Fútbol Celebrations…Bueno! Football Celebrations…No Bueno?

I know that some of you have really gotten into the spirit which is the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, and for that I am proud of you. It takes a certain sacrifice to sit down and watch a sport that you might not really care about otherwise, but you know its a big deal globally and you want to be a part of it. I get it. See, I’ve been a soccer fan since the late 90′s, so I’ve become accustomed to watching a match for 90 minutes and seeing only one goal or sometimes no goals scored. Doesn’t faze me.

However, I know it fazes you. You want to see action, you want to see goals, and you want to see someone win. Get outta here with these freaking ties you say. Understandable. So when we finally see a breakthrough in a soccer match, we see unbridled celebration by the players. Literally the entire team becomes unhinged and a player’s raw emotion comes out. Sometimes, its a premeditated celebration…something that he’s thought about for years, and he finally gets a chance to do it on the world stage. Sometimes, its just someone running around like a crazy man. That works too.

So why is it that we in the States cast stones at our favorite football players for doing similar celebrations when in fútbol it is beloved by the entire world?

Let me start this post by shouting out my dude Clark Matthews who gave me the inspiration to write this, because he is total opposite with me on this one. I appreciate you brother.

When scoring a goal constitutes in a laborious task of matriculating a ball up and down the field, I see nothing wrong with doing a celebration when finally scoring. In Clark’s case, I get it that there is more scoring in football than there is in soccer and thus the need to celebrate for one glorious goal doesn’t seem as needed. However, in a soccer match a game usually lasts for a little over 90 minutes, and while soccer players do flop and wear no pads, I would be remiss to say that the game is nowhere near as physically demanding as football.

So why is it that the NFL hates celebrating so much? They hate to see folks showing up the other team? Really? How about not letting the other team score? How about stop being so damn sensitive when someone else celebrates? Then NFL players have the shortest span of playing time for anyone in professional sports, and with a league that doesn’t give out guaranteed contracts like they do in any other pro league, man let these dudes do the “Stanky Leg”, “Josephine Johnny”, “The Wop”, “Southside”, or any other ridiculous dance they want.

I tweeted a couple of days ago that the NFL was racist and just didn’t want to see the brothers out there celebrating and showing up the rest of the league. I don’t want to be the one to throw out the race card when it seems obvious, but what other reason can you come up with?

Now I can understand that you don’t want to have folks doing what T.O. did, by having ole buddy run to the middle of the Cowboys star and look up to the heavens. (By the way, I still thought this was dope but I wasn’t surprised to see George Teague then try to yuuule on Owens after the fact.) The NFL has always been reactionary when controversial things come into play, when Elmo Wright was the first player (a brother) to spike the ball it became the cool thing to do. Then folks started taking the spike to new levels and then they banned it. Same with Billy “Whiteshoes” Johnson started dancing in the endzone, it was cool at first, then they banned it. Chad “Ochocinco” Johnson started Riverdancing, putting with the pylon, and proposing to cheerleaders, all of this was cool, but then they shut him down too.

Yet you’re telling me that  folks doing triple sal cals, backflips, pelvic thrusts, and other dances and celebrations I can’t even begin to describe is beloved and folks wait with baited breath to see in soccer? First off, where do you think they even got the idea to do some of these celebrations? From the United States! We were the inspiration for some of these dances!

First off, the dude that does the Street Fighter fireballs/Dragon Ball Z kah-me-ah-may-ah moves had me cracking up. Also, the dude getting knighted was awesome. You telling me if Larry Fitzgerald did that they wouldn’t give him 30 yards in penalties but you’d be dying laughing.

Here’s the thing, watch the videos. You tell me what’s the difference between the two videos? Their eerily similar aren’t they? I ain’t saying, but I’m saying.

The NFL should take notes, and stop being the No Fun League.

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

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Posted By Ed The Sports Fan to Ed The Sports Fan at 6/23/2010 09:23:00 AM

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Eduardo (Eddie) Maisonet, III
Creator & Sr. Editor
Ed The Sports Fan
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All Hail The Coolest Baseball Player of our Generation

As fans, I think we should all be ashamed of ourselves for what has transpired in the last 12 hours. Somehow, we’ve let a soft, sensitive, sissified 1st-base umpire who’s testicular fortitude was tested by the apex of perfection and in jest dropped the proverbial ball in egregious fashion, that we’ve let the second most important athlete of the 1990′s go away without any fanfare whatsoever.

The pundits of professional sports have conveniently swept Ken Griffey, Jr.’s career under the rug as a #2 story as if we’ve never seen a perfect game before. You’ll see plenty more perfect games before you see as great a baseball player as Junior. (Hell, we’ve seen two already in this 2010 MLB season before the All-Star break) So pay respect, and tip your cap to someone who at 40 years old can still be called, “The Kid” and everyone knows the deal.

