I’ve followed sports for as long as I’ve known what sports are.
From football to baseball to basketball, I’ve covered events as a professional and watched countless hours of games on television. Yet, even with all this experience there are still some sports-related things which make no sense to me. Try as I might, I can’t figure them out. Please let me know if you can give me insight into any of the following:
•why professional athletes who make millions of dollars no longer have a dime to their name. It’s hard for the average working man and working woman who live paycheck to paycheck to have much sympathy.
•fantasy football leagues.
•those who sit for hours playing sports-related video games.
•why “big-time” college football refuses to have a full blown playoff system. It can work folks. It does work. I was watching college football playoffs Saturday. It was a great game between Georgia Southern and Old Dominion. Playoffs. One team wins and advances. What a concept.
•why people who sit in the stands at a game think they know more than the coach of the team. Please. You’re embarrassing yourself.
•why people harass the officials, until they make a call which favors their team and then the fan says “great call!”
•why Notre Dame can not play in a conference and therefore not play in a conference championship game and be rewarded for it.
•why no big time college has tried to hire Mount Union football coach Larry Kehres. Look up his coaching record. It’s mind boggling.
•why the Georgia High School Association insists on playing state championship football games in the Georgia Dome. It used to be the semifinals but now it’s the state championship games. I may be in the minority in this thinking, but the more than half-empty dome kills the great atmosphere.
•why former Tennessee football coach Phillip Fulmer can’t find a new program to direct.
•why we have so many NFL preseason games.
•why people complain about unions when it comes to workers who make $50,000 but have no problem with millionaire athletes going on strike in an effort to get more pay and benefits.
•why layups and dunks in basketball are not worth just one point. If you are awarded three points for a long-range attempt, why not one for the tries up close?
•why the NFL, with all its billions in revenue, isn’t a little more concerned with what has become of its players from past decades.
•why college football coaches can’t simply say, “I’m happy with my job now, but if a better situation comes along for me, my coaches and my family, then I will have to consider it.” Wouldn’t that be better than, “I have not been contacted by anyone” or “I have no interest in any other job” five minutes before leaving for another job.
•why some people get so mad at something they read in the paper. While some cost more, this one costs a whopping 50 cents. Nothing you pay 50 cents for should get you so upset.
Chris Bridges is sports editor of the Barrow Journal. You can reach him at cbridges@barrowjournal.com.
