Why LeBron James Shouldn't Say Goodbye To Cleveland

With Game 6 in the Cavaliers-Celtics series on the horizon tonight, many voices are wondering aloud if this is the last game that LeBron James will ever play in a Cleveland Cavaliers uniform. Speculation has insisted for more than a year about where LBJ will go in 2010, but that has intensified after his disengaged and bizarre performance in Game 5. His effort in Game 5 has caused several voices in the media, thousands of deranged and depressed Cleveland fans, and conspiracy theorists across the country to declare that LeBron James quit on his team to move on to the promised land - the New York Knicks.

Why?

Stop and ask yourself that question.

Why?

Why would LeBron quit on his team? Why is New York such a great destination for James? Why does the NBA need LeBron in New York? Why does LeBron need to leave Cleveland?

I don't want to focus so much on what happened to LBJ in Game 5 - let's face it, nobody knows what's going through his head/elbow/mind or whatever. I want to focus on the rush to put the final nail on LeBron's time in Cleveland.

The deluge of articles proclaiming Game 5 as LEBRON'S GOODBYE TO CLEVELAND and discussing the future can be seen at ESPN, SI, USA Today, Chicago Tribune, New York Post, and ESPN again.

We've heard statements about the death of basketball in Cleveland coming, we've heard the odds discussed on where LeBron is going (not staying), and we've heard ad nauseum from arrogant northeasterners that LeBron needs to leave.

Again... why?

Are the Knicks really a national team alongside the Yankees and Cowboys and Red Wings? Does the health and vitality of the NBA and sports itself hinge upon whether or not LeBron James plays 41 games a year in MSG instead of 2? If Peyton Manning can be the most well-known and popular player in the most popular sport in America... why can't LeBron do the same in Cleveland? Hasn't he already accomplished that anyways?

As someone who lives in Ohio, the rush to put the Cavs away, to write the obituary on LeBron's time in Cleveland, to drool over his free agent recruitment tour, and the necessity to extoll the virtues of New York City over Cleveland is disgusting. Many people saying this are ones that praise parity in the NFL and decry the Yankees for their robbing from the poor teams of Major League Baseball. The fatalistic attitude of Clevelanders is only enhanced by folks wetting their pants that another heartbreak is coming their way and the King is saying goodbye.

Our favorite sports media personality Colin Cowherd spoke of LeBron as a young man who has felt that his time has come on to move somewhere. Basically saying in glowing terms that Cleveland and Akron suck and it was time to go to greener pastures. In an interview, Chris Sheridan was all too happy to go along with this sentiment that nobody wants to live in Northeast Ohio their whole life when all of the riches, happiness, success, and championships await him in New York (a team that hasn't won a title since 1973 by the way), or even Chicago.

It makes me sick.

I earnestly hope that LBJ stays in Cleveland, just to stick it to these elitist fools. I hope he puts up 50 in Game 6 and wins a title this year. The entire country outside the Northeast corridor could care less where the King places his throne. Why is the media so anxious to rip this guy off his home team and write the death sentence for basketball in Cleveland? Why are they so anxious to place more suffering on Cleveland fans that have seen the Browns taken away, the Indians destroy a championship contender, and no titles since 1964?

In fairness, LeBron has done this to himself. He's the one that wants the attention, he's the one that wants to be a free agent, and he's the one that clouds his future. He's the one that no-showed Game 5 and he's the one that hasn't carried a team to a title yet. He's the one that had John Calipari and Jay-Z courtside. But, this isn't your typical coverage regarding a free agent. We consistently hear that LeBron needs New York, New York needs LeBron, and the NBA needs LeBron in New York.

Why does the NBA need LeBron in New York. I'm sorry, but the last 2 or 3 years have seen the NBA reach its height in the post-Jordan age... with the Knicks sucking and LeBron playing his basketball in Cleveland. Idiots like Cowherd and others make the argument that leagues like the NBA need the Knicks and the big markets to bring in ratings, money, and notoriety. Does a 3 point boost in the ratings justify this arrogant nonsense?

Does that seem American to you? Does that seem like the way sports should be? Let's just tell the Colts that the Giants need Peyton Manning more than Indy does. Let's tell the Phillies that the Red Sox need Ryan Howard and Roy Halladay. Let's tell the Saints that the Cowboys need Drew Brees and Sean Payton. Let's redistribute all of the talented players in the world to the big cities that justly deserve them. Why? Well... because everybody wins, right? The New York fans win (and hey, there's more of them, plus they deserve LeBron more than his home state does). The NBA wins. And, LeBron wins.

Nobody knows what's going through LeBron's head before Game 6, but I hope it's not any of these thoughts. I hope he tries to win a title and plays a great game tonight. I hope he doesn't believe that he can't be the global icon that he wants to be by playing in Cleveland.

