Still want to make the argument that conference realignment is for the "Betterment" of the school and the game?
Well then you might want to sit back and read a little about this story.
The University of Colorado Athletic Department reportedly has had to take a $10 million "Bridge" loan from the school and the state university system to help cover a budget shortfall created by the Buffalo's move from the Big 12 to the Pac 12.
Yes, that's right, it's now on the students and taxpayers of Colorado to back and possibly pay for the move.
Oh...the school gave the athletic department $3 million more...that it doesn't have to pay back to help cover the cost of the move. The excuse "The move benefited the entire school".
Now...we will say, for those of you who read this far, the school is likely to recoup its $10 million once the Athletic Department starts getting their cut of the Pac 12's very, very lucrative TV deal.
So you are probably saying "What's the big deal?" The "Big Deal" is that in this time of rising tuitions and supposedly escalating cost of going to and operating colleges, its somewhat surprising they could...at the drop of a hat, hand over $10 million.
It also is a big deal because AGAIN, this is all about the chase for ESPN's money. Sure, we get that its no longer a pure "Student-Athlete" game, despite what the school presidents say. It's big business. And school's have to do what they have to do to make money. We get that, its they way our system works.
We just feel badly for the next generation of kids who want to go to college and are being priced out of the system. And no, going to college does not make you "A Snob" like some dumb-ass politicians try to claim. It should be an opportunity open to anyone who can qualify instead of just those few that can afford it.
Really...wait, stop, nobody should be able to go to college except athletes, right Rick?
It wasn't easy and it took withstanding a 44 point, 10 assist and 8 rebound effort by Celtics point guard Rajon Rondo, but the Miami Heat won yet again, beating Boston 115-111 in overtime Wednesday night.
LeBron James dropped 34 including 18 of 24 free throws, Dwyane Wade had 23 and Mario Chalmers had 22 points to lead the Heat to their second straight win over a visibly upset Boston team.
The reason the Celtics were so upset ironically, the amount of fouls called against them. Boston coach Doc Rivers was really aggravated that James took 24 free throws himself, the C's had 29 free throws for the entire game. Apparently Celtic's GM Danny Ainge was berating the refs after the game because his team was called for almost twice as many fouls as the Heat.
It's funny, because most teams feel like the Celtics are the one's who get that kind of benefit during their games.
Rondo did all he could to keep his team in the game, playing the entire game. Paul Pierce, he fouled out late in the game.
The Heat took advantage of a big game by Chalmers and help from Udonis Haslem to grab the win and a steep advantage in the best of 7 Eastern Conference Finals.
Game 1 went to overtime and the game winner was scored by a center just trying to keep his team in the game.
Anze Kopitar found himself with the puck after a pass from Justin Williams and nothing but clear ice and New Jersey goalie Martin Brodeur.
Kopitar deked Broudeur and put the biscuit in the basket giving his L.A Kings a 2-1 overtime win and a 1-0 lead in the best-of-seven Stanley Cup Finals.
The battle, which featured the #8 seed in the West and the #6 seed in the East was a physical, slow paced affair that didn't feature a whole lot of shooting. Brodeur had 23 saves, but one go in early in the 1st and failed to stop Kopitar on the breakaway.
Kings goalie Jonathan Quick stopped 17 shots and gave his team the advantage because game 1 was played in New Jersey.
The two suspects in the beating of San Francisco Giants fan Bryan Stow at Dodger Stadium last opening day were in court to determine whether or not they would be standing trial.
Prosecution is looking to call somewhere close to two dozen witnesses as well as police who were present at some point of the incident and following investigation...
Really? With all the tumult and rumors that the Jacksonville Jaguars might leave the city and the city terminates their lease with the team?
Huh?
Jaguars owner Shad Khan is asking the same question tonight after finding out in the Newspaper that the city has found his team in default of their lease and said lease is going to be terminated.
The reason: The city says the team violated the lease by agreeing to hire SMG to manage Everbank Field.
The L.A Jaguars?
Not likely. Although....
Khan is not so amused by the letter from the city of Jacksonville's attorney. So much so that he fired off a letter to the city's mayor, Alvin Brown. And since the city appears to have released their issue with the team to the paper, Khan released his perplexed letter to the media.
Read the original story on this from a former employer, First Coast News RIGHT HERE
To his credit, Khan is saying all the right things. He says the city never gave him a chance to discuss the process with him. Thus far...the city hasn't commented.
We don't normally side with team owners on many issues, but the city of Jacksonville needs to be really, really careful here. Khan is stating that he just wants the termination rescinded and a chance to compromise, the city hasn't expressed that opinion yet.
If Mayor Brown isn't careful, he may chase the team to Los Angeles without realizing what happened. We truly believe that Khan wants to try and make a go of it in Jacksonville. And having lived there, we can tell you if the team starts to win, people will come.
But they'll come with a caveat. Pro football is not the king in Jacksonville. That's why the fans aren't AS loyal as they are in many other NFL cities. And the city got hit pretty hard by the recession. It isn't a town of mega-rich people. But the are passionate football fans. Very passionate.
