The Sports Beatdown with Lance Clarke  

We will recap UFC 98 and give our opinions on the results and possible future ramifications that came from the clashes in the cage. Join in to give your opinions on how you percieved the card.

    Control is something we all seek to have over our lives.   We work so hard to have the independence to live as we see fit.  However, as hard as we try to gain control over our selves there are those that work just as hard to take it away.  The hard part is allowing people to think they still have control when really they are merely pawns in a larger game.

 

                We found out early this week that USC head basketball coach Tim Floyd has been accused of giving a middle man $1000.00 to pay off OJ Mayo to come play at USC.  Now obviously there is most likely more money involved in this situation.  That however is not the point of this blog.  The NCAA has become a haven of corruption, not only for the education system but for the high level athletes that participate.  There was a time that achieving a higher education was the goal of most that attended college or university.  Now with bigger dollars available in TV deals the NCAA and colleges do not truly care about providing high level education but about drawing elite athletes to the school to sell tickets and merchandise.  Too often we see college basketball players bolting for greener pastures after one year.  The school gets as much out of them as they can and if they did not make a big enough impact to impress scouts they may hang around for another year. 

 

                From the time that any of these young (usually Black) athletes start to show any promise at any sport the rules start to sway in their favour.  Maybe a coach does not ride them as hard in practice, or they are simply showered in praise.  The focus no longer seems to be on the development of the person but on the athletic prowess.  To many times we see black youth steered into the paths of entertainment or athletics as the only way out of a bad situation.  Now in some cases that may be true.  Talent should never be ignored.   However, in the case of athletes in particular you have to think long term because athletic talent will always fail as time passes on.  This is why focus on the whole being, mind and body must be maintained and not ignored.  We cannot allow our young black athletes to be pigeon holed into a system that seeks to use them and cast them off when they are done.  They promise an education that sometimes people do take advantage of, but there is still that carrot of making it pro and raking in the big money.  The question that a lot of them fail to ask is what’s next.  What do I do with myself when my playing days are over?  What will I do in my late 20’s or early 30’s?  So much time left, but so few options.   I want you to stop and think about the players in the NBA today.  How many of them have graduated from college?   How many of them played more than two years.  When you listen to some of them speak, what crosses your mind?  Money is not everything, and it certainly is not the only thing that makes a person who they are.

 

                Now I live in Canada where we do not have athletic scholarships.  You have to completely earn your way in based on your grades.  You can decide on your own what school to attend based upon their past success in certain sports.  There is no real recruiting or ass kissing.  No false sense of pending glory for those who attend a certain school.  Just hard work and the knowledge that you are working your way to a solid education and future down the line.  On the flipside you have a system that caudles young athlete into a sense control that they really do not have.  Please choose my school we can offer you X, Y, and Z.  Meanwhile another school may offer A, B, C and with the help of school boosters D.  The power to choose is the paramount of control in our lives.  However, isn’t that they way of the devil, giving us choices and allowing the individual to corrupt themselves.  Water always flows faster through the path of least resistance, and people will always flock to the choice that offers the greatest rewards without a second thought.  After the choices are made and the seeds are sewn, the athlete is given the chance to blossom.   When the season is done, they are picked dry and for gotten.  Thanks for your time and good luck to you.

We are living in a time where the first time ever there is a black president, a true role model.  Someone that shows that anything is possible if you put your mind to it, more than just sports and entertainment.  Being able to get the education need to create a brighter future for yourself but for your community as well.  To be a guiding light to show our young people that our communities can be better, stronger and self sufficient, something to be truly proud of in a proud country. 

     

    Control can be too easily given away without a second thought.  Parents today must help balance their children so they are more than a sport, but a contributing member of the community.  If we show our children now that through education we can build a stronger community without relying on guns, and gangs and the like.  How much better would black society be?  We should not allow ourselves to be pigeon holed as just potentially great athletes when we also posses mighty hearts and strong minds.  People such as Barack Obama, Myron Rolle, Kevin Johnson, Cory Booker, are just the few of many who do great things to show the potential our community has if we stay the course.  We must make the hard choices and promote those that make incredible headway with their minds, and not just their bodies.  Being in the world of entertainment is all fine and good, but what does it do for the community.  Everyone cannot be an entertainer or an athlete. We have to show our young people that there is more than that out there.  That’s when we will truly have control over ourselves and community.

 

We are talking NBA action people. Open lines are available to you the listeners to call in and discuss what's on your mind concerning the NBA playoffs. Share your opinions and your passion. Join in on the Sports Beatdown.

Taking a look at the second round series of the NBA playoffs. Lines are going to be open during the Beatdown segment for callers to express their opinions about what they think about each individual series.

WE`RE TALKING HOCKEY PEOPLE! The NHL is embroiled in another sticky situation that they are sure to screw up. Is this power play for the Phoneix Coyotes by the CEO of Research in Motion doomed to fail. We will discuss this and whether or not Bettman should keep his job. We will have open lines to discuss this topic. Feel free to call in and debate the topics.

