America Has Spoken, and the Votes are In!!

Finally, I can let go of this breath I have been holding. The fate of Barry Bonds' record breaking ball has been decided. Not only did the proud owner of the ball, fashion designer, Marc Ecko, let us all know what he was going to do with the ball, he actually let US, "the fans" decide. Sweet! Now that's what I call interactive sports.

What exactly did we, "the fans," decide? Well, it looks like the famous ball is headed to the Hall of Fame with a cute little star on it. That sounds reasonable, considering the other options were to send it off into space as "space garbage" (which we all know is polluting the universe-where were you on this one Al Gore and "An Inconvienient Truth" fans?) Or, we could just have voted to send the ball to the Hall of Fame just as it is. This option would have seemed inappropriate considering the controversy over this whole Bonds situation.

So, after more than 10 million online voters (I am a proud voter myself, just doing my civic duty), 47% of them said to mark it with an asterisk and send it to the Hall.

Now with that said, anyone care to join me on a trip to Cooperstown, NY to see this famous almost space junk ball?? Personally, I think it's great that the museum now has one more whole ball to brag about having. I hear they are just thrilled. I mean, who wouldn't want this ball, besides the millions of people in this country who couldn't afford it or just don't give a crap?
Let's not be hard on Barry Bonds, he did hit a heck of a lot of homeruns. Steroids or not, the man knows how to play some baseball. Whether or not the ball deserves to have the asterisk or not, Cooperstown, NY now has something new to talk about. The ball will now be in its rightful resting place in the Hall. Life is good.

OK, now that we are all done with the question of where in the Milky Way to send the 756th ball, we can move on to actual news. Oh yea, did you hear Bonds won't even play for San Francisco anymore? Um, excuse me, "the fans" didn't get to vote for where Mr. Bonds will go. Obviously Marc Ecko cares more about what the people want. Where can I get some of his stuff?

McNabb Makes a Bold Statement

Donovan McNabb let out a can of worms last week when, during an interview on Real Sports, McNabb claimed that “African-American quarterbacks such as himself face added pressure because there are fewer black quarterbacks -- and because some still don't want black athletes playing the position”. This takes a lot of guts for McNabb to make these claims. Race is always a tough card to play because of all the attention that is drawn from it. From a marketing standpoint, it also puts the team and the League on the radar. Commentators have been expressing their opinions of this topic also.

Being from Philadelphia I have mixed emotions about Donovan McNabb. I feel that he was once a great quarterback but he has peaked as a quarterback long ago. He is also an attention whore. I have heard numerous comments, from former Eagles’ players explaining the reason for the McNabb-TO “Thrilla in Phila” was very much Donovan McNabb’s fault. I do not disagree with this statement. I used to believe McNabb was the messiah and T.O. was trying to thwart the dreams of all Philadelphia. Now as I look back, it seems in the last 4 years since T.O., McNabb has had his fair share of problems: the Garcia vs. McNabb competition that was brought about this past summer, the numerous injuries and missed playing time, and the Eagles not being able to win “the big one”. Garcia wanted to be resigned by the Eagles and a second string and after last season Garcia was looked upon as Philadelphia’s favorite quarterback. McNabb couldn’t handle that and Garcia was forced out. The same thing happened with Terrell Owens. He was Philadelphia’s most favorite athlete. McNabb could not take it. Then the situation blew up.

In terms of the argument that black quarterbacks are more scrutinized than white quarterbacks, I do not feel McNabb’s argument has any truth behind it. I understand there are only five starting quarterbacks in the NFL that are black. That is a shame. I am not going to hide that fact. I feel the quarterback position is transitioning though, and there will definitely be more black quarterbacks in the future. In terms of criticism of black quarterbacks, I feel all quarterbacks get more criticism than praise 99% of the time. This does not matter if you are black, white, yellow, green, or blue. Quarterbacks are the leader of the team, and will be the first ones criticized. McNabb gets criticized because he is a player in Philadelphia. Philadelphians are some of the harshest critics in the world. If you do not win a championship, you probably will be greeted with tons of hate. If you do bring home a trophy, you will be revered forever.

From a marketing standpoint, the Philadelphia Eagles and the NFL should really brush this topic under the table. It is a very touchy subject, and I feel has no value. McNabb is just looking for a way to grab some more unnecessary attention. If he wants attention, he should bring home a championship. Besides that, he should just be worrying about the wins. He has not been doing that at all this season.

