March 8, 2018
COWBOYS BASEBALL/SOFTBALL ON KEZM!
SportsRadio-1310-KEZM-Lake Charles is airing select McNeese Baseball and softball games in 2018. Broadcasts can also be heard on the Internet at KEZMOnLine.com
Please see upcoming schedule below.
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ON HIATUS
SportsCentral is taking some time off. WE HOPE TO HAVE AN UPDATE FOR YOU SOMETIME IN THE NEAR FUTURE. AS SOON AS THE STATUS OF THE PROGRAM HAS BEEN CLARIFIED TO US, WE’LL PASS IT ON TO YOU.
BATON ROUGE AREA BROADCASTING SCHEDULE:
THURSDAY: SPORTSCENTRAL: ON HIATUS 5pm—6pm: Central First Facebook Page… … Les Bueche, Sid Edwards, Frank Fresina… ON HIATUS
SPORTSRADIO-1310-KEZM-LAKE CHARLES (AND KEZMONLINE. COM) BROADCASTS
*SUN, MARCH 11: 12:50pm McNeese Baseball vs UCA
TUES, MARCH 13: 5:50pm McNeese Baseball vs Houston
*If McNeese Basketball is still alive in the SLC Tournament at this time, there will be no Baseball broadcast.
HOUSTON ASTROS BASEBALL PRE-SEASON GAMES (On radio, no Internet coverage)
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THE WIZARDRY OF OS
Assistant Basketball Coach and Head Swimming Coach at Central High
I am overwhelmed with topics to write about this week. Too much to discuss in depth, so instead I will go with the mailbag approach.
● I was going to put up some of Tremont Waters stats against some of the 16 players that were named first and second team All-SEC, but decided against it. If someone needs me to reference the numbers then they didn’t watch SEC basketball and shouldn’t get a vote.
● I hate mock drafts. I try to stay away, but every once in a while I click, get mad, and tell myself not to click again. If the Saints pick a quarterback in the first three rounds I will vomit on my laptop.
● I like the signing of Kurt Coleman. A good player added to our team from a good defense in the division is a win-win. I appreciate the effort Vaccarro gave, but I don’t think it takes much to replace his production.
● The Saints offense is best when they have excellent interior lineman… check. A number one receiver (Colston/Thomas)… check. A true deep threat (Henderson/Ginn)… check. Complimentary running backs (P. Thomas and Bush/Ingram and Kamara). Of course, Drew Brees… hopefully he will sign within the week and that will be a check.
● The main component the Saints missed last year was Lance Moore (or 2016 Willie Snead) on crossing routes against tight coverage on third down. Back to the mock drafts, drafting a 6’3” wide receiver to play on the outside is not what the Saints need. The Saints need a receiver that is very quick, gets to top speed quickly, and fast getting in and out of breaks. Think of almost all the Patriots receivers.
● The other offensive need is obviously a tight end to catch balls over the middle in tight windows. Josh Hill actually did it in the playoffs. There are a number of tight ends in the draft the Saints could get and spend much less money than trying to get a free agent.
● My kingdom for a dynamic, young pass rusher.
● How quickly things change when evaluating a baseball team. Suddenly LSU’s pitching staff shows great promise, even the starters. As fans we must be cautious though. The first two weeks were a small sample size against good competition. This week was a small sample size against weak competition. Still, I see the ability and have confidence that pitching tends to improve as the season progresses.
● Hess, Gilbert, Labas, Sanders, Hillard, Beck, Bain, Todd Peterson, and Bush appear to be a very good core of talented pitchers for this pitching staff. If Storz is able to pitch in a game soon and performs as he should, there is a lot for Tiger fans to be excited about. Besides, there are a number of other pitchers I didn’t mention that could contribute.
● LSU’s lineup concerns me a bit as it seems pretty one dimensional. I think it is a lineup that can stress a pitching staff 1-9 with its ability to string hits together from time to time. But I don’t see this lineup applying enough consistent pressure.. The running game is not scary. We know LSU doesn’t bunt much. The batters don’t walk much so far this year. As a result, LSU seems to have one big inning a game, and the rest of the game is pretty quiet on offense. Maybe they can find an identity to produce runs as they get healthier.
● I am intentionally leaving out the NBA team from New Orleans. Seems like every year they start playing well, I jump in saying something good, and they lose 4 games in a row to the worst 4 teams in the league. Instead, I will leave it alone and just mention I am very grateful for Anthony Davis.
HEY REF
Recently an ESPN, Fox Sports, CBS network and some other sports networks ran a story in which the headline read “NCAA investigating illegal payments to athletes”. This caught my eye because I feel there can’t be any illegal payments going to those individuals doing ALL THE WORK to put BILLIONS into the pockets of people like NCAA President Mark Emmert.
