Florida has a male model posing as a wide receiver. Riley Cooper has been one of Tim Tebow’s go-to guys this season for the top-ranked Gators. And Cooper, a 6-3, 215-pound senior, is easy on the eyes. He has let his hair grow out since his early years with the Gators and it’s a look that works. Photos and video of Cooper making a one-handed catch: Continue reading →
Weekend Hot Jock: Riley Cooper
France cheats to qualify for World Cup
And you thought there was controversy over Bill Belichick going for it on 4th-and-2. That’s nothing compared to the outcry in the soccer world after France qualified for next year’s World Cup by beating Ireland, 2-1, in an elimination game when Thierry Henry used his hand to help score the winning goal. For you soccer novices, only goalies can use their hands.
What’s worse is that Henry admits he used a handball but blamed the ref for missing it. This is so big the Irish prime minister asked for a replay of the game and said he would bring the issue up with French President Nicolas Sarkozy. Americans have nothing on international soccer fans when it comes to passion and blowing things out of proportion. Continue reading →
Brett Favre’s “really tiny jean shorts”
Are you as tired of Brett Favre’s Wrangler commercials as I am? Well Funny Or Die brings the perfect cure for Favre-Wrangler blues (produced by The Midnight Show, a sketch comedy show in L.A.). Oh. My. God. You’ll never watch those commercials the same way again.
Video after the jump.
Repressed homosexuality in Big Fan
I stumbled across a review for the film Big Fan today. I remember hearing about it when The Wrestler came out, as Robert Siegel wrote both scripts. The film’s been out since August, but it barely made a blip on any radar screens; It broke the top 50 in box office receipts just one weekend. But the review I saw today makes me more intrigued than ever to see it.
The film is about a hardcore New York Giants fan, Paul. Blue-collar guy. This reviewer, Kim Nicolini, ties the fan’s intense love for the Giants and their star quarterback to the protagonist’s repressed homosexuality.
Injured? Have placenta rubbed on your leg.
Warning: The visions this story conjurs up aren’t safe for work. Or home. Injured Arsenal striker Robin Van Persie is going to try an unorthodox treatment for his injured ankle. He’s flying to the Serbian home of Mariana Kovacevic. Once there, the housewife will (close your eyes) rub placenta on the injured area to help speed recovery. Apparently, he’s not the first soccer player to try this. There seems to be a shroud of mystery around the whole procedure. Duh!
My question: Where does the placenta come from? A human? A pig?
Frank Luntz shows he’s clueless
For some reason, CBS’ “NFL Today” had the political pollster Frank Luntz on to dissect which players communicated well. Luntz was billed as a “language expert” for his use of meters to register how people feel when they watch other people speak.
In his dissection of a clip of Terrell Owens (in which the receiver scored very low), Luntz told T.O. to ditch the sunglasses and hat because millions of young people look to him as a role model and would start dressing how he did. He was then asked about T.O.’s earrings:
“That may work in San Francisco.” Continue reading →
The debate: How gay is MMA?
It has been interesting to see mainstream writers wrestle with whether mixed martial arts is “gay.” The Daily Beast has had two somewhat-opposing columns on the subject in the past two weeks, the most recent by Sam Sheridan, himself a fighter. Writes Sheridan:
Having fought and trained a little, let me assure you that there is nothing sexual going on-fighters are in survival mode, the “fight-or-flight” instinct is in full swing. It’s kill or be killed, intensely claustrophobic, and a mental and physical war of counter and bait, deception, and speed. A fighter’s grappling style reflects his body type, his temperament, his training and his thoughts, just like an artist’s. There are thousands of variations on attacks and defense, “the ground game” is hard to appreciate at first, but worth the study. Is it homoerotic? Sure, if you want it to be. But, as Freud said, sometimes a cigar is just a good smoke. Of course, to those boxers and boxing promoters who don’t understand and are threatened by MMA, homophobia is the last refuge of the scoundrel. Continue reading →
Bengals sign Larry Johnson
Do you believe in karma? If you do and you’re a Cincinnati Bengals fan, you may want to shield your eyes from the rest of the season. The Bengals have signed running back Larry Johnson as an “insurance” policy against injuries to their other running backs, including Cedric Benson who’s nursing a hip injury.
On the face of the deal, it’s a smart move. Johnson still has juice and could fill in nicely if he needs to. Getting him in now, when you don’t need him and he can learn the offense, is a great idea. But I just have this nagging feeling that prognosticators could look back at this six weeks from now and say this was somehow what sent the Bengals on a downward spiral.
