ESPN's Scott Van Pelt has a running joke about picking Rutgers against the spread, and always losing.
This week he said he's done with picking them.
Good call, Scott!
nwhawkfan
3046 posts
PICK SIX !!!!
Weird penalty against our defense. "Not ready to play." Huh?
Bring on Rutgers !
(Pathetic, I know.)
Baby steps...
Can't wait to watch the replay. (Not ready to spring for ESPN Plus quite yet.)
Wish I could be there to cheer Gary on. I saw him when they had the US Open out here at Chambers Bay a couple of years back.
The last major I watched before that was when the PGA was at Sahalee CC east of Seattle 20 years ago. The guy who won, Vijay Singh, is coming back here in a couple of weeks to play the Champions Tour stop.
I like what they did at the Masters. They threatened to eject anyone who yelled "you da man," "mashed potato," or something stupid like that during the swing.
After that mediocre round Saturday, things could really get brutal for Gary on Sunday. He's paired with Tiger. (1:35 tee time.)
Even if his game doesn't fail him, it's gotta be tough when most of the gallery is rooting for the other guy.
@JayHawkFanToo Amen to that last comment.
When I was still thinking about whether or not to leave KC, one thing that swayed my decision was that I didn't want to be 10 or 15 years further along in life, tied down with more obligations, wondering "what if" I'd moved to Seattle? I figured if it sucked, I could always move back to the Midwest. Fortunately, things managed to work out for me (personal gripes about today's Seattle aside).
I gotta admit, I liked it better before it became a boom town.
I moved here during what's considered the second wave of national media hype. The first was during the 1962 World's Fair, which brought the Space Needle and a lame Elvis movie. Lots of tourists, but no real growth. Then there was that TV show "Here Come The Brides" about early Seattle pioneers (as the theme song went, "The bluest skies you're ever seen are in Seattle"). Otherwise the rest of the country pretty much ignored the Northwest.
The second was the initial late-Seventies growth spurt that brought the Boeing comeback and major league sports (Seahawks/Mariners/Sonics). Seattle was considered the up-and-coming hip metropolis (sort of like how people view Portland nowadays) but it was still a "big small town"...a place where you could run into the same people on a regular basis, depending on your social circle.
A local newspaper columnist named Emmett Watson foresaw what could happen once more and more people started moving here. So he started a ficticious "anti-Chamber Of Commerce" group called Lesser Seattle, whose goal was to keep the outsiders from turning the area into another Southern California.
Then the early Nineties brought Grunge (a term that the local musicians hated, by the way), then the locally-based megacompanies like Starbucks, Amazon, and of course, Microsoft and the other tech firms). For God's sake, they were even making lame movies about us again (like Sleepless In Seattle).
Now it's crowded and expensive, with brutal rush hour traffic and numerous homeless camps all over the area.
Not that I want too put too fine a point on it. After all, the natural beauty can't be beat. We're flanked by two mountain ranges, Puget Sound and Lake Washington. When the dry season comes (the running joke is that summer in Seattle starts on the Fifth of July), it's as nice as anyplace in America. The hype about it raining all the time is misleading...winters are really mild, just mostly cloudy with a little drizzle from October thru June, punctuated by the occasional outbursts of really nice weather.
One thing that made me decide to move was a February visit. It was around 50 degrees most of the time. When I flew back to KC, I had to dig my car out of a snowdrift. It was about that time I decided to move here.
Maybe I'm just getting cranky in my advancing age. But 40 years down the road, I just don't know if I'd recommend a move to anyone unless they had a big bankroll and a tolerance for radical local politics.
This past weekend series between the Royals and Mariners in Seattle brought out a lot of mixed emotions, nostalgia, etc. from yours truly.
It was great to see a bunch of KU Alumni at our local chapter’s event on Saturday night at Safeco Field.
Then on Sunday Nick Collison (R.I.P. Seattle Supersonics) threw out the first pitch. Tough day for hitters on both sides. The Royals’ starter, Brad Keller, pitched great…he threw a complete game and only gave up one run. Trouble is, he was pitching against the Mariners ace James Paxton, who threw an 11-K shutout. (Appropriately, the British Columbia native won on Canada Day.)
