As the NFL Draft approaches, there is a pile of various things that have occurred since the end of the season that are worth discussing. Free agent moves.. Or lack thereof... the pending draft..Chad Johnson acting like a virgin who get felt up at the prom...The Tuna in Miami.. and so on. Really I just miss football, any excuse I can find to talk about it works for me.
In Free Agency we saw a ton of money thrown at mediocre to good players. Asante Samuel and his almost 60 million dollar contract from the Philadelphia Eagles comes to mind. He’s a decent corner back no doubt about it, but he is not 60 million dollars worth of good. True he had a ton of interceptions with the Pats, but I firmly believe that’s a product of the defensive system that the Pats and ‘Hoodie’ have implemented. Look at the division that Samuel now plays in.. Multiple times a year he will be lining up against the likes of Plaxico Buress, T.O., Amani Toomer, and so on. These are all big receivers.. Samuel is a small guy..not even 6ft. He is going to get pushed around a bit and be susceptible to jump balls. The Eagles defense is good but he is not going to be the lock down corner back in the NFC. The Jets loaded up with a bunch of mid 30's players with the exception of LB Calvin Pace. They threw a ton of money at Alan Faneca.. A lot for an offensive lineman anyway. Calvin Pace may be a nice pick up...but he has been hurt a lot in his career and does not warrant the big money the Jets gave him. This is a make or break year for the not so ‘Mangenious’ Eric Mangini. If that team does not make the playoffs or back doors into the playoffs and gets bounced in the 1st round, he is a goner. The Patriots did very little in free agency, they let a lot of guys go (especially in the secondary), but the biggest priority on their off season list was taken care of, re-signing Randy Moss. True to their nature they got him at 75 cents on the dollar. 3 yrs, 27 million. It’s a steal. They also still have Wes Welker, and Jabaar Gaffney to keep the most lethal parts of their passing game in play. Still in need of a number one corner and some youth at the LB position..perhaps in the draft. Thats ok they have the 7th pick in this years draft...thanks SF.
I am very intrigued, as well as wary, to see Bill Parcells in Miami. Parcells no longer wants to deal with the grinds of being an NFL head coach. He still however knows how to evaluate talent, especially defensive talent, and that is his primary role as VP of Player Personnel and whatever the hell else he wants to do. The Dolphins are a total mess on both sides of the ball (sorry Meester Jeff), so Parcells needs to build this team from the ground up basically. He pretty much threw out all the trash, including long time favorite Zach Thomas. One thing that Bill Parcells believes in is that, your team is only as good as your offensive/defensive lines let them be. He will build this team from the lines out. I think he will use the 1st draft pick to get a dominating defensive lineman like a Chris Long or Glenn Dorsey. Solidify the lines and then work out into role players like running backs, receivers, Qb’s, linebackers, and so on. My bet? In about 3 years the Dolphins will back in contention and vying for playoff spots, playing Parcells football. Tough defense, solid special teams, and a deceptively good offense.
Last and certainly least in my mind, is Chad Johnson. What is this guys deal anyway? He’s a great receiver, a great talent, but his attitude sucks giant donkey balls. He is the stereotype for prima donna athletes (include T.O. who, in fairness, did seem to settle down a touch last year) who have great on-field accomplishments but let their mouth and ‘me!me!me!’ attitudes overshadow it all. Johnson is pissed at the Cincinnati Bengals because the team sucks and he really wants to win. Thats a fair point to be sure. Coach Marvin Lewis does not have the authority and backing from the front office to really assemble the team that he wants. Owner Mike Brown still has final say on all draft picks on personnel and draft picks. His record sucks, filled with David Klinglers, Ki-Jana Carters, Dan Wilkinsons, and so on. The offense on the Bengals is not the problem..it’s the defense. Its awful. Half the defense has pending court cases and the other half are just plain old not good. Let Marvin Lewis have more of a say in personnel matters and I promise you that team gets better. He is not a bad coach. So I understand Johnson’s frustration. The answer, however, is not to run around all off season, whoring yourself out to any team that will take you, while throwing the Bengals (and subsequently his team mates) under the bus. He has made this a very VERY public process and that is just lack of class. You don’t think Carson Palmer, TJ Houshmazolli :), Rudy Johnson, and the other non felons on the team, want to win? Of course they do. Take your issues to ownership, privately, and make whatever veiled threats and demands you want and see how it plays out. The only thing he is accomplishing right now is killing his team and making himself look like a horses ass in the process.
Back on Thursday with the start of my MLB preview.
Tuesday, March 25, 2008
'Random Musings and Tidbits from the NFL'
Monday, March 24, 2008
'Duke Feeling the Blues....... HA! HA!'
So you can understand why I have a smile that is stretching from ear to ear today still. On Saturday the highly touted, second ranked Blue Devils got bounced out of the tournament by West Virginia University, 73-67. Normally a staple deep into the tournament, this is the second year in a row that Duke has exited stage left in one of the first two rounds of the tourney. Such glee this causes in me. On Thursday, they almost lost their first round matchup against little known Belmont. In a contest that could have been likened to David vs. Goliath, Duke took advantage of refs that were obviously afraid of Coach K’s homicidal temper (that might be a slight exaggeration) and a time keeper that seemed really interested in running the clock an extra second or two after the whistles blew, which ultimately allowed Duke to escape with a one pont victory. Not sure if they were able to recover their dignity or not though.
Saturday was a different story though as WVU defended, rebounded, and hustled their way to victory. The amusing part of that is that is how Duke used to win games. I talked to a friend of mine that I went to school with who has been suffering watching Duke as long as I have (except for his unhealthy love of Bobby Hurley...something about him being from NJ. NJ natives are obsessively rabid about supporting their own that make it to a national sports stage. I think its small penis complex being so close to New York and all). Cordell basically said that for as long as we have been watching Duke, he can’t ever remember them defending a back door cut so poorly. He can’t remember a time when nobody would step up to take a charge...remember Carlos Boozer? Can’t remember a time where they just launched threes and relied on that to get them out of a jam. Its as though they forgot how to do all the things that used to make them so maddeningly good. Defense, rebounding, hustling, crisp guard and low post play. I am not sure if its because Coach K is pulling double duty as coach of the US basketball team, which will be in Beijing this summer for the Olympics, or if its because of all my voodoo wishes finally coming home to roost.:) Either way.. I don’t care. Duke is no longer full of mystique and super powers. They are just another decent college basketball program. May their drudgery and early round exits from the tournament continue for a decade. May the refs finally start calling defensive fouls consistently on them. But cheer up Coach K, I hear Abercrombie and Fitch is having a really big spring sale soon....maybe you and the boys can head on down and grab some designer sweaters, polo shirts, and mens cologne. Just spend a little bit of money and that smug sense of entitlement will be back before you know it. And we shall see you next March. :)
Saturday, March 22, 2008
'Top Five Sports Movies' Part Deux
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Thursday, March 20, 2008
'Top Five Sports Movies' Part 1
Apparently I like lists because for the second time in two weeks, I am putting together a top five list. Truth be told, I am really tired and feel like dung. I could do a list like this in my sleep and it does not require much effort therefore making it a fabulous topic to write about. This list of course is Top Five Sports Movies. As with my Top Five QB’s post, its entirely subjective and worthy of debate. Bottom line? If someone put a gun to my head and said ‘You may only watch these five sports movies for rest of your life’ (an extremely odd premise, I know.)....these would be the five I would choose. I apologize in advance for what may seem to be a prevailing baseball theme. Off we go...
