It is trash time, and we are going to have a first here because I am leading off with horse racing. Yes, horse racing! Because there is potential greatness in our midst. Zenyatta. Don’t believe me? How about Penny Chenery, the owner of Secretariat, perhaps the greatest racing horse to ever walk the planet; from the San Diego Union-Tribune:

“I just think Zenyatta is wonderful,” Chenery said this week on a conference call in which she discussed the new movie about her Triple Crown winner, “Secretariat,” set to go to post Oct. 8. “She’s like Secretariat in that she’s a great showoff. She’s well aware of who she is, and when she prances into the ring, she swells herself up.

“Secretariat used to do that. He’d come into the walking ring and blow himself up to intimidate the competition. And with her dance, it’s her opening number to prance into the walking ring. She’s so gorgeous and with such dominating speed. I’m crazy about her. She’s going to run this Saturday, so I’ll get to see her again. She’s just a blessing to the industry.”

Zenyatta, undefeated in her incredible 18-race career, makes her last start in California today [Saturday] in the Grade I, $250,000 Lady’s Secret Stakes at the Oak Tree meeting at Hollywood Park. She’ll try and win the race on Cushion Track three years in a row and use it as a final prep for her defense of the Breeders’ Cup Classic against the best male horses in the country next month at Churchill Downs.

Yes, Zenyatta has really been that good in her undefeated career. If you did not catch her run from behind, over the best male horses out there, to win the Breeder’s Cup Classic last year, maybe the biggest non-Triple Crown race there is, you should watch the clip I have attached; she was simply remarkable. If she can win these last two races, Zenyatta will go down amongst the greatest horses ever. Tall order, but this is a special horse. ESPN Classic will air a 90-minute special from Hollywood Park from 3:30 p.m. to 5 p.m. The Lady’s Secret is expected to air on ESPN between college football games at approximately 4:15 p.m. (all times are PST/FDL time, so if you are on the east coast, add three hours). Bet you never heard the Dead cover George Jones before, but The Race Is On!

Okay here is a picture taken by Rosalind live this afternoon at Hollywood Park of the magnificent Zenyatta just before the start of the Lady Secret Stakes:

NCAA Football – Two huge games this week and a bunch of also rans. The first big game is Florida at Alabama. The first, and most important thing you need to know is the game is at Alabama. That means Tuscaloosa, not Gainesville and that is simply huge, especially when the Gators are featuring the inexperienced John Brantley at QB and the Tide have the heroes of last years National Championship, McElroy and Ingram, lined up on the other side. If the Tide were going to get taken out, I think it would have been last weeks rumble at Arkansas. Thing is though, these same two teams might be meeting again in the SEC Championship game, and it may be a different game on a neutral site and a more experienced Brantley.

The other big time tilt is the Tree at the Quackers. Honestly, for my money, this looks like a far more interesting game than the SEC clash above, and both are pitted against one another on the prime time Saturday night schedule, with the SEC on CBS and the Pac-10 on ABC. Stanford QB Andrew Luck is the talk of the nation, and he indeed has mad skilz that will translate to the pro game. But we are still in the college ranks and Oregon’s Darron Thomas is not far behind him in production so far this year. Both teams are very high scoring and play surprisingly tough defense. Oregon has simply killed the Tree over the last four meetings when playing in Eugene’s Autzen Stadium, winning by an average of almost 27 points a game. That is the winning margin, not their point total mind you. And, as I have said before, if you have not been a visitor to Autzen Stadium before, you just do NOT know; the place is fucking unbelievably insane and intense. A good game, but the Ducks win again, and take the driver’s seat in the Pac-10.