All Entries in the "ESPN" Category
The Batting Cage
As spring is settling in here in Minnesota, summer is in the on-deck circle. And with summer around the corner, this means many things to different people: Going to the beach house at the Jersey Shore every weekend, heading up to the Maine coast, traveling “up north to the cabin” here in our state and [...]
The BCS: Should Congress Get Involved?
This time of year everyone is a college basketball fan. From college hoops junkies to the office worker indifferent to sports, filling out The Bracket forces fans and “fans” to follow the NCAA basketball tournament with an almost maniacal intensity for three weekends every March.
College football, however, as popular as it is, does not have the same sweeping [...]
For Tennessee, Progress is in the Risk
By Christopher Gabriel, CGabriel.com
The Phillip Fulmer Era at the University of Tennessee has ended. The final statement in his long tenure on the Vols sideline was a 28-10 win over Kentucky. After several Gatorade showers, a brief interview on ESPN and lots of hugs, smiles and a few tears, he was carried off the field by his players while clutching the [...]
Will We Survive Without the Yankees in October?
By Christopher Gabriel, CGabriel.com
The New York Yankees have been put on alert: Win, and win now. The fate of the world is in your hands.
While that may not be completely true, sports pundits will have you believe the very foundation of baseball is crumbling and the blame rests at the gates of Yankee Stadium.
Maybe it only seems [...]
College Football Should Do Away with Preseason Rankings
By Christopher Gabriel, CGabriel.com
I love college football. It is unlike any other sport on the planet. The pageantry, traditions and unbridled emotion from its fans allow it to walk alone in its uniqueness. College football also walks alone when it comes time to crown a champion. Rather than have an actual playoff, there is an Olympic figure skating-like system combining the [...]
USA Volleyball Won Gold in Character
It’s not where you start, it’s where you finish.
Athletes are told that from their earliest days of competition. Implied in the phrase, however, and what is often overlooked, is the importance of the journey. In the case of USA Volleyball, the indoor men’s and women’s teams understand that importance a little better than the rest [...]
College Football 2008: Stories, Non-Stories and Near-Stories
By Christopher Gabriel, CGabriel.com
In just a few days, the Beijing Summer Olympics will begin. Whether or not anyone actually sees who wins events in track and field because of the smog is anyone’s guess. In just a few weeks, the Democratic and Republican national conventions will commence. Whether or not anyone actually sees a candidate that can lead this nation is everyone’s hope.
But forget the [...]
Valdosta (Ga.) Named TitleTown USA; Losing Cities Furious
By Christopher Gabriel, CGabriel.com
Rival cities believe ESPN.com rigged voting
VALDOSTA, Ga. (Harbors) – This afternoon, ESPN.com named Valdosta (Ga.) as TitleTown USA. While residents of Valdosta were thrilled, the reaction in several other cities across the nation was swift and scathing.
City leaders, local businessmen and even students in Los Angeles, Boston, Green Bay and Gainesville (Fla.) were fuming over the [...]
ESPN: They Hate Us!
In my freshmen year of college in Los Angeles, a sociology professor set up a little demonstration designed to illustrate perception versus reality. Requiring three volunteers, he asked the hundred or so in the class if anyone was from Seattle, Chicago and Boston. Sure enough, the three cities were represented so off to the blackboard they went.
He then gave them what [...]
Championship Saturday in College Football
The first Saturday in December, traditionally, is when college football and clarity meet head-on. Conference championships are won, the bowl picture is cleared up and, more often than not, all hell breaks loose. Today shapes up as yet another one of those days. Your biggest games:
Missouri vs. Oklahoma, Big 12 Championship
Tennessee vs. LSU, SEC Championship
USC vs. UCLA, [...]
