Author: Vin

Vin is a Philly boy who shouldn't be invited into your house because he'll judge you on your book and music collection. He owns Dawkins, Utley, Iverson, and Lindros jerseys, which is all you really need to know about him. He can be reached at [email protected].

Categories
Boxing

The Devil has an audience with the Pope


Perhaps this is the end of times — Don King will have an audience with the Pope on March 21. The meeting was set up by a boxer King promoted named Luca Messi. Messi has a boxer who is a priest, and apparently with enough pull to get him in front of the pope.

Remember, this is Don King, the guy who probably pushed Mike Tyson over the edge of insanity. The guy who killed two people (for real) when he was a bookmaker in Cleveland. The guy who takes juries on nice vacations when he’s on trial for something. The guy who shortchanges his own boxers and robs some others blind. The guy who Mike Tyson claims owes him $100M. (Well, we’ll throw that one out since Mike Tyson can’t even count to 100.) The guy who dangled Vanilla Ice off the balcony of a hotel.

In any case, Don King is a bad bad man and yet he gets an audience with the pope? Something doesn’t seem right here. Only two good things can come of this. The Pope sends Don King to hell…. or Don King starts breakdancing for the Pope.

Links:
[Page Six]: DON KING IN RING WITH POPE

Categories
College Basketball

Nevada’s coach has anger management issues

The tournament is full of upsets other than the 12-5 and one of our favorites is to take a 10-7 upset. (Actually, a couple of these 10-7s look good this year…) But the main reason you want Creighton over Nevada is maybe we’ll witness Nevada coach Mark Fox going nuts after the game. Fox was almost arrested after losing to Utah State in the WAC tournament.

Quent Pirtle, the police officer who was on security duty for the officials that night said that Fox used “loud, boisterous and profane language toward the officials” and at one point chased an official up a stairwell. Fox also cursed at the officer and that Pirtle considered arresting him on charges of assault on a police office (What?) and a conventional assault charge for harassing the officials but decided to let college officials deal with it.

Fox will not be suspended from Nevada’s game on Friday in the opening round. College basketball is getting so soft. Nobody was talking about arrests when John Chaney threatened to kill John Calipari after a game. And by the looks of it, Chaney actually meant it.


Links:
[SI]: Police: Nevada’s Fox abusive, profane

Categories
MLB General

MLB loses its erection


Ahhh the last time we’ll be able to make a baseball ED joke and post a picture of Raffy Palmeiro. Viagra is ending its five-year-old endorsement deal with Major League Baseball. The overwhelming reason is that changes in pharmacy guidelines meant that drug companies couldn’t advertise in prime-time anymore and that took away most of the value of the deal. However, the leagues have also been growing increasinly wary of advertising sexual dysfunction drugs in a family friendly atmosphere.


Sports properties saw dollar signs, and there was a land rush,” said Michael Neuman, CEO and founder of Amplify Sports and Entertainment, New York, who had worked on marketing programs for a variety of pharmaceutical brands from Pfizer, Amgen and GlaxoSmithKline. “But when you had ads talking about four-hour erections during NFL games, people from ownership on down started questioning the association.

Links:
[Sports Business Journal]: (Subscription) ED era wanes as Viagra exits MLB deal

Categories
College Basketball

Odds and Ends: A true American hero



Who runs a $22 office pool?

Michigan state representative Kim Meltzer wants to decriminalize NCAA tournament pools because “what makes March Madness unique is that all kinds of people and sports fans of all levels fill out their brackets and enjoy the tournament. It’s a crime we consider that a crime, and I want to change it.”

Bravo Kim! Bravo! Any pool that’s $20 or less would be legal. Although nobody ever gets prosecuted over an office pool, it shouldn’t be illegal to throw your money away to the guy who just moved here from Bangladesh and is picking teams based on mascots. Hell, the office pool is probably the only chance sports geeks get a chance to talk to that cute girl in marketing. God Bless America and the bracket!

