- 04:00 AM
- 11/22/09
I really really thought Couture would win quite easily. This potentially puts the lie to the claim that size means nothing in MMA fighting. Couture wasn't ever able to mount any kind of offense against Lesnar. He looked so small next to him! I quess all that's really left is for him to fight Fyodor Emelianenko.
Kenny Florian was impressive as usual, all he ever does is win and win some more.
posted by vito90 at 03:00 PM on November 17
Enjoyed this alot. Somehow I had never heard of Pat Jordan before. I also thought the linked article about Canseco was a riot.
posted by vito90 at 02:43 PM on May 23
Sweet freakin' blast from the past. There was so much talent in that league. I would love to see an analysis of the combined Pro Bowls and HOF's that spent time in the USFL. Everytime a new pro football league rears its head, (and yes even the XFL) I have such high hopes. I completely forgot that Doug Flutie played in the USFL. Just today I saw this great highlight on TV. Maybe you've seen it? When he was in college, he threw this awesome Hail Mary pass that his receiver caught in regulation to win a game. It was amazing! He had to evade a near sack to get the pass off. I'm gonna go scour youtube for that clip.
posted by vito90 at 05:42 PM on February 25
Did anyone notice that Favre (and most of the Pack) looked like they were about to die of exposure the whole night, while Eli and Plaxico looked almost comfortable? Man I thought this too and I think it played a big part. I think the Pack was VERY cavalier about the elements and it hurt them. I think the machoness of playing without sleeves was ridiculous. Who the hell did they think they were going to intimidate? The warm guys? Some of the second half drives Favre looked absolutely miserable, I think I saw him putting in eye drops and breathing through a (cheesecloth?) rag just to draw some warm breath. As strange as this may seem, and I feel ridiclous for suggesting it but Favre didn't look like he wanted to be there! I guess I'm hoping for the perfect Pats season at this point. And four years IS quick for a QB to lead his team to the Super Bowl! Not everyone can be Ben Rothlisberger!
posted by vito90 at 12:16 PM on January 21
University of Washington Husky Class of '94 and Class of '01. My first Husky memory was a 27-20 win over the Wolverines in the Rose Bowl. 1978. Warren Moon and Jacque Robinson. Followed them all through the 80's and 90's as we put player after player in the NFL. The Rose Bowl seemed our birthright. You know at one time the Dawgs had 8 guys on NFL rosters at QB alone? (Moon, Pelleur, Conklin, Hobert, Brunnel, Millen, Huard, maybe a couple others). Tight ends, running backs, offensive and defensive linemen. Only Miami it seemed like produced more pros. I was a student when we won the split title with Steve Emtman and Napoleon Kaufman and then a couple years later a great Rose Bowl with Marques Tuiasosopo. But it came at a cost, the first scandal under Don James' watch set us back and then the second punch under Neuheisel put us on the canvas. Since then it's been ugly and uglier. I want wins, and I want them badly. I don't even really care if a few corners are cut to get us back to relevancy. I think the idea of football player as student is pretty much a canard anyway, so I'm not really concerned with recruiting guys that might not be academically up to UW standards. As long as they're good citizens and stay out of trouble. What I want from Ty (and I'm glad he's back for another year) is to keep the big picture sparkling clean, hide the dirty details, and win some fucking football games. I think when you have tremendous pride in your school and your team, it's like making sausage. Maybe you don't really want to see how it's being made. The Huskies have a great quarterback in Jake Locker. Not just great but with the potential to be the best Husky ever and who knows? Maybe one of the best Pac-10 QB's ever. Lots of local skill-position recruits want to go to the UW to play with Jake. The decision to keep Ty was the right one in my opinion. If he fails, then we can bring in Mora. But for now he should have the full support of all Husky fans. Incidentally I predict a backlash against this asshole who made his contribution contingent on Ty's firing.
