More Than a Win

It wasn't pretty.

It wasn't convincing.

It wasn't even close to good football.

In fact, the University of Memphis' game against Marshall last night was, at times, difficult to watch from an X's and O's point of view.

There were overthrown passes and dropped touchdowns.

There were untimely and foolish penalties.

There was questionable play calling, blown assignments and muffed handoffs.

But none of that mattered last night. Because last night wasn't about a football game. It wasn't about a team trying to salvage a season or a coach trying to save his job. It wasn't about building on-campus stadium or renovating the Liberty Bowl.

Last night was simply three-and-a-half hours of therapy for group of football players, coaches, student, fans and the city of Memphis as a whole. Prior to kickoff, ESPN play-by-play announcer Reece Davis asked former college coach and ESPN color commentator Lou Holtz whether he agreed with the team's decision to play the game. Holtz said if he were coach, he didn't think he would've played. With all due respect to Coach Holtz, the Memphis Tigers and Tommy West made the right decision.

With the blessing of Taylor Bradford's parents, the team chose to play their nationally televised game as scheduled and use it as a way of paying tribute to Bradford and as a means of dealing with their own feelings of anger, confusion and grief. Bradford's number 93 adorned nearly every blank space of the stadium and every fan. Even several of the Marshall players sported the initials TB on their armbands, shoes and helmets.

The Tigers walked out of the tunnel prior to the game arm-in-arm...as a team...something that this fan would like to see continue for the rest of the season. Playing their third game in 11 days, the team was fatigued - both physically and mentally - yet they were poised. They were emotional with an air of renewed confidence. And, as if it mattered on this night, when all was said and done, the Tigers had won the game by a final score of 24-21.

Yes, the Tiger football team got a much-needed win. But on this night, the team, the coaches, the fans, the University and the city of Memphis did something more than that...they achieved victory.

We are Memphis.

Turning a Negative Into a Positive

Sunday night, a coward hiding behind a gun - the definitive symbol of violence in this country - took the life of University of Memphis defensive lineman Taylor Bradford.

On Monday morning, the city of Memphis and the University family mourned the tragic and senseless loss.

Later that morning, Bradford’s teammates voted unanimously to go forward with their scheduled game tonight against Marshall at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. In doing so, the team made a bold statement that Taylor was – and still is – a Tiger and this is what he would’ve wanted. Bradford’s number 93 will appear on the back of each player’s helmet tonight in tribute to their fallen teammate.

It should not be lost on anyone that tonight’s opponent is Marshall. The irony is almost too surreal. If any university…any group of fans…knows what it’s like to deal with tragedy on this level, it is Marshall. By now, you know their story. Perhaps, you’ve seen the movie. Many of you may even remember that rainy November evening in 1970 when a charter jet carrying the Marshall football team, coaches and supporters crashed on approach just outside of Huntington, West Virginia.

The Memphis Tigers now have to do – obviously, on a lesser scale – what Marshall did 37 years ago. Grieve. Mourn. And, somewhere amidst all the tears, find a way to turn a negative into something positive. The collective "we" cannot allow Taylor’s death to become just another statistic in a long line of ever escalating numbers. His life meant more than that. It is our responsibility as teammates, family, friends and fans to make sure Taylor Bradford lives on. How should that be accomplished? I’m not the person who will decide that, but I have ideas.

An annual Taylor Bradford Award given to the player who best represents those endearing qualities that made Taylor easy to love.

Honoring a walk-on player each year by allowing him to wear Taylor’s #93.

There will be other ideas…better ideas, I’m sure. The important thing is to remember this young man. To keep his spirit alive. And, to honor his life…not his death.

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy." – Martin Luther King

We Are Memphis!

In Memory Of Taylor Alexander Bradford

A lot happened this weekend in the world of sports.

Five teams ranked in the top ten of the Associated Press college football poll lost over the weekend.

The United States continued its domination of the President's Cup by defeating the World team 19-1/2 to 14-1/2.

The Philadelphia Phillies overcame seemingly unsurmountable odds to overtake the New York Mets and win the National League East division on the last day of the season.

Brett Favre threw two touchdown passes on Sunday to become the most prolific scoring QB in the history of the game.

Today, however, none of that matters. Today, we are mourning the senseless, irrational and cowardly murder of Taylor Bradford, a junior defensive lineman for the University of Memphis. I've already read and heard people saying that Bradford's death shouldn't come as a surprise because Memphis is a violent city. Many have used this young man's death as a vehicle for spouting their ignorance and bigotry. They seem to forget that a young man's life has been cut tragically short. They forget that this was a human being...so, I'll make up for that:

Taylor Alexander Bradford was born March 14, 1986, in Nashville to Jimmie and Marva Bradford. He was a three-sport letterwinner at Antioch High School in Nashville where he played defensive line and was named all-region and was the team’s defensive line MVP. Taylor helped his team to a 9-2 record in 2004 and was also named all-state in track in the shot put event from 2002-04. He holds the AHS record in shot put and discus and recorded a discus throw of 162’3.5” and a shot of 56’10”. Also earned three letters as a member of the basketball squad.

