LAKERS - HEAT PREVIEW

        

Shaq called out Kobe on the halftime interview on Monday Night Football.  He called Kobe a "corvette" and himself a "brick wall" and used those analogies to describe what will happen if Kobe tries to rise on Shaq. 

Boom....Shaq Sumter.  The first shot has been fired...and as it has been all season long, Shaq fired it.  Kobe hasn't said anything yet...but the media is ready to dump on him.  ABC and the NBA have been waiting for this game all season long...as well as Laker fans.  This is a "Laker Game"....and the Miami Heat just happen to be the team Shaq plays for.  It is all about Lakers, performed by Lakers and written from the Laker Soap Opera.  Everyone in LA will spend their Christmas afternoon glued to the TV to see if Kobe can beat Shaq's team.  Everyone else will watch to see if they get in a fight.

And, remember, Phil Jackson will be on the ABC telecast of this game...imparting his "wisdom" of how great these two guys are, how great His Lakers were and how he doesn't understand why Kobe doesn't like he and Shaq.  Why not bring in Rick Fox as sideline reporter and Derrick Fisher to get the locker room buzz??  The announcers will go on about the incidents of their pasts...like we are all oblivious to them....and we will get to see images of Kobe and Shaq as Lakers and their successes and failures together.

As we watch these two go at each other...make faces when they score...flex when they get fouled....guys like Dwyane Wade and Lamar Odom will be determining who wins the game.  Odom will have a favorable matchup of Haslem and Allen to go against instead of those PFs the West throws at him.  Wade will be going against Atkins who hasn't shown an ability to stop anyone.  Eddie Jones will be busy fouling Kobe....and Mihm, Divac, Slava, etc will be fouling Shaq.  Someone without a "Bryant" or "O'Neal" on the back of their jersey will make this the time to make a name for themselves among people that aren't NBA die-hards.  But, who's kidding...it is Shaq v Kobe. 

                                  

The winner will be the one that was right.  With a Miami win...it is "see, you shouldn't have traded me!"  A Laker win brings "I don't need you anymore."  Of course, to us Laker fans...this is THE game for us in the season.  Shaq is back in the house he says he "built".  We want to see the shot of Shaq during a timeout, on the bench sweating...looking up at the scoreboard...mouth wide open panting for air....while the Lakers are high fiving on the sideline, crowd is rocking to some music and cheerleaders, in their Santa hats, dancing and smiling away. 

Merry Freaking Christmas to Us!!!!
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FROM JOHNNYSEE:  The Lakers, for perhaps one of the few times this season, are in the drivers' seat when it comes to the importance of this game, which is only as important as the Lakers want it to be.  It's one of the few luxuries being the underdog guarantees.  You can't really wring all that much suspense from a game nobody expects you to win, and certainly nobody - with the possible (although hardly probable) exception of Kobe Bryant - expects the Lakers to beat the Heat on Christmas Day.

Shaq can say whatever he wants, it's no more important to the Heat than the game before it or the one that follows.  Neither, in any realistic sense, is it any more important than any other game for the Lakers.  And it's nowhere near the importance the media is trying to place on it.

But... if the Lakers win... well, then, the game's importance - realistically or not - skyrockets and we'll all be hearing words like "building block" and "turning point" and "statement" and "revenge" and even (abeit somewhat absurdly) "rivalry." 

It's all up to the Lakers.

Beep-beep!
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FROM LAKRMIKE: 
‘Twas the night before Christmas, and all through the house
Pacer fans planned their beverages for Pistons they’d douse
The league, with its ruler, the Emperor Stern
Was holding its breath, in the hopes players learn
From the year-long suspension and the revenue lost
No feel-good endorsements might soon be the cost
While over in Staples, a quieter place
The jumbotron waited to feature Shaq’s face
Would they cheer him or boo him when tomorrow he entered
Now as Miami's center (some would call him self-centered)
The fans were home waiting for tomorrow’s great thrill
Of watching young Kobe throw one down in Shaq’s grill
Did you see that takeoff?  Did you see that lift?
Oh thank you, Saint Bryant, for the great Christmas gift
And say thanks for the Lakers, when you sit down to eat
Your fine Christmas dinner, after they beat the Heat.

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From KtmDog:  At the risk of sounding like Spaceman Bill Walton, the game will have little to do with X's and O's and everything to do with will, determination, committment to dominate. In effect the game will suggest a moral stance and standing. I look for Kobe and the Lakers to dominate.

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From ENDORA:  That's it. This isn't just one game of 82; this one has a point to be made. Were the Lakers right to trade Shaq out and put Kobe in charge or was Shaq right to leave when he saw the Keys being handed to Kobe? The Heat are doing well enough; Kobe and the Lakers will comeout and play this one hard. I think that determination will carry them to win.

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From KEYGRIP:  I have no predictions at all. The Lakers are too jeckle and hyde to know. But I do know for a fact I'll hate the way the media covers the whole thing.

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From RICHCBT:  I agree with Johnny that Kobe's going to set the nets on fire on Saturday, more than likely.  It's just the way he's wired.  Shaq will come charging out of the gate, and if I'm Rudy I pull Mihm after ONE foul, not two.  Let Shaq wear himself out in the first half scoring on Brian Grant, and keep Mihm fresh to outhustle Shaq up and down the court in the second.  I see Kobe shooting lots of treys in the first three quarters, and not forcing too much into the middle unless they are silly enough not to run another man at him when he's isolated.  Shaq obviously can't come out on Kobe, or else he gets called for stupid reach in fouls.  In the second half, Kobe starts to take over, penetrating and, at first, dishing to Mihm.  He waits for his opening, but it's probably going to come late.  That's when Shaq picks up his flagrant, and after that Kobe gets his cherished stuff, suitable for poster-size framing, over the Big Bicoastal. The Lakers win by outscoring the Heat 32-19 in the 4th, 14 of them by Kobe.

 

QUARTERBACK ISSUES!!!

The old saying goes….there are 32 NFL teams, and 28 of them have QB controversies.

Not quite precise…but not that far off the mark. There will be a ton of teams that need to assess their QB situations in the off season. And some will be in the playoffs.

WE DON’T HAVE NO STINKING QB CONTROVERSY!

PEYTON MANNING. About the best job security in the NFL is in Indy.

DAUNTE CULPEPPER. If it wasn’t for Peyton, we’d all be up Vikes QB Daunte’s butt.

TOM BRADY. Heck, this guy has won 2 Super Bowl MVPs for New England.

DONOVAN MCNABB. Well, he’s going to have to play great to get the Eagles into the Super Bowl. No Owens anymore.

BEN ROETHLESBERGER. The guy isn’t perfect, nor is he the most talented QB. But, he refused to let the Steelers lose…and rarely puts them in a situation to. Sounds like the guy I just named.

MIKE VICK. He’s still not the most talented QB as far as passing. He has only 13 TD passes and 12 picks. But, he is the most exciting player in the NFL and sells tickets, shoes and whatever else. He is Mr. Falcon.

JAKE DELHOMME. He led the Panthers to an improbable Super Bowl appearance and has his team in the playoff race when you took away his top WR and top two RB this year. He has a never was as the back [Goines] and a rookie [Colbert] and Muhammad as his targets. Brilliant!

BYRON LEFTWICH. Did you watch that Jags game against the Packers?? Wow. What heart!

ELI MANNING. Yeah, he hasn’t played very well…but that isn’t all his fault. He’ll be fine and has no worries about losing his job. Not at least for a while. Of course, what to they do with Warner??

TRENT GREEN. Despite the Chiefs poor season…it isn’t all Green’s fault. With less-than-stellar receivers….he still gets the job done. With all the QB issues in the NFL, the Chiefs need to stay put. He trails only Manning and Brees in the AFC for QB rating.

THE STARTER….BUT NEEDS TO GET IT DONE

MATT HASSELBECK. He’s playing very well. It isn’t his fault the receivers can’t catch, Alexander can’t hold on to the ball and the defense sucks. But, he is a Holmgren guy….and if Holmgren gets canned, Hasselback could be elsewhere as well.

MARC BULGER. He’s in the same position as Hasselbeck. He runs the Rams offense better than anyone else right now. But, if Martz gets hacked….he may be hacked as well.

