FlaNative's Blog

Little Leage Championships are back!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!   I watched a regional game on ESPN Saturday night....11 innings between Ohio and Indiana!!  WHAT A GAME!!!  One kid had broken his nose in 4 places the night before on a bad hop while playing 2nd base, had found a face guard to wear the next night, and was out there playing!!  You think a major league player would ever do that??????

The Little League World Series will start this weekend.  The South is represented by a team from Tampa, FL (my hometown). 

If you want to watch REAL baseball and a refreshing look at the youth of today, check out a few games!!!

Seems where there is smoke, there is fire.  Apparently Fox reported the ref already caught made over 130 phone calls, mostly immediately before or after games HE betted on, to another ref!!!!

So, why didn't the NBA do a complete investigation last year?  Were they covering up, knowing there was more than one "rogue" ref?  Do you trust the NBA or the refs??

http://www.foxnews.com/wires/2008Jul14/0,4670,BKNDo
naghyCalls,00.html

Check out the link to the video of the crash Michael McDowell was in during Texas qualifying yesterday (Sat).  Note he WALKED under his own power to the ambulance for the mandatory check up and is racing today!!!   Many safety features in your car today were developed or tested by NASCAR.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XlGlLDaT9l0

Watching Fox 35 this morning while getting ready for work, sports come on.  They show the highlights of the Bucs getting blown out and the Jags losing.  The Fins?  NOTHING!!

Hey Fox...in case you didn't know..the Fins had the best game of all Florida teams Sunday...losing by a FG in overtime!! 

For us TRUE Florida natives, we remember when the Fins were the FIRST and ONLY pro sports team in the state!  We remember Czonka, Kiick, Warfield, the "no name Defense", the undefeated season, the 3 consecutive trips the the Super Bowl (winning 2 of the 3).

Get rid of the bias towards the Bucs and Jags...Florida has 3 NFL teams...and the Fins are the granddaddy of the state!!

The GOOD news about the move to Hendricks for Jr!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Eury Jr. to be crew chief for Earnhardt Jr. at Hendrick Grubb to move into senior leadership position with team By Official Release
September 4, 2007
01:29 PM EDT

CONCORD, N.C. -- When driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. joins Hendrick Motorsports for the 2008 Sprint Cup Series season, Tony Eury Jr. will be his crew chief. Eury, who has been Earnhardt's crew chief for the past two seasons, signed a multi-year agreement with the organization this week.

"Tony Jr. and Dale have a successful history working together," Hendrick said. "They have trust in each other, which is the biggest part of the relationship between driver and crew chief. We have the utmost confidence in their ability to win races and compete for titles at Hendrick Motorsports."

A Kannapolis, N.C., native, Eury will move to Hendrick Motorsports immediately following the current NASCAR season. He will continue the work of Darian Grubb, who will finish the 2007 schedule as crew chief of the No. 25 Chevrolets before moving into a senior competition role with Hendrick Motorsports.

"Dale Jr. and I are both excited to continue working together," said Eury, 34, who has been Earnhardt's crew chief or car chief for the majority of the driver's NASCAR career. "With the resources we'll have at Hendrick Motorsports, it's an opportunity to consistently run up front and be in title contention every year. The goals are winning races and winning championships."

Grubb, 31, who hails from Floyd, Va., will coordinate the at-track engineering efforts of the Earnhardt and Mears teams with emphasis on supporting Eury's transition to Hendrick Motorsports and Mears' switch to the No. 5 Cup Series program.

The personnel moves will give Hendrick Motorsports additional depth with the Earnhardt and Mears teams. Grubb, who earned a championship as an engineer with the No. 48 Chevrolets and has won three times in 29 races as a crew chief, will work hand-in-hand with veteran team manager Brian Whitesell.

"We've asked Darian to shoulder more responsibility and take another step," Hendrick said. "With all the challenges and difficult situations we've thrown his way, he has always proven to be successful. Darian is a star in our organization and his contributions will be vital to our future success.

"This is an extremely talented group we're putting behind Casey and Dale Jr. With the combination of Alan [Gustafson], Tony, Darian and Brian in key leadership positions, we feel strongly that both teams will have the tools to be successful in 2008 and beyond."

