The Top 10 Things I Don't Get About These Kids Today

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Went to my son's 7th grade football scrimmage yesterday afternoon and - it's official - I'm effin' old. Uncool. Dweeby. Dorky. And totally outta touch.

These two boys - I dunno, maybe 13 or 14ish - were talking underneath the bleachers. At least I think it was talking. To my ancient ears it might as well have been that click-cluck-clicking-chirping from those alien prawns in District 9.

Boy 1: "'Sup mayne."

Boy 2: "Kickin' the bobo. You straight?"

Boy 1: "California."

Boy 1: "Bruh, you think she's dime?"

Boy 2: "Hells yeah!"

Um, my best-guess translation:

Boy 1: "Hi."

Boy 2: "Hello, how are you?"

Boy 1: "Fine."

Boy 1: "Look at that girl, you think she's pretty?"

Boy 2: "Yes!"

This got me to thinking. About my own demise and the accelerated plunge off the cliff of what was supposed to be the next generation. My conclusion? Damn, I don't understand kids today. Not just their communication. Their culture. Their, ya know, existence.

Cue the banjo, pour some rock salt on the homemade ice-cream maker and put a quarter in the Coke machine, I'm about to act as old as I am confused.

The Top 10 Hottest TV Women in Dallas/Fort Worth: Soon to be Updated

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For your approval.
My new midday friend Newy Scruggs takes an active interest in my weekly monthly randomly updated list of the hottest chicks on our TV sets.

He was on my case for not including Tammy Dombeck (middle) in my August offering. Now, he's strongly suggesting I - and, of course, that means we - consider new NBC5 reporter Kim Fischer.

Candace Crawford, whom may or may not be dating a certain Dallas Cowboys' quarterback, is sure to remain No. 1 when the newest rankings are released sooner or later. But check out Fischer and you tell me: Yay or Nay?

The Top 10 Couples I'd Like to See on DWTS

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Granted, it would force me to actually watch the ridiculousy cheesy show, but I'd be willing to stomach Dancing With The Stars' sequins and sass and smarminess of Tom Bergeron if only I could orchestrate whom was boogieing down with whom.

Following in the "Foxtrot" footsteps of Emmitt Smith, Cowboys' Hall of Famer Michael Irvin will be on this season's show. I hear that Troy Aikman declined an invitation last year and Tuesday morning on 105.3 The Fan owner Jerry Jones said during his new weekly show that - despite his nifty moves in those Papa Johns's commercials - he doesn't consider himself a candidate.

"I had the step at one time," Jones said, "but these days it's a little off."

For me to get into DWTS, I want star power. I want sports. I want drama. I want conflict. I want skin. I want couples. I want ...

The Top 10 Hottest TV Women in Dallas: Part III

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Iola. The original.
The other day I told you about the voices you'd be hearing on Dallas Cowboys' radio broadcasts this season. Now how about some good news on the faces you'll be seeing?

In particular, one Candice Crawford.

Yowsa.

I hear the new(ish) Channel 33 reporter/former Miss Missouri will be involved in some way on Cowboys-related TV programming. Possibly even anchoring something as vital and prominent as Special Edition with Jerry Jones.

Bad news: That would mean a diminished TV role for Dallas icon Brad Sham.

Good news: It would take the sting out of the recent rip-our-hearts-out departures of Erin Hawksworth and Megan Henderson.

Time to shuffle the deck and tweak what we all must admit are the most important rankings in town ...

The Top 10 Reasons Austin is Better Than Dallas

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Different vibe in Austin, sayeth this T-shirt for sale on South Congress.

Born in Oak Cliff. Raised in Duncanville. Citizen of Dallas.​

But every time I go to Austin - like this past weekend when I skeedaddled from Cowboys' Camp in San Antonio for a quick getaway - I feel like I belong there. Know what I mean?

10. The whole city is one big Deep Ellum.

9. Two words: Cable. Access. The people willing to pay for their 15 minutes are incredibly entertaining, if not so much talented. On Saturday morning I was momentarily mesmerized by two pasty dudes sitting really close together on a love seat wearing headphones, holding microphones and talking ... atheism. I didn't care if they were agnostic or the sons of Robert Tilton, they were just so bad they were, well, good.

