Hey, did anyone catch the score of the Columbia-Fordham game?New York Giants QB and Super Bowl XLI MVP Eli Manning is fronting a new effort by the National Football Foundation’s Gridiron CLub to boost interest in college football in the New York City area.Eli’s dad Archie is a long-time active member of the NFF, and he said it best:”We all know, the New York media market is heavily dominated by professional sports, and a concerted effort to promote college football in the area will be challenging at first. However, with the many leaders and CEOs in New York who had formative experiences on the college gridiron, we believe we’ll rally significant support for our efforts. College football has provided so many opportunities for my family, and Eli and I are certainly happy to be a part of this unique initiative. ” I was very happy to read that Columbia athletic director Dianne Murphy was at the event last week kicking off the efforts, along with Rudy Guiliani; CBS The Early Show Anchor Harry Smith; Rutgers Head Football Coach Greg Schiano; Arena Football League Commissioner Dave Baker; executives from ESPN and CBS; 1992 College Football Hall of Famer and former NFF Chairman Ron Johnson; 2008 College Football Hall of Fame inductee from Syracuse Don McPherson; and athletics directors Bob Mulcahy of Rutgers and Francis McLaughlin of Fordham.I have a lot of friends who are rabid sports fans who never lived anywhere other than New York City. I always have trouble convincing them that they haven’t seen anything until they go to a key Big 10 football game, or an SEC rivalry game, etc. It’s intense and New York City is missing out on creating its own traditions…

or should I say “recreating them?”Columbia and Fordham are responsible for a lot of early college football lore, and if the media gets behind these unique student athletes, we can do it again. This article is also featured on Roar Lions Roar.  Honestly, I don’t even know where to start with this one…Oh yeah…wait…I just remembered.When the Bears picked Benson fourth overall back in 2005, I like (most likely) half of Chicago, let out a collective groan the best way I could express my displeasure for such a waste of a draft pick.At the time, I questioned Jerry Angelo’s motives for such a move, especially after bringing in the shifty veteran RB Thomas Jones, who was set to be the feature back of the “new look” Bears (even though their feature was focused 80 percent on defense. The other 20 percent was just from the meatball fans focusing on Rex Grossman, but that’s not what this article is about).So I’ll start off simply by saying that I am a HUGE supporter of the three-strikes-and-you’re-out policy. What I don’t understand is this policy wasn’t enacted on our friend Ced Bed Three strikes was one year ago. These strikes were like Corey Patterson hitting a sinker in the dirt eight states away just so blatantly pathetic.Let me give you my strikes, and then I’ll explain why this move by the Bears pleases me, but at the same time, pisses me off. Strike One: Benson is drafted fourth overall in 2005. Being the fourth pick, he demands a ludicrous amount of money in order to sign with the Bears.

The McCaskey family (being notoriously cheap, as they are) was smart in this case, and found themselves in a deadlock with Benson. Cedric says he’ll hold out of training camp and all practices ’till he gets what he wants.The Way I See It: I’m sorry Cedric, but today, you just proved to the league (again) why no rookie deserves the money they get. What have you done yet? For this case, you can also see the following: Ryan Leaf, David Carr, Tim Couch, Michael Vick (not a rookie, just ignorant), Curtis Enis, Cade McNown (Sad thing is, there are three Bears off the top of my head on this list). Strike Two: When asked by a reporter during this holdout if it will effect his learning of the Bears’ offense, and his ability to effectively run the ball, Ceddy responds by saying, “Running the football is instinctual. I know all there is to know about this game, and nobody can teach me anything else.”The Way I See It: Cedric, you did learn something from all this .08 is the legal limit See? You learn something new every day. Too damn bad it wasn’t on the field. Strike Three: Ceddy ignites a feud with Thomas Jones in 2006 over who should be the feature back (or the starter for you simpletons) in the offense. This leads to much rhetoric from the Chicago media about starters, and causes quite the distraction in the locker room.The Way I See It: Mr. Benson this was actually the best thing you’ve ever done for the team.