A Recollection of the Year’s Best

As the year comes to a close, it is important to reflect on the year you had before moving on to the next one.  On this blog, it is important to reflect on the year in sports.  Feel free to create your own list based on these questions, or comment on mine.

Favorite sports moment (or season)?

This is a tough question, considering Villanova went to the Final Four in basketball, and also won the Division 1 Football Championship in Football.  However, the greatest moment in my life to this point was when I got to see Villanova win the National Championship firsthand.  I got to storm the field and celebrate with my favorite players.  Not to mention I was seen on ESPN2 with my “This is Szczur’s Palace” sign.  The Nova football season was about as good as it got for a fan.  Nova started the season by winning the inaugural Mayor’s Cup against city rival Temple.  Then the team went 9-1 the rest of the season to win the CAA and earn the 2 seed in the playoffs.  Nova beat #1 Richmond and #5 William and Mary along the way.  Then, in the playoffs, Nova beat Holy Cross, got revenge by blowing out New Hampshire, who had given Nova its only loss, then beat William and Mary in a thriller and finally beat Montana to win the National Championship.  The Cats earned three big pieces of hardware this year; the Mayor’s Cup Trophy, the CAA Title, and the National Championship trophy.  What a year for a fan, and that season was the my favorite ”moment” of 2009.

Craziest you have acted at or during a game?

This is another tough question.  I have really been crazy even when the games have been on television, but I will limit this question to a game that I actually attended.  It comes down to either Villanova Pitt, the last game at the Spectrum, Villanova Syracuse at the Carrier Dome, or Villanova American in the first round of the NCAA tournament.  I will eliminate the American game because, while I was cheering wildly, I was more scared than anything.  The last two are about as close to a tie as it gets.  However, I think the craziest I have acted at a game was the Villanova Syracuse game at the Carrier Dome.  From the opening tip, I could not be silenced.  I was getting up, screaming about my Nova players, and razzing the Syracuse fans about their team.  A few Syracuse fans were not thrilled about my antics, to put it mildly.  One guy sitting in front of me said that I would lose my teeth if I kept it up, another said to me, “You are the reason Philadelphia fans have a bad name,” and finally, a sixty year old lady from the next section over was continuously getting up, screaming, and pumped her fists at me when Syracuse would score.  So I guess I don’t really know if she was irritated by my antics, but I am just making an assumption.  What a game though.  Nova won by two, and Johnny Flynn missed a game winning shot at the buzzer.

Best game you saw?

Easy.  Villanova Pittsburgh in the NCAA tournament.  It was a back and forth game, and was the most evenly matched game I saw in the NCAA tournament.  No team lead by more than 5 points at any point during the game, and it was decided by the most memorable play of the 2009 NCAA tournament: Scottie Reynolds’ last second dash down the court to make the layup over Gilbert Brown.  Best game of the year.

Biggest disappointment?

If we are talking about sports in general, Tiger Woods no question.  But I am tired of talking about Tiger.  My biggest disappointment was the baseball season in general.  The Cubs were embarrassing this year.  We go out and get Milton Bradley to be a lefty power hitter (he is a switch, but who is counting right?).  Geovany Soto smokes pot in the offseason, gets in trouble, and subsequently has a terrible year.  Alfonso Soriano remains the most inconsistent player in baseball, although Carlos Zambrano, “The Great Zambino,” gives him a run for his money.  We get rid of Mark DeRosa, and then never were consistent at 2nd.  Real smart, Jim (Hendry).  Aramis Ramirez is injured for the majority of the year.  Harden and Bradley are gone, and we haven’t made many additions to this point.  It’s extremely frustrating as a Cubs fan.

One can not talk about disappointment in the baseball season without talking about the Mets.  Beltran, Delgado, Reyes, Wright, and Santana were all hurt for extended periods of time.  ERRORS ERRORS ERRORS!!! The team could not make a play in the clutch (ie. Luis Castillo dropping a game ending pop up against the Yankees, with Teixiera scoring on the play to win, Jeremy Reed throwing a 90 thrown from first to home 10 feet to the left of Omir Santos, and in the same game, Ryan Church not touching third on his way to scoring the game winning run).  There are so many more examples of why the season was just incredibly disappointing.  Mike Pelfrey balking three times against the Giants, which led to the Giants’ two only runs and the Mets loss.  I can only hope that the guys will stay healthy, Bay will provide a solid presence in the outfield, and the errors and dumb play will be reduced greatly.   

