Start waving those orange towels

Tonight the World Series that Fox TV didn’t want begins in San Francisco.  I heard the network execs crying all the way here in Kansas City when both the Yankees and Phillies went down.  All they could think about was all those TV households on the east coast that couldn’t care less about any team west of the Alleghenies.

Despite that, this works out to be a fascinating series.  The undermanned, Giants against the upstart new kids on the block from Texas.  A marquee pitching match-up to start things off, but featuring some other outstanding pitchers who are capable of great games in their own right.  I’m expecting big things from Jonathan Sanchez.

On the surface, you have to go with the Rangers.  They have the invincible Cliff Lee on the hill for three games if necessary, plus a powerful lineup led by Josh Hamilton.  They also have the better defense going in, but the same could be said for the Phillies and look who’s home for the winter.

The Giants come at you with pitching depth, a versatile lineup that doesn’t scare you, but can hurt you in many ways and they’ve got the home field advantage.  It’s not like the Rangers have been there before.  

In the end, I think this series will go down to the bullpens.  Brian Wilson can scare you to death as a closer and may blow one or two games under this kind of pressure, but the same could be said for rookie Neftali Feliz who really hasn’t been tested so far in the post season.  If it comes down to bullpen depth, I like the Giants and don’t San Fran fans finally deserve a pennant of their own?  I’ll take’em in seven.

NFL rule changes coming from the wrong direction

For years the NFL ignored the repercussions of concussions.  Players got their bells rung and team doctors and coaches sent them back on the field and laughed about the fact the player was in another area code for a while.  Finally, they came around to the fact that players needed to be held out of games until their brain function and cognition had fully returned.  Helmet to helmet hits were outlawed and those committing the crime have been fined and punished.

Now following a weekend of numerous player concussions, they league is ready to change the rules and really bring down the hammer on players for vicious hits.  But is this really a step in the right direction?  I’m all for the rule changes regarding keeping players off the field until they’ve been fully cleared after suffering a concussion, but I think they’re attacking this new issue from the wrong direction.

Sunday DeSean Jackson suffered a severe concussion as a result of a violent hit from Dunta Robinson.  But it wasn’t a helmet to helmet hit.  It was a form tackle.  Shoulder to sternum.  It was the speed at which the blow was delivered that caused the whiplash and concussion.  It occurred on a crossing pattern where Jackson was left open to the possibility of a hard hit.

NFL Operations Executive Ray Anderson says the league wants to eliminate hits with the head, forearm or shoulder to the shoulder or head areas.  You might as well say let’s play flag football.  Now you’re asking defenders to lower their heads where they risk serious injury by exposing themselves to neck injuries and concussions from contact with knees.

The only way the NFL is going to eliminate the ferocity of the hits is to eliminate the extent of the armor the players wear.  Shoulder pads need to be brought back to the size they were in the 60’s.  Players have little fear about launching themselves into another player because they’re so well protected and because of the speed at which they game is now played.  Coaching has to change as well.  No one really teaches wrapping up a player with your arms anymore.  Most tackles you see today are from a player just trying to deliver a shoulder blow.  Lessen their protective gear, lessen the ability to deliver the blow.  That should even go for helmets. 

Players use their helmets and lead with their heads because the helmet is now a weapon.  Protecting the players is important, but I believe making rash rule changes in mid season doesn’t solve the problem.  Football is a violent sport and that violence is what made it popular.  The NFL promotes that violence at every turn.  The players can change in time, but this doesn’t solve that issue.  Change the equipment.

This one should really hurt

This is one that got away for Kansas City and when the season comes to the close, it could be the difference between going to the playoffs and sitting home for another year.  For the first time this season the culprit was the defense.  The offense did everything it could do to win this one, but when your defense gives up three fourth quarter touchdowns, it’s not often you win.

