Joe Paterno is Guilty

As most of you know, I'm a huge college football fan and a huge fan of tradition and institutions like Joe Paterno. In fact, what he stood for in today's Nick Saban-Pete Carroll world of fame and money grab - it made me love Joe Pa even more.  He was what he was.  Old School.

But like many old institutions, they tend to have skeletons.

From the sounds of the Jerry Sandusky grand jury indictment...Penn State football had a morgue full of skeletons buried under Beaver Stadium.

Let's cut to the chase, Mike McQueary is a pussy.  He was an eye witness to a rape/assault and went home and called his dad.  Seriously Mike?  How about you go in there and ask, "Coach Sandusky, why are you having sex with this boy against his will?" Or do what I would have done...just stood there long enough and made the situation uncomfortable enough to the point they would have stopped. There are stronger jellyfish than you Mike.  Now the real reason he is a pussy is because in 2002, he witnessed a rape by a now ex-coach who officed in the facility he worked.  At the time of this incident, he was a Grad Assistant, but then mysteriously became an Assistant coach the next year.  Coincidence?  No, that is not a coincidence.

Here is how it went down in the Fall of 2002.

Joe Pa: Mike, we want you to join our staff next year full time.
Mike: That's awesome.
Joe Pa: You work hard as an Administrative Assistant (2003), we'll get you on the field the year after (2004).
Mike: That's awesome.
Joe Pa: You're now part of the family.
Mike: (bewildered) Okaaaaaay????

The rest is history.  McQueary went on to coach and work at PSU from 2004 to today as a Full Time Assistant (WR coach).

The next set of Pussies are the people getting there jobs taken away, the President and AD.  By all accounts there only job was to save the institution of Joe Paterno and Penn State football.  Obviously they failed and deserved to be fired for not doing a better job of covering it up (tongue in cheek).  They were doomed either way.  Firing Joe Paterno would hold the same course for an Administrator as Myles Brand did by firing Bob Knight....but imagine Joe coached at PSU for 61 years compared to Knight's paltry 29 at Indiana.

But the biggest Pussy in this whole thing (besides Sandusky of course) is Joe Pa.  I know, I know tearing down Joe Pa is easy right now.  But the guy is guilty of being loyal.  And guilty of being stubborn to get rid of Sandusky all together.  He is not guilty of a crime.  But you can fill in the blanks of all the other stuff he is guilty of.

When the dust settles on this thing there will be 3 camps:

• Joe Paterno is God.  Those worshippers came out in droves last night in State College
• Penn State Football was ruined by Mike McQueary and Jerry Sandusky.
• Joe Paterno controlled everything in State College...he should be fired, and not allowed to continue to coach, even this Saturday.  If you go to the game and cheer for this mess of a football program you should take a hard look in the mirror.

I feel sad for college football today, but mostly I feel sad for these kids and their families because the nasty underbelly that is the power and the greed of college football was so great that it denied them their basic rights they deserved.

Shaking my head.

Sports Rock Bottom

Everybody has a sports rock bottom.  Over the last 90 days, I hope I have hit it and now I'm coming out of it. Here are a few lowlights:

1. All of my favorite teams in season are turrible (a la Sir Charles).

- Gopher Football (I went to Purdue last weekend...it looked like a D2 scrimmage versus a real Big 10 game with 75K fans cheering).

- The Purple (momma always said, if you don't have anything nice to say....)

- Twins (see previous whine blogs)

- The Wild holds a lead like Jeff Lobl holds his pee.

- The Gopher Winter men have done so little lately that my hope is almost gone (and so will my season ticket checks by the way)

2. I can name the starting 5 to the MN Lynx (and 2 or 3 subs)...that is sad. Congratulations to the World Champion MN Lynx.  Ok, quickly name 3 other teams in the WNBA besides Atlanta, NY, and LA....and no the Charlotte Trim is not one of them...buzzzzzzzzz.....times up (I only could name 7 without Google).

3. The Gopher's biggest rival is on the verge of a Heisman trophy award finalist and very good chance of a BCS championship game appearance vs. the SEC champion as we plod through 1-11.

Okay, I could name off 25 more reasons I hate being a sports fan..but you guys would be jumping off of a building if I kept going.  So to spice things up, I had a few other sports rock bottom inspiration's occur to me the last few weeks.

