This is a video put together by a local Tiger fan. Show him some love.
I'll be back to posting soon. I'm still sobering up from Tuesday night.
Thursday, November 6, 2008
Monday, November 3, 2008
After Six...
If LeBron James doesn't win the NBA MVP this season, he deserves the MVP of sports marketing at the very least. The LeBrons commercials were always hilarious and this new video is outstanding.
(snap.)
(snap.)
Please Eats Tons of Animals...
Over the past few days, the media has been abuzz over Chris Massie 2.0 and his contract with Coach Cal that requires him to lose 75 pounds if he wants to play for the Tigers. News stations have been revealing Niles in his various states of exercise, diet and struggle. Cal calls this contract more of an "intervention" than a simple deal to play ball. While I agree that reaching your mid-20s below the 300 pound mark is an admirable goal, I can't help but have visions of Jesse Jackson storming to Memphis, shooting turkey legs from the half-time t-shirt cannons. I digress.
If I were in Niles' (giant, overwhelmed) shoes, I would feel pretty raw that the most local news I've had in my career was over the story of me trying to lose weight. Niles' feeding frenzy has even reached a national status, with PETA stepping in to allow their glorious voices of reason to be heard.
Legend has it that PETA saw the Full Court Press video series that Rivals.com and Yahoo produced and took "concerned" notice of Niles' predicament. They took it upon themselves to contact Niles with their suggestions.
PETA's rampant futility is highlighted in the following line: While lots of grease might be required to tame Coach Calipari’s hair, choking down greasy chicken and ribs just makes people fat and causes heart disease. Let's be honest here. If I'm picking teams, Cal's hair is coming with me and PETA is going down. His hair alone is responsible for 2-3 conference wins per season.
Furthermore, let me dissect the previous statement from PETA to prove how mind-numbingly useless that organization is. This is a company who is seeking to made a national headline for themselves by profiteering off a young man who is struggling with his weight. Beyond the lame joke about Cal's hair, PETA warns Niles about the inherent dangers of greasy chicken and ribs. In that vein, I can think of a few other issues that might warrant greater attention from the PETA people.
Exhibit A:
Our own coach serves more steaks in one night than Niles eats in... a month? 6 months? Regardless, let's weigh the options... Niles' diet? or.... CAL'S STEAKHOUSE.
Exhibit B:
We know you're all big fans of the Full Court Press videos. So, why would you prefer to harass Niles about his weight than rescue what was a forest full of helpless minks?
Exhibit C-E:
PETA, you do realize you're talking to someone from Memphis, correct? Let me give you a quick run down of the spots Niles passes on his way to the gym.
You really expect Niles to give up meat? Just give it up? The final tally here is 280 KFCs, 575 hot wing stops and a meager 1015 BBQ joints here in the greater Memphis area. This is beyond a kid in a candy shop. This is a frat guy in a sorority house. This is a Republican in ANWAR. This is a Democrat in an unemployment office. Brotha's gonna eat meat at some point or another. If you really wanna help, send brotha some Tums and go back to taking pictures of young, mindless activists.
If I were in Niles' (giant, overwhelmed) shoes, I would feel pretty raw that the most local news I've had in my career was over the story of me trying to lose weight. Niles' feeding frenzy has even reached a national status, with PETA stepping in to allow their glorious voices of reason to be heard.
Legend has it that PETA saw the Full Court Press video series that Rivals.com and Yahoo produced and took "concerned" notice of Niles' predicament. They took it upon themselves to contact Niles with their suggestions.
PETA's rampant futility is highlighted in the following line: While lots of grease might be required to tame Coach Calipari’s hair, choking down greasy chicken and ribs just makes people fat and causes heart disease. Let's be honest here. If I'm picking teams, Cal's hair is coming with me and PETA is going down. His hair alone is responsible for 2-3 conference wins per season.
Furthermore, let me dissect the previous statement from PETA to prove how mind-numbingly useless that organization is. This is a company who is seeking to made a national headline for themselves by profiteering off a young man who is struggling with his weight. Beyond the lame joke about Cal's hair, PETA warns Niles about the inherent dangers of greasy chicken and ribs. In that vein, I can think of a few other issues that might warrant greater attention from the PETA people.
