Thursday, December 31, 2009

Go ... and take your eeeeee-go too

The football coach in Florida has to be a kissing cousin of the Minnesota quarterback who must be a distant relative of a former Bulls player and owner of the Washington Wizards, who certainly must be related to any other performer in any venue who doesn't know when to get off the stage.
Why?
One word: Ego.
It's too big for all of them. In three of those cases, their health is not at risk. The football coach's is, in spite of a bald-faced lie he uncorked over the weekend.
That coach will learn that wins are not the only thing that makes life go 'round. So does quality time with family.
Especially while everyone has the health in order to enjoy the time.
Don't let the door hit you in the ego, coach.

Monday, December 7, 2009

Stock-less

Thoughts about the Tim Donaghy interview on TV last night?
He's the former NBA referee who bet on games – including some he was working – and served a jail sentence as a result.

Monday, November 30, 2009

Plenty of blame in this one

Neither USC nor UCLA escapes blame for the way their football game ended Saturday night.
What should have been an ugly, 21-7 win for the Trojans turned into a 28-7 win, a near-fight in the middle of the field with less than a minute to go and black eyes for both coaches.
UCLA's boss is Rick Neuheisel. He's the one who started the problem by stopping the clock when his team had no chance to win. Yes, give your team a chance to win. But be realistic, too.
USC"s boss is Pete Carroll, the same Pete Carroll who was on the receiving end of a "run-up-the-score" effort by Stanford a couple of weeks ago (it wasn't called for either), nor was his decision to throw a long TD pass in response to the timeout. You took a knee once. You can do it two more times, hop on the bus and go home. It's quite easy. The pros do it all the time.
The reaction from both teams – a big stare down in the middle of the field and the restraint of some players – was predictable and uncalled for.
It could add some life to a rivalry whose game was pushed back to the evening hours this year because neither team is particularly good. Me? I'd rather see a good rivalry played out in the name of an athletic contest, not for the benefit of two grown-ups who think the game is about them and them alone.

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Blah blah blah blah

Note to Ron Jaworski and Jon Gruden, this year's analysts on Monday Night Football.
Shut up.
The analysis (?) is way too technical. Because it is so technical, it sounds like the two of you are rehashing your respective playing and coaching days and not including your audience. Most of the world isn't interested.

Monday, November 23, 2009

A penalty-kick championship

Love to know some thoughts about deciding outcomes of championship soccer games by penalty kicks.
Not sure there's a lot of athletic skill when it gets to that point in a soccer game. Can't tell you how many times I heard the MLS championship analyst say, "He guessed right" last night.
Jump in ...

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

A new low

And now, we present to you the Denver Broncos' own TV-station's medical doctor weighing in on the starting quarterback's ankle injury.
Breathless.
Worthless.

Tuesday, November 17, 2009

Brain cramps happen to the best

We've had a couple of days to digest the finish of the New England-Indianapolis game. And the only thing that explains the ending is a brain cramp.
Why else would Bill Belichick ordered a fourth-and-2 play from his own 28-yard line with a couple of minutes left?
Yes, even the exalted NFL coaches such as Bill Belichiok are entitled to brain freezes.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Theater imitates life

It's an old wheeze, but it seems to be true.
The Denver Center for the Performing Arts sent a warning to its subscribers about an upcoming production, "Spring Awakening." The show deals with mature themes (teenage sexuality, depression, suicide, molestation and abortion, partial nudity, brutality and masochism, not to mention raw language). It's not appropriate for those 15 and under, so says the theater.
My question is does this sort of entertainment belong on stage? Weigh in ... anxious to hear your comments.

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Out of whack

It's a wonderful lesson that the University of Oregon is sending by reinstating LaGarrette Blount to the football team.
He's the one who sucker-punched a player from Boise State – on national TV, no less – earlier in the season and was suspended from the team for the rest of the season.
Or so we thought.
He may be a talented football player – obviously the school and the coaches think so. But at some point, this young man has to take some responsibility for his actions. Sucker-punching someone in the face may not amount to a legal definition of an assault, but it amounts to anyone's definition of a pampered college athlete run amok.
The fact that Oregon has a chance for a bowl game – and the money that goes with it – shouldn't get in the way of using common sense with this kid (namely keeping him out of the lineup for the rest of the year).
But when the bills are as green as the school colors, all hope of common sense is out the window.

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Over votes?

As we sat last night awaiting election returns for everything from a term limit extension to a mayor's race to school board and council seats and looking at unopened liters of soft drinks and uneaten cookies (thank you, Mrs. Denke), there was one thing that seemed rather odd.
The number of so-called "over votes" in the election. An "over vote" is voting for too many choices in a particular race. In yes or no questions, you can't vote both ways. Yes. Chicago has made that famous. But it really isn't cricket, yet 24 people did on one issue, which invalidates the vote.
I can see "under votes." Voters aren't familiar with issues so they decide not to vote for a council candidate, dog catcher, etc.
But "over votes?"
It happens every election cycle. And it's no less bizarre this time.

Monday, November 2, 2009

Series, Broncos loss no surprise

The World Series is playing out about the way I thought it would.
Philadelphia is good, but the Yankees (even with buying most of their players for prices equivalent to the gross national product of most countries) are better. The main reason is pitching, which has borne itself out the last three games.
The Broncos weren't going to go 16-0, no matter how much Kool-Aid the Denver press forced down our throats. Baltimore was superior in every way, shape and form Sunday and exposed a lot of weaknesses that other teams hadn't been able to find.
We'll see what sort of a coach Josh M. is these next few games. If he can addresses the warts that Baltimore found, it could be an interesting next two or three months. If not, well ... there's always the preps.

Monday, October 26, 2009

NFL is brave, if nothing else

According to the New York Times, the city of Industry, Calif., (15 miles east of downtown Los Angeles) may become home to a new 75,000-seat "green", non-taxpayer funded stadium to house an existing NFL franchise in the L.A. television market, perhaps as soon as 2013.
Seven teams were cited as potential targets for a move – San Diego, San Francisco, Oakland and St. Louis (the former L.A. Rams) and Buffalo, among others.
It's easy to understand why the NFL wants in a TV market such as Los Angeles. But there's a reason those seven teams are having trouble drawing interest in their product and, thus, a new facility. The teams are simply putrid.
I can't see how a new stadium would fly. The economy is awful, especially in California. And there is no interest in professional football. That wasn't always the case, but it is now.
L.A. had two NFL teams at one time – the Rams and the Raiders. Neither is there now. There is good major college football (UCLA and USC), good high school football. Pro baseball teams (the Dodgers and the Angels), pro basketball teams (the Lakers and the .... well, the Lakers), ice hockey (the L.A. Kings) and horse racing (three tracks in the Southland) dot the landscape, too. And if none of that is appealing, there's always the beach or the mountains close by.
The NFL had its chance in Los Angeles for almost 50 years. The product deteriorated. The teams on the short list to come into the market really wouldn't help.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger can huff and puff all he wants. But he can't change the overall apathy towards the NFL. It's quite strong.

Wednesday, October 21, 2009

Armchair QBs as jury members?

Here’s something to ponder as you drink your coffee this morning.
One of the biggest problems with society’s need for instant news – and, in the case of the wayward balloon flight last week, instant blame – is that the people who want instant prosecution may be sitting in judgment of people accused of a crime some day.
That’s just plain scary.
The balloon – minus the 6-year-old boy thought to be inside – landed less than 24 hours before all of the public pundits and the news pundits started wondering about hoaxes, whether the parents wanted to return to the limelight of television (they had been on a TV reality show at least twice). Some had enough gall to declare that they knew it was a hoax from the minute the balloon landed.
Funny. In the newsroom of MetroWest Newspapers, we wondered what happened to the child, whether he and/or a box he may have been riding in fell off the balloon, whether the child was badly injured. Maybe that’s our softer side. Maybe that’s because most of the people at MetroWest Newspapers are parents themselves.
Part of the reason to find someone at fault, absent facts that could hold up in court is the 24-hour news cycle. Ever noticed what sorts of issues wind up on the cable news each night? It’s not the sort of stuff that keeps people’s attention and offers precious little in the way of information to help us become more educated citizens. It does fill seven-minute segments, which helps the news networks. The debate on health care this summer doesn’t count, unless you are a big fan of yelling, screaming and other forms of bullying.
We use a process for criminal cases in this country that has no room for speed, nor should it. Incidents happen, police investigate to determine if there was a crime, the district attorney decides on charges and then there’s a trial. The Founding Fathers didn’t have CNN or Fox News in mind when they were at work. And while not wishing to discourage free speech, the Founding Fathers probably didn’t have Monday morning quarterbacks in mind either.
Here’s something else to ponder before you opt to ream the parents of the little boy. Assuming the sheriff’s office opted to pursue a criminal complaint, according to the Larimer County sheriff, the worst charge the parents could face is a third-degree misdemeanor count of filing a false report. The sheriff said that was a step up from a petty offense, such as urinating on the sidewalk.
It’s great to see a robust debate in any forum. But it misses a certain something when it becomes armchair quarterbacking and where people who haven’t been criminally charged are guilty until proven innocent.
That’s not what the Founding Fathers had in mind.

