Toledo Newspaper » Matt Sussman

Reliving my Jamie Farr traditions

Matt Sussman — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 04:00:54 +0000

I’d be hard pressed to remember any other LPGA events outside of the Jamie Farr Owens Corning Classic presented by Kroger, and anyone else who wants to and the four majors.
I am aware that The Farr (shortened for brevity’s sake, otherwise I could just repeat the full tournament name five more times and fill my word quota for the week) is one of two tournaments sandwiched between two majors, which I suppose positions it well.
But when I think of the Jamie Farr, two customs come to mind. One is the stretch of Monroe Street in Sylvania being renamed in honor of whoever wins the previous year. For just a little bit longer, it will be “Paula Creamer Drive,” which greatly inconveniences the residents of that street, having to fill out yearly change of address forms.
The other tradition is the biennial bashing of the Jamie Farr Web site.
Two years ago, I pulled up the site www.jamiefarrowenscorning.com in search of the participant list. My conclusion was that I couldn’t find it, but my sleuthing lacked patience, and the list was just very poorly hidden. In 2009, the list was tucked away in the bottom right corner, standing out as the only nearby pink text.
All right, finally, a complete list of every single golfer who will be … what the heck? That’s a short list. The way tournament officials organized the player list is in groups of 10 women with a “more” button showing another set of 10. They’re alphabetized by first name, but at least there’s a search button, so I can look for my favorite player. It’s a good thing they didn’t just list all the players on a single page because then they wouldn’t get to show off all the new Web site code they learned.
In all fairness, it’s a clean layout that was a vast improvement over the old Web site, which I just had to revisit using the Internet Archive Wayback Machine (http://www.
archive.org). Wow, whoever thought animated .gifs were a good design feature should probably be slapped around a little. But it looks like they just severely reprimanded him and/or sent him to design school. This year, they’ve concealed the tackiness with what appears to be a scrolling news bar in the top left corner, but it’s just an animated graphic that was well done.
The tournament organizers also have a link to a Facebook group, which means they’re hip, but they don’t have a Twitter, which means they’re not that cool.
But they are cool enough to stick around. As this is the 25th anniversary of the tournament, and not all stops on the tour were that lucky. The other Corning Classic no relation to OC in Corning, N.Y., had its 31st annual tournament back in May, but there will be no 32nd, as it was one of four LPGA tournaments sliced off the tour. So, organizers of the Jamie Farr, I mean this in the nicest way possible when I say you should hope that I get to keep poking fun at your Web site for years to come.

Football player gets ‘Waterboy’ treatment

Matt Sussman — Fri, 19 Jun 2009 04:00:47 +0000

Some punk vandalized my parents’ house eight years ago. Have you ever heard of the prank where you take a garbage can, fill it with water, lean it against the front door, ring the bell and run away? That’s exactly what happened. Cold water splashed all over my mom and my dog, and the flash flood wrecked our hallway’s hardwood floor, dripped into the basement and ruined my dad’s office equipment. The guy ended up getting caught because he continued to attempt the prank at other houses. He pleaded guilty and served 30 days in jail.
We were momentarily shaken, but not hurt, and since it was the first time I had heard my mother drop the “F-bomb” (quite loudly, I might say), it was quite a hilarious moment. Maybe not for “Waterboy” (as we fondly call him in the family), but at least he still has his health.
The same will never be said of Mario Reyes. The Miami native was running to catch a bus on a Saturday morning when he jaywalked and collided with a car driven by Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth. On June 16, the legal proceedings came to a close as Stallworth pleaded guilty to DUI manslaughter and, looking 15 years of jail straight in the eye, wound up with 30 days in jail.
Now, his sentence is clearly worse than Waterboy’s, as he also received two years house arrest, eight years probation, several hours of community service, court costs and mandatory donations. Still, that’s not much punishment for taking the life of a man whose only crime was punishable by a $62.50 ticket.
I’ve read that some of the factors leading to the reduced jail sentence included Stallworth feeling remorse for the death of Reyes, and that the victim’s family wanted the emotional process of sentencing Stallworth to happen as quickly as possible. Still, Michael Vick served 19 months for running a dog-fighting ring. Browns running back Jamal Lewis was sentenced to four months for setting up a cocaine deal.
I’m not a lawyer, but I play one in this column. Florida Statute 316.193 partially reads: “A person who is convicted of DUI manslaughter shall be sentenced to a mandatory minimum term of imprisonment of four years.” Adding up his jail time, house arrest and community service — a tenuous way to look at it — doesn’t even equal three years of penance. Maybe him feeling bad about what happened reduced the sentence?
Again, I’m no lawyer, but I do understand words in English (one of the more impressive footnotes on my resume) and, subsequently, I know what “mandatory” and “minimum” mean.
Months earlier, just north of Miami, in St. Lucie County, a man named Michael Knecht was convicted of DUI manslaughter. Obviously, the details of his case and Stallworth’s are not the same (Knecht had some illegal drugs in his car, for example), but as a result of killing another motorist while driving drunk, Knecht received 10 years in jail, four years probation and will never be able to drive again.
I missed the part of the Florida statute about DUI manslaughter that read: “If you are a professional football player, the minimum four-year sentence can be reduced to what a person would serve if he vandalized a house, and then he can serve some time confined in his own home, where he can still enjoy the big-screen TV and backyard.”

