as well but it is not as much a sports related blog even though they have that category here.

I want to get the comments from sports fans mostly and I seem to get more comments on my other blog. However I hope to hear from you whenever you wish to comment and I want to make it as easy as possible so I would like your input especially from my readers on my mailing list. This is mainly trying to decide how much I should keep writing on this blog which has been great to write on as well but I want to write mostly where it is most beneficial to me and you as well. I appreciate your support and I am happy when you just read or keep allowing me to send you my blogs. I also appreciate it when you send me comments in my personal e-mail as well. Take care and talk soon and keep reading my blogs when you can or are interested. I appreciate that so much. Best wishes. bratman

But Uncle Paul was a sportswriter in Minneapolis and he saw I was interested in sports at a young age. He encouraged me to collect as many sports articles and information as I could. He encouraged me to watch and listen to sports as often as I liked and could and he inspired me to talk and write about sports as much as I could as well.

I have thought of him a lot over the years as I continue to pursue my dream in whatever way it turns out. I would like to be a writer specifically about sports although I enjoy writing in general whatever I write about.

Writing has changed a lot from his days and others who wrote for newspapers and long before the instant writing and blogging we can do on the Internet today.

I wish I could thank him today for helping me with that early start in writing. Similar to me he was a man with a slight disability who didn’t play a lot of sports but always had a love and passion for it. I wish he could see me writing today and give me more advice and help as I go along but I write this today to honor his memory and say Thanks Uncle Paul.

I’ve met a few other writers over the years including another man from Duluth Minnesota who was a newspaper sportswriter as well despite having two stubs for arms. So you never know what you can do. You just have to keep trying. So I thank all the great people in my life family and friends and others who have inspired me to keep my dreams going past, present and future. We’ll see what happens but I’ll always keep my dream going thanks to those who have helped me.

 Best wishes and thanks always for reading. Paul/badgerbratman

Jenn Sterger and her lawyer said they were disappointed with the findings and called the NFL a good old boys league which is ridiculous because Roger Goodell the NFL Commisioner has been clamping down on personal behavior issues since he took the job even if a player hasn’t been charged or arrested. In this case with Favre and Sterger, Goodell said he and the NFL couldn’t find positive proof that the inappropriate pictures were of Favre so he could only give Favre a $50,000 fine which I said is hardly anything other than a little damaged reputation to a well paid NFL player.

So what did Jenn Sterger really get out of this? Other than 15 minutes of fame and wasting three months of our time. She and her lawyer weren’t able to get positive proof of the pictures and allegations, Brett Favre who’s injured and retiring wasn’t suspended and the case went until the last week of the season. And Sterger isn’t getting any money or damages out of this. So in conclusion I don’t get the reason for the investigation other than publicity which may pay off in other ways for her in the future and no positive proof  in this case eliminates further talk about this and the waste of our time proved nothing other than athletes are well paid, have good lawyers and the NFL isn’t going to do anything further unless there is absolute positive proof in the investigation and case. So case closed and good day to Jenn Sterger. Brett Favre will retire, go home and mow his tractor or whatever form of publicity he wants to engage us in next. Best wishes. badger bratman

Of course you cant compare teams, records and era’s and they are different because they are men’s and women’s sports. But they are human beings competing against other competing human beings and they beat the best the competition has to offer and that’s amazing and deserves your respect and admiration.

89 wins in a row no matter what the sport or teams involved is amazing and the streak isn’t over yet. Next up is Stanford the last team to beat UConn at the Women’s Final Four in April 2008. That would be 90 wins in a row. Ahead is possibly 100 wins in a row and if they were to unbelievably run the table at 39-0 for a third straight year that would be 117 wins. But maybe as we’re seeing it isn’t unbelievable because this team is making us believe.

Lets see where head coach Geno Auerriema whose Connecticut team won 70 games in a row in another streak earlier this decade can get this team to along with senior All American Maya Moore who has experienced all these wins and the last UConn loss vs Stanford as a freshman back in 2008.

So good luck UConn and as I said in an earlier blog, this streak makes women’s basketball more interesting for the casual fan. Best of luck, Merry Christmas and thanks always for reading. badgerbratman

+ and – for bowl picks

So here’s the bowl schedule and my picks for the winners including the three championship games this weekend in FCS, Division 2 and Division 3 levels.

