Prepare for madness
By the time you read this article, college basketball’s Championship Week will be well underway as teams try to punch their tickets into the NCAA Tournament to be a part of March Madness. Several top teams have already assured themselves of positions in the tournament with strong regular seasons, but only one team, Cornell (20-5, 12-0), is officially in after winning its first Ivy League conference title since 1988.
While some teams need to win their conference tournaments to get into the NCAA Tournament, others are looking to gain some momentum heading into arguably the most exciting sporting event of the year. As the “Big Dance” eventually begins, don’t be surprised if some pressing issues determine certain teams’ fates in crunch time.
North Carolina (28-2, 13-2) recently returned to the top of the AP rankings, but the Tar Heels will need a healthy Ty Lawson (13.0 points, 5.6 assists) to have a chance to win the title. After Lawson injured his left ankle on Feb. 3rd against Florida State, UNC convincingly lost to Duke, though they have rattled off seven wins in a row since that loss. Lawson returned on March 1st against Boston College, and he has played about 20 minutes in consecutive games. With Tyler Hansbrough leading the way, North Carolina is still able to beat down weaker opponents without Lawson at 100 percent, but they will need his quickness and playmaking abilities to take down other top teams during close games.
After starting out 11-5, Connecticut (23-7, 12-5) won 10 straight games and started to gain some recognition in the tough Big East Conference. A.J. Price and Jeff Adrien lead the Huskies with 15 points per game each, but Hasheem Thabeet is the team’s most intimidating player. At seven foot three and 263 pounds, Thabeet has the ability to dominate the paint and force other teams to change their styles of play. Averaging 10.2 points, 7.8 rebounds, and a whopping 4.4 blocks per game, Thabeet, a sophomore, will have to play strongly if the Huskies are to go far in the tournament.
Purdue certainly surprised many people in the Big Ten this year. The Boilermakers (23-7, 14-3) are led by one of the most productive freshmen in the country, Robbie Hummel. Hummel averages 11.7 points, 6.0 rebounds, and 2.6 assists, and he shoots over 50 percent from the floor. Third-year head coach Matt Painter has done an outstanding job and has his team playing well heading into the tournament.
When discussing freshmen, leaving out Michael Beasley’s name is tough to do. Beasley has dominated the Big 12 this year by averaging 26.9 points and 12.6 rebounds per game. Beasley probably won’t be returning to college next year as he more than likely will head to the NBA, but he still has the chance to lead Kansas State (19-10, 9-6) to a few wins in the NCAA Tournament. Beasley is having one of the best seasons ever for a freshman, and he may even turn out to be better than Kevin Durant, who last season became the first freshman to ever win the AP Player of the Year award. If Beasley plays like he has all season, Kansas State should be a tough matchup for anyone.
One of the most interesting teams this entire season has been Indiana. The recent dismissal of head coach Kelvin Sampson for violating NCAA regulations has placed a black cloud over the program, but the Hoosiers (25-5, 14-3) remain in second place in the Big Ten and are still ranked in the top 20. Led by freshman sensation Eric Gordon (21.3 points) and power forward D.J. White (17.0 points, 10.2 rebounds), Indiana will be sending a formidable team into the tournament. If the players and coaching staff can stay focused without Sampson running the show, the Hoosiers could definitely advance to the Sweet 16. If they can’t, they may just get bounced in the first or second round. Interim head coach Dan Dakich has his work cut out for him.
Other players to keep an eye on include Memphis’s Joey Dorsey, Derrick Rose, and Chris Douglas-Roberts, Tennessee’s Chris Lofton, Louisville’s David Padgett, Notre Dame’s Luke Harangody, UCLA’s Kevin Love and Darren Collison, Stanford’s Brook Lopez, Vanderbilt’s A.J. Ogilvy, Davidson’s Stephen Curry, VCU’s Eric Maynor, Butler’s A.J. Graves, Saint Mary’s Patrick Mills, Duke’s DeMarcus Nelson, and Texas’s D.J. Augustin.
Then again, someone else that no one thought would step up and have a big moment certainly will. That’s what makes March Madness so great.
– Matt Kremnitzer
2008 Baseball Preview
Coaches:
Guy Robertson, 1st year
Dan Sidorowicz, 4th year
Bill Shields, 3rd year
Corey Green, 1st year
Top Returners:
Andrew Speights, Sr.
