North Carolina Tar Heels: As I write this, the team that so many thought would be number one in the nation, is 1- 2 in the ACC and 15- 2 overall. Thus far the #6 Heels have lost to unranked Boston College and #3 Wake Forrest. Both of which are division opponents. Their lone ACC victory came last night as they beat the unranked Virginia Cavaliers 83- 61. How good is North Carolina? Time will tell but my feeling is that they are not as good as many of us thought they were.
NFL Draft: Okay, so I’m pretty excited about Texas Tech standout Michael Crabtree, who has been selected as the top college receiver in his first and second years, going pro. He’s six-foot-three and 214 pounds with fine hands, an excellent leap and a great burst. The record-setting Crabtree could be a top-five pick and an immediate difference maker. In college, he averaged 120.3 yards per game and 1.6 touchdowns. He could quickly upgrade many NFL passing attacks.
Steelers versus Eagles Super Bowl: I don’t think so. Then again, you never know. This week as the Steelers play the Ravens, I have trepidations about the point spread that’s got Pittsburgh at either -5.5 or -6.0. During the regular season, Pittsburgh beat Baltimore twice. They first won in OT by three and then again in regulation by four. Six points is a big spread in this game. Good news for Pittsburgh, RB Willie Parker had his best game of the season last week versus San Diego and QB Ben Roethlisberger was solid. The Steelers defense handled the Chargers running game easily. Still, a six-point spread will be tough to cover versus the Ravens. (This is when premium picks are especially useful if you’re betting this game.) I think that the Eagles will have a tough time versus the Cards. RB Westbrook is ailing and QB McNabb has been mistake prone. On the other hand, Arizona is running on all cylinders.
NBA: The Cleveland Cavaliers are looking sort of scary. Why? First, they have small forward LeBron James. James has great stats—27.7 points per game, 6.7 assists per game and 2.0 steals per game—for sure. He is also the major force, go-to guy in the NBA. But one man does not a basketball team make. Power forward Ben Wallace is not in the game for offense, although he has a fairly accurate shot; Wallace’s defensive averages are down but still good. He has 7.0 rebounds per game, .91 steals per game and 1.77 blocks per game. Center Zydrunas Ilgauskas is both a sound offensive and defensive weapon. He rounds out a powerful frontcourt. Ilgauskas, a ten-year vet, is shooting 51.8% from the floor, 50% from the three-point arc and 83.5% from the charity stripe. These are all above his career averages. He’s been good this season for 13.8 points per game, 7.9 rebounds per game and 1.3 blocks per game. Shooting guard Delonte West is also having a fine year when shooting from all parts of the court, and he’s a good defensive force. Point man Mo Williams, late of Milwaukee and newly arrived in Cleveland, has also upped his shooting stats, although his assists are down. There’s also depth on the team. This could be Cleveland’s year. We are almost at the mid-point of the NBA season and the Cavs look like the real thing.
Gruden’s Groove Thang: After guiding the Tampa Bay Buccaneers to a 2003 Super Bowl crown in his first year at the helm, John Gruden could not get the team back on track. He was the head coach of the Bucs for seven seasons, going 60- 57, which includes all playoff games. In his first year, Tampa Bay’s mark was 15- 4. That was the season that they won it all. After that, the club went 45- 53. This year, the wheels came off at the end of the season after the club started out 9- 3 and ended up 9- 7 and one game away from a wild-card berth. Gruden is one of a long list of coaches who have been axed at the end of the 2008- 2009 season, making the position of head coach in the NFL one of the more tenuous ones around. Don’t despair Jon, there are plenty of openings for a guy with experience and a Super Bowl ring.
Jim Ed Rice: Congratulations to Jim Ed Rice who was elected to the Baseball Hall of Fame in his final year of eligibility. Rice was the dominant player of his generation, wreaking daily havoc on opposing pitchers with an awesome homerun stroke. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen a stronger non-steroid-laced hitter. Rice was a massive force. So why did it take so long for him to get to the Hall? His career lasted 16 years. Four to six more seasons would have given him the stats to make him a shoe-in. Also, he was not a media darling. In fact, the media found him to be an uncooperative pain-in-the-butt and they are the ones who vote on the Hall. But the years have mellowed both sides and this year the Hall of Fame voters did the right thing. Rice got 76.4% of the vote (players need 75%). The other inductee this year will be Ricky Henderson, who garnered 94.8% in his first year of eligibility. Both players were left fielders. It’s the first time in 20 years that left fielders have been elected to the Hall. Henderson deserves it and Rice’s election, which is also deserved, made my year! Induction will be July 26 in Cooperstown, NY.
