Sportadise

Middlebury College Gets Anonymous $20 Million Gift

2006-04-26T17:52:00.000-07:00

Middlebury College Gets Anonymous $20 Million Gift

I want an anonymous $20 million gift too.

Angry dad shoots at video game

2006-04-26T14:04:00.000-07:00

United Press International - NewsTrack - Angry dad shoots at video game

I know some people want to believe violent video games lead to violent behavior, but come on this is taking it a little to seriously.

CNN.com - Nutty: 43-year-old fruitcake found in attic - Apr 19, 2006

2006-04-24T16:57:00.000-07:00

CNN.com - Nutty: 43-year-old fruitcake found in attic - Apr 19, 2006

Dennis Miller Quotes

2006-04-24T14:55:00.000-07:00

Dennis Miller Quotes

A recent police study found that you're much more likely to get shot by a fat cop if you run

Baseball Mom Sleeps With Son's Teammate

2006-04-24T14:33:00.000-07:00

38 Year Old Mom Has Sex With Son's High School Teammate

Well she had needs I suppose. I can only imagine how fun the bus trips were with one player nailing a teammate's mother.

Monopoly to roll the dice and change its board: Report - Apr. 24, 2006

2006-04-24T14:22:00.000-07:00

Monopoly to roll the dice and change its board: Report - Apr. 24, 2006: "

Monopoly rolls dice, changes look

CNN.com - Two planes collide midair, killing 5 - Apr 24, 2006

2006-04-24T09:56:00.000-07:00

CNN.com - Two planes collide midair, killing 5

Isn't amazing this doesn't happen more often?

ESPN.com - Keith Hernandez Having Trouble Getting Over Elaine

2006-04-24T09:50:00.000-07:00

Keith Hernandez critical of woman's presence in dugout

Is he really so stupid that he didn't believe a comment like that would create a shitstorm for himself? I see it one of two ways, either he is in fact that stupid or he is just trying to get in the news whatever way he can.

ESPN.com - GOLF - Pocket aces for 58-year-old Massachusetts golfer

2006-04-21T11:47:00.000-07:00

ESPN.com - GOLF - Pocket aces for 58-year-old Massachusetts golfer

Now that is pretty damned impressive.

Note To Self #2

2006-04-20T17:56:00.000-07:00

Fuck Note To Self #1, just don't go into Property Law.

SI.com - NFL - Favre says McNair 'doesn't deserve' exile treatment

2006-04-20T17:55:00.000-07:00

SI.com - NFL - Favre says McNair 'doesn't deserve' exile treatment

Yeah Mr. Favre, can you please just shut the fuck up. You ran your best receiver out of town by commenting on why he shouldn't hold out, and now you feel the need to stick your nose in other team's business. You were a great player, but just retire and go do whatever retired football players do in backwoods Mississippi.

Note To Self #1

2006-04-20T17:47:00.000-07:00

If I choose to go into Property Law, move West of the Mississippi River.

Skeptic's Annotated Book of Mormon

2006-04-20T17:28:00.000-07:00

Skeptic's Annotated Book of Mormon

ESPN.com - NFL - Bengals give Johnson monster deal

2006-04-20T17:19:00.000-07:00

ESPN.com - NFL - Bengals give Johnson monster deal

Retiree Flushes Money Down Toilet - Yahoo! News

2006-04-20T17:11:00.000-07:00

Retiree Flushes Money Down Toilet - Yahoo! News

I guess the old addage an idiot and his money are easily seperated is especially true in application to elderly Germans.

Evidence - Outline

2006-04-20T15:44:00.000-07:00

Evidence - Outline

Miller to introduce self-cooling beer cans next year

2006-04-20T15:26:00.000-07:00

Miller to introduce self-cooling beer cans next year - Engadget

Now that is just fucking cool!

SI.com - Soccer - U.S. international Beasley to face drunk driving charges - Thursday April 20, 2006 12:50PM

2006-04-20T15:25:00.000-07:00

SI.com - Soccer - U.S. international Beasley to face drunk driving charges - Thursday April 20, 2006

How about we change the culture of soccer? Seriously, I mean how can we let our children idolize people who drive drunk?

Changing the Culture of Lacrosse.........LMAO

2006-04-20T15:22:00.000-07:00

SI.com - More Sports - John Yeager: Changing the lacrosse culture - Thursday April 20, 2006

Yeah, the culture of lacrosse is just fine. Obviously what the players at Duke did was completely unacceptable, but lets be honest, that is the rarity. Unfortunately most Americans are too mother fucking stupid to know that. I played High Lacrosse, College Lacrosse, Club Lacrosse, and was offered a professional contract to play lacrosse in Australia. I am gonna go out on a limb and call John Yeager a fucking idiot. Yes, lacrosse players party hard. Yes, there is probably a good part of the culture of the sport that most retarded Americans would find appauling.

Now a history lesson for these fucking tools. Lacrosse has been around longer than any sport in North America, stemming back from the Native Americans. It was known as the game of war, Indian tribes would settle disputes with a not so friendly game, featuring a rock for a ball and a field often measuring over one mile long. How do you think they unwound from a game? Whereas I don't have any imperical evidence I am going to go out on a limb and say they partied their loin cloth wearing asses off after a win. As such, that very culture pre-dates our own American culture, so how about we shut our semi-retarded mouth and leave the sport the fuck alone.

I do feel horrible for this girl, and I honestly believe the NCAA should look into taking action against Duke University (yeah, I know they won't, it is Duke afterall). But what good is a grass roots effort going to do to change the culture of a sport that is older than the United States of America? Lacrosse is about playing a violent sport and partying hard. It has been that way since well before Europeans found this country, and it will be that way until the sun burns out in 5 billion years. Most lacrosse players don't commit gang rapes, apparently only a select few at Duke.

I wrote a couple of weeks ago about what I thought would happen to the growth of lacrosse stemming from the Duke Scandal. I am sure it will take a hit, largely because your average soccer mom is too stupid to seperate the indiscretions of 2 to 3 depraved individuals from the rest of the people who play the sport. I didn't see these ass hats calling for a change in the culture of basketball after Kobe Bryant made a girl in Colorado kiss his penis. Of course had there been an outcry for this, it would likely have been seen as racially motivated. I guess though when it is a sport that is largely comprised of upper class white people and something happens we should change the culture. Wow, what a great world we live in.................

CNN.com - Uncle Kenny's dungeon inspires crackdown - Apr 20, 2006

2006-04-20T15:07:00.000-07:00

CNN.com - Uncle Kenny's dungeon inspires crackdown - Apr 20, 2006

Okay, now lets be honest, you didn't think something was wrong when your children were hanging out with a grown adult who lived in a trailer park? Uh huh....... Note to self, start pyramid scheme in Hartsville, SC.

Brat Child Gets $221,000 Settlement

2006-04-20T15:02:00.000-07:00

City of Espanola, NM Jailed Student Settlement

City of Espanola, NMIn August 2004, 8-year-old Jerry Trujillo was sent to the school counselor's office after he hit another child with a basketball. Jerry then allegedly went out of control and refused to return to class. The police were summoned; they handcuffed the third grader and took him to the city jail where he was dressed in an orange jumpsuit and placed in a holding cell while adult inmates in a nearby cell taunted him. The Trujillo family filed a lawsuit against the city and was awarded a $221,000 settlement.

That'll teach the little brat won't it? Let's see, the kid commits Assault & Battery on a classmate, goes bonkers in the principal's office and needs to be arrested, and his family is compensated with over $200k. Seriously, bring that shit to trial, no way a jury awards more than that, especially if you play up the annoying child angle. I mean really, how many people would love to see annoying children sent to a jail, I know I would, and I am sure the average juror would too.

KRT Wire | 04/11/2006 | Soft drink makers sued over possible benzene threat

2006-04-20T14:57:00.000-07:00

KRT Wire | 04/11/2006 | Soft drink makers sued over possible benzene threat

CNN.com - Court tosses 'Friends' lawsuit - Apr 20, 2006

2006-04-20T14:55:00.001-07:00

CNN.com - Court tosses 'Friends' lawsuit

Baylor Threatens Disciplinary Action If Coeds Pose In Playboy....

