Thursday Grab Bag: Nice Person, Horrible Place

"Sometimes I'm glad I work here. I feel bad for people that have to come to this horrendous place," Employee T said.

There are some bad businesses in the world, some miserable employees, but not many would feel comfortable telling a customer that sentence.

One comes to mind: The Farmington Department of Motor Vehicles.

I had the pleasure and joy of returning to the DMV for the second day in a row -- that is, I got to wake up early on my day off for the second day in a row -- and return for the fourth time. The first two times I waited several hours and didn't make it before the place closed.

I feel justified for waiting exactly one year to get my New Mexico driver's license and license plate.

Kudos to Employee T, though, who was the most helpful DMV employee I've ever come across and solved some proof of residence problems with just one consequence (I was five minutes late to a meeting).

*****

Rankings: Shiprock took the No. 1 4A spot from Kirtland after KC's loss to Thoreau, but not by much. Meanwhile, Navajo Prep's girls are lingering at No. 3, Bloomfield's boys crept into the top 10 at No. 9 and District 1-4A placed a quartet of teams in the wrestling top 10.

4A Girls

1. Shiprock (2), 69 points
2. Kirtland Central (6), 68
3. Roswell 66
4. Espanola Valley 48
5. Del Norte 40
6. Piedra Vista 33
7. Los Alamos 30
8. Volcano Vista 13
T9. Chaparral 10
T9. St. Pius 10

2A Girls

1. Santa Rosa (5), 65
2. Texico, 56
3. Navajo Pine, 49
4. Clayton (1), 41
T5. Mora (1), 31
T5. Rehoboth, 31
7. Navajo Prep, 25
8. Tularosa, 23
9. Mesa Vista, 19
10. Penasco, 18

3A Boys

1. Hope Christian (8), 80
2. Sandia Prep, 67
3. St. Michael's, 66
4. Robertson, 43
5. Santa Fe Indian, 40
6. Lovington, 39
7. Pojoaque, 38
8. Socorro, 22
9. Bloomfield, 19
10. Wingate, 11

Wrestling

4A
1. Volcano Vista (2), 26
2. Silver, 24
T3. Moriarty (1), 22
T3. St. Pius, 22
5. Belen, 16
6. Kirtland Central, 13
7. Aztec, 12
8. Farmington, 7
9. Piedra Vista, 7
10. Deming, 6

1A-3A

1. Robertson (1), 19
2. St. Michael's (1), 19
3. Bloomfield, 15
T4. Cobre, 12
T4. Tucumcari, 12
6. West Las Vegas, 10
T7. Newcomb, 7
T7. Ruidoso, 7
T7. Wingate, 7
T10. Foothill, 1
T10. Pecos, 1

*****

Power poll: The local pecking order's starting to become more apparent. Here's how I see it.

Boys

1. Shiprock: The Chieftains, apparently, were proud enough of their start to fill out their record on the NMAA site, a rarity. Listed at 12-5, they're the best team, win-loss wise, in District 1-4A and beat two district foes. (Previous: 1)

2. Bloomfield: The Bobcats have held their own against 4A teams and cleaned up against the other in-state competition. They play hard every night and have options inside as well as around the perimeter. (Previous: 3)

3. Kirtland Central: The Broncos have continued to play to the competition as four of their past five games were decided by three points or less. (Previous: 2)

4. Piedra Vista: The Panthers are starting to resemble their head coach in Brian Shock, winning a school-record five straight behind aggressive defense. (Previous: T6)

5. Farmington: The Scorpions have beaten Newcomb, Deming, San Juan (Utah) and Ignacio (Colo.). Not exactly powerhouses. They did play Shiprock in a close game and have a chance tonight to prove themselves against Bloomfield. (Previous: 4)

6. Aztec: The Tigers slipped this week while shorthanded in the post and seemed frustrated. It's tough to understand why they haven't won more games. Incongruity might have something to do with it. (Previous: T6)

7. Navajo Prep: The Eagles returned to earth a bit after two close games against Bloomfield and aren't ranked in Class 2A. (Previous: 5)

Girls

1. Shiprock: The Lady Chieftains are playing the best, most consistent, team basketball in the area, boys or girls. Their five-game winning streak likely will not be tested until they host KC on Jan. 30. (Previous: 2)

2. Kirtland Central: The Lady Broncos finally had a game where their defense couldn't throw the offense a life jacket. (Previous: 1)

3. Piedra Vista: The Lady Panthers continue to show improvement in multiple facets, but still vary from game-to-game in certain areas -- or so it seems based on the stats. (Previous: 3)

4. Navajo Prep: The Lady Eagles quietly have put together a strong non-district resume. The coaches voted them No. 1 to start the season out of respect, but top 7 at this point is solid. (Previous: 4)

5. Bloomfield: The Lady Bobcats lost six of seven without some of their key players. They were 4-0 before that and won two of three since. (Previous: 6)

6. Aztec: The Lady Tigers have lost three straight and don't appear ready to contend in Tom Shields' first year as coach. (Previous: 5)

7. Farmington: The Lady Scorpions are in a tough-luck district, but that doesn't mean they're happy with a 1-9 start to their season. (Previous: 7)

*****

Loco coaches: Lane Kiffin's bolt to USC via the University of Tennessee surprised me.

Shocked is an exaggerated term now, particularly when it pertains to coaches jumping ship.