posted by vito90 at 05:12 PM on January 10
While there will certainly be some knee-jerk reactions and attempts to change/ban/limit the sport, I don't think they will get much traction. MMA fights couldn't get licensed 10 years ago until the UFC agreed to make many significant modifications to the sport to make it more safe. They have a very good track record and I see that track record allowing them to make a stand against those who would seek to water the sport down at this time. Still - for this guys family and friends a very tragic story.
posted by vito90 at 07:49 AM on December 03
Howard, yerfatma said what I was going to say, which is that since they were commiting another crime it's potentially a death penalty case - but "intent" and "premeditation" are two different things.
posted by vito90 at 07:28 PM on December 01
Very, very, very thoughtful writing. Thanks for the link.
posted by vito90 at 07:25 PM on December 01
Great comments and article. I have been keenly observing fan's shifting from boxing to MMA and UFC. I was a huge boxing fan growing up, now I consider myself a huge UFC fan. I think there are several reasons for boxing's loss of popularity, many of which have been mentioned (no marquee names that the layperson knows such as Ali or Sugar Ray or Tyson, too many governing bodies, etc.) There are a couple more differences as well - one is there are too damn many weight classes. Imagine how much better and more frequent the matchups would be if you consolidated the divisions in boxing. The biggest difference comes down to money, or I should say the root cause of the differences. UFC fighters, even top ranked ones, are hungry. When you make less than $100,000 per fight (which everyone outside of a title fight does), and then have to kick funds to your agent, entourage, etc. you have to fight more than once a year. Promising fighters trying to get a title shot might fight three times in a year. UFC fights take place, at minimum, one night per month with anywhere from 5 to 10 fights on the card. One out of every three fight nights is on free basic cable. And the fights are set up in a way that is much less political and much more egalitarian. If you win, you fight the next guy above you. If you lose, you fight the next guy down. Right now, in the USA, the UFC is totally driving MMA, and whether you like Dana White or not, he is positioning the sport the right way. When UFC bought PRIDE, they immediately put all the top PRIDE fighters on a free card so as to introduce them to US fans.
posted by vito90 at 07:16 PM on December 01
That looks freakin' great. It's in my queue now. Thanks for the link, I had never heard of it.
posted by vito90 at 06:58 PM on December 01
This isn't a sad day, it's a necessary day. And his trainer Anderson was supposedly just released from prison.
posted by vito90 at 05:54 PM on November 15
Nice find rumple! Thanks for posting. Bookmarked.
posted by vito90 at 03:51 PM on November 15
Fantastic link. Monkeyhawk - I did a double take when I read the "best lie" passage. Do you think it might be a transcription error and should read "best he"? A few sentences later it reads "my clad" when it should have been "my dad". Anyway that was really something.
posted by vito90 at 06:12 PM on November 10
I'm guessing the answer is "Hitler" (Godwin in a spofi thread???) but an apropo answer might be Don King - similar impacts on their respective sports...
posted by vito90 at 01:40 PM on October 27
I have to say that was one of the more interesting reads in quite awhile. He's a fascinating guy and has really carved out some kind of niche for himself.
posted by vito90 at 08:20 PM on October 26
In my opinion, another example of Manny being stupider like a fox was how he rested his body in the last weeks of the season, with the ambiguous painful oblique muscle. His body in the playoffs is just a little bit fresher than guys who didn't get any days off. He is fun to watch, I just really wish he would hustle on the fly balls.
posted by vito90 at 10:50 AM on October 24
I have to say, Lofton looked SLOW out there yesterday. I don't think it's a shoo in he scores if the third base coach sends him, unless Manny doesn't even bother making a throw. There were alot of goats for Cleveland yesterday, Garko killed them in the field (not the first game he's struggled) and Blake grounding into the double play when it was still close. This should be a fun series, the best pitching staff in baseball versus a team playing about a .900 clip for the last month. Bring it!
posted by vito90 at 08:42 AM on October 22
Bonds should really only have about 500 homers.
