While I always enjoy an extended vacation and quality time at home with my family during the holidays, I was excited to get back into the local high school basketball scene this past week and to talk with some of the local players, coaches and media members about the first few weeks of the hoops season.

There are several interesting storylines developing in the District XI region.  Here are three of note:

1) Salisbury is good—AGAIN…
I honestly don’t know if there’s a more underrated head basketball coach than Jason Weaver…and a more underrated program than his Salisbury basketball team.  We’ve been touting Weaver and his programs for years on both the TV edition of “SportsTalk” and on this blog.  Every season he has a winning team—and most years he loses most (all?) of his entire core of players to graduation, only to come back the following year and find success.  And not only do his teams rebuild during the offseason and have good years—but they always play well out of the game—something truly extraordinary when you’re bringing in nearly a whole new set of starters most seasons.

They’re coming off a huge win over previously undefeated Bangor (a 4A school) and have a few other 4A-level teams on its non-conference schedule over the next few weeks.  Despite not getting much hype, the Falcons look like they will “surprise” people again in February, when they most likely will play deep in the league and district playoff rounds.

2) …and so are a number of other Colonial League teams.
Salisbury does not own a monopoly on quality basketball play in the Colonial League this winter.  Bangor and Southern Lehigh have just one league loss—both losing its first Colonial game of the year last week (both losses to Salisbury).  Both teams are well-balanced and led by incredibly knowledgeable head coaches, and both the Slaters and the Spartans had battle-tested contests one year ago, which will help them come crunch time(s) this winter.

Also, don’t count out the teams that got a late start due to their school’s football team playing late into the fall.  Saucon Valley, Notre Dame and Catasauqua all posted wins over quality opponents last weekend, and all three teams have climbed back above .500 in league play.

Once more, there’s some interesting head-to-head battles over the next few weeks, which include (but are not limited to):

Jan. 13
Southern Lehigh at Bangor
Catty at Saucon Valley
Northwestern at Notre Dame-GP

Jan. 15 (and again on Jan. 25)
Saucon Valley at Notre Dame-GP

Jan. 22
Saucon Valley at Bangor (on RCN-TV)
Southern Lehigh at Catty

Jan. 25
Salisbury at Notre Dame-GP

Jan. 26
Saucon Valley at Salisbury

Jan. 28
Catty at Notre Dame
Southern Lehigh at Saucon Valley

Feel free to check out the Colonial League’s website  for the latest league news, scores and schedules.

Don’t forget, RCN-TV is scheduled to broadcast the Colonial League semifinals as well as the boys and girls championship games.  Keep checking back to the RCN-TV website for scheduling updates!

3) Glovas returns!
After an outstanding playing career at DeSales University and becoming one of the schools’ all-time top scorers, Sondrine Glovas has returned to Wilson High School to continue her career as the head coach of the same Warriors program that she once played for.  In addition to a tremendous student-athlete career and being a standout player in a high quality collegiate program, Glovas benefitted from legendary Bulldogs Head Coach Fred Richter and his outstanding staff in preparing her to take over at her alma mater.

Glovas’ Warriors have gotten off to a good start and have their targets set on qualifying for a District XI playoff appearance this winter.

Keep checking back here at the “SportsTalk Shop” for more winter sports updates and news and features on teams and players in the RCN viewing area.  Next week we’ll put the spotlight on our local wrestling teams with video highlights and insights for next week’s blog entry.  We’ll also be talking wrestling on this Thursday’s “RCN SportsTalk” show (live, 7-8pm on RCN-TV) and featuring long-time wrestling Head Coach Dave Crowell and members of the Nazareth wrestling team, along with a feature on the Bangor wrestling program.  The podcast of the show will also be available on Friday and can be found at rcn.com/atvn/sports-talk.

Finally, a big “THANK YOU” to all the people who voted for and watched the “Best of RCN-TV” marathon on New Year’s Day.  The event was a huge hit and while the RCN marketing team developed the idea and deserve all the credit, I’d like to think “RCN SportsTalk” had a tiny role in the outcome, as one of our programs—“NFL Draft Preview”—was one of the shows selected as the “best of” for 2015.  Again, thanks for voting for all of our RCN-TV programs and we are already planning on another NFL draft-oriented preview show once again in 2016.

