NFL Network vs. Cable Companies – Fans Are The Losers

Cowboys 10-1. Packers 10-1. They meet Thursday night in what should decide home field advantage for the NFC. Two of America’s favorite teams are getting ready to “strap it on” and do battle in Dallas, Texas. Can’t wait?

Well unless you subscribe to a satellite service like DirectTv or The DISH Network you’ll be relegated to late night highlights on your favorite sports show or reading about it the next morning on the sports page. You won’t find the game on ESPN or Fox or CBS. The NFL has put together an eight game schedule on their own fledgling NFL Network which began last week. When the Colts and Falcons squared off last week most fans were napping with a few pounds of turkey, stuffing and all the trimmings packed in their guts. Oh are the fans making some noise this week though!

Only one-third of households in the country will be able to see this game this week. The cable giants like Time Warner, Dallas’ cable provider and Comcast, which is the largest in the US, along with Cablevision and Charter do not carry the network. The NFL wants the channel as part of the cable companies basic digital tiers. The cable companies, on the other hand, have a different idea. They want it as a separate entity – a la NBA TV and NHL Network. Here’s the problem. “Big Cable” does not market those networks very well and traditionally sports tiers have not captured much interest. Conversely, DirectTv has offered a package called The NFL Ticket where subscribers pay about $270 per football season and can see virtually any game they want to. That has sold like wild fire.

Football is America’s new past time. We love it and we want it. It doesn’t matter who is playing we just want to watch. This reminds me of the days when the only way you could make a telephone call was through AT&T. Cable companies have the same mentality today. “We are the big boys and we make the rules”. Guess what cable? That’s going to change very soon.

Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys owner and NFL Network Chairman, claims the league is going to expand it’s number of games on the NFL network. When that happens I promise there will be a noticeable increase in the number of people dumping cable and moving to satellite for that reason alone. The NFL is very powerful. I believe more powerful than the cable companies.

So hang in there fans – “Big Cable” will have to give in sooner or later.

C.C. or Josh - The Winner Is?

I am absolutely amazed that the Baseball Writers Association of America, yesterday, decided the Cy Young Award winner to be C.C. Sabathia. Are you kidding me? I can understand him being in the conversation but this year by far belonged and BELONGS with Josh Beckett. How Beckett doesn’t get the majority of the vote is a mystery.

While Sabathia was excellent, at times, he was nowhere as near as dominant as Beckett. There are not many players today, or in the history of the game, that can do what Beckett can. They may be able to throw 90 and strike hitters out. They pitch you a complete game every now and then. No one….NO ONE…in the game today, or really in recent memory, can create fear in the hearts of hitters like Beckett. No pitcher can give his team an opportunity to win every time he takes the mound like Beckett. I promise you one thing….without Beckett the Sox do not win the World Series. They lose to Sabathia twice and probably don’t make it out of that series with Cleveland.

They posted similar records this year. Sabathia had a record of 19-7 with an ERA of 3.21 and Beckett went 20-7 with a 3.27 ERA. Their respective teams had the exact same record at 96-66. But think about it…when Sabathia came to the mound were you AFRAID of him? Did you say “my team is guaranteed to win tonight”? No you didn’t. But you did when Josh Beckett stepped on the bump.

Here’s the problem. The Baseball Writers Association of America stops voting at the end of the regular season. The regular season for these guys was pretty much the same. All the votes came down to the last game of the season which Beckett lost to drop to a RIDICULOUS 20-7 and Sabathia went to 19 – 7 with a win. That’s it – the voting stopped – and Sabbathia is the winner.

Beckett far outshined Sabathia in the postseason, in which they were matched up head-to-head twice in the American League Championship Series; but voting by the Baseball Writers Association of America is done at the end of the regular season. So Sabathia's 1-2 record and 8.80 ERA in three postseason games (15 1/3 innings) did not factor in. Neither did Beckett’s three postseason games (15 1/3 innings) did not factor in. Neither did Beckett's 4-0 record and 1.20 ERA over four starts and 30 innings.

