NFL Quiz: Name the 11 quarterbacks to throw for 40,000 yards. I’m going to give you a big hint. No. 12 is Kerry Collins; No. 13 Dave Krieg; No. 14 Boomer Esiason; No. 15 Jim Kelly; No. 16 Jim Everett; No. 17 Jim Hart; No. 18 Steve DeBerg; No. 19 John Hadl; 20. Phil Simms. And only one of the 11 played at least part of his career in the 1950s. Answer below.
The Rocket
As Jeff B. wrote me on Thursday upon learning that Roger Clemens had been indicted, “Cue the Edwin Hawkins’ Singers…Oh Happy Day!” [No. 4 Billboard, spring 1969]
It was after Clemens’ name appeared in the 2007 Mitchell Report, that Roger, eager to clear his name, but against all advice, testified before the House committee looking into the Mitchell findings. Clemens then squared off against committee members.
Question: “Did you during your playing career use steroids?”
Question: “Anabolic steroids, which are performance-enhancing steroids, you have never used those?”
But the indictment says, “In truth and in fact, as Clemens well knew when he made this sworn statement, Clemens knowingly received injections of anabolic steroids while he was an MLB player.”
Trainer Brian McNamee told federal agents, Sen. Mitchell and the committee that he injected Clemens more than a dozen times with steroids and HGH from 1998 to 2001.
As USA TODAY’s Mike Lopresti recalls from the Feb. 2008 hearings, “I remember leaving the room convinced that the future would hold many billable hours for many happy lawyers.”
Former Rep. Tom Davis, the top Republican on the House committee, said after the indictment was handed down:
“If it was just Roger versus McNamee, it’s a different matchup.” The key was Andy Pettitte.
“We didn’t call [Pettitte], we deposed him, and he supported McNamee and that was a problem for [Clemens],” Davis said. “Without Pettitte, neither McNamee nor Clemens was that articulate or credible.”
“Andy Pettitte didn’t want to testify against his friend,” Davis said. “But when he raised his right hand, he told the truth. It would’ve been different without him. Roger was a great pitcher who’s done a lot for the community, and McNamee’s had other issues.”
Pettitte testified that Clemens had told him he had used HGH. That’s when Roger said, “I think he misremembers our conversation.”
“(That) didn’t add up when Pettitte’s wife remembered the conversation in 1999.
“Laura Pettitte gave a sworn affidavit before the 2008 hearing. In it she said, ‘In 1999 or 2000, Andy told me that he had had a conversation with Roger Clemens in which Roger admitted to him using human growth hormone.’
“That backed up Pettitte’s memory of talking to Clemens at his house in Texas and Clemens telling him he had used HGH. Six years later, Clemens would tell Pettitte he was mistaken and he never said that but told Pettitte he had said his wife, Debbie, had used HGH.”
“The Department of Justice takes referrals from congressional committees very seriously,” said U.S. Attorney Ronald Machen, who is prosecuting the case in Washington.
“Our government cannot function if witnesses are not held accountable for false statements made before Congress. Today the message is clear. If a witness makes a choice to ignore his or her obligation to testify honestly, there will be consequences.”
If convicted of all charges, Clemens, 48, faces a combined maximum sentence of 30 years in prison and a $1.5 million fine, though it seems the government will recommend 15-21 months under federal guidelines.
Clemens defiantly wrote on Twitter, “I never took HGH or Steroids…And I did not lie to Congress. I look forward to challenging the Government’s accusations, and hope people will keep an open mind until trial. I appreciate all the support I have been getting. I am happy to finally have my day in court. Rocket.”
No you’re not. You’re scared s—less. And as Lester Munson of ESPN.com points out, “Clemens has no one disrupting the government’s case in the way that former trainer Greg Anderson is disrupting the case against Bonds.”
“It took awhile because, let’s face facts, these things always do in baseball. But out of all that came Sen. George Mitchell’s report on performance-enhancing drugs in baseball. Then Roger Clemens’ name was in there, and in lights, as a user. Clemens told everybody it was a lie, told that to Mike Wallace and every microphone in sight and finally to the House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform.
“Now that same government has indicted him because it says he’s the liar….
“Rusty Hardin, who rode right along with Clemens to this moment, to this six-count indictment against his client, says that Clemens has been looking forward to this moment all along. Sure he is. Who wouldn’t want to be indicted on perjury and obstruction and face jail time? Rusty Hardin, who doesn’t know when to shut up the way his client doesn’t – maybe it wasn’t just destiny that brought them together – makes it sound like more fun for the two of them than a trip to Six Flags.
