MLS MVP Award Name Change

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By Kaleb Page

The game of soccer in the United States is still on the upswing and still has vast improvements to be made not only in international play, but also here in the states as part of Major League Soccer.

A major factor in the growth of soccer here would be a player that not only was an exceptional athlete on the field but an even better person off of it. This player would be none other than Landon Donovan. A player that is easily the most recognized faces in the soccer community (and by casual fans) as not only an ambassador for the sport but as someone who was there for the tough times in U.S. soccer that have led to a bigger and better following today.

This Thursday at the MLS Superdraft, the MLS made sure to pay tribute to the player who lead countless U.S. men’s national soccer teams and finished his career being the all-time leading scorer in the league. This tribute made by the MLS was to re-name the MVP trophy the “Landon Donovan MVP award.”

Donovan was on hand to be presented with the honor and went on to say:

“I am incredibly honored. I will try to live my life in a way that is worthy of having a MVP award named after you.” – Landon Donovan

Fox Sports talked with MLS commissioner Don Gerber on what made the league do this and the answer was simple. He said that the league wanted to enshrine Donovan’s achievements permanently after his influential role in the growth of the league over the past decade.

I think it is cool for this league to make it a point to honor and remember someone who put in the effort and work to make the league better than it once was. Donovan had all the talent to go play in other more top flight leagues at the time, and instead looked to stay home in hopes of one day making the MLS a league worthwhile.

In his 14 seasons as a player in the MLS Donovan has a resume to be proud of, amassing over 144 goals, 136 assists and a record six MLS Cup titles. It is safe to say the MLS made the right decision in making this living American soccer icon the title bearer on its highest trophy to an individual player. An appropriate way to commemorate the man who carried the torch for U.S. soccer for so long, and now can sit back and watch how this sport will grow for years to come. This being in large part to the foundation he laid and passion he brought to the game.

Thank you for all you did #10.

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Why Does Mark May hate Ohio State.

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By Paul Duncan

ESPN personality, Mark May has a bitter relationship with Ohio State and it has spiraled out of control. No school’s fans have a bigger rivalry with an analyst than Ohio State and Mark May. First let’s start with why Ohio State fans hate Mark May.

Throughout his tenure as an ESPN personality he has bashed Ohio State at every turn saying they’re not fast, saying they’re overrated, criticizing the NCAA for not punishing Ohio State more, and even saying he’d want to “whack” members of Buckeye fans. Yes he said on his Facebook that he wanted to physically harm “haters from Buckeye Nation.”

These comments have led Ohio State to retaliate by making funny signs, or reminding him on Twitter that he has 2 DUI’s, or that he got arrested for starting a riot, but more often they point to the 72-0 thrashing Ohio State gave May’s Alma Mater Pittsburgh in 1996.

But why does Mark May hate Ohio State? This is a question to which no one has a definitive answer. Some believe it has to do with the aforementioned drubbing Pitt received by Ohio State in 1996. Some people think it might have to do with him not being recruited by Ohio State out of high school, but for whatever reason Mark May can’t stand Ohio State and it’s starting to get out of hand.

Throughout the year Mark May never had the Buckeyes in the playoffs and even couldn’t get himself to say that the Buckeyes deserved to be the playoffs. This kind of analysis borders on trolling which should not be acceptable in this high up in television journalism. Sports show hosts have all kind of prejudices toward their favorite teams like Skip Bayless and his Cowboys, Lou Holtz and Notre Dame, and Dick Vitale and Duke but no personality has a personal vendetta against a team like May and OSU. Each time Ohio State wins new Mark May memes flood Twitter. Mark May trends in Ohio and people continue to make fun of him and frankly he deserves it. Now that Ohio State has won May is nowhere to be seen. May has shown that hating another team to the point where it interferes with his analysis is very harmful even if it gets a reaction.

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The Fox and the Bears: John Fox Potential New Coach?

