A character moment

A reprint of my Sept. 17 column published in the Woodford Sun.

You probably missed it unless you were paying close attention.

On any given day, sports fans will find stories on ESPN, or in their local newspaper, chronicling athletes in trouble. Drunks. Wife beaters. Boorish behavior.

I never lack for subject matter when it comes time to award my weekly puck to the head.

Actions displaying class, sportsmanship and grace tend to get lost in the media noise.

But sometimes, within the swirl of negativity, something happens that restores my faith in humanity – something to remind me that behind every negative headline, hundreds of positive stories go unnoticed.

I experienced one of those moments at the Woodford County – North Bullitt football game Saturday night.

Had I not been paying attention, I probably would have missed it.

During Woodford’s first offensive series, starting Jacket quarterback Ryan Garrahan overthrew his receiver. The result – an Eagle interception.

During Woodford’s second offensive series, Garrahan stood on the sidelines, holding the proverbial clipboard, watching as sophomore Matt Couch took the reigns of the Yellow Jacket offense – his offense.

Garrahan knew it was coming. Coach Chris Tracy told him earlier in the week that Couch would get a shot with the offense in the third or fourth series.

But not now. Not like this.

If you weren’t playing attention, you probably missed the next part.

In that moment, standing on the sideline, Garrahan won a victory far bigger than the one the Jackets would win on the field that night. He won a victory over his own human nature. His own selfishness. His own desire to shine.

Ryan Garrahan made a choice. He chose not to pout. He chose not to hang his head. He chose to put his team ahead of himself.

“I understand him giving Matt that shot because I made that mistake,” Garrahan said. “The win is the most important thing.”

Garrahan spent the entire game engaged. He was calling plays on the sideline, and he was the first player to run up and hug Couch after the sophomore threw his first touchdown pass.

He wasn’t crying, he was encouraging. He wasn’t whining, he was cheering. He wasn’t sullen, he was exuberant.

I talked to Ryan on the Monday after the game. He wasn’t happy about being yanked. I could see it in his eyes. And I wouldn’t respect him if he accepted the situation without some anger. But throughout the course of our conversation, he constantly reminded me that team comes first.

Ryan wants to be a good quarterback. But more than that, he wants to be a good teammate.

That fact wasn’t lost on his coach.

“I give a lot of credit to Ryan. Ryan was on the sidelines calling plays. He was Matt Couch’s biggest supporter,” Tracy said.

After the game, Garrahan stepped up and led his team in prayer, just as he always does.

“Having that opportunity to share that with my teammates is important. It’s a priority to me.”

Perhaps that faith explains how the youngster stays so grounded.

Yes, the Jackets remain his team. He may not spend the rest of the season calling plays from behind center, but that doesn’t diminish his role. This is his team. He’s its leader.

Tracy said that Ryan will have other opportunities on the field as the season progresses.

“He’s important to us.”

But I think he’s already made his biggest contribution to Woodford football. He made it standing on the sideline demonstrating true manhood.

And to think, I would have missed it if I hadn’t been paying attention.

Quick Shots

On Sept. 10, the Woodford County High School volleyball team took the floor to face district opponent Western Hills. For the first time in my tenure as sports editor of The Sun, I walked into the Hive expecting the Jackets to win. This team has experienced quite a turnaround in one season. They play with confidence, they are competitive and they’re a lot of fun to watch. And along with the improvements on the court, they are raising expectations.

The University of Kentucky football team survived the bye-week and remains undefeated. I would expect the win streak to continue against the University of Louisville this week. After that, it’s gonna get ugly, Cat fans. My Gators are coming to town.

Did anyone else find it extremely bizarre to watch Brett Favre in a Vikings jersey? The old guy looked pretty good. But number four in a purple was still a trip into bizzaro world.

Speaking of old, Mark Martin continues to carry the banner for – let’s just say the more seasoned athletes everywhere. The 50-year-old NASCAR driver enters the chase for the Sprint Cup championship as the top-seed.

Quote of the week

“If I could, I would take this (expletive) ball and shove it down your (expletive) throat.”
-Serena Williams during a tirade directed at a judge after he called her for a foot fault in the U.S. Open.

Puck to the head

This week’s puck flies at the head of Serena Williams for the above-mentioned quote of the week.

Practice Practice Practice

A reprint of my Sept. 10 SlapShots column

"It's not the will to win, but the will to prepare to win that makes the difference.”
-Paul Bear Bryant

Every athlete wants to win. Every team begins a season wanting a championship. Every competitor takes the field struggling and striving, wanting to reach the top.

But simply wanting something does not make it so. At some point, DOING must factor into the equation.

