American Idol- Top 14

I watched the two hour recording of American Idol's first Live broadcast of the season late Monday night. Now, it is about 48 hours later and I will proceed to offer some observations. Since it is two days, instead of merely one, many of these thoughts may seem even more disjointed.

 

First of all, with the implosion of the planned Sunday night "The Bachelorette" season, why does ABC just not kick things old school and make Idol a two night event, with a Results Show? Does that cost more money than just airing re-runs of some other dumb show?

 

Anyways, the evening did start off with all 20 of the kids on the Hollywood studio stage for the first time, but soon enough, six of them would be cut and would not get a chance to sing again on national television. To start off the blog, let us begin by looking back at my rankings and predictions from the previous two episodes.

Group 1-

 

10. Makiyah- predicted to be eliminated

 9. Jake Thistle- predicted to be eliminated

 8. Kutter Bradley

 

 7. Daniel Stallworth

 6. Genevieve Hayward- predicted to be eliminated

 5. Jesse Finding

 4. Brooks

 3. Hannah Harper

 2. Kyndal

 1. Braden Rumfelt

 

Who was eliminated: Makiyah, Kutter Bradley, Genevieve Hayward

 

So, in this group we see that America actually got it right in two out of three, and I correctly predicted two of the three. The convergence was on Makiyah. Jake had more fans than perhaps I expected and not enough country folks for Kutter, who might have lost support after a strong night by Braden.

Group 2-

 

10. Ruby Rae- predicted to be eliminated

 9. Lucas Leon 

 8. Philmon Lee- predicted to be eliminated

 

 7. Rae- predicted to be eliminated

 6. Madison Moon

 5.  Abayomi

 4.  Julian Kalel

 3.  Chris Tungseth

 2.  Jordan McCullough

 1.  Keyla Richardson

 

Who was eliminated: Ruby Rae, Madison Moon, Abayomi

 

A bit more surprises here. Philmon survived but Madison did not, which did not incredibly surprise me. Abyaomi leaving feels like a bigger surprise. I think the African-American vote must have swung heavily towards Keyla and Jordan, leaving Abayomi in a bad place. Finally, I find it hard to understand who is super motivated to vote for Rae. Could it be Kristi Noem's husband out of envy? I did not think female Idol voters, of any age, would really vibe with her.

 
Rae survived but the similarly named Ruby Rae did not, although it is hard to say she was really on the same level at this point in her career as many of the others. Two heavily tattooed "rock chick" singers were both cut, even though I would have liked to have heard a little bit more from them. Also, two single name African-American female singers met the same fate. 

 

So, the Top 14 was now set, and it is a pretty talented group, even putting aside the mix of it being 10 white kids and four racial minorities. Usually, that does not quite happen that way. However, the biggest issue seems to be that the Finalists at this point are composed of 10 guys and just four girls. Idol sort of messed up there if they were issued in a more balanced casting. While the math might, I repeat might, mean that the next few eliminated contestants are males, I think this is clearly a sign that Idol is going to have a guy win this season. 

 

Moving on to the Monday performances, it was the second annual "Songs of Faith" evening. Last year, it aired on Easter Sunday. This year it aired as Holy Week was just getting underway. Passover is now in progress for those (like myself) of the Jewish faith, but most Idol watchers and of course most Americans are Christian. Over the past couple of seasons, Idol has pivoted hard in trying to appeal to a Christian, and especially Protestant base. While religious contestants, often from the South, and of all races, have always been part of Idol since the beginning, the show is focusing far more on Gospel and Worship songs being presented in the competition. Monday night saw a lot of those songs, but also a few "songs of faith" that were notably not religious in nature. There was also one, that has been done on the show many times before, that is most certainly an anti-religion song. More about all of this as we continue.

 

1. Keyla Richardson- "Jireh"

 

After "bringing down the house" in Hawai'i in the final spot the week before, Keyla, with a very sophisticated looking make-over and outfit, would be the first to sing for America. I do not know this song of course and am not sure if would be considered Gospel or Worship or if it might possibly even be categorized as both.

 

I remember Keyla singing it really well though. She brought the emotion, but perhaps the impact might have been a bit more muted after what we saw her do in her previous performance. This time, her young son was there again. He definitely knows every word to every song his mother sings and is quite ready to sing along on camera.

 

Also a note here that of the mere four ladies still left in the competition, all are at least 24 years old. Two of them, including Keyla are 29. Three of them are either parents and/or married. There is nothing resembling a teenage girl left in Season 24, although Brooks maybe sounds a bit like one.

 

2.  Jesse Findling- "Bless The Broken Road"

 

While nothing has of course been stated on the air, I am pretty sure that Jesse is Jewish. (Bit of a tongue twister there.) That makes things even more interesting on an evening that was very Christian themed. Like all the other contestants, he was out there pretending to sing back up as Lionel Richie and Luke Bryan sang a song called "Jesus Is Love."

 

On the more religiously inclusive Rascal Flatts cover, Jesse was good, in his less experienced Josh Groban sort of way. The backup singers maybe overwhelmed the sound of his voice in a couple of places. All things considered, it was probably the right kind of song for Jesse, but he really does not come across as a country artist to begin with and is clearly an underdog in this competition.

 

3. Lucas Leon- "Gratitude"

 

This is either a country song or a Christian Contemporary song, In either case, I did not know it. Once again, Lucas played guitar. He is good at what he does, I thought it was a stronger vocal than what was shown in Hawai'i, but he just seems somewhat lackluster in terms of showing off his voice, which on shortened Idol seasons like this, might be more necessary.

After he was done, Seacrest mentioned he had just missed his Prom, and put a crown on his head. There was no mention of the previous weekend's "No Kings" protests.

 

4. Daniel Stallworth- "Brighter Days"

 

This was definitely a Gospel sounding song. It seemed very much in Daniel's lane and I was impressed with his vocals. I really cannot remember how the song goes though.

 

Daniel is talented and seems like a good guy, but he does not have much of a personality in the show banter. One other male contestant is far more bland in that regard though.

 

5. Philmon Lee- "Simple Man"

To start with, I was a bit surprised that Philmon made it this far. While he was decent in Hawai'i, I also had him ranked eighth out of 10.  This Lynyrd Skynyrd song has previously been done a ton on Idol and other singing competitions and I am not exactly sure how it fits the theme or why Philmon chose to not try to appeal to the religious folks out there.

 

It may have been very smart though, because he did a really excellent job on this song. While longtime Idol watchers have heard "Simple Man" at least a few times before, Philmon sang the southern rock ballad flawlessly in my view. While it is not the kind of song that will have anybody proverbially "jumping up and down", I hope he won some new fans on Monday night.

 

6. Rae- "Up To The Mountain"

 

This is another song that has been done a few times on Idol in usually very emotional performances. As mentioned I was surprised that Rae, who clearly has a very good voice, got the votes to make it here.

 

This was quite a different vibe than her choreography heavy previous performance. Rae definitely sang the heck out of this ballad. She even pulled out some Mariah Carey like runs. Like Philmon, Rae exceeded my expectations.

