Archive for August, 2011
2011 NFL Preseason Schedule: New Orleans Saints at Oakland Raiders on NBC
On August - 27 - 2011
The New Orleans Saints (1-1) and Oakland Raiders (0-2) meet up in Week 3 of the 2011 NFL preseason Sunday night at the O.co Coliseum. Kickoff is scheduled for 8:00 EST and will be nationally-televised on NBC.New Orleans is hoping a return trip to the Bay Area will deliver similar results to its 2009 campaign, as the team captured a 45-7 win over Oakland on Aug. 29—on its way to winning Super Bowl XLIV over the Indianapolis Colts.The Saints will be on the road for a second consecutive week and were handed a 27-14 loss to the Houston Texans as ...
Lockout in Basketball Mirrors Kris and Kim Kardashian’s Lock-in Honeymoon
On August - 27 - 2011
Kris Humphries and Kim Kardashian’s marriage may be on a collision course with the lockout in basketball. Which one ends first may be the sign that on the court, traveling is back in fashion. On a honeymoon whirl around the world, Kim Kardashian and her dribbling husband are all over the Internet like a bad hurricane report. On their honeymoon when Kris Humphries threw Kim into the ocean, she lost a $75,000 earring. It’s almost as bad when he tries to throw a basketball into the net from 25 feet. It’s not as easy as throwing your bride into the ...
2011 NFL Predictions: Atlanta Falcons to Win First Preseason Game in Pittsburgh
On August - 26 - 2011
The Atlanta Falcons and Pittsburgh Steelers are set to battle in Week 3 of the 2011 NFL preseason in a rematch of a season-opening contest a year ago. Kickoff is expected to be at 7:30 p.m. EST at Heinz Field.Lines makers sent Atlanta off as a one-point road favorite in last year's game, as Pittsburgh was playing the first of four games without the services of starting quarterback Ben Roethlisberger due to violating the league's personal conduct policy. The result was a 15-9 home underdog win by the eventual 2010 AFC champions. Atlanta bounced back after that defeat by capturing a 41-7 ...
Chad Ochocinco: Beating his Own Drum and Marching like a Doodle Dandy
On August - 26 - 2011
Why do so many fans hate Chad Ochocinco? Let’s count the ways. Actually, his image and likeability quotient has improved since coming to New England, but he still garners endless tweeting insults. We cannot understand why there is such unreasonable animosity toward someone with such a sunny disposition. Perhaps some despise him because he changed his name from a dull moniker to something more suitable to a self-made man. Perhaps some despise him because he finds joy in celebrating his work at the goal line. Perhaps he is disliked because he is not Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man. Some obviously dislike ...
India to Boycott the 2012 London Olympics over Dow Chemicals’ ‘Fabric’?
On August - 26 - 2011
While Indian newspapers’ front pages and TV channels feed off Anna Hazare’s crusade against corruption, the sports sections are chock-full of analysis, recriminations and reactions to Team India’s pitiful surrender of their No.1 Test ranking to England.The headliners above have buried another burning issue: The unpalatable association of Dow Chemicals with the London Olympics.Dow’s Performance Plastics Division will deliver a “fabric wrap” for the main stadium made of “sustainable” resins.London Olympics chief, Sir Sebastian Coe, described the “wrap” provided by Dow Chemicals as “the icing on the cake”.He said:“”The stadium will look spectacular at Games time and having the wrap is the icing on the cake. I’m delighted that ...
ESPN Horribly Convolutes Issue with ‘What If Michael Vick Were White?’
On August - 25 - 2011
This morning, ESPN ran a column titled "What if Michael Vick were white?" Accompanying the column was a picture of the quarterback utilizing the digital equivalent of "white face." Immediate reaction to the column, which will appear in ESPN The Magazine's Sept. 5 issue, was knee-jerk, swift and overwhelmingly negative. Many sports fans hate when issues of race are even brought up. If that's you, you're probably in the wrong column. More significantly, the response was interestingly centered less on the article itself and much more on the picture (which has since been, justifiably, removed)—hearkening back to days when this ...
2011 NFL Preseason Picks: Washington Redskins at Baltimore Ravens on ESPN
On August - 25 - 2011
Week 3 of the 2011 NFL preseason is here and the Washington Redskins (2-0) and Baltimore Ravens (1-1) are set to battle at M&T Bank Stadium on Thursday night in front of a nationally-televised audience on ESPN. The two teams kick it off at 8:00 p.m. EST.Washington has been one of the most impressive teams during the preseason—opening with a home win over the Pittsburgh Steelers (16-7) and picking up a road victory over the Indianapolis Colts (16-3) as five-point road favorites.Redskins head coach Mike Shanahan has been tight-lipped about tonight's starting quarterback, as both John Beck and Rex Grossman ...
MLS Nicknames Confuse Joe Sixpack
On August - 25 - 2011
From the beginning, MLS should have required franchise names to be recognizable to all sports fans. Toronto FC, Sporting KC, Chivas USA, FC Dallas, Seattle Sounders FC, Real Salt Lake, Vancouver Whitecaps FC are unnecessary names. FC should not be associated with any MLS nickname. Too many sports fans don't know what it stands for and it makes them feel further separated from soccer than is really the case. Reality is there is not a big divide between U.S. sports fans and soccer. Everyone is familiar with the game. MLS will never achieve ...
The TMZ Effect on MLS
On August - 23 - 2011
Salacious headlines is not the first thing that comes to mind when the American public thinks of Major League Soccer. Most people in America probably don't even know what MLS stands for. Many might say Multiple Listing Service, representing real estate and homes, which is what appears first on a Google search (MLS.com). Suffice it to say, if the question was narrowed to include sports only, still a big percentage would not know the answer. If the public was asked who TMZ was or what the initials stood for, probably most would not ...
Who’s More Popular in L.A. Now, the Dodgers or the Galaxy?
On August - 23 - 2011
Who's more popular in the second-largest metropolitan area in the U.S. now, the Dodgers or the Galaxy? The Los Angeles Galaxy have possibly the greatest tandem of players (Beckham and Donovan) any single soccer team has ever had in the U.S., mostly play at near capacity or sellouts and is a contender for a championship this year. The Los Angeles Dodgers have massive debt, poor attendance, a bad win-loss record and a horrible reputation for safety at the ballpark. What is even worse for the Dodgers is the probability that their ownership problems ...