NASCAR wins the sport argument

Matt Sussman — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 04:00:04 +0000

Countless naysayers have looked at NASCAR and derisively said, “Well, that’s not a sport because … ”
They followed that up with a bevy of characteristics that accurately describe NASCAR, but don’t necessarily rule it out as a sport. They dust off their dictionary from the 1930s, look up the definition of sport and look down on auto racing with disdain.
“The drivers aren’t athletes! Just look at their bodies. They’re not like other athletes.”
This is the big argument I hear a lot. A driver’s body is not often shown, since it’s hidden inside a racing suit littered with dozens of logos. But many drivers lift weights, such as Mark Martin, Carl Edwards and Dale Jarrett. Others may not have strict workout regimens, but they still have to be in shape.
Now look at ex-Indians and Yankees pitcher C.C. Sabathia. That’s a 290-pound frame you see. He throws fastballs with amazing speed and accuracy. People don’t question his 40-time and dismiss him as an athlete. Many other players in baseball have bad bodies. (Yes, Gerald Laird, we’re talking about you.)
Punters and place-kickers in football don’t exactly have the muscle mass of other positions. In fact, in a back alley fight, I’d put money on a NASCAR driver to take out a punter with his bare hands, especially if the punter is an empathizer of Kurt Busch.
Looking at the body is an easy way out of the argument. Well, don’t leave so fast. We have more to talk about.
“Most of the competition is done on the car. Building an engine isn’t sports.”
There’s a lot of mechanical prowess that has to be done prior to the race that ensures a driver succeeds. This is no secret. It’s also not private knowledge that professional golfers use their own clubs, custom fit by companies who are good at making them.
“There’s not nearly as much physical exertion to race a car than it is to play some other sport.”
Yeah, and apples don’t nearly have the glossy red color or flavor of oranges. I, therefore, dismiss apples as a fruit and expect no counterargument.
Most athletes have to endure contact from other athletes while maintaining control of a ball and running in all sorts of directions. NASCAR drivers are always sitting down.
But while in that position, they sustain G-forces for about three hours, battle with keeping the wheel precisely in the right alignment and have to do all that while enduring triple-digit temperatures for more than three hours. (Plus, they only turn left, a concept so ridiculous, baseball runners do it, too.)
This isn’t a plea for people to drop everything and love NASCAR.
Hey, I don’t love tennis or boxing, but I’m not about to classify their activities as anything other than a sport. What’s not a sport, but a sight to behold, is how the quiet town of Brooklyn, Mich., swells into a temporary metropolis during race weekends.
And winning “sport/not a sport” arguments probably isn’t a sport either, but it sure is fun.

Give athletes the pink slip

Matt Sussman — Fri, 22 May 2009 04:00:34 +0000

The news of 75 Toledo police officers getting their jobs whacked seemed shocking. My first thought was, “Um, can they do that? Don’t you need those people?”
But sure enough, layoffs are affecting everyone, even seemingly essential staff members. Departments are being shrunk as if Rick Moranis was inadvertently involved. Careers are being popped like bubble wrap in the hands of frenetic children. And people everywhere are pawning their gold jewelry left and right, causing former trophy wives to finally look like the rest of us.
But what about sports?
There have been franchises that jettisoned some office jobs, but the rosters have always been sacrosanct. There are still 25-man rosters in baseball, 53 on a football sideline and 12 on a basketball bench. If hockey can play four-on-four hockey at times, then certainly the rest of the leagues can begin trimming overhead and widening their profit margin.
Basketball: Four-on-four hoops would be intriguing. The floor would be more wide open. More individual matchups would be exploited. Heck, why stop there? Two-on-two basketball is all you need. It harkens us to the days of “NBA Jam.” Finally, LeBron James doesn’t need teammates.
Football: Intramural football is already seven-on-seven. Do we really need five linemen? Not if there’s only one pass rusher. And how necessary is the quarterback? Surely, the Lions might agree with this.
Baseball: This one may be tricky. The players are already quite spread out on the field, but the infielders do seem to interfere with each other sometimes. Pitchers are prevalent on the rosters, and I always suspected the move from a four-man starting rotation to a five-man was a direct product of the dot-com boom. No team can afford this anymore, and most teams probably wouldn’t be that broken up about losing their No. 5 starter.
Golf: Tiger Woods has a coach. This to me has always seemed to be overdoing it.
Quidditch: Yes, times are so bad, even fictional sports in Harry Potter books need to trim the fat. Do you know they have a position whose sole job is to fly around and catch the one magical ball that essentially wins the game? Meanwhile, six other players on the team play an almost separate game. The way I see it, you don’t need those other six. Write them all letters of recommendation.
Third-grade kickball: Don’t get me wrong, I am all for participation, but jeez, they let everyone in gym class kick in the lineup. This is excessive and waters down the level of play. Take some of the lovable scamps at the end of the line and outsource them to social studies.
Mixed martial arts: Just fire everyone, since I’ve never warmed up to the sport. Some of them will likely turn out to be great volunteer neighborhood watchmen, which solves the initial problem of laid-off policemen.

Matt Sussman blogs at www.toledofreepress.com.