And that doing begins long before those stadium lights flicker on – in out-of-the-way places, at unlikely times, in quiet moments broken only by grunts, labored breathing and the sharp, staccato commands of coaches.

Behind every moment under the blazing stadium lights and for every goose bump raised on an athlete’s arm when the fans scream with abandon, stretch hours of inglorious sweat and pain on the practice field.

Every athlete has suffered through “one of those” practices. The workout where it seems nobody on the team can find the same page. The one in which the last 30 minutes consists of running “gassers” because the team failed to accomplish anything else on the field. Athletes hate those practices. They look forward to them with the kind of dread normally reserved for a stint in the dental chair. And when it finally ends and the team has safely gathered in the locker room, it collectively showers the coach, long out of earshot, with horrible invectives for putting them through such torture.

But a method exists within the coach’s madness. The skipper knows that without preparation, the team will tank it in competition.

When I was playing hockey for the University of South Florida, our coach would often tell us, “You will only play as well as you practice.”

It was amazingly accurate prophecy.

The Woodford County High School football team learned that lesson last week. After what was reportedly a lackluster week of practice, lacking in focus and intensity, the Jackets lost a game to Dunbar – a team they should have beat. The lack of focus and intensity seemed to spill over from the practice field into Community Stadium.

“When you don’t prepare, you get beat,” Woodford coach Chris Tracy told his team after the disappointing loss.

But an early season defeat like the Jackets suffered at the hands of Dunbar can prove positive, IF the team learns the lesson.

“I hope that focuses you, because in the grand scheme of things, this game doesn’t mean a thing,” Tracy said.

Nope, the game didn’t mean a thing in the overall picture. It was a match-up against a team in another class. (Woodford plays in 5A and Dunbar competes as a 6A school.) But it could well prove a turning point in the season – if the team takes the lesson to heart and puts the effort in on the practice field.

Yellow Jacket quarterback Ryan Garrahan has the right idea.

“All we can do is get out in practice and bust our butts to correct the mistakes.”

That’s the secret. Busting butts – every minute of every practice.

I have no doubt that the Jackets want to win, but will their desire to win translate into a will to prepare?

Quick Shots

As I walked into Community Stadium last Friday, I got a little thrill as I looked up into the stands and saw them filled with yellow and black. There’s nothing like the atmosphere of a Friday night high school football game, especially in a small town. The sound of the marching band, the chants of the cheerleaders, the churning prism of school colors, the adolescent bravado of the players and the carefree giggles of teenage flirting all wrapped in the bright white stadium lighting captures something uniquely Americana. In a country that often seems torn and fractured by political rhetoric, a small town high school football game does something politicians and pundits find impossible. It brings a community together.

Easy there UK fan. It was just Miami of Ohio. Yes, your Wildcats looked pretty good. The offense put points on the board and the defense pitched a shutout. But keep in mind that they were facing a small conference team with a brand new coach, and there were some things that would concern me if I were a Big Blue fan. The offense was pretty much the Randal Cobb show, and a one-dimensional attack isn’t going to cut it against an SEC defense. And speaking of defense, the Wildcat D failed to put pressure on the Miami QB throughout most of the game, and that could spell big trouble down the line. But the good news for the Cat faithful is that UK beat a team that they should beat. That hasn’t always been the case. It may well prove a good season for the Wildcats, but don’t get delusions of grandeur based on this game.

I was looking at the qualifying order before the NASCAR Pep Boys Auto 500 race. As I was reading the order to my wife, she asked me where Dale Earnhardt Jr. qualified. I told her I hadn’t gotten to him yet, to which she replied, “You should have started from the back.” Kasey Kahne won the race, running away after a late caution. Earnhardt took 17th.

Quote of the Week

“I don’t think toughness is when a quarterback says, ‘I’m going to run somebody over.’ Toughness is playing the worst game of your life, but not backing down. You don’t want to sit on the sideline. You want to stay in there and win.”
-Pittsburgh Steelers quarterback Ben Roethlisberger

Puck to the head

This week’s puck flies at the head of University of Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount for punching Boise State defensive end Byron Hout in the jaw after the Sept. 3 game between the Ducks and Broncos. Blount allegedly threw the punch after Hout taunted him. Apparently Blount missed that whole “names can never hurt me” thing in grade school.

A review of Calipari's book

A reprint of my Sept. 3 SlapShot column published in the Woodford Sun

I spend an inordinate amount of time involved with sports, not only in my professional life, but also personally.

Obviously, sports consume my workday. Off the “clock” I watch sports as a fan and participate as an athlete. My experience in college hockey was an extremely significant part of my life.

With all of this focus on sports, I have to confess that I sometimes struggle with the significance of that which consumes so much of my life. I mean really … sports – so what?

