Ncaa makes me sick

I absolutely hate guys like Johnny Manzell. I am going to misspell his name thought this piece because I don't respect him at all.  He is a spoiled brat who gets his way because he has affluence, and because he has the right people in the "old boys network" who protect him. Are we going to hear 5 years from now that he actually took money and since no one could prove it manzeil could get away with it? Is he another Lance Armstrong, Ryan Braun, Pete Rose? Guys who knew they did wrong and make the public sympathize with them and then burn us in the end?  Don't you just want to put a uniform on and cheap shot him for rubbing this in all of our faces?  He goes to the super bowl, the heat game, hangs out with celebs, signs thousands of autographs for free allegedly. At first everyone was writing articles and said have compassion for Manzel because he is 20 and he doesn't no any better. Even he gave a press conference and expressed his hope that people would understand  that he is a little 20 year old rich kid who can have things that most people his age can't.  He shows up at a Texas frat party and thinks that they care going to roll out the red carpet for him. They should let him get drunk and tied him up to a tree.
This decision bothers me because Terrell Pryor, A.j. Green and Dez Bryant paid a big cost for doing something as egregious as manzelll. Those three guys mistake was they had a money trail. Dez Bryant lost his eligibility because he had lunch with Deion Sanders. He got no money. He got a sandwich and some fries and his college career was over. Football players at North Carolina were suspended because they were at a party where some known agents were at. Manzelle was in a room signing autographs where somebody got money for his time. I am outraged that on the day that Dr.King said 50 years ago how he wished he kids could grow up in a world where his two kids could be judged by the content of their character not the color of their skin. Where is the equality? Are we that naive?
Also stop saying athletes need to be paid.. Division 1 athletes get more perks, advantages, hook ups than professional athletes. They get free books, education, best dorms, best girls, they rarely pay for food, alcohol. They get free sneakers, clothing, jackets,. They get into every party, bar, club, strip club usually for free. What don't they get? When they go to bowl games they get a gift bag like they are going to the Oscars. They get play station, x-box, beats head phones, plus other goodies. Yes I get it. They don't have an opportunity to find a job.  They can in the off season. They get a stipend as well. No one who plays the game complains. I went to a 1aa school for football. The athletes  owned Amherst. UMass basketball team. Say that to a bouncer in Amherst and they have nightmares. 
I am simply appalled that the NCAA suspended him for a half off a game. Who cares about Rice University or Sam Houston st which is the next game? To me they destroy people. They punish people for being slick. If Manziel isn't being slick I don't what is...

