The Bleacher Seat

Fed Up

2004-03-17T10:05:00.000-08:00

ESPN's Buster Olney interviews an anonymous baseball player on the issue of steroids for an article that will appear in ESPN the Magazine. I can't quote any text of the article because ESPN appears to have disabled the reader's ability to copy text, but it is well worth your read.

Inside Selection Sunday

2004-03-11T10:01:00.000-08:00

Athlon Sports takes a peek at the NCAA basketball tournament selection process.

"The Committee meets officially on the Monday prior to Selection Sunday. At this meeting, the first item of business is the “Nitty Gritty” report. This report is an alphabetical list of the top 105 RPI-ranked teams with the following statistical splits included:

- Division-I record
- Overall RPI
- Conference record
- Non-Conference record
- Conference RPI
- Non-Conference RPI
- Road record
- Record in last 10 games
- Record vs. teams ranked 1-50 in the RPI
- Record vs. teams ranked 51-100 in the RPI
- Record vs. teams ranked 101-200 in the RPI
- Record vs. teams ranked 200+ in the RPI
- Record vs. “board teams” (i.e. teams under tournament consideration)

Though individual Committee members are in touch throughout the week, the next official meeting is on the Thursday (March 11, 2004) prior to Selection Sunday. Prior to 8 p.m. on Thursday, the first and second ballots are due to the chairman.

On Ballot No. 1, each Committee member must identify no more than 34 teams deserving at-large bids. This may include teams that could eventually qualify automatically by winning their respective conference tournament. On Ballot No. 2, each member must identify all other teams deserving consideration for at-large berths. Any team that has already earned an automatic bid is not included on either ballot.

Once the first round of balloting has taken place, there are two boards kept for the duration of the process, the “At-Large” board and the “At-Large Nomination” board.

Any school named on all but two ballots of eligible voters (members are not allowed to vote for their own team) will then be automatically placed on the “At-Large” board, securing their place in the field of 34, at least for the time being. The “At-Large Nomination” board is a compilation of all teams that garnered at least one vote for the “At-Large” board as well as any team that won or shared their conference’s regular season title. After this step, the “At-Large Nomination” board is technically closed. The only way a team can be added is by receiving three or more votes from committee members."

Missing You

2004-03-11T05:57:00.000-08:00

It's a few minutes before the NHL announces what suspension Todd Bertuzzi will receive for his savage hit on Steve Moore a few days ago. Pondering the future of Bertuzzi and the NHL, USA Today's Christine Brennan weighs in.

"Who among us would notice if, this autumn, we found ourselves surveying a sports landscape without major league hockey? And how many of us would complain? Certainly not the thousands of parents and coaches who try to teach this wonderful game to kids and find themselves cringing every time another so-called superstar threatens to ruin a season's worth of sportsmanship lessons with one brutish outburst.

... there always has been room in the NHL for violence, and there always will be — unless the league decides it wants to suspend Bertuzzi for the rest of this season and the upcoming playoffs as well as all of next season (whenever next season is for the NHL). I'd say suspend him for the rest of his career, but only normal people lose their jobs over something like this, not professional athletes."

Maris*

2004-03-09T06:37:00.000-08:00

Allen Barra has an essay in the Wall Street Journal on the asterisk that never was in baseball records. [Hat Tip: Sports Law Blog].

"... so the talk of steroid use and how it should affect Bonds's breaking the single-season home-run record in 2001 has brought one of baseball's most enduring myths full circle. There never was an asterisk next to Roger Maris's name nor a record book to enter it in. Commissioner [Fay] Vincent couldn't remove Maris's asterisk because it never existed.

How did the myth of the asterisk come into being? Apparently it was born in 1961, a combination of the efforts of then-Commissioner Ford Frick and the controversy-making New York Daily News sports columnist Dick Young. Frick was one of Babe Ruth's closest friends and considered himself a personal guardian of the Babe's legend. In mid-July of 1961, when Maris and teammate Mickey Mantle were threatening Ruth's 1927 record of 60 home runs, Frick, fearing that the American League's new 162-game schedule would give someone an unfair advantage, called a press conference and announced, 'If the player does not hit more than 60 until after his club has played 154 games, there would have to be some distinctive mark in the records to show that Babe Ruth's record was set under a 154-game schedule.'"

Facts and Hysteria

2004-03-05T13:40:00.000-08:00

Dan LeBatard of the Miami Herald only had to write about 100 words for this column but it turned out to be one of the more interesting pieces I've read in awhile. (It has few words because he extensively quotes Dr. Norman Fost of the University of Wisconsin who has studied steroids for decades).

"'People become emotional and make up medical facts to support their view,'' says Fost, professor of pediatrics and director of Wisconsin's program in medical ethics. 'Good ethics start with good facts, and there are so many bad `facts' out there on steroids. Liver cancer? There's no evidence I can find anywhere to support you can get liver cancer from steroids. Injectibles don't even go to the liver or gut. And yet I see it repeated over and over again in news accounts, a photocopied paragraph borrowed from previous news accounts linking it to liver cancer. It's laziness. It shouldn't be repeated. It's not true. No doctor says it is.''

But, um . . .

''Even avid steroid opponents admit there has been great exaggeration and distortion of the risks,'' says Fost, who has been writing about steroids in medical journals for more than two decades. `But the sports media's coverage of this is uncritical, repetitious, clichéd, reluctant and repeatedly distorting of risk and harm.'

''I really don't understand the media's role in creating this kind of hysteria about steroids,'' Fost says. `There's Lyle Alzado dying on the cover of Sports Illustrated and in The New York Times with a this-is-what-happens-on-steroids headline. It's just not true. He had brain cancer. There is no empirical link between steroids and brain cancer. It's just not true.'''

The Price of Infamy

2004-03-05T07:18:00.000-08:00

Steve Hummer of the Atlanta Journal Constitution on the mess in the Georgia basketball program.

"The "test" is sure to be passed around the SEC, as well as certain areas of North Avenue. It is the stuff that cheers opponents' hearts as well as confirms -- in their minds -- an obviously superior intellect. This one will go down in Jan Kemp-type infamy, a slur that will be revisited upon Georgia and its athletes for years to come.

As for Georgia, the institution, it can only stand there with head bowed and take it. Who can blame it for rolling over in this matter? What other choice did it really have -- go to the mattresses for Harrick's credibility? That would be like taking up a defense for Kid Rock's fashion sense.

If all Georgia needs to do is answer these old charges -- if nothing new is flopping around on the deck of the NCAA dredge -- then it can count itself fortunate. For having a president who had the bad sense to ally himself with Harrick and for allowing coaches to give academic credits to players, a little humble contrition and decades of merciless teasing are a small price."

Reader Email on Wiley/Bonds

2004-03-05T07:16:00.000-08:00

"I don't like Barry Bonds. Never have, never will. It has nothing to do with him being black, or whether or not he's juicing; it has to do with the fact that he's a jerk. Yes, being in the public eye and having to deal with all the attention and scrutiny that he has to is no doubt stressful. In my opinion, none of that excuses how Bonds deals with his team-mates or baseball fans. Bonds is an amazing talent, with a hitters eye and a knack for waiting for the one slip up he knows is coming. He'd be a HOF candidate whether or not he passes Ruth. Reducing the whole thing to some stupid notion of racial jealousy or deification of Ruth is lazy and oversimplified. I like some of Wiley's columns, but that's a theme that shows up far too often."

Absolutely.

Missing the Point

2004-03-04T10:47:00.000-08:00

Ralph Wiley of ESPN's Page2 has a knack for shifting any criticism of a black athlete into some form of veiled racism presumably, in this case, because white America is so angered with Barry Bonds and his baseball talents that we conspiratorily invent an "issue" to discredit him.

That's the essence of this piece by Wiley on steroids, Bonds, baseball and America's struggling sociological maturity (according to Wiley).

"But isn't Barry Bonds out there every year, year after year, performing at the highest level? Where's Jose Canseco? Where is Ken Caminiti? Where is Brady Anderson? Where is Mark McGwire? Isn't that strange, for a man abusing even so much as food, or alcohol, or tobacco, or illegal pharmaceuticals, or certain other alkaloids, to have such longevity? Is Barry Bonds, by all accounts an egotistical sort, secretly sneaking around washing down monster steroids with water from the Fountain of Youth?"

So, because Bonds is still playing, he must not have ever taken steroids - he'd be physically worn down by now. So the fact that he continues to play casts doubt on his alleged steroid use. Uh-huh. Baloney. The fact that Bonds is still playing does not prove or disprove steroid use.

"This frenzy, this 'Roid Outrage -- and that would include investigations and any political currency shrewdly gained by the current crop of politicans -- seems to me to be rather curiously timed to Barry Bonds being on the cusp of breaking the home-run records of the most iconic figure(s) in all of American baseball history."

Does Wiley really believe that the Federal investigation of BALCO Labs - the catalyst of the "'Roid Outrage" - is the product of some deep-seeded conspiracy diabolically timed to thrwart Bonds' pursuit of Aaron's homerun record? Does he honestly think that's what this is?

"What Barry Bonds has done is show great merit in the game. Unfortunately, when you are what is called "black," that can be inconvenient; often when you show merit, the rules on merit are changed to make them more obtuse.... All of a sudden, all the pure-number guys, the sabermetricians, are just like everybody else, going off emotion, feel -- they plain don't like Barry Bonds."

Wiley needs to do a little more homework. The "pure-numbers guys" (as if there is an inherent flaw in seeking empirical data on baseball performance) usually stand in awe of Bonds. There is nothing but respect for Bonds' numbers. And most lists of the greatest players of all-time that I have seen usually include Bonds.

Wiley takes a few more racial cheap shots like this one:
"... but sometimes I get the feeling some sports fans would like it better if all of sports history was rather like an episode of 'Friends.'"

I wish Wiley would just write what he's really thinking. He's thinking "racism", he's so consumed in defending Bonds from what he perceives as America out to get the black man that he completely dismissed the issue at hand. Bonds may be innocent. Wiley doesn't know that, I don't know that. But there is cirsumstantial evidence that is causing plenty of fair minded people to begin asking tough questions. This is about baseball and competition, not necessarily about any one player. But to Wiley it's all about race. No other dynamic is in play. To Wiley no other facts matter.

Wiley never addresses the core issue. Does he believe that Bonds took steroids? It seems to me as if Wiley is preemptively counterattacking the accusations with a series of "So what" responses. And if Bonds did take steroids, does Wiley believe that Bonds had an unfair advantage? Are his records at all tainted? And if steroids aren't all that helpful, why are so many athletes willing to take chances with the drugs and why are they so secretive about it?

This issue demands so many tough questions that it hacks me off to read people like Wiley who are so dismissive of the central dilemma and instead resort to making accusations about race and sports.

Casting a Shadow

2004-03-04T10:26:00.000-08:00

Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe vents some frustration over the steroids issue.

"Unfortunately, the ever-vigilant, ever-blind Major League Baseball Players Association will protect its membership with typical intransigent rage. Citing players' rights and players' privacy, the union will insist on protecting the members from exposure. It will do so until a couple of players die (anybody remember Lyle Alzado?). And then probably keep doing it. In the name of players' rights and privacy. Safety be damned.

And so baseball's absolute joke of a steroid policy (get caught five times and you're in trouble, buster) will remain toothless. And the game and its records will be suspect. It'll be open season on baseball. Why will newspapers and television stations continue to cover this sport? How is it now any different from professional wrestling? We don't know who's cheating and who's not cheating. So until otherwise proven, we can only assume they are all cheating. After all, it's on record that 5-7 percent of major leaguers were caught last year, and they knew they were going to be tested."

Drastic Action

2004-03-03T06:19:00.000-08:00

Mark Purdy, of the San Jose Mercury News, is in favor of immediate action in the wake of the rising scandal in baseball over steroids.

"This is what Selig needs to do: He should immediately suspend the likes of Bonds, Giambi, Gary Sheffield, Benito Santiago and any other major leaguers named in the Balco documents.

Selig shouldn't stop their paychecks. But he has to keep them off the playing field until baseball conducts its own investigation into the Balco case -- or until prosecutors release all of the investigative information and grand jury testimony, so we know precisely which players are accused of doing what. An independent investigation by baseball would sift through the mess.

Selig should also convene a panel -- Hall of Famers, baseball historians, current players --to formulate a pre-emptive policy on the next thorny question: Should the records or honors achieved by Bonds or any other men be nullified, if it can be proved they were taking performance-enhancing drugs while attaining those records?

My personal opinion: If Bonds produced a record with dishonorable drug matter in his system, his records should be erased. Yes, that includes his 73 home runs of 2001. The same goes for the 40-40 season of confessed steroid consumer Jose Canseco. The same goes for Ken Caminiti's MVP award in 1996, produced while he admittedly used steroids."

Answering the Call

2004-03-02T06:13:00.000-08:00

The University of Georgia will not dispute four major violations alleged in its athletics department under the tenure of coach Jim Harrick, per the Atlanta Journal Constitution.

"The NCAA's 10-month investigation found four major violations:

- In the summer of 2001, former Bulldogs assistant coach Jim Harrick Jr. provided $300 in a wire transfer payment to Eva Davis, a friend of former player Tony Cole, for Cole's expenses.