Now, that is funny

Matt Sussman — Fri, 01 May 2009 04:00:16 +0000

Yet another former UT running back has confessed to being part of a point-shaving scheme so devious, they won their bowl game by a mere 32 points.
Running back Adam Cuomo joins ex-UT running back Scooter McDougle and former basketball guard Sammy Villegas as key figures in federal documents regarding this scheme.
This brings up several questions. Did their actions compromise the integrity of college athletics? Are other players and coaches involved? How do we prevent this from happening again?
Those are all interesting questions, I suppose, but as a BGSU fan, a more pertinent question would be, “Is it ethical to use a scandal like this to make fun of the school?”
A memorable rivalry infuses trash talk both on and off the field. When Ohio State running back Maurice Clarett got into trouble, you can bet your bottle of Grey Goose that Michigan fans wouldn’t let the Buckeyes hear the end of it. After all, given all the times OSU has consistently whopped the Wolverines, the dejected fans needed something.
That brings us back to the point-shaving scandal. Indeed, it is a right - and perhaps a responsibility - for fans to use this scandal as a thesis in smack talk. Not every day does a story like this come across the wires and it would be irresponsible to let the opportunity pass by when, say, a wide receiver drops a pass (Did Gary tell you to do that?) or if someone clanks a couple of free throws (Thanks, Sammy, I took the under.)
But it’s not just limited to off-the-field shenanigans. It’s also fully acceptable to poke fun at a team when they lose to someone else. For example, UT cannot brag about beating BGSU in football (ha, ha), but they can point out BGSU lost to Eastern Michigan at home in football and basketball. (EMU also recently crowned BGSU in baseball 27-7, which is like a football score. I have no idea why I’m telling this to Rockets fans.)
Sexual health is a great example of what is off-limits. Students like to slam other colleges by the “cleanliness” of their female population. “BGSTD” is one such jeer I’ve heard over the years.
I’m going to consider this type of trash talk off-limits because sexually transmitted diseases are pretty much rampant everywhere in college. But if it would be fair game, I’d have to point to the 2008 Trojan Sexual Health Report Card, which ranks schools in major athletic conferences by availability of sexual health resources and information. BGSU ranks No. 33 in the nation, while Toledo is 133, which ranks in the bottom 100. But it’s not fair game, so I won’t bring it up.
I mentioned in my Toledo Free Press blog laughing at Miami University’s loss in the NCAA hockey championship, despite having a two-goal lead in the final minute. You’re not going to believe this, but several passionate Miami fans disagreed with me. They made a fine point, to which I retorted, “Ha ha, your team choke.”
While we’re on the subject, it’s probably fair to mention that rumors of a sports team’s death by economic recession is a fair and legitimate argument, especially if that team consistently finishes last in the CCHA, despite winning a national championship 25 years ago.
There are plenty of great examples of useful and tasteless topics that a fan can use to weave one’s own thread of rivalry rabble-rousing. Ugly uniforms, for example. (Sorry, UT, but orange and brown is the new black.) The point — and the key — is to take the jeering in stride, just like the game in front of you. They’re just points and balls, but they’re fun as heck to watch, especially if some of the points are intentionally shaved for profit.

Don’t waste your time trying to figure out life

Matt Sussman — Fri, 17 Apr 2009 04:00:05 +0000

It was a daunting task for any sportswriter April 9 to not find oneself deep in thought about the tragic death of Angels pitcher Nick Adenhart.
The news came across everyone’s desk in the morning, and as fact after depressing fact came to light, those in the press box realized the stuff they wrote about later that day actually mattered.
Two of Adenhart’s friends, Courtney Stewart and Henry Pearson, died almost instantly at the scene of the accident. Adenhart died at the hospital a few hours later. Another passenger, Jon Wilhite, survived and continues to improve.
The driver who hit the car was 22-year-old Andrew Gallo. He was previously convicted of driving drunk, resulting in a suspended license. And it was believed that he was also under the influence at that time he killed those three young people.
A story like this always reminds me of Michael Gagnon. I wish it didn’t.
Gagnon, if you remember, is serving a 43-year sentence for five counts of vehicular homicide. On December 31, 2007, the Adrian, Mich., native drove drunk and turned the wrong way on Interstate 280, colliding head-on with a family of seven.
Here’s what always gets me about this story. Gagnon had a designated driver that night — his pregnant sister. They had three rooms reserved at a nearby hotel. But for some reason, Gagnon just left. He even went to a Taco Bell drive-thru, where one of the employees suspected he was drunk and called 911, but stall tactics failed and Gagnon drove onto I-280.
That was the truly eye-opening part. He had a network of friends, family and good Samaritans in place to try to prevent this from occurring. But it happened regardless.
Hopefully, we can find out what happened to Gallo that night. Who was he with? Does he have friends and family who still support him? Was anyone able to approach him with his alcohol problem or did his loved ones give up on him?
The focus was on Adenhart because the gripping part of this story was that he was the Angels most promising pitcher. He was out with his friends celebrating the game he just pitched, throwing six shutout innings.
But focusing on Gallo’s situation seems to be more practical. Figuring out how to prevent and punish such offenders will be the key to stopping these random and senseless deaths.
I did think of one other recent situation that reminded me of Adenhart: the death of Mario Reyes. Most people don’t know whom this gentleman was, unless they know why Browns receiver Donte Stallworth is in big trouble. Well, “trouble” by athletes’ standards, is probably downplaying the situation.
Stallworth struck and killed Reyes in his car last month in Miami, and reports indicated he had a blood alcohol level over the legal limit. He was charged with DUI manslaughter, which is an almost identical crime to the one to which Gagnon pleaded no contest. It’s probably what Gallo will be facing, too.
These are just three examples in which nine people died. There are thousands more. There will probably be another similar fatality tomorrow. But as Los Angeles Dodgers legendary broadcaster Vin Scully said of the Adenhart tragedy, before jumping back to the play-by-play, “There is one thing I’ve learned in all my years — and I haven’t learned much — but the one thing I’ve learned: Don’t even waste your time trying to figure out life.”

