KPLC Sports

Saints Face Tall Task in San Francisco

A record-breaking season takes the Saints to San Francisco, where Drew Brees and their high-octane offense will be put to the test against not just the league's top defense, but one of the toughest place for dome teams to win.

Wind-swept Candlestick Park has been the Waterloo for several playoff teams in the past, and while these aren't the 49ers that hoisted up five Lombardi Trophies in the 80's and 90's, first year head coach Jim Harbaugh has worked miracles. He has turned a perrennial loser into the NFC's second seed in a single season.

Tomorrow's game will test the theory that the Saints are a great dome team that can be exposed when exposed to the elements. Two of New Orleans three losses during the regular season came outdoors, while all three came on the road.

One positive going into this game for the Saints is the return of their running game. With Pierre Thomas and Darren Sproles combining to give Brees option in the backfield, as well as the passing attack, even a poor weather day should give New Orleans dimension to their attack.

The biggest question mark will be the defense. The 49ers have stopped every offense they've faced this season, holding opponents to just two touchdowns on average. The Saints defense have relied on their offense to keep them in the game. They may not have that luxury tomorrow. 

Miles, Tigers Fail in Clutch

I don't want to appear like I'm piling on. LSU did have an outstanding season, one that fans will remember for many years to come. Making it the BCS Title Game is a major accomplishment unto itself, as is an undefeated regular season. The SEC Championship Trophy will make a handsome addition to the trophy case in Baton Rouge.

That being said, losing to Alabama, while not a sin unto itself, in the fashion that the Bayou Bengals did, is shameful. I don't refer to the score, 21-0, the lone shutout in BCS Title Game history. I mean, with the game hanging in the balance at halftime, still winnable by anyone's definition, Les Miles failed. He failed to make corrections at intermission. The one thing everyone involved with football knows is that the great coaches make halftime adjustments.

Jordan Jefferson was having the worst game of his career. Understandable against a Tide defense that had practiced for 45 days to stop him. With his option quarterback dead in the water, why would Miles not turn to Jarrett Lee, the quarterback who filled the void while Jefferson was suspended at the beginning of the season. Yes Alabama had his number in the first game, however Lee, a 5th year senior, had earned the right to try to salvage the game as well as his career at LSU.

Could the Tigers have won? It seems unlikely, but we'll never know. One things for sure, whether Miles had a brain freeze or a blind spot, he was out-coached by his predecessor, Nick Saban. Saban did not hesitate to pull A.J. McCarron in the first game after struggling against the Tiger Defense. While it ultimately didn't pan out, Saban at least gave the impression that he was trying. Miles simply seemed hopelessly out-coached. By the 4th quarter, the Mad Hatter appeared resigned to defeat.

Paterno's End

We've all heard the old line "the game has passed him by", but most of us think in terms of a coach who can't keep up with the game on the field. However, in Joe Paterno's case, it was the game off the field that passed him by.

The 84 year-old legendary coach is from an era where all bench bosses had to do was coach. They answered to no one and didn't need to deal with outside issues or the 24 hour news cycle. So it's no surprise that Paterno was ill-equipped to deal with the modern tragedy that is child sex abuse. That's not to say that the child sex abuse is a new problem, but that there's an expectation that a coach, when informed of an assistant commiting the horrific act in the team showers, needs to do more than pass the information up the chain.

This is not to excuse Paterno for his lack of action, but to put it in proper perspective. Paterno made a mistake of mammoth proportions. By not living up to his accepted position of not just being a legendary head coach but a role model, he allowed this monster named Jerry Sandusky to continue his serial raping of small children. The former defensive coordinator should be locked under the jail and never be allowed to see the late of day again.

As for Paterno, HIs legend is tarnished at least for the rest of his lifetime. That's his punishment for looking the other way. Let's hope all of us have learned from this terrible lesson.