It's Valentine's Day

It’s Valentine’s Day. No, not every day spent with the former Mets manager, Bobby Valentine. That would be a bad attempt at recreating the movie Groundhog Day. And I really did like Bill Murray in the movie. I don’t know if Bobby V would be so entertaining, despite wearing a mask in the dugout after he had been ejected from a game. 

In the sports world, Valentine’s Day is another day to market the product. While the NBA is in the midst of the annual All-Star weekend in frigid Chicago (it should be frigid in Chicago in mid-February), it is another college basketball night for those who play on the weekends like the Ivies. 

There was a showdown between the two top teams in Jadwyn Gymnasium at Princeton. Yale demolished the Tigers to go 18-5. There is talk that Yale could garner an at-large bid if they don’t win the ivy Tournament at Harvard in a couple of weeks. I think that their resume is not outstanding with a loss to San Francisco in OT, and close losses to North Carolina and Oklahoma State; the team has a 2 point loss at highly ranked Penn State and a road win at Clemson. 

Yale has to get through another road contest this weekend in the Palestra against tough host Penn, who upset Harvard, another Ivy contender, a few weeks ago. The Bulldogs get a chance at revenge versus Harvard in Cambridge on March 7, the last game before the conference tournament. This is a team to watch. 

I saw a pedestrian 12-11 Davidson College team win by 29 at St. Bonaventure. The Bonnies fell to 17-9 and 9-4 in the Atlantic 10. One of St. Bonaventure’s wins was against Rutgers in Toronto early in the season. More on Rutgers later in this blog.

So I thought about Valentine’s Day in a couple of contexts. Besides the obvious homage to my lovely wife for her dedication and devotion to me for all of these years, which continues a celebratory tradition of eating two cupcakes (a consecutive year streak of 38) and Chinese food for lunch, I wondered who was born on Valentine’s Day.

The leading name for Valentine’s Day birthdays is Michael Bloomberg. Unless you have been hiding under a rock, you might have heard of him. President Trump sure has. Additionally, magician Teller of Penn and Teller calls Valentine’s Day his birthday. So does actress Florence Henderson. And labor leader Jimmy Hoffa was a Valentine’s Day baby.

Sports figures who are February 14th celebrants include Jadeveon Clowney (Seattle Seahawks), Alshon Jeffrey (Philadelphia Eagles), Hall of Fame QB Jim Kelly (Buffalo Bills), Drew Bledsoe (New England Patriots—the man Tom Brady replaced) and Christian Hackenberg (New York Jets). Female golfer Mickey Wright was born on this date, along with Hockey Hall Of Fame player Bernie (Boom Boom) Geoffreon. Plus, Mel Israel was born on this day in 1911 in Alabama—we knew him as legendary Yankees announcer Mel Allen.

What notable sporting events occurred on Valentine’s Day? In 1934, there was a benefit hockey game for Ace Bailey, a Maple Leafs player whose career was tragically ended by a violent hit during a game in the 1933-34 season. The Leafs hosted a group of the NHL players at Maple Leaf Gardens, defeating them 7-3. That game was the underpinning for the NHL All-Star Game.

Other notable achievements on February 14 included Sugar Ray Robinson, one of the greatest boxers ever, defeating Jake La Motta for the middleweight crown in 1951 and Wilt Chamberlain, the gigantic center off NBA fame, breaking the then NBA career scoring record in 1966. On February 14, 1987, 53,745 saw the Philadelphia 76’ers play the Detroit Pistons in Pontiac, Michigan. 

Just a bit more current trivia from February 14, 2020. In the NBA Futures Game, top draft choice Zion Williamson of the New Orleans Pelicans bent the rim dunking from an alley oop pass by number 3 draftee Ja Morant of the Memphis Grizzlies. Those two will play in many future NBA All Star games.

Sidney Crosby, Canada’s hero and back in form with the Pittsburgh Penguins, had three assists in a home win over Montreal. Plus the suddenly surging New York Rangers won another game on the road, topping Columbus.

What also was going around the baseball world as Spring Training convened in Florida and Arizona was continued talk about the Houston Astros cheating scandal. Yankees manager Aaron Boone was unhappy about it. NK MVP Cody Bellinger of the Dodgers was angry and felt the Astros stole the World Series from them. Some Astros and former Astros apologized, but Astros owner Jim Crane was a bit more defiant about their World Series win, saying that the team deserved to be champions. 

Most assuredly, this will not go away. Opposing teams will target Houston batters. There will be fights. The catcalls from the stands will be vicious. 

The more I think about it, the chances that Jose Altuve makes the Hall of Fame have taken a major hit given the insinuations about his wearing a buzzer. I don’t know how it will affect the careers of Gerrit Cole, now a Yankee, or Justin Verlander when their careers are evaluated. 

MLB botched the steroid controversy. Not enough players were penalized for drug-enhanced careers. It has sadly been up to the Hall of Fame voters to keep out the supposed cheaters like Roger Clemons, Sammy Sosa and Barry Bonds.

Once more MLB has botched it.  Reopen the investigations, before anarchy reigns this season. Protect those who participated by suspending them—before some pitcher strikes Altuve, George Springer or Alex Bregman in the head. They must be punished because they participated. My former juvenile clients would have been held accountable for their actions in a theft or robbery. 

