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The National Football League released its 2014 schedule this week and, as you know by now, I was only interested in the future for the Dallas Cowboys.
Now that I have your attention we can get down to football. I have been a fan since 1960 and they are my team,... win, lose, or draw. The last few seasons has seen my Boys breaking even at eight and eight, and no trip to the playoffs. 2014 looks pretty rugged on paper, but as my old high school coach used to say, 'We'll decide the game on the field.'
Week number one (Sept 7th) will find the Boys at home opening the 2014 campaign against the San Francisco 49'ers.
The Cowboys and Niners have no love for each other...dating back to 'The Catch' by Dwight Clark in the 1987 game that Dallas should have won. The 2014 edition of both teams have changed drastically and this one should be decided in the final minutes.
Week number two (Sept 14th) will find the Cowboys on the road to Nashville and the Tennessee Titans.
I have chosen a photo of the Titan Cheerleaders because I can't think of a single player who suits up for Tennessee. Despite them being a high scoring team, I look for the Cowboys to come home with a win in this one.
Week number three (Sept 21st) and again Dallas will be on the road... this time to St Louis.
St Louis is a team that is still undecided in where they want to go.. I thought when they drafted Sam Bradford out of Oklahoma this team was on the upswing. Bradford has some injuries and the team has suffered also. Look for Dallas to notch another win.
Week number four (Sept 28th) and the New Orleans Saints come to Arlington.
Dallas has had a problem with its secondary for the past few years and if that problem still persists this season look for Drew Brees to pick them apart. Brees lives in Dallas in the off-season and loves to play in the big house for friends and neighbors.
Week number five (Oct 5th) will find Dallas still at home as cross-state rival Houston pays a visit.
The Oilers... excuse me, I mean the Texans are another up and down team. Great pass rushers will make Tony Romo's day interesting, but they too have a secondary susceptible to the passing attack. Should be an aerial circus for both teams.
Week six...(Oct 12th) and Dallas again will have to journey to the Pacific Northwest to face the Seahawks in Seattle.
The reigning Super Bowl Champs are the class of the league right now and feature a great running and passing attack. Dallas will have to be at the top of their game and have their helmets buckled on real tight for this one.
Week seven (Oct 19th) and the New York Giants come calling at Arlington.
This will be the first divisional game of the season for Dallas and they won both games against the Giants last season. You know the New Yorkers love nothing more than beating America's team, so I see this one going down to the last two minutes also.
Week number eight (Oct 27th) and the Washington Redskins pay a visit to North Texas.
RG III had a bad season last year and his disputes with Mike Shanahan resulted in the coach getting fired. New coach and new ideas this year may take the team a little time to get acquainted with a new system.
Week number nine (Nov 2nd) and Dallas will be at home for the third week in a row as Arizona comes to town.
The Cardinals are another team that I just can't figure out. They have one of the best wide receivers in the game but just can't find someone to throw him the ball. A suspect secondary for Arizona is also an Achilles heel.
Week ten (Nov 9th) and Dallas really has a road trip here. They travel all the way to jolly old England to face Jacksonville.
This is the view the team charter will see as they fly into London for a game at Wembley Stadium. That is the Thames River winding its way through town.
The Jaguars are another team looking for its own identity.. and if they are not properly prepared they could be embarrassed in front of our English cousins..
Week 11 (Nov 16th) and the Cowboys are idle this week to give them some time to heal bumps and bruises before they begin the home stretch of the schedule.
Week 12 (Nov 23rd) and here is where 2014 really gets nasty for Dallas. A trip to New York and a second meeting with the Giants.
Eli Manning is a better than average quarterback for the Giants and could pick apart the Dallas secondary if given the chance. The Cowboys need to exert pressure on Eli to keep him and the Giants contained.
Week 13 (Nov 27th) and this is the first of two Thursday night games for Dallas. The Philadelphia Eagles will visit Dallas in this one..
Head Coach Chip Kelley has had this team for a year now and could be making some adjustments after last years disappointment. The Eagles are still in a quarterback quandary and can't decide who will lead the team.
