Sam Calvert Every year in the NCAA tournament, there seems to be a "Cinderella story." Teams like Davidson College, Western Kentucky University and Siena College give viewers a reason to get excited and draws non-basketball fans to the television.
Sam Calvert On my way to Lucas Oil Stadium this afternoon before the games, I heard one coach on the radio say, "Don't mess with happy." It got me thinking about what "happy" really means. Sitting in my seat this evening, I discovered the meaning. I found it in the students and fans that drove everywhere from six miles (Butler University) to 596 miles (Duke University). Fans from all schools flooded the stadium, shouting to compatriots as they passed them on the streets and in the arena. "Go Green!
Sam Calvert From the moment I stepped off the airplane in Indianapolis, I was surrounded by basketball. There were huge advertisements and signs everywhere. People were pouring into the city. In the short amount of time I've been here, everything has been characterized by the tournament. Excitement fills the air everywhere I go. Just eating is tough, as traffic swarms the road. Every television in the town seems to be set to air analysis of the games. Any conversation seems to start off with some form of the same question: "Are you here for the games?" Fans already surround Lucas Oil Stadium and have been there since early this morning. Students and fans pack close to the doors, ready and painted hours before the games begin. In the lobby of the hotel, folks donned bright yellow shirts with navy "West Virginia" and "Mountaineers" printed so large that nobody could mistake their loyalties. A family struggled through the door, bags in tow, in their best "Duke" blue and accessorized with beads and hats and the like. "Izzone" tributes to Michigan State University coach Tom Izzo remind me that the team has made the Final Four for the second year in a row, six times in the last 12 years. Even those who lack paraphernalia won't for long. One woman was discussing with her friend about the first purchase she would make -- a Butler University shirt. I can already anticipate the apparel tables with lines that wrap around the stadium, encircled by basketball fans from all over, trying to claim identity with one of the four that made it this far. But these aren't the fans that intrigue me the most. Sitting in the corner of the lobby, quietly reading a book next to the fire, was a woman with "Kansas" written across her chest. Although it exited the tournament early -- in the second round -- she does not abandon her team. Surrounded by teams who have made it farther, who have proved to be the best of the best, she wears her colors proud. This is what March Madness is all about. It's about basketball and the fans who support them. It's about team faithfulness and the spirit of competition. And nothing matches the excitement of the Final Four.
So, to all of you who think that tacos are meant for lunch or dinner - SHAZAM! They're not. At least, not in Texas.
So, it's come to this. In the midst of quarrels about how to contribute to plans for world peace, stop terrorism and get water to those around the world that need it, people are debating about the most effective Exit sign. The big red word, the little green man. We've seen the huge red word lighting the exits in movie theaters for a while now, and I don't know about you, but I've been fine!
Conor O'Neill I'm sure the atmosphere of the ACC tournament this week in Greensboro will have an electric feeling to it.
So, last night I took the liberty of watching the new MTV sensation, 16 and Pregnant. I watched it last season and suffered the same bout of overwhelming nausea with each passing segment (don't ask me why I chose to endure the torture again). Six girls are highlighted in the series, and each show is an hour-long segment that normally takes place during their third trimester.
Conor O'Neill Let's face it: this has been a fantastic season of college basketball. There have been plenty of major upsets, surprises, disappointments, an Ivy League team ranked in the top 25, everything.
Conor O'Neill Pete Carroll is headed back to the NFL. Adam Shefter reported it Saturday morning, and I've come to understand that anything reported by Shefter is going to be true.
Pam Richter Allen Iverson's tirade about practice when he was a member of the Philadelphia 76ers is one of the most replayed and talked about interviews in recent sports history.
Pam Richter Starting late Monday night, ESPN began airing a 24-hour midnight marathon of college basketball.
Elon junior quarterback Scott Riddle threw three interceptions in the first quarter of today's game.
Coming into today’s game, both senior wide receiver Terrell Hudgins and ASU senior quarterback Armanti Edwards have been highly targeted. Hudgins virtually seems to have every SoCon receiving record and this season has made his presence known on the national level breaking several records.
