The Bigger Man!

It is very doubtful that you have not heard the sad story of Houston Texans running back Ryan Moats and his encounter with a member of the Dallas Police Department.  I would like to set this story up with a small recap of that story.   Moats, in his attempt to see his dying mother-in-law, ran a red light.  An officer witnessed this and pulled him over in the parking lot of the emergency room.  As the Moats family exited the vehicle the office drew his weapon and allegedly pointed at them.  He then harassed Ryan Moats and provoked him as his mother-in-law lay in the hospital less than a hundred yards away dying.  The officer was implored by hospital staff and fellow officers to let Moats say good-bye and he ignored them as he continued on his power trip.  The whole situation was disgusting.

The silver lining in this ordeal came this morning on ABC's Good Morning America.  Ryan Moats appeared with his wife Laticia and openly stated that he accepts the officer's apology.  They did make a request that the officer issue them a personal apology instead of a statement released by a lawyer.  I believe they are owed this and should get it.  But overall the family looked ready to put this whole ugly thing behind them.  I often bash sports stars here on their inability to obey the law, and Moats said that he would have been more than happy to pay the ticket, but he really deserved more humane treatment.  Enforcing the law is a tough and often thankless job, but we trust our officers of the law to have better discretion when handling the most sensitive of situations.  The officer here was obviously on a power trip.  I am in absolute awe of Ryan Moats for his ability to accept the apology of the officer and Mr. Moats willingness to put this situation behind him.

Law enforcement is a stressful job and a miscalculation of a situation can almost be forgivable.  But officer Robert Powell apparently has a history of this kind of behavior.  It seems that he took Zach Thomas' wife to jail for a illegal u-turn.  I wanted to label the Moats incident as a racial issue, but it seems that is not the case.  Zach Thomas' wife is white.  This officer obviously has a superiority complex.  I think that is nearly as bad as being a racist.  I hope that the Dallas Police Department handles this in an appropriate fashion.  I also think that Ryan Moats has set an example with his maturity and selflessness.  Live like no one is watching and keep your life in perspective.

PS. Tiger Woods

Oh yeah and today Tiger Woods rallied from 5 strokes back to win the Arnold Palmer Invitational.  It looked like West Texas boy Sean O' Hair just couldn't handle the pressure.  Tiger hit a putt on 18 that gave him a birdie for the hole and a win for the tournament.  If  Tiger Woods were a closing pitcher in baseball whatever team he played for would never lose, whether or not he entered the game with a lead.  He has ice water in a veins!

Obviously absent

I stand before you, my faithful readers, humbled today.  If you have been in my bar at all during the month of March you have undoubtedly heard me flaunt Oklahoma as the unbeatable force in the NCAA tournament.  I was also cocky about my final four due to the fact that I picked so safely.  But I was wrong, completely.  If you haven't heard, which I know many of you have from the amount of texts and calls, none of my teams made the final four.  So for those of you who follow this blog for expert analysis, you obviously haven't been reading.

My picks for the Final Four were Louisville, Memphis, Pittsburgh, and Oklahoma.  These picks looked strong one short week ago.  Then I watched my tournament life unravel.  Memphis got beat at their own game by Missouri, Louisville got smothered by Michigan State's defense, Pitt got out muscled by Villanova, and Oklahoma was out matched at every position by North Carolina.  It seems so simple to explain but it shook me to my very core.  Now the worst part about this was that, Oklahoma, the team I picked to win the tournament got manhandled today by the team Elysa, my sports challenged better half, picked to win the whole thing, UNC.  It is embarrassing because she picks by mascot and jersey color and has only picked about one percent of the games right.  Unfortunately for me and my standing in this house, she got this one right.

If it weren't for my stubborn pride I would probably shut this blog right now and start writing about interior decorating.  But I will stand by my statement that I am a very good analyst of all sports and if you don't believe me, well you have good reason.  I now have one mission in life now and that is root for the demise of UNC.  I know John will join me because Elysa is his arch-nemesis! Live like no one is watching and once again, I implore you, pick by mascot! 

