Abe Pollin Passes Away

Abe Pollin, owner of the Washington Wizards and founder of the Washington Capitals, passed away at age 85. The longest tenured NBA owner, Pollin was known for his loyalty and love of basketball, and a great friend and owner. Pollin was reported to be afflicted with a rare brain disease that affected movement and balance known as supranuclear palsy, and had bypass surgery back in 2005.

Rather than give heresay on what a great man he was, here is what others had to say.

The NBA family has lost its most revered member, whose stewardship of the Wizards franchise, together with his wife Irene, has been a study in unparalleled dedication to the city of Washington," NBA commissioner David Stern said. "During his illness he fought with a determination and valor that will remain an inspiration to all.

I just lost a real, real good friend," said Wes Unseld, star of the 1978 championship team who later became the team's coach and then general manager. "And I think it's more than any of you will understand or I could even explain. It's just going to be a big void in sports in this community.

We're deeply saddened to hear about the passing of Abe Pollin - a giant in the world of professional sports and someone I was proud to call a friend. Abe was a man who knew that being an owner wasn't just about winning championships, although his teams had plenty of success. It was about helping young athletes become good people as well as good players. And it was about being part of a community," Obama said.

The funeral is set to be held on Friday, along with a public memorial service on Dec. 8 at the Verizon Center.

The Hits Keep on Coming for Notre Dame

So Notre Dame lost another game at home, this time to Connecticut. Charlie Weis is on the hot seat, the team has lost three straight, and players to the NFL seems likely.Then this happens, Jimmy Clausen gets punched outside a bar in South Bend the morning after the double-overtime loss. The black eye that was given to the program materialized on their best player's face.

This is just what Notre Dame needs, their starting quarterback, who is having a phenomenal season in almost every aspect while already injured, getting sucker punched at two in the morning. What can possibly happen next? Where can this go? Are they going to lose to Stanford while scoring touchdowns on themselves as the Stanford Tree is playing defense?

Apparently what happened was that Clausen was at the bar with family and friends, and decided to leave around two in the morning. After his girlfriend had forgot her purse in the bar they returned to get it. On the way out she was pushed and Clausen said something to the person, as anybody would. Then he was sucker punched and the cops were called.

Now people are going to get on Clausen because they are Notre Dame and Clausen haters, calling him a "pussy" and a "loser" saying he just got beat up in a fight. You know, because all of those Internet tough guys were there, and they would have done it themselves. Clausen finally did what players should do, and walked away and stayed away from more trouble. For that I think he should be commended. Clausen will be wearing a visor for the game on Saturday following the black eye, but he is going to be alright to play.

The Buffalo Bills on Steroids

So the Buffalo Bills went to the Super Bowl four straight years, and unfortunately for them and their fans lost all four times. Now their fans have to hear about it forever, or until they actually make it back there and win it. Now fans of Jimmie Johnson will have to hear about his four straight for the rest of time, but they will hear it from one another while they are gloating.

Johnson cruised to his fourth straight Sprint Cup Championship, and became only the fourth driver to win more than three titles. Those other three are not too bad, you might have heard of Dale Earnhardt, Richard Petty and Jeff Gordon.

He was able to win in 2009 thanks to his fifth place finish at the Homestead-Miami Speedway, easily giving him enough points to run away with it. It is a truly remarkable accomplishment, especially given the drivers that are around and the level of cars these days. Johnson is truly a great competitor and a great driver. When asked what this meant to him Johnson was very appreciative.

To do something that’s never been done in the sport, and love the sport like I do and respect it like I do and the greats – Petty, Earnhardt, Gordon – to do something they have never done is so awesome,” Johnson said. “And to win four championships in eight years, what this team has done – this is unbelievable.

Bird and Magic Forever Linked....Again

Larry Bird and Earvin "Magic" Johnson just can not seem to separate themselves from one another in basketball lore. It all began in 1979 in the National Championship game when small school Indiana St. was led by Bird to face Magic's Spartans of Michigan St. Then they went to two of the most storied NBA franchises- Bird to the Boston Celtics and Magic to the Los Angelas Lakers. Then they found one another again in the NBA Finals in 1984, and again in 1985...and then again in 1987. The two were finally on the same side for the 1992 Olympic basketball team, or the Dream Team.

So the two should only be inducted into the College Basketball Hall of Fame together. After that great game they should have been planning this for 30 years. The two have become great friends, and to have them both going in the great year, is a great move by the voters.

