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Kiffin Wants to Play VolsNews "broke" yesterday that former UT coach and all-around general jack-ass Lane Kiffin approached the UT athletic department about the Vols playing USC in 2011. Kiffin wanted it the game to be on a neutral field in Atlanta (he's smart enough to know that he'd be lynched if he came into Rocky Top) as the Chick-Fil-A kick-off classic. Mike Hamilton said that UT has declined for the reason that we've got our schedule set for 2011, but said the Vols would be interested in the future. This all happened a month ago. Kiffin "leaked" the news because one of USC's top guys transferred to UT because, in case you missed it, karma worked as it should and USC is under NCAA sanctions for cheating while Kiffin was there. Of course, no one from UT mentioned this a month ago. Because we have something Kiffin doesn't--class. Once again, I'm reminded of just why I'm glad this jackass is gone from Knoxville. Outside of beating the stuffing out Georgia, he really didn't do much to distinguish himself as a coach during his tenure in Knoxville. All this jackass distinguished himself in was running his mouth and writing checks the players had to cash on the field. Don't get me wrong--I'd love to see the Vols play a series against USC. It'd be great for us to beat the stuffing out of them on national TV (because you know ESPN would be slobbering on themselves for the chance to show USC) in a neutral site. It would also be some kind of redemption for the Vols to face the coach who shafted them so. Of course, this all assumes the jack-ass stays around USC for more than a year or two....
The LeBron ShowTonight at 9 p.m EST, LeBron James wastes an hour of prime-time television to tell us where he's decided to play basketball next season. Of course, it's on ESPN, who is being a facilitator in feeding the overinflated ego of this guy. They've been doing that since the day his team lost in the playoffs with nearly second-by-second speculation on where he'd play next. Never mind that it's summer and even though I'm not a huge baseball fan, I'd like to see some highlights occasionally on SportsCenter. Instead we get at least 20 minutes a day of blowharding on where LeBron might go next. And then we get this special tonight, which will be the biggest waste of 59 minutes and 50 seconds since the season finale of "American Idol." Of course, that doesn't take into account the three-hour SportsCenter leading up to the hour.... Seriously, anything that makes me wish they were showing soccer instead is a terrible, terrible idea. Labels: sports, tennessee football
posted by Michael Hickerson at 7/08/2010 11:50:00 AM |
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On this morning's episode of Rick and Bubba, the guys interviewed Jason Spires. Spires is a passionate fan for the Alabama Crimson Tide, the L.A. Dodgers and the L.A. Lakers but has found himself missing one aspect of the rabid fandom in his life--an NFL team. So, he decided he'd pick one and began a quest to do so, including a web site and sending a letter trying to get various NFL teams to tell him why he should root for them.
He says that he started the web site for himself, his family and his buddies, but now he's got interest from several national media outlets, including the Evil Empire themselves, ESPN. In fact, he appeared yesterday on Outside the Lines to discuss his quest.
Listening to Jason talk about what he was looking for in a team got me thinking about some things that have been rolling around inside my head this past week--especially in light of how poorly my pro teams have fared so far this year.
The most interesting question is, what makes you a fan of this team over that team. For example, how did I come to love the Redskins and Titans so much and, at the same time, despise Dallas, Baltimore and San Francisco. As I've stated before, my love of the Redskins was born when my family lived near D.C. in the mid-80's and the team was making its first run under Joe Gibbs. My passion was lit when the Redskins won the Super Bowl for the first time and it's never really waned in that time. So, of course you can see why I'd choose to dislike the Cowboys so much since they are the natural rival to my favorite team.
Which brings up my relatively new love for the Titans. I'll admit this one took me a bit by surprise because when the Oilers came to Tennessee, I really didn't have much interest in them. I would watch games and I was happy they beat the Cowboys on Thanksgiving, but it was really their first season as the Titans that my interest began. That was the season they changed names, moved into the Coliseum and won a lot of games, including earning a berth in the Super Bowl. And while you can see a common theme here--teams going to the Super Bowl--I think it's deeper than that. Otherwise, I'd pick a new team every year and there is no way on this earth I will pull for the Patriots or Cowboys if they're in the Super Bowl. I think part of what endeared the Titans to me was that they embraced their new home and also realized they didn't need to compete with the college game for fan love and loyalty in the South. I've been to a few NFL games but the Titans is the only one that comes closest to capturing the spirit of going to a college game. I think their embracing that has helped a lot...plus they've got Mike Keith who is the best play by play guy in the NFL.