8. St. Edward's University. While the Cowboys bounce around from San Antonio to Wichita Falls to Oxnard, Calif., I'll always have a special, seared place in my heart for those 103-degree camps spent covering Jimmy Johnson's two-a-days on Woodward Street. Drove by the place yesterday and - gasp! - the fields that spawned three Super Bowl champions have been turned into a parking garage.

7. I know the women are classically prettier and plastically(?) hotter in Dallas, but there's something very grrrrrr about Austin chicks. Most have tattoos. Some wear hats. Or Army boots. And none of them give a damn what you or any of the fashion snobs at NorthPark think. Character + Confidence = Sexy.

6. Barton Springs. The water is always 68 degrees and sparkling clear. The women are sometimes topless. Your move, White Rock Lake. And don't get me started on Town Lake vs. the Trinity River Project.

God Bless America. And Sports.

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Happy Birthday!

Our country turns the ripe old age of 233 tomorrow. Between burgers and beers and bikinis, let us not forget how fortunate we are to have a variety of sports and the freedom to choose which ones we love and/or loathe.

In honor of the Fourth of July I started jotting down reasons to love American sports, and I'll be damned if all the sudden I hadn't come up with one for every single year of this country's existence.

Add to the list if you want. Or just pick and choose. Whatever.

It is, after all, a free country.

233. Terrell Owens, WR, Buffalo Bills.

232. Sharing personal space with 20,000 really happy people and high-fiving a guy
whose name you'll never know.

231. Michael Phelps.

230. Josh Hamilton's resurrection.

229. Jennie Finch.

228. Jim McKay.

227. Bookies.

226. The star on the helmet.

225. Yankee pinstripes.

224. The 18th at Pebble Beach.

223. Dick Vitale, John Madden and, yes, even Brent Musburger.

222. Marion Jones, before she lied.

221. Hail Mary and Touchdown Jesus.

220. The Ice Bowl, the Rose Bowl and the Beer 'n Bowl.

219. Game 7.

218. Cameron Crazies.

217. Stockton to Malone.

216. Brandi Chastain's sports bra.

215. Richard Williams. Well, he was right.

214. Boston's Green Monster and Augusta's green jacket.

213. The 12th Man.

212. Brian's Song.

211. Spurrier's visor.

210. "H-O-R-S-E," "Hot Box" and "Tackle the Man with the Football."

209. Happy Valley and March Madness.

208. Michael Jordan.

207. The seventh-inning stretch and "Down the stretch they come!"

206. Army-Navy.

205. Pauley Pavilion.

204. Caddyshack.

203. "Gentlemen, start your engines!"

202. Atlanta's Tomahawk Chop.

201. Vince Lombardi.

200. Don King, Gene Keady and Slick Watts.

199. Kobe in the clutch and Junior on the gas.

198. Hot dogs.

197. The Three J's, The Four Horsemen and The Fab Five.

196. "It ain't over 'til it's over."

195. Hawg hats, Fort Worth Cats and Minnesota Fats.

194. Michael Irvin's reincarnation.

193. A two-putt birdie.

192. Wide Right and Student Body Left.

191. Natalie Gulbis.

190. The smell of fresh-cut grass on Opening Day.

189. Slow-motion instant replays.

188. Al Davis' white(ish) windbreaker.

187. Pizza delivered right before kickoff.

186. The hole in the roof so God can watch his favorite team.

185. The Immaculate Reception.

184. A no-hitter after eight.

183. Jimmy Connors at Flushing Meadows. At night.

182. Alligator arms, swim moves and The Shark.

181. Tom Dempsey.

180. The Silver Boot, the Iron Skillet and plain ol' braggin' rights.

179. Underdogs.

178. Navratilova vs. Evert.

177. Grass.

176. Hat tricks via bicycle kicks.

175. Jerry Jones.

174. NFL Films.

173. Bo Jackson.

172. Bobby Knight's sweaters. And trifecta bettors.

171. Texas-OU Weekend.

170. Flo-Jo and Little Mo.

169. DirecTV's Sunday ticket.

168. Two points, three-peats and four-baggers through the five hole.

167. Emmitt Smith, former ESPN analyst

166. Slap Shot.

165. Troy Aikman, Daryl Johnston and Deion Sanders on the
other side of the camera.

164. John Wooden's program and Red Auerbach's cigar.

163. The Steel Curtain.

162. Taking your glove to the game.

161. Tatu. And tattoos.

160. "Down goes Frazier! Down goes Frazier!"