The two of them have done so much for the game, and did so much for the college game, especially with that monumental championship. The rivalry that they began in college and let grow in front of the eyes of the world was something special, and what better than to have this special moment shared by the two of them, for the world to see.

'Cuse is in the House! Oh My God, Oh My God!

So is it time to stop talking about the Syracuse loss to Division II Le Moyne yet? I think the Orange believe it is, especially after the double digit spankings they have put on the four opponents since. Syracuse is leaving New York City and Madison Square Garden with a trophy to prove that the Le Moyne game is but a distant memory.

Syracuse came back from that exhibition loss to demolish the next two foes in the Carrier Dome, by an average of 36 points, and did not stop on their way to the title. In facing number 12 California they were able to control the game, aside from Jerome Randle being unconscious in his shooting display, winning 95-73.

Then came the vaunted defending champ North Carolina Tar Heels. Well they were able to make it a great first half, that is before Syracuse took control in the second half. With a 22-1 run in the beginning of the second half Syracuse was able to deliver the blow that the Syracuse faithful that packed the Garden were hoping for. Though UNC got it back down to eight points, a few defensive plays and dunks and the game was out of reach again, and the Orange were in complete control. Len Elmore said it had been awhile since he saw a North Carolina team dissected and dominated like this (maybe not those exact words, but something very similar).

What does Syracuse have that makes them a good team?

• Size
• Athleticism
• Length
• A hunger for defense
• Inside scorers, outside shooters
• Can run the floor well
• Experience
• Coaching

This is a team that knows how to win, and win convincingly already, and they want to prove to people that losing their three top scorers from last year does not mean this team is not going to be good. It is early yet, but they look to be a complete team, and people will certainly have to watch out for the Orange. They got fans in Syracuse smiling.

Replay! Replay!

So this is a blog mostly about what I deem to be the four major sports, but there are times that those other games have to be considered here, and this is one of those times. France defeated Ireland, but could not do it without a little bit of controversy. Come the 103rd minute of the match, a great match to that point, the ugliness began. Thierry Henry was found himself in a position to help his team win, so what did he do? Something that you are not supposed to. (I know what you are thinking, just like the French, right?) He went to redirect the ball, and rather than using his knee, he thought that his hand would do just fine.




Well I am not the biggest soccer fan, but even I know you can not do that. And the Ireland team knows it too, and they want something done about it. They want a rematch, a replay. They want to know why they are not going to the World Cup because of such an obvious disregard for the rules. Which if you ask me, makes a lot of sense.

Fifa does not really agree however, and they have declined such a match. Henry himself thinks that this is something that should be done however, calling it the "fairest solution." Well it just does not look like it is in the cards for the Irish though, because Fifa probably is not going to budge.

It just does not make sense to me, how can this go on? The result is so flawed, and so obviously so, that it just makes me laugh at how this "sport" continues to push me and others away. If nothing else just start the game from where they would have called the handball and find out the real winner, the fair way.

Bowe Gone, Does it Matter?

Dwayne Bowe, a good receiver on a bad team. Dwayne Bowe, a good receiver having an alright season thus far. Dwayne Bowe, a good receiver that is now out for four games. Yup, Bowe was caught having used a banned substance by the league back in training camp. The specifics have not been released, as to whether or not it was steroids or some sort of diuretic masking agent.

Bowe at least took the lead, and did something that is somewhat respectable if he did in fact cheat, and is not appealing the suspension. Though he did state that it is because this is a battle that players do not win, so I guess I will give him half of the credit. Adam Schefter is reporting that he was doing it in order to try and lose some weight, which is plausible, though the NFL is not saying anything. I do not know if that is the truth, and honestly I do not care. I do not know how much weight he really needed to lose though.

The real question is does it matter? Sure to fantasy football owners it means something, where Bowe was a reasonable draft pick, but he found himself out of the top 30 in terms of the top point getters by receivers. So he was not really doing much in that regard.

He has not even really showed up that much this year, with a majority of his yards coming in only four games. Though to give credit where credit is due, he did lead the team in receiving in their two wins this year. That is where it comes up again though, why does this matter? The Chiefs find themselves 2-7 and not really looking any better, despite their win this past week, seeing as it was against the Raiders.

Bowe may be done for four games, but in the end the thing he might really be doing is preserving himself better for the future. Yeah he will come back this year, but at least he will have saved his body a bit, from a bad team, in these four games.