Inspiration #1 is a buddy of mine (let's call him Big Doug), who is a huge St. John's football fan.  He referred me to this site.  Yes, there is a website dedicated to Division 3 football (proof people will read anything, including this blog). So in case you don't follow D3 football, St. John's is a juggernaut...just ask Doug.  Last year SJU lost to it's territorial rival St. Thomas for the first time in a long time (20+ years)...SJU/UST is a big rivalry for a million reasons (both catholic, it's student body's went to HS/church together, some families have both Tommies and Johnnies, etc).  This year, the Tommies took the Johnnies out back and gave them 20 years worth in one 3 hours time slot....63-7.  I've known Doug for 15 years, it's the first time I've ever seen him with the "my team is horrible" look on his face.

Inspiration #2

Speaking of my team is horrible...how about those Longhorns?  Texas football is to Indiana basketball, Minnesota hockey, etc.  They have the biggest of everything -- including idiotic head coach who literally stopped coaching the night Vince Young made USC look like slow motion a few years back. After losing to the Oklahoma's of the world the 'horns will be happy with a 4th place finish in the Big 12 South.  Texas not playing NYD is like MN or Indiana missing the NCAA tournament (inexcusable) in their stronghold sport.

Inspiration #3

You're a Red Sox fan and read the Herald to find out this year's edition is the Best Ever, heck you watch a few games in the first half of the season and it seems true.  Their record at the All Star break suggested they would laugh all the way to ALCS at the very least.  They had pitching, hitting, defense, and lots of guys named Sully wearing their green "Sawks" hat sitting behind home plate calling their other buddy Sully telling them he's on TV.  Well, the fun ended for Sully and a bunch of other guys on a rainy night in Baltimore.  The Sawks went from IN (Rays down 7-0 to Yanks in the 8th inning) to possible 1 game playoff, to OUT all in a matter of 2 hours time.  How cruel does it get?

Not sure what's worse....being good for a long time and then sucking (see Texas) or just sucking and never figuring it out (see MN Football)?

Top 10 Sports Fans

This post is for my 66 buddies who I email this blog.

While talking to a buddy (see #1) today he mentioned he may skip watching Minnesota/USC game Saturday in favor of a neighborhood party.  I told him his Top 10 Sports Fan status would be in jeopardy.  He inquired what the criteria for this high regard was....I told him, "read my blog and you'll find out."

The following is a list of 10 dudes who make my top 10 list - 66 total dudes - the criteria was generated by a crack committee of sports experts and a panel of Sea Lions off the coast of Chile.

Criteria: must be passionate about ALL sports (Men's Figure Skating is not a sport, it's for men who couldn't play another sport, period).  Liking some sports is an automatic DQ (if you need to ask what DQ is, you're probably not gonna make the list). You can show no signs of bandwagon-ism (that eliminates my wife Debi....she magically became a Packer fan again last Winter). And for tiebreaker purposes being a good athlete helps your cause.

10. Scott Polman: Hailing from Shakopee, Minnesota - Scott is the guy who speaks sports, not english.  He refers to players on his favorite teams by first name (e.g. Donovan has a great arm), he uses Ron Jaworski type language (e.g. two deep zone and 8 in the box) about sports that he never even played.  But the #1 reason he makes this list is he always thinks his team is going to win the prize (e.g. "...the Vikes with the last place schedule are going to make a run this year....").

9. Jay Ettinger: This guy barely makes the list.  He is a sports fan Times Ten.  I just hate his choice of teams to follow: LA Dodgers and North Carolina Hoops (what is it 1982??? - c'mon Jay, bump the Levi cordorouys and get with the times).

8. Dave Krikke: This guy is a noob to my blog, but he memorizes each word to this blog like a Bible verse (that would qualify most).  But this guy bleeds sports (again despite poor choices like the Yankees and Hawks) - his lack of hockey knowledge doesn't keep him out of the top 10, mostly because he respects it as a cultural icon here in MN.

7.  Carl Monty: passionate about all sports, loyal to his teams (White Sox, Wolverines, Red Wings, etc) - his athleticism hurts him for sure.

6. Dave Lissauer: First of all, any guy who gives himself his own knickname (Deuce) scores points on the Sports Fan list. A die hard Indians, Cavs, and Browns fan, Deuce is one for the ages.  Whenever he's feeling a little big for his britches these phrases usually come in handy: "The Drive", "The Shot", "The Fumble", or my favorite "Edgar Rentieria".

5. Steve Monson: Steve and I go way back.  Steve met his wife on a baseball trip to East Lansing, MI to watch his brother play against MSU. Whenever and wherever there is a game -- Steve (like his dad Rich) will be there.  Lives in Dallas and is more connected on Minnesota sports than anyone I know.