Each New Year we are made to feel guilty because we adopt resolutions for ourselves that we rarely keep.  Supposedly, this tradition was started by the Babylonians when they promised to pay off their debts.  Well, now there is a tradition we have maintained – Always being in debt.

In medieval times, the New Year caused knights to vow to be chivalrous.  The last time I checked there are very few knights around these days and chivalry does not seem to be all that abundant either.  The overall concept, it appears, was for each of us to aspire to self-improvement.  I guess we could all do a little introspection, so I did.

Since I rarely ever even think about New Year’s resolutions, I sought some guidance to come up with some.  I found a list of the top ten so I analyzed them for myself:

1. Spend More Time With Family and Friends  I like the concept, but I think my family and friends see just about enough of me.  I have no way of gauging this, but no one seems to be clamoring to spend more time with me.  I’m hoping it’s already just enough.
2. Fit in Fitness  This sounds clever and healthy.  I know exercise is good for you, but who has the time.  Between working and “spending more time with family and friends”, fitness takes a backseat.
3. Tame the Bulge  I know 66% of Americans are considered overweight or, even worse, obese.  I am not obese and I am usually in the majority (overweight).  No need to be “taming” anything yet.
4. Quit Smoking  Never started, so I’ll make this resolution.  Accomplished!
5. Enjoy Life More  Now here is a resolution I can wrap my head around.  I will do my very absolute best to fulfill this resolution, so if it looks like I am trying to finish this blog quickly, see #5.
6. Quit Drinking  I do not drink very much as it is, but what about those people who are telling me to drink wine in moderation?  Do I just snub them and run the risk of spending less time with friends?  See #1 – I am confused.
7. Get Out of Debt  This is a leftover from the Babylonians.  If we couldn’t fulfill this resolution thousands of years ago, what makes you think it will work now?
8. Learn Something New  Learn a new language, a new hobby, more do-it-yourself stuff, to become more tech savvy?  Nah – See #5.
9. Help Others  I like this one.  I will do my best.  Do you need me to do anything for you?
10. Get Organized  At work, I am very organized; at home, not so much, but I married a great organizer.

I think I have figured out this resolution thing.  If you have a good job, a nice family, good friends, and a wonderful wife, there is only one resolution that really matters –Don’t change anything!

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)

1. This past Sunday was not the best time for the Eagles to play well, since the only thing that was accomplished was playing Seattle at Seattle next year and not playing Kansas City in London. Am I yawning?  I apologize.
2. Am I the only one who thinks the decision by Penn State quarterback Christian Hackenberg to go into the NFL draft was a good one – FOR PENN STATE! In the games I have watched, dare I say, I was less than impressed.  I will be very interested in what the NFL thinks.
3. Who are the geniuses who thought it would be a good idea to put the FBS college football semifinals on New Year’s Eve? Is this really what ESPN wanted for their huge investment – a ratings drop of 38.5% for game one?  The late game between Alabama and Michigan State dropped 36.8%.  Besides agreeing to have a ridiculous number of bowl games (mostly bad), this decision is even worse when you are trying to showcase the best of college football when most people just want to party.  I watched one and taped the other which kept me up until 2:30 AM.  I’m still cranky.
4. I know you can’t wait for my NFL picks each week. I had 63% correct for the year.  And I picked 63% of the division winners, also, getting Denver, Cincinnati, New England, Carolina, and Minnesota correct.  I did not pick Houston, Seattle, or Washington to win their divisions.
5. If you watch the FCS championship (that is the Lafayette and Lehigh group) on Saturday from Frisco, Texas on ESPN2, look for the familiar face of the field judge. He is our local football, basketball, and baseball official, Frank DAngelo.  He is very good in every sport.  Congratulations to him.

NFL PICKS LAST WEEK – 10-6; OVERALL 160-96 (63%)

NFL PICKS (WILD CARD)
KANSAS CITY
PITTSBURGH
SEATTLE
WASHINGTON
           

We had a chance last week to address some of the top stories in 2015.  We’ll identify one more “award” here in this week’s blog entry along with a few predictions I’d like to make for the new year (if you read my blog last year, you’ll remember that I do hold myself accountable and will correctly identify if I get my predictions right or wrong!)