“ ‘The most interesting aspect of this,’ (an attorney tells Lupica), ‘is that Rocket has paid millions of dollars in fees to attorneys and public relations specialists to get himself indicted by the federal government. And, get this, now he says he’s ‘happy.’
“Suddenly there is the notion, floated by friends of Roger, that the government may have overstepped its bounds by going after him this way. As if the hearings run by Henry Waxman and Tom Davis were some kind of perjury trap. As if they tricked Clemens into testifying. Really? Clemens did everything except pay them to let him testify even after being told that he didn’t have to.”
“Sports are supposed to build character, but the evidence is that some of the great athletes of our time – Bonds, Clemens, Marion Jones – believed they could say and do whatever they wanted because of who they were.
“Justice takes time. This is what journalists learn in this hair-trigger world of the blog and the tweet. Fans ask: why don’t we just write what we know – or what we suspect? Everybody saw Bonds all bulked up in a few years, hitting home runs nearing 40. Everybody saw Clemens, heaving a splintered bat at Mike Piazza in the 2000 World Series, looking for all the world like a man on ‘roid rage.
“Can’t prove it. Big thing. Can’t prove it. But ultimately the wings of government can ask questions under oath. Subpoena power is a wonderful device. Roger Clemens has been indicted – at least partially because his old buddy said what he knew….
“Pettitte said he brought up Clemens’ statement to McNamee, who warned him not to talk about it, which only seems to have confirmed Pettitte’s memory. When investigators questioned him about his own brief forays into bodybuilding drugs, Pettitte was put in the position of having to come clean.
“Clemens tried to intimidate McNamee at the Congressional hearing. McNamee was an enabler, cutting his own deal, but he stuck to his story that he had discussed Clemens with Pettitte.
“ ‘Mac told the truth about me,’ Pettitte said when he reported to spring training in 2008.
“Some fans have portrayed McNamee as a snitch, a rogue trainer trying to save himself at Clemens’ expense. Then again, some fans do not mind that athletes take drugs, although they would care if their children were taking chemicals that can alter the body and the mind in ways doctors do not yet understand. There are reasons this stuff is illegal.
“Whatever Clemens did, he could have admitted to some isolated usage, the way Pettitte did, the way Alex Rodriguez did, the way Mark McGwire has done, however belatedly. But Clemens tried to hardball the investigators.
“Ultimately, the committee members – and their lawyers – had to compare the testimony and the apparent character of the two training buddies. Without malice, by just telling the truth, Little Andy has helped indict Big Rog.”
“Will he do time? I have no idea. I have no insight on the law. But I do know Clemens a bit, and if people want him to suffer, he will do that without being imprisoned. Because he already is locked away from the life he thought he had earned.
“Late in his career, in his own mind, Clemens had come to believe himself an American hero – a John Wayne in cleats. He was the original Brett Favre, believing his retirements and returns deserved wall-to-wall coverage. He saw a post-career life as an icon, moving from one standing ovation to the next. He was a big kid with a giant ego, needing the special perks and the adoration.
“Think about how he announced his return to the Yankees in 2007: During a game, on a microphone, from the owner’s box. How many players – even implored by the Yankees – would have agreed to that kind of self-aggrandizing entrance? Clemens was a social animal, wanting to mingle with stars, orchestrate the team parties and have a forever pass beyond the velvet ropes.
“Clemens had envisioned a lifetime of freebies, a permanent association with the Hall of Fame, the Yankees, Astros and Red Sox. I have met few players who hungered for the fringe benefits of fame more than Clemens. He forged a Rocket alter ego that he was going to ride for the rest of his life. He was Roger Clemens, so he got a personal trainer hired by the Yankees: Brian McNamee, the man who is now – in a twist – taking him down.
“That has put him on the Pete Rose track. He still is at the point of defiance, victimhood and obliviousness. But, like Rose, it will dawn on him at some point that the doors he wants most open are closed, sealed further by these charges. Jail time or no for Clemens, no team is going to associate with him. He will have to seek solace from autograph sessions or other congregations of that ilk, cheered only by the kind of people who have lost the ability to differentiate between fame and infamy….
“He shunned the roadmap of former pal Andy Pettitte and former teammates Jason Giambi and Alex Rodriguez to offer at least some version of the truth. Maybe it did not bring permanent exoneration, but it did bring some peace plus the ability to move on within the confines of the game.
“Obviously getting locked up would be the most serious punishment for Clemens. But he is suffering one of his worst pains imaginable by being where he is now: solitary confinement.”
