Which Team is Going to Come Out 10-2?

This evening at 8:30 PM on the NFL network two teams will kick off in hopes for possible home field advantage throughout the NFC playoffs. The Green Bay Packers and Dallas Cowboys are two teams with a substantial history and tonight, will battle for continuing their one loss record. Both teams are currently 10-1 but tonight one NFC powerhouse will fall short.

The Packers are hoping that their star quarterback, Brett Favre, will lead them to victory. Favre, who recently turned 38 is having one of the best statistical seasons of his career. But, can't you remember how most thought he should have retired becuase he was reaching the ripe old age of...40!

Now a days athletes are beginning their careers younger and surprisingly ending their careers later. How is this possible? And is it bad for the sport to have a continuous STAR on one particular team?

I think having Favre still on the field and performing the way he does is only increase fan loyalty. He might be older but he is probably not going anywhere soon.

Roger Clemens is another example of an "old" athlete. This 45 year old led the National league in era's two years ago and he is five years older than Favre.

So tonight you might want to be on the lookout for another dominating performance by Favre.

Running Back: Unwanted Fame

Stockpile running backs. That is the trend that most National Football League teams are going for these days, but why? The reason is simple, running back is the most damaging position in football. As a running back, on every down of every series of every game you expect to get hit. The nature of the sport makes it so that while you have to have a balance of passing and running the ball to be successful in the NFL. Every week it seems to be another star running back injured, every week some new and obscure players signs with a team and somehow eventually gets playing time.
But are these players being treated fairly? They are constantly being battered and bruised and not properly compensated. While the Larry Johnson’s and LT’s of the world are getting the money they deserve, plenty of other running backs today don’t get paid for their services.
They don’t call them workhorses for nothing. Truth is if I was a running back in today’s NFL I would do my best for one year, sign a big contract and just get the heck out of there. It is not worth risking your life and health to not get the proper pay, when in the end you are just bound to retire early anyways.
Maybe these NFL teams should think about making running back the highest paid position, and not quarterback, heck they only receive punishing hits at most seven times a game. A starting running back can more than triple that number.

There Is A Winning Team in Miami

The University of Miami Men's Basketball Team moves to an impressive 6-0 start with a recent home victory over Alabama State, 83-74. As a senior at UM, coming off of a horrendous four and out season from out football team, I am very pleased that I finally have something to cheer about.

The team is looking pretty good this year with their returning leading scorer, Jack McClinton. Last year he ended his season by averaging 44.0 percent from the three point line, ranked first in the ACC in three point percentage. Jack Bio. In his first four starts this season he has averaged 14.3 points per game while shotting 57.1 percent from behind the arc. Unfortunately, McClinton has been on the bench for the last two games because of an injury to his thumb.

Another exciting retuning player this season, is fifth year senior, Anthony King. King missed the last 24 games of the 2007 season with a wrist injury. He started 8-of-8 games played, averaging 7.9 points, 9.3 rebounds and 1.4 blocks per game. King was leading the ACC in rebounding prior his season-ending injury. He scored seven or more points in five of the eight games he played and recorded double-digit rebounds in all but three of those games. Lastly, King scored a season-high 19 points with 15 rebounds and four blocks in the season-opener against Florida International (11/11).

This Miami team brings their record to 6-0 for only the fifth time in program history. It is the best start for us since the 2001-2002 season when we won 14 straight. Just recently Fox Sports ranked Miami in the top 25. Fox Sports.

The next game for the Hurricanes in on Sunday, December 2nd at 4 p.m. They are going to be playing against their former Big East rival, St. Johns. This should be an exciting game and remember the last time we went 6-0 to start a season we made it to the NCAA tournament. So come out and support!

Give me your money!

Are the possibilities of being burglarized more evident now than ever for a professional athlete? Recent history would say that the answer is yes. After the Sean Taylor “attempted” burglary earlier this week, it brought to light the fact that professional athletes live a very scared lifestyle.
Grant it, professional athletes seem to live a lifestyle full of glitz and glamour, they drive around in expensive cars and live in million dollar mansions, but they still have to pay for body guards to make sure that they won’t get mugged. The irony of it all is that these athletes are famous for being really good at what they do, and earning the pay for it, but some prominent business owners might make as much as a star athlete and will now have even half the trouble of keeping their family safe as say an Antoine Walker has. Then at the point when these athletes are getting mugged or burglarized, they really can’t say, “Hey, this guy stole my $75,000 Rolex watch.” Most people would just tell them to go and buy a new one, they can afford it. Why should they have to?
It’s unfair to ask these individuals to be a star and a role model for others, but don’t feel defenseless when you get one of your valuables stolen from you, just go out and spend more of that money. If you feel that this money was hard earned or not, regardless, it is fairly given to them through the rules of their sports governing body. It is sad to say that we have lost one of the top athletes in the history of our school, because someone needed his valuables more than he needed his life.

Am"busch" Marketing

You are probably rolling your eyes and saying, here we go again, another story from NASCAR girl, but I could not resist since it is a marketing course and one thing that NASCAR sponsors do well is ambush marketing.
Sponsors drive head to head every week not only in the marketplace as competitors but also on the hoods of racecars challenging each other on the track. In the NASCAR world, ambush marketing is extremely easy because many sponsors contradict others because their most fierce competitors also have the same or a greater presence on the raceday. Some corporations sponsor a racecar(s), other the race themselves, and others are named an official product of NASCAR. There are a select few that choose to do all three.

For example, Coke has the Coca-Cola Racing Family which consists of driver Greg Biffle, Bobby Labonte, Kyle Petty, Carl Edwards, Michael Waltrip, Jeff Burton, Jamie McMurray, Tony Stewart, Dale Jarrett, Elliott Sadler, Denny Hamlin, Mark Martin, and Kevin Harvick. They also sponsor the Kyle Petty Coke Zero Car, and of course the Coca-Cola 600. Coke is also the Official Soft Drink of NASCAR. But what happens when Pepsi is slid into the mix? What happens when a track like Phoenix International Raceway announces the tracks Official Soft Drink Sponsor is Pepsi-Cola? Or when a driver like Jeff Gordon wins the Coca-Cola 600 and wants to drink Pepsi in the Coca-Cola Victory Lane? It seems like all this marketing would end up cancelling each other out.

If sports fans were asked the question, “What is the Official Beer of NASCAR?” you would get a variety of answers. You have drivers like Kurt Busch who drives the No. 2 Miller Lite car (ironic I know!) and David Stremme in the Coors Light Car. Then you have the most popular driver, Dale Jr. with Budweiser branded all over him and his car. Then you have the Busch Series, which is the second tier NASCAR series, obviously sponsored by Anheuser-Busch. But surprisingly the Official Beer of NASCAR for the 2008 season is now Coors Light for a $20 million deal.

