A point blank field goal missed? The job of a NFL kicker

In Sunday's game vs the New England Patriots the Ravens were projected to fall by 7 points in spreads throughout the nation.  The game seemed to be a quarterback's dual but it always seems the game is based on a teams last mistake.  In a 23-20 score going into the last drive Billy Cundiff (the Ravens kicker), missed a 32 yard field goal which could have sent the game into OT.  The kicker had missed 7 field goals during the regular season and seemed to struggle all year.  The biggest kick of his young career comes though.  As the ball is snapped and the hold is set Cundiff shanks the kick wide left and leaves New England with eleven seconds to kill the clock.  What has Raven fans so mad is because, previous to the kick Lee Evans also drops a touchdown in the end-zone.  In my perspective you cannot blame the game on either of these competitors.  The game could have been a different result if the ravens first three possessions were not punts, or having to settle for field goals off of turnovers.  In all the Ravens played a great game and I dont believe Billy Cundiff's kick was the deciding factor in the AFC Championship game.
Read more at: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/football/nfl/gameflash/2012/01/22/4854/index.html#recap?sct=hp_t2_a3&eref=sihp

Lebron or Kobe?

The debate on who is the best in the NBA is always asked. There are two choices that come to mind, either Kobe or Lebron. These two are two of the most dominating athletes playing a sport today. Both African Americans that have made a great legacy that will be remembered forever. Kobe is known for how smooth he is and how composed he is. Lebron is known for his athleticsism and his power. So who do you choose? My choice has to be with Kobe, he is consistant the entire game and doesnt shut down in the 4th quarter. He has won championships which lebron has not been able to do yet even with his star studded team that he is on. This topic has created its frair share of arguments but my choice has to be with Kobe Bryant.

Skip Bertman and The Lsu legacy

The Lousiana State Baseball coach from 1984-2001.  He lead the team to 5 National Championships and 6 SEC Championships and truely has changed the face of the LSU program.  After 2001 he became the Athletic Coordinator at LSU.  Hiring prolific coaches to the program like Les Miles and Nick Saben and those two names help develope the most dominate college football teams in the nation.  So need less to say Skip Bertman knows what he is talking about just a little.
Read for more information: http://www.lsusports.net/ViewArticle.dbml?DB_OEM_ID=5200&ATCLID=174043

WTF Are You Thinking!?

Hey Look Guys! I can flip so that automatically means I can sell drugs!

Yes folks, this is the world we live in. Where NFL multimillionaires attempt to sell drugs on the side because 5.15 million over 5 years (in Sam Hurd's case) just wasn't cutting it. Yes, we also live in a world where wall street bankers can defraud an entire nation and end up being the Treasury Secretary: looking at you Geithner. So maybe this shouldn't be too surprising.

Sidenote: Everyone should watch this film and see how the American people got fucked over (excuse language).

Recently Jerome Simpson was indicted for drug charges in his home state of Kentucky.Yea, Yea, I know what your thinking. There isn't anything else to do in Kentucky so how can you blame him? While this line of logic is certainly true, it does not excuse the behavior. My question is: How are you stupid enough to jeopardize your whole professional playing career over a couple pounds of weed?

About a month ago, Sam Hurd of the Chicago Bears was busted by an undercover cop for trying to set up a drug ring in Chicago.

Not necessarily a proud moment

After reading about criminality within sports, these two stories are especially relevant. What causes semi-successful NFL players to do dumb shit? Does society automatically write these guys off so they feel that they must live up to low expectations? They living up to sports medias stereotypes? Is it environmental? There are many questions that this country must answer in order to move forward. Honest dialogue is the most important thing that this country can undertake in order to heal and create a better tomorrow for our kids.

Final thought: WTF were you thinking?!

The U's Dominance in the NFL

After watching the documentary "The U" this week, about the dominance of the University of Miami over the last 20+ years in college football, I started thinking about the former Hurricanes in the NFL.

It seems to me that the U has produced such a high percentage of really good NFL players that there had to be something behind it. Miami is up there with the schools that are represented most in the NFL, but no other school has the percentage of players that are actually GOOD. From Ray Lewis to Ed Reed to Antrell Rolle to Willis McGahee to Michael Irvin to Jesse Armstead and I could go on, drafting a player from Miami give you the best chance that that player will pan out for your organization.

One of the reasons for this is that Miami recruits almost exclusively from southern Florida, where high school football is king. Thousands of people go to each game. The pressure these kids are playing under from the time they pick up a football is enormous. And while this is the case in many place in the country (Texas, Ohio, Western PA, etc) the difference with the Miami players is that they are in or around major urban areas with major gambling rings and gangs. In "The U" they talk about how they were scared of dropping a pass or missing a tackle in their high school games because there was a good chance that someone who lost money on that game would attack them afterwards. Playing under this kind of intense pressure with those kind of stakes from a young age prepares you better than anything for the pressure of the NFL.

