Second thoughts

New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick didn’t have a lot to say after his team’s second-half comeback against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday stalled in the final moments.
New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick didn’t have a lot to say after his team’s second-half comeback against the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday stalled in the final moments.

— The horses don’t like these odds

Let’s open by saying: This isn’t taken from a deleted scene from Swiss Family Robinson.

Cheetahs need to stretch their legs, and in Houston there are zookeepers who have found a solution: Sam Houston Race Park.

Yes, they let one of the world’s fastest animals race across turf grounds to burn metabolic compounds and energy, using the straight-aways as the staging ground, according to the Houston Chronicle.

“They need about 600 feet,” Beth Schaefer, the zoo’s curator of carnivores, told the Chronicle.

“We don’t have that straight-away anywhere on the zoo grounds.”

So, Kito and Kiburi, who are brothers and 5 years old, take a trip each week to the horse track.

And, yes, there is a fence. And the big cats do get tired.

That’s of little consolation to any potential thoroughbreds stabled at the park.

Under the hood

New England Patriots Coach Bill Belichick isn’t known for being loquacious.

So it isn’t surprising he wasn’t spitting out quotes after a 41-34 loss Sunday to the San Francisco 49ers.

NESN provided a smidgen of his post game news conference.

Let’s take a look.

On whether he had any hesitation going for it on fourthand-2 late in the game from the New England 12: “None.”

What was the strategy in that situation? “It was fourth-and-2.”

Did they do a good job running the ball against you? “No, I don’t think so.”

What were your thoughts on San Francisco quarterback Colin Kaepernick? “They won.

Give them credit. Talk to Jim [Harbaugh] about his team.”

Clearly, Belichick wasn’t providing insights. But feel free to ask his opinion on the season premiere of Downton Abbey.

A little batty

Iowa baseball players told the Daily Iowan, the school’s student newspaper, they’re living in a house inhabited by phantoms.

Clearly, the worst roommates ever.

In the student newspaper’s story, they said chairs started being moved around the kitchen late at night, or the channels on the TV changed with the remote not clinched in a viewer’s hand.

A local paranormal investigating task force inspected the home, confirming a grandfatherly ghost, which the athletes have named “Tim,” roams halls and rooms, while a younger girl is posted up in one room.

Meanwhile, USA Today’s Chris Chase doesn’t have much sympathy.

“College houses tend to have that effect,” Chase wrote, “particularly if they’re populated by guys who follow Phish, collect crystals and have convoluted theories about how the first 16 minutes of The Dark Knight can be synched up with the medley from Abbey Road to prove NASA faked the moon landing.” Web heads

Now, the best fake headlines from The Onion:

“Casual fan ready to introduce NFL to his parents”

“Mike D’Antoni drawing up plays to get Lakes to like him”

“Tim Tebow puts empty Gatorade cups in Wildcat formation on bench”

“Eagles concerned about Nick Foles asking best way to tear ACL”

“Kyle Shanahan admits mother helped design most of Redskins plays”

Quote of the day

“There’s a lot of Tigers, but there’s only one Airedale.” Doug Loughridge, who is leaving the Class 3A power Charleston Tigers football team to take over as coach of the Alma Airedales, a tradition-rich Class 5A program

Sports, Pages 18 on 12/18/2012

Upcoming Events