2006-04-20T14:55:00.000-07:00

Oddly Enough News Article | Reuters.com: "

SAN ANTONIO (Reuters) - Baylor University in Waco, Texas, which bills itself as the world's largest Baptist college, has threatened to discipline female students if they pose for Playboy magazine, which is trying to recruit models from the college.Playboy photographers came to Baylor's hometown seeking models for a photo spread on women of the Big 12 college athletic conference, of which the college is a member.Baylor Vice President for Student Life Samuel W. Oliver sent an e-mail to women students this week warning that any who 'associate' with Playboy would be subject to the university's disciplinary processes.'Playboy is clearly antithetical to Baylor's mission and associating with the magazine would be a violation of the code of conduct,' Oliver wrote in the e-mail. University officials said punishment could include suspension.Baylor, known for its conservative outlook, did not allow dancing on campus until 10 years ago.A spokesman for Playboy declined to comment on the e-mail.The threatened punishment was met with a yawn by students on campus.One woman, who professed no desire to pose for Playboy, said Baylor officials had 'more important things to worry about' and wondered if male students would face similar punishment if they were seen reading an issue of Playboy featuring Baylor women.

49ers, Broncos swap picksSan Francisco moves up to get Denvers' first-rounder

2006-04-19T15:19:00.000-07:00

SI.com - 2006 NFL Draft - 49ers add additional first-round pick

59 Things a Man Should Never Do Past 30

2006-04-19T14:37:00.000-07:00

59 Things a Man Should Never Do Past 30

1. Coin his own nickname.

2. Use a wallet that is fastened with Velcro.

3. Rank his friends in order of best, second best, and so on.

4. Hacky sack.

5. Name his penis his name plus junior.

6. Hang art with tape.

7. Hang The Scream, unless he stole it from the Munch museum in Oslo.

8. Ask a policeman, "You ever shoot anybody with that thing?"

9. Ask a woman, "Hey, you got a license for that ass?"

10. Skip.

11. Take a camera to a nude beach.

12. Let his father do his taxes.

13. Tap on the glass.

14. Shout out a response to "Are you ready to rock?"

15. Use the word collated on his resume.

16. Hold a weekly house meeting with roommates.

17. Name pets after Middle Earth characters.

18. Jokingly flash gang signs while posing for wedding photos.

19. Give shout-outs.

20. Use numbers in place of words or locations, such as "the 411" for information, or "the 313" for Detroit.

21. Hug amusement-park characters.

22. Wear Disney-themed neckties.

23. Wake up to a "morning zoo."

24. Compare the trajectory of his life with those of the characters in Billy Joel's "Scenes from an Italian Restaurant."

25. Request extra sprinkles.

26. Air drum.

27. Choose 69 as his jersey number.

28. Eat Oreo cookies in stages.

29. Volunteer to be a magician's assistant.

30. Sleep on a bare mattress.

31. End a conversation with "later skater."

32. Hold his lighter up at a concert.

33. Publicly greet friends by shouting, "What's up, you whore?"

34. Wear Converse All Stars with a tuxedo.

35. Propose via stadium Jumbotron.

36. Decide anything based on the ruminations of Howard Stern.

37. Call "shotgun" before getting in a car.

38. Dispute someone else's call of "shotgun."

39. Whine.

40. Mist up during Aerosmith's "Dream On."

41. Purchase fireworks.

42. Google the word vagina.

43. Ride a pony.

44. Sport an ironic mustache.

45. Hit 13 against a 6.

46. Organize a party bus.

47. Say "two points" every time he throws something in the trash.

48. Buy a novelty postcard in another country of topless women on a beach and write, "Wish you were here" on it.

49. Keg stands.

50. Purchase home-brewing paraphernalia.

51. The John Travolta point-to-the-ceiling-point-to-the-floor dance move; also that one from Pulp Fiction.

52. Put less than ten dollars' worth of gas in the tank.

53. Keep a minuscule amount of marijuana extremely well hidden.

54. Read The Fountainhead.

55. Watch the Pink Floyd laser light show at a planetarium.

56. Refer to his girlfriend's breasts as "the twins."

57. Own a vanity plate.

58. Whippits.

59. Say goodbye to anyone by tapping his chest and even so much as whispering, "Peace out."

Top 5 Things You Should Never Buy

2006-04-19T14:33:00.000-07:00

SCI FI Tech Link

Sadly I was dumb enough to buy expensive cables for my Xbox, but I still think they were worth it. I also bought a refurbished lap top from Dell and have had no regrets.

CNN.com - 'Suspicious device' found at Atlanta airport - Apr 19, 2006

2006-04-19T12:48:00.000-07:00

CNN.com - 'Suspicious device' found at Atlanta airport

Yahoo accused of helping jail Internet writer - Apr 19, 2006

2006-04-19T12:13:00.000-07:00

Yahoo accused of helping jail Internet writer

American International College, the worst lacrosse program in America?

2006-04-19T11:42:00.000-07:00

I say yes.

Here is a link to their schedule this season (it says 2005 in the link, but it is the 2006 schedule)

Here are the results for those too lazy to click the link.
3/21 Assumption 17 - AIC 1
3/25 Saint Michael's 13 - AIC 3
3/27 Merrimack 17 - AIC 1
3/29 Bryant 20 - AIC 0
4/3 Saint Anslem 18 - AIC 3
4/6 Pace 17 - AIC 2
4/9 Bentley 19 - AIC 1
4/18 LeMoyne 22 - AIC 0

Total Opponents 143 - AIC 11

So they have scored 2 less goals on the season than SMC scored against them, and that was their closest game (WTF SMC?). They have 2 games left vs. Franklin Pierce and Southern New Hampshire, can they win a game? This person says no.

Saint Michael's College 11 - Assumption 8

2006-04-19T11:40:00.000-07:00

SMC Link

Go Purple Knights!

How Hard Can It Be To Rob A Bank?: In Western Mass, Pretty Damned Easy

2006-04-19T11:22:00.000-07:00

From The Greenfield Recorder, my commentary below the italicized article.

Can it be that easy to rob a bank? Police say ‘yes,’ but safety is their main concern

By GEORGE W. CLAXTON, Recorder Staff

GREENFIELD — The day after police say the same man robbed his third bank in Franklin County within a week, police Capt. John Newton was asked why it seems so easy to rob banks in Greenfield.

“It’s easy to rob banks everywhere,” he replied.

Because most bankers don’t want to risk a shootout in a building full of customers, they generally wait until the robbers have left the bank before notifying the police.

In the case of the robbery of the TD Banknorth in Greenfield on Monday, for example, witnesses say that the workers in the bank held off until they saw the robber walk away before they called the police.

It was the second time in a week that the bank was robbed by a note-wielding man who slipped away through downtown streets before police arrived.

Police are looking for Max E. Churchill, 25, of 361 Route 8A, Heath, identifying him as a suspect in all three bank heists in the past week in the county.

“In the end, it’s better that way because the last thing you want is to have an armed and desperate person in a building full of innocent people.

“That’s why there are no armed guards in banks anymore. It’s not that it wasn’t cost effective, it’s just that people were getting hurt,” Newton said.

The captain said that it is every police officer’s nightmare to have an armed man in a room full of hostages.

“In the greater scheme of things, it’s property versus lives.

“They may get an amount of money, but in the long run they’re going to get caught. The vast majority of these guys get caught,” he said.

John Hall, spokesman for the American Bankers Association, agrees with Newton.

“Three out of four bank robbers do get caught within 18 months of their crime. These are not rational people; your chances of getting caught are very high and the amount of money that you are likely to get is very small,” he said.

According to Hall, 50 percent of bank robberies are committed by drug users who need money to feed their habits.

Bank security

Most banks, Hall said, have a standard series of security measures that they employ as a matter of course to retard crime.

“They do simple things such as making sure the tellers monitor their cash amounts and make regular deposits so that they never have too much in their drawers. They use time locks on the safe so that it varies the time that it opens and no one can open it in-between.

“They also vary the pattern in which they open the doors to the bank and the times at which they open the doors. The key is not to make things repetitive. Thieves don’t like variation,” he said.

Hall also said that having armed guards in a bank is a bad idea.

“Most security experts say that anytime you introduce a gun into the lobby, you vastly increase the chance of gunplay, ricocheting bullets and the like.

“In any robbery situation, the bank’s number one priority is making sure that everyone is safe. That’s not negotiable,” he said.

Because there are so few guns in use in banks around the country, Hall says, injuries occur in less than 2 percent of bank robberies.

“In places where they have a lot of robberies, banks will sometimes station armed guards outside of the bank as a deterrent. It works because they don’t want these guys in the bank in the first place,” he said.

According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the northeastern United States, which had an estimated 18.6 percent of the country’s population in 2004, accounted for 19.5 percent of the nation’s robberies. However, the estimated number of robberies in the region declined by about 3.3 percent from what it was in 2003.

FBI statistics say that of the robberies in the northeast, only 3.6 percent are bank robberies, almost twice as many robberies, 6.7 percent, occur at convenience stores. The largest percentage of robberies, 53.2 percent, occur on streets and highways.

