MIKE, MIKE & ESPN COMING TO THE BURGH

As mentioned numerous times, there are some intriguing football games coming up this weekend at Heinz Field, and ESPN has taken notice, which officially makes it a big deal.

Mike and Mike, the sports talk radio industry's attempt at a daily four-hour Odd Couple sequel, will be broadcasting live from the Jerome Bettis Grille 36 on the North Shore from 6-10 AM on Friday.

It has been announced that they will be joined by several high-profile guests, including Hines Ward and Dave Wannstedt. Later on in the day, Bettis himself will be stopping in at 5 PM for his weekly radio show with Scott Paulsen, Eddy Crow, and Mike Logan.

My only question: will The Bus have time for one of his famous fried meatloaf hoagies while he's in town?

ESPN Radio Homecoming Weekend [ESPN Radio 1250]

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Steelers Run Up the Score in Shutout of Dolphins

STEELERS (8-3) 3

DOLPHINS (0-11) 0

By the numbers, there were a few intriguing storylines to last night's debac...I mean, game. For instance, "How many plays for zero or negative yards would the Dolphins have?" (many), "How many potheads would Lawrence Timmons step on?" (one), and "How many points would be scored in the game?" (three).

Yes, last night was not a shining moment for anyone involved. Joey Porter put it best when he said that "it was like playing on the beach", although I would imagine that the beach had more traction and a more attractive crowd.

Mike Golic was on TV/radio this morning blaming the four high school championship games and Saturday's Pitt game for the poor turf, but in actuality the culprit was the new turf installed after those games. Unfortunately, each of those games ended up being more interesting than the Steeler game. Give me more Central Catholic-Gateway.

Monday night's other major storylines, other than Big Ben's upcoming exclusive interview with Channel 4 ("I don't play football for the money"), Seal's music being played at every break, and the possibility of Dave Wannstedt showing up to personally choke Ricky Williams, was the presence of one Joey Porter.

The Dolphins got their money's worth, with the $32 Million Interception Heard Round the Burgh. Mr. Peezy ended the game with 8 tackles (6 solo), 1 pick, and his 11th loss since leaving Pittsburgh.

It's hard to say anything about the actual play in a game like last night's, but I'll try. I thought the Steelers, when not sinking in quicksand, were sloppy. They had several killer penalties that wiped out first downs, and that's an aspect of the game that can't be blamed on the ground crew. The Dolphins looked every bit the part of an outmatched team, but they have to get credit for hanging in there. When your offense consists of John Beck handing off to Patrick Cobbs (who was briefly a Steeler, by the way), honestly, what do you expect?

The Steelers, coming off of consecutive games against 1-8 New York and 0-10 Miami in which the combined score was 19-19, will next face off against Hall of Famer Chad Johnson, Carson the Great, and the Cincinnati Bingles on Sunday night. In a nice change of pace for NBC, it's not a Patriot or NFC East game. Hopefully the game will also be a nice change of pace for Steeler fans, who've witnessed consecutive stinkers the past two weeks.

News and notes:

--I take my hand off to Willie Parker for crossing the 1,000-yard mark. Now if he could only improve on scoring just 2 TDs this season...

--Your obligatory Big Ben update: he's currently ranked #2 in passing in the NFL at 106, behind only Tom Brady at 127.9.

--More fun Steeler rankings: 2nd in total rushing, 22nd in total passing, 12th in total offense; 2nd against the rush, 1st against the pass, and 1st in total defense; 1st in points against and 4th in net points; and 1-1 against the Jets and Dolphins.

--Don't forget, the Steelers are now 2-0 with two shutouts without Troy Polamalu and Santonio Holmes in the lineup.

--Was I seeing things, or was that a Willie Reid appearance last night in crunch time?

--Nice interview by Stan Savran last night with Gabe Rivera on FSN's pregame show. And speaking of pregame shows, has the WTAE Sally Wiggin Monday Night show become a Pittsburgh institution yet?

--Let's send a thank-you note to the Cleveland Browns for continuing to win each week. I'm convinced that their success is, at least in a small part, pushing the Steelers.

Gisele Strips, Golic Ate Bad PB, Pippen Returns, NFL Mock Draft, Who Plays Anna Nicole, 70s Haircuts

Many a reader sent over the tidbit that Tom Brady squeeze/supermodel Gisele is now taking stripper classes for his enjoyment.

Looks like Mike Golic ate a little too much of the Salmonella-flavored peanut butter

The readers of "ESPN Conversation" take on the CBS-Bill Cowher marriage. Our favorite family man can now spend about 20 weekends with his family...Boomer Cowher, Shannon Cowher, Dan Cowher...

Are the playmaker's days with ESPN numbered? Admit it, you'd miss him.

Scottie Pippen is considering a comeback. Seriously.

SI's Snap-judging Don Banks gives us a new NFL mock draft, with the Steelers trading their first-round pick to Washington for T.J. Duckett. Wait, that's John Clayton's mock draft.

$126 million dollar man Barry Zito decides now is a good time to tinker with his mechanics. What in the name of Hilary Duff is going on here?

Skippy Reed is wishing everyone a Happy Valentine's Day.

Much like their characters, it looks like the ratings for Lost have disappeared.

New Mexico's newest innovation in the battle against durnk driving? Talking urinal cakes.

The 10 Greatest Interviews in WWF/WWE history, with video. This takes me back to the days when my idea of happiness was saving up enough cash for a Rowdy Roddy Piper wrestling figure. (warning: this page has been taking a loooooong time to load)

Charlize Theron the early favorite to play Anna Nicole Smith in the inevitable biopic. Howard Stern will not be playing Howard K. Stern.

If you're in need of a new hairstyle, consult this scan of a 1970s Ebony magazine. Being a businessman, I personally have chosen "the executive" for my new look.

Mike and Mike Descend on Pittsburgh, Again

ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike will visit Pittsburgh yet again, this time from the Marriott City Center (across from the Arena) tomorrow morning at 6 AM.
Golic attempts to eat his microphone

Here's a prediction of how it goes down: Golic teases Greenie, Greenie talks about the Jets, they play Whitney Houston's I Will Always Love You song while discussing Chad Pennington, they'll analyze "what went wrong with the 2006 Steelers", and many Pittsburghers will skip work and start drinking at 7 AM (the announced opening time of the Marriott's bar).

Pittsburgh has a strange fascination with this tag-team. They pack the people in each and every trip they make to the city. And don't forget, their radio show is simulcast from 6-10 on ESPN2. I'm sure Pittsburghers will not disappoint a national television audience. There's nothing like showing drunken Steeler fans at 8 in the morning to really illustrate the finer points of our city.

It's a big day for the station, who has a number of live remotes planned around an incredibly uninteresting football game. Junker and Crow will shove off on a three-hour tour on the Gateway Clipper (actually, they're just broadcasting from the docks) at 5 PM. Following the game, Mark Madden & Stan Savran broadcast live from a bar in Wexford. I would think two of local radio's biggest names would be given a better assignment than a suburb bar at 11 PM on a weeknight, but I guess not.

So go check out Mike and Mike. Or not. Whatever you do, I'm sure they'll be back soon enough.