Taylor began his college career at Samford University in Birmingham where he played in four games during the 2005 season and totaled three tackles and one TFL on the year. He participated in eight games in 2004 and finished the season with 13 tackles. He transferred to Memphis after playing two seasons at Samford and worked as a member of the Tiger defensive scout team during the 2006 season.

That is what matters. Taylor Bradford was a great young man who was involved in many noble on-campus causes. Let's remember him for that.

Peace!

When The Going Gets Tough

Being in Philadelphia, I don't get to see too many of the University of Memphis football games on television. After last night's choke job against Arkansas State, that might not be a bad thing. I haven't listened to the radio programs that are streamed on the Internet, but I'm pretty sure that the tone of most of the calls and discussion is very similar to what I'm reading on the message boards. The football team stinks and the blame falls on the shoulders of Tommy West.

Can't argue with that. Tommy West is to blame for his team's dismal showing so far. President Harry Truman said it best when he said, "the buck stops here." Well, in the case of the University of Memphis football program, the buck stops with Tommy West.

I followed the ASU game on the Internet - turning it off at halftime since I thought the game was sewn up with the Tigers leading 31-6. When I turned it back on after the Phillies game, I was floored to find out that ASU had come back and won the game 35-31...Memphis didn't even sniff the endzone in the 2nd half. My initial reaction was the Tommy West's time was up. He had to go.

I've since softened my stance. Yes, the team is playing poorly. Yes, that is the coach's responsibility. Yes, Tommy West is doing a poor job of coaching right now. But, it's senseless to fire a coach in mid-season. There's still a chance that this team could get things turned around. The problem is we, as Tiger fans, seem to say that every year. This year needs to be that year...the year things get turned around...and if it doesn't, then a change has to be made in the form of a new coaching regime.

Joseph Kennedy coined the phrase "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." It's time for Tommy West and his team to get it going, because it's already pretty tough out there.

Peace!

How It's Done

This will be short and sweet.

In 2003, three schools - Louisville, Cincinnati, and South Florida - bolted from Conference USA and joined the Big East as all-sports participants. Can't blame them. The Big East is a BCS conference which means that all football playing schools receive BCS money regardless of whether or not they ever play in a BCS bowl game. Has it made a difference for Louisville, Cincy and USF? Take a look:

Louisville has been ranked in the Top 25...nay, the Top 10...for the better part of the past three seasons. They started this season ranked #7 before losing two unexpected games to Kentucky and Syracuse.

Cincinnati is 4-0 this season and is on the verge of garnering a spot in the Top 25.

South Florida is 3-0 this season and was ranked #23 in last weeks ESPN/USA Today Coaches Poll. Most likely, they will rise a couple of spots this week after throttling North Carolina yesterday.

Where is Memphis? 1-2 after a humiliating 56-20 loss to Central Florida yesterday and still stuck in Conference USA. The sad thing is that unless the university makes a committment to football the way they have to basketball, that's where Memphis will always be.

Peace!

If It's True, Raines Must Resign

It seems that an e-mail campaign has begun in the neighborhoods around the University of Memphis with the sole intent of derailing the new-found momentum for an on-campus football stadium. That was to be expected. Those who own property around the University have every right to be concerned about what might happen to the value of their property. They can't be faulted for having such concerns. That being said, some of their concerns are rooted in a wealth of misinformation, the bulk of which I won't go into  since, at this juncture, those aren't the biggest issues on the table.

No, there's a much bigger issue at play here. The issue of what...or more specifically, who...is behind the e-mail campaign. If the evidence being presented is true, the person responsible for the campaign having legs is Dr. Shirley Raines. Yes, the president of the university.

This hasn't been a good week for Raines. First, she released a statement late Tuesday afternoon saying that the University had no plans for an on-campus stadium. After an intense media firestorm over the release, Raines issued a back-peddling release on Wednesday stating: "I released a statement Tuesday to the media, which was not printed in its entirety and has led to some misunderstandings." That release went on to say that Raines has charged the Athletics Advisory Committee to "to review all viable proposals for renovation of the Liberty Bowl Stadium or for construction of a new stadium at the Fairgrounds, as well as all financially feasible proposals for building and maintaining a stadium on the University of Memphis campus." Today, the University announced that an on-campus feasibility study would, in fact, be conducted.

This is where it gets good. A couple of hours prior to the announcement of the feasibility study, at least two e-mails from neighborhood associations near the campus began circulating and both had a hauntingly similar voice to them.