We believe that the two sides here will work out there little dispute, but be forewarned, the table is being set and the team...and Khan...if they want it; now have their excuse to leave.
We were going to post this video as a gag, but if you listen to it closely, there are a few parallels here:
1930 UPDATE: After receiving the letter from Khan asking the city to withdraw a lease default letter, Mayor Alvin Brown promptly wrote back and said that the city does not want to terminate the Jaguars' lease.
"Let me be crystal clear: the City of Jacksonville has absolutely no intention whatsoever of terminating its lease with the Jacksonville Jaguars," Brown wrote in a response to Khan.
And no, it isn't the 1st time the bombastic and slightly off-kilter former player, current color commentator and blatant homer Ken "Hawk" Harrelson has gone off script.
The subject of Harrelson's ire: The back end of a "Hit-by-pitch" fest at Thursday's Tampa Bay Ray/White Sox game.
The said incident happened as a follow up to A.J Pierzynski getting beaned the previous inning. The next time through, when the Rays were at bat, White Sox pitcher Jose Quintana throws one at Ben Zobrist, Quintana immediately gets the "Heave-Ho" from umpire Mark Wegner.
There are a couple of items that are of concern in the Glasgow Rangers...
First the courts have agreed with the administrators and the franchise that the lockdown on signing players older than 18 was harsh punishment for a franchise looking to move forward.
From the Rangers website...
Paul Clark, Joint Administrator said: "We welcome the decision by Lord Glennie today that vindicates the Club's position that the original SFA judicial panel tribunal and the appellate tribunal acted beyond their powers in imposing a transfer embargo on the Club.
"The costs for this legal action have been awarded against the SFA and it is our position it is very regrettable that court action was required.
"Both we, and the SFA, will have to study the full ramifications of the judgment when it is published and either side has 21 days in which to decide the next course of action or whether they wish to appeal."
Charles Green, the new bidder at the top of the pecking order to take over for Rangers, wants creditors to accept the terms of the Company Voluntary Agreement (CVA) without having looked at the terms of it. A 75-percent majority have to decide if they want something without knowing what exactly that "something" may be in percentage...
Duff and Phelps, who hold secure creditor status, have legal fees of over £5.5-million which has to be paid while the outcome of a tax tribunal could send the club's debt above £134-million... thanks to Craig Whyte's shenanigans.
The CVA is being sent to approximately 400 trade creditors, over 6,000 fans holding debentures and all shareholders within the club.
If the plan is approved at the June meeting, another 28-day cooling-off period would be involved before Rangers could come out of administration.
If the CVA is not agreed to, Green plans to push through a newco purchase of the assets. Green, though, may have to fight the SPL's new rules against newco franchises... which would be a big problem...
Here's the BBCSI investigation on the past year of Craig Whyte's mismanagement
Either Aroldis Chapman has some bad mojo surrounding him off the field or he's got some secrets.
The reason we say that; apparently during last night's Pittsburgh Pirates/Cincinnati Reds game in Pittsburgh, someone or ones broke into the big Cuban lefthander's room and robbed him.
And it appears police found out after security guards were alerted by guests at the Omni William Penn hotel that there were screams coming from Chapman's room.
That's where they found a 26-year old woman tied up and crying.
The story says police reported "The woman opened the door to the room after a man claiming to be maintenance knocked on the door". The part the police...or this report leaves out was apparently what the woman was doing in Chapman's room.
She is not ID'd.
Chapman has had his fair share of issues the past few weeks. From the $100 million alleged lawsuit from someone in Cuba to his driving and DUI issues, he has not been the model of quiet off-the-field behavior.
There may have been a perfectly rational reason the woman was in his room.
And no, it doesn't explain...or justify the robbery. We hope police are able to catch that clown. But there are a lot of odd, unexplained coincidences here.
Maybe we are just cynical, but we think there is a better explanation for the woman in the room that we haven't and probably won't hear.
We think this whole ESPN/Sports Science thing is kind of stupid, but its good video and a way to show why Chapman has made a name for himself.
"We are aware of the hotel room robbery of one of our players and are working with local law enforcement agencies. Because it is an active police investigation, we have no other comment at this time," Reds spokesman Rob Butcher said in an email.
Reds manager Dusty Baker was found entering a cab on his way to the ballpark and admitted he didn't know much about it and said also that it was a police matter...
Here's early returns from our friends at WCPO-TV in Cincinnati
Lars Anderson put the perfect swing on a pitch Tuesday night and launched the ball where none had travelled before.
Anderson, a power hitting prospect playing for the Pawtucket Red Sox, crushed the baseball with such force that it sailed to the depths of deep, deep, deep right center field at McCoy Stadium and not only hit the scoreboard, but knocked the lights out too.
This is no urban legend, there is actually video evidence.
Anderson is a first baseman, a position that demands consistent home run power however even though he has the potential to test the limits of a ballpark like the tape measure shot Tuesday night Anderson has never put up big home run numbers in the minors. Last year Anderson hit 14 home runs, not the kind of numbers that would have the Boston Red Sox clearing roster space for a call up. Anderson is 24 years old so time is not on his side.