In a few weeks, it’ll be 40 years since I moved from KC to Seattle. The night before that move, as I packed my worldly possessions into my lime green ’71 Chevy Vega hatchback, I took an occasional glance at the game of the week on ABC Monday Night Baseball with, as luck would have it, the Royals playing the Yankees.
Even Howard Cosell’s endless droning couldln’t keep me from following the game. (Dennis Leonard outpitched Dick Tidrow and the Royals won 5-2).
Once I got to Seattle I tried to follow the Royals as best I could, but in those pre-Interweb, pre-ESPN days, about the only way I could get any news about them was to troop down to a newsstand downtown once a week to get a copy of the Sunday KC Star.
A couple of months later, the Royals came to town and I went down to the gray dismal Kingdome to root them on. Maybe it was the sterile atmosphere, the paltry crowd of 6,000, or perhaps it was Frank White giving me an ugly look when I yelled some encouragement his way.
By the time they finished that season with yet another playoff loss to the Yankees, I kind of soured on baseball for a time. It was all well and good that they made it to the World Series a couple of years later, but my heart wasn’t really in it anymore.
Gradually I started to cast my lot with the Mariners. What the hell, they were the local team, and I tend to root for the underdog anyway.
Those early expansion M’s were pretty bad. But it wasn’t like I’d never rooted for bad teams before. (After all, as a kid I put up with 13 straight losing seasons by the A’s before Charlie Finley hauled them off to Oakland just as they were getting good.)
After a time, the Mariners became my main team. Of course I rejoiced when the Royals beat the Cardinals in ’85, but that was almost as much of an anti-St. Louis thing as anything else. ( I can remember going on childnood vacations with my folks and trying to pick up a Kansas City A’s broadcast, but as we drove through those small towns in Kansas and Missouri, the only thing we could get on the radio was that damn Harry Caray calling Cardinal games. But I digress…)
Anyway, by the time the ‘90s rolled around most of my Royals heroes had retired. Meanwhile, the M’s were building a team around guys like Ken Griffey Jr., Edgar Martinez and Randy Johnson, and managed by Lou Piniella.
(Another KC connection…on the Royals’ first Opening Day I skipped school, walked about a mile to old Municipal Stadium, and watched a rookie Piniella go 4-for-5. They won in 12 innings, but I missed the ending ‘cause I had to catch the last bus to my neighborhood! Years later I ran into Lou at an M’s Fan Fair. He got a kick out of finding a Mariners fan who was there at his first MLB game.)
So while I still hold a warm spot in my heart for the Royals, I’m still waiting for that first Mariners World Series game. Maybe this year?
If not, well, Cubs fans waited twice as long.
I ain’t getting any younger, though…
@drgnslayr They should make tiny T-shirts that say "Chicks Dig KU"
Maybe there should be a banner in there for a website called "KU Buck-buck-buck-ETS !"
@justanotherfan And it's not just the quality of players, it's the coaching too.
When the old North American Soccer League started about 50 years ago, it inspired a number of ex-pat Brits and others to start up youth leagues in many cities including Kansas City. Trouble is, not enough of them had high-level coaching experience.
It's like a Panamanian basketball fan deciding to become a coach, and then going up against Bill Self.
It takes several generations to catch up with the established soccer powers. Even China, with its massive population and big money salaries to domestic league players, isn't anywhere close to the US...not on the men's side anyway.
Close, but no cigar...KU's Sharon Lokedi made a game try to double in the NCAA 5000 meters race today in Eugene, after winning the 10K on Thursday.
She stayed with the leaders and was in first until she ran out of gas with about a lap to go. Mizzou's Schweizer won the race for the second year in a row. Lokedi finished back in the pack.
Still, a great meet for Sharon...add her name to the list of great KU distance runners along with Glenn Cunningham, Jim Ryun, Wes Santee et al. Well done !
Looking forward to the rematch with Mizzou's Schweitzer in the 5000 meters on Saturday.
