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12.31.2005
New Orleans? San Antonio? Saints: This morning, I read a couple of articles about where the NFL?s Saints franchise will be playing next year. There?s so many cavaets contained in the stories that I don?t know what to think. After the team was displaced by Hurricane Katrina just before the start of the 2005 NFL season, they?ve lead a nomad?s existence this year, playing home games in New Jersey (!!!), Baton Rouge and San Antonio. Owner Tom Benson was chided for making love-dovey eyes at San Antonio and the Alamodome. This week, officials for the Superdome said that the facility will be ready for play in September?after earlier saying November.
Saints player Kendyl Jacox was less than optimistic: "I don't think the Superdome will be ready next year at all. They were saying November. I don't think it'll be ready by then, either". His scepticism is well founded, as even before Katrina, the Saints were playing the "If you don?t build us a new stadium largely with taxpayer money, we?re leaving" dance. New Orleans mayor Ray Nagin isn?t sold on the team?s promises either. "We look forward to the day when the Saints organization will fully commit to this community and be a vital part of our recovery for many years to come". Ouch.
In the article I read, Kendyl Jacox brought up a very good point: will New Orleans be safe to play in, no matter what the venue? Though I couldn?t find any solid answers after a few minutes of Googling, there?s a line of thought that says that New Orleans is a toxic site due to the floodwaters that ravaged it being less than drinking quality. NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue met with the players this week, but consider Jacox unimpressed by what he heard. "My question to him was, `Would you take your family there to live?' He tried to ignore me". The Saints have had a horrible season and it would be nice if the league and city/cities sorted out the various problems before next year so that the team can concentrate on playing football.
In Bloom: Outsports message board favorite Jeremy Bloom actually did something sports-wise that wasn?t related to taking his shirt off and oiling up for a photo shoot this week. Bloom nabbed a spot on the United States Olympics freestyle skiing squad on Friday at the Olympics trials in Steamboat Springs, Colorado. I suspect the ratings for the freestyle skiing portion of the Olympics telecasts just got a boost with that news.
After Bloom competes in Torino, Italy, he?ll head right home to prepare for the NFL scouting combine in Indianapolis, where he will try to kickstart a career as an NFL wide receiver/kick returner. Be careful in Italy, dude.
Have a great and safe New Years Eve and a fantastic 2006. Go Everton!-- Jim Allen
12.30.2005
Coach Dungy back: In something of a surprise, Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy returned to the Colts? a week after the apparent suicide of his 18-year old son James. The general feeling was that the terrific Colts coach would wait until the team has some time off while waiting for their first playoff game, which would have been after Sunday. "It was the right time to come back. I talked about it with my wife, and we went through the grieving process and now we're starting with the healing process". Dungy was greeted with hugs and condolences by his players, who seem to really like their coach. Defensive lineman Raheem Brock said "I thought maybe he might wait until probably after [the regular season] when we started to get ready for the playoffs. I hope being back helps". Me too, as Dungy seems like one of the real class acts in the NFL. Of course, winning the Super Bowl would be the best thing his team could do for him professionally, but there?s still a long way to go for that to happen.
Contracts: Two men connected with the USC Trojans football progam got some job security this week. Coach Pete Carroll signed a rumored five year extension to his contract at an estimated $2 million a year, putting him in the top tier of college football coaches. The extension might quiet down speculation that Carroll would parlay his great success at USC ? 54-9 in five seasons, including a possible third straight national title if they beat Texas at the Rose Bowl on Wednesday ? into a return to the NFL, where he was, to be charitable, less than successful. It will also help recruiting, as high school players can be relatively assured that Coach Carroll will be there when they are seniors. Carroll will likely have to really earn his money next year, what with quarterback Matt Leinart definitely leaving and running back Reggie Bush likely to leave early after this season for the NFL. He?s got highly rated replacements ready in John David Booty and LenDale White respectively, but it?ll it be interesting to see what happens in the transition.
A former Trojan, the gorgeous Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Carson Palmer, also scored big in the contract sweepstakes this week, as he signed a six year extension to his existing deal. He could make over a $100 million over the life of the deal and it could mean that he?ll be a Bengals player for a good while. "I'm excited that, hopefully, this is the place I end up playing [his entire career]. That's so rare in this league these days. It's so rare to see one person play a five, eight, 10, 12-year career in one place. I feel very fortunate that that looks like that's going to be my future".
It?s rare because of injuries, bad coaching decisions, what players Palmer has around him and so forth, but the former Heisman Trophy winner has put it all together this year, as he?s helped lead the Bengals to the NFL playoffs for the first time since Palmer was playing Pop Warner football. The Bengals are an exciting young team with a great head coach in Marvin Lewis, so by locking up Carson Palmer for the foreseeable future, that future looks bright in Cincinnati. How weird it is to be typing that?? -- Jim Allen
12.29.2005
How Much Will You Play?: The Indianapolis Colts clinched home-field advantage in the AFC for the NFL playoffs and have since rested key players. Some, such as quarterback Peyton Manning, played little a week ago and the same is expected this week in the regular-season finale against Arizona. Manning, like a lot of the Colts, is getting sick of being asked how much they will play.
"I think we reveal too much around here as it is," Manning said. "Every time someone asks me that question, I assume someone is asking me because of their fantasy football team or they have action on the game." He?s right on both counts. I had a friend call me from Hawaii last week asking whether it was wise to place a large bet on the Colts getting points at Seattle. His concern was based on the amount of playing time for Manning and other starters. I told him betting on the Colts was dumb, he heeded my advice (Seattle covered) and he saved a bundle.
Manning is also very aware of the power of fantasy football. Earlier this year, the Colts were winning (they started 13-0) but Manning was not putting up huge numbers. He said that people would come up to him and express concern, to which Manning would reply: ?Buddy, you and I have different priorities.? --Jim Buzinski
12.28.2005
Short Takes: -- Indianapolis Colts coach Tony Dungy buried his 18-year-old son James on Tuesday, five days after he was found dead in his Tampa apartment of an apparent suicide. Players from the Colts and around the league attended the funeral. "We loved our son very much," Dungy said. "He loved us, and we miss him terribly. . . . Our grief is great. But from our family, we just say thank you. We just say thank you to everyone. We appreciate everybody that's touched his life, everybody that's been part of him growing up. James was -- he was a good young man with a compassionate heart, and we were glad to have him for 18 years. . . . God has him now for the rest of eternity."
