Thursday, November 13, 2008
Wednesday, October 22, 2008
Clearing the archives -- Pat Tillman (part two)
Much has been written about Pat Tillman since his death. The following articles are not intended to be a comprehensive listing; rather, they form a selection that gives good perspective and provides terrific reading.
First, a basic report from MSNBC immediately following his death. Note that at this time, it was still being reported that he had been killed by enemy fire.
After his funeral, Gwen Knapp of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an interesting article: Challenge yourself.
Tim Layden of SI wrote a tremendous personal essay Remembering Pat Tillman the morning he heard the news that Pat was dead.
Later in 2004, Layden nominated Pat as his sportsman of the year.
In September 2006, SI published Remember His Name by Gary Smith.
The fallen soldier of fortune by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN includes some great insight from Doug Tammaro of ASU's Sports Information Department.
First, a basic report from MSNBC immediately following his death. Note that at this time, it was still being reported that he had been killed by enemy fire.
After his funeral, Gwen Knapp of the San Francisco Chronicle wrote an interesting article: Challenge yourself.
Tillman talked about everything, with everyone. According to the speakers, he had read the Bible, the Koran, the Book of Mormon, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and he underlined passages constantly. Garwood recalled how he'd mail articles to friends, highlighting certain parts and writing in the margins: "Let's discuss."
Tim Layden of SI wrote a tremendous personal essay Remembering Pat Tillman the morning he heard the news that Pat was dead.
A few minutes ago my 12-year-old son walked into my home office to check on me. I turned to him, and all I could think to say was, "Pat Tillman says hello."
Later in 2004, Layden nominated Pat as his sportsman of the year.
And there I sat in my tall chair, spouting off and thinking: Tillman would despise this. He would deplore that television anchors and journalists and politicians are making a fuss over his death or worse yet, using his death to push their own agendas. With each passing live shot, I felt more out of place, more desirous of running and apologizing to Tillman's memory.
In September 2006, SI published Remember His Name by Gary Smith.
Pat just had that way, with colonels and coaches and Nobel Prize winners, too, of slicing through rank and reputation, of turning every encounter into nothing more or less than two human beings talking. Hell, the guy introduced himself to strangers simply as "Pat," and if they asked what he did before strapping it on for Uncle Sam, he'd say he studied some back at Arizona State and quickly ask about them, never mentioning the summa cum laude or the Pac-10 defensive player of the year award, and certainly not the NFL. And still, something about him made you walk away wanting to learn more, laugh more, run more, give more.
The fallen soldier of fortune by Adrian Wojnarowski of ESPN includes some great insight from Doug Tammaro of ASU's Sports Information Department.
In the year since Tillman died during a firefight in Afghanistan, Tammaro has told a thousand stories that have undoubtedly reached millions of people. He's determined to make sure that people know all about the man Tillman was, about all the dimensions of his life and character that went far beyond the headlines and sound bites centered on the million-dollar football player for the Arizona Cardinals who left it all behind in the wake of September 11th to fight for his country.
Friday, October 17, 2008
Clearing the archives -- Pat Tillman (part one)
After Pat Tillman's tragic death, I started linking to some of the better articles that had been published before he died. Of course, many great essays have been written since, but it's important to go back and read what was written while he was still with us.
A cut above was published in SI while Pat was still at ASU.
Privileged to Serve, by Peggy Noonan of the Wall Street Journal, was written after Pat had left the NFL to join the Army.
On March 20, 2003, NFL.com published an article "Tillman follows beat of a different drum" by Tom Barnidge, but this has since been removed from the site (probably just lost in the shuffle, not deliberately deleted). If anyone can find a cached version, please send me the details.
The NFL's Lonely Hero, by Paul Beston, was published in the American Spectator in December 2003. All too prophetically, Beston wrote:
Pat was killed on April 22, 2004.
A cut above was published in SI while Pat was still at ASU.
This season Tillman has become simply the best player in the country who doesn't have his own (fill in the blank: Heisman, Outland, Lombardi, Butkus) campaign, living proof that there is room at the highest level of the game for a guy without much size or blazing speed but with a brain and cojones. "He epitomizes what college football is all about," says Southern Cal offensive coordinator Hue Jackson, who was an assistant at Arizona State during Tillman's first two seasons.
Privileged to Serve, by Peggy Noonan of the Wall Street Journal, was written after Pat had left the NFL to join the Army.
Right now he has 13 weeks of basic training ahead of him, then three weeks of Airborne School, and then, if he makes it, Ranger School, where only about a third of the candidates are accepted. "It's a long row," said the Fort Benning spokesman, who seemed to suggest it would be all right to call again around Christmas. Until then he'll be working hard trying to become what he wants to become.