Oregon and Ohio St. Try to dethrone the Crimson Tide

Another college football season is upon us and the only question anyone wants to know is if someone can stop the SEC from winning another title?  Alabama has won the last two and are loaded to do it again.  They have the best leader in the game in Nick Saban. They have the veteran quarterback on offense and defense. They have a dynamic player in T.Y.  and  more top players sitting on the bench than the dream team.  They have a tough opener against Virginia Tech, but they are chomping at the bit to play Texas A&M on September 14th. If they get through those games, the annual tilt with LSU and Georgia could determine their fates. No one expects them to be tested. This is the SEC though. Texas A&M showed them that last year. The SEC is loaded. South Carolina is good.  Florida is quietly lurking in the swamp. Georgia has top five talent. L.S.U. does too. The story though is A&M and quarterback Johnny Manziel.  Manziel is being investigated for receiving improper benefits from signing autographs. He is the reigning He is an trophy winner. He has had the off season for ages. Court side seats at Heat games. Appearances at other sporting events, concerts, talk shows, other universities have made every either love him or hate him. He should be suspended if he did something wrong. We will save my thoughts on him till later.  If he plays all season the aggies will be a formidable opponent.  The SEC is ready for war. Let's see who can challenge them.
Every year I say that the Pac-12 conference has the team to dethrone the SEC and it never comes to fruition. USC every year has as much talent as anyone in the nation and just can't seem to get out of their own way. Stanford is the most physical team in the conference but every year loses or play down to a team like San Jose st and falls out of title picture. UCLA has a real good quarterback in Hundley but can they handle being the kings of L.A.? So that leaves only one team. Oregon. Oregon has a dynamic duo in Mariota and Thomas. They will score 500 points but can they stop anyone? Stanford punched them in the mouth last year and showed them the meaning of toughness. They have a favorable schedule. They have the speed to run with Alabama. Do they have the heart? A new coach may be what the doctor ordered.
The ACC has Five good teams that won't back down from a fight. Clemson has been underachieving over the last two seasons. They can play with anyone. Boyd and Watkins are a combo worth watching. They open with Georgia. This will make or break their season. A close win or loss may give them the confidence to go all the way. A blowout loss will crush them. FSU is starting a super phenom freshman so there will be great highs and lows. Virginia Tech has a NFL ready quarterback in Thomas. He had to play like one. Opening against Alabama will show far he has come. The Hokies want to be back on national stage. Miami has to get back to dominant defense days. If they can they have weapons on offense who can do damage. North Carolina has NFL quality on defense. The question is can they score enough to compete. South Carolina on opening night will answer some questions.  The ACC is taking on the big dogs to start the year. If they come out unscathed then we're mash have a something here. No one expects them to win a single game. I think Clemson will. Tech won't lie down for Alabama.
The big 12 has Oklahoma and revitalized Texas program. K-state shocked everyone last year. Coach Snyder is a living legend. Oklahoma St. Always finds a quarterback and a receiver that lights up the scoreboard. Can anyone in this conference play defense? Oklahoma and Texas used to win with balanced attacks on both offense and defense. A showdown with Notre Dame  will put them back on the map with a win. A down year for this conference.
The big east is all about Louisville. Teddy Bridgewater has the burden of carrying a conference that just simply does not have enough quality teams.  Louisville will be favored in every game by 10 points or more. They may unbeaten and not play in the title game. That's a shame...
The big ten is loaded and angry. Everyone picks on this conference because every year they have quality teams who get embarrassed in big national games. Ohio st. Is the pick to play for the title. They went unbeaten last year and a ton of people returned this year. Braxton Miller is the best player on the team and will win the He is an if they go undefeated. He is that good. No team in the big ten has as much talent returning like Ohio st. Michigan on offenses will be explosive, defensively they have a lot of new faces and unpredictable. Michigan st. Always finds a way to shoot itself in the foot. They will find a running attack but the quarterback position is a weakness. They play good defense. Penn st. Is still one big signing year away from getting back to the top. Nebraska is trying to erase the memory of the championship game. Wisconsin knows who they are and have the team to sneak up and bite someone.  The Buckeyes should rule this conference.
Notre Dame had a lot of success last year. They beat you with defense one week. They beat you with ball control the next. Not having Golston will hurt them. Tommy Rees is a backup. Their defense is great on the defensive line. They have a brutal schedule as they do every year. Revenge is on the minds of Stanford,USC and Michigan. Should be fascinating.
Overall there are four teams that can challenge the SEC for the title. Ohio st. Must be solid on defense or they won't have chance. Stanford needs to find a play maker on offense who is a security blanket for the quarterback. Oregon has to stop someone and not turn the ball over playing too fast. Clemson has to compete for four quarters and BELIEVE they belong at the adult table. I think Ohio st. Will get it done.... The south has risen again, but it is time for the rest of the country to step up and be heard..

