Drop Back Pass

Memphis Going To The Hall!

2006-08-05T10:45:00.000-05:00

Today the city of Memphis and the USFL will have someone going to the Football Hall of Fame: Reggie White. You see, before he played for the Eagles, Reggie White was the defensive end for the Memphis Showboats, of the USFL. While the NFL rejected the city year after year, the USFL did not. When the league came to town, the city embraced it as well as Reggie White. The Minister of Defense recorded 23 and a 1/2 sacks in two years in Memphis. Not only was he a fan favorite while at the University of Tennessee he was the shining star while with the Showboats. So for all those fans, who followed the Showboats, sit back and enjoy the ceremony today because it is a chance to remember the memories that he provided to the city.

The Pot calling the Kettle Black

2006-06-26T19:52:00.001-05:00

I always find it funny and a little hypocritical that European nations, the majority of the time, turn their nose down at American culture as well as American behavior. Having experienced this several times, I am somewhat amussed that these nation's ills always seem to find thier way out of the closet during the World Cup or any other international sporting event. Look at the behavior of the Hooligans that has taken place during the past couple of weeks. Several European countries police forces, have sent officers to deal with thier country's hooligans. Interpol, International Criminal Police Organization, has a database of hooligan fans, from around Europe. When I was studying in London, I got a behind the scenes tour of Arsenal. Arsenal spent $7 million dollars on a security system to deal with hooligan fans. Well the only team here that would spend that much on a system like this is the Eagles. It has also been revealed, to unknowledgable fans in the States, the major problem that black futbol players are experiencing with racism. While we, as Americans, have our own issues with race; I have never known, in the past 20 years, American fans to begin emitating monkees when a black player entered the game. As I have stated we have our issues with race but we have come a long way in terms of confronting race head on. So I wonder which nation is uncivilized now? Last time I checked thier were no monkees in our stands!

The Pot calling the Kettle Black

2006-06-26T19:52:00.000-05:00

Houston We Have a Problem!

2006-06-12T19:13:00.000-05:00

I am extremly disappointed in myself because I bought into the hype of surrounding the US Soccer team. I let myself believe that they really were the 5th best team in the world, knowing in the back of my mind that this was truly a pipe dream. I knew we were in trouble when I watched the friendly matches and the one thing that I noticed was that we are not a physical enough team to compete with the European teams. If we want to compete against these teams we are going to have to find 11 guys with the size of Oguchi Onyewu, Gooch. We need 11 men with size and speed of Terrell Owens and the attitude Ronnie Lott, and here in lies the problem. If the United States actually wants to win a World Cup by 2010, as has been proposed, soccer is going to have move out of the suburbs and into the inner city as well as into the rural areas. US Soccer is going to have to attract athletes that want out of the situation that they currently live. People can talk about how much heart the US team has, but heart ain't going to get it done on the international stage in which the national team currently plays. As a friend pointed out we are good enough to compete in CONCACAF but we are not prepared to compete against the European teams. Think about this I can gaurantee you that the majority of the US players come from comfortable backgrounds, meaning middle to upper middle class. Compare thier backgrounds to the backgrounds of the Brazilian players or the Mexicain players and you will probably notice a stark contrast. We will not win a World Cup until the soccer's image moves away from soccer moms and orange slices to the way the rest of the world plays: a physical tough game.

Striker Magazine and Nike

2006-05-23T19:37:00.000-05:00

I love to watch international soccer, so I decided to buy some materials to prepare me for the World Cup. One of the publications that I purchased was Striker magazine. Flipping through the pages there is one glaring fact, Nike spent alot of money on advertising. In fact they are the only advertiser. If you look at the photos that accompany the articles it is hard not to notice the Nike swoosh. This is just the latest blurring of commerce, sport, and journalism. When I bought this magazine I was hoping to find objective articles concerning the World Cup and the international footballers, not international players that are sponsored by Nike. I feel a little dupted by this, because there is no objectivity what so ever because the magazine is based upon Nike's marketing agenda. I know people,who:would say that this is a brillant branding ploy. How do we get people to buy a magazine, whose sole intent is to enhance Nike's reputation as a leader in soccer/football gear? Nike has been trying to become the leader in soccer for the last 15 years, overtaking Adidas. So in this attempt they are trying to enter the world of journalism as well? I wouldn't feel so bad if the name Striker was replaced by a giant swoosh; then it would be buyer beware.

