Last chance to jump on the bandwagon

By By Josh Taylor/sports writer
January 18, 2004
It's official. I just reserved myself a seat on the Peyton Manning bandwagon.
I've always been partial to him because he is a son of the south, but his performance in recent weeks has made me a full-fledged disciple.
All right, I may be exaggerating just a little bit. The fact remains that you can't deny the way this guy is playing. Last week Manning went 22-for-30 for 304 yards and three touchdowns. The Colts didn't punt once during the entire game. Keep in mind that this was against a 13-3 playoff team.
Not good enough for you? The week before Manning put a 41-10 whipping on the Denver Broncos. In that game he was 22-for-26 for 377 yards and five touchdowns. Indianapolis didn't punt in that game either. One defensive coordinator actually lost his job because of Manning. Now that's impressive.
It's hard to compare guys to Joe Montana and Steve Young, but Manning definitely fits in this category. Manning has started every game for the Colts since 1998. He has thrown for more than 4,000 yards five of his six years in the NFL. During his rookie season he barely missed the 4,000 yard mark with 3,739 yards.
Manning is probably the best quarterback the league has seen since Elway and Marino were in their prime.
I don't know who will win the AFC championship game today, but I do have a pretty good feeling that this year's Super Bowl winner will come out of the AFC.
Reality TV
How many of you have been watching the overabundance of reality television pumped daily into our homes. There's Survivor, The Bachelor, The Bachelorette, Fear Factor, Celebrity Mole, and the list goes on.
I must confess that I was curious to see who would win the first Survivor, but three years later it's not quite as entertaining.
TV researchers and ratings will tell you that reality television is the newest hot trend in the broadcast world. I've got news for these people. Reality television has been going on since television was invented. It's called sports. There is no greater drama than third and long with 35 seconds to go and down by three.
Consider a few of the storylines from this NFL season. Historic coach Bill Parcells takes over one of the NFL's most storied franchises and pulls them from the depths of defeat into the playoffs in a single season.
Kansas City starts the season 9-0 with a possible run at the 1972 Dolphins' perfect season before being tripped up by a very unlikely foe, the Cincinnati Bengals.
The defending Super Bowl champions go from being called one of the best defenses of all times to not being called at all. Their opponent in last year's Super Bowl, the former top offense in the league, also fell off into oblivion.
New England loses their top defense player just days before the season starts and goes on to win their last 12 games and have a solid shot at another Super Bowl.
Jamal Lewis and Priest Holmes knock out two of the NFL's most coveted rushing records in a single season.
Donovan McNabb begins the season with two losses and most of the national media calling for his retirement before crashing back into the playoff hunt and grabbing a repeat trip to the NFC championship game.
Michael Vick, the most electrifying player in the league, goes down in preseason action and doesn't make it back until it's too late to count. Oh well, I'm sure the Falcons got all that season ticket money just the same.
In one of the most inspiring stories of the year, quarterback icon Brett Favre makes one more valiant run at an NFL title and people still ask him whether he can compete or whether he should just retire. I think Brett proved his point.
Try sending these kinds of scripts to Hollywood producers and they would laugh you out of the room. But that's the reality of sports.
It's easy for the non-fan to say that it's just a bunch of scores and stats, but we know the truth. This is a lot more real than seven people living in a house together without jobs, without rent, and plenty of free alcohol. Sure, it might be entertaining sometimes, but it's not reality.
Watch the Patriots and Colts slug it out this afternoon for the AFC title and you'll see some real reality television. It's doesn't get much more real than that.