A couple years ago I traveled to rural Belize. It's a great place, but not exactly the cultural epicenter of the world. It's about as far away from New York as you can get. Who was the one celebrity figure that I saw in an advertisement in the country?

LeBron James. On a Sprite poster. In a Cavs uniform. Just a kid from Akron.

Bulls%*t he needs New York.

**Update

-Well, I'm glad I'm not alone, because just now Chris Broussard has a great article preaching the same message - without the Ohio bias and anger.

Big Ten Expansion and the New World Order of College Athletics

Amid all the noise of the NFL Draft and the playoffs of the NHL and NBA, there is a storm cloud on the horizon that could change college athletics forever. You probably already knew the Big Ten was poised for expansion in the near future. But, did you know they are accelerating those plans? Did you also know the other major conferences, the SEC, ACC, and Pac 10 are already plotting their responses? Where could it all end? Let's take a look into the crystal ball and see!

Background

-Ok, at first, Big Ten expansion seems rather mundane. So what if they go from 11 to 12 or 14, they'll get their big money football title game, increase profits, hit new tv markets, blah, blah, blah. But, what about the ripples of this potential move? I was one of those folks who didn't think anymore about the effects of Big Ten expansion...until I read former Syracuse A.D. Jake Croumathel in this New York Times story yesterday. Here's an excerpt:

Eventually, Crouthamel said he saw the Big Ten, the Atlantic Coast Conference, the Southeastern Conference and the Pacific-10 forming four 16-team superconferences and leaving the umbrella of the N.C.A.A. (Just imagine the fight between the SEC and the Pac-10 for Texas.) He said that those leagues would form their own basketball tournament to rival the N.C.A.A. tournament.

“If you look at the history of what’s been going on for the last decade, I think it’s leading in that direction,” he said.

So, 64 teams forming their own intercollegiate athletic association? Their own tv deals, their own academic standards, their own champions? That's crazy talk, right? Maybe not as much as you'd think. To prove how easy it is to envision this scenario, let's tackle what this New World Order of College Athletics (NWOCA for short) would look like.

The Rules

We've taken the teams from the current BCS conferences (Big East, ACC, Big Ten, SEC, Big XII, Pac 10). Also throw into the mix are Boise St. and TCU, which have been promoted from the ranks of the mid-majors into the NWOCA. That means some teams are going to have to bite the dust. If you're a fan of these schools remember, it's not personal, it's just business.

(1) Mississippi St. - One half of the Egg Bowl wasn't going to make it into the NWOCA. Both Mississippi schools have been dreadful in football and basketball for much of the last 15+ years, save a few bright spots. Ole Miss wins out due to its history and that scary lookin' Rebel guy.

(2) Iowa St. - Umm, if anyone can give a reason to keep Iowa St. in this conglomerate, that would be the first.

(3) Baylor - Despite the success of Scott Drew's run into the Sweet 16, there just hasn't been enough success on the football field to warrant them staying over teams with richer tradition or more recent success in their region.

(4) Washington St. - No, not the school of Ryan Leaf! A record of 3-22 since 2008, they were the school on the West Coast that missed the cut.

(5) The Big East - The biggest victim of the NWOCA will be the basketball behemoth formerly known as the Big East. Several schools with little or no football will be cut out of the pie. So, we'll join what's left of the Big East with some other smaller basketball powerhouses to create a 12 team basketball league on par with the NWOCA. The new conference with two divisions would look like this:

The Old School Basketball Alliance

Eastern Division

Georgetown

Temple

UMass

St. John's

Providence

Villanova

Western Division

DePaul

Xavier

Dayton

Marquette

Memphis

Butler

-A nice blend of old, dormant powerhouses and programs on the rise. The great basketball schools of the Northeast combined with the best from the heartland, this conference could either be accepted into the NWOCA Basketball Championship for a 76 team tournament, or could be the jewel of whatever's left of the NCAA.

-Ok, now on to the meat of the matter. Here's what the new 16-team superconferences, each with two 8-team divisions, will look like. We'll follow each with some pros and cons to the allignment.

Update: You can compare my conferences with Andy Staples of SI, who looked at what these superconferences might look like back in February. That was back when this was a moon landing level conspiracy...now we're at a grassy knoll level, people!

The New ACC

NorthEast Division

Boston College

UConn

Syracuse

Rutgers

Virgina

Virginia Tech

Kentucky

Louisville

Mid-Atlantic Division

Maryland

West Virginia

North Carolina

Duke

North Carolina St.

