S. Evan Townsend's Blog, page 56

The Huskies are 8-2

I'm going to write this post in two parts: Saturday Morning after the Friday night Husky game and Sunday Morning when all the other games have been played and the AP Top 25 Poll has come out.

Saturday Morning

The University of Washington Huskies played Stanford last night in Palo Alto, California. I knew going in this was going to be a tough game, playing Stanford on their home turf is never easy. But at first, it looked like there was no problem for the Dawgs. The Cardinal (it's a color) got the ball first but were stopped by the Huskies' amazing defense, and then the Huskies scored a touchdown, and then the defense stopped Stanford again and the Huskies scored again in the second quarter. Then the Cardinal scored. It might have been a high-scoring game except...the Huskies somehow stopped playing hard. Starting in the second quarter, Stanford kept racking up points as the hapless Huskies would go three and out on most series. At some point in the fourth quarter, the announces mentioned that the Huskies had had only one first down in the second half.

With less than five minutes to go, the Huskies came alive and tried to make up a 16 point deficit. They got a touchdown and made the two-point conversion. But it was too little, too late.

The Huskies aren't used to being behind and I wonder if the farther behind they got, the more demoralized they became. Something was off last night. The final score of the game was 22-30.

This makes the Huskies 8-2 over all and 6-2 in conference.

On Sunday morning we'll see how the rest of the Pac-12 shakes out and what happens in the AP poll. But this finishes Washington's slim hopes of being the the CFP playoffs. No Pac-12 team will make the playoffs this year.

Sunday Morning

Last Tuesday, the CFP committee put the Huskies at #9. I'm assuming they will be lower this week when the rankings come out on Tuesday. The AP poll also had them at #9.

Yesterday, Washington State University Cougars beat Utah bringing their record to 9-2 overall and 6-2 in conference. That puts them on top of the Pac-12 North. But their bye week is next week (meaning they have two weeks to prepare for the Apple Cup rivalry game with UW). Likely, the Pac-12 North championship will come down to the Apple Cup, if UW beats Utah next week at home.

Stanford is also 6-2 in conference but 7-3 over all so they're in third place. They play Nortre Dame on the last weekend of the regular season. They play California in their rivalry game next week.

In the Pac-12 South, USC beat Colorado to remain in the top position. They play UCLA next week in that cross-town rivalry game. Their bye week is the last week of the regualar season, giving them more time to prepare for the Pac-12 Championship game. The Pac-12 did a horrible job of scheduling bye weeks this year. That's probably partly to blame on ESPN and Fox, who have contracts with the Pac-12 to show the games.

It's too bad Washington lost, they could have gone up a lot in the AP poll and the CFP rankings. That's because #10 Auburn beat #1 Georgia (these rankings are CFP). And #7 Miami Florida beat #3 Notre Dame. As those teams drop, Washington could have moved up.

In the AP top 25 poll (which is a hint of what the CFP committee will do), Washington is now at #16 with no chance of getting into the playoffs (top 4). USC is the top-ranked Pac-12 team at #12. WSU is at #15 (yes, higher than Washington). And Stanford is back in the top 25 at #20.

Georgia dropped from #2 in the AP poll to #7 and Notre Dame went from #3 in the AP poll to #9.

Washington plays Utah next week at home. The game is at 7:30 PM PST on ESPN. I hate these late games.

The Speculative Fiction Cantina with Catrina Taylor and Jack Hillman

Today on the Speculative fiction Cantina we are pleased to welcome writers Catrina Taylor and Jack Hillman.
Catrina TaylorCatrina Taylor

Mother, Author, and scifi enthusiast, Catrina Taylor keeps her words flowing, worlds growing, and friends in touch with what is going on. She is currently working on the release of a new universe in the first quarter of 2018.

Catrina's Books:

The Choosing: Knights of the Immortals (Book 2)

Noble Transition: Knights of the Immortals (Book 3)

Choices: Knights of the Immortals (Book 4)

Catrina's Links:

Website
Facebook
Twitter
Amazon

Jack HillmanJack Hillman

Jack Hillman is a journalist, novelist, playwright and a medical underwriter.  His published fiction has appeared in Buzzy Mag, Sorcerous Signals, Amazon Shorts, Aberrations, the Kings of The Night III anthology, and the Magistria: World Of The Sorcerer anthology.  His most recent novel, Magic Forgotten- was released September 2017, the first book of a new series.

