I prepped for this article the same way I prep for every column after a game:
I transferred the game from DVR to DVD, stuck it in my computer, opened up a
separate MS Word document, and started taking notes on the action while the game
played in a different window.

I admired Jack Tyler’s early tackle for loss, and the way John Graves
dominated the line of scrimmage in the Stanford possession that resulted in a
first-quarter safety. It was just about time to view Virginia Tech’s ensuing
(and only) TD drive … but I stopped. I ejected the DVD and haven’t watched
another minute of the game.

There are two reasons for that: number one, I was exhausted. I’m always tired
at the end of a football season, because the months of intensity wears on you.
It gets worse as I get older. (I turned 46 over the Christmas break.) Monday
night’s game and the message board aftermath kept me up until 1:30 AM, and I
just don’t recover like I used to, so I went to bed at 9:30 Tuesday night and
slept nine and a half glorious hours. So I didn’t have a chance to watch any
more of my DVD.

Number two, this column doesn’t need to be, in any way, a recap of the action
that happened Monday night. Some columns do. Mostly victories (ha-ha). Some
columns don’t. This one doesn’t.

...