Global Brotherhood?
As much as these winter Olympic games provided lots of wonderful and thrilling moments, I think the legacy of these games will still be the preventable death of a 21-year-old Georgian luger and IOC President Jacques Rogge doing his best Avery Brundage impersonation. It cast a slight pall over the games before they even started. I say "slight pall" because the media attention considerably waned as the games went on these past two weeks.
On ESPN Radio's "Mike & Mike" this morning, the question was raised, "if the luger killed was from the USA, would the tone of the games and its coverage be different?" The sentiment was YES, because an American luger's death would've generated much more and more constant media attention. It's a shame to think that a young man's death was progressively treated as a media afterthought because of his geographic home.
This is the one thing I don't think we as fans keep in mind enough when it comes to Olympic competition, it's a global competition for everyone and their nations. It's all well and good to cheer "USA USA!" or sing the Canadian national anthem, but sometimes I wonder if people from some nations forget that the Olympics aren't only about their nation. National pride is one thing, borderline jingoism is another. To mentally sweep the death of an athlete because he wasn't a citizen or resident of the home country or a media-centric nation like ours leaves a little stain, reminding us of past Olympics marred.
Showing posts with label March 2010 postings. Show all posts
Showing posts with label March 2010 postings. Show all posts
Saturday, May 15, 2010
Originally posted on www.ThatsSports.com -- March 2, 2010
Super Duper Meadowlands
I have very mixed feelings about the 2014 Super Bowl being played here in the new Giants-Jets stadium (name to be determined). On one hand, I'd love to see the game played here, even in harsh weather. But there's still a part of me wondering why John Mara and Woody Johnson didn't just fork over more money (yeah, what's money when the stadium cost $1.6 BILLON to build) for a retractable dome. Looking out the window the past 2-3 weeks around here, I could imagine the kvetching folks would do having to watch a Super Bowl in frigid weather and more than a foot of snow.
But... if the NFL does give NY-NJ the 2014 Super Bowl and sets a precedent for the "Big Game" in bad weather, that potentially gives a green light to other northern and cold cities to host their Super Bowl!
How would you guys like to see a rotation among ALL 31 NFL cities (NY counts twice with Jets & Giants) to host the Super Bowl? Rotate between warm or domed cities and cold climate cities! Imagine the following schedule of Super Bowls for this decade and beyond...
2010 -- Miami
2011 -- Dallas (dome)
2012 -- Indy (dome)
2013 -- New Orleans (dome)
2014 -- NY-NJ Meadowlands
2015 -- Tampa
2016 -- Cleveland
2017 -- Arizona (dome or open)
2018 -- Chicago
2019 -- St. Louis (dome)
2020 -- Green Bay
2021 -- Atlanta (dome)
2022 -- Pittsburgh
2023 -- Jacksonville
2024 -- Seattle
2025 -- San Diego
2026 -- Kansas City
2027 -- Houston (dome or open)
2028 -- Foxborough
2029 -- Detroit (dome)
2030 -- Cincinnati
2031 -- Oakland or San Francisco
2032 -- Baltimore
Sounds crazy? No crazier than my past suggestion to move the Pro Bowl to Hall of Fame weekend and historic Lambeau Field, and certainly no crazier than my repeated pleas to get rid of regular season overtime, leaving sudden death solely for postseason games.
Besides, with so many teams getting new stadiums over the past 10-15 years, why not boost their cities' economies and pass around the TV revenue wealth?
Just a thought...
I have very mixed feelings about the 2014 Super Bowl being played here in the new Giants-Jets stadium (name to be determined). On one hand, I'd love to see the game played here, even in harsh weather. But there's still a part of me wondering why John Mara and Woody Johnson didn't just fork over more money (yeah, what's money when the stadium cost $1.6 BILLON to build) for a retractable dome. Looking out the window the past 2-3 weeks around here, I could imagine the kvetching folks would do having to watch a Super Bowl in frigid weather and more than a foot of snow.
But... if the NFL does give NY-NJ the 2014 Super Bowl and sets a precedent for the "Big Game" in bad weather, that potentially gives a green light to other northern and cold cities to host their Super Bowl!