4. Tony/Scott Cattelino: They both deserve a spot on this list...but ranking one higher than the other would be offensive.  My brother/father in-law combo is a treat to be around (except when the Gophers play the Badgers).  They know it and love it all (they're admittedly weak in hockey, but still follow it).

3. Jeff Lobl: this guy defines sports fan -- sports drips out of his pours every minute of every day.  Loyal is an understatement, he's Pitt Panther football fan through and through (he proposed to his wife on the 50 yard line of Pitt Stadium with and gave his wife an autographed ball of then coach Johnny Majors).  Jeff's short coming is his huge disdain of anything basketball.  If you asked him who LBJ is he'd say that crummy president from the '60's.

2. Pete Johnson: I remember the first day I met Pete (September, 1986). Imagine the first day Wally Pip met Lou Gehrig. I thought I knew everything about sports - this guy put me to shame within 5 minutes.  I felt like that guy in Amadeus who knew he's never be as good as Mozart.  The guy is a sports encyclopedia.  Now if he could only beat me in golf or backgammon.

1. Joe Janasz: The Polish Bow and Arrow....this guy is D, all of the above.  I am continually amazed by his fandom.  There isn't an event he misses...he is as die hard as they come (he walked home from the Dome after the 98 NFC Championship Game).  The other day we show up at a party after watching the Minnesota/USC game for 3+ hours he gets out of the car with an Oregon t-shirt on.  I'm like, "Joe, what's with the Duck shirt?" To which he responds, "hey, if you got an Oregon shirt on, the odds of us seeing the game tonight just doubled!!!!!" On top of his fandom the guy runs at least 3 marathons a year, plays 40 rounds of golf, and coaches winning baseball.

Others receiving votes: Jeff Traylor (he'd be #1 if this were the University of Texas only category), Debi Zosel (for marrying me), Mark McCrory (he'd make my list - but Bears and Yankees is an automatic DQ), and my Mom (for letting me come home from Kindergarten to 12th grade to watch the State High School Hockey Tournament).

Besides the worst team, the Twins have worst names, too

There are certain guys that have great baseball names and immediately strike a fear in you...the first great name I remember was Cesar Cedeno.  I remember just saying it the first time and it was fun, but on top of that he was a pretty good ball player, he was even better because of his name.  A few more off the top of my head: Jaoquin Andujar, Reggie Jackson, Gorman Thomas, Vladamir Guerrero and now Joey Votto....these guys were/are all good/great players in their day, but their name seem/s to have have made them even better (at least to me).

Let's take a look at my beloved Twins.  Their best power hitters are Justin, Jason and Michael.  This sounds more like the makings of a suburban white-boy band than Murderer's Row.  Their highest paid and marquee player is just Joe.  And he likes being just Joe.  Too bad Joe, you're a slap hitting Catcher with a Vitamin D Whole Milk contract that will forever strangle my profit slathering Twins.

I'm not done.  Their pitcher names (except Liriano) are the worst in the majors: Scott Baker, Glen Perkins, Kevin Slowey, and Matt Capps.  Carl Pavano sounds cool, but then you see him and his 84 mph fastball and then you're like, no....not cool.

So then you look to the young guns for hope: Ben Revere...sorry, he's not exactly riding in to save the day, or Trevor Plouffe...ah ah, not gonna do it.....Jason Repko...okay, you're starting to see my point.  The list goes on and on: Delmon Young (nope, not cool), Matt Tolbert (buh bye) and Alex Burnett (end of story).

But Tony, what about Valencia or Nishi...those are cool names?  Not if they can't hit out of a wet paper sack they're not cool.

Okay, I admit picking on the Twins isn't exactly risky at this point...they suck.  But I guess it would be more fun if just one guy had a cool name and he backed it up a couple time a week.

Help me add to the list of cool names....send me a few.

Z

PS Not trading marketable players before July 30 deadline made about as much sense as Fox Sports keeping with the Cleatus The Robot gig. Shaking my head.

Baseball/Softball Summer Wrap Up - 4 forgettable encounters and one great 1

An old friend (and let me stress the old part) once told me, "Tony, if your team wins with class and loses with dignity, that means you got the rest figured out.  If you don't, you were either raised wrong or you got some unfinished athletic business and you're using someone else to get you there!!!"

This blog highlights 4 encounters I had this Summer that I'd rather forget, but each comes back to what my old friend said...and it also features one encounter that I will choose to always remember.