0-4...What to do?

For most it's hard to believe that Notre Dame is 0-4 for the first time in their illustrious history, but for other college football junkies it's not hard to fathom after their disappointing loss to LSU in last year's bowl game and this year's quarterback dilemma. The question at hand is what will Charlie Weis do to get his team back into the dominating team that they once were or touted to be? Or will Coach Weis still be at Notre Dame if his team is 0-8 in four weeks (Notre Dame plays Purdue, UCLA, Boston College, and current number 1 USC).

From a marketing perspective the only thing Notre Dame can pride itself on right now is the fact that they play Navy in Week 9, whom they haven't lost to in 43 meetings, in addition to their number 1 ranked recruiting class for 2008. But is that enough to keep the boosters off Weis' back calling for his removal? Which if it were to happen could mean less commitments from their top ranked high school players, if they don't already decommit after seeing the Fighting Irish start off to a possible 0-8 start. Perhaps the marketing department in South Bend may have to resort to new options such as this Fantasy Camp.

Whatever it is that the Fighting Irish and Coach Weis decide to do in an attempt to salvage their season they have to keep the bigger picture in mind, because the last thing they want to do is to forget that college football is not the NFL; keeping and maintaining a dynasty as hard as it is in the NFL is now becoming harder in college football because of the competitiveness amongst coaches when it comes to recruiting, the time a coach has to turn around a program or keep a program at it's pinnacle, and the overall competition and upsets that occur from year to year (ex. Appalachian State).

If Weis and his staff can continue to build this year's team for the future and continue to recruit the talent that they have been, then they should be back in the Top 25 polls real soon. The alumni and donors at Notre Dame have to maintain their support for the program and be willing to undergo a hard season such as the one they are enduring now, if they want to see the Fighting Irish back in a BCS Bowl Game. The same goes for NBC, who broadcasts all of Notre Dame's home games, because even during seasons like this one Notre Dame can still attract more viewers than other notable Top 25 games based on their history. But this isn't to say that Weis and Notre Dame aren't pressured to turn the program around by next year.

How does the Patriots organization bounce back?

It has been a full week since the world exploded for the New England Patriots and head coach Bill Belichick. The hype surronding the espionage shows no sign of dying down. The harsh penalties imposed by Commissioner Goodell only serve to further amplify the questions surronding the Patriots organization, especially from a marketing perspective. Although Belichick's gruff attitude has made him a less than popular guy around the country, in Foxborough, he is a God and I'm pretty sure a big seller of the famous New England Patriots sweatshirt. Will this cheating scandal ruin Belichick's image of a role model for young kids? I would say yes, if I was a parent I would not endorse merchandise, a team, or a person cheating because it is not a good example for kids.

The marketing department for the Patriots needs to find a way to put the scandal in a positive light in order to counteract the damage this negative publicity has had on the organization. I wonder what sort of a plan they will come up with because I would have assumed that Robert Kraft would distance himself from Belichick. Interestingly enough the opposite has happened with Kraft and the rest of the organization standing behind Belichick. The organization seems to have no problem with Belichick and is confident in his ability as he is rumored to agreeing to a five year extension-- albeit before the scandal but there have been no rumors of the extension offer being rescinded. I think it will be interesting to see how many fans turn out for the first game in Foxborough against the Chargers tonight and how many people watch the game.

Cheating obviously is something that cannot be controlled in sport. It is only possible to catch a few and set them out as examples and hope that it serves as a deterrent. I wonder what effect the new marketing strategies all of the NFL-- not only the Patriots-- will have to implement in order to attract fans, new and old, to a sport with the image of cheating.

Is the Patriots "Scandal" Being Overhyped?

In a matter of a weeks time, the New England Patriots have gone from the NFL's model franchise to cheats. Who knew that video taping the opposing teams signals could tarnish 3 Super Bowl victories and a coaches legacy. Is it really that big of deal? Do other teams around the league do it too? Is stealing signals just another form of gamesmanship in order to give your team the best chance to win?

At this point, none of those reasons are good enough to excuse the Patriots and Bill Belichick from what they did. People around the country have been waiting for an opportunity to dethrone the Patriots and this is their chance. Belichick has not been liked nationally since he left the Jets to coach the Patriots. I'm sure Belichick haters around the country were salivating when they heard that he was caught. People need to be honest with themselves and realize that they are scrutinizing the Patriots not only for the video taping, but also because of their genuine dislike for Belichick and his team. If it was Herm Edwards caught cheating, would there be as much of a hoopla?

