This week i witnessed one of the more impressive team performances I've seen in college sports in a while, from the Division II Chaminade University Silverswords of Hawaii basketball team. Most people know Chaminade as the host school of the Maui Invitational, a eight team tournament which usually involves several of NCAA's elite teams. Chaminade is usually the only Division II team and entering this year's tournament they had just won 5 games in the 25 year history of the 3-game tournament.
Chaminade's all time record in the Maui invitational reflects the huge difference between Division I and Division II basketball. Think about it like this: There's about 360 Division I college basketball teams which offer 12 scholarships per school, which means there is usually a significant drop-off in talent between the two levels.
Apparently Chaminade didn't receive that memo. In the first of the Silversword's three games, Chaminade played Michigan State down to the wire, losing by just eight points. May I remind you that Michigan State was the #2 team in the country, and a popular pick to win this year's NCAA Division I Championship. Yet Chaminade, led by 5"6 inch point guard Steven Bennett and center Mamadou Diarra were able to keep the game that close.
Chaminade managed to win its third game against the Oklahoma Sooners, 68-64. While Oklahoma is not a basketball powerhouse, they are still a high profile team, and the Silverswords clearly asserted themselves as the better team. As the ESPN analyst mentioned, both Bennett and Diarra are Division I-talent and were good enough to start for the Sooners.
Prior to their win against Oklahoma, the last time Chaminade won was in 2007, against Princeton. At the conclusion, Bennett was named to the All-Tournament Team, an honor shared with some of college basketball's elite players. The last time a Chaminade player made the All-Tournament team was in 2000.
Overall, a very impressive effort and I'm looking forward to see how Chaminade handles its schedule this season
Sunday, November 28, 2010
Blog Housekeeping Issues: One Year Later
Just about a year ago, I started my own blog, The Friedman Focus, mostly as a diversion from writing my senior thesis and as a way to write about my thoughts and opinions on certain issues. When I started the blog, I chose not to limit my blogging to a particular subject. Over the course of the past year, I've blogged about a lot of issues, from school politics to shopping to local news. However, I have decided to take the blog in a new direction. For those of you who know me personally, one of the things I am most passionate about is college sports, which is one of the things I feel that I can write about with ease.
This past weekend, at my grandmother's 75th birthday party, I ran into my cousin Lee, who has started her own blog, College Foodie Finds, where she blogs about healthy eating choices geared towards college students (check it out, I recommend it). In talking about blogging, Lee pointed out how she writes a blog post once or twice a day. After thinking about the mission of my blog, I've decided to just focus on college sports instead of focusing on broad topics. I'm going to try to post a news or opinion topic about college sports daily. Also, you may have noticed the new design of the blog.
On to year two!
This past weekend, at my grandmother's 75th birthday party, I ran into my cousin Lee, who has started her own blog, College Foodie Finds, where she blogs about healthy eating choices geared towards college students (check it out, I recommend it). In talking about blogging, Lee pointed out how she writes a blog post once or twice a day. After thinking about the mission of my blog, I've decided to just focus on college sports instead of focusing on broad topics. I'm going to try to post a news or opinion topic about college sports daily. Also, you may have noticed the new design of the blog.
On to year two!
Wednesday, November 10, 2010
Inside the Cam Newton Allegations
About a week and a half, I was prepared to write a blog post celebrating Auburn's star quarterback Cam Newton, the Heisman Trophy frontrunner, for passing up a question on the possibility of skipping his senior season to enter the NFL Draft. Newton declared that it would be "selfish" to think about individual awards or the NFL in a season where Auburn is contending for a national championship. The fact that the best player in college football would so candidly reject a question about the NFL seemed refreshing compared to recent actions of Brett Favre and Randy Moss.
Only a few days later, both ESPN and The New York Times reported of a story that last year as a junior college player, Newton was being shopped around to various colleges by a middle man. In the past week, their has been several alleged reports which would not render Newton ineligible, but would damage his credibility in the eyes of Heisman voters. The latest report, from ESPN last night, alleges that Newton decided on Auburn from tons of scholarship offers, because the money "was too much" to pass up. Alleged reports have indicated that Newton or his father set up a "pay-to-play" plan in which Newton would have been paid by boosters to attend Auburn. For the most part, Auburn has neither confirmed or denied any or the reports and the school has simply stressed the fact that Newton remains eligible to play.
Newton's lofty performance this season, coupled with the fact that he is still eligible to play, has left him as the favorite to win the Heisman. Newton's on-field performance is clearly deserving of the award, however, it would be hard for me to consider him a Heisman winner if the allegations turn out true. Many sportswriters, including Sports Illustrated's Michael Rosenberg acknowledge that "pay to play" plans and under the table payments have been a dirty staple in college football history, and for that it would be a mistake to victimize Newton. In some ways, yes, it is wrong to single out Newton. However, it is a greater mistake to look the other way and allow these under the table payments to continue. You cannot justify something in 2010, based on an issue that has been largely ignored.
