So let me ask you this question: how many times have you found yourself watching a football game thinking to yourself, could (insert coach’s name here) possibly manage the clock any worse than he just did? I’m no stranger to coaches mismanaging the clock late in games or during the closing minutes of the half, but sometimes there are cases where football coaches display such atrocious clock management (cough, Herm Edwards, Norv Turner) that it’s nearly inconceivable that aforementioned coach even knew how much time he had left.

Now let me preface this by saying that most coaches manage the clock correctly most of the time, either giving themselves as much time as possible to score or the opposing team as little time to score. However, it seems like, at least once a week, one coach makes a major blunder during a critical time in the game. And can I please be the first one to say; adept clock management really isn’t that difficult. Especially when you consider all the other immensely more difficult things that head coaches deal with on a daily basis, clock management really shouldn’t be a problem. And despite my consternation, coaches continue to make simple mistakes with major consequences.

For example, this past Saturday night, the Washington Huskies traveled to Tempe, Arizona to play the Arizona State Sun Devils in a very important Pac 10 matchup. With 1:17 to play in the 4th quarter and a 17-17 tie, Washington returned the ball to it’s own 10 yard-line. With 1:17 in the game, ASU had just one time out to spend, while Washington had two. Now, most coaches and most quarterbacks would be content to simply run out the clock and go to overtime. But not Washington coach Steve Sarkisian and his phenomenal quarterback, Jake Locker. Two weeks ago Sarkisian and Locker orchestrated an incredible 53-yard drive with 51 seconds left in the first half of their previous game at Notre Dame, completing 3 passes for 58 yards (5-yard penalty) in under a minute to set up a 40 yard field goal to take the lead at half time. Knowing this, Husky fans were shocked and upset when Sarkisian called running plays on first and second down. The Huskies then lined up for a 3rd and 1 play with 0:27 left in the game… And promptly threw the ball down field. The clock stopped with 22 seconds left to play and Washington still had two timeouts.

They punted the ball away to ASU who returned the ball to midfield with 13 seconds left in the game. On the next play, due to poor play-calling and severely blown coverage, the Sun Devils threw a 50-yard touchdown pass to win the game. Defensive mishaps aside, this loss can be put squarely on the shoulders of the Washington play-caller, Steve Sarkisian. Now, so far, the young former USC coordinator has done an excellent job at Washington, but his clock management late in this game was nothing short of appalling. In my mind, he has one decision to make: attempt to win the game with the time remaining or run the clock out and head to overtime. Sarkisian seemingly attempted to do both. And in the end, his Washington Huskies ended the game with neither.

But Steve Sarkisian isn’t the only coach who potentially cost his team the game in the past weeks. If you were lucky enough to tune into the incredible Monday Night showdown between the Miami Dolphins and the Indianapolis Colts two weeks ago, you would have witnessed an even worse display of clock management by Dolphins coach Tony Sparano.

With over three minutes left in the game, the Dolphins trailed the Colts by a score of 27-23. In other words, the Dolphins have three minutes and three chances to stop the clock (two minute warning and two timeouts) in order to reach the end zone. The Dolphins started the drive (from their own 20-yard line) by calling two running plays to Ronnie Brown. This may have been salvageable, but the offense was so slow that after two running plays and calling a time out they had reached the two-minute warning. How in the name of Don Shula is that humanly possible? Here’s how. After Ronnie Brown’s first run, a gain of one yard, Sparano waited almost 45 seconds to call the timeout, just to save his offense from taking a delay of game penalty. Can you believe that? The Dolphins are down by 4 points with less than 3 minutes in the game and they spend 45 seconds doing absolutely nothing?!

But again there’s 2:26 left in the game and the Dolphins still have a time out and the two-minute warning. Plenty of teams have gone 80 yards in 2 minutes. In fact two of Peyton Manning’s touchdown drives went 80 yards in less than 2 minutes for touchdowns. This should all lead you to believe that the Dolphins should still have plenty of time to score. Until Sparano calls another running play that develops so slowly that it takes the Dolphins all the way down to the two-minute warning. I kid you not, the Dolphins managed to call two plays and a time-out in 1:13.  Now I think you know where this is going. After the two-minute warning, Sparano finally decides, hey, maybe throwing the ball is a good idea… But unfortunately for Dolphins fans who had a legitimate shot to win this game, the Dolphins had already lost this game. After gaining 46 yards and a devastating sack by Robert Mathis, the Dolphins finally run out of time and attempt one desperate throw to the end zone, which is subsequently picked off by Antoine Bethea.