Encounter #1: I'm coaching in a boys baseball game and the best team (by far) is playing right after us.  They pulled off the Triple Crown of prickhood in 15 minutes flat.  They laughed at one of the players of our opponent's who struck out looking, they talked smack about being bored playing teams like ours and the team they were about to play and last but not least they barged into our dugout before we were even close to ready to vacate.

Encounter #2: While playing a game against a notorious team from south of the MN river...the other coach yelled so loud at his team and for so long that the other 3 fields stopped play to make sure lives weren't being sacrificed.  In the same game, the same coach on 4 different occasions pulled 4 different kids for making errors (total class, dude). But his all time low light came after we swept them for the season, he said "I wouldn't take one of their players over any of his 12...." right to my face in front of like 5 of my kids and parents.  Apparently this guy had given our team some thought.

Encounter #3: This is the true prize.  While coaching my daughter's K-2 softball team...a friend observed the other team's coach encouraging his girls' rolling the ball to first base rather than the much more difficult approach of throwing it!  This technique is offensive and sexist.  No coach would ever teach a group of boys to do the same in order to win (I know, I coached K-2 boys for years and never saw this approach once). To add insult to injury, this team had a ground ball hit to their best player at Pitcher (she clearly knew how to throw it) who then rolled it to their second best person at 1st base (who clearly knew how to catch) for their team's only put out of the night.  To which the coach yelled, "Nice Play.....that's how you do it!"  To which I almost collapsed.

Encounter #4: Last night, my daughter's team is playing a playoff softball game (note: I was not there).  Olivia's team is winning handily 14-2 to a completely overmatched team.  Late in the game a girl on her team gets injured pretty badly.  Through free substitution, another girl was placed in the game.  What the head coach failed to realize was that the girl who was sent in had already played her minimum number of innings in the infield....the other coach noticed and immediately called our team on it and we were forced to forfeit the game.  Read future blogs about this one....I think the title will be "C'mon get a clue moments".  Sidebar: My daughter gets in the car, turns to my wife and says, "I'm so glad Dad wasn't here....he would have FREAKED!!!!"  I honestly wouldn't have freaked...the rule is pretty clear on the substitutions...the assistant coach who innocently sent the girl out there didn't know...he felt awful. I probably would've mustered up a nice little barb for the lady who caught it, like "Do you watch golf tournaments and call the PGA when you see an infraction???"

Good One: This Summer, we had the good fortune of playing a team from Winona, MN called Goodview Sandlot.  With special emphasis on the word Sandlot.  This team had nicknames for all their kids...they had tall kids, short kids, fat kids, fast kids, white kids and even a black kid.  For all their differences they had one thing in common - they loved baseball.  Their coach fostered a love for the game amongst their kids - the rest took care of itself.  Never once did he raise his voice, never once did he shout instruction to his players in the batters box or scream plays or give signals...he just let them play ball (note: the coach was a ripe 25 years old). We lost to them 3-1...had bases juiced in the bottom of the 6th and they brought in their Scotty Smalls to end it...and they did.

Father's Day

So I'm coaching my son Jake's baseball team last weekend in a local tournament.  Our team is just above average record-wise, but long on athletic ability and endless potential.

In the early innings, we can't hit their (Elk River) starter.  The kid's fastest pitch was maybe 30 mph.  Our kids constantly challenged to hit in the 60 MPH cage are completely baffled. The Elks peck away each inning and take a commanding lead into the bottom of the 6th ahead 8-2.  I tell all 10 kids, we need to bat around in order to win...we've done it before, let's do it again (truly hoping to just get something positive brewing for our next game immediately following).

We start a little party -- couple hits, couple walks and boom just like that it's 8-5.  They yank their pitcher, bring in another kid.  Couple hits, a wild pitch...it's 8-7, no outs, they bring in their closer.  Nobody out runner on 1st and 2nd, nicest kid under the sun (dripping with potential, has had a rough start to the season) drives a ball to the gap, score is tied.  As the runner on first is rounding third, the cut off man bobbles the ball. As the third base coach I send him home....the throw.....safe on a wild throw.  We win. We come back from 6 down and win in walk off fashion....9-8!

In the photo below you will see our kid sliding into home for the winning run and the umpire.  But if you look closely you will see two males, one past his prime living the dream as a coach and one just hitting his prime - jumping for joy.

Why Kids Suck at Baseball

Baseball is called America's pastime.  That's because you can play it with a stick and a ball, the rules are simple -- and the heroes are likable and lovable with names like Whitey, Babe, Willie or just Joe.  When we were kids we played ball around the clock.  Some of the kids never played for a "team"...mostly because they weren't good enough, it cost money, or they didn't care enough to sign up. Kids in my 'hood just played to play.