--Jeff Reardon, one of baseball's all-time best relief pitchers, allegedly robbed a jewelry store in Florida mall Monday and later blamed it on depression medication. "He said it was the medication that made him do it and that he was sorry," Lt. David O'Neill said. Reardon, 50, said he had a gun but he had no weapon and surrendered peacefully.
--Earlier this year, Sports Illustrated asked PGA golfers if they would give up sex for a year if they were guaranteed to win a major title. Thirty-eight percent said yes.
--Defense was missing from the Insight Bowl in Phoenix as Arizona State beat Rutgers, 45-40. The teams combined for 1,210 total yards, a record for any bowl game ever played.
--In a marquee men?s college basketball game, Darius Washington and fourth-ranked Memphis defeated Adam Morrison and No. 8 Gonzaga, 83-72, in Memphis.
12.27.2005
ESPN?s Made-Up News: I think USC will beat Texas Jan. 4 in the Rose Bowl to win college football?s national title. However, I could be wrong, so any discussion of USC?s place in college football history has to wait until the game is played. Nothing so trivial as a game stops ESPN, though.
The network this week is asking its viewers to decide how SC ranks among the top teams of all time by playing a ?schedule? against 11 all-time great squads. That?s a fine idea ? after the Rose Bowl, if USC wins. It will look awfully silly if the 2005 Trojans are deemed the greatest team in history, only to lose on the field to the Longhorns.
It seems that ESPN is no longer content with reporting on actual events. Why bother analyzing how the 2005 Longhorns match up with the 2005 Trojans when you can vote on whether ?Matt Leinart, Reggie Bush and Co. will still be able to light up the scoreboard against the stifling defenses that 1955 Oklahoma and 1979 Alabama possessed??
ESPN, though, loves making crap up these days. In November, the network ran a series of fake ?press conferences? featuring analyst Steve Phillips playing the role of different general managers being asked ?questions.? It was a low moment from ESPN, and that?s saying a lot about the same folks that brought us competitive eating as a sport this summer. --Jim Buzinski
12.24.2005
London calling: The competition among cities vying to host the Summer Olympics is fierce. There?s national pride at stake and, oh, by the way, a lot of money to be made if the event is handled right. The International Olympic Committee likes to operate in secret when voting on what city will host a future Games but the system is not perfect. London, England was awarded the 2012 Summer Games in July, winning a close vote 54-50 over Paris, which made the English very happy. Now it appears that all wasn?t exactly sweetness and light in the voting process.
Lambis Nikolaou, president of the Greek Olympic Committee, now claims that his vote in a preliminary round was miscounted. Moscow and New York City had already been eliminated from contention when the voting turned to Madrid and Paris. Paris won that round, or so it would seem, 33-32 but Nikolaou apparently meant to vote for Madrid, which would have meant a 32-32 tie; a "vote-off" would have siphoned support from London to back Madrid over Paris, with Madrid possibly nipping London in the final round of voting.
A British member of the IOC, Craig Reedie, didn?t sound very sporting when he was quoted as saying "If you're looking for reasons for London's win, I suspect you should probably look at the quality of the bidding effort that went in in Singapore and the quality of the lobbying effort", not the voting snafu. Well, that settles that, I guess. -- Jim Allen
12.23.2005
I Read the News Today, Oh Boy: Although I?m pretty much obsessed with sports, I?m always aware that it?s just entertainment, no different from movies or music. I?ve never been one to say "We will beat?" when talking about my favorite teams and I don?t get caught up in the fanatic side of being a fan too often (except when Everton play Liverpool, as they do on the 28th). Still, it?s shocking when "real life" intrudes on the somewhat insular and unreal sports world, as it did in tragic fashion on Thursday. James Dungy, the 18 year old son of Indianapolis Colts head coach Tony Dungy, was found dead in his apartment in Lutz, Florida, an apparent suicide. "Based on evidence at the scene, indications are that this death appears to be a suicide" Hillsborough County Sheriff's spokeswoman Debbie Carter said.
Tony Dungy is one of the true class acts in the NFL and has talked about how his life is more than coaching. He?s talked about running a prison ministry after he?s done coaching and often stresses the importance of family to his players. The Colts have told Dungy to take as much time as he needs and announced that assistant head coach Jim Caldwell will lead the team in Dungy?s absence. What a world we live in. -- Jim Allen
12.22.2005
Damon Moves Shocks N.E. Red Sox Nation is still shocked a day after Johnny Damon signed a four-year, $52-million deal with the hated New York Yankees. ?While New England slept last night, Damon got into bed with the enemy,? one Boston Globe columnist wrote. Damon leaving the Red Sox for the Yankees was akin to an athlete defecting during the Cold War. These two teams and their fans loath each other and the thought that Damon, the longhaired free spirit who helped the Sox win the 2004 World Series, would bolt to the Yankees was consider inconceivable.
"It?s just disappointing, man -- it seems like the fricking wheels are falling off," said pitcher Bronson Arroyo, referring to what has a been a turbulent offseason for Boston. "Red Sox Nation is in an uproar," one fan told the New York Times. "The sentiment is it will be another 86 years until we see another team like that. They're imploding."
Damon will have to cut his famous long locks and shave his beard to conform with Yankee team rules, but he?d shave his entire head for $13 million a year. We?ve always liked Damon for his attitude and especially when he said this to Newsweek earlier this year: "If someone came out on the baseball field, I don't think it would be a big deal ... If I had a gay teammate, I'm sure we'd keep slapping each other on the butt." --Jim Buzinski
12.21.2005
Skater Wins Title: Australian Jayson Sutcliffe won the recent men's artistic inline skating world champion held in Rome. Sutcliffe, 35, is openly gay and has won several world and Australian titles in his sport.
"I was hoping to win this one as I knew it was going to be the last one," Sutcliffe told the Melbourne Herald Sun. "I guess there has to be a point where you have to say that's it, as it's been 20 years since my first world championships."
Sutcliffe, who calls himself Rolaboi,
has a terrific website with great links and photos covering the inline skating world.
12.20.2005
Lions Fans Pissed: Since Matt Millen (the guy who called Chiefs receiver Johnny Morton a ?faggot? two years ago) took over as president of the Detroit Lions, the team has had the worst record in football. Yet Millen has somehow kept his job and fans in Motown are fed up. About a thousand protested outside Sunday?s game against Cincinnati (a 41-17 Lions loss) and some fans inside wore Bengals orange and lustily booed the home team. The players were not amused.
