Beer Championship Series final: Your vote decides the winner
It all comes down to this, folks. Two beers going head to head for the title of Oklahoma’s favorite beer. Your votes have sent 62 beers packing. So who are our competitors? Here’s how Monday’s Final Four voting went:
-Marshall McNellie’s Pub Ale- 88 percent vs. Modelo Negra – 12 percent
-Fat Tire – 57 percent vs. Guinness – 43 percent
Modelo Negra’s improbable George Mason-like run finally comes to an end at the hands of Tulsa’s own McNellie’s Pub Ale, while the upstart Fat Tire knocks off the traditional power Guinness.
And now we’re down to two: Oklahoma Region champion McNellie’s Pub Ale vs. the USA Region’s champ, New Belgium’s Fat Tire. Who will win the title? That’s up to you. To spice things up a little bit, I’ll hide the voting results today. The winner will be revealed Wednesday morning. Good luck to both beers!
Big 12 (Lack of) Power Poll: Week 11
This week in the Big 12: Don’t fire Dan Hawkins, keep it loose Texas Tech — whoa, not that loose! – and Basement Bowl 2009!
(Note: If you’re looking for the Beer Championship Series, see the post below this one.)
1. Colorado (3-7, 2-4, lost to Iowa State 17-10; next, at Oklahoma State) Can someone please bring the Dan Hawkins era to an end! Wait, what am I talking about? I love it when Big 12 teams other than Oklahoma State suck. Save Dan Hawkins, save Dan Hawkins!
2. Kansas (5-5, 1-5, lost to Nebraska 31-17; next, at Texas) Who among us saw this one coming? Kansas returns its leading quarterback, two leading wide receivers and starting running back, and the offense completely falls apart? A bounce-back year will be tough next season with all those guys gone. Or maybe they’ll actually be better off.
3. Baylor (4-6, 1-5, lost to Texas 47-17; next, at Texas A&M) Baylor has seen a lot of demoralization this year, but I think being down 40-0 in the first half, at home, on senior day, has to be about the lowest point.
4. Texas A&M (5-5, 2-4, lost to Oklahoma 65-10; next, vs. Baylor) It’s fitting that Texas A&M and Baylor square off this Saturday. Battle for the Big 12 South Basement 2009! Be there!
5. Iowa State (6-5, 3-4, beat Colorado 17-10; next, at Missouri) Not much to say about Iowa State, so I’ll say this: Has the Big 12 North ever been this bad? You pretty much have to go undefeated in conference to win the south; in the north, three losses and you still got a chance. Are you kidding me?
6. Kansas State (6-5, 4-3, lost to Missouri 38-12; next, at Nebraska) So much for Bill Snyder as coach of the year. Although by some stroke of magic — or by some stroke of everyone in the Big 12 North being awful this year — KSU can still put itself into the title game with a win Saturday.
7. Missouri (6-4, 2-4, beat Kansas State 38-12; next, vs. Iowa State) How unremarkable is Missouri’s football team this year? The video playlist on the Missouri football homepage on ESPN.com has two videos: Highlights from the season opener against Illinois and a college basketball preview.
8. Texas Tech (6-4, 3-3, lost to Oklahoma State 24-17; next, vs. Oklahoma) Isn’t it great how Texas Tech players were so loose on Saturday against Oklahoma State? Jumping around on the sideline, jumping around on the field. They sure looked like they didn’t have a care in the world. Especially not stopping the run.
9. Oklahoma (6-4, 4-2, beat Texas A&M 65-10; next, at Texas Tech) Heading into Saturday’s game, OU played the part of the mountain climber trapped in the Swiss Alps; Texas A&M played the part of the St. Bernard with the mini-keg strapped around its neck. The Sooners seemed to like that medicine.
10. Nebraska (7-3, 4-2, beat Kansas 31-17; next, vs. Kansas State) Your uninspiring 7-3 team of the week, ladies and gentlemen! Is it possible that of Nebraska’s seven wins, only one can really even be considered a good win? Why yes. Yes it is.
