From Cliff
Hey, I'm a long time 5-at-10 reader and have listened to Press Row from the beginning back when you were 1 to 3. You guys are awesome.
I have a few questions, and I don't know if it would qualify for Friday's mailbag, but these are just a few things I was wondering.
First, did you see the rift between Finebaum and Harbaugh? That cracked me up.
Second, Friday is Jordan's birthday. We were wondering what would be on your Rushmore of MJ moments.
Finally, I have heard you talk about the responses you get from your A2 column. Do you still get a lot of them and what are they like.
Thanks.
Cliff -
This works as a mailbag for sure. (Heck, as long as there's not cussing, we're pretty sure anything works for mailbag these days on the interwebs.)
In order, and we have a lot to get to today, so we will try to be brief. (Yes, we said try.)
I did see the spat between Paul Finebaum and Michigan coach Jim Harbaugh. And in truth, in terms of verbal jabs, each landed a haymaker. Finebaum called Harbaugh the Donald Trump of college football, and it's a good a stingy comparison because Harbaugh does a lot of outlandish things just because he can.
Harbaugh's retort was genius, and in true Trumpian fashion, it happened on Twitter. "Pete Finebaum, the unabashed SEC water carrier, really needs to get his facts straight. #AlternativeFacts
9:34 PM - 16 Feb 2017
Awesome. (And we all know the ultimate punch to Finebaum's persona is the whole "Pete" jab. That is so well played.)
As for MJ, man that's tough. Dude had so many iconic moments right. In fact, let's break out the iconic photo moments and the iconic plays. Deal? Deal.
Rushmore of MJ images: On the bench in the flu game; the shoulder shrug after burying 3 after 3 after 3 in the Finals against the Blazers; the celebration against Ehlo and the Cavs; the extended follow-through on the Finals-winning jumper over Russell and the Jazz.
Rushmore of MJ highlights, and man there were so many: The jumper to win the NCAA title in New Orleans; the drive in the Finals when he switches hands in mid-air (you know the one); the iconic dunk contest leap from the foul line; and the play (some would say push off) that led to the shot over Russell to beat the Jazz.(Side question: Is MJ's Nike silhouette more iconic than Jerry West's NBA logo? Discuss.)
As for the feedback, well, it still amazes me. And in this time of political unrest and discussion, I get more direct feedback from A2 than I ever in sports. Here are two from last Saturday on the same topic of the short-lived dress code at Southside Social.
EMAILER 1
I enjoy your column, RIGHT TO THE POINT very much.
Today was particularly good. Specifically, I too offer kudos to the Southside Social for their dress code. We can only hope that it catches on for other establishments. I live in Cleveland so it won't affect me very much but it is a step in a direction I applaud.
Second point....your comments regarding the "men/women in blue" was right on. They deserve our thanks and respect more than I can adequately say. Thank you for saying better.
Keep on holding the 'elected' officials feet to the fire. They need to know someone is watching.
EMAILER 2
South side Social will close their doors within 6 months. Young millennials do not care for intolerance. Nor do I.
I'm sure we will see more Trump like regulations as his minions try to mimic his (A-hole) ways. (Sorry but I couldn't think of a better word.)
Stick to Sports Jay!
Yep, these are our readers.
From Sportsfan
For the mailbag...Would Tiger be better off just admitting that he doesn't have the same game he had prior to his allegedly taking a 9 iron in the teeth rather than using the bad back excuse? He won a major on one leg, so the bad back is getting to be a lame excuse in my opinion. Several PGA players have had back issues (Couples comes to mind) without the "drama" that Tiger creates. It might take some pressure off Tiger to just admit it, and work through improving his game. No one stays at the top forever...except maybe the 5 at 10.
Sportsfan -
No doubt.
In fact, it would be so refreshing and real for Tiger to sit down - even if he hand picks the reporter (here's money on Tom Rinaldi in a fireside chat with soft music and Kleenexes for everyone) - and just shoot it straight.
He missed almost a whole year, comes back and plays very mediocre in one tournament but talks about how great he feels and then his back is so balky he can't make it through a press conference.
This is in a confusing place from the outside looking in. The only think we can think is that Tiger actually believes he's going to get back to being Tiger.
(In some ways that makes sense. The three most irrationally confident to extreme athletes on the planet are, cornerbacks, golfers and elite shooters. Corners have to immediately forget the previous play. Golfers routinely look for someone or something else to blame because if it gets in their heads that they actually may have made a mistake or actually can't do something, they are cooked. And shooters, well, for elite shooters, 0-for-21 simply means there's a 25-for-27 stretch coming.)