It has been said on ESPN and other media outlets that the Patriots are probably not the only team that has taped other teams signals on the sidelines. However, since they were caught, the Patriots are therefore the cheats and their past wins should be questioned. How does this logic make any sense at all? Yea it is impossible to prove that other teams have been doing this as well, but there have been hints from coaches, players, and former players around the league that this is a more common occurrence then we may think.

Yes the Patriots were wrong to do this and yes Bill Belichick was not very smart to try this stunt on Eric Mangini, but I think fans and the media are blowing this way out of proportion. The Steelers Heinze Ward even had the audacity to say that the Patriots playoff win in 2001 should be questioned. Come on Heinze, you know that your team was beat fair and square, get over it. The Patriots are on the ground, bleeding, and people are taking every chance they can to get a shot at them.

Give the Marlins a 1,000 seat stadium

This past Wednesday the Marlins held a home game against the Washington Nationals. It turned out to be a very exciting game that ended with a Marlins win in the 12th inning. The problem is no one was there to see it. When attendance for a Major League game is in around 9,000 then attendance is considered very poor. The Marlins would have been ecstatic about a number like that. Instead the estimated attendance was around 400 people. No that's not a typo it really is a four with 2 zeros behind it. That number was at the peak time. It is estimated that the attendance by the end was around 200 with a whopping total of 9 people in the outfield seats.

This number is appalling to me. Sure this is a match up of the basement of the NL east division and it was a day game but honestly the Marlins must be doing something wrong to put up a number like that. The Miami Herald argues that this is a good a advertisement for why the Marlins need a new stadium. Does a team that is going to draw worse than a class A team in the middle of nowhere really deserve a brand new stadium complete with a retractable roof? I would say no. The truth is that even if the stadium wasn't so far away from downtown they still wouldn't have drawn a crowd for a mid-week day game. The problem isn't the stadium. The problem is within the organization. They don't try to sell their product and when they do they apparently market to the wrong people. It's about time the Marlins realized that, in the popularity contest that is Miami, they are the nerdy unpopular band geek in high school and not in the popular crowd. It's about time to pack up, move to a new town, completely change their appearance, and hope for better popularity somewhere else.

What is just as interesting to me is the lack of attention that a crowd of 400 people earned on a national media scale. If you want a sign of the coming doom of watching sports live then here would be the perfect example but instead the Doom Sayers seemed to ignore the fact. The only mention that I heard in the next couple of days was during the broadcast of the Cardinals game on FSN Midwest. The topic of the Marlins was brought up in connection with a discussion of the small crowds they had seen on their recent road series in Cincinnati. Of course the Cardinals announcers are spoiled with a brand new stadium that is nearly sold-out every night even for a sub-500 team. The the question becomes what are the Cardinals doing that the Marlins aren't? The Cardinal's announcers had no solutions. The only question they had was why should the Marlins stay in Miami? This is a very valid question and I would love to hear the Marlin's front office's reply to that. Why stay?

Appalachian State: The New Cool School

(Disclaimer: I am not bashing Appalachian State University.I respect the school and all those who attend.)
Appalachian State has just been handed the best marketing tool the school has had in awhile...well, maybe ever. With their football victory over Michigan last weekend, the school can afford to send its entire marketing department on vacation for awhile. Apparently, the football team decided to take over promotions duty last weekend and put to shame any other efforts the school has made for promoting itself (cheesy Hot, Hot, Hot video makers, I'm talking to you). Now, the only problem the school will have is weeding out genuine applicants from former Ohio State dropouts who are looking for a mountain getaway and a new football program friend to cheer for.

Now, with no disrespect to ASU, I want to propose the question: Why is everyone suddenly a Mountaineer fan? Ok, I understand that tiny little ASU beat big 'ol nasty Michigan, but does everyone who hates Michigan have to go run and buy Appalachian stuff? I find that a little extreme. I really can't stand Florida or Florida State, but everytime they encounter a major upset (which happens more to FSU than UF recently), I don't run out and buy some other random school's gear to wear to our game against them. I mean, did anyone cheer for this team when they weren't beating Michigan? Probably not too many people. Hey, now there's a whole bandwagon-jump on you bandwagoning Buckeyes! Just sounds a little silly.

