NEWS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

NEWS
- RAPE!... AND BUTT FUCKING!... IN GEORGIA OF ALL PLACES! Things have been desperate on their campus for so long that someone finally snapped over at Georgia Tech. Paul Johnson suspended Jerrard Tarrant from the team indefinitely. Kind of interesting that we're kind of going through the same situation, though, this one seems pretty legit. Tarrant was contending for a starting cornerback position as a redshirt freshman coming out of spring ball.

Remember to keep it suave, even in your sexual assault mugshot.

- Four players (Spiller, Davis, Harper, and Kelly) have been named to the Maxwell watch list. Clemson joins Southern Cal and Oklahoma as the top schools with candidates on the list, each having four. Ricky Sapp and Michael Hamlin have also been named to the Bednarik preseason list as well.

-All but two Clemson freshman signees have made it to campus and enrolled in second summer session. The two men down are Xavier Brewer still needs to take a summer class back home. Jared Crittenton didn't meet our standards and was released from his LOI. He has signed with Memphis.

-Kyle Parker was named to the Freshman All-American team for being a stud with a bat. Now if only he could figure out that whole defense thing, we'd be great. I'm still predicting he never plays a down of football for Clemson.

- The Deandre McDaniel's plot thickens as the women who filed the charges against him was identified as Ms. Abra Weeks. Good thing that we're not UGA or USC or the like because her getting killed by psychotic fans right now would not help Deandre at all. Bowden plays it smart and remains mum on the situation.

- Graduate Assistant Michael Morrell has been hired on as the new director of men's basketball, replacing Josh Posterino who replaced Shaka Smart who accepted a job at Florida. Here's a run down: Morrell -> Director of Men's Basketball; Posterino -> Assistant Coach; Shaka -> Gonzo to Florida; Clemson Women's Basketball -> Could still get beat by any girl's JV high school team in the upstate.

- The US Army Corps of Engineers tells their residents of Orlando "Just chill out man, it's not a big deal. Don't worry about it..." regarding bombs that they may miss during a cleanup of a one-time bombing range from WWII turned local neighborhood.

RECOMMENDATIONS

DFIG Recommends: Firefly Sweet Tea Vodka - we're not big fans of the Firefly Muscadine Vodka. Terrible. We wouldn't recommend that to anyone. We do, however, promote the sweet nectar that they bottle named Sweet Tea Vodka. We've never tasted a better liquor drink in our lives. Here's essentially all you need to do:

- Fill one glass with your preference of cubed ice.
- Fill glass 3/4 full of Fire Fly Sweet Vodka.
- Fill rest with Minute Made lemonade.

BEST. DRINK. EVER.

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW FOR SOLID ORANGE WEEKEND

If you haven't heard about Solid Orange Weekend then [insert hilarious yet subtly quirky "out of radio contact" remark here]. Clemson's new found call to the motherland for pilgrimage has been issued. Thankfully, you have me to guide you through the key points of the weekend that would interest your average DFIG reader.

One of the main pulls is the home series against the #4 ranked UNC Tarheels baseball team this weekend. As of late, our boys on the diamond have had a rough go of things and pulling some wins out this weekend could be really exciting. Freshmen students can check out free giveaways on Friday at the lawn at Littlejohn before the game.

Of course there is the annual Spring Game. Last weeks scrimmage was apparently shit, so let's hope that our guys come ready to show off. The game is scheduled to start at 1pm. No idea if they're still having the equipment sales beforehand as they have in years past. I have no idea how the parking is going to go seeing as this is the first year they've had the Solid Orange Live. In years past, Chili and I have been able to roll up and easily find an orange spot directly in front of the hill, tailgate, and then walk right in that gate. As I say again, I don't know how parking is going to go now and also I don't know how cool the cops will be this year with drinking on the streets but if I had to guess they'll probably be pretty lax. Here's a handy parking site from the CUAD or check out a map below.

Click to enlarge

For those of you with kids you might want to check out the field day to be held on the lawn at Littlejohn from 10am till the spring game starts. Info can be found here. Also, I think there might be a carnival on the old practice soccer fields (now known as the parking field in the middle of Littlejohn, Fike, and Death Valley) in town so look for that. Don't quote me on that last one but I think it's in the cards. If it is happening, look for it to be going on all weekend. As cheezy as it sounds, it's insanely fun to experience one while hammered. No peer pressure, but I'm just saying. It's as fun as you make it.

As Chili mentioned earlier, the Sons of Clemson game will be held before the spring game and it marks yet another day that Danny steps foot on Frank Howard field. Here is some CUAD approved literature on the game with info.

I'm more than sure the Esso as well as many of the fine establishments downtown will be open before, during, and after the spring game. Personally I'm going to shoot for TTT's Upstairs because I like to drink PBR, watch grainy satellite feeds of random sports, inhale moldy Winston smoke, and have good ol' boys give me seething "Eat shit and die" looks for invading their private territory.

Also, if a few of you are planning on going to the ticket office to bitch about seat equity please do me two favors: 1) Just don't do it. This is the way most college football programs are run (which is the way it should be). The people who pay and donate more money get better parking and better seats; 2) At least be nice to the people behind the counter... they have souls too, even if they don't show it at work. Otherwise go sit on a rusty nail, pal.

For those of you with Facebook, you can check out the nifty and easy to navigate Solid Orange Live group.

