The Key for the week of November 17, 2025
It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over..
That’s according to famed philosopher Yogi Berra. At the same time, Ben remembers when famed songsmith “Dandy” Don Meredith would croon at the end of a blowout Monday Night Football game, “Turn out the lights, the party’s over.” All this is a roundabout way of saying, for Bengals fans, the party’s over. Another season of wasting what should have been a landmark year for Joe Burrow, another season of watching the rest of the NFL pass the Bengals by. The door slammed on Sunday with an ugly loss to the Steelers and an uglier act by Ja’Marr Chase who swore he didn’t spit at Jalen Ramsey but the tape tells us otherwise. Lack of tackling, lack of discipline and lack of a sense of urgency have doomed the Bengals to waste another year of Burrow’s Super Bowl “window.” For Sunday’s home game against New England, don’t be surprised if you see more Patriots jerseys than orange and black ones.
Big Day in Clifton Saturday
The UC Bearcats get a big dose of national exposure on Saturday when FOX Sports brings its Big Noon Kickoff to Clifton before the BYU game. The matchup has lost a little bit of luster after the Bearcats’ loss to Arizona, but the Big 12 playoff picture is still in flux and a win over the Cougars could put UC back in the mix. For your planning purposes, the tailgate starts at 7:30 a.m. and the broadcast starts at 10 a.m.
Bigger Day Sunday for FC Cincinnati
Forget about Hell is Real, Messi is Real-er (if that’s a word). FC Cincinnati faces international superstar Leo Messi and Miami in a winner moves on in the MLS Cup, loser goes home match Sunday at TQL Stadium. FC has faced Messi three times, with a 2-1 record. Expect a close match, which could favor the Orange and Blue. FC Cincinnati is 18-5 in one-goal games this season, and have one win and one draw against Miami but Miami has 81 goals in 34 regular season games this year, 12 more than anyone else and 29 more than Cincinnati. They’ve scored three or more in nine of their last 11 matches.
A Fond Farewell...
Ben mourns the demise of the Farmers’ Almanac (not to be confused with The Old Farmer’s Almanac, which continues to feature a drawing of Ben Franklin on its cover). As the author of Poor Richard’s Almanack, Ben knows how difficult it can be to print a book of weather forecasts, household hits, puzzles and other information. The Farmers’ Almanac says this 2026 edition is its last after 200+ years and it will shut down the website at the end of the year because of financial challenges in the current media landscape. Ben says thanks for the years of wisdom, and remember to plant your pickles in the sign of the twins.