For one night though Lars Anderson hit a shot that was literally lights out.
I'm sure Red Sox fans are wondering how Anderson would test the limits of Fenway Park.
You've heard us rant multiple times about pro sports stadium issues. You've heard us decry the blatant blackmail efforts of the NFL in Minnesota. We've railed on about AEG trying to steal a team in Los Angeles. And we've spoken about the fraud the Atlanta Falcons are about to perpetrate on their fans too.
And you know what? We're right. And now we've found a story and some numbers that prove it.
We've heard from NFL fans who say "They have to build a new stadium to keep the team. It brings tourists to the area and business to the community".
Uh...no it doesn't.
Especially the way the trend in prices is going.
According to an excellent story in Sunday's Atlanta Journal-Constitution written by Tim Tucker, the last 3-teams to build stadiums have increased their ticket prices by an average of nearly 26-percent. And in a couple of cases, have added PSL's where there were none before.
Read the very detailed article from AJC.com RIGHT HERE
Now, we'll just say we aren't "Anti-Stadium" period. But we are "anti-stadium" in places that already have one. And in the case of the Falcons, a rather nice one that just doesn't have enough "Club Seats".
The reason: Simple. The owner doesn't pay for it. Or if he "does", he just passes the cost down to you. The city doesn't pay for it. They just take it from "Tourist Taxes". Even though on "paper" their may be no cost to the taxpayers of a city or state, its the longtime season ticket holders or family that wants to catch a game that pays for it.
We were stunned to see in the story that the average cost for a family of 4 to attend an NFL game is over $421.
Yeah...$421.
Able to fork that over a couple times a season?
Sure, we know this sounds like we are railing on the NFL, the most popular sports league of all-time. And maybe in a sense, we are. But that's because the NFL and its teams don't really care what you think. Or what we think.
All they care about are luxury/club seat holders. If they could get away with charging you a PSL and Club Seat price for every seat in their "Luxury Stadium", they would. They won't tell you that publicly, but it sure is the impression they give.
Think about it.
If you have 2 kids, a wife and make $30,000 a year, you are just trying to keep your heads above water. Now imagine one of your kids is an Atlanta Falcons fan. Today, you aren't paying the league avg., you are only paying roughly $390 to take your family to the game.
That's roughly 3 weeks of groceries. That's more than a car payment.
And that price is likely to go up.
The Falcons are going to get their new stadium. Believe us, its already been signed off on. And guess who is going to pay for it.
Yeah, team owner Arthur Blank will "Front" a good chunk of the nearly $1 billion. But you do realize that savvy businessmen make investments, don't you? They don't spend their money unless they know they are going to make it back.
And Arthur, much like Zygi Wilf, Jerry Jones and others will make it back. In spades.
And the cost will be passed down to you.
Your $80 dollar mid-level, end zone seat, $100. And that is if you want to pay oh $750 to $1000 for the right to buy it.
Really, we are kind of gloating here a bit because we found something to validate our opinion. And to be totally honest, most people these days can watch a game in the comfort of their own home. They don't get subjected to the massive crowds, the non-stop stream of TV Timeouts and the ability to do what they want when they want to.
We will get off our soapbox now. Mostly because we know it isn't going to change your behavior, your spending habits or really your thoughts about the NFL. We just want to make you think about it a little more. And realize that as much as you'd like it to be representative of you and your city, it's really all about the owner and the league and how much money they can make off of people who actually have it...and occasionally those who don't.
We were just as shocked to hear this news as you were (sarcasm). The "Player", the man who thought he'd be the greatest wide receiver in NFL history can't keep his job in the Indoor Football League.
The Allen Wranglers announced today they've released Terrell Owens.
Not only did Owens attempt to play for the team, he was given a partial ownership share.
But apparently, it only took a couple of months for his co-owners to get tired of his act. The team says the "Straw that broke the camels back" was Owens no-showing a hospital event. But of course there was the matter of him picking and choosing which games he felt like playing in too.
We'd laugh hysterically at this if it wasn't so typical of Owens. He's never gotten the fact that he is not bigger than any team that he has played for.
Ever.
It's apparently never dawned on him that the problem is not the team he plays for or the players he plays with...its him.
Why else would nobody in the NFL touch him this past season? And they won't touch him this season either.
It's just kind of sad because with a normal person's head, Owens really could have been the greatest wide receiver ever. But the guy is living, breathing proof that it doesn't matter how talented you are, if you are unable to play with others, there's no room for you at the inn.
Maybe this was too much for him:
Wonder what the baby mamas are going to do now? This may have been too much info here as our "Anti-Hero" tries to appear sympathetic on Dr. Phil's show:
SEC fans, you may commence with the planning of your football travel schedules for the next decade plus.
According to a report by CBSSports.com's Brett McMurphy, the league will announce at their annual spring meetings in Destin, Florida this week a new plan to try and accommodate the league's two newest members, Missouri and Texas A&M.
The plan supposedly will go like this:
Each team will play 6-games within their own division. They can keep one cross divisional rivalry such as Georgia/Auburn. And each team will play one game against a team in the other division. That game will rotate each year.
