NBA and Fanaticism

Lets establish one thing: The NBA is not a team oriented league. It is a player oriented league. I think we can all agree on this. If you don't understand what this means, I will briefly explain.

If Kobe Bryant never played in LA, then nobody would care about the Lakers except for the few diehards there are.

If Lebron plays for the Knicks next year, then you can anticipate a slew of "diehard" Knicks fans that we unexplainably never cheered for them before.

There are several pros and cons with method of fanaticism.

Pro: If the Clippers miraculously convince Lebron to move to LA and play with them. Then the Clippers would become the most popular team in the League. All of a sudden you'd hear things like, "My Clippers have a shot at the title this year!" or "My Clippers are going to rock Kobe tonight." The blessing is that overnight a team can go from being forgotten and belittled, to the favorite team in the league.

Con: If Cleveland does lose its star, the Cleveland fans will disappear all over. I'd estimate that 90% of the so-called "fans" of Cleveland, would end up becoming fans of the Bulls, or Knicks, or whatever team lands Lebron this summer. Fans come and go. Jersey sales will skydive underground, and the league will never know what it means to have stability.

Pro: Thats why I don't necessarily have a favorite team. For the moment, I am cheering for the Suns, but not because I like the team, I just like Steve Nash, Lou Amundson, Channing Frye, and the rest of players. If Steve Nash was playing for the Lakers, then I'd be one of the annoying Laker fans that tweets about them nonstop.

Cons: Confusion. How do I react/cut ties with a team that I have been cheering for? Or how do I start liking a team that I used to cheer against? An example of this is when Ben Wallace went from Detroit to Chicago. I loved the Detroit team that won the title, with Wallace being my favorite player. Then he ended up in Chicago, and I found myself cheering against the Pistons.

Pros: Options! Lets imagine you have 10 players in the NBA that you love, and of the 10 players, 8 of them made the playoffs. You have 50/50 chance of one of them winning the title. The playoffs are interesting longer, and you always have something to keep you paying attention.

Cons: A player will overshadow a team effort, even if the star player has an off night. A few weeks ago. The Lakers were playing an overmatched OKC Thunder team. In the final game of the series, it went down to the wire. Kobe (aka the only reason people cheer for the Lakers) has the ball in the winding seconds. He throws shoots...................... and misses............. Pau Gasol gets the rebound and scores. LAKERS WIN! As basketball fan, I was thrilled. Buzzer beaters are always amazing. To my shock, dismay and disappointment. SEVERAL people sent me texts and tweets roughly stating: "Kobe does it again!" "Kobe is a beast" I shook my head, and realized the problems NBA has.

You make up your mind whether this a good thing or bad thing, but lets be real.... This will never change, and by the look of things......

Chicago and Lebron will be my favorite team next year....

Letter to Lebron

Dear Lebron James, Your Majesty, The King..... THE Akron Hammer:

I still believe in you. If it means anything at all, I still have faith in you. I don't think there is player in the NBA that can match your skills. Every player that has ever played with you has complimented your charisma, your loyalty, your unselfishness. Every player in the NBA wouldn't mind lacing up their kicks and playing ball with you. MJ had Pippen, Kobe had Shaq and now he has Gasol and D-Wade had Shaq. That is all you are lacking, but I think we can save that discussion for another day.

The purpose of me writing you is on behalf of people of Ohio, specifically the greater Cleveland area. In Ohio, you are the only King in the Kingdom. Their is no greater sports icon. To give you a hint about your dominance. Shin Soo-Choo is best player for the Indians, and Colt McCoy will likely be the best player for the Browns. Do you see what I am getting at? This town needs you. If they don't have you.... gulp..... Mo Williams is the best basketball player in Cleveland.

Cleveland needs you. Ohio needs you. Simple as that. You know the saying, "It takes a village to raise a child." Do you want to abandon this village that raised you? Then they'll be left with the nephew of Kim Jong the North Korean Dictator as their city's sports star.

You gave them hope. June 26, 2003, "The Mistake By the Lake" was actually the envy of every team in basketball. They had The Basketball God's prodigal child. I don't think Cleveland has given up on you. Your first game, the entire world tuned in. You are the only NBA player I've seen where people actually buy your high school jersey. Arena's that don't fill up for their own team will fill up when you are in town. Cleveland has never had a superstar - the closest thing was almost 50 years ago with Jim Brown.

