We all watched as the Clemson Tigers took home the championship Monday night, January 9, 2017, but that’s not the first time their opponents, the Alabama Crimson Tide, lost a big game in such a tragic fashion. Of course, we will take a look at the ending of the latest championship, but first we must venture back to 2013.
It was tied 28-28 as time ran out in the fourth quarter in the 2013 Iron Bowl between Rolltide and the Auburn Tigers. Chris Davis had knocked Alabama’s T.J. Yeldon out of bounds after the clock had struck 00:00. ‘Bama coach, Nick Saban, then ran onto the field throwing his challenge flag, complaining that Yeldon was out of play at 00:01. With the ball resting between the 38 and 39 yard lines, the refs reversed their call and sent the players back onto the field for one final play. Instead of taking a knee and venturing into an overtime period, Saban brought out his kicking unit. Adam Griffith lined up for his first kick of the evening. As the placeholder is 8 yards behind the line of scrimmage and the field goal posts are at the very back of the 10 yard end zone, 18 yards are added to the number on the field the ball is at. With that number being 39, the field goal would be 57 yards. That’s long even for great NFL kickers like Matt Prater, Stephen Gostkowski, and Stephen Hauschka. Griffith was a Freshman back then. Auburn head coach Gus Malzahn saw that this would be challenging kick for the Freshman and he sent out his punt returner, Chris Davis, to stand in the end zone to be ready to try to run back a short kick. The Senior positioned himself just under the uprights. The ball was snapped and the kick went up. To the Crimson Tide’s dismay, the Griffith had come up a yard or 2 short, but that wasn’t the worst part. The muffed kick had ended up in the arms of now sprinting Davis. He went downfield and ‘Bama was now watching with horror as their dreams were vanishing before their eyes. They regained hope when the returner bordered on falling out of bounds at his own 30 yard line, however that hope would be quickly vanquished as Davis kept his balance and rushed past the rest of the Roll Tide team. Auburn scored the touchdown there and ended the game, thusly making the final score of the 2013 Iron Bowl 34-28 Tigers on top. A week ago last Monday, Alabama faced a different set of Tigers, this one from Clemson. In the fourth quarter, ‘Bama led 24-14, and they looked forward to another championship win. However after 2 Clemson scores, the Tigers had the ball with a second to go and a 3 point deficit. With a 31-28 score, the Alabama defense desperately needed to make the final game-winning play. On the last play, Deshaun Watson tossed the ball to Wayne Gallman who then scampered into the endzone to take the game, 35-31. Clearly, ‘Bama has the unfortunate trait of having a poor defense to the rare, but deadly, Tiger attack. The Crimson Tide are going to lose star players to the NFL such as O.J. Howard, Reuben Foster, and Jonathan Allen, so that means that their future may be in jeopardy over the next few years. Without their stars, the Roll Tide might have trouble making it back to any bowl games; except for the Iron Bowl, of course. In these 2 games, as well as many more, though it’s tough to hear for those who hail from Tuscaloosa and its surrounding cities: Alabama has a Low Tide. Jesse A. Cook “Alabama Has A Low Tide” January 30, 2017
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The Cincinnati Reds have been near dead last in the National League in the last couple years, but can they change, this year? There have been many terrible teams that turned it all around in one year: the 1991 World Series was between the Minnesota Twins and Atlanta Braves, the 2 teams that had finished last in their respective leagues the previous year.