CHAD PENNINGTON. He’s their man…but seems to have a ton of injury issues. Also, the team needs to look at an adequate back-up for him.

CARSON PALMER. He’s the guy…Kitna is gone. In what was a controversial move, the Bengals decided to start Palmer from Day 1. That isn’t a bad thing…since they’ve stuck with him the whole season. He’s made some great improvements….and made some major errors. But, the only way to correct those errors is to work them out. Looks to be a solid top pick.

DAVID CARR. He has only 14 TD for the Texans….and 12 picks.

KYLE BOLLER. He’s more Dilfer than Manning. With a sub-par Jamal Lewis this year….he has the Ravens in pretty much the same spot as last year. And Billick seems to like him.

ISSUES AHEAD

STEVE MCNAIR/BILLY VOLEK. Not that McNair is in trouble of keeping his job….but he isn’t sure that the injuries are worth staying in the game. He has bounced in and out of the lineup all year…and has permanently been on the “questionable list”. Billy Volek has looked pretty good…and the Titans have planned for this scenario. Still, they’d be losing the co-MVP of two years ago.

BRETT FAVRE. No he isn’t going anywhere else…but he is a year-to-year proposition for the Packers now. And they have nothing in the tank behind him.

AARON BROOKS. Who else do the Saints have? He is 7th in the NFL in passing yards.

JAKE PLUMMER. What is this guy?? He can single-handedly bring the Broncos from behind to win….or from ahead to lose. For every nice play he makes…he pulls off a dumb one. NINETEEN picks! Coaching ain’t as easy without a John Elway.

DREW BREES. This is the most interesting problem to have. Drew Brees is a candidate for MVP also-ran behind Manning. But, he is a free agent and the Chargers “drafted” Philip Rivers to be their guy. They have publicly said they want Brees back…but will he re-sign when he knows he will have to look over his shoulder? And will Rivers whine because he’s not getting his shot?

JOEY HARRINGTON. There were talks of benching him.…then he throws 361 yards and gave the Lions a shot at winning the game. He has all the tools…but something is holding him back. It doesn’t help that everyone around him is injured. He may have to fight for his job in training camp.

DREW BLEDSOE/JP LOSMAN. What if Losman was healthy?? Where would the Bills be now? Who knows…but Bledsoe does have them in contention, even if it is in spite of him. Losman is their future…but when does Buffalo decide when the future starts?

KERRY COLLINS. I can’t see Rich Gannon being able to play again….but if he does, it may be to backup Collins. Collins is a Norv Turner type QB who can sling it. However, it can also drop it hold it to long, side-arm it and throw it to the other team. But, he’s probably going to be the starter next season as well.

QUARTERBACK MESSES

JOSH MCCOWN. He had Arizona winning when he was benched. Replacements King and Navarre lost their games. McCown comes back, and they win again. Denny Green…take a hint!!!

TIM RATTAY. Rattay can fling it. But, he is injury prone and is giving Ken Dorsey a chance to steal his job. And Erickson may not be around to make that decision.

JEFF GARCIA. Who knew that the San Francisco breakup of Garcia and Owens would result in Garcia being the bad teammate? In a season that started so promising at 3-3, they’ve lost 8 straight and no one seems to have a guaranteed job next year. Kelly Holcomb?? No. Luke McCown?? Not right now. Paging Tim Couch.

PATRICK RAMSEY. Decisions. Obviously Mark Brunell can’t bring it anymore. The Skins gave him WAY more time [and $$$] than they should have to prove it. Ramsey, who was killed last year is Spurrier’s system, can make plays and the offense actually moves. However, he has made plays that have absolutely killed the Skins chances to win. Just look at the Eagle game.

BRIAN GREISE. Who knows what Tampa will do. They’ve peeved Johnson off so much that I doubt he’d play for them again. Chris Simms is the future…but he’s start lasted about a quarter. Griese has played well since inserted as the starter [#3 in the NFC in QB rating]…but this was a guy the Dolphins let walk.

JAY FIEDLER/AJ FEELY. What to do here?? It is tough to know what they have…since the offensive line didn’t give them a chance to perform and the defense knows that Ricky Williams isn’t back their running. Feely will most likely stick, especially with this win against the Patriots on Monday Night.

DA BEARS. One would think that Rex Grossman would still be their top guy. He did have the team play well and win some surprising games during his time. His injury showed that Chicago isn’t much without him.

DALLAS COWBOYS. I’m expecting Troy Aikman to come down from the booth to take snaps. The QB situation is a huge issue…something Boys fans aren’t used to. Vinny’s best days were 7 years ago. Drew Henson’s better days were fielding grounders. So that leaves Tony Romo. Yeah. They’ll be going after Drew Brees pretty hard, I think.

QUARTERBACKS THAT ARE LOOKING FOR WORK

KURT WARNER. The Giants began the Eli Era so Warner, who played well, is on his way out. He threw for over 2000 yards and 6 TD [Barber was hot then]….with only 4 picks. His QB rating is better than Leftwich. He may be a guy that Dallas may look at acquiring.

JOHN KITNA. As 2003 proved…Kitna can lead a team. The Bengals were nothing….and Kitna did all of the right things to get them to 8-8. He is an excellent teammate and never toots his own horn. And if he was the starter this year, the Bengals may be 8-6 instead of 6-8.

ROOKIES THAT WILL BE HERE TO SPICE UP LIFE

MATT LEINART [USC]. He could be the top QB taken in the draft. And with a team like Miami, Cleveland, Washington and Dallas picking high…the Heisman winner could be headed there.

AARON RODGERS [Cal]. He will be #2.…or #1...of the QB’s taken. Solid guy with solid arm. I can see him in burgundy and gold.

ANDREW WALTER [Arizona State], KYLE ORTON [Purdue], CHARLIE FRYE [Akron] and JASON CAMPBELL [Auburn] all could be first or second rounders. And you never know…one of these guys could be the next Big Ben.

WHO ARE THESE GUYS??

All of these guys below started at QB for NFL teams this past week.  Can you name them?? [Answers below]

 

 

 

 

 

Chad Hutchinson...Bears
Chris Chandler...Rams
Ken Dorsey...Niners
Jon Kitna...Bengals
Kyle Boller...Ravens
AJ Feeley...Dolphins
Billy Volek...Ttians
Luke McCown...Browns

 

OWENS OUT FOR THE SEASON

                       

Wow. Does the NFC have a chance??

The Philadelphia Eagles….easily the best team in the NFC….has lost Terrell Owens for the season and most likely the entire playoffs. There is an outside shot he could be available for the Super Bowl.

What a blow!

The Eagles have had everything wrapped up for a while now….and they were hosting a Dallas Cowboys team in life support as it was. Yet, everyone played [granted, it was early in the game] and the worst thing imaginable happened. Owens broke his ankle.

As we’ve seen this year, losing a player of TO’s caliber can alter your entire team. Just look what Miami went thru with no Ricky Williams. Heck, just look at the Eagles after Owens left. There were ZERO completions to a wide receiver after TO left in an ugly 12-7 win over those Boys. And this came after the Redskins had every opportunity to take them down last week. Their other WR are average, at best. Todd Pinkston is as unreliable as they come [classic alligator arm complex against the Skins a week ago]. The reason the Eagles so desperately wanted Owens was because of the shape of their receiving corps.

The Eagles still are 13-1...which is good for home field in the playoffs. They have a first round bye….so the next three weeks are absolutely meaningless to the Eagles’ cause. They will play someone, possibly the Seahawks or Rams or one of those 6-8 wildcard teams, in their first playoff game. None of those teams seem to be any threat….but “any given Sunday…” you know.

But, Atlanta, Green Bay, Minnesota or someone else will be at The Linc for the NFC title game. And we all know how Philly has done in the last three title tilts. And the ONE in the 13-1 record came against the Pittsburgh Steelers…the best the AFC has to offer.

Right now, I still feel the Eagles will get to Super Bowl XXIX. They are far and away the best team in the conference. If anyone will give them a run…it will be Atlanta, Green Bay and maybe Carolina. But, I still think they get through. However, I don’t see them beating Pittsburgh, New England, San Diego, Indianapolis or even New York in the Big Game. That would leave only B-more as a possible Super Bowl opponent I’d have them favored…and it doesn’t seem that the Ravens will be making reservations for Jacksonville.