a warm up blog before i start blogging again

I haven't blogged since June and so much has happened in the world of sports.  The Dodgers went from last to first.  The Pirates have thrown down the challenge to its pursuers in the N.L.Central. Andy Murray won Wimbledon. Anderson Silva lost a fight. NFL training camp opened. Great news for some. Bad news for others. A-rod is back and the Yankees have a pulse. Jeter comes back today.  Usain Bolt is still the man. Ryan Braun is pathetic. Why do they lie? Johnny Football hates signing autographs... For free.  NCAA better handle this right. A.J. Green and Dez Bryant are watching.  Scary stories about Lamar Odom, Chamique Holdsclaw, Dick Trickle, Aaron Hernandez to name a few.   Dwight Howard bailing out on the Lakers. Houston Hello..
A lot of stories I will be talking about over the next few months and hopefully gives an unique spin to them.  Should college athletes be paid or is this a story about only a select few athletes?  Why does no one complain about p.e.D's in football or boxing but go crazy about in baseball? Do Americans have a right to say something since the majority of the prescription drug population make up is mostly us and our kids? The Jets should fire everyone after Saturdays fiasco. Tiger didn't win a major this year. Serena is 60-4 this season.  Are they still must see t.v.? Does anyone really care about the upcoming Alvarez/Mayweather fight? Miguel Cabrera is the greatest right handed hitter since Willie Mays? Who is better? Frank Robinson? Edgar Martinez? Robin Yount? Adrian Peterson want 2500 yards this year? Rg3 and the Redskins are the most over hyped team in football. Super Bowl or bust they say.
A ton of topics I will dissect over the next few days. Plus news and weather..  Let's get ready and I could have my radio show back in a week..

Why does everyone hate A-rod

When Alex Rodriguez finally got a World Series ring a few years ago, I honestly thought that the world put him their rear view mirror and leave him alone. How wrong I have been. He is the most hated, scrutinized, polarizing athlete in the entire world. Tim Tebow nor Lebron James has nothing on A-rod. A-rod could find this spy guy in Russia right now and be arrested because somehow someway someone would say that he has aided in some way. A-rod could take a bullet for the President right now and he would be blamed for the assassination attempt. I have heard every pundit on every show talk about how hated he is.  How A-rod is not a Yankee.  How the Yankees want to get rid of him. How he has personally destroyed the game of baseball. A-rod is the only P.E.D user who admitted to taking the drugs because he was trying hard to live up to the richest contract in baseball history. Bonds denies not knowingly taking them. Clemens went to court and was acquitted during his trial for taking them. Mark McGwire took years to admit what he did. Only A-rod is getting the abuse he gets. His name is linked to the latest scandal and deservedly so he should be persecuted as a repeat offender but he is not the only one on the list. Lance Armstrong lied to us for years and years, yet every person in the world would still buy Lance a beer if they saw him in a bar. All of the things he did for Cancer patients will never be forgotten and in most people's eyes his evil was used for good.
Does anyone remember Reggie Jackson?  When Reggie became a Yankee the locker room was divided from day one. He told the press that he was the "straw that stirred the drink" on that ball club the made Thurman Munson nuts. Reggie openly fought with Billy Martin in the dugout because Billy thought he wasn't playing hard enough in a game in Fenway Park. of all places. No one would ever accuse Reggie of being precocious or shy. Even George would get on Reggie for his strikeouts and lackluster efforts at times, people associate Reggie's career only with a the Yankees. He was a stud with the A's in the early 70's. His home run in Tiger Stadium at the 1971 All Star game is still traveling.  He is often credited as being a Yankee even though so many disliked him. I know about the World Series performance in 1977. I know about 1978 as well. The Yankees immediately two rings in Reggie's tenure. When he left the Yankees it took 12 years before they went back to the post season.  Maybe if A-Rod had better success in the Post season people would leave him alone. Maybe if he had not signed the richest sports contract that the Yankees can't get out of people would leave him alone. Maybe if he didn't date Hollywood actresses or beautiful models people would leave him alone. Maybe he should be giving out autographed baseballs like Jeter after he dates you and dumps you. The man tweeted that he was getting back on the field.  Brian Cashman went psycho on him. The Yankees lost tonight.  They may lose Texirera for the rest of the season. What would happen if A-rod hit a walk off home run in game 7 of the world series and won the championship for the Yankees this season? Would you think he is a true Yankee then?  Probably not....