Finding humor in Miami’s Frozen Four collapse

Matt Sussman — Sun, 12 Apr 2009 14:06:03 +0000

Did you see the NCAA hockey national championship game Saturday night? Wasn’t that amazing? Boston University, a heavy favorite down 3-1, scored two goals in the final minute of the Frozen Four final en route to a 4-3 overtime victory over the Miami University. While watching BU’s winning goal float over the Miami goalie’s shoulder and into the net, I had but one definitive thought:

“Ha. Ha. Hahahahaha. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA.”

Allow me to explain.

As a Toledo native, rooting for Boston is tantamount to supporting former Toledo Goaldigger star Mike Eruzione, a BU Terriers alumnus, who gave the team a pep talk before the championship game. Perhaps it makes up for omitting him in my NW Ohio Mt. Rushmore of Sports candidates.

Okay, that’s a small reason, but if we were playing “Family Feud,” I guessed the sixth most popular answer. Here’s the No. 1 answer.

While I traditionally envy and cheer on all things related to the Mid-American Conference — as well as the CCHA, the conference featuring many teams including BGSU, Miami, Ohio State and Michigan — I just couldn’t help but laugh at perhaps the most glorious collapse in championship history, because Miami’s athletic teams have simply aggravated me this decade.

UT may be BGSU’s prime rivalry, but for some reason the hatred toward Miami sports is more warranted if not more historic.

Those who remember the Falcons’ great 2003 football season may know of the team’s ultimate demise stemming from the hands (and arm) of Ben Roethlisberger, who led the Miami RedHawks to two victories over BGSU. In fact, Miami football has beaten the Falcons in five of the last six matchups by an average of more than 17 points. In that same span of time, BGSU mens basketball is 3-7 against Miami, with one of those losses coming in the MAC tournament.

It’s personal, too. When I participated in a college curling tournament back in 2003, I remember losing to Miami in the round-robin play that prevented us from playing in the championship game; our team had to settle for third. (In all fairness, we won our third place game by default, because our opponent — another Miami team — never showed up, probably because they were hung over from the night before. These things happen in non-varsity collegiate sports.)

While the men and women being sculpted educated down in Oxford, Ohio may have tremendous character, I have no sympathy for those crestfallen over MU’s chance to finally hang a national championship banner in their rink. Instead, Boston U. will rise their fifth banner up to the rafters, 25 years after BGSU also won a hockey championship in overtime.

My only fear of publicizing this schadenfreude is that it will result in another 27-point defeat to the RedHawks in football next season.

A few promotional ideas worth stealing

Matt Sussman — Fri, 10 Apr 2009 04:00:06 +0000

Growing up, I was fairly convinced I was a master at the extremely nerdy card game “Magic: The Gathering.”
This was based on the fact that I had two other friends who played and I beat them quite frequently. Sadly, this false sense of superiority came crashing down to terra firma when I entered a public M:TG tournament. Not only did I lose badly, I was also disqualified for using illegal cards. True story.
I mention this because it’s sometimes hard, in a city without major pro sports, to get a reading on a team like the Mud Hens and how they compare to other minor league franchises. Not in terms of wins and losses (they have stats and junk to measure that), but by the whole experience of going to a game and seeing the interns and stadium announcer work their pants off to entertain the audience.
I had the pleasure of seeing three other minor league parks, and while the Hens experience is at a much higher level than the average franchise, there are some ideas to steal. And some to leave alone.
Take, for example, Telus Field in Edmonton, Canada. This is home to the Edmonton Capitals of the independent Golden Baseball League. They possess what I determine to be the most atrocious professional baseball field in North America. The outfield is beautiful, luscious grass, but the infield is artificial turf. If I was scolded growing up because I tried to wear two different shades of green in public, baseball diamonds ought to have the same fashion sense.
If we can learn anything else from our friends in Edmonton, it’s to not change our team nickname. The average Toledoan is already desensitized over the hilarity of the Mud Hens name, but imagine if we changed it to something lame like Bulldogs or Thunder.
Edmonton’s team was called the Cracker-Cats. They actually veered away from a unique name that sounds offensive but isn’t. (It’s derived from an oil-rigging term called “cat cracking.”) People are far less likely to buy a Capitals hat than a Cracker-Cats hat, which is the one reason (that doesn’t involve Klinger) that Hens apparel can sometimes be seen across the nation.
So we’ve covered the field and the team name. Now, it’s time to look beyond the team and into the concession stand. What sounds more interesting: a hot dog or a Driller dog? Spoiler: They’re both the same mystery meat, but one has a fancy name. The Tulsa Drillers got it right by selling dogs with nothing but a clever moniker. Creative marketing costs nothing. In their defense, Hens sell the Muddy Dog, which is, contrary to what it sounds like, not a hot dog that dropped on the ground.
Perhaps the best game I saw last year was in Lowell, Mass. The Spinners are the Red Sox’s short-season Single-A affiliate, which sounds as rinky-dinky as it can get, but they came up with perhaps the most diabolical way to taunt the opposing team.
When a visiting player named Tom Edwards stepped up to bat, the electronic scoreboard flashed his picture, as host teams are often generous enough to do. But after a few pitches, they deftly switched it to a picture of disgraced politician John Edwards. Likewise, they really gave it to opposing batter Jacob Julius, when they flashed the Orange Julius logo on the screen. Also, I lost track of the number of times they played the scene from the movie “Twins” when Arnold Schwarzenegger told Danny DeVito, “I’m your brother, Julius!”
This is an idea the Hens need to steal immediately. My only request is that they do not hold any Magic: The Gathering tournaments before the games. I can’t bear to see any children lose confidence in their nerdiness.

