Mailbag - "Roger Moore Was the Best James Bond" Edition

It would be a shame to term these facts as "useless."

• The Chinese Crested dog is known for developing acne.
• The giant red star Betelguese has a diameter larger than the earth's orbit around the sun.
• A cat's urine glows under a black light.
• The shortest complete sentence in the English language is "Go."
• The catfish has over 27,000 taste buds.  Humans have 10,000.
• A 2x4 is actually 1 1/2" x 3 1/2".  A 2x6 is 1 1/2" by 5 1/2".  A 2x8 is 1 1/2" by 7 1/4".
• A female ferret will die if it goes into heat and cannot find a mate.
• During WWII, Oscar Awards were made out of wood due to a metal shortage.
• The name "Wendy" was made up for the book "Peter Pan."
• The first CD pressed in the United States was Bruce Springsteen's "Born in the USA."
• "The Guiness Book of World Record"s holds the record for the book most oft stolen from public libraries.
• Money isn't made of paper, it's made of cotton.
• 315 entries in the 1996 Webster's Dictionary were misspelled.
• Most lipstick contains fish scales.
• 40% of McDonald's profits comes from the sale of Happy Meals.
• Warren Beaty and Shirley McClaine are brother and sister.
• Leonardo da Vinci could write with one hand and paint with the other at the same time.
• The only capital letter in the Roman alphabet with one end point is "P."

elrojogrande:

Against Utah the first drive had arguably the best play calling up until the first of many interventions by the zebras (Pac conspiracy to keep Utah in playoff hunt deserves its own storyline). Assuming this great drive was all scripted plays, can we not finally relieve smith of in-game play calling duties?

Pescador Paul:

Why is no one pointing out that Coach Petersen made another of his boneheaded game decisions by not going for a two pint conversion versus Utah? In hind sight it made no difference, but it could have been disastrous.

gliderdawg:

I don't have much money but some time back you said something about being a "doctor"? Consider this a desperate plea for help; Is there a known medical or psychological term for a "strong revulsion and subsequent nausia resulting from the sideline antics of certain (unnamed) coaches in the 48th state? My naturapath thinks I suffer from a zinc and copper deficiency? Thanks for any "free-stuff"!

UWDP: They are certainly quite the pair, aren't they?

Rich Rodriguez and Todd Graham actually coached together for two seasons at West Virginia.  Rodriguez was the head man, and Graham was linebackers coach the first year, and defensive coordinator the second.  The Mountaineers went from 3-8 to 9-4 those two years, but Graham then left to be the defensive coordinator at Tulsa.  Yes, he left West Virginia to go to Tulsa.  For the same position.  Those two don't like each other.

this year:

Yeah I would like to win all the game's. But I did not have any hope for this year to start with. My philosophy has been that the whole year is being treated like the bowls 15 extra practices. Seems like we are improving everywhere but wide receiver. I would think that us not having great receivers would actually be a positive in recruiting. We just seem to be missing out. Most players we are going after seem to be staying home. Do we have any state players at WR that are worth a scholarship offer

UWDP: Yeah, you'd think there would be at least a couple of guys that would be taking a long look at playing with Jake Browning.  But the thing is, most of those guys had either made their decisions or had favorites before Browning ever took the field.  It's something that should help in the next cycle - in fact the #8 receiver in the nation for the class of 2017 - Terrel Bynum - mentioned this on an unofficial visit this past weekend.

There aren't any prospects in the state this year that merit an offer, and right now, there are only a couple for the class of 2017.  Other than through development, and it's important to remember that there are a lot of young receivers on this roster, or finding an unheralded player that really breaks out, the Huskies are going to need to look outside the state of Washington to find production at receiver.

UWFAN99:

So I saw three problems Saturday: turnovers, points off turnovers, and the officials. I want to know: what makes the Pac-12 officials so inferior to other conferences? There were two PI calls that were just terrible, especially the second one on Josh Perkins on that big gain. This has been going on for years, and I'm tired of it.