Relatedly, by going to the U with all these hardened, great athletes, they get used to playing with NFL level talent. Players coming from schools were maybe 3, 4, 5 players might be going pro may have a hard transition into the NFL, but on any given Miami team, regardless of how successful that team is, there are probably upwards of 7, 8 or 9 players that are at least talented enough to be pros.

Miami players are bred to perform under pressure which relates directly to NFL success. Every football player drafted in all 7 rounds of the NFL draft has the potential to play in the NFL, and were probably the star of their high school or college team, but Hurricanes already have the seasoning and experience of playing alongside pros and with pro-level pressure. So if you are an NFL GM this April, when all else fails, draft a Cane.

-Andrew Emmer

Same Problems, Different Era: Have We Come Full Circle?

In the 1930s when America was still a nation far from sports integration, Black churchgoers would fret that "every Joe Louis victory would reinforce white stereotypes of the brutal warrior" (from Entine's Taboo, Ch. 24). The segregation of sports served as a point of attack for non-Whites to prove their ability to be quality competitors if only given the opportunity. African American athletes slowly began making strides within the White community, participating in competitions here and there. Slowly but surely, sports began to integrate, and with each success of an African American athlete, the hearts of countless African Americans nationwide welled with pride.

Nowadays, African Americans have sort of 'taken over' the sports world, at least in most of the mainstream sports of today. Some professional sports leagues are predominantly made up of African Americans, like the NBA. Not only are there a great amount of Black players, there is pretty much a general consensus that it is the Black players that tend to be to the most physically dominant on the court, or on the field in the NFL. But with this dominance, we seem to have come full circle and we are back to being concerned about the stereotypes that are being reinforced and perpetuated with each new Black player that gets an athletic scholarship to play ball at a University or when another player gets drafted into the NBA. Look at the pattern over time:

1930s : fear of stereotypes -> integration -> success/pride among AA's -> domination/high prevalence of AA's in professional leagues -> fear of stereotypes/exploitation : 2000s

While we have made significant strides since the 1930s as a nation, we still find ourselves in some of the same predicaments as before, contemplating what it really means to play ball as a Black athlete in America. Black players have excelled so much that it has come to the point of putting too much emphasis on sports and not enough on education. It is at this point when the "dumb jock" stereotypes are in danger of being perpetuated and when there are concerns about schools exploiting players for their talent without placing enough emphasis on preparing them for life (i.e. getting an education -- hellooooo that's why you're in school, isn't it?!)

I just had this thought while reading some of the articles posted for class, and I thought I would share. It's interesting that although we, as a nation, like to think we have distanced ourselves significantly from such eras as the 1930s, we are still fighting some of the same battles today, though perhaps in different forms.

Len Bias was perhaps one of the best basketball players to play for the University of Maryland (UMD). Many people compared Bias to Michael Jordan and might have even considered him better than Jordan. Bias was from Landover, Maryland and was fortunate enough to receive a scholarship to play basketball for the Terps. He was an All-American who was drafted second overall by the Boston Celtics in 1985. Two days later, Bias died as a direct result of his decision to try cocaine.

Bias is not as well known today as he was when he was at UMD. Today most people may not even know who he was. I recently watched “Without Bias” a documentary of his life and his family’s. After returning to campus following the NBA draft, Bias decided to use cocaine to celebrate his athletic achievement. Brian Tribble (Bias’s friend) supplied the drugs to Bias. Bias’s close friends had no idea that he would even think about doing drugs. This is what is so puzzling. Bias had never used cocaine before. But that night something made him try it. That one decision ended his life and changed the lives of his family and friends forever.



Bias is an example of an athlete that had everything going right for him and in a split second everything is lost. Athletes at UMD and everywhere should know Len Bias’s story regardless of the sport he or she plays. His story can help athletes everywhere realize that there are decisions that are out there in the world that could end up being harmful for them. Decisions that are life-changing or ending.

Athletes can learn from this horrible end to an exceptional athlete living his dream. If athletes hear about what happened to Len Bias, it may teach them to be smart and always think about their decisions, to stay away from making a decision that may change their life forever.

I mean who else did you have in mind?

Today, as I was browsing through the web, Iwas surprised to see an article on our Terps headlining the Washington Post website. The title reads, "Are Terps leaning too much on Stoglin?" I clicked the link: thought it would be interesting to read since we don't see much of our Terps in the Post. After the site was finished loading the very top of the page states, "Maryland basketball relying heavily on Terrell Stoglin for scoring."



The article discusses how Stoglin is the top scorer on the entire Men's basketball team. His statistics show that he is #1 in the ACC for scorers and #3 in the nation, so what's the problem? Matt Bonesteel emphasizes how he believes Terrell maybe a crutch for our team because it seems as though coach ____ uses him entirely too much in games. Isn't that what competition is about, using your best player(s) to score as many points as possible over the opposing team? If there is something wrong with that, then maybe they should change the definition of sports completely. So this must be a race thing: getting the black kid off the court and letting the white man play a half. Who knows, it just seems rather sketchy to me that this journalist, Mr. Bonesteel, wants our precious amenity Terrell off the floor. Who else did you have in mind Matt? He said it himself, he "lead the Terrapins in scoring for the 12th time in 17 games this season." Terrell Stoglin is a hardworking young man, that clearly shows in his performance on the basketball court, so there is no real need for anyone to take his spot. I think he should stay where he is, his work is clearly doing our Men's team some justice.