The main question I am asking is does it really matter if you are the “main sponsor” in NASCAR if you have all these other sponsors and competitors overshadowing your brand anyways? NASCAR is so cluttered with brands, logos, promotions, signage, and sponsorships that it is difficult to make sense of it all and I wonder how effective it must really be that they continue to do it.

How Can The Cavaliers Survive Without LeBron?

During tonight’s game against the Detroit Pistons, LeBron James performs as he always does, he goes hard or goes home. This time it costs him. He sprained his left index finger as he tried going to the basket against Pistons center Nazr Mohammed. Unfortunately for the Cavs, this injury occurred during the second quarter leading James to return to their bench late in third quarter not in his jersey but in a suit with tape around his injured fingers.

Before being injured James had 15 points and 3 assists. He accounted for more than one-third of the Cavalier’s points.

This injury could not come at a worst time, as LeBron has been playing exceptionally well lately. He clearly carries the team along, evident in Cleveland’s OT win against the strong Celtics last night.

The Cavaliers were playing a tight game up until the point where James was injured and taken out of the game. From that point on the Cavs had no chance of keeping up with the Pistons. Other than the injured James, the only other Cav player to reach double figures was Sasha Pavlovic with 13 points.

How long will James be unable to return to the game? Hopefully not too long, for the sake of the Cavaliers. It is apparent that without LeBron the Cavaliers have no chance of being victorious against their competitors. LeBron is the highest scorer on their team, with usually only one other high scorers coming close to his points gained.

Without LeBron, I fear the Cavs will have no chance.

Would It Be Ok To Just Kill O.J.?

O.J. Simpson pleaded not guilty on charges of kidnapping an armed robbery of two sport memorabilia dealers today at his arraignment. These charges stem from Simpson’s arrest this past September for charges of armed robbery. He was busted for breaking into a hotel room in Las Vegas and snatching memorabilia showcasing his long deceased sports career.

Simpson is facing twelve charges against him including two counts of robbery with a deadly weapon, two counts of assaults with a deadly weapon, conspiracy to commit a crime and burglary with a firearm.

Even with all of the evidence pinned against him, Simpson is still deciding to plead not guilty on the charges. First, an audiotape of O.J.’s standoff with the men he accused of stealing his memorabilia was discovered. Also the three former co-defendants who accompanied Simpson during the assault took plea deals in return for their testimony.

Simpson clearly thinks that he can get away with anything since his freedom from his murder trial over a decade ago. O.J. does nothing but cause trouble for himself. Honestly, if someone tried to get “rid” of Simpson, would they get in trouble for it? They should just claim they did not do it and get away with it...it worked for Simpson himself.

Crazy NASCAR Promotions

As a lot of you know, I interned with Lowe’s Motor Speedway this summer in the PR and Marketing Department and one of the conclusions I came to is that the promotion activities that the sponsors do are almost as crazy as your typical NASCAR fan. It is obvious that sponsors blanket the sport of NASCAR, but many may not realize what ridiculous ideas are implemented to make their brand stand apart from the thousands of others.



The week before the Coca Cola 600, driver of the No. 45 Coke Zero Dodge, Kyle Petty, made a surprise visit to a few of his fans camping at the Concord campgrounds right near Lowe’s Motor Speedway to ask if any of them wanted to ride around the track a few times with him in his Coke Zero racecar. As you can imagine, many of the fans were ecstatic that their favorite driver offered a ride-along to them, and it was all caught on tape for the Coke Zero promotion. After they agreed to ride-along, each fan was given a Coke Zero T-shirt to wear as a “gift,” or for Coke Zero’s branding image and a cold Coke Zero to quench their thirst. This is one example of marketers thinking outside the box to create one crazy promotion, or probably just to make some random fans day.

Another promotion I got to witness at 8:00 a.m. on a race day was the “Twist, Lick, and Dunk Oreo Contest” sponsored by Greg Biffle’s Double Stuf Oreo Race Team. Driver Greg Biffle was there to judge the contest with five finalists from around the country competing in Victory Lane at Homestead-Miami Speedway earlier this month to determine who the luck licker would be. As the “Official Cookie of NASCAR,” Oreo invited all media members to the early morning competition in hopes they would cover their crazy competition.

Now if the crazy fans and the crazy media go along with these crazy promotions, it is easy to see why the marketers host such wild ideas. But why it is that people would want to offer their face for free advertising, or wake up at the crack of dawn to lick a ton of Oreos is beyond me.

Poker, an under estimated "sport" marketers dream!

The Poker world has emerged as one of the biggest "new" things around. With television and radio stations such as ESPN and Fox Sports Net among others covering live cash games and tournaments, the potential for continual growth is enormous. The potential that Poker is exhibiting has thus led to a new and exciting market that has taken not only this country but this world by storm!
The realization that poker is here and isn’t going anywhere is distinguished through the extremely large base of players and fans. ITunes has pod casts covering everything from tutorial sessions to coverage of the WSOP (World Series of Poker). We now even see the world competing against each other in team tournaments in the World Cup of Poker.
There are various written publications out on poker and the poker community. CardPlayer magazine, All-IN magazine, and Bluff magazine are three of top in the industry.
States who have restrictive gambling laws or even where poker is illegal , their are still various non profit poker clubs throughout the U.S., I have been lucky enough to experience the environments of various poker arena's, from the free games in traveling pub leagues, the backdoor cash games, the private games in hotel suites, online play straight through to daily casino play and every atmosphere differs but this remains true, the new and exploding market that is poker is growing faster than anyone could have anticipated. Poker players land on no specific part of the chart in society, but instead land all over. The variety that you get at the tables is almost inconceivable. The ability to get a so called “stranglehold” on even a small part of the emerging poker society will prove to be very lucrative.
If one chooses to play poker for a living it is said to be “a hard way to make an easy living” and nothing could be closer to the truth! For those who find themselves continually hitting felt and taking that long walk to the ATM or making that apologetic phone call to the girlfriend or wife take a step back quickly and reevaluate your situation and know chips and a chair may not be the best or the only way to be around the game you love but that the poker market doesn’t just stop when you get up from the tables. Poker is everywhere and the market is lucrative, don’t get caught on the rail watching others prosper on and off the felt!

For the Love of the Game or Money?!?