But as discussed earlier the postseason doesn’t count for the post season. What does count is that ring on Beckett’s finger. Make no mistake – Josh Beckett will be back – it was not a fluke. If pitchers traditionally won MVP Awards – I would have given him that too.

The Weekend Lives Up To It's Billing

Amherst vs. Williams - Drury vs. Hoosac. The weekend certainly brought a fun filled weekend...well I guess that depends on your perspective.

The Drury Blue Devils went on the road and kept their post season hopes alive with a 6-0 win at Hoosac Valley and will face them again next weekend in the first round of the Berkshire County playoffs. Waconah, the top seed in the county will know after next weekend who they will play for a berth in the Western Mass Superbowl. In front of a capacity crowd, the defenses of both teams showed their muscles and kept the offenses in check. Justin Racette turned what was sure to be an intercpetion into a touchdown in the third quarter and Drury came out victorious. Drury quarterback Jake Cantoni threw an ill-advised pass to the one yard line and Racette literally pulled it from the hands of the Hoosac defender and gave the Blue Devils their only score of the day. This sets up yet another contest between this storied rivalry. My pick? Drury 13 and Hoosac 10.

The campus of Williams College this weekend was alive with the spirit of college football and ESPN. The sports giant brought College Game Day to a Division III school for the first time ever. With an estimated 15,ooo fans in attendance, the Williams-Amherst rivalry took on whole new meaning. The Ephs won the game to 20-0. That gave Williams their 45th Little Three title. For Williams fans it was a great day and gave them bragging rights over the Lord Jeffs for the third consecutive year. The coverage ESPN provided before the game was absolutely outstanding and they should be commended. In a day and age where high profile games and players dominate, bringing their show to small town America was a tribute to college footballa t it's best. Great job!

High School Football, College Football and ESPN....what a weekend !

Wow, what a sports weekend it will be in Berkshire County ! For anyone who is from around here this weekend is one a lot of people wait for. It is the weekend of the anuual rivalry game between the Blue Devils of Drury High School vs. The Hurricanes from Hoosac Valley High School. Ah yes, high school football at it’s best. Hoosac Valley sits 7-2 overall and 6-1 in the division. Drury comes in with an overall record of 6-2 and a division record of 5-2. That means that this is a must win for both if they plan on playing in the post season. Historically this rivalry has been awesome. Drury had been on the losing end of it for the most part with, up until two seasons ago, a 14 year losing streak! So my son and I will be heading to watch this game, at Hoosac Valley, and hope the Devils can come out winners. This will definitely be one to watch.

It was a tough decision we had to make, though. Normally, it would have been a no brainer. Drury/Hoosac matchup…we go. This weekend though, and completely surprising I might add, ESPN is coming to town! Well not actually to town, but they will be in Williamstown at Weston Field. This weekend marks the 122nd meeting between another set of rivals. The Ephs of Williams College will play host to The Amherst College Lord Jeffs. Nationally, you could probably count on one hand the number of people who care about this weekend’s Division III matchup from a conference called The Little Three. Which, by the way, combined with Weslyan, is the oldest conference in college sports.

No seriously is this really happening? Yes it is. ESPN’s College Football GameDay, complete with Kirk Herbstreit, Lee Corso and Chris Fowler will set up shop and broadcast all day long from Weston Field. That place is going to be a madhouse. The gates open at 8 in the morning and I am sure, in typical GameDay fashion, fans will show up in their Saturday garb (Purple and Gold in this case for the Ephs) holding their signs with the hopes of getting their mugs on ESPN. With all the hub bub people may be forgetting that this game could mean a title for Williams College. With a win and some help from Tuft’s University, Williams could claim the NESCAC (New England Small College Athletic Conference)crown. So now you see why it was such a difficult decision.

Small town high school football or small town college football – both with title implications – both storied rivals – both will be exciting. What a great weekend to be a sports fan!

