THE SPORT HOT NEWS

Friday, December 7, 2007

"A Date Which Will Live in Infamy"

0 comments Posted by asem tuwo at 12:09 PM

December 7, 1941. Franklin Delano Roosevelt uttered those famous words after the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor.

But for the sports world, the date is December 7, 1963.

CBS was broadcasting a college football game between Army and Navy. On that December Philadelphia afternoon, CBS director, Tony Verna used a modified Ampex VR-1000B videotape machine for an instant replay of Army quarterback, Rollie Stichwehs' touchdown run.

"This is not live!" announcer Lindsey Nelson screamed. "Ladies and gentlemen, Army did not score again."

And so was born.......instant replay. We take it granted now days and even when I attend a live sporting event, I'm looking up at the Jumbo-tron to get my instantaneous replay. CBS........we applaud you and thank you. This is indeed a date which will live in infamy.

Wednesday, December 5, 2007

Hump Day Thoughts......

0 comments Posted by asem tuwo at 12:21 PM

Locking up a #2 pick.......The NFL has completed 3/4 of it's season and the bottom teams are all fighting .....non-fighting for draft positions next spring. The winless Miami Dolphins have locked up the #1 pick but there is a battle between four 3-9 teams that include the Atlanta Falcons, the San Francisco 49ers, the St. Louis Rams and the New York Jets. Each team could conceivably lose their final 4 games. Interesting side note --- The 49ers traded away their pick to the New England Patriots, leaving the Falcons, Rams and Jets to jostle for that #2 pick. Look for those lovable, losing Falcons to blow it and win 3 of 4 down the stretch.

The National League just got a bit more boring......Major League Baseballs' Detroit Tigers pulled off the biggest trade of this years' winter meetings by trading six prospects to the Florida Marlins for Dontrelle Willis and Miguel Cabrera. Willis brings his charismatic personality and premier left arm to the American League, while Cabrera is one of the finest hitters in baseball. It's no wonder the American League wins every All-star game, dominates inter-league play, and has won 4 out the last 6 World Series.

Is Isiah still coaching the Knicks?

Adios Amigo........As expected, UCLA head football coach Karl Dorrell was fired after a 5 year run with the Bruins. Dorrell, only one of six Black head coaches out of 119 Division 1 schools, has decided not to coach the team when they play BYU in the Las Vegas Bowl.

Must read article........Leonard Pitts, Jr. is a columnist with the Miami Herald......Interesting read: `Murder is the greatest injustice of all'

Boxing is officially dead.......Boxing, as we know....and once knew it is dead. And ....as if we needed further proof.......it was announced today the heavyweight division will unify the championship by having the IBO champ meet the WBO champ in a Feb. 24 bout. If you can pronounce these guys names.....If.....you know from whence they came.....If you even care......It's IBF champ Wladimir Klitschko versus WBO champ Sultan Ibragimov.............Serious!.....you can't make this stuff up.

And finally.........everyone will sleep at night now knowing that 47 pit bulls seized from Michael Vick's dog-fighting operation were recommended for placement with rescue organizations by the dogs' court appointed guardian. Court appointed guardian? For dogs? Jeezzzz!

And finally......finally.....Thanks to the guys at Profootballtalk.com...........Ben & Brady

These two have.......just a tad bit different outlook on life. You think?

Tuesday, December 4, 2007

The Meaning of the Word, "boy"

0 comments Posted by asem tuwo at 1:51 PM

Webster's definition reads like this:

Boy
Noun
1. A youthful male person; "the baby was a boy"; "she made the boy brush his teeth every night"; "most soldiers are only boys in uniform".
2. A friendly informal reference to a grown man; "he likes to play golf with the boys".
3. A male human offspring; "their son became a famous judge"; "his boy is taller than he is".
4. Offensive term for Black man; "get out of my way boy".

In Monday night's football game between the New England Patriots and the Baltimore Ravens (won by New England, 27-24), a small harmless three-letter word made national headlines. Ravens cornerback Samari Rolle has accused an NFL refere

e, head lineman Phil McKinnely , of using ........the "b" word in an exchange between the two.
Rolle told the Baltimore Sun that McKinnely repeatedly called him "boy."
"The refs called me a boy," Rolle said after Monday's game. "No. 110 (McKinnely) called me a boy. I will be calling my agent in the morning and sending my complaint."

