Archive for April, 2009

It is a very busy weekend in sports!  Here are some other great stories from other great sites!

Louisville Recruit Peyton Siva With A 360 At McDonalds All-Star Game * NESW Sports
Jay Cutler, QB, Chicago Bears * Zoner Sports
There Is No Crying In MMA * Total Pro Sports
Stretch Like An MVP:The Evgeni Malkin Edition * PSAMP
Top 10 All-Time Wrestlemania Moments * Ask Men
Wrestlemania I – XXIV: A Highlight From Each * Hugging Harold Reynolds
Joe Paterno Remembers When Basketball Was Dominated By The Jews * Sports Rubbish
Durrell Summers Of Michigan State Posterizes UConn’s Stanley Robinson * Hoop Doctors
Boxing Middleweight Division Rankings * Profighting-Fans
The Mistreatment And Disrespect Of Allen Iverson * Ed The Sports Fan
Mets And Gary Sheffield Close To Striking A Deal * FOX Sports
AL Central Preview * Gatorsfirst
Future Final Four Host Cities * Moon Dog Sports
Maurice Clarett – Sports Blogging From The Cell * The Love Of Sports
Mangini Denies Almost Trading Brady Quinn To Denver * Smack Caster

Enjoy All Of These Great Stories!

This weekend, the WWE will induct “Stone Cold” Steve Austin into their Hall of Fame.  Austin was the top dog in the WWE for a for a few years. His plain ring attire and beer drinking, middle-finger throwing persona were legendary with fans of wrestling.  Austin first broke into the WWE as The Ringmaster, a thug that Ted DiBiase Sr. paid to do his dirty work. 

Once Austin adopted the “Stone Cold” personality, he had legendary feuds with Mick Foley, The Rock, and Vince McMahon.  McMahon will be giving the induction speech for Austin’s induction ceremony.  Austin personified what Mickey Rourke was all about in the wrestler.  Bad knees were his obvious undoing, forcing him to retire as an active competitor. 

Often portrayed as rebelious, Austin made McMahon look perfect as the overbearing boss who had no control of his champion.  I still think his greatest stretch in the WWE was as a champion.  The storyline was for Vince McMahon to demand Austin to be “corporate”.  This meant wearing a suit, not throwing the bird, eliminating the drinking, and being polite and respectful.  The writers of the era (Vince Russo deserves the credit), really sold McMahon going nuts as Austin would repeatedly push his buttons to see how far he could go.

Steve Austin’s biggest contribution to the sport was his attitude.  He breathed arrogance every step he took while on camera.  He didn’t care who he was competing against or who rooted for him.  He didn’t have any in-character friends or true allies, and WWE did the best they possibly could at maximizing his cocky and foul-mouthed persona.   

The first weekend in April has always been my favorite time of the year.  Any sports fan has plenty to pay attention to.  Living in a true seasonal climate, it also means the end of snow and cold, as the mercury rises and the barometer falls.  Look at all that is happening in the upcoming week:

• Major League Baseball kicks off a new season this Sunday night.  Those few months we have no baseball just suck to me.  Anyone reading this is probably in a fantasy league and shares my sentiments.
• NCAA Final Four and Finals come to a dramatic end within the week.  It’s been a great season for college basketball and the entire country is engrossed in this years tournament.  There are four pretty good teams left, so it will be interesting to say how it plays out.
• NBA regular season ends April 15.  As a Cavs fan, I wished it ended sooner to ensure home court right through the finals.  There are still unclaimed playoff spots and a bunch of shuffling for seeds to take place, so the drama will captivate fans as the season winds down.
• NHL regular season ends April 12.  Same as basketball, many teams still have a chance to make the playoffs or improve their seeding with the few remaining games.
• The Masters starts next week.  Any casual golf fan will be curious to see if Tiger can keep the momentum from his victory last weekend.  This is always another one of those “Spring is officially here” events that is not hard to watch on a warm Sunday evening.
• Wrestlemania XXV is Sunday.  Maybe not technically a sport, but rather “sports entertainment” as Vince McMahon has called it.  Regardless of whether you like it or not, the PPV buy rate is astronomical every year and this year might even break some records.

Don’t forget the NFL draft is not far away either!  I just love April!

Sidney Crosby seems to have taken his latest loss in good humor.  At a recent Pittsburgh Penguins practice, Crosby was defeated by new Head Coach Dan Blysma in a mock shootout.  Crosby said the contest was fixed, but paid up on his bet, serving Gatorade to his teammates, in a graceful manner.  Crosby earned the nickname “Juice Boy“, and will probably be ribbed by his fellow Penguins for a very long time

Here Is A Look At Some Great Stuff From Sites of Friends:

Lebron James Flip Shot Is Jordanesque * Hoop Doctors
When Good College Mascots Go Bad * Rootzoo
John Calipari Headed To Kentucky? * FOX Sports
Tiger Woods Top 10 Tournament Winning Shots * Total Pro Sports
Romanian Soccer Ref Pulls A Gun On Fans * Sports Rubbish
Michael Jordan Challenges James Worthy To A One-On-One Game * NESW Sports
Where They Stand For 2009: Milwaukee Brewers * Sharapova’s Thigh
Kevin Garnett: What Me Worry? * Hardwood Houdini
Jay Cutler To The Bears? * Zoner Sports
Derek Jeter Comes Out Of The Closet * Gunaxin

Enjoy These Great Stories!