Only in America!

The World Baseball Classic has been the subject of debate recently and I feel the need to chime in before it is forgotten.  If you didn't pay attention I will recap; Netherlands upset the powerhouse Dominican Republic in the first round, America made it to the semi-finals and were bounced by North Korea, and Japan won it for the second time making them two for two in the WBC.  All this happened and American fans didn't seem to care.  There were some amazing moments.  My favorite non-American moment was the Netherlands beating the Dominicans.  My favorite moment of the whole thing was when the Americans beat the Puerto Rican team with a late rally.  The coolest thing about the win was the fact that the Puerto Ricans walloped the Americans a few nights earlier.  I also loved the Americans going old school baseball and throwing at a Netherlands player after the batter before styled on his home run trot.  It almost started an international incident with a mostly neutral region of the world.  The World Baseball Classic was awesome, but why couldn't we get more American fans on board?

Like always I do have an answer for the question in the opening paragraph.  See this is a complex issue for American fans, Yankees and Red Sox playing on the same team.  But I think the real issue started with the players.  See I believe that the players who played did so with intensity and passion.  If you don't believe me, just watch the celebration after the Puerto Rico game.  But there were some big names missing and that just tees me off.   All the other world teams draw their best players and their fans are super excited.  Even the Netherlands and Australia managed to create a small amount of buzz by beating big teams like the Dominican and Mexico,respectively.  This is supposed to be America's past time, I mean we invented the game.  America had a couple of big name guys but the rest are too busy worrying about being hurt.   Without big names it will never take off here.

Another culprit is the major teams.  It has not been reported outright but I think the teams don't want their big stars to play.  They have legitimate reasons like injuries and lack of reps with the team.  Teams are complaining now that their pitchers didn't get enough innings in the Classic and might not be ready for the season opener.  If the teams and the players can not get behind this, it is doomed, but only in America.

With all that said I really enjoyed this baseball event.  I enjoyed watching the other teams as well as the Americans.  I don't think that America should be the host of the event in 2013 unless we start to show more interest.  I understand that the economy of host cities might have been helped by the influx of tourists but I just don't see how it is fair to the rest of the world for us to host.  Let Japan do it, they are the two time champions.   I hope by 2013 that the Americans have gotten on board.  I also think that this Baseball doohickey has been a success, just not here in America.  Live like no one is watching and remember to think globally! 

My Bracket and more!

The first weekend of the tournament was blase.  The first round is usually a blur of blowouts and upsets all intertwined to an amazing artistic sporting event.  This year was safer for the bracketologists but boring in a way that is kinda sad.  Two of the regions advanced the top four, one region went 1-3 and 5, and one regions snuck in a 12 seed.  But the 12 seed is Arizona so it just doesn't feel the same.  There were no mid-majors, no super shockers, no excitement.  That is the bad news, the good news is that I was a coward in my bracket and have a 95% accuracy rating! Go Me!

It seems the major sports shows can not stop arguing whether or not this situation is good for the tournament.  I am on the fence myself.  On the one hand there are no small conference schools, other than Memphis, getting national exposure, but on the other it looks like the selection committee got it right.  Memphis is the lone exception but they played in the national championship last year and are a really good team.  They should have been a number one seed.  The irony of all this is that the team I argued shouldn't be in the tournament, Arizona, is the only low seed to advance to the Sweet 16.  Now they did get a few breaks.  You see the 5 seed they drew in the first round was Utah.  Utah is a pretty mediocre basketball team and Arizona figured out they could play.  Then Arizona got a big break when Cleveland State upset the four seed Wake.  So, with all due respect to Cleveland State and Utah, Arizona has played no one. 

 So that equation proves that even the 12 seed that is still dancing is a bit of a disappointment.

I did take a chance and picked Oklahoma to win the whole thing.  It wasn't much of a stretch since they are a 2 seed but they will potentially have to face UNC in the elite eight if they both win there next game.  That would be a great match-up between Blake Griffin and Tyler Hansborough.  I am personally disappointed in this years tourney, but it is going almost exactly like I picked it.  Live like no one is watching and pick the long shot at least once!

