**UPDATE**
I was really close on the UT/Southern Miss score (Final: UT 39, Southern Miss 19). TCU laid an egg to thwart my upset prediction, losing at Texas 34-13.
The real story is the 598 yards of total offense that LSU laid to Va Tech. Under Les Miles, the Tigers have had a tendency to be fairly conservative, particularly in big games. That certainly wasn't the case Saturday night. Va Tech's defense looked awful, but give the credit to LSU. They have looked dominating in their two games.
**Original Post**
So I missed out on a football prediction post last week. I have to admit that its probably best, because I was sure the Vols would overcome Cal. Here's my shot at three games this week.
UT/Southern Mississippi
UT's talent level is clearly down on defense. However, the coaches have made a few changes and they should help some. What will really help is playing this Southern Miss team. Don't get me wrong, Southern Miss will be tough. They have a talented RB that was overlooked by most recruiters, and they always play tough against the best competition. However, Southern Miss is still not at the talent level of Tennessee.
I look for Tennessee's offense to keep with the "dink and dunk' approach for the most part, but I bet they took a few extra shots downfield. The defense should play better against this team.
Tennessee 34, Southern Miss 17
LSU/Va Tech
The Hokies go into Death Valley #9 in the country and looking to upset the #2 ranked Tigers. I'll keep this one short and sweet. It "ain't gonna happen". The Tigers are tough this year and aren't going to lose to lose to the Hokies with an 8:30 start in Death Valley.
LSU 24, Va Tech 14
Upset Pick of the Week: TCU
Texas comes limping into this weeks game ranked #7, but barely scraped by Arkansas State last week in a less than stellar showing. TCU comes into this game hungry and ranked #19 in the country. The Horned Frogs are always on the cusp of breaking into the big-time ranks. Key stat: The Horned Frogs are on a 5 game winning streak against Big 12 opponents. Look for them to make it six in a row Saturday night in Austin.
Friday, September 7, 2007
Teaser
This is just a teaser, but keep an eye on this space over the next week. The Sausage is a busy guy and just can't keep up with the requests for information. In an effort to keep the information coming, Knoxville Unwrapped will occasionally feature a guest blogger or two. This should keep things interesting and the information flowing faster.
There are a lot of folks reading out there, but nobody commenting. (Well nobody except for Tyler taking a stab in the dark at who The Sausage is). We've got some readers from all over the US, particularly in the last few days. People are starting to find this corner of the blogosphere, so now is the time to speak up. So, jump on in . . . the water is nice.
There are a lot of folks reading out there, but nobody commenting. (Well nobody except for Tyler taking a stab in the dark at who The Sausage is). We've got some readers from all over the US, particularly in the last few days. People are starting to find this corner of the blogosphere, so now is the time to speak up. So, jump on in . . . the water is nice.
Wednesday, September 5, 2007
Coker to provide spark?
Ok, don't get me wrong, LaMarcus Coker has the ability to be an explosive tailback. He has game-changing speed, and can stop and shift on a dime. However, we scored 31 points last week without him. 31 points should be enough to beat anyone on our schedule. Could he provide a spark? Sure, he could break off a long run and change a game.
The real spark is needed on defense, however. Can they put Coker in to rush the passer? How about finish a tackle? With some semblance of a pass rush and a better job of finishing tackles (22 missed against Cal), UT wins last week's game by two touchdowns. How about finding a spark on defense and keep scoring in the 30's? That should take care of things this week.
The real spark is needed on defense, however. Can they put Coker in to rush the passer? How about finish a tackle? With some semblance of a pass rush and a better job of finishing tackles (22 missed against Cal), UT wins last week's game by two touchdowns. How about finding a spark on defense and keep scoring in the 30's? That should take care of things this week.
Tuesday, September 4, 2007
Tyler Harber lies?
Most people know Tyler Harber's penchant for being unable to completely tell the truth. Here's an e-mail his boss sent out to several hundred people this afternoon:
From: Neil Newhouse [Neil@pos.org]
Sent: Tuesday, September 04, 2007 2:58 PM
To: Neil Newhouse
Subject: FYI
You may have recently received information regarding former Public Opinion Strategies (POS) employee Tyler Harber and his recent move to Wilson Research Strategies.
In his recent promotional releases regarding his move and in recent e-mails that have been forwarded to us, Tyler considerably overstates his experience.
Imagine our surprise when Tyler claims credit for literally every single POS win in the 2006 election cycle, including Senate races, Governor’s races, Congressional races and down-ticket races in which Tyler had absolutely no involvement.
