Ron Higgins was on fire over the weekend. He's one of the best writers about SEC football newspaper writers outside of Tony read more...
When Deryle Perryman contacted me last week to say read more...
Despite winning back to back national titles in football, the SEC susre seems to hate the BCS. Lately, this hatred has been read more...
We found this article from a week or so back that is about NFL Network being
read more...
Widespread Panic On The Beach 4/19/08
A Prelude To The Spectacle 4/17/08
The three poems currently appearing in the Poetry section of Swampland are by Mississippi born Pulitzer Prize winner
Here a quick primer for our teams in this weekend’s NCAA Tournament. East – This is read more...
Quick Summary: The Saints bombed out after their near-Super Bowl run in 2007. People can point to injuries, but
Huntsville, Alabama, has chosen
Yes, I read the article in the New York read more...
It’s the most exciting time of the year for many of the smaller schools around our region. Their conferences tournaments have read more...
Quick Summary: The Dolphins are one of the NFL's proudest franchises, but the 2007 season became its read more...
Holden Caulfield wanted to know where all the read more...
“Look back but move forward” was the credo of civil rights activist
Today the New York Times ran an article entitled
I was listening to NPR on Saturday morning when I heard the bluesy sound of an acoustic guitar and a voice that reminded me of read more...
Trumpeter John Brunious, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band's leader and senior member, died Tuesday, February 12, 2008 in Orlando, read more...
I always thought that in my next incarnation I wanted to come back as an independent documentary filmmaker. I held on to that dream read more...
* The Kentucky Wildcats finally look to be playing the kind of winning ball that Big Blue fans expect. It took a while to adjust to read more...
One mid-major club that higher seeded teams will not want to see in the Big Dance is Davidson from the Southern Conference. The read more...
* The best rivalry in college hoops takes place Wednesday night when #2 ranked Duke invades Chapel Hill to battle #3 North Carolina. read more...
I sat back Sunday ready to enjoy a Super Bowl without a "horse in the race," so to speak. All of our SPF teams had read more...
Roving Notes On Super Bowl Sunday 2/3/08
The day was February 3, 1959. At approximately 12:55 AM, Buddy read more...
by Patrick Snow * Someone forgot to tell 2-time National Champion Florida that they were supposed to struggle this read more...
January 30, 2008, marked the 60th anniversary of the assassination of India’s political and spiritual leader
by Patrick Snow The regular season seems to get a little overlooked in many of the smaller or “1-bid” leagues in read more...
by Patrick Snow * Could this week finally bring the contest where #1 Memphis actually loses a conference game? The read more...
I live in the boonies, the hinterlands of Northern Alabama. For years, I made do with erratic reception from local television read more...
In the south we not only claim kin we also claim friends. I have learned that behind every new acquaintance there lies the read more...
12. Cincinnati Bengals and 13. St. Louis Rams - Our final Poll spots are held by two teams that have a connection read more...
We've now gone through the first 7 teams in the T.I. Poll. So far, the entire AFC South has been covered as well as the read more...
This is SPF's group of teams that are "On The Verge" of reaching elite status. They all have challenges, but they are read more...
There are three SPF teams left in the Super Bowl hunt, but the news doesn't stop with them. Of the 4 current coaching read more...
Late winter and spring of 2008 will see the blossoming of a host of film festivals in the South. A number of the festivals read more...
We're mixing it up again going into the playoffs. In an up and down year, six of the 13 SPF teams made the playoffs. Two, read more...
Legendary Miami Studio 50 Years Later 12/30/07
Dr. John Expresses Frustration With Katrina Fallout 12/29/07
Playoffs and draft slots. It's all on the line in a strange season-ending weekend in the Footprint.
White Pelicans are a rarity on Elk River. I have never seen one north of Gulf Shores, but on Christmas morning a friend down the read more...
It's the last week of the NFL season. There isn't much left to be decided. Two SPF teams (Washington and Tennessee) can read more...
SATURDAY NIGHT Dallas (12-2, 6-0 away) Carolina (6-8, 2-5 read more...
SPF laid down the gauntlet before last weekend's games. Many teams answered the bell. With two games left in the regular read more...
It has been a largely disappointing season for SPF, but these final weeks can redeem or further decimate a team's momentum for read more...
SPF will say it - this has been a very tough year for pro football in the Swampland Footprint. Of our 13 teams, more than half read more...
SPF has been beating a few drums this year, but one is about letting players play. Coaches coach systems. read more...
Mystery & Manners John Sayles Interview 12/8/07 On Thursday I interviewed
SPF has looked at the coach/QB relationship. Now, it's time to look at the owner/coach relationship. When this read more...
While Tribal Fever nation witnessed their conference championships this weekend, SPF has found a few of their own. There are read more...
Today is the day we find out whether it will be an all-Swampland matchup in the BCS Championship Game. If all goes according to read more...
