RIP Beano Cook 1931-2012

Carroll Hoff “Beano” Cook (September 1, 1931 – October 10, 2012) was a college football historian   and commentator who had worked for ESPN since 1986. 

He received his B.A. from the University of Pittsburgh in 1954, the year I was born.  

Beano was the sports publicist for the University of Pittsburgh from 1956 to March 1966, worked for the Miami Dolphins for one season, and later served as a publicist for both ABC and CBS in New York. It was Beano who was most influential in deciding the ONE college game viewers would see on Saturday afternoon back in the day.

Bean died in his sleep Wednesday night at the age of 81. His breadth of knowledge of the history of the college game earned him the moniker, the “Cardinal of College Football.” Most recently, Cook and ESPN.com senior college football writer Ivan Maisel shared the microphone on a weekly podcast. Cook also chatted regularly with ESPN.com users. I last heard him on the Tim Brando Radio Show ten days ago before his death.

Said ESPN “College GameDay” host Chris Fowler: “Cook was an American original. His passion, depth and breadth of knowledge, and humor were unique. He was an invaluable early mentor to me and friend. His imprint can still be seen on ‘GameDay’ each week.”

One of Cook’s most famous quips came in 1981, after then-commissioner Bowie Kuhn offered lifetime passes to baseball games to U.S. hostages returning from Iran. “Haven’t they suffered enough?” Cook said.

He also was afraid to fly, often citing that one of the words associated with any airport is “terminal.”

“You only have to bat a thousand in two things — flying and heart transplants,” Cook once said. “Everything else, you can go 4-for-5.”

A neighbor gave him the nickname “Beano” when he moved to Pittsburgh from Boston as a child ( “Oh, from Boston, like the beans”).

Beano served in the U.S. Army for two years after graduating from Pittsburgh and lived in Pittsburgh for 74 years until his death.  Nobody knew and loved college football  as much as Beano.  He was one of a kind.  There will never be another Beano Cook.

Update on Thursday, October 11, 2012 at 8:36PM by Bonzer Wolf

Roger Goodell's NFL has Turned the Wolf into a Futbol Fan

I’m not a fan of Roger Goodell or his new brand of NFL football.  Goodell is a PR Czar kind of guy who has decided to mold the NFL brand into his own image.  Ignoring, universal rule #1, if it ain’t broke don’t try and fix it, Goodell is building a kinder gentler product on the field while ruling with an iron fist from his office in Manhatten.

Thanks to Roger I’ve discovered original English football, a game we call soccer in America.  I’ve had a casual interest in soccer since high school but now with the miracle of the Internet and Directv, I can become as informed a fan as the most fanatic hooligan in Manchester. I can watch live games just about everyday if I’m so inclined.

Barclays English Premier League is futbol at the highest level.  The EPL is able to attract the best players in the world.  But there are also excellent leagues in Europe and throughout the world. La Liga, UEFA, Bundesliga, Serie A and countless others.

Football, Futbol, Soccer is truly the World’s favorite sport.  Most Americans however could care less about the great game.  But fortunately for me, I’m not one of those and the more I get into football, espeically the EPL and UEFA, it the more I like it. 

The more I hear from Roger Goodell, the less I like the NFL.  Today the NFL announced that replacement officials will be working the first regular season game.  Roger Goodell is arrogant enough to believe that you are stupid enough to believe that anyone can officiate an NFL game. 

Just ask Jerry Jones who said he could find 500 coaches to replace Jimmy Johnson and still win.  In a way Jerry was correct.  The Cowboys have won a single playoff game in the last 15 years.  And guess what, the Cowboys are still the second most valuable sporting franchise in the world (behind Manchester United).  The Networks still give the Cowboys more coverage than any team in the League and the Cowboys franchise is still the most liked and most hated in the NFL. Jerry is making money and he thanks you for your support.

Goodell is gambling that he can do the same with the rest of the NFL.  See David Stern over at the NBA for details.  