UWDP: Is it inferior?  Maybe.  I certainly don't know how you'd quantify it.  I haven't seen anything from the Pac 12 that rises to the level of the incompetence shown in the North Carolina - Duke game, though.

Familiarity breeds contempt, and I'd wager all of us here are most familiar with the Pac 12 officials.  But I'm pretty sure folks in Big 10 or SEC country think their refs are the worst in the country.

Technology certainly hasn't helped the perception of officials' performances.  Even a decade ago, you just didn't have the same level of ability to instantly and dramatically show every single mistake they make, and make it national news on the spot.

I agree that officials are too big a part of the game too often.  I think there are two solutions - instead of officiating by conference, create a national pool.  And make them year-round employees.  Yes, I know they only work 15 or so weeks a year.  But there's enough money involved in college football that the game deserves better quality of officiating.

Ozdawg:

Have you guys thought about resetting new gameThreads at the half? Just by the end of the game there is always a lot of scrolling going on.

UWDP: I know it's something that gets done some of the time.  And it probably should get done.  I personally am not on my computer during games, but I'd bet at least one person on the staff could make it happen....

(anonymous):

KJ Carta-Samuels must know that UW is Jake Browning's team and he's not going to start during the next few years barring injury. Do you think that he transfers at the end of the season?

UWDP: Yeah, I do.  At least that's the way I'd wager if I had to.  Like you said, outside of injury, I don't think there's any way that KJ Carta-Samuels improves to the point that he beats out Browning.  That's not a knock on KJ, it's just reality.  I'd love for him to be the exception of four-star quarterbacks that find themselves behind an entrenched starter and then transfer, but we've probably got that guy already with Jeff Lindquist.

GlendaleDawg:

Why do the Dawgs practice inside Dempsey when it rains, instead of getting time on the field and gaining a home field advantage by experiencing the wind and rain where the games will be played? The weather on Saturday seemed to bother the Udub more that the Utes. ...Thanks Brad, GD.

UWDP: I didn't really get the impression that the weather bothered the Dawgs more than the Utes.  Maybe it did.  What gave you that impression?

Part of the reason you don't practice out in the rain, at least always out in the rain, is that a lot of practice becomes dealing with the weather instead of getting valuable reps actually working on your offense (or defense, or special teams).

They do practice in the elements a fair amount.  There just comes a point when it becomes counterproductive.

NorDawg:

So at what point will the Pac-12, University of Washington, or whomever come to the conclusion that ESPN/television is ruining their product? It was shameful that Husky Stadium was not even close to a sellout for the Utah game. Of course, the Arizona game was a joke at 8 pm on Halloween. I'd rather have the games in the afternoon, the way they were meant to be played, even if that means no t.v. I can't believe they seriously don't care about their fans.

UWDP: They'll come to that conclusion when someone else steps forward with $25 million per school per year.

I don't think the lack of fans at the Utah game had all that much to do with TV scheduling.  It was a 4:30 kickoff.  I'm open to the idea that I'm wrong, but I think attendance was far more affected by the weather than the start time.  And just a general apathy for a .500 team.

I do take your point about the late starts, and not knowing the start times until right before the games.  It certainly doesn't help.  Since I'm at the stadium, I don't care if a Husky home game isn't on TV, but there's no way I want to go back to the time of not being able to watch every single game each year.

You know who misses afternoon games?  Parents with kids that play soccer.  I'm not especially looking forward to standing in the rain watching my girls while surreptitiously trying to watch the game on my phone.  I was a nine-year old goalie in 1984, and had a soccer game while the top-ranked Huskies were playing at USC.  My dad was listening to the game on a little radio, and gave me periodic updates when the action was at the other end of the field.  I gave up two of the only goals I surrendered all season after he gave me the final score....

gltaylor:

Someone's question last week about BYU sparked my interest in discussing Pac-XX expansion. -First, I really appreciate how you highlighted something that many people gloss over: the fact that this is an academically stacked conference (save the d*cks and the cuogs), and does not take that factor likely. Snaps for that. -Secondly, it does beg the questions: what are the odds that the Pac-12 expands, what do you think the timeline of that would be, and which schools would even be considered for that? Boise State? Idaho? UNM? -Third, how many teams can we add before the "Pacific" becomes obsolete? (Looking at you, AZ, Utah, Colorado.)