The Chiefs offense was everything you could hope for.  It rushed for a season high 228 yards, Thomas Jones getting 100 and Jamaal Charles 93.  Matt Cassel was 20 of 29 with 3 TD’s, no interceptions and a 122 passer rating.  Dwayne Bowe...yes, Dwayne Bowe had six catches for 108 yards and two scores.  KC scored 17 second half points after leading by 7 at halftime and yet they lost.

The Texans scored TD’s on their final four possessions, the last two on drives of 80 yards or more in the final four minutes.  They never led until the last score in the final 28 seconds of the game.  You could point to several factors but the lack of pressure on Texans QB Matt Schaub in the second half and the failure to force a turnover were critical in my book.  

Throw in a bad interference call on the final drive and a rookie mistake by Eric Berry on Andre Johnson’s game winning catch and you have a loss that shouldn’t have been a loss.  How the Chiefs bounce back from this defeat next week at home against Jacksonville will say everything about how far Todd Haley’s team has truly progressed.

Do we really care who Favre is texting?

As the Minnesota Vikings prepared for Monday night’s game against the New York Jets there was more talk about Brett Favre and Jenn Sterger than there was on the effect having Randy Moss in the Vikings lineup was going to have on the game.  Isn’t it amazing that a story that has been percolating on the internet for months now suddenly became a big story just days before the Vikings and Favre were headed to the Big Apple for a game?

I’m not quite sure when covering the world of sports suddenly crossed over into the porn beat, but I’m really sick of it.  First of all, if Favre was sexting and making passes at Jets female employees when he played there two years ago, he was an idiot.  But sexual harassment aside, I’m not quite sure where the public and NFL comes in here.  

In the case of Sterger, she’s apparently said all along she had no intent of pursuing the matter, she just happened to let a few friends know what was going on, allegedly and word got out.  In the case of the other two Jets female masseuses, they sound like bandwagon jumpers.  

One claims Favre stared at her ass while he was getting a massage from another woman.  Really?  If it’s a sexual harassment issue, wouldn’t it be something that would have been taken care of privately by his employer, the Jets?

If true, as I said, Favre is giving his good old boy Mississippi background brand name a beat down.  But does America really care?  Do NFL fans really care?  And by the way, if the NFL is fast tracking their investigation with a possibility of suspending him, don’t they need to start suspending all players involved in infidelity?  And if they’re going to suspend players for that, they damn well better suspend them for DUI’s.  

If this was sexual banter between two consenting adults, why does everyone else have to get involved?  It’s Brett’s problem and an issue he and his wife have to deal with.  I could really care less. 

It's a great start, but it's only a start

The Chiefs head into their bye week probably wishing they didn’t have the time off right now.  The team has a lot of momentum following their 31-10 demolition of San Francisco.  KC is now the surprise team in the NFL sitting at 3-0 and they didn’t win this one ugly.

Kansas City dominated the 49’ers in all phases.  Defensively they shut down the San Fran running attack and pressured QB Alex Smith into five sacks and an interception.  Offensively, Thomas Jones and Jamaal Charles each had over 95 yards rushing and combined with Dexter McCluster accounted for 310 yards in offense.  

I've got no problem with how the Chiefs used Charles, who had 154 yards in total offense.  In fact, you can understand the philosophy of limiting his touches early in the year if possible.  I puts less of a strain on the shoulder he had surgery on in the off season and leaves him fresher for the later part of the year when the run game often times becomes more important.  As long as they win, it's tough to argue with it.

Matt Cassel threw for 250 yards and three TD’s, his best performance by far this season.  Rookie tight end Tony Moeaki made a phenomenal one handed grab for one of the scores.  He continues to impress me with his athleticism.  With the exception of a missed 38 yard FG by Ryan Succup, not much went wrong in this game for KC whose offense totaled 447 yards.

Head coach Todd Haley was thrilled with the win, but kept an even keel after the game, talking first about being 3-0 in the first quarter of the season, but also about having a week off to work on the things they need to improve on since they’re a team that hasn’t had much success in recent years.  It was a response really meant more for his players than the media.  

