Campus Confidential

Next up: Rick Neuheisel

2008-05-13T11:27:41Z

I'm finalizing a time now to speak with former walk-on, Rose Bowl champion, Pac-10 champion, lawyer, former Colorado and Washingotn coach, former Baltimore Ravens offensive coordinator and current UCLA head coach Rick Neuheisel.

Submit your questions while you can. And, yes, I will ask about the misfortune of the Bruins' QBs in spring ball.

Texas A&M coach Mike Sherman ready for a turnaround

2008-05-08T16:56:46Z

By Adam Abramson

In addition to making me look bad this season, Dennis Franchione flipped College Station upside down and left Texas A&M’s football program in a state of emergency.

The former coach recruited a ton of talent to play on Kyle Field and this Web space predicted the Aggies to win the Big 12 with their stable of offensive weapons.

Instead, they flopped to a 7-6 record, showing little toughness and often forgetting football includes playing defense.

In addition to ticking everyone off with mediocre football, Franchione raked the program over the bad press coals with stunts like the “booster newsletter” that earned him, I mean his Web site, over $37,000.

A&M decided to clean its hands of Franchione and bring in Mike Sherman from the Houston Texans. While Sherman is a stranger to running a college football program, he’s no foreigner to the A&M football program. That said, leading the Aggies won’t be that foreign a task to Sherman, who served as both general manager and head coach in Green Bay.

Purely from a personality standpoint, Sherman is the perfect hire. The Aggies have to restore their great tradition of pure football and winning and Sherman is the right man to front this movement. He’s all business and has a great appreciation for what Texas A&M football was. After all, he’s been there.

“It’s kind of like going full circle,” Sherman said. “This is my third time, so there’s a lot of familiarity, but a lot of new things, as well.”

That makes sense, considering he hasn’t coached in College Station, or on the college ranks, since 1996. After over a decade in the pros, Sherman is having to adjust to the changes that come with the college game.

“The numbers that you deal with when you get your whole squad together is 130 players and in the National Football League you had 53 with about eight practice squad players,” Sherman said. “And then the issues you deal with are so different, obviously. The academic part of things, the maturity aspects, trying to get guys to be more accountable – most of the guys in the National Football League have achieved success in those areas as far as accountability and doing your job the right way. The kids here are just learning, so you’re teaching them those things.”

Sherman served as the GM and head coach in Green Bay -- experience should weather that change rather well. Sherman acknowledged the similarities between the roles of GM and head coach at A&M, citing everything from recruiting to administrative duties.

“The transition is always a difficult time. When you take something over like I did, and like other people have done, the sooner people jump in the boat, the sooner the trust factor comes your way as a leader of the football team and the sooner you can make progress.”

Progress is what Sherman is hoping to achieve right away. A&M went 32-28 under Franchione in five seasons – far below the program’s standards. Taking over at such a fragile time, Sherman knew he had to earn the trust of his new players immediately.

“What I did was I say to the players, ‘Hey, you don’t know me very well, we don’t have a relationship, but I’m going to ask you to trust me from the get-go. Give me a leap of faith and trust that I’m going to make good decisions and lead us in the right direction. If you do that, then we’ll get to where we need to be faster. And through that time, hopefully we’ll develop a relationship that will validate everything. And if I disappoint you and you can’t trust me, so be it. But hopefully that will not be the case. Understand that I have this football team and your best interests at heart and let us move forward.’ ”

“So far the players have bought into that part of it and have trusted how we’re doing things and it has allowed us to move forward a little faster.”

While Sherman gets everyone to move forward, looking at the recent transgressions of the program is something he’s not interested in.

“I don’t want to talk about changes in regard to what [Franchione] did and what I’m going to do. There are different philosophies and whatnot,” Sherman said about noticeable differences under his watch. “I don’t want to be critical of the past. I just know what our guys are going to do. Offensively, defensively and special teams, what we’re going to do – regardless of the past – is be fairly aggressive.”

Sherman admitted he didn’t look much into the past when he took over. It’s also interesting he mentioned aggressiveness, a characteristic of A&M teams questioned at times under Franchione.

With his first spring under his belt, Sherman has had time to evaluate what he inherited.

Up front, Sherman has a fairly green unit of offensive linemen that he says he’s trying to mold. Fortunately for A&M, Sherman has over a decade of coaching offensive linemen. He admitted it’s “a work in progress.”

As for strengths, Sherman didn’t have to look far: “I would say our strength is two-fold: The quarterback and running back position.”