It seems to be that all Bonesteel had were complaints and/or problems; he did not have any sort of solutions. The suggestions he gave seems rather open-ended. He gave names like Sean mosley, Pe'shon Howard, and Nick Faust but quickly shut them down with negative reasoning (not to mention each of these men are African American). At the end of the article Bonesteel says, "Thoughts?" Yeah, I have a few thoughts: you're an uninformed outsider that doesn't know the first thing about Terrell Stoglin, but I guess since you know the stats you must be hip.

The Legend of O.J.

Earl Smith shed light on an issue related to the behavior of some professional athletes that is rarely addressed. In a discussion of the criminality of professional athletes, Smith references famous names such as Daryll Strawberry, Mike Tyson, and most notably, Orenthal James Simpson. While these three athletes can be associated with various crimes, they were all involved in some form of domestic violence as well. O.J. being the most notorious for his involvement/non-involvement (everyone has an opinion about it but lets not forget that he was found innocent in a court of law) in the brutal murders of his ex-wife Nicole Brown Simpson and her friend, Ron Goldman.

Smith cites a number of factors that link the glorified world of professional sports the terrifying reality of domestic violence. He notes the increase in reports of violence against women on Super Bowl Sunday. He also notes the famous names mentioned above and their involvement in these crimes. What Smith attributes to this violence against women, among other behaviors shared among professional athletes, is the male camaraderie. In the locker room and on the field--areas where women are excluded--these athletes feed off of each others' ideas and validate their beliefs. This type of environment can breed dishonorable behavior and lead to a vast array of crimes. To this day, we can point to O.J. Simpson as the face of this issue. He believed that his fame and money could and would enable him to get away with anything, including murder. Which is exactly what he ended up doing.

Breaking Down the USA Basketball Roster

Recently the roster 18 man roster for USA men's basketball team that will play at the 2012 Olympics in London was released. Here is the breakdown by position:

Guards: Chris Paul, Deron Williams, Derrick Rose, Russell Westbrook, Kobe Bryant, Dwyane Wade, Eric Gordon and Stephen Curry.

Forwards: LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Kevin Love, Chris Bosh, Carmelo Anthony, Andre Iguodala, Rudy Gay and Griffin.

Centers: Dwight Howard and Tyson Chandler.

Seems like a pretty awesome team, right? There is no doubt that America has the greatest basketball talent pool on the planet, and since we invented the sport, we should be dominating the world competition and besides the embarrassing bronze-metal showing at the 2004 games, we always have.

If you look a little closer at the roster, you may notice something interesting about its makeup...there is one white player on the team. Kevin Love, the star forward for the Minnesota Timberwolves is the sole white representative.

While no one who watches the NBA or follows American sports is probably surprised by this, if an alien came down and saw the make up of the United States and then saw the basketball roster, he/she would probably be very confused.

According to the latest census, 63.7% of American are Caucasian while 12.2% are African-American, and 16.3% are Hispanic. Conversely, 99.5% of the US Men's Basketball team is African-American, leaving only .5% Caucasion (Love) and 0% Hispanic.

This doesn't seem possible, does it? One might say that there are a greater number of great black players because the game is popular in the inner city, where many lower class african-americans live, but don't a large number of whites and hispanics also live in these areas?

I do not know the reason for this statistical anomaly, but it is certainly fascinating.

- Andrew Emmer

Trent Richardson's Decision

Trent Richardson has made a career decision and that is to pursue his talents next year in the NFL.  The Heisman candidate from Alabama had an amazing Junior year and felt that he needed to take his talents to the draft where he can help develop his own legacy.  Nick Saben and the rest of the Alabama coaching staff support his decision and are very happy for the young man.  The BCS victory was enough Nick Saben said and he believes that Trent Richardson will develop his talents in the NFL.  The most feared playmaker on the offensive side of the ball in the 2011-2012 college season, has the talent to play in the NFL.  He has won a BCS championship so it all seems right that he should throw in his cards and enter the draft.
Read more: http://espn.go.com/nfl/draft2012/story/_/id/7455537/trent-richardson-dre-kirkpatrick-alabama-crimson-tide-enter-nfl-draft

Why do black players seem to only desbribed in the same way

When reading the articles in lesson 7 and learning about the 2 images that African American players are categorized into. They have the "brutish" image where the athlete is categorized as being dumb but a physical specimen that is agressive and strong. Then theres the "sambo" image where the athlete is seen as comical, high energied and lazy. These images seem to be put on almost all African American athletes. When describing athletes like Ray Lewis or Adrian Peterson they show Lewis making a crushing tackle or Peterson running over a poor soul. When describing these men they talk about how these men are "beasts" or "unstoppable." This burns the brute image into our heads. When talking about the "sambo" image they show the dumb plays that we get to laugh at and talk about but this too burns the image into our heads. White athletes are described with a laid back and very technical style where black athletes are talked about with their agression and strength. It seems that almost all African American athletes are seen as the same thing. I can think of a few examples of this with Mike Vick and Kobe Bryant. These men arent described as the normal African American Athletes, they are praised for their expert technique and calmness when playing. Its upsetting that it seems to be that if an African American athlete is talked about that he is talked about for his power or aggressivness instead of his skills and technique.