Looking out into Rhodes Stadium, it may be difficult to believe that this is a home game for the Phoenix. Appalachian State brings fans, and they bring a lot of them. Not only are there fans present, but they are loud and supportive of their team. This morning ASU fans were tailgating as early as 9 a.m., and probably even earlier.
Last week against Western Carolina Elon started the game with a 44-yard pass from junior quarterback Scott Riddle to senior wide receiver Terrell Hudgins to start the game. Today, the Elon offense went back to Hudgins on the first play again once again.
Today's matchup between No. 6 Elon and No. 7/8 Appalachian State is one of the biggest in conference history.
It's some sort of combination of broken-heartedness, a level of maturity, growing and some struggle that lies beneath the eleven tracks I recently downloaded from iTunes.
Sam Calvert The average age of an NFL starting quarterback is 28. Nine starting quarterbacks out of the 32 teams in the NFL are 25 years old or less. At the same time, nine are 30 years old or more. Of the nine that are 25 or less, two are only 21 years of age (Matthew Stafford of the Detriot Lions and Josh Freeman of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers) and one is 22 years of age (Mark Sanchez of the New York Jets.) There are only six wins among these three quarterbacks, and four of them go to the eldest, Sanchez. With these facts presented, let me just pose a question: Would you entrust the title of CEO of a Fortune 500 company to a 21 year old, or even a 28 year old? According to Forbes, the average age of a CEO in 2001 was 48.8 years, with the average of 45.2 years old in the field information technology being one of the younger averages. If we accept these figures to be true, then the answer to my question is no. And yet we put these quarterbacks in a leadership position very similar to that of a CEO, but with one minor caveat-- millions of people are watching these men do their jobs each and every Sunday. The pressure is enormous, and yet these are men who are barely out of college. Even the starters who we consider veterans, who have been around for a while, are not that old. Take Ben Roethlisberger of the Pittsburgh Steelers, for example. He is only 27 years old, and yet he has been playing in the NFL for six years. Since he was 21! And the "old players," conversely, are not very old. Often I hear people talk about Donovan McNabb of the Philadelphia Eagles and Matt Hasselbeck of the Seattle Seahawks, using phrases such as "He's getting too old" and "He's seen better days." These two men are 32 and 34 respectively. By Forbes' standards, these men are not even old enough to be expected to be the CEO of a company, and yet they are already "too old" to lead their team. It is also no coincidence that some of the best teams in the league are led by older quarterbacks. The only two teams left undefeated at this point in the season are the Indianapolis Colts and the New Orleans Saints. Peyton Manning of the Colts and Drew Brees of the Saints are 33 and 30 years of age, respectively. Tom Brady is considered by some to be the greatest quarterback in the league right now, and he's 32 years old. The Minnesota Vikings only have one loss, and their quarterback, Brett Favre, is 40 years old. While much of this has to do with athletic ability and its direct association with age, we still need to remember that these quarterbacks are just kids in most respects. When Jay Cutler of the Chicago Bears had his debacle with the Denver Broncos and their head coach, Josh McDaniels, Cutler was made out to be a "cry baby" and "selfish." While these things may have been true, we must remember that he is only 26 years old! By society's standards, he still has a lot of growing up to do, and his behavior might have been dismissed as a guy in his mid-twenties, not quite mature and wise enough to handle himself in that situation. But since he is the starting quarterback of a team that millions of people watch on a week-to-week basis, he is held in a different light and expected to behave perfectly every time. I do not foresee the average age of the starting quarterback getting any younger in the coming years, but I do think that we should keep in mind that these players are really only 10 years into adulthood. It's a reality check-- one that is much needed in this age of pressure on sports franchises to compete at the highest level possible.
On the first play of the game, Elon junior quarterback Scott Riddle completed a 44-yard pass to senior wide receiver Terrell Hudgins.
Elon senior wide receiver Terrell Hudgins needs 34 yards to tie the record for the most career receiving yards in the FCS.