How would you guys like to see a rotation among ALL 31 NFL cities (NY counts twice with Jets & Giants) to host the Super Bowl? Rotate between warm or domed cities and cold climate cities! Imagine the following schedule of Super Bowls for this decade and beyond...
2010 -- Miami
2011 -- Dallas (dome)
2012 -- Indy (dome)
2013 -- New Orleans (dome)
2014 -- NY-NJ Meadowlands
2015 -- Tampa
2016 -- Cleveland
2017 -- Arizona (dome or open)
2018 -- Chicago
2019 -- St. Louis (dome)
2020 -- Green Bay
2021 -- Atlanta (dome)
2022 -- Pittsburgh
2023 -- Jacksonville
2024 -- Seattle
2025 -- San Diego
2026 -- Kansas City
2027 -- Houston (dome or open)
2028 -- Foxborough
2029 -- Detroit (dome)
2030 -- Cincinnati
2031 -- Oakland or San Francisco
2032 -- Baltimore
Sounds crazy? No crazier than my past suggestion to move the Pro Bowl to Hall of Fame weekend and historic Lambeau Field, and certainly no crazier than my repeated pleas to get rid of regular season overtime, leaving sudden death solely for postseason games.
Besides, with so many teams getting new stadiums over the past 10-15 years, why not boost their cities' economies and pass around the TV revenue wealth?
Just a thought...
Originally posted on www.ThatsSports.com -- March 19, 2010
Now I know why it's called "March Madness"
The past 24 or so hours of March Madness reminds me of an old Rodney Dangerfield joke...
"I was having dinner at a Chinese restaurant and when I opened my fortune cookie, I found the check for the guy at the next table. I turned to the guy and said, 'hey, I have your check', and the guy said, 'thanks.'"
Ever get the feeling you've got a hot read on seedings and end up picking the wrong seeds in the wrong regionals? Well, welcome to my bracket!
Did I pick for upsets? Yep. I picked 9, 10, 11, 12, and 14 seeds. Unfortunately, I picked the wrong 9, 10, 11, 12, and 14 seeds.
While I was good with Northern Iowa, I didn't pick Wake Forest. I picked Florida, Missouri, and Georgia Tech. But I've been burned by BYU and St. Mary's.
I had a hunch about Minnesota, and they bit the dust against Xavier. Thanks for NOTHING, Marquette and Notre Dame! Your losses to Washington and Old Dominion started the quick burning of my bracket.
12 seeds? Hey, UTEP seemed a very wise pick, but Butler did it. I'm in mourning for my beloved Temple Owls, laying an egg against Cornell. Well, I'm sure Ed Marinaro's smiling somewhere.
14 seeds? I thought for sure Montana was riding with a lucky charm, and then Anthony Johnson goes from a 42-point performance to win their NCAA berth to an Academy Award winning impersonation of John Starks during games 6 & 7 of the 1994 NBA finals. And still Montana gave New Mexico everything they had.
Yeah, and like I honestly thought Ohio University stood a chance against Georgetown...
And so, my record so far to date is 8 winners and 11 losers. Not a good first round for me.
If there's any consolation or hope for my bracket, if the rest of the weekend is kind to my bracket, I'll still have 12 of my Sweet Sixteen teams still in play. But I'm not holding my breath.
The past 24 or so hours of March Madness reminds me of an old Rodney Dangerfield joke...
"I was having dinner at a Chinese restaurant and when I opened my fortune cookie, I found the check for the guy at the next table. I turned to the guy and said, 'hey, I have your check', and the guy said, 'thanks.'"
Ever get the feeling you've got a hot read on seedings and end up picking the wrong seeds in the wrong regionals? Well, welcome to my bracket!
Did I pick for upsets? Yep. I picked 9, 10, 11, 12, and 14 seeds. Unfortunately, I picked the wrong 9, 10, 11, 12, and 14 seeds.
While I was good with Northern Iowa, I didn't pick Wake Forest. I picked Florida, Missouri, and Georgia Tech. But I've been burned by BYU and St. Mary's.
