As much as Thanksgiving is an opportunity to spend quality time with family and friends, eat boatloads of food and feebly acknowledge the debacle that is your academic semester, it is also a time to sit down in front of the good ol' TV and catch up on some quality athletic competition.
Through single-game performances, playoff-like competition, bowl announcements and players changing zip codes, this past holiday weekend was one filled with outstanding action in the sports world.
With that, here is what I would like to call the good, the bad and the ugly in sports from last weekend.
The Good: Those who failed to watch the Dallas Cowboys and the Miami Dolphins on Thanksgiving Day also missed catching UW alum and Dolphins' wide receiver Chris Chambers play one of the best games this season in the NFL.
From the first play of the game when Chambers drew a pass interference penalty, the ex-\U-dub"" standout single-handedly propelled his team to their dominating victory. While finishing with only five catches for 96 yards, statistics don't necessarily tell the story of this game. Whether it was diving for a score, tip-toeing the back of the end zone or running wild from the competition, Chambers showed he has the abilities to be the best wideout UW has ever sent to the pros. His instincts, Forrest Gump-like speed and knack for the big play notches him as one of the top receivers and premier playmakers in the game.
The Bad: Who would have thought the two defending NFL Conference Champions from the 2002 season would be where they are today? The Tampa Bay Buccaneers and the Oakland Raiders continue to get worse week by week, and every week something new is plaguing the team.
As bad as Tampa is, even with their off-field personnel problems, Oakland's pathetic season has been worse. It is at the point where their coach has called them the dumbest team in the NFL. Since the team is supposed to epitomize the coach, I say, ""stupid is as stupid does.""
The Ugly: As fantastic as it is for me to see Curt Schilling accept a trade to the Red Sox in order to bring a title to the beloved city of Boston, the ugly part is the retaliation anticipated to be taken by George Steinbrenner of the Yankees. Whether it is signing Andy Pettite, Bartolo Colon, Gary Sheffield or even God for that matter, Steinbrenner will look worldwide to get the guys he wants in pinstripes. For a Brewer diehard that must suffer through the recent news of trading their best player in order to dump a contract rather than have a proven player on the field, these actions in no way help the game of baseball and therefore are so ugly; they are ""ooglee.""