In other news…

[Sign On San Diego]: Adonal Foyle is now free to make fun of Canadians

[WrestleZone]: When your false teeth come flying out during a match, you might want to stop wrestling

[Nashville City Paper]: Even Pacman Jones knows he’s in a heap of trouble

[The Offside]: Sometimes you just gotta check the ol’ undercarriage

[The Big Lead]: Bill Belichick won’t have to testify for banging Sharon Shenocca

[10,000 Takes]: Yeah but where are the strippers?

And finally, we hope you signed up for March Madness On Demand cause it’s gonna be crazy this Thursday. Here’s a list of the announcer schedules. Sadly, one of the most intriguing Cinderalla matchups (Butler/ODU) has Kevin Harlan on the mic.

Categories
College Basketball

Why didn’t Drexel and Syracuse get into the tourney? Money


We’ve heard a lot of theories of the selection committee setting up matches not because of relative strength of teams but because of possible second round matchups that would be phenomenal for TV ratings. Gonzaga – UCLA anyone? Well, this is the first we’ve heard of the reasoning why teams like Syracuse and Drexel didn’t get in this year.


Two years ago, the NCAA bought – that’s right, the organization spent more than $50 million to purchase – the National Invitation Tournament. The other tournament, March Not-So-Madness, had gone along very nicely for years by hosting the NCAA’s rejects in a separate-but-unequal shadow tournament.

Now the NCAA owns it. Now the NCAA has incentive to make sure some attractive teams are available for the NIT field. The committee can’t get away with sending Wisconsin and Pittsburgh to the NIT – even Dick Vitale would figure that scam out – but it can send a few big programs from a few big markets.

Drexel and Syracuse, Kansas State and Florida State. They will draw nice crowds and decent TV ratings to their NIT games.

As if Drexel and Syracuse fans aren’t pissed enough. Now they find out that they didn’t make the tourney cause they are too good… for TV ratings anyway.

Links:
[Philly.com]: Phil Sheridan | Enough unfair exclusions: Add teams

Categories
High School Sports

Dear wrestling champ, please keep your fingers out of my rectum


High school wrestling always gets a bad rap… partly because two sweaty dudes grappling with each other sends up the red rainbow flag like you wouldn’t believe. However, we wrestled in high school and we’re not gay (except for that one time with Tim Hardaway in the Heat locker room). Still, when a story like this comes out, it doesn’t do anyone any good.

A 17-year-old state wrestling champ named Jerome Hunt has been accused by 6 former Parker High School wrestlers that he either raped them or tried to rape them with his fingers. However, his lawyer says that the “penetration” was a result of legitimate wrestling moves known as “skinning” and the “butt drag”. Listen, there are no legitimate wrestling moves that involve a finger actually in the rectum. NONE. Well, there is the “hold and sodomize” move but that’s only allowed in overtime… and in prison.

The victims said that the attacks happened before practice, on the team bus or at a wrestling camp. Now Hunt might be as dedicated as Louden Swain but “practicing” skinning and butt dragging on the team bus is a little too much. One victim said Hunt also kissed him so at least he’s a gentleman. You don’t just go penetrating people without a smooch.

Links:
[Fox News]: South Dakota High School Wrestlers Testify They Were Raped by Teammate
[Comedy Central]: Fingerbang

Categories
New York Knicks

New York Knicks: 4 more years of mediocrity!



Isiah did wonders for the CBA

Apparently Knicks owner James Dolan (the worst owner in sports) thinks that a possible 8th seed playoff berth and 5 games below .500 is evidence of Zeke “turning the team around” because he just gave Thomas a multi-year contract extension.


That isn’t what you should rely on in terms of what motivates a team,” Dolan said of the club playing for Isiah’s job. “I know some will worry the pressure will be off. Don’t worry. This team will play just as hard before this announcement as after this announcement. You can count on that.”

The players getting better, the hard work, the heart they showed, that counted more to me than the won-loss record. We wouldn’t be sitting here today if we had the same record and didn’t show we had the heart and [the young players] hadn’t developed.

If the Atlantic division wasn’t so pathetic, would the Knicks even be sniffing the playoffs? Look, in the end, Isiah Thomas might not be the worst GM/coach in sports history but does anyone really think he’s the guy to take this team to the promised land? This smells of James Dolan just wanting to give Larry Brown the finger again.

