News: The hated Dodgers beat Sabo's Padres two games to one. The Braves remain odds-on favorites.

Next: Sabo's Padres travel to play the Giants (1-1 so far) and D'backs. Only the Monday game in Phoenix is a dog game. Also: the Dodgers have a huge game in Phoenix, the Tigers have an elimination game in Kansas City, and the Phillies and Reds have a double-elimination game in Cincinnati.

_{Projections by All-Star Sabo-Metrics— tw 3% rc(5-5),tg(2-2 Sep3 @ry),pd(34-37 dd/\\;Sep2 @dm) ~0. X— rn(4-2),as(2-1),rs(2-1),mt(4-4),bz(3-3),cr(3-3),at(1-1),pr(6-7 Sep4 mz),dm(9-11 Sep1 dd,pd),ex(5-7),an(1-2),mr(2-4),mz(3-7 Sep4 @pr),or(1-3),bj(0-1),ry(0-2 Sep3 tg),in,yn. Team abbv— key. /— home win. \— home loss. A gratuitous sports post.}

News: Both of our FBS team's opening opponents were in the FCS playoffs last season... and they played the "big boys" tough. UC Davis recovered a Cal fumble on the opening kickoff, turned that into a TD, and were quickly up 10-0. The game was 13-13 near the end of the third quarter, before the Cal offense, QB'd by Chase Garbers, pulled away 27-13. The Ryan Agnew QB'd Aztecs weren't able to cross the goal line... the Aztec offense amounted to two field goals. The Rocky Long coached defense needed to "pitch a shutout" to beat Weber State.

In exhibition play, my Patriots were leading 29-10 in meaningless scores into the third quater... and managed to lose 29-31 on the final play of the game. I saw this game on taped delay. Well, I guess they dodged the anecdotal jinx of having an undefeated exhibition slate. They'll get these Gaints back for real in a Rivalry Bowl later this season.


Next: Our FBS teams step it up notch with two tougher games. My Golden Bears travel to Seattle for an early Pac-12 conference game against the ranked Huskys. The Huskys beat FCS Western Washington at home 47-14 last week. This game will go a long way to determine if Cal will be a contender to reach that Hallowed Ground this season... the Rose Bowl game.

Sabo's Aztecs will play on that Hallowed Ground this week. They visit UCLA, who lost 14-24 @Cincinnati last week. In Rose Bowl Stadium SDSU is 2-11: 0-8 @UCLA, 1-0 in Pasadena Bowls (defunct bowl, they beat defunct football program Boston University Terriers 28-7 in 1969), and 1-3 @Cal State LA (1959-1967, defunct football program). If fact, SDSU has never beaten UCLA. In their only non-loss, a 1924 13-13 tie @Balboa Stadium, the schools were known as the Southern Branch of the University of California “Grizzly Bears” and the San Diego State Teacher College “Staters”.

Also, the pros kick off tomorrow in Chicago... stealing that customary perk of that early start from my world champion Patriots. New England gets started Sunday night. Going by last year's records, we can divide my Patriots schedule into four phases: (A) A "harder" home opener against the always tough Steelers, who had a winning 9-6-1 record last season. (B) An "easier" stretch of seven straight games against teams which all had losing records last season. This includes four road games, four of six division match ups, and a record three Rivalry Bowls. (C) A "harder" stretch of seven weeks, where my Patriots play not only teams which had winning records last season, but where every team also made the playoffs. There are three road games and the bye in that stretch. (D) An "easier" stretch of there games against teams with losing records last season. There are two home games, both vs divisional rivals.


^{FCS teams— italics. Records— 2018. Rankings— AP. Odds— www.vegasinsider.com. Team abbv— key. Notes— 1: no scab games, 2: 2018-2-4 Superb Owl LII @US Bank Stadium, Minneapolis, 3: Playoffs, 4: Jets/Titans 65-54-1; Giants 6-6, 5: Ravens 10-3; Colts 12-15, 6: Cowboys 5-7; Texans 3-3, 7: Texans 10-1; Oilers 16-15-1, 8: Jets 4-15; Giants 1-1, 9: @Jets 6-3; @Giants 1-0, 10: @Texans 3-1; 2-0 in Superb Owls. A gratuitous sports post.}

News: The Royals, Phillies eliminated the Tigers, Reds respectively. The Braves remain odds-on favorites. Correction: The Marlins@Pirates game was on Sept. 3rd (not the 4th).

Next: Sabo's last game of the season... against the Rockies in the Barkyard tomorrow. This is a double-elimination game.

