Monday, January 5, 2015

St. Louis Likely To Play The Tortoise Role Over NFL

((HT: Fox2Now))

With all the talk of St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke buying his land in Inglewood, California and wanting to build a stadium near Hollywood Park and The Forum, the city who currently hosts the Rams doesn't seem to be in a whole lot of a hurry to talk to the Rams any more.

The city claims that they have been up front and have wanted to negotiate with the Kroenkes, but the family doesn't seem to be interested.

Here's the talk from St. Louis about their confidence of having a tenant for the Edward Jones Dome- even if it isn't the Rams long-term.


This approach has been consistent with the city's approach the whole time- patience and prudence in the face of impending financial doom at the loss of of a primary tenant of their signature building. The city still feels that they may need that new building instead of continued renovation of the "Ed."

Which might be their downfall...

Nancy Lee Grahn Scores... From Center Ice...

((HT: Nancy Lee Grahn's Facebook Page))

Get your head out of the gutter...

Unless, you're talking about her current role as Alexis Davis on "General Hospital" where her pairing with William deVry has created the "Julexis Army"- which, as a group, you should never make angry by disparaging their behavior in any way.

But, she is a native of Skokie, Illinois and had to train for a celebrity shot from center ice at a recent Blackhawks game against the Dallas Stars. She was one of a handful to pull the trigger and try to put the puck in that really small hole in the center of the plywood that no one can ever shoot it in to successfully...

Unless you get a little pre-shoot help from Bobby Hull...

Here's the look from the rafters at the United Center from her Facebook Page



TOP THAT!!!

The HQ has always held Grahn as a Top Five since her days on "Santa Barbara," but we'll challenge her allegiance to the Blackhawks to our LA Kings any time...

Sunday, January 4, 2015

Requiem For A Touchstone: Stuart Scott Passes At 49

When you look up the word in the dictionary, the word is listed like this- and, for the sake of argument, we'll focus on the second and third definitions from Merriam-Webster:

2: a test or criterion for determining the quality or genuineness of a thing

3: a fundamental or quintessential part or feature : basis

Stuart Scott was a touchstone... on a few levels- as an anchor and as a father...

The HQ will admit that, at first, we didn't "get" him. We didn't get his "schtick" on the air. It took a while and it took the reinforcement of a quote we saw that reminded us why he was what he was- as a person and as an anchor.

From Steve Wulf's piece on ESPN.com this morning:

And one of his best moments off the air came when a producer suggested he change a reference on his NBA show from Omega Psi Phi, the fraternity of Michael Jordan and Shaquille O'Neal, to something more universal, like Animal House.

"I have friends who have no idea what that movie is about," Stuart told him. "That movie was made two decades ago, and black fraternities have been around since 1906."


And, with that, we are reminded that our styles are our own- and they should be always...

Emulation should always be encouraged, but not to the point of repetition and carbon-copy. Unfortunately, we see that a lot these days on television. People, instead of being themselves, try to be someone they're obviously not and end up being caricatures.

Stuart was never a caricature and he came at us all from a different place with a different look, approach, angle, and output. And, for that, we all should be thankful and grateful for widening our perspectives on story-telling.

Now, for the fighter...

We have seen his public battle and, in the end, we lose the physical representation. But we get to hang on to the memories, the style, and the impact that someone has had on our lives- lost to us too soon at 49.

I think it occurs every generation or so... there are people who cross your path that you remember for one reason or another. When our comtemporaries were half the age we are now, it was the Jim Valvano speech at the ESPY awards that reminded us never to give up and also reminded what the value of a full day should be.
((HT: ESPN))


Now, this time around as some of us get a little gray in the temples, we are reminded of what Valvano and his approach meant through a sports anchor that will now live on through far different and just as important means...
((HT: ESPN))


For those who fight and those who have fought...
For those who remember and are remembered...
For those who love and are loved...
The words are simple: Be yourself and make your mark your way...
Don't stop loving. Don't stop fighting.
Don't stop and don't give up...
#StuStrong

UFC 182: Jon Jones Wins by Decision

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The two men in the feature match at UFC 182 made it clear they don't care for each other. But they still put on quite the show.

Light heavyweight champ Jon "Bones" Jones beat challenger Daniel Cormier by unanimous decision late Saturday night in a very, very close fight.

The two men had scuffled during the pre-fight press conference and the language between the two was not exactly g-rated leading in.

But Jones left the MGM Grand Hotel with the win...

Highlights from FoxSports/UFC:

Crazy Hockey Fight: Wild's Stu Bickel Gets 37 Minutes for Fight

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Down 5-0 midway through the 2nd period, the Minnesota Wild were looking for anything to wake them up. Anything.

And the whole thing got triggered by Wild forward Ryan Carter who ended up not being a big part of the end result. Carter shoved Dallas defenseman Trevor Dailey into Stars goalie Kari Lehtonen. And the Pier 6er was on.

Wild enforcer Stu Bickel immediately jumped in and ended up throwing down on not one, but two Stars players. They eventually ended up on the ice while Bickel kept swinging.

The result was a long trip to the penalty box. A game misconduct for an aggressor penalty, an instigator minor penalty, a 5 minute major penalty for fighting and another 10-minute misconduct call got Bickel 37 minutes worth of penalties in one game.

Zoinks!

Video from HockeyFights.com:

Saturday, January 3, 2015

NHL Ref Loses Lunch During Game

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((ht: foxsports.com))

Poor NHL ref Mike Leggo.

Leggo was working the Tampa Bay Lightning/Pittsburgh Penguins game Friday night in Pittsburgh when he had um, a bit of an embarrassing problem.

Leggo, let go of his lunch...or dinner on the ice during the 1st period of the game. And while he's become a bit of a punchline this morning, we're guessing he was legitimately sick because he left the game and did not return.

It sucked for the Ice Girls who had to clean it up, but they did and the game resumed with the Penguins winning 6-3.

Morning Wrap: UCLA Holds off K-State in Alamo Bowl

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((ht: espn.com))

The UCLA Bruins jumped out to a quick 31-6 lead in the Alamo Bowl Friday night. But they had to hold on for dear life to get the win.

The Kansas State Wildcats didn't give up and stormed back closing within 6 early in the 4th quarter. But a 67 yard touchdown run by Paul Perkins sealed the deal and the Bruins got a 40-35 win.

Perkins ran for 194 yards and a pair of TD's for UCLA who finished the season 10-3. Kansas State struggled to run the ball but QB Jake Waters through for 338 yards and a pair of TD's to receiver Tyler Lockett. The Wildcats finished their season at 9-4.

However, most aren't talking about the game the next morning. The big conversation surrounds UCLA coach Jim Mora and his near brush off of Kansas State coach Bill Snyder after the game. Mora was angry because Snyder called a timeout before the last play of the game and the Wildcats took a shot at UCLA coach Brett Hundley as he kneeled down afterwards.