Week 14 (Dec 4th) and Dallas will be playing on Thursday night for the second straight week... but this time from the Windy City.
Dallas and Chicago have a long history together, dating back to when Chicago drafted Don Meredith and then sent him to Dallas for 'future considerations.' The Bears made the playoffs last year and should be a worthy opponent in this one... along with the weather this time of year.
Week 15 (Dec 14th) and the Cowboys continue their road trip to the City of Brotherly Love.
Should be an interesting contests since the two have just faced each other two weeks ago. Always a physical brawl when these two meet... and I see this one much the same.
Week 16 (Dec 21st) and back home to AT&T Stadium in Arlington..
...and the opponent for this last home game of the regular season will be the Indianapolis Colts.
The Colts have shown they still have a lot of life in them after the departure of Peyton Manning. Andrew Luck has proven to be another great quarterback and the Dallas secondary will have to bring their A-game to this one.
Week 17 (Dec 28th) and the Cowboys go on the road to close out the regular season... and to the nations capitol.
Cowboys and Indians (Redskins)... It couldn't get any better than this to finish off the 2014 campaign. Barring injuries to the key players, look for this one to be a passing spectacle. Both teams have been absent from the playoffs for a while and this could be the game that puts one of them into the money games..
I can't believe it!... We scheduled an event at Texoma Harley-Davidson and got a beautiful day for a change. Usually it is either rainy or too cold, but Saturday was simply super (Thank You Lord).
The crowd response was good too. From nine o'clock in the morning until around three in the afternoon, the dealership was packed with riders and friends. One of the big drawing cards was the chance to win a new bike on the roll of the dice.
This group of beautiful young 'Angels' helped with crowd control and kept the flow to the table organized. Participants had to register in advance and show up at the table in the order of registration.
Riders and friends got one roll of the six dice. Each dice had a letter on one side instead of numbers, and if the dice spelled out the word HARLEY the winner would take home a new ride. There was a steady stream at the table with hopes of a new Harley-Davidson dancing in their heads.
We had the face-painting ladies on site again and they were a big hit. Usually I say something about face-painting for the kids, but.....
...as it turns out, kids of all ages took advantage of the face-painting. Here events manager Tiffany shows off some artwork on her face.
Something new at a Texoma HD event was the leather work of Skid.. He was personalizing leather belts and bracelets,..and was busy most of the day.
J B and the gang from Ringtail Bar-B-Q was on hand to feed everyone and his stuff simply gets better and better. If there is a better lunch than a chopped beef sandwich, chips, and a Coke,..I don't know what it is.
Live music filled the air and kept the large crowd entertained. The local area is blessed with some great musicians and Texoma HD is proud to give them a place to showcase their talents.
Selina was busy at the sewing machine from the moment we arrived until late in the day. It seems like everyone had a new patch for their jacket or vest. Plenty of HOG (Harley Owner's Group) members had new patches applied, and they came from Panther Creek and American Eagle chapters as well as the local Texoma Chapter.
Thanks again for the big turnout, and we look forward to our next event on May 3rd at Texoma HD. Ride Safe and keep the shiny side up...
Given the number of good teams, drivers, and equipment at the Sprint Cup level of NASCAR, it is obvious that it takes a little 'luck' to be consistent in this sport. When King Richard Petty was accumulating those 200 victories, he was doing it at the expense of others who barely made the field. Maybe five or six cars had a chance out of the 40 cars starting the race. In present times it is just the opposite with 40 of the 43 cars in the race standing a chance of visiting 'Victory Lane.'
Kevin Harvick has a victory already this season, having taken the checkered flag at Phoenix in the second race on the schedule.... but he could have had three or four more wins if equipment had not let him down.
This weeks race at Fort Worth was the latest nightmare in Harvick's dream of winning a championship this year.
The race was delayed from Sunday to Monday due to rain in North Texas all weekend. Kevin had his 'lucky charm' in his son with him before the race and you have to admit he looks pretty good in his cowboy hat.
Harvick had a good starting spot in the race, having qualified 3rd for the Duck Commander 500 mile event.