Memphis fans, alot has happened since I last posted

2006-05-18T19:38:00.000-05:00

Alot has happened since I was last online. Shawne and Darius have left for greener pastures; there was a big surprise! 20 changed to 34 but stayed in the South and the biggest shocker Gostowski was drafted by the Patriots. Calipari has agreed to a 16 game conference schedule to help CUSA's RPI. Today Jerome Woods was released by the Chiefs and our baseball team might have a winning record this season. All in all a busy three weeks.

Am I The Only One?

2006-05-18T19:29:00.000-05:00

Last night I tried to watch the NBA playoffs and I believe that I saw something that is truly unbelievable: Marv Albert has gone blonde. Can it work that way? Can he go from a black toupe to a blonde one and no one notice? Did he have to kill a golden retreaver puppy to get that rug? I don't know maybe I was hallucinating?

Part 2

2006-04-24T21:02:00.000-05:00

Well I am a week late on part two of my discussion of the Memphis Grizzlies but I lost total interest in this post. It is spring time hear in Memphis and there are too many other things to do besides sitting inside watching basketball. The next sporting event that I look forward to watching is the Kentucky Derby presented by Yums Brand, i.e. KFC. I understand why Yums Brand would want to be associated with the Derby but why would the Derby sell it's sole to KFC. To me this ranks up there with the idea of the Master's having a title sponsor. As a person who educated in the field, of sports marketing, I still beleive that there are a handfull of events that are sacred and the tradition is more important naming rights. The Derby is one of those events, as is the Super Bowl, World Series and the Master's. When you think about the Derby do you think about fried chicken? No, you think about mint juleps, people dressed to the nines, and the fine horses that make it all possible. What is next The Master's presented by Wal Mart? Why not John Daly is sponsored by Hooter's.

The Memphis Grizzlies and Their Attendance Problem

2006-04-19T19:16:00.000-05:00

It has been discussed ad nausium this season as to why the Memphis Grizzlies are not drawing fans to the game and I have the answer. Pundits want to blame the median household income and the fact that the majority, of the city proper, residents live below the poverty line; while this might play a small role in the low turn out it is not the main reason. The reason why they do not have a larger fan base is due to thier poor branding efforts. What? When the Grizzlies moved from Vancouver it took team management 3 seasons to change their logo and colors. To some this might be a trival matter but it helps when the team looks like it belongs in a certain city. Teal, red, white and brown do not reflect the city of Memphis. when the team did roll out a new logo and colors they did it in a manner that was simplistic and trite. They tried to link the new colors with the musical past and heritage of the city by calling the blue Beale St. blue. Which leads me to the next problem thier advertising campaign in which the team arbertrariliy intertwined images of music with the Grizzlies without making a deeper link with artists that came from the city. They threw something together and hoped it would stick and it really hasn't. Thier marketing strategy is the equivilent of throwing darts in the dark, just throw it and hope it gets close. Tomarrow I will have part 2 of my analysis.

Where in the World is Catholic Packer Fan?

2006-04-13T09:51:00.000-05:00

Can anyone tell me what happened to the Catholic Packer Fan? I have tried to go to his site but it is now a gardening site. Is this a joke?

A Tragic End To A Tragic Story

2006-04-11T20:43:00.000-05:00

Today Logan Young was found brutally murdered in his home, here in Memphis. They haven't been able to identify the body because of the state in which the body was found. A forensic autopsy will have to be done to proove that it really is Logan Young.

Logan Young is responsible for the pay for play scandle involving Albert Means, Lynn Lang, and the University of Alabama. He was covicted and sentenced last year for several federal charges surrounding this incident. A truly sad ending to a sad life.

West Signs A New Contract

2006-04-11T20:40:00.000-05:00

Along with Cal getting more money the Tigers spent even more when they increased Tommy West's salary and increased the spending for his assitant coachs' salaries. West signed a deal that will increase the length of his deal until 2010.

Memphis 1 NC State 0

2006-04-11T20:26:00.000-05:00

Diamond Dave once sang " I've been to the edge and I stood and looked down..I've lost alot of friends there baby" well that is what happened today to the University of Memphis. Calipari and NC State took the Tigers to the edge but instead of jumping over Lovers Leap Coach Cal pushed the Wolfpack off the cliff. Despite the bad blood that developed between Cal and RC Johnson the alumni stepped up and generated enough money to make a competitive offer to Coach Cal. The bad blood developed when Cal was offered a $100,000 raise which would have raised his base pay to $1.3 million. RC was playing hard ball thinking that he didn't have any competition for Calipari's services, this belief came to bite him in the ass. NC State took a big bite of RC's ass, when they offered Cal $2.2 million to be the next Wolfpack coach. I don't blame Cal in this circumstance I blame RC Johnson because Cal's deal could have been done 2 weeks ago.