Every once in a while, while in the heat of competition or pontificating on this game or that team, I hear that little voice.

“Dude, it’s just a game.”

But from time to time, something comes along to remind me that the valuable lessons learned on the fields and courts of athletic competition apply in my everyday life.

University of Kentucky basketball coach John Calipari’s new book Bounce Back serves as such a reminder.

For those of you looking for a “sports” book in the strictest sense of the word will find yourself disappointed. Fear not Cat fan, the book has plenty of references to basketball, and provides some interesting insights into the heart and mind of your coach. But Calipari’s focus really centers on practical ways to bounce back from setbacks in life. The book was written to help you – not entertain.

Drawing primarily from his experience of getting fired from the New Jersey Nets, and to a lesser degree Memphis’ loss to Kansas in the 2008 National Championship game, Calipari takes the reader through a step-by-step process in dealing with and overcoming setbacks, whether personal or professional. His advice focuses on practical steps – surrounding yourself with people who can help, maintaining a positive attitude, being proactive and engaging in serious self-evaluation. Bounce Back even contains interactive exercises throughout.

As regular readers know, I’m not much of a Wildcat fan, so I wasn’t exactly ga-ga about reading a book by the Wildcat coach. But the publisher sent me a prerelease, so I decided give it a read. I’m about two-thirds through and I have to admit, the more I read, the more impressed I become.

The book makes for something of an odd read because Calipari wrote it assuming that the reader is in the midst of a setback. It takes you step-by-step through the process of dealing with personal adversity, from the moment of the “trigger event”, the anger and frustration, and all the way through to the ultimate success of the bounce back.

I’m not experiencing any type of setback in my own life, so it was initially a little hard to relate. But as I got into the book, I started to recognize principles I can adopt.

My wife will tell you that I am NOT an optimistic person by nature. I’m definitely a “glass half empty” kind of guy. But in reading through the chapter entitled “Next – the Power of Amnesia,” I realized I would be far better off to develop a more positive attitude and dwell less on the negative.

The underlying message Calipari communicates is that we control our own destiny. We will always encounter obstacles, but how we face them will determine the course of our journey. Too many people ride through this world as passengers in their own lives.

What a waste.

“You have to be adaptable; you will do that by having a positive attitude, unrivaled energy and a vision of where you’re headed,” Calipari writes.

Honestly, I’ve never been a huge fan of rah-rah self-help books. But as I’ve read through Bounce Back I’ve realized that so many of those simple principles I’ve learned out on the ice – self discipline, hard work, a positive attitude and a refusal to quit apply just as much in “real life.” I need to utilize those same principles in my work and my relationships.

I highly recommend picking up a copy of the book – even you Louisville fans.

Maybe sport isn’t as insignificant as I sometimes think.

Quick Shots

A couple of weeks into the fall and Woodford County High School has three undefeated teams. Both the girls’ and boys’ soccer team are 3-0-1 and the football team is a perfect 2-0. All three squads show a lot of promise, but they’ve also shown they still have a lot of work to do.

The Wildcats open their football season this weekend against Miami of Ohio. The Cats have a pretty tough schedule. After its opener against the Redhawks, UK has a bye and then 11 straight games, starting with Louisville on Sept. 19. As usual, Wildcat fans seem a little over optimistic. I’ve heard many UK faithful on talk radio predicting a 9-3 or 8-4 season. Looking through the schedule, I would call 7-5 optimistic. The team should beat Miami and Louisville, but after that I look for them to lose three of their four games against Florida, Alabama, South Carolina and Auburn. Of the remaining games, Mississippi State, Vandy and Georgia certainly don’t rank as gimmies. Then there is Tennessee. The Vols are rebuilding under new coach Lane Kiffin. Maybe this is the year the Big Blue will finally take down the dreaded Volunteers. At least they play at home so they won’t have to listen to “Rocky Top” 1,000 times.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve had enough pre-season football. I’m ready for the real thing!

And on a personal note, I’m thrilled that the ice is back up at the Lexington Ice Center. That means one thing – hockey time!

Quote of the Week

“I've got six players coming in who think they poop ice cream.”
-UK coach John Calipari on his heralded recruiting class

Puck to the Head

They make this SO easy. This week’s puck flies at former UK coach Billy Gillispie. Alleged drunk driving. The upside for Wildcat faithful is that he just made the University of Kentucky administration look like geniuses.

Who's tough? Who's not?

A reprint of my Aug 27 SlapShots column from the Woodford Sun.

Watching the Woodford County High School girls’ soccer team battle Assumption last week, one thing really stood out to me. These Jacket girls will not back down from a physical challenge.