5. 'Field of Dreams'- A pretty easy pick and a smooth way to start the list. Great movie filled with baseball history, relationships between fathers and sons, with a touch of the surreal. I am not here to summarize the movies... if you have seen them, then you know they are good and if you haven’t seen them...then get up off your ass and go buy, rent, or borrow these movies right now. They are great and you would not even be reading this if you did not like sports and subsequently sports movies. So there. Field of Dreams is unique in numerous ways. It starred Kevin Costner back when his career was worth more than a chewed up gum ball... also known as gum I guess. It also starred the always awesome James Earl Jones...can never go wrong with that guy. I liked the way the movie incorporated old time baseball from the early twentieth century with a touch of, what I called , mystical spooky. It’s the only way you can have guys who died decades ago, come back in their young athletic prime form and play ball in the middle of a corn field baseball diamond. Mystical spooky works. The cinematography is great and bonus points go to the portion of the movie where Costner and Jones end up going to Fenway Park to watch the Sox and end up seeing a mystical spooky message on the scoreboard. Ultimately, my favorite part of the movie is the end when Ray (Costner’ character) realizes that all the voices and the crazy things he has done has led him to the point where he was able to meet his Dad, who was a minor league player before Ray was born. Ray and his Dad had a falling out and his Dad died before they could reconcile. The movie ends with Ray and his Dad playing catch...while an endless stream of cars start arriving at the farm to watch the mystical spooky players from days gone by play. Good stuff.
4. 'Slap Shot'- Probably the best and funniest hockey movie ever. Made in 1979 and starring Paul Newman. Newman being the player/coach for an absolutely wretched minor league hockey team, the Charlestown Chiefs. In order to avoid the team being folded.. Newman devises a masterful way of putting fans in the seats..he turns his team into a bunch of feckless thugs on ice skates. They start fights and literally just bludgeon other players. The highlight of this team and the movie is The Hanson Brothers. Three crazy Canadian players who just like to do nothing but mug and beat the ever loving crap out of opposing players. They put aluminum foil on their knuckles to keep them from splitting when they are pounding on whomever. 'Puttin on the foil coach..' Even Newman starts a fight with an opposing goaltender by yelling at said goalie, that he knows his wife is a lesbian. But he uses much more colorful metaphors to describe what she likes to... um.... munch. The clothes are late 70's atrocious and thus amusing. Great movie...have watched it gillions of times and I do own a replica Charlestown Chiefs jersey.
3. 'Major League'- Essentially, the funniest baseball movie ever. So many quotable lines... 'Come on Dorn! Get in front of the damn ball! Don’t give me any of this oleeee bullshit!' or perhaps this one 'Well you may run like Mays, but you hit like shit'.Just one more? 'Ahhh Jesus.. I like him very much.. But he no help me with curve ball.' 'Are you tryin’ to tell me that Jesus Christ can’t hit a curveball?!?' 'Come on Harris lets not start a Holy War..' 'Well.. I wouldn’t leave that rum lyin around with this bunch...' 'Tis very bad to steal Joe Boo’s rum.. Tis VERY bad' (spooky voodoo music and.......... scene!) Ugh.. I could go on and on. Basically the Cleveland Indians are like the worst team of all time...the owner wants to move the team to Miami and if attendance is low enough she can exercise a clause in the lease with the city of Cleveland to let them go. She packs the team full of super craptastic players in hopes that they will stink it up and allow her to bounce the team to Miami. Naturally tons of hilarity ensues followed by the inevitable team unity, winning a bunch of games and winning the predictable but still entertaining playoff game against the scum of the earth Yankees. Charlie Sheen, probably his best role ever. If you have seen any of his other movies then you know I am right. But the total star of the movie is Bob Uecker as radio play by play announcer, Harry Doyle. I’ll just close out with a just a couple of gems: 'Haywood leads the league in most offensive categories...including nose hair' 'Give (insert unimportant players name that I can’t remember here) some credit for sacrificing his body on that racket...that guys got a family to think about' 'Vaughn into the windup....... Juuuuust a bit outside, tried the corner and missed. Ball 4, Ball 8, Ball 12, and Vaughn has walked the bases loaded on 12 straight pitches.' I giggled multiple times just writing this.
Coming tomorrow.. The top two movies. These movies are more drama oriented, just in case any of you think that I am a shallow huckster who thinks 'Beavis and Butthead' is the best television show ever made. :)
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
'Its Alive.... Its Alive!!' Welcome to the Madness.
After watching the NCAA Tourney Selection on Sunday night and subsequently all the coverage on tv and in print media for the past two days, I decided that if I wrote everything down that has gone through my mind on this years tourney... then this post would rival 'War and Peace' in its length. Not really shooting for that record right now. So I am trying to condense my thoughts by breaking it down by region, with the occasional editorial on teams I like or disdain.
EAST: With UNC being the number one seed, fully healthy finally, and on a bit of a roll its hard to see how they do not make it to San Antonio for the Final Four. Tyler Hansbrogh is developing quite the legend for himself as a big time and clutch time performer. Just look at the ACC title game against Clemson..chases down a rebound and then turns around to hit the game winner. UNC is playing well on both sides of the ball right now and while I used to hate Dean Smith (and his huge nose and crappy four corners defense) and subsequently UNC... I always liked Roy Williams, so I now can stomach them. There are a couple stumbling blocks on the way Final Four for UNC though. The 2 seed Tennessee and the 3 seed Louisville. With Tennessee you have a well coached team that plays very good defense. Their offense can be a touch streaky but is generally solid. That would be a great Elite Eight match up Although someone should tell Tennessee head coach Bruce Pearle that those sherbert orange blazers he wears are absolutely hideous.. Louisville.. While I listed them as potential trouble for Carolina... I just don’t think they are. They are a good team.. Another one of Rick Pitino’s pressure teams that always create havoc and turnovers for opposing offenses with quick and speedy guards to facilitate transition. I think Pitino has just never been the same legend that everyone thinks he is since he came back from driving the Celtics franchise to deepest depths of hell. He was great, pre Celtics, at Kentucky and he is good, post-Celtics, at Louisville but does not seem quite the same. But one thing is for sure.. If you don’t protect the ball against his teams, they will get a grip of points off of your mistakes. Other teams in this region include George Mason, from 2006 Final Four Cinderella fame, Butler..winners of 13 of their last 14 and Indiana, who just seem headed for a first or second round defeat. Look for UNC to come out of the East.