With Stephen McGee, Mike Goodson and Jorvorskie Lane in his offensive backfield, Sherman has much to work with. And that’s not a foreign concept to him either. Remember he’s the coach who worked with Brett Favre and drafted/developed guys like Nick Barnett, Aaron Kampman and Javon Walker.

While McGee, and any other college quarterback, is a step down from the field general Sherman had in Favre, the new A&M coach is confident in McGee.

“He’s very competitive, he was out this past [offseason] with a labrum tear. It’s in his non-throwing shoulder, but when we started up, he was very anxious to get back and get on the field and pushing the envelope. He’s a tremendous competitor,” Sherman said. “He’s very intelligent and is going to be a fine quarterback.”

One thing that will have to change under Sherman is A&M’s ability to win the close football game consistently. Two years ago, A&M’s three regular season losses were by a combined six points.

“My philosophy is to get our guys to be confident in those situations that come up in games that are game-defining plays. We practice a lot of special situations,” Sherman said. “We practice the last eight minutes of the game … a lot of variables come up that define whether you win or lose. So we practice to prepare for those three or four plays to define who win a game. And it’s not just from a functional standpoint, it’s so the players gain confidence when we get in those situations. It’s so they can say ‘We practice this, we’ve been here before.' "

Sounds exactly like what the Aggies need.

Talked to Mike Sherman, stay tuned

2008-05-07T16:02:44Z

Talked to Mike Sherman this afternoon.

I'm going to spend the rest of the day writing up something on the interview. Please stay tuned.

Why does the AP hate on fratting?

2008-05-06T16:47:42Z

Here's a story from the AP that just moved on the wire:

Authorities say nearly 100 students have been arrested at San Diego State University on drug-related charges.
Drugs, cash and guns were seized from sellers and buyers in the bust that followed a five-month undercover operation.
The San Diego County district attorney’s office says the 96 arrests include fraternity members. Defendants are scheduled to appear in state court to face charges Tuesday afternoon.

The 96 arrests included fraternity members? I wasn't in a fraternity, but I have to take issue with that sentence. What does that have to do with anything?

I was/am friends with plenty of fraternity members who spent four (in some cases five) years fratting drug free and are doing quite well today.

What's the beef, AP?

Read this post as the part of me still attached to college still taking up for fellow students, I guess.

College...

Next up: Texas A&M's Mike Sherman

2008-05-06T16:12:06Z

Tomorrow morning I'll be talking to Mike Sherman over at Texas A&M.

If you'll remember, A&M is a the team I predicted to storm through the Big 12 last year with Dennis Franchoine as coach. Well, that didn't happen.

Maybe I'm bitter and I am calling to see if Sherman will right this ship.

Who knows. Either way, I'm sure it'll be a good interview and we'll learn a lot about the direction Sherman wants to take the Aggies. I can guess that direction is upward, as quickly as possible.

Have anything you'd like me to ask? You have until 11 a.m. tomorrow to let me know.

Marcus Ball is out at Florida State

2008-05-06T15:42:07Z

By Adam Abramson

I reached out to my person in the know concerning the dismissal of Florida State linebacker Marcus Ball.

From the sound of it, Ball had just become a headache and wasn't fulfilling his end of the bargain with academics and attitude.

The coaches must have become fed up, because he's a huge loss for that defense. Ball and Geno Hayes were both eligible to play for that linebacking corps in 2008, but neither will be playing on Doak Campbell this fall. And Dekoda Watson is MIA for the first four games of the season.

Ball is the younger brother of Georgia Tech quarterback Reggie Ball and was one of the country's top players coming out of high school. He had just finished his sophomore season and had a promising future, despite injuries in his first two years.

We'll see where he ends up.

More with WVU coach Bill Stewart

2008-05-05T20:50:55Z

On strength and conditioning coach Mike Barwis leaving WVU:

Mike Barwis did a tremendous job. We just hired Mike Joseph. Tremendous young man. He was here first, went to Notre Dame [and now is back]. This guy has just gelled greatly with these young people. The style is a little different, but young people are resilient. They were resilient in that bowl game. They put aside their personal feelings -- you had to.

Mike Barwis, who we miss, my friend, [is] gone. I hate that, but it opens a new chapter. That's how we've looked at this whole thing. We have a great man in Mike Joseph. This summer is crucial. It is their time to bond. You pray. You do the best you can.

