I posted a blog about the Lance Armstrong documentary last week. Well it finished up this week.
Lance Armstrong certainly marched to the beat of his own drum. And he still does today. He said multiple times in the taping of the documentary that he wouldn't have done it any other way. He wouldn't change a thing about what he did.
I know most people can't stand the guy today. I understand that.
But he wasn't the only one who doped. I said that last week, too. He was the best cyclist who doped.
The positive stuff he did certainly hasn't outweighed the bad for most people. But he did help sell 80 million bracelets as part of a Livestrong fundraiser. That's $80 million. He also made hospital visits with cancer patients and wasn't looking for attention from the media.
But Lance Armstrong burned a lot of bridges with former teammates and those involved with those teammates. He sued a lot of people who accused him of doing something he later admitted to doing. So he definitely had flaws.
Some other observations from the rest of the documentary that aired tonight on ESPN:
- Lance Armstrong still hates Floyd Landis and Greg Lamond. No love lost there.
- I didn't know Lance Armstrong's son, Luke, plays football for Rice.
- He admitted to doping with Oprah Winfrey in 2013. He did everything on his own terms. He admitted to needing a nuclear meltdown.
- The documentary's final seconds shows Armstrong jogging, not cycling, and he says he's sorry for the way he led. He wished he was a better man. But also said he has no trouble sleeping at night.
- Armstrong wasn't always the best decision maker in general. The decision to come back and race in the Tour de France in 2009 was a dumb choice. His career was done and over. But coming back three years later put him back on the map. He placed third that year but his competitive fire always seemed to win out in his decisions.
- Floyd Landis won the Tour de France in 2006 but also tested positive for PEDs. After he came back from his suspension, Armstrong's team denied him entrance back on the team and Landis took that personally. He felt like he took a bullet for the team when he was caught.
- Landis was so mad he went public and became the whistle blower for doping in cycling. He went all in.
- Tyler Hamilton suggested in one of his interviews that doping in cycling went all the way back to the 1980s.
- The first two-year investigation into doping and Armstrong resulted in a charges being dropped. He was off the hook until the UCI brought about new charges that led eventually to his demise.
- The charges forced the UCI to strip him of his seven Tour de France titles. Testimonies by his friend George Hincapie, Tyler Hamilton, Frankie Andreu, Christian Vande Velde, Michael Barry, Stephen Swart and Jorg Jaksche all played a role in Armstrong's guilty verdict.
- That led to sponsors Nike, Oakley and Giro to cut ties with Armstrong. They were all gone in 48 hours. And then Livestrong cut ties with him shortly after that.
- Armstrong cannot use a potato peeler. He cut his finger using one and even said on camera to his fiancee that he had no idea how to use it.
- His biggest regret was the way he treated Emma O'Reilly. He called her a whore during a live interview and admitted in the documentary that he was in "full attack mode."
- He also regretted the way he treated Felippo Simeoni, who testified against Dr. Michele Ferrari. Armstrong said in the documentary that he was a "fucking asshole" to him.
- Armstrong denied all of the allegations that came out in O'Reilly's book. He said in the documentary that you "can't dope and be honest."
- I found it laugh out loud funny that Matt Lauer made the documentary as someone reporting the demise of Armstrong. Lauer would later meet his demise in a sexual assault scandal.
Armstrong was an amazing athlete. He won seven straight Tour de France titles in an era where everyone was doping. He basically went 100 days on the tour without crashing.
The documentary didn't paint a better picture as to who Armstrong was. Most will come away from the four hours with the same opinions they had before. But I was wildly entertained and enjoyed spending my last two Sunday nights watching.
Sunday, May 31, 2020
Be Kind
Buckle up. It's going to be a challenging summer for a lot of folks.
In my little bubble, summer sports practices have officially begun. The challenges there lie within the coaches, players, fans and others who will be attending baseball and softball games starting on June 15.
A lot has been put on the coaches' plate this time around. They will be asked to do more. A lot more.
But everyone will have to play their part in making sure anyone who is involved is as safe as they can be.
It has already been a challenging few days for law enforcement around the country. Des Moines had a few interesting nights recently. Peaceful protests turned violent and unnecessary on both Friday and Saturday night.
I don't have an answer for that. But I hate seeing pictures of broken windows at the Polk County Courthouse and popular downtown restaurants/bars such as Spaghetti Works and Johnny's Hall of Fame.
I made a few trips to Johnny's Hall of Fame with a few other media friends after our basketball all-state meetings in early March. It's the place we go to catch up. And it stinks seeing the damage that was done to that place.
Rioting isn't the answer. But peaceful protests haven't been able to get the message across in previous years so things have escalated.
Television reporters are even struggling to do their jobs. I watched a few local channels on Saturday night to catch up on what was going on and a female reporter from WOI-TV needed three chances to do one live shot because she was part of a group that was tear gassed and then had a protestor screaming obscenities at her during the second segment.
We can be better as a society. Yes, there are a few bad apples in every profession, including law enforcement. But none of us should paint a picture with a broad brush.
We have to find a way to be better people. I was taught at an early age by my parents, teachers and coaches to treat everyone the way I wanted to be treated. It's the Golden Rule.
It sounds so simple. But it's a big part of the answer to all of this madness.
If we just treat others better a lot of this reactionary nonsense would go away.
I don't understand what it's like to be a person of color in this world. I won't pretend to understand what they go through on a daily basis. But I understand why they are upset.
Maybe this message of breaking things, attacking cops on the streets and spray painting buildings will get their point across. Maybe it won't.
I hope one day it doesn't have to come to this. Actor Will Smith caught my attention the other day with a post on social media. To paraphrase, he said racism didn't come back recently, it's just being recorded now.
Everyone has a camera these days. Maybe video taping something that isn't right is a better way to handle a bad situation.
I won't pretend to have all the answers. But I will continue to treat others how I want to be treated. We have to find a way be better to everyone. And it starts at the top.
Now back to summer sports. This season will go by fast. There is less than a full month's worth of games before the playoffs start. Some of our area teams are playing around 12 games. Some are playing as many as 18.
It will be a challenging summer for me as a sports journalist. I won't be able to roam free like I have in the past. I will do my part in following social distancing guidelines the best I can.
I plan to use the media boxes on the field more this summer. So if I'm blocking your view because I'm in the box, just know that it's not intentional. I try to stay out of the way of spectators when taking photos, but I don't think the setup this summer will give people like me too many options.
Try to be nice to us media folks. We are just doing our jobs. Be nice to the coaches because I guarantee you they will be more stressed than normal this summer. Be kind to the umpires, whose already tough job won't be easier when games start on June 15.
We'll all get through this tough time. Whether it be on the ball diamond or in real life. There is a light at the end of the tunnel. I can see it. And it's glorious.
It's now our job to find a way to get there.
Saturday, May 30, 2020
Camping, Bike Riding and S'Mores
My daughter loves playing outside but hates any kind of bug that stings you. And our yard is a full of wasps and bees from the time it gets warm to when it gets cold. They are all over the place.
It's so bad right now for my daughter that she is wearing a light jacket to cover her arms when she is outside. I try to tell her that they will likely leave you alone if you just go about your own business, but she was stung once two summers ago and just hates everything about them.
We don't go to the pool enough. We don't ride bikes as a family enough right now. And we don't enough outside to get her used to the environment.
She can't fully swim yet but made huge steps last summer when we were on vacation in Colorado. And now swimming pools aren't open to further her learning right now. I suppose we could sign her up for swimming lessons.
We took her out to learn how to ride a bike without training wheels. That went better than we thought but she's not there yet. It will take some time and it's really up to her parents to continue to get her outside to work on it.
We went camping in the backyard for the first time last night. We started out by roasting s'mores in our fire pit. I could make a fire every weekend and just sit out there and enjoy the outside air. My wife hates them. So we just don't do it enough.
The s'mores were, per usual, delicious. My daughter loves them and enjoys sitting by a fire.
The camping experience could have been better. Our daughter slept from about 11 p.m. to 5 a.m. without a hitch. Her parents woke up every few hours. My legs, back, neck and shoulders hurt today. We are just not the roughing it crowd.
We made it to 5:30 a.m. and decided to come inside because the wife and daughter were cold and the birds were having some fun. They were loud!!!
The next time I sleep in a tent, there will be an air mattress. My body at almost 40 cannot handle the ground. Our backyard isn't exactly flat either.
I think camping in our future needs to be of the glamping variety. I think I could handle it more than my wife, but neither of us think sleeping in a tent without a mattress sounds all that fun. And we are feeling it today.
Monday, May 25, 2020
Lance Armstrong Documentary - Part 1
I just finished Part 1 of the Lance Armstrong documentary.
Back when he was winning seven Tour de France titles in a row, I don't think the United States was ever more captivated by a cyclist. Competing cyclists fall pretty far down the totem pole when it comes to sports.
But Armstrong had all of our attention from 1999-2005. And I am here to tell you that he's not as bad of a guy as you think.
OK. He was banned from the sport because of illegal doping. But who wasn't doping back when he got started. The documentary tells us that almost everyone doped. If you didn't dope, you had no chance to win the Tour de France.
So was Armstrong one of many who doped and was just better than the others who doped? I think so.
He isn't all bad either. In 1997, Armstrong and his team formed the Lance Armstrong Foundation. They have raised $325 million to help cancer research.
Armstrong didn't come from the best home life growing up either. His mom got pregnant with him at age 16. His biological father left the family when Lance was a baby.
Lance was adopted by his mother's second husband. Lance said Terry Armstrong would beat him with a paddle for the littlest of things when he was a kid. And Terry admitted in the documentary to pushing Lance in athletics the point where he was winning at all costs.
His mother even forged his birth certificate when he was 15 years old so he could compete in a cycling competition that required the participants to be 16. He won that race, too.
