Weekly Sporties

-The day after the NFL regular season ends has come to be known as "Black Monday" because that is the day most NFL coaches are fired. This year was particularly dark because 7 NFL coaches (Kansas City, Chicago, San Diego, Buffalo, Arizona, Cleveland, Philadelphia) and 2 more general managers (San Diego, NY Jets) were let go before the day was over. Most of the firings were expected and warranted. Now, as you would expect these coaches were fired because they weren't winning enough and their teams are kind of a mess. But, of all the messes, which one is the most attractive? The coaching searches have already begun in earnest (and one my have already ended, as it looks like Andy Reid will be taking over the Chiefs), so I figure I would help a couple of these coaching candidates to pick a new landing spot. If I had my choice I would go to Chicago. Yes, they are in a tough division with Adrian Peterson and the Vikings as well as Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers. Even the Lions, who appeared to have returned to their dysfunctional ways after one year as a competent franchise, can be very frisky. But that division is no tougher than the ones Buffalo, Arizona and Philadelphia are in and the Bears have the most weapons at the ready. If you take the Bears job you have an amazing defense to work with and a quarterback who appears to have all the technical skills if not the social ones. You can argue that San Diego has just as many weapons, but that window appears to be closing a lot faster. Of course, there are higher expectations in Chicago, as evidence by the fact they fired a coach who won 10 games this year. But wouldn't you rather win in a place that will appreciate it, versus Arizona where they may not notice if the Cowboys are also having a good season? When you add up all the factors I think the Bears job is the best one currently available, so whomever gets it should know they lucked out.

-I have to say, one of the most interesting things to watch is how fans react to getting a new coach because it can serve as a good reminder of just how unrealistic fan expectations can be sometimes. As I mentioned, reports have Andy Reid already in place as the new head coach of the Kansas City Chiefs. While the last couple of seasons haven't gone well for him in Philadelphia there is no denying the fact that Reid was the best coach the Eagles ever had so the competition for his services was pretty fierce. You would think after a lineage of Herm Edwards, Todd Haley and Romeo Crennel the Kansas City fans would be ecstatic to welcome a coach with a winning pedigree into the organization. However, a lot of Chief fans appear unhappy with the hire due to Reid's reputation of not being able to win the big game. They are quick to point that Reid only won 1 of the 5 NFC Championship games he went to, even though he probably had the better team every time. I would reply by reminding them the last playoff game the Chiefs won happened 20 years ago and featured Joe Montana handing off to Marcus Allen. Is Andy Reid going to win you a Super Bowl? Maybe, but probably not. Is he going to get the franchise headed in the right direction, win 8-12 games a year, consistently get you into the playoffs and occasionally make some noise once he gets you there? Yep and given the current state of the Kansas City Chiefs that should be seen as nirvana. Sometimes admitting who you are and lowering your short-term expectations is the first step in reaching your ultimate destination. I know the Super Bowl is every fans final goal, but even in the quick turnaround world of the NFL you have to be able to crawl before you can run.

-One guy who won't be heading to the NFL is Penn State head coach Bill O'Brien. After taking over the job in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal and the NCAA sanctions which came with it, most people expected O'Brien and the Nittany Lions to crater this season. However, O'Brien held them together and the team won 8 games. As you can imagine, keeping them focused under those circumstances impressed quite a few people and O'Brien's name came up for several of the open NFL jobs, Cleveland in particular. But after interviewing with the Browns, O'Brien withdrew his name from consideration and reaffirmed his allegiance to Penn State. I have to say, while I admire his loyalty (I'm sure the raise he got probably helped) I'm not sure it was the best career move. There is no doubt Penn State had a better season than most people expected. However, they were led by a talented group of upperclassmen who stayed with the school through the scandal even though they knew they would not be bowl eligible. There is no guarantee O'Brien will be able to convince an equally talented group of kids to keep coming to College Station without the prospect bowl games for another 3 years. And if he can't bring in recruits he will find himself waiting to rebuild until after the sanctions expire, which means he won't be getting back to this point for several years. In other words, it is going to get a lot worse before it gets any better and I'm not sure his name with be able to withstand that much losing. Climbing the coaching ladder is all about striking while your name is hot and I'm not sure O'Brien's name will ever be this hot again. Loyalty is great, but not if it costs you the only chance you're going to have to be an NFL head coach.

-A few weeks ago I told you about a growing divide between the Houston Rockets and forward Royce White. White has famously battled anxiety issues for most of his life, including a severe fear of flying and has publicly begun to wonder if the Rockets have his best interest in mind, accusing them of not listening to his doctors and initially refused to accept an assignment to their Developmental League team. Well, after a few weeks of relative quiet and a couple practices with the Rio Grande Valley Vipers, White is once again refusing to join the team, calling the situation "unsafe". There are some who wonder if White's real problem is that he doesn't want to play in the D-League, while just as many people are sympathetic to his plight and question if the Rockets have the medical staff to handle these issues. Complicating this matter is the strange clause which states that to be treated by an NBA team's medical staff you have to actually be on that team, meaning White can only see the Rockets' doctors as long as he is with Houston and not Rio Grande. Obviously, the Rockets would prefer to use that roster space on someone who will actually come to games, so they are in a bit of a pickle. This would seem a simple enough fix, yet the NBA appears to be in no hurry to amend this bylaw to something which says the medical staff can see anyone who is under contract with the team, regardless of their current roster status. (Commissioner David Stern was too busy yelling about NBA teams in Europe by 2020, which no one but him wants.) But even if they come to some kind of agreement, I still don't see this working out in the long-term for White and the Rockets. I think there have just been too many things said in both directions for the trust ever to come back. You know, the Rockets have been at the forefront of bringing advance statistical analysis to the NBA but these problems with White just goes to show you that even in this day of advanced scouting techniques, there is no way to measure what goes on inside someone's head.