On his high-profile staff:

I never go in the defensive room, first and foremost. I've been an offensive guy my whole life. I was on the defensive staff under Fisher DeBerry for four years at Air Force. Let me say this: Army never crossed the goal line under Bill Stewart. I'm proud of that. But I never go in that defensive room.

…

[Defensive coordinator] Jeff Casteel is the best kept secret in the country.

[Note: Stewart told me a story about a journalist hyping Casteel and how he's doing everything he can to keep Casteel's prowess on defensive coaching a secret.]

…

Offensively, we've got Doc Holliday. The best recruiter in the country. Put it down, William Stewart.

How I am keeping these guys? I went to every coal miner, every mill worker, every construction worker, every laborer, every God-fearing West-by-God-Virginian. I said go out by the outhouses, dig up the coffee cans and give me money. They did. They went into their burlap sacks and coffee cans and I was able to hire the best coaching staff in the country.

On the challenge to replace Steve Slaton and Owen Schmitt:

Oh God. We don't have that plan mastered yet. How do you replace 35 [also listed the other seniors]. I don't know how you replace them. I know you can try to substitute. We have a guy named Will Johnson. He's better than that Owen coming out of the backfield. Can he block? No, he's 215. But he's an athlete.

…

We will run a little more option to replace Owen. You have to do some smoke and mirrors. We have 2 great quarterbacks in Patrick White and Jarrett Brown. We'll be OK.

To replace Steve, we've got Noel Devine [and a few young backs]. Devine had 73 carries last season. I told my coaches he'll have that in the first three games. … We've got too much talent.

On the changes we can expect with Bill Stewart running the program:

Everyone is different. We don't change for change. Offensively we will still be the same. We're going to add motion. I'm a big motion and movement guy. We're going to use a little of what Virginia Tech did with Michael Vick. I'm not a stealer, but I'm a borrower.

I truly work for the team, the university and the people of West-by-God-Virginia. If I ever become bigger than those three things, I gotta go.

The only thing difference about me is: I let the coaches coach. I coach the in meetings, not on the field. I'm not an innovator; I'm not real, real smart. I know what the good Lord blessed me with. It's not a whole lot of smarts, but he has blessed me with leadership.

On what needs shoring up for the coming season:

Depth. I'm worried about our secondary. All good football teams have tremendous offensive lines because they can control the football, and I'm an offensive line coach. I will always have a great one, and we have one.

All good defenses have good linebackers. We have good linebackers and a great scheme. Now, you can get by with youngsters in the secondary, but we have an untested secondary. And we don't have a stable of backs. The barn's not full. We have Noel Devine and a couple of young freshman coming in.

But, we have the best quarterback in the nation. We have the best winner in the nation. He oozes winning. And behind him we have Jarrett Brown. Don't be surprised to see them in the backfield at the same time.

[Note: Stewart and I talked about White's 193 carries last year and how he needs to bring that down, but he still wants the two quarterbacks on the field simultaneously, at times]

On West Virginia's chances of winning the 2009 national title:

If the Good Lord's willin' and we can stay healthy. And we take care of our Big East Conference schedule. We've got a tremendous schedule. But all things are possible. That's the great thing about college football, we can get on a great run.

That's why you gotta watch as a coach how much emphasis you put on each game. We start at Villanova; hey, Appy State beat Michigan … we've got a heck of a schedule.

Can we get 'em all? Yeah. Can we lose 'em all? Yeah. That's the great thing.

We have just as much right as anyone else to go for the big one. We've got to stay healthy. We've got to have great chemistry... We've got to have the ball bounce our way.

WVU coach Bill Stewart can keep the Mountaineers rolling

2008-05-03T00:15:59Z

By Adam Abramson

One of the first things West Virginia head coach Bill Stewart did when I picked up the phone was thank me for taking his call and giving him exposure in the big city of New York. He asked about me and when I told him I’m a Virginian, we quickly found out he has a long-standing relationship with a legendary coach from my high school, Charlie Hovis. I immediately knew it was going to be a great interview.

Stewart is a throwback to the older days of college football. Modern-day coaches and players have become so tight-lipped that sometimes the only thing you’ll hear from a program is clichés. Stewart is anything but. He had plenty to say about Rich Rodriguez’s departure, the Fiesta Bowl experience, what it takes to maintain a wining program and what his major concerns are in Morgantown.

“When Rich decided to got o Michigan, we wished him nothing but the best. I worked for him for seven years. There were some people upset, but I told them we had to get ready to for this game we had to win,” he said of the fallout before January’s Fiesta Bowl.