Don’t get me wrong, I will watch the Cowboys games and some of the other NFL games available Sunday, Monday and now Thursday.  I’ll be watching college football too.  I’m a sports fan.  I love the drama, the unpredictably and the low cost entertainment that sports played at the highest level provide.  I admire and respect the talent and skills of the players and coaches. 

However, I don’t look to the players as role models no more than I look at actors in that manner.  Their job is to be the best they can at what they do while entertaining the rest of us.  I don’t care what their politics are, don’t care if they go to strip clubs or run around on their wives or even if they pay their taxes or hit their mama’s.  I don’t care how much they are paid and don’t care that most of them will be broke within five years of leaving the game.

I do care that Roger Goodell thinks I’m an idiot and I do care that he’s a hypocrite. He punished the New Orleans Saints to make an example out of them. Yet the Saints were doing what every NFL team has been doing for the last 75 years.  He decided to make an example out of them so he (and his league) would look good. 

Political correctness is a cancer found every where these days.  See Bud Selig and Barry Bonds or Lance Armstrong and USADA for details.  Armstrong was doing what all the cyclists were doing at the time.  So was Barry Bonds.  Take away Armstrong’s seven Toure de France wins and give them to other confirmed dopers.  Oh yeah, that makes a lot of sense. Throw Barry Bonds under the bus to make youself feel better about allowing steroids to save baseball after the strike.  Yeah, that’s the ticket. 

But guess what, I don’t care.  I enjoy watching LeToure and don’t care about any of the riders legacies. I still watch baseball and don’t care about the steroids era one way or the other.   I watch to be entertained just like some of you watch ghost hunting, reality shows or Mexican soap operas.  Each to his own.

Thanks to the miracle of a 60 inch HD (and sometimes 3D) TV, I watch from the comfort of my Lazy Boy.  Cowboys Stadium is just 12 miles from my Lazy Boy and even if Jerry Jones gave me 50 yard line tickets, I have a better seat at the Wolf Den. Ah, the miracle of technology…

But for those of you who still like to attend games, Roger Goodell has some new rules in play.  Don’t get pissed at those replacement refs and attract the attention of one of those minimum wage yellow jacket security morons.

Roger has instituted a new policy in which fans ejected from a stadium will be required to take a 4 hour online course before they are allowed to return to an NFL facility.  I kid you not.

According to ESPN the course focuses on drinking, anger management and crude behavior.  If an ejected fan (there were around 7,000 last season) does not complete the course and is found on stadium property, he or she will be arrested.  Now you know why they call it the No Fun League. 

If I wanted to take bullshit online political correctness courses, I would have hung on with the federal government for a few more years. At least they paid me to waste my time learning how to be PC.

Oh well. Not for me to worry.  I may be an old man but I’m a new fan of the beautiful game of football.  It’s easier to crack the code on an offside pass in futbol than pass interference in the NFL. There are games to watch everyday if I’m so inclined, thanks to FOX Soccer, BEin Sports, GOL-TV and ESPN.   It’s all about options.  Life is Good even with Goodell, who can’t rain on my parade even with replacement officals. 

Not for nothing, but if you are inclined to wage on regular season NFL games officiated by NCAA Division 2 refs at best,  Lingerie Bowl refs at worst, you’ve got too much money, too little sense or a gambling problem. Of course you are going to wager, that’s the reason America loves football as much as England loves football. Take the UNDER 9.5 wins for the Cowboys this season.  Yeah, they gonna suck again this year. See the Texas Longhorns for details. Boomer Sooners!

Have a Bonzer Day!

Cart Game within the Game at Cowboys Stadium

In case you missed it, here’s the great cart caper from Cowboys Stadium during the High School Championship playoffs yesterday.