So cheating has been going on in his life for a long time.
Armstrong was against doping before he was diagnosed with cancer. When he returned, he just did what everyone else did.
And basically could have renamed the Tour de France the Tour de Lance from 1999 to 2005.
Before the 1998 Tour de France, he told a friend that he didn't think he would ever do the Tour de France again. He almost retired before he was just getting started at that level.
The French first began accusing Armstrong of doping after he won the Prologue at the Tour de France in 1999. He was always thought of as a cheater.
But again, who wasn't cheating back then.
Do we really think the whistle blower Floyd Landis wasn't cheating?
In baseball, today's fans don't hate football players who use performance enhancing drugs. Even Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez are considered the best players of the steroids era. MLB had an entire era of cheaters and some of turn a blind eye to it.
I don't condone cheating. But I can't fault Lance for doing something that everyone was doing. He's taken too big of a hit of his decisions. The good that he has done should outweigh some of the bad.
He's not perfect, but who is?
Back when he was winning seven Tour de France titles in a row, I don't think the United States was ever more captivated by a cyclist. Competing cyclists fall pretty far down the totem pole when it comes to sports.
But Armstrong had all of our attention from 1999-2005. And I am here to tell you that he's not as bad of a guy as you think.
OK. He was banned from the sport because of illegal doping. But who wasn't doping back when he got started. The documentary tells us that almost everyone doped. If you didn't dope, you had no chance to win the Tour de France.
So was Armstrong one of many who doped and was just better than the others who doped? I think so.
He isn't all bad either. In 1997, Armstrong and his team formed the Lance Armstrong Foundation. They have raised $325 million to help cancer research.
Armstrong didn't come from the best home life growing up either. His mom got pregnant with him at age 16. His biological father left the family when Lance was a baby.
Lance was adopted by his mother's second husband. Lance said Terry Armstrong would beat him with a paddle for the littlest of things when he was a kid. And Terry admitted in the documentary to pushing Lance in athletics the point where he was winning at all costs.
His mother even forged his birth certificate when he was 15 years old so he could compete in a cycling competition that required the participants to be 16. He won that race, too.
So cheating has been going on in his life for a long time.
Armstrong was against doping before he was diagnosed with cancer. When he returned, he just did what everyone else did.
And basically could have renamed the Tour de France the Tour de Lance from 1999 to 2005.
Before the 1998 Tour de France, he told a friend that he didn't think he would ever do the Tour de France again. He almost retired before he was just getting started at that level.
The French first began accusing Armstrong of doping after he won the Prologue at the Tour de France in 1999. He was always thought of as a cheater.
But again, who wasn't cheating back then.
Do we really think the whistle blower Floyd Landis wasn't cheating?
In baseball, today's fans don't hate football players who use performance enhancing drugs. Even Barry Bonds and Alex Rodriguez are considered the best players of the steroids era. MLB had an entire era of cheaters and some of turn a blind eye to it.
I don't condone cheating. But I can't fault Lance for doing something that everyone was doing. He's taken too big of a hit of his decisions. The good that he has done should outweigh some of the bad.
He's not perfect, but who is?
Monday, May 18, 2020
Building My NBA team
Watching 'The Last Dance" on ESPN the past five Sundays has given me the chance to look back at what the NBA was like during my youth. I was in high school when Michael Jordan and the Chicago Bulls were finishing up their sixth NBA title in eight years.
But the documentary also allowed me to dive into the other players the Bulls were playing against. So I decided to make my own roster of NBA greats. But the catch for me is, they had to play at least a year in the timeframe that I have been alive.
So here is my NBA team of players who hit the hardwood starting in 1980. It's a starting five and then 10 backups to make up a 15-player roster.
Full disclosure - this team is not who I think are the best 15 players of my era. It's mostly NBA greats, but I also picked out guys I like or liked over guys I didn't or don't.
I am not a fan of Isaiah Thomas or Kevin Durant. I know they probably should be on this list. But they aren't part of my team.
Starting Point Guard
Magic Johnson
Johnson played most of his career before I turned 10, but he's regarded as one of the best point guards of all-time and definitely the best point of the 1980s and 1990s.
Magic is a five-time champion, three-time NBA MVP and a 12-time all-star. He made the all-NBA first team 10 times. Johnson averaged 19.5 points, an NBA-record 11.2 assists, 7.2 rebounds and 2 steals per game throughout his career.
Starting Shooting Guard
Michael Jordan
This also is a no brainer. Jordan is the GOAT so I better have him as my starting off guard.
Jordan was a 6-time champion and a 6-time NBA Finals MVP. His 10 scoring titles are by far the most in NBA history and he made the all-defensive first team nine times. You could make the argument that he was the best two-way player in the history of basketball, too.
MJ averaged 30 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game throughout his career. So those that they say he was just a scorer are wrong. In the playoffs, the scoring averaged did rise to 33.4 points per game.
MJ was a five-time NBA MVP, a 14-time all-star and a 10-time all-NBA first team member. He's fifth all-time in career points with 32,292.
Starting Small Forward
LeBron James
With LBJ on the floor, I basically have two point forwards distributing the ball to MJ and my bigs.
James belongs on any all-time great list. He is a three-time champion, four-time NBA MVP and a 16-time all-star. James also has been on the all-defensive team six times and is a 12-time first team all-NBA selection.
James averages 27 points, 6.3 rebounds, 6 assists and 1.2 steals per game so far in his career. He's the first active player on my roster and is currently third all time in scoring with 34,087 points.
Starting Power Forward
Karl Malone
This is the only position I struggled with for my starter. There are legit four PFs I could put on this team so one will get left off.
Malone is one of the best at the position all-time and ranks second in career scoring with 36,928 points.
Over his career, he averaged 25 points, 10 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He's a two-time NBA MVP, a 14-time all-star and made the all-NBA first team 11 times.
Starting Center
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
The starting center position was not hard as far as a starter goes but this position is also deep with talented HOFs. The current era doesn't use a center like the old days but there were great big men roaming the lane in the 1980s and 1990s.
Abdul-Jabbar can make a case for the greatest player of all-time. He played all of his career before I was 10 years old so I don't remember much about him. I just know he was great.
He is the NBA's current all-time leading scorer with 38,387 points. The only guy who could break this record is James.
Over his career, Abdul-Jabbar, who was originally named Lew Alcindor, averaged 24.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.6 blocks per game.
He was a 6-time NBA champion, 6-time Finals MVP, an NBA-record 19-time all-star, made the all-NBA team 15 times and was part of the all-defensive team 11 times.
Backup Point Guard
John Stockton
Karl Malone owes a lot to Stockton, who would rather deliver an impressive dime to Malone than score a bucket.
Stockton never averaged over 20 points per game in a season but averaged 12 assists or more per game 8 times. He's the league's all-time leader in assists and steals and is a 10-time all-star.
Backup Shooting Guard
Kobe Bryant
Bryant is the closest thing to MJ based on how he played and how he talked. He modeled his game around Jordan and it showed.
That's one of the reasons I wasn't a fan of his during his playing days. But he deserves to be in the conversation of best ever after averaging 25 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game during his career.
He's a 5-time NBA champion and an 18-time all-star. He's fourth in career scoring with 33,643 points.
Backup Small Forward
Larry Bird
The only thing keeping Larry Bird from being higher on the all-time list was longevity. His back just didn't let him play late in his career.
His statistics are staggering though, averaging 24 points, 10 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game. He was a better version of James when healthy and could shoot it much better.
He's also a three-time champion, three-time MVP and 12-time all-star.
Backup Power Forward
Charles Barkley
I could have gone a few different ways with this one. It's the hardest position for me. But Barkley was so good in the 80s and 90s.
He averaged 22 points, 11.7 rebounds, four assists and 1.5 steals per game during his career. He's an 11-time all-star and is one of a handful of guys to have 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds and 4,000 assists in his career.
Backup Center
Shaquille O'Neal
My love for Shaq has grown since he stopped playing. It was hard for me to cheer for the Lakers so I never really rooted for him as a player. I also thought he was just a big dude that was hard to stop because of his size.
But he was dominant for 10 straight years in the league. He averaged 24 points per game in his career but had 10 straight seasons of more than 26 points per game. His overall career was hurt by his final six years where he averaged under 20 points per game.
He was a 4-time champion, won two scoring titles and was a 15-time all-star.
Rest of the roster
Steph Curry
Dwyane Wade
Scottie Pippen
Kevin Garnett
Hakeem Olajuwon
Other Guys I strongly considered
Allen Iverson
Reggie Miller
Dominique Wilkins
Tim Duncan
Patrick Ewing
But the documentary also allowed me to dive into the other players the Bulls were playing against. So I decided to make my own roster of NBA greats. But the catch for me is, they had to play at least a year in the timeframe that I have been alive.
So here is my NBA team of players who hit the hardwood starting in 1980. It's a starting five and then 10 backups to make up a 15-player roster.
Full disclosure - this team is not who I think are the best 15 players of my era. It's mostly NBA greats, but I also picked out guys I like or liked over guys I didn't or don't.
I am not a fan of Isaiah Thomas or Kevin Durant. I know they probably should be on this list. But they aren't part of my team.
Starting Point Guard
Magic Johnson
Johnson played most of his career before I turned 10, but he's regarded as one of the best point guards of all-time and definitely the best point of the 1980s and 1990s.
Magic is a five-time champion, three-time NBA MVP and a 12-time all-star. He made the all-NBA first team 10 times. Johnson averaged 19.5 points, an NBA-record 11.2 assists, 7.2 rebounds and 2 steals per game throughout his career.
Starting Shooting Guard
Michael Jordan
This also is a no brainer. Jordan is the GOAT so I better have him as my starting off guard.
