THIS and that to chew on over lunch. Are there any other
teams in the top 20?Life is tough at the top, I guess. Not only does the Wahine volleyball team have to cope with the loss of five starters, including two of the best players in America, but then a couple of real good teams come to the Special Events Arena and win and so everyone wants to ask Dave Shoji what's wrong.
Nothing.
They're young. Right now, they lack leadership. They have no experienced star-caliber players and they're still 6-4 and ranked No. 19 in the country.
Think Fred vonAppen would take that after 10 games? Undoubtedly.
Hang in there, Dave. No other coach in Manoa has ever hung a national championship banner from the rafters nor will they any time soon.
Life changes fast sometimes in college football. Not too long ago, Josh Skinner was ready to pack it in and go to the University of Northern Colorado. In a week and a half, he'll likely be the starting quarterback when the Foot'Bows play Colorado State. Skinner is from Aurora, Colo., so he'll get to play in front of his family and friends. I don't know about you, but I like Skinner's style. He makes decisions with confidence and just maybe he won't be so willing to take a sack. A side note to Tim Carey: Tim, baby, if you know you're going to get sacked -- and anyone who's been bagged more often than boiled peanuts should know this by now -- throw the ball away if you can. An incompletion is better than a 10-yard loss.
Speaking of making decisions with confidence, why has the word "defer" become so hip with college football coaches? A little background: A team that wins the coin toss may choose to either kick off, receive the kickoff, or defer its choice until the second half.
It's as if you're telling your opponent, "I don't care. You decide." Shoots. If that's the case, I decide to take the ball and score first. Or, I decide to kick off and stuff your sorry butts deep in your own territory. Furthermore, I decide to win the damn game. Let's face it, deference is weak.
The baseball playoffs are just around the corner. Life is good.It's hard to believe there is actually some debate over who should win the Most Valuable Player award in the National League. Let's see, Larry Walker of the Colorado Rockies is hitting .367, he leads the league in home runs, he's second in runs scored and hits and is third in runs batted in. Oh yeah, plays pretty good defense, too. Case closed. The American League MVP?
Junior.
No one can match him in either league. First in runs, RBIs and homers. Best defensive outfielder in the American League. Great player.
Tougher to pick are the Cy Young winners: How about Griffey's teammate, Randy Johnson, in the AL? Even Walker doesn't want to face him.
In the NL, Shawn Estes of the Giants. Greg Maddux and Denny Neagle of the Braves have more fame and have put up solid seasons, but I like Estes. He's won some huge games for the Giants and goes today as they try to nail down the NLWest crown.
Former Chicago Bears coach Abe Gibron died yesterday. He was, uh, colorful. When I was about 10, I was watching a Bears-Vikings game on TV and Abe gets a little too close to those parabolic microphones that pick up the sound on the field. One of his players makes a boneheaded mistake and Abe blows a gasket, swearing a blue streak that my mom hears in the next room. She, of course, thinks it's me complaining about the Vikes and says something to the effect of, "You use that kind of language again and I'll come in there stuff your sorry butt deep in your own territory."
I asked her if she would defer until the second half.
