Hockey’s back

I’ve got to admit, I’m a hockey fan. Yeah, yeah, I know. This is college football country.

And, trust me, there’s no better sport than football. But hockey can hold its own. It used to be part of the Big 4. You remember—NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL.

Ever since the strike and some terrible decisions by owners, professional hockey has seen better days. However, I’m here to tell you that in places like Detroit, Pittsburgh and my living room, the NHL is alive and well.

Especially after Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Finals on Monday night. Did you see it? If not, I’m sorry. It was one of the best hockey games I’ve ever seen. And I’ve watch a lot of hockey.

Pittsburgh ended up winning 4-3 in triple overtime to stay alive. Penguins goalie Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 55 shots (55!!) in the win. It was unreal. He was unreal.

Here’s the thing about hockey ... it’s a great live sport. Don’t believe me? Go to a game. I guarantee by the time you leave, you will be converted. It’s kind of like NASCAR. TV doesn’t do it justice.

Being there, hearing the crash of the boards, the slap of the stick, watching the Zamboni ... you’ll be screaming “Let’s Go, Flyers!“ by the second intermission. Even if the Flyers aren’t playing. Trust me.

Hockey is a great sport. And it has a great tradition. It’s just too bad greed got in the way.

But even after the strike and the “new” rules, the heart and soul of the game is still very present. You see it on the sweaters and in the faces of the players. It’s real to them. And their fans.

Plus, the NHL has the best championship trophy in the game. Lord Stanley’s Cup is in a league of its own. And just to watch each player of the winning team, starting with the captain, skate around with the Cup makes the hair on the back of my neck stand up each time I see it.

It’s awesome. Don’t believe me ... just watch. Game 6 is tonight.

*** I started thinking about some of the best championship trophies and traditions in professional sports, and I came up with a Top-5 list of best championship celebrations/traditions.

Here they are:

5) The Green Jacket.
Honoring those who come before you, is what sports are all about—remembering those who paved the way, so future champions can have their moment in the spotlight.

Golf is as much about tradition as taking your hat off at the dinner table. Getting to put on the green jacket after winning The Masters has got to be the greatest feeling any golfer can experience.

But what makes this ceremony so special is that the previous winner presents the present winner with the jacket. The Green Jacket.

Even if last year’s winner doesn’t make the cut, he’s still got to stick around all weekend just to hand out a 42 long.

4) Dog piling.
In baseball, tradition, history and legend are just as important to the game as pine tar and pinstripes.

And after a World Series Game 7 win, what can the pitcher expect from his teammates?

A 30-person dog pile. That’s right.

Even if they are up by 12 runs, whoever is on the mound is getting bum rushed.

This is the greatest scene in baseball. The last out is called. The pitcher throws his glove up in the air, a la the Mets’ Jesse Orosco in the 1986 series.

Everyone storms out of the dugout. The pitcher jumps into the catcher’s arms. The player from the field who gets there first tackles the pitcher and catcher.

Then a 15-minute Royal Rumble ensues. Good stuff.

This tradition is all around us, under us, on top of us, smothering us, not letting us breath, pinning our arms down, causing our leg to fall asleep.

3) Gatorade bath.
Though it has made an appearance in other sports, the real tradition lies with football.

Super Bowl wins. College national championships. High school state finals. Soaking the coach with the contents of a Gatorade cooler is priceless.

And usually, when this happens, it’s in the dead of winter. Bonus.

There is an art to this one. Not anyone can do it.

Most coaches are so wrapped up in the game, they don’t see it coming. But some, know and are looking for it. It’s a tricky thing, but if done right, you can get the head coach, headset and clipboard, and maybe an assistant.

Waiting until the end of the game won’t work. It’s got to be after the 2-minute warning, but before the final whistle blows.

But the key is, you got to make sure you are actually going to win the game.

Gatorade dumping is the most difficult tradition to pull off. But when done right, it’s better than a Hail Mary.

2) Cutting down the nets.
It’s what every college basketball player lives for—a chance to climb the ladder and cut off a piece of history. Four teams do it after advancing from the Elite Eight to the Final Four. Then the national champion. Climbing the ladder with a scissors and a baseball cap, that always has the tag on it.

The best part is a 7-footer climbing the ladder. He could cut down the net standing on his tippy toes, but he gets on the ladder anyway. That, and the head coach celebrating on the top step, looking like he could lose his balance at any time.

1) Stanley Cup skate around.
This is my favorite part of hockey. When the winning team gets Lord Stanley’s Cup and the captain is the first one to touch it.
Every player gets to skate around the ice, kissing the cup.

