WE'RE VERY CLOSE.....HONESTLY, HARRISON "JUST A LOT OF BRAVADO," LEACH BOOK EDITOR SUSPENDED BY ESPN & NCAA COMES DOWN ON GA TECH
"Unless someone throws cold water on it, we're closer to a deal than we've ever been" so says someone who was in the room today. The NFL negotiations went late into Thursday evening, "we were knocking stuff down making some real progress." Apparently the biggest obstacle to a handshake deal was the rookie wage scale & it was settled tonight, at least that's the word. ESPN's Chris Mortensen said via Twitter "even skeptical participants among negotiating teams are stunned at momentum resolving remaining issues." Mort believes a deal within the next 24-48 hours is very realistic. It appears the owners buckled on the rookie wage scale's 5th year compensation. I told you days ago I couldn't see the players giving in on this issue, it looks like they held their ground & won the day...at least on this issue. Another compromise was the agreement to a panel of 3 retired judges to hear disciplinary issues & rule upon them, taking it away from the commissioner. Facing a loss of $200 million for cancelling the first week of preseason, both sides have finally decided to quit posturing & start negotiating in earnest. Too bad our elected officials in Washington can't do the same. For the record, it takes 24 out of 32 owners to ratify & 50%+1 on the players side to ratify. I doubt there's any way this won't pass when the votes come, way too much at stake. Let's hope this is really it & not more "cold water."
Wonder why Denver running back Knowshon Moreno hasn't made any type of impact since he was selected 12th overall in the 2009 draft. Apparently it's "Pile on Josh McDaniel" week, Woody Paige of The Denver Post spilled some ugliness today regarding Moreno's place on the Broncos. "Privately I realized we made a big mistake" Page reported McDaniel told him. He then threw gas on the fire with this comment "He hasn't been tough, smart, motivated, if that's what you're asking. He's not a great clubhouse guy. Interpret that how you want & he's been a wimp on the field." Man, folks in Denver really don't like Josh McDaniel, quotes like this are usually "off the record." New head coach John Fox said recently "we need to find a tough runner in free agency." He doesn't seem to be in Moreno's corner either, but then he's seen the film, he may know all he needs to know. When I watched Moreno in a Bronco uniform, it was difficult to believe he was the same runner who blew me away at Georgia.
The complete sh*tstorm that Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison stirred up earlier this week with the release of an interview in Mens' Journal carried over into Wednesday. Like with a lockout going on, there was anything else to grab our attention. Harrison's agent, Bill Parise, tried to put the fire out all day long. He called Harrison's interview "a lot of bravado." To the ugly remarks Harrison made about teammates, Parise said "everyone knows he loves those guys ya know." Later in the day, Harrison surfaced on Twitter & claimed the interview had twisted his words out of context. "Words pulled out of a long conversation & the context was lost" claimed Harrison. The reporter who interviewed Harrison & wrote the piece told everyone he spoke to yesterday "he said every single word, I stand by everything in the article." He also threw his support to Harrison when the subject of Commissioner Roger Goodell came up, "The man took over $100,000 from James in a short period of time for hits that were completely legal, yeah he has a right to hate him." Then late last evening Harrison filed an apology, sort of, on Facebook. It was clearly prepared by his agent or lawyer. It never denied anything, it never claimed words taken out of context & it never really said "I'm sorry." With one exception, he did apologize to all his teammates for discussing anything pertaining to the team to anyone outside the team. I failed to mention in yesterday's piece, Harrison made a gay slur on Goodell. I just talked about this 2-3 days ago & here we go again. An African-American male using a gay slur to demean another person. Harrison apologized for using the "slang", claiming it wasn't intended to be a gay slur. Not buying that James. He did not apologize to Goodell for the things he said or to other players who he called "clowns" or "juiced up." As to the picture featuring Harrison posing bare chested with a pair of handguns, he said he was a collector who likes guns, hunting & fishing. "I couldn't pose with a pair of fishing poles across my chest could I?" He tried to say everything in the interview was his response to the lack of meaningful NFL safety. I buy some of that, but not the whole enchilada James. Even with a settlement in the labor dispute, James Harrison's rant will get him fined by someone, somewhere, sometime in the near future.
This shot cost Harrison $60,000
In an annual report, Forbes Magazine ranked the most valuable sports' franchises worldwide. Six of the top-10 were NFL teams, led by the Dallas Cowboys, ranked second to Manchester United, the English soccer team owned by the Glazer family, owners of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jerry Jones' Cowboys were valued at $1.81 billion. After the NY Yankees at three, 4th place belonged to the Washington Redskins. The New England Patriots at six, NY Giants at 8th, Houston Texans in 9th & NY Jets in tenth. Spanish soccer team Real Madrid ranked 5th & Arsenal, the British soccer club owned by Rams owner Stan Kroenke, was 7th. Just to show what a good investment buying an NFL club is, Jones paid $140 million for the Cowboys in 1988, pretty good return on his money.
