Note: Guys, doing my best. I’m very lucky to have had power, but caring for family members who do not, and, well you’ve seen the pictures. The gas lines are still awful (just one in four stations in my immediate area open today, Sunday), just like everywhere else. School was canceled for a sixth straight day, Monday. And Wednesday’s upcoming weather event no one wants to even think about. So paying very short shrift to NFL action due to time constraints.
Buffalo Bills Quiz: 1) Thurman Thomas (11,938) and O.J. Simpson (10,183) are the Bills’ top two career rushing leaders. Name the third on the list with 4,445 yards. 2) Jim Kelly (237) and Joe Ferguson (181) are one-two in Buffalo history for touchdown passes. Who is third with 77? 3) Who am I? I was a Bill from 1960-67 and caught 294 passes for 5,294 yards (a nice 18.0 average) and 35 touchdowns. Answers below.
The New York City Marathon
You kind of have to be from this area to appreciate the enormity of this issue. It was big, but personally I am very uncomfortable with the tone of the debate in terms of New York’s reputation going forward. As I noted in my “Week in Review” column, Mayor Bloomberg should have called it off Wednesday. It’s easy to say Tuesday but a lot of the damage hadn’t really been assessed until a day later. There are also some inaccuracies below, including those who write as if the airports were open on Tuesday and Wednesday and they weren’t, which is why Wednesday would have worked as a cut-off date. Many runners then wouldn’t have shown up later, the Mayor could have threatened airlines who then didn’t refund fares, hotels could have been shamed into cancelling without fees, etc. To just callously say, ‘Who cares about rich runners who will lose a few thousand dollars’ pisses me off.
So it was an ugly debate all around and deeply disturbing on a number of levels.
“The Marathon has been an integral part of New York City’s life for 40 years and is an event tens of thousands of New Yorkers participate in and millions more watch. While holding the race would not require diverting resources from the recovery effort, it is clear that it has become the source of controversy and division. The marathon has always brought our city together and inspired us with stories of courage and determination. We would not want a cloud to hang over the race or its participants, and so we have decided to cancel it. We cannot allow a controversy over an athletic event – even one as meaningful as this – to distract attention away from all the critically important work that is being done to recover from the storm and get our city back on track.”
“Mayor Michael Bloomberg tried to sell the New York City Marathon as a symbolic victory for the city after a devastating storm, invoking two of the biggest symbols of them all – Rudy Giuliani and 9/11.
“The former mayor, Bloomberg said, made the right decision by holding the marathon less than two months after the 2001 terror attacks: ‘It pulled people together, and we have to find some ways to express ourselves and show our solidarity with each other.’
“ ‘You have to keep going and doing things, and you can grieve, you can cry and you can laugh all at the same time,’ he said.
“And once again, the city cringed, hearing another false note that renewed familiar criticism that New York’s billionaire businessman mayor is tone-deaf to suffering in a crisis. By the time the mayor changed course three hours later Friday and called off the world’s largest marathon, he had already offended a passel of flood-weary New Yorkers.
“ ‘He is clueless without a paddle to the reality of what everyone else is dealing with,’ fumed Joan Wacks, whose waterfront condo in Staten Island was under 4 feet of water. ‘He’s supposed to be the mayor of all the city, but he’s really the mayor of Manhattan.’
“It was a rare reversal for Bloomberg, who’s known for sticking by his decisions, however unpopular. He’s built a reputation for being an efficient, independent-minded pragmatist in office, a philanthropist and public health innovator, and he has gotten praise for the city’s preparedness for the storm.
“But at times, people say he lacks empathy for the people he leads.”
“You did this. You made this happen. You changed his mind.
“Yes, this newspaper took a stand on Friday morning – a big one, an important one – appealing to the Mayor’s conscience to call off the New York City Marathon. Yes, there were plenty of pundits, print and radio and TV, who took up the baton, who rightly and loudly tried to shame the Mayor into doing the right thing. Yes, there were some solid men and women of principle among our elected officials (sadly, I am not talking about you, Gov. Cuomo) who rebuked the Mayor, who were offended that the marathon would begin in a place where bodies still are being recovered, that it would run through the streets of a city still in agony and loss.
“You are. Your voice, and your anger, and your outrage. This is exactly as we want to believe our nation can be at its best, at its brightest. We want to believe our opinion matters. We want to believe we can be heard, and so often we aren’t, so often we are tuned out, marginalized, ignored….