Lastly, there are some pretty awesome acts playing on Friday (alternative and rock) and Saturday (country music) nights. Below is a list of some of the performers. Personally I'd like to check out the Wailers, Eddie Money, and Wyclef Jean. You can find schedules in that first link at the top or on the Facebook group page. Also, $35 for the regular crowd, $25 for student with CUID. Expect to pay a $2 handling fee at the gate if you don't pre-order. Pretty neat all in all in that since Freedom Weekend Aloft left Anderson, Clemson can step up and hit one out of the park.


UPDATE (04/11/08): If you're a commuter student that parks and takes the bus, don't even bother coming to class today. Just take the day off and start your weekend early. Parking and bus routes are beyond screwed. Near Death Valley is figuratively a ground zero for commuter students today.

NEWS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

NEWS

- Of course, the men's basketball team beat Virginia Tech this past Sunday afternoon on Senior Day. Both sides battled back and forth and Oglesby yet again drained some more monster threes (5/7 on the day, 17 points total) and Demontez Stitt won the game in the final seconds by making two free throws. Great game. KC Rivers and Cliff Hammonds received all ACC honors. Oglesby was honorable mention for the freshman team and James Mays got honorable mention for the defensive team. Check the team out Friday at 9pm for our first tournament game. We get a bye for Thursday since we are third seed

- Four NCAA track & field National Championship invites have been garnered by the following:

Men's: Travis Padgett (60 meter), CJ Spiller (60 meter), and Mitch Greeley (Pole Vault).

Women's: Patricia Mamona (Triple Jump)

Congratulations and good luck!

- The baseball team nearly blew it at home against UNC-Greensboro by a score of 11-10. They went 11-0 until same late game rallies including one in the ninth cost them the game. Some of our pitchers need to get it together after the Wake Forest debacle. We can't keep winning by scoring into the double digits and barely squeaking by everytime. Stoneburner had yet another great outing as well as Kyle Parker. If Kyle Parker is anything like this on the football field, we're gonna have a battle. Chris Epps, Ben Paulsen, and Mike Freeman continue to be absolute ballers. Get over to the game at 4pm today if you can and are in the area.

- The AAFL will probably fold before training camp opens a la their wikipedia entry. It was a cool concept while it lasted but because of the bad economy, no major backer, and no television contract it looks like our friend Marcus Katz will be needing to find himself a new job. Marcus, if you're out there and still have us on google alert, let us know whats up in the comments section.

RECOMMENDATIONS

Willy Mac: Pat O'Briens - Whether you're in Memphis (sorry that you'd be there), San Antonio, Cancun, Orlando, or New Orleans (the one I went to), you're bound to get a good stiff drink. For some reason they're stable drink is a non-Irish hurricane (which I ironically pounded in New Orleans). This thing was so strong and so sweet that I nearly had to get Liberty Medical on the phone cause it nearly gave me the Beetus. Also, mixed drinks are your best bet as singles are usually a tad more than a half and half and doubles are pretty much just full glasses of alcohol stirred with a Q-Tip dipped in the desired mixer. Best shots in New Orleans too. Also, you get to take some of the glass ware with you and they even package it up so you look extra touristy. If you'd like to dry their hurricane mix you can go to just about any grocery store and buy their death in a bag. Best served on rocks and not blended. Also, check out their online store as they sell hats, t-shirts, hurricane glasses, and several mixers as well. Just follow the link up top.

Chili: My recommendation is Montana Ale Works in Bozeman, MT for all the Fat Tire you can drink and some good billiards. Seriously Willy Mac you could've just posted "HEY Y'ALL I JUST WENT TO NEW ORLEANS!" instead of recommending a quasi chain bar that 95% of our readership isn't within 200 miles of. My recommendation this week is that Willy Mac shuts the fuck up. I'm just kidding, pal. My actual recommendation is for the hilarious blog Stuff White People Like. It's funny because it's true! Swimwalk!!

THURSDAY NEWS AND VIRGINIA PREVIEW

NEWS

- The spring game for football has been tentatively set for April 12th. Wonder how Willy Korn's "shoulder injury" is healing up?

- The baseball season is set to begin on February 22nd at home with a weekend series against Mercer in Doug Kingsmore. 4PM Friday, 2 PM Saturday, and 1PM Sunday. Check out the remainder of the schedule here.

- The basketball team destroyed Boston College last Saturday, 78-56. Five Tigers scored in double figures and saw a strong defensive performance from Clemson's younger players including Terrence Oglesby, David Potter, and Raymond Sykes. Last year there were times that I worried we made a mistake recruiting the latter two but they have really turned it around. The stat column didn't show it for that game but they played with a lot of emotion and intensity. Box Score.

- CJ Spiller posted a national best time of 6.58 in the 60 m dash last Saturday at the Carolina Classic. He also beat out a few professional times in the 60m and it's the schools fourth fastest time for the 60m.

- Cliff Hammonds was named to the ESPN All-District Team. He is a senior with a 3.2 GPA. Impressive, but what's even more impressive is that he's a double major in architecture and psychology. Congratulations Cliff. But seriously, the only career I could see a former college athlete with superb grades and those two majors winding up as would be a Ghostbuster.

- The State has an interesting article about Clemson's recruiting of Jamie Harper and how the high school star almost changed his mind.

PREVIEW

Clemson (16-5, 4-3 ACC) @ Virginia (11-9, 1-6 ACC). Thursday, February 7th, 7:00 PM, ESPN2 HD, XM Radio Channel 190, WCCPFM 104.9 in the upstate (Live feed).

