Bedlam Continues

A cover vote for the newest edition of EA Sports' Madden video game has been ongoing over at ESPN for sometime now. Finally, they've reached the finals. The final vote for who is going to grace the cover of Madden '14, due out in August.

Who wants to? Probably every sports fan. Who doesn't want to? Probably most active professional athletes. It is an honor, there's no doubt. But the curse of the cover is too real to ignore for current athletes. Since John Madden removed himself from the cover and began adding players in 2001, the following season has been less than admirable for the stars, some of whom have even suffered injuries that caused time off or even season ending trips to the doctor.

More importantly is who are the finalist's for this year's cover vote. Barry Sanders, who retired from the NFL in 1999 after ten years with the Detroit Lions is up against Adrian Peterson of the Minnesota Vikings. Arguably the greatest running back of all time is going up against one who could be the greatest running back of all time after his time is up. Fascinating.

What makes this even more interesting is the matchup for who graces the cover of Madden is now the newest, and unintentional, bedlam battle. Oklahoma versus Oklahoma State. The matchup we all love to throw ourselves into.

Sanders did things at Oklahoma State nobody had seen before and has seen since. Some call what Sanders did in 1988 the greatest season in college football history. 2,850 yards rushing and 42 touchdowns, the yards a record. He won the Heisman that year and ranked number two in the Greatest College Football Players of All-time by ESPN.

Peterson, well, what he did at Oklahoma most of you know about. AP Freshman of the year, stunning runs, powerful runs. Peterson was well on his way to breaking the Oklahoma record for rushing yards and could have challenged Sanders in his senior year but "AD" went to the NFL after an injury shortened junior season.

Both Sanders and Peterson enjoyed stellar NFL careers, Peterson still doing incredible things for the Minnesota Vikings. Whoever wins the cover of Madden is no doubt a deserving winner. I don't care who wins, I vote for Barry. I'm just glad to see a little Bedlam continuing post-university.

Like, For Real Baseball Season

Basketball season is over in the NCAA and this means we are one step closer to it being baseball season. 

(AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

I know baseball season has started. It is in full swing in the college ranks. The pros are getting their feet underneath themselves and baseball season is in complete, full force. But, for real baseball season is a different thing.

For real baseball season is after the NBA Finals are over and when we really aren't talking about the NFL very much and when there isn't a huge friggin' golf tournament quickly approaching.

For real baseball season is almost here and it's almost time to hear all the other sports fans talk about how much they can't stand this time of the year. The time of the year I love. Think about the perfect summer day.

You wake up (every morning is beautiful in the summer), then you knock out a few chores, maybe mow the lawn. Next up is the lake. Do a little fishing in that spot that only you know about, or so you'd like to think. Drift off to a quiet spot and relieve yourself from the scorching sun by taking a dip. Finally before your day can be complete, you head back into town, stop by the closest 7-Eleven and pick up some sunflower seeds and peanuts and head to the ball park.

For real baseball season is almost here, get ready.

Keynotes: 

-Make a playlist for mowing the lawn, my picks are country.

-Never get mad while fishing.

-Don't jump in the lake with your cell phone, they haven't made that a feature yet.

-Only buy enough snacks to fit inside your girlfriends purse, if she has a small purse, buy her a bigger
one.

-Finally. Think of fun games to play during the baseball game.

Football In March

Football in March doesn't get the recognition it deserves. From September to the first weekend in February, football is the sport the makes the world go 'round. But, in March it doesn't get the mention that it deserves. Maybe that could be due to the fact the biggest tournament in sports is being played at the same time. But that doesn't mean we should shove our favorite football team's foam fingers to the back of the closet until the leaves turn.

(AP Photo/Paul Connors, File)

For starters, the rule change. Runningbacks being charged with a penalty for lowering their helmets before running into a defender. That is the clear  and dry version of the rule. Let's put it this way. The 200 pound guy running with the ball, sees the 270 pound guy coming for his life. The defender lowers his head and leads with the shoulder, it's okay (he can't lead with his head either). But if the runningback lowers his head as he braces for impact that is an offensive penalty. All I can say is wow. I understand the reasoning behind it. Roger Goodell, the NFL's Commissioner, wants a safer league. He should, all the old veterans are suing him because of past head injuries.

I just don't believe this is going to solve any issues. Playing in a game that demands instant reaction doesn't allow for players to think about whether or not they should duck their head. A single play can last just a few seconds and it is human nature to brace yourself before contact. Especially when the contact you are bracing for could put you in the hospital.

Super Bowl Blog

The Super Bowl is here. The moment we’ve been waiting for. All season we’ve cheered and jeered. Thought about why our team couldn’t win or if the reason we were winning was legitimate or not. Did we just win that game? How do we win this game but lose this one? Now it’s officially the end of the road.  We have come to the finale, some of us happy and most of us picking a team based on some random rationalization of our football knowledge.

The Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers, or for some of you, the Niners and the Ravens. Who will win? Who is better? These guys can do this but those guys can do this. My favorite part of the Super Bowl might be the two weeks leading up to the biggest spectacle in all of sports. 

Of course watching the game is cool too, watching the commercials is fun and gathering watch parties is always a blast. But the fun facts that pop up on a daily basis before the game actually gets played are so intriguing.

Ravens linebacker Ray Lewis announced his retirement just before the playoffs began, sparking a momentous occasion worth discussion every time he did anything. The fun fact, Lewis’ first sack was against the 49ers head coach Jim Harbaugh. Harbaugh would play against Lewis in practice everyday just two years later.

(AP Photo/Mark Humphrey)

Speaking of Harbaugh, if you haven’t been tuning in, there are two of them. Brothers, friends, comrades and opposing coaches. What a storyline. It has dominated the two-week layoff pre-Super Bowl. They played against each other on Thanksgiving in 2011 with Baltimore nabbing the victory. John Harbaugh of the Ravens and Jim Harbaugh of San Francisco will provide the most fascinating storyline.

These go on for days, 14 days to be exact. Following their respective victories in the Conference Championships, these two teams instantly became the topic of discussion and have frequently been so since.

The next quirk and very interesting factor is that of the 49ers and their starting quarterback. Colin Kaepernick, starting quarterback for San Francisco for exactly nine starts in a season of 16 games. Two playoff starts included, Kaepernick has shocked the world by replacing a starting quarterback who took this team to the doorstep of last year’s Super Bowl and actually doing better.

(AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Reminiscent of the year a certain Tom Brady replaced the New England staple Drew Bledsoe at quarterback and turned out to be… The best quarterback of our generation. Also, the last time the Super Bowl was in New Orleans, a second year quarterback, Brady, took over at starter following an injury won the Super Bowl. Get ready New Orleans.

All of the storylines are interesting and all of the talk about them is fun. The debate over who will win the game is just as interesting and a lot more intense. Baltimore has a stingy defense and when done right their offense is rather efficient. (Another quirk: The Ravens fired their offensive coordinator in week 14.) But Baltimore has 44 touchdowns in 16 games and they came from a balanced attack, 17 rushing and 22 passing.  For San Francisco, 44 touchdowns, 17 from rushing and 23 from passing.

The comparisons continue through kickoff when the teams actually play the game. Who will win? Baltimore, 27-20.