At least there is humor in Grizzlies land...

I was just surfing around the internet and clicked on Grizzlies.com. Somebody over there has the greatest sense of humor ever (I hope this is supposed to be funny). I am going to copy and paste this so you can see what it says in case it gets changed...
(this is directly from the front page)

Despite a stellar effort from Hakim Warrick (13 points) and Darrell Arthur (12 points) the Grizzlies could not hold off the Cavaliers in a 94-79 loss on the road Tuesday night. The Grizzlies will travel to Indiana on Wednesday to face the Pacers.

Holy. Crap.

Update: It has been changed now. Boooo. At least it was funny before. Now it says "Despite strong efforts..." Hakim Warrick hit a three at the buzzer and had 1 friggin rebound. The headline should read- "Despite no effort..."

Bring the funny headlines back Grizzlies.com. Don't let this crappy little blog change your headlines. You have a regular Don Rickles working over there. Do not muzzle this person! Let us at least laugh through this.

Shane Battier NYT article (and the cvernon.com time capsule)

Michael Lewis ain't telling me nothing homeboy. Sometimes it is interesting, or indicting in some cases, to go back and read the things that I have written in the past. On January 16th, 2007, I wrote a blog post entitled "Losing Shane Battier." You can read it HERE. Several people have sent me the new article in the New York Times written by Michael Lewis, knowing I would appreciate it. I thought the article was great, but he is preaching to the choir with me. Here is the Times article on Battier... The No-Stats All-Star.

Coveting DeJuan Blair (vindication is mine)

At the beginning of the college basketball season, I dubbed DeJaun Blair the guy that I loved that was not high on the draft boards. I had to take some grief over this. All of the usual things... undersized, tweener, blah blah. Here is what is proven... the guy has over a 7 ft wingspan, and is an absolute beast. The nation just watched him kill Thabeet (almost literally). He almost ripped his entire arm out of his socket. He just dropped 22 pts, to go along with 23 boards at UCONN. We have to find a way to get this guy in a Grizzlies uniform.
Here are the guys on the "3 Guys I would like to see in a Grizzlies uniform that are not ranked highly (Top 15) on mocks" The list will change and expand as the season continues. First list...
1. DeJuan Blair
2. Jonny Flynn
3. Jodie Meeks

The trade deadline (The Final Countdown)

The deadline is set for Thursday at 2 p.m. CST, and this is the only inspiration we need. Pure genius.

A Single Roser 2 (the stunning ending)

If you missed the finale of A Single Roser 2, it is now loaded, along with the rest of the show, in the podcast. Go to www.730foxsports.com. Today was the final interview with the girls, and listeners were allowed to ask questions that they felt we failed to ask. The way it ended will never be forgotten.

Why you do what it takes to get Amare Stoudemire (the novel)

I am still holding out hope that the Grizzlies can provide the best deal for the Suns to get Amare. If the Grizzlies are not making the deal because of the players that they would have to give up, that is totally insane. You can find a Mike Conley or Hakim Warrick anywhere. In the landscape of the NBA they are totally ordinary. Don't tell me about increased production. If you get minutes in the league, you get production.

By my count, there are 101 players in the NBA that avg. 30 or more minutes per game. Quick trivia-- How many of those don't avg. double-digits in scoring?
The answer............. 3. 3 freaking players-- Jason Kidd, Mike Miller, and Shane Battier (2 former Grizzlies). Anybody in the NBA that gets minutes will produce, some much more than others. And they really can produce if they are on bad teams.

Rudy Gay, who I like, is a guy that might make an All-Star team once. He is a great talent that does not have the moxie to be a truly great player. Think Rashard Lewis.
So, I know that I can find Warrick and Conley anywhere (hell, Chalmers and Sessions are both second round picks and they have shown much more promise as future PG's), and Rudy is the big piece I lose? Where do I sign?

The Grizzlies do have a "core." His name is O.J. Mayo. The team needs to be built with how it will compliment this tremendous talent. You trade for Amare, put him at the 4. Now you have a perimeter star and a post star. In a few years you have two of the top 10-15 players in the league, and you pair them with guys that will play a role. Every great team has role guys. You can have talented players and no role guys (like the Clippers have), and you can have a terrible team. Conley is not the best fit to compliment Mayo at the point, and Rudy is not the best to compliment Mayo at the 3 spot. Your 3 spot is going to be a grinder that can guard multiple positions and hit a corner three. You have your 5 guy in Gasol, he can play that role. Now for my PG I have to find a bigger guard that can stretch the floor to put alongside OJ. This is easy.

The hardest thing to attain in the NBA is a real star. Role guys are the easiest thing to get. The Grizzlies have a golden opportunity to get a star, and if they pass up this chance it will be another horrific decision. These chances don't come around that often. Amare Stoudemire is a machine that nobody (including Duncan in the playoffs) can stop when he is really motivated, and puts up 21 and 9 when he isn't playing his best. The Grizzlies would be total idiots to not do everything, including getting rid of pieces of the crappy "core" that will never go anywhere together, to get Stoudemire.

Bow with me as we pray.

Quick update for earlier post

Ramon Sessions tonight against the Pacers... 15 pts, 17 assists, 7 rebounds. Go read the article below for context, if needed.

Chris Wallace invites your thoughts on Stoudemire...

The show today featured Seth Davis, A Single Roser 2, and Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace. I get the sense that the Grizzlies have a legit shot at attaining Amare Stoudemire. Why would Wallace invite people to get worked up in a frenzy by calling in and telling them what they want if he knew there was no chance it could happen?
Maybe he would do it because at least people are interested in something Grizzly related, but I get the sense that the possibility of getting Amare is real (considering the multiple reports, and knowing what the Suns want in return). Anyway, if you missed the Wallace segment, or anything else for that matter, you can go to http://www.730foxsports.com/ and go to the bottom of the page for the podcast of the show (which is broken up into labeled segments).

Have the CA and Marc Gasol heard about Ramon Sessions?

Remember the two articles in the Commercial Appeal a few weeks ago saying not to trade Mike Conley? When the Grizzlies were talking to the Bucks about trading for Ramon Sessions and Joe Alexander?

Remember how Marc Gasol said the deal did not make any sense? He was right, he was just on the wrong side of things. Let us take a look at Ramon Sessions the last four games, just for fun...

26 pts, 7 rebounds, 4 assists, 4 steals vs. Houston
44 pts, 12 assists, 5 rebounds vs. Detroit
19 pts, 6 assists, 3 rebounds, 4 steals vs. Nets
20 pts, 7 assists, 4 rebounds vs. Hawks

That is just embarrasing. The CA and Marc Gasol never said why the deal didn't make any sense (unless you consider he is gonna be Tony Parker, blah, blah, blah, as a reason), and never even mentioned why Ramon Sessions would not be worth trading for. Maybe I can read 1000 more times about how much better Mike Conley is playing and then I will forget how the CA said (twice, in two columns by two different writers) not to trade him for a guy that is going totally bananas.

Update: this is incredible, there is another Conley article today. Ha! Surprisingly, no mention of who the paper said not to trade him for.

85-80 Grizzlies win

Sorry to those of you who count on me for financial advice. I said the Grizzlies would win tonight 84-80 and that the under was the way for you to make millions. While the under did hit (of course), I wanted to be perfect and was off by a point. I am sorry for my error.