Boston Fans are the toughest fans in the world..

I wish I was Boston Strong.. I dont mean to trivialize the entire Boston Strong movement. I am extremely sensitive to what happened on Boston Marathon day. I am only using the phrase to try and understand  what you guys have been through. Heartbreak after heartbreak. 86 Mets. Aaron Freaking Boone. Bucky Freaking Dent. The New york Giants David Tyree. Eli Manning in both Super Bowls when you clearly have had better teams. The Stanley Cup against Edmonton with the messed up ice and fog in the arena. And of course the the other night. 1 minute from forcing a game a 7. Yes you have redemptive moments. Beating the Lakers and giving Garnett and Pierce their one and only title. Beating heavily  favored Vancouver in 7 games in Vancouver ( which caused a riot) was awesome. The Red Sox down 3-0 to the Yankees and sweeping the next 4 games and then sweeping the Cardinals in the World series was the stuff of legend. How do you keep sane? When I went to the University of Massachusetts I used to argue/debate with my fellow classmates about what city had better sports or better teams. At that time the Celtics were supreme. The Giants and Mets were filled with super players so the debates was quite heated. i was at UMASS when the riot happened after the Mets defeated the Red Sox in '86. The wave of passion even went racial. The combatants were on Donahue of all shows in the 80's.
What I love about Boston fans is no matter how good or bad their teams are their fans show up and support their players. I am sure Celtic fans are mad at Doc rivers for bolting to the Clippers in Los Angeles of all places but I am sure they will applaud him for what he accomplished while the Celtics coach. They never booed Larry Bird when he coached the Pacers so I don't expect Doc to get a bad reception as the Celtics re-build. The Bruin loss was tough to see because i felt they had the better team and had the proper strategy to beat the upstart Blackhawks. The Bruins had several opportunities to score in the first period and exuberance caused them to miss out. Bergeron is a super hero. He has my respect forever. The Red sox are currently in first place in baseball. No one expects to finish there. The Blue Jays have just won 11 straight and are preparing for a huge run in the second half.  The Yankees have not had their team all season. Jeter and A-Rod have yet to play this season. Chris Davis is "crushing" the ball everywhere and Baltimore is here to stay. I don't want to jinx the Sox but things could get tough for them in the second half. The fans will still be there.  That is why Boston Strong is more than just a slogan, it is a way of life. You have my respect...

Micheal Jordan is a "better" player but Lebron Means More...