Wednesday, October 14, 2009

Language? We don't need no stinkin' language

Once upon a time, announcers covering sporting events and the highlights thereof used to speak in English.
There were clear indications of such punctuation marks as periods, commas, semi-colons. And there was some intent for the commentators to make sense, even when trying to motormouth through 50 bazillion highlights before the next 50 bazillion minutes of commercials.
Fast forward. Players "lay the boom" on each other. Yes, it's a sentence. No, it makes no sense. A boom is a large noise from an explosion, and it also a device from which to hang apparatus for making movies.
Someone takes the ball to the house (hopefully, not mine. Mine looks like a pigpen). Someone else "housed" a touchdown (not sure what that means, though it's not in reference to personal pigpens). People house stray pets. Not sure how one houses a touchdown.
A "pick-6" is more sensible (well, not really). But to me, it still means a bet at a race track and has nothing to do with a football game. According to awfulannouncing.com, one major network announcer said "'stop' is a four-letter word tonight." Perhaps it morphed into three letters the following night.
Basketball players take it to the rack (of ribs?). Baseball players go yard (mine is inhabited by trash and squirrels. But if a baseball player wants to go into my yard, fine by me). Hockey players aim for the top shelf (apparently not the prepackaged dinners in the store) or the five-hole (golf course, right?).
It's very hard to speak off the cuff for 3 1/2 hours at a time. Vin Scully can do it with ease. But he's also the best at his trade and is far more experienced than a lot of the announcers on TV today. Gus Johnson of CBS thinks a 2-yard gain is the most unbelievable thing he's seen since the last 2-yard gain. In most cases, the announcers who infiltrate our ear drums are trying to sound more intelligent than they really are. Or (gads, no!) they are lending more importance to a particular situation (the two-minute warning? The next Viagara commercial?) than is really necessary.
The "up" side is there's less time to hear athletes' interviews, you know.
My hope is people will try to use the king's English, try to keep their booms away from my ears, stop pick-6ing my house and stay out of my yard. Otherwise, I'll have to get my rack (of antlers) off the top shelf and get really unpleasant.

Tuesday, October 13, 2009

Potpourri

* The Broncos might be legitimate after all. I'm not sure beating Dallas is all it's cracked up to be. After all, the Dallas writers say the 'Boys will finish 9-7. And Kansas City almost beat the "Boys the other day.
Denver, though, rallied in the fourth quarter/overtime to beat New England, which is head and shoulders above Dallas.
* The Rockies are legitimate, even after falling in four games in the division series.
* Who's the new Rockies' radio announcer? Jeff Kingery retired after the end of the playoff run for the Rockies. For a lot of younger fans in these parts, he's the only voice associated with the team.
* Jim Tracy is legitimate. He should see the "interim" removed from his name tag on the door of his office and be given several years worth of time to continue to manager Colorado.

Saturday, October 10, 2009

Amazing

After finding more ways to stay warm during Friday night's Brighton homecoming football game – even to the point of camping out in the press box – imagine my surprise to read more than 200 comments about the weather on someone else's Web site.
Some were legit ... road closures, how many birds were around the feeder, etc.
Someone managed to bring up the subject of condoms.
For those who don't know ... and as a refresher for those who do ... yes, it snows in Colorado. Yes, it gets cold in Colorado. And no, it's not worth getting bent out of shape.
And in closing, please tell me why condoms have anything to do with the weather.

Wednesday, September 30, 2009

Premature ga-gas

Yes, it's nice that the Broncos are 3-0.
But enough with the coronation.
Denver hasn't played anyone of note yet. None of the three wins are against teams that have a chance to make the playoffs.
Dallas will be a good test. So will the next month or two.
I know it's impossible for many. But I'll wait a little while before I start sipping Broncos Kool Aid.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

How about them Bulldogs

Brighton High is playing its best football in years. The Bulldogs manhandled Littleton the other night in more ways than one.
The glee on the sidelines was something to see, too. If you weren't among the ones who got handshakes or hugs – or poor Aaron Welch, whose interception return for a touchdown as time ran out entitled him to be on the bottom of a dog pile in the end zone – you may not have been close enough.
The big rivalry game with Prairie View is this week, then a homecoming game against Thornton next week. Stay tuned. It could be one of those years for BHS.

Tuesday, September 22, 2009

Beware of playoff plan

Ten dollar Rockpile tickets for the first round of the playoffs sound pretty good.
That's before the Rockies ruled fans had to buy an entire set of tickets for a particular round of the playoffs (i.e. no single-game seats) and tacked on a mess of fees, service charges and a chance to pay for the new health-care system in the works in Congress.
Colleague Kevin Denke and his wife got into the postseason, online fray today. They found – much to their disgust – that those $10 Rockpile tickets (the cheapest available) would cost close to $50 per person for a family of four.
At least there's a way to get in there and play this year. But at $50 per person for the first round, the Rockies priced the average fan out of the running.
Again.

Monday, September 14, 2009

Are you sorry, Serena?

Hey Serena ...
Saw your meltdown on TV the other night. That was quite the rant against that linesperson. Lip readers – pro and amateur – had a field day, that's for sure. So did the censors at CBS.
Was curious if you were ever going to apologize, though. You tried to Sunday but didn't. You weren't interested in owning up to a colossal error in judgment Saturday either.
The longer you go without showing some contrition, the lower your stature becomes. One rant is fine. Three separate expletive-filled rants would make people cringe.
It's one thing to be talented at what you do. It's another thing to come off as a thug.

Friday, September 11, 2009

Band battle

USC and Ohio State play football tomorrow night on TV. Those are two of the better teams in the country, so hopefully the game will live up to some of the advance billing.
If it doesn't – and if the TV commentators will stop yakking long enough to let the audience take a breath – listening to the schools' bands might be the best second option. Those are some talented musicians playing for bands with long histories (the tradition involved with Script Ohio included).
Enjoy ...

Medical report

A quick update on Valley Courier Sports Editor Lloyd Engen, who was injured covering a prep football game. He made it through surgery Thursday and is in the ICU unit of St. Anthony Hospital in Denver. After a week in the hospital, he'll go back to Alamosa with orders to stay off his feet for three months.

Tuesday, September 8, 2009

Get well, Lloyd

We need to take a minute here and send along best wishes for a speedy recovery to Lloyd Engen, the sports editor of the Valley Courier in Alamosa and a friend of many years.
Engen was injured seriously Saturday while taking pictures of a prep football game. Three players converged on him, and Engen landed on his back. He has serious back and pelvic injuries, and there's some concern about whether he'll be able to walk again. Engen is awaiting surgery at St. Anthony Central Hospital in Denver.
No matter the event, it's easy to find Lloyd. Just look for someone with a constant smile on his face – chances are real good that it's Lloyd. He's either told a real good joke or offered up a good story or anecdote. He enjoyed life as a sports information director at Adams State College, and you could tell he liked life as the newspaper's sports editor just as much if not more.
We are a small group of people who choose to spend our lives chronicling hometown sporting events. We are missing a good one, at least for a while. And we hope he's back among us real soon.

Friday, September 4, 2009

Another behavior reminder

Another prep season is upon us, and it serves as a good opportunity to remind people – students and fans – about acceptable behavior.
Rooting for your team/son/daughter is fine. Rooting against the other team is not. "Way to go ... so and so" is great. "You !@#$% bag" is not.
The season isn't a month old, and already I've seen an official issue a warning to a student section for inappropriate behavior. Go to the games and appreciate them for what they are ... an extension of a classroom.
Leave the rest of the trash someplace else.

Monday, August 31, 2009

A break from sports

There are times when the most moronic of athletes deserve a break from criticism.
This is one of those.
Fires are raging all around the foothills of Los Angeles County. One is almost 105,000 acres in size and stretches some 20 miles. It's burning through land that hasn't been burned in 60 years and – oddly enough – isn't getting help from the warming Santa Ana winds, one of the main contributors to fire season in Southern California.
Two firefighters are dead. As of late this afternoon, their brethren are trying to find ways to rescue five people who stayed behind in Little Tujunga Canyon, which is north of Los Angeles, and now want out. The east side of the fire is threatening the L.A. area's answer to Lookout Mountain plus a 104-year-old observatory.
We'll have time to get back to games on the pro, college and high school level. But not now. Instead, we'll send nothing but the best thoughts and wishes for families, friends and firefighters in the fire area.

