July 12, 2010

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Tidbits

How many of y'all have been glued to the TV with intense interest in the World Cup?  Me, neither.

How many of y'all were glued to the TV to see where LeBron was going.  Me, neither.

What was the most important sports item of the week?  No it isn't the World Cup.  And it isn't the University of Tennessee refusing to play Southern Cal in football in the Kick-off Classic in 2012.  It was ESPN signing a twelve year $1.86 billion contract with the ACC.  This not only includes football but basketball as well.  This will more than double the TV revenue for each school from $6 million to $12.9 million per year.  This is getting close to SEC numbers.  This should keep the ACC as a viable conference over the next twelve years.  It could also propel them into the hunt for a BCS football championship.

Mike Garrett, the athletic director at USC, had to issue apologies to Florida, Alabama, Washington, and Fresno State for falsely accusing them of inappropriate conduct.  My question is, how does this guy keep his job?  This guy is an embarrassment to intercollegiate athletics.

Did you see who ESPN the Magazine voted the # 1 professional sports franchise in the United States?  None other than the Nawlins Saints.  What did the old TV commercial say?  “You've come a long way baby.”  That is quite an honor considering where this franchise was five years ago.

Are your ears ready to hear this NFL season, every time the Saints play, the phrase “defending Super Bowl Champions?”  I'm not sure that phrase has really sunk in yet.

It was announced this weekend that LSU baseball will be without two pitchers who played last season and were expected to contribute this coming season, Joey Bourgeois and Chris Matulis.  They will both miss this season after having Tommy John surgery on their arms.

This really puts LSU baseball short on pitching.  Paul Mainieri better hope that Zach Lee stays on campus and doesn't take the Dodgers' money.

Best MLB trade so far - the Rangers getting Cliff Lee and Mark Lowe without giving up any front line players.

I wonder if this means my main guy for the Astros, Roy Oswalt, will not be traded and stay with the 'Stros.  By the way, he threw a one-hitter this week.  He's still got it.

Speaking of the Rangers.  If you would like to own them you can put in a bid with bankruptcy court to buy them.  Bids start at $500 million. 

LSU, third string and soon to be fourth string quarterback, Chris Garrett, has left LSU and will transfer.  After spring practice it was obvious that he was not going to see any playing time this season.  And if Zach Lee stays, Lee would have passed Garrett on the depth chart.  The only question I have is did Garrett get a fair shake?  The only people that can really answer that are the coaches.  However, it seems from the outside that he sure wasn't given much of a chance in the Spring Game. 

There is an old French proverb -  “The more things change the more they stay the same.”  This past week, former LSU QB, JaMarcus Russell was arrested for using a drink called “Purple Drank.”  This apparently consists of using large quantities of codeine cough medicine.  Without knowing anything about this stuff, it sure reminds me of my college days when people would drink Vicks Formula 44 to get a high on.

The most over hyped “sporting event” in my life time was the tennis exhibition between Bobby Riggs and Billy Jean King.  It wasn't even in a tournament.  It was between a guy out of competitive tennis for years versus a lady in her prime.  Because King won they all said this showed women were as good as men. 

The reason I bring this up is that up until this week, the attendance in the Astrodome for the Riggs-King  match was the largest crowd ever to witness a tennis match live, 30,472.  This past week Kim Clijsters played Serena Williams before 35,681. 

I hope everyone is enjoying their summer.  We are now less than two months away from kickoff.