Tuesday, May 18, 2004
reviewjournal.com -- Sports: JOE HAWK: You heard it here first (again): Smarty...
horse is a horse, of course, of course, unless it's Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Smarty Jones -- then it's a sure thing to become the first horse in 26 years to win its sport's Triple Crown. Don't believe us? "Rants & Raves' " resident psychic and hack scribe, Hawkadamus, guarantees it:
• So maybe Hawkadamus hasn't always been right on with his predictions. Oh-kaaaay, so maybe he never has been right with a prediction. But just like Smarty Jones broke the Sports Illustrated cover jinx by winning the Preakness on Saturday, so too shall the fleet-hooved wundercolt snap the Hawkadamus hex by winning the Belmont in three weeks and claiming horse racing's esteemed Triple Crown. You can take that to the race book window. ...
• Hawkadamus is feeling lucky today, or, hey, maybe he just has a death wish. But the High Priest of Prognostications says it doesn't matter whether it's the Minnesota Timberwolves or the Sacramento Kings that advance to the NBA's Western Conference finals this week, the Los Angeles Lakers are a L-O-C-K to win the best-of-7 series and go to the league finals. He says it, of course, then he runs like hell. ...
• The expansion Nashville (Tenn.) Rhythm of the ill-reconceived American Basketball Association has a female general manager and, as of Monday, a female head coach. The Rhythm named Ashley McElhiney, a two-time All-Southeastern Conference player at Vanderbilt, to be the first female head coach of a men's professional basketball team. Just wondering, but do you think the team's style of play will be known as the Rhythm method? ...
• There's a lot about the Arena Football League to like, and that doesn't count the hometown Gladiators' late-season Lazarus imitation in going from 3-7 to 7-7. Played on a 50-yard field, the game action is hard-hitting and high-energy. But, cripes, if those flags thrown on almost every play don't become annoying after about, uh, the first half of the first quarter. The league had better review its rules, its players' knowledge of them or rein in its flag-flippin' zebras if it doesn't want to turn off those newcomers it's trying to turn on. ...
• The Gladiators need serious work done on their ancillary in-house entertainment. (Folks, try taking a page from those innovative minds running Wranglers' hockey games.) But we give the AFL franchise props for a dynamite doubleheader of pregame singing Sunday. KVBC-TV sportscaster Rick Strasser was outstanding on the national anthem, and that was with the tough task of following deep-throated 9-year-old Patrick Dorson, a student at Lomie G. Heard Elementary School who cranked out "God Bless the U.S.A." like he was Lee Greenwood's protégé. Hey, Patrick, we'll be looking for you on "American Idol" in 2011. Sorry, Rick, you're too old to be a contestant. ...
• Reader L. Steve LaDouceur was checking out Sports Illustrated's Web page devoted to Nevada in its 50-state tour of the country and noticed this gem: Our major college programs are University of Nevada-Las Vegas Rebels and University of Las Vegas-Reno Wolf Pack. Yikes! As if Reno doesn't already have a small-town complex. ...
• UNLV right fielder Eric Nielsen had five home runs and 15 RBIs in four games last weekend against Utah? Nielsen, the Mountain West Conference Player of the Week, continues to enhance his chances of being named Mountain West Conference Player of the Year. ...
• The mothers of three Colorado football players have asked Gov. Bill Owens to apologize for saying the school's football recruiting scandal -- involving alcohol supplied to minors and the alleged rape of coeds -- was an embarrassment to the state. Owens immediately said he was sorry and explained that what he meant to say was the Buffaloes' 3-5 Big 12 record and 5-7 overall mark last season were an embarrassment to the state. ...
