Sports Quiz: This season the New England Patriots are
attempting to win their third straight NFL title. Name the nine
professional franchises to accomplish this since the Boston
Celtics’ run of 8 NBA titles, 1959-66. [Hint: 3 are NHL, one
other franchise did it twice, so it’s thus 2 of the 9.] Answer
below.
The Wall Street Journal, in conjunction with James Lindgren of
Northwestern University for the Federalist Society, just released
its latest survey of the presidents. 85 scholars were chosen to
rank them and the group had an even balance between liberals
and conservatives.
Great
1. George Washington
2. Abraham Lincoln
3. Franklin Roosevelt
Near Great
4. Thomas Jefferson
5. Theodore Roosevelt
6. Ronald Reagan
7. Harry Truman
8. Dwight Eisenhower
9. James Polk
10. Andrew Jackson
Below Average
25. John Quincy Adams
26. Chester Arthur
27. Martin Van Buren
28. Gerald Ford
29. Ulysses Grant
30. Benjamin Harrison
31. Herbert Hoover
32. Richard Nixon
33. Zachary Taylor
34. Jimmy Carter…so why does he get so much ink?
35. John Tyler
Failure
36. Millard Fillmore
37. Andrew Johnson
38. Franklin Pierce
39. Warren Harding
40. James Buchanan
[William Henry Harrison and James Garfield aren’t included
because of their short tenures.]
The rest are ‘average’ or ‘above average,’ including both Bushes
and Bill Clinton. Reagan is obviously doing well in these
relatively early assessments. My main man Dick Nixon isn’t.
[Hey, as you learn each Earth Day, he was a great
environmentalist!]
But I keep threatening to examine James Polk, for selfish reasons
since I don’t know as much about the man as I feel I should, so
next time we’re going to look at him a little more closely.
Stuff
–The Rolling Stones are performing in the New York area this
week and their Madison Square Garden effort on Tuesday
received a very favorable review from the New York Daily
News. But tickets go up to $450, a far cry from 40 years ago as
Guy Sterling wrote in New Jersey’s Star-Ledger the other day.
On November 7, 1965, the Stones appeared at Newark’s
Symphony Hall, which back then was a hot spot for rock acts
such as the Dave Clark Five. That afternoon the Stones
performed twice, 1:00 and 3:30. Patti LaBelle and the Blue
Belles and the Vibrations, along with some local acts, opened up,
all for the cost of $3 – $4.50.
The group’s “Get Off Of My Cloud” was at #1 that month and
the Stones’ going rate was $30,000 for nine songs; which in
those days meant “Everybody Needs Somebody To Love,”
“That’s How Strong My Love Is,” “Mercy Mercy,” “The Last
Time,” “Not Fade Away,” “Play With Fire,” “Cry To Me,”
“Satisfaction,” and the aforementioned “Get Off…”
Back then, of course, the Stones consisted of Jagger, Richards,
Wyman, Watts and Brian Jones. Sterling writes of Jones (who
would later be found dead in a pool, July 1969) that he was
nervous that particular November night, surrounded as he was by
Newark police. It turns out Jones “was worried he was about to
be arrested for slashing a man’s face with broken glass in a club
fight in New York two days earlier.”
–So I purchased this terrific record book, “Fifty Years of College
Football” by Bob Boyles and Paul Guido, and I’ll offer you this.
If you’re having trouble remembering something since 1955
regarding your alma mater and football team, like who the
quarterback was, drop me a line and, if I’m not traveling, I can
probably help you within a few hours. The book not only has the
schedules of all Division I programs the last 50 years, but also
the leading rusher, passer, receiver, etc., each season.
Anyway, the authors attempted to come up with the greatest
collegiate players, 1955-2004. Here are some of their thoughts
as a way to jog your memory.
Wide Receivers / Wingbacks: Fred Biletnikoff (Florida State),
Tim Brown (Notre Dame), Anthony Carter (Michigan),
Desmond Howard (Michigan), Raghib “Rocket” Ismail (Notre
Dame), John Jefferson (Arizona State), Johnny Rodgers
(Nebraska), Charles Rogers (Michigan State), Ron Sellers
(Florida State), J.J. Stokes (UCLA), Peter Warrick (Florida
State).