The film, "The Journey of the African American Athlete" shed some new light on the black athlete--white audience/white management relationship. Jim Brown, I believe, described it best by saying that as a black athlete, his white audience had a "superficial admiration" for him yet as a black man, they paid no attention to him. As Bill Russell was winning championships for the Boston Celtics, he faced immense discrimination from the city of Boston in more ways than one. When he tried to buy a house, he faced numerous obstacles, and when he finally did purchase a home, neighbors threw trash on his lawn and wished that he would leave. However, once they found out he was a star player for their beloved Celtics, they replaced the trash with flowers and kind words. A third example from the film that stood out to me was when Curtis Flood was describing the white control in baseball. Flood said that he and his management had a "master-slave" relationship and would do whatever they wanted regardless of the player's wishes.

These examples, coupled with years of the "jockey syndrome," are still a cause for concern. While progress has been made on this front, it still irks me to see the domination of whites in management positions and lack of African Americans. It is a business that's success lies firmly on the shoulders of the more than fifty percent of black athletes that make up professional sports, and would be crumble to the ground without them. Something needs to be done and the white grip on corporate positions in pro sports needs to be loosened.

Manny Being Manny

Manny wants to be back playing baseball in the Major Leagues. His reason, he claims in a recent interview posted on ESPN.COM, is that he wants to be a role model.

Manny left MLB last April when he was faced with a 100 game suspension for failing a second performance enhancing drug test. 5 months later he was back in the news for a domestic incident. According to Manny, he almost lost his family.

Today, Manny wants to return to MLB. He is hoping to teach his children that people can change, and that if you make a mistake, you should go back and fix it. You shouldn't quit.

According to the interview, Manny has reached a deal with MLB that would allow him to start playing with a team during Spring Training, but would be subject to a 50 game suspension beginning Opening Day.

ESPN reports further that Manny will hold a workout for MLB scouts to come watch him later this month. But who will take Manny? Who will be willing to take a chance on Manny?

Everyone who watches baseball knows that "Manny being Manny" means lots of different things. It can mean clutch hits, home runs and World Series MVP....it can also mean half-hearted swings, injuries, drug violations and acting like a prima dona.

Manny has made mistakes, serious mistakes. He broke the rules and should face the punishment; but, if a team is willing to take a chance on him, he should be allowed to play. He should be held accountable for his actions and shouldn't be given any special treatment. His behavior has likely cost him entrance in the Hall of Fame. But, the bottom line is that Manny is one of the greatest hitters of all time in MLB. Unfortunately, he is still a person who makes mistakes.

Should Manny be given another chance - why not? People make mistakes and they should be allowed to make things right. We want to watch great baseball and Manny has provided some amazing baseball moments.

Should he be a role model - I don't think so. Should any athlete should be a role model? Kids should look up to athletes for their work ethic, approach to the game, community service and their treatment of family and those around them. They shouldn't look up to athletes because of their athletic ability alone.

If Manny does get a chance, I predict more great baseball moments and more "Manny being Manny" moments.

The Obligatory Tim Tebow Post

Tebow Tebowing

It is no secret that Tim Tebow has become an international phenomenon. Go to any search engine and he is most likely a top 10 search, twitter or blog topic or news story. ESPN literally talks about him on a daily basis. They might as well create a separate network dedicated to Tebow fodder. After a 1-4 start, Denver was forced to make a change (most coming from the Broncos fanbase) and went with Tim Tebow. After a prolific college career at Florida, Tebow lacked what many NFL analyst described as "fundamentals" or "mechanics" to play at the professional level (we'll come back to this is a second), but somehow overcame the odds and landed a starting gig in the NFL. Now as overwhelmingly cheesy as this premise sounds (which is exactly what it is), national and international media knew that it could sell products and ran with it.

Now I would like to start off by saying that I am neither a Tebow supporter nor detractor. I am totally indifferent. Is he the most talented QB? Not by a long shot. Is he the luckiest QB? Definitely. With that said, I also understand the racial dynamics at play here. The drop back/conventional white quarterback is still king in the National Football League. Any deviation from that mold is either moved to another position or given a very short lease (see a long list of athletic/mobile black QBs). Before (and largely still) the Doug Williamses or Warren Moons, the NFL was highly biased against black quarterbacks. They didn't feel that they possessed the intelligence, skillset, or technical mechanics to play the QB position. These are the same arguments being made against Tim Tebow and yet there he is out there on the field. He has successfully become the Eminem of the NFL. Here is a very interesting conversation on ESPN about Tebow and race.