159. Amen corner. And Death Valley.

158. Nike vs. Reebok.

157. No. 1 vs. No. 16.

156. "Boomer Sooner", "Rocky Top" and "wake up the echoes."

155. One-handed 360.

154. Phil Jackson's Triangle and Dean Smith's four corners.

153. Breathe Rights, eye black, mouthpieces and ear holes.

152. The Great One and The Greatest.

151. "Fumblerooski."

150. Monday Night Football.

149. "Havlicek stole the ball!"

148. A-Fraud.

147. The Ring of Honor.

146. Between the hedges.

145. Reggie Miller vs. Spike Lee.

144. Sports sections of the newspaper blogs.

143. The chills + a hangover + the day off = the Cotton Bowl.

142. Two minutes for roughing.

141. Rick Reilly.

140. "The Friendly Confines." And Raiders fans.

139. The Zamboni.

138. Yankees-Red Sox.

137. "He could ... go ... all .. the ... way ..."

136. Joe Pa.

135. Tailgating.

134. The Downtown Athletic Club.

133. A blue parking pass.

132. Mel Kiper Jr.'s mock draft.

131. Erin Andrews sideline reports.

130. Tim Duncan's bank shot.

129. Rick Barry's underhand free throw.

128. Goal-line stands and the Stanford band.

127. "Can I have your autograph?"

126. Labor peace.

125. Brett Farve, retired. Maybe.

124. Brad Sham and Eric Nadel.

123. Lambeau Field in January.

122. Sports talk radio.

121. Miami vs. Florida vs. Florida State.

120. "Steeeerriiiike Three!," "Let's play two!" and "We're No. 1!"

119. Roger Staubach down 13 with 2:19 remaining.

118. Dropping the gloves. And catching big air.

117. The Sky Hook.

116. "Coooold beeeeeer!!"

The Top 10 Most Notable Sports Deaths of Our Era

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Patrick Michels
An old Michael Jackson poster at last week's candlelight vigil in Duncanville.

I grew up with Michael Jackson. Had his Off the Wall album cover tacked - that's right, tacked - to my bedroom wall. As a senior member of the 1982 Duncanville Panthers' basketball team - district 9-5A champs, look it up - I picked "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" as our pre-game layup line music.

I'll always remember where I was - Mavericks' draft, Old No. 7 Club - when I heard the news that the King of Pop/Weird had died.

Got me to thinking about other notable deaths in my lifetime, particularly sports passings. What do you know? I happen to have 10 of 'em.

The Top 10 Best Things About Summer

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In case today's triple-digit heat hadn't reminded you yet, summer officially began this week. Y-a-w-n.

No football. No basketball. No hockey. No frost bite.

No worries.

With plenty of time to kill, thought I spend today pondering my favorite heat-beatin' time-killers. Otherwise known as The Top 10 Best Things About Summer:

The Top 10 Hottest Women's Tennis Players

Even if you don't like tennis, I'm suggesting you'll enjoy The French Open.

Hot and dirty young women sweating and grunting and playing with fuzzy balls. What's not to like lust?

Even though Anna Kournikova has bagged her beautiful raquets, there's plenty to look at in the women's game on the clay at Roland Garros. Come for the vixens. Stay for the volleys.

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10. Ashley Harkleroad

 

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9. Elena Dementieva

 

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8. Serena Williams

 

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7. Ana Ivanovic

 

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6. Daniela Hantuchova

 

The Top 10 Sportiest American Holidays

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Had a buddy yesterday gloat to me that Memorial Day Sunday is "one of the greatest sporting days of the year!"

To which I replied, "Huh?"

I remember a time when the Indianapolis 500 was must-see TV along with the Harlem Globetrotters, heavyweight boxing matches, Oklahoma-Nebraska football and NBA All-Star Saturday. Alas, those events long ago passed their prime. At this point they should be on the endangered species list, because they've gone the way of stewardesses, stationary and smoking.

