Welcome back to the Year in Review! Today we’ll be looking at the top sports events of 2011. As fair warning, some of them will tend to be a little biased (especially my team of the year), but whatever. It’s my list. I can do whatever I want! Anyways, this has been a weird year for sports. Between labor disputes, and then all the college scandals, there’s been a lot of negativity. However, it was probably one of the more exciting years for on field play that we’ve had in quite a while! So, we have somewhat of a mixed bag this year.
As usual, I’ll list the events in reverse order, from 10 to 1…sort of like a countdown, ya know! So, let’s get to it…
HM. The Death of Joe Frazier: Smokin’ Joe Frazier was one of the greatest Heavyweight boxing champions of all time. His fights with Muhammad Ali were legendary (Fight of the Century, The Thrilla in Manilla), as was his powerful left hook, which he used to lay out many opponents. He was an Olympic Champion and the World Heavyweight Champion. He was a monster in the golden era of Heavyweight Boxing. His matches against Ali and George Foreman were worldwide events. Smokin’ Joe passed away this year at the age of 67 from liver cancer. Frazier was one of the all time greats in boxing who much of the time is remembered more for his feud with Ali than for his amazing run of dominance and sheer boxing will. He will be missed.
10. The Rise of Tim Tebow: You know, I tried my hardest to hate Tim Tebow and all the attention he gets. He’s really only so damn popular because of his very outspoken and well-known religious beliefs. He’s not a very good QB overall. His mechanics in the pocket are terrible. His accuracy waivers. But, you know what? He wins! He’s led the Broncos to a respectable record and a very good shot at winning their division! His accuracy is improving…and he can run very, very well. Also, he seems to have that ability to elevate his game when it matters most. Most importantly, however, is that he’s gotten his teammates to all believe in him and buy into him as their leader. That’s no small task. So, I will recind my hate for now. I still don’t think he’s a long term answer for any team at the QB position…but what he’s done this season so far has been pretty exciting!
9. Japan Wins Women’s World Cup: The U.S. Women’s Soccer Team had defeated Brazil on PKs in the Quarterfinals, tying the match in extra time to force it. They won in the Semifinals, and were expected to cruise to a World Cup, since all that stood in their way was Japan. Japan is not a soccer powerhouse (although they are getting better). However, they had the hopes of an entire nation, and the sympathy of the entire world on their side. Remember, the World Cup happened not too long after the big Earthquake and Tsunami in Japan. The U.S. dominated the ball against Japan, and was undoubtedly the more talented team. But they blew too many scoring chances (the U.S. outshot Japan, 27-14) and let the Japanese hang around. The U.S. broke through in the 2nd half, only to see Japan tie it late. The U.S. took the lead again in the Extra Time…only to see Japan tie it late again. And in the PKs to decide the World Cup…something the U.S. was quite adept at…they missed. TWICE! This epic choke, combined with the cool, calm, collected approaches of the Japanese team led to the upset, and, for at least a few hours, a nice distraction for the people of Japan…a chance to celebrate.
8. Dallas Mavericks win NBA Championship: The Mavericks knocked off my Lakers, in a sweep, in the 2nd round…thus ending our Championship reign. So, naturally, they had to win the whole thing. In the finals, they were up against the hated, stacked, Miami Heat. On the big stage, LeBron (who decided to try and let friends carry him to a Championship rather than lead a team himself) choked…and the Mavericks played lights out and won. There were many interesting storylines that made this a pretty epic Title for Dallas. First, the Mavs had been sort of the San Jose Sharks of basketball…always super talented, always coming up short. This was big redemption for Dirk Nowitzki and Jason Terry, who had been there through all of Dallas’s playoff shortcomings. Jason Kidd also got his first title, after being one of the best PGs of his generation, but never getting that chance. Mark Cuban, the outspoken owner of the Mavs, got some sort of vindication over everyone who thought he was too much of a distraction for his team. I mean, this was basically Team Redemption. And, beating the media-darling Heat is always nice too.