That is the year in review.  Feel free to place a comment (top right) about my examples or create your own examples based on the questions.  Happy New Year to all my loyal readers.

Jason Bay to the Citi

Today the Mets signed left fielder Jason Bay off the free agent market.  This is by far the biggest move by the Mets this offseason, and arguably the biggest move in the baseball offseason so far.  Bay is a powerful hitter who has been the best RBI man in baseball since his move from Pittsburgh to Boston.  The Mets are a team who desperately needed a dynamic offensive threat, as the team ranked last in home runs last year with only 95.  While some of this problem may be pinned on both the injury problems and the Mets’ new pitcher’s ballpark, Citi Field, the Mets certainly were not an offensive juggernaut. 

This deal was a match made in heaven.  Last year, left field was played by a platoon between Gary Sheffield, Fernando Tatis, and Daniel Murphy.  To put it mildly, the Mets needed a major upgrade in left, and they got the best available on the market. 

However, there are many skeptics that think the deal isn’t very beneficial to the Mets.  They think that Bay will not have the impact he did in Boston, or they think that he is not a good enough defender for the spacious Citi Field.  To these people I have to ask one simple question: What was the other option?  Would the Mets have been better by not making any move and sticking Gary Sheffield back out there? Or should the Mets have gone after another player, like Matt Holliday?

Obviously, the second option would be the more plausible alternative.  However, I don’t think people realize that Holliday would have more problems in New York than Bay will.  Holliday is a terrible defender, worse than Bay.  Holliday has struggled mightily on defense when he has played in spacious outfields like Citi Field (ie. Coors Field, Oakland Coliseum).  In addition, Holliday has struggled offensively when he has played at big, pitcher’s ballparks.  For example, when he played in Colorado, his road numbers consistently lagged far behind his numbers at Coors Field, arguably the biggest hitter’s park in baseball.  When he was traded to Oakland, he struggled in the Coliseum, which is much more of a pitcher’s park.  When he finally moved to the Cardinals and Busch Stadium, relatively fair but certainly more of a hitter’s park than a pitcher’s park, his numbers went up again. 

Therefore, from evidence provided in seasons past, it appears that Holliday would struggle as a Met far more than Bay will.  The skeptics who criticize this deal are, in my opinion, trying too hard to find a reason to criticize it.  I think that this deal is a lot simpler than people are making it out to be.  The Mets needed a left fielder as badly as any team in baseball, had a lot of money to pay a quality left fielder, and therefore went out and signed the best outfielder available on the market.  Sounds pretty simple to me.

RIP Colts Undefeated Season

The Colts were 14-0 going into yesterday’s game against the Jets, and had a chance to have a perfect regular season, which would put the team in elite company.  Only the 2008 New England Patriots and the 1972 Miami Dolphins have had undefeated regular seasons.  However, the team, in simple terms, gave up.  The Colts had a 15-10 lead in the 3rd quarter when coach Jim Caldwell decided to take out many of the starters, including quarterback Peyton Manning, in order to rest them for the playoffs.  Backup Curtis Painter took over and the offense gained a total 23 yards, with Painter causing two turnovers.  The Jets scored off these turnovers and won the game 29-15.

Why did the Colts decide to replace its starters with the perfect season on the line?  According to head coach Jim Caldwell, the team is more worried about winning the Super Bowl than the undefeated regular season.  Many in the football community are extremely upset about this decision, including myself.  There is just something special about going undefeated; one can see this when understanding the pride the 1972 Dolphins have as the only team to ever go undefeated and win the Super Bowl.  The Colts certainly had that opportunity.  The Colts, had they left Peyton in the game and beaten the Jets, would have played Buffalo next week with a chance to go undefeated in the regular season.  To that I say, leave your starters in and beat the Jets, then sit them against Buffalo if you want.  You aren’t going to lose to Buffalo. 

In my opinion, the Colts did a disservice to the NFL and its fans.  Fans pay to see the extraordinary, and the Colts simply did not care that they were the biggest story in football.  Jim Caldwell needs to learn his place as a first year head coach.  He could have been the only first year head coach ever to lead his team to an undefeated season.  Instead, he really embarrassed himself and his team, because now everyone is scrutinizing the team’s decision to give up a perfect season.  Since a perfect season has only been acheived twice, I believe the Colts had the responsibility to at least leave its starters in the game Sunday to pursue the perfect season.  The Colts owed it to themselves, the fans, and especially Peyton Manning, who has done everything right in Indianapolis and had a chance to further enshrine himself into football history.