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By Ellen Chlumecky

The Bears fired Marc Trestman was fired on December 29, 2014 along with general manager Phil Emery. Opening the dreaded head coach position for the Chicago Bears. A very heavy task filled with frustration, a rocky history, and aggressive fans. A dream come true, right?

Ryan Pace has only been the new general manager for a couple of weeks now and he made it his first mission to be on a serious “fox” hunt for a new coach. Now on Friday, January 16th, ESPN sources confirm that he’s already almost near to closing a deal with a new coach. Specifically they are looking at, former head coach of Denver Broncos, John Fox.  The Chicago Tribune have commented that Pace is just in the “getting to know you” phase with Fox. However, whatever the case may be there is a serious possibility that Fox may be the new head coach of the Bears.

If Fox were to get the job, he would be the third head coach since 2012, following the termination of Marc Trestman. Trestman’s two seasons went 13-19, which explains a great deal about his termination. The Bears have missed the postseason four consecutive years in a row due to the coaching of Marc Trestman and Lovie Smith. Not exactly an ideal situation for any new head coach to walk into, however Fox might be the man to rectify the somewhat permanent losing streak they seem to be stuck in.

Fox has been in the business for a long time and has a long list of accomplishments. Fox coached the Broncos to 49 overall wins from 2011 to 2014. In addition, he assisted them in winning four consecutive AFC West titles. He also led the Broncos to a Superbowl game, even though they ended up losing to the Seattle Seahawks, which is more than Trestman can attest. Fox also is a seasoned defensive coach and has been the defensive coordinator for teams such as: the Los Angeles Raiders and the New York Giants.

The Bears could use someone who has won multiple conference titles and a vast amount of experience being a defensive coach. John Fox holds a mentality of acquiring plays with mental and physical toughness, which could be a helpful attitude to hold. While Bears fans are upset, which is not at all unusual, about the deal, there seems to be no snags in the deal as of now. He may not be Ditka, but let’s be honest, who is?

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Would you take 75 to 1 odds?

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By Kaleb Page

Let’s hop back in time for just a moment.

Let me take you back to a marquee game under the lights in Columbus, OH on September 6, 2014.

The game was between The Ohio State Buckeyes and Virginia Tech Hokies. A night game in the Horseshoe is a tall task for any team let alone Virginia Tech. However when the Hokies came to town they went all out on an Ohio State team that was still in the infancy stage in their season development.

The buckeyes just prior to the start of the season lost their center piece, the one everyone thought the entire season hinged on: Braxton Miller. When Miller went down, in stepped someone who everyone was scrambling to figure where he even came from. J.T. Barett took the reins and in only his second start faced off with the talented defensive mind of Virginia Tech defensive coordinator Bud Foster. Foster also took advantage of an offensive line that was replacing four starters, three of which went on to be starters in the NFL.

All night Ohio State could just never seem to get it going. Whether it was dropped passes, poor blocking or even missed assignments on defense; there was a multitude of deficiencies to point out.

Upon losing the game 35-21 in a stunning home defeat, many looked to this team as a lost cause. A team that had no chance to even get anywhere near the college football playoff. The teams’ odds after the first game were 12 to 1. After the defeat, ESPN’s Darren Rovell found a ticket in Las Vegas that had the buckeyes at 75 to 1 odds to win the national championship.

Now I am no betting man but whoever had that ticket has to be doing a happy dance at this very moment.

Even though there were countless naysayers, tough road games, a loss of another quarterback and even the death of a teammate; this team became the ultimate definition of a team. Each and every week players on both sides of the ball stepped up to make plays and show how the team was growing. Even if I was not a fan of Ohio State I would have to be blown away with the resiliency and manner with which this team handled itself after so much adversity.

The college football playoff berth by the Buckeyes was set up after a 59-0 demolition with a third string quarterback (Cardale Jones) making his first ever start. It didn’t get any easier when the seeding gave the Buckeyes a match-up with the king of the SEC: Alabama. A game essential in Alabama’s back-yard, was just the second start for Jones but at the same time a coming out party for the talent, speed and physicality that this team developed from that loss early in September.