Wake Forest

Clemson

South Carolina

Pros: This is the new Big East in terms of basketball prowess. Not only are we keeping tobacco road together in the Mid-Atlantic Division, but we're adding some of the most prestigious programs in the country (Kentucky, UConn, Syracuse, Louisville). Kentucky and Louisville and UConn and Syracuse get to keep their rivalries, while forming new ones with other hardwood powerhouses. The New York media market is also surrounded with UConn and Rutgers, while Duke is practically a bastard child of New York in basketball.

Cons: Clearly the weakest of the conferences in terms of football, but, someone out of the four has to be the whipping boy. Kentucky, UConn, and Syracuse also lose a lot of their historic rivals.

The New SEC

Southwest Division

Texas

Texas Tech

Texas A&M

Arkansas

LSU

Ole Miss

Auburn

Alabama

Southeast Division

Tennessee

Vanderbilt

Georgia

Georgia Tech

Florida

Florida St.

Miami

South Florida

Pros: Wow, if this conference were to come to pass Mark May and those who love the current SEC may self-combust. In one division all of the Florida schools are finally reunited with their rivals to the north in Georgia. Also, Vandy is thrown in to raise academic standards, because we still care about the kids (wink, nudge, wink). On the other side, all of the big Texas schools are kept together. Can you imagine a conference championship between Texas and Florida?

Cons: Many of these schools don't offer much on the hardwood (South Florida, Ole Miss, Texas Tech). Also, some may question the inclusion of South Florida, but you can't argue with their progress in the toughest football recruiting area in the country.

The Big 16 (formerly the Big Ten)

East

Ohio St.

Cincinnati

Michigan

Michigan St.

Penn St.

Pitt

Indiana

Purdue

West

Northwestern

Illinois

Notre Dame

Minnesota

Iowa

Wisconsin

Mizzou

Nebraska

Pros: Notre Dame finally caves in and allows itself to join the NWOCA in the new Big 16 that sweeps the heartland. This may be the most balanced conference in terms of football and basketball. While Michigan and Ohio St. are in the same division, the possibility of them playing a Nebraska or Notre Dame remains possible in a conference championship. Also, little guy Cincinnati finally gets a crack at big brother Ohio St.

Cons: Ok, Northwestern might be a stretch, but again, we have to keep some sense of student-athletics, right? Also, Mizzou and Nebraska miss out on some of their long-standing rivals (Kansas, Texas, etc.). This conference could also use some improvement from programs like Minnesota, Indiana, and Purdue in football.

The Big West (formerly the Pac 10)

Great Plains Division

Kansas

Kansas St.

TCU

Oklahoma

Oklahoma St.

Colorado

Arizona

Arizona St.

West Coast Division

Boise St.

Washington

Oregon

Oregon St.

Cal

Stanford

USC

UCLA

Pros: Little guys Boise St. and TCU finally get to prove themselves against the "Big Boys" and avoid being in the same division. Also, all of the California schools stay together while the possibility of conference championships against the likes of Oklahoma and Kansas could be enticing.

Cons: Again, a bit of a weaker basketball conference, but a resurgence by UCLA and Arizona could do a lot to fix that problem. Also, Colin Cowherd may never want to travel east of Las Vegas ever again...come to think of it, that's actually a pro!

Final Thoughts

-So there you have it...this is what major college athletics could soon look like. Imagine the possibilities! A 64 or 76 team single-elimination Basketball Championship with no Bucknell's or Alabama A&M's taking up bids. A true Football Championship Playoff with the 4 conference champions playing each other in a single-elimination tournament. We can even throw the academic football schools in each conference (Vandy, Duke, Northwestern, and Stanford) a bone with some contrived Scholarly Athlete Trophy! Sure, the idea of Cinderella will be gone forever. There will be no more George Masons, or Butlers, or Boise St.'s but we will have the best of the best consistently playing each other. That's the price to pay for putting the almighty dollar above all else.

What do you think of our fantasy alignment...crazy conspiracy, or legit look at the future of college sports? Let us know by posting a comment below. You can also follow us on Twitter @RSS_Sports. Don't forget we'll be live blogging the 1st round of the NFL Draft this Thursday! Until next time, it's bye for now!

5 Reasons Why It's OK To Hate Duke

We're now at the Final 4, but we have to address Duke advancing to the Final 4 today. For a lot of normal college basketball fans, yesterday was a sad day. Why? We hate Duke. So, for those of us out there that are looking forward to driving a burning Q-Tip into your ears this week while the media wets their pants talking about Coach K's Dukies, this article is for you!

1) The Bracket

Duke was the only #1 Seed to advance to the Final 4. Now that most of the tournament has played out, we can look back and see that in a way we were right about this year's version of March Madness. This is what we said before the tourney began before the madness began...

