Odds and Ends: Brett Favre's future reads like this...

Posted on Thu Jul 03, 2008 at 01:05:24 PM EST in NFL
More on: Brett Favre, Packers, NFL, Alex Rodriguez, Urijah Faber, Wayne Gretzky, Rampage Jackson, Dick Vitale, Erin Andrews, MLB, Len Bias, video, Odds and Ends (all tags)

With rumors ferociously swirling around a potential Brett Favre comeback, everyone is now buzzing about the possibilities. "Are we going to get one more year of horribly timed interceptions?" "Will we get one more season of John Madden slobbering over No. 4?" "Could we still see another euphoric sprint to the end zone?" Who knows. Actually, Tirico Suave knows and they've come up with a pair of headlines from the distant future regarding the NFL's ironman. As indicated, Favre will die at the age of 89, but that still doesn't mean his playing days are over.

In other news...

[NYDailyNews.com]: "Hey, Madonna, whatcha doing tonight?"

[MMAMania.com]: Next up for Urijah Faber is Mike Brown

[The Big Lead]: Thank goodness, she looks nothing like her father

[Throwdown.com]: Rampage is practicing his gangsta rap poses

[Awful Announcing]: Dickie V is just like the rest of us. He's smitten with Erin Andrews too

[The Wizard of Odds]: Art of the cupcake schedule

[Home Run Derby]: Ooh-la-la. Dodgers coconut bra

[ESPN]: Extraordinary piece on the impact of Len Bias' life and death

[The Bad News Bloggers]: Top 10 reasons the NFL salary cap must stay in place

[FBKid's Sports Minute]: It's never too early to start thinking about fantasy football breakout players

[The Sporting Blog]: Weeeeeeeees and pees

And finally, "ringing the bell," huh? So, that's what you kids call it these days.

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Around the Rim: Class of 2008

Posted on Tue Apr 08, 2008 at 09:28:19 AM EST in NBA
More on: Hall of Fame, Patrick Ewing, Adrian Dantley, Pat Riley, Hakeem Olajuwon, Dick Vitale, LeBron James, Cavaliers, Heat, Michael Beasley, Jazz, Hornets, Eric Gordon, NBA, Around the RIm (all tags)

1. Hall of Fame time
While the NCAA national championship game might have been the most exciting event in San Antonio on Monday, it wasn't the only ticket in town. Long before Mario Chalmers became truly Super, seven basketball legends were selected to grace the Hall of Fame. Of NBA note, Adrian Dantley, Hakeem Olajuwon, Patrick Ewing and Pat Riley got the nod. However, nobody was more overcome by the moment than the voice of college basketball Dick Vitale. Dicky V was all choked up all afternoon as he savored the honor.

I can't run, can't jump, can't shoot, but just have had a tremendous -- I'd like to think -- passion about the game," said Vitale.

The fellas officially take their places amongst the other legends of the game on Sept. 5 in Springfield, Mass.

2. LeBron takes it easy for a change
The last thing the Cavaliers need right now is to drop out of the top four in the Eastern Conference and lose home court advantage in the opening round. And that's exactly why LeBron James didn't practice on Monday. King James has been dealing with a bad back for a while now and in order to make sure the superstar is ready to finish the season strong, the Cavs gave him the day off. It's not like he needs to practice anyway, he's a triple-double waiting to happen for cryin' out loud. The kid should have been shut down two weeks ago when this problem first started. Now Cleveland is dealing with an injury-laden James, a losing skid of five losses in seven games and it owns a measly two-game lead over Washington in the standings. Luckily, its next game is against New Jersey.

3. Eric Gordon follows Kelvin Sampson outta Indiana
Eric Gordon has confirmed he'll be entering the NBA draft, meaning the Heat and the Sonics can finally start to get a glimpse of what their future's could hold. The six-foot-four guard led the Big Ten in scoring with 20.9 points per game while setting the school and conference record for freshman scoring with 669 points. Unfortunately, all that glitz was somewhat negated when he injured his wrist back in January and his game went downhill. And with guys like Michael Beasley, Derrick Rose, O.J. Mayo, D.J. Augustin and Kevin Love possibly in the mix, Gordon could slide to a tail end top 10 pick.

Tuesday's Game to Watch: Utah (51-26) @ New Orleans (54-22)
On paper the Jazz look pretty darn good with a 50-win season wrapped up and a current grip on the fourth seed in the West. But looks can be deceiving. While owning the league's best home record, Utah is a pathetic 16-22 on the road. In fact, the only reason they even have homecourt advantage at the moment is because the three division leaders are guaranteed one of the top four seeds. But it should still be a compelling matchup, especially at the point guard position where Chris Paul and Deron Williams will go head to head.

Buzzer Beater: Without saying he was going to pick Michael Beasley in the draft, Pat Riley said he was going to pick Michael Beasley in the draft. Of course, this is assuming Beasley goes pro and the Heat grab the top pick. But assuming all goes according to plan, Riley expects his recent scouting trip to the opening round of the NCAA tournament in Omaha to pay off. In case you don't remember, Kansas State just so happened to open and close its March Madness in Omaha.

If the ping-pong ball falls right, I think one of the players I saw will be in a Miami Heat uniform," Riley said. "That was why I was in Omaha.

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Bob Knight falls asleep at the idea of going back to Indiana

Posted on Mon Mar 17, 2008 at 09:09:39 AM EST in College
More on: Dick Vitale, Bob Knight, ESPN, college basketball, NCAA, video, funny (all tags)

Last night, amidst all the Bracetology talk on ESPN's family of networks, Dick Vitale unveiled his blueprint to "dominate college basketball." And frankly, it all seemed to bewilder/bore Bob Knight.