Line: Clemson -3

The more you know: Clemson is 63.5% as a team on the year for free throws, but have gone 24/30 in the past two games. The Tigers also lost to UVA last year in Littlejohn in terrible fashion. Shitting the bed in the final minutes of the game, they allowed the Cavaliers to score 15 unanswered points and beat them.

Our take:

Willy Mac: At first glance I thought that this could be a great opportunity for a hiccup game but UVA really has been that bad this year. Granted that they've nearly beaten some good teams in the final seconds, they've also lost to some decent at best teams like Seton Hall and absolutely go pounded by Xavier. I think if we play smart and just make some of our free throws we should be fine and come away with a win. Considering injuries and players being banged up, we're playing some really good ball right now sub the loss to Miami. I just hope the refs actually call a clean game and not one like they did against Boston College and Wake Forest with all the holding and arm push-offs.

OP is tired of the no-calls for holding as mentioned briefly Monday night in his show.

Chili: Forthcoming.

BRIEF SATURDAY NEWS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

NEWS

- The Tiger baseball team is ranked 23rd in the Baseball America Poll and 16th in the Sports Weekly Coaches Poll. God, February 22nd can't get here fast enough. This should be a good year of baseball after last years semi let down. What I'm not looking forward to is the effect skipping all those classes to go drink beer in the outfield is going to have on my grades. How many times have you parked in Lot 5 and just said "Screw it, it's too nice out to waste today inside in some boring class," then wandered over to Doug Kingsmore Stadium?

- The basketball team is well into the patented "Clemson Rollercoaster Mode" as they have gone 3-4 since the semester started back. A brief injuries run down: Trevor Booker is questionable to start; Stitt is out for at least two weeks; Mays is still banged up but will play. Today's Boston College game is sold out and if you're a student at Clemson I strongly encourage you to put your ass in seat at Littlejohn for that one. WCCP FM will be broadcasting the game for free. Check out that link for their internet broadcast. Clemson has boosted their free throw percentage to 63% overall with a 75% (15-20) at the Miami game. Let's hope this is an upward trend. Also, we face Boston College guard (I think?) Tyrese Rice who has a 22 point average per game.

A depleted Tiger basketball team faces a tough challenge in BC's Tyrese Rice

RECOMMENDATION

Moe Joe Coffee Company - Run by a former Clemson football player and graduate, Moe Joe is the only true local coffee place out of a handful that have popped up in Clemson. You've got the national Starbuck's, that crap store in Bilo that I can't even pronounce, Spill the Beans which started in Greenville, and Jittery Joes, a UGA based company. I can vouch that it's some of the better coffee in town. Oh yeah, the fact that they have great food and, oh yeah, my favorite, a good selection of premium cigars. Just do me a favor and buy local because not only is it a quality product but I'm just sick and tired of seeing national chains come into Clemson and force local businesses into closing down.

BRIEF MONDAY NEWS AND RECOMMENDATIONS

NEWS

- Terry Don Philips announced last Friday that the Labor Day game set for August 30th against Alabama is a lock. It will be prime time Saturday night slot on either ESPN or ABC. It will be held in the Georgia Dome and will be a night game. Also, UCF and LaMo asked out of their contracts for next year and we've picked up the Citadel *who has had some decent success against larger teams in recent years) and SC State. I like the fact that we're playing in state schools because they get big school money for those games that can greatly help out their respective athletic departments.

I just wish he would concentrate on breaking the person's nose directly in front of him rather than the shot.

- We lost to UNC last night, 90-88 on a last second shot in overtime. Big congratulations to the following: UNC, because I didn't think they were getting out of there with a win; UNC fans for being the usual pricks that you'd expect most t-shirt fan bases to be; Our guys for pretty much dominating the entire game (I think that UNC only had the lead twice in the second half; The women's team for losing to Maryland 110 - 46; Oliver Purnell and the incredible job he has done cleaning up the mess that was the Clemson basketball program. Purnell also sent the following letter to Clemson students:

Dear Clemson Students,

I wanted to express a big thank you for your support last night in
Littlejohn Coliseum. Our guys definitely fed off the atmosphere that you
provided and sustained throughout the game. Although we suffered a
heartbreaking overtime loss, I couldn't have been more pleased with the
overall atmosphere. I realize that classes have not started back and you
made an effort to come back to school early for this game and I want to
thank you on behalf of your entire basketball team. We still have very
high expectations for the season and it is extremely important that you
continue to support these guys in the way you did last night.


I would also like to thank Student Government for providing the Oliver
Purnell's Posse t-shirts that were handed out last night. Thanks again
for your great support and I look forward to seeing you in Littlejohn on
Wednesday night as we take on the Charlotte 49ers at 7:30 pm.


Go Tigers!

Oliver Purnell 

RECOMMENDATIONS

Willy Mac: Boda Pipes - My tried and trusted cigar and pipe tobacco store of choice in Greenville. They have a walk-in humidor, an open smoking bar/lounge, great prices and an even better selection. It's located in McAlister Square (Near the intersection of Laurens and South Pleasantburg) I absolutely love this place because they really do know their stuff and are not foreign, rude, or snobbish. Good people, good location, good cigars.

