No, really.  HELP!  "Duke is done."  "Duke dominance is dead."  These were many of the proclamations made after Duke's first round exit in the NCAA tournament last year.  Last year, Duke lacked depth and did not look like the Duke of old.

But they're not dead. Far from it.  Coach K restocked the shelf and also learned a new system thanks to his experience this summer with team USA.  Duke looks good, they look like the Duke of old.  Depth.  Desire.  Dedication.  Duke.

Now, I know the Duke haters are now vomiting.  I realize why people despise Duke.  In reality, probably because they once ended your favorite team's magical season.  I also fall victim to that, circa 1992. 

Led by senior DeMarcus Nelson and junior Greg Paulus, Duke is currently ranked #3 in both polls.  They were down 45-36 last night to N.C State and then steamrolled the Wolfpack in the second half.  Paulus couldn't miss.  Nelson did a little bit of everything.  Freshman Kyle Singler showed his all around game.  When freshman Nolan Smith gets minutes, he opens eyes.  David McClure, Gerald Henderson, Jon Scheyer and Lance Thomas are all showing significant improvement. 

Duke travels to UNC Wednesday to renew the best rivalry in college basketball.  If UNC wins, don't bury Duke.  This Duke team could be the first Duke team since 2004 to make the Final Four.  It could be the first Duke team to win a national championship since 2001. 

Duke is not dead.  They are alive and well.  Right now, they're as smart as a pick as any to cut down the nets in San Antonio.

AND NOW,  I PRESENT THE DUKE HATERS:

We've all heard of  "My way or the highway", right?  This phrase fits Rich Rodriguez perfectly.  Listening to a little sports talk radio yesterday, a couple things are certain about Rich.

1. He doesn't care if you don't agree with how he runs his program.   Learning that Ryan Mallett was transfering, and that Adrian Arrington and Mario Manningham were bolting for the NFL Draft, Rodriguez's response was, "I only care about who will be on Michigan's football team in 2008."  In other words, don't let the door hit you on the way out boys.

2. This guy needs to land a certain recruit out of Pennsylvania and he knows it.  I am talking of course about Terrelle Pryor.  Word is that Mr. Pryor has narrowed it down to either Michigan or Ohio State.  One of Rodriguez's first calls when he got the Michigan job was to Pryor.  So Pryor erases West Virginia from his list and adds Michigan. 

Along these same lines, Rodriguez needs Pryor because........... WELL, THE CUPBOARD IS PRETTY BARE EVERYWHERE ELSE ON THE MICHIGAN ROSTER IN 2008.  With the defections of Arrington, Manningham, Mallett and all the seniors, even I've looked at the roster for next year and cringed.

Getting Pryor would:

A. Steal him from Ohio State.  Good times.

B. Land Rich that mega recruit that would help bring more top talent to the new system Rodriguez is implementing.

C. Like I said earlier, getting Pryor would give Rodriguez somebody noticeable to put on the field next year.

It's nice Rich has ordered that 95% of the weight room be replaced ( they're selling the old stuff Sunday in the biggest yard sale anyone has ever seen), so his strength and conditioning coach can work his vaunted program.

It's nice Rich has a team first approach.  A certain guy named Shembechler preached THE TEAM, THE TEAM, THE TEAM.

A slight little problem though.  It seems Mr. Rodriguez's approach has turned many players away.  Mallett was the second rated quarterback last year behind Jimmy Clausen.  Manningham and Arrington would have been weapons for whoever ends up as Michigan's quarterback.

Michigan has never had a problem landing recruits.  Many have said the similarities between Schembechler and Rodriguez are striking.  You might suffer a little in the begining, but it will be worth it in the end.

And it's not like Michigan plays the hardest schedule in 2008.  Big Ten foes Wisconsin, Illinois, MSU, Northwestern come to play in the Big House.  Michigan travels to PSU, Purdue, Minnesota and Ohio State.  Non conference games include Miami-Ohio, Utah and Toledo at home with the annual matchup in South Bend to round out the schedule.  So to be generous, 6-6 and a bowl game?  I certainly hope so.

Change is well under way in Ann Arbor.  Change can sometimes be difficult.  And some players may be asking for spare change in a few years to get on I-94 and get the hell out of Ann Arbor if things don't change for the better. 

I guess I have to be first on that list.   Bill Martin knew what he was doing all along. Michigan could not have hired a better candidate to replace Lloyd Carr.  This changes a whole lot in Ann Arbor, including ( cover your ears Bo) the spread offense being run by MICHIGAN in the Big House.  Did you think you would ever see that day come? 

Change was needed in Ann Arbor.  Michigan was very stuck in their ways and with a Bo disciple running the program, ( Lloyd Carr), they were running in circles.  Now with Rich Rodriguez in charge, Michigan can look to the future and be hopeful.

I can't put it into words how excited I am about this hire for Michigan.  Rodriguez was my second choice behind Brian Kelly to succeed Lloyd Carr.  There were rumors floating that Michigan would give offensive coordinator Mike Debord the interim label for a year and try to hire another huge name next year.  That would have been a disaster.  ALSO, LES MILES NOT GETTING THIS JOB WAS THE BEST THING THAT ANY MICHIGAN FAN COULD HAVE ASKED FOR. 