People have already started roasting Griffey not looking like “The Kid” he used to be, he finished this season hitting under the .184 with no homers. The pundits are saying he should’ve retired a long time ago, saying he was over the hill.

Let me tell you something, there’s a reason why when John Elway retired it was such a phenomenal thing. Because no one ever gets a chance to retire when they are on top, it rarely ever happens. When Jordan retired the first two times, it was utterly amazing because he was still on top. When Jordan retired the third time, everyone was like, “he should’ve never came back.” Why do folks say this? Because people have a strong tendency to only have short-term memory. When Jordan retired the 3rd time, folks were killing him.

With Griffey its already been the same way, piling dirt on the man when he finally realizes he can’t cut it anymore and when the game’s not fun anymore. Folks talking bad about Griffey falling asleep in the locker room “supposedly”. You know what? He’s a man, he’s 40! Old people tend to fall asleep more often than younger folks. Let the man get his winks in! Even my dude Stephen A. Smith this morning talked bad on him, which stunned me. “He couldn’t even show up to the stadium the next day and be appreciative of the fans.” What? Let that man retire on his own terms! He’s a grown man, he can do what the hell he wants to!

(from baseball-reference.com) And so, the retirement of one of the greatest centerfielders of all time takes back seat to an even bigger story. These days, it’s easy to forget the impact that Griffey had on the game. As a rookie in 1989 he was a favorite across baseball. Before McGwire and Sosa took center stage in 1998, Griffey was the pre-eminent power hitter in baseball and he averaged more than 50 HR over the 4 seasons from 1996 to 1999. Throw in excellent defensive abilities (in both flashy plays and fielding runs for the first half of his career) and this guy was an all-around stud. After 22 years, Griffey can now nod off to as long a guilt-free nap as he likes.

Recognize the fact that Griffey’s game was transcendent in a very similar capacity to Jordan’s career in the 90′s. Much like how Willie Mays changed the game with the over-the-shoulder catch, Griffey made the jump-at-the-wall watch look super easy (think the Jordan fadeaway) and with flair. Griffey had the super-dope Nike’s, I remember folks were hooping in his shoes religiously. Griffey’s cleats were $130. Trust me…I know, I had two pairs. His swing was so live that it rivaled Jordan’s jumpman as the dopest Nike logo for a period of time in the 90′s. He also dominated the Home Run Derby like Jordan did the Slam Dunk Contest, especially making it cool with wearing the hat backward. Even Griffey’s video game was great.

Ken Griffey Jr tribute @ Yahoo! Video

Folks seem to forget that Griffey was robbed of his quest for breaking Maris’ record in the strike shortened 1994 season (40 HRs in 111 game), forget the fact that he took LESS MONEY to play for his hometown Cincinnati Reds team, was destroyed by injuries while in Cincinnati for multiple years, and still finished 5th all-time in home run history. Understand that Griffey was destined to break Hank Aaron’s record, it was supposed to happen, it just didn’t because the baseball gods robbed him.

Ken Griffey Jr. was perfectly made to play this game, so don’t let a “perfect game” take away from not only the greatest baseball player of our generation, but the coolest baseball player of all-time (even with Willie Mays) stepping away from the game. All hail “The Kid.”

-Ed.
http://www.edthesportsfan.com/

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Expanding The Tournament To 96 Makes Sense…

Let the hate mail commence… (please send all emails to ed@edthesportsfan.com)

Did I shock you? Are you crazy yet? Freaked out? Have I blown your mind? If so, good. If not, well…good too.

The simple fact of the matter is, we at ETSF represent who you all are. Hardcore sports fans. However, I truly believe that we are more than just a fan, you see that would entail us to be a “fanatic” and I don’t know about you but I take my sports a bit more seriously that to be a fanatic about something. We’re connoisseurs of sport, and we have an intrinsic ability to appreciate what goes on between those lines. So I ask that you take all of that into consideration when you realize that the NCAA is not making this choice for us. They are making this choice for the casual fan. Why does the NCAA want to expand their greatest product, in this case March Madness, from 64 to 96 teams? Forget about what they SAY is their reasoning, here are the true facts.

1. The NIT is Irrelevant & Doesn’t Make Money – When was the last time you actually watched an NIT game and actually cared about the outcome? Never, never in life. Now, I could understand if your team was in the NIT, then the circumstance is different. However, you have major venues that do not make money from hosting the NIT, the networks aren’t receiving any ROI (return on investment) from their marketing because…no one’s watching. Plus, you basically have teams that are playing to see who is the 66th best team in college basketball. Is that a title you really want to brag out? I didn’t think so.

