Rich Rodriguez Cries & It’s a good day to be a Buck Eye

College Football starts this week at 8:15 this Thursday with Oregon facing off against Boise State and no one could be happier than I am. It’s the top dog in everyone’s hearts. The college game comes with blackened brats from barbeques and the soon-to-be-remembered feel of an ice-cold brewski on your lips. Even for the smallest of sports fans College Football brings nostalgia for your alma mater and even holds a faint scent of Thanksgiving and Christmas in the air. What’s not to like? Every little piece of this minced-meat pie quenches the starving soul for a taste of the dramatic love of the game. The nation gorges itself on every victory and scandal and confidently whimpers like little Oliver Twist, “please sir, may I have some more?” A relatively early casualty of this season is the poor, poor, Michigan Wolverines.

The last few years have been a trifle difficult for the Big Blue with the true culmination being their embarrassing loss to the Appalachian State Mountaineers at home. I don’t believe the Big House has ever seen a darker day than that. The coaching transition between Lloyd Carr and Rich Rodriguez has been rough. The change in coaching styles and strategies has pretty much made the transition a clean sweep, cold turkey, 180 degree (insert your own clichéd idiom) situation. It’s worked before and will probably work for the Wolverines, it just takes time; time that the Wolverines don’t really have to stay relevant in a slowly deflating Big 10 conference.

So here’s the bad news, Rich Rodriguez and his staff are now under investigation for breaking NCAA rules pertaining to training restrictions. A few of Michigan’s players innocently spoke to the press about the rigors of their schedules, unknowingly admitting to things that could possibly indict their own coaching staff. Rodriguez recollecting their apology to their coach is what prompted the 13 second “get a hold of yourself” pause that he took during his press conference today. Even though these boys seem relatively innocent, there have been other cases relating to this same issue with Rodriguez, including the loss of one of their top recruits last year. Players are speaking out intentionally and unintentionally. Either is alarming. Because somewhere in this relatively minor scandal there is a disconnect between coach and player. A bad sign for Wolverine fans. Whether respect has been won and lost or whether it was never given at all is irrelevant. It’s not there now, and it’s not where they want to be.

With all of this badness hanging around, I can’t really be mad a Rodriguez for trying to work too hard. I’m not trying to be inconsiderate, but if you’re going to break a rule, this is the best one to break. Getting in trouble because you worked to hard or too much is relatively ok in my book. It’s still against the rules, so you shouldn’t do it, but I can forgive you for that. On a lighter note, you’re probably pretty happy if you’re Ohio State Fan. All this malarkey with Michigan and USC’s number 2 receiver, Ronald Johnson, went down with a broken collar bone after their starting Quarterback, Aaron Corp, went down with a broken fibula leaving a true freshman to start in his wake. So I guess it’s at least a good day to be a Buck Eye. You’ll get to be over-rated again, have a shot at the National Championship again, and get embarrassed by somebody who truly deserved to be there when you really should have been at the Emerald Bowl in the first place, again. So congratulations.

NAACP to March for Vick

Michael Vick makes his debut as a Philadelphia Eagle tonight at Lincoln Financial Field, but apparently his one-year, $1.6 million contract with a second-year team option for $5.2 million wasn’t enough. The NAACP has felt an overwhelming need to march in support of the three-time NFL Pro Bowl, two-time Virginia Penal All-Star. Apparently he hasn’t gotten enough chances.

President of the Philadelphia chapter of the NAACP, J. Whyatt Mondesire, informed the Associated Press that his chapter and the Black Clergy of Philadelphia were going to march tonight. According to ESPN.com, Mondesire said, "We believe Michael Vick has served his time, paid his debt to society, and deserves a second chance, and the animal-rights groups want to hold him hostage for the rest of his life." After spending two years in prison only to be released to the option of having one of the most privileged, high-paying jobs in the world wasn’t what this African American Civil Rights group was looking for. They’re holding out for a moral victory.