Jack's Books:

Giants Want The Lost River

Giants Want Ragnarok

Magic Forgotten

Jack's Links:

Website
Facebook

From today's Program: Alien Visitor to the Solar System

Listen to today's program at 6:00 PM ET / 3:00 PM PT, or in archive here.

My Middle Name

Back to the 30-day blogging challenge that I'm doing in 30 weeks (approximately).

Today's prompt is: "Your middle name and how you feel about it."

This is kind of funny for me. I go, professionally by my middle name: "Evan." This is why I'm "S. Evan Townsend." I like my middle name better than my first name (which starts with "S," obviously). People who know me personally call me by my first name (one calls me "S.") and as a child I only heard my middle name when I was in trouble.

My brother-in-law goes by his middle name personally and professionally. I didn't know for a long time that he had another name. It's not bad, I don't know why he doesn't like it.

My wife, on the other hand, hates her middle name. I think it's cute, but she loathes it. She wasn't happy when I gave a character that name. I won't say what her middle name is, but it's an old Norse name. And the character is in Hammer of Thor .

So, obviously, I like my middle name (better than my first name). Although I'm still getting used to people calling me "Evan."

How do you feel about your middle name? Comment below.

Star Trek: Discovery "Issues."

This post is going to reveal what a geek I am. And warning:

**Spoilers Ahead***
I have so far watched seven episodes of Star Trek: Discovery. And I have..."issues" with it.
It's very well made, and well written, and looks gorgeous in 4K (I'm watching it through an Amazon Fire TV with 4K). The main actors do a fine job and it seems everyone buys into the Star Trek mythos. There's not a smirk in the bunch (unlike the J.J. Abrams Star Trek movies).
Star Trek: Discovery (hereafter ST:D) is set ten years before the first Star Trek series (the original series, hereafter ST:TOS) with Spock and Kirk and Bones. So it's a prequel.
I'm not going to complain about ST:D having technology that wasn't in ST:TOS such as holograms and to activate the transporter you move a slider on a screen, not a physical slider. I can live with that. After all, our technology, especially in movie/television special effects, has changed a lot since the late 1960s.

I'm not going to complain that in all the ST:TOS episodes and movies, Spock never once mentioned having a human foster sister.
I'm not even going to bitch about the science errors (how did the Beacon of Kahless, basically a very bright light, communicates over interstellar distances in a matter of minutes?)
But there are a lot of continuity issues with ST:TOS and Star Trek: The Next Generation (hereafter ST:TNG). I almost wish I'd taken notes, there are so many.
1) The Klingons have cloaking. This is about 12 years before the Klingons got cloaking. In "The Enterprise Incident" episode of ST:TOS it is explained that the Romulans traded cloaking technology to the Klingons in exchange for ships. This is when the Klingons first had the cloaking device. Now, in ST:D it's only one (or two) ships and a lot of the Klingons are surprised by it. But it's never explained how a Klingon got cloaking technology.
2) The insignia everyone wears is wrong. In ST:TOS all the ships had their own insignia. The  Enterprise Command InsigniaEnterprise's insignia was the triangle thing that everyone now associates with Star Trek When the Enterprise came back from its very successful five-year mission, Star Fleet made it's insignia the symbol of Star Fleet. That's why in the movies, in ST:TNG, and other later shows, everyone is wearing the stylized triangle of the Enterprise.  In ST:D, everyone is already wearing that Enterprise insignia. They shouldn't be. They should be wearing an insignia unique to their ship.

3) In the ST:TOS episode "Day of the Dove," Kirk does a very risky "site-to-site" transport from the transporter room to inside the ship. This was supposed to be the first time it's tried and worked. In ST:D, they do this all the time (okay, three times). They sort of needed to for the plot, but it's still an inconsistency. (By the time ST:TNG came around, site-to-site teleportation was old hat.)

