Sports Then and Now

Jose Maria Olazabal - The last European to win the "Green Jacket" in 1999.

Despite the fact that the US Masters is still a couple of months away, the start of the new season in Golf means that players will be looking to fine tune their games ahead of the first “major” of the year, the US Masters, and with European players occupying the top four places in the World rankings currently, the question is whether a European can finally win the “Green Jacket”, some 13 years after the last!

It seems an eternity since Jose Maria Olazabal last won what is arguably the sport’s most prestigious tournament. His win in 1999 added to his first win at Augusta in 1994 and came after Sir Nick Faldo’s third triumph in the event in 1996. Other European winners of the Masters in a golden era for players from across the Atlantic included the late, Seve Ballesteros, who won it twice in 1980 & 1983. German, Bernard Langer, also won two “Green Jacket’s” in 1985 and then eight years later in 1993. Sandy Lyle became the first ever British winner in 1987 and while Faldo followed him with back to back wins in 1989 & 1990, it was Welshman, Ian Woosnam who took the title in 1991. However, despite recent European winners of the other three “Majors”, the Masters has seemingly become elusive for Europe’s top players.

Of course, Rory McIlroy had the 2011 Masters when he took a four shot lead into the final round but the young Ulsterman imploded early on the Sunday and his chance was very quickly gone. As we know, he made some amends a few weeks later when winning the US Open but losing the “Green Jacket” will still sit heavy on his shoulders and McIlroy will be out to avenge that final round performance in April and he is arguably Europe’s best chance of ending the 13 year wait. Read the rest of this entry →

We’ve hit midseason, and College Basketball is in full stride. So why not rank the 6 Power Conferences? Onward…

The Big Ten is the best conference in America as of now.

#6- PAC-12:

When you look at this Conference, your first impression is, “Hmm, mediocre, only three teams under .500.” Then, when you look at who they have beaten, you laugh. No team in the PAC-12 has beaten a Top-25 Team. None. Nada. I don’t know what the deal is with the scheduling, because there is absolutely no chance to grab an at-large bid in the NCAA Tournament if you haven’t beaten, or played a ranked opponent. College Fans are starting to dismiss the Big East as a “Power Conference” in College Football. Can you please turn your attention to the “Power Conference” who’s best showing in the RPI is California at 37, and then Colorado at 62! Compare that to the 6 teams the Big East has in the RPI Top 25, and you get an absolutely disgraceful conference. All insults and opinions aside, the Pac-12 is looking at 1 team to make the NCAA Tournament. They have a possibility of having no at-large bids. NONE! Granted, it’s an Off-Year for USC, UCLA and Washington, but the fact that 12 schools are mediocre at best, is hard to imagine.

Regular Season Champion: California (16-5)

Anything can happen in a Conference Tournament, but the regular season title unanimously goes to Cal. They’ve gotten embarrassed by every good team they have played, but they can beat the teams they need to beat to win the regular season crown.

At-Large Bids: None

On The Fence: Stanford, Oregon

#5- SEC:

The SEC has been better than recent years, but still falls into their usual ranking. Get past Kentucky and possibly Florida or Mississippi State, and you get the same thing the Pac-12 has, mediocrity. Granted, the SEC actually has one of the best teams in the country, and Florida and Mississippi State are solid teams, but we thought LSU would be a Top 25 team. We thought Tennessee would be a quality team after the Bruce Pearl era. They both aren’t. However, watch Vanderbilt to make a move at Kentucky and the Top 25, as the Commodores beat Marquette at the Bradley Center in Milwaukee. Vandy just has to learn how to close out big games, as they have three losses against ranked teams in overtime. A loss to Mississippi State put them back, but that OT loss was only their 1st in SEC Play. We’re looking at 3-5 bids for the Southeastern Conference, but only if Vandy or another un-ranked team can step up late in the season. Florida, Mississippi State and Kentucky are all locked in.

Regular Season Champion: Kentucky (19-1)

Is a comment necessary?

At-Large Bids: Florida, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt

On The Fence: Alabama Read the rest of this entry →

Joe Paterno became an assistant coach at Penn State in 1950 and head coach in 1965.