Haley knows 3-0 guarantees a team nothing when it comes to making the playoffs, but it certainly improves the odds.  In fact, 75% of teams that start 3-0 make the playoffs.  But Kansas City shouldn't start making plans just yet.  Last season the Broncos started off 6-2 and led the division by two games, but they didn't make the playoffs.  In 2008 Buffalo started 3-0 but they were sitting at home in front of their fires when playoff time came around. 

Cat's Coffman is key to KSU being a factor in Big 12 North

The Wildcats return to the non conference part of their schedule this week after picking up a hard fought win over Iowa State in their conference opener.  Kansas State showed themselves to be resilient in their win as they battle back from behind, but a breakdown in the secondary in the final minute nearly cost them the game.

Daniel Thomas needs to be a part of the Heisman conversation.  The senior is leading all of the nation’s running backs by averaging 184 yards per game.  He’ll  continue to be the focus of the Wildcats offensive attack as coach Bill Snyder looks to Carson Coffman to be his game manager.  This team could take a dramatic step forward if their passing game with Coffman could improve.

The emphasis on the running game is well founded.  A veteran line leads the way for Thomas and backup William Powell, who was also Big 12 special teams player of the week against the Cyclones, to move the ball on the ground effectively.

This week’s opponent Central Florida is 2-1 with their only loss a seven point defeat by N.C.State.  They have the 15th rated defense in the country and have allowed an average of just 15 points per game.  George O’Leary has named freshman Jeff Godfrey his QB, ending an early season controversy.  Godfrey ran and passed for 174 yards in the Golden Knights win over Buffalo last week.  Let’s see what the Cats defense can do to pressure Godfrey into mistakes this week.

KC can take huge step with win at home

As the Chiefs prepare for Sunday’s home game against the 49‘ers, KC sits in an unfamiliar position.  At 2-0, they lead the division and are off to their best start since 2005, but a loss at home this weekend would negate a lot of the early season excitement generated by the club.

San Francisco will come into town as a desperate team already.  The pre-season favorite to win the NFC West is sitting at 0-2 after their last second loss to the New Orleans Saints Monday night.  Coach Mike Singletary knows that an 0-3 start would almost doom their playoff chances.  Despite the loss, the 49‘ers played impressively at times against the defending world champs and QB Alex Smith showed flashes of being the quarterback they’ve been waiting for since they drafted him.

San Fran faces the same challenges KC faced a week ago.  Go on the road on a short week after playing Monday night.  The Chiefs showed they could do it and win.  Now we’ll see it they can keep the 49‘ers from doing the same.

A trophy in the hand worth two in the Bush?

Read the headline anyway you want.  Reggie Bush, depending on who you want to believe, gave back his Heisman trophy because he was told he was about to have it taken away, decided to beat the Heisman Trust to the punch. was tired of all the controversy and wanted to put it behind him or finally developed a conscience.  Whatever.  It was as I talked about last week, a bad decision by Bush, the Heisman Trust, everyone involved.

I’m just waiting for the other Heisman trophy recipients to start turning over their hardware, because Reggie isn’t the only cheater in the bunch.  We’ve all known for a long time that Bush took money from an agent, or agent wannabe and didn’t pay him back.  College football isn’t an amateur sport no matter how you slice it.  It’s never been.  And it’s everyone’s fault for it being that way.  But it isn’t changing anytime soon. 

I’ve told the story involving Heisman winner John David Crow. I promise you it’s not the only story like that involving a Heisman winner.  That doesn’t make what Bush did right.  That’s not the point.  But it’s interesting that the other Heisman winners will watch him burn at the stake and no one will step forward acknowledge their wrongdoings.  It’s not like I expect it.  It’s just an observation.

What do you think Bush should have done?  Should the Heisman Trust have said thanks but no thanks, Reggie.  You keep it.  All I know is that as a former Heisman voter, the award has taken another step toward irrelevancy.

