From Johnny Football to Johnny scandal

August 8, 2013 / Rich Sports Talk / Leave a comment

Manziel’s off the field antics could derail both his college and pro career

Johnny “Football” Manziel has become the most talked about player in college football since Tim Tebow. However, unlike his fellow Heisman winner, Mr. Football hasn’t exactly been a choir boy. On the field, Manziel is a daredevil whose risky playing style makes him the most exciting offensive player in college football. It’s that same daredevil attitude that has gotten him in trouble off the field. An arrest, twitter wars, flashing stacks of cash, and leaving the Manning football camp early are just the tip of the Manziel iceberg. A few weeks ago Manziel went A&M’s rival Texas for a frat party and was kicked out. First, he’s drinking underage, and second what in god’s name was he thinking? A frat party at your arch rivals school? Johnny are you trying to get in trouble and piss off everyone at college station? Now Johnny football is caught in an autograph scandal where he accepted money for his “John Hancock”. With a suspension possibly looming, Manziel is at a crossroads where he either needs to grow up, or face the consequences for his poor decisions. Think about it. If this suspension costs Texas A&M a chance at a National Title, then he has let his fellow Aggies down. You look at quarterbacks like Tim Tebow

Could Johnny’s antics cost him in the NFL Draft?

and Matt Barkley who were also in the national spotlight, but understood they had responsibilities and had to make good decisions. Do I think Manziel is a bad guy? Not necessarily, but he has to realize that his decisions don’t just affect him, but everyone in College Station and beyond. If Manziel doesn’t care about his fellow Aggies maybe he’ll care about his NFL future. While many scouts compare Manziel to Sea Hawks quarterback Russel Wilson, they are polar opposites. Wilson is a professional, while Manziel is the out of control renegade. With all of the offseason incidents and the looming possibility of a suspension, NFL teams will probably have Manziel sliding down their draft boards. He already has question about whether he can make it in the NFL, but when your bringing baggage it makes teams say thanks but no thanks. Hey if Manziel can’t control his off the field urges, how can a franchise expect him to lead an offense of ten grown men whose lively hood is on the line. Maybe this will be the wakeup call Manziel needs to realize that while he has all the talent in the world, he needs to learn to make better decisions. The so-called “lightning rod” needs to be quiet and just do his job. Johnny I understand that you’re in college and that you want to have fun. Heck everyone’s entitled to their fun, but you are the reigning Heisman winner. When you enter that hallowed group there is a responsibility to represent that award and club in a positive way. Johnny can’t be a kid forever, and if he wants to be a top pick in next year’s draft he needs to prove to the world that he has matured and he’s not the spoiled kid that has dominated the headlines for this summer. Look, Manziel is trying to be a celebrity based upon his influence in media. Johnny, it’s ok to be a celebrity but only after you have established yourself. It may be great now but will it be worth it if in five years your out of football and on some terrible VH1 reality show? Even with a suspension, all eyes will be watching College Station to see what Johnny Manziel will do next. Will he break off a spectacular highlight reel play, or do something crazy we didn’t see coming? One thing is certain, this is going to be one entertaining fall following Johnny Football.

The “T” Factor: Tim Tebow’s role in Foxboro

July 27, 2013 / Rich Sports Talk / Leave a comment

Will it be Tebow time in Foxboro?