However, since the team decided to give up, fans should simply not care.  I am angry that a chance at football history was given up in order to rest a few starters, but I do not feel the least bit sorry for the Colts as a whole.  I feel bad for Peyton and the other players who wanted to play, but it serves Caldwell right to lose that game.  Resting players is not what football is about, and it is not what the fans pay to see.  Honestly, I hope and think that the Colts deserve to get crushed in the first round of the playoffs, which could happen if a team like Baltimore played the Colts.  Even if they don’t lose, and they win the Super Bowl, the Colts will just be one of 44 teams that are Super Bowl winners.  The team could have been 1 of 2 teams to win the Super Bowl with an undefeated season.  If the team is happy to simply be a Super Bowl winner and does not care AT ALL about the undefeated season, well then I guess Coach Caldwell made the right decision.  But the fans, simply stated, should not care about the Colts and the perfect season, because the team gave away its chance, no one else. 

The Colts will not be an undefeated team, and it serves them right.  If they didn’t want it, then they do not deserve it.  Fans pay outrageous prices to see these games, and Colts fans with tickets to these games were most likely ecstatic to have the opportunity to see their team have a chance to go undefeated.  Instead, they paid to watch Curtis Painter (no offense Purdue fans) blow the game against the Jets, and to give away a chance at the perfect season.  It is like paying for a preseason game.  If the NFL keeps going down this road and teams start the trend of resting starters extensively when their playoff spots are clinched, fans simply won’t show up for the latter games of the season.  So to coaches like Jim Caldwell, don’t be surprised if your fans stop showing up at the end of the season, and the lack of attendance causes blackouts in your areas.  And when that does happen, don’t look to blame it on anyone else but yourself.  It is embarrassing what these coaches are doing, and it is one reason why college sports are on the whole so much better than the pro sports.

Comment on your thoughts? What did you think about the Colts decision to sit the starters?

Urban Meyer (Part 2)

Less than 24 hours after deciding that he was going to call it quits as head coach of the Gators, Meyer decided that he would instead remain the head coach and take “an indefinite leave of absence.”  Offensive coordinator Steve Addazio will take over as interim head coach until Meyer either returns or decides to quit completely.

This new development is extremely interesting in that it completely changes the picture of the Florida coaching situation.  The day before, Meyer was so worried about his health that he decided to leave a $4m salary and arguably the best job in college football.  But yesterday, after a practice with his players, he decided that he can’t just leave and pass the program on to someone else.  Something doesn’t add up here.  Meyer stated that he made the decision to walk away after thinking the situation through thoroughly, balancing his enjoyment from coaching with the need to support his family and keep his health.  If this decision was made so thoroughly, how can a decision that affects the future of your life be changed less than 24 hours after it was made?

In my opinion, there can only be two answers to this question.  Either Urban Meyer simply does not have his priorities in check, or he is simply doing this to retain the strong 2014 Florida recruiting class.  If the former is the reason Urban changed his mind, then I feel sorry for him and his family.  Meyer was told by doctors, his family, and even himself that the stress and anxiety caused by coaching was dangerous to his health.  He convinced himself that he needed to support himself and his family by being there as a husband and a father.  His children were extemely happy to hear that they were getting their father back in their lives.  However, in this case Meyer would have decided that giving up the Florida football program would be worse for him than being there for his family, remaining healthy, and not coaching.  Meyer would be acting childish in this situation, but this wouldn’t be too surprising.  Meyer has pulled some childish and irresponsible ploys while coaching at Florida.  For example, he called timeouts in the final minute against Georgia last year while crushing the Bulldogs, only because Georgia overcelebrated after scoring a touchdown the year before.  In addition, after LB Brandon Spikes tried to gauge a players eye out, Urban Meyer suspended him for a half against Vanderbilt.  A half? against Vanderbilt?  It was a joke to think that suspension only for a half was sufficient for the action performed.  It is even more laughable when one considers that Spikes suspended himself for the rest of the game after Urban Meyer did not.  These actions, in addition to the childish feud between him and Lane Kiffin, among others, show that Urban Meyer, while a great coach, has been very childish at times.  He very well could be acting childish again in this situation.

