 |
||||||||||||||||
Pac-Man Goes Down Not me...the other guy. Juan Manuel Marquez landed a devastating right hand at the end of the 6th round and knocked out Manny Pacquiao. The "pound-for-pound" toughest fighter in the world went crashing down face-first onto the canvas. It was devastating. It was the first time that the "Pac-Man" had been KO'ed since 1999....and if you haven't seen the punch, you owe it to yourself to take a look. It was as vicious as they come, and Pacquiao walked right into it....what a punch. After all the years and all the talk of a Pacquiao-Mayweather fight....the buzz has been eliminated with the Pac-Man losing his second consecutive fight. In fact, there's probably more interest in a 5th edition of Marquez-Pacquiao, given the dramatic ending on Saturday night. You'd get no argument from me that the MMA have lapped the sport of boxing, but the fight on Saturday night goes to show that if boxing could ever get its act together....it's still an electrifying event. Unfortunately, the heavyweight division is a joke and the internal corruption of the sport is too deep for those days to return. But there is no doubt that the Marquez-Pacquiao fight delivered. Major props go out to Johnny Manziel, a.k.a. Johnny Football, who made history this weekend by becoming the first "freshman" to win the esteemed Heisman Trophy. Heading into the awards ceremony, it appeared to be a hotly contested battle between Manziel and Notre Dame's Manti Te'o....with the third finalist, Collin Klein, tagging along for the ride. But given the "anti-freshman" and "anti-defensive player" sentiment, anything could happen before the announcement. In the end, it was "Johnny Football" taking home the hardware and establishing a new era in the ultra-exclusive Heisman Trophy club. All week in New York there was a buzz about the outcome...and former winners of the award were really split and torn with their decision. It made for an interesting announcement. As for Manziel, it has been a whirlwind for the kid from Texas. He wasn't even the starting QB at A&M until a few weeks before their season opener. The win against Bama in November put Manziel and the Aggie football team on center stage. I think it should be pointed out that both Te'o and Klein were classy throughout the process and certainly deserving of being named finalists for the prestigious award. Now that we've handed out the Heisman hardware, it's time to prepare for the upcoming 35 bowl games.... The NFL has seen better days. The past two weekends, the sport has been saddled with terrible news concerning a pair of their players. Last week was the murder-suicide involving the KC Chiefs' Javon Belcher. This past weekend we get the awful story of Dallas Cowboys player, Josh Brent, driving while intoxicated and getting in a wreck that killed fellow player, Jerry Brown. Local authorities arrested Brent for intoxicated manslaughter and he could face up to 20 years in prison. There are so many life lessons to be told, considering the terrible news the past two weeks. It happens all the time in society, but when it involves high profile athletes and the country's most popular sport, then the stories get magnified. NBC's Bob Costas went off on his dissertation about gun control last week....I wonder if he has been researching the abuse of alcohol and driving while impaired? These are no laughing matters, and it should be a reminder to all of us to be careful and responsible. While the games will continue in the NFL, the tragic events of the past few weeks bring the importance of life vs. the outcome of a game into question. I mentioned it last week and I'll write it again....sports should be the great get-away from the pressure of everyday life. Sometimes we lose sight of that.....here's another reminder. The Carolina Panthers smashed the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday and gave their fans an early Christmas gift. Cam Newton was fantastic...becoming the first player in NFL history to throw for over 250 yards, rush for over 100 yards...and score a TD running and passing all in the same game. The Falcons, who entered the game with an 11-1 record, had absolutely no answer for the Panthers. The NFL is so bizarre....from week-to-week, you really have no idea what to expect. Last week, the Panthers laid an egg in losing to an emotional Chiefs team that entered the game 1-10.....This week, the team is terrific in all phases of the game in dismantling and dominating an 11-1 team. Go figure? I'm sure most Panthers fans are scratching their heads and wondering why the team they watched on Sunday can't show up every week....but isn't that the beauty of sports? I'd go so far as to say that it was one of the best team efforts that I've seen from Carolina in many years. But when you take a look around the NFL, it's becoming increasingly difficult to name the best team and expect them to stay in the #1 slot the following week. Add it all up and you have the makings of a wild, fun and unpredictable playoff awaiting us in January. Before the start of the college basketball season, there were all kinds of expectations for the teams in North Carolina. You had the same old story at Duke and UNC, where the two shades of blue normally find themselves on top of the ACC and in the national polls. For the first time in decades, NC State was selected by the media and coaches to be the best team in the ACC in addition to a pre-season Top 10 ranking. Even Davidson College got some attention and love from the national media as a team that could cause some problems in the NCAA Tourney. Not a single person was barking about the Charlotte 49'ers....and if they were, nobody was paying them any attention. Alan Major has been nondescript since taking over the reins at Halton Arena...but now he finds himself and his team starting to garner some national love....and rightfully so. The Niners are off to a roaring 9-0 start, which includes a win over rival Davidson on the road. On Friday, Charlotte ventures to play the Canes...of the mighty ACC. It's the same team that defeated Michigan State in the ACC-Big 10 Challenge. If the Niners make it 10-0....somebody needs to take notice....one of the best coaching jobs in college hoops is taking place in the Queen City. |
|
|||||||||||||||