This past Monday night saw the improbable tale culminate the way it was meant to with Ohio State beating another stout team in Oregon. The first ever undisputed champion in college football history. Most teams that would have experienced the things this team did would have crumbled and maybe would have even struggled to go .500.

This team took that notion that they should feel sorry for themselves and threw it out the window. From “the slobs” (nickname of Ohio State’s offensive line) upfront developing into an unmatched force, Ezekiel Elliot fulfilling his potential to be a potent threat, a defense that found its mojo (the silver bullet defense is brewing up) and arguably the best coach in college football Urban Meyer; this team is complete. Their mantra of “The Power of The Unit” grew and grew as they needed everyone to make this dream a reality.

So do you want to take those 75-1 odds now…I sure wish I had way back when.

The Buckeyes mission is complete.

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It’s Ryan Pace’s Time to Shine

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By Ellen Chlumecky

Ryan Pace is the new Chicago Bears general manager. He is now the youngest general manager in the NFL at 37 years old. While he may not be a native of Illinois, he seems to have orange and blue coursing through his veins. His main task is returning the Bears back to greatness. The first crucial step in this long process is to hiring the best head coach for the team.

Before Pace was chosen for the coveted position of general manager for the Chicago Bears, he had quite a track record. Pace was a four-year letterman as a defensive end at Eastern Illinois University. Pace was selected by the Saints to attend the Stanford Business School’s Executive Education NFL-Stanford Program for Managers. Pace spent the last two seasons with the Saints as the director of player personnel. He clearly has the qualifications and experience to take on this position.

George McCaskey, team chairman for the Bears, said that Pace won the job over very qualified candidates. The three other considerations were: Tennessee Titans vice president of player personnel Lake Dawson, Houston Texans director of pro personnel Brian Gaine, and Chris Ballard who was the former director of player personnel for Chicago and current director of player personnel for Kansas City Chiefs. McCaskey expressed that Pace just stood out. He said he was thorough, charismatic, and showed himself as a leader.

Immediately after signing the contract, Pace started conducting interviews with potential head coaches starting with Todd Bowles. Dan Quinn and Adam Gase have also been interviewed for the position prior to Pace’s contract being signed. While Pace wants the position filled as soon as possible, there is no indication that a hire will be found in the next coming weeks.

Pace’s next item of business is to evaluate the roster and the staff before making any serious decisions about trading or rehiring. An excessive amount of attention has been put on what Pace will be doing with the somewhat tumultuous career of Jay Cutler. He wants to get to know Cutler before making a final decision on his career.

This isn’t Pace’s first problem team that he’s had to deal with in his career. He had to deal with the New Orleans Saints during the height of Hurricane Katrina.  He clearly knows how to handle a tough situation but the Bears have been in a rocky spot for more than just a couple of years now. It is quite noble of him to take on such a mighty task as his first GM job. He’s clearly up to the challenge, but we’ll have to see if he can succeed.

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The Crashing Toronto Maple Leafs: Is it Really the Coaching?

By Savannah Malnar

The Toronto Maple Leafs have a great history as an Original Six hockey team in the NHL. Unfortunately lately they have had more downs than ups and have not won a Stanley Cup since 1967. With this drought has come a multitude of personnel changes. Toronto fans are used to coaches being temporary, so it was no shock to them when coach Randy Carlyle, coach of only roughly two and a half seasons, was terminated.

His success with the Anaheim Ducks (who he led to a Stanley Cup) did not transfer to the Leafs. Fans and management hoped his defensive mind would bring a new perspective to the Leafs’ locker room, but instead the team only made the playoffs once under his coaching and then in the 2013-2014 season went 2-12 to end the season and fall out of what looked like to be a clinched playoff spot.