So the reasons for staying are simple. You would be the hero. You would give a city that hasn't known championship in any sport since 1964. They will start naming their kids after you.

Apparently there are only a few teams in the market. The ESPN ticker has mostly been talking about three options, Knicks, Bulls and the Heat. I closed my eyes and tried to picture "James" on the back of one of those jerseys, and it just didn't work, and I'll tell you why each one of those places isn't for you.

New York sounds appealing doesn't it? I know whenever I blast "Empire State of Mind" by Jay-Z, I even consider packing up and heading there. But here is your situation if you go there: Your sidekicks would be David Lee and Tracy McGrady. If your supporting cast was bad in Cleveland with Mo Williams and Anderson Varejao and a handful of other unselfish players, then you are walking into a terrible support group. And we will see how sincere the love is between you and Knick fans after a slow start, and missed expectations. The boo birds will be present, love will be tarnished, and no titles will be won.

Chicago looks really good on paper. Good supporting cast. You would finally get that supporting cast that previous superstars enjoyed. Derrick Rose even looks like Scottie Pippen. It is a big time city that loves its sports, and its fans are loyal. But you would be like the 2nd husband to a widowed woman. You would live in a house where MJ's photos still hang on the wall. You'd go to bed in his bed. You'd sleep with a woman who is thinking more about her first husband. Radios, blogs, studios all over the country will be talking about how you remind them of MJ. You'd be a sequel, and sequels are never remembered, they are just reminders of the first.

Miami. What more can I say about Miami, that Will Smith hasn't already said.

"Don't get me wrong, Chi-town got it going on
And New York is the city that we know don't sleep
And we all know that L.A. and Philly stay jiggy
But on the sneak, Miami bringing heat for real
Y'all don't understand
I never seen so many Dominican women with cinnamon tans
MIRA this is the plan
Take a walk on the beach draw a heart in the sand
Gimmie your hand
Damn you look sexy
Let's go to my yacht in the West Keys
Ride my jet skis
loungin in the palm trees
Cause you gotta have cheese for the summerhouse piece on South Beach
Water's so clear you can see to the bottom
Hundred thousand dollar cars, every body got em
Ain't no surprise in the club to see Sly Stallone
Miami my second home."

Who wouldn't like to be able to head home after each game with their top down, and spend your days off on a yacht. What doesn't sound good about that? You and Dwayne Wade would make quite the dynamic duo, but I don't think you know how much they love D-Wade down there. You would be the lovable friend that D-Wade brought over. In the old television series "Growing Pains", this character was none other then Boner Stabone, best friend of Benjamin Seaver. You are better then that, you aren't a sidekick, you're not a Tito Jackson, Robin or a Tonto. Miami is a place that would be fun to visit, and even live in during the offseason, but I don't see you in a Heat jersey, and lets be honest, neither do you.

Cleveland is your city. You have two sons with your high school sweetheart with whom you are still with today. You are a self-proclaimed loyal guy. You are the only guy I've seen who invited the whole city to come to his MVP ceremony. You yourself has said, "I want to put this city [Akron] on the map." Have you done that yet? Have you left them anything? I know you can, if you just stick around. Be as loyal to Cleveland, as they have been with you. You wouldn't leave your high school sweetheart for the hot girl in New York who wouldn't be with you, if you weren't a superstar. Cleveland was with you during those AAU days. You probably played your first basketball game in the YMCA. Be that guy, the American sports hero that hasn't been heard of. There is only one place where you can do it, Cleveland, Ohio.

We are all witnesses.

Sincerely,

Jake Alan Runyon

Childs Play

A small child comes up to you. He has a new toy. He loves this thing, but it has it’s flaws. Nonetheless, this child adores this toy, and is loyal to it above all other toys. The child sheepishly hands you it to have you fix it. There is only a little bit of tinkering that has to be done.

You smile at the little one.

With a large breath, you throw your shoulders back, lift the toy above your head, and with all your force, you smash the toy in the ground. Crushing the small child’s hopes in the process.

Does this sound like you?

Would anyone with a soul ever do this?

This tragic think is something that is at the helms of occurring. Symbolically of course.

The heartless, and deceptive adult that is supposed to be in control is the NCAA. The easily fixable, and solvable toy is college football.

We are obviously the disappointed, and heart-broken child.

The NCAA is taking this great thing of college football, that we have seemed to love unconditionally forever, and trying to destroy it. I don’t understand it, and I never will understand why they want to destroy this almost perfect sport, especially when they have the opportunity to make it flawless.