- Harrick Jr. "failed to deport himself with the generally recognized high standards normally associated with the conduct and administration of intercollegiate athletics and violated the NCAA principles of ethical conduct for his involvement in Allegation No. 1."

- During the fall semester of 2001-02, Harrick Jr. fraudulently awarded grades of "A" to three men's basketball players in a basketball course he taught.

- In December 2001, the school permitted six players to receive extra benefits by making $1,572.66 worth of personal long-distance telephone calls from team hotels."

These aren't minor infractions and will likely result in probation and loss of scholarships at UGA. Coach Dennis Felton has his hands full.

The Ante is Increased

2004-03-02T05:58:00.000-08:00

Per the San Fran Chronicle, Barry Bonds received steroids.

Also implicated were Jason Giambi and Gary Sheffield, whose attorney did not exactly blanketly deny that Sheffield used steroids.

"Sheffield's attorney Paula Canny said, 'Gary Sheffield has never knowingly ingested a steroid ... and Gary Sheffield has never knowingly applied an anabolic steroid cream to his body.'"

Knowingly is the key word, obviously. So apparently, it is possible that Sheffield used steroids, but will claim he didn't know he was given and was ingesting a banned substance. I don't buy that at all.

Sea Change

2004-02-27T05:45:00.000-08:00

Thomas Boswell, of the Washington Post, on the perception of guilt and innocence in the sports world.

"For at least the last 10 years, sports have simply gone too far in almost every way. Too many behaviors -- from ostentatious living to drug abuse to selfish play to disrespect for paying fans to widespread cheating with steroids -- have gone on for too long. Now we're seeing the backlash. Some who are innocent will be caught up in it. Dusty Baker, who has managed both Bonds and Sammy Sosa, says, "This is like the McCarthyism of sports." The Cubs manager has a valid point. These are days when we have to hold especially tight to the presumption of innocence.

But there's an opposite and equally valid side of the coin, too. Those in sports who want to run on the edge -- of cheating, of breaking the law or doing violence to others -- should consider themselves warned. There has been a sea change. Those who ignore it do so at their own risk."

Southern Brawl

2004-02-26T19:45:00.000-08:00

Tennessee and Alabama have both been in their share of NCAA trouble in recent years. And like any two good rivals, they are starting to blame each other for their transgressions (at least Bama is). ESPN, who was front and center into the investigations of academic fraud at Tennessee (which, though there were problems on Rocky Top, were grossly exaggerated, a conclusion I am confident in making as I worked in Office of Student Life at UT at the time of the controversy) is reporting on the Phil Fulmer connection with the NCAA investigation of Alabama.

"Thomas Gallion, a Montgomery, Ala., attorney who represents disgraced former Tide assistant coaches Ronnie Cottrell and Ivy Williams, has for months been telling anyone who would listen that the NCAA sacrificed its principles and ignored violations at Tennessee in a desperate attempt to nail Alabama. Outside of SEC country, his rants were widely ignored.

Then in January, he opened his file. Among the documents he had gathered were interview summaries by NCAA investigator Rich Johanningmeier, who was using Tennessee coach Phillip Fulmer as an informant against Alabama at the same time Tennessee was under NCAA scrutiny for alleged academic fraud.

Fulmer was an investigator's dream. In his first interview with Johanningmeier, he fingered Memphis businessman Logan Young as someone who had been paying for players dating back to the era of Paul "Bear" Bryant. He provided leads and phone numbers. He invited to the meeting three of his assistant coaches, who offered even more leads. That interview was on March 9, 2000. On March 20, less than two weeks later, the NCAA announced that Tennessee had been cleared in its academic probe."

It probably was not proper for the NCAA to speak with Fulmer about Alabama at the time that UT was being investigated, but then again UT and Fulmer and every other NCAA school has a duty to confront violations committed by another school. Maybe Fulmer should have first confronted Alabama without talking to the NCAA (which he may have done for all we know), and tried to apply some good old fashioned peer pressure. But, that doesn't change whether or not Alabama was or should have been in trouble with the NCAA. The timing is odd (the NCAA exonerated UT two weeks after Fulmer met with the NCAA about Bama), but I find it extremely hard to believe that the NCAA ever entered into any sort of quid pro quo with Fulmer. I just do not believe that allegation.

Cleaning up Baylor

2004-02-26T19:35:00.000-08:00

Baylor University officially released its internal investigation of violations in the men's basketball program. The school has been very impressive in dealing with its issues very directly and professionally. It's not easy to deal with severe NCAA violations (which these are), much less with the murder of a player by another player. Again, I'm rooting for the Bears this year. The kids that stuck it out there and the school should be commended for dealing with a tough year as well as they have.

"A report prepared by a school-appointed committee found evidence that former coach Dave Bliss paid the tuition for two players, including slain player Patrick Dennehy, during the 2002-03 season and the program did not report some players' failed drug tests ...

Among other NCAA infractions found, members of Bliss's coaching staff made and arranged for meals, transportation, lodging and clothing for more than one student athlete or prospective athlete ... Coaches also improperly paid tuition and fees to another institution on behalf of a prospective student prior to the player's enrollment at Baylor ..."

Oprah to feature the Marcus Dixon Story

2004-02-25T10:41:00.000-08:00

Thursday.

European Hoop Dreams

2004-02-23T11:20:00.000-08:00

The college basketball world was abuzz last week when Florida's Christian Drejier left the Gators to sign a pro contract in Europe. Several coaches publicly called into question the lack of any NCAA rules addressing such a mid-season possibility. Tony Barnhart of the Atlanta Journal Constitution offers this thought:

"First: European coaches would suggest that the American coaches have been raiding their talent for years with promises of riches after attending college in the United States. Don't expect a whole lot of sympathy elsewhere in the world.

Second: The NCAA has enough problems with accusations of overstepping its authority. It cannot make a rule that tells a player from another country whom he can talk to, whom his parents can talk to, and for how long he is bound to a school.

Coaches must understand what they are getting when they recruit European players and proceed with caution."

"A Reason to Smile and Laugh"

2004-02-22T18:00:00.000-08:00

The Ft. Worth Star Telegram has a wonderful piece on what baseball means to the people of the Dominican Republic.

"Baseball means more than money to Dominicans, though. It is a passion, truly a national pastime. Everywhere one looks, children are playing baseball -- on grassy fields, in streets, on actual baseball diamonds, in parking lots. Those without money for equipment play bare-handed with broomsticks for bats and tennis balls, or even dolls' heads, in place of baseballs.

Fans flock to games of the six Dominican teams in the Winter League, which begins about a week after the World Series and concludes with the champion earning a berth in the Caribbean World Series.

The stadiums are smaller than those of major league clubs. But the atmosphere, particularly for a game between rivals such as Los Tigres del Licey from Santo Domingo and Las Aguilas of Santiago, is that of an October playoff game, albeit one with a distinctly Latin flavor.

Salsa, merengue and bachata music blares from loudspeakers. Teen-age cheerleaders dance atop the dugouts between innings. Fans blow whistles, wave flags and cheer loudly, even during a nearly two-hour rain delay for an Licey-Aguilas game at Estadio Quisqueya in Santo Domingo. Children who can't afford to buy a ticket from a scalper sit perched on a concrete wall just beyond right field to watch."

There was also this interesting fact:

"Nearly 10 percent of major league players on Opening Day 2003 (79 of 827) -- and 23.2 percent of minor leaguers -- were born in the Dominican Republic, a nation with 8.7 million residents."

Anatomy of an Infractions Case

2004-02-22T17:44:00.000-08:00

Auburn University is currently under NCAA investigation for potential violations in its athletics department. The Washington Post elaborates on the process.

"Meeting six times a year at various sites around the country, the infractions committee hears the cases of schools accused of rules violations, deliberates and issues a verdict and usually a penalty in a lengthy public report three months later.

An aura of secrecy usually shrouds a hearing to protect the confidentiality and integrity of the process from outside influences. A hotel receptionist, asked the day before Auburn's hearing when the NCAA meeting would begin, said no such meeting was scheduled.

The room's setup is determined by precise requirements, such as the three-foot distance between the committee's table and where the university representatives sit. During the hearing, the committee reviews each allegation and both sides -- the enforcement staff and the university -- state their case.

The NCAA is often considered a toothless organization because it does not have subpoena power. Documents that support allegations are key when the enforcement staff puts together a case. For a violation to be proven, evidence must be "credible, persuasive and of a kind on which reasonably prudent persons rely in the conduct of serious affairs," NCAA bylaws state."

A Brief Retrospective

2004-02-22T17:34:00.000-08:00

This article on Vanderbilt's athletics department restructuring originally appeared in the Chicago Tribune last week (which requires registration) and was picked up here by the San Jose Mercury News. The article simply catches up with how things are going in Nashville since the rest of the college athletics world marked the end of civilization and college athletics as we know it with Vanderbilt's abolishment of its athletics department as a separate, distinct entity. What is remarkable about the change is both ordinary and promising. Ordinary in that practices continue and the normal hum of intercollegiate athletics continues unchanged. Promising in that VU is contemplating ideas in its athletic department that are - let's just say, unusual - in college athletics. Writer Bonnie Desimone picks up the story from here.

"But there is a promise of something more - a promise that Vanderbilt athletes, who already graduate in larger numbers than most Division I jocks, will have a less isolated, more well-rounded college experience. Radical concepts are being floated: athletes participating in foreign exchange programs or student government; athletes going directly to grad school rather than delaying because they weren't encouraged to take enough required classes or entrance exams.

On the academic side, Williams has asked several coaches to propose sites for foreign study where the teams could play but also attend lectures and programs with non-athletes. Vanderbilt pathology professor Virginia Shepherd, co-chair of the national Coalition on Intercollegiate Athletics, hopes things will become more workable for student-athletes with the highest academic aspirations."

And, for the record, both men's and women's basketball teams are on track for NCAA tourney births, the baseball team is picked to participate in postseason play, and the men's and women's tennis teams are nationally ranked. While intercollegiate athletics continues to be wrecked with stories like are coming to light at Colorado, administrators at Vanderbilt quietly carry out their radical idea.

A Basketball Pioneer

2004-02-20T06:42:00.000-08:00

Saturday evening, Vanderbilt University will retire the #25 jersey number of Perry Wallace, the first black basketball player in the SEC. Wallace, now a law professor, was an exceptional player as well as being a courageous pioneer. This accolade is long overdue. The local Tennessean profiles Wallace.

"Wallace moved to [Vanderbilt] with a strong, firm plan for how to conduct himself, culled from stories of Jackie Robinson and other civil rights groundbreakers. 'Willing to take insults, willing to be in tense situations and not react precipitously, demonstrate competence and trustworthiness, be a worthy American,'' he said. ''That was kind of the strategy and I never broke out of it.

''I think it was discipline, I think it was intuition, I think it was a good fix on the hard-core reality. I guess I remembered some black folks who acted precipitously in the face of racism. Most of them I never saw again. It was painfully clear the consequences of reacting. It was built in. That's what a regime like segregation in the South did to people, it made things topsy-turvy.''"

Also, USA Today has a story on Wallace and the VU students who led the move to honor him.

"What Wallace is particularly proud of is that Vanderbilt students have led the drive for the recognition. Three students — Zach Thomas, Sara Ruby and Justin Wood — put together a 30-minute documentary on Wallace last spring as a class assignment.
Prompted by professor Richard Pride to take the documentary idea to another level, Thomas says, they pushed for the jersey retirement in meetings with school administrators, who were receptive."

Race and the NBA

2004-02-10T18:43:00.000-08:00

Fascinating story in the Philly Inquirer by Stephen Smith on how black NBA players interact differently with white and black head coaches. Essentially the story lays the failure of many black head coaches at the feet of black players who, according to the column, "circumvent the coach's authority and exploit it at their discretion."

"The truth hurts, especially when the sting is personal. It's never fun to paint a group with a broad brush, to attach deplorable behavior to the backs of many with whom one may share a cultural identity. But how many African American coaches must have their abilities lambasted, their careers placed in peril, before someone starts noticing the primary cause for their travails? It's the black athlete."

Smith does not explicitly blame white coaches or white execs for the strained relationship between black players and black head coaches. However, Smith does implicitly point to an uneven distribution of power and money in the coaching ranks towards white head coaches (Phil Jackson, Jeff Van Gundy) who therefore command more respect from all players. Thus the fact that black head coaches, as a group, earn less and have less power than their white counterparts enables black athletes to essentially show lower levels of respect (and presumably effort) to them.

"... most white coaches get paid more. Most are blessed with more influence and power than their black counterparts. And, whether it's real or not, that perception is usually enough to keep athletes alert and on point, subconsciously reminding them of their responsibilities without the coaches' uttering a word."

"The players pontificate about why more of their own are not in positions of power but neglect to look in the mirror."