I had to change today's edition of the Mike Leach report because of breaking news. Bruce Feldman, a college football reporter for ESPN.com & ESPN The Magazine, was suspended tonight. Feldman agreed some 3-years ago to edit Leach's proposed biography. According to his contract with ESPN, he was required to get permission to participate in any outside writing. He said he did, every step of the way, over & over. It took the "Worldwide Leader" just 3 days to drop the hammer on Feldman. The book was released Monday & he was suspended late Thursday night. Oh don't go looking for anything about it on their website, it's not there. Like so much of their Leach vs. "The James Gang" reporting, ESPN is extremely biased. As soon as someone takes a position counter to theirs', ESPN acts like a spoiled child & lashes out. For those who've been here since the Leach/Texas Tech/Adam & Craig James/ESPN ugliness began, you'll remember I've been very outspoken regarding the behavior of this so-called professional media outlet. If the facts don't support your agenda, just omit them. If the facts don't support your position, find another source(James) that will give you what you're looking for. Don't bother asking University regents, board members, respected assistant coaches or trainers, nope, just ask a 20-year old slacker who's been proven to be a liar over & over. His dad works for you, that's good enough right? Feldman is in that top-5 group of college football writers, I hope he'll found an outlet for his immense talent before the season starts. There are two other writers at ESPN I really respect, I hope they don't anger their employer by displaying any of that un-ESPN-like integrity or honesty, they'll be gone as well. What a mess.
The Iron Bowl pits Auburn versus Alabama every year, the last game of the regular season. It is truly one of the five most intense rivalries in college football. Since the April 27th tornado that struck Tuscaloosa, people all over the state have tried to find ways to raise money to help those affected by the killer storm. They came up with a beauty & I have little doubt it will be a success. The HeartinDixue Alumni Day Flag Football Game will be played on August 13th. Forty alums from the schools will participate & with names like Bo Jackson & Cornelius Bennett as team captains, I'm guessing alumni from both schools will want to be a part of this game. Tickets just $20 & $5 for parking should ensure a sellout & every single dollar will go to tornado relief. Excellent work.
This afternoon the NCAA made an announcement they would have a statement in an hour regarding their investigation into the Georgia Tech football program. What investigation into Georgia Tech? I hadn't heard a thing, talk about 'under the radar.' It turns out an unnamed player for the Yellowjackets accepted $312 worth of free clothing in November of 2009. Then another player became a target & the first player told the second player what NCAA investigators said to him, apparently at the behest of someone in the football office(this report is pretty vague). That's it, nothing else. The outcome was severe I thought. Tech had to vacate their 2009 ACC Championship game win, the program was fined $100,000 & head coach Paul Johnson was ordered to attend an NCAA Regional Rules Seminar before the 2012 season begins. The school was also put on a 4-year probation. Who knew?
A quick correction is in order. My pal Rance Berger, a local sportswriter, corrected me on my omission of the St. Louis Blues having helped the folks in Joplin. I was wrong, a number of Blues' players helped gather nearly 13,000 pounds of food for tornado relief. Every person who donated received a voucher for a free preseason ticket later this year. Good for them & thanks Rance for setting me straight.
Wonder why Denver running back Knowshon Moreno hasn't made any type of impact since he was selected 12th overall in the 2009 draft. Apparently it's "Pile on Josh McDaniel" week, Woody Paige of The Denver Post spilled some ugliness today regarding Moreno's place on the Broncos. "Privately I realized we made a big mistake" Page reported McDaniel told him. He then threw gas on the fire with this comment "He hasn't been tough, smart, motivated, if that's what you're asking. He's not a great clubhouse guy. Interpret that how you want & he's been a wimp on the field." Man, folks in Denver really don't like Josh McDaniel, quotes like this are usually "off the record." New head coach John Fox said recently "we need to find a tough runner in free agency." He doesn't seem to be in Moreno's corner either, but then he's seen the film, he may know all he needs to know. When I watched Moreno in a Bronco uniform, it was difficult to believe he was the same runner who blew me away at Georgia.