Friday, August 28, 2009

Marshall suspension

Is anyone honestly surprised?
He doesn't know the playbook, doesn't want to know the playbook, thinks the whole world is against him and generally acts like a 4-year-old.
I ask again ... does this surprise the masses?

Wednesday, August 26, 2009

Free advice

Because the Denver media think John Elway has something to say about all things, I'll offer my free advice to the Denver media.
Stop subjecting him to us.
Thank you.

Thursday, August 20, 2009

Once burned, twice shy doesn't apply

Brandon Marshall of the Denver Broncos and John Calipari, the mens basketball coach at the University of Kentucky, have something in common.
They don't learn very well.
Marshall's case (he of the repeated accusations of violence against women) isn't all that unusual among highly paid college graduates who don't have an ounce of brains. Instead of blaming his teammates for not supporting him after his acquittal on the most recent charges, Marshall should take some steps to correct his behavior. That's where the "I in team" comes into play.
In Calipari's case, his Memphis team had to surrender 38 wins from the 2007-2008 basketball season and its Final Four appearance. Why? Because someone took an entrance exam for one of the players. This is the second time in Calipari's coaching career that mysterious exam-takers have popped up to save his bacon.
Hey John – did you ever stop and think someone might actually find out what you're doing is not on the up an up? Or did you ever stop and think?

Wednesday, August 19, 2009

What will we do now?

It seems that the former Green Bay quarterback with the ego that matches all of the state of Wisconsin has signed with Minnesota for at least two years.
He said his daughter made the decision for him.
I can't say what I really think. Even free speech has its limits. But it wasn't his daughter that made the choice. The QB's out-of-control ego did.
Now that he has a place to play, we can turn our attention to something just as asinine.
Is Michael Jackson still dead?

Monday, August 17, 2009

Leave it alone already

Did anyone else notice a certain amount of glee in the on-field problems of one former Denver quarterback over the weekend? -- you know, the one whose last name sounds like a collection of silverware on the dinner table?
Yes, he did have problems. So did his replacement in Denver. Yes, it's the first game of the preseason.
And, more to the point of this --
No one cares.
The former Broncos QB is a top-notch jerk. But he's not news in this part of the world any more. If the local media want to take a critical look at something, examine the yearly made-up quarterback controversy. But leave the dinner-ware dude out of the discussion.

Friday, August 14, 2009

Eagles land Vick

So jump in with both feet ... good move? Bad move?
First glance says Vick may not get a lot of playing time once he's reinstated. After all, there is some guy named McNabb in front of him who still plays pretty well.

Monday, August 10, 2009

In case you'd forgotten

The Colorado Rockies Web site is still quite adept at throwing people out of the ticket queue on their Web site ... even for regular season games. It happened twice Saturday morning in the span of about five minutes.
That Web site has to be the worst thing about the team, save, perhaps, for that moronic purple dinosaur. It should not be that hard to log on, pick a game, chose seats for the chosen game and make a transaction.

Thursday, August 6, 2009

Scully may be finished in 2010

There was an item on the Web Wednesday morning about the retirement of legendary Dodgers' announcer Vin Scully, perhaps as early as the end of next season. If true, Scully will have worked in seven decades and 61 seasons for one team – not to mention doing a host of other things that other teams would do well to follow.
His heir apparent, Eric Collins, was hired this year and does the TV games east of the Rocky Mountains – about 40 in all.
One of the columnists in the L.A. Times, Chris Erskine, ripped Collins in print. While not wishing to be the next voice of the Dodgers after Vin Scully, the writer still pointed out that Collins is "painful and seems to need more seasoning."
Duh.
Anyone who takes on any new job is going to need seasoning. The secret is to give the employee time to make the job his own. All of us have been the recipient of such patience.
I've not heard Collins, but I am sure his style is different from Scully's. Whose wouldn't be? There are two people in the world who can quote Shakespeare, Chaucer and show tunes in the span of a baseball game – Scully and his mentor, Red Barber.
Somebody gave Scully the opportunity to put his stamp on the Dodgers' broadcasts once upon a time. And it worked rather well, I dare say. It would be nice if the L.A. media would be as kind to Eric Collins.

Wednesday, August 5, 2009

Vick a Bronco?

If you were in charge of the Broncos' payroll, would you sign him?
The floor is open.

Tuesday, August 4, 2009

Slow days to come

I'm not a big fan of media coverage of every breath taken at anyone's training camp.
But it is August, and everyone and his mother are at Broncos training camp to do their yearly chronicle.
Guess that means I won't be subjected to reports of daily choices of music before practice.
I'm heartbroken.

Thursday, July 30, 2009

Easy way to do this

Manny Ramirez of the Dodgers apparently is on the list of suspected users of performance-enhancing substances dating back to 2003.
So is David Papi of the Red Sox.
Wouldn't it be simpler to say who isn't?

Wednesday, July 29, 2009

Helton a Hall of Famer?

There obviously isn't anything else going on in the world of sports, so the discussion is under way about Todd Helton and whether he belongs in the Hall of Fame.
Nothing like getting a six- to seven-year head start on the discussion, but no one ever said the Denver sports media didn't like to stir up something well in advance of a potential event.
Five hundred doubles with one team goes a long way toward some national awards. So does his defense at first base. Think of how many other troubles the Rockies would have had without his glove.
The one big downside – and a fact of life around these parts – is the Mountain Time Zone. Most of the Rockies games start very late on the East Coast which, naturally, is where many of the the voting members for the Hall work and live.
Is he deserving? Offer up a thought or two ...

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

The return of Vick

Michael Vick, who just finished a federal jail term for his part in a dog fighting ring, is back in the NFL ... sort of.
He can play in the last two preseason games, provided someone signs him to a contract. He could be back in the complete fold by the time the sixth game of the season rolls around.
Any thoughts?

Monday, July 27, 2009

Back to blogs

Disappeared for a week ... things got a little squirrely (and shorthanded) last week in sportsland.
Lots to touch on ... the Broncos open training camp this week with new people in charge and, hopefully, more of an inclination to make the players act like players and not cry babies ...
The Rockies keep winning series, but they aren't gaining a lot of ground on the L.A. Dodgers. Colorado won seven of its last 10 entering this week's slate of games and gained just one game in the standings. Division title? A little far-fetched right now. Wild card? ...
Jump in ...

Friday, July 17, 2009

Amazing Irv

Irv Brown was in Brighton today.
The local talk-show host, former NCAA basketball official, former baseball coach and present employee of the Denver Nuggets spent an hour talking basketball, trading cards and passing along some sage advice for a group of 5- to 8-year-olds attending a basketball camp at the Brighton Recreation Center. The story will be in next week's Brighton Standard Blade and will be on the Web site shortly thereafter.
Aside from his knowledge of sports and the people who played the games from today to once upon a time – and the fact he is as entertaining in person as he is on the air – Irv Brown is the last of the talkers on any medium who understands that talk radio is conversational. That gets a big plus in my book.
He engaged everyone in his talk today – parents, campers, city employees, a school district employee and two members of the press. It was fun to watch.

Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Kingery on way out?

Jeff Kingery, longtime radio voice of the Colorado Rockies, may not be around much longer.
A report in yesterday's Denver Post said Kingery's behavior on board a team bus in Los Angeles caused his role to be cut in half (home games only) for the second half of the season. There's been no discussion about Kingery's role beyond this season. But in this day and age, you don't pay someone a Kingery type salary to work a half a workload.
What do you think?

Tuesday, July 14, 2009

Can't stand TV

So, how many sat breathlessly by the edge of their TV sets watching that made-for-Chris Berman extravaganza last night in St. Louis?
How many opted to eat dinner and read a book instead?
One version was quite a bit less noisy. That was my choice.

Monday, July 13, 2009

47-41?

As they say, who'd have thunk it?
The Rockies, rightfully given up for dead six weeks ago, are six games over .500 heading to the All-Star break.
They are playing a much better brand of baseball these days. Jim Tracy isn't a subscriber to the "book" 100% of the time, as was the previous administration. The Rockos are playing smart baseball (trying to hit behind the runner, squeeze plays, stolen bases, etc.), which wasn't always the case before.
They aren't on a par with the Dodgers or some of the other division leaders, but they are catching up. The recent three-game series with L.A. was quite a bit more entertaining than any of the games earlier in the year.

Friday, July 10, 2009

Sakic's retirement

What are your thoughts on the retirement of Joe Sakic? The local media would have you believe ole Joe is going to walk on water before long.
But I digress. Weigh in ...