UWDP: The conference had criteria that had to be met with the new entrants, but expansion is all about money.  TV money, to be exact.  A 12 team conference, which is necessary to have a championship game, is a lot more valuable to the ESPN's of the world (and by that, I mean ESPN) than a 10 team conference.  And the conference wanted the Denver and Salt Lake City TV markets, the only two meaningful ones not already in the Pac 10 footprint.

Boise State adds very little to the conference outside of a decent football brand.  Idaho and New Mexico add zilch.  I doubt any of those three would be invited.  Really, the only way I see another round of expansion happening is:  1. If the Big 12 doesn't add two more teams (enabling it to have a conference championship game) and the little sisters there want to get away from Texas and Oklahoma during their next TV contract renegotiation (similar to what almost happened a few years ago).  The real prizes there, of course, are the Longhorns and the Sooners, and that's who the Pac 12 would court first.  The Big 12 just isn't all that stable.  It's likely going to have to expand, or dissolve.  2.  The college football playoff causes a seismic shift, and the whole country realigns into a few "power conferences," completely shutting the door on everyone else.  This isn't likely to happen.

I think expansion is done for awhile.

dgdawg:

What's up with Todd Graham's wristbands?

UWDP: You don't think this is a cool look?

JoeinWSea:

Nnnnnnnnooooooooooo?!?!

UWDP: Yes, Joe.  The sooner you accept, the better off we'll all be.

McKinleyville:

Is it too much for us to expect Pac12 officials to be able to count up to 4? I mean holy suspension Bat Man, they were doing their best! And - Are the officials for the playoffs ONLY selected from conferences that make the playoffs?

UWDP: I think the logic was that since they have five fingers, teams should get five downs.

For the playoffs, each of the Power 5 conferences submits its "All Star" officiating crew to national college football officiating coordinator Rogers Redding.  No officiating crew works a game with a team from its own conference, so Redding then selects from the three "neutral" sets of officials to work each semifinal game, and the championship game.

s.d. miller:

Perhaps my memory is skewed, but it seems that the number of touchdowns the Huskies have missed either from dropped passes or penalties are about the same as the number they've actually made. True or false?

UWDP: The Huskies have 28 official touchdowns this season.  They've barely run 28 additional plays, much less 28 that came that close to scoring.

(anonymous):

Not sure where to ask this or if anyone wants to discuss, but just something I wanted to talk about. It may be a little early, well actually its definitely way too early, but I've seen enough this year to be encouraged for next year. We have been in every game hold Stanford, and I think next year we can and should win all of these games we have been in, so I'm excited for next year. With every starter pretty much coming back, slide Daniels/Sample into TE, Turner/McIntosh into SS, my only question is what they do with the front 7. Do you think the bump Qualls out to DT and have Gaines take over at NT? Then at LB, do they bump Bierria out to OLB and have Burr-Kirven take his place at ILB? And who plays the Buck position. Wooching has made some plays here and there, but I just don't know if hes a starter for us at the position. I know they experimented with Mathis there, so can a guy like Potoa'e fit, or are they looking for someone who is a better athlete and can play in coverage? Wooching might be the guy, but a front 7 of: DE: Mathis NT: Gaines DT: Qualls Buck: Potoa'e ILB: Victor ILB: Burr-Kirven +15lbs. OLB: Bierria seems like it would be pretty damn good.

UWDP: Yes, the future certainly is pretty bright.