Here is the situation. The major conferences like the Big Ten, Big 12, SEC, PAC 10, ACC and Big East have been whispering about “expansion.” And in the confusing list which involves several teams jumping from one conference to the other. Here is what the rumors are:

The Big 10 would become 12 teams... (Bigger 12??) by STEALING schools from other conferences like Missouri (Big 12) and Syracuse (Big East). The Big 12 in retaliation would go after TCU (Mountain West Conference) to replace Mizzou, and possibly Arkansas from the SEC (Which I don’t think they would be able to convince to come over). The SEC has threatened to go after Texas. The PAC 10 is rumored to be sweeping the Utah out from under the MWC.

What does all this mean?

The college football world will become 4 Sumo Conferences (Pac 10, Big 12, Big 10, and SEC) and all the other conferences will just get the crumbs of the BCS money.

The Mountain West Conference, I think, would be the most effected. In both Football and Basketball, The MWC has shown that they can compete with the best teams in the country. Each year, they have multiple teams end the year ranked in the top 25. If TCU were to leave, then we lose a team that has the talent and criteria to reach a BCS Bowl Game. If Utah were to leave, then the conference would lose a team that can potentially contend for a National Title in football, and that can occasionally be ranked in the top 25 in basketball. For UNLV, SDSU, and BYU, this means that conference is left out of a share of millions of dollars. Recruiting goes down, quality of play goes down, something to cheer for goes down.

However, here is my proposal. If the NCAA isn’t going to get rid of the BCS (which I don’t think they will), then there is one idea of expansion that makes perfect sense.

Boise St. graciously leaves the WAC to join the MWC. This undoubtedly turn the MWC into an automatic qualifying conference because it would have at least four teams that would contend for a BCS spot (Utah, BYU, Boise St, and TCU). As far as basketball goes, Boise St would be a middle of the road team in the conference, which will occasionally be able to contend against the elites. If this were to occur, based on recent history, the best conferences would go as such.

SEC

Big 12

Big 10

MWC

ACC

Pac 10

Big East

In basketball

Big East

ACC

Big 12

Big 10

MWC

PAC 10

SEC

But obviously, this won’t ever happen. But could you guys imagine. The MWC being treated like the giants. It’s what I hope for, and I what I want to work to make it happen. Write your senator.

Until then, I am holding onto my slightly flawed toy, at least until the adult gets responsible.

Optimism

Am I optimistic? Yes. Is that a good thing? Of course it is! An optimist thinks everything is a good thing. Before I go on, let me mention that I am one of those UNLV Football fans that every year I somehow spill this out of my mouth, “This year is the year.” So before this optimism wears out. Let me tell you why this year is the year.

Mike Sanford is a fantastic coordinator. He will have alot of success as a coordinator. Simply put, he isn’t Head Coach material. Bobby Hauck however is a good head coach. He fits well in UNLV. He is hard-nosed, understands west-coast recruiting, defensive minded, and carries a small ego. His career at Montana speaks for itself.

-7 Conference Titles

-3 National Title Appearances

-5 Seasons of 11+ Wins

-0 Seasons with a losing record

That last point to me is the most important. UNLV has failed to have a winning season since 2000. I was 11 years old and probably spent half the game watching cartoon network, and the other half the game jumping up in down in my Jason Thomas jersey.

Bobby Hauck reminds me a lot of Bob Stoops at Oklahoma. They both yell, and are known for having tough practices. In fact, they have a similar records.

-6 Conference Titles

-3 National Title Appearances (1 Championship-2000)

-9 Seasons with 11+ Wins

-0 Seasons with a losing record

When Sanford got fired, we had to wait for a new Athletic Director before finally getting a new head coach. I thought that Hauck was the best option available. The last thing UNLV needed was another coordinator and must I say it, a softie.

Short term, Hauck will install a simple offense and an efficient defense. Just enough to possibly get a winning season in his first three years.

Long term, we have a guy who is experienced in west coast recruiting. He was an assistant coach in Washington, and UCLA. So far, he has done a simple idea that all other previous coaches forgot to consider. Las Vegas athletes. For years, we saw some of our top athletes move out of state to play football. Before even starting this season, he already has a handful of local talent. Talent that likely would have ended up with conference rivals.

I don’t think that it is a stretch to say that his Montana teams could beat UNLV.

