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I heard a story earlier this week that the Monday of the last full week of January is the most depressing day of the year. The weather is normally grey and dreary, the reality of how unreasonable your New Year's Resolutions are is gone and the credit card bills for all that Christmas shopping come due.
But that's just real life. How about sports life? It's just as bad.
No more football until the Super Bowl, and even that leaves only one more game. (Funny aside, when I told our producer this weekend that we need football to go year round, she said "No, because girls need to see their boys.")
The NBA is in the thick of it's regular season, which means more meaningless games for teams the like of the Spurs who use the regular season as a tune-up for the post-season.
The NHL just lost it's only draw in Sidney Crosby for the next 8 weeks.
College basketball? Wake me up when it's Conference Tournament week.
The Australian Open is good, but almost over.
It seems too early for golf, and thus, it's hard to watch it even if Tiger is playing for the first time this weekend.
So what's a sports fan to do? Start watching pro bowling, poker, or darts to get yourself until the end of February. From there, we're out of the Winter Doldrums.
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It's not Seinfeld and sports can be so easily related. But, thanks to WLUK, the Fox affiliate in Green Bay, I've been able to do just that. (Oh yeah, I like this idea).
In case you haven't heard, WLUK has pulled it's Seinfeld re-run tomorrow at 5:30 because they heard it was Eli Manning's favorite show. This has not played well with Jerry Seinfeld himself, who has sent Eli a copy of all the seasons on DVD as well as a personal DVD player.(The sea was angry that day my friends. Like an old man trying to send back soup at a deli.)
Why shouldn't this even be a story? The Giants weren't even supposed to be in this game. Heck, this game wasn't even supposed to be in Green Bay...it was supposed to be in Dallas. (I don't want to be a Cowboy!).
But the Giants are clearly going into hostile territory when traveling to Green Bay. On top of pulling the Seinfeld repeat, the weather is supposed to be 6 degrees. (No Soup for You!)
So WLUK has replaced Seinfeld with a special on Vince Lombardi called "God, Family, and the Green Bay Packers." (It's a write off for them, they just write it off....You don't even know what a write off is)
I don't think anyone really thinks this will have an impact on the game (Your cranium called, there's space for rent.)
But give the people of Green Bay a break. They love their Packers, they love their cheese, and they love their tailgating. (These pretzels are making me thirsty)
And you can believe that everyone in that small town in Wisconsin will be either at the game, at home or at a bar watching the Packers and Giants. No one will be at the gym, at the grocery store, no one will even be at the movie theatre. (Why don't you just tell me the name of the movie you want to see?)
So after all this, you're probably wondering who's going to win. Just remember (Gold Jerry, pure Gold).
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Sure I could talk about Jason Garrett remaining with the Cowboys, being by far the highest paid assisstant in the NFL, and how it must be nice to have as much money as Jerry Jones does.
But there's something far more pressing on my mind today: both written and unwritten traffic rules not being followed in San Antonio.
I'll grant you this problem is not limited to this city; however, it seems far more prevalent in this city than others I've lived in.
- Unwritten Traffic Law # 1: Follow the wedge/go/wedge/go process when faced with a lane closure/merging traffic situation.
- Regardless of how late you are or how important you think you are, you do not get to go past the people following the rule. If everyone followed this process, the delays at lane closures would be at minimum cut in half.
- Written/Unwritten Traffic Law #2: Obey Yield Signs/Don't be jerks to people who do obey yield signs.
- Yield signs do not mean kind of slow down but it's up to the other person to get in somehow. If you are being told to Yield, you must let the other person in, even if it means you have to stop. And yes, this includes turnarounds too. I can't tell you how many times I've been honked at for obeying this law.
- Written Traffic Law #3: Slower Traffic keep right.
- Seems simple enough, but too many people who are going slow insist on staying in the left hand lane. Please kindly move over if you see a string of 1,534 cars on your tail behind you.
- Written Traffic Law #4: 4-Way Stop means stop all 4-ways.