Let’s remember as I write this blog that I am a diehard, born and bread Yankee fan.
Scott Boras is known as a cut throat agent who gets what his client wants and more. But recently the New York Yankees and Alex Rodriguez gave this agent a “gut check.” Now let’s be serious as much of an egomaniac Mr. Boras is and just as much is true of ARod if not more so, the gut check I referred to isn’t nearly as bad as some would say either of them deserve. The hit that Boras and his reputation (some disagree) took is merely nothing compared to his ability to get the job done, I mean he still gets a check for 14 million dollars and this time he was told to stay home for the negotiations. I would rather have seen Alex fire Boras and publicly apologize for the ridiculousness that came from the negotiations and decisions that were made back before the World Series even began. Alex might not have gotten his $350 million that was said to be what he was demanding but instead he receives $27.5 million plus incentives for the next ten years (some call him “Pay-Rod”).
I guess the main concept i am trying to get at is whatever happened to “for the love of the game.” I know it is too much to ask to bring the big business that sport has become back to the reality of the everyday person. Don’t get me wrong sport is a tapped market that has unlimited potential for growth hence the unlimited potential to make more money. I think of the days when I was younger playing little league not thinking of the almighty dollar and the ultimate long term contract. It would be naïve as a young man to grow up and not start to think about providing for one’s self or family but the greed that is blinded by what some call the increase in living costs among other things has become ridiculously absurd.
With player agents and player associations we will never see the necessary change to alter what is now. Though if it were possible to clear the slate and start from scratch one of the more optimal scenarios for player contract would be a base salary that is the same for every player at a particular position with incentives to be earned per game per season. Some say the Torre incentive based contract was an “insult” but even as someone who praises Joe Torre for what he did in pinstripes I still believe on the business side of things it is what have you done for me lately and with the ridiculousness of contracts incentive base contracts seem to be the only true way to leave the absurdness that is the size of contracts from continuing to grow.
As a fan of baseball I welcome Alex back to the pinstripes and the Bronx, as a fan of the Yankees all I ask is that on and off the field you show respect for the game, the uniform, and mostly yourself by striving to become a better athlete, teammate, and ultimately a better person!

Will Guns and Athletes Finally Mix?

Just two days after the shooting of Redskin's safety Sean Taylor in his home, a few serious questions should be asked: Are athletes easy targets of violence? What do athletes have to do to keep themselves safe? and more importantly, Should athletes carry guns? Sean Taylor was shot in the middle of the night in his home. No night club, no strippers, just him and his girlfriend laying in bed. After hearing the rumble of an intruder in his house, Taylor apparently pulled out a machete, and now we can see that a gun shot will kill a person before you can retaliate with a machete. The murder of Taylor comes a little over a year after University of Miami's Bryan Pata was shot and killed just outside of his apartment. Once again, no drugs, no strippers, just an innocent man coming home from practice and being gunned down before he can step foot through his front door.

So what do athletes have to do to keep themselves safe? We don't know if things would have been different if Sean Taylor had pulled out a gun instead of a machete after hearing the intruder. Maybe athletes should be allowed to carry guns for safety. But if the tables were turned and Sean Taylor would have gotten in a shot and killed the intruder then it's highly possible that the media would be condemning him for using a gun and owning a gun in the first place. It's a catch 22, if a man is shot and killed then he should've been carrying a gun for safety. If a man is approached by a gunman and he defends himself by shooting the gunman, then he shouldn't have had the gun at all.

This theory could potentially get out of control. If every person carried a gun then people would be shooting each other all over the place, just because they thought that they were unsafe. This is the same for athletes, too. Let's go back to Pacman Jones' infamous Vegas strip club incident. If he were carrying a gun on that night, he might be serving more than a one year suspension from the NFL.

Then there's the possibility of all athletes being perceived as criminals or thugs if they were to carry guns for safety precautions. For instance, the Brandon Meriweather and Willie Cooper gun incident. Brandon Meriweather's name was slightly tarnished during the 2007 NFL draft. Certain media outlets were saying that the Patriots were taking a chance drafting someone with "his history." Yes, there was the helmet slinging incident against FIU which is a different story entirely. But the gun incident is fishy because different sources have said that the deatails of the story are false. I've even heard from reliable sources that Meriweather actually shot Cooper with a BB gun on accident and was embarassed, so they changed the story up a little bit. But from the moment that the story hit the presses, the Canes were proclaimed as thugs. I mean how many times during Canes' games do they put up the graphic of the new rules that Coach Shannon has enforced: "No guns (there's an idea)."

So what do professional athletes have to do to keep themselves safe if guns have such a negative connotation? always walking around with five bodyguards at all times and never having a normal life again. Because people won't stop and stare at you if you're walking around with five gigantic men dressed in all black.

RIP Sean Taylor

Yesterday was a rough day for all fans of the NFL. The passing of Sean Taylor due to a fatal gun shot wound reminded us all of how precious life is. As a fan of Sean's since his days as a Hurricane I was deeply affected. I remember his play in the 01 Rose Bowl, the last UM National Championship. I remember Sean's historic day in FSU having two interceptions, one returned for a touchdown in a Miami come from behind victory. Yesterday the world lost a father, a brother, a champion, and a man that was loved and feared by different fans for the same reasons. Sean Taylor will be missed immensely as the search for his killer continues. November 27, 2007 will be a day all fans of the Hurricanes and the NFL will remember as the day we lost an incredible and often misunderstood man due to the unbelievable and terrible actions of another human being.


RIP Sean Taylor
4/1/83-11/27/07

RIP Dr. Cade

Following my earlier post about Darren Rovell's incredible book about Gatorade, I would like to share this.
The University of Florida announced the death of Gatorade inventor Dr. Robert Cade today. According to the press release he died due to kidney failure at the age of 80.
In 1965, Cade and three other professors developed Gatorade. Today, a multi-billion dollar industry.
Like I mentioned in my earlier post. If you are interested in sport marketing, there is no way you should skip learning about Dr. Cade's story. It has a reason why Gatorade is called "the father of product placement".

Beijing 2008 - Green Olympics?

For weeks, months and years, people are talking about the 2008 Olympics in Beijing. With the Olympics coming closer, more and more people take a closer look at China, the city itself and the environment.

A remarkable amount of articles featuring the air pollution in China’s capital was already released in the press.

Beijing and the surrounding area is home to about 14million people. In the inner city, 3 million cars can be found on the streets every day. 80% of all cars are privately owend.

Last week, Australian doctors released a new study on the air pollution in the metropolis. As a conclusion they said that China is holding back important data so that outstanding source can’t accurately analyse the pollution.

The IOC released exact guidelines about air pollution and regulations about green olympics. This is not only for the environment but also to ensure a healthy environment for all athletes, participants and spectators in the Olympics.

High air pollution can increase asthma attacks and even cause heart problems. Especially endangered are athletes in endurance events.

As a result, China already announced that they will not ban private cars on the street during the Olympics but will introduce a new system that allows cars with odd numbers and cars with even numbers to drive on specific dates. A test run of the system showed that about 1 million cars less were on the streets. A lack of public transportantion is one of the reasons why Beijing can not ban public cars.

Although China works on the problem and tries to find a solution to improve air quality, several Olympic Comittees already announced that they are going to arrive as late as possible to the games.

Jacques Rogge, IOC president announced that he is willing to postpone events if the air pollution is too high.

Turmoil in Buffalo

Its happening again at a time that we (I refer to all Buffalo Bills Fans) least needed it, a quarterback controversy. This week it will be the Bills third round draft pick from Stanford that will take the reins of the struggling team and sadly franchise. Trent Edwards was named the starter Monday (11/26) by head coach Dick Jauron during a press conference.