I know we are a basketball school, and I don’t consider that a bad thing. The underlying challenge that Coach Hauck has is to accomplish is filling up Sam Boyd Stadium and getting local residents to care. The only way to do that is getting more numbers in the “W” column then in the “L” column. Lon Kruger did it with basketball, and the Mack is as loud as it has been years.

Omar Clayton is a consistent QB. With the exception of one game, he threw for over 50% all year and had a passer rating of over 100 in all but two games. With a simpler offense, those numbers could go up. We have depth in the QB position with Mike Clausen as a more then effective backup.

The running back situation is up in the air. Besides Frank the Tank and Dominique Dorsey, its hard to think of some consistent backs the Rebels have had over the past 10 years. But now, with a simpler offense, with a handful of backs that can share the load. We might be able to see consistency on the ground game.

As I said earlier. Mike Sanford was a great coordinator and will go on to be a great coordinator in college football. UNLV has finally got a Head Coach that isn’t past his prime. f think the future is bright for UNLV Football. Then again. I’m an optimistic.

and optimistically thinking....... This is our year.

Tebow the Great

It was man-love at first sight. Tebow was a senior in Highschool. On ESPNU they were showing a highschool football game featuring Nease Highschool. Tebow was the starting QB and the highly touted blue-chip recruit. I had heard his name thrown around. I knew he was heading to Florida, which was already one of my favorite college football teams. That Saturday morning I found myself watching the every single snap of poorly filmed (not even in HD) highschool game. Tebow caught my eye. He automatically became my favorite college football player, without even setting foot on the Florida campus.

His freshman year was quite interesting. He was a true freshman. The QB ahead of him on the depth was Chris Leak. A talented Senior that had more success then any other Florida QB since Danny Wuerrfel. Yet each game played in the swamp, boos and jeers echoed those orange walls. The Gator Faithful wanted to see Tebow and the experienced Leak play. Tebow had the love of his fans without having done anything, but those fans knew, like I knew that we weren't witnessing just another QB.

That Freshman Year, Tebow threw for 5 tds, and rushed for another 8.

His college career was nothing short of incredible. A heisman trophy as a sophomore. Two national titles. During the process he became public enemy number one in Baton Rouge, Athens, and every other SEC city.

It is my opinion that he is the greatest college football player of all time. His stat sheets don't show that, but we will be telling our kids the folk tales of Tim Tebow.

-His speech after losing to Mississippi.

-Taunting thousands of fans in Baton Rouge

-The Jump Passes

-Bloody Tebow

ok, so maybe it isn't blood, but you he would have played even if it was blood.

Basically, I think Tim Tebow is the type of player we will tell our kids and grandkids about. Even if he doesn't have success in the NFL. Honestly, think about it. Do you think we will ever see a college football player with as big an impact/legacy then Tim Tebow? No.

However, none of this is the purpose to why I am writing this. The reason I am writing this is to maybe convince a Tebow hater that Tebow and Denver is a good match.

1). Ever since Elway retired, the poor Bronco fans had to deal with QB's they didn't like. Jake Plummer was booed, and he even flipped them the bird. Jay Cutler hated Denver. Kyle Orton is just there, kind of like he was just there in Chicago. Tim Tebow is loveable, and he loves his fans back.

2). Josh Mcdaniels got his career in the NFL by being a QB coach with the New England Patriots. There he has helped QB Tom Brady progress into a future hall of famer. If anyone coach would be able to help Tebow become a more prototypical QB (which if you ask me, he doesn't have to.)

3). I expect Rookie Tebow to be alot like Freshman Tebow. Orton starting, and the fans booing him and chanting "Tebow" until he gets on the field. He might take a few snaps every game, but won't be the premiere QB for the Broncos. I don't think anyone expects that out of him anyways.

4).Did anybody see the interview he had after getting picked? The kid is everything you want and more if you are a coach. His willingness to learn, diligence, and love for the game make for a 1-2-3 combo. He kept saying, "I'll do whatever they ask me to do!" His excitement was almost childlike and refreshing. If I were a Coach. Tebow has the right mentality to be my QB.

5). Versatility. Wildcat Offense. H-Back. Goaline QB. Nuff Said.

6). He is a winner. He leaves it all on the field. He works hard. (see speech video after loss)

7). Locker room guy. He is a leader. He will motivate his fellow teammates. I think that if there were anyone that could have helped Brandon Marshall, it would have been Tebow.