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Leave The Guessing Up To The Experts

Posted on Wed Mar 14, 2007 at 07:05:11 PM EST in College
More on: March Madness, celebrities, Dick Vitale, college basketball (all tags)

I'm unbiased baby!

At some point every year, college hoops fans come to a crossroads when it comes to filling out their tournament brackets. Whether it's in the first round or the Final Four, there are always those toss-up games that will drive you to the brink of insanity. Well, now you don't have to frantically scan through all the menial stats and scenarios because celebrities like Doogie Howser, Lauren Holly, and Dicky V (actually stay away from Dick's picks, his bracket has Coach K's kids winning it every year) have already done all the hard work for you. And if you think that all their predictions suck then you can rely on the national popular opinion. But, why do that when it's so much more fun to ridicule individuals for your own mistakes.

Neil Patrick Harris, Jeff Probst, Tony Kornheiser, Sam Hornish Jr., Lauren Holly, Seth Davis, Dick Vitale, Clark Kellogg, ESPN Experts, National Bracket

It looks like an overwhelming number of votes are being cast for the Gators to make it through the entire field win a second consecutive championship. That's just fine with us, as long as we can see a repeat performance of Joakim Noah's spastic boogey.

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Dick Vitales calls Joakim Noah...

Posted on Mon Mar 12, 2007 at 09:29:27 AM EST in College
More on: Dick Vitale, marketing, NCAA Tournament, college basketball (all tags)

Now that the tournament is officially underway with Selection Sunday, get ready for the onslaught of marketing that accompanies it. In addition to the dumbest television commercials ever produced (remember Applebees popcorn shrimp), companies will be trying to capture your attention online too.

First up is Dick Vitale and Digiorno Pizza with their "send a message" campaign where you can customize a message for a friend and have it email or phone them. Well, here's a little fun with Dicky V.

Links:
[SC]: Cell phones... they're AWESOME BABY!

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Feb 28 2007 episode of Poor Man's PTI

Posted on Wed Feb 28, 2007 at 08:47:23 AM EST in Other Sports
More on: podcasts, Poor Man's PTI, Chris Leak, Dick Vitale, Greg Oden, college hoops (all tags)

Welcome to another episode of Poor Man's PTI.

You can download this week's podcast directly (running time 32 mins) or subscribe to the feed.  

If you use iTunes, just click here and then click subscribe and iTunes will take care of the rest.

This week's topics include:

• Chris Leak's wonderlic score
• The Oscars
• Antonella Barba
• Dick Vitale's cell phone
• Ohio State vs Wisconsin / Greg Oden vs Kevin Durant
• Shaun Livingston's knee injury
• more college hoops
• Fuzzy Zoeller's wikipedia entry

Hope you guys enjoy the podcast.  If you did enjoy it, please give us a good rating below so we can rise up in the rankings. If you didn't, send us an email (editor@sportscolumn.com) and give us some suggestions. Thanks for listening.

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Cell phones... they're AWESOME BABY!

Posted on Tue Feb 27, 2007 at 12:50:55 PM EST in College
More on: Dick Vitale, college basketball, ESPN (all tags)

It seems that radio is the best method to get in trouble these days. First it was Jim Mora Jr., then Timmy Hardaway, and now college hoops announcing icon/blowhard Dick Vitale. Dicky V is in hot water over some comments he made at a restaurant to a fellow diner while unknowingly on the air via cell phone with WNML-FM in Knoxville. (audio link)

Vitale relayed a private conversation between him and Billy Donovan over the draft prospects of Joakim Noah:

Right now, I talked to some NBA guys who have a little doubt about [Noah]. I mean, he's still going to get drafted top six or seven, but [he has] no shot. No shot. I'm going to tell you what. I'd take Horford over him. You know who told me that in confidence? Billy Donovan grabbed me all alone and said the pro scouts are making a mistake. He said there's no way I would take Noah over - he said he would never say that publicly - over Horford.

Vitale called the next day and said he was joking and that conversation between him and Billy never took place. It's a little too late Dick. There's no way that any NBA team will take Noah over Horford now. And while the NBA scouts might have come to the conclusion that Horford is a better pick, Vitale might have just cost Noah a lot of money. Thanks a lot, Dick.

Links:
[Loser with Socks]: Dickie Vitale Reveals Billy Dononvan Comments.....Oops and Oh Shit
[TBO.com]:Vitale's Inadvertent Remark Could Affect Team's Chemistry

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It's time to dust off Dick Vitale

Posted on Fri Nov 03, 2006 at 10:51:58 AM EST in College
More on: college basketball, Dick Vitale (all tags)

We are so excited about the college basketball season getting underway this year... that is, until we were reminded that along with college bball comes Dick Vitale. It's like sitting through Freddie Prinze Jr to see Jessica Biel. (You know you saw Summer Catch.) Check out his column for USA Today:

Hey, it is time for college hoops, baby. Are you kidding me? My passion just keeps getting bigger and bigger and bigger. I can't wait for the middle of November and the start of my (insert number)th campaign on ESPN.

Somebody pinch me. Sitting at courtside for the best games in the land is like stealing money.

Man, I'm (insert current age), but I act like I'm 12 when I'm around some of the best college kids across America. This year there are so many story lines, so let me play a game of a Dozen Questions.

And then at some point he'll mention Duke and put them in the top 10. There's gotta be a Dick Vitale column generator out there like there is for Bill Simmons, right? In any case, college hoops is right around the corner.... kicking off with Vermont vs New Orleans? Talk about a let down. The NCAA has to get a little bit of the NFL hype.

Here are some links to get you in the mood:

[ESPN]: USA Today/ESPN Coaches Preseason Top 25
[College hoops.net]: CHN's Top 144 Season preview
[SI]: Sports Illustrated 2006 Preview

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