"It's almost a relief to go on the road and play football," guard Damien Woody said. "At least on the road, you know why they hate you." Wonder if Woody regrets leaving the New England Patriots? Cornerback Dre' Bly said, "When you're at home, you expect to see blue, black and silver. In rough times, we don't need people bailing out on us. When I went out for pregame and saw that orange and black, I was disgusted." Maybe if the Lions played better, the fans wouldn?t have cause to be disgusted; winning is the ultimate deodorant.
The End of MNF: ABC?s Monday Night Football, which began in 1970 and ushered the era of prime-time sports broadcasts, will have its final airing Dec. 26, and the series is going out with a whimper. Monday?s 41-3 Baltimore win over Green Bay was the third straight blowout and featured two teams with losing records. Next week?s finale, New England at the New York Jets, will have no playoff import. How the mighty have fallen.
Next season, ESPN takes over Monday nights, but with only 80% of TV households getting the channel, ratings will be much lower than on ABC (both nets are owned by Disney). The marquee games will move to Sunday nights when NBC takes over the package. NBC will get something that ABC has desperately needed ? a flexible schedule the final seven weeks that will make it less likely we will get dogs like Ravens-Packers.
It?s hard to believe that when MNF started in 1970, World Series games were still played during the day and the NBA got minor exposure. There was no ESPN, cable TV or Internet, so fans got their weekly highlight fix at halftime each week from Howard Cosell. How times have changed when you can now download highlights onto a cellphone. --Jim Buzinski
12.19.2005
Soccer Players Coming Out?: We received this story from the Financial Times from several readers: ?Three homosexual German professional footballers have agreed to come out of the closet, but only if campaigners can find eight more gay players to come out with them. One of the three is very prominent indeed, while the other two play in Germany?s lower divisions. It?s another sign that the last bastion of homophobia ? male-team sports ? is tottering.?
Unfortunately, that?s all the story has to say about the rumor since the rest is devoted to whether sports are ready for openly gay players. There?s no attribution of where this information came from, or who these ?campaigners? are. So forgive me if I?m not as excited as some of the people who sent me the article.
We hear these rumors all the time and they never come to pass. Last year, an alleged huge name in British soccer was going to come out. Never happened. Or we hear that Magazine X or TV network Y is ready to go public with a big name. Hasn?t happened. While I?ll be the first cheering on an active male elite jock who comes out, I?m not holding my breath. It?s bound to happen one of these days but let?s wait for a name to be attached to these rumors. Mike Piazza declaring he?s straight or Jeff Garcia announcing he?s dating a Playmate don?t count. --Jim Buzinski
NFL Week 15: Check out our news and notes and hotties from Week 15 in the NFL.
12.17.2005
NFL: socialists: The NFL announced this week that New Orleans Saints players will receive a $40,000 bonus for "performing under unusual and unanticipated conditions arising from the Hurricane Katrina tragedy". Players who haven?t been on the roster the whole season will get $2,350 per game they played. I love the NFL from a business point of view: it?s often held up as shining example of American hyper-capitalism but it?s run on principles closer to socialism, such as revenue sharing. Ah, American sports.
World Baseball Classic: I?m not sure what to think of baseball?s World Baseball Classic at this point. While it would be nice to have a World Series that actually embraces the world outside of North America, the competition, scheduled for March, 2006 is already mired in controversy. Cuba has been banned from playing by the United States because of U.S. regulations stemming from the economic boycott of Cuba dating from when I was about 5. Cynic that I am, I think it?s mostly to do with not wanting a good Cuban team kicking U.S. butt in the U.S., but still.
Then there?s the "who do I play for?" question. With the increasing numbers of non-Anglo-Saxon derived players in the major leagues, some have a choice. Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees has flipped flopped: one day he says he?ll play for the Dominican Republic, even though he was born in New York. Another day he says to honor his Dominican parents, he?ll play for their homeland. Hideo Matsui is another player: Japan or the U.S.? In any case, I?m looking forward to seeing the Italian and Dutch baseball teams, Euro-centric that I am.
Miami love: How well I remember Pat Riley coaching the Los Angeles Lakers to a glorious run of titles in the 1980?s. He?s had success elsewhere, and now he?s doing the same in Miami (again). Three games after taking over the coaching duties of the faltering Miami Heat from Stan van Gundy, he?s got them playing some inspired ball. A 112-105 win over the Philadelphia 76ers is the Heat?s third win in a row and the players seem to have bought in to what he?s selling: "Guys have responded very well, and I think, because of his resume, guys will listen and will do what he says. I have a pretty good feeling" said Shaquille O?Neal after the game. Riley is a notorious taskmaster in practice, so I?m waiting for the Heat to lose five in a row and the players start saying that the practices are burning them out, but for now, all is love in Miami. -- Jim Allen
12.16.2005
Party Boat problems: Four Minnesota Vikings players ? Daunte Culpepper, Bryant McKinnie, Fred Smoot and Moe Williams ? were charged with three misdemeanor counts of indecent, lewd and disorderly conduct by Minnesota prosecutors Thursday. The charges stemmed from an October 6 boat outing on Lake Minetonka, arranged by Smoot and teammate Lance Johnstone. Basically, they had a boat party and an orgy broke out, and when some crew members complained about public sex acts, the law got involved. Up to 30 Vikings players were on the two boats, but only the four mentioned above were charged. If convicted, each player faces up to a maximum of 90 days in jail and a $1,000 fine for each count but the players will probably end up with a wrist slap fine.
When the story about the boat trip hit in October, the Vikings were having a bad start to the season, going 1-3. Since then, Culpepper has been hurt and backup Brad Johnson has helped lead the team to six straight wins, positioning them to contend for a playoff spot in the weak NFC. The four charged men have a January 5, 2006 court date, a few days before the NFL playoffs begin. Great timing, eh?
Armstrong on trial: A feud from the 2004 Tour de France escalated in to a court case on Thursday, as seven-time winner Lance Armstrong has to defend himself against charges of defamation against fellow Tour rider Filippo Simeoni. I?m not quite sure what Armstrong said that defamed Simeoni ? the closest I could find in the two stories I read was that Armstrong accused Simeoni of "whining" ? but this is really about sports doctor Michele Ferrari, who was convicted of sports fraud and malpractice in connection with the performance enhancing drugs issue that continues to dog top-flight cycling.