Sexy women and naked men in a locker room

Over the past few days everyone has wanted to get their two cents in on the controversy regarding female reporter Inez Sainz being sexually harassed in the New York Jets locker room.  Wow, that’s a new story, athletes behaving like pigs around women?

There’s the contingent that wants to blame Sainz for wearing inappropriate sexy clothing to her workplace, led by none other than prescription drug addict and Mr. Sports himself Rush Limbaugh who’ll jump on any story with his large girth that might bring him listeners.  Throw in the Fox News hypocrites whose women dress in low cut sexy attire on the set.

Then there’s the women’s groups that want to argue about a woman’s right to do her job in her workplace dressed in whatever clothing she wants to wear.  That’s what the law says.

Hey, I’m the first to agree that Sainz has every right to be there and wear what she wants.  If it causes people to stare and make comments so be it.  It’s likely that’s what she wanted as well, or at least she's comfortable with it.  She is after all a former Miss Universe contestant in addition to being a sports reporter who has covered major events before dressed in a similar fashion.  She isn't even the person who filed the complaint.

This is as much an argument about cultures and our expectations of women’s dress in this country as it is about anything else.   

The other issue that has become a part of the story that is just as interesting to me is access to the locker room.  Many male reporters believe they have to have access to the locker room to get the real story because they’ve always had it.  I disagree.  There’s little to be gleaned from the locker room that you can’t get outside the door in interviews conducted in a separate room or sitting on the bench or around the batting cage before a game.  

Have all interviews done it a separate room and you wouldn’t have to stand around waiting for naked men to come out of the shower and talk with you while they rub deodorant under their arms or sit naked on a chair with ten other reporters with mics and tape recorders shoved in their face.  I’ve wasted way too much of my life waiting for sullen players to come out of training rooms and showers just to have them say they weren’t talking today.

Just keep all of the reporters, men and women, out of the locker room and this issue would be settled.  Make players come to an interview room.  Make it mandatory, a part of their contracts.  Good reporters don’t need the locker room to get the story.  Do business reporters get to sit in on company staff meetings to find out information about the business deal that was just done?

A few decades ago I would have felt differently.  Back then athletes tended to hang around the locker room forever and you could sit and have long conversations and sometimes drink a beer with them.  Back then you could glean really good information about the game and their personalities from those conversations.  That doesn’t happen anymore.  Those conversations happen elsewhere now. The rules have changed for everyone, not just women.  We need to change with them. 

Chiefs jump in the hot tub time machine for win over the Chargers

There was little pretty about it, but last night’s game between the Chiefs and Chargers is why the NFL is so popular.  The late Monday night game, played for much of the contest in a downpour was like jumping in the hot tub time machine with the Chiefs surprising the four time Western Division champs 21-14  holding off a furious last minute rally by Philip Rivers and San Diego.

After falling behind early, the Chiefs swamped the Chargers with big plays, starting with Jamaal Charles 56 yard touchdown run.  He now has 5 TD runs of over 40 yards since the start of last season, second only to Chris Johnson. In the second quarter, linebacker Derrick Johnson who had an outstanding game, forced a Ryan Mathews fumble and KC struck with a Matt Cassel to rookie tight end Tony Moeaki TD pass.

Finally, rookie Dexter McCluster electrified the crowd with a Chiefs record 94 yard punt return with less than two minutes to go in the half.  It was a scene reminiscent of the mid 90’s Chiefs of Marty Schottenheimer.  The newly renovated Arrowhead stadium thundered with a sound not heard in the last decade.

The Chiefs offense behind Matt Cassel did little to support the defense, which looked totally different under Romeo Crenell’s leadership.  Cassel threw for just 68 yards in the game.  Despite breakdowns, such as leaving Legadu Naanee totally uncovered for a 59 yard third quarter score, the Chiefs defense swarmed to the ball and pressured Rivers much of the night.  Former first round pick Glenn Dorsey played his best game as a Chief by far.

The crowd noise frustrated the Chargers and Rivers much of the night as San Diego was called numerous times for delay of game, but San Diego had one last shot when they drove to the KC 4 with 1:12 to go.  But the Chiefs defense held, something they’ve failed at every time in recent years.