Allen Peake, Sr.
Scott Eastment, So.
Joe Clark, Jr.
Brett Mitchell, Sr.
Top Newcomers:
Trevor Conner, Fr.
Ben Oberman, Fr.
Zack Lucas, Fr.
Jon Houser, Fr.
Kevin Collier, Fr.
Guy Robertson steps into his first year at Frostburg State and the thing he’s looking forward to the most this season: “Hopefully sending these seniors out on top.” His seniors are well prepared to come out on top, having made it to the NCAA tournament in both 2006 and 2007.
Seniors Allen Peake and Andrew Speights will be expected to dominate the 2008 season. Peake, named AMCC first team last season, should push for the school’s homerun record. Speights should compete with Peake for the offensive records as they are both offensive powerhouses.
The pitching staff will rally behind starter Scott Eastment, who might see come competition from freshman Trevor Conner.
Despite losing their first game 9-2 against Methodist, Robertson expects his team to be hunting for an NCAA berth near the end of the season.
The Cat’s Meow, Amber Nichols
First off, why Frostburg?
I applied a few other places, but when I came to visit here I absolutely loved it. I liked that it was a smaller school, but was close enough to civilization that I could get everything I need. It’s about 3 and half hours away from home – which is far enough away that there can’t be any surprise visits from my parents, but close enough that if I needed to go home I could. This is the first time I’m actually living on my own and the setup of the town and the way people around here operate remind me a little of home.
When did you start playing softball?
I started playing tee ball when I was 5, and when [my family] moved to Pennsylvania. I had to take two years off because they didn’t have anything but baseball until [girls] were nine. Then I started playing little league again. But competitively, not until the summer I turned 15. I was recruited to play on a travel ball team in Ohio.
What is your favorite position and why?
Without a doubt my favorite position is outfield, preferably right field. I like being in the grass and showing off my speed a little when I catch fly balls and dive and all of that. I’m left handed and my arm isn’t very strong so I was sent to right field pretty early on.
What do your team mates mean to you? Has it changed meaning now that you’re a coach?
I have met most of my best friends through softball. I know people always hear that a team is more likely to win if they all get along well, but until you really experience it, you can’t understand it. The only downside to it is that when you move onto different teams, the game isn’t the same anymore. It was really frustrating for me in college because I’ve been on a team where everyone genuinely liked each other and spent as much time together as possible. On most college teams you get the little cliques so it will be hard for me to get players to understand the game at that complete cohesion level.
How do you develop companionship with your team mates?
The best way to develop cohesion in a team is to take risks that will help you trust each other. People like to stick to what they are good at and what is comfortable to them. It’s not something that a coach can force a team to do. Players just have to be willing to give people a chance and it has to happen on its own.
Do you have any superstitions?
Sooooooo many! I believe the number four is lucky. I’m Irish so there is the whole 4 leaf clover association. I also always drank orange juice when I played. I don’t know where it started, but I never went up to bat before taking a swig of OJ. I wore the same pair of socks every game (washed of course). One time I didn’t wear them and it was the only game I didn’t have a hit in all season. I’m also very big on routine so I always made sure to do my warm ups in the same order before every game.
How is collegiate ball different from any other league or team?
I played D3 in college so I think travel ball is a little more competitive, but the greatest thing about college ball for me was the rivalries. They have been going on for so long and you don’t even know what started them, but certain games always bring out the best, or worst in players and fans. The facilities are another great aspect of playing college ball as well.
What is your favorite sports movie and why?
My all-time favorite sports movie is Hoosiers. One thing I love is that it’s a true story, but it was also one of the first to capture the idea of the underdog: it showed a coach who didn’t give up on his team. The greatest scene in that movie is when he takes them into the court before the championship game and pulls out the tape measure to show them the court is no different from their own home court.
What pumps you up for games?
Again it goes back to routine for me. I would listen to the same songs on my mp3 player before we started warming up. I never really got pumped up, though, until we did our little team huddle and ran out onto the field. Just something about sprinting out to the grass really got my adrenaline going.
How do you prepare in the off-season?
I’ll admit I didn’t do this all the time, but my senior season was by far my best season as a player and it was also the most work I ever did in the off-season. I was lifting three days a week and conditioning at least two. I had a friend that played on the baseball team and we were both pretty quick so we would run sprints together whenever we could too. Coming into the season in shape was always the most important thing to me, because it meant we didn’t have to waste practice time getting there.
