This week, two great college basketball coaches died. Dean Smith died days ago and now comes news that Jerry Tarkanian has passed away at the age of 84.
“Tark,” as he was known, won so many games and for years battled the NCAA and its hypocrisy. His teams at Long Beach State and Nevada Las Vegas were “outlaw” teams often facing NCAA sanctions.
His 1990 U.N.L.V. team won it all, routing Duke in the championship game. In 1990-1991 they were undefeated until the semi-finals, when Duke, a big underdog, upset them.
I think now of that 1991 semi-final/final four. In the opening game a Roy Williams coached Kansas team upset North Carolina coached by Dean Smith.
In the second game, Duke got arguably its greatest win as coach Mike Krzyzewski’s team upset Tarkanian and UNLV.
Duke went on to beat Kansas for its first title. They now have four, all under Krzyzewski, who recently notched his 1000th coaching win.
Roy Williams, an assistant coach under Dean Smith at North Carolina, eventually became the North Carolina coach where he still coaches. He won national titles in 2005 and 2009.
Now within days, Smith and Tarkanian have died and just to show who is to say nor “JUDGE” in life, consider the following.
A key, if not the key play in Duke’s semi-final win vs U.N.L.V. and “Tark” nearly 24 years ago, was a “charging” call against Greg Anthony of U.N.L.V.
Now on the same day of Tarkanian’s death, news that a solicitation charge against Anthony will be dropped. “Tark” a kind man who loved his players, likely would have appreciated the coincidence.
I watched Joe Torre’s speech at services held for the recently departed great Chicago Cubs’ baseball player, Ernie Banks.
Torre, as was the case with all that met Banks, talked of Ernie’s warm ways which included his famous optimistic “let’s play two,” that is forever associated with Mr. Cub (Banks).
At some point, Torre brought up something I knew but did not immediately associate between Banks and Torre.
As I pointed out in my tribute to Banks when he died, he was certainly one of the greatest players never to appear in a post season game.
Torre, himself, in my book, a near great player and certainly a great hitter, also never played in a post season game.
His luck changed when he became Yankees’ manager and the team’s success for over a decade under Torre, which included an incredible 4 titles in 5 seasons added to his fine playing career, rightfully got Torre into the Baseball Hall of Fame.
I know that Torre appreciates his great fortune in managing the Yankees, meanwhile Banks great playing career and his great name is not diminished by the fact he never made it the post season.
Ernie Banks was one in a million–as friendly as could be with a big heart. We should all strive to be more like him.
Click here to watch Joe Torre at the Ernie Banks memorial service
Those two storied NHL rivals, the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens, played only 4 games in this seemingly endless NHL regular season. The Canadiens won all four, and that’s it for this year.
Guess what, no not “that’s what,” but that the games mean little, if anything.
Regular seasons are too long and nearly meaningless in hockey and, for that matter, in basketball.
Also, there are too many teams in the playoffs in all sports.
A true regular season in baseball is the best, but it is more than diminished by the presence of wild card teams. Only the football season is reasonable because the team’s record is truly important.
So, regarding hockey, wake me when the playoffs start, because that is still a good deal of time away.
Dean Smith, who had a remarkable career as a College basketball coach died yesterday at age 83.
He was best known as the coach at North Carolina University for 36 seasons, guiding his teams to two national titles and 11 semi-final appearances–better known as Final Four appearances.
His North Carolina teams were almost always at least pretty darn good. Of the 11 Final Four appearances, he lost the first six in a row, won in his 7th attempt in 1982 and again in 1993.
I remember sitting on the floor at home watching the 1982 final game. It pitted North Carolina led by James Worthy vs Georgetown led by Patrick Ewing. The radio was also on, crackling through from WBT in Charlotte, North Carolina.
North Carolina trailed by one point with about 30 seconds left when a freshman player took a cross court pass from Jimmy Black.
Legendary North Carolina announcer Woody Durham and I called it as Michael Jordan, then
a freshman, hit the first, and one of the most important shots of his great career. A short time later Dean Smith had finally won the NCAA basketball title as a coach.
Smith’s North Carolina teams played in three straight Final Four appearances from 1967-1969 against the great UCLA teams that were led by college basketball’s greatest player Kareem Abdul Jabbar, then known as Lew Alcindor.
UCLA won all three, the 1968 title vs Dean’s team which included the great player, Charlie Scott, who was actively recruited by Smith and became North Carolina’s first black scholarship player.
In addition to his eventual coaching, Smith was also a player in two semi-finals with the University of Kansas. Those appearances resulted in a national title in 1952 and a finals loss in 1953 which is pretty darn good.
Michael Jordan and Dean Smith
The demolition process has begun on Candlestick Park in San Francisco.
There were so many great games and so much history there.
The NFL 49ers won 5 Super Bowls while playing there, the baseball Giants lost their only two World Series while playing there.
Before game 3 of the 1989 World Series in which the Oakland A’s swept the Giants in 4 straight games, an earthquake erupted just after 5 p.m. local time.
The great winds at Candlestick Park were legendary. Once in an All Star Game, a fine pitcher named Stu Miller was actually blown off the mound with insult added as a balk was called on Miller.
The games, so many great ones. I choose the most dramatic, one from football and one from baseball.
In the 1981 season NFC Championship game vs the Dallas Cowboys, the 49ers drove for the winning touchdown late to win (28-27) thanks to Joe Montana’s touchdown pass to Dwight Clark.
The 1962 World Series between the New York Yankees and San Francisco Giants went to the decisive seventh game.
The Yankees led (1-0) in the bottom of the ninth inning but the Giants had the tying and World Series winning runs in scoring position.