I had a hunch about Minnesota, and they bit the dust against Xavier. Thanks for NOTHING, Marquette and Notre Dame! Your losses to Washington and Old Dominion started the quick burning of my bracket.
12 seeds? Hey, UTEP seemed a very wise pick, but Butler did it. I'm in mourning for my beloved Temple Owls, laying an egg against Cornell. Well, I'm sure Ed Marinaro's smiling somewhere.
14 seeds? I thought for sure Montana was riding with a lucky charm, and then Anthony Johnson goes from a 42-point performance to win their NCAA berth to an Academy Award winning impersonation of John Starks during games 6 & 7 of the 1994 NBA finals. And still Montana gave New Mexico everything they had.
Yeah, and like I honestly thought Ohio University stood a chance against Georgetown...
And so, my record so far to date is 8 winners and 11 losers. Not a good first round for me.
If there's any consolation or hope for my bracket, if the rest of the weekend is kind to my bracket, I'll still have 12 of my Sweet Sixteen teams still in play. But I'm not holding my breath.
Originally posted on www.ThatsSports.com -- March 26, 2010
Madness driven by March
I know Len's going to offer his Final Four thoughts in the morning, but I wanted to post a few thoughts while the regional finals are fresh in my mind...
As a chemistry and physics professor, I know too well that all processes are generally inefficient and reaction yields can be pretty low when you finally get your desired end product. What's my point? March Madness and one's bracket usually gives the "Average Joe" (or in my case, Schmoe, Schmendrick... whatever Yiddush term floats your boat) exponentially diminishing returns!
So, we have a Final Four of West Virginia, Duke, Butler, and Michigan State. How many of us had ANY of these teams in our brackets? I at least kept on track with West Virginia, my predicted champion for the whole thing. Other than that, my bracket progressively declined like interest rates on a checking account (remember when we used to have legitimate interest bearing accounts?!). I was correct on 16 of the 32 teams to make it through the first round, 7 for 16 through the second round, 3 for 8 through the Sweet Sixteen round, and 1 for 4 to make it to the Final Four. If any of you remember geometric progressions in Algebra or Calculus class, my bracket is almost a perfect geometric REGRESSION, declining by a factor of approximately 2 each step (i.e., 2^-n or 1/2^n).
Yuck! Forget the mathematical theory... the bottom line is either I stink at picking brackets or you really need to have a special knack. But I don't feel alone with my sorry bracket. I'm sure a lot of folks picked Kansas, Kansas State, and Purdue for their Final Four too. If memory serves me correct, didn't President Obama pick Kansas and Kansas State among his Final Four? See? Even our nation's Big Cheese can crap out trying to play NCAA Nostredamus!
What have I learned from Bracketology? If you're not a Math Savant, or a leading authority on college basketball, the only sure-fire way to have a successful bracket is to FILL IT IN AFTER THE GAMES ARE PLAYED!
But seriously, as much as I would've loved to be King of the Bracket, I've had a lot more fun watching some incredible games whenever I got the chance. So many games went to the final buzzer, and just as many games had more momentum changes than health care reform. AND, best of all, we have a couple of pretty good games to look forward to in next weekend's Final Four:
Butler vs. Michigan State
Duke vs. West Virginia
I know, I know... the Butler Bulldogs have to be a sentimental favorite, playing minutes away form their campus, everyone harkens back to "Hoosiers", and Gene Hackman's going to be on the sidelines for added nostalgia. Yes, and Duke is the lone #1 seed left, outlasting a physical Baylor team down the stretch with better rebounding and composure...
But I'm looking for a Michigan State-West Virginia final, and I'm sticking to my story... Mountaineers hoist the trophy and clip down the nets after a 67-61 win.
Why MSU-WVU? How can I go against my original prediction and not have the Mountaineers playing for the title on April 5th? But why Michigan State? Call it a feeling, but there's something special about a Tom Izzo-coached team in March, more special than Butler. Would I be surprised if Butler knocks off the Spartans? No, but just as the local hype eventually took its toll on Baylor in Houston, something tells me Butler may have the same fate against a veteran coach with lots of Final Four experience.