"The Group of TeleTubbies is the South, which in irony of ironies, is Duke's bracket!! Somewhere Dickie V is smiling. Duke has the weakest 2 (Nova), 3 (Baylor, yes, Baylor is a 3 seed), 4 (Purdue - without Robbie Hummel and coming off of an 11 pt 1st half in the Big 10 Semis), and 6 (ND). Glad to see the committee is doing all they can to get Coack K back to the Final 4. Only Duke's terrible recent tourney history can keep them from reaching Indy. Ridiculous."

In the end, we didn't give Baylor enough credit, but the rest of the bracket played out on schedule. In fact, Baylor should have beaten Duke yesterday (more on that in a little bit). But, from the beginning, it was clear that the powers that be were doing the Dukies a favor. Compare that to Kansas who was in the same bracket where very capable 5 and 6 Seeds (MSU/Tenn) WHO JUST HAPPENED TO BE RANKED 13 AND 15 IN THE COUNTRY played in a great regional final. How convenient that we forgot about that whole S Curve thing this year...

2) Baylor Got Screwed

-I'm not going to use this space to complain that Baylor played 5 on 8 the entire game. For the most part, the refereeing was solid, but you hate to see one call change the course of a game. And isn't it something that that call usually goes the way of Duke. Let's set the scene...

4:37 left in the game, Baylor leads 59-57. Quincy Acy drives to the hoop and into a sliding and sideways Brian Zoubek. Acy scores and everybody in the building, including the Duke broadcast team of Jim Nantz and Clark Kellogg thinks it's an And 1 opportunity and the 5th foul on Zoubek... but no! Of course not! It's an offensive foul! Duke then goes on a 10-2 run. Ball game over.

So, instead of being up 5 - you get a crushing call going against you. For Baylor, I can understand how the wheels came falling off from there. Even if that call didn't happen, it's not like Baylor would have strolled to victory... but it would have been nice to see if they could.

3) Dick Vitale

-For years, Dick Vitale's transparent love affair with all things Duke has sickened college basketball fans across the country. His endless spewing of praise and adoration along with his tired schtick turns off fans. Well, get ready for a long week America, this was Vitale this morning about the insanity of the Duke haters...

"What is there to hate about a bunch of kids that play hard, play with feeling, play with intensity, play the right way, go to class, get their degrees, do things with integrity. I totally get amazed by those out there that have such an anti-feeling... and there's a lot of jealousy involved about their success."

It's not that we hate the kids Dickie - we hate that you and your friends love Duke so darn much. Here are some facts for Dickie V -

1) Duke is not the only team that plays hard - see Virginia, West.

2) Duke is not the only team that plays with feeling - I guess John Wall or Evan Turner can't feel, what monsters.

3) Duke is not the only team with players that go to class - maybe Dickie V is there with the kids in class though, just to make sure they're doing their Calculus homework.

4) Duke is not the only team that gets their degree - in fact, Duke's Graduation Rate is 92%. 6 teams that made this year's tournament (BYU, Marquette, Notre Dame, Utah State, Wake Forest, and Wofford) all rank at 100%. And yet, I bet that Dickie, or anyone else at ESPN, isn't going to spend a second of air time talking about those programs. Here's the full list.

5) Duke hasn't been to a Final 4 since 2004 - In comparison, Michigan State is at their 3rd Final 4 since then and North Carolina has won 2 titles, you tell me who I should be jealous of...

OMG - now Colin Cowherd is talking about Duke's diversity. Let's just move on before I get angry.

***UPDATE - Let's add Duke fans to this one thanks to this great and hilarious article from our friends at Rumors & Rants where they interview actual Duke fans. Just be thankful that you aren't one of them.

4) Conspiracy Theory

-It's funny how the conspiracy theorists only come out for the NBA Playoffs. Waaahh... David Stern wants the Lakers and Celtics in the Finals.... waaahhh Lebron James always gets every call. Umm... did we just witness what happened yesterday and throughout the tournament? Let's take a trip to Crazy Town and let the conspiracy theorists have some fun!

*Refereeing in yesterday's game. It might not show up throughout, but look which way the biggest call of the game went - check.

*Easiest bracket - check.

*The NCAA can opt out of its TV deal with CBS after this year. Ratings = dollars. Duke = ratings. The question is, who picks up the red phone first to give Duke the best chance to make it - the NCAA or CBS? Seeing Nantz and Kellogg follow Duke's yellow brick road to Indy adds further spice to the whole network conspiracy. I can't believe I'm agreeing with Jason Whitlock here, but conspiracy theories make for strange bedfellows.

*Coach K is secretly a Communist Spy and was also the second gunman on the grassy knoll.

