NCAA's New 5-Year Rule; NBA Draft Notes; Giant Stench; Mr. Personality; MAWA Court
In recent years we've seen a new phenomenon emerge in college football and basketball--the seven year player. Used to be, you'd have four years to participate in your sport, or perhaps five if you were red-shirted or had a season-ending injury. But the recent rule changes allowing athletes to play up to four games without losing a year, a variety of waivers issued for injuries or coaching changes, and the NCAA's grant of an additional "COVID Year" and then a blanket waiver f
Gary Cavalli
6 days ago
A Giant Mess; A Big Warriors' Pick; A Lost War
The San Francisco Giants continue to struggle mightily. They find myriad ways to lose games--bullpen failures, bad baserunning, sloppy fielding, inconsistent hitting. At 31-46, the Giants are competing with the Colorado Rockies, LA Angels and Kansas City Royals for the designation as the worst team in baseball. They just got swept by the Miami Marlins, displaying the usual unforced errors and in the process wasting another terrific performance by Logan Webb, whose 4-5 record
Gary Cavalli
Jun 22
Brunson's Brilliance; The Big Quarterback Gamble
Some guys just know how to win. Guys like Bill Russell. Michael Jordan. Tim Duncan. Kobe Bryant. Steph Curry. And Jalen Brunson. A man who has won championships at every level--an Illinois state championship in high school, a USA Basketball Under 19 World Cup, two NCAA titles at Villanova, and now the NBA crown. Brunson steered the New York Knicks to the second round of the playoffs in his first two seasons and a conference finals last year. Saturday night he carried the Kni
Gary Cavalli
Jun 15
How to "Save" College Sports; Bay Area World Cup Bust? Stanford Women Rebound
We hear a lot of talk these days about how the wild spending on NIL payouts and transfers in college sports is "unsustainable," and how the federal government must do something to "save" Olympic and women's sports. So we've had presidential commissions, round tables, executive orders, and now federal legislation to address this "crisis." The Protect College Sports Act recently introduced in the Senate would allow the NCAA to limit transfers and eligibility, cap spending on at
Gary Cavalli
Jun 8
Spurs' Stanford Connection; NFL's Sunday Erosion; SEC Cupcakes; Quote of the Week
The NBA Western Conference Finals between the Spurs and Thunder was one of the most memorable and enjoyable series in recent league history. One of the interesting aspects was the presence of former Stanford point guard Mitch Johnson as the head coach of the Spurs. At age 39, Johnson has seemingly won the lottery. He succeeded one of the greatest coaches ever to work the NBA sidelines, Gregg Popovich, after serving as Pop's assistant for six years and previously winning the G
Gary Cavalli
Jun 1
The NBA's Vanishing Breed; All-Freshman Lottery? Gambling's Growing Influence
Other than the repulsive gambling promotions (see below), the NBA's Western Conference Finals have been enormously entertaining. The quality of play by both the Thunder and Spurs is, to put it simply, amazing. And the fact that both teams are led by a foreign-born superstar is a reminder of how the league is now being dominated by players from other countries, and how there is a real shortage of American born white stars. The general consensus is that the four best players in
Gary Cavalli
May 25
Cal Icon Passes; Fox Pushes 24; NFL's Traveling Circus; Stanford's Friday Night Blight; Okorie Going Pro
Cal football legend Craig Morton passed away last week at the age of 83. Morton was an All-American quarterback at Cal, first round NFL draft pick, 18-year NFL veteran, and the first quarterback to lead two different teams to the Super Bowl (a feat later accomplished by Kurt Warner, Peyton Manning and Tom Brady). Morton came to Cal after being a three-sport star in football, baseball and basketball at Campbell High School in the South Bay. During his career in Berkeley, he pa
Gary Cavalli
May 18
The Expansion Nobody Wanted; CFP to 24? Warriors' Awful Annnouncing; Stanford's Big Loss
Bigger isn't necessarily better. Case in point: March Madness. A few days ago the NCAA approved an expansion of its Men's and Women's Basketball Championships to 76 teams. Nobody other than a few committee members, athletic directors and conference commissioners thinks this is a good idea. So we'll now have 12 "play-in," first round games to reach the optimum 64-team bracket. How silly. How absurd. You might say, a different kind of "Madness." I'm not the only one who think
Gary Cavalli
May 11
Short Takes: Giant Disappointment; 49ers' Draft Woes; Needless Expansion; LIV Dying; Stanford Exodus; TV Time; Quote of Note
The San Francisco Giants are borderline unwatchable. They're the lowest scoring team in baseball. Shut out seven times in their first 32 games. Fewest home runs and lowest number of walks and steals in the majors. Lots and lots of strikeouts chasing pitches out of the strike zone. And blown ninth inning leads. Their prized acquisitions, Rafael Devers (above) and Willy Adames, continue to underperform, both hovering near .200. The Giants will be paying Devers around $30M per y
Gary Cavalli
May 4
Cal, Stanford Go 1-2 in NFL Draft; Home Schedules for Bears, Cardinal; Kuminga Revisited
It got little attention from the national and local media, but two Bay Area college alums were the first two players selected in last week's NFL Draft. Former Cal quarterback Fernando Mendoza went No. 1 overall to the Las Vegas Raiders. And former Stanford edge rusher David Bailey was the next player selected, going No. 2 to the New York Jets. Of course, they weren't picked on the basis of their performances in Cal and Stanford uniforms. No, while they played well during thei
Gary Cavalli
Apr 27