7. Team of the Year: San Francisco 49ers: Yes, I’m a huge homer. But, look at what they’ve done this year! Last year they finished 6-10, fired their head coach, and seemed to be in disarray. Enter Jim Harbaugh, who has rallied this team, won the locker room, and finally turned all this talent into an NFC West title and a return to the playoffs! I mean, this is an epic turn around. The statement game of this turn around just happened, when the Niners dominated the defending AFC Champion Steelers on Monday Night Football. I was there…it was awesome. They’re headed towards the playoffs with a definite home game in their first playoff game they play…and a chance at the 2 seed and a first round bye. I mean, its mind boggling how ridiculous this turn around it…and how awesome! I get to cheer for a team in the playoffs again! It has been far too long…
6. Green Bay Packers Win the Super Bowl: Yes, the Packers probably should have been team of the year. And they probably would have been if they were still undefeated this year. But, alas, they are not! They lost to the Chiefs! So, now, they’re just another good NFC Team...but one who was expected to do well, so its not as impressive a run as the Niners are on. But, they did come from the 6 seed to steamroll to a Super Bowl. Aaron Rodgers (Q’s Athlete of the Year) has turned into the best QB in the entire NFL. The way he operates that offense is impressive. They are very real threats to go back to back. Hopefully the Niners can get in their way…
5. Boston Bruins win Stanley Cup: The NHL Playoffs are the most difficult, grueling affairs in all of sports. 16 wins in a fast, hard hitting game gets you to the title. And, as any Sharks fan can tell you, those 16 wins are hard to get to. The Bruins defeated the whiny, diving, classless Vancouver Canucks in the Stanley Cup Finals in an epic Game 7 victory. Actually, the Bruins won 3 of their series in a 7th game. Their goalie Tim Thomas was outstanding, and he basically carried the Bruins. Vancouver tried to dive and cheat their way to a Cup…almost got there…but alas, their goaltender is Roberto Luongo, and he is bad. You may think I’m overstating how awful the Canucks were…but let me just say this: The Canucks turned the entire U.S., AND THE ENTIRITY OF CANADA, into Bruins fans for 2 weeks. U.S. sports fans love to loathe anything from Boston…and Canada would love for one of their teams to win the Cup! Despite all that, no one wanted Vancouver to hoist the Cup and taint it with their whining, diving ways. It was that bad. The Vancouver fans rioted and burned down their city after the Bruins won, just to put an exclamation point on how classless that entire organization and fanbase is. So, the Bruins winning was the best thing for hockey. They won the cup with class, decency, and Tim Thomas’s American Excellence. Pretty awesome!
4. St. Louis Cardinals win World Series: This had to be the most improbable World Series win in a long, long time…and, it was definitely the most entertaining World Series since 2001. The Cardinals got into the playoffs on the very last day of the season…sneaking in because of a good winning streak coupled with an epic Braves collapse. The Cardinals would make the most of their opportunities, knocking off the Phillies in the first round, and then knocking out their divisional rival Brewers in the NLCS. In the World Series they faced the Rangers…and my oh my, what a back and forth series this was. No one ever seemed to have control. Just when you thought one team was about to take control of the series, the other team would storm back and win. Then, the kicker…Game 6, Rangers leading the series 3-2, winning the game by 2 in the bottom of the 9th, Cards have 2 on, with 2 outs, 2 strikes…their closer cannot get the final strike, and the Cardinals tie it up. The Rangers then took the lead on a 2 run homer from injured star Josh Hamilton in the top of the 10th! What a great script! Then in the bottom of the 10th, 2 outs, 2 strikes, 2 on, 2 run lead…the pitcher cannot get the final strike AGAIN, and the Cards tie it up, AGAIN! The Rangers were 1 strike away from their first ever World Series win…TWICE…and could not close the deal. The Cardinals won in the 11th, and then won Game 7 easily to win their 11th World Series title, and leave the Rangers up just short again. Made for an epically exciting World Series, though; and a nice way for Tony LaRussa to go out on top.
