I was worried about our friend Joseph. I hadn't seen him in months, and repeated calls to his publicist were not returned. We finally had one sighting last week, and we've got our second one today....

World champion quarterback Joe Theismann and champion pitmaster Chris Lilly this season will be on the virtual sidelines coaching sports fans who host friends and families at backyard tailgate parties.

Tailgate Week, created by Kingsford charcoal and ESPN, pairs the season's biggest college football games with recipes created by Theismann and Lilly that incorporate foods and flavors native to the schools' states.

Ha, okay....where to start? I'll just go straight to the quotes and bypass the initial reaction....

"Tailgating is one of my favorite football season traditions and hosting people in my own backyard is just as fun as grilling in the parking lot, if not more," said Theismann, who adds to the fun at his parties by making good use of his backyard to encourage a halftime game of tag football.

Nice! Tag Football at BBQs is sweet. I prefer cornhole, but a little Nerf never hurt anyone. Here's how I imagine the whole day going.

Backyard BBQ Attendee: "Hey Joe, What you got going on over at the grill over there?
Joe Theismann: "Well I'm glad you asked. What we have here is meat. Now meat you have to cook to eat, and well...if you don't cook it...you're still going to be hungry.
BBA: Umm okay? Thanks I guess. How about that game of touch Football you've got going on later on?
JT: "Well I'm glad you asked. In "touch" Football the object is to touch someone with not one, but TWO hands. If you are touched with TWO hands you can't score touchdowns. And if you don't score touchdowns you won't get your TWO hands on the Joe Theismann Invitational Trophy sitting by the Grill over there."
BBA: Thanks for that Joe. I'll just watch.

Joe Theismann Joins All-Pro Grill Team, Calls Plays to Bring the Tailgate Home (Yahoo)