Amy Morford was particularly aggressive, banging Rocket players and obviously getting under their skin. Teammate Taylor Kelly called Morford, “a beast.” But Kelly did some bumping and banging of her own, and Hannah Greenwell also played a physical brand of soccer.

Then there’s Katrina Ott. I’ve seen her play hurt more often than not. Several times during the game against Assumption, Ott went down hard, throwing her body around with abandon. Coach McIver has commented on more than one occasion that Ott plays like a boy. He means it as a compliment.

I’m not going to lie. I liked the physicality and toughness the Jackets brought to the field. I hope they continue to play with that kind of intensity. I think it will intimidate other teams and pay dividends in tight games, as long as they can keep that aggressiveness under control.

Yeah, keep up the physical play, girls. I like it – a lot.

I can’t help it; it’s the hockey player in me.

Every sport develops its own culture and ethos. Expectations evolve, and players reinforce and pass along those unspoken standards in the locker room.

And in hockey, toughness is king. I mean, have you ever heard of a wimpy hockey player?

I’ve spent many years playing hockey, and I’ve certainly adopted toughness as a virtue. Hockey players don’t back down. Hockey players play hurt. And hockey players certainly don’t whine and complain.

So when I see any team play with grit, determination and toughness, it immediately gains my respect.

Yes, Yellow Jacket girls – you’ve got my respect.

While we’re on the subject of toughness, what’s wrong with baseball players?

An article in the Herald-Leader caught my eye the other day. Cincinnati Reds’ pitcher Aaron Harang is out for the season after undergoing an appendectomy.

Out for the season? Seriously?

Detroit Red Wings defenseman Jonathan Ericcson had his appendix surgically removed during the Stanley Cup playoffs. He played – FOUR DAYS LATER. By the way, he scored a goal in his first game back too.

Maybe I’m missing something.

Perhaps pitching a baseball is more physically demanding than swinging a hockey stick and getting banged into the boards. Maybe something in the throwing motion makes it impossible to pitch after appendix removal. (Any readers in the medical field feel free to help me out here.) Perhaps standing in the dugout gnawing sunflower seeds is more difficult than hurtling up the ice at 30 miles-per-hour.

Or maybe Harang is just a sissy.

Quick Shots

The Yellow Jacket football team looked pretty good in its season opener against South Oldham. The defense seemed much improved over last year. The Dragons really only managed one sustained drive. Woodford also looked more physical than last year. I really liked the way the defensive backs finished their tackles. Junior Wayne White in particular laid some nice hits. Quarterback Ryan Garrahan looked shaky in the first half, but settled down and made some nice throws in the second. It seemed like the game was faster in Garrahan’s mind than it was in reality in the early going. He often rushed throws when he had plenty of time. But he seemed to gain confidence in his line as the game wore on, and did a much better job of standing in the pocket and stepping into his throws. It will be interesting watching this team evolve as the season goes on. They definitely have a strong foundation to build on.

Former Yellow Jacket soccer player Stephanie Patterson earned a starting forward spot at the Air Force Academy.

Kyle Busch got a much needed win at Bristol, edging out Mark Martin in the Sharpie 500. For his effort, the driver of the number 18 got showered with boos. Busch gets a lot of grief from NASCAR fans and I can understand it to some degree. But he’s my favorite driver for two reasons. Number one, he’s one heck of a race car driver and number two, it gets under other NASCAR fans skin when I talk up Busch. Yes, he can come across as miserable and whiney. Yes, his aggressive racing sometimes gets him into trouble on the track. But it’s only because he hates to lose, and that I can respect. Martin summed up the fan hatred for Busch pretty well. “He has won a lot of races. I'll tell you, anybody that wins a whole lot gets booed. Jeff Gordon never did anything, in my opinion, to get booed. And he got booed because he won a lot. That's part of the sport.”

Quote of the Week

“Donte Stallworth kills somebody – 30 days in jail. Michael Vick kills dogs – 17 months in jail. Plaxico Burress shoots himself – two years in jail…our legal system seems to be working normally.” –Tyler Crane

Puck to the head

This week I’m shooting a whole slew of pucks at all of the University of Louisville fans throwing rocks at University of Kentucky head coach John Calipari after the NCAA forced Memphis to vacate its 2007-2008 season. The punishment stems from allegations that Calipari’s former team’s freshman phenom, Derrick Rose, had a stand-in take his SAT the second time around. Cardinal fans should probably focus on the goings-on in their own house. I’m just sayin’.

Team chemistry

A reprint of my Aug. 20 SlapShots column

Many factors go into forging a championship team.

Talent, fundamentals, a good system that maximizes the strength of the players, coaching and a myriad of other tangible building blocks go together to build a team can that compete with the best. But it’s often intangible characteristics that separate a great team from the good ones.