This very evening, (editors note: there was a delay in the posting of this article) Norv Turner continued his tradition of what I like to call, “The Norv Turner School of Clock Management”. Truthfully, I didn’t coin this phrase, but it is most certainly an excellent one. With 1:59 left in the fourth quarter, losing by 11 points, the San Diego Chargers had the ball on the Denver Broncos 26-yard line. Philip Rivers had just completed a first down pass to Antonio Gates and I was pleading with Turner to have Rivers hurry to the line, spike the football and have Nate Kaeding, the most accurate kicker in NFL history as of tonight, kick a 43 yard field goal.

Now I understand the Chargers are trailing by two scores and need an onside kick recovery to even have a chance, but regardless of the situation, as a head coach you are supposed to give your team the best chance possible to win the football game. Down by just two scores, (touchdown, successful two point conversion, and a field goal) Turner’s best option with the limited time that he had would have been to, after spiking the ball on first down, take two shots to the end zone and, if unsuccessful, kick the 43 yard field goal. Then with just more than a minute and a half left in the game attempt an onside kick and score a touchdown. My logic for this argument is this: as it stands, you are already in field goal range, so kicking a field goal now takes no extra time off the clock. If you instead decide to attempt to move the ball further downfield, it will take time off the clock, but even worse puts you in danger of being sacked or caught in bounds. Taking two shots at the end zone and then kicking the field goal at this moment would have allowed the Chargers to save their remaining time out in case they needed it after recovering the onside kick and would be the most time-efficient strategy. Perhaps most convincing is that a 43-yard field goal is basically automatic for Nate Kaeding who, as I mentioned earlier, just passed Mike Vanderjagt as the most accurate kicker of all time. Instead, Turner decided to keep his offense on the field, and in doing so lost 45 seconds of precious time and 11 yards after succumbing  to Denver pressure and taking a sack. Kaeding then missed the 55-yard field goal.

Again, I understand that the Chargers had little hope of winning this game, but like I said, a coach’s job is to put his team in the best situation to win the game and in my eyes, Norv Turner, much like Steve Sarkisian, and especially Tony Sparano did not do that.

My solution? NFL coaches should play Madden. I’m dead serious about this. I know I’m not the only person saying this too. I love the game of football. I’ve watched more football in the past five years than just about anyone I know. But my intricate knowledge of clock management comes almost solely from the game of Madden. I can’t fathom how many games of Madden I’ve played in my life (the true number being slightly too telling of my sad lifestyle) but what I’ve learned by putting myself and my opponent in countless late game situations is that clock management isn’t that hard to figure out. It just takes a little practice. And where better to do it than inside the friendly confines of EA Sports where the worst that can happen is a painful punch to the kidneys from a friend after a thrilling victory due to excellent clock management?

For Pitino, his brief relationship with Sypher also carries added ramifications. As a future Hall of Fame Division I college basketball coach, Pitino has an ethical responsibility to lead by example. 6 years ago he did his family, his faith, and his University a disservice by straying from his values. Pitino’s “indiscretion” is the latest of a worrying number of related cases and raises questions for not only the Louisville coach, but also for athletes nationwide. First, what affect will this have on Pitino’s reputation as both a coach and a person? Earlier today, the PTI crew made a very good point when discussing this very question. As notable sports figures face similar problems at an increasing rate, the follies of one man begin to fade as new stories are revealed. For example, just a few years ago Kobe Bryant looked like he would leave Los Angeles as a disgraced hero. Shortly after winning three NBA Championships with the Lakers, Kobe was nearly exiled from the city that once adored him. His self-defeating behaviorbincluded driving both Shaq and Phil Jackson from LA, before subsequently demanding a trade and creating a massive off-the-court distraction with his rape trial. Today, one NBA championship later, Kobe is once again the golden boy of Los Angeles. Should Pitino make a National Championship run this upcoming season he may similarly rehabilitate himself with a fan base that he has misled.

Second, what can be attributed to the spate of accusations of sexual transgressions amongst major sports stars? Is it an issue of over-confident, ego-inflated chauvinists? Or are women targeting athletes at an ever-growing rate, pining for both the large cash influx that often results from settlement and a spot in the limelight? Or are the misdeeds of athletes merely a high profile reflection of societies dwindling moral attitude towards honesty in human relationships?

