Durzblog

more: The (Unofficial) New York Surf Week

According to a new SI report, A-Rod failed a test for steroids in 2003. In typical fashion, the report came from four unnamed sources -- who saw a legally confidential document that included Alex's name on a list of 104 players that failed the test 6 years ago -- I am no fan or apologist for Rodriguez, but this is total bullocks. The whole unnamed source craze in the media is a gripe for another day -- these sources at the very best made a federal offense and who ever responsible ought to be sued.

What is the next step for Alex? -- will he go Pettitte and cry, Giambi and kind of admit it, OR is he going to go the lie some more route (see Barry, Palmeiro, Clemens et al). I'm hoping for some truth, but I highly doubt it -- its never been his style.

MLB continues to be an absolute embarrassment and the Players Union ought to be ashamed of themselves. Why is it OK to continue to drop these names out to the public all willy nilly. I'm still outraged by the Mitchell Report, unless you are going to tell me every player who has used steroids -- then I would rather not know any. I'll just assume that at least half of the guys in the majors from 1997-2003 were on the juice, if you weren't -- you just weren't trying hard enough. Show me all 104 or show me none and please stop hiding behind these unnamed sources. A-rod is going to take a big public hit for this, but until last week, everyone thought he was going to be the one to break all the records, "clean". Who else is sitting all pretty who failed drug tests 6 years ago? I guess we will just wait until they become a really big star before we out them. After-all, this is about selling mags and newspapers.

what is that smell coming from Queens -- its smells kind of like the Mets sh*tting their pants again??

The NL East, NL Wildcard and AL Central crowns are all up for grabs as the season turns for home with only two weeks to go. Are the Metropolitans going to collapse once again (I thought that was Willie Randolph's doing), or will they hold on, leaving the Phils in goose chase with Milwaukee and Houston for the lone WC spot. Should be an exciting few weeks and equally nauseating....

ESPN COVERAGE

Gooooooooooooooooddddddddddddddddd afternoon Everybody!!!!

Nearly 19 years since the inception of the program, Mike and the Mad Dog, is now no longer. Fatso and Fruit loops (as Imus loving referred to the boys as) are done after a 19 year run. Love them or hate them, the show was entertaining and was a metropolitan New York institution. Mike will stay on WFAN and the pride of Rollins College, the dog, will reportedly ink a 5 year deal with Sirius worth approximately 15 million.

Personally I am sad to see Russo go, in my opinion he could be very annoying but was the more likable of the two. I won't be tuning into listen to Mike talk about how great and smart Mike is and I don't get satellite radio, so no Russo for me either. As much as a charade the show had sometimes become, it is still a sad day.

Christopher's tirade after the player/fan/Artest brawl in Detroit a few years back is one of the betters listens I have ever had....don't be a stranger Chris....

Newsday

other Notes:
How ridiculous is Michael Phelps? had the pleasure of watching him win number 6 last night, gold medals and world records that is...nice effort by the Phils being swept in 4 by the Dodgers for the first time since 1962, please baseball season just end already....speaking of, European Football season kicks off this weekend and I am ecstatic, good luck to Gregg and the boys from Munich

--BD

Giants celebrate their Super bowl Championship this morning -- NYC style.

A ticker-tape parade began in Battery Park at 11am and proceeded north on Broadway, going past the financial district and the World Trade Center before ending at City Hall.

The route is known as the "Canyon of Heroes," where parades have celebrated everything from Charles Lindbergh's flight to Hogan's Open Championship to Yankee crowns. The last parade was in 2000, when the Yankees won the World Series and this parade was the ever first for a football team.

Manning, Defense bring Big Blue 3rd title -- 17-14

All the pent up hatred for the Pats has almost seemed worth it, it made the Giants historic win all that much sweeter. To say that this playoff run was astonishing would be the understatement of the year. Six weeks ago this team was down 14-0 at Ralph Wilson stadium with a post season bid seriously in jeopardy. Eli Manning was a bum that most would have traded for JP Lossman and Tom Coughlin was likely finishing up his tenure with the Giants. This club was 3-5 at home this season (wins coming over some pretty bad teams -- Eagles, Jets and San Fran) -- as a season ticket holder I can't say that is how I saw this season going down!

