Posted on January 8th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
As word leaked that Bill O’Brien would be the next head football coach at Penn State, some prominent alumni illustrated the same narrow-minded, shortsighted thinking that contributed to the mess at their alma mater.
Apparently, critics such as former all-America linebackers LaVar Arrington and Brandon Short believed that the only acceptable coaching candidates either played or coached at Penn State in the past. Outsiders need not apply.
Arrington, who backed interim coach Tom Bradley for the job, told Rivals.com that he was “done with Penn State. If they’re done with us, I’m done with them. … If they get rid of Tom Bradley, that means they in essence have accepted the fact that we are all guilty. You might as well call it the same thing.”
Short went even further, expressing sympathy for O’Brien. “He has not been made aware of the implications of him being in this position,” Short told ESPN.com. “I don’t envy him at all. He doesn’t have support of the vast majority of former Penn State players and the vast majority of the student body and faculty won’t support him. I feel sorry for him.”
I feel sorry for Short and others who share those views, which very well might include proponents of inbreeding.
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Posted on January 7th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
Just as we can’t help noticing that more than 80 percent of NBA players are black, it’s impossible to be oblivious when a team can put five white players on the court. Especially white American-born players, who are outnumbered in the league by Europeans.
ESPN’s J.A. Adande pointed out the obvious about the Los Angeles Lakers Lakers in a column that drew 900 comments and counting.
It figures that the topics of skin color and the NBA would attract such attention. As the late tennis great Arthur Ashe said in the 1989 NBC News special Black Athletes — Fact and Fiction, the issue of race in sports is “a sociological red button.”
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Posted on January 6th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
The Redskins are awful, and the Capitals are disappointing. The Nationals could be a year away; Mark Turgeon’s Terrapins might be two. And the Wizards will be 0-7 unless they somehow manage to upset the New York Knicks on Friday at Verizon Center.
Granted, the competition hasn’t been stiff. But the Georgetown men’s basketball team is running away as metro Washington’s best major sports outfit. The Hoyas’ surge is even more enjoyable because their performance was totally unexpected.
The joy ride seemed headed for a speed bump Wednesday night against No. 20 Marquette, which enjoyed a 17-point lead with 13 minutes left. Georgetown’s No. 9 ranking and 10-game winning were in serious jeopardy, but the young Hoyas — especially the young ones — rallied for a stirring comeback that thrilled the crowd of 11,213.
Senior Jason Clark led all scorers with 26 points, and the only other Hoyas in double figures were the only upperclassmen — senior Henry Sims (13) and junior Hollis Thompson (16, including the game-winning 3-pointer with 24 seconds left). But Georgetown’s impressive freshmen played invaluable roles in the improbable 73-70 victory.
Perhaps owner Ted Leonsis should instruct Verizon Center workers to leave the Hoyas’ court in place for Friday, hoping that Georgetown’s characteristics rub off on his Wizards. They certainly could use a dose or 12 of the Hoyas’ patience, trust, unselfishness and commitment.
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Posted on January 6th, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
Ryan Clark thought that Saturday might be different. Even though he sat out the Pittsburgh Steelers’ last two games at Denver — after suffering a severe medical condition when he played there in 2007 — Clark thought he might have a shot this week because it’s a playoff game.
But Steelers coach Mike Tomlin has decided otherwise. He doesn’t want to risk another incident like the last one, when Clark became violently ill and had his spleen and gall bladder removed as a result of sickling after playing in Denver’s high elevation.
“Everybody knows I want to play and I would have played,” Clark told ESPN. “I talked to my doctors and we actually had a plan in place for me to play. All things pointed to me going until (Tomlin) told me I can’t. He said he wouldn’t have let his son play, and so I’m not playing either.”
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Posted on January 3rd, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay, clearly filled with emotion after reaching a momentous decision, steps up to the lectern and empties his heart:
“It was difficult, but it was time and it was the right decision to make,” Irsay says. “Fourteen years is a long time in this league. There are a lot of great memories, and I’ll treasure all those memories. But it was time.”
We don’t have to imagine the scene at Colts headquarters. It occurred Monday following a 2-14 season. But the subject was Bill Polian, who was fired after building the Colts into a long-running powerhouse.
Irsay might as well save those words and utter them again soon — in reference to quarterback Peyton Manning.
Parting with Manning might seem difficult to Irsay and a generation of Colts fans so accustomed to seeing No. 18 under center. They love the sight of him in the backfield, running the offense like a maestro conducting an orchestra. Manning and the Colts became synonymous with sustained excellence, to the tune of 141 regular-season wins, 11 playoff appearances, six division titles, two AFC championships and one Super Bowl title.