What to offer for Amare Stoudemire...

Amare Stoudemire is on the trading block and the Grizzlies are one of the teams talking to the Suns about a possible deal. Chad Ford had speculated in a column that the Grizzlies might be one of the teams interested, and Chris Herrington reported that the Grizz are in fact one of the teams talking to the Suns about a deal. Herrington has a freakin War and Peace on the possibilities that you can read HERE.

If I was Chris Wallace I would tell the Suns that they can choose anything they want except O.J. Mayo. You are looking at attaining a bona fide perennial all-star who has proven that he is even better in the postseason. I love Rudy Gay, but I still don't know if he will ever be an all-star. He could be one day, but I would not bet on it. Mayo is the only guy the Grizz have that I believe will be an all-star, and competing at the highest level in the NBA is about having great players.
I will be the guy with my fingers crossed, hoping against hope that a miracle happens and that Amare Stoudemire plays regularly in the FedEx Forum. Give the Suns anything they want, except Ovinton.

Most. Depressing. Photo. Ever.

Roser dances on a pole, but that is not the problem. Where are the girls? Is Roser really dancing on a pole in a room full of dudes? What should I do about this?

Here we go Cardinals, Here we go!

I swear, when the fake Cowboys get dropped by the Cardinals, Katie bar the door. If they don't, I may not show up to work on Monday. Come on Arizona, I need this.

Phillip Rivers and George Foreman on the show

Phillip Rivers returned to the show today to talk about the playoffs, losing to the Steelers, Jay Cutler, Norv Turner, and who will win the Super Bowl.

George Foreman was on the show to talk about his new product he is pitching, his life now, and his career. Both interviews were in the 5 oclock hour of the show today.

Also, yesterday Clyde Drexler was on and he was great. All of these interviews are available in the podcast of the shows at www.730foxsports.com at the bottom, in the splashcast player. All of the segments are labeled so you can choose whatever you want to hear again, or whatever you missed.

Rudy Gay getting ready for the dunk contest (video)

Rudy got together with the Sklar brothers to try to decide what he should do in the dunk contest...

Filling in with Parrish

I will be filling in again with Gary Parrish on the Geoff and Gary show while Geoff Calkins is in Tampa covering the Super Bowl. So check out the show at 11. Gary and I are scheduled to be joined by Marisa Miller (Maxim's hottest woman in the world) in the last segment of the 11 oclock hour. You may remember that Miller is now a Tennessee fan (covered in this post from last year).

The truth about the Lionel Hollins hire

I thought hiring Lionel was the wrong decision, but I hope the guy becomes the NBA coach of the year and is fantastic. Some have killed the hire, and some have defended, or even praised the hire. I like the guy, like to see him getting his chance, and believe he could turn out to be good.

But here is the truth...
-Nobody in the media, including those that love Hollins and Heisley, would have put Lionel in a top 5 list of guys they think the Grizzlies should hire when they fire Iavaroni. Nobody. They can defend the hire now, but everyone knows his name would not have been mentioned if someone called into a show and asked who the Grizzlies should hire. Maybe all the fans and media would have been wrong to not include him (time will tell), but his name would never have been mentioned. So nobody would have mentioned him a week ago, yet now it is a good hire?

-Nobody with a brain believes that Lionel was hired because the Grizzlies think he was the best man for the job. Again, he might turn out to be the best man for the job- but nobody thinks that is the reason they are hiring him. This is my real concern.

- What is done is done, and I hope the guy is great. Primarily because I think he is a good guy and I like to see good things happen to good people. But nobody can deny that he would not have been on any media or fan top 5 as to who the team should hire, and nobody can deny that he was not hired because the team believes that he is the best man for the job.

The Lionel Hollins era begins tonight. Let's hope he's a great hire, even if I don't agree with it.

Memphis Business Quarterly feature on the show

I did an interview that is featured in Memphis Business Quarterly for their issue that comes out this month. They wanted to ask me about everything that goes along with my job, and specifically the sales angle of the show. If you ever wanted to know how my deal at the station is structured, and how it all works, then check it out. Thanks to Greg Akers (who wrote the article). If you want to pick the magazine up at the store, it is the newest issue and has investor Robert Compton on the cover.

The Chris Vernon Show in Memphis Business Quarterly (Winter '09 issue)

Lionel Hollins presser, Heisley speaks

The Grizzlies held their press conference today to announce Lionel Hollins as the head coach. The press conference had some decent moments, but the real fun was after the event was over. Michael Heisley held court with a small group of us, and fielded any question we wanted to throw at him. As far as I know, I have the only audio of the exchange (which lasted over 20 minutes), and I will play it on the show tomorrow. Their is a ton of really good stuff to sift through in the audio.

Grizzlies coaching situation, Mic Check channel

I am in Knoxville getting ready for the Memphis/Tennessee game and I have not been able to put anything up about the Ivy firing/ Hollins hiring, but if you want to check out the show from yesterday--- go to www.730foxsports.com and scroll to the bottom. The entire show is loaded in the splashcast player (including Kevin James coming on the show). The show was primarily about the Grizzlies coaching situation and the Tigers/ Vols game.

Also, I wanted to mention that the guys at ABC 24/ CW 30 have set up a channel for the TV bit, Mic Check with Chris Vernon. You can check out the most current bit, and scroll through ones from the past. Here is the link...
MIC CHECK Channel.

Clyde Drexler, Kevin James, Knoxville

All-time NBA great Clyde Drexler will be on the show Thursday in the first hour.

Kevin James (star of #1 movie in America, Paul Blart: Mall Cop) will be on the show on Friday.

The Memphis/ Tennessee game is this weekend.
Friday we will be doing the show live in Knoxville at Rays ESG, a great sports bar in town. If you are going to be in Knoxville the day before the game, come check us out at this place. Parrish will be out there with me.

If you are here to try to find audio of something that was on the show (the Chris Wallace bit, etc.) you can find the show broken into segments each day after the show is over.
The Chris Vernon Show podcast can be found at the bottom of www.730foxsports.com

"The Dribbler" has his defenders (and I predicted all of this)

There are times when I really think I might be a prophet. At the beginning of November, I wrote an article entitled "What is Mike Conley Jr?". You can find it HERE.
Now today I read an article in the CA about how "The Dribbler" being awful is the Grizzlies fault. Surprise, surprise. Like I said in November, with guys like Conley it is never really their fault if they dissapoint. cvernon.com= predicting the future since 2005.

The show now has a podcast

If you missed any of the show and want to check it out, the show is now always available at http://www.730foxsports.com/. Scroll to the bottom of the page where the splashcast player is and you can surf around from there (to whatever segment you missed or want to check out). Our show, and the Geoff and Gary show are loaded each day. Check it.

Miss St. coach Dan Mullen, Romo, Denunzio (The Audio)

Monday we were joined by the new HC at Miss. St. and we tried to get to know him. We talked to him about his road to becoming the coach of the Bullies, what he looks for in QB's, Urban Meyer, etc. He was good, I thought he was an interesting guy.

Dan Mullen on the show (monday)

Bill Romanowski joined us for his weekly bit and we talked about him trying to get the Broncos job, the playoffs, etc. Romo was in rare form when we got to talking about the Cardinals and the other playoff games.

Romo on the show (monday)

Also, here is the Jimmy Denunzio bit from Friday where he picked the playoff games if you missed it...