The other possible reason for his decision to leave would be that he does not want to have his recruits from the extremely strong 2014 recruiting class decommiting.  Most of the recruits committed to Florida because of Urban Meyer and the program he has built during his time at Florida.  Therefore, he would have decided only to take a leave of absence because he did not want the recruits to commit to other schools.  However, this reason doesn’t exactly add up when one thinks about it.  If Meyer really was worried about the recruits decommiting, he never would have made the announcement about his role change in the first place.  He would have waited until after the signing period, or at least until after the bowl game.  Therefore, this most likely could not have been the main reason to change his decision to a leave of absence.  Instead, it looks like Urban Meyer made a childish, self-consumed decision to attempt to return to coaching at Florida at some point, even though doctors have told him that coaching is detrimental to his health.  By returning he would be letting himself and his family down.

Urban Meyer

Yesterday, the college football world was hit with completely unexpected news.  Urban Meyer resigned from his head coaching position at Florida.  When asked about the sudden timing of his decision, he said that there were no immediate life-threatening health concerns, but said “I have ignored my health for years, but recent developments have forced me to reevaluate my priorities of faith and family.”  Also, he said that many of his coaching practices were becoming “self-destructive.”  But it was stressed that none of these health developments were “immediate.”  Meyer said that there is no timetable for his return, but will stay coaching through the Sugar Bowl against Cincinnati.

What should fans think about this sudden resignation?  Even though Meyer said that it wasn’t an immediate health condition, I believe he could very likely have a impacting health issue facing him.  First, he made this declaration before the bowl game January 1st, and only 1 week before the game.  If it wasn’t an immediate health concern, he could have waited a week to make such a startling and probably unnerving declaration to his players.  To give an example, when coaches are considering taking another job, they wait and bide their time, avoiding questions from the media and players until it is almost obvious that they are taking the job.  Meyer, if the problem wasn’t immediate and health threatening, would have done the same.  Meyer would have waited until after the Sugar Bowl to tell his players and the media, in order that Florida plays its best and does not worry about its coach’s resignation.  Since he did feel the need to make the statement of his resignation 1 week before the game, it is probable that there is something more that he and the Florida athletic department are not saying. 

Also, to those that argue that the decision was stated now because of the impact on recruiting, I just have one question.  Would Florida have any trouble finding a coach?  It is arguably the most desirable coaching job in the country, and many big name coaches would drop everything to coach at Florida.  In addition, since Meyer is coaching through the Sugar Bowl, Florida can not hire a coach until after the Sugar Bowl anyway.  Therefore, the timing actually has a negative impact on Florida, as recruits now have at least 1-2 weeks without knowing who their coach is, meaning they have more of a reason to choose a different school.  There would be no reason for Meyer to make this decision now unless it was due to an extremely threatening health concern.

In addition, this decision had to be fairly recent and unexpected, and could not have been a methodical decision like it was made out to be.  Former Florida defensive coordinator Charlie Strong left Florida for the head coaching job at Louisville just two weeks earlier.  However, Strong would have been a top choice to replace Meyer if he were to resign.  In fact, it has been reported that Florida is now trying to bring Strong back to Florida to become the head coach.  So why would Strong have gone to Louisville if Urban Meyer’s health issues were known, and not immediate and unexpected?  Why would Strong leave if Meyer’s decision was a “methodical” one?  The development with Charlie Strong gives convincing evidence that Urban Meyer and Florida are not delving all the details about Meyer’s resignation, and that the decision was prompted by a recent health development.

What would the recent and threatening health developments be?  While I have no direct knowledge of Urban Meyer’s health, I do know that Meyer has suffered from persistent headaches caused by an arachnoid cyst that becomes inflamed by stress, rage and excitement (Sports Illustrated).  However, in the past these headaches have never been enough for him to miss any games or cut back on coaching.  His life has never been threatened by these headaches.  Therefore, it is difficult to believe that these headaches were the sole reason that he is leaving.  There almost has to be something more from this to make sense.  He is the most beloved and renowned coach currently in college football and makes $4m per year.  There needs to be a hidden reason for his sudden and untimely departure.