The Reds are kind of like the Boston Red Sox, they’ve been bad for a few years, but their minor league system has some good prospects who could very possibly take the Reds back to the playoffs. Before we talk about them, however, let’s focus on who’s currently on the team: They’ve got young stars like Billy Hamilton and Adam Duvall who they can rebuild around, but they’d need to get rid of some of their veterans for younger players. Brandon Phillips is a no-brainer, but he won’t go. The Reds have tried every year to rid themselves of him and get some minor leaguers, yet Phillips repeatedly invokes his no-trade clause; the Reds Legs are stuck with him until after the 2018 season. Joey Votto, on the other hand, is a bit of question mark. He’s been good in the last few years, but is he so good that they should keep him and rebuild around him or so good that they should trade him and get good players and prospects for him? Votto’s batted over .300 in the last 2 seasons, and 6 more times in his 10 year career, he hit 29 home runs in each of the last 2 years, and he’s batted in more than 75 runs in each of the last 2 years. These stats make you wonder how he hasn’t made the all-star team since 2013: he was hurt for most of 2014, but in the last couple years, he’s been better in the second-half of the season. If Votto can keep up these stats for the entire year, he, alongside Hamilton, Duvall, and the soon-to-be rookie, Jesse Winker, might be able to take the Reds to their first playoff bout since their Wild Card Game loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2013. Zack Cozart is a player for whom Cincinnati may consider a trade. While he may not have peaked yet, he has a great future ahead of him and The Reds would be able to acquire other prospects. He would be a valuable acquisition for a team striving for the championship this year like the Kansas City Royals, Seattle Mariners, or Texas Rangers. Cozart’s contract ends after this coming season, so the Reds will definitely want to trade him and get players in return, rather than lose him to free agency and get nothing. This is all assuming that the Reds won’t want to sign him back. Now, they could do what the New York Yankees did with former Reds’ closer Aroldis Chapman, and trade him away during the season then sign him back after the playoffs when he’s a free agent. Getting back on the topic of prospects; there is another hope for Reds Country: Jesse Winker. Playing in Triple-A ball for the Reds’ Kentucky affiliate, the Louisville Bats, Winker batted .303, had 115 hits, and batted in 45 runs. Granted, MiLB is nowhere near being on the same level of playing as MLB, these stats are still quite impressive. Keep in mind, if the RBI and hits seem low, he did only play 106 games at AAA. Winker isn’t their lone ray of hope. As I mentioned before, Hamilton and Duvall are very promising, yet there are more minor leaguers that should be ready, and plenty of young men who are currently on the roster. Other players in the Reds’ minor league system include Nick Senzel, Amir Garrett, Robert Stephenson, and Alfredo Rodriguez. Of these 5, Winker is rated third, by MLB.com, behind (in order) Senzel and Garrett. Senzel played 10 games for the Pioneer League Rookie Ball Billings Mustangs and 58 games for the Midwest League Single A Dayton Dragons. In total, he hit .305, 24 doubles, and he batted in 40 runs. Garrett has a bit more experience; having played professionally since 2012, he pitched very well in 2016 for the Double A Pensacola Blue Wahoos and the Triple A Louisville Bats: with a total 2.55 Earned Run Average in 144.2 innings, he only gave up 6 home runs, and a 1.092 WHIP (Walks plus Hits over Innings Pitched). Robert Stephenson has already made the majors; in fact, he started 8 games at the end of the 2016 season for the Reds with a 2-3 record and a 6.08 ERA in 37 innings pitched. It’s not quite clear how close Rodriguez might be to the majors, for he’s playing for the Reds of the Dominican Summer League. Players in that league are usually Hispanic guys who were just recently signed by a big team. Most players don’t exceed the age of 21, which is the age when a good portion of Hispanic guys make the majors. Rodriguez, at 22 years old, is one of those few, though he was only signed last year. The Reds already have on their team promising young players like Anthony DeSclafani, Raisel Iglesias, Michael Lorenzen, Dilson Herrera, and Eugenio Suarez. These guys, combined with their prospects, the future players they may receive in trades, and the veterans like Joey Votto that they may not trade in order for them to lead the team, could turn the Reds back into the playoff team they were a few years ago, in the late 80s and early 90s, or the Big Red Machine of the 70s. It will take some crafty ownership and general managerial skills, but the hunt for a Reds October may not be too far off from their prey. Jesse A. Cook January 8, 2017 “The Hunt For Red October” There have been rumors of bringing back the Expos to Montréal, Québec. How will this happen? Well, before I answer that, we must take a look at why they left:
Owner Frank Loria faced a financial problem with the Expos. Most of the people funding the team had left them, causing Loria to increase his shares up to 92%. At this point, he realized that the main issue was the annual revenue that fans brought in. Why were ticket sales so terrible? That, you can blame on their ballpark, Olympic Stadium. It’s a pretty ugly place and it sort of resembles Tropicana Park in Tampa Bay, Florida where the Rays reside. Loria then searched for a new area for the park, but he had no use for the area as neither did the MLB, the province of Québec, nor an architecture firm that would’ve aided in the building of a second Expos field. This lack of a stadium would force fans to fear getting to April and having no team in their city. Just 72 hours before spring training in 2002, Loria left for the Florida Marlins and Omar Minaya was left in charge. The franchise was saved by a new bargaining agreement that guaranteed the existence of the team until 2006, however, it looked to be as if the best option for maintaining the baseball program would be relocation. After the 2004 season, baseball left Montréal and returned to Washington D.C. as the Washington Nationals in 2005. The Nationals have not honored the Expos with retiring their numbers of Gary Carter’s #8, Andre Dawson’s #10, Rusty Staub’s #10, and Tim Raines’ #30, yet they do have the universally retired Jackie Robinson’s #42. These numbers do, however, hang up in the rafters of the Centre Bell, the home arena of Montréal’s NHL team, the Montréal Canadians. So, getting back to the main idea, how will the Expos make a comeback to Québec? The Montréal Baseball Project (MBP) was founded by former player and star of the Yomiuri Giants in Japan, Warren Cromartie. Currently, Montréal is home to the Canadians, the Impact of the MLS, the Alouettes of the Canadian Football League, and the Jazz of the National Basketball League of Canada; how and where does baseball fit into this mix? The MBP is looking into 5 main locations: Bonaventure Expressway, Wellington Basin, the Montréal Children’s Hospital, the Montréal Hippodrome, and Olympic Stadium. Wellington Basin looks to be the best and most feasible option for a new ballpark. Though there is a likelihood of land contamination, it wouldn’t require demolition, public transit is available, there’s good parking available, it’s within walking distance of downtown Montréal, there’s a great deal of space ready, and there’s a great deal of renewal potential. The MLB doesn’t want to add a team, like the soon-to-be 31 team NHL with the addition of the Las Vegas Golden Knights, so the only option for a second Canadian baseball team (in addition to the Toronto Blue Jays) would be the relocation of another team. The Tampa Bay Rays are a prime candidate for relocation: their stadium is falling apart, they’re dead last in yearly revenue, and frankly, they have no potential. Even the Reds and Phillies have their farm systems in the works. Sure, they have Evan Longoria, but ever since Ben Zobrist, James Shields, and David Price left, there hasn’t been much keeping them there. One might argue that the Reds or Phillies should move, but they have wonderful ballparks, they still bring in a good amount of revenue, they’ve got great potential, they’ve got the history, and they have something else that the Rays don’t: a large fanbase. Have you ever tuned into a Rays home game? The crowd is essentially empty! The Expos would surely sell out. There is a thirst for baseball in southern Québec that must be quenched. Whether it’s by importing some fishes from Florida or expanding the MLB, it’s got to happen, and they have the means, the might, and the manner of doing so. Let’s bring back the Montréal Expos, we need le retour de Nos Amours. Jesse A. Cook “Le Retour De Nos Amours: Bringing The Expos Back To Montréal” January 6, 2017 My dad turns 47 today, so I’ve been pondering for the last month or so, what would be the perfect gift? Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. can attest, baseball is the best way for a father and son to connect. I don’t play anymore, and I live in New England (I thought we’d have a couple inches of snow on the ground by now), so I decided that I should use my talent to buy him a gift I could afford: words; cheap, free however, meaningful words. Happy birthday, Padre:
It was 1990 when they heard the news: Ken Griffey Sr. and Jr. would be playing on the same team. The Seattle Mariners had brought Junior to the Majors just the year before, and now the father Griffey would join him on the same ballfield. On September 14, 1990, the two would share a great moment when the dad hit a bomb to left center to put the Mariners above the California Angels 2-0. The incredible moment came in the next at-bat when Junior fired a shot just a few feet over into the left field stands. Back to back home runs in Junior’s second year and his dad’s second to last. The Griffeys will go down as one of the greatest father son pairs in history. Cecil Fielder and his son, Prince, are another historic pair. In the same year as the Griffeys’ back to back bombs, Cecil hit 51 home runs, and 17 years later, in 2007 Prince knocked his 50th out of the park. They’re the only father son pair to each have a 50 homer season. My dad grew up in Cincinnati, Ohio, and almost every night during the summer, he and his brother would fall asleep to the magical words of the longtime (and still on the air) Reds sportscaster Marty Brennaman. To this day, the Hall of Famer and his son will often take us out with Marty’s signature catchphrase: “And this one belongs to the Reds.” They’ve been doing the games for years just like I have been doing with my dad for our hometown sports teams. “Like father, like son”, has great meaning in the world of sports, and I’m thankful that I can share that with my dad. There are some great father son duos, and I like to think that my dad and I fall into that category. Happy birthday, Padre, and many more. Jesse A. Cook “On The Field, Over The Fence, And In The Booth: Like Father Like Son” January 2, 2017 Sports media and journalism are tough fields, but if you’re wondering how to get by, there are some excellent ways. It’s tough to write; everyone has writer’s block at least once in a while, but fortunately, there’s news everyday in sports: whether it’s the death of Jose Fernandez, the Patriots search for a starting quarterback, the Knicks praying that their new team will pull together, or the NHL preseason, there’s always something to follow. Fans who live in a Big 4 city, a city with a team in the MLB, NFL, NBA, and NHL, can attest, for there’s almost always a good team around.