Jordan was a 6-time champion and a 6-time NBA Finals MVP. His 10 scoring titles are by far the most in NBA history and he made the all-defensive first team nine times. You could make the argument that he was the best two-way player in the history of basketball, too.
MJ averaged 30 points, 6.2 rebounds, 5.3 assists and 2.3 steals per game throughout his career. So those that they say he was just a scorer are wrong. In the playoffs, the scoring averaged did rise to 33.4 points per game.
MJ was a five-time NBA MVP, a 14-time all-star and a 10-time all-NBA first team member. He's fifth all-time in career points with 32,292.
Starting Small Forward
LeBron James
With LBJ on the floor, I basically have two point forwards distributing the ball to MJ and my bigs.
James belongs on any all-time great list. He is a three-time champion, four-time NBA MVP and a 16-time all-star. James also has been on the all-defensive team six times and is a 12-time first team all-NBA selection.
James averages 27 points, 6.3 rebounds, 6 assists and 1.2 steals per game so far in his career. He's the first active player on my roster and is currently third all time in scoring with 34,087 points.
Starting Power Forward
Karl Malone
This is the only position I struggled with for my starter. There are legit four PFs I could put on this team so one will get left off.
Malone is one of the best at the position all-time and ranks second in career scoring with 36,928 points.
Over his career, he averaged 25 points, 10 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 1.4 steals per game. He's a two-time NBA MVP, a 14-time all-star and made the all-NBA first team 11 times.
Starting Center
Kareem Abdul-Jabbar
The starting center position was not hard as far as a starter goes but this position is also deep with talented HOFs. The current era doesn't use a center like the old days but there were great big men roaming the lane in the 1980s and 1990s.
Abdul-Jabbar can make a case for the greatest player of all-time. He played all of his career before I was 10 years old so I don't remember much about him. I just know he was great.
He is the NBA's current all-time leading scorer with 38,387 points. The only guy who could break this record is James.
Over his career, Abdul-Jabbar, who was originally named Lew Alcindor, averaged 24.6 points, 11.2 rebounds, 3.6 assists and 2.6 blocks per game.
He was a 6-time NBA champion, 6-time Finals MVP, an NBA-record 19-time all-star, made the all-NBA team 15 times and was part of the all-defensive team 11 times.
Backup Point Guard
John Stockton
Karl Malone owes a lot to Stockton, who would rather deliver an impressive dime to Malone than score a bucket.
Stockton never averaged over 20 points per game in a season but averaged 12 assists or more per game 8 times. He's the league's all-time leader in assists and steals and is a 10-time all-star.
Backup Shooting Guard
Kobe Bryant
Bryant is the closest thing to MJ based on how he played and how he talked. He modeled his game around Jordan and it showed.
That's one of the reasons I wasn't a fan of his during his playing days. But he deserves to be in the conversation of best ever after averaging 25 points, 5.2 rebounds, 4.7 assists and 1.4 steals per game during his career.
He's a 5-time NBA champion and an 18-time all-star. He's fourth in career scoring with 33,643 points.
Backup Small Forward
Larry Bird
The only thing keeping Larry Bird from being higher on the all-time list was longevity. His back just didn't let him play late in his career.
His statistics are staggering though, averaging 24 points, 10 rebounds, 6.3 assists and 1.7 steals per game. He was a better version of James when healthy and could shoot it much better.
He's also a three-time champion, three-time MVP and 12-time all-star.
Backup Power Forward
Charles Barkley
I could have gone a few different ways with this one. It's the hardest position for me. But Barkley was so good in the 80s and 90s.
He averaged 22 points, 11.7 rebounds, four assists and 1.5 steals per game during his career. He's an 11-time all-star and is one of a handful of guys to have 20,000 points, 10,000 rebounds and 4,000 assists in his career.
Backup Center
Shaquille O'Neal
My love for Shaq has grown since he stopped playing. It was hard for me to cheer for the Lakers so I never really rooted for him as a player. I also thought he was just a big dude that was hard to stop because of his size.
But he was dominant for 10 straight years in the league. He averaged 24 points per game in his career but had 10 straight seasons of more than 26 points per game. His overall career was hurt by his final six years where he averaged under 20 points per game.
He was a 4-time champion, won two scoring titles and was a 15-time all-star.
Rest of the roster
Steph Curry
Dwyane Wade
Scottie Pippen
Kevin Garnett
Hakeem Olajuwon
Other Guys I strongly considered
Allen Iverson
Reggie Miller
Dominique Wilkins
Tim Duncan
Patrick Ewing
Sunday, May 17, 2020
Fun MLB exercise
Major League Baseball's Twitter page presented a fun exercise to its followers yesterday.
They asked fans to post their four core players using 1 outfielder, 1 infielder, 1 starting pitcher and 1 relief pitcher using the first letter of your first name.
A couple of these were easy. For me, I couldn't find enough great infielders who start with T.
My team is the Cincinnati Reds so I went with Hall of Famer Tony Perez. All four of my players are Hall of Famers as I also went with Tony Gwynn, Tom Seaver and Trevor Hoffman.
I wish Gwynn or Ted Williams played infield because if that were the case, I might have the best four core players you can have.
Since I couldn't pick both guys I went with Gwynn for no other reason than I saw him play as a child. Williams was great obviously, too, but I just never watched him and he's way before my time.
Here's the breakdown of Gwynn though.
He played 20 years and struck out just 434 times and never more than 40 in a season. Gwynn had a career batting average of .338 with 3,141 hits, 543 doubles and 85 triples.
Gwynn's 135 home runs weren't impressive at all but he did everything else so well that it didn't matter. He was a professional hitter. He also scored 1,383 runs, collected 1,138 RBIs and stole 388 bases.
Gwynn's career OBP was .388 and his career OPS was .847. He walked 790 times in his career. He was a 15-time all-star, including 11 straight from 1989 to 1999.
Perez played 23 years and even though I am a Reds fan, he was before my time, too. And he's a borderline Hall of Famer. He might be one of those guys who got in because of longevity.
But he was still damn good.
Perez batted .279 for his career. He collected 2,732 hits, 505 doubles, 79 triples and 379 home runs. He scored 1,272 runs, finished with 1,652 RBIs and stole 49 bases, which was about 2 per season. His career OBP was .344 and his OPS was .804. He was a 7-time all-star.
The first two starting pitchers that came to mind for me were Tom Glavine and Tom Seaver. My first instinct was to go with Glavine because he was in my time frame. I remember watching him pitch for those great Braves teams.
But when you look at the numbers, it's really not close. Both guys are Hall of Famers and even though Seaver has just 6 more wins, he also had a better ERA and struck out around 1,000 more hitters.
Seaver was 311-205 in his career as a starting pitcher. His career ERA was 2.86 and he struck out 3,640 batters. Glavine only struck out 2,607 batters and his ERA was 3.54.
Seaver played 20 years in the league and won at least 20 games five times and struck out at least 200 batters 10 times. He led the league in strikeouts five times. And his best season as a Red came in 1981 when he went 14-2. He made the all-star team 12 times.
I didn't do much research on relief pitchers. Trevor Hoffman is about as good as it gets with the first name that starts with T. If you have another one, let me know. But I doubt he's better than the man who marched to the mound to the song "Hells Bells" by AC/DC.
Hoffman played 18 years in the MLB and had a losing record at 61-75. But that didn't matter at all when he had an NL-record 601 career saves.
His career ERA was 2.87 and he struck out 1,133. He averaged 39 saves per 162-game season in his career.
Hoffman holds several MLB records. Besides NL saves, he also has the record for most consecutive seasons with 40 saves with four, most seasons with 40 saves with nine and most career strikeouts per nine innings by a reliever with 9.36.
He also has the most career games pitched for one team with 902. He is a San Diego Padre for life, playing 15.5 years of his 18-year career in San Diego. He was a 7-time all-star.
Put together your core four of MLB players using the first letter of your first name. And if it's T, how would yours be different than mine?
Leave comments below to let me know your squads. Can you beat mine?
They asked fans to post their four core players using 1 outfielder, 1 infielder, 1 starting pitcher and 1 relief pitcher using the first letter of your first name.
A couple of these were easy. For me, I couldn't find enough great infielders who start with T.
My team is the Cincinnati Reds so I went with Hall of Famer Tony Perez. All four of my players are Hall of Famers as I also went with Tony Gwynn, Tom Seaver and Trevor Hoffman.
I wish Gwynn or Ted Williams played infield because if that were the case, I might have the best four core players you can have.
Since I couldn't pick both guys I went with Gwynn for no other reason than I saw him play as a child. Williams was great obviously, too, but I just never watched him and he's way before my time.
Here's the breakdown of Gwynn though.
He played 20 years and struck out just 434 times and never more than 40 in a season. Gwynn had a career batting average of .338 with 3,141 hits, 543 doubles and 85 triples.
Gwynn's 135 home runs weren't impressive at all but he did everything else so well that it didn't matter. He was a professional hitter. He also scored 1,383 runs, collected 1,138 RBIs and stole 388 bases.
Gwynn's career OBP was .388 and his career OPS was .847. He walked 790 times in his career. He was a 15-time all-star, including 11 straight from 1989 to 1999.
Perez played 23 years and even though I am a Reds fan, he was before my time, too. And he's a borderline Hall of Famer. He might be one of those guys who got in because of longevity.
But he was still damn good.
Perez batted .279 for his career. He collected 2,732 hits, 505 doubles, 79 triples and 379 home runs. He scored 1,272 runs, finished with 1,652 RBIs and stole 49 bases, which was about 2 per season. His career OBP was .344 and his OPS was .804. He was a 7-time all-star.
The first two starting pitchers that came to mind for me were Tom Glavine and Tom Seaver. My first instinct was to go with Glavine because he was in my time frame. I remember watching him pitch for those great Braves teams.
