Rich's Sports Beat

I am a car guy (actually a truck guy, but allow me to make my point). I’m not talking about the cars today. Everything looks the same. You can’t tell a Ford from a Dodge from a Chevrolet. It didn’t used to be that way. Back in the 1960s and into the 1970s, cars were cars. You could tell them apart. That was the muscle car era and everyone was in on the craze. You had to be or you were left in the dust. Now, when I say everyone, I mean the big three. Dodge, Ford, and GM all had cars on the market that were muscle cars. I’m talking about cars that looked fast when they were perfectly still. The speeding tickets were already in the glove compartment. Those cars moved, moved fast, and were headaches for the local law enforcement. I have often stated that had I learned how to drive in one of these cars, and actually owned one, I would have been bad news. I would still be paying off speeding tickets today had I driven one of those muscle cars. In other words, I would have bee...

*Well, if you are going to be wrong, be wrong BIG! I was one of the many who was shocked at the way the Penguins came out and performed in their deciding game seven of the Eastern Conference semi-finals. 10 seconds in, Sidney Crosby takes a boarding call that I question. I have seen much worse not called as a penalty. 30 seconds after that penalty was called, the Canadiens scored a power play goal and the route was on. Too much hockey over the last three years? Players paid a lot of money to perform? Complacency due to the fact they won the Cup last year? The operative word was disappointment across the board. Yes, expectations are high, as they should be. But this team is not going to make is as far as the Final every year. The core is still very young, to be sure, but there is more involved than just having a talented team. The Penguins lacked some toughness this season. Losing defensemen Hal Gill and Rob Scuderi last summer hurt the team. You need defensive defensemen ...

*I was not an athlete growing up. I was not blessed with any natural athletic ability. In hockey terms, I was a mucker and a grinder. I had to work at any sport I participated in. Nothing came easy. Maybe that’s how I have been able to handle all of the adversity thus far in my life. However, since I knew I wasn’t blessed with the ability to take my game to the next level, I accepted what I couldn’t do and just had fun (are you listening, parents?). But, my friends and I, we did it all. Football, baseball, slow pitch softball, basketball, hockey, stickball, wiffle ball, kickball, soccer, golf, bowling, Frisbee, volleyball, It tag, etc. You name it, we did it. We were always busy. I always held my own, in some sports better than others. Mind you, I have been tall for a long time, so my coordination was better for some sports than others. I scored many more points in my driveway playing one and one and two on two than I did for my high school basketball team. But I learned ...

Sports Beat exists due to the fact that I am a sports junkie, for lack of a better term. It began as an avenue to follow the Steelers three years ago for this publication and continues to add some balance for our readers who might end up becoming sick of reading about politics all the time. Today, even women read the sports pages to follow the Steelers and the Penguins, not to mention the young people who participate in sports in high school. While many may choose to watch something on network TV (nothing on anymore that I wish to see, although I am a 24 fan and I like Justified and Rescue Me on FX. I also catch CSI: NY when I can). In the evenings, I am either watching some type of sports programming (except the NBA) or an old(er) movie on one of the movie channels (not HBO and the like). So, Sports Beat is an extension of my love of, and knowledge of, sports. And that is something I do not apologize for. It is who I am and what I do. You name it, I just about follow it to a ...