Yesterday: relevant. Tomorrow: extinct.

Maybe it's just because I don't think drivers are athletes, but I no longer - despite Danica Patrick - make time for the Indy 500, much less the Coca-Cola 600. I know baseball has interleague play and NBA offers a marquee playoff game, but in the big picture I don't consider Memorial Day sports to be that, um, memorable.

You?

The Top 10 Bodyguards in Case of Zombie Apocalypse

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Would the Bird Man make a good Wing Man?
So you're having a beer at your favorite watering hole. Next thing you know, zombies.

Through the door. Crashing in the windows. Falling from the ceiling. Purgatory-confined, blood-thirsty zombies. Everywhere.

This hasn't happened to me in a while, but when it does I want an athlete to be my bodyguard. A big, scary, tattooed, pierced, fearless dude that has a chance to fight off the zombies and keep me from, ya know, being a dead man's dinner.

But who?

Couple of the Denver Thuggets have "the look", but I wonder if The Bird Man would make a good Wing Man? Nawwww, too skinny.

When the zombies attack, the guy I want at my side is ... 

The Top 5 Mexican Athletes in the History of Dallas

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Numero Uno.
Pretty sure I should call in Gustavo for a round of Ask a Mexican on this, but with it being Cinco de Mayo and all I thought I should crack open a Corona and at least give it a go.

I was going to - per my usual list - rank the Top 10 but that's extremely difficult considering the lack of decent Mexican athletes since it's May 5th I fittingly went with just the five.

My five greatest Mexican athletes in the history of Dallas:

5. Eduardo Najera - Mavs have never replaced his energy and tenacity.

4. Tony Romo - Antonio Ramiro Romo, a third-generation Mexican-American on his father's side, still waiting for post-season success.

3. Esteban Loaiza - Won 17 games with Rangers from '98-'00 and started a '99 playoff game vs. Yankees.

The Top 10 Sports Superstitions That May or May Not Work

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3-0 with; 0-3 without. Is it that difficult to decipher?
Step on a crack, break your mother's back. Avoid black cats, the No. 13 and walking under ladders. And, above all else, wear anything other than red and find yourself dead.

Hmm. Are the Texas Rangers superstitious about superstitions?

Seems to me that rituals, traditions and even obsessive compulsive disorder could reinforce routines and therefore increase performance. But aren't superstitions just a scaredy cat way of avoiding bad luck?

I'm not a superstitious guy. But I guess if I wrote three consecutive award-winning columns in my undies while eating cereal, you can damn well bet on the fourth day I'll have those boxers clean and the Raisin Bran prepped.

But your Rangers: Arrogant? Naive? Stubborn? Stupid?

Not sure which one fits most snug, but there's a reason they got swept in Detroit after sweeping Cleveland and it's not rocket science, it's primary colors. Texas won division championships wearing red in the late '90s. Brought the color back this year on a limited basis, but started 3-0 in it. So off to Detroit and - what? - blue on all three days leads to three losses and this red realization:

Superstitions in sports matter. Right?

The 10 Most Compelling People on TV

With the Rangers over and the Mavs resting and the Stars playing a meaningless hockey game - ugh, is there an uglier phrase in the English language? - I flipped around DirecTV for a moment last night before wondering aloud:

If I had my choice, who would I watch right now?

Then I answered myself. With a list.

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10. Dave Chappelle - Yeah I know he walked and his show is kaput, but every once in a while you'll stumble upon a rerun and it's a week-sweetner. Don't you dare die before seeing his Race Draft. Priceless.

 

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9. Murray Hewitt - Flight of the Conchords manager conducts the worst/best beend meeting in the history of "music."

 

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8. Peter Gammons - I'm not a seam-head, but whenever ESPN's analyst speaks about baseball I stop and listen. He lives for that shit. man, I wished I loved anything half as much as Gammons loves baseball. Plus, I'm fascinated how much he looks like Andrew Jackson, the face of our $20 bill.

 

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7. Mary Carillo - I find her passion and knowledge and ability to communicate tennis to be very arousing. No kidding.