Crumbs: How Ireland brought UT and BG together

Matt Sussman — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 12:10:36 +0000

It’s time again to sift through the futon and share what is found between the cushions, in a feature within a feature affectionately titled “Futon Report Crumbs.” This week, I’ve found some shamrocks, some sham rumors, and a ShamWow!

While few may know St. Patrick’s Day as anything other than a day to drink and wear green - which is also the same reason most people are Notre Dame football fans - I’ve always thought of the day as one where we set aside differences and find common threads between our neighbors. This is as good a time as any to tell you that a Toledo and Bowling Green grad are tearing it up in Ireland on the same team.

Former UT forward/center Jerrah Young and former BG guard Ryne Hamblet are both playing for the UCC Demons, a basketball team based in Cork, Ireland. Hamblet has average 17.5 points, 4.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists, Young is an MVP candidate in Ireland’s Superleague, averaging 22.2 points and 12 boards per game. An online poll, which is more scientific than astrology and “American Idol” judging combined, says Young is one of the most valuable players in the Irish basketball league.

The Demons went 17-1 in the regular season and are in the league’s playoff semifinals. It’s an odd format. They play two games against their opponent and whoever has more combined points advances to the next round. On Monday the Demons played UCD/Marian to a tie game, so the second game is a win-or-go-home. Apparently tie games are perfectly acceptable in Ireland. (That would’ve helped UT in the MAC basketball tournament.)

BULL HOCKEY — When I first heard the rumor that BGSU might scrap its varsity hockey program, I was a little bit sad. After all, I’d rather see my alma mater’s sports team lose than see my alma mater lose its sports teams. The program’s prestige is a far cry from the 1984 national championship squad, but having the team become dismantled would have been a bold statement that the University is in financial crisis, not to mention the state of collegiate hockey as a whole. The blogsphere was atwitter. (I think that means the Twittersphere was ablogger?) Message boards and letters to the editor were filled with more passion than the last election cycle. But lo and behold, the BGSU athletic director Greg Christopher wrote an open letter to all BGSU fans ensuring that no team, hockey or otherwise, would be shut down.

Looking back, I really have to think this firestorm could have been avoided were it not for a letter to the editor printed in the BG Sentinel Tribune. Reader Mark Pape said he heard a rumor that the hockey program might be finished and “heard nothing to dispel these rumors” but had no facts to support it. (Aren’t claims like this the main reason newspapers hate blogs?) The BGSU athletic department, of course, never quite came out and said “Falcons hockey is safe” until Tuesday afternoon, so they might need a refresher in learning how to deal with rumors.

HELPFUL HINTS FOR THE NEW ARENA — Last week I saw an indoor football game in Muskegon, Mich. with my girlfriend for two reasons: 1) It’s Muskegon, so there’s not much else to do; and 2) I’ve never seen indoor football and wanted to get a vague glimpse into the quality of play for the inaugural Toledo Bullfrogs season next year.

Here’s my plea to the builders of the Lucas County Arena: Please double-check the size of the ceiling and do not install an overhead scoreboard. Every time one of the teams lined up for a long field goal beyond midfield (roughly 40-yard field goals), the attempts kept ricocheting off the scoreboard or catwalks. One pass attempt even hit a digital score tile, jarring it loose and swinging over the players for the remainder of the half like the Sword of Damocles. This will not be a problem for the Walleye hockey team, obviously, but for the sake of tolerable indoor football, please do Toledo a favor and just put flat scoreboards on all sides. Or make sure the ceiling is high enough, then get the UT kicker to try some long field goals before hanging a million-dollar scoreboard like they did in Savage Arena.