SOUTH: Memphis is the 1 seed here and I know they have been arguably one of the top two teams all season, only losing once to Tennessee. There is no logical reason for me to not pick them to make it to the Final Four. However, their free throw shooting is just atrocious. I think this is going to cost them either in the Sweet 16 or the Elite 8. Inevitably every year, a top team gets involved in a dog fight with an unlikely opponent and free throws will be huge. And since Memphis really sucks with free throws, I see it as a potential Achilles heel for them. All the quickness and suffocating defense in the world if you can’t take advantage of free points. The 2 seed, Texas, does not scare me at all. They have had a decent year but were easily handled by Kansas in the Big 12 Championship..they don’t have the muscle to hang with the big boys. Same feeling about Stanford. However here is who I do like to come out of the South region... Pitt. Don’t forget they were playing really well earlier in the season, had a mid season swoon of sorts, and then picked it up again at the end of the year and in the Big East Championship, where they had a convincing victory over Georgetown. I like their combination of youth and defense. If they can get by a really hot Temple team in a potential second round match up, then I think they can make it to San Antonio.
MID WEST: A two or three horse race in this region between 1 seed Kansas, 2 seed Georgetown, and 5 seed Clemson. Kansas seems to be peaking at the right time..playing smooth and with ease. Georgetown was on quite a run until they ran into Pitt in the Big East Championship. They are anchored by big man Roy Hibbert in the middle giving htem a nice post presence on offense and defense. They have seasoned guards and young forward Patrick Ewing Jr..not much of a scoring threat but a good defender and passer off the bench. Clemson is playing really well taking out Duke in the ACC semi final and within a few seconds of doing the same to UNC in the final. Nothing makes me happier than seeing Duke lose. Coach Krykweoiwpmcxmski and his merry little band of preppies and over achieving do gooders have always made me sick. Is there any correlation between all the preppie goofy white kids he recruits that excel in college and the fact that those same preppie goofy white kids totally suck balls when they make it to the NBA? But I digress.. Back to Clemson..playing really well right now. I see them making it to the Sweet 16, possible a regional final. Btw.. I see a lot of talk about Davidson and Gonzaga. I say phooey. I see Georgetown and Kansas playing for a spot in the Final Four......with Georgetown pulling it out in a squeaker.
WEST: Last but certainly not least. UCLA is the 1 seed out here. The evil and totally lame Duke Blue Devils deservedly the 2 seed (even a backhanded compliment to Duke feels like I need to shower with a wire brush). U Conn is a 4 seed. This seems to me like a weak region that will come down to UCLA and Duke. Georgia, who made a great run in the SEC tourney, will not last. Arizona was 50-50 chance of even getting in the tourney and not playing well. If a no name team is going to make some noise this year it might be the 5 seed Drake...cruised through their regular season and demolished the competition in their conference tournament en route to a championship. U Conn could interject themselves into this mix but I think it will be UCLA and Duke for regional final. And I pray to the basketaball gods that UCLA extinguishes the life out of Duke and I see the Blue Devils cry on the bench while wiping their tears with Tommy Hilfiger t-shirts.
So there it is my Final Four: UNC, PITT, GEORGETOWN, UCLA. Oh.. You want my picks too? Pushy you folks are...... In the first Final Four semi I like UNC over Georgetown in a nail biter. In the second semi I like UCLA over Pitt. National Championship Game: UNC 72- UCLA 64. Hansbrough cuts down the nets and then rides off into NBA obscurity. I love this time of year. :)
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Tuesday Thunder in Thunder valley
Being that yesterday was St. Patrick’s day, I did not have the requisite time to put together any coherent thoughts on the NCAA Tourney...another 24 hours and I should have a better handle on it all. There are a lot of teams and players to review and I can’t combine that with the unbridled, beer drinking joy that is St Patrick’s day. Therefore we are going to chew a little NASCAR fat, after a damn good race on Sunday.
Sunday was the Food City 500 (save your sponsor jokes) at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee. Now for someone who does not like country music or moonshine, I don’t have much use for Tennessee. However, twice a year they put on two of the better races of the NASCAR season (the second one is in August under the lights). Bristol is short track racing at its finest. It’s a half mile, high banked, concrete oval. Its referred to as a bull ring and when you put 43 cars on that track you can see why. 43 cars taking 500 laps around (turning lap times around 15 seconds or so) this track, beating and banging on each other all day long. All the while surrounded by 160,000 fans. 160,000... no other professional sport in the United States can plant that many butts in the seats for one of their events. It was at Bristol in 1999 that the late Dale Earnhardt (my favorite driver of all time) gave us one of his many signature moments by dumping Terry Labonte (that means wrecking somebody else, for you newbies) on the last lap to win that race and then had the gumption to tell the camera that 'I didn’t mean to wreck him...just wanted to rattle his cage a little bit', all the while smiling like the Cheshire Cat.
Bristol is known for good racing, wrecks, spin outs, fights between drivers, and last lap drama. Sunday’s race provided all of that, except for the fights between drivers. There was lots of good racing but basically the race for the win really came down to two teams: JGR (Joe Gibbs Racing) who are represented by Tony Stewart, Denny Hamlin, and Kyle Busch, and RCR (Richard Childress Racing) who has Kevin Harvick, Jeff Burton, and Clint Bowyer. Those six cars were the class of the field and truth be told, much to my chagrin, the Joe Gibbs Toyotas were the dominant cars of the field. Harvick, Burton, and Bowyer were able to keep up with them..they just could not stay in front of them. Between Stewart and Hamlin...they combined to lead almost of 400 of the 500 laps in the race. Yeah...that’s a team that has their stuff together. Stewart is really the only guy I like on that team. Hamlin is a cocky little prick, who thinks he is entitled to everything because he is Denny Hamlin. Kyle Busch is just a meathead...hot headed with a tendency to wreck himself. That being said...the kid can wheel. I have to give it to him... I don’t want to but it’s the truth. He can do some things with a race car that not a lot of other guys can do. But he bugs me a lot, so I do tend to snicker tremendously when some misfortune crosses his path. Tony Stewart is an old school driver. Says what he feels on live tv, can drive anything on four wheels, and will turn a fellow racer into the fence if they mess with him on the track.. All three of those guys have had cars capable of winning every race so far this year...but with the exception of last week in Atlanta (Kyle Busch won), a series of circumstances seems to keep from actually closing the deal. Works for me. Gives my guys (Harvick, Burton, Bowyer in that order) a chance.