Best Story of 2015:  Four District XI State Championship teams in a single “sports season”
There have been some tremendous state champions over the years, but there has also been a number of sports seasons in which no team from the Lehigh Valley  team ends their season with state gold medal.  However, this past spring, there were not one, or two, or three, but FOUR different teams that captured a PIAA title (this doesn’t include individual honors for tennis and track-and-field).  Parkland boys volleyball team, the Parkland and Bethlehem Catholic softball teams and the Moravian Academy tennis teams all won high school’s biggest prize.  We had the pleasure of hearing the stories of all of those teams on “SportsTalk” this summer—each one with its share of challenges en route to the championship.  Just to have one representative from an area that is dwarfed in school enrollment numbers by the Philadelphia and Pittsburgh schools is pretty impressive, but it was tremendous to have four outstanding programs from the Lehigh Valley viewing area win state gold, all within a few weeks of each other.

Now, as promised, some predictions for 2016:

1. Philly pro sports teams will win LESS games in 2016

Wait, they’ll win less games.  Is that even possible?

Well consider this…

The Eagles are going to have to rebuild and the NFC “Least” cannot possibly be worse, and this fall’s schedule wasn’t really all that tough to begin with, so their level of competition will be tougher next year.  The Birds will need at least one year to turn around the mess that Chip Kelly has left behind.  Plus, they desperately need to find value in a draft—one that was depleted thanks to the Sam Bradford trade.  Plus, with the 13^th overall pick they’re not going to find a front-line premiere position player.  Add in the fact that some of your top players will be a year older and you still have to revamp the offensive line, receiving corps, a couple defensive updates and…oh, yeah, decide on a quarterback.  Yeah, I don’t think an increase in the win total is likely, much less a playoff berth for the Eagles in 2016.

The Phillies will be starting the season without some very talented names from last year’s team, among them Chase Utley, Cole Hamels, Ken Giles, an optimist’s version of Aaron Harang (remember how good he was the first half of the year?)  Plus, Ryan Howard, Carlos Ruiz and other veterans are a year older—with slower bat speeds and a higher percentage of injury.  I like the team’s strategy of going after some “reclamation projects” and “diamond in the rough” gambles for next year—hoping to get a player or two you can hold onto until the younger, blue-chip prospects get here in 2017.  But, while the youngsters will be fun to watch, the Phillies will probably challenge their 99-loss season again in ‘16.

The Flyers have been playing better of late, but when I consult with the hockey experts I know, they’re not real thrilled with the current crop of players, nor are they optimistic  about a fast rebound in 2016.

The 76ers are already surpassing last year’s record of mediocrity and won’t win a ton of games the rest of this season to surpass last year’s level of mediocrity.  Next year’s highly important draft picks?  Even if they do hit the jackpot and are able to land a few HUGE names, they won’t be able to gel competently for the first few months.  We’ll find out if the “Hinkie plan” is a success in 2017 or 2018, but pro basketball fans will actually have to suffer another calendar year of futility, before we even get a chance to find that out.

2. The District XI 5A football tournament may be renamed the Spartan/Zephyr Bowl

In additional to this classification being one of the smallest groups (in terms of number of teams), the new “5A” looks to be dominated by two teams.

Whitehall, of course, has been playing—and winning—against larger schools for years.  Despite the numbers disadvantage, the Zephyrs have faired quite well, if not better than, other current 4A schools in the area.  There’s no reason to think they won’t continue their success and be perennial favorites in this new classification.

Southern Lehigh, meanwhile, has become perhaps the most consistently winning program (along with Northwestern) in recent Colonial League history.  The talent level continues to rise every year, and a number of talented juniors and sophomores, from this past fall’s team, all will be returning.  There’ll be something seriously wrong if the Spartans don’t parlay their current and future players into multiple championship appearances, along with capturing the school’s first ever district title, at some point on the foreseeable horizon.

Don’t be surprised if the PIAA turns this into a “Subregional” (with District XI schools playing teams from other areas in the playoff’s first round) like the current 4A teams have been doing.  Otherwise, you may just see Southern Lehigh and Whitehall squaring off against each other for the District XI championship for many years to come.