Smith does not examine why white coaches tend to garner more power and money than do black coaches. In many ways, it is a separate issue, though still an important one. Regardless, it is a fascinating sociological observation, supported by quotes from at least one black NBA player, that black players will respond to a coach only when he exhibits greater power and wealth. It is Smith's contention that black players do not respond as well to black coaches, presumably performing poorer, presumably causing teams coached by black players to lose more games and thus lose their coaching jobs quicker, presumably diminishing the reputation of black head coaches, presumably creating reasons for execs and owners not to bestow greater power and wealth on black head coaches, thus feeding the cycle. (Sorry for all the presumablys)

Sounds like a ready-made ESPN Outside the Lines special. I hope the substance of Smith's column gets more attention, because it is an intriguing observation.

Recovery

2004-02-10T10:47:00.000-08:00

Mike Lopresti writes in USA Today on the "Hard Road Back from Disgrace." Scandals have rocked the basketball programs at Georgia, Baylor, St. Bonaventure and St. John's (among others this past year), and the recovery is long and painful.

"We come today to issue a status report on college basketball's disaster areas. Places where scandal has ransacked the roster, and the survivors are left to cope, long after the confessional press conferences are over and the television cameras have gone home...."

A Numbers Guy

2004-02-10T10:39:00.000-08:00

The American Enterprise Institute's David Damiani on the "underground baseball culture" that gave rise to sabermetrics. (Hat tip: Baseball Musings)

"Sabermetrics are a threat to many of baseball’s long-standing party lines, such as issuing paeans to those who “manufacture” runs (giving up outs to advance runners); dismissing “one-dimensional” players who walk frequently and hit for power; focusing on errors rather than range in judging fielders; and emphasizing wins and saves as the best measures of pitching performance. As a result, the sabermetric teams and their leaders--all successful on the field in recent years--are open to an endless barrage of media criticism.

What’s more, the fact that fans are leading the way in a revolution of baseball thought directly challenges many Fourth Estate elitists’ perception of fans as idiots. Doling out simplistic explanations of teams’ performance, pontificating about alleged fan misbehavior or willing-executioner support of athlete transgressions, and challenging fans to name more than five players on a team are the modi operandi of far too many sportswriters. The idea of thinking fans so befuddles them that they take opportunities to stereotype sabermetricians--not just Beane, but the fans themselves, as antisocial eggheads who threaten baseball’s mystique."

Taking His Time

2004-02-10T10:32:00.000-08:00

Mark Bradley of the AJC is asking questions about the Tar Heels less than excellent start under Roy Williams.

"What if the problem wasn't Mad Matt's temperament but his players' lack of spine? Did genteel Carolina act too soon in shoving a good guy -- and a loyal Heel -- aside?

... it isn't as if Ol' Roy is lacking assets. He has a big-time guard in Raymond Felton, a big-time wing in Rashad McCants, a big-time center in Sean May. He has, in sum, a better starting five than Kansas had last season, when Ol' Roy nearly won his long-sought national championship, but Ol' Roy hasn't figured out what to do with these Heels just yet."

Baylor Coping

2004-01-28T09:36:00.000-08:00

Back when the basketball program at Baylor was at its lowest point following the tragic events of the Brian Dennehy murder, I said that Baylor was a team I'd be rooting for this basketball season. The players who stuck it out deserve all the luck and good fortune they can get. The Dallas Morning News reports on how Baylor is standing tall, despite being outmanned.

"Despite the lack of depth, coach Scott Drew's team has drawn rave reviews from opposing coaches. Baylor (6-11, 1-3 Big 12) pushed nationally ranked foes Texas, Texas Tech and Purdue without prominent Bears from last season's team.

Drew uses a 2-3 zone defense to disguise his team's lack of height and athleticism. A motion offense allows the Bears to work the shot clock, slowing the pace. That allows the Bears, in particular the six walk-ons, to be more effective."

Misinterpretation

2004-01-28T09:31:00.000-08:00

The Yankees and Aaron Boone appear to have a difference of opinion on what activities Boone's contract did and did not allow. Boone tore his ACL playing pick-up basketball and might be lost for the year. The Yankees might want to terminate his contract, but Boone and the Players Association thinks otherwise. USA Today takes it from there.

"Should the New York Yankees attempt to push Aaron Boone out the door, the Major League Players Association will shove back, claiming the team is not allowed to terminate his one-year, $5.75 million contract because he injured the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee in a pick-up basketball game nearly two weeks ago.

On Monday, Yankees general manager Brian Cashman said certain activities in Boone's contract were prohibited, "including basketball," but players' association spokesman Greg Bouris, after consulting Mike Weiner, associate general counsel for the union, said, "He is not in breach of his contract."

... the Yankees' far-reaching contract designates a myriad of banned physical activities, and specifically states 'pick-up basketball.'"

Bush, Baseball and Steroids

2004-01-23T14:23:00.000-08:00

Like me, you probably raised an eyebrow during Tuesday's State of the Union when the President called for pro sports leagues to end the use of steroids in their games. Personally, the plea made sense to me, considering Bush's background in and love of sports (previous owner of baseball's Texas Rangers).

The Dallas Morning News' Kevin Sherrington has some thoughts.

"Dismiss the impact of sports on society, if you like. Call it inconsequential, and surely it may seem like it when juxtaposed with the problems facing a world leader. But, whatever you think of his politics, Bush recognizes the potent impression that athletes make on our youth, and he's holding them accountable.

Charles Barkley once famously said he's not a role model. The president says he is. Like it or not, we all are, and even in the midst of greater issues, it's a point worth making."

What If They Won a World Series ....

2004-01-23T14:19:00.000-08:00

... And no one showed up to watch? The next season that is. The Florida Marlins are apparently having trouble selling 2004 season tickets, a perplexing problem for the Miami Herald's Dan Le Batard.

"President David Samson said Thursday his team hasn't sold even 5,000 season tickets yet. This is depressing, unfathomable, inexplicable, damning and probably without precedent in major American sports.

As a fan base, we continue to lead the league in awful. Our baseball team may be the best in the majors, but this town remains minor-league. You will not find a sports city in North America, not one, that would treat a defending baseball champion with this kind of yawn."

Time on My Hands and Back to Business

2004-01-23T13:52:00.000-08:00

Time has been a non-existent commodity lately. Apologies for my absence. On to stories...

Marcus Dixon, the high school senior serving a 10 year sentence for child molestation in Georgia in what many have characterized as an unfair verdict and punishment, has been in the news lately. The would be Vanderbilt Commodore has had his story highlighted in the New York Times and on CBS and NBC nightly news this past week. Yet, the one source that has consistently reported, quite adeptly and fairly, on the story since last year is VandySports.com, who covered Dixon's appeal before the Georgia Supreme Court this week.

A decision by the Court is due within six months of the hearing, though one is expected sooner. Here is one of the most interesting segment from the VandySports report.

Before [District Attorney] McClellan even reached the podium for his opening statement, one justice began her questioning. "Let me ask you this question before you even get started: Does the state contend that this defendant, if there had there been no injury, could have been charged with and convicted of child molestation?"

"Yes, your honor," replied McClellan. "There is nothing that would have prevented him from being charged with or convicted of child molestation."

"So, any time there is consensual sex between teenagers who fall within the right legal parameters there is the possibility that one or both could be charged with child molestation?"

"Yes, your honor," replied McClellan.

Continued the female justice, "Even if she were 15 and a half, and he were 16 and a half, you could have charged him with child molestation?" "There is absolutely nothing in the child molestation statue that would have restricted the state's rights to charge him with child molestation", replied McClellan.

Continued this justice, "So if a 17 year old is with a 15 and a half year old, or maybe she's two or three days away from turning 16, and they are petting, and the parents come in and find them, he could be charged with child molestation?" "Yes, your honor", said McClellan. The justice pressed further: "What if there is some pressure applied, and there are some bruises, he could receive 10 years?" "Yes, your honor. Under the way the current statute is written, he could."

Presidents and Fans

2004-01-18T12:57:00.000-08:00

Mark Bradley of the AJC, on the need for college presidents to act presidential.

"We assume too much when we assume that presidents are, by nature of their Ivory Tower occupancy, clever and selfless. Some are, yes. But presidents are people, too, and people, as we know, can be silly and shallow when it comes to sports.

Not every loss is a crisis. Not every disappointing season is cause to dismiss an honorable coach. Presidents err when they emulate those CEOs who seek to manage the stock price, as opposed to the company itself. August bodies like the Knight Commission insist that universities must have higher goals than to win games. How strange, then, to find that those positioned to be the highest-minded are often the biggest cheerleaders and front-runners on campus.

What's needed aren't presidents who act like fans. We have too many of those already. What's needed are presidents who act presidential."

Fallout at Auburn

2004-01-17T11:31:00.000-08:00

Auburn President William Walker has resigned, only 18 months into the job. Walker was involved in the controversial clandestine plane trip to recruit Louisville's head football coach as a replacement for Tommy Tuberville. From the Birmingham News:

"Walker, 66, was Auburn's provost in February 2001 when trustees removed William Muse and named Walker interim president. On June 3, 2002, trustees named Walker president with the understanding he would serve three years. But in the fall of 2003, trustees and Walker hinted he might serve indefinitely.

Also during the fall, Walker quietly began considering replacing Tuberville. Two days before the Alabama-Auburn football game, Walker, Athletics Director David Housel and Trustees Earlon McWhorter and Byron Franklin flew on a Colonial Bank airplane to consult with University of Louisville football coach Bobby Petrino, a former Auburn assistant, about the Auburn coaching job.

After the trip came to light and caused a public outcry, Walker apologized to Tuberville and accepted blame. He asserted his firm support for Housel, who has also faced a chorus of calls for his resignation."

A Tall Order

2004-01-15T11:35:00.000-08:00

Teenage golf sensation Michelle Wie will play in PGA's Sony Open this weekend. I'm rooting for her, but you've got to wonder how well she'll do as a 14 year old against men.

"The challenge for Wie will be to play her best golf, despite the pressure, despite the attention, despite her lofty expectations of making the cut. That is a lot to ask, no matter how good she is. But that is part of why so many people are eager to see how she performs against PGA players."

UPDATE: Congrats, Michelle, on a great weekend of golf. She just barely missed the cut in an impressive debut on the men's tour.

Unwrapping History

2004-01-11T20:09:00.000-08:00

A fascinating column by Pete Rose investigator John Dowd in Sunday's WaPo.

"Bart and I agreed on the fundamental points of such a resolution: Pete would have to reconfigure his life. He would have to stop betting. He would have to make a candid response to all of the hard evidence. He would have to explain his association with all of the characters in the betting operation. He would have to submit to, and complete, a full rehabilitation. During his rehabilitation, he would be removed from the game of baseball.

I had been advised by federal authorities that if Rose agreed to these terms, he would not be prosecuted for tax evasion but would have to pay all taxes, interest and penalties due. Upon successful completion of his rehabilitation, he would have been readmitted to the game of baseball and could receive all honors which come with achievement and good conduct. He would have been eligible, if chosen, for admission to the Hall of Fame.

I worked for a month with Pete's counsel. They tried but could not get Pete to admit the truth. They asked if I would meet with him alone and talk to him. They believed I could bring him around. Bart approved and I agreed to talk to Pete. But Pete's agent vetoed the meeting.

We were at complete loggerheads. Pete's criminal counsel wanted the resolution we were working on but his agent would not budge. Bart, then-deputy commissioner Fay Vincent and I met with Pete's agent. He told us that Pete was a legend and would not admit to any of the allegations. It was a short meeting."

Blogging the 20/20 Rose Interview

2004-01-08T19:50:00.000-08:00

Off the top of my head....

Rose: "I can’t answer the question of why I did it?"
You can't answer the question? Well, Pete, you need to come up with something for me. You can't dodge that question.

Rose: "It never altered the way I ran the game."
I don’t buy it. Maybe not consciously, maybe not willingly, but if you bet on your team sometimes and don’t bet on them in other games, and you want to win as bad as Rose did, then I don’t think you could help but have the fact that you had a bet down alter the way you ran a game as a manager. And even seemingly innocuous decisions that might seem aggressive and might be interpreted as a manager really wanting to win could be the ill-effects of a manager wagering on his team, such as leaving a pitcher in too long, pushing him harder, his health or the next pitching outing be damned.

Rose couldn’t get a response from baseball, he says. Sorry, but I don't think he deserved one until he came clean and admitted gambling on the game. Until that was done, no response was warranted.

Rose continues to deny that he bet from the clubhouse or that those were not his betting slips that the Dowd report uncovered. I don't know if that is true or not, but the Dowd report is convincing and detailed.

Rose managing again? No way. Absolutely not. Never. End of story.

"Understanding" a mistake is fine (as Rose put it), but it doesn't absolve him of responsibility. Plus he never said in the 20/20 interview that he was sorry he bet on baseball, that he was sorry for dragging baseball through what he did. He's right that he owes baseball and it doesn't owe him, but he owes us and the game an apology, full and unconditional and completely truthful.

Also, I was disappointed in the length and breadth of the Gibson/Rose interview. I was hoping for more.

Backfire

2004-01-08T19:36:00.000-08:00

This isn't exactly working out like Pete Rose thought it would. I don't appreciate him choosing the moment to hash this out the public and with baseball when two other legitimate HoFers should be having their great careers reflected on. I thought it would have been a nice gesture too, for Rose to announce that partial of full proceeds from his book would go to some worthy cause (Gamblers Annonymous would be a good start). Not that any such gesture would change my mind, but a little good will would have been nice.