So Long Dick Jauron

There is Dick Jauron after a win. There is Dick Jauron after a loss. There is Dick Jauron after being fired. That stoic face does not change no matter what is going on, and to be honest today I feel bad for him. If nothing else Jauron is a good guy, and I do feel bad that he lost his job. With that being said, he had to go at some point and it might as well be now.

Over his four seasons at the helm of the Bills coaching staff the team was was nine games under .500, with a 24-33 record before he was fired. On top of that he never had a better record than 7-9 with a team that was supposed to be on the rise. This includes last season when the team began 4-0, and then 5-1 before losing eight of their last 10.

I just do not think that this was something that was going to get turned around, both in terms of Jauron and the team in general. This team is injured and young, and they are just going to have to finish out this year before they can start fresh next year. This team is not going to win out and make the playoffs.

Perry Fewell has been named the interim head coach to finish out the year, elevating from his defensive coordinator position. In year 12 of his NFL career, he has been with the Bills for four of them as he came in with Jauron. I am not saying Fewell is the future, but I think another reason that this was a good time to do it was because of what we saw just last year with Mike Singletary.

In the end I think there are two choices for the Bills to really go after, and these will obviously be tough guys to get for multiple reasons, but Bill Cowher and Mike Shanahan. Cowher will bring the discipline, the attitude, the winning mentality that the Bills franchise needs, and could really turn them around. Then, with Shanahan, is there any better coach for young offensive lineman and a good backfield. He can bring in his zone blocking scheme, which led to numerous 1,000 yard rushers while in Denver, and really help mold these young, but talented, lineman. Not to mention that Fred Jackson and Marshawn Lynch would not be bad backs to bring that scheme to.

Leave Harbaugh Alone

I turn on the radio and hear Mike Greenberg of Mike & Mike talking about the "incident" that occurred this past weekend towards the latter end of the Stanford and USC game. Leading USC 48-21 Stanford and coach Jim Harbaugh decided to go for two, and increase the lead that much more. Undoubtedly so, many people are upset that they were running up the score, and rubbing it in on the Trojans.

Give me a break. You played a team that punched you in the mouth, ran all over you, and you lost. If you do not want them to have a chance to run up the score then stop them. People a few years ago, maybe even Greenberg (though I am not sure if he did, so I am not saying he did) were saying that if you want the Patriots to stop scoring then stop them.

Harbaugh probably did not really expect that much of a backlash from the attempt, or maybe he did, I don't know. Either way I have no problem with it, and to be honest, as fluffed and fake as it may sound, I think his explanation was not half bad.

"We felt there was an opportunity to punch it in and make it a four-score game, plus a two-point conversion," he said. "We wanted to be full-throttle the entire game. ... It felt like we were going to get it; that's why we did it. Credit USC for stopping us.

"Had I known they weren't going to score any more points, had I known we were going to score another touchdown, I probably wouldn't have done it. I didn't have that luxury at the time."

Let's not act like USC has never seemingly run up the score either, and maybe Harbaugh just was not a fan of the losses he had endured to USC thus far in his career. USC has dominated the PAC-10 in recent years, and have had their fair share of blowouts, just ask Washington St. about their recent loss to the Trojans 69-0.

Personally I think it was about time somebody sent a message to the Trojans. This makes two wins in three years for Harbaugh against USC, maybe he knows something that not everybody else does.

No need to worry '96 Bulls

Though I am sure that Michael Jordan and his 1995-96 Bulls teammates were real worried going into the season, it already appears that their record is safe yet again. The two teams that many were trying to force into the role, the Lakers and Celtics, have both showed us they are more than human lately.

Let us take a look at the Lakers first, which have already done several things that the Bulls did not that year.

• So far the Lakers have lost three games, and the '96 Bulls did not lose their third until December 26.
• They have lost all three games by more than a double-digit margin, '96 Bulls had only two of their 10 losses by 10 or more points.
• Lakers have lost their last two games, the only losing streak the '96 Bulls team had was a two game losing streak. Once.
  
• Lakers have lost two games at home, again something the '96 Bulls took the entire season to achieve.
  

I know that the Lakers could go and win 40 games in a row and then lose three and win out and have only six losses to fight that argument, and they could easily win the rest of their home games. I am just saying that at this point there are some things they have done that the '96 Bulls only did once, or throughout the whole season and not the first month.

I could get into the Celtics and the Cavs and their own deficiencies in terms of matching or bettering that year by the Bulls, but at this point I think you understand that two teams with three losses already, both also with two of those losses at home already which are strong points for those teams, are already going up against the idea of reaching that plateau.