"Because its always been this way," simply isn't a good enough answer anymore. More than ever, there is scrutiny inside college sports. With budgets of tens of millions of dollars, College Athletic Departments are being held accountable like corporations. Just like corporations have a moral responsibility, so do athletic departments and their representatives (coaches, staff, and players). It is time for the appropriate parties to live up to that responsibility.
Only a few days later, both ESPN and The New York Times reported of a story that last year as a junior college player, Newton was being shopped around to various colleges by a middle man. In the past week, their has been several alleged reports which would not render Newton ineligible, but would damage his credibility in the eyes of Heisman voters. The latest report, from ESPN last night, alleges that Newton decided on Auburn from tons of scholarship offers, because the money "was too much" to pass up. Alleged reports have indicated that Newton or his father set up a "pay-to-play" plan in which Newton would have been paid by boosters to attend Auburn. For the most part, Auburn has neither confirmed or denied any or the reports and the school has simply stressed the fact that Newton remains eligible to play.
Newton's lofty performance this season, coupled with the fact that he is still eligible to play, has left him as the favorite to win the Heisman. Newton's on-field performance is clearly deserving of the award, however, it would be hard for me to consider him a Heisman winner if the allegations turn out true. Many sportswriters, including Sports Illustrated's Michael Rosenberg acknowledge that "pay to play" plans and under the table payments have been a dirty staple in college football history, and for that it would be a mistake to victimize Newton. In some ways, yes, it is wrong to single out Newton. However, it is a greater mistake to look the other way and allow these under the table payments to continue. You cannot justify something in 2010, based on an issue that has been largely ignored.
"Because its always been this way," simply isn't a good enough answer anymore. More than ever, there is scrutiny inside college sports. With budgets of tens of millions of dollars, College Athletic Departments are being held accountable like corporations. Just like corporations have a moral responsibility, so do athletic departments and their representatives (coaches, staff, and players). It is time for the appropriate parties to live up to that responsibility.
Friday, November 5, 2010
Persa's Return to Penn State
Growing up in Pennsylvania, Northwestern's Dan Persa cheered on the Penn State football team. Both his mother and older sister are Penn State alums, and Persa too, hoped he would draw recruiting interest from the Joe Paterno and the Nittany Lions as a star high school quarterback in PA. Despite a productive career, one in which he became the first player in Pennsylvania to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in a single season, Persa barely drew any notice from Paterno and his staff. Apparently Persa was overlooked, because he was perceived as too small to play for Penn State. Instead, Persa opted to play at Northwestern, where he has emerged as one of the country's best quarterbacks, and a legitimate candidate for the Big Ten MVP
. Persa has completed 74.4 percent of his passes (2nd in the nation) and ranks in the top ten in total offense.
Tomorrow, Persa will return home to lead Northwestern against Penn State in State College, PA. The game will be intriguing, not only because of Persa's return, but the fact that Joe Paterno is seeking his 400th coaching win. This is a huge milestone, only two other coaches have won 400 games, and may never happen again. College football coaches simply have too much pressure, from the media, large contracts, alumni, boosters, and university officials, to last as long as the ageless Paterno, Penn State's coach since 1966. Most college football writers believe that, at best, seeing 400 again is extremely unlikely. Because of the rarity of this feat, the game will be broadcast nationally on ABC or ESPN2 at 2:30 CT. Paterno has admitted he regrets not recruiting Persa. For Persa, this is the game to show his State University what he is made of.
The game should be a close one, and hopefully the Wildcats can delay Paterno's milestone for the next week. Either way, it will be compelling.
Northwestern at Penn State
State College, PA
2:30 CT/3:30 ET
TV: ABC (Midwest), ESPN2 (Outer Markets)
. Persa has completed 74.4 percent of his passes (2nd in the nation) and ranks in the top ten in total offense.
Tomorrow, Persa will return home to lead Northwestern against Penn State in State College, PA. The game will be intriguing, not only because of Persa's return, but the fact that Joe Paterno is seeking his 400th coaching win. This is a huge milestone, only two other coaches have won 400 games, and may never happen again. College football coaches simply have too much pressure, from the media, large contracts, alumni, boosters, and university officials, to last as long as the ageless Paterno, Penn State's coach since 1966. Most college football writers believe that, at best, seeing 400 again is extremely unlikely. Because of the rarity of this feat, the game will be broadcast nationally on ABC or ESPN2 at 2:30 CT. Paterno has admitted he regrets not recruiting Persa. For Persa, this is the game to show his State University what he is made of.
