When El Hombre was enjoying his university days at The Sorbonne, he and Senor Penguin would delight in imagining various scenarios in which collegiate football and basketball players could be organized into unions and exercise some influence over the NC2A. Our dream was that just before kickoff in a given year’s most important bowl game (these were the halcyon days before the BCS and the kid’s-meal-sized playoff), a representative of the two participating teams would stride to midfield and inform the referee that no one was doing anything until the players received 50% of the gate.
Next to Senor Penguin’s “One bullet” rule for basketball – more on that another time – this was our grandest college conception.
Back then, we were just dreamers.
Today, we are visionaries.
Those of you caught up in Shermania or espn’s continuing quest to make every game LeBron James plays into grand theater might have missed Tuesday’s announcement that members of Northwestern’s football team, led by former QB Kain Colter, have decided to join the United Steelworkers union. The Wildcats are seeking a spot at the Big Table and a chance to have influence over those who make the rules that impact and often define them. It was a huge step forward in the history of college athletics, and it has the potential to rock the NC2A to its core.
Despite protestations to the contrary, college athletes – particularly those who play big-time football and men’s basketball – are indeed employees of the university. They are charged with the vital job of marketing the school to the general population and with spending long hours making sure their final product is as good as it can be. All of them work hard, make significant sacrifices and are undercompensated, not to mention ruled at times with impunity and treated poorly by glory-hungry coaches. Northwestern’s move is to be applauded, and it must be more than just a symbolic gesture. Other athletes must join the cause.
Why?
As Bill Plaschke pointed out in his column Wednesday in the Los Angeles Times, this is a winnable fight. Graduate students around the country have unionized successfully and are now paid for their work as teaching assistants. They, too, are students, but they are also employees. The NC2A’s insistence that athletes’ getting paid for their efforts “undermines the purpose of college: an education” is insulting legalspeak and yet another effort by the organization to exploit the athletes’ work for its institutions’ gain. This goes back to the ‘50s, when the term “student-athlete” was coined as a way to protect schools against workers’ compensation claims made by injured players. The sham that is the NC2A’s glorification of the college experience for top-tier athletes has only grown since then. It is now a successful marketing campaign designed to fool fans and alumni into believing players are no different than the frat boy who enjoys a little touch football or IM hoops after completing his lab assignments.
The grad students’ arguments centered on the fact that they were working for the colleges and therefore had the right to negotiate salary, terms of employment, amount of time they would serve, etc. The athletes are no different. They are performing extremely important tasks for the schools they represent, and the NC2A’s attempt to classify them as “student-athletes” is disingenuous, and frankly, unethical. Members’ quests to promote themselves and increase their bottom lines – across the board, not just in the athletic department – by using teams’ performances reduces players to showmen. In return for an education that often doesn’t lead to a degree, schools reap millions.
And there are millions out there, particularly for the big boys. Hundreds of millions. Not only is the TV money getting obscene (by 2018, Big Ten schools should be getting $42 million a year from networks), but the sponsorship money is also growing. That doesn’t begin to measure the impact on the whole university, in terms of fundraising and increases in prospective students’ applications. Last year from March 21-25, views on the Florida Gulf Coast University admissions page jumped from 2,200 to 47,000, after the Eagles won a pair of NCAA tournament games. Freshman applications to the school this year have jumped 35.4%.
If the money isn’t enough to make the athletes unionize, then their lack of control over the situations in which they perform should be. Scholarships that they receive are for one year, not four, as many believe. They have little or no say on injury protocols set up by the university. (Treatment of those who sustain concussions was part of the motivation for the Northwestern move.) Athletes are often asked to dumb down their academic courses of study, the better to make them more available to their coaches. (El Hombre spoke with a prominent basketball player who changed his major from Economics to Communications, because he was having trouble doing the work and playing ball. And this was no dummy.) And, finally, the myth of athletes’ commitment to their sports stopping at 20 hours every week is folly. A survey Thursday of volleyball, softball and baseball athletes at a Division I university revealed universal agreement that they spend more than 20 hours every seven days training, practicing, meeting, studying film and playing. Just imagine what happens to a football player at an FBS school in season.
The bottom line is that athletes need an organization to protect their interests and give them a strong voice in an athletic climate that is becoming more and more professionalized every year. Here’s hoping Colter and his mates begin a trend that prevents schools from exploiting their athletes further.
And makes a couple of young students’ dreams come true.
* * *
EL HOMBRE SEZ: You have to love the huge conflict of interest that occurred this week when Jonathan Martin sat down with NBC’s Tony Dungy for an “in depth” interview about the hazing business in Miami. Martin revealed some things, but there is no way Dungy should have done the interview, since he serves on a committee for the Dolphins that is charged with looking into the incident. So much for journalism, folks. Let’s just let friends talk on camera and pass it off as illuminating. Next up, Eli Manning’s hard-hitting conversation with his brother, Peyton..Big changes are coming to NASCAR. A premium will now be placed on wins, rather than just racing sort of well. That should add lots of excitement. And officials have promised extra points in The Chase to those drivers who can somehow work endorsements from all five food groups onto their cars – while still maintaining a presence for Dr. Pepper, Goody’s Headache Powders and Piggly Wiggly…The Winter Olympics start next week, and the U.S. should win a whole bunch of medals, especially in some of the events that are debuting, such as the beerathlon, which combines ice fishing and drinking. The entire state of Minnesota is favored to medal. And watch out for Lolo Jones, who earned a spot on the women’s bobsled team, despite not being very good. She will, however, appear for two hours every day on NBC, so that the network can show America at least one athlete it may recognize – and think is hot…Cavaliers fans are upset that guard Kyrie Irving is reported to have been telling friends that he will leave Cleveland when his contract is up in a couple years. That’s no surprise, since recent play by his teammates indicates that they left town a few weeks ago. As for the fans, it’s understandable that the 6,500 that didn’t show up Tuesday to the desultory loss to New Orleans would be upset. Bye-bye, Kyrie. Enjoy Los Angeles/Brooklyn/Miami.