_{Projections by All-Star Sabo-Metrics— tw 3% rc(5-5 Sep6 @pd),pd(34-38 dm/;Sep6 rc) ~0. X— rn(4-2),as(2-1),rs(2-1),rd(5-4 \ph),mt(4-4),bz(3-3),cr(3-3),at(1-1),dm(10-12 dd\,pd/),ex(5-7),pr(5-8 mz\),tg(2-3 /ry),mz(4-7 \pr),an(1-2),ry(1-2 tg/),mr(2-4),or(1-3),bj(0-1),in,yn. Team abbv— key. /— home win. \— home loss. Sabo game in red. Not quite a gratuitous sports post.}

News: Sabo thoroughly enjoyed his 56th baseball game. However, Sabo was disappointed that the Rockies eliminated his Padres from the SDDC race. The Braves remain odds-on favorites.

Next: The Rockies have two more games left on this, Sabo's Padres 12th home stand. Then the Cubs invade the Barkyard for four. The White Sox and Rays also have home dog games. A loss eliminates any of the four aforementioned teams. The defending SDCC champion Dodgers also have a huge dog game in Baltimore.

_{Projections by All-Star Sabo-Metrics— tw 3% rc(6-5 \pd;Sep7 @pd2) ~0. X— rn(4-2),as(2-1),rs(2-1),rd(5-4 Sep12 @mr),mt(4-4),bz(3-3),cr(3-3),at(1-1),pd(34-39 rc\;Sep7 rc2,cb4),ex(5-7),dm(10-12),pr(5-8),tg(2-3),mz(4-7),an(1-2),ry(1-2 Sep10 @ws),mr(2-4 Sep12 rd),or(1-3 Sep10 dd),bj(0-1 Sep8 @dr),in,yn. Team abbv— key. \— home loss. A gratuitous sports post.}

News: The Giants were re-hung with the dreaded ~0. Sabo's Padres eliminated the Rockies and Cubs. The Braves remain odds-on favorites. Then there is this proclamation (below). Note that the Dodgers remain 2018 SDDC champions.

To memorialize the sad fact that there are 12 MLB stadiums that Sabo will now never get to visit, let it be known that the last regular season game at these stadiums will be "Envisioned". Also, these dog games from last season also count: July 5 Rangers win @Tigers, August 13 White Sox loss @Tigers, August 28 Braves win @Marlins.

~The Competition Committee

Next: Sabo's Padres head out to Denver and Milwaukee... none of which are dog games. The feature dog game is Friday in DC. A Braves win would eliminate the Giants, Phillies, Rays, Twins and White Sox... leaving only the defending SDDC champ Dodgers and Braves alive.

_{Projections by All-Star Sabo-Metrics— tw 2% gn(8-5) ~0. X— rn(4-2),as(2-1),rs(2-1),rd(6-4 \mr;Sep15 @dm),mt(4-4),bz(3-3),cb(3-3 \//\pd),cr(3-3),at(1-1),rc(6-7 //pd),pd(38-41 rc//,cb\//\),ex(5-7 Sep13 br),dm(10-12 Sep15 rd),pr(5-8 Sep17 mr),tg(2-3 Sep16 or),mz(4-7),an(1-2),mr(2-5 rd/;Sep17 @pr),ry(1-3 /ws),or(1-4 dd\;Sep16 @tg),bj(0-2 /dr),in,yn. Team abbv— key. \— home loss. /— home win. A gratuitous sports post.}

News: It was a good football week for Sabo & me. All three of our teams were clearly the best team on the field... and all three won. My Golden Bears came in as big dogs on the road. Even though the Huskies scored a late TD for the lead, they left too much time on the clock. The Chase Garber's QB'd Cal offense marched confidently down the field for the winning FG. Sabo's Aztecs came in as enormous dogs on the road. They established a second half two score lead. The Rocky Long coached defense shut down the Bruins to beat UCLA for the first time ever. My Patriots came in as big favorites at home. They whipped the Steelers every which way... the game wasn't as close as the 33-3 score would indicate.


Next: All three of our teams come in as enormous favorites. These all reek to high heaven as 'trap' games. Our teams are coming off of big wins, and then play teams which could be easy to overlook. North Texas lost 27-49 @SMU last week. The Dolphins got pounded 10-59 at home by the Ravens. New Mexico State is 0-2, being slaughtered by Washington State#20 and Alabama#2 on the road.

However... Sabo's Aztecs and my Patriots are both on the road. New Mexico State went bowling just two seasons ago. North Texas went bowling last season, are playing at .500 (they beat FCS Abilene Christian), and perhaps most importantly, come in as a total 'unknown'. My Patriots have historically just gone to south Florida to lose, including last season's haunting "Miracle in Miami". It's a Tarp !!!1!

News: The Braves (10-3) shutout the Nationals 5-0... which eliminated every other team except the defending SDDC champion Dodgers (7-4). Atlanta dogs are bitter because without these added "envisioned" games the Braves would have already clinched the championship. All-Star Sabo-Metrics now has the Braves as a 91% favorite. Also in dog games, the Reds, Tigers, Marines beat the D'backs, Orioles, and Pirates respectively.

