Kickball
OK, we have been dragged into the modern times and have even said a time or two that soccer is making in roads.
But the soccer revolution is still at least a generation away, and there's a new threat to the emerging empire.
Gang, you can't have long term success in this country unless you win. Period.
The ball gets past United States goalkeeper Brad Guzan for a Jamaica goal during the first half of a CONCACAF Gold Cup soccer semifinal. Wednesday, July 22, 2015, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore) And with last night's loss to Jamaica in ConFab or ComicCon or Conquistador Cup leaves plenty of questions of the long-term success of our American men in kickball.
Here's some well-measured questions about Jurgen, Jurgen, Jurgen and his personnel decisions.
And, this is not like it was a loss to Germany or Brazil, large countries who put way, Way, WAY more emphasis on soccer than we do as a society.
This was Jamaica, which has a smudge more population than Chicago.
That should be unacceptable, but in truth the relative silence is more painful to the soccer movement than the loss.
Think when this happened to the U.S. basketball team, and the overhaul and radical changes it caused.
The relative indifference by comparison for a loss to a country that would be our nation's third largest city magnifies the thought that our new-found soccer love in international settings is more patriotism than passion for the sport.
Hey, again, soccer will grow in the years to come. That's undeniable because there are going to be more and more adults down the road who grew up playing - and understanding the game's nuances - than ever before.
But, in a lot of ways, we have to ask is soccer itself ready for the big time?
There was the whole FIFA scandal.
There is the entire flopping debacle.
Plus, there was a potential walk-out because of a bad call in Mexico's win over Panama on Wednesday.
Does any of that say, "Hey we're ready to be the next big thing?"
Didn't think so.
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Inflating news
OK, this now makes the Roger Goodell stall tactics a little more plausible and makes the drama around Tom Brady's four-game suspension for DeflateGate a little more intriguing.
Goodell has this in front of him:
FILE - In this March 25, 2015, file photo, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell addresses the media at a news conference at the NFL Annual Meeting in Phoenix. The National Football League is giving up its tax-exempt status. In a letter to team owners, Commissioner Roger Goodell said the league office and its management council will file tax returns as taxable entities for the 2015 fiscal year. Goodell says the NFL has been tax-exempt since 1942, though all 32 teams pay taxes on their income. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File) Option one: Keep the suspension at four games, which would appease some high-powered owners who according to reports want to make sure the Patriots pay a penalty. It would mean Brady would sue the league in Federal court, which no one in this scenario wants. And in the court of public appeal, how well would Brady's four-game suspension play since it would be the same as what Greg Hardy officially got for his domestic violence troubles?
Option two: Drop it down to two games and negotiate with Brady not to sue. That will infuriate some of the owners who believe Goodell and Patriots owner Bob Kraft spend a little too much time together (the Roger and Bob sittin' in a tree song comes to mind). It also may not be enough for the players' association, which has said it wants Brady to be exonerated. Plus the players association would love a chance to sue in court and test the legal definition and limits of Goodell being the giver of punishment and then the appeal court on whether his first decision was just.
Option three: Drop it to bagel, and let the entire world bellyache from on high about how Roger and the Patriots are smooching. Goodell couldn't care less about what the public thinks, but the owners are swirling and this option could very well cost Roger his job.
Tick, tock.
Senator, love the suit.
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Mocs
TFP UTC beat ace Mean Gene Henley has a report on the Mocs being the overwhelming favorite in the Southern Conference football race this season.
OK, we'll ask this and we want your feedback, too.
Could even the most optimistic Johnny Mocs Fan among us have imagined this scenario a decade ago?
Seriously?
UTC quarterback Jacob Huesman, left, who is preparing for his senior season with the Mocs, is the preseason pick for Southern Conference offensive player of the year. He won the postseason version of the award the past two years.Going from arguably the worst I-A college football team in the country - in 2004 UTC won two games and allowed fewer than 35 points exactly one time - to being a team that could win the whole thing is somewhat staggering.
Yes, Georgia Southern and App State leaving plays a rather large part in the Mocs being a consensus pick to win the league, but still.
Look at the progress and the pieces.
Jacob Huesman is in line to be a Walter Payton finalist.
The defense has five first-team All-SoCon picks.
It's a program that has a foundation and a high-arcing ceiling.
If UT is building brick-by-brick, Russ Huesman and company are to the point that the rebuilding job of the Mocs is just shingle by shingle.
Here's a vote that they will be playing late into December, and may even give JMC a chance to be the mist crazed fan in Frisco, Texas come January.
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This and that
- Chattanooga is blessed to have TFP ace columnist Mark Wiedmer. Dude is on a serious roll. Here's today's thoughtful and well-crafted take on the UTC men's track team. Well-played indeed Weeds.
FILE - In this Saturday, Nov. 2, 2013 file photo, South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier looks on during the first half of an NCAA college football game against Mississippi State in Columbia, S.C. Steve Spurrier has a message for all those "enemies" out there, saying he will remain South Carolina's coach for a long time. Spurrier said Wednesday, July 22, 2015 that he's not too old at 70 to coach and is not leaving the school where he has coached the past 10 years and is the team's career victory leader.(AP Photo/Rainier Ehrhardt, File) - We have a man crush on Steve Spurrier. Dude is great at his craft and enjoys the occasional Banquet Beer, but this is Spurrier at his worst. Poorly played indeed.
- Also, happy #NationalHotDogDay everyone. Who knew Rickey Henderson got his own national day? As they say at The Varsity, "What'll ya have?" Most important addition to a hot dog, as what are you picking if you only got to add one thing to your wiener? (Whoa, that sounds downright rude, huh?)
- Couple or three NBA tidbits: We'd love to see Becky Hammon get a shot at coaching an NBA team. If the NBA goes to the top eight making the playoffs form each conference, then they need to kill the divisions.
- Donnie Tyndall reportedly will be hit pretty hard by the NCAA in the coming days. Somewhere Sonny and Cher - and Bruce/Caitlyn Jenner - weep. Side note: And tip of the visor to Jomo for trotting out the Donnie Tyndall- Chaz Bono comparison from the start, but do you think Chaz gets a little miffed at all the love B/C Jenner has received.
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Today's question
OK, as most of the regulars around these parts know, we have a fair amount of appreciation for LeBron James.
FILE - In this June 7, 2015, file photo, Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James smiles during a news conference after Game 2 of basketball's NBA Finals in Oakland, Calif. Two people familiar with the negotiations say LeBron James has agreed to a one-year, $23 million contract with the Cavaliers for next season. The deal includes a player option for 2016-17. The people spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity Thursday because the contract has not been signed. James has informed the team he will return. (AP Photo/Ben Margot, File) You know this.
Well now his performance in "Trainwreck" is getting rave reviews.
So that leaves us with a Rushmore of sports stars playing themselves in movies? There are more than a few, and yes Kareem technically could have two spots - "Fletch" and "Airplane" both count since the kid blows his cover in the cockpit.
Roger, Roger.
Whatcha got and remember the mailbag.