Pundits call it chemistry. Anybody involved in sports has seen that team. The one that just seems to click. The one that may not match up in the overall talent department, but comes together on the field and slays giants. The one with players that seem to enjoy being around each other as much as they enjoy playing the game.

The Woodford County High School girls' soccer team exemplifies that kind of team chemistry and it appears another Yellow Jacket squad may have ripped a page or two from the soccer team’s handbook.

The Woodford volleyball team under new head coach Meredith DellaGuistina dropped its first two matches of the year, winning only one game in the process, but the young squad exudes a confidence and a sense of purpose lacking last season.

Much of last year’s struggle stemmed from the team’s youth, and while the squad enters this season with a year of experience under its belt, the team still isn’t exactly gray around the temples. After losing only two players to graduation last spring, the Jacket varsity roster still includes only two seniors.

But if nothing else, this team seems to believe in each other. During last week’s varsity match against West Jessamine, the Hive reverberated with the sound of cheering, both from the freshmen and JV squads, and the players on the bench. The Jackets played with emotion and intensity, and despite the loss they seemed to genuinely enjoy themselves.

“That’s as much enthusiasm as I’ve seen in a ballgame in a long time around here,” local photographer Steve Blake said, adding that the team’s spunk made watching the game a lot of fun.

I have to agree. There was an energy in the gym that I have never seen at a high school volleyball match. Even during the lowest moments of the game, a constant stream of encouragement, cheering and laughter echoed around the Hive.

Credit DellaGuistina. The new Jacket skipper said that she’s emphasized creating team chemistry.

“We’ve been working on that – trying to build the team as a family and as a sisterhood and friendship.”

I have a feeling that the new coach’s efforts will soon begin to pay off in the W-L column. This team may not have the talent or experience to challenge the top squads in the state, but as the chemistry continues to percolate and the squad gains a little seasoning under its new coach, I have a feeling the Yellow Jackets will creep up and surprise some teams.

I encourage everybody to make it out to watch this team. I can’t promise you a victory, but from the looks of things, I feel pretty safe in guaranteeing you a fun time.

Quick Shots

Woodford County High School volleyball coach Meredith DellaGuistina got some good news on Aug. 14. The International Olympic Committee voted to include women’s boxing in the 2012 Olympic Games in London. That opens the door for DellaGuistina, a world class boxer, to make a run for the U.S. team.

The volleyball match against West Jessamine also provided a comedic moment. Some of the freshman players held up signs with the letters W-O-O-D-F-O-R-D painted on them during the game. But they had a little problem with the order, creating a unique and creative spelling of their school’s name. The good news is that they have four years to figure it out.

I was sad to learn that the Arena Football League will cease operations. The AFL issued a short statement on Aug. 4 announcing the shutdown. The league cancelled the 2009 season earlier in the year. Arena Football League 2, with teams in small and medium size markets will continue to operate. The Kentucky Horsemen play in AL2. I was never a huge fan of indoor football, but I followed the Tampa Bay Storm at a distance. The team came to Tampa in 1991 and won five ArenaBowl Championships. In the years before the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Lightning rose to respectability, the Storm provided the lonely bright spot in the Tampa Bay sports landscape. There’s just something disconcerting about an entire league fading into the past.

Dale Earnhardt Jr. fans got a rare treat. The 88 actually led a few laps in the Carfax 400 at Michigan International Speedway. Earnhard took fuel during a late caution, relinquishing his lead. But with fresh tires and no worries about running out of gas, the fan favorite drove back through the pack to finished third. Jimmie Johnson led the most laps, but ran out of fuel in the end. Earnhardt is arguably the most popular driver in NASCAR, but his recent performance doesn’t seem to warrant the hype. He last won 43 races ago.

Quote of the Week

“Here is the lesson and reality. All the legal language in the world about moral turpitude will not cause Coach Ricky to lose his job. Why you ask? Because Pitino wins basketball games and that is ultimately much more important than teaching students and players about morals, honesty and trust.”
- Chicago Now columnist Corri Fetman

Puck to the Head

I should fly a puck at Rick Pitino’s head, but that’s just too easy, so this week’s puck flies at the head of San Francisco 49ers draft pick Michael Crabtree. The wide receiver from Texas Tech was drafted 10th overall. But he was projected higher than Darrius Heyward-Bey, who Oakland picked in the seventh spot. So based on pre-draft hype and his projected selection ahead of Heyward-Bey, Crabtree wants a contract higher than the $23.5 million the Raider draft pick signed. Basically, Crabtree wants his contract to reflect that he was the higher selection – except that he wasn’t. He called anything less than the $23.5 million Heyward-Bey will receive, “unacceptable.” Are you kidding me? Crabtree has yet to catch pass one in the NFL and he thinks $23.5 million is unacceptable? I think it’s this clown’s ego that is unacceptable.