In fact, here’s how Tyler introduces himself:
"Last cycle, my research team helped manage the research and strategy for four winning US Senate races, six winning Republican Governors, 46 Members of Congress, as well as numerous down-ticket statewide and legislative winners."
The truth: Those victories required the hard work of six POS partners, four POS Vice-Presidents and roughly 25 other POS employees. Further, Tyler worked for POS for a little more than one year, and was neither the lead strategist nor the lead pollster on a single project.
We’ve been in touch with Tyler and have given him the opportunity to correct the record and he has failed to do so.
Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this email.
Neil Newhouse
Public Opinion Strategies
Phone 703.836.7655
Fax 703.836.8117
Neil@pos.org
Public Opinion Strategies is pleased to have polled for more major winning campaigns and ballot issues than any other firm in the country in 2006. This follows our being recognized as having "scored the best win-loss record among the major polling and media firms in the 2004 election" and being named Pollster of the Year in 2002.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The real surprising part about this story is not the part about Tyler lying, he's done that time and time again. Besides, I've yet to meet a political consultant that doesn't take complete credit for much more than they should. The surprising part is the scathing e-mail from Neil Newhouse. Newhouse is a partner in POS, and one of the most respected pollsters in the Nation. What did this "trouble young man" do to get under his skin?
From: Neil Newhouse [Neil@pos.org]
Sent: Tuesday, September 04, 2007 2:58 PM
To: Neil Newhouse
Subject: FYI
You may have recently received information regarding former Public Opinion Strategies (POS) employee Tyler Harber and his recent move to Wilson Research Strategies.
In his recent promotional releases regarding his move and in recent e-mails that have been forwarded to us, Tyler considerably overstates his experience.
Imagine our surprise when Tyler claims credit for literally every single POS win in the 2006 election cycle, including Senate races, Governor’s races, Congressional races and down-ticket races in which Tyler had absolutely no involvement.
In fact, here’s how Tyler introduces himself:
"Last cycle, my research team helped manage the research and strategy for four winning US Senate races, six winning Republican Governors, 46 Members of Congress, as well as numerous down-ticket statewide and legislative winners."
The truth: Those victories required the hard work of six POS partners, four POS Vice-Presidents and roughly 25 other POS employees. Further, Tyler worked for POS for a little more than one year, and was neither the lead strategist nor the lead pollster on a single project.
We’ve been in touch with Tyler and have given him the opportunity to correct the record and he has failed to do so.
Please let me know if you have any questions regarding this email.
Neil Newhouse
Public Opinion Strategies
Phone 703.836.7655
Fax 703.836.8117
Neil@pos.org
Public Opinion Strategies is pleased to have polled for more major winning campaigns and ballot issues than any other firm in the country in 2006. This follows our being recognized as having "scored the best win-loss record among the major polling and media firms in the 2004 election" and being named Pollster of the Year in 2002.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
The real surprising part about this story is not the part about Tyler lying, he's done that time and time again. Besides, I've yet to meet a political consultant that doesn't take complete credit for much more than they should. The surprising part is the scathing e-mail from Neil Newhouse. Newhouse is a partner in POS, and one of the most respected pollsters in the Nation. What did this "trouble young man" do to get under his skin?
Monday, September 3, 2007
Lumpy out of control?!?!
As someone who has witnessed one of his temper tantrums first hand, it does not surprise me that Lumpy is rumored to have lost it Friday night on community activist Jamie Rowe. Brian Hornback has the scoop.
Jamie Rowe is a storm water activist from Fountain City. She has a beautiful farm on Tazwell Pike, and is none to crazy about all the development runoff in the area. Now, I must confess I'm not a fan of most of Ms. Rowe's stances. There is no doubt that the County has some storm water issues to deal with, however I tend to believe the problem lies with enforcement rather than problems with the codes. Despite my disagreement with her stances, there is no doubt that Ms. Rowe is a very mild-mannered, intelligent lady who is always polite, not to mention well prepared.
How many of those attributes can the "Lump from Powell" claim?
Jamie Rowe is a storm water activist from Fountain City. She has a beautiful farm on Tazwell Pike, and is none to crazy about all the development runoff in the area. Now, I must confess I'm not a fan of most of Ms. Rowe's stances. There is no doubt that the County has some storm water issues to deal with, however I tend to believe the problem lies with enforcement rather than problems with the codes. Despite my disagreement with her stances, there is no doubt that Ms. Rowe is a very mild-mannered, intelligent lady who is always polite, not to mention well prepared.