A friend of mine responded to a facebook discussion by say this this quote," Micheal Jordan is a "better" player , But Lebron means more", and he could not be more correct. Micheal Jordan came a long to this world when we were still getting over Muhammad Ali's retirement. Reggie Jackson and his Yankee Days. Magic and Larry were must see t.v. The Doctor J show. Lawrence Taylor and Joe Montana legends growing. In other words the sports world was okay. Hell it was better than okay. It was thriving. We met a man named BO. We had Sugar Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler. The Mets were big in baseball. John McEnroe and Ivan Lendl were fierce rivals. Chrissie and Martina were opening the door for Steffi. Carl Lewis was God. Excess was the word and everyone was having fun. Jack Nicklaus won the Masters at age 46 and Hale Irwin had a magical run at it too. SPORTS was as Good as it gets...
This generation needs Lebron. Tiger does not connect to all people like people want him too. No matter how many golfing academies he opens or what he does for main stream America, people will always want more from him.  Baseball is treated like pro wrestling.  No one believes in any number put up or no one fully understands the P.E.D rage in the game. Football wants so badly for a new face to emerge because it is tired of re-tread coaches and old quarterbacks winning titles thus making all of the old boy network proud that their style of football still wins over this new age of football. Plus football players are wimps and are incapable of taking care of themselves. All of the new rules implemented to keep players safe or on the field have diminished the game to the point that fans would rather the players play flag football than to watch penalties called for hits that made players millions of dollars in previous year. Even Hockey is pushing harder for a more open ice/European style game. The story lines are more about concussions and players who fail than giving credit to the ones that have succeeded.
The NBA has been ridiculed over the past 15 years because they seemed to be more interested in just putting bodies on the floor instead of proven talent. Inviting 18 and 19 year old kids to play has hurt the game so much that teams have been moving at a feverish pace because of no fan support. Think about this, what other sport was given a mandate to dress up or improve your attire for press conferences before and after games? This couldn't be more insulting than any mandate that anyone could think of. Lebron is pure. Lebron is the savior of this generation.  He is Derek Jeter, Micheal Jordan, Joe Montana wrapped up in one enormous figure. He represents everyone. He is Tupac to most people because he is just like all of them. Raised by a single mom. Educated but has a street edge. He is the voice of this generation because no one is. RG3 could become that in football if he stays healthy. Tiger Woods showed that no one is perfect or teflon. Lebron has to keep quieting main stream America who resents him for making a choice. When he wins an entire generation wins because he took the short cut that so many want to take and is thriving. He is like Jay-z selling records out of his car and creating his own brand and company.  Jordan did it too, but he had Nike, gatorade, and other large corporations blow him up. (plus he was winning dunk contests, and doing the unimaginable at the same time). Lebron had one commercial run during the entire playoffs!!! Jordan had McDonalds, Gatorade, Nike, Wheaties, Hanes all going while he was at his highest peak. If that does not tell you why he must continue to grow and win, nothing else will....
Jordan is a much better player. He would average 45 points a game in this era. There are no obstructions to the rim in this era. No Bol.  No Shaq. No Olajawon. No Robinson. They hand checked back in those days. There was no flagrant fouls called in this series. Lerbon this new generation of fans needs you to keep being you. I hope you do...

swallowing the whistle is nothig new in all sports..

 I wrote a blog two months ago about whistle swallowing and I deleted last night because I could n't finish it. I know that it has been a part of sports for years. Remember the 2001 NBA playoffs. Dikembe Mutumbo never had any fouls called on him in the Eastern Conference playoff run. When he met up with Shaquille Oneal in the finals, if he sneezed it was a foul. This past football season, the Atlanta Falcon were denied a pass interference call the allowed the Niners to win the NFC championship game. Only the Niners lost the Super Bowl on a similar play when Crabtree was held in the endzone. This season in baseball has been marred by several blown calls by umpires. Baylor's womens basketball team had its championship dream ended on a no call to end that game. Coach Melky was so angry that she was willing to pay any amount of money for making comments about the officiating. We understand that Refs are people too.  They miss calls, they have bad judgement on some calls that is blatantly obvious to you and me. The homerun in the Oakland A's and Cleveland indians game is an example. We all saw it as a homerun. 4 umpires who watched the same replay did not. Armando Galarraga retired 26 straight batters in a game and when it appeared to the entire planet that number 27 was out too, the umpire screamed out safe. What do we do?
Clearly everyone is going to complain that the Spurs should have had a few free throws to eliminate the Heat tonight. Spur fans forget that Bruce Bowen grabbed Lebron James on a potential game winning shot where Lebron should have at least had free throws. He got nothing but swept aside. All pro sports put out its best officials for championship games or series. they try not to let the refs or umps be the story and want the players to determine the outcome. Did Jordan push off? Of course he did. But it wasn't called. Remember the 1985 World Series when the Cardinals thought they had won but the first base umpire called the runner safe at first? Making a tough call is why they have the guys there in the first place. If you can'tdo it or the moment is too big or bright for you then get out of the way. Game 6 will be remembered for the shot by Allen, the Missed free throws by Ginobli and Leonard, and of course the no calls in overtime. its a damn shame..