Exhibit A:
Our own coach serves more steaks in one night than Niles eats in... a month? 6 months? Regardless, let's weigh the options... Niles' diet? or.... CAL'S STEAKHOUSE.Exhibit B:
We know you're all big fans of the Full Court Press videos. So, why would you prefer to harass Niles about his weight than rescue what was a forest full of helpless minks?Exhibit C-E:
PETA, you do realize you're talking to someone from Memphis, correct? Let me give you a quick run down of the spots Niles passes on his way to the gym.
You really expect Niles to give up meat? Just give it up? The final tally here is 280 KFCs, 575 hot wing stops and a meager 1015 BBQ joints here in the greater Memphis area. This is beyond a kid in a candy shop. This is a frat guy in a sorority house. This is a Republican in ANWAR. This is a Democrat in an unemployment office. Brotha's gonna eat meat at some point or another. If you really wanna help, send brotha some Tums and go back to taking pictures of young, mindless activists.
Saturday, November 1, 2008
El Capitan...
I hope no one was confused by the endless amount of compliments given to Cal by his players. Friends first, teammates second... Cal, the father figure and the genius... Cal, the bail bondsman... While part of Cal may be sugary sweet, there's another side to Cal that pries into the minds of his players, shines a light on their every weakness and forces them to plow through that weakness.
This is the father figure Cal. This is the practice coach Cal. This is National Championship Coach Cal.
Part II to appear next week.
Thursday, October 30, 2008
Hittin the Links (10/31/08)...
SI.com has a little follow up to The Game of Which We Will Not Speak. Bitter taste, indeed, Dozier.
SportingNews.com conducted a Q&A with Coach Cal. Cal talks about reloading, the importance of our defense and the talent in NCAA basketball this year. Cal believes that everyone (except UNC) is a little bit worse this year. That statement will come back to bite him. He's referring to team's on a national level and I agree with him on that. However, the CUSA has made strides recently and the Tigers should keep an eye on the other CUSAers.
Gary Parrish is showing some love to the cream of the non-BCS crop. Adding more fuel to the February 7th fire, he placed the Zags 1st in the non-BCS pool, followed by the Tigers. Must be the excessive hair product seeping into his brain. Nonetheless, it's a good list, especially considering three CUSA teams made the cut. I like that call.
Mike Miller from msnbc.com gives some nice insight into the 3-point line change. Considering the Tigers have shot about 35% in recent years, expect that number to dip a bit. This will force the team to create some shots, get to the hoop and rely more on the big men. Cal could care less where the line is. Nonetheless, it's a good article with a few good links.
Goodman at FOX lists his Top 20 Freshmen here. He has Tyreke at #4. While Tyreke obviously will be #1, he'll be followed closely by Holliday, DeRozan and Shumpert. All the kids on this list are skilled, but these four guys are in the best situation to make the most of their time.
Old Man Roberts... Everyone at Memphis loves CDR, not because he was flashy like Rose, physically dominant like Dorsey, or slick like Cal. No, we loved CDR for his old-man game.
Lastly, I leave with the greatest sports headline that I've read this year. It needs no introduction, but it needs a lot of explanation... "Singletary dropped pants at halftime to make point to 49ers." I don't want to hear about anyone making any kind of point with his pants down.
SportingNews.com conducted a Q&A with Coach Cal. Cal talks about reloading, the importance of our defense and the talent in NCAA basketball this year. Cal believes that everyone (except UNC) is a little bit worse this year. That statement will come back to bite him. He's referring to team's on a national level and I agree with him on that. However, the CUSA has made strides recently and the Tigers should keep an eye on the other CUSAers.
Gary Parrish is showing some love to the cream of the non-BCS crop. Adding more fuel to the February 7th fire, he placed the Zags 1st in the non-BCS pool, followed by the Tigers. Must be the excessive hair product seeping into his brain. Nonetheless, it's a good list, especially considering three CUSA teams made the cut. I like that call.
Mike Miller from msnbc.com gives some nice insight into the 3-point line change. Considering the Tigers have shot about 35% in recent years, expect that number to dip a bit. This will force the team to create some shots, get to the hoop and rely more on the big men. Cal could care less where the line is. Nonetheless, it's a good article with a few good links.
