Thinking out loud…while wondering if Halloween is the scariest night of the year, what does that make Election Night?
Football. Is. Back. Bill Shakespeare (yes, we’re on a first-name basis) once said, “You take my life when you take the means whereby I live.”
Must’ve been talking about football, amiright?
You got questions? We got questions. Here are the primaries on the Patriots now that camp is underway from this POV: 1) Who plays cornerback? 2) Who plays linebacker? 3) And can either of these positions make the Buffalo Bills punt at least ONCE the next time they face them?
If you think not knowing which coaches call the plays is a big deal, then I wonder if you’ve ever strapped on shoulder pads, or a jock strap. The coaches may coach, but the players have to play.
Can the coaches put the players in a better (or worse) position to make plays? Of course. But ultimately, it’s still on the players to execute. If you think teams don’t already know what their opponents are calling, I’ve got swamp land south of Wrentham (way, way south) to sell you.
You need smahtah playahs. Having smaht coaches is a bonus. The Patriots have BB for a 23rd year. I’m good with that.
Too much film, too much video out there, so much scouting going on. It’s hard to keep secrets…especially with Big Brother watching your every move. And the Twitterverse, too.
It’s real simple. BB is protecting his guys – Matt Patricia and Joe Judge – so they can slowly build back their coaching credentials and reputation. He’s loyal to them, they were loyal to him.
That, plus the fact that untitled coaches don’t have salary parameters as dictated by the league, so…
And remember, BB didn’t start out so hot in Cleveland, did he? He’s done pretty well in his second HC stint. Not saying Matty P. and Judge will turn into BB Part II and III, but I’ll give Coach Belichick the benefit of the doubt on his strategy here.
His track record sez we all should.
Early storylines developing from Fort Foxboro? DeVante Parker sure looks good in the red zone, no matter how early it is. The Patriots were just bad in the red area last season.
But can he stay healthy for a full season? Or close to it? The Magic 8 Ball sez “highly doubtful.”
Let Mac lead. Let Mac throw. Let Mac play along, if only just to grow.
Congratulations to Robert Kraft, a Pro Football Hall of Fame finalist as a contributor to the sport for 2023. Really, other than Jerry Jones in Dallas, what other owner/leader in this league would be more deserving of a hall induction?
And RKK has won what – twice as many Vince Lombardi trophies as Jerry has?
The story itself – from season ticket holder during a sad-sack era, to owner of a six-time Super Bowl champion – is crazy enough for even Disney to turn down that script.
Former Pats’ scout, GM and VP Frank “Bucko” Kilroy is also on that nominee list along with names like Art Modell, Don Coryell, Art Rooney, Jr., Dan Reeves and Mike Shanahan.
Remember a few weeks back, we told you the NFL would charge you five bucks a month for a new app that basically gives you nothing new?
Uh huh. Welcome NFL+ to your over-stuffed smahtphone.
Friars making news this week – PC grad Noah Horchler has signed on with Aris BC in Greece for next season.
Alyn Breed and Rafael Castro will play for the USA East Coast all-star team this summer, the same organization that scrimmaged at PC a few summers ago when the Ed Cooley-led Big East team took part in the Pan Am Games. They’ll play in Barcelona, Spain August 5 through 7.
What was your first reaction when you saw Kansas pull coach Bill Self off the road for recruiting this summer? That the Jayhawks are preparing for the NCAA hammer?
Or that maybe their NCAA Sweet 16 win over the Friars will ultimately be vacated? Maybe the Jayhawks beat PC, but can they also beat the FBI?
Were you in attendance for the coaching roundtable at Alumni Hall? Honestly, I’m not sure I thought I’d ever see Rick Pitino, Rick Barnes, Pete Gillen, Tim Welsh and Ed Cooley all on the same stage – together. Without any yelling.
And Billy Donovan, who won a couple of natty’s at Florida, too. Kinda cool.
More than 150 former players have also joined in for the weekend reunion – kudos to the Friends of Friar Basketball (and former Friar Harold Starks) for putting together this rare ‘family’ opportunity.
Did you hear that a former Friar, Marcus Douthit, is the new men’s basketball head coach at CCRI? Bill Koch had it in the ProJo, as Douthit will step in for Rick Harris – who leaves the Knights’ program with 301 wins over 15 seasons and four trips to the NJCAA Tournament.
We are now at that time of the summer where I get asked multiple times per week, “when’s the schedule coming out?” I’d be surprised if it’s too much longer before the non-conference portion is released – the Big East slate usually isn’t out until September.
PC’s soccer slate is out – and the Friars open at home at the end of August (25th) against Colgate. They’ll face URI on Labor Day Monday, and Brown the following Saturday (Sept. 10th). Big East play opens Sept. 17th at Villanova for a team that finished ranked 16th nationally last season.
Former URI hoop star Kenny Green has joined the faculty and coaching staff at the Winchendon School.
And another former Ram great, guard Tyson Wheeler, is the newest addition to Mike Martin’s coaching staff at Brown. That…sounds like a great move.
