Synopsis:


Hmmm. Jumping the gun indeed!

Three new remaining including this episode!

Wow, three more? Sweet.

I thought there were 5 more including tonight.

You know - I think you're right. Where did I come up with 3?

I think you've got the same mental disorder King Arthur suffered from in Monty Python and the Holy Grail.

Yippee!!
New episode tonight!

Happy to see Smash finally commit and make his mom happy. Also glad to see Coach and Riggins patch things up so quickly.

I know I'm not gonna like this upcoming angle with the drug dealer. Seems kinda gimmicky, similar to the murder storyline.

What the hell has happened to all these other storylines?

Street and the waitress
Street's new apartment
Buddy and his adopted ex-con
Anything with Lyla
Matt and the housekeeper
Coach's new job as head of the athletic department
Mrs. Coach and her male friend

You know the cast is getting too large when you get an episode like tonight's where they jettisoned a few of them (Tami's sister, and the MILF next door to Riggins) and there's not much screen time for Lance/Tyra or Street/Lila anymore, though we did get a quick shot of Buddy and Lance's dad (I know the son's name is Landry, but I like using Lance ever since Coach called him Lance). So Smash finally got to verbally commit (mainly to up his street cred amongst other football prospects), wonder how the relationship with girlfriend/tag-along will end up.

Julie finally owned up to her shortcomings, and Coach had to eat some crow, and Riggins has turned into a zen bandit.

@ Rick Barnes playing the TMU recruiter

Isn't he the UT head basketball coach? I thought he looked familiar.

Thought the title was kinda ironic since I commented to my wife that the show had really jumped the shark when the Larribee coach explained his sadism/ingratitude/boorishness/stupidity/etc. by confiding to Taylor about his wife's illness.Not saying that such an event couldn't cause behavioral changes, but his team didn't seem to notice any difference in him, so it's logical to conclude that he was always a jerk.

Actually, I thought the writing was WAY over the top with the entire Larribee-Dillon conflict. There would be jealousy/resentment/friction in such a situation without resorting to making the Larribee coach and players as the total jerks/a-hats that were depicted. The only thing more they could have done would have been to give the coach a stovepipe hat and a twirly moustache. Really weak, telegraphed-punch writing for a show that was initially acclaimed for more complex, subtle depictions of human nature (like Chris Mulkey's new Dillon coach character, who didn't get near enough airtime).

The Woody Hayes/Bobby Knight moment was priceless, though.

Totally agree with Big Dave that way too many storylines are being abandoned, jettisoned, or otherwise ignored. If I wanted to give the writers a pass, I'd say that it's just realism (in the "Slackers" vein in which one storyline gives way to another), but I think it's just laziness. They throw ideas at the audience, explore the ones that seem to stick, and throw out the ones that don't seem to jell without providing resolution. I like subplots as well as anyone but think there's a limit on what can actually be depicted within the hour-long format.

Lest anyone think this is just a 'hater' post, we still think the show has potential (and we bought the first season DVD set). It's just that the characters don't seem too likeable (as opposed to, say, The Wire...which has hard-drinking, somewhat immoral, vulgar-talking individuals who still manage to become sympathetic & even admirable characters). Coach Taylor comes across as being somewhat naive (especially regarding Julie), Riggins is the "noble rebel" stereotype (good kid, bad environment in the James Dean mold), Julie is the 'trying-out-her-wings', mistake-prone adolescent (how many chances will the Taylors give her to screw up?), etc. Smash & his family often seem uncomfortably close to racial stereotypes (again, I'd compare this to The Wire with its diverse depiction of individuals within a minority culture). Landry is an example of a much-better written character...he nearly always came across as a really compelling character that the audience cares about. Likewise with his buddy Saracen, although the stammering routine was wearing a little thin there, too. Lyla shows a lot of potential after initially being a selfish, self-absorbed character. Her conversion offers a chance to show a different type of character...a new believer feeling her way around a new belief system, complete with having to confront new issues along the way).

I read a comment from a viewer in TV Guide asking what had happened to the show...seems that she was complaining that the show was being 'dumbed down' to appeal to a larger audience (which isn't working, according to the low ratings). While I know there's no 'moral victories' in cancellation (to borrow a sports phrase), it would still seem nobler to be remembered as a great show that will become a cult classic, cancelled-before-its-time favorite than to try too hard to please everybody and end up with the same fate.

I'd like a wide range of characters & know that they have to alternate storylines but still wish they give us glimpses of what some of the former 'regulars' (Street, Lyla, etc.) are doing. Glad Tammy's sister is gone (that story got old quickly) and would like to see less focus on Riggins & Julie and more on some of the other characters.

Also get a bit tired of Eric & Tammy's 'rapid-fire' exchanges in which they talk over each other at a mile-a-minute pace...much prefer the quieter discussions they have in which there are some awkward pauses, patient listening while trying to think how to word their next idea, etc. It's okay to show an argument now & then, but I swear, sometimes they sound like Alvin on crack when they start going on about something.