OK, I made that last one up, but I almost had you for a second!

5) Duke Colored Glasses

-When one program is shoved down your throats as all that is right with the world, you begin to ask questions. What makes Duke so much superior to other programs? Is it because they're smarter? Or their coach is a "good guy" and "respectable"? Is it because they have "good kids" who "play hard" and "play the right way"?

Does Duke tangibly play harder or righter than Michigan State, UNC, UK, or other top programs? No! Yet, they are lifted up as the holy grail of basketball programs. Don't get me wrong, it's great that they recruit good kids and that they graduate and all the rest. It is admirable. But Duke is not the only team in the country that does these things.

In an age where so many guys are out after a year, it is the programs and coaches that become the leading characters. Duke and Coach K don't recruit the one and done guys like Derrick Rose, John Wall, or DeMarcus Cousins. You rarely see guys at Duke with headbands and tattoos like DeMarcus Cousins. You see understated guys like Scheyer, Singler, and Smith. You see Duke recruit guys that will likely stay for 4 years in school. Yes, they can ball, but they won't make a lot of noise doing it.

Here's 2 takes about UK's talented big man - who might symbolize the Duke divide.

From CBS's Gary Parrish

No, the biggest threat to Kentucky's national title hopes is that DeMarcus Cousins seems a little unbalanced and capable of snapping at any time. Or, as Louisville's Edgar Sosa reportedly put it after the game, Cousins is a "nutcase." The guy is capable of getting 20 and 15 in the Final Four against Kansas or of throwing a punch at Sherron Collins before the first media timeout.

From RealGM

He undoubtedly doesn’t have the maturity of a Blake Griffin in 2009, or Oden/Durant in 2007, but he has a great sense of the game, plays extremely hard within a team concept and is genuinely well-liked and well-respected by his teammates... Ultimately in Cousins, I see a pretty decent guy who plays with a lot of emotion. I might need a longer vetting process if my future unborn daughter brought him home instead of someone like Evan Turner, but he shouldn’t have any serious problems to override his talent.

And yet, the stigma of Cousins is that he is a nutcase and unbalanced. By the way, don't tell me Cousins lost his cool and cost UK against WVU - Cousins didn't shoot 4/32 from downtown. And yet, he plays as hard or harder than any of Duke's big guys - however that judgment is made. Compare that to glowing articles about Jon Scheyer and Kyle Singler. Here's a great line about Singler from Bleacher Report:

He is willing to play the entire game without a break, grab rebounds, make hustle plays, and hit big baskets without receiving any credit on the national level... It's true—no one in the nation works harder and more efficiently for his team than Singler does for Duke.

Is it the tattoos and the headband and the showing of emotion that scares us? If DeMarcus Cousins put on a Duke uniform would we see more clearly the big man with the high basketball IQ with the skills to be a future All-Star - I bet we would. If Singler didn't play for Duke would folks say he's the hardest working player in the nation? Of course not - he'd be Jon Diebler. In the end, that's my biggest problem with the love affair with Duke. Nobody sees past the uniform.

RSS Roundtable: Tiger's Saga and What It Really Means

No news in sports over the past few months has captured the attention of the nation like the Tiger Woods saga. It began as a car accident in his neighborhood, but has developed into so much more. For such a dynamic story, we've brought in Brother Yohey to help us in a RSS Roundtable event to answer the 4 Most Important Questions for the big picture of Tiger Woods and HydrantGate. How has Tiger and the media handled the situation? How does this affair affect Woods' image? And, what is the lasting impact?

1) How has Tiger handled the situation?

Mr. Yoder II: For a man who has built this immaculate image as a corporate icon, golfing god, and down-to-earth family man, Tiger has managed to ruin his perfect image by handling this situation terribly. From evading the police, to not confronting speculation soon enough (remember his original statement called the rumors about his affairs "irresponsible" but not untrue), to this cold, distant statement released Wednesday. Tiger is the most clutch athlete alive, but can't speak to his fans, sponsors, and media? Please.

Mr. Yoder I: Tiger has handled this situation very poorly. Y2 is right, it looks incredibly foolish to call the rumors irresponsible and 2 days later admit to "transgressions"! That is a triple bogey for Woods. Tiger is a victim though of his own image and reputation. In the grand scheme of things, people make mistakes, and we should all hope that there can be healing here. But, Tiger, being idolized like no other athlete in our history, has a long way to fall for us to realize that he's human.

Bro. Yohey: I wanted for this to not be true; I’ve liked Tiger since watching him run away from the field for his first Masters victory. However, I feel that you both are missing one big problem that has arisen in this culture; the idea of Tiger being human. Was it Tiger’s fault that he excelled in golf and was the hottest advertising commodity? I don't think there can be a judgment that he's handled it badly or not.