 

7. Jake Thistle- "Have A Little Faith In Me"

 

I keep wanting to like Jake's performances, but they are falling short for me. This time, he played the piano and I do not think the song really worked all that well for him.I lost a little more faith in his chances of winning Idol, but I guess he has fans. Jake just seems more like he is gigging at a club than wowing people with his interpretations of a song in a way that makes people think he could be a future star.

 

In the auditions, he sounded like Bryan Adams and Seacrest told him on Monday he looks like Tom Cruise.I do not know if the religiously oriented would be big on a Scientologist Idol. 

 

8. Braden Rumfelt- "Hard Fought Hallelujah"

To be clear, I am no fashion maven, but I cannot ignore commenting on the outfit that they gave Braden to wear or that he agreed to wear. Why was a young dude dressed up like a lesbian? It was like some sort of pantsuit deal that I could almost imagine Hillary Clinton wearing. Jesse also had some very weird baggy slacks on during his performance. Is that the new thing?

Last round, Braden was perhaps the biggest positive surprise of the competition. This week, while you can definitely appreciate his voice in parts, I did not like the performance nearly as much. I think he might actually see himself as a worship type singer who loves songs like this, but I do not think it showed off his talent nearly as much as a totally different kind of song might. He also seems to still be battling nerves a bit.

 

9. Julian Kalel- "Fix You"

 

The night continued to take some interesting turns. Last week, I determined that Julian Kalel  might be the overall frontrunner to win the whole thing, but this week, he sort of faded into the crowd a bit.

 

 For one thing, I have never liked this Coldplay song. Perhaps he should get some points for not singing something religious, but that was an odd choice. It seems like he is all in on the "mental health" message and some folks may find this choice of a song to be a bit sacrilegious even. Vocally, I thought most of it was a bit boring and somewhat amateurish, although he had some nice moments at the end.Also, while throughout Idol history, kids often show up at the Finals with more professional makeup and looking all glammed up. Somehow, Julian, who I have no doubt has legions of female fans, looked a bit "rougher." I do not think the stubble is a wise choice for the stage at this point in his life, but what do I know?

 

10. Kyndal- "Nothing But The Blood Of Jesus"

 

Last week, I was quite impressed by Kyndal's quirky take on an emotional song I did not know. This week, I have to say, I really did not like her performance. She has a very distinct and nice voice but it did not work for me on this on. It sounded somewhat frantic and screamy to me. Clearly though, Kyndal, who has talked about having misspent part of her youth, is very much into her faith these days.

 

I have to at least examine the aspect of me perhaps just not being into Christian worship music. After all, I am Jewish, but am trying very hard to judge everything on the merits and needless to say, I have always had respect for Christians. These are polarized times though. For years, i was very actively politically aligned with Evangelicals. In the Trump era, the hypocrisy of those folks in their devotion to someone as thoroughly un-Christian as Donald Trump is hard for me to shake, but that should not affect how I would judge Kyndal on a singing show.

What I will hold against her is that she showed up on stage (once again) without shoes on. I have held that against Idol contestants for years and cannot help but deduct at least one point. I call it the Paul Kim Rule. 

 

11. Jordan McCullough- "I Can Only Imagine"

 

For a couple contestants now, I have stated that I just do not feel they are at their best doing Worship song. For Jordan, I will say the opposite. This is his sort of thing and he sang it really well.

 

As is the case with many of these songs I heard for the first time, I do not remember the melody of the tune or anything like that, but I definitely remember being very impressed with Jordan, who is a worship leader in his job, for the second time in a row. 

 

12. Brooks- "Imagine"

 

We go now to another song with "Imagine" in the title, but this one far more well known. I also know that my mother is likely to rank Brooks last on her list for as long as he is in the competition. I will say that Brooks, who in the audition "get to know you" pieces, seems like a very solid guy, is just boring as heck on stage. He does not really even try to pretend to have any interest in kibitzing with Seacrest or mugging for the camera.

 

Let me next stay that I appreciate Brooks tone and the way he sings. He has talent, even if I personally find it a bit boring. This particular performance was pleasant to the ears but not earth shattering. That is sort of the overall musical vibe to this John Lennon song though. I did not even initially get all the praise that the enormously talented David Archuleta got what he first sang it. (All these years later, I think Archuleta might be the most radically changed Idol finalist in terms of image, but I wish him the best.)

 

Now, about this song.. I wrote a lot about this back when Blake Lewis did on the "Idol Gives Back" night when a lot of the other kids were leaning into religion. This song is an ode to atheism (which is why Archie omitted a certain verse.) Maybe some people find that inspiring and in some ways Brooks looks like he might lean left (although I thought I also spotted him putting up praise hands on the couches while others sang) but a lot of Christians who were watching might have been outright offended by the song and the message and perhaps that can have an impact on his short term or long term success on the show. Also, Brooks' pants were way too big, unless he is trying to recreate Kriss Kross.

 

13. Hannah Harper- "At The Cross (Love Ran Red)"

This was the second week in a row, Hannah sang a song about the death of Christ.  At least she is consistent, and to my ears, it sounded more in her wheelhouse than what Kyndal did, but at this stage, they as part of the small amount of females left, are in direct competition.

 

Hannah has a very nice voice, and sang this well. I think this is the kind of music she could find success doing when Idol is over, which means that about 95 percent of American music fans will never hear from her again.

 

14. Chris Tungseth- "By Your Grace"

 

Last week, I liked how Chris sounded on "Apologize" and wanted to hear more from him. It is not too late to say though that I am sorry I did not like this nearly as much. It is not that he sounded bad, I just remember it being boring in a guy with a beard singing 70s soft rock sort of way.

This was not a soft rock song though but what definitely sounded like yet another worship song. With the song choice and his post song interview on stage, Chris definitely leaned heavily into his Christian identity.

We had been told throughout the night that "America was voting in real time" and that two would get get to get to the Top 12. The time for this announcement was running out though because we had to see for the second year in a row, Carrie Underwood go all out vocally to school everyone on the same religious song. This year, she was joined with three finalists from last season who probably have some free time these days.

 

 

Rankings:

 

14. Kyndal

13. Jake Thistle

 

12. Julian Kalel

11. Chris Tungseth

10. Brooks

 9. Lucas Leon

 8. Jesse Findling

 7. Braden Rumfelt

 6. Hannah Harper

 5. Daniel Stallworth

 4. Rae

 3. Keyla Richardson

 2. Jordan McCullough

 1. Philmon Lee

 

Perhaps, Philmon won the night for me by singing the one song out of 14 that I knew and at least somewhat liked.

 

Who was I predicting would be eliminated? Jesus would be safe but not Jake and Jesse.

I guess we will find out next week. I might not watch until next Tuesday night though because I will probably be checking out the NCAA Championship game while flipping over a bit to "The Voice" also.

We do not know yet because things got weird at this point in the broadcast. Nobody was eliminated. Not out of the goodness of Idol's heart, as they have done before, but because Seacrest said they had to "make sure the votes were accurate" or something along those lines that did not have much specificity.

I have always said that I think the live voting coast to coast during the show is a horrible idea (even more so on a Monday night) because of the disparity of time zones, etc, so on the surface, this might be a good idea, but I do not think they even said they were extending the voting time. It just all brought up a lot of questions.

