Wilson: The need to be needed
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 6, 2002
Extra Point -- Chuck Wilson (morning): "For 16-seasons, he pitched for the Atlanta Braves, winning 242-games. Now future Hall-of-Famer Tom Glavine is a NY Met. What happened? Why isn't he finishing his career with the Braves? Yes, the Mets offered a superior contract. But the difference in money doesn't tell the whole story. For it's pretty clear this first-time free agent wanted to remain in Atlanta, for family and professional reasons, and hoped the team wanted him to stay. But the Braves negotiating tactics and their lack of passion were in stark contrast to the approach of the Mets and Phillies, who came after him hard. The recruiting during free agency is invigorating. The process is little different from the rest of the business world. You find out just how much others value your work. And organizations make every effort to show you how special you are in ways that go beyond money. Simply put, you feel wanted. That's a strong human emotion and it plays just as big a part in job decision-making by big-money pro athletes as it does with the rest of us."
Extra Point -- Bob Picozzi (afternoon): "So which professional athlete will be the next one to tear up at a news conference and proclaim 'I readily did want to stay, but ...' How about the nerve of Jim Thome, passing up a $61 million offer to stay in Cleveland and then getting emotional when talking about how difficult it was to leave?' Oh, by the way, he signed an $85 million deal to go to Philadelphia. Typical modern-day, selfish ballplayer, right? Maybe not. I can think of eight good reasons for Thome to leave. From his vantage point at first base, just look around at the eight other guys the Indians' crack ownership had assembled to play with him. Manny Ramírez? Gone. Bartolo Colón? Gone. What kind of commitment is this franchise making to compete compared to the one the Phillies are suddenly making? They're throwing money around like the Democratic-controlled Congress once did. A message to Indians fans: I know you are upset, but don't be upset with Thome. Be upset with the clowns who run your team, the ones who have run it right into the ground."
SportsBeat -- Brent Musburger from Houston (afternoon): "From my vantage point here at the Big 12 Championship, I don't see anybody in the college landscape who can come within two touchdowns of Miami. When the season began I didn't think the 'Canes could march through Gainesville, Knoxville and a game with Florida State unbeaten. But they did it, and now they are a victory away from playing Ohio State for their second consecutive national championship and all the Tostitos in the Fiesta Bowl. Folks, if I'm a Buckeye or a Buckeye lover, I'm pulling hard for Virginia Tech to raise their game to a new level tomorrow and upset the 'Canes in Miami. No, I don't think it will happen. In fact, I think the 'Canes will blow their wheels off, but let's say the Hokies do win. Unless it's the most unlikely of blowouts, I still see Miami's BCS lead being big enough to keep them in the national championship game.

"On paper, the SEC Championship looks like it could be a good game. Georgia comes in 11-1, and Arkansas has won six straight. The 'X' factor here is the crowd. It's the first time the Bulldogs have reached the championship game in Atlanta, and when the Razorbacks come on the field, they're going to think they're between the hedges with a roof over their head. The Georgia Dome will be Athens West, and that scene will be no small part of Georgia's game. It just seems like Uga's year. As for our game here in Houston, who can figure Oklahoma? When the season started, we all thought its secondary was the best in the country, but the Sooners were torched by two quarterbacks -- a Texas A&M freshman and an Oklahoma State unknown. Enter Colorado for tomorrow's rematch of a 27-11 loss at Norman, where the Buffaloes self-destructed with four turnovers. They certainly have something to prove against a reeling OU team. A loss to Colorado would bring significant criticism to Bob Stoops' regime for the first time in his four years at OU. The pressure is squarely on the Sooners coaching staff in this one."

"You'd have to say Willis McGahee might be the finest running back Miami has ever pointed toward the NFL. Remember, this is the school that produced O.J. Anderson, Edgerrin James and Clinton Portis. McGahee has run the 40 in 4.28. In other words, Deion Sanders in his prime would not have been able to gain on him. Another future pro star is Penn State's Larry Johnson, one of only a handful of backs to have rushed for more than two-thousand yards in one season. Problem is he was a non-factor against Ohio State, Iowa and Michigan, all losses for the Nittany Lions. Colorado's Chris Brown appeared headed to the top of the charts, but injuries have slowed him to the point of being doubtful for Saturday's Big 12 title game against Oklahoma. So as we did at quarterback, we lean toward a Hurricane. McGahee joins Dorsey as the best in college football this year. But what happens if the Miami stars split the vote? Who wins the Heisman? One of the other four could slip in and pick up the hardware nine days from now in New York. Your guess is as good as mine."

"First, Yao Ming is about two years ahead of schedule with the Rockets. He had as many rebounds as Tim Duncan and David Robinson combined in Houston's win over San Antonio. How would you like to be the Eastern Conference center, whoever he winds up being, taking on Yao Ming and Shaquille O'Neal in the All-Star Game?

"Have you ever seen a better night for buzzer beaters? First, there's Steve Blake's half-court Howitzer that came just after the buzzer. Instead of a Maryland win, it turned into an overtime decision for Indiana. Then there was Georgia, down four with 11-point-3 seconds left before the Hayes twins hit a pair of three-pointers to pull out a one-point win at Colorado. But nothing was better than Ed Persia, whose one-handed, 80-foot heave at the buzzer gave Princeton a 60-57 win over Monmouth. As 'Dickie "V"' would say, 'Are you kiddin' me?'