Coaching changes. They happen every year even though it seems as though jobs are more than safe. Changes are usually made read more...
Leadership. Is it there? The leader(s) of each SPF team define that team to their fans. Already, Thanksgiving read more...
Rivalry games define college football. More than bowl games or even conference championships, a win against your rival means read more...
SPF often talks a team's style when it comes to identity. Style, though, is kind of a catch all. Dig a little deeper and read more...
This year marks the fiftieth anniversary of Auburn’s 1957 National Championship. Not only did the Tigers go undefeated that read more...
This week, more than any other this NFL season, the fan will find out who their teams are. Are teams going to the read more...
The wild year continues. In many ways this was just a sign of the transition college football around the Footprint has read more...
Week Ten was a very weird football weekend. Many of the SPF teams lost games. Few had important wins. It just seems read more...
SPF will stick by this point - no team set the NFL back more than the Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens. This read more...
Patrick Snow has it right. This year's
Everyone knows that football is the dominant sport in the Footprint, but it has always been college dominating the pro variety. read more...
It's it the "Clash of the Titans!" The Colts-Pats game deserves the hype that it is getting. Both teams read more...
In the spring a young man’s fancy may turn to baseball, but in the fall in the South everyone’s fancy turns to read more...
Things continue to settle out in the SPF Footprint. This week's big question is whether the South's best is the NFL's read more...
Much like yesterday's college slate, this week's SPF schedule features teams looking towards the season's end and where they want to read more...
If you aren't a Florida or Georgia fan, this weekend might be a good one to spend with the kids. This is a pretty thin weekend read more...
SPF's season previews are looking pretty good so far. The teams we singled out like the Jags, the Texans, and the Dolphins have read more...
Getting on the same page. Coaches and players that have the same sense of urgency signify teams that are winning. The NFL read more...
It's the old saying when a player celebrates a little too much - act like you've been there before. This rules seems to also read more...
Here we are again for SPF's weekly Team Identity Poll. Things have shaken up a bit. We are much closer to how we saw read more...
Sorry I have been incommunicado lately. I am still struggling with allergies that seem to get worse rather than better. Ah, fall in read more...
It's week 6 for the SPF teams. Four teams are basically done, but the rest have critical games that will go a long way to read more...
Tribal Fever would like to start this weekend's festivities by directing everyone to a fantastic series on
The rich seem to be getting richer (and the poor, poorer) in the SPF Footprint. There is happiness at the top, confusion in the read more...
It's week five in the NFL season. Overall, the SPF Footprint is shaping up to be a year of the haves and have-nots. The read more...
Let's start with this week's College Football Preview from Athlon. Swampland's own Patrick Snow hosts each read more...
Just like in the college ranks, it was a bit of a crazy week in the SPF Footprint. Right now, there are more bad teams than read more...
I have just returned from ten days in Italy (Venice, Florence/Tuscany, and Rome) and am way behind on my blog, so please bear read more...
Patrick Snow mentioned in his last column read more...
Welcome SPF fans! Here's today's slate. (SPF teams in BOLD) Early read more...
It was only a matter of time before Swampland Sports starting covering the colleges in earnest. Today marks the start of Tribal read more...
Back to our weekly gauge of how each SPF team is resonating with its fans. First, let's take a look back at last week's Team read more...
Here we are again. Let Week Three begin! SPF Teams in BOLD Early read more...
We've just posted a new analysis of the Wayne issue in read more...
Just a few quick hits here on Thursday.... Snowman's Latest Column Patrick Snow's
New Releases Doyle Bramhall
Time for our Week Two "Team Identity" Poll. Things keep getting interesting, and that's how we like read more...
THE "BEATING THE DEAD HORSE" THEME Our theme for this week is similar to last read more...
Each week, it will be SPF's pleasure to bring you the best pregame show on the Net. We provide our audience with clips from read more...
Another great southern tradition is writing. We have a whole section called Discourse that is dedicated to this read more...
Team Identity. This is our constant gauge for the success or failure of NFL teams in the South. College football reigns read more...
12 of our 13 SPF teams have played. Only the Bengals remain with a tough Monday Night battle against the read more...
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Thursday's game didn't do nearly what yesterday's college slate did to pump us up here at SPF. Our own James Calemine is
Phew! The 2007 previews are finally read more...
I have been having a lot of trouble with Mapquest lately. Used to be, I could depend on those wonderful internet cats to read more...
read more...
Charlie Daniels is participating is in a religious-themed CD of contemporary Christian songs done country-style. Time Life is slated read more...
Recently, we decided to take off, pretty much on a whim, and set sail for the shore. Jill and I had visited before, but it would read more...
1/21/07 Willie Nelson takes his show on the road to the British Isles this week. Nelson prepares to tour in the states in the read more...
