Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Entertainment/2018 October 8

= October 8 =

Did Peter Dinklage appear on Saturday Night Live?
If it wasn't him, it sure looked like him. He wasn't famous yet so he wouldn't have been mentioned in the thank you that host Christopher Walken did at the end. Actually, I couldn't hear what he said. The Jan Hooks sketch on October 24, 1992 featured two little people as leprechauns.

Once he became famous, Dinklage hosted the show and was allowed to perform more dignified roles.— Vchimpanzee  •  talk  •  contributions  •  18:13, 8 October 2018 (UTC)
 * According to IMDB (not an WP:RS, I know), he appeared on SNL uncredited in 2013. If I read the page right it was when Melissa McCarthy was hosting.  RudolfRed (talk) 18:56, 8 October 2018 (UTC)
 * That's more than 20 years after this appearance.— Vchimpanzee  •  talk  •  contributions  •  20:01, 8 October 2018 (UTC)
 * You're talking about the "Sinead O'Connor Goodtime Happy Jamboree" sketch (and reprise)? I don't think either of those two fellas look like Dinklage. According to our article, this was specifically the kind of role he avoided, leading to him abandoning acting for several years, making it even more unlikely. FYI, at the end of the show, Walken thanks the audience and Arrested Development (kind of getting stuck on their name) and then pauses to congratulate Toronto. Matt Deres (talk) 02:53, 9 October 2018 (UTC)
 * Watched that sketch and agree with Matt Deres, not Dinklage. But he was great in SPACEPANTS! Gråbergs Gråa Sång (talk) 09:33, 9 October 2018 (UTC)

NFL Draft Combine
In Osi Umenyiora, it says, "Despite not being invited to the 2003 NFL Draft Combine,[11] Umenyiora was drafted in the 2nd round".

I get that the draft combine has become slicker over the years, but why wouldn't they have invited such a stand-out college player? (Good enough to be a 2nd round pick). --Dweller (talk) Become old fashioned! 20:29, 8 October 2018 (UTC)


 * Lots of great players weren't invited. In Umenyiora's case, I venture to guess that playing for Troy University had something to do with it. (On the other end of the spectrum, JaMarcus Russell made a "big impression" at the combine.) Clarityfiend (talk) 04:05, 9 October 2018 (UTC)
 * Are Troy University's opponents much weaker than those played by players who were invited? I don't know anything about college football (and as a Brit, the idea that people are interested in it is quite exotic - it's like The Boat Race on steroids.) --Dweller (talk) Become old fashioned! 09:33, 9 October 2018 (UTC)
 * Yes, Troy is what is referred to as a mid-major; professional football teams overwhelmingly draft players from major programs (historically in football there are five "major" conferences: the ACC, Big 12, Big Ten, Pac-12, SEC, and the independent school Notre Dame.) That's only 65 schools, out of the 774 that play college football.  Looking at 2018 NFL Draft, there were 185 players (out of 256 total selections, that's 72%) taken from those 65 schools; the remaining 709 schools only had 71 players selected from them.  Troy University is in the latter set.  Now, as a mid-major, it plays at the same level (NCAA Division I FBS) as the majors, but in a less prestigious conference, so it probably has a slightly higher chance of having players in the NFL than lower division schools, but not much. -- Jayron 32 18:16, 9 October 2018 (UTC)
 * Really interesting, thanks for taking the time to explain. Complicated. --Dweller (talk) Become old fashioned! 10:45, 10 October 2018 (UTC)
 * It is quite messy, though like any system, you get used to it by being familiar with it. The system in Europe of promotion and relegation seems weird to Americans as well, but I'm sure it seems perfectly normal to you.  We are comfortable with that which we are familiar, really.  -- Jayron 32 10:53, 10 October 2018 (UTC)
 * It was kind of like that in major league baseball - in the 1880s. ←Baseball Bugs What's up, Doc? carrots→ 18:22, 10 October 2018 (UTC)