"I have a wife and three kids," Rolle added. "Don't call me a boy. Don't call me a boy on the field because I said, 'You've never played the game before.'''

Actually, McKinnely played 7 seasons in the NFL.......but let's stick with this "boy" stuff.

In the Military there is a side boy, soldier boy, fly-boy, dough boy, drummer boy and ship's boy.

There are.......houseboys, bellboys, busboys, cabin boys, cabana boys, hall boys, kitchen boys and link boys.

Then .....you have.....altar boy and choir boy. Th

ere is the cowboy........best boy, office boy, copy boy , delivery boy, paperboy, pizza boy , errand boy, messenger boy and ball boy. We also have boy bands, boy scouts........we even have "boyz in the hood".

But..........It's when that little three-letter word is used as a singular noun to describe a black man when it gets to be a slur against that individual. In the South, after reconstruction and well into the 1970's, grown black men were often referred to as "boys" by members of the white law enforcement establishment. "Where 'yall boys goin'?" "He's a pretty good 'boy' ".

"Boy"........has long been a disrespectful and degrading term in the black community. It's just amazing it took 2 black men .....on Monday Night Football.....to bring it to light. Growing up , when someone called myself of one of my brothers a "boy" , we had a simple reply, " 'Boy' plays on Tarzan, Cheetah split......call me mister.......or .........don't call me shit".

Monday, December 3, 2007

Monday Morning Moanings

0 comments Posted by asem tuwo at 5:52 AM

The BCS Gods have spoken. In the final poll, the BCS has selected Ohio State and LSU as it's numbers 1 and 2 teams. The Buckeyes were expected to move into the top spot when #1 Missouri and #2 West Virginia both lost on Saturday. Meanwhile, LSU was ranked seventh going into the SEC Championship game against Tennessee (winning 21-14). LSU leaped over 4 teams to land the #2 position. Go figure.

See how the poll changed dramatically in just one week:

11/25/07
---------------
1. Missouri (11-1)
2. West Virginia (10-1)
3. Ohio State (11-1)
4. Georgia (10-2)
5. Kansas (11-1)
6. Virginia Tech (10-2)
7. LSU (10-2)
8. USC (9-2)
9. Oklahoma (10-2)
10. Florida (9-3)

12/02/07
---------------
1. Ohio State (11-1)
2. LSU (11-2)
3. Virginia Tech (11-2)
4. Oklahoma (11-2)
5. Georgia (10-2)
6. Missouri (11-2)
7. USC (10-2)
8. Kansas (11-1)
9. West Virginia (10-2)
10. Hawaii (12-0)

Big Winners..........Hawaii, goes to the Sugar Bowl to face Georgia. Illinois, gets a trip to the Rose Bowl to meet USC.

Big Losers.............Missouri, goes from playing in the national championship bowl game, to playing in a non BCS bowl (Cotton ), after losing the Big 12 Championship to Oklahoma.

Georgia is an early 11 point favorite over the undefeated Warriors of Hawaii. The Dawgs are in a "lose - lose" situation. If they win........they were supposed to.....But if they lose.....Wow, David slew Goliath! Too a lesser degree, same thing with USC. The Trojans are a 14 point favorite over Illinois (9-3). Anything less than a USC blowout would be viewed as underachieving. Would have loved to see a USC - Georgia match up.

What a melt down in Morgantown. How do you lose to a team when you're a 28 point favorite? You're playing at home, getting all kinds of favorable calls from the referees, and you still lose? Yes Pat White got hurt, but this is supposed to be a "triple option" offense. I didn't see any other options. I saw a team that did not execute , played scared and allow Pitt to gain and sustain momentum in the second half.

Get ready for the 32 Bowl marathon , beginning with the December 20 Poinsettia Bowl in San Diego (Utah -- Navy), and ending January 7, 2008 in New Orleans withe the BCS Championship game. Wake me up on New Year's Day. I'll start watching then.