In 1998, I moved to the suburbs....two doors down there were two brothers (Eric and Matt) that played all day long.  Screaming and yelling at the top of their lungs at every close play, every home run -- all with a passion I once played with.  In an odd way I was jealous of the passion they played with because now my passions had switched to coaching and projects around my new house. Their shrieks brought back so many good memories, they were sounds of joy (almost music to my ears). Sidebar: Eric and Matt went on to fantastic baseball careers.

Fast Forward to 2011

I coach an 11 year old traveling baseball team. I have a nice crew of boys that play the game well (their defensive statistics rival a major league teams, they throw strikes like a pitching machine and some can hit balls pitched speeds I know I couldn't have ever hit at that age).

But here are a few reasons why kids aren't any good at baseball anymore.

Knowledge: These kids don't know the game.  They don't sit around on a rainy day Saturday and watch The Game of the Week on NBC listening to Vin Scully call a game (or even better, the B crew Tony Kubek and Joe Gariogola).  Today they watch Sports Center and they know the great players and they know who gets them points on their fantasy team, but they don't understand why a guy would hit a ball to the right side to score a run versus swinging for the fence to get on TV.

Mommy Says: Kids today are very good at being told when to be somewhere, where to be, and how long they have to be there.  That's a bad recipe for baseball.  In baseball, there is no time limit and no rule on how far to lead off, or how hard to throw it. By age 11, a boy has played for 5 years -- but for the life of me today they don't know if the ball is 45 feet away from the catcher to steal home on a Passed Ball. Why is this? Their coach didn't say so.  For the life of me, if a kid is leading off way too far at 1st or 3rd, a kid won't throw down. Why is this? Their coach didn't say so. They don't do these things because they've been programmed to do exactly what authority tells them...and if they don't they get yelled at to conform.

No Instinct: A secondary flaw to the "Mommy Says" reason is kids don't play like I did, or Eric and Matt did as late as the late 1990's. People learn by doing things hands on.  Showing up for a practice and learning skills is nice and praises to the thousands of volunteer coaches in America for their time. But you'd be better served coaching kids by dropping them off at the park, hand them a tennis ball and some cheap wood bats, some cheap Target bases and then LEAVE for 2 hours. You'd return to find a kid who understood how to hit a crappy pitch the other way, a kid who knew how fast he was and how much he could get away with, and most important a kid who understands if the punk on the other team is showing you up you just deck him next time.

Other Sport Pressure: One of the biggest problems in Minnesota is the pressure to play Hockey or Basketball year round.  Kids and parents are constantly struggling to keep up in the arms race of these two important (longer season) sports.  Kids are running from baseball diamonds to hockey rinks, basketball gyms and training facilities....year round. See my blog on Youth Hockey for proof.

Choices/Toys: My 11 year old has access to Internet, he has an iPod touch, Sony Wii, Comcast On Demand, DVR, DVDs, Baseball Cards, a Swimming Pool, and every toy under the Sun. By most standards he's not considered spoiled.  Compared to my childhood, he'd be Richie Rich. On top of the toys, his parents have managed to wedge him into 500 other activities.  All of these things are all well and fine on their own, but smashed together it can be a mess.

So in summary, kids suck at baseball because we as parents over program, over indulge, and over coach them.  The sad fact is there is no easy answer -- other than the fateful crossroads that most parents face - make Johnny specialize in one sport by age 11 so that they can be good/great at something.

My Non Bucket List

Everyone has a bucket list, I'm creating a Non Bucket List of things I won't do, ever (sports related).

Some by choice, some by sheer physical impossibility, some by financial/prestige impossibility.

Choice:

1. Go to any MLB stadium and cheer for a big market team
2. Go to a PGA tour event and shout, "You the Man!"
3. Argue with an ump during a Kindergarten softball game
4. String together the next three sentences into one. Lets. Go. Red.
5. Beat my chest when my favorite MLB team wins the worst division baseball

Physical:

1. Sky Dive
2. Enter a Hot Dog eating contest
3. Play on a JCC under 6 foot basketball team
4. Run Boston Marathon
5. Pose with David Stern as #1 pick in NBA draft

Financial/Prestige:

1. Play Augusta
2. Move to Edina ;)
3. Throw out the first pitch at Twins game
4. Sit court side next to Jack at a Lakers game (ran out of choice ones)
5. Coach PeeWee football for a living

Besides your obvious loyalties and the dude who reads this that thinks he's the next Prefontaine, do you see yourself doing any of these 15?  If so, why?

