The Last Post

One of the hardest questions a general manager of any sport ever has to ask themselves is what to do with an aging veteran whose production has steadily dropped. The average veteran will be cut as soon as they stop producing but I'm talking about the guys who have had great careers and have given so much to the organization. It become very difficult because to what extent do you compromise winning just to pay thanks for sometimes a decade or more of success.


In sports like hockey and baseball it is easier to keep an aging veteran. Since there are so many position players you can reduce the play of an older player but still keep them on the roster. Football though is different. Because the shelf life of an NFL players is only 5 to 10 years, teams will quickly abandon their veterans for unproven younger prospects. The most recent case of this was with the Jacksonville Jaguars. They dumped pro bowl runner Fred Taylor just because he is getting old. It will prove to be a huge mistake in the long run.

Although it is tough for teams to drop these types of players we must remember that in the end it is a business and teams have to do what is in their best interest. This is all I have to say on this topic, but before I go I just want to let all my viewers know that this will possibly be my final blog. I want to thank you all for your input and feedback and I hope you guys learned a little bit about sports. I sure know that I have. I would like to thank ESPN for the inspiration for so many of my postings and thanks to Nelly who inspired the whole theme or Heart of a Champion. Most importantly thank you Mrs. Stoklosa for giving this assignment. It helped me to come in touch with a form of communication that is becoming very popular and I have greatly improved my writing skills through all my postings.

Michael Vick

When thinking of sports only one name comes to my mind at this very point. That name is Michael Vick. Today at 4:00 in the morning Michael Vick was released from federal prison after serving 21 of his 23 month sentence for hosting a dog fighting ring. Vick will be returning to his house in Hampton, Virginia where he will serve the final 2 months under house arrest.

Two years ago Michael Vick was one of the premiere players in the league. The man made a horrible mistake and has served his jail time for it. The question now becomes should he be aloud to come back and play in the NFL or should a further punishment be handed down from the league. Organizations such as the Humane Society and PETA will do everything in tehir power to make sure he never sees the field again. While tehy are right to protest he admittance back to the league because the crimes he committed were inexcusable is it fair to ban him foreve from the league?

Personally I no problem allowing him back into the league as soon as his house arrest is complete. The man has paid his debt to society and everybody deserves a second chance. Also Michael Vick owes so many millions of dollars to the Falsons and to some of his former endorsers. He will be in debt teh rest of his life if he doesn't get the chance to play again in the NFL. Last he is only 29 years old. I honestly believe the man has some gas left in the tank and I know whoever signs him will be greatly helping their team.

All this being said I take back everything if he steps out of line but once. He should be on teh shortest of leashes (no pun intended) and should be banned forever if he does anything less than act as a model citizen. Michael Vick has the opportunity to actually do some good for the community and influence young men and women of the adverse affects of dog fighting. He deserves a second chances but noting more than that.

Title 9

Playing hockey and being captain of the Cypress Bay the Cypress bay Roller Hockey team there is one word and one number that I have come to hate over the years. It is Title 9. Title 9 under the school code and regulations requires every sport and club to be opened up to both boys and girls. It requires that if there is a team it must either be integrated or there must be a team for all boys or all girls.

While i see why it is important to have Title 9 it has really affected our hockey team. We were required the past few years to play a girl on our team even though she was not very capable of playing. Each year our team has tryouts and for the most part only guys show up. Then every year we are forced to cut some quality male players and replace them with a girl who is required to play a certain amount each season. Title 9 can be avoided though if no girls try out or show interest so basically that was our plan this past year. To avoid this my teacher who is also the team sponsor and I decided to create a girls team. I would be the head coach and It would be my responsibility to teach them how to play. Needless to say only a few girls showed up and they lost interest very quickly.

Overall it is important that Title 9 exists. It provides equal opportunities for both boys and girls to get involved in school athletics and allows any person to participate in an activity if they would like to.

Steroids part 2

Just when Baseball thought that it has cleaned up its act and rid the sport of steroids another huge star tested positive on a random drug test. On Sunday, Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Manny Ramirez failed a drug test and later admitted to using performance enhancing drugs. This comes after Manny had been given a 20 million dollar new contract during the off season.

