While attending the University of North Carolina (#GoHeels), I earned a spot on the Sports Desk of the Daily Tar Heel as a second-semester freshman. That meant rescinding my membership in the Carolina Fever fan group, but ultimately earned a courtside seat for the 2005 NCAA Championship ... which UNC won. Sure, I was furiously typing out the mother of all cliche-ridden sidebars, but I was there.
A fraternity brother of mine, who shall remain nameless, was an inveterate defender of all Tar Heel on-court interactions. A cushion-flipping, spittle-flecked madman on gameday, he went a week without speaking to me for defending the referee's interpretation of the traveling rule.
That is to say, I'm the cooler, and I'm okay with this logical and dispassionate approach to my work-based sporting life, which means I'll be the one to say it:
Get ready for Graham and Kyle on Tuesday!
Sure, there are all kinds of great reasons to play Darlington Nagbe and everyone's favorite next Jordan Morris, Christian Pulisic. But check the Jurgen Klinsmann substitution patterns: We saw Nags and CP in minutes that were going to waste against Colombia. Everything that's counted has been ol' reliable all day every day. Zusi even scored in this Copa. Huzzah!
It's Argentina up next, and with no Jermaine Junior, there's a big fat open space for a defensive midfielder to fill, and the crunching tackle captain of the Rocky Mountains can slot in right alongside Michael Bradley like it's 2014. Then you're looking at a sub for Bobby Wood up top and Alejandro Bedoya out wide, and when Jurgen slots Gyasi Zardes alongside Deuce up top, there's a nice clean move to be made for the crossing king of Kansas City. From there, considering DeAndre Yedlin is back on the right, and Matt Besler showed (mostly) well on the left, shifting Fabian Johnson to his natural midfield wing seems mighty tasty.
Exciting? Perhaps not. But easy. And safe.