4) Captain Lorca has a tribble in his ready room. If he knows about tribbles, how come they were such a shock to Kirk in the ST:TOS episode "The Trouble with Tribbles"? Lorca apparently knows not to feed it so he won't be knee-deep in tribbles. How come Dr. McCoy had to figure that out?

5) The Klingons don't look like Klingons. Okay, the art department wanted to put their own spin on them. But at least give them hair.

6) Harry Mudd's character is, in my opinion, violated. He is not a killer, he's a con man. He's too chicken to kill someone.

And 7) The Discovery doesn't look like a Star Fleet ship. In fact, none of the ships really do. I know it's supposed to be ten years earlier, but the Enterprise in Star Trek: Enterprise looked more like a Starfleet ship than the Discovery does.

It's still a pretty good show. But I wish they'd honor their heritage by being a little more consistent with the Star Trek canon.


UPDATE: In last night's episode they said that Star Fleet doesn't have the death penalty. But they do: going to Talos IV, as described in "The Menagerie" episode of ST:TOS.

Huskies are 8-1

Yesterday, Ohio State, which was ranked #3 in the AP top 25 poll and #6 in the CFP rankings, lost to Iowa. Not #14 (#15 CFP) Iowa State, but Iowa. They just didn't lose to the unranked Hawkeyes, they were trounced. This means Ohio State is going to be dropping a lot in both the AP poll and the CFP rankings (which come out Tuesday).

Which is good news for every team ranked below them, including the University of Washington Huskies.

Last night the Huskies took on the Oregon Ducks in a rainy game at Husky Stadium. Oregon took the kickoff to start the game and then managed to march down the field. The Husky defense held them to a field goal, putting them on the board first at 3-0. Then the Huskies marched down the field, but got held to a field goal attempt. Place kicker Viscano tried and missed. This was the nadir of the game.

The Ducks never scored again. Dante Pettis made his 8th career runback for a touchdown from a punt, making him the NCAA all time record holder for that accomplishment. From then on out, the Huskies dominated the hapless Ducks, who often just went three and out when they had the ball. A fake reverse got the Huskies seven more points. When the score was 38 - 3 and there was about 9 minutes left in the game, Husky coach Chris Petersen, as he does, started rotating backup players into the game. Even then, the Ducks couldn't score (even though they could move the ball better). The final score was 38 - 3. The missed field goal denied us a 40+ score, something I think is needed to impress the voters of the AP poll and the CFP committee.

Also yesterday, the Washington State Cougars defeated Stanford in Pullman. This is both good and
bad for the Huskies. It's good because now the Dawgs are securely in the top spot of the Pac-12 North with an 8-1 record (5-1 in conference). The Cougars are number two at 8-2 overall, 5-2 in conference. And Stanford is at number three with a 6-3 overall and 5-2 in conference.

But it's bad because this will probably drop Stanford out of the AP and CFP top 25, meaning next week's game when the Huskies travel to Palo Alto to play the Cardinal, Stanford won't be ranked. And the Huskies will still not have played a ranked team. That will have to wait until the Apple Cup the Saturday after Thanksgiving (assuming the Cougs don't "Coug it" in their game against Utah next week. their last game before the Apple Cup).

In the Pac-12 South, after defeating the Arizona Wildcats, USC is firmly in control and will probably be the Pac-12 South winner with an 8-2 overall and 6-1 in conference record.

The Playoff Hopes:

If Washington doesn't lose any more games and beats USC in the Pac-12 championship game, they might have a chance at a playoff spot. But this year the competition is so strong, it seems unlikely. Washington's strength of schedule (or lack thereof) will hurt them with the committee. Sure, Ohio State is out, but you have powerhouses such as Alabama (who Washington lost to last year in the playoffs), Georgia, Notre Dame, and Clemson currently in the top four positions. Alabama and Georgia are undefeated. I don't see that list changing unless one of the top four has an upset loss. Washington should move up with Ohio State's loss, but I don't see them getting into the top four slots anytime this season, which is where you have to be to be in the playoffs.