Thursday, July 9, 2009

And now, some real news

KIHEI, MAUI – Pleased to report that the saga of Michael Jackson didn't bypass the Hawaiian Islands last week.
Spurred on by the breathless and sensationalistic coverage of Nancy Grace and the usual suspects on the other cable networks, we weren't left with a moment to breathe until we could hear about a mystery syringe, who was in the house at the time Mr. Jackson took ill, speculation about whether the entertainer self-inflicted the cardiac arrest and CNN stooping to the level where it had to show pictures of Jackson's last rehearsals. (This was late at night, long after the day's meals had been devoured).
We heard something about an earthquake in Greece but no details, not even in the local papers. We read a long story about the passing of Karl Malden, one of the great actors of our day. But by comparison, those items rated nothing more than a belch when stacked up against Mr. Jackson.
If the media actually think the world lives for all things Jackson, then please take time to pity a future generation of educated people.

Wednesday, July 8, 2009

Freedom in all forms

KIHEI, MAUI – We celebrated our nation's birthday Saturday, our freedom from British rule earned 233 years ago.
At a place called Little Mikena (about 15 miles south of here), people celebrated freedom from their clothing Saturday at a public nude beach. The split was about 60/40 in favor of those whose torsos were suitable for nude swimming, snorkeling sans clothes and, yes, sunbathing. (Insert your own joke here). Most of the 40% who should have worn anything haven't quite made it out of the '60s yet.

Tuesday, July 7, 2009

Back in the saddle

Vacation was truly wonderful ... a week in Hawaii can't be anything but, right?
It was eight days of body surfing, seeing fish, eating fish, eating too much in general, drinking too much salt water.
And doing it with the family.
Which made it the best part of all. Those with aging parents know the routine. At best, the opportunities to round up five people, mesh their varied schedules and schlep them someplace for a few days are very scarce. And the time to spend together as a family is getting scarce, too.
But to see the smiles on mom and dad's faces during the past few weeks -- as the credit card commercial says, "Priceless."

Monday, June 29, 2009

Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Jack and Jeff on same path

Interesting to see that two offspring of rather famous athletes opted not to continue playing their respective sports in college.
Jack Elway won't be playing football, and Michael Jordan's son, Jeff, said "no" to playing basketball.
Perhaps someone in their families made sports a bit too serious?

Tuesday, June 23, 2009

Say what?

One of these days, we'll get away from the madness that Sunday Night Baseball has become. But this one is priceless.
Joe Morgan, who apparently never learned to shut up, tried to extend his best wishes to some couple who supposedly had a new child in the house.
It took him three tries to figure out which couple actually HAD the child.
That's just flat embarrassing. But because it's ESPN, where accuracy takes a back seat to celebrity, my guess is nothing will happen.
Morgan may have been a very good baseball player. But as is so often the case, that doesn't make for a good announcer, especially for mistakes like this.

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Idiocy

Could someone with a degree in human stupidity explain why fans of championship sports teams think they need to celebrate by rolling over cars, trashing other peoples' property and basically behaving like a bunch of primates in the zoo at feeding time?

Wednesday, June 17, 2009

Mute button in overdrive

It's a slow time for the sports media, that's for sure.
One network breathlessly updates the on-again, off-again saga of some QB who just can't cope with the idea of not being in the limelight. Most of the TV stations around here are frothing at the saga over Brandon Marshall, who apparently wants to be traded.
Here's an idea. Ignore both of them, and maybe .. just maybe .. they will go away.

Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Another summer of indecision

So good ole what's his face ... you know, the quarterback who's trying to get the most baggage tags on his suitcases based on the number of teams he plays for ... hasn't made up his mind about whether to play this year.
Who cares?

Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Broadcasting boot camp for NFLers?

Saw this on www.awfulannouncing this morning.
Seems the NFL is going to run a broadcasting boot camp later this month for players who might be interested in that line of work.
Here's a better idea. Let them go to school and learn to be journalists. It's a foreign concept, I know. But most ex-athletes don't know the difference between a pigskin and a pork rind.

Monday, June 8, 2009

Ads on Broncos' practice jerseys

Saw that item on the internet this morning. Apparently Denver and other NFL teams can enter into advertising arrangements with one sponsor for an ad on practice jerseys.
Given the Broncos' recent history of legal issues, I suspect bail bondsmen are already lining up for the privilege.

Friday, June 5, 2009

This could be ugly

Maybe Orlando will show up Sunday for the second game of the NBA finals. They certainly didn't come by last night.
If Orlando doesn't show some passive interest, this series could be over by this time next week.

Tuesday, June 2, 2009

Semantics a la baseball

Here's one to ponder this morning ...
Manny Ramirez, he of the 50-game suspension for violating baseball's drug rules, is to begin working out 10 days ahead of the end of his suspension. The workouts include participation in minor-league games.
Apparently it's legal. The collective bargaining agreement allows it. Morally, there is room for some debate. If he starts playing in games 10 days ahead of the end of his suspension, you could make the case that the suspension isn't 50 games after all.
How about some thoughts? The floor is open ....

Monday, June 1, 2009

Talk TV comes to baseball

Never thought the day would come where three hours of watching a baseball game could turn into a debate suitable for talk television.
Can't even put a finger on what the argument was about last night during the Sunday night baseball game ... that's how stupid the conversations were (yes, there was more than one). But the longer it went on (courtesy of those two masters of blather and babble, Phillips and Morgan), the more it sounded like one-upsmanship than, perhaps, a debate about some meaty baseball-related topic.
The mute button got quite the workout ... the first of many, I fear.

Friday, May 29, 2009

It's drunk night at the stadium

I'm not a big fan talk radio, just like I'm not a fan of the yellfests that wind up on cable TV. The rule that one person speaks at a time on TV (supposedly because only one person can be heard at a time) or that talk radio can produce intelligent dialogue is very old-fashioned, I guess.
But I did catch an item the other day in which the moderator was wondering why people who pay good money to attend sporting events wind up so blitzed that they don't remember what happened.
We've seen them – the ones who wind up sleeping it off on the shoulder of a complete stranger, the ones who get thrown out of a game without seeing it to completion.
Jump in ... love to know why you think people behave like that.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Race track idea resurfaces

Saw in the paper that the idea of building a race track in the Denver area is back before the masses.
This one would be closer to DIA and seat 65,000 people to start.
Do you think the Denver area would support something like this? Jump in and sound off.

Not what ESPN/ABC or the NBA wants

While very exciting – perhaps the best playoff basketball in years – there is the chance that Kobe Bryant of the Lakers and LeBron James of Cleveland won't meet in the finals.
Translated: a ratings disaster for ESPN/ABC.
If Denver wins, it would be a wonderful thing for the Nuggets and their fans. If Orlando wins, it's the first trip to the finals in 20-something years.
But ABC/ESPN would much rather see the Lakers and Cleveland. Two star players, two major television markets. It would be just the thing to boost ABC's poor overall ratings.

Wednesday, May 27, 2009

No Roy is a good thing

Saw this morning that former Colorado Avalanche goalkeeper Patrick Roy won't be coming back as coach or general manager – at least not now.
it's a good thing for this reason. Roy has no experience in an NHL front office. He was a wonderful goalkeeper, but that doesn't translate into a good coach.
Especially here, where the Avalanche need a little stability and some luck to turn things around.

Tuesday, May 26, 2009

Back to work

Here's hoping you had a wonderful holiday weekend and that you had a chance to think about the reasons for the weekend. The service to honor America's war dead in Fort Lupton yesterday was just such a reminder.
Two things came to mind yesterday during a long afternoon of TV viewing ...
* How about the Nuggets? Winds are hard to come by in Los Angeles. But Denver certainly has played better than the Lakers in all four games.
* How about them Rockies? How about them Dodgers? How do the Dodgers – they of a strong pitching staff since time immemoriam – walk 11 batters and still win by 10 runs? Answer: when they play the Rockies. I'm not sure the Rockos have tuned out their manager. But surrendering – in the span of eight days – separate innings of 10 runs, nine runs and an eight- and a seven-spot in the same game doesn't exactly produce a lot of inspiration.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Roy as an NHL coach?

What do you think?
Speak up.

Wednesday, May 20, 2009

1.5 innings of pure, unfiltered babble

The worst fears of many of us have come true.
For a full 1 1/2 innings Sunday night, alleged analysts Joe Morgan and Steve Phillips were debating about whether a New York Mets player was or wasn't a team leader. (Riveting stuff, I'm here to tell you)
Never mind the game was in progress. Never mind they missed two or three plays. Never mind the two of them will always be infatuated with the sounds of their own voices.
Even though Morgan has spent 19 years mastering the art of repeating the same point ad infinitum, there was always a limit, namely the next play, the next inning. Now that Phillips is part of the show, discussions like that are likely to be repeated.
We said it before, but it bears repeating. Two in the booth is a crowd. Three is stupid.