“Look, even the smartest leaders sometimes lose their way, lose sight of what’s right, wrong, important. You easily can get lost in your bubble. And for the mayor, that bubble included some tricky things: restoring normalcy, exhibiting a typical New York defiance and, not least, the enormous economic windfall the marathon brings every year.
“He is a smart man. He has been a good mayor. He was wrong here. And he needed to be told how wrong he was….For all the times your opinion vanished into the ether, this time was different.
“This time, the Mayor listened, the Marathon was canceled, the right thing was done.”
“It wasn’t enough that the New York Road Runners couldn’t bring themselves to do the right thing, couldn’t see that cancelling the New York Marathon was the only proper course of action once Hurricane Sandy ransacked the city that has given the race – and the organization – its name and its fame.
“No. Now, on top of serving as Mayor Bloomberg’s clueless consigliere on this whole matter, the NYRR sends a letter to the 47,000 people scheduled to run the race – so many of whom, as amateurs who actually call New York home, know first-hand just how preposterous the idea of holding this race, at the time, would have been.
“ ‘It became increasingly apparent that the people of our…area were still struggling to recover,’ the letter reads, in part. ‘That struggle, fueled by the resulting extensive and growing media coverage antagonistic to the marathon and its participants, created conditions that raised concern for the safety of both those working to produce the event and its participants.’
“Shame on the NYRR. Shame on Mary Wittenberg, the NYRR’s heartless president and CEO, for allowing this absurd drivel to stand as the NYRR’s official explanation. Shame on her for fouling the legacy of Fred Lebow, a native of Romania but a true guardian of this city, the man who made the Marathon such a proud annual staple – and a man who, certainly, would have understood his beloved race’s proper place at a time like this.
“Blame the media? Please. I wish the media could take the credit for making a fool like Wittenberg understand how wrong it was to pursue running this race….
“If the NYRR was smart, today would be Wittenberg’s last day on the job. If the NYRR isn’t smart, the Marathon’s sponsors should threaten to withdraw until new leadership is in place.”
“We always want to make the games part of the relief effort, as if they’re being played for the victims. They’re not. They never have been and never will be. Of course there have been bad times before this when we all wanted to buy into the romantic conceit that our teams and our athletes can somehow make us feel that we’re all in something together. We’re not. Even at their best, they’re just games.
“Mike Piazza’s home run in September of 2001, when baseball came back, made us cheer, was the most emotional night in the history of old Shea Stadium. And there were absolutely those home runs from Scott Brosius and Tino Martinez and Derek Jeter in the World Series of 2001, and those were moments when you could trick yourself into believing that we had gone back to the way things were before the planes hit, that it was still a Sept. 10 world.
“They are not the relief effort. The relief effort from sports is when the teams give money, and big money. The relief effort from sports, after 9/11, was when the teams give money, and big money. The relief effort from sports, after 9/11, was when the athletes came downtown, began putting on hardhats and showing up at firehouses and Ground Zero.
“You want to remember a magnificent relief effort in New York City, remember the one we saw at Shea Stadium in September of 2001, when the Mets and their manager Bobby Valentine turned the place into an emergency clearing house for goods and volunteers and even offered first responders from out of town a place to rest for a while.
“If you remember anything about that time, remember Valentine being everywhere on those days, unloading cars and trying to be everywhere at once at old Shea. And a year later, this is what he said about that time in the life of this city:
“ ‘On an anniversary, all I can say is that I thank all the people who without a doubt gave more than others….And I’m grateful that I worked side-by-side with a lot of people who gave a damn. They made a little bit of a difference. We should never forget and I don’t think it’s ever going to be the same.’”
“He just didn’t get it. He just didn’t see that too many people had been killed, too many people had lost their homes, too many people were struggling to get food and water, too many people were without power, too many people were desperate for gasoline and too many people were locked in transportation hell to stage an international sporting festival.
“He just didn’t comprehend that every cup of water handed on Sunday to a runner in the New York City Marathon would be taken as an insult by the thousands of people who are lining up for bottled water and by all those who have been advised to boil water in the rubble of Breezy Point.
“He just didn’t recognize that people who are trapped in apartments or worried about looters would be outraged to see a single NYPD officer – let alone 1,000 – serving as a flowerpot for the running of a foot race….
“Logic said the race would show once again that New York was the most resilient of places.
“But, set free in the wrong direction, logic can reduce matters to the absurd.