We concur, Sportsfan, that simply talking in real terms would make the most sense and in short, we think everyone this side of his caddie can see where we are.
Everyone, that is, except for Tiger himself.
From Will R.
Saw this week where you wrote about Tiger and his back.
I started following golf because of Tiger. Who is on the Rushmore of stars who changed their game the most.
Will R. -
Will, you are far from alone in the group picture of the people who started watching golf because of Tiger Woods.
Dude was transcendent. He became what people talked about Monday at work. He was on the short list of people - like Tyson and Jordan - for length stretch of time that you watched because you didn't want to miss what he might do and what everyone would be talking about the next day.
And man, what a great question. So good in fact, we're going to split into two categories:
Athletes who changed their sport and non-athletes who changed their sport.
Athletes: Babe Ruth (yes baseball was popular, but he made it the national pastime); Arnold Palmer (before Tiger, Arnie brough golf to the masses); Magic and Larry (they have to be meshed as one because together they truly saved the NBA) and Tiger Woods. (Yes, that's two golfers on one list, but that's where we are.)
Non-athletes: Pete Rozelle (simply put, dude put the NFL in position to become the monolith it is today and likely is the greatest commissioner in sports history), Branch Rickey (you know why), Pat Summitt (who knows what happens to women hoops if Pat was not Pat) and Don King (this one is for all the wrong reasons, and when the final obit is written about boxing, know that King planted the death seeds).
Great question.
UTC guard Rodney Chatman, left, passes the ball ahead of teammate Nat Dixon, right, and Citadel guard Frankie Johnson during the Mocs' home basketball game against The Citadel at McKenzie Arena on Wednesday, Jan. 11, 2017, in Chattanooga, Tenn.From Jomo (in multiple parts)
For the mailbag : Every time a Coach, AD or General Manager is asked by a reporter about another job they always answer " I have not been officially contacted by blah, blah... " and NEVER does a reporter follow up with " well have you been unofficially contacted ? " or " Has your Agent been contacted ? ". It's almost like not swinging at a hanging curveball out over the plate. My question is why does the reporter Not ask the follow up question ? is it because the reporter is afraid he will get cut-off from future from said coach or AD or GM ? would seem like in today's sports media competition some reporter, somewhere would not be afraid to ask the follow up ?
Also After Kentucky slaughter of the UTK Vols last night, Can we please stop pretending that UTK is on the bubble for NCAA tourney ? unless it is some other bubble, like the dot.com bubble or the Mortgage crisis bubble.......I mean seriously a team with a losing conference record in a weak conference ?
And finally Great idea for a Rushmore. With the Chattanooga v ETSU game coming, Rushmore of players, one for each side, of the rivalry. ETSU- Mister Jennings, Timmy Smith, Calvin Talford, Greg Dennis UTC- Brandon Born, Keith Nelson, Chad Copeland, Ashley Champion, what you got ?
Jomo -
In reverse order:
We are not well-versed enough in the history of UTC hoops to make a fair Rushmore of this rivalry. Opinions from longtime fans such as you and MT and BiB would carry way more weight. In fact, we'll see if we can get a response from Weeds and post here. Deal? Deal.
As for No. 2, I would agree that UT is on the outside looking in, but the perspective that the Vols are still on the bubble is valid because a) the computers love UT's resume and b) the committee has vowed to be more analytic (i.e. computers) in the selection process.
We were intrigued most by your first question. In fact, this has been an interesting transition in the time of journalism in general and interviewing across all sections of a newspaper or desks of a TV broadcast.
Your point is valid, and there're a lot of layers to that. (Please do not take this as anything more than our view on how this transition has happened.) Let's look at the eras of sports reporting, since your specific instance was about GMs or ADs or what have you.
Forever, the media throng would protect guys like Babe or Arnie or Mickey or you name it. They were heroes - to everyone - and the reporters sculpted those heroic tales that did not include running around or drinking too much or what not.
The last two megastars who got this kid-glove treatment were Jordan and Tiger, and that signified the change that was about to come in the media-star relationship. The old-school guys were buddies with the press, and the press took care of them.
Jordan and Tiger - and now even the newfound confidence of LeBron James in interviews that in striking contrast to his more reserved past - know that the media needs them more than they need the media.
