11 sports wishes for 2011

Ah, another flip of the calendar.

The year 2011 has snuck up on us. As always, we all have wishes entering the year – losing weight, getting hitched, getting a better job or trying to fulfill the American Dream.

However, we also have dumb wishes. Consider this post my list of dumb wishes for 2011.

Here are some 2011 sports related wishes. Again, in no particular order.

1. No more “coach speak” in interviews.

No offense to the three high school coaches who (I think) read this blog. But coach speak sucks, to put it frankly. This is one I’ve collided with way too much in sports journalism career covering high school athletics. I’m so sick of coaches saying “the league is going to be great this year” when it’s clear the league is the equivalent of a local bakery – full of cupcakes and pastries.

I’m sick of coaches crediting coaches who they hate or don’t respect with “being a good coach” while on the record.

Now, I understand the reason for coach speak. I get it. You don’t want to give the other team bulletin board, nor do you want to sound arrogant.

For once, however, it would be nice to hear a coach say “No one can beat us when we bring our A-game” or “I wouldn’t trade my kids for anyone.”

That will rarely happen on record. If I prayed to God each night, that would be among my wishes – a non-boring, vanilla head coach to cover. I have a couple of coaches who are close to that territory, but not quite there yet.

2. The 2011 Kansas City Royals need to be historically bad.

First and most selfishly, I have a bottle of wine riding on it.

Second, having the first overall pick is a good thing, especially when you’ll be bad no matter what.

Third, and probably most importantly, bottoming out first will help the future. Mike Moustakas, Eric Hosmer, and all of our other stud prospects would be best coming into a situation where only improvement can be made. I like that scenario more than a 77-85 like season and expectations suddenly being dramatically higher for 2012.

The Royals need to bottom out and let the kids write the new chapter of the franchise.

3. No sideline reporter will ask a winning team “How are your emotions like right now?”

God love her, Erin Andrews inspired this wish. She asked one of the TCU players something close to that question after a replaying of the Rose Bowl Sunday morning. Some believe sideline reporters are worthless.

I don’t.

I think there could be some really good questions thrown in and some good reaction quotes are definitely possible.

But asking a winning team how their emotions are? What answer do you expect from that from a  bunch of guys who just won? That’s a solid question for the Wisconsin staff or any other team that lost a bowl game.

4. Duke and Kansas cannot play for the national title in basketball.

Feel free to ask a couple of my friends about this, but I nailed KU last year. I predicted they would lose in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. Sure enough, they did.

Sadly, I’m getting the exact opposite feeling about them this year. I think they go far in the tournament. More about this later this week, but my two biggest reasons I feel like this: KU hasn’t peaked yet and they generally do better under the radar. In 2010, they are under the radar.

Which leads me to this: Duke and Kansas must not play in the tournament title game. I simply cannot root for either of those teams. Strangely, I wouldn’t be that upset if the Blue Devils or Jayhawks made the game by themselves.

I could still root for the other team in the title game and quite frankly, it’s good to have a personal villain make it far into the playoffs.

Together? Kill me.

I either have to root for the Jayhawks, which is unthinkable for a Tigers fan and someone who is surrounded by KU fans each day of the week. Or, I have to whore myself out and root for Duke to win their second straight title, meaning they’d be the kings of college basketball for over 700 days.

Again, unacceptable.

5. The obligatory “Boston Red Sox, Denver Broncos, Chicago White Sox, Dallas Cowboys and any other team I hate can’t make the playoffs in their respective sport” wish

Enough said.

6. Mike Anderson needs to turn down a high-profile job.

Anderson is my favorite NCAA head coach ever. He took on a gig that was undesirable for many candidates and has turned the Tigers into a solid Top 20 program the past three years.

Unfortunately, I suspect he’ll leave Columbia at some point.

The best way for me to put those fears aside is for him to turn down a pretty solid job again. Georgia was nice. Oregon’s OK. But neither are top-tier jobs.

Him turning down Arkansas would be ideal this year.

7. The Miami Heat need to win the NBA championship

No, I’m not one of those bandwagoning types. I’m not a Heat fan, nor will I ever be.

But the collective meltdown of Celtics, Lakers, Spurs, Mavericks, Knicks, Bulls and Cleveland fans (along with the media) would be worth it.

Plus, while the handling of their free agencies was a joke, LeBron, Wade and Bosh signed for less money for two good reasons: Playing together and to win titles. There’s nothing wrong with that. It’s too bad LeBron had to shoot himself in the foot about five times last summer.

Take away the TV special and his attitude afterwords, most of America would not have minded him signing with the Heat.

