Well this past weekend was certainly one to forget. The Cards got swept, the Blues lost twice in their first two home games of the season, the Tigers lost at home to Nebraska, the Illini lost, and oh yeah, the Rams lost again. That is one one depressing 4 day span for St. Louis area sports fans.

Where do I start? Let's go with the Red Birds. The playoff sweep leaves a bitter taste in all of our mouths. But the signs were there. After clinching the Cardinals did not scare anyone. In fact they barely beat anyone. Except for Wainwright and Carpenter the Cards were not very good the last two weeks of the season. The bull pen was not good and the hitting all but disappeared.

But let's look on the bright side. It was a fun season. Team management proved it was willing to make bold moves to improve the team. I think the building blocks are there for another run next year. And remember we are not the Cubs.

Mizzou was just as disappointing to me. The Tigers were in control for almost all of the first three quarters of their game against the Cornhuskers. But they could not deliver a knockout blow. Kudos to Nebraska for hanging tough until the offense came alive.
The most frustrating part of that game for me is one of the same things that frustrated me last year. The defensive backs do not play the ball well. They seem to jump early or late, or misjudge where the ball is going. That was a problem last year and it looks like it could be a big problem again this season.

I still see reason for optimism. Gabbert looks like the real deal. The front 7 played a strong game. Gettis provided a much needed spark on punt returns. Mizzou was not picked at the top of the North division, but the team still could surprise.

The Illini. This was my saving grace of the weekend. I missed this game. But as the Fighting Illini continue to lose you have to wonder after all the highly rated recruits coming into this program.. how much longer the coach can last without a big winning season.

I'm not down on the Blues. I am confident the Notes will get things going and I still look forward to an exciting season of hockey. It's just that those two loses after the great start in Sweden, and on top of everything else, is just piling it on.
By the way, defenseman Jonas Juland has pumped in 3 goals in Peoria's first 3 games. And some scouts from other teams who saw Lars Eller for the first time say he is the real deal. He has a goal and two assists so far for Peoria.

Ah the Rams. At least we expected them to lose to the Vikings. So from that aspect they did not disappoint. Instead they teased us: 400 yards of offense, owned time of possession, repeated trips to the red zone, Steven Jackson out gained Adrain Peterson.
And still it was a butt whipping on the scoreboard.
There appears to be a bright side here. Alex Barron played a strong game. So did Laurinaitis. The defense overall was decent. The offense actually scored a TD.
And next Sunday we play Jacksonville. The Jaguars got hammered 41-0 by Seattle. Is this the week?

Brian Barthold

---