* * *
YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT? It looks as if the New York/New Jersey metroplex will be spared any gruesome weather conditions Sunday during Super Bowl 420, er, XLVIII. But that’s no reason why Philadelphia should think it has a legitimate shot at hosting a future Super day. New York was awarded this game as a reward for building the new Hoffa Mausoleum and because Roger Goodell’s office sits about 10 miles away from midfield on Park Avenue. New York is the media and advertising capital of the country, so throwing a big bash to make sponsors happy and then stuffing them into luxury boxes is good business. If it snows in New York/Jersey, that’s on the NFL. If the game is compromised by weather in Philly, it’s another black eye for the city. The Eagles can put brand new scoreboards up and talk about making a bid, but it will be a long time before the league decides to host a Super Bowl outside in a cold-weather locale again. For good reason.
* * *
AND ANOTHER THING: So, there’s football game on Sunday, and it’s incumbent upon El Hombre to tell you how things are going to go. In the previous 47 Super Bowls, there have been four matchups that have pitted the top offense against the top D. In three of those games, the top defense prevailed. That’s going to happen again. The Seahawks will pressure Peyton Manning and lock up his receivers long enough at the line to make the Denver passing game stall at times. On the other side, the Broncos don’t have enough to stop Marshawn Lynch on the ground, and that should make things easier for Seattle QB Russell Wilson. Still, this could come down to Manning’s getting the ball back with 1:37 on the clock and 74 yards to travel for the winning TD. If that happens, it will be legacy time. But it says here the Seahawks win. Seattle 24, Denver 20.
-EH-
Friday, January 31, 2014
Friday, January 24, 2014
SUPER BOWL GETS EXACTLY WHAT IT NEEDS
Entering last weekend, the NFL was excited to have its four best teams playing off for the spots in Hoffa Bowl I at Ice Station Zero in Da Swamps. It was hard to argue with the primacy of Denver, New England, Seattle and San Francisco, and the robust TV ratings (the AFC title game tied a 17-year high) proved that the nation was excited by the doubleheader.
But once the Super matchup was set, the league, not to mention its many propaganda partners, might have experienced a letdown, because Denver and Seattle aren’t exactly the kinds of name brands capable of generating enough heat to sustain a two-week build-up to the Big Game. Thank goodness for Richard Sherman and his carefully-packaged brand of in-your-face misbehavior. If not for the Seattle cornerback, we might have had to endure a fortnight of Peyton Manning legacy hand-wringing. Now, we get to howl about Sherman’s antics, a careful recipe of buffoonery, WWE showmanship, hip-hop danger and marketing savvy, with a dash of Clubber Lang thrown in for good measure.
INTERVIEWER: Do you hate Rocky/Michael Crabtree/Colin Kaepernick/Erin Andrews?
CLUB-SHER: No, I don’t hate [insert target here]. I pity the fool, and I will destroy any man [or female sideline reporter] who tries to take what I got!
Be prepared for a healthy dose of psychoanalysis, both of Sherman and his cartoonish outbursts, as well as those who have the temerity to criticize him. Sherman fired the first salvo, courtesy of his MMQB column on Sports Illustrated’s web site, when he explained that his shots at Crabtree after the game stemmed from an altercation last summer. Fair enough, those two men just don’t like each other. But what about the choke sign he flashed at Kaepernick? What is the justification for that? And did he need to froth when Andrews placed a microphone in his face right after the game? At a time when Sherman had a chance to make his best – and in many cases, first – impression on the American sporting public, he chose to board the crazy train.
If that’s how he wanted to behave, then that’s his right. But it is also the right of the public and the media to react negatively. There is no rule that says every bit of behavior must be embraced universally, no matter how many trophies are given out on Little League fields or how much self-esteem is built when kids don’t try their best. Sherman and his apologists hid behind the “he’s a competitor” defense, as if everybody who competes in sports, business or any other arena should be allowed to act in any way he or she wants.
Interviewer: Doctor, can you explain how you were able to remove that tricky tumor without damaging the patient’s brain?
Doctor: Listen up, fool! I am the best brain surgeon that ever lived. Don’t be brining me any sorry-ass tumors. They have no chance against me. Bow down!!!
There are hundreds of football players who must engage in controlled violence every Saturday yet have the self-control to turn down the aggression meter when the final gun sounds. The same goes for those who play other sports. Even boxers, who emerge from 12 rounds of pounding, can dial back the anger to address the media and fans. Sometimes.
