Tuesday, March 27, 2007
Goodbye Joe Theisman...don't let Kornheiser kick you on the way out...
Finally ESPN manned up and admitted a mistake.
Joe Theisman, he of the incredibly lame assertions and no sense of humor, was smartly removed from the Monday Night Football booth that will include Mike Tirico, Tony Kornheiser, and now Ron Jaworski. ESPN announced that Theisman left because he had been given a "prominent football analyst" position; which if you break down the PR B.S. means that they bumped him to Monday Night Countdown or something. For those who don't know much about the media business; when you're doing color commentary for ESPN's biggest broadcasts of the year, and then are removed and placed on the same set as Michael Irvin, that's a downgrade.
So why was Joe thrown under the bus? It mostly had to do with Tony Kornheiser and their inability to concoct any chemistry. The stuffy Theiseman was the antithesis of Tony Kornheiser, whose sole purpose was to interject life and little flavor to the Monday Night Football booth.
But Theisman and Kornheiser never clicked, for obvious reasons. Theisman is a arrogant prude, and Kornheiser is a sarcastic needler. It was almost painful listening to them bounce off each other; with Kornheiser constantly trying to bait Theisman, and Joe either brushing him off or completely missing the joke.
So ESPN had to made a call, and for all the pub and love they have spent on Tony's arrival into the booth, he wasn't going to be the one to go. Tony of course is the immensely popular host of Pardon the Interruption, one the Worldwide Leader's most-watched daily shows. While Theisman has plenty of fans, he doesn't have the platform that Tony has, and even though Kornheiser is a balding sportswriter; his snarky sense of humor makes him appealing to a wider, and more importantly, younger, demographic. Kornheiser is an up-and-coming brand that could help generate dollars for ESPN, meanwhile Theisman is more like the Costco of has-been-former-athlete sportscasters.
So I will join The Sports Guy Bill Simmons in pouring out a forty for Theisman's departure. Though his time in ESPN's booth was not long, it was full of stiff, embarrassingly awkward moments done in front of a national audience...well done Joe, you're an inspiration to pompous a-holes everywhere.
Monday, March 19, 2007
Reactions from the best gambling weekend of the year...
Between sips of Green Beer, I was able to catch some pretty thrilling games this past weekend.
Even more thrilling for me was the fact that I actually killed in my predictions. It's been years since I've had a bracket this intact, and more than likely it'll be more years before it happens again. I've always fancied myself as a pretty good predictor of college sports; but if a cocker spaniel can out-pick an ESPN analyst, then I don't feel so bad about all the times my sister wiped the floor with me.
Now that the dust has settled around my 40-9 record after two rounds, let's take a look back at a weekend that was:
-My Best Picks: UNLV over Wisconsin, Vanderbilt over WA State, and VCU over Duke :).
-My Worst Picks: Albany over Virginia, Notre Dame over Winthrop, and Arkansas over USC.
-This was the first year that I didn't pick Butler to make some noise. And of course, in fitting poetic irony they go ahead and knock off the Terps and charge into the Sweet 16. However, I have to agree with Ray Hollomon, who says Butler's best player has the body of Olive Oil.
-Ron Lewis of Ohio State has to be the most underrated clutch player on any of Terp's Top 8 Teams Left. Can't get enough of a dude who demands the ball in the huddle, then comes looking for it with seconds left and drains a three under pressure. Ron Lewis is "Cold-blooooodddeeeedddd!!!!!"
-For the first year in a long time, no double-digit team sneaks into the Sweet 16. And I'm telling you now...No team lower than a #3 seed will make the Elite Eight.
-"Upset" Special coming up: I have to put it into quotations because I don't see any more major upsets happening. Best I can do for you is put Texas A&M in the Final Four along with Georgetown, Florida, and Kansas. That means the Aggies beat #2 Memphis and #1 OSU thanks to two straight "home" games in San Antonio.
Terp's Top Eight Teams Left:
(8.) -Oregon: I really like to watch this team, but I don't know if they can get the job done against Florida in the Elite Eight. Just not enough defense or inside presence to get to the Final Four
(7.) -Ohio State: They were lackadaisical against Xavier. They deserved to lose. This team lacks focus. Yet, they are supremely talented.
(6.) -Texas A&M: I know they're one of my Final Four teams, but only because they match up very well against OSU. I wasn't planning on having Memphis face off against the Aggies in the Sweet 16, but I still think A&M is battle tested enough to move on.
(5.) -UCLA: Very talented, just not enough to get it done and get by Kansas in the Elite Eight.
(4.) -Florida: Most everyone has them in the Final Four, and that's because there was no one in their region to challenge them. They're still dangerous, but not hungry.
(3.) -UNC: Deep, talented, and almost guaranteed a Final Four spot next year.
(2.) -Georgetown: Big, tough, athletic, and they play defense. Good luck knocking them out if they decide to lock it up.
(1.) -Kansas: My pick to win it all. Multiple scoring options. Depth. Solid leadership and coaching. They can get out in the open floor, and they can run their sets. If they rebound and play "D" they can beat the Hoyas. I think this is shaking down to be one of the most high-scoring Final Fours in recent memory.
Working on some renovations...
The last month has been crazy for me, high school basketball owned my soul, and work in general has kept me from putting forth any kinds of updates. My days of lounging on the couch, searching for something to fill my time is long gone.
Here's what's to come from West Michigan's best/laziest blog:
-I'll get some audio hosting here at some point. MP3's from the show, my personal interviews, that kinda stuff. Just need to bribe my tech guys into doing it for me.
-I'll be updating the blog a couple times a week, I promise. And if I fail, I'll buy you a drink at McFaddens on a Thursday night. Just make sure you submit your drink order via a slender blonde wearing short-cut clothing. Don't want any of my buddies to think I've gone soft.
-I'm going to incorporate a little bit more inside information from the radio show and TV station. I realize that it's kinda fun being in the know...and it's even more fun to blab what you know all over the Internet.
-Ideas, opinions, and slanderous comments are always welcome. My email is available on here. Bad idea? Maybe. But I prefer hate mail to junk mail anyways. I can only read so much about increasing the size of my manhood in four short, impotence-inducing weeks.
So fellow former athletes (or in my case, fellow former pseudo athletes), that's the bottom line, cause Stone Cold called and he said so.