GILEAH & THE GHOST TRAIN Gileah & the Ghost Train The Love Library TLL-100 Gileah is a read more...
“Something’s gonna happen like…Just spark the whole world,” exclaims Darius, the star of the read more...
James Calemine's "Never Ending Soul Food Tour" includes documented visits to barbecue joints, catfish dens, chicken read more...
Song of America Various Artists 31 Tigers Records By James Calemine This 50-song, 3 CD read more...
Whatever Remembers Us: An Anthology of Alabama Poetry edited by Sue Brannan Walker and J. read more...
Southern Soul Barbecue 318 Mallory Street Saint Simons Island, Georgia 31522 912-634-7516
Mrs. Wilkes Dining Room 107 West Jones Street Savannah, Georgia 31401 912-232-5997 James read more...
An excerpt from HURRICANE SEASON: A COACH, HIS TEAM, AND THEIR TRIUMPH IN THE TIME OF KATRINA By Neal Thompson Free Press, a division of Simon & read more...
An excerpt from DRIVING WITH THE DEVIL: Southern Moonshiners, Detroit Wheels, and the Birth of NASCAR By Neal Thompson Crown read more...
by Patrick Snow As I attended a Kentucky Derby function this past Saturday, it was never more evident that Southerners must throw a pretty good party. We are probably more known nationally for our college football crowds and pageantry, but the spring read more...
We at Tribal Fever find it odd that it would be the SEC who would call for a playoff system. We wonder how the SEC can be so blind to the fact that the BCS has been great for that conference. For those that love the idea of a playoff, we will list the reasons why most every proposal for a college playoff is a horrible idea for college football at large and especially read more...
The annual NFL Draft is now over, and the critics will have a field day with opinions on who did well and who faltered with their choices. I thought I would take a look at the Draft from the collegiate view and see who from our region will have the biggest impact on their new read more...
Although the NFL Draft still have rounds 3-7 to go, we at SPF think it is time to hand out some awards. Except in very rare cases, team's drafts are defined by their day one picks, and we learned a lot about how the SPF slate of teams are approaching the coming season - for better or worse. Let the cermony begin! THE "DAMN THE TORPEDOES read more...
Widespread Panic: On The Beach
ALABAMA CD Cellar Anniston AL Oz Music Tuscaloosa AL ARKANSAS Sound Warehouse Fayetteville read more...
by Penne J. Laubenthal Pulitzer Prize winner Natasha Trethewey is a poet who gives voice to the voiceless, names to the nameless, and who creates monuments in words for those whom history has forgotten. Relying on photographs, personal memory, read more...
Miscegenation In 1965 my parents broke two laws of Mississippi; they went to Ohio to marry, returned to Mississippi. They crossed the river into Cincinnati, a city whose name begins with a sound like sin, the sound of wrong, mis in Mississippi. A year later they moved to Canada, followed a route the read more...
by Penne J. Laubenthal Severe weather warnings had been issued for North Alabama when I made my way to Florence for the Friday afternoon session of the 11th Annual George Lindsey Film Festival featuring Billy Bob Thornton. But apparently neither sleet nor snow read more...
by Penne J. Laubenthal Dangerous Highway is an amazing documentary about the life and music of the incredibly talented and tragically fated Eddie Hinton, called the "greatest unknown musician you have ever heard." The film was made by read more...
Once in a great while, just when you think there is no reason to get up in the morning and that there is no hope for humanity, and that people will just go on killing one another forever, and that tomorrow will be probably be even worse than today, then something happens to turn your world around. For me, that something was seeing a feature length documentary read more...
In 2005 Logan Smalley, a special education major at the University of Georgia-Athens, undertook a venture that would change his life, not to mention the lives of those who view his amazing film. Smalley rented a handicapped accessible RV, recruited ten
The Fifth Annual Oxford Film Festival (OFF) will open Wednesday evening, February 6, in Oxford, read more...
By Patrick Snow It’s an argument that will never end-whose Conference is better? Fans will debate this topic vociferously every season, and the answer always tends to lie close to your address. I’m not sure that the Bowl games are the best way to evaluate league strength across college football, but it is basically all we have. Here’s my opinion read more...
By Patrick Snow It has already been quite the postseason in the SEC coaching ranks, and it’s only going to get more interesting. With the recent additions of Nick Saban and Bobby Petrino along with Houston Nutt and Les Miles staying in the conference, wins are going to be harder and harder to come by in the nation’s toughest gridiron league. Each read more...
by Penne J. Laubenthal Billy C Farlow, blues musician, song writer, and harmonica player who skyrocketed to fame in the early ‘70s with Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, is a force to be reckoned with on the music circuit. Billy C has been out there for over forty years making his music, writing read more...