This was when management and fans really began to look at Carlyle’s effectiveness. The decision to fire Carlyle followed a barely winning record of 21-16-3 that left the Leafs grasping onto a wild card playoff spot to start the 2014-2015 season; it was most likely heavily influenced by recently hired (as of the end of the 2013-2014 season) President of the team, hall of fame player and previous Director of Player Safety, Brendan Shanahan.

Prominent hockey writer Greg Wyshynski for Yahoo! Sports authored an article titled: “Randy Carlyle fired by Toronto Maple Leafs, finally.” A writer for CBS Sports says this shows the Leafs have “learned from their mistakes.” So it seems the national media agrees with the call. A different view comes from an article from a more local source, the Toronto Star. Rosie DiManno instead goes straight to the top, calling out Brendan Shanahan for not doing enough in his first season as President. She stated she believes General Manager Dave Nonis could be the next piece to go if Shanahan really wants to turn Toronto around. In her words, “And Carlyle, for his sins, was miscast as the old-style coach who could reach deep inside this lineup and come up with a fistful of guts. That’s on management, those who’ve departed and those still here.”

DiManno appears to be among the loyal Toronto fans and media who are desperate for a turnaround for a team with such a strong past. Perhaps Carlyle being sacked will be the beginning of that, or maybe they just have to wait for something bigger.

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Jameis Winston and FSU Need a Timeout

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By Ellen Chlumecky

Jameis Winston has not been doing himself any favors these past couple years at Florida State University. He has stolen, behaved inappropriately in public at the Florida State University student union, and he was accused of sexually assaulting of a woman in December 2012. I understand college students acting in a childish manner at certain points in their career but he clearly exceeded his strikes and now is being punished for it.

On Wednesday, January 7th, attorneys for the women who accused Winston, filed a civil suit in U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida against FSU. The woman is suing them alleging that the university did not properly protect her Title IX rights. The woman’s attorneys demand a trial by jury and damages from FSU for fostering a “hostile educational environment.” Her attorneys stated that FSU’s athletic department deliberately concealed the rape from the university and did not investigate the allegations as required by federal Title IX laws.

The woman alleged that Winston sexually assaulted her in his apartment on Dec. 7, 2012. Winston and his attorneys contented that the sexual encounter was consensual. Winston was also never charged by either the Tallahassee police or the state attorney’s office.

Last month alone, Winston was cleared of four violations of FSU’s student conduct code hearing after a two-day student judiciary hearing. Why any university would want a student that continue to causes this many problems, no matter how good he may be at football and baseball, is beyond me. While the main violations have been accusations and have not been clearly confirmed or denied, he still has committed several inappropriate acts that are not respectable for any college student.

As any avid sports fan hopes to have is for the best players around for their selective team. However, I would hope most people would not want players who do not have correct moral compasses, especially an athlete who continually disrespects women as often as people have been reporting he does. In Jameis Winston’s actions, he is showing that he clearly does not know wrong from right or just chooses to ignore the rules. His attorneys can only defend Winston for so long until he does something that he cannot take back.

Jameis Winston announced that he intends to enter the NFL Draft inside of returning to Florida State University for his junior season. Since he is three years removed from his high school graduation, he is eligible to enter the NFL Draft as a sophomore. The day he is drafted, the day he becomes the NFL’s problem instead of FSU’s.

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Who Spiked the Kool-Aid?!: SEC shocked, the miracle ride continues and more

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By Kaleb Page

As the final days left in the college football season start to dwindle down, this bowl season gave us all some great moments, players and story lines. Whether it was the Camellia Bowl or the Rose Bowl this season of bowls and the inaugural college football playoff brought a great end to what was (at least for me) a season where almost every Saturday was a great slate of college football games.

As this cap played out over the weeks the theme of how dominant the SEC is took a huge hit. Even though the SEC did go 7-5 overall as a conference, the mystique of the conference left many in the sports world wondering what happened since the conference only went 2-4 against ranked opponents. Even though the piece was full of satire the title of Clay Travis’s piece on Fox Sports was something of interest. The title read “The SEC is Dead, Long live the SEC,” yes it is over the top and it is supposed to be, but there needs to be a discussion on this topic; discussion on is everyone else finally starting to catch-up?