Hendrick Motorsports is evaluating alternative numbers for the Earnhardt team, which currently uses the No. 25 on its Chevrolet racecars. A timetable for that announcement has not been set.

Well, looks like it's gonna happen.  Gibbs Racing going to Toyota next year.  Not a big surprise I guess....Chevy's BIG teams are Hendricks, RCR and DEI...Gibbs got the leftovers.  Now, Gibbs goes from a small fish in a big pond the the big fish in a little pond!!

But what about Stewart?  Doesn't he also have a contract with Chevy with commercial endorsements?  Will the fans follow him in a Toyota????  Why has Tony, not known for being shy, been so quiet about this?

Looks pretty much like NASCAR may get its way.  The court has said NASCAR/Nextel/Sprint can prevent Cingular/ATT from changing their logo to the new ATT. 

It's ok for Nextel to change to Sprint, but Cingular can't change to ATT.....

ATLANTA -- A ruling by a federal appeals court cleared the way for NASCAR to prevent AT&T Inc. from featuring its logo on Jeff Burton's No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet.

The 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Monday in its order that San Antonio-based AT&T lacks standing to challenge NASCAR's decision.

The court, therefore, threw out a lower court's ruling that prevented NASCAR from stopping AT&T's plans. The appeals court remanded the case to the U.S. District Court in Atlanta for dismissal.

At issue is AT&T's desire to change the Cingular logo on Burton's car to the AT&T logo. AT&T bought Atlanta-based BellSouth Corp. last year, gaining full control of Cingular and has since rebranded the cell phone provider under the AT&T name.

NASCAR has tried to prevent the Cingular logo from being changed to the AT&T logo on Burton's car because AT&T rival Sprint Nextel Corp. sponsors NASCAR's premier series, the Nextel Cup, and has exclusive rights as the telecommunications company for the series.

Attorneys for NASCAR and Sprint Nextel have argued the only exceptions are companies, including Cingular, that already sponsored cars when Nextel reached its agreement with NASCAR.

"Because Cingular [now AT&T Mobility] was neither a party to nor an intended beneficiary of the [grandfather clause], it has not itself suffered a legally cognizable injury as a result of NASCAR's interpretation," the three-judge panel wrote in its unanimous decision to overturn the May 18 decision of U.S. District Court Judge Marvin Shoob.

Cingular's parent has argued that its rights included changing its brand name to AT&T.

In May, Shoob issued a preliminary injunction barring NASCAR and any entity affiliated with it from interfering with AT&T's rights as primary sponsor of the Burton car in NASCAR Cup Series races.

In his ruling regarding Burton's car, Shoob said, "The court concludes that the continued appearance of the Cingular brand on the No. 31 car, unaccompanied by any indication that Cingular now does business as AT&T, is likely to confuse NASCAR fans."

Shoob also concluded that AT&T has shown it will suffer irreparable harm in the form of loss of goodwill and loss of exclusive rights to renew its sponsorship agreement unless the court issues the injunction.

But the federal appeals court lifted the injunction Monday, saying in part that under Georgia law AT&T was not a third-party beneficiary of an agreement between NASCAR and Richard Childress Racing and, as a result, it lacks standing to challenge NASCAR's interpretation of that agreement.

The case, which includes a $100 million countersuit by NASCAR against AT&T, is still scheduled to go to trial.

These things usually happen during the off-season...  Is DEI (Thresa) finally "getting it"????   A bit too late?  What do you think about Jr and Martin...teammates for the rest of the year!!!!????

Dale Earnhardt Inc. absorbed Ginn Racing, creating a four-car operation that will compete under the DEI banner this weekend at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Effective immediately, DEI drivers Earnhardt Jr. and Martin Truex Jr. will be joined by Mark Martin and Aric Almirola, who will split the remainder of this year in the No. 01 car. DEI driver Paul Menard will inherit the owner points of former Ginn driver Sterling Marlin, whose car was inside the top 35, while the No. 13 formerly piloted by Ginn driver Joe Nemechek will be eliminated.