But when you look at the numbers, it's really not close. Both guys are Hall of Famers and even though Seaver has just 6 more wins, he also had a better ERA and struck out around 1,000 more hitters.
Seaver was 311-205 in his career as a starting pitcher. His career ERA was 2.86 and he struck out 3,640 batters. Glavine only struck out 2,607 batters and his ERA was 3.54.
Seaver played 20 years in the league and won at least 20 games five times and struck out at least 200 batters 10 times. He led the league in strikeouts five times. And his best season as a Red came in 1981 when he went 14-2. He made the all-star team 12 times.
I didn't do much research on relief pitchers. Trevor Hoffman is about as good as it gets with the first name that starts with T. If you have another one, let me know. But I doubt he's better than the man who marched to the mound to the song "Hells Bells" by AC/DC.
Hoffman played 18 years in the MLB and had a losing record at 61-75. But that didn't matter at all when he had an NL-record 601 career saves.
His career ERA was 2.87 and he struck out 1,133. He averaged 39 saves per 162-game season in his career.
Hoffman holds several MLB records. Besides NL saves, he also has the record for most consecutive seasons with 40 saves with four, most seasons with 40 saves with nine and most career strikeouts per nine innings by a reliever with 9.36.
He also has the most career games pitched for one team with 902. He is a San Diego Padre for life, playing 15.5 years of his 18-year career in San Diego. He was a 7-time all-star.
Put together your core four of MLB players using the first letter of your first name. And if it's T, how would yours be different than mine?
Leave comments below to let me know your squads. Can you beat mine?
Thursday, May 14, 2020
Thoughts on Summer Sports in Iowa
Will they play or won't they? That is the question.
And believe it or not, no matter what Governor Kim Reynolds, the Iowa High School Athletic Association or the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union decides, it will be the wrong answer by a large majority of folks.
This is a no win situation for everyone making the decisions.
There are still a large number of folks who think COVID-19 is doomsday. And there are a bunch more who think it's no big deal. It lies somewhere in between, like most things in life.
Nothing is as bad as it seems. Or as good as it seems.
My personal opinion in this matter doesn't really make any difference. I won't be the one making the decision and my daughter is only 7. We are not in a position for this to matter to me on a personal level.
I want the kids to be able to play. I want the seniors to have one final season. I think Iowa and America needs positive news. We need something to take our minds off the pandemic.
That doesn't mean I want it to be a free for all. My family and I have hand sanitizers in our vehicles for when we are out and about. We each have two masks to wear in public.
But at some point, we are going to have to learn to live with the virus. Because who knows when a vaccine will come. And even so, we have a vaccine for the flu and folks still get that. So we will have to learn to live with it, vaccine or not.
I have a few suggestions at how this can work for both softball and baseball seasons. I am not expert by any means but there are ways to make the situation as safe as can be.
For instance, fitness centers are opening up again this week. But they are making some drastic changes to make sure they can stay open and their members are safe.
Why can't we do that with this? If you ask a kid who plays a summer sport to make an adjustment or not play, what do you think they will choose?
Here are some things we can do to make this work.
-- Bus rides
Take them away. Why we do we need to put a bunch of kids in a bus? Just have the parents take the kids to and from the games. Most of the kids don't ride the bus home anyway.
-- Dugouts
Don't use them this summer. If you don't want to jam the kids into one space, just line them up along the fence on each base line. They'd have to pay attention more and wear helmets out there, but it's better than nothing.
-- Waivers
I would make every player sign a waiver. If they want to play, a waiver signature from the parents is required. If they agree to play and something happens, they can't sue. We all have choices. If we don't want to play, we don't have to. But if you do play, just know the consequences.
-- Temperature checks
I think making the kids do temperature checks before each game or practice would be wise. They would do that if it means they get to play.
As we know, the baseball and softball games are naturally social distanced when they are in the field. The only hangup would at the plate. There is no way to keep the batter six feet away from the catcher and six feet away from the umpire.
That might be something they just have to deal with. But we also don't have to touch everyone we are close to. Just stay as far away as you can and make sure to use some kind of sanitizer in the dugout.
I have a natural bubble by nature. I am not a guy who has to be in contact with a lot of people. I like being inside my house and in my basement most of the time.
But I also don't live my life in fear. I am not built that way.
In the end, if the kids play or not could and maybe should come down to the parents. If they want to play, make them sign a waiver. If you don't want to play, it is certainly a choice you can make.
We also might be in a situation where Governor Reynolds gives the OK to play, but the IHSAA and IGHSAU both say no. Or one could yes and the other one could say no. They also could both say yes.
And the schools themselves don't have to play. That's a choice, too.
I would be shocked in the Des Moines Public Schools play summer sports. They have been ahead of the curve when it comes to being conservative. They canceled the rest of the school year before Governor Reynolds made the decision.
It appears by the numbers that small communities and farm communities are just not as affected by all of this. So will all the small towns play and the big cities won't? That remains to be seen.
I don't know what they'll do. And I really don't know what they should do. I think, like everything else in life, we can find a way to adjust and make it happen.
Maybe they play. Maybe they don't. I am 50/50 at this point. It could go either way.
And we could certainly use the distraction.
And believe it or not, no matter what Governor Kim Reynolds, the Iowa High School Athletic Association or the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union decides, it will be the wrong answer by a large majority of folks.
This is a no win situation for everyone making the decisions.
There are still a large number of folks who think COVID-19 is doomsday. And there are a bunch more who think it's no big deal. It lies somewhere in between, like most things in life.
Nothing is as bad as it seems. Or as good as it seems.
My personal opinion in this matter doesn't really make any difference. I won't be the one making the decision and my daughter is only 7. We are not in a position for this to matter to me on a personal level.
I want the kids to be able to play. I want the seniors to have one final season. I think Iowa and America needs positive news. We need something to take our minds off the pandemic.
That doesn't mean I want it to be a free for all. My family and I have hand sanitizers in our vehicles for when we are out and about. We each have two masks to wear in public.
But at some point, we are going to have to learn to live with the virus. Because who knows when a vaccine will come. And even so, we have a vaccine for the flu and folks still get that. So we will have to learn to live with it, vaccine or not.
I have a few suggestions at how this can work for both softball and baseball seasons. I am not expert by any means but there are ways to make the situation as safe as can be.
For instance, fitness centers are opening up again this week. But they are making some drastic changes to make sure they can stay open and their members are safe.
Why can't we do that with this? If you ask a kid who plays a summer sport to make an adjustment or not play, what do you think they will choose?
Here are some things we can do to make this work.
-- Bus rides
Take them away. Why we do we need to put a bunch of kids in a bus? Just have the parents take the kids to and from the games. Most of the kids don't ride the bus home anyway.
-- Dugouts
Don't use them this summer. If you don't want to jam the kids into one space, just line them up along the fence on each base line. They'd have to pay attention more and wear helmets out there, but it's better than nothing.
-- Waivers
I would make every player sign a waiver. If they want to play, a waiver signature from the parents is required. If they agree to play and something happens, they can't sue. We all have choices. If we don't want to play, we don't have to. But if you do play, just know the consequences.
-- Temperature checks
I think making the kids do temperature checks before each game or practice would be wise. They would do that if it means they get to play.
As we know, the baseball and softball games are naturally social distanced when they are in the field. The only hangup would at the plate. There is no way to keep the batter six feet away from the catcher and six feet away from the umpire.
That might be something they just have to deal with. But we also don't have to touch everyone we are close to. Just stay as far away as you can and make sure to use some kind of sanitizer in the dugout.
I have a natural bubble by nature. I am not a guy who has to be in contact with a lot of people. I like being inside my house and in my basement most of the time.
But I also don't live my life in fear. I am not built that way.
In the end, if the kids play or not could and maybe should come down to the parents. If they want to play, make them sign a waiver. If you don't want to play, it is certainly a choice you can make.
We also might be in a situation where Governor Reynolds gives the OK to play, but the IHSAA and IGHSAU both say no. Or one could yes and the other one could say no. They also could both say yes.
And the schools themselves don't have to play. That's a choice, too.
I would be shocked in the Des Moines Public Schools play summer sports. They have been ahead of the curve when it comes to being conservative. They canceled the rest of the school year before Governor Reynolds made the decision.
It appears by the numbers that small communities and farm communities are just not as affected by all of this. So will all the small towns play and the big cities won't? That remains to be seen.
I don't know what they'll do. And I really don't know what they should do. I think, like everything else in life, we can find a way to adjust and make it happen.
Maybe they play. Maybe they don't. I am 50/50 at this point. It could go either way.
And we could certainly use the distraction.
Monday, May 11, 2020
Zoomin' with the Goonies
"Hey You Guys!!!!"
One of the movies I watched the most as a kid was Goonies. And recently, actor Josh Gad jumped on Zoom and tried to get in touch with all of Goonies cast members. Those are that are still living anyway.
It was hilarious and brought back a lot of memories.
Goonies had a $19 million budget but Director Richard Donner and Producer Steven Spielberg turned into a cult classic that grossed $124 million worldwide.
Gad, who is most known for being the voice of Olaf in Disney's Frozen, started the Zoom conversation with Sean Astin, probably the biggest star from the 1985 Adventure hit.
Astin starts out by saying he will only cooperate with Gad if he gives him an Olaf impression. Then the rest of the characters start joining the conversation.
The crew told stories of what it was like to be on set and what they are up to now.
Astin was 14 years old when he played "Mikey" and is now 48. He's also known for playing the lead role in Rudy and supporting roles in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Encino Man.
But outside of Astin, Corey Feldman and Joe Pantoliano, the rest of the cast really didn't do all that much.
Josh Brolin is pretty famous. But his other top films other than playing "Brand" in Goonies were No Country of Old Men and Hollow Man. He's not that big of a star I don't think.
