I count this as a good week. Fan X did not bother me. Don’t get me wrong. I really like Fan X. His interest in my blog runs like the price of a barrel of crude oil this week. So. I take shots at him when he takes jabs at me. Kind of like injecting a disinfectant into somebody.
If anything, I think Fan X needs more sunlight. I recently heard that it is good for you. He likes to tan. I think Fan X has developed a tolerance for the sun. It helps give him the sunny disposition we all love.
Know that I was having some fun at the expense of the anonymous Fan X. It gets the juices flowing when I have writer’s block.
Well, there actually was some sports to report on this week. And no further injuries to Yankees personnel have been announced.
Topping the list is the story of Rob Gronkowski un-retiring from the New England Patriots to join his good buddy, Tom Brady, as they embark on a new football journey in Tampa. It sounds so compelling. Brady-to-Gronk, TD’s galore. A revitalized Bucs’ offense ready to carry them to the next level and contend, not just for the Division crown, but for the NFC title and a Super Bowl win.
This kind of starry-eyed enthusiasm is good for selling tickets. Except that nobody knows if there will be fans inside Raymond James Stadium for the 8 Tampa home games. It is also good for filler, when there isn’t much for reporters and columnists to delve into. Ditto for the talking heads on TV and radio.
Tampa has decided it is in a win now mode given Brady’s age. Bringing in Gronkowski for a 4th and 7th round draft choice in the trade with Patriots isn’t bad for either side. And the 1 year $10 million salary the Bucs will pay Gronkowski is fair value for a player who had been out of the league and had a history of injuries.
That move offsets two missteps by Brady. G.O.A.T. was seen working out in a Tampa park, in violation of the edict forbidding use of parks due to COVID-19. I guess that Derek Jeter’s house and property wasn’t suitable?
Then there was the second mishap. Brady went to see OC Byron Leftwich. He exited his car, walked in through the unlocked door and deposited his equipment on the kitchen floor.
Except that Brady went into the wrong house. He went into the one next to Leftwich’s, surprising the owner by the sight of this mountain of a man in his kitchen. After realizing his error, Brady quietly called an audible, picked up his stuff and left.
In Florida, Brady is lucky he wasn’t shot upon entry. This isn’t Massachusetts.
So Tom Brady has a lot to make up for in his first few days with the Bucs. Are signs that Tom Brady is losing his focus? Perhaps Tom Brady needs Bill Belichick and Robert Kraft a lot more than he realized.
Of course, the other big story was an event I covered last week. The Last Dance premiered on ESPN on Sunday. I thought it was excellent and I am looking forward to the next two installments. Much more so than I did with the conclusion of Philip Roth’s The Plot Against America.
I liked the depth of the interviews, which have helped us identify with the main characters in this story. I also appreciated Michael Jordan, sitting in his luxurious mansion, with a cigar and drink, offering some running commentary.
I would have watched this even if there was plenty of live sports available. These rare glimpses behind the scenes are so very interesting to me, no matter how much editing is done.
And I found out on Friday that Kobe Bryant documented his last year with his own film crew. They were granted unusual access to the Lakers and the video will be just as thrilling and exciting when it eventually airs.
I hope that a film crew wasn’t following Tom Brady around this season. If so, stop now!!
Muffet McGraw retired. For those who don’t know who she is, Muffet was an exemplary head coach of the women’s team at the University of Notre Dame, a winner of 2 National titles and she is a member of the Basketball Hall of Fame.
McGraw coached with passion and emotion, which transferred to her teams, first at Lehigh and then on the much bigger stage in South Bend. She comes from the same suburban Philadelphia area and coaching tree as Geno Auriemma, the legendary women’s coach at UConn. They both coached for Jim Foster at St. Joseph’s in Philadelphia, with McGraw joining the St. Joe’s staff right after Geno left.
Once friends early in their careers, the friendship dissolved in the heat of their repeated battles over many, many years. That’s the way things happen in college coaching, especially in the women’s ranks, and particularly when they involve Auriemma and a woman who has experienced success—even more so when that success has led to triumph over UConn.
McGraw ranks 7th in wins with 936 in 38 seasons. Her .762 winning percentage is fifth all-time. It is her nine Final Four appearances, seven championship game appearances and two National Championships which place her among the best ever to coach.