- Here's the process for a 4-way stop. You come to a complete stop. The person who has come to that complete stop first, goes. Tie goes to the person on the left. This is regardless of whether you are on the street that sees more traffic or not. You still have to stop. You can't kind of slow down, then speed past as the person who was supposed to go almost broadsides your car. Well, I guess evidenced by the experiences I've had, you can and do.
If these 4 laws were followed, driving around San Antonio would be a much less stressful experience. Now if you'll excuse me, I have to figure out how to get Jerry Jones's job.
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There are things that go well together. Peanut Butter and Jelly. Pizza and Beer. Peanuts and Candy Corn (seriously....try it if you haven't).
And along those same lines with me would be snow and football. Did you see the game between Green Bay and Seattle on Saturday afternoon? To me, nothing beats two teams playing in the elements in January.
And that's what makes it so hard for me to understand why the NFL is so hesitant to consider an outdoor, cold-weather city for the Super Bowl. Not that it needs the help, but can you imagine the ratings for a Super Bowl played in the wintry conditions that we saw in that Green Bay game? Who would turn away from that?
Sure, Super Bowls have been played in cold weather cities such as Detroit and Minnesota. But all those games have been indoors in domed stadiums.
So what are the reasons for no cold-weather Super Bowls? For one, people say they're not getting the "best game" if it's not played in ideal conditions. The whole game of football is predicated on adjustments, so to make teams adjust to something unforeseen such as snow showers I think even enhances the game.
And the only other reason I've heard, from sportswriters who have debated the issue, is that all the sportswriters who travel to cover the Super Bowl don't want to be cold. Well to those people, I say get over it. You can be cold, or deal with rain or snow for 4 hours to watch the football game that determines the champion of the National Football League.
Because for me, that's January football. Two teams, battling each other and the elements to see who the best team is and who's moving on in the playoffs.
I guess you could say that I'm dreaming of a White Super Bowl.
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We do this every year.
Every year, 4 teams have a bye week for the first round of the NFL playoffs.
And every year, we give every conceivable reason why those teams should lose in round 2 of the playoffs while forgetting the very reason they aren't playing in week 1 in the first place.
The en vogue pick this week: the Giants will beat the Cowboys.
The reason? The Giants played well last week, and the Cowboys didn't play well 2 weeks ago.
But how quickly we forget that Cowboys are 13-3....that the Cowboys beat the Giants twice...that the Cowboys lost only 1 game that really mattered to them (against the Patriots). And also that the Giants played last week.
So I expect all 4 teams to advance this weekend, setting up one of the greatest football championship Sundays I can ever remember. I mean, how can you beat New England-Indy and Dallas-Green Bay? As we've seen already this year, those are going to be two stellar match-ups.
But, I guess if you listen to everyone else, "Beware the Bye-Week Curse."
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I know, I know. I've said I'm over all the baseball steroids allegations. But this one with Roger Clemens is a little different. This is a complex version of he-said, she-said. And, for now at least, I'm not really buying what Clemens is selling.
I watched the 60 Minutes interview last night. Roger was combative, stern and visibly annoyed by having to answer all these questions (and I don't really blame him). But I didn't quite see the indignation that I expected from someone who so vehemently disputes what was written in this Mitchell report.
And then today. I watched the whole Roger Clemens press conference live on a feed. After sitting through Roger's incredibly annoying lawyer talking far too long and saying in essence nothing, they played a tape with a phone conversation between Clemens and former trainer Bryan McNamee. What you'll hear on SportsCenter, or the national news shows tonight is McNamee repeatedly (21 times according to the AP) asking "What do you want me to do?" What you won't hear is Roger's response...because for most of those 21 instances he didn't give one.
What did I want to hear from Roger? I wanted him to say this in some manner: "I want you to come down here to this press conference on Monday, say what you said in the Mitchell Report was a lie, and retract everything about me taking steroids." Is this an unreasonable request? I don't think so. If I knew I was innocent, and the person who accused me knew I was innocent, I think I would be well within my rights to request that accuser rescind the accusations against me.
Clemens said multiple times that he knew he didn't use steroids. But he never asked McNamee to confirm it for him. That's what was missing. After the phone conversation, Roger answered reporter's questions with the kind of indignation I felt was missing in the 60 Minutes interview.