So back to the race on Sunday. So the JGR cars are all taking turns at the lead... with Stewart leading the most, avoiding wrecks and lapped traffic along the way. Towards the last portion of the race Busch came up and took the lead and then subsequently loses his power steering. Goes a few laps then his car spins out and hits the inside wall..taking him out of contention. I laugh heartily to myself and thank the NASCAR gods for my good fortune. All the while Harvick and Burton are just lurking in the top five. When the race resumes, Stewart goes back to the lead and then trades it back and forth with Harvick a few times. All I notice is that Harvick can’t stay in front of Stewart for more than a few laps. Stewart has the better car. As my friend Thomas 'The Tank Engine' would say ‘No satisfaction’. Now Hamlin is barnstorming through the field..he had pit troubles and fell way back..but now he is on a march to the front and takes the lead. With about 12 laps to go a caution flag came out for a wreck. Stewart and Hamlin stayed out, while everyone from third place back came in for tires. On the restart with less than ten laps to go.. Hamlin and Stewart got out front but were being chased by Harvick and Burton with their fresher tires. Harvick was trying to pass Tony Stewart for 2nd place underneath him when he drifted up the track a little and knocked Stewart into the wall but Burton gets by Harvick. Caution is out and we will have a 2 lap shoot out for the win. When the race restarts Hamlin is leading, Burton and Harvick in 2nd and 3rd. Half a lap into it...Hamlin just slows up and Burton rockets past and ends up beating. Harvick to the line by a half second..with Clint Bowyer coming in third. That’s right..1st, 2nd, and 3rd place went to RCR. Now THAT is satisfaction. Apparently, Hamlin had a problem with his fuel pick up and that’s why his car all of a sudden resembled a 1981 Honda on the restart. It couldn’t have happened to a smarmier prick.There was much rejoicing on my part, along with some colorful metaphors thrown Hamlin's way(normally I save my venom for Jeff Gordon or Jimmie Johnson but they are pretty much sucking it up so far this year). Great race...with a really great ending.
Now you may wish that you had chosen to read an article about theoretical physics instead of my NASCAR musings and that’s ok (thanks for reading this even if you hated it)... but if any of what I described above piqued your interest in the slightest bit, then you should watch the Bristol night race in August. Its one of the best. There is a seven year wait list for tickets to that race. I am not kidding. On that note.. I think I am off in search of some moonshine...suddenly Tennessee does not seem like that bad of a place after all. :)
Monday, March 17, 2008
Break Down On Why Tiger Is Dominant
I know I told you that I would have an NCAA Tourney preview on Monday but a couple of things prevented that from happening. One, I went out on Sunday night to my favorite watering hole in all the land, Maloney’s. If you are ever in downtown Albuquerque, swing by 4th and Central and stop in for a Viking sized beer. No really, it’s a liter of beer in a mug. So delicious and thirst quenching. Second, and more important reason for pushing back the tourney preview is one Mr. Eldrick 'Tiger' Woods and it is he that we will be discussing today. So give me one to two days to review all the regions, match ups and so forth. Then I shall provide you with a tidy little preview to the 'Madness.'
So this past weekend was The Bay Hill Invitational, a yearly PGA Tour event held at Arnold Palmer’s course in Florida. Now, you may recall in my introductory post I fawned over Tiger Woods pretty heavily. Some of you might have thought it to be a bit much but if you, by chance, happened to watch the final round at Bay Hill on Sunday then you now know what I was talking about. First of all Tiger has not lost a tournament since last August. He has won the last six tournaments he has entered in. I mean how ridiculous is that? Most of the schlubs and lifers that currently make up the PGA tour would kill to have a season where they win a couple of events, maybe a few top tens. I mean that really is a good season. Now I swing back to Tiger . . . he has won the last six events he has been in. He’s won the last two majors and is the odds on favorite to win The Masters in three weeks. He is playing golf at such a stratospheric level right now that the other guys on tour would be better off bludgeoning him with a pitching wedge to keep him under control. Scary thing is he would probably still find a way to win.
At Bay Hill, Friday night found Tiger seven shots off the lead heading into the weekend. He wasn’t playing poorly . . . but he wasn’t playing very well either. Oddly enough, despite the seven shot deficit heading into the weekend I found myself thinking that if Tiger heats up there is no reason he can’t steam roll the field. Well it didn’t turn out exactly the way I thought. It was more like a combination of events that propelled him to a five-way tie for the lead by the end of Saturday’s 3rd round. A number of players that were above Tiger on the leader board just simply fell apart. On the front nine Saturday, Vijay Singh dropped five shots over a four-hole stretch. I am no Vijay Singh lover at all, in fact the only he thing that he does that I like is that he smokes, but players like Vijay Singh do not drop five shots in four holes. A number of other players were not playing particularly well either. Tiger however, went out and shot -4 under 66, with two ridiculously good iron shots at 15 and 16 that resulted in a 2-ft putt for birdie and a 3-ft putt for birdie on two of the toughest holes on the course. Hard to describe unless you saw them but he knocked them stiff.