Goodman at FOX lists his Top 20 Freshmen here. He has Tyreke at #4. While Tyreke obviously will be #1, he'll be followed closely by Holliday, DeRozan and Shumpert. All the kids on this list are skilled, but these four guys are in the best situation to make the most of their time.
Old Man Roberts... Everyone at Memphis loves CDR, not because he was flashy like Rose, physically dominant like Dorsey, or slick like Cal. No, we loved CDR for his old-man game.
Lastly, I leave with the greatest sports headline that I've read this year. It needs no introduction, but it needs a lot of explanation... "Singletary dropped pants at halftime to make point to 49ers." I don't want to hear about anyone making any kind of point with his pants down.Tigers #12 in the ESPN/USA Today Poll...
Staying pretty consistent with the other preseason polls, the ESPN/USA Today poll has Memphis ranked #12. We fared a little better than the Gayhawks, as they come in at #23.
With these opening rankings, the Tigers streak of remaining in the Top 25 has run to 61 consecutive weeks, matching UCLA for the longest active streaks.
Memphis is, of course, the only CUSA team present in the preseason rankings. Sadly, our old foes Loserville and Marquette have made a preseason appearance. I hate the CUSA.
With these opening rankings, the Tigers streak of remaining in the Top 25 has run to 61 consecutive weeks, matching UCLA for the longest active streaks.
| 1. North Carolina (31) 0-0 775 |
| 2. Connecticut 0-0 707 |
| 3. Louisville 0-0 694 |
| 4. UCLA 0-0 650 |
| 5. Duke 0-0 578 |
| 6. Pittsburgh 0-0 576 |
| 7. Michigan State 0-0 572 |
| 8. Texas 0-0 538 |
| 9. Notre Dame 0-0 525 |
| 10. Purdue 0-0 465 |
| 11. Gonzaga 0-0 437 |
| 12. Memphis 0-0 425 |
| 13. Tennessee 0-0 408 |
| 14. Oklahoma 0-0 387 |
| 15. Arizona State 0-0 304 |
| 16. Miami (FL) 0-0 233 |
| 17. Marquette 0-0 219 |
| 18. Georgetown 0-0 175 |
| 19. Florida 0-0 161 |
| 20. Davidson 0-0 158 |
| 21. USC 0-0 153 |
| 21. Wisconsin 0-0 153 |
| 23. Kansas 0-0 130 |
| 24. Wake Forest 0-0 129 |
| 25. Villanova 0-0 122 |
Others Receiving Votes UNLV 60, Saint Mary's 59, Ohio State 54, Baylor 47, Xavier 27, Syracuse 23, Texas A&M 19, LSU 19, Arizona 18, Virginia Tech 15, Brigham Young 13, West Virginia 10, Washington 8, Siena 8, Kentucky 7, Vanderbilt 7, Oklahoma State 4, Clemson 2, Washington State 1. |
Memphis is, of course, the only CUSA team present in the preseason rankings. Sadly, our old foes Loserville and Marquette have made a preseason appearance. I hate the CUSA.
Memphis and the Incredible Calipari Nonconference Extravanganza!
Brace yourselves. If you haven't been to the bathroom in a while, go now and return asap. We don't want any accidents. Are you ready for this, Tiger fans?
In an interview on AM 560 in Memphis this morning, John Calipari singlehandedly caused Memphis basketball fans everywhere to start dancing in the streets and speaking in tongues. On the radio with Dave Woloshin, Cal dropped a BOMB on Memphis fans.
Memphis has reached (what Cal calls) verbal agreements to play a home-and-home series with both North Carolina and Duke.
Is this for real? It appears so. Duke fessed up to talking with Cal. The Blue Devils even want a third game in the series at a neutral Chicago site. If there's a way, Cal will play.
North Carolina's AD played hard to get, that little rascal, saying he hasn't talked to anyone from Memphis, but that Roy Williams may have. Roy has friends in the area, so it wouldn't surprise me if he's been around a bit and, in the meantime, got together with Cal. I imagine the meeting was pleasant, but ended with Roy and Cal discussing whose was bigger... egos, that is. And what do you get when your cross two members of modern basketball royalty? A precious basketball lovechild that takes the form of a home-and-home between Memphis and North Carolina.