Chili: It's a little old, but I still have to recommend No Country for Old Men, which if you haven't seen by now you need to punch your mother in the face and then go watch it. In addition to that I have to share some of the stuff that's been on my iPod lately. First up are The Cool Kids, rappers out of Chicago who are the self described "new black version of the Beastie Boys" with a little bit of Lupe and Jurassic 5 thrown in. They've received some pub lately from that Rhapsody commercial you've probably seen. They have an EP out called Totally Flossed Out, pick it up for "Black Mags" and "Gold and a Pager," but the whole thing is awesome and well worth a listen. I've also been listening to a lot of M.I.A. and her occasional DJ, Diplo. May not be your style, but I love it.

Is it 1988? Oh, it is.

Also, here's two internet fat guys reviewing cereal.

"Family size? This is family size?"

THURSDAY RECOMMENDATIONS

Chili:

Team Fortress 2: I'm a fan of online shooters like Counter Strike: Source so this latest iteration of the Team Fortress series is right up my alley. Unlinke CSS, this game features varying classes with varying abilities, speeds, and health levels. Sit back and blow peoples' heads off as a sniper or run into the fray as the Heavy, pictured below. You could also be an engineer and build gun turrets and teleporters or by a spy and stab people in the freakin' back. Your call. Get the game from Steam, let me know if you do and we can go shoot each other in the face.

Let me show you my chaingun. My chaingun, let me show you it.

American Gangster: I had the opportunity to see this a couple weeks ago and highly recommend it. Hitting theaters tomorrow (for you ham and eggers) is the story of Frank Lucas, played by Denzel Washington, a drug kingpin in Vietnam era Harlem notorious for making his own South Asian heroin connections and shipping the bricks back in the coffins of dead US soldiers. The movie tells of his rise to power and the cop (Russell Crowe) who ultimately brings him to justice. Common and T.I. cameo. Also, Cuba Gooding Jr. has a bit role and it's good to see the worst Oscar winner ever (except for that garbage Robert Redford movie that beat out Goodfellas, but I'm really referring to individuals here) get some work. It's a crime film that is more of a Donnie Brasco than a Goodfellas, but still a must-see.


Willy Mac: I Am Legend - Will Smith stars in yet another sci-fi movie that I think will be one of his best yet. The movie, a film adaptaion of the 1954 Richard Matheson book of the same title, is a look a a post-apocalyptic world with Will Smith as the only living human. The world as we know it is gone and only Smith and an army of zombie/vampire beings are around. It's hard to explain, but just watching the trailer it's gonna be awesome.

I absolutely can't wait for this film to come out. In theaters December 14th.

Seigler:

If you ever want to feel patriotic, or to completely understand the Vietnam conflict, this is the book to read. Five Years to Freedom is Col. James N. Roe's book detailing his five years (yes, five) in captivity in Vietnam. It will really piss you off that we pulled out of Vietnam before the job was finished, and certainly will give you a new perspective on the military and our current political climate.

Did you have one of these guys? I did. You can buy one here if you're so inclined.

FRIDAY NEWS AND RECOMMENDATIONS... OH YEAH, AND, UH... 10 DAYS

NEWS

- The Men's basketball team has FINALLY released their schedule for this year. I guess I'll let it go this time. In all seriousness, I'm really excited to see how the team looks and to see the improvements that Purnell has made with the team this year. I really do think we've got something this year. We could do pretty darned good in conference play and (fingers crossed) we can get a low seed tourney bid. Great, now I jinxed us. Check out the schedule here.

- CJ Spiller and Jame Davis were named to the "Baller-Assed Player of the Year" preseason watch list, also known as the Walter Camp Award watch list. Check out the official Clemson AD release article here. It's a pretty high honor for a team to just have ONE player, but we have two out of a field of 35. We also join the likes of national powerhouse teams from last year that are fielding two players on the list to include West Virginia, USC (The real one), Wisconsin, Texas, LSU, Michigan (who had three), and Cal.

- DFIG readr Jasonl has made a Clemson Countdown Mac Widget for us. It's pretty cool and he even hosted it for us. We're attempting to make a Yahoo and Vista widget, but we're afraid that it won't be ready in time.

- The United States edged out Japan 23-20 in the World Championship of American Football (hosted by the International League, which has kind of taken over for NFL Europe) played in Japan. Basically, Japan's pros and semipros beat the junk out of a couple of former Syracuse/Temple/D3 players around for a few quarters and we came back to win in the end. The game itself was great due to the rainy/windy weather and the amount of clumsy play as well as the amount of pointless turnovers. It really felt like a AA high school game on steroids. For the record, even though Japan kind of outplayed us in the first half, we had the best and hardest hits. I will give Japan some credit though, I liked how they had "Japan" as a name plate on the back of their jerseys as opposed to their names.

- We gotta give run to TBIG for discovering this. Someone ordered a customized Willy Korn action figure from McFarlane Toys. You can read their "Start Willy Korn for the FSU game" diatribe here. Don't forget to check out some of the water heads in their comment section. Yeah, even you JasonL. WINK. Word is the guys from TBIG are bidding early and often to get the figure in hopes of some magical Indian in the Cupboard action. Oh, little Korn, you're the only one who understands me!

- The Wunderkind Korn got some snaps in a game situation with the first team offense in a recent practice. Cullen Harper faked an ankle sprain and Korn was sent in with no warning to test his readiness. Korn went 9 of 16 with 134 yards and a touchdown pass to La'Dante Harris.

- Word on the street is that the scrimmage that was scheduled for this coming Saturday for reasons unknown to us outside the program.