Maybe the Eagles won’t be either.

Big Ben....Or Eli??

                             

What a week to be Eli Manning.

Since he has been inserted as the Giants starting QB [which was a bad move by Tom Coughlin], the Giants haven’t won a game and have fallen out of the playoff race. He’s had to face the Eagles, Redskins, Falcons, Ravens...all great defenses [the Eagles, Redskins and Ravens are 3 top NFL defenses]. In the last 3 games...the Giants have lost each by at least 21 points.

Now he gets to face off against the Steelers...another darn good defense. Oh yeah...and across the field will be Ben Roethlesberger. Big Ben has been the antithesis of Eli this season. Ben stepped in for the injured Tommy Maddox in a Week 2 loss to the Ravens. Pittsburgh hasn’t lost since. While Ben has had a surprisingly good season....he is helped by having a great team around him. A great defense and a solid, deep rushing attack enables Ben to pick and choose his spots. Don’t get me wrong...we he has to pass it, he does a great job.

You could argue that the rolls could be reversed. The Giants could have picked Roethlesberger with the #4 overall pick. Instead, they drafted Philip Rivers and dealt him [along with their top pick in 2005] for Eli Manning. Would Eli have had success in Pitt?? Would Ben struggle in NYC?

                                  

Meanwhile, the Chargers, the team Eli refused to play for, will be playing for the AFC West title this Sunday. Rivers has spent the season waving in play calls.

Oh....and Sunday night....his big brother, Peyton Manning, could break Dan Marino’s record for TD passes in a season. The elder Manning is having an MVP season...and the Colts are a team with a very good shot at winning the Super Bowl. Peyton has 4 more touchdown passes [46] than Eli has completions [42].

Manning, Eli that is, has only completed 42 of 110 passes. Only one of those completions went for a TD. At that rate, it would take 184 games for Eli to match Peyton’s 46 TD. Six of his passes were picked off. He’s thrown a tad over 500 yards...and has a NFL worst 33.8 QB rating....including a big ZERO rating last week against Baltimore. .

If you added up Eli’s and Peyton’s TD passes...it would still be one short of Marino’s mark.

This isn’t all Eli’s fault. The offensive line, which was suspect at the beginning of the year, has been banged up. The receiving corps hasn’t played well at all. And it isn’t fair to throw a rookie into a lion’s den of defenses like that.

So, as the two rookie quarterbacks prepare to square off....Eli wants to taste victory for the first time. Roethlesberger knows nothing but.

                    

Hornets vs Bobcats

                    

The Charlotte.....errrr....New Orleans Hornets were back in Charlotte Tuesday night to face the team that replaced them.....the Bobcats.

They met in an arena that the Hornets called home for 14 seasons. An arena that the Bobcats will call home for only this season....before moving to an uptown arena that the citizens of Charlotte refused to buy the Hornets. I’ve seen many games at the Charlotte Coliseum. Every LA Laker game I’ve attended has been held there. I remember the last, Laker [or any NBA game] I went to....Kobe Bryant hit the game winner at the buzzer.

Charlotte loved the Hornets. The Hornets were like their first born child. Until 1988, Charlotte was mainly known as just some southern city....like a Birmingham, Columbia, Norfolk or Jacksonville. But, the mid-to-late 80s brought a huge boom to the south...and Charlotte became one of the biggest benefactors of this. Many people from New York, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, Buffalo and Philadelphia moved into the Queen City. The Hornets arrival came at the same time.

                             

The Hornets were the first team around Charlotte. Yeah, the Carolina Cougars of the ABA were there...but does that really count?? This was a big deal. In a college basketball crazy area...the NBA plopped a franchise in a city that really didn’t house a college team...but did have college fans. All of those UNC, Duke, State, Wake and Clemson fans could all agree to like the same NBA team...even if JR Reid [UNC], Mike Gminski [Duke] or Todd Fuller [State] wore the teal. We could all hate each other as the ACC season rolls along. But we could sit beside each other at the Coliseum and root for a team with the city’s name on the jersey.

Because of the sucess of the Hornets...the NFL came knocking 7 years later an brought the Panthers to Charlotte....officially making Charlotte a big league town.

While the city loved the team....they hated the owner. George Shinn, who was a God when the team first arrived, was loathed. The man was frugal with his money [which I don’t want to tell people they have to spend money....but if you are going to own a sports team, you cannot penny pinch]. We watched Larry Johnson, Alonzo Mourning, Glen Rice and Eddie Jones get traded away because Shinn didn’t want to pay them [actually, he did pay LJ, which started a ripple effect]. Not to mention the many significant role players [Vlade, Geiger, Hawkins, Brad Miller] that got away. Add to the fact that he had a high profile sexual misconductcase...that eventually drove him out of town. The man that added Bible Belt values or prayer and religion to the NBA couldn’t hold up to his own standards. That Laker game I talked about in the opening?? Shinn’s Hornets passed out beads that night. Nice slap in our faces.

Now Shinn is married to woman who could be his daughter’s daughter. He also spent the game where he spent his time when the team was still in Charlotte....somewhere else. He wasn’t in Charlotte to watch his team play in a city they deserted. A city he left for dead. It was obvious that is wasn’t the city’s fault....since the NBA darn near awarded Charlotte a new franchise the day after the team moved. It is Shinn....who’s Hornets are 28th in attendance in their new digs, N’Awlins. The Hornets entered the game 1-17...worst mark in the NBA. When they left Charlotte...they were an Eastern conference championship contender. Now they are a Western conference laughingstock.

So, the old and new teams met in Charlotte. The Bobcats made in "Conversion Night"...meaning you could bring in your old Hornets crap and they’d give you a Bobcats hat. Five thousand pieces of Hornets gear was traded in [that stuff goes to overseas charities....so there will be some Iraqis wearing Kendall Gill #13 jerseys soon]. The floor of the arena is Bobcat orange and blue...but the seats and everything else in the arena are still Hornet teal. We traded a stingy owner in for a gazillionaire. Bob Johnson does everything he can to be seen in a city he didn’t grow up in. Shinn doesn’t like to show his face in his home turf. The original Hornets included Muggsy Bogues and Dell Curry who are now part of the Bobcats team.

At least they could have left Hugo in Charlotte. Rufus is NO Hugo.

Independence High School Wins 5th Straight NC Title

Independence High School in Charlotte, NC won its FIFTH straight NC 4AA championship game this past Saturday. The win extends the nation’s longest current winning streak to 77 games [that streak is the second longest streak in high school history].

I attended Independence High School from 1990-1993.

The Patriots, who are ranked #2 by USA Today, beat Hope Mills South View in Chapel Hill 41-7 in the NC 4AA Championship game. Heading into that game, South View only allowed 6.3 ppg. Independence, who averages 55 ppg….easily beat up that defense.

Joe Cox, the Pats’ QB, threw 4 TD passes to set the single season TD record in North Carolina. His 66 touchdown passes breaks the old record of 64 set by Independence’s [and current Florida Gator] Chris Leak in 2002. Cox needed one less game to break Leak’s record.

Congrats to the Pats!!

Sportz 2004

Since I will be leaving in a week for a vacation…I’m going to go ahead and do my 2004 Wrap Up. For me, personally, it has been a fantastic year. My wife and I bought our first home…the biggest achievement in our 5+ years of marriage. There is nothing better to have all of those things you’ve spent dreaming up with each other actually come to fruition. He all have our health. We’ve had tons of help along the way from family and friends…and I thank everyone for their help. And thank God for her.

But, let’s talk sports. The Year 2004 has had quite a ride. Sure, most years have their great sporting moments and their sad sporting events. But, this year has had quite an array of weird and wild occurrences….not to mention some very historical events.

                                                   

Year 2004 will mostly be remembered for the Boston Red Sox breaking “The Curse” and winning its first World Series in 86 years. I’m not a Red Sox fan….nor did I buy into curses or the “woe is us” feeling of the Sox Nation…but what this team in itself did was quite amazing. This team was DEAD. Completely dead. Down 0-3 to the Mighty Hated Yankees and down in the bottom of the 9th. Marino Rivera on the hill. Magically, Boston pulls out that game. But, how could they pull off the series?? Combining the greatest comeback in sports history with the greatest choke job [never forget A-Rod’s slap down the first base line], the Red Sox did it. After those 4 wins….the Red Sox went on to win 4 more and the World Series over St. Louis. Simply amazing! So, now instead of futility…all of sports will now point to the Red Sox as evidence that, in fittingly Yanks Yogi Berra’s words, it ain’t over til it’s over! So, while I didn’t buy into the Curse…I did buy into the love that the New Englanders have for their team. Quite rare in sports.