Pretty simple...ain't it? Amidst all the hoopla and concern over scheduling, College Football's top conference managed to keep most of their traditional rivalries intact and they hope have created some new ones.
If you are hearing a rather loud "Sigh" of relief from pretty much all the East schools, you are not alone. It all but eliminates the possibility of having to face both Alabama and LSU in the same season for most of the league.
If you are a fan of the Butler Bulldogs, you are going to have to learn your new conference a little faster than you thought.
Butler announced this afternoon (Tuesday) they've reached an agreement with their now former conference...the Horizon...to speed up the move to the Atlantic 10 by a year.
In other words, they start A-10 play...this season (2012).
And the Atlantic 10, which along with the addition of Virginia Commonwealth, becomes what will be considered the premier "Mid-Major" conference in college hoops.
Quite honestly, we don't know why a conference (Big East) would make someone who has agreed to leave, play a lame-duck season or 3 before they are allowed to go. It doesn't do anything to foster relationships among the member schools and basically just makes group meetings really, really awkward.
Alcorn State hired Jay Hopson as its football coach, making the former Memphis defensive coordinator the first "non-black" head coach in the history of the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Hopson was hired Monday and the news conference was held on the lawn of school president M. Christopher Brown II. Hopson replaces Melvin Spears who was fired in February after going 2-8 in his only season.
"I don't see black or white, we're all purple and gold," Hopson told reporters. Hopson said he had withdrawn his name from consideration for the job but Brown convinced him to reconsider.
"Today's historical appointment will require us to walk hand in hand to disrupt naysayers wedded to a racist past," Brown said at the presser.
According to a report by thehockeywriters.com, Bob Hartley will be the next coach the Montreal Canadiens while Eric Veilleux, who led the Shawinigan Cataractes to a Memorial Cup title, will be hired as an assistant coach.
It looks like a lot of the old Atlanta Thrashers are hooking up in one place. Hartley was seen with Veilleux at the Memorial Cup tourney as a Shawinigan consultant. Montreal personnel were seen with both...
"One plus one" and all that stuff...
Hartley has been a winner wherever he has been and the Canadiens will have more resources than his last job in Atlanta...
If it plays this way, the new coach will be able to appease the Francophone fan base as a lot of Quebecers intended from the beginning after the Randy Cunneyworth experiment...
Here's some of Hartley's most recent action from his time at ZSC Lions- where he's got another winner under his belt...
((HT: SwissHabs/RTS))
More when we know more...
WEDNESDAY UPDATE: It could also be Calgary, or it could be nowhere...
This war of words is both funny and a bit surprising.
Apparently the battle began a couple of weeks ago when Charles Barkley of Inside the NBA fame and other things went on a bit of a rant against San Antonio.
Let's just say the "Chuckster" said some unkind things in a very lame attempt at being funny, about the women of San Antonio. (Note--we aren't passing judgement on the truth of the statement. We've never been there)
Apparently the mayor of San Antonio, Juan Castro heard enough. He posted a video to YouTube in, well, I guess you can say rebuttal to "The Round Mound of Rebound".
And props to Mr. Castro for his...shall we say, biting sense of humor.
We are guessing that former Man U striker Teddy Sheringham isn't a fan of "Hell's Kitchen". Either that or he owns a restaurant that was featured on "Kitchen Nightmares".
What else could explain Sheringham taking out the famous celebrity chef during this years "Soccer Aid" match in Old Tratford, England.
If you look at the video, Sheringham slide tackles Ramsey while Ramsey was trying to handle the ball. What's even funnier is the little playful face slap that you can see on the closeup replay.
And yes, Ramsey had to be stretchered from the match.
Oh...in case you were wondering there were other celebrity's who participated in the match including Will Ferrell, Gerard Butler and Mike Myers.
No other celebs were harmed in the playing of the match.
You are probably asking yourself if you are reading this "Who the heck is Oviedo?" For those of us who grew up around the Orlando area, its a small town in Southeastern Seminole county.
But that is irrelevant.
Juan Carlos Oviedo, or as he was formerly known, Leo Nunez received an 8-week suspension for Major League Baseball for using a false name.
Ovideo/Nunez was the former closer for the Marlins. He was found out towards the end of the 2011 season, one where he had saved 36-games.
Though he apparently will be able to participate in extended Spring Training.
Read our original story on Nunez from September RIGHT HERE
Huh?
We thought he already was suspended. Which...we thought...was why he hasn't played yet this season. Or for that matter emerged from his home, the Dominican Republic. Though admittedly, we think it might have had to do with Visa issues.
Either way, its interesting and we'll be curious to see who decides to take the plunge and make a move on Oviedo to shore themselves up for the stretch run this baseball season.
The Freedom 100 is, usually, the first race of the Indy 500 weekend that is part of Carburation Day festivities.
It went the sum total of four laps before a wreck and a subsequent red flag...
Here's the incident...
The cars of Oliver Webb and Brandon Wagner took the biggest licks in the wreck while Emerson Newton-John, Peter Dempsey, and David Ostella all ended up being casualties...