Gail Marcinkiewicz, an FBI special agent, said that bank robberies in the state last year were down slightly from 2004, but saw a major drop since 2003.

“In Massachusetts alone, there were 190 bank robberies in 2005, 193 bank robberies in 2004 and 250 bank robberies in 2003,” she said.

Federal courts

The FBI has been called in to assist on the most recent robberies in Franklin County because bank robbery is a federal offense.

According to a spokeswoman from the United States Attorney’s Office, the penalty for robbing a bank is quite variable.

“The short answer is 20 years for unarmed robbery and 25 years for armed robbery, but it would depend on what is involved, guns, other factors,” she said.

The guidelines for federal sentencing set a base offense level which is then modified by such things as the brandishing of a dangerous weapon that is not a firearm, the use or display of a firearm, the discharge of a firearm, injury sustained by any victim and the seriousness of the injury.

According to the federal guidelines, the judge can also consider the criminal history of the defendant and add points for previous incarcerations and can take into account whether the current crime was committed while the thief was on probation or on work release.

Given the conditions of the three robberies in Franklin County this month, the threat of a firearm could raise the base offense level to 25 years.

Under state law, a person found guilty of armed robbery can be sent to prison for any number of years up to life behind bars.

This month’s robberies

Since April 11, there have been three bank robberies in Franklin County. Two were robberies of the same branch of TD Banknorth in Greenfield and the third was at the Sunderland branch of Greenfield Co-operative Bank on Amherst Road last Saturday.

According to police, in all three cases a tall white man walked into the bank, handed a teller a note suggesting that he had a gun, took the money and left.

Using forensic evidence, police say that they have identified the thief as Churchill, and he is now wanted in all three incidents on charges of armed robbery.

Churchill is described as a white man 6 feet 3 inches tall with brown hair and green eyes.

According to police, during the robbery of the Greenfield TD Banknorth on April 11, Churchill was sporting a mustache and a goatee, but he may have shaved off his facial hair since then.

Police say that on Monday, after escaping from the area of the bank in downtown Greenfield, Churchill drove the stolen car he was using to the town of Whately, where he abandoned it. Investigators think that he must have had another vehicle waiting there, or someone waiting to give him a ride.

The Saturday Sunderland robber also used a stolen vehicle to drive to Whately where a swap apparently was made.

“We know there are a series of people helping him and running him around. These people have been doing nothing to help us find this guy and they have to understand that he is going to jail and if they help him, so are they,” said Greenfield Police Chief David Guilbault.

The chief said that he is worried that if the bank robberies continue someone will eventually get hurt.

“I don’t want that to happen. This is just foolishness and it needs to stop,” he said angrily.

Police request that anyone who may have any information concerning the whereabouts of Churchill or any information concerning the robberies contact them at (413) 773-5411 or (413) 774-3186 and ask for the detective bureau.

Local representatives of TD Banknorth were not available for comment after the robbery.

However, Leslie Roberts a spokeswoman for the Portland, Maine-based bank, said officials were relieved that no one had been hurt.

“As a rule, other than to confirm that it happened, we can’t comment on something that’s still under investigation,” she said.

“The safety of our employees and customers are at the top of our minds. We have a security program in place. Our regular employees are trained, and we keep our security system upgraded. We’re cooperative with authorities,” Roberts added. “We’re thankful that everybody’s fine.”

MY COMMENTARY
I live in Western Massachusetts, one town over from these bank robberies. If I am being honest, the cops in our area borderline on retarded at best. I would use the word incompetent, but I don't want to insult incompetent people around the world. I would never rob a bank, but if I were to pick a locale to do it, Franklin County, Massachusetts would be near the top of my list. We don't have a lot of crime, the way say Detroit does, or even Hampden County, Massachusetts (Springfield & Holyoke), so the cops aren't the most street toughened units you will find. Typically, people will begin their jobs as Police Officers before ever attending the Massachusetts Police Academy. Most have some Community College, some just a high school diploma, some have an actual four year college education, but those are by far the minority. As such I would be remiss in saying they are qualified to actually perform the duties of this rather important job, and are often ill prepared for the realities of the world. Hopefully this comes to an end soon, given that the geniuses robbing banks aren't exactly the highest quality, given the latest assclown didn't even obscure his face. That being said, people are learning how easy it is, which could create some more serious problems. Hopefully this is turned over to a higher authority soon enough.

Duke Rape Indictment - April 18, 2006

2006-04-19T11:15:00.000-07:00

Duke Rape Indictment

From TheSmokingGun.com

CNN.com - Cruise, Holmes welcome daughter Suri - Apr 19, 2006

2006-04-19T11:12:00.000-07:00

CNN.com - Cruise, Holmes welcome daughter Suri

What's the oldest cold case ever solved?

2006-04-19T11:03:00.000-07:00

What's the oldest cold case ever solved?

Is globalization destined to fail? - Editorials & Commentary - International Herald Tribune

2006-04-19T10:52:00.000-07:00

Is globalization destined to fail? - Editorials & Commentary - International Herald Tribune: ""

Hilarious Blog Post

2006-04-19T09:57:00.000-07:00

Trying to get a refund on a video game...or, My policy differs from yours

CNN.com - Judge: Doctors not required to report teen sex - Apr 18, 2006

2006-04-18T15:51:00.000-07:00

CNN.com - Judge: Doctors not required to report teen sex - Apr 18, 2006: "

Judge: Doctors not required to report teen sex

Coach on DVD - 6/13/06

2006-04-18T06:59:00.000-07:00

Coach (TV series) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

From the bottom of its Wikipedia page.

THE GENERAL LAWS OF MASSACHUSETTS

2006-04-18T06:52:00.000-07:00

THE GENERAL LAWS OF MASSACHUSETTS

You never know when you'll need them I suppose. Plus I am playing with a new Firefox extension that makes blogging about my web finds a piece of cake.

Baseball Mogul 2007 Demo

2006-04-18T06:43:00.000-07:00

Baseball Mogul 2007 Demo Now Available (30mb)

UVM student activists, faculty respond to last week's eviction of demonstrators from UVM Green

2006-04-18T06:38:00.000-07:00

UVM Students Protesting Again

I guess they needed to do something to entertain them between now and Thursday. I remember when I was a kid a bunch of white kids at UVM held a sit in at the President's office over the lack of diversity on campus. I know on its face it sounds like a good cause, but the problem was the University of Vermont is the major state university of a state that at the time was 99.5% caucasian and there were next to no minorities applying to the school from out of state.

Major League Baseball : News : Major League Baseball News

2006-04-18T06:31:00.000-07:00

Major League Baseball : News : Major League Baseball News: "

Fan arrested for throwing tube at Bonds

Man reportedly upset over not getting autograph years ago

"

So when he was 7 years old Bonds refused to sign an autograph and he has been holding a grudge ever since. So does anyone actually believe he isn't a virgin?

Warchant.com - Bowden reviews FSU's spring practice

2006-04-18T06:28:00.000-07:00

Warchant.com - Bowden reviews FSU's spring practice: "

Bobby Bowden is making his annual Booster Tour. The Head Seminole made a stop on the First Coast on Monday to play golf at the Jacksonville Golf and Country Club. Warchant.com caught up with Coach Bowden to discuss his impressions of the recently concluded spring practices and of course, his golf game.

ESPN: The Worldwide Leader In Sports

2006-04-18T06:23:00.000-07:00

ESPN: The Worldwide Leader In Sports:

Two Arrests In Duke Lacrosse Case A day after two sealed indictments were issued, two 20-year-old Duke University lacrosse players were arrested early Tuesday on charges of rape, sexual offense and kidnapping, a jail official said.

NFL Draft Analysis: Ernie Sims III

2006-04-17T12:26:00.000-07:00

Ernie Sims, LB, Florida State

Coming out of high school in 2003, the Tallahassee, FL native was the number one ranked player in America. With these accolades comes increased pressure, and this pressure was only exponentially increased when Sims signed with hometown favorite FSU. To say Sims was disappointing at FSU would be unfair, but probably true. Coming into FSU he was undersized to play Linebacker and in my opinion he should have been moved to Rover (Strong Safety by NFL terminology) early on. However, he was left at linebacker. He had a solid freshman season for FSU and followed it up with a good sophomore season. However late in the seasons teams like N.C. State and Clemson showed off his weaknesses by running right at him. Sims was too small to take on blockers in the ACC, and that likely won’t change in the NFL.

