Was This Over Before... Before It Ever Began?

Back in 2004 when I was a sophomore in high school, I started to going to my school's football games. It began as a "Let's get points for the Homecoming competition", but I enjoyed myself so much I made it to every home game (and playoff game home or away) after that. Aurora Christian was just discovering its entry into the world of competitive IHSA football, and in the first year under Don Beebe, we were ready for a title run. We'd won our first 2 playoff games, advancing to the quarterfinals for the first time in school history. Everything seemed to be going right until a couple days before the game. One of our star wide receivers in his first year with the team woke up one morning with chest pain and went to the hospital. It turned out that a preexisting heart condition flared up requiring surgery and he missed that game. Our hearts and prayers went out to him. We would up losing that game, but said star would make a full recovery and finally get to play for the basketball team. His debut at home was inspiring and his first basket nearly blew the roof off the old "801" gym on the west side of Aurora.

This is the kind of inspiring story Chicago Bulls fans are hoping for in these playoffs, seeing a similar unexpected turn. I found some reminders of my sophomore year of high school in the hours since Derrick Rose tore his ACL against the 76ers. I wasn't watching the game, but was following along on Twitter. When I heard the news, my heart sank. Obviously tearing a ligament in your knee isn't anywhere near as serious as a heart problem, but both events see a final result of a star missing out on big playoff games. I along with all of Chicago am praying that Derrick will have a speedy, but more importantly full recovery to come back and have the impact he has had his first 3 1/2 years in the NBA.

What does this mean for the Bulls? The obvious initial reaction that everyone (myself and Geoffy included) comes to is that the Bulls are no longer title contenders. It's hard to say for certain, but thinking about it, that's the most likely scenario. The best case, of course, would be that the Bulls come together again as a team and resolve to win for Derrick as it's what he wants them to do. Worst case, we see a second round exit to Boston or another elimination at Miami's hands. Unfortunately the second scenario seems more likely.

In order for this best case scenario to come to fruition, so many things have to go right. Some teams may have to lose for the Bulls to get a better matchup (I'm looking at you, Miami.) If there does end up being a Bulls-Heat East Finals, Bosh needs to be invisible while Boozer shines, Noah keeps bringing the energy, Korver keeps shooting lights out, John Lucas becomes this year's Jason Terry (Irrational Confidence guy), and so on and so forth. Realistically, I don't think it's going to happen. But I will support this team on their run however deep they go.

For those of you who want to blame Coach Thibodeau... just stop it. No one on the Bulls is blaming him; heck, everyone came to his defense. Rose missed 27 games this season. He needed to get back in rhythm with his teammates. The only way to do that is to play. He needed to get back into some key situations. His knee injury could have happened at any time. It's a double standard to blame a non-contact injury, something that could have happened at any time during the game, on the coach when said injury could have happened in the 2nd quarter yesterday, or in the opening minutes on Tuesday. There was no way to predict this could have happened. Yes, it follows Murphy's Law, but that's more of a reactive thing than a proactive one. And Derrick certainly isn't blaming his coach. Why should we?

Bulls fans, enjoy the ride as long as we have it this season. Even if the Bulls get knocked out, this group will develop a tough mentality and use this experience for next season. ACL injuries take a while to come back from, plus if Deng decides to have wrist surgery, we're down our top 2 guys. But this is a deep team, and they won't make any excuses. They will do what they can to stay near the top of the East again while their heroes recover. And be ready next spring, because this team isn't going away. Godspeed, Chicago Bulls.

A Step in the Right Direction

You would think this would normally be about the NFL Draft tonight. I caught good chunks of it, was surprised by the sheer number of trades, but there were a lot of good picks. Some picks were question marks, but overall it was a good round. As 32 guys have left college to go join the pros, something else is leaving college football as well.

Supposedly a shard of Alabama's BCS trophy. Just like their "championship".

If you are a regular reader of Confessions of a Sportscaster, you know I have a heavy anti-BCS bias. So when I heard early during the college football offseason that there was talk of change to the postseason format, I was a little leery, but hopeful. As we've gone into this week, I've gotten really optimistic. The conference commissioners... plus the ever outdated AD of Notre Dame are all brainstorming and discussing ideas for a fairer and brighter end to the season.


