I found Joey Harrington...
I knew there had to be something here on the campus of the University of Oregon. I knew there had to be some kind of shrine to Joey Harrington.
Didn't see anything at the Autzen football stadium (it's like a NFL stadium - wow). But a trip to the student bookstore...and I found Joey.
There is a curio cabinet filled with his NFL stuff, from an autographed Lions jersey (on sale for $295) to Falcons and Dolphins helmets. It's all for sale, with proceeds going to the Harrington family charitable foundation.
There is a typed letter from Joey in the case, saying he's having the Ducks bookstore sell this autographed stuff in response to the demand.
I asked the kid working the cashier counter if there is much demand for Harrington stuff. He told me that there hasn't been much lately, but added, "Joey Harrington is a god around here."
I told the kid I was from Detroit, and his Joey-induced smile went away. Yeah. Lions fans know that feeling.
Real World: Detroit, Don't coach me dad, Adios Toronto
1) If only they had done "Real World: Detroit" (or better yet, Real World: Downriver), then they could have avoided rioting at MTV's offices.
2) Verrry interesting. A lot of coaches dream of having their son or daughter on their team. Gophers football coach Tim Brewster could have had that scenario, as his son Clint, a freshman QB, plays for Minnesota. Buuut, it seems son doesn't want dad yelling at him...he's transferring.
3) Raptors Jorge Garbajosa has rescinded his contract with the team, freeing himself to play for Spain in the Olympics. The Raptors had not allowed him to play for Spain, fearing injury. The Spanish Federation had been dueling with the Raptors over Garbajosa. The parties have been negotiating in Madrid the last few days, and reached the agreement to allow Garbajosa to walk.
Back to school, I see dead mayors, not feeling the DaVinci code...
1) Love these stories, the ones where athletes go back to school to finish their degrees. The latest cool dude is... Atlanta Hawks big man Al Horford. Sounds like he's going to fulfill his promise to his grandfather to get his college degree. Good for him.
2) There's a cautionary tale here for politicians: people in Romania have re-elected their dead mayor because they preferred him to the living options.
3) It sounds like the Pope and the Catholic Church will not be going to see the sequel to the DaVinci Code. And please, no noise or filming in church. And as always, the book (Angels and Demons) will probably be better than the movie.
Wings and Faygo, Flip the switch - german style, We're running out of time!
1) Whooo - the ultimate pain and insult of having to wear a Wings jersey and drink Faygo...ooh. Let's all have a moment of silence for Pa. Gov. Ed Rendell for suffering such a fate due to his Pens losing to the Wings.
2) Take my word for it, this is a big deal in the Europe: the mighty German soccer team lost 2-0 to Croatia in Euro2008 (aka the European Championships, aka the Stanley Cup of pro soccer). Upset Germans are already calling for the coach's head, accusing the team of...flipping the switch-type behavior. Hmm, where have we heard this before? A good team not playing hard every game?
3) For those of us who still love "24", here's some news about the 2009 season: Jon Voight has been cast as the nemesis for Jack Bauer. No word if Angelina Jolie will make an appearance to help Bauer rub out the enemy. (just joking - hopefully she's in a better place with her dad these days.)
Word up Letterman.
As usual, Dave Letterman gets to the heart of the matter, instead of making nice hockey players sing "SexyBack"...here's a good top 10 list on "Signs Top Ten Signs an NBA Game Is Fixed":
10) Game begins 20 minutes before visiting team arrives.
9) Tip-off always goes to the player with the largest salary.
8) At the end of the first quarter, the score is 179 to 2.
7)Missed three-pointers count for two points if they're "pretty close". (This one I think Rasheed Wallace and Chauncey Billups would be strongly in favor of...)
6) One of the Laker Girls looks suspiciously like Pete Rose.
5) Whenever he's open, referee takes a shot.
4) Scoreboard has disclaimer: "All Scores Approximate" (This one applies for Philips Arena = Atlanta Hawks.)