3. The Wizards,  Nats AND Redskins – will have even greater success in 2016

I think all three programs are headed in the right direction, and each organization has quality people making personnel decisions.  I like some of the moves the Nationals have made so far as they are continuing their search to acquire depth.  This was an area of concern from a year ago and I think they will make the necessary tweaks to give Washington fans their long-awaited playoff appearance in 2016.   The Redskins will be without the distraction of Robert Griffin III next year and will add the certainty of a proven quarterback—along with another year of experience for some of the young talent acquired last season.  If they can add quality players through this year’s NFL Draft and a few key free agency signings, they can absolutely add more victories in the coming year.

I wrote last summer about how much confidence I have in the Wizards to add around the solid core of John Wall, and my contacts around the DC area have given no indication that I should change that opinion.  In fact, I think the chances of an extra winning playoff series is much more likely this summer than it was a year ago.

Imagine a 2016 with all four major sports teams in the playoffs?  I think you can probably count on it!

Feel free to email us your sports predictions for 2016 to RCNSportsTalk@rcn.com and join us on Thursdays, 7-8 pm on RCN-TV and on our podcasts here on the website for topical conversations and interviews with special guests dealing with sports in the RCN viewing area.  We’ll resume our live shows this week, so tune in!

Each year, I usually spend the final few weeks of December reflecting back on all the exciting, rewarding and positive (and sometimes not so positive) sports moments in the RCN viewing area.  We try to come up with some new “awards” each time to keep it fresh and to touch on several different levels of competition of interest to those in our coverage area.

Here are some of our top teams and stories from this past year, and we’ll have more reflections, in addition to a look ahead, in next week’s “SportsTalk Shop” as well.

Biggest Surprise:   The Nationals NOT winning the division…let alone the pennant.
There are no “sure things” in sports but the Nats certainly seemed like—on paper—they were one of the best two teams in the National League.  But injuries, chemistry, managing and then Jonathan Papelbon “happened,” and the team didn’t even qualify for a wild card berth.  We’ll have more on what to expect from Washington coming up in next week’s blog entry.

Nicest Team: Nazareth Blue Eagles Girls Basketball Team
While Easton might have the best girls’ high school basketball team in the District XI (PA) region this winter, the Blue Eagles had the best team on the court during the 2015 scholastic season.  We had the opportunity to speak with a number of them on “RCN SportsTalk” this past year, and the ladies were as classy and well-spoken as they were talented.  Don’t rule out another Nazareth/Easton meeting in a championship matchup again in 2016.

Biggest Enigma: 76ers
One of the largest amounts of emails I received this past year was when I made a comment that I had “reservations” about the Sam Hinkie plan—to lose games in order to increase the organization’s chances of drafting top-quality picks and improve the club a few years down the road.

The comment came after news that previous top draft pick Joel Embiid was hurt more seriously than thought—and he might not play again—ever!

While I didn’t say that I was against “The Process” philosophy, I had some questions if it was proceeding in the correct fashion.  After the show I received a TON of complaints about my statement, virtually everyone saying that they thought the losing was great, they’re completely on-board with everything going on and that they were excited about this team’s direction.

More on the future of the 76ers in next week’s blog, but for now, (which, by the way, is “year three” of this endeavor) we saw the worst point-total loss in the franchise’s history and a near-record number of losses to start a year.  That streak, combined with the way the team finished last year, resulted in a record number of losses by a professional sports team—EVER.

If people think this is the way to go…so be it.  But, in my opinion, my reservations and cautions have not been reduced by what I saw in the final months of 2015.  And judging by the December hiring of Jerry Colangelo as a “special advisor,” the Sixers have some reason for pause as well.

Best Comebacks: Saucon Valley & Notre Dame-Green Pond HS Football teams
By definition, there can be no better turnaround than the Crusaders bouncing back from a 0-10 season in 2014 to setting a school record with 11 wins in 2015.  This year’s team also captured the school’s first ever pair of District XI playoff victories.  They also reached their first ever PIAA state playoffs before falling to a very talented Dunmore team.  However, many of this year’s  players’ accomplishments and their records will probably stand for quite some time.