1. Alabama
2. Ohio State
3. Boise State
4. Florida
5. Texas
6. TCU
7. Oklahoma
8. Nebraska
9. Iowa
10. Virginia Tech
11. Oregon
15. Pitt
–You know what is confusing the hell out of me? The movement between the Mountain West and Western Athletic Conferences, seeing as I often confused them to begin with. So the following is really for my benefit, but maybe one or two of you will also appreciate the clarification.
Boise State
Fresno State
Hawaii
Idaho
Louisiana Tech
Nevada
New Mexico State
San Jose State
Utah State
Air Force
BYU
Colorado State
New Mexico
San Diego State
TCU
UNLV
Utah
Wyoming
It was the last two years that the Mountain West really came into its own with three schools, Utah, TCU and BYU, as good a top three as that of any other conference in the country. Really.
But in the case of Boise State, its national ranking has been hurt by the total mediocrity of the rest of the WAC.
So recently, amid the other conference changes, Boise State said it would join the MWC, which makes for a hell of a top four. And then last week, Fresno State and Nevada said they’d join the MWC as well, giving it 12 schools.
But wait…now BYU is hinting they want to go it alone in football…be an independent. If any school fits the bill, in a number of ways, it’s them, though they would be in a conference for all other sports. Like Notre Dame in the Big East, ex-football. And BYU would move to the WAC! BYU has until Sept. 1 to tell the MWC if it’s leaving. Regardless of whether or not they make a move, the WAC is now desperate for more schools, but even North Texas has evidently turned it down.
Ball Bits
–Big scare for the Washington Nationals as phenom Stephen Strasburg was forced to leave Saturday’s game after 4 1/3 with a strained tendon in his forearm. This was his third start after being on the disabled list with inflammation in the back of his right shoulder. Not exactly the way you want to start your career. It’s why if I’m a GM, I would never give a pitcher more than a 3-year contract, but you’ll always find someone else giving 4 or 5 years so sometimes you have to roll the dice. But it would be terrible if Strasburg is just another flameout. Baseball needs him. If Saturday was his last start of the year, Strasburg finished up 5-3, with 92 Ks (and just 17 walks) in 68 innings, to go along with a 2.91 ERA.
–Suddenly, Cincinnati’s Joey Votto and the Cards’ Albert Pujols are both right there in terms of a potential Triple Crown. [Hasn’t been one since 1967, sports fans.]
–Seattle’s Felix Hernandez, aka King Felix, has an ERA of 2.51, but with the weak-hitting Mariners is just 9-10. Against the Yankees, though, he is now 3-0 this season, after throwing 8 shutout innings on Friday night, allowing one run in 26 frames.
–Speaking of the Yankees, manager Joe Girardi is catching a lot of heat for allowing Alex Rodriguez to come back too soon from his calf injury as A-Rod talked himself into the lineup, Friday, and promptly reinjured it in his first at bat. A-Rod is now on the 15-day disabled list. Girardi also let Andy Pettitte push himself in rehab from his groin injury and now Pettitte is out indefinitely.
It was your editor, weeks before the mass media latched on, who told you A-Rod may not make it to Aaron and Bonds after all, though his recent 3-homer performance showed everyone he still has the ability, it’s just a matter of staying healthy long enough. But these nagging injuries keep popping up.
“After missing 38 games last year, 28 from preseason hip surgery, this is Rodriguez’s second absence of this season, an increasing sign he is starting to show his 35 years, if not his usage of performance-enhancing drugs.”
And then there is the topic I broached the other week, that being Derek Jeter’s upcoming contract negotiation. He’s 36 and if the season ended today, in terms of batting average and on-base percentage it would be his worst. It’s one thing to reward a guy for his past efforts, but do you keep paying a .278 hitter with declining pop $20 million per? Like I said, this is going to be the most fascinating contract discussion of all time, especially now with the Yankees locked into paying A-Rod $25M per for the next seven seasons.
–Turning to the Mutts, err my Mets, this joke of a franchise opened up a new chapter when manager Jerry Manuel said outfielder Jason Bay, out with a concussion for three weeks, was finished for the year. That was before Friday’s game. After Friday’s contest, however, Manuel said, “It appears as if I was a little premature in saying Jason Bay won’t be back. It appears as if he is recovering nicely and there’s a possibility he’ll be back and play.”
Bay probably is, indeed, out the remainder of the year, but evidently he was pissed Manuel wrote him off already.
Of course Bay first collided with a wall in Dodger Stadium, then played two games after, only to suffer symptoms on the flight back to New York. It was then the Mets diagnosed him with having a whiplash concussion, seeing as his head never hit the wall directly.
But it’s not as if the Mets haven’t had all manner of other bungled injuries the past few seasons, including a Ryan Church misdiagnosis on a concussion that has left Church playing like a vegetable ever since.