So let’s look at what Mr. Emmert earns as President of the NCAA; $1.674 million in 2011 which was 46% more than his predecessor, Jim Isch, whose final salary in 2010 was basically minimum wage at $977,531.00…
So in just twelve months on the job Emmert is doing such a great job the NCAA voted him a 46% raise. But that’s just where he started and his “total” package today which includes the best healthcare available, retirement, bonuses, automobiles, free airline tickets and hotel rooms, etc., etc., etc. comes in at about a rumored $6 ANNUALLY.
When I brought these figures to the attention of a few close friends they all just shrugged their collective shoulders and say that an average salary for a head coach in today’s market. So the NCAA and everyone under their care are raking in BILLIONS but Mark Emmert continues to balk at paying the athletes. He claims they get free tuition and that should be enough for them. Well, Mark I’ll use your train of thought and say you get a car and free hotel rooms so you don’t need anything else now do you? Anyone care to guess at how long Mr. Perfect would stay on as NCAA president if he were also paid the same scale as the athletes?
What follows is one of my so called “Best of” articles on this insane theory of keeping all the money for figure heads and butt kissers and not giving some to the very people that do all the sacrificing and in my judgement are modern day slaves. Just how much longer will this obscene thing continue? I don’t think players will ever get their truly fair share of the multi-billion dollar industry which is so lovingly called the NCAA. I hope everyone enjoys this unmasking of modern day slavery!
If ever there was a poll that just can’t be believed and should be investigated is the one published by the NCAA with the headline that states “that a majority of fans don’t favor paying athletes”. While I find this statement untrue I just had to stop everything I was doing to read for myself what information was disclosed in this so called poll of sport’s fans?
The whole article was very short but what I found “funny” was nowhere in it did it give out the numbers of fans questioned, their ages, demographics, etc., etc., etc. And it never released any details on the so called anti pay for the student-athletes. Well, that term went the way of T-Rex, there ain’t no such thing around anymore. They should be referred to as to what they actually are and that is “university employees”.
If you’ve read this column on any regularity you’ll know this writer’s stance on paying “employees”. From now on I’ll never write student-athlete since they are extinct. Getting back to the poll results it shows that 67 percent, up 12 points (I guess they mean percent) actually believe that universities break NCAA rules.
The increase it is thought stems from two highly publicized cases; Harvard and Miami. In the Harvard case which sounds just too funny to be true but they report the school issued academic sanctions against approximately 60 students for a cheating scandal on the final exam in a class on of all things: CONGRESS!
Now come on, this has to be made up. Maybe the students started studying the way our Congress works and decided stealing, lying and cheating is the way to get what you want. Not what you earn but what you want and isn’t that the way not only our lawmakers are perceived but how the vast majority get ahead?
Oh, sure, I can hear it now, how can I write something like that. Let me just put a couple names out there you might recognizes; Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens and Lance Armstrong. All three swore on the Bible they didn’t do drugs, didn’t lie, didn’t steal but all are liars. Armstrong was proven guilty beyond reasonable doubt in a court of law. The court of common sense decided the case of the other two athletes.
But the article didn’t say anything about the Miami case and I find that odd since the Hurricanes are known for going way outside the lines of the law and the rules. I guess maybe they didn’t have room for “old” news? So, as I finished the short column not a single word on the so called vote on not paying employees.
I mean the whole reason for a headline is to get the reader to notice something they may want to read about. As in my case, I just wanted to see how many ignorant people there were that answered “no” to this question. In this day and time it really shouldn’t surprise me, I mean the working people of this country can’t stand to see another worker to get ahead. Big business was very successful in their “Divide and conquer” war against those that have to punch a clock to make a living.
The NCAA is rewarded in BILLIONS of dollars by keeping the vast majority of the money that is generated by all the “FREE LABOR” these men and women generate. But let me ask a simple question “Why are they called student athletes in the first place? The scam run by both the NCAA and the “tax free” non-profit NFL is downright absurd. Most of the players working on the football field are from poor families and neither employer educates their employees the mundane task of balancing a checkbook.
Don’t start about all the sports that never make a profit and are supported by basketball and football. The ONLY and I do mean ONLY reason those sports are still on the books is because so many students still play those sports and the families of these kids are the reason Deans keep footing the bills. Mom and Dad still have some clout or maybe I should say “You don’t bite the hand that feeds you” so it’s sort of a tradeoff.
But to not pay the employees that generate BILLIONS of dollars is not right, never will be right and should be abolished ASAP if not sooner. Pay those that make it all possible! For those universities that think they can generate these sums of dollars on their own without these young EMPLOYEES all I can say is go ahead and try. And every one of them that believe they can make it without paying their athletes all I can say is this; they’re be extinct along with the dinosaurs!!
Till next week… …
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