Tag Archives: NIL

Diagnosis: Portal Stress Syndrome

Basketball, , ,

It seemed a fascinating, obviously delusional comment to one of the many articles about Kevin Willard’s Week of Waffling. After it became obvious he was Mainline bound, jumping ship in College Park. (To be replaced with peripatetic Buzz Williams, late of Texas Aggies.)

A number of Terrapin fans weighed in. Invective reigned.

The specific comment was something to the effect of “Maryland has the most dedicated basketball fans of any school in the country.”

Unable to help myself, I immediately replied, “Really? You heard of Kentucky? Kansas? Indiana?” To name but a few.

Some fan bases are bigger. More vocal. Travel better. More obnoxious, if only to their opposites at arch rival.

But fans are fans.

Fan is derived from “fanatic.” Or so I’d surmise.

From the Latin fanaticus. “Mad, enthusiastic, inspired by a god.” At least according to one etymology site. Other “theories.” From the 1520s, “zealous person.” From the 1640s, “a furious person.”

“A fanatic is someone who can’t change his mind and won’t change the subject.” Attributed to Winston Churchill.

You get the point. Continue reading Diagnosis: Portal Stress Syndrome →

Diss & Dat(a): NIL, 5 Rings, Media ++

Media, Olympics

Some curious friends who are not as obsessive as I am often ask me to explain NIL.

Where does the money come from?

How much are the kids getting paid?

How involved are the schools and coaches?

All of which remains somewhat mysterious. Even for those of us trying to stay up to speed.

It would take Endeavour Morse teamed with the Bletchley Circle to truly figure out what’s behind every padlocked door or taped under a drawer somewhere in the Yum!.

A few clues do exist. Such as . . . Continue reading Diss & Dat(a): NIL, 5 Rings, Media ++ →

Seedy K’s Hoopaholic Hiatus Warning

Basketball, College Sports, Football, ,

So, yeah, you loyal readers, especially the ones at the Chron, you won’t have me to kick around for the next couple weeks.

Which one hopes you might have already discerned from the photo up top, an image of you now know where I’ll be if you didn’t already know.

So, say, next Thursday morning at 11:30 when you are at work, or you’re lookin’ for some bloggoid type to vent your spleen toward, I’ll be sipping on a frozen latte, perhaps not being able to wait also savoring a crawfish strudel, and be either at Gentilly Stage listening to the New Orleans Suspects, or in the Blues Tent with Tin Men, or in the Gospel Tent where I often start the Fest, along with more fellow Hebrews than you’d imagine, praying along with Melvin “Maestro” Winfield Jr and The Glory Chorale Community Choir.

Just a way of saying thanks to the Lord for the blessing of JazzFest. This, my 35th.

Maybe at the Lagniappe Stage.

But before I go . . . Continue reading Seedy K’s Hoopaholic Hiatus Warning →

Hump Day Hoedown

Basketball, College Sports, ,

Yeah, that’s what I’m talkin’ about.

My throwback.

If you don’t know which former Cardinal it references, you be in the wrong place. Just sayin’.

If you do, eat your heart out.

I throw it up there, because all signs are pointing to the Cardinal men’s hoops returning to where it once belonged.

It’s going to take awhile. So, be patient.

 * * * * *

My man who is periodically at practice reported in last evening.

FYI, he shall henceforth be known as Gym Eyes. Here anyway. Not sure his bride will find it as cute as I do.

Unfortunately, I was sitting in my car outside the grocery when he rang me up. So I didn’t have paper and pencil in hand to take notes. My memory on the wane, I’ll only be able to talk in generalities.

The big takeaway is that everybody on every drill looked markedly if incrementally improved over GE’s last look see a couple of weeks ago.

The coaching staff is emphasizing conditioning. Drills will be blown dead if players are not going full speed. As happened at least once when Josh Jamieson blew a stop the proceedings of the guys he was working with. I’m advised the team was broken into two groups on Tuesday, the bigs and the perimeters. Continue reading Hump Day Hoedown →

Supremes Skunk NC2A

Sports, ,

We don’t need Matt Damon to demonstrate how much Supreme Court Dude Brett Kavannaugh likes beer.

The future Justice only mentioned it about 173 times during his confirmation hearing.

During which dog and pony show we also learned that he and his pals — Squee, Moose, and PJ — also like college hoops. Kinda anyway.

He made a note on his calendar in March 1982 about the U of L/ Georgetown battle in the Final Four.

“Who won that game anyway?”

Yeah, beer and basketball. It’s a match for many.

Maybe his honor doesn’t remember much about that particular tilt, but it’s obvious from his concurring opinion in “NCAA vs. Alston,” that he’s been paying attention to the grift college sports’ ruling body has been running for a long while.

More about his take in a second. Continue reading Supremes Skunk NC2A →