–Alas, the Mets’ SNY.TV is unveiling nine 5-7 minute Internet shows titled “Kiner’s Korner Revisited.” That’s must see video for us Mets fans. I suggest the rest of you check it out, too.
–Peter Morris and Alan Schwarz had a piece in the New York Times on baseball’s early catchers. Picture that the mask didn’t arrive until 1877, followed by the chest protector and the mitt. And talk about blows to the head.
“Catchers earned high praise if, after being knocked unconscious, they insisted on completing the game. A typical 1883 account described the mask of George Myers of the Port Hurons in Michigan being ripped off his face by a foul ball. He gamely borrowed a replacement, only to be clobbered on the next pitch by another ‘terrible blow’ that ‘threatened to disable him,’ The Cleveland Herald reported.
“ ‘Though weak,’ the report continued, he ‘was able to resume his position.’
“Two 19th-century semiprofessional catchers exhibited immediate, unmistakable signs of brain damage after being struck by foul balls. A Californian, Jeff Dolan, was placed in an asylum, where in 1890 he was reported by The Louisville Courier-Journal to routinely ‘go into the yard and take up a position as if behind the bat’ until his death. An upstate New York player, Samuel Lindsley, exhibited such alarming symptoms of insanity that he was manacled to his bed….
“With no awareness at the time of brain trauma’s effects, their symptoms were attributed to alcoholism, madness, morphine addiction or criminal tendencies. Substance abuse and bursts of anger, often unlawful, have recently been identified as signs of chronic traumatic encephalopathy, brain damage resulting from repeated blows to the head….
“Marty Bergen was a teetotaler whose outward calm masked a deep-seated paranoia that in 1900 led him to murder his wife and two children, then to commit suicide….
“Nor were catchers alone. In an 1897game, Chicago Colts (now Cubs) first baseman Gentleman George Decker was struck in the head by a pitch and fainted several hours later. Manager Cap Anson pooh-poohed his request for more time to recover and returned him to action two days later. Another concussion apparently followed; three years later, Decker was institutionalized….
“As for major league personnel being killed by a ball, even casual fans have been told about Cleveland Indians shortstop Ray Chapman in 1920. But few remember the more recent story of the umpire Cal Drummond.
“During a June 10, 1969, game in Baltimore, Drummond seemed unhurt after being struck on the mask by a foul tip. The incident and even the batter’s identity had been forgotten by game’s end, when Drummond lapsed into unconsciousness. Released after a week’s hospitalization, he began the slow path to recovery and resumed umpiring the next spring.
“But on the final day of a minor league rehabilitation stint, Drummond collapsed and died. An autopsy attributed his death to the effects of the foul tip, making him the only on-field participant since Chapman to have sustained a fatal injury during a major league game. As with so many athletes until recent medical revelations into brain injuries’ hidden toll, the delayed and mystifying course of the injury has left Drummond all but forgotten.”
—Joe L. Brown died. He was 91. Brown was the Pirates’ general manager who built two World Series championship teams and five National League division winners in the 1960s and ‘70s.
Brown took over from Branch Rickey after the 1955 season. The Pirates had finished at or near the bottom the prior six years, but Brown was able to draw on young players such as Roberto Clemente, and coupled with a shrewd trade or two, before long he had built the 1960 champions, thanks in no small part to Bill Mazeroski’s Game 7 homer against the Yankees.
And then the 1971 World Series Pirates defeated the Baltimore Orioles behind Clemente’s spectacular performance. Brown retired after the 1976 season.
And yes, Joe L. Brown was the son of comedian and actor Joe E. Brown.
This June, the Pirates honored the 1960 team on the 50th anniversary of its championship. This weekend, though, the Pirates wrapped up their 18th consecutive losing season, extending their record of futility as the losingest professional franchise in North American sports history. [i.e., no NFL team, NHL, NBA, CFL, etc.]
–San Diego’s Matt Stairs hit his 21st pinch-hit home run on Saturday, eclipsing Cliff Johnson to become the all-time leader in that category. Not bad…not bad at all.
–Dodgers broadcaster Vin Scully announced he is coming back one more year for what will be his 62nd in the booth! He’ll be 83.
–The Yankees’ Robinson Cano hit the team’s 10th grand slam of the season on Sunday. The Mets have zero. ZERO!
And having met C.C. Sabathia up close and personal a few years ago, and liking the guy, it’s good to see him doing so well (even if I can’t stand the Yankees). Now 17-5 on the season, he is unbeaten in his last 19 starts at home going back to the All-Star break in 2009…15-0 over that stretch.