The Panthers—a comeback story?  Didn’t they win the Colonial League last year and get to the District Championship game?  Yes, they did, but they wanted more.  Not only did they avenge last year’s painful loss to Bethlehem Catholic, but they went about their goals in a very workmanlike approach.  They also kept their focus—something often lost among the modern- day athletes.  They didn’t hang their heads and sulk about how last season ended, but they sought out a higher set of goals—and achieved them.  A District XI 3A championship and state playoff victories over Selingsgrove (a perennial state playoff program) and Scranton Prep were achieved as this year’s Panther team became the greatest football team in Saucon Valley history.

Most Impressive Performance: The Philadelphia boys/girls basketball state champions
Back in March, we talked about the dominance of the Philly schools in the scholastic basketball circles.  They had representatives in each championship game and won most of them, which speaks volume to both the talent level of the players, but also the coaches in the Southeastern PA region.  It’s one thing to have a great team on paper (see the Nationals—above), but to keep teenagers’ focus—and to have so many programs from a small area (distance-wise) achieve this—was clearly the standout performance that I witnessed in our viewing area.

Late this past fall, we began covering the Washington, DC area football teams more closely and I was impressed by the limited amount of teams that I had a chance to see in November and early December.  We will continue our coverage of high school sports in the DMV region in 2016 and I look forward to featuring more of those schools and players on both our television show and here at the “Shop” next year!

More “awards,” as well as some predictions for the new year coming up in next week’s blog.

While we hope you enjoy the holiday season, a quick note that we’ll return with new editions of “RCN SportsTalk” (seen live, Thursdays, 7-8 pm on RCN-TV) and our podcasts  resuming on January 7^th.  Among our scheduled discussion topics include George Washington, Georgetown and American University basketball, local high school basketball and wrestling, the NFL playoffs and other pro sports teams in the Philadelphia and DC regions and more!

Last but not least, a very Happy New Year to everyone…and thanks for reading!

from the RCN-TV Staff

NFL PICKS LAST WEEK – 9-7; OVERALL 150-90 (63%)
NFL PICKS (WEEK SEVENTEEN)

JETS
CAROLINA
NEW ENGLAND
CINCINNATI
ATLANTA
HOUSTON
PITTSBURGH
KANSAS CITY
INDIANAPOLIS
WASHINGTON
DETROIT
GIANTS
MINNESOTA
DENVER
ST LOUIS
ARIZONA

Happy Holidays

from the RCN-TV Staff

NFL PICKS LAST WEEK – 10-7; OVERALL 141-83 (63%)

NFL PICKS (WEEK SIXTEEN)
OAKLAND
PHILADELPHIA
DETROIT
PITTSBURGH
BUFFALO
CHICAGO
CAROLINA
INDIANAPOLIS
NEW ENGLAND
HOUSTON
KANSAS CITY
JACKSONVILLE
ARIZONA
SEATTLE
VIKINGS
CINCINNATI

Without question one of the top turnaround success stories on the NCAA basketball court belongs to Head Coach Mike Lonergan and the George Washington men’s basketball program.

After a highly successful tenure at Vermont, Coach Lonergan’s Colonials posted back-to-back 20-plus win seasons for the first time since 2006-07 and have gotten off to an incredible start in the 2015-16 campaign.

After consecutive seasons of NCAA or NIT post-season entries, anyone thinking of a letdown this year has been sadly mistaken.

George Washington came out in mid-November and provided the nation with one of college basketball’s first big losses to a team ranked in the top 10, with a 73-68 win over Virginia.  The Cavaliers were the sixth-ranked team in the country at the time of that contest.  The Colonials continued their dominating performances by winning ten of its first 11 ball games (a perfect 8-0 at home), with many victories coming by a double-digit margin.

Moreover, Lonergan’s guidance has led to a resurgence among the Colonial fan base and an extra level of excitement to his team’s contests at the Smith Center.

We had the opportunity on “RCN SportsTalk” to talk with Coach Lonergan about his GW men’s basketball program, their previous years’ successes and about his team’s hot start to the current season.

Before coming to George Washington, Coach Lonergan had great success at Vermont. His teams compiled a .700 or better winning percentage in four of his last five seasons and qualified for the NCAA tournament in 2010 (overall record 25-10).