2. What’s The Difference Between #32 & #96? – Not much, in fact how ridiculous is the bubble anyway? How can you logically and realistically decide who the last at-large team in the tournament should be? Well, I know what your thinking…”Ed, even if you expand to 96 teams you’d still have folks complaining on who the 96th vs. 97th best team in the land is!” To a degree that is correct, however its much different when you’ve now allowed the regular season champion from the Sun Belt and its #2 seed who went 23-7 this year (when in the field of 64 only one team would make it) versus trying to decide who the 3rd best Patriot League team is compared to the 9th best Big 10 team. Now that’s ridiculous.

So look at the rankings…take the #32 vs. #96 team in the RPI. You’d get Wake Forest (19-9) vs. Harvard (20-7). ACC vs. Ivy. Harvard does have a quality win over Boston College, and played UConn & Georgetown tough in non-conference games and finished 3rd in their conference. Wake, who would be a #9 seed in a 65-team tourney, is the 5th best team in the ACC and have played lethargic basketball at times of the season. You telling me Harvard wouldn’t AT LEAST have a chance at beating Wake?

#3. Casual Fans = Ticket Sales = TV Ratings = Win for NCAA – Please understand this, the Super Bowl doesn’t receive those absurd ratings because of YOU! They receive those ratings because your mama and her friends watch the Super Bowl. People who on any other random sporting event day would have no reason to watch, now have another reason. If the tourney expands to 96, that means more fan bases get to watch their team play for something meaningful. Think about the teams on the bubble; Washington (Seattle), Ole Miss/Miss. State (the South), Seton Hall/Rhode Island (Northeast), Illinois (Chicago), Georgia Tech (Atlanta). Those are all major markets with teams who have fan bases that will travel. That means more money for the visiting sites, more people across the nation watching the games, and more teams that now have a chance at it all.

#4. One Shining Moment – Let me say this, this will not have any effect on some of the elite teams in college basketball, so the “purity” of the game really will not be affected. Plus, it gives us TWO MORE DAYS of March Madness! This is a good thing! We all yearn for the tourney to get here, and then it leaves as soon as it came. Prolonging it for two days won’t hurt, and you’re gonna watch it regardless. Plus, we know how this thang works…there will be a miracle team that will come from nowhere and make a magical run. We all remember the first time Gonzaga made a deep run, same with Tulsa, Siena, Xavier, and other programs. Think how epic it was when we watched VCU and the Eric Maynor show come alive before our very eyes. Most importantly, George Mason, who almost didn’t even make the tourney if they hadn’t have squeaked out the conference title.

One shining moment gives 32 more teams that opportunity. Think about it this way, in any other league’s playoff format almost HALF of the teams get a chance to make the playoffs. In the NBA and NHL, 16 of 30 teams make the playoffs (53%), in the NFL 12 of 32 teams make the playoffs (38%), in MLB its only 8 of 30 (27%). In college basketball? Only 65 out of 347 teams make the tournament. That percentage is just 19%. If you increased it to 96 teams you only increase the percentage to 27%, same as baseball. Remember that the tourney was at one point only THIRTY-TWO TEAMS! Just not that long ago, in the 80′s it was that way. Now we’re not trying to give ribbons of participation around here, but at the same time when such a small percentage of teams get the opportunity it isn’t the worst thing in the world to sweeten the pot a little.

Negatives of 96? What are you’re true negatives of expanding to 96 teams?

Is it because you just like things the way they were? I can understand that, I hate it when Facebook changes every 6 months but you’ve got to evolve with the times.

Is it because you think the regular season would be dead? Well guess what…the ratings would tell you that the regular season is already dead. WE watch college basketball in November, casual fans don’t. Remember what I said, this isn’t about us…its about the casual fans. The more you understand this concept, the easier your sports life will be.

96 won’t be so bad, we get more important basketball and more folks will feel included. I’ll take it.

(Now lets see if my boss will give me 4 days off of work instead of 2 days…)

-Ed.
www.edthesportsfan.com

Some Fans Should Just Stay at Home

“Excuse me, sir? Can you sit down? I can’t see.”

This question was posed to me while I was shockin’ the world at the Fiesta Bowl two months ago. Boise State and TCU were playing in Arizona, and with over 70,000 people, the odds that people were gonna stay in their seats were pretty slim. What made it bad for the person who asked me is that my sister goes to damn near all the TCU fans, and knows a fair-weather when she sees it. She just looked at the lady, and didn’t even bother sitting down. Shoot, my sister may have even cursed her out, but I was so live and excited that it didn’t matter what the lady said. There was no way in hell I was sitting down, and why should anyone? It’s the Fiesta Bowl for God sake, but see, this is why some fans are meant to attend games, and why some are better off staying at home.