Z

Barry Sanders or Deion Sanders, which one are you?

The age old question, do you jump around like a fool and celebrate because it may be your last time scoring or do you act like you've been there before?

Barry Sanders was my favorite football player. Supremely talented, exciting to watch, but most memorable was how he celebrated a TD.  He handed the ball to the referee. Deion Sanders was also supremely talented and exciting to watch.  However, his celebrations of success were epic.  Pretty sure they made rules against celebration because of "Neon" Deion.

Even the most casual sports' fans would know the difference between the two.  And most, if asked, would say they are most like Barry.  Barry is what everyone aspires to be (talented, classy, and very humble).  Deion on the other hand, was a punk.  In case your memory has faded, watch what he did to Tim McGarver during a post game celebration for proof (Click Here).  He took his amazing gift and flaunted it...flaunting to the point whereby most couldn't stand him and they couldn't wait until he was out of the limelight.

Okay....I'm not breaking new ground here on Barry versus Deion.  But my point is simple, we can all spot a great guy pretty quickly and we definitely know a punk in a hurry. But for all the times we help a little old lady across the street, we probably have done a TD dance in a meaningless intramural football game, or worn a jersey that says, "Excuse Me" on the back (i.e. me).

So, next time you see someone celebrate victory, a TD, or a goal and you don't like it.  Here are some things to remember:

1. Think about all of your victory celebrations and success... chances are good your opponent saw Deion in you not Barry.

2. Appreciate it.  That athlete or team worked their tail/s off, congratulations.

3. If you don't like it or can't possibly appreciate it, stop 'em next time and quit your whining (i.e. work harder).

4. The sports' God's always get even on guys like Deion (or Tiger).

5. Finally, if you act like a clown, you'll be remembered as a clown.

Thank you Barry Sanders for your great example.

MN High School Hockey Tournament -2011 Edition

As Minnesotans we suffer through hard winters, for several reasons 4 million people seem to stick around.  One of those reasons for me is this thing called the State Hockey Tournament.  As a youth, my Mom would let me come home from school early to watch the games starting in Kindergarten all the way through high school. From my earliest memories as a child, this tournament has always been very special to a lot of people in this state.  Neal Broten, former Gopher Hockey star, Hobey Baker winner, NHL Great, 1980 Olympian, and Stanley Cup winner once said winning the State Tournament would have been more exciting than winning the Olympics (his best finish was 3rd).

To put things in perspective on Saturday night 40 High School kids from Minnesota outdrew every pro and college team in the world (SRO 19,000 fans).  And this has been going on for decades here.  The tournament always draws over 100,000 people and the games are always very exciting.

The section tournaments to get to state are sometimes even more exciting with a ton of geographic rivals facing off in the section finals for a shot at the tournament.  Of the 16 section finals, 5 were decided in overtime (Lakeville North, Duluth East, Eden Prairie, White Bear Lake, and Breck all advanced in miraculous fashion) and 7 were decided by 1 goal.

My personal highlights this year:

* Edina losing (actually didn't see it).

*  My nephew David scoring the game winning goal in overtime in both the Section Semifinal game and Section Final to send his team Breck to the Big Dance.  Couldn't have happened to a nicer kid.

* Watching a great kid like AJ Reid win a state championship and then win the Herb Brooks Award for being a credit to his school, peers, and community.  I'll bet his dad is proud.

* My nephew David during his player introductions on TV, greets my son Jake with a "Happy Birthday Jake, " to which my cell phone goes bonkers!!!

*5 championship round games decided in OT, including all 3 for Duluth East and both Title games.

*My nephew David places #2 on the All Hockey Hair team.....check this video out, it is hilarious.  Yeah, he's kind of a big deal.

One more highlight....this one borders on odd:

At the conclusion of each medal ceremony, the High School League hands out the Herb Brooks Award (see above). For the Girls winner, Herb Brooks' daughter presents the award and for the boys his son presents the award.  To set the scene, I'm watching the girl's final and Herbie's daughter comes out to present and she's wearing a very revealing red sweater.  To which my wife Debi says, "what is SHE wearing?" Two weeks later, Herbie's son shows up to the AA award ceremony in a black leather jacket he must have stolen from one of the Pet Shop Boys...to which I replied, "what is HE wearing?"