The Polls:

The CFP doesn't come out until Tuesday. But the AP top 25 poll comes out at 2 PM EST (11 AM PST) today (Sunday).

Ohio State dropped from #3 to #11. Washington went from #12 to #9, putting them back in the top 10. USC went from #17 to #15, and WSU went from #25 to #19. And Stanford dropped out of the top 25. Arizona also dropped out of the top 25 after being ranked for one whole week.

It'll be interesting to see what happens Tuesday with the CFP rankings.

We Love to Hate Oregon

Today the University of Washington Huskies play the University of Oregon Ducks. For many Husky fans, this rivalry is even more important than the cross-state rivalry between the Huskies and the Washington State University Cougars.

I talk about why, here. Let's just say that Huskies love to hate the Oregon Ducks.

Last year, after I wrote that post linked above, we destroyed Oregon 70-21 on their home turf. Think of that more as ten touchdowns to three touchdowns. Making ten touchdowns in one game is a amazing accomplishment for any team. It was a wonderful part of the Huskies'
Oregon Logowonderful 2016 season. Oregon fired their coach at the end of the season and brought in a new guy. Phil Knight (Nike founder and Oregon graduate) has said he'll pay up to $10 million per year for a coaching staff that can make Oregon great again.

Today's game is at Husky Stadium so we get to play at home. Oregon, rebuilding after what was an awful year for them last year, is 5-4 overall, 2-4 in conference so far on the season while the Huskies are 7-1 overall, 4-1 in conference. This should be a fairly easy win for the Huskies (of course, I thought that about Arizona State).

The game is at 7:00 PM PDT on FS1. It'll be interesting to see what awful uniform the Ducks are going to wear.

The Speculative Fiction Cantina with Parker J Cole and K. T. Conte

Today on the Speculative Fiction Cantina we are pleased to welcome writers Parker J Cole and K. T. Conte.
Parker J ColeParker J Cole and also writing as Parker Payne

Parker J. Cole is an author, speaker, radio host and executive of PJC Media with an obsession for the Lord, Star Trek, K-dramas, anime, romance books, old movies, speculative fiction, and knitting. A former Mountain Dew and marshmallow addict, she writes to fill the void the sugar left behind. Find out any and everything about her at parkerjcole.com. Or just ask.

Parker's Works:

Druid’s Spear (writing as Parker Payne)

The Cure 

"Godforsaken" (short story)

Parker's Links:

Website
Blog
Twitter
BlogTalkRadio


K. T. ConteK. T. Conte

K.T. Conte is a lover of books, people and all things wild and crazy. She received her B.A. in English from Boston College and her law degree from Suffolk University Law School. While she has and continues to be a licensed attorney, her first love has always been books from the tender age of 2. Originally from Massachusetts, K.T. currently lives in New York City with the monsters in the closet, her husband Everett, a couple of building fairies and her dog, Champ.

K.T.'s Book:

Awoke: The Want Series

K.T.'s Links:

Website
Blog
Facebook
Twitter

From Today's Program: An Inflatable Habitat Orbiting the Moon.

Listen to today's program at 6:00 PM ET / 3:00 PM PT, or in archive here.

Two More Pet Peeves

Wow, November already. Christmas will be here soon.

Back to the 30-day blogging challenge. Today's prompt: "Your Top Five Pet Peeves."

Well, I did three here. So I guess I only need two more.

Number Four: People who post stupid stuff on Facebook that if they took a moment to think about it, they would know it's not accurate. For example, it seems every six months or so this thing goes around about posting something will protect your privacy on Facebook. Or something. I never read it.

This seems to have abated lately and instead there's tons of Fake News. Whenever I see something on FB that claims to be news, I check the source. If it isn't a source I trust (mostly major news organizations), I dismiss it. And it swings from far left to far right.

Number Five: I do a fair amount of book signings. And people will come up to you, pick up a book, and flip through nearly all the pages. I have no idea why. But I tell them, "Yes, there's print on every page." Because what else are they looking for? I know some folks are looking to see how big the font is, but you don't have to look at every damn page to do that.