The 21-14 win puts the Chiefs in an unfamiliar spot.  Sitting alone atop the AFC West after week one. 

On the hunt for Hesiman trophy criminals

So the folks who give away the Heisman trophy are talking about sneaking into Reggie Bush’s house and taking back their trophy.  They haven’t made up their minds yet but they’re talking about it publicly.  Testing the waters if you will.  This is a bad idea.  As much as we’d all love to, we can’t rewrite history.

Take back the trophy and you open up a giant can of worms.  Are you telling me there’s not another member of the Hesiman trophy club that didn’t receive some sort of under the table help when they were a collegiate player?  Only a fool and an idiot would believe that to be true.  Any college kid who went to a major university and watched sports knows better.

Let me tell you a little story.  I can’t tell you for sure if it’s true, but I believed the man when he told me because he would know.  He knew where all the bones were buried.  Back in the late 80’s I was the radio voice of Texas A&M.  Football is of course king in the state of Texas and basketball was and still is the bastard step-child.

The late Shelby Metcalf was the basketball coach of the Aggies or 27 years and a good one.  He first came to College Station in 1958, a year after John David Crow won the Heisman trophy and became a legend at A&M.  In 1988 Crow was named Athletic Director at A&M.  Sitting in Metcalf’s office a few months after Crow took over, Shelby said to me in his slow southwestern drawl, “John David says he’s going to clean up college athletics, that’s funny coming out of the mouth of a guy who was bought and paid for to come to A&M.”

Like I said, I can’t say the statement’s true, but I believe him knowing what I do about football at A&M.  Now is the Heisman committee going to go back and investigate Crow?  No. Nor should they.  He was voted the best player in the country that year and nothing will change that.  Nothing will change the fact Bush was given    the Heisman either.  Hey if you want to pull a Heisman, go get O.J.’s.

As a former Heisman voter I just want to tell the Hesiman trust to stand down.  You can’t change the past. That’s something only the NCAA thinks is possible.

  

Pelini QB quandary not a good sign

This is just a small observation about the importance of the quarterback to winning football games.  Most coaches will tell you there is no more important player on the field.  The statistics will also show the following statement is true.  Teams that play multiple quarterbacks are typically not very good teams.

In fact, most coaches will tell you when you can’t pick a starting quarterback it’s because none of them are any good.   All that said, we’re just a few days away from the opening of the college football season and Bo Pelini still hasn’t named his starting QB at Nebraska.  This is a team ranked in the top ten and picked to win the Big 12 North easily.  I don’t get it.

I just read through the first game preview notes provided by the Nebraska sports information department.  As you might expect, it’s quite lengthy.  Fourteen pages to be exact.  But one thing you won’t find in there is any mention of the quarterback.  They go on and on about the Blackshirt defense for several pages, but I can find only two references to the quarterback position. One is a statement that all three quarterbacks who took snaps last year are back and a note that Taylor Martinez is in the battle for the job. 

That’s it.  The most important position on the field and that’s all you get on the Nebraska quarterbacks.  That tells me two things.  One, none of them are really any good and two, Nebraska is overrated.  I refuse to believe the defense can match the sensational season they had a year ago and until they prove they have an offense run by a legitimate quarterback, they’re nowhere near the elite team they and their fans think they are.

Dooley makes poor choice to try and control media

The other day I happened to come across a blog post from the Knoxville News discussing Tennessee football coach Derek Dooley’s decision to allow only certain reporters who had met his criteria to cover the Volunteers mock game a little over a week ago.

Dooley allowed six area reporters who met his criteria of showing up for the vast majority of their practices and being respectful in their questions and reporting to attend the mock game.  I don’t know if any national media were allowed, I would assume not since they didn’t meet criteria.   Admittedly, Dooley was fair in in the fact that his list of reporters covered radio, tv, print and the internet, but I found a comment he made that those allowed to attend the game were being given access with the understanding that “with abuse brings control” a bit disturbing.