Jimmy Denunzio from Friday

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace (The Audio)

Wallace was in the studio today for the weekly segment, where he broke the news that the Grizzlies had traded for Shaun Livingston only to waive him. He explained the logic behind that deal, the Steve Francis deal, and the Darius Miles deal. We also took some of your calls. If you missed it, or want to hear it again, it is loaded at the link below...

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace on The Chris Vernon Show 1-7-09

Also, I mentioned on the show today that Chris Herrington was going to post an article about what is wrong with Rudy Gay. This is the best analysis of a Grizzlies subject done this season by anyone in the media. Check it out if you get a chance...
http://cmimemphis.com/grizblog/ (scroll to the post: What's wrong with Rudy?) Herrington will in studio tomorrow for his regular slot at 5.

Grizzlies interested in Joe Alexander?

I got a call earlier today saying that the Grizzlies could be making a trade for Joe Alexander. I have not been able to confirm that the team is going to be making this move, but it is an interesting idea. Alexander was the #8 pick in the draft and is lodged behind Richard Jefferson, Charlie Bell, Luc M Bawhatever, etc. He is cheap, has a chance to perform better than his contract, has a lot of talent, and could be used as a wing player for the Grizz. Stay tuned. I liked Alexander a lot in college, have not seen him in a NBA uni.

Geoff and Gary Show comes back tomorrow

The Geoff and Gary Show (with Geoff Calkins and Gary Parrish) is back on 730 Fox Sports and will be on for the first time tomorrow (Monday) starting at 11am. The show will be on from 11a-1p, Monday through Friday. As I have stated before, I am thrilled that they are back.
2009 begins for our show at 3.

Philanthropy (The Picks) *Bowl Game Edition

Philanthropy record at the end of the season stands at 57-34 (63%). Here are the bowl games we are rollin with...
I think it is the first time all year that we have taken 5 favorites, but I going with these 5 defenses to take it home for us. I thought when the bowl games were announced that we could get 4 BCS game blowouts, and I am sticking with that first impression.

USC -8 over Penn St
Alabama -9 over Utah
UConn -5 over Buffalo
Texas -8 over Ohio St
Florida -3 over Oklahoma

Weeping and gnashing of teeth

44-6 with the season on the line?

Time for feelings through art...

Philanthropy (The Picks) *Christmas edition

Christmas came early last weekend as I dropped another 4-1 on that Vegas head. Christmas comes late this week. Philanthropy record stands at 56-30 (65%) for the season ats. Here are the picks...

Patriots/ Bills over 42
Saints/ Panthers over 52
Redskins/ 49ers under 37
Rams/ Falcons under 44.5
Texans/ Bears under 47

Update: These picks are trash

The Greatest Listener contest, Bowden, Goodman (The Audio)

The Greatest Chris Vernon Show listener of 2008 contest was more competitive than we could have ever imagined. Big thanks to all of you that have been extremely dedicated to the show in '08. We attempted to ensure that the winner would be an incredibly dedicated individual. Many of the female listeners of the show were the ones that lasted the longest, and in fact the winner of the contest was a female... Jasmine. She finished everyone off by answering the near impossible question that had ended many a quest to be crowned champion. We will attempt to get a picture of Jasmine. Congratulations to Jasmine, and thanks to all of you that listened this year. If you missed the contest and want to see if you would have won, the audio is below.

The Greatest Chris Vernon Show listener contest 2008.

Terry Bowden joined us on the show to talk about the Auburn job, if Turner Gill didn't get the job because of race, preparing a team for a bowl game, etc.

Terry Bowden on The Chris Vernon Show 12-22-08

Jeff Goodman was on for his weekly segment on Monday and discussed everything college basketball. Jeff Goodman on The Chris Vernon Show 12-22-08

How soon we forget

I thought Pau Gasol should have been booed instead of celebrated in his return to the FedEx Forum and I must tell you that I am more than a bit puzzled that I virtually stand alone in the media with that opinion. In fact, this morning in the paper Geoff Calkins wrote the following...

So Heisley was one of those cheering Gasol during the introductions. There were boos, too. Which was both ridiculous and predictable.
Booing Gasol is like booing class. Like booing intelligence and sportsmanship.
"I will always have great memories of Memphis," said Gasol.
Why would anyone ever boo that guy?

Wow, booing class and intelligence? I am stunned at how absurd this has gotten over the course of time. Let's go to the paper to find out what was written when Pau wanted to be traded...
Calkins wrote...
"As much as anyone else, Gasol is responsible for the Grizzlies' hideous year. He broke his foot playing for Spain in the World Championships. The Grizzlies -- who are paying him more than $12 million this season -- never uttered a critical word. 'You have to understand, Pau loves his country,' West said. 'That's part of what makes him the great player he is.' Pretty darn gracious, eh? But, then, when haven't the Grizzlies been supportive of Gasol?
They hung with him while he learned the league his rookie year. They shipped Jason Williams and Bonzi Wells out because they were too hard on their sensitive star. Then they paid Gasol the maximum allowed by the NBA, a six-year, $86-million contract extension that symbolized their faith in him. 'We believe in Pau Gasol,' said West. And he repays them with this. In the most difficult season the Grizzlies have had in Memphis, at a time when the franchise needs Gasol's leadership more than ever, the only thing he wants to lead is the parade out of town."

So when the team needed him more than ever, he turned his back on the organization and wanted out? Do I have that right? Sounds like a guy that deserves a tribute! What a freaking joke. And now today it is why would anyone boo Pau Gasol? I feel like I am in an alternate dimension in this town sometimes. How soon we forget. Archives can be a great refresher huh?
The whole event and ridicule of the real sports fans that rightfully booed this bum is shameful and proves that if you are nice to the media, they will always have your back. Even if you turn your back on the team when they need you most (Calkins words, not mine), they will encourage a celebration of your time here. Pathetic and transparent.

I wanna puke

I did not expect the Grizzlies to win the game against the Lakers tonight, and actually I was pretty impressed by the good effort. The game has nothing to do with my disgust.
In the first quarter during the first timeout, the team put up a "Thank you Pau" video with "highlights" of his time in Memphis. It was the most second-rate, bush-league crap I have ever seen in my life. How pathetic is that? It easily topped the stupid Shane Battier poster night, and I more than anyone loved Battier and how he gave it everything he had every single night. Can this organization stop celebrating the opposing team?

Can the Grizzlies decision makers please read the paper? Do we not remember the biggest mistake in Grizzlies history saying the following...
"No matter what, the Grizzlies aren't going to be able to put themselves in position to win a championship. I don't think that's ever going to happen."
and... "I think it's just the way it is. I don't think the Grizzlies will ever have enough to be at that highest level."

What I witnessed tonight with that joke of a video was the lowest moment in Grizzlies in arena "entertainment" history. Unforgivable. And anyone that stood up and cheered is a damn idiot that should never be allowed in that arena again.
"Thank you Pau" For what?
I guess thanks for the laughs as you checked for blood, laid in the fetal position, and made a mockery of the game.
What a low moment. Anyone that has ever lived in another sports town knows how pitiful and ridiculous this was. Celebrating a player that wanted to be traded because the team stunk when the team stunk because it was built around him? I wanna puke.

The Return of the Weenie

Tonight is the night that the most overrated player in the history of the Grizzlies comes back to the place he made home for the first several years of his career. Today on the show will be a tribute to the great moments in the shows history with our favorite player. And for old times...