Boston, Detroit, Washington DC, and Phoenix are all incredible examples of how you always have a team to track. You’d probably think of New York, LA, or Chicago, but there are too many teams out there. In New York, you have the Jets and Giants in football, the Mets and Yankees in baseball, the Islanders and Rangers in hockey, and the Knicks and Nets in basketball. Fans are split; there’s no one hero team per sport. There, you run the risk of writing about a team that half the city hates! Boston, Phoenix, Washington DC, and Detroit there’s only one team per sport. Washington DC’s got the Wizards in basketball, the Nationals in baseball, the Capitals in hockey, and the Redskins in football; the city’s a sportswriter’s wonderland. In LA, if you write about how Adrian Gonzalez might be a better hitter than Mike Trout, you’ve made lots of Dodgers fans happy, but now there are lots of steamed Angels fans, however if in Phoenix, you talk about how Paul Goldschmidt might be a better hitter than Mike Trout, you’re only surrounded by happy Diamondbacks fans. Fans in cities with more than one team per sport don’t root for both teams, they choose one and stick to it. Cubs fans and White Sox fans in Chicago do not get along. That’s one of the tricks to succeeding at working in sports media and journalism, you have to know who your general audience is. You can make whoever you want happy by writing positive articles, but more people read the fearmongering ones because it piques their interest. If you saw two articles and you only had time to read one, you wouldn’t read “Sox Win Again,” you’d probably read “2 U’s, 2 K’s, and 2 Broken Legs: Bruins’ Goaltender, Tuukka Rask, Out For Season.” You have to grip the reader, surprise them, you have to know what’s going on in the sports world and what of it people will want to read. I am the head writer for Cincinnati sports. Considering that the Reds and Bengals aren’t the best teams, it’s hard to find what’ll make people read what I write. With teams like the Reds and Bengals you have to find which players people like. Every team has that big name that everybody knows, that’s who you write about. In the MLB, NHL, and NBA you have the minor league systems. In the NFL and NBA, as well, you also have big draft picks, people want to hear about that; it’s what gives their team hope for the future. In my case, I write about Andy Dalton, Tyler Eifert, and A.J. Green for the Bengals and Pete Rose, Billy Hamilton, and Adam Duvall for the Reds because those are the people know and want to hear about. If you’re in a city like Salt Lake City, Utah, you’re not in a big sports town, for they only have basketball in the Utah Jazz, but even they have their big names, you know Gordon Heyward, Karl Malone, and John Stockton. Stuff about those guys grips people out there, and before you know it, you’re everyone’s favorite writer! Another way to pique the reader’s interest is to talk about how the unknown players will rise up and become those big names. In cities where there’s only minor league teams, like Pawtucket, Rhode Island, you talk about those unknown players. Pawtucket is a gold mine for stories like that. They’re the Boston Red Sox’s highest level minor league affiliate, so a lot of Boston’s big names had to develop there. Jackie Bradley Jr. and Xander Bogaerts were American League Players Of The Month, Mookie Betts could be the American League MVP, Eduardo Rodriguez could be New England’s next pitching star, and Andrew Benintendi has made multiple highlight reel grabs. All of these players were big prospects and were followed throughout their minor league careers; writers in Pawtucket and its fellow minor league teams had a field day with all these great prospects to write about. Even if the major league team is doing poorly, or there isn’t one around, you can always write about the minor league, college, or even local high school teams. A great trick to succeeding at writing in this field is to always know what you have to work with. If you live in the middle of Iowa, you probably don’t have many professional sports teams around you, but you have the high school and college and minor league teams around to excite people about. It’s like making something out of next to nothing. If you do your research it’s really not that difficult to write good article. There are a few easy tricks to get by in the sports media and journalism field, but it’s not like “How To Succeed In Business Without Really Trying;” you do have to work hard. You have to know your audience, know what grips people, and know what’ll give people hope for their favorite team’s future. Sports media and journalism can seem like a scary, tough field of work, but if you know all the little tricks and idiosyncrasies, you’ll make off just fine. Jesse A. Cook “Sports Journalism: How To Get By” January 1, 2017 |
AuthorJesse Cook: High school junior. Does play-by-play for the Sharon Varsity Eagles softball, soccer, volleyball, basketball, and football teams. Fanatic of the Boston and Cincinnati teams in the Big Four sports. Designs graphics of athletes, politicians, and musicians at Picsart.com. Archives
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