I thought she was 26...

Non Football Thought:
New reports are surfacing that gold medal Chinese gymnast He Kexin might actually be 14 instead of the required 16. Given this photo from Getty Images, was there really any doubt that this young girl, talented though she may be, was born well after Pearl Jam first hit the airwaves? It's probably safe to say that, given his reportedly gargantuan diet, Michael Phelps probably eats two He Kexin's for breakfast everyday (as well as a five-egg omelet.)

Please, please dominate me.

Non Football Thought:

The U.S. beats Brazil in soccer. Japan beats the U.S. in softball. The favored U.S. men drop the baton in the relays. The favored U.S. women do the same thing. The U.S. sweeps the 400 meters, but favorite Jeremy Wariner comes in second.

What ever happened to good old fashioned Olympic predictability? Outside of the occasional quasi-jingoistic feel-good upset --- U.S. beats Russia in ice hockey; 65-year-old German gymnast wins silver, yada yada --- my theory is people love dominance and inevitability in Olympic sports. See: Michael Phelps.

Olympic sports are obscure enough. (It took me a Google search to figure out that the “200-fly” meant 200-meter butterfly.) But when Unknown Athlete X beats Phelps, it’s a total bummer.

Don’t ask me why, but put the hated New York Yankees in a pool in swimming trunks and all of a sudden LeBron and Kobe are in the stands cheering you on. Put Phelps in a New England Patriots jersey and suddenly you're a cheating Satan in a helmet.

An emotional two-week extravaganza that flames out quickly after its conclusion, the Olympics might be the ultimate bandwagon event.

A "Q" Tip. Har.

This tip passed on from colleague Erik Rodriguez: The Texas Longhorns are experimenting this year with a two quarterback formation. That's right, two QBs in the backfield. It's called Texas's "Q Formation." I guess that's what happens when you have, like, six five-star recruits vying for signal caller.

Computers are the darndest things.

Nary a snap has been played, yet Jeff Sagarin, he of computer polling fame (and an Indiana resident, I might add), has already computed that USC is No. 1 in 2008. The rankings can't be all that bad. It has my alma mater, Boston College, ranked No. 18. Um, sure they are. Absolutely.

Redemption for Ricky?

Ever since I spotted Ricky Williams cruising down the UT Drag, Rastafarian-style, in his Hummer during the NFL off-season in Austin, I knew he danced to the beat of a different drummer. Now comes word that the Rickster
has emerged as the Dolphins' No. 1 back during training camp. I'll believe it when I see The Tuna pose for a magazine cover like the one you see to the right.

A sneeze shy of naked...

Non Football Thought:

I'm no fashionista, but did the skimpy/semi-translucent outfits of the United States give pause to anyone watching the gold medal match for Women's Beach Volleyball? The U.S. played China and won. Perhaps more importantly, U.S. players Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor spurred a national discussion of whether all women's beach volleyball matches should henceforth be played in a torrential downpour with 95 percent humidity.

New York's new color: Orange.

In an attempt to rebrand itself and expand its marketing base, Syracuse is tagging itself as "New York's College Team." As a former resident of the Tri-State area, I can assure you that Syracuse, which I still root for in a fetishistic kind of way because they play in a cool dome, is most definitely not "New York's Team." Truth is, New York doesn't have a college team, unless you count the Jets, which is kind of like a minor league football team, Brett Favre aside. Maybe there are stats that show otherwise. But given that the 'Cuse is some 250 miles away from NYC and 150 miles from Buffalo, I'd say that Syracuse is, well, Syracuse's team. As for Syracuse's chances this year? Hmmm. Given that they have posted a 7-28 record over the past three seasons, I'd say their chances of winning the Big East conference this year are, oh, roughly zero percent.