So am I convinced Roger did steroids? No. But am I convinced Roger didn't do steroids? Not really. Apparently now we'll leave that up the courts to decide.
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Well surprisingly they asked me to play wide receiver in this game not running back like I've always done. The highlight of my day was the fact that I didn't mess up any of the routes! I think I caught a total of three passes in my entire high school career so it's been really different for me to play wide receiver. The first couple of days were tough, but I've quickly learned here that their are no weaknesses from any of these players. When you're playing with the best, every player is on their best game! It's taught me that you REALLY have to practice every day if you want to play with the best. You have to be mentally and physically focused at all times.
Marcus Wright
Reagan Running Back
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Well, because I live here, I was here at 9:00 am. I got through registration and then all the players had to sign a hundred or so footballs. We took our head shots for the game, and were each required to do a physical with the medical staff. My roomate is local Madison High School running back Devin Thomas. We've been friends since we were very young, and began playing football together when we were six years old.
The highlight of my day today (Sunday) was by far seeing how big the other guys were. I honestly couldn't believe the size of some of them. Although I'm used to it for the most part, I'm anxious about having to play on national TV. I'm looking forward to simply seeing how I match up with others in the nation. Everyone here is the best, so to play with the best is definatley an experience I'm really looking forward to.
Marcus Wright
Reagan Running Back
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I was going to write my New Year's Resolutions down in blog form, but I figured I had used up my quota of holiday-related blog entries. So since I was off for Christmas and spent the last 4 days putting together last night's year-end piece, I thought I'd give some of my views on the big stories of the last week or so.
- News: Roger Goodell announced last Wednesday the Patriots attempt to become the first ever 16-0 team would be seen on both CBS and NBC as well as the NFL Network.
- Views: Awesome....now where was that a month ago when the Packers and Cowboys played in front of only 1/3 of the country on NFL Network? As a fan of football, I want to see as many games as possible. So the NFL Network needs to figure out a new strategy, because clearly the one they've taken hasn't worked.
- News: Patriots win the game mentioned above, and become the first team to go 16-0 in the regular season.
- Views: I was nowhere near as into this as I thought I would be. It just doesn't seem that important to me unless they're able to go 19-0. As someone who's not a big fan of the team, I'm just hoping that someone will knock them off in the playoffs, rendering a season for the ages somewhat meaningless. Tony Romo said it on the podium Sunday....the Vikings were 15-1 and lost in the NFC Championship game. It can happen.
- News: Colorado, after a valiant comeback effort, falls in the most important bowl game this year, the PetroSun Independence Bowl.
- Views: They were down 27-0 in the 1st half, and came back to make a game of it. These Buffaloes don't quit, and they're young enough to get better and better. So Texas fan, don't think it's going to be an easy W when the Longhorns go to Boulder on October 4th.
- News: After Tim missed some games, and then Tony missed some games, now Manu and Brent are missing some games.
- Views: I realize they're missing games because of injury, and nobody wants to get injured. But this almost works out to the Spurs' advantage. The Spurs really look at the regular season as a solely a pre-cursor for the playoffs anyway. They don't care where they finish. So to get Tim, Tony, and Manu some regular season games off and keep them fresher for later in the season, while continuing to be competitive without some of their stars bodes well for their Drive 4 Five.
- News: We put together that year-end piece for Sports Sunday, and got a few e-mails saying we should have included some stuff or not included others.
- Views: There were some valid points. We should have included Craig Biggio's 3,000th hit. But the one e-mail that I will absolutely not agree with is the one saying that we should have left out the Hot Dog eating contest. That was a true American triumph.
Let me be the very first to wish you and yours a very happy, healthy, and fortuitous 2008. Happy New Year everybody.
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 It was supposed to be all about good sportsmanship and fun. Instead, an Aggie yell leader embarrassed his school Thursday night, calling Penn State fans second rate, trashy and said coach Joe Paterno was on his death bed and that somebody needs to get him a casket.