Saturday December 18th

FCS Division 1A Villanova at Eastern Washington: Eastern Washington +

Division 2 Minnesota Duluth vs Delta State:   Minnesota Duluth + 20-17

Division 3 Mount Union vs Wisconsin_Whitewater:  Wisconsin Whitewater (these two teams have played in the last 6 championship games vs each other) + 31-21

College Bowl Schedule

December 18th

New Mexico Bowl:  BYU vs UTEP:  UTEP – BYU 52 Utep 24 (0-1)

Humanitarian Bowl: Northern Illinois vs Fresno State: Fresno State – Northern Illinois 40 Fresno State 17 (0-2)

New Orleans Bowl: Troy vs Ohio: Troy + Troy 48 Ohio 21 (1-2)

St Petersberg( Beef O Bradys) Bowl: Louisville vs Southern Mississippi:  Southern Mississippi – Louisville 31 Southern Miss 28 (1-3)

Wednesday December 22

Las Vegas Bowl: Utah vs Boise State; Boise State (What a drop for Boise State!) + Boise State 26 Utah 3 (2-3)

Thursday December 23

Pointsettia Bowl: San Diego State vs Navy: Navy – 35-14 San Diego State  (2-4)

Friday December 24

Hawaii Bowl: Tulsa vs Hawaii: Hawaii– Tulsa 62 Hawaii 35  (2-5)

Sunday December 26

Little Ceasers Pizza Bowl:  Toledo vs Florida International: Toledo– Florida International 34 Toledo 32 (2-6)

Monday December 27

Independence Bowl: Georgia Tech vs Air Force: Georgia Tech–Air Force 14 Georgia Tech 7 (2-7)

Tuesday December 28

Champs Sports Bowl: North Carolina State vs West Virginia: West Virginia– North Carolina State 23 West Virginia 7

(2-8)

Insight Bowl: Iowa vs Missouri: Missouri– Iowa 27 Missouri 24 (2-9)

WednesdayDecember 29

 Eagle Bank Bowl: Maryland vs East Carolina: Maryland + Maryland 51 East Carolina 20 (3-9)

Texas Bowl: Illnois vs Baylor: Baylor– Illinois 38 Baylor 14 (3-10)

Alamo Bowl: Oklahoma State vs Arizona:  Oklahoma State + Oklahoma State 36 Arizona 10 (4-10)

Thursday December 30

Armed Forces Bowl: SMU vs Army: SMU–Army 16 SMU 14 (4-11)

Pinstripe Bowl at Yankee Stadium: Syracuse vs Kansas State: Syracuse + Syracuse 36 Kansas State 34 (5-11)

Music City Bowl: North Carolina vs Tennessee: Tennessee– North Carolina 30 Tennessee 27 2ot (5-12)

Holiday Bowl: Washington vs Nebraska: Nebraska vs 6-6 Washington are you kidding me!– Washington 19 Nebraska 7 (5-13) I am stunned and i’m not kidding over Washington’s win but with a 5-13 bowl record I can’t pick them very well!

Friday December 31

Meineke Car Care Bowl: Clemson vs South Florida: Clemson–South Florida 31 Clemson 26 (5-14)

Sun Bowl: Notre Dame vs Miami: Miami (For the first time in 20 years this heated rivalry is played again. Remember the fight in the tunnel before the game in the 1980s.)– Notre Dame 33 Miami 17  (5-15)

Liberty Bowl: Central Florida vs Georgia; Georgia– Central Florida 10 Georgia 6  (5-16)

Chick FilA Bowl; Florida State vs South Carolina; South Carolina. (South Carolina beat Alabama and got to the SEC Championship Game, Nice season)– Florida State 26 South Carolina 17  (5-17)

Saturday January 1

Dallas Football Classic: Northwestern vs Texas Tech: Texas Tech + Texas Tech 45 Northwestern 38 (6-17)

Outback (Tampa) Bowl: Penn State vs Florida; Florida (46 Year old Florida Coach Urban Meyer retires against 84 year old Joe Paterno who will still coach some more years!) + Florida 37 Penn State 24 (7-17)