For one thing, did Idol know (or even anticipate) that two females were about to be voted off leaving a 10-2 split gender split and are panicked to try to stop that somehow? I am predicting two white dudes, who are either not Christian or chose not to be vocal about it this week, to be cut, but I would also not be shocked if at least one female got the boot.

What are they trying to say though about the vote and needing to assure everything is accurate and thus delaying the acceptance of the results? It sounds exactly like what Trump is going to claim right after the midterms.

 

American Idol Top 20- Group B

I watched a recording of the Monday night episode fairly late and would not have had time to live-blog it. That will probably be the case for the rest of the season if the shows are on Monday night. So now, about 24 hours later, I will be consulting my rankings of the contestants and will try to offer some comments based on memory.

 

1. Philmon Lee- "Don't Stop Believin'"

 

It was an interesting choice for Philmon, whom I believe has a father who was once prominent in the country music industry, to sing an '80s Journey classic instead of a country song. It was sure to get the Disney Resort crowd in Hawai'i pumped up though and perhaps appeal to voters at home of a certain age. I thought there were a bunch of cool song choices in the Monday episode, meant to appeal to folks my age or even a good deal older.

 

Of course, it is tough to break this song down to the allotted time. For the most part, I thought Philmon sounded pretty good. He has a nice range, but also came across a bit nervous and somewhat tentative.  There are probably many singers in America who could have sung this particular song as well.

 

2. Rae- "Respect"

 

One of the many one named contestants in this 24th season of Idol went even further back into pop music history to take on Aretha Franklin. Rae is definitely a bit "extra" in her persona but she has a powerful voice and clearly is no stranger to the stage. I wonder if she has ever been a "dancer" in addition to being a singer.

 

The vocals were good but nothing earth-shattering. She seems to have been cast to play a character of sorts and will be divisive. Idol's voting fanbase is overwhelmingly female and I do not think a lot of them are going to identify or perhaps even like Rae all that much.

 

3. Lucas Leon- "Just To See You Smile"

 

In many ways, the teenage guitar playing country singer from Tennessee should be considered an automatic front-runner and I get the sense he already realizes that.  He picked a country song by Tim McGraw that I do not know.

 

There was nothing noticeably bad about Lucas's vocals, but it was obvious he was not putting in the performance work the first two contestants on the evening had done. Maybe he felt he did not need to do that at this point in the competition and he would get through regardless. That may be the case, but there would still be one other young guitar playing country dude who would be appearing later in the show whom Lucas might have to be concerned about splitting votes with.

 

4. Jordan McCullough- "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For"

 

Until this point of the competition, Jordan had not made much of an impact in my mind, but I was really pleasantly surprised by this performance. Taking on this nearly 40 year old U2 hit was a bold choice and I am pretty sure this song (nor many from U2's catalogue) have ever been covered on Idol.

 

As the cliche goes, Jordan "made it his own", but leaning into making it sort of a gospel number was both very shrewd and also obvious. It has always been essentially a gospel song and I believe Bono has said as much. The judges seemed surprised by what Jordan did and the contestant, whom I believe might be a worship leader did not openly say he was trying to have a :"religious moment" but that is indeed what U2 has always been somewhat about. Nobody should have been too surprised by that. All things considered, I thought Jordan sounded very good and definitely won a lot of people over. The performance felt a bit more like "The Voice"  than recent Idol, although I say that as someone who gets pretty bored usually trying to watch that show.

 

5. Abayomi- "Mama Knows Best"

 

This was a much more modern song choice from the 16 year old Idol hopeful. I think Abayomi has a lot of talent but will probably be even better in a few years. She definitely seems to love the stage and camera though and seems to be having a lot of fun (as did her mother, grandmother, and younger sister.)

 

Vocally, it was pretty good, if not a bit rough around the edges at times. She brought sort of an old school jazz vibe to the whole thing which might appeal to many but a lot of younger kids who could be her target audience might not get it. I will give Abayomi credit for not trying to just go out there and sound like Beyonce.

 

6. Madison Moon- "Since U Been Gone"

 

This contestant seems to be in the same "rock chick" lane as Genevieve Hayward who performed on last week's show.  I think Madison has a very impressive voice and I like the song choice (even as well know original Idol Kelly Clarkson is currently part of another show's panel.)

 

This is probably a hard song to sing and on a couple of occasions it sounded like Madison missed hitting a couple of notes perfectly, but all in all, I remember it being a strong vocal. Is she what Idol voters are looking for though in 2026? Did anyone else catch she sort of has both sun and moon in her name?

 

7. Chris Tungseth- "Apologize"

 

This contestant has a blue collar background and looks like a viking, which is appropriate for him being from Minnesota.  I think people were expecting him to be a country singer, but he has sort of a different vibe that is hard to completely nail down, but that sort of element might make him a fan favorite. There really has not been anyone like him on Idol before that I can recall.

 

Vocally, this was a bit understated, as the nearly 20 year old song is, but I liked what he did with it and how he sounded. Like Philmon, he also came across as a bit nervous, but I would be interested in hearing what he would sound like on additional songs.

 

8. Ruby Rae- "Drag Me Down"

 

For one thing, Ruby picked what is probably One Direction's lone cool song. She is another 16 year old and seemed perhaps not quite at the same level as the others. That is not to say she sounded bad. I thought she sounded pretty good, but not great.

 

It is interesting that there is both a Rae and a Ruby Rae in this group. She might have been better off just going by Ruby. I think the similar names and the way people vote these days are going to confuse some people and put both ladies at risk and frankly I think that was Idol's master plan all along. The judges basically made it seem like this would be Ruby's one "live" performance.

 

9. Julian Kalel- "Tourniquet"

 

I have to start off by mentioning that his last name is the same as Superman's first name right? I looked it up and Kal-El means "Voice of G-d" in Hebrew. I guess that is one way to claim to be the next American Idol.

Frankly, Julian is very much a contender to win this season I think. He is from the border town of El Paso, Texas and definitely is of a Latino background, but his family also appears to be very wealthy. There was some backstory that I cannot quite understand about how he made it to Hollywood last season, on an audition that never aired, but dropped out due to mental health reasons. Now though, he is apparently ready to compete and everything about him seems to suggest he knows exactly how to play the game. He comes across and talks like someone who might have been a child actor, but if that is the case, it has not been mentioned. Julian will apparently continue to make a lot of generic references to mental health awareness though.

 

That seemed to be the gist of this song, which is another country one I do not know. Vocally, it was really good, but far from perfect. At this stage in the competition, Julian might have become friends with Lucas Leon, but with both being young guitar playing, cross-wearing, male singers from upper class backgrounds who sing country music, they are definitely in competition with each other. My hunch is that Julian might last longer, especially if he can pair the Latino vote with Evangelical support.

 

10. Keyla Richardson- "With A Little Help From My Friends"

I already knew from the Idol promotional spots that Keyla was going to have the judges, especially Lionel Richie going crazy in praise of what she did.  I was not totally surprised to go into the show expecting the 29 year old single mother and music teacher to do very well. She has been impressive thus far. I was perhaps a bit surprised (and maybe a bit relieved) that her precocious young son,who has been by her side every step of the way singing along with every lyric stayed at home in Florida to go to school.