–Did you read the Sports Illustrated piece on Philadelphia’s Jason Werth? What an a-hole; a darn good a-hole, I’ll admit.
–The St. Louis Cardinals are 67-54, but just 25-37 outside of their top three starters…Adam Wainwright, 17-7 (2.06 ERA); Chris Carpenter, 14-4 (2.88); and Jamie Garcia, 11-6 (2.42). Talk about being set up for the post-season, but first they have to get there.
–And Sweet Lou Piniella finally packed it in as manager of the Cubbies on Sunday, a month earlier than he had previously announced due to his mother’s illness. The Cubs have had a dreadful season and have now gone 102 years without a Series title. And talk about going out on a terrible note…Atlanta scored 11 runs in the last 3 innings to blast Chicago, 16-5.
Golf Ball Bits
–It’s estimated that at next week’s Barclays, the first of the FedEx Cup playoffs, Tiger Woods will need to finish 55th or better to move on to the next round.
By the way, as golf struggles with its television ratings during Tiger’s slump, only three golfers are known to half of the U.S. public, according to a leading media group. Tiger has 99.8% recognition (which even I see as exceedingly high given how many morons you come across in any given day), Phil Mickelson, 68% (I would have guessed 75%) and Vijay Singh, 50% (kind of surprised this many do recognize him). But what a powerful statement when it comes to the PGA Tour and having its work cut out for it. As I’ve been writing, it’s not enough to have a lot of talented 20-somethings. One of them needs to win a bunch of majors before the vast public will latch on.
–As for Sunday’s action, 37-year-old Arjun Atwal of India won the PGA Tour event in Greensboro, his first, but more importantly he was a Monday qualifier, the first to then go on to win in 24 years! That’s truly remarkable.
Yet it was five years ago that I wrote of Atwal when I walked a few holes with him during the first round of the PGA Championship at Baltusrol:
“One of (Jonathan Kaye’s) playing partners, Calcutta’s Arjun Atwal, is a neat guy and I had some pleasant exchanges with his uncle. Unfortunately, Arjun didn’t make the cut but he won a fan.”
While I didn’t write of this at the time because I didn’t deem it appropriate, it was three years ago that Atwal was involved in a racing incident in Orlando where the other driver died. He was cleared of any wrongdoing, but imagine the stress. Atwal is also the first golfer from India to win a tour event. And he happens to be a very good friend of Tiger’s, who is undoubtedly psyched for his buddy. Life works in strange ways. I’m wondering if Atwal’s win does something positive for Woods.
–And in one of the Senior Tour’s majors, the Tradition out at Crosswater in Bend, Oregon (Sunriver…just a gorgeous spot…though a place that has experienced as bad a real estate bubble as any in the country), Fred Funk prevailed. Get this…Funk hit 54 of 56 fairways! Even Calvin Peete didn’t hit that many. [Any time you can find an excuse to mention Mr. Peete is a good time. Loved that guy.]
–Too bad Kyle Busch is such an a-hole. This weekend in Bristol, Tenn., he did what no other NASCAR driver has ever done, sweep all three races; wining the Trucks race (Wed.), the Nationwide event on Friday, and then Saturday night’s big Sprint Cup race. I’ve always wanted to get to Bristol, but in the old days it was impossible to purchase a seat, the same fans going back year over year. Now with NASCAR suffering along with the greater economy, maybe I’ll finally go next year.
Back to Busch, he got into another scrape, this time with Brad Keselowski in the Nationwide race, where Busch intentionally rammed him, and then Busch was booed in pre-race introductions on Saturday.
But this is too much. When Keselowski, who is no angel himself and is currently on probation, grabbed the microphone during introductions, he said, “I’m Brad Keselowski…Kyle Busch is (a jerk).”
—Bill Millin died. He was 88. From Simon de Bruxelles / London Times:
“As the Germans poured fire on to Sword Beach on D-Day, one man’s bravery stood out among the many.
“Apparently oblivious to danger, Bill Millin marched up and down in full view of the defenders urging his comrades across the blood-soaked sand with rousing tunes from his bagpipes….
“Lord Lovat led the 1st Commando Brigade ashore with the 21-year-old kilted Scotsman at his side in the first of 21 landing craft.
“Lovat had defied orders from D-Day commanders not to bring his bagpiper, believing the instrument would inspire his troops. Shells and bullets rained down on the beach as the commandos disembarked under heavy fire.
“While most took cover at the earliest opportunity, Mr. Millin marched in full view playing ‘Highland Laddie,’ ‘Our Road to the Isles,’ and ‘Blue Bonnets Over the Border.’
