What to watch for in 2012

Every year there are great sporting events to look forward too. Here are the big events to look forward to each month.
January - NFL Playoffs begin this weekend with the wild card. The next few weeks feature the Divisional Round and Conference Championship games. The NFL Playoffs are unique in that they are one and done. There are no series or finals, but winner takes all each round.
February - The NFL Playoffs conclude with the Super Bowl, America's unofficial holiday. Most Americans know what teams play in the Super Bowl, but no idea who they had to beat to get there.
March - March Madness, the most wonderful time of the year. Teams work hard all season just to qualify for the tournament. In the words of Dick Vitale, "It's upset city baby!"
April - The Masters and Horse Racing Season. While I am not a huge fan of either, both play a major role in American sports history. Will this year be the year that a golfer wins the grand slam? Will a horse finally win the triple crown after such a long hiatus?
May - NBA Playoffs turn up a notch as the teams prepare for Conference and NBA Finals.
June - Wimbledon begins in London, shortly before all eyes are focused on Great Britain in the coming months.
August - Skipping July to focus on the biggest sporting event in the world, the 2012 London Summer Olympics. The Olympics are the reason that sports are so amazing. It is a time of unity and competition. I love the Olympic games, when the world can be unified as one great family.
September - The beginning of College Football Season. There are few other sporting events that I look to than the start of college football. My only wish is that there was a National Championship and that all teams were invited to participate.
October - America's past time concludes its regular season and commences with the playoffs. The playoffs conclude with the one and only World Series.
November - The annual Turkey Bowl held by families and friends throughout the country.
December - College Football Conference Championship games and the beginning of Bowl Season.
These are just a few of the events to look forward to in the coming year.

Athletes that can be role models in 2012

Too often these days athletes are falling from grace, that is, they are are top of the world and behave as if the are invincible. Tiger Woods is a prime example. He is one of the greatest golfers of all time, but showed complete disrespect for his wife and kids. Michael Phelps was the hero and the face of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics. Within six months of his return to the states photos surfaced of him smoking marijuana. The list goes on with Ben Roethlisberger, Terrelle Pryor, Barry Bonds, and others. The youth (and common fans) of the world need athletes that they can look up to as examples on and off of the court. These are people who show by their actions that they aren't any superior than the rest of us. The get up, go to work (although in a different manner), and have to do the everyday things that we all must do. Feel free to add to this list as athlete/role model list can never be too big.
1. Kevin Durant (Oklahoma City Thunder)
2. Jimmer Fredette (Sacramento Kings)
3. Peyton Manning (Indianapolis Colts)
4. Eli Manning (New York Giants)
5. Ray Allen (Boston Celtics)
6. Chauncey Billups (Los Angeles Clippers)
7. Jason Kidd (Dallas Mavericks)
8. Steve Nash (Phoenix Suns)
9. Derrick Rose (Chicago Bulls)
10. Dwyane Wade (Miami Heat)
This list is in no particular order. It also goes off people that I know of with an emphasis on the NBA (I know NBA players better than other professionals). This list is not meant to be all inclusive, but just a place to start.

'THE' Ohio State University

While this is old news, the sanctions from the NCAA were handed down rather quickly. One thing that I have often praised the NCAA for is being a stickler on the rules. Last year, it was learned that several football players were receiving improper benefits. Originally the school planned to suspend the players, which included star quarterback Terrelle Pryor, for the Sugar Bowl or the first six games of the upcoming season (2011 Football Season). When the players announced that they would be returning to school, they were officially suspended for future games in the 2011 season. This is the first big mistake that was made. The University had an opportunity to send a message that ethics and playing by the rules were more important than the wins. Soon thereafter it was discovered that Head Coach Jim Tressel had known about the allegations and did not report them to keep his players on the field. Wait, aren't head coaches supposed to be the example to the young student athletes? Not too surprisingly, Terrelle Pryor skipped his senior season and entered the NFL. Jim Tressel was asked to resign once his involvement in the issue was discovered. Now the NCAA places Ohio State under a one year postseason ban and scholarship reductions for the next few seasons. While I wished that the punishments would have been more severe, those that were involved are no longer part of 'The' Ohio State University. Coach Tressel has received sanctions that will effect future NCAA Coaching opportunities. The NFL had the guts to step up and suspend Pryor from his first six NFL games (likely reflecting the college ban that he would have served) even though they had no obligation to do so. While their are egregious acts performed at Penn State and Syracuse this year, the violations that Ohio State performed with the knowledge of their coach are still severe. To me the school is tainted, and will be for several years, with the mark of the cheater.

Tebow Mania

The Tebow Mania has hit an all-time high, prior to today's game with the New England Patriots. Bronco fans have already been comparing him to John Elway! Seriously! Elway took the Broncos to five Super Bowls, winning two of them. Tebow is in his second NFL Season, his first as a starter. Their six game winning streak was great, but it wasn't like they played the most difficult teams. Is Tebow a great athlete? Yes, but not on the same level as Elway. Most sports fans (not from Denver) are reasonable about the Tebow Mania. I saw this video last night that capitalized on the Tebow Mania. While I don't agree with the message, it is quite a funny video.

Skip Bayless should know that does other things than winning, including losing to one of the most dominant NFL teams today.

Sports movie of the month

Although this story focuses on a deeper meaning than sports, The Blindside is the featured movie of the month. This is another great that everyone should see. It is the story of Michael Oher and the charity of the Tuohy Family in Memphis, Tennessee. He is taken off of the streets and into one of the wealthiest neighborhoods in Memphis. The Tuohy's never asked for anything in return. It is a great movie to watch at this time of the year and helps us all to know that we can make a difference in the world.

Dark day for College Basketball

While most of the country enjoyed the upset in Bloomington, Indiana, an even occurred in Cincinnati that will leave a dark mark on Cincinnati and Xavier for years to come. The Crosstown Shootout (as it is known in Cincinnati) was a great rivalry game that fans from both schools always looked forward too. The usual trash talk proceeded the game and a horrible fight broke out. It was so horrific of a fight that many players may be suspended and even dismissed from the team. Watch the video and see for yourselves what you think.
Clearly this is something that will effect the image of these teams for the rest of the season. The bright spot in this brawl was Coach Mick Cronin's postgame news conference. Their are some players that should receive severe punishments, if not dismissals from their teams. It will be interesting to see if the Coach will stick to his words in the coming days.

How the BCS got it wrong

Do to lack of a playoff system, only certain teams are allowed to play for a so called Championship. The season is treated like a playoff as they would have us believe. One loss can literally remove you from the title. The Alabama LSU rematch is a joke to say the least. They mat once during the season with LSU winning a close game. Now the two teams are set to play each other for the BCS National Championship (a championship only for BCS teams). Is LSU being punished for having a perfect regular season? They beat the Crimson Tide once already and now they have to do it again to win the BCS Championship? LSU must go 2-0 against Bama this year to win it all while it is okay for Bama to go 1-1 and be claimed Champions. It appears that more and more people are crying foul, even those that are fans of BCS schools. How big will the cry be if Alabama beats the Tigers in the rematch. Will LSU fans rise and join the outcry? With all due respect to the Crimson Tide, the Oklahoma State Cowboys deserve their chance to play LSU for the BCS Championship.