• Permit us one final "rave" today, the greatest "rave" we will ever print here: For 37 years, Review-Journal boxing writer Royce Feour exemplified what a journalist -- not just a sports journalist but any journalist -- should be about. He was honest, fair, hard-working and committed to excellence. His work was always about you, the reader, and there was never a day that Feour didn't bring his "A" game. We learned a lot at his knee over the past 26 years, and for that we say, "Thank you, Royce. You are the best!"
horse is a horse, of course, of course, unless it's Kentucky Derby and Preakness winner Smarty Jones -- then it's a sure thing to become the first horse in 26 years to win its sport's Triple Crown. Don't believe us? "Rants & Raves' " resident psychic and hack scribe, Hawkadamus, guarantees it:
• So maybe Hawkadamus hasn't always been right on with his predictions. Oh-kaaaay, so maybe he never has been right with a prediction. But just like Smarty Jones broke the Sports Illustrated cover jinx by winning the Preakness on Saturday, so too shall the fleet-hooved wundercolt snap the Hawkadamus hex by winning the Belmont in three weeks and claiming horse racing's esteemed Triple Crown. You can take that to the race book window. ...
• Hawkadamus is feeling lucky today, or, hey, maybe he just has a death wish. But the High Priest of Prognostications says it doesn't matter whether it's the Minnesota Timberwolves or the Sacramento Kings that advance to the NBA's Western Conference finals this week, the Los Angeles Lakers are a L-O-C-K to win the best-of-7 series and go to the league finals. He says it, of course, then he runs like hell. ...
• The expansion Nashville (Tenn.) Rhythm of the ill-reconceived American Basketball Association has a female general manager and, as of Monday, a female head coach. The Rhythm named Ashley McElhiney, a two-time All-Southeastern Conference player at Vanderbilt, to be the first female head coach of a men's professional basketball team. Just wondering, but do you think the team's style of play will be known as the Rhythm method? ...
• There's a lot about the Arena Football League to like, and that doesn't count the hometown Gladiators' late-season Lazarus imitation in going from 3-7 to 7-7. Played on a 50-yard field, the game action is hard-hitting and high-energy. But, cripes, if those flags thrown on almost every play don't become annoying after about, uh, the first half of the first quarter. The league had better review its rules, its players' knowledge of them or rein in its flag-flippin' zebras if it doesn't want to turn off those newcomers it's trying to turn on. ...
• The Gladiators need serious work done on their ancillary in-house entertainment. (Folks, try taking a page from those innovative minds running Wranglers' hockey games.) But we give the AFL franchise props for a dynamite doubleheader of pregame singing Sunday. KVBC-TV sportscaster Rick Strasser was outstanding on the national anthem, and that was with the tough task of following deep-throated 9-year-old Patrick Dorson, a student at Lomie G. Heard Elementary School who cranked out "God Bless the U.S.A." like he was Lee Greenwood's protégé. Hey, Patrick, we'll be looking for you on "American Idol" in 2011. Sorry, Rick, you're too old to be a contestant. ...
• Reader L. Steve LaDouceur was checking out Sports Illustrated's Web page devoted to Nevada in its 50-state tour of the country and noticed this gem: Our major college programs are University of Nevada-Las Vegas Rebels and University of Las Vegas-Reno Wolf Pack. Yikes! As if Reno doesn't already have a small-town complex. ...
• UNLV right fielder Eric Nielsen had five home runs and 15 RBIs in four games last weekend against Utah? Nielsen, the Mountain West Conference Player of the Week, continues to enhance his chances of being named Mountain West Conference Player of the Year. ...
• The mothers of three Colorado football players have asked Gov. Bill Owens to apologize for saying the school's football recruiting scandal -- involving alcohol supplied to minors and the alleged rape of coeds -- was an embarrassment to the state. Owens immediately said he was sorry and explained that what he meant to say was the Buffaloes' 3-5 Big 12 record and 5-7 overall mark last season were an embarrassment to the state. ...
• Permit us one final "rave" today, the greatest "rave" we will ever print here: For 37 years, Review-Journal boxing writer Royce Feour exemplified what a journalist -- not just a sports journalist but any journalist -- should be about. He was honest, fair, hard-working and committed to excellence. His work was always about you, the reader, and there was never a day that Feour didn't bring his "A" game. We learned a lot at his knee over the past 26 years, and for that we say, "Thank you, Royce. You are the best!"