Philanthropy (The Picks)

Philanthropy record is now 52-29 (64%). The games for this weekend are all totals on Sunday. Here we go...

Patriots/ Cardinals over 45
Vikings/ Falcons over 43.5
Texans/ Raiders under 44
Rams/ 49ers under 43.5
Giants/ Panthers over 37.5

Out Wed-Friday

I will not be on the show Wed-Fri and will return to boo Pau Gasol on Monday. Harry and Jason Smith from the Commercial Appeal will be in studio and they will be getting contributions from Gary Parrish, Geoff Calkins, Scott Caciolla, Chris Herrington, etc. Take care of those guys that are doing the show while I am gone. Thanks for listening and a big thanks to the guys that are keeping the show going while I am out. I'll be back Monday.

A few thoughts (Antonio Anderson, Grizz)

When I was saying that Antonio Anderson probably should have tried the draft, what is happening this year so far is what I was talking about. Would he have gotten drafted? Maybe in the second round, with people thinking he could be a role player. Now the light shines on him as a vet and he is expected to be better than what he is. He is a role guy, and always has been, and role guys stock is dependent on who is on the court with them rather than how good they are individually. If Bruce Bowen were on a different team people would think he is a bum. Anderson has always been viewed as the "guy that doesn't get the credit" type. Not now.

Mike Conley Jr. has been playing much better since Kyle Lowry has been starting games. I get the sense that the other players like Kyle as the starter.
Conley played the first part of the season as the worst pg in the league, now he has been playing like most point guards do when they get minutes. Am I supposed to act like he is really progressing? I guess it is all relative. Great, he is no longer playing like the worst point guard in the association. I am still not sold. The team looks better with Kyle Lowry as the starter, and it is not a coincidence.

Antoine Walker is getting his contract bought out by the Grizzlies. I don't buy for a second that the Grizz should do this for Antoine because he wasn't gonna play and didn't act like a jerk about it. Walker could and would contribute if he were not totally out of shape and totally incapable of giving the team anything. This guy can't play anymore because he wouldn't stay in shape and the Grizz should do him a favor? How about if he would have done the Grizz a favor and not been a total waste? This team would love to have another vet that could play. The reason Walker didn't play was not because of the youth, it was that he sucks because he let himself go. How professional of him. I have no problem with them buying him out, but not because it is the right thing to do by Walker.

I will be away from the show on Wednesday through Friday, but the show will still be live with a lot of show contributors teaming up to fill in.

Philanthropy (The Picks)

Philanthropy season record is now 50-26 (65%), after going 11-4 the last three weeks. Here are the games for this weekend...

Baltimore/Pitt over 34
Titans -3 over Houston
Redskins/ Bengals under 36.5
San Diego/ Chiefs under 45.5
Panthers/ Broncos over 48

CVERNON.COM EXCLUSIVE: Q. ROSS WILL REMAIN GRIZZLY

I just confirmed that Quinton Ross will not be waived by Monday and his contract will be picked up through the rest of the year. Not a surprise, considering the Crittenton trade, but good news anyway.

Clark Kellogg and Chris Wallace (The Audio)

CBS basketball analyst Clark Kellogg joined us on the show on Wednesday to talk about the college basketball season and the Memphis/Gtown game he is calling this weekend.

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace joined us for the weekly segment to talk about the Critt trade, the team, and the type of guard they are looking for to pair with Mayo.
Both interviews are loaded.

Small update on Critt...

Crittenton is not with the team in Oklahoma City. He was held out of practice this morning before the team left. The deal is expected to happen tomorrow.

CVERNON.COM EXCLUSIVE: CRITTENTON TRADED?

I do not have all of the details, but I was told that Javaris Crittenton is being traded to the Wizards and the deal includes picks coming back to the Grizzlies. Like I said, I do not have details, but will get them as soon as I can.
Maybe they are getting back the pick they sent in the JCN trade?

Also, Herrington and I were talking about this and he brought up a good side note to this, which we had also talked about at the game last night... (The Q. Ross contract status)

Maybe Wallace moved Critt with no players coming back so that he would not have to fight to keep Ross next week when a decision has to be made on his contract. Losing Critt and not replacing him with players would mean they are at the league min. and would have to keep Ross no matter what.

Philanthropy and Denunzio (The Audio)

Philanthropy record for the season is now 46-26 (64%) for the year. Here are the picks for the weekend (all NFL)...

Titans -13.5 over Browns
Saints/ Falcons over 51
Cardinals/ Rams under 48.5
Patriots/ Seahawks under 43
Colts/ Cincy under 41.5 (i like best)

Jimmy Denunzio (The World's Greatest Handicapper) could hardly make it through the segment (classic performance). We found out about his new job and got the picks for the weekend...

Geoff and Gary coming back...

Geoff Calkins and Gary Parrish are going to be back on 730 and will start the show on January 5th. The show will run 11a-1p, M-F. Obviously, I am thrilled to have them back. Mediaverse wrote an article about their return. Here it is.

Announcement on the show at 4

There will be an announcement on the show today regarding the programming of 730 Fox Sports, and some changes at the start of the year.

The Audio

I loaded the weekly segment with Chris Wallace from Wednesday. We talked about coaching for the most part, and listeners called in to talk to the GM.

You know you are a Tennessee homer...

if you were impressed by Lane Kiffin's opening press conference. The only thing missing was actual urine running down his leg. It reminded me of when I was in 7th grade and the teacher made the shy kid get up in front of the class to speak. I wish the guy the best, but if you thought that was anything other than an uncomfortable joke, you my friend are officially incapable of being objective regarding this subject. He may turn out to be great, but the presser was just another red flag to me. Gotta give it to him on the wife though, he obviously can recruit.
Delivery- F
Content- D-
Inspirational meter (Houston Nutt is an A)- F
Corny Jokes- F- (not one moment of humour intentionally created)
Bravado (false or real)- F- (no stones, he even laid the Florida prediction on Hamilton)
Wife- A

Philanthropy (Turkey Weekend Picks)

Philanthropy record is now 43-24 (64%) after going 4-1 last week.
This week Vinnie Verno takes...

Texas Tech -21 over Baylor
Nevada -4.5 over La Tech
Ole Miss -16 over Miss St
Oklahoma -7 over Okla St.
Southern Miss -15.5 over SMU

Wallace and Denunzio (The Audio), Mayo for PG '08

I could not get the audio to load in the player, but I got it up another way.

MAYO FOR PG '08... Change we can believe in (has that already been used?)

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace was on for his weekly segment and we spent the majority of the time talking about the point guard situation. We also talked about what the Grizzlies are looking to add to this team, coaches getting fired, etc.

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace (11-26-08) part 1
Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace (11-26-08) part 2

The World's Greatest Handicapper Jimmy Denunzio joined us for a Thanksgiving Day edition of picks.
Jimmy Denunzio (11-26-08)

Grizzlies look for shooting help...

That was the title of the article in the CA this morning. I agree with the idea that the Grizzlies need more guys that can hit shots, but that is not a major problem to me. They really need...

1) to move O.J. Mayo to the point, play Ross at the SG (this would change the dynamic of a hapless offense that now has point guards that are an offensive abyss). The idea of getting a shooter is to open the floor. Hello! Put a guy that can hit a shot at the point and things may open up some more. Mayo and Ross helps you offensively and defensively. It is a no-brainer to me.

