Tony Kornheiser should stick to PTI

OK, so I wanted to keep this blog informative, positive, and inspirational, but here goes my first rant. Tony Kornheiser needs to stick to PTI cause he sucks on MNF. Let me expand upon this: Two weeks ago the Falcons were playing and he couldn't quit talking about the one player who had absolutely no effect on the game at hand-Michael Vick. I mean, OK, Vick has adversely affected the Falcons season, but I guarantee you those players on the field weren't like, "Oh no, what are we gonna do without Michael Vick....(tear)." They played the f'n game hard nosed and tried to win just like any pro/amateur athlete would do. Then this week the Colts are playing and he can't stop talking about a player not even in the game, Tom Brady. He spoke 'as if' he were Peyton Manning saying repeatedly, "Look at me, I'm still here, don't forget about me, I'm still the superbowl champ....blah blah blah." C'mon Kornheiser, Peyton doesn't throw TD's cause he's trying to keep up with Tom Brady. He throws them so the Colts win games. If they need 6 TD's for the Colts to win, a good majority of the time he'll probably throw 6. He's got nothing to prove and I'm tired of Kornheiser getting stuck on a very mute point for the duration of MNF. Everything that comes out of his mouth has a negative feel. When the Giants were playing he spoke as if he was Eli and couldn't get over how (Kornheiser speaking)"Peyton gets all the attention, Peyton sells out to advertising, etc." Now I may be a product of American cinema/entertainment by wanting to hear feel-good stories all the time, but what's wrong with that. I want to hear about the guy who battled back from a would-be career ending injury, the guy who fought cancer or the loss of a family member and is dedicating his performance to their memory. Those are the things I watch MNF for--entertaining and enlightening stories that make you feel good after the fact, not stories unrelated to the game or hypothetical conversations with yourself speaking as if you were someone else. Save the speculation for PTI where you belong. There is a time and a place for the hypothetical questions like, "who's the best quarterback in the NFL", "who had the best performance yesterday", "what's the best matchup this weekend", but the time and the place is in the afternoon on a talk show, not monday night when I want to see the matchup at hand. Even if it isn't a good game, take notes from baseball commentators and fill the dead space with history of the game or interesting facts about players on the field. Do some homework, just don't show up with an agenda to talk about and force it upon the fans for 4 quarters. Tony does a good job on PTI opposite Wilbon. I like the point/counterpoint style of the show, and I watch it when I'm in the mood for that, but I don't want it on Monday night when I'm watching an actual game.

Ed Hochuli

Beginning last fall (2006) I joined the ranks of football officials everywhere when I was hired by the UND wellness center as a flag football official. In the beginning, I wanted only to officiate games and go home, treating my official status much like any other job. This soon became impossible to do as I am an avid fan of the NFL and observe the mechanics and speech patterns of the officials at this pinnacle position of
football referees everywhere. Before last year I paid absolutely no attention to the officials as people serving a purpose, but only as objects for scrutiny. Watching these officials caused me to analyze how I conduct myself on the field and apply their methods to my own officiating style. Through time I have a newfound confidence in my ability and have started adding some 'color' to my officiating. By this I mean that I still make the calls in accordance with the rules, but I try to spice up the emphasis in making the verbal and physical signals. One man that has jumped to the forefront in my mind is the man you see in the picture at left. His name is Ed Hochuli and for anyone that doesn't know, he is a 56 year old Wisconsin native who played college football(linebacker) at UTEP where he earned a law degree and is now a resident in Arizona, a partner in a law firm, and a father of six. Ed is definitely not the average NFL official. At first glance he has a physical presence that one would equate with a uniformed player and not a referee. He also has great verbal prowess when articulating explanations on the field. Certain traits I have noticed are that when he signals a first down, he reaches across his body, away from the first down direction which always catches me off guard and I'm like, "oh, which way are they going?" only to snap it forward to the actual direction of the first down. Also, doesn't it look like he's posing in the picture above, maybe flexing his bicep as he signals the holding? And you can't tell me he's not wearing a shirt one size too small. All of these little things are what makes him unique and an individual even though he must continue to perform his function as the protector of fairness and neutrality on the field. Basically, in my second season as a flag football official I've started going past just making the calls and having some fun with the job. Adding a few 'pieces of flair' to our run of the mill daily routines can make time pass by a little faster or at least allow us to go through the day with a smile on our faces.