“I told the guys we have 20 minutes and I’ll see them on the practice field. Most went to shake coach’s hand and went out to practice … We had great practices. Sharp. Crisp. We got out there and started weaving our magic. I didn’t have to say much, I turned it over to the senior class.”

The quick turnaround and intense preparation led to a stunning and dominant 48-28 victory over Oklahoma.

Stewart told a funny story about the practices leading up to the BCS game: “Patrick White said ‘Let’s get it moving!’ He was shooting his eyes to the left, shooting them to the right and everyone was following. Then he cut his eyes to me and I said ‘Damn, I better start running. He’s talking to me!’ Pat says let’s get to work. We went to work. They just did it. You know why? They knew deep down that it was the right thing to do. It’s that simple.”

It really is that simple. You can just tell less is more with Stewart as the boss, and it works. It worked out in the desert against the Sooners.

“I told them we owed it to the people behind this program. This is a lot of pride. We’re gonna do all the right things. They bought into it hook, line and sinker. We were out there for eight days and seven nights and we had just one curfew bust. Not many know that. These guys were on a mission. We put Oklahoma in our crosshairs,” Stewart said.

He then admitted with a chuckle: “I wouldn’t want to play Bobby Stoops and OU again.”

But if things keep going the way they’re headed for West Virginia, they’ll quickly be a fixture among the Oklahomas, Ohio States, Southern Californias and Floridas of the country. Jumping out all over Georgia and Oklahoma on the stages they did are the stepping stones.

But it won’t be easy. Those stones were traversed with Rodriguez at the helm, who was able to breathe a ton of life into the program. The torch is now in Stewart’s hands, and he understands the challenge. The team wrapped up its spring on Thursday with a team meeting and the coach had a simple message.

“I said, ‘Guys, there’s no more 35, 53, 10. No more Ryan Mundys. Who is going to step up and take the bat off their shoulder? Patrick can’t carry this team. You seniors have to be just that – team-leading seniors. You can’t stand in the background.”

He stressed the importance of leading by doing things the right way and not just vocally. The right way being finishing practices hard, working together, showing up for summer workouts and showing up ready to play in the fall.

“Thirty minutes into the meeting, 1600 hours, I said ‘You’re in the right place at the right time with the right people. I believe that with every fiber. We have a great bond and a great chemistry.’ ”

Stewart then told his team they’re the focal point of the second Golden Era of West Virginia athletics. The first was led by names such as Jerry West and Sam Huff, “The only football player I recall seeing on the cover of Time magazine.”

The coming season is crucial if Stewart and his staff want to keep that hope of a second Golden Era alive. Steve Slaton, Owen Schmitt, Marc Magro, Darius Reynaud and Ryan Mundy are among a group of extremely talented players now moved on.

But with the spirit of the whole state at the forefront of the program, the future looks promising. Ask any West Virginia football fan.

“We’re going to keep the same kind of plan we had out in the desert. Keep our guys healthy … Good things will happen.”

LSU is better off without Ryan Perrilloux as QB

2008-05-02T15:34:52Z

By Adam Abramson

It's obvious Ryan Perrilloux's ship was sinking in February. I addressed it. It's really a shame. Hopefully he goes to a smaller pond, refocuses and resurfaces again some day.

I love the move on Les Miles' part, and everyone at LSU should as well.

Had Perrilloux stayed, he would have officially become larger than the team, which is cancerous for a group that won the national title and lost a group of players including offensive leaders Matt Flynn, Jacob Hester and Early Doucet as well as Ali Highsmith, Glenn Dorsey, Chevis Jackson and Craig Steltz on defense.

With a new group of leaders comes a search for identity and the focus shouldn't be on a guy who was allowed to bend the rules.

But Miles knows this and that's why he made the right move.

What's the future hold for the quarterback position? Tough to say.

At first glance it's redshirt freshman Jarrett Lee and junior Andrew Hatch. Incoming freshman Jordan Jefferson could also make a push for playing time.

But if there's a dropoff from Perrilloux, the world isn't going to stop. Keiland Williams has more talent than he knows what to do with and he would gladly take more carries.

Brandon LaFell is one of the best young receivers in the country and can make plays no matter who's throwing to him.

The Tigers offense will be fine, but the program is much better off.

Bill Stewart is the man

2008-05-02T14:05:30Z

Just got off the phone a 35-minute conversation with West Virginia coach Bill Stewart.

