DORRELL IS BLACK?

There was a recent article about Karl Dorrell keeping his job because he's black. I may be naive but it doesnt matter what color you are your job performance is what matters most. Let's face it the last five years of Dorrell's tenure had been average at best and in the end it really wasnt his fault. Dorrell didnt have a head coaching resume and did the best he could. He was the affordable option for Dan Guerrero and UCLA. If you want to blame someone then look for Guerrero. He did a great job bringing Ben Howland in to lead the storied basketball program only to go on the cheap and hire an unproven coach to lead the less-than-storied football program. What did Bruin fans expect? Anytime a team goes through 4 offensive coordinators in 5 years you're going to get inconsistency.

In the end the head coach, a nice guy by all accounts, had to go. Now the search begins and presumably for a proven head coach type this time. Some folks on the radio speculate that Rick Nuheisel will get serious consideration. Now as a Trojan fan I hope Nuheisel gets the job. Nuheisel is a former Bruin, has head coaching experience and is a NCAA violation waiting to happen.

FIGHT ON!

RAIDERS IMPROVE

Finally the wretched evils of the past have been exorcised...sort of. The Raiders have won two division games in as many weeks to break a sad streak of losses in the division. They scored a touchdown in the first possesion and the number one pick got some playing time. Also by beating the dreaded and hated Broncos have doubled their win total from a year ago.

It would seem that the Raiders are indeed improving. New coach Lane Kiffin has brought a new energy and attitude to the perenial losers. It hasnt been perfect this season, uneven and sometimes dreadful QB play, leads lost in the final minutes of 4th qtrs, undisciplined play by the O-line, and penalties as drive killers. Despite that the Raiders have found a way to march on and persevered. While the Raiders arent world beaters just yet they unbelievebly still in the playoff race, with only 3 games behind the San Diego Chargers.

As long as they play hard and continue to show improvement then there will be hope in Raider Nation. We haven't had that in 4 years so maybe we're on the right track.

 

On realizing that Seattle Supersonics owner Clay Bennet was filing the paperwork to move the team to his home state of Oklahoma, NBA Commissioner, David Stern stated he was disappointed with the Mayor and City Council for not approving the allocation of public money to fund a new arena for the Sonics. Also, that it would be very unlikely he would put another team in Seattle anytime soon. He was miffed and was taking his ball with him.

It is that kind of arrogance from corporate mongers like Stern that believe cities and their citizens owe sports organizations a kickback, a stipend to enjoy their product. And why wouldnt he want people to pay and continue to pay in tax money, parking, tickets, concessions, jerseys, to further enrich the lives of billionaire owners and the corporations they run. Stern loves corporate welfare. He'd prefer Seattle to foot the bill for some multi-million dollar state-of-the-art arena that will surely be obsolete in 10 years and he'll encourage the city to renovate on their dime again or else. So where is the loyalty from the NBA?

The owner has every right to move his team if chooses. I don't think he ever intended to stay in Seattle anyway. He knew what the climate was in Seattle when he bought it. The wise city officials and citizens were not going to shell out more money to yet another billionaire so he could have a new place to play. He's the guy with all the money. If he cant afford to build he's own arena then maybe he shouldn't have bought an NBA franchise. The poor pro-sports deprived folks in OK will no doubt gladly hand over tax money to support an NBA team. It's a chance of a lifetime for them. It'll seem worth it to them because it's a totally new venture for their citizens. I'm sure the owner and Stern were counting on that.

Some good news this weekend and some of the same bad news (Raiders).

Lakers - okay, i know its only 3 games but hey i gotta enjoy the teamwork, yes i said teamwork. Kobe is still Kobe thats no surprise but the other guys have stepped up. After losing a close one to Houston, the Lakers have turned up the team defense and routed Phoenix and wore down Utah to have a 2-1 record so far. Bench points are through the roof. Offensively the Lakers are getting production from Fish, Bynum and Farmar. Defensively, everyone is getting involved and moving in the right position to affect the other team. If only they keep this type of effort can they really be a force this year. If they do they'll change a lot of minds (hopefully Kobe's as well) that the Lakers are good and can compete in the west.

other Laker notes:

Who needs Lamar Odom?

Sit Brian Cook and insert Coby Karl.

Trojans - Booty's back and looked pretty good in their easy win against Oregon St. At least for one half they were dominate offensively. Now they just have to win out and with some luck can get to the Rose Bowl.

UCLA - Now i told my brother-in-law that the Powder Blue would lose against Arizona simply because they are so inconsistent and thus unpredictable. On paper they should of beaten the Wildcats but unless its a big game they wont win. They'll play hard against the Trojans because its a rivalry game and because its a game that could save Dorrell his job. I think though they'll have a new coach next year.

Raiders - Excuse me while i induce vomiting to take the bad taste out of my mouth. All i have to say, bring in J. Russell to finish yet another dismal season.

More interesting happenings in college football, more questions from Oakland, and Lakers still "in darkness"

 

Trojans - Finally a dominating game the way the Trojans use to play. they handed Notre Dame their worst loss in the rivalry. I just love blowing out the Golden Domers and kicking them while theyre down. It  looks  like Mark Sanchez is getting better and better.  He managed the game  very well and  didnt panic on the road. Now the question is with Booty possibly healthy enough to play do you sit Sanchez or reinstall Booty as the starter. I know Booty has seniority and all that but with Sanchez the offense seems to flow so much smoother. Sanchez is more mobile and a stronger arm. Booty all season has had trouble getting the ball to receivers on time and accurately.