Now as reporters we all understand that coaches don’t like us there because they’re afraid we’ll give away their secrets before game day.  You always have to be aware that you don’t talk about the special plays they may have run.  That’s fair and understood.

The question I have is what is abuse in Dooley’s mind?  Is it investigating the program because of reports of NCAA violations?  Is it asking questions about a player that may have had a run-in with the law?  Or is abuse to ask why a young man looking to transfer to another school isn’t being given his release?

Coaches can and will choose not to answer questions.  Sports information offices will try and steer reporters to cover the stories they want covered, but trying to dictate and control what a reporter decides to write about crosses the line.

Most of the comments to the blog criticized the writer and supported Dooley.  And there were a lot of them.  Of course they were rabid Volunteer fans as well.  Nobody really likes to hear someone else complain about having trouble doing their job, I get that.  But the responses are just as troubling as Dooley’s ambiguous criteria.

I remember Watergate, which makes me two things, old and smarter than a lot of America.  I’m actually not very proud in making the smart statement.  It’s more of a damning statement regarding American education than it is about my intelligence.  But in remembering Watergate, I think about the number of people who didn’t want to know and didn’t care what was going on until the President had to resign.

Now I’m not comparing this to Watergate.  Don’t be a fool and say I am.  This is only a little football we’re talking about.  It’s the coaches and rabid fans that want to make it into a life and death struggle against evil.  What I am saying is that when you do that, don’t be surprised when reporters want to know what’s going on behind all those closed doors. 

Krizz kaliko-Game On

Here's a chance to listen to the song that will be the Jayhawk basketball anthem for 2010-11.

How much pressure is Pavin getting to name Woods to Ryder Cup team?

A couple of weeks ago I did a What Do You Think? commentary for www.lexy.com about Tiger Woods and how he should just say no to the Ryder Cup this year.  His game isn’t up to par and he’s likely to prove a more of a distraction than provide a positive impact.

Since then Woods has stated publicly that he wants to play and would accept a captain’s pick selection by Corey Pavin.  Earlier this week it was announced that Woods  had become officially divorced from wife Elin Nordgren, putting that part of his life behind him and maybe leaving him better able to focus on golf.

Now comes the hard part for Pavin who will announce his selections September 7th. Woods has not played well at all the last couple of months and hasn’t won a tournament in nine starts this year, but he is still the number one ranked player in the world.  Can he leave him off the team?

This week a friend of mine brought up the question of pressure being put on Pavin to select Woods.  How much pressure might he be getting from the PGA?  Or what about NBC which will televise the event?  Ratings are always higher when Tiger’s in the field and they’d probably be through the roof this time around for no other reason than to see what will happen.

Would the fans in Wales be particularly harsh in their cries from the crowd?  Would Tiger rise to the occasion and lead the US to a surprising victory or would he be a divisive force and a mess on the golf course for his team?

Fans will watch just like they slow down for a wreck.  While it may not be the best for the team, it could end up being great theatre.

A fond farewell to Sweet Lou

Lou Piniella bid a tearful farewell to baseball Sunday afternoon after spending over 41 years in a major league baseball uniform.  He’ll likely end up in the Hall of Fame for his managerial career, but I'd like to look back on the player he was.

He first broke into the majors with one at bat with Baltimore in 1964 when he was 21.  But it wasn't until five years later he came to the show to stay with the Kansas City Royals, after being acquired in a trade just days before the opening of the 1969 season.  Kansas City was an expansion club in their first year at the time and Lou was a rookie who was plugged into the lineup in centerfield on opening day and as the Royals first hitter, doubled.  He went 4 for 5 that day and was an instant star in KC.  He won the A.L. Rookie of the Year award hitting .282 that year.