I can only conclude that Herbie had those two doing pushups, stairs and "Herbies" their whole life.  This is their way of getting back at him, while he sits up in Hockey Heaven.

Congratulations to St. Thomas and Eden Prairie.  By all accounts this EP team won a PeeWee State Championship, 2 Bantam State Championships and 2 state Championships.  An amazing run.

SunMart Arena

My son's hockey team had the pleasure of traveling to the Fargo Flyers International hockey tournament in Fargo, ND this past weekend.  It was North American youth hockey at it's finest.

Over a thousand kids from all over the place playing their guts out for 4 straight days.  On top of the hockey, the kids come equipped with their team pins to exchange at face-off and to trade in between games. On top of the trading the kids enjoy time with their teammates and make new friends from other teams.

Upon arrival home Sunday night, my son Jake says to me, "Dad, I just wish life were like FARGO all the time..." Don't we both young man, don't we both.

As we winded between rinks and games all weekend we happened across one of the most unique rinks I've ever seen. In all my years of hockey I've seen hundreds of rinks. You've seen one, you've seen 'em all. Some are cold (Minnehaha), some are new (Dakota), and some are oozing with tradition (Braemar and Wakota).  Some I love (Richfield), some I hate (Bloomington 2), and some are filled with childhood memories (Parade and Augsburg).  But for the most part, every hockey rink has 4 similarities: ice that is resurfaced by a zamboni, chilled by underground refrigeration, enclosed by fiberglass boards and plexiglass, and the rink size is usually 200' X 80'.

On Saturday afternoon, my life forever changed when I stepped into SunMart Arena.  I knew this rink was special even before we got there -- as we approached the rink somewhere deep in the bowels of the Fargo warehouse district, Jake said to me, "where are you taking us dad?" As if to say, rinks aren't made out of single level warehouses.

After parking 5 blocks from the arena, I finally arrived.  As I stepped into this old warehouse, I'm not sure if my first memory will be the smell (imagine outhouse combined with diesel fuel) or the sight of a hockey game played in the dark -- almost as if I was at a back alley dog fight, sans the rif-raf. The lighting and smell were just the beginning.  The single sided stands held possibly 125 people comfortably, the rest of the patrons were asked to stand wherever you could find a view. The opposite side of the rink broke all rules of decor....no plexiglass, just some more white fiberglass and an occasional local business sponsorship (I was surprised to find there wasn't a local manure salesmen sponsoring the rink).  Not to mention, the rink was 160' X 70' making the neutral zone about the size of a walk-in closet.

I had the pleasure of walking into the rink when it was jam packed (a local team was playing a hated team from the Cities)...which made it seem like I had just walked onto the movie set of Hoosiers. The passion, the excitement and the energy was remarkable. Editor's Note: The team from the Cities won 12-0....sending the local faithful to their cars parked 4 Blocks or less after the second period.

The clincher for me to write this blog had to be my visit to the bathroom....a scary proposition.  Before I entered the abiss....it was difficult to decipher Male/Female because whichever 6 year old they let paint the door and the frame decided to paint over the Male/Female sign.  Upon arrival to the Men's room I found possibly the worst smell known to man (combine 77 years of non flushed urine with a dash of odor of a minty urinal puck)...you know the kind of smell that forced me to hold it.

As I put the finishing touches on this blog....I'm still not sure if I loved this place or hated it.  So I asked Jake if he liked it, to which he replied, "it was awesome -- I just wouldn't want to play there everyday."  True that brother, it was the microcosm of our visit last weekend to Fargo -- an awesome experience, but not a place I'd want to live everyday.

Congratulations to the Edina Squirt A team for their impressive run through the tournament (outscoring their opponents some 59-2).  Editors Note: Jake does not play for Edina.

It's Tubby Time

For those that were screaming for Tubby Smith's ouster on Thursday night, this is a "calm down people" Sports Blog.

First and foremost, I was as angry as a fan can get after the Illinois game, but I came to realize that Tubby Smith is a giant upgrade from Clem Haskin.  Haskin was greats for the Gopher and Dan Monson was great too - for my season ticket move from the baseline to center court.

But here is why Tubby is the best Gophers' coach (by far) in my short 40 years as a fan.

Good recruiter...he can identify talent (some high profile, some under the radar) and get them to come here and play.  In 2 years, he closed off the borders and made Minnesota his home base for recruiting.

Good practice coach.....Tubby is very good at building a team of 7-9 guys that will get after you, get after rebounds..and as a rule his players get better after 4 years in the program.  Right now, pretty sure Rodney Williams and Ralph Sampson are breaking this rule....hence his frustration.