Sherman chose to cultivate a personality that is mercurial. Watch his “First Take” performance with Skip Bayless for more evidence. If he expected America to wrap him in its collective arms and throw hosannas and endorsement money at him, he isn’t as smart as he – or his Stanford diploma – says he is. There is emerging in this country an expectation among those who decide to live on the margins of accepted behavior that their departures from the norm must be celebrated. Sherman wasn’t jailed or fined or harmed after his outbursts. But he was criticized. That’s how it is when you court attention. Some people aren’t going to like it. Those who are mature and experienced understand that their calculated risk has some potential downsides and are willing to pay the price to “be who they are”. Others whine and complain when their actions trigger outrage in some corners. Pay the band, Mr. Sherman. That’s how life goes. You want to be outsized, then understand that there will be detractors.
As for those who say that anyone who criticizes him is racist, consider that if we are going to have real equality in this country, then people of all colors, races, religions, genders and any other categories that I might forget must be willing to understand that they aren’t always going to be welcomed, if they act in a way that isn’t pleasing.
That doesn’t, however, spread into racism. Hate speech is the province of the small-minded. Sherman isn’t a thug. He is an aggressive player in a violent game. Anyone who tries to mask their racism with code words like “thug,” should be excoriated.
This is about how Sherman has decided to portray himself, and it will be interesting to see how Sherman proceeds, and how the Fates treat him. He could end up like Fred “The Hammer” Williamson, who mouthed off before Super Bowl I (which was actually the AFL-NFL World Championship Game) and ended up being carted off the field when a Packer laid the hammer down on him. Or, as one advertising executive put it, Sherman could be in line for “$1-3 million” annually in marketing income, should the Seahawks win the Super Bowl. Sherman’s persona, which he has put forth during his time in the league, will be analyzed every way possible during the run-up to the game. What he has to understand is that living large has its downside: everybody sees you. And not everybody has to like you.
* * *
EL HOMBRE SEZ: Fox Sports producer Richie Zyontz says the network cut short Sherman’s post-game rant because “it started getting a little dangerous for us.” How so, Richie? Was it dangerous because an NFL player was about to show even more of his backside to America, something the folks at the NFL HQ on Park Avenue definitely didn’t want to see? Was interviewer Erin Andrews in danger? Was Sherman going to commandeer the microphone and launch into a WWE-style monologue? Here’s a vote for A. Fox was trying to protect its partner and chose to end a great bit of TV in order to spare the NFL a P.R. nightmare. Great journalism, guys…In other hard-hitting TV news, espn led off its overnight SportsCenter Friday with some compelling X Games footage. Granted, the story of the snowmobile rider’s victory after his brother’s tragic death was touching, but there was no other media outlet in the world that saw fit to make that its lead item. It couldn’t have been because ESPN televises, owns and is frankly populated by the only people over 35 on the planet who cares about the X Games, could it? Nahhhh…NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says the league will look into whether it is prudent to allow players to use marijuana medicinally in order to recover and gain some relief from the injuries they sustain while playing the game. Smart move, Rog. In a related story, the Jacksonville Jaguars are thinking of allowing their fans to use hallucinogens while watching games, the better to trick themselves into thinking that their team might actually have won something…Things are really heating up in the NBA Eastern Conference, where five teams are now over .500. Meanwhile, in Milwaukee, the Yucks are nearing mathematical elimination from the playoffs – in 2018…The NHL handed down a 15-day suspension to Vancouver coach John Tortorella after his meltdown between periods of the old-fashioned pier-six between his Canucks and Calgary. Fifteen days without regular-season hockey? Reports from British Columbia have Tortorella skipping in the streets and smiling broadly 24 hours a day…Former North Carolina football player Michael McAdoo reports that academic counselors at the school steered him toward no-show classes while he was there, countering the NC2A claim that athletes shouldn’t be paid because they are receiving a priceless education while battering their bodies for the greater (promotional) glory of old State U. Courses included Waste Management, (Daily) Numbers Theory and Statistics, Probability and The Vig. Neither Provost Corleone nor Dean Soprano could be reached for comment.
* * *
YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT? Anybody else get the feeling Phillies GM Ruben Amaro is simply messing with the fans? His latest off-season move, a back-to-the-future special with Captain Cool himself, 40-year old Bobby Abreu, is particularly cynical. Sure, it’s just a minor-league deal, but Abreu didn’t play last year, and just because he tore it up in Venezuelan winter ball, there is no reason to have him around. In Abreu’s last three seasons (2010-12) in the majors, he hit .255, 253 and .242 with a total of 31 homers, 11 of which came in the final two years. It’s as if Amaro is trying to complete some kind of aging player motif and can’t stop himself from signing old timers. His other move this week, the Chad Gaudin signing, was equally mystifying. Forget whether he can be the “swing” pitcher Amaro covets. This is a guy who pleaded no contest to a disorderly conduct charge after allegedly groping a woman while in a Las Vegas hospital. That’s a smart move for a team in need of fans. The 2014 season is shaping up as one of the most twisted in franchise history, and things down at the Retirement Home could get truly strange before too long.