The future for Florida and the rest of college football will be impacted greatly by Meyer’s sudden departure.  How will the power within the SEC be shifted.  Will Alabama become the Florida of the last 5 years with no true competitors?  Will Lane Kiffin bring Tennessee to the top of the SEC by landing recruits that may have otherwise gone to Florida?  Will coaches like Bobby Petrino have more opportunities to grow their program within the SEC without the Florida cloud drafting over the rest of the SEC?  Or will a coach like Dan Mullen or Charlie Strong return to Florida, and with their familiarity with the Florida program return it to the top of college football without any rebuilding years?  I can not wait to see how the SEC specifically is affected in the coming years by this change, because it provides opportunities for so many teams to rise up and reestablish themselves within the conference.

The other big question is about the replacement.  Florida has the option of either bringing back Dan Mullen, former offensive coordinator, or Charlie Strong, former defensive coordinator.  Both men know the Florida system very well and would most likely provide a seamless transition into next season.  The other option is to go after a big name head coach, regardless of affiliation with the university.  In this case Florida could attempt to bring in Chris Peterson of Boise State, Bob Stoops of Oklahoma, or even Pete Carroll of USC.  The next few months at Florida will redefine the balance of power within the SEC and within college football.

Christmas Weekend Bowl Preview

The first of three bowl’s December 26th is the Little Caesar’s Bowl (1PM), which will pair Marshall of Conference USA and Ohio from the MAC.  Ohio is 9-4 this season and won the MAC East.  Marshall started the season strong, but struggled in Conference USA play and finished the season 6-6 after going 1-3 to end the season.  Marshall is playing without a coach, as Coach Mark Snyder resigned after the Herd’s final regular season game.  Defensive coordinator Rick Minter will coach under the interim tag for this game.

Ohio is led by quarterback Theo Scott and talented running back/kick returner Chris Garrett.  Marshall will need to key on Chris Garrett in an effort to make Ohio a one-dimensional team.  The defense will need to eliminate Garrett’s impact make slightly nicked-up Theo Scott be the one to beat them.  This will be the only way Marshall will be able to stay in the game.  Marshall’s offense is led by quarterback Brian Anderson and running back Darius Marshall.  Anderson has solid passing numbers, but has a mediocre TD-INT ratio.  The Ohio defense will look to exploit Anderson in the passing game.

This game will come down to turnovers and which team’s running back can impose his will on the other defense.  Ohio is just too talented of a team for Marshall to compete with for 60 minutes.

My prediction:  Ohio 31-Marshall 14

The 4PM game is the Meineke Car Care Bowl, which pairs Pittsburgh and North Carolina.  This could be one of the best bowl games of the season, and a very difficult one to predict.  Pittsburgh has an extremely explosive offense, and North Carolina has one of the top 10 defenses in the country.  North Carolina has struggled at times on offense, but Pittsburgh’s defense has not been very consistent this year.  Every time I think about this game, I switch from picking Pitt to picking UNC, and then back to Pitt.  Will Bill Stull and Dion Lewis impose their will on the North Carolina defense, or will UNC’s defense stop the explosive Pitt offense?  The other big question is whether or not the UNC offense will show up and play well.

My prediction may change by gametime, but I think the UNC defense will stop the Pitt offense, and the UNC offense will do just enough to win the game.  My prediction:  UNC 27-Pitt 21 

The final game of the day is the Emerald Bowl, where USC will battle Boston College.  The game will be played at San Francisco Giants’ AT&T Park.  This game is an interesting matchup in that both teams have not played to their potential this  year.  USC looks to erase the disappointment of a 5th place finish in the Pac-10 with a bowl victory.  It is not certain whether or not Joe McKnight will be cleared to play yet, but he would be a big part of USC’s offensive attack.  Another key to the game will be quarterback Matt Barkley’s response to his first career bowl appearance.  Boston College will rely on Montel Harris, who set the school rushing record this year with 1,355 yards and 13 TDs. 

My prediction:  Boston College’s Montel Harris will run free on the USC defense that has struggled against the talented runners this year.  BC 30-USC 17.

The only game Sunday, 12/27 is Clemson vs. Kentucky in the Music City Bowl.  This game will be a matchup of the ACC runner up and a middle of the road SEC team.  Kentucky has played many solid games this year; with a few good wins and a few tough losses against good teams.  This game comes down to if Kentucky can stop Clemson running back CJ Spiller.  Kentucky’s defense has not looked stellar this year against the run, and I think that will be the difference in the game.