“That’s what happened to Bloomberg. He has this blind spot, it seems, about how natural disasters play havoc on the lives of people who are less well-appointed to ride out storms, be they hurricanes or, ah, yes, blizzards.”
“The right decision to call off the New York City Marathon, was only 72 hours late.
“It could have and should have been made as soon as Sandy stopped bombarding the region, as soon as it became apparent that people had died, and that millions were in trouble….
“The best barometer of the inappropriateness of a marathon on Sunday was the discomfort expressed by runners themselves. Finely tuned competitors, whether of the championship or the plodder variety, knew in their bones and their nerve endings and their hearts that it would be wrong to prance through a stricken city….
“With all due respect to other sports events in this region, the marathon is the best single scheduled day in any calendar. It is hard to miss the pulsing humanity as elite Kenyans stride off the bridge into Brooklyn, followed by thousands of runners who, as the race goes on, look more and more like most of us.
“There is New York in all its glory…the people four and five deep in the wall of noise on the East Side of Manhattan. The marathon is a great event for the human race, as represented in all its diversity by New York.
“It would have been obscene to use police officers who earlier in the week were saving lives, or lamenting lives they could not save, in inundated cellars in Staten Island or smoldering fires in Breezy Point or other afflicted corners of this city….
“With a glorious stretch of beaches and history wiped out down the Jersey coast, with the homes of police and fire officers still smoldering…the runners of the world were encouraged to flock to airports all over the world, to fly to a stricken city. Now they are here, paying gouger prices for hotels, and being told, uhh, never mind.”
“Tens of thousands of weekend warriors will return to their day jobs, having lost only travel costs and entry fees with the cancellation of the New York City Marathon. But contenders missed a chance to earn what amounted to half a year’s salary.
“A number of elite runners said they understood why the marathon was called off, given the public outcry against using essential services to monitor a race while many in the region are struggling to recover from Hurricane Sandy. Still, cancellation brought a significant shortfall to the best runners in the field.
“The world’s best generally run only two marathons a year, one in the spring, another in the fall. (Some had planned a third in this Olympic year.) The prize for the male and female winners in New York in 2012 was to be $130,000. For past winners like Meb Keflezighi of the United States (2009) and Marilson Gomes dos Santos of Brazil (2006 and 2008), a repeat victory would have raised the prize money to $200,000. An American as successful as Keflezighi – he won an Olympic silver medal at the 2004 Athens Games and finished fourth at the 2012 London Games – would have negotiated an appearance fee worth as much as $250,000, agents said.
“An additional bonus of $60,000 would have been paid for running the 26.2-mile course under 2 hours 5 minutes, $50,000 for running under 2:06….
“Friday night, some agents scrambled to see if they could place their runners in another marathon. There is a women’s race in Yokohama, Japan, on Nov. 18 and a men’s race in Fukuoka, Japan, on Dec. 2. But the rosters and budgets are set….
“Brendan Reilly of the United States, who is (Edna) Kiplagat’s agent (she being the 2011 world marathon champion), noted that many of the world’s best marathon runners grew up in meager circumstances, living without electricity and facing other hardships in developing nations. And so the runners could sympathize with the cancellation of the race, Reilly said, adding, ‘They are not money grubbers.’”
The NYRR may give a portion of the appearance fees to the runners, seeing how important this is to their annual income.
The elite runners will end up doing OK, it’s the second-tier ones, looking to break through and get a shoe contract, perhaps, that will suffer.
“Australians who had hoped to run the New York marathon have expressed dismay at its last-minute cancellation.
“Marathon legend Robert de Castella said the eight indigenous Australians who had traveled to New York with him to do the marathon – after nine months of training – were ‘absolutely devastated.’…
“ ‘ To do this 31 hours before the race is a really tough call,’ he said. ‘The guys were so excited and over the moon to be over here and were really looking forward to it.’….
“He said what was particularly disappointing was that New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg had initially promised the race would proceed.”
There are a number of other marathons looking to take advantage of New York’s cancellation. Brooklyn has one later this month., but is capped at 500 runners. Richmond, Va., organizers said the phone hasn’t stopped ringing off the hook for their Nov. 10 event. Harrisburg, Pa., has openings for its Nov. 11 race. Honolulu would love to see some of New York’s runners go there for its Dec. 9 event.
College Football Review
Well, the action heated up late in the day so I’ll just review a few key games.