Tuesday, May 19, 2009

Four minutes too many

Not sure what to make of the Channel 9 piece about the virtues of Clint Hurdle, the somewhat beleaguered Rockies manager.
The gist of the "alleged" piece of journalism – clearly an opinion from the main anchor yet never labeled as such – was that Hurdle should have a lifetime contract.
There are many reasons why Hurdle shouldn't have a lifetime contract. The main one is save for one month, he's done absolutely zip with a franchise whose owners won't spend money.
For now, the complaint will be this. If the Channel 9 dude thinks Hurdle is the greatest thing since canned tuna fish, fine. Label it as an opinion so that people who want objective stories won't be misled.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Lakers in six

It's great that the Nuggets advanced to the Western Conference finals.
But that's as far as the ride goes.
In spite of the Denver sports media's efforts to crown the Nuggets the next NBA champions, it's not going to happen this year.
The Lakers are too talented and too deep for Denver. Even if the Lakers' alter ego shows up for the two to three games in Denver, the Angelinos are far and away the better team.
It won't be a whitewash just for the fact that the Lakers are very inconsistent. How else do you beat a Yao Ming-less team by 40, then get your clock cleaned two nights later?
It will be an entertaining series. But make mine Lakers in six.

Thursday, May 14, 2009

In the finals

Now that Denver has advanced to the Western Conference finals --- and now that those in attendance have managed to make their way into work (we hope), the question today is how far can Denver go?
Is the next round the end of the line? Can they beat either the Lakers or Houston? What about their chances against either Cleveland, Boston or Orlando?
Jump in ...

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Exciting but ragged

Any NBA game in which two teams can score 236 points is a pretty good game, especially considering that half the league plays games where the combined score is in the 160s.
But last night's Nuggets game (Denver lost by a bucket) had absolutely no rhythm whatsoever. Between the fouls, the technicals, the scrums, the TV timeouts (why do pro teams need six regular timeouts, a horde of 20-second timeouts and two mandatory TV timeouts each game?), the game had all the charm of two elephants dancing in quick sand. Little wonder it took almost three hours to play.
Let's hope this is just an exception.

Friday, May 8, 2009

This is journalism?

The sight of an ESPN reporter standing outside Brett Favre's home and saying nothing of any value yesterday made me think of two things ...
1) Wouldn't you have liked to heard her say, "The only thing I would add is there is nothing to add?"
2) How long will it be before networks like ESPN start using shower cams to chronicle people's private business?

Second thoughts

So ... how's Matt Holliday doing?
Seems that the former Colorado Rockies player is learning about the advantage of playing half his games at altitude vs. playing half his games in the cavernous McAfee Coliseum.
Through 23 games, ole Matt had three home runs and was batting .227.
He won't be in Oakland for long and not because of those numbers. But one has to wonder how much of a price tag he can command this offseason with that kind of production to back it up.

Thursday, May 7, 2009

50 – count 'em 50

Manny Ramirez' 50-game drug suspension goes beyond the wonderful phrase "Manny being Manny."
It's more like "Manny being stupid."

Make him go away

One name (at least this session):
Brett Favre.

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

This guy is good

His name is Zack Greinke.
He pitches for Kansas City. Greinke won five games in April. His ERA was 0.50. He struck out 44 and walked eight and pitched two complete games. He and Fernando Valenzuela of the Dodgers are the only two pitchers in history to not allow an earned run in their first four starts in the big leagues.
Pretty good numbers.
Two downsides come with this. Kansas City is destined never to appear on a televised baseball game (free TV) near you because MLB's broadcast partners think we need to see Boston, the Yankees, the Mets, the Cubs and the Phillies – or some combination thereof – each week.
The other is a potential agent in waiting – Scott Boras. If Boras can gets his mitts on young Mr. Greinke, then Mr. Greinke will go where the top dollar happens to be at the time.
Because baseball's money is in such markets as New York and Boston, Greinke would appear every other Sunday night on ESPN, that's for sure.

Thursday, April 30, 2009

Partially convinced

Anyone who watched the Nuggets dismember New Orleans in the first round of the playoffs has to be convinced that Denver is a better team than New Orleans.
Anyone who saw any of the four games between Denver and Dallas (the Western Conference semifinal opponent) could rightfully say that the Nuggets have a chance to beat the Mavericks. Denver beat the Mavs in all four games this year.
But that's as much convincing – real and potential – that I'm willing to offer right now. Denver had a lot of trouble playing the Lakers this year, and the Lakers figure to make the conference finals in two weeks' time.

Wednesday, April 29, 2009

Speak English, please

What do these words have in common?
Black mamba.
Ups.
Verticality.
Athleticism.
Impactful.
Boo-yah.
First, they make no sense.
Second, I'm not sure they are words one would find in a dictionary.
Third, they are what makes up the world of sportscasting this day and age.
Clearly, no one is going after my age group .. or any age group over the age of about 10.
But there is a segment of the world that expects highly paid announcers and overblown analysts to speak in something resembling the king's English.
Then again, the Reggie Millers and Stuart Scotts of the world may be taking a page from "My Fair Lady" --
"But use proper English, you're regarded as a freak."

Tuesday, April 28, 2009

Growing up fast

From time to time here in the world of blogging, we like to salute the young men and women we meet who handle athletically difficult times in their young lives with a certain amount of grace.
This time, we're going to sing the praises of Fort Lupton's Eric Frazier, who met a personally horrible time in his life with more grace than most grown-ups can summon at similar times.
Frazier's mother passed away in mid-April after a long fight with cancer.
He played his first game of the season the other day against Brighton. He got a base hit. He recorded a putout in the field, and he talked about his loss. The chance to read what he said will be in the Fort Lupton Press Wednesday.
What you won't read is how well he handled himself during that interview. Eric looked at the reporter the whole time. He spoke in strong voice and conducted himself in a manner that made me think there's no way this kid is in high school, that there's no way he suffered the biggest loss of his life at a very young age.
The result of the game -- even as daffy as that one was -- will fade with time.
But to watch a young man carry himself so well in this kind of a situation ... you don't forget things like that.

Monday, April 27, 2009

A sign of the apocalypse

When the Broncos (television) insiders threaten to break into programming "when the Broncos do something (their words, not mine), it's a sure sign that someone is bored to tears.

Tuesday, April 21, 2009

Hold your horses

There's nothing like an impressive win to bring the Denver sports media a new reason to be euphoric.
Or to be rightfully accused of smoking something really funny.
Yes, Denver beat up New Orleans the other night by almost 30 points. In case you couldn't stay up that late, Chauncey Billups hit eight, 3-point baskets.
Now, here are some other facts that the Denver press apparently glossed over.
1) It's one win in one series that could last seven games. You need 16 wins to capture the NBA title.
2) Provided all of the karma is in the right place, Denver would have to beat the Lakers in the conference finals (not likely) and then beat Cleveland in the finals (not likely either).
3) Why aren't those likely to happen? The Lakers and Cleveland are better teams. Cleveland may even be better than the Lakers. Denver is much better (Billups is one of the main reasons) than has been the case in several years. But the Nuggets are not in the same class of competition as either the Lakers or the Cavs.
So yes, celebrate a win. By all means.
But stop being so amateurish as to think the Nuggets – or anyone else who won their first games – are going to win the championship.
Save that sort of thing for the cable networks who need to fill seven minutes at a time with drivel.

Monday, April 20, 2009

It's a sad day

There's a certain desire to stop remembering the anniversaries of the Columbine shootings. And I fully agree that the people in our business could create more copy-cat incidents by spending as much time as they do recounting what happened, who/what caused it and what has been done/could be done to prevent it.
But today is still a tough day for anyone who works around young men and women. Grown-ups on the prep sports circuit have one thing in common – a good experience for their athletes. Athletes on the prep sports circuit genuinely appreciate the time the coaches spend with them and the time the press spends covering their efforts.
Maybe the prep sports beat is as close to Mayberry as we can get these days. The Columbine shootings remind us there is an unfortunate side of life outside a playing field and outside the traditional norms of a classroom.
That's sad, and we don't need the media to tell us about it ad nauseam.
We know.

Friday, April 17, 2009

If you write it, they will come

HENDERSON – Someone actually wrote a paper-back book on the art of fighting in the National Hockey League.
Whoever the author was explained the rules, the instigator penalties. He found a good many of the players whose incessant desire to brawl made the NHL more of a fringe sport than it used to be and quoted them about the state of fighting and what they thought of the rules to cut down on some of that stuff.
Needless to say, it didn't make it into the shopping cart.
Hockey is a very graceful sport when played properly. When the league opened up play a few years ago, it was the best thing they've done in eons.
No one would dare cut out the fighting. It's what sells. But it still takes away from a certain amount of skill required to play the game.