If Keyla going to win American Idol? Probably not, although I also said that about the African-American music teacher and parent who wound up winning last season. She is very good though and probably set a world record for the number of crosses on her outfit during the performance. That is very much a part of the modern American Idol aesthetic though and a bit of a contrast to her very casual appearance while rehearsing for the cameras with Keke Palmer and Brad Paisley.

 

This is a song I have never really liked, ever since "The Wonder Years" and it has been done a ton on Idol. It works though if someone wants to show off vocally and do riffs and holleration. Keyla is extremely good at that. I was still planning to put her right behind Jordan in my rankings until the end until she of course proverbially  "took it to church" and her final fury of vocal firepower could not be denied. As expected, Lionel (and the others) loved it and she got all sorts of praise. She definitely has some Fantasia in her.  Could such a strong performance from Keyla put the much younger Abayomi, the only other African-American female performer of the night at risk?

 

Rankings:

 

10. Ruby Rae

 9. Lucas Leon 

 8. Philmon Lee 

 

 7. Rae

 6. Madison Moon

 5.  Abayomi

 4.  Julian Kalel

 3.  Chris Tungseth

 2.  Jordan McCullough

 1.  Keyla Richardson

 

As for predictions, I am pretty sure that young Ruby Rae will not make the Top 14, which will have become the Top 12 by the time Idol's Songs of Faith spectacular is over next Monday. The other two are much harder to predict. It could go in many directions. I think Philmon is the next most obvious bet. 

 

On the merits, Lucas should be cut, mostly because the other kids all looked like they had to work harder and indeed, if a lot of people planning to power vote for Lucas were instead won over by Julian, than it could be a problem for another teenage alliteration named singer.  That probably will not happen though. I will go with Rae joining the other Rae being dimmed while Moon stays afloat. We shall see and I will blog about Tuesday or maybe Wednesday.

American Idol Top 20- Group A

Twenty years ago, the American Idol franchise was born. For many of those seasons, I have blogged extensively about the competition here. Back in the day, many people did that. These days, I seem to be one of the few who still does. I will continue to watch the performances, offer commentary, rank them based on vocal performance alone, and simply for fun, make some predictions. 

 

I have always enjoyed American Idol because it combines popular music, athletic like competition, and a ton of political intrigue. In so many ways, the show feels a a lot different than it did back in the Fox days. It is far more oriented towards country music and gospel music these days to the extent of a wider range of other genres. I took particular note that the auditions this season were not held around the country, but simply at one location in Nashville, the home base of judges Carrie Underwood and Luke Bryan. Then, the show stayed at Belmont University for "Hollywood Week", instead of actually taking the contestants to Hollywood, or elsewhere in Southern California.

 

Since going to ABC, Idol has mostly become a Sunday night tradition. Now, it seems to be set for a Monday night schedule. I wish that were not the case, but it is what it is. Back in the day, Idol used to be on Tuesdays and Wednesdays. 

 

Also, this beginning of the "America votes" portion of the competition, which is already whittled down a Top 20, instead of a Top 32 or Top 24, is starting a month earlier than it has in the past. I do not know if that means that Idol will end earlier this Spring or if the season will contain additional weeks, with less double or triple eliminations.

 

For tonight, they are showing a highly edited recording of what has now been a several years tradition of the kids singing at the Disney Resort in Hawai'i  I will he watching a recording, and pausing as I go, before I hear the judges (almost always exclusively positive) comments to offer my own commentary. Ten will go tonight and ten next week. My understanding is that they are planning to get down to a Top 14, so I can only assume that three in each group will be cut, while seven advance.

 

1.Makiyah- "Bang Bang"

From her previous appearances, I know the young bank manager from Arkansas has a powerful and impressive voice. I was not too impressed though on this vocal.

 

Makiyah went out on stage to give a high energy crowd pleasing performance, and it seems like she did that. However, it felt like it was the wrong song for her and her voice sounded sort of grating to my ears. Maybe I just going to be hard to impress tonight.

 

2. Jake Thistle- "The Power Of Love"

 

Jake has apparently been gigging around New Jersey for many years and from what I understand, has spent a lot of time actually around Bruce Springsteen.  He seems very comfortable in front of the camera and vocally, he often sounds very much like Bryan Adams.

 

His sort of 80's pop-rock guitar playing identity might make him someone I enjoy in this competition, but I felt was was off vocally in his attempt to go "Back to the Future" and appeal to female Idol voters in their 50s and 60s. So many people try to go out in front of this outdoor Disney crowd and have a "party" and it seems sort of corny. He is the second contestant to kick off the evening that I thought was better than what they presented vocally.

 

3. Genevieve Hayward- "Pink Pony Club"

 

I was surprised she did not sing an 80s rock song to try to appeal to an older audience. Instead, she went with a Chappell Roan anthem from about a year ago, while also wearing a horrible outfit.

Vocally though, Genevieve sounded decent. She can hit all sorts of notes. Will that be enough this early in the competition when building an identity with the voters is so key?

 

4. Daniel Stallworth- "All Night Long (All Night)"

 

Last season, American Idol was won by an African-American male elementary school teacher from Mississippi.  While reigning champion Jamal Roberts was a PE teacher. Daniel is actually a music teacher and trying to recapture the formula.

 

While talented, I think Daniel might have a tougher hill to climb. Singing an old popular Lionel Richie song, in front of the man himself, was probably a good move for the Hawai'i crowd and the contestant definitely has vocal abilities, but it really did not show anything about what kind of artist he might be outside the show. It just felt like we were listening to a very good karaoke singer.

 

5. Kyndal- "Call Your Mom"

 

Kyndal has seemingly dropped her last name of Innskeep for the purpose of this competition and has joined the legion of one name only hopefuls. She has been around Nashville as a singer/songwriter long enough to have inspired one other young contestant to have auditioned with an original song by her, just as Kyndal was standing by to audition herself. I definitely think that was producer manipulated though.

 

I do not know this song and it is not one that Kyndal wrote herself, but it easily had the most "gravitas" of what we have heard so far. One can imagine her as a current artist and she will probably do well on this show because she has a bit of a country twang to her voice,even though she is not necessarily singing country music. I think Idol is invested in seeing her go far this season. 

 

6. Kutter Bradley- "It's Not Over"

 

Who decides to name their kid, Kutter? With a K to boot? Anyways, this dude from Alabama seems like a nice guy. I thought he would probably sing a country song, but instead covered Daughtry, and while reasonably credible, was not quite on par with the original.

 

 I thought Kutter started off pretty good vocally, but maybe ran out of steam. He did this performance without playing guitar, which was new to him,and maybe he ran out of steam a bit towards the end. I give him points for effort though. This seems like it would be sort of a tough song to sing.

 

Idol really wants everyone to vote this season via Instagram, Facebook, or Tik Tok. I do not do any of those things. Why not a Twitter/X option? I am on there (semi anonymously) where I mostly vent about politics, make observations about sports, or try to guess the identities on "The Masked Singer."