This was quite a year for sports champions. The Detroit Pistons surprised everyone outside the Great Lakes by smacking the Lakers so easily. Or the amazing feats of the Tampa Bay Lightning and Calgary Flames in the Stanley Cup Finals. We had the New England Patriots winning their second Super Bowl in three years. Or the Connecticut hoops teams winning the men’s and women’s titles.

How about Lance Armstrong winning a SIXTH Tour De France?? Or Phil Mickelson winning the Masters?? Kurt Busch coming back and winning the reformatted Nextel Cup?? Smarty Jones captured the hearts of everyone in and out of the horse racing industry.

Or the Athens Olympics?? In what was looking like one of the biggest mistakes in sporting history…the Athens Games did surprisingly well. LeBron James is showing why he may be better than Jordan. Roger Clemons, Barry Bonds and Randy Johnson did their thing after age 40. How about Freddy Adu, 14, trying to single-handedly save soccer in America. Big Ben winning 20 straight games [and counting] at Miami-OH and for the Steelers. Michelle Wie’s 68 at the PGA’s Sony Open.

Personally, for my teams…I had a pretty good year. Joe Gibbs returning the Redskins….though it didn‘t work out as well as hoped. The Lakers, despite the hate, did get to the NBA Finals by upsetting the Spurs [on a shot with 0.4 seconds left] and the Wolves. My Tar Heels made a surprising football run into the Continental Tire Bowl while the hoops team got back into the NCAA tournament and this year are a legit title contender. The NBA came back to Charlotte in the form of Bobcats.

Numbers?? Barry Bonds getting to 700 HR. Manning chasing Marino’s TD record. Ichiro broke the all time single season hits record which stood for 84 years. Streaks?? How about the Patriots record 21-game winning streak?? Or Payton Manning throwing at least 2 TD in 13 straight games. Eric Gagne reeled off 84 straight saves. Greg Maddux has won at least 15 games in 16 straight seasons. Or De La Salle’s football team losing a game which broke their 151 straight winning streak for high school football. The longest current streak is currently owned by my alma mater…Independence High School in Charlotte, NC [the Pats just won their 5th straight state title].

How about the heart warming story of the Iraqi Olympic soccer team??

For every great event…there are the bad ones. The sight of Ron Artest running up into the stands to fight all of the Pistons fans [except the ones that actually threw something at him] will live on for quite a while. I hope those 1,200 albums he’s sold will help deal with the pain. That followed the Lakers Breakup that sent Shaq to Miami, Phil to Montana, Payton to Boston and Karl to wherever….yet everyone still is talking smack. That all happened as Kobe Bryant’s sexual assault trial was suddenly dropped…right before it was set to happen. We had Breast-gate after Janet Jackson’s Super Bowl halftime performance which has had MAJOR repercussions across all of the media across the board. Ricky Williams decided to sit home and toke up instead of showing up for work. Oh, and Jamal Lewis’ suspension for drug trafficking. We had chairs thrown in Oakland…and bottles flying at Dodger Stadium. Or our USA Olympic basketball team coming up short.

We’ve had Armageddon in the NHL….and it doesn’t seem to be ending soon. Of course, the NHL and the players are finding out that no one cares if they are not playing. We’ve had a BCS controversy at the beginning of 2004 [Oklahoma, USC, LSU]...and now at the end [Oklahoma, USC, Auburn]. We had the whole Maurice Clarett/Ohio State crap come back up…only after he tried, and failed, to fight the NFL. Colorado was accused of providing alcohol and women as recruiting tools…and rape allegations followed. Pete Rose finally admitted he bet on baseball…but only after deciding to sell books to do it. How about the dumb fluff over the TO/Desperate Housewives intro??

The worst event [which will spill into 2005] could be the outing of many athletes in the BALCO  [BALCO] case. It has already claimed Gary Sheffield, Jason Giambi and Barry Bonds. There will be others [namely Marion Jones] that will be thrown in front of the bus. But, there will be a chain reaction due to testing and witch hunts that may claim quite a few others.

There were sad events….like Pat Tillman killed in action in Afghanistan. The plane crash that killed four members of the Hendrick family. The Expos were dragged and killed in Montreal so everyone could cash in on quickly selling them to a DC market. Hurricanes unmercifully ravaged the state of Florida…which [not as importantly] played havoc with sports schedules all over the gulf states.

Amazing all of that…plus so much morehappened in just 366 days [yep, leap year] in sports.

Can't I Just Watch My Lakers Play Basketball

Even I am getting tired of this garbage.

Kobe Bryant is in the middle of yet another controversy with the Lakers….this time feuding with one-season Laker Karl Malone. A week ago….there were an imminent deal on the table to send guard Kareem Rush to the Charlotte Bobcats for table scraps….essentially opening the door [and a roster spot] for Karl Malone to return to the team.

After that….bam!

Kobe Bryant went on a local radio station to defend his team…and basically say that it unfair to the guys that were there and already put the time in for the Lakers to speculate what a guy that hasn’t even committed to the team may do. Karl was miffed about the comments…complaining that he doesn’t want to be a ‘distraction’. The media descended on Kobe because of yet another former teammate has a rift with him. Kobe backed off a little…saying he didn’t mean to offend Malone by his comments. Since then, it has speculation about where Malone will end up and why Kobe’s a jerk. Then the story took a Soap Opera twist over the weekend.

Now the story is here: Karl Malone hit on Kobe’s wife Vanessa the Tuesday before Thanksgiving. On November 23.…the Bucks visited the Lakers. Vanessa Bryant was sitting at the game and on her cell phone with Malone’s wife Kaye. Vanessa, seeing Karl sitting with his son in the front row, asked Kaye to call Karl and have their son come up and sit with her since he was looking bored. Kaye gave Vanessa Karl’s cell number….so Vanessa called [which was the first time Karl and Vanessa had talked without either Kobe or Kaye around]. And the speculation turns.

                     

When Vanessa called Karl…he apparently replied “Why don't you come over here and sit next to me and give me a big hug”' When Vanessa asked why…Karl replied, “If you do that it will be on the cover of every magazine in the country.”

“Do you like me?”…Karl asked. Vanessa told him that she was a married woman and that Karl was old enough to be her father [zing!]. Karl zinged back with “Oh, like your daddy?” Eventually, Karl’s son came up to sit with Vanessa. After the game ended…Vanessa walked the young Malone down to Karl. That’s where the capper comes in.

Vanessa: “Hey, cowboy…what are you hunting?”

Malone [wearing cowboys boots and hat]: “I’m hunting for little Mexican girls.”

Bam!

On the ride home…Vanessa told Kobe of the incident. She then called Kaye and told her of the incident. Kobe called Karl about the incident. And that leads us to this past week.

Just another chapter in Days Of Our Lakers. Frankly…I am growing sick of it. I love my Lakers [yeah, I said ‘my‘]. I’ve been a Laker fan since I learned about basketball….when I was about 10...and the only teams on TV were the Lakers and Celtics. Magic Johnson grabbed my attention….and I was a Laker Lover ever since. I’ll defend ‘my’ Lakers to the fullest.

But, I will also smack them when I feel appropriate. Now…there really is nothing inheritably wrong with any reactions of this past week. I somewhat agree with Kobe’s original comments about Malone. I somewhat agree with Malone’s reaction to it. And I somewhat agree with Kobe’s feelings of Malone if this incident is true. I also see the irony of Kobe vehemently defending his wife’s honor…after he embarrassed her by cheating on her with a hotel clerk in Colorado that pretty much laid the foundation for everything that has gone on over the last 17 months.