What do you look forward to in your first year of coaching?
The hardest part is definitely going to be resisting the urge to actually play, but there are a lot of things I think I will enjoy. Being really general, I want to help the team win games. I want to make the team better as a whole and individuals at what they do. If I can help even one girl improve her skills and it shows in games, I’ll be happy.
Any softball “idols?” I know this is going to make me sound terrible too, but I hate actually watching softball. It makes me want to get out there and play. I could watch baseball all day long, but softball I pretty much only watch during the world series. My baseball idol though is David Justice. He played outfield for the Braves, Indians, Yankees, and A’s. Game 7 of the World Series in 96 or 97 Braves vs. Indians, he made an amazing diving catch that definitely saved the game for them, then comes up a few innings later and hits a grand slam to win the game. Ever since then I wanted to be just like him (except for the whole spousal abuse thing).
Favorite softball memory: My travel ball team was playing a tournament in Montreal over 4th of July weekend- my absolute favorite holiday. We drive up in this little tiny bus with a brand new bus driver who gets us lost. Then once we finally get there, she won’t take us anywhere but to the fields and back because she’s scared to drive. On top of that, the weather was so cold that it snowed – I was miserable. There were about 40 teams there and they had an America vs Canada All Star game. I was picked by my teammates to represent our team. It was the first night game I ever played in a stadium and the adrenaline I felt running out under the lights and all the people cheering was nothing I had ever experienced before. I did really well in the game and got voted MVP of the tournament. Then my team went on to take 4th in the tournament as well. It’s my favorite memory because it taught me that even when things are going bad, something great can happen.
The Cat’s Meow, Liesa Bohannon
How long have you been playing Field Hockey?
Since 2nd grade.
What position is your favorite? Why?
Defense, I like being the person that backs everyone else and that is always there. I get a rush of being able to stop offensive players from scoring rather than actually score.
What does your team mean to you?
They mean everything: they’re my family, my friends and people I depend on all the time – not just when I’m at school, when I’m everywhere.
How does your team develop companionship?
It really starts in pre-season, we bond over practice and the time it takes to recopperate from practice. We spend a lot of time together and for some reason – even on days off- we just spend time together.
Do you have any superstitions?
Yea, in high school I used to wear the same shorts under my kilt and I always tried to do the same thing before I do before a game we win.
How is being a college athlete different from any other league or team?
The whole experience is awesome, you get to travel around the state and area and that’s something not a lot of people get to experience. You also know that at this level, you’re playing because you love the sport and the people around you are playing for that reason too.
What is your favorite sports movie?
Hoosiers. I grew up watching it with my brother and it has that “no matter what, don’t quit” and “keep pushing whenever your down” feeling.
What pumps you up for games?
I listen to different types of music, it ranges from poppy type stuff to angry music…it’s a pretty good mix.
What do you do in the off-season?
Work out a lot and try to run constantly. I try to play, or at least do stick skills, when I can – it’s hard to wait for the season to come back around.
If you could change one rule in Field Hockey, which would it be?
I occasionally use the wrong side of the stick, but I would probably change the rule of obstruction. The rule is really a judgment call and sometimes it can be unjustly called. I just think that it shouldn’t be allowed if it is not going to be called consistently.
Have you ever played with Guys?
Yes, at the University of Maryland camp and playing them is crazy. They have so much upper body strength which gives them amazing abilities. You should see their chip shots, I was like “Ohh wow.”
What do you think about the kilts?
I think it’s funny that we still wear them, but it’s such a tradition that I forget we wear them when we actually play.
Where do you see FSU Field Hockey in 2008?
I see us having a really good future. We have a good chance of having a steady program and a great group of girls. This year we should just build off of last year and improve from a wonderful 2007 season.
Meet the Coach: Interview with FSU Women’s Lacrosse Coach Ashley Manion
Frostburg State University’s new head women’s lacrosse coach, Ashley Manion, was hired in August to lead the program. After being a four-year starter at Lehigh University and graduating in 2004, Manion was hired by Binghamton University’s athletic department to become the first full-time women’s lacrosse assistant coach in the program’s three-year history. I had the chance to ask Coach Manion a few questions about her experience in Frostburg so far and on the upcoming season that begins in March.