A friend’s mistake changes football player’s destiny

Matt Sussman — Fri, 13 Mar 2009 04:00:43 +0000

When Loren Hargrove was arrested on cocaine charges in May, a fair number of media outlets reported it.
When Hargrove was proven innocent by the justice system, only one newspaper gave him a chance to tell his side of the story.
So here’s another chance.
Hargrove, a former BGSU linebacker who graduated in 2007 with high expectations to play in the NFL, drove to Shelby County to pick up Melvin Cole, another ex-Falcon football player and his former roommate. Cole was en route from Cincinnati to Bowling Green, and Cole’s then-girlfriend drove him from Cincy to Botkins, where Hargrove met the two.
While there, police seized cocaine in Cole’s luggage, which was in Hargrove’s truck. Cole admitted to the police at the scene of the crime, before any arrests were made, that the cocaine was his and not Hargrove’s or his girlfriend’s.
This helped the girlfriend, who drove home that night and was not arrested. The same couldn’t be said for Hargrove, despite Cole’s admission (which was documented in one police report). They were both arrested for drug trafficking, a fifth-degree felony.
Hargrove knew he was innocent. He knew his friend confessed to owning the cocaine. And yet he was still going through the legal system.
“The night I went to jail, I asked the officer, ‘why am I here?’ ” Hargrove said in a phone interview. “[The officer] read the report that had him admitting to it and the officer said to me, ‘You shouldn’t be here too much longer.’ The next thing you know I spent four days in county jail.”
His theory is that he was arrested because authorities wanted to seize his vehicle, in which the cocaine was found.
“They just wanted me to give up things to let me off, but I chose to fight it because I knew I was innocent.”
He also fought so he could continue his dream of playing in the NFL. Yet the stigma of being just another punk football player still lingers with him to this day, especially since a small handful of his former BGSU teammates also ran into legitimate legal trouble in the past few years, such as Marques Parks, Orlando Barrow and Jacob Hardwick.
“They tried to classify Bowling Green as having a bunch of thugs,” Hargrove said of the media coverage. “My story wasn’t being told truthfully at the time.”
How come it wasn’t being told properly? For one, he was advised to stay away from the media until the charges were cleared in September. Three weeks later, only one newspaper interviewed him for a story. But the damage was done.
Hargrove had worked out with the Cleveland Browns prior to the NFL draft, and although he wasn’t selected, he was aiming to sign as a free agent with somebody. That goal took a detour as the free agency period overlapped with his legal battle.
“Who’s going to sign a free agent with cocaine case pending?” Hargrove asked.
Cole’s fate was much worse. Combined with an unrelated set of charges of drug trafficking, he began serving a five-year, eight-month sentence earlier this year.
Throughout this ordeal, Hargrove has been training and staying in shape. He participated in BGSU’s pro day, where NFL scouts examine incoming talent. His goal is the same as it was before he drove to Shelby County: to be an NFL free agent and play professional football on Sundays.
His dream is shared by many other young men, and while many of them have had tragedy in their life, Hargrove has experienced more than his share. His mother passed away three years ago after a battle with cancer, and his uncle, former Cowboys running back Ron Springs (father of NFL cornerback Shawn Springs) has been in a coma since 2007.
Hargrove said his successful battle with the legal system may not give him an advantage over other players with the same dream. But it does separate him from athletes who did break the law. If anything, his only mistake was befriending someone who dealt with cocaine.
Last I checked my big book of laws, that is not a crime, but he knows it should not happen to him again. After all, the NFL cracks down on troublemakers with its squishy “conduct policy” and will suspend players if they want to — even if charges are dropped or never filed.
“This was a very serious life lesson for me,” he said, “and I have been very careful with the company that I keep.”
After hearing his story, I might just take that same advice.

Matt Sussman blogs regularly at www.toledofreepresscom.

Futon Report: Rockets’ season mirrors ‘Apollo 13′

Matt Sussman — Wed, 11 Mar 2009 14:25:25 +0000

Thanks to the magic of movies, I’m aware of the story of Apollo 13. A space shuttle launched, something bad happened in space, and after a nightmare of technical malfunctions, NASA brilliantly guided the astronauts back home. That parallel works for the UT basketball team because of how they saved their best for last. Although mostly it works because of the mascot.

Seven wins and 24 losses in the regular season was attributed to this bad, bad team. They earned that final seed with disappointing basketball and they should have been destroyed by Akron in the MAC tournament by, let’s say, 23 points. Instead, the Rockets showed — for the first time all season — that the team was capable of running with any team in the league, as evidenced by their heartbreaking 93-92 overtime loss.

While I did not have the pleasure of attending this game, the WSPD broadcast and MAC-Sports.com live blog were more than enough to capture the excitement. But in the end, the Zips’ excitement (and clutch shots) sealed the game.

The Rockets, after playing inspired basketball, had a three-point lead with seconds left on the clock. But Akron’s Anthony “Humpty” Hitchens drained a 3-point shot to send it to overtime.

In the extra period, UT’s two leading scorers, Tyrone Kent and Jonathan Amos, fouled out. No sweat. They hung in there, and freshman guard Clayton Sterling stepped up with the go-ahead basket. Mere seconds were left on the clock.

Unfortunately, seconds were all the Zips needed, and Brett McKnight tipped in the winning basket to seal the win.

I’m trying to remember the last time I was excited over a game I was listening to on the radio. It was even longer when I was that pumped over a Rockets basketball game, and it’s too bad their season had to end like that. Finally, they play a fantastic game, and they still lose.

If nothing else, this will help the underclassmen next year. Justin Anyijong and Clayton Sterling learned they can make big shots without the seniors around, which is the situation they will experience next year. (Mohamed Lo learned that you can’t commit more than five fouls in a game.) This, of course, will not be solace for them this week, as they were almost the first bottom seed to win a tournament game since 2000.

It’s too bad this team finally played to their potential last night, because had they done that all year, they truly could have landed on the proverbial moon.

Note: If you want to continue following the MAC tournament at work (which CERTAINLY does not include me, bosses, since I always stay busy at work) MAC-Sports.com is live blogging every game of the MAC tournament (women’s too) with up-to-the-minute scores and analysis, and they are doing a heck of a job on it. As a live blog connoisseur — sometimes I do them during big sporting events for Deadspin — I can certainly appreciate the work they’re doing, and I hope you will too.

Futon Report: Handing out senior GPAs

Matt Sussman — Mon, 09 Mar 2009 11:21:35 +0000

When you’re a senior - athlete or not - your final year is supposed to be a little self-indulgent. You’ve paid you’re dues for three years. Now its your turn. But it doesn’t always wind up like that. The most painful example is the UT basketball team.

March 7 was the final home game for four seniors who scraped through probably the most dismal season of their basketball careers. Except for Anthony Byrd, they got to play in the MAC tournament championship game their freshman year, but now three years later their February goal was just trying not to finish last. Although they won their home finale against Northern Illinois 74-69, they still finished 12th (last) in the MAC. Seven wins in a season is never something positive, unless you’re talking about Pop Warner football or your name is Dontrelle Willis.

While the rest of the team may be the talk of next year, 2009 should be about the seniors - who are also, no coincidence, the four team captains - so let’s see how each performed. To give this in-depth look a more academic feel (since that’s what’s important), I will don my judgmental dean’s cap and assign each player a grade point average (GPA) based not only on ranks within the team, but also on their expectations.

(All stats are recent as of March 7.)

