Final day of 2015. Crazy year. Great year in a lot of ways. Trying year in others.
Here's hoping you ring in Sweet '16 in a safe and entertaining way.
Thanks for another great year - we started this puppy in late October 2010, back when Auburn had an emerging quarterback with a lot of skill. Some kid named Cam Newton. (Yes, that seems like a long time ago.
From the "Talks too much" studios, we miss Dick Clark.
2015 in review
Well that went by very quickly.
Strange how immediate time can drag and extended periods of time - like years and generations - vanish like whispers at a concert.
It was a big year for many. Historic even.
We had our first Triple Crown winning horse since Jimmy Carter was in the White House. We flirted with Grand Slams in men's and women's tennis and even in men's golf. We celebrated the greatest of the U.S. Women's soccer team, both nationally and locally, and watched as UConn's women's basketball team continues to achieve success unknown since John Wooden was at UCLA.
Closer to home we followed the ball that bounces funny as closely as ever, and the looked on as the college programs closest to those in these parts took on directional differences. UT continued its brick-by-brick walk up the cracked sidewalk that is the SEC East. Led by Jacob Huesman, the Mocs' greatest football player ever, UTC took the best team in the country in overtime in the playoffs after winning its third consecutive SoCon title. Alabama continues to dominate and made the college football playoff for the second straight year. Georgia decided that the thought of Kirby Smart coaching at South Carolina was too much to take and canned Mark Richt, despite the fact that Richt has averaged almost 10 wins a year over his 15-year career in Athens. (Miami of course was happy to pick up his scraps and there's a better than even money chance that the Hurricanes are in the college football playoff before the Bulldogs.)
Beyond sports, it was a crazy year. Heck it was a crazy final month.
Crazy that the word of the year was a social media image - some doodad called an emoji that shows emotional faces on texts and Twitter.
Crazy that a majority of the county is calling for Ooltewah High School to end its basketball season today, and in truth the county is probably right. The horror that happened in Gatlinburg - where three Ooltewah players have been charged with a litany of crimes after sodomizing a teammate with a pool cue - should cost people their jobs and the county millions. Yes, we believe we are too litigious as a society, but the county better be braced for the multi-million-dollar lawsuit on the horizon.
Crazy that the one athlete we never expected to be in any type of an HGH or PED controversy has been. When Peyton Manning's name is linked to this, well, let's start accusing everyone. (For what it's worth, I believe Peyton. I really do. But I also know that none of these stories about athletes and any form of PEDs have ever come back false. Here's hoping that Peyton continues to be the trend-setter. He's first in NFL history in passing yards and TDs; he can be the first to be cleared of these type of allegations, too.)
It's been a year too-dominated by political correctness. We have college kids protesting offense Halloween costumes, college administrators sending out memos trying to do away with the overly offensive pronouns such as He and Her, and Caitlyn Jenner was a finalist for Time's Person of the Year. (Wise move by Time to go gender neutral many moons ago, or well, you know. Here's a question about Jenner: If Caitlyn deserves praise for 'embracing' the change, did Bruce Jenner - or any of the folks like him now - deserve criticism for not? Whatever.)
So in some ways, let's be glad that 2015 is leaving.
Here's hoping '16 is sweet for all of us.
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Best athlete ever poll
The Harris Poll, one of the best polls ever, right there with the Gallup, the AP and Lech Walesa, released its results Wednesday for the best athlete of all-time http://espn.go.com/nba/story/_/id/14470482/michael-jordan-jordan-stays-atop-harris-poll-ahead-babe-ruth-muhamad-ali.
The top spot went unchanged, as Michael Jordan held the top spot, same as he did six years ago. The top 10 - Jordan, followed by Ruth, Ali, Serena Williams, Peyton Manning, Joe Montana, LeBron James, Tiger Woods, Tom Brady, Wayne Gretzky - were relatively unchanged.
The poll also asked the more than 2,300 surveyed what the best in the respective sports, and while we're sure you have a problem with the above list, the specific sports' lists also had some incidences where the public opinion - like Tiger over Jack as the best golfer ever - were less than solid.
(Side note: When doing a poll like this, our view between best athlete - some one like Bo or Jim Thorpe or Deion Sanders - as opposed to most accomplished or most popular - like some of the ones above - is a key connotation, and one not unlike the distinction between most valuable player and most outstanding player.)
Also of note in that poll was the results for favorite sport:
1. NFL (50 percent of those polled)
2. MLB (32 percent)
3. College football (29 percent)
4. NBA (22 percent)
5. College basketball (19 percent)
6. NHL (15 percent)
7. PGA (13 percent)
From there, it was noted that women's tennis (9 percent) was picked more than men's tennis (8 percent).
Two key observations about the favorite sport answers: a) We are surprised college hoops did that well; and b) NASCAR better be coming up with some plans ASAP.
Thoughts?
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College football playoff
We'll know late tonight a) if Jenny McCarthy embarrassed herself at the New Year's Eve show again this year; b) that we won't have to do laundry tomorrow; and c) who is in the college football championship.
To that we say yes to a), hooray to b) and Alabama and Oklahoma to c).
The long-standing discussions of focus and depth give Alabama a clear and decisive edge. Especially against a team like Michigan State, which is built in a similar fashion as Alabama.
And if there are three things you can say about Nick Saban's program: a) no team will have more talent or out-recruit it; b) the other team's coach will be taller; and c) no one out-Alabamas Alabama.
Period.
As for Oklahoma, we think they have more weapons. We also think that it will be a shootout over Clemson - and a much better game than the night cap.
For scores, we'll go Oklahoma 42-38 over Clemson and Alabama 27-9 over Michigan State.
Thoughts?
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This and that
- It will be a strange sight this weekend http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/25432400/peyton-manning-expected-to-return-sunday-with-new-job-hes-never-had, but Peyton Manning is expected back on the field Sunday, and for the first time since the first month of his freshman year at UT, Manning will not be the starting quarterback.
- Miami cornerback Brent Grimes spoke on his wife Miko's Twitter barrage on Dolphins quarterback Ryan Tannehill http://www.cbssports.com/nfl/eye-on-football/25432123/dolphins-brent-grimes-responds-to-his-wifes-bashing-of-ryan-tannehill. His answer was a pretty basic, "Dude, her opinions are hers. Ask her." Or something to that effect.
- Not sure how many of you know, but we have always been a big fan of game shows. The Family Feud especially. Here's some of Family Feud host Steve Harvey's best clips of 2015 https://www.yahoo.com/tv/the-family-feud-survey-that-left-contestants-210239756.html, and no the Miss Universe pageant was not part of the take.
- After topping Memphis in the Birmingham Bowl - with their best defensive effort by far, mind you - Auburn announced http://www.al.com/auburnfootball/index.ssf/2015/12/source_auburn_expects_kevin_st.html Kevin Steele will be its new defensive coordinator. Steele's probably a fine fellow and has big-time experience. That said, the fact that last year AU coach Gus Malzahn hired the hottest name out there, and this year he had to make multiple calls and reportedly made multiple offers before settling in with Steele speaks more of Malzahn's tenuous job security than anything else. Coach 'em up Gus.
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Today's question
Plenty above to discuss.
As for a question, well, we were saving our predictions for Friday, so there's that.
We can start with does anyone know all the words to Auld Lange Syne? (If you need them, they are here http://www.carols.org.uk/auld_lang_syne_song.htm.) It's like the holiday version of O' Canada. We all know the start and then start mouthing the rest.
Or you can offer your thought on the best sports story lines of 2015, be them local or national.
And please be safe ringing in the New Year.