To be successful in the NFL, I think Sims will need to follow in the footsteps of Carnell Lake or Adam Archuleta and change positions early on. He has tremendous cover skills as he displayed vs. Maryland, holding Vernon Davis to 1 reception for 8 yards while in man to man coverage, he also further showed that with an impressive interception that sealed victory for FSU.

My overall analysis would have Sims going in the late first round to a team with an established Strong Safety whom could teach Sims the position. New England with Rodney Harrison would be the perfect fit, however he will likely to earlier and play Linebacker where he will likely struggle and become a bust.

2005 Draft Preview

2006-04-17T11:27:00.000-07:00

Well everyone and their uncle as posted a 'Mock Draft' by now, so instead of doing that I'll give my opinion on players and what strengthes and weaknesses I see in each player.

Reggie Bush, RB, Southern California

In my opinion he is the best looking running back prospect to come into the NFL since Barry Sanders in 1989. He has jaw dropping moves, breath taking speed, and eye popping field vision. On top of those tangibles, he can play RB, WR, and be a return specialist. Houston could not ask for a more talented nor diversed player with their number one selection.
However, there is a concern of durability. He wasn't the classic work horse back in college splitting carries with both Herschel Dennis and LenDale White. He also had a lot of pressure taken off of him by the prolific passing game with Matt Leinart, Dwayne Jarrett, Steve Smith, and Dominique Byrd. However, that could also be a major plus for him, as his body hasn't taken the beating that other players have, such as DeAngelo Williams of Memphis. This could of course only serve to prolong his career in the long run.

Vince Young, QB, Texas

Of all the players with the potential to go in the Top 10, Young is the one who would give me the greatest reasons for concern (especially with LenDale White falling to the bottom of the First Round). Young was an amazing player for Texas, there is no doubting that. I don’t think there was a player in America, including Reggie Bush that gave opposing Defensive Coordinators more terrifying nightmares. You had to take in his ability to tuck and run on every play, but you also had to account the skill position talent Texas possessed. You could focus on stopping Young from running, but would open up the passing game.

In the NFL, you will need to take these factors into account but given the level of athlete you see at Linebacker, Young’s threat to run will be greatly diminished. Add to that, the coverage skills of NFL Defensive Backs is exponentially greater than that of the Defensive Backs Texas faced in 2005. So you are left with a player with a ceiling that is out of sight, but whom could also be a huge bust. Young will need the right offense to succeed, you cannot bottle him up in the West Coast Offense like Atlanta has done with Michael Vick, but at the same time if you run the offense Texas did you will just get killed with how simple it would be for an NFL Defensive Coordinator to take dissect. If I am Tennessee sitting at number three, I cannot pull the trigger with a player with a lower ceiling but less bust potential like Matt Leinart available to me. However, if Leinart goes to New Orleans at number 2, then passing on Young with Steve McNair’s future in the air could be fatal to a struggling franchise.

Kamerion Wimbley, DE, Florida State

I do not believe that there is a more interesting player in this draft than Wimbley. He didn’t start at Florida State until his senior year, backing up Eric Moore and Chauncey Davis previously to this past season. He had a strong senior season, but nothing too spectacular. However, he has been a beast in workouts, and like DeMarcus Ware in 2005, he has soared up most teams’ draft boards. So now the question must be asked if he is in fact this year’s DeMarcus Ware, or if he is another Mike Mamula. I have seen him play the past 4 years and I cannot honestly answer the question. I just don’t see the body of work to make this judgment. He was a backup, albeit to current NFL players, but they went much lower than Wimbley is projected to go. I am reading teams see him as an Outside Linebacker in a 3-4 scheme and a rush end in a 4-3. Former FSU Defensive End Peter Boulware made the switch successfully, however Reinard Wilson was unable to make the transition. I think Wimbley has first round talent, but he scares me a lot as a potential bust because of the Mamula-esque way he has become a premier prospect.

Biggest Busts in NFL Draft History

2006-04-14T12:09:00.000-07:00

With the Draft 2 weeks a way this could be interesting to discuss. Here is ny definition of bust, a player taken in Round 1 who never came close to living up to their potential and subsequent draft positon. I would say 2003 is a good place to start.

2003 Busts
#2, Charles Rogers, WR, Lions
#14, Michael Haynes, DE, Bears
#15, Jerome McDougle, DE, Eagles
#17, Bryant Johnson, WR, Cardinals
#19, Kyle Boller, QB, Ravens
#30, Sammy Davis, CB, Chargers
#31, Nnamdi Asomugha, CB, Raiders
#32, Tyler Brayton, DE, Raiders

Given that players like Boss Bailey, Eugene Wilson, Anquan Boldin, and Mike Doss went in Round 2, these picks look even worse.

2002 Busts
#3, Joey Harrington, QB, Lions
#16, William Green, RB, Browns
#17, Phillip Buchanon, CB, Raiders
#22, Bryan Thomas, DE, Jets (why'd they pick him with Ellis and Abraham?)
#32, Patrick Ramsey, QB, Redskins (major reach)

Green looks particularly bad given that Clinton Portis went #51 overall. The QB picks aren't awful given how bad of a class it was, but considering Harrington was almost the #1 overall pick and is now out in Detroit it doesn't protect him from bust status.

2001 Busts
#3 Gerard Warren, DE, Browns (over Richard Seymour)
#8 David Terrell, WR, Bears
#10 Jamal Reynolds, DE, Packers
#14 Kenyatta Walker, T, Florida
#15 Rod Gardner, WR, Redskins (over Santana Moss, good call!)
#24 Willie Middlebrooks, CB, Broncos
#25 Freddie Mitchell, WR, Eagles
#26 Jamar Fletcher, CB, Dolphins

Second round picks included Drew Brees, Chad Johnson, Alge Crumpler, Kris Jenkins, Fred Smoot, Lamont Jordan, Chris Chambers, Todd Light, and Shaun Rogers. Hell, the second round produced more elite players than the 1st did. In Round 3 we saw Steve Smith go and then Rudi Johnson in Round 4.

2000 Busts
#1 Courtney Brown, DE, Browns (Noticing a trend of Browns picks?)
#4 Peter Warrick, WR, Bengals
#10 Travis Taylor, WR, Ravens
#11 Ron Dayne, RB, Giants
#17 Sebastian Janikowski, K, Raiders
#21 Sylvester Morris, WR, Chiefs
#26 Erik Flowers, DE, Bills
#29 R. Jay Soward, WR, Jaguars
#31 Trung Canidate, RB, Rams

Round 2 saw players the likes of Darren Howard, Mike Brown, Jerry Porter, and Deon Grant. Round 3 had Lav Coles, Darrell Jackson, and Reuben Droughns. So this was a good year for WRs, just not in Round 1.

1999 Busts
#1 Tim Couch, QB, Browns (wonder why they suck?)
#3 Akili Smith, QB, Bengals
#12 Cade McNown, QB, Bears
#13 Troy Edwards, WR, Steelers
#28 Andy Katzenmoyer, LB, Patriots (over Patrick Kearney and Al Wilson)
#29 Dimitrius Underwood, DE, Vikings (major reach)

Round 2 featured Jon Jansen, Dre' Bly, Peerless Price and Round 3 had Joey Porter.

1998 Busts
#2 Ryan Leaf, QB, Chargers (and they traded up for him!)
#3 Andre Wadsworth, DE, Cardinals (could that be the worst trade ever?)
#5 Curtis Enis, RB, Bears (over Fred Taylor)
#16 Kevin Dyson, WR, Titans (over Randy Moss)
#18 Robert Edwards, RB, Patriots (He was hurt in college all the time too)
#19 Vonnie Holliday, DE, Packers
#24 Shaun Williams, S, Giants (right before Donovan Darius)
#29 John Avery, RB, Dolphins
#30 Marcus Nash, WR, Broncos

Round 2 wasn't great but did have Tony Parrish and Samari Rolle. Round 3 had Ahman Green, Hines Ward, Brian Griese, and despite the off the field problems Leonard Little

1997 Busts
#5 Bryant Westbrook, CB, Lions
#7 Ike Hilliard, WR, Giants
#9 Tom Knight, CB, Cardinals
#11 Michael Booker, DB, Falcons (all of whom before Tony Gonzalez)
#14 Reinard Wilson, DE, Bengals
#15 Yatil Green, WR, Dolphins
#16 Reidel Anthony, WR, Buccaneers
#22 David LaFleur, TE, Cowboys
#25 Jon Harris, DE, Eagles (before Trevor Pryce)
#26 Jim Druckenmiller, QB, 49ers
#27 Rae Carruth, WR, Panthers (okay, he was pretty good before killing someone)
#29 Chris Canty, CB, Patriots

Round 2 had Jamie Sharper, Tiki Barber, Jake Plummer, Corey Dillon, Sam Madison, Marcellus Wiley, and Darren Sharper.
Round 3 had Dexter Coakley, Ronde Barber, and Jason Taylor.