Or kids with dirty hands will come up and I say, "Please don't touch the books" in an authoritative voice and...they touch the books.

So there's two more pet peeves in addition to the three I did earlier. What are your pet peeves?

Not Doing NaNoWriMo This Year.

This is the first day of NaNoWriMo.

Might as well get it out now: I'm not doing NaNoWriMo this year.

I've done it four years, won three of those years. The three novels I won with were the "Treasures of Space" novels ( Treasure of the Black Hole , Treasure of the Pirate Planet , and Treasure of the Rogue Moon). The novel I didn't win with was Book of Death , which I did eventually finish. What stopped me from winning was I realized I needed to do a lot of research on Romania (where most of the novel is set) and I didn't have time to do that and finish the novel by the end of November.

Last year I didn't do NaNoWriMo because I had nothing to write. I was trying to write a novel, had writer's Hoover Dam (not just a block, but Hoover Dam). This year I started a short story which is now around 25,000 words. I'm not going to stop writing it to do a NaNo novel. And I don't think I'll get 50,000 more words out of it (I'm hoping for 35,000 more).

So no NaNo for me. I'll just keep plugging away at my current work in progress. It's working title is Chumba of the Intelligence Corps: The Smugglers of Mars. It's a prequel to the "Treasures of Space" novels.

Huskies are 7-1 (and the Cougars aren't)

Yesterday the University of Washington Huskies played the UCLA Bruins at home. And they won quite handily by a score of 44-23. UCLA's score would have been less but once the Huskies got over 40 points, Chris Petersen, as he does, put in back up players. This allowed the Bruins to make a defensive touchdown and an offensive touchdown, adding 14 points to their score. I hope the voters for the AP poll realize this.

The Huskies did running plays most of the game. This frustrated me because I love watching Jake Browning throw the ball. But, apparently Petersen and his staff decided running was the best way to beat UCLA. A win is a win and I'll take it.

And the Huskies looked so much better than they did two weeks ago when they lost to Arizona State. Even the kicking game worked as the UW kicker was perfect in the game. The Huskies are 7-1 over all and 4-1 in conference.

Next week the Huskies play the Oregon Ducks at home. The Ducks are rebuilding after their awful year last year with a new coach. Still they are 5-4 overall and 2-4 in conference. So, if the Huskies play up to par, they should win this game.

Elsewhere in the Pac-12

As I said yesterday, The Washington State-Arizona game had implications for both the Pac-12 North and the Pac-12 South. Since Arizona won it 58-37, that puts the WSU Cougars 7-2 overall and 4-2 in conference. Unless Stanford and UW both screw up, that puts them out of the running for the Pac-12 North championship.

Stanford (6-2 overall, 5-1 in conference) and UW are still neck and neck for the Pac-12 North championship. They play November 10th (a Friday) and the winner of that game will likely be the Pac-12 North champion now that WSU is out of the running..

In the Pac-12 South, USC is still on top at 7-2 overall and 5-1 in conference. But Arizona is now nipping at their heels at 6-2 overall, 4-1 in conference (USC has yet to have a bye). These two teams play next week so the winner will likely be the Pac-12 South champion.

The Polls:

The first College Football Playoff (CFP) poll, which is chosen by committee, comes out Tuesday. The top four teams in that poll at the end of the season go to the playoffs. The AP poll came out Sunday morning (just a bit ago).

TCU (who got beat yesterday) dropped from #4 to #10 and now Wisconsin is #4. The CFP often closely mirrors the AP poll so Wisconsin may now be in the playoffs. But it's a long ways to January.

Another upset yesterday, #2 Penn State lost to #6 Ohio State. Now Penn State is #7 and probably out of the playoffs and Ohio State is #3 and has a good chance to be in the playoffs. But it's still a long ways to January.

UW stayed at #12 (needed to keep UCLA from scoring those last two touchdowns). Still the highest-ranked Pac-12 team for the second week in a row.

USC moved up to #17 from #21. Stanford moved from #20 to #18

Arizona entered the top 25 at #23.

And WSU is on the bubble at #25, falling from #15.

When the CFP comes out, I'll probably post that (on Wednesday).