* * *
AND ANOTHER THING: As Uncle David Stern prepares to leave his perch as NBA commissioner for a quiet life of making sarcastic comments to friends, rather than reporters, his legacy is unquestioned. Stern built the NBA into a global juggernaut, boosted revenues considerably and presided over tremendous growth in franchise values. He brought us the Dream Team and put the league on the cusp of international expansion. But it’s funny that he is grousing about the rampant tanking going on throughout the NBA by its lesser teams, not mention the nightly gutless displays by CarMElo and the Knicks. Since Stern created the superstar-heavy promotional strategy that thrived during the past three decades, why would he be surprised that teams are fleeing from the idea of building a unit capable of winning and losing in order to draft big names they can market? CarMElo is a perfect example of this. A talented player with porcine tendencies, he has never won anything. Yet, the NBA celebrates him as a superstar, despite his petulant behavior and lack of winning pedigree. The Knicks, who are still celebrating their 1973 world championship, are the most valuable franchise in the league. So, why would other teams try to accumulate winners at the expense of big names? The league and its propaganda partners don’t glorify teams like Indiana and Portland, because they don’t have big names. Stern should be praised for his work as commissioner, and he is on the medal stand – at least – for tops in the commissioner field in all sports over the past 50 years. However, the tanking trend is his own creation, and he needs to take ownership of it.
-EH-
But once the Super matchup was set, the league, not to mention its many propaganda partners, might have experienced a letdown, because Denver and Seattle aren’t exactly the kinds of name brands capable of generating enough heat to sustain a two-week build-up to the Big Game. Thank goodness for Richard Sherman and his carefully-packaged brand of in-your-face misbehavior. If not for the Seattle cornerback, we might have had to endure a fortnight of Peyton Manning legacy hand-wringing. Now, we get to howl about Sherman’s antics, a careful recipe of buffoonery, WWE showmanship, hip-hop danger and marketing savvy, with a dash of Clubber Lang thrown in for good measure.
INTERVIEWER: Do you hate Rocky/Michael Crabtree/Colin Kaepernick/Erin Andrews?
CLUB-SHER: No, I don’t hate [insert target here]. I pity the fool, and I will destroy any man [or female sideline reporter] who tries to take what I got!
Be prepared for a healthy dose of psychoanalysis, both of Sherman and his cartoonish outbursts, as well as those who have the temerity to criticize him. Sherman fired the first salvo, courtesy of his MMQB column on Sports Illustrated’s web site, when he explained that his shots at Crabtree after the game stemmed from an altercation last summer. Fair enough, those two men just don’t like each other. But what about the choke sign he flashed at Kaepernick? What is the justification for that? And did he need to froth when Andrews placed a microphone in his face right after the game? At a time when Sherman had a chance to make his best – and in many cases, first – impression on the American sporting public, he chose to board the crazy train.
If that’s how he wanted to behave, then that’s his right. But it is also the right of the public and the media to react negatively. There is no rule that says every bit of behavior must be embraced universally, no matter how many trophies are given out on Little League fields or how much self-esteem is built when kids don’t try their best. Sherman and his apologists hid behind the “he’s a competitor” defense, as if everybody who competes in sports, business or any other arena should be allowed to act in any way he or she wants.
Interviewer: Doctor, can you explain how you were able to remove that tricky tumor without damaging the patient’s brain?
Doctor: Listen up, fool! I am the best brain surgeon that ever lived. Don’t be brining me any sorry-ass tumors. They have no chance against me. Bow down!!!
There are hundreds of football players who must engage in controlled violence every Saturday yet have the self-control to turn down the aggression meter when the final gun sounds. The same goes for those who play other sports. Even boxers, who emerge from 12 rounds of pounding, can dial back the anger to address the media and fans. Sometimes.
Sherman chose to cultivate a personality that is mercurial. Watch his “First Take” performance with Skip Bayless for more evidence. If he expected America to wrap him in its collective arms and throw hosannas and endorsement money at him, he isn’t as smart as he – or his Stanford diploma – says he is. There is emerging in this country an expectation among those who decide to live on the margins of accepted behavior that their departures from the norm must be celebrated. Sherman wasn’t jailed or fined or harmed after his outbursts. But he was criticized. That’s how it is when you court attention. Some people aren’t going to like it. Those who are mature and experienced understand that their calculated risk has some potential downsides and are willing to pay the price to “be who they are”. Others whine and complain when their actions trigger outrage in some corners. Pay the band, Mr. Sherman. That’s how life goes. You want to be outsized, then understand that there will be detractors.
As for those who say that anyone who criticizes him is racist, consider that if we are going to have real equality in this country, then people of all colors, races, religions, genders and any other categories that I might forget must be willing to understand that they aren’t always going to be welcomed, if they act in a way that isn’t pleasing.
That doesn’t, however, spread into racism. Hate speech is the province of the small-minded. Sherman isn’t a thug. He is an aggressive player in a violent game. Anyone who tries to mask their racism with code words like “thug,” should be excoriated.
This is about how Sherman has decided to portray himself, and it will be interesting to see how Sherman proceeds, and how the Fates treat him. He could end up like Fred “The Hammer” Williamson, who mouthed off before Super Bowl I (which was actually the AFL-NFL World Championship Game) and ended up being carted off the field when a Packer laid the hammer down on him. Or, as one advertising executive put it, Sherman could be in line for “$1-3 million” annually in marketing income, should the Seahawks win the Super Bowl. Sherman’s persona, which he has put forth during his time in the league, will be analyzed every way possible during the run-up to the game. What he has to understand is that living large has its downside: everybody sees you. And not everybody has to like you.