I don't think Tebow will ever be the best QB in the NFL. Maybe he'll make a probowl once or twice. I can see him making whatever team he plays for better. Will he win a superbowl? (Answer: see reason #6 to why he will be a good fit with Denver)

You don't have to agree with his religiousness or his political views. Just look at Tebow on the field and you know that he loves being out there. We will see this same enthusiasm in Denver. We saw it all with Florida. And on that saturday morning, I saw it with Nease Highschool. Enthusiasm is contagious.

Why I love March Madness

I have this theory. It is a long theory that I could probably punch out 6000 words about, but I’ll quickly summarize my theory. Men are stuck in a nasty vice grip. We aren’t allowed to be emotional. We are limited to the things we can get excited about. When it comes to things we can cry about. There is just one thing that we can cry about without being mocked and teased by other men. That one little outlet we have to vent out all of our feelings is encumbassed in the manliest of all things. Sports. Think about it. Our estrogenized counter-parts can jump up and down, and hug one another for any reason, and just about anything can bring them to tears without the heckling. However, the only time men can do this is in sports, and only when the moment calls. Luckily, we get three weeks worth of bromance and man-love each March. All enveloped around March Madness. March Madness is the best sporting event because its emotional, its raw, its upsetting, its surprising, and its sports in it’s purest, more beautiful form.

Sixty-five teams. Twenty venues. One champion. With a handful of buzzer beaters, upsets, and cinderellas in between. In 2006, I was a witness. Adam Morrison had led the nation in scoring for the entire year. He was NBA bound. He was a star. He had a redunkulous cheesy moustache. He was very manly. But after his team let a 17 lead dwindle away, and let the UCLA score the last 11 points of the game, this man. Sat down on the court and tears crashed like free-falling airplanes. He yanked his jersey up over his eyes to hide his tears. He rolled on his side. He broke and no one teased him, and some men even cried with him, because for some reason can all relate. March Madness brings out all this emotion because its honest and real. These men put so much into their basketball game and for most of them, the only thing they can get in return is championship. Something that all 65 teams go after and only 1 will get. What’s more emotion then that?

Another reason you have to love the NCAA Basketball tournament is how raw it is. By raw, I mean personal and authentic. Throughout this entire year I had a friend who played on BYU’s basketball team. He has always been a bench guy, but occasionally he would come in. Well, this same BYU team went into the first round of the NCAA tournament and found themselves in trouble. My friend Michael Lloyd came off the bench and dominated the floor and was easily the most athletic guy in the building. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. This same guy I saw play in highschool. This same guy who was in my group for prom. I beat this guy in tennis once, and got dunked on by him when we were in just 7th grade. Then here he is, doing it in the spot-light. That is just part of the intimacy felt in March Madness. The other part of it is that the guy who was named first team all-south region is in my sociology class. How many sporting events can you say, “hey, that guy is a whiz in socioeconomics. Trust me, I know.” And its personal when you lose. Even more personal.

Some of the greatest upsets of all time, David v. Goliath (600 BC), USA vs USSR (1980) throw in a couple of college football games, and the rest are all college basketball games. I could make a list longer then your 400 pound neighbor’s shopping list at Costco, but I’ll just list off the top-5 upsets from this years NCAA tournament:

-Northern Iowa (9) over Kansas (1): We’ll see the highlight of Ali Farokhamanesh draining that three pointer for years to come. It was something amazing to see. He catches the ball right at the 3-pt line and an entire epi-drama unfolds in front of our very eyes. He stands at the line and looks at the basket. His team was already in the lead and all that was expected of him was to let the clock tick away. When he looks at the basket, all the KU players on defense stopped. Farokhamanesh makes eye-contact and the showdown begins. The KU player says with his eyes, “I dare you to take that shot.” Farokhamanesh looks back at the basket and lets it fly. Everyone in the basketball loving world held their breath. “Did that just happen? Did we just see an Iraqi kid in a purple jersey put a nail in the coffin?”

-Butler (5) over everyone they played: I admit it ok. I thought this team was overrated all year. I picked them to even lose first round. Their most noteworthy upset was probably against Syracuse. Butler is a school that only has 3000 students. They beat schools like Syracuse, Kansas St, and Michigan state which have about 3000 kids in their graduating class. Their journey of pissing big schools and myself off ended in the National Title game where they came a quarter-inch away from making the basketball world explode.