2) offensive sets. There are only one of two answers to the question of why the Grizzlies look ridiculous on offense. Either a) they don't listen to the coach, or b) they are woefully unprepared.

3) Get Rudy Gay in better position to score. There was a Hubie mantra about the function of a coach is to get guys into sections of the court where they are most successful. I fear that the coaches don't even know where guys are in best position to shoot a high percentage.
Rudy would be helped by having a PG that can make plays and open up the floor with the threat of scoring. Rudy is not without fault. He clearly is not responding to the coach and has little confidence in the man leading the team. That is the fault of everyone. The organization for leaving Iavaroni dangling instead truly empowering him, and Rudy for not just getting past his problems. Multiple times I have seen Rudy not do what the coach told him to do, or roll his eyes when told what to do. This is a major problem. I fear that this dymamic will only change when the coach does. You can blame Rudy, or blame the coach, but the problem is real and it hurts the team.

I would like for the Grizzlies to get more shooting, but they can fix some of their problems without having to.

Philanthropy (The Picks)

Philanthropy record is 39-23 (63%) on the season. Here are the games this week...
Had to roll with some NFL games this week too.

Ole Miss +4 over LSU
Boise St -6 over Nevada
Giants -3 over Cardinals
Titans -5 over the Jets
Bears -8 over Rams

Bruce Pearl and Bobby Bowden (The Audio)

Pearl and Bowden were on the show today and we loaded up the audio from earlier in the week. Check it.

Season preview for Tigers (AOL FanHouse)

AOL's FanHouse is one of my favorites, and so I was honored when they asked me to write a season preview for the site. I think you will agree that I am a regular Bill Shakespeare. In fact, I might be the greatest writer of this era and I didn't even know until I penned this masterpiece.

FanHouse NCAA Hoops BlogPoll: No. 10, Memphis Tigers

Show news: Bobby Bowden and Bruce Pearl...

are scheduled for the show on Thursday. I will try to get the audio from earlier in the week up on the site today (Bill Romanowski, Jeff Goodman, Easterwood, etc.). Today, Hasseltine will be in studio because the Grizzlies travel tomorrow, and Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace will be on for the weekly segment at 5.

UMASS coach Derek Kellogg (The Audio)

Coach Kellogg was on the show before the game tonight. Audio is below if you missed it...

Philanthropy (The Misery)

2-3 on the weekend, making the season record 39-23 (63%).
We won on Texas easy and we won on Washington St. The rest of the picks were rough. Georgia gave Auburn about 90 yds of offense in penalties and by the end of the game I was hoping Kodi Montana, I mean, Kodi Burns would just go ahead and beat them. When Oklahoma St. kicks a FG from the 1 on their first drive, you get the feelin it is gonna be a long night, and it was. The last game was South Carolina and that might have been the quickest cover in history, and it least it was a quick death. And the positive of the weekend... we didn't have the Steelers. That was seriously shady.

Philanthropy (The Picks)

Philanthropy season record now stands at 37-20 (65%) after Vinnie Verno killed it last week. Now it's go time. You can't stop this train. Philanthropy this week...

Texas -13 over Kansas (I love Kansas, they have been good to us, but they can't stop the Melrose Wildcats. Kansas is 92nd in the nation in defense, 117th against the pass. Uh-oh. Texas needs style points, Reesing has been throwing picks under pressure. This could get ugly for the Jayhawks.)

Georgia -9.5 over Auburn (Auburn is awful. 99th ranked offense, come on. Georgia has the 14th best rushing D in the country, which leads us to...Kodi Burns. 1 td, 8 picks. Georgia rolls Auburn here, just like they have the last 2 years when Auburn had a better team)

South Carolina +23 over Florida (That is just too many points to cover against an SEC team that is not terrible. South Carolina has the 3rd best defense in the nation and I get over 3td's? I'll take it.)

Oklahoma St. -17 over Colorado (Blow. Out. The Cowboys are awesome against the spread this year at 8-1. Colorado had the whole team fall apart from injury and grades in October. Buddha can't help you in this one Dan Hawkins. This is gonna be a mercy killing)

Washington St. +36.5 over Arizona St. (I know, I know. The Cougars might be the worst team in the world, but they did score 28 last week. Their coming on! Actually, I don't believe that, but I do believe that this is too many points to cover for an Arizona St. team that is 82nd in the nation in total offense. They are 110th in rushing, and Wash St actually is 33rd nationally in pass defense. Give me over 5 tds.)

Mic Check

This week the TV bit was based on the article I posted a few days ago about Mike Conley Jr. I would like to thank ABC for the way the screen is frozen on the video before it starts. Hahaha. Mic Check is on CW 30 at 9:45, and ABC 24 during the 10pm news on Wednesday nights.
Here is the bit if you missed it...

MIC CHECK 11-12-08

Kenny Mayne and Big Jack Eaton (The Audio)

The legendary Big Jack Eaton

Jack Eaton is one of my favorite people ever. When I first got a job in radio I worked with him for the first several years. I didn't grow up in Memphis, so I did not grow up watching Jack on Channel 5 and listening to him call Memphis games on the radio. I just worked with him, everyday for 5 years. He was always there to help me, which can be rare sometimes in a business where many times older guys can be resentful, insecure, and take themselves so seriously. In a business where so many people take themselves so seriously, I always noticed that the guy that was the most beloved in town was also the most self-deprecating. That is not a coincidence. Also, I looked forward to seeing him at work everyday and never remember him being in a bad mood. Anyway, Jack now has a new book coming out. The book is of his famous poems he wrote, and it is available at www.memphissport.net. I would imagine if you are a Memphis sports fan, or know one, this would be perfect. Jack was in studio in the 5 oclock hour yesterday to talk about some of his favorite stories of calling Tiger games, and to talk about the book (I will get the audio up soon). He also brought a poem about the show...

Ode to Chris Vernon

Great Caesar's Ghost what do you know
Here I am on the Chris Vernon Show.
He's come a long way I'm telling you
From his days working at WHBQ.
At 56 he just couldn't find his spot
But 730 said-go for kid- and look what he's got.
Checking those ratings-they go up and down
But he has the # 1 Sports talk show in town.
Chris,you've done very well working alone
So if Weinberger calls-don't answer the phone..

What is Mike Conley Jr.?

I guess I need to say from the jump that I never liked the draft pick. I was convinced that if Xavier fouls when they should have against Ohio St. in the tournament that there was no way Mike Conley Jr. was gonna be a lottery pick (much less a top 5 pick). In fact, he probably goes back to school. His stock went crazy after his team went to the championship game. Beware of the guy who's stock was dependent on the tournament. I was hoping I would be wrong about this, but I wasn't.

With that being said, the same people that wanted to max-out Pau Gasol, build around Pau Gasol, and keep Pau Gasol are the same that love Mike Conley. This is no coincidence. Conley has a lot of the same characteristics. He is smart, he is nice, he is weak.
Everyone else around these type of players will get blamed for what they are. The other players, the coach, the media, whatever.

Guys with supreme talent can overcome not having any "dog" in them (see: Pau Gasol), and guys with the "dog" in them can overcome not being supremely talented (see: Shane Battier).
Conley has no "dog" in him, and he is not supremely talented. This is a problem, and it is already easy to identify. This does not change with time, this is not about coaching, this is not about the other players on the team.