With the introduction of the playoff and new varying bowl match making, is the SEC starting to come back down a bit? I would agree with some analysts who say that the conferences are starting to show parody but to say the SEC is completely terrible now is something I won’t go forth in saying quite yet. It is better in the end to see that more teams are coming into the fold and we aren’t being completely hammered with how the SEC is better than everyone else. Parody no matter what the sport is makes it that much more enjoyable because it makes things more interesting and competitive, instead of seeing the same old same old year after year.

The SEC has their bad teams just like every other conference. For those still over sipping on the SEC kool-aid and notice that nasty taste in your mouth don’t look at me, instead look at the Big Ten and other conferences that crashed the party.

The perception change that happened over the past few weeks to the SEC could really put in full effect by one team slaying the SEC’s biggest giant.

The Ohio State Buckeyes went into New Orleans, LA and faced the big bully on the block from the SEC: Alabama. As big as a nine-point underdog, it looked like the magical run by the buckeyes was doomed to be ended with such force that it might as well not even be played. Isn’t that why we play the game though? You play the game to prove that sentiment that the underdog has no chance wrong and for the buckeyes they did just that. Even though they got down early in the game, the buckeyes showed that they had the heart to win and continue their magical journey. The journey though still has another huge task in the way.

Monday night puts the end to all the talk on who the best team is in college football. Finally with the playoff we all will know that there is a definitive champion. Oregon off its impressive win versus FSU showed how potent their offense is and that the talk of them being “finesse” is something far from the truth. As mentioned above Ohio State looks to cap off an impressive season full of adversity by winning it all and showing what it means to be a complete team. It will be interesting to see these two teams play since both teams are full of great players and coaches. Making this game a battle more than just a physical one on the field, but one that is a mental chess match as well.

For the way this season will come to an end it pushes the old phrase “don’t drink the kool-aid” to the front. For all that we heard that the majority trend for people was to lean one way or the other (mainly on SEC teams), it truly shows at the end of this season that putting your full confidence towards one frame of mind is almost foolish. It also has shown that to essentially “drink the kool-aid or go only off of the thoughts of the majority,” is a habit we all need to break. To say I’ve been insusceptible to this would be foolish too, but I will say for the majority of this season I stayed away from the punch bowl so many others drank out of.

Hopefully next season we all can stay away from the kool-aid and make our own thoughts. Until then don’t drink the kool-aid too much…you’ve been warned.

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The Cavs Make Moves

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By Kaleb Page

In this early stage of the NBA season the Cleveland Cavaliers have had not even close to the start everyone including themselves had expected. With a record of 19-16 this is still a team searching to find what it is and what it wants to hang its hat on night in and night out. As I said it is still very early so things can change and even with injuries to Kyrie Irving and LeBron James this team still is second in their division and fifth in the eastern conference.

For the GM of the Cavaliers David Griffin, managing this team that has so much potential is a huge task. With Irving and James down and the Cavalier faithful starting to wonder what is up with this team in recent weeks; Griffin needed to find something to re-energize not only the team but the fans as well. On Monday night that opportunity presented itself in a trade.

Prior to the game between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Cleveland Cavaliers starting shooting guard Dion Waiters was pulled from the line-up. It was then soon broadcast all over the sporting world that a three team deal had been made. This deal would send Waiters to the Oklahoma City Thunder, Iman Shumpert and J.R. Smith to the Cavaliers, and the Knicks get three players who have non-guaranteed contracts they can dump at the end of the season to further open up their cap space. Along with the players in the deal, the Thunder are giving the Cavs a protected future first-round draft pick and they are also sending a 2019 second-round draft pick to the Knicks.