Mr. Yoder II: Honestly, I think the bubble shield that Tiger has built up the last 10 years has done more harm than good in this instance. Tiger's never been known as a great communicator...people marvel if he gives anything away in a post-round interview, let alone his personal life. He had to deliberate, and hide behind his PR team until they drafted this empty, defensive statement. In that sense he's failed to get in front of the story, such as Andy Pettite, A-Rod, and even David Letterman.

Bro Yohey: We build athletes up to this superficial standard, and when we find out that they aren’t flawless, then they are ripped apart. It is a terrible catch 22 which athletes find themselves in today. I just wish that athletes have something in common with us normal people; human nature. Tiger not appeasing the media with his statments is something I can not and will not fault him for. I wonder where it says that in order for you to excel at a sport and play at a high level, you must sacrifice your privacy. Why give the media anything to play with when they have showed countless times in the past that they can't be trusted with any information?

Mr. Yoder I: By only giving a sparsely detailed, defensive, and veiled statement regarding the accident, Woods only invited more speculation and conspiracy theories. That strategy blew up in his face. Once the voicemail came out it seems like the light finally went on for Tiger that he better come clean about the affair. Does Tiger regret his actions and everything he brought on his family, or does he regret that he got caught? Instead of just offering a mea culpa he again plays the privacy card and lectures us. Really? I don't expect to visibly see him for at least a few months, and then the questions will come once again.

2) How has the media handled the situation?

Mr. Yoder I: It's been good and bad. On one hand, the sensationalist tabloids like the Enquirer and TMZ were the ones to bring to light the affair accusations. Like communism in the movie Clue, Tiger's car accident was a red herring hiding the true story. Of course, the tabloids aren't real journalism, but we know the mainstream sports media would never dig up the true story. That mainstream sports media has too much interest in Woods. They ignored the real story until he finally released a statement. I'm sure ESPN and Tiger protectors will emphasize his humanity and sweep it under the rug.

Bro. Yohey: Ok, I can’t disagree more with your statement Y1 actually giving the media some credit. Oh Lord, ESPN actually covered the story, when they heard from Tiger! TMZ is garbage that posts stories dealing with speculation. So they got it right this time and I applaud the mainstream media for not going with this until they had the facts straight and got the statement from Tiger. Hindsight is always 20/20.

Mr. Yoder II: We all want to believe journalism is still well and alive in this country, but it's not. Journalism as we knew it is dead. However sleazy they might be, give credit to these "gossip" sites for breaking the news the mainstream is afraid to cover. If the mainstream wanted to show journalism wasn't dead, they'd be going after the truth in this story instead of trying to protect their cozy relationship with Tiger. I mean, there wasn't even a mention of the US Weekly allegations on ESPN's front page until Tiger's statement, that's pathetic.

Mr. Yoder I: Both sides of the media have a clear agenda, and it leaves the public uninformed and uneducated. There is a vacated middle ground that has to look at this from a grounded perspective. How does the scandal affect Tiger's marketability? Will his rep ever be the same? How does this relate to other cases? Neither end of the media is right, but both might have a shred of truth and accuracy in their coverage.

Bro. Yohey: The media has become a cancer in the world of sports. The notion of Tiger living in a world where privacy stops at his doorstep is ridiculous. I wonder how those in the media would like it if they had an incident like this happen, and people all over start making remarks regarding private matters when they don't even know the truth.

Mr. Yoder I: Bro. Yohey, in a perfect world Tiger could have his privacy. He could also give back that billion dollars and go work in a factory for $10 an hour in Duluth, MN. But, we need to be realistic. He's perhaps the 2nd most recognizable person on the planet behind Barack Obama, real privacy is a pipedream. It's the media's duty to cover him just like any other celeb and hold him accountable. I don't care if it's TMZ or ESPN. You don't think sponsors and the PGA Tour want to get to the bottom of this? It might be tough for Tiger, but it's the price he pays for being the world's first billion dollar athlete.

Mr. Yoder II: And I think that's the main point in the coverage of this story. It's not that Tiger doesn't deserve his privacy, everyone certainly does. In an ideal society, these tabloids wouldn't exist, athletes and celebrities could be just like the rest of us. But, when you become one of the world's most high-profile athletes, you have to play by a different set of rules than "normal people". Just because Tiger is usually in control of everything, doesn't mean he's exempt from the same scrutiny as all other public figures.

Mr. Yoder II: Look, nobody's asking Tiger and his family to go on Dr. Phil for a public counseling session. But, for a man that is the most recognizable figure in the world, he owes it to the millions of fans who pay to see him play and buy his merchandise to speak to them. Not to beg for forgiveness, but show his face to the public. By submitting this crafted statement, he's taking the easy way out and hoping the controversy goes away before he returns to golf in a couple months.