Act 2: NC State

2006-04-10T20:27:00.000-05:00

I am not going to set here and say that NC State is being a bit underhanded in thier pursuit of John Calipari. I will say this that NC State AD will no longer be welcome back here in Memphis. the good will that he built by be an assitant coach, under Dana Kirk, is over. So what do we know? Not much but rumors, such as the erroneous info Andy Katz was peddling today on ESPN.com. Cal did not fly to Raliegh today but then this is a minute detail. What the real issue is where are we going to get another high profile coach that can generate the brand awareness that Cal has done. I said, a couple of weeks ago, that Nolan Richardson would be a good choice but after thinking about it I was wrong. He is too old and doesn't bring the energy that Cal has. A good example of this is that Cal was a co host of the Best Damn Sports Show on Fox Sports. Nolan could never do this. We have crossed that line in which we can no longer look back. Memphis fans have always wanted respect and to truly be a national program. Cal has begun to take us there and we can't go back. If Cal leaves we have to find someone with as big a persona that he has created. Today there have been names thrown about that would be an insane choice suchh as Steve Lavin or Rick Majerus. Now if either one of these guys is hired I promise you that heads will roll. A.D. R.C. Johnson will lose his job and the program will take ten steps backward. The problem that we face is that it is a little late in the year to find a coach willing to leave thier program. If Cal leaves expect some of our recruits to decommit and for Darius and Shawne to goo pro. We won't be able to recover from this for a couple of years. I hope that the meeting that was held today, with the boosters, generated enough money to keep him here. The sad thing is that this could have all been avoided if R.C. didn't try and play hard ball. Thanks R.C. I hope that the coaching search goes smoothly because your every move will be under the microscope. I hope that you get it right because your job is truly on the line. Next time you want to play hard ball go to the batting cages.

The Hangover has Finally Worn Off!

2006-04-04T20:23:00.000-05:00

It has taken me week and a half to get over the Tigers loss to UCLA. I was so disappointed that I found it really hard to watch any more basketball after that game. I heard that the Gators won the National Championship last night but I maybe watched five minutes of it. I found, last nights, Yankee blowout more entertaining. With that said I would like to say a few words to Billy Packer. You are a pompose ass and it was given a strong kick in it when George Mason made the Final Four. They were one of the only reasons people tuned into the Final Four games. I better leave it at that because I feel my heartrate rising.

Well That Was Quick!

2006-03-28T20:26:00.000-06:00

I am not afraid to admit that I was wrong in terms of Coach Cal and Indiana. Coach Kelvin Sampson put the Calipari fire out real quick when he decided to leave Oklahoma for Indiana today. Next up is the rumors that Johnny C will be going to the Sooners. The one thing that is in our favor is that, today, John Calipari stated that as long as Memphis was fair then he will be here. So fans expect him to be the second highest paid coach, behind Patino, when the Tigers up his salary. Don't be surprised that his number will be somewhere around the two million mark. Hey Fred Smith do you mind throwing in another 500 grand, whats another half a million, you own FedEx.

Will He Stay or Will He Go? If so then Who will Come?

2006-03-27T19:05:00.000-06:00

Memphis fans,we could be coming to the end of the Calipari era. If rumors are "serious" then he could be the next coach at Indiana and where there is smoke there usually is fire, when it comes to coaches. Remeber when he was named the coach here? It was the same type of situation. I really like Calipari and think that he is a real asset to the program, in terms of national exposure, but if he does leave then we still have to get out of bed the next morning. The program will go on because it will have to considering that we want to have some hefty leverage for the next round of conference realignments. We can't afford to hire another up and coming coach and go through the disaster that we did with Tic Price. So who is out there that can come in and win with the players that we currently have? Well we will need a guy that will convince DWash and Shawne Williams in to staying one more year? Who is out there who believes in playing shut down defense and a up tempo offense? What coach is out there with a reputation of puting guys into the NBA? What coach has a history of winning? What coach has a reputation with the high school coaches in Memphis? What coach was once considered for the head coach job here? Well I am going to throw out an old name that some might scoff at but I say why not? How about Nolan Richardson? He is a better option than many of the coaches that would be mentioned for the job. We know what he once did and I wouldn't be concerned about his time off it certainly didn't hurt Dick Vermeal. While I am sure that many people will disagree but at least I am looking forward. So if you have a better idea then leave it in the comments section.