1996 Busts
#5 Cedric Jones, DE, Giants
#6 Lawrence Phillips, RB, Rams
#8 Tim Biakabutuka, RB, Panthers (both before Eddie George)
#9 Rickey Dudley, TE, Raiders
#18 Eddie Kennison, WR, Rams (right before Marvin Harrison)
#22 Marcus Jones, DT, Buccaneers (before Ray Lewis)

Round 2 had Tony Brackens, Amani Toomer, Mike Alstott, Lawyer Milloy, Muhsin Muhammad, and Brian Dawkins.
Round 3 had Tedy Bruschi and Terrell Owens.
Round 4 had Donnie Edwards and Earl Holmes
Round 5 had Marcus Coleman, Joe Horn, Zach Thomas, and Patrick Jeffers

1995 Busts
#1 Ki-Jana Carter, RB, Bengals
#4 Michael Westbrook, RB, Redskins
#7 Mike Mamula, DE, Eagles
#10 J.J. Stokes, WR, 49ers
#11 Derrick Alexander, DE, Vikings (right before Warren Sapp)
#21 Rashaan Salaam, RB, Bears (over Ty Law)
#26 Devin Bush, S, Falcons (over Derrick Brooks)
#30 Craig Powell, LB, Browns/Ravens

Round 2 wasn't great but had Ken Dilger, Bobby Taylor, and Ted Johnson.
Round 3 had Curtis Martin and Antonio Freeman
Round 6 had Terrell Davis

1994 Busts
#1 Dan Wilkinson, DT, Bengals (over Marshall Faulk)
#3 Heath Shuler, QB, Redskins (over Willie McGinest)
#5 Trev Alberts, LB, Colts
#10 Jamir Miller, LB, Cardinals
#11 John Thierry, DE/LB, Bears
#23 Shante Carver, DE, Cowboys
#25 Greg Hill, RB, Chiefs
#27 Jeff Burris, DB, Bills

Round 2 had Tre Johnson, Isaac Bruce, Kevin Mawae, Bert Emanuel, and Charlie Garner
Round 6 had Kimo von Oelhoffen
Round 7 had Jamal Anderson and Tom Nalen

1993 Busts
#2 Rick Mirer, QB, Seahawks
#5 John Copeland, DE, Bengals
#6 Eric Curry, DE, Buccaneers

Round 2 had Michael Strahan, Michael Barrow, and Darrin Smith
Round 3 had Jason Elam, Will Shields, and John Lynch
Round 4 had Lorenzo Neal
Round 5 had Mark Brunell
Round 6 had Frank Wycheck
Round 7 had Brock Marion
Round 8 had Troy Brown, Craig Hentrich, Jessie Armstead, Blaine Bishop, Elvis Grbac, and Trent Green

1992 Busts
#1 Steve Emtman, DT, Colts
#5 Terrell Buckley, CB, Packers
#6 David Klingler, QB, Bengals
#21 Vaughn Dunbar, RB, Saints
#25 Tommy Maddox, QB, Broncos (Resurrected his career, but he was a bust)

Round 2 had Carl Pickens, Jimmy Smith, Darren Woodson, Levon Kirkland, Phillippi Sparks, Eddie Robinson, and Jason Hanson
Round 3 had Robert Brooks and Joel Steed
Round 4 had Edgar Bennett
Round 5 had Dwayne Sabb, Ed McDaniel, and Santana Dotson
Round 6 had Mark Chmura and Jeff Blake
Round 9 had Brad Johnson and Ty Detmer
Round 10 had Brad Culpepper

1991 Busts
#7 Charles McRae, T, Buccaneers
#8 Antone Davis, T, Eagles
#16 Dan McGwire, QB, Seahawks
#24 Todd Marinovichm, QB, Raiders

Round 2 had Roman Phifer, Brett Favre, and Ricky Watters
Round 4 had Aeneas Williams, Mo Lewis, Erik Williams, and Ed McCaffrey
Round 4 had Yancey Thigpen and Raghib Ismail
Round 5 had Bryan Cox, Merton Hanks, and Ben Coates
Round 7 had Leon Lett
Round 12 had Keenan McCardell

1990 Busts
#1 Jeff George, QB, Colts
#2 Blair Thomas, RB, Jets (Emmitt Smith went #17, way to go Jets!)
#4 Keith McCants, LB, Buccaneers
#7 Andre Ware, QB, Lions

Round 2 had Keith Sims and LeRoy Butler
Round 3 had Ricky Proehl and Neil O'Donnell
Round 4 had Chris Warren, Scott Mitchell, and Chris Calloway
Round 5 had Larry Centers, Barry Foster, and Brian Mitchell
Round 7 had Shannon Sharpe
Round 11 had Bill Goldberg (yes the wrestler)
Round 12 had Matt Stover

Much further back stretches my memory of who was a bust and who wasn't, but I'll attempt 1989.

1989 Busts
#2 Tony Mandarich, T, Packers (over Barry Sanders, Deion Sanders, and Derrick Thomas)
#8 Burt Grossman, DE, Chargers
#16 Hart Lee Dykes, WR, Patriots (over Steve Atwater)

Round 2 had Steve Wisniewski, Carnell Lake, Darly Johnston, and Robert Massey
Round 3 had Mark Stepnoski, Marv Cook, Jerry Fontenot, and Bubba McDowell
Round 4 had Tony Tolbert and Ray Crockett
Round 5 had Jeff Uhlenhake and Dave Meggett
Round 6 had Rodney Peete and Chris Jacke
Round 7 had Marion Butts
Round 8 had Pete Stoyanovich

2005-2006 All-ACC Basketball Team

2006-03-07T14:33:00.000-08:00

The 2005-2006 All-ACC Team has been revealed and is as follows:
First Team

Tyler Hansbrough, North Carolina
J.J. Redick, Duke
Shelden Williams, Duke
Craig Smith, Boston College
Sean Singletary, Virginia

Second Team

Al Thornton, Florida State
Guillermo Diaz, Miami
Justin Gray, Wake Forest
Jared Dudley, Boston College
David Noel, North Carolina

Third Team

Eric Williams, Wake Forest
Cameron Bennerman, NC State
Robert Hite, Miami
Nik Caner-Medley, Maryland
J.R. Reynolds, Virginia
Reyshawn Terry, North Carolina

Honorable Mention

Anthony Morrow, Georgia Tech
Alexander Johnson, Florida State
Cedric Simmons, NC State
Zabian Dowdell, Virginia Tech
Coleman Collins, Virginia Tech

Can someone please tell me how FSU swingman Al Thornton isn't on the First Team? No player has been more valuable to his team this year in the ACC, and that includes J.J. Redick of Duke. Good call retards, but what more can be expected from the same idiots who didn't call FSU Quarterback Drew Weatherford the ACC Newcomer of the Year.

R.I.P. Kirby Puckett

2006-03-07T14:19:00.000-08:00

ESPN.com Link

Kirby Puckett is one of the most unlikely Hall of Famers I have ever seen. Baseball-Reference.com lists him at 5'8 and 210 lbs, and we know they are being generous on his weight. He was the ultimate definition of a 'scrappy' player. He took his limited physical gifts and parlayed them into enshrinement in Cooperstown. His gritty play helped lead the Minnesota Twins to wins in the 1987 and 1991 World Series. Sadly his career was cut short when he was hit in the face by a fastball by Dennis Martinez, however the usually fickle Cooperstown voters elected him anyway.

His career stats are as follows, a .318 batting average, 2,304 hits, 207 homeruns, 1085 RBI, and 134 stolen bases. He appeared in 10 All Star games and won 6 Gold Gloves, to go along with his 2 championship rings.

Today, Kirby Puckett passed away and will be missed by everyone who ever saw him play.

