Tuesday, July 21, 2009
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Anyways first here is the blurb from TSN.ca and here's the text:
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I think it's safe to say the Winter Classic has become such a huge event that you've got various venues lining up or at least expressing interest in having the game played. The idea of playing the game at the Rose Bowl would be intriguing as hell but not feasible as I don't think the NHL should muck around with what's working and move the game away from the Jan. 1st date. Before you say that the ice would melt and such technology has come a long way from that hot night in 1991 when the Kings played an outdoor exhibition game in Vegas. There's now synthetic ice and other such things.
The other venue that most interests me is New Yankee Stadium. The NHL was very close to getting this year's Winter Classic at the old stadium but the lukewarm to somewhat hostile reaction to that forced them to go in another direction.
The Las Vegas strip idea is a great one and i'd go outside the box with this if they were to play a game there. Instead of having a regular season game there i'd have the All Star Game there. No ice, no actual rink per se (there would be boundaries of course) and make it a street hockey format. I know this would appeal a lot to Canadian fans (well at least the ones willing to think outside the box) as street hockey is a part of every Canadian and a lot of northern US people's lives. It would be a neat one-off event IMO.
Last but not least as you see from the blurb there the Winter Classic will be treated in much the same was as the Super Bowl and various cities/venues would have to bid to host the game. I don't necessarily like that idea as it would probably push the game away from the hockey fan and turn it into a big corporate schmoozefest. The league will have to carefully balance out bilking venues out of their money and keeping it accessible to the average fan. I also think that the NHL needs to stop ignoring the Canadian cities. If the game is played in Boston next year (Fenway) then they better schedule the Habs as their opponent. I'd also like to see some Canadian venues getting some recognition after all, the concept WAS started here.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Tim Tebow may be the greatest QB in college football history, certainly i've never seen or heard of any QB that has dominated the college ranks the way Tebow has. This can be a very good thing but it's a double edged sword especially in this heavily concentrated media age. Tebow has generated such a following that it's almost like a cult. You have teammates, announcers, coaches, and fans heaping so much praise on the kid that any kind of criticism of him is met with an almost whiny "I can be a pro QB. Give me a reason I can't be? wah wah wah". This is why I thought Mel Kiper Jr. should've been more forthright when he was talking to Tebow on the radio a while ago. Sometimes you need to add a dose of reality amidst the hype. Unfortunately, Mr. Kiper played it safe.
When someone has all the success in the world that Tebow is having it becomes awfully hard to face adversity. Other then a loss or two in the regular season Tebow hasn't had any real challenges/setbacks. Everything he's done has been with a Midas touch. The thing that really clinched my feeling that Tebow will be a bust was the Sunday Conversation on ESPN a couple days ago. Tebow is asked a question about the upcoming BCS Championship game and he's going on about how the Gators are representing a team, a state, the whole college football universe and how important the game is etc etc. I swear when he was going on and on with his answer I thought he was gonna say something like "We're representing truth, honor and the American Way. God is on our side!" and lapse into some crazy spiritualist mumbo jumbo.
I said to myself, "self, this is just a football game. If he thinks this is so important and meaningful I hate to see how he'll take to losing". That's what it is with Tebow. The guy has not lost a truly meaningful game. He goes into the huge games with so much on the line that if he loses it's not going to be pretty. It's similar to Leinart when he lost to Vince Young's Texas Longhorns in the I think Fiesta Bowl. (someone correct me here) Ever since then his career has spiraled downward and he just doesn't have the confidence to be a good NFL QB. I can see this happening to Tebow on a much larger scale if Florida loses OU. If Florida doesn't lose then it's holding off the inevitable where Tebow's spirit is gonna get absolutely crushed when he's getting sacked and having to make quick snap decisions in the NFL.
One last thing, it was said that Tebow inspires his coach Urban Meyer....When I heard that I cringed. Tebow is NOT going to get the kid gloves treatment in the NFL. He's going to have a very hard time adjusting to the pressure and expectations that he will be faced with. I'm telling you I just feel Tebow is going to flame out BADLY if he's given the opportunity to be a QB in the NFL.
If he does flourish well, i'll make a post 3 years from now and admit I was wrong.
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Posted on December 16, 2008 at 12:18 PM.
So I know i'm way late on this but the point I want to make brings up race and that's taboo in the forums so I'll make my point here. This is about the Auburn hiring of Gene Chizek. Chizek's record as a head coach is, well mediocre to put it best yet he was chosen ahead of Turner Gill. There were reports before the Chizek hiring that Gill was one of the favorites for the job but apparently those in charge of the Auburn Athletic department didn't interview him or even made serious overtures. This seems to be a recurring pattern for Auburn as just recently Charles Barkley has blasted his alma mater for this same kind of discriminatory behavior. During the '90s Barkley agreed to be part of a search committee for a new basketball coach on the condition that Auburn interview three black coaches who would be interested and able to take on the job. Auburn did this but eventually hired a white coach who had a poor record as a head coach before taking the job.