On March 20, 2003, NFL.com published an article "Tillman follows beat of a different drum" by Tom Barnidge, but this has since been removed from the site (probably just lost in the shuffle, not deliberately deleted). If anyone can find a cached version, please send me the details.
The NFL's Lonely Hero, by Paul Beston, was published in the American Spectator in December 2003. All too prophetically, Beston wrote:
Tillman walked away from a three-year, $3.6 million dollar contract with the Cardinals for an $18,000 salary and plentiful opportunities to get his head shot off. That hasn't happened yet, and God willing it won't. But the pay cut kicked in right away.
Pat was killed on April 22, 2004.
Wednesday, October 15, 2008
Clearing the archives -- Sparky
All ASU fans know about our beloved mascot, Sparky. For younger fans, a brief history can be found at the official site and the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism published a nice article about The real life of Sparky the Sun Devil.
Not all current Sun Devils, however, know that the school was originally known as the Owls, and later the Bulldogs. Only after the Arizona State Teachers College became a four-year school named Arizona State College did the Sun Devils moniker arrive.
By the way, Sparky has his own blog!
Monday, October 13, 2008
Kickoff times for the rest of the season -- Update #4
As expected, ABC selected UCLA @ Cal for their regional telecast on October 25, so the ASU/Oregon game will not be televised and will kickoff at ASU's preferred time of 7pm.
Looking forward through the rest of the schedule, two other games are in jeopardy of not being televised. To recap:
On November 1, the game at Oregon State is already set for 7:15pm on FSN.
Daylight savings time ends on Sunday, November 2.
The Washington game in Seattle on November 8 is unlikely to be televised, because there is only one open slot that day, at 1:30pm on FSN (California at USC has already been selected by ABC for 6pm). Oregon State at UCLA or Stanford at Oregon is the most likey selection. I think UW prefers daytime games so I would assume an early afternoon kickoff.
November 15 has two open timeslots: 1:30pm on ABC or 8:15pm on FSN. I would be shocked if ABC wanted to show Washington State so an early start is unlikely. Since this is the homecoming game, it's possible that kickoff will be late afternoon if not selected for TV, but unlike homecoming games in years past, this game is still listed as TBA on the ASU website.
The UCLA game is already set for ESPN2 at 7:30pm on Friday, November 28 (the day after Thanksgiving).
The contest with Arizona in Tucson will be televised, but the kickoff could be 1pm or 6pm.
Looking forward through the rest of the schedule, two other games are in jeopardy of not being televised. To recap:
On November 1, the game at Oregon State is already set for 7:15pm on FSN.
Daylight savings time ends on Sunday, November 2.
The Washington game in Seattle on November 8 is unlikely to be televised, because there is only one open slot that day, at 1:30pm on FSN (California at USC has already been selected by ABC for 6pm). Oregon State at UCLA or Stanford at Oregon is the most likey selection. I think UW prefers daytime games so I would assume an early afternoon kickoff.
November 15 has two open timeslots: 1:30pm on ABC or 8:15pm on FSN. I would be shocked if ABC wanted to show Washington State so an early start is unlikely. Since this is the homecoming game, it's possible that kickoff will be late afternoon if not selected for TV, but unlike homecoming games in years past, this game is still listed as TBA on the ASU website.
The UCLA game is already set for ESPN2 at 7:30pm on Friday, November 28 (the day after Thanksgiving).
The contest with Arizona in Tucson will be televised, but the kickoff could be 1pm or 6pm.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Clearing the archives -- the Dirk Koetter years
The Archives page will soon be gone. Today's recap starts with the announcement from November 15, 2000 that Bruce Snyder had been fired. Two weeks later, Dirk Koetter was introduced as the new head coach.
I think it's fair to say that the consensus option of Sun Devil nation at the time is that Snyder had to go. It was obvious that he had failed to keep the momentum of the 1996 season (and a pretty good 1997 season) going, and it was hard to present a solid case for his retention.
Meanwhile, Dirk Koetter was received with cautious optimism. Remember, we whisked him away from Oklahoma State at the last minute; he was certainly a hot commodity that winter. However, two red flags went up early following his hire: first, the announcement that he planned to retain the 4-2-5 defense he had used at Boise State; and second, when we saw photos of his coaching staff and realized just how young they all looked.
One thing was certain, however: Koetter was a much better selection than John Mackovic, who the Rats introduced as their new head coach at around the same time. In January, 2001, Rob Miech of SportsLine.com wrote a good piece on the challenges facing both men: Arizona schools' new coaches hope to beat heat in desert.