3) How does HydrantGate affect Tiger's aura of invincibility?

Mr. Yoder II: To the public and some of his peers, his image is affected greatly in the short-term. Look at Jesper Parnevik's comments yesterday (boy those Swedes sure know how to stick together, huh). The longer he's defensive about it, the harder it's going to be for the public to completely forgive him and move on. Look no further than Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, and Mark McGwire: legendary athletes who have never faced up to allegations that have dogged them for years. The public still holds them in a negative light because they haven't addressed their "sins" publicly to a camera. Woods admitted his guilt, but he needs to actually showremorse, and not just type it on a word doc.

Mr. Yoder I: Maybe not so much his invincibility, but his carefully manicured image. Think about what a bad end of 2009 it has been for Tiger Woods on and off the course. It started with blowing his first major to YE Yang at the PGA, and now this happens. I think Tiger's aura is definitely affected here. Part of the intrigue of this whole story is that it is Tiger Woods. It's not Rick Pitino or David Letterman that we're talking about here. Rick Pitino's affair didn't put Rick Reilly on Good Morning America, for better or worse.

Bro. Yohey: I get a kick out of this question. Tiger wishes to stay private and not let his life play out on the tabloid pages. For that, he is protrayed as being invincible; I say he is being smart. The media will do all they can to bring you down; if you are deemed "invincible" they will search to find chinks in the armor just to make you look bad and to sell publications. Y2, the McGwire, Clemens and Bonds analogy is illogical; their accusations dealt with cheating in the sport they played. Tiger’s situation has nothing to do with his golf game, and the only sense of invincibility he should have is on the golf course.

Mr. Yoder II: Of course Tiger's on-course persona takes no hit from this scandal. We've already seen Tiger is the most mentally strong athlete ever, so he'll be able to block this out with no problem. Unless Phil's caddy or Sergio start talking trash on the golf course, or women run out on the tee to give Tiger their phone number, he'll be unaffected. His competitors will draw more confidence from his failure in the 2009 PGA Championship than his rocky personal life. Let's not kid ourselves, Tiger can't be the only pro golfer who's putting his clubs in a different bag, if you know what I'm saying.

Mr. Yoder I: Really, we don't know these people at all. We idealize our athletes so much and Tiger is the perfect example. He's crafted such a perfect image of himself that when it takes even the slightest hit, it's a huge, huge deal. The affair and the decline of the idealized Tiger are the true story here. I think when a role model falters it's a tragic story no matter how you look at it. Whatever the actual number is, there will be many of people that will turn Tiger off, and not watch on TV, or have to answer tough questions from 10 year old kids that want to be the next Tiger Woods. That's the underlying sadness to this story.

4) Does this whole episode have any lasting impact?

Bro. Yohey: Ask me this in a year. Tiger giving the press and media nothing to work with is a good tactic, although they feel "entitled" to an explanation. They don't deserve a damn thing and it gets me annoyed.

Mr. Yoder II: In a word, no. Does anyone honestly believe Tiger won't go on to win another major just because he's having problems at home, of course not. Tiger will still go on to break Jack Nicklaus's record for most career major titles and go down as the best golfer in history. His sordid affairs will merely be a footnote, much like Babe Ruth, Kobe Bryant, Ray Lewis, and countless others.

Mr. Yoder I: The PGA, sponsors, and countless others are invested in the Tiger Woods brand and need to know if they can trust this guy in the future or not. The direct impact is on Woods' legacy; much like Ruth, Bryant, Lewis, and any other athlete that has faced scandal it is a very small portion of their legacy, but a portion nonetheless.

BY: Now, after hearing there are leeches out talking about indecent Tiger texts and voice mails, this will grow larger and it is sad. People are only coming out with this due to the crash and it is sad. They are like sharks who pounce when they smell blood. Put them all on a spaceship and launch it to the sun. Fans need to be more realistic. The idea of having athletic role models always troubled me. I didn’t grow up idolizing Barry Larkin or Bernie Kosar or Larry Bird; I grew up idolizing my father. What is so wrong with society that no longer worships athletes as more than human?

Y1: Again though, I think that the lasting impact is larger than even Tiger Woods. Think about it, the one athlete that we thought was perfect in every way has fessed up that he's human. That's what is so compelling part about sports: that we can look up to these people as something more than they actually are to inspire us in our "normal" lives. The troubling thing for me moving forward is the question of whether or not there are any role models left today in sports? Today it's Tiger Woods, who will it be next? Do these athletes need to be more responsible and accountable to the millions that look up to them, or do fans need to have more realistic expectations of their heroes? I think that's a question that sadly nobody has the answer to.