Yet, there comes a time when teams must move on without their beloved icon. Unless logic is thrown out the window in favor of emotion, the Colts have reached that point with Manning.
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Posted on January 3rd, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
Playing basketball while naked from the waist up sounds like an uncomfortable — if not painful — experience for women. But Hall of Famer Dennis Rodman plans to coach a topless team for HeadQuarters Gentlemen’s Club in New York City.
“I don’t know too many men that don’t like a good-looking woman running up and down around the court,” Rodman told the New York Post. He said players will wear shorts and skimpy shirts at first. “They’ll come out in a T-shirt or a tank top, but when the game starts, they’ll go topless.”
Rodman isn’t the first former NBA player to be associated with topless basketball. Another strip joint, Rick’s Cabaret, formed Rick’s Basketball Association in November and landed Spud Webb as one of its coaches.
That news barely caused a blip on the news radar screen, though at least one website shared its outrage. However, Webb isn’t close to the eccentric Rodman in his ability to draw attention, whether it’s donning a wedding dress, marrying Carmen Electra or having an affair with Madonna.
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Posted on January 1st, 2012
By DERON SNYDER
Folks customarily make resolutions once it’s time for new calendars. I’m still determining mine for January and the next 11 months.
Self-examination can be difficult. Coming up with suggestions for others? That’s a lot easier and twice as much fun. So I hereby make the following resolutions for these sports figures in 2012:
• Redskins coach Mike Shanahan: “To limit wild speculation.” Maybe we weren’t supposed to take him literally when he said, referring to Rex Grossman and John Beck, “I put my reputation on these guys that they can play.” That gambit cost Shanahan one of his Super Bowl trophies on the credibility scale.
• Capitals wing Alex Ovechkin: “To perfect a transformation.” The high-scoring days — at least 46 goals in each of his first five seasons — might never return. But the “Great Eight” can still be a superior player if not a prolific scorer. At least he better be, having signed a 13-year, $124 million extension in 2008.
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Posted on December 30th, 2011
By DERON SNYDER
The Oklahoma City Thunder are one of the NBA’s best young squads, a small-market up-and-comer that thrilled the nation last season with its run to the Western Conference finals. The team is led by a dynamic duo of 23-year-old stars, two-time league scoring champion Kevin Durant and All-NBA point guard Russell Westbrook.
And therein could lie the problem.
Durant and Westbrook appeared to engage in a heated exchange during Wednesday’s game against the Memphis Grizzlies. According to a report in the Oklahoman, the two stars began shouting at each other and had to be separated.
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Posted on December 30th, 2011
By DERON SNYDER
Just after his new Air Jordan sneakers sparked an uproar, Michael Jordan decided to settle down.
The NBA Hall of Famer and owner of the Charlotte Bobcats got engaged over the Christmas weekend, which began with the release of his retro Concord XI sneakers. Limited-edition classics, the shoes incited a rash of violence nationwide.
Here’s hoping that the union between Jordan and Cuban-born model Yvette Prieto enjoys much more peace and goodwill than the shoppers exhibited toward one another.
The shoes were released on Friday, Dec. 23, followed by widespread criticism of Nike and, by extension, Jordan for their marketing tactics. Publicist Estee Portnoy confirmed that Jordan and his girlfriend were engaged within 48 hours of the shoes going on sale.
Coincidence? Perhaps. But an engagement certainly helps put Jordan in a more favorable light.
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Posted on December 30th, 2011
By DERON SNYDER
Landing left-handed starter Gio Gonzalez was a big move for the Washington Nationals, addressing one of two major goals as outlined by general manager Mike Rizzo.
Prince Fielder wouldn’t address Rizzo’s second objective — an outfield bat, preferably in center field and atop the lineup. But the rotund first baseman is the biggest move possible for Washington or any team in the market for an offensive boost.
Should the Nats sign Fielder, whose age (27) is appealing but whose weight (275 pounds) is worrisome? Could they sign him, satisfying the desired terms of seven or eight years at approximately $25 million per? Would they sign him, making Adam LaRoche expendable and creating a potential logjam at first base in the near future?
If it’s not my money or my headache to make everything fit, the answer is YES!
I know, I know. The Nats already overspent on Jayson Werth last season and topped it off with a no-trade clause. Ryan Zimmerman deserves an extension that will keep him in D.C. past 2013, and it won’t be cheap. LaRoche is due “only” $8 million this year, but his trade value is limited unless he plays and proves his bum shoulder is fully healed.
All of those are sound reasons to pass on Fielder, especially since he wouldn’t solve the Nats’ more-pressing concerns, a center fielder and leadoff hitter.
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