We're to the middle of the week, and 7-and-8 Express have started the season and we're going full speed.
Yes, we're coaching again, and yes, it's coach pitch and if there's any value in being a wash-up above-average high school pitcher, it you never forget the ability to find bats. And that little lefties like the ball down.
Good times.
From the "Talks too much" studios, the madness is happening
Hampton's Reginald Johnson celebrates after a 74-64 win over Manhattan in a first round NCAA tournament basketball game Tuesday, March 17, 2015 in Dayton, Ohio. Hampton advances to face top-ranked Kentucky. (AP Photo/Skip Peterson) Kentucky
Has the storyline that is Kentucky's quest for perfection hurt the dance?
We say yes. We say it made the regular season more intriguing but the NCAA tournament - a three-week mess that has become a roller coaster mixed with a parlay sheet - is now viewed as the Wildcats and everyone else.
There's little talk of Cinderellas and there is an air of inevitability in this tournament that we have not felt since in a long time. Even that great UK team in '12 and the UNC team with Hansborough and Co., there was tangental angles that offered intrigue.
Of course, that said, it was 30 years that the biggest slam dunk took the biggest chin shot in the game's history when Villanova toppled mighty Georgetown.
Still, here are the staggering odds form Vegas about the Wildcats' dominance (from pregame.com):
UK is +120, which means Kentucky is now a slight underdog against the field according to the pros in Vegas (bet $100 wins $120);
Kentucky -350 to make the Final Four ($350 wins $100);
It's a 10/1 payoff if Kentucky wins every game by double digits;
It's a 4/1 payoff if Kentucky does not trail in the second half of any tournament game;
It's a 25/1 payoff if Kentucky never trails in any Tournament game;
Over/under 25 minutes of total time UK trails in the tournament;
Crazy right?
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NFL narrative
Excellent discussion here yesterday after the Borland announcement. Well-played all around.
And as true to form, another excellent column from TFP ace Mark Wiedmer on the topic.
We concur with the sentiment here yesterday that it will not alter the game at all. There will be hundreds of guys who would cut off a digit to take Chris Borland's place with the San Francisco 49ers.
In this Sunday, Nov. 23, 2014, file photo, San Francisco 49ers inside linebacker Chris Borland (50) tackles Washington Redskins running back Alfred Morris (46) during the second half of an NFL football game in Santa Clara, Calif. The 49ers announced late Monday, March 16, 2015, that Borland is retiring after one season, without offering specifics.But we do believe the following changes will come as the narrative starts to turn.
Teams are going to have to evaluate a player's goals before drafting/signing them. The investment in a guy who is in it for the short term is too great and too painful for the organization. Ask San Fran, which is now scrambling to fill what was a position of strength at linebacker after two retirements in the last two months.
The NFL does not care about player safety as much as it cares about legal deniability in lawsuits regarding player safety.
The future of the game takes a hit every time one of these stories is discussed because mommas unload, "See, I told you football's."
The game is ascending and will be the pop culture icon of the next generation. It's made for TV and it's rolling right now.
But, think back through history, and baseball was the same thing before it became too slow and the strike happened. Football is going to face a serious player-owner safety debate the next time the sides discuss a contract.
Also, and possibly more comparably, there was a time when boxing was the king sport in this land, and being the heavyweight champion of the world was the greatest title in sports.
Head injuries toppled that one too.
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Win stuff
Here's the 5-at-10 hoops challenge:
Basketball tileWe will host and play in the fifth annual "Method to the Madness: Last-in, First-out Challenge." The rules are easy, pick the first No. 1 seed to get bounced and the last double-digit seed to be left in the dance. Since there are more double-digit seeds in the draw, in the case of a split tie (one has the double-digit and one has the No. 1 seed correct), we'll give extra credence to the double-digit seed. If we still have a tie after that, we'll let the Electric Elite Eight Shootout challenge serve as a second tie-breaker. (The Electric Elite Eight Shootout is when you pick two players alive in the second weekend and the pair that scores the most total points wins. We'll get to that next week.)
If you want to play a traditional bracket against us, we will be in the ESPN 105.1 FM challenge too.
Follow the instructions from this link.
You could win stuff - and it don't cost nuthin' gang.
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Diana TaurisiThis and that
- Furman Bisher died on this day three years ago. Selah Furman, you were legendary.
- Crazy story here on former UConn story Diana Taurisi, who says she can't afford not to play in Russia. Interesting read, and how she copes with a lot of vodka.
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Today's question
UTC women's head basketball coach Jim Foster directs players during the Lady Mocs' basketball practice and their Mocs Club Basketball Open House.Wow, we had Jim Foster on Press Row on 105.1 FM and timesfreepress.com on Tuesday, and he was awesome as usual.
Today, UTC football coach Russ Huesman is scheduled to join us at 4 p.m. in advance of the Mocs starting spring drills on Friday.
What questions do you have for the Mocs football poobah?