No. 1 Alabama needed a late TD drive to secure its 21-17 over No. 5 LSU in Baton Rouge. LSU outgained ‘Bama 435-331. The contest should give Alabama’s BCS title opponent hope.
No. 2 Kansas State outlasted No. 24 Oklahoma State 44-30, but the Wildcats may have seen their title hopes shattered as Heisman candidate and quarterback Collin Klein suffered an undisclosed injury.
No. 3 Notre Dame surely will drop in the BCS poll after needing three overtimes to defeat a game, but mediocre, Pitt Panther squad, 29-26. Pitt should have won this one in South Bend as they were up 20-6 in the fourth. But then in the second overtime, when a field goal would have won it, inexplicably running back Ray Graham didn’t center the ball on third down and instead gave kicker Kevin Harper a more difficult angle on a 33-yarder and he barely missed wide right. I’m just amazed no one is giving Graham heat for this (at least no one on air did).
So the Fighting Irish next play Boston College, then Wake Forest, before finishing with USC in Los Angeles. They’ll be undefeated heading into that last one, but on the outside looking in when it comes to the BCS title game should they then beat the Trojans.
Speaking of the Trojans, what an incredibly wild game in L.A. between No. 4 Oregon and No. 17 USC.
During the Pitt contest, Dr. Bortrum, who is staying at my place due to his not having power, and I were talking about the day in 1975 when we were in attendance in Pittsburgh as Tony Dorsett rushed for 303 yards against Notre Dame, made all the more spectacular by the fact no one to that point had ever rushed for 200 against the Fighting Irish. As I’ve documented in this space on more than one occasion, Dorsett had 151 yards on his first four carries!
So then you have the Oregon contest and senior running back Kenjon Barner put on a show for the ages…38 carries, 321 yards and five touchdowns. Barner had 169 yards at half on 16 carries as Oregon racked up 730 yards total offense in defeating the Trojans 62-51. The 62 were the most ever given up by USC in their storied history. The 730 yards were also the most ever against the Trojans. Heck, like 9 yards a play!
Duck quarterback Marcus Mariota outplayed Matt Barkley, going 20/23, 304, 4-0. Plus the freshman QB had 96 yards rushing.
Oh, don’t get me wrong. Barkley was just fine..35/54, 484 and 5 TDs, but he did get picked off twice.
And look at the game the Trojans’ Marqise Lee had. 12 receptions for 157 yards and 8 kick returns for another 251.
As for Barner, talk about making a last minute dash for the Heisman. He’s been on an incredible roll and now has 1,295 yards rushing, averaging a stupendous 7.2 per carry, plus 19 TDs.
I mean there was probably a minimum of 8 future first-rounders on the field Saturday.
And this as De’Anthony Thomas, a pre-season Heisman pick, along with Barkley, has been largely invisible after a fast start to the season and yet no one doubts Thomas will himself be an NFL sensation. As I commented to Johnny Mac on Saturday, Thomas should be fired up he’s being overshadowed by Barner. Less wear and tear. The NFL scouts know what Thomas can do. He could be involved in just five or six plays a game and he’s still one of the top 15 picks in the draft.
So add it all up and the question is, will Oregon finally get the respect it deserves in the computer rankings? In the human polls, Oregon is No. 2. We’re about to find out.
No. 7 Florida had a very unimpressive 14-7 win at home over a crappy Missouri (4-5) team. The Gators are the most boring team in America and should be relegated to the Weedeater Bowl (if that still exists…oops, doesn’t….try the Idaho Potato Bowl).
In other important games, No. 11 Oregon State roared back from an early deficit to defeat a tough Arizona State squad at home, 36-26. Beaver Nation’s hopes for a Rose Bowl bid remain intact.
No. 14 Stanford defeated perhaps the worst team in all of college football, including Division III, Colorado, 48-0. This is a Buffalo outfit that has lost to Fresno State 69-14, lost to Sacramento State!, and was defeated by Oregon 70-14 (with the Ducks holding down the score big time) and USC 50-6.
Virginia (3-6) defeated North Carolina State (5-4) in Raleigh, 33-6, which hurts Florida State’s BCS bid even further, the Wolfpack dealing the Seminoles their only loss.
7-2 UCLA will break into the BCS top 25 in a big way with a 66-20 win over No. 22 Arizona.
And this is one year we can’t talk about No. 19 Boise State playing Cinderella as it suffered its second loss, at home, to San Diego State (7-3) 21-19.
