Columbus vs. Real Salt Lake, April 24, 2010

I apologize for the tardiness in this post, but this week has been rather busy, writing papers and doing interviews and such.  

This past weekend, I finally experienced a Columbus Crew game from the comforts of the Nordecke (pronounced Nor-deck-uh).  It was an experience to behold. 

Despite torrential downpours throughout the night and leaving more soaked than a wet blanket at a party (I'm talking to YOU, "guy-who-ruined-Highfest-with-your-feeble-attempts-at-starting-a-fire"), the atmosphere was electric and worthy of an entire blog post from yours truly.  

The amount of pride and excitement that the supporters sections show for the Crew is outstanding, and I wish that more people would realize how amazing the world's game actually is.  

It took me a few tries to get all of the songs right, but when I finally nailed them, I sang them loud and proud, and was enveloped with passion for "Guilleeeeeermo" and "Paduuulllaaaa" (Guillermo Barros Schelotto and Gino Padula, respectively).  

The game itself was mediocre at best, only because the Crew played sloppily in the second half and nearly let Real Salt Lake steal a draw long past the 80th minute mark.  But it was the superb keeping of Will Hesmer that kept the Crew from losing this one at home.  Schelotto put the Crew ahead in the first half off a penalty kick, but his play mirrored that of the team during the second half.  Mediocre at best, with the majority of his crosses finding the defender rather than his streaking teammates.  

However, the Crew pulled through, and I have become hooked on the Nordecke.  The Crew play at home May 5th, and I may just make the midweek drive to Columbus to support the city's finest team.  

For more information on the Crew, visit thecrew.com, or mlsnet.com for more information on Major League Soccer.

A New Experience

In one of my previous posts, I mentioned many things about the atmosphere at Crew games, and how "hooliganism" is becoming OK in American soccer.  

Today, I am about to experience this for the first time.  I will return tomorrow with a more detailed look at this experience, and how it affects the fan who cannot participate in this every time.  

It should be a good post, I'll see you all on Sunday afternoon!

BREAKING NEWS: Armon Bassett Declares for NBA Draft

According to John Groce, Ohio guard Armon Bassett will declare for the NBA draft, but has not hired an agent.  

In his press conference, Groce said that since he did not hire an agent, he is eligible to return to Ohio University and play for the Bobcats next year if he withdraws from the draft by May 8.

What does this mean for Bobcat fans?  It means that it's either the NBA or NCAA for Bassett, who is unlikely to take a gig in Europe, considering he decided not to hire an agent.  That's good news for the Attack U nation.  

This gives Armon time to talk to the NBA draft committee to see what his chances of being drafted are, and apply for Ohio University again in the instance he decides to return for his senior season.  

If he returns for his senior year, Ohio would return its top scorer from the Mid-American Conference and NCAA tournaments.  

If he doesn't return, it opens up a second scholarship for John Groce, as Asown Sayles has decided to graduate and leave the university following spring quarter.  

Visit Bobcat Attack, the official fan board for Ohio athletics to discuss today's press conference events.  

Let's Play Clean Boys

Yesterday, Ben Roethlisberger was suspended for the first six games of the 2010 season for violating the NFL Player Conduct policy.  There are currently sexual assault allegations against the PIttsburgh Steelers quarterback, a result of a night of partying in a Georgia town.   

Is this right?  Can a player truly be suspended for close to half of his season on PENDING allegations?

The definitive answer is YES, because sports in today's culture is so micromanaged, and so public, that you have to avoid negative publicity at all costs if you are the league in question.  

Not only are these athletes being scrutinized by the watchful eyes of the media, but also their adoring fans.  3-year-old's who someday wish to be just like Tiger, or just like "Big Ben" are seeing first hand what it means NOT to be a good role model.  

Sports is a business now (despite the feeling I have deep in my heart that they are always pure, and that players play "For the love of the game"), and commissioners are acting accordingly, making sure the negative publicity doesn't take away from the quality of the product.  

A recent article by USA Today reveals that the crime rate by NFL players has significantly dropped since Goodell implemented the policy in April 2007.  

Baseball is suffering the same ordeal, only not with player conduct.  Rather, MLB is still dealing with steroid allegations and positive tests, years after the first instances of steroid use by popular players were made public in 2005.

This "60 Minutes" story, which first aired in 2005, hints at the hypocrisy in MLB, and how much work still needs to be done to clean up the league, even five years later. 

The NBA?  They have suffered as well, but not as much recently.  "The Malace at the Palace," an infamous brawl between the Detroit Pistons and the Indiana Pacers took the media by storm, which led to the coining of the phrase "The Thug League."  

Kobe Bryant was the center of a sexual affair scandal in 2003, bringing more negative publicity to the league.  

Most recently, Tiger Woods has been the king of "Sports Icons Who Dramatically Fall From Their Pedestal."  His sexual affairs, and his confession to sex addiction rocked the sports world, and even made enormous waves in the global media.