“Legend later said that the German snipers refrained from shooting him because they assumed he must have gone mad in the maelstrom of fire….
“He survived D-Day unscathed but his pipes were later silenced for four days when two of the drones were damaged by mortar fire. By then the Army top brass had realized how he raised the morale of his men and ordered an urgent replacement to be dropped to him by air.”
Millin’s exploits were depicted in the film “The Longest Day.” One of the great moments of the Big One.
–Talk about a pain in the butt…the New Meadowlands Stadium has a pre-paid parking scheme based on the level of your seat; not first-come, first-served like the past. So picture how for decades, some groups of fans always met in the exact same spot for the tailgate, but now if you’re sitting in one section, and your friend in another, you might have different assigned parking sections. It’s one thing to give the top 1,000 seats some kind of close in priority, it’s another to do it this way.
What’s happened now, though, is that parking passes are being scalped! Some $25 single-game passes are going for $110, while a 10-game season pass (including two exhibition games) is going for up to $650, more than double the face value.
And get this. One Giants fan spent $40,000 for seat licenses but couldn’t secure parking. And then certain Giants fans with five seats only got one parking pass.
–Interesting story by Les Carpenter in Yahoo Sports on Denver quarterback Tim Tebow, who is loved by many for his reckless abandon on the field, but, already, in the first preseason game, “He barreled into the end zone on the game’s final, useless play, knocking flat two Cincinnati Bengals – one of whom rolled on the ground for several seconds. It was the kind of move those football men adore. A man’s play.
“Only it appears Tebow may have gotten hurt on it, injuring his side or lower ribs – it’s hard to tell.”
And Denver is now hush hush about it. Tebow only knows one way to play the game, but he’s not going to last very long unless he changes his style.
–In a story in Sports Illustrated by Tim Layden, we learn that the average career of an NFL running back is just 2.6 years, the shortest of any position, which is why these guys have to go for all the money they can get as soon as they can. Yet these days, NFL teams are devaluing the star system because it’s felt there are a ton of good backs to choose from. From 2003 to ’06, for example, Denver had a different back lead the team in rushing, and each gained at least 1,000 yards.
“That established the economic blueprint for managing the position,” writes Layden. “A team can succeed, sometimes even win the Super Bowl, without a great running back, provided there is ample talent at quarterback and offensive line. Hence management will economize at the position, moving out highly-paid, established backs in favor of cheaper up-and-comers or journeymen.”
–We note the passing of former college great Johnny Bailey, who died at the age of 43 from pancreatic cancer.
Bailey starred for Texas A&I University, a Division II school, from 1986-89, and rushed for 6,320 yards; at the time the only other college back aside from Tony Dorsett to rush for 6,000 in a career. Three times, Bailey was Division II player of the year, an astounding achievement, and runner-up his freshman season when he ran for 2,011 yards. He rushed for more than 200 in his first four college games.
Johnny Bailey went on to play six seasons in the NFL with three teams; Chicago, who drafted him in the ninth round, Phoenix and the Rams, making the Pro Bowl in 1992 as a return specialist when he averaged 13.2 yards returning punts for the Cardinals.
—Serena Williams pulled out of the U.S. Open, saying she is still recovering from foot surgery, required after she suffered cuts from broken glass at a restaurant in Munich last month. [Ye olde broken glass trick.]
Of course it was last year in New York that Ms. Williams earned “Dirtball of the Year” consideration for cussing out and threatening a lineswoman.
–At the Gooding & Co. auction at Pebble Beach, Calif., a 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider sold for $7.26 million. A 1933 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 Monza went for $6.71 million and a 1961 Ferrari 250 GT SWB Berlinetta SE-FAC Hot Rod fetched $6.105 million.
What was also kind of interesting for this particular auction was one of the chaps running it said at least 10 of the cars sold went to Chinese collectors through a U.S. agent, the first time Gooding had seen buyers from China, which tells you something about the wealth being created there.
“$5…amount paid at a Kentucky yard sale for a bicycle later discovered to have been designed for Floyd Landis. Estimated value of the bike…$8,000.”
–Sad news out of Ohio. 24-year-old Brent Kandra, caretaker for owner Sam Mazzola’s fake zoo, opened up a bear cage for a routine feeding and the bear mauled the guy to death. The bear was then euthanized and word is spreading fast in the Animal Kingdom. “It didn’t have to be this way,” said one, when reached by Bar Chat correspondent Morley Safer IV.
It does suck that the kid that was killed had a lifelong love of animals and that’s what drew him to Mazzola’s exotic animal park where there are four tigers, a lion, eight bears and 12 wolves. The USDA had revoked Mazzola’s license to exhibit animals after animal rights activists complained. Neighbors said they were fed up with the noise.