I had that feeling of doubt over his starting spot in this race. Usually Harvick does not qualify well but makes up for it with good driving and quick pit stops. The crew was almost giddy over how well the car was running and optimism was running high....BUT on lap 28 the engine let go..BANG! End of day ! Only a 43rd finish by Dale Jr was worse than Harvick's 42nd.
The bad luck with the car is starting to mount up.. A 41st finish in Las Vegas due to a burned up front hub... A 39th finish in Bristol due to a faulty oil line that caused a fire...and a 7th place finish at Martinsville when a tire chain holding up the rear end broke, causing lengthy pit stops. I guess you could throw in the 36th finish at Fontana,..but everyone was having tire problems at that place.
Monday's let down was just the latest of problems that have to be overcome IF Harvick is to make the chase. That lone victory may not be a guarantee to put him in the field with different winners in each of the races thus far. With engines being supplied by Hendrick Motorsports, this was the farthest thing in the mind of crew chief Rodney Childers before the drop of the green flag Monday. He remains confident that the crew is supplying Harvick with a fast machine, but if things don't turn-around soon, everyone will be standing on the outside and just watching others compete for the Championship.
UPDATE: Harvick became the Sprint Cup series first two-time winner by taming the 'track too tough to tame.' Kevin's Budweiser #4 dominated the field to capture the Southern 500 at Darlington on Saturday (4-12-2014) night.
Harvick became the first driver to win from the pole position at Darlington since Dale Jarrett did it in 1997. The second win of the season assures Harvick a place in the chase as long as he remains in the top 30 drivers in points. NASCAR's Sprint Cup drivers will take next weekend off before the Saturday night race at Richmond, Virginia on April 26th.
I was shocked Thursday night when Dave Letterman announced he was planning on stepping down from the Late Show sometime in 2015. He said he had met with CBS officials earlier in the day to advise them of his decision.
As I think back on this move, I believe I am in a position where I have seen the late night format from its earliest program to the current state. During the black and white days of television, Steve Allen was the original host of the 'Tonight Show' on NBC and he was followed by Jack Parr. Johnny Carson followed Parr and set the standard for late night comedy and variety. It was Carson who opened the door for Letterman by bringing him back time and again for national exposure. Letterman was given a late, late show on NBC following Carson and was being groomed as the successor to Johnny, BUT when the time came Jay Leno was given the job and Letterman was left hanging..... Enter CBS.
I worked for CBS and was with their affiliate in Sherman/Denison at this time. The network took advantage of all of its affiliate stations being at the Jerry Lewis Telethon in Las Vegas to make the announcement. A previous attempt at late night programming with Pat Sajack was not working out and CBS signed Letterman for the gig. He has grown comfortable with the position and even enjoys making joke about CBS and New York City politicians. It's the entertainment community that really embraces Letterman and they have provided some great moments in TV. From Farrah Fawcett to Madona, they have all been on the set with Dave...and who can forget the night Drew Barrymore bared her breast to Dave and the expression on his face?
Dave scared the entire nation with his health problems over the years. He made fun of undergoing a colonoscopie and it has since become a routine procedure for all. In 2000 Letterman had by-pass surgery to his heart and friends like Bill Murray and Jerry Seinfeld filled in for him while he recuperated.
When he returned to the air Seinfeld was in the midst of a monologue and Dave simply walked out... Jerry turned to him and said, "I thought you died." It was one of the classic moments of the program.
Thursday night Dave combined his time at NBC and CBS and said he had been behind the late night desk for 34 of his 68 years and it was time to hang 'em up. He has not always seen the same side of a political situation as I, but he has never failed to make me see the humorous side of it. Democrat, Republican, or Independent, we can all agree on one thing... Letterman has proved Johnny Carson right and he has been one hell of a late night host. Thanks Dave.
Good Night Kids !!
UPDATE as of 4/10/2014: CBS has named Stephen Colbert as the replacement for Letterman
Colbert has been a regular on the Comedy Channel and before that was a writer & performer on John Stewart's Daily Show. Letterman announced last week he would step down sometime in 2015.