Sunday found Tiger in the final pairing, wearing his famous Sunday red 'money' shirt, tied with four other golfers at the start of the round. On the second hole, he bagged a 15-ft putt for birdie to take a lead that he would never relinquish. That does not mean the victory or the lead was assured. On 10, Tiger had a mystifying three putt which resulted in a bogey and a tie with relative unknown, Bart Bryant. I don’t know where this collection of no name stiffs, like Bryant, come from to challenge Tiger every once and a while. They probably come from central casting for all things warm, fuzzy and full of inspirational goodness. Bryant and Woods basically matched each other on the back nine..birdie for birdie, par for par. The announcer’s glee at the proposition of someone 'challenging' Tiger was growing by the hole. Which brings us to 18, a very challenging and difficult hole to close on. Bryant plays it (he was in the group ahead of Tiger) and comes up with solid par. Nice drive..nice iron shot...nice putting. A well played hole by Bryant. So if Tiger pars the 18th hole, he and Bryant will have a playoff, if he birdies then Tiger wins. Simple enough. Tiger steps to the 18th tee and bombs one down the left side of the fairway. Before his 2nd shot into the green..the wind really picked up, making an already difficult shot over water even more treacherous. My guess is that things like that only embolden Tiger to execute a perfect shot. Which is exactly what he did. He took his five iron and launched an approach shot that landed about 25 ft to the left of the cup...which is the only safe place to land a shot if you can’t afford to bogey the hole. Now the announcers spent the next 5 minutes talking about how Tiger had not made a putt of over 19ft all tournament long.....which is exactly the moment that I started thinking that this one was going in. You just get feelings like that about Tiger if you watch him enough. Anyway he was 0-21 all tournament long on putts of 19ft or more and this was a 25 ft putt. But it was for the win. So Tiger takes his requisite time, studies the putt from 5 gillion angles and steps up to the ball and taps it. Right off the bat, I can sense it is on line and I as I watch it approach the hole and slow down, I scream at the tv ' Get in f’ing hole!'.. The ball, as if on cue, stops right at the edge of the cup for a split second....and then drops in. Pandemonium ensues. Tiger has always been an emotional guy on the course when he makes big putts and such but he was extra pumped today. When the ball dropped in, a yelling Tiger took his hat off and spiked it on the ground like a football and then turned to the crowd and gave them his trademark fist pump with both arms. Crowd going wild, Tiger going wild and in the background, Arnold Palmer stood smiling with a bemused look on his face that basically said ‘I knew that was going to happen’. This is why I love to watch golf anytime that Tiger Woods is playing, because for the last seven months it has been nothing short of must watch tv and a talent like this only comes around once in a lifetime. I certainly want to watch and be able to tell my kids that I saw, arguably, one of the most dominant and best athletes of all time. See you in three weeks at Augusta, Tiger. :)
Friday, March 14, 2008
In The Mind Of A Sports Guru
I had about 3 trillion different ideas swimming around my head for a possible topic today. Nothing I settled on felt worthy of a full length post. So I had a better idea...in order to rid my head of all these rambling and unrelated sports fragments, I figured I would just toss some of them down here and let you all make what you will of them. Oh and anybody who is concerned that I have not touched upon March Madness...fear not. Once the field of 64 is set on Sunday night.. I will most definitely dedicate some space here to it. I just find it pointless to engage in the endless speculation and 'bubble' watching. It changes by the day and half the speculation ends up being wrong anyway. I think the two best jobs in America have to be Meteorologist and ESPN College Basketball 'Analyst.' They are the only jobs where you can be wrong 50% of the time, not get fired and probably end up getting promoted. Anyway....
1. I think its odd that the Red Sox get rewarded for winning the World Series by having to make a 17 hour flight to Japan to open their season against the Oakland A’s. I mean why not open the season in Bangladesh or one of the poles (North or South...I’m not picky). I know the weather in Boston in early April sucks but come on..
2. The Houston Rockets seem hell bent to make me look foolish for semi-dismissing their post season chances by winning 20 straight games...2nd longest NBA winning streak of all time. I keep waiting for this smoke and mirror show to collapse upon itself but day after day they keep chugging along...picking off one team after another. Even if they are not as good as some of the other Western teams...they now think they are just as good, if not better, than those teams. Confidence is a big factor in the post season and they have so much of it right now they could probably sell some to Phoenix for a jar of Shaq’s sweat.
3. Who gets in a fight in spring training? On Wednesday the Yankees and the Devil Rays got into a bench clearing brawl in the second inning of their SPRING TRAINING GAME. Apparently some nameless Yankee slid spikes high into some really nameless Devil Ray, sparking the fight. But wait...there’s more. Apparently there was bad blood from a game these same two teams played a couple days before, in which some totally nameless Devil Ray player bowled over some young nameless Yankee catcher and broke the wrist of said, insignificant Yankee catcher, in a play at the plate. This is worse than a wrestling storyline. The Yankees, as usual, are just pathetic. They got a new, no nonsense manager and boy are they tough now. Please (rolls eyes). The Devil Rays have a right to be upset...but it shouldn’t be at the Yankees.. It should be about the organization they play for. They suck. They have always sucked. They probably always will suck. All they do is spread their contaminating suckiness all over everybody else. Just be gone Tampa Bay, please.
4. Notice how my first three points got progressively longer?? :)
5. Alert! NASCAR thought forthcoming. I find it very interesting that Roush-Fenway is not appealing the penalties assessed to its 99 Sprint Cup team, driven by Carl Edwards, after the race at Las Vegas two weeks ago. In case you are wondering what the penalties were for, and I know you are in breathless anticipation for my explanation, I shall tell you. Two weeks ago in Vegas, Edwards wins the Sprint Cup race in pretty dominating fashion. However after the race, his car fails the post race inspection. It seems as though his oil tank reservoir lid had come off during the race. Who cares you say... well the lack of that lid where it is supposed to be can create significant advantage in aerodynamic down force. Non-nerdy answer? It can make his car go faster and handle better. Believe me at almost 200 mph..every little bit helps. Now these oil tank lids don’t just slip off..they are supposed to be bolted on. So in order for it to be even possible for the lid to come off, the prevailing theory in the garage was that it was rigged. Well, NASCAR pretty much agreed and took 100 championship points from Edwards, suspended his Crew Chief for 6 weeks and fined him 100k for good measure. Jack Roush (Owner of Roush-Fenway Racing) went on a child lake tantrum at last weekends race in Atlanta talking about his integrity and how his teams do not cheat..blah, blah, blah. NASCAR has an appeal system set where you can appeal any penalty. Most teams appeal penalties..most of them do not get overturned...Every once and a while some do. So if you didn’t cheat, you have tons of integrity, and you are offended at the mere insinuation that you cheated...then don’t you file the appeal on principle? I guess you don’t if you actually did cheat so your horse toothed, back flipping driver could win a race.
6. Last one, because I like even numbers. Involves both Super Bowl teams. The Giants have just recently signed David Carr to a one year deal to back up Eli Manning. After winning the Super Bowl in stunning fashion this year, Giant fans will now know what its like to have a star quarterback backed up by a sack of potatoes,. My point is this... if Tom Brady ever suffers an injury that takes him out of a game or games... then we have Matt Cassel to back him up. That’s like going from a Ferrari to a Ford Pinto. And David Carr is a lot worse than Matt Cassel. He even gets sacked 6 times a night in his dreams. Anybody else wondering what the Patriot plan is for the secondary? They lost Asante Samuel to free agency, released Eugene Wilson (about time), and Randall Gay. That’s half their secondary and they are in dire need of making the line backing corps younger as well. Belichick always has a plan but my sense is that he is trying to overhaul a majority of that defense. He hates drafting linebackers..so he might grab a free agent line backer or two and then promote some of the young guys that have played in garbage time and special teams the past couple years, like Pierre Woods and Erick Alexander. Which leaves the draft to pick up some CB’s. They like bigger, physical corners for that defense (a la a younger Ty Law). Samuel and Gay were certainly not that and I think that’s the direction they are going to head. Their pass defense was soft at times this year and certainly in the last two minutes of the Super Bowl. We shall see..