There would be some four-wide racing with two laps to go, but the winner would be Esteban Guerrieri and Sam Schmidt Racing under a yellow-checkered situation after Jorge Goncalvez hit the wall on the back stretch at the same point of the five-car crash earlier in the race.
Yes, you read the headline correctly. Former Indianapolis Colts placekicker Mike Vanderjagt has made the news.
And it is not for a good thing unfortunately.
Vanderjagt never recovered from having the reputation of being a great regular season but lousy playoff performer. He also got in trouble for running his mouth. At one point, he criticized then coach Tony Dungy and then QB Peyton Manning. The famous quote "He got liquored up and was running his mouth was Manning reacting to that interview.
Vanderjagt was let go by the Colts in 2006 and aside from a brief shot with the Dallas Cowboys, he essentially was done in the NFL
Well, it seems the guy Rodney Harrison once called "Vander-jerk" is back in the news. He apparently has been a volunteer soccer coach at Marco Charter Middle School near Naples. And apparently Vanderjagt had been relentlessly teased by some kids who kept yelling "Wide Left" to him during a soccer match.
Ouch....
Well, Vanderjagt apparently lost his cool, grabbed the kid around the throat and threatened him. Uh...that's not good.
You can read about it from the Naples Daily News RIGHT HERE
For what it is worth, Vanderjagt apparently has apologized and deeply regrets his mistake. Unfortunately, the incident was being investigated by police. (It happened in March)
The good news for him is that he ended up not being charged. The bad news is, the incident cost him his job. Fair? Hard for us to say. All we can add is while we believe Vanderjagt probably got caught up in the moment, he needs to have slightly thicker skin.
Chris Jericho has been suspended indefinitely for what he did while he and his WWE folk were down in Brazil...
Jericho is still touring with his rock band, Fozzy, and the music is still huge in South America. He may have popped himself twice with his wrestling persona and his rock career...
The fallout will be interesting as we move forward...
The HQ knows it's all about getting the cheap pop as the heel, but in the moment we sometimes go a little too far...
Or... a lot...
For the record, he has apologized over and over and knows he screwed up...
OSG Sports first told you the story of Fennville High (MI) senior Wes Leonard- the team leader for the basketball squad who collapsed and died during their season and unheard of playoff run after his passing...
Leonard would have graduated last night and the school made sure they didn't forget Wes. His younger brother walked in his place and each senior carried a rose that wound up with the family in tribute.
Well, so goes the premise of the Miami Heat flaming out in the second round of the NBA Playoffs.
The team with the most Top 5 players won, and won somewhat convincingly.
Dwayne Wade woke up and dropped 41 points, LeBron helped him out with 28 more to close out the Pacers 105-93. The win caps a 4-2 series victory and moves the Heat to the Eastern Conference finals where they await the winner of the Boston/Philadelphia series.
We, along with many others, categorized...well okay, openly pulled for the Heat's demise after they fell behind 2-1 in the series and showed signs of imploding. They played the whole series without spoke #3 Chris Bosh and played Game 6 without a suspended Udonis Haslem.
This is the part where we begin tuning out the endless, 4-month long NBA Playoff season, mostly because outside the Oklahoma City Thunder, none of the other teams are even remotely interesting.
Well that, and there are other things to do during the summer than worry about a basketball/playoff season that won't end until July.
Really, you should not emulate the man in this story. Seriously....you should not get drunk and try to streak across the field at a Major League Baseball stadium.
But...if it were something that someone...DID decide to do, then it might turn out like this.
Collin Gundstrum apparently decided sometime Thursday that he was going to make his statement and run naked across the field at Busch Stadium in St. Louis during the Cardinals/Phillies game.
He was successful...at least until security caught up with him
Honestly, this was kind of funny. But it isn't something that's normally reported on anymore. Mostly the TV cameras are ordered to ignore it as are the announcers. But Gundstrum's streak was so stark and blatant and essentially harmless, that they didn't.
And yes, there is video (though not network quality):
Shorter University and Oklahoma City University had to go to extra innings to figure out who would be the 2012 national champ.
Hawks center fielder Charlsie Broome made sure the game made it to the bottom of the ninth...
Shorter would score a run in the bottom of the inning for their University national championship, 1-0, in Gulf Shores, Alabama. The Hawks are moving to Division II's Gulf South Conference, so the HQ is fairly certain that OCU is more than happy to see them leave...
And with that, a gauntlet of sorts is being laid down by New Jersey Governor Chris Christie.
Christie announced Thursday afternoon that he would allow the state begin implementing Sports Gambling in order to help prop up ailing Atlantic City.
Okay great. One problem.
According to a 1991 Federal law, they aren't allowed to have Sports Betting. And they apparently had a chance to be included before that law passed, but didn't.
Christie says he's prepared for the Feds to try and stop him, but says "Go Ahead".
We think there will be a lot of eyes on this one. A non-binding referendum during the last election cycle indicated that the public in New Jersey are for it. The casino industry, of course, is way for it. But they are hesitant to open up said betting parlor for fear it could be shut down.