Some question why we should care what these athletes do in their free time.  They ask why we cannot just take what we get on the field, and leave our love for these athletes at that.  

I will pose this question:  Why do sports have such a large influence on us as humans that we spend hundreds, if not thousands of dollars a year watching them, buying clothes with logos of our favorite teams, and playing them?  

For something as important as sports, we have to hold those who play them at its highest level to a certain degree of morality.  

Play the games fair, teach our kids valuable lessons, and make the world a better place. 

Crazy for the Cavs

Today was an interesting day at work, because I had told myself that despite being ridiculously busy, I would at least have the night off to watch sports and what not (I work at Chipotle, and its the only Chipotle within a 40 mile radius of Athens, so needless to say, its a busy place).

However, as I was sitting there eating breakfast, I had an epiphany of sorts.  I realized, "Hey, the Cavs are on today at 3, so we probably won't be busy the last hour I work...hmmmm."

It was a stretch, but I was going to assume that since an Ohio team was in the playoffs, and are tabbed to win the NBA Championship this year, that everyone was going to watch the Cavs game.  

The first three hours wore on, the line of people waiting to get their burrito stretched out to the sidewalk, and I could hardly think straight anymore.  

Then, the unthinkable happened.  Once the helped the last person in line, there was no one behind them.  I looked at the clock.  

Just like clockwork (Pun DEFINITELY intended), everyone had gone home, to the bar, or to their buddies house to watch the Cavs, because it was 3 o'clock!  

What does this mean?  It means that Ohio sports fans are yearning for greatness so much that they will stop whatever they're doing to watch their teams.  And you know what, there is nothing wrong with that.  It speaks volumes of our ability to commit to the long term.  And that makes us valuable assets, and reliable people.  You can always count on us to support our teams, and never back down.  

I made reference to this attitude in a post about being a fan of a mid-major college, and it has shown itself once again amongst the subjects of the effervescent King James.

King James, it's time to take your people to the promised land. 

Armon Bassett's Twitter

 Ohio guard Armon Bassett has been mum on whether or not he will return for his senior season next year, and while no official statements have been made, it's easy to make educated guesses based on his tweets.  

I hope this post doesn't cause him to delete me from his Twitter followers, but Armon Bassett has been dropping huge hints at what he is going to do next year in terms of his basketball career.  Three tweets that have stuck out to me are the following:

1. Today should be John Groce Appreciation Day. In my heart I kno he couldve had that Clemson job but didn't take it bcuz of Us 2:15 PM Apr 13th via web  
2.  Hello world! Great day to be a bobcat.. 10:33 AM Apr 9th via mobile web
3. Bout to tell coach groce to schedule butler next yr.. At butler too.. I want a piece them 9:44 PM Apr 5th via web 

This first tweet insinuates that Groce was offered the coaching job at Clemson, but he stayed because of the team he is going to have next year.  No official statements have been made by Groce nor the Athletic Department on this issue, so Armon made a statement to those who happen to be following him on his social network. 

The second tweet is a little more generalized, but it stills give us a look at what is going through his head right now.   He loves being a Bobcat, and it sounds like through his other tweets, he loves being in Athens and on campus.  

The last is the biggest red flag of all.  Not because it holds untruths or defames any person or thing, but because it is a total giveaway to what Armon wants.  He straight up tells his followers, "I want a piece of Butler, NEXT YEAR."  

Hint, you can't play Butler if you're not in college. 

So followers, you can always trust your athletes to give you the most personal and up to date information on themselves, without ever having to talk to them.  Twitter is wonderful.  

And if for some reason, Armon starts moderating his content (Say, moderates it so that the journalists can't figure out whats going on), I'll be happy to say I wrote this on my blog first. 

The Music of Sports

Every time you go to a basketball, hockey, football, or baseball game, you are going to hear music that is designed to excite you as a fan.  Music is dramatic, and so is sport, so it is only natural that the two go hand in hand with one another.  

Here are four moments in a sporting event when music selection is key to tapping into the adrenaline of the fans in attendance.  

  

1.  Your college basketball team just went on a 15-0 run in the second half to take a slim two point lead with three minutes left in the game.

 My first exhilarating experience as an Ohio University basketball fan came my freshman year in Athens.  OHIO was playing George Mason in the 2008 Bracketbuster game on ESPN, and OHIO had just stormed back from a slight deficit to take a commanding lead in the second half.  

The Ozone was on the verge of eruption and the Convocation Center was loud as can be.  George Mason was forced to call a timeout, and the place went crazy when this song came on.

An O-H-I-O chant has been added to the end of the verse since then, with a resounding "U!" finishing off the simple, yet highly effective, adrenaline tapping jam.  