 

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6. Dale Hansen - Whether he's unplugged or applying the Q&A taser to Jerry Jones, Channel 8's icon sports anchor is the closest thing we have to must-see local TV.

A Systematic, Somewhat Sane Ranking of the World's Most Athletic Sports

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Holding up my arm during this photo? 'Bout as athletic as Dale Earnhardt's driving.
In this week's column in the dead tree version of Sportatorium I maintain that NASCAR drivers aren't athletes. Conversely, Texas Motor Speedway grand poobah Eddie Gossage counterpoints that not only are drivers supremely athletic, but more fit than even soccer players.

Got me to thinking: Which sport truly has the world's best athletes? We could peruse this Superstars list or, better yet, come up with our own criteria.

Football requires strength and speed, but minimizes endurance. Basketball requires agility and stamina, but minimizes strength. Hockey requires skating and fighting. And baseball? Basically just the ability to spit or, in some cases, inject.

Which sport's combined athletes would win a Superstars team competition?

Only one way to settle the debate: Let's rank every known sport on an athletic scale of 1-10 ...

The 10 Worst Sports Celebrations in the History of Sports

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Bad, but nowhere near the worst.
Dear LeBron James,

Just ask, and I'm sure Dancing With The Stars will have you on their ridiculously cheesy show next season. I'm sure millions of potato-chip snackin' housewives would be fixated on your every silly, pre-fabricated step.

But as a basketball fan, I demand you immediately cease and desist with your bullshit pre-game choreography. It's stupid. It's illogical. It's degrading. It's unbecoming of a player who has the talent - but not the temperament? - to win an NBA Championship.

Keep dunking. Stop dramatizing.

Sincerely,

Sports

Just a hunch, but I bet I could get the likes of Tim Duncan, Michael Jordan and Larry Bird to sign the letter as well.

I've been contemplating this list for a while. For the longest time I debated the merits of things like the Ickey Shuffle and Carl Edwards' backflip and Barry Bonds' batters-box 360 and every single athlete these days jumping and colliding into teammates in mid-air.

My conclusion: It's not entertaining. It's embarrassing.

Surely you've seen LeBron's LeRoutine?

The Top 10 Greatest Black Athletes in the History of Ever

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Mission Accomplished Impossible.

In honor of February's Black History Month, I set out to pinpoint a pristine list of the world's all-time greatest black athletes. But using what criteria?

Sheer athleticism? Popularity? Accomplishment? Social activism? Transcendence? All of the above? Nothing of the sort?

The task, in and of itself, is as absurd as trying to convince Dallas County Commissioner John Wiley Price that, sure, 28 days is adequate celebration of your race.

I wound up taking into account everything, nothing and random bits in between. I wound up including one local athlete and - can't believe I'm typing this - excluding the likes of LeBron James, Usain Bolt, Jesse Owens, Oscar Robertson, Walter Payton, Daley Thompson, Carl Lewis, Michael Johnson, Jim Brown, Roberto Clemente, Deion Sanders, Jackie Joyner-Kersey, O.J. Simpson, Kip Keino, Rickey Henderson, Edwin Moses and Lawrence Taylor.

Jump for the best, most difficult list I've ever whittled ... 

The Hottest Male Athletes According to Females

Second in a very sporadic, yet nonetheless fascinating series by Dallas Observer staff writers Merritt Martin/Megan Feldman. Ladies, as always, mi casa es su casa ...

You've been waiting haven't you?

We knew you wanted it, but c'mon, we had to make you yearn. It was a tease, all in good fun ... and then Megan had to go out of town (Something about reporting? Something about an actual printed newspaper? I dunno). We didn't really mean to leave you with a case of blue balls blogs.

Anyway. First, we gave you the girls with their grace, style and beauty to boot, and we promised you some brawn as well. So here it is [insert dramatic music], the ladies' list of hot male athletes.

They're strong, they're talented, they're - for the most part - smart, and they're smokin' hot.

Agree?

Tags: hot guys

UPDATED: The Top 10 Hottest TV Women in Dallas

Iola Johnson - The Original.gifIt wasn't that I got 20 minutes of solid face time on KFWD Channel 52 Friday night.

It wasn't that I got to tour Channel 8's spiffy HD studios in Victory Park and take a spin in Dale Hansen's chair. (Psst, it really is unplugged!)