Before this season started, George Washington had two players, Patricio Garino and Kevin Larsen, named to the All-Conference Second Team, with Garino also named to the A-10 All-Defense Team.  The Colonials also were picked by A-10 experts to finish in the top four spots in the league this winter.

Pre-season Atlantic-10 Poll

1. Dayton (12 first place votes) – 352 total points
2. Rhode Island (8) – 347
3. Davidson (6) – 329
4. Washington (1) – 285
5. VCU – 277
6. Richmond – 262
7. Saint Joseph’s – 194
8. Bonaventure – 177
9. La Salle – 164
10. Massachusetts – 142
11. Duquesne – 113
12. Saint Louis—96
13. George Mason – 52
14. Fordham — 45

The Colonials are looking to continue their current four-game winning streak through the holiday season, with some intriguing match-ups on the horizon.

Upcoming Schedule

Dec. 22^nd              at DePaul
Dec. 29^th               at UCF
Jan. 3^rd                  vs. Fordham*
Jan. 6^th                  at Saint Louis*
Jan. 9^th                  vs. Duquesne*
Jan. 12th              at UMass*
Jan. 15^th                at Dayton*
Jan. 22^nd               vs. Rhode Island*
*Atlantic-10 Conference games
All home games are played at the Smith Center

We hope that basketball fans check out the Colonials in action as they’ll look to have a number of exciting match-ups coming up over the next few months.  Also, keep checking back to the “SportsTalk Shop” and the “RCN SportsTalk” show for more great guests and insights on this winter’s NCAA basketball season.

I have broadcast well over 4,000 games in my 40+ years at this job, about one-third of them football games.  For the RCN-TV team, this past Saturday’s win by Parkland over Upper Dublin in the PIAA state football semifinal was our final football game for this season.  Parkland will now play for the AAAA state title this Saturday in Hershey.  The game will be on PCN starting at 6:00pm.

As exciting as this season was with the success of our teams, I am never real sad to put away the football clichés for another year (both the coaches’ and mine).  As I was packing away my notes this morning, I looked at some of the things coaches told me and some of the things I wrote down as keys to victory.  Take a look:

“We have to take it one game at a time.” – I know the thought here is that a team may look past another team or the coach does not want to offend the team that they are playing at the time, but really?  You can only play ONE game at a time.  Talk about THAT game and leave the cliché in the closet.

“The other team wanted it more.” – Over all my years of competing and broadcasting, I can’t remember a team NOT WANTING to win.  You cannot practice WANTING TO WIN, but you can face a team that is better than you are on a given night or, even worse, perhaps they were prepared better and that might actually reflect on the coach who was asked, “Coach, what was the difference in the game?”

“He’s deceptively quick.” – Does that mean he looks slow, but isn’t?  Or he’s not as slow as he is …. What?  Am I deceptively handsome and, if so, is that a good thing?  I don’t know either.

“They are better than their record indicates.” – Ouch!!  I use this one often when the teams look like a complete mismatch.  I am just trying to keep you from changing the channel.  That makes me deceptively sneaky, doesn’t it?

“He gave 110%.” – No, he didn’t.  No, he couldn’t.  Need I explain?  And why is it almost always 10% more than you can actually give?  Why not make it 125%?

“He’s a downhill runner.” – What if the field is level (which it is)?  Are there runners who run uphill on a level field?  Who makes this stuff up?  And why do I continue to use it?

There are certainly many others (“The defense bends, but doesn’t break”; “The quarterback had all day to throw”, etc.), but you have heard them time and time again and I have probably said them time and time again.  But what can I say, “I write this column one blog at a time and try to give 110% and I think it is better than what others might indicate.”

Get the picture?

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)