And it might.
But it might not.
We aren't big advocates of gambling, mostly because we...well, we suck at it. But, if that is what the majority wants...they should have the ability to get it. Though we haven't been to Atlantic City are ownselves, we know plenty of people that have. And, well, it doesn't exactly have the same reputation that Las Vegas does.
So if this would help them, they should be allowed to do it. As long as they play by the rules.
We look forward to seeing what happens now that the ball is, at least in theory, now in the Feds court.
Maybe Christie can call Robert Conrad to back him up:
From multiple Boston sources including MyFoxBoston and WHDH-TV
A source at video game blog Joystiq tells FOX 25 that all employees at Curt Schilling's 38 Studios have been laid off.
The news comes after Joystiq.com reported that workers at 38 Studios haven't gotten a pay check since May 1 and their health insurance runs out Thursday.
The former Boston Red Sox legend had been in discussions with Rhode Island politicians to keep his video game company afloat- even after an initial infusion of a $75-million loan. He moved the company from Massachusetts to its new home in 2010.
Governor Lincoln Chafee and his staff were looking into whether or not 38 Studios could even receive subsidies to stay afloat since the company was incorporated in Delaware.
WPRI-TV obtained a copy of the e-mail Schilling sent out as part of the dissolving...
“The Company is experiencing an economic downturn. To avoid further losses and possibility of retrenchment, the Company has decided that a companywide lay off is absolutely necessary. These layoffs are non-voluntary and non-disciplinary. This is your official notice of lay off, effective today, Thursday, May 24th, 2012.”
In one of those unrelated-probably related anyway moves...
CVS Caremark executive Helena Foulkes resigned as vice chair of the R.I. Economic Development Corporation. Moody's Investors Service, according to WPRI-TV, said Rhode Island will pay off bondholders if 38 Studios defaults.
Here's some of the last set of stories before this afternoon's announcement...
((HT: WPRI-TV Providence))
Governor Chafee held a press conference at the Rhode Island state house saying that he would gladly extend the life of the company if there was any confidence in the company's profitability, and he didn't see it coming.
"It's not a good situation," he said. "We just have to deal with the ramifications."
"I'm not here to share good news. I wish the situation was different."
Here's Schilling leaving Studio 38 with boxes in the back of his car...
Never a good sign... and you can see his license plate clear as day...
If anyone is interested in tracking him down for a stern talking-to...
((HT: MyFoxBoston))
Did you see the plate...???
Here's more coverage from Providence...
((HT: WPRI-TV again))
The larger question the HQ has in all of this is: Where did the almost US$50-million go in a TWO-MONTH period...???
How do you burn through something that large that fast...???
And what is the four-letter's stance on Schilling as an analyst...??? The HQ is fairly certain that Schill won't be doing any radio in Boston any time soon, either...
Here's one last round of coverage (for now) from our friends at NECN...
A former Long Beach Poly high school football star was exonerated on a rape conviction by a southern California judge.
Brian Banks lawyer told him to plead nolo contendere 10 years ago after a childhood friend, Wanetta Gibson, falsely accused him of attacking her on their high school campus. After serving five years in prison and another five on probation with an ankle monitor attached, Gibson (at some point after his release) friended Banks on Facebook.
She would admit to him twice that she lied- once on tape. Gibson's only hang-up was that she didn't want to give back $1.5-million her family got in a civil settlement from the Long Beach City School System.
Banks' lawyers are asking pro football franchises to give their client a chance to play some kind of pro ball since Banks had accepted a scholarship to play at USC the day of the alleged assault.
The Minneapolis City Council voted 7-6 to approve a plan that would fund the facility using redirected sales taxes.
The vote is one of the last hurdles for the project, but the Council still has to ratify their decision during a regularly scheduled meeting Friday morning.
If the vote stays as is, the city will finance its portion of the stadium using a citywide sales tax, downtown restaurant and liquor taxes and a hotel tax. Those taxes work toward paying off the city convention center, but money can be transferred to the new Vikings stadium project when the debt is paid off by 2020.
The master of the mono-syllabic pun running an NBA franchise?
Really?
Well, according to ESPN.com's Chris Broussard, the Orlando Magic want to meet with the former Magic star and current TNT commentator. The reason: Apparently O'Neal has a good relationship with the whiny Dwight Howard and the Magic may believe O'Neal can help keep Howard in Orlando.
And, well, they (the Magic) might actually give O'Neal, who began his career in Orlando at least a cursory interview.
But don't believe this for a minute.
Well, no, scratch that. Considering the smart decision making the Magic ownership has made over the past couple of years, you can't rule it out. That's despite O'Neal having no management experience and no discernible talent evaluation skills.
But he'd be a heck of an interview.
We wish the "Big G.M" luck. Maybe he will get the job. And maybe he'll surprise us all and be good at it. Then again, he tried acting a few years back...and we all know how well that turned out.
UPDATE 3pm Thursday---Mr. O'Neal released a statement Thursday afternoon saying in essence he is not interested in pursuing the job. (damn!). How much fun could this have been?