* * *
EL HOMBRE SEZ: Fox Sports producer Richie Zyontz says the network cut short Sherman’s post-game rant because “it started getting a little dangerous for us.” How so, Richie? Was it dangerous because an NFL player was about to show even more of his backside to America, something the folks at the NFL HQ on Park Avenue definitely didn’t want to see? Was interviewer Erin Andrews in danger? Was Sherman going to commandeer the microphone and launch into a WWE-style monologue? Here’s a vote for A. Fox was trying to protect its partner and chose to end a great bit of TV in order to spare the NFL a P.R. nightmare. Great journalism, guys…In other hard-hitting TV news, espn led off its overnight SportsCenter Friday with some compelling X Games footage. Granted, the story of the snowmobile rider’s victory after his brother’s tragic death was touching, but there was no other media outlet in the world that saw fit to make that its lead item. It couldn’t have been because ESPN televises, owns and is frankly populated by the only people over 35 on the planet who cares about the X Games, could it? Nahhhh…NFL commissioner Roger Goodell says the league will look into whether it is prudent to allow players to use marijuana medicinally in order to recover and gain some relief from the injuries they sustain while playing the game. Smart move, Rog. In a related story, the Jacksonville Jaguars are thinking of allowing their fans to use hallucinogens while watching games, the better to trick themselves into thinking that their team might actually have won something…Things are really heating up in the NBA Eastern Conference, where five teams are now over .500. Meanwhile, in Milwaukee, the Yucks are nearing mathematical elimination from the playoffs – in 2018…The NHL handed down a 15-day suspension to Vancouver coach John Tortorella after his meltdown between periods of the old-fashioned pier-six between his Canucks and Calgary. Fifteen days without regular-season hockey? Reports from British Columbia have Tortorella skipping in the streets and smiling broadly 24 hours a day…Former North Carolina football player Michael McAdoo reports that academic counselors at the school steered him toward no-show classes while he was there, countering the NC2A claim that athletes shouldn’t be paid because they are receiving a priceless education while battering their bodies for the greater (promotional) glory of old State U. Courses included Waste Management, (Daily) Numbers Theory and Statistics, Probability and The Vig. Neither Provost Corleone nor Dean Soprano could be reached for comment.
* * *
YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT? Anybody else get the feeling Phillies GM Ruben Amaro is simply messing with the fans? His latest off-season move, a back-to-the-future special with Captain Cool himself, 40-year old Bobby Abreu, is particularly cynical. Sure, it’s just a minor-league deal, but Abreu didn’t play last year, and just because he tore it up in Venezuelan winter ball, there is no reason to have him around. In Abreu’s last three seasons (2010-12) in the majors, he hit .255, 253 and .242 with a total of 31 homers, 11 of which came in the final two years. It’s as if Amaro is trying to complete some kind of aging player motif and can’t stop himself from signing old timers. His other move this week, the Chad Gaudin signing, was equally mystifying. Forget whether he can be the “swing” pitcher Amaro covets. This is a guy who pleaded no contest to a disorderly conduct charge after allegedly groping a woman while in a Las Vegas hospital. That’s a smart move for a team in need of fans. The 2014 season is shaping up as one of the most twisted in franchise history, and things down at the Retirement Home could get truly strange before too long.
* * *
AND ANOTHER THING: As Uncle David Stern prepares to leave his perch as NBA commissioner for a quiet life of making sarcastic comments to friends, rather than reporters, his legacy is unquestioned. Stern built the NBA into a global juggernaut, boosted revenues considerably and presided over tremendous growth in franchise values. He brought us the Dream Team and put the league on the cusp of international expansion. But it’s funny that he is grousing about the rampant tanking going on throughout the NBA by its lesser teams, not mention the nightly gutless displays by CarMElo and the Knicks. Since Stern created the superstar-heavy promotional strategy that thrived during the past three decades, why would he be surprised that teams are fleeing from the idea of building a unit capable of winning and losing in order to draft big names they can market? CarMElo is a perfect example of this. A talented player with porcine tendencies, he has never won anything. Yet, the NBA celebrates him as a superstar, despite his petulant behavior and lack of winning pedigree. The Knicks, who are still celebrating their 1973 world championship, are the most valuable franchise in the league. So, why would other teams try to accumulate winners at the expense of big names? The league and its propaganda partners don’t glorify teams like Indiana and Portland, because they don’t have big names. Stern should be praised for his work as commissioner, and he is on the medal stand – at least – for tops in the commissioner field in all sports over the past 50 years. However, the tanking trend is his own creation, and he needs to take ownership of it.
-EH-
Thursday, January 9, 2014
IT'S TIME FOR FOOTBALL'S BIG BOYS TO TAKE CENTER STAGE
Despite all of the talk about how the NFL is a business and that its players are grown men capable of exploiting any weakness they find, it’s tough sometimes not to imagine the league as filled with kids who rode their bikes to the field after eating bowls of Cap’n Crunch and forgetting to brush their teeth.
In order to prepare his team better for Saturday’s playoff game in Seattle, New Orleans coach Sean Payton had the Seahawks’ logo painted on the Saints’ practice fields, in an attempt to “create the exact environment” his team will face in the Pacific Northwest. Given N.O.’s timid effort against the ‘Hawks in an earlier, 34-7 Monday Night loss, perhaps Payton should foregone the artwork and sprinkled testosterone powder on the turf, in the hopes the Saints would show up with a little bit of fight for Saturday’s playoff showdown.