The complete sh*tstorm that Pittsburgh linebacker James Harrison stirred up earlier this week with the release of an interview in Mens' Journal carried over into Wednesday. Like with a lockout going on, there was anything else to grab our attention. Harrison's agent, Bill Parise, tried to put the fire out all day long. He called Harrison's interview "a lot of bravado." To the ugly remarks Harrison made about teammates, Parise said "everyone knows he loves those guys ya know." Later in the day, Harrison surfaced on Twitter & claimed the interview had twisted his words out of context. "Words pulled out of a long conversation & the context was lost" claimed Harrison. The reporter who interviewed Harrison & wrote the piece told everyone he spoke to yesterday "he said every single word, I stand by everything in the article." He also threw his support to Harrison when the subject of Commissioner Roger Goodell came up, "The man took over $100,000 from James in a short period of time for hits that were completely legal, yeah he has a right to hate him." Then late last evening Harrison filed an apology, sort of, on Facebook. It was clearly prepared by his agent or lawyer. It never denied anything, it never claimed words taken out of context & it never really said "I'm sorry." With one exception, he did apologize to all his teammates for discussing anything pertaining to the team to anyone outside the team. I failed to mention in yesterday's piece, Harrison made a gay slur on Goodell. I just talked about this 2-3 days ago & here we go again. An African-American male using a gay slur to demean another person. Harrison apologized for using the "slang", claiming it wasn't intended to be a gay slur. Not buying that James. He did not apologize to Goodell for the things he said or to other players who he called "clowns" or "juiced up." As to the picture featuring Harrison posing bare chested with a pair of handguns, he said he was a collector who likes guns, hunting & fishing. "I couldn't pose with a pair of fishing poles across my chest could I?" He tried to say everything in the interview was his response to the lack of meaningful NFL safety. I buy some of that, but not the whole enchilada James. Even with a settlement in the labor dispute, James Harrison's rant will get him fined by someone, somewhere, sometime in the near future.
This shot cost Harrison $60,000
In an annual report, Forbes Magazine ranked the most valuable sports' franchises worldwide. Six of the top-10 were NFL teams, led by the Dallas Cowboys, ranked second to Manchester United, the English soccer team owned by the Glazer family, owners of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Jerry Jones' Cowboys were valued at $1.81 billion. After the NY Yankees at three, 4th place belonged to the Washington Redskins. The New England Patriots at six, NY Giants at 8th, Houston Texans in 9th & NY Jets in tenth. Spanish soccer team Real Madrid ranked 5th & Arsenal, the British soccer club owned by Rams owner Stan Kroenke, was 7th. Just to show what a good investment buying an NFL club is, Jones paid $140 million for the Cowboys in 1988, pretty good return on his money.
I had to change today's edition of the Mike Leach report because of breaking news. Bruce Feldman, a college football reporter for ESPN.com & ESPN The Magazine, was suspended tonight. Feldman agreed some 3-years ago to edit Leach's proposed biography. According to his contract with ESPN, he was required to get permission to participate in any outside writing. He said he did, every step of the way, over & over. It took the "Worldwide Leader" just 3 days to drop the hammer on Feldman. The book was released Monday & he was suspended late Thursday night. Oh don't go looking for anything about it on their website, it's not there. Like so much of their Leach vs. "The James Gang" reporting, ESPN is extremely biased. As soon as someone takes a position counter to theirs', ESPN acts like a spoiled child & lashes out. For those who've been here since the Leach/Texas Tech/Adam & Craig James/ESPN ugliness began, you'll remember I've been very outspoken regarding the behavior of this so-called professional media outlet. If the facts don't support your agenda, just omit them. If the facts don't support your position, find another source(James) that will give you what you're looking for. Don't bother asking University regents, board members, respected assistant coaches or trainers, nope, just ask a 20-year old slacker who's been proven to be a liar over & over. His dad works for you, that's good enough right? Feldman is in that top-5 group of college football writers, I hope he'll found an outlet for his immense talent before the season starts. There are two other writers at ESPN I really respect, I hope they don't anger their employer by displaying any of that un-ESPN-like integrity or honesty, they'll be gone as well. What a mess.
The Iron Bowl pits Auburn versus Alabama every year, the last game of the regular season. It is truly one of the five most intense rivalries in college football. Since the April 27th tornado that struck Tuscaloosa, people all over the state have tried to find ways to raise money to help those affected by the killer storm. They came up with a beauty & I have little doubt it will be a success. The HeartinDixue Alumni Day Flag Football Game will be played on August 13th. Forty alums from the schools will participate & with names like Bo Jackson & Cornelius Bennett as team captains, I'm guessing alumni from both schools will want to be a part of this game. Tickets just $20 & $5 for parking should ensure a sellout & every single dollar will go to tornado relief. Excellent work.
This afternoon the NCAA made an announcement they would have a statement in an hour regarding their investigation into the Georgia Tech football program. What investigation into Georgia Tech? I hadn't heard a thing, talk about 'under the radar.' It turns out an unnamed player for the Yellowjackets accepted $312 worth of free clothing in November of 2009. Then another player became a target & the first player told the second player what NCAA investigators said to him, apparently at the behest of someone in the football office(this report is pretty vague). That's it, nothing else. The outcome was severe I thought. Tech had to vacate their 2009 ACC Championship game win, the program was fined $100,000 & head coach Paul Johnson was ordered to attend an NCAA Regional Rules Seminar before the 2012 season begins. The school was also put on a 4-year probation. Who knew?
A quick correction is in order. My pal Rance Berger, a local sportswriter, corrected me on my omission of the St. Louis Blues having helped the folks in Joplin. I was wrong, a number of Blues' players helped gather nearly 13,000 pounds of food for tornado relief. Every person who donated received a voucher for a free preseason ticket later this year. Good for them & thanks Rance for setting me straight.
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