Hopefully the Grizzlies can get something for him before everyone in the world realizes the truth.

You mess with the bull...

you get the horns. You knock Vinnie down, you better kill him. Vinnie Verno comes back blazin, going 4-1 on the day. Philanthropy season record moves to 37-20 (65%) on the year. We also gave you the 3 games to run away from (the traps)- AZ State, Kansas, and Rice (update: AZ St pulled out cover). You can't stop this train now. Merry Christmas.

Philanthropy (The Picks)

The record now stands at 33-19 (63%) after getting beat up last week. But Vinnie Verno ain't no punk and we are comin back swingin. Here are the picks for the weekend...

Alabama -3.5 over LSU (LSU is a fraud, we have been talking about it all season. Bama is 8-2 ats in last 10 road games. Road team is 10-1-1 ats in this matchup in last 12)

Penn St. -7.5 over Iowa (Not buying an upset or close loss for Iowa. Penn St is 7-1-1 ats in last 9 games. Penn St has 6th ranked D and Iowa can only run.)

Ohio St. -10.5 over Northwestern (Mike Kafka, your time has expired. This is revenge for NWestern beating us when we had Minny. The nerds stink. I watched them. Ohio St drills them every single year., they drill em again)

Michigan St. -9 over Purdue (Purdue is trash. 89th against the rush, 85th in overall D. Helllloo Ringer. Purdue has scored 6,3,6, and 26 in Big Ten games against teams not named Michigan)

Air Force -10 over Colorado St (People are on the Rams jock because the played BYU close. So what, they stink. We love Air Force and they are 7-1 ats in last 8 at home, 13-3 ats in last 16 overall. Colorado St. cannot stop the run. Bad news for the Rams.)

NFL Overdog Parlay of the Year!
Miami -8.5 over Seattle
Tenn -3 over Chicago
Carolina -9.5 over Oakland

Clay Travis and Chris Wallace (The Audio)

Clay Travis writes for deadspin.com, and is also writing a book about the Tennessee Vols season. He joined us the day that Fulmer stepped down to talk about the decision, and where UT goes from here.

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace joined us for the weekly segment live from Sacramento.
Both are loaded in the player.

What is it with that town?

The Grizzlies cannot win in Sacramento (that is 20 in a row now). I hope my grandchildren will get to see a Memphis Grizzlies team win in that town. Sac had been getting beaten to death by teams coming into this game (which I should know does not matter) and then...
Kevin Martin goes ballistic
OJ and Rudy get in foul trouble
Sac doubles the ball constantly
Marc Gasol rendered ineffective after monster game
At least the Grizzlies fought and made it interesting in the 4th, after being horrific to start the last frame (they had a chance...Ross missed FT's, OJ losin ball on break, those hurt)

By the way, people always fancy Conley as a "Tony Parker type" which always makes me shutter/ laugh. Parker had 55 tonight. 55! There is only one Parker, he is insanely rare in what he brings to the table. There are virtually zero players you could even compare him to.
If Mike Conley ever scores 55 in a game in his career I will cut off both of my ears. I would be amazed if he ever gets half of that in a game.

Chris Wallace and Jimmy Denunzio (The Audio)

I loaded up the segments with Wallace and Denunzio from last week. Wallace joined us for the weekly segment to talk about where he watches the games, etc. His impression of the Philly fans during the playoffs is priceless.
Denunzio was in rare form, and brought to the table some terrible Halloween jokes with his picks.

Oh what a day, what a day

How was I supposed to know that the white Vince Young was the second string QB for Northwestern? Holy crap, I have never seen a slow white guy tear off more 40 yd runs in my life. I now hate Minnesota. Why are you throwing from your own 15 with no time to do anything? They got what they deserved. I deserved better. The gopher is a stupid animal too.

Florida trashed Georgia, that is about the only thing I got right.

Texas did not even show up in the first half, they were great in the second half, and then got beat on one of the best plays in college football history. Texas Tech gets respect.

Missouri was putting it on Baylor and then must have played their cheerleaders in the second half. Nice 3 pt win over Baylor, Misouri. Geez. That is terrible. I know, I know, Baylor is a tough place to play. Muahhahaa.

And the Oregon St. game is still going on but I am sure they will lose now.

Vinnie Verno apologizes to his followers. It is unacceptable to lose.

Philanthropy (The Picks)

The documented Philanthropy record for the season stands at 32-15 (68%).

This is so easy. Here are the games...

Florida -6 over Georgia (Georgia gave up almost 500 yds against LSU last week. Florida is 6-1 ats in last 7 SEC games, after losing to Ole Miss they are on a mission. Florida rolls here.)

Texas -4 over Texas Tech (I have no idea why so many people like Tech in this game. Texas has taken on the giants and punished them. 8-1 ats in last 9 games. McCoy completes 82% of his passes, and I watched Tech struggle with Nebraska. Texas covers 4 easy.)

Missouri -20 over Baylor (I thought this line would be 35. We get it at less than 3 td's. Missouri 8-1 ats in last 9 road games. They have only lost to Ok St and Texas but they beat the crap out of bad teams. Baylor is 85th in total d and 87th passing d. Bad news. Missouri in a romp)

Oregon St -15 over Arizona St (Arizona St is trash. They came off a bye and lost by 5 tds at home to Oregon. Oregon St is a covering machine at home over the years. 38-18-1 ats in last 57. Oregon St 10-1 in last 11 on turf (turf team!). Az State is 0-6 ats on turf. 15 not enough.

Minnesota -6 over Northwestern (I love this game and am counting on it. We find a team and ride them, and Minny has been good to us. Like the QB Weber. Minny is 6-0 ats in conference, 6-1 ats overall this year. Northwestern nerds have 1 win over semi-decent team, it was Iowa, and Iowa turned it over 5 times and still barely lost to them. The nerds are banged up, including their QB and they catch a beat down early in the morning on Saturday, making it for a fun rest of the day for us.

Have a great weekend, you should all be billionaires by now.

Mic Check this week

Mic Check was based on the article below.

Who the Vols should hire...

I believe Phil Fulmer is a great football coach who is a victim of his own success. I think he is judged against his own record, when he was winning 85% of his games. I think that is totally unrealistic and I think the Tennessee job is, at best, the 4th best job in the conference. But none of that matters. I may think the fan base is stupid, but I cannot deny that they have turned on him. It appears inevitable that Fulmer will be gone at the end of the year.

So we move on to who to hire if you are Tennessee. Most of the names that have come up regarding the job are hilarious to me. If you replace one of the most successful coaches ever in a conference where it is very hard to win, you better think long and hard about who that is.

Who could you hire that would leave their current job?
Who is a great coach at a place where the UT job would be an upgrade?
Who is a guy that has competed against and defeated teams in the conference?
Who is a guy with recruiting ties in the South?
Who is a guy that nobody could ever say is a worse coach than Fulmer?
Who is a guy that you would feel comfortable coaching against Saban, Meyer, and Richt?

In my opinion, you have to go get somebody proven to be better than Fulmer if you are gonna fire him. That list is very short in terms of record.

