Josh's Early October Storylines

Razorbacks Roll Up Mean Green

A 66-7 victory over North Texas doesn't do much to change the public perception of the Razorbacks, but it can certainly help the players gain some confidence in themselves. The passing game was more than functional; for a change, it was seriously impressive. Casey Dick looked way better on the playaction throws, while wideouts London Crawford and Robert Johnson stepped up and made some nice catches. Defensively, the secondary finally started turning to look at the ball (sure does help, huh?), while the stud tailback duo of McFadden and Jones churned out 270 first half yards before mercifully hitting the bench for half number two.

Things won't get any more exciting this coming weekend, when Arkansas hosts former I-AA school Tennessee-Chattanooga in Little Rock. A rout it shall be, and the Hogs will then be 3-2 when the night wraps, but they'll still be stuck on 0-2 in SEC play, a mark that won't change---for the positive or the negative---until they host Auburn in Fayetteville a week from Saturday.

One real Chattanooga storyline of note: Heisman hopeful Darren McFadden needs 151 yards rushing (probably all in the first half) to set the all-time Razorback ground mark in front of his hometown fans in Little Rock. Here's hoping D-Mac gets it done in the Rock.

Mets Slide All the Way Out

An epic collapse apparently won't cost Mets' skipper Willie Randolph his job, but it probably should have. Watching New York trip over itself during the final 17 games of the season was one of the more painful experiences of my sports life. The pitching completely collapsed, both starting and in the bullpen, while the offense lost almost all of its spunk. A lot of that stemmed from the top of the lineup: Jose Reyes looked like a completely different player during the final two months of the season. He went from a guy who was arguably becoming the most exciting all-around player in the game to a guy who couldn't even get on base.

A lot of the fold-up was psychological. After losing eight straight times to the Phillies towards the end of the year, the Mets clearly no longer believed in themselves. The swagger was gone, and soon, so was their divisional lead. And now New York enters an offseason filled with questions, while Philadelphia parties like it's 1993. Oh, the misery....

LCS Picks: Cleveland over Boston in ALCS; Chicago over Colorado in NLCS
World Series Champ: Cleveland Indians

NFL Wraps First Quarter of Play

New England is once again the team to beat, at 4-0 through one quarter of the season. The "undefeated" talk has already started up, with Tom Brady (13 TD tosses) playing like the Most Valuable Player. Clearly the addition of Randy Moss (7 TDs already) has made the Patriots scary good; rumors of the Freak's athletic demise were undoubtedly exaggerated. Don't sleep on the Colts yet though: at 4-0, they are still the defending champions until someone proves otherwise.

The two other undefeated teams are unquestioned surprises. We knew Dallas would be good, but this good, this fast under Wade Phillips? My goodness. Tony Romo is playing like a bona fide star, while Marion Barber has emerged as the best red zone tailback in the NFL. If the Cowboys' 'D' ever gets up to speed, it's going to mean serious trouble for the rest of the NFC.

And then there's Green Bay. Brett Favre has his Packers off to a 4-0 start, and now he also has the all-time TD toss mark in the bag, shattering Dan Marino's previous tally of 420. Favre is playing like he's 28, not 38, and the Green Bay defense has improved as much as any group in all of football.

The list of disappointing starts is a lot longer, stretching from San Diego, Philadelphia and Cincinnati (all 1-3) to New Orleans, Saint Louis and Miami (all still winless).

A fourth of the NFL season is it all it is, but now is the first real good time to take stock of where your respective team is---or isn't.

Springsteen Back with "Magic", Crows Postpone, Radiohead Loses Collective Mind

Yes, I've already picked up my copy of Bruce Springsteen's new album Magic, but I've yet to put it in the CD player for a spin, so give me just a couple of days till I offer you a full-fledged review. It's coming though, I promise . . . the E Streeters are back, baby.

In other music news: the Counting Crows have, rather unfortunately, elected to postpone the release of their fifth album Saturday Nights, Sunday Mornings until after the New Year. Something about being too busy to take care of "all the little details" according to lead singer/songwriter Adam Duritz in a post on his band's website. Too bad about that. Almost six years now since the last Crows' album.

Meanwhile, British collective Radiohead---arguably the greatest living rock band in the world today---has taken a completely different route in releasing their seventh album, titled In Rainbows. With almost no advertising or advance notice, and no record deal to speak of (the previous one has already been fulfilled) the group will release the album on its own via the internet next Wednesday, October 10th. Ten songs will be available, and here's the crux of the craziness: downloaders will have the right to pay as much or as little as they like for each and every song. You read correctly: downloaders can elect to pay nothing for the songs if they so choose. On December 3rd, the band will then release a double CD of the album, containing eight extra tracks, along with artwork and more. That too can only be ordered online and will set you back a mere $80 in American cash.

Will it prove to be a profitable decision for Radiohead? Time will tell, but at the least, it's certainly a statement against the big music conglomerates. Kudos for that, but still sort of crazy if you ask me. That's Radiohead for you.

-JAB