I didn't watch it.
I didn't even listen to this on the radio.
I didn't even miss it.

Really.
No foolin'.

Life is good without having to spend four-plus hours in front of a television.

If the Bears were in the game, or even if the Broncos were in the game, I would have listened to it on the radio - and done about four or five things while I did just that.

I did thoroughly enjoy the Manchester United/Chelsea English Premier League Football Match on Fox earlier that Sunday. 

90 minutes of continuous football action with absolutely no commercials (not even one). A short Half Time break with some in-studio insight and highlights (sprinkled with the usual commercials) and the after--the-match recap and roundup and the entire broadcast was complete a little after Noon. 

Total time in front of the television: 2 hours (including two halves of 45 minutes of straight, uninterrupted game action with no commercial breaks on in-screen ads).

Has anyone noticed the NBA is locked out?
Me either.

(Note: This is the exact same way I feel about the NBA regular season when they are not locked out.)

Nothing has leapt out at me in the world of sports for the last few weeks, but a few things have stuck around in my mind for that same amount of time in such a way I thought I had to get them out.

TERRY FRANCONA
(Ex-Manager of the Boston Red Sox)

The Red Sox fired Francona after the Red Sox fail to make the playoffs on the last day of the 2011 season.

This makes no sense to me.

The Red Sox were the best team in the American League from May until August, had a loaded roster that was made even better by the acquisition of Carl Crawford from Tampa Bay and Adrian Gonzalez from San Diego in the off-season and were the odds-on favorite to go to the World Series of everyone who knew anything about Major League Baseball.

The Red Sox had 6 Wins and 18 Losses in the month of September to blow a 9-game lead over the Tampa Bay Rays.

I'm sure Francona is the only one responsible for that collapse.

The New York Yankees didn't even mention firing manager Joe Torre after the 2004 playoffs when the Yankees blew a 3 games to 0 lead over the Red Sox to lose the American League Championship Series, 4 games to 3 (the first time a collapse of that kind had ever happened in Major League Baseball). There certainly was no muttering about Torre being fired after the Red Sox tied the series at 3 games a piece.

By contrast, Francona was rumored to maybe be fired with two days and two games left in the season.

I have one word for the Red Sox organization:
Scapegoat

You found one in Francona.
The man who managed your team to two World Series titles after 85 years of not winning one at all. Total class, gang.

Total class.

THE TEXAS RANGERS
(The Defending American League Champions)

This club got no love during the year.
This club has gotten no love through this point in the playoffs.

Right now, the Rangers are up 1 game to none over the Detroit Tigers in the American League Championship Series - and they just beat (certain) Cy Young Award winner, Justin Verlander in doing it.

This crew is working on going to their second World Series in a row.
Does anyone mention that on sports television or sports radio?
No.

If the Yankees or the Red Sox were in the same position, they would be the talk of baseball and all the talk would be about adding another brick in the wall of the dynasty.

But not a peep.

Here's to watching the Texas Ranger start their own dynasty -
The Yankees and Red Sox can sit at home and watch them, too.

THE NFL
(Or is it Arena Football?)

Stop passing the ball so much.
It's cool to do that and all, really.
But run the ball successfully and you will win games.
Really.
Winning is cool and all.
(See the LoudMouth on this, right here.)

Green Bay Packer Charles Woodson throws and lands an uppercut punch on a New Orleans Saints player.

Al Michaels and Cris Collinsworth break it all down during the replays of the run play.

It's amazing that Woodson did not get ejected from the game.
At least there was a flag thrown and a penalty called on the play.

My bet is that the NFL and Roger Gedell will take action on this during the week.
Woodson will be either lighter in the wallet or sitting on the bench next week - or both.
=====================================================================
Date: 9/14/11

Charles Woodson was fined $10,000 today by the NFL for his uppercut punch that landed low on New Orleans Saints tight end., David Thomas.

The University of Miami (FL) football team is in trouble again.
This time, the consequences could be severe - but you didn't need me to tell you that.
Details of the current mess at The U. is right here at the source of the story, Yahoosports.com.

Two things come to my mind when I read or think about this latest incident:

1) Every Division One college football program probably has done, is doing or will do something like this. Yeah, I said it. See the SEC, see USC, see Ohio State, see Florida State, see Michigan, see North Carolina, see Georgia Tech, see Oregon, see....well, pick a Division 1 program, toss it up in the air and see what falls out.
2) The folks in charge at the University of Miami (FL) had to know something was quite amiss around this Nevin Shapiro person. By folks in charge, I mean the university president, the board of trustees, the athletic director, the football coaches, the assistant football coaches and on down the line. Yeah, I said it. I'm certain all of this happened in a vacuum, or in a quiet dorm room in the athletic compound - like when a bunch of football players and other assorted "guests" got together on Mr. Shapiro's yacht to party....shake that boat sideways and tell me know one in the school administration knew anything about this Shapiro guy.

Maybe they didn't know.
Maybe they didn't want to know.
(Kinda like the folks at Ohio State that somehow didn't recognize or think it strange that their starting quarterback kept showing up at practices driving a different new vehicle  - every other week. Looks like Jim Tressel is taking the hit for that one because I guess he's the only person on the Ohio State campus that has good eyesight.)

There is one unverifiable fact - every Division One college football program probably has done, is doing or will do something like this.
There is one verifiable fact - the University of Miami (FL) seems to have done this, and for a long time, and has gotten caught.