Rose is not finding quite the reaction I think he had envisioned.

"For nearly 15 years, baseball has allowed Rose to position himself as a sympathetic martyr in the eyes of a huge segment of the public. Now, all of a sudden, he isn't looking so sympathetic. After years of living with all the calls and letters from fans urging Selig to bring the Hit King back into baseball, people in the commissioner's office say they've been stunned by the reversal of that tide in the last week. Since Monday, the anti-reinstatement calls and emails have vastly outnumbered the pro-Pete sentiment, they say."

He also hasn't totally convinced everyone that he is being fully truthful now. Joe Morgan doesn't fully believe him, and neither do I. Simply put, there are still plently of inconsistencies in Rose's statements, and that is a huge problem for him.

More Rose

2004-01-06T06:56:00.000-08:00

Thomas Boswell of the Washington Post, on Pete Rose.

"Baseball has only one cardinal rule. You can't gamble on the game. In any form. Ever. It's posted in every clubhouse. Everybody, down to the densest rookie, understands it. If you take drugs or become an alcoholic, that's entirely different. It's a personal problem. You deserve and get rehab. But if you gamble on the game -- let alone, good Lord, bet on the team you are managing -- you have stabbed a dagger into the heart of the game's competitive credibility. Yet Rose, in this damning attempt at rationalization, shows how the mind of an egotist and amoralist works. Rose set up a completely different code -- in his own mind -- so that he could get around the rules that apply to everybody else in baseball."

The distinction between the sins of drinking or drugs and the sin of gambling is extraordinarily important, and one that doesn't get enough respect from Rose apologists. Gambling on baseball destoys the game; there is no competition and no game. Finally admitting that he bet on baseball is an important first step for Rose and without it any discussion of the Hall of Fame or reinstatement is a non-starter without first admitting the obvious. Even the great Bill James will now have to entirely reevaluate his position on Pete Rose. But now that he has admitted gambling on the game, it is not suprising that a rather harsh backlash has appeared in response to Rose and his supporters for years accusing Dowd, Vincent and the rest of us of lying and conspiracy. Boswell is right that Pete owes those individuals specifically and us broadly a huge apology, not to be mistaken for the apology he owes fans and the game for his gambling.

The sentiment expressed by Boswell, Sheridan and others sure to come will be quite strong for a while. Pete deserves that, though and he better not complain. This is not a simple "say you're sorry and all is forgiven" thing AT ALL. And if Rose doesn't understand that, then any discussion of reinstatement of HoF will be much tougher.

For now, I appreciate Pete coming clean, as it appears he has. I will watch the interview closely Thursday and read the book closely and then I will reconsider my position on Rose. But for now I must say that my position that Rose does not belong in the HoF, but that his accomplishments should be celebrated and remembered in the halls of the museum, has not changed.

Save Your Receipts

2004-01-05T14:24:00.000-08:00

Danny Sheridan, in the Philly Inquirer, on Pete Rose.

"There are people who believe his on-field achievements, becoming baseball's all-time hit leader while playing the game as if it were a matter of life and death, earn him grace points against his transgressions. Really, it should be the opposite. It is precisely because Rose was such a great player, and such an enormously popular figure, that his damage to the game was so profound and lasting.

Let's say you could set aside the fact that Rose, while managing the Cincinnati Reds, bet on games involving his team. That's really quite a reach, but let's just say for a moment that you could. What about the damage he's done to the game over the last 14 years? What about all the lying? What about constantly positioning himself as a victim and detracting from major events such as All-Star Games and Hall of Fame inductions? What about the people who believed Rose and put their credibility on the line for him?

If gambling on baseball didn't warrant a lifetime ban - and it does - then all of Rose's actions over the last 14 years certainly should. He's bad for the game. As great as he was for the game at one time, he's that bad for it now."

Not everyone, including me, is ready to forgive Rose and accept him back with open arms.

Pete Rose

2004-01-05T07:01:00.000-08:00

By now you've probably heard that Pete Rose will admit in his soon to be released book and in a primetime interview this week that he did bet on baseball while managing the Reds. More on this later, but for now check out this column from Frank Luksa at the Dallas MN.

"Dowd said during a 1998 interview that if Rose had admitted the obvious, Giamatti "would have sat him down for two to five years." Rose instead stubbornly resisted, went on and on about how he had been banished by tainted testimony. He played to an adoring public that felt whatever his crime, it had been exceeded by ongoing punishment. The pro-Rose faction skipped the uncomfortable fact that Rose had committed the ultimate sin of jeopardizing the game's integrity."

Popular vs. Authoritative Rule

2003-12-30T14:40:00.000-08:00

The Weekly Standard on "Tocqueville and College Football" (Note that the author is a professor who created one of the computer rankings used in the BCS).

"The public outcry was loud and immediate: How dare the BCS leave out USC, thereby defying public opinion as registered by the media and coaches' polls? Perhaps most striking was the nearly complete absence of any attempt to defend the polls' judgments as correct. Their correctness was held to be self-evident. The consensus view, expressed on ABC's BCS selection show, ESPN's follow-up broadcast, and apparently in living rooms and barrooms across the nation (judging by emails I received), was something along the lines of, 'The polls have USC No. 1, yet the Trojans are not No. 1 in the BCS standings; therefore, the BCS standings are clearly wrong.' This recalls Tocqueville's comment that in America, 'the majority . . . lives in perpetual adoration of itself.'"

I agree completely and noted so a few weeks back.

"In their zeal for overthrowing a BCS system that does not unquestioningly embrace public opinion, fans are willing to leave behind their customary place at the altar of public opinion only if they are allowed to transport themselves to their other favorite altar, that of authoritative rule. Let's scrap the BCS system and create a "panel of experts" to determine results, they say. They'll know which teams to pick."

Interesting article. Anderson also argues that a playoff would diminish the drama of the regular season, a sentiment I wholeheatedly agree with.

Did anyone notice the Nike ad in last week's Sports Illustrated that had a three game, four team bracket with the Rose, Sugar and a hypothetical Jan. 10 championship game above the slogan "Just Do It"?

A Changing of the Guard in Kentucky

2003-12-30T10:23:00.000-08:00

Rick Pitino's Louisville Cardinals beat the Kentucky Wildcats for the second year in a row last weekend, infuriating Big Blue Nation who hate losing to their in-state rival ESPECIALLY when they are led by former UK coach Pitino. Do these games portend an era of dominance for UL over UK? Pat Forde of the Louisville Courier Journal dives right in.

"And what happens in the seasons beyond? Pitino doesn't figure to stop bringing in big-time talent — which means Smith had better resume doing the same to compete in the rivalry that fans talk about in this state every day of the year. Otherwise, we could have an unprecedented era of Louisville dominance over Kentucky. UofL has matched its longest series winning streak with UK at two, with strong signs that Pitino is just getting warmed up while Smith's talent base is in danger of drying up.

Perhaps that's why Smith's cheeks puffed out in a deep, defeated exhale as he walked off the court Saturday. He stared straight ahead — perhaps seeing a daunting vision of the future."

Pondering His Next Move

2003-12-30T10:15:00.000-08:00

The Washington Times' Tom Knott on Steve Spurrier.

"Spurrier has never been in the position of being a total, utter lemon. The development has overtaken his being. He is showing signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. He could use a good couch, a qualified therapist and a soft pillow in which to bury his head and sob. If he could bare his soul to the masses, the first word out of his mouth would be, "Help."

His form of motivation appears to be sympathy. He tugs on his cap. He scrunches up his face in pain and sorrow. If you look real hard, you can see the faint outline of a tear rolling down his cheek. At his best, as it has come to be, he has the droopy countenance of a sleepy-headed bloodhound bound to a porch on a lazy summer day. He looks miserable, as if some mysterious force has overtaken his body and left only pieces of his former self."

UPDATE: Well, I guess this settles it. So what's next for Spurrier, Nebraska?

MORE UPDATE: The WaPo quotes Spurrier as saying he has NOT resigned. Stay tuned.

Why the MLBPA Messed Up

2003-12-22T11:04:00.000-08:00

Doug's Business of Baseball Blog has this guest column by Shayna Sigman of the University of Minnesota Law School arguing against the MLBPA decision to intervene last week in the A-Rod trade.

"First, in a legal world that is reluctant to force unwilling employees to perform services they are contractually obligated to do, the MLBPA would have been acceding to the wishes of its own member, Alex Rodriguez, and permitting him to pursue the employment that he desires.

At the same time, revising the A-Rod contract is unlikely to harm the salary structure for the rest of the union membership. In the three years that have passed since A-Rod signed his ten year/$252 million contract, it has become clear that this contract was an aberration. It did not set the market for superstars (which continues to hover in the $15 million/yr range), and, therefore, revising it seems irrelevant to the going rate for major league players.

Last, in an era where fans increasingly despise the union and "greedy players" as much as they do "greedy owners," the MLBPA had a bona fide opportunity to demonstrate to the media and public at large that it is not an organization fixated solely on maximizing the amount of money that it can get for its own members at the cost of all else. And in this regard, the union failed miserably. There is being right, and, then, there is being right. Perhaps the MLBPA has won too much in the past to know what is truly right."

I agree completely.

The Evolution of the Game

2003-12-22T10:43:00.000-08:00

The Volokh Conspiracy spotted a trend in the whacky Saints/Jags ending Sunday. My rugby playing brother-in-law at Hampden-Sydney would be proud.

SEC Athletics

2003-12-22T10:13:00.000-08:00

With all the talk surrounding Mississippi St.'s hiring of Sylvester Croom, the conference's first black head football coach, the hiring of the first black athletics director in the conference's history occured with relatively little fanfare. Such was the introduction for Georgia's Damon Evans, who at 34 will lead one of the nation's finest athletics departments. The AJC introduced Evans last week.

"Evans will become the first African-American athletics director in the Southeastern Conference. According to the NCAA, there are black athletics directors at four other school that field Division I-A football teams -- Gene Smith at Arizona State, Herman Frazier at Hawaii, Craig Littlepage at Virginia and Mike Garrett at Southern California. Evans also becomes the youngest athletics director in the SEC, and he's the second-youngest ever hired in the conference. Bill Carr was 33 years old when he was named Florida's athletics director in 1979."

Evans will have to deal with an athletics department that is the classic model of a separate and distinct organization, within the university proper, that operates as a wholly independent entity. Generally, the UGA model is the structure that Vanderbilt Chancellor Gordon Gee railed against when introducing his restructured model in September. While general university funding in Georgia takes reductions and the academic core is threatened, the athletics programs have been on a spending spree.

"The [Athletic Association] operates the UGA athletic program, which has grown into a $45 million-a-year business, with little oversight from university officials or the state Board of Regents. The athletic board raises all its own money, sets its budget, pays all staff salaries, and decides when and where the program needs new facilities. When the association named a new campus building after a prominent athletic booster last year, the regents -- who own the building -- found out only when they received invitations to a dedication ceremony, university officials said."

The financial news that Adams broke to the athletic board in September was grim -- for academics. Already the university had lost about 12 percent of its state funding. About 1,100 vacant jobs had gone unfilled. Travel and equipment spending had been slashed. And faculty and staff members last received a pay raise in October 2002. More cuts, Adams said, were probably on the way. Then he sat in silence as Dooley launched his PowerPoint presentation. The 12 projects Dooley highlighted that day represent less than half the $81 million in construction at athletic facilities, including $64.3 million during the past five years.

... the $750,000 refurbishing of the trophy room -- officially the "football archives" -- would show potential Bulldogs how their achievements would be glorified, Dooley said. Toward that end, the association spent $13,291 on cases for individual awards, $23,347 on display columns, and $14,025 on mahogany-finished trophy pedestals. To commemorate the two Heisman Trophies won by UGA players, the association paid $5,500 to buy a replica of each."

Athletes and Sexual Assault

2003-12-22T06:34:00.000-08:00

USA Today has a fascinating piece on how athletes fare in our legal system when charged with sexual assault.

"... research of 168 sexual assault allegations against athletes in the past dozen years suggests sports figures fare better at trial than defendants from the general population. Of those 168 allegations, involving 164 athletes, only 22 saw their cases go to trial, and only six cases resulted in convictions. In another 46 cases, a plea agreement was reached. Combined with the six athletes convicted at trial and one who pleaded guilty as charged, that gives the athletes a 32% total conviction rate in the resolved cases. That means more than two-thirds were never charged, saw the charges dropped or were acquitted."

The Biggest Trade That Never Happened

2003-12-19T09:46:00.000-08:00

No, not the A-Rod, Manny swap of 2003, but the Teddy Ballgame, Joe D trade of 1947.

The Division III Model

2003-12-19T06:32:00.000-08:00

Kevin Blackistone of the Dallas Morning News continues his ten part series on Fixing College Sports with "Division III athletes, schools balance the books."

"Division III is a different world than Division I," said Fischer, who spent 25 years at New Mexico, where Dave Bliss coached for many years and where the faculty once voted to abolish athletics after a coach tried to get a player's grade changed. "It's partly not awarding athletic scholarships and that every student is admitted on the same basis. That's the starting point. We expect academically of our student-athletes what we expect of all our students.

