It’s been awhile since we’ve thrown a blog together that focused on College Football.  Tonight seemed like as good a time as any.  Some big changes have happened recently including the coming of a football playoff.  Too much to discuss in our allotted time tonight, so we’ll save it for later.

Let’s take a look at our first mailbag installment.  That’s right it’s like “Dear Abby” for sports.  You send me your tired and your poor and your good questions and I’ll try my best to answer them from time to time here in the blog section.  So drop me a line, let’s talk some football, baseball, college hoops, maybe you have a little beef you want to get off your chest…here’s your chance…email me, cgoforth@wdefradio.com

If you really want to get old school, send it snail mail and keep a postal employee happy for another day. 

Chris Goforth

Fox Sports Radio 1370

2615 Broad St.

Chattanooga, TN 37408

I’ve always thought it important to respond to every email, phone call and letter that I get.  So good or bad send them this way and I’ll be glad to answer.

I get some cool stuff in the mail.  It’s one of the few perks that come with the jobs.  Today, I open up my mail and find my first piece of info from Texas A&M.  Being the good southern gentleman that I am, I thought I would do my part and welcome the Aggies to the SEC.  The literature from TA&M was an introduction to the traditions, along with a logo guide etc…

Very few programs outside the SEC can match Texas A&M’s traditions.  What I’m offering below is merely a primer to Aggie traditions. 

“The 12^thMan” – You’ve seen it plastered around Kyle Field while watching Aggie highlights on TV before.  The tradition of “The 12^thMan” comes from a thrilling game against Centre College in 1922.  The Aggies were down to just 11 men when a student came down out of the stands, suited up and stood ready to go on the field if needed.  In keeping with tradition, Aggie students stand during the entire game.  Don’t lock your knees kids, these SEC games on TV take forever, buy comfortable shoes.

“Howdy” – It’s the official greeting of Texas A&M.  Who knew?  When I was a kid, I’m pretty sure that the official greeting at the University of Tennessee was…”Damn, that Johnny Majors”.

“Yell Leaders” – In the SEC we call these folks, “male cheerleaders”.  Apparently at TA&M, they don’t cheer they yell.  They even have Yell Practice, so I guess they must be pretty good at it.

“Midnight Yell” – Not to be confused with the Allman Brothers “Midnight Rider” or Billy Idol’s “Rebel Yell”.  The midnight yell happens the night before a game.  Again, they get together and an bunch of people yell at each other late.  You do that in east Tennessee, a neighbor with a gun comes out of his trailer shooting at you.

“Gig’em” – Ah, this is TA&M’s version of “hook’em horns”.  Two thumbs up, just like Siskel and Ebert.  For those not fortunate enough to crow up in east Tennessee or other select parts of this great land, a “gig” is a pole with prongs on the end used for hunting frogs.  In College Station Texas, it used to be “Horned Frogs” I guess.  Good luck trying to catch a Gator with one of those things.

Corps of Cadets/Fightin’ Texas Aggie Band:  I’ll give TA&M credit, they got a band that will fit right in.  SEC caliber right from the start.

“Reveille” – She’s the official mascot of Texas A&M.  Reveille actually was a stray dog that a group of cadets brought on campus back in 1931.  You’re mascot is a stray dog?

The best A&M can hope for this year will be middle of the pack in the SEC West.  We’ll start previewing the conference championship race as we draw closer to kickoff.  Until then, enjoy some of these Aggie traditions.

We’re just over a month in to the Major League Baseball season and I thought it was time to take a look at our baseball predictions from way back in March.  I’ve been meaning to get this up in the blog section for weeks.  These predictions somehow managed to survive about six weeks of laying on my kitchen counter and not being thrown away, so I’m guessing that they were destined to make it to the blog section of the website.

So with all that being said, here’s your predictions (a bit late granted) from your Monday crew on The Show.

Chris Goforth

NL East: Nationals

NL Central: Reds

NL West: Dodgers

NL Wildcards: Braves/Diamondbacks

NL Champs: Reds

AL East: Rays

AL Central: Tigers

AL West:  Angels

AL Wildcards: Red Sox/Rangers

AL Champ: Tigers

Tigers vs. Reds

World Series Winner: Tigers

Jerre “Musicman” Haskew

NL East: Marlins

NL Central: Reds

NL West: Diamondbacks

NL Wildcards: Braves/Cardinals

NL Champs: Marlins

AL East: Rays

AL Central: Tigers

AL West: Rangers

AL Wildcards: Angels/Red Sox

AL Champs: Tigers

Marlins vs. Tigers World Series

Winner: Tigers

David Jenkins “DJ”

NL East: Marlins

NL Central: Brewers

NL West: Giants

NL Wildcards: Reds/Braves

NL Champ: Giants

AL East: Rays

AL Central: Tigers

AL West: Angels

AL Wildcard: Rangers/Yankees

AL Champ:Tigers

Giants vs. Tigers World Series

Winner: Tigers

So we all had the Tigers winning it all.  These fearless forecasts aren’t looking especially hot right now.  I’m sure we’ll pull these out again and in October and see how we do.  Oops, almost forgot, our loyal caller “JC” added his World Series pick, Yankees vs. Reds, with the Yanks taking the title.

The summer is heating up and baseball is just getting underway, enjoy the season and remember, you can always hear the Braves on Fox Sports Radio 1370!!

Random thoughts on tonight’s NFL Draft…

Nick Saban was on hand to see four Crimson Tide players drafted in the first round for the second year in a row.    Alabama’s 2008 recruiting class included seven first round draft picks.

Three natives from the state of Tennessee were drafted tonight…none of whom played for the University of Tennessee.

 The Titans grabbed Baylor Wide Receiver Kendall Wright.  Wright should remind Titan fans of Derrick Mason.  He can make some people miss and should have some good YAC numbers.  A little surprising to see a team that really needed a pass rusher, go after a wide receiver.  Titans had some good production from a faceless group of receivers after Kenny Britt went down last year.  This is a great draft for pass rushers and there were a lot of impact guys that Tennessee passed over in the first round.  The rest of the draft should be interesting for the Titans.  Titans GM Ruston Webster was overseeing his first ever draft after being in the league since 1988. 

Andrew Luck carries a $10 flip phone.  It was that phone that he took the official call from the Colts tonight, making him the number one overall player.

 The Cowboys took Mo Claiborne in the first round with the sixth pick.  Prior to 8:30pm Thursday night, Dallas had zero contact with Claiborne.  No interview, no phone calls, no contact, nothing.  Great pick up for the Cowboys who had a hard time defending the pass late in games last season. According to sources, the Cowboys had Claiborne the number two player in the draft on their “big board”, ahead of RGIII.   Jerry Jones has made 59 draft day trades since buying the team in the late 80’s. 

The first round of the 2012 Draft featured 19 trades.  That is the most in the first round since at least 1970.  First time since 1980 that no Miami, Florida or Florida State player was taken in the first rounds.   The first round lasted exactly three hours.  Perfect.  Great for TV.  So much more compelling than those marathon rounds in years past.  Rich Eisen is without a doubt the best studio host on an NFL broadcast.  Did Mike Mayock really refer to Darren Sharper tonight as “what’s his name”?  Come on Mike, you are so much better than that!

Those new draft day hats?  UGLY.  Who went back to 1993 to find those things?

Join us Friday for “The Show with Chris Goforth” on Fox Sports Radio 1370.  We’ll be breaking down tonight’s NFL Draft and talking some baseball.  12noon – 3pm on Fox Sports Radio 1370.