What do you think about this incident? Click here to comment…
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As we all know, Santa is furiously going through his list, making last-minute adjustments to who has been naughty and nice this year. We won't find out whether we made the cut until Christmas morning, but I have a few North Pole connections, and Santa released to me a few days early those in sports who have been naughty and nice this year. Please enjoy.
- Nice- Tony Romo. More than just a 1-hit wonder, Romo went from phenom last year, to a stud this year. He even convinced the Cowboys enough to the point they gave him a big-dollar contract mid-season instead of waiting till the end of the season like Jerry Jones wanted to. Plus, he's dated Carrie Underwood and Jessica Simpson this year. Santa may have already given Tony his best gifts this year.
- Naughty- Select members of the Florida State football team. Beyond their lucky win in Boulder earlier this season, it came out that over 20 players were involved in an on-line cheating scandal and will miss the team's bowl game. Not only do they miss out on free trip to Nashville for the Music City Bowl and all that comes with that, on-line classes are never that difficult. Did you really need to cheat?
- Nice- Bosie State giving hope to the little guys. If you were outside the state of Oklahoma, you were rooting for the Broncos. And to see that statue of liberty work for the 2-point conversion is one of the top 10 plays I've ever seen. True story, that night I stayed at work for an extra hour and a half because I didn't want to miss the end of that game.
- Naughty- Patriots. I'll freely admit that I've never liked the Patriots. But this year, they've actually given me reasons not to like them. From Spy-gate to running up the score, is anyone outside of New England actually rooting for this team? I doubt it.
- Nice- The Spurs. One of the few teams that's of championship caliber both on and off the court. It's not often in these days in sports to see a team that has players who can stay on the right side of the law, and do nice things in the community.
- Naughty- Tim Donaghy, Michael Vick, Barry Bonds. All were huge stories over the summer, but for all the wrong reasons. They overshadowed even the greatest of American success stories over the summer....Joey Chestnut bringing the Mustard Belt back to the USA, winning the July 4th hot dog eating contest.
- Oh-so-Close to being Nice- Terrell Owens. TO was the model citizen for the first half of the season. Heck, the first 14 weeks of the season. But, he couldn't handle leaving the spotlight for the whole season, so he had to say what he did about Jessica Simpson. I don't mean to make a "mountain hill" out of Owens' joke, but I think that one would have been better left on the cutting room floor.
- Naughty, but in a nice way- Brian Westbrook. He had that brilliant play at the end of the Dallas-Philadelphia game. Instead of scoring a meaningless touchdown with just over 2:00 left, he fell down on the 1-yard line and the Eagles were able to run out the clock. Nice until you realize that Westbrook cost millions of fantasy owners a playoff victory.
I'd like to thank Santa for giving me insider access to his list. We'll do it again next year. Merry Christmas everybody.
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First of all, I want to make sure that I apologize for my previous blog entry, and let you all know that I was kidding. And I say that with absolutely no sarcasm at all.
But we've moved on from Jess-Gate. Today the ultimate "Dog ate my homework" story. Only in this case, the homework was a World Series winning baseball.
Turns out Jonathon Papelbon has a dog named Boss (ironic because he plays for the Red Sox and not for "The Boss" and the Yankees.) And Boss likes to play with baseballs. The Riverdancing closer left the ball with which he recorded the final out of the 2007 World Series on the counter. Boss, clearly not knowing nor caring about the significance of this ball, decided that he was bored and needed something to chew on.
So now, the historic ball from that fateful October night in Colorado is sitting in shreds at the Papelbon home. I guess at least we don't have to worry about a court battle for the ball like we did for the last Red Sox World Series ball. (Doug Mientkiewicz kept the ball from the Red Sox World Series win in 2004, and after multiple lawsuits agreed to give it to the Hall of Fame.)
But here's the thing...is that ball all that historic? If it was, don't you think Papelbon would have placed it somewhere other than a counter with apparently no protection. And since the Red Sox had already broken the curse 3 years ago, this ball kind of lacked the historical perspective of the other one. So in the long run, I guess Boss chewing up the 2007 World Series winning ball isn't that big of a deal.