I’ll be back on Monday with a weekend review and the official start of 'March Madness' Have a good weekend all.
Thursday, March 13, 2008
"Top 5 QB's Of All Time" Final 2
Okie dokie...here we go. Sure to create more anger and hostility come my top two picks for my Top Five QB’s of all time. If you happen to have the memory of a South American fire ant (like I do) and cant remember my 5,4, and 3 picks...well just go to my previous blog. :)
2. John Elway: Believe me this gets harder the closer we get to Number One. I have watched his entire career. Became a fan for life in January of 1987(I was 12)...the AFC Championship game against the Cleveland Browns. They call it "The Drive." Down by 7 points in a championship game, five and a half minutes or so left in the fourth quarter, 98 yards away from the end zone, a stout Cleveland defense in the way, and a rabid Cleveland crowd in his ears. This guy takes his team over those 98 yards in five minutes and two seconds, converting a 3rd and 18 along the way, and then fires a five yard laser beam to Mark Jackson for a touchdown with 37 seconds left in the game. And with the extra point the game was tied and the Broncos went on to win on OT. From that moment I was a huge Elway fan (except for 2 weeks later when they played the Giants in the Super Bowl and were subsequently destroyed by Phil Simms of all people). Not necessarily a Broncos fan but a John Elway fan. And you know the crazy thing? He made a career out of making 4th quarter comebacks not unlike the one I just described. It was always fun to watch Elway play..he was a gun slinger. There was a time that I wondered like everyone else..if this guy was ever going to get that elusive SB championship. He had been to three SB’s in the 80's and had subsequently been blown out of all three of them. Then Mike Shannahan shows up in Denver in the mid 90's and does what blockhead Don Shula never did for Dan Marino...took pressure off of John Elway by developing a lethal running attack. The result? Two Super Bowl Championships for Elway and the Broncos. Elway was the SB MVP in the 98 SB against Atlanta. The previous Super Bowl against Green Bay was one of the best of all time. Statistically not one of Elway’s best games but nobody wanted it more than he did. Facing a critical first down conversion in the second half..Elway ended up scrambling around the right side and with the end zone pylon in sight dove head first into two Green Bay defenders, getting spun like a helicopter. Short of the end zone but got the first down. Knew they were going to win that game based on that play alone. His career is loaded with similar plays, throws, and game winning drives which is why he is my Number 2 QB of all time. So there..suck on that. :)
1. Joe Montana. You know you can probably make plenty of statistical arguments as to why he should not be Number One..and they would be valid. But if any of you are old enough to remember him playing in his prime with the Niners... you know this is the right choice. The only QB who had more 4th quarter comebacks than Joe Montana (who had 31) is John Elway (with a staggering 47). Here are a few reasons why Joe Cool is at the top of the list: Was the starting QB in four Super Bowls and won them all. Is the only 3 time Super Bowl MVP ever. 2 time league MVP. Led the NFC five times in passer rating (naturally a result of the West Coast offense to a degree but whatever it helps my case). A beautiful 92 yard game winning drive in the Super Bowl against the Cincinnati Bengals (1989). 1986 NFL Comeback Player of the Year after returning from a severe back injury. One of his best talents was never getting rattled under pressure...no matter what the situation. Remarkably cool. Reminds me of another QB who plays for a New England based football team, who is one SB championship and one SB MVP award away from tying Montana on both of those fronts. Oh... and this New England based QB’s name rhymes with Blom Drady. But um ahem... back to the point. Joe did it all over his career..consummate professional, champion and all around great player and teammate. Which is why he is my pick for No.1 QB of all time....as of now.
Now for all of you in the mid west that are screaming about Peyton Manning and/or Bret Favre.. I can hear you. I have super powers...its quite impressive. Look here is the deal..Peyton first. Peyton popped out of the womb throwing a football...probably hit the Nurse right between the....um...numbers we will say. Has always been a good to great quarterback at whatever level of organized football he has ever played. But in college at Tennessee had a knack for losing big games. And up until 2 years ago, when the Colts won one of the ugliest SB’s I have ever seen, he had that label in the NFL. Now everyone wants to give him the mantle of best of all time. Forget that. I am not totally certain he is the best QB playing today. In yesterdays post I mentioned that Tom Brady for the first time this past season had receivers that were on par with what Peyton has had for the past 7 years and what did Brady do? Broke Peyton’s single season touchdown pass record and threw for just under 5,000 yards and so on. Until Peyton starts winning more SB’s and not stinking it up in big games more often than not, than I don’t want to hear about how great he is. And when he starts winning more championships then he gets in the top 5. Brett Favre... here is the deal..everybody is in a love fest with him right now bc he retired and that’s cute. And yes he is a great player... 7 million consecutive games started.. One SB championship, leader for passing yards and td’s ( a result of playing football since George Halas founded the league). Those are all valid points to be discussed. But what I remember the most about Brett Favre is how many times he killed his team with boneheaded interceptions. Case in point: the last pass he ever threw was an interception right into the hands of a waiting NY Giants corner...in OT of the NFC championship game. Are you kidding me? Giants took the ball..moved it a few yards kicked a field goal to win and then went on to AZ to ruin my dream of seeing a perfect season. But I am not bitter. His career is filled with moments like that. 288 career interceptions. That’s a lot...and while it could be worse given the number of years he played..it’s the crucial backbreaking interceptions he threw. So while he was a great player..he was flawed as well and that’s why he is not in my top 5. Top ten maybe..same as Peyton for now.
So that’s it folks. Leave a comment or an e-mail with your agreement, disgust, disdain or whatever you feel. Just leave my mom out of your insults..she doesn’t watch football and would have no idea where all the bad karma came from. :)
Tuesday, March 11, 2008
"Top Five QB’s of all Time"
Warning: the following post is certain to cause anger, incredulity, scoffing, name calling (probably aimed at me), blurry vision, heated debate, dry mouth, and maybe some cramping. You can consult your doctor if you want but it probably won’t help. I have decided to go ahead and dive into the dangerous rip tide that is making a "Top Five QB’s of all Time" list. This is based solely on my opinion, with some statistical help that..well supports my point of view. Off we go.
