Mike Rice should have been fired the moment his abusive behavior was discovered. Let’s not stop there. The athletic director and the president of the university need to go also. They were aware that Rice treated his players like this. For that matter, it is their business to know how he treated his players.
Mike Rice hurled racial slurs, homophobic slurs, hit players, pushed them and threw basketballs at their legs and groin. He was verbally and emotionally abusive. Who on earth thinks this behavior is acceptable? It is unacceptable behavior for any coach at any level of competition. Read more…
This Saturday, May 5 will be the annual 138th Kentucky Derby. No charming horse stories jump out at us this year. That might happen post race. The slight favorite this year is a horse named Bodemeister. Why that almost sounds like Blogmeister!
Every year I go out with friends and play our dollar bets on the each race of the Triple Crown. It sounds silly but it is a rite of spring for us.
To view the horses for this race, go to the Washington Post section. CLICK HERE .
Update: 10:20 : Coach Joe Paterno has died. RIP Coach.
The above video is the last interview with Joe Paterno and was with Sally Jenkins of the Washington Post.
It has been reported that former head football coach Joe Paterno is gravely ill and family is considering removing him from a respirator. Paterno suffers from complications of lung cancer. He was abruptly removed from his position as head coach November 9, 2011.
Paterno fell at home December 19 and suffered from a shattered pelvis. His health has been in continued decline since then.
Students, faculty and friends have begun to gather at the campus bronze statue to keep vigil. Shown here, friends removing snow from the area of the larger than life likeness of their beloved Coach Paterno. Coach Paterno is the winningest coach in the history of college football. He went to Penn State in 1949.
In the wake of the child sexual abuse scandal at Penn State the cost legendary football coachJoe Paterno his job, a Virginia legislator has filed two bills that add to the list of mandated reporters in the case of child abuse or neglect.
In HB3 and HB4 Del. Robert G. Marshall, R-Manassas, proposes adding coaches and athletic directors working at colleges or universities or for private sports organizations to be required to report any suspected abuse or neglect to their local Department of Social Services.
If passed these coaches and athletic directors would be added to a long list of professionals who are considered mandated reporters by the state, including doctors, nurses, K-12 teachers and coaches, probation officers and day care workers.
The emphasis here is on college and university level coaches and athletic directors because these individuals generally don’t deal with minors in their day to day work. Adding these positions to the long list of mandated reporters would remove the guess work out of who is and is not responsible for reporting suspected child sex abuse.
Perhaps it seems like over-kill but it is better to be safe than sorry. In many ways its seems that those at Penn State were ill prepared to deal with child sex abuse. If this bill passes into law, there will simply be no question as to the right and legal behavior required. For once, we give Del. Marshall a rare thumbs up.
John Thompson III’s quick reaction to a melee on the court probably saved the day. His staff sprang in to action and removed the Hoyas from the court. As they left, they were pelted with water bottles and water. There is no excuse for this kind of behavior. It is uncertain if the Georgetown Hoyas will move on to the next round of games in Shanghai or not.
The Prince William Park Authority has approved major renovations for the Pfitzner Field to begin after the Nationals’ season ends on September 6. Renovations will include the installation new grass, a new irrigation system, new sod and soil. The cost of this project will be about $300,000 and will be shared by Prince William County and the Park Authority. The Nationals will oversee the progress which is supposed to take 6 to 8 weeks to complete.
The field is 27 years old and was the subject of quite dust-up several weeks ago. Quoting Potomac owner Art Silber, according to insidenova.com:
“The field is 27 years old and has never been rebuilt. With the amount of clay underneath it and the natural subsoil in the area, it’s difficult to develop a proper drainage system and develop some low spots in the outfield. It’s also impossible to get the water to not accumulate. That has created some situations that are less than ideal.”
Park Authority executive director Jay Ellington said that one of the project’s main purposes is to raise the elevation of the outfield and that the Nationals are working on obtaining a waiver from the office of minor league baseball that allows the field to be under the regular field standard.
This project will be the latest in an attempt to get Pfitzner Stadium’s field in proper playing shape to avoid the difficult predicaments Potomac has experienced this year.