 

7. Jesse Findling- "You Found Me"

 

Hey, the song he picked is sort of a variation of his last name. Jesse is an interesting contestant. He was introduced as a stutterer when he speaks, but seems to not be doing that too much in front of the Idol cameras. He definitely sings better than Lazaro Arbos, Idol's previous stutterer. Also, I am pretty sure that Jesse from Long Island is Jewish, so these days, I bet he is probably sadly getting a lot of online hate for that alone. I hope he can shut that all out.

 

There is no doubt that he has a really good voice and I was impressed with his take on this song by The Fray. Performance wise, he is all sorts of awkward, at least so far at this stage of the competition, but a lot of nerdy guys with good voices have managed to go pretty far in Idol history. I envision Jesse as more of a Josh Groban type than a pop singer though.

 

8. Hannah Harper- "Ain't No Grave"

 

Hannah is likely to be a polarizing contestant, but she seems to have quite a grasp of her musical identity and will definitely appear to many Evangelicals and perhaps fellow mothers of young children.

 

She is from a prominent bluegrass family band, but apparently left music when she started having kids. Now, the mother of three young boys, she is competing on American Idol and did a strong job on what sounded like a religious worship song with country music overtones. It will be interesting to see if she can show musical versatility on other genres.

 

9. Braden Rumfelt- "Love On The Brain"

I was sort of expecting Braden to be sort of average and perhaps cast in a role of Idol fodder but I have to say, this performance definitely exceeded my expectations.  

 

He sang this Rihanna song really well and seemed to effortlessly hit some big notes. I think this was commented upon in his audition, but his voice does sort of resemble Steve Perry of Journey in a way. I would be very interested to hear his sing some songs in that musical lane. I think he probably took a lot of votes that Jake was hoping to get.

 

10. Brooks- "Dancing On My Own"

I truly do not understand why he dropped his last name. It seems very pretentious for the kind of seemingly humble singer he is and the Rosser branding is still on his social media of course.

 

Brooks is my mother's least favorite member of the Top 20 this season. I do not think she likes the fact that a dumpy looking male with facial hair sounds like a woman when he sings. Frankly, a lot of older Idol fans may feel the same way. I appreciate his talent though and I thought this was actually the best he has sounded on anything that has been aired thus far. This particular song was very well suited for his style.  Idol is definitely pimping him a ton early on.

 

Rankings:

 

10. Makiyah

 9. Jake Thistle

 8. Kutter Bradley

 

 7. Daniel Stallworth

 6. Genevieve Hayward

 5. Jesse Finding

 4. Brooks

 3. Hannah Harper

 2. Kyndal

 1. Braden Rumfelt

 

I do not know if we will get the results in one week or two weeks. I think these kids are probably fine with a longer wait. As for my view, I thought the first two performances of the need were not nearly as good as I was anticipating from those particular singers and they missed a big opportunity and fairness dictates they should be eliminated. Everyone else was decent but Kutter was somewhat less decent than some of the others. It was all very close though.

What will happen? I think Makiyah and Jake will probably go. The third prediction is more difficult. I do not think it will be Kutter. I think it will be either Daniel or Genevieve and since I think more Lionel Richie fans were watching than Chappell Roan fans, I think it will be bad news for Genevieve, to go along with a curse on all Wisconsin competitors ever since the Milwaukee Brewers stupidly flew an L flag in "celebration" last October. 

 

U.S. House Special Election

I always predict every U.S. House election, which occasionally makes it necessary to do these posts. I last did so in October.where I should note that a Safe D win in Texas did have me picking (via tossup) the wrong specific candidate among the two Democrats running, but since I got the party right of course, it does not count as a loss.

 

Anyways, there will two more special U.S. House elections coming in May and June, and I will get to those eventually, but Georgia is holding a very crowded election this coming Tuesday. If one candidate receives a majority, they are on their way to Washington D.C. Thus, I have to do this critical prediction before Tuesday! However, there is a virtual guarantee that there will be a runoff between the top two contenders a month from now. If needed, I will revise my call at that time.

 

Georgia

 

14. vacant upon resignation of Marjorie Taylor Greene R

 (won by Trump with 68 percent of the vote)

 

Likely R/Leans Fuller

 

 

Super Bowl LX Result

I do not know how to get the font size the way I want to, so I will just leave it as is. This is what I get for trying to add some color to the annual Super Bowl post. 

From Santa Clara, California 

Seattle Seahawks (16-3) 

vs.

New England Patriots  (17-3) 

 

W 1

Super Bowl Result: 1-0 (100%)

Final non-predictions Results: 126-158 (44%)

 

Patriots finish 17-4 

 

Seahawks are NFL Champions at 17-3 

 

Frankly, most of the game was boring, and my interest in football kind of waned a bit after the Bears were eliminated, but congrats to Seattle. They certainly had a strong Defense last night.

 

Outside of the two fanbases, it seems like most of the focus of the game was on the damn Halftime Show. Some people just need to be outraged at all times, and of course that helps explain the political appeal of Donald Trump.

 

In the first ever Super Bowl a trumpeter performed. In the sixtieth, it was Bad Bunny. So, we have gone from Al Hirt to Butt Hurt.

 

So many MAGA types were just outraged beyond belief by a Puerto Rican performer, who has been vocally anti-Trump singing almost all in Spanish. Of course, Puerto Ricans are Americans and while I cannot claim to know much about the music of Bad Bunny, I sort of delight by the ridiculous anger his gig generated.

 

While the production value was impressive and I noted much of the symbolism of the performance, it was really not my kind of music. He is a global superstar though who was sure to generate huge ratings. The alternative MAGA Halftime Show featuring a lip syncing Kid Rock was a technical and musical mess. I only really liked Kid Rock when he was supporting Mitt Romney back in the day, so I am sure that somewhere in the archives of this blog, I praised him, but he has really turned out to be among a collection of silly people who gravitated towards Donald Trump.

 

Of course, the current President, who definitely watched Bad Bunny instead of Kid Rock, took to social media to complain about the perceived raunchy lyrics (which a lot of people could not understand anyway if they occurred) and some suggestive dancing. There may be somewhat of a point to that, but I do not think those who advocated for the Kid Rock counter-programming have any room to complain about gibberish lyrics or very inappropriate ones for that matter either.

Also, Trump' signature YMCA dance and what he pretended to do to a microphone in the last campaign was far worse than anything ever done on any Super Bowl Halftime Show. 

Super Bowl LX

From Santa Clara, California

Seattle Seahawks (16-3) 

vs.

New England Patriots  (17-3)

 

Overall Non-Prediction Results: 125-158  (44%) 

While I do not truly have a massive rooting interest, I will root for the Seahawks and am also predicting they will win. Frankly, the Patriots, and all of Boston's professional teams have won enough this decade. Seattle fans deserve another Super Bowl, after more than a decade's wait, because the Mariners seem to be a cursed franchise.

 

Next year though...... Bear Down! 

NFL Conference Championship Results

 How about that? I went 2-0 in my predictions.

 Below are the results I wanted to see.