Les was very much like Bo and Michigan would have probably reverted back to three yards and a cloud of dust.  There is zero chance of that happening now with Rich Rodriguez's offense being the staple in Ann Arbor.

Congratulations to the Wolverines and Bill Martin for abandoning the status quo.  That was a huge step in guiding Michigan back to the elite of college football.  Of course, there will be questions about this hire. 

What took Bill Martin so long?  From the outset, Bill Martin said that he would get the best candidate for the job, no matter how long it took.  Martin accomplished that.

What about all the recruits Michigan lost this past month?  I'll answer that with a question of my own.  What about all the recruits Michigan just GAINED?  Rich Rodriguez brings buzz, excitement, a wiining record and mentality. 

You can mock him for getting that record in the Big East.  ( FYI fellow Big Ten fans, the Big East was top to bottom better than the Big Ten this year.) You can point out that Rodriguez and his Mountaineers blew a chance of playing in the BCS title game by losing to Pitt.  I can't argue that, but name me a coach or team who didn't blow a game or title opportunity this year.  I hear crickets.

As you can tell, I'm behind this hiring 100%.  Change was needed and will happen in Ann Arbor.  It will not happen overnight.  Rodriguez has to get athletes and guys who know the spread offense to play at Michigan.  If he can recruit  those guys to play at West Virginia, he will find it easy to recruit those same guys to Michigan.

January 1 2008 will be, in a way, and ending of an era.  After that day, there will be no more Henne, Hart, Long or Carr.  There will be enthusiam, nervous anticiaption, excitement and change.  It's what Michigan needs and Bill Martin knew it all along.

It has been a struggle for me to pick a side in the BCS Championship game. As a Michigan fan, do I root for Les Miles and LSU to beat the Buckeyes?  You know, to put Sweatervest's championship game record at 1-2?  Or do I root for The Senator and boys to try to put the SEC in their place?  This is quite easy.

As you know, the University of Michigan is looking for a head football coach.  What a scene it is when LSU, coached by a Michigan alum, is playing Ohio State for all the marbles.  Get this, there are actually media members, and of course, paranoid LSU fans, who think Michigan is trying to harm LSU's chances of beating Ohio State.  Were these people born yesterday?  So you're telling me, Michigan is going to HELP Ohio State win a national championship, just so the Buckeyes have something else to hold over Michigan's heads? 

Les Miles is a classic Butterface case.  You know, Butterface.  You see this girl walking towards you.  Oh, things look promising.  Wow, she is smoking hot.  What a body!  As she gets closer, your heart begins to race.  You try to keep your composure.  And then, it happens.  That drop dead gorgeous girl turns out to be a butterface.  Her face is just hideous.  She had everything!  BUT-HER-FACE!

Looks can be decieving boys.  With all this desire over Les, you would think the guy would be a coaching legend.  But, last time I checked, there are no statues of Les Miles being built.  Les Miles isn't on my wish list for the next Michigan coach.  LSU, please keep him!  The guy was outcoached by Rich Brooks and Houston Nutt this year, so how bad is Jim Tressell going to embarrass Miles? 

To top this whole saga off, let me introduce you to Skip Bertman.  He is LSU's athletic director.  Oh, sorry.  Since Skip is in the all to mighty SEC, we shall give Skip proper respect.  Is it Skippy?  Mr. Skip?  Skip to my Lou?  Hop Skip and a jump?  I'll just call him ####, something we can all agree on.

#### gave Michigan athletic director Bill Martin permission to speak to Les Miles, but asked Martin to wait until after the SEC Championship game.  Martin, being a classy Big Ten gentleman, obliged.  Then news yesterday spread that, GASP, Miles had spoken to Michigan.  Traitor!  How could he?  He promised!  Oh, that Bill Martin!  Les is staying Bill, leave him alone!  Leave Les Alone!  Tears, many tears.

So #### issues a press release and in it he says that LSU is a better job than the Michigan job.  Debatable, but what do you expect him to say?  The guy is trying to keep the coaching legend ( snicker ) that is Les Miles from heading back to his alma mater.  I mean LSU is full of tradition, national championships, the works.  What's that?  I know, don't tell the people that believe this that more people have said the Michigan job is better.  Even with Michigan hardly doing anything the last 10 years, and LSU having the chance to win a second BCS championship game, most people IN THE KNOW ( and that's not you or me)  say Michigan would be a better job than LSU.  But LSU's in the SEC, which makes them automatically better.  Case closed.

So, I hope Miles stays at LSU.  I hope he makes more head scratching gameday decisions.  I actually hope he makes a coaching blunder in the BCS title game.  Then all these whiners who want Michigan to leave Les alone will have their way. 

They will be crying for losing to a Big ten team in the title game.  They will blame Michigan and Miles.  But hey, you saw what you were getting when you wanted to keep Les.  You're now stuck with the butterface.  That is something to cry about.