Feldman played "Mouth" in the Goonies. He also was part of other cult classics such as Gremlins, Stand by Me and the Lost Boys. Feldman was 13 during the summer of 1985 when the movie debuted.
Kerri Green, who played "Andy" was part of some bigger movies back in the day. She also played minor roles in Lucas and Summer Rental but never really hit it big.
Green's best friend in the Goonies movie was Martha Plimpton, who played the role of "Stef." She was part of some big Broadway type productions but hasn't done much since the Goonies from a film standpoint. Like Gad, she also is a voice in Frozen 2.
The most funny Goonie was definitely "Chunk." He was played by Jeff Cohen, who got out of acting completely and is now an attorney. He was 9 years old when the movie debuted and is the youngest cast member now at age 45.
Remember "Data," the Goonie who had all those inventions? Well, Jonathan Ke Huy Quan hasn't done much since the Goonies. He talked in the interview about how hard it was being an actor of Asian decent. He said he had some opportunities coming but he's only known for Goonies and playing a minor role in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
Sometimes, Hollywood gives us movies where a 25-year-old actor is playing the part of a 15-year-old. That's not the case with the Goonies. Other than Cohen at 9 years old, the rest of the cast is as old as they are portrayed in the movie.
Plimpton appeared to be the same age as Green's character but wasn't. Green was 18 when the movie came out and Plimpton was 14. She was around the same age as Astin, Feldman and Huy Quan. Brolin was Astin's older brother in the movie and three years older in real life.
The only other age difference was Mikey and Brand's parents. Dad, played by Keith Walker, was 49 and Mom, played by Mary Ellen Trainor was 32. Both of them died of cancer. So did "Rosalita" and mother Fratelli, who was played by Anne Ramsey.
Pantoliano was one of the Fratelli brothers along with Robert Davi. They were both 24 when the film came out and are 68 today. They were also part of the Zoom call. John Matuszak, who played "Sloth" was not as he also died.
Matuszak played 9 years in the NFL and died of an accidental overdose.
Tell me if I am wrong. Pantoliano may have the deepest film resume of anyone in this cast. He was rarely a lead actor but LaBamba and The Fugitive were both hits. Astin is probably the biggest star, but Pantoliano has the deeper resume.
The Zoom call also had Spielberg and Donner in it. They were great as always.
And the best news I took from the 25 minute or so interview was that Spielberg and Donner continue to work today on trying to do a Goonies 2. Donner said in 2014 that a Goonies 2 was "in the works."
There have been reports on this for years. Feldman went as far once as saying it wasn't going to ever happen.
I hope that is wrong. I would be all for a sequel. You might have to find all new kids but the original cast members could be parents or something. It would be fun.
One of the movies I watched the most as a kid was Goonies. And recently, actor Josh Gad jumped on Zoom and tried to get in touch with all of Goonies cast members. Those are that are still living anyway.
It was hilarious and brought back a lot of memories.
Goonies had a $19 million budget but Director Richard Donner and Producer Steven Spielberg turned into a cult classic that grossed $124 million worldwide.
Gad, who is most known for being the voice of Olaf in Disney's Frozen, started the Zoom conversation with Sean Astin, probably the biggest star from the 1985 Adventure hit.
Astin starts out by saying he will only cooperate with Gad if he gives him an Olaf impression. Then the rest of the characters start joining the conversation.
The crew told stories of what it was like to be on set and what they are up to now.
Astin was 14 years old when he played "Mikey" and is now 48. He's also known for playing the lead role in Rudy and supporting roles in the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Encino Man.
But outside of Astin, Corey Feldman and Joe Pantoliano, the rest of the cast really didn't do all that much.
Josh Brolin is pretty famous. But his other top films other than playing "Brand" in Goonies were No Country of Old Men and Hollow Man. He's not that big of a star I don't think.
Feldman played "Mouth" in the Goonies. He also was part of other cult classics such as Gremlins, Stand by Me and the Lost Boys. Feldman was 13 during the summer of 1985 when the movie debuted.
Kerri Green, who played "Andy" was part of some bigger movies back in the day. She also played minor roles in Lucas and Summer Rental but never really hit it big.
Green's best friend in the Goonies movie was Martha Plimpton, who played the role of "Stef." She was part of some big Broadway type productions but hasn't done much since the Goonies from a film standpoint. Like Gad, she also is a voice in Frozen 2.
The most funny Goonie was definitely "Chunk." He was played by Jeff Cohen, who got out of acting completely and is now an attorney. He was 9 years old when the movie debuted and is the youngest cast member now at age 45.
Remember "Data," the Goonie who had all those inventions? Well, Jonathan Ke Huy Quan hasn't done much since the Goonies. He talked in the interview about how hard it was being an actor of Asian decent. He said he had some opportunities coming but he's only known for Goonies and playing a minor role in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.
Sometimes, Hollywood gives us movies where a 25-year-old actor is playing the part of a 15-year-old. That's not the case with the Goonies. Other than Cohen at 9 years old, the rest of the cast is as old as they are portrayed in the movie.
Plimpton appeared to be the same age as Green's character but wasn't. Green was 18 when the movie came out and Plimpton was 14. She was around the same age as Astin, Feldman and Huy Quan. Brolin was Astin's older brother in the movie and three years older in real life.
The only other age difference was Mikey and Brand's parents. Dad, played by Keith Walker, was 49 and Mom, played by Mary Ellen Trainor was 32. Both of them died of cancer. So did "Rosalita" and mother Fratelli, who was played by Anne Ramsey.
Pantoliano was one of the Fratelli brothers along with Robert Davi. They were both 24 when the film came out and are 68 today. They were also part of the Zoom call. John Matuszak, who played "Sloth" was not as he also died.
Matuszak played 9 years in the NFL and died of an accidental overdose.
Tell me if I am wrong. Pantoliano may have the deepest film resume of anyone in this cast. He was rarely a lead actor but LaBamba and The Fugitive were both hits. Astin is probably the biggest star, but Pantoliano has the deeper resume.
The Zoom call also had Spielberg and Donner in it. They were great as always.
And the best news I took from the 25 minute or so interview was that Spielberg and Donner continue to work today on trying to do a Goonies 2. Donner said in 2014 that a Goonies 2 was "in the works."
There have been reports on this for years. Feldman went as far once as saying it wasn't going to ever happen.
I hope that is wrong. I would be all for a sequel. You might have to find all new kids but the original cast members could be parents or something. It would be fun.
Thursday, May 7, 2020
Gym problems
So I miss my gym. I may have already said that in a previous blog. But it's true.
Outside of getting my haircut, the first thing I will do when things open back up, is get in a nice long 2-hour plus workout at my local Anytime Fitness.
I miss A.J. and Brittany, the husband-wife couple who run the gym. I miss the giant purple floor in the middle of the gym. I miss the treadmills. I miss the bicycle. I miss the weights that I use. I can't wait to get back to it.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds said yesterday that fitness centers can open on Friday but by appointment only. I wasn't sure what that even meant as most gyms don't operate like that. It turns out, the wonderful folks at Anytime Fitness posted today on Facebook that it means only one person can be in there at a time.
What a stupid deal. No way anyone who uses a gym on a daily basis thinks that's realistic. If they do, they are just SO desperate to use the facility that they don't care how dumb that is.
Hopefully we get some better news on May 15. Hopefully Reynolds opens the other 22 counties to a point where we can at least start using some things. Hopefully we can get back to the gym soon. But our Anytime Fitness is not going to open for now because they realize having only one person in the gym at one time is not realistic.
To pass the time I can't be in the gym, I have found ways to workout. I have recently got into YouTube on my TV. So I searched and subscribed to a few fitness folks to give a few ideas on workouts without weights.
That can only go so far for me. I need my weights and cardio machines.
The past two weeks, I have started another regimen. I run two miles one day and walk two miles the next day. I did that four straight days last week and then five days in a row this week. My daughter went with me on my walk today.
It's so terrific listening to a 7-year-old in that kind of setting. The stuff she says and the things we talk about is priceless. You can tell that little head is working overtime trying to think about things to say. She analyzes things more than I do. And I think that's great.
I will get back to my gym soon enough. But I miss it. I miss it more than anything else to be honest.
Outside of getting my haircut, the first thing I will do when things open back up, is get in a nice long 2-hour plus workout at my local Anytime Fitness.
I miss A.J. and Brittany, the husband-wife couple who run the gym. I miss the giant purple floor in the middle of the gym. I miss the treadmills. I miss the bicycle. I miss the weights that I use. I can't wait to get back to it.
Iowa Governor Kim Reynolds said yesterday that fitness centers can open on Friday but by appointment only. I wasn't sure what that even meant as most gyms don't operate like that. It turns out, the wonderful folks at Anytime Fitness posted today on Facebook that it means only one person can be in there at a time.
What a stupid deal. No way anyone who uses a gym on a daily basis thinks that's realistic. If they do, they are just SO desperate to use the facility that they don't care how dumb that is.
Hopefully we get some better news on May 15. Hopefully Reynolds opens the other 22 counties to a point where we can at least start using some things. Hopefully we can get back to the gym soon. But our Anytime Fitness is not going to open for now because they realize having only one person in the gym at one time is not realistic.
To pass the time I can't be in the gym, I have found ways to workout. I have recently got into YouTube on my TV. So I searched and subscribed to a few fitness folks to give a few ideas on workouts without weights.
That can only go so far for me. I need my weights and cardio machines.
The past two weeks, I have started another regimen. I run two miles one day and walk two miles the next day. I did that four straight days last week and then five days in a row this week. My daughter went with me on my walk today.
It's so terrific listening to a 7-year-old in that kind of setting. The stuff she says and the things we talk about is priceless. You can tell that little head is working overtime trying to think about things to say. She analyzes things more than I do. And I think that's great.