Kobe Bryant has another scandal. Bryant had a technical foul called on him. Kobe, not being a mild mannered chap at all, responded. According to Eurweb.com:
It took place during the 3rd quarter of their game with the San Antonio Spurs after Kobe received a technical foul. The NBA star — clearly upset — screams for ref Bennie Adams and appears to mouth the words, “F**king f**got.”
I am no fan of Kobe Bryant. But $100,000 fine? Was he fined for the first F word or the second F word? Team representatives said they could not confirm that is what he said.
Now I am all for not using homophobic slurs. It is a matter of sensitivity and good manners to refrain from doing so. But is the punishment really worth $100,000?
Just when you thought it was safe to go back in to the water, an 8 foot shark is caught in the Potomac River. It wasn’t just any shark. It was an 8 foot deadly bull shark.
Willy Dean was on the Potomac River in a 22-foot skiff Tuesday morning when he realized there was something both abnormal and enormous in his net. It was a deadly 8-foot-1bull shark, a 300-pound-plus killer that had likely been feasting on cownose rays at Cornfield Harbor, just off the shores of Point Lookout State Park.
“When I first seen it, it was like ‘Jaws’ — we need a bigger boat!” Dean said Thursday. “I’m not kidding you. It looked huge. I didn’t know how we were gonna get it out. It’s my first shark. I’ve been fishing here a little over 30 years, and it’s the first time I’ve even seen one.”
But it wasn’t even the only one caught on the river during what has apparently become Shark Week on the Potomac. Thomas Crowder, a commercial fisherman from St. Mary’s County, said he and his crew were cutting a net near Tall Timbers on Wednesday when an even bigger bull shark was trapped. “He couldn’t swim and breathe, and he drowned,” Crowder said. “We kept saying for years that we wanted to catch a shark. . . . And Willy gets one, and then all of the sudden we get one. What are the odds? It’s just bizarre.”
Crowder measured the shark (8 feet, 3 inches), took a few photos, then dumped it back into the river, its stomach split open to keep it from floating.
About 30 spectators in northern Spain were injured by a rampaging bull when he jumped into the stands and began goring people. One ten-year old boy was seriously injured when he was gored in the stomach. Bull fighting has already been outlawed in some parts of Spain.
Many people find bull fighting a very offensive sport. While rules differ, the odds really aren’t in favor of the bull. I find myself secretly cheering for the bull any time one goes after human beings, although I am sorry a child was injured. The bull was put down after being tied down. Bull fight has no redeeming qualities it seems.
Did you catch the dude trying to hold the bull by his tail? There has to be a Darwin award for that stunt. And naturally the fool escaped without injury.
Bob Sheppard has sometimes been referred to as ‘the voice of God.’ He had an eloquence that anyone who ever heard him immediately recognizes. From the New York Times:
From the last days of DiMaggio through the primes times of Whitey Ford, Mantle, Roger Maris, Berra, Jackson and Jeter, Sheppard’s precise, resonant, even Olympian elocution — he was sometimes called the Voice of God — greeted Yankee fans with the words “Good afternoon,ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to Yankee Stadium.”
Sheppard also believed that:
“A public-address announcer should be clear, concise, correct,” he said. “He should not be colorful, cute or comic.”
The following tribute to Bob Sheppard was from May, 2000:
I sure wouldn’t want to be this guy. The Brit goalie, Robert Green, will never be able to appear in public again, it seems. He goes into the Goalie Hall of Shame forever. According to New Zealand Herald:
El Diego gave us the Hand of God, Thierry Henry the Hand of Frog, now Robert Green is destined, according to the disparaging headline that featured in two red-top Sunday papers, to be remembered as the Hand of Clod.
The unfortunate Green and his wrists of wet spaghetti let past a shot from American Clint Dempsey that barely had enough steam to make it across the line.
Are Americans this cruel to our sports icons? Our sports icon seem to catch more hell for their indiscretions than they do their playing time mistakes. I am not even sure why New Zealand is beating up on an England player. Are we immune to this kind of scorn because we don’t have any national sports teams who routinely play. All of our American teams are created for special occasions and are not a standing team for seasonal play, for major sports.