Thursday, April 16, 2009

One more forum

Through the wonders of technology – and perhaps because people can't stand to be out of touch for more than a second or two at a time – the Brighton Blade has a Twitter page .. http://twitter.com/brightonblade.
So come join the fun.
I've been told that if I fail at Twittering, I become a Twerp.

Wednesday, April 15, 2009

A road oft-traveled

Fort Lupton boys basketball coach John Panas won't be back next year.
The reasons may sound familiar –
Parental behavior.
Jump in with your thoughts.

Can't explain this one

Today is Jackie Robinson Day in the world of big-league baseball. Robinson broke the color barrier in 1947 while playing for the Brooklyn Dodgers.
While the 62nd anniversary of something is a pretty awkward thing to celebrate, I had to laugh when I saw that the Wednesday night baseball game was not going to involve Robinson's former team at all. It will involve two teams that weren't in existence when Robinson played, however.
Two theories come to mind. The network that shells out the money to beam the games around the country either loves showing the same two teams twice in three days or has no particular interest in baseball west of the Mississippi.
What Jackie Robinson did for the game is of far more import than a second look at a stadium that most people can't afford to frequent.

Friday, April 10, 2009

The world is fine

I watched the Dodgers the other night on TV – a rare treat in Denver, I dare say.
As the Dodgers stumbled to a loss against San Diego, there were references to old players, new players, the fact that a Dodgers' player had 9,200 songs on his Ipod and tie-ins to "The Music Man" and "My Fair Lady."
The next night – a Dodger win – there was more talk about old baseball players, pitchers throwing aspirin tablets (a euphemism for a hard fast ball), another discussion about "The Music Man," a comment about "Blazing Saddles" and the late comic Harvey Korman.
Yes, Vin Scully is back in fine form.

Wednesday, April 8, 2009

Hardly a surprise

Jack Elway wants out of football.
Methinks someone pushed him too far ...
Perhaps his dad?

Tuesday, April 7, 2009

Three in the booth is too many

The first review from the three-man announcing crew for Sunday Night Baseball is in. And as is the case with most three-man crews, it's too many.
The advantage is Joe Morgan, the master of repetition without saying much to start with, has to quiet down. The disadvantage is the newcomer, Steve Phillips, never met dead air he couldn't fill.
Baseball is one of the rare televised sports that doesn't require an excessive amount of talking. Thirty seconds of quiet gives the fan a chance to play along with the managers of both teams. With three people clamoring to say something – anything – of value, the quiet time is gone. The Dodgers use one at a time and have done that for 70 years.
Two can be irritating. Three is overwhelming.

Monday, April 6, 2009

What the ...?

Now that baseball season is under way, it's time to answer a burning question.
When baseball souvenirs are so treasured, why would anyone in their right mind throw one back onto the field, particularly when other fans will get ejected for interfering with balls that are in play?
The "tradition" argument doesn't hold water, especially not in Denver, where the major-league baseball "tradition" (for good or bad) has lasted less than 20 years. That's hardly enough time for a tradition (unless it's substandard play). Besides, it's illegal in most parks to throw anything from the stands onto the field. The fan pays good money for those seats ... why run the risk of getting tossed out of the park and wasting the hard-earned money?
If you don't want the home run ball, don't sit in a favored area for the taters.
Better yet. Send it to me. I've gone to games for 45 years and caught one. Uno.
The ball, which sits in a Baggie at home, is lonely.

Thursday, April 2, 2009

All gone, all but forgotten

Lest you think we are done with the whiny quarterback who got some really bad advice from perhaps as many as three fronts, let me be the first to remind you of what's to come later on this summer.
In addition to the annual "more training camp coverage than is necessary" routine, there will be many days of run-up to the appearance by the whiny QB's new team when da Bears come to Denver for a Sunday night exhibition game (sorry, NFL honchos. That's precisely what they are) in late August.
So enjoy the next 4 1/2 months or so of relative freedom from this soap opera that makes "High School Reunion" look like a Nielsen ratings grabber.
Don't wake me when the saga returns. If the pennant races aren't in place by then, it will be time for another year of prep sports. And as most of us know, prep athletes are worth spending your time with.

Wednesday, April 1, 2009

Apathy meter registers high

An odd place to find this sort of thing. But a Web site for people who enjoy listening to police radio traffic is where I heard of the Broncos' desire to trade their petulant quarterback last night.
My apathy meter is about pegged out. But that doesn't mean you can't jump in and offer your thoughts ....

Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Almost time

The hot dogs are on the fire.
The suntan lotion is at the ready.
Now if we could clear the snow off Coors Field, we might be able to play some baseball in Denver by the end of next week.
Today's question is how will the Rockies do this year?
Jump in.
You too, Kevin.

Sunday, March 29, 2009

No NCAA magic for sports dude

What happened to Louisville?
To Duke?
The same thing happened to them as happened to many a bracket for the NCAA basketball tournament.
They were left in shreds. My bracket is so bad, it makes me want to cry.
The Villanova-Pittsburgh game Saturday night was quite something ... the best of the tournament so far. The others over the weekend were not quite up to that standard, and listening to Gus Johnson of CBS scream and yelp at everything from a good shot to a timeout was a little hard on the ear drums Sunday.
The occasional nail-biter isn't enough to get my investment into the boss' kids' education fund back. But as they said on many a game show, it's the tournament's way of saying, "We have some nice consolation prizes for you."
Take the poll in the upper right-hand corner of the blog. You can't do much worse than your trusty scribe.

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Carpenter new FLHS football coach

What do you think of Justin Carpenter's promotion to head coach of the Fort Lupton football team?
The floor is open for comments ...

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Drowning in the NCAA pool

In a couple of days or so, the NCAA men's basketball tournament resumes. Your trusty blogger picked 13 of the last 16 teams in the field.
And finds himself in the lower fourth of one pool (96th of 128 participants) and second from the bottom in the all-important office pool.
Which begs the question ... if the alleged sports dude can't do any better than that, why is he a sports dude?
A pastry chef? Be better qualified. A dancing bear? In terms of physique, yes. In terms of dancing skill .... uhhhhhh, no.
The story is well-known to others. The only time sports dude ever won an NCAA pool, he was sailing trough Central America on a 10-day cruise. The economy obviously won't allow for that every year.
One former colleague said, "Be happy." I am. The leader in the office pool happens to be my boss' wife. So I know the winnings will go to something useful, say, their two small children.
But any sort of pride in being the papers' sports dude takes a severe beating every spring.
Getting 13 hits in 16 times to the plate may get a tryout with the Colorado Rockies. But something indicates loud and clear that becoming a dancing bear is the best option each March.
Cue the music, Yogi.

Signed,
Boob-oooh

Monday, March 23, 2009

Memories

There was a time when one could actually turn on Denver radio stations and listen to some news -- five minutes at a time and twice an hour at that.
One of the people who made that happen was murdered over the weekend in New York. His name was George Weber, and he worked for KOA Radio about 25 years ago.
We crawled around a few late-night crime scenes and fire scenes in those days. We were far from best friends. But he was always polite and eager to help the rookies.
Weber loved Philadelphia, his hometown. He was aggressive in what he was doing, far more than most.
His wry sense of humor was something to behold. Once, he said, he stuck his microphone down a gopher hole to see if he could get some reaction to a decision by a city leader.
I'm not sure something like that would have made it on air. But what it did show was creativity in a medium that has long since lost its ability to be creative. A future colleague tried the same thing. He took an otherwise boring council meeting that was full of price tags and costs and finished it with "the most important numbers of the evening" ... the score of a World Series game.
Weber loved news, and he was good at reporting it. Inquisitive. Smart. Politely aggressive.
That's worth remembering.

Saturday, March 21, 2009

Bracket collapse

29-11 through the first round and a half of the NCAAs ... the good thing (well, sort of) is 13 of the top 16 are still alive.
But with a record of 29-11, it makes one wonder whether the sports person at the newspaper ought to take up teaching.
Or basket weaving.

Friday, March 20, 2009

Dying on the vine

12-4 wasn't a bad start to the NCAAs last night. It's 6-2 so far today. So all in all, I'm pleased.
Unfortunately, that puts me four games behind the leader in the office pool with the night session to come. Colleague Kevin Denke is in the same boat.
"They call it March Madness. But the only one who's getting mad is me," Kevin said as he sauntered off to look for a women's bracket.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Memphis got mad

Good thing. Many of the participants in the office pool (otherwise called the 401(k) augmentation plan) put Memphis through to at least the round of eight, if not beyond.
I do feel for one of the office mates who picked BYU to go all the way to the championship in 2 1/2 weeks. BYU is out of the tournament already.
On we go ...