The tyranny of the urgent

A reprint of my Aug. 7 SlapShots column.

Sometimes the tyranny of the urgent can keep us from focusing on what’s important.

For that reason, I think it’s healthy to get away from our day-to-day routine from time to time. Every once in a while, we need to just step away and refocus.

I spent the last week in West Virginia and Florida with my wife and kids. We hiked mountain trails, basked in the sun on the beach and saw some pretty cool historic sites. But the best part was the uninterrupted time with the kids, quiet moments with my wife and an opportunity to visit with family we don’t often get to spend a lot of time with.

For an entire week, I was totally disconnected from the world of sports. I didn’t watch any games, didn’t surf the Internet and scarcely glanced at a newspaper. About the closest I came to athletic competition was a pretty intense battle between the kids and grownups in the license plate game (More on that in a moment.) Oh – and there was a pretty good round of Frisbee with my son … and some boogie boarding in the surf. But I digress.

While I was gone, the Yellow Jackets hired an interim men’s basketball coach and the Woodford County High School worked out an agreement to keep Walker Terhune as its athletic trainer. While I was sitting on the beach last Wednesday, the Woodford Sun went to press, just as it always does.

It all went along just fine – without me.

I will admit, there is something slightly disconcerting in knowing I am not indispensable. But also something very liberating. Sometimes I get too wrapped up in my routine and forget the truly important things. Sometimes the outcome of a game seems so all-important, but in reality, it means nothing in the big scheme of things. Sometimes I get all wrapped up and stressed out about things that just don’t really matter all that much.

This last week was a reminder to keep my focus on the important. Family, friends and moments spent gazing at the wonder of the world add far more value to my life than many of the things that eat up hours like my daughter’s hungry algae eater on the side of the aquarium.

This doesn’t mean that we don’t do our jobs. Sometimes we simply can’t ignore the urgent. It is urgent, after all. But I do think it’s a good idea to recognize that we aren’t indispensable. It’s healthy to know that if we pause for a moment to tend to the important, the world won’t stop spinning. It’s a good thing to just stop and let things go.

It’s okay – try it.

Now about that license plate game…

I will freely admit my extreme competitive nature. My wife shares this personality defect – or strength, depending on how one looks at things. If there existed any doubt that we are both out of control, it vanished somewhere between Jacksonville and St. Augustine.

The license plate game is a great way to pass time on long car rides. It’s a simple game. Try to find license plates from all 50 states throughout the course of the trip. We decided to spice things up a bit and play adults against kids. I must admit; the kids did pretty well. They were keeping pace with us and it was looking like the game could end in a tie. We had a couple of states they didn’t, but they had a couple on us as well.

My wife and I were sweating it a bit until we found our opportunity to grab an almost insurmountable advantage. On our way down to St. Augustine, a van with Alaska plates passed us. I nudged my wife. She saw it too. A wicked grin. The kids were in the back; all three absorbed in the Nintendo DS.

Advantage – grownups.

While basking in our near certain victory, we decided to pull off and grab some lunch. Subway was sounding like a good, healthy option. But as I pulled into the parking lot, I saw the Alaska van sitting right in front of the door. No way to get in without the kids seeing the plate.

Advantage – lost.

Suddenly the Waffle House across the way was looking pretty good. I’d been craving a waffle all trip. And besides, who eats healthy on vacation?

So I did a quick turn out of the Subway lot, explaining my sudden need for breakfast. The kids were fine with that.

Advantage – grownups.

Quick Shots

I know you are dying to know who won. Grownups, of course. We lacked only four states: North Dakota, Wyoming, Vermont and Hawaii. The kids had none of those and also missed South Dakota, New Hampshire and Alaska, of course.

The more I watch NASCAR Sprint Cup racing, the more I become a Jimmy Johnson fan. His crew chief, Chad Knaus, has as much to do with my growing respect, as Johnson’s driving – and he’s no slouch behind the wheel. I love the fact that the team never gives up. In the Sunoco Red Cross Pennsylvania 500, Johnson was running strong when he started to experience engine trouble. Several pit stops later, the crew found the problem, a bad sparkplug. By the time the team got the number 48 running right, it was three laps down. But Johnson patiently kept at it, taking advantage of cautions to work his way back to the lead lap, then blew through the back of the field to salvage a 12th place finish.

Kudos to Woodford County Schools for stepping up and getting the job done, keeping an athletic trainer at WCHS. It was good to see everybody involved focus on student safety. It says a lot for the priorities of all of the school officials involved.

