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Guilty, Guilty, Guilty Jerry Sandusky was found guilty of being an evil creep by a Pennsylvania jury on Friday evening. He will spend the rest of his life in prison. Somehow, that doesn't seem like a stiff enough penalty, given the acts that he was found guilty of performing. Anybody that preys upon innocent kids deserves more than just prison time. While this chapter of the Penn State nightmare draws to a close, there are other questions that still loom. How is it possible that powerful leaders on the college campus could allow such a beast to continue existing in the community? The legendary coach, Joe Paterno, in his last interview before his passing claimed that he should have done more to prevent this from happening. I'm a huge fan of Paterno and his accomplishments at Penn State, but there is no denying that his statement is painfully true. And it begs the question why Paterno and other powerful men at Penn State didn't do more to stop and eliminate Jerry Sandusky? Paterno is no longer with us, but the former Athletic Director and VP of Finance involved with this nightmare are still in question. What will become of these gentlemen as the Sandusky trial fallout continues? Penn State University is an incredible institution. It didn't deserve this kind of attention....and neither does any other place on the planet. But for there to be full closure and healing, every question surrounding this bizarre and harmful affair needs to be answered. What did the Penn State leaders know and what did they do about it? Apparently, they didn't seem too concerned to know about the grand jury's findings early last year, only to allow Sandusky to show up for Penn State football games and sit in the luxury suites at Beaver Stadium. How is that possible? Did the Penn State officials think they were invisible and indestructible in this process? Penn State will be back....but it might take some time. But make no mistake that all of these questions need to be answered. It's great that Sandusky will be behind bars, but that's just the start of a long and painful healing process. One thing is certain: we should never forget about the children that were affected by this sick bastard, Jerry Sandusky. The courage that these people showed in coming forward to testify in front of a nation should not be taken for granted. It took a great deal of intestinal fortitude for the young adults to step forward, look the devil in the eye and tell their painful story. Maybe this case will help all of us realize that these acts by harmful people need to end. If it can happen at Penn State, then nobody is immune from this heinous act. I just wished the penalty for hurting children in this way was more severe. Jerry Sandusky should consider himself lucky that I don't make the rules or the laws. I watched a little bit of racing over the weekend. I saw the last lap of the Nationwide race from Road America. I figured that was about all I could handle, since I find road racing on TV to be a complete snoozer. I did happen to catch the best part....Danica got punted from behind by some former Indy 500 winner...this time, it wasn't Sam Hornish. Instead it was Jacques Villenueuve. It wasn't the "Face of NASCAR's" fault, but I certainly got a good laugh out of it. Supposedly, she was having a good race until the last lap bump. Too bad; that's racing. I also happened to catch the first couple laps of the Iowa Corn Indy 250 from....you guessed it, Iowa. I mentioned on the SiriusXM show that this race might have the worst name since the World Famous Idaho Potato bowl game. Back to the race, not only did it finally rain in Iowa....thank goodness, I don't want to over-pay for my corn this summer.....but it also caused a headache for the race. After the delay, the pole-sitter, Mr. Ashley Judd (Dario Franchitti) blew out his engine before getting to the first lap of the race. Eventually, nearly half of the field wouldn't finish the demolition derby and the race ended under caution. Boring. The Cup guys were in Sonoma....which is where I believe Sominex is produced. If not, it should be, because road races are incredibly boring. NASCAR didn't disappoint, since there were all of two cautions for the entire race....eventually Clint Bowyer picked up the victory. It was his first with Michael Waltrip Racing. There should be a new rule for both the Cup and Nationwide series.....no road races. Leave that snooze-fest racing to the Indy Car circuit. This is the week of the NBA Draft. Our beloved Bobcats, or is it just "Cats" now?...have the second pick, unless they decide to trade down and acquire additional selections. Surely, they can find somebody to help their cause for the upcoming season. Thomas Robinson or Michael Kidd-Gilchrist appear to be the logical choices, but with this franchise, you never know. Anytime a Tar Heel is lurking, you can't discount the Jordan factor.....and that means a guy like Harrison Barnes might grab their attention. Either way, coming off a 7-59 campaign, this pick should be an upgrade and needed help for the worst team in the NBA. But keep in mind, this time next year, the city of Charlotte and "Cat fans" will be discussing another high lottery selection. I don't care which player they pick; Charlotte will have a better winning percentage than last year, but they will still be one of the worst teams in the league. I'm just hoping that Michael Jordan won't be looking for the franchise's 6th new head coach in the first ten years of existence. Let the Dunlap Era begin! As I'm writing this week's Ripe Gripe, the College World Series championship round between Arizona and South Carolina has not yet begun. I have talked about this a bunch on the Sirius XM show along with the local radio and TV commentaries in Charlotte, but I can't emphasize what a cool event this is for the fans. In addition, the players and coaches of all the teams were great to work with as well. Ray Tanner has been a miracle worker in Columbia. The Gamecocks are back in the title series for the 3rd consecutive year and they are going for the 3-peat. The last and only time a school won 3 or more baseball championships in a row was Southern California back in the 70's. The Trojans won 5 in a row from '70-'74. Tanner is great with the media, and his team always plays the game the right way. Gamecock fans should be pumped and proud of having an incredible baseball program. Arizona is first-class, too. Andy Lopez is fantastic on the air, and he has a great time during interviews as he promotes his team and the game. The Wildcats haven't won it all since 1986, and they have yet to lose a game since arriving in Omaha. It should be a tremendous "Best of 3" series to crown the college baseball national champion. On Tuesday, the Presidential Oversight Committee should approve college football's 4-game playoff concept. Or at least I hope they do. You never know when it comes to these guys, but I think we're so far down the road with the conference commissioners (and Notre Dame) that it's too late to turn around and go back to the old BCS. I claimed for years that we would see a college football playoff in my lifetime, and it appears that is precisely what's going to happen. Last week, the power- brokers agreed that a 4-team seeded playoff would be in effect for the 2014 season. It would include a committee to select the teams and the strength of schedule and conference champions would receive added weight in the process. The national semi-final games would be played within the format of the BCS bowls on a rotating basis and the title game would be offered out to the highest paying cities. I like every aspect of that plan....even though the best four teams should be playing in the tourney, regardless of their conference affiliation. But that's just my two cents. I thought it was incredibly ironic that Notre Dame AD, Jack Swarbrick, was announcing their conclusion. Considering that the Irish have yet to join a conference full-time, it was amazing that he was telling the world what the conference leaders had agreed upon. Maybe it was foreshadowing for a future ND announcement? Maybe mike Slive and Jim Delany decided to throw him a bone since ND won't be a part of the national title scene for decades to come? Who knows? I'm just thrilled that the power leagues have agreed to a college football playoff.....assuming of course that all goes well on Tuesday. Amazing....we celebrated 40 years since the implementation of Title IX. And in 40 years, there still isn't a single women's collegiate sport that can stand alone by itself without some kind of financial help. You would figure in the span of 4 decades, there would have been at least one sport played by women that could generate enough revenue to survive on its own merit. I think it's great that women have the chance to participate in sports and acquire degrees in the process. It's truly wonderful...and as a father of two girls, it gives everyone a chance. However, from a business standpoint, Title IX has been a disaster. Every athletic department in the country loses its shirt with women's sports. So before everybody high fives each other with the 40 year old party....take a look at bottom line. |
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