This kind of behavior is pretty sad and disturbing especially after the recent affirmation of the American public's willingness to hire on the basis of qualification rather then race as we saw in the recent presidential election. Obviously this is not just a problem with Auburn but with the schools in Division 1 Football. (i'm not too familiar with the situation in the basketball ranks but i have a feeling it's not as bad) Out of the 119 schools in big time college football this past season only FOUR are black and we're now basically down to two since Ty Willingham's firing and Sylvester Croom leaving Miss. State.
I truly believe that the Powers That Be in the NCAA need to seriously take a look at this. Now I know the Rooney Rule in the NFL is not perfect but I strongly encourage the NCAA to look into adopting some kind of rule to that effect. I also heard something pretty shocking and sad last night on the radio. Jim Kelley (the sports writer) related how he's had off the record conversations with those involved in college football. One of the main reasons why black coaches don't get hired, much less interviewed is because the ADs are scared. Why? They're scared that if they hire a black coach that they can't fire said black coach at all.
What kind of *** backwards cockaminie line of thinking is this?! Are there people running the athletic departments of major colleges and universities that truly believe this pap they're spewing? Now I know there's the issue of boosters especially down south where the racial attitudes are less tolerant but damnit schools shouldn't be beholden to a bunch of old guys who are living in the 1950s!
This has been an issue in college football for years now but I gotta think that the Turner Gill situation HAS to be the tipping point. This kind of nonsense has to end.
Sunday, December 14, 2008
JP Losman is one of the worst QBs i've ever seen play at the NFL level. He makes David Woodley look like Joe Montana. That's how bad he is.
As for Dick Jauron? I don't know how a coach can go from getting a nice extension in the middle of the season to likely being on the way out. The man has completely bungled everything and is way too passive. Don't get me started on some of the playcalling by offensive coordinator Turk Schonert, when he's not being super conservative he pulls out crazy "unconventional" plays that almost always backfires. The best example was the pass call near the end of the game today. Calling a passing play isn't so bad but it looked like a roll out play. Who the hell calls that kind of pass play when the defense will be gunning for the ball the way the Jets were there?
"sigh"
I say the Bills bring in Marty Schottenhemer. Anyone else like this idea?
Saturday, December 13, 2008
I've watched one complete game (The Bears game) and bits and pieces of a couple others and have come away very impressed at Matt Ryan. Let me say that I was one of the few defenders of Ryan when he was drafted and it's nice to see him having such a good rookie year. There's something about his cool demeanor and poise at the pivot that impresses the hell out of me.
The offense in Atlanta reminds me a lot of the K-Gun offense of Jim Kelly's Buffalo Bills. They're obviously not as explosive but the style of play is very similar. Michael Turner can pound opposing defenses but he also has the ability to get up to the second level and just zip by defenders with his speed much the same way Thurman Thomas did. Roddy White doesn't quite have the blatant disregard for his health the way Andre Reed seemed to have but White is just as explosive in terms of getting huge yards and getting big TDs. Matt Ryan is young but he seems to have the team's attention and I really love it when the Falcons allow him to run the no huddle.
When the Falcons are in the no huddle you can really see Ryan's poise and how he can direct the team in an organized fashion. The guy is just very mature. I wish the Falcons would let Ryan run the no huddle more often because that's when the Falcons offense reminds me the most of those old Bills with the formations and the routes that the receivers run. In many ways the Falcons when they go uptempo seem to run a hybrid of the run n' shoot and it's worked effectively for them.
Maybe i'm just crazy but if it's not similar to the Bills' glory days it's at the very least a variation on the old Run n' Shoot.
Friday, December 12, 2008
secondly, this is for people that keep saying the Raptors and the Toronto market isn't very good blah blah blah. Forbes recently did their annual NBA franchise valuations and the Raptors are ranked 11th with a value of 400 million dollars. If the Toronto market isn't a good basketball market then how the hell is the team worth so much money huh huh? The Raptors also have one of the highest ticket revenues in the league as well so I don't know how so many of my fellow OS'ers have this jaundiced view of the franchise.
Last but not least, the Blue Jays are pissing me off royally. They've reportedly signed Matt Clement to a minor league deal with an invite to spring training and are now looking at signing Carl Freakin' Pavano! What next? Are we gonna take Mike Sirotka out of mothballs and sign him too?
"sigh"
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Posted on December 11, 2008 at 01:58 AM.