3. David Stern vetoes Chris Paul trade to the Lakers: This is a major, major event in that a commissioner of a major sports league vetoed a legal trade because a few owners whined that one of its premier teams was getting a star player. It’d be like if Selig vetoed Adrian Gonzalez going to Boston because the Indians and Blue Jays owners whined that the Red Sox were getting another star. It’s absurd. It’s such an egregious overuse of power, and a serious affront to all of the NBA. I’m surprised the Lakers and Rockets don’t sue the league on anti-trust and collusion grounds. If we’re going to start deciding which teams are allowed to get players, then the league is dead. You cannot run a league like this. So then Chris Paul gets traded to the Clippers, for a very, very similar package…and nothing. The only difference is that the Lakers are a premier, winning franchise, and the Clippers are not. If this is how Stern plans to promote parity in the league, then the NBA is doomed. What a fucking joke.
2. Labor Strife affects major sports: The NFL had a lockout that almost cost them the start of the season. The NBA had a lockout that cancelled games and almost cost them the entire season. MLB just got their new CBA signed, avoiding a lockout, and the NHL is up after this season. Labor issues are in the forefront of sports these days. The two lockouts garnered much attention this year. First, the NFL, the most successful league in all of sports, locked out its players until well through the summer. At times, it looked like the season may get shortened. The players union decertified and sued the league. The owners wanted more money from the players and were content to sit. Then, finally, a deal was struck, saving the full season. This ended up being a relatively minor labor setback compared to what the NBA went through. After one of the more exciting seasons in NBA history, the owners locked the players out. Their issues were much more fundamental. The big market teams were making tons of money…the small market teams were losing a bunch of money. There was a giant gap between the two. I mean, how to you fix this without contraction? The owners were fighting among themselves, and then they were making ridiculous demands of the players, so the players fought back. It was a mess. Games were cancelled, the union decertified and sued, the season seemed lost. And then, all of a sudden, a deal was struck, and a plan was put in place to have a condensed season starting on Christmas Day. I’m not sure anything was fixed, but they’re playing again. It’s been a pretty major news story throughout the year, though.
1. Scandal at the College Level: College sports have been just hammered this year by scandal. Ohio State’s football team was gutted when it turns out that their players were receiving improper benefits, and their heroic coach knew about it and did nothing. That, of course, pales in comparison to the goings on at Penn State. The Penn State scandal cost an icon his job and his god-like status as one of the “good guys of college football.” Apparently long time assistant coach Jerry Sandusky sexually assaulted or had inappropriate contact with at least eight underage boys on or near university property. After an extensive grand jury investigation, Sandusky was indicted on 42 counts of child molestation dating from 1994 to 2009, though the abuse may date as far back as the 1970s.
This is awful. I mean, the accounts of the actions of this man make me sick. Joe Paterno got tied up in all this because apparently he had been told about it once from an eye-witness account and just told his higher-ups, without following up on it or doing anything else about it. This is bad…as all child abuse reports should be taken seriously…but the people in the media painting him as some heartless demon, and calling him the worst offender in this entire thing was awful. Technically, he did his job. Be disappointed in him for not doing more, but shit, no one Paterno told did anything, and the assistant coach actually sodomized boys. There’s a long list of people to blame here, and Paterno is well down the list.
After this all came out, reports of sex abuse arose from the Syracuse basketball program as well. If this becomes a sort of epidemic, then college sports are in for a very, very rough time indeed. These things cannot be allowed to go on. Colleges need to stop turning a blind eye towards things happening in their athletic departments. People need to be held accountable. College sports programs have been a cesspool of corruption for quite a while now. If we follow this latest disaster down the rabbit hole, who knows what more could come out. Ultimately, cleaning up college sports is a good thing…but it’ll be painful while it happens.
So, as you can see, weird year. The top stories were all pretty negative, but behind that there was some pretty entertaining sports being played all over the place! Hopefully next year brings more of the latter and less of the former. Tune in tomorrow for the top World events of the year.
Cheers!
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