Yesterday's Stars Did A Lot Worse

I just finished reading an article on Foxsports.com talking about today's athletes and their misgivings and how they didn't hold a candle to Mickey Mantle (Today's bad boys couldn't touch Mantle). After giving it some thought, I say the same thing.

Yesterday's stars or heroes didn't have to worry about cell phones,computers,paparazzi, TMZ or anything that today's professional or even amateur athletes worry about. I've read about or heard stories about "The Mick", Babe Ruth, or any Oakland Raider from the 70s or 80s, how they lived hard, partied hard, and played hard. Thing is, hardly a soul ever knew about their wrongdoings. You think this Brett Favre mess is something. Roger Goodell would have to bring in replacements for some of those wild Raiders characters. Sexting? That was child's play to them. As much as Ruth and Mantle were revered, they were hard partying womanizers and heavy drinkers. They also were buddies with anyone covering the team, so whatever they did disappeared and didn't come out until they were long retired or dead. Today it's harder to get away with anything with all the technology, internet, and cell phones. In reality, they have nothing on the stars of yesteryear.

Not that I condone any of their behavior, but there are lots of "heroes" that got away with a lot worse than anything that Brett, Tiger, or Ben Roethlisberger could ever do. I don't really care to know what anyone does with their time away from their sport. They are human, they just decide to play by a different set of rules from the average man. I know, a lot of us say that if we did that we'd lose our job. We don't live in  their world and they don't live in ours, so please stop using that one. I kind of liked it when I didn't have to hear about what Reggie Jackson or Walter Payton did in their spare time.  

It's Official

It has been officially announced that Michigan will play Alabama to kick off the 2012 college football season. The game has been talked about for sometime but no one had really confirmed it. It's going to happen on September 1, 2012. I like the idea, but considering the opposite ways the programs have been headed I would hope Michigan is ready to play in this prime time matchup of two of the traditional titans in college football history.

The Canes Need to Show More Fight Than Their Fans

The Miami Hurricanes had a lame performance Saturday but their fans made up for their lack of a fighting spirit during the game.


 


If their players showed more heart and fire like this, their fans wouldn't be subject to ridicule by opposing fans.

A Major Downer

This is why you don't try to tackle anyone after they've reached the end zone. They need a rule to prevent mishaps like this happening again.

What I Saw In College Football

Soon the BCS standings will come out and all the shouting and controversy can begin. Its wide open now since South Carolina knocked off big, bad, Bama. It appeared that the Tide had flaws in their game, but had enough poise and moxie to cover them. Now they'll need to win out and hope for help. Lots of help. It's not out of the realm of possibility. Stranger things have happened.

Les Miles lives dangerously and survives- You talk about a cat with nine lives. Everytime it looks like he's exhausted his chances, he does something screwy and gets away with it. For a week Miles was ripped for another time management debacle against Tennessee only to get a HUGE repreive when Tennessee had 13 men on the field. This time he pulls a fake field goal and received the most fortuitous bounce in the college football season so far. Add to that it was very close to being a forward pass. Miles coaches like a man on fire. He doesn't win in a conventional way, but he somehow gets it done. He has the Tigers in the mix right now.

The bandwagon crashes- That loud noise you heard was the driver and last person jumping from the Michigan bandwagon. I hate to say i told you so, but I told you so. Denard Robinson is a great talent. He just can't win the game alone. The defense is atrocious. They couldn't tackle the local high school team. And of course, everyone is calling for Rich Rodriguez's head right now. Just see it for what it is. Michigan State played the role of the bully and won for the third straight year. Look at Rodriguez's teams at West Virginia. If teams ( South Florida and Pittsburgh) don't back down from them it throws their whole game out of whack. The Wolverines need to learn to fight back. They have a tough one against Iowa Saturday, so this game could be an indicator of how the rest of the season goes.

The Pac-10- This could easily be the best confernece or the worse. It depends on how you look at it. Any of four teams could win the conference(Arizona, Oregon, Stanford ,Oregon State). Each of them could lose a game they shouldn't, as evidenced by Stanford's escape over USC. They play terrific offense and no defense. It's almost like a Playstation game every Saturday.

Michigan State- They had a plan against Denard Robinson and Michigan and stuck to it. That game should provide a blueprint on how to play Michigan. Don Treadwell has done a good job filling in for Mark Dantonio on the sidelines. Treadwell will be a hot name in coaching circles this offseason. Let's hope he doesn't step in a hopeless situation. The Chris L. Rucker off field problem took the luster off a fantastic week for the Spartans. The Spartans can take control of the Big Ten race if they can keep the momentum rolling in the next few weeks.

Utah will have something to say in the BCS race- The Utes are quietly putting together an impressive resume. They are one of the unbeaten 13 right now. They also have a showdown against TCU that should decide the Mountain West. As far as the "mid-majors" go, Boise State might want to be more concerned about Utah than anyone.

Hey Florida, how about being outta  the national championship race this early.

Halladay No Hits Reds

Excuse me for saying that Roy Halladay has ended the Cincinnati Reds 2010 season. True, it's far from over, but in all my years that I've watched baseball and sports in general there has been a moment in the postseason that has rendered plenty of teams dead in the water.

Consider Roy Halladay's no-hitter against the Reds one of them. Halladay tossed the second postseason no-hitter in MLB history. I think this will sink the Reds and send them on their way. I'm not a Reds hater, but ask Nick Anderson how he torpedoed th Orlando Magic in the 1995 NBA Finals. Or ask the Oakland A's how Kirk Gibson flamed their chances in the 1988 World Series. The list can go on. Halladay acheived a great feat in his first postseason start, ever. And he probably ended the Reds' season in the process. 

I could be wrong though.        

What I Saw In College Football

Before I go any further, I must say that if Michigan had even a middle of the road defense, they'd be Oregon and we would be talking about them as national title contenders. Also if my aunt had a package she'd be my uncle. They defense or lack of one will cost them real soon.

Miami should be rolling over the ACC. Like I stated previously, if Jacory Harris can cut down on the bad throws they could run the table in the conference. Florida State should give the canes a run for their money, but they tend to have bad games they shouldn't.

The Tim Brewster death watch is on. Boy, Glen Mason sure looks good right about now. They lost a tough one to Northwestern which gave them their, I don't know I lost track of how many straight games they lost at home. Speaking of Northwestern, they will put a scare into some of the teams in the Big Ten this year.

The Tide rolled over Florida and they are the clear favorite in the SEC. They do have some big road games coming up and the season ending showdown versus Auburn. It'll be a tough go for them but Nick Saban will have them up to the task. Keep an eye on Cam Newton and the Tigers.

USC is a fraud just like I thought they were and probation will take its toll, more sooner than later. Oregon ran past Stanford and also Boise State in the polls. It's going to be an interesting rest of the season to see a number of teams jockey for votes and put up style points.

Colin Kaepernick, Colin Kaepernick, Colin Kaepernick