Next: Starting Friday Sabo's Padres close out Petco Park with three vs D'backs, and then after an off-day, three more vs the hated Dodgers. For reasons we'll only concern ourselves here with the Arizona games.

Also on Sunday the Orioles close out Camden Yards (vs Mariners), the Marlins close out Marlins Park (vs Nationals), the Braves close out SunTrust Park (vs Giants), the Astros close out Minute Maid Park (vs Angels) and the Brewers close out Miller Field (vs Pirates). All these stadiums are dog friendly... and sadly Sabo will never visit any of them, so they've been proclaimed as "envisioned". Of the 12 total "envisioned" games, only one impacts the SDDC race. That impact is huge however... as a Braves win clinches them the SDDC championship.

News: It was no tarp. Cal went up 20-0 in the 1st Q. Even though they needed a defensive stop at the end of the 4th Q, they still were impressive enough to enter the rankings at #23. It gets harder for my Golden Bears. To preserve that ranking, they complete out-of-conference play by travelling for the first time to Vaught–Hemingway Stadium, in Oxford MS. The Rebels are a system on the up-tick, as they are off probation this season. So far, the Rebels lost 10-15 @Memphis, then beat Arkansas 31-17 and FCS Southeastern Louisiana 40-29.Even though ranked, Cal is a dog on the road.


It was no tarp. Sabo's Aztecs won handily. I didn't see my Patriots game... I was taking Sabo to his IWW meeting. Priorities. From all reports, their win was 'handily' too. It gets harder for Sabo's Aztecs. They play back-to-back Aggies. This time they start conference play by hosting Utah State. These Aggies, who many picked to win the conference, are coming off a bye. They lost 35-38 @Wake Forest, and beat FCS Stony Brook 62-7. Even though haven't lost to Utah State since 1967, SDSU are dogs at home.


Next: Besides the two aforementioned FBS games, which are getting 'harder', we have my Patriots game... which is getting 'rivalry-er'. Yes... it's the first of a record three Rivalry Bowls this season. The hated Jets come into Foxborough on short rest and at 0-2, having lost to Buffalo 16-17 and then losing Monday 3-23 to the the Browns. I'll have to go watch this one in the bar.

News: Sabo's Padres won yesterday, salvaging a win against the D'backs. They'll finish the season playing those same D'backs three in Phoenix... Sunday is a dog box game. Also this season...Tuesday the Tigers (vs Twins) and Pirates (vs Cubs), Thursday the Mets (vs Marlins) and Saturday the Nationals (vs Indians) host dog games.

Last Sunday the Orioles closed out Camden Yards (df Mariners), the Marlins closed out Marlins Park (df Nationals), the Astros closed out Minute Maid Park (df Angels) and the Brewers closed out Miller Field (df Pirates). Thursday the Tigers will close out Comerica Park (vs Twin) and the Rays will close out Tropicana Field (vs Yankees). Sunday the Phillies will close the season at Citizen Bank Park (vs Marlins), the Rockies will close the season at Miller Field (vs Brewers), the White Sox will close the season at Guaranteed Rate Field (vs Tigers) and the Royals will close the reason at Kauffman Stadium (vs Twins). Sunday the Rangers will close out their tenure at Globe Life Park (vs Yankees). Sadly Sabo will never see a game at any of these 11 MLB stadiums... so we find these games have all been proclaimed as "Envisioned".

Next: There is a twelve MLB stadium that Sabo will never visit: SunTrust Park. Last Sunday the Braves lost their regular season home closing "Envisioned" game to the Giants. This opens the door to the defending SDDC champion Dodgers repeating. To do so they'd need to sweep tomorrow's season closing three game series in the Barkyard. The Braves are still odds-on favorites to win the SDDC... All-Star Sabo-Metrics gives the hated Dodgers a 26% chance of the sweep.

Sabo & me have been together a long time. To the count of 2105 straight days. That streak ends today. It's time for Sabo & me to go our separate ways. Nobody promised us everything would always work out. Oh well...

Reunited... and it feels so good !!!1! What happened is we had separate vacations. Sabo had a 'stay-cation' with his aunt JQ. Me, and Sabo's uncle D from Lake Havasu AZ, flew to Arlington TX to see my Red Sox play. Yesterday was the only day we've been apart since before Sabo became Sabo. Sabo... He's a good guy !!!1!

News: My Golden Bears won in Oxford. I didn't make it to the bar on Sunday. From all reports my Patriots crushed the hated Jets in this Rivalry Bowl. The Jets two garbage time scores weren't scored by their offense... meaning the Patriot's defense is yet to give up a TD this season. Sabo's Aztecs slink into their first bye.

My Golden Bears were the better team in Mississippi last Saturday. Despite needing a goal line stop on the last play of the game, the victory impressed enough to vault Cal to #15. To answer the "Is this team a contender in the Pac-12, Part II" question, and preserve their ranking, they'll need to prove they can win under the Friday Night Lights. My Golden Bears resume conference play hosting Arizona State tonight.