It is a bit long, but here is the intriguing point. Kordell Stewart makes a passionate plea for the NFL to give young black QBs a chance to fail as much as Tebow has and I couldn't agree more.

Another rookie QB did get a chance and played extremely well. Cam Newton also struggled with the same criticism coming out of college (me included) and proceeded to light the NFL up, breaking records in the process. Yet his name is not splashed all over the media or ESPN on a daily basis simply because he played on a much worse team and didn't have the luck or skin color Tebow has. It also needs to be pointed out that Tebow played in a much less talented league than Cam Newton (AFC West vs NFC North who had 2 teams reach the playoffs). The Broncos finished the year 8-8 and were able to HOST a wild card playoff game against the defending AFC champion Steelers, who went 12-4. Believe me, I hate the Steelers, and was happy to see them lose, but in no way shape or form is allowing an 8-8 team host a playoff game fair. I would say the same thing about last years 7-9 Seahawks as well.

So the question becomes; Is Tim Tebow getting preferential treatment because he is white? Discuss.

I just thought this was funny. I'm a Skins fan for life, but will be secretly cheering for Bmore come Sunday.

Roethlisraper v. Vick the dog killer

One sunday night my friend and I went to Buffalo Wild Wings, it being game night about 4 games were on and everyone was tuned in. My eyes were glued to the Ravens/Browns game. With each kickass play and touchdown, I notice I'm only one out of five people cheering in the restaurant. I look around and see that almost the entire restaurant is filled with black and gold jerseys. I found it rather fascinating, yet slightly insulted that there were so many Steelers fans as oppposed to Ravens fans (keep in mind we live in Maryland, and because of the seasons the Redskins have been having they are automatically ruled out for now). My friend notices the same thing, and with their sarcastic humor goes, "How about them Steelers?" As I laughed at all the fans glaring I turn to the Steelers tv and see Roethlisberger hammering out some pretty nice passes. Hold up, shouldn't he be in jail? So I inquizitively search the web for any articles.
Apparently, the Steelers quarterback follwed a young college student into an Atlanta nightclub bathroom and proceeded to assault her despite her many objections. After the police reports were filed and lawyers were called, the asked that the charges be dropped. What?? This man (yes he's a man, not a football God) just raped a woman and you want charges to be dropped? On what account? Had this been a regular man out of these eyes of the media, convictions wouold have been flying toward him; but because he is a prized possession of the Steeler's Nation he gets a slap on the wrist?
This whole instance makes me think of the Michael Vick dog fighting situation. When America found out about Vick and his underground dog fighting arena, they went insane. It was like the entire world turned against him at the drop of the dime: PITA and the NFL. When he went before the judge he got a year in jail and an boatload of community service, c'mon really? He was condemned and exiled for over two years, and people still bring it up. I just don't understand it. This just makes me realize that racial biased is still out there. To me, black men recieve harsher punishments for crimes and are held accountable more for their actions then whites. It might not be a fact, but it sure is a reality.

American Sports: Post-racial?

I think it's clear that American society is a far cry from where it used to be, sports included. Our progress toward being post-racial, however, is questionable, at best. I think one of the first things we would have to look at is a clear definition of what is meant by the term "post-racial" in the first place. My understanding of it is a society in which racism no longer exists -- at all. A post-racial society would be reflected by complete racial equality; that is, all people have the same access to the same occupational opportunities, regardless of race. I don't think that it is necessary to ignore our differences and act like they aren't there. It is only necessary that all people are granted the same rights and respect regardless of appearance.

With that said, it seems rather obvious that America is not yet there. Debates about available career opportunities for all people aside, there are still examples of blatant racism occurring everyday, including in the world of sports. Here are just a couple examples:

Don Imus on Rutgers Women's Basketball Team

When you see/hear stuff like this, all you can think to yourself is...."WHAT?!" It's like...how could you even begin to think that that would be a good idea to say that....like, really. And Don Imus has a track record of offensive, racially insensitive comments about people of virtually all races and ethnicities dating back to the 1980s all the way into the 2000s, yet he has managed to receive all kinds of accolades including being listed as one of TIME magazine's "25 Most Influential People in America" (1997). It makes you wonder...

Kelly Tilgham on Tiger Woods

In this case, I tend to feel there was less ill-will in her comment than Don Imus'. Woods and his people seem to have some kind of relationship with Tilgham, and didn't take much offense to the comment. I think I'd sooner find her guilty of racial insensitivity in this particular moment than being a racist. Her private and public apologies were accepted by Woods, but the fact that she even thought to say that might say something about how historical acts of violence are viewed in this day and age. Have we become somewhat desensitized to heinous acts like lynching? Or the mass extermination of Jews during the Holocaust?

Personally, I tend to give people the benefit of the doubt. I'm generally optimistic, and I tend to want to believe that most people are decent and that today's American society is farther beyond issues of race than it probably is. Clearly, this is far from the truth. Even though it may not be blatantly in our faces all the time, we still have a long way to go before we even begin to consider ourselves "post-racial".