11. Oklahoma State (8-2, 5-1, beat Texas Tech 24-17; next, vs. Colorado) The Cowboys keep doing enough to win conference games, mainly thanks to their defense, which is now ranked 32nd in total defense, 25th in scoring defense and No. 7 against the rush. Whatever the award for assistant coach of the year is, if Bill Young doesn’t get it, it’s a total traveshamockery.
12. Texas (10-0, 6-0, beat Baylor 47-14; next, vs. Kansas) Texas reminded Baylor it is still a minor league Big 12 affiliate, throwing down a 40-spot in the first half. Now the Longhorns have three simple steps before claiming a spot in the national title game: Beat an imploding Kansas at home, beat a terrible Texas A&M on the road and beat (insert below-average Big 12 North team here) in the conference title game.
Vote today in the BCS Final Four!
To get yourself in the mood for some Final Four action, listen to this clip. Sixty beers down, only four remain. This is the Beer Championship Series Final Four! Your vote will determine who will win the crown of Oklahoma’s favorite beer. How did we get to this point?
And without further delay, let’s get on to the voting:
BCS Final Four is set: Voting will be Monday
We have crowned our regional champions in the Beer Championship Series! Your Final Four participants are:
-Oklahoma Region: Marshall McNellie’s Pub Ale – 73 percent vs. Mustang Golden Ale – 27 percent
-International Region: Modelo Negra – 57 percent vs. Red Stripe – 43 percent
-USA Region: Fat Tire – 60 percent vs. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale – 40 percent
-Europe Region: Guinness – 55 percent vs. Newcastle Brown Ale – 45 percent
So our Final Four match-ups are McNellie’s Pub Ale vs. Modelo Negra and Fat Tire vs. Guinness. Come back Monday for voting to see who will make the finals.
Thirsty Beagle Sports Shorts
Some random sports thoughts for a Friday afternoon:
(Note: If you’re looking for the Beer Championship Series, see the post below this one.)
-No joke, a headline in today’s Tulsa World says “Flu kills 7 more Sooners.” I mean, broken bones and ruptured tendons are bad enough, but if this keeps up, OU will have to start Jimmy Stevens at right tackle.
-Speaking of the Sooners and kickers, did anyone consider that when you’re depending on a football player named Tress, things probably are not going to work out for you?
-And one more OU note: People may or may not like the new Nike uniform the Sooners will wear at Texas Tech, but they should all be glad they won’t be wearing the gear Nike put together for TCU. Horned frog skin print pants and helmet? Yikes.
-My hometown Toronto Raptors are scuffling along at 4-4. My guilt level for canceling NBA League Pass after three years: holding steady at 3 out of 10.
-One-time metro-area resident Byron Scott was fired from the New Orleans Hornets, who are getting out of the gate rather slowly this year. Sure they’ve got Chris Paul, but if you could pick either the Hornets or Thunder, which one would you take now? One look at Paul’s surrounding cast, and I’d best most in this area would rather have the Thunder.
-I get that nationally televised games are great for exposure and recruiting and all that good stuff, but OSU’s night games in mid-November are pushing it. This Saturday’s forecast calls for a low of 47 and a 50 percent chance of thunderstorms. OSU better win if fans are going to have to sit through those conditions.
-I know who is the winner of the Jay Cutler-Kyle Orton trade: Every team in the NFL except the Broncos and Bears.
Beer Championship Series: Vote in the Elite Eight
An impressive day of voting yesterday in the Beer Championship Series; now the field has been cut from 16 to eight. Today, it’ll be chopped in half again and we’ll have our regional champions. First, here are Thursday’s winners:
-Oklahoma Region: Mustang Golden Ale – 53 percent vs. COOP DNR – 47 percent
-International Region: Modelo Negra – 66 percent vs. Sapporo – 34 percent
-USA Region: Sierra Nevada Pale Ale – 64 percent vs. Shiner Bock – 36 percent
-Europe Region: Guinness - 70 percent vs. Pilsner Urquell – 30 percent
-Oklahoma Region: Marshall McNellie’s Pub Ale – 57 percent vs. Marshall Sundown Wheat – 43 percent
-International Region: Red Stripe- 75 percent vs. Molson Canadian – 25 percent
-USA Region: Fat Tire – 63 percent vs. Anchor Steam – 37 percent
-Europe Region: Newcastle Brown Ale- 51 percent vs. Chimay Red – 49 percent
Take a look at the updated bracket.