A Match Up For The Ages: Patriots & Colts

I can't believe I am saying this but I am going to miss my first Bronco game in about 15 years this weekend. That's right...the kharma will bebroken...yeah right alot of good that's done so far! I am going to watch the Patriots and the Colts. As a football fan I can't pass up this opportunity. This is a chance to watch, not only two undefeated teams who are inarguably the top two teams in football, but to watch two future hall of fame quarterbacks square off against each other.

In mylifetime, I have seen Elway vs. Favre which was pretty amazing. This is however a diffrent game. Tom Brady is posting numbers this year never seen before. 30 touchdowns and 2 interceptions ! That is ridiculous. With the weapons he has this year there is no telling when he will stop. Peyton Manning, who seems to always be at the top of his game, has been consistent in leading his team to an undefeated record without the service of several key players. His Colts offense can put up huge numbers at any time and against any team.

These two giants are the models of efficiency on the field. They make plays that grace Sports Center clips almost everytime they take the field. Manning does it with guys we have all heard of like Marvin Harrison and Reggie Wayne. He made those receivers into superstars. He took a fll back from the University of Iowa, Dallas Clark, and turned him into one of the most talented tight ends in the game. Manning, with his non stop audibles at the line, confuses the best of defenses and shreads them like paper. Brady, it seems, has a different cast of characters every season. He has gone through receivers like he has changed his shirt. I was going to look them up on the internet but I wanted to see if I could remember them....but I can't ! When they were with Brady they stood out because he made them great. This year he has taken a receiver named Randy Moss, who everyone thought had "lost a step" and was washed, and took him back 6 years ! He has 47 catches for 11 touchdowns through week 8, which leads the NFL. Wes Welker...yeah....exactly...Wes Welker is one of the top receivers in the game right now. Brady has even thrown TD's to a line backer - Mike Vrabel.

When it comes down to it...this is the one game you shoud wtch in your lifetime. You have the chance to witness greatness for about 3 hours or so everytime ther is a snap. Make sure you watch it. My pick.....

Patriots - 31 Colts - 28

Sports Injuries In Female Athletes

With the start of my basketball season arriving this week (YEAH !!!!) I thought I would write something about sports related injuries in female athletes. I have been lucky over the years (or my kids have I should say) of not having any players suffer severe injuries. Female athletes are much more prone to severe injuries than male athletes based, mostly, on their inherent biomechanical differences. one difference that is most apparent is that of a wider pelvis in women than in men. The "Q" angle or the quadriceps angle is much wider in females than in males. Many sports medicine professionals feel this puts more strain on the knee joint as well as causing the quadricep to pull on the patella (knee cap) causing discomfort and injury.

So, what does this mean? It means do everything you can to make sure you (if you are a player) or your athletes (if you are a coach) are adequately stretched and warmed up before going through rigourous practice drills or a game. Now, obviously, stretching does not guarantee there won't be an injury be it sure prepares the body for what is to come.

There are some links on my blog that talk about various injuries and how to treat them. make sure to check them out and really pay attention. Injuries are not fun...but knee injuries can be the most crucial and the most severe.

More Mile High Magic? Not Quite....

Apparently the days of mile high magic are over. The end of this game was crazy, and there was some magic. Unfortunately, that magic came from the wrong side. Brett Favre is a machine and proved once again that he DOES still have it and there is no reason for him to retire. He was pretty much perfect in the second half and led hi spack to the overtime win.

What the hell happened to the Broncos' "star" cornerbacks. Champ Bailey and Dre Bly, supposedly the best tandem in the NFL, got torched for touchdowns over 75 yards! I don't get it. One thig I can say is that we are starting to see the results of the Broncos' arrogance in recent draft years. Other than Jay Cutler, Denver has pretty much ignored drafting players and have tried to anchor their team with cast offs from other ones. It's obvioously not working!

The future does look bright with Cutler at the helm but they need to get him some help and they need to do it soon.