Quote of the Week

“We’ve come close in a lot of races this year and come up short. But definitely had some angels with us today.” – An emotional Denny Hamlin after winning the Pennsylvania 500. Hamlin’s grandmother died earlier in the week.

Puck to the Head

I’m going to step out of the sports world to shoot this week’s puck at the heads of slow drivers in the left hand lane.

My personal greatest sports moments

A reprint of my July 30 SlapShots column in the Woodford Sun.

I’m heading out of town for a week vacation on Friday, July 24, so needing to write a column way ahead of time, I wanted to do something a little different. I got to thinking about all of those lists pundits like to put together – you know, the greatest this or that in history. So, I decided to create my own. I have compiled a list of the top-10 greatest sports moments in my life. These are the events that meant the most to me, not necessarily because of their historical significance, or their greatness in the big scheme of sports, but because they involve my teams, my emotions and my sports passions. That is after all what keeps us watching, eh?

10. Cincinnati Reds win 1975 World Series over the Boston Red Sox, Oct 22, 1975
I was 8-years-old when the Big Red Machine won the first of its two back-to-back World Series. I was like a lot of kids during that time. I loved baseball. I played in the local youth league, collected baseball cards and organized impromptu games with the other neighborhood kids in a nearby vacant lot. And the Reds were my team. Johnny Bench was my hero. This was my first experience watching a favorite team win a championship. It was a dramatic one too. Carlton Fisk blasted a 12th inning home run off the foul pole in left field to give the Red Sox a 7-6 victory in game six. That made for an early lesson in sports disappointment, which only made Cincinnati’s 4-3 win the next day that much sweeter.

9. USA defeats the Soviet Union in the Olympics Feb. 22, 1980
Quite frankly, this would rank higher if I had a better memory of it. We watched the game at a Mr. Gatti’s pizza place in Ohio or Indiana because I was up there competing in a swim meet. I don’t know that I had ever watched a hockey game before that, but just about everybody in the country watched that one. I don’t really remember the game at all, but I do remember the pride of being an American and taking down the hated Soviets. Those of you old enough to remember the Cold War understand this. For you younger folks, I’m not sure I can even think of anything to compare it with. And I do vividly remember the complete pandemonium that broke out in the restaurant when the U.S.A. scored the go-ahead goal. The game also sparked my lifelong love for hockey.

8. USF beats the University of Louisville 45-14 Sept. 24, 2005. This was the year before I started classes at USF, but I was already a fan of Bull football. The win over the ninth ranked Cards was USF’s first victory over a team in the top 10. That it came over Louisville made it even better. The rise of the Bulls’ football program makes for a pretty amazing story in and of itself. The team began playing in 1997 as a D-II squad. USF held its first team meeting under a shade tree because the school didn’t have football facilities on campus. The win over Louisville was a classic David slays Goliath story, and you gotta love those.

7. Florida Gators win National Championship with a 24-14 win over Oklahoma, Jan. 8, 2009. Ahh – it’s good to be a Gator football fan. This was the team’s second National Championship in three years. I really respect Tim Tebow, both as a player and a person, so I was thrilled to see him hoist the BCS trophy. And look out SEC because Tebow will be back this coming season.

6. Florida Gators win National Championship with a 41-14 win over Ohio State, Jan. 7, 2007. The 2007 National Championship gets the edge over 2009 because the Gators not only brought home the hardware, they exposed Ohio State and the Big Ten for the perennial overrated sensations that they are.

5. Tampa Bay Rays 3 Boston Red Sox 1, game 7 ALCS, Oct. 19, 2008.
This would rank higher if I cared anything about baseball. Loved the game as a kid, but something happened over the years and I just have no passion left for the boys of summer. But it was still a thrill to watch the hapless Rays make it into the World Series, especially beating the Red Sox, my second most un-favorite team in the world of sports. (Top honors in that category goes to the Detroit Red Wings.) I lived in the shadow of Tropicana Field, and like most St. Petersburg residents, ignored the Rays for many years. I started paying some attention when Stu Sternberg bought the team, running that clown Vince Namoli out of town and injecting some life into the franchise. Most fans thought the new ownership was taking the team in the right direction, but I don’t think anybody imagined the Rays would make the run that they did in 2008. Another little guy overcomes the big boy story.