Seems like every team out there are making moves to improve their teams while JP Ricciardi and the Jays are staying put. I've heard Rafael Furcal is on their radar but I doubt it happens. Now i'm hearing Texiera may go to the O's or even the BoSox! The Yankees have made ANOTHER offer to Burnett. It really looks like it's going to be a very long year for the Jays. "sigh"Hopefully JP can do something he hasn't done before and actually get valuable bargains in free agency or this team is going to be awfully thin especially in the rotation. I guess this'll prove just how good of a manager Cito is if the Jays don't make any big moves this offseason to improve the club.
Monday, December 8, 2008
Posted on December 8, 2008 at 06:57 AM.
So the first regular season to be played in Canada happened yesterday. I thought it came off well. The fans weren't very loud but they weren't completely dead either. The one thing that disappointed me the most (other then the Bills choking down the stretch) is that the roof wasn't open. That's one thing that needs to be addressed for the future Bills in Toronto games. As for the future of the Bills in Toronto, well let's put it this way, Rogers Communications vastly over estimated what people were willing to pay. If you compare the seat pricing at Rogers Centre compared to the Ralph it's like night and day. You can get very good seats in Buffalo for about 75 bucks whereas here some people were paying upwards of 500 dollars! It was also a strategic mistake to make the very first game a preseason affair. That really soured some of the excitement for the series of games here. The people behind this probably thought "oh it's the NFL they'll just gobble this up!" Well, Torontonians didn't just fall out of the turnip truck. They know when they're being suckered in.
I do think there is a future for the NFL here it's just going to be a lot harder then previously thought. It's definitely not going to be an expansion team because the Bills and the NFL have basically made Toronto a part of the Bills sphere of influence. The only way Toronto gets an NFL team is if Buffalo gives up its territorial rights or it's the Bills franchise itself that moves here. It's not explicitly said but most NFL fans here are wary of stealing the Bills away from Buffalo because doing that would basically be the death sentence for Buffalo economically since the Bills are the only entity that really generates revenues.
There's also the problem of an NFL sized facility. The Rogers Centre would be ok as a temporary measure but Toronto would need a bigger facility. There's land by Woodbine racetrack that would be ideal for a stadium as it's pretty easy to get to by public transportation and as far as road travel goes it isn't as congested as driving to the Downtown core.
What I think eventually happens is that we're going to see a set up similar to Green Bay and Milwaukee for years and years. Buffalo and Toronto would have 4 games each and that's that.
Now onto the Cowboys, this'll be quick but that team is full of soft babies it isn't even funny. These guys can't take adversity at all. It seems the Cowboys players are a bunch of guys who are frontrunners but when things go badly they wither and die. I do think some of it is a reflection of the coach who's pretty much a gutless wonder despite his physical girth. There just aren't very many character guys or plain ol' tough guys on that team. The majority of the Cowboys locker room is full of poseurs who live the celebrity lifestyle well but when it comes to getting knocked around on a football field they just can't handle the tough times. I think Parcells took all the character guys off that roster and took em to Miami. (except Witten)
I guess we'll see what happens in the coming weeks regarding that team.
Sunday, November 30, 2008
I'm tired of the Weis era. I want his lazy fat arse out of South Bend yesterday. The guy has literally stolen millions of dollars from the school and is pretty much a fraud. His best results have come with Ty Willingham's kids. He's taken the school to a couple bowls (probably undeservedly so) and the twam has been waxed. Weis' big signing in Jimmy Claussen? Well, underwhelming is not the right word to describe what he's been to Notre Dame.
It's time to find a real coach and recruiter to South Bend. Mike Riley is the perfect guy. He's having success with Oregon State which, if it wasn't for Hawaii is the Siberia of college football. The man has consistently done well with the best that he can get and is a player's coach. If he's given the high profile of a school like Notre Dame i'm sure he'll bring in some legit 4/5 star recruits.
Riley has also excelled in the pros and won two Grey Cups as coach of the Winnipeg Blue Bombers of the CFL. He wasn't given the greatest opportunity with the Chargers in the NFL but he wasn't the worst college to NFL coach ever.
I just think ND needs a true collegiate coach who is a far better recruiter and someone who can connect with his kids. He's known as a player's coach and has done more with less in his coaching career then Weis has.
If that doesn't happen i'd like to see someone like Brian Kelly at ND as well.
Saturday, November 22, 2008
Trivia question for you Americans out here: What's the highest rated sporting event in Canada?
Answer: The Grey Cup
Yes, as strange as it may be the championship game of the CFL is the highest rated event in Canadian sports. It's also an unofficial holiday for most people as it's often referred to as the Great Canadian Drunk.