MK: You held a variety of duties during your time at Binghamton University, including being the recruiting coordinator, helping with fundraising activities, and obviously helping with practices. How has your performance on the field and experience on the sidelines as an assistant coach helped you prepare for your first head coaching opportunity with Frostburg State?
AM: I think that my experience at Lehigh, where I had three different head coaches in four years, helped prepare me for my first year as a head coach. By seeing three different styles of coaching, I was able to really see what I liked, what I felt worked best, and what meshed best with my vision and personality as a coach. At Lehigh my junior year, we were the number one turn-around team in all of Division I, going from 4-10 in 2002 to 10-4 in 2003. During that turn-around year, I was a starter and team captain. My leadership skills grew tremendously that season because the coach asked a lot of the players and of the captains. That season showed that if you work hard at your goals and believe you can win, you tend to accomplish more than you ever set out to.
At Binghamton, the former head coach, Emily Edmonston, did a great job of mentoring me and giving me a lot of responsibilities which allowed me to grow as a coach. I worked with the goalies, training them in proper technique and trying to increase save percentages. During my third year at Binghamton, I handled a large portion of the attack side of the ball. I was designing some of the plays and calling all the plays during games. I think being recruiting coordinator just made the transition to head coach easier in terms of being able to recruit prospective student-athletes, as I had experience in all aspect of the recruiting process.
MK: How has your personal experience at Frostburg been since you were hired in August?
AM: Since I was hired here at Frostburg, I have felt nothing but welcomed in by my team and the athletic department as a whole. The team has been extremely responsive to what I have asked them to do in practice and with putting structure into our program to build it up. The athletic department, and athletic director Mr. Troy Dell, have supported me and given me added confidence with rebuilding our Bobcat women’s lacrosse program.
MK: In 2006, you helped to lead Binghamton to an upset over American. What did you take from that win or any other notable wins during your coaching career?
AM: The upset against American was the number one upset in Division I in 2006. American was ranked in the 30s, I believe, and Binghamton was in the 80s. From that win I learned how important a good scouting report is on another team and that on any given day a team can raise up and win if they want it.
MK: Over the past three seasons, the women’s lacrosse team at Frostburg has finished with records of 7-10, 6-11, and 5-8 respectively. What goals do you have for this season?
AM: I think the most obvious goal would be to have a winning season. I think we have an excellent chance at accomplishing this looking at our game schedule and how the team is developing in practices. We will focus on specific stats this season to track our team’s successes in more than just the win/loss column. These stats include shot percentage, ground balls, draw controls, and some of the critical stats in games that tend to be the deciding factors.
MK: Three team leaders in points and goals from last season, Carly Rihard, Elisabeth Hildebrand, and Lindsay Lamont all return this season. Besides strong performances from them, which other players do you think will step in to make an impact?
AM: I am looking for Erin Morrell to step up in goal and have some huge games for us. I think we have a strong midfield, which will be our strength this season. I will look for our two senior captains, Lindsay Lamont and Carly Rihard, to lead us on the field and in the midfield. I think all of our midfielders that will be starting will have huge contributions this year, whether or not that means in goals. They each play an integral part in accomplishing success this season. On the defensive side of the ball, two sophomores will help Erin direct the defense, and they are Davia Procida and Marissa Henderson.
– Matt Kremnitzer
Renting an inactive All-Star
After contemplating a return with different teams such as the Detroit Pistons and the L.A. Lakers, Chris Webber officially signed with the Golden State Warriors on Tuesday. The Warriors hope that he will be ready to play in early February or after the All-Star break in the middle of the month.
Although his role on the team will not officially be determined until he gets back on the court, Webber will probably land a starting role at center in the second half of the season as the Warriors push for a playoff spot. In the crowded Western Conference, the Warriors are currently 28-19, which is good enough for eighth place.
Webber faced an interesting choice last season when he was waived by the Philadelphia 76ers after only 18 games. Webber sat back and went through his options, and he eventually chose to join a very strong Pistons team right around the second half of the season.
Starting at center for 42 out of 43 games, Webber averaged 11.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 3 assists during the regular season for the Pistons. The Pistons, the number one seed, advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals to face the Cleveland Cavaliers, who eventually prevailed in six games due to the outstanding play of LeBron James. Webber contributed 9.9 points, 6.3 rebounds, and 1.5 assists during the playoffs.
