Having grown up in the Carolinas, the Gamecocks were always the team with the passionate fans who loved to hoot and holler but never had anything substantial to back it up with. Sometimes they call themselves Carolina even though everyone else thinks first of the University of North Carolina and other times they refer to themselves as USC even though everyone else thinks first of Southern California. They're athletic history in the 3 major college sports was one that usually was associated with men's title futility. They had a national title in women's track and field in 2002 and while that is a lofty accomplishment, it is not one beholden to the common fan. Their multiple titles in women's equestrian made that their most successful sport in terms of banners. I am not sure where you hang an equestrian banner but I have never heard a South Carolina fan use them in a sports discussion.
The signature of South Carolina in major college sports became high expectations meets inevitable letdown. Whether it was believing the Old Ball Coach would lead the football team to the promise land, the basketball team getting Fang Mitchelled, or the baseball team falling just short of and in Omaha it appeared the Gamecocks could never get over the hump. That all changed last night when Whit Merrifield hit an RBI single in the bottom of the 11th to capture the national title in baseball. The final game ever at historic Rosenblatt Stadium. So hold your heads high and puff out your chests South Carolina fans, today you are known for more than selling hats and shirts that say "Cocks" on them, today you really are a school for champions. Just be prepared for the comedown when football season gets here.
South Carolina edges UCLA to win school's first baseball title [USA Today]
photo via AP
Wednesday, June 30
Cocks of the Walk
Tuesday, April 6
Sometimes Life Isn't Fair
Aside from Duke fans, everyone was unhappy with last night's outcome. However, while I count myself as one who was pulling against the Devils, Duke earned this title. People can talk about how the heavyweights were down this year or how Duke had an easy run, the bottom line is that they are still standing after the smoke is clear. They earned the belt. I thought the game was surprisingly well officiated. Once again the production from CBS was horrid. Nantz and Kellog are all over the place. I enjoyed Clark behind the desk but not on game commentary. Replays were no where to be found on key fouls. We already knew Howard was going to get in foul trouble. Butler just did not knock down enough of those open shots. Their halfcourt defense was again spectacular. Even with their field goal troubles the Bulldogs had two shots to win, and came up painfully short. I commend Gordon Hayward and above all Brad Stevens for their accomplishment. I was off my couch jumping on that last Hayward halfcourt heave, it looked like it was good off the glass on my TV. But alas it was not to be, sometimes the underdog everyone is pulling for does not win. I half-expected David Anspaugh to run out onto the court and tell the players to run it again until Hayward made the shot. The Blue Devils are the champs, for better or worse, that is what makes this tournament great; you are not always expecting or happy of the result. There is much random chance, just like life. If life were like the BCS, we could manipulate all our circumstances to form our best outcomes. A pleasant notion but one that would ultimately fail like when the machines tried to make the Matrix a paradise where all their humans had their desires come true. Millions of crops were lost.
I still prefer the basketball side of things because sometimes there is no clear way to determine who is the best team. Football still has no set criteria. In the NCAA tournament, you have to play whoever is in your bracket and win. No polls, no margin of victory, no bias toward the big 6 conference (well, maybe just a little). It's a cruel reality for the anti-Duke segment, but it is reality. Coach K has one for the pinky, Zoubek was a difference maker, and Wojo finally has that elusive ring. Now to the harsh reality of my tournament picks and it is not pretty, "How Wrong Were We": 2010 NCAA Tournament edition.
Midwest Region: 9/15
South Region: 4/15 (I stand by my Robert Morris pick! They got hosed by the officiating.)
West Region: 7/15
East Region: 8/15
My Final Four: Kansas (uggg), Syracuse (oops), Duke (squirrel finds nut), New Mexico (why did I ever trust Alford?). I had Kansas beating Duke in the finals.
So out of a possible 63 games, excluding the opening round game (which I got wrong), I got 29 right. That is 46%. I also had Butler losing to UTEP in the first round. Overall a horrible state of affairs for my prediction skills.
pic via
Monday, April 5
Country Braces For Possible Duke Triumph
When the season began many thought Duke and Butler were going to be good, possibly Final Four good. Not many thought they would be playing for the title tonight. Conspiracy theorists have united against the hated program that is Duke. The same people who said their road was paved out for them also had them going out before Indianapolis. I am no Dukie and I loathe the flopping manequin defense and the moving screens of Thomas and Zoubek, but if the Blue Devils win tonight they win. I mean that the banner will go up in Cameron, Coach K will continue to be fellated by the media, and the record books will state 2010 belonged to Duke. Despite a Lance Thomas elbow to the face of Joe Mazzula in Saturday night's semifinal, Duke is viewed by its fans as a paragon of the seedy world of college basketball. Where fans say it was just an elbow, detractors can rewind the video and see Thomas measuring the blow and then nailing Mazzula in the face. A Duke win will not be easy for people to swallow (myself included), hell Catfish has lost enough hair over this, but a win is a win and a title is a title.