8. The Miami Hurricanes football program starts being relevant again

Again, not a Miami fan, native or whatever.

But college football is better when they are good. College football doesn’t need them to be successful, but the Hurricanes are a hell of a luxury to have.

I’m not sure one team did more than one sport than the Hurricanes did for college football in the 1980s. The Lakers and Celtics have been joined at the hip. The Packers, Steelers and Cowboys can arguably be called “America’s Team” from the NFL. While the Yankees have been the premier baseball team, Babe Ruth and the Brooklyn Dodgers were significant, too. Brooklyn increased the amount of minority baseball fans by a lot and helped put baseball on the map for blacks, Hispanics and other minority players.

Back to Miami: They celebrated, “The U” is a cool nickname for a team and the fact they are still somewhat “new” on the scene. Their tradition began in 1983 and they won five titles within an 18-year period. Not too bad.

9. College football games need to stop being played at baseball stadiums.

How bizarre was it watching Illinois and Northwestern battle at Wrigley Field – while playing in one direction?

I also read the Kansas State broadcasting crew were separated and segmented in Yankee Stadium because of the seating arrangements.

College football games and baseball parks don’t mix. As Tony Soprano would say, “end of story.”

10. All pre-game shows need to be cut in half

Why was there a four-hour pre-game show for the Final Four this year? Why is there an awful amount of pre-game segments prior to the Super Bowl?

Why is there an hour pre-game show each week before the NFL?

There are generally only two pre-game shows that work – Charles Barkley and crew on TNT and at times, ESPN Gameday. That’s it.

The rest of the programs need to slash their time in half.

11. The “NFL in Los Angeles” topic needs to be settled or die out.

The NFL has become the most popular sport in America despite not having a team in the second biggest market.

(By the way, part of that is false. The Oakland Raiders still have a HUGE following in Los Angeles and the San Diego Chargers have a decent following. Los Angeles may not have a team physically in the city, but the Raiders and Chargers matter a lot in that city.)

Still, once or twice a season, fans are subjected to lengthy discussions about the NFL in LA question. Please settle this.

Whether it’s the Vikings, Jaguars, Raiders or Chargers, a team needs to announce the move.

Or, the NFL needs to put a deadline on getting an NFL team in Los Angeles. How is it a team in Green Bay has approached 80 years of sticking in the same city, but LA can’t get it right?

Perhaps Los Angeles isn’t the great city it’s portrayed as in the media.

Ranking Kansas City’s Coaches – 2010

Kansas State head coach Bill Snyder

I did a similar post to this two years ago, but things have changed. And changed big time.

Kansas State fans will be a little happier with this list compared to the one in 2008, while Jayhawk fans will frown at me. From the bottom up. This list is based on personal opinion and accomplishments.

8. Turner Gill, Kansas football: Hard to rank Gill considering he hasn’t coached a game. For now, he’s at the bottom. He will be able to prove himself soon, though. (I had Ron Prince 8th in 2008)

7. Trey Hillman, Kansas City Royals: I know the Royals roster isn’t exactly the 1927 Yankees. Or the 1951 Yankees. But there’s particulars about him that bother me – bunting in the first three innings of a game. Sorry, you should never bunt in the American League that early. He also allows his pitchers to accumulate high pitch counts. He’s also highly fond of himself and thick-skinned. He’s also very inconsistent in decisions. (Hillman was 7th in 2008)

Missouri basketball head coach Mike Anderson

6. Todd Haley, Kansas City Chiefs: He inherited the least talented Chiefs team ever, so the jury is still somewhat out on him. But I still like him more than Hillman. He showed that he was willing to bring in some top notch assistants after failing to do things “his way” and the Chiefs improved a lot at the end of last season, knocking Denver out of the playoffs picture. I honestly think Haley will be a winner in Kansas City. It might come sooner than we think considering how great the Chiefs have been this offseason. A solid draft could put them in second place in the AFC West. (I had Frank Martin 6th two years ago)

5. Gary Pinkel, Missouri football: Having Pinkel third two seasons ago, he’s fallen off not necessarily because of his own accomplishments, but because of developments at other schools and sports. Still, Pinkel’s built a solid program with solid recruiting classes coming in. A Big 12 title will be needed soon though to put Pinkel among the elite of coaching. (Mike Anderson was fifth two seasons ago)

4. Frank Martin, Kansas State basketball: This is when we start getting into the cream of the crop. Martin has proven himself beyond what any K-State fan could have expected. Martin’s taken Kansas State to the Elite Eight and is appearing on the radar of notable recruits. The Little Apple is starting to become a hot basketball town and “The Octagon of Doom” is a loud and tough place to play. He showed loyalty by signing a contract earlier this year that was probably below market value. (Herm Edwards was fourth)