2.  It's 3rd down and 2 yards to go, and your favorite football team is on defense.  

If you assumed that I would put a link to "Hell's Bells," that would be too easy!  (Sorry Ohio State fans)

Sure, the majority of football teams in the United States use the bells to jack up their crowd, but Hans Zimmer's "The Kraken" from Pirates of the Caribbean is a solid choice as well (Note:  Skip ahead to 6:12 in the video to hear the theme at its darkest) 

If that's not your cup of tea, then get down with Ozzy Osbourne's "Iron Man."  Or AC/DC's "Thunderstruck."

Honestly, you can't go wrong with any of these.  I'm ready to charge through a brick wall just listening to them.    

3.  Your team is lined up in the tunnel and is preparing to take the field for the biggest game ever.  

 Trust me, if you haven't been in a stadium right before the teams come out, it is absolutely necessary to play the perfect song when the home team is running from the tunnel, or else you lose the intensity that may have been built up by the pregame show. (See Below)

The first one that comes to mind is this Young Jeezy hit from 2008.  Definitely makes you want to jump around a little bit and chest bump the person next to you.  

Or, perhaps you'll do a few fist pumps, a la Ronnie from "Jersey Shore."

Because I do contain slight bias, there is no entrance song better than the Cincinnati Bengals' "Welcome to the Jungle" as performed by Guns 'n Roses.  

In more obscure realms of musical delight, this Powerman 5000 power-synth-grunge anthem just might do the trick.  It's weird.  It's a little wacky.  But the philosophical message of world's colliding coincides perfectly with two teams of guys trying to bash each other into the ground just to run a ball across a line.  

4.  Pregame Introductions

You can't play mention any of the top pregame songs in sports without mentioned the legendary Chicago Bulls introduction music that become wildly popular during the Michael Jordan reign of the 1990's.

If you are in need of a good jam for your pregame introduction video, look no further than Paul Oakenfold's "Zoo York." (The theme starts at 2:02 of the video)

My personal all-time favorite is Fatboy Slim's "Right Here, Right Now."  Forgive my vague use of the word "epic," but that's the perfect word to describe this song.

One final song that many teams use (And OHIO should use too, just saying) is "Remember the Name" by Fort Minor.

Sports and music go hand in hand with one another.  The right choices must be made or else the music doesn't work at all, and your fans will become lazy and bored.  Pick the right music, and they will come. 

MLS Is Awesome!

Reason No. 1 that MLS is Becoming Relevant Again:  Uniforms

Beginning in 2007, MLS allowed its clubs to seek corporate sponsorship and place the company’s logo on jerseys for advertising purposes.  The league has struggled to find an identity with their uniforms, but the new batch issues by Adidas is well on its way to fixing the problems of the past. 

Fanhouse.com writer Brian Straus does a good job analyzing this years crop of kits for those who may have no clue what is supposed to look good and what isn’t.  Actually, his blog post is far superior to this one, so if you find yourself wandering around his page more than here, I will accept it and work harder next time. 

FINALLY putting those sponsorship logos on the kits make MLS teams look like actual soccer clubs.  Not to mention, it’s bringing in some needed dollars.  The key to relevancy has been money for MLS, and sponsorships should help bring more clubs out of the red.  

Reason No. 2:  The David Beckham Experiment

Yes, he’s not here anymore (Technically he is, but we all know his heart isn’t), and yes, he angered the entire country when he feuded with teammate Landon Donovan, but the way in which the league got him to come to the US and play soccer has defined the league.  If the league blossoms and becomes as large as the Big 4 (NBA, NFL, MLB, NHL), you can bet top dollar it was because of David Beckham. 

The league’s designated player rule allows clubs to pay a player as much money as they want, and that player only take up $335,000 of cap space.  This has brought European power players Juan Pablo Angel and Freddie Ljundberg to the States, as has opened the door for clubs to pursue other European stars.  

I’ll note, however, that no club with a designated player has won an MLS Cup.  Not to say these players aren’t worth it, but they need to be used the right way, and with the right club.  Not just to look pretty and make the headlines (See David Beckham)

Reason No. 3:  Hooliganism

OK, so its not European style hooliganism, where unfortunately people have died in large scale battles with opposing supporting groups.  BUT, it’s on the rise, and it’s awesome.  Supporters in Columbus and Toronto (archrivals and nemeses to one another) are among the leagues most rowdy and aggressive.  

I haven’t had the luxury of going to a match in quite some time, but season ticket holder for the Columbus Crew recently told me that the “atmosphere is completely different than five years ago, and its awesome.”  He said there are still the same numbers of fans, but those who attend are more involved, more supportive, and generally crazier than ever before.  

If you dig deep enough, you can find a page on Wikipedia that talks about American Soccer hooliganism, and because of the creation of a team in Portland, a rivalry will most likely emerge between Seattle and Portland that will rival the intensity of Columbus-Toronto. 

Don’t flinch, soccer is becoming relevant in the United States.