TGIF everyone, here's my Top 5 for December 18, 2009 from Len Berman at www.ThatsSports.com.
1. Quick Hits
* The Indianapolis Colts remain perfect, 14-0, after beating Jacksonville last night 35-31.
* The New Orleans Saints try to go to 14-0 tomorrow night when they host Dallas.
* Tragedy. Bengals wide receiver, 26-year old Chris Henry died yesterday from injuries suffered when he fell off the back of a truck in Charlotte in a domestic dispute with his fiancee.
* Alex Rodriguez does not need further hip surgery. He's good to go.
* Bobby Knight wonders why Kentucky's John Calipari is still coaching after he "put two schools on probation." Knight says college basketball lacks integrity. Knight probably wouldn't have ripped a fellow coach if he were still coaching.
* Bundle up! The new Giants/Jets outdoor stadium is in the running to host Super Bowl XLVIII in February of 2014.
2. The Cost of Infidelity
Wanna put a price tag on Tiger Woods dalliances? According to Bloomberg.com it'll cost the PGA tour, TV networks and merchandise vendors a cool $220 million. Which probably pales in comparison to Tiger's potential divorce settlement and alleged hush money payments to the bimbos.
3. TV Talk
Stop picking on sportscasters! An Atlanta TV station got rid of its sports department and is letting the local radio station handle sports. And now a West Palm Beach station is doing the same. Hey why not have your local radio talk show host anchor the news and turn over weather to the Weather Channel? Better yet, why not sell your TV station to people who actually have a clue about local news?
4. Friday Mailbag
Brian Kelly leaving Cincinnati to take the Notre Dame football coaching job upset many of you. J.B. wrote, "What kind of a message is Kelly sending to his former players, many of whom he probably recruited, when he abandons them a few weeks before they reach the goal they have all worked so hard to achieve? What happened to Kelly's moral compass? And why has there not been an outcry about his selfish and misguided behavior?"
And from E.G. "Yeah, Brian Kelly, another coach that throws his team in the dumpster for his own benefit."
From subscriber W.H. "Hideki Matsui (now an Angel) is one of my favorite players. On the Internet I found the link to the Hideki Matsui Baseball museum his brother built in Japan."
Check it out: http://www.hideki.co.jp/top/english/english.html.
As for Alabama giving students days off from class around the championship game, P.M. writes: "My daughter went to Georgia - the Thursday and Friday before the Florida game, were always days of high absenteeism. So what does the university do? They instituted a four day 'fall break" (Thurs - Sun) about seven years ago to coincide with the game!!"
Editor's Note: Priorities, Priorities.
And in response to my appearance last night on Hannity, P.M. writes: "Hannity??? If he managed a baseball team there would nobody playing 'left???'"
5. Pick a Winner
A German fortune-tellers society checked out all the predictions they made for 2009, and every single one was wrong. They shouldn't feel bad. That's about the same winning percentage as those people who are itching to sell you betting "locks" for football games.
Today's Birthday: The great Ty Cobb was born on this date in 1886. Against today's pitchers he'd probably bat only .280 or so. Then again, he'd be 123 years old.
Bonus Birthdays: Director Steven Spielberg. 63. Actor Brad Pitt. 46.
Today in Sports: Slingin' Sammy Baugh is named the first coach of the New York Titans (later named the Jets) in the American Football League. 1959.
Bonus Event: Holy Cow! Phil Rizzuto signs on to become a Yankee broadcaster. 1956.
Have a great weekend everyone!