Wow, good news travels fast. As I was trying to watch SuperBad last night, my cell phone begins to go crazy.  My one friend is practically yelling into the phone and all I can make out is him screaming, "Are you ready to get Miggy with it?" 

Absolutley confused at this point, I switch over and talk to my brother who actually could tell me details of the trade between the Tigers and Marlins.  So the Tigers get Dontrelle Willis AND Miguel Cabrera for 6 minor leaguers.  Giving up studs Andrew Miller and Cameron Maybin does hurt a little for Tigers fans, but not giving up 1 major league starter in this trade?  Dave Dombrowski works his magic again.

Let's look at the Tigers projected lineup:

1. Curtis Granderson- He's still getting better

2. Placido Polanco- Whatever you need him to do, he does it

3. Miguel Cabrera- Might be an MVP candidate now that he plays with a winning team and plays in a winning atmosphere

4. Magglio Ordonez- A-Rod put up crazy numbers to win the MVP last year, Mags wasn't too shabby though

5. Gary Sheffield- Injuries kept him down last year, he wants retribution

6. Carlos Guillen- When you have him batting sixth, yikes

7. Edgar Renteria- Oh yeah, another pickup for Dombrowki

8. Ivan Rodriguez- Pudge is slipping a bit, but doesn't need to be the offensive force he once was, not with this lineup

9. Jacque Jones or Marcus Thames- You're not exactly pitching around these guys either

Who wants to take an estimate on opposing pitchers ERA's against the Tigers lineup? 

With that lineup, the pitching doesn't need to be lights out.  Justin Verlander is an ace.  He's just filthy.  Nate Robertson shows signs somedays, and then flops on other days.  Jeremy Bonderman needs to stay healthy.  Dontrelle Willis just needs to pitch like he always has.  Kenny Rogers also needs to stay healthy and provide the leadership he has.  Looking at that starting 5, there are 3 lefties, which can only be an advantage.  The guys in the bullpen took a beating last year, primarily because many of them had to change roles due to all the injuries.  If Joel Zumaya is able to pitch at all this year, that's just icing on the cake.

The Tigers had an amazing run in 2006.  2007 saw injuries and the red hot Indians.  2008 looks to be a fun year in Motown. 

So Santa, about those season tickets.................................PLEASE!>

Okay, I believe the word is OVERKILL. Everywhere you look it's someone praising or bashing Whitlock's take on Sean Taylor.  So for a little something different:

Shhhhhhhhh.  You have to be able to keep a secret now.  I find myself rooting for the evil ones.  Belicheck and his group of bullies.  Why would I do this?

1. I have Tom Brady on my fantasy football team as well as the Patriots defense and special teams.  Times are good.  VERY GOOD.  I found myself rooting for not just Brady and the D/ST, but for the Patriots team.

2.  I root for all the guys who went to Michigan to have success.  Never in anyone's wildest dreams did they have Tom Brady having this much success in the NFL, but it's fun to watch Brady just prove people wrong time after time.

3. I find myself rooting for success lately.  Don't know what it is, but I'm not rooting against teams I would normally despise.  Maybe it's an appreciation that Tom Brady could throw 50 touchdowns this season.  It's admiring the fact the Patriots could go 19-0.

I was on the "Belicheat" bandwagon like everyone else earlier this year.  Then I asked myslef, " Why are you watching the Patriots play if you're not enjoying the game?"  It is just a game, someone wins, someone loses. It's not the end of the world if the Pats shred the NFL apart, it's actually a little fun knowing they can kick #### and take names. Who wouldn't want their team to be able to do that? It takes a lot of misguided energy to ridicule the success of a football team.  And a lot of jealousy also.

Which brings me to another point- Why can't anyone appreciate greatness?  Why is it we all have to bash the coach, rip on the owner, or wish injuries on players?  What have they ever done to us?  IT'S JUST A GAME!!!!!!!!! 

So if the Pats beat  my boy Peyton and the Colts in the playoffs, there will be no rooting against them.  I want to see history.  I want to see the Pats run the table.  I want to see Brady and Belicheck win their 4th Super Bowl ring, further cementing their legacies.  Sure, there will be numerous posts praising the Patriots, but as they say, "To the victors go the spoils".

It is upon us once again. It does not seem that long ago that rivals Michigan and Ohio State were playing for a berth in the BCS title game, does it?  Seems like it was just yesterday I was watching Cold Pizza at work the day before The Game, when that sick feeling came over me.  Bo had collapsed and was taken to the hospital.  It sounded bleak and when they went to a live report with Dana Jacobsen ( Michigan grad, oddly enough) just before noon, you just knew.  Bo was gone.  The day before arguably the biggest contest ever between the 2 bitter rivals.  It was surreal. 

They played the next day in what was a tremendous game.  Back and forth with all the emotion of the rivalry, plus Bo's death and the right to play in the BCS title game.  The Game will probably never see the circumstances surrounding last years's game, but they will still play Saturday.  And it will be almost as fun as the week leading up to The Game.