This move comes after a sputtering offensive performance in Jacksonville that resulted in a 36-14 loss. The loss isn’t what pushed Jauron over the edge to make the change as much as Losman’s individual struggles. In his latest game Losman committed three turnovers, two interceptions and a fumble. The second interception proved costly as it came midway through the fourth quarter with Buffalo driving into Jaguars territory while down only 22-14. At this point the Bills were still in it and the turnover gave the game away.

"In terms of our quarterbacks, we'll make the switch and Trent will be our starter," said Jauron. "We fully understand that it's not only J.P.. That's not the only reason we've lost these couple of games in a row, but it is the focal point of the offense and we do need a lot of consistency from that position."

Edwards will get back on the field after a 5 week layoff mainly due to a wrist injury suffered during a 13-3 win against the New York Jets on Oct. 28th.

"I'm excited and anxious to get the opportunity again to get back out there and help this team win," said Edwards, whose hand has fully healed. "I hope I can use the experience I had at the start of the season and hopefully take that and run with it."

This change will hopefully help the Bills in their waning playoff hopes. The Bills are currently 5-6 and have lost two straight which and are now two games back of the 2nd wildcard spot in the AFC.

The move to bench Losman is surprising at first but when you look at his numbers it is more that understandable. Losman sputtered in his past three games, including a 13-10 win at Miami, by going a combined 54-of-89 for 541 yards with two touchdowns and four interceptions. The lone bright spot for the 2004 first round draft pick came against Cincinnati in a 33-21 win. In this game Losman helped the Bills produce season highs in points, passing yards and total offense.

Since his rookie year Losman has gone 10-21 as a starter. He has had his time to mature and produce and he just can’t seem to get over the hump. In this pivotal AFC game against Jacksonville fans watched as Losman bounced passes and sailed passes over wide receivers heads. Event the most loyal J.P. fans have to admit that he has had his chance in his 31 games as a starter.

I am glad that Dick Jauron came to his senses and made the switch back to Trent Edwards on Monday. I am not going to pretend to know that Trent Edwards is the future, but the Bills need to find out as soon as possible. I am willing to ride the season out with Edwards, to see if he can provide some hope heading into the off-season. If not at least we will know that the Bills have to find a new guy to play the position.

The toughest thing about benching Losman is that he is nothing but a class act and is hard not to root for. My favorite Losman moment came this summer after the 2007 NFL Draft. Losman took the new Bills rookies and showed them around the city of Buffalo a place that he now calls home as he lives in a Buffalo suburb. He helped ease players into the area and let them know that it is a great place to live and work. This surprisingly became the tour for the man that now replaces him, Trent Edwards. His move of leadership made him a fan favorite in Buffalo, but as badly as we all want him to do well it doesn’t change his performance.

However, this move proves that the Bills aren’t going to throw in the towel on our season yet. Its time that we move on and stop waiting for Losman to become an average NFL quarterback. Instead let’s put our faith into a rookie quarterback and let him prove whether or not he can lead us to the promise land. I don’t know if Edwards is the right man for the job but Losman has had his chance.

If Chicks Ran the NFL

You read the title right. Back in 2004, Sports Business News released a set of statistics that revealed an estimated 40% of the NFL’s fan base consisted of women. As an avid fan of football in general, both collegiate and professional, I am proud to consider myself a part of that 40%, and it appears that the NFL and its partners/sponsors are honing in on the group that makes up that statistic. I remember the first time I caught the Reebok commercial for NFL merchandise for women. A rewind and review was necessary and possible with TIVO in order to make sure I had really seen that right, and I must say I was truly impressed with the attempt to target the female audience.

With that said, I came across an article by another female football fan, Ivette Ricco (President of femmefan.com), who is a little less impressed with the way that the NFL supposedly attempts to appeal to its female audience. She proposes a few ideas that would make the game experience better “if chicks ran the NFL.” While a good number are silly and ridiculous, there a few where I think she may have a point. The question is do they require women running the NFL to make it happen? Below are a few of her ideas:

• Wine, because beer makes us "go" way too often, and puts on the pounds. The wine has to be the good stuff not Wyoming Valley vintage 2000 with twist off caps.


• Baby-sitting services at every stadium in the USA where you can drop off the rug-rats while you sit back and enjoy the game.


• An e-lounge where you can stay wired into every electronic gadget in your life during the game.


• Team Apparel that fits us and isn't made for men who are 6'2" and weigh in at 330 pounds.
  
• Ladies Day at least once a year in every stadium for every sport.


• We love the yellow first down line; this is the best thing since the Wonder Bra. Every network should be required to use this feature during NFL broadcasts.


• With all the technology available let's put a trailer after the ball or sensors on the goals posts that light up when the ball goes though, or how about positioning the camera above the goal post?

Perhaps Ms. Ricco is on to something. Perhaps a select handful from that 40% of football fans who are women could run the NFL and make it a better game experience. Any female football fan up for the challenge?

For the Record Lovers

Setting and breaking records is a part of every professional sport. They give information-hungry fans and commentators something exciting to talk about, and they even provide marketers and PR people with new angles and that "wow factor" to attract attention to their team if used wisely.

As of last night, Patriots fans, watchers of football in general, and commentators can continue the discussion of the Pats’ journey towards that shining “perfect season,” a feat that has yet to be replicated since the Miami Dolphins finished 17-0 in 1972. The question is, after their close call last night at home in Foxborough against what some would consider a lackluster Philadelphia team, is the discussion and hype premature? Have the Patriots fully displayed their dominance throughout the season and are on their way to obtaining a record that should be rightfully theirs? After being in Boston this weekend, I noticed a good number of New Englanders that would openly and loudly agree with my second question. I, for one, believe in the ability to jinx a good thing and feel compelled to keep my thoughts to myself while letting the action speak for itself on the field. Can I deny that it would be exciting to watch a “perfect season” unfold before my eyes? Definitely not. Would I already proclaim that a “perfect season” is on its way? Not necessarily.

Let’s not forget where our once-“perfect season” Miami Dolphins find themselves currently. After tonight, the Patriots may not be the only ones continuing their quest for an NFL record. Will they make it to 0-11 or even 0-16? On this subject, I am simply keeping my mouth shut.

"A Media-Player Love Affair"

A league built on media and revenue, the NFL needs characters like Terrell Owens. Not a player but a character, the drama of Terrell Owens provides people with jobs in the sports industry. Without his shenanigans on and off the field, the NFL would be nothing more than just a game, rather than the entertainment package that it markets itself as. Like gasoline to a fire, Owens fuels the media. To go a week without Terrell Owens on the news can be compared to agricultural states going without rain, they need him.