If we could clone him so he could call UT games on Saturday, I'd be really happy.
But back to my point...
Of course, an integral part of being a fan is loyalty to a team. For one thing, have you seen the price tag on the various articles of clothing for teams these days? That's one reason I can't see how band-wagon fans can afford to jump from team to team each year. Also, I don't see how they can really enjoy and savor your team being good if you haven't been through lean times. As incredible as the Titans' run was last year, it was even more fun for me because I'd watched a lot of games where we weren't very good and had a down year. It's the same feeling I hope to get someday again with the Redskins, though right now it's not looking too good.
In listening to Jason, he said that what he wants is to be loyal to one team and be a rabid fan for them. Which is why I pray he doesn't choose the Cowboys because the last thing we need is one more idiot Cowboys fans out there.
But it also raised another question for me--one that Clay Travis' book "On Rocky Top"raised. What is it about these teams that makes us care so much? Why do we get so up when they win and so down when they lose?
Why do we let three hours on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon cloud our outlook on the rest of the week?
And is Jason condemning himself to this when and if he picks his NFL team?
I'd certainly love to make a case that he should choose the Titans or the Redskins, but I hate to tell him that no matter who you pick, at some point they're going to break your hearts.
I just wish the Titans and Redskins could find a way to stop doing it every Sunday. Or at least that's how it's seemed this year...Labels: football, sports
posted by Michael Hickerson at 9/30/2009 02:00:00 PM |
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It must be terrible to be a Memphis fan.
You've lost your coach to Kentucky and then when you looked for a replacement, no one would take the job. You've been an elite team in college basketball the past couple of years, but there's always that caveat added that you play in a weak conference. Then you've got the whole 2007-08 season where you only had two losses--one to the Vols on national TV in your home arena and the other in the national title game where you choked away your chances to win, losing in overtime.
Well, turns out now that even if you'd won, it wouldn't matter. The NCAA is set to take away all your wins from that year. Actually, they're going to force the team to vacate all the wins from that season, which every time I hear the term "vacate" I have an image of a landlord trying to roost an unruly tenant from an apartment. Apparently there were some NCAA violations involving someone else taking the ACT for Derek Rose.
It's got to sting, but I have to wonder how much more it would hurt if they'd actually won the game. Would Kansas suddenly run out and print up a bunch of national champion t-shirts, hats and other collectibles? Would the issue of Sports Illustrated that celebrated your title become a huge collector's item, going for hundreds of dollars on E-Bay?
What I find really intriguing about this are the conspiracy theories that are circulating around it-a lot of them centered on now-Kentucky coach John Calipari. Apparently, Calipari caught wind of these storm clouds on the horizon and that may have been a reason that he thought the Kentucky job was so incredibly ideal. (I mean, besides the fact that he can be around a great coach in Bruce Pearl twice a year now and see the orange blazer...). Did Coach C know what was going on and did he leave Memphis in the lurch? And if he is involved, is it fair to the Memphis fans and the university and the new team?
Seems to me that by moving, Calipari may have avoided having to deal with the consquences of these violations. It might have dinged his popularity a bit in Memphis and it would definitely have hurt his recruiting ability for Memphis. It's one of those crazy loopholes in the NCAA rules where the university gets dinged but they can't touch the coach if he's gone elsewhere. I'm not really sure it's fair, but it's the way it works. And I'm sure a lot of those who pull for Memphis will be screaming today about how unfair it is.
Seems to me they're making an example of Memphis. Because you can't tell me that in all the years of NCAA basketball, Memphis is the first school to have someone else take a test for a player.
Speaking of making an example, it appears that may be happening to Bryce Brown at Tennessee. I've read this story and I just have to shake my head on a lot of things. I understand why the NCAA has rules and regulations, but it'd be nice if they followed up on them in a timely manner. From my understanding, this investigation began months ago but they let Brown start practice for the fall and then pull this? I don't quite get it. Surely there has to be a way to check eligiblity of players before they set foot on the field or become part of a program.
I guess the good news is that if we find out now, we won't have to vacate any wins we might get this year.