- According to sources that were at practice last night, CJ Spiller told several media outlets that he fully expects Death Valley to be as loud as ever come Labor Day. He thinks that the fans and the loudness will definitely play a factor in this years game. I for one can't wait for the Tigers to run down the hill as the ESPN cameras jostle from the crowd noise. Prime time slot on ESPN with a full capacity crowd? Shades of Georgia Tech year.

10 DAYS

Remember when we were #10 in the nation? Ahh, distant memories.


RECOMMENDATIONS

Willy Mac:

Beautiful Katamari - If you've ever played any of the other Katamari Damacy (literally Japanese for "clump spirit" or "school spirit"), then you know what to expect. Lots of fun from rolling up objects, people, cars, buildings, whales, parts of the earth, etc. I think what makes these games so much fun is their simplicity which echoes the greatness via simplistic themes from many old school video games like Contra, Mario Brothers, and Sonic. There is a full release demo available on X Box Live. Unfortunately, the PS3 version was canned early on, so it's only available on X Box 360. Expect it's release on October 16th of this year. The game can be pre-ordered via Amazon.com. Finally, an awesome Katamari game that is HD.

Awesomeness in a box, literally.

Bass Pro Shops Savory Bites - If you have a dog that you are having trouble training, or just want to get good treats for, then look no more. I've tried several treats with my dog, and nothing makes him go nuts like these things. They come in bacon, chicken, steak, and pork flavors. I can't find any info online about them, but they're there. Trust me. Great for medium to large sized breeds.

Chili:

Bob Saget Special: That Ain't Right - If you only know this man as wholesome Danny Tanner, you only know half the story. Saget cut his chops as a foul-mouthed comedian before being the questionably straight San Francisco gentleman with a house full of children. You can hear him occasionally on the Opie & Anthony Show on XM Radio, and he kills. Check him out Saturday, August 25th, 10 PM, on HBO.

(LATE) THURSDAY NEWS & RECOMMENDATIONS

News

Clemson defeated Syracuse 74-70, sending the Tigers to NYC to play in Madison Square Garden and assuring a Palmetto state team reaches the NIT Final Four three years in a row. Littlejohn was home to a raucous crowd of 10,000, a fantastic attendance number for a game played during Spring Break. Congrats Tiger Basketball team.

Tubby Smith left the University of Kentucky today to dart off to Minnesota. Tubby had four years left on his contract, and coached for 10 solid years, though he never echoed the success he had in winning the NCAA tourney in 1998 with Rick Pitino's players. I don't know who UK will go after next, but it is a huge job sure to attract top coaches who don't mind rabid Kentucky mountain men breathing down their neck. I've heard Wildcat fans mention greasers Pitino and Donovan, along with bagman Thad Matta.

Josh McRoberts announced today that he'll enter the NBA Draft. His stock has dropped since last year when he was projected as a lottery pick. This year he'll be late first round, early second round material and will go the way of Duke early defectors like William Avery and Shavlik Randolph. NBADraft.net projects him 18th to the 76ers, which would make sense since fellow Dukie Billy King is GM over dere and they took a chance on another lanky white Devil; Shav.

UNC's Butch Davis is undergoing chemotherapy for a growth discovered on his gums. Here's to a speedy recovery.

Recommendations

It's just me this week, and I'll focus on some of my favorite websites not involving hardcore pornography.

ACC Basketblog - This blog covers, as impartially as possible, the world of ACC basketball. They do a great job spreading info out on every team in the league and do cover other sports during their respective seasons. The comments section gets as lively as any blog I've seen, and most commenters know their stuff, except for some random WVU mouthbreather who's attached himself to the site. If you want the lowdown on the best league in basketball, check these guys out.

The Rant - Sports & other stuff, uncensored. I love this place even though it is populated largely by UGA fans. There are boards for most D1 teams, your standard non-sports boards, eyecandy boards, and games to bet on each week with virtual cash. Not to mention dozens of fun flash games. It's a tremendous alternative to Tigernet, CUTigers.com, or any other board policed by those who take themselves way to seriously. It's sort of Willy Mac's and my postgame hangout. Please, fellow Clemson fans, join up, even the numbers against the leg humpers.

Okay, now for some non-sports sites.

EZTV - This is the torrent site for television shows. Shows are posted immediately after airing and sometimes earlier, and you usually get a choice of HD or SD flavors. Pick up some episodes of Rome if you don't get HBO (if you did, you'd watch it, right??), or The Riches, a show about Irish Travelers those of us who've been through the North Augusta area are familiar with starring witty cross dresser Eddie Izzard. If you download a reality show I won't be your friend.

Hacking NetFlix - I like NetFlix, but this guy loves it. He'll clean out your ears with his NetFlix queue tips. (sorry) Enough to write a whole blog about the site itself, the company's policies on everything from vacations to damaged discs, and of course the heated battle between NetFlix and the evil Blockbuster empire. This site introduced me to FlixQueue, a program for managing your NetFlix queue from your desktop that is far more convenient than using the site itself.

Engadget - I love gadgets and this site is the source for all the latest gear news. With the consumer electronics show CeBIT going on now in Germany, this is the first place to find out about the new bone-conducting phone/PDA/MP3 player you've gotta have.

That's all I've got for this week.