Sunday, December 2, 2007

Sunday Morning Headlines

0 comments Posted by asem tuwo at 6:26 AM

For your viewing pleasure......
(Click photo for larger image)

Saturday, December 1, 2007

ACC.......You're no SEC

0 comments Posted by asem tuwo at 2:10 PM

A note to the Atlantic Coast Conference. Stick to basketball. Today's championship game between Virginia Tech and Boston College could not even garner a sell out in Jacksonville, Florida. There were so many empty seats, ABC did their due diligence to avoid showing crowd shots. Last year.......In the game that featured Georgia Tech and Wake Forest......the weather was horrible. The attendance was predictably lousy. But today was a beautiful December afternoon in Jacksonville -- with the top two ACC teams facing off..........and still.......no sell out....lots of empty seats.

Toward the end of Virginia Tech's 30-16 win over Boston College......I switched over to CBS's SEC Championship game featuring LSU and Tennessee. What a difference! Full house in the Georgia Dome.......Electricity......Energy.....Enthusiasm!

The ACC only sold out the Jacksonville stadium once in their inaugural championship game when Florida State was there. Jacksonville is in the last year of it's contract to host the game....so we'll probably get a change of venue.......In the mean time......ACC? Stick to basketball.

Friday, November 30, 2007

A Letter From the Grave

0 comments Posted by asem tuwo at 7:34 PM

Dear sports world,

My name is Sean Taylor. I've been in the news recently. I was murdered in my own home. I played football for the NFL's Washington Redskins. I played college ball at the "U"......as in the University of Miami. Before that, you could say I grew up in the "hood" .....if you consider Richmond Heights a hood with the average medium family income at $44,095. My parents divorced when I was three years old and I was raised by my Father and my stepmother.

My dad was and is the police chief of the Florida City Police Department. I was always surrounded by law enforcement friends of the family my entire childhood. Yet the media continues to label me as a product of the "hood".

I fell in love with football at Gulliver Prep where I played running back on offense and defensive back on defense. Football gave me a sense of who I was......it also made me ......well....it made me feel like my own man. I was good. Natural talent. And I worked hard to be better. That drive led to three successful years at the University of Miami. After my Junior year, I did what most athletes would do.......I opted for the NFL. I had read....heard.....even imagined I just might be a first round draft pick......so......hey, what the heck?

So......in 2004, the Redskins pick me in the first round. Wow.....that rookie season. I fired 2 agents......yes I did....and I was accused of spitting on a Cincinnati Bengal player....no I didn't.....and it was never proven. In the 2005 season I was fined $5000 for not wearing the Redskins socks. And....I will admit I did spit at Tampa Bay running back Michael Pittman and was fined $17,ooo .....but only him....and I.....well may be the ref's ....know what the exact exchange between the two of us was.

The NFL is a strange league. I made the Pro Bowl last year. And I didn't think of it as my best. I had a up and down year and only made it as an alternate.....Philadelphia safety Brian Dawkins chose not to play....opening the door ....for me.

Now it's 2007.........I'm leading the Redskins with 5 interceptions but I'm sidelined with an injury.....so I return to my Miami home.

I'm in my bedroom along with my woman and child......when someone....somebody.......some person.....has invaded a privacy....my privacy. I react.....I over react....This is My house...I think I hear a sound that sounds like a gun shot.....I feel a sharp pain. My body is still moving.....I can still hear.....I can feel.....but then ....I can't breathe.....and then......I'm out. Asleep. They would later say I went into a coma.....what's the difference. I was in shock. I lost a ton of blood. And.......I'm not there with you today.

My death has touched a great deal of people.....It has also demonized everything from "hip hop" to "rap". They are saying, "He got what he deserved"..........."It had to have been another woman who shot him"..........."He bragged too much about his money"........."This was a random act of a burglar"....."His girl friend did it".....and so on .....and so on.

Let me just say this.......you are what you are.....I....am not of the hood.....I....have made a ton of mistakes. I...... love my child, my mother & father and the mother of my child. At 24 years old, I now will miss out on the life that you ......and that sports world full of you guys and gals take for granted. But for j

ust a mere moment........think of me.....be me......if only for .....a mere moment.

Sincerely,

Sean Taylor