Unfortunately for football fans, the conference commissioners think that an 8-16 team playoff "diminishes the regular season" while completely forgetting that they gave a team that lost to the #1 team in the nation last year a second chance to beat them. They don't seem to understand the idea that not only would a larger playoff make money, it's a much fairer system for deciding a national champion.

As of right now, it seems like the committee wants to go with a "plus-one". Having 4 teams play for a title is certainly much better than having only 2, but it's still heavily flawed. Even if we only go with conference champions for the new postseason, there's still too heavy a reliance on coaches polls (biased due to politicking and best-interest voting rather than honest thoughts on the best teams in the nation) and computer formulas that don't even take margin of victory into consideration.

Don't get me wrong; a plus-one is an improvement over the current BCS system. But it's not enough. I'm still advocating the 16 team playoff (the 11 conference winners plus 5 at-large teams, usually 1 or 2 loss teams). By bringing in the conference winners, you still have importance of the regular season, while having a loss or 2 doesn't necessarily kick you out. And we get an exciting conclusion to the season.

The biggest questions that remain revolve around host sites and the big bowl games. Personally I'm still of the opinion that they either become part of the playoffs in the final round (3rd place game on down the line for the BCS ones) or keep them separate but wait for the title game pairing to be announced so games like the Rose Bowl can keep their traditional matchups as best as possible.

As for playoff sites, I'm okay with the neutral site idea if it comes down to that, but I still believe having a higher seed host would make things so much more interesting. For example, having a playoff game at the Horseshoe in Columbus to mix tradition with a great system? Love the concept. There may be some logistical things to work out, but I can't imagine it being unrealistic. The biggest problem with hometown is making sure out of town visitors have hotels to stay at (which, given how big game days are as it is, I can't see it being that much of an adjustment).

The biggest obstacle I continue to see from fans who want to keep the status quo (seems to be largely SEC people, but I'm sure there's more beyond just that conference) is how some schools don't deserve to go to the title game. It either stems from a bad loss (see Oklahoma State's loss this year to Iowa State) or a "weaker" schedule (see every Boise State season it seems like). These are the people that should be most in favor of a playoff. Think a team lost a game they should have won, or didn't play a tough enough schedule to play for a title? You shouldn't be scared of them. After all, they're an inferior team and you'd beat them en route to a title, right? What are you afraid of?

I'll admit; no system is perfect. Not even the 16 team playoff is perfect. I think it's the maximum number of teams we can include before it becomes diluted, but probably the best possible way to really decide a national champion, something the current system does not do. A plus one is a step in the right direction, but not a total victory. So, my fellow revolutionaries, the fight must go on. But we are making strides and making a real change for the good of college football.

Going Home Early

I remember reading something back in the 2009-10 NHL season saying that the Hawks had potential to be a dynasty, but due to the salary cap it would be a challenge and thus their best shot at the Cup was that magical 2010 playoff run.

The years since have been tough, with this year seeing a painful exit. During this series with Phoenix, I felt just about every emotion a sports fan can feel. Excitement. Disappointment. Joy. Fear. Anger. Depression. And resignation last night when the third puck got by Corey Crawford. I had come to terms with the fact that this incarnation wouldn't be playing again.

As far as playoff series go, this was not a good one... And not because of the outcome. As has been harped on early and often this April, the officiating throughout the Stanley Cup playoffs has been atrocious. You can point to Philly-Pittsburgh as the top example, but this series was equally bad. Early on it seemed like the Hawks couldn't buy a call. We had Flopgate. And even last night there were bad penalties. The one that ticked me off the most was the misconduct on Jimmy Hayes. Not the smartest hit, definitely a 5 minute major for boarding, but it was not a malicious hit. It just looked like it with an injured Coyote. It was reactive officiating again, not proactive.

As much as I harp on the officials sometimes, I'm a firm believer in the concept that referees don't decide games, the players do. And that was absolutely the case here, as most Hawks fans understand. Hawks defenders made some bad turnovers or were caught out of position to lead to big goals. Crawford let in 2 soft goals in overtime in the Madhouse. The offense often tried to do too much. So many times guys like Kane tried to maneuver through traffic rather than pass the puck.