[Big omission…Howard Twilley (Tulsa)]
Tight Ends: Dave Casper (Notre Dame), Mike Ditka
(Pittsburgh), Gordon Hudson (BYU), Ron Kramer (Michigan),
Keith Jackson (Oklahoma), Ted Kwalick (Penn State), Ken
MacAfee (Notre Dame), Pat Richter (Wisconsin), Kellen
Winslow, Jr. (Miami), Dave Young (Purdue).
[Next chat…QBs and running backs]
And from time to time I’ll peruse the book for other tidbits.
Such as:
First to wear numbers on football jerseys…University of
Pittsburgh, 1908.
First to wear names on backs of football jerseys…University of
Maryland, 1961.
Most 1,000 yard rushers – North Carolina backs have rushed for
1,000 yards 24 times. The first was Don McCauley in 1969, and
Amos Lawrence did it four times (1977-80).
And this… “Anson Mount was a normally sane observer-writer
of college football; after all, he was the first on the national scene
to recognize the brilliance of North Texas State (and future
Pittsburgh Steelers) great, ‘Mean Joe’ Green. But, in Mount’s
1965 ‘Playboy’ preview article, he selected a surprise team,
Iowa, as his preseason national champion team. Iowa finished 1-
9 in perhaps the worst bit of prognostication ever.”
I’ve done worse…but the list is too long.
–The World Wildlife Fund reported that only 887 hippos remain
in Congo and the species will be extinct shortly. Freakin’
poachers. And guess how much they get for a hippo? All of
$50…$50! If I’m a hippo, at this point I dip into my savings and
just give it to the dirtballs.
“For cryin’ out loud…here, take the $50. Now run along and kill
a wildebeest before I smash the crap out of you.”
–Football Hall of Famer Larry Csonka and five other passengers
were stranded on their small boat in the Bering Sea, resulting in a
dramatic rescue by the Coast Guard as the 28-foot craft was
swamped by 9-foot swells and gale force winds. But in reading
the full account in the Anchorage Daily News, I came across this
other item.
“Watch moose in rut with caution”
“The most stimulating time of year may be over for humans, but
for moose it’s just getting started. September and October are
mating season, which can mean bulls locking horns and
occasionally chasing cows through urban neighborhoods….
“ ‘More often than not, bulls will just materialize out of the
alders and try to determine if you are another bull looking for a
fight or a cow looking for a mate.”
Goodness gracious. I always knew moose were idiots, but
sounds like you need to carry an ID card or something just to
prove who, and what, you are. And you better keep this in mind.
“Bulls make a low-pitched, grunting noise, while cows emit a
long, quavering moan, which is mainly a warning sound for a
bull to keep his distance if she’s not interested.”
Kind of like the noises women’s tennis players make, wouldn’t
you agree?
[In case like me you didn’t know what an ‘alder’ is, it’s time to
pull out the trusty Webster’s. “A tree or shrub related to the
birches and growing in wet areas.”]
–Mark Messier retired after a spectacular 25-year career in the
NHL. [Had to add this last bit because for some of you it’s been
so long since you thought about hockey. In fact the other day I
saw a picture of the New York Rangers’ head coach. Heck, I had
totally forgotten who it was.] Messier played on six Stanley Cup
champions, ranks second all time in seasons, games played, and
points scored, and is third in assists.
–Wasn’t that awful seeing Barry Bonds back in uniform?
Thankfully, he is homerless in his first two games and in the
initial contest he admitted to being fatigued by the fifth inning.
Fatigued? Hmmm…this is encouraging for those who wish he’d
leave us all alone.
But you probably forgot that Barry is earning something like $22
million for this season, or almost $2 million per game he’s likely
to appear in the remainder of the season. Plus the Giants
dropped a provision “that would have allowed them to void
Bonds’ $18-million salary for 2006 if he failed to reach 500 plate
appearances this season or a total of 1,500 from 2003 to 2005,
including at least 400 this year.” [Los Angeles Times]
–I forgot to note that Philadelphia’s Bobby Abreu now has seven
straight 20 HR – 20 SB seasons, tying Bobby Bonds for second
and only two behind Barry Bonds’ nine. [Willie Mays had six.]