How many of those attributes can the "Lump from Powell" claim?
Tuesday, August 28, 2007
Restaurant Review: Koi Fusion
I had the opportunity to enjoy a few drinks and meal at Koi Fusion on Knoxville's Market Square on Saturday night. This was my second visit, but first for dinner. Here is my take:
Atmosphere: 4/5
The atmosphere at Koi has a very contemporary feel, with plenty of Asian flare. The interiour is cool and shadowy, with sleek lines. It feels like a hip downtown Asian joint. There is a patio which overlooks Market Square. It looks perfect for catching a concert or just people watching on the square. I'd give a higher score for atmosphere except for the annoying fact that the CD playing for background music skipped continuously throughout the night. I don't know if the staff was too busy to turn it off or just didn't notice, but it skipped for nearly half an hour.
Service: 3.5/5
There was a large group of us dining and the arrivals/departures were quite fluid. Our server did a good job of staying on top of who was who and what was what. He wasn't the friendliest guy in the world and didn't help with dinner recommendations, but covered the basics. On a side note we had a great conversation with the hostess who appeared to be hanging out post-shift. She was a bubbly personality that was great at the door.
Food: 2/5
I was very disappointed with the food. We started off with some pot stickers. They appeared to be pan-fried and were stuffed with a pork mix. They were served with a chili based sauce, and were delicious. Ms. Patty had a chicken dish (Mideria, if I recall). It appeared to be pan-fried and was topped with mozarella cheese and a mushroom. It was served with a vegetable medley similar to a stir-fry. I've been to some rubber chicken dinners in my life (politics of course), but this chicken had to take the cake. It was lacking on taste and even worse in consistency. It was similar to chewing on a baseball mitt.
I went with the Asian Grilled Pork Chop with vegetables. The vegetables were wonderfully flavored and prepared. However, I ran into the same problem as the chicken with my pork chop, although not to that extreme. It was better flavored, but still quite tough. Some of our companions had much better entrees. In particular, the Pad Thai looked and tasted (according to others) great.
Overall: 3.2/5
Overall it was a good time. The atmosphere is very nice and service was up to par. We had a drink a piece, plus a small order of sake (Fuki, served hot). The sake was good, but probably served a tad too hot. The tab came out to over $60 + tip for the two of us. Given the price tag, the quality of food was very disappointing and didn't match the service or atmosphere.
Atmosphere: 4/5
The atmosphere at Koi has a very contemporary feel, with plenty of Asian flare. The interiour is cool and shadowy, with sleek lines. It feels like a hip downtown Asian joint. There is a patio which overlooks Market Square. It looks perfect for catching a concert or just people watching on the square. I'd give a higher score for atmosphere except for the annoying fact that the CD playing for background music skipped continuously throughout the night. I don't know if the staff was too busy to turn it off or just didn't notice, but it skipped for nearly half an hour.
Service: 3.5/5
There was a large group of us dining and the arrivals/departures were quite fluid. Our server did a good job of staying on top of who was who and what was what. He wasn't the friendliest guy in the world and didn't help with dinner recommendations, but covered the basics. On a side note we had a great conversation with the hostess who appeared to be hanging out post-shift. She was a bubbly personality that was great at the door.
Food: 2/5
I was very disappointed with the food. We started off with some pot stickers. They appeared to be pan-fried and were stuffed with a pork mix. They were served with a chili based sauce, and were delicious. Ms. Patty had a chicken dish (Mideria, if I recall). It appeared to be pan-fried and was topped with mozarella cheese and a mushroom. It was served with a vegetable medley similar to a stir-fry. I've been to some rubber chicken dinners in my life (politics of course), but this chicken had to take the cake. It was lacking on taste and even worse in consistency. It was similar to chewing on a baseball mitt.
I went with the Asian Grilled Pork Chop with vegetables. The vegetables were wonderfully flavored and prepared. However, I ran into the same problem as the chicken with my pork chop, although not to that extreme. It was better flavored, but still quite tough. Some of our companions had much better entrees. In particular, the Pad Thai looked and tasted (according to others) great.
Overall: 3.2/5
Overall it was a good time. The atmosphere is very nice and service was up to par. We had a drink a piece, plus a small order of sake (Fuki, served hot). The sake was good, but probably served a tad too hot. The tab came out to over $60 + tip for the two of us. Given the price tag, the quality of food was very disappointing and didn't match the service or atmosphere.
