Wow, just read my last post and saw it was back in February. Eeek. I am just going to jump right back into this thing head first. Lets go!
The Cardinals are in the World Series? Are you kidding me! It was crazy enough that they made it to the playoffs but no one really took them seriously did they? The Rangers on the other hand are back for the second straight season. People don’t seem as excited about them being there but they are a really fun team to watch. The Rangers did not get talked about too much by the masses as world series favorites throughout the season even though they were defending AL champs.
Mark Sanchez looked pretty decent vs the Dolphins on Monday Night. The offense really took a while to get going but when it did they looked real good. A nice balance of run and pass and the Jets look decent again. Holy Revis by the way. He may have gotten away with a little interference on the TD but the D never gets the benefit of the doubt, good call.
No NBA in the near future is really not cool with me right now. I got my NBA fix and some with 2k12 lately but now playing the game is only getting me more excited about actual NBA action.
I got roped into a fantasy hockey league for the first time ever. So glad I am in the league. I enjoy watching hockey but I admit I am falling behind on the buzz of the league and who the players are. Patty Roy’s Right Hook is definitely helping me out. My new favorite player is one of my earlier picks Wayne Simmonds from Philly. He can get after it. Throws his body around, gets some penalties, and attacks the net with speed. Finally got Versus network at the house and love having NHL on my television again.
World Series tomorrow night! No football, no NBA action, so you better be watching. Its the freakin World Series people come on! Oh and New Hampshire’s own Chris Carpenter is on the bump, very cool.
Are you kidding me! the Cavs finally won a game against my fantasy star Blake Griffin and the Clips. I guess no one can really be surprised by the Clippers being the first victim in 26 games. Weren’t you lookin forward to the Wizards 0 – and everything on the road vs the Cavs losing streak? Well that game was still played and the Wiz finally won on the road. Combine the Cavs ending their losing streak, the Wizards getting their first road W, and the Ohio State Buckeyes losing for the first time on the season, and you got quite a week for ending streaks.
Did you watch that Kansas – Kansas St game last night? Pullins went OFF for State. They made Kansas look like a cupcake and not the number one seed that they had gained just hours earlier. Remember when K State was supposed to be a good team. Top 5 to start the season. Now they might be playin in the NIT.
Spring Training has begun. As exciting and happy I am for Spring Training, it does not do too much for me. I love watching some spring training games and hearing about some baseball stories but we are still over a month away from real baseball and Spring Training just isnt the same. Maybe I should go next Spring and catch some of the games.
Pujols is gonna get paid a TON of money but the question is by who? I gotta think they Cards and Albert will come to an agreement and not let him walk. Pujols could be the greatest player ever behind Babe Ruth. You do what you have to do to keep that guy. He is a once in a life time player.
I know its been out a while but I love the Ovechkin “This is Sportscenter commercial”. I don’t think I have ever seen one of those comercials I didn’t enjoy.
Don’t look now but Nash is making a run at Rondo and his league leading assists per game. In the past week Nash averaged about 3 more assists per game than Rondo and is now just over 1 asssist per game behind Rondo. I think this is the NBA story that no one is paying attention to and will be fun to watch down the stretch.
The biggest arguement in basketball is how to rank the top PGs. For some reason no one likes to rank any other position. Here is my top 7 point guards. Deron Williams, Chris Paul, Derrick Rose, Jason Kidd, Rajon Rondo, Steve Nash, Russell Westbrook. Deron and Paul I think are in a class alone. Both can fill up the score sheet and dish out assists like nothihng. If they were not such good scorers they would be putting up the same assist numbers of Nash and Rondo. Rose is next. He is one of the best scorers in the league and is so difficult to guard one on one. Maybe impossible. And with his pretty good jumper this year he is just too dangerous now. I got Kidd over Rondo because he is a better passer I believe and easily a better shooter. Rondo has the defense edge and quickness but not being able to shoot a lick just can not put you ahead of Kidd. Nash is next for me because his offense is so well rounded as a dominate passer, offense runner, shooter. His D is just too lacking for me for him to be top 5. Russ is 7th because of how explosive he is. He moves too quick and fast sometimes and gets charges called and throws up off balanced shots in the lane. But his skills are right there with Rose and he could be on his level pretty soon.
