Sports Then and Now

South Carolina's Beau Welling provides the U.S. Curling Association with ideas from someone from a non-traditional curling background.

Given that the sport of curling was invented in Scotland and perfected in Canada, you might be surprised to know that one of the biggest fans and advocates for the game is a golf course designer from South Carolina. Yet, when the Olympics start later this week Beau Welling will take his place among representatives from more typical winter sports locales as a board member of the Unites State Curling Association.

That someone with no background in the sport could become a decision maker at the national level illustrates the desire by the leadership within American curling to grow the popularity of the sport with a non-traditional fan base across the country.

Welling’s road to Vancouver is an interesting tale that started in 1988 when curling was a demonstration sport at the Calgary Olympics.

“I remember briefly watching it in 1988 with the rocks and brooms and thinking it was one of the most ridiculous sports I had ever seen,” Welling recalled.

It wasn’t until 14 years later in 2002 when Welling’s compulsion with the sport started to be cultivated.

“I saw it on television in Salt Lake City and was inexplicably drawn to the sport,” Welling said. “One of the guys in our office was from Canada and knew the sport, so I would come in every day asking him questions.”

By the time of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin, curling was a ratings bonanza for NBC and Welling couldn’t get enough of it.

Just weeks after the 2006 Olympics, the US National Championships were being held in Bemidji, Minnesota and for some odd reason Welling felt that he should be there. Unfortunately, he was scheduled to be in Europe on business at the same time.

In a moment that would have lasting implications, Welling’s trip was cancelled at the last second leaving him an unexpected free week and feeling like fate was sending him to Bemidji.

“When my trip was cancelled I felt like it was a sign that I was supposed to go to Bemidji,” Welling said.

Thanks to his secretary, Grace Bishop, Welling had tickets and unbeknown to him was the talk of the town. Read the rest of this entry →

Drew Brees secured his place among the NFL elite with his MVP performance in Super Bowl XLIV.

No, the headline above is not a typo, the New Orleans Saints are lovable losers no more. After 43 years, the New Orleans Saints have reached the NFL mountaintop with a 31-17 victory over the Indianapolis Colts in Super Bowl XLIV.

When Peyton Manning and the Colts marched methodically down the field to score the first 10 points of the game it looked like the Saints might be in for a long day.

However, this is not your father’s New Orleans Saints and instead of folding under pressure, this New Orleans team responded with spunk, determination and guile.

Inspired by their head coach, Sean Payton, who made a number of bold decisions that got the Saints back in the game, New Orleans came storming back to seize control.

Even after failing on a fourth and goal play late in the first half, the Saints rallied to make the game 10-6 at intermission.

Then, Payton made his boldest call as they started the second half with an onside kick. Had the Colts recovered, they would have had great field position and might have been able to put the game away.

Instead, the Saints recovered and quickly marched down the field to take their first lead of the game 13-10.

Illustrating why he is among the greatest quarterbacks in NFL history, Peyton Manning led the Colts right back down the field to take a 17-13 lead.

With the Colts clinging to a 17-16 lead, they had a chance to extend their advantage, but a 51-yard field goal by Matt Stover faded to the left at the end and fell no good. Read the rest of this entry →

Enter the Sports Then and Now Trivia Contest to win tickets to the 2010 BNP Paribas Showdown on March 1st.

On Monday, March 1, 2010, four of the best players in women’s professional tennis will be on one court at Madison Square Garden vying for the prestigious Billie Jean King Cup and you could be in the audience.

One lucky Sports Then and Now reader will win a pair of tickets to see Serena Williams, Kim Clijsters, Venus Williams and Svetlana Kuznetsova face off in a high-powered evening of tennis at the 2010 BNP Paribas Showdown.  The format includes two single set semifinals followed by a best of three set final.

To register, click here to answer a quick trivia contest that includes questions about the four contestants as well as Billie Jean King. The winner will be selected from all entrants that correctly answer the highest number of questions. The winner will receive two tickets to the tournament, but must provide their own transportation and other accommodations in New York City.

2010 marks the second year of the BNP Paribas Showdown as Serena Williams won the inaugural event last March.