Of course, there is a part of me that wondered if the NCAA hadn't been on such high alert for the Vols becuase of Lane Kiffin comitting a minor violation a day for the first few months he was coach, if this would be as big a deal as it is. I have a feeling that given how Kiffin acted in the early days, that we're going to see consequences down the road for years to come, no matter how clean the program may run.Labels: sports
posted by Michael Hickerson at 8/20/2009 12:45:00 PM |
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Not really enough for a full post, but some random thoughts from the past couple of days in the world of sport.
- Got an e-mail today asking me to go to a poll and answer whether or not Michael Vick should be forgiven. I'll agree that what he did was a deplorable thing, but the man has paid his debt to society for it and is, for now, saying all the right things. I'm hopeful it's a permanent change and he seems to have seen the error of his ways. So, I'm all for giving him a second chance. Interestingly there are some protest groups who are not and seem to want to define him by this one moment in his life. Which I find ironic given that one group wanted to rehab the dogs involved and get them back into normal society. So why not give Vick the same chance?
- Oh good grief....Brett Favre may be coming back after all. Good heavenly days. The man needs to just stay retired already.
- I'm not a huge golf fan, but even I can see the historic value of someone finally challenging Tiger Woods and Woods is the one who blinked. Golf has been begging for a true rival to Tiger for years, but I am not sold that Y.E. Yang is it. Even a blind squirrel finds an acorn from time to time as they say. But for Tiger, it starts a long stretch of having to sit back and count his money and accolades while he contemplates not having a major under his belt this year.
- The new Monday Night Football crew is OK, but not great. Anything was an improvement over Tony Kornheiser, I suppose. But my big issues is still Mike Tirrico, who I just find rather smarmy.
- Sorry Ole Miss fans, but you're team is in trouble. They were featured on the cover of SI this last week, talking about how they could be BCS busters. Three words: SI Cover Jinx.
Labels: sports
posted by Michael Hickerson at 8/17/2009 07:50:00 PM |
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As you all know, when it comes to sports, football is greatest passion (some would say obsession, esp. those of you who followed by Twitter commentary on the 2006 UT vs Alabama game the other night where even though I knew the outcome was a victory for the Big Orange, I still got nervous and bent out of shape during the broadcast of the game. I also danced like a fool when the Vols went on their only sustained drive of the game in the final quarter for the game-winning TD as the ball broke the end zone).
That said, I still do have an affection of the other games that are played out there...well, at least on a college level. I find it hard to sustain much interest in the NBA or Major League Baseball simply because it seems like the seasons never end and their playoffs are designed to last half a calendar year.
But, I still love college baseball and basketball and I find the minor league game fascinating.
I even worked for a minor league team years and years ago, selling souveniers during the long, lazy days of summer. And I also tried to make it a point each year to tune into the All-Star Game. Sure, I may not sit down and watch an entire game on TV, but the All-Star game was a different beast entirely.
Or at least it used to be....
I've not watched an All-Star game in years. And I'd be interested in the Home Run Derby if it weren't covered by Chris "I Have to Make Up a Stupid Nickname For Everyone" Berman.
Apparently, I'm not the only one who thinks the All-Star game has lost some of its luster. There was a column in yesterday's Philadelphia Inquirer by Bob Ford that summed it up:
Baseball used to have the best all-star game in sports. That was before interleague play, of course, when there was still a mystique to any meeting between players of the American and National leagues. One team in home whites, the other in road grays. All those different uniforms, all those great stars. That was before fan voting, too, before the selection of the starting position players became a bad joke. Now the all-star manager has to fix the mistakes made by the fans the best way he can. He has to get at least one player from every team in the league on the roster. Then he has to nominate five guys for the last spot and throw that back to the fans so Bud can get their e-mail addresses for the identity thieves.
All the teams that have players involved in the Monster All-Star Final Vote are going to ridiculous means to get their guy on the roster. The Phillies are no different, encouraging fans to sit at their computers and click away. Starting yesterday at noon, four lucky fans set up shop at the Harry the K's restaurant in Citizens Bank Park to have a vote-a-thon. The fan who casts the most votes will get an autographed jersey from Burrell and will be invited, along with 15 friends, to sit in Burrell's suite for a game later this season. Sweet!