Next: Besides the aforementioned Cal game, the feature game is Sunday, as my Patriots travel to upstate New York to take on the Bills. Both teams come in undefeated at 3-0 and tied for first in the AFC East. I'll miss this game, as julietinozi is flying into town that morning.

News: From all reports my Patriots barely eeked out a win in Orchard Park NY. This was another game the defense won, although they did give up their first TD of the season. The Bills defense was just as good, they also only gave up one TD, which was setup by an interception. T.Brady had one of the worst games of his career. The margin of victory turned out to be a blocked punt return. But a victory is a victory is a victory... when your team wins.

Next: My Patriots play their second straight game on the road. This time they visit southern Maryland to play the sad-sack team known as 'Wash'. I'll need to go to the bar to watch this game too.

Sabo's Aztecs are 3-1 coming out of their first bye. They lost a strange game going into that bye against Utah State. SDSU was marching down the field it seemed, and dominated yardage and time of possession at the start. However they weren't scoring, the Aggies got a pick-six, then in the second half the Aggies scored a TD. They built a 23-3 lead. The R.Agnew led Aztec offense scored two TDs late to make it close... but goodbye to SDSU's undefeated season, and hello to 0-1 in conference play. Sabo's Aztecs will try to 'right the ship' in their first ever visit to Canvas Stadium, Ft.Collins CO to play the Colorado State Rams.


Feature: Cal travels to take on the Ducks. Last week, coming off what was widely hailed as a breakthrough game at Ole'Miss, QB Chase Garbers was injured just before the halftime. Former UCLA backup, Devon Modster (who I've mentioned in this blog before, see below), led Cal to an all running TD drive at the start of the 2nd half, but that was literally it for the Cal offence. And so poof... there goes the undefeated season, the ranking, and there goes becoming a Capital-C contender.

Now the shoe is on the other foot. They travel to the hostile confines of Eugene OR. They play the highest ranked Pac-12 team, who is undefeated in conference play... and is coming off a bye. Cal's starting QB in out. A loss would put them 1½ back of the Ducks, with only six left, and without the tie-breaker. So... they really need a win here just to stay relevant. They are enormous dogs. Seems like for-always.

News: Although it was 3-3 at the end of the first, Sabo's Aztecs dominated the Rams, and ran the score to 24-3 early in the fourth. My Golden Bears slink off into their first bye.

Next: Sabo's Aztecs play their only home game in a six week span vs the Wyoming Cowboys. Three years ago, when SDSU last played Wyoming, they played them twice in Laramie over a three week span... and the Aztecs won the second meeting, which was the MW conference championship game.


Feature: I made it to the bar this time, with my brotherman R. The team known as Wash started the scoring with a 65-yard TD run... but that was it, as the Patriots defense shut them out the rest of the game. It was still close, 12-7, at halftime. In the second half the Patriot offense started clicking... and Wash was duly crushed.

So it's back home to Rivalry Bowl LI this Thursday. For the first time ever, the hated New York football Giants will be appearing in a Rivalry Bowl. The Patriots are 7-0 in Rivalry Bowls, including 3-0 @Gillette Stadium. Happily, the despised Eli Manning is riding the pines.

Cal's Season in Review: Coming off a bye is always a good time to review a team. My Golden Bears are coming off their first bye at 4-2. Cal won their first four games, including sweeping their non-conference schedule. Including road upsets at Washington and Ole'Miss. This earned them a #15 AP ranking. Then...

They lost their last two games. This forfeited that ranking. Both of these games were win-able. The loss in Eugene was especially frustrating. Cal led 7-0 at halftime. Oregon took their first lead, 10-7 with only 1:38 left in the 3rd Quarter. With C.Garbers out with injury for a while, D.Modster is the new starting QB. He played noticeably better than he did vs ASU, but the net result was the same: seven points.

Those losses also forfeited any claim to being a Capital-C contender. Uniquely in the FBS, and presuming that six wins won't win a division (or the Big 12, or clinch a playoff berth), one way to look at things is this: a team can concentrate solely on getting bowl eligible... and only then start to consider where (and if) they are in contention for their conference title (or a playoff berth). Let's try this way of looking at things with regard to Cal.

To go bowling, Cal needs to win two of their remaining six games. One of these opponents are currently ranked (Utah#13). They presumably will be dogs in five of these games. If so, the only game they'll be favored will be this week: vs Oregon State @Memorial Stadium. This is a game Cal really needs to win to get to a bowl game.

News: This was a close game. Wyoming led @SDSU 14-6 at halftime. Sabo's Aztecs scored 13 unanswered to take a 19-14 lead. This Cowboys fought back, and led 22-19 with 2:09 left in the 4th. But... the R.Agnew QB'ed offense marched down and scored the late TD for the win.

