This year, as far as we can tell only one of the 151 nominees is directly related to sports: ESPN’s segment on Kye Allums. What makes that nomination a little strange is how negative that piece was, with so much focus on made-up negative aspects of Allums transitioning and playing on a women’s basketball team (not to mention Kevin Blackistone constantly referring to Allums as “a woman” and “she”). We’re glad any time sports are highlighted by gay organizations; This one, however, is a bit of a head-scratcher.

Interestingly, Outsports’ groundbreaking piece on Allums, which introduced him to the world, was not nominated last year. This is also the first time in years the work of LZ Granderson at ESPN is not highlighted.

We are however thrilled to see some of our friends receive nominations this year! Our good friend Josh Berman was nominated for Outstanding Individual TV Episode for the “Prom” episode of Drop Dead Diva. Towleroad, which was overlooked last year, was nominated for Best Blog this time around; Rod McCullom at Rod 2.0, who often highlights sports news, is also nominated in the same category. Howard Bragman, associate producer of Becoming Chaz, was nominated for Outstanding Documentary.

Congratulations to all of the nominees!

You can see the full list of nominees here.

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Openly gay former Villanova basketball player Will Sheridan has release a new music video in anticipation of his debut album release in February. His music name is actually W!ll Sheridan; You can read more about him at his blog.

The remix of ‘Set Fire to the Streets’ by Great Tiger is pretty damn good! I can absolutely envision this being played in the clubs.

Photo by Josh Maready

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Video after the jump. Allums comes in at minute 36:00. 

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Brian Healey

This is cool — players from the men’s and women’s basketball teams, men’s hockey team and tennis team have combined to produce an It Gets Better video for St. Michael’s College in Vermont.

One of the editors of the video is Brian Healey, captain of the Purple Knights men’s tennis team, who says this:

I’m an out college athlete and I’m proud to say my teammates support me as much as I support them on and off the court.

The video is a must-see and shows the power of an institution getting behind making athletics safe for LGBT athletes. Healey is the only athlete self-identified as gay in the video, which means there are a ton of gay allies at the school. Hearing hockey player Brady Earle say, “we will not tolerate bullying of any kind” is terrific and if I was a gay hockey player considering a school, the welcoming environment at St. Michael’s would be appealing (along with its excellent academics).

Related: Other sports It Gets Better videos.

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I didn’t find anything clever about the St. John’s fans in the student section that were chanting “U of Gay” as a mocking retort to Arizona fans’ chant of “U of A” at the Garden yesterday for the 2K Sports Classic.

I’m looking at these young, energetic, supposed future leaders crammed into the “Redzone” section behind the basket and I think, “What if one of their friends who is gay is sitting in that section, listening to this homophobic venting?”

Maybe that young man or woman is wondering: “Is the university I attend, which is located in the most socially diverse city in the world, the right place for me?”

Later, some morons in the St. John’s fan section were chanting “Suck my Johnnies!” The university said they would address the issue of fan behavior.

I applaud Robbins for pointing out the offensive (and uncreative) nature of these chants. I wish more media people would write about the stuff that is chanted at sporting events, since it is telling of group behavior. But in the comments section, he is the one being criticized for being overly sensitive. Go figure.

Hat tip to reader John.

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Joe Paterno describes the current “tragedy”  at Penn State as “…one of the great sorrows of my life.”

He should add to that list the devastating harm he did in protecting women’s basketball coach Rene Portland while she blatantly discriminated against the women on her team who she presumed were lesbian. She was public about her practices until 1992 when Penn State included sexual orientation in their non-descrimination policy.

Apparently that didn’t stop Portland. In 2005 Jennifer Harris, a star player for the Lady Lions, was dismissed from the team. She charged Rene Portland, Tim Curley and Penn State with discrimination based on her perceived sexual orientation. Penn State tried to wiggle out of it saying that their non-discrimination policy was not a legal document. The case was settled in 2007. The film Training Rules depicts the 27 years that  Portland was able to wreak havoc on the lives of so many of her players while Paterno and the university did absolutely nothing to stop her.

You can reach Yacker via email.

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The photos are hyperstylized and gorgeous, what we’ve come to expect from Out magazine over the years (Allums photo after the jump). And the inclusion of these men is a powerful statement that sports are becoming more ingrained in gay culture. 

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Few basketball coaches are as decorated as Summit. Eight national championships spanning 22 years. Seven NCAA coach of the year awards. Basketball Hall of Fame inductee. Olympic gold medal coach. She’s the only head basketball coach, men’s or women’s, to reach 1,000 NCAA career coaching wins. She has never had a losing season. And it’s probable that she will go hours or days at some point in her life when she won’t remember any of it.

My great-grandmother had Alzheimer’s. If you haven’t experienced a loved one with the disease, it’s incredibly tough. Most of the time my great-grandmother thought she was a little girl back in France and thought I was someone else. That is what her family and friends are in for.

While some will criticize the decision, I’m glad Summit is opting to remain the head coach of the Lady Vols. She’s earned it.

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College basketball, 2010. When Kye Allums contacted Outsports in the spring of 2010, he was afraid of the repercussions of coming out as the first publicly out transgender male playing women’s college basketball. Other trans athletes like Keelin Godsey had come out in college, but Allums faced the scrutiny of D.1 basketball. With the help of Helen Carroll and the National Center for Lesbian Rights, we crafted a plan that would give Allums some protection. He decided to take the leap.

On Nov. 1, 2010, Outsports ran the brave story of Allums. George Washington University, where he played, wasn’t remotely ready for what happened next: An unprecedented tidal wave of media attention for Allums that few women’s college basketball players ever receive. Allums even received an invitation to the White House.

Allums’ revelation forced the NCAA to put their thinking on trans-athlete issues into high gear. Suddenly fans and the media wanted to know what a trans athlete could and could not do to remain eligible. Some even questioned whether anyone who identified as male should be allowed to play women’s sports. Like few other stories in history, Allums’ revelation trained the attention of sports fans across the country squarely on transgender issues.

Heading into the 2011-12 season, Allums has ended his college basketball career. Speculation swirls about whether he was forced out by an intensely Christian coach or whether his passion for basketball faded. Regardless, Allums will graduate this winter…and I’m excited to see what he does next.

For more information:

• Outsports’ article on Kye Allums
• School ends Allums’ 2010-11 season; Allums’ mom speaks out

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Part of Outsports’ series on our

College basketball, 2007: Rene Portland had a simple rule during her 27 years as Penn State’s women’s basketball team — no lesbians were allowed. Finally, in 2007, after the culmination of a lawsuit by former player Jen Harris and fought by the National Center for Lesbian Rights, Portland resigned as coach. Our 2007 headline on a column by Pat Griffin said it all: “Rene Portland resigns, lesbian athletes rejoice.” Portland bragged openly about her no-lesbians policy, telling the Chicago Sun-Times in 1986:

“I will not have it in my program. I bring it up, and the kids are so relieved, and the parents are so relieved.”

Portland was a success on the court, winning 600 games as Penn State’s coach. But in her last two seasons, she had a losing record, which made it easier for Penn State to accept her resignation. Her homophobia, contrary to the school’s nondiscrimination policy, was an embarrassment to the university, and the 2005 lawsuit filed by Jen Harris brought much unwanted media attention to the program. Times had changed and employing a homophobe was no longer acceptable.

The controversy and Portland’s 27-year run were chronicled in the documentary film Training Rules.

For more information:

• Pat Griffin column on Portland’s resignation
• Column on Portland’s homophobia
• Review of Training Rules
• NCLR’s blurb about the case
• Chicago Sun-Times 1986 article on Portland

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