This weekend’s NFL playoff games are for the birds — literally. They also are for a trip to the Super Bowl in Tampa. I don’t know about you, but after this week’s weather, no one would beat me if I had a chance to go to Tampa.
Speaking of beating me. (Get your minds out of the gutter, people.) Here’s your chance to outdo me as I predict this weekend’s game. All you have to do is Text “whiz” followed by a winner for each game and score to 47383. Don’t forget to include your name. Whizzer just might give you a shoutout in Monday’s RedEye.
The quarterbacks
Ben Roethlisberger
Joe Flacco
Donovan McNabb
Kurt Warner
Baltimore at Pittsburgh
5:30 p.m. Sunday, CBS
Pittsburgh and Baltimore have two of the toughest D’s in the league (taking notes, Lovie?), so it’s entirely likely we’ll have a 2-0 game. It’s also entirely likely it’ll go into overtime. And the score could come on the final play of the game.
Pittsburgh 14, Baltimore 10
Philadelphia at Arizona
2 p.m. Sunday, Fox
It would be great if this were the Super Bowl matchup. Two underdogs (Hey, why is it that teams not expected to win are called underDOGS?) that stumbled into the playoffs only to defy expectations. That’s unlike the Bears, who stumbled out of the playoffs. It could be an aerial show, which is appropriate for the Cardinals and Eagles.
Arizona 40, Philadelphia 29
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Hometown hits
The Fire traded Matt Pickens’ Major League Soccer rights and its second-round pick (No. 28 overall) Thursday to the Colorado Rapids for an allocation and the No. 20 pick in the second round, which it used to draft 21-year-old midfielder Baggio Husidic of the University of Illinois-Chicago.
No. 19 Purdue 63, Northwestern 61
JaJuan Johnson hit two free throws with 2.2 seconds left Thursday night and No. 19 Purdue capped a wild comeback from a 14-point second-half deficit to beat Northwestern 63-61. Craig Moore and Kevin Coble scored 16 points each for Northwestern (8-6, 0-4), which lost its fourth straight in the Big Ten.
– Northwestern defensive end Corey Wootton has had surgery on his right knee to repair an injury suffered during the Alamo Bowl.
No. 17 Butler 78, Loyola 55
Freshman Shelvin Mack scored 20 points to help No. 17 Butler beat Loyola of Chicago 78-55 on Thursday night. Ross Forman scored 13, Marcus Thomas had 12 and Leon Young added eight for Loyola (10-8, 2-4).
UIC 77, Valparaiso 52
Robo Kreps had a game-high 23 points to lead Illinois-Chicago to a 77-52 win over Valparaiso on Thursday night. Tori Boyd scored 14 points, Rob Eppinger had 13 points and Josh Mayo added 10 points for Illinois-Chicago (9-7, 2-4 Horizon).
Thursday’s results
– Bulls 102, Cleveland 93 (OT)
– Centenary 47, Western Illinois 45
– Eastern Illinois 58, Eastern Kentucky 48
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SUPER BOWL
Horsing around for Bud
Anheuser-Busch’s game plan for this year’s Super Bowl is simple: More Clydesdales. The iconic symbols of the St. Louis-based brewer likely will appear in three of seven spots Anheuser-Busch, maker of best-selling Bud Light and Budweiser, has bought during the broadcast of next month’s championship football game.
One-liners
– Monica Seles was elected to the International Tennis Hall of Fame on Thursday – Vijay Singh had surgery on his right knee Wednesday and is expected to miss the next three weeks on the PGA Tour – Detroit Lions agree to hire Titans assistant Jim Schwartz as coach.
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BASKETBALL
Globetrotters to honor Obama
The Harlem Globetrotters will wear No. 44 jerseys on Tuesday to honor incoming president and basketball fan Barack Obama, the nation’s 44th president, the team announced Thursday. “This inauguration marks a landmark moment in our nation’s cultural history, and we felt compelled to honor the historic occasion in our own small way,” said Globetrotters CEO Kurt Schneider. Around the holidays, the Globetrotters sent the Obama family red, white and blue “Inaugural Balls” with the presidential seal emblazoned on them.
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Watch Dog
Friday, it’s the sports appetizer for a weekend buffet of sports. Plus, it’s the end of a grueling workweek. A cold one. Which is what I could use right now. A nice, tall, cold one. A bowl of water, of course. TGIF.
Here now, my TV picks.
WWE
Friday Night Smackdown!
7 p.m. MYTV
One word: The Undertaker. Wait, is that two? Articles don’t count, do they? Crap.
NHL
Blackhawks vs. New York Rangers
7:30 p.m. CSN
The Rangers are in first; the Blackhawks want to be. Fight it out, boys.