The Holy Grail of hockey. This makes for great tradition.

The longest season in sports, culminating with the presentation of a 100-year-old trophy.

What the players get to do with after they win the cup is even better. Each player gets a day with it.

What other sport can say they do that? What other sport trophy can you actually chug a beer out of?

And what the players do when it’s their day to house the cup is better than any story about Bobby Orr flying through the air.

Some take it to bars. Family parties. Some have a parade. Some do other things. If the cup was a movie, it would be rated triple-R.

There is even a story of a baptism in the Cup. Talk about a religious experience.

But what makes this so great, is that every hockey player, from the time they can stand up in a pair of skates, wants to win the Stanley Cup.

I remember playing street hockey when I was a kid. We’d have the Neighborhood Stanley Cup playoffs.

We’d split the kids on the street into teams and have the best-of-seven-game series. The winner would win our version of the Cup—a puke-green trash can that was too dirty to actually put trash in.

But dang if we didn’t play our hearts out for that foul-smelling, dented-up piece of plastic. And there we were, sweaty and worn down from a tough series, running around the neighborhood with the Stanley Cup over our heads.

And yes, we even kissed it.

Saturday in the park

Here we are, in Paterson Field in Montgomery for Game 2 of the AHSAA Class 6A state championship series between Opelika and Hoover.

The Bulldogs are one win away from their first state championship.

The first pitch will be tossed in about 20 minutes. Opelika’s going with Zach Blatt, who, rumor has it, is suffering from a sore elbow. That’s why Chase Dawson started in Game 1 on Friday. Dawson threw a gem. No doubt.

The lefty went nine innings, throwing over 130 pitches. He was tough. Very tough.

The Bulldogs have 42 wins on the season, but 43 is the magic number. Hoover, however, isn’t going to go quietly. That’s a fact.

Today’s game should be as good as the one on Friday. Sit back and relax and enjoy the game.

You can follow along online at http://www.oanow.com as prep writer Tom Peavy gives an inning-by-inning account of today’s game. I’ll be blogging as well.

Happy belated Mother’s Day and all that jazz

What a great weekend.

Does it get any better than Mother’s Day? Really. OK, you don’t have to answer.

But I’m serious. I want to give a big shout-out to all the moms out there holding down the fort while us husbands do our thing. Without you, we’re lost. No doubt.

I especially want to recognize my wife—the Busy Girl—for all she does for me and our two girls. Without her, not only do I not have any clean clothes, I wouldn’t know how to survive.

Other than taking my wife out to eat at Outback for her special day (can you say cheese fries ... mmmmmm), Mother’s Day was pretty uneventful. We did nothing. And when I say nothing, other than breathing and the occasional blinking, I mean nothing.

It was the perfect day. And she enjoyed it, too. I think.

Oh, you want to read about sports? OK.

*** The Opelika High baseball team is riding high after sweeping Prattville in the semifinal series of the Class 6A playoffs. The Bulldogs will now take on Hoover in the best-of-three series beginning Friday at 10 a.m. in Montgomery. The first game will be Friday. The second game is Saturday at 10 a.m. and the if-needed game is slated for 1 p.m. Saturday. All games will be at Patterson Field.

What are Opelika’s chances? I’d say pretty darn good. The Bulldogs are 41-2. That’s impressive, I don’t care who you are.

Opelika’s got a deep pitching staff and can hit up and down the lineup. And it doesn’t hurt to have 13 seniors, all of who contribute, on the roster. There’s nothing like leadership to go along with talent.

My guess, Opelika sweeps Hoover. No disrespect to the Bucs, but this Opelika team is a team of destiny. And it’s hard to get in the way of that.

*** Collin Mickle pretty much summed up what’s going on with AU head baseball coach Tom Slater in today’s story.

Auburn AD Jay Jacobs said he’s going to wait until the end of the season before he makes any decisions on Slater’s future at Auburn. I think that’s fair. Let the season play out, then make the call.

Either way, it’s not an easy call. Regardless of what the popular opinon is.

But, and everyone who’s ever worked in this profession knows, a coach is only as good as his record. And in the “what have you done for me lately?“ world of college athletics, if that record (the bottom line) isn’t good, then it’s only a matter of time before you’re shown the door.

Fair? Hey, it has nothing to do with fair. College sports is a business. Period.

