SBNation.com User Blog: soubuckeye

THREE Prime-Time games for Cincy!

soubuckeye — Fri, 19 Apr 2013 00:04:46 -0000

The Bengals open up against The Chicago Bears in week one, turn around and play on Monday Night against the Steelers for Week 2. Later prime-time games include Miami on Thursday night, and the week 15 game against the Steelers on Sunday Night.

This is based off the scrolling announcements on NFL Network. Dont know yet about 4:00 games, etc. Hopefully the news will keep rolling in quickly. Interesting that the Steelers games are both going to be prime-times. Apparently the Harrison rumors had an effect.

Not bad...

That sting we feel in the back of our necks

soubuckeye — Sun, 06 Jan 2013 02:09:51 -0000

Is what fans of ELITE teams feel when their team loses in the playoffs.

We’re not settling for being happy with a winning record. (We would have been ecstatic for that. I remember the “In Marvin We Trust” hoopla when he had us 8-8 two years in a row).

We’re not settling for being happy to make the playoffs. Last year, we were.

We’re only settling for WINNING in the playoffs. That’s what fans of ELITE teams demand.

That sting we feel in the back of our necks…. Like Marcellus Wallace said… That’s pride fucking with us.

Congratulations to EACH AND EVERY MEMBER of Bengaldom. From those who suffered through the 90's and are still with the team today. To those folks who considered themselves part of the "Who Dey Revolution" when they maintained their fan status by ripping the team unlike any rival could (and still do).

At one point, we were the laughing stock of the football world. I'm not talking about the team. WE, THE FANS, were. I remember the days when a group of guys would get together and we'd play the usual get to know you shit-shooting. We'd all say who our favorite team was, and then everyone would talk trash about the team. Then it'd come around to me and I'd confess to being a Bengals fan. No trash talk would come, instead guys would shrug, hang their heads, and offer words of sympathy. It's not like that anymore.

Ok... So the team is stuck in mediocrity. Our HC is in the lower third of ability among head coaches, our OC is questionable, and we're waiting with baited breath to see if our one bright spot is leaving for a head coaches job. Our QB is an average quarterback, along the same level as a Mark Sanchez. When the team is ranked in the teens in the power rankings, we're right where we should be for that season. Hell, boys.... That's still a hell of a turnaround since the days of the revolving door of QB's and HC's.

So.... We've upped our standards. We have clawed and kicked our way out of the overflowing shithouse septic tank of low expectations. Gone are the days when we had nothing to look forward to, except a hope that we would at least look respectable on the field. Gone are the days when we'd attend games with grocery bags on our heads as NORMAL team gear. Gone are the days when we didn't even bat an eyelash when someone talked about us as the "Bungles," or mentioning the arrests our players had. Right now, the Bengals are a middle-of-the-road NFL team. Give us the current state of the franchise 10-15 years ago, and we'd be crying tears of joy. It's been a hell of a long road.

But the kicker... The REAL thing that brings a smile to my face in the face of this loss today.... Is that we're not happy. The sting of pride hurts. We're hungry. We Bengals fans are NOT happy for mediocrity. We want that next step. And when training camp opens next summer, we'll be FULLY EXPECTING a playoff run. Not just HOPING for a good season.

Marcellus Wallace said "fuck pride." No, baby.... That sting feels good. It reminds us that we're still alive, and that we are fans of an NFL franchise, and that we have high fucking expectations for that franchise. One and done? Hell no. We're just getting this shit started.

WHO DEY!

Is what fans of ELITE teams feel when their team loses in the playoffs.

We’re not settling for being happy with a winning record. (We would have been ecstatic for that. I remember the “In Marvin We Trust” hoopla when he had us 8-8 two years in a row).

We’re not settling for being happy to make the playoffs. Last year, we were.

We’re only settling for WINNING in the playoffs. That’s what fans of ELITE teams demand.

That sting we feel in the back of our necks…. Like Marcellus Wallace said… That’s pride fucking with us.

WHO DEY!

John Kitna update & an awesome, inspiring story.

soubuckeye — Thu, 20 Dec 2012 11:34:18 -0000

In my day job, I teach public school. More specifically, I teach 8th grade, North Carolina History. This morning, I caught the following article on Yahoo about John Kitna and his new life as a high school Algebra teacher. Awesome story, and as one who has had kids much like the ones described in the article (in fact, I looked at some of the descriptions and half expected to see familiar names).

Anyone who teaches in a public school needs to read this. Anyone who is a Bengals fan needs to read this. Anyone who wonders why public schools have the struggles they do need to read this.

John Kitna Article

Anyone who teaches in a public school needs to read this. Anyone who is a Bengals fan needs to read this. Anyone who wonders why public schools have the struggles they do need to read this.

John Kitna Article

Lest we forget what ol' Palmer did for us Cincy fans.

soubuckeye — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 00:26:49 -0000

Lest we forget what ol' Palmer did for us Cincy fans.

Lest we forget

soubuckeye — Mon, 19 Nov 2012 00:26:01 -0000

Lest we forget

Just a reminder as to what ol "Pick-6" Palmer did for us.