As Laker fans, we’ve had to deal with Kobe’s sexual assault case, deal with the explosion of the Shaq/Kobe/Phil triangle, Gary Payton going Gary Payton, getting spanked in the NBA Finals, the entire revamping of the roster, Kobe testing the free agent market, to deal or not to deal Shaq, getting a new coach in, Phil’s book, defending the trade of Shaq, Shaq’s comments lobbied about everyone, blah, blah, blah. People we loved….we now hate. People we hated….we loved….then hate again.

                    

I’m not a “KobePhile”…as some Haters love to moniker all Laker fans. I’ll support Kobe and the Lakers as my duty as a fan. He’s one of the best players in the NBA…and has accomplished quite a bit at his age. But, I’ve always said he’s a jerk. He’s a jerk. He’s a egotistical jerk. I’ll never deny that. But, he’s one hell of a player….and as a player for a professional team, who cares if he’s a jerk?? He’s our jerk.

But the jerk is quite the lightning rod. He’s the most loved and hated athlete right now. Many defend his greatness….many shoot that theory down. There are Laker writers who see no wrong in him…and there are Laker writers [read: Shaq guys] that blame everything on him. He can’t win either way. So, Kobe…here is some advice. Screw them. Don’t try to please them. You can’t. You could win a championship with this crew….and they’d still find fault in it. So why bother.

I just want my normal team back. You know, a team where you can watch the game and not have some sort of cloud overhead or Jim Gray hiding under bleachers. I mean, I’m glad the ol’ “Kobe getting off the plane from Colorado and walking down the tunnel minutes before tip out” camera is gone. I’m glad the ol’ “Shaq and Kobe running down the court not acknowledging the others existence” tapes are wearing thin. I’d love it if the ol’ “let’s hear Stephen A. Smith’s meaningless take on the situation” went down the tubes as well [on a side note….Smith’s “at the end of the day” staple is my new pet peeve].

Just give me normal…like when Van Exel and Magic are pushing refs….lol.

WHO WILL WIN THE HEISMAN???

This should be one whale of a Heisman race. I mean, usually a name or two pulls away from the pack and is the odds on favorite to bring home the hardware. But who knows??

The five finalists will be suited up tonight…and all think they have a shot to bring it home. All five are playing in BCS bowls. All five have won every game this season. Three are quarterbacks….two are running backs. Four of the five will be playing in the Orange Bowl…..the de facto National Championship Game. Two of the finalists come from Helix High School in San Diego [Bush, Smith]. There is only one senior in the mix. The winner could be historic. No freshman or sophomore has ever won the award…but one of each is in the running. Only Archie Griffin has won multiple Heismans….but there is a former winner here [who can vote for himself]. You have a QB for USC here…and a QB from USC [Carson Palmer] won the Heisman two years ago. None of the candidates play East of the Mississippi River.

5TH-ALEX SMITH [QB, Utah]

WHY HE CAN WIN: Maybe the Sooner and Trojan nominees split the votes amongst themselves and Smith can sneak away with the award. He’s thrown 28 TD and only 4 INT and thrown for over 2,600 yards. He also has 563 yards rushing and 10 TD to his total. Very nice numbers. If you think that the fact that he played at Utah deters voters…remember Ty Detmer’s Heisman at BYU. And, heck, he only led the Utes to a BCS game…becoming the first non-BCS school to get into one of the big games.

WHY HE WON’T WIN: Lately, schools from non-BCS conferences tend to get a invite to the ceremony…but tend not to win. Utah really wasn’t on TV that much….so many voters never really got to see him play. Add to the fact that many of the voters have held on to their ballots…and Smith hasn’t played since before Thanksgiving. Out of sight, out of mind??

WHAT WILL HAPPEN: Smith may end up a surprising 3rd in the voting….though he may not be viewed as the 3rd best player out of the bunch. However, Smith may be the best pro prospect out of this Heisman class.

4TH-REGGIE BUSH [RB, USC]

WHY HE CAN WIN: Many people think that Bush is the best player on USC…and that will get him some votes. While his yardage isn’t enormous…he does have 15 total TD. He’s probably the best all around player in the country and can play many diverse roles for USC. Desmond Howard won the award with a similar-type game. He has a whale of a game in the USC-UCLA showdown.

WHY HE WON’T WIN: His core numbers aren’t eye-popping. Just 833 rushing yards and 6 TD….along with 478 receiving yards and 7 TD. He has thrown a TD and returned 2 TD. Also, Matt Leinart will most likely steal a ton of Bush’s votes.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN: The “Push For Bush” campaign will fall a little short…though we should see him back next year as an early favorite to take the 2005 award.

3RD-ADRIAN PETERSON [RB, Oklahoma]

WHY HE CAN WIN: He rushed for over 1,800 yards and 15 TD. But…the man…uh, kid…was the best in Oklahoma’s biggest games [OSU, Texas, Big XII title game]. That Big XII title game against Colorado is fresh on everyone’s mind…where he scored 3 TD and ran for 172 yards.

WHY HE WON’T WIN: Mainly because he is a freshman. And many voters won’t vote for him because of that. Aside from Archie Griffin’s back-to-back awards…the last time the Heisman winner came from the same college two consecutive years was Army’s Doc Blanchard and Glenn Davis in 1945 and 1946 [Davis actually finished 2nd in the 1945 voting].

WHAT WILL HAPPEN: Many people will have him #1 on their ballots….and he could have the 2nd most first place votes. But, many people will shun a true freshman….believing that he will have his day in 2005 and in 2006. He’ll make a nice run…but come up short.

2ND-MATT LEINART [QB, USC]

WHY HE CAN WIN: Paging Carson Palmer. Leinart stepped up and threw for just a hair under 3,000 yards and 28 TD. He also ran for 3 TD.  He's the QB for the #1 team in the Nation...and that usually accounts for a few votes.  Also, he did all of this without Mike Williams and Kerry Colbert...which is quite impressive.

WHY HE WON’T WIN:  He played his worst game of the season while everyone was hanging on to their ballots.  Histeammate Reggie Bush outshined him and may steal some votes away.  He didn't win last year's Heisman when USC was a better team than this year. 

WHAT WILL HAPPEN:  He may end up winning the Heisman.  Coming into the ceremony...he is most likely the favorite.  Though, favorites don't always win. 

WINNER-JASON WHITE [QB, Oklahoma]

WHY HE CAN WIN: He put up the numbers….2,961 yards and 33 TD. Just as USC sits atop the polls because no one has knocked them off…White is atop my Heisman poll because no one has knocked him off. If you size up White to Leinart and Smith….he has about the same amount of yards as Leinart [300 more than Smith]…and more TD passes than both. He threw the same amount of picks as Leinart [6] and just two more than Smith. Of course, those two picks were in the Big XII title game…an extra game that Utah didn’t have to play.   White also took the Maxwell award for top player of the year. 

WHY HE WON’T WIN: Ty Detmer didn’t repeat….basically because we many voters don’t think he is in the realm of Archie Griffin. White isn’t the kind of player that many voters will want do put in that category either. Also, many people believe that Peterson is the reason the Sooners click….so White may lose some votes there.

WHAT WILL HAPPEN: I honestly think he brings this one home and becomes only the second person to own two Heismans. Since having both knees blown out…he’s won a Heisman, in the running for a second…and playing for a National Championship. That shows me his toughness.

Bowling, bowling, bowling....

“It’s the most wonderful time of the year!”

Bowl season. A time where we get to watch games in cities we’d never visit [Boise, Mobile, Shreveport] and teams we’d never watch play [Troy, North Texas, Navy, New Mexico] because….well, there is nothing else on. We could watch “A Christmas Story” or QVC or World Suicide Poker Tour instead…but that Bowling Green-Memphis match up is a little more inviting.

Being a bowl team nowadays isn’t as prestigious as it once was. In fact, only THREE teams with winning records are NOT in a bowl game this year. Two of them, Clemson and South Carolina, declined bowl bids due to a brawl that ended their rivalry game a few weeks ago. The other winning team was Akron.

Five MAC teams are in bowls. Two Sun Belt teams. Florida and Notre Dame fired their coaches despite going to bowls.

Don’t get me wrong…I kid because I care. I have no problem with the glut of bowl games. To many of these kids…this may be the pinnacle of their football careers. This will be the final football game for many of these guys.

This isn't my "Bowl Preview" as such...just my rating of the actual games and my interest in them. 