There was more than just a twinge of irony this past week at the SEC Media Days for football…when the news broke about the NCAA essentially allowing unlimited transfers among all athletes.
The NCAA Board of Directors is expected to approve this next week – which may turn the already-whirling transfer portal into a revolving door not seen since my last trip to Macy’s in Manhattan.
Good for college athletics? Good for the college athletes, maybe. But what are we teaching here? Certainly not how to stick with a commitment.
Big 10 commissioner Kevin Warren let it slip this week at the Big 10 Football Media Days that his league might not be done expanding. CBS Sports reported four more Pac-12 schools – Oregon, Washington, Stanford and Cal – could climb on board as soon as 2024.
Like I’ve said before – hit now or be hit later. If Fox wants it, the Big East needs to consider expansion…or be left behind in the collegiate dustbin.
Gotta admit, I smiled the entire time I watched David Ortiz during the Hall of Fame weekend in Cooperstown. So cool to see a player “you know” reach the pinnacle of a profession.
It would be fabulous if a little of that pinnacle could trickle down to the current Red Sox team. They simply seem to be going through the motions, and for the life of me, I don’t get it.
Tweet of the Week, from @PeteAbe: “They should send Franchy Cordero out to first base with a cricket bat or jai alai cesta. It can’t be any worse than a glove at this point.”
Makes the decision to buy or sell a bit easier. Sell.
It’s embarrassing to have a ‘big market’ club playing this poorly. And no, I don’t care if they’re a few games out of a wild card spot.
As a fan, I’d simply like to see/know what direction this ownership group intends to take from this point forward.
Andrew Benintendi to the Yankees? In my best Bob Lobel – why can’t we get players like that?
What a tough way for ex-Hendricken Hawk and BC Eagle Michael King to end his season with the Yankees. Injuries are a part of the game, a part of sports, sure. Always a bit tougher to take when it happens to the good guys…and the guys we know.
King’s right elbow fracture has knocked him out of what has been an outstanding season in the bullpen for New York, but the prognosis for next year (and beyond) looks good. He should be ready for spring training in 2023.
Just say no. Kevin Durant to the Celtics? No.
And I’m a big KD proponent. And I don’t believe the Celtics’ roster is big enough for the personalities or the egos of Jayson Tatum, Jaylen Brown AND Marcus Smaht.
What the Celtics have already done this off-season, by adding Malcolm Brogdon and Danilo Gallinari, might be enough to seriously pencil them in as a front runner for 2023. Love to see a little more size, however.
Dealing it all – or most of it – away for KD? Not that it wouldn’t work, but you’re playing with fire, Brad.
Not for nuthin’, but KD’s Thirty Five Ventures company has a large stake in the Premier Lacrosse League, which just held its all-star game at Gillette Stadium and showed a 38% increase in attendance.
The WWE also has a financial stake in the PLL – which reportedly doubles the league’s valuation. Is lax a hot sport? Yup.
It isn’t so much the end of a sports dynasty as it is the end of a dynastic business era. Vince McMahon’s decision to retire from his role as Chairman and CEO of the WWE marks the end of a promotional, marketing, all-out-in-your-face media-blitzkrieg of a career.
Maybe Vince has his faults, some of them more obvious than others. But the man can promote. He can run a show. He put wrestling in the mainstream of our sports consciousness…whether we believe wrestling is “real,” or not. Just sayin’.
Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee did something this week that former Governor Gina Raimondo never could do, or apparently wanted to do – and that’s save Pawtucket.
Or at least the hope for Pawtucket professional sports again, with the PawSox dead and buried and McCoy Stadium presently wasting away.
McKee cast the deciding vote on a deadlocked RI Commerce Corporation Board this week to approve a reworked financing plan for the new soccer complex on the Seekonk River.
If you are of a certain generation, then how can you not be touched by the passing of Wally Cleaver this week, aka Tony Dow, at age 77. Dow played Wally Cleaver on the “Leave it to Beaver” TV sitcom of the ‘50s and ‘60s…still in syndication in many places throughout the television stratosphere today.
Wally wasn’t only the Beaver’s big brother; he was America’s big brother. Unfair or not, his typecasting as Beaver’s bro (and somewhat reluctant child TV star off camera) certainly didn’t help him much with his later career, although he did spend several decades acting, producing, directing, and even sculpting.
What I liked about Tony’s ‘Wally Cleaver?’ He was genuine. Honest. Kind. Loyal – even to a fault in defending his buddy, the mischievous Eddie Haskell. I always wanted to go hang with Wally and do “stuff and junk,” like he used to say on the show.
He was the big brother I never had, and I’ll miss him, even if I only knew him from the TV screen. I’ll be whistling that theme song all day now.
Interested in having your questions on local Rhode Island sports (and yes, that includes the Patriots, Red Sox, Bruins and Celtics) answered in a somewhat timely fashion? It’s your chance to “think out loud,” so send your questions, comments, and local stories to jrbroadcaster@gmail.com. We’ll share mailbag comments/Facebook posts/Tweets right here! Would appreciate the follow on Twitter, @JRbroadcaster…and join in on Facebook, www.facebook.com/john.rooke ...
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