 

Play like a girl!

It is March Madness! Everybody in sports is talking about it.  Even the football shows are discussing who is going to win the national championships.  This blog is no different.  I have discussed the tournament and even filled a few brackets out.  That's right a few, I have commitment issues.  But there is a women's tournament going on as well.  I don't participate in the brackets for the women's tournament because I do not follow it that well.  But that is a fault of mine, not the sports.  The women play with passion and dedication.  Another thing about women's basketball is that the teams usually stay together for four full years! That is probably my favorite part about women's college basketball.  The things we love about the men's tournament are all there; the rivalries, the legendary coaches, the upsets, and the passion.  I decided to give you a few things to watch for in the women's tournament.

In each of the regions there are some great potential match-ups.  In the Trenton region we have the UConn Huskies, the number one overall seed.  UConn comes in to the NCAA tournament undefeated.  Every time I watch the Lady Huskies play they destroy teams.  The get their confidence from legendary coach Geno Auriema, whom I have a hard time deciding if I love or hate this man.  I don't see anyone in this region challenging the Huskies until, and if, they get to play, two seed Texas A&M.  TAMU is a tough gritty team and I believe they could beat UConn.

In the Berkley region we have a bit of a conundrum.  I believe the strongest seed in this conference is in the five spot.  That would be the fighting Lady Vols from Tennessee.  They are seeded lower this year than they ever have been before, AT NUMBER 5!  The history at this school is untouchable.  Pat Summit is the winningest active coach, in any college sport.  They have an opportunity to play number one seed Duke.  This will be a good match-up but I think that Tennessee will come out of this region.  Which will lead them to a match-up, possibly, with UConn.  That will be fun because Pat Summit and Geno Auriema are not exactly best friends.

In the Raleigh region there are three very Strong teams.  Maryland, Vanderbilt, and Baylor are all strong.  These three teams are the class of this region.  I really believe that Baylor will come out of this region as the winner.  They are mentally tougher than the other two teams.  

Finally in the Oklahoma City region we have a few staples in women's college basketball.  I think the most intriguing match-up in this region would be if Oklahoma and Auburn were to meet.  I like this Oklahoma team.  They play with a ton of passion.  Courtney Paris, forward for the Lady Sooners, has guaranteed that Oklahoma will win it all or she will pay back her scholarship.  That is passion.  I think that Oklahoma will come out of this region, but they will have a couple of tough possible match-ups with Auburn and strong seven seed Rutgers.

One thing missing from this year's women's college basketball this year is, the beautiful, awe-inspiring, Kay Yow.  Coach Yow has been a successful coach and motivator at North Carolina State university for over 30 years.  She also won a gold medal as the coach of the women's Olympic team in 1988.  This year Coach Yow lost her courageous fight with breast cancer after 22 years.  Her team, and college basketball fans all over, will miss her.  Thanks Coach.  Live like no one is watching and watch the girls play, you might learn a thing or two.  

A quick after thought, watch the NIT.  Did you know it has been around longer than the NCAA tourney.  Also there are some really good teams in there.  Almost all the teams that were snubbed by the NCAA are in there.  Penn State and George Mason put on a show with Penn State winning an exciting game with a game-winning three point shot.  Also a big Match-up will be Davidson verse St. Mary's.  So look out for that.  Both of these teams can make arguments to be in the NCAA tourney.  So watch it! 

Same argument different sport!

Ok, this is for the anti-BCS fanatics! I always hear that we need a playoff system in college football.  The BCS haters claim this will truly be the end all to the national championship questions.  But I say, "Not so fast my friend."  You see college basketball has a playoff and there was almost a fist-fight via video phone between ESPN college basketball analysts, Jay Bilas and Dick Vitale.  What, you ask, could have started this argument.  Well it was that fact that really good Mid-major teams, aka small colleges, where left out of the tournament so that some mediocre big conference teams could play.  Sounds familiar does it not?  That's right it is the same argument we have about college football week in and week out.