Matt Bonner starts an international sandwich chain called Red Rockets
Rasheed Wallace or Robert Horry hits the game winning shot in the NBA finals
Jimmy Fallon becomes the face of late night, with Questlove right there by his side
The Heat face off against the Spurs in the NBA Finals and break every TV rating record
Space Jam is re-released in 3D
NFL Redzone is offered online for a discounted price
Michael Vick graces the cover of Madden 12 and two weeks after release it is deemed illegal to use Vick because of his dominance
NHL games will be shown two or three times a week on ESPN, FOX, NBC, or CBS (not all of us have VERSUS)
MMA fights will lead SportsCenter more than ten times
A batch of young exciting boxers and a newly implemented plan for boxing gets people excited about it again
Three More NBA Super Teams (Heat) are formed
Andre Johnson and Cortland Finnegan face off in the octagon
Andre Johnson and Cortland Finnegan have a much needed rematch in the octagon
Andre Johnson and Cortland Finnegan have a third and final fight in the octagon to settle the score
Technology allows Ted Williams to return to baseball
Ted Williams 2.0 signs the largest contract in baseball history
Prince Fielder endorses baseball pajamas
One of the major sports adds a new team called the Zombies
Chipper Jones announces his retirement and takes over as Manager
Manu Ginobli finishes in the top 3 in the MVP voting
Slam Magazine becomes a weekly mag
US Mens Soccer ranks 1st in the World
Fatheads drop in price by 50%
College Football implements a 16 team playoff
Bill Raftery opens a traveling Onions! Stand to sell Raft’s Onion rings on location of college basketball games
2002 MLB All Star game that ended in a tie will finally be decided as all players from the game are brought back to play some more extra innings
Brett Favre and Jenn Sterger go head to head on Dancing with the Stars
Kevin Durant is selected for NBA 2k12’s cover
A clueless mom fills out a perfect NCAA Bracket
The Colts figure out how to run the ball and stop the run
Steroids are nowhere to be found in all levels of sports
EA Sports loses its monopoly on NFL licensing in video games
LeBron James, Russell Westbrook, Derrick Rose, and Blake Griffin all participate in the Dunk Contest
Jim Mora’s “Playoffs?” and Allen Iverson’s “Were talkin Practice” press conferences are never referenced ever again
Stuart Scott steps down from ESPN and or he stops the mid 90’s middle schooler act
Jack Johnson performs a 2 hour long halftime show at the Super Bowl
Backbreaker Football 2 comes out and is twice as good as the first one (if you have yet to check out the first BackBreaker game please stop reading and check it out now)
Aroldis Chapman becomes a dominate starting pitcher and loses no velocity on his fastball
Keene State College gets a football team
The Yellow Line is no longer “Unofficial”
The Cubs play baseball in October
All Networks decide that fans running onto the field is suitable for us to watch
Michael Jordan shows us all he’s still got it by competing and winning the 3pt contest
Baseball cards become more popular than video games
Neither the Celtics or Lakers make it to the NBA Finals
Peyton Manning is elected into the Hall of Fame
I in game dunk in a men’s league game
SBnation.com starts a magazine
Ron Artest plays in the NFL
Brandon Marshall plays in the NBA
Wesley Matthews will be a household name
ESPN on NBA’s halftime show coffee shop table will get even smaller and more uncomfortable
I will pick up a bigger interest in and follow college baseball
Dick Vitale and Bill Raftery call a game together
The Dunk Contest is amazing
Ron Artest wins Kobe his 6th NBA Finals ring and gets another minute on the mic post game
Pau and Marc Gasol will get a reality tv show, and it will be great
Tim Tebow quickly becomes a top ten quarterback in the NFL
Baseball holds a Home Run Derby for pitchers during its All Star Break
The Pitchers Home Run Derby will be called the Chicks Dig the Long ball Competition
Micah Owings wins the inaugural Chicks Dig the Long ball Competition
Andrew Bynum, Greg Oden, Brandon Roy, Blake Griffin, and Yao Ming stay healthy for over a year
Reggie Bush becomes an every down back and wows us on a weekly basis like he did at USC
Patrick Roy coaches a Stanley Cup level NHL team
The new NFL playoff overtime rules will be used at least once
The Mets win the World Series
The Broncos win the Super Bowl
The Bulls win the Finals (ignore Heat vs Spurs prediction)
The Avalanche win the Stanley Cup
North Carolina wins the NCAA Mens Basketball Championship
Notre Dame football goes undefeated
Vince Young beats the Titans in the playoffs