posted by vito90 at 01:21 PM on September 27
Well the season's not even over yet, so it's a little preliminary to say...but I think even among AL teams there might not be all that much interest. Plus he might still get indicted. Possibly when he sees he has not a ton of options, and not for a ton of money he might just choose to hang 'em up.
posted by vito90 at 01:57 PM on September 22
That looks fake. The Duck dropped an atomic elbow on the cougar. I think that was a Oregon student wearing a Cougar costume.
posted by vito90 at 02:50 PM on September 13
Milicic is in the running for worst top-five lottery pick ever. Or Len Bias. Too soon?
posted by vito90 at 01:53 PM on September 08
You know an upset was big when it makes Drudge. wow anyone catch that UW Huskies win over 'cuse? hmm boy that tasted goooooooood
posted by vito90 at 04:51 PM on September 01
This seems like an awfully dramatic fall from grace. Just a couple years ago the Jags were on the short lit of teams with no QB questions for the foreseeable future. I wonder of Garrard is good enough to take them to the promised land. And I would think that some teams would be desperate to join the Leftwich ssweepstakes.
posted by vito90 at 05:45 PM on August 31
Never heard of the guy, but he sounds like a good chap.
posted by vito90 at 04:25 PM on August 29
Haha, Jeter the second best shortstop of all time. I'm sure nobody will have a negative opinion on that.
posted by vito90 at 08:59 PM on August 22
I come to praise the Cougar, and not to bury him, as I would like to do with most Cougars. I think this article is totally unfair and overly harsh. Bledsoe had a phenomenal career, went to a couple Super Bowls and has one ring. He put up some pretty gaudy numbers and in a different era those numbers would have garnered him some Hall of Fame consideration. Just because he spoke honestly about enjoying the downtime of his vacation more than the rigors of the season doesn't mean he was a pussy. Other guys (Tiki Barber, I'm looking at you) chose to walk away from the game once they had the money salted away and not because their bodies had given everything they had to play this brutal fucking sport. Bledsoe kept going until nobody wanted him, and for that even a WAZZU alum gets a pass from me.
posted by vito90 at 08:55 PM on August 22
I thought the Smoot quote above was actually about Bake McBride? And nthing the notion that there's nothing dumb about alot of these quotes, they're great.
posted by vito90 at 03:49 PM on August 22
I don't know, this is a pretty important update to a pretty important story. I would also like to see the thread play out because the problem with the first thread was the apologists who said "wait and see", "innocent til proven guilty", etc. Now that their man has plead guilty and ADMITTED he TORTURED and EXECUTED DOGS I would like to see if they'll even show up here. I was also glad to read that one of the states has every intention of continuing prosecution of Vick on their own statutes. Vick's putting one set of problems behind him, still has alot in front of him. And yet he's still better off than the animals who had the misfortune of falling under his, uhh, what's the opposite of "care"?
posted by vito90 at 02:57 PM on August 20
Nice. That is some sticktuitiveness right there. His is a great, great story.
posted by vito90 at 11:42 AM on August 10
Nice to see a pro athlete take a potentially unpopular position to look out for animals. I HATE the idea of foie gras and Neidermeyer's just picked up another fan.
posted by vito90 at 01:56 PM on August 09
Interesting article, thanks for the post.
posted by vito90 at 01:54 PM on August 09
Awesome link. Funny way to start the day. Here's an American NBA one, I hope I get it right, and it's a self mockery. Jerry Sichting once said "People say my name in the same sentence as Larry Bird all the time. They say, 'Jerry Sichting, he's no Larry Bird'."
posted by vito90 at 12:33 PM on August 04
THX-1138, I would have to say three games local to us stand out. None of them would register on a national scale. The first one is the Seahawks first post-season victory over the Miami Dolphins in Miami in 1983, they would lose the next week to the Raiders who would win the Super Bowl. Being a huge UW Husky fan, the one victory that stands out the most is the win over Todd Marinovich's USC team (ranked #5 at the time) 31-0. Marinovich said after the game “All I saw was purple. No jerseys, no numbers, just purple.” And even though I was 8 I still remember Gus Williams hurling the ball in the air after the clinching win against the Bullets in 79.