Webber, at the time of his signing by the Pistons, seemed like an ideal fit for the team. He had the ability to play solid defense and hit mid-range jump shots. He was also still one of the best passing big men of all-time. He played well at times and gave the Pistons another talented frontcourt player.
But with his recent decision to join the Warriors, an up-tempo team that always looks to run and push the ball, Webber’s contributions may be limited.
Webber turns 35 in March, and his most athletic years are behind him. In his recent stints with the 76ers and the Pistons, Webber played in slow-tempo offenses. Only time will tell how well he can adjust to Don Nelson’s style with the Warriors.
In most cases, when athletes get older, they usually start to break down and are not able to do the same things they could do when they were younger. Webber has lost some of his athleticism, which is something that the Warriors thrive on.
The top eight players on the Warriors, in no particular order, are as follows: Baron Davis, Monta Ellis, Stephen Jackson, Al Harrington, Andris Biedrins, Kelenna Azubuike, Matt Barnes, and Mickael Pietrus. Each of these eight can play a large amount of minutes if needed, and with the exception of Biedrins, all of them are interchangeable at different positions. They can all run the floor and are excellent in an up-tempo game. Webber’s addition will take away minutes from some of these eight players, which could possibly alter how the Warriors play when he is in the game.
Obviously, though, Don Nelson and the Warriors’ front office are simply making a move that they feel is right for the team. They think that a talented player like Webber can help push them over the top. Usually, though, teams do not bring an inactive player into their organization in the middle of the season, especially when they are already doing so well.
While Webber’s return may not seem like such a big deal, the same can not be said for the last few years of Roger Clemens’s career. Choosing to retire in 2003 after playing with the New York Yankees for several seasons, Clemens instead decided to play for the Houston Astros in his native state of Texas. The Astros paid Clemens enormous amounts of money, and he rewarded them by putting up excellent numbers in 2004 (18-4, 2.98 ERA, 218 Ks, Cy Young winner) and 2005 (13-8, 1.87 ERA, 185 Ks).
Led by timely hitting and the excellent pitching of Clemens, Roy Oswalt, and Brad Lidge, the Astros reached their first World Series. Unfortunately for Clemens and the team, the Chicago White Sox swept the series.
After the season Clemens again said that he would retire and that he was done pitching in the MLB. Not many people were surprised when they found out that Clemens was interested in returning in the middle of the 2006 season.
Because the Astros had declined arbitration on Clemens, he could not be signed until May. After either deciding which team he would rather play with or wrestling with the idea of actually retiring, Clemens came back to the Astros in June and stayed for the rest of the season. Clemens, as usual, posted a solid 2.30 ERA, but the team won only seven of his 19 starts. The Astros finished 82-80 in 2006 and missed the postseason.
Shockingly enough, Clemens retired again — but not really. Amid another dose of annual speculation that he would return to the league, he eventually did. At a Yankees game on May 6, Clemens, then 44 years old, announced to the Yankees’ home crowd that he would be coming back to play in New York.
What Clemens did not tell the fans that day was that the Yankees would be paying him around $18.5 million dollars for the rest of the 2007 season — almost $4.5 million per month and over one million per start.
ESPN and other sports channels found themselves unable to stop talking about Clemens’s return to New York. They repeatedly pondered how well he would perform, and they speculated just how great the team would be with him. They even televised his first start back in the minor leagues with the Class-A Tampa Yankees, and they broke down his performances against minor league hitters. John Kruk could hardly contain his excitement.
Unfortunately for the Yankees, Clemens finally hit a bump in the road and did not pitch that well when he returned to the majors. He compiled a 4.18 ERA, but he finished 6-6 and the Yankees won just six of his 17 starts. For the whole circus he caused, his performance did not live up to the hype or the huge salary.
When bringing in an extremely talented player in the middle of the season or after retirement, teams need to make sure the move actually makes sense. Chris Webber’s return to Golden State does not make sense on the surface, especially since his various skills, besides his passing, do not seem like they will mesh well with the other players on the floor. But they could — no one saw Don Nelson leading his eight-seeded Warriors over the Mavericks last year in the first round.
Similarly, many baseball analysts figured that Clemens’s return to New York would help push the Yankees over the top. It did not, and they lost in the first round to the Cleveland Indians.