I don't need to tell you these schools don't like each other.  At all.  You may disagree, but this rivalry is bigger for Ohio State than Michigan.  Michigan doesn't like Ohio State, but Ohio State lives for Michigan week.  Last year there were actually students at the library in Ann Arbor when #1 was playing #2.  Think ANYONE in Columbus didn't have their eyes and ears on The Game?  Who knows what it is, but this may speak to the fanbases also.  Michigan fans are more reserved, and are a little conceited.  Buckeye fans are exuberant and passionate.  The Big House is not loud at all for having the largest seating capacity in all the land, partly because of the way it was constructed.  The Horseshoe is incredibly loud and is known for being a pain in the #### for visting opponents.  Maybe you disagree, but this guy says this means more for Buckeye fans than Wolverines fans. 

Dude, quit rambling, get to the rules!  Alright here we go.  This week is one of the funnest of the year for me.  Message boards, blogs, sports talk radio, I can't get enough of it this week.  So as a Wolverine fan, these are my rules for the week.  How serious am I being?  You decide.

ALLOWED

1. I can take that much more joy when my fantasy quarterback, Tom Brady, torches the Buffalo secondary led by Ashton Youboty and Donte Whitner.  Sure, it's a day after The Game, but this rivalry isn't just Saturday, it's year round.
2. I can hope Desmond Howard strikes a Heisman pose whenever he encounters Robert Smith at ESPN this week.
3. I can dream that Charles Woodson gets teammate A.J. Hawk suspended by presenting him with a rose this week, and Hawk goes nuts because of it.
4. I am allowed to look up any meaningless fact about this rivalry if it benefits any argument of mine this week.  I am allowed ( and encouraged) to just leave the words Cooper, 1969, Biakabatuka, Elvis, Desmond, Bo, Woodson or anything I want on any pro-Buckeye post this week.  Likewise, I expect many Troy Smith, Archie and Lllllllllllllloyd Carr comments in return.

NOT ALLOWED

1. The word Bucks is out this week.  If person A asks me for ten bucks and person B asks me for ten dollars, person B clearly wins.  Person B is a Wolverine fan and knows how to speak correctly.  And also shower.
2. The color red is out.  I may root for the Red Wings, but I have to say, " Go Wings!" not "Go Red Wings".  This also means no Target, wearing red clothing, ketchup, pizza or stopping at red lights or stop signs.  Red is in a lot of things, I'll stop now.
3. No Buckeye gear around me.  I live about 100 miles west of Ann Arbor and the sight of Buckeye gear makes me cringe.  This week if I see any bumper sticker, flag or apparel with tOSU on it, all bets are off.  
4. Last, but certainly not least.  If I or any Michigan fan encounters one of those Nuts claiming it's THE OHIO STATE UNIVERSITY, you DO NOT let that slide.  A proper response could be this:

"THE Ohio State University sure did get THE #### kicked out of them in THE national championship games last year."

I know you can do better than that, give it a try.

GO BLUE!

Oh Sparty. We believed in you. We were thrilled for you. You started the season oh so well.  We thought Mr. Dantonio had changed the mindset in East Lansing. 

And then you reminded us why you are Michigan State football.  You are the school that once mentioned having basketball coach Tom Izzo take over the football program.  Huh?  Oh Sparty, we feel for you.  ( Someone get Mariucci off of NFL Network so he and Izzo can be in East Lansing coaching together.) 

You're more of an annoyance than anything else.  When I claimed my allegiance many moons ago to the University of Michigan, my brother just to be different, picked Michigan State.  He bet me a couple times in football.  #### poor results for him.   Happiness for me.

FYI.....Michigan invades Spartan Stadium Saturday.  Let's get this straight, this is a nice and for the most part, clean rivalry.  If you've never been to a Michigan-Michigan State hockey game, whether it be in Ann Arbor, East Lansing or Joe Louis Arena, that gets my vote for being the fiercest of any sporting rivalry between these 2 schools.  Michigan State owns Michigan in basketball, quite the opposite in football though.

This is also a nice rivalry because MSU fans for the most part are also Tiger, Piston, Lion and Red Wing fans.  They're not Ohio State fans, that's a step in the wrong direction. ( November 17 ####es)  Anyway, you kind of have to root for MSU.  You can't hate Sparty, East Lansing is a GREAT, let me repeat that, GREAT college town. 

But on occasion, Sparty pisses you off.  When they ever so keenly keep an extra second on the game clock so T.J. Duckett can catch a game winning touchdown.  Or when they trip Desmond Howard in the end zone so " no one" defeats " number 1". 

But more times than one can keep straight, Sparty does things like blow a huge lead to your team and while laughing, you say " Oh, those poor ####s!"  Or Sparty gives you the impression they have an NFL changing reciever and so your favorite NFL team picks, lets say Charles Rogers, in the NFL Draft and the guy is a BUST. 

One can not hate Sparty, we love Sparty.  We root for Sparty.  We want Sparty to fight for Big Ten titles in football.  We want Sparty ranked.  WE WANT A RIVALRY SPARTY!!!!!!!  You can't replace Ohio State, sorry, they're our first.  One doesn't forget your first, right Buckeye? Oh, we got Buckeye to blush.  How cute.

We ask this of you Sparty.