I guess I love my team too much to wear some other school's colors on my back. I kind of thought Buckeye fans were that way too. Maybe not though, maybe secretly they want to look like the mountain men of Appalachian.I guess it's the new "Hot" look anyway.

Don't get me wrong, I think it's wonderful that Appalachian State is selling so much stuff. I am very happy for them. Really, I am. They are a great little school with lots of big potential. Now with their lucky football break, they are on the minds of underdogs everywhere, and finally on the maps of some ignorant fools who have no idea where the Appalachian Mountains are-Michigan fans.

The Move to Dolphin Stadium: RIP OB

As everyone in the Miami area and many sport fans around the world know, the Orange Bowl is one of the most historical stadiums in the country. It was built in 1935, and when you walk into the stadium for Hurricane game days you might think there have not been many improvements since then. It has survived countless hurricanes and there is a special place the Orange Bowl has in every University of Miami fans’ heart. The Hurricanes won 58 straight home games. “The U” has won three of their five national championships there. Is the move to Dolphin Stadium as big of a deal as we are making it out to be? Aren’t we as spectators of a top Division I program better off being able to watch a game in a stadium suited for today and not thirty years ago? A lot of people say yes, but some of those people and others are sad to say goodbye to the Orange Bowl on November 10, 2007.

I have gone through a similar experience during my childhood. I am from Philadelphia, and when I was growing up Veterans Stadium was the stadium the Philadelphia Phillies and Philadelphia Eagles played in. This was the only stadium these teams had played in during my lifetime. There was a ton of history behind this stadium as well. It was one of the most feared houses in all of professional because the fans were so brutal. It was also well known for the horrific playing surface. Teams would fear playing on the turf because there were patches that assisted in plenty of broken ankles and knees. “The Vet” was a piece of crap, but it was ours. The Philadelphia fans were proud of Veterans Stadium. We were excited to get two new stadiums, one for football and one for baseball, but a little piece inside every Philadelphia sports fan hurt a little. This is similar to how I feel saying goodbye to the Orange Bowl.

I, for one thing, am a little upset to say goodbye. I have said since my freshman year how big of a dump the Orange Bowl is. It sucks to stand on these uncomfortable bleachers for three hours. It sucks having no room to walk and to not have a state-of-the-art scoreboard. I also can not imagine being handicapped and having to navigate around the Orange Bowl. It says it has handicapped seating for 282 people, but anyone who has been to the Orange Bowl will find that hard to believe. It also sucks that there is no parking there, and the process to get to the Orange Bowl is that: a process. You have to take the metrorail to Culmer Station, and then pick up a bus from there. It would take 20 minutes to drive to the Orange Bowl, but it takes about 45 minutes to an hour to get there by public transportation. There is absolutely no parking unless you want to pull into someone’s driveway for $50. Dolphin Stadium, on the other hand, is one of the newer stadiums in the country, and is making a ton of renovations. These renovations are expected to be done in 2009 and will make Dolphin Stadium one of the premier stadiums in the country. Currently, Dolphin Stadium has one of the largest areas for parking in the country. This would make tailgating and parking much more convenient than the Orange Bowl. It also had a huge plasma high-def scoreboard. With the renovations coming in 2009 this will be THE PLACE to watch games.

So you are probably wondering: why are you upset to say goodbye? A question I have is: what is Miami football known for? One might say running out on to the Orange Bowl Field with the smoke from the helmet. Another might say a tradition of excellence for over 25 years. The Orange Bowl is where the history of Miami football lives. All memories we have has been at the O-Bowl. Besides the campus in Coral Gables, I would consider the Orange Bowl our second home. Our players and recruits live to run out of the helmet tunnel. The students and spectators live to see the players run out of the helmet tunnel. This is where the bad boys of Jimmy Johnson’s era pummeled every opponent. The orange seats, the “U” at midfield, and the sign that reads “the City of Miami Welcomes You to the Orange Bowl” all bring a smile to your face. It feels like we are leaving the house we grew up, and have our childhood memories in, for one that is bigger and better. It might be an upgrade, but it is still not that house that made us who we are today.

November 10, 2007 will be a mixed emotion event for all University of Miami fans and players. We are saying goodbye to our home for the last 72 years, and moving to a bigger more beautiful home. I am glad to say I had the opportunity to spend three seasons in the Orange Bowl, and will be the first graduating class in Dolphin Stadium. Orange Bowl- you have given us millions of memories. We will miss you. Rest in Peace.