Sometimes teams should think a little bit more instead of just trying to make a bold move. Sure, these are just two examples of many in sports over the years, especially since athletes in many sports often can not cope with leaving the competition and glory behind.
But in the end, unless Michael Jordan is coming back from retirement wearing number 45, who knows exactly what a team is going to get?
– Matt Kremnitzer
Nightmare ending for Favre and the Packers
After Lawrence Tynes missed his second field goal chance in a row in the fourth quarter to try and give the Giants the lead, the Packers seemed destined to head to the Super Bowl.
Not surprisingly, they won the coin toss and appeared ready to march down the field and steal the game from the Giants.
Unfortunately for the Packers, though, Brett Favre wasn’t up to the task in overtime. His second interception of the night, this one to Corey Webster, put the Giants in position for a third attempt for Tynes, and this time he didn’t miss.
Before the NFC Championship loss, Favre’s play had been one of the highlights of the season. He seemed rejuvenated as he led the Packers to a 13-3 regular season mark. Favre threw for 4,155 yards and 28 touchdowns. He cut down on his interceptions and threw 15 of them, down three for 2006 and down 14 from 2005. He also managed to complete 66.5% of his passes, the most during his career, while also averaging a career-high 7.8 yards per pass attempt. His quarterback rating of 95.7 was his highest since 1996, when the Packers went on to defeat the Patriots in the Super Bowl.
As Favre continued his inspired play, others stepped up around him. Ryan Grant, who was traded to the Packers from the Giants earlier this season, emerged from obscurity to steady the Green Bay rushing attack, and receivers like Greg Jennings and James Jones allowed the Packers to spread the field in five wide receiver sets. The defense also improved tremendously, led by the play of cornerbacks Charles Woodson and Pro-Bowl selection Al Harris.
But what had been so successful for the Packers during the regular season left them when they needed it most. Grant rushed 13 times for a meager 29 yards. Jennings caught just one pass for 14 yards. James failed to record a reception. And Harris, shadowing Plaxico Burress for most of the night, was beaten time after time as Burress caught 11 passes for 154 yards.
Favre seemed to put up respectable numbers: 19/35 for 236 yards, 2 TDs and 2 INTs. But 90 of those yards came on one play, where the cornerback covering Donald Driver fell down, allowing Driver to coast to the endzone.
Besides that play, Favre looked more like the quarterback of the last few seasons, the one who threw passes up for grabs and didn’t take care of the ball.
Favre was right, though, when he said after last season that he fully believed this team was one of the most talented that he had ever played with. But they aren’t talented enough to play that poorly at home in the playoffs and still win against another very good team. If Favre does come back next year, then he’ll have to be the one who steps up when they need him the most.
Sure, the weather was a significant factor and effected the outcome. But it didn’t seem to bother Eli Manning as he led his team to its third straight postseason win on the road. And now they’re going to the Super Bowl.
(It’s even stranger to say that out loud. What a weird season.)
– Matt Kremnitzer
Strieby Gone!
As of December 20, 2007, an email informed fellow coaches that Head Swimming and Diving Coach Troy Strieby has resigned. The Graduate Assistant will be filling in until the position is filled.
There has been no reports as to why Strieby resigned, and no announcement has been made on the official Athletic Department website.
Look for futher news to come soon.
- A. Baldwin
Coach Potato
All pun intended. It was not that long ago when another sportswriter said to me, “Be sure you don’t over step your boundaries. You certainly do not know more about the sports than the coach does.”
Yet, when the Baltimore Ravens lost to the winless Miami Dolphins yesterday I stomped, I hollered (at Brian Billick especially), and I was all for his coming home to a note that read “Thanks for your time here.”
On my couch until three in the morning, I thought about what Billick should have done, how this season would have been better had he called this or that sooner, and became more depressed as shows like “I love New York” became the only bearable thing to watch. And then I remembered: I do not know as much about football as Brian Billick does.
The man did not become a head coach by luck – and he certainly did not win a superbowl in his second year not fully comprehending the game. Yet, coach-fan relationships are becomming extremely strained – especially Billick’s relationship with the city of Baltimore who constantly questions his status as an “offensive genius,” a disciplinarian, and a good coach.
As of Monday evening, Coach Billick has a nine percent approval rating according to ESPN’s SportsNation. During weeks two, three, and six, Billick has been able to gain an approval percentage over 50 percent. For five weeks he’s been in the twentieth percentile. For more than half the season, however, Billick has received an approval rating under 20 percent.