The game should be a close one, and hopefully the Wildcats can delay Paterno's milestone for the next week. Either way, it will be compelling.
Northwestern at Penn State
State College, PA
2:30 CT/3:30 ET
TV: ABC (Midwest), ESPN2 (Outer Markets)
Thursday, November 4, 2010
Pat Quinn Projected for Governor
According to ABC 7 Chicago's 10 PM News, The Assoicated Press has projected Pat Quinn as the winner of the close race between the incumbent and Republican Bill Brady. The AP reported that the outcome of the Governor's race in Illinois is too insurmountable for Brady to overcome Quinn's lead. As of 10:10 pm, the Chicago Tribune Election Center Quinn had an 18,000 vote lead over Brady. While there are still some ballots left to be counted, it doesn't appear that there are enough to make a difference. Quinn hasn't made a formal announcement, and is apparently waiting for Brady to concede. Expect some announcement tomorrow.
Decision Points
George W. Bush's new memoir Decision Points will debut on November 9th and from the two reports I have seen on it, the book portrays Bush largely as a sympathetic figure, seeking to build a good legacy after leaving Washington with extremely poor ratings. One excerpt, from CNN, reveals that Kanye West created the worst moment of Bush's presidency when the rapper declared that Bush was racist following Hurricane Katrina.
Another excerpt,from the New York Times' The Caucus Blog , mentions how the book reveals that Bush considered removing Dick Cheney as his Vice President on the 2004 Election Ticket...Right and I guess the book will also say that going to Iraq wasn't the best decision in the end?
The book should be somewhat interesting/revealing. Its 497 pages, according to the New York Times' Book Review , so its not light reading. With that said, I don't think I'll be buying a copy.
Another excerpt,from the New York Times' The Caucus Blog , mentions how the book reveals that Bush considered removing Dick Cheney as his Vice President on the 2004 Election Ticket...Right and I guess the book will also say that going to Iraq wasn't the best decision in the end?
The book should be somewhat interesting/revealing. Its 497 pages, according to the New York Times' Book Review , so its not light reading. With that said, I don't think I'll be buying a copy.
Election 2010: Good and Bad
As the last of the absentee votes trickle in, its time to mark the close of the midterm elections. Obviously, the fact that Republicans took control of the House will be the legacy of the 2010 Election. Regardless of political affiliation, there are some good and bad things about what happened on November 2nd:
1. No more political commercials (for now). Any TV viewer apathetic to politics has to be relieved that the Elections are over. I can't remember a political cycle with campaign commercials as vicious as what I've witnessed in the Chicago market over the past several months. Of course, none of the commercials actually inform the viewer of their platform and who they are. Instead, politicians take the chance to rip the other candidate. The days of seeing two of these, every commercial break, are over until the 2012 campaigns begin.
2. New leadership. For Democrats, this is probably not a day you'll look back on with fondness. However, a change might be what is needed to jump start the country. Having a new wave of politicians in office may help strengthen the country in the long run, like what happened in the late 1990s.
3. With that in mind, one of the bad things about politics: Sore losers. For the past two years, there has been a lot of Republican resentment from the 2008 elections and that resentment probably will turn blue. I hope that Democrats do not spend the next two years pissed off. Even though I am a Democrat, I am supporting whoever is in office the next two years. At this time, Congress can't really afford not to be effective. America really needs to do the best it can with whoever is in office.
4. Political interest. I think one of the positive things about this election is how many people were interested and involved in the election. For a mid-term election, the turnout was really great. Among people my age, I felt that, there was just as much interest as the 2008 elections, which is a good sign.
1. No more political commercials (for now). Any TV viewer apathetic to politics has to be relieved that the Elections are over. I can't remember a political cycle with campaign commercials as vicious as what I've witnessed in the Chicago market over the past several months. Of course, none of the commercials actually inform the viewer of their platform and who they are. Instead, politicians take the chance to rip the other candidate. The days of seeing two of these, every commercial break, are over until the 2012 campaigns begin.
2. New leadership. For Democrats, this is probably not a day you'll look back on with fondness. However, a change might be what is needed to jump start the country. Having a new wave of politicians in office may help strengthen the country in the long run, like what happened in the late 1990s.
3. With that in mind, one of the bad things about politics: Sore losers. For the past two years, there has been a lot of Republican resentment from the 2008 elections and that resentment probably will turn blue. I hope that Democrats do not spend the next two years pissed off. Even though I am a Democrat, I am supporting whoever is in office the next two years. At this time, Congress can't really afford not to be effective. America really needs to do the best it can with whoever is in office.
4. Political interest. I think one of the positive things about this election is how many people were interested and involved in the election. For a mid-term election, the turnout was really great. Among people my age, I felt that, there was just as much interest as the 2008 elections, which is a good sign.
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