A 16 seed beats a one seed in the Big Dance
The Basketball Jones tv show airs in the United States
Half court and beyond shots are counted at 4 points
55 plus yard FGs are counted as 4 points
A Goalie scoring is counted as 2 goals
A pitcher hitting a Homerun is counted as 2 runs
The Olympics announce three on three basketball as its newest Olympic sport
HD tv, like color tv before it, is available for free
The Red Sox and Yankees have a benches clearing brawl resulting in 9 total broken bones
Tommy Heinsohn agrees with a call against the Celtics
Welcome to the run down, just a semi organized post of stuff I gotta talk about in sports. Here we go…
Gilbert Arenas is back. He may not be Agent Zero or Gilzero but his game is back! With or without John Wall he is scoring the ball like its 2006 again. Basketball is just better when the new number 9 is a top player. I am not just saying this because I have his autographed shoe and jersey, but he is just an entertaining player to watch. Its good to see his game talking for him and not his over the top antics. The funny stories and practical jokes are cool but we all know he went over the top with the whole gun thing. The Wizards have a nice little group of guys this year even if one of them (Arenas) is making more than the Florida Marlins. Gilbert and Wall make a good pair of guards with Hinrich off the bench. JaVale McGee is having a year closer to the expectations when he came into the league. Blatche has continued his good play since Gil went down last year. If you haven’t selected all 7 of your league pass teams take a look at the Wiz.
Derek Anderson and the Cardinals had an embarrassing showing on Monday Night Football. If you have a TV, internet, or twitter, I am sure you have caught the video of Derek Anderson laughing on the sidelines during a blowout and then blowing up (Mentos and coke style, not Mount Vesuvius style) during the post game presser. For one I don’t think laughing and joking on the sideline is that big of a deal even in a losing effort. Yea this is their job and they are getting paid big money to do what most of us would love to do on a weekly basis, but its ok to have a laugh, smile, or chuckle despite whats happening on the field. Maybe he should just wear all black (they were wearing the alternate black tops last night) and mourn until next Sunday. Your watching a grown man playing a game! What do you expect. Hes playing a sport for a living, its not the most serious and important thing in the world. The Cardinals were not losing a playoff game or an early season game, they have 3 wins and its week 12. Probably not going anywhere this season.
Blake Griffin is a bona fide all star. In a league with not a lot of dominate centers, Blake Griffin is making his case for starting in the all star game. He is not just dominating the highlight reel with send all your friends youtube clips dunks, he is putting up around 20 and 10 daily, nightly, and ever so rightly. Blake has been well worth the year long wait. Their is finally a reason to watch the Clipp show even if they lose by 10 or 20.
Besides Derek Anderson’s laugh on the sideline last night, MNF was the stage for a premier player going down for the season. That would be San Fran’s bulldozer Frank Gore. The Niners were ripping off 10 yards a clip with Gore in the back field as he was well on his way to a career game. On just 5 carries in the first quarter Gore had 52 yards. Suddenly Gore was seen jogging to the locker room. Gore came back the next possession for one carry for about 11 yards and looked like he would come back to get the 150 to 200 yards he was on pace for. Then he was seen shaking his head, helmet off, talking to coach Singletary back on the sideline. While grimacing on the sideline Gores back up and former Eagle great Brian Westbrook eclipsed 100 yards to go with a score. Twitterverse was flooded with, Gore is a wimp… Get in the Game Gore… I just need a couple more Fantasy points Gore come on! And some other NSFW pleads for Frank. Gore is now out for the season with a hip injury and killing Fantasy Nerds playoff hopes everywhere. Including mine.
Andre Johnson and Cortland Finnegan went at it NFL Blitz style. Remember sitting on the basement floor with your brother for hours late hitting Emmitt Smith with your favorite line backer? Then you loved the “fisticuffs”, as ESPN calls it, that occurred in the Texans vs Titans blowout. Its always fun when a hockey fight breaks out in a football game. Helmets flying and fists throwing ended with ejections and 50K into the NFL’s bank account. Andre won the fight over the Josh Koscheck – DJ Pauly D combo in Finnegan.