I am a Florida State graduate and have no love for the Hurricanes.
In this case I am not going to pile on.
My favorite Seminoles have had multiple problems with the NCAA for similar reasons and for other issues. An entire season of wins was removed due to a test-taking/grade scandal a few years back that served to knock then head coach Bobby Bowden out of the running for all-time winningest college football coach.
I know how scandals can hit a college football team.

Does anyone remember SMU football in 1986-87?
The Mustangs went hooves up two full seasons.

The kind of thing that seems to have happened at The U. has happened, is happening and will happen all around us. No one in the arena of college football is blameless.

...well, except for Vanderbilt University.
The Commodores have never come under a wave of a scandal in their football program.

That's exactly what we need -
Three loud cheers for Vanderbilt University.
The Commodores' party will go on.

(Vanderbilt University homepage)

Tiger Woods removed himself/was removed from the professional golf scene a few years ago.
Since then, everyone (and I do mean, everyone) has been looking, clamoring, hoping, stretching, aching and chomping for one of two things to happen:

1) Tiger comes back and plays at the same form as he always has and continues to dominate
2) Some other golfer steps up and plays in the same way Tiger had and dominates himself

Woods did not play in the 2011 U.S. Open.
Woods did not play in the 2011 British Open.
Woods did not make the cut at this weekend's 2011 PGA Championship with a score of (+10).

The U.S. Open gave us Rory McIlroy who bested the field rather easily for that weekend. The next thing we heard on television and sports radio is that McIlroy had the "best swing ever" and was poised to take over the PGA because with a swing and talent like his, how could he not?
The next PGA Major event was the British Open - McIlroy finished tied for 25th Place.
Going into the final round of the 2011 PGA Championship (Sunday August 14, 2011), McIlroy is currently in 67th place.

The British Open gave us another sudden, had-to-be PGA superstar in Darren Clarke won the tournament. Clarke had to be the next One of the PGA Tour. He has the game, he has the gamesmanship and he has the personality we all could grab onto with his down-to-earth attitude.
This week at the 2011 PGA Championship, Clarke missed the cut entirely with a score of (+14).

Two golfers are currently tied at (-7) going into Sunday's final round at the PGA Championship:
Justin Duffner (#52 going into Bridgestone Invitational - August 7th, 2011)
Brendan Steele (#72 going into Bridgestone Invitational - August 7th, 2011)

One shot behind those two is: 
Keegan Bradley (T#47 going into Bridgestone Invitational - August 7th, 2011)

The golf prognosticators and experts have been on the money with their thoughts on who would be the present or next great golfer, haven't they?
Not hardly.

Can we all just hold down the fanfare and stop all of the fireworks and fluffing up of golf stories because a player wins a PGA Major championship? 

You all went crazy again this last week when Woods began the 2011 PGA Tour Championship at (-3) over the first five holes.

Take it easy -
Your golf messiah might come back soon, he might re-appear as someone else soon, but someone will be in that spot to swoon over and dote upon soon enough.

Until then, try something different - try writing an actual sports news story.

We all know what happened in the courtroom last week - 
The prosecuting attorney tried to use evidence the judge had previously deemed inadmissible.
The result: a mistrial.

Now, if the feds decide to pursue prosecuting Mr. Clemens further, the next time available for a trial date could be in September of this year. Some of us are eve wondering if it is worth the time, the cost and the effort to keep pursuing this case against Mr. Clemens.

When Roger Clemens was in front of congress in the initial round of congressional involvement into steroid use in Major League Baseball, what he then said has since come under suspicion of maybe not being entirely truthful. He is accused of lying under oath and lying under oath while being questioned by the federal government.

One more time, with feeling:
Mr. Clemens is accused of lying under oath to the federal government.

A better question would be, what is the federal government doing looking into steroid use in MLB. That is a valid question, and one that demands an article of it's own. But, while being questioned under oath by the federal government about possible steroid use himself, Mr. Clemens in accused of not telling the truth in some of his answers.

If either you (dear reader) or I were in the shoes of Mr. Clemens, we too would be facing the reality of sitting in federal courtroom with legal counsel defending ourselves against perjury charges - and no one would care because no one would know who you are I were. You and I would still have to face the consequences of being accused of lying under oath to congress and we would have to face the real possibility of what consequences waited for us if we were convicted of those charges. No one would wonder why the feds were pursuing us, they all would know we were being prosecuted for lying under oath to congress (if they even noticed). All anyone could want would be justice.

This is what is happening with Roger Clemens.
This is what happened to him.
Justice is what we should want.

The NFL is locked out - the 2011 NFL season is in jeopardy.
The NBA is locked out - the 2011 NBA season is in jeopardy.
Air traffic controllers have held strikes/walkouts.
Teachers have held strikes/walkouts.
All sorts of workers in all sorts of jobs have had work stoppages for one reason or another.
Baseball has had one or two - as has football, in my lifetime.
Seems like this kind of thing is normal in the business world.
That's what these sports are - businesses.
My television will be tuned to something else on Sundays if the NFL is not in session.
I don't really watch the NBA, save for the Finals, so no huge imposition to me, there.
Good luck, fellas.
I hope you get it worked out for your sakes.
I was sad when they cancelled The Cosby Show, Cheers and Miami Vice.
- but I got over it.