The Curious Case of Black Duke Basketball Players

Former Michigan and NBA guard Jalen Rose made headlines when he referred to the black basketball players are Duke University as "Uncle Toms" in his documentary about the Fab Five.

The term "Uncle Tom" is defined by dictionary.com as "a black man considered by other blacks to be subservient to or to curry favor with whites." In using this phrase, Rose was trying to make a point that the black players on Duke's teams throughout the years have not been real, urban, blacks.

While these comments drew the ire of many, that truth is that this IS the prevailing thought amongst the basketball community. Inner city kids do not root for Duke, instead they look to teams that have recruited those from their neighborhoods, like Georgetown, St. Johns, UCONN, and Kentucky. The views on these schools, among others, are that they will take kids who can play ball, regardless of their background, while Duke is looking for a specific kind of player, like Grant Hill, the son of NFL player and Yale graduate Calvin Hill, and Austin Rivers, son of NBA player and coach Doc Rivers; kids who have a pedigree.

Part of the reason for the "different kind" of black player that goes to Duke is the rigorous academic standards one must pass in order to get into the school, which many inner-city or public school athletes cannot attain. Unlike other basketball powers that have a certain amount of academic exceptions in which to get players that wouldn't otherwise be able to get into the school, all Duke players must meet all normal requirements.

Duke is predominately white and as a private university, the tuition is far greater than any public school, leading to the reality that it is a school made up of mostly privileged students. It is not surprising that some top black basketball players would not fit in at such a place. This feeling is highlighted by current NBA player Elton Brand's letter to Duke student Jennifer Taylor after she sent him a letter bashing him for leaving school early to pursue a career in the NBA. Here are the two letters in full, as published on sportsgrid.com:

From: Taylor, Jennifer
Sent: Friday, April 16, 1999 2:55 PM
To: Brand, Elton
Subject: Leaving Duke

I graduated from Duke last May and just wanted to express my disgust for your decision to leave the Duke program after only two years. As an alum, not only do I hold the school in high regard, but the basketball program as well, especially since both have deservedly garnered such a great deal of respect for their accomplishments.

As part of our basketball program, you represent Duke as a whole. We are first and foremost an academic school, you clearly did not belong at Duke in the first place if this was the extent of your commitment to Duke and a college education in general. You have not only insulted the current students who are putting in four years at a school they love, but also the thousands of alumni who have realized the value of a Duke education and what an honor and privilege it was to be there for four years.

If you do not realize the opportunity you has infront of you to play for Coach K and at the same time attain a Duke diploma, then that is certainly your loss. I just wish that you has spared us the notion that you were continuing in the tradition of being a Duke student-athlete, in emphasizing excellence in both academics and athletics. You will not be considered part of the Duke family, in my mind as well as many others. You have by no means proved yourself worthy of that title.
Sincerely,
Jennifer Taylor

From: Elton Tyron Brand
Sent: Sunday, April 25, 1999 8:05 PM
To: Taylor, Jennifer
Subject: Re: Leaving Duke

Thank you very much, for reminding me of the reason why I left Duke. People like you can not and will not ever understand my situation. I’m sure daddy worked very hard to send your rich self to college. While real people struggle. I would also like to extend an invitation for you not to waste your or my time ever agin. Never being considered a part of your posh group of yuppies really hurts me to the heart. Yeah, right. Because I don’t care about you or your alumni.

Sincerely,
Elton Brand #42 NBA


I rest my case.

- Andrew Emmer

The Jerry Sandusky Case: The Use and Abuse of Influence

It seems to be getting increasingly nerve-racking making decisions about where to send our kids for camp or whether to even send them at all. It's growing more and more difficult to figure out who we can trust to act responsibly while in close contact with minors. Amid the controversy and scandal that is the Sandusky case, this seems like a pretty good time for reflection on what cases like this say about the (sometimes dangerous) influence that figures of authority in society can have on the young and impressionable.

Sandusky claims that many of the kids he worked with would refer to him as a "father figure". Often when kids are lacking a father figure in their lives they latch onto (emotionally!!) males in their lives who they feel comfortable around, who make them feel special. According to the reports, Sandusky's victims were often from needy backgrounds, stayed at his home, and were bought gifts ranging from snowboards to clothes to NFL tickets. To a child growing up with virtually nothing to call his own, suddenly having access to all these things creates a rapid bond (emotionally!!) between himself and Sandusky. Seeing the fame and fortune that sports stars (seem to) enjoy on television is one thing, but then being immersed into that culture on Sandusky's tab takes the experience to another level. Sandusky had to know what he was doing here, taking kids from a vulnerable place, showering them (pardon the pun) with gifts, and then ultimately taking advantage of them.

Unfortunately, there are countless similar cases going on right now, many that may never see a court room. When we hear about these things, it reminds us just how much influence sports can have on the society in which we live, and how iconic figures in sports can use and abuse that influence for their own gain.

By the way, it seems that "PedoBear" made an appearance at Houston v. Penn State (be sure to check out the comments at the bottom).