5. Johnny Unitas. Before the groaning and eye rolling begins, keep in mind the fact that this is the man that revolutionized the position of quarterback in the 50's and 60's( much the way Lawrence Taylor revolutionized the role of linebacker in the 80's) and helped turn it into the superstar position it is now. Over 18 yrs he amassed 40,239 yards passing (11th best of all time) and 290 TD passes (7th best of all time) and he never had the likes of Jerry Rice, Randy Moss, or God forbid I say this.. a T.O. to throw to. He was the guy that was responsible for turning offenses towards a throw first mentality. No more three yards and a cloud of dust. Also was the starting QB for the Baltimore Colts in what many call "The Greatest Game Ever Played".. The 1958 NFL Championship Game vs. the NY Giants. This game widely credited for planting the NFL’s flag on the national sports landscape. In that nationally televised game (a rare thing in those days plus there were only three channels to watch, not 800 and ppv porn like now) Unitas went 26-40 for 361yds 1 td and 1 int. Not a bad way to say "Hello America"
4. Dan Marino. Hurts me to put him this low but its only because he never was able to win a championship...through not fault of his own. Don Shula being the bumbling idiot that he was/is..never could seem to get his 20lb bowling ball of a head around the fact that the only thing Dan Marino needed to put him over the top was a decent running game. But nooooo..why do that when we can have Dan throw the ball 76 times a game and see what happens? Naturally he would always make some plays that would leave your jaw on the floor but by relying that much on the passing game inevitably an INT would be thrown or some other mistake. Shame..Dan was a hell of a quarterback..tough, great arm and vision. Sadly he may be best remembered for his role in "Ace Ventura: Pet Detective"... "Laces Out Dan!" I kid I kid... Marino’s case as a top five QB is strictly in the numbers and you can’t argue it. Passing Yards: 61,361 (2nd all time). TD Passes: 420 (2nd all time..not to mention the 32 post season TD’s). Completions: 4,967(2nd all time). And he didn’t do it in a West Coast offense. Enough said.
3. Tom Brady. Well if your not pissed yet..this should do the trick. The Patriot fans who read this (remember I am one of them) will say this is not high enough...the Patriot haters, which is everybody outside of New England, will say he doesn’t belong in the top 7 billion. To my fellow Patriots fans: try some knee bends and deep breaths. He is still in the prime of his career and barring injury (ugh.. just the thought of that almost caused a stroke) he easily has the opportunity to pass my number 1 and 2 picks before he retires. As long as the core of this team and especially the coaching staff (well lets just say Bill Belichick) stays in place..they have about another 3-4 year window for winning another Super Bowl or two. To the Patriot/Brady haters: Wake the F up. In eight years as a pro (7 as a starter) he has won 3 Super Bowl championships, 2 Super Bowl MVP’s, and 1 NFL MVP ok? This guy does not suck. Up until last year when he was finally surrounded with some serious receiving talent, he had spent his career making the most out of average to mediocre receivers. Anybody who thinks Deion Branch is pretty good need only to look at what he has done in Seattle...nothing. So with the exact opposite of what Peyton Manning has had for receivers for his entire career.. Brady has 3 championships, multiple mvp’s, etc. Now 2007 ended miserably in the Arizona desert but take a quick look at what Tom Brady did numbers wise this year with his first loaded receiving corps of his career: TD Passes: 50 (NFL single season record), Passing Yards: 4,806, Passer Rating: 117.2 (Really? 117.2 for the season? Really?? That’s insane). For his career he has a 63% completion percentage and a 92.9 QB rating. So anybody who thinks this guy is not worthy of Top 5 discussion needs to lay off of the peyote and recognize the guy for what he is: A winner, bottom line. Not bad for the 199th pick of the 2000 draft.
Coming tomorrow.... the top two picks.
Lets Say Yea, For The NBA
With the NBA season starting to wind down...its not going out on a limb to say that we are about to be treated to one of the better versions of the NBA playoffs then we have seen in quite a while. So many teams playing at a high level right now. The East is starting to close the gap on the West...they are not there yet but the absolute dominance the West has had for quite a while, has turned into just being the superior conference. Problem with the West is that there are so many good teams there that come playoff time its going to resemble a WWE Royal Rumble. The East, which in my opinion has three (at best) NBA Championship caliber teams (Boston, Detroit, Cleveland), seems to have more cupcakes in the lower half of the seedings currently. Lets take a look at this by conference shall we? We shall.
The West: Currently the Lakers are on top followed by the Spurs, Houston, Utah, N.O., Phoenix, Dallas, and Golden State.
I am not sure what to make of the Lakers. They look fresh and are playing crisp right now and Kobe is doing is usual Kobe thing. Gasol is a great addition and Fisher is always solid. But does anybody else get the feeling that they are just headed for a first or second round exit? As nice as Gasol is.. they have no REAL presence in the post. Lamar Odom just makes me feel like I want to throw up my breakfast if the game is on the line. And they do not seem like a very physical team and that will be a needed element in the post season. I don't know and I really hope I am wrong... as good as they have been playing (9-1 over their last ten games), I just think they are headed for finish that will have Kobe soliciting trades again like a hooker at the Navy's "Fleet Week" in NYC. For the record I like Kobe..great player..but does not always make the best off court choices...that is not a Colorado reference. That brings me to the Spurs. Same story every year... invisible until about mid March, then you take a look at the standings and notice that they are the second seed..one game behind LA and winners of 8 of their last 10. They are like Ninja's..stealthy and quiet. And honest to God the most BORING basketball team on the planet to watch..2nd place goes to the Pistons. I should have more appreciation for the "Big Fundamental" and Parker, Ginobli etc., but every time I watch them play.. I inevitably start thinking about other things I need to be doing like trimming my nose hairs or re-organizing all my DVD's. But the bottom line is..they get it done. End of story and probably my favorites to come out of the West this year bc they always execute, they have experience and they don't get rattled. Ugh. Any of you that think the Suns have a shot... just no. Have you seen Shaq trying to lose 847 lbs in two weeks by being forced to run (if thats what you want to call it) the floor with Nash and Stoudamire? Thats just a weird collection of players that won't hold up..entertaining to watch though. I like New Orleans maybe to make it through the first round perhaps..but its not their time yet. Houston and Utah..whatever. I mean Houston has won nineteen straight and playing way better without Yao but I see a 2nd round bow out for them... this kind of thing can't last through the playoffs against the Spurs, Lakers etc etc (although they could be the ones to maybe cause the Lakers the earlier than expected exit if they somehow keep playing like this).Utah just not enough talent to keep up with the top seeds in a seven game playoff series. No disrespect to Deron Williams or Kirilinko. Dallas... not getting into this since every other basketball commentator and writer already has but Jason Kidd at this age does not put them over the top. Dirk is still Dirk..not as good as everyone makes him out to be. And they have less post presence than the Lakers. Good luck with all that Mark Cuban. Golden State I would like to see them make a push like they did last year but its unlikely given how they have played all year. Need to surround Baron Davis with just a little bit more stable talent but I love watching B Diddy play.