Florida State Football: 2006 Season Preview

2006-03-06T14:50:00.000-08:00

Well it is almost time for Spring Football to start up again in Tallahassee and Florida State will be looking to defend their 2005 Atlantic Coast Conference Championship. On offense they should be lead by Sophomore Quarterback Drew Weatherford and Senior Running Back Lorenzo Booker. I would also look for the emergence on a national level of 6'6 Sophomore Wide Receiver Greg Carr, who as a Freshman was unstoppable at times, collecting 30 receptions for 618 yards and 9 touchdowns (a FSU record for touchdown receptions by a freshman). The offensive line should be improved with addition of four star Junior College recruit Shannon Boatman, four star prep school recruit Matt Hardrick, and four star high school recruit Daron Rose. The offense, which looked awful at times last year will also gain a lot from their experience in 2005. However, the losses of David Castillo, Leon Washington, and ACC Championship Game MVP Willie Reid will be hard to overcome, as will the expulsion for former five star rated Wide Receiver Fred Rouse and Offensive Lineman Cornelius Lewis.
On Defense, FSU will lose Defensive End Kamerion Wimbley, Defensive Tackle Broderick Bunkley, Linebackers A.J. Nicholson and Ernie Sims, Free Safety Pat Watkins and Rover Kyler Hall. FSU also lost Cornerback Antonio Cromartie, despite a knee injury that forced him to sit out the entire 2005 season. Despite the loss of 5 (or 6 depending how you look at it) Day 1 picks in the NFL Draft, the FSU defense should be solid in 2006. They return Junior Defensive Tackle Andre Fluellen, whom had a strong 2005 season, along with Linebacker Buster Davis and Cornerbacks Tony Carter and J.R. Bryant. In addition to these players, look for the following players to step up in 2006 and have breakout seasons; Linebackers Geno Hayes, Derek Nicholson, and Lawrence Timmons, Defensive End Everette Brown, and Rover Myron Rolle. Although the defense will be young, it will easily be as talented as the 2005 version, and likely much more disciplined.
Now lets take a look at the schedule:

-4-06	at Miami FL (Mon.)
9-9-06	TROY
9-16-06	CLEMSON
9-23-06	RICE
10-5-06	at North Carolina State (Thur.)
10-14-06	at Duke
10-21-06	BOSTON COLLEGE
10-28-06	at Maryland
11-4-06	VIRGINIA
11-11-06	WAKE FOREST
11-18-06	WESTERN MICHIGAN
11-25-06	FLORIDA

(Thank you Nationalchamps.net for the C&P)

If I look at this game by game, here is what I get:
Miami is a toss up, it always is and to believe otherwise regardless of your allegence would be borderline retarded.
Troy should be an easy win and time to heal up from the Miami battle.
Clemson will be difficult, especially after they hammered FSU in 2005, however it is at Doak Campbell and Charlie Whitehurst will be in the NFL, so I expect FSU to exact some revenge.
Rice should be a very easy win.
N.C. State will be a battle, but they lost a lot on defense and FSU doesn't like losing more than once to ACC teams, so I expect FSU to pull out a game that will be closer than it should.
Duke should be a win and time for backups to gain experience.
Boston College will be tough, but if the weather is warm look for FSU to roll.
Maryland has been a battle the past two years, and will be another one in 2005, but I'd look for FSU to pull it out.
Virginia will get rolled to exact revenge.
Wake Forest will be tough because of their offense, but sans Chris Barclay and Corey Randolph this should be a comfortable win, although their dirty play will likely end someone's season.
Western Michigan should be an easy win and time to prepare for.....
Florida. This game will be a 60 minute war, with FSU looking to avoid a 3 game losing streak to the Gators.

My season prediction would be 10-2 right now, but could be 12-0 as easily as it could be 8-4, this team is too young and too erratic.

Some more players to look for in 2006 to step up and become household names by 2007

Sophomore Running Back Antone Smith
Sophomore Wide Receiver Richard Goodman
Redshirt Freshman Cornerback Jamie Robinson

South Dakota Bans Most Abortions

2006-03-06T14:13:00.000-08:00

CNN.com Link

If you are interested, here the text of the statute from Findlaw.com. This is definitely an aggressive move on the Abortion Rights front by South Dakota, that is for sure.
I am sort of an intermediate when it comes to Abortion Rights, by all means I believe that a woman has the right to do what she wants with her body, and no one can take that away from her, however I don't like the idea of women getting abortions for petty reasons, such as inconvenience either. There are consequences to our actions, and whereas I am not prepared to take the radical stance that some anti-Abortion advocates take, I am not willing to go to the other side of the spectrum either.
My wife and I one day plan to have children, but we know given some biological constraints that this will not be the easiest task in the world, and that adoption or a surrogate may be the only way we can have children. So as such, when someone through their own carelessness gets pregnant, I really find it hard to stomach that girl aborting the child. I can appreciate she has that right, and I have a rather solid understanding of where this right comes from (I got an A- in Constitutional Law in Law School). But part of me just cannot agree with doing it.
I will not go as far as to say I hope South Dakota is successful in their bid to overturn Roe v. Wade 410 US 113 (1973), I do hope that it leads to some changes in the way we view abortions and perhaps to some reform on the matter.
As for my opinion of what will come of this, the votes still are not there on the Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, unless someone who has changed their stance that I don't know about. But who knows who will be on the Supreme Court when this gets there either. By my calculations, it would a be a likely 5-4 vote to sustain Roe v. Wade, but if someone on the majority retires before this reaches the Supreme Court and we still have a Republican President, then it could very well go 5-4 the other way.

Now I want to speak about the implications of Roe v. Wade being overturned, to clarify one major point. If the Court overturns this decision, it will likely not mean Abortion is illegal, but that the States would get back the right to decide for themselves about its legality. If you live in a Bible Belt state then yeah, expect Abortion to become illegal, but if you live in a more liberal state like Massachusetts or Connecticut, then this decision probably won't effect you. That being said, the Supreme Court could come down with a verdict saying life begins at conception and effectively outlaw abortions, but from the past arguments against it, I really see the matter just being kicked back to the states to decide upon.

College Basketball Player of the Year: Redick v. Morrison

2006-03-06T12:27:00.000-08:00

Has there been a more interesting debate this College Basketball season than whom should win the Player of the Year honors? Just like the Heisman Trophy race was a three-way battle between USC RB Reggie Bush, Texas QB Vince Young, and USC QB Matt Leinart, the battle for College Basketball Player of the Year honors is a battle between Duke SG J.J. Redick and Gonzaga SF Adam Morrison.
Now I feel obligated before I delve into my analysis and opinion to be upfront with my hatred of Duke. I am on the side of the Duke-haters, and their game against FSU in Cameron Indoor earlier this year only solidified that opinion. Now with that being said, I will do my best to analyze both players fairly.
Adam Morrison averaged 28.6 ppg, 5.6 rpg, 1.7 apg, and shot 44.3% from three point range. He also stepped up in big games for Gonzaga, scoring 25 points vs. Maryland, 43 vs. Michigan State, 18 vs. UConn, 43 vs. Washington, and 34 vs. Memphis. All of those to the best of my knowledge are potential Tournament teams, with UConn and Memphis looking at very high seeds. However, he did however play in the West Coast Conference which is a far cry from the competion of the Atlantic Coast Conference. However, he did help lead Gonzaga to a 26-3 overall record a perfect 14-0 record in WCC play. There 3 losses came to UConn, @ Washington, and @ Memphis, and if we are being fair, 99% of the teams in America would be lucky to be 1-2 against those teams, and of those 3 losses, only one was by a margin of more than 10 points (Memphis beat them 83-72).
Every night Morrison would draw the oppositions best defender, and would frequently see double teams and schemes designed to just stop, or should I say contain him. Despite all of that, he scored in double digits every night out and had perhaps only one bad game only scoring 11 points vs. San Diego, however Gonzaga still won the game 75-59 so he wasn't really needed in a close battle. However, he did have one eye popping statistic, he average more turnovers per game than assists, which for me is problematic, especially in light of the schemes he was exposed to. Now with no doubt I can say he was Gonzaga's best offensive player, however given what he saw for defense he really should've had a lot more assists, which brings into question his role as a team player, but to that the 26-3 record speaks for itself, especially considering none of their losses could be considered bad losses by any stretch of the imagination.
Now onto J.J. Redick, whom averaged 27.8 ppg, 2.0 rpg, 2.7 apg, and shot 41.8% from three point range. Like Morrison, Redick stepped up in big games scoring 29 points vs. Indiana, 41 vs. Texas, 41 vs. Georgetown, and 35 @ UNC. Duke finished the season with a 27-3 record and 14-2 in ACC play. However, they did lose their last two games vs. Florida State and UNC and struggled to wins over Boston College and Florida State during the regular season, both of which came under tremendous scrutiny with the seemingly overly beneficial calls Duke seemed to receive (the referees were suspended for a game after the FSU game).
Unlike Morrison, Redick had a lot more help, as he was surrounded by McDonald's All-Americans, most notably PF/C Shelden Williams who averaged 18.8 ppg and 10.4 rpg. So with the dominant inside force like Williams, teams could not purely focus on Redick which can only be seen as a benefit.
I was able to see these two candidates play about an equal number of times over the course of the season, largely thanks to Gonzaga being on a lot of late night games on ESPN2, which leads to the next part of the debate, the effect of media exposure on this award. Like the Heisman, we know that hype is a large component in winning the award, and both of them got a lot of it. However, to say that Morrison got nearly the exposure that Redick got would be an understatement. Gonzaga did have a lot of televised games, but Duke had I believe 27 games televised, all of which during reasonable viewing hours. I don't know how many of Gonzaga's games were televised, but nowhere near as many, and most notably not at a time the average East Coast viewer would be watching. And whereas ESPN has hyped both, the pure love they give all things Duke cannot be overlooked, especially when you consider how fickle the voters can be. They were more or less inundated with Redick coverage to an almost nauseating level, I would hope that wouldn't play into the vote, but I wasn't born yesterday either and am not that naive, and as such I believe Redick will come away with the award.
Now with that being said, it is close, but I give the edge, albeit a small one to Morrison, solely because of the lack of supporting talent. By all means Gonzaga has great players, but not the calibur of Duke, which gives the opposition the ability to key on just Morrison, without having compensate for a player the level of Shelden Williams, no offense to Gonzaga PF/C J.P. Batista but you aren't the player Williams is, which if I had a vote would cast it to Morrison.