Derrick Rose and Russell Westbrook are the two guys I would pay the most to see play live. These are two of the top players in the league right now and should be leading sportscenter on a daily/nightly basis. No one is quicker than either won and both dunk in track and finish near the hoop better than most players can finish a free throw. Russ Wes is taking over the Thunder from his bff Durant while Rose is putting the city of Chicago on his shoulders and can’t wait until the Booze Cruise Carlos gets in the lineup.
Heres a little thing I saw on SBnation.com (a great website by the way). They do review of the sports weekend using the alphabet. So I am taking a shot at it. Here we go!
A is for Andrei Arshavin. Andrei Arshavin is interviewed for Arsenal TV and answers some non soccer related questions with some interesting answers. Take a look.
B is for Benched. The Carolina Panthers are going back to Matt Moore after giving the Jimmy Clausen experiment a try. Clausen looked like a rookie for the Panthers and for now will watch the games from the sideline.
C is for Cliff Diving. Junior Seau, former San Diego and Patriots Linebacker, had a rough weekend. First he was arrested in a domestic dispute with his wife, then he fell asleep at the wheel and drove his car over a cliff suffering minor injuries.
D is for Double Dip. San Francisco Giants corner outfielder Cody Ross tagged Roy Halladay for two home runs in game one of the NLCS on the way to a 4-3 Giants victory.
E is for ERA 5.26 After falling behind two games to one against the Texas Rangers, the Yankees are in desperate need of a win and turn to AJ Burnett and his season era of 5.26, good luck Yanks.
F is for Freshman! Freshman! Number 5 ranked and undefeated Nebraska took on unranked and struggling Texas on Saturday. Nebraska’s Freshman QB and early Heisman candidate Taylor Martinez had a rough game going 4 for 12 passing for just 63 yards and rushing for just 21 yards on 13 carries. The Huskers lost 20-13 and might have said good bye to the Heisman and National Championship hopes.
G is for the Goulet Awards. Minnesota Twins Starting Pitcher Carl Pavono is a finalist for 2010’s “Robert Goulet Memorial Mustached American of the Year” On why Pavano was selected as a finalist, the American Mustache Institute said,
“Many thought Carl Pavano’s baseball career was done. And then hegrew a mustache. Since then, he resurrected his career with a 17-11 record in 2010, 3.75 ERA, and a Central Division Championship. His Pavstache single handedly brought the popularity of lip garments back to Minnesota and powered the team into the 2010 playoffs.”
H is for Hossa. The defending Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks were picked by most experts to drop off from last year after letting go many pieces of their championship team. Marian Hossa is doing all he can to keep the Blackhawks in the Elite of the NHL. Hossa scored 2 goals in 2:31 seconds of the the third period on the way to a win over the St. Louis Blues. Hossa leads the NHL with 7 goals.
I is for Illegal Hits. After many NFL players went down with injuries on blows to the head on Sunday, all over the sports websites and ESPN this morning are talking about the leagues stance on trying to enforce the rules of illegal helmet to helmet hits with greater effectiveness. A possible one game suspension is in the works and the debate begins of whether or not this is appropriate for a game that prides itself on toughness and big hits.
J is for Jacked up! Eagles young Wide Receiver DeSean Jackson got his head knocked off and out of this country on Sunday by Atlanta Falcons Dunta Robinson.
K is for K’s. K’s as in Cliff Lee and his bakers dozen of them vs the Yankees in game three of the the ALCS. Cliff Lee is looking like the greates post season pitcher we have seen in a looooong time and has his Rangers up 2 games to 1 over the team from New York.
L is for Lee. Cliff Lee’s performance on Sunday was so good it had to be talked about again. I still can not get over what a game Cliff Lee had vs the Rangers. His ERA in the playoffs is now 1.26 and he is 7-0. Put a ring on that and he very well could be the greatest playoffs pitcher of all time.
M is for Midnight Madness. This past weekend was the opening night of college basketball. With teams able to practice for the first time, college campuses across the country were up all night watching their respective teams host slam dunk contests, dance offs, introduce new players, shave coaches heads, and give away prizes.