"Maybe it's the pressure to win," Fischer said of Division I. "Maybe it's the money. But it seems inevitable that people start cutting corners [in Division I]. We don't do that. For us to be a model for any Division I school would be very difficult."

Reader Email

2003-12-19T06:28:00.000-08:00

On the University of Illinois' use of Chief Illiniwek:

"... because there are so many bad myths about blacks, Latinos and American Indians, any stereotype becomes a bad one as part of a slippery slope effect. So while there might be a few tribes who sanction such mascots -- like Florida State's relationship with a tribe there -- my guess is that in most cases, it goes over indifferently at best and negative at worse."

Shame on the MLBPA

2003-12-18T06:33:00.000-08:00

You know it's a big story when Sportscenter spends the first 15 minutes of its telecast on a baseball story in December. Heck, they don't spend that much time on hardly any story, much less a baseball story in December. But the A-Rod, Manny trade simply redefines the term blockbuster. The principle players want it to happen, the Rangers want it to happen, the Red Sox want it to happen, the city of Boston wants it to happen, I think Arlington wants it to happen. I'm a Cardinals fan, with no dog in this fight, and I'd like the trade to happen. It just makes too much darn sense, everyone seems to truly want it to happen.

Everyone that is, except the Players Association, which deserves our unbridled ridicule right now. I'll leave the particulars to Dan Shaughnessy of the Boston Globe and Baseball Musings.

And On the 8th Day ....

2003-12-17T12:36:00.000-08:00

Baseball Musings points to an interesting tidbit from the latest Rob Neyer column over at ESPN involving Pete Rose (it's at the bottom of the column). Rose and the baseball Hall of Fame were the subjects of one of my very first posts for this blog.

Misplaced Outrage

2003-12-17T11:25:00.000-08:00

The San Fran Chronicle's David Steele on the NFL, image and outrage.

"What happened in the NFL on Sunday caused yet another tear in the fabric of civilized society and made us all once again question our values, priorities and very way of life. The president of the Detroit Lions twice used a homophobic slur in an infantile eruption against an opposing player after a game. A Giants player three times compared his team's crushing loss to being raped.

But none of that seems to be raking the nerves of the nation's football followers. What has sent them over the edge, in print and on the air, is ... a player bringing a cell phone onto the field. Can we spare a little of the outrage directed at Joe Horn and divert it to Barrow and, especially, to Millen?"

At least the WaPo's Mike Wilbon has Millen in his crosshairs.

"Millen has to know better; he knew enough to quickly apologize Monday. He has been retired a dozen years now. I've known him for 15 years to be smart, circumspect and aware of public perception, dating from when he was a great player on great teams. But he's not a player anymore, he's a club executive representing not only the Lions but the NFL. He's the guy in charge of day-to-day football matters of a club that has been terrible since he arrived on the scene. Millen was already on thin ice because the Lions are 9-37 on his watch and on Sunday will almost certainly set a league record for consecutive road losses. That alone makes it defensible to fire him."

The Dividing Line

2003-12-16T19:33:00.000-08:00

For several years now, an argument has been waging at the University of Illinois over the appropriateness of its mascot, Chief Illiniwek. The NY Times examines the debate.

"A debate over whether mascots with Indian themes are offensive or harmless has played out on college campuses and at professional stadiums for more than two decades. But there is something singular here, a fierce loyalty to a student in war paint that makes the hair stand on grown men's forearms. The passions aroused by the chief also make the great-great-granddaughter of Sitting Bull, a junior at Illinois, fear for her safety.

The catalyst for the debate was a proposal last month by Dr. Frances Carroll, a new member of the university's board of trustees, to have Chief Illiniwek "honorably retired." She set aside her proposal after her support on the board eroded unexpectedly, but she intends to raise it again in March."

I try hard to be sensitive to claims that mascots or team nicknames offend people, even if they do so unintentionally and with a genuine desire to honor someone or some group. Yes, I think "Redskins" is over the line, but I believe Cowboys or 49ers or Fighting Irish is OK (even though those historical groups are caricatured by their mascots as much as the Illini). However, at a gut level I just can not bring myself to fully appreciate the opponents of the UIUC mascot. I have been to games there, I have seen the halftime performance. Its the furthest thing from mockery that you could imagine. In fact, it is the exact opposite in that the dress and the dance are authentic and the mascot and the fans take that tradition, for what it means to the school and to the Native-American community, very seriously.

What exactly is the objection? Mascots are often meant to honor or represent regions of the country, or to describe the local population ("Tar Heel" in North Carolina and "Volunteer" in Tennessee have unique historical significance. It's not as if someone just thought it sounded cool or would be good in a cheer). Is the objection that it is not authentic and incorrectly portrays Native-Americans? Then work with the school to make it better, for I am quite positive that they'd listen and welcome suggestions. I just have a hard time wrapping my head and heart around the intellectual and emotional arguments for opposing Chief Illiniwek, who was and is meant to honor Native-Americans.

I am open on this, so if you feel differently, let me know your thoughts and describe your reasoning.

Foreign Policy

2003-12-16T06:25:00.000-08:00

The Indy Star on fundamental differences between US and international basketball players.

"It's clear that the international players are far more fundamentally sound than their domestic counterparts, the 2002 World Basketball Championship being the most recent and glaring example. The fundamental gap has grown to the point that many basketball purists believe the game has to be taught differently at the grassroots level in this country. If not, the United States runs the risk of being passed by the international brand of a game that was birthed and nurtured here.

There is no empirical data to support the fundamental dominance of international NBA players versus their home-grown peers, but it's easy to spot the ever-increasing disparity on the court. Watch reigning league MVP Tim Duncan (Virgin Islands) bank in 16-footers off the backboard or 3-point shooting champ Peja Stojakovic (Yugoslavia) spray jumpers from all over the floor. Proficient shooting resulted in Rasho Nesterovic (Slovenia), Nene (Brazil) and Pau Gasol (Spain) finishing in the top 10 last season in field goal percentage, while Dirk Nowitzki (Germany) was sixth in scoring average."

Who We Are

2003-12-15T10:17:00.000-08:00

Flak Magazine has an interesting piece on men, women's sports and our sociological need to watch sports.

"I believe men will only watch women's sports where the women are hot," [Pressman] said. "The sexual persona is more important than athletic ability."

"We [especially men] are also told to watch sport," [Bairner] writes. "It's the manly thing to do. Furthermore the media-sport complex is such that the message is also getting through to more and more women as well as to men. Sport is cool. Sport is fashionable. Ultimately economics drive this process. How much should we pay for that ticket that everyone wants/needs in order to be part of an 'unmissable' spectacle?"

Dr. Bairner describes the humbling fact that drives sports fanaticism, but is often talked around: "One of the main reasons that men [and women] like to watch sport is so that they can act out fantasies through the actions of their heroes. These fantasies may be largely personal (the hard tackle, the fast sprint, the great goal, all of which we would like to have done ourselves) although they can also have a more collective aspect — the fantasies that relate to the triumphs of nation, the ideology, the race." This is the ludicrous challenge for a women's league attempting to engage a male audience.

Provocative. A buddy of mine disdains women's basketball because as he says "I'd always be the best player on the floor." This from a 6-2, marginally athletic, white guy who played high school basketball. His point has always seemed irrelevant to me because, after all, millions of us watch high school sports where the games don't exactly incorporate flawless fundamentals. We are not always watching for the very best athletes, we tend to like the competition. The fact that the game is not played at the absolute highest level possible doesn't matter that much. Besides, less athletic players in certain sports sometimes play a purer version of their game. John Wooden harps on this a lot with basketball, but I buy into the argument more when watching tennis or volleyball. Women have rallies, men have the serve and winner. Points rarely last more than a few seconds it seems with men, and frankly my admiration for the 140 mph serve wanes after about 12 of them are not returned. I am no expert on tennis or volleyball, but when I do take time to watch and admire those sports, the game itself is more exciting when the women play it.

I did a paper in grad school for a Women, Sport and Society class where I archived Sports Illustrated magazines for a three year period in the mid-80s. I was examining how the magazine portrayed women and men differently, if at all. I categorized the pictures and captions and described the subject of the articles and found that the vast majority of pictures of women were posed shots of women off the court or field, smiling, generally trying to look pretty. In contrast nearly every picture of a male athlete was an in-action shot, with the growling, sweating, muscle-bound man proudly displayed. The articles on women focused on their non-athlete life - their family, their children, etc. It was a classic human-interest story, whereas the articles on male athletes tended to be exclusively about their on-the-court play. Rarely were kids or family prominently mentioned. The focus was primarily on this person as an athlete.

There were plenty of exceptions to these trends and granted this was from magazines nearly 20 years ago, but it was startling for me to see evidence of what the 20 women in that class had been suggesting to me, the one male in the class, all along about the portrayal of women in sport in the media. I didn't believe them until I saw it for myself.

The Heisman Trophy

2003-12-15T09:54:00.000-08:00

Allen Barra on The Lunacy of the Heisman.

"You almost never hear anyone ask what you think would be common-sense questions such as, "Is the player the best man in college football at his position?" or "Is the player the principal reason for his team's success, or is he merely the beneficiary of it?" Or, perhaps the most sensible question of all, "Did his statistics actually mean something? Were they compiled against worthy opposition or were they just piled on against weaklings to impress voters?"

Every year, sportswriters wail and wail for a Heisman overhaul, and still nothing changes. So here's a more feasible remedy. College football would gain some credibility by simply acknowledging that modern football is a division of labor among specialists. Gather up all the various year-end awards, including the Heisman, rent a ballroom, and present them all on the same night. If we can't get the best players checked off on the Heisman ballot, maybe we can at least get them all in the same room."

The Solution to Too Many Bowl Games

2003-12-12T15:01:00.000-08:00

Per a recommendation from the Knight Commission.

"MIAMI -- Colleges should graduate at least 50 percent of their football players as a prerequisite for bowl game eligibility, a commission recommended Friday. The Knight Foundation Commission on Intercollegiate Athletics is calling for bowl eligibility reforms, saying that more than half of this year's 56 bowl-bound teams fail to meet their proposed graduation standard.

The commission said only two of this year's bowl games -- the Houston Bowl between Navy and Texas Tech, and the Capital One Bowl between Purdue and Georgia -- match schools with 50 percent graduation rates or better."

Sorry, but this recommendation is just too silly for me. With all the real issues in college athletics and the viable solutions out there, they advocate this? Now, I like the rule that mandates a student-athlete pass so many hours a semester before s/he can participate in post season competition (i.e. bowl games at the end of the fall semester). But this proposal doesn't do much for me.

A Horrific Night

2003-12-12T09:15:00.000-08:00

The Sacramento Bee on Bobby Hurley's near fatal crash, and life since then, that occured ten years ago today.

"That Hurley survived the accident that ensued at Del Paso and El Centro, the brutal car crash that pushed him to the brink of death, shattered his basketball-centered existence and became one of the darkest chapters in the Kings' history, is one of those situations that you can explain in one of two ways. You can cite the stacks of coincidental and beneficial evidence, the staggering connected series of events that had to occur for Hurley to have lived through his injuries or even left the scene breathing. Or you can say, 'Miracles.'"

Readers React to the BCS

2003-12-11T14:21:00.000-08:00

"My problem with the weekly drama that is the current system of determining a national champion is two-fold. The idea that every game counts is fraudulent when you consider that while USC could have avoided its problem by beating Cal, it would have gotten into the Sugar Bowl if Hawaii or Notre Dame had won last weekend. So LSU would have had a similar margin of victory and beaten more top 25 teams, and would still have been sent to the Rose or Fiesta Bowl.

The other part is that "the gauntlet" is not equal for everyone. During Virginia Tech's run to the title game in 1999, it would be laughable to say that there was an "elimination" game for the Hokies that year. Their test game? A sub-vintage Miami team. Not exactly a gauntlet. In contrast, a title contender from the Big Ten will routinely play four or five Top 25 teams, without the luxury of a conference title game to boost the computer scores for the BCS."

Good email. I agree on the 99 Hokie team, though as the mega conferences continue to form (the ACC will be much tougher to come out of unscathed than the Big East or the former ACC), that objection will be alleviated somewhat I think. On the first point, the important fact for me is not sifting through the teams with one loss. Only a playoff will overcome that. But all the teams with 2 losses or even the ones with 3 losses were effectively "eliminated" by the playoff system that is the regular season. And, USC, OU and LSU would have made all this moot had they not lost that one game. I guess I view the BCS as a way to separate similar groupings of teams. An imperfect one yes, but you must "play your way" into that top grouping, thus the entire season has the feel of a playoff system. What we have is a 4-month long playoff that eliminated Ohio St., Michigan, Miami, Texas, Tennessee, Florida St., etc. The BCS, in absence of a season ending playoff, is left to sort out the teams left standing.

Auburn Troubles

2003-12-11T14:03:00.000-08:00

AU President William Walker's clandestine jaunt up to Louisville to woo a football coach is apparently one of many indiscretions that have produced calls for his resignation. Also the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) put the school on probation for a host of problems that are extremely embrassing for a major research university.