Four seasons later he was traded to the Yankees where he became a contributor in their lineup for more than a decade, playing on five playoff teams and two World Series champs.  He hit .313 in four World Series with 10 RBI’s in 72 at bats.  He was old school.  What you call a professional hitter, with a .291 lifetime average and seven .300 seasons.  But what I liked about him the most was he hated to lose and he gave the game his all, despite not having great speed or talent.

That didn’t change when he became a manager.  He was temperamental, combative with players at times, but he won.  Eight times his teams won over 90 games.  He won a World Series in his first year with Cincinnati.  His Mariners team in 2001 won 116 games.  Can you imagine that today?

He managed for 23 years, won three manager of the year awards and is one of just two men to amass over 1700 hits as a player and 1700 wins as a manger.  Joe Torre’s the other.  He’s a Hall of Famer in my book.  He gets there for his managing, but I loved him as a player.

Clemens mess won't accomplish anything

So Roger Clemens has been indicted for perjury by the feds for making false statements to Congress.  The move comes two and a half years after he testified under oath at a hearing before the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and directly contradicted trainer Brian McNamee over whether Clemens had used banned substances.  A hearing he asked for.

It’s a sad point in a great players lifetime, but what does it accomplish?

He’s been defiant to this point so it’s doubtful he’ll plea bargain.  We’ll likely see a trial and who knows what the outcome will be.

Congressmen will gives speeches over the fact they are taking a stand on stopping drug use.  Oh really?  Then why haven’t we stepped up enforcement along our borders to stop the drug cartels?  Why aren’t we destroying all of the poppy fields we find in Afghanistan?  Why aren’t we funding more cops on the streets?  Because that’s taking real action.  This is just grandstanding.  Elections are coming up.  Need I say more.

You think popping another ballplayer for lying about performance enhancing drugs is going to put a stop to it? 

I’m not condoning drug use in sports, but this going after the big names and leaving the rest who used PED’s unscathed does nothing other than tarnish a man’s reputation.  No matter what occurs going forward, a vast majority of fans will assume Clemens is guilty.  Guilty of lying and guilty of taking PED’s.  He’s been branded for life.

I can tell you from personal experience that Clemens was always one of the hardest workers in the game and followed the type of conditioning program Nolan Ryan did.  That doesn’t mean he didn’t use PED’s, but no one ever accused Ryan and he was still pitching effectively at 46.

I’m not covering my eyes and denying many players have used PED’s, they have.  But what is dragging these guys in front of Congress years later to talk about their playing days doing to help curtail use today?  Absolutely nothing.  That’s what bothers me.  

We’ll all make our own judgements about Clemens, Barry Bonds and Sammy Sosa who are up for vote to the Hall of Fame in 2013.  They’re not the first guys to ever cheat in the game, but it looks like it’s going to be an empty class three years from now.   

BYU the Fighting Irish of the west?

Just a month ago, college football was on the verge of monumental upheaval.  Instead, there was an earthquake, but not massive damage.  The Big 12 survived with a flesh wound and it appeared all would settle down until next summer.

Then word came out Wednesday that BYU was looking to become a football independent and would leave the Mountain West Conference.  Suddenly the ground began shifting again.  While this isn’t a seismic shift, it does indicate how fragile college football’s footing is.  

If the Cougars become an independent in football and move back to the WAC for all other sports, suddenly the Mountain West could fold.  Boise State is said to be ready to back out of joining the Mountain West and come back to the WAC.

Just a month ago, BYU thought they might get invited to join the Pac-10.  Instead, Utah got the offer, but the Mountain West was still on the verge of possibly becoming a BCS conference if the Big 12 had folded. 

In short order the Mountain West could be totally irrelevant while BYU tries to become the Notre Dame of the west with their own TV network.  Something they can easily do considering the Morman church, which owns the school, already has BYU-TV and it is set to go HD, making it possible to expand their brand as an independent and make much more than the $1.5 million in TV rights they’d get in the Mountain West.

The Cougars won’t likely get the preferred path to BCS bowl games that Notre Dame gets, but it looks like they’ve made the decision it’s worth the risk to go it alone.