At the same time, Phoenix deserved to win this series. They played phenomenal defense all series, and took advantage of Chicago miscues. But the biggest reason they won was because Mike Smith played out of his mind, especially yesterday. The philosophy is that you need a good goaltender to win a Cup. Mike Smith is a good, even great goaltender. That being said, I don't respect him. As good a net minder he is, trying to win an Oscar is unnecessary. He's a great player, but also a scumbag.

So what about a 2013 run? The Hawks need help on the back end. They're pretty good at forward (aside from needing a 2nd line center), but more physicality at the blue line is a must, and unfortunately Crawford is not the long term answer in goal. Good backup, but that's about it.

This group will be back in the playoffs again next spring. And hopefully then they will have the grit as well as the skill needed to bring Lord Stanley back where he belongs.

South Side Perfection

I surmised at the beginning of this month that it was going to be a long summer for Chicago baseball. For my Cubs, I was right. The starting pitching has been good, but the bullpen and offense have struggled in typical Cub fashion. The Sox meanwhile have been off to a decent start and are competing in a tough AL Central. But I never saw what happened today coming. No one could have.

Major League Baseball has been around for almost 150 years. Many things have changed since the 19th century within the game since then, but even with all the differences, retiring all 27 men you face in a single game has only happened 21 times in hundreds of thousands of games. I've been blessed to be alive for 9 of them, though I was really only aware of 5 of them (all since 2000).

I had no idea Humber was going for it today. I had called my dad this afternoon to figure out stuff with dinner when he told me Humber was 3 outs away. He talked me through the pitches of out number 25 before I was able to get the TV on at my girlfriend's house. She knows I'm a Cubs fan, so needless to say she was shocked that I flipped on a Sox game. But when you have a chance, even on TV, to witness history, you don't pass it up.

The closest I've ever been in person was 2009 also involving the Sox... and the last South Sider to do it in Mark Buehrle. The start right after his perfecto was in Minnesota. He retired the first 17 or so batters as I recall before giving up that first hit... then the floodgates opened. I was happy he didn't record another perfect game, but 5 innings was awfully early to really feel it.

I'm not a Sox fan. I never will be. But I'm a baseball fan, and I appreciate these rare moments when they happen. I was rooting for Humber to get those last 2 outs when I flipped on the game. And I'm really glad the Mariners fans in Seattle were on their feet in the 9th. A classy move by them to appreciate the moment.

So from this humbled Cubs fan, congratulations to Phil Humber. You may not feel like your name belongs in the annals of history with the likes of Randy Johnson, Roy Halladay, and Sandy Koufax, but you earned it today. And you are forever immortal in the lore of baseball.

An Open Letter to Brendan Shanahan

Mr. Shanahan,

Thank you for once again screwing over the National Hockey League.

You can read my last post on here to see my thoughts about the hit Andrew Shaw put on Mike Smith. By the letter of the law, you can't touch the goalie. I get that. I also get that you want to protect players. But you are going about this the wrong way.

Anyone with unbiased eyes can tell that Mike Smith embellished the hit. He was hit, but he blew it out of proportion. That you can't or won't see the obvious manipulation here would be beyond me if I didn't already know you were terrible at issuing punishments.

Shea Weber WWE-style slams Zetterberg's head into the boards repeatedly... A non hockey play... And he gets the minimum fine. In a non- Red Wing game, Andrew Shaw tries to make a hockey play, and gets 3 games. Unbelievable.

You claim the hit was "A forceful blow" and Shaw "Does not make a reasonable effort to avoid such contact." He was up against the wall. What does he have to do? And what normal human being goes flying that badly on a hit from someone smaller than him?

I hope for your sake you don't go near Chicago any time soon. Or any city with an NHL team other than Detroit, because people will be out to get you. You clearly are not qualified to hold your office. Go be a TV analyst where your experience will be of use to you.

Sincerely,

Confessions of a Sportscaster

Karma in the Desert

I'm getting an opportunity before I go to bed to catch some more playoff hockey and I'm getting a sick sense of joy watching the LA Kings beating up on the Vancouver Canucks. If they make a comeback and end up against the Hawks, I'll talk about these guys. But for now, the 3-6 matchup in the Western Conference has been interesting so far, tied at one game apiece.