 

 1. Patriots (16-3) at Broncos (15-3) L 1

 2. Rams (14-5) at Seahawks (15-3) W 1

 

Conference Championship Result: 1-1 (50%)

Overall Results: 125-158  (44%)

 

Rams finish 14-6

 

Broncos finish 15-4 

2025-2026 College Football Bowl Game Results

 NOT PREDICTIONS

 

1. LA Bowl L 1

Inglewood, CA

 

Boise State Broncos vs. Washington Huskies 

 

2. Salute to Veterans Bowl W 1

Montgomery, AL

 

Troy Trojans vs. Jacksonville State Gamecocks

 

3. Cure Bowl W 2
Orlando, FL

 

Old Dominion Monarchs vs. South Florida Bulls

 

4.  68 Ventures Bowl W 3

Mobile, AL 

 

Louisiana at Lafayette Ragin' Cajuns vs. Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens

 

5.  Xbox Bowl L 2

Frisco, TX

 

Missouri State Bears vs. Arkansas State Red Wolves

 

6. Myrtle Beach Bowl L 3

Conway, SC

 

Kennesaw State Owls vs. Western Michigan Broncos

 

7.  Gasparilla Bowl L 4

Tampa, FL

 

Memphis Tigers vs. North Carolina State Wolfpack

 

8.  First Round Game L 5

Norman, OK

 

# 9 Alabama Crimson Tide at # 8 Oklahoma Sooners 

 

9. First Round Game L 6

College Station, TX

 

# 10 Miami Hurricanes at # 7 Texas A&M Aggies  

 

10. First Round Game L 7
University, MS

 

# 20 Tulane University of Louisiana Green Wave at # 6 Mississippi Rebels

 

11. First Round Game L 8

Eugene, OR

 

# 24 James Madison Dukes at # 5 Oregon Ducks 

 

12. Idaho Potato Bowl L 9

Boise, ID

 

Washington State Cougars vs. Utah State Aggies

 

13.  Boca Raton Bowl W 4

Boca Raton, FL

 

Toledo Rockets vs. Louisville Cardinals

 

14.  New Orleans Bowl W 5

New Orleans, LA

 

Western Kentucky Hilltoppers vs. Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles

 

15. Frisco Bowl  W 6

Frisco, TX

 

Nevada, Las Vegas Rebels vs. Ohio Bobcats

 

16. Hawai'i Bowl W 7

Honolulu, HI

 

California, Berkeley Golden Bears vs. Hawai'i at Manoa Rainbow Warriors

 

17.  GameAbove Sports Bowl W 8

Detroit, MI

 

 Central Michigan Chippewas vs. Northwestern Wildcats

 

18.  Rate Bowl W 9

Phoenix, AZ

 

New Mexico Lobos vs. Minnesota Twin Cities Golden Gophers

 

19.  First Responder Bowl L 10

Dallas, TX

 

Florida International Panthers vs. Texas at San Antonio Roadrunners

 

20. Military Bowl W 10

Annapolis, MD

 

Pittsburgh Panthers vs. East Carolina Pirates

 

21. Pinstripe Bowl L 11

Bronx, NY

 

Pennsylvania State Nittany Lions vs. Clemson Tigers

 

22. Fenway Bowl W 11

Boston, MA

 

Connecticut Huskies vs. United States Military Academy at West Point Black Knights

 

23.  Pop-Tarts Bowl W 12

Orlando, FL

 

# 22 Georgia Institute of Technology Yellow Jackets vs. # 12 Brigham Young Cougars

 

24.  Arizona Bowl L 12

Tuscon, AZ

 

Miami RedHawks vs. California State, Fresno Bulldogs

 

25.  New Mexico Bowl W 13

Albuquerque, NM

 

# 25 North Texas Mean Green vs. San Diego State Aztecs

 

26.  Gator Bowl W 14
Jacksonville, FL

 

# 19 Virginia Cavaliers vs. Missouri Tigers

 

27. Texas Bowl W 15
Houston, TX

 

Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College Tigers vs. # 21 Houston Cougars

 

28. Birmingham Bowl L 13

Birmingham, AL

 

Georgia Southern Eagles vs.Appalachian State Mountaineers

 

29.  Independence Bowl  L 14

Shreveport, LA

 

Coastal Carolina Chanticleers vs. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs

 

30. Music City Bowl W 16

Nashville, TN

 

Tennessee, Knoxville Volunteers vs. Illinois Urbana-Champaign Fighting Illini

 

31. Alamo Bowl W 17

San Antonio, TX

 

# 16 Southern California Trojans vs. Texas Christian Horned Frogs

 

32.  ReliaQuest Bowl L 15

Tampa, FL

 

# 23 Iowa Hawkeyes vs. # 14 Vanderbilt Commodores

 

33. Sun Bowl W 18

El Paso, TX

 

Arizona State Sun Devils vs. Duke Blue Devils

 

34. Citrus Bowl W 19

Orlando, FL

 

# 13 Texas at Austin Longhorns vs. # 18 Michigan Wolverines

 

35. Las Vegas Bowl L 16
Paradise, NV

 

Nebraska-Lincoln Cornhuskers vs. # 15 Utah Utes

 

36.  Cotton Bowl L 17

Arlington, TX

 

# 10 Miami Hurricanes vs. # 2 Ohio State Buckeyes

 

37. Orange Bowl L 18

Miami Gardens, FL

 

# 5 Oregon Ducks vs. # 4 Texas Tech Red Raiders

 

38.  Rose Bowl W 20

Pasadena, CA

 

# 9 Alabama Crimson Tide vs. # 1 Indiana Bloomington Hoosiers

 

39. Sugar Bowl W 21

New Orleans, LA

 

# 6 Mississippi Rebels vs. # 3 Georgia Bulldogs

 

40. Armed Forces Bowl L 19
Fort Worth, TX

 

Willam Marsh Rice Owls vs. Texas State Bobcats

 

41. Liberty Bowl W 22

Memphis, TN

 

United States Naval Academy Midshipmen vs. Cincinnati Bearcats

 

42.  Holiday Bowl W 23

San Diego, CA

 

# 17 Arizona Wildcats vs. Southern Methodist Mustangs

 

43. Mayo Bowl L 20

Charlotte, NC

 

Wake Forest Demon Deacons vs. Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science Bulldogs

 

44. Fiesta Bowl L 21
Glendale, AZ

 

# 10 Miami Hurricanes vs. # 6 Mississippi Rebels

 

45  Peach Bowl W 24

Atlanta, GA

 

# 5 Oregon Ducks vs. # 1 Indiana Bloomington Hoosiers 

 

 

46. National Championship Game W 25

Miami Gardens, FL

 

# 10 Miami Hurricanes vs. # 1 Indiana Bloomington Hoosiers 

 

Results: 25-21 (54%)

 

 

 

 

NFL Conference Championship Games

My predictions are the Patriots and Seahawks win...

 

Overall Results: 124-157 (44%)

  

1. Patriots (16-3) at Broncos (15-3)

 

It will be tough for Denver to win with their backup Quarterback, but I will root for the underdog. The people of New England really do not need another professional sports championship anytime soon.

 

2. Rams (14-5) at Seahawks (15-3)

 

The sports fans of Los Angeles definitely do not need another championship anytime soon. I would even be forced to root for New England over them.