Next: Using the same bowl-eligible-centric way of thinking with regard to Sabo's Aztecs: They need one more win to be bowl eligible. They can get that win at this week's double elimination second leg of the Mythical CSU Championship. In the first leg, FCS Sacto State was eliminated with a 20-34 loss @Fresno State back on Sep 21. The SJSU Spartans, recently the door mat of the WM, are resurgent this season at 3-3, and are at home.


Feature: Rivalry Bowl LI was closer than the final score indicates. Again, the Patriots offense struggled at times. Again, the defense (scoop six) and special teams (blocked punt return) really won the game. Two late Patriot TDs finally sealed the win.

This week's feature game is an unprecedented third Rivalry Bowl in a season, and unprecedented consecutive Rivalry Bowls. New England is coming off an "extended mini-bye" (Thursday to the next Monday is 11 days later vs 14 days later in a standard bye). In Rivalry Bowls, my Patriots are 8-0, including a 30-14 thumping of the Jets in Rivalry Bowl L, @Gillette Stadium back on Sep 22nd, and including 2-0 @MetLife. The the hated and hapless Jets are 0-7 in Rivalry Bowls, including that 0-2 @Metlife.

Quote:

Sabo's Dog Day Championship

1978. San Diego
1992. Minnesota
2004. Pittsburgh
2005. Chicago Cubs
2006. Chicago White Sox
2007. Chicago White Sox
2008. Chicago White Sox
2009. Chicago White Sox
2012. San Diego
2013. San Diego
2014. Chicago White Sox (2-0)
2015. St.Louis (3-0)
2016. Texas (4-0)
2017. Cincinnati (8-4)
2018. Los Angeles Dodgers (10-2)
2019. Los Angeles Dodgers (10-4)

When hated Dodgers came into the Barkyard on September 24th for their third visit, and their penultimate regular season series, they needed a sweep to repeat as SDDC champions. That's exactly what they got... winning Tuesday and Wednesday nights (which Sabo surely missed on his Sabo-cation), and then on Thursday afternoon (just as we were reunited). Although Sabo saw the Dodgers organization lose both their home dog games (at their "Pups in the Park", and by the Class A Quakes in Rancho Cucamonga)... they rode a 10-2 record in road dog games (8-2 @Padres, 1-0 @D'backs, 1-0 @Orioles) to defend their championship.

2019 SDDC Final Standings

1. 10-4 .714 —	Los Angeles Dodgers*
2. 3-0 1.000 1½	White Sox
3. 6-2 .750 1	Rays
4. 3-1 .750 2	Astros
5. 10-5 .667 ½	Braves
6. 2-1 .667 2½	A's, Red Sox, Twins
9. 9-5 .643 1	Giants
10. 7-4 .636 1½	Reds
11. 5-3 .625 2	Phillies, Rangers
13. 4-3 .571 2½	Cubs
14. 7-7 .500 3	Rockies
15. 4-4 .500 3	Brewers
16. 3-3 .500 3	Card's
17. 13-14 .481 3½	D'backs
18. 7-8 .467 3½	Marlins
19. 39-47 .453 7	Padres
20. 4-5 .444 3½	Mets
21. 7-9 .438 4	Nationals
22. 2-3 .400 3½	Royals
23. 6-11 .353 5½	Pirates
24. 3-6 .333 4½	Mariners, Tigers
26. 2-5 .286 4½	Orioles
27. 1-3 .250 4	Angels
28. 0-1 .000 3½	Indians
29. 0-2 .000 4	Blue Jays, Yankees

_{* The Dodgers had a higher RDF (Record Difficulty Factor of .910) than the White Sox (.875), Rays (.855) or Astros (.688). Corrections—(1) the Rays closed out Tropicana Field Sep 25th (not the 26th). They beat the Yankees. (2) The Braves added a second dog game on Sep 8th. They lost to the Nationals. (3) The Rangers added a second dog on game Sep 14th. They lost to the A's. None of these corrections effect the outcome of the SDDC. However, the added Braves game also means none of the 'Envisioned Game' effected the outcome either. Other Finals— Sep24 tw\tg, cb\pr; Sep26 mz\mt, tw\tg; Sep 28 in/ex; Sep 29 pd/dm, yn/rn, bz/rc, tg/ws, tw/ry, mz\ph. Team abbv— key. \— home loss. /— home win. A gratuitous sports post.}

News: Sabo's Aztecs had their most workmanlike victory in front of absolutely nobody in San Jose. Seriously, their was a good crowd, but they were all on the home & camera side of the field. Those cameras showed the SDSU bench in front of a completely empty grass hillside. Stadium renovations in progress.

With Sabo as my witness, I called the Patriots safety in Jersey. That's all the Patriots defense needed to win the game. Of course, the Patriots offense had already opened up a 24 point lead at that time. The game wasn't as close as the 33-0 score indicates. All in all, a through thrashing of the hated Jets in another Rivalry Bowl.