(We may not see Psycho T or Paulus, but commit their jerseys and facial expressions to your memory.)
When, might you ask, will these blessed series commence? Cal said they could happen as early as the 2009-2010 season! Kudos to Cal for striking while Memphis' iron is blazing hot and making an effort to get these incredible series. These agreements are why Cal makes the big bucks. Cal added that the 2009-2010 nonconference schedule may end up being Duke, North Carolina, Syracuse, Tennessee, Gonzaga, Massachusetts and neutral-site games with Kansas (likely in St. Louis, a 4.5 hour trip) and Loserville (likely in Nashville, a 3 hour trip)! In case you didn't catch that last line, I'm going to write it again.
Cal added that the 2009-2010 nonconference schedule may end up being Duke, North Carolina, Syracuse, Tennessee, Gonzaga, Massachusetts and neutral-site games with Kansas and Loserville.
Granted, the deals are not in writing, but Cal says everyone has verbally agreed to the matchups. The North Carolina and Kansas series would be incredible. At this point, Duke might be lucky to get a game with us (ha). You can listen to Cal's Glorious Proclamation here. Give it a listen, because at the end of the call, Cal gives his own little State of the Union address and it's cool to hear him so pumped about the Tigers.
You can read a little more about this story at Rivals.com, here. Notice at the end of the article that Pearl talks some smack about Cal. If the Memphis-Tennessee series ever falls through, I hope they replace it with a no-holds-barred cage match between Cal and Pearl. Cal with his mafia connections, Pearl with his big orange man-breasts. It would be quite a show.
In an interview on AM 560 in Memphis this morning, John Calipari singlehandedly caused Memphis basketball fans everywhere to start dancing in the streets and speaking in tongues. On the radio with Dave Woloshin, Cal dropped a BOMB on Memphis fans.
Memphis has reached (what Cal calls) verbal agreements to play a home-and-home series with both North Carolina and Duke.
Is this for real? It appears so. Duke fessed up to talking with Cal. The Blue Devils even want a third game in the series at a neutral Chicago site. If there's a way, Cal will play.
North Carolina's AD played hard to get, that little rascal, saying he hasn't talked to anyone from Memphis, but that Roy Williams may have. Roy has friends in the area, so it wouldn't surprise me if he's been around a bit and, in the meantime, got together with Cal. I imagine the meeting was pleasant, but ended with Roy and Cal discussing whose was bigger... egos, that is. And what do you get when your cross two members of modern basketball royalty? A precious basketball lovechild that takes the form of a home-and-home between Memphis and North Carolina.
(We may not see Psycho T or Paulus, but commit their jerseys and facial expressions to your memory.)When, might you ask, will these blessed series commence? Cal said they could happen as early as the 2009-2010 season! Kudos to Cal for striking while Memphis' iron is blazing hot and making an effort to get these incredible series. These agreements are why Cal makes the big bucks. Cal added that the 2009-2010 nonconference schedule may end up being Duke, North Carolina, Syracuse, Tennessee, Gonzaga, Massachusetts and neutral-site games with Kansas (likely in St. Louis, a 4.5 hour trip) and Loserville (likely in Nashville, a 3 hour trip)! In case you didn't catch that last line, I'm going to write it again.
Cal added that the 2009-2010 nonconference schedule may end up being Duke, North Carolina, Syracuse, Tennessee, Gonzaga, Massachusetts and neutral-site games with Kansas and Loserville.
Granted, the deals are not in writing, but Cal says everyone has verbally agreed to the matchups. The North Carolina and Kansas series would be incredible. At this point, Duke might be lucky to get a game with us (ha). You can listen to Cal's Glorious Proclamation here. Give it a listen, because at the end of the call, Cal gives his own little State of the Union address and it's cool to hear him so pumped about the Tigers.
You can read a little more about this story at Rivals.com, here. Notice at the end of the article that Pearl talks some smack about Cal. If the Memphis-Tennessee series ever falls through, I hope they replace it with a no-holds-barred cage match between Cal and Pearl. Cal with his mafia connections, Pearl with his big orange man-breasts. It would be quite a show.
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