"Jack Allen, one of SACS' associate executive directors, said Auburn failed to comply with five standards, including a requirement that its board of trustees not be controlled by a minority of members. According to SACS, trustees also are not supposed to have a financial interest in or business dealings with the university. The report also said Auburn failed to have a chief executive who maintained administrative oversight of the athletics department. Auburn failed to meet a catchall requirement that colleges cooperate with the accreditation process."

The Birmingham Post Herald offers this commentary.

"Bottom line is that Auburn University is in a mess, and it's one more instance of being forced to ask the question, what are college athletics really for? What values should athletics represent? Can a separate entity that has a budget of nearly $50 million and is the most visible representative of its school be expected to operate under the same moral guidelines as the university at large?

When the way the athletic department is run — oh, let's do away with the pretense and say it: when the way the football program is run has a chance to jeopardize the reputation and standing of the university as a whole, then clearly that school has become a football factory."

Reader Email

2003-12-10T11:06:00.000-08:00

A reader offers a sentiment that I instinctively find appealing and have expressed before, though the playoff idea still intrigues me.

"Occasional controversy surrounding the national championship game is the price required to maintain the unmatched importance of the regular season. The weekly drama of teams running the gauntlet, unique in American sports, would be greatly diminished or lost entirely if there were a play-off of even 4 teams. For this reason, I'm against a playoff. The current system is much preferable."

Excellent point. The unmatched excitement of the winner-take-all-atmosphere that surrounds games as early as September vanishes somewhat with a playoff system.

On the Right Track, Sort Of

2003-12-10T10:55:00.000-08:00

Per USA Today, "BCS officials dismiss talk of playoff in 2006"

"Tranghese said among the new models being discussed for the 2006 season and beyond is one that would add a fifth game to the BCS schedule, to be played after the four BCS bowls — Rose, Sugar, Orange and Fiesta. Two of the four BCS game-winners would square off in the fifth game for the national championship. The two participants would likely be determined by using a BCS-style formula that would rank the four bowl winners, with the top two meeting in the extra game."

Why not instead, take 3 of the 4 bowls and engage in a four team playoff? Two bowls would have semifinal games and a third would have the title game. One bowl game would get left out, true, but only once every four years would you have a meaningless, though compelling, game. Now, only one game really matters for all the marbles (though this year the Rose Bowl will take on the gravity of a title game because I think the title is likely to be split if USC beats Michigan). No need for a fifth game. You could still use the BCS to determine the top 4 teams. Yes, there would still be some potential for controversy, but I can live with controversy between #4 and #5 (a sentiment Mitch Albom expressed on Sports Reporters on ESPN last week).

College Athletics

2003-12-10T10:40:00.000-08:00

The Dallas Morning News has been running a series of columns by Kevin Blackistone that examine issues in college athletics. Blackistone is one of the better columnists and sports observers out there. His latest one in the series (I think he's on #5) is on the vanishing "off-season" for college athletes.

"Student-athletes over the years have found themselves more and more having to fit their class time into their practice time, especially in their so-called non-traditional season, or off-season. They may as well be minor league pro athletes taking night courses at a nearby community college.... The NCAA legislated limits on practice time in season and out of season some years ago. Still, it is too liberal, especially after the season. Why should volleyball teams play games in the spring when their seasons are in the fall and winter? Why must football teams practice in spring when they are going to practice in summer anyway?"

Things Get Worse for Quin Snyder and Mizzou

2003-12-10T06:12:00.000-08:00

Per the St. Louis P-D, "Clemons talks of money on tapes."

"Former Missouri basketball player Ricky Clemons said in taped jail telephone conversations that an assistant mens' basketball coach gave money to him and other players.... Clemons also indicated that his former lawyer, Wally Bley, had told him to deny to prosecutors that he received money from university officials, but that they never asked. 'He said if they ask you anything about the money or anything, tell them no.' Clemons said.

In a previous conversation with a family member in North Carolina, Clemons said: 'The people here are just shady. Even Quin (Snyder, the head coach), like, he's got faith in me, he believes in me, he's been there with me, but it's only because he thinks I'm going to say something, I mean about the money and all that stuff.'"

Mizzou has a date with NCAA probation in the near future. I don't think there is any doubt about that now.

Playoffs, Payoffs and the BCS

2003-12-09T06:37:00.000-08:00

Unlike his PTI and WaPo counterpart, Mike Wilbon pens a thoughtful column on college football's championship system and its future.

"You think March Madness is big? What's bigger in America, football or basketball? Let me declare my baggage right now: I hate the BCS. I hate figure skating for pretty much the same reason. Anything that focuses attention on something other than the actual competition is inadequate, and often winds up being unfair. The debate becomes the issue, not the contest."

Inner Turmoil

2003-12-09T06:35:00.000-08:00

Baseball Musings raises some interesting questions regarding the Yankees, the supposed signing of Gary Sheffield that has not been acknowledged, and Vladimir Guerrero.

Just Rolling Along

2003-12-09T06:28:00.000-08:00

Per USA Today, Sports Illustrated has been ordered to reveal sources for the Mike Price/stripper story at Alabama.

"U.S. District Judge Lynwood Smith said the Alabama law protecting newspaper, television and radio reporters from being forced to disclose their sources doesn't extend to magazine reporters."

Honestly, I don't understand that rationale. I'm no lawyer, but what is the substantive difference that would make a magazine reporter different from other media, and thus held to a different standard of reporting and sourcing?

Tougher By the Day

2003-12-09T06:24:00.000-08:00

Sylvester Croom's job just got exponentially tougher. The Jackson Clarion-Ledger reports here on Mississippi St. and the NCAA hammer.

"The NCAA has charged Mississippi State University's football program with dozens of major violations ranging from giving prospects petty cash on campus visits to making an offer to pay off the home mortgage for the family of a blue-chip recruit. Jackie Sherrill is named in three of the 13 allegations, charges that led the NCAA to accuse MSU's former head coach of unethical conduct. Sherrill, who was implicated in NCAA violations at Texas A&M in the 1980s, on Monday denied making the statements attributed to him in the report."

You have to wonder whether or not Croom knew his program was under the NCAA microscope when he took the job. There's some ambiguity here that doesn't quite add up. Either way, not a good day for folks in Starkville.

"The notice of allegations was dated Dec. 2 — the same day the school held a news conference to introduce Sylvester Croom as the replacement for Sherrill, who announced Oct. 17 he was retiring after 13 seasons at Mississippi State. MSU athletic director Larry Templeton on Saturday would not reveal when the school received the letter. The notice of allegations comes nearly nine months after the NCAA sent MSU a preliminary letter of investigation saying the organization's enforcement division was looking into allegations of rules violations."

Kornheiser Misses the Point

2003-12-08T10:28:00.000-08:00

The WaPo's Tony Kornheiser is livid with the way the BCS turned out, excluding USC from the title game. Tony does make a great final point in his column in which he argues that the USC-Michigan and LSU-Oklahoma games would be great semifinal games in a four team playoff (which is eventually what I think we'll see in I-A college football). But he is truly mad because he feels Oklahoma doesn't deserve the title shot. Fair enough. But that's not the logical reason to oppose the BCS. Pundits and analysts will continue arguing about who should play in the Sugar Bowl and will continue to go around in circles. Obviously it is a matter of opinion. Does Oklahoma's blowout loss to a talented, hot K-State team trump USC's stumble against California? People feel differently about this, but the truth is that it doesn't matter. Tony thinks OU shouldn't be in New Orleans, but there is a case to be made that they should be. The 3 top teams all have a great case that they should be in the national championship game. The BCS didn't screw up because it picked Oklahoma, the BCS screwed up because it is only allowed to pick 2 teams. What do you do, like this year, when 3 teams (or 4 or 5) can legitimately make a case that they should be in the title game? The answer is not a recalculated BCS or going back to writers' picks. No the only options are this and a true playoff system. Don't hate the BCS for what it produced this year. Hate the BCS for what it precludes, a winner take all determined on the field.

Take Your Pick

2003-12-02T10:22:00.000-08:00

Page 2 writers sound off on the number one sport in America. Best part for me? Jim Caple with this:

"I love baseball because Hank Aaron is the first name alphabetically, because of Steve Bartman and Pedro vs. Zimmer, and because of all the other many bizarre circumstances and moments that make it clear that, while God doesn't play dice games with the universe, he does play Rotisserie Ball. I love it, not just because of the numbers, but because they're the only numbers people recognize, because .406, 56, 755 are more familiar than our cash machine numbers. I love it because where the game is played is almost as important as the game itself. I love it because they let you keep the ball when it goes into the stands. I love it because of the home run trot. I love it because of box scores.

I love our national pastime because a Japanese player was the American League MVP two years ago and a Dominican player won it last year while a French-Canadian just won the Cy Young and an African-American just won the NL MVP for the third year in a row. I love baseball because, as the national pastime, it is held to a higher standard than the other sports. I love it because even with all the anguish over steroids, one of the best players in the world is 5-foot-9 and weighs 170 pounds.

I love it because you almost never see players taken off the field in a stretcher. I love it because even though there are the same number of boors and SOBs as anywhere else, more people laugh and joke about themselves than in other sports. I love it because it's fun.

I love it because when players talk about baseball, they refer to it as a game instead of a war."

Amen.

Small Ball

2003-12-02T06:33:00.000-08:00

If you haven't read Michael Lewis' Moneyball, you're missing a fascinating book about Billy Beane and the Oakland A's and the emergence of statistical analysis as an influence in the management of baseball. Though the A's have enjoyed tremendous success in the regular season for several years now, they have not had recent success in the playoffs, a fact that perplexes many baseball fans. Some wonder whether Beane's aversion to "small ball" - hitting and running, bunting, stealing bases, manufacturing runs - is a detriment in the small-sample-size crucible that is October baseball.

"While Moneyball simply misdiagnoses the cause of the A’s success in the regular season, it does offer an important explanation of the manner in which sophisticated statistical analysis is used today by teams like the Oakland A’s, Toronto Blue Jays and Boston Red Sox (the latter two run by Beane disciples JP Ricciardi and Theo Epstein, respectively).

While Beane clearly has achieved consistently outsized returns in the regular season – due largely to factors unrelated to Beane’s different way of approaching his business – going 0-for-9 in games for playoff advancement is a remarkable feat of underachievement. Indeed, there is reason to wonder whether Beane’s approach to the sport is responsible for his team’s lack of success in the playoffs."

[Hat tip: Baseball Musings]

Bowled Over

2003-12-02T06:07:00.000-08:00

I was skeptical when I read that TCU had turned down an invite to the GMAC Mobile Bowl for "academic reasons." It's not that I didn't believe TCU, but I couldn't logically reject the other reasons they might possibly turn down that bowl invitation. Well, now the Ft. Worth Star Telegram reports on the politics and the behind the scenes manuevering that jeopardized TCU's bowl plans.

"It wasn't that TCU chose to, for lack of a better phrase, play the academic card. As early as mid-November, Hyman said he informed Conference USA commissioner Britton Banowsky that because of the school's examination schedule, 'We had a problem and could not play [in the GMAC Mobile Bowl].'

Connect the dots. The dots that have TCU rumored to be leaving C-USA and bolting to the Mountain West Conference. Having turned down the Mobile game, it was no secret TCU's choice was the Sheraton Hawaii Bowl. But Houston was awarded the invitation Monday to play in the Hawaii game.

Houston is staying in Conference USA. Memphis will play North Texas in the New Orleans Bowl. Memphis is staying in Conference USA. See a pattern? Only when Louisville agreed Monday night to fill the spot in the Mobile Bowl was a bowl berth for TCU finally secured.

A group of adults, trying to wage a grudge against other adults, nearly stole something away from a few dozen deserving kids. If TCU aims to keep its integrity intact, it will leave this dying mess called Conference USA as soon as possible."

Banner Day

2003-12-02T05:54:00.000-08:00

I wonder what Alabama would do if they had it to do over (they hired Mike Shula and finished 4-9). Congrats to Mississippi St. on hiring Sylvester Croom, the first black head coach in the SEC. The Jackson Clarion Ledger has this story.

"Of 11,647 combined football seasons at the Division I-A level, only 80 have been coached by African-Americans,"

I knew there weren't many black head coaches, but wow that puts their absence from the coaching ranks in perspective.

An Embarassment Indeed

2003-12-01T10:47:00.000-08:00

Go get 'em Tony Barnhart (of the AJC). Auburn has crossed way over a line with this latest stunt. Forget for a minute that secretly wooing a potential coaching candidate severely undermines your current football coach. When the entire Auburn braintrust (I use that term in its broadest possible sense, so as not to impute any undue level of intelligence or ethics on the powers that be at Auburn), thinks its a good idea to recruit another head coach without the knowledge of the other president or athletics director, you have to wonder if they care about anything at all other than winning. It's true that coaching searches are never neat, pre-packaged processes where full disclosure is sanctified. But for goodness sakes is anyone at Auburn capable of exercising good judgment?