I think it's fair to say that the consensus option of Sun Devil nation at the time is that Snyder had to go. It was obvious that he had failed to keep the momentum of the 1996 season (and a pretty good 1997 season) going, and it was hard to present a solid case for his retention.Meanwhile, Dirk Koetter was received with cautious optimism. Remember, we whisked him away from Oklahoma State at the last minute; he was certainly a hot commodity that winter. However, two red flags went up early following his hire: first, the announcement that he planned to retain the 4-2-5 defense he had used at Boise State; and second, when we saw photos of his coaching staff and realized just how young they all looked.
One thing was certain, however: Koetter was a much better selection than John Mackovic, who the Rats introduced as their new head coach at around the same time. In January, 2001, Rob Miech of SportsLine.com wrote a good piece on the challenges facing both men: Arizona schools' new coaches hope to beat heat in desert.
"As I told people when I took the job, my number-one objective is to go and win the Rose Bowl," Mackovic said. "It has to be. If it isn't, I shouldn't be here. No one should be here. It can't be any less, because we haven't done it. It's like scaling Mount Everest. It's there, and you have to do it."Of course, things never did work out for Dirk in the desert, and six years of mediocrity later (was it really six years?) he was fired, to be replaced by his polar opposite, Dennis Erickson. The best summary of Erickson is Portrait of a winner, written by Jim Meehan of the Spokesman-Review in August, 2006, while Erickson was at Idaho. At the time of writing, the jury is out.
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Clearing the archives -- selling out
The ongoing project to transfer the contents of the Archives to this blog continues...
You'll notice that a lot of the articles come from the New Times. Two primary reasons for this: the New Times has an extensive online history for free; and when they do cover ASU athletics, they tend to do so in depth.
Anyway, two articles today from the late 90's, both of which are still highly relevant.
In March 1998, John Dougherty's article ASU plays footsie with Nike detailed then-AD Kevin White's attempt to secure a $5 million per year deal with Nike. Funny, but 10 years later it's obvious that ASU is not one of Nike's "featured" schools. I can buy an FSU, Texas or UNC cap here in PA, but no sign of ASU merchandise.
In The Selling of ASU Football from September 1998, Dougherty reported on the commercialization of the gameday experience.
Two years later, ASU was forced to announce that they were reducing the number of in-game commercial announcements.
You'll notice that a lot of the articles come from the New Times. Two primary reasons for this: the New Times has an extensive online history for free; and when they do cover ASU athletics, they tend to do so in depth.
Anyway, two articles today from the late 90's, both of which are still highly relevant.
In March 1998, John Dougherty's article ASU plays footsie with Nike detailed then-AD Kevin White's attempt to secure a $5 million per year deal with Nike. Funny, but 10 years later it's obvious that ASU is not one of Nike's "featured" schools. I can buy an FSU, Texas or UNC cap here in PA, but no sign of ASU merchandise.
In The Selling of ASU Football from September 1998, Dougherty reported on the commercialization of the gameday experience.
The real battle during ASU home football games pits fans against a high-tech marketing machine that employs a distracting array of audio, video, live stunts and bright signage to hammer commercial messages into a captive audience.
No matter how the game unfolds, no matter the situation on the field, Sun Devil fans face a fusillade of advertisements. The ads divert attention from the field and refocus the "market" on products and corporations being hawked.
Two years later, ASU was forced to announce that they were reducing the number of in-game commercial announcements.
Monday, September 29, 2008
Kickoff times for the rest of the season -- Update #3
Updated 9/29/08: as predicted, the ASU @ USC game on October 11 has been selected by ABC for the 12:30pm timeslot. As with the Cal game this coming week, this will be a regional telecast. If you live outside the far West, you'll need to sign up for ESPN Gameplan ($22 for the day) or head to a sports bar.
The next game with a kickoff TBD is Oregon on October 25 at Sun Devil Stadium. Expect an announcement on October 13. The only open slot that day is the 12:30 ABC telecast, and the only other possibility for that time is UCLA at Cal, so the game this week in Berkley will probably have a major influence. If the Oregon game is not picked by ABC, expect a 7pm kickoff with no live TV coverage.
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Updated 9/22/08: the ASU @ Cal game has been picked up by ABC with a 12:30pm kickoff. This is a regional telecast, and given how poor the Pac-10 is doing this season you can be sure it will be shown in the Pac-10 region and maybe a few other western states only. For those of us outside that area, you'll need to sign up for ESPN Gameplan ($22 for the day) or head to a sports bar.