NFL Divisional Round Playoff Results

NOT PREDICTIONS

 

1. Bills (13-5) at Broncos (14-3) L 1

2. 49ers (13-5) at Seahawks (14-3) L 2

 

3. Texans (13-5) at Patriots (15-3) L 3

4.  Rams (13-5) at Bears (12-6) L 4

 

Divisional Round Results: 0-4 (0%)

Overall Results: 124-157 (44%)

 

Oh well, the Bears lost in Overtime. This was after another amazing play to get the game to Overtime. As for the other games, I picked only the underdogs, for strategic Bears fans reasons.

 

The season for the Chicago Bears is over and while I wish it was not, for one thing, I do not think anybody was going to go into Seattle next week and win. All things considered, this season for the Bears was an amazing success. They exceeded all expectations. From worst in the division to first, and a classic, thrilling victory over the evil Packers in the post-season, it is hard to ask for me, at least right now. Next year though, another step will need to be taken. The team must get, at least, to the NFC Championship Game. It would really suck to wind up like the Buffalo Bills. I really feel for their long-suffering fans. Bears fans will be approaching the 2026 season with tremendous optimism. Next up though, it is time for baseball. The Chicago Cubs have had amazing recent success in years that end in six.

Bears finish 12-7

 

Bills finish 13-6

49ers finish 13-6

Texans finish 13-6

NFL Divisional Round Playoff Games

NOT PREDICTIONS

 Overall Results: 124-153 (45%)

 

 

1. Bills (13-5) at Broncos (14-3)

2. 49ers (13-5) at Seahawks (14-3)

 

3. Texans (13-5) at Patriots (15-3)

4.  Rams (13-5) at Bears (12-6)

 

 Whatever happens on Sunday, at least the Bears cannot lose to the Packers!

2025-2026 College Football Bowl Games- Part 7

 Might as well make it a Prediction, but it is not technically:

After this weekend's slate of NFL Playoff games (which I will run thru tomorrow), a new college football champion will be crowned.

It just so happens that the game will be played in what is typically the home stadium of one team and in the hometown of the other's teams Heisman Trophy winning Quarterback, who is also expected to the be the #1 Overall pick in the upcoming NFL Draft. 

  

46. National Championship Game

Miami Gardens, FL

 

# 10 Miami Hurricanes vs. # 1 Indiana Bloomington Hoosiers 

 

I suppose all the talk that Notre Dame should have gotten in over Miami is pretty moot at this point. However, Indiana just looks like they are pretty unstoppable. It will be quite a story if the program, from a "basketball school" which I believe is the one that has lost the most games in history goes undefeated.

 

For me, I guess I need to root for Indiana for nothing else than the fact that their state had some courageous State Senators who recently said no to Donald Trump. 

NFL Wildcard Round Playoff Resuls

 NOT PREDICTIONS

1. Rams (12-5) at Panthers (8-9) L 1

2. Packers (9-7-1) at Bears (11-6) W 1

 

3. Bills (12-5) at Jaguars (13-4) W 2

4. 49ers (12-5) at Eagles (11-6) L 2

5. Chargers (11-6) at Patriots (14-3) L 3

 

6. Texans (12-5) at Steelers (10-7) L 4

 

Wildard results: 2-4 (33%)

Overall Results: 124-153 (45%)

 

First, I am not too upset to see Aaron Rodgers go out in a Joe Biden like fashion. There is no way he is coming back right?

 

Next, the evening of January 10, 2026 was simply amazing. I have never really felt anything like it, in some ways, even after seeing a bunch of championship clinchers, including Game 7 of the 2016 World Series.

 

It has felt like the Packers have owned the Bears and dominated the rivalry since I first became a reasonably knowledgeable football fan, some 35 years or so ago. I have been waiting a long, long, long time for this. I think back to all the bandwagon Packers fans from Chicagoland whom I went to High School and college with. We finally got one! Thank you Ben Johnson and thank you Caleb Williams. Whatever happens this coming Sunday or beyond is just extra at this point, but if you do not go all the way, please get even closer next season and do not stop until the ultimate victory is achieved.

 

Indeed, with the score 21-3 at Halftime, I thought the game was over and we would be waiting until next season. I did not actually think we could actually come all the way back and win this game until maybe six minutes were left in the 4th Quarter, but the Bears have been doing amazing things late in games all season long. Doing it against the Packers (again) was just all the sweeter. It was the best combined night in Chicago sports history, considering the Bulls and Blackhawks also won, and more importantly, the Cubs signed free agent Alex Bregman. 

 

Panthers finish 8-10

 

Packers finish 9-8-1 in an utter shambles

 

Steelers finish 10-8

 

Eagles finish 11-7

Chargers finish 11-7

 

Jaguars finish 13-5 

NFL Wildcard Round Playoff Games

NOT PREDICTIONS

Final Regular Season Results: 122-149  (45%) 

 

1. Rams (12-5) at Panthers (8-9)

2. Packers (9-7-1) at Bears (11-6)

 

3. Bills (12-5) at Jaguars (13-4)

4. 49ers (12-5) at Eagles (11-6)

5. Chargers (11-6) at Patriots (14-3)

 

6. Texans (12-5) at Steelers (10-7) 

 

I keep reminding myself that the Bears are at least one year ahead of schedule. They were predicted to be a last place and started off 0-2 this year. Then, they went on to definitively take the NFC North over the three other teams, all of which finished over .500.

 

So, no pressure, right? 

 

 

2025-2026 College Football Bowl Games- Part 6

NOT PREDICTIONS

One thing that is very clear is that receiving a Bye in the College Football Playoffs has not been a good thing. Since that began last year, seven out of eight teams who had that have now lost. The exception was Indiana's blowout Rose Bowl win on New Year's Day, so maybe that should count for two

 

Also, while it is not Division 1, I think a mention should be made of the Illinois State Redbirds, who won a bunch of upsets in their Division II playoffs and after a late comeback got all the way to Overtime in the championship game before losing a heartbreaker to Montana State. Hopefully, the remaining Bowl Games are as competitive.

 

44. Fiesta Bowl
Glendale, AZ

 

# 10 Miami Hurricanes vs. # 6 Mississippi Rebels

 

45  Peach Bowl

Atlanta, GA

 

# 5 Oregon Ducks vs. # 1 Indiana Bloomington Hoosiers 

NFL Week 18 Results

 NOT PREDICTIONS

1. Panthers (8-8) at Buccaneers (7-9) L 1

2. Seahawks (13-3) at 49ers (12-4) W 1

 

3. Saints (6-10) at Falcons (7-9) L 2

4. Browns (4-12) at Bengals (6-10) L 3

5. Colts (8-8) at Texans (11-5) L 4

6. Titans (3-13) at Jaguars (12-4) L 5

7. Packers (9-6-1) at Vikings (8-8) W 2

8. Cowboys (7-8-1) at Giants (3-13) L 6

9. Jets (3-13) at Bills (11-5) W 3

10. Lions (8-8) at Bears (11-5) L 7

11. Chargers (11-5) at Broncos (13-3) W 4

12. Cardinals (3-13) at Rams (11-5) L 8

13. Chiefs (6-10) at Raiders (2-14) L 9

14. Dolphins (7-9) at Patriots (13-3) L 10

15. Commanders (4-12) at Eagles (11-5) W 5

16. Ravens (8-8) at Steelers (9-7) L 11

 

