Sports rambling roundup

So I haven't complained about sports for awhile. Got a couple things on my mind.

First, the Super Bowl. Yes, it's coming. No, I cannot wait. But the thing I'd like to talk about is media during Super Bowl week. (Yes, I'm aware I'm a media nerd, but as a member of the media, I feel appalled by where my profession — on the large scale — is heading.)

It's almost unbearable. Today's "news," coming from the likes of TMZ:

Big Ben takes his linemen out to a piano bar. SCANDAL. GASP. DISGUST.

That's how we're supposed to react, I suppose. TMZ also tried to say they were out past their curfew, which they denied, so I find that humorous. First question: Why is ESPN reporting on TMZ's postings? ESPN is the greatest and most credible news organization out there — sports or not. I find it an insult to media that they'd take TMZ reports as truth.

Also: Who cares? He went to a bar. Going to a bar does NOT mean he went to a bar, hit on girls and raped them in the bathroom (which he wasn't charged on anyway, so that's neither here nor there). He's not 14 years old. He's not even barely legal to drink. There's nothing here.

I'm currently listening to Pardon the Interruption, and Mike Wilbon, a new columnist for ESPN and a fantastic writer, called the media "morons" for caring about this. They're bored. There's nothing left to discuss because they've been talking about the matchup for two weeks, Wilbon said. Point proven, from a true member of the media who's willing to speak his mind.

Now, college

Yes, college football. I realize that's not relevant right now, aside from national signing day being yesterday, and we had a couple local guys sign with a Division II school.

But all over ESPN (OK, apparently I'm attacking major news networks today) were images of high school players signing to major schools. ESPN! High schoolers! Some of which may not even be 18 years old yet!

Let that sink in.

The scandal that we saw all over the place was Cam Newton getting paid (or not) to go to college, and not in scholarship terms. We all know that story. So why is ESPN feeding the "star" treatment, which I guarantee is why Cam thought he could get money for college football, for others?

These football players have never been told no. And now they've been featured on ESPN, a network which reports on money scandals and discusses schools making money off unpaid football players, which many find unsavory. Schools sell jerseys and use athletes' names, but those athletes never see a dime. No, I don't like that. And no, I don't think college players should be paid money outside of scholarships.

But how is ESPN any different than those schools? They sold commercials for their live signing day coverage. They got ratings for it. They ran stories online which produces page hits and Internet advertising.

Until ESPN chills on high school prospects and stops feeding the beast — namely the big-man-on-campus ideal — Reggie Bush scandals will continue, and football players will continue to take money because they feel they deserve it.

I call that unsavory.

Pre lives

Seriously. 

If you were in Coos Bay for the 30th Annual Prefontaine Memorial Run, then you'd know it, too. Nearly 1400 people raced, with Great Britain and Australia represented. The guy from Australia won, sporting a rocking mustache/sideburn combo a la Steve Prefontaine. His long lost twin, I swear.

Coos Bay isn't big. At all. And people gather here from all over the world, no matter how old they are, just to pay homage to this great runner. That amazes me. Half those people out there weren't even alive while he was alive!

It's humbling, really. I don't like running. In fact, I hate it. But the dedication and love shown today as I saw Bradley Cooper cross that finish line, barely breathing heavy and completely capable of giving me a full interview directly after he finished, was just too much. All for the love of running. All for the love of one man, a man that none of these people knew personally, although I think his sister ran, and his mother was there.

It's unreal. I'll never understand the sport of running, but I will always respect it.

Pre lived again today — I could feel it.

Yay football!

Right now, we're sitting on the couch watching college football being played on a bright blue field. I'm preparing for the Civil War game on Friday night, the first of many football games for the season, and my career. NFL games starts soon.

But fall is a bit different here. It's still hot in Ohio this time of year. I'll probably wear a sweatshirt over my dress clothes to the game. The leaves aren't quite changing yet, but the air is still crisp. Mostly because the air is crisp all summer here in Coos Bay.

I was introduced at the who's who of Coos Bay/North Bend athletics luncheon today, and kind of felt like a celebrity, which John (the sports editor) basically is. Everyone loves him here, and people were so excited to meet me, for whatever reason. It seems I'm the first female full-time sports writer. Take that, glass ceiling!

Both coaches are hilarious, nice and fun. They're absolutely NOTHING like the coaches I dealt with at the Advocate. I think these guys actually like their job. And North Bend just won the league last year. Odd how that works out, when you have a coach who's fun. Rick Taylor may be my new favorite person in this town. Either way, I'm enjoying this full-time sports writer thing, where coaches and players know who I am when I walk up, and I don't have to introduce myself as 'Rachel Finney, sports writer with The World,' every time I call them.

Plus, I got free pizza topped with sausage and mushrooms.

Employment

I'm an editor. Can I just say something really quick? EEEEKKK!

Thanks, I feel better.

It's only a weekly page, but it's more than I have ever done before. I'll also be heading into two-a-days next week, and "football tab hell," as John calls it, which is the time of year where we push wayyyy too hard to put together a full-sized preview of every football team in the area. Did I mention that they removed the part-time sports writing position? Because they did. 

Which means...it's just me and John. He must have had so much faith in me to do this job with him, because I happen to know that all the other people who made it to the final cut had more experience than me. He took me to lunch and literally blind-sided me with an interview in which I needed to sell him on the idea of hiring me. Something must have worked, although I may never know what it is.

Maybe it's because we have similar tastes in bad baseball teams.