Good man...he tells his kids the truth, he helps his kids graduate, he holds kids to higher standards than the NCAA will, and he won't be in trouble with them ever.  I'm not saying he's perfect, he just strikes me as a no bull type of guy.

Repeat: by all historical accounts he won't be in trouble with the NCAA, kids won't be in trouble with the law (and stay in the program) and they will win a lot more than they lose. Will he bring us to the promise land of college hoops?  Probably not.  Has he made the Gophers relevant and much better than even Haskin ever dids? Yes.

So if you read this garbage yesterday by Jim Souhan and you started to second guess Tubby's prowess as a coach, consider this:

Tubby lost the best point guard in the Big Ten to injury and kicked his second best Guard off the team.  On top of that, lost a promising big man to injury in December.  Leaving him on the island of misfit toys:

Rodney Williams (aka the gun that shoots jelly) - if dunks counted for 10 points he'd lead our team in scoring.

RS III (aka the boat that sinks)- he plays with the same emotion as the Mona Lisa

Colton Iverson (aka the cowboy who rides an ostrich)- we could use him on the gridiron or ice, but he just lacks consistentcy

When and if Al Nolen returns, this is the 2nd best team in the Big Ten.  Hopefully they will return to the B10 title game this year and prove it...and prove to the naysayers that Tubby is a great fit for Minnesota.

Oh and Souhan, before you choose Tubby for your weekly bloodbath, please look at the facts:

-Sold out arena

-3 straight NCAA appearances (first time ever for MN)

-Top recruiting classes

-Tough love for players

-Respectability to school and Big Ten

And most important a better product than we've ever had here at the U. Comparing Kentucky basketball's expectations to Minnesota is like comparing Yankees and Twins (did I just say that?).

Z

Who wants it more at your house?

Note: Youth Hockey in Minnesota is a disease and the author has some of the classic symptoms (dry mouth at the sight of a youth game, nausea at the thought of missing a game, chronic irritable bowel syndrome during a practice or game).

Was at the rink this week and ran into an old sage of a youth hockey coach.  This guy has successfully coached in the same system for 20+ years and still enjoys it.  If I weren't so wordy, that might be a good blog post in and of itself.  While he and I see eye-to-eye on a ton of topics...he and I are two totally different beasts.  He is a non-parent volunteer...I'm a hockey dad.

For the record, non-parent volunteers can see the landscape a lot clearer than any hockey dad...no matter how smart the hockey dad thinks he is, he usually only sees things through the lens of his child/children.

So while talking over the many issues related to youth hockey (and youth sports for that matter), the old sage said the magic words (almost like an knife right through my heart), "You know Z, a parent can't want success on the ice more than their kid....it just can't happen, no matter how hard you try."

Me? Wanting my kids success more than they do. No way, that's not me.  I deny that all day long...as does just about every parent.

As I prepared for this blog (prep = culling through the refrigerator looking for that lost piece of chocolate cake), I discovered there are 3 types of hockey dads.

1. That Guy - you know the guy who stuffs his kid into every possible sheet of ice, all star team, camp, etc and talks about it 365/24/7...and isn't one bit shy about telling you how great his kid is, what AAA team they play for, etc.....heck some of the That Guys wear the AAA jacket of their kid's team and they don't coach the team...but they are just bursting with pride that Johnny/Jenny plays for these teams.

2. I Don't Care Guy - the guy who does just about the same stuff as "That Guy"-- lotsa hockey, lotsa training, and lotsa talk.  The difference between "I Don't Care Guy" and "That Guy" is his kid probably isn't that good (yet)....so he uses the always famous line, "I don't care how good Johnny/Jenny is, just as long as they are having fun...."

3. No Clue Guy - Here is the guy who never played, he's never engaged in the "how good a kid" is conversation...generally doesn't hang out with the other dads...and as a rule their kids aren't that good or their kid doesn't really care how good he is at age 10.

Numbers 1 and 3 add up to about 10 percent of hockey parents...which puts most parents in the "I Don't Care" category (me included).

So as of today and maybe tomorrow...I vow to be more like #3: when I act like I don't care, I will mean it...when the "how good a kid is" conversation appears, I will run faster than Lumpy Rutherford did to a Buffet Line and most important, I'm gonna drop the act that I don't care.  I do care if my kid is a good hockey play.  Okay I said it.

But from now on...I will remember that the sport is still my son and daughters and I can't want it more than them and be happy.