3. Mike Anderson, Missouri basketball: The reason I have Anderson narrowly over Martin is 1.) Anderson inherited a program on probation and 2.) Martin inherited Bill Martin and Michael Beasley. Anderson has established himself as one of the hottest names in college basketball. He’s changed the perception of the Tigers in four seasons from a “dirty, disappointing program” to a nationally ranked team. Next year’s squad could be Mizzou’s most talented since 1990. Anderson is proving that he can recruit. Will he lead Mizzou to the promise land? (Pinkel was third on this list previously)

2. Bill Self, Kansas basketball: Self’s national title puts him up this high, but his recent tournament losses keep him at number two behind Bill Snyder. Self’s kept the KU machine going, inheriting a program that went to back-to-back Final Fours under Roy Williams. Losing to Northern Iowa, Bucknell and Bradley isn’t exactly inspiring. (Mark Mangino was 2nd in 2008)

1. Bill Snyder, Kansas State football: I’m the president of his fan club. Snyder took over a tough roster for his system last year and molded them into a team that almost won the Big 12 North last season. OH – he also had the best turnaround in college football history. Snyder is one of the five best coaches in the history of college football. He’s also lining up some good talent in Chris Harper and the Browns.

Best Monologue Joke Ever

From David Letterman:

“Here’s more good news about the health care reform bill: It covers the Kansas Jayhawks choking.”

Don’t Buy The Hype: Midwest Bracket Sets Up Well For KU

One of the bigger talking points from college basketball pundits 24 hours after Selection Sunday is the fact that Kansas got placed in a “loaded bracket” and they’ll have to survive it.

Don’t be fooled – as long as Kansas doesn’t beat itself, the Jayhawks will move on to the Final Four. And quite frankly, there’s not too many scary teams in the bracket.

Don’t get me wrong.

Michigan State with Tom Izzo is always dangerous. If I had to win a big game with equal talent, I’d select Izzo number one as my head coach. Georgetown, a Big East team, can make it to the Final Four. Ohio State looked really good in the Big 10 Final. Tennessee and Oklahoma State, also in the bracket, have already knocked off KU this season.

Also, every bracket should be considered tough, no matter how easy it looks on paper. Upsets happen everywhere as well, so a bracket can fall apart quickly. Remember that big KU-Georgetown regional final that was supposed to happen in 2008? It turned out to be KU-Davidson.

However, it seems to me that Kansas has been at its best when having a “showdown” type of environment with great teams.

• They knocked off a great Kansas State team three times, although the officiating in Manhattan was brutal late and arguably cost the Wildcats the game.

• They destroyed Mizzou twice.

• They defeated solid Big 12 opponents like Texas aTm, Texas, Baylor and other teams. The conference was great this year and it should prepare them.

When it’s mattered most, these Jayhawks have played the best.

The times that the Jayhawks have looked vulnerable is when a team has snuck up on them. Tennessee, who was with I believe six scholarship players, played the game of their lives. Oklahoma State completely outplayed KU.

Cornell was within three stupid possessions of knocking off KU in Lawrence as well.

The Jayhawks are a great team and have more talent than anyone else in the bracket.

To me, the greatest upset threat will actually come from the bracket’s nine-seed in Northern Iowa. It won’t happen, but it reminds me of the So. Illinois game from about three years ago. A “mid-major” team can ugly it up enough to cause problems, but even that might be too much of a stretch.

A team like that could sneak up on the Jayhawks.

Don’t forget about the flaws of some of the other teams – Michigan State stumbled down the stretch and has chemistry problems. Ohio State’s depth is an issue, despite how big a STUD Evan Turner is. Georgetown still lost 10 games, including getting nuked by Southern Florida and Notre Dame. Maryland had some horrible losses and one good win all year – Duke. And I think KU will be a little motivated if Oklahoma State or Tennessee comes across their path.

With it being the tournament, anything can happen.

The fact that a bracket may have been loaded also helps KU. It’s tough to overlook anyone when the national media is saying everything it is about “The Bracket of Death” or “The Bracket from Hell.” Call me crazy, but historically KU has done well in tough brackets. In 2003, they had to go through Duke and Arizona to get to the Final Four. In 1991, they made the Final Four after knocking off a great Indiana team and an even better Arkansas team.

But barring an injury or the Jayhawks just playing awful one night or everything going against them, they get to the Final Four.