There is a lot going on in the world of sports, with the NBA and NHL playoffs winding down, Major League Baseball heating up and, well, the NFL locking out. Even though we should be talking about the Browns' mini-camp and how the newest draftees looked, we are left to wonder if there is even going to be NFL football this year. We're just going to have to sit back and let that situation play out.
However, this writer has quite a few other questions and/or curiosities regarding what is going on in sports.
Let me share my queries and, hopefully, someone will be able to provide some answers.
First let's take a look at Jim Tressel and the Ohio State Buckeyes football program...
Just curious...with the decision regarding the future of Ohio State's 2011 season in the hands of the NCAA, how long are they going to take to make their intentions clear?
Jim Tressel was wrong. He was not forthcoming in the whole memorabilia-for-tattoos scandal and the university is going to end up paying the price. But how long are Buckeyes coaches, players and fans going to be left to stew? There are a lot of Buckeyes fans that plan road trips and vacations around the OSU football team, and it would be nice if they knew what they were going to be dealing with when perusing the 2011 Ohio State schedule. It would be nice if the players knew their head coach's situation was settled and they didn't have to worry about losing him any time soon.
Word is that the NCAA is going to announce its punishment sometime in August, when training camp is already underway. Why will it take that long? All the facts appear to be in place. Why not just take care of this so all the speculation can end and we can all get on with our lives?
Just curious...what is going through Darrell Hazell's mind? After spending seven seasons as an assistant to Tressel at Ohio State and being given the title of "assistant head coach" in 2005, just one season into his Buckeyes' tenure, Hazell left Columbus to accept the head coaching position at Kent. He was a good soldier on Tressel's staff, one of the top-recruiting assistant coaches in the country whose players adored him. And he was, by common logic, the "next man up" when it comes to the head coach position at Ohio State.
If, by chance, Tressel ends up losing his job in Columbus will Hazell ask Kent to be allowed to interview for the Ohio State position, even though he has yet to coach one game for the Golden Flashes? If not how much will he regret jumping at the Kent job offer? Luke Fickell is the interim coach at Ohio State, and he was below Hazell in the pecking order. You would have to think the job would be Hazell's if he wanted it.
Just curious...does LeBron James think the entire City of Cleveland is stupid? Why can't he just let things go? James, after Miami defeated Boston to advance to the Eastern Conference Finals, made an apology of sorts to the fans in Cleveland.
"I knew deep down in my heart, as much as I loved my teammates back in Cleveland and as much as I loved home, I knew it couldn't do it by myself against (the Celtics)," James said.
First of all, no one in Cleveland wants this apology. We want to just forget this hemorrhoid ever put on a Cavaliers uniform. Yes, the trip to the Finals was a blast and the back-to-back 60-win seasons was great, but the pall that hung over the franchise for years, the "LeBron is just going to leave for greener pastures when his contract is up" paranoia (that turned out to be 100% correct) made things just a little less fun than they should have been. And now, after watching Miami get past the Celtics, the moron thought it was proper to bring up Cleveland again? Let it go, man.
Some of the idiots in the national media frequently make the claim that Clevelanders are like bitter jilted lovers when it comes to LeBron leaving. Well, they should have been here during the entire off-season of "The Decision" and dealt with the fury we felt when LeQuit went on national television and took a big, stinky dump on us. Are we bitter? Not really...disgust is more like it. We misjudged this clown from Day One and, trust me, aren't going to make that mistake again.
Oh, by the way, LeBron can take that apology and stick it up his immature, socially inept, entitled behind. We don't need an apology because, honestly, we're better than that. By the way, LeBron, why are you still talking about the Cleveland area as being "home?"
Just curious...is there any chance Cleveland will ever get an NHL hockey team? If you are fortunate enough to have the Versus channel and have been watching this year's Stanley Cup Playoffs you have been witness to some of the best hockey this writer has ever seen. As a Boston Bruins fan it has been especially exciting for me as Boston is headed to the Eastern Conference Finals against Tampa Bay.
The Gunds, former owners of the San Jose Sharks, do not own the Cavaliers anymore so there is no reason to worry about any kind of conflict of interest. Yes, the Blue Jackets are just a couple of hours down the road, but that is not the same as it would be if an NHL team made its home in Cleveland. And, sorry to say it, the Lake Erie Monsters aren't any kind of a substitute for an NHL team.
Cleveland will always back a winner, and this city has the best sports fans in the country. The NHL, as a league, is on the rise again and it would be nice to get in on the action in Cleveland. Probably never going to happen in my lifetime.
Just curious...what is going to happen at this year's MLB trade deadline. The Indians, if they can continue to play good baseball, should be in the hunt all year. After being sellers at the deadline for the last few years it would be nice to actually be buyers again.