The beauty of sports is that even though his birth
certificate tells us that Willie Mays turns 90 years old today, our minds can
still remember the “Say Hey Kid” as the young superstar with a smile and
personality that could light up New York and who possessed enough talent to
fill up a baseball stadium.
You can argue about who was the greatest baseball player of
all-time, but there is little doubt that Mays is on the short list for any
discussion.
Mays was the rare player who could win games with his bat,
glove and legs.
After earning Rookie of the Year honors in 1951, Mays missed
most of the 1952 season and all of the 1953 season while serving in the
military.
When he returned in 1954, Mays began a streak of 19 straight
years earning an All-Star spot as he won the first of his two National League
MVP Awards.
During his career, Mays led the league in runs, hits,
triples, home runs, stolen bases, batting average, on base percentage and
slugging percentage. He was the first player
in baseball history to steal 30 bases and hit 30 home runs in the same season.
Whether from his days as a coach, broadcaster or simply as
the name on a video game, John Madden is a football legend known by fans of all
generations.
It seems hard to believe that Madden will celebrate his 85th
birthday on April 10th. Almost as surprising is that it has been
more than a dozen years since Madden retired from broadcasting after three
decades as the preeminent color commentator on television. But, of course, his
influence lives on in the leading football video game known as Madden NFL.
The journey for Madden from a 21st round NFL
Draft pick to the most recognized person in the NFL is truly a remarkable one.
A talented multi-sport athlete, Madden was a boyhood friend
of John Robinson, who would go on to a successful career as head coach at the
University of Southern California and with the Los Angeles Rams.
Madden played college football at the College of San Mateo
for a year, earning a scholarship to the University of Oregon. However, an
injury forced him to redshirt and he ultimately finished his college career
playing two seasons as a two-way player at Cal Poly in San Luis Obispo. He was
also a catcher on the Cal-Poly baseball team.
The Philadelphia Eagles selected Madden in the 21st
round (244th overall pick) of the 1958 NFL Draft. However, a knee
injury suffered in training camp ended his dream of playing in the NFL.
After completing his degree, Madden became an assistant
coach at Allan Hancock College in Santa Maria, California. He was promoted to
head coach in 1962.
The Sports Then and Now Vintage Athlete of the Month was the
ace of the Boston Red Sox staff when they reached the 1975 World Series and is
considered by many to be someone worthy of induction in the Baseball Hall of
Fame.
Luis Tiant, known as “El Tiante”, spent 19 years in the
majors between 1964 and 1982.
Though he was 75-64 with a 2.84 ERA in six seasons with the
Cleveland Indians and then helped the Minnesota Twins reach the playoffs in
1970, it appeared that Tiant’s career might be over following the 1970 season.
Double-digit seeds usually
have a short stay in the NCAA men’s basketball tournament. In fact, only five
double- digit seeds have ever reached the Final Four since 1979 when the
selection committee began seeding teams. While the intrigue, drama, and excitement
of this event is largely built on these lower seeds knocking off their favored
counterparts, they typically have been eliminated during the first weekend of
play after a win or two if you include the First Four which started in 2011.
Not if you are Syracuse.
The Orange have defied
the odds. Syracuse has advanced to the Sweet 16 in three of the last five NCAA tournaments
as a double-digit seed. The Orange are there this year as a No. 11 seed and
will meet No. 2 Houston in the Midwest regional semifinals tonight. Tip-off is
set for 9:55 pm EST.
While this success is a
credit to the coaching of hall-of-fame head coach Jim Boeheim and his heavily
capable assistants, it is also Syracuse’s fabled 2-3 zone defense that is a
major factor in befuddling opponents as they are not used to it. A proven
winner and an elite coach, Boeheim and his assistants do a masterful job of
getting the most out of their players and improving during the season. While
the Orange have finished anywhere between sixth and 10th in the final
ACC regular season standings over the last six seasons, Syracuse is typically on
the upswing the last week of the regular season as they head into March.
Sports is changing its game face—turning an optimistic gaze towards women and the issues they represent. Women play and win in the Olympics, major leagues, and other international competitions. More of their games can be seen on television and online. There are huge audiences gathered in stadiums to cheer and support their games.
True, women are making strides in various sports, conquering game after game, and winning seemingly impossible feats. They’re medalists, champions, and ambassadors to show young girls and other women that they can excel in sports.
Amidst the glitz of shiny medals and the sparkle of huge trophies, roaring crowds, and confetti, women are now leading their own to address issues of gender equality in sports. They’re breathing new life into sports by championing equal pay, equal training opportunities, scholarships, and facilities.
In short, they’re using ‘girl power’ to claim their rights and ensure aspiring female athletes are given a fair chance. Society and sports organizations are listening and addressing these needs in the world of sports and beyond.
Breathing Life Into Sports
Women have come a long way from their first appearance in the Olympics. From 22 female athletes in the 1900s, there were 5,059 female athletes in the 2016 Olympics. They comprise 40% of sportspeople worldwide and excel in various sports such as basketball, boxing, football, skiing, soccer, and tennis.
Happy 79th birthday to one of the iconic figures in NFL history, the true “Captain America”, Roger Staubach.
Throughout his nine seasons as the starting quarterback for
the Dallas Cowboys, Staubach was known for leading his team to late-game
comebacks and improbable victories and thus was also often referred to as “Captain
Comeback”.
He seemed to always have the uncanny knack of making the big
play needed to lift his team to victory. He led the Cowboys to 23 fourth
quarter game-winning drives during his career, including 15 times with his team
trailing.
The Cowboys reached the playoffs in eight of his nine
seasons as the starting quarterback and he led the Cowboys to the Super Bowl
four times (they also reached the Super Bowl in 1970 when he was the backup).
He was named MVP of Super Bowl VI and also led Dallas to the
title in Super Bowl XXII.
Staubach was a winner even before joining the Cowboys.
The Sports Then and Now Vintage Athlete of the Month is a former major league baseball player who came into the game as a teenager and stayed until he was in his 40s. In between, Rusty Staub put up a solid career that was primarily spent on expansion or rebuilding teams.
Originally signed by the Colt .45s at age 17, he made his major league debut as a 19-year old rookie and became only the second player in the modern era to play in more than 150 games as a teenager.
Though he hit only .224 splitting time between first base and rightfield, Staub did start building a foundation that would turn him into an All-Star by 1967 when he finished fifth in the league with a .333 batting average.