Although, if he's a Yankees fan......
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Terrell Owens to Jessica Simpson earlier today: "Right now, Jessica Simpson is not a fan favorite -- in this locker room or in Texas Stadium."
Earth to Terrell Owens: Dude, can't you just be happy for your quarterback Tony Romo? I mean, think about it, a happy quarterback is a good quarterback. A good quarterback will get you, Mr. I-want-the-ball-on-every-play, the ball more, which is something that hasn't happened lately. And I think we can all agree:
- Tony Romo+Jessica Simpson=Happy Quarterback
Terrell Owens to Reporters earlier today: "With everything that has happened, obviously with the way Tony played and the comparison between her and Carrie Underwood, I think a lot of people feel she has taken his focus away,"
Earth to Terrell Owens: Really, TO, you're going to talk about someone else losing their focus? I'll remember that the next time I see you complaining about not getting the ball enough while wearing a Cowboys Santa hat after losing on Christmas like you did last year. I'll remember that the next time I see you wearing a Lance Armstrong get-up while riding a bike during training camp. And I'll remember that the next time I see you acting like a petulant little child, yelling at assistant coaches on the sideline.
Terrell Owens to Jessica Simpson: "Oh, I got a message for her when we make the playoffs. Just stay tuned."
Earth to Terrell Owens: Hopefully that message will occur in Dallas and not in Green Bay. Because if the Cowboys lose homefield advantage, that message will probably not come from the Super Bowl.
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We're just hours from the first Spurs-Suns game of the 2007-08 season, and I'm hoping its the first of many, that include a tense playoff series. As a San Antonio, I love my Spurs and it's fun watching them knock off the Suns in the playoffs. But as an "unbiased" media geek, the storylines are endless.
1. D'Antoni is a good guy, and so is Nash. If you didn't have a horse in the race, they'd be a good pick because they truly are engaging personalities.
2. Horry a villian? Never here in S.A. but definately in the desert, and I actually think it's a role he embraces.
3. Nash vs Parker: A 2-time MVP against the 2007 Finals MVP. Enjoy it as long as it's around.
4. Amare Stoudemire is a freak of nature (and that's a compliment). The things he is able to do on the court, for his size are amazing.
5. Tim Duncan: See reason 4 and remember, Duncan destroys the Suns in ways that will NEVER show up on SportsCenter.
6. 3 out of 5: The Spurs have beaten the Suns in 3 playoff series the last 5 seasons. By the way, every time led to a Spurs championship.
Here's my question. Is it "the" rivalry for San Antonio? Or does Dallas still dominate the trash talk?
Who's your favorite Spurs opponent to hate? And enjoy tonight's game.
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Terrell Owens says the Cowboys will be fine. He says there is no doubt the Cowboys will respond Saturday against Carolina, and that the Super Bowl hopes are still alive.
I agree..to a point.
 Tony Romo played the worst game of his career against the Eagles, and the Cowboys still had a shot with under three minutes to go in the game. That either says a lot about the rest of this Dallas team, or a lot about how inept the Eagles are this season. Either way, I don't think the Cowboys will be playing Philadelphia on their way to the Super Bowl.
Romo is spectacular..and to criticize at this point is just dumb. But when he fails, he fails in a way that makes MAJOR headlines. Remember the Buffalo game? Sure, the Cowboys won that, and Romo was a huge reason....but there doesn't seem to be a happy medium with him.
He is either All-Pro or terrible. Maybe it would help if Dallas rekindled their running game. When is the last time you saw Jones or Barber dominate a game...and not when the outcome was already decided. Getting 4 or 5 yards a pop at the beginning of the game, might be more effective than when you're trying to run out the clock.
As for the passing game...it's quite obvious that defenses are either going to allow Owens or Jason Witten to go crazy. But the other won't. Okay, so what happened to Crayton, Hurd, Miles, and Barber out of the backfield? As great as Jason Garrett appears to be at calling plays, can't he call something besides a curl route from Witten or an in route for Owens?
Two games to go... and 3 more for a championship... what's your prediction for the final six weeks of the NFL season? Click here to comment...
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