#1-The Orange Bowl is the National Title Game. USC and Oklahoma have stayed a top the polls all season long….so this match-up should be awesome!!! FOUR of the five Heisman trophy candidates are playing in this game [Leinart, Bush, White, Peterson]. Even if this wasn’t the “title game”…it would be one heck of a matchup.

#2-How about that Liberty Bowl??? This is the best bowl game to be played before the new year. Undefeated Boise State against Louisville. They have a combined record of 21-1. The Cards average over 50 ppg….Boise averages just under 50 ppg. LeFors and Zabransky could combine for 1000 passing yards in this game.

#3-The Rose Bowl is the Granddaddy of them all. The most prestigious and, to me, the best bowl experience. Beautiful weather at a huge historic venue with two great/very good teams competing. Michigan vs. Texas should be a doozy of a game….and I’m not a bit miffed by Cal not being there. It could be the closest BCS game. Hard to believe that this will be the first ever meeting between Texas and Michigan.

#4-With the BCS bowls kind of breaking away from the other games….bowls like the Florida Citrus, errrrr, Capital One Bowl get lost in the shuffle. Iowa and LSU will match up their outstanding defenses. Heck, both schools could end up meeting next year in the National title game. The bowl also features two of the most sought after coaches in college….Kirk Ferentz and Nick Saban.

#5-The Battle for Florida will be played….in Atlanta. Florida and Miami-FL will meet in the Peach Bowl on New Year’s Eve. While you and your loved ones are wearing annoying hats and making god awful noises with pieces of cardboard stapled to a piece of plastic….these two schools will settle the title of Best Team In Florida [both beat Florida State].

#6-Auburn may run away with the Sugar Bowl. While V-Tech is a formidable opponent….they have nothing to lose nor gain. Auburn wants a piece of that National title…and they have a grudge to bear. Don’t overlook V-Tech. They did win the ACC and play better special teams that anyone.

#7-I like the Outback Bowl. First, they play those Outback Steakhouse commercials during the game that get my mouth watering. Second, this should be a whale of a game. I had Georgia as my #3 team before the season. And Wisconsin…..is no slouch….itself. The Badgers, however, have looked horrible in their final two games [Michigan State, Iowa].

#8-The Gator Bowl has gotten lost in the shuffle of late. This year should be no different. West Virginia against a disappointing Florida State squad. FSU should dominate this game. But, hey, it is the first bowl of 2005!!!

#9-The Tostitos Fiesta Bowl will be very important. No, it doesn’t matter if Utah stays undefeated….but they have to beat Pitt. Pittsburgh shouldn’t be in a BCS game while Georgia and California are not. But, that happens. Utah is the first non-BCS school to get into a BCS game. However, they play a team that is probably the worst BCS team of all time. If Utah loses this game….it may be a long, long time before you see a non-BCS school in a BCS game. If they can’t beat Pitt…they how can you justify any mid-major team to beat a legit BCS team??

#10-Why is there a bowl game in Boise, Idaho??? Formerly the Humanitarian Bowl…the MPC Computers Bowl [great name….ptttthhh!!!] finally doesn’t feature Boise State. Instead, Virginia and Fresno State will just freeze their hinnies off. Actually, Virginia preferred this game so it wouldn’t interfere with exams. Fresno just wanted to go somewhere other than the Silicon Valley Classic.

#11-The Emerald Bowl played in…..heck, I don’t know….will be a running feast. Of the 117 teams in Division I football….New Mexico is 115th in pass offense and Navy is 116th [Rice is the worst pass offense]. Will anyone watch this game?? Possibly. No matter what, the service academies are a treat to watch when they get in these bowl games.

#12-The Holiday Bowl is usually quite a game. This year, slighted California will battle the upset minded Texas Tech Red Raidahs. Cal was the odd man out of the BCS….just as Texas was last year [they ended up losing this bowl].

#13-The John Hancock….I mean, Sun Bowl would have been a better match-up if Arizona State’s QB Andrew Walter wasn’t injured in the Zona game. Purdue’s Kyle Orton will be there…and although he had a big dropoff as the season wound down….he still is a pro prospect.

#14-Do you like to run the football?? Then the Music City Bowl’s matchup of Minnesota and Alabama is for you. This should be a bruiser. In a rarity…both teams love to run the ball. Bama has one mean defense.

#15-The Alamo Bowl tends to favor the Big XII team….especially when that Big XII team is from Texas or Oklahoma. So look for OSU to win this game. Ahhhhh…..but which one??

#16-The Cotton Bowl will feature…gasp…Texas A&M against Tennessee. A week ago, this was a orange filled UT vs. UT game [Texas-Tennessee]. But, with Cal dropping out of the BCS….A&M fills this void.

#17-Laugh, but the GMAC Bowl in Mobile, Alabama should be a gol’ durn good time!! Memphis back DeAngelo Williams is the best player most people have never heard of…and will finally get his national audience. This game has seen Ben Roethlesberger, Byron Leftwich and LaDanlian Tomlinson in past years. Bowling Green won’t be a pushover…with a high octane pass offense.

#18-In the Continental Tire Bowl, an interesting experiment will take place. Boston College is the better team…but North Carolina will have a home crowd advantage. Will BC have a letdown after being so close to a BCS berth?? Will mediocrity in the ACC be better than being elite in the Big East?? Next year, these two schools will be ACC brethren.

#19-The Insight Bowl [the old Copper Bowl] is a rematch of the 2001 Fiesta Bowl played at nearby Tempe. Oregon State killed Notre Dame in that game 41-9. OSU should win this one….especially with all the turmoil going on due to the firing of Ty Willingham in South Bend.

#20-The Houston Bowl will have an in-state team playing, UTEP. Actually, this game features two coaches who have been embroiled in scandals of late. We all know about UTEP coach Mike Price’s dismissal from Alabama [where he never coached a game] due to some stripper and room service. We all know the scrutiny Gary Barnett had to deal with this past summer in Boulder. Both coaches are tough skinned and should have their teams ready for one another.

#21-The Motor City Bowl tends to not get my motor running. This year it is Toledo and UCONN. Yeah, there will be some scoring…which should make the game watch-able. This is the first bowl game for Connecticut since becoming a D-I program.

#22-Here is one of those “we are playing close to home” bowls. The Hawaii Bowl features, yes, Hawaii. As if the Warriors ever play outside of the Aloha State. Timmy Chang can just keep on piling up the yards against a pretty good UAB team. Hey, the game gives me something to do until I open presents.

#23-Usually, the Independence Bowl has a pretty good game. A couple of pretty good teams that matchup pretty well. Not this year. Iowa State and Miami-OH. Iowa State was a pleasant surprise this season…nearly winning the Big XII North division. Miami came back to a pretty nice season after losing Big Ben Roethlesberger to the Steelers.

#24-The Las Vegas [California Bowl/Raisin Bowl/Silver Bowl] Bowl has become a better game since they got out of the MAC vs. Big West bids. This edition has the best bet to be a blowout. Wyoming hasn’t been to a bowl in a while…and UCLA should have a ton of fans that made the trip up to Vegas. Watch the game…then gamble.

#25-The Ft Worth Bowl…yes, that’s right….looks to be a very mediocre day. Neither Marshall nor Cincinnati is that good. Let’s just hope the Bearcats decide not to trample all over the logo before the game. 70-7 anyone? Also, this is a matchup of a C-USA team that is leaving the conference against a MAC team that will be entering the C-USA next year…on the field of a C-USA team that will be in the Mountain West next year.

#26-Formerly the Tangerine Bowl….I think…the Champs Sports Bowl begins Bowl Week. Georgia Tech and Syracuse [possible Final Four pairing in hoops] look to cap off a year in which they weren’t expected to do much.

#27-I don’t hate on the New Orleans Bowl….but why is it still around?? I guess so North Texas has something to do in mid-December. The Mean Green is in the bowl yet again…and face a Southern Miss squad that was ranked a few weeks ago.