The NCAA website has the race scheduled for 5:25 PM. I think that's Pacific Time, which would make it 7:25 Central, on ESPN.
@Crimsonorblue22 You'll REALLY love who it is that she passes to take the lead !
@Crimsonorblue22 Check the ESPN website. They have a replay of the race.
Click on "Watch," then "Schedule & Replays." Look for NCAA Men's & Women's Track & Field. Scroll ahead on the video to about the 1:58 mark The race runs for a little over half an hour.
Good news from Eugene, Oregon...KU runner Sharon Lokedi just won the 10,000 meter race at the NCAA Championships.
Not only did she set a new school record, she broke a 30-year-old meet record to boot !
ESPN2's been carrying the meet live. It was cool to watch her race at Hayward Field, a neat old venue I visited a few years ago. It's sort of track & field's version of Allen Field House. This is last major meet there before they tear up the track and rebuild the facility.
She's got a chance to double when she runs the 5000 meters on Saturday.
Rock Chalk Jayhawk !
@approxinfinity A belated shout out for all you do on this board.
A nice change of pace from all the Pac 12-centric media out here on the coast.
As ambivalent as I am about chat rooms and social media in general, this board has managed to keep things pretty classy, save the odd flareup or two.
Flying back to KC later this week, and I plan to spend a day in Lawrence reminding myself just how lucky I am to be a KU alum. Makes it worth having to deal with my Northwest friends who keep telling me to "shut up about Kansas already." (Nope.)
See you all next season. (Or maybe sooner!)
PROUD TO BE A JAYHAWK !!!
Oops, "in ten years"
Regardless of your politics, all Jayhawks should send out a great big Thank You to Stormy Daniels. Highest 60 Minutes TV rating fin ten years.
Which means that the overtime managed to expose millions of otherwise unaware Americans waiting for the interview to the greatness that is Kansas basketball.
Not a bad "opening act!"
I'm still recovering from yesterday. After going nuts with our Seattle alumni group, I went to a nearby blues club and watched a guitarist buddy of mine celebrate his birthday on stage (still rockin' at 72). Taking it kinda s-l-o-w today.
Given the expectations most of us had about this team a month or two ago, it's all gravy from here on out. But what the hell, let's win it all !
Clueless. We should go on the Loyola Marymount site and troll them.
@Texas-Hawk-10 First things first. Let's pay back Duke for 27 years ago. That one still hurts.
Just announced...as expected, Louisville says David Padgett won't be back as coach next year. Xavier's Chris Mack looks to be at the top of the list to replace him.
In his news conference today, Padgett said the school told him "they're going in a different direction."
(A really annoying cliché, with more than a bit if irony there...when a big client of mine pulled out recently, those were the EXACT same words they used.)
Good luck to David...another strong branch from the KU coaching tree.
@nuleafjhawk Still, there's gotta be a school out there with a big budget that's willing to spend beaucoup bucks so they can make a splash with a big-name coach.
(see: Charlie Weis)
@BShark Gregg Marshall @ WSU = Mark Few @ Gonzaga.
Given that they're both coaches in similar situations (i.e., big fish in a small pond), wonder who leaves first?
Gregg Marshall should've taken the big-money coaching offer(s) while he had the chance. That loss could cost him a million or two when he moves on to his next gig.
Forget about the 12-v-5 upsets...this year it's all about the 13s.
Charleston over Auburn, anyone?
Now, how 'bout a Marshall - WVU matchup on Sunday?
Oops..69th
Hey, there's still a chance to win the NIT and become the 89th best team in the land.
What was that Bill Walton was saying about the "Conference Of Champions"?
Oh, I guess he was talking about water polo...
ESPN Bracketology interviewing HCBS right now.
Great quote from Seth Greenberg on the top half of our region:
"You guys take the field...I'll take Kansas>"
'bout damn time !
Hey trendsetters! Found this link on msn.com today:
According to a new article on The Daily Meal website, they consider Lawrence to be the "Brooklyn" of Kansas...