Bowl Schedule

All times Eastern

Jan. 9 BCS National Championship at New Orleans 8:30pm (ESPN): LSU vs. ALABAMA

Jan. 8 GoDaddy.com Bowl at Mobile, Ala., 9pm (ESPN)

Jan. 7 BBVA Compass Bowl at Birmingham, Ala., Noon (ESPN): PITTSBURGH vs. SMU

Jan. 6 Cotton Bowl at Arlington, Texas, 8pm (FOX): KANSAS STATE vs. ARKANSAS

Jan. 4 Orange Bowl at Miami, 8pm (ESPN): CLEMSON vs. WEST VIRGINIA

Jan. 3 Sugar Bowl at New Orleans, 8pm (ESPN): MICHIGAN vs. VIRGINIA TECH

Jan. 2 Fiesta Bowl at Glendale, Ariz., 8:30pm (ESPN): OKLAHOMA STATE vs. STANFORD

Jan. 2 Rose Bowl at Pasadena, Calif., 5pm (ESPN): WISCONSIN vs. OREGON

Jan. 2 Gator Bowl at Jacksonville, Fla., 1pm (ESPN2): OHIO STATE vs. FLORIDA

Jan. 2 Outback Bowl at Tampa, Fla., 1pm (ABC): MICHIGAN STATE vs. GEORGIA

Jan. 2 Capital One Bowl at Orlando, Fla., 1pm (ESPN): NEBRASKA vs. SOUTH CAROLINA

Jan. 2 TicketCity Bowl at Dallas, Noon (ESPNU): HOUSTON vs. PENN STATE

Dec. 31 Chick-fil-A Bowl at Atlanta, 7:30pm (ESPN): VIRGINIA vs. AUBURN

Dec. 31 Fight Hunger Bowl at San Francisco, 3:30pm (ESPN)

Dec. 31 Liberty Bowl at Memphis, Tenn., 3:30pm (ESPN)

Dec. 31 Sun Bowl at El Paso, Texas, 2pm (CBS): GEORGIA TECH vs. UTAH

Dec. 31 Meinke Car Care Bowl at Houston, Noon (ESPN): TEXAS A&M vs. NORTHWESTERN

Dec. 30 Insight Bowl at Tempe, Ariz., 10pm (ESPN)

Dec. 30 Music City Bowl at Nashville, Tenn., 6:40pm (ESPN)

Dec. 30 Pinstripe Bowl at Bronx, N.Y., 3:30pm (ESPN): RUTGERS vs. IOWA STATE

Dec. 30 Armed Forces Bowl at Dallas, Noon (ESPN): TULSA vs. BYU

Dec. 29 Alamo Bowl at San Antonio, 9pm (ESPN)

Dec. 29 Champs Sports Bowl at Orlando, Fla., 5:30pm (ESPN)

Dec. 28 Holiday Bowl at San Diego, 8pm (ESPN)

Dec. 28 Military Bowl at Washington, 4:30pm (ESPN)

Dec. 27 Belk Bowl at Charlotte, N.C., 8pm (ESPN)

Dec. 27 Little Caesars Pizza Bowl at Detroit, 4:30pm (ESPN2)

Dec. 26 Independence Bowl at Shreveport, La.,4pm (ESPN)

Dec. 24 Hawaii Bowl at Honolulu, 8pm (ESPN)

Dec. 22 MAACO Bowl at Las Vegas, 8pm (ESPN)

Dec. 21 Poinsettia Bowl at San Diego, 8pm (ESPN)

Dec. 20 Beef ‘O’Brady’s Bowl at St. Petersburg, Fla., 8pm (ESPN)

Dec. 17 New Orleans Bowl, 9pm (ESPN)

Dec. 17 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl at Boise, Idaho, 5:30pm (ESPN): OHIO vs. UTAH STATE

Dec. 17 New Mexico Bowl at Albuquerque, 2pm (ESPN)

Big XII BCS Report Card for Week 14

The Baylor Bears of the Big XII Conference of nine teams (in 2012 if WVA loses court battle) come in at No. 17 in the BCS Rankings for Week 14.  The Bears need several teams in front of them to lose for them to climb into at-large bid territory. Baylor has one last chance to impress voters this Saturday when they take on No. 22 TEXAS, the biggest under achiever in the FBS.