The biggest grin I had all day was not thinking about Brady and his perfect season ending or Belichick and his smug arrogance taking a hit, rather it was for Tiki Barber. Hey Tiki, you think Eli as a leader is a big joke now?? Nice call -- Super Bowl MVP.

The Giants ended the season 8-9 last year with Barber and are the Champions without him.


Manning, Strahan, Burress, Coughlin, Tyree...these names will live on forever as legends of New York sports like Messier, Brosius, Clyde, Namath. Its a tough place to lose, but its the best place to win. As for the game and the effort of the G-men, Tom Coughlin said it best, "“Every team is beatable, you know."

That's why they play the game

not to be a jerk, because if forced to bet I would have gone with the Pats, but here is a great list of predictions from the nflnetwork.com:

"ESPN and NFL Network on-air personalities offer their predictions for Super Bowl XLII. Of the 30 ESPN picks, 25 chose the New England Patriots, while just five selected the New York Giants..."

PICKING NEW ENGLAND
Raul Allegre, ESPN Deportes NFL analyst and former New York Giants kicker
Patriots 31-21. I just don't see the Giants defense being able to stop the Patriots’ offense. Nobody is better at controlling time of possession than the Patriots and their arsenal is just too tough.

Russell Baxter, ESPN NFL research coordinator
Patriots 38-19. Thirty eight has been the Patriots’ magic number all year and 19 would be fitting since this would give them an undefeated 19-0 record.

Skip Bayless, ESPN First Take and 1st and 10 commentator
Patriots 38-17. Plaxico Burress lost this game for the Giants before it was played by saying the Giants receivers may be better than New England’s and by predicting the Giants would win by scoring 23 points and holding Tom Brady’s offense to a mere 17. Big mistake.

Ray Buchanan, ESPN 1st and 10 analyst
Patriots 28-24. Eli being hot will keep this game close and I don’t think the Patriots defense will be able to slow down the Giants offense.

Colin Cowherd, host of ESPN Radio’s The Herd
Patriots 31-17. It'll be close early but then the Patriots will do something in the 3rd quarter to pull away -- whether it's creating a turnover or converting on a big third down play. Tom Brady will be named the game MVP.

Jay Crawford, ESPN First Take and 1st and 10 co-host
Patriots 38-21. Not going to stop the Patriots offense. The difference in the game is that New England has been there, done that, while the Giants are taking video of everything like it’s a trip to Disney.

Hank Goldberg, ESPN Correspondent
Patriots 30-27. They always win by three points. Just look at their last three Super Bowls.

Mike Golic, NFL Live analyst and co-host of ESPN Radio’s Mike & Mike in the Morning
Patriots 31-24. Their versatility will be the key. They always find a way to get it done and they will again this time.

Jemele Hill, ESPN.com Page 2 writer and 1st and 10 commentator
Patriots 38-31. Tom Brady goes to quarterback immortal.

Gary Horton, ESPN Scouts Inc. Insider
Patriots 31-20. With two weeks to prepare for Bill Belichick - and with field conditions being perfect - as much as I respect the Giants, they can't keep up with the Patriots. Tom Brady will find 4-5 match-ups that he will exploit.

Tom Jackson, ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown analyst
Patriots 31-21. Hard to imagine the most prolific offense in NFL history coming all this way and not winning. There is also something to be said for the Patriots’ experience, being in this position before and winning three times.

Ron Jaworski, ESPN Monday Night Football and NFL Matchup analyst
Patriots 41-21. The key will be the Patriots three down linemen -- Seymour, Wilfork and Warren -- who will be able to collapse on Eli, forcing him backward which is not his strength.

Keyshawn Johnson, ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown analyst
Patriots 35-17. New England has had two weeks to prepare for this game, and the lights might be too bright for Eli.

Erik Kuselias, ESPN Radio host
Patriots 34-20. This game was over when Brady took off the boot and squeezed into a cleat…too much offense.

Steve Levy, ESPN SportsCenter anchor
Patriots 34-21. The Giants won their Super Bowl in Green Bay.

Steve Mariucci, NFL Network
I think the Patriots have the best chance to win. If I predict the Giants to win, it’s because I’m saying there is a possibility for an upset. So all that being said, I think the Patriots are going to win, but I also think the Giants can pull off an upset.