Just mentioning Tim Tebow is sure bring numerous eye rolls, face-palms, and enough debate that would rival anything on capital hill. It’s the same old song and dance; He can’t throw, overrated, not a quarterback, distraction, Skip Bayless’ crush, etc. With the Tebow train pulling into Foxboro for the 2013 season, one thing is for sure, he’s not going to be competing for the starting quarterback role. With one of if not the greatest quarterback of all-time under center the question is, why is Tebow there? The answer, nobody really knows. While Tebow has repeatedly said that he wants to be a quarterback in this league, the problem is nobody wants a quarterback who can’t throw. It will be interesting the see what Bill Belichick has up his sleeve. After all he’s a coach who is known for finding successful niche roles for players on the Patriots roster. So what about Tebow? I don’t see him running a wildcat offense, or coming in for five plays to throw the ball. Taking five throws away from Tom Brady is too valuable. The best role for Tim Tebow? Tebow lovers cover your eyes!! Tight end! I’ll pause for a few seconds so you guys can debate or Tebow fans can scream their obscenities. Ok, everybody get that out of their system? Great, now that your back it only makes sense that Tebow should be used as a tight end. With the Aaron Hernandez situation, I’m not touching that one, and the injury to Rob Gronkowski, the Patriots are thin at both tight end and playmaker. Enter the Tebow, whose combination of size and speed could make him a formidable tight end. Plus, he might not only be catching passes, there could be a gimmick play for a pass, or Belichick could put him in the backfield. He probably wouldn’t run the ball but might take some direct snaps, or be a distraction so that a receiver could get open down the field. I know that Tim Tebow fans want to see him get an opportunity to play quarterback, and I do believe he does deserve another shot, but not in New England. So for all the people with Tebow crushes, I’m talking to your Skip Bayless, if you’re expecting him to drop back and throw passes in New England, you’re in for a huge disappointment. If the Patriots want to use Tim Tebow to help them win football games, it will be as a tight end. Will he be a superstar at tight end over night, no, but he could give Tom Terrific a viable target that he desperately needs. If they want to unleash Tim Tebow upon the NFL use his freakish athletic ability and size as a tight end and give Tom Brady some much-needed help. While he may not resurrect his quarterback career in Foxboro, if Tim Tebow wants to keep his football career alive, he will suck it up and play tight end. Since he is a team player, I think Tebow will do this because he knows that this is what’s best for the Patriots. Who knows maybe Tebow was that missing piece to another Super Bowl for the Brady-Belichick era.

Bring them back! NHL jerseys that need to be revived

July 24, 2013 / Rich Sports Talk / Leave a comment

With the zombie craze sweeping the nation, it made me think what NHL jerseys should rise from the hockey graveyard and be worn again? While I am glad that most teams are going back to more traditional uniforms instead of crazy designs, I still think there are a few looks that should grace the ice once again. Here are five jerseys that the NHL should bring back right away.

While Buffalo has some classic jerseys, these were some intimidating threads

5) Buffalo Sabres- Ok Buffalo fans I know you’re not going to love this one but give me a second. I do love the current Sabres sweaters and I’m not saying they should be replaced, but I wouldn’t mind seeing the Sabres don these a few times a year. Come on they’re better than those “Buffalo” script jerseys. These jerseys had it all. The black, red, and silver created an intimidating sweater with a very good logo. Add in the cool shoulder logos with the saber and B and you had a great combination. This jersey also was the banner for a Stanley Cup final team, and would give the Sabres a great intimidation factor when these were put on.

The Stars have had a mess of uniforms. It’s time to go back to the basics.

4) Minnesota North Stars- With the mess of Dallas Stars jerseys over the past decade, including their new threads, maybe they should go back in time. Adopt the green, white, and yellow color scheme of old. Instead of being the “N” for North Stars maybe they could do an “S” or “D” with the yellow star. Hey no one has this color scheme in the NHL right now, and it would be a vast improvement over their new ugly sweaters.

It’s time to bring back a Canadian icon

3) Winnipeg Jets- The new Jets uniforms are incredible. However, they don’t have an alternate uniform. Instead of trying something new, why not wear the classic Jets jerseys. The combo of red, white, and blue is well-balanced. The old Jets logo with the hockey stick inserted into the script in front of the white background really pops. Hey this was a great jersey back in the day. Why not bring this back and bring back nostalgia for those older fans who had the original Jets in Winnipeg.

This jersey was the best jersey with the Ducks, maybe keep the jersey but adjust color scheme

2) Mighty Ducks- Boy these were classic. Hey they might have come from a movie, but the white Mighty Ducks uniform with the purple and green was awesome. Add in a cool logo and these jerseys were fantastic. Here’s what I’m purposing. The new Mighty Ducks uniforms look terrible with the Ducks script or the “D” web foot logo on the chest. Instead keep the color scheme of black, gold, and orange in the third jersey and insert the old logo. Hey A black jersey with the orange and gold highlights would make this logo really pop and bring back the best logo in the club’s history while maintaining their new colors.

Black and silver look great, but purple and gold would give the Kings a distinctive look

1) L.A. Kings- While I do love the kings colors of black and silver there is one problem. How many teams now have black in their color palette? A lot. However, no one has a gold and purple color scheme. Hey this was their original look, and would look great alongside their L.A. counterparts, the Lakers. There is something about purple and gold that just evokes royalty, and sophistication. With so many teams having black now incorporated, wouldn’t it be a fresh take if the Kings wore something unique that made them stand out? The Kings would have a look that no one else in the NHL could copy or duplicate. Plus, this crown logo is probably the best they’ve had. Hey, it’s tinsel town, shouldn’t gold be a color for all the glitz and glamour in L.A.? All I know is that I’d love to see the Kings bring these jerseys out of retirement, and bring some L.A. flavor back to the NHL.