So, if the media and league needs characters like Owens so much, why is it that they only acknowledge them when they are acting out? In a pro-bowl like season, Terrell Owens has received considerable less attention than he did last year while leading the league with dropped passes. In every interview with or about Terrell Owens, the media tries to bait someone into a negative comment either from or about the player. Why is it that they can’t respect him as a good player? With numbers matching Brady and Manning, and a personality greater than both players put together, why is it that Brady and Manning are in every commercial and Owens is in none. He is good enough to sell your tickets but not to market your cell phone. The last TV exposure I can remember with Owens was a controversial “Desperate Housewives” skit for a Monday Night Game.

Try to imagine a league without Owens; you couldn’t. Owens brings life to a league trying so hard to go corporate. Owens is that rebel that refuses to change himself for the better of the whole. Though this is selfish, the league secretly loves it. He is what I like to call, “a necessary evil.” The league needs him, but they need him to act out some. Not to break any laws but just show his hind parts to the league and its rules every once and awhile.

The league should pay more dues to its characters. Without them there would be no life and no money. The media feeds off of these characters and the league feeds off of the media. They all need each other. The media knows that people want excitement. They want touchdowns, fumbles, interceptions, but more importantly they want drama. Here in the 21st century, drama dominates television. Every major network has some form of reality TV on it and with reality TV you get drama. Just look at Bill Parcells, he was hired for the simple fact by ESPN to give dirt about Terrell Owens. Every week he was asked to give some negative comment about “tha player,” but as he continued to speak positively about “Terrell Owens,” he was featured less and less in the coming weeks. So the media loves T.O., but they can’t let everyone know it, they have to keep this affair on the down low, so T.O. keep doing what you do.

The Great []_[]? I Think NOT!

I remember the good ole days! When anytime the University of Miami was playing, I couldn’t wait to get home and see it. No matter what I was doing, I’d drop everything and run to the television. I could tell you who they were playing and what time. I could even name pretty much the starting line-up and some other string. I’d even watch the draft and see what round our players were going in. The 2002 NFL Draft was so memorable to me! I watched Bryant McKinnie, Jeremy Shockey, Phillip Buchanon, Ed Reed, and Mike Rumph all go in the 1st round. When the first few rounds were done, I still waited around for Clinton Portis, Martin Bibla, Najeh Davenport, and others to get picked up. I just knew that my team would be strongly represented. Times have sure changed.


The days of the Miami Dynasty feels so long ago. Yes, it was plagued with stigmas (i.e. "Thug U") and a lot of negative connotations dealing with the off-campus activities of some athletes. I mean, the first thing said to me when I told relatives that I was coming here was, “Stay away from those football players! They’re bad news.” Through it all, when it was game time, those boys showed up. I mean, we have 5 Championship rings to show for it. Now, I’m just praying to see one before I leave.

The University athletes have kept up with their illicit activities (i.e. The FIU Brawl, 7th Floor Crew, and the W. Cooper and B. Merriweather related shooting). I'm not one to bring it up to smash down our school or anything, but we’re not doing anything else. At least back then, they had something else to take the attention off of all the negatives, like victories. Coker leaving wasn’t big enough, it was bound to happen. I mean how long could he have hid behind the fact that he used another coach’s team to advance his career? Being here for going on three years, I’ve seen a horrible Peach Bowl, up-close and personal. Also, the worst game in U.M. history at the worst time possible. How am I suppose to be saying goodbye when the score is so devastating, and all I see is fans leaving during the 3rd quarter. Last but not least, the 1st losing record in over 20 years. I had faith the whole Boston College game, but I wonder if they did. When I see facial expressions telling me that the game was over, before the game was actually over, AGAIN, how am I supposed to be excited?

Don’t get me wrong, I will FOREVER be a Canes fan. I root for us, win or lose. When the odds are set against us, I’m rallying everyone to watch the games with me. But if the players don’t care, why should we? After I loss a game, I didn’t go out and club hop. I didn’t chill out in front of the dorms and try to talk to anyone who passed by. And I sure did care if we lost! Nowadays, the focus is individual. I hear the players say, it doesn’t matter, I’ll go to the league anyway. Which some are clearly delusional on that issue, but I shall not digress. It's starting to make me feel like I’m dragging myself to watch and support. It shouldn't be this way at all.


If Randy Shannon wants people to take that long ride on buses to get to and fro’ our new stadium, then he needs to recruit players with heart and make them learn the value of being a team. Because I’m tired of people quitting before it’s over and quarterbacks showing favoritism and ignoring those who are wide open. I know Randy is doing the best he can do with the cards that he was dealt, but I really can't wait until the team is made up of predominately his recruits. Randy has already received promises from a few boys that play for Miami Northwestern, which is the #1 high school team right now. He has an eye for the boys who truly love the game, and the boys want to play for him. It's a lot of the upperclassmen that need to leave. If even the recruits who came for a visit feel that our team is lacking heart, that shows that a change needs to occur.

By the way, this doesn’t go for the whole entire team. There are those that you can tell are fighting. It’s for those who are obviously not.

Has Chad Johnson Changed His Ways?.....Almost!

The Chad Johnson of today is only a fraction of the show boater that he was just a season ago. Johnson seems to be trying to be more humble when it comes to touchdown celebrations and T.V. interviews. During the 35-6 victory over the Tennessee Titans Johnson had 12 receptions, 103 yards and 3 touchdowns. Now the old Chad Johnson would of had many touchdown celebrations ready to go but instead he only had one.

He commandeered a television camera behind the end zone, swung it around and aimed it at the field as part of a touchdown production. He drew a flag for excessive celebration. Yes this penalty helped the Titans put 3 pionts on the bored with a field goal, but in the words of the Bengals defensive captain John Thornton, "He deserved it." "He's been working hard. I told him to keep it up. I told him if he needs a penalty to get himself going, go ahead."

You have to remember that he scored 3 times and only celebrated once becuase he was having a great game. The other two times he did what ever other NFL player does when they score a touchdown, keeping it old fashioned with hugs and high-fives. So the question is why is Johnson toaning it down? There were many questions about his "look-at-me antics"such as the "Ocho Cinco" stunt , hurting the Bengals, so Johnson the very chatty reciever stopped talking to the media for a month and when he finally had something to talk about after the impresive game he chose to stay silent. He simply shook his head at interviewers and went into the locker room when he was questioned about the game.

"He doesn't care about that, he'll probably reflect on it later," said teammate and fellow receiver T.J Houshmandzadeh. The way that Chad Johnson is acting lately reminds me of the way Terrell Owens acted after his "Suicide Attempt." He was very hunble talking to interviewers during preseason interviews and games. I would like to think that Johnson is turning over a new leaf and becoming more humble, but he can't lose it all becuase that's what makes the NFL entertaing and that's part of his persona.

Women Broadcasters... A Dying Breed?

I'm a major advocate for women in the sports industry. And it's sad that people base their opinions on those who interact unpleasantly within the arena. Women in general are usually looked down upon when compared to men in anything. If a person is a female she’s second guessed, and if she’s also a minority, there’s racial comments. Women are expected to cook, clean, and conduct themselves in a submissive manner. Now women are showing they’re not just gentle beings; they’re rough, tough, and can be just as great as any man. They fight hard to gain what they want and/or deserve.