Taylor's advice to Smash regarding the TMU/Alabama choice was a little strange, I thought. Regarding playing time, many 'blue-chip' athletes who play the same positions sign with top-ranked schools thinking that they will be THE ONE. Of course, some end up transferring to other situations for more playing time (especially quarterbacks). However, many schools employ a multiple-running back offensive scheme and the idea that Smash wouldn't set foot on the field until his junior year was a questionable opinion. Running backs arguably take the most punishment on the team as a rule & most schools alternate backs, especially if they offer different looks (slashers, straight-ahead bruisers, breakaway threats, blocking backs, receiving threats, etc.) for different situations. It's one thing if the offense is oriented toward throwing the ball, for instance...but a team that favors the run first can always use several good backs.

Also, I thought the NCAA had eliminated the text-messaging to recruits (some recruits were receiving up to 100 per day). Obviously, there are lots of violations going on, but all of the direct-contacts in the grocery store/restaurant scenarios as opposed to official visits seemed like a stretch. Maybe not...don't know how strict the rules are in regard to these types of communications. Can someone enlighten me on the rules? Did the show go too far in its depiction of legal recruiting?

The evil coach explaining that his wife had only 3 months to live, played like a second rate soap opera. There are too many OMG moments that undermine the realism season one built.

Exactly. They spent all that time characterizing him as evil incarnate & then tried to blow it off with sob story.

Regarding the 'realism' of this season... if anyone knows Texas football, they know that, when the incident on the field occurred (trying not to spoil the episode), there would have been brawls on the field, in the stands, in the parking lot, etc. The coach probably would have been lynched from the goalposts (or dragged behind a pickup down 640-W).

What would NOT have happened would have been for the entire stadium to get quiet & then silently file out of the stadium.

Oh yeah. Nice catch.

I agree - there would have been a brawl - at least between the players, particularly given what had been going on the last few weeks. But hey, the cardiac kids pull another one out of their asses on a long screen play.

Rick Barnes! I recognized him, but couldn't remember his name. Thanks.

I think they put in enough lingering shots of coach Dickey being distracted after each encounter with coach Taylor to give his Woody Hayes moment enough impetus for it to happen. Plus, while Dickey was talking down to his team on the final play ("one play, girls, you got it in ya?"), there's a quick cut to the Larabee player (the one that also verbally committed to TMU and harrassed Smash about it in the school hallway) and he was taken aback by his coach's behavior, as if to think "Damn, he's a real dick tonight."

Smash's girlfriend looks like a young amalgamation of a young Jessica Alba and Krista Allen.

Hot and knows her football. I loved Coach's reactions to her knowledge.

Noel is teh hot. I wonder where that storyline is going...is she going to be Smash's agent now?

You're right about the time-out moment on the Larabee sidelines...we also caught that quick glimpse of the player (Chip?) who didn't appreciate his coach's remarks. Still, considering the way the coach had behaved for the past two weeks (ragging Taylor constantly, acting as if he owned the place (wienie soccer coach giving up the locker room...I thought Taylor was the A.D. and would make those decisions), grabbing Riggins in the locker room, etc. and the way the Larabee players acted most of the time (they were nearly always the provocateurs except for the Dillon players commenting about them when they first arrived), his comments didn't seem that out of character for him. Heck, that 'girls' comment didn't sound too different from lots of coaches I've heard on the sidelines (although usually that sort of thing is confined to the practice field).

Your point is taken, Patman. Although I think the writers could have made their point more effectively had they been more subtle (little snide comments such as the 'Boy Scout' remark work better than the more in-your-face behavior in showing the underlying character, in my opinion), it did seem that an attempt was made to show that the coach was unraveling beyond his usual nasty behavior.

I am kind of creeped out by Smash's girlfriend, because it feels like she is trying to latch onto him because he could be a potential NFL star. Just one question did Smash's mom want him to go to TMU, or was he just waiting to hear from them.

Hope somebody answers Bluelight's question about the TMU choice. We missed an episode somewhere about the recruiting (mistakenly thought the writers' strike was delaying any new episodes for a while 'cause we thought they had run out of filmed episodes). What is the deal with the coach & Mom seemingly favoring TMU? Are they supposed to have better academics or something? Is it because it's closer to home than some of the other schools?

I'd go to Alabama for her; and I've been there before, so I know what a sacrifice that would be.

das

Not sure about the mom, but coach wanted him to go there because it would be a better situation where he could play right away (I think). And coach knows more about that program since he was coaching there briefly.

Did Dillion win the game? All the ref said was coach interference and the game was over? Did the other team automatically lose the game because their coach interfered? Did they not state who won or did I miss something?

If you're interested in seeing the missed episode, this season's episodes are available on NBC.com

Yes, they did. The penalty for off-the-bench interference is an automatic TD, so since they were down 5, the automatic TD puts them ahead and there was presumably no time left on the clock.