sportsfanatic

When I hear someone say the 5-0 teams of Tennessee, the last ones that I expect them to be referring to are the Vanderbilt University Commodores and the Tennessee Titans. Now, I know that all of you are thinking that there are more teams in Tennessee that are 5-0 and you are right. But, with that being put out there, let me state this. I am only referring to college and professional teams. When you look at high school and below, you open up a ton more.

I do not think that anyone in the state of Tennessee would associate either program mentioned here with a 5-0 start. The Titans have had their share of close calls and have even changed quarterbacks. As for the Commodores, they have squeaked out their share of games.

It is funny that over the years, Vanderbilt University Commodores have been respected by few when it comes to college football. This year, the Commodores are trying to change that. And frankly, they are doing everything right to do that very thing. After yesterdays stunning victory over 13th ranked Auburn University Tigers in Nashville, maybe they will be getting the respect that a 5-0 team deserves.

I have heard people state that Vanderbilt has yet to really beat anyone. Well, I have to disagree with that. This team has beat South Carolina, Ole Miss, and Auburn out of the SEC so far. All three of these teams have played tough. Ole Miss was the team that went to the Swamp and dislodge the #4 ranked Florida Gators from their lofty perch.

As I do not believe that the Commodores will win the SEC, I do believe that they will be a contender. With the 2 toughest matches in Georgia and Florida yet to come, time will tell where they will sit. With that said, I would hate to be Kentucky or Tennessee and have these Commodores breathing down my back.

Just the other day I heard someone talking about their kids school doing away with the sports programs and it got me to thinking about this topic. For as long as I can remember, sports and schools have always been associated. Then something hit me that I never thought about. This takes me back 30 years ago and to my home town.

The year was 1976 and this was rural town Georgia. The elementary schools there were all about school rivalry.  I was going to play basketball this particular year. I went out for the school tryouts and all and made the “A” team due to my size and all. I was 5′ 8″ at the age of 12 so I had the height to play center or power forward. All things were good and then all of a sudden our coach came in and told us that the athletics department had been cut out of the county budget. There was a saving grace as we were going to all be transferred into the recreation centers program.

Now, for me, that was cool. I lived about a mile away and back then, that is walking distance. So, every Saturday morning we would meet in front of the school and get bused out to the rec gym. It was 30 miles away. Now, with all the schools combining their teams and mixing and matching, this slated a problem. I ended up playing center for another team and it was all fine by me. The problem was that over 30 kids did not get to play in the league due to travel issues. Some of the elementary schools did not provide a driver so people had to find their own ways.

Now, in the present time, that is when it hit me like a ton of bricks. Sports is something that a lot of kids can do to keep themselves out of trouble. The schools typically have better programs because so one is paid to care about all the children, not just their son or nephew, which is the case in a lot of the rec leagues. I think that the schools need to do what they can to keep these programs around. This is just my .02 worth.

 It is funny that you always here about the people that are first round draft picks. But, it is not always the first rounders that make the biggest impressions. Tom Brady is just one of the names to throw in the pile. He was taken in the 6th round of the 2000 NFL Draft and yet he wears 3 NFL Superbowl. Roger Staubach is another name that just blows me away. Here is a guy that only accomplishes being a 6x Pro Bowl selection (1971, 1975, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979), a 5x All-Pro selection (1971, 1976, 1977, 1978, 1979), a 2x Super Bowl champion (VI, XII), making the NFL 1970s All-Decade Team, winning the Super Bowl VI MVP, and winning the 1971 Bert Bell Award. And yet, somehow, he does not go until the 10th round of the 1964 NFL Draft? He was 129th overall? I would ask for someone to name a bigger name that came out of the 64′ draft than Staubach.

Any, here is the top 10 list. Let me know what you think.

1. Joe Montana (3^rd round 1979)
2. Tom Brady (6^th round 2000)
3. Johnny Unitas (9^th round 1955)
4. Mike Webster (5^th round 1974)
5. Roger Staubach (10^th round 1964)
6. Bart Starr (17^th round 1956)
7. John Stallworth (4^th round 1974)
8. Terrell Davis (6^th round 1995)
9. Nick Buoniconti (13^th round 1962 AFL draft)
10. Shannon Sharpe (7^th round 1990)

Below is a list comprised of the top 10 football cities in the United States.  It was sent to me just the other day from the guys over at Bankroll Sports Picks. I find it funny that the two top cities are actually NFC East teams and when you factor in New York at number 5, you have 3/4 of the NFC East making up 60% of the top five. It just goes to show you that this is once again one of the best conferences all around.

I am also shocked by the presence of Detroit on this list. The Lions have not seen a winning season in some time and it does not appear that they will for sometime to come. But then again, I can remember people filling the old Atlanta/Fulton County Stadium on a Sunday to watch the lackluster Atlanta Falcons play.

Let me know what you think on the list.

1. Philadelphia, PA
2. Dallas, TX
3. Denver, CO
4. Chicago, IL
5. New York, NY
6. Seattle, WA
7. Detroit, MI
8. San Francisco, CA
9. Pittsburgh, PA
10. New Orleans, LA

This year could hold something very memorable for two cities where the World Series is concerned. It is a simple thought really though. But, the more I think about it, the more I know that it is not something that happens on a frequent bases. As a matter of fact, I can only recall once that I have seen it in my life time. What is this that I am referring to?