"This episode has already proven to be a monumental national embarrassment to Auburn. And think of this: Alabama is still on NCAA probation. The Crimson Tide had a losing season in 2003, and the effects of scholarship reductions are just starting to kick in. They have a young head coach who is still learning on the job. With all that negativity going on at its hated rival, Auburn still found a way to grab a ton of lousy press just in time for its coaches to go recruiting."

But ironically, some people down south are saying 'what goes around, comes around' for Tuberville. This view from the Jackson Clarion Ledger (MS).

"Here's what's funny: Back in 1998, Tuberville was every bit as deceitful to Ole Miss (and his players) as Auburn has been recently. Remember? Published reports kept coming from Alabama that Tuberville had agreed to a deal to leave Ole Miss and become Auburn's coach. Tuberville kept denying the reports, to his bosses, to us in the media and, worse, to his players. "They'll have to carry me out of here in a pine box," Tuberville said. He was talking about Oxford. A couple days later he was in Auburn for the press conference. He never told his players so much as "good-bye." Tuberville, a really good football coach, left Ole Miss for more money, better facilities, a better chance to win. Nothing wrong with that. But he didn't leave with much grace or class."

Husked

2003-12-01T10:44:00.000-08:00

By the standards of Dr. Tom Osborne, Frank Solich's record at Nebraska was not up to par. But then maybe only Larry Coker's or Bob Stoops' would have been for Husker Nation lately. Still, the firing of Frank Solich seems a bit odd. It's not like Nebraska dropped off the national football landscape the way Alabama has. But then again, since that drubbing Nebraska took at Colorado to finish out the 2001 regular season, Nebraska is 1-7 vs. ranked teams.

The Ft. Worth Star Telegram's Richie Whitt takes issue with Nebraska.

"Don't get me wrong, Solich is no Bob Devaney or Tom Osborne. He's closer to Mack Brown than Bob Stoops. And the Cornhuskers' intimidation and invincibility has all but vanished. But Pederson speaks of "mediocrity," a term which is understandably relative. During Solich's 58-19 tenure, Oklahoma went 60-15 and Texas 59-17. If Pederson and his unrealistic expectations were in charge in Austin, Brown would be gone. There are grumblings at Texas, of course, but at the end of the day cooler heads prevail and realize there are worse beds to lie down in than 10-win seasons capped with Bowl Championship Series bowl berths."

Not So Fast

2003-11-24T05:17:00.000-08:00

Oklahoma vs. USC is shaping up to be a dandy title game, but forgotten LSU will make a strong case that they deserve a shot at the Sooners.

"The issue of who deserves the No. 2 spot in the BCS is, at least in this writer's opinion, far from settled, mostly because LSU is going to have a lot to say about it over the next two weeks.

The fact is that if LSU manages to win both [Arkansas, Georgia]-- combined with the Ole Miss victory and its previous win over Georgia -- no one could possibly say they've accomplished less than the Trojans. The Tigers will have beaten five teams with at least eight wins (Georgia twice, Ole Miss and Arkansas) and lost to another (Florida), while USC, which finishes with 7-4 Oregon State, will have beaten no more than two eight-win teams (9-3 Washington State and 7-4 Hawaii, which has two games left) and lost to a 7-6 Cal team."

Somebody Do the Math

2003-11-24T05:07:00.000-08:00

The Miami Herald adds it all up for the Marlins new stadium proposal.

"Three tough questions keep popping up:

- Did the Marlins really lose $20 million last year, as they say they did?
- How can the team, supposedly one of the poorest in baseball, promise to spend $137 million of its own money to finance a new ballpark?
- How much would a new ballpark boost their payroll?

The best answers we have at the moment:

- Though the Marlins refuse to open their books, an analysis by The Herald shows that the $20 million figure is, ahem, in the ballpark but might be a little high.
- Through various ways, the Marlins can get the construction money, but the cost is the equivalent of a veteran all-star pitcher they could otherwise afford.
- A new home might boost their net revenue by $20 million or $30 million a year, but that doesn't mean they can use that money for better players. What it might do is allow them to afford their present payroll for the long term."

Hoops Scandals

2003-11-21T12:24:00.000-08:00

So what long-term impact will the scandals at Baylor, St. Bonaventure, Georgia, etc. have on college basketball? Well, if the past is instructive at all, the long term damage might be minimal. So says this column at Sports Central.

"The likelihood is that the landscape of college basketball is not going to change much. CBS' contact to televise the NCAA tournament is in the billions of dollars. ESPN, ABC, FOX Sports, and other regional carriers and syndicators also have a hand in the pot. The overall image of college basketball takes a hit each time a scandal rears its ugly head, but the sports always perseveres and moves on."

A-Rod at Harvard Yard

2003-11-21T06:19:00.000-08:00

Via, the Boston Globe. They'd love to have this guy in Boston.

"Crimson assistant baseball coach Matt Hyde remembers getting a call from the Harvard SID office late in the summer. He was told that one of the Texas Rangers wanted a tour of Harvard and would like to meet him at the Harvard field at 12:30. Hyde asked for the name of the player and the unimpressed woman from the SID office told him it was some guy named Alex Rodriguez.

Hyde called incoming freshman Zak Farkes and told him to be at the field at 12:30. Farkes and his brother, Josh, got there and worked out, waiting for A-Rod, but it got to be 1 p.m. and there was no sign of the superstar shortstop. Hyde was thinking the whole thing was a hoax when he walked out of Dillon Fieldhouse and saw Farkes walking with Rodriguez. Rodriguez was with teammate Mike Young and both wore jackets and ties."

Recompute

2003-11-21T06:17:00.000-08:00

Tony Barnhart of the AJC takes a swing at the computer polls used in the BCS formula.

"Not only are Oklahoma and USC perceived to be the best two teams, that is the national championship game that people want to see. If Ohio State beats Michigan and the BCS formula lets the Buckeyes play in the Sugar Bowl instead of the Trojans, here is what the fans and media will say every day between Saturday and Jan. 4: This is proof once more that the whole system is flawed. For the third time in four years, the BCS has gotten it wrong."

Yes the system is flawed. Prior to the BCS, the writers who VOTED on the national champion weren't perfect either. Think about that, we held a vote to decide who the best team was. Not a game on the field, but a vote. Anything short of a playoff on the field will be flawed in that sense, even with a non-computer poll BCS. So I guess I don't think the issue is whether or not to use computers. The basic objection to the BCS still stands: that until you play it out on the field, the national champion will necessarily be somewhat subjective.

Reflections

2003-11-19T05:34:00.000-08:00

The WaPo's Michael Wilbon, Remembering Len Bias.

"He would have changed the game, you know. Bias would have altered the course of NBA history for sure. He would have joined a defending champion Celtics team with Larry Bird, Kevin McHale and Robert Parish up front, Dennis Johnson and Danny Ainge in the back court. Bias would have practiced with Bird and McHale every day, would have been shaped by their way of playing the right way. And in short time, Bias's presence in the lineup would have allowed Bird and McHale to play fewer minutes. Bird's back likely wouldn't have given out so quickly, McHale wouldn't have had to play so many playoff minutes on a busted ankle. Both would have almost certainly been healthier for a few more seasons.

That means the Bad Boy Pistons probably would not have existed, not in championship form. They wouldn't have gotten past the Celtics. The Lakers wouldn't have won in 1987 and '88. Perhaps Magic would have gotten them past the Celtics one of those years, but not back-to-back. And Chicago's run would have started in, oh, '92 or maybe even '93, and Jordan probably wouldn't have retired for the first time, at the end of the '93 Bulls Threepeat."

40 Years Ago

2003-11-19T05:29:00.000-08:00

The Dallas Morning News on the game no one wanted to play.

"As a nation mourned President John F. Kennedy's death, the Cowboys were in Cleveland for a game that had suddenly lost all relevance. None of the other 13 NFL teams that played on Sunday, Nov. 24, 1963, carried the stigma attached to Dallas, the city where Kennedy had been assassinated two days before."

I wasn't alive then, but I suspect it was the same feeling many of us had the week of September 11th when sporting events stopped.

To Asterisk or No

2003-11-18T19:25:00.000-08:00

Mark Kreidler of ESPN on Barry Bonds.

"And, believe it, this is the tip of the volcano. More than BALCO, this is about the age. This is about the era in sports and how it will be perceived, and Barry Bonds is a part of that, and, really, it's all inseparable if you're going to approach the thing with anything that resembles logic.

It is denial on the highest order to attempt to isolate Bonds' performance from the questions of the day. It's a fact that he got enormously bigger, with a quicker bat and possibly the greatest swing-reflex in the annals of the game, while on the far side of 35. It's a fact that Bonds smashed the single-season home-run record just a breath or two after both McGwire and Sammy Sosa laid waste to the Ruth-Maris marks that had stood for decades. It is a fact that Bonds has worked closely with the lab owner alleged to be at the heart of the THG scandal, and that his personal trainer is enveloped in the case as well.

It is a fact that this entire generation of statistics is and will continue to be loudly questioned by some people, who variously discount the numbers on the basis of any number of theories: the postage-stamp-sized strike zone, artifically amped baseballs, smaller parks, crummy pitching."

Like him or not, like his records and prowess or not, this sentiment on Bonds and baseball is valid and will be present for time to come.

Reader Email

2003-11-18T11:00:00.000-08:00

On Len Bias:

"I was an undergraduate at UMD when Len Bias played there. I had a friend in the Sports Information office and got good seats 3-5 rows behind the Maryland bench for all the home games Bias's senior season. I have never seen anyone - and I saw Jordan play many times - get up as high on their jumper. Unstoppable. The comments in the article from Jim Calhoun about him "disregarding the defense" are a perfect description of how dominant he could be. It sometimes looked as if he was playing with some junior high kids instead of ACC athletes. He rebounded with ferocity, was a solid defender head up and on help and could run the floor. He didn't have a very good handle and could still look awkward with the ball but had improved so much from his freshman year he would have overcome that flaw. We knew we were watching something special but the national media never really caught on.

I found out he had died as I was clocking in to my summer factory job at the start of second shift. I didn't believe it until I got off work at 11 PM and heard it on the radio on the way home. I still think of him and how he would have changed NBA history in the 80's and 90's. With his tenacity, talent and work ethic he would have fit in perfectly with the Celtics and brought them at least 3-4 more championships. He was that good."

Looking Back

2003-11-18T06:13:00.000-08:00

The Boston Globe, on Len Bias, who would have turned 40 today.

"This is my 24th year at Duke," says coach Mike Krzyzewski, "and in that time there have been two opposing players who have really stood out: Michael Jordan and Len Bias. Len was an amazing athlete with great competitiveness. My feeling is that he would have been one of the top players in the NBA. He created things. People associate the term `playmaking' with point guards. But I consider a playmaker as someone who can do things others can't, the way Jordan did. Bias was like that. He could invent ways to score, and there was nothing you could do about it. No matter how you defended him, he could make a play."

Expanding Duties

2003-11-18T05:56:00.000-08:00

USA Today reports that baseball teams have been looking for signs of steroid use.

"Aside from examining what game skills a player has, major league baseball scouts have had additional assignments in recent years: charting players' growth and evaluating where, how and for how long they have packed on muscle mass.
Even before Major League Baseball released results last week of the first testing for steroids, scouts have been looking for signs of steroid use among amateur and professional players."

The Glare of the Spotlight

2003-11-18T05:38:00.000-08:00

The news that four Oakland Raiders tested positive for the steroid THG has refocused our attention on other well known athletes and their possible involvment with performancing enhancing steroids. Skip Bayless of the San Jose Mercury News can't help but wonder about Barry Bonds.

"Bonds has treated steroid questions from reporters as attacks instead of opportunities to explain exactly how he pumped himself up naturally. To my knowledge, the only question he has answered on this topic came from HBO's Bob Costas, who asked Bonds if he has ever used anabolic steroids. "No,'' Bonds said, quickly, dismissively and pretty unconvincingly.

But it's possible some -- even many -- of the team-sport athletes under suspicion were charmed into taking a "magic formula'' they trusted because they continually came up clean in tests. It's possible they weren't told it contained THG. It's possible Bonds fell under the spell of Anderson, whom he has known since childhood.

And it's quite possible Bonds has done nothing worse than use and promote ZMA and rely on hard work and rare genetic gifts to set a home run record. But after Sunday's report, most people probably will presume Barry Bonds is guilty until proven innocent."

It sounds like Bayless counts himself as one of those who presumes Bonds is guilty, given the weight of the circumstantial evidence. Gaining 25 pounds of muscle at age 35 is not impossible I guess, but it makes it very hard for me to fully exonerate Bonds. That said, even if he did take steroids, you don't just pack on muscle and then start launching 73 homeruns. Bonds has established himself as a Ted Williams-esque hitter with a sharp batting eye, unmatched plate discipline and an uncanny ability to punish mistakes that a pitcher makes. Even if he weren't so muscular, those traits alone would have turned him into a feared, highly successful hitter.

From the 'Where Are They Now' File

2003-11-18T05:32:00.000-08:00

Big Mac at the Links.

More on Marcus Dixon

2003-11-17T14:27:00.000-08:00

Internet fan boards are usually no place for linking stories, but the Vanderbilt folks have done an exceptional job with the Marcus Dixon story. The site, VandySports.com, now has an indepth background piece up.