Next: Sabo's Aztecs are off to Vegas, baby, Vegas. They're looking for their 7th win of the season to really nail down that 10th straight bowl appearance. My Patriots battle the Browns for their 13th straight win, and their 20th straight win @Gillette. Even tough this is the CBS national game, and no LA teams are involved...I'll still need to go to the bar to see this game.


Feature: Hay, cousin Vinny, that's the football playing youth of the major university located in Salt Lake City. A loss to them would officially make it a season-on-the-brink for my Golden Bears. That makes this a game-on-the-brink, as the #12 Utes are massive favorites at home, while Cal's starting their 3rd string QB. Cal still needs two games to go bowling. This might be their hardest remaining game. Why not get one of those two wins here ???/?

How did they get on the brink-of-being-on-the-brink? Three straight losses, the last at home to those Beavers. Cal finally got on the board with 26 seconds left in the half... making the score 3-14. Cal scored two TDs in the third quarter to take a lead. However, Oregon State marched down for the winning TD with 4:41 left. True Freshman Spencer Brasch failed to create a miracle in the last two possessions after replacing injured 2nd string QB Devon Modster.

News: Sabo's Aztecs soar ranked into, while my Golden Bears slink into, their second byes. Today, my Patriots defeated the Browns. The best team on the field won this game in convincing fashion.


Feature: A test. Sure, my Patriots have the best record in the NFL. As they say in the FBS: "Who have they played?" The Ravens are the first opponent who were in the playoffs last season. This season, besides the surprising Bills, the Ravens are the first team they'll face with a winning record, and the first team who are actually contenting for the playoffs. To make matters more difficult, the Ravens are coming off their bye, and are at home. It's a test.

News: My Patriots slink off into their bye not undefeated.
Next: Sabo's Aztecs start their "third quarter" hosting the Wolf Pack.

Aztec Bye Review: Coming out of a bye is always a good time to evaluate a team. Sabo's Aztecs are coming out of their second bye. This divided their season up nicely into thirds.

The first third they went 3-0 out of conference, and lost their only game this season to conference foe Utah St. The second third they went 4-0 in conference. This included a tight 20-17 win over UNLV. Sabo's Aztecs had a 17-0 lead, but were helped late went a potential UNLV game tying field goal hot the post. This gives SDSU a final 9-7 record all time in Boyd Stadium: 8-6 @UNLV, 0-1 vs North Carolina, and 1-0 vs Houston. Unless they play in a third Las Vegas Bowl. This has earned them their tenth straight bowl game, an AP #24 ranking, and a game and a half lead in the MW West.

What's the third third hold: At home they have games against Nevada tomorrow, then Oil Can rival Fresno State under the Friday night lights. Then a trip to the Islands. Then they finish out of conference vs their old WAC nemesis BYU. SDSU wasn't ranked in the first CFP poll, so they got their work cut out for them. But... a Mountain West championship followed by a Fiesta Bowl is bid is out there...


Feature: It's officially a season on the brink. The less said about Utah's 35-0 crushing of Cal, the better. The dream of the roses has once again been trammeled under foot. Cal still needs two wins to go bowling. It sure would be nice to win their last two home games, and the last two games before Big Game: tomorrow against Washington State and next week against USC. Both Cal and Washington State are coming out of byes.

News: D.Modster had his best Cal game since he helped beat them with UCLA a few seasons ago, and my Golden Bears thoroughly dominated those favored Cougars @Memorial Stadium.

Next: It's Senior Day in Berkeley, hosting the University of Spoiled Children and their birth control products. Cal needs one more win to be bowling, and it sure would be nice to get it before heading off to Palo Alto next week to collect a missing axe. They got their work cut out... as they are big dogs to USC.

Patriots Bye Review: Coming out of a bye is always a good time to evaluate a team. My Patriots are coming out of their bye. They have the best record (8-1, tied with the surprising 49ers), the greatest point differential (172), and have allowed the fewest points (98). They have opened up a two game lead in the AFC East (over the surprising Bills). Football Outsiders projects them as favorites to make the playoffs (99.9%), earn a second bye (92%) and capture that Superb Owl (26.8%). So far, so good.

It's not a perfect team however, as we found out with that 20-37 loss at Baltimore heading into this bye. Tons of Patriot mistakes, and a defense trashed by Ravens QB L.Jackson showed that. Still... it's been the defense winning games this season, while the GOAT QB led offense has sputtered at times.

The New England schedule was back-loaded this season. First, they only faced one winning team in eight games. Now, starting with the Ravens, they only face one losing team in eight weeks.All the rest are playoff contenders. Next up: it's back down the Acela corridor to take on their Supurb Owl nemesis, the Philadelphia Eagles.


Correction: The Las Vegas Bowl (as MW champs) is out there for Sabo's Aztecs, the Fiesta Bowl (playoff this year) never was.