Saint Mary's, San Diego State, and Creighton, along with a few other notable small conference schools, were left out of this year's field of 65.  And some large conference schools, most notably Arizona, got in with a less than impressive records.  The arguments are the same as they are in college football like; Who did they play?  Who else is in their conference? How well will they travel.  I know it is amazing a field of 65 and a tournament and we still have arguments.  It's preposterous!

The biggest argument is not in the snubs but in the seeding.  Memphis, arguably the best team in the nation, is a number two seed.  They were easily a number one, however they play in the wrong conference.  Louisville, which is the overall number one, comes from the best basketball conference in the Big East.  Memphis did beat Gonzaga and Tennesee in the opposing gym.  Louisville lost to Western Kentucky, Minnesota, Notre Dame in their own gym.  Memphis coach, John Calipari, asked that the tournament board judge his team and not his conference.  Yeah I think he stole that argument from Utah.

We all know where I stand in this argument.  But I don't have a vote.  It is a 65 team tournament and their are still teams and fans that feel they were slighted.  So my message to football fans is be careful what you wish for.  A tournament might bring more questions rather than answers.  Live like no one is watching and always shoot the three ball! 

You got one more. You got one more?

Syracuse should change their mascot name from Orangemen to Supermen.  After what was easily one of the top five college basketball games of all time lat night, a six overtime thriller in which they beat UConn, they played tonight and won in overtime.  So for all the mathematicians out there that is seven overtimes in less than 24 hours.  Jonny Flynn has heart and mental toughness, and displayed it.  Last night Flynn played 67 of 70 minutes, and tonight he played every minute.  Now I  don't want to leave out the rest of the team so kudos to; Rautin, Harris, Devendorf, and the rest of the player, all of which put in quality minutes last night.

Syracuse has had a long road to get to the Big East championship game but now they will run into Louisville.   Louisville will be a tough match up for an undoubtedly tired Syracuse team because they like to press.  The Cardinals make you move and work and that may prove tough for the Orangemen.  Rick Pitino's Louisville Cardinals beat Villanova today by forcing them to make mistakes.  That is the style of basketball Louisville plays, annoying.  Syracuse showed no real signs of fatigue today until overtime but they do have one more.

I have to say I am on the Syracuse bandwagon, I hope they are honored.  The truth is I don't like to see any one work as hard as the Orangemen and not get anything out of it.  It is like taking a virgin to prom and...I digress.  And now I have to give a shout out to high school for the origin of my title.  At a track meet in high school the eloquent coach Rodie came to me after I finished the mile and right before I ran the two mile and made this statement/question.  "Nathan you got one more.  You got one more?"  Live like no one is watching and finish in overtime.

Give it up!

We all know that it is often my contention that professional athletes are big, overpaid prima donnas.  It is no secret that one of the biggest is "Mr. Me First" Terrell Owens.  But I do not believe that it is all his fault.  T.O. has facilitators.  Not only the media but also the people around him.  The most obvious of these is the goober he calls an agent. There was also Jerry Jones in Dallas.  Now T.O. has the player management team in Buffalo apparently answering his every beck and call.

I first heard this story this morning and couldn't believe it.  Terrell Owens wants the number 81.  Not a big deal except, someone already has the number.  It has been decided that James Hardy, the previous one player who donned the number 81, will be wearing the number 84 now and T.O. will get his number.  Surprise, surprise T.O. gets what he wants.  Did anyone even ask Hardy; or did they just call him and say "Oh by the way your number 84 now".  Until I hear other wise that is the way I see it going down.

You know I may be making a mountain out of a mole hole.  But with T.O. you just can never be sure.  Is he already causing trouble?  I had a friend, who is an avid Bills fan, ask me; "Nathan how much damage can he cause in just one year?"  I don't know.  I hope he will be relatively quiet.  I think this experiment might work considering he will be playing, and behaving, for a new contract.  Some say this is his last stop, but I don't know.  Ya'll live like no one is watching, and take whats yours!  