Armstrong was connected with Mr. Ferrari, and after Simeoni said that Ferrari had urged him to take performance-enhancers, Armstrong called Simeoni a liar. Simeoni sued for libel and this current case is a continuation of the pairs feuding. I?ve never liked Lance Armstrong as a sports personality, so this comment: "He was whining, like some Italians do ... 'Yah, yah, yah' ... all these things, and I'm like, 'Shut up and ride your bike. C'mon?" only reinforces that. What does Simeoni?s nationality have to do with anything? One could easily say that pompous, egotistical Americans get what they deserve, but then that might be libelous or defamatory. -- Jim Allen
12.15.2005
A Killer Camp: An Australian swim coach is in trouble for running a military-type boot camp for swimmers that featured mock executions.
Australian newspapers got hold of pictures of young swimmers kneeling (See here.) as part of the fake executions while an imitation gun was held to their heads.
"These images are nothing short of appalling, insulting, embarrassing and are unequivocally unacceptable," said Glenn Tasker, chief executive officer of Swimming Australia, the national swimming association.
"Tough training regimes are part of our sport, but there is a line you don't cross ... I was shocked to see some of these activities, and I want to stress that they are not in any way endorsed by Swimming Australia," he said.
Rohan Taylor, the coach who ran the camp, apolgized "for the distress caused," but he really didn't seem to mean it when he added, "we were all laughing at the time, but the pictures did not present well." Another classic example of the "non-apology apology" as Taylor seemed most upset that he got caught.--Jim Buzinski
12.14.2005
Stern on Shockey: Cyd and I have been big fans of Howard Stern, especially after he read stories once on-air from Outsports, including one that said the Montreal Expos mascot Youppi was gay. Stern was not told the story was a spoof and he got pissed off at his producer when he found out it wasn?t true.
This was the same Howard Stern who got New York Giants tight end Jeremy Shockey to say he?d never play with a gay teammate, comments that caused an uproar. Stern, on the eve of jumping to Sirius satellite radio, gave an interview to Fox where he talked about his favorite sports and sex moments on the show. Shockey was one of them and here?s what he had to say:
?OK, Jeremy Shockey. I asked him if there were gay guys on his team. And he went ballistic and he said he would never play with a gay person. And that made big news because, after all, he exhibited so much homophobia. And it was kind of a shame in the sense that he was a huge fan of my show and ever since he did that his handlers won't let him come back on my show.
?Yeah, because you know he was being honest. This is a farm boy, and out there you know, you make love to a chicken. They don't know from anything. So it was kind of, kind of funny.?--Jim Buzinski
12.13.2005
Van Gundy Out in Miami: I always get suspicious when a person steps down from a job to spend more time with their family. It's usually code for saying they jumped before they were pushed. In the case of Stan Van Gundy, who resigned as coach of the Miami Heat, maybe it's true.
Van Gundy's departure led to the return of Pat Riley, a job the longtime coach has expressed interest in since last year. Yet Van Gundy said the choice to leave was all his.
"I made this decision for one reason and one reason only: I love my family," Van Gundy said. He said that because of the demands of the job, he would have seen his children at home only 49 days out of 170 this season. "That's just not enough any more for me. It's just not enough. I mean, it's been like that for my kids' entire lives. I've got a 14-year-old daughter and it started to hit me when I started thinking about her birthday, which was last month. I've got four more years left with her. Four. And then she'll be off to college and I'm just not willing to sacrifice any more of those four more years."
Van Gundy said Riley sincerely asked him to stay, so the Heat gets the benefit of the doubt on this one. But I wager that Van Gundy's domestic life will bore him quickly and he'll one day get the urge to go back to the bench; coaching is addictive and few walk away for good.
Falcons Win: In a rather listless affair, the Atlanta Falcons beat the New Orleans Saints, 36-17, on Monday Night Football to keep their playoff hopes alive. Atlanta quarterback Michael Vick injured his ribs when he was cheap-shotted by a Saints player, but Coach Jim Mora said Vick should be ready next week. With the win, Atlanta moved to 8-5, one game behind Tampa Bay and Carolina in the NFC South. The homeless Saints fell to 3-10. --Jim Buzinski
12.12.2005
Bush Gets the Heisman: USC?s Reggie Bush deserves the Heisman Trophy he won Saturday as college football?s best player. Bush won in a landslide and it?s hard to argue against the choice, but runnerup Vince Young of Texas did not hide his disappointment.
"This will give me a little more edge, a little more ego," Young said. "Right now, I feel like I let my guys down. Right now, I feel like I let my family down. I feel like I let Houston and Austin down." I loved Bush?s response when told what Young said: "That's not my problem."
Young will get a chance to show voters they were wrong when his Longhorns play Bush?s Trojans in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 4 for the national title. --Jim Buzinski
NFL Week 14: Check out our news and notes and hotties from Week 14 in the NFL, including Phil Simms? latest homoerotic comment.
12.10.2005
2006 World Cup draw announced: In Leipzig, Germany on Friday, the United States men?s football (soccer) team got some bad news. The World Cup 2006 tournament, to be held in Germany this coming summer, held its draw to determine who will play who. It couldn?t have gone much worse for the U.S. as they drew Italy, the Czech Republic and Ghana. The Italians, as usual, will be tough, and the Czechs will be too; perhaps only Ghana is the "gimme". The United States will do very well to get out of their "group of death".
England, on the other hand, got a fairly easy set of opponents: Paraguay, Trinidad & Tobago and Sweden. None of those three are powerhouses, but England, much as I love ?em, always find a way to make things difficult for themselves, so they definitely aren?t a lock to win the group. Host Germany drew Costa Rica, Poland and Ecuador but since the German side is somewhat of a rebuilding mode, they should be aware of taking their opponents lightly. My two favorites to win it all, Brazil and Argentina (who have been incredible the two times I?ve watched them on TV in the last year) got mixed news. Brazil?s draw is dead easy: Croatia, Australia and Japan. The five time defending champs should romp in to the Round of 16. The Argentinians have a little tougher time of it only because they have a fine Dutch side to contend with. However, they should easily dispatch the Ivory Coast and Serbia & Montenegro.
Looking at the draw, I?m very happy that both Mexico and Iran were not drawn in the United States? group, though of course they could play later on. The last time the U.S. and Mexico met in the World Cup, it was a nasty affair that did no credit to either side. Iran, well, with the world geopolitical situation as it is these days, I?m glad to be spared reams of dead trees being killed by pundits who don?t know jack about football weighing in on a match between the two. However, the matchup between Germany and Poland promises to fill any void in mindless chatter that a U.S. vs. Iran match would have otherwise occupied. Think the Poles will be fired up for that match?
