Winners Don't Quit; Quitters Don't Win

• The Monologue:
• The NCAA ruled that Cam Newton can in fact play in the SEC title game. In other shocking news, DC traffic was nightmarish when it rained this morning.
• I think one of the reasons I don't like college football -- besides the lack of competitive balance and the chance for only a handful of predetermined teams to win in any given year -- is that the NCAA turns its back on principle for money as much as the pro leagues do, but speaks platitudes about integrity at the same time. Sure, Calipari and others in college basketball get off easy, but it seems to happen more often with football, probably because there is so much more money.
• Random Pop Culture:
• The near-perfect first -- hopefully not only -- season of Terriers wrapped up tonight. It closed so cleanly that, even if it were to not be renewed, people should watch the show because the season is so beautifully self-contained. Really, check it out on Hulu, if it's there, or on iTunes. Boardwalk Empire and The Walking Dead are very good, but they don't come that close to the brilliant writing and acting of Terriers. A blend of humor and drama that one rarely sees. Best show on TV besides Mad Men and maybe Breaking Bad.
• It is perhaps fitting that Survivor ended almost exactly as The Amazing Race did this week, but that Survivor dealt with people wrestling with the decision to quit with much more appropriate scorn. Of the two shows, Survivor is the one that treats the game with more respect, whereas The Amazing Race has a bunch of vague rules. Think about the fact that it is entirely possible that Nick and Vicki could win one million dollars after deciding to quit the race. On Survivor, Jane, of whom I have not been a fan all year (though she is clearly the favorite right now), made the best speech of the season with a dead-on monologue about how no matter how tough things seem, you're on a freaking reality show while people around the country are unemployed.
• Random Video:
• The look at 1992 music rolls on.