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Bracket time

Enough of the experts on TV.
And Digger Phelps, too.
It's time to fill out the NCAA brackets.
Good luck ... make mine Louisville and Duke in the finals.

Monday, March 16, 2009

Out of kilter

Noticed this one over the weekend ...
Seems a parent started fighting with a youth football coach at George Washington High School the other day. The incident got so out of hand, the police brought out the Mace and used it on the parent.
Instead of railing about how moronic the behavior was, I'll defer to a comment from one of the people who serves on the state 5A girls basketball selection committee. He said no one will ever remember a score of a youth sporting event 20 years from now but that people would remember individual behavior.

Sunday, March 15, 2009

Kellogg a welcome addition

Now that the pairings have been announced for March Madness – and before we have a chance to digest them and start filling out office pools – a word of praise for CBS Sports.
Clark Kellogg's commentary is the best thing to happen to TV coverage of college basketball since NBC teamed up Dick Billy Packer and the late Al McGuire almost 30 years ago.
Kellogg's thoughts are fresh and insightful. They aren't full of clichés. And he doesn't sound bored, as Packer did for the last several years on CBS.
March Madness is a lot of fun. Kellogg will enrich that enthusiasm.

Saturday, March 14, 2009

Sandoval thoughts

Pat Sandoval is the new football coach at Brighton High School ... what are your thoughts?
Weigh in ...

Friday, March 13, 2009

E-e-e-e-e-e-e nuff -- part 3

Sources tell me that the press has paid enough attention paid to Jay Cutler's temper tantrum.
It's not the main story on the news. It doesn't even compare to some of the area's more meaty problems. It isn't even a story that he talked to anyone about anything.
Most of the world doesn't care.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Taking responsibility

Colleague – and my boss – Kevin Denke mentioned yesterday morning that the CU athletic director wants to take a certain amount of ownership for the problems the CU basketball program is having. And Mike Bohn did so publicly.
Wow.
However, Bohn is facing the same problem as other basketball-playing schools along the Front Range – a lack of interest in the sport. CU is the longest-suffering example of what happens when the product doesn't draw many fans to the seats. DU, which entered NCAA Division I play a few years ago, plays in a conference (the Sun Belt) where the Pioneers are the western-most team in the league. That leaves few potential rivalries.
New facilities at CU will help. So will a product that gets people excited, a product that has to include some in-state recruits.
The last time anyone was excited about CU hoops was in the days of Chauncey Billups. Before that, it was Bill Blair. It would be great to have some local interest in the NCAAs come the middle of March. But it won't be for a few years yet.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

Free fall

How about them Nuggets?
One week, they are the second-best team in the NBA's Western Conference. Now, they are seventh (you won't hear that on Altitude). Only eight go to the playoffs.
What happened? Every team slumps. In Denver's case these days, they play a considerable amount of individual basketball, and they don't play a lot of defense.
There's time to turn it around. But this trend will leave Denver on the sideline in another five weeks.
You won't hear that on Altitude either.

Monday, March 9, 2009

A sucker born every minute

Buffalo signed wide receiver Terrell Owens over the weekend.
Hope the front office has lots of aspirin for the headaches that are to come.

Thursday, March 5, 2009

Deaf ears

It's not that the Mountain West Conference doesn't deserve a seat at the BCS table each year. It doesn't make a lot of sense for an undefeated team in a minor conference, such as the Mountain West, to be excluded.
It's just that the NCAA Division I presidents won't go for an eight-team playoff – or a four-team playoff or any sort of Division I playoff – any time soon.
The presidents are worried about the amount of class time that football players would miss by participating in another round of postseason games. It's baloney, of course. Look at the amount of time kids miss for the NCAA basketball tournaments each spring.
The bigger problem is how to tell the 35-odd towns that host college bowl games – big and small – that their games may go by the way side. Those small towns pull out everything they have to welcome the two teams to town, and it's a big pay day for the local merchants.
Besides, as far as the NCAA is concerned, the mere fact that everyone whines about a flawed system is good enough.
It's not right. But the NCAA won't repair it for a while (certainly not while the BCS games are on ESPN for the next four-year cycle), if ever.

Wednesday, March 4, 2009

This is play-by-play?

We've had a lot of interesting discussions in the office about the Altitude radio and TV networks – the ones in which nothing disparaging is ever heard about the teams they supposedly cover.
So I guess it's fair game for the Nuggets radio voice (not Jerry Schemmel) to openly root for a player to foul out of the game against the Lakers the other night. And it's equally as fair for those folks to conveniently forget the fact that the Lakers played the night before and traveled to Denver early that morning.
Funny. Denver came off a long road trip and had one of those quick, turnaround games against Boston four days earlier. Boston waxed them, and all we heard was how the travel did in the home team. Baloney.
Tell us what happened. Criticize when it's appropriate. But stop being delusional in your praise of teams you are paid to cover. Most people can figure out when you're feeding us the company line.

Monday, March 2, 2009

Poor Jay Cutler

Must be tough to be 25 years old, have a certain amount of talent and have skin as thin as an envelope.
Note to the Broncos quarterback: Just like anyone else in any form of business, you are a commodity, not a vestal virgin.
Deal with it.

Thursday, February 26, 2009

Big loss with no Rocky prep coverage

Say what you will about the closing of the Rocky Mountain News – the final edition is tomorrow after 150 years in business. But one thing that will be missed is its interest in covering the prep sports scene.
Scott Stocker has been doing that line of work for as long as I can remember. He started with his own publication, then joined the Rocky. More than most, he understands how important prep sports coverage is to a major metropolitan area and to the young men and women he's covered.
Sorry .. the Denver Post can't compare. The level of interest just isn't the same.
I've known Scott for a long time. Regardless of event, regardless of weather, Scott always has a smile on his face and a story to tell. And isn't it nice to be around people who thoroughly enjoy what they do!
I hope someone can come in and fill the void of good prep sports coverage left vacant by the departure of the Rocky Mountain News.
I really do.

Monday, February 23, 2009

Favre may be serious

Word is that the free Fox folks are talking to Brett Favre about becoming an analyst next season.
He just might retire after all ...
Until some team comes up with a better offer.

Thursday, February 19, 2009

Join the fun

It's getting toward the end of February, and that means the winter sports seasons are about to wrap up.
We didn't get anyone from the swim teams to the state meet in Fort Collins last week. But the four schools that field wrestling teams sent 21 grapplers to the state tournament at Pepsi Center in Denver.
Four or five of the basketball teams could qualify for the state 4A and 5A tournaments next week. The seedings come out Sunday afternoon.
Come join the fun as we start down the road toward a batch of state champions.

E-e-e-e-e-e-e nuff -- part 2

Anyone else sick and tired of watching the pregame introduction of Shaquille O'Neal from the NBA All Star Game the other night?

Wednesday, February 18, 2009

Return to Rockies of 2007?

Before we start talking about a run to the World Series for the Rockies – and as magical as the Rockies run to the World Series two years ago was – let's remind ourselves of a few things.
Two years ago, the Rockies caught fire at the right time. Winning 20 of 21 in September and October is astounding, yes. But the Rockies – like everyone else in their division – were bad up until then.
The Rockies lost Matt Holliday to impending free agency. Brian Fuentes is working for the L.A. Angels of Anaheim/Azusa and Cucamonga. Todd Helton cannot be counted on to hit 40 home runs. It would be great if he could be counted on at all. After all, he had back surgery during the offseason.
Those are some pretty good-sized holes to fill for a team that wasn't very good a year ago.
Playoffs? Would be great. World Series? Not likely.

Tuesday, February 17, 2009

Mullen fans out of order

Did you see where the Mullen student section got a little carried away with itself in a basketball game against Overland the other night?
Some of the cheering turned downright filthy. Why? Most of the Overland players are African-American; most of the Mullen cheering section is white.
Cheering for your team is one thing. Cheering against the other team is something else. But being racially insensitive is out of bounds.
I hope those students at Mullen "walk a mile" in the shoes of someone of a different culture. It would be the best lesson after something that stupid.
I'm not going to hold my breath, though.

Monday, February 16, 2009

Avsolutely inconsistent

The local NHL team can't beat the likes of Phoenix or St. Louis or even Columbus.
They can't score very much either.
But the Avs scored five goals in regulation against Detroit and won in a shootout.
If you have answers to why Colorado isn't any more consistent than this, you might be entitled to part-ownership of the team.

Wednesday, February 11, 2009

Favre part 2

Is this it?
For real?
The retirement of Brett Favre?
The only retirement that can last the length of a professional football season?
A reincarnation of that new soap opera, "As the Stomach Turns?"
I'll wait for the Cliff Notes version.