In short, it just seems as though the rest of the world is confused. The Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s was one of the most, if not the most just cause in the last century. True utopian equality may never be achievable, but the United States has made it a priority over the last 50 years, and rightfully so. Will there be discrimination even with the current social and political legislature in place? Absolutely, but there will be unfairness towards all races in these relatively infrequent occurrences, including Caucasian males. But these scenarios happen due to bigoted individuals that could stare freedom in the face and laugh at it, never having changed for the better. So what are groups like the NAACP and other minority rights organizations to do once their main cause has been achieved? I guess they support convicted felon soon-to-be-millionaire pro-athletes get more.

Whether or not he’s being treated fairly by animal rights groups is irrelevant. He’s a high profile public figure who lives in a world of different rules. He’s done his time, yes, but does that simply mean all is forgiven? Truthfully, no. There is still a long way that Vick has to go to redeem himself in the court of public opinion. It’s not just the dog fighting, but the marijuana charges before he was sentenced. It’s the life-long career of making bad decisions. It’s even, unfortunately, the legal problems of his younger brother. Vick has paid his debt to society through his prison time, but he still has to take responsibilities for his actions. That’s what it appears the animal rights groups are trying to do, however overzealous they may be.

So the question remains for the rest of the country, how many chances should Michael Vick get before a march of support is no longer necessary? This Jail Bird turned Eagle should feel like the luckiest guy in the world. By all accounts, the NFL was within their rights to ban him from the NFL for life. But he’s not only got another chance, but is once again in the front pages with pretty good PR, playing for a potential major playoff contender, and has an opportunity to make more money in two years than many honest, hard-working, non-felony-committing Americans make in a lifetime. So what is this march about again?

"We believe Michael Vick has served his time, paid his debt to society, and deserves a second chance, and the animal-rights groups want to hold him hostage for the rest of his life."

Second chances, that’s right. Oh wait, couldn’t this be considered a third chance? Or maybe a fourth? Potentially a fifth for several separate questionable endeavors? Or does several years of calculated bad mistakes (when done over a long period of time are no longer “mistakes” but personality traits) all bundle up into one chance? Animal rights groups would probably cry that every animal he abused was each it’s own individual chance for redemption that he failed. And I might be willing to agree with them.

One thing is for certain, this NAACP pro-Vick march not only feels unnecessary, but could easily become a turn off to trying to give Michael Vick more of anything. He got what he deserved, now he’s getting what he doesn’t. So why march? I’m all for giving him the opportunity to play in the NFL, I’m in agreement with the NAACP on that. If Roger Goodell hadn’t given him the opportunity, I might have rallied for him because even though he doesn’t deserve a second, third, fourth chance, it shows mercy and compassion on the side of the NFL and gives the American public an opportunity to forgive. Even if he didn’t get the chance, the NAACP shouldn’t have anything to do with it because it has NOTHING to do with the fact that he’s African American. It’s because of his actions, not his color.

Hopefully, this won’t blow up in anyone’s face and make the NAACP look like the National Association for the Advancement of Dog Fighting. Regardless, this will probably be enough for the ready-at-the-drop-of-a-hat Animal Rights groups to shout “PHILISTINES!” from the rooftops (even though the dog of one of Vick’s most fervent critics recently died after being left in a hot car). For the record, PETA has not scheduled a pro-Vick march at this time.

Dodgers Beginning to Slip?

Due to the HCG controversy, the seemingly outrageous contracts that stars get in baseball, and the fact that he’s only hit 4 home runs since the All-Star break, Manny Ramirez is receiving most of the blame for the recent “slide” in the Dodgers offense. Last night’s loss to the creeping Colorado Rockies is only adding a can of diesel to that flame. Starting at a base camp of 15 ½ games back of the NL West division leading Dodgers, the Rockies have almost reached Everest finding themselves only 2 ½ games back of the boys in blue. While Manny isn’t necessarily being Manny over the last month, the blame for slipping from their “best offensive team in baseball” status doesn’t necessarily lie with him.