Feature: Can you believe it... we are 16 weeks into this football season blog, and this is the very first time Sabo's Aztecs have been the feature. And... Sabo is sooooo jealous, as I'm going to see Sabo's Aztecs tonight with my brotherman R, while he has to stay home and guard the house.

The rolls are reversed from last season: as Sabo's Aztecs are already going bowling and need a win to stay a game up over Hawaii and Nevada in the MW West, while the Bulldogs are two wins away from the bowling alley,and need a win to avoid MW elimination. Still... SDSU is coming off losing at home to an enormous dog of Nevada (on a reverse-pass trick play), it's a rivalry game, a pick'em, Fresno State is defending MW champions, and Fresno State has ruled over San Diego State in the Oil Can era. This should be a good game.

Nov 15: 4-6 Fresno St @SDSU 17-7
Nov 16: 7-4 USC#23 41-17 @Cal
Nov 17: Patriots 17-10 @5-5 Eagles
Nov 23: 5-5 Cal @4-6 Stanford -140-2½
. . . . . . . 8-2 SDSU @7-4 Hawaii -145-3
Nov 24: 6-4 Cowboys @9-1 Patriots -300-6½

News: Friday Sabo's Aztecs won, Saturday my Golden Bears lost, and Sunday my Patriots won. I took Sabo to his monthly IWW meeting, and so missed the NFL game (see above).

The USC game was close until right before halftime. With 43 seconds left, USC scored on a 33 yard TD pass. Also in the first half, surprise starter C.Garbers was re-injured, again replaced by D.Modster. USC scored to start the second half, and the rout... on both sides of the ball... was on. Ouch.

Next: It's Big Game! Cal has lost Big Game for nine straight years, the longest streak in the long history of the game. My Golden Bears still need to win a game to go bowling... Big Game =OR= the mythical UC championship next week in the Rose Bowl. The twisted tree is in a worse spot... they need to win Big Game =AND= beat Notre Dame next week in Palo Alto. Now's the time to re-claim that axe !!!1!

Also, my Patriots host the always despicable, and this season first place in the NFC East, Cow Pies of north Texas.


Feature: First thing first... with 7:05 left in the 1st Q last Friday night, the Fresno State Bulldogs made it 7-0 to open the scoring. With 13:14 left in the 4th Q, Sabo's Aztecs made it 17-7 to close the scoring. R.Agnew threw for 323 yards, while the defense won another game R.Long style. My brotherman R (a Fresno State grad), and myself, thoroughly enjoyed attending the game.

With the victory, SDSU clinches the mythical CSU championship (standings: SDSU 2-0, Fresno & Sacto States 1-1, SJSU & SLO 0-1... with Fresno State@SJSU coming up on Nov 30). More importantly, it sets up an effective conference semi-final playoff game situation over in the islands this week: the winner of SDSU-Hawaii game clinches the WM West division.

Nov 23: UCB 24-20 @4-7 Stanford
........... SDSU @8-4 Hawaii 14-11
Nov 24: 6-5 Cowboys @Patriots 13-9
Nov 30: 7-4 BYU @8-3 SDSU +185+6
............ 6-5 UCB @4-7 UCLA +105+1
Dec 1: 10-1 Patriots @7-4 Texans +150+3

News: Surprise starter C.Garbers scored a surprise 16yd running TD with 1:19 left in the game to give Cal its first and final lead of the game. Even though the twisted tree was in front almost the entire game, it really seemed Cal was the better team. Finally, ten years later, that axe is coming home to Berkeley. And... my Golden Bears are going bowling for the second season in a row!

Meanwhile, over in Hawaii, the Rainbows likewise seemed to be outplaying Sabo's Aztecs, despite the closely matched stats. Still, SDSU missed a game tying FG with 2 seconds left in the game. So... no 23rd conference championship for the Aztecs, which would have included the 4th Mountain West championship in Sabo's life time.

Next: Both Sabo & my FBS teams have one more game before they hear what and where they are going bowling. My Golden Bears head to hallowed ground for the Mythical UC championship @UCLA. Sabo's Aztecs host, if not quite a rival, old WAC and MW nemesis BYU. This is surely BYU's last visit to SDCCU, which has functioned as their "home away from home"... there has always been a large and loyal Mormon The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints community in San Diego, BYU is 17-10-2 all time @SDCCU, including 11 bowl game appearances, and they won their national championship there (24-17 win over Michigan 1984-12-21, I was at this game). But... the most epic BYU vs SDSU game may well be the 52-52 tie @SDCCU back on 1991-11-16 (I had game tix, but instead went on an epic rural Nevada road trip adventure, and ended up watching the 2nd half in a casino in Carson City)...


Feature: Sabo & my three teams all played pressure-building gut-wrenching razor-close defensive struggles last week. The NFL game also took place in a wind driven cold rain. Still, my Patriots were able to kick those despicable, and soggy, cow-pies out of the way.