Chris Mortensen, ESPN NFL Insider
Patriots 41-31. Perfect climate, perfect game, perfect season for Tom Brady.

Sal Paolantonio, ESPN Correspondent
Patriots 31-24. Giants defense still won't have an answer for Tom Brady.

Sean Salisbury, ESPN NFL Live analyst
Patriots 34-17. The weather is not a factor and on a fast track and with all those weapons, I don’t think the Patriots can be beat.

Mark Schlereth, ESPN NFL Live and NFL PrimeTime analyst and three-time Super Bowl champion
Patriots 31-27. The Patriots do the best job in the NFL adjusting. They are chameleon-like in who they are and what they do. They can totally reinvent themselves during the course of a ballgame on the offense and defensive sides of the ball.

Stuart Scott, ESPN SportsCenter anchor
Patriots 34-20. The Giants will play them tough for a half, but the Patriots passing game is built for a dry, fast field.

Emmitt Smith, ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown and Monday Night Countdown analyst and three-time Super Bowl champion
Patriots 35-24. The bye week hurt the Giants by taking away their momentum. Belichick is a genius at breaking down tape and he had a second week to prepare.

Mike Tirico, ESPN Monday Night Football play by play commentator
Patriots 32-23. Too much offense, too much experience, too much to deny the perfect ending.

Marcellus Wiley, ESPN NFL Live analyst
Patriots 38-23. They have had a perfect season. Why bet against them now?

Trey Wingo, ESPN NFL Live and NFL PrimeTime host
Patriots 41-27. No weather problems, perfect fast track. They are going to unleash the full arsenal. I can’t see the Giants stopping the Patriots, If the Giants don’t score 30, they will get blown out.

Steve Young, ESPN Monday Night Countdown analyst and three-time Super Bowl champion Patriots 42-10. Eli Manning is not a Hall of Fame quarterback yet. Brady will get the upper hand.

PICKING NEW YORK
Lomas Brown, ESPN 1st and 10 analyst
Giants 27-24. Giants win the first overtime game in Super Bowl history.

Mike Ditka, ESPN Sunday NFL Countdown analyst
Giants 31-28. I haven't picked the Patriots all year, so why should I start now?

Mike Greenberg, co-host of ESPN Radio’s Mike & Mike in the Morning and SportsCenter anchor
Giants 24-23. Just a little magic the Giants have working now. Call it a funny feeling.

Merril Hoge, ESPN NFL Live and NFL PrimeTime analyst
Giants 31-30. The Giants’ defensive scheme matches well with Brady and the Patriots because they attack the quarterback and challenge the wide receivers.

Shaun King, ESPN NFL Live analyst
Giants 34-26. Confidence.

Rod Woodson, NFL Network
I think it’s going to be a close game. My head is telling me New England because their offense is so explosive, but my gut is telling me the Giants because of their running game, defense and special teams is solid. Eli is playing outstanding…I think it’s going to be the biggest upset in Super Bowl history – Giants.

Super Bowl XLII
Giants v Patriots

At Last!!




Boston and New York go at it once again tomorrow night, -- well Foxborough v East Rutherford -- but whatever

In a rematch of the Week 17 thriller, unbeaten New England will play the wild-card football Giants in Glendale, Ariz. The match-up has been built as a David v Goliath match for the in the build-up to the game. Lots have been made over nothing in the last two weeks: Brady's boot, Plax's prediction, Pats cheating and somehow Tiki Barber even still gets his mentions....Now its finally time to get it on.

Can the Giants get enough pressure on Brady and can they run the ball seem to be the two biggest issues facing New York heading into the big one. The week 17 game has shown that the Giants can hang with the Pats, but it will be interesting to see if they can do it on America's grandest stage.

One thing is for sure, if the Pats do not win -- this idea that people are going to forget this team if they lose is dumb. It will leave a sour taste in New England's moth, but in running off 18 games without a loss they have already proven that they are one of the best teams of all time. The Giants stand in the way of them becoming perhaps the best.

Prediction: 23-17 Giants (your my boy Plax!)

ESPN preview

Uconn v Pitt

The mess of weedgate might be about over, at least we are at the move on point. It appears that Wiggins was not smoking grass in the parked car where he and Jerome were found with booze last Thursday. Wiggins will return to practice today and may very well come off the bench on Saturday after serving a two game sentence.