This year's game isn't the sexiest matchup possible but it's a rarity on some levels. This will be a true battle of the best teams in the league as the Calgary Stampeders and the Montreal Alluettes are the #1 and 2 team in the league. The game is being played in Montreal and is only the 9th time in CFL history where the home team will be participating in the game.
The Als are led by veteran QB Anthony Calvillo, a man with a very interesting backstory to him. Calviillo was an undrafted player out of a tiny school and got his big break during the CFL's American experiment as he literally just walked onto the job as the starting QB for the Las Vegas Posse franchise. Since that time Calvillo has become one of the most prolific QBs in CFL history. He's a guy that has been very much underrated throughout his career and even to this day he doesn't fit everyone's image of a legendary QB. This game may very well be his swansong, not necessarily because of age (he's 36 IIRC) but because of his wife's health situation. In fact this may be the swansong for this current incarnation of the Montreal team.
The Als have been one of the most consistently stable teams of the last 10 years which is a feat in itself in a league where turnover is a hallmark. A lot of the O-Line and defense are made up of older guys and one of the best offensive players in CFL history in Ben Cahoon is more or less wrapping up his career.
To draw an NFL parallel the Als are akin to the Cowboys of '79-'83 except they've been more successful as they've played in 5 Grey Cups in the last 10 years with a 1-4 record. A win on Sunday would do a lot for the reputation of the franchise and this group of players.
On the other side of the ball are the Calgary Stampeders. A team with a better defense, probably a more explosive offense led by QB Henry Burris, RB Joffrey Reynolds, WR Ken-Yon Rambo, SBs Jermaine Copeland and Nik Lewis. The receiving corps for the Stamps have been under scrutiny the last couple of years for their showboating and seemingly cavalier attitude to the game. Reynolds is considered by many to be the best back in the league and is an integral part of the Stamps offense.
Henry Burris is also an interesting figure in that he has a reputation for choking in the big games so Sunday is going to be a huge career defining type game for him as well.
As far as defense goes they're led by a pretty stout defensive backfield but it was the play of Canadian and former NFL'er Mike Labinjo on the D-line last week that propelled the Stamps to the Grey Cup. Labinjo's performance last week generated a ton of buzz and he totally dominated the game which is a mean feat in a league where offense rules the day.
This year's Grey Cup is going to be a dawn of a new era and it's probably going to be watched with great interest by the NFL and ESPN. Why? Because this is the first time in CFL history that the Grey Cup game will be aired on cable rather then over the air on CBC. Before this move a lot of people were aprehensive about this but this past season has been a smashing success for the league and for TSN. There has been a blip on the radar however with the playoff games being moved from the traditional Sunday to Saturday where the ratings have fallen noticeably. Some have made the argument that it's due to the fact that no Ontario teams are involved. It's going to be very interesting to see how the Grey Cup TV numbers come out.
Last but not least, I know i'm writing to a majority of Americans and good news for you guys if you have VS. The game will be aired on VS live on Sunday at 5:30 PM so if you're interested check it out. CFL Commissioner Mark Cohon has said in an interview that he hopes this dry run on VS will lead to the League cutting a deal with that network for a US national package rather then having games scattered about on various US regional networks.
SPTO'S Prediction:
Als 40
Stamps 38
Friday, November 21, 2008
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Posted on November 20, 2008 at 02:39 AM.
This is pretty amazing and at the same time frightful stuff. The CBC program The Fifth Estatedid a program on this topic Wednesday night. Apparently most of this is due to concussions and the pounding that football players go through day in and day out especially those on the lines. The study is based on actuarial studies done by insurance companies and by studies from major universities. Anyways here's the page to the video of the story. Let me know if the video doesn't play and i'll try to find a transcript or another video of it.
CBC story
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
I guess this makes some sense what with the two coaches in the Grey Cup this year. Calgary's coach is John Hufnagel who's been a longtime QB and offensive coach in the NFL and Montreal's coach is Marc Trestman who's best known for his college and NFL work. At least Hufnagel had experience coaching in the CFL prior to this year but Trestman has NEVER worked in the CFL before. The Argos are of the mind that Fassel is in the same mold as he's done a lot of work with QBs and has a lot of coaching experience.
Pretty interesting stuff.
Monday, November 17, 2008
The Leafs right now are 7-7-4 with 56 Goals For and 61 Goals against. The Leafs this time last year had the same record, 57 Goals For and 61 Goals Against.
Perception is a crazy thing indeed....
Looking beyond the numbers this is exactly the WRONG thing the Leafs are doing. They're clearly not going to be cellar dwellers like everyone expected and if they keep up this performance they're going to be in the same crappy hole they've been in the last few years. This is why I hate this franchise so much. They can't even do a rebuilding phase properly!
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