Monday, August 27, 2007
County Commission Today
So there are rumors abounding in regards to today's Knox County Commission meeting. I spoke with two commissioners over the weekend who think that Commissioner Pinkston may have something up his sleeve. Pinkston has certainly been the most critical of the Mayor's office.
Many will remember that the Mayor supported Pinkston's opponent (David Keiger) in the last election. Keiger was well funded, but unorganized and had no name idea. While Pinkston was sure to lock up the victory he still ran around town very paranoid and accusing everyone of working against him. Don't expect him to let up on the Mayor anytime soon. I don't really believe he'll drop anything of any importance on the meeting today. Just look for hot air and, if we're lucky, a testy exchange or two. Pinkston is funny when he's mad.
The other rumor has to do with the Mayor offering his resignation. This one is being floated by Commissioners with a beef on Ragsdale. They are just floating the rumor to keep talk going about him possibly resigning. Mark my word, this guy isn't going anywhere unless he's carried out, walked out in handcuffs, or forced out.
The real debate will center on two things: Lewis Cosby and "the Re-do". So I'll offer my predictions:
Cosby will speak during open forum. He'll lay out his case to much fanfare from a few Commissioners who will praise his work and give him a few 'atta boys'. I don't see much else coming out of this.
The "re-do" will get voted down. I'm not sure on the votes, but here is my best take:
We will see a mix of the two factions vote together. For instance, Lumpy and Pinkston will vote "no". They will be joined by Mark Harmon. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good 'ole fashioned "we ain't done nothing wrong" speech from Pinkston. Scooby will also vote no, and could be the deliverer of the "we ain't done nothing wrong speech". My money is on Pinkston
I would say that Hammond and R. Larry Smith will vote yes. They will both grace us with their thoughts on restoring public trust, etc. I think both of these guys try to vote their conscience, but both are auditioning for Mayor, so keep that in mind while listening.
I think Bolus, Tramel, and Cate will all vote "yes", but you can't tell with these guys. They probably need the "public trust" points, but are at danger of not being reappointed in the event of an actual re-do. One thing to keep in mind is that the appointed commissioners have to run for election in a few months.
C. Leuthold will tack on an ammendment asking for a contingency that the N-S accept the proposal. He'll vote yes if it passes, no if it doesn't. I think his father will follow.
That's about as far as I got on guessing this one. It's harder to figure out when the factions don't agree within themselves!!
Many will remember that the Mayor supported Pinkston's opponent (David Keiger) in the last election. Keiger was well funded, but unorganized and had no name idea. While Pinkston was sure to lock up the victory he still ran around town very paranoid and accusing everyone of working against him. Don't expect him to let up on the Mayor anytime soon. I don't really believe he'll drop anything of any importance on the meeting today. Just look for hot air and, if we're lucky, a testy exchange or two. Pinkston is funny when he's mad.
The other rumor has to do with the Mayor offering his resignation. This one is being floated by Commissioners with a beef on Ragsdale. They are just floating the rumor to keep talk going about him possibly resigning. Mark my word, this guy isn't going anywhere unless he's carried out, walked out in handcuffs, or forced out.
The real debate will center on two things: Lewis Cosby and "the Re-do". So I'll offer my predictions:
Cosby will speak during open forum. He'll lay out his case to much fanfare from a few Commissioners who will praise his work and give him a few 'atta boys'. I don't see much else coming out of this.
The "re-do" will get voted down. I'm not sure on the votes, but here is my best take:
We will see a mix of the two factions vote together. For instance, Lumpy and Pinkston will vote "no". They will be joined by Mark Harmon. I'm keeping my fingers crossed for a good 'ole fashioned "we ain't done nothing wrong" speech from Pinkston. Scooby will also vote no, and could be the deliverer of the "we ain't done nothing wrong speech". My money is on Pinkston
I would say that Hammond and R. Larry Smith will vote yes. They will both grace us with their thoughts on restoring public trust, etc. I think both of these guys try to vote their conscience, but both are auditioning for Mayor, so keep that in mind while listening.
I think Bolus, Tramel, and Cate will all vote "yes", but you can't tell with these guys. They probably need the "public trust" points, but are at danger of not being reappointed in the event of an actual re-do. One thing to keep in mind is that the appointed commissioners have to run for election in a few months.
C. Leuthold will tack on an ammendment asking for a contingency that the N-S accept the proposal. He'll vote yes if it passes, no if it doesn't. I think his father will follow.
That's about as far as I got on guessing this one. It's harder to figure out when the factions don't agree within themselves!!
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