-Ohio (14) over Georgetown (3): Georgetown was in the Big East final the week before. They have a legendary coach, an all-american center. They have the name! Georgetown is a legendary school. Most people couldn’t name a single player from Ohio’s roster, and they weren’t even the 2nd best team in Ohio.

-St. Mary’s (10) over Villanova (2): St Mary’s was just a goofy team. Half of their team was from Australia. They wouldn’t have even made the tournament except they won their conference tourney. Now I will be the first to admit that Nova was overrated, but they were the type of team you’d expect to do well in the tournament. A good coach, a backcourt led by All American Senior Scottie Reynolds. Not expected, and several brackets busted.

-Cornell (12) over Wisconsin (5): Ok, so Wisconsin might have some brains, and they definately have alot intelligent people on the team, but this is Cornell we are talking about. An Ivy League school. These are guys who picked brains or brawn. On their roster is a guy who knows 6 languages, and I bet all of them can solve a rubic’s cube in less then 3 minutes. What can be much cooler then that? Its like playing the chess club at your high-school, except this chess club has a seven footer.

In some of these upsets, we got it on that surprising shot or play. I already mentioned what happened in the Kansas and Northern Iowa game. I have said it before and I will say it again. THERE IS NO BIGGER OR EXCITING PLAY THEN A BUZZER BEATER. For the winning team it was flawless. Its like making out with Carrie Underwood. For the losing it team, its like watching your heart get ripped out in slow motion by the crazy witch-doctor in Indiana Jones. My team lost on a buzzer beater this year, but in most games, it doesn’t matter who you like. A buzzer beater is that epic. I have been trying to figure out the closest thing that compares to a buzzer beater during March Madness to real life and this is what I’ve got:

-Stealing an enemy’s girlfriend and then getting her to talk trash about him. (Win for you, loss for him)

-The only seat left in the airplane is next to Cameron Diaz. (Win)

-The only seat left in the airplane is next to Michael Moore. (Loss)

Those were the only things I could come up with, and those actually don’t compare at all to the bitter-sweetness of a buzzer beater. Point is this: Buzzer beaters are greatest things to see in sports.

I think that is what you would almost expect though out of sports in its purest sense. Now you may be asking yourself what I mean by purity. What I mean by this is that these kids play simply for the love of the game. No paychecks, no contracts, no endorsements. NBA Basketball is boring to watch until you get to April when they finally start playing and not mailing it in each night. Even people that don’t like sports will know what I mean when I say that college basketball players play for the love of the game. I think thats the biggest reason that we get all the emotion that I’ve already mentioned. A pro player loses, and he goes home, counts his money and calls a stripper. A college player loses, he goes home, has to study for his exams, and figure out what he is going to do with his life. College players don’t boast the same talent as NBA players, and I bet alot of them can’t even dunk. However, I’d much rather see guys I can relate to out there busting their butt up and down the court just cause they like it. Sports is about pride. I can’t think of any other reason why you would play it. March Madness is that vessel though. I’m going to miss March Madness but I know it’ll be back, for us to cry, be emotional, and jump up and down like little girls. But because its sports, no one can make fun of us.

USA vs Canada

(originally posted February 21, 2010)

We are in the beginning of the second period.

I'm sitting here. Angered, yet happy. Happy that we are winning, and sad that I wasn't alive in 1980.

My parents were my age that year. The year the United States upset their cold war enemy of Soviet Union.

The game I'm watching is really just a border rival. A good one at that, but nothing compared to an enemy is war that scared some people underground.

Let's be real. United States dominates so much in basketball, that its not easy to get swept away by them. We aren't good enough to win the world cup yet. The United States olympic status is defined by the individual athlete. Shaun White, Apolo Ohno, Lindsey Vonn, Bode Miller, Shani Davis.

The US hockey teams are no namers to me. Partly my own fault for drifting away from hockey over the years. I can only name Jack Johnson as one of our players, and thats because I love his music (thats a joke, that another Jack Johnson).

I am rivoted. I mean, we are tied up against a team that features more NHL All Stars then any other country.

Its not very often that we as a country, can get together and root for our team as an underdog. Not enough people I know care about the world cup to do that for soccer. But most people I know care about the Olympics!

I am sitting here. I want to call everyone I know that old enough to remember the 1980 miracle game. Where were they? Was everyone watching? Did they cry? Did the Soviets cry? Did people show up at work the next day in American Flags?

I am here. I just got another reminder of what it means to be an American. The sports reason. Which to me.... is almost the biggest.

GO Team USA!