Links:

[NY Post]: EXTENSION ATTENTION

Categories
Pittsburgh Penguins

Penguins get a new $290M igloo



Our favorite penguins

Wow, our first NHL story in months that doesn’t involve any goons! (Well, except for Georges Laraque.) The Penguins have reached an agreement with the great state of Pennsylvania to to remain in Pittsburgh for the next 30 years.

The Penguins are responsible for $3.8M a year toward construction and another $400k towards capital improvements. The rest of the money will be provided by the state and the owner of the casino group that has been awarded the slot license for the Pittsburgh area. All in all it adds up to a $290M deal, which is better than the $276M arena in Kansas City. On top of that, Lemieux and company get to keep the team in Pittsburgh and not have to rename it the KC Barbeque Ribs or something.

Here’s some reaction from the blogosphere:

Hard Drive Life: “Growing up north of the Pittsburgh area, I’ve been hoping and praying that the Pens would be able to stay. Now, I can confidently go out and buy my Evgeni Malkin jersey and wear it with pride, and not worry that the team is taking flight.

In the words of ex-Pitt mayor Sophie Masloff: “`GUINS WIN!” Actually, all hockey fans do!”

James Mirtle: “I can’t say that I’m particularly surprised, as all along I found it incredibly hard to fathom a team with this much hockey talent, in a market with a recent history of championships and some star power in its ownership group would ever really leave.”

MY KC Penguins: Hmmm…. they might want to change their name to MY KC Predators

The Burgh Report: “This arena, while worth it, will cost us a fortune and we have our government officials to thank. Furthermore, though we have been spared the abject civic humiliation that would have followed losing the team to Kansas City, the mishandling of the arena matter has, nonetheless, seriously damaged the reputation of local government.” Yikes.

Links:

[Post-Gazette]: Arena deal keeps Penguins in Pittsburgh

Categories
General Sports

Stallone officially charged in Australia for HGH


This is old news but he officially was charged in Sydney yesterday for importing a banned substance. Authorities found vials of HGH in his luggage when he arrived for a press tour to promote Rocky Balboa. Then three days later found 48 vials of HGH in his hotel room, limo, and private jet.

Hubris or stupidity? If you’re busted with HGH at the airport and one of your cronies has already brought 48 vials into the country, perhaps you want to dispose of those vials (inject it into your ass at least) before the authorities get there.

The maximum penalty for importing HGH into Australia is $86,000 and a five year prison sentence. However, according to TMZ.com, Sly faces a $22,000 fine.

There is no truth to the rumor that when told about the fine, Stallone said, “$22k? It ain’t shit. What’s $22k to me? Next time I might shake my dick.”

Links:
[Steroid Nation]: Oh no, Rocky’s down: Stallone charged with importation of HGH ( PEDs; ‘steroids’) in Australia
[TMZ.com]: Stallone Charged with Importing Steroids Down Under

Categories
College Basketball

Odds and Ends: Pokey Chatman sold out by assistant coach


We know that a coach sleeping with his or her players is wrong (unless that player is Jennie Finch, in which case we say, bravo…) but did assistant coach Carla Berry really have to go all Judas on her? It wasn’t like Pokey was having sex with a current player. It was a former player. We’re talking former. Not current. Former! (Thank God for AI.)

According to ESPN, Berry is a longtime friend and colleague of Chatman’s and her motivation for alerting university officials was “unclear”. Chatman, meanwhile, is hiding out until this whole thing blows over and then she’ll get a fat contract from a program who just wants to win. Sex with players or not, Pokey delivered as a coach. Although her contract will be the first with a “no sex with players” clause.

In other news…

[Sports By Brooks]: U. OF WASHINGTON LOSES PRIDE FIGHT ON OWN WEBSITE

[Dallas Morning News]: T.O. didn’t bother to learn the playbook

[USA Today]: Who knew Hang Time could prepare Reggie Theus for the NCAAs?

[The Offside]: I really am a soccer player!

[WBRS]: Phil Simms in a skit with Geico Caveman TV Show (there’s just so many things wrong with this)

[HeraldNet]: How the hell did Shaun Alexander not get laid till he was 24?

[SoccerBlog.com]: Steve Nash’s soccer skills