The feature this week is my Patriots travelling to Houston to play their fourth straight team with a winning record, which also was in the playoffs last season, and is contending to do so this season. In fact, the Texans are first place in the AFC South. My Patriots are 1½ up on the Bills with five games left.

Nov 30: 7-5 BYU @9-3 SDSU 13-3
.......... 7-5 UCB 28-18 @4-8 UCLA
Dec 1: Patriots @8-4 Texan 28-22
Dec 8: 8-4 Chefs @10-2 Patriots -165-3

News: I was remiss in not noting last week that a Browns win (they rolled over to the Steelers 13-20) -or- a Chefs win (they sunk the hated Raiders 40-9) would set up a chance for my Patriots to clinch the playoffs with a win in Houston. Instead, my Patriots got crushed in Houston by those Texans. The game wasn't ever close, despite the final score. New England got beat on both sides of the ball, but the offense was particularly impotent.

Next: Sabo's Aztecs, along with my Golden Bears, soar off into their third, pre-bowling, byes. Tomorrow, both Sabo's Aztecs & my Golden Bears will find out where and when they are going bowling.


Feature: The Chefs clinch the playoffs with a win, and a Titans win. On their second try, my Patriots clinch the playoffs simply with a win. Following last season's pair of classic match ups, this is the game the whole NFL (and especially CBS) has been waiting for all of this season: Chefs @ Patriots.

Dec 8: 9-4 Chefs 23-16 @Patriots
Dec 15: 10-3 Patriots @1-12 Bengals +11

News: Today is bowl selection day, the start of The Most Wonderful Time of the Year... as ESPN used to promote their largely owned FBS franchise. There are the same bowls as last season (below). Changes are... The Cure Bowl moves from the Camping World Citrus Bowl to Exploria Stadium, home of the Orlando City FC soccer team. Both are in Orlando FL. The First Responder Bowl moves from the Cotton Bowl in Dallas to nearby Ford Stadium in University Park TX, home of the SMU Mustangs. And the former Dollar General Bowl has been re-branded as the LendingTree Bowl. It remains at Ladd-Peeples Stadium in Mobile AL, home of the South Alabama Jaguars. With Missouri (6-6 SEC) on suspension, Toledo (6-6 MAC) is the odd-team out... as the only bowl eligible team not to get to go bowling.

Next & Feature: Welp... my Patriots went down and scored on their first possession, then got a quick interception. It seemed like the good old times. Fast forward into the 3rd Q, after 23 unanswered chef points... seeming like the bad new times, as in recently against the Ravens and Texans. But, unlike those two games, my Patriots rallied, and staged a comeback... which failed to tie the score on 4th & goal inside the two minute warning. So there goes the 23 game home winning streak. So much for clinching the playoffs, again.

That's three losses in the last five games, after eight straight wins to start the season. It's not quite time to panic. If they lose the next game, against the team with the worst record in the league... then it's time to panic. Hopefully the third time is the charm... as New England simply needs a win in Cincy to clinch the playoffs.

Dec 15: Patriots 34-13 @1-13 Bengals
Dec 21: 8-5 C.Michigan v.9-3 SDSU -170-3½ @New Mexico Bowl
............ 10-4 Bills @11-3 Patriots -300-6½

Correction: My Patriots had a 21 (not 23) home game win streak.
News: While I took Sabo to his IWW meeting, my Patriots beat the Bengals (below).

Next: Now that, on their third try, my Patriots have clinched, and extending their record playoff streak to 11... the goal switches to... extending their record first round bye streak beyond nine. The NFL first round bye is the biggest perk in sports. My Patriots can earn it with a win =and= a Bears win. Back on September 29, my Patriots beat these surprising Bills, who have also clinched the playoffs, 16-10 in upstate New York.


Feature: Sabo's Aztecs close out their season at the New Mexico Bowl, at Dreamstyle Stadium, Albuquerque NM... home of the New Mexico Lobos. Their opponents are the Central Michigan University Chippewas of Mt.Pleasant MI.

The Chippewas are coming off a close loss in the MAC championship game at Ford Field, Detroit... home of the NFL Lions. A Central Michigan 'Hail Mary' as time ran out failed, giving Miami of Ohio a 26-21 win, and the MAC title.

Sabo's Aztecs are coming off a 13-3 upset win at home over old nemesis BYU. Starting QB R.Agnew was out from an injury suffered vs. Hawiii, so redshirt freshman Carson Baker make his FBS debut in his place. Agnew is expected to play the New Mexico Bowl. The Aztec defense won this game, basically shutting down BYU the entire game. This was another R.Long style defensive nail-biter win.

The Chippewas have never met SDSU, never been to the New Mexico Bowl, and has never played in Dreamstyle Stadium. Sabo's Aztecs have never been to the New Mexico Bowl, and are 13-5 @Dreamstyle against the Lobos.