The Sports Industry is extremely lacking women, but they’re making a rise. In Orlando, women are making up 25% of the sports staff on newspaper and television staffs. The percentage is more than double the national average. It is said that Orlando is representing the diversity of the area. Jemele Hill has only spent 2 years in the “big leagues” and is creating a name for herself. Though she got a lot of backlash from reporting on similarity of Lance Armstrong and Barry Bonds doping charges, she’s gotten praise for her summertime series in which she interviews athletes while riding in their car.

What’s even more impressive is after 17 years of its existence, a woman has received the Pro Football Hall of Fame’s Pete Rozelle Radio-Television Award. Lesley Visser, known as the first female NFL beat reporter, received that prestigious award in August of 2006. She began her career having to conduct interviews in the parking lot, to now being on the sidelines, where all the action is. Women and men of different nationalities participate and watch sports. Orlando is letting it be known that they see it and they’re doing something to make a change.

Though more young girls are involved in sports, males still make up a majority of sports readers 2-to-1. That looks as if women don’t care, which isn’t true in my opinion. There’s been some improvement with women in the sports world, having had a 50% increase in sports broadcasting in the past 10 years. But they need to keep working hard at it. There’s a large imbalance between the salary, prestige, and acceptance of male to female sportscasters.

Some people think successfulness of the female in sport journalism is on the rise, but others think that it’ll go on a backward slide. Women have to continue to prove that they are equal counterparts in a white male-dominated arena. Which is hard as it is, because they get assigned a lot of fluff pieces. Or they're only commented on their appearance. What about the job they're doing? Does that count for anything?

There were times when women couldn’t touch a field. They could only stay in the house. They couldn’t “play with the big boys”. Now, they’re running all over the fields. They’re managing companies. They are the “big boys”. Women have grown in a field that they were once not allowed. They’re standing shoulder-to-shoulder with men. We don’t really know what the future may hold. Only time will tell.

Still Perfect

The team that everyone loves to hate The New England Patriots are still undefeated and still on the road for that perfect season. With a win over the Eagles on Sunday night football Tom Brady took his team one step closer to NFL history to be the second team to go 17-0 and win a superbowl. The only other team to achieve this perfect season was arguably the best team ever the 1972 Miami Dolphins. After watching this close game against the Eagles and the close call that the Patriots had its a toss up if they can pull it through and go undefeated. With the Brady-Moss connection clicking and an offense that is averaging over 39 points per game, the Patriots appear to be an unstoppable force. This undefeated question reminds me of the Cults and last year's season.

With five games left in the season anything can happen at this point expecially with a little thing called "Any Given Sunday." There are too many factors that can happen over the next few weeks to prevent the undefeated season. Pittsburg and the NY Giants pose big obstacles to the Patriots. The three other teams on the schedule arent going to role over to the Patriots either just becuase they are on a perfect season run. Each of the five teams left on the schedule want to be the one that puts the banana in the exhuast of the Patriots Bus on the road to the perfect season.

So far every team that has come close to the history books has come short for one reason or another. Statistically, the chips are not stacked in the favor of the Pats becuase the NFL season is full of upsets and with five more games there are five chances for that to happen.

For the Patriots to be perfect they have to play perfect. Brady has to continue playing his game, Moss has to keep the Brady-Moss connection alive, Maroney has to keep the ground game alive, and most importantly the defense has to shut everything down. If the Pats can manage to be perfect for the next five games which i feel they have a good chance to do, they will be the next team in the history books.

BCS...Big Corporate Sponsors

The Bowl Championship Series is probably the most controversial issue in college sports. On second thought, it may be the most controversial issue in all of sports. Year after year since it's inception in 1999 the system has been questioned by all sports fans. Why not a playoff system? Well, this season that same question will be asked again.

This has been the strangest of seasons in Division I

 football. It began when Appalachian State defeated preseason #5 Michigan. Then, it continued to shake up throughout the season to the last week of the "regular season" when both the #1 and #2 teams in the country lost in the same weekend (#1 LSU and #2 Kansas [unranked preseason]). The #2 ranking seemed to be a curse as week after week the team holding that spot was knocked off. The top ranking changed an amazing 4 times, the most since 1997. LSU even lost the #1 ranking two different times this season. If the season ended today, the Allstate BCS National Championship Game would be #1 Missouri (preseason unranked) vs. #2 West Virginia (preseason #3). Nobody could have picked that one. Yet, that might even change as Missouri still needs to defeat Oklahoma in the Big 12 Championship Game next weekend.

So, what is keeping the BCS alive? Well, there are many arguments for that. First is the lucrative deal that FOX Sports just signed last season worth millions of dollars. The other reasons: Allstate, Tostitos, FedEx, AT&T. As in the Allstate National Championship Game, Allstate Sugar Bowl, Tostitos Fiesta Bowl, FedEx Orange Bowl and the Rose Bowl Game presented by Citi. Sponsors, sponsors, sponsors. And that's not all of them. There 25 corporate title sponsors of college bowl games (not including the 4 previously mentioned). No matter how we look at it, college football is big business and that looks unlikely to change anytime soon.

How to change it? Get the commissioners on board. Unfortunately for playoff fans, the commissioners of almost all of the college football conferences are the biggest supporters of the Bowl games. Is it coincidence that the commissioners of the major conferences rotate as BCS Commissioner, probably not. So it looks as if the BCS is here to stay. The contract runs through 2010 but an extension is expected in the near future. So congratulations Corporate America, you win...again. Who knows, maybe one day you will even get to name a bowl game after yourself.

I know that this blog entry is a little bit different from the rest but I thought I had to share this with you.
I was reading this book over the last two days. Unfortunately my tiredness prevented me from reading it in a row. This book which has the title "first in thirst - how gatorade turned the sience of sweat into a cultural phenomenon" tells the story about Gatorade and how it was established on the market. The reader learns the marketing secrets of Gatorade and how it survived attacks by Coca-Cola and PepsiCo.
I found it incredible to learn how a couple of doctors at the University of Florida developed this drink from collecting sweat. It sounds kind of weird but what they created was and still is a market phenomenon.
I can highly recommend this book for everybody who is interested in the sports business, especially in marketing and also for everybody who just loves to read incredible stories.
It is very easy to read and I promise you will read this book in one day.
Darren Rovell just does an amazing job teling Gatorade's story and actually keeps his readers and everybody interested in the Gatorade brand updated on his blog. The Gatorade Blog.
And if you want to know where the "Gatorade dunk" comes from there is really no way you can skip this book.

"Are Agents Becoming A Problem For Sports?"

