http://www.expressmilwaukee.com/articles.sec-237-1-sports.html Devoted readers of the Observers (we know you’re out there somewhere) may have been wondering, “Why don’t those yahoos talk about basketball, now that the NBA and college seasons are well under way?” Wonder no more; now that the Bucks are past their brutal first-month schedule and Marquette and Wisconsin are heading for their annual showdown Saturday, the Observers have enough data to join the discussion.]]> It's not going to be the Bowl Championship Series title game in sunny Miami. That dream died at Michigan. It's not going to be the Rose Bowl in sunny Pasadena, Calif. That dream died against Ohio State. It's not going to be a New Year's Day Bowl in sunny Florida. That dream died against Penn State and Iowa. It's not even going to be the Alamo Bowl in sunny San Antonio. That dream, such as it was, died at Michigan State.]]> There are a few sports-themed movies that have been embedded into our psyche. There are the obvious- Bull Durham, A League of Their Own-but there are seminal films too. Pride of the Yankees, Bang The Drum Slowly, Slap Shot. I suppose the original Longest Yard might make that cut. Now, Hollywood says a film is being made about a non-fiction interpretation of the Oakland Athletics and its GM, Billy Beane. Oh yeah, superstar Brad Pitt is rumored to play Beane...]]> The Observers returned to their “divide and conquer” strategy last week. Frank was in New York, visiting family and monitoring East Coast sports frenzies, while Artie maintained the home office. Their deadline for the Shepherd wouldn’t accommodate the Packers’ Monday night game, but there were plenty of things to discuss by phone. ]]> "This is the seventh year in a row that we'll be bowl eligible. That puts us as (the) No. 2 longest (streak) in the Big Ten. Ohio State has the longest at eight. It says a lot about your program and being able to sustain things for a long time. We definitely had expectations coming into this year to have more victories than we do at this point in the season. But bottom line is we've scraped and put ourselves in a position to be bowl eligible, and what we do this Saturday has a lot to do with what we could do in the future."]]> The state’s football fans have endured some unpleasant weekends this fall, but not this time. The Wisconsin Badgers rallied to beat Minnesota, 35-32, raising their record to 6-5 and making them eligible for a bowl game. And the Packers shook off two straight narrow defeats and demolished...]]> I used to play with Frisbees when I was a kid, at least until our German shepherd tore the crap out of them. There are some wonderful things about playing with a Frisbee; you don’t have to be particularly athletic, talented, or buff. This speaks to most Wisconsin residents. Enthusiasts and fans of the familiar circular plastic discs have taken a pastoral recreation further with Ultimate Frisbee, a game which has been around longer than you may think, and it’s taking the world by storm...]]> Looking to build on their first playoff appearance in a generation, the Brewers have settled on their leadership for 2009. General manager Doug Melvin has a contract extension through 2012. Former Oakland manager Ken Macha is the new skipper in the dugout. Several coaches from Ned Yost’s staff are back...]]> Some things should not be repeated. False rumors, hurtful information and John McCain's bid for the presidency are examples of actions which should be nipped in the bud, never to...]]> At first glance it was a bleak weekend for Wisconsin’s top football teams. The Badgers blew an 11-point lead in the fourth quarter and lost at Michigan State, 25-24. Then the Packers lost at Tennessee, falling to 4-4. But Green Bay battled the Titans, the NFL’s only undefeated team, to a stalemate. The coin flip for overtime...]]> Opening nights can be a great scene. Flowers sent backstage, good wishes to 'break a leg,' the makeup, the costumes. Oh yeah, that's a Broadway show, not the NBA. Perhaps I spoke too quickly. The Bucks opened their latest home campaign with a bang, a Bango and a boom. It was an interesting confluence of elements at the Bradley Center on Saturday night. Since Bucks head coach Scott Skiles was in high school, flash has been as much a part of an NBA game as the ten players running back and forth between the baskets...]]> Brett Favre didn’t wear “004” on Sunday, but last week he was depicted as a secret agent in some media. It was learned that Favre, who bitterly left Green Bay for the New York Jets, talked about the Packers with Detroit Lions executive Matt Millen before the teams met in the season opener. It didn’t help the Lions...]]> There’s only a couple of reasons I can fathom why a man would want to be a cheerleader. Any red blooded heterosexual male with an ounce of testosterone would tell you the same reasons off the top of his head. It’s a fantasy, being surrounded by gorgeous girls in tiny dresses. As a bonus, you get to lift them off the ground and support them with your palm. With any luck at all it will be a very long fight song, the game will go into triple overtime.]]> Oh captain! My captain! This glorious elegy was written by Walt Whitman for his slain leader Abraham Lincoln. While captains in sports weren't instrumental in freeing the slaves, and they didn't spend much time presiding over a civil war, they were often responsible for bolstering the psyche of a team and improving winning records.]]> The Observers took a week off from baseball to prepare for a "look back, look forward" analysis of the Brewers that will run next week. But there was plenty of football to talk about. Frank: Boy, the state owes Aaron Rodgers one. After three straight Packer losses, his big second half in Seattle had everyone breathing more easily. ]]> The Interstate highways across the nation, as well as the shock absorbers on the Madden Cruiser, breathed a collective sigh as NFL broadcasting icon John Madden will take a break from his magic bus. Madden will miss the road trip to Tampa, his first abandoned broadcast in 476 games, since Reagan first moved Nancy into the White House. Madden, 72-years-old, says he's just taking a break from the rigors of the road. ]]> Milwaukee area professional baseball club has multiple openings. Great opportunity. Seven months a year, winters off. (An occasional October, perhaps every 30 years or so.) A wonderful work environment, spring in Arizona, summers around the country to virtually every major city. While in Milwaukee you have an option of a roof, depending on the weather.]]>