It's Been a While

Hello again sports fans.

Apologies for my lack of posts and insightful looks into everything sports.

And on a completely un-sports related note, I have decided to dub Tuesday Song of the Day day. Other days of the week will soon be identified, suggestions are welcome.

Today's song:
Sometime Around Midnight
By: The Airborne Toxic Event

Dark, emotional song with complex beats and words that seemingly have no meaning. The band's name is something awesome as well. Totally a great listening experience and I will probably download the album. I will let you know how it goes.



Quick Hits on the last week of sports:
- Record for the year of picks: 18-10
I became a little disenchanted with the world after KU lost a heart breaker to the evil that resides in Columbia (you may know them as Mizzou). We will get back in the full swing of things quick after a healthy weekend of beating the other Jayhawk rival. (Note from that game: the best play came from Brady Morningstar who committed a blocking foul on Clemente and subsequently got KU a 5 point play. Clemente with a stupid elbow directly in front of the referee resulting in 2 technical free throws and the ball followed by 3 pointer from the corner from Tyrel Reed - who later got smacked in the head by Clemente, who needs to keep his cool and I swear was crying on the bench at the end of the game).

There is one game of interest tonight as #5 Michigan State travels to play #21 Purdue. Purdue has not been the same team as of late as their leader Robbie Hummel has been sidelined with a stress fracture in his back (that has to hurt a lot, I can't even imagine). Michigan State is the cream of the crop in the Great Lakes Eleven and will keep their stranglehold on the top stop. Michigan State will make it look easy.

- Good point from Colin on the MLS. Soccer is a sport that has yet to find the mainstream in the US, despite being played by more kids than any other sport. This is partly because parents just want their kids to run around and blow off some energy playing, but also because the world of competitive soccer in the US is kind of a joke. Paying a butt load of money to join a club team, then traveling all over to play and this is in a game that you can't compare statistics between players other than goals and saves. A little bit crazy if you ask me.

Anyway, The Beckhams in the USA reality show should be over. It didn't work, nobody cares, and the US needs to matter in the world cup. Everything Colin said. Thanks.

I did enjoy ESPN pumping the US vs. Mexico match last week during rivalry week, but it is so hard to get soccer highlights when there are only 2 goals scored in a 90+ minute match. That is one reason soccer is so hard to sell.

What can you sell if the game ends in a 0-0 tie and its just good defense? The NHL has modified its rules to me more "fan friendly" because no goals were boring fans to death. I'm not suggesting that soccer needs to change its rules, but unless something changes in the US for the sport, soccer will remain a dull sport in the public's eyes.

- Tiger Woods is close to returning to the PGA tour. Good for the sport, even though I really can't watch golf. I know how hard it is for the pros to play as well as they do, but I just can't watch it. I would rather be playing it seeing how hard I can hit the ball off the Tee and how badly I can injure my back doing so.

- The NBA All-Star extravaganza was this weekend and it included something new. A game of H-O-R-S-E was played between Kevin Durant, OJ Mayo and some guy from the Atlanta Hawks (Pretty sure it was Joe Johnson). Durant won, and I only saw highlights on PTI on Monday, which is disappointing. I want to see that competition! That is the game that anyone with a ball and a hoop can play as long as you have 2 people. You can't have a dunk contest with 2 people (who judges, the net?) and a game of 1 on 1 only stays cool for so long (either someone quits or gets punched). We need more H-O-R-S-E in the world and the NBA should start it, they owe us that for all the traveling that doesn't get called.

Also, the NBA trade deadline is coming up on Thursday, and there is never enough excitement in the NBA to capture my attention. For that reason, I am calling out the NBA and challenging them to draw my attention to the deadline in a formal letter.

NBA,

I challenge you to make the trade deadline mean something more than a second round pick to Boston in exchange for the expiring contract of the winner of best human impression of an alien fetus (Sam Cassell). If the Kings are involved in a trade with anyone other than the 4 best teams in the league, that does not count. If team that is more than 5 games out of the 8th spot in their league makes a move to "get better" for this season, that doesn't count. Please stop sucking before the trade deadline and let me dream about Chris Bosh being relevant in the US (Canada sucks), and think about how one of the contenders just got better and will be as much of an unstoppable force as Neo was in the Matrix trilogy. Thank you for your consideration, DDSF

- College football/the NFL is about to be relevant again as the NFL scouting combine starts this weekend. I'm totally excited to see who surprises everyone by running a 4.22 40-yard dash and which quarterback will run a 5.2 just like me. Plus, we get to see more of Mel Kiper's hair and Todd McShay being a total loser with his picks that mean absolutely nothing for about another month and a half.

- Finally, as baseball season is basically upon us (spring training) the steroids issue is even more prevalent. I'm sure there will be more news coming out about A-Rod as I am writing this (I can't bring myself to watch that press conference), but there are some things that I have an issue with.
Bud Selig does not want to be blamed for the whole issue and emergence of steroids in the game. I just have one question for the Commish:

Are you kidding me?????

After the strike of 1994, baseball needed something to jump start the League and bring it back to a favorite of the American public. Enter the home run chase of 1998.

If Bug Selig wants us to believe that while these guys were using performance enhancing drugs, he had no knowledge, then he is crazy. I'm sure he knew about it and that he just turned a blind eye. I can't blame him, because he a business to run (MLB), but the fact remains that he has most likely known that steroids have been a problem for 10 years. Heck, the biggest "juicer" in recent history (Jose Canseco) was most relevant playing for the A's and Rangers (1985-1994). He was the AL MVP in 1988 and the Comeback Player of the Year (ha ha, that's funny now because he probably came back with a little help from his friends - steroids) in 1994.

Bud, you will be blamed, and you deserve it. Stop complaining.

Also, the Commish is contemplating punishing A-Rod for using steroids in 2003. Why do I have a problem with this? Because there were 103 other players who tested positive at the same time. How can you punish one person for the wrongdoings of so many others? I don't expect A-Rod to be punished, but the discussion itself it ridiculous.

Still working on figuring out the principle of verticality,

DDSF