Ginn also fields late models for Ricky Carmichael, the motocross champion attempting to make the transition to stock cars. NASCAR.COM has learned that Martin will continue to aid Carmichael's development, and that his stock-car schedule will be increased beginning this weekend with events Friday at Orlando, Fla., and Saturday at New Smyrna Beach, Fla. Sponsor Monster Energy will remain on Carmichael's car.

 Although management at DEI will oversee day-to-day activities of the expanded team, the complete ownership hierarchy -- general manager Jay Frye owned a stake in the Ginn team along with Bobby Ginn -- was not explained in Wednesday's release. Executives at Ginn and DEI did not immediately return interview requests. The principals are scheduled to meet with the media Thursday at Indianapolis, site of Sunday's Allstate 400 at the Brickyard.

The merger also makes teammates out of Earnhardt Jr. and Martin, two of the sport's most popular drivers, at least for the remainder of this year.

Seems an NBA ref have been shaving points and betting on NBA games he was officiating!!!   Big surprise!!  Wonder how many more may be caught for the same thing!!

Lets face it...many calls in an NBA game are judgement...and could go either way.  I can see where the ref could control the outcome or point spread of about any game.

Do you think more refs are involved?

Will it stop you from going to NBA games?

July 21, 2007

The reaction from former players and coaches Friday was consistent to the news that former NBA official Tim Donaghy was being investigated by the FBI for allegedly betting on games -- and point-shaving ones that he worked -- over the past two seasons.

It was shock, dismay and sadness.

NBA Commissioner David Stern both confirmed the investigation and identified Donaghy as the subject, vowing to use his power to protect the integrity of his league.

"No amount of effort, time or personnel is being spared to assist in this investigation to bring to justice an individual who has betrayed the most sacred trust in professional sports," Stern said in a statement from his New York office. "And to take the necessary steps to protect against this ever happening again."

The FBI originally notified the NBA about Donaghy's association with gamblers while conducting a separate mob investigation in the New York City area. It first was reported Friday morning in the New York Post.

"There is no more serious offense in professional sports than something like this," said former Magic player Danny Schayes, whose father, Dolph Schayes, is in the Basketball Hall of Fame. "Any relationship to gambling is probably the biggest violation there is. If it's true, there is no wiggle room."

Donaghy, 40, has been in the NBA for 13 seasons, making his offseason home in Bradenton. He worked 74 NBA games last season. He worked seven regular-season games and one playoff game involving the Orlando Magic. Donaghy recently resigned from his position with the NBA.

Magic General Manager Otis Smith and most current league officials declined to comment Friday on anything involving either the league's or the FBI's investigation.

"This [the gambling accusation] is very concerning, very troubling, very sad," said Richie Adubato, former NBA head coach in Detroit, Dallas and Orlando, and a longtime NBA assistant. "An official has the ability to control a game, change the outcome of a game, more so than anyone else. If you're a gambler, it's the easiest way."

The NBA, under Stern's lead, has gone to great lengths to avoid the kind of gambling scandals that have rocked college basketball through the years. The worst came in 1951 and involved several New York area college teams.

In the past 25 years, there have been basketball point-shaving scandals at Boston College, Tulane University, Arizona State and Northwestern, but all involving players. Although there always have been wild conspiracy theories involving the league, its operations and its champions, the NBA has avoided any serious problem with gambling issues until now.

In the past few years, the NBA has increased the scrutiny of its officials, hoping to avoid credibility issues. The NBA assigns an observer to each game specifically to report on officials, who also must file reports with video analysis on every call they have made.

According to a law-enforcement official who spoke with The Associated Press, authorities were examining whether Donaghy made calls to affect the point spread in games on which he or his associates wagered. The official said bets involving thousands of dollars were made on games throughout the past two seasons.

"These are very, very serious allegations because they strike to the heart of everything we do," former NBA standout Bill Walton, now an NBA television analyst, said from Las Vegas on Friday. "A league's most valuable assets are its credibility and integrity."

Just the allegations of point shaving -- although still under investigation -- sent shudders through veteran NBA people.

"If true, this is devastating," said Chuck Daly, former coach at Detroit and Orlando, from his home in South Florida. "It's saddening, also. I was involved in a lot of games over the years, and something like this makes you really think. I'm surprised this could have happened."

