04/26/24
January 29, 2014
SportsFilter: The Wednesday Huddle:
A place to discuss the sports stories that aren't making news, share links that aren't quite front-page material, and diagram plays on your hand. Remember to count to five Mississippi before commenting in anger.
Rick Reilly, making friends wherever he goes.
posted by yerfatma at 03:20 PM on January 29, 2014
Brendan Gibbons (Youtube) has been expelled from Michigan for sexual misconduct.
posted by phaedon at 03:21 PM on January 29, 2014
Glad that's settled. Totally feels true and in no way forced in hopes of selling books.
posted by yerfatma at 03:55 PM on January 29, 2014
What with our winter-lite weather we've experiencing in North Carolina, my neighborhood pond is dangerously close to being hockey worthy. Too bad it's going to be 60 degrees and sunny all weekend.
posted by NoMich at 06:44 PM on January 29, 2014
Brendan Gibbons (Youtube) has been expelled from Michigan for sexual misconduct.
Good. More information on Michigan's cover up.
posted by Ying Yang Mafia at 07:03 PM on January 29, 2014
If there's credible evidence a rape occurred, why isn't the response to charge him?
Instead, the university is making him look like a rapist while he never gets an opportunity to defend himself in court and seek exoneration.
That seems like a less than ideal solution as far as justice is concerned.
posted by rcade at 07:31 PM on January 29, 2014
Super Bowl Tix, not just 4 cheep, but also available in bulk!
Which brings up an interesting question in my mind of what happens in the unlikely event that those tickets aren't sold: who takes the loss, the owner of the stadium or the NFL?
posted by Bonkers at 07:33 PM on January 29, 2014
"If there's credible evidence a rape occurred, why isn't the response to charge him?
Instead, the university is making him look like a rapist while he never gets an opportunity to defend himself in court and seek exoneration.
That seems like a less than ideal solution as far as justice is concerned."
True, but it's a perfectly ideal system as far as satisfying demands to do something about a problem while maintaining the school's image and the problems of a legal trial. They can then claim they both took action and are tough against rapists without ever having to go through the trouble of the law.
There are editorials here and here that discuss these proceedings; summary is they are essentially kangaroo courts that allow the schools to split the difference of doing nothing and criminal trials (which aren't the schools decision anyway, to be fair).
posted by Bonkers at 08:12 PM on January 29, 2014
The NFL may fine Marshawn Lynch $50K for not talking to reporters. Lynch's crime is wanting to focus on playing the game rather than talking about it.
Maybe he should just show up and yell some bizarre baseless shit for the media via a coke induced style rage .. would save him $42K plus.
posted by cixelsyd at 11:16 PM on January 29, 2014
That seems like a less than ideal solution as far as justice is concerned.
Whatever do you mean? His eligibility was up.
posted by yerfatma at 09:03 AM on January 30, 2014
a coke induced style rage
Adrenaline's a hell of a drug.
posted by Hugh Janus at 09:35 AM on January 30, 2014
Getting cameras and microphones shoved into your face during the NFL's biggest week is part of the price you pay for being a star in a big time league. Suck it up and continue to light cigars with hundred dollar bills. After all, the sports media is nothing more than the NFL's hype machine, especially Super Bowl week.
The NFL needs to have a come-to-Jesus meeting with Marshawn, a la Arthur Jensen to Howard Beale in Network.
posted by NoMich at 09:46 AM on January 30, 2014
The NFL may fine Marshawn Lynch $50K for not talking to reporters.
He showed up on Media Day and did six minutes and a brief Deion Sanders interview.
If he doesn't want to talk but is willing to do the bare minimum, the NFL has no room to complain.
posted by rcade at 10:05 AM on January 30, 2014
Suck it up and continue to light cigars with hundred dollar bills. After all, the sports media is nothing more than the NFL's hype machine, especially Super Bowl week.
The media has been getting a ton of airtime through Lynch's refusal to be a willing participant in the theatre of sports journalism. They ain't hurtin'.
The vast majority of interviews are talking points and cliches. If you get too real (criticizing referees, the league, etc.) you get a fine. Richard Sherman gets called a thug by many for actually being emotional after a game. It's all bullshit, and I dig that Lynch is just calling it what it is.
posted by dfleming at 10:09 AM on January 30, 2014
I've said it before and I'll say it again: No one in the NFL is paid to play football. They are paid to sell tickets and jerseys to fans and eyeballs to advertisers. Playing football is only a means to that end, which is why the Cowboys, Redskins and Texans are the first, third and fifth most valuable teams in the NFL despite none of them getting past the divisional round of the playoffs in 18 years.
Part of that is the stupid media stuff, because fans like the illusion of "getting to know" the players. Media Day sucks, but people are still watching.
posted by Etrigan at 10:55 AM on January 30, 2014
Lynch ought to take a page from Key and Peele. Make yourself the least interesting interview EVER.
posted by ursus_comiter at 11:22 AM on January 30, 2014
Media Day sucks, but people are still watching.
Is this still true though? Media Day feels like a leftover from the days before round-the-clock Sportscenter and athletes on Twitter. What possible story is going to break via 12 hours of interviewing long snappers?
If he doesn't want to talk but is willing to do the bare minimum, the NFL has no room to complain.
The Pro Football Writers of America on the other hand . . .
posted by yerfatma at 11:50 AM on January 30, 2014
Media Day sucks, but people are still watching.
Just because the media cover it does not mean people are watching. The interviews are by far the worst part of SportsCenter because they're exactly the same, over and over again. My informal survey of people I know seems to get more of a kick out of Lynch than anything - the only ones who seem upset are the journalists.
posted by dfleming at 03:05 PM on January 30, 2014
The last Media Day I cared about was when the Super Bowl came to Jacksonville.
posted by rcade at 05:06 PM on January 30, 2014
We aren't the target audience for Media Day and the rest of the required-media stuff. The target audience for it is the people who only watch the Super Bowl and don't know what the deal is with this Martian Lynch guy.
posted by Etrigan at 06:46 PM on January 30, 2014
I assumed that Media Day was still around just for the talk shows and foreign media to send comedians to film silly bits of them asking dumb questions while wearing weird outfits/disguises.
posted by grum@work at 07:59 PM on January 30, 2014
Teams that already have that built in extra star power and pizazz? They don't need no stinkin' Media Day.
posted by beaverboard at 08:43 PM on January 30, 2014
The target audience for it is the people who only watch the Super Bowl
That's who's watching the live cut-ins to these pressers?
posted by yerfatma at 07:21 AM on January 31, 2014
I've said it before and I'll say it again: No one in the NFL is paid to play football. They are paid to sell tickets and jerseys to fans and eyeballs to advertisers.
Then how do you explain Tebow not having a job?
posted by tron7 at 12:56 PM on January 31, 2014
He had three more than most people with his quarterbacking ability.
posted by Etrigan at 09:22 PM on January 31, 2014
His career was cut down in it's jersey-selling prime! He was on pace to be a first-ballot entry into the jersey-selling hall of fame.
posted by tron7 at 04:50 PM on February 02, 2014
Harry Gamble, former Eagles GM, Penn coach, dies