His season-long rating averages out to 24 percent.
In the 2006 season, Billick’s rating was the exact opposite: Four of the last seven games in the 90th percentile, one game at 89 percent, and one game at 74 percent – his lowest rating.
This shows that Billick knows what he’s doing, that he has the knowledge and the power to do it. So what changed this season from last? – besides quarterbacks, injuries, etc.
I am not going to say that I know more than Billick, but I know Billick: he hasn’t been the same since 2000, and whatever has changed with him has gotten worse. Perhaps his time is up – not because he can’t coach anymore, but because he might not be a good fit with the Ravens anymore. And as a fan, I am at least capable of seeing that.
After all, as Ken Loeffler says, ”There are two kinds of coaches—those who have been fired and those who will be fired.”
-A. Baldwin
To sign or not to sign
For the past few weeks, the Wizards (13-10) have played terrific basketball. Since Gilbert Arenas re-injured his knee on Nov. 16 against Minnesota, the Wizards are 10-5. The most recent win came tonight at home against Sacramento with DeShawn Stevenson leading the way with 19 points.
The end of their bench, though, is starting to get thin. After Antonio Daniels sprained his medial collateral ligament in his right knee during Thursday’s win over Miami, only nine players remain on the roster healthy enough to play: Caron Butler, Antawn Jamison, Stevenson, Brendan Haywood, Roger Mason, Nick Young, Dominic McGuire, Andray Blatche, and Darius Songaila.
Daniels is expected to miss 2-4 weeks with his injury, which leaves Mason, Stevenson, and Young to shoulder the workload at point guard. But besides the temporary hole at PG that Daniels was already filling for Arenas, the Wizards have other concerns. With all of the untimely injuries and the uncertainty of when Daniels and rookie Oleksiy Pecherov (broken right ankle) will play, GM Ernie Grunfeld has to decide whether or not to sign another player, probably a guard.
Two main concerns come attached to that already difficult choice: the luxury tax and heavy minutes. The Wizards are very close to the $67.86 million luxury tax, and owner Abe Pollin would like to stay under that amount if possible. Teams that stay under the luxury tax get to share the tax money after the season from teams that go over the amount and must therefore pay the dollar-for-dollar tax.
Also, fewer healthy players on the bench means an increased amount of minutes for everyone else, especially star players such as Antawn Jamison and Caron Butler. Butler is currently tied for first in the league in minutes played per game at 40.7. Jamison is ninth with 39.5. Both players are in great shape and can take the pounding for most of the season, but they may start to wear down as the postseason looms. Arenas is supposed to return in three months, but even if he does, the Wizards will need Butler and Jamison at full strength to make any noise in the playoffs.
But no matter who goes down on the team, the Wizards continue to win, leading to more confusion in the front office. If the Wizards choose to wait and see how quickly Daniels recovers, they could force him to come back too early and have him risk a possible long-term injury. And if they choose to go ahead and sign a player now, they might be risking the chance to stay under the luxury tax for a player who may not really make any kind of impact on the team at all.
Either way, they’re stuck in a Catch-22 scenario. It would be unfortunate if they exceeded the luxury tax limit, but building a winning team, especially with this solid group of players, is more important than trying to save a couple million dollars for an already extremely wealthy owner.
Why exactly? Because the Wizards have the talent to win now. With a completely healthy roster, they’re arguably as talented as the Orlando Magic and the Detroit Pistons and probably only trail the Boston Celtics in the East.
They have a solid mix of young and veteran players, and they’ve done very well so far with all of the adversity that’s been thrown their way. Butler and Jamison should both be All-Stars. Haywood seems to have turned into a real center who can hold down the paint and grab tough rebounds. Stevenson, Songaila, and Mason have been shooting well and are important role players. Blatche, Young, and McGuire are all young and seem to improve every game by bringing something different to the table. And of course, the return of some guy named Gilbert Arenas is looming in the near future.
Though the season is still young, the Wizards continue to pass every test with flying colors.
Signing a player briefly surely won’t make or break the season, but by doing so the front office can still show that they’re supporting this team the best they can and are fully committed to this season.
Who knows — maybe Grunfeld can somehow land another Butler or Mason.
– Matt Kremnitzer
