This past weekend at the Masters, Phil Mickelson once again captured the heart of the country with a magnificent victory. Now that we can no longer cheer for what I would deem as the most beloved athlete currently in sports, where will the sports attention go? As we enter the slowest two weeks in sports (at least for this sportswriter), there were three events whose lack of attention by fans seemed to warrant the consideration of a column. Without further ado, the three news items that Phil blocked away ...
If a struggling college football team cuts its starting middle linebacker, defensive end and cornerback and has a lackluster spring football camp, would anyone really notice?
Prior to the start of the 2006 Virginia spring football practice, questions loomed as to whether the team could regain the form shown a few years ago. Before the questions started coming, Al Groh opened fire by stating that three strengths of the defensive unit would not be coming back next year due to various discipline reasons. To say that the loss of the three stars (Ahmad Brooks, Vince Redd and Tony Franklin) is a huge chink in the armor of this team is an understatement. While nobody ever glorified the three stars' time spent in Alderman or work ethic off the field, all are physical specimens that would have struck fear in any opposing team.
While everyone knew the Wahoos would be losing talent on offense, the defense looked to return most of the skilled players. Now the defensive depth appears as thin as the starting Virginia frontcourt basketball players. The linebackers will have huge shoes to fill in replacing Brooks and Kai Parham, while the defensive line will be missing the talented Brennan Schmidt and Redd. Although Groh deserves praise for not giving in to these immature athletes, one has to wonder whether the Orange Fever will be more of a sickness than a student fan group next year ...
If the NBA would just end, would anyone really notice?
After watching the heart-pounding excitement of March Madness, the NBA looks like a retirement home full of prima donnas. Watching J.J. Redick and Adam Morrison collapse from emotion after losses in the tournament shows a glimpse at the emotional level of college basketball. The last time we saw tears flowing from Kobe Bryant was in a news conference about charges of sexual assault.
Please just wake me up for Game 6 of the NBA Finals when Shaq is taking on the best team from the West. Until then, would someone please tell ESPN that we need less of Bill Walton and more of Digger Phelps?
If a player turns down a scholarship at other universities to walk-on at Virginia, would anyone really notice?
Andy Burns, a senior high school forward in Northern Virginia, turned down multiple scholarships (Vermont, American) for the chance to play at Virginia.
The University will also be welcoming Ryan Pettinella, a 6-foot-9-inch, 230-lb. center who played at the University of Pennsylvania before transferring to play for Leitao this upcoming season. With five stud scholarship players already in the upcoming recruiting class and eight scholarship players coming back from last year's team, Leitao had no scholarships left to entice them. Yet Burns and Pettinella miraculously found the atmosphere at Virginia compelling enough to walk on the team.
While the Virginia football team struggles to keep committed recruits, the basketball team does not have enough scholarships to give out. What does it say for a program when players are willing enough to walk-on to the team just to play here? I do not profess to be the next "Swami," but the words March Madness will entail more than just a bracket pool for the Wahoos next year.
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