N is for Newton. No not Sir Isaac, were talking Cam. Auburns freakishly big Quarterback Cam Newton, has the Tigers undefeated and atop the SEC after a crushing of the Arkansas Razorbacks. Auburn won the game 65 to 43 lead by Cameron Newton. Newton was 10 of 14 for 140 yards and a touchdown and added 148 yards rushing and 3 TDs. I smell a Heisman.
O is for O-H-I-O. Everyone has seen a story on or even a commercial with the students of Ohio State doing the YMCA hand gestures with OHIO on campus. I doubt there is much of that going on going to class this week. Number 1 Ohio State lost this weekend by 13 to Big Ten foe Wisconsin.
P is for Phillies Anti Lincecum. Game one of the NLCS matched up Tim Lincecum and Roy Halladay. One of the greatest pitching match ups we have seen in the playoffs in recent memory. Lincecum got the best of Halladay and the Phillies despite the creative signs by Phillies fans.
Q is for Quick. This is the only way to describe the pace in which Peyton Manning was working on Sunday Night vs the Washington Redskins. The Colts offense was regularly snapping the ball with around 26 seconds left on the play clock. Manning was in the zone in the first half on Sunday Night. Manning went for over 200 yards and 2 TDs in the first half making it look easy. The Colts won the game and share first place in the division.
R is for Riding Bitch. Phillies first base slugger Ryan Howard was seen on FOX’s telecast of NFL football advertising that nights Phillies Giants game. Howard was shown riding bitch on the Phillie Phanatic’s ATV on the way to the stadium for his game that night. Terezowens.com with the pic
S is for Slim Chin. Two more great ads for basketball shoes. Those shoe companies sure know how to do it. Slim Chin is the new Opulence guy.
T is for Tim Tebow. Tebow got in the game and on the board for the Denver Broncos in their crushing loss to the Jets. Tebow ran it in from five yards out. Meanwhile his college team is really missing him this year as they drop to 4-3 with a 10-7 loss to Mississippi State.
U is for Unhappy. That seems to be Wayne Rooney’s mood right now as he has expressed the desire to leave Manchester United. His coach Alex Ferguson has confirmed the reports that Rooney wants out of Man U.
V is for Velasquez vs Brock Lesnar. This coming weekend is UFC 121 and the hype began this past weekend. Brock Lesnar will be defending his Heavyweight belt vs Velaszquez who is looking to become the first Mexican title holder.
W is for World Cup Inspiration. The World Cup and soccer as a whole may be inspiring young college kids during midnight madness this year. It is reported by yahoo.com’s College Basketball blog Dagger that the new thing in college dunk contests is the heel flick slam. Duke’s Casey Peters and Miles Plumlee combined for it at their Midnight Madness and so did Buffalo’s Mitchell Watt.
X is for Xtra Time. (yea kind of a cop out on the spelling). A couple AFC East games went to extra time. Both the Dolphins vs Packers and the Patriots vs the Ravens games ended with the Phins and Pats winning 23-2.
Y is for Yipee, Yay, and Yahoooooo. This is what owners of Chris Johnson were likely screaming when Jeff Fisher left his star RB in the game on 4th and5 under 2 minutes in a blowout win over the Jaguars. Johnson busted a long TD run on the last play of the game for the Titans flipping fantasy match up scores on their ear in the process.
Z is for Zigtech. John Wall is the newest athlete promoting shoes with Reebok’s Zigtech technology. Ochocinco, Sidney Crosby, and Peyton Manning are a few of the other Zig guys, and now it is rookie John Wall with his own Zigtech Basketball shoe. here is a look at his special Gold Rush version of the shoe you will see Wall wearing on the hardwood this season.
Arkansas had a 13 point lead on the number one team in the country and blew it. Yes you are playing the best team in the country defending their title with the defending Heisman winner, but if you are any type of good team with a supposed Heisman candidate at QB who is gonna be a first rounder next year, you do not blow that lead. Alabama is a great team and it is tough to stop from getting two touchdowns, but you gotta put some points on the board Mallett.