And it wasn't that I out-yelled The Ticket's Mark Elfenbein despite generally looking a fidgety, finicky mess.

The point is, I bumped into Shelly Slater and - whoa - time to update the ol' rankings.

In other words, watch out Megan Henderson:

The World's Top 10 Left-Handed Athletes

Simpsons Lefty.jpgRight is wrong and left is ... right?

Seems to be. It's not exactly a bass-ackward revolution, but left-handers are doing okay for themselves in sports these days.

Or are they?

The idea struck me last week when I saw highlights of college quarterbacks Josh Heupel and Matt Leinart winning BCS National Championship Games. They disappeared = Bad.

Then I watched this year's game and saw Florida's Tim Tebow will his Gators to a title. He's one of the best players in the history of college football = Good.

The rest of the planet's lefties are also in state of quirky so-so-ness.

Rafael Nadal is the world's No. 1 tennis player, but no lefty was among the NFL's 32 top-rated quarterbacks this season. Dallas product and Raptors' forward Chris Bosh is sixth in the NBA in scoring, but there isn't a lefty among any of college basketball's All-American probables. The highest-ranked women's tennis player is 14th (Patty Schynder) and only one of the NBA's top 50 scorers is lefty (Detroit's Tayshaun Prince is 51st).

In golf there are two lefties (Phil Mickelson and Mike Weir) among the top 21. In baseball the Indians' Cliff Lee won the Cy Young and Minnesota's Justin Morneau won the Home Run Derby and the AL MVP. In hockey, who knows? They're all left-handed. Or is it right-handed?

Locally, Josh Hamilton's bat makes the loudest lefty noise.

As for sports' most righteous left-handers ...

Girls on Girls: The Hottest Female Athletes According to Females

Tech Hotties - Swim Team.jpgOkay, let's try something different. Something titillating.

Since Observer staff writers Merritt Martin and Megan Feldman almost never get in a cat fight that spills over into the mud-wrestling pit, they instead want to entertain us visually-stimulated, testosterone-saturated dorks with their own list.

Couple of months ago I gave you my ranking of the hottest female athletes ever. Now the girls want to weigh in on their favorite girls.

Objections? Didn't think so.

Since they're both too shy (re: smart) to post their pics on here, I should think descriptions are in order. Simple, Merritt is a prettier version of her; Megan a younger, better her.

Got it?

Ladies, mi casa es su casa ...

OK, so you get Richie on here all the time. Hell, you even get a little Merten sometimes and, last week, even an apperance by Schutze. But the ladies of the DO felt it was time to rep-ruh-ZENT!

And, really, what better way to show that we do watch sports (and even partake in them occasionally) than to give you a list of athletes we think are hot? Our preferred guys are coming later, but for now we're ogling the girls.

Now, this isn't totally superficial. These females are tough, talented and fine. Fine as in, "We want beautiful physiques like them," as opposed to, "Damn, how does she jump with those tig ol' bitties?!"

Let's proceed, in no particular order:

Happy New Year! The Top 10 Most Memorable Moments in Cotton Bowl History

Cotton Bowl.jpgPass the Advil and crank up the wayback machine.

Let's kick off 2009 with one last, long, loving look back at the Cotton Bowl. Oh, the refurbished stadium will still be around, but its namesake game is moving to Arlington after tomorrow's Texas Tech-Ole Miss curtain closer and, other than Texas-OU, looks like nothing else of note will call its hallowed ground home.

From founder J. Curtis Sanford's idea in 1937 to Jim "Hoss" Brock's glad-handing to Michael Crabtree's final college game, the ol' joint will always gush with memories.

10. 2006: Alabama Smothers Leach, Tech.

9. 1983: Pony Express Survives Dan Marino.

8. 1991: Miami 'Canes Texas.

7. 1971: Revenge of the Irish.

6. 1966: LSU Stops Hogs' Streak.

The Top 10 Most Memorable Dallas Sports Moments of 2008

josh_hamilton_derby.jpgBefore you muffle your "Happy New Year's" wishes with tired, old criticism, notice I said "Memorable" and not "Best". Got it?

In lieu of Dick Clark, let me start these balls dropping.