I?ve been to Germany twice on opera excursions, and I love it there. The final will be held in Berlin on July 9 at the renovated Olympiastadion (home to the notorious "Nazi" Olympics of 1936) but there?s some great venues throughout Germany. I?m a bit of a fairweather fan of the German side Schalke 04 who play in Gelsenkirchen near the Belgian border and their stadium is amazing. How can it not be when it has this: "The ground incorporates a 5km beer pipeline to keep fans well lubricated during football matches". Mmmmm??German beer. Here?s a link to the full draw. Is it summer 2006 yet? -- Jim Allen
12.9.2005
Barnett gone from Colorado: I?ve been following the Gary Barnett situation at the University of Colorado ever since the football team he coached got embroiled in a sleazy scandal in 2004. The team was accused of using booze and sex to lure players to the Boulder campus. I imagine those things are standard issue recruiting enticements at a lot of schools but the whole thing blew up in Barnett?s and the school?s face. Still, he managed to keep his job, even after he was then suspended for making not at all nice remarks about a female kicker on his squad.
In a sign of the Apocalypse or just business as usual in the often murky and sordid world of bigtime college sports, Barnett was fired as the CU coach on Thursday and managed to pocket $3 million in a contract settlement in the process. Reading between the lines of the three stories I read about this, it wasn?t the scandals and suspensions that did him in, it was a three game losing streak cluminating in a disastrous 70-3 capitulation to the Texas Longhorns in the Big 12 title game that did him in. That?s pretty freaking sad if that?s the case: scandal = keep your job, three game losing streak capped with humiliating loss = lose it. --Jim Allen
12.8.2005
"He's Gay to Me": We admit we were hoping supermodel Gisele Bundchen knew something we didn't when we saw that she said about Tom Brady, "He's gay to me."
Alas, the Victoria's Secret model was referring to the fact that Brady, the New England Patriots quarterback, was already dating Bridget Moynahan. ?He?s cute, but if he has a girlfriend, he?s gay to me,? Bundchen told the Boston Herald after she watched Sunday's Patriots-Jets game in person. ?There are too many men in the world to go after a man who has a woman. Life is too short.?
Bundchen, who dated Leonardo Di Caprio, said Brady stacked up pretty well. "Tom Brady, definitely not too shabby," she said. "He?s pretty cute. All-American, that?s a good way to describe him."
Brady was a little red-faced when asked by a Boston radio station about Bundchen's gay comment. "Oh, geez, that?s a little harsh," he said on WEEI. "That?s crazy." Brady said it was hard for his teammates to concentrate on the game Sunday when Bundchen's picture was posted on the stadium scoreboard. "She was up there [on the scoreboard] and there?s 11 guys in the huddle looking up at her," Brady said. "And you go, ?Come on guys.' "
It seems that everyone drools over Brady, three-time Super Bowl champion and this year's Sports Illustrated's Sportsman of the Year. Teammate Chrisitan Fauria said this in October. "I love that guy. I wish he didn't have a girlfriend. Did I say that out loud? I did, didn't I?" Tom Brady, a man of all the people. --Jim Buzinski
12.7.2005
Made into a soccer player: MTV￢??s Made has made a name for itself making over teenagers and turning them into things they never thought possible. There was the girl they made into a pageant queen, the boy who learned to be a playwright and the girl who wanted to play football.
The latest episode of Made, for me, takes the prize. The people at MTV found a 295-pound gay high school junior, who loves drama and participates on the school cheerleading squad, who wanted to become a soccer player. Josh came out to his school in Bethel, a town of 2,000 smack dab in the middle of Vermont, as a sophomore and since then has felt the brunt of jokes from the boys in his class, many of whom play on the very same soccer team he wants to join.
Josh￢??s coach Steve is a hunky (though Josh doesn￢??t think so) coach of some sort with Major League Soccer￢??s New York/New Jersey MetroStars. He pushes Josh to his limit, making him run and crawl and run and dribble and run. Josh struggles through it, all 295 pounds of him.
But the hardest part, it seems, proves to be socializing with the other boys. At a soccer camp Steve enrolls Josh in, Josh is more interested in talking and laughing with the girls. Steve puts his foot down: talk with jocks or else. When it comes time for the first day of practice with his team, he￢??s shocked to find out he￢??s lost 30 pounds and the guys actually invite him out for food and a milkshake after practice. Seeing Josh lose weight, change his image and work his ass off to make the team, it seems, earned him a little of the guys￢?? respect; and, of course, gave Josh a little self-respect along the way.
Josh doesn￢??t get to start his first game, but he does get to enter the game with about 12 minutes left. The way the episode is edited, it looks like Josh even gets an assist in the game; but, I can￢??t tell if that is, truly, just the way it was edited.
What I loved about his episode was how it showed one teenager in New England that through sports you can learn that you can accomplish anything in life. The kid went from screaming how he couldn￢??t do a simple jogging exercise in 90 seconds (after crying about it, he completed it in under 60) to taking aim at a starting position on his high school soccer team. I wish more gay kids would follow Josh￢??s lead and get everything they can out of sports while they￢??re still young enough to learn the life lessons sports have to teach. -Cyd Zeigler jr.
12.6.2005
A Blowout in Philly: The Seattle Seahawks did a lot to shut up their critics with a 42-0 destruction of the Philadelphia Eagles on a Monday night where TV sets clicked off by the millions at halftime. It was the worst home loss by the Eagles since they lost 49-0 to Green Bay in 1962.
"Embarrassing may be a good term for it," Eagles defensive end Jevon Kearse said. "It was embarrassing and everything else bad that goes with it." The culprits were six Eagles turnovers that led directly to 28 Seattle points and a 35-0 halftime lead. We saw a weird anomaly were Seattle had only 194 total yards to Philadelphia?s 190, but the ?Hawks only had to throw 15 times.
With the win, Seattle is now an NFC-best 10-2 and helped silence those who said they were overrated. I still don?t know whether they are a Super Bowl team, but beating any Eagle team 42-0 is pretty impressive, especially in the frenzied atmosphere of a Monday night.
Brady Is S.I.?s Man: New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady was selected as the 2005 Sports Illustrated Sportsmen of the Year. Brady is the first NFL player to win the honor since Joe Montana won in 1990. That?s kind of odd given that the NFL is by far the nation?s most popular sport, but reflects that the last champion is crowned in January and the current season is still going on.
"Against the steepest odds and on the grandest stage, he refuses to believe his team can be beaten. That character extends to his teammates and his fans," the magazine said in announcing the award. Brady has led the Pats to three Super Bowl titles in four year. It?s hard to argue with the choice, but if the SI cover jinx strikes, then New England is clearly doomed to not repeat.
