It's not what's on the back of the jersey...

It has been over a decade since I was the part of an actual athletic team, competing with other individuals for a championship. (And even then, it was a golf team, so that counts as one-third; maybe) So, who is my team now? I can't cheer as an equal of my favorite sports teams. I haven't done the work, spilled the blood, shed the tears. But I've realized now that I do have a team...

The United States of America

No, this isn't a patriotic call to arms, but just a basic observation. Sports become entirely more interesting when the good ol' USA is on the jersey. I've got three recent reasons...

1) The World Basketball Championships - When was the last time you (hell, anybody) cheered for an outlet pass from Tyson Chandler to Andre Iguodala, or a kick out from Russell Westbrook to Rudy Gay? I did this week. Why? Because there are a group of guys who were willing to spend their offseason competing in an ever-improving international basketball competition, while others stayed home. It's the jersey, I swear. I will watch the games online. Yeah, we got the gold back in the Olympics, but the last time America won the World Basketball Championships? Hakeem Olajuwon was the NBA MVP, OJ "didn't" murder his wife and Nancy Kerrigan just wanted to question 'Why.' Yep, 1994. Wow! Get it done boys!

2) The Ryder Cup - Why can't it hurry up and get here? This professional golf season has been more about young American players choking (see Johnson-comma-Dustin or Watney-comma-Nick) than about them excelling, or providing anything worth watching. Look at the golfers who showed up with more balls than just their Titleists in the majors:

a) Mickelson - Been there, done that, and had the cajones to pull this off.

b) Graeme McDowell - Only person who bothered to grab the club tight and swing it

c) Louis Oosthuizen - Didn't read the papers and just kept the accelerator down

d) Martin Kaymer - Knew how to make a putt when it counted

What do the final three have in common? Not from this country. And two will be donning blue and gray trying to bring the Cup back. I want the US to prove they can actually win something.

3) LLWS - Japan finally beat the US at something. In honor of my grandfather, I say this for all WWII Vets and their misguided grudge... "Scoreboard!"

Honorable Mention to the US Open (tennis), for being the major after Wimbledon that allows for (gasp) creatively colored outfits, fist pumps, drunk fans and midnight matches. That's how we play it in Amurrica!

- Will

Welcome Back... Sort Of

I am working on a new entry before football season officially kicks off later this week. In fact, I am hoping to actually have storylines in the works in advance.

(Let me preface this mini entry by saying welcome back to Awful Announcing, one of the better sports blogs out there that went MIA, but has been brought back from the dead thanks to some writers)

I was excited next week to post an entry about "Top 10 Things I Learned from Watching Hard Knocks," only to see that AwfulAnnouncing beat me to the punch, with an entire episode still to be aired. C'mon boys. Well, it's an unlimited stratosphere of web content, so we should have plenty to both add. And then, Boom! #10 on their list is verbatim #2 on my list (of course, in draft form, so they win). That was my punch line. The clincher. The hook. I have been rendered useless, stale and unoriginal.

Back to the drawing board for now...

- Will

Random Musings From A Summer Spent In Relative Hibernation

It is time for me to stop riding Will's coat tails, and actually contribute to this blog. And I decided what better way than to just spout off on random topics from the summer months? So, without further delay, here is my debut with CTZ:
(did....did you see what I did there?....instead of Cover Two Zone, I abbreviated it to 'CTZ'...)

Am I the only one who finds themselves cheering more for Tiger Woods now? I mean, even before the world knew he was flying sluts all over the world into Pound Town, I appreciated his elite level of golf. (Or, at least as much as I could while alseep on the couch during a Sunday afternoon.) But, now he has been exposed, and everyone is jumping off his preverbial bandwagon. There is one thing we must all remember: Tiger Woods is a champion. And we all know champions don't go down like some punk bitches. Woods is about to embark on an international F-you tour to everyone counting him out. The last time the sporting word has seen something like this was with the Patriots in 2007.

Remember? The Patriots were respected for winning at an uncommonly high level in the NFL, then all sorts of drama came out about Spygate. How did they respond? With an undefeated regular season that set all sorts of records for offensive production. Same type of thing here. Woods is going to blow up all over again. It's not a matter of if, it's a matter of when.

...after last night's game against the Colts, is there anyone that wouldn't put Aaron Rodgers in the top three QBs for fantasy football? He tore up a good Colts defense, and was without his top
wide receiver.

I really couldn't care less about the NBA, but I have a hard time becoming a Utah Jazz fan out of principle. I realize that, as a Butler alumnus, I am legally obligated to be a Jazz fan, but, really? The Jazz? I just can't see myself hustling home this winter to catch a Jazz game.