10. Byrd Watching.

9. A National (Anthem) Embarrassment.

8. Jivin' at the Joule.

7. Morrow's First/ Avery's Sloppy Seconds.

6. You Must Be Kiddin'.

2008 in Memoriam: Your Top 10 Most Popular Sports Items of the Year

AnnaKournikova.jpgIn keeping with our "Best of ... " programming this week, I'll provide the most memorable Metroplex sports moments of 2008 on Wednesday. Until then, a look back at what you guys clicked on/commented on the most in the past year.

The Sportatorium's version of The People's Choice Awards, if you will.

10. People No Longer Like The Ticket.

9. Sean Avery Got Suspended for What?!

8. Where's Greggo? On ESPN Radio.

7. Don't Mess With Texas.

6. Live 105.3 Fires Russ Martin, Switches to Sports.

Final NFL Quarterback Rankings

Romo SI.jpgAccording to the Pro Bowl, Peyton Manning and Kurt Warner are the two best NFL quarterbacks of 2008.

According to me, nonsense.

Warner has the best receivers in the league and throws in the worst division in football. Manning was steady, but hardly spectacular.

My rankings, which take into account quarterback rating, team record, TD-to-Int differential and which way the wind's blowing, culminate today. And my winner - surprise - ain't even headed to Hawaii.

32. Dan Orlovsky - Lions

31. Ken Dorsey - Browns

30. Seneca Wallace - Seahawks

29. JaMarcus Russell - Raiders

28. Marc Bulger - Rams

27. Ryan Fitzpatrick -  Bengals

26. Tyler Thigpen - Chiefs

25. J.P. Losman - Bills

24. Tarvaris Jackson - Vikings

23. Shaun Hill - 49ers

22. David Garrard - Jaguars

21. Jason Campbell - Redskins

20. Kyle Orton - Bears

19. Aaron Rodgers - Packers

18. Joe Flacco - Ravens

17. Matt Cassel - Patriots

Wrapping Up Jon Daniels' Third Year As Rangers GM

Armando Galaragga was the only thing of value Jon Daniels was able to get from the Alfonso Soriano trade. Then he gave him away for a player the Rangers released. Whoops.
You want more hot-stove baseball talk from Sam? Merry Christmas ...

As mentioned yesterday, Jon Daniels is entering his fourth year as general manager. He started off with a bang in year one, trading Alfonso Soriano in his first move and dealing Chris Young and Adrian Gonzalez less than two weeks later. Unfortunately, he received very little in return -- Adam Eaton, Akinori Otsuka, Brad Wilkerson and Armando Galaragga. Eaton and Wilkerson battled injuries and overall ineffectiveness before leaving as free agents, Otsuka was not offered a contract after the 2007 season and had elbow surgery earlier this year, and Galaragga was traded to Detroit for a prospect that was released shortly after the deal.

Daniels bounced back with a successful second year, making the Rangers' farm system one of the best in the bigs after a strong draft and trading Mark Teixeira, Eric Gagne and Kenny Lofton for top young talent like Neftali Feliz (9th-ranked prospect in baseball, according to MLB.com), Elvis Andrus (21st), Jarrod Saltalamacchia, Matt Harrison, Max Ramirez and Engel Beltre. Of course, that same year, he dealt away John Danks in perhaps his most illogical move to date.

Through it all, the organization has improved under his watch regarding talent, but that hasn't translated into more wins, as Texas won 80 games in 2006, 75 in 2007 and 79 this year. With another year in the books, it's time for the third annual installment of Jon Daniels' report card.

NFL Quarterback Rankings: Week 16

Romo SI.jpgTony Romo, all is forgiven.

At least for a week.

After one of the most Gawd-awful performances of his career - or, let's face it, any career - in Pittsburgh, the Cowboys' quarterback went out Sunday night and padded his legacy with a game straight from Hollywood.

Aching back and nagging teammates be damned, Romo willed Dallas to a crucial victory over the Giants by throwing two touchdowns, committing zero turnovers and withstanding four brutal sacks.

Two more games like that and he just might finish in the Top 5 after all. Another Steelers' stinker, however, and not only will he fall into double digits, but his team will miss the playoffs.