Capital One (Orlando) Bowl Michigan State vs Alabama: Michigan State in a mild upset here. Alabama has struggled at times.– Alabama 49 Michigan State 7 Boy was I wrong!! (7-18)

Gator Bowl( Jacksonville) Michigan vs Mississippi State: Mississippi State + Mississippi State 52 Michigan 14 ( 8-18) Hope it doesnt cost Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez his job. It did Rich Rod Out as Michigan Coach

Other non BCS Bowls after January 1st

Thursday January 6

Godaddy.com bowl Miami Ohio vs Middle Tennessee State: Miami Ohio. (Does Danica Patrick drive in for an appearance at halftime?)+ Miami Ohio 35 Middle Tennessee State 21 (12-19)

Friday January 7th

Cotton Bowl: Texas A&M  vs LSU: LSU (Les Miles the Mad Hatter Coach finds a way to pull games out)+ LSU 41 Texas A&M 24 (13-19)

Saturday January 8th

Birmingham Bowl: Pittsburgh vs Kentucky; Pittsburgh+ Pittsburgh 27 Kentucky 10 (14-19)

Sunday January 9th

Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl: Nevada vs Boston College: Nevada (one of the better teams that few have heard enough about) 11-1 after big win over Boise State. + Nevada 20 Boston College 13 (15-19)

BCS Bowls; The Big Boy Big Money Bowls

Saturday January 1st

Rose Bowl at Pasadena, California: Wisconsin vs TCU: Wisconsin (Did you expect me to say anything but On Wisconsin?) TCU is undefeated and has speed but they havent beat a Wisconsin team that can score and is more powerful than any Badgers team I’ve seen before) Go Badgers–TCU 21 Wisconsin 19. Boo Hoo. A disappointment for me as a Badgers fan but happy for non BCS team TCU. Congratulations on a fine win and undefeated season. (8-19)

Fiesta Bowl at Glendale, Arizona: Oklahoma vs Connecticut. Is there possibly a bigger rout in the BCS games. Oklahoma rolls over a 4 loss Connecticut Big East Champion in this game. + Oklahoma 48 Connecticut 20 (9-19)

Monday January 3

Orange Bowl: Miami, Florida; Virginia Tech vs Stanford. Stanford (Watch out Virginia Tech. A good Stanford team is coming accross the counrty to beat you) + Stanford 40 Virginia Tech 12 (10-19)

Tuesday January 4

Sugar Bowl: New Orleans, Louisiana:  Arkansas vs Ohio State. Ohio State. (Two pretty good teams that missed out on a bigger game especially Ohio State who wanted a Rose Bowl or national championship) + Ohio State 31 Arkansas 26

(11-19) Ohio State was previously 0-9 against SEC in bowl games.         

BCS National Title Game

Monday January 10

Glendale Arizona;  #1 .Auburn vs #2 Oregon. Auburn (Oregon is very good but they havent played a team with Auburn’s speed or Auburn qb and Heisman Trophy winner’s talent.  Auburn wins the crystal ball. + Auburn 22 Oregon 19 (16-19) Congratulations Auburn on the national championship. A 11-2 finish in my picks for me after New Years Day when I was 5-17 in my picks

So there are all my picks of the 38 college football bowl games. The 35 bowl games plus the three championship games this weekend in the lower levels where they actually have a playoff system.

Finally a friend notified me that Temple (8-4) who actually beat Connecticut who is playing in a BCS bowl was not invited to a bowl along with 6-6 Western Michigan and 6-6 Arizona State. His suggestion was that the play a Freezer Bowl somwhere in Alaska. Perhaps the North Pole. Congratlations to those teams that made a game whether they deserved it or not. Personally I don’t like 6-6 teams making a bowl because if they lose the bowl they have a losing record and they don’t have a winning record to begin with. Best wishes, talk soon and enjoy the games especially if you have a team involved. Happy Holidays! badgerbratman

Meanwhile the Rose Bowl goes back 108 years to 1902 and growing up in the cold Midwest it was always a treat to watch the Big Ten teams play often the Pac 10 in sunny southern Pasadena, California although that’s sometimes different now partly due to this stupid BCS setup. but this year I’m happy to see my favorite college team Wisconsin back in the game after 11 years and they get to play a deserving non BCS conference team, and it will be a fun game to see Wisconsin’s power against TCU’s speed.