1. Change your mindset.  Doesn't take a rocket scientist to know you've got a confidence problem.  If the Detroit Lions can start to change around their losing mentality, so can you Sparty.

2. Give us a reason to not like you.  I couldn't even find that much to dislike about you Sparty.  You just sit there and take it. You've got to fight back Sparty.  When I put my foot on your seat, because I want a footrest, don't act like that's okay.  It's not okay!  Damn it, that's your seat!  ( This happened in Spartan Stadium 2 years ago.  We got their early and I'm wearing a Michigan hat, coat, you name it.  I'm relaxing before the game and my feet are in this guys seat.  Instead of asking me to move my feet, he just sits closer to his buddies.  I would have moved my feet!  But he didn't even put up a fight.  He's a true Spartan.)

3.  Play to your potential every week. You had me fooled earlier this year.  I believed the words of Mark Dantonio.  I believed Sparty, I believed!  But, I should have known better.  I should have known when Michigan State fans didn't get excited about the quick start.  I should have known you would come back and scare the #### out of Ohio State, but lose in the end.  And then you lost to Iowa and Northwestern.  Would you have lost to Minnesota also?  Don't answer that.

Well Sparty, the 100th meeting between Michigan and Michigan State is Saturday.  Will you win?  It could happen.  You're due for a win in this rivalry, plus you play at home.  And, I pretty much called you out here, and that will probably come back to bite me. Michigan might just be penciling in a big FAT W .( Something they shouldn't do again after the Appalachian State disaster.)  We just don't know with you Sparty, I'll reluctantly say:

MEEEEEECHIGAN wins 26-18.

GO BLUE!

Rumors have it ( and we all love rumors) that one of the potential landing spots for Alex Rodriguez could be in Detroit.  As a Tigers fan, I have mixed feelings about this.

Pros:

Ticket sales would be thru the roof.  The Tigers didn't have many empty seats last year and with the addition of A-Rod, tickets would be hard to come by in 2008 and beyond.

Getting one of the best players ever definitely has it's perks.  The numbers alone for A-Rod are unreal.  Pile those numbers with the numbers of Magglio Ordonez, Gary Sheffield, Carlos Guillen, Edgar Renteria ( welcome, Edgar) Placido Polanco and Curtis Granderson.  It could be record setting.

The Tigers and Scott Boras know each other.  Magglio Ordonez and Ivan Rodriguez were two huge signings when it wasn't encouraging to be a Detroit Tiger.  Boras knows how to deal with the Tigers and Tigers GM Dave Dombrowski knows what he's getting with yet another Boras client.

Cons:

Okay, I tried hard to come up with more positives than negatives, but I couldn't. 

As good as A-Rod is, his next team will be his fourth team.  It says something about the best player in the game when his past teams did not decline after he left.  It's highly debatable if he makes his teammates better.  Like I said, if he's THAT great, why didn't anyone beg to keep him?

The Tigers have a good nucleus right now.  They're going to be fighting for the American League pennant whether A-Rod wears the olde English D or not.  Jim Leyland has done an incredible job turning the Tigers attitude into a winning one.  Who knows what happens when you add A-Rod to this team.  It could go either way.

Where would A-Rod play?  Obviously if you sign him, he's going to demote somebody.  Will it be Edgar Renteria who the Tigers just acquired Monday?  Will it be Brandon Inge, who is nowhere near A-Rod offensively but is better defensively?  Will A-Rod DH sometimes?  Then what do you do about Gary Sheffield?

My gut says, A-Rod will not be a Tiger next year.  There are some things working in the Tigers favor, but I doubt anyone can say with 100% conviction the Tigers would be a better team in 2008 if they add Alex Rodriguez. 

I tried to convince myself they would be better, but I couldn't.

What do you think?

Last time, we looked at a legend in basketball. A man who did things on the court the right way, and more importantly, did and does things now off the court the right way. Our first look was at "The Admiral" David Robinson. Now we look at a legend in baseball, Cal Ripken Jr.

Of course, we all know about the streak.  Well, maybe not all of us.  10 years ago, my mom was in a conference in Baltimore and one of the perks was getting free tickets to an Orioles game.  She does not follow sports and nothing surprised her at the game, well, except for one thing. 

She could not believe the ovations Ripken got everytime he made a fielding play or when he stepped up to the plate.  The ladies she was at the game with did not have a clue as to why this guy was being worshipped either.  So they decided to ask a couple fans beside them.  Luckily, these fans were Orioles season ticket holders who gave them a 4 inning tutorial on what Ripken meant to the Orioles.  They learned about the streak, the Ripken way, how Cal helped save baseball after the strike and anything else they wanted to know.  Talking to my mom later, she goes " Oh, that's the guy they made that fuss about when he broke that record, right? He seems like a really nice guy, they really love him in Baltimore."

It stretches past Baltimore though.  "The Ironman" is one of the most respected athletes ever.  Playing 2,632 consecutive games will cement your legacy.  What helped everyone love Cal was the way he didn't draw attention to himself, the fact he just went about his business without needing to draw extra attention to himself.  One of my favorite sporting memories to this day is watching Ripken having to be pushed out onto the field to accomadate the affection being poured out to him when he broke the streak against the California Angels.  He didn't crave the spotlight, but understood why people appreciated the way he conducted himself.