1. Saucon Valley was one of the top four teams in the state in the AAA football bracket and they were beaten on Friday night by a 72-27 score by Imhotep Charter. Imhotep is a private school and gets players from all of Philadelphia and Southern New Jersey.  I know the PIAA does not want to consider separating private and public schools for their championships, but something seems wrong when these two teams compete on equal footing.
2. Parkland is everyone’s favorite to win the EPC, but without their football players, they have started 2-3; 2-1 in the conference. They have Pleasant Valley and Northampton this week and should win both.  Next Tuesday, however, they will play Central Catholic and the football players, at best, will have one day of practice.  We will broadcast the Central game.
3. How about Moravian Academy? They did not win a game last year.  They are already 3-1 overall and 3-0 in the Colonial League East.  I would be shocked if they compete for the title, but there has certainly been some marked improvement.
4. I’m sure you are all wondering, “How is Gary doing with his NFL season predictions made before the season started? In the AFC, after 14 weeks, I picked every current first place team – New England, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, and Denver correctly.  In the NFC, I picked the Packers, Seattle, Carolina, and the Eagles to win their divisions.  Only the Eagles are tied for first.  The others are in first place by themselves.  A perfect 8 for 8.  Now you know why I brought this up.
5. The Eagles are tied with Washington and the Giants at the moment and have the Cardinals (uh, oh), the ‘Skins and the Giants left. The ‘Skins have the Bills, the Eagles, and the Cowboys left.  And the Giants have Carolina, the Vikings, and the Eagles left.  Very, very interesting!

NFL PICKS LAST WEEK – 10-6; OVERALL 129-79 (62%)
NFL PICKS (WEEK FIFTEEN)

ST LOUIS
JETS
MINNESOTA
JACKSONVILLE
HOUSTON
KANSAS CITY
BUFFALO
NEW ENGLAND
ARIZONA
CAROLINA
SEATTLE
GREEN BAY
MIAMI
PITTSBURGH
CINCINNATI
NEW ORLEANS

With the PIAA football championships coming up in Hershey this week, it’s time we take our final peek at the highlights of playoff games seen on RCN-TV this fall.

Congratulations to all of the teams, coaches and athletes for an entertaining season.  Special honors go out to Parkland, the lone team in the RCN viewing area who will be playing in the state final this weekend (all of the state championship games can be seen on the PCN Network—RCN dial position 97).  Saucon Valley had a great year and, despite their season-ending (and only) loss last weekend, the Panthers handled themselves with class.  In fact, all the players I had the good fortune of seeing and being around this season deserve a tremendous amount of credit for the way they conducted themselves this fall, both on and off the field.

I’d also like to take a moment to thank all the athletic directors, head coaches and their staffs for the wealth of information and insights they provided us during this past high school football season.  Their jobs are tough enough as is, but they never hesitated in helping us gather information about their teams or backed away from telling us about all of their players’ highlights and accomplishments.

You can relive all the memorable moments by watching the playoff games again through RCN’s On-Demand services.  These games will be available for free to RCN subscribers through the end of the calendar year, or you can purchase a DVD of these games by calling or emailing us at the RCN TV studio.

A final reminder…

It’s almost time for our annual “end of the year” awards here at the “SportsTalk Shop” and I’d like to include your opinions once again as we start to reflect on the highlights from both this year’s football season, as well as the top moments overall in the RCN viewing area.  We’re looking for your favorite athletes, teams, games, special plays and unforgettable moments that you saw in 2015.  This includes all teams in the Eastern Pennsylvania and Washington, DC regions and at the scholastic, collegiate and professional levels.

There were certainly some great storylines from this past year.  Just looking at recent events on the football field:

• Notre Dame going from 0-10 last year to 2A District Champs (not to mention winning its first-ever, two playoff games, setting a school record for wins in a season and its first-ever appearance in the PIAA playoffs)
• Parkland and Saucon Valley both advancing to the semifinal round of the state playoffs
• The turnaround of the Nazareth football program—reaching the district playoffs with many names returning next fall
• The end of the “Ed Christian Era” at East Stroudsburg South High School and all the District XI wins he earned during his illustrious career
• The launching of the “DC Sports Minute” on our “SportsTalk” show, featuring the high school teams in the Washington, DC and Virginia regions
• …and many more!!!

If you have a suggestion for someone or some group to get a mention, we’d love to hear from you!  Send us you a favorite sports moment, a really great game or event, a standout athlete or team who really exceeded expectations, via email to RCNSportsTalk@rcn.com.  Be assured that we’ll factor that in when putting together our “Year in Review” selections.  If you are mentioning a sport that we typically don’t cover or a sport that doesn’t usually receive a tremendous amount of publicity, feel free to pass along more information about the program, a contact person or anything that is available to you.