-When Jim Calhoun took an extended leave of absence last season to deal with health issues, everyone knew it was pretty much the end of his tenure with Connecticut. The combination of age, poor health and looming NCAA sanctions was pushing him out the door. However, he held off on announcing his retirement until late September because he had been clashing with the school's new President, Susan Herbst, regarding his replacement. Calhoun thought he had earned the right to name his successor and wanted his assistant Kevin Ollie to get the job, whereas President Herbst wanted to take the program in a new direction. By waiting until essentially the last minutes, Calhoun left the school without enough time to do a proper coaching search and Ollie got the job, though it appeared to be given to him rather begrudgingly. To publicly distance themselves from the hire, Connecticut was only willing to give Ollie a one-year contract. Since UConn is facing a postseason ban due to poor graduation rates and several players either transferred or decommitted because of that, many people thought UConn would stumble through a down season, Ollie would be fired and the school's new Athletic Director could hire his own coach. Well, a funny thing happened on the way to that plan - it appears Kevin Ollie may actually be good at his job. UConn is currently 10-3 and while they haven't exactly played a murder's-row of teams, that is still a better record than anyone expected the Huskies to have at this point and it includes an upset of then-#14 Michigan State. So, this week Ollie was rewarded with a 5-year contract extension. Not bad for a guy who only has only been on the job for about two months. Moral of this story - when it comes to the basketball program, maybe you should trust the guy who has been coaching there for 30 years.

-A few months ago I mentioned that there was a storm brewing for World #1 golfer Rory McIlroy. As a lot of people know, golf is back in the Olympics for the first time in 100 years. Since McIlroy is from Northern Ireland he has the option of playing for either Ireland or Great Britain and even though the Olympics aren't for another 3 years, people want to know who he plans to play for now. As you can imagine, it does not appear to be an easy choice for McIlroy since this is an emotional issue and no matter which side he chooses there are going to be some hurt feelings. Well, suddenly it looks like his choice could be to not make any choice at all, as this week Rory revealed he is thinking about skipping the Olympics altogether. Personally, I think that would be too bad. Rory is one of the brightest stars the game of golf has and is poised to become one of the most popular athletes on the planet. For him to miss a competition like this would be a shame. Also, it is important to remember that golf is only back in the Olympics on a trial basis. Whether it survives to see a second Summer Games will depend largely on how well things go in Rio and seeing as how they are already having issues with whether or not the course will be ready in time, the chance the player who will probably be the sports biggest draw by the time 2016 rolls around may skip the event because it is too much of a hassle would really hurt the chances of golf sticking around. I know there is still plenty of time before we get there and the chance to be the only golfer with a gold medal may be too tempting for McIlroy to pass up. Of course, he could avoid picking sides and just decide to play for America. Sure, he has no actual ties to this country, but people fudge allegiances all the time to be in the Olympics. I'm sure we could find some relative who is an America to make it legit enough for the Olympic Committee's low standards. If nothing else the threat of Rory playing for America may be enough to get people in England and Ireland to come to some sort of compromise.

-When I was working at Gillette, we would often be at the stadium during Revolution games and wonder what happens to all the little soccer fans when they grew up. Because while the MLS has always been very popular with kids since it first arrived 20 years ago, it doesn't appear as though those kids stay as fans when they get older. At some point they simply stop following the sport and we could never figure out why. Apparently FIFA President Sepp Blatter has been wondering the same thing, because he recently blasted the MLS for its lack of growth. However, while I think the problem is that there just aren't enough American stars who stick around the league in their prime, Blatter has a different theory and it has to do with the schedule. He wants the MLS to shift away from their current format of playing from March to October and coincide with the Premier League season which runs from August to May, thinking that the league would be better served by playing during "soccer season". Allow me to explain to Blatter why he is an idiot. If you are trying to capture the attention of a casual sports fan, starting your league at the same time that the NFL is kicking off is a really idiotic business plan. On top of that he wants to wrap up the season at the same time as the NBA and (allegedly) NHL playoffs will be underway, also known as the only time casual fans pay attention to those leagues. So, Blatter's plan is essentially to go away from only having to compete with baseball during the summer to having to compete with three different leagues in the winter and spring. Oh, and let's not forget how lovely the weather is in places like Seattle and Vancouver in January, which are some of the few places the MLS is thriving. Clearly, Blatter has spent too much time in Europe if he thinks soccer would have that kind of pull over here. Also, don't forget Blatter is the same guy who essentially sold the World Cup to Qatar, so I'm not sure he is qualified to question anyone's decision making. I'm not sure what the solution to the MLS's problems are, but I know listening to anything Sepp Blatter has to say is not the answer.