Orlando...we give you your new G.M...hahahahahaha!
According to a report in the Ohio State student newspaper "The Lantern", OSU athletic director Gene Smith admitted the school may have another dozen NCAA violations to tack onto the 46 that surfaced last week.
Really?
The paper...nor Smith specified the violations other that to say it wasn't known if they were primary or secondary in nature.
Among those already known, and we might add are mostly minor in nature, include one by Smith himself who appeared in a personal recruiting video for a prospect along with OSU legend Archie Griffin.
Yes, that's a violation and Smith admitted it wasn't the 1st time he's done such a video.
Okay. While Smith and Chad Hawley of the Big 10 don't seem to think any of this is a big deal, the fact of the matter...is that it is.
Sure, we detailed some of the original 46 violations last week, which you can read RIGHT HERE. and showed that most were minor and many were just plain idiotic, they also show a bit of a pattern.
The school, the Big 10 and Smith in particular seem to think that having 40 something violations a year is minor. In some ways it is, but considering the other problems with the NCAA the Buckeyes face, this is kind of a big deal.
Yeah, the NCAA rulebook is bloated and full of silly, idiotic things that you can and can't do while recruiting, but it seems, at least on the surface the OSU either doesn't teach or doesn't concern with it. In fact Smith shrugged it off to the paper, saying its because the athletic department is so big.
Sigh.
He doesn't get it. And he is a big part of the problem. But he's the AD at a "Power School" in a "Power Conference". They will get a slap on the wrist. Both for this and for the Terrelle Pryor, tattoo-gate whole enchilada thing too.
And they'll continue doing business the way the feel like, while the smaller school will receive monster penalties...for similar...or the same infractions.
**Smith released a statement Thursday morning, apparently after realizing he put his foot squarely in his mouth. The statement read "Contrary to reports attributed to me, Ohio State athletics is not facing any major NCAA violations."
Hmmmm...wonder why Smith felt compelled to deny saying anything to the Latern?
Eh..it's possible, but kind of hard to believe. But if the Dodgers are worth $2 billion, hypothetically, what are the Yankees worth?
The New York Daily News reports that New York Yankees team CEO Hal Steinbrenner is exploring his options regarding his family owned baseball team. The paper quotes various sources as saying that banking and financial sectors in the city have been talking about this for weeks. And the story is making the rounds of all the Network newscasts Thursday morning.
And he did. He released a statement this morning (Thu) saying the story is "Pure Fiction" and the family has "No intention" of selling the Yanks.
We don't doubt that they at least floated a couple of "What if" proposals, quite honestly they'd be crazy not to.
But sell the team.
No....we don't think so.
As much as we despise the team and what they've done to baseball, we admire the Brand that they've built. It's unparalleled in any sport. They are iconic. And honestly, they should be.
But no, you can file this story under the category of "Wild Speculation" by the Daily News...and its a good way to get attention and sell papers.
Miami Heat center Dexter Pittman has been suspended three games without pay for striking the neck and shoulders of Indiana guard Lance Stephenson, and Miami forward Udonis Haslem has been suspended one game without pay for striking the head and shoulders of Indiana’s Tyler Hansbrough, it was announced today by Stu Jackson, NBA Executive Vice President, Basketball Operations.
Both Pittman and Haslem had their Flagrant Foul Ones upgraded to Flagrant Foul Twos, as did Indiana’s Hansbrough, who struck the head of Miami’s Dwyane Wade on a foul that occurred shortly before Haslem's foul.
The incidents occurred during the Heat’s 115-83 victory over the Pacers on May 22 at American Airlines Arena in Miami.
Haslem will serve his suspension on Thursday when the Pacers host the Heat in Game 6 of their Eastern Conference Semifinal series. Pittman will begin serving his suspension in Game 6.
The HQ figured you had to give Haslem one game for his retaliation on the Wade hit, but Pittman's wink after knowing he popped someone in the throat was about right. Pittman had no history and could only get three...
Here's your recap on Pittman...
((HT: NBA on TNT/youtube))
And the winners are Buck Baker, Cotton Owens, Herb Thomas, Rusty Wallace and Leonard Wood...
Baker, Owens, and Thomas were three of the sport's early stars in the 1950's and Owens would have added success as an owner.
Rusty Wallace won 55 races in his career and was the Series champion in 1989...
Most folks remember him from here behind the wheel in 1993...
((HT: NASCAR/CBS Sports/Speed/youtube))
And Leonard Wood goes in on behalf of the Wood Racing family who were innovators in the sport. Leonard won almost 10-percent of the racing team's starts as crew chief...
The Wood Brothers last win wasn't too long ago...
((HT: NASCAR on FOX/youtube))
And the ceremony is set for February 8th in Charlotte...
Congrats to all the inductees...
Sorry, the HQ couldn't resist...
Can you dig it...???
In San Francisco, provided the waterfront arena is built in time for the 2017-2018 season...
The team, initially, played at the Cow Palace for 11 seasons after their move from Philadelphia in the early 1960's. But they moved to, what is now, Oracle Arena when Larry Ellison bought the naming rights for the Oakland arena they play in now...