In all likelihood, each of these factors may contribute to the problem at hand. But ultimately, men like Rick Pitino and superstars like Kobe Bryant and Steve McNair need to step up and deal with adversity – with honesty. As Pitino preaches to his players every week, a mistake that is solved honestly and with integrity becomes a part of your past. Maybe if Pitino had followed his advice six years ago, this “indiscretion” wouldn’t be a part of his future.

Upon Forcier’s departure from UCLA, he created a very unique press release to “make it clear” on why he left UCLA. As you’ll read, the press release exhibits an angry, petulant tone that can be compared to an uncomfortable scene at an office, after someone gets fired. In the latter part of the release he starts every statement with ‘Fact:’ and then proceeds to list his vast, if not arbitrary, credentials. You’ll also notice that Forcier even misspelled Furman on the last point, a possible sign that the document was created out of haste and primal bitterness. Don’t get me wrong, I think Forcier was definitely snubbed in his brief UCLA career. However, he clearly bypassed the high road to make a very immature exit.

Curiously, Forcier was interviewed on the Dan Patrick Show, where Dan Patrick, a former ESPN reporter, questioned Forcier about the document. In this segment, Forcier seemed very calm and passive about the way things transpired at UCLA. It was clear that it wasn’t even passive-agressiveness. Forcier was legitimately happy with how Neuheisel helped him seek greener pastures. So why then, Chris, did you release such a clearly bitter statement to the press? I find it hard to believe that you actually feel no contempt for those at UCLA, including Rick Neuhisel, who never gave you a chance to win the job. I feel the press release was created and released out of initial frustration at the school, and once it was written and published, you realized how immature of an action it was. You then chose to disguise your petulance as merely being informative. Unfortunately we are smarter than that.

The Forcier family’s website was also posted on the release. It is bizzare. This shows why Chris exhibited such a sense of entitlement in the release. Just something to check out.

Really, it wasn’t unexpected. I mean, I had read yesterday morning that they were probably going with Sanchez, so it wasn’t a shock or anything. But I immediately thought, “Really Huntington? Wrong time man.”

Maybe the pick had something to do with the fact that two years ago the Pirates skipped over top catching prospect Matt Wieters who has just entered the majors with much fanfare, and Pittsburgh wished they had their own catcher that was causing such jubilation. It wasn’t like that though. Actually, the Pirates made the exact same mistake they made two years ago, when decided to pass on Wieters to save on bonus money. When the Pirates selected Sanchez, they were getting a good catcher, particularly defensively, and they knew that. But they also knew that if they didn’t take him, he probably wouldn’t go until the end of the first round or maybe even the compensation round. I mean the guy was losing weight on the Subway diet. Why did they take him then? It wasn’t because they thought he was extremely under-valued, its because he was cheap, and that’s just too bad.

To credit the Pirates, they have said that the reason they did this was that so they could still have some money to sign more picks later on in the draft, so it wasn’t just that they were completely stingy, it’s just that they want to spread out what cash they have. Fine. It’s not like it’s the worst idea in the world, I just don’t like it.

When you have a pick like fourth, and especially after you have shown to your fans that you are committed to rebuilding, I think that you’ve got to go out and get a guy that has a super-star potential. It’s not like they weren’t available at that point.

High school pitchers Zach Wheeler (taken 6th, San Francisco) and Tyler Matzek (11th, Colorado) were still available. As was Mike Minor out of Vanderbilt, considered a guy with lower upside but a safe bet at least. Aaron Crow was still an option, and certainly will want to sign after having played a year in independent ball. And, while it would have been a stretch, Michael Leake from Arizona St., who was rising up the boards after pitching well at the end of his season, was still there and would have been a better pick than Sanchez.

The bottom line you is that you have to have some great players to have a winning a team, and the only way the Pirates are going to get some is by taking a chance on some guys in the draft. Sure, Sanchez will catch for them, but by avoiding some of the great young arms in the draft, the Pirates skirted around the chance at injecting serious talent into their organization yet again.

Update: It seems that most of the Pirates blogs out there agree and are upset by the Pirates picks yesterday. This one talks about Sanchez’s slow bat and inability to hit breaking pitches.

Why do they love him? Well, a fastball that tops out at 103 mph is a good start. His excellent command is another. His tight curveball and brutal slider are a third and forth. He’s 6′ 5”, and perfect. You hear it everywhere. “Stephen Strasburg will likely win one Cy Young and a couple dozen Stephen Strasburg’s in his career,” say the guys at Beyond the Box Score. He’s got the stats to back it up too, Strasburg is pulling a 1.32 ERA, a 16.1 K/