THURSDAY NEWS & RECOMMENDATIONS

NEWS

- Last night our basketball squad was able to hold off a less than mediocre East Tennessee State team in a half hearted, brick-laden performance at home. About 3,100 people were attendance and the Tigers played without any heart whatsoever. If it wasn't for a few key shots and my man Trevor Booker having a double-double, I don't think we woulda won it. We played a bad team way too close. We're a top seed and they were a bottom seed and we had no business being tied with them most of the game. Next Monday we host Ole Miss at 7 pm. Recap.

The Rally Cats are once again officially the best part of the basketball season.

- On a better note, our baseball team looked in good form last night after beating Georgia Southern last night, 3-0. That gives us a 11 - 4 overall record. The score doesn't do the game any justice cause we absolutely drilled GSU. Kopp, Zoltak, Clyne, and Moskos all had great outings as GSU could only manage three hits. Straight from the horse's mouth, Widmann is still uncertain about his future and is continuing to see doctors about surgery on his neck.

- Word on the street is that Nick Watkins hasn't been going to class and as a result he's being suspended from spring practice by Bowden. This hasn't been confirmed and this is just what I've heard through the AD grapevine. But just remember, you heard it here first.

- Well things are getting bleak around here. Not much to write about and we're starting to get the itch. You know, that "Holy shit when is football season going to come" itch. Just last Tuesday I had to talk Chili down from the fire escape ladder. He kept speaking in unintelligible verbiage but I did catch something about "Adam Yauch", "Bubble screens", and "the rat speaking to the eagle"... i dont' know, you got me. We're trying to get over things, but the Spring Game on April 14th is only going to make the itch worse. I've been contemplating barracading myself in my own apartment until Labor Day, but my doctor advised against it. If anybody else has kind of lost touch with reality like Chili and I have, we have our own support group in the form of this forum on The Rant. Please sign up and perhaps we can get through this thing together. Think about it, where else are you gonna go, the Tigernet? Let's just hope that this baseball season is saturated with plenty of booze, burgers, and wins.

Recommendations

Willy Mac:

Cuba Cologne - Definitely one of the best purchases I've made in the past six months. Found it at a local cowboy boot and hat store, but you can order straight off the net as well. It's sort of a heavier cologne used for clearing the air after smoking a cigar. Personally, I like the after smell of cigars, but I like the scent that this provides as well, plus the ladies like it also. It's great for a smokey bar or club, too. What I like best about it is that the bottle itself is shaped like a cigar so if you are taking a two-fer cigar carrying pouch or pocket and just want to smoke just one stick, you can take this along very easily.

Jameson's Gold Special Reserve Irish Whiskey - Going with the St. Patti's theme for this weekend, if you want a nice, smooth sipping whiskey to get things started off right this weekend, this is a good bet. It's a good dollar to throw down on an irish whiskey, but well worth every penny. It's decently hard to find, but I'm sure most major liquor outlets carry it. I'll take mine with a splash of water to open up the taste and a twist of lime to change things up a bit.

Chili:

Don't fuck with the Irish.

The Wind that Shakes the Barley - With St. Patrick's Day around the corner, it's only fitting to review this film about the early 20th century Irish bid for independence that'll teach you more about your Irish heritage than a dozen pints of Guinness. Rolling out in a limited release this Friday, the film won Best Picture at Cannes and borrows its title from a ballad by Robert Joyce about a similar rebellion a century earlier. While I won't go into the historical parallels between this and our current affair in Iraq, one can certainly draw conclusions of their own as to why this story of an outnumbered home force fighting for independence against an occupying imperialist force is still so relevant today. Regardless of modern political baggage, this looks to be an incredible and moving film. If you're crafty you may be able to snag it from a filesharing site as it was released overseas last year.

The Tony Kornheiser Show - Mr. Tony, half of PTI, has his own daily radio show out of Washington, syndicated on FM and on XM 144. David Aldridge is usually the co-host, along with some chick who's more annoying than helpful. The banter isn't anything outrageous and doesn't dig too deep into sports minutiae, but sprinkles in pop culture, wining and dining, and Tony's obsession with American Idol. There's something endearing about this nebbish old sports writer extolling his love of bracket busters and dark horse reality show contestants, subscribe to the podcast and give it a shot.

THURSDAY NEWS & RECOMMENDATIONS

News

- #6 Baseball beats #17 Coastal Carolina. The Tigers are now 8-3 after being jacked up by Sakerlina over the weekend. Still no definite word on Widmann's injuries. One plus is that P. J. Zocchi (2.70 ERA, 2 - 0) gave a stellar pitching performance, now if he can just do the same thing on the weekends. Chalk (an astounding .429 batting average on the season) and Smith (a respectable .333 on the season) both went 3 for 4. Taylor Harbin tacked on two doubles and an RBI. The Tigers had 11 hits total.

- Our basketball team is gearing up for the most wide-open ACC Tourney in years, Clemson plays Florida State today at noon in an important matchup for the Tigers' tournament hopes. According to most bracket pundits the Tigers need to beat FSU and show up against UNC to secure an at-large bid. The Sporting Gnomes have a good preview over on their site.

- ESPN has a spring football blurb about each team in the ACC. They mention this position... I think it's.. um... quarterback? I haven't heard of that position in a couple years, so I'm not real familiar with it.


Recommendations

Chili:

Oooh.... shiny....