    Ok I know I was going to write about the NFL draft, like last week, but with mi vida loca (my crazy life for all my non spanish speaking peoples out there), I had to go and get myself sick. Yup I spent the last week and a half fighting a spring cold, which is something I probably hate the most, well maybe getting sick in the summer time is far worse. You know the weather is getting brillant, the sun is shining, but alas, your ass is to sick to sit outside, cause your holed up in bed, with a least two boxes of tissues waiting for the world to end, or a least the damn cold.  On the postive side I did have some fun hitting on a really cute french girl, before I got sick.  I was working a comic convention in T.O. and the cute french girl's booth was right behind mine. Now of course the first day was pretty busy, but every chance I got, I did smile at her. It was better then dude across the way, who wanted to tell her she was cute, so on the next day, mon petite (cute french girl) had her hair in pigtails which made her even cuter, and me being slightly evil, told her that she was cute, and I told her that I dug her accent, like I said, better then dude across the way.  So by the end of the two day event when it was time to clean up and ship out, while I was waiting for the dude I worked with to get the van, I found myself sitting next to the cute french girl, talking, mind you alot got lost in translation but hey it was better then dude across the way, who was to busy cleaning up.
    All right lets move on and talk about the draft, which in some ways was a bit bland and predictable like a Nickleback song, seeing it was no big surpirse that Matt Stafford went first over all, so now we get to see him duke it out with Culpepper for the starting job and wtih Culpepper's track record of late (come on Oakland then Miami?) I don't think it'll be to hard for Stafford to get the nod early in the season, of course I really don't envy Stafford, I mean I would say he has some pretty big shoe's to fill but being a QB in Detroit is like being on the endanger species list. Of cousre I shouldn't talk my team the Bears (don't laugh) started something like 23 QBs while Brett Favre started for Green Bay, ok maybe you can laugh but not hard, now that they got Jay Cutler, ha ha Denver (I'm only kidding...well just a little).
    Now I could keep going down the draft and talk about Sanchez going to New York or Wake Forest's Aaron Curry going to Seattle or Micheal Crabtree getting selected by the 49ers and his bring a carry-on with him, because right now he has more in common with Snoop Dogg and Cypress Hill (hits from bong, pick it, pack it, fire it up...sorry) then say Jerry Rice or yes Terrell Owens, I know TO's got a big mouth, dude still has the skills to pay the bills. Sure he has a lot of honours but isn't he also in the NFL Wellness program and he hasn't caught a ball yet.  Now I rather talk about a kid who looks like he'll have a good solid 15yrs in the big league, Micheal Oher who for me was the feel good moment of the draft, here's a guy with no fixed address, was taken in by a white family, and litereally given a second and he took it and ran with it. In high school they were already comparing him to Orlando Pace. He went to Ole Miss, and contiued to exell, he could've gone pro back in 2008, but withdrew, which was a smart move and now Oher gets drafted by the Ravens were he'll definitly be starting at right tackle, mauling defenders and bodygaurding Joe Falco (he's a monster at 309). The thing that stuck with me about Oher, was when he got interview and with tears running down his face (i'll admit I was a little misty myself) and said he was ready to play like tomorrow, and he stated it didn't matter when he got drafted 1st, 3rd, 7th or by who he was drafted, this kid was just happy to be in the NFL and he is ready to prove his skills and his heart.  So I'm gonna keep an eye on this kid and I hope he'll prove the experts (which he will) wrong who said that he has learning problems and lacks mental awareness.  Kid's got Heart and his a monster.
    Moving on and away from the draft, and talk about MMA, which another sport that I have a passion for.  Now the rumors are swirling around that Anderson Silva, after his lackluster fight againest Thales Leites, is set to rumble with the prettiest man in the UFC, the former 205 champ Forrest Griffin. Now I don't know what was wrong with the Spider with his last fight, was it he diddn't feel challenged or threaten by Leites? or was it Leites kept on doing his best inpression of a spanish soccer player and was flopping all night, (if you don't know much about spanish football, some of the players will just drop on the pitch and roll around in pain, sorry "pain" looking for a yellow card, most of the time there isn't a opposing player near by the fallen "actor" and it seems they get pushed by the wind...ohhh look at me with the proper football terminology).  Maybe Silva moving up to the 205 zone will give him bigger and better challenge, and a banger like Griffin, could give it to him. The one problem I have is I still like to see someone, try and take the middleweight strap from him if his moving on up (to the eastside) for good. I dunno someone like my homeboy GSP who is rumored to be moving up to the middleweights stating its getting hard for him to cut the weight when he defends the 175 belt, and who has Alves nexts but after that (yeah I know I'm looking past Alves, but that whopping GSP layed on Penn its like whoa),  lets see it the pound for pound number 1 vs the pound for pound number 2, Silva vs GSP, sounds good to me.  I am looking forward to the next ppv, with my boy Suger Rashed Evans set to defend the Light Heavyweight title againest Lyoto Machida,  its to bad that Rampage Jackson who originally had the title shot, but due to surgery will have to wait for the winner of this fight, not saying this throwdown won't be a (and to borrow from JR) slobberknocker, with Suger and the Dragon drawing a line in the sand and doing it Queensberry rules. On top of that we'll finally get to see the battle of the Matts, lets hope it won't be like the battle of the Dans, (its a series of old Nike commericals were two guys named Dan who were both  competing in the decathlon at the Olympics, problem was only one made it and he didn't win the gold). Two former welterweight champs Matt Serra and Matt Hughes will have their brawl to settle it all, question is will the winner get another title shot? who knows but if they due heh good luck.  
alright I'm starting to get tired, and my brain is shutting down, so until next time, that's my time

TLT