The Texas Longhorns got blasted by UCLA over the weekend. UCLA dropped a 34 spot on the Horns while holding them to just 12 points. Texas lost McCoy to the NFL but that does not excuse the 6 year old girl fight they put up against UCLA. The Longhorn’s season is over now in terms of any hope of a National Title now.
Tom Brady knocking down a pass late in the 4th quarter. This play got overlooked by everyone including the announcers doing the Patriots Bills game. It did not end up meaning anything but it very well could have. With just over 3 minutes left in the game the Patriots set up a short pass on 4th and long to try and pick up some extra yards to get a better punt off. The Bills are down 8 and are getting the ball back for one final attempt at a game tying drive. Brady threw a pass that got blocked by the D line and right back to him. Instead of catching the pass then running or even just taking a knee to keep the clock going and forcing the Bills to take their final time out, he bats it down and stops the clock. Now, the clock is stopped before the punt and the Bills have a very helpful time out in the pocket. With little time left the Bills need to save as much time as they need.
Best of the Weekend
Leon Washington had two spectacular kick off returns for touchdowns in a win vs the slow starting San Diego Chargers. Two out of the three touchdowns the Seahawks scored, including the game winner, were these two kick off returns. The Hawks offense did not do too much so Washington bailed them out to get the win.
The Texas Rangers are in the playoffs. It has been 11 years since October has hosted the Rangers. The AL West has been dominated by the Angels for a while now. The Rangers used surprisingly good pitching a an always special offense on their way to a division title that cultivated over the weekend.
Anquan Boldin was a fantasy hero this weekend and more importantly a Baltimore hero in a win over the Cleveland Browns. Boldin racked up 143 receiving yards and all three of Baltimore’s touchdowns on Sunday. Bolding seems to have gotten out of Arizona just in time, and is now the best player on a Super Bowl contending team.
Iowa’s offensive line on the final drive vs Arizona. Iowa charged back while everyone was sleeping thinking they got smoked, and tied the game late in the 4th quarter. Arizona took the lead with about 2 minutes left to play. Iowa had to make one drive to keep their BCS championship hopes alive. Instead, they got NFL Blitzed for 4 straight sacks to start the drive. The first came on 3 straight heavy blitzes and the final sack on 4th down came on a 4 man rush.
The Patriots second half vs the Jets resulted in 3 turnovers, no points, and very little yards. After one half of football the Patriots lead the Jets 14 – 10 and appeared to have no problem moving the ball on offense. Moss made an amazing touchdown grab, Welker was catching passes, and the running game was looking respectable. Once both teams came out of the tunnel for the second half things changed. Brady threw a carer high 6 straight completions including two interceptions and fumbled away a last gasp effort to make a comeback in the red zone.
The Colorado Rockies blew an early 6-1 lead to the Dodgers and lost in extras 7-6. The Rockies are in the middle of a playoff race for both the division and the wild card. They can not afford to let games get away from them at this point in the season. Every game and every inning counts. The off season could be a long and dreadful one for the Rockies if this game causes them to miss the playoffs.
Best of the Weekend
Troy Tulowitzki is having the best month baseball has ever seen. In his last 16 games Tulo has whacked 14 home runs and is making a late charge at the MVP. Tulo hit three of those 14 HRs over the weekend to keep the Rockies in the playoff hunt. It is sad that so many people are in NFL and College football mode right now because the Giants, Padres, and Rockies are in quite the late season battle and Tulo is doing something you may never see again.
Jahvid Best had a week one and NFL debut to forget last week vs the Bears but more than made up for it on Sunday. Jahvid had 78 rush yards and 2 TDs to go along with 154 recieving yards and a 75 yard receiving TD. If Best can perform any where near this on a weekly basis, the Lions look to have quite the future with Stafford, Johnson, and Best on the offensive side of the ball. Jahvid did all he could do in a tough loss to the Eagles.
Michael Vick got his first start in the NFL since 2006. Boy did he take advantage of it. Not only did Vick make highlight play after highlight play teaming up with DeSean Jackson, he also put together a 21 for 34 for 284 yard day in the air for 2 TDs and 37 yards on the ground. Vick did all he could to take over the Eagles in a victory on Sunday. If only Andy Reid would do what every non PETA football fan wants and hand him the rains to the team.