So to the Rasheed Wallaces, Scottie Pippens, and anyone else that thinks these teams are hunting down the '96 Bulls, respect that team, and Jordan, and lay off until one of these teams actually makes a serious run a couple of months in. The only reason these teams are getting this hype is because of the star power, because as good as the Mavs were in 2006-07 they were not getting this much attention, later in the year no less. They won 14 in a row with seven losses, and then nine in a row after getting loss number eight. No Lebron or Kobe meant no hype for that team though.

Can we talk about the Nuggets yet?

They have one of the top scorers in the league in Carmelo Anothony. A top point guard that has won an NBA Finals in Chauncey Billups. A coach that has been to the NBA Finals, and has a led three different teams to the conference finals. Not to mention, one of the toughest home courts to play at, and were in the conference finals last year. So why does this team still find themselves singing Aretha Franklin in the locker room?

This team has made multiple upgrades from last year's team on top of it with their offseason moves. They got more athletic in their forward coming off the bench with Joey Graham taking the place of Linus Kleiza who is now playing in Greece. Anthony Carter has been replaced by the faster, and more athletic, rookie point guard from North Carolina Ty Lawson. He only won ACC Player of the Year last year. They also got younger, and more of an offensive game, when they let Dahntay Jones leave and picked up Arron Afflalo in free agency.

With all this in their favor all you hear about going into this year is the Lakers and the Spurs. Maybe you get the occasional, "oh yeah and the Nuggets will be good too." I just do not know why there is just this prominent stance to taking them as a nice team, but not a threat to anyone, given all of these options.

They might have made their statement last night, though it was just one game, that was in Denver, and in November. You have to take notice though, as they were able to dominate the Lakers, minus Pau Gasol of course with his injury, destroying them 105-79. The game really was won in quarter number 3 when the Nuggets only allowed eight points, forcing multiple turnovers and getting out on the run to really get the crowd into it. Though the night's true excitement might have been when 5'11'' Ty Lawson threw down a dunk in the lane on the Laker's backup center Didier Ilunga-Mbenga.

This was a small bit of revenge for last year's conference finals loss to the Lakers, but they know they want more and that this does not quite equal losing out on a trip to the NBA Finals. Denver finds themselves with a record of 7-3 early this season, and it is apparent that they are going to be a team to watch yet again, as they have been since Carmelo was drafted back in 2003. I think it is time to give the N-U-G-G-E-T-S a little R-E-S-P-E-C-T.

Big East Battle for Bearcats

Cincinnati and coach Brian Kelly have exactly what every team wants, the ability to control their own destiny. Currently at number five in the BCS standings, with two of the four teams ahead of them playing one another, and TCU facing number 17 Utah this week, the Bearcats are able to grasp at that much more optimism. Problem is that Cinncy has to face West Virginia themselves tonight at home.

Since joining the Big East in 2005 the numbers have not been pretty when these two matchup, and before they won last year in a thriller at Morgantown, West Virginia had won all three times they faced each other in conference. This included a 38-0 drumming at home the first year in the conference for the Bearcats.

Injured opening day starter, and former Heisman Trophy candidate, Tony Pike is still unable to start according to coach Kelly, however he will be able to play. Kelly believes that Pike is healthy enough to help the team, though starting is apparently too much for him at this point. Instead, backup Zach Collaros is coming off of his third start, and what possibly might be his best when he threw for 480 yards against Connecticut. A better runner than Pike, Collaros has helped the offense not miss a beat since becoming the starter.

Cincinnati currently ranks 48 in the nation against the run, giving up an average of 126.1 yards a game. The run defense will certainly be tested by West Virginia, and star running back Noel Devine, who finds himself number 14 nationally in total rushing yards.

I think that Collaros will be fine against the Mountaineers and their pass rush, especially since his offensive line has been playing well all year. Devine will also be able to find some daylight, and if he finds it he will capitalize. This looks like a game where the offenses should reign supreme, and an upset is very possible. With Kelly at the helm though, I think this Bearcat club is solid all the way around. But don't let Devine get that ball at the end of the game, just ask Connecticut.

Prediction: Cincinnati 38 West Virginia 27

Hey, if you get through this one Bearcats you can look forward to an easy road to an undefeated season. Oh. Wait. You still have Pitt coming up on the fifth of December. Here's to controlling your own destiny...