GOODBYE, BABYLON A Patchwork Quilt of American Music By James Calemine
In the end, it was a surprise. But the surprise came in the school chosen, no the destination - the SEC West. Bobby Petrino finally made it to the coaching promised land when he was named the head coach of Arkansas late last night. Fresh off of a Monday Night Football debacle against New Orleans, Petrino made the move. Today, the SEC stands as the read more...
By Patrick Snow The end of the college football season always brings with it unfulfilled goals which translates into coaching changes. There has been quite a bit of movement in our region. Some of the firings were inevitable while others showed us just how unrealistic certain fan bases are with their expectations. I thought I would examine each job, and how it matches up read more...
A Celebration of The Life & Work of Paul Hemphill By James Calemine "I was ridin' number nine Headin' south from Caroline I heard that lonesome whistle blow."
by Penne Jones Laubenthal The state of Alabama is a red state. It has been slowly turning red politically since 1960. In the past twenty-seven years, Alabama voters have increasingly voted for Republican candidates at the federal level, especially in Presidential read more...
by Penne J. Laubenthal Charles Ghigna (aka Father Goose) is the author of more than 5,000 poems and 30 award-winning books of poetry. His books have been featured on ABC-TV’s "Good Morning America" and NPR, selected by the Book-of-the-Month Club and the Parents' Choice Book Award. He is a poet, read more...
by Charles Ghigna Dry rooted in penny coated clay, the wiregrassers come suntan tamed in drawl through the mire faster. Machetes high aimed for home, they carry the clues of day across their open, flying clothes. Blade for blade, steel for grass, they flog the wire with a hungry denim run.
By Patrick Snow Another college football season--another initial release of the BCS standings. This annual ritual seems to send everyone running to call a local talk show to scream about a Playoff system and how the middle letter should be removed from ‘BCS’. Enough already. If all that you’re worried about is how January turns out, you’re read more...
Ron Higgins grew up around sports during his youth in Louisiana. He has spent read more...
By Patrick Snow Many of us who grew up in the South have always believed that the SEC was King when it came to sports and our allegiances. We watched and cheered for professional teams, but our passion was always at the collegiate level. For many years, coaches have moved from the Amateurs to the ‘Pros’ mainly for monetary reasons, but you read more...
By Patrick Snow (editor's note: Swampland Sports considers the following teams to be part of the Footprint: Atlanta Braves, Baltimore Orioles, Cincinnati Reds, Florida Marlins, Houston Astros, St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, and Washington Nationals) I do want to sound too negative about a game that I absolutely read more...
Now that Swampland Sports has launched Tribal Fever (TF), our dispatch dedicated to college sports in the South, we figured it was time to do weigh in on the current state of college football conferences. The college football conference landscape in the Footprint has become downright confusing. It used to be that there were three main conferences, the read more...
After NFL's week one, Patrick Snow sounded the alarm. The Florida teams in the SPF Footprint were in trouble. It wasn't just about losing games. It was about losing their identity. The Dolphins were losing theirs. The Bucs were losing theirs. Even more read more...
Southern college football-we live it and breathe it year-round, and it has become abundantly clear that the stakes of the game have been raised with some of the recent coaching hires. The ‘price of poker’ is increasing steadily, and if your school is not ready to ante up, your team will be left behind. We’re witnessing a changing of the guard when it comes to read more...
Sunshine State Swoon By Patrick Snow Has professional football hit its lowest point in the state of Florida? I’m not trying to overreact to three Week 1 losses, but one has to wonder what direction the franchises in the Sunshine State are going. None of the three squads ran for over 90 yards as a team in Week 1, and it’s hard to see much read more...
St. Simons Island:
By Doris Gabel Welch My South is Hot Humid Sultry Just like its women. My South is
Phillip Quinn Morris, author of Mussels and
The Georgia Sea Island Singers Preserving Coastal Music Traditions By James Calemine Spring 2006 After four decades, Frankie and Doug Quimby continue to travel the world as the Georgia Sea Island Singers, sharing the Gullah culture with audiences from presidents to preschoolers. The group’s read more...
BeauSoleil’s Michael Doucet Talks Of Hurricanes And Louisiana Music by Derek Halsey November 2005 BeauSoleil has been one of the premier bands to come out of Louisiana since its inception in 1975. Hailing from the Lafayette region of Louisiana west of New Orleans, in the area known as Acadiana, the group read more...
Etoufee d’ Ecrevissess (or "Mudbug Gravy") by Ron Williams September, 2002 I caught crawdads as a kid under the rocks of creeks near Siloam Springs, Arkansas. It was great fun to turn over a rock and see if you could grab a crawdad before it slipped away and not get pinched by its sharp claws. One day, read more...
GEORGE LINDSEY A Chat with Mayberry’s Goober Pyle by Michael Buffalo Smith June 2002 There’s no doubt about it. George Lindsey will always been remembered first and foremost as the loveable goof known as Goober Pyle, whom he made famous read more...