Oh, C'mon John Wall can't be that bad!

I was reading the Washington Post this morning and on the front page, in bold color ink was a picture of John Wall and the Washington Wizards coach. My first assumption, just by looking at the picture, was that they both were merely discussing some pointers that could help Wall improve in the remainder of the game. Then my eye scrolled to the top of the page and the title exclaims "Wall needs some coaching up!" Now normally I only read the newspaper for the comics section, but today the article caught my attention so I continue to read on.
With African American males, there is a stigma attached to playing basketball. You must be fast, agile, and coordinated: the full athletic package. Some people fail to consider that there is a great deal on smarts and thinking involved in this sport; those that do, don't think African Americans have the smarts of basketball. Here, Thomas Boswell reinforces this stereotype stating that John Wall doesn't have the mental ability to be a the basketball player he wants to be. As I read on Boswell states, "In two respects, he is acutally one of the worst players in the league." At that moment, I asked myself, "there's no possible way that John Wall is the worst player in the league." To me, since there is such a high standard for African Americans to be athletic and perform well, that they overlook Caucasian players that do not perform well.

Last Time I Checked David Stern Didn't Have A Wicked Jump Shot

A few days ago I was watching ESPN and the Dan Le Batard show came on. It was the usual rundown of the hottest trends in the sports world until the guest came onto the program. Le Batard had former NBA player and current ESPN analyst Tim Legler on the show. At first the conversation was fairly normal, but midway through Le Batard asks Legler what it was like being a white player in the NBA. Legler goes on to talk about the struggles of being a white player in the NBA. YES, this (around 10mins into the podcast) just happened. Now as an African American male I do not expect the average white person to understand what being an African American is like in this country. But suffice it to say, when I hear a white male talking about the struggles he had to endure as a guard in the NBA, it sheds some light on really how little white people actually think about race and how it affects people on a daily basis. I mean we are a far cry from the days of bus boycotts and sit ins, but this idea of a post-racial society is ABSURD. But wait, there's more.

Legler goes on to say that after toiling in the developmental leagues and the amateur circuit he contemplated "giving" up and wait for it.............APPLYING TO LAW SCHOOL AT VILLANOVA! This took the cake for me. How many African American players have the option to go to law school, let alone finished their undergraduate degree (NBA only requires 1 year of college)?? To many African Americans the NBA is a way to break out of the cycle of poverty and provide for their family. Additionally, a lot of times these athletes come from environments that  do not afford them the same educational opportunities and they have to go through the daily pressures of living in a country that expects little to nothing of them. In fact, if it wasn't for their athletic prowess they would most likely be unemployed, behind bars, or dead. The fact that Tim Legler can go on and be whatever he wants, while the NBA player next to him ONLY has his talents speaks volumes to the inequalities that still pervade our society. But wait, there's more.

Legler goes on to talk about how it was especially difficult as one of only 13 or so guards in the league at the time. Really Legs? Try being the only African American kid in a class of 32. Or the only one at a job interview. You didn't feel welcome because there were only 13 others like you? Try being the minority, every time you step foot outside of your home or walk into a college classroom. This dynamic is seen in Gerald Early's article, "Performance and Reality: Race, Sports and the Modern World." He writes:

"White athletes, even when they play sports dominated by blacks, are still entering an industry not only controlled by whites in every phase of authority and operation but also largely sustained by white audiences."

Forget the sporting industry. White people run the PLANET! And last time I checked David Stern doesn't have a wicked jump shot, nor does he need one: HE RUNS THE NBA! That is something that white people can look up to and aspire to be because of white privilege. Or in the case of Legs you can follow your dreams of being an NBA player, bottomline is that you have options; something that isn't just handed to you from where I'm from just because of the skin you were born with. Again, this just reenforces the idea that there is no such thing as post-racial until we have an honest discussion of race to begin with.

2012 NHL Classic 5th Most Watched Regular Season NHL Game Since 1975

According to NBC, the Winter Classic between the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers held on Monday was the fifth most-watched regular-season NHL game since 1975. The Winter Classic games started in 2008 and for hockey fans these games have become one of the season’s highlights. While most sports fans were watching the Outback Bowl on ABC or the Rose Bowl on ESPN, I was in Philly watching the hockey game with about 45,000 other hockey fans. The build up to the game began with an HBO series “24/7” dedicated to the New Year’s Day Winter Classic. It served as a marketing tool for the NHL and NBC in promoting the big game – and it worked. Next, came the Alumni game that sold out and showcased former players we all grew up watching like Brian Leetch (who happened to play hockey and graduated from the same high school I did). By game day, fans were camped out in area parking lots wearing their team jerseys, tailgating and setting up street hockey nets. Fans of all ages were lining up to get into the game. The game was a great match up which included several nice goals, nice saves, hard hits (no fights) and a penalty shot with under a minute left in the game. It was an exciting game for hockey fans, but lacked the “entertainment” of a Super Bowl. Patti LaBelle sang the National Anthem – but I didn’t recognize any of the other entertainers. The Super Bowl attracts sports fans; people who want to watch the commercials and some who just want to watch the half-time show. While the Winter Classic is a great first step for the NHL to gain the attention of the American sports fan, it will never compare to the atmosphere of a Super Bowl until larger venues are chosen, better entertainment is hired and more sponsors sign on. Regardless, I am still a big fan of the Winter Classic.