There have been no reports of a referee, umpire, linesman or other in-game official ever being arrested or indicted for point shaving or match fixing in the history of the four major American sports leagues. That could change with Donaghy.

"This is huge. It's stunning, and it's sad, if it's all true," former NBA player Dee Brown said. "It paints everyone in a bad light. People already are tired of professional sports. Baseball has steroids. Football has dogfighting. Now basketball has gamblers. Fans are going to turn to hockey, where they just fight. Any way you look at it, it's not good for basketball."

Gambling long has been a problem for sports, and the NBA has spent considerable effort to educate its players each season on the potential pitfalls. Legalized gambling is a big reason why Stern never has embraced the idea of moving an NBA franchise to Las Vegas, although he has softened his stance considerably.

The NBA played its All-Star Game in Las Vegas this past season. And many of the NBA stars are in Las Vegas this weekend, participating in a USA Basketball minicamp. The league also sanctions a Las Vegas summer league.

Stern allowed Las Vegas to submit a proposal for ownership to the Board of Governors meeting in April. Las Vegas Mayor Oscar Goodman told The Associated Press on Friday that the latest gambling revelation possibly could help his city's quest to land an NBA franchise because it monitors potential gambling irregularities.

Stern and the NBA next week are expected to announce new measures to help monitor its officials, trying to recover from this image setback that is sure to linger.

"At the end of the day, this is going to hurt everyone in basketball, at least for the short term," former NBA player Dennis Scott said. "The officials are going to be put under an even stronger magnifying glass now. All those people who always question officials, they'll have even more ammunition now. Everybody gets tainted, and that's not good."

What a finish to the Pepsi 400!!!  A photo finish after 400 miles...plenty of excitment...all of us waiting to see who Kyle Busch would crash into.. :)

My fantasy team didn't do to well...  I had Stewart, a crash that also took out Jr.  I thought Martin would be more of an influence...didn't hear about him all night...

But without a doubt, those last 15 laps were the typical nail-biting, edge of the chair sitting restrictor race!!

What did you think about the Fox coverage with the commercials going on while still showing the race?  Was it annoying or did ya like it?  I'm still not sure, but think overall, the coverage was good.

We see it more and more..those "star" atletics, put on a pedetal though high school and college, falling to drugs.  Too much pressure?  Do they see themselves an invencible?  The "big fish" in the small high school pond becomes "just another fish" in the college pond?  Should we allow the college BIG BUSINESS of football continue to pressure these kids with promises they won't keep?  What type of programs are in big college athletic programs to help these kids adjust?

Especially in basketball...high school players recruited into the pros...given MILLIONS of dollars overnight!!  And we wonder why they often fall to temptation.

Yea...I know...we don't KNOW the cause of death yet...but I'd bet a paycheck it will probably be drug related.  What a waste...

Former University of Florida and Mainland High School cornerback Avery Atkins was found dead at his home this morning, police said.

Atkins, 20, was in his car and could not be revived, despite attempts by EVAC Ambulance paramedics.

"We are investigating it as a supsicious death," Port Orange Sgt. Wayne Dorman said. "In an abundance of caution, we're looking at all angles. It doesn't appear anyone else is involved at this point."

Police are awaiting the results of an autopsy, which is happening today, to determine the cause of death.

Dorman said there were no outward signs of trauma to Atkins' body but would not elaborate on where or in what position he was found in the car.

Dorman said the car was parked in the garage of his Birch Mountain Road home and the garage door was open. He would not say whether the car's engine was running.

Police were notified by a call from a relative at the home, who was the only other person home at the time. The call came in about 8 a.m.

More details are expected to be released later today.

Dorman would not comment on what Atkins might have been doing last night or before he was discovered.

Atkins, an All-American high school player and the centerpiece of Urban Meyer's first recruiting class, has had a string of troubles in the past year.

The Gators agreed to release Atkins from his scholarship on June 29, 2006, granting his request after he became disgruntled.

Just Monday, he was arrested in Ormond Beach on a charge of possessing crack cocaine. It was his third arrest -- and the second for drugs -- in the past three months.