And now, here are your Elite Eight match-ups. Who’ll go to the Final Four? Your vote will decide:
Welcome to the Beer Championship Series Sweet 16!
Ladies and gentlemen, beer fans from around the world, welcome to the Beer Championship Series Sweet 16! After several days of voting, we’ve narrowed our field of 64 beers down to a mere 16 survivors. These beers are no longer hanging around on the perimeter; thanks to the wonders of technology — as in Internet voting — these brews have now moved to the center of the beer world. Before we get to the voting, let’s take a look at Wednesday’s results:
Oklahoma Region: Mustang Golden Ale - 59 percent vs. COOP Gran Sport Porter - 41 percent
International Region: Sapporo- 62 percent vs. Moosehead - 38 percent
USA Region: Shiner Bock- 56 percent vs. Leinenkugel Summer Shandy - 44 percent
Europe Region: Pilsner Urquell - 57 percent vs. St. Pauli Girl - 43 percent
Oklahoma Region: Marshall McNellie’s Pub Ale - 58 percent vs. Marshall Atlas IPA - 42 percent
International Region: Molson Canadian - 52 percent vs. Taj Mahal Lager - 48 percent
USA Region: Anchor Steam – 54 percent vs. Boulevard Wheat - 46 percent
Europe Region: Newcastle Brown Ale- 67 percent vs. Moretti - 33 percent
And now, it’s your vote to decide who goes to the Elite Eight!
Mid-week beer notes
Passing along some beer happenings coming up in the metro area and around the beer world.
(Note: If you’re looking for the Beer Championship Series, see the post below this one.)
-Edmond Discount Liquors, 1125 S Broadway, is hosting a beer tasting from 5:30 to 7 p.m. Thursday. Featured beers are Mustang Golden Ale and Amber Lager and Sam Adams Coastal Wheat. RSVP by calling 341-0362.
-Speaking of Mustang Amber Lager, Mustang is holding a pint night featuring its Amber Lager on Monday at McNellie’s in OKC. 5 p.m. start.
-A London restaurant is trying to figure out what to do with a 12-liter bottle of beer worth more than $1,100 U.S.
-Former Oklahoma chef Rick Bayless has teamed up with Mexican beer Bohemia to introduce a Web site to help people with holiday party ideas.
-A fire-damaged bottle of beer found in the wreckage of the doomed Hindenburg airship is being put up for auction.
That’s it for the beer news today. Just a reminder, you can follow The Thirsty Beagle and get updates on new blog posts at www.twitter.com/thirstybeagle.
And if you’re a local liquor store owner or bar manager and you’ve got a beer-related event coming up for which you’d like some publicity, drop me a line at thethirstybeagle@yahoo.com.
Beer Championship Series rewind: Vote now!
I learned an important lesson yesterday: Don’t tempt the computer gods. They will strike down on you with a vengeance. Wasn’t long after I posted a blog with the title “You can’t stop the BCS!” that the Beer Championship Series was stopped. Apparently, I was scoffed at by the computer gods. As I wrote yesterday, some kind of phantom computer-code glitch prevented an unknown amount of people from voting. In reviewing the situation, nobody knows why. So, we’re re-setting the vote and starting again today.
Here’s what the bracket looks like right now.
And now, hopefully without any further disturbances, here are today’s Sweet 16 hopefuls:
Important news concerning the Beer Championship Series
Sorry to have to report this, but a technical/coding/java/mystic problem has derailed today’s voting in the Beer Championship Series. Some people were able to vote, some weren’t. There was apparently no rhyme or reason to this issue. Didn’t matter what browser you used, what location you voted from, what time of day you voted. You might have been blocked. Because of that, I’ve decided to scrap Tuesday’s results.
I’m going to re-format and re-post today’s match-ups on Wednesday morning. That has been deemed by myself and my technical gurus to be the fairest way to determine who should move on in the BCS bracket.
If you were able to vote today, many thanks. Hopefully you can find a minute Wednesday to vote again. What do you have going Wednesday, anyway? Nothing. So there.
See you tomorrow,
TTB.