Here's the presser in full announcing the hope of San Francisco...
((HT: KGO-TV))
Owner Joe Lacob actually admitted that the building will be privately funded. The current lease over at Oracle runs out after the 2016-17 season.
Yeah, it's as goofy as you'd think that it would be.
But it is an athlete, albeit a now former one trying to do what people at the Weather Channel do for a living; forecast the weather.
Smoltz was a guest on the Your Weather Today morning show shot in the metro Atlanta area. In this video, the former ace pitcher for the Atlanta Braves and current game analyst for TBS Sports among others tries to read a "Baseball" game forecast.
The guy who pops in to help is Weather Channel meteorologist Eric Fisher.
Sometimes NFL Football players do things to remind you that they aren't all getting arrested, in trouble or using drugs.
A story in today's Detroit News detailed a gesture that Detroit Lions and former University of Georgia quarterback Matthew Stafford recently made to a patient at the University of Michigan's Mott Children's hospital and her family.
Stafford was at a benefit put on by Michigan football alums Brian Griese, Charles Woodson and Steve Hutchinson. He attended the events charity auction and ended up bidding on a gift he himself donated to the auction. Tickets to a Lions game.
He bid $15,000 for the package and won...then immediately Stafford and his girlfriend turned to the family of Faith Falzone who is soon going to be having surgery at the hospital...and gave them the tickets/prize.
As the story goes, Stafford spent a good chunk of the event with Falzone's brother Will and asked him what prize he thought would he'd like. He mentioned the tickets. The rest is....well...a great story.
We applaud young Mr. Stafford whom we've known since covering him at the University of Georgia. Over the years, we've probably interviewed him 25-30 times. He's a very, very sharp kid and to quote friend of the OSG Gil Tyree "He Gets It".
We hope that Falzone and her family enjoy the "Monday Night Football" package and something tells us there will be more than just game tickets waiting for this one.
Former West Virginia head football coach Bill Stewart apparently died Monday after suffering a major heart attack while playing golf.
Stewart took over the head job at West Virginia in 2007 after his then boss, Rich Rodriguez bailed and went to Michigan. Stewart, who was 60-years old, was forced to resign the job in mid-2011 after several "Issues" arose when the school hired Dana Holgersen to be the "Coach in Waiting".
According to the WVMetroNews.com website, Stewart was at the Stonewall Golf Resort, playing in the West Virginia Hospitality and Tourism Associations golf outing.
Well, you can say the Magic is gone. Or they've lost their Magic touch. Or Magic...well...nevermind.
The Orlando Magic, to the surprise of nobody have fired head coach Stan Van Gundy and agreed to a "Mutual" parting of the ways with GM Otis Smith.
We say nobody was surprised because, well, the whole Sports world saw it coming.
Van Gundy publcily feuded with egotistical Magic star player Dwight Howard. The highlight of their relationship came April 5th, when Van Gundy publicly said that he knew Howard had been lobbying team executives to fire him.
As for Smith, he's taken the blame for not being able to surround Howard, who though apparently a big egotist, is also one of the best talents in the NBA. Multiple trades and reconfiguring of the players around Howard has brought exactly no NBA titles and a moody Howard wanting to play anyplace but Orlando.
Like we said, none of this is a surprise. Howard, who is a complete Free Agent after the upcoming season has made no secret of wanting to leave town...on the next plane. He did...allegedly...say he'd consider staying with new coaches and players.
However, the Magic do not have tons of Salary Cap flexibility and have few players that other teams would be interested in. We think that Howard will be traded so they can begin rebuilding this offseason. We may be wrong.
Van Gundy is highly regarded in the coaching biz and though he is now 0-2 with teams in Florida, expect him to eventually land another gig during the season after an NBA team fires a coach for a poor start.
As for Smith, though also highly regarded, he is going to have a tougher time. The personnel decisions he's made, such as the ill fated acquisition and eventual trade of Vince Carter, the trade of Rashard Lewis for Gilbert Arenas and other debacles, will haunt him for a long time. We wish him luck.
We also wish whomever steps in and runs this dysfunctional group a lot of luck. Although a premier talent, Dwight Howard has done nothing to enhance his reputation during the free agent song and dance over the past year. He's come across as very selfish, very egotistical and very indecisive about his potential future. It's a shame and a mess. And a mess that some coach (probably a young one) is going to have to sort out in the next few months.
Here's the infamous interview that probably sealed everybody's fate:
It's an issue that has been around in high school athletics as long as the modern era of recruiting, transferring, and figuring out what's "best for my kid- the next big thing" has gone down...
What has high school sports become in this modern era...???
Here's FOSG Sam Crenshaw and Matt Pearl explain a busy off-season in the state of Georgia...
But a larger issue has happened in the state of Florida with Armwood High in Seffner. The school is now on the verge of losing its 2011 state football title for having five players ineligible and some of their parents having lied about residency to even play at Armwood. The Florida High School Athletic Association (FHSAA) is already calling for a forfeit of all of their games from last season...
((ht: dailycamera.com))