–Ichiro has 181 hits thru Tuesday’s play with 18 games to go. In
other words, he should reach 200 hits, barely, for a 5th straight
season. [It’s been a very disappointing year for Ichiro as he’s
hitting just .302. Personally, I thought he’d hit about .440 with
320 hits.]
Anyway, only a handful in baseball history have had as many as
five consecutive seasons with 200.
Wee Willie Keeler…8
Wade Boggs…7
Chuck Klein…5
Al Simmons…5
Charlie Gehringer…5
Speaking of Gehringer, it’s easy to forget just how phenomenal
this Hall of Fame second sacker was. Part of the reason he gets
overshadowed is he didn’t reach the 3,000 hit level…ending his
19-year career (1924-42) with 2,839.
But he had a career average of .320, had seven seasons, overall,
with 200+ hits, 12 seasons with 100+ runs (including seven of
120+…and in 154 games), he drove in 100 seven times, had 10+
triples seven times…and the list goes on and on.
What gets fans like Johnny Mac and I fired up, though, is to see
how seldom Gehringer struck out. 12 times he was in the top ten
in the league for toughest to fan; including two stretches, 1929-
30 and 1935-36, where he had over 600 official at bats each of
those four years and never struck out more than 19 times in any
single campaign. How awesome is that?
So we tip our cap and slug a beer to the great Detroit Tiger,
Charlie Gehringer. Actually, you don’t mind if I have two, do
you? I’m kind of thirsty.
–Johnny Mac is a huge East Stroudsburg Univ. fan, living in
East Stroudsburg, PA himself, so we make a note of the fact that
this past weekend, QB Jimmy Terwilliger was a finalist for
college football player of the week, an award that ended up going
to Ohio defensive back Dion Byrum for his two interceptions for
touchdowns against Pitt in the Bobcats upset of the Panthers, 16-
10.
As for Terwilliger, a junior who is wracking up some staggering
#s at ESU, all he did was throw for 546 yards and nine…count
‘em…nine touchdown passes in their 66-49 win over Division II
opponent C.W. Post. The nine falls one short of the D-II record.
[Not a lot of defense, eh?]
–AP college football poll
1. USC
2. Texas
3. LSU
4. Virginia Tech
5. Tennessee
10. Notre Dame
17. Boston College
116. Wake Forest
117. Buffalo [Univ. of…]
–Kansas City running back Larry Johnson, who torched my Jets
for 110 yards rushing on just nine carries in the opener, is facing
an assault charge following an altercation late Friday evening in
Kansas City involving his girlfriend. According to ESPN.com:
“[Police Department spokesman Darin Snapp] said Johnson’s
girlfriend came into the bar and saw him with another woman.
The 25-year-old girlfriend…then walked away, Snapp said, but
Johnson text messaged her on her phone and asked her to meet
him downstairs.”
Well, at this point it got ugly and he allegedly grabbed her and
shoved her to the floor.
“Chiefs coach Dick Vermeil said the incident will not affect
Johnson’s standing with the team.”
Well of course it wouldn’t, Dick. We’re talking you’re trying to
win football games, after all. Who cares about what kind of
citizens you have on the squad. And it’s not as if Johnson is the
only dirtball in K.C., which is fast becoming the Portland
Trailblazers of the NFL. ESPN chronicled five other players that
have had scrapes with the law in just the past few months.
–Attention Bucknell grads….attention Bucknell grads.
Guess who the point guard is on the Russian national basketball
team? Former Bucknell star J.R. Holden. Holden, who obtained
his Russian citizenship two years ago, will be the first American
ever to compete for a Soviet or Russian national team when they
go up against Ukraine on Friday in a Euro tournament.
Surprisingly, given the normally jingoistic Russkies, Holden is
receiving a good reception from his Russian coaches and
teammates such as Andrei Kirilenko of the Utah Jazz. Kirilenko
– who I see having a breakout year in the NBA this coming
season as he becomes a true household name, at least among
sports fans – says of Holden, “He is one of the three best point
guards in Europe.” [Moscow Times]
–We note the passing of broadcaster Chris Schenkel, a mainstay
on all manner of telecasts from the 1950s to the 70s. Schenkel
was 82. As Richard Sandomir writes in the New York Times,
Schenkel’s era of play-by-play announcing was one in which
they were less talkative than they are today and rarely critical.