Jim Nance is a Crybaby!

2006-03-12T18:02:00.000-06:00

I have just finished watching Jim Nance cry about the fact that the small conference teams got into the tournament instead of the bigger schools from the "Power Conferences". His argument is that there hasn't been one of these teams to make it to the Sweet Sixteen rather it is the "Power Teams" that are there. So why should we allow these teams into the tournament when Jim knows for a fact that they won't be standing after two games? Well Jim, the basketball tournament is not the BCS and TV and sponsers can't dictate who can and can't come to the dance. To get mad about this and treat selection committee, Craig Littlepage, the way that you did just proves what a dick you really are. We sit and listen to you ruin just about every sporting event with your fluffy gay language and cliches but now we will have to sit and listen to it for the next three weeks. I wish I had a death ray that could travel through the TV because buddy you and that fat wind bag, Billy Packard, would be the first to go. So go home take out your tampon and have a good cry over the big conferences not getting more schools into the tournament, you Douchebag!

Call Me Crazy

2006-03-07T20:24:00.000-06:00

Is it me or does the current NFL situation seem like two little kids fighting. Think about two little boys, who are about to fight, but both are too affraid to throw the first punch. So one of them draws a line in the dirt and tells the other that if he crosses then the fight is on. So the boy crosses the line and the other boy draws another and tells him that if he crosses that line then the fight is on. This last for an hour, until they both forget what they were going to fight over; so they decide that they make better friends than enemies so they make up. This is what I see the current relationship between the NFL and the Players Association. The Players Association, or should I say Gene Upshaw, has too much to lose by not making a deal because a number of his constituents stand to lose big time with the pending cuts do to the salary cap not be increased. These players will not be resigned to long term contracts because of the instability of the Collective Bargaining Agreement. So folks don't be surprised to see an agreement signed soon because the Players could loose alot.

Can a Loss Be Good, I say Yes.

2006-03-03T18:28:00.000-06:00

Last thursday night the 3rd ranked Memphis Tigers lost to UAB. With this came the break down of every aspect of thursday nights game by the Memphis media. The only thing that I didn't hear mentioned was that maybe this loss was a good thing. The Tigers were on a 15 game winning streak with Texas being their last loss. Since that loss they have rolled over the wealk competition in CUSA and have begun to take winning for granted. The team has become arrogant, which is evident by their play on the court and the commnets that some of the players have made to the media. So they needed to lose thursday night to wake them up and prove to them that they need to bring it no matter who they are playing be it Duke or UAB. Ask the '05 Colts, the '04 Steelers or the '05 Cardinals where they went wrong?

Can You Feel it Folks?

2006-03-02T20:05:00.000-06:00

If people outside of the South want to know how passionate Southerners are about their football all they have to do is look at the festivities surrounding spring practice. Now I am not trying to say that fans will turn out like they do for the regular season but they do turn out. Last year the University of Memphis had close to ten thousand for the spring game; this is a school that couldn't draw ten thousand fans, on a good day, ten years ago. Look at how many showed up for the South Carolina spring game last year. Hell they even put the game on ESPN 2, now that is saying some. Maybe that they were searching for content but that is another story. So when the rest of the country is trying to stay warm, the 1st two weeks of April, Southerns will be basking in the sun watching some football and drinking a cold one. Well this should help us make it to August when fall practice begins.

The Battle For The NFL

2006-02-27T20:05:00.000-06:00

The current fight between the owners could bring the NFL's run of success on and off the field to an end. Now I generally consider myself a capitailist but in this case I beleive that the big market teams might need to take one for the team. The current battle centers on the amount of money that the teams that market themselves against the teams that don't invest much in their product, i.e the Dallas Cowboys and the New England Patriots vs. Buffalo Bills and the Pittsburgh Steelers. It is the belief of the large market teams that they work and invest in the marketing of their brand and therefore should be allowed to keep a larger portion of the shared revenue, which is the American way. Now I lean in this direction somewhat because I know how much that Jerry Jones invests in his brand but there would be no brand if there is a lockout or shut down of play. Unlike European soccer teams, NFL teams have no other competition than themselves; the large market teams rely heavily on the small market teams to generate their income, i.e ticket sales and tv ratings.So what this current debate really boils down to is a battle between socialism vs capitailism. The purest form of marxism is practiced by the NFL and that is why the NFL works. So if the large market teams want to keep generating the money that they do then they might have to be the ones to give a little, if not they run the risk of being the next NHL or MLB.

Tough Times!