On the field, the awards and numbers are staggering:

• 1982 American League Rookie of the Year
• 1983 American League M.V.P.
• 1983 World Series Champion
• M.L.B. career record in:
• Consecutive games played-2,632
• All team games played-15 straight from 1983-1997
• Homeruns for a shortstop-345
• Started 17 straight All Star games
• Started an A.L. record 19 games
• Led All Star voting 4 times
• All Star M.V.P. in 1999 and 2001
• M.L.B. record for double plays by a shortstop with 1,565
• 2 time A.L. Gold Glove Winner-1991, 1992
• Ended career with a .276 average, 431 homeruns and 3,189 hits

To no one's surprise, as soon as Cal was eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame, he got 98.53% of the vote.  Cal was inducted into the Baseball Hall of Fame this past summer and helped draw the biggest crowd ever to see any induction with over 75,000 fans.

As much success as Cal had on the field, he is respected just as much for what he has done off the field.  He is part owner of two minor league baseball teams.  His contributions to Lou Gehrig's disease are well documented.  The Cal Ripken Sr. foundation was founded by brother Billy and Cal Jr. to give less fortunate children across the country an opportunity to attend baseball camps around the country and better learn the game of baseball.  Ripken Baseball operates for profit-camps and designs ballfields for youth, college and professional teams. 

It's no wonder that when I wear a Ripken jersey my mom bought for me when she was in Baltimore, I get nods of approval and smiles.  And I live in Michigan, where people love the Tigers.  Everyone loves Cal though.  How can you not?

I'd like to thank and salute Cal Ripken Jr. for being one of the good guys in sports.

( All stats and info courtesy of the Washington Post and the Sporting News)

Sick of showboating athletes?  Sick of ME first guys?  Sick of hearing about all the negativity in sports today?  Yeah, me too.

Not having any interesting ideas to write about, I think I'll give this a shot. Having just read mtmarinerfan's post asking where the classy athletes have gone, inspired me to write a series on the good guys.  My objective here is to take a look at the guys who made headlines for what they did on the field and the way they carried themselves off of it. 

So no talk of scandals, steriods or stupidity.  We're going to talk about the guys who clearly made a difference.  I'm going to start with David Robinson, with future write-ups including Cal Ripken, Joe Dumars, and I'll gladly take suggestions as to more guys who should get praise for the way they carried themsleves on and especially off the field or court. 

David Robinson was one of my favorite athletes to watch.  There was something different about him.  Maybe it's because he was left-handed.  Maybe it's because he has one of the best nicknames,"The Admiral". Maybe it's because he was underappreciated playing in the same generation as Patrick Ewing, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Shaquille O'Neal.  I can't really pinpoint one reason as to why David stood out to me, probably because there are so many.

Make no mistake, this guy was dominant.  So dominant that the San Antonio Spurs drafted him knowing that they would have to wait 2 years for him to play an NBA game.  ( Robinson attended the Naval Academy and honored a 2 year commitment after his graduation to the Navy) So dominant he once blocked 14 shots in one college game.  So dominant he once scored 71 points in an NBA game.  So dominant he turned around the San Antonio Spurs franchise. 

The thing I appreciate the most about David Robinson is the way he spoke.  There was no um, uh, duh, yeah, yup when he spoke.  I'm not ripping on anyone who uses those words, I've used them all today.  When you want an athlete to represent your city, you want him or her to be well spoken and be articulate.  If you remember Robinson interviews or press conferences, he was always able to get his point across and have you say to yourself " I wish more athletes spoke and acted like him."

On the court, his accomplishments are many:

• Olympic gold medals in 1992,1996 and a bronze medal in 1988 playing for U.S.A. basketball
• 2 time NBA champion for the San Antonio Spurs in 1999 and 2003
• Rookie of the Year in 1990
• Voted one of the 50 greatest players in N.B.A. history in 1996
• Recipient of the N.B.A. Sportsmanship Award in 2001
• Defensive Player of the Year in 1992
• 10 time N.B.A. All Star
• 4 time All-N.B.A. First team
• 2 time All-N.B.A. Second team
• 4 time All-N.B.A. Third team
• 4 time All N.B.A. Defensive first team
• 4 time All N.B.A. Defensive second team
• Recorded the rare quadruple double against Detroit with 34 points, 10 rebounds, 10 assisits and 10 blocks on February 17 1994
• N.B.A. Scoring Champion in 1993-1994

For a guy who accomplished so much on and off the court, I salute David " The Admiral" Robinson as one of the good guys in sports.

( All statistics courtesy of NBA.com)

It can't be that time already, can it?  The calendar does not lie, it's time.  It's time to get your hatred for Duke started up once again.  It's time for Billy Packer to kiss some ACC ####.  It's time for #### Vitale to share his enthusiasm for college basketabll with all of us.

Now you're saying, already?  It's only mid-October.  Isn't March Madness in, well, March? It seems I can't sneak that past you, but the Madness is upon us.  Midnight Madness is truly a great event to attend, give it a try sometime.  The Madness is here.