posted by vito90 at 01:44 PM on July 27
Funny stuff. I especially liked that one where the guy says horse racing is like dog fighting.
posted by vito90 at 06:51 PM on July 26
When is the day going to come that having Boras represent you is a detriment? Are there any clubs that will refuse to draft or look at guys that Boras represents? If this article is to be believed then Boras is the Don King of MLB.
posted by vito90 at 06:15 PM on July 21
GodDAMN. I rooted for that sick son of a bitch. I hope he fucking ROTS IN JAIL.
posted by vito90 at 06:17 PM on July 17
Oh man holden, that is funny shit. The one on their homepage right now with Sheffield is even better. " Kiss_The_Sheff has angrily stormed out of the chatroom."
posted by vito90 at 01:41 PM on July 17
This reminds me of the discussions back in the day re: Prop 48 which was minimum scholastic requirements for Division 1 athletes. Lots of critics complained it was racist because it was usually Black athletes that didn't meet the SAT or GPA standards and therefore were ineleigible and lost scholarships. Arthur Ashe said "yeah, but for every Black athlete that is ineligible there is another one behind him to take his scholarship, and that one will be better qualified for college." Hank Aaron was a great man who accomplished his record during a completely divisive time. Bonds is a fucking hack cheater. Bonds could hit 900 home runs and it won't matter, Hank will always be the King.
posted by vito90 at 12:01 PM on July 17
That was indeed one of the greatest videos I've seen in awhile. Maybe the Phillies helped because of the great respect most baseball players have for the temple that is a baseball diamond. Probably not, but I can dream.
posted by vito90 at 01:36 PM on July 10
Dear Ray-Ray. Suck it. In other news, Ichiro's about to sign an extension. Sorry rest of the league who needs a leadoffhitterleftygoldglover. Go find your own.
posted by vito90 at 01:34 PM on July 10
Great link and great story, anyone who enjoyed this should definitely pick up a copy of "Breaks of the Game" by David Halberstam. It chronicles a season with the '79 Blazers.
posted by vito90 at 01:16 PM on June 14
OK. Now, I love Bo, but I have to say something about Brian Bosworth here, just for a moment. It seems there are only a few memories of the Boz. The Mohawk in college, "Stone Cold", and two Bo Jackson-related plays. One of the plays already mentioned was totally legit, yes in a Monday Night game Bo Jackson literally ran around Boz to the sideline (and Boz absolutely had the angle) and trucked down the sideline for a long, long touchdown. Sweet. The other play, where Bo supposedly ran Boz over for a touchdown. The line of scrimmage on that play was the two yard line, they hand off to Bo, he meets Boz at the goal-line and Boz brings him down about five yeards into the end zone. The fact was that Boz made the tackle, and i fthe line of scrimmage had been the fifty then nobody ever remembers this play. Jesus jumping Christ on a pogo stick, am I fucking defending BRIAN BOSWORTH? The Seahawks drafted Boz in the SUPPLEMENTAL draft. All 30 teams or whatever there were in the league got one name in the hat and they drew for the pick. Boz was the only player worth a shit, and the Hawks despite the long odds got the pick. He was in that sense a steal. Two of his three seasons were very productive. Sorry to derail. I love Bo much, but to define Bosworth's career in terms of what Bo did to him is silly.
posted by vito90 at 02:08 PM on May 30
Lot of talk up here in Seattle. It makes sense from Seattle's standpoint because the team desperately needs to generate some excitement to even stay here. Plus we have the #2 pick and Rashard Lewis is opting out of his deal. I think Seattle may be too small of a pond for Kobe but then again only Chicago, LA, and New York might be big enough ponds to contain him. Mostly it's wishful thinking up here, which is apt to happen when your team is short-timing and you back into a high draft pick.