With all these various platforms and avenues - and Derek Jeter's "Player's Trubune" is only going to grow in stature and significance if you ask me - superstars know they set the agenda. That transfers to the powers that be in terms of mega-name GMs and all-power coaches.
And that transfer has happened rather quietly and succinctly but overwhelming in recent years. The public loves Gregg Popovich being a jerk. Nick Saban could sacrifice a small child on the Wednesday teleconference and Alabama nation will blame the guy asking the question. The only way we could expect Bill Belichick to tell the whole truth to the media is if a) he was sworn in in a court of law or b) he was Pinocchio's older brother.
Even to your specific question, you are not blaming the AD for wiggling out of the question with a qualifier, you are (and in a lot of ways rightfully) blaming the media for not asking the follow-up. As for the reasoning on not asking the follow-up, well, we have been in a lot of tense interview settings. (The most tense was Tiger's first return to Augusta after the flush 9-iron Sportsfan referenced.)
And maybe this sounds like an excuse, but this is our best view on it.
Question gets asked. Answer "I have not been officially contacted." If you ask the follow-up you are referencing, 99 times out of 100 (at least), the answer is going to be the same thing and you run the risk of causing a hasty or earlier than expected exit from the interviewee, which means fewer chances to get something usable or enlightening or good.
That said, that has become a bigger problem than most realize, especially when dealing with mega-star coaches like Saban or whomever.
Because we believe we know what their answer is going to be - and, let's face it, we all know so many of those answers are going to be - we let the coaches and the ADs off easy by not forcing them to at least put those lame answers out there.
It's a catch-22, in which the reporters are trying to get something new and more interesting, but it also looks like they are missing the elephant in the room at times, if that makes sense.
This is part of big problem in an industry filled with big problems. A lot of those big problems, those of us in the news BID-ness have very little control over.
But your point highlights something Paschall and I have discussed on Press Row from 3-6 on ESPN 105.1 regularly: The questions asked in a lot of these news conferences are far-too-often dreadful.
David Blackburn speaks at a luncheon with the Chattanooga Quarterback Club in 2013, which marked his first public appearance after being introduced as UTC Athletic Director two weeks prior.From MocTastic
Now for the MAILBAG. Seeing that David Blackburn is a finalist for the UTK AD job, I have a question. Two of the major functions of an AD is to hire coaches and raise funds. Blackburn has done the first quite well at UTC, but we are curious just how well he has done the second. Maybe you can get your sleuths to answer the question, where is the UTC Athletic Office additions at in the funding process and when can we expect groundbreaking? This was made out to be one of the major missions of his at UTC and we aren't hearing much on how its going. Thanks.
MocTastic -
MT, we think that is a very astute point.
Blackburn in terms of hiring coaches and putting people in place to have on-field success has been an absolute grand slam AD. In fact, it's hard to picture the improvements across the board in terms of on-field success.
And to be fair, as far as the student-athletes go, their off-the-field success in the classroom has also been aces. Blackburn and the leadership of the department (especially the excellent work of Emily Blackman, who has been aces as the director of the student-athlete support services) deserve some kudos for that as well.
But your reference to fund-raising is very interesting, and that appears to be somewhat stagnant. In fact, we're willing to bet that the main reason the UT job is still open is some concerns from some very big Big Orange donors about whether Blackburn can generate the kinds of donations needed at a place like Knoxville. (Yes, we know you are thinking, "What, UT doesn't need big donations? They get like $40 million from the SEC each year." Well, that still leaves around $60 million to fund the annual nine-figure budget, and that's not even talking about the extra coin needed to keep on building and expanding the facilities in the arm's race that is the SEC.)
In fact, the future of college sports fund-raising is going to be even more vital on the big-boy level because at some point the TV money will flatten but the expenditures for elite coaches, facilities and accommodations - never mind if they start paying players at the higher level - will only grow.
It's those fund-raising concerns, in our view, that also make Phillip Fulmer the front-runner in K-town.
We will see what we can find out about the status of the expansions and the progress (possible stagnation) of that process, because you are right, things have gotten quite quiet in that regard.
It also doesn't help that some of the biggest UTC donors were less than thrilled that Russ is no longer in town, and the undercurrent of discord that unraveled in the end in that process.
Side question: Over/under 6,000 at McKenzie on Saturday to face UTC. We'll take the over. Whatcha got?
Great job gang, and enjoy the weekend.