Pitcher Ralph Terry, victimized two years earlier by Bill Mazeroski’s World Series winning home run, got the great Giants player Willie McCovey out on a hard hit line drive to second baseman Bobby Richardson to give the Yankees an incredible 20th world Series win in 40 seasons.
Demolition has begun on Candlestick Park
I saw the incredible movie, “The Only Real Game” for a second time last night at The Jacob Burns Film Center in Pleasantville, New York. The film and its director Mirra Bank deserve high praise.
Watching a second time, I noticed so many new things. Those include the incredible scenery in Manipur, which is a state in India. Ms. Bank highlights the beauty as the movie begins.
The natural beauty there belies the terrible trouble in the state. High unemployment, insurgents, who have abounded since Manipur became part of India in 1949, and HIV/Aids are three terrible problems.
Despite those problems, baseball is a game loved in Manipur since being introduced by United States’ servicemen during World War Two, and has helped and given hope.
So many heroes and brave individuals have emerged as depicted in the film.
Organizations such as Harlem RBI led by Rich Berlin and First Pitch have brought baseball equipment and coaching skills to Manipur.
The coaches brought to Manipur are Jeff Brueggemann and Dave Palese.
Muriel “Mike” Peters and Richard Brockman are two of the movie’s producers.
Paul Brill is the music director and was a panelist for questions and answers which followed the film presentation.
Special praise to Randye Ringler for all her efforts in promoting the film. Additionally she did a fantastic job as a panelist.
It was noted that WFAN baseball specialist Ed Randall was in the audience and Mr. Randall had high praise for the film and those involved.
I hope to see “The Only Real Game” a third time, it is that inspiring!
For more info on the film, click: “The Only Real Game”
Perhaps I needed a day or two to reflect on what was an incredible finish to the 49th Super Bowl, in particular the Seahawks’ decision to throw and not run Marshawn Lynch at the New England one yard line with the NFL title at stake in the last half minute of play.
Of course I seriously question coach Pete Carroll’s decision, feel it was a bad one, yes for not running Lynch but perhaps more so for trying a difficult “slant pass.”
Compounding the “mistake” (not many, if any would have criticized if it went for a touchdown–not that many would have if the pass was incomplete and not intercepted) was the formation used and that there was no “play action” before the play unfolded.
It is pretty obvious, not 100 percent “etched in stone brought down from Moses,” however, Seattle should have run Lynch and if he failed to get in, have two downs left albeit, with no timeouts.
So much happened in the game and as far as strategy, Seattle essentially wasted two timeouts on the last drive, certainly another factor in the game’s outcome.
However, in conclusion it was a bad decision by Carroll and the Seahawks.
They had a great two year run, three in fact as they lost a gut wrenching divisional round game at Atlanta (Falcons) two seasons ago. In that game, coincidentally, Lynch scored, in effect “too soon” and Atlanta won with a subsequent field goal.
In trying to assess Bill Belichick’s obvious bottom line greatness as a football coach, I also want to give the New England Patriots their proper high ranking among all-time football teams, and their (2001-2014 and likely at least a bit into the future) span, as one of the best in any North American major professional sports league.
Following this weekend’s Super Bowl XLIX, Bill Belichick’s 4 Super Bowl wins ties Chuck Noll, the late great Pittsburgh Steelers coach for that record.
The first three Super Bowl wins were by three points, two on game ending Adam Viniatieri field goals. This fourth triumph, achieved by a four point margin, truly is significant in Patriots’ emotions and achievement.
This year’s accomplishments for Belichick and the Pats:
They struggled in the divisional playoffs vs a Baltimore Ravens franchise that is (2-2) vs the Patriots in playoff games all since 2009. (The two Ravens wins were “far, far (cue Ronald Colman) “better”/easier than the two Pats wins, each a monumental struggle).
Next came the AFC Title game, where the Pats’ demolition of the Indianapolis Colts whose kicker is Viniatieri, was overshadowed by the pressure in the footballs.
Finally, an incredibly close Super Bowl win vs the defending champion Seahawks.
Mr. Belichick also has 2 Super Bowl wins as an assistant coach with the New York Giants, the 1990 season win clearly more to do with his defensive unit than any other aspect of the Giants’ play.
Once when Belichick was undefeated as much as (10-0) with the Pats in the playoffs, and (11-1) all-time, he was compared favorably to the immortal Vince Lombardi as the NFL’s greatest coach.
I opined no to that then, and most eventually changed to that thought as time moved inexorably forward.
Bill Belichick is one of the best NFL coaches ever, but not the greatest. This Patriots era is one of the best ever, not the greatest.
“You know what they say about opinions, they are like posteriors– everyone has one,” is one of the best maxims ever. Alas, even that is an opinion.
In an exciting 49th Super Bowl, the New England Patriots rode four Tom Brady touchdown passes and one of the all time clutch plays, in this case an interception by Malcolm Butler in the closing seconds, to win their fourth crown (28-24) vs the defending champion Seattle Seahawks.
By winning his third Super Bowl MVP award, Brady tied Joe Montana in that category and his four Super Bowl wins ties him with Montana and Terry Bradshaw for the most in the QB category.
The Patriots 4 titles have all occurred in a 13 year, 14 season span (2001-2014). An interesting note about the city of Boston: in that time frame all four Boston area major sports league teams have won at least one championship.
The Red Sox sans a title for 86 years, have three titles in this span while the Celtics and Bruins have one each, giving Boston 9 in this 13 year/14 Patriots seasons span.
For all-time 13 season spans: the Boston Celtics, whose legendary broadcaster was Johnny Most, won 11 NBA crowns in 13 seasons, during 1957-1970. Add the Boston Bruins hockey title in 1970 and Boston had 12 championships in 14 seasons with at least two different sports involved.
Andy B Sports 