What do the othe BCS games mean without a playoff system? A bigger payout to those universities and their presidents who dont want a playoff and absolutely nothing else to you and me the fans. Enjoy the bowl games and have a happy holiday season. Best wishes. badgerbratman

Houston Texans at Philadelphia Eagles Thursday night Eagles bounce back from loss to Bears with 31-21 win.

Pittsburgh Steelers at Baltimore Ravens Sunday night. A grudge match in the AFC North for the division lead. Steelers 24-20

New York Jets at New England Patriots Monday night. The Patriots are back and a good Jets team will find that out in prime time on the road Patriots 24-14

Now some other NFL games this weekend not all but so so.

Atlanta Falcons at Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Falcons show the young improved Bucs that they’re better in Tampa 27-21

St Louis Rams at Arizona Cardinals The Rams at 5-6 are tied for the NFC division lead with the Seahawks and a game over the 4-7 49ers. Disgruntled quarterback Derek Anderson in the Cardinals have slumped back to 3-8  two years after the Super Bowl. Rams win 20-10

Oakland Raiders at San Diego Chargers. Remember the Raiders won vs San Diego earlier this season. The Chargers are playing better and haven’t lost in December in three years. And the Raiders are struggling lately. Chargers win 35-17

San Fransisco 49ers at Green Bay Packers. The 4-7 49ers head to Lambeau Field to face a good Packers team coming off a tough loss. What do you think? I think Packers win 28-20.

Dallas Cowboys at Indianapolis Colts. This was supposed to be my Super Bowl matchup. My pick and tune-up for the big game. Well maybe not this year on second look but could there be an upset here this week. Jason Garrett the Cowboys new coach has had three good games and a tough loss to the Saints. Go Cowboys against a struggling, injured Colts team 24-17. It’s an upset but I dont like the way Peyton Manning and the Colts are playing so we’ll see.

Chicago Bears at Detroit Lions. This was the opening game with the Calvin Johnson of the Lions game winning touchdown that wasn’t allowed. And look at the springboard it’s given the much improved 8-3 Bears. They still aren’t the best but very good especially defensively and qb Jay Cutler is getting better. Bears win 31-20 against Lions.

Now a look at the college football weekend as we head to the last weekend before the BCS and other college bowls are announced.

Arizona State at Arizona  Arizona State could become bowl eligible with a win and have played good at times this year.  Arizona has been ranked and should spoil Arizona State’s hopes 31-24 at home in this rivalry game.

#2 Oregon at Oregon State Oregon is playing for the national championship game in this Civil War rivalry game. I like Oregon 35-24 in this game.

Washington at Washington State. For the Apple Cup in Washington state and 5-6 Washington could become bowl eligible win a win for senior qb NFL prospect Jake Locker. I like the Washington Huskies 45-28 to get to a bowl game.

Connecticut at South Florida. If  UConn wins they win the Big east and get the BCS bid. I like Conn in this game 34-27 to get the BCS bid.

Rutgers at West Virginia. If UConn stumbles at West Virginia wins then the Mountaineers get a BCS bid with a win. I like the Mountaineers to win 28-17.

Florida State vs Virginia Tech for the ACC Championship Another BCS bid on the line and a good close matchup. I’m going to go Florida State 24-21 in this one.

Nebraska at Oklahoma for the BIG 12 Championship. Could there be a better matchup for the final BIG 12 Championship game before Nebraska leaves for the BIG 10 which actually have 12 teams while this conference will have 10. Oklahoma beats Nebraska 27-24  in this great old matchup of Big 8 rivals.

#1 Auburn at #14 South Carolina in the SEc Championship Game Will Auburn win the SEC Championship and get into the national championship game. Or will Steve Spurrier the Old Ball Coach get the upset for South Carolina. It will be a good exciting game but Auburn has pulled these games out all year and will this time 38-27.

Well enjoy the games and your holiday season and we’ll talk soon to discuss the games more. Thanks for reading always and best wishes. badgerbratman

Wisconsin finished the regular season with an 11-1 season. Ohio State also had an 11-1 record but Wisconsin beat them in Madison in October. The Michigan State Spartans also had an 11-1 record and handed Wisconsin their only loss at Michigan State on October 2nd. But Michigan State’s only loss was to Iowa who Wisconsin beat by a point and Ohio State beat in the final minute of their game a few weeks ago.