What a Gamer!

2006-03-06T11:49:00.000-08:00

FreeNewMexican.com Link

I am sure it started out as a typical day for Mesa Vista High School senior Kayla Alire. I am sure she woke up, probably took a shower and got ready to go to school. From there, she probably sat through her classes (bored off her ass if he is anything like me), and was mentally preparing for her basketball game that night. From there, I am sure she went through whatever her pre-game ritual was.

After that, she played in her game; hit a couple of three pointers. Sounds like a typical day for a high school basketball player right?

Well it was, until 2 hours after the game when she gave birth to a 6 lb 4 oz baby boy named Isaiah. She played in her game that evening despite going through contractions. Wow, that makes Shaq’s bad toe or Ken Griffey Jr.’s bad hamstrings look like well, the kind of injury a little girl would sit out for.

This is just insane, an 18 year old girl, with no knowledge of her pregnancy, played a basketball game while suffering from contractions? In high school I sat out a game after being diagnosed with kidney stones. That was nothing compared to this girl, and wow do I ever feel like a pussy right now, and that was 9 years ago.

Well, good luck to her and her boyfriend in the future, and thank you for not naming the baby Jordan.

The Feel Good Story of 2006

2006-02-23T08:17:00.000-08:00

A high school kid with autism suited up for a Boy's High School basketball game and scored 20 points in 4 minutes hitting 6 three pointers.

Good job kid, and big props to the kids who stormed the court in support after the game. Generally, I hate when fans storm the court, but when a handicapped kid scores 20 points in 4 minutes in what could be is only HS basketball game, it is cool with me. Also, mad props to the coach who let this kid play. In an age of HS Basketball coaches taking on a belief they are greater than God, a feel good story is a nice change of pace.

Brokeback Soccer Pitch

2006-02-23T07:34:00.000-08:00

As I do every morning I was perusing BadJocks.com and I came across this little gem of a story. If you are too lazy to click the second link and are too stupid to put two and two together, the article links soccer players to homosexuality. Apparently, some genius in England believed it was be a good idea for the local Soccer Club to do a Brokeback Mountain themed calendar.
If you could not tell, I am not what you would call a soccer fan, in fact I really don't understand why anyone would want to play that alleged sport, unless of course they are attracted to members of the same sex. I also fail to see why parents not only allow their children to play this sport, unless of course it is their goal to raise homosexual children, I guess that could be it, but I can't understand why you would want to raise homosexual children?
Since no one reading this knows this, I will admit that I grew up playing lacrosse. I know some people play both (I liked to think they just played soccer to stay in shape for lacrosse season) but I fail to understand why soccer somehow received a populariy boom while lacrosse is left as a fringe sport typically associated with the Upper Class.
Lets compare the United States' exploits in soccer as compared to lacrosse. In 1998, our Men's National Team lost to Iran in the World Cup tournament. Now keep in mind, it is socially acceptable to fuck sheep in Iran. So for those who don't follow, they lost to a bunch of sheep fuckers. Way to represent girls! Meanwhile, our Men's National Team in Lacrosse has failed to capture the World Championship in all but one World Championship tournament, and to the best of my knowledge, they never managed to lose to a bunch of sheep fuckers.
Now lets compare the way the two sports are played. Lacrosse is the fastest game on two feet, it combines the skills of Football, Hockey, and Basketball with the strategy of Baseball. Meanwhile, soccer involves not being distracted by your teammates short shorts and wanting his dick in your ass later that night. Lacrosse involves hitting like Steve Atwater on Christian Okoye, Soccer involves playing with your penis mid-game. I would assume that is done so to make sure it is still there, given that Soccer is meant for people with vaginas.
In Soccer, countries such as France and England are amongst the upper echelon of teams. Are there any gayer countries than those? In Lacrosse the USA dominates, the way it should.
So in conclusion, unless you like sucking dick, why would you play soccer?

*In a related news, Western Kentucky has secured the #1 ranked recruiting class for men's soccer after a frat party involving a goat.

UNC-Charlotte 72 UMass 71 - Amazing Game!

2006-02-22T21:27:00.000-08:00

Tonight UNC-Charlotte defeated the University of Massachusetts 72-71. This game was one of the the most interesting and entertaining that I have ever seen. UMass starts on a 13-2 run to open the game, for UNCC to comeback with a 25-0 run to go up 27-13. From there UMass caught up and went up by as much as 3 late in the Second Half, only for UNCC to pull out one final spurt to win as Curtis Geathers hit a free throw with 3.4 seconds left. Of UNCC's 72 points, 3 players accounted for about 66 of them between DeAngelo Alexander, Leemire Goldwire, and Geathers. At any time one of the 3 was hot, which carried UNCC to the win.
For UMass, James Life played like shit, getting in foul trouble and only scoring 4 points. And I have never seen a bigger waste of what could be a tremendous talent than from Freeman of UMass. You can tell the physical gifts are there, and he does lead UMass in scoring, but if you him play, something screams he should be a dominating player in the A-10.
One last observation about UMass, they have a special coach in Travis Ford, it will be a miracle if they can keep him when big name schools come courting him. Who knows, UMass has been to the Final 4, albeit 10 years ago, but this is a sleeping giant of a program.

PPV Cage Match: Steve Francis v. Stephon Marbury

2006-02-22T12:10:00.000-08:00

As rumored last week, Orlando Magic PG Steve Francis has been traded to the New York Knicks for Penny Hardaway and Trevor Ariza.

So, what is the over/under on how long before a fist fight breaks out over who gets the ball between Francis and Stephon Marbury? I say 5 games.

Fuck You ESPN

2006-02-22T11:57:00.000-08:00

Thanks for stealing my ideas you bitches. I know you flagrantly steal information from the net and present it as your own, such as the McPherson College to the BCS thing in 2004. I know the idea wasn't too original, but when you go directly below, one can't help but question the timing.

The Debacle on Ice

2006-02-21T09:18:00.000-08:00

It has been 26 years since the USA Hockey team shocked the world by defeating the USSR on their way to a Gold Medal in Lake Placid. It was as we all know an improbable upset that sent shockwaves throughout the hockey world. A group of kids took down the same USSR team who so easily dominated NHL All Star teams. Now fast forward to the year 2006, Team USA is now made up of NHL stars and somehow they have managed to take a gigantic step backwards.

On Saturday, the men's hockey team lost to Slovakia 2-1, and to be honest the game was never that close, it took USA goalie Rick DiPietro standing on his head in a Jim Craig like performance to keep it respectable. Team USA was out played, out skated, and out worked in losing to a country with a population smaller than the city of Pittsburgh. Now I know in Slovakia, hockey is the number one sport, whereas in the USA hockey is at best behind Football, Basketball, Baseball, and possibly even Soccer and Lacrosse in terms of its popularity. While the respective pro leagues from the aforementioned sports have games televised on ESPN and/or ESPN2, the NHL has been relegated to the Outdoor Life Network. That being said though, Hockey is the number one sport in Minnesota and Massachusetts, and when you keep in mind that Boston is more populous than the entire country of Slovakia, it is still mind boggling that Team USA has fallen that far in basically one generation.

