'Dogs run free this week

In just two short days, we'll be starting up our annual charity pro football underdog game, the game where readers try to pick an NFL underdog every week that will win its game outright. If your 'dog wins, you get the number of points your team was favored to lose by. The player with the most points at the end of the season is the winner.

There is a modest entry fee, and all proceeds go to charity, in that the winner gets to pick an eligible charity that gets the dough. The second place finisher will also get to designate a small portion of the pool to his or her eligible charity. If more than 20 players play (last year we had 21), the third place finisher will also get to designate a small portion of the pool to his or her eligible charity. So far we've got around 15 'dog aficionados who have expressed an interest, including nine whose entries are in hand.

The full rules are here. If you want to play, you can do so for free the first week, provided your fee is in by the 14th (a week from Wednesday).

In the past, this has been a lot of fun, and some good causes have benefited. That's the idea again this year. 

I know that things are different now than they were when our game was first starting out. You can gamble on any sport, any time. Fantasy football is huge. But if you give our underdog madness a shot, you'll be doing a good deed in a way that you can't do anywhere else.

If you're interested, just send let me know by email at dogpdx22@gmail.com, and I'll get you started.