Week 18 Results: 5-11  (31%) - almost like last season's Bears, who this year became Division Champions

Final Regular Season Results: 122-149  (45%)

 

Raiders finish 3-14

Jets finish 3-14

Titans finish 3-14

Cardinals finish 3-14

 

Giants finish 4-13

 

Browns finish 5-12 

Commanders finish 5-12

 

Bengals finish 6-11

Chiefs finish 6-11

Saints finish 6-11

 

Dolphins finish 7-10

 

Cowboys finish 7-9-1

 

Colts finish 8-9

Ravens finish 8-9

Buccaneers finish 8-9 

Falcons finish 8-9 

 

Vikings finish 9-8

Lions finish 9-8 

 

NFL Week 18 Games

 NOT PREDICTIONS

Overall Results: 117-138 (46%)  

 

1. Panthers (8-8) at Buccaneers (7-9)

2. Seahawks (13-3) at 49ers (12-4)

 

3. Saints (6-10) at Falcons (7-9)

4. Browns (4-12) at Bengals (6-10)

5. Colts (8-8) at Texans (11-5)

6. Titans (3-13) at Jaguars (12-4)

7. Packers (9-6-1) at Vikings (8-8)

8. Cowboys (7-8-1) at Giants (3-13)

9. Jets (3-13) at Bills (11-5)

10. Lions (8-8) at Bears (11-5)

11. Chargers (11-5) at Broncos (13-3)

12. Cardinals (3-13) at Rams (11-5)

13. Chiefs (6-10) at Raiders (2-14)

14. Dolphins (7-9) at Patriots (13-3)

15. Commanders (4-12) at Eagles (11-5)

16. Ravens (8-8) at Steelers (9-7)

NFL Week 17 Results

 NOT PREDICTIONS

1. Cowboys (6-8-1) at Commanders (4-11) L 1

2. Lions (8-7) at Vikings (7-8) L 2

3. Broncos (12-3) at Chiefs (6-9) L 3

 

 

4. Texans (10-5) at Chargers (11-4) L 4

5. Ravens (7-8) at Packers (9-5-1) W 1

 

6.  Seahawks (12-3) at Panthers (8-7) L 5

7.  Cardinals (3-12) at Bengals (5-10) W 2

8.  Steelers (9-6) at Browns (3-12) W 3

9.  Jaguars (11-4) at Colts (8-7) W 4

10. Buccaneers (7-8) at Dolphins (6-9) W 5

11. Patriots (12-3) at Jets (3-12)  L 6

12. Saints (5-10) at Titans (3-12) W 6

13. Giants (2-13) at Raiders (2-13) L 7

14. Eagles (10-5) at Bills (11-4) L 8

15. Bears (11-4) at 49ers (11-4) L 9

 

16. Rams (11-4) at Falcons (6-9) W 7

 

Week 17 Results: 7-9 (44%)

Overall Results: 117-138 (46%) 

 

2025-2026 College Football Bowl Games- Part 5

 NOT PREDICTIONS

28. Birmingham Bowl

Birmingham, AL

 

Georgia Southern Eagles vs.Appalachian State Mountaineers

 

29.  Independence Bowl 

Shreveport, LA

 

Coastal Carolina Chanticleers vs. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs

 

30. Music City Bowl

Nashville, TN

 

Tennessee, Knoxville Volunteers vs. Illinois Urbana-Champaign Fighting Illini

 

31. Alamo Bowl

San Antonio, TX

 

# 16 Southern California Trojans vs. Texas Christian Horned Frogs

 

32.  ReliaQuest Bowl

Tampa, FL

 

# 23 Iowa Hawkeyes vs. # 14 Vanderbilt Commodores

 

33. Sun Bowl

El Paso, TX

 

Arizona State Sun Devils vs. Duke Blue Devils

 

34. Citrus Bowl

Orlando, FL

 

# 13 Texas at Austin Longhorns vs. # 18 Michigan Wolverines

 

35. Las Vegas Bowl
Paradise, NV

 

Nebraska-Lincoln Cornhuskers vs. # 15 Utah Utes

 

36.  Cotton Bowl

Arlington, TX

 

# 10 Miami Hurricanes vs. # 2 Ohio State Buckeyes

 

37. Orange Bowl

Miami Gardens, FL

 

# 5 Oregon Ducks vs. # 4 Texas Tech Red Raiders

 

38.  Rose Bowl

Pasadena, CA

 

# 9 Alabama Crimson Tide vs. # 1 Indiana Bloomington Hoosiers

 

39. Sugar Bowl

New Orleans, LA

 

# 6 Mississippi Rebels vs. # 3 Georgia Bulldogs

 

40. Armed Forces Bowl
Fort Worth, TX

 

Willam Marsh Rice Owls vs. Texas State Bobcats

 

41. Liberty Bowl

Memphis, TN

 

United States Naval Academy Midshipmen vs. Cincinnati Bearcats

 

42.  Holiday Bowl

San Diego, CA

 

# 17 Arizona Wildcats vs. Southern Methodist Mustangs

 

43. Mayo Bowl

Charlotte, NC

 

Wake Forest Demon Deacons vs. Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science Bulldogs

NFL Week 17 Games

This has been quite a season for fans of the Chicago Bears. We knew that they would have a better record than last year but their success in year one under new Head Coach Ben Johnson has been truly amazing.The team has come back to win while trailing in the final minutes of the game on a remarkable six occasions. What can be made of that? Even as a Jew, I just knew it might be good to have a Pope who grew up as a Bears fan. Now, for the Bears, the division, and potentially a number one (or number two) seed is very much in play. It is pretty crazy to be picking which teams I want to win this week's games, knowing that very few of them in the NFC can potentially catch the Bears.

The possibilities of what could or could not be on the table in Week 18 are pretty crazy. For now, I will hope for the Lions to stay alive, at least for this week, because that might be the only way to knock the Green Bay Packers out of the playoffs, and that would be pretty fun to see in a way. The Bears will play the Lions in Week 18, and might need to "take a dive" theoretically, but I will not want that to happen. Odds are, next week will matter to the Bears' playoff positioning, and they will probably be facing Green Bay again in early 2026.

 NOT PREDICTIONS

Overall Results: 110-129 (46%) 

 

1. Cowboys (6-8-1) at Commanders (4-11)

2. Lions (8-7) at Vikings (7-8)

3. Broncos (12-3) at Chiefs (6-9)

 

 

4. Texans (10-5) at Chargers (11-4)

5. Ravens (7-8) at Packers (9-5-1)

 

6.  Seahawks (12-3) at Panthers (8-7)

7.  Cardinals (3-12) at Bengals (5-10)

8.  Steelers (9-6) at Browns (3-12)

9.  Jaguars (11-4) at Colts (8-7)

10. Buccaneers (7-8) at Dolphins (6-9)

11. Patriots (12-3) at Jets (3-12)

12. Saints (5-10) at Titans (3-12)

13. Giants (2-13) at Raiders (2-13)

14. Eagles (10-5) at Bills (11-4)

15. Bears (11-4) at 49ers (11-4)

 

16. Rams (11-4) at Falcons (6-9)