Much has been made about the loud fans in Seattle. They broke the Guinness record for crowd noise twice during the season, which isn’t such a big deal, since that kind of uproar is replicated many times each year all over town, whenever the latte machine breaks at Starbucks. It’s curious that Seattle, a lovely city known more for its lush flora and fish-heaving merchants, is the loudest place in the NFL universe – the league’s vehement denials that concussions cause long-term brain problems notwithstanding. But Seahawks fans can indeed crank up the volume, and they fly their 12th Man flag proudly, while reveling in the illegal procedure penalties they force.
So, Payton has painted the field and will pipe in deafening crowd noise – or rebroadcasts of Jon Gruden’s MNF commentary. He might also want to set the scoreboards around the complex to 17-0, to remind the Saints about their first-quarter flop back in early December.
The NFL playoff preliminaries are over, and it’s time for the big hitters to step onto the stage. Andy Reid and his Chiefs are back in Beeftown, trying to figure out what went wrong in the second half against Indy. Green Bay is wishing its defense had as much bite against San Francisco as the icy wind that surged across the Lambeau tundra, and the Eagles are trying to manufacture some serious ire after a dream season that ended disappointingly but hardly disastrously. Meanwhile, in Cincinnati, the Bengals are wondering whether it’s possible to use Andy Dalton (team-record TD passes during 2013) during the regular season and somebody (anybody!) else during the playoffs (one TD, six ints. in three games).
By Sunday evening, the NFL will have found its Final Four and taken a step closer toward footballgeddon, i.e. an outdoor game in early February at Jimmy Hoffa’s crypt. There are no guarantees the game will be plagued by apocalyptic weather, but the Farmer’s Almanac predicts enough snow will fall to bury all of the five families. The league is prohibiting tailgating in the lots at Snoopy Stadium, a crushing blow to the trashcan fire industry and to those fans who prefer 19 inches of powder with their brats.
The biggest stars reside in the AFC, and just about everybody is hoping Denver and New England continue on their paths to the game Everybody Wants to See. Last year, Peyton Manning couldn’t handle his side of the deal in the Broncos’ home loss to Baltimore. This time, he gets a San Diego team that must keep winning, the better to keep its collective soul from joining Mephistopheles’ expansion franchise. Talk about lucky. A month ago, the Chargers looked ready for a housecleaning. Now, SD is on a roll. Meanwhile, the aptly named Andrew Luck and his Colts must visit Foxborough, about the only place besides Bridgeport and New Haven that spoils New England’s charm. It’s entirely appropriate that the team’s symbol is a horseshoe, although after last week’s choke-‘em-up by the Chiefs, Indy might want to add a rabbit’s foot, four-leaf clover, the number seven, the Voodoo Love Amulet and a picture of Tommy Allsup to its helmet.
The aforementioned Saints trip to Seattle heads the NFC slate, while San Francisco visits Carolina in an attempt to secure a title game date with the Seahawks and give Fox the chance to air a 30-minute retrospective on the Jim Harbaugh-Pete Carroll “What’s your deal?” feud. That might even be enough to wake up Terry Bradshaw.
Now that college football has left us, not to return for nearly eight interminable months and way too much Jim Nantz, the focus turns to the NFL. Let’s hope the remaining teams are able to fill the void with some entertaining action.
Here now the winners (As always, remember how much you paid for these picks): Seattle 24, New Orleans (+8) 20; San Francisco 23, Carolina (+2) 17; Denver 31, San Diego (+9.5) 17; New England 30, Indianapolis (+7) 20.
* * *
EL HOMBRE SEZ: So, Louisville is welcoming back Bobby Petrino as its football coach. We’re talking about the guy who left town six months after signing a 10-year contract extension and later decided that the proper accessory on the back of a Harley was a blonde who wasn’t his wife. In a way, this is good news for college sports critics, who can now point to the exacta of Petrino and Rick “Quick Draw” Pitino as exhibit A of how sleazy the whole process has become. Good luck with that, Cardinals, and El Hombre will set the over/under on seasons before Petrino leaves town at 3.5. Here’s a tip: take the under…Now that the flood of underclassmen’s declaring for the NFL Draft has begun, we will be blessed with four months of mock selections that promote the event and generally have the same level of accuracy as Congressional budget estimates. Congratulations to the NFL for creating a big something out of practically nothing…In a related story, pro football teams had better pay close attention to the psychological profiles of the players in this year’s draft, the better to avoid choosing someone like Aaron Hernandez, who this week was named in a 2012 double homicide. That brings the total of murders in which he has been implicated to four. But, hey, the guy could really catch the football…The NBA has fined J.R. Smith 50 large for trying to untie the shoelaces of Detroit’s Greg Monroe, one game after Smith was warned for untying Shawn Marion’s shoes. What the league should do is make the nitwit sit in the corner for an entire game, the better to demonstrate his juvenile tendencies and shame him into acting like a professional. What’s next, trying to pants someone during a jump ball?...UTEP has dismissed three men’s basketball players for gambling, and the NCAA has suspended them from competition for at least a year. The players didn’t wager on any Miners games but did admit to betting that nobody would care that they were tossed off the team…In soccer news, the NASL’s Fort Lauderdale Strikers traded midfielder Walter Restrepo to the San Antonio Scorpions in return for “free lodging and transportation during Fort Lauderdale’s two road trips to San Antonio in 2014.” In a related story, the Jacksonville Jaguars tried to trade all of their players to anybody at all for a bag of used game socks…Reports from across the pond bring news that golfer Rory McIlroy proposed to tennis star girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki on New Year’s Eve. The wedding has been postponed, however, until one of them wins anything of consequence…Lance Armstrong insists that one of the reasons the USADA and other athletic governing bodies went after him so vigorously was that he “was a bigger a-hole” than others. Sounds about right. Self-awareness is a first big step toward getting better, Lance.