What do you think? Let us know your opinions about the Tiger Woods saga and what it really means for Tiger's rep, his future, the game of golf, and what it says about society and sports.

When Irish Eyes Are Crying

Yesterday, one of the great injustices in sports history happened, and no, this is not another article blasting Colin Cowherd... but something that is perhaps more important. The field of 32 is set for the World Cup, but not without controversy. Of course, you probably know by now that traditional power France defeated Ireland 2-1 on aggregate thanks to a goal by William Gallas in extra time. That goal was directly set up from an obvious handball on French icon Thierry Henry (see pic from Sky Sports above, c'est manifeste). Henry knew it was a handball, he even admitted it afterwards, the other French and Irish players knew it was a handball, the millions watching around the world knew it was a handball... and yet, the goal stood. France are in the World Cup and Ireland are out on not just a missed call, but a blatant disregard for the rules of soccer. Here's the video evidence from a scarred Irishman...

Sure, bad calls are made all the time... but as American sports fans, it might be hard to realize the magnitude of this decision. Imagine if a blown call cost your favorite team a spot in the playoffs... only that it would be 4 years until you could get another chance back in. Oh, and it's not just you and the fans of your favorite team, it's your entire country that feels cheated. Needless to say, this is the blown/missed call of all blown/missed calls. This makes the Tuck Rule and Phil Luckett's coin toss look like child's play.

Many in Ireland are calling for a replay of the game, which if it happens would be the most stunning thing in sports I've ever seen. Have a look at some of the Irish quotes surrounding this incident and tell me if FIFA and world soccer has some fences to mend...

"We got robbed. ... We feel cheated. We were the better team," said Irish defender Sean St. Ledger. ''It's cost a lot of us our dreams - as a boy I used to dream of playing in the World Cup, and now I'm not.''

"Throughout the country today there is an air of bitterness. We were beaten unfairly and there is general disgust in France too," Irish lawmaker Joe McHugh said. "Friends of mine who attended last night's game phoned me this morning from a cafe in Paris to report that the French people are ashamed and do not regard this as an honest victory."

"If the game's going to survive, it's got to be an equal playing field," Irish Ast. Manager Liam Brady said. "If we're going to have integrity and dignity in the world game, the game should be replayed. And we'll go to Paris to play it."

"If that result remains, it reinforces the view that if you cheat you will win," said Irish Justice Minister Dermot Ahern.

But, the best and most damning quote came from Ireland Captain and Tottenham star Robbie Keane, who questioned the ethics of FIFA President Sepp Blatter and UEFA head honcho Michel Platini...

"They're all probably clapping hands, Platini sitting up there on the phone to Sepp Blatter, probably texting each other, delighted with the result, with France (getting through)."

And we thought conspiracy theories only existed in the NBA?! This is on, hello, a WORLD scale. This is the captain of a national team calling out the presidents of the two most important governing bodies in the world's biggest and most popular sport. Can you imagine if Tom Brady accused Roger Goodell of this sort of behavior??

Of course, Ireland felt hard done by the whole seeding process of UEFA and FIFA which was done to protect the bigger countries like France and Portugal (which beat Bosnia to go through). The Henry Hand controversy is only going to reinforce the notion that there is an unfair playing field and that nations like Ireland will never get a fair shake in world soccer. The Football Association of Ireland has now lodged a formal request for a replay of the game.

If life were fair, a replay would happen next week in Paris. (The only similar scenario I can find occurred in 1999 when Arsene Wenger offered an FA Cup Replay to Sheffield United after questionable circumstances surrounded a winning goal by Arsenal). But, we're living in dreamland if we think that Ireland is actually going to get the chance to play France for a spot in the World Cup again. First, FIFA and UEFA have gotten their wish of France going through to South Africa. Secondly, a replay opens up a Pandora's Box that soccer or any other sport can't afford to deal with: every game decided on a missed or disputed goal would need to be replayed. Of course that would be insanity.

So, sadly, injustice reigns again. And, you know, maybe France would have won a penalty shootout, but maybe they wouldn't have won. The nation of Ireland will sit at home and watch France play in South Africa knowing that they were robbed of what could be a once in a generation chance at playing in the world's most prestigious sporting event. So when your team suffers at the hands of questionable officiating, keep the Emerald Isle in mind and know it could be much, much worse. Keep the Guinness on tap come next June...

What are your thoughts on the France/Ireland controversy? Should Ireland get another chance? Is FIFA corrupt? Does soccer need video replay? Should the French do the honorable thing and offer a replay? Are the French capable of such a thing? (Just kidding to all 1-2 of our French readers) Let us know what you think!