Baseball’s newest villain

July 23, 2013 / Rich Sports Talk / Leave a comment

From franchise savior to baseball villain

It wasn’t that long ago when baseball and steroids were as common as peanut butter and jelly. However, in an era where baseball is desperatly trying to clean up its “juiced” image, the Biogenesis case has certainly been a black eye. In a game that once encouraged players to get as big and strong as possible in order to hit tape measure home runs, it just seems that every time baseball is just about to even playing field, we come to find out that yet another superstar took steroids. This isn’t the first time Ryan Braun and steroids have been linked together. Just a few years ago the Brewers slugger was found guilty of using performance enhancing drugs. While the original suspension was appealed and later reduced, the fact that baseball was now implementing the 50 game suspension. Now Major League Baseball has found out that once again Mr. Braun has been getting a little too brawny. For his second strike, Major League Baseball gave Braun a 65 game suspension, and there are rumors that A-Rod could be next. Braun has become the villain of baseball, and MLB might be happy about that. They need to create a poster child for what happens when you cheat and cheat again. For College Football it was SMU, for the NFL it was Pacman Jones, and the NHL Billy Couto. MLB wants to prove that no superstar is too big, and that it will no longer tolerate the substance abuse that has plagued the game for decades. This will also lead to the question, what happens if he is caught for a third time? Will it be the classic baseball saying that “three strikes and you’re out”? Will MLB now consider a life ban from the game? Either way Braun has let down his team, and his other players. Will the problem of performance enhancement drugs ever go away? In my opinion it will never go away. As long as there are millions of dollars at stake players will take the gamble. Seriously if the risk was sit fifty games but make fifty million if you took performance enhancers you’re telling me that most if not all people would take that risk? Here’s what I think. Will a lifetime ban be effective, not really because you already have two chances to clean up your act before the final strike. You really want to stop these players? Hit them where it hurts, the wallet. Have a new rule in their contracts where if they are caught taking performance enhancing drugs that they can be terminated immediately and t will lose any money remaining on their contract. With Ryan Braun’s suspension, baseball is taking a step in the right direction, but they need to do more. Whether it is right or wrong baseball is going to make this guy a villain. Baseball needs a person who will now not only pay the consequences on the field, but socially and in the media. The media is going to rip Braun apart for cheating, while the majority of baseball fans will look upon him with disgust. It’s truly sad to see some one cheat their way to the top. Being a former player and not cheating my entire life it angers me when I see other players getting ahead by taking short cuts. Despite how he has tainted baseball, Braun may be a great thing for the game. Because he is the villain and now has been dragged through the ringer, maybe the rest of the pros will finally wake up and stop juicing.

Where are they now? Gordon Bombay: The Minnesota Miracle Man

July 17, 2013 / Rich Sports Talk / Leave a comment

From community service to legendary coach

In any relationship there is give and take. When it comes to Gordon Bombay and the game of hockey, it’s been a rocky but satisfying relationship. It’s had heartbreak; The death of his father, being pushed to far as a kid by a ruthless coach, and blowing out his knee missing out on his opportunity to play in the NHL. However, for all the blows that hockey has dealt, it’s the positives that Bombay is known for. Taking the worst team in Minnesota to the state championship, and having the U.S.A. junior team to pull off the major upset against the best team in the world, Iceland. After the Junior Good Will victory, Bombay shocked the hockey world when he accepted the American ambassador role for the Good Will games. “I felt that I could’ve helped more kids in need in that position. The Ducks had grown up and I knew that I needed to let them soar on their own. Was it hard? It was the most difficult decision in my life but in the end I knew I would always be there for the Ducks whenever they needed me”. After helping hundreds of kids, the games would come to a close in 1998 and Bombay would be out of a job. What to do? The Ducks were all grown up and had gone their separate ways. While in L.A. Bombay was one of the driving forces