JONATHAN AMOS

His freshman year, I remember saying to myself, “This guy is going to be fun to watch someday.” And he was - for the next two years. Amos matured from a brash, wild player into a smart athlete who created turnovers, played tough defense, and could jump-start a rally. He was still brash, but that’s what made it more fun. This year, under a new coach, things just didn’t seem to click between him and Gene Cross. The dynamic he had with former coach Stan Joplin worked so much better for him, and maybe that’s what led to his in-season suspension for violating team rules.

Beyond the box score, he just didn’t play like himself. It was almost as if he was afraid to make a mistake, and that hesitation would result in … well, a mistake. He still hustled at times, and would try to light a fire under the collective Rockets’ posterior. He played inspired Sunday against NIU, and sometimes all you can ask for is a great last impression.

He led the team in scoring efficiency (0.46 points per minute), assists (3.1/game) and and steals (1.8/game), but he also led the team in turnovers (4.4/game).

I will probably look back at Amos’s basketball career as a combination of disappointment and unfortunate luck. He had the chance to overtake Robierre Cullars as the most entertaining player in recent Rockets history. Instead, he’ll rank right below him.

This Year’s GPA: 2.3
Cumulative GPA: 3.2

ANTHONY BYRD

Since his first two years were played at Canisius College, and scholars to this day are not sure how to pronounce “Canisius,” I will strike his freshman and sophomore years from the record; I’ll just tell him that his basketball credits got lost in the transfer.

Byrd will go down in Rockets history as the prototypical role player. This year he was the de facto point guard until Cross was comfortable in playing Larry Bastfield as all-time point. As a result, Byrd’s minutes have slowly gone down. In the last five games before Senior Day, only once did he surpass 20 minutes.

He is probably UT’s best free throw shooter, which is probably the best kept secret among the team. Last year he was 88 percent at the line (37-of-42), and his numbers at Canisius were equally impressive, but he shot only nine free throws all year, missing four of them. That’s astounding. Either he’s failing at drawing contact, or he’s making fun of the refs’ mothers.

He’s been a solid player, and I give him extra credit for not complaining (at least publicly) about his dwindling lack of playing time. He’ll go down in Rockets history along with guys like Art Norman and Rory Jones in the class of junior transfers who executed the role they were asked to fill.

This Year’s GPA: 2.8
Cumulative GPA: 2.7

RIDLEY JOHNSON

When I watched Johnson play in his first couple of years, I thought this guy could evolve into a great scorer. That never really seemed to happen. Even in his junior year, he averaged just under nine points a game (11.2 points/40 minutes). Among other adversity this year, Johnson missed six games with an injury in January and battled through pain, playing only six minutes in the last three games (with zero points and just one shot) leading up to Senior Day, in which he logged all of nine minutes.

So unlike Amos, I’m not disappointed in him, because you can’t yell at someone for getting hurt. (Although high school football coaches in Texas probably beg to differ.) If nothing else, Johnson got to appear on “The Today Show,” a feat about which few college basketball players can brag.

This Year’s GPA: Incomplete
Cumulative GPA: 2.8

TYRONE KENT

Even though I arranged this by last name, it sure worked out that the alphabet saved the best for last. Kent led the Rockets in scoring his junior and senior years (16.9/game, 14.9/game respectively). He also logged more minutes than anyone else in the last two years. So it’s fair to say the success of the team should fall on his shoulders more than anyone else except for the head coach. And both of those years were disappointing for the team. While he might’ve had more points than anyone else, Kent had a very inconsistent year in terms of scoring. Sometimes he’d take over the game (such as his 37 points against Xavier) and sometimes, during a loss, he’d shrivel away like a dandelion (zero points in that dreadful 91-58 loss at Ohio).

Kent will probably be remembered as a Keith Triplett-type leader in Rockets history. Sure, he was good individually, but his teams suffered mediocre fates.

This Year’s GPA: 3.1
Cumulative GPA: 3.3

Oh, and I’ll grade the underclassmen later.

Futon Report: BGSU may sweep the hardwood

Matt Sussman — Tue, 03 Mar 2009 14:39:59 +0000

The BGSU womens team, as if it needed to be said, is sort of dominant right now. But the men? The team that began 1-3 in the conference? Holy heck, it looks like they just might win the regular season championship too.

Sunday’s 50-46 win over Akron gives the BGSU men first place in the Mid-American Conference (although mathematically tied with Buffalo at four losses, BG swept the season series against them). Meanwhile, the women clinched at least a share of the regular season title with their nail-biting win over Kent State. (Well, I guess this proves the theory that the Falcons didn’t take my advice and lose a game on purpose.)

Sometimes the men can be firing on all cylinders, and other times the women, but rarely does the success flow simultaneously in Mars and Venus. To find the last time a university completed the men’s and women’s regular season sweep, you have to go all the way back to 2002, when Kent State was simultaneously king and queen of the MAC.

While we’re on the subject of Falcon-esque droughts, to find the last time the BGSU men made the postseason, you have to flip your calendar back two more years. The Falcons played in the 2000 NIT, and a regular season championship guarantees, if nothing else, at that least that much. Not to jinx anything, but one would have to stretch their memory all the way back to 1968 to see the last time the Falcons even made the NCAA Tournament. Head coach Louis Orr was nine years old then. And bread probably cost a nickel, or something.

The Falcons’ final two games are at Miami on March 5, which will be a difficult test, and Senior Day against the very mediocre Ohio Bobcats on March 8. In all likelihood, the regular season title will come down to that final day. Also, the women play their last home game of the year the day before the men’s finale.

