5:36 PM As Herbstreit noted on ESPN's GameDay last Saturday, if Mangino is such a good guy, why aren't his players coming out to defend him in droves? Last I checked, even the formerly gruff Charlie Weis at least had the support of his current players.
5:25 PM This Friday the UFL Championship game is in Vegas. Today I received an email offering $15 off each ticket. Should be a great crowd.
5:13 PMJimmy Traina of SI's Extra Mustard has a photo of Vince Young high-fiving an on-field NFL official last night.
5:03 PMThose of you speculating about KU Alum and TAMU asst. Nolan Cromwell as Mangino's replacement at KU, stop it. Cromwell = Zorn. 'Nuff said.
As the Windy City Series gets underway at Wrigley today, Ozzie Guillen managed to have a hearty laugh at some Cubs fans selling shirts that make a mini-mockery of his Hispanic heritage. After such grand guffawing, one is bound to be bedeviled by a parched throat. Hey, Ozzie, how ’bout a Pepsi?
And look who’s co-starring in the commercial with the White Sox manager - it’s none other than Cubs hurler Carlos Zambrano. And even Bobby Abreu makes a last-second cameo.
Ahhh, muy refrescante!
As for the offensive shirts, Ozzie really does get the last laugh - at least for today.
Some say spring starts with the vernal equinox, or maybe the first robin of the year, or maybe even Opening Day. Ninja please. Nothing says spring has sprung until baseball players start fighting like schoolgirls near the pitcher’s mound.
(Now these guys know how to put on a brawl.)
The Angels and Red Sox were eager to play that part today, as a Josh Beckett pitch over Bobby Abreu’s head set off a weird quasi-melee that eventually led to four ejections… none of whom were Beckett or Abreu. In fact, the main offender was, for some reason, Torii Hunter.
Quiet night in sports as the NBA gears up for the All-Star weekend in Phoenix (first round of stories: “Hey, it gets cold in the desert!”). Therefore, coverage this morning will be 20-25% less sports-y. This is in honor of NFL Commisioner Roger Goodell taking a pay freeze this year and trimming his bonus from last year to drop his 2008 pay by roughly a quarter.
“The commissioner believes it will take a collective sacrifice of everyone to get through this difficult economic environment.” The commish is wise. However, the commish will certainly have a better case for the uncapped year coming up and the next CBA negotiations by showing “fiscal responsibility” now. Also, the layoff of 15% of league staff in NYC might be a little more palatable.
Darren McFadden, Bay Area savior and Al Davis’ last good idea, had his shoulder ’scoped last month, but no one knew his shoulder was injured. Not only that, but he went back to his college doctor to have the procedure done. We’re not suggesting this was a good idea, but Al Davis’ medical plan for the Raiders consists mostly of leeches and bromide. Hey, it’s worked for him…
Our favorite Tweet of the day, from the Phoenix Suns: “All-Star round table topics - Obama, race, education, HIV - were just interrupted by a birthday cake for Bill Russell.” The All-Star weekend is magnificently bizarre.
Hideki Matsui made a rather bizarre announcement today, notifying the press that he was getting married to a “a 25-year-old civilian and had formerly been working in a reputable position at a highly respected company. I cannot go into further details at this current time.”
A civilian? Wow, we would’ve guessed Matsui met her in a South Dakota missile silo. Even stranger was how he introduced his wife to public life. Read more…