On the other side we see Butler as a longshot. This is the first game where I think Butler had little chance. First concern is Matt Howard, who is concussed but should play. Even if he does he will probably pick up 2 fouls faster than Jim Nantz can spin a witty anecdote or read a Masters promo. One certain thing is that Butler needs to hit their open shots to have any hope tonight. In the semifinal they were fortunate enough to have the Spartans also struggle from the field. Duke's scorers cannot be banked on to have all 3 be cold and in fact in their semifinal all 3 were on. If players like Veasley, Jukes , and Hahn can hit the open jumpers, the Bulldogs can stay close.
One last note on Butler. The all-knowing Dick Vitale took a jab at Butler after Saturday's game by saying they were able to beat teams that were not at full strength, pointing to Syracuse's Onuaku and Michigan State's Kalin Lucas. Fair enough if Dickie V wants to play that game, but let's look at who he picked to win Saturday: the Spartans. So he wants to give an excuse to two teams he had beating Butler, yet he picked those teams to beat the Bulldogs despite the injuries. It is all part of the fun of his March picks. Vitale jumped the shark for me 11 years ago when he picked UConn in his preseason magazine number 1 and said they would cut the nets down. Then Duke had a seemingly unstoppable run in the tourney until they met UConn and lost the title and wouldn't you know Vitale flipped on his pick and chose Duke. And that is way too many words to waste on him.
We think Duke wins this game, and by double digits. Now would be as great a time as any for a pleasant surprise.
Monday, June 15
Weekend Recap
Hi I'm Cleet and I'm a New York Mets fan. Yes I am aware that the above picture is how it is always going to be. I'd still rather live with this kind of crap than cheer for the Yankees.
Speaking of the Subway Series, no name Yankee reliever who is still on the DL called out K-Rod for celebrating too much after a win. Rodriguez confronted said reliever before the game yesterday because he is acutally a man and is nt afraid to talk face to face. Or maybe he just wanted to show this guy his ring. Video below. [MLB.com]
Speaking of rings, Phil Jackson now has more than Red, Kobe has one without Shaq, and yes Bobcats fans, Adam Morrison and Shannon Brown have one! [Yahoo Sports]
Speaking of semi-anonymous people getting rings, the Pens pulled the game 7 upset on the Wings on Friday. Marian Hossa is taking the heat, but he says "that's life." How profound [NHL.com]
Speaking of tough breaks, Jim Calhoun breaks his ribs but finishes bike race. He then did interviews, passed out and only went to the hospital at the behest of Ray Allen. [Hartford Courant]
Speaking of college basketball news, today is the deadline for players to withdraw from the NBA draft. Players like Luke Harangody have to make a difficult choice. [Sporting News]
Speaking of college athletes not everyone pays attention to, the IRA regatta to decide the men's rowing national champions took place last weekend (sorry forgot to post) with Washington taking the men's eight title. With that and the news about Nick Montana, the Husky faithful must be pretty content right now. [Row2k]
On a last note, I saw The Hangover this weekend. While I do think it was funny, I thought it went begging in several areas and would not put it in the upper echelon of epic raunchy comedies. I think it belongs in the second tier with movies like Road Trip, Euro Trip, and PCU but falls short of Animal House, Revenge of the Nerds, or Wedding Crashers territory.
Wednesday, September 17
Top Ten List: Championships That Vindicated
Every title means something different to everyone who experiences it, be they a fan, coach, or player. There are certain titles that have meant a statement of proof that the player was the right choice to lead them, the coach had what it took to get the team there, or the organization or school belonged. If I omit certain statement titles forgive, for these are the ones that come to mind immediately and I have ranked my top ten.
10. Pete Sampras over Andre Agassi, 1995 U.S. Open
In the mid to late 90s, Andre Agassi became more than just the guy with the hair on the commercials; he became one of the best tennis players of his generation. But in the 1995 meeting at center court, Sampras added to his legacy the title of best ever. Anytime these two met there were fireworks, but this was in both of their primes. Andre was confident after beating Boris Becker in the semifinal, looking into the camera and saying “Pete, I’m coming for you.” Sampras outlasted Jim Courier in his semifinal and then dropped Agassi in four sets. Andre always got the fan love and was adored by the media, but specifically on this day, Sampras held the hardware.
9. New York Rangers, 1994 Stanley Cup
If anyone mentions this title two images immediately spring to my mind: Stephan Matteau’s (Matteau! Matteau! Matteau!) double overtime goal against the Devils in the Eastern Conference Finals and the fan in MSG holding up that sign that said “Now I Can Die in Peace”, that pretty much says it all. They climbed the hill against the Canucks to end the 54 year "curse", but here’s the game 7 goal just because I enjoy watching it.
8. John Elway and the Broncos, 1998
Elway was always known as a clutch quarterback, yet his previous attempts at a Super Bowl were blowouts against the Redskins, 49ers, and Giants. Elway was in danger of becoming akin to Dan Marino, Fran Tarkenton, and others in the stable of great quarterbacks who never won the big one. But with Shanahan and Kubiak running the offense, Terrell Davis in the backfield, the dirty…err gritty O-line, and finally a stout defense personified by nose tackle Neil Smith, the Broncos had their best shot. They were underdogs going into the Super Bowl against the defending champion Packers, but in what would go down as one of the most entertaining Super Bowls ever, Elway led a late drive including the memorable running play where he got helicopter flipped. The Broncos scored and the defense held, and Elway had his ring. Though they would go on to repeat, it was this title that truly took Elway to the next level.