The USC game on October 11 is still TBD, with an announcement to be made on Monday, September 29 or Sunday October 5 if ABC uses one of its 6-day selections. ABC's other options that day are:
ARIZONA at STANFORD
UCLA at OREGON
WASHINGTON STATE at OREGON STATE
This is a pretty sorry slate of games, so I think it's likely that ABC will select the ASU/USC game, but no guarantees!
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Numerous posts are starting to show up on various message boards asking when certain games will kickoff. Keep in mind that apart from a few games that are selected before the start of the season, most weeks' games are not selected for TV until 12 days prior to gameday. Twice per season, ABC is allowed to wait until 6 days to announce their picks.
Three invaluable resources are the full Pac-10 schedule, the Pac-10 TV schedule, and Matt Sarzyniak's excellent listing site.
The most important thing to keep in mind is that if you are planning to travel to a game, kickoff could be as early as 12:30pm or as late as 8pm, so keep your plans flexible. Typically if a home game is not selected for TV, it will kickoff at 7pm.
Here's what we already know about the 2008 season:
The first three games (NAU, Stanford and UNLV) were not selected for network TV and are being shown by FSN Arizona with a 7pm kickoff.
The Georgia game was selected by ABC prior to the start of the season with a 5pm kickoff.
The three big October matchups are all TBA:
The October 4 game at Cal is likely to be televised, and would kickoff at either 12:30pm on ABC or 4:30pm on Versus.
The October 11 contest at USC is also likely to be televised at either 12:30pm on ABC or 7:15pm on FSN. Remember, ABC cannot show USC every week (it just seems that way!).
The only open TV slot for the Oregon game on October 25 is 12:30pm on ABC, but UCLA @ Cal is also a candidate for that window. If the game is not picked by ABC, I assume ASU would schedule it for 7pm.
On November 1, the game at Oregon State is already set for 7:15pm on FSN.
Daylight savings time ends on Sunday, November 2.
If Washington keeps losing, the game in Seattle on November 8 is unlikely to be televised, because there is only one open slot that day, at 1:30pm on ABC. I think UW prefers daytime games so I would assume an early afternoon kickoff.
November 15 has two open timeslots: 1:30pm on ABC or 8:15pm on FSN. I would be surprised if ABC wanted to show Washington State so the early start is unlikely. Since this is the homecoming game, it's possible that kickoff will be late afternoon if not selected for TV, but unlike homecoming games in years past, this game is officially listed as TBA on the ASU website.
The UCLA game is already set for ESPN2 at 7:30pm on Friday, November 28 (the day after Thanksgiving).
The contest with Arizona in Tucson will be televised, but the kickoff could be 1pm or 6pm.
The next game with a kickoff TBD is Oregon on October 25 at Sun Devil Stadium. Expect an announcement on October 13. The only open slot that day is the 12:30 ABC telecast, and the only other possibility for that time is UCLA at Cal, so the game this week in Berkley will probably have a major influence. If the Oregon game is not picked by ABC, expect a 7pm kickoff with no live TV coverage.
------------------
Updated 9/22/08: the ASU @ Cal game has been picked up by ABC with a 12:30pm kickoff. This is a regional telecast, and given how poor the Pac-10 is doing this season you can be sure it will be shown in the Pac-10 region and maybe a few other western states only. For those of us outside that area, you'll need to sign up for ESPN Gameplan ($22 for the day) or head to a sports bar.
The USC game on October 11 is still TBD, with an announcement to be made on Monday, September 29 or Sunday October 5 if ABC uses one of its 6-day selections. ABC's other options that day are:
ARIZONA at STANFORD
UCLA at OREGON
WASHINGTON STATE at OREGON STATE
This is a pretty sorry slate of games, so I think it's likely that ABC will select the ASU/USC game, but no guarantees!
------------------
Numerous posts are starting to show up on various message boards asking when certain games will kickoff. Keep in mind that apart from a few games that are selected before the start of the season, most weeks' games are not selected for TV until 12 days prior to gameday. Twice per season, ABC is allowed to wait until 6 days to announce their picks.
Three invaluable resources are the full Pac-10 schedule, the Pac-10 TV schedule, and Matt Sarzyniak's excellent listing site.
The most important thing to keep in mind is that if you are planning to travel to a game, kickoff could be as early as 12:30pm or as late as 8pm, so keep your plans flexible. Typically if a home game is not selected for TV, it will kickoff at 7pm.
Here's what we already know about the 2008 season:
The first three games (NAU, Stanford and UNLV) were not selected for network TV and are being shown by FSN Arizona with a 7pm kickoff.