I will get back to my gym soon enough. But I miss it. I miss it more than anything else to be honest.
Sunday, May 3, 2020
The Last Dance recap
I can't get enough of The Last Dance. I needed this in my life right now with basically no live sports on TV.
The NFL Draft kept my attention last weekend and The Last Dance has held it for the past three Sundays.
I don't care what they talk about. I don't care what I knew already. It's all great. And I will be starving for more two weeks from now when the final two episodes are given to us.
The latest two episodes focus on the 1992 Dream Team, Michael Jordan's gambling addition and how easy it was for MJ to gain an edge. And it took me back to when I truly hated the New York Knicks.
The Knicks, for me, were worse than the Bad Boy Pistons. I was still a little young during the Bad Boy Piston days. Of course, I knew about them. But the Knicks were right when I was hitting my teenage years.
Patrick Ewing. John Starks. Anthony Mason. Charles Oakley. I hated them all.
I remember Oakley more as a Knick than an MJ teammate.
I do remember the Dream Team. That was the greatest team ever assembled and you can't convince me otherwise. Some of the greatest players to ever play the game were on that team. And MJ kept one-third of from ever winning a title.
The thing I enjoyed the most about the two episodes was the grudges MJ held. And it was usually by no fault of the person he was grudging against.
Toni Kukoc did nothing to MJ or Scottie Pippen. But because Jerry Krause loved him and was negotiating a deal with Kukoc behind closed doors that was all the motivation those two needed.
And Clyde Drexler. One journalist compared Drexler to MJ and put them on the same level and MJ used that as motivation. He felt disrespected and used any disrespect to his advantage.
Charles Barkley won the MVP the year the Bulls were going for their first three-peat. And MJ was mad because he finished second. Barkley did nothing wrong, but Jordan made sure to use that as motivation to win his third championship.
He was even motivated or disrespected during a Dream Team practice. Magic Johnson and Barkley were on the side that was up eight at one point in the practice and Magic told MJ he better start playing or they were about to get blown out.
Well, they paid the price for making MJ mad and then acknowledged it on the bus afterward.
MJ didn't need an edge most nights. But when he was given an edge he never failed to take advantage of it. That's why he was the greatest. He used the littlest comments to build a chip on his shoulder.
It was clear Jordan didn't care for Jerry Krause. Scottie Pippen didn't either. If Jerry Krause said blue was his favorite color, MJ would probably avoid looking up at the sky. Whatever Krause's opinion was, you could bet MJ felt the opposite.
As I watched highlights from that Knicks series in the Eastern Conference Finals the year they won their third championship, I was reminded how physical the NBA was back then.
If that kind of contact happened in today's NBA, there would be suspensions and players might get kicked out the league. Today's NBA is much softer and the players are nowhere near as mentally tough as those players in the 1980s ad 1990s were.
It's hard to compare eras, but I will always think the 1980s and 1990s NBA were the best two decades in league history. And MJ owned the the latter decade.
But I get it. I never saw the era of Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell. I barely remember watching Kareem Abdul-Jabbar play. Those players were all great but I can't relate to their greatness.
That is what we are seeing with anyone under 30 right now. To them, the greatest players are Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. And I understand that. They didn't live through any of the other eras.
I hope those watching The Last Dance tonight paid extra attention to the opening scene of Episode 5. They dedicated that episode to Kobe Bryant, who was interviewed briefly.
Kobe said he hated when folks talked about who would win a 1-on-1 matchup, he or MJ. Kobe idolized MJ and admitted that everything he did was because of him.
It's OK to love who you love. If Kobe is your MJ, that's understandable. But at least recognize and understand what Kobe was saying. Without MJ, there wouldn't have been five titles for Kobe.
I admit, I was the guy who cheered against Kobe because I hated that he was compared so much to Jordan. I have a lot more love for him today than ever though. And it sucks that he's no longer with us.
I have never hated LBJ. I am usually the one defending him at all costs. But in today's NBA of load management and everyone complaining about a touch foul, it would be hard for a guy like James to adjust to the physical nature of the the 1990s NBA. He's a big guy. But he doesn't necessarily like the physicality that Jordan had to play through.
We need to appreciate all the greats who have played the game. MJ, to me, is the GOAT, but now is not the time to compare apples to oranges. I'm just glad I got to see most of these guys play.
The NFL Draft kept my attention last weekend and The Last Dance has held it for the past three Sundays.
I don't care what they talk about. I don't care what I knew already. It's all great. And I will be starving for more two weeks from now when the final two episodes are given to us.
The latest two episodes focus on the 1992 Dream Team, Michael Jordan's gambling addition and how easy it was for MJ to gain an edge. And it took me back to when I truly hated the New York Knicks.
The Knicks, for me, were worse than the Bad Boy Pistons. I was still a little young during the Bad Boy Piston days. Of course, I knew about them. But the Knicks were right when I was hitting my teenage years.
Patrick Ewing. John Starks. Anthony Mason. Charles Oakley. I hated them all.
I remember Oakley more as a Knick than an MJ teammate.
I do remember the Dream Team. That was the greatest team ever assembled and you can't convince me otherwise. Some of the greatest players to ever play the game were on that team. And MJ kept one-third of from ever winning a title.
The thing I enjoyed the most about the two episodes was the grudges MJ held. And it was usually by no fault of the person he was grudging against.
Toni Kukoc did nothing to MJ or Scottie Pippen. But because Jerry Krause loved him and was negotiating a deal with Kukoc behind closed doors that was all the motivation those two needed.
And Clyde Drexler. One journalist compared Drexler to MJ and put them on the same level and MJ used that as motivation. He felt disrespected and used any disrespect to his advantage.
Charles Barkley won the MVP the year the Bulls were going for their first three-peat. And MJ was mad because he finished second. Barkley did nothing wrong, but Jordan made sure to use that as motivation to win his third championship.
He was even motivated or disrespected during a Dream Team practice. Magic Johnson and Barkley were on the side that was up eight at one point in the practice and Magic told MJ he better start playing or they were about to get blown out.
Well, they paid the price for making MJ mad and then acknowledged it on the bus afterward.
MJ didn't need an edge most nights. But when he was given an edge he never failed to take advantage of it. That's why he was the greatest. He used the littlest comments to build a chip on his shoulder.
It was clear Jordan didn't care for Jerry Krause. Scottie Pippen didn't either. If Jerry Krause said blue was his favorite color, MJ would probably avoid looking up at the sky. Whatever Krause's opinion was, you could bet MJ felt the opposite.
As I watched highlights from that Knicks series in the Eastern Conference Finals the year they won their third championship, I was reminded how physical the NBA was back then.
If that kind of contact happened in today's NBA, there would be suspensions and players might get kicked out the league. Today's NBA is much softer and the players are nowhere near as mentally tough as those players in the 1980s ad 1990s were.
It's hard to compare eras, but I will always think the 1980s and 1990s NBA were the best two decades in league history. And MJ owned the the latter decade.
But I get it. I never saw the era of Oscar Robertson, Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell. I barely remember watching Kareem Abdul-Jabbar play. Those players were all great but I can't relate to their greatness.
That is what we are seeing with anyone under 30 right now. To them, the greatest players are Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. And I understand that. They didn't live through any of the other eras.
I hope those watching The Last Dance tonight paid extra attention to the opening scene of Episode 5. They dedicated that episode to Kobe Bryant, who was interviewed briefly.
Kobe said he hated when folks talked about who would win a 1-on-1 matchup, he or MJ. Kobe idolized MJ and admitted that everything he did was because of him.
It's OK to love who you love. If Kobe is your MJ, that's understandable. But at least recognize and understand what Kobe was saying. Without MJ, there wouldn't have been five titles for Kobe.
I admit, I was the guy who cheered against Kobe because I hated that he was compared so much to Jordan. I have a lot more love for him today than ever though. And it sucks that he's no longer with us.
I have never hated LBJ. I am usually the one defending him at all costs. But in today's NBA of load management and everyone complaining about a touch foul, it would be hard for a guy like James to adjust to the physical nature of the the 1990s NBA. He's a big guy. But he doesn't necessarily like the physicality that Jordan had to play through.
We need to appreciate all the greats who have played the game. MJ, to me, is the GOAT, but now is not the time to compare apples to oranges. I'm just glad I got to see most of these guys play.
My top 20 favorite workout songs
I really miss my gym. It's been hard to get after it with exercise without that consistency of going to the gym and having options.
The first two weeks of COVID-19, I was able to use my basement as a mini workout area and do 20-minute workouts that I found on YouTube or whatever.
But that only goes so far. My latest attempt as working out consistently through the pandemic is to jog and walk every other day. The goal is to jog at least 2 miles one day and then walk at least 2 miles the next and continue that until I get my weight back to where I want it.
This is all weather pending of course. It's been nice out lately so I was able to get two good runs and two walks in the last four days.
The fact is, when I have certain songs hit the headphones, it motivates me even more. So here is a top 20 favorite songs to workout to right now.
I say right now because I think this list would honestly change each week or month. I love rock music and I have so many songs that just make me go.
The original thought to today's blog was to give you my 10 favorites but that's almost impossible.
If you haven't heard some of these songs, give them a shot and let me know if they fire you up like they do me.
The list I am about to give you is in no particular order and I will even throw in some honorable mentions at the end.
1. "Blue on Black" remake by Five Finger Death Punch
This one wouldn't have made my list 5 years ago because it didn't get released until 2019. Blue on Black by Kenny Wayne Shepherd was regarded as the best rock song of 1998 by several media outlets.
In 2019, Shepherd teamed up with heavy metal band Five Finger Death Punch, along with country singer Brantley Gilbert and Queen guitarist Brian May for a reworked version of "Blue on Black."