Perhaps you are thinking the loss to Slovakia was a fluke, much like the Miracle on Ice, not quite. In the opening game of the round robin tournament USA skated to a 3-3 tie with Latvia and Latvia's 2 NHL players. That is right, the USA team filled with NHL players could only manage a tie with Latvia, the same Latvia that Russia defeated 9-2. Now when you keep in mind that Russia is just a faint shadow of the dominating force of the USSR circa 1980, it really puts into proportion how far the USA has fallen. Russia, despite the collapse of Communism and their economy can still manage to dominate the likes of Latvia, whereas the USA cannot even manage a narrow win.

What are we to do? Truthfully, I don't know. We have a solid youth program in the areas where hockey is attractive; however where we seem to lack is at the intermediary level. We do not have the Junior League that Canada does, yet our College Hockey teams are generally loaded with foreign talent. So as such, there is a log jam for our players to continue their development. Some will be good enough to be drafted into the NHL out of prep school, but not a lot. As the NHL becomes increasingly more and more foreign, the NHL prospects of Americans become more and more slim. So working through this, the logical answer would seem to be an initiative by the USOC to put more focus on developing male hockey talent the way they do female hockey team. Our players should grow up playing under International rules, which would create an ease into the NHL style of rules. Instead of breeding power forwards like John LeClair of Keith Tkachuk, we should be focusing on developing speed players the likes of Jaromir Jagr or Pavel Bure, players who depend on their speed and skill rather than sheer size. I don't know if that will end the bleeding, but it will at least slow it down.

Fred Rouse: The Legend Discontinued

2006-02-20T13:02:00.000-08:00

Okay, by now it is old news that former Rivals.com 5* WR Fred Rouse and teammate Cornelius Lewis have been dismissed from Florida State University. But given that I am a FSU fan and this is my blog, I'll tell the world my feelings on what went down for Mr. Rouse at FSU.

This was a kid with all of the talent in the world, a kid whom had he been allowed to go pro out of high school probably would have been picked on Day 1 of the NFL Draft. However, as evidenced by an ESPN: The Magazine article in 2004, young Mr. Rouse has an ego. His recruitment was a roller coaster of emotions for the Florida State faithful. At the beginning of the process most presumed he would be a solid lock to become a Seminole on National Signing Day 2005. The kid was coming out of Lincoln High School in Tallahassee, FL, a school that has been a pipeline of talent for FSU, and at the time had alumni like Antonio Cromartie and Pat Watkins as Seminoles. However, along the way to signing with FSU, Mr. Rouse certainly appeared to be anything but a lock. First, a lot of people thought given FSU's offensive woes that he would be on his way to the University of Miami. As you can imagine, that prospect put the 'sky is falling' emotion into most FSU fans. Then, FSU QB Xavier Lee told Rouse to visit Texas, who appeared to become his instant leader, and again the FSU faithful were having trouble coping with a hometown kid turning his back on FSU and heading west to Austin. This was only intensified when then Texas commitment QB Ryan Perrilloux said that Rouse and TE Martellus Bennett (then committed to Miami) would be joining him at Texas. The feelings of loss only became worse when Rouse flashed the 'Hookem Horns' sign at the US Army All American game after a reception. Most believed all hope was lost, and that FSU's offensive woes had sent this sure fire Nole into the arms of another.
Then a funny thing happened, former 5* WR Quan Crosby committed to Texas, and it was reported that Texas Coach Mack Brown pulled Rouse's scholarship offer. (I have been informed of why, however if this information is wrong I don't feel like subjecting myself to a potential libel suit). Then shortly thereafter, Miami head coach Larry Coker pulled his scholarship offer as well. This left only FSU and Alabama standing in the competition for Rouse's services. As had originally been expected, on National Signing Day, Fred Rouse signed his letter of intent to attend Florida State University and with the surprise commitment of 5* RB Antone Smith and a commitment from 4* OL Matt Hardrick, all was well again in the Seminole Nation.
Then things got interesting. Reports of Rouse's inability to qualify started to surface, and some people were reporting that he had an ACT score that would make his qualification near impossible. All was quiet, and Rouse eventually enrolled at FSU, getting through the NCAA Clearing House, another worry was avoided for the Noles.
Then practice started, and FSU began to prepare for the University of Miami on a nationally televised Labor Day game on ABC. However, Rouse was nowhere to be found on the depth chart. He was behind at least 3 fellow freshmen receivers. This of course lead to a lot of confusion from Seminole fans. This kid was supposed to be Randy Moss, how can he sit behind these lesser known kids? The Miami game came and went, FSU won 10-7, ending a 6 game losing streak to Miami. Rouse saw time on special teams and had a fumble recovery questionably overturned.
As the season progressed, Rouse was nowhere to be found, and fellow freshman WR Greg Carr became an emerging star, dominating Boston College in a nationally televised game on ESPN. From there, Rouse faded into the background. He had some highlights, including a game changing touchdown reception vs. Wake Forest. However, Rouse was able to garner some national attention during a televised game against Virginia. Rouse was seen on the sidelines yelling at a FSU coach after missing a chance to go into the game and causing FSU to use a timeout that would be proved to be much needed later in the game. Rouse was subsequently suspended against Duke and did not see the field against Maryland. Throughout the rest of the season, he saw sporadic playing time, and failed to live up the hype he had coming into school.
FSU was able to get into the Orange Bowl where they played Penn State, during the month of practice before the game, word leaked that Rouse was improving and his attitude was great. He ended up starting the Orange Bowl. However, during the game this attitude improvement we heard about vanished after he was wide open for a sure TD and QB Drew Weatherford missed him in the face of PSU's tremendous pass rush. Young Mr. Rouse then went to the PSU, no that is not a typo, he went to the PSU sidelines after the play, before going back to the FSU sidelines after the next play. From there, Rouse was pulled from the game, and as time would later reveal, that would be his last play as a member of Florida State.
As National Signing Day 2006 approached, FSU was in the midst of putting together what would become one of the nation's best classes. However, with NSD on the visible horizon reports came out that Rouse and teammate Cornelius Lewis were dismissed from the team. This send shockwaves through the Seminole Nation. How could this be? What did he do? What would this mean for recruiting? Head Coach Bobby Bowden remained quiet on the issue, and as he almost always does, he closed better than anyone and FSU ended up with Rivals.com's #3 ranked class, which included 3 new wide receivers.
Now the question as to where Mr. Rouse will resurface has begun to pop up in ernest. Reports have said he is considering Louisiana State, California, UTEP, and some other smaller schools. Teammate Cornelius Lewis had a similar list, with a couple of different schools. As of now, no one knows where he will end up. Odds are someone will take a chance on him, and if this kid can get his life together and show that Randy Moss level talent, he could become a dominating force at anyone of those aforementioned schools. I am sorry he will not be playing at FSU, and I wish him luck. I just hope he doesn't come acrossed FSU's path in the next 3-4 years, as that will not be pretty.

Knight School: Bob Knight's New Reality Show on ESPN

2006-02-20T12:23:00.000-08:00

Reality Show Disclaimer

First of all, I must admit that I mostly have nothing but distain for 'Reality' Shows. I can handle American Idol, but more because that is a competition involving something tangible, as compared to the backstabbing crap that most other 'Reality' shows consist of. I just think you should know that when seeing my take on Knight School.

The Premise
For those who don't know, the premise of this show involves 16 Texas Tech students competing for a walk-on spot on the Texas Tech Men's Basketball team, coached by none other than Bobby Knight, hence the name Knight School. I for one need to give the show an A- for the premise, as in this world of regurgitated crap, this is actually a fresh idea. It would earn an A, but it is hard not lower it knowing that ESPN will probably cut and paste the show to their liking. Meaning, we won't actually see an unfiltered version of Bobby Knight, instead we will see the Disneyfied version of Coach Knight. Had this been on say, HBO or even F/X, it would earn the A.

The Execution
The first episode was pretty entertaining for a reality show. Sadly though, there wasn't really a basis for comparison in the footage shown to know if I agreed with the choices made, as they simply spotlighted a few kids who you pretty much knew would become the 'stars' of the show, and whom ESPN wanted you to gain a rooting interest in. That being said, these kids are walk-ons, so whereas there may be some talent disparity in who tried out, the odds of a kid from this show ever making a meaningful contribution to Texas Tech are slim to none. I'd have liked to have seen more of the tryouts, maybe in an American Idol type of way, so we saw who was really bad, contrasted with who was really good, at least comparatively speaking. It was interesting to see the process Coach Knight went through to cut the kids, but too much time was spent there. For the first episode, I would give it a B-. It was above average, but a lot of work needs to be done.

The Verdict
Overall, I would say this show is watchable, and will probably make it into my DVR for future episodes.