The Georgia game was selected by ABC prior to the start of the season with a 5pm kickoff.
The three big October matchups are all TBA:
The October 4 game at Cal is likely to be televised, and would kickoff at either 12:30pm on ABC or 4:30pm on Versus.
The October 11 contest at USC is also likely to be televised at either 12:30pm on ABC or 7:15pm on FSN. Remember, ABC cannot show USC every week (it just seems that way!).
The only open TV slot for the Oregon game on October 25 is 12:30pm on ABC, but UCLA @ Cal is also a candidate for that window. If the game is not picked by ABC, I assume ASU would schedule it for 7pm.
On November 1, the game at Oregon State is already set for 7:15pm on FSN.
Daylight savings time ends on Sunday, November 2.
If Washington keeps losing, the game in Seattle on November 8 is unlikely to be televised, because there is only one open slot that day, at 1:30pm on ABC. I think UW prefers daytime games so I would assume an early afternoon kickoff.
November 15 has two open timeslots: 1:30pm on ABC or 8:15pm on FSN. I would be surprised if ABC wanted to show Washington State so the early start is unlikely. Since this is the homecoming game, it's possible that kickoff will be late afternoon if not selected for TV, but unlike homecoming games in years past, this game is officially listed as TBA on the ASU website.
The UCLA game is already set for ESPN2 at 7:30pm on Friday, November 28 (the day after Thanksgiving).
The contest with Arizona in Tucson will be televised, but the kickoff could be 1pm or 6pm.
Thursday, September 25, 2008
The greatest of the great, redux
18 months ago, I started a project to name the All-time ASU football team. I received some great feedback from fans, and got in touch with some past players who provided invaluable insight. The project stalled for two reasons: mostly, I got distracted by work, but also, the selections proved far more difficult than I ever anticipated.
I don't want to quit, so the project is back on my front burner. But I need assistance.
First, a recap of the rules (which I set for myself): most importantly, this will be a true team, with the right number of players at each position. That means one halfback and one fullback for example. I'm not going to cheat like the NFL did when they named four quarterbacks to their 75th Anniversay All-Time team. This defeats the entire purpose: it's easy to say that Baugh, Graham, Unitas and Montana were all great; it's a lot harder to say which of them was the very best.
Players will be evaluated based on their college career, not their pro performance, and extended careers will carry more weight. So while Derrick Rodgers' performance in '96 was one of the great single seasons in Sun Devil history, it's not enough for him to make the team. Players will be judged at the position they played in college, not the pros, so Darren Woodson will have to make it as an OLB, not a SS. Football performance will also outweigh off-field contributions or all-around popularity, so while Pat Tillman was without doubt one of the greatest men ever to wear a Sun Devil uniform, he wasn't necessarily one of the two best OLBs in ASU history.
Realistically, only players from the WAC era and beyond will be considered (that's 1962 onwards). It is almost impossible to fairly evaluate players from the Border Conference days, although please let me know if you feel strongly about anyone excluded.
Some positions are relatively simple; others are very difficult. I already named the two cornerbacks: Mike Haynes and Eric Allen. Just 20 more to go. Please send me an e-mail with your suggestions or post comments to this article.
I don't want to quit, so the project is back on my front burner. But I need assistance.
First, a recap of the rules (which I set for myself): most importantly, this will be a true team, with the right number of players at each position. That means one halfback and one fullback for example. I'm not going to cheat like the NFL did when they named four quarterbacks to their 75th Anniversay All-Time team. This defeats the entire purpose: it's easy to say that Baugh, Graham, Unitas and Montana were all great; it's a lot harder to say which of them was the very best.Players will be evaluated based on their college career, not their pro performance, and extended careers will carry more weight. So while Derrick Rodgers' performance in '96 was one of the great single seasons in Sun Devil history, it's not enough for him to make the team. Players will be judged at the position they played in college, not the pros, so Darren Woodson will have to make it as an OLB, not a SS. Football performance will also outweigh off-field contributions or all-around popularity, so while Pat Tillman was without doubt one of the greatest men ever to wear a Sun Devil uniform, he wasn't necessarily one of the two best OLBs in ASU history.
Realistically, only players from the WAC era and beyond will be considered (that's 1962 onwards). It is almost impossible to fairly evaluate players from the Border Conference days, although please let me know if you feel strongly about anyone excluded.
Some positions are relatively simple; others are very difficult. I already named the two cornerbacks: Mike Haynes and Eric Allen. Just 20 more to go. Please send me an e-mail with your suggestions or post comments to this article.
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