Yep, Brady Quinn still sucks
This was supposed to be his third chance. His big breakout. Brady Quinn was being named the starter of the Cleveland Browns for the third time in the last two seasons, and we were finally going to see the player who earned first-round draft status. And then he had to play a game…and had one of the worst performances by a quarterback in the NFL this season. He completed under 42% of his passes, averaged an abismal 3.2 yards per attempt and threw 2 interceptions with no TDs. Other than his one 30-yard completion, he averaged 2.3 yards per attempt for the other 30 attempts. Plus, he should be looking at a fine for a dirty cheap shot hit on Terrell Suggs.
I know a lot of people think he’s hot, and I must say his looks have grown on me a bit. But he is tough to watch out there. Time to sit the guy on the bench and trade or release him in the offseason. Maybe he can do a better job sitting on a bench in Jacksonville or Green Bay.
This year’s Out 100 is sports-less
The latest Out 100 has been released, and the glaring omission this year (there’s always at least one) is the complete lack of sports figures in the list. The most glaring of all those possible names is Brian Sims, who came out on Outsports earlier this year and who has since become a valuable advocate, speaking at various college athletic departments. He’s certainly done more for the good of gay people than half of the people on the list. But I digress….
Since Out magazine likes to sexualize sports, there’s no shortage of cute sporty double entendres. For example, two guys are labeled “The Jocks.” One, Scott Evans, does play in the New York Gay Football League and is as big a Patriots fan as I am. So that’s something. Their “Most Valuable Players” are a couple peeps in advertising and marketing…playing softball (kinda) in the photo. Grey Gardens writer/director Mike Sucsy used to play flag football with the gay group that Jim runs here in L.A. So it’s not completely devoid of true sports. But pretty much.
Middle finger salute costs Titans owner $250,000
Buffoonish Tennessee Titans owner Bud Adams flipped the middle finger to Buffalo Bills fans during Sunday’s Bills-Titans game in Nashville. NFL commissioner Roger Goodell was in attendance. Adams later apologized and was fined $250,000 Monday by the NFL. Video: Continue reading →
Should Belichick have gone for it?
All anyone is discussing around the NFL today is the end of the Colts’ 35-34 stunner over the Patriots on Sunday night. Not the Colts coming back from 17 down in the fourth, but Patriots’ coach Bill Belichick’s decision to go for it on 4th and 2 from HIS OWN 28 with a little over two minutes left. They fell short, the Colts took over and scored the game-winner with 12 seconds left.
I ripped Belichick in my Week 10 notes and am in the solid majority on this. A statistician, using the odds of probability, defended the decision. ESPN’s Merrill Hoge also defended Belichick, but that like having Bernie Maddof as a character witness at your trial. Hoge said (and I am not making this up) that the Patriots were hoping to hold the Colts to a field goal on the last drive. The Colts were never going to try a field goal since they were down six, dumbass. Continue reading →
The incredible shrinking gay media
I’ve noticed the disappearance of some gay-sports media outlets in recent weeks. Gay.com’s Sports blog has apparently been abandoned as nothing’s been posted there since Aug. 10 and emails to the editor got bounced back. Gaysports.com hasn’t been updated since June, and that wasn’t about sports. Now comes news that Window Media, which owns the Washington Blade, Southern Voice and David Atlanta, among others, has closed down. The publications’ Web sites have already been taken down.
It’s disappointing to see all these news outlets cease reporting. But it’s not surprising. With the economic recession and ad market where it’s been, many publications have been forced to downsize or shut down. I had a strong personal and professional connection to Window Media, having been the sports editor for Genre and the associate editor of the New York Blade while the company owned them. I even appeared on the cover of David Atlanta to promote Outsports Revolution. Shocking, I know.
Weekend Hot Jocks: Water polo players
Water polo is a terrific sport to watch and I became a big fan after covering an international meet in 2004. Being in Southern California, there are always quality matches going on. Recently, Brent shot No. 4 UCLA’s 10-5 win over No. 6 Loyola Marymount. A gallery below: Continue reading →
Gay basketball team tops on ‘Community’
The NBC sit-com Community had a fun throw-away line last night that caught our attention. The show is about the faculty, staff and students of Greendale Community College. Dean Pelton, who’s proud of helping change the school’s mascot from the “Grizzlies” to the “Human Beings” had this observation about the athletic department:
The best compliment our sports program gets is that our basketball team is really gay.
I thought it was funny. And that can be quite a compliment; I’d put the Rock Dogs up against just about any bunch of (non-NBA) straight guys any day!