Dynamism.com - This site, specializing in "next generation Japanese notebook and gadget technology," is the place to go if you want to be the first kid on the block with the latest cell phone or gadget. If you buy a cell phone from Verizon or Cingular, it usually comes crippled with some form of DRM, meaning if you want to put your own music or videos on there, you have to pay for them at whatever rate your provider charges. One of the advantages of buying a phone from Dynamism is that it comes with none of these restrictions. I got a pretty cool Samsung phone last year that was only available in Japan, Dynamism provided me with English language manuals and American plugs for the power charger as well as a solid warranty. I put whatever I want on my phone, and a bonus is that I don't have a RAZR like every ham and egger out there. Make sure you get a phone that is compatible with American networks so you can pop your Cingular or T-Moblie SIM card in and get going. The site isn't limited to phones, it has sushi shaped flash drives, silent-clicking mice, hand held PCs, and the obligatory Japanese Hello Kitty shit.




Tim & Eric Awesome Show, Great Job! - Someone described this show as "great, but I kinda wanna take a shower after I watch it." Pretty spot-on. It's a variety show featuring nonsensical skits and intentionally douche-chill inducing karaoke. Guest stars such as Weird Al, John C. Reilly, Bob Odenkirk, and more pepper this show from the creators of Tom Goes to the Mayor. Some people might not get it, it's kind of a love it or hate it thing. Check out some YouTube videos of Tim & Eric here, here, and here.

Willy Mac:

Black Donnellys - This show is great. It manages to mix the right amount of humor with drama. It really reminds me of an Irish version of the Sopranos. People said it had terrible Nielson ratings, but I don't know why. If you've missed the first two episodes, you can catch it either for free from NBC or not so free on iTunes.

iSquint (Mac) or Super © (PC) - I finally got the whole transferring non-iTunes purchased videos *Cough, Cough, porn, Cough* to my video iPod and to my iTunes. Both of these programs are free, so don't hold back. Also, if you missed the Rant argument about the subject, here it is. Not like I coulda gone to the Tigernet for help with this one. Last time I checked, those mid-life crisis pedos are still oogling Rendrick pictures and sweating over recruiting and spring football stuff. Also, big ups to PissedOffMofo for the help on this one.

THURSDAY NEWS & RECOMMENDATIONS

NEWS

- Basketball beats Miami,but just barely and much in the same sloppy, non-aggressive fashion that we have gotten used to. A few things were solidified here, however: Raymond Sykes is awesome at blocking shots. James "Usually reapplies to Clemson in" Mays finally got it together in the classroom and made it to the end of the year, good lookin' out big fella. Speaking of Sykes and Mays, they need to workout with the defensive line on the football team to get big and mean. Trevor Booker is a mean and aggressive dude who is going to leave a huge set of shoes to fill when he graduates. Lastly, watching K.C. Rivers shoot threes used to be fun and automatic, now I'd rather have staples removed from my skull.

- The Tiger Baseball team rallied to beat a good Winthrop team. I'm glad we actually pulled this one off. Yet again, our pitching is still suspect, but that's expected February and March. Also, our big sticks pulled us out of a jam yet again. Thank the stars and Danny Ford's influence on the cosmos that we convinced this guy to come to Clemson.

- The Spring Football game has been set for April 14th. I've been meaning to tell you since I see it every time I go in the ticket office, but I guess the CUAD website beat me to it. Oh well, now you know.

- Hamlin, Rendrick have surgery on there feetses and all goes well... old news unless you've been hiding under a rock. If you're too lazy to click the link, they both are in boots till next month and should miss part of spring practice but are still doing strength training with the team. Hamlin might miss more of spring, possibly the game. Both are scheduled to be healthy hosses for the opening day of practice in the fall.

- Travis Storrer finally gets some ink to paper on a minor league baseball contract and settles down in Chillicothe, Ohio. Here is the low-down a la the Chillicothe website. I'm happy for the guy cause he really worked his butt off for us and is one of the main reasons that we got to the big dance. I think he's gonna go places and make it out of the farm leagues.

- Bad news for Clemson fans, Jim Grobe just signed a ten year extension on his contract with Wake. This is kinda unbelievable that Wake has the chance to have a football legacy in the ACC. If you woulda told me that the Deacs would win the ACC championship three or four years ago, I would have laughed at you and probably would have tripped you up during a serious presentation of some sort just to spite you for having that opinion.

RECOMMENDATIONS

- David Burke's Flavor Sprays - Burke is a world renowned chef based out of New York who has come up with these sprays that help you cut out the stuff you can't have on a diet. He was recently on a Ron & Fez show (XM 202, Noon - 3pm) plugging these sprays and apparently, it's like tasting the real thing. I've heard personally from others that have tried it that it really does taste like the flavor on the bottle and not just some cheap knock-off that you'd find elsewhere. Also, these sprays are diet and diabetic friendly. Also check out his gourmet pops. I can tell you first hand that they are great.

- Peter Millar - Website - They have a great selection of shirts, pants, shorts, vests, and ties for their spring line. Nice uses of greens and blues. Give it a shot, if you don't like it or if it isn't bright enough for you, theres always TailorByrd to fall back on, however they are putting out some weird, darker colors for spring. I can half expect Chili to make some joke about how I like shirts with "perty colors" and he'll probably take a jab at my slow-wittedness. So there, I'll go ahead and get it out of the way.