Well, it is really a quite simple answer. It is the tale of two cities that could potentially not be flying for the world series. For the sake of a better phrase, we will call them the “Interstate Series” For the first time in a long time, 2 cities have 2 representatives trying to make it to the “End” game. We could very well see the Angels playing the Dodgers in LA or the White Sox playing the Cubs in Chicago. Either way, there is not a plane needed to go from town to town. There are no hotels needed for the players to stay in. And there is no need for travel to be figured into the plans.

What will be impressive if this actually happens is the lack of economical impact that either of these senerios would have if they happened. And it is for all those reasons mentioned above that will limit the econmical impact.

For those of you that might have crawled from under a rock or maybe stranded on Gabon, then this may come as a shock. For the second year in a row, we need a sudden death playoff to determine one of the teams going to the playoffs. This is only the 8th time that it has ever happened, so it is not like it is a regular occurrence. To me it is just another way to sale some more tickets. As I mentioned in yesterday’s post, I am not a fan of these types of playoffs.However, if this game is like any of the others that were played for the same reason, it will be awesome.

I believe that they should play the 162 games out of the year and whatever the head to head is, that will be the deciding factor. If for some reason, there was a tie with the head to head, then and only then should this be used. This would cut out the need for the extra games to decide who the division champion is. All in all, we have to go through the game one more time.

Tonight’s ball game will pit the Chicago White Sox against the Minnesota Twins . It is set to start at 6:37 CT and will be aired on MLB.com and TBS. It will be play in Chicago. The starting pitchers will be John Danks for the White Sox going against Nick Blackburn for the Twins. Danks is 11-9 on the season while Blackburn is 11-10 this season. Danks is more of a strike out pitcher than is Blackburn, but Blackburn has 18 fewer walks than does Danks while both threw 187 total innings each this season. Danks has given up less hits, less homeruns, and less runs to finish .67 better in ERA than Blackburn. As for base runners, Blackburn only had 2 stolen bases against him all year while Danks gave up 23 of them.

Question is, will you be watching?

It did not take long for the St Louis Rams’ owner Chip Rosenbloom to replace fired head coach Scott Linehan. Replacing him will be the new Interim Head Coach Jim Haslett. One need not look very far to find the reasoning behind this happening. The Rams have been so bad this year that pathetic is too weak of a description. Now, do not get me wrong, all the blame does not lay on the shoulders of Scott. For, without the players performing to the best of their ability, then he is but one man. This issue with that is he is the head coach and his direction and motivation is what is suppose to guide these players. That is where he failed.

Haslett did what was needed to be done and gave the players a day off. This was to allow for them to say goodbye to the man that had led them. Most of these players knew that in some respect, they had a hand in the departure of Linehan. All in all, some are lucky that they too did not loose their jobs today. And for some, that scared starting position might still soon be gone.

Haslett is not new to the head coaching role either. He wore the head set for 6 years with the New Orleans Saints. Lately, he has been the Defensive Coordinator with the Rams.

It has not happened often in history, but it does happen nonetheless. What is it I am talking about? It is the “One Head to Head game” to decide who wins a division in case of a tie. For me, I am not a fan of this. I think that whoever wins the series throughout the season is the team that would win the division. However, I do not make the rules.

Now, with all that being said, Monday September 29, 2008 at 2:05 PM will be the most important time for the entire season for the Chicago White Sox. This is the time that theDetroit Tigers can rain down on the parade of the White Sox and propell the Minnesota Twins into the ALC Playoffs to face the Tampa Bay Rays.

The University of Mississippi Rebels travel to Gainesville, Florida today to face the undefeated University of Florida Gators in the “Swamp”. Prior to this game, the Ole Miss Rebels were 2-2 on the season. The two games that the Rebels have lost were close nail bitters. The first lost came against Wake Forest with a score of 28-30. The second loss was against Vanderbilt 17-23.

You knew that this was going to be a game when Ole Miss quarterback Jevan Snead rushed in from the 1 yard line for the first and only score of the first quarter. The second quarter saw the Gators get on track with the first score coming from Florida’s Jonathan Phillips as he kicked a 32 yard field goal. The next score was just a 1:05 later as Tim Tebow connected on a 43 yard touchdown pass to Percy Harvin with 12:26 left on the clock. The final score of the second quarter came with just 1:06 left on the clock as Tebow took it in himself from one yard out.

The second half opened and the Rebels were not going to take it laying down. With 3 scores of their own to dominate the third quarter, the Rebels shocked the Gator Nation. The first score came at the 11:00 mark when kicker Joshua Shene split the uprights from 33 yards out. Just 30 seconds later, the Gator fans would be shocked as they watched Snead throw an 18 yard touchdown to Cordera Eason. This was set up when Tebow fumbled at the 18 after the ensuing kickoff. The final score of the third quarter was had by Dexter McCluster as he galloped for 40 yards.

The fourth quarter was where both teams let it all hang out. The Gators went into the quarter trailing by a touchdown and needed to answer. They did just that with 11:26 left on the clock as Tebow once again called his own number and took a dive through the line to score from 1 yard out. The two teams traded a round of possesions that ended in punts. After Florida punted, Ole Miss made them pay dearly on a blown coverage play. It came on the third play of the series as Snead connect with Shay Hodge for an 86 yard touchdown pass. This would leave 5:26 on the clock. Tebow brought the offense onto the field and carved up the defense as they moved the ball at will. The drive ended with Harvin taking it in from 15 yards out. The difference to the game was the blocked PAT.

Florida would get the ball back one more time and march down the field. With a 4th and 1 to go, instead of attempting a 48 yard field goal, Tebow took it to the right side of the line only to be stopped short and turn the ball over on downs. Rebels win 31-30.