"A quirky town full of Midwestern charm and full to the fedora brim with a rich culture of arts, music, sports, and more, Lawrence benefits from being home to both the University of Kansas and Haskell Indian Nations University. Check out Lawrence Busker Fest, a huge gathering of street performers, or come for the Free State Festival, an arts and film festival, or the Haskell Indian Art Market. There are also plenty of hipster-friendly hideouts like The Bourgeois Pig, a popular coffeehouse and bar."
Of course, I'd take this with a large grain of (pink Himalayan) salt...the same article calls Westport the "Brooklyn" of Missouri.
Sad to hear the news. I think back to when I listened to that KU-Texas Western NCAA game as a kid. I was heartbroken when the ref waved off his game-winning shot.
Later the ref was quoted as saying that the call was so close that, if Jo Jo wore black sneakers instead of white ones, he might not have called him out of bounds.
Later on in 1977 I was at AFH when he and Norm Cook (then a Celtics rookie) were introduced before the game to a huge roar.
Another Jayhawk legend gone too soon. RIP Jo Jo.
.
@RockChalkinTexas And a Merry Christmas to you and yours ! Enjoy the holiday, everyone !
Yep. PJ Carlesimo knows enough about the game that he doesn't have to fall back on lame schtick like Dan Dakich.
Really liking Svi's inside game tonight. Developing a quicker step to the basket.
@Crimsonorblue22 And we stretched out the lead while he was on the mic!
I just put this on the General Discussion thread, but for anybody who missed it, right now a talk about the history of the settling of Lawrence is running on CSPAN 3, if you happen to have it on your cable or satellite system. If not, I'm sure you can find it on their website. They run lots of history features on weekends and during the holidays. Something to do while we wait for tipoff...
While you're waiting for the game to start, check out CSPAN 3, if you happen to have it on your cable or satellite system. Right now they're doing a feature on the history of Lawrence and its settlement. Part of their American history series which normally runs on weekends. They also show a lot of talks from the KC Public Library and the WW! Museum.
@HighEliteMajor I can understand how hard it can be for announcers to keep the audience from tuning out during a blowout game...it happens all the time in other sports, especially baseball.
Vin Scully was a master at this, and was understated to boot, which made it even better. But Dakich shows his lack of talent in that particular area.
What's worse, he kept contradicting himself, first slamming KU's defensive effort, then praising it, then slamming it again. Make up your damn mind !
@Texas-Hawk-10 I blame it all on Dick Vitale. Ever since he started doing color commentary every has-been coach thinks he can copy his act.
I really liked Al McGuire back in the day, but nowadays every retread coach wants to believe he can do a stand-up act at Mr. Yuk-Yuk's Comedy Cellar.
@Crimsonorblue22 Oh well...at least we have the best-smelling arena.
@JayHawkFanToo Don't know when they tore it down, but I think there's an apartment complex where it used to stand.
@JayHawkFanToo Yeah, I mostly hung out downstairs at The Stables. As I recall, it was the first tavern in Lawrence to have an Atari Pong machine.
@jaybate-1.0 I'd like to believe that Naismith was trying to curry favor with the folks in Indiana, as he was heading to the Berlin Olympics later that year for basketball's first appearance in the Games.
Earlier in the year, according to the book "The Basketball Man" by Bernice Larson Webb, there was a nationwide "Naismith Night" where one penny from each ticket sold at all games went to a fund so that Dr. Naismith and his wife could travel to Berlin. I wouldn't be surprised if a big chunk of that money came from Indiana, hotbed of high school basketball that it was (and is).
His statement could have just been a bit of hyperbole and gratitude to the folks in Indiana as the Naismith Fund continued to snowball. I also wouldn't discount that as he neared retirement at KU, he was getting nostalgic for the "pure" roots of the game. Maybe he believed that Indiana was doing a better job of developing the sport in a manner that he preferred.
In an ironic sidebar, KU failed to make it into the tournament that decided the two teams that would qualify for the playoff finals to get that initial USA Olympic berth. But the state of Kansas would still be represented by an AAU team, the McPherson Oilers, who lost in the final to a club sponsored by Universal Pictures (whose big movie that summer, by the way, was "Show Boat").