Former New York Giants great Frank Gifford commented: “We
could talk with Chris about anything. You’d tell him to watch
for something in the game and you didn’t have to worry that he’d
tell that to someone with the Bears. He was part of the family.
(But), if there was one critique of him, as the business changed, it
was that he was such a nice guy.”
I’ll always remember him for his decades doing the Professional
Bowlers Association Tour, along with his sidekick Billy Welu.
Pretty tough to be hard-ass broadcasting that sport.
–And former Dallas Cowboys kicker Tony Fritsch passed away
at the age of 60. It seems he collapsed and died of heart failure
in Vienna after eating at a restaurant. Uh oh….I love the heavy
food in Austria, especially the wiener schnitzel at Figelmullers.
Fritsch also played with San Diego and Houston and holds the
record for consecutive playoff games with at least one field goal,
13; a mark New England’s Adam Vinatieri will probably pass as
he now stands at 12.
–Headline from Lebanon’s Daily Star:
“Dolphin signs $1 billion Islamic financing deal”
See, I told you they were smart. It’s sort of like when Gilda
Radner was about to open the door but first checked to see who
was on the other side.
“You can’t fool me….you’re that killer land shark, aren’t you?”
“No…just a dolphin.”
–Oops, sorry….just re-read the article….it was “Dolphin Energy
Ltd.”, securing financing for some natural gas reserves off Qatar.
Never mind………….
–Hey, did you see the Otter family on the “Today” show
Wednesday, describing their ordeal as they were being attacked
by a grizzly bear, a topic from last time? See…we pick only the
best stories for Bar Chat. Both father and daughter looked awful,
by the way.
–More wit and wisdom from Johnny Carson’s 1965 book,
“Happiness is a Dry Martini.”
“Happiness is…discovering at the kindergarten pageant that
when your son said his teacher was 42, he didn’t mean her age.”
“Happiness is…having the smart aleck who was voted Most
Likely To Succeed make it – on the FBI’s ten ‘Most Wanted’
list.”
“Happiness is…finding out the hobby your wife signed you up
for is nude figure drawing.”
“Happiness is…being stuck in an elevator and discovering the
ravishing blonde with you is a liquor salesman with a case of
samples.”
“Happiness is…your dentist telling you it won’t hurt and then
having him catch his hand on the drill.”
“Happiness is…recognizing your new secretary from a picture in
an old Playboy magazine.”
You know, something tells me this wasn’t written up in The New
York Times Review of Books.
–Check this out. Rum sales in Chile were up 43% in 2004 and
are projected to increase another 25 to 30 percent in ’05. The
Chilean consumer is getting tired of less fashionable tequila, just
as your editor, incidentally, is rediscovering it.
–But they weren’t drinking rum across the U.K. the other day as
the nation celebrated the country’s first defeat of Australia in
cricket since 1987 in the “Ashes.” Boy, can’t say I know
anything about this one but folks there were psyched. Mega ale
and pints of stout were no doubt consumed, as well as some
wine. Captain Michael Vaughn said of his visit with Prime
Minister Tony Blair:
“He didn’t give us any wine to start with but he eventually had to
crack some open from his fridge!” [BBC News]
–StocksandNews.com tidbit….60% of my site traffic these days
is from overseas. Surprised the heck out of me.
Top 3 songs for the week of 9/13/69: #1 “Honky Tonk Women”
(The Rolling Stones) #2 “Sugar, Sugar” (The Archies…bizarre
week) #3 “A Boy Named Sue” (Johnny Cash)….and….#7 “Lay
Lady Lay” (Bob Dylan) #8 “Easy To Be Hard” (Three Dog
Night…underrated tune…from “Hair”)
Sports Quiz Answer: Three consecutive titles since Celtics’ run
of 1959-66.
NHL – Toronto, 1962-64
NHL – Montreal, 1976-79 (4)
NHL – New York Islanders, 1980-83 (4)
NBA – Chicago Bulls, 1991-93
NBA – Chicago Bulls, 1996-98
NBA – Los Angeles Lakers, 2000-02
NFL – Green Bay Packers, 1965-67
MLB – Oakland A’s, 1972-74
MLB – N.Y. Yankees, 1998-2000
Next Bar Chat, Tuesday.