"The news of Dixon's arrest for rape, statutory rape, aggravated assault, false imprisonment and sexual battery seemed to take those who knew him by surprise. It seemed totally out of character for this near-4.0 student, who scored greater than 1,200 on his SAT and planned to major in education at Vandy. In the end, the jury found no basis for any of the "forcible crimes" charges, and found him not guilty on all of them. They also concluded that, as was Dixon's claim all along, the sex was completely consensual."

Additionally, they have conducted an interview with Dixon's parents, who according to the interview, "were awarded legal guardian status for Dixon several years ago after the courts ruled Dixon had effectively been abandoned by his natural parents."

There is another side to the case. I have been corresponding with someone involved in the court case and hope to be able to post this person's comments soon. In the meantime, Black Entertainment Television has done a story on the Dixon case and adequately represented both sides.

"Dixon has been involved in two other sexual incidents, according to Prosecutor McClellan. The first involved a 16-year-old Dixon exposing himself in a classroom; in the second, he "inappropriately touched" a 14-year-old student when he was 17.

In the most recent case, a nurse testified that the alleged victim sustained vagina bruising and a torn hymen. Although, the victim's statement revealed that she was a
virgin at the time of the sexual encounter, which some say could explain the injuries, it could not have helped Dixon's image. Since Dixon was 18-years-old when the incident took place, he could be charged with aggravated child molestation -- which involves a physical injury sustained by the victim due to the sexual act."

ACC Basketball

2003-11-17T05:57:00.000-08:00

The WaPo on the effect that football expansion will have on ACC basketball.

"This season, though, is the end of that formula, in which every ACC team hosts each league opponent at home, and then must return the favor by going on the road. The double round-robin will die next year, when the ACC's football-driven expansion brings Miami and Virginia Tech -- football powers, basketball pushovers -- into the fold. Boston College, too, will join, by 2006 at the latest. Playing every league opponent twice would mean 22 league games in the future. Too many, according to the coaches and athletic directors -- not that they're happy about it."

Those Pesky A-Rod Trade Rumors

2003-11-17T05:48:00.000-08:00

The Ft. Worth Star Telegram reports on the poor relationship between Rangers' star Alex Rodriguez and manager Buck Showalter and the impact it could have on a possible A-Rod trade.

"A source close to Rodriguez said over the weekend that the Rangers' shortstop is "on the outs" with Showalter and is incensed over the recent firing of clubhouse attendant Tommy Bolin, a close friend who had landed the job before the 2002 season at Rodriguez's behest. And that's why trading Rodriguez might be the best thing the Rangers can do."

BCS Changes?

2003-11-17T05:43:00.000-08:00

The NYT reports on what changes are possible and what changes are not when the BCS contract is renewed after the 2005 season.

"It is unclear what form it will take in determining college football's No. 1 and No. 2 teams and matching them in a championship game, but presidents representing the six B.C.S. conferences and Notre Dame and the five non-B.C.S. conferences agreed it would not be a 16-team, single-elimination playoff. A four-team playoff, perhaps incorporating existing bowl games, has not been not ruled out.

Yesterday, the two sides agreed to hire consultants to come up with alternative models and to meet again within 60 to 90 days on what has become an increasingly galvanizing issue that has drawn the scrutiny of Washington lawmakers and state attorneys general."

More on Baseball and Steroids

2003-11-14T05:50:00.000-08:00

The NYT reports on the steroid test results in Major League Baseball.

"Though the number of positive tests ranged from 70 to 100, it was unclear how many players tested positive. Of the 1,438 tests, 240 were repeat tests, and so some players may have tested positive twice.

As part of the labor agreement concluded last year, which included the ban on steroids, baseball and the players' union agreed to the anonymous testing for 2003. Because the positive test results exceeded the 5 percent threshold, the agreement calls for all players to undergo stricter testing starting on March 2, 2004. If the number had been less than 5 percent, the same survey testing would have been repeated next year.

Until agreeing to testing last year, the players union had been opposed to it on the grounds that it infringed on players' privacy rights. The new testing plan will be in effect for 2004 and 2005. Unless the combined positive rate is less than 2.5 percent in those years, it will also be in place in 2006."

Also, Dave Anderson of the NYT thinks that baseball has a major problem even if a majority of players tested negative.

"To me, 70 to 100 positive tests is not a relatively low level of use. To me, one player testing positive isn't low. One is one too many. To me, 70 to 100 positive tests adds up to nearly the active rosters of two or three teams... Instead, both Selig and Manfred should have acknowledged that, if there were 70 to 100 positive tests, Major League Baseball has a serious problem it needs to police. Not just for baseball's image, but for the future health of the steroid users."

Skip Bayless of the San Jose Mercury News offers this column with a very interesting theory as to what might have been behind the positive tests.

"Were these players trying to win jobs or roster spots who gambled they could beat the tests? Were these guys so stupid or arrogant that they thought they couldn't get caught? Were they so psychologically hooked on `roids that they simply couldn't quit for a while? Were some duped into taking oral steroids by quacks telling them this was a magic mineral supplement?

Or is it possible some players wanted to test positive to bring about testing with penalties? Did they want to be saved from themselves by eliminating the pressure to keep up with steroid-abusers? Sixteen Chicago White Sox players discussed refusing to take the test - an automatic positive - to help ensure mandatory testing. But they decided against it.

Do you think players enjoy risking physical and psychological breakdown, sexual dysfunction and long-term disease?"

The New York Daily News' Filip Bondy goes a little overboard I think in his assessment of the impact this story has on the state of the game.

"If Selig had any sense of shame, of honor, he would admit what is obvious to the public: This is a dark moment in baseball history, far worse than Pete Rose's gambling or Sammy Sosa's corked bat. This one goes to the core of the game, because the problem is systemic. Selig ought to consider resigning, frankly, just because so much of the stuff went on under his nose for so long."

Baseball Steroid Use

2003-11-13T15:12:00.000-08:00

At least one in twenty, which triggers automatic testing next year, so now what?

"The commissioner's office announced Thursday that the threshold has been exceeded, but the exact percentage was not released."

NL Cy Young

2003-11-13T13:24:00.000-08:00

Eric Gagne of the Dodgers wins the award, a shock to no one. All but one of ESPN's baseball writers picked Gagne (save Jim Caple). I have no problem with this vote, though personally I would have picked Mark Prior, who dominated after returning from his shoulder injury in July. Prior carried that club to the playoffs and was much more instrumental to his team's success than Gagne.

Still, Gagne is deserving as he had perhaps the most dominant season ever for a closer, with the possible exception of Dennis Eckersley's 1990 campaign. My only beef is with the notion that Gagne was perfect all year. Yes he was dominant and yes he was perfect in save situations (the All-Star game notwithstanding). But Gagne's W-L record was 2-3. Those three losses represent games in which the Dodgers were tied, but Gagne gave up the go-ahead or winning runs. It's not a blown save, because he was trying to preserve a tie. But those three games are three games where Gagne was not perfect and cost his team a potential win. For more details, check his game log and examine the boxscores.

Still, three games out of 77 that he pitched in is nothing to be shameful of. In fact it is quite remarkable that in the other 74 he was unhittable. I watched my Cardinals flail away at him like a high school team back in July. Gagne was dominant and was deserving of the award. I just want to dispell the notion that he had a perfect season and was never a factor in a Dodgers loss.

Baseball's GM Meetings

2003-11-13T06:13:00.000-08:00

ESPN runs down developments from Day 3, including rumors involving D-Backs pitcher Curt Schilling.

"Alex Rodriguez is not on the trading block. And any deal to send Curt Schilling to New York probably won't happen this week -- even after the Arizona ace agreed to speak directly to the Yankees. But the Milwaukee Brewers could be close to trading star first baseman Richie Sexson, with the Arizona Diamondbacks the most likely destination."

Meanwhile the Philly Inquirer ponders Schilling's future and whether or not it may include a return to the Phillies.

"Schilling would like to pitch four more seasons. Given his druthers, he'd do it in Arizona, where he and his family live in a stunning home, where his children are comfortable and enrolled in school, where he won the 2001 World Series. But, Schilling said, his lame-duck status in Arizona - coupled with the fact that he is now his own agent - has led him to consider the future throughout almost all his waking hours. He said he has an agreement with Diamondbacks management that if it can strike a trade that benefits both the team and him, it should pursue one. Ah, but Schilling's full no-trade clause gives him the right to choose where he'd go. He would accept a trade to two teams - the Phillies and the New York Yankees. But his conditions for leaving Arizona are different for each team."

The Notre Dame/ACC Rumors Continue

2003-11-13T05:56:00.000-08:00

Per the Indy Star, "Notre Dame Asks About Joining ACC, Big Ten, Officials Say."

"Athletic director Kevin White, through spokesman John Heisler, said, "At present, we are staying the course with the Big East; however, we are continuing to monitor the landscape." When pressed, Heisler replied, "We are not going to address specific comments like that." But in late September the school was pointed in denials of media reports that suggested the Irish were looking to join a new conference.

ACC commissioner John Swofford, whose league recently approved the three additions, wouldn't comment Wednesday on Notre Dame. But he confirmed, "We have received some informal inquiries about potential membership." He added he did not believe the league was ready to expand again."

College Athletics

2003-11-12T13:59:00.000-08:00

NCAA president Myles Brand spoke to the National Symposium for Athletics Reform earlier this week where he and other college athletics leaders discussed college athletics reform. Of note in his comments was this:

"The goal is to reaffirm -- to sustain -- the collegiate model of intercollegiate athletics," Brand said. "We need to take the steps necessary to arrest the drift toward the professional model and to strengthen the ties to the mission of higher education."

Tulane president Scott Cowen, one of the leaders of the anti-BCS movement, summed up Brand's speech:

"The message," Cowen said of the speech, "is we somehow have to discipline ourselves to think about athletics much more in terms of the values, principles and missions of our institutions, and a lot less about just the revenue and the money it's generating. I think that's an important message."

Interestingly, former Vanderbilt AD Todd Turner was there and participated in a panel discussion on the BCS football system. Vanderbilt has taken the boldest step in the college athletics reform movement by restructuring (and effectively eliminating on paper) its athletics department, yet Turner and VU decided to part ways. Probably a case of similar goals, but disparate means.

Drug Appeal

2003-11-12T13:30:00.000-08:00

The San Jose Mercury News on "Why They Choose to Use."

"But if the public asks why some of the world's best, and best-known, athletes would risk their reputations and their bodies by taking steroids, doping experts offer several reasons:

- Steroids really work.
- The physical health risks are long-term, if any.
- It has been relatively easy to avoid detection, and it will remain easy because sports executives know that the public wants to see the biggest, strongest, fastest athletes they can.
- Most important, steroids can make athletes rich and cover them with glory. And with lucrative prizes to be won, it is human nature that some people always will be willing to cheat.

In 1995 a Chicago physician, Bob Goldman, asked 198 Olympic-level U.S. athletes whether they would be willing to take a banned substance if they were guaranteed to win and not get caught; 195 said yes. More than half said they would take the drug if it would enable them to win every competition for five years but then kill them."

An uphill fight to be sure to stomp out steroids in athletics.

The Bleacher Seat

Fed Up

Inside Selection Sunday

Missing You

More Reader Email on Wiley/Bonds

Maris*

Facts and Hysteria

The Price of Infamy

Reader Email on Wiley/Bonds

Missing the Point

Casting a Shadow

Drastic Action

Answering the Call

The Ante is Increased

Sea Change

Southern Brawl

Cleaning up Baylor

Oprah to feature the Marcus Dixon Story

European Hoop Dreams

"A Reason to Smile and Laugh"

Anatomy of an Infractions Case

A Brief Retrospective

A Basketball Pioneer

Race and the NBA

Recovery

A Numbers Guy

Taking His Time

Baylor Coping

Misinterpretation

Bush, Baseball and Steroids

What If They Won a World Series ....

Time on My Hands and Back to Business

Presidents and Fans

Fallout at Auburn

A Tall Order

Unwrapping History

Blogging the 20/20 Rose Interview

Backfire

More Rose

Save Your Receipts

Pete Rose

Popular vs. Authoritative Rule

A Changing of the Guard in Kentucky

Pondering His Next Move

Why the MLBPA Messed Up

The Evolution of the Game

SEC Athletics

Athletes and Sexual Assault

The Biggest Trade That Never Happened

The Division III Model

Reader Email

Shame on the MLBPA

And On the 8th Day ....

Misplaced Outrage

The Dividing Line

Foreign Policy

Who We Are

The Heisman Trophy

The Solution to Too Many Bowl Games

A Horrific Night

Readers React to the BCS

Auburn Troubles

Reader Email

On the Right Track, Sort Of

College Athletics

Things Get Worse for Quin Snyder and Mizzou

Playoffs, Payoffs and the BCS

Inner Turmoil

Just Rolling Along

Tougher By the Day

Kornheiser Misses the Point

Take Your Pick

Small Ball

Bowled Over

Banner Day

An Embarassment Indeed

Husked

Not So Fast

Somebody Do the Math

Hoops Scandals