With the recent negotiations regarding Alex Rodriguez and his next big contract, it has been brought to my attention that sports agents are a teams worst nightmare. Yes it is their role to negotiate contracts and endorsement deals for their clients, but in recent years, they just seem to be getting in the way. Not only that, but their expectations and requests for salaries are absolutely ludicrous. Where does Scott Boras get off asking for $350 million just to have his client meet with the Yankees? Is he serious? I realize that we are talking about one of baseballs greatest players, but $350 million just to talk with A-Rod, give me a break. Additionally, for Boras to announce the fact that his client would not be renewing his contract while in the middle of the World Series playoffs was completely foolish and unprofessional. I am glad to see that Rodriguez finally came to his senses and met with the Yankees after all, despite the advice given to him by his agent. Still, in today's world of professional sports, we often hear more about the agents than the players themselves.

Although I would prefer not to pick on him, I simply cannot help but to use Scott Boras as a prime example of all that is wrong with sports agents now a day. They are a breed of their own whose main purpose is to obtain as much money for their clients as humanly possible. Their relentless and unorthodox negotiation habits have caused many sports teams to stay away from certain agents who many simply cannot deal with. Nevertheless, my argument simply leans towards the fact that big name agents who seek big money contracts are hurting sports all over. To be a pro athlete, one must not only have the proper skills, but a love for their sport as well. I personally believe that agents today take away from the love of the game. Their focus simply revolves only around money and is much like a game in itself to see who can negotiate the biggest deals. I realize that pro athletes expect to be paid the big bucks, but there is more to life than money, and agents simply make matters worse in their attempts to suck franchises dry financially. Unfortunately, with new athletes constantly turning pro or switching to different teams, agents are always looking for ways to build up bigger and better contracts. Whether it be Daisuke Matsuzaka, A-Rod, Johnny Damon or Jason Varitek, players who sign with agents such as Boras head in the path to which money controls their existence in the sport.

For now, I would like to switch sports and focus on another agent who has become notorious for his greedy ways and often intolerable negotiation strategies. If you guessed that I am talking about Drew Rosenhaus, you guessed right. Although Rosenhous and Boras represent athletes of two different sports, they both share the same characteristics when it comes to being sports agents. Neither of them care about anything but money and simply hurt sports because of this. With Rosenhaus, we see him constantly advising players to stay away from training camps until they receive more money and a better contract. I must say, this makes me absolutely furious, the fact that Rosenhaus would keep an athlete from playing their sport until more money is offered. This is sports we are talking about, not Wall Street, but agents such as Rosenhaus seem to forget this. It is about the love of the game, not the love of the money. These agents tarnish both their clients reputations and that of the sport when they do things like this and it makes not only teams angry, but causes the fans to be unhappy as well.

Maybe I am overreacting a little bit, but I still believe that agents bring bad "PR" to the sport they represent. They take the focus off the player and their talent, and simply let everyone know that they are in it for the money. I think agents such as Boras and Rosenhaus quite often bring out the bad in sports and need to figure out a way to clean up their image. I have seen the movie Jerry Maguire and I know that agents constantly work day and night to succeed in the business. However, when the agent begins to overshadow the player, that is where I draw the line. It is the agents job to be in the background, not the spotlight. So for someone like Boras to announce during the World Series playoffs the fact that A-Rod will not be returning to New York or for Rosenhaus to stop his client from attending practice, I think something must be done to turn things around. Unfortunately, I doubt anything will change in the future and until then, sports agents will simply continue to get in the way every chance they get.

Controversy and Scandal… Good or Bad for Sports?

A few weeks ago, I’m sitting in the UC and the group of people next to me is reliving the two 53 yard field goals made by Nick Folk (the first one negated by a last second Bills timeout) during the Cowboys- Bills game (October 8, 2007). The controversial attempt at “freezing out” Folk generated a lot of talk about fairness and what attracts people to watching sports. Back to me sitting in the UC; one of the people said sports today is all about controversy, not the actual game and people get tired of it. Someone else in the group disagreed, saying sport fans thrive off controversy. It occurs to me that both people are right.

First, it is important to differentiate between controversy and scandal. Controversy usually refers to plays or calls during a game while scandal usually refers to events outside the game. For example, the last second timeout during the Cowboys- Bills game or the late Browns field goal that bounced off the uprights and then fell over the crossbar are controversial. Situations like Spygate, Isiah Washington, Pacman Jones, and Dennis Franchione are all scandals.

Controversy and scandal have both drawbacks and positives. When one team is constantly surronded by controversial calls, the average fan begins to think about things like conspiracy theories. Unless they are true die hards, they may become discouraged and lose interest in the team. For someone not devoted to the particular team, there may be increased interest to see what interesting things happen in the next game. Some people say that controversy causes people to lose interest in the game because they just want to watch for the love of the game. I think controversy makes the game more interesting and challenging. It gives people something to talk about and a chance to commiserate or celebrate. Scandals, depending on what they are tend to turn off fans but when they motivate players (like the Patriots this season) it makes for spectacular games. Also, minus a select few, I think the majority of athletes do it because they love the game and competing.

To me, it's part of the game and watching teams overcome negativity makes it worthwhile-- as a consumer and a marketer. I watch because I love sports; controversy and scandal ups the ante, attracting attention therefore ultimately they are good for sports. So the next time I'm sitting in the UC and I overhear someone talking about how sport is all about controversy and not about the game, I can tell them controversy helps sport.

Can this College Football Season be any crazier… YES!!!

Let me start by stating that I have been putting of this entry for way to long. The first time that I thought about writing this topic was when USF beat Auburn at home. It was after this game that I realized that unranked teams were performing really well against ranked opponents; cough, cough Appalachian State Vs. Michigan, arguably the biggest upset of all time. Then more time passed and the season got wilder and before I knew it USF found themselves ranked number two in the country. ‘Are you kidding’ I thought to myself ‘this is the strangest top 10 ever.’ However, I still managed to push the entry off till this past Thursday (11/15) when the unimaginable happened; No. 2 Oregon was upset by unranked Arizona. Not only did Oregon lose they suffered a bigger loss as Heisman front runner Dennis Dixon limped off the field in the first half and did not see the field of play again.

It now seems that No. 2 ranking is a cursed spot as Oregon is the fifth number two team to fall this season. It is not only surprising how many number two teams have fallen but the way by which they fell. All of those five teams lost their ranking by losing to an unranked team. That is unprecedented! According to their ranking these teams should only be bettered by one other team in college football, and that is the No. 1 ranked team. Instead, they all lost to teams outside the top 25 in the nation! The struggles have extend to more than just the second ranked team in the nation as eleven times this season a top-five team as lost to an unranked opponent.

What really pushed me over the edge this week was the injury to Dennis Dixon. He was in the backfield ready to leave the pocket and juke an Arizona defender when he collapsed after he knee gave out without anyone touching him. That’s right; arguably the best player in College Football injured himself by getting his foot “caught in the grass.” Now the notion of a curse on the second ranked team in the nation doesn’t seem so silly. Dixon then watched the rest of the game from the sidelines in street clothing and underwent an MRI on Friday (11/16). Coach Mike Bellotti is anything but optimistic as he said "I think he's probably done for the year" after Thursdays 34-24 loss to Arizona.