As a coach Bombay helped establish 2 NHL franchises including the Mighty Ducks

behind Anaheim getting a pro hockey franchise. When they looked a namesake, they looked no further than Bombay’s team for inspiration and adopted the banner Bombay helped to create. Although, it’s no coincidence, after all Bombay was always great at persuasion from his lawyer days. After establishing a franchise in L.A., Bombay used his abundant free time to help bring back a franchise back to Minnesota. After the North Stars departed after the 1993 season, Minneapolis was without a pro franchise. Bombay would be one of the men who lobbied to get an NHL franchise back, and in 2000 the dream was realized. Since their inception Bombay has remained in the Wild front office and is in charge of the player development. When asked if he would ever return to behind the bench again, Bombay smiles and stays with a chuckle, “I’m retired”. However, I follow the Minnesota miracle man after he leaves the Wild facility. When he stop his black Lincoln on the edge of a sea of glass ice, he puts on a pair of skates and grabs his stick from the backseat. Then I look out through the frozen mist and see the Ducks, like apparitions gliding through the winter evening. The stop when they see their former protege and burst out in a joyous roar. Then I see the group that enthralled a nation, resume what they’ve been doing for years, flying across the truth. Then I remember those famous words that Bombay once said and know that it is really true. Ducks will always fly together!

Where are they now? Ricky “The Wild Thing” Vaughn

July 14, 2013 / Rich Sports Talk / Leave a comment

The “Wild Thing” tattooed his unique legacy on the classic game

Like a cowboy in the wild west, when Rick Vaughn stared you down through those spectacles it made even the toughest man quiver in their boots. Is it because he can hurl an object at your head at a hundred miles per hour? Or that he could he beat you to a pulp in the blink of an eye? The answer is yes to both. When Ricky Vaughn broke into the Majors in 1989 he was raw power. A fastball that sat at a 100 MPH was his weapon of choice, the problem is he had no idea where it was going. With control problems garnering him the infamous nickname “The Wild Thing”, it wasn’t until Vaughn was given a pair of horn spectacles that he truly became one of the game’s elite. Armed with a fastball he called “the terminator” he helped to bring respect back to the Indians organization. After one of the best seasons as a rookie pitcher, Vaughn struggled in 1990 when he tried to “reinvent himself” by trying to improve on his secondary pitches and cleaning up his “bad boy attitude” It was a roller coaster season that led to Vaughn being demoted to the bullpen after a drop in velocity and sub par secondary pitches. However, in the Playoffs Vaughn found his velocity and attitude to once again become a force in the World Series. However, Jim Taylor decided to keep Vaughn in the bullpen, a decision he openly admits was a mistake, as the Indians would lose game seven while Vaughn, now the closer, never got into the game. The next two seasons Vaughn would win 20 and 21 games and helped the Indians to two more World Series appearances. But After the third consecutive World Series loss, Vaughn’s career would take a sharp down turn. On the way to the 1993 Spring Training, Vaughn crashed his Harley while doing a 120 MPH on the freeway. The accident caused severe head trauma and tore his rotator cuff. After rehabbing for a year and a half it looked like Vaughn would be able to join the Indians late in the 94 season, but the baseball strike that season brought that dream to an end. The late 90’s were not kind to Vaughn as he missed more time off the field with altercations, injuries, and

After years of turmoil Vaughn has found peace, for now

suspensions. These included bar fights off the field, failing drug tests, and suspended by the Indians for inappropriate “staff” relationships. After the 1999 season the Indians refused to resign Vaughn citing the off the field issues and a severe drop in velocity. With no other teams offering him a contract, Vaughn did what every washed up ball players does, head to the broadcast booth. This turned into a disaster when his constant swearing lead to a disagreement with Joe Buck. Vaughn would punch him live on TV in the face for “not shutting up” according to Vaughn. The Wild Thing has remained true to his namesake in the first decade of the twentieth century. With three different arrests including one for driving his Harley across the field during an Indians game, wearing only his sunglasses and a pair of underwear. After a second stint in rehab it looked like Vaughn was on the right track. But just as mysteriously as he arrived in the big leagues, he vanished. No one knows where Vaughn is these days, but he maintains a twitter account with over five million followers. It seems that Vaughn has been traveling around the country on his Harley occasionally posting a bizarre tweet or picture, just like last week when he posted a picture of himself giving a McDonald’s employee a wedgie. The reason? Apparently he wouldn’t give Vaughn a free meal for being a “celebrity”. Wherever he is one thing is for sure, he will always be the bad boy of baseball. “Wild Thing” you made baseball interesting.

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