I know its a lot to make of Sanchez' game against the lowly Holy Rollers. i mean who couldnt beat the worst team in division 1 college football (oh thats right, UCLA)

 

UCLA- speaking of the Powder Blue, they ruined a lot of gamblers this weekend by defeating the ranked Cal Bears. Sure Longshore was injured but the Bruins made a statement. i dont understand how Dorrell coaches. does he get the team ready  only  for games that will  help save his job?  i mean i  give them credit they played  a great game. the defense was aggresive and Pat Cowan (from Pico Rivera) played like the best QB in Westwood. so now what?  which team will play next week? that seems to be the question every week.

 

Lakers - Kobe is still a Laker. thats the good news. the bad news is Kupcake is still the GM and theres no help on the horizon. Defense has gone MIA in these preseason games and Phil is planning his retirement as soon as this season is over. its hard to really tell how this team will do. Lamar is still out and I dont think Luke is 100%. there are still a lot of questions. will Kobe be around the whole season or will he be traded? will the improved Farmar take the starting job from fan-favorite D-Fish? Will Kwame use Stik'um on his hands of stone? Will Bynum transform into Kareem sooner than later? every one says its a long season, it'll seem even longer if the team doesn't get on the same page soon, very soon.

Raiders - i left the worst for last. its games like the one this Sunday that makes me want to put down the Miller Lite and pick up a bottle of Patron to try and numb the pain of watching the offense stagnate again. How can you not score more than 10 points against the Chiefs? well you can start by having a weak running game. what happen to the offensive line? they were blowing holes wide open for the backs and now they look lethargic.

Dropped passes! We dont want to rely on Culpepper to throw 50 passes so we gotta make the ones that are thrown count. Curry has had a lot of great games and catches this season but it is vitally important to move the chains when the running game is not working. there was that 4th & 1 that they went for in the first half and some people say just take the field goal and youre still in the game. thats true and at that point in the game and in hind sight that wouldve been the better call but i understand what Kiffin is trying to instill in these guys. he wants to instill confidence in his team and a swagger that they can dominate when needed. One yard shouldve been possible but evidently not the way theyve been running lately. just win baby...please.

 

 

Another weekend of mediocre sports news and events.

 Trojans - they are looking more and more mediocre. Mark Sanchez wasn't entirely bad against Arizona. It was his first start and was shaky at the beginning but seemed to gain confidence as the game went on. Too bad this isn't the preseason, its the freakin halfway point in the season. its really difficult to plug in a sophmore backup QB at this point among other injuries on that o-line. i know it sounds like excuses but things are really different this year. theyve been playing like the Bruins lately. very inconsistent play from their receivers and running backs and with all the injuries how deep down the depth chart can you go before hitting walkons.

at this point they dont deserve to be ranked in the top ten. they have to regroup and earn their way back in. at the very least win the Pac-10, destroy Notre Dame and the powder blue squad with the lame duck coach and win the Rose Bowl. that should be the minimum for SC, national championship still a slim possibility if they play like they are suppose to.

Raiders - LT, LT, LT. Raider defenders will wake up in cold sweats in the middle of the night as they relive LT running by them in their dreams. it was the worst time to see the Chargers of last year show up and not only stop the Raiders from running, forcing Culpepper to throw the ball, but run all over the Raider defense. it was difficult to watch as the Raiders were clearly the inferior team on the field. Jordan couldnt get anything going on the ground and Culpepper either held on to the ball too long and got sacked or fumbled the ball away. it was ugly. they were simply overmatched and made too many mistakes. its 2006 all over again.

lets hope they put this thing back together...soon.

Baseball -  its a shame the national media has chosen to ignore teams like the Rockies and the Indians. The Rockies are on a historic run to the World Series and Cleveland is finally making a playoff run and all radio hosts and tv pundits can say is how terrible for baseball and tv ratings to have two small market teams. Supposedly having the Red Sox in the World Series could salvage it but thats unfair to rest of the teams. I mean the media could spin this the right way and give plenty of exposure to guys like probable Rookie of the Year, Tulowitzki, and veterans waiting for a taste of the World Series. On the Indians it seemed they underestimated Sabathia, Carmona, even Westbrook against the mighty and much hyped RedSox (JD drew must lose).

I always thought it was about the game and not about ratings and big market vs. small market. the playoffs and World Series are suppose to make legends not handed to teams with huge payrolls and bigger personalities. last time i checked teams still had to win and earn their way to the big game. i hope someone tells and reminds the national media.

Lakers -  after last year you;d think theyd practice defense this year. its a novel idea i know but the warriors just ran circles around Laker "defenders".  i know its just preseason but they dont look cohesive with the first string on the floor. i know odoms out, browns out, but defense should be a team concept but they are slow and soft. its not going to matter how many points you score if you cant stop somebody from scoring. 

then theres the Kobe mess. Actually the entire organization has been a mess since they won their  last championship. the geniuses in the front office havent been able to put a competitive team on the floor even when Shaq was here. i mean they were so desperate that they signed Malone and Payton in their twilight years to help Shaq and Kobe but we all know how that turned out.

so maybe they did promise Kobe that they would put top talent around him but lets see we have an inconsistent semi-star with all-star potential in Lamar Odom, a gutty but slower Derek Fisher, an underachieving big man with hands of stone named Kwame Brown, a smart but unathletic  fascilitator in Luke Walton, and waiting in the wings the biggest example of potential, untouchable and unproven Andrew Bynum. You may have noticed not one All-Star in the bunch. So much for promises.