* * *
YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT? Now that the Eagles season has fizzled to an ending, and the off-season contract hysteria can begin, it’s time for Philadelphia fans to turn their attention to the Phillies and what could be a hugely disappointing season. (Hey, at least all the players are recognizable!) Before anybody throws or hits a pitch, however, there is the issue of Wednesday’s broadcasting team shakeup to address. Chris Wheeler and Gary Matthews are out, victims of the team’s new 25-year, $2.5 billion deal with Comcast SportsNet, which now has editorial control over the team’s broadcasts. The topic here is not that Wheels can’t talk about “middle-in” pitches or Sarge won’t be “hopping into the Cadillac” anymore, but that Tom McCarthy will be the voice of the team heading forward. McCarthy is likeable and competent, but he is the broadcasting equivalent of a carnival barker, and his non-stop shilling for the team distracts from the game action. It’s one thing to be pro-Phillies and another to do work that would have been considered over the top by Pravda editors. It’s interesting that the Comcast folks took offense to Wheeler and Matthews while considering McCarthy the rightful heir to Harry Kalas. But that’s what happens when you wield the big checkbook.
* * *
AND ANOTHER THING: After the new Hall of Fame inductees were announced Wednesday afternoon (a big “tough luck” goes out to BALCO Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire and the rest of the steroid crowd), it was revealed that ESPN host and Miami Herald columnist Dan Le Batard gave control his HOF ballot to the web site Deadspin, which directed him to vote for Bonds, Clemens and Jeff Bagwell, among others. Le Batard said that he was hoping to make a statement about the need for reform in the voting process, but he could have been far more eloquent by surrendering his right to choose than by giving Deadspin a promotional boost and sullying the Hall. Here’s hoping Le Batard is stripped of his privilege and looked at sideways by any team, league or school from which he asks for a credential. Journalists are supposed to report and comment on the news, not become the news. That’s a 101 level lesson and something Le Batard should consider the next time he wants to grandstand.
-EH-
In order to prepare his team better for Saturday’s playoff game in Seattle, New Orleans coach Sean Payton had the Seahawks’ logo painted on the Saints’ practice fields, in an attempt to “create the exact environment” his team will face in the Pacific Northwest. Given N.O.’s timid effort against the ‘Hawks in an earlier, 34-7 Monday Night loss, perhaps Payton should foregone the artwork and sprinkled testosterone powder on the turf, in the hopes the Saints would show up with a little bit of fight for Saturday’s playoff showdown.
Much has been made about the loud fans in Seattle. They broke the Guinness record for crowd noise twice during the season, which isn’t such a big deal, since that kind of uproar is replicated many times each year all over town, whenever the latte machine breaks at Starbucks. It’s curious that Seattle, a lovely city known more for its lush flora and fish-heaving merchants, is the loudest place in the NFL universe – the league’s vehement denials that concussions cause long-term brain problems notwithstanding. But Seahawks fans can indeed crank up the volume, and they fly their 12th Man flag proudly, while reveling in the illegal procedure penalties they force.
So, Payton has painted the field and will pipe in deafening crowd noise – or rebroadcasts of Jon Gruden’s MNF commentary. He might also want to set the scoreboards around the complex to 17-0, to remind the Saints about their first-quarter flop back in early December.
The NFL playoff preliminaries are over, and it’s time for the big hitters to step onto the stage. Andy Reid and his Chiefs are back in Beeftown, trying to figure out what went wrong in the second half against Indy. Green Bay is wishing its defense had as much bite against San Francisco as the icy wind that surged across the Lambeau tundra, and the Eagles are trying to manufacture some serious ire after a dream season that ended disappointingly but hardly disastrously. Meanwhile, in Cincinnati, the Bengals are wondering whether it’s possible to use Andy Dalton (team-record TD passes during 2013) during the regular season and somebody (anybody!) else during the playoffs (one TD, six ints. in three games).
By Sunday evening, the NFL will have found its Final Four and taken a step closer toward footballgeddon, i.e. an outdoor game in early February at Jimmy Hoffa’s crypt. There are no guarantees the game will be plagued by apocalyptic weather, but the Farmer’s Almanac predicts enough snow will fall to bury all of the five families. The league is prohibiting tailgating in the lots at Snoopy Stadium, a crushing blow to the trashcan fire industry and to those fans who prefer 19 inches of powder with their brats.
The biggest stars reside in the AFC, and just about everybody is hoping Denver and New England continue on their paths to the game Everybody Wants to See. Last year, Peyton Manning couldn’t handle his side of the deal in the Broncos’ home loss to Baltimore. This time, he gets a San Diego team that must keep winning, the better to keep its collective soul from joining Mephistopheles’ expansion franchise. Talk about lucky. A month ago, the Chargers looked ready for a housecleaning. Now, SD is on a roll. Meanwhile, the aptly named Andrew Luck and his Colts must visit Foxborough, about the only place besides Bridgeport and New Haven that spoils New England’s charm. It’s entirely appropriate that the team’s symbol is a horseshoe, although after last week’s choke-‘em-up by the Chiefs, Indy might want to add a rabbit’s foot, four-leaf clover, the number seven, the Voodoo Love Amulet and a picture of Tommy Allsup to its helmet.