Quite the deal that happened on a Monday night in the NBA. This move for the Cavaliers was dissected by ESPN’s Tim Legler and he made it clear that this trade really benefits everyone involved. In his break down on SportsCenter, Legler mentioned that this trade addresses a need the Cavs have when it comes to team defense, and with a guy like Shumpert who adds length along with a defensive mindset to the starting line-up; the Cavs made a great deal. He also went on to mention that the swap of Smith for Waiters is a slight upgrade even though both players do have similar playing styles.

With that said I would have to agree with Legler on this trade being really beneficial for the Cavaliers. When you can get a young guy like Shumpert, who is a rising player in the league known for his perimeter defense, it helps improve what the team is lacking right now. Even though Smith is somewhat a loose cannon no matter what team he is on, he has proven to be an offensive weapon capable of going off at any time. It will be interesting to see if these two pieces are able to pay dividends for this team that expects to be in the finals when it is all over.

I would add though that this might not be the end for the Cavaliers as far as deals go. Even though the deal is great, it does miss the hole that is still their post defense. It is hard to find anyone on the market to fill the void left when Anderson Varejao went down, but the team does need to find some type of presence to shore up the back-end just like it did with this trade that added help to the perimeter.

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Stuart Scott Dies at Age 49

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By Ellen Chlumecky

On Sunday, January 4th, the sports world lost another talented man: Stuart Scott. Scott died at the age of 49, losing his battle to cancer. Scott went into remission in early 2012, but he was again diagnosed with cancer on January 14, 2013. He was also suffering from liver complications and kidney failure. His death was a huge loss to the sports community. His contributions to the sports world were nothing short of exceptional and dynamic. Scott had such a passion for sports and inspired so many others with his talent, work ethic, and devotion.

One of the reasons Stuart Scott was such an inspiration to so many is because of his overall presentation. While Scott was certainly not the first black sportscasters, he presented himself with the confidence as if he was. He talked about his personal experiences that a white sportscaster might not have had. His fellow colleagues expressed how he brought “soul” to the show and how he brought a different beat to every thing he did. He brought his own stories to the table and it started to cover a bigger demographic that wasn’t always being covered. He related well with many black athletes and a majority of them felt more comfortable because he related to them on many different levels.

Bringing his own personality to the show was just one minor break through Scott made on ESPN. With his clever catchphrases, Scott showed ESPN that he was in it for the long haul. Especially with his catchphrase, “Boo-yah” people were hooked on Scott wondering what he was going to come up with next. His charm beamed from him and all of his colleagues knew he was someone special.

Obviously his colleagues were not the only ones who saw something special in him. As a combination of his long-lasting battle with cancer and his perseverance, he received the Jimmy V Perseverance Award at the ESPYS in July. Scott humbly accepted and made it known to the audience that he was not a hero, he just chose not to live around his cancer.

Twitter this morning was blown up with the mass amount of condolences for Scott and his family. Athletes like Johnny Manziel, Patrick Peterson, Mike Adams, Daniel Meadows, Nick Moody, and many others took to Twitter to express their heartfelt condolences and love of Scott. Even some celebrities such as Carson Daly, Rob Riggle, and Josh Gad talked about his legacy. Even President Obama talked about the tremendous impact Scott had on the sports world and what a loss his death is to so many people. ESPN dedicated their shows tonight to him and his family.

In the words of Stuart Scott: “When you die, it does not mean you lose to cancer. You beat cancer by how you live, why you live, and in the manner in which you live.” While he may be gone, he will continue to be an inspiration for so many anchors and aspiring sportscasters. So many people my age looked up to him and aspire to be as dynamic as him. He presented himself professionally but was so charismatic and enjoyable to watch. In our hearts, he will always be “as cool as the other side of the pillow.”

While I am not the biggest fan of ESPN, Scott was a reporter I truly respected and genuinely enjoyed watching. He spoke with such eloquence that made me see him as more than just someone relaying statistics. The world lost not only an amazing sportscaster, but a powerful writer, which in this day and age is something we need more than ever.

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