I certainly hope they use Elijah Qualls at tackle instead of the nose next year.  Greg Gaines is showing that he can man the nose tackle fairly admirably, and I think Qualls is the type of athlete that could put up some scary production at the tackle spot.  The likes that hasn't been seen on Montlake since Larry Triplet in 2000.

It's tough to know what they're going to do at the Buck position.  They're looking for a guy that can go out and be "special."  Psalm Wooching is obviously getting the backup reps behind Travis Feeney, but I think the coaching staff will look at a number of guys there throughout the spring and fall.  At this point, very little would surprise me there.

There's nothing about Ben Burr-Kirven that suggests he should be playing as much as he does or as well as he does.  Except, of course, how well he plays when he's out there.  Projecting 15 pounds on a guy is a pretty dangerous proposition.  Some guys can gain weight easily, and some are never really able to, no matter how much they lift and eat.  We'll have to see on Burr-Kirven.

I really like the way Keishawn Bierria has played on the inside this season.  I'd really like to keep him there, with that nice rotation that we've seen this season.  Tevis Bartlett has gotten some good experience, so I wouldn't count him out as the guy to take Corey Littleton's spot.  And there are a number of guys redshirting that might be good fits.  The good news is that there's just going to be a ton of depth at all three of those spots next season.  The bad news is that Feeney and Littleton will be gone.

At this point, it's going to be almost impossible to keep Jojo McIntosh from putting a choke hold on the strong safety spot.  He's really playing well.

Rhaego:

Does Jonathan Smith know he's on the hot seat?

UWDP: I texted him to make sure he knew.  I almost fired him, but told him he's got one last chance to stop calling bad plays and get this team into the end zone.

Rhaego:

There's a culture problem brewing among Husky Nation. Zone taking people out of their seats, fans not staying through the whole game, stadium half full, students now at an endzone. It stings a bit. I'm a little less proud. What do we do?

UWDP: Yeah, it's disappointing.  Winning fixes a lot of it, but the Husky fan base just doesn't create the home field advantage it once did, and with each passing season, it becomes more possible that it just never will again.

Rhaego:

Win @ USC. Lose to Oregon and Stanford. Destroyed Arizona. Loses to Utah. The youth roller coaster? What's different about the UW team that won those games vs the UW team that lost? Is it opponent?

UWDP: I don't really think there's anything different about the Huskies in those games.  I don't think they've won because of some special game plan, or being extra motivated, or anything like that.  They're just inconsistent, and there's a lot of randomness in college football.

I know we can't just dismiss the turnovers against Utah, because they actually happened.  But if we could get past them a little, I'd argue that the Huskies have played their two best games on the offensive side of the field in the last two consecutive weeks.

mossyrockfan:

That OPI call on Perkins was the most egregious I've ever witnessed. I've seen bad calls on television, and bad non-calls in person and on television. But for that guy to throw that flag on that play at that moment was the worst I've seen in person. My question: What does the Pac-12 do about it? Is anyone held accountable?

UWDP: Yeah, it was probably the worst of the calls/non calls in that game.  It just wasn't there.  It wasn't close.  I can't understand why the flag was thrown, and how eight seemingly competent people didn't decide to pick that flag up.

Larry Scott is generally pretty protective of the officials.  As he should be.  Outside of suspending the crew from the WSU-ASU game, it doesn't do him any good to publicly say anything about them to cast them in a negative light.  I don't know what happens behind closed doors.  I don't know if the answer is to simply start replacing officiating crews, or to give David Coleman more time to affect change with the current guys.

UWdadVanc:

Which team is more desperate for a win this weekend-UW or ASU? Both need 2 more wins to get to a bowl game.

UWDP: The expectations were a lot higher for Arizona State coming in to this season, so they probably qualify as "more desperate."  Especially since they're coming off of three straight losses, and are in danger of really bottoming out.  I'd wager they're feeling a little more pressure than the Huskies are.  And I think that's going to work in the Huskies' favor this weekend.

Alrighty folks.  Time to fork the Devils.