Seriously, you’ll be hard-pressed to think of a more aggravating sight than a fan who either complains about folks not sitting down, or even worse, someone who takes a book or magazine to a game. Now don’t get me wrong; I love to read, and take a book pretty much anywhere I go, but there is one place a book will never come with along with me, and that’s to a game. You go to a game that’s a sell-out; not an empty seat in the house. The game is great, filled with highs and lows, only to look over to the side to see some clown sitting down with their head buried between the pages of a book. In my opinion, if it’s not the program you buy at the game, it needs to stay at the house, or in the car.

It’s understood folks pay their money, which gives them the same right as any fan in an arena. That’s understandable, but there’s still something about certain types of fans that comes off as pompous and seditty to me. If folks really don’t like people standing up at the game, because they can’t see, they need to save their bread for courtside seats, or sit in the skybox, or shut the *bleep* up, and deal with it. Sure, there are times when a view could be better if someone took a seat, but that’s something that comes with the territory of going to see a game. Folks are gonna be loud, do chants, and if they’re live enough, and you’re in the right atmosphere, you may even see something like this:

So for anyone who reads this, attends games and feels similar about this as I do, keep making noise, having fun, and doin’ what you do. As for folks who do the opposite, try embracing part of what makes going to the games fun. I’m not speaking of folks who get drunk and act a total donkey, but just do better. Leave the book at home, come out of your shell, and enjoy yourself. If not, the odds that a game will be enjoyable will continue to remain slim.

-K. Masenda
http://www.edthesportsfan.com/

Stupid Fans are the Devil

Lord knows, I can’t stand stupidity on any level. When it comes to sports, it’s even worse. Being a sports fan exposes you to a whole new level of people that you may never meet elsewhere. Your sole link to them is the fact you both love the Dallas Cowboys, the Eagles, Steelers, etc. The same can be said for basketball, and the fact the two of you are simply linked to the game by your collective fandom. For the most part, you can talk to other fans, and even if you disagree, you do so with good reason, but this can’t be done with a dumb-a** fan. It’s impossible.

One of my partners-in-crime, The NFL Chick, wrote a piece a while back about the four types of fans you never want to be, speaking pure gospel and truth the entire time. In my opinion, the worst type of fan, the one I want to feed to the wolves, the one I want to see just go away, is the stupid fan. You know; the ones who just say the dumbest garbage known to man. You see, it’s impossible to be civil with this type of fan, because anything they say makes absolutely no sense. For example, I live in Dallas and am a die-hard Dallas Cowboy fan. Tony Romo is arguably under the biggest microscope of any quarterback in the NFL. That comes with the territory, but when he has a bad game, I hear ridiculous nonsense such as:

“Jerry Jones needs to bench Romo, or trade him, because he can’t play.”

First off, lets state the obvious; Romo is not going to get benched, and just the fact that a fan would even suggest such foolishness is beyond me. Secondly, the Cowboys have invested $60+ million in Romo, so they’re not going to trade him either. Thirdly, the back-ups are Jon Kitna and Stephen McGee. Have you happened to see either of them play? Kitna is an insurance policy in case Romo gets hurt, and McGee is nowhere near ready to play. I honestly wish stupid fans like this could be banished from stadiums, radio stations, forums, blogging, commenting, and anything else associated with football. Just go away.

It’s even worse in basketball. Now if anyone knows me, they know I hate Kobe Bryant, and have since the 1997 Rookie Game, when he tried to hog his way to glory. I make no apologies about the fact that I think he’s a mark-a** buster, but I also admire and respect his game, and recognize the fact that he’s a terrific basketball player. He adds something new to his arsenal every season, and his basketball IQ is impeccable. When people say “Kobe sucks,” it just…it just bothers me. I mean, say anything else about him; say he’s a bad teammate, call him an adulterer, tell him he has ugly-ass shoes, call him anything you want, but don’t ever, under any circumstances, insinuate that the man can’t play basketball. Your entire credibility goes to hell in a hand basket by even suggesting such absurdity.

It’s only Week Four of the NFL, so there’s plenty of time left to be subjected to this tomfoolery and disease known as The Stupid Fan. With basketball starting next month, it’s only going to get worse. Hopefully, the rest of the season will be completed without incident, or you may hear plenty of stories about your boy channeling his inner-Martin Payne, and spending a significant amount of time in The Angry Corner.

Be easy.

-K. Masenda

www.edthesportsfan.com

Ed the Sports Fan

Eddie Maisonet, III aka Ed The Sports Fan is a twenty-something sports & lifestyle blogger born and raised in Oklahoma, now presiding in Cincinnati. He’s not only a a contributor for GraeGram, but also Blitz Magazine, American Dreaming Mag, and The Fresh Xpress. Primarily, he’s the creator and writer of the 2008 Best Black Sports Blog on the net, www.edthesportsfan.com, check him out!