2006-02-13T19:35:00.000-06:00

The period of the year that I like to call the winter of my discontent period has started. While I have been weened off of football slowly, I am beginning to go through withdrawl. In the past I have tried to substitute the Arena League but it's just not the same. It is like trying too substitute trail mix for M&M's. While trail mix is okay some of the time M&M's are awsome all of the time. I am a traditionalist when it comes to my sports. While the AFL, CFL, and XFL have and have had there place in the sports marketplace, there is no substitute for the real thing. There is no substitute for gameday in the South. The tailgating, frat boys in ties, travel bottles of Jack and Jim, the sense of community at a game, rivalries, the cheerleaders and bands, the color, and the smell of the grills in the parking lot. You can't find this anywhere else. Baseball doesn't have this, basketball doesn't have this and hockey will never have this.

There is no substitute for the physical ballet that is the NFL. While basketball has the dunk it will never have the beauty of a hand handed catch by Brandon Loyd, Barry Sanders ability to stop on a dime and change directions, watching Roy Williams hit someone, or watching Michael Vick, aka Ron Mexico, break one for a TD. There is no substitute for these types of experiences. With that said I guess I will be catching up on some reading but only after the Memphis Tigers basketball season is over.

That Was The Super Bowl?

2006-02-06T18:57:00.000-06:00

If last night's game was meant to highlight the best that the NFL had to offer, then it missed it's mark. I am a die hard NFL fan and researcher and I found last night's game to be almost unbearable. First Aaron Neville and Areatha Franklin have lost their voice. I hate to say, because I really like the Neville Brothers, but that National Anthem was reallty bad as well as being an omen of things to come. The refs' calls were alittle off and they added to the idea that the game was rigged. I don't believe this but a jaded person could be convinced that this was true. I have heard mixed reviews about the Stones performance but: 1) they are in their sixties and 2) they are the Stones so who cares, they rock. I heard much commentary, on the commercials, from women today and they were not impressed. I didn't care because I don't care about the commercials. The networks steal money from these corporations. Steal! Companies pay $2 million dollars for a 30 second spot and the viewership of the Super Bowl is decreasing. I can see why the viewership is in decline after yesterday's game. In terms of the play on the field the game was boring. I had to fight my inner self not to channel surf. Three or four big plays and 56 minutes of watching grass grow. I tell who should have been the MVP, the punters: Tom Rouhen and Chris Gardocki. I swear the announcers were searching for things to talk about. Did you know that Gardocki has never had a punt blocked? Well that was what things boiled down to last night, talking about the career of a punter during the Super Bowl. The season went out on a whimper instead of a bang unless you like the Steelers and their style of play.

The Super Bowl, Do Fans Care?

2006-02-05T15:30:00.000-06:00

Before I start this post I want to say that I hate all of the commentary about the Super Bowl commercials. I have heard almost as much about the commercials than I have about the actual game, with the outcome being talked about ad nassium. It is everywhere CNN, CBS, NBC, and ABC. Hell I wouldn't be surprised if the Disney Channel didn't have pundents discussing the Super Bowl ads. Now I would watch Goofy tell us his opinion of the GODaddy.com ad, that would make good tv.

With this said, this year's Super Bowl just doesn't have the excitement that the last 39 have had, maybe it is the fact that it is in Detroit. The media has been trying to create storylines but no matter how much Joey Porter talks it just isn't going to happen. The Seahawks and the Steelers, a little boring to the average fan and I doubt these teams deserve the hype that they have been given. Or in the Seahawks case maybe not enough. I can't remember a team that has been given less hype than the Seahawks. People think that the because that Jerome Bettis is playing in his hometown, the Steelers will win. What a lame storyline! This has been the drama of this years Super Bowl, The Bus being sent to the scrap heap in Detroit. I don't care how many times the media pushes this people don't care. He might be the 5th best running back in the NFL history, he hasn't had the national following that the other 4 have had. Emmitt, Payton, Jim Brown, or even Curtis Martin. These guys played in the Super Bowl earlier in their careers and were afforded the luxury of building upon their reputations over a longer period while it has taken Bettis till potentially his last game to get to this stage. Some people might say that this creates a greater storyline line but he is not the player that he once was. Now you could say this if he rushes for 3 td's and 200 yards but the likelyhood of that happening is pretty slim.

As to who I am rooting for today I am going with the Seahawks because they are the NFC representative and because they are the underdog but I am doing this because I feel I should root for one of these teams.

By the way that is the worst National Anthem I have heard since Carl Lewis. Shame on you NFL.