While I love the original and there is nothing wrong with it, I actually think I like the 5FDP version better. It hits harder, there's no doubt about that.
Five Finger Death Punch is one of my favorite heavy metal bands out there right now. There will be a few of their other songs on my honorable mention list. And seeing them live as one of the main acts for Lazer Fest in 2010 was awesome. I think the 5FDP drummer is one of the best in the business.
2. "Trenches" by Pop Evil
I admit I was a little late to the party on Pop Evil, but they are too are one of my top rock bands right now. I have seen them twice live, the second time as one of the openers for Nickelback at the Iowa State Fair a few years back.
I could have listed a few other songs by Pop Evil in my top 20 but they will definitely make my honorable mention list.
Pop Evil won the Radio Contraband Rock Radio Award for Song of the Year for "Trenches" in 2013. In June 2013, the band that was formed in Michigan in 2001 scored their first national No. 1 single on Rock Radio with "Trenches."
3. "Indestructible" by Distbured
Disturbed is and always will be in my top five of heavy metal bands. The Chicago-based group led by front man David Draiman started in 1994 and five of their seven studio albums debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 list.
I could have listed about 10 songs for which pump me up during a workout. Some will make my honorable mention list but with this blog, I am trying to list 20 songs from 20 different groups.
"Indestructible" was the title track from their fourth studio album. And it hits the spot when I am on the final part of my workout. It gives me the extra motivation to go a little harder.
4. "One Step Closer" by Linkin Park
Like Disturbed, Linkin Park has been a staple of mine since high school and college days. I still remember the only time I saw Linkin Park was with one of my very best friends in Omaha. They rocked the house that night. And every night I imagine.
"One Step Closer" was on the band's first big album titled Hybrid Theory, which was released back in 2000. The band started in 1996 as Xero and then changed its name to Hybrid Theory before switching to Linkin Park for good around 2000.
That's when lead vocalist Chester Bennington came on board. With Bennington and founding members Mike Shinoda, Brad Delson, Dave Farrell, Joe Hahn and Rob Bourdon, Linkin Park is one of the best selling bands of the 21st Century, selling more than 100 million records worldwide.
The band is considered alternative rock but the music has a heavy metal, hard rock, hip hop and electronica feel to it.
I don't think there's been another band in music history that has mixed those four things into one. It's truly remarkable and unfortunately may not be heard of in the same way after Bennington committed suicide back in 2017.
The band did announce on April 28 of this year that new music is coming.
5. "Sugarcoat" by Breaking Benjamin
I discovered Breaking Benjamin when I lived in Texas during the mid-2000s. I worked at my first daily newspaper in Big Spring. Texas, and one of the reporters there also played guitar in a heavy metal rock band.
I supported the band as much as I could even to the point where I would attend practices at their old building on the outer edge of town. One of that band's influences was Breaking Benjamin so I heard a lot of their music and fell in love with their sound.
It's not a perfect band. The lead singer is Benjamin Burnley and he is the only member left from the original group. The band took a hiatus in 2010 because of illnesses Burnley couldn't shake. There were legal issues in 2014 and that leads us to why he's the only original left.
There are plenty songs to workout to, but my two favorites are "Sugarcoat" and "Shallow Bay," which are both from the 2002 album titled Saturate. It's their best album overall in my opinion.
"Shallow Bay" will make my honorable mention list but so will "Red Cold River," which is one of their latest songs from the 2017 album Ember.
Outside of Burnley, the band is different, but Burnley carries the group through their angst-heavy lyrics. The opening notes from "Sugarcoat" and "Shallow Bay" bring me in and I never leave.
I have seen BB once in my life. I went with a college friend, who picked me up in his 4-wheel drive truck in the middle of a snowstorm. I am lucky I made it back to my girlfriend's (current wife) apartment that night.
6. "Click Click Boom" by Saliva
Saliva is another band I absolutely loved in my college years. I have seen them live a few times. The band was formed in 1996 and they became mainstream in 2001 with singles "Click Click Boom" and "Your Disease."
Those two songs were both from their most popular album Every Six Seconds. "Click Click Boom" and another one of their songs appeared the original The Fast and the Furious.
I stopped following the band when lead singer Josey Scott left the band in 2011 to pursue a solo Christian music career. The band announced in October 2019 that Scott was reuniting with Saliva for a tour and new studio album.
If that is the case, I might have to get back on board.
7. "Burn it to the Ground" by Nickelback
The most polarizing rock band on the planet might be Nickelback. You either love them or you hate them. I don't hear a lot of folks between that.
I have always loved the Canadian rock band. Chad Kroeger and company have sold more than 50 million albums worldwide starting all the way back in 1996.
Nickelback takes a bad rap because of the songs most of you folks hear on the radio. Well I've got news for you, their best songs are probably ones you have never heard because you won't give them a chance.
I know every word to Rockstar. And Photograph was severely overplayed on Top 40 radio. There are some other songs that resemble a soft rock band. That's not who Nickelback is to me. If you look up the band on Wikipedia, it will tell you that they are known as a lot of different genres. Their earlier music was classified as grunge.
The songs that hit for me are the one I listed above in "Burn it to the Ground" as well as "Bottom's Up," "Animals," "Never Again," "Figured You Out," and Something in Your Mouth." If you listen to those songs and think they are soft rock band, then you can't be convinced otherwise.
You don't suck if Billboard calls you the "most successful rock group of the decade" in 2009.
My wife and I don't agree on music too much but we both attended this concert at the state fair recently and had a good time. She liked the sing-a-long songs and I liked the harder rock songs. It was the best of both worlds for us.
But Nickelback was a bucket list concert for me that I got to check off. I heard from a former co-worker that they were fantastic live. That is an accurate statement.
8. "Blood" by In This Moment
In This Moment was formed in 2005 but it's a fairly new band to me. They are known to be heavy metal or gothic metal and is fronted by lead singer Maria Brink.
I saw this band in person a few years back with the same college friend who picked me up in a snowstorm to see Breaking Benjamin.
I discovered the band, and this song to be more specific, from a former boss about 5 years ago and have been a fan every since.
9. "Rollin'" by Limp Bizkit
Limp Bizkit takes me back to high school days. They formed in 1994 and came out with their debut album when I was a sophomore in high school. The first song I remember hearing was "Faith," the remake of the song made famous by George Michael.
I don't even know if Limp Bizkit is even making music anymore, but Fred Durst made rap rock famous back in the 1990s. "Nookie" and "Rollin'" just hit differently for me. And for this exercise, I have to include "Rollin'" on my top 20 list.
10. "Blackout" by Hed PE
This song has some sentimental value to it. I first heard this song while cruising with some of my very best friends during our college years.
A buddy of mine knew the type of music I listened to and thought it would be one I liked. He was right. I don't think I even know another song by Hed PE. Certainly not another one that hits like this. But this one has to be on my list.
11. "Hell Yeah" by Rev Theory
If I am struggling to finish a workout or a run and this song comes on, it's instant energy. This song gets going from the opening note and never slows down. It's just one of those songs that I like because of the tempo.
Rev Theory is known for having music on video games mostly I think. "Hell Yeah" was the opening theme song in Blue Mountain State.
12. "More Human than Human" by White Zombie
Another one from my high school days. This song will always been one of my favorites. The band lasted 13 years before Rob Zombie formed his own group and came out with a few more bangers who will make my honorable mention list.
13. "Boom" by P.O.D.
I attended the first-ever Lazer Fest and P.O.D. was one of the headliners. It was nice all day but when P.O.D. hit the stage it started pouring rain. The show went on and we had a great time. I was a fan ever since.
I don't listen to them much anymore. I don't know if they are making new music. But they had a stretch in the late 1990s and early 2000s when they rocked the house.
"Boom" is my favorite song to workout to, but "Alive," "Satelite," and "Youth of the Nation" also were some of my favorites.
The author of "Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music" has described P.O.D. as "one of the most biggest success stories in recent Christian music."
14. "Monster" by Skillet
Skillet is another Christian rock band that I saw play at a Lazer Fest back in the day. The band is fronted by husband and wife John and Korey Cooper and their stage performance is really good.
I had a hard time picking between "Monster" and "Hero" as which song I like better but "Monster" is better to workout to in my opinion.
I remember "Hero" live featured John and Korey Cooper on moving podiums. They moved up and down with the music and it was awesome.
15. "Diamond Eyes" by Shinedown
I had to get a Shinedown song in here somewhere. I could have picked "Bully" as well but "Diamond Eyes" is a non-stop, fast-paced song after about 30 seconds. The tempo gets me every time and allows me to push through those last few reps. Or get the workout started on a high note.
While "Second Chance" is wildly believed to be Shinedown's most popular song, "Diamond Eyes" is a better song to workout to.
I have seen Shinedown play several times live. And they never disappoint.
16. "Happy" by Mudvayne
I am not a huge Mudvayne fan in general. I like some of their songs. They are known for wearing body and face paint or masks when they perform. That is similar to Iowa's own Slipknot, which is better than Mudvayne but they don't have a song as good as "Happy" to me.
"Happy" has been one of my favorite workout songs for about 15 years now. And I like the band enough to see them in concert.
17. "A Warrior's Call" by Volbeat
Yes, I first saw Volbeat play at one of the Lazer Fest shows that I attended. And as soon as lead vocalist Michael Poulsen shouts "Lets' get ready to rumble" I am hooked.
The Danish rock band has produced some other hits but this one is by far my favorite jam to workout to. It's my favorite song overall, too, even though a quick google search tells me that most fans think "Still Counting" is more popular.
18. "Black" by Sevendust
Sevendust is one of those bands I have listened to since it released "Black" on the first album back in 1997. They are known for heavy riffs and angry vocals, which is what I enjoy the most.
"Black" was the band's opening song in just about every concert they hosted until 2004. It's by far my favorite song by this band and a really good song to workout to.