THURSDAY RECOMMENDATIONS

Chili:

A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints – Trailer - This movie is in the same vein as other New York coming-of-age stories like Chazz Palminteri’s A Bronx Tale and, like that film, is a true story. IMDb describes it as “a coming-of-age drama about a boy growing up in Astoria, N.Y., during the 1980s. As his friends end up dead, on drugs or in prison, he comes to believe he has been saved from their fate by various so-called saints.” The movie stars Robert Downey Jr, Chazz Palminteri, Rosario Dawson, Eric Roberts, and Shia LaBeouf, among others.

Wallstrip Podcast – Website - This is a great video podcast that the New York Times described as “Squawk Box meets Saturday Night Live.” While that might not necessarily be a compliment, Wallstrip has become a favorite addition to my iPod. Each day, blogger chick Lindsay Campbell presents a new stock and tells us why it’s trending and accompanies the stock profile with a bit of humor and interviews with experts and CEOs. Some sort of wacky skit usually follows the analysis. While they rarely hit on stocks before they are on the national radar, they cover stocks whose long-term future is bright and provide some solid advice.

Gladys Knight and Ron Winan's Chicken & Waffles - Website - Great southern cooking, a great place to take visitors while in Atlanta (If they don't want to spring for Bone's, that is). The Midnight Train: 4 chicken wings and a Belgian waffle, enough said. The fried green tomatoes are the jams. Don't miss the sweet potato cheesecake, either. Open till 4 AM most nights, if you dare go downtown at that hour. And, yes, I dare.

Waffles: great side dish or greatest side dish?

Willy Mac:

Sorry to throw two Apple products on you, but...

Video iPod - Website - It's everything all the other iPods are, except one extra thing. Yeah, it plays movies, TV shows, and music videos that you download from iTunes. This thing is so addicting I would need a support group and twelve steps to stop using it. It has 20 hours of battery life for audio use only and six and a half for video use. The downsides to it are that you can only really put movies and stuff that you buy directly from iTunes on it. Nothing else really works, I tried and it wouldn't let me do it, but I'm sure there is someway to do it. More downsides to it are that it scratches easily (probably another ploy to get you to buy a protective casing for it) and, of course like most other iPod products when they first come out, it's only available in black or white. It comes in 30 GB and 80 GB.

MacService - Website - If you own a Mac and damage your computer, it's ok. These guys can save the day. They're relatively cheaper than all the others I checked out and they offer 24 hour shipping. The only downside is that the place is in California so you have to ship it out, wait for it to be fixed, and get it shipped back. So, you're wondering what I did? I set my MacBook down on the table go get a drink from the fridge and return to find it on the ground (I don't know how it happened) with a crack on the top right of the screen. It basically made the last for inches of the right side of my display a big jumble of rainbow colors. It turned my 17 inch MacBook into a 13ish inch MacBook with a rainbow plaid accent. Oh well, when I finally get the money saved up, I get to flush about eight $800 down the toilet.

THURSDAY RECOMMENDATIONS

Willy Mac:
- American Psycho (Bret Easton Ellis, Vintage Contemporaries, 1991) – If you’ve seen the movie, and haven’t read the book then you need to pick this up. It follows most of the main points the movie, but the story flows better and it has much more to it. By much more, I mean much more gore and insanity. Not saying that Christian Bale did a bad job… he did an excellent job. What I’m getting at is that some of the stuff in the book, you just can’t put in a movie and hope to at least get an R rating. Plus, I don’t think any actor alive could do justice to some parts of the book. I saw the movie about three years ago. I picked up the book two months ago and still found it enjoyable and I also found it a very hard book to put down.
Chili: I brought this book along with me to the Furman O-Line Camp in 2000. Needless to say, I was the only one with such reading material. A great book, great commentary on the "Me Generation" and materialistic solipsism.


- The Nintendo Wii – If you can find one (good luck and countless hours of searching and calling stores), you’ll love it. It’s well worth the search and definitely worth the money. It’s one of the cheapest and funnest game systems on the market coming in at $250. Unlike most systems that are starting to charge $60 a game, Wii holds it down and stays with the previous par of $50. With games like Wii Sports, Zelda, and Rayman Raving Rabbids, it’s hard to put down the wireless controllers that you actually use as a sword/tennis racket/golf club/what have you (don’t forget to use the lanyard, unless you like hurling your controllers across the room, shattering them into pieces). Internet, weather forecaster, and old school game formats are available for download. One down side is the only way to connect to their store/internet stuff is wirelessly, there is no physical internet cable port on the system.
Chili: I was lucky enough to grab one of these things on their release date, and they've only gotten more popular since. Wii Sports and Wario Ware: Smooth Moves are awesome group games, while Zelda: TP offers a great single-player experience.Willy Mac and I will take on anyone in doubles Wii Tennis. Bring it.

- Indy IV - On Jan. 2, 2007, George Lucas and Steven Spielberg announced that they will bring back the Indiana Jones series in a yet unnamed movie due to shoot this June. The movie is set to be released in May of 2008. If they get Sean Connery to reprise his role in this new film, I might just shit a brick. TheRaider.net reported that Connery told a Scottish news publication that he is in fact considering coming out of retirement to do this film. Not really a recommendation, but hey.

Chili:
- BC Powder - Look, it tastes awful, but it just freaking works. Whether it's a hangover or a non-alcohol related headache, a good powder will get you going. These packets of powerful powder are the main reason I was able to make it to Materials & Methods of Construction at 8 AM half the time.

Update: Also, added to the sidebar is an NC State basketball centered website entitled Section Six. Enjoy.