My prediction:  Clemson 28-Kentucky 21

Merry Christmas

I want to wish all my readers a Merry Christmas. Enjoy the holiday season.  Also, stay tuned for my Top 10 Sports Moments of the Decade, which will be released December 31st.  Feel free to comment on my Top 10, or create your own and post it as a comment.

The Mountain West?

The Mountain West has 5 teams playing in bowl games this season:  Wyoming, BYU, Utah, Air Force, and TCU.  The Mountain West has been the conference that many people think is simply the best mid-major conference, but not competitive on the national scale.  TCU’s undefeated record has been called out by many college football fans on account of little or no competition.  However, before someone passes judgement on the talent of the Mountain West, one must look at the success the conference in the recent bowl games.  Wyoming played the first bowl game of the season and shockingly defeated Fresno State, who was highly favored in the game.  Then BYU crushed Oregon State 44-20.  Finally, last night, Utah defeated Cal, 37-27 in a virtual home game for Cal at San Diego’s Qualcomm Stadium.

Air Force will play Houston December 31st at 12 PM.  TCU will close the Mountain West bowl season January 4th against Boise State in the Fiesta Bowl.  If the Mountain West wins at least one of its last two games, it would be time to consider the possibility that the Mountain West in better than at least one of the major conferences.  The Mountain West has arguably 3 upsets already, and Air Force looks to be an underdog against Houston.  TCU will be the lone Mountain West team that is favored in its bowl game, but that is only because the BCS tried to save itself by pairing the two non-BCS conference teams against each other, TCU and Boise State.  If TCU played any other team in one of the BCS bowls, the Horned Frogs would be underdogs.  Therefore, one more bowl win by the Mountain West would put the conference at 4-1 in the bowl season with at least three upsets.  With this postseason resume, the Mountain West would deserve consideration as one of the top 6 conferences in the country. 

Compare the Mountain West with the Pac-10, which is currently 0-2 in the bowl season with two losses to Mountain West teams.  Cal lost to Utah by 10, and Oregon State lost to BYU by 24.  As mentioned, both Mountain West winners were underdogs in the games, but these teams beat two Pac-10 opponents by a combined 34 points.  There is certainly something to be said for that.  The Pac-10 was extremely down this year, as USC finished 5th in conference.  The Pac-10 struggled mightily as a conference on defense this year, and that weakness was exposed by Utah and BYU. 

The Pac-10 has 5 remaining bowl games.  USC will play Boston College, UCLA will play Temple, Stanford will play Oklahoma, Arizona will play Nebraska, and Oregon will play Ohio State in the Rose Bowl Game.  The Pac-10 would be doing well if it went 3-2 in these five games, and it is probable that the conference will go under .500 for its remaining games.  USC and Boston College is a toss up, but I think USC will win that game.  UCLA v. Temple will be a good game, but I think Temple will win that game.  Stanford has no defense, and that will hurt the Cardinal against Oklahoma.  Nebraska has one of the best defenses in the country, and Arizona will have trouble moving the ball against the best defense it has seen this year.  Oregon has not played a defense as strong as Ohio State this year, but when Oregon played Boise State, granted it was early in the season, it Duck offense could not move the ball well against the Bronco defense. 

So even if the conference went 3-2 in its remaining games, which would be arguably the best case scenario, that would only put the Pac-10 at 3-4 for the bowl season.  That would mean that the Pac-10 would have less wins in 7 games than the Mountain West does in 5.  Couple that with the fact that the Mountain West gave the Pac-10 2 of its losses, the games in which both Mountain West teams were underdogs, and one must consider the possibility that the Mountain West is a better football conference than the Pac-10.

The Ed Block Courage Award

The Philadelphia Eagles’ players all voted to determine the winner of the Ed Block award, given to the Eagle who has shown the most courage.  The players unanimously voted for Michael Vick, who as a result won the award.  There is something to be said for when an entire team feels one way about a player, and that may have some validity in this case.

However, I can’t help but question the decision to give Michael Vick the award.  Let’s recap what he has been through.  He killed dogs in dogfighting matches when he was the franchise player for the Atlanta Falcons, then spent about 2 years in prison.  He came back and signed with the Eagles, which was about the only bidder for Vick.  Now, with the Eagles, he has had very limited playing time.

Therefore, my question is, what makes him deserving of the courage award?  What was he so courageous about?  He handled himself like a professional, said all the right things, and did not complain about his backup role.  However, I fail to see why every Eagle player thinks that he is the most courageous player on the team. 