The perfect choice for the Vols is the man that will stand across the field from them in their next game... Darth Visor himself.... back up the Brinks and get Steve Spurrier. He is so competitive and realizes that it is freaking impossible to win big at South Carolina.
There is your huge name that makes sense. If he failed for some reason, nobody could ever say it was a bad hire.
Hey, and he is a Tennessee native.

That is what I would do. Steve Spurrier. I don't buy for a second that he has lost the fire or the desire to be great, I think he is at a tough place to win.

Grizzlies Roundtable w/ 3 Shades of Blue

3 Shades of Blue put together a Grizzlies roundtable about the upcoming season at the end of last week. I was part of the roundtable, along with Geoff Calkins, Chris Herrington, and Eli Savoie. The discussion covered just about every topic you can imagine regarding the team this year.
Here it is (podcast form)...
Grizzlies roundtable discussion (3 Shades of Blue)

I will never trust Joe Lee Dunn again...

3-2 on the philanthropy picks this week. The season record is now 32-15 (68%). Ole Miss gave up a late TD to Arkansas and I still cannot believe that Idaho won a game, those were our two losses. Thanks for holding the Idaho potatoes to 271 yds rushing Joe Lee Dunn. I should have known better than to trust that dude. New Mexico State should shut down their program. I am serious. Got Georgia, Minny, and Troy... but 3-2 is totally unacceptable.

Philanthropy (The Picks)

Philanthropy record for the season (documented) 29-13 (69%)

Troy -24 over North Texas (116th ranked d in the nation for N Texas, bad news. N. Texas is absolute trash. 2-12 ats vs. winning team. Troy is 14-5 ats in last 19. Rice beat N Texas 77-20.

Ole Miss -6 over Arkansas (Revenge game for Houston. Ole Miss is 7-2 ats in last 9. 3-0 ats on the road. Arkansas 2-5 ats in last 7. Ole Miss kills them this weekend.)

Minnesota +1 over Purdue (Minn is 11-2 ats vs. teams with a winning record. Purdue 2-6-1 ats in last 9 games. Minnesota QB Adam Weber is the deal. Minn--sssttttraiiiight up!)

Georgia +1.5 over LSU (LSU is a phony. Georgia is 6-2 ats vs. teams with winning record. LSU has played 1 good team this year, they lost by 30. LSU 2-6-1 ats in last 9 at home. Georgia-- stttrrraight up!)

N Mex. St. -13 over Idaho (This is the insult of all insults. Idaho is the worst team in the history of western civilization. They cannot cover anything under 30. The spread in all of their games should be 3td's and then go from there. This is insane. N Mx St by at least 20)

Mic Check (TV bit) from this week

Mic Check: Return of Houston Nutt

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace (The Audio)

Wallace was on for the weekly segment live from Orlando today. We talked about how the team has looked so far, the roster, etc. Have you ever wondered who the Grizzlies would have taken if they would have gotten the #1 pick? Wallace told us. Check it.

It finally happened...

We took our first losing week on the Philanthropy picks this week as I just watched Air Force get stopped at the 2 yd line and kick a field goal when a TD would have covered it for us. Heartbreak. Ole Miss we got, and we got Kansas, but Miss. St. threw two pick 6's in a row to blow that game open for UT, and I have no idea about Wake. So we ended 2-3 on the day, moving the season record to 29-13 (69%) . Unacceptable. The rest of the season is free. Muhahahahahaha.

Surprise guest Kelly Pavlik

Weekly regular Bert Sugar was on the show from Atlantic City on Friday. While we were talking he gave the phone to none other than Kelly Pavlik. Here is what happened if you missed it...

Philanthropy (The Picks)

Philanthropy season record stands at 27-10 for the season (every pick documented every week on cvernon.com). That is 73% this season. You roll with Vinnie Verno or you don't roll.

Here are the picks for this weekend...

Ole Miss +13 over Alabama (Alabama has punked out teams that have weak interior play. This will not be the case with the Rebels. Ole Miss gives Bama all they want.)

Miss St +7.5 over Tennessee (Holy crap, UT is over a TD favorite in a game. Insulting. I won't be surprised if the Bullies take them down and it gets Phil fired. Miss. St is 3rd in the nation against the pass, and UT thinks they are a passing team. The 104th ranked offense should not be giving over a TD to anyone)

Wake -1.5 over Maryland (The last time we saw Maryland they were getting crushed by Virginia 31-0. I think Wake is gonna win the ACC. Their defense is great. They are 5-1 ats on the road, 8-2 ats against winning teams, 10-3 ats in last 13 games, Maryland has 92nd ranked D in the nation and 96th ranked D against the pass. Is this enough to convince you?)

Air Force -4.5 over UNLV (This seems to be like an absolute mortal lock. You know I love Air Force and I still have no idea how they get no respect on these lines. The last 2 weeks we have seen UNLV get beat by 2td's by Colorado St, and lose by 3td's to Nevada. They cannot stop the run. In fact, they are 110th in the nation against it. Bad, bad news when you face the 5th ranked running team in the nation. Air Force is a covering machine. I hope they never get respect, they make us rich)

Kansas +20 over Oklahoma (20? what the heck is going on here? 20? Kansas is again one of our favorite teams to roll with as Mangino is a covering machine. Kansas is 6-1 ats on the road in last 7, 20-6 ats in their last 26 games, and let me remind you that they are 17-2 in their last 19 games overall. Now I get 3 tds? Crazy. I'll take it.)

Dan Wetzel gets down with Thursday underdogs, mentions show

Dan Wetzel was here yesterday for CUSA Media day because Yahoo is doing a Hard Knocks type show about the Tigers for their website. He told me that he was going to be flying out of Memphis to get to the TCU/BYU game and then I told him what was going to happen in the game. Ha! Anyway, Wetzel wrote his article about the concept today with some great research included.
He wrote...
"My friend Chris Vernon gave me the Thursday night home dog one. Vernon hosts a radio show in Memphis – which is not located in Nevada and, as a result, is a place where no gambling occurs. If he happens to buy a new HD television set anytime soon, it’s solely because of the big ratings his show gets.
However, upon hearing I was covering the game he said he felt bad for BYU for purely journalistic reasons. The Cougars were a heck of a story that unfortunately had to end because TCU was a home underdog and all of that."

Here is the whole article... BYU buried by Thursday trouble
Big thanks to Dan for mentioning the show.

Robert Vaden in studio, Chris Wallace (The Audio)

Robert Vaden from UAB was chosen as the pre-season CUSA player of the year. He joined us in studio to talk about everything. Going through the NBA draft process, Mike Davis, playing at Indiana, catching fire against Kentucky last year, Memphis, this past weekend, etc. Vaden is a really good guy with a good head on his shoulders. The audio is loaded.

Our weekly segment with Chris Wallace is also loaded in the player.
Jason Witten from the Cowboys is scheduled to join us on the show tomorrow.

ECU coach Skip Holtz (the audio)

Skip Holtz was on the show on Tuesday to talk about their season so far, dealing with injuries, the landscape of college football in the Carolina's, the Memphis game this weekend, etc.

One thing I love about NBA pre-season games...

is getting to see players that I never knew existed. Such was the case with Josh Davis, who was playing for the Indiana Pacers the other night. I had never heard of this guy in my life.

Josh Davis is a living, walking, breathing, NBA playing, avatar. I could not believe my eyes. I could not even decide if this was really a human that I was watching on the court. Here is the visual evidence (and the picture does not do this man justice)...