#28-This gets my vote for the worst bowl of the year. And it really isn’t a bowl. The Silicon Valley Classic. That’s a lie…since it never has been a classic. This year is no exception. Northern Illinois against Troy. Yep…that’s it. First off…who cares about these teams other than the people on those campuses?? Second…Troy is in Georgia [right?] and NIU is in, uh, Illinois so neither will have an abundant of fans at the game. Third, the game is on at 11:00 pm on New Year’s Eve Eve. I’d be willing to bet that most of you couldn’t even give me the school’s nicknames.   This is just another thing that you can blame Ron Artest for.  If it wasn't for his brawl...the SoCarolina-Clemson brawl may not have happened and those teams would have gobbled up bowl bids.  Instead we have these two stalwarts. 

Michigan Lineman Suspended For Whacking

                            

Don’t you love college athletics??

In the pro game….usually the police wire has domestic assaults, drugs, sexual misconduct, DUI, shooting your limo driver in the chest…etc. Sure, those happen in the college game as well. But, the college kids also have those great immature foul ups….and every year some school gets a nice streak going.

This year it is those mighty Michigan Wolverines.

Michigan, who in their last game was smacked by their rivals Ohio State, is having a whale of a time lately. Their all-Big Ten offensive lineman got rowdy in a bar, took a leak on the floor, did the “do you know who I am” rant…and spent a night in the hole. Yeah…that’s something out of a bad college football movie [see: Unnecessary Roughness]. But…I haven’t seen this next act in a movie.

Wolverine defensive lineman Larry Harrison was suspended from the team after being charged with indecent exposure. He was caught masturbating on the porch of a house occupied by several women one night. Yeah….a peeping tom who got caught “going a few rounds with the bald headed champ“. And by ‘caught’, I mean the cops actually caught him in the act.

But that’s not all. Because of getting caught…he is now the main suspect in 15 other indecent exposure cases in the campus area.  Reports say that a man would knock on the window of women's homes to get their attention...then "rub one out" while having a t-shirt over his head.  If this is true….than this guy is a very, very, very sick individual. A serial masturbator/stalker.

This isn’t the kicker, waterboy or backup receiver. I mean….this is a DEFENSIVE LINEMAN for one of the most prestigious programs in college sports…and he is going around “peeling some chilies” in front of women’s homes. Undercover police who’ve been investigating those previous complaints of the serial whacker noticed Harrison’s car in the neighborhood. They saw the car again Monday night sitting outside a house where female students of UM where living. They observed Harrison “flogging the dolphin” while watching the women thru a window and arrested him on the scene. Harrison posted bail and was placed inthe custody of his father.

So, a guy who should be preparing for the Rose Bowl against a tough Texas team instead sits at home because he spent the season spanking the monkey in front of chick's dorms. 

I almost wish it was drugs, DUI, etc. 

Why Just 1 v 2 ?

The BCS does it again. Auburn fans have a right to feel slighted. So do Cal fans. 11-0 Utah got in….but what about undefeated Boise State?? Cal, #5 in the BCS, is out. Pittsburgh, #21 in the BCS, is in.

Yeah, I know….no system is perfect. Fine. This is our system. But at least admit that aside from having computers help the two polls pick the two top teams for the NCAA “title game”…..it is worthless.

There are some great non-BCS bowl games. The Capital One Bowl [formerly the Citrus Bowl] has Iowa and LSU…both at 9-2. The FSU-WVU matchup in the Gator Bowl has promise. How about Georgia and Wisconsin meeting in the Outback Bowl?? Florida and Miami-FL must go up a state to play in Atlanta’s Peach Bowl. And how about 10-1 Louisville [who’s put up 55 points at least in their last 4 games] against 11-0 Boise State. Hey, Boise….let’s see if you can win a bowl game on a green surface!! That Arizona State-Purdue Sun Bowl game could be nice.

But, there are some bad games. There are 4 bowls that pit two 6-5 teams against each other. The Champs Sports [G-Tech/Cuse], Ft Worth [Cincy/Marshall], Vegas [UCLA/Wyoming] and Insight [Notre Dame/Oregon State] bowls. And why are conferences like the C-USA, WAC and MAC squeezing these 6-4 teams in?? I know that South Carolina and Clemson’s bowl binds were opened when both programs banned themselves from a bowl. The MAC has FIVE FREAKING SCHOOLS in bowls.

And there are some ugly games. How about Navy and New Mexico in the Emerald Bowl [that used to be the Diamond Nuts Bowl]. How about Northern Illinois and Troy in the Silicon Valley….uh, Classic. Troy makes the SECOND Sun Belt team in a bowl. There is 10-1 Cal facing 7-4 Texas Tech. Utah is an early 15 point favorite over Pitt. How is Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl??

Here is a list of those teams with winning records that aren’t playing in bowls. Clemson, South Carolina and Akron. That’s it. Three teams. And two of them declined bids due to a brawl.

Here is an interesting list of some of the schools that aren’t going to a bowl. Maryland, NC State, Michigan State, TCU, Oregon, Stanford, Washington, Missouri, Nebraska, Kansas State [who was in a BCS game last year], BYU and Arkansas. All pretty steady bowl teams.

But, since I obviously hate the BCS…yet am resigned to the fact that it is going to stay….can I ask for a modification? Just use the entire BCS rankings to match up ALL OF THE BOWLS!!! Why the heck not?? One vs. Two. Three vs. Four. Five vs. Six…..ya get it.

ORANGE: USC v Oklahoma….SUGAR: Auburn v Texas…ROSE: California v Utah…FIESTA: Georgia v Virginia Tech…CAP ONE: Louisville v Boise State [hey, that one is happening!]…COTTON: Iowa v LSU [hey, that one is happening in the Capital One Bowl]…GATOR: Michigan v Miami-FL…OUTBACK: Tennessee v Florida State…PEACH: Wisconsin v Virginia…SUN: Arizona State v Texas A&M…MUSIC CITY: Pittsburgh v Texas Tech…LIBERTY: Florida v Oklahoma State…etc. They all look like pretty fun bowl games.

Oh…what do I know. Bring on Connecticut vs. Toledo!!!!!

SPORTS IS KILLING ITSELF

Why does Mr. Average Fan have such contempt for today’s athlete??  Well, because they ruin everything.  We just had the Boston Red Sox make a historic comeback on their hated rivals, then go on to win their first World Series in 86 years.  We currently have in the NFL THREE 10-1 teams and Peyton Manning putting up sick passing numbers.  NCAA hoops has tipped off and we have a ton of outstanding teams that have legit shots at winning the title.  The NBA is as wide open as it has been in over a decade. 

 

Then, we have a Pacers vs. Pistons fans melee that has put the sports world in shock.  A day later, we have a brawl between South Carolina and Clemson.  We have Ricky Williams in and out of the NFL news with his garbage.  We’ve had coaches quitting and being fired….even if they got their team into bowl games.   We have a Kobe Bryant civil case, a Jayson Williams retrial, an NHL lockout, a looming NBA lockout, a BCS mess, Maurice Clarrett, and a ton of NCAA hoops program issues.  Now this.

 

So….now it breaks.  Statements made before a federal grand jury in the BALCO case are coming to light.   Here is my take, bit by bit, on this whole mess:

 

SHOCKED??

No.  Usually, where there is smoke…there is AT LEAST a mini fire.  Sometimes those fires explode.  All you need to do is see the sudden spike in the numbers these guys are putting up.  Smaller stadiums, bad pitching and diluted talent have all contributed to this….but there were times in baseball history that those things happened as well. 

 

BARRY BONDS

I’ve been on both sides of the fence with Barry.  I’ve used this forum to shout my displeasures about Bonds…and I’ve also sung his praises.  His numbers are simply amazing to me…no matter if he was on the juice or not.  I hoped not.  But, seeing those images of a slender Barry Bonds in his Pirates uniform against the hulking Bonds in his current Giants state is quite astounding [of course, in another POV, look at Tony Gwynn’s rookie physique against the one he retired with is comical as well].  He may indeed have a heck of a training regimen…but how do you stretch those muscles in your jaw and forehead??  How do you turn 35 years old and all of the sudden start doing things that no one else in the history of baseball are doing. 