How the hell is Texas still ranked in the top 25? A Bear’s longhorn butt whipping will correct that error. By the way, do you think any of us will live long enough to see Texas A&M ranked in the BCS poll after they join the SEC in July?  Methinks not. See Vanderbilt and Kentucky for details.

LSU and Alabama remain in the top two spots are are followed by Oklahoma State and Stanford. Virginia Tech enters the top five for the first time on the eve of its match up with Clemson in the ACC Championship game. 

Undefeated Houston climbs to No. 6 one spot ahead of Boise State. Arkansas slips to No. 8 after falling to LSU. Oregon comes in at No. 9 while Oklahoma rounds out the top 10. 

Other Big XII teams include Kansas State at No. 11, Texas No. 22 and Missouri (joining SEC in 2012) at No. 25. TCU (joining the Big XII in 2012) is ranked is No. 18 in the BCS.

Here is a look at the full BCS Rankings for Week 14:

BCS		Harris Poll			USA Today			Computer Rankings
RK	TEAM	AVG	PVS	RK	PTS	%	RK	PTS	%	AVG	A&H	RB	CM	KM	JS	PW	%
1	LSU	1.0000	1	1	2875	1.0000	1	1475	1.0000	1	1	1	1	1	1	1	1.000
2	Alabama	.9551	2	2	2756	.9586	2	1411	.9566	2	3	2	3	2	2	2	.950
3	Oklahoma State	.8712	4	5	2414	.8397	5	1245	.8441	3	2	3	2	3	3	3	.930
4	Stanford	.8559	6	3	2512	.8737	4	1289	.8739	4	4	4	5	8	10	5	.820
5	Virginia Tech	.7811	5	4	2438	.8480	3	1291	.8753	10	8	9	9	13	18	11	.620
6	Houston	.7399	8	6	2147	.7468	6	1096	.7431	8	5	12	8	9	8	6	.730
7	Boise State	.7027	7	8	2092	.7277	8	1033	.7003	9	9	7	6	14	12	8	.680
8	Arkansas	.7003	3	9	1971	.6856	10	937	.6353	6	10	8	13	4	4	4	.780
9	Oregon	.6862	10	7	2107	.7329	7	1041	.7058	10	15	5	12	12	9	9	.620
10	Oklahoma	.6710	9	10	1768	.6150	11	882	.5980	5	6	6	4	6	6	10	.800
11	Kansas State	.5702	11	15	1348	.4689	15	681	.4617	6	7	10	7	5	5	7	.780
12	South Carolina	.5684	12	14	1554	.5405	13	833	.5647	12	11	13	10	10	11	12	.600
13	Michigan State	.5369	14	11	1704	.5927	9	941	.6380	16	17	11	16	18	20	15	.380
14	Georgia	.5348	13	12	1613	.5610	14	816	.5532	14	13	16	14	11	14	14	.490
15	Wisconsin	.4576	16	13	1567	.5450	12	852	.5776	19	19	14	18	24	25	18	.250
16	Michigan	.4310	15	16	1256	.4369	16	658	.4461	15	12	17	11	17	22	17	.410
17	Baylor	.3910	18	18	900	.3130	18	457	.3098	13	14	18	15	7	7	13	.550
18	TCU	.3310	20	17	980	.3409	17	534	.3620	18	21	15	19	23	19	16	.290
19	Nebraska	.2578	21	19	773	.2689	19	390	.2644	20	18	19	17	25	24	19	.240
20	Clemson	.1979	17	20	632	.2198	21	286	.1939	21	22	20	21	22	23	21	.180
21	Penn State	.1382	19	22	415	.1443	22	192	.1302	23	20	21	20	0	0	23	.140
22	Texas	.1334	25	25	160	.0557	NR	51	.0346	17	16	0	22	15	13	20	.310
23	West Virginia	.1241	NR	21	495	.1722	20	295	.2000	29	0	0	25	0	0	0	.000
24	Southern Miss	.0724	NR	23	287	.0998	23	173	.1173	29	0	0	24	0	0	0	.000
25	Missouri	.0588	NR	NR	16	.0056	NR	16	.0108	22	23	24	0	16	15	25	.160