“Police who uncovered two marijuana fields near the U.S.-Canada border had to tread carefully: 13 black bears were wandering around the crops.
“The fields of about 2,300 plants were found near Christina Lake (British Columbia)…
“Royal Canadian Mounted Police Cpl. Dan Moskaluk says that when police arrived in the area two weeks ago, they discovered the bears and cautiously went about making the seizure.
“He says the bears were docile and obviously were used to humans. They could be put down if they are too habituated to people.
“The property’s two owners were arrested on charges of production and possession of a controlled substance.
“It’s unclear if they used the bears to guard the pot fields or just liked having them as pets.”
Hey, it’s a tough economy. The bears are taking any jobs they can find, while the owners are thinking they don’t have to pay for the bruins’ healthcare. It’s what’s being discussed during the bears’ lunch hours that should most concern the Mounties.
“A father has saved his three-year-old daughter from an Asian black bear after the girl climbed into the animal’s enclosure in a German zoo, police say.
“Both father and child were injured after the girl climbed over a fence in a private zoo in Luenebach, western Germany. [“Let’s go to Luene-bach, Germ’ny…Waylon and Willie and the boys…”]
“The bear hit the girl on the forehead before her father was able to snatch her away.”
“Almost a quarter century after the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear meltdown in Ukraine, its fallout is still a hot topic in some German regions, where thousands of boars shot by hunters still turn up with excessive levels of radioactivity. In fact, the numbers are higher than ever before.”
The boar population has been exploding and as more and more are killed, owing in no small part to compensation paid for by the German government to decrease the numbers, more and more of the meat is turning up contaminated. One expert said the boar population has more than quadrupled over just the last few years.
Get this… “Last season, hunters brought home a record 640,000”! Goodness gracious. No wonder Boar’s Head seems to be in every supermarket and deli.
–Mark R. correctly observes that the bull that leaped into the stands of the bullring in Tafalla, Spain, injuring at least 30, should be “Athlete of the Year.” A Spanish website said the bull was about to be removed from the arena as it was underperforming when it decided to leap into the crowd. In other words, the bull had a real chip on its shoulder. “I’ll show these [expletive deleted]!” he snorted.
Back to Mark R.’s assertion, I’m assuming he’d receive the Sullivan Award, for outstanding amateur athlete, though this is limited to the United States and there is no evidence the bull has dual citizenship. Or I should have said “had,” because you see, the bull was killed, precipitating a hearty barbecue, including American burgers. None of the injuries were said to be life-threatening, unless you count the fact that all in attendance probably had ten years taken off their lives when one realizes they will never have another night’s restful sleep.
“From the size and shape of the beak, researchers have always known that the massive South American ‘terror bird’ was a predator. Now they know precisely how the bird killed – wielding its huge skull and hooked beak like a pickax and repeatedly chopping at prey until it succumbed.”
The Andalgalornis steulleti was 5-feet tall, weighed 90 pounds, and had a skull twice the size of a human’s. Imagine seeing that on your birdfeeder? But, alas, it became extinct a cool million years ago, or about 980,000 before the late Robert Byrd became a senator, no relation.
“Shakira is so sexy, she’s illegal…in Barcelona. The Spanish city reportedly is considering fining the Colombian singer for stopping traffic as she filmed a music video in a bikini top and gold hip-huggers that exposed her well-toned backside. Shakira, who didn’t get any permits, danced in a public fountain and rode on the back of a motorcycle with her hair flowing in the wind, when she should have worn a helmet.”
–Among the zillion publications I subscribe to is BBC History Magazine and I never have the chance to read it, but I did just peruse the current issue and their calendar for August. Hopefully, some of you got to see PBS’ showing of “South Pacific” last week. It was outstanding, and a real treat for viewers across America who would never otherwise have the opportunity to take it in on Broadway. Heck, I had been meaning to go myself but didn’t and now it’s closing.
Anyway, there is this item in History Magazine for Aug. 23, 1960.
“American musical producer and lyricist Oscar Hammerstein II died of stomach cancer, aged 65. He is best known for the musicals he wrote in collaboration with Richard Rodgers which included Oklahoma!, Carousel, South Pacific, The King and I and The Sound of Music, which opened on Broadway shortly before his death and contained the last song he and Rodgers wrote together – Edelweis.”
Well, I’d say that’s going out on top. I mean you’re not going to find a better last song, anywhere. Imagine if it had been Yummy Yummy Yummy…know what I’m sayin’?