Hands down, best interview I've ever had.

The only problem: I have more to digest than I know what to do with, but he left me with specific instructions:

"Don't make me out to be a genius. I'm just a house painter."

I'll return.

Long Islander makes College Football Hall of Fame

2008-05-02T12:07:58Z

By Adam Abramson

I couldn't make it to the Waldorf Astoria yesterday, but it was where the 2008 College Football Hall of Fame class was announced, and it's a pretty good list.

Included on it is Don McPherson, former Syracuse quarterback and Heisman runner up. McPherson, a Long Island resident, was a fixture on the XM show this past fall and is one of the more superior football minds I've ever talked the game with.

Also, Lou Holtz is on this list. While I have been very critical of him on here, there's no denying the facts: He's undoubtedly a Hall of Famer. My disdain is purely ESPN-analyst driven.

Here is the full list:

Players
TROY AIKMAN- QB, UCLA (1987- 88)
BILLY CANNON - HB, LSU (1957- 59)
JIM DOMBROWSKI- OT, Virginia (1982- 85)
PAT FITZGERALD- LB, Northwestern (1994- 96)
WILBER MARSHALL- LB, Florida (1980- 83
RUEBEN MAYES- RB, Washington State (1982-85)
RANDALL McDANIEL- OG, Arizona State (1984-87)
DON McPHERSON- QB, Syracuse (1984- 87)
JAY NOVACEK - TE, Wyoming (1982- 84)
DAVE PARKS- SE, Texas Tech (1961- 63)
RON SIMMONS- NG, Florida State (1977- 80)
THURMAN THOMAS- RB, Oklahoma State (1984- 87)
ARNOLD TUCKER- QB, Army (1944- 46)

Coaches
JOHN COOPER- 192-84-6 (.691) -- Tulsa (1977-84), Arizona State (1985-87), Ohio State (1988- 2000)
LOU HOLTZ- 249-132-7 (.651) -- William & Mary (1969-71), North Carolina State (1972-75), Arkansas (1977-83), Minnesota (1984-85), Notre Dame (1986-96), South Carolina (1999-2004)

Congrats to Don and the rest of the class.

Coming Friday: Bill Stewart interview

2008-05-01T13:40:00Z

I've got West Virginia coach Bill Stewart on the hook tomorrow to talk a little spring football and give us some insight into what's coming up this fall.

This will be the start of a spring/summer series I hope to run with coaches from around the country to get us geared up for the 2008-2009 season.

If there's a coach you want me to reach out to, drop a name on me.

If there's a question for Bill Stewart you have (BNG), drop it on me.

I doubt he'll be too jazzed to talk RichRod, and I'm more looking towards the fall.

Scouts are not dumb, Colt Brennan

2008-05-01T13:28:27Z

By Adam Abramson

I've sat near scouts during college football games before and I've always walked away thinking the same thing: They're meticulous.

Knowing this, it made me laugh to see Colt Brennan say he lost millions by staying an extra year at Hawaii and falling to the No. 186 overall pick by the Washington Redskins.

Brennan stayed an extra year in paradise to throw 20 fewer touchdowns and 1,200 fewer yards. But his final year in Honolulu garnered him Heisman looks, a sweet tan and living on the beach. More importantly, he stayed to front a campaign that solidified my argument that the Hawaiis of the world generally fare little chance in BCS games.

Scouts, GMs, coaches and owners don't draft numbers. While Brennan regressed on the stat sheet, he didn't regress in intangibles and skill set.

After Brennan's decision following his junior campaign, The Honolulu Advertiser ran a piece about Brennan passing up the big bucks with the following passage:

UH head coach June Jones said Brennan would have been selected between the 10th and 20th pick in the first round. Matt Leinart, Brennan's high-school teammate, was the 10th pick in last year's draft. He signed a six-year contract worth up to $51 million.

Couple of things to point out:

1. Matt Leinart is a 6'5", 230-pound stud who ran a pro-style offense at Southern California. He won a Heisman Trophy and National Title manning a program that ranks near the Miami Dolphins in talent. Colt Brennan is 6'3 and weighs 205 in a rain storm. He put up monster numbers in a division that fooled linebackers my size (6'1, 200, for the record). The two's college careers are not comparable.

2. Brady Quinn was the second quarterback drafted in the 2007 draft, at No. 22. There's ZERO chance Brennan would have been drafted before Quinn. The two quarterbacks drafted after Quinn, Kevin Kolb (No. 36) and John Beck (No. 40), would have likely been drafted ahead of Brennan as well.

