Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Murph's Stream of Consciousness for July 15th

  • I love the All-Star game. The introductions are my favorite part. Makes me feel 10 again. I love the step forward and tip of the cap.
  • The pregame was terrific. Loved the All-Stars Among Us tribute, including all living Presidents.
  • To my relief, Sheryl Crow didn't butcher the Anthem as I've seen her do in the past. She was okay.
  • It was great to see the Cardinals Hall-of-Famers, especially Stan Musial. I know some Cardinal fans are disappointed Musial didn't get the Ted Williams treatment from players, but if the same feeling's not there, they shouldn't force it.
  • Barack Obama can work a locker room like no President I've seen. He needs to work on that rainbow first pitch though. Not as bad as his bowling, but a clear sign of someone who hasn't thrown a baseball much in his life.
  • Major cool points to the President for wearing a White Sox jacket and not pandering to Cardinals fans. Do you think Hillary Clinton would have done that?
  • Game was pretty good too, though the National League can't get out of its own way. At least this year John Bachman wasn't worried about whether the outcome would keep the Cubs from having home-field advantage in the World Series.
  • Keno Davis is averaging more than one contract extension per year.
  • I was skeptical about the Chiefs paying $63 million for Matt Cassel, a guy with one year as a starting quarterback since high school, but the NFL Network's Paul Burmeister tells me he thinks it's a smart move.
  • Paul also said he has serious questions about the leadership of Bears quarterback Jay Cutler.
  • Paul's most underrated NFL player? Peyton Manning. Think about that for a minute.
  • Tony Romo reportedly dumped Jessica Simpson the night before her birthday. Andy thinks this was to save money on a gift.
  • Florida's Urban Meyer says he'll never coach at Notre Dame. Based on the track record of college coaches who make statements like this, it's time for Charlie Weiss to watch his back.
  • UNI is putting in new turf. Thank goodness. The Panthers old field feels like worn out cheap carpet spread over a concrete floor.
  • It's good news that Jewel Hampton may be in uniform for the UNI game. We had two different sources tell us Hampton partially tore his ACL and would likely miss considerable action. Kirk Fernentz---through Gary Dolphin---says Hampton did injure a knee ligament, but doctors think he should be ready for the opener.
  • The more I get to know LeBron James, the less I like him. He's a once in a lifetime talent, and as far as I know, a law-abiding citizen, but he has some punk tendencies. We saw the first sign of it with the bad sportsmanship after the Magic crushed the Cavs, and another look when LeBron (reportedly) conspired with Nike to prevent anyone from seeing the King get dunked on. That's just stupid. Plus, it only makes us want to see that tape more.
  • NASCAR says Jeremy Mayfield tested positive for meth AGAIN. Keep this guy off the track.
  • Brett Favre says he'll let the Vikings know by July 30th if he's their quarterback. In other news, Brett Favre will announce July 30th that he's coming out of retirement to quarterback the Vikings.

6 comments:

T said...

Murph you forgot to mention the most important thing happening; that coach Thomas' son will be replacing his dad this season on the field. It is good to see that his legacy will live on through someone who appears to share the same great qualities his dad did.

John Stossel said...

Lay off King James sheesus! He doesn't disrespect you, so don't disrespect him, at least, until you get to know the guy personally.

Anonymous said...

FYI: From Chronicles of Higher Education:

Any thoughts on college athletic and broken system in higher education? State of CA is completely broke. Jobs cuts, no $ for schools, programs being cut. Yes, this was a contract between the school and a coach. But that does not make it right in the state schools.

http://chronicle.com/jobs/blogs/onhiring/1142/the-coach-who-wouldnt-leave

July 10, 2009
The Coach Who Wouldn't Leave

San Diego State University fired its head football coach, Chuck Long, last November after his third straight losing season. So why’s he still keeping office hours?

Mr. Long, a runner-up for the Heisman Trophy but a coach whose Aztec teams went a combined 9-27, has a clause in his contract guaranteeing him $715,900 per year through December 31, 2010, as long as he keeps working at the university. If he gets a new job, he forgoes the money.

Not many takers on the job market these days — surely no one willing to pay a losing coach that kind of coin. So like a modern-day George Costanza, Mr. Long is hanging around the campus doing “projects and analysis.”

San Diego State is paying an outside consultant $125 an hour to work out a settlement. And university officials say that $1-million has been pledged to pay off the former coach’s contract, but it’s not clear how much of that has come through.

Angie said...

I am a lifelong Vikings fan and frustrated that Favre wants to play for us! The Packers are our #1 rivals. Favre needs to STAY in retirement or go back to the Packers.

Just my thoughts on the issue :)

Keith Murphy said...

T,

Smart and needed move for the healing of AP.

John,

I don't need to know LeBron personally to recognize bad sportsmanship and bratty behavior.

Anonymous,

I can't fault Chuck. It's a contract. Good work if you can get it.

Angie,

I feel your pain, but he'll quarterback the Vikings.

Thanks.
Keith

Kirk Diggler said...

Keith, 2 instances of supposed bad sportsmanship and/or bratty behavior is no reason to start labeling the guy as a punk.
I bet if I poked around long enough, I could find instances where you acted bratty or with bad sportsmanship. I know I have and still do occasionally. He's a human, just like everyone else. If I was 24 years old, and the worst you could say about me is that I didn't shake someone's hand and that I didn't want people to see a video of me getting faced, I'd take it in a heartbeat. I think most everyone else in this world would to.