*** Three cheers for the triple play.

In case you haven’t heard, Cleveland Indians second baseman Asdrubal Cabrera turned the 14th unassisted triple play in major league history on Monday night against Toronto.

I’m all about the triple play. It’s kind of like Moe’s Triple Lindy, but without the guacamole. Tasty.

A lot going on this weekend ... and a little BCS talk, too

Like high school sports?

Good.

There’s going to be plenty going on in the Opelika/Auburn area (and around the state) this weekend.

Let’s see ... The Class 4A-Area 6 softball tournament starts today at Beauregard. Tomorrow, No. 1 Opelika will host McGill-Toolen in the quarterfinals of the AHSAA Class 6A playoffs in the best two-of-three. Also tomorrow, the Class 6A-Area 8 softball tournament begins at West Ridge Park in Opelika, the AISA state softball tourney gets cracking in Montgomery and the state track and field meets begin at Gulf Shores (4A-5A-6A) and Troy (3A-1A).

Oh, and Saturday, the Auburn High boys soccer team hosts Fairhope at Duck Samford for a quarterfinal playoff game, while the girls team travels to Mary Montgomery.

College baseball fan? Auburn hosts Mississippi State in a three-game series this weekend at Plainsman Park. First pitch of Game 1 is slated for 6 p.m. Friday.

There’s enough going on this weekend where if you don’t want to cut the grass or do any yard work, you can find plenty of excuses not to. And I here the golf courses are pretty nice this time of year.

So do yourself a favor, get out and take in a ballgame or two and save the yard work for another weekend. That’s what I’m going to do.

*** Well, we’re not going to have a playoff, or even a plus-one game, any time soon in college football.

Surprised? You shouldn’t be.

Money talks. And the BCS and bowls generate a lot of dollars for colleges and universities.

But it seems to me, the only schools and/or conferences who are for a plus-one or playoff are the schools/conferences who have been burned by the BCS. Maybe the reason the Big Ten and Pac-10 don’t want a playoff—and are using the Rose Bowl as a cover—are because whenever they have a team close to being “the best” they always get a nod into the national title game.

Did Ohio State really deserve to be there last year? Discuss.

Anyway, for now, we’ll have to deal with more bowls and less on-the-field problem solving.

 

 

Sitting in Section “Junior Nation”

I was in Talladega this past Sunday for the Aaron’s 499. No, I wasn’t covering it. I was there as a spectator.

For the first time since, well, I can’t remember, I attended a sporting event with a ticket and not on a media credential. And it was fun.

My brother hooked my dad and I up with tickets ... actually, my brother’s fiance bought him three tickets for Christmas. Anyway, it was a boys weekend, and we took full advantage.

I took off Friday, and hung out with the guys on my back deck. Good times.
Saturday, we went golfing. Really good times. Although I couldn’t hit my driver to save my life, I still had a good time. And I didn’t walk, which is always, always a plus.

Sunday we went to Dega. We left out early to beat the traffic, and guess what ... we did. Seriously, on the way there and on the way back we didn’t sit in one bit of traffic. Jealous? I know you are.

My brother’s got GPS, and I don’t know what he did, if he tapped into some time-space continuum, but we zipped right in. It was glorious.

Our seats were even better. We were 19 rows up right at the entrance to pit road. We could see turns 3 and 4, the tri-oval and the start finish line. Plus we got a great view of the first (or last, depending on how you look at it) pit stalls. I’m still amazed at how those guys can change four tires in under 18 seconds.

The section we sat in was “Anniston” but I think it was a misprint. We were in, as the nice lady behind us said, “Junior Nation.“ Actually, the entire Talladega Superspeedway is Junior Nation.

There was one guy in front of us who, and I’m not making this up, screamed “Go June Bug ... whaaaaaaaaoooooooo” and held up three fingers every time Dale Earnhardt Jr. drove by. I’m talking EVERY. SINGLE. TIME.

And it got funnier every single time he did it. He was taking it so seriously, but even the die-hard Junior fans behind us were cracking up.

In all, it was a great time. No traffic. Good seats. And no sunburn. Extra bonus.

*** In 2009 NFL draft news (I know you can’t wait for that. You’re holding your breath already), Scout Inc.‘s Todd McShay is picking Auburn University defensive tackle Sen’Derrick Marks to be the fifth overall pick to the Bengals. Don’t believe me, look.

Sen’Derrick is good. Really good. But the ‘09 draft is a long, long, long, long, long, long, way away. I could be the fifth overall pick by then. Hey, I’m eligible for the draft, it’s been three years since I was in high school.