It is hard to believe that during arguably the most packed sporting month of the year, college basketball is back.  I know most people don't pay much attention to this sport until college and pro football are done, but I'm in the mood for some basketball talk.  Plus, if you watch from the begining you will know the freshman phenoms like last year's Kevin Durant and Scottie Reynolds before everyone else.

Here are some of my thoughts, leave me yours.

Eric Gordon is the next big thing out of Indianapolis.  Following Josh McRoberts, Mike Conley and Greg Oden is a lot of work, but this kid will light up the scoreboard for the Indiana Hoosiers.

Do you know who your school's head coach is?  You sure?  Billy Donovan couldn't leave the love of his life in Gatorland.  Wait, yes he could.  Alright Orlando!  Give me Darko, Jameer and Dwight!  On second thought ,( or third or fourth) Billy found he belonged back at the University of Florida.  Is he going to regret this when he sees his young, inexperienced team?  We shall see.

So Tubby is in Minnesota, Billy is in Kentucky, Beilein is in Michigan, and Huggins is at West Virginia.  Got it?  Good.

More questions-Will UConn be back?  What will Ohio State look like without Oden and Conley?  Who is there left to hate at Duke?  Is UCLA the next dynasty?  Will Kansas ever reach their potential under Bill Self?  How much will D.J. Augustine miss Kevin Durant at Texas?  Will Arizona underachieve again?  Will Hansbrough and UNC be the team to beat?

Alright, I can't wait for the tip off classics and the Madness to begin. 

This is a dark day my friends.  I'm just shaking my head in disbelief.  Driving home from work, I hear the horrific news that a Karate Kid remake may be in the works.  This is not good.  Some things you don't mess with.  Like the olde English D on the Detroit Tigers uniforms.  Or the winged helmets of the Wolverines.  Or remaking Karate Kid.

As you know, I have an appreciation for this movie.  Karate Kid 1- excellent.  ( Did anyone else hear the Elizabeth Shue talk on Family Guy Sunday, hilarious!) Karate Kid 2- Not as good, but not horrible either.  The next Karate Kid or Karate Kid 3 or whatever it was called with Hillary Swank-worse than Appalachian State beating Michigan.  It was that bad.

So here's what I know.  Will Smith is in talks to be the producer with his son playing the role of Daniel Larusso.  It gets worse.  Jackie Chan as Mr. Miyagi. Somebody stop this please.  Hopefully, and I have a good feeling about this, this idea will either be stopped or it will just go straight to DVD.  I don't mind Will Smith producing this, but his son playing Larusso and Jackie Chan as Miyagi?  Hey Chan, do you understand the words that are coming out of my mouth?  Make as many crappy films with Chris Tucker as you want, but dude, you've got to have more respect for the crane kick.

Alright now that I've got that off my chest, let's talk some sports.  Probably the best time of the year right now, I'm just going to give a thought on each of my teams.

DETROIT TIGERS- Fell short of the playoffs and talk is that Ivan Rodriguez, Todd Jones and Shawn Casey may all be gone next year.  Jim Leyland was extended thru 2009 today and with Carlos Guillen moving to first, the Tigers need a shortstop.  Tigers owner Mike Illitch opened his wallet for Rodriguez and Magglio Ordonez, some rumors are that A-rod could be an option at shortstop.

DETROIT PISTONS- Watch out for the youngsters Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson to get more minutes and Rasheed has dropped some weight.  ESPN said this may the best Pistons team since their 2004 championship team.

DETROIT LIONS- They've already matched last year's win total with 3.  Marinelli is making a difference.  They broke a 10 game losing streak to the Vikings, and a 4 game losing streak to the Bears already this season.  Sunday they go to Washington D.C. where they have never won.  Was Kitna onto something with his bold predictions?  We shall see.

DETROIT RED WINGS- Once again a favorite to compete for the Stanley Cup.  I can't believe it's hockey season already and I can't believe more people don't enjoy hockey.  The addition of Brian Rafalski is huge. 

INDIANAPOLIS COLTS- #### hum, 4-0. Unbeaten streak as always to start off the year. Yawn.  Patriots come to Indy November 4, Colts have got the Pats number as of late.  Epic game.

COLLEGE FOOTBALL- Michigan is 2-0 in the Big Ten which is an accomplishment after the first two weeks of the year.  Look for Lloyd to end his run in Ann Arbor as he changed his contract last offseason to set this up as being the end.  Sadly, health may be a determining factor as well the bashers actually having an affect on his health.  That's a shame, Lloyd has done an overall outstanding job in Ann Arbor.

Congratulations to Western Michigan University alum and Kalamazoo native Greg Jennings on being the recipient of Brett Favre's record breaking 421st touchdown pass.  Good start for Western in the MAC, beating Toledo in Toledo, something they had not done since 1988.

COLLEGE BASKETBALL- Did you realize Midnight Madness is October 12?  I'm interested to see how fast John Beilein can have a positive affect on Michigan basketball.  And Steve Hawkins continues to keep Western at the top of MAC basketball.

