I could list all sorts of reasons for stepping aside from ThroughBall.com, not least of which is a desire to shower attention on my nine-month-old but, if I’m being honest, I simply have neither the passion nor the time it takes to do this correctly.

I suspect I’ll see you all again down the road—here or somewhere else completely (oh I’ve got ideas, mister—don’t unsubscribe just yet).

For now, though, I offer you heartfelt thanks for sticking in there with me and making ThroughBall.com an incredibly rewarding experience.

Update: The ThroughBall.com Fantasy Football League is up and running until we give away that new jersey!

Photographer: HugoPan

Not a great showing from the boys last night. There were flashes here and there but they rarely looked in control. That said, here are three non-game-related points about last night:

Commenting on the Commentators

While searching for the game, I inadvertently flipped to ESPN instead of ESPN2. Who did I hear doing the play-by-play of the UConn/Syracuse game? Ol’ Dave O’Brien. He seems happy. I said “hello” for you.

JP is definitely the better guy for the job but it still only took about 15 seconds for him to mention that Michael Bradley is the coach’s son and he seemed off all night. I wish John Harkes would consider Tim Magraw’s question, “why you gotta be angry all the time?” Not that there were a lot of positives last night but still, ease up, man!

Alternate Universe

I saw fewer-than-normal projectiles from the Mexican fans and to the best of my knowledge, Tim Howard did not tear open his elbow on a nail before last night’s game. Moreover, the Mexican team did shake hands and exchange shirts last night. I think that means they are just sore losers, not sore draw-ers.

Pigpen

Clint Dempsey has seemingly abandoned all modern social mores concerning personal hygiene. I’m left to wonder if the bulkiness of his hair and the extra 2 millimeters of dirt on his skin was enough to weigh him down and keep him a 1/4 step offside before he schooled four Mexican defenders and placed a beauty past the keeper. We’ll never know.

Can we get a little consistency, please? If I flip to a game, I know immediately if Italy or Brazil are playing just by looking at the uniforms. With the U.S., there is no telling what they might be wearing.

Here’s your chance to be a part of the great video evolution at U.S. Soccer. The Federation is looking for a Manager of Video Production. Here’s what you need to know:

Candidates should have extensive knowledge of and experience with Final Cup Pro, Adobe Photoshop, AfterEffects and multimedia production and video management systems. Candidates should possess a strong knowledge of audio editing software and a basic understanding of compression and formatting standards in the use of flash video, Quicktime and Windows Media.

If this sounds like you (for what it’s worth, it sounds like me, except for the audio editing software), apply here.

Can I tell you how much I love it when readers send me things of interest? It makes my life a lot easier.

• Brian Quarstad interviews the Minnesota Thunder’s new Marketing Director [Blue Sky Soccer via BQ]
• Speaking of USL, Austin gets a team in ‘09 [The Offside Rules via Minor]
• Beckham is being called the world’s “biggest environmental threat,” which, of course, is code for “we want Beckham’s money and this seems like a good way to get it.” [FoxSoccer.com]
• MLS teams can now take charter flights, but only four times per year. In other news, MLS still has no money. [Big Apple Soccer]
• Roy Hodgson says that Eddie Johnson is on his way to “underperform at Fulham offer us another dimension to our attacking play.” [FulhamFC.com]