The East: This should be quite a bit shorter than the West bc it comes down to two teams really: Boston and Detroit. Cleveland is worthy of debate based on having Lebron James alone but does anybody think they are going to beat Boston or Detroit in a 7 game playoff series this year? Everyone got their knickers in a bunch bc at the deadline Cleveland got Joe Smith, Wally Scerfjhdfrjlghfdeak, and Delonte West. Big F'in deal. Those guys aren't going to make Cleveland leap frog anybody. Besides whatever cartialge is left in Wally's knees should be spent by the time the playoffs start. Joe Smith is well Joe Smith.. not bad but not great either. Delonte is nice but erratic and always has been.... If you look at the current seedings in the East its : Boston, Detroit, Cleveland, Orlando (love love love Dwight Howard), Toronto, Washington, Philadelphia, Atlanta and on the outside but lurking currently is a lifeless NJ team and a suddenly spunky Chicago Bulls squad. So that being said I don't really see many scenarios that don't include Boston and Detroit going through a 7 game war for the Eastern Conference championship. And quite honestly thats what I want to see. I want to see KG, Ray Allen and Paul Pierce and unsung hero Ranjon Rando.. in a back and forth, nail biting, cursing at the tv, pacing the living room series against Chauncey , Rasheed, Tayshaun, and Rip Hamilton. Thats what everyone who likes basketball wants to see. But everybody better beware...coming soon to dominate the Eastern Conference (even more than he is now) for the next decade if they can keep decent talent around him.. Dwight Howard. I am in awe of this guy. Just an absolute animal on the boards...and a huge presence down on the low block. Plus he can run the floor. Come to think of it.. he reminds me of Shaq when he first showed up in Orlando before his off season conditioning program consisted of.. well... getting fat and out of shape.. Fun times. Anyway...the seedings are subject to change before the end of the season and we will revisit this topic again no doubt. But strap yourselves in and hang on if you love hoops... this post season is going to be really entertaining and should be great to watch.
Monday, March 10, 2008
What I Can Do For You
Greetings everybody and welcome to the initial installment of the Shoehead Sports Blog. My name is Don and as far as relative importance in the universe goes.. I don't rank very high but I am a sports junky. Ask anyone who knows me. The purpose of this blog is to have a forum to throw down opinions on anything and everything in the world of sports. I tend to be pretty opinionated but try to be fair. Sometimes you may agree with me and sometimes you won't. If you have an opinion on something I have written here..good or bad... e- mail me with your thoughts. I am more than happy to engage in healthy debate and from time to time I will have a posting of e-mails from readers with questions and will answer them.
A little more about me.. I am 33 and live in New Mexico and have been watching sports since on tv since I was knee high to a grasshopper. I really do like all the major sports and let me give a little breakdown.
The NFL (Patriots, Giants):This is probably my favorite sport but the Super Bowl was an utter nightmare for me..lets move on.
MLB (Red Sox, Mets): Been a good 7 years for the Sox..two championships and numerous playoff appearances. The realization that the Sox have won two World Series in the past 4 years while the Yankees have won none in 7+ years makes giddier than a man of my age should be but I digress... The Mets have been fairly relevant this decade as well..and seeing as they just picked up the most dominant left hander in baseball in Mr Johan Sanatana to go with an aging but crafty Pedro Martinez, they look to be in contention this year as well. More in depth baseball analysis to come in a future post.
The NBA (Lakers, Celtics): I recognize the irony of rooting for both of these teams and have people frequently tell me that I can't lest I cause a cosmic disturbance that will result in armageddon (these are some serious basketball fans)..but I can't help. My early childhood was spent in southern california watching Kareem, Magic, Worthy, Coop,and Byron Scott. Then from 1984 until 2006, I lived in Maine with a 4 yr stint in North Carolina for college. You live in New England for any period of time and the rabid dog that is Boston sports seeps into your blood..hence the C's. The entire NBA product right now is on the rise with Kobe, Lebron, Chris Paul, Deron Williams, the Big Three in Boston and so and so on. Again more in depth NBA analysis to come in future posts.
The NHL( Bruins): Its tough right now bc pro hockey has been so craptastic for so long..that its hard to get really pumped up to watch. Sidney Crosby and some other young guns are starting to make a difference but its not back to the point where I would run an old lady over in the street in order to get home in time to watch the puck drop. It used to be that way. But I still have hope..its a beautiful sport when played the right way. And yes, I absolutely love the fights and somebody getting crushed into the boards as much as I love seeing a finesse player get in front of the pack and bear down on a goalie in a one on one situation. Good stuff all of it.
NASCAR (Harvick, Stewart, and anybody else who races for RCR and DEI): Yeah I said it.. I like NASCAR. Everytime I mention that..whether I am in the Northeast or the Southwest.. I usually get a look like I am the crazy uncle at the wedding who drinks too much and wants to dirty dance with every female in the room...related or not. Here is the bottom line...if you don't think that 3400 lb car with approx 800 horsepower, going anywhere from 170-200+ mph is cool..then you need to check yourself. TV does not do justice as to how fast those cars are moving.. I can promise you that.. I have been to a race. There is the speed, there is banging and bumping at high speeds, there are wrecks, there are occasional fights between drivers. So much to like. I will stipulate that some tracks are boring as all get out...but there are an equal number of exhilirating tracks and races as well. Much more to come on this in future posts.
TIGER (aka Golf): This is simple... I find playing golf quite frustrating.. I find watching golf w/o Tiger in the field better than Ambien to help me get to sleep. However I find that watching golf with Tiger in the field can be just as exciting as any other sport listed above. He is simply the man. A human golf Terminator come to rid the world of snoozy, bland, boring golf. And this year he is on a quest to bag all four majors in one PGA Tour year. I mean thats how sick this guy is. Most other pros set goals to win one or two tourneys a year.. maybe be in contention at a major. Not Tiger.. his goal is to win every single tournament he enters. Period. Its awesome to watch. He is one of the best athletes of our time. More to come on this as The Masters approaches.. a tradition unlike any other.
So there is my not so brief summary of the major sports that I watch. I know I didn't even get to college sports but fear not we most definitely will. Especially with March Madness starting to descend on us. I want to take this opportunity to thank the creator(s) of this site for giving me this space to unload on all things sports. He is a good friend of mine that I worked with a few years back when I lived in Maine. Apparently it pays to keep in touch when you move away.. so thanks Ice. And to the rest of you..thanks for reading and keep coming back to the site to check out all the latest in the world of kicks as well as some light sports related reading. Remember any opinions or comments you may have are welcome via e-mail. I look forward to reading them. Until tomorrow y'all.....