The rest of the column is worth reading, as well.Labels: sports
posted by Michael Hickerson at 7/10/2008 03:00:00 PM |
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Driving home for a meeting last night, I had my radio tuned to the Vandy vs South Carolina game (as a Vols fan, I had a rooting interest in South Carolina. Should they win, it was possible the mighty Vols would get a bye in the SEC Tourney next week.).
As the game wound down and they took one of the umpteen jillion time-outs basketball has in the final two minutes of a close game, I heard a commercial that made me laugh.
Now, two years ago, Vandy beat UT in football for the first time since the early 80s and to celebrate the victory, Vandy put out a DVD of the win. I can understand the reasoning and why they'd do it. Begrudingly, I can see why Vandy fans would want to have a copy of the big win, esp. since it's unlikely it's going to happen again until at least the year 2030. Then last year, Vandy went to Athens and upset UGA in football. A DVD of the game followed.
Two weeks ago Saturday, Vandy beat then-number-one Florida at home in basketball. And, yep, you guessed it--they've got a DVD out of the game. Frankly, I find that to be going to the well one too many times and it makes me lose a bit of respect I've got for Vanderbilt. I understand it was a big win over the number one team in the country, but do Vandy fans really need a DVD of this one game to watch over and over again? Following this logic, I expect releases of the Vandy wins over Kentucky this year to follow sometime in the next week or so.
You don't see UT putting out DVDs of single-game wins, for the most part. Yes, there is a DVD of the national championship game from '98 but it was the freakin' national championship game, not just some random game mid-season that we won. I know UT puts out season-perspective DVDs, which include highlights of each game played. But then again, I guess the Vols are used to winning on a regular basis and we don't need a DVD release of every "big" win we have.Labels: sports
posted by Michael Hickerson at 3/01/2007 08:51:00 AM |
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It pains me to say this but...
Congratulations to the Florida Gators for their big national championship win last night. And let me add another level of congratulations for being the only school in history to hold the college basketball and football championships in the same calendar year.
It just goes to show the superiority of the SEC in all things sports-related.
And now, having said all that, I have to go and shower. I feel so dirty....Labels: sports
posted by Michael Hickerson at 1/09/2007 10:26:00 AM |
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Just like beating Florida or Alabama in football, there's a certain satisfaction in the Lady Vols beating U-Conn.
Not the blowout I thought it would be with ten minutes to go, but a big win on the road as the Lady Vols begin SEC play.
I will also admit that Rebecca Lobo's calling of the game on CBS wasn't nearly as one-sided as it could have been. She did a good job of staying pretty fair and objective about calling the game. She gave Tennessee credit and spoke well of us when we did well and was ready to be critical of both sides in the game. Oh sure, a few times the fact that she played for U-Conn slipped through but after the disaster that was Monday's coverage by Todd Blackledge, it seemed tame.
Now, if Peyton and the Colts offense could get it together and finish off the Chiefs, I'd be happy.Labels: Lady Vols, sports
posted by Michael Hickerson at 1/06/2007 05:00:00 PM |
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- Does anyone else find the sound effects, voices and other such stupid antics that Chris Boomer and Tom Jackson do on ESPN's The Blitz NFL coverage annoying? I was just watching highlights of the Titans game vs Jacksonville and we were subjected to a bad Irish accent when Cortland Finnegan returned the fumble for a touchdown and the Pac-Man eating pellets sounds when PacMan had the ball. I've honestly found Berman's antics annoying for years and it's getting worse and worse. Who in the world told this guy he was funny? Just show us the highlights, please. Keep the annoying sound effects, voices and names to yourself.
- It was a good weekend for my teams. The Vols, Lady Vols, Titans and Redskins all won. Merry early Christmas to me.
- So, going into the Jacksonville game yesterday, I felt pretty sure the Titans were in for a letdown. And while the offense did have an off day, the defense was superb. I am pleased by how the Titans are winning as a team and extremely hopeful for next year. Sure, I'd love to see the Titans make the playoffs this year, but I'm not expecting it despite their success. Honestly, they'd get in and probably hit a wall. I'd rathre see them win out and go into the off-season on a positive note to build on for next year.
Labels: basketball, football, Redskins, sports, Titans, Vols
posted by Michael Hickerson at 12/18/2006 07:14:00 AM |
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