The aforementioned Saints trip to Seattle heads the NFC slate, while San Francisco visits Carolina in an attempt to secure a title game date with the Seahawks and give Fox the chance to air a 30-minute retrospective on the Jim Harbaugh-Pete Carroll “What’s your deal?” feud. That might even be enough to wake up Terry Bradshaw.
Now that college football has left us, not to return for nearly eight interminable months and way too much Jim Nantz, the focus turns to the NFL. Let’s hope the remaining teams are able to fill the void with some entertaining action.
Here now the winners (As always, remember how much you paid for these picks): Seattle 24, New Orleans (+8) 20; San Francisco 23, Carolina (+2) 17; Denver 31, San Diego (+9.5) 17; New England 30, Indianapolis (+7) 20.
* * *
EL HOMBRE SEZ: So, Louisville is welcoming back Bobby Petrino as its football coach. We’re talking about the guy who left town six months after signing a 10-year contract extension and later decided that the proper accessory on the back of a Harley was a blonde who wasn’t his wife. In a way, this is good news for college sports critics, who can now point to the exacta of Petrino and Rick “Quick Draw” Pitino as exhibit A of how sleazy the whole process has become. Good luck with that, Cardinals, and El Hombre will set the over/under on seasons before Petrino leaves town at 3.5. Here’s a tip: take the under…Now that the flood of underclassmen’s declaring for the NFL Draft has begun, we will be blessed with four months of mock selections that promote the event and generally have the same level of accuracy as Congressional budget estimates. Congratulations to the NFL for creating a big something out of practically nothing…In a related story, pro football teams had better pay close attention to the psychological profiles of the players in this year’s draft, the better to avoid choosing someone like Aaron Hernandez, who this week was named in a 2012 double homicide. That brings the total of murders in which he has been implicated to four. But, hey, the guy could really catch the football…The NBA has fined J.R. Smith 50 large for trying to untie the shoelaces of Detroit’s Greg Monroe, one game after Smith was warned for untying Shawn Marion’s shoes. What the league should do is make the nitwit sit in the corner for an entire game, the better to demonstrate his juvenile tendencies and shame him into acting like a professional. What’s next, trying to pants someone during a jump ball?...UTEP has dismissed three men’s basketball players for gambling, and the NCAA has suspended them from competition for at least a year. The players didn’t wager on any Miners games but did admit to betting that nobody would care that they were tossed off the team…In soccer news, the NASL’s Fort Lauderdale Strikers traded midfielder Walter Restrepo to the San Antonio Scorpions in return for “free lodging and transportation during Fort Lauderdale’s two road trips to San Antonio in 2014.” In a related story, the Jacksonville Jaguars tried to trade all of their players to anybody at all for a bag of used game socks…Reports from across the pond bring news that golfer Rory McIlroy proposed to tennis star girlfriend Caroline Wozniacki on New Year’s Eve. The wedding has been postponed, however, until one of them wins anything of consequence…Lance Armstrong insists that one of the reasons the USADA and other athletic governing bodies went after him so vigorously was that he “was a bigger a-hole” than others. Sounds about right. Self-awareness is a first big step toward getting better, Lance.
* * *
YOU GOT A PROBLEM WITH THAT? Now that the Eagles season has fizzled to an ending, and the off-season contract hysteria can begin, it’s time for Philadelphia fans to turn their attention to the Phillies and what could be a hugely disappointing season. (Hey, at least all the players are recognizable!) Before anybody throws or hits a pitch, however, there is the issue of Wednesday’s broadcasting team shakeup to address. Chris Wheeler and Gary Matthews are out, victims of the team’s new 25-year, $2.5 billion deal with Comcast SportsNet, which now has editorial control over the team’s broadcasts. The topic here is not that Wheels can’t talk about “middle-in” pitches or Sarge won’t be “hopping into the Cadillac” anymore, but that Tom McCarthy will be the voice of the team heading forward. McCarthy is likeable and competent, but he is the broadcasting equivalent of a carnival barker, and his non-stop shilling for the team distracts from the game action. It’s one thing to be pro-Phillies and another to do work that would have been considered over the top by Pravda editors. It’s interesting that the Comcast folks took offense to Wheeler and Matthews while considering McCarthy the rightful heir to Harry Kalas. But that’s what happens when you wield the big checkbook.
* * *
AND ANOTHER THING: After the new Hall of Fame inductees were announced Wednesday afternoon (a big “tough luck” goes out to BALCO Bonds, Roger Clemens, Mark McGwire and the rest of the steroid crowd), it was revealed that ESPN host and Miami Herald columnist Dan Le Batard gave control his HOF ballot to the web site Deadspin, which directed him to vote for Bonds, Clemens and Jeff Bagwell, among others. Le Batard said that he was hoping to make a statement about the need for reform in the voting process, but he could have been far more eloquent by surrendering his right to choose than by giving Deadspin a promotional boost and sullying the Hall. Here’s hoping Le Batard is stripped of his privilege and looked at sideways by any team, league or school from which he asks for a credential. Journalists are supposed to report and comment on the news, not become the news. That’s a 101 level lesson and something Le Batard should consider the next time he wants to grandstand.
-EH-
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