Comments?

Questions?

Concerns?

" So is Hart on your Heisman list?"  A co-worker asked me that today and I'm thinking, "WHAT?"  Am I suppossed to keep a Heisman list somewhere and update it every Saturday night?  Hopefully, I have something better to do on a Saturday night or I'm making another kind of list.

I realize this is a fun debate to have among college football fans, but I don't get it.  Quick, tell me the name of the award that goes to the best colege hockey player.  Anyone?  The Hobey Baker Award.  How about college basketball?  Rev, BGL, Shooter, Pete, any fellow college basketball fan?  How about the James Naismith Award! 

Why does the Heisman get so much attention and publicity?  Why would the University of Oregon put a billboard of Joey Harrington in Times Square?  Why would I make a Heisman pose over my little brother as I beat him for a touchdown many years ago and he congratulated my pose by kicking me in man land?  WHY?

Why would any college football player want to win the Heisman trophy this year?  Do they want their team to lose a championship game as former winners have done so lately?  ( See: R. Bush, T. Smith) Do they want to be in the same breath as former winner O.J. Simpson?  Do they want to add to the percentage of Heisman winners who have done squat in the NFL?  ( See: R. Salaam, E. Crouch)

Now that I'm done playing 20 questions with you, I'll provide some of the answers.  Obviously, the Heisman Trophy exsists to recognize the best college football player every year.  That's fine with me, but I could do without the weekly Heisman polls. By far my biggest beef with this award is this: WHY DOES IT ALWAYS GO TO A TOP RUNNING BACK OR QUARTERBACK ON A TOP 5 TEAM?

Does someone want to tell me that Larry Fitzgerald or Charles Rogers were not the best player when they each set receiving records?  Guess how many of the last 20 Heisman winners were either running backs or quarterbacks?  17, which I think is ridiculous.  This award I believe takes away from the team concept, which may play a part in why guys who win the Heisman haven't done so hot in their bowl games.  Too much emphasis on the ME in TEAM if you ask me.

I understand why you may like this award.  I just think it's over-hyped and doesn't really ever live up to the billing.  And I would enjoy the process more if the best players got votes, not just the star running backs or quarterbacks.

Comments?

Questions?

Concerns?

Thanks, Tommy Bowden. You know, I was sitting here watching some pregame Monday Night Football talk when I started flipping thru the channels.  So, I switch over to ESPN 2 and see College Football Live.  I catch a quote from Bowden.

" We won.  That's more than I can say about Lloyd Carr."  Son of a ####.  I guess Bowden was asked a question about why his team didn't beat Furman more handily.  Instead of taking the high road, he takes a shot at Carr for losing to Appalachian State.

Am I upset he took a shot at my favorite's school's coach?  You're damn right I am.  It's one thing if fans or us bloggers call out coaches or players.  But for a coach of a major BCS school to call out another coach like that?  That's absolute bush league.  It's all fun and games when I read post after post about Lloyd being overrated or Michigan flopping.  That's fine, that's why we're on here.  What was Bowden's motivation?  #### envy my friends, serious #### envy.

( Here comes the rant, enjoy)  You see, Mr. Bowden suffers from a serious case of #### envy.  Tommy will never be as good as his daddy, Bobby Bowden.  Hell, he's the second best coach amongst his siblings.  His brother Terry had an undefeated season in the SEC!  THE SEC!  What has brilliant Tommy done in the ACC?  He has won ZERO ACC championships.  Zero.  The football powerhouses that are Maryland and Wake Forest have won ACC championships.  In the two years the ACC has had an ACC championship game, guess how many times Clemson has APPEARED in the game?  ZERO.  At least you're consistent Tommy, congrats!

The #### envy is sad, really.  Now that ol' ballcoach Steve Spurrier is beginning to show serious signs of ruling the state of South Carolina, Tommy is toast.  Tommy got the Clemson job for basically two reasons. #1 He had turned Tulane into a pretty nice squad even going undefeated in 1999.  ( Probably by playing teams like Furman all season, huh Tommy?  Not so easy in the ACC, huh?)  #2 Oh, HE'S BOBBY BOWDEN'S SON.  Anybody want to tell me this numbnut would be where he's at if his daddy didn't pull some strings along the way?  Didn't think so.

Let's compare the great Tommy to the man he kicked while he was down.  Lloyd is on the end of his road, I'll give you that.  BUT Mr. Carr has WON 5 ( that's 5 more than zero Tommy) Big ten titles and a share of a national championship.  So you want to compare now Tommy?

So in summary, Tommy has #### envy of: Bobby Bowden, Terry Bowden, Steve Spurrier, Lloyd Carr, every male blogger on this site, Ryan Seacrest, my two week old nephew ( I knew I'd find a reason to get him in a post soon) and any other male you can think of.

Tommy, you're the reason why you give bloggers something to talk about.  All you had to do was take the high road Tommy.  You might want to start worrying about your own job before you start critiquing some other coaches job performance.

So, ya with me?  Was Tommy's remark uncalled for?  Does he have serious #### envy?  Some things are better left unsaid, right Tommy?