"The Dallas Mavericks try to run their record to 17-1 tonight when they visit Portland, which is turning into a hostile place for the home team. Ruben Patterson, a registered sex offender, just had separate charges of domestic abuse dropped, but Blazer teammates Damon Stoudamire and Rasheed Wallace still have a court date this week in Washington for allegedly being caught with marijuana. The normally loyal fans in Portland are starting to let their feelings be known about these so-called citizens, and let's just say it's not all rosy in the Rose Garden. In the East, there's a growing feeling around the NBA that the Philadelphia 76ers may be the best team in the conference. Tonight they host an old rival -- the Boston Celtics. Keith Van Horn is giving Allen Iverson some much-needed scoring help, and so far they have not missed the defensive presence of Dikembe Mutombo, who will be out of the New Jersey Nets lineup up to four months after wrist surgery tomorrow. So much for that trade."

Moore: Vick is the one
TUESDAY, DECEMBER 3, 2002
Extra Point -- Chris Moore (morning): "Well, I know that it's a no-brainer to make Mike Vick the subject of one of these commentaries, but I'm still not sure the American sports fan really appreciates what we have here. Forget about changing the game or reinventing the position. This guy is Michael Jordan or Joe Montana or Wayne Gretzky. He is the show by himself. Name a player in any sport you'd rather watch play. The bandwagon is now full, but it wasn't always that way. I always loved the talent but wondered if his body could take the NFL week-to-week pounding. Then I was assigned a trip to the 2000 national championship game -- Sugar Bowl, New Orleans, Virginia Tech vs. Florida State. Number 7 got pounded in the 46-29 loss to the Seminoles. He got pounded, and he got up again and again and again. How many guys live up to the hype? How many win games seemingly by themselves? How many are just 22? The guy was born in 1980. There are doubters -- there always are -- but this guy is no fluke, and there's no one anywhere like him."
Extra Point -- Trey Wingo (afternoon): "Amazingly, one of the topics discussed in the newsroom here in Bristol this week: If Miami loses to Virginia Tech next weekend, who goes to play Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl? Georgia? USC? To which I have to respond are you kidding? Even if Miami loses to Virginia Tech, which I highly doubt will happen, there's not another team in the land more deserving of playing for the national championship than the Hurricanes. They haven't lost in 26 months, and you can't convince me that either Georgia or USC would be a better one-loss team. Miami came into this season having lost three-fourths of their starting secondary to the first round of the NFL Draft along with some fairly decent players like Jeremy Shockey, Clinton Portis and Bryant McKinnie. So what does Miami do? Just keep winning. Was it always perfect? No, but what it always has been is a win. If Nebraska can limp into last year's title game after getting waxed by Colorado, shouldn't the defending champs be given the same courtesy? They've earned their stripes. No other team, no matter what their record is, can make that claim."
SportsBeat -- Brent Musburger (afternoon): "Will the BCS bashers please do me one favor? Wait 'til they play the games. Issue one: Notre Dame. Yes, the Irish remain the number-one attraction in college football. Love 'em or hate 'em, you can't ignore 'em. And yes, they suffered an embarrassing loss at the hands of USC Saturday night. But at no time were the Irish ever going to replace the Trojans as a BCS choice because of the so-called 'Kansas State rule.' USC will finish fourth or higher in the final B-C-S rankings, guaranteeing it a spot in one of the four major bowls. So what about the Irish? They remain an Orange Bowl possibility if Washington State loses Saturday at UCLA. It is not Notre Dame's fault that it is a major television attraction, so let's everybody get off their backs. And it's not the BCS's fault either. The Irish were the sweetest, juiciest apple on the tree long before the BCS ever existed.

"BCS issue two: Iowa. The knights of the keyboard have suddenly concluded the Hawkeyes is about to be victimized by the BCS because of the Notre Dame factor. They are assuming the bowl games are run by idiots. That is simply not the case. But economics are a huge part of the equation in any bowl formula. The Rose Bowl badly wants to restore its Big Ten-Pac-10 tradition, one that has been very kind to their bottom line. Look for a deal to be cut matching Iowa against either Washington State or USC. Now the Orange Bowl, which faces enormous ticket-selling pressure in South Florida, has a fail-safe: As ACC champion, Florida State is an automatic BCS player and would fill Pro Player Stadium. So let's say Miami and Washington State take care of business this Saturday. Here's a possible bowl lineup -- Fiesta: Miami against Ohio State. Rose: Iowa against Washington State. Orange: Florida State against Oklahoma or Colorado. Sugar: Georgia or Arkansas against USC. I have just one question after all this: What was the big deal here?"

"The playoff picture in the NFC is starting to take shape. Green Bay is in. San Francisco and Philadelphia are closing in. In the South, the New Orleans Saints and the Atlanta 'Vicks' are making it interesting for the Tampa Bay Bucs. Meanwhile, the AFC epitomizes the word 'parity.' Did you notice that only Cincinnati, Houston and Jacksonville are below .500 in the AFC? Everyone is still in the mix."