But USC likely is about to face tough times from the NCAA. Kiffin and his father spent a year frightening SEC powers Florida and Alabama by keeping the game bogged down and close, and Kiffin spent the year patronizing coaches around the league.

He left to replace Pete Carroll after one season. An interesting path after inciting Al Davis' corpse to fire him in Oakland.

It reminds me of a story from my high school cross country days. A few of my buddies got burned out by the end and slacked, finishing their careers in the JV races. They raced on a notorious course in Mountain Brook, a suburb of Birmingham, Ala., that features a steep powerline hill.

They ran with a quirky teammate who was a bit off. More than halfway through the race, the guy implored them between wheezes: "This is where we see who wants it the most, guys! This is who wants it the most!"

Then he stopped, bent down and tied his shoes.

Kiffin's been poking people in the eye around SEC country, saying, 'Here I come, here I come, I'm gonna mess with all of you,' and by the time that wagon circled to its own campground, the sun came up and it decided to move to the other side of the country.

It will be interesting to see how Carroll does with the Seattle Seahawks, but only if he succeeds.

What do Steve Spurrier, Nick Saban and Carroll have in common?

All three have won national championships and all three have busted as NFL coaches.

There's such a different motivational vibe and different way of communicating and going about business in the NFL, a tough adjustment to make. Also, coaches that spend a decade or more in the NFL know other teams' personnel and schemes.

Owner Paul Allen is the richest in professional sports and the Seahawks, hammered by injuries and a few poor personnel decisions, isn't bereft of talent.

But ask Patriots fans about Carroll's rah rah shtick and how well it went for New England. Nice guy, not a professional coach. But he's anxious to prove he can learn.

*****

Charged up: Speaking of Tom Brady and Bill Belichick, New England put up one of the worst playoff performances in recent memory in its 33-14 loss to Baltimore in Foxborough.

Now they get the Pats' longtime AFC rival in the Indianapolis Colts.

Don't expect much of the same from Ray Lewis and company. The Ravens finished the regular season 1-6 against playoff teams despite all that baloney about how well they played against good teams. Close losses don't count for anything in the NFL. The one win came against a San Diego Chargers team that floundered early in the season.

They've gotten a lot out of their talent. Last year they won their Wild Card game and reached the AFC Championship by forcing Tennessee Titans tight end Alge Crumpler into a late red zone fumble. This year their run will stop in Indy as a rested Peyton Manning and company will return to their winning ways.

The Chargers, my preseason Super Bowl pick, far outclass the Jets in terms of production this year. Rex Ryan, the Jets' coach, didn't even realize his team was still alive with a few weeks left in the season.

But on paper, New York presents an interesting matchup. San Diego, according to Football Outsiders, has one of biggest disparities between its passing and rushing offenses in playoff history. Philip Rivers and his legion of tall, athletic receivers do damage while the diminutive Darren Sproles and LaDainian Tomlinson fizzle.

Problem is, Darrelle Revis is a one-man shut down corner, regardless of what Randy Moss has to say. He's had the most productive year of any defensive back in coverage. The Jets have been great against the pass and not good against the run.

They should be able to run the ball against the Chargers when they need to, but Mark Sanchez won't be able to replicate his accurate performance last week.

He hasn't played that well all season.

The game comes down to Rivers' ability to distribute the ball to tight end Antonio Gates and Sproles on some screens, exploiting the middle of the field and creating mismatches in coverage by forcing a linebacker or safety to make a mistake.

I say it's Colts-Chargers in the AFC.

*****

Cowboy up: Now that Tony Romo, Jerry Jones and the Dallas Cowboys won a playoff game, where do they go from here?

They broke a streak that began in 1996 -- shortly after their Super Bowl runs with Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman and Emmitt Smith -- with a big win over division rival Philadelphia last week.

They'll face the Minnesota Vikings in perhaps the best trench matchup of the 2010 playoffs.

Will the overwhelming size of the Cowboys' offensive line push back the All Pro defensive tackles the Vikes boast? Or will Jared Allen and company terrorize Romo and drive Flozell Adams insane?

Brett Favre is declining at the end of the year for his third straight season. Adrian Peterson seems worn down by the grind of being an NFL running back who doesn't step out of bounds or avoid hits. Cornerback Antoine Winfield has been getting embarrassed by pedestrians and won't have an easy time with Miles Austin. The front seven of Dallas will continue its recent streak as long as it can keep AP from gaining traction and experiencing a playoff renaissance.

The Cowboys will move to the NFC Championship, where they'll await the winner of Arizona-New Orleans.

The Cardinals, with Kurt Warner, Larry Fitzgerald and a Super Bowl appearance last year, as well as 400 points last week against the Green Bay Packers, have proven they can score. But if the Packers put up that many touchdowns against Arizona, imagine what Drew Brees and company can accomplish.

This Saints defense is tied to the offenses' success in some ways and plays better with a comfortable margin. That being said, it's much better against the pass than it is against the run. Meaning, a team like the Cowboys will give them trouble but the Cardinals might be in trouble.

Brees will throw for five touchdowns and the Saints will set up a rematch with Dallas in New Orleans for the NFC crown.

*****

Link of the week: NFL history buffs will enjoy this story about the life of the man that designed the old Tampa Bay Bucs logo. He passed away last week.