I know some folks would love to see MSU against Duke, Izzo matching wits against Coach K (I'm not going to try and spell it), but I think Bob Huggins has his team going on all cylinders for the entire tournament, not just the east regional.
Tom Izzo and Bob Huggins both coach a physical, defensive-oriented style, a hoops version of Rex Ryan's "ground and pound". Both MSU and WVU are capable of suffocating the life out of Butler and Duke, and that's what I expect... two very tightly-played semifinals with the more muscular teams surviving.
Then again, come April 6th, I could be sauteing some crow. It's not like I know any of these outcomes in advance...
I know Len's going to offer his Final Four thoughts in the morning, but I wanted to post a few thoughts while the regional finals are fresh in my mind...
As a chemistry and physics professor, I know too well that all processes are generally inefficient and reaction yields can be pretty low when you finally get your desired end product. What's my point? March Madness and one's bracket usually gives the "Average Joe" (or in my case, Schmoe, Schmendrick... whatever Yiddush term floats your boat) exponentially diminishing returns!
So, we have a Final Four of West Virginia, Duke, Butler, and Michigan State. How many of us had ANY of these teams in our brackets? I at least kept on track with West Virginia, my predicted champion for the whole thing. Other than that, my bracket progressively declined like interest rates on a checking account (remember when we used to have legitimate interest bearing accounts?!). I was correct on 16 of the 32 teams to make it through the first round, 7 for 16 through the second round, 3 for 8 through the Sweet Sixteen round, and 1 for 4 to make it to the Final Four. If any of you remember geometric progressions in Algebra or Calculus class, my bracket is almost a perfect geometric REGRESSION, declining by a factor of approximately 2 each step (i.e., 2^-n or 1/2^n).
Yuck! Forget the mathematical theory... the bottom line is either I stink at picking brackets or you really need to have a special knack. But I don't feel alone with my sorry bracket. I'm sure a lot of folks picked Kansas, Kansas State, and Purdue for their Final Four too. If memory serves me correct, didn't President Obama pick Kansas and Kansas State among his Final Four? See? Even our nation's Big Cheese can crap out trying to play NCAA Nostredamus!
What have I learned from Bracketology? If you're not a Math Savant, or a leading authority on college basketball, the only sure-fire way to have a successful bracket is to FILL IT IN AFTER THE GAMES ARE PLAYED!
But seriously, as much as I would've loved to be King of the Bracket, I've had a lot more fun watching some incredible games whenever I got the chance. So many games went to the final buzzer, and just as many games had more momentum changes than health care reform. AND, best of all, we have a couple of pretty good games to look forward to in next weekend's Final Four:
Butler vs. Michigan State
Duke vs. West Virginia
I know, I know... the Butler Bulldogs have to be a sentimental favorite, playing minutes away form their campus, everyone harkens back to "Hoosiers", and Gene Hackman's going to be on the sidelines for added nostalgia. Yes, and Duke is the lone #1 seed left, outlasting a physical Baylor team down the stretch with better rebounding and composure...
But I'm looking for a Michigan State-West Virginia final, and I'm sticking to my story... Mountaineers hoist the trophy and clip down the nets after a 67-61 win.
Why MSU-WVU? How can I go against my original prediction and not have the Mountaineers playing for the title on April 5th? But why Michigan State? Call it a feeling, but there's something special about a Tom Izzo-coached team in March, more special than Butler. Would I be surprised if Butler knocks off the Spartans? No, but just as the local hype eventually took its toll on Baylor in Houston, something tells me Butler may have the same fate against a veteran coach with lots of Final Four experience.
I know some folks would love to see MSU against Duke, Izzo matching wits against Coach K (I'm not going to try and spell it), but I think Bob Huggins has his team going on all cylinders for the entire tournament, not just the east regional.
Tom Izzo and Bob Huggins both coach a physical, defensive-oriented style, a hoops version of Rex Ryan's "ground and pound". Both MSU and WVU are capable of suffocating the life out of Butler and Duke, and that's what I expect... two very tightly-played semifinals with the more muscular teams surviving.
Then again, come April 6th, I could be sauteing some crow. It's not like I know any of these outcomes in advance...
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