This is shameful, Rob Manfred. Do something. We cannot act as if the case is closed when it isn’t.

Speaking of baseball players who have sinned, Alex Rodriguez is interested in putting together a syndicate to buy the Mets from the Wilpons. The Mets were his favorite team growing up and Keith Hernandez was his idol. This sounds interesting and would be a great story in New York and throughout baseball. Imagine Derek Jeter and A-Rod attending owners meetings together? Making trades? 

The large salaries previous and current owners awarded top talent in baseball enabled the former player becoming an owner. I love it. I look forward to the day when basketballer LeBron James owns the Cleveland Cavaliers…

Fan X has been all over me about devoting too much time yo Rutgers basketball. Fan X has been like the gnat in your ear which doesn’t seem to want to go away. Thankfully he does not have a Twitter account.

I have told my readers that my love of RU basketball is rooted in my teens. Growing up in Highland Park, a mile away from the Rutgers campus, I was first exposed to RU hoops on the airwaves of local station WCTC 1450. I went to my first game in 1965 when RU downed Gettysburg at the College Avenue Gymnasium (later dubbed “The Barn”). Although a small venue, the noise of the pep band, the activity of the cheerleaders and the loudness of the crowd abutting the court was magical. I had read the articles in The Home News, our local paper. As RU got better, the coverage was more intense.

I grew up in the first golden era of Rutgers basketball. All-time great Bob Lloyd was the star. He was joined in the backcourt by a young, energetic player from Long Island named Jim Valvano. Yes, the Jimmy Valvano who coached NC State to a NCAA title and then succumbed to cancer. When I was in New Brunswick or on Raritan Avenue in Highland Park, our main street, I would sometimes see Lloyd or Valvano. They were my idols.

RU had a magical season in 1966-67. Lloyd led the nation in scoring. He was a highly accurate free throw shooter. He and Valvano formed the highest scoring backcourt in college hoops. While RU didn’t get invited to the NCAA’s because here were so few at-large berths, the Scarlet Knights made it to the National Invitation Tournament at the old Madison Square Garden on Eighth Avenue. The NIT still carried great prestige at the time.

RU behind Lloyd, Valvano and Bob Grecean, who later played with the Milwaukee Bucks, went on a run, beating Utah State, New Mexico (with star center Mel Daniels, who was mainstay of the Indiana Pacers) before falling to a Walt Frazier-led Southern Illinois squad which won the tournament. I went to the consolation game before the finals on a very cold and windy March day in 1968, getting a student ticket which landed me in the upper deck of the Garden. I watched Lloyd and Valvano, in their final collegiate game, lead the Knights to a third place finish with a win over Marshall.

I was hooked. I played pickup basketball at College Avenue. Our high school team had a playoff game there. I knew local hero John Somogyi, the then top scorer in NJ scholastic history out of St. Peter’s H.S. in New Brunswick, who transferred to RU. 

They were my team. Just like the football team—I met Coach John Bateman, whose  son Scott went to Highland Park H.S. Rutgers was starting to emerge from the sleepy little Ivy-like school to what it has evolved into. Athletics was a key component in making Rutgers into a nationally-known school. They played Alabama and Bear Bryant in football along with other SEC teams like Tennessee and Florida and more than held their own. In basketball, there would be trips to the NIT and NCAA’s, with 1975-76 producing the undefeated regular season marred only by losses to powerhouses Michigan and UCLA in the Final Four. 

The RAC opened in 1976. I adored it. I shot one shot on the floor and made it. The RAC became my favorite arena. I am still awed that Rutgers Stadium, where I sometimes ran on the track, grew from a 23,000 seat venue to a massive 52,000 fan structure. 

In football, I have seen Army, Notre Dame, some Big Ten schools and I was there the night RU shocked the nation by defeating top-ranked Louisville. In basketball, even with the lean years after the 1991 NCAA team, I have seen FanX’s Syracuse Orange taste defeat at the RAC. I was there when RU played the University of North Carolina. I was there during the Atlantic 10 years and of course, when RU was part of the Big East with Geoff Billet and Quincy Douby. I have seen RU play in the Big East Tournament at the Garden. Now RU is in the Big Ten. Pretty heady. My list is of RU highlights is endless.

I have followed Rutgers from afar as well as attended numerous games. This is why I have a partial season plan at the RAC. For the fun and loyalty that oozes from me—even if I am not an alumnus. I love a sunny spring afternoon to go see RU play baseball nearby Bainton Field. There are new banners for Rutgers wrestling hanging from the rafter in the RAC; I was there to see some of the top wrestlers wrestle.

So, Fan X, I bleed a different shade of red—scarlet. I like it a lot better than orange. Besides, the Scarlet Knight on his white steed at the football games or even the costumed version indoors at the RAC is far superior to “Otto the Orange.” 

Which is why I was so happy that the team made its miraculous resurgence against Northwestern last Sunday night. And why I look forward to the visit by Illinois to the RAC, another must win situation for the team if they continue to lose on the road like they did at Ohio State this week, just coming up short in another comeback attempt. I will be in my seat, rooting for my team. Like always. My adolescence, which formed around Rutgers sports among other teams, has traveled with me as I head into my later adult years. 

Happy Valentine’s Day, Fan X. From a friend with a Scarlet Knights T shirt covering his scarlet heart during the National Anthem.