Mistakes were made: Our prediction of 38-20 Ohio State was, let’s just say, a little off. OK, more like not even close. Or not even there. Like Brittney’s undergarments. Had we known Ted Ginn Jr. would be injured in the first half, it might have changed things. But the biggest blow to the Buckeyes was when Heisman quarterback Troy Smith was secretly replaced right before the game by Spergon Wynn. Wasn’t it terrible how they did that? Let the kid play!

Meanwhile, the BCS head talked about the “plus-one” system that could create a four-team mini-playoff. That immediately made us hungry for frosted mini-wheats, plus one pound of bacon.

We’re not sure much else of relevance happened last night, considering one of the giant TV screens at Senser’s kept showing bloopers from the 1980s over and over again. We’re here to tell you: Bernie Kosar was not amused by the snake in the Gatorade trick.

A deal for the Big Unit: Randy Johnson is heading back to Arizona in exchange for a decent relief pitcher and three minor-leaguers. This is all very strange.

Take a moment: Stop dreaming about new coaches for a minute and realize that the Wild lost at home last night, 3-2 to Tampa Bay.

OK, back to business: Marc Trestman and Larry Coker entered the fray for the Gophers football coaching job. Chip Scoggins broke down those possibilities and others right here. But a question to you: Throw out a specific name you want to see here, but more importantly explain the qualities you think a coach in any sport in this state needs to exude in order to be accepted and well-liked in the public. We think the requirements here are different than they are elsewhere. OK, go!

The Orange Bowl was doomed from the start: Louisville defeated Wake Forest 24-13, but most of the free world was probably still talking about and replaying the Boise State/Oklahoma game, which is one of the best games of this generation. There was no way the Orange Bowl was going to top it. It’s like batting after a grand slam. Or singing karaoke after RandBall.

The Answer tossed: Allen Iverson was ejected; his old team, the 76ers, defeated his new team, the Nuggets; and Denver is now 2-4 since the big trade. We’ll reserve judgment until Carmelo Anthony is back, but so far, not so good for A.I. in Denver.

Hey, great news for Lions fans: Matt Millen said this on Tuesday: “I’ll never quit.” One might think that having a 24-72 record during his tenure might take the job decision out of Millen’s hands, but indications are otherwise.

No more grumbling about Boise State: The undefeated Broncos sent the Fiesta Bowl into overtime by running the hook-and-ladder, then won on a two-point conversion using the Statue of Liberty play. What, no center sneak? No fumblerooski?  

KG’s with leather: In his first game with the new old leather ball, the Wolves forward had a season-high 32 points as the Wolves rallied from 20 points down to defeat the Bobcats. “Hallelujah for the [leather] ball,” KG said.

UFO in Chicago: United Airlines employees think they spotted a “saucer-shaped craft” in the fall. Officials are blaming a strange weather phenomenon. Several Bears fans are pretty sure it was a wayward Rex Grossman pass. Â

It was just your average quiet holiday weekend, really. No big news. Except, you know, for the fact that Glen Mason was fired. To say that caught quite a few of us off guard is an understatement. We don’t have any interest in rehashing Mason’s pros and cons. He was what he was: A slightly above average football coach who never connected with much of a broader Minnesota fan base because of his personality. What really strikes us is the irony of it all. Based on AD Joel Maturi’s comments, the bowl game collapse played a significant role in this decision. So: 1) Mason actually might have spared his job had the Gophers lost one of their final three regular-season games, a strange premise. And 2) A coach whose legacy is huge collapses and playing in the types of bowl games that indicate a team hasn’t made it over a prominent hump was fired after losing a game that involved both of those things. 

But even with the bowl game loss in his hip pocket, seeing Maturi have the fortitude to fire Mason a month after firing Dan Monson was a shocker. The timing, in both cases, was wrong. Maturi should have had the foresight to see the 2006 seasons coming for both teams — particularly the Gophers football season, which was fairly predictable. In fact, before the season started, a lot of water cooler talk in RandBall circles was that Minnesota would win four, maybe five games. In short, nothing that happened this year should have been any different than how Maturi envisioned it playing out when he gave Mason an extension on the final day of 2005. It suggests that Maturi erred a year ago and the U will pay because of it. The other option is that Maturi saw extending Mason as a necessary move for stadium continuity, and now that the stadium is a go, he could make the move he has wanted to make for at least a year, if not more.

Overall, this would have been a much better move a year ago. Right now, I honestly have mixed thoughts. But the guess is that you don’t. So: Was this a good move? Were you surprised? What qualities do you want to see in a new coach? All those questions, and others on the topic, are in play right now. Discuss.

(Oh, and any thoughts on the Vikings are pretty much right here).Â