Our very own Starry Flights is in South Africa and has take in a few soccer games. I hope he will comment from time to time.
Americans, overall, seem rather underwhelmed by the World Cup. Mr. Howler pronounced on Saturday that the England vs USA World Cup soccer game was like watching paint dry. I then heard the buzz of curtains being sucked into his nostrils for a while, only for him to arise from the recliner to tell me it was the most boring sporting event he had ever watched. What is everyone take on the World Cup games?
Duke has come from the lowest of lows in 2006 to a 6-5 win over Notre Dame today in an overtime win this afternoon.
Duke was at a low when some of their players were falsely accused of raping a stripper. It turned out that she lied and had a history of lying. The district attorney is no longer in office and the lacrosse coach lost his job. Young men lost their reputations. The Duke lacrosse team was suspended for a year.
Today Duke can celebrate. In addition to their awesome win over Notre Dame, the team has a 3.2 GPA and has played Lacrosse overseas. Duke lacrosse coach John Danowski has brought to Duke lacrosse program a long ways. He has been an excellent coach, father figure, and mentor.
Congratulations are also in order for the Lady Terps who won the Womens National Lacross Championship yesterday! The Maryland women’s lacrosse team defeated No. 2 Northwestern, 13-11, for its first NCAA Championship since 2001 in front of a record-breaking crowd of 9,782 Sunday at Unitas Stadium.
A huge thanks to our friend George for sending this video our way. It isn’t often we get to start of the week with such a great display of real class.
Just prior to the start of the Air Force-BYU football game, Sept. 22, 2009, this video was broadcast in the BYU stadium in Provo, Utah. Later, the USAF Academy Superintendent, LtGen Gould, showed this clip to the faculty and staff. He told everyone that BYU ran it minutes before the kickoff at the game. He was clearly moved by it, as were those who watched it. BYU is a class act.
Both the UVA men’s and women’s lacrosse teams have won the first round of the NCAA championship. The men’s team won Saturday evening in an 18-4 win over Mt. St. Marys. The women’s team just won a narrow 14-12 victory over Towson State. Yeardly’s mother and sister were present at the game and her mother was awarded the winning ball from the game.
Both games started with a tribute and moment of silence to Yeardly. Her number, #1 was worn on the uniforms. The teams have begun to heal. The Love family was asked about continuing the season after the tragic death of their daughter. They encouraged them to not only play but play to win–to win for Yeardly.
“A lot of mixed emotions,” Clausen said. “The field’s provided a sanctuary. I wanted to soak it all in one last time.”
An hour later, the public address announcer requested a moment of silence for the “tragic loss” of Love, and Clausen remained still. The words “One Love” were written in orange script on the back of the players’ navy blue warm-up shirts, and black patches with Love’s initials and jersey number dotted the front of their white game uniforms. Clausen, a defenseman, wore her initials on his eye black. He embraced teammates with hugs.
The pall that has hung over the program since former midfielder George Huguely was charged with first-degree murder for his alleged attack on Love, a member of the women’s lacrosse team, 12 days ago lifted for one night. By vanquishing No. 16 Mount St. Mary’s, 18-4, Virginia (15-1) coasted to next Sunday’s quarterfinals at Stony Brook.
“You witnessed a team that was happy to be on the field again,” said Virginia coach Dom Starsia.
Supportive messages were scrawled on signs and enmeshed in shirts with the words “One Team. One Heart. One Love.” Two teammates wore orange ribbons in their hair and one had the No. 1 etched on her white wristband. Eleven men’s team members, led by senior tri-captain Mikey Thompson, marched up the stands as the game started.
The same faces that followed Love’s family to the funeral last week reunited for the games. Love’s mother, Sharon Donnelly, arrived in the bleachers five minutes before the game, with her oldest daughter, Lexie, by her side. The two wore bright pink outfits and dark sunglasses. Next to them, university president John Casteen III sat among the team’s families.