We’ll have our “year-in-review” entry coming up in a couple weeks.  I, just like Jolly Ol’ St. Nick, have already started compiling my list, so please don’t hesitate to send your opinions to us right away!

As the year comes to a close, it’s time for my annual thoughts on the Yahoo Year in Review.  This is their annual look back at the top athletes.  There are many other Top Ten lists if you wish to search Yahoo for those.   For instance, the top-searched question for 2015 was, “How do you tie a tie?”  I can understand that question, but I am somewhat amused that the #9 most-asked question is, “How many weeks in a year?”  That either means that we are just not very smart or more elementary school children are on the internet.  I personally do not like either conclusion.

The Top Ten Athletes searched on Yahoo are:

1. Ronda Rousey
2. Lindsay Vonn
3. Maria Sharapova
4. Danica Patrick
5. Caroline Wozniacki
6. Tiger Woods
7. Floyd Mayweather
8. Manny Pacquiao
9. Ana Ivanovic
10. Hope Solo

It appears that for an athlete to be searched more than others they have to have attributes, both good and bad, that go beyond them playing sports.  Although each of the females on the list are outstanding athletes and at the top of their various sports, I think it is safe to assume that much of their popularity comes from their sex appeal.

Ronda Rousey, who recently lost her UFC bout with Holly Holm, is the star of her sport, but she has also become a favorite through her modeling photos.  The same can certainly be said for Vonn, Sharapova, Patrick, Wozniacki, and Ivanovic.  Rousey, Patrick, Wozniacki, and Sharapova are back for the second straight year.

Hope Solo was the goalkeeper for this year’s USA World Cup championship team, which certainly captured the attention of Americans.  Solo allowed only three goals throughout the tournament.  She also has had her share of controversy angering teammates at times and facing a domestic violence charge.

Tiger Woods was #1 last year in most-searched athletes.  Much like his golf game, he drops all the way to #6, but he was the most-searched male athlete of the year.  At a time when it looks like he may not be able to play competitive golf again, he still garners more attention than any other golfer.  It will be interesting to see if he even appears on the list again next year.  Last year’s list included Tony Stewart, Tito Ortiz, Ray Rice, and Michael Vick.  None of them are on the list this year.

Mayweather and Pacquiao are no surprises to make the list together since they were part of the self-promoted “Fight of the Century”.  The fight made $410 million in revenue and one could certainly argue that these two are the only ones to truly make the list based on their athletic abilities in the past year.

So what does the list tell us about where our real interests are in the world of sports?  I will let you come to your own conclusions.

ABOVE THE EARS (SOME MUSINGS)

1. Who were those guys in the Eagles’ uniforms on Sunday? As horrible as they looked the two previous weeks, that’s how good they were on Sunday when they played the New England Patriots.  The offense still looked spotty, but the defense and particularly the special teams looked great.  But they ARE tied for first place in the NFC East and it appears that the last game when the Eagles face the Giants will decide the champion.  Go figure.
2. The Flyers are also playing better – the ’76-ers, not so much. Do you think the ‘76ers’ strategy of tanking season after season will work in the long run?
3. Parkland should be the team to beat in high school basketball, but they have to start the season without the football players who are enjoying amazing success. This past week, their football team became the first District XI AAAA team to beat a Philadelphia Catholic League team in the PIAA playoffs.  They went overtime to do it, but they did it!
4. I like Bangor and Salisbury to battle for the Colonial League championship, but there should be plenty of good talent and exciting games in the 2015-16 season.
5. The PIAA state semifinals are this coming weekend and we have our two local teams LIVE on RCN-TV. Saucon Valley will be at Bethlehem School District Stadium to take on Imhotep on Friday night at 7:00pm and Parkland will tackle undefeated Upper Dublin in Souderton at 1:00pm on Saturday.  If you can’t be there, we’ll take you there.

NFL PICKS LAST WEEK – 12-4; OVERALL 119-73 (62%)
NFL PICKS (WEEK FOURTEEN)

ARIZONA
CINCINNATI
PHILADELPHIA
CAROLINA
SAN FRANCISCO
CHICAGO
DETROIT
KANSAS CITY
TAMPA BAY
JACKSONVILLE
JETS
NEW ENGLAND
DENVER
GREEN BAY
SEATTLE
GIANTS