4. USF beats fifth ranked West Virginia 21-13, Sept. 29, 2007. I would argue that the 2007 win over the Mountaineers was the signature victory for the Bulls’ football program. It thrust USF into the national spotlight. This win was so special to me because I felt a part of it. I was a student at the time and this was my school. I only got to watch the first half of the game. The USF hockey team was in Miami that weekend playing Florida Atlantic University. I remember our entire team was crammed into this tiny bar attached to the rink watching the first half. As the Bulls took the early lead, we were all going nuts. It was one of the most exciting fan experiences I’ve ever been a part of – sharing that moment with my teammates and fellow Bulls. We had to go get ready for our own game at halftime. We didn’t even know who ultimately won until after the hockey game. The coaches wouldn’t tell us anything, wanting us to focus on our task. By the way, the Ice Bulls beat FAU 5-3 that night.

3. Florida Gators win the National Championship with a 50-20 win over Florida State in the Sugar Bowl Jan. 2, 1997. I’ve been a Gator fan since I was a little kid. Even though I spent most of my growing up years in Kentucky, three years living in Ormond Beach as a child was enough to make me a Floridian in my mind. When I attended UK in the late ’80s, I went to the Wildcat-Gator games and cheered for Florida. So watching the Gators win their first National Title in my lifetime was a pretty big deal. Beating Florida State to do it made it that much better. That the Gators’ only loss that year came at the hands of the Noles just weeks earlier made it that much better. The rivalry between Florida and Florida State is something akin to UK’s rivalry with Louisville in basketball, to put things in perspective for you Kentuckians.

2. Tampa Bay Buccaneers win the Super Bowl 48-21 over the Oakland Raiders, Jan. 6, 2003. For so many years, the Bucs represented ineptitude and futility. From the ridiculous creamsicle uniforms to the successive years of losing records, Tampa Bay was the laughing stock of the NFL. And from the team’s first season in 1976, I was a fan. I actually owned one of the old orange jerseys. I wish I still had it. I moved to Clearwater in 1991 and my favorite team became my hometown team. It wasn’t easy being a Bucs fan. The joke was that you could leave a ticket on your car windshield in the parking lot of the Big Sombrero, as old Tampa Stadium was known, and when you returned, you’d have five tickets. I once went to a Bucs game against Green Bay and there were about 35,000 Packer fans in the stadium. It was embarrassing. But I’m nothing if not loyal, and that loyalty paid off when the Bucs finally became World Champions. I can’t even describe how amazing it felt to see the team that struggled for so long finally win. The emotional words of Bucs radio announcer Gene Deckerhoff as the clock hit zero sums it up. “Buccaneers win! Buccaneers win! Buccaneers win in San Diego! We are kings of the world!”

1.Tampa Bay Lightning wins the Stanley Cup with a 2-1 game seven win over the Calgary Flames, June 7, 2004
I don’t have a whole lot of sports memorabilia in my home. Now my office is a different story, but other than items from my playing days at USF, there isn’t a whole lot displayed in my house. But one piece of sports history does hang in a prominent spot in my living room. It’s a framed copy of the St. Petersburg Times from the day after the Lightning won its Stanley Cup. The photo on the front page featured Tampa Bay captain Dave Andreychuk lowering the Cup toward his lips for a kiss. It’s an iconic image. I will admit that I am a pretty emotional guy, and I am passionate about sports. But the night the Lightning won the Cup was the only time I’ve shed tears of joy as a fan. It was so amazing – so emotional. I have followed the team closely since it came into the NHL. In fact, I moved to the Tampa Bay area the summer before the inaugural season. I attended countless games and was a partial season ticket holder. Like the Bucs, the Lightning franchise spent many seasons serving as the butt of countless jokes. Lightning ineptitude started in the front office and extended to the ice. There were many years of frustration for Lightning fans. I was here in Kentucky when the Bolts finally won. In fact, I was at work at the airport in Louisville. Fortunately, there were no flights on the ground, and I was able to slip into a dark office and catch the end of the game. As the Lightning skated the Cup around the raucous St. Pete Times Forum, I was alone in this office, awash with emotions and memories, jumping up and down – a few tears trickling down my face. It was kind of surreal. It’s amazing how team can connect an individual with a community. I was 1,000 miles away from Tampa, but I felt I was a part of it all.

Quick Shots

As I look over my list, I realize how fortunate I’ve been as a sports fan. A lot of big moments. Many great memories. This is a very personal list, but for me, it’s probably the most special list I could create. Because it’s about my memories – my connections to the sports and teams that I love.

One lesson from my life as a fan, loyalty and persistence eventually pay off. Stay off the bandwagons!

I would love to hear about some of your sports memories. Write me at sports@woodfordsun.com

Quote of the week

“Gone like a freight-train, gone like yesterday Gone like a soldier in the civil war, bang bang” –Montgomery Gentry (I’ll see you all after my vacation.)

Puck to the Head

Hey, I’m on vacation. You don’t expect me to be wasting times shooting pucks around, do you?