Well, it took a few years, but the journey is over; we’ve finally arrived. Everybody off, end of the line! Welcome to the Point of Can’t Return.
Short of blowing the whole thing up, we’re in too deep; there’s no way out. Not that it paid much, but the rescue workers have been laid off, dissed and dismissed for disrupting the parade. Besides, where would they start? How do you distinguish the top from the bottom?
On “SportsCenter,” at 9:07 a.m. Saturday, ESPN was mighty proud and eager to cut to the West Coast to capture a pre-sunrise vigil among hundreds of hollering, sign-pumping “fans” — yahoos — gathered to demonstrate for ESPN their excitement for the Oregon-Stanford game, just 11 hours away on ABC/ESPN!
Nine minutes later, ESPN cut back for some more live, er, coverage. There was no sense that big-time, TV-money-fueled college football had gone too far over the prior eight days, that perhaps it was time, at least for one weekend, to gear down rather than step on the gas.
Nah, it was more of the same: “Look how crazy it is! Isn’t it great? Woo! Woo!”
Oh, and our thoughts, hearts and prayers are with the kids. Almost forgot those who-knows-how-many alleged victims of both Jerry Sandusky and big-time college football.
Come to think of it, how was it that everyone at the top of Penn State and Penn State athletics knew the score, knew that Sandusky used school facilities and Penn State football as child-bait, yet that escaped all the Board of Trustees members, who last week began to clean house? Fascinating.
Saturday afternoon, in the second quarter of Nebraska-Penn State, ESPN play-by-player Dave Pasch paraphrased the response of Nebraska’s coaches to the Penn State story:
“We recognize what’s going on, we are praying for the victims in these allegations, but we also have a job to do, trying to get our kids prepared and avoiding the distractions.”
Bingo! There’s that one-stop-shopping word, “distractions.” Doesn’t matter what the “distraction” is: a flood in the weight room, academic fraud, the arrest of a defensive back for beating his girlfriend, a serial pedophile or a fly in the ointment. They’re all just distractions.
I’m sure Pasch wasn’t alone Saturday in sliding the Penn State calamity into the “Distractions” file, but, yes, it must have been a terrible distraction. After all, what coach includes “Prayer and thought time for pedophile coach victims” in his game-prep schedule?
As Nebraska played Penn State on ESPN, ABC/ESPN had Oklahoma State-Texas Tech. With Oklahoma State up, 66-6 and driving, the Cowboys threw a pass off a play-action roll-out. Yup, a 60-point lead wasn’t enough. Then, on a fourth-and-goal from the 7, Oklahoma State threw into the end zone.
Later, during Auburn-Georgia on CBS, Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden was nominated as the “AT&T Player of the Week.” The clip included Weeden throwing a long TD pass to make it 63-6.
Next, Weeden’s elevated Heisman Trophy chances were discussed.
Did it matter that his coach needlessly ran up the score, further humiliating the opponents when they were thoroughly beaten? Not a bit.
As the NCAA’s image ads remind us, student-athletics build character in the future leaders of America.
We’re here, folks. Last stop, everybody out! The Point of Can’t Return. So don’t forget to avoid distractions — and to visit the Hearts, Thoughts & Prayers Chapel and Gift Shop. Enjoy your stay.
Clueless ESPN earns no medals
Not that ESPN would be expected to know or notice, but the man wearing the medal around his neck — the gent seated to the immediate left of President Obama on Friday during the Veterans Day’s game between North Carolina and Michigan State on the USS Carl Vinson — was John Baca.
That medal is the Medal of Honor. As a kid with the Army in Vietnam, Baca fell on a live grenade.
* Good swap by CBS yesterday, dropping Bills-Cowboys at 34-7, for Steelers-Bengals. … John Lynch, an anti-personnel weapon as an NFL safety, yesterday during FOX’s Cardinals-Eagles pointed out dangerous hits against the defenseless.
* Several readers, after noting Penn State and Nebraska knelt in prayer at midfield before kickoff, wondered what they were praying for. My guess is that it was for the TV cameras.
* While the rest of the nation sweats rent, college teams run around like Paris Kardashian, or whatever her name is. Last week, Florida Atlantic and Georgia State went to Seattle to play Washington and Portland. Class time missed? Who cares?
Color us surprised at unis
It was strange. Saturday during Rutgers-Army on CBS Sports Network, the Scarlet Knights wore white and scarlet; the Black Knights wore black and gold. Is there a Nike rep in the house?
Rutgers-Army also brought this fourth quarter “QB Chart” graphic: Rutgers’ Chas Dodd, on passes of 1-6 yards was 12-of-13 for 113 yards; on passes of 7-15 yards, he was 1-of-6 for 13 yards; on passes of 16 yards or more, he was 2-of-5 for 54 yards.
“This would tell you,” said Randy Cross, “that Dodd is much more accurate and comfortable throwing short.”
No, this would tell us that CBS stuck Cross and us with an absurd graphic. My sister-in-law would be “more accurate and comfortable” throwing a 1-yard pass than a 14-yarder!
* Awkward moment in Friday’s Hurricanes-Rangers game. After Sam Rosen soft-sold Carolina’s Eric Staal’s nailing of his brother, the Rangers’ Marc Staal, during a game in February (Marc’s career has been more off than on since), Rosen’s MSG partner, Joe Micheletti, jumped slightly incredulous, insisting there was no good reason for Eric’s head hit on Marc, doubly so because they’re kin. Rosen didn’t respond.
* FOX field audio continues to be superior. Yesterday, late in the first half of Giants-49ers, we could clearly hear San Francisco quarterback Alex Smith say at the line of scrimmage, “We’re going timeout; we’re going timeout,” before calling a timeout.
As long as Joe Buck and Troy Aikman dump “red zone” stats on us, as they did during Giants-49ers, do such numbers begin only on first down, or any time a team reaches the red zone? First-and-10 from the 20 1/2 doesn’t count but first-and-10 from the 20 does? First-down from the 19 has the same red zone value as first down from the 2?