I can't believe fans picked "Black" as it's sixth best song though. That's dumb.
19. "One" by Creed
Creed was one of my favorite bands in high school and college. They had some huge hits back in the day before Scott Stapp decided his ego was too big for the band to continue. At least the most popular opinion out there at the time.
"One" is my favorite Creed song. "Bullets" is a great one to work out to also.
If you gave me a choice of one person to start my rock band with and then build around him or her, it would be Mark Tremonti, who was the lead guitarist for Creed and now Alter Bridge.
20. "Metalingus" by Alter Bridge
Of course, Tremonti moved over to Alter Bridge after Creed disbanded and he made an even bigger mark. "Metalingus" is the best song to workout to in my opinion and is still the entrance music for WWE's Edge. That started back in 2004.
In fact, several songs from that album One Day Remains established an affiliation with the WWE.
The band has so many great hits and the best thing about it is Tremonti has a featured solo in every song. They really make sure he is heard in the music and that is fine by me.
If you haven't heard Alter Bridge before, check them out. They have plenty of hits I think most rock fans will enjoy. And the lead singer and guitarist Myles Kennedy has a lot of talent, too.
Honorable Mention
"Bad Company" by Five Finger Death Punch
"Jekyll and Hyde" by Five Finger Death Punch
"Be Legendary" by Pop Evil
"Footsteps" by Pop Evil
"Bully" by Shinedown
"Devour" by Shinedown
"In The End" by Linkin Park
"Shallow Bay" by Breaking Benjamin
"Red Cold River" by Breaking Benjamin
"Hero" by Skillet
"Ten Thousand Fists" by Disturbed
"Are You Ready" by Disturbed
"Liberate" by Disturbed
"Animals" by Nickelback
"Bottoms Up" by Nickelback
"Whore" by In This Moment
"Your Disease" by Saliva
"Superbeast" by Rob Zombie
"Dragula" by Rob Zombie
I probably missed a few. But that list is pretty much what I am into. I have worked all day on this one and I am ready to be done.
Enjoy.
Friday, May 1, 2020
Iowa football recruiting
Football recruiting looks a little different this offseason. With so many states having travel restrictions and face-to-face restrictions because of COVID-19, it's been a challenge for college coaches.
But don't tell that to Iowa's staff.
Many rival fanbases told Iowa football fans that their old coach wasn't going to be able to keep up with their younger coaches in the coming years.
Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa State all have younger coaches. And while those programs have made progress in recruiting since taking over, Iowa has not fallen off. In fact, recruiting in Iowa City has improved since Matt Campbell (Iowa State), Scott Frost (Nebraska) and P.J. Fleck (Minnesota) arrived on their respective campuses.
Iowa won another head-to-head battle with Iowa State on Friday, landing three-star wide receiver Brody Brecht out of Ankeny. Brecht's final two were the Hawkeyes and Cyclones but also had reported offers from Nebraska, Kansas and Kansas State.
The Hawkeyes have offered 10 in-state players for the 2021 class and have received commitments from eight of them.
I don't expect T.J. Bollers to be a ninth or 10th commit. Both parties seem to be on opposite paths, and Iowa State could very well beat Iowa in this matchup.
Thomas Fidone is the other one. He's a tight from the Council Bluffs area and it seems to be either Iowa or Nebraska. So Frost could win that one.
But for those thought those young coaches would take over Iowa, that has been dead wrong so far. Iowa likely gets 8-of-10 offers from in-state at least from this class.
As we sit here today at 1:14 p.m. on Friday, Iowa ranks sixth in the country in team recruiting rankings, according to 247 Sports. The Hawkeyes have 14 commits, four of which are four-star players and the other 10 are three stars.
Iowa ranks sixth and Minnesota is seventh in the latest rankings. The Gophers also have 14 commits with four being four stars and 10 being three stars.
Ahead of Iowa in the rankings right now are Ohio State, North Carolina, Tennessee, Florida and Clemson. Clemson has just nine commits and all nine are four-star players. So I would expect the Tigers to climb as they get more commitments.
Iowa is the second highest Big Ten Conference school followed by Minnesota (7), Michigan (10), Wisconsin (13), Penn State (14), Maryland (17), Rutgers (18), Michigan State (21), Iowa State (24) and Nebraska (38). The Cornhuskers only have five commits but two are four stars.
If you break down individual commitments for the Hawkeyes, they have some pretty impressive kids with some great offers.
The top out-of-state commit is David Davidkov, a four-star offensive tackle who also fielded offers from Michigan and Ohio State.
Justice Sullivan, the son of former Cyclone basketball player Jake Sullivan, has committed to the Hawkeyes for football. He's a four-star ATH who has offers from Nebraska and Minnesota.
The top in-state commitment came from Connor Colby, a four offensive guard who chose the Hawks over Iowa State, Michigan, Michigan State and Minnesota.
In-state commitments Max Llewellyn, Jeff Bowie and Griffin Liddle both had offers from more than one power 5 school.
Llewellyn, a three-star TE, chose Iowa over Iowa State, Kansas State and Kansas. Liddle, a three-star defensive tackle, picked Iowa over Iowa State, Michigan State and Minnesota. Bowie also had offers from Iowa State, Kansas State, Minnesota and Indiana.
Jaden Harrell, a three-star linebacker, picked Iowa over an offer from Nebraska and Zach Twedt picked Iowa over a reported offer from Iowa State.
And one of my favorite players in the class is OABCIG quarterback Cooper DeJean. Iowa is his only reported Power 5 offer, but he was recently elevated to four stars. I saw him play in person last year in the high school playoffs and he was electric.
DeJean played quarterback and defense for the Falcons and led them to the Class 2A championship. OABCIG will be a favorite to win it all in 1A this upcoming season.
This class for the Hawkeyes likely won't be a top 10 ranked class but it should stay in the top 20, which would be one of Kirk Ferentz's top recruiting classes ever.
He's not too old for this stuff. And he continues to show it as more and more recruits pledge their name to the Hawkeyes.
But don't tell that to Iowa's staff.
Many rival fanbases told Iowa football fans that their old coach wasn't going to be able to keep up with their younger coaches in the coming years.
Nebraska, Minnesota and Iowa State all have younger coaches. And while those programs have made progress in recruiting since taking over, Iowa has not fallen off. In fact, recruiting in Iowa City has improved since Matt Campbell (Iowa State), Scott Frost (Nebraska) and P.J. Fleck (Minnesota) arrived on their respective campuses.
Iowa won another head-to-head battle with Iowa State on Friday, landing three-star wide receiver Brody Brecht out of Ankeny. Brecht's final two were the Hawkeyes and Cyclones but also had reported offers from Nebraska, Kansas and Kansas State.
The Hawkeyes have offered 10 in-state players for the 2021 class and have received commitments from eight of them.
I don't expect T.J. Bollers to be a ninth or 10th commit. Both parties seem to be on opposite paths, and Iowa State could very well beat Iowa in this matchup.
Thomas Fidone is the other one. He's a tight from the Council Bluffs area and it seems to be either Iowa or Nebraska. So Frost could win that one.
But for those thought those young coaches would take over Iowa, that has been dead wrong so far. Iowa likely gets 8-of-10 offers from in-state at least from this class.
As we sit here today at 1:14 p.m. on Friday, Iowa ranks sixth in the country in team recruiting rankings, according to 247 Sports. The Hawkeyes have 14 commits, four of which are four-star players and the other 10 are three stars.
Iowa ranks sixth and Minnesota is seventh in the latest rankings. The Gophers also have 14 commits with four being four stars and 10 being three stars.
Ahead of Iowa in the rankings right now are Ohio State, North Carolina, Tennessee, Florida and Clemson. Clemson has just nine commits and all nine are four-star players. So I would expect the Tigers to climb as they get more commitments.
Iowa is the second highest Big Ten Conference school followed by Minnesota (7), Michigan (10), Wisconsin (13), Penn State (14), Maryland (17), Rutgers (18), Michigan State (21), Iowa State (24) and Nebraska (38). The Cornhuskers only have five commits but two are four stars.
If you break down individual commitments for the Hawkeyes, they have some pretty impressive kids with some great offers.
The top out-of-state commit is David Davidkov, a four-star offensive tackle who also fielded offers from Michigan and Ohio State.
Justice Sullivan, the son of former Cyclone basketball player Jake Sullivan, has committed to the Hawkeyes for football. He's a four-star ATH who has offers from Nebraska and Minnesota.
The top in-state commitment came from Connor Colby, a four offensive guard who chose the Hawks over Iowa State, Michigan, Michigan State and Minnesota.
In-state commitments Max Llewellyn, Jeff Bowie and Griffin Liddle both had offers from more than one power 5 school.
Llewellyn, a three-star TE, chose Iowa over Iowa State, Kansas State and Kansas. Liddle, a three-star defensive tackle, picked Iowa over Iowa State, Michigan State and Minnesota. Bowie also had offers from Iowa State, Kansas State, Minnesota and Indiana.
Jaden Harrell, a three-star linebacker, picked Iowa over an offer from Nebraska and Zach Twedt picked Iowa over a reported offer from Iowa State.
And one of my favorite players in the class is OABCIG quarterback Cooper DeJean. Iowa is his only reported Power 5 offer, but he was recently elevated to four stars. I saw him play in person last year in the high school playoffs and he was electric.
DeJean played quarterback and defense for the Falcons and led them to the Class 2A championship. OABCIG will be a favorite to win it all in 1A this upcoming season.
This class for the Hawkeyes likely won't be a top 10 ranked class but it should stay in the top 20, which would be one of Kirk Ferentz's top recruiting classes ever.
He's not too old for this stuff. And he continues to show it as more and more recruits pledge their name to the Hawkeyes.
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