Although his home runs haven’t quite been up to par, Ramirez is still hitting .306, by all accounts a quite respectable number. Last night, Manny was 2 of 4 at bats with a tying RBI. Not spectacular, but he did come up clutch in a major moment. Now let’s take a look at James Loney, Russell Martin, and Rafael Furcal: 0 for 5, 0 for 5, and 1 for 6 respectively, all with 0 RBIs. Russell Martin has been in a slump all year, making it one of his worst ever, so we leave him out of the equation. James Loney and Rafael Furcal have been almost non-existent on the offensive end for the last few months. Defensively, Furcal (SS) is still the leader and best player on the team, but that doesn’t make up for his lack of hitting when the Dodgers have needed it most. It also hasn’t made it any easier that he’s their lead-off hitter. When the lead man can’t do anything, it makes successful clean up batting (Ramirez) very difficult. Whoever wrote the article blaming Manny Ramirez for this “losing streak” needs to turn a watchful eye to these two players.

The Dodgers left 8 men on base last night, and there are no excuses for that, but since the beginning of the season the real problem has been that the Dodgers don’t really have an outstanding pitching staff. Maybe they didn’t do enough before the trade deadline, but who knew Cliff Lee would be this dominant for the Phillies? Regardless of any slump the Dodgers may be having right now, they’ll still probably make the post-season. But with an acceptable to mediocre pitching staff, it will be difficult to make it far in October without some astounding offense. A problem which the Dodgers need to solve. Quickly.

Brett Farve: Vain or Indecisive?

Now that Brett Farve is back (again) and happens to be playing for his former team’s division rival, many questions were raised about his once again waffley flip-flop return. Is he just drawing this out because he just loves the attention? Did he sign for the Vikings out of some unquenchable spite against Green Bay? Or is he just some confused old man?

This 39 year-old superstar may be in his 70s in NFL years, but he still has a cannon who could probably still blast the ball 60 yards if he needed to. After all of the injuries and surgery, he could be the $25 million dollar man, rebuilt better and stronger. Brett Farve, Quarterback. A man barely alive. Gentlemen, we can rebuild him. We have the technology. We have the capability to build the world's first bionic man. Brett Farve will be that man. Better than he was before. Better, stronger, faster. Regardless of bionic capabilities, he can still play. Maybe not as well as he did 10 years ago, but he still has mileage left in him, and he certainly makes the game more interesting when he’s taking snaps.

Whether he acts from a spirit of vanity is another question and one that only Farve could answer. From the public eye, it could certainly appear so. But whether you love, hate, or are just plain tired of Brett Farve being in the news, it’s undeniable that he loves to play the game. This Southern boy has a heart for the game more than almost anyone and simply cannot deal with a life on the sideline. His flip-flopping doesn’t have anything to do with being in the limelight, he wants to play, but doesn’t know whether he can withstand the rigors of making it through an entire season. If you think about it, any professional goes through the same process. Any CEO loves the perks of their job, but doesn’t want to deal with all of the meetings, traveling, and grunt work that goes along with being successful. When it comes time to retire, it’s very easy to let those perks entice you to stay longer than you should, but in the end, it’s your decision on whether you stay or go. That’s where Farve is now. He wants the perks, but not the pain. So he holds out and is able to miss training camp. Farve: 1, Brad Childress & Vikings front office: 0.

In the end, the Vikings are a better team with Farve on the roster. Are they a better team 3 years from now? We’ll have to see how the ball bounces in terms of upcoming drafts and trades because once Farve leaves, they’re going to be in the same seat they were a month ago: without a leading quarterback. Farve will probably waffle again in two years (or possibly even next year) about staying or playing. We might even get a heart-felt, tear-laden delivery on Sports Center, which he will probably sincerely mean. But Farve really won’t be content playing golf on a Sunday in November until he has to use a walker to get there. He’ll be playing until his body won’t let him anymore, and then maybe he’ll try for a few more games after that. So let’s all just be prepared to see Brett Farve in a jersey until he’s old, tired, and grumpy wearing Velcro shoes.