The field for 2010 is amazing as it includes the winners of the last seven majors, with each of the four participants having won at least one major during that stretch.

Serena Williams, the winner of 12 Grand Slam titles, has been the most successful of the four players in recent times as she has claimed four of the last six majors, including the last two Australian Opens.

Venus Williams, winner of seven Grand Slam titles, won the 2008 Wimbledon and was a finalist in 2009.

Kuznetsova won the 2009 French Open for her first Grand Slam title. Clijsters has two Grand Slam titles, including the 2009 U.S. Open.

Even if you don’t win the free tickets from Sports Then and Now, you can still attend this great tennis event. Tickets for the 2010 BNP Paribas Showdown are currently available through Ticketmaster.  You can save $10 by typing in the promotional code: SHOWDOWN.  You can follow Madison Square Garden on Twitter and Facebook.

Frustrated by her lack of television exposure, Kim Kardashian tries to take matters into her own hands.

With the Super Bowl now only a few hours away, here are some predictions about what we may see tonight. Hey, just remember, it is the Super Bowl, so anything can happen:

Fight for the Spotlight: Frustrated that Archie and Eli Manning have received more television air time than her, Kim Kardashian storms into their suite in the third period and starts swinging her purse at the shocked Mannings. Channeling years of frustration for always being the one being hit, Eli takes her down in a battle that is more captivating than the game.

Senior Moment: Roger Daltrey and Peter Townshend start playing “Who Are You” during their halftime concert and then can’t remember who they are and begin playing “Start Me Up” by the Rolling Stones.

Clearing the Set: With NFL Network analysts seemingly dropping like flies due to allegations of domestic violence and rape, the NFL Network just gives up and decides to clear their set of all former players and coaches. This leaves host Rich Eisen sitting alone at the Super Bowl for four hours rambling on about whatever topic he can think of, including a 20 minute dissertation about the greatness of nachos. After the program, Eisen is seen in front of the ESPN truck clicking his heals and repeatedly saying “There’s no place like home, there’s no place like home.” Read the rest of this entry →

As usual, the Pro Football Hall of Fame will not be opening its doors to the most deserving candidates come August.

Given their past track record, I guess it should come as no surprise that the voters for the Pro Football Hall of Fame made some bad decisions during their annual selection meeting on Saturday. They didn’t mess up the selection of two deserving first ballot candidates in Jerry Rice and Emmitt Smith, but in my opinion the rest of their choices were seriously lacking.

In addition to Rice and Smith, the other members of the 2010 Hall of Fame Class will be Rickey Jackson, Russ Grimm, Floyd Little, Dick LeBeau and John Randle.

Of those other five, in my opinion only Randle was the best player at his position who is not already in the Hall of Fame. Little is among the ten best running backs previously excluded from the HOF, but there are a plethora of more deserving players at the respective positions than Grimm, LeBeau and Jackson.

As has become common place, the Hall of Fame voters overlooked some clearly deserving candidates while selecting others that most people would consider borderline. Read the rest of this entry →

Charles Darwin must have been imagining the Super Bowl when he devised his theory on survival of the fittest.  Only the strong make it to the finish line and only the most fearless claw their way to the top, reigning over inferiors.  The most colorful, the most aggressive and boastful are the ones we wish to follow as fans.  They are special, attracting attention for their bravura.

That, in part, explains why we are irresistibly attracted to bad behavior –– the bad boys and girls –– on the playing fields, the ice, on the tennis courts and golf courses –– the ones who are not afraid to try the impossible –– to test the limits, often going beyond boundaries set for them.  Because they go all out in their drive to win, we cringe but applaud those vicious hits that rip off helmets or result in some poor receiver landing on his head because the guy tackling isn’t afraid to lay his body on the line.

But when the aggressor steps over some shifting line in the sand, we all step back tsking and berate the player caught front and center in the media spotlight when moments before we admired his or her tactics.

Where exactly is that line of demarcation?  When does it cease being aggression in the spirit of the game and verge on the boundaries of physical assault?  More importantly, when do we stop applauding the actions of our sports stars and those aggressive maneuvers on or off the field of play? Read the rest of this entry →