From Melissa Pearce of The Village neighborhood off Poplar near the Oak Court Mall:

"Dr. Raines wants and must hear from you now! THIS IS A REAL ISSUE SO PLEASE RESPOND NOW!!!  Tell your friends and neighbors to email also, The more emails from you the better.  The outside pressure for this stadium is very real threat to all the University District and all the work we have all done in this area to make it great.  She must have pages and pages of emails to show the press and others looking to tear down this area for a facility that is only used a few months out of the year.  This affects all the neighborhoods in the U of M area and not in a good way."

Then, the second from Dot Neale representing the area around Galloway Golf Course:

"Please send Dr. Raines, President University of Memphis, an email as soon as possible voicing your opinion concerning a possible stadium on the campus and its impact (traffic, noise, property values, etc). She wants and needs to hear from neighbors. Please see the attached for additional information."

It's no secret that, for whatever reason, Raines is opposed to building an on-campus stadium. However, these e-mails sound as if Pearce and Neale were asked directly by Raines to do some behind-the-scenes anti-stadium leg work for her. If that is indeed the case, this is a brazen example of unethical behavior from someone who is supposed to have the University's best interest at heart. If that is the case, Raines should and must resign her position effective immediately.

I'm not sure why Raines is so adamant in her opposition to an on-campus football stadium. No one is sure because she hasn't made her reasons public, which only adds to the speculation. However, in light of these recent developments, I'm only interested in hearing one thing from Dr. Raines:

"In the best interest of the University, I am resigning my position effectively immediately."

Peace!

What We've Learned So Far

By now, fans of most college football teams in the country know what to expect from their respective teams. Such as...

Notre Dame fans can expect to start the season either 1-7 or 0-8.

LSU fans know their team is scary good...probably the best team in the country.

Louisville fans know their team isn't going undefeated like a couple of the "gurus" at ESPN said they would.

What about Memphis? What have Memphis fans learned about the Tigers after two games played and a third that was postponed because of a brilliant lightning storm? Here's what we know...

1. Martin Hankins can throw the ball. Sure, he's thrown a few - five, to be exact - to the other team, but the man has a slingshot arm. And let's be fair, two of the four INTs he tossed in the Ole Miss game were the result of an offensive line meltdown that caused him to throw the ball before he was planted. Hankins currently ranks 35th in the nation in passing efficiency with a 138.2 rating. That rating comes on the strength of a 69.51 completion percentage. Hankins also ranks 13th in the NCAA with 316 passing yards per game.

2. This could be the best receiving corp in school history. Duke Calhoun. Carlos Singleton. Carlton Robinzine. Earnest Williams. Maurice Jones. Dave Thomas. These guys have it all. They average 6' 3" across the board...an average that is being dragged down by the 5' 11" frame of the gutsy Thomas. They've got speed. They've got great hands (see Hankins' completion percentage for proof). Remember Russell Copeland, Mac Cody and Isaac Bruce back in 1992? That group wasn't as good as this one is going to be.

3. Joe Doss is the key. You have to give props to T.J. Pitts and Miguel Barnes for filling in for an injured Doss in the Jacksonville State game. The two combined for 85 yards and one touchdown. That's the good news. The bad news is it was Jacksonville State. In order for the Tigers to be successful, they need a healthy Joe Doss. I won't make any insane comparisons to DeAngelo Williams, but Doss gives the Tigers a weapon in the backfield. Any time he touches the ball, he has the potential to make something great happen. Doss in the game keeps opposing defenses honest and will open up the passing game...if you can imagine that.

4. Let's hope we never need a game-winning field goal. Tiger fans have been spoiled to the point that the position of place kicker has been an afterthought. Joe Allison. Ryan White. Stephen Gostkowski. Yeah, Tiger fans considered extra points and any field goal under 55 yards a gimme. Not any longer. Place kicking is the weakest link this year. PK Matt Reagan has missed his only two  field goal attempts this season from 32 and 25 yards. Reagan needs to vastly improve or the Tigers are going to be attempting a lot of 4th down conversions the rest of the season.

5. The defense is back. I know that might be a stretch considering who the two opponents have been, but at this point you take what you can get. Right now, Memphis ranks 43rd against the rush, 53rd against the pass, 35th in scoring defense and 40th in total defense. It's a far cry from the days when Memphis ranked in the top 10 in total defense, but it's also a far cry from a year ago when the Tigers ranked near the bottom of every defensive category in the book.

That's what we know about the Tigers after two games in Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium. We'll know a lot more after this weekend's trip to Orlando.

Peace!

Spying on the Game

So, that's how the New England Patriots have mastered kicking tail and taking names. And all this time we thought it was Bill Belichick's coaching skills, Tom Brady's good looks, Kevin Faulk's strong legs and Teddy Bruschi's inspiration.

