So Suh Me!

The Detroit Lions for many years have been best described as a joke of a professional football team.  They are in fact the only team in NFL history to go 0-16.  Whether it was poor management or lack of talent or whatever the reason may be this team had not been relevant since Barry Sanders was breaking ankles at the old Pontiac Silverdome.  But then things changed.  They drafted WR Calvin Johnson (Megatron) with the 2nd pick in the 2007 draft. He has turned out to be a beast of a receiver and nearly unstoppable when covered man-to-man.  They then drafted their franchise QB Matthew Stafford #1 overall in the 2009 draft.  And while he has missed some time he has proven to be a good, young, and tough QB who could lead the team from mediocrity.  They followed that up by taking defensive tackle Ndamukong Suh with the 2nd pick in the 2010 draft.  As the most dominant player in college his senior year he will be the anchor for their defense for the next decade.  This three headed monster of talent has begun to turn the franchise around and they are in contention for a playoff birth for the first time since 1999.

However all the news about the Lions this season is not good news.  After getting off to a blistering start the team has come back to Earth a little bit.  And it has not been without controversy.  Most of it surrounding their star defensive tackle Suh.  In less than two full seasons he has been voted the NFL's dirtiest player.  I know it sounds funny to call anyone in this profession where men routinely try to harm/maim/kill each other dirty but there are still lines that shouldn't be crossed.  Most of his actions have been defended as he plays hard and plays with an attitude and he is setting the tone for his team and changing that losing mentality.  To this point I had agreed with those assessments.  Until the Thanksgiving day game between the Lions and the Packers.  See the video below:

Suh's actions on this play were dirty!  I understand he was probably frustrated because the Lions were losing to division rival Green Bay and at no point were really in this game.  And the officials were right in ejecting him.  None of what happened to this point was surprising.  What should have happened next is when he was interviewed/asked about it post game he should have said "I apologize for my actions, I was frustrated and let the emotions of the game get the better of me".  Instead he actually tried to explain away his actions by saying he was "held down" by the Packers lineman and that he pushed his leg down to "get myself out of the situation".  Seriously?!?

The good news for Ndamukong is that he won't be sued or Suh'd,  instead he will be fined and suspended, probably 2 games by Commissioner Roger Goodell.  The bad news is all eyes will now be on him and any questionable activity will almost certainly draw the attention of officials and of the league.   Looks like Steelers LB James Harrison is off the hook and can put his check book away.  I expect Suh will now be the new face of how the NFL wants to clean up the game by fining players for dirty play.

Gobble Gobble

No post this week as I have been working on getting the podcast up and going.  You can check it out at www.bot4q.posterous.com.  You can also go to the facebook page Bottom Of The 4th Quarter for links to the podcast as well as submit topics for discussion there.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Moment of Silence

Sports for most people are an escape from the real world.  It allows us to forget what's really going on out there and lose ourselves in the game for a few hours.  It is because of this that we tend to think of the people involved, whether it be coaches or athletes or any team personal, as almost invincible.  We forget that they are human and therefore subject to the same potential tragedies that affect people around the world daily.

A plane crash killed the head coach of Oklahoma State University's women's basketball team, along with an assistant coach and 2 other passengers early Friday morning.  This is a tragedy and my thoughts and prayers go out to the OSU family and the family and friends of the deceased.  This is especially devastating because nearly 10 years ago the OSU men's basketball team lost 10 of it's members including players, coaches, and team personal in a plane crash.  I can't imagine the pain that community is going through in having to relive such a horrible accident now that it has happened again.

Hundreds of pro, college, and amateur teams travel by plane daily.  I have often said it amazes me that we don't see more tragedy involving teams and their travel.  Never did I think that one program would ever be affected by multiple plane crashes, not only in my lifetime, but in less than a decade.  If you pray, please pray for those that were lost and for the OSU community as they try to pick up the pieces again after this devastating and truly tragic accident.

November Madness?!?

Today is the defacto beginning of the college basketball season and like many of you I couldn't be happier.  With the NBA locked out this is the only basketball you will see for the near future, a fact I don't mind at all.  I also hope that the games will take our mind off of some of the ugliness that is going on in the world or sports.

The biggest game of note tonight is the game being played between UNC and Michigan State.  The "Carrier Classic" as it is being called will be played on the USS Carl Vinson.  No better tribute could be paid here on Veteran's Day.  Let some of our men and women of the armed forces relax and enjoy what we hope will be an excellent basketball game between two marquee programs.  Happy Veteran's Day to all who have served and a heart felt thank you to all those who continue to protect our freedom.

Also the UConn Huskies will begin defense of their national title tonight.  As a former Husky I am excited to see how the freshmen mix with the returning players who were a part of perhaps the most magical run through the tournament we have seen probably since NC State's run in 1983.  Celebrate tonight as the banner is hung before the game boys then focus and let's start the run toward back to back titles.  U-C-O-N-N...UCONN, UCONN, UCONN!

NCAA ACTION......IT'S FANTASTIC!  OK so I stole that from the NBA!

I Just Can't Find The Words.

As more details come to light surrounding the child molestation scandal at Penn State I become more and more disgusted and can't even find words to express the disappointment I feel in humankind because of it.  I will not go over all that has been released as anyone of you who read this blog is already aware of what is going on since this has been the biggest sports story since Saturday.

All I will say is this. The university officials including any coaches who knew anything about this, and we still may find out more in the coming weeks, should no longer be employed by Penn State effective immediately.  Their failure to notify authorities in my eyes makes them accomplices and they should all end up in the State Pen along side the child molester they enabled.