Along with the recent admittance by Alex Rodriguez, and the positive testings of Andy Pettite, Jason Giambi, and Roger Clemmens it is becoming a safe assumption that many more players than we can imagine have used steroids during their career. The question then becomes is the era that has come to be known as the Steroid Era completely tarnished. Should every record set during this time be thrown out.

While that might be radical many people are proposing that we should put an asterisk next to any record set over the past decade. Personally I don't have a huge problem with records being set with players who were on steroids. First of all so many players were doing it at the time that it was basically an even playing ground. Barry Bonds who allegedly took steroids hit seven home runs off Andy Pettite, which is tied for second most against any pitcher. Andy Pettite has already admitted to taking steroids and Bonds clearly won that battle.


Last, steroids were not illegal when all these players were using them. How can we discredit the achievements of players who were only giving themselves an advantage by something that was legal at the time. Although we should not look highly upon past steroid users we should in no way let it taint their records.

Life of the Rich and Famous

When we first moved into my new house about three years ago our new neighors stopped by to introduce themselves. When they saw us moving in all our hockey equiptment into the garage they proceeded to tell us that Florida Panther's winger Chris Gratton lived in the house three doors down. I got so excited. All I could think about for the next few days was what I would say to him when I met him. So about a week later as I was getting ready for a hockey game I saw him jog by. He had obviously been running for a long time and looked really tired. I didn't want to bother him so I just kind of half waved and yelled good game last night to him. He then stopped and came up to me and we talked for a little while about the Panthers. I was so excited to actually talk to a real Panther player that I forgot about practice and showed up 20 minutes late.

In reality Chris Gratton is really not a good player. Just the fact that he plays in the NHL is what impressed me so much. I often wonder why we get so excited when we meet someone famous. In reality they are just a human being and happen to be good at something. Actually now a days people don't have to have any talents to be famous. On my street there are people that are far more educated and successful than Chris Gratton. There are doctors and lawyers and even the mayor of the city live a few houses down. In the end it just comes down to the fact that human nature is intrigued by fame. This is the way it is and the way it will always be.

The Collapse of the Bubble

Two years ago on teh corner of University and Nova Drive the Miami Dolphins opened up their new parctice facility. It was named "The Bubble" due to it bubble like appearence. In reality it is a massive dome fully light and air conditioned for the players to use during bad weather conditions.

The Dallas Cowboys have a very similar practice facility or at least they had one. This past Monday a storm packing winds nearing those of a tornado ripped through their practice facility leaving the place in ruins. There were around 20 players in the building and around 40 staff and media members present at the time of the collapse. Video images show the roof of this air inflated structure shaking profuciously. Light can theyn be seen crashing to the ground as the whole structure began to fall apart. Players and staff began frantically running towards the exits, many of which had been blocked off.

Within a few minutes everyone had evacuated the building. 11 people had to be airlifted to a nearby hospital. While most people escaped with only a few scratches Cowboy's special teams coach Joe DeCamillis had a portion of his vertibrate severed and has been paralyzed from the waste down.

There is alot we can learn from what happened. First off we must be thankful that the building was not more crowed as usually there are upwards of 150 people present in the dome at all times. Next we must consider moving team practices to an actual indoor facility while it is raining. These bubbles just arn't safe and its not work risking the live of players and staff just to save a quick buck. Another alternative is better tracking systems. If tornado force winds were heading in the direction of the facility practice should not have been held there.

Giving Back...A touching story of a player who cares

Now a days every professional sports league has a program in which they give back to society. It is a very nice gesture but I often ponder the motive of these programs. Are these programs designed to actually give back to the people who need it most or is it just to make the league and teams look good in the eyes of the public? While ticket sales might be the reason for the teams funding them I believe that the players really feel that it is their duty to give back to society.

Miami Heat superstar Dwayne Wade showed what caring and giving back can really do to help someone in need. The following clip is of a 10 year old boy named Michael Stolzenberg whom my brother knew. Over the summer Mickey contracted a rare and potentially fatal virus. In order to survive doctors were forced to Mickey's hands and feet. This video will show what a professional athlete can give to a kid that has had so much taken from him.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gIBawxlMOio