 

JASON GIAMBI

Gee.  He shows up to spring training like 100 pounds lighter and has the worst year of his career.  Doesn’t sound like someone trying to get off the juice, does it??  Or the fact that he had weird medical issues including a PITUITARY problem, eh??   So now the Yanks are trying to get out of his contract.  I actually am not sure where I stand on this.  First off, the Yankees decided to overpay him because they knew no one else could.  So, they should have to deal with it.  I mean, they made that investment…and not all investments turn out for the better.   Of course, Giambi hasn’t held up to his part of the bargain as well.  Besides the steroids, he’s also a known party guy who loves to live it up.  “Live Like A Rock Star” he believes.  He does owe the Yankees to give everything he has to live up to his huge contract.  Of course, the Yankees…and everyone….knew this about Giambi in Oakland.  Yet the Yanks thought it was alright to bring him into the New York culture. 

 ASTERISKS

You know….I’m not one for asterisks.  I mean, what is the point??  Does it really do anything except create arguments over which record is the real one??  I mean, did the Roger Marisasterisk mean anything??  Having said all of that….the asterisk is just there to notify in the history books of the “tainted record”.  Who among us won’t know of Barry Bonds and his steroid use??  And, in future discussions….this era could be known as the Age Of Steroids.   I mean, Jose Canseco, Ken Caminiti, Jason Giambi and Barry Bonds have all admitted to using steroids.  That is TEN MVP AWARD WINNERS admitting they were on the juice.  If we throw an asterisk on Bonds 700+ home runs or a justifiable one on his 73 HR season…then we need to throw asterisks all over the place.  Those MVP seasons.  Oakland’s 3 straight AL pennants.  Canseco’s 40-40 creation.  San Diego’s NL Pennant.  Possibly the 1997 Marlins World Series championship.   And we’d need to look at Mark McGwire’s achievements as well…since Andro, though not illegal when he was taking it, is so now.  He “retired” once Andro was banned from baseball [and most other sports] and looks remarkably different now then in his playing days.  Asterisks are not necessary since history may view today’s baseball as the Steroid Era. 

 

TAINTED RECORDS

All these records broken or created during this Steroid Era, to me, are still records.  But they are tainted.  No matter what the discussion is….how can you look at Bonds HR numbers, Babe Ruth’sHR numbers and Hank Aaron’s HR numbers and believe they are equivalent?   All three did their time in completely different eras of baseball.   Babe Ruth was hitting more HR than other TEAMS were.  He was just so much better than everyone else.  But, he did play in an all-white era of baseball…which doesn’t stain his numbers [since he didn’t control who was allowed to play in MLB] but it does garner some attention.  He also played during a time where there were only 8 teams, shorter rotations and pitchers pitched entire games…which means Ruth saw the same pitchers over and over and with more of a tendency to be fatigued.  Bonds, as I said, did his during an era of steroids, small ballparks, chartered flights, interleague play, the addition of 4 more teams and smaller strike zones.   Aaron, who’s HR feat I admire the most, did his in an era where the NL went from 8 teams to 12 teams during his playing time.  Point is, you can find fault in all numbers.  The difference is that Bonds…ahem…knowingly cheated.  Ruth and Aaron didn’t. 

 

MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL
What is the MLB going to do??  Nothing.  They can’t.  They have a spineless leader against the strongest union in America.  I mean, with all of the talk of steroids in the labor deal of a few years ago….what happened??  After all of the pomp and circumstance, the baseball drug policy is an absolute joke.  That is why baseball is falling, the NFL is #1 and the NBA has risen.  Strong leadership.  Baseball doesn’t have that

 

MARION JONES, GARY SHEFFIELD....

Rest assured, there will be more coming out.  The most intriguing will be Marion Jones….since it involves a world class athlete in a sport that has a history of drug problems.  But, the biggest name…and the one we all were waiting for…has been outed.  And that really hurts our sports world as a whole. 

Is West Setting??

I don't know if any of you guys have caught the press conference that announced Mike Fratello as the new head coach of the Memphis Grizzlies.  It was one of the oddest things I've seen in a while in one of those press dealings.

Most of the time, no matter what the deal is....there is the "we're lucky to get this guy and lets build this future together!" feel about the press room that even glows on televsion.

Not this one.  Jerry West looked very saddened...and quite depressed.  This could be a clue into the severity of ex-Grizz coach Hubie Brown's "medical issues".  Maybe it is quite serious.  Maybe that is why the delay in getting The Czar in there.  Maybe that's why the Grizz are 0-4 since Brown's retirement.  All of this is speculation...but it does deserve noting. 

One thing I also noticed.....West looks like he's out of Memphis pretty soon as well. 

Watching The Logo at this news conference....you'd swear he was on the verge on making some sort of "surprise announcement".  That is pretty much the only reason I even watched this news conference.  I'm watching Jason Giambi's testimony and Ricky Williams re-retiring....and then this news conference comes on.  I'd normally turn it off...but West just had this look about him. 

He muttered and sputtered with his words.  He also looked like he'd been thru complete hell.  Whether it is Brown's condition...or even his own....he didn't look right.  And when he introduced Fratello...he sort of did it in a "well, here's our coach" manner. 

All of us here love Jerry West.  I never got to see him as a player....and was too young to know him as a coach.  To me, he is THE GM of all GMs.  Our great 80s Laker teams....and that huge, huge, huge gamble of moving our entire roster to bring in Shaq.  That could have backfired greatly.  He left us after seeing his creation win titles. You can blame that on Phil Jackson if you will [West has also fueded at times with Hubie Brown about Bonzi Wells playing time].  You can blame it on the pressure of helming one of sports glamourous franchises.  You can blame it on maybe West seeing the Kobe-Shaq cracks in the armor and didn't want to deal with rebuilding the Lakers again....just look what its done to Kupchak. 

There are rumblings of Jerry West retiring after this season.  A season in which the Grizzlies aren't doing too well.  A 50-win team last year that was built on depth, chemistry and a group of guys out to prove themselves...has turned into just another team.  I've always felt that depth is overrated.  Depth isn't as big in the playoffs when you don't have back-to-back games.  Their chemistry has been tested a bit.  And those guys who were out to prove themselves have cashed in nicely [Gasol, Battier, Swift]. 

It isn't as bad as the Mike Bibby/Shareef Abdur Rahim/Bryant Reeves days....but in the Wild West that have seen the Hornets reduced to a 1-13 team....it is tough to try to fight back. 

I hope all is well in the health of both Jerry West and Hubie Brown.  I hope that their retirements will be spent with family and leisures.  I also hope that neither use "retirement" as a means to stay completely away from the NBA. 

We need people like that around the game in some form or another.

Un Ty-ed

Now Notre Dame is looking for a new head football coach. Like it or not, Notre Dame fired Ty Willingham yesterday.

I have strong feelings both ways about this move by the Irish. First off, I hate it. Ty Willingham was a perfect coach for that university. It is extremely tough to head up a college with such high academic standards. Willingham had experience when he coached Stanford. Notre Dame doesn’t want problem players that most colleges would let a few “eek by”. It is a credit to the university….that academics ARE important. However, they cannot expect BCS bowls every year either. In this day and age…you got to get those kind of kids in the fold if you want to be consistently stay on top.

I think the alumni wants this….but Willingham didn’t.

Willingham is one of the classiest guys in the coaching profession. That was needed, when the Irish had to deal with the whole George O’Leary fiasco. Willingham, not perturbed to be the “second choice”, came in a brought respect to the program. Bob Davies was leading the Irish down a path of punch lines. Willingham, though having about the same amount of success, brought dignity and a sense of pride back to the Irish and the fans.

However….I cannot totally fault Notre Dame for doing this. Willingham had some big wins….he also had some big losses. Two major ones at the hands of USC.

When Willingham was hired…the landscape of the NCAA was different. Remember, there will be a huge reshuffling next summer. The Big East, which Notre Dame is “associated with” has become a shell of itself. Good-bye Miami, Virginia Tech and Boston College! Hello, Connecticut, Cincinnati, Louisville and South Florida. This could threaten the Big East’s BCS status. So winning is very important…apparently….to the Domers.

He should get the full 5 years of his contract to do his thing….just as Bob Davis and Gerry Faust did. He only got 3 of the 5 seasons [uh…3/5 ring a bell??] Is that race related??? Hmmmm….I don’t know. I do know that the fact that a certain Urban Meyer is out and about with all kinds of job offers thrown at him had something to do with the timing of this. I don’t think it was a “hey, this black guy can’t coach!” I just think that bad losses didn’t make up for the wins against Tennessee and Michigan.