Someone said that Dalton looked like Spock in the pictures I had used for his "Ginger" memes. I...

soubuckeye — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 03:26:58 -0000

Someone said that Dalton looked like Spock in the pictures I had used for his "Ginger" memes. I went with it and had some fun in Photoshop.

It is time for us to be heard!

soubuckeye — Wed, 03 Oct 2012 20:23:35 -0000

So many of us do not live in the Cincinnati Bengals "home" or "secondary" markets. To see our beloved Bengals on TV we switch over to DirectTV or crowd into the local sports bars packed out more often then not by shitty arrogant fans of bandwagon teams with huge bandwagon followings (Eagles, Steelers, Cowboys, etc). Of course, some of us go online and find websites (likely owned, ultimately, by Swedish hackers or the Russian Mafia) to watch the game over a laggy, low quality stream and hidden behind a plethora of pop-up & take-over ads. Meanwhile, we're thinking to ourselves it'd be great if we could have just stayed home to watch the 1:00 Bengals game on our own big-screen HDTV's. Sure, we like going out and flying the orange and black flag... But there's also a small sense of pride when OUR team is being shown on TV - kind of like a junior version of the pride we feel when we've got a Monday night or Sunday night game.

As I do every week of the NFL season, I point my browser over to The506.com or WBTV.com (the local CBS affiliate) and see if the Bengals game will be on in the Charlotte, NC area where I live. In case you’re living under a rock that gives you AFC North tunnel vision, Charlotte is the home of the Carolina Panthers, part of the NFC South. Of course, with the NFL rules, if they have a home game, then that particular game will be the only one found on TV, and I can accept that. But in the many weeks the Panthers are not playing at home at 1:00 (thus other games aren't blocked out), and since CBS does the AFC and not NFC games, you can get a grab-bag of games that could be shown. This week the Panthers have the Seahawks in Seattle as one of the 4:00’s. This gave me some hope that the Bengals/Dolphins game would be shown in the local market.

Come to find out, however, that some other game would be broadcast. What game do I get to watch in my local market? Giants vs. Browns. When I saw this disheartening news, I literally exclaimed "what the fuck?" The Cleveland Browns – the whipping boys of the entire NFL versus the inconsistent New York Giants? REALLY? And don’t give me this "ELIte" crap, or "Trent Richardson’s the second coming." When we can compare that to one of the top 5 wide receivers in the NFL today, another receiver who is emerging as one of the best slot receivers in the game, and a QB who has consistently been among one of the top in the league for the past 3 weeks. You can't even give me the excuse that it's a conference game to compare with the Panthers (i.e. Falcons or Saints vs. whomever)!
In the past, I would have shrugged my shoulders and then started to talk to some buddies about meeting up at the local sports bar for wings, beer, and football. But to show such a scrub bowl as Giants / Browns angered me. I thought back to two years ago when the Bengals came to Charlotte to play the Panthers. It was the first time I was going into an opposing team’s stadium to support my Bengals, and I was fully expecting to be the lone orange jersey in a sea of electric blue. But when I got there, I was amazed at how many Cincinnati Bengals fans had come out of the woodwork to be at that game. Instead of being 1 out of 100, the orange and black were easily a third of BofA Stadium’s crowd that day!!! Shouts of "Who Dey" could be heard all over Uptown Charlotte. For a day, I felt like I was in Cincinnati. Since then, Chiquita has moved its headquarters, assuredly bringing many native Cincinnatians with it. You can even find Skyline Chili for sale in the freezer section of a regional up-scale grocery store, Harris Teeter. The Queen City of the Ohio has invaded and is taking over the Queen City. I know I am not the only Bengals fan in the region.

So… I did what we out-of-market Bengals fans need to do. I searched WBTV’s website until I found the email for their programming director. I immediately fired off an email suggesting, respectfully, that they switch coverage away from Browns/Giants to Bengals/Dolphins. But there is a problem. I expect no change in programming. I expect no response from shill@wbtv.com. I am one man. I am one Bengal fan. My voice means nothing. But when we speak together, we make the Jungle roar. If you live out of market, I URGE you to contact your local CBS and FOX stations and tell them in no uncertain terms that Bengaldom DOES exist nationwide, and we DO want to see our games locally. It took me 5 minutes to find the email address and send my message. If a thousand of us spend even 5 minutes… If we get even ONE station to switch games and broadcast what BENGALDOM wants to see… Then we have made a difference. I know this seems like much to ask when we're having trouble even selling OUT the game, but for those of us who live in other regions of the country, that is beyond our control. What we CAN control is asking for the game on our own TV's.

Had a dream last night...

soubuckeye — Mon, 16 Jul 2012 13:47:47 -0000

So I dreamed last night that Andy Dalton and AJ Green were selected as the front cover for Madden 14, the first time 2 athletes from the same team were featured. Of course, Larry Fitzgerald and Troy Polamalu shared the Madden cover a couple years ago, but two players from the same team?

I don't know how the dream turned out because I woke up, so was it a dream, a nightmare, prophecy, or what?

Poll

Andy Dalton & AJ Green sharing the cover of Madden. This is a...

Dream

28 votes

Nightmare

34 votes

A good possibility of coming true

17 votes

The "Madden Curse" is nonsense, and this has no chance of happening

15 votes

Wait... They have football video games now?

12 votes

106 votes | Poll has closed