No. 21 West Virginia continued its collapse, losing at home to TCU 39-38 in double-overtime. Mountaineer quarterback Geno Smith had another ordinary game, 32/54, 260, 3-1. Oh, how WVU fans had thoughts of a national title dancing through their heads when they rose to No. 5 after a 5-0 start, only to then lose three straight.
Lastly, I won another free lunch, like my fourth in a row, I think, off Steve D. as Wake Forest defeated his Boston College boys, 28-14, behind Michael Campanaro’s 3 TD receptions. Campanaro is the second coming of Wes Welker. You can book it. Saturday he had 16 receptions for 123 yards…just a classic possession receiver who can get yards after the catch.
1. Alabama 9-0 (all 60 first-place votes)
2. Oregon 9-0
3. Kansas State 9-0
4. Notre Dame 9-0
T-5. Ohio State 10-0…BCS ineligible
T-5. Georgia 8-1
7. Florida 8-1…travesty
8. Florida State 8-1…inching up
9. LSU 7-2
10. Clemson 8-1…Tigers headed to BCS game and a very attractive ‘get’
11. Louisville 9-0…if they stay undefeated, at least a Florida State-Louisville Orange Bowl would match up two with gaudy records
13. Oregon State 7-1
23. Toledo 8-1…love it
24. Rutgers 7-1
And the new BCS poll
1. Alabama .9957
2. Kansas State .9318
3. Oregon .9166…up one
4. Notre Dame .9050
5. Georgia .8171
6. Florida .7863
7. LSU .7054
8. South Carolina .6206
9. Louisville .6040
10. Florida State .5969…Wolfpack swoon killing FSU in computer rankings
13. Clemson .5772…oh, c’mon!!!!
Peyton Manning has the Broncos (5-3) in good shape following a 31-23 road win at Cincinnati (3-5). Manning was 27/35 for 291 and 3 touchdowns.
Da Bears went to 7-1! 51-20 victors on the road at Tennessee (3-6). Jay Cutler had a solid game, 19/26, 229, 3-0, and Matt Forte rushed for 103 on just 12 carries. For the Titans, Chris Johnson continued his resurgence with 141 yards on only 16 carries.
The Pack is back, and then some, moving to 6-3 after a 31-17 win over the slumping Cardinals (4-5). Aaron Rodgers, though, had a subpar effort, despite his four touchdown passes…14/30, 218.
The Lions (4-4) are on the comeback trail, though a 31-14 win over the incredibly pathetic Jaguars (1-7), sorry Steve G., is hardly something to start printing Super Bowl tickets over.
The Steelers moved to 5-3 with a nice win over the Giants (6-3) in the Meadowlands as Isaac Redman rushed for 147 yards.
And remember how RG3, Robert Griffin III, of the Redskins was the talk of football just two weeks ago, following a heroic effort, in defeat, at the hands of the Giants? RG3 was rewriting the rookie book.
But he’s now had two poor performances and the ‘Skins are reeling, 3-6, following a 21-13 loss to the dreadful Panthers (2-6).
So on 10/25, after pointing out all of RG3’s superlatives, I wrote the following:
“As for the man RG3 will always be compared to because of their positions in the 2012 draft, Andrew Luck…(he) is 32nd in completion percentage (53.6) and 25th in yards per attempt (6.7). Luck is also tied for next to last in quarterback rating.
Yup, good call on your editor’s part. Two weeks later, Luck threw for a rookie record 433 yards and two touchdowns as the surprising Colts went to 5-3 in a 23-20 triumph over the Dolphins (4-4). Hopefully these two will be compared to each other for the next 15 years. That would be great fun, and a sign of two great careers.
Finally, just a note on former kicker Tom Dempsey that I’ve been meaning to clear off the pile. Sports Illustrated’s Tim Layden wrote a terrific piece in the Oct. 29 issue on how amazing it is that it’s been 42 years since Dempsey’s historic 63-yard field goal and in all this time no one has surpassed it, despite the kicking game being far superior to what it was in those days.
I’ll never forget watching that Lions-Saints contest of Nov. 8, 1970. I’m not sure why it was on in the New York area, but I was a full-fledged football fan at this stage of my life, age 12.