Josh Davis = The Avatar

Terry Bowden and Romo (The Audio), philanthropy

The Philanthropy record moved to 27-10 (73%) on the year (all documented on cvernon.com). 3-2 this past weekend. I am clearly totally unreal at picking games against the spread. I might be the best of all-time.
It is not a matter of if we win, it is only of how many out of the five games we get. Still no losing weekends this year.

College football analyst Terry Bowden was on the show today and talked about his brother getting fired this morning, Auburn and Tennessee situations, spread offense, etc. He is always money. Bowden is loaded, as is our weekly segment with Bill Romanowski.

I had to go to St. Louis...

for a family emergency, so I will not be doing the show today. I already had the Philanthropy Picks ready to post so here they are...

Season record 24-8 (75%) documented

Air Force -10 over San Diego (SDSU gave up 383 yds rushing last week, and 569 to Air Force on the ground last year. SDSU is 118 in nation against the rush. Bad news)

Ball St. -15.5 over Western Kentucky (I know a good ride when I see it. They will kill this team just like they have killed everyone else they have played this year)

Northern Illinois -11 over Miami (OH) (Miami OH is 1-7 ats in last 8, NIU is 7-0 ats, Miami just lost by 18 at home to Temple!)

Arizona -6 over Stanford (Zona is a great ats team, away team is 7-1 ats in the series. More importantly, Stanford made Jimmy Claussen look like the greatest QB ever)

Utah -23 over Wyoming (Wyoming cannot cover a number. Also, Utah is 6th against the rush and Wyoming is one of the worst passing teams in the nation. If that were not enough- Wyoming's coach flipped off Utah after the Utes drilled them 50-0 last year).

Have a great weekend. I hope to be back Monday.

Georgia coach Mark Richt (The Audio), show tomorrow on location

Mark Richt was on the show today to talk about offenses in college football, Matt Stafford, having to do two call-in shows after a loss (ha), penalty problems, the UT game this weekend, etc. I always like having him on the show, he is always good. The audio is loaded below.

The show tomorrow will be live at Ubee's on the Highland Strip. We will be there from 3-6pm before the Memphis/ Louisville game. We will give away tickets to the game if you don't have any. Come by and get some drinks and some food before you head to the Liberty Bowl.

Houston Nutt on the show

Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt joined us on the show today, and he watches Mic Check. unreal. We talked to Houston about the season so far, the Florida win, the South Carolina loss, Jevan Snead, what is wrong with Greg Hardy, etc. Audio is loaded-- and it works now.

Dan Hawkins, Bill Romanowski (the audio), added guest

We are now scheduled to have Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt on the show tomorrow. Mark Richt will be on Thursday, Jason Whitten scheduled for Friday.

The weekly bit with Romo is loaded. Dan Hawkins is loaded, and he was a gem as expected. He is seriously one of my favorite guests because he is such a different kind of guy.
remember- we are at Moe's Southwest Grill in Cordova Thursday, Ubee's on Highland Strip on Friday (before Memphis/Louisville game).

Go play intramurals brother

Colorado coach Dan Hawkins is one of our favorite coaches to have on every year. We can always count on him to wax philosophical about football and life, and give us a book to read. He will be on in the 4oclock hour.

Tommy West (The Audio), guests this week

Tigers coach Tommy West joined us on the show Monday to talk about the season so far, spread offenses in college football, changing recruiting philosophy, etc.

Scheduled for the show this week... Colorado coach Dan Hawkins, Georgia coach Mark Richt, Dallas Cowboys TE Jason Whitten.

The show is on the road this week twice. Thursday we will be live from Moe's Southwest Grill in Cordova and Friday (before Memphis game) we will be at Ubee's on the Highland Strip.

Tommy West audio is loaded...

Who takes care of you?

This is another actual photo of me bursting into flames this weekend. Vinnie Verno takes care of you. 4-1 this weekend and the NFL parlay hits for the third time this season. This is getting totally ridiculous now. I will imagine that we can all now meet in the ocean on our yachts. Let's be honest, I might be the best handicapper in the world. The picks on the show (Philanthropy) now...

24-8 (75%) ATS documented.

Philanthropy (The Picks)

Vinnie Verno picks winners, you make money. The rich get richer. Philanthropy record is now 20-7 this season (74%).

Missouri -10 over Nebraska (Daniel has 12 tds and 1 pick, Huskers gave up 377 yds to V Tech. Last years score...41-7)

Kansas -12 over Iowa St. (Mangino is a covering machine. They kill this team every year.)

Florida -24.5 over Arkansas (Arkansas is trash, they continue to prove it. Until the line against them hits 35, we keep winning)

Ball St -8 over Toledo (Toledo lost to Florida International House of Pancakes.... by 19! This is an insult)

Nevada -24 over Idaho (Every week we bet against this team, every week we win. So easy)

The NFL Parlay is the Chalk Road Warriors 3 team parlay of the year!
Titans -1 over Balt
Bears -3.5 over Detroit
Pats -3 over San Fran

Hahahahahahahahha....

Best. Postseason. Ever. I told you so. What a total embarrasment the Cubs are. Their winning this season and having all those fans buy into it makes this so much better. "This is the year!" Nope! Actually it is the year, the year that the pain gets even worse because they actually believed they had a chance. The Cubs will never win, ever. The regular season highlight video is gonna be great. 100 years... and counting. Muuahhahahahahahaha. I would implore all Cubs fans to ditch their team now and root for the Cardinals, a real team.

Derrick Mason and Patrick Willis (The Audio)

These two are truly some of the great guys in the NFL. I always thought that Willis was an amazing story considering all that he had been through. He was the best linebacker I have ever seen in person when he was at Ole Miss. Derrick Mason is the consummate pro and keeps gettin it done at 34. Both were great to talk to on the show. Audio is loaded if you missed them.

A couple of NFL guests on today...

Ravens WR Derrick Mason and 49ers LB Patrick Willis are scheduled to join us on the show today. Both should be in the 4oclock hour.

The Movies Song has been added

I put the song on the side along with the other songs. Every week we get requests to send it to people or to put it on the site and I am not real sure why we never have. Anyway, the link is on the side now.

The Romo audio is loaded

I had gotten requests to put up the audio of our bit with Romanowski from Monday. If you scroll down to where the player is, it is there. If you missed it, Romo talked about how he tried to cheat once, how he choked Tony Gonzalez, and you will hear what he called JJ Stokes (we had to bleep when it was live).

The Playmaker in Memphis...

Michael Irvin was in our studio this morning. He hosts his own show in Dallas and was in town for some business, so he used Verno's golden microphone, ha. The guy was totally cool to everyone at the station. I had never met Irvin before, so you never know with guys that are that famous, but he was way cooler and more humble than a bunch of guys that we have run across.

CVERNON.COM Exclusive: Tigers getting big time transfer

This dude looks mean.

I was told that Jon Demps is transferring from Florida to the U of M. He was ranked as the #8 inside LB in the nation coming out of high school.

When I ran a search for this dude, the article that came up was about him beating another guy with a sandwich. In fact, that was the title-- Florida player beats a guy with a sandwich.

Here is the actual story about it....

http://www.gainesville.com/article/20071206/NEWS/71205018/0/MISC

And here is the Rivals profile of the kid...

http://footballrecruiting.rivals.com/viewprospect.asp?pr_key=26821&sport=1