I'm not saying Brennan can't succeed at the NFL level, but he'll definitely earn any playing time he gets. While Leinart is being groomed to lead the Cardinals in the future, the Redskins are focusing on Jason Campbell and have their fingers crossed Brennan will contribute on some level.

Buzz Bissinger is lame

2008-05-01T02:32:38Z

By Adam Abramson

I'll say it again: Buzz Bissinger is lame.

I’m eight years younger than the mind behind deadspin.com, Will Leitch, and apparently eight years older than Buzz Bissinger’s son. I think that puts me near the beginning of this whole Internet boom and shouldn’t surprise anyone that I indeed blog.

I say he’s lame because it’s clear he’s stuck in the past. What was his point about the late W.C. Heinz? That Heinz is a better writer than Leitch, myself and every other blogger in the history of the world? OK, cool. And?

Bissinger came off as pretentious, which is found all-too-often in the words of major columnists today. I don’t need someone to imply they’re more intelligent than I am, when they’re not.

The best part of the 20-minute train wreck on Bob Costas’ show was Bissinger’s lack of a solid argument and Leitch taking the high road on several soft jabs flailed in his direction. While Bissinger may be eloquent with the pen, he came off looking like a buffoon in front of the camera.

What Bissinger sees as indecent is what I, a 24-year-old college educated sports nut, think makes Deadspin and its blogosphere peers work. The new media generation doesn’t want someone rehashing what we watched. We’re looking for the conversation we’ll have in the bar or at the water cooler.

While Heinz, Bissinger and their colleagues were, and are, great at capturing the moment with words, the camera operator on TV sufficed just fine. LeBron James’ stat line and critical jumper in the final minute mean little – I've already witnessed it and I know what it means. I’ve moved on to the Jay-Z diss and DeShawn Stevenson wearing a Michael Vick jersey. This is probably where Bissinger would look at the picture of me in the left rail and say “You’re dumbing down like the rest of your generation, you *(#&$*(&#$!!”

Sour grapes. Bissinger’s theme song is embedded.

And I won’t bother to dwell on the hypocrisy of his profanity-laden tirade on Deadspin’s indecencies.

Face it, Bissinger, the dream is over. Respected Newsday columnists Bob Glauber and Neil Best wake up every day and take to their computers to blog. And guess what? They’ve been trying to “perfect the craft” like you, for decades.

Shoot me a link when you decide to catch up and show us what blogging is all about.

The truth behind "Going Abramson"

2008-04-30T14:52:11Z

By Adam Abramson

It has been brought to my attention that there's a new phenomena sweeping the metro New York area. It's called "Going Abramson."

Considering I'm Abramson, I feel I need to clarify what happens when someone "Goes Abramson." Click that link for more back story from mentor Bob Glauber.

1. Yes, you do get very angry. But it's more of a fluster than a rage.

2. The flustering shuts down your brain. At the Draft, Bob, on several occasions, offered to transcribe any thoughts I had while the wireless network was in limbo. I had nothing. I couldn't make out words, put together thoughts. Picks were happening in front of me and I had no opinion. I couldn't speak. I waited 365 days to have my brain shut down. I'll stop before I "Go Abramson" again just thinking about it.

3. There's a whole different level of "Going Abramson" that should be documented. Generally, this side comes out when I'm playing sports or Wii bowling Friday nights on Wall Street. Don't stand near me if I miss a big jumper, an easy interception or a crucial spare. That "Going Abramson" is a more extroverted experience that's actually fun to witness, say friends. I'd also give that one an R-rating. This can come out during long drives, also. "Going Abramson" on a road trip generally happens when a semi-trailer cuts you off to pass another semi-trailer, but the first semi only goes 1 mph faster than the first making the pass take 12 minutes -- totally OK to "Go Abramson" there.

La Monica just reminded me that the No. 1 place to see Abramson "Go Abramson" is any golf course, and is highly recommended.

And always remember, "Going Abramson" requires you walk a fine line. You can never fully lose it. For instance, at the Draft, I could not totally snap, or else I would have been thrown out by security and likely been banned from all New York media functions forever. "Going Abramson" during a work softball game also requires some self-restraint, no explanation necessary. And, if you "Go Abramson" in front of your friends, be prepared to take some ribbing for it when you eventually settle down.

And always laugh it off.