“It can’t be long now. We have surely reached the last days of 63, one of the most stubbornly and strangely enduring records in any sport. Dempsey’s kick died in the air just inches past the crossbar and fell to earth like a buckshot mallard dropping into a flat-water pond. The stadium erupted. Stumpy was hoisted onto his teammates’ shoulders and carried from the field to the locker room, where New Orleans police eventually brought him two cases of Dixie beer, sating his renowned thirst while the crowd dissipated. The record kick was stunning in the moment, a Beamon-esque performance that skipped a generation of steady progression….
“The number 63 has a life of its own, a poor man’s version of DiMaggio’s 56 or Wilt’s 100. When (Rams rookie sensation Greg) Zuerlein was a high school kicker in Lincoln, Neb., his coach instructed him to look up 63 online. Packers kicker Mason Crosby, a six-year veteran who has hit from 58 yards and in 2008 came up just short on a 69-yard free kick, says, ‘That number has been out there for so long, it almost defines strategy. Like coaches are thinking, Someone made a 63, so that’s about as far as we should try.’”
The other three kickers to hit from 63 are Jason Elam, Sebastian Janikowski and David Akers. Dempsey’s is the only one of the four kicks to win a game.
—Trees were the big killers (along with storm surge) in Hurricane Sandy. Countless victims in the New York area. Two died near me (Mendham). Last year in the Halloween snowstorm, two of my hometown residents died, hit by falling trees.
You always feel that it can’t happen to you, but there are some simple preventive measures, just like taking shelter before a tornado hits.
Don’t go out in extremely windy weather unless you have to! Especially in this area, with 2011’s Halloween storm, Hurricane Irene and now Sandy, our trees are stressed to the max. I have a massive one out my office window that I admire all day and amazingly only one large branch fell this time, harmlessly in someone’s backyard, but, boy, if the whole thing ever went it would take out two homes.
I mean in North Salem, N.Y., two young boys were killed when a tree crashed into the living room where they were sitting.
–After more than two weeks of zero negotiations, the two sides in the NHL dispute finally met, with the league already calling off the Winter Classic, New Year’s Day, which is really unbelievable…that the owners could be such idiots. This is the most loathsome group in all of sports and Commissioner Gary Bettman is hands down the favorite to be “Bar Chat Dirtball of the Year.”
“The owners haven’t closed their rinks out of financial desperation. Forbes estimates the value of Big Four teams every year, and yes, in its latest ranking, covering the 2010-11 season, the magazine showed that 18 of the NHL’s 30 clubs lost money – but a lot of teams chasing championships in every league lose money. The Angels and Mavericks lost money in 2011, as did the Red Sox and Tigers in 2010. None of these clubs is in rough shape. And neither are the L.A. Kings (who lost $2 million) or Capitals ($7.5 million) or Penguins ($200,000) or Sharks ($7.8 million). Good teams invest in title runs. Overall, NHL team revenues actually climbed 5% in 2011 to a then-record $3.1 billion. The average franchise is now worth $240 million, also an all-time high.
“So it’s not distress that has driven hockey into this mess. It’s greed. NHL honchos watched their fellow one-percenters in the NFL and NBA roll back player compensation, and they wanted to do the same.
“The NHL, however, does have one legitimate, chronic problem: Half a dozen or so clubs are in deep financial trouble, even when they perform well on the ice. Phoenix, Carolina, Florida, Nashville and Tampa Bay lost a combined $51.8 million in 2010-11 and carry debt that averages a whopping 48% of the value of their franchises. But this isn’t a revenue-split or salary-cap problem. It’s a market-size and hockey-love problem….
“Just giving the owners more money to paper over the losses of their sorriest brethren won’t fix hockey’s underlying problem – and will simply embolden them to ask for even more the next time. The NHL has lost 1,833 regular-season games to lockouts since Gary Bettman became commissioner in 1993, far more than any other sport. And you know what they say. Fool us 1,833 times, shame on you. Fool us 1,834 times, shame on us.”
–Can’t say I care about the start of the NBA season, seeing as how I have some more pressing responsibilities, including caring for my parents while they’re still here, but I do have to note that James Harden, newly acquired by Houston from Oklahoma City, had one helluva debut in the Rockets’ 105-96 opener against the Pistons. 37 points and 12 assists. This after Harden agreed to a five-year, $80 million contract extension with Houston. Good for him. Way to back it up.
[Harden then went off for 45 and 24 points in his next two games…Houston is 2-1.]
And nice first three games for Tim Duncan. 21 points, 10 rebounds per…three Spurs wins. The old guy still has it. [Also just love Kawhi Leonard on the Spurs. What a brilliant draft pick. He’s perfect for that system. He just plays hard every night and keeps his mouth shut.]