Models Over Boring Football: From the Boston Herald: Richard Seymour ripped into the quiet Gillette Stadium crowd, saying the Foxboro faithful were ?spoiled? and that they made more noise for a visiting Victoria?s Secret model than the three-time Super Bowl champions. br>?It?s really disappointing,? said Seymour following the Patriots? 16-3 victory over the Jets. ?The loudest they ever got was when there was a Victoria?s Secret model (Gisele Bundchen) on the scoreboard. They don?t know when to cheer. You look up and you see half of the stands empty.?
Seymour should shut up. The Pats-Jets game was a mangy dog with fleas and any sensible heterosexual male would have found more excitement with Victoria?s Secret than a 16-3 snoozer. --Jim Buzinski
12.5.2005
Going Bowling: Texas and USC, each 12-0, will play each other in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 4 in a game to decide the national college football championship. It?s a match everyone wants to see, but does still not mean the Bowl Championship Series worked; instead, the BCS just got lucky that neither the Trojans nor Longhorns had a loss or else we?d be having another controversy.
USC has already been made a 6 ﾽ-point favorite, which sounds about right, and my early pick says USC wins, 45-31. The Trojans have too many weapons and giving USC coach Pete Carroll a month to prepare will be huge.
The rest of the bowls will be a mixed bag. Ohio State-Notre Dame in the Fiesta Bowl looks pretty good and Penn State-Florida State in the Geezer (aka Orange) Bowl will match coaches Joe Paterno and Bobby Bowden (combined ages about 313). One-loss Oregon got screwed out of a major BCS bowl, but has an attractive matchup in the Holiday Bowl against Oklahoma. The least-attractive big bowl is the Sugar, which matches Georgia against West Virginia and has zero appeal outside of those two states. --Jim Buzinski
12.3.2005
I?m in love with Ed Hochuli: Today was a tough day for me, as I spent all of it anxiously awaiting the 6:00 pm Pacific Time unveiling of the NFL Channel?s show on referee Ed "Guns" Hochuli. It did not disappoint.
First off, Ed is waaaay sexy, even apart from those mammoth biceps/triceps. They showed him "working" at his law firm in Phoenix, but the meat of the show was what life as a referee is like. They primarily focused on a game from a few weeks ago that Mr. Hochuli worked, when the Detroit Lions visited the Dallas Cowboys. Wow, NFL referees really are heavily scrutinized ? they have to basically justify every decision they make with the NFL front office. In the game in question, Hochuli called a roughing the passer call on Dallas that wasn?t justified; he admitted as much. All the decisions, good and bad, are tallied up in to referee rankings and those are used to decide who works playoff games and the Super Bowl.
As promised, the cameras followed Mr. Hochuli to the gym to observe his workout routine. Um, the dude can lift some serious weight, which isn?t surprising since he lifts four times a week. He?s 54 and in much better shape than a lot of guys half his age. This doesn?t go unnoticed, of course, either by me or Jim B. or Phil Simms or NFL players, some of whom were shown basically going "Dang, you have bigger arms than I do!". Jim B. and I think there should be a rule that Ed Hochuli only works warm weather games where he wears short sleeve shirts.
They also showed a bit of Ed Hochuli?s life. His law firm is based in Phoenix, but he goes to a beach house he owns on the beach in Southern California for part of the week and via computer and Blackberry, works there too. Nice! He seems pretty down to earth and aware of his notoriety, so I cracked up when he mentioned that he watches the DVD of each game he works that the league gives him for self-evaluation to make sure his explanations of his calls and his signaling of penalties and first downs are properly done. Jim B. and I love how he sounds so serious and precise when announcing an offside penalty, so it?s nice to see that Mr. Hochuli practices those things. All in all, an interesting look at someone in a job that we sports fans only really notice when they make a bad call. Oh, and did I mention that Ed Hochuli is sexy as all get out? The show repeats a few times on the NFL Channel today and Sunday. --Jim Allen
12.2.2005
Balls: In the last ten years or so, the explosion of the memrobelia market for sports items has meant that the monetary value of historic baseballs and so on has skyrocketed. When Barry Bonds hit his record setting 73rd home run in 2001, two guys fought over it at the stadium and, when no clear owner could be ascertained, the case ended up in court. The latest example of ownership of a baseball being the cause of a lawsuit came this week when the Boston Red Sox went to court to assert ownership of the ball caught by first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz for the final out of the Sox 2004 World Series. Mientkiewicz, who was mostly a late inning defensive replacement for the Sox, has claimed ownership of the ball ever since Red Sox closer Keith Foulke tossed him the ball for the out that ended the 86 year World Series drought for the team.
After he was traded to the Mets in the offseason, Mr. Mientkiewicz said he?d loan the ball to the Red Sox for a year. That?s not flying at Fenway Park as they assert "that their former employee, Mientkiewicz, obtained the baseball through the course of his employment, that he acquired no ownership interest and that the Red Sox are the rightful owners of the baseball". The team says it?s not doing this for monetary gain; they just want to be able to display the ball, along with the World Series trophy, for fans to be able to see them (after paying admission to wherever they are housed, I?m sure). I don?t expect Doug Mientkiewicz? position to get much sympathy in the Massachussets courts.
No Irvin: If there?s any of you out there who tune in ESPN?s NFL Sunday Countdown to see/listen to Michael Irvin, you?re going to have to go cold turkey this week: after his arrest in Texas on Friday, ESPN suspended him for a week, mainly because the network found out about Irvin?s legal problems only when reporters began to call them for comments. Sure, that probably wasn?t the best way for Irvin?s boss to find out, but now he has also got legal woes hanging over his head. He was arrested for a warrant on an unpaid parking ticket ? um, he makes how much a year? -- and a search of his car resulted in a charge of misdemeanor possession of drug paraphernalia when a crack pipe was found. So, you Michael Irvin fans, be patient, he should be back by the December 11th show. --Jim Allen
12.1.2005
"Do You Love Me?" The strange case of Mike Danton, the former NHL player convicted in a murder-for-hire plot, got even stranger when Canadian television got hold of audiotapes between Danton and his former agent, David Frost.
"Hey, Mike. Listen ... do I have to worry about my safety any more?" says Frost in one tape to Danton in 2004 as the player sat in a California jail.
"No, you don't," Danton replies. "I got to go."
"OK, do you love me?" Frost asks. When Danton says yes, Frost presses him: "Say it."
"I love you," Danton says.
"Do you?"
"Yeah," is Danton's reply.