So even though Wisconsin lost to Michigan State and all three teams had the same record , the Badgers got the likely BCS and Rose Bowl bid because they were ranked highest in the BCS standings of the three Big Ten teams. The Badgers beat Ohio State and I think the reason they were ranked ahead of Michigan State despite their loss there was because of Michigan State’s bad loss to Iowa.

Style points count unofficially in college football without a playoff system and I think Wisconsin’s impressive amount of points scored has helped them. Winning impressively and having an all around game offensively, defensively and special teams has helped in their success both in winning and overall rankings and image.

Wisconsin has been to and won Rose Bowl’s before in 1993, 1998 and 1999 when running back Ron Dayne became the all time NCAA leading rusher and Heisman Trophy winner at Wisconsin.

Those Badger teams won a lot on ball control offense, running and a bend but dont break defense under then head coach Barry Alvarez who is now Wisconsin’s athletic director. Barry Alvarez was coach from 1990-2005 when he moved to become Wisconsin’s athletic director. He handed over the coaching duties to a then 36 year old coaching assistant Brett Bielema. Bielema went 12-1 in his first year in 2006 with a lot of Alvarez players. A couple years ago in 2008 the Badgers struggled to a 7-6 record and I questioned if Bielema was still the best head coach in my blog.

Boy has he proved me and others wrong. Last year the Badgers finished 10-3 and beat Miami of Florida in the Champs Sports Bowl 20-14. This year Bielema has the Badgers 11-1 so far and it looks like they’ll be back in the Rose Bowl unless they find their way into the national championship game but that seems a long shot as Auburn, Oregon and TCU are undefeated and LSU’s only loss is to Auburn in the tough SEC conference.

With no playoff system in college football I am just as pleased to see Wisconsin make another Rose Bowl which is called the grandaddy of all the bowl games having been played several years since 1902. It is in Pasedena, California and in one of the most beautiful and traditional bowl sites of all the different bowl games. It is popular with Big Ten fans, Pac 10 fans and fans of other conferences in recent years. There have been two national championship games at the Rose Bowl the past decade. The best one was in 2005 when Qb Vince Young and the Texas Longhorns scored a last minute touchdown to beat the USC Trojans 41-38. Texas also won a Rose Bowl on a last second field goal over Michigan in 2004 and lost the national title game 37-21 to Alabama last year after qb Colt McCoy got injured. The Badgers and Texas are two of my favorite college teams and they’ve had some exciting success in the Rose Bowl along with a lot of other great teams over the years. That’s one of the reasons it’s my favorite bowl game and I’m just as pleased to see teams play there instead of the national championship game that is decided without a playoff system.

Anyway good luck to the Badgers and we’ll see how things shake out in college football after the conference championship games and final BCS standings before all the bowls are announced next week. Thanks for reading and talk to you soon. Best wishes. badger bratman

P.S. Since I wrote this I have learned that LSU has been beaten by Arkansas for their second loss. Boise State was stunned by Nevada 34-31 in overtime knocking them from ther unbeatens and likely out of BCS contention since they play in a weaker conference, the WAC. Auburn came from 24-0 down to beat Alabama their in state rival 28-27. Oregon beat Arizona 48-29. Oklahoma and Oklahoma State are currently in proggress and the winner wins the Big South and plays the Big 12 North winner in the Big 12 Championship game. Wouldn’t it be something if it were Nebraska and Oklahoma one more time. We’ll see what happens and talk to you soon. badgerbrat

But both teams have struggled lately. The Leafs had an eight game losing streak recently but now have won three straight home games against the Nashvillle Predators, New Jersey Devils and the Dallas Stars. They also had a 2-0 loss last Saturday night in Montreal against their long time Canadian rivals, the Montreal Canadiens.

But the Leafs are playing a little better lately and its a long season so we’ll see where they go for here. It’s always difficult for me as a fan when two teams I like play each other in sports. Stars vs Leafs, Penguins or Capitals is one example. I like the Steelers vs the Packers, Vikings or Bears, the Spurs vs the Bucks and the rare occasions when the Red Sox play the Brewers or Cubs or Rangers. In college I would have to say Wisconsin vs Texas would be my favorite matchup growing up in Wisconsin and living in Texas now.