—David Ortiz signed a two-year, $26 million extension with Boston.
—Mariano Rivera said he would come back for the 2013 season and with Rafael Soriano testing the free agent market, the Yankees really need a return to form by Mo. That’s a lot to ask for after his serious injury.
–Texas signed Josh Hamilton to a $13.3 million, one-year offer sheet for the purposes of ensuring that they get some draft compensation should Hamilton decide to go elsewhere.
–Police in the Dominican Republic arrested three men suspected of killing former major league pitcher Pascual Perez, 55, during an attempted home robbery. It seems at least one of the suspects knew Perez and was after his monthly $2,400 pension for his 11-year career in the majors.
Perez was 67-68 for four teams in his career with a fine 3.44 ERA. His best years were with Atlanta, 1983-84, when he went 15-8 and 14-8, making the All-Star team in ’83.
—Lindsey Vonn will not be allowed to race in a men’s World Cup downhill race. The International Ski Federation (FIS) turned down her request, saying that “one gender is not entitled to participate in races of the other.” Secretary General Sarah Lewis said, “It’s very clear. It’s called the men’s World Cup and the ladies’ World Cup.”
–Hey Wake Forest fans…see what we did the other day? The men’s soccer team, No. 18 in the country, upset No. 1 Maryland 4-2, thus handing the Terps their first loss in 17 matches. The ACC tournament begins Monday.
–We note the passing of PGA Tour caddie Scott Steele, 55, who collapsed a few weeks ago while caddying in a Champions Tour event for Kirk Triplett. The last 12 years Steele has primarily been on Tim Herron’s bag. Herron, in comments to Golfweek, was very shaken over his friend’s death.
But Scott Steele was also known for a magical moment in golf history. He was on Larry Mize’s bag at Augusta in 1987, when Mize outlasted Greg Norman in a playoff.
–So the New York Aquarium on Coney Island has been out of power, running on generators, since the storm, but some of the exhibits didn’t last, such as the rare fish one.
I’m going to say something that may seem insensitive to some, but you’d think the power authorities could devote one truck to get the aquarium back to normal. As I write they are talking about transferring the bigger fish, such as sharks, to other facilities. Do you realize how incredibly daunting this would be? And how many would be lost?
Anyone who bitches about priority being given to a bunch of fish is totally missing the big picture. You lose the aquarium, you lose a ton of revenue and jobs. That would be a different kind of tragedy.
“British military code-breakers are trying to decipher a message attached to the skeleton of a World War II carrier pigeon found in an English chimney.
“Military experts believe the coded message, which was written by a Sergeant W. Stott, will provide unique insight into the war.
“The bird was found when David Martin in Bletchingly, Surrey, was renovating his fireplace.
“Martin told the BBC that when he began pulling it down ‘the pigeon bones began appearing one by one,’ including a leg with a red capsule with a message inside.
“Theories suggest the bird was making its way from behind enemy lines, perhaps from Nazi occupied France during the D-Day invasions, heading toward Bletchley Park, which was Britain’s main decryption establishment during World War II.
“More than 250,000 carrier pigeons were used in World War II.”
Top 3 songs for the week 11/8/69: #1 “Wedding Bell Blues” (The 5th Dimension) #2 “Suspicious Minds” (Elvis Presley) #3 “Come Together” (The Beatles)…and…#4 “I Can’t Get Next To You” (The Temptations) #5 “Baby It’s You” (Smith) #6 “Sugar, Sugar” (The Archies) #7 “Hot Fun In The Summertime” (Sly & The Family Stone) #8 “And When I Die” (Blood, Sweat & Tears) #9 “Something” (Beatles) #10 “Smile A Little Smile For Me” (The Flying Machine)
Buffalo Bills Quiz Answers: 1) Joe Cribbs is third on the rushing list with 4,445 yards. 2) Jack Kemp is third on the touchdowns passing list with 77. 3) Elbert Dubenion is the fine wideout from 1960-67. One of the great names in all of sports. And, heck, in 1964 he caught 42 passes for 1,139 yards…a league-leading 27.1 avg. per reception. As Ronald Reagan clearly said at the time, ‘Not bad…not bad at all.’
Next Bar Chat, Thursday…worried Wednesday’s predicted northeaster will bring another round of serious power issues. So…if you don’t see a column, that’s the reason.