The tapes, made by the FBI, were played on ?CBC News: the fifth estate? on Wednesday. They describe Frost still trying to manipulate Danton in the week after the player was arrested in a plot to murder the agent. Danton, 25, is serving a 7 ﾽ-year sentence in a New Jersey federal after he pleaded guilty in 2004 to trying to arrange Frost's murder. A female friend who was charged as an accessory was acquitted.
On the tapes, Frost is heard trying to coach Danton into what to say to investigators. CBC reporter Bob McKeown told the Toronto Globe and Mail, "You can hear in the conversations Frost reclaiming his position as Danton's mentor ? telling him what to do, telling him what to say and how to say it."
Frost still publicly denies that he was Danton?s intended target, but on the tapes he asks the player why he was targeted. "I just wanted fucking to do things you know and things weren't fucking good between that person and it was like there was no other way," Danton says, though he never says who that person is.
Interviews with Danton?s parents, from who he is estranged, describe Frost as a manipulative creep who in one incident allegedly duct-taped a preteen player naked to a bed at a Frost?s summer cottage and took pictures.
It?s clear that whatever ?love? existed between Danton and Frost was twisted and warped and influenced by the older man?s Svengali-like effect on the impressionable player who even dropped his given last name after the falling out with his parents. As reporter McKeown says: "It's like a cross between an Elmore Leonard novel and a Coen brothers movie."
Danton is also asking a federal judge to reconsider his sentence, contending he was promised a transfer to a Canadian prison when he pleaded guilty in July 2004. --Jim Buzinski
11.30.2005
?Guns? on TV: Most NFL referees are anonymous souls, generally less than athletic sorts who look out of place among the toned, muscular men they officiate. Then there?s Ed Hochuli.
We call Hochuli ?Guns? in honor of his impressive biceps and we?re not the only ones. Virtually every NFL announcer mentions the Guns? great physique as he makes a call. Hochuli, a Phoenix attorney, is rightly proud of his bod, writing to one website, ?I have never used steroids, growth hormones, or anything like them. I work very hard at maintaining my physique.?
Even the NFL Channel, the official network of the league, has taken note and will feature Hochuli this week in their ?Six Days to Sunday? segment (first airing Thursday, Dec. 1, 8:30 p.m. EST). In his blog
for NFL.com, network host Rich Eisen could barely contain himself at Hochuli?s upcoming appearance:
America's favorite shredded ref Ed Hochuli followed by a camera crew for an entire week! C'mon, talk about giving thanks! Of course, knowing you people like I've gotten to know you over the course of this now 12-week old blog, I had your back in this one. Immediately, I fired [manager of programming Tom Brady] a one-sentence e-mail in return:
"Please tell me we follow Ed Hochuli into the gym." To which, it took Tom all of three minutes to reply: "If we don't, we're doing something wrong."
Oh, baby. Is the NFL Network programming department on top of its game or what? Set your TiVos now and rip the knob off. Personally, I can't wait to see how many plates Ed can put up. And I know you feel the same. While we're on the subject, here's a funny story about the hunky Hochuli that I can't believe I've buried to this point:
Every preseason, each and every broadcast crew meets with a group of officials to review any rule changes that come into being during the offseason. You know, to make sure those who "Watch This!" get it right when close calls occur. At any rate, a few years back, when the Monday Night Football crew included the vivacious Melissa Stark and brilliant Dennis Miller, Ed Hochuli found himself part of the referee contingent on hand to explain the new rulings. From what I heard, during a break in the proceedings, Ed strolled up to Melissa and, within earshot of Miller, innocently told her "I really enjoy your work." To which Miller responded, and you're required to read the following in his voice: "Ed Hochuli! A referee ... AND a player." How great is that?
See, it?s not just the gays who love Ed. He?s a uniter, not a divider. We're also proud that if you type in "Ed Hochuli" into Google, you get Outsports at the top.--Jim Buzinski
11.29.2005
Michael Irvin Back on Crack? Former Dallas Cowboy and Hall of Fame candidate Michael Irvin was arrested on Friday for not only failing to pay a traffic ticket, but also for possessing drug paraphernalia. Irvin has spent much of the last 36 hours telling the media that the item - a crack pipe - was taken from a friend of his when the friend brought it to Irvin's house. Irvin has said he then put it in his car so his kids wouldn't find it.
Instead, the cops found it. According to reports in The Dallas Morning News, Irvin told them it was his brother's, which contradicts his statements to the media that it was a friend's crack pipe. Irvin said he has known the friend for 17 years. His youngest sibling is 30. Unless his brother was missing for the first 13 years of his life, Irvin has lots of explaining to do.
But, forget all that. This is the same Michael Irvin who has had drug problems himself since he was a player with the Cowboys. When he talked to Stuart Scott on Monday Night Countdown, I got the feeling that this was a guilty man who was trying to figure out a way to get out of it. Chances are, though, someone will find a way to dismiss the charges and all will be forgotten. -Cyd Zeigler jr.
Colts Stay Perfect: With their impressive 26-7 win over the Pittsburgh Steelers on Monday, the Indianapolis Colts went to 11-0, the sixth NFL team to do this since 1970. The previous six all made the Super Bowl and five won it.
The Steelers' three previous defeats were by a combined 12 points, yet the Colts put the hurt on them. Edgerrin James ran for 124 yards against a Steelers defense that hadn't allowed a 100-yard rusher in the previous 22 games. Can the Colts go 16-0? They have three games left against teams with winning records (Jacksonville, Seattle and San Diego), but the Colts have met every challenge thrown their way. --Jim Buzinski
What An unnamed Philadelphia Eagles fan was arrested Sunday for running onto Lincoln field during the Packers-Eagles game and spreading his mother's ashes on the field. As he ran onto the field, he emptied a plastic bag apparently holding the ashes. He went to midfield and dropped to his knees, then dropped to his stomach, spread-eagle, before being arrested. It's not known if the man is a season ticket holder or if the Eagles plan to take any action against the man.
Apparently, he did it because his mother never got to go to an Eagles game while she was alive. Seems odd that, if she was such a diehard Eagles fan, she would have never made it to a game. Since they just built the Linc, chances are she'll be there for Eagles games for years to come. -Cyd Zeigler jr.
11.28.2005
T.O. to finally wear a star? Just when you thought the Terrell Owens drama had quieted, Dallas Cowboys owner Jerry Jones has added fuel to the proverbial fire; and the Philadelphia Eagles aren't happy about it.