posted by vito90 at 01:52 PM on May 30
Wanna know something interesting? There is so little buzz here in Seattle about this. I wonder what color jersey Durant will be wearing in Kansas City.
posted by vito90 at 11:33 AM on May 23
Bye, bye beardie. And Phoenix, for the love of God, please send Bowen, Ginobli, and Horry home. It pains me to see Tim Duncan have to play with those ass clowns...although I have to say Tim in his age seems to be getting more and more chippy.
posted by vito90 at 08:58 PM on May 16
Awesome story. Yerfatma, condolences on your previous effort ;)
posted by vito90 at 08:54 PM on May 16
Good link. Glad to see the greatest individual man-on-boy beat down of all time was on there. See #1... (you tube)
posted by vito90 at 02:59 PM on May 16
Only problem with this article was it wasn't long enough. Thanks for the link rumple.
posted by vito90 at 02:07 AM on May 12
Behind Baron's Beard there is no chin. Only 30 points and a fat W. He's the best player named after nobility since Earl Monroe.
posted by vito90 at 02:03 AM on May 12
Don't worry. This charge is tenuous at best, and Michael Vick is going to rip McNair from the headlines in 3..2..
posted by vito90 at 02:18 PM on May 10
This beard talk begs for Chuck Norris type jokes. Did you know Baron Davis was the fourth wiseman? He brought the baby Jesus the gift of beard.
posted by vito90 at 10:44 AM on May 08
Not for nothing, but LaRussa's credibility on the subject is nil.
posted by vito90 at 03:48 PM on May 04
I just knew it would turn out he was drunk. Fuck! I didn't want to suggest it right after he died but in conjunction with the other story about him "sleeping in" cause of a new mattress? They're saying his blood alcohol was over .15, over twice the limit, they found weed, and he was on the phone. Christ almighty what a fucking waste.
posted by vito90 at 11:29 AM on May 04
In my extremely limited sample, I always felt the opposite was true. In Seattle for several years we had Brent Barry, who was as athletic as any brother in the game, but he never, ever got the benefit of the doubt on calls. He would get called for charging frequently on what appeared to me to be obvious blocking violations, I always felt the refs dinged him because they figured a honky couldn't be THAT athletic. It happened so regularly during his career here that I must have pointed it out to half a dozen friends.
posted by vito90 at 11:11 AM on May 02
Oh, if only this were true.
posted by vito90 at 02:23 PM on April 27
They have been talking about this book on espn radio and I have to say my interest was piqued. One of my favorite sports books as a kid was Breaks of the Game by David Halberstam (God rest his soul) which had a similar premise (a year following the Portland Trailblazers). That is the book that taught me all the names of Darryl Dawkin's dunks. I'd love to see if this book becomes the Ball Four of the NBA.
posted by vito90 at 12:54 AM on April 25
Ugh. I still think they picked the wrong sport. It's really Bavasi that needs to be on the next train out of town. Fact is, the success we had two years ago (Nate McMillan's last year coaching) was a team that drastically overachieved. They now have the same basic core and they've come back to their own level. This is how a team will do when Rashard Lewis is your second best player. (I mean you want to see what a really good, playoff caliber team is? Look at their second best player, it's a superstar type which Rashard is not, not, not). I guess the game has basically passed Lenny by, which makes me sad that he would not be able to relate to this generation of players. Casey is an option, not a very sexy pick but he's been here. Silas also doesn't seem to be too inspiring a selection. You're right about one thing, it could be interesting.
posted by vito90 at 12:49 AM on April 25
Todd Marinovich: The Man Who Never Was
Yeah, but see...the focus of that post was Marinovich, while for me it was merely a mechanism for discussing the Huskies great season many, many, many years ago.
I'm a douche, please delete the post...