Aug. 15, 1940…in the most intensive day’s fighting of the Battle of Britain, the German Luftwaffe flew over 2,000 sorties and lost 75 aircraft to Fighter Command’s 34.
Aug. 21, 1940…Leon Trotsky died of his injuries after being struck on the head with an ice pick by Soviet agent Ramon Mercader who attacked him in his study in Mexico City. I always thought this was rather brutal, but today in Mexico, Trotsky would have been beheaded, with the head then dumped in a vat of acid.
Aug. 24, 410…Rome was sacked by Alaric I, king of the Visigoths and a former servant of the Roman Empire. It was the first time the city had been sacked in 800 years. Kind of makes you want to treat Alaric with a bit more respect, doesn’t it?
–The Daily News’ Joe Neumaier gives “The Tillman Story,” a recounting of Pat Tillman’s life and death in Afghanistan, 5 stars.
–I have not been a viewer of “American Idol” over the years, but I can see myself catching a few shows now that Steven Tyler is going to be a judge. He just seems perfect for this. It’s also said he was willing to accept considerably less than the $20 million J-Lo reportedly was asking for. $20 million?! J-Lo, come back to us, kid.
—Dania Ramirez is the actress playing Turtle’s girlfriend on “Entourage,” guys…I’m just sayin’.
—U2’s Bono told an Irish interviewer that his recent back injury could have left him crippled for life, saying of the treatment he received from German doctors:
“I had a pretty close call. What was dangerous about it was a piece of disc that had ripped through ligaments had gone down into the spinal canal and I could have lost the use of my left leg.”
–Finally, we note the passing of Richard ‘Scar’ Lopez, 65, a founding member of Cannibal & the Headhunters, the East Los Angeles garage band that had the spring 1965 hit “Land of 1000 Dances,” which peaked at No. 30 but certainly has received far more air time over the years befitting a much bigger song. Go YouTube it…great video. And you realize just how well the song has held up.
The group was fronted by Frankie “Cannibal” Garcia, and had Lopez, Robert “Rabbit” Jaramillo and his brother, Joe “Yo Yo” Jaramillo; four Mexican-American high school students when they emerged on the national scene in ’65. “Naa na na na naaa…” [Now you should know the tune!]
“I remember we were cruising Whittier Boulevard in Bobby’s ’49 Chevy and [DJ] Huggy Boy plays our song,” Lopez recalled in a 2005 interview with L.A. Weekly. “And we were going crazy, going ballistic on Whittier telling everyone to put their radio on.”
As producer Hector Gonzalez later said, “They were basically a one-hit wonder, but that record left an indelible mark in the history of American rock ‘n’ roll. They gave pride and dignity to the Mexican-American community because of their contribution to not only rock ‘n’ roll but the success they achieved.”
Imagine how in ’65, aside from appearing on “American Bandstand” and “Hullabaloo,” they opened for the likes of the Beatles (Shea Stadium!), the Rolling Stones and the Righteous Brothers.
Top 3 songs for the week 8/21/71: #1 “How Can You Mend A Broken Heart” (The Bee Gees) #2 “Mr. Big Stuff” (Jean Knight) #3 “Take Me Home, Country Roads” (John Denver…love this song)…and…#4 “Mercy Mercy Me” (Marvin Gaye…ditto) #5 “You’ve Got A Friend” (James Taylor…not a bad week, eh?) #6 “Sweet Hitch-Hiker” (Creedence Clearwater Revival” #7 “Beginnings” (Chicago) #8 “Signs” (Five Man Electrical Band…speaking of signs, I got all ticked off on Saturday when I saw a big sign, “American Recovery Act,” for what was a simple paving job…It’s so freakin’ deceptive…so many of these projects would have been done anyway, so how the hell do you know you aren’t being bamboozled?) #9 “Draggin’ The Line” (Tommy James…Sept. 18…Morristown Community Theater…be there) #10 “Liar” (Three Dog Night…the story of Rod Blagojevich, then age 14)
NFL Quiz Answer: 40,000 yards passing.
1. Brett Favre…69,329…Boooo! Boooo!
2. Dan Marino…61,361…Yay Pitt! Sock it to ‘em!
3. John Elway…51,475
4. Peyton Manning…50,128
5. Warren Moon…49,325…never knew how to assess this guy’s career. Still don’t.
6. Fran Tarkenton…47,003
7. Vinny Testaverde…46,233
8. Drew Bledsoe…44,611
9. Dan Fouts…43,040
10. Joe Montana…40,551
11. Johnny Unitas…40,329
Next Bar Chat, Thursday…actually, earlier, Wednesday a.m., as I hit the road for a short hop across the pond.
