Two items in today’s New York Times put the NCAA’s de facto raison d’etre in stark relief:
Item 1: The NCAA chides Oklahoma for inadequately policing its football players’ off-field activities, thereby enabling two of them to - WARNING: MOVE ANY YOUNG CHILDREN AWAY FROM YOUR SCREEN BEFORE READING ON
While everyone is still wondering exactly why NASCAR impounded Michael Waltrip’s car (and taken the intake manifold for inspection), Mikey’s crew chief, David Hyder, has been hit with an indefinite suspension, with further penalties to be announced later today. That brings to five the number of Nextel Cup crew chiefs who get to take Sunday off. This is a particularly inauspicious start to the inaugural season of Michael Waltrip Racing, as well as for Toyota.
UPDATE: Michael Waltrip has been penalized 100 points in the standings. Yikes. Even with whatever advantage all the cash Toyota is throwing around confers, that is a LOT of points to have to make up. Even with a good finish Sunday, it will be almost as though he started the season with a DNF.
Just after NASCAR suspended Robbie Reiser and and Steve Francis for infractions on Matt Kenseth’s and Kasey Kahne’s cars, respectively, it looks like Ray Evernham has gone 0-for-3, with the crew chiefs for his other two drivers, Elliott Sadler and Scott Riggs, now also suspended. The fines are relatively modest, and since Jimmie Johnson won at Daytona last year after Chad Knaus was suspended, the suspensions don’t figure to alter the outcome much. What is striking, though, is that each driver was also penalized points - 50 each for Kenseth and Kahne, 25 each for Sadler and Riggs. Ouch. While a token amount, it could easily be the difference for any of these drivers in making the Chase, should they find themselves on the bubble in late Summer.
I’m of two minds on these things. On one hand, cheating is cheating and no sport’s governing body can permit the rules to be flouted. Especially by teams that field three (or five) cars in each race - they already have more than enough advantages over the Boris Saids of the world. Making everyone’s cars meet the same technical specs at least gives the less well funded drivers a fighting chance, unlike in, say, Formula One. On the other hand, tweaking a standardized car to improve performance is essentially the basis of stock car racing, and 50 points seems like a stiff price to pay for what are arguably venial sins. And on the other other hand, Brian France strikes me as such an unimpressive specimen of homo sapien that I instinctively question the wisdom of any decision he makes.
P.S. As if this weren’t rough enough for Ray Evernham, his developmental driver and (ahem) special friend Erin Crocker, after winning the pole in her ARCA race this week, finished in 20th place. How ever does she keep her ride?
In honor of Valentine’s Day, the Boston Dirt Dogs are running a survey asking fans to select their favorite Sox (since 1967) at each position.
My two cents:
C - Fisk. Hey, ya gotta love Varitek (and my wife certainly does). But let’s be honest: Tek is toiling in Fisk’s shadow. Fisk truly hated the Yankees. Fisk grew up a New England boy, and remains a New England boy. He publicly lambasted Deion Sanders (who desperately needed it). And he hit The Home Run. You know the one. Give Tek credit for putting AFraud in his place a few years back (and yes, my wife has a photo of that altercation in her vanity… seriously). But Fisk is the man here - and always will be.
I can’t let football go just yet – so I decided to examine a couple comparisons that have often been made in years past. When Brady was winning Super Bowls (oh, those were the days), we heard him compared to Joe Montana. And while he was beating Peyton Manning to get to the big dance, we heard about Manning’s Marino to Brady’s Montana. Well, now that Manning has a ring that eluded Marino, I thought it might be worthwhile to examine Brady vs. Montana… vs. Manning. Putting aside regular season counting stats for the moment, I just took a look at the respective career rate stats for Brady and Montana:
Brady - 7 seasons, 96 games, 61.9 comp%, 7.0 ypa, 1.88 TD/INT
Montana - 15 seasons, 192 games, 63.2 comp%, 7.5 ypa, 1.96 TD/INT
I understand that Mike Lupica, among many others, contends that Rex Grossman is “the worst Super Bowl Quarterback… ever”. I love it when fans and/or media insist that “it’s obvious that [current player/event] is undoubtedly the [best/worst] ever!”. It’s a good thing that historical accuracy is not a prerequisite for Lupica’s column, or for fan outbursts.
Now, I’m not suggesting Rex Grossman played a good game. He didn’t. But believe me, there were many, *far* worse performances by Super Bowl quarterbacks. It’s been a few days since the Super Bowl, so you may or may not remember Grossman’s stat line. Here’s a fun game to play:
I’ve actually heard a number of people this week whine that “well, if the Pats had beaten the Colts, they woulda won another Super Bowl… wah-wah”. Wow. Is this what it’s come to? Pats fans are now as bad as Yankee fans? I realize that many of us in this region prefer to see the Super Bowl renamed the Patriot Invitational – but have we really lost *all* perspective? Um… this just in… the Patriots were *maybe* the fourth-best team in the playoffs this year – behind San Diego, Indianapolis and Baltimore (in whichever order you prefer). I’d listen to arguments that the Saints (among others) were also better teams. The Patriots weren’t good enough to play in the AFC Championship Game, never mind the NFL Championship Game. The got by the much more talented Chargers for two reasons: (1) Marty Schottenheimer was the Chargers head coach, and (2) the playoff experience differential was *so* large, that the Chargers handed that game to the Pats even after the Pats tried to lose it.
So, I’m finally fully digested from Super Bowl Sunday. I’ve digested the fact that we can longer insist Peyton “can’t win the big one”. I’ve digested the fact that Rex Grossman can technically be called a Super Bowl QB. I’ve digested the fact that the Colts borrowed the 2004 Red Sox blueprint and won the anti-climactic championship after first vanquishing their long-time tormentors, and coming from behind to do it. And I’ve finally digested the various and sundry appetizers I nibbled on throughout the course of the game. My two cents:
Well, we have made it through the saddest weekend of them all. I am, of course, referring to the one right after the Super Bowl, where the realization that there is no more football for seven months begins to set in.
So the question becomes, do you just grit your teeth and do this thing cold turkey? The decision is not as easy as you think. The NFL trots out a few offerings of methodone. First, there’s the Pro Bowl. Then, there’s the NFL Network. Lastly is the Mel Kiper Jr. Invitational ESPN broadcast.
Well it looks like there haven’t been any posts today, so until Cliffy figures out how to log in (insert derisive Red Sox fan comment here) or Carl decides to post his comments in the comments section instead of our inboxes, you’ll be stuck with my NASCAR posts. Muahahahahahaaaaaaaa.
Congratulations to Tony Stewart for winning the Bud Shootout, even though I have a tough time getting excited about non-points races. He loosened up Kyle Busch nicely, unlike Junior’s ill-timed bump draft on the final lap. A couple observations: 1) I’m not sure I can get used to seeing Mark Martin driving the #1 car, though the Army is a much more dignified sponsor than Viagra; 2) it will also take some getting used to Dale Jarrett as #44, though despite switching from Ford to Toyota it looks like he’ll retain not only his UPS sponsorship but his back-of-the-pack finishes of recent years; 3) good to see Boris Said behind the wheel, I really hope he gets to run more races this season; and 4) how can sub-prime mortgage lender Ameriquest afford to sponsor a car anymore? I think Jack Roush will be lucky not to lose another sponsor before Homestead.