Suddenly, a new leader has emerged in insulting your sports intelligence - Dim Jim shoots from the hip.

Not content to let Fat Pat be the only writer to get his jabs in at the Gophs, Star Tribune columnist Jim Souhan has produced his own form of hot, steaming compost over the last few days.  Oh good. I haven't read an article explaining why we shouldn't really care about Golden Gopher basketball or anything else with the block 'M' attached to it in awhile.  Wait a minute, yes I have.  I won't get into too many of the details, as 'The Daily Gopher's' PJS does a outstanding job dissecting the latest nonsense that passes for sports opinion these days.  This is a must read, as it brilliantly takes a part Souhan's laziness and utter disregard for actually KNOWING something about the topic he decided to tackle.  Read Souhan's mess of an editorial first though, before seeing it sliced apart.  Its worth the reaction.

Next, after creating his little piece of bulletin board material for the Musketeers, and being thanked by Xavier coach, Chris Mack (whom he ironically - see Souhan's own picture above - refers to as 'Whiny McBaldwhimp'), he churns out a truly insulting post in his blog that suggests that Jamie Dixon would 'eat him (Mack) alive' in the next round, among other things.  Hmm.  How'd that work out for Chris Mack last Sunday?  And 'Whiny McBaldwhimp' - what the hell is that?  Souhan looks like Harry Shearer's (see other pic) estranged kid brother (sorry Harry, I love ya, but neither of you are exactly tough guys).  But hey, all I know is that Chris Mack guided Xavier into the Sweet 16 in his first season, and definitely proved that they deserved that #6 seed.  Clearly making the Gophs underdogs, both conventionally (the Selection committee saw it this way), and posthumously - the #6 beat our #11.

Worst of all, one of his 'favorite moments' at the Bradley Center was an exaggerated (to the benefit of Wisconsin Badger fans no less), somewhat pointless slice of Session 1. His moment? "Wisconsin fans roaring throughout the Bradley Center when the Badgers came back against Wofford.  Even though Pitt was playing Oakland in the Bradley Center, and the Wisconsin game was available only on TVs in the corridors."  Huh?  It wasn't as if the place was packed with Badger fans (it wasn't), there was hardly a roar in the place (a dull cheer at best). More like a sigh of relief after Jon Leuer hit the game clinching free throws.  I know, cause I was standing out there in the concourse watching it.  It had become more compelling than the game going on 10 steps away. Really by the time this all happened, the Bradley Center was over half empty, as Pitt had Oakland well under control, and most of the Gopher and Xavier fans had emptied out onto the streets.  Why exaggerate this, if not to somehow juxtapose Badger fans loyalty versus Gopher fans?  Ah, but I'm sure I'm just being hyper-sensitive. 

What it really comes down to with Dim Jim and Fat Pat is that I'm starting to believe that these two are just writing this crap in an effort just to see how many people who unapologetically follow the Gophers through thick and thin, they can drive insane. Congratulations guys, its working (on me at least).  Somebody more levelheaded than me please tell me I'm wrong, and that these guys are just calling it down the middle.  Maybe I'm too 'duckies and bunnies' on the U.  I'm fine with that if I am. And I certainly won't pretend to be something I'm not.  But I also don't think everything the athletic department does is beyond criticism either though (my disdain of Jedd Fisch in 2009 for example). 

Then again, maybe these two (Souhan and Reusse) are just complete douchebags, working for a dying medium that frankly, deserves to die if these are the best opinion writers they can employ.  Hey guys, guess what? I might read your columns for the sake of sado-masochism, but I don't buy your newspaper, and I generally don't support your advertisers.  Maybe if you actually played things down the middle once in a while and weren't so goddamn lazy in your research, you'd help circulation pick up.   Try it.  It couldn't hurt, could it?  Its not like the paper is tanking or anything.  Oh, wait...

Now, before your head explodes - get over to the Daily Gopher for that great dissection of the crap Souhan has been churning out.