Kansas, the No. 2 team in the latest AP poll, may want pass on their highest ranking in school history and stay at their current ranking, No. 3, with the results of No. 2 teams so far this season. Regardless of where the BCS will rank the Jayhawks their next game will be the most important in their schools history; as they will play their Big-12 rival Missouri who is No. 3 in the latest AP poll. The game will determine the winner of the Big-12 North and who will go to the conference championship game with national title aspirations.

So with one week left in the regular season is there anyway that things can get even more unpredictable. The answer is a resounding YES! The No. 2 (Kansas) and 3 (Missouri) teams will meet each other and square off for the Big-12 North title in Kansas City’s Arrowhead stadium.

Arizona State (9-1) controls the Pac-10 race as they face off against USC, No. 11 this thanksgiving.

Virginia Tech, No. 8, can still earn a spot in the ACC Championship game with a win over instate rival Virginia, No. 16.

The WAC conference champion will also be decided this week as the undefeated Warriors, No. 14, face Boise State, No. 17 at home with possible BCS implications.

So buckle up the finally is going to be a wild ride!

Can the Knicks Be Saved?

I am by no means a huge basketball fan, particularly the NBA, but it's hard to see the New York Knicks in their current state. Being from New York, and growing up when the Knicks were once a proud and winning team, what has happened over the last few years has been appalling. From the days of GM Scott Layden acquiring extremely overpaid fringe players (Shandon Anderson?!) to the Larry Brown and Isiah Thomas fiasco's. For a team that had great success in the mid to late 90's, what has happened recently has hurt not only the Knicks organization, but also the NBA. The Knicks, who are in an important sports market, are no longer as big of a draw as they used to be, and are now more of a laughingstock because of their recent problems.

Isiah Thomas, who was a great player during his time, appears to be in way over his head with the Knicks as GM and head coach. He has not only made questionable basketball decisions, but his off court problems have given not only him, but the organization, a big black eye. Thomas was accused, and found guilty, of sexual harassment, which caused Madison Square Garden (and Thomas' boss) to pay a hefty amount of money in damages. While Thomas was not the only one at fault here, it hurts that the team's President and coach, their most recognizable figure at this point, was involved in an incident like this in the first place. Something like this, in addition to the team's recent poor performance (sneaking into the first round of the playoffs in the Eastern Conference isn't exactly success), has created a bad image for the team, and the NBA can't be happy that a team like the Knicks are struggling like they are.

Where to begin with Stephon Marbury? Marbury, with his big time contract, came to the Knicks with much excitement, as he is from Brooklyn and he was coming home to play for the hometown team. It has been all downhill since then. Not only has his performance been under par, but he has also created some more turmoil for the team, by not showing up for a game because he was not going to start, and then claiming he had "so much stuff" on Isiah Thomas. By this, he meant he was going to blackmail Thomas is he didn't start against the Phoenix Suns. How bad does this look for the organization? Although Thomas and Marbury are saying all the right things, it's pretty clear that this organization is in a lot of trouble if it keeps on its current path. Over the last several years, this organization has been one big, public nightmare, and it's going to need a huge restoration to bring back fans and respectability to this once proud team.

So what can save this team from further public relations problems? First, it appears that the organization needs to clean house and get rid of cancers like Isiah Thomas and Stephon Marbury. The team needs to return to good character players like they had in the 90's like Patrick Ewing and John Starks, and stay away from selfish players like Marbury. The Knicks need to rebound to restore this franchise because the fans in New York want to have a team they can actually cheer for. I'm sure the NBA wants the Knicks to bounce back so that they can benefit from a popular team in a big sports city. Leagues need major sports markets to have teams that people want to watch. In baseball, the Yankees not only draw great attendance at home but they also draw a lot of fans on the road. That is what big market teams that are successful can do for their respective leagues. This is what needs to happen again with the Knicks. Maybe the draft can be rigged (Scroll down to Apr. 19 article "Basketball Blog"), like it has been suggested that the 1985 NBA Draft was, in order for the Knicks to land Patrick Ewing to be the savior of one of the league's big market teams. But thats just wishful thinking. The Knicks have a long way to go to get back on good terms with the fans and the NBA, but it is something that needs to be done.

Ricky Returns!

Ricky Williams returns to the Miami Dolphins today, after serving an 18th month suspension for drug usage. Coach of the Miami Dolphins, Cam Cameron decided to let Williams rejoin the team after they met earlier today (Thursday, November 15th, 2007).

"The meeting was positive," Cameron said. "He'll be a member of this team and will start with us Monday. He's a Miami Dolphin."

In the last year Cameron had continued to give no comment regarding whether he would want Williams to return after the NFL lifted his suspension, actually seeming less likely too before the summer . In May, when discussing Williams' latest relapse, Cameron said it was hard to save a players career who has been troubled with drug and addiction on numerous occasions. The chances for Williams' to be let back on the team seemed slim, but his suspension couldn't have ended at a better time. The Dolphins are 0-9 for the season, currently the least ranked NFL team and reinstating Williams doesn't sound like a bad idea right now.

Williams, who played college football at Texas, was originally drafted to New Orleans Saints, 5th pick in the 1999 draft. In 2002, Williams was traded to the Miami Dolphins for two first round picks and he was the leading rusher that year in the NFL with 1853 yards and named a Pro Bowler. We can only hope that his past stats can bring aid to the painful results we're seeing from the Dolphins this season.

The only discouraging factor is his reliability, Williams has failed to abide by the NFL drug policy for years. In 2004 Williams was diagnosed with depression and anxiety, and tested positive on 3 different occasions for marijuana which led him to announce an early retirement. He was out for the following year and his absence contributed to the teams low scoring year. The dolphins finished second to last in 2005, with a 4-12 record. He came back late in 2005 apologizing and jumped right back into training. After a 4th violation of the NFL drug policy in February 2005, the NFL suspended Williams for the entire 2006 season.

The Dolphins allowed Williams to play for the CFL's Toronto Argonauts during his suspension, with the terms that he return to the Dolphins when the suspension ended. Williams was required to take multiple drug tests by the NFL in order to return to the league for the 2007 season. He tested positive once again in May 2007 and applied for reinstatement in October and this brings us to today, where he was officially back on the Miami Dolphins roster. Although he isn't allowed to play until week 12, everyone is hoping he'll be able to help get a few wins for the depressing Dolphins.

Cameron said the entire team supports the decision to welcome back Williams on the roster, probably taking anything they can get to try and improve their win/loss record for the season. I think the entire fan base can't help but be somewhat excited for the extra hand being brought into play this season, we can only pray that he can stay clean long enough to help the Dolphins get out of the gutter.