The Lesser of Two Evils
Did you see the way the University of Notre Dame's players and coaches ATTACKED Michigan State's Matt Trannon on the Notre Dame sideline? Holy moley! First, a Fighting Irish player delivered a late hit on a Spartan. Then, Trannon waded in to assist his quarterback; out of the blue, an ND player grabbed Trannon's facemask while an ND coach (or at least someone not in a player's uniform) yanked Trannon from behind. At this point, Trannon lost his head and acted like a blasted fool, nullifying the late hit penalty for which the Irish had been rightly flagged. Did Trannon commit a penalty? Yes, quitely blatantly, and the officials made the right decision in throwing that flag. Why didn't they flag Notre Dame for attacking him in the first place?

Go back and examine every vile, hateful thing I have ever said about Notre Dame's coaches, players, and alumni and you will find I have never accused themn of displaying thuggish behavior. Butt that's what they are: thugs. Only a pack of thugs would simultaneously attack a lone Spartan from the front and the back. Bog knows I hate the Spartans. They are both thugs and braggarts. But they didn't attack a lone Irish player on their sideline the way the Irish attacked Matt Trannon. Charlie Weiss may not be a thug, but his players and assistant coaches are. If Star Trek has taught me anything, it is that a captain is responsible for the conduct of those under his command.

ND should change their nickname from the Fighting Irish to the Thuggish Irish... though if you listen to the 19th century Nativists, called the Irish thuggish is redundant. I am a quarter Irish by blood; so, thanks Notre Dame, for confirming the worst things people say about my heritage. You know I could never, ever bring myself to mean the words "Go Spartans!" However, for the second half of the Michigan State-Notre Dame game I will go out on a limb and cheer, "Don't lose, Spartans... you losers!"