Best wishes, talk soon and Have a Happy Thanksgiving. badgerbratman

Pro football:

Chicago Bears at Miami Dolphins Thursday Night. The Bears could be one of the surprise teams in the league and we havent figured them out even at 6-3. Both the Bears and Dolphins play kind of ugly and struggle. Dolphins 17-14

Detroit Lions at Dallas Cowboys Speaking of ugly football what will we see here or is this the new and improved Jason Garrett coached Cowboys we saw in a 33-20 win at the New York Giants last week. I like the Cowboys 28-17

Oakland Raiders at Pittsburgh Steelers. The Raiders are improved this year and even beat Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh last year. But last year the Steelers had injuries and a five game losing streak. This week they’re mad after losing to the Patriots. Steelers win 35-24

Cleveland Browns at Jacksonville Jaguars. Two of the hot and interesting teams in the league. The Browns beat the Patriots a few weeks ago and the Jaguars beat the Texans on a Hail Mary last week. Neither team makes the playoffs I think.  The Browns win a crazy game this week like 31-28 maybe on a hail mary themselves.

Washington Redskins at Tennessee Titans. If the Redskins lay another egg this week after losses to the Detroit Lions and Philadelphia Eagles then it’s curtains for them especially in Tennessee. I like the Titans at home 31-14.

Green Bay Packers at Minnesota Vikings. This will likely be the last time we see Brett Favre against the Green Bay Packers. The 6-3 Packers will give Favre and the 3-6 Vikings a parting goodbye. Packers win 31-21 but look for a Brett miracle finish so dont be surprised there if it happens, it’s his old team.

Indianapolis Colts at New England Patriots The Colts have won here in the regular season a few times with Peyton Manning but the Patriots are awake now and playeing inspired at 7-2 after beating the Steelers. I’ll pick the Patriots 34-24.

New York Giants at Philadelphia Eagles Sunday Night. Watch out New York Giants secondary here comes Michael Vick after a 6 touchdown performance against the Redskins. The Giants got picked apart by the 2-7 Cowboys. Eagles win 24-14.

College football;

#7 Wisconsin at Michigan The Badgers are playing for a Big Ten Championship and scored 83 points. Michigan beat Illinois 67-65 in 3ot a few weeks ago. We could have a high score here. Denard Robinson is an exciting qb for Michigan. The Badgers have a better team. Badgers win 42-31

#9 Ohio State at #20 Iowa Ohio State hasn’t lost since losing to Wisconsin. Iowa is reeling a bit after losing to Northwestern and earlier to Wisconsin and Arizona as well. I like Ohio State 45-28 here over a struggling Iowa team.

Fresno State at #4 Boise State Boise State is playing for national title hopes and respect. Down on the blue Boise carpet Fresno. Boise looks for BCS and national votes with a 56-31 win.

#6 Stanford at Cal. The Game. The Rivarly. The most crazy ending ever when the band ran on the field giving Cal the victory in 1982. In 2010 Stanford is better and  wins 34-14

#8 Nebraska at Texas A&M A good old fashioned Big 12 game as Nebraska says goodbye to another Big 12 opponent before leaving for the Big 1o next year. Nebraska wins  a wild game 38-28 here in College Station home of the Aggies.

#11 Oklahoma at Baylor. Baylor has been an improved and surprise team but has fallen back a bit with losses to Oklahoma State and Texas A&M the last few weeks. I like Oklahoma here 41-28.

#16 Virginia Tech at #24 Miami Florida. I haven’t talked a lot about the ACC and Big East and wonder if some of the western teams from smaller conferences are better. Boise State defeated Virginia Tech in the opener and TCU, Utah could play with these teams. Still a competitive game and Virginia Tech beats Miami unheard of in the old days 27-17.

#13 Arkansas at #21 Mississippi State. Another SEC matchup between two pretty good ranked teams in a conference with better teams than them. I think Miss State wins at home here 28-17.

Well I hope you’re keeping track of my picks because truth be told I haven’t . It’s hard picking scores, I don’t know everything and I just try to throw my thoughts and gut feelings at these picks. Take them for what they are and sometimes I surprise myself and get them right. Best wishes and thanks always for reading. badger bratman.