I had said last week that Phoenix was a fairly talented team but not one I was too worried about against the Hawks. I was a little overconfident; this Coyotes team is very talented and they've showed some flashes of brilliance. They've earned their way to a division title and to be tied after 2 games in this series.

That being said, many NHL fans have been complaining about the officiating throughout the playoffs, and it's been a problem in this series as well. I didn't catch much of Game 1 because of my work schedule, but saw Phoenix's first goal. They should have been called for a too many men penalty right before the score. Honestly though, the penalty didn't impact the play, and it's Chicago's own fault there for letting Phoenix keep the puck in their zone for almost 2 straight minutes. A goal was bound to happen. The goals on Saturday, however, were another story.

I just missed the play above last night but caught the ensuing Phoenix goal. This came after an earlier bogus goaltender interference on Jonathan Toews where Smith pushed him and got the call. Let me be clear. Andrew Shaw should not have gone after that puck with Smith back there. He deserved a penalty, even if it was a major. A game misconduct may have been a little much, but that should be the end of it.

The main thing I got out of this: Mike Smith earned an Oscar nomination with this play. I watched the hit a few times. Shaw's shoulder clearly gets Smith in the head. But to say Smith embellished the hit is an understatement. I highly doubt someone who allegedly got "knocked out cold" by this hit would get up immediately after finding out Shaw got a game misconduct, then proceeded to finish the game. I showed this clip to my girlfriend, who is not a sports fan, and she said that Shaw tried to get out of Smith's way.

To be fair: I think Mike Smith is a good goaltender. He's made some fantastic saves all series long, and he's been busy. But I also think he's a scummy hockey player based on these plays in Game 2. And many Hawks fans have spoken up about how the overtime win yesterday is karma. I have to agree.

I still think this series is going to the Hawks in 6. The United Center is a nightmare to play in as an opposing player. The Hawks have a 2 game home playoff winning streak, and have won 7 of their last 8 dating back to the 2010 Cup run. The officiating will hopefully be more balanced, and hopefully Brendan Shanahan will realize how badly Smith dove on the Shaw hit and not suspend Shaw (though knowing Shanahan, he'll suspend him for a game and keep up the inconsistency of punishment).

Phoenix, be on watch. You're in the Madhouse now. Let Chelsea Dagger ring on throughout the Chicago night on Tuesday and Thursday.

Let Her Dance With Me Just For the Hell of It

I found a little time between readjusting my sleep schedule and being reminded how people in Los Angeles don't know how to drive to come back to writing. The Cubs are on pace for 121 losses, Knick fans are having delusions of grandeur after beating the Bulls at MSG on Sunday, but we're about to start one of the toughest playoff gauntlets in all of sports in the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

I've watched decent chunks of a few Hawks games this year, usually seeing them get beat either in overtime or shoot outs for some reason this season. But once you start the round of 16, this team will always be a tough out.

In the grand scheme of things, the Hawks should be glad they went to overtime against Detroit on Saturday. They were going on the road regardless of what happened in that last game, and I'd rather see Phoenix than Nashville.

To be fair, the Coyotes do have some talented players in guys like Ray Whitney (77 points) and Shane Doan (50), plus probably the best goaltender in this series in Mike Smith (38 wins, .930 save pct., 2.21 GAA).

Phoenix, however, has been a first round out each of the last couple years, and the 2010 champs are not to be taken lightly. Yes, Phoenix will have home ice, but the Hawks have proves they can win on the road when the situation calls for it. No one is certain yet, but by many accounts Jonathan Toews will be back from his injury, and this team has been better since the Johnny Oduya trade. The Hawks will also have a healthy Dave Bolland for a full series unlike last year.

I'm thinking Hawks in 6 to give Phoenix some credit, but this is the matchup Chicago wanted. This allows Detroit and Nashville to beat up on each other while the chalk plays out so St. Louis can get the Red Wing/Predator winner and the Hawks get the seemingly inevitable matchup with the evil Vancouver Canucks.