- The Sandusky Verdict. I know that last fall I said that I was not going to write any further on the topic of Jerry Sandusky, but the recently concluded trial brought the stench of this guy and his crimes back in the spotlight. No, I was not in the courtroom, and no, I did not hear every piece of evidence presented, and, yes, I strongly believe in the concept of "beyond a reasonable doubt". That said, there is no doubt in my mind that the Centre County jury delivered a just verdict late Friday night, and I am quite comfortable in the knowledge that Jerry Sandusky will never see light outside of prison walls again.
- Also, on trial, of course, is the culture of Big Time Sports at Penn State, a culture that allowed Jerry Sandusky to remain on campus, even after he was no longer employed there, and a culture that has turned Mike McQueery, the one guy who we seem to know did what he was supposed to do in the course of events, into a pariah in the local community, and who is probably pretty much unemployable in his chosen profession.
- Before you point it out to me, I am under no illusions that this same culture exist at just about every other University that competes in Big Time College Athletics.
- Those whose biggest priority is the preservation of the Legacy of Joe Paterno, should probably be thankful that the old coach has left this mortal coil. The mess is only now beginning at PSU as civil suits and other allegations will begin to surface. There is no way that Paterno (a decent man who in one of his last statements said that he "should have done more") would have survived the rot that will be revealed in the months ahead and kept his skirts clean. Should 1,000 good acts be wiped away by a single bad act? Not for me to judge, but, like it or not, Joe's "I-turned-it-over-to-my-boss" actions will be as much a part of his legacy as the Library, the undefeated seasons, and the 400+ wins.
- And this probably really will be the last thing I write on this topic.
On to more pleasant things....
- Is it too soon to start beating the MVP drums for Andrew McCutchen?
- Very exciting US Open last week with Webb Simpson emerging as champion. Loved that it was on the west coast which enabled us to see it all in prime time while at the beach.
- Speaking of the Open, I enjoyed the telecast, but a word about NBC's sacred cow announcer Johnny Miller. No one ever criticizes Miller because he "tells it like it is" and calls out golfers who "choke" down there on the course, but on Saturday, he said one of the most asinine things I've ever heard on any sports telecast. After a Tiger Woods shot from the rough went astray, Miller said that he "could hear from the sound of the club striking the ball that Tiger hit that shot a groove off" on the club face. Everybody loves to dump on Tim McCarver as a broadcaster, but on his worst days, Timmy never said something as ridiculous as that.
- Speaking of sports, the All-England Tennis Championship begins at Wimbledon in London this week. After a lot of studying and reviewing hours of video, I am going to go out on a limb and say that Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokavic will meet in the Men's Singles Final at the conclusion of the Fortnight.
- Also, there will be no American Men left after the round of sixteen, if not sooner.
- The Miami Heat win the NBA title, just as I predicted, although in a shorter period of time than I thought. Any doubt who the best basketball player alive is right now?
- It was suggested by Colin Dunlap in The Fan a few weeks ago that the Pirates may have been at a crossroads in their season on the night that Justin Verlander punched them in the mouth with that near no-hitter in Detroit on May 18. They could have folded it all in then, but instead they have now won seven of the nine series they have played since that one in Detroit, including the one that ends today with none other than Justin Verlander as their mound opponent.
- They are now a season high six games over .500, one game out of first place, and sitting in the second wild card spot (albeit by percentage points).
- I was going to wait until August 1 to start looking at the Wild Card standings, but what the hell!
I've probably left out some more things, but I don't think I've yet recovered from my middle of the night drive home form North Carolina. There will be more to come in the days ahead, I'm sure.
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