3) The team loses even though it led in points, delegates and the popular vote.
2) Jack Nicholson scores 25 points from his seat.
1) The Knicks win.
Grow up guys....
Shame on all the local sports talk radio types who insist on using slams against women and gays to characterize Paul Pierce's dramatic whining over his whatever knee injury.
Calling him a skirt, fag, using the p-word or other perjorative terms is wrong because A) most women are tougher than Pierce (ahem, childbirth?!?), B) how is it accurate or even funny to rip on half of the population - and let's be serious - a lot of women are sports fans, D) last time I checked, gays are sports fans and athletes too, D) it's just stupid, lowest common denominator radio.
There are a lot of terms that can be used to describe Pierce, without insulting other groups.
Let's try to get beyond using classless junior high locker room insults.
Red Wings wrap-up
1) Major loser props to the tool who was constantly standing behind the local TV interviews during the Red Wings post-game celebration. You probably saw him - the guy pretending to talk on his cell phone and blowing kisses. This dork just thought it was so cool to get on TV. And he wouldn't let it go. Seriously, dude, you looked stupid.
2) Don Cherry lost a lot of points for his unwillingness to fully give the Wings credit for winning the Stanley Cup. He's still driving the Sidney Crosby/Anaheim/Gary Roberts bandwagons. And yes Grapes, you can get irate like you did during yesterday's "Coach's Corner" and say I don't get it. I don't get it. And you're getting awfully defensive about it. Grapes, bless your Irish heart, your blind spots are as glaring as that multi-colored Gerbera daisy suit (which would make a lovely couch slip-cover at IKEA).
3) I guess I'm on the other side of the argument about non-hockey players drinking out of the Stanley Cup. I know there are some media types who drank from the Cup last night and this morning, and that's their choice. For me, it's simple: I didn't earn it, I'm not on the team, so I'm not drinking out of the Cup. I'm there as a witness, a reporter, so that doesn't make me a participant. Just my personal code.4) And finally, loved the wrap-up video on the CBC to Diana Ross' "Love Hangover". Would never have associated that with the NHL playoffs. But it worked. And some Diana Ross for a Detroit win is quite appropriate.
Wayne's World - partytime, Don Cherry's threads, and blasted Spurs...
1) Don't adjust your retinas...or show this to the dearly departed fashion designer Yves Saint Laurent...but here's a photo gallery of Don Cherry's impressive suit collection.
2) Things are still not going well for the Spurs. Reserve DerMarr Johnson has been collared for impaired driving.
3) Schwing! Get a 1994 flashback, when Mike Myers was still funny, through a 2008 redux of Wayne's World at the otherwise horrible MTV Movie awards last night. And seriously, MTV needs to give it up. They have no taste, they're not funny, and they couldn't even get Johnny Depp to say more than 5 words. Why bother?
The other big three, Spackler gone wrong, in the closet.
1) I find these big three much more interesting than the tall ones wearing green. In case you didn't know it, the annual Grand Slam of dirtball is going on in Paris...
2) Say it's not true, Bill Murray. If it is, please get some help - for yourself and your family's sake.
3) I hate when this happens, somebody sneaks into your house, lives in your closet, eats your food, and you don't know it for a year. Uh, what?!?!
Mickey Redmond = crowd control, floppers = dealt with, Eva Longoria = Frostys?
1) Another Mickey Redmond classic for the ages. Last night, before game 3, some Penguins yahoo thought it would be fun to interrupt Redmond while he was on the air. The dude is lucky Mickey didn't opt for the BC 2-hander.
2) Ah yes, it's a first - the NBA is stealing an idea from the NHL. Scary but true - and it's a good idea. The NBA will starting fining floppers next season. Remember the NHL's infamous diver list? Can't wait to see the fines start flowing.
3) Maybe Eva Longoria-Parker is taking the impending exit by her Spurs a little hard...she's been spotted working a Wendy's drive-through. Really.