I didn’t like McGraw. Largely because I liked UConn much more. But her imprint on women’s game cannot be denied.
If I were to engage in the recent practice of naming a Mount Rushmore, the one for women’s collegiate coaches, Auriemma, McGraw and the late Pat Summitt of Tennessee would be my top three. Rounding out the group would be Tara VanDerveer, who still is active at Stanford.
The Yankees did receive an apology from the Red Sox for their part in the 2018 cheating scandal. A Red Sox media person was suspended and the already-suspended Alex Cora did not receive additional punishment.
The NHL has floated a four site playoff rotation for its four divisions, which would optimally commence in July. The people of Minneapolis-St. Paul, Raleigh, Edmonton and a final Eastern destination should be thrilled.
Speaking of hockey, Wayne Gretzky and Alex Ovechkin, aided by others, managed to play to a draw in an NHL 20 simulated contest. Over $40,000 was raised to help in the pandemic.
Another crazy idea going around is a charity golf match between the pairings of Tom Brady (that name again) and Tiger Woods versus Peyton Manning and Phil Mickelson. Ugh.
Roger Federer kept his mind active. He suggested that this is the time for the governing bodies of men’s and women’s tennis to unify as one. Players from the women’s tour have agreed that this would help the sport.
In other worldly news, Baltimore QB Lamar Jackson will be the cover person for Madden 20, the NFL video game. Jackson seemed unfazed about any jinx associated with being on the cover.
Lest I forget, the NFL Draft started on Thursday night with Roger Goodell sequestered in his Bronxville, New York basement to read the names of the selections. Courtesy of the people at Budweiser, the time-honored practice of booing the Commissioner at the Draft was preserved via pre-recorded videos. Goodell cheerfully went along with the gag.
Ratings were the highest ever for the event. They peaked at just before 9:00 P.M. when Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa was drafted by Miami. Then the wives took over and the husbands watched the finale of Will & Grace.
An oddity of the first round was that the first three drafted all played at Ohio State under the current head coach, who was an assistant there before being elevated to the top job. Green Bay traded up for a QB who will be the heir apparent to Aaron Rodgers; the Chargers went for a QB to replace the departed Philip Rivers, and Dallas stole the best available wide receiver. And I heard that Bill Belichick’s dog stole the show in the second round when New England was ready for a pick.
Both New York teams went with linemen. The Giants wanted to be able to spring prized RB Saquan Barkley for dazzling runs. The Jets wanted protection for QB Sam Darnold. Solid, not flashy choices.
Philadelphia secured a backup QB for Carson Wentz in the second round. I can just imagine the boo birds at Lincoln Financial Field if Wentz gets hurt. That, of course, should be no earlier than 2021.
Not to leave the local NBA scene dry—the Nets are considering former star player Jason Kidd and former Knicks coach Jeff Van Gundy as the next head man. I hope they can keep the egos of Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving in check.
Two university heads differed on the notion that there will be college football this fall. The President of the University of Connecticut doubted very much if football would be played in 2020. The Chancellor of the University of Missouri spoke in absolutes about the prospect that football would start this autumn. He is from an SEC school—football is everything to those schools. UConn seems to be more prudent.
I saw that Alabama suffered a $21.2 million shortfall in 2018-19. That is because of changes in the tax laws—revenue of $164 million wasn’t too paltry. Do not feel sorry for the Crimson Tide. It is merely an accounting procedure.
Fellow SEC members Auburn and LSU respectively had profits of $13.2 and $8.8 million dollars, while Texas recorded a $16.5 million profit. No wonder Missouri wants to play this year. Should we be hearing about the bulging bottom line for college football when so many have filed for unemployment?
Those millions would be better used elsewhere. Rutgers is deducting a 5% salary reduction from coaches Steve Pikiell, Greg Schiano and C Vivian Stringer as well as
AD Pat Hobbs. All capital construction projects have been halted. Rutgers, like most colleges and universities, does not make a profit from football like the big boys and there is going to be a serious deficit for the 2020-21 academic year.
Finally, Vikings owner and Springfield resident Zygi Wilf donated over $5 million for pandemic relief in New York, New Jersey, Minnesota, across the U.S. and Israel as part of the NFL’s Draft-A-Thon. Which reminds us that the aforementioned sports items are merely diversions from reality. Which remains the long fight ahead against COVID-19.
Sports was back…temporarily.
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