News of the death of former Penn State head football coach is a reminder of just how quickly things can change.

It was less than three months ago (October 29, 2011) that Paterno led Penn State to a 10-7 victory over the University of Illinois to become the winningest coach in all of Division I football history and I wrote an article with the title “Joe Paterno and the Penn State Nittany Lions Keep on Ticking.”

No one could have imagined that Paterno would be fired from the school less than two weeks later without coaching another game and then less than three months later the iconic 85-year-old football coach would be dead following complications from lung cancer that was diagnosed just days following his dismissal.

Paterno now joins one of the men he passed on the way to the all-time wins record, Paul ‘Bear” Bryant, as an all-time iconic coach who passed away just months after the end of his coaching career.

However, thanks to the scandal that has engulfed Penn State football over the last two and a half months, unlike Bryant, who is still a legendary figure in college football, Paterno’s final legacy will likely be a combination of respect and disappointment. Read the rest of this entry →

Victoria Azarenka is favored to win her first major down under.

As week one at the Australian Open in Melbourne draws to a close, there are some mouth-watering matches we earnestly pray will happen. They involve top-ranked players as well as aspiring new-comers hoping to reach the summit by upsetting those at the top.

We have already seen some heart-breakers like No. 6 seed Aussie Samantha Stosur stumbling out of the blocks as well as the top-ranked American Mardy Fish going out in the second round.

But when a door closes, a window opens. These upsets might unveil a new talent preparing his or her first full-fledged assault on a major.

As we head into round four, also called the round of 16, there are some challenging matches on tap—if only all the promised ones make it through the third round staging ground.

Following are the matches we sincerely hope will happen.

Read the rest of this entry →

The New York Giants and San Francisco 49ers have played some memorable playoff games over the last 30 years.

When the San Francisco 49ers and New York Giants meet for the NFC Championship on Sunday it will mark the eighth time the two squads have met in the playoffs and second time with the Super Bowl on the line.

Given that these two squads have a combined total of eight Lombardi Trophies, it is hard to believe that when they first met in the playoffs thirty years ago, neither team had ever made a Super Bowl appearance.

In the first playoff game of the Joe Montana and Bill Walsh era, the 49ers jumped out to a 24-10 halftime lead and went on to register a 38-24 victory. They would go on to defeat the Cincinnati Bengals in Super Bowl XVI.

That game proved to be the first of five playoff meetings over the next decade.

The 49ers claimed the second matchup three years later with a 21-10 victory on their way to their second Super Bowl title.

However, the tide would soon turn as the Giants won 17-3 in 1985 and then in 1986 completely demolished the 49ers 44-3 on their way to their first Super Bowl title.

The two teams would not meet again in the playoffs until the 1990 season and for the first time they were playing in the NFC title game.

San Francisco was shooting for a third straight Super Bowl title, but in what would prove to be his final playoff start as a member of the 49ers, Joe Montana suffered a huge hit from defensive end Leonard Marshall that knocked him out of the game for nearly two years.

The 49ers led the game 13-6 in the second half, but three Matt Bahr field goals, including the game winner following a Roger Craig fumble, allowed the Giants to steal a 15-13 victory and end the dreams of a third straight Super Bowl for the 49ers.

New York went on to defeat the Buffalo Bills 20-19 to win their second Super Bowl under head coach Bill Parcells. Read the rest of this entry →

Without Peyton Manning in uniform in 2011, Jim Caldwell was unable to keep the Colts as winners and ultimately lost his job as head coach.

The Indianapolis Colts have parted company with head coach Jim Caldwell after they finished their season with a 2-14 record.

Caldwell became the third high-profile dismissal at the club following the departures of vice-chairman Bill Polian and his son, general manager Chris after a campaign that saw the team produce their worst season in 20 years. Those looking at the American football odds will have been unimpressed.

Team owner john Irsay had reportedly grown tired of his side’s struggles and although he admitted it’s always tough to sack people, he believes it’s the best decision for the franchise as they move forward.

“This is obviously a big transitional time for us, and I know we’re excited moving forward and it’s hard when you say goodbyes to some people,” Irsay said. “But it’s part of the business.” Read the rest of this entry →