It looks like Anderson Arena will be quite happenin’ this weekend, whether you have an Adam’s apple or a ponytail. (Or if you’re just in the Wood County area and happen to be bored, which of course, never happens.)

Falcons need to crash before they soar

Matt Sussman — Fri, 27 Feb 2009 04:00:43 +0000

The reason I lose interest in sports video games quickly is the sheer ease by which I beat the computer opponents.
I’ll play a season of baseball, have 12 All-Stars, win every award, sweep the World Series and only have one superstar suspended for steroids.

Lauren Prochaska of the BGSU women’s basketball team.

I’ll play a college football season as, say, Eastern Michigan, go 12-0 and win the Orange Bowl. Dominance, as impressive as it can be, usually defaults fans’ interests. This is why Roger Federer, Jimmie Johnson and sometimes Tiger Woods can be classified as boring.
It’s also why I’m having a hard time rallying around this extremely dominant BGSU women’s basketball team.
There’s no other explanation for this. After all, any other women’s basketball squad would be another lame footnote in my personal sports world, but these girls are attending my alma mater. Usually that’s supposed to help one’s interest.
It’s not like they’re underperforming, either. Coming into the last weekend of February, the Falcons are 24-2, with those 24 wins all happening after a 0-2 start. Three more wins and they finish the MAC regular season undefeated. And yet … I’m only sort of excited over that feat.
If our reality is God’s Xbox, he accidentally set BGSU season’s difficulty on “easy.” No, check that, he set it on “cakewalk.”
It was fun and exciting watching their overtime wins over Northern Illinois and Western Michigan. It was even more thrilling seeing the intensity around the team as they beat Toledo on Feb. 12. Then they had a couple more routs against MAC opponents. Then it was … yawn, I think I’m going to get some sleep now.
Perfection — or at least a long stretch without a loss — can really inflate a team’s ego to dangerous proportions. But BGSU coach Curt Miller, much like New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick, knows how to wield the psychological Ginsu knife and pop any possible overconfidence swelling in the locker room.
That’s nice for the team, but —and I really hate saying this — I really hope they lose one of their final games before the MAC tournament. Any kind of defeat after the regular season and a certain supernatural being might change the game difficulty to “WNIT.”
Or maybe it’s not the perfection. Maybe it’s the magic from the 2006-07 team that is still fresh in my mind. I vividly recall, while on a business trip, driving 30 minutes out of my way to an almost empty sports bar with satellite TV just so I could watch the Falcons’ second round NCAA tournament win over Vanderbilt. It may not be fair to compare this 2008-09 team to the Sweet 16 girls, featuring Kate Achter’s endurance, Ali Mann’s leadership and Liz Honegger’s incredibly catapult-like shooting technique, but unfortunately that’s the yardstick against which they’ll be measured.
Again, it’s not that this team is bad. Or lazy. They’re highly motivated, well-disciplined and watching them should give any human with a central nervous system the chills.
But I’m sorry that two-year memory is just shining brighter. I guess the Falcons are just going to have to advance further in the NCAA tournament this year, assuming they qualify for it.
And once the Falcons reach their eighth straight Final Four in 2017, I will again grow weary and recycle this article for you to read, while updating all the names, numbers and dates. Please plan accordingly.

Futon Report: UT fans were optimistic vs. BG

Matt Sussman — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 14:09:54 +0000

On Facebook, there was an event page hyping up Wednesday night’s UT-BGSU basketball game, which the Falcons won 59-54. Since the page was created by Rocky Rocket (how does he type with such fat fingers?), the forum was very pro-UT. And hey, I’m all for homerism. It’s served me well throughout my writing career. But fans and students who rallied behind a 4-19 basketball team ready to face off against a 13-9 squad made their best argument on why the Rockets would win. And all they had to do was throw out all the numbers.

One fan actually did that. Wednesday morning, before the game, the student quipped on the Facebook page (seeing the link requires a Facebook account):

“regardless of what everyone is saying, it doesnt matter how good we did or Bg did in the past, because today the rockets are gonna kick some falcon [posterior]. Which isn’t much of an accomplishment, but hey I’ll take it any day.”

That’s why sports is fun. Anything can happen on any given day. But, holy cow, has anyone seen what BG has done lately? (The attendance numbers say “no.”) Coming into the UT-BGSU game, the Falcons had won five straight games, including three on the road. Conversely, the Rockets had dropped five in a row. (Because you can do the math, both streaks are now at six.) And UT didn’t just lose five straight, they went out on the court, laid down on the hardwood, and took daydreamed for five straight games. Their “best” loss in that stretch was a 9-point defeat against Akron, and the other games included three 13-point losses and a 28-point spanking by Kent State. Yuck. I’d throw out those numbers too if I was a UT student.

There was only one statistic that Rocket fans could use to advance their argument: BGSU hadn’t won a game in Savage in 10 years. But historical stats like that are the ones you actually can reasonably throw out like expired sour cream because, to paraphrase coach Rick Pitino, Greg Stempin and Chad Kamstra are not walking through that door.

And while the conclusion was foregone, the consistently overwhelmed UT team, bless their collective hearts, actually made this game close, narrowing the deficit to just two points in the final two minutes. But BGSU executed a flawless game plan down the stretch, which was: put the ball in UT’s hands and let them turn it over.

It’s probably my own fault for giving sporadic Facebook comments more weight than they’re inherently worth. But what can I say? The Falcons won, which makes me happy, and my homerism enables me to use 20-20 hindsight to construct the perfect argument.