2008 Roundup

I think that it's about time that I showed up back on the scene with my take on the 2008 sports year for my teams. If I had to sum up this year in one word, it probably would be "mundane". Why you ask? Well simply because none of the teams that I follow did anything to improve upon their position as well as their image in the comity of their respective peers. Arsenal, which started the season pretty shaky, has continued to falter here and there with draws and losses to teams that are not to be expected. At the same time I am so happy that they were able to beat both Manchester United as well as Chelsea (although that goal was an off-side but guess what STOP WHINING!). Overall Arsenal is settling for what I think a mediocre finish in probably the top 4-6 teams (that's right; I can't even be sure whether they are going to finish in the top 4 for the first year since 1999 when I started watching them). Will this have any effect on my resolve, probably not, in fact I will continue to shout and cheer for my gunners the way that I have always done, with pride in my heart for that red and white uniform. So Texans also sucked this year, although I am going to cut them a break, as they started off the season by going through a storm and Pittsburgh Steelers (that's right I put the Steelers at par with a storm too). With the roof of the Texans stadium unusable for the rest of the season after Ike, Texans pretty much settled for a long season, but I have to admit that they have come back and beat teams that towards the tail end of the season that I thought they would lose to. What's even better is that if they finish 8-8, I would actually be happy (now only if they stop losing games, in the last 2:00 minutes: See loss to Indianapolis in 2008). I feel that if we can maintain the core players that were involved in this team this year, and harvest some good safeties/CB's and O-Line players through this draft, I think we should be pretty good to go next year (I know, I know the whole next year thing...) but I feel that with K Walter, A Johnson, A Davis in the receiver/TE lineup and M Schaub and S Rosenfels in the QB role we have a very solid Offense, which can compete with the best of the best. Defense Line is also fair in my opinion with not a plethora of teams stuffing it down our throats (that much), but obviously it can be much better, and if we are able to get a good draft going this year, I feel that in 2009 we will really have a team that can give Jaguars/Titans and Colts a run for their money. Aggies! Oh my poor Aggies. You are probably my first sports love in the US, and every year you rise up in the beginning and then fall through the ashes of broken and burnt dreams. With two QB's taking the helm through various stages this season, and the Defense deciding to act like a sieve; there wasn't a whole lot that M Sherman could do. However keeping in mind that 4 of the teams from the Big 12 South were ranked through the last week of the season, and that three of the QB's from the Big 12 south were being considered for the Heisman, I think I can unequivocally say that it wasn't something I was surprised at. Although that one loss to Baylor does hurt as A Briles now starts to come into big time. Dare I say "Maybe next year!" So all in all it was a "mundane" year for my teams. Well at least we've got the unbeaten 49-0 to last us a lifetime, ha ha ha ha; take that united fans.