I switched coaching positions this year, and will be moving from Rockford High School on to Grand Valley State University. I'm not surprised if you didn't know about it. My decision aired on ESPN2 at the same time as Lebron's decision. No one in Rockford took to the streets burning bow ties though.

I can't wait for michigan football to start out 0-2 this year. They open with UConn at home, then travel to Notre Dame. One of my former players at Rockford is a manager at michigan now. He said Forcier isn't getting any reps with the first string. Gardner, the incoming freshman, is. (How is THAT for some inside infomation!!) If East Grand Rapids can shutdown Gardner (and they did), I have a feeling UConn and Notre Dame won't have much of a problem with him, either.

The Little League World Series is the only baseball worth watching. A kid gives up a three-run shot, and cries right there on the mound. Everytime I see that, I think of the scene from Step Brothers, when the parents tell Will Ferrell they are getting a divorce. Will Ferrell starts sobbing uncontrollably while saying 'I..think..I'm..going...to...throw...up'. Brilliantly funny. Gets me everytime.

I'm glad the World Cup is over. Now people can stop having to pretend they give a crap about soccer. And don't give me that 'you just don't understand the subtleties of the game' garbage. Soccer is boring. Vuvuzellas suck. End of story.

I think the next Olympics should do away with drug testing. All athletes should compete on the 'honor system'. I don't care about integrity in sports. I want to see some Hulked-up Russian 'chick' throw the shotput out of the stadium.

That's all I have for now. Thanks to everyone for reading. I promise to write more in the future, and in fact, will use this time to announce that Beat The Sports Guy will be coming to Cover Two Zone this fall. That's right, BTSG will be found only at CTZ. Be sure to check back in!

- Murray

Appetizers

The summer sports season certainly didn't help grow the readership of this blog. Sure, I was spending a few days on the road or the golf course, and not writing. But, what was there to write about? Roger Clemens is going to write the same "How'd You Spend Your Summer" essay as Lindsay Lohan. Brett Favre has gone from my favorite NFL QB Story to a cliche of most grandfathers: indecisive, creaky and self-righteous. And.... that's about all we've missed over the past month. (Oh yeah, Pete Dye's course design finally cost somebody a major unintentionally. Those circus designs were going to bite somebody other than me one day.)

Hurry Up Football Season! The scholarship athletes will be here a week from now. And, if Roger Goodell and his owners get their way, we'll be playing professional football this week, for real, by 2012. This week has me giddy for sports again because actual "sport" is taking place. Week 3 of the NFL Preseason is the one time when I feel like an actual scout. First teams play a significant chunk of time, so you get a feel for how your team will actually fare (1st Team Colts is better than 1st Team Packers, EDIT - I wrote this with 5 minutes left in the 2nd quarter. Despite the outcome, I still stand by it. A touchy pass interference call, botched punt/TD and silly Peyton int made a world of difference. I'd take the Colts in the regular season). And, let us not forget that every game is a tryout for my fantasy team. (I saw those buttery hands, Ryan Grant)

I've forgotten the art of football a little bit since early February. I like being able to just watch the game with nothing on the line. I am building up the excitement, wetting the appetite.

[Side note: How good is John Gruden in the booth? He is 1996 John Madden without the stutter. MNF finally found a team]

The other reason to be excited about sports: Little League World Series. There is so much drama and good balance between amazing, mature-for-their-age skill and sheer dumb, young mistakes. Watch the elimination games when you have to balance pitch counts and bring in 12-year-olds who have never thrown. Just pure, nail-biting drama. I would say it is one of the few remaining pure sporting events, but then we would have to forget Danny Almonte, and that would be wrong, wouldn't it?

[Side note: How good is Brent Musberger at the LLWS? Perfect pace for his delivery, like college football. (Not so much in college hoops) And, why couldn't I have had Musberger call a little league game of mine?]

You can't watch these kids play, as a sports fan, and not fall in love with competition and sports even more. You really can't. If you disagree, I'll file a stolen property report for your soul.

Do me a favor... Watch the elimination games tomorrow and take a mental picture. Then, when the World Series finally gets here and some overpaid juicers from the AL East beat up on some pitchers from the NL, tell me which was better.

So, get excited America... Sports is back and it's only going to get better. Feel free to frequent Cover Two a bit more starting next week as there will be a bit more content, including weekly football game predictions, maybe even against the spreads, not that there is gambling at all. Time to go rank my fantasy players again...

- Will

Ending the Silence

How boring has the sports world been the past few weeks? So boring, that this blog has gone from useless to downright deceased. A summer wrap-up rant is coming, along with increased chatter around football season. Oh, and that 'other guy' who is a member of this blog, who knows what ever became of him... http://www.collegelax.us/news/2010/08/24/slate-wiped-clean-at-gvsu/ (Love the tie!)

- Will