March Mayhem

This is easily one of my favorite months.  Not only is it the host month of St. Patty's day, but it is also the start of one of the greatest sporting events of all time.  March Madness begins.  That's right I am a NCAA tournament junkie.  But it starts with the conference championships.  I do not care about the Big 10, the Big 12, or the Big east however.  I am a fan of the small conferences.  I know surprise, surprise.

I love watching the small conference championships because of the passion.  A lot of these teams have to win their conference to get into the tournament.  Very few of them will be allotted an at-large bid.  See if a team like North Carolina doesn't win their conference, they will definitely win an at-large bid.  But a team like Montana State needs to win the Big Sky to get in.  These small conference champions play their asses off for a week just to get to the dance.  That is like having to take a girl to dinner just so you can, okay maybe it is not like that but you get what I am saying.

The other reason I pay attention to these small conference tournaments is to check out the Cinderellas.  Every knows I love the underdogs and these teams are the ones that will be making up the bottom half of the bracket.  I love the bottom, hmm let me rephrase that, I love the big upset.  I want to see what team I can pick to make a run, like George Mason in '07, or Davidson last year.   These teams are the only reason I love the tournament!

I am going to try to post my bracket on the blog here so you all can watch how badly I do.  So live like no one is watching and play like you've got some passion.

The Good, The Bad, The Ugly

The oft criticized Florida State football program took another hit this week.  It was sanctioned along with 10 other sports on the Tallahassee campus for an online cheating scandal.  The Seminoles are a big time college football program that is no stranger to drama.  Over the past decade or more the program has been accused on many occasions of turning a blind eye to the disciplinary problems of it's athletes.  I wanted to take a quick look at the good, the bad, and the ugly that makes up this major icon in college sports.

THE GOOD:

Florida State once was a powerhouse in Division I college football.  They hold two national titles, 15 conference titles, and two Heisman Trophy winners.  Coach Bobby Bowden has amassed 300 wins with only 85 losses in 32 years, as of now.  The program has produced a countless number of professional football players including Deion Sanders.  Also, and to me the programs most shining achievement, they lay claim to one of the greatest college football personalities of all time, Myron Rolle.  this young man's story this year just blew my doors right off.  He is a fantastic human being and a pretty damn good football player.  Florida State has been an overachiever in the recruiting process even when the program declined.  Bobby Bowden is a mainstay at the helm and is one of the greatest college coaches of all time.  

THE BAD:

Last year in the Music City Bowl 36 players were excused from the team for violation of team rules.  These players were all caught cheating on, no shit, a MUSIC CLASS TEST!  Again this year about 10 players were suspended for their involvement in a fight on campus.  This along with many other violations of both team and NCAA rules have raised some questions as to Bowden's connection to his athlete's.  Many wonder if he has lost control of his team.

THE UGLY:

The NCAA passed the new sanctions last week.  The school didn't try to fight any of them except for the vacating of all wins from 2006-2007, which would put Bobby Bowden way behind in the race to be the winningest coach of all time.  The school has already filed an appeal to this and only this part of the sanction.   It is getting ugly for a once proud football program.

It is sad to watch this because I love Bobby Bowden.  I hope that the Seminole program can get this turned around.  They will have to change everything from the way they recruit, to the way they monitor their student athletes.  Well live like no one is watching, and sanction yourself or someone else will!

Too Good T.O. be True

The Cowboys made a step in the right direction late last night when they cut Terrell Owens.  I guess they finally figured out that the risks outweighed the reward.  T.O. is still a top ten performer in this league.  But with his numbers declining with age and his locker room antics becoming tired, he doesn't seem worth the risk.  I strongly agree with this decision and I am ecstatic about the trend that seems to be unfolding in the NFL.

The NFL seems to be taking stock of the character of their teams.  The teams with the lowest moral always seems to have trouble utilizing their talent.  The Cowboys are the greatest example of this but they aren't the only team with character problems, and they aren't the only team cleaning the proverbial house.  Earlier this off season the Browns traded perennial problem-child Kellen Winslow.   My inside sources also say that they may move disgruntled wide receiver Braylon Edwards.  Braylon Edwards has expressed his displeasure in the organizations inability to put together a winning squad, also new coach Eric Mangini wants to make sure his team has no character distractions.  The Cowboys started all this with the cutting of Pac-Man Jones, the failure to offer Tank Johnson a new contract, and the most recent cutting of T.O.  So what is the string that ties all these players together?  The fact that all of them can still play and that they all are or have been distractions to their respective teams.