It's the most wonderful time of the year

And it's not Christmas. FOOTBALL AHHHHH!!!!

I'm not sure how to portray just how excited football season makes me. The air seems cleaner. The sky bluer. Sleep comes naturally, and there's always something on TV during the weekends.

I got married, moved to Oregon, went to Canada on our honeymoon and now football starts. Life couldn't be more perfect. 

If only our apartment could double in size so we could find room to fit everything we got from the wedding...

On to writing some thank you notes, the best part of being married. Right? Right?

The need to play dirty...

...because the Red Wings are doing it right. 

I think the Pens forgot that in the playoffs, refs don't call anything. And the Wings know exactly what they can get away with. We need to learn that, and go for it, even if it's against our moral beings as hockey players, because otherwise, there's no way we win this series.

Screen the goalie, because there's no other way to get past Osgood. Especially not when they miss a million blatant penalties that could have resulted in fantastic scoring opportunities for the Pens. Lay in front of the goal. The Wings do it all the time! Why not us? As soon as the puck gets near the goal, lay down, make sure there's no possible way the puck can get through the wall of players. Isn't your goalie fat enough to do this on his own?

We need to test the waters. Throw some elbows. Toss some sticks. Push the envelope with penalties, just to see what we can get away with, because until we figure that out and start playing with a little toughness and urgency, the Wings are going to win this one, because they already figured this out a long time ago, and we all see where that led them last season.

Hats off to Evgeni Malkin

Game two of the Eastern Conference Finals definitely didn't disappoint. Well, for the Penguins fans, at least. What started out as a close game of back-and-forth goals turned into a scoring contest, with my Boys of Winter coming out on top. Winning 7-4 and going up 2-0 in the series before they head south -- now that's sweet.

What's truly awesome, though, is the accomplishments of the boys. Chris Kunitz finally found the back of the net for the first time during the playoffs, and looked so happy I thought he was going to cry.

Adorable. Man deserved it.

Another great accomplishment was Evgeni Malkin's lovely hat trick. Relatively quiet during most of the series with the Capitals, Geno finally burst back onto the scene with a strong game tonight. Expect him to continue this for the rest of the series, now that he's found his groove. I wish I had a screen cap of how cute his parents were after he scored that third goal, with his dad planting a big old kiss on his mom. Such supportive parents -- they must be so proud.

One thing I noticed glancing into the crowd (aside from one of the Hanson brothers! Oh my gosh!) were many Geno for MVP signs. I love Geno, and I campaigned for him to win the Hart Trophy all season, but frankly, I'm over it. Not like I think he doesn't deserve it, but I've forgotten about it, in lieu of the playoffs. 

Ovechkin will more than likely win the trophy, and good riddance. He may be a complete tool and inadequate at playing defense, but he scored the most goals, and that's what counts to the people watching hockey and voting on it. Frankly, I value assists over goals in a Most Valuable Player because someone who wills others to score is fulfilling the namesake of the honor.

But I don't care if Geno gets it. I'd give up 956 Hart Trophies for a chance at the Stanley Cup. And the fact of the matter is, Geno still has a chance at that, while Ovie is probably golfing.

Silverback vs. the White House

James Harrison, the Steelers' defensive virtuoso and NFL defensive player of the year, will not be going to the White House on the routine, post-Super Bowl visit. Everyone is making a big deal out of this, but oddly enough, didn't care when he skipped out on the last White House visit a few years ago.

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, he cites a fear of flying as the reason for jumping ship on both visits. But why do people care now, when they didn't care the last time? Maybe because he's now a high-profile, and not to mention high-paid, athlete. Maybe because of his often-replayed, slow-motion touchdown return before halftime of this year's Super Bowl.

Or maybe it's because last time they were visiting George Bush, the controversial and much-criticized president, and fans figured it was okay for him to dislike Bush. This time around, that's not so forgivable, with the historic President Barack Obama thoroughly settled into the White House. Are media outlets trying to make this into a political statement? Are they reading too much into this, as they often do?

Maybe they're just bored. It's the offseason, and what else are these sports media super giants going to cover? Brett Favre might return. Manny ended up "just being Manny," and got suspended. In other news, Lord Stanley is rolling over in his grave as the Stanley Cup Playoffs continue on, passing by performance-enhancing drugs and aging quarterbacks.

A new beginning

Well here I am, a journalism major just now getting into the world of blogging. I read so many blogs, but never got around to making one of my own, mostly for the reason that I had no idea what kind of platform on which to write. I'm a sportswriter, but how many more Pittsburgh sports bloggers does the world really need? Don't get me wrong, I'll still be weighing in on my beloved Steelers and Penguins, especially now during the quest for the Stanley Cup. I have too many opinions on the public affairs of sports to not share them.

I also love food, but don't know enough technicalities to write a food blog -- all I know is that is tastes good. Travel is my other passion, and of course living in the Northwest and a soon-to-come honeymoon in August will lead to travel posts. I guess I'll just be writing about how I'm adjusting to married life 3,000 miles away from home, in a place where Steeler fans are few and far between, and it's too difficult to find a good steak for a cheap price.

But don't expect frivolous tales of my life. I'll be living with two cats and a boy who prefers to wear jeans and a Browns t-shirt over going out for a fancy night on the town. Luckily, I'm the same way, minus sporting the hideous brown and orange. Besides, Coos Bay isn't the most hopping place to be in the Northwest, and especially not when you don't know anyone your own age. Being a 20-something in a coastal town should be interesting. At least we'll have each other.