Happy Friday afternoon, Bruins!

In another Friday night game that would be infinitely more compelling on the hardwood instead of the gridiron, tonight's college football game pits connects matches Pittsburgh (4-5) and Connecticut (3-6). I'm not even going to try to provide any analysis for this one. It's football. Isn't that enough?

Wait, don't click away just yet.

After all, we need a place to chat before the basketball game thread goes up around 7 PST, so why not here? If this football game isn't interesting enough, we can always talk about Hello Kiffin's soft balls (there are still lots of unused jokes), the NHL lockout (what, you didn't know?), the hottest women's bobsledder ever (guess who won a silver medal today?), or who should be the Lakers' new coach (Ben Howland, anyone?).

Or heck, if you even want to talk Big East football and their ridiculous automatic BCS berth, or anything else that's on your TV or on your mind, then this is just the place.

I was planning on going to see our U.C.L.A. women's volleyball team up the road tonight in Boulder, but that game is now paired as a double header with their men's basketball opener. Meanwhile, my daughter's beginning-of-the-season hockey team party is this evening, and our own basketball game is televised here in the mountain time zone right after that, so it looks like I'm staying close to home instead.

So, for everyone tuning in to the tube, and to Bruins Nation, with me tonight, here is our Friday afternoon/evening open thread. Have at it.