How about Sheldon Brown, who is getting underpaid, complained about his contract before the season, and still went out and played a pro-bowl caliber season.  That is playing for the love of the game and not worrying about the money, like almost every other NFL player does.  Sheldon has also been playing with a torn ligament in his leg as well.

Therefore, when you think about players with courage, it is important to look beyond the obvious.  Michael Vick may have the best story, where he improved himself and now acts like a professional, but a courage award is one specifically where a player shows courage over the course of the season.  Michael Vick hasn’t showed extraordinary courage, but instead is acting like any NFL player should.

When one looks at Sheldon Brown, one sees a Pro-Bowl caliber corner, playing for love of the game after not engaging in any contract negotiations that he desired, and playing tremendously with a slightly torn ligament.  That is courage.

The Xavier v. Butler Controversy

This past Saturday, Xavier and Butler played a thrilling game that came down to a Butler last second shot by Gordon Hayward to win the game.  However, with 14.7 seconds remaining in the game, with Butler in control of the ball, the game clock stopped for what looked like about 1 second.  There was then a chaotic exchange just outside the lane, and Butler scored to take the lead with 1.2 seconds remaining in the game.  After a long review by the officials, during which they used a stopwatch to determine how much time should have been run off, it was determined that the inadvertent clock stoppage exceeded 1.2 seconds, effectively ending the game.

Before I give my opinion on the issue, one must realize that the referees should not be subject to any of my negative statements.  They did everything right.  In the case of an inadvertent clock stoppage, referees must take a stopwatch to determine the correct time on the game clock.  They must do this before the next play starts.  If time still remains on the game clock when the time should have expired, as it did during the Xavier Butler game, then the game is over.  However, if Hayward had released the ball with under 1.2 seconds to go, the shot would not have counted and Xavier would have won.  Therefore, the referees handled the situation correctly on Saturday.

That being said, the rule needs to be changed.  It is completely unacceptable that Butler could have lost the game had the winning shot been released with 1 second remaining on the game clock.  Consider this situation.  A player dribbles the ball up the court, and the clock stops for 1 second.  Neither the players nor the officials notice the problem.  The play develops normally, and the player steps up and releases a game winning shot with .5 seconds left.  Why should this team lose the game?  Realistically it should not.  The team and the player did absolutely nothing wrong.  There was no way to know at the time that the clock had stopped for 1 second inadvertently.  Therefore, the rule is unfair and needs to be changed.

However, if the rule is changed, and the game clock is treated as the true time, regardless of whether or not the clock was “paused,” this still creates another problem.  It opens up a proverbial can of worms because it now gives the home timekeeping crew a hand in the outcome of the game.  For example, if a team is right on the bubble, playing a conference opponent at home, isn’t there a possibility that the timekeeper might try to influence the time to allow the team to win the game (ie. stopping the clock momentarily to ensure that the team has more time for a last second shot)?  I think this would happen quite often, and this trend can not be allowed to begin.

Therefore, I believe my solution is the fairest way to solve the problem.  In cases where the game clock was inadvertently or intentionally stopped, the away team should always benefit.  One may ask, “Well, isn’t that unfair to the home team?”  In my opinion it is not.  This solution does two things.  First, it prevents anyone other than the players and officials from having any way or temptation to affect the outcome of the game.  The timekeepers are usually affiliated with the universities for which they keep time during a college basketball game.  Therefore, the timekeepers are more likely to alter the time in their university’s favor than in the opposing team’s favor.  This solution prevents attempts at intentionally altering the time, and makes the timekeepers be more careful while controlling the clock. 

In addition, this solution will ensure that the most talented people are put in the timekeeper position.  The athletic directors will be aware of this rule that any clock discrepancy can only help the away team, and will not want their teams to be negatively affected by this rule.  The athletic directors will be compelled to find a talented person for the position that will not produce clock discrepancies.  This will effectively limit the number of clock discrepancies that occur in college basketball.

Therefore, in the Xavier Butler game, the referees were correct in their decision to end the game.  They followed the rule correctly by using the stopwatch to determine how much time would have ran off, and then ended the game.  The solution to this problem is to assure that whenever a clock discrepancy occurs, the away team benefits.  This rule will ensure that home timekeepers do not have an impact on games.  It will also lead to the hiring of more intelligent and reliable timekeepers, thereby limiting the number of inadvertent game clock stoppages that do occur.