Whites becoming the minority in sports?

As I read the articles in the first lesson a repeating statement I have seen is that African Americans are starting to make a more prominent role in sports. Early in the sporting years in the United States teams were all white. They had African American leagues separate but the white leagues were the big time leagues. As the years progressed African American players started making an appearance in the leagues. This continued to rise in numbers as the years went on. Recently in the past few decades African Americans have surpassed the numbers of white players. In sports like basketball and football, teams are consisting of more African Americans than whites. It seems that now white players are becoming the minority in certain sports such as football, basketball and track and field. Some people talk about certain positions as being only white positions like quarterbacks but recently if you look at the number of African American quarterbacks are increasing in numbers and they are all very very good. Are white athletes in certain sports becoming extinct? chances are no but for now it looks like we still have hockey!

The Original Post for this Blog (read it to give you some guidelines as to what to do)

(Orginally posted last spring by me. Sorry its not timely, but its a good example of what you can do, and also discusses--towards the end, what I expect of you on the blog)


As countless Americans take time out of the work day to fill out brackets, to check out the shooting % of Hampton's 3rd string PG hoping that he can play a role in dismantling the Evil Empire and to take money out of their kids' 529 fund to finance their entry fees into the 28 pools they have entered, we are reminded of the American obsession with sports. We listen to "experts," psychics, no-nothing grandmothers and even follow the directions of random animals whose knowledge of sports mirrors Rep. Michelle Bachmann's knowledge of American History. We turn off stories about teenage moms and the 98 potential fathers, actors gone completely insane and of non-stop greed, lust, deceit and partner swapping (I'm referring to Soap Operas, not Jersey Shore) for 2 days to watch the first, excuse me, second round of games played by teams that we couldn't identify if you gave us a web address and GPS coordinates (hint: you cannot see Russia from any of the schools in this year's tournament). We stop to celebrate the accomplishments of 916 Black men--for once--and stare in amazement while many privately root for the 14 white men trying to overcome the odds. March Madness captures the soul and our attention for at least 2.1 seconds (long enough for Christian Laettner to sink a game winning shot or for yet another child to be conceived thus providing Maury with one more shows worth of material).

Sports serves many purposes, for some its a vocation, for others it represents a legal and relatively harmless deviation from the daily stresses of life, liberty and the (endless and futile???) pursuit of happiness. For a nerdy few (if you can't do, study???), sports serves as a laboratory to study society.

This blog will house not only my views (and rants and raves) about the world of sports but also those of 39 students in my AASP 498R class in the spring of 2011--Race and Sports. As the late Linda F. Williams always reminded me, race is the most salient issue in American politics....similarly race has and continues to be a critical element in the ongoings of American society, the sports world included. The goal here is to intelligently opine and analyze issues that arise in the sports world. On an almost daily basis we see the issue of race embedded in the world of sports--in the ongoing labor negotiations in the NFL, in the evolution of the NBA, in the seemingly hourly off the field and court deeds of athletes both professional and collegiate, and even in how we view and characterize our athletic heroes. (try this for fun--listen to how CBS announcers--regarldess of their race describe the young men (and young women--go Terps!) in the mens and women's NCAA tournaments..what do you notice?).

Sports and society......race and sports....race and society......pure madness, 12 months a year.

I hope you enjoy the postings here and support the students (and students support each other). Students, post away and feel free to include links to any articles or random stuff on the internet you see fit. Friends and family, feel free to read, comment, criticize and most importantly, fill out that bracket!

Joe Louis and the IRS

After watching the documentary on Joe Louis, I am truly disgusted with the way the U.S. Government (the IRS in particular) chose to deal with his debt problems. I understand and am fully aware of the fact that taxes are a part of life in this country and if you get yourself into a serious pickle, like the one Louis was in, you must pay it off. That is not the issue here. If the people at the IRS had taken a step back and had taken a good look at what Louis's money was going to, they would have and should have cut him a little slack. In the aftermath of Pearl Harbor, Louis gave over $100,000 to relief funds. He sacrificed four years of his salary to accept the salary of a soldier ($21 a month). He enlisted, mostly for morale purposes, and stood up for his country when it would eventually turn its back on him. Now I am all for taking responsibility for your actions, but the IRS hounded Louis. It was like a game to them. This is just not right. Louis never once said he was trying to avoid paying the government back, he was just trying to find different ways to make money to pay them back while his star power was dwindling away. Despite his treatment from the IRS, Louis remained the strong, humble, soft spoken figure he had always been. His only break came with his third wife (an attorney) who managed to strike a deal with the IRS so he would only have to pay taxes on future earnings. All this said, I really and truly wonder if the IRS would have harassed Louis to this extent if he had been white?