Nope. It was some peon with a video camera. Doh!

The Patriots have been accussed...and have admitted guilt...of using a video camera to record their opponents' defensive signals being sent in from the sidelines, deciphering the signal codes and relaying that information to their offensive coaches. The advantage here is obvious. If Tom Brady knows what defense the opponents are going to be in, he can easily call successful plays based on that information. Now, I have mixed feelings on this whole video camera spying thing.

On one hand, shame on the Patriots. One of the first rules you learn when you start playing sports at an early age is that of fair play. You just don't cheat...plain and simple.

On the other hand, is this really cheating? If an opponent uses a signal sequence and code that is so simple it can be decoded during halftime, shame on them. In this case, shame on the NY Jets. One would think - after spending years working under Belichick - Jets' coach Eric Mangini would've turned the cards on the Patriots and spied on them. Heck, reports say that Mangini, himself, actually ran the spy cam when he was on the Patriots staff. Shame, shame, shame.

Stealing signals is a part of the game, folks. If I'm at second base and I'm able to decode the catcher's signals to the pitcher, is it my fault? No...it's the pitcher and catcher's fault for being too dumb to make their signs more complex. And, don't give me any of this "integrity of the game" crap. There's enough things going on that have already marred the integrity of sports: guns, steroids, strip clubs, and dog fighting to name a few.

Besides, does anyone really think that the video camera helped the Patriots beat the Jets, 38-14, this past weekend? Did the video assist Ellis Hobbs on his 108-yard kickoff return for a touchdown?

Here's an idea...instead of complaining, maybe the Jets should invest in a peon with a video camera.

Peace!

Only The Good Die Young

A little after 7:00 EST this past Saturday night, my little brother passed away in Greensboro, NC. He was 36-years-old...far too young.

Rodney wasn't much of a sports fan, which was one of the many things he and I didn't have in common. Talk about being as different as night and day...that was me and my brother. I'm a huge sports nut and played sports most of my life. He wasn't all that interested in sports, but would tolerate them on occassion. He was more of a nature enthusiast. Loved being outdoors. Loved animals. Loved the beach...even going so far as to call me a couple of years ago on his cell phone while sitting on the beach in Maui. I didn't like him much that day.

The fact that we were so different, didn't prevent us from sharing a unique bond. We weren't as close as some brothers...living so far apart tends to have that affect on relationships. He lived in Nashville, St. Louis and, ultimately, Greensboro. I lived in Memphis and Philadelphia. But, on the occassions when we were able to get together or talk on the phone, we picked up right where we left off the last time. It's almost as if time would stand still, waiting on us to come together again. That's a special bond that comes from being brothers.

I am going to miss him like crazy. I never knew how much until I stood beside his bed at the hospital yesterday and said goodbye.

I love you, Rodney. Enjoy your trip home and save a seat at the dinner table for me. Billy Joel was right...only the good die young.

Peace!

Here Comes the T-word

I puposefully haven't mentioned the weekend "incident" on Beale Street involving three University of Memphis basketball players, waiting - and hoping - to get more information on the story before rushing to judgement and spouting off something that I would later regret. By now, you've heard about it...Shawn Taggart and Jeff Robinson were arrested for disorderly conduct and inciting a riot and Joey Dorsey is under suspicion for being the instigator of the whole ordeal. Kinda makes you wonder what's going on at Camp Cal.

If the players involved in this fiasco were from the University of Tennessee, Ole Miss, Arkansas or any number of other schools in the area, Tiger fans would be throwing out the word "thug" when they talked about them.

Hello, Kettle? This is the Pot...you're black.

Sure, John Calipari addressed - sort of - the issue in an emergency press conference on Sunday and announced the implementation of a new team policy  prohibiting players from going to nightclubs and setting a team curfew. Calipari also said that there would be disciplinary action after the police and university officials conducted their investigations. Let me say this as diplomatically as I possibly can, so as not to offend any delicate Tiger fans out there: that's nothing but a copout.

Somebody has even hired Mary Winkler's defense attorney, Lelie Ballin, to represent Taggart and Robinson. Heck, if Ballin can successfully paint Winkler as a wounded, defenseless, helpless woman who killed her husband merely to preserve her own life, imagine what he can do for two basketball players who merely disturbed the peace. The Plush Club will soon be renamed Shawn & Jeff's Crib.

Taggart, Robinson and Dorsey may or may not be thugs. I'm not going to level that accusation at them. The fact of the matter is that early Sunday morning, all three acted like thugs and they should be swiftly and harshly dealt with. I'm willing to wait until the investigation is complete. But, if this is somehow swept neatly under a rug - meaning if suddenly no one wants to press charges - then we'll have a much bigger issue to deal with...the thugs in the Athletic Department.

Peace!