7. Boston Red Sox, 2004
Before Red Sox nation was intolerable to the entire population (not saying they weren’t somewhat before) they were lovable losers. Their history after the trade of Babe Ruth had become a epilogue of futility from Bucky Dent to Bill Buckner. In recent years the Sox had become perennial contenders but always they fell short, and usually to the hated Yankees, including the previous year on Aaron Boone’s extra inning blast after it appeared Pedro had the game won earlier. New GM Theo Epstein decided he was going to do whatever he felt necessary to win the title that year and beat the hated Yankees. This included, much to Red Sox Nation’s chagrin, trading Nomar Garciaparra. After Boston fell behind the Yankees 3-0 in the ALCS, it seemed all the work to get back had been in vain, but lo! David Robert’s legs and Big Papi’s bat ignited them to the most epic of comebacks. They vanquished the Yankees and steamrolled the Cardinals in 4 to capture a title that was 89 years and much heartache in the making.
6. Joe Namath and the Jets, 1969
Not much chance was given to Broadway Joe and the Jets in the Orange Bowl in ’69, but Joe must have known something everyone else did not. The Jets D stifled the Colts and Joe did what he need to do to pull off the huge upset. The win not only backed up the famous guarantee Joe made it also proved the AFL could compete with the supposed dominant NFL. Vindication for Joe and an entire football league; anyone who can’t recreate the scene in their mind of Joe running off the field with the finger in the air?
5. Dr. J and the 76ers, 1983
Everyone already knew that Julius (the docta) ERRRRRRRRRRving was the most supreme of the high fliers, but no one knew that he could play team ball and lead the 76ers to a title in the highly competitive NBA of the 80s. The addition of Mr. fo-fo-fo Moses Malone provided the missing link at center and propelled Dr. J and the Sixers to a sweep of Magic and the Lakers.
4. Tie: Roy Williams 2005 and Jim Boeheim 2003
I know it’s a bit of a gimmick to put a tie in just to make extra room on the countdown but these two great coaches are truly linked and there were some I definitely wanted to get on the list. Roy had been one of the greatest coaches of his time, been to multiple Final Fours and even lost a few title games, the first in 1991 to Duke. He took Kansas as far as you can possibly take a program without winning a championship, and then left for his alma mater even though he had protested not to care deeply for the job after losing to Boeheim in the 2003 Championship Game. Jim did his best to console Williams, who is a good friend of his, after he captured the title with the dominant play of Carmello Anthony, the sharp shooting of Gerry McNamara, and the incredibly long arm of Hakeem Warrick. Boeheim had sat stunned in 1987 when Keith Smart sank a baseline jumper to propel Indiana over Syracuse, and again in 1996 his surprise #4 seeded Orange fell to the Kentucky all-star team even with the aid of a legendary performance by John Wallace and the even more legendary hair of Jason Cipolla. In 2003 Jim got his title and the years of frustration were gone and two years later, Roy got his. Williams took the talented blob of a mess of players left by former assistant Matt Doherty and molded them into the first championship team Carolina had in 12 years. Not all the deserving coaches can win a title, especially in college basketball, but these two persevered.
3. Georgetown Hoyas 1984
In 1982 the Georgetown Hoyas had a chance to tie the North Carolina Tar Heels after Jordan hit the shot from the wing. Freddie Brown got confused and threw the ball to James Worthy and the game was over. John Thompson gave Brown a hug and tried to console the inconsolable young man. Two years later the Hoyas were back and this time, they triumphed over the Houston Cougars to claim their national championship and the first person into Thompson’s arms was Freddie Brown. Having Patrick Ewing helped too. Thompson also became the first African-American coach to win the Final Four.
2. Don Haskins and Texas Western, 1966
Having recently lost Don Haskins, I again remind anyone out there to read or watch Glory Road. The story truly transformed the sport. Haskins and his players stood in the face of racism and ignorance and triumphed on the biggest stage. On that spring night in Cole Field House, Haskins played all his black players against the all-white line-up of Adolph Rupp and Kentucky. Even the great Pat Riley was no match for the Miners as they took the championship and erased the insane notions that black athletes could not perform under the big time pressure.
1. Steve Young and the 49ers, 1994
I have to admit, it was watching Steve Young talk about some ridiculous story on twwl, most likely a T.O. story that led me to the idea for this list in the first place. I was not interested in what he was saying so I began thinking about what I knew about Steve Young and one sound bite came to mind. In 1994 Young finally detached the primate from his posterior and got the 49ers a ring, sans Joe Montana. Vindication was his, and so were a few Super Bowl passing records. It’s 1:45 on the video for the moment that got me thinking about this list in the first place.