Jones said on a radio show that he has his eyes on the crazy Pro Bowl wideout who once taunted the Cowboys by stomping on the star in the middle of the field when he was with the San Francisco 49ers.
"In general, I am a risk-taker. We've gone down that road," Jones told the radio host when asked if the Cowboys might be interested in Owens. "I probably have a propensity to try and make things work. ... A top receiver could flourish with Drew Bledsoe. That's always appealing."
The Associated Press is reporting that the Eagles have filed a complaint against the Cowboys because they believe that Jones' comments constitute tampering. Since Owens is still an employee of the Eagles, Jones' comments could be interpreted as trying to recruit Owens to play for Dallas.
Just imagine Keyshawn Johnson and Owens on the same team. The Eagles should be THRILLED that one of their archrivals wants to take their biggest headache off their hands. -Cyd Zeigler jr.
NFL Week 12: Check out our news and notes and hotties from Week 12 in the NFL.
11.26.2005
College hoops: The Duke Blue Devils were the overwhelming pre-season choice for the #1 slot in the men?s basketball rankings and after a terrific game on Friday, they showed why. In the NIT final in New York?s Madison Square Garden, Duke held off an excellent Memphis Tigers team 70-67 to go to 5-0 on the season. Shelden Williams scored 30 points and the gorgeous J.J. Redick scored 15 as Duke continues to roll. Earlier in the NIT, they lost starting guard DeMarcus Nelson to a hairline fracture of his ankle and had to rely on some of their younger players to come through. They did and Duke had their third NIT title in the bag. It?s a long season and Duke doesn?t figure to go undefeated in the tough ACC -- they start two freshman and they?ll need a more balanced scoring attack ? but they?re fun to watch.
With the baseball season over, I?ve been watching a lot of college basketball and in flipping around the dial, one team I was impressed with was the #3 Connecticut Huskies. They?re tough on defense and can wear teams down, as they did on Wednesday against Gonzaga. They beat the Zags 65-63 to win the Maui Invitational tournament in Hawaii. The Maui Invitational was fun to watch. The teams play in a small gym and the coaches wear Hawaiian shirts on the sidelines in place of their usual expensive suits, so it?s a little looser than the usual college basketball tournament.
Another team that was interesting to watch in Maui was #12 ranked Michigan State. They were ranked #4 going in to the season, but they got schooled by that perennial college basketball powerhouse ? not ? Hawaii by 22 points in the opener of the Maui tournament. They then lost a fantastic triple overtime game against Gonzaga and looked to be dead in the water. However, they beat a very good Arizona Wildcats team in overtime, 74-71, to salvage something out of their trip to Hawaii. Despite the losses, they have a stud center, Paul Davis, and lot of other excellent players, so they should do well in the Big 10 this year. Now, if UCLA can keep playing decent ball, it should be a fun college basketball season to watch. --Jim Allen
11.25.2005
Turkey day NFL: For as long as I can remember, the Detroit Lions and Dallas Cowboys have hosted games on Thanksgiving. This year, the Lions hosted the Atlanta Falcons and Detroit looked like a team in serious disarray. The Lions used three quarterbacks ? hottie Joey Harrington, Jeff Garcia and rookie Dan Orlovsky ? and none of them looked very good. It?s hard to tell whether Joey Harrington really isn?t very good or whether the poor Lions receiving corps are to blame, but the passing game is not happening for Detroit right now. Neither is the rushing game; it?s a bad day when your leading rusher only has 32 yards. On the other hand, the Falcons felt so comfortable with their 27-0 lead at the end of the third quarter that they sat quarterback Michael Vick for all of the fourth quarter. "It's always nice when you get an opportunity in the fourth quarter to sit down, enjoy the moment and the victory" said Vick.
The second game of the day was a much better one, as the Denver Broncos beat the Cowboys in overtime, 27-24. Ron Dayne ripped off a great 55 yard run down to the Cowboys six yard line and reliable Jason Elam had no trouble with the winning 24 yard field goal on the next play. Dallas can?t be happy with their kicker, Billy Cundiff, as he hit a very makeable 34 yard field goal try wide left with 7:46 to play that would have given the ?boys a 24-21 lead. The look on Dallas coach Bill Parcells? face after Cundiff?s miss was priceless: a mix of disbelief, disgust and anger.
Jim B. and I disagree about how the NFL structures its overtimes. He prefers the college way, where both teams are guaranteed at least one series. I like it how it is now, with a coinflip and sudden death. For the first time in ages, I sort of agreed with Jim B. about this, because the Cowboys basically got steamrolled by Ron Dayne?s great run. Oh well, if their defensive line hadn?t been blown off the ball so completely on the play, maybe Dallas could have given their offense a chance to win the game. --Jim Allen
11.24.2005
No more drama - T.O. loses his case: It is a sign that there is justice in the world. Terrell Owens, the obnoxious superstar wide receiver for the Philadelphia Eagles, has lost his grievance against the Eagles on every count, and arbitrator Richard Bloch has upheld Owens' four-game suspension and given the Eagles the freedom to keep Owens deactivated for the rest of the season.
Kudos to Bloch for doing the right thing. Stories had been coming out Wednesday morning that, after the 14-hour hearing last Friday, he was going to overturn some of the Eagles' actions. Owens was a distraction to the team, he was counterproductive to a positive work environment and no employer should ever have to put up with an employee calling them "classless," picking fistfights with teammates and saying disparaging things about his coworkers.
I actually heard some people defend Owens in recent days. They said that the Eagles should have known what they were getting in T.O. People forget that all he and the rest of the players in the NFL, NBA, NHL and other leagues are are employees. They're well-known employees, to be sure. But, a sports team is a business and that business should never have to put up with the bullshit that this knucklehead threw at them in the last six months.
So now, Owen's agent, Drew Rosenhaus, has everything he wanted. Rosenhaus was hired by Owens after Owens signed his deal with the Eagles. Now that Owens will surely be released or traded, Rosenhaus will get a big fat payday when he negotiates a new deal for his most visible client.
It's hard to tell who's worse: Owens or Rosenhaus. My pick would be the latter; Owens was crazy before he hired his new agent, but he wasn't particularly self-destructive. Now with Rosenhaus pulling the strings, Owens has a one-year history of doing and saying things that are destroying his reputation to the point of possibly never getting a longterm deal from another team.
As for the Eagles, they'll be fine. Owens was certainliy a huge asset on the field, but they don't need him to win. This is a solid franchise, and the sooner they are able to get over one of the most bizarre midseason catfights in memory, the better off they'll be. -Cyd Zeigler jr.