Unfortunately the news was not soo good for Dyson. His drug test came back positive and thus he will be sitting until March as this is his second failed urine test while at Uconn. Personally I am too tired of the whole story to get into the whole "Calhoun vs Hathaway" or "Uconn Basketball vs the Connecticut media" arguements -- Its all very tired to me at this point. The players on the roster need to start having more respect for what they are involved with and start playing by the rules, everything else will fall into place.

This Saturday Uconn will host a tough Pitt squad at the XL Center looking for win 5 in a row, as the off court issues keep tarnishing what is happening on the floor, there seems to be a resolve within the guys playing that has not been seen in Storrs for a couple of years. Stanley Robinson and Craig Austrie actually seem to be benefiting from the dire situation. They and team leader AJ Price will be key as they fight a very big and physical Panther squad, who due to injuries has been playing shorthanded for about a month now.

The suspension story below.

dyson

Brian Leetch's # 2 became the fifth Rangers number raised to the rafters last night at Madison Square Garden. Arguably the best U.S.-born player in NHL history will have his jersey forever hung with the greats of Ranger and Knick history.

In all of the people he thanked, and there were loads, interestingly Leetch never mentioned Rangers president Glen Sather. Brian clearly is still irritated over how he was traded from the Rangers toward the end of his career, receiving a phone call from Sather in a Boston hotel.


The Connecticut native made three appearances for the US in the Olympic Winter Games, was a 11-time All-Star, two-time winner of the Norris Trophy, captained Team USA to victory in the 1996 World Cup of Hockey and holds 24 NYR records, including goals (240) and points (981) for a defenseman, and career assists (741).

Post Coverage

oh by the way, Rangers hit break on high note, 2-1 in SO

NYG over 'Boys 21-17
Giants stop Romo and TO and advance to the NFC title game and leave Dallas still searching for first playoff win since 1996. Another efficient and mistake free game from Eli and a surprisingly fantastic patchwork defense were barely enough to pull out the win. The sweetest win for Giant fans in roughly 7 years. No love lost in this one, emotions were high before, during and after...(poor Terrell -- popcorn stale buddy?)

Sunday's NFC Championship game against the Packers at Lambeau will start at 6:30.


post coverage


Huskies play well again, cannot pull out win (again)

The pessimist is getting annoyed by the team folding in the last few minutes of winnable games repeatedly. The optimist sees the Huskies about to take a turn and go on a big run. We shall see on Thursday as the try to bounce back at the XL Center against Providence. Saturday's game was the best performance the Huskies have had in nearly two years and there are worse things than having the 7th best team in the country need some shaky officiating and their last possession to beat you.

We'll see where they go from here but the team needs to stop throwing away chances to reestablish themselves back in the national spotlight. A mini home stand this week with the Friars and Marquette is very important. Calhoun will reportedly return to the bench

Courant Georgetown recap

Barber boys now 0-2 with dumb totally unnecessary comments about Manning

The Giants moved to 8-1 away from home with a dominating 24-14 NFC-wild-card playoff victory over the Tampa on Sunday. New York has won every away game since they fell in the season opener in Dallas. Now they get a chance to more than makeup for that loss in a much bigger matchup next Sunday...with the winner going to the NFC title game.

As for Eli's role as the hero, he should enjoy it after the grief he has taken all year. Getting his first playoff win is a big deal and will make Giant fans very happy this Monday, but nothing is forever and next week he might be back to being a "bum" or "never going to be any good" as most would have said about him as late as the start of the 2nd quarter yesterday.

Veteran Amani Toomer probably summed it up best, "Well, you know, it's New York," Toomer said. "He had a great game today, but there hasn't been a lot of time when I've been in New York where they've actually loved the quarterback."

After the 1st quarter the defense became more aggressive and Eli began using all of his weapons in an offense that would yield many positives and most importantly no turnovers. The precise throws to favorite target Toomer and the tandem running of Bradshaw and Jacobs seemed to wear down the Bucs defense, most notably in a game defining drive beginning late in the third and ending 15 plays later with a 4 yard touchdown pass leaving the Giants up 24-7 with just 8 minutes to play. The Giants were nearly flawless in the last 3 quarters winning the turnover battle 3-0 and the score would make the game look a bit closer that it was.

Today redemption is spelled, E-L-I