Pressure? What pressure?

32. Dan Orlovsky - Lions

31. Ken Dorsey - Browns

30. JaMarcus Russell - Raiders

29. Seneca Wallace - Seahawks

28. Marc Bulger - Rams

27. Ryan Fitzpatrick -  Bengals

26. Tyler Thigpen - Chiefs

25. J.P. Losman - Bills

24. David Garrard - Jaguars

23. Shaun Hill - 49ers

22. Tarvaris Jackson - Vikings

21. Jason Campbell - Redskins

20. Kyle Orton - Bears

19. Aaron Rodgers - Packers

18. Joe Flacco - Ravens

17. Matt Cassel - Patriots

The Top 10 NBA Beards I Could Think of After Gregg Popovich Reminded Me Last Night How Cool Beards Could Be

Scot Pollard - Beard.jpg

Since I'm drowning in deadline, hirsute Observer Night & Day Editor Noah Bailey is kind enough - bold enough - to stand in. Noah, take it away:

After the Mavs beat Baron Davis' Clippers last week, I couldn't help but reconsider Davis' much-ballyhooed place in the pantheon of NBA beards. A 4-17 record will make people question your manhood, after all.

We only wish we could include more Mavs on this list, but we've yet to see Dirk, Damp, Terry or Barea rocking anything close to these ten entries in NBA beard-dom. Here's hoping one of them will put down the razor and give our new number one a run for his money.

10. Bill Wennington

Comment: A classic '80s specimen of the "Just for Men" beard.

9. Pau Gasol

Comment: Easily the most grizzled beard on this list, we'd move it up a couple spots if he'd agree to wax his moustache conquistador style. Probably grown to offset his lack of an actual chin.

8. Rasheed Wallace

Comment: A paranoid beard, equally at home blocking shots or one of Charlie's grenades.

7. DeShawn Stevenson

Comment: Notice how King James' beardlet pales to Stevenson's in this side-by-side comparison.

6. Bill Walton

Comment: A classic of Lincolnian proportions, with extra bonus points awarded for extreme redness.

NFL Quarterback Rankings: Week 15

Romo SI.jpgOkay, I'm swamped up to here penning a cover story about a former Cowboy you haven't thought about in a long time, so let's make this snappy.

Besides, isn't it best to eat your crow on the run?

After praising Cowboys' quarterback Tony Romo in a swath of I-told-you-so's last week, he went out and looked like the goofball from the worst flag football team you ever played on.

Goofy grins. Running to the heater between plays. Sailing passes. Fumbling. Throwing high and wide interceptions. Trying left-handed passes to wide open receivers in the end zone.

Romo's still great and all, but that was pathetic. It looked like a guy who had no idea how to handle giant-game pressure. Which, come to think about it, his record may prove to be more fact than fiction.

Guess well know more on Sunday, huh?

32. Daunte Culpepper - Lions

31. Ken Dorsey - Browns

30. Ryan Fitzpatrick -  Bengals

29. JaMarcus Russell - Raiders

28. Marc Bulger - Rams

27. Matt Hassellbeck - Seahawks

26. Tyler Thigpen - Chiefs

25. J.P. Losman - Bills

24. David Garrard - Jaguars

23. Shaun Hill - 49ers

22. Gus Frerotte - Vikings

21. Donovan McNabb - Eagles

20. Jason Campbell - Redskins

19. Kyle Orton - Bears

18. Matt Cassel - Patriots

17. Joe Flacco - Ravens

The Top 10 Sports Zingers I Can Think of Off the Top of My Head

Sean Avery Playa.jpgNot saying Sean Avery isn't an asshole. Or a horrible teammate. Or, for that matter, a room-wrecker the Dallas Stars should consider dumping.

I'm just saying he shouldn't have been suspended - or worse, pending this afternoon's meeting with NHL poobah Gary Bettman in New York - merely for his "sloppy seconds" zinger.

It was a classic barb. Years from now Stars' fans - shoot, all sports fans - will associate sloppy seconds with him. As in, "Dude, don't go home with her. Unless you want to be Phaneuf to my Avery."

His insult got me to thinking about the all-time sports zingers. Care for a hastily assembled Top 10? Well then, jump to it.

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