Friday, September 11, 2009

Why does ESPN employ Lou Holtz?

Why does ESPN keep Lou Holtz?

You know, this reminds me of something that I saw on Food Network… bear with me….

I love watching some of the food challenges they have here, but there was one where they had to make bridges using their skills as chefs and bakers. One lady was so terrible at what she did one of my friends called her works, “hot mess”. So that’s what we called her…Hot Mess.

Her works were so bad, so non professional that none of the judges liked her works. I remember going online and reading some of the forums on the challenge and everybody was asking why in the world did Food Network even allow her on. One person made a comment that I think was right on the money.

The did it for the shock factor, because the very fact that people disliked it meant they were watching.

So true was this that just recently Food Network had a second challenge of bridges…and guess who was back. The one person nobody liked and criticized was back, not because she was good, but because people wanted to see “Hot Mess”.

Television feels that it has to have controversy or something you either hate or love in order to bring ratings…sadly I think ESPN feels the same way.

Now I say this knowing that I am in NC, and Lou Holtz’s son coaches at nearby East Carolina University, but I have no loyalties there. I am completely amazed at how ESPN allows somebody with no standing morals to sit there in front of the camera and say the things he says…and gets away with it.

This is the same man who last year, when asked for an HONEST opinion of how Notre Dame would do, he looked at the camera, with a lie in his heart and declared that they would go perfect, and not lose one game…this oh by the way for a man that, during one of the home games at ND, they were going to erect a statue of him to commemorate their last glory days.

I call it kissing butt.

This from a guy who, during one of the games on ESPN, with an injured player who eventually got up, said that if HE was the coach, he BETTER stay down because he cost the team a time out. Lou Holtz opened his big mouth and said that if he had a player go down on the field, he better stay down or he would made him wish he did. I remember the other guys calling the game give that “oh come on coach”, knowing that this guy said something he should not have said.

This is the same guy who has made comments about how great a leader Hitler was, making a complete fool of himself.

We can go on and on.

Folks, there is a line that is drawn between being loyal and being honest. ESPN should be paying Lou Holtz to be true to himself and to the sport, not to kiss butt to Notre Dame every year. I am not a fan of ND, but even if I was, there is no way I would have predicted Notre Dame to win EVERY game last year like Lou Holtz did.

It’s kinda like he’s that old man that you can’t stand, the one that if he says ONE MORE WORD to you, he’ll be laying on the floor counting the cobwebs on the ceiling. It’s gotten to the point that when Lou opens his mouth, I change the channel.

I don’t get it, is there that much charm in a lying old fart for ESPN to allow him to continue to do what he does. And folks, I am quite aware of Lou Holtz’s past and how great a coach he was. But he must be hell to deal with in that studio, I feel sorry for Rece Davis and Mark May. Heck, I am surprised May has not put a speed bump the old man’s head.

It’s funny that one of Lou Holtz’s quotes involved a tasteless act that involved the Clemson Tigers and his last team, South Carolina. His team got into a fight with Clemson which resulted in the decision by both schools to not go to a bowl game. Lou Holtz made a comment that both his and legendary coach Woody Hayes (Ohio State) both had their careers ended with Clemson.

Yeah…both classless acts…but Woody Hayes apologized for his.

We can argue all day about what Lou Holtz has done for Notre Dame, and all the wins and stuff, but at the end of the day, you look at the character of a man to see what he is about… and if Mark May or Rece Davis talked about all the things Lou Holtz said, there may not be a lot of respect one could give Mr. Holtz.

But ESPN seems to be trying to spin this idea of some witty old man that would be the life of the party, I mean everybody loves Lou Holtz….

Do they?

So this year the old man has predicted that Notre Dame will be playing in the BCS Championship against Florida…I can buy half of that.

He said Notre Dame would go perfect last year, with a lie in his mouth and heart… as my brother says, “ain’t nothing changed but the date”.

Guys like Mark May, Lou Holtz and other analysts are paid to be objective and credible…but this man is obviously suffering from that rare disease called Rectumkissania…

Figure out what that means…

So I will keep my remote handy and flip the channels every time Lou Holtz opens his mouth…there is nothing he can say that I would be interested in. Shame on you ESPN, you know better than that.

Clemson vs Georgia Tech: Aftermath

Clemson vs. Georgia Tech: Aftermath

What an interesting game.

I watched that game with a few schools of thought before the kickoff, one, that Clemson with a new head coach, and having a disappointing season last year, could be looking at a loss. I also thought Georgia Tech, as a nationally ranked team, at home, should win, but was not convinced because their quarterback is not REALLY a quarterback. I mean, looking at his stats, you really had to wonder about that.

And so the game begins and it just looks like this triple option thing that Georgia Tech has is really going to work…I mean, it did well for the last year. But I have my doubts about it working for a great team, against great opponents. It just seemed that the Yellow Jackets were kinda out of date by using it, even though their coach came from Navy, where it is still being used.

I watched that game and saw Georgia Tech jump to a 21-0 in the first quarter, then 24-7 by halftime…but I wondered something about Georgia Tech, something they best not repeat.

With the score 21-7, and the Yellow Jackets driving, they had a third down and maybe 3 or 4 yards for a first down, inside the 10 yard line. I remember asking my brother if GA Tech ought to try to punch it for the first down or touchdown. He said they should try to at least get a field goal out of it. The play they ran seemed to imply that Georgia Tech was only trying to get in the center of the field, to guarantee at least a field goal.

I can understand that, but what it also seems to imply was that they were not going for the “killer blow” when they were inside the 10 yard line. I know it’s hindsight, but if you played aggressive for at least the first down, you might have 4 more downs to score a touchdown, and possibly break Clemson’s heart. Instead, they went for 3 and got it.

But in doing so, I really wonder if they gave Clemson hope. It certainly seemed so, as Clemson came in the second half to tie the game at 27-27, and it took a great effort by Georgia Tech to win.

I will say that I am impressed by Clemson, but I wonder if Georgia Tech will be able to win 8 games. When you take the field to play an opponent, you can’t fool yourself to think that 21 points will guarantee you a victory. The Yellow Jackets almost learned the hard way that jumping off to a 21-0 start does NOT guarantee a victory.

And what’s up with the passing? I mean, it was an adventure just short of “Lord of the Rings” whenever Nessbitt dropped back to pass. At one point Nessbitt had more interceptions than completions. What this tells me is if Georgia Tech’s triple options for any reason fails or slumps, they can’t win because they don’t have a quarterback to pass the ball. His stats last year were 2 touchdowns, FIVE interceptions the whole year!

Georgia Tech survived that game, and to be fair, sometimes you need that scary game to shake you into playing better. To be sure, Georgia Tech’s style of play is different from anybody else in the ACC, so there is some idea that they can rise through the ranks. And with the ACC falling apart with ranked members VA Tech and Florida State falling, and basement teams like Duke and Virginia losing to foes they ought never lose to, maybe Georgia Tech is in position to make some real noise.

And I’ll say the same for Clemson, they played a LOT better than I thought they would, hats off to those guys for not giving up when things got hard. Playing like that, and eliminating just a few mistakes can have them making serious contention for the ACC crown.

Overall, a VERY good game, I enjoyed every bit of it. Great job Yellow Jackets and Tigers.