Sunday, February 8, 2009

Pro Bowl charade

Now that the 2008 season's Pro Bowl (or is that a glorified touch football game?), is over, we cans tart discussing the plans for next year's Pro Bowl.
It won't be in Hawaii right after the Super Bowl. It will be in Miami right before the Super Bowl.
Because of the odd rules, the game isn't that good to start with. The NFL, in its infinite wisdom, decided to basically take its top two teams' selections out of consideration for the game by moving it to the week before the Super Bowl.
One more reason not to watch.

Saturday, February 7, 2009

A-Rod and roids

Alex Rodriguez of the New York Yankees is the latest big-league baseball player to be accused of taking illegal steroids. This time, it happened in 2003, according to Sports Illustrated.com, which said this morning it had four sources who could verify the information.
Any surprise?

Tuesday, February 3, 2009

This borders on being stupid

First, it was a slam dunk contest, whose idea is very stale (as most things tend to get after 30-something years).
Then it was a match race between Charles Barkley and NBA referee Dick Bavetta.
Now ... it's a game of H-O-R-S-E that's been introduced to the world of the NBA All-Star Game Feb. 14- 15.
Thanks just the same. But there's some spilled milk in the fridge that requires my attention.

Monday, February 2, 2009

Quite the finish

If it weren't for the fourth quarter last night, the Super Bowl would have gone down in history as another clunker.
How many thought Arizona would make a game of it? How many thought Pittsburgh (with its emphasis on a good run defense) would have enough offense to run down the field and score the game-winning TD?
The fourth quarter did a lot to improve the status of the NFL postseason this year. But the best description of the first three quarters came from a couch in Pasadena, CA. Dad said he wanted a glass of Scotch "to wipe the horrible taste out of his mouth from watching the first three quarters of the game."

Thursday, January 29, 2009

Commentary is right on the mark

If you watch television sportscasts, you know that the emphasis is on comedy and not on sports (thank you ESPN for that).
That said, I find myself watching Vic Lombardi on Channel 4 more often than not. Yes, there's some humor. But it doesn't come at the expense of scores, highlights and issues.
He raised an issue about why the Avalanche attendance is down last night. His feeling is the product is not up to usual standards (a real good reason not to shell out what little extra money we have) and the economy is in the tank (good reason No. 2 not to shell out what little extra money we have).
Even when the economy wasn't in the dumper, the Avalanche ticket prices were something this side of outrageous. Most of the tickets (particularly downstairs) were sold to large corporations, groups that could treat an evening with the Avs as a business expense.
It's true of most professional sports, and it leaves the average fan outside looking in.
But there is a good side ... 90 percent of the games are on home television ... another reason that the Avs and other teams are shooting themselves in the foot.

Tuesday, January 27, 2009

The 10 and six rule

For those with nothing to do Sunday morning, we direct you to NBC's pregame Super Bowl coverage.
It starts at 10 a.m. Mountain time and features 10 talking heads – sportscasters, ex-coaches, Fred the maintenance man.
On the other hand, the weather in Denver is supposed to be in the low 50s during the day Sunday, so perhaps a nice walk around the block will prevent one's derreiere from growing roots through to the floor.
Besides, six minutes of Keith Olbermann (one of the aforementioned blabber heads) is enough to send me outside for a walk in a raging blizzard.

Monday, January 26, 2009

Scorer's remorse - 2

Word came this morning that the coach of that Dallas prep team that beat an opponent 100-0 was fired over the weekend.
The coach didn't think he did anything wrong, and he objected to the athletic director's (read his boss') stance on what happened during that game.
To repeat, there is no place in the world of prep athletics for something like this. The coach may be better off finding work somewhere else. It won't be in prep athletics, though.

Thursday, January 22, 2009

Scorers' remorse?

100-0.
That was the score of a girls prep basketball in Dallas the other night. One of the winning team members – not the head coach, unfortunately – expressed her dislike for running up the score to that extent.
Good her for. The school apologized (eventually) for running up the score. But no one from the school – including the head coach – has offered an excuse for what happened.
In my mind, there's no excuse to score that many points against a team that obviously isn't of your caliber. It's not a question about what we say about winning and losing at this age level. It's a question of the need to win 100-0. And I'm not sure that's necessary.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Refs didn't cost the Nuggets

I have news for the fans of the Denver Nuggets.
Despite a serious amount of on-air abuse last night, referee Bennett Salvatore did not cost the Denver Nuggets a win in Houston yesterday.
Look at two missed free throws later in the fourth quarter, a missed layup and who knows what else happened beforehand.
Was the charging call controversial? Yes. Questionable? Perhaps. Does it get old listening to everyone blame the officials for the Nuggets' problems. Absolutely.

Friday, January 16, 2009

Food for thought – part 2

Courtesy of an invitation that came to our managing editor and colleague, Kevin Denke:
"My meals will be less watery after I win the Lottery."
And with that, have a great weekend.

Thursday, January 15, 2009

Time out for sports, time in for music

It isn't all sports here at Under the Seats. We've been known to talk politics, television, some culture.
And some music.
The other night, I heard the pep band at Rocky Mountain High School play "Jump in the Line," a calypso dance tune by Harry Belafonte from the 1950s. They did a wonderful job with their rendition. And for veterans of prep sporting events, it was a treat to hear something else besides, "Nah nah, hey hey," "Tequila" and "Rock and Roll Part 2" by Gary Glitter.
Among the many things my parents taught my brothers and I was an appreciation for all sorts of music. I thoroughly enjoy listening to Harry Belafonte sing just about anything, especially calypso tunes.
More importantly, I hope those kids in the band continue their study of music and learn for themselves that music in any form is a lifelong joy.
Thanks Mom and Dad. There's at least one lesson that didn't fall on deaf ears.

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Parental behavior gone amok?

Parental behavior at prep sporting events has been a problem for several years.
It may have gone over the line in Fort Lupton.
In today's issue of the Fort Lupton Press, former football coach Mike Muedeking singles out select parents' behavior (including coarse language directed at his wife and two small children) as one of the reasons he chose not to come back to the sidelines in 2009.
Disagreeing with a coach or a coaching decision is a time-honored part of any sport. But when the disagreement stoops to a level that coaches don't want to return to do something they love, that is very disturbing.
How about some thoughts? Am I missing something here?
The floor is open ....

Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Oh please

Dick Vitale, the motormouth basketball announcer, was in town the other night to Dipsy Doo and Diaper Dandy his way through a televised NBA game.
That's why I went somewhere else.
Very few announcers are that good to upstage the event they are covering. Vitale doesn't come close to making that list. But don't tell Channel 9 that. The highlight package was all Vitale, all the time.
Denver's ear drums will never be the same.

Monday, January 12, 2009

Was open to any and all

Former NFL player Bill Romanowski wanted a chance to be the Broncos head coach.
It's a moot point now. Denver hired Jason McDaniels of New England instead.
Romo knows the game, no question about that.
But one thing the Broncos needed to do is repair some of the PR problems from the Mike Shanahan era. Romanowski was not an angel under the best of circumstances.
If nothing else, McDaniels gives Denver a clean slate from which to work. But unlike the CBS outlet here, I'm not quite ready to compare him to Shanahan's once-genius offensive mind.

Friday, January 9, 2009

Two football coaches won't be back

Brighton and Fort Lupton are looking for new football coaches.
BHS' Tom Ritter will not be back in 2009. Mike Muedeking resigned after two years in charge of the Bluedevils' fortunes.
Let me know what you think.

Thursday, January 8, 2009

Sports and finances

Did you chuckle when you heard that the porn industry, the world's oldest profession (and the one that introduced the author to the word "concubine") is in need of a financial assist ($5 billion) in these troubled economic times?
I'd like some financial assistance, too, though not for practicing porn. I don't think I can go beat on the New York Yankees' door. After all, they provide a subsidy for the rest of the major leagues. I can't ask the Rockies. They can't afford Matt Holliday, so they certainly can't afford to help out a 50-year-old dude who can't stay out of divots on football fields.
The Nuggets can't help. The Avs are paying Joe Sakic an inordinate amount of money so he can stick his hand in the front end of a snow thrower.
I guess my financial assistance will be found in the loose change in parking lots, hubcaps and pants pockets.
That nice Quansett hut on the corner? I'll take it. Do I get heat? Central air?

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

Rocky Mountain rumble

Fact: The Utah attorney general thinks the Bowl Championship Series may be in violation of antitrust laws.
Fact 2: Utah U. hasn't been invited to a BCS game on a consistent basis the past few years, despite a pretty decent record.
Thought: Is someone running for re-election?

Thursday, January 1, 2009