Not every team is on board with the new character movement, which means that all these players will eventually land somewhere, with the exception of Pac-Man.   I personally believe that this is a great idea and hopefully all the professional sports organizations will jump on board.  I hope we also see this trend expand.  Live like no one is watching and evaluate the character in your own locker rooms!

On a much sadder note

Today the Coast Guard suspended the search for three men lost at sea.  It is a sad day for the sports world.  Two of the men where NFL football players.  Marquis Cooper and Corey Smith where not superstars in the NFL.  They where the kind of professional football players we need more of, guys who come to work everyday, grind out a career, and love their jobs.  I hold out a small amount of hope that these two men along with fishing buddy Will Bleakely will be found.  As for their families; we will hold you all in our prayers.  God bless the men and women of the Coast Guard who work long thankless hours on this, and many other dire tasks, that they refer to as their day-to day jobs.  Live like no one is watching and pray, because every one needs to every now and again.

Loyalty or Professionalism

Professional sports and it followers seem to be bipolar.  We, and I include myself here, seem to want two totally different things from both our sports and our stars.  To the fans sports is simply fantasy.  This is the reason we exalt our sports stars.  To us it is not real life or real people.  We long for the days before free agency, when players spent their whole careers with one team, but we want our sports stars to carry themselves like professionals.  I hate to break it to you sports nuts but we can not have both ways.  The only reason that  I bring this up is the situation that I have come to call; The Cutler Crisis.  

In the afore mentioned Cutler Crisis, Jay Cutler and the Denver Broncos have found themselves on two very different sides of a debate between sports fans that has spanned more than a decade.  Is professional sports a big business where players are just commodities, or is it entertainment in which loyalty to a team or a player is mandatory?  Recently the Broncos fired long time head coach Mike Shanahan and replaced him with a young coordinator from the Patriots, Josh McDaniel.   McDaniel is from a very arrogant organization and brings with him that arrogance.  He has already made some good moves in free agency.  But, also, he has done something that seems slightly questionable, he apparently put his 26 year old quarterback on the trading block for a one year wonder in Matt Cassell.  Cassell is a career back up that had one good year in a system that could make me an NFL superstar.  Cassell is a nobody that happened to have a good year.  Cutler is a proven started in this league that is starting to find his rhythm with the weapons that are surrounding him.  I as a sports fan am outraged, but I as a business man say;  What the hell it will save you some money give it a shot!

No one seems to be more upset about this than the outspoken Cutler.  He has said that he loves Denver and that he didn't even know he was on the trading block.  He is furious with the organization and won't even fly out to meet with his new coach to go over the new offensive scheme.  It seems that he is being childish, but he has been the face of the organization for the last three years.  Jay is a fantastic athlete that plays, and obviously lives, with an unwavering passion.  The new coach obviously has more faith in super backup, Matt Cassell, than he does for the franchise quarterback.  I mean it's not like Cutler is in his late thirties and all washed up, he was the first round draft pick three short years ago.  He has a strong arm and great football savvy.  I am with ya Jay, get 'em.  Hold out if you have to.  There goes that football fan again, but then the business man says; suck it up and play, after all you signed the contract.

It is a slippery slope, as they say, to choose sides in this debate.  I am a huge Denver Bronco, and not to mention, Jay Cutler fan.  I was absolutely astounded when this news broke.  I cannot imagine that the organization would have given up on him already.  All I want is for someone to be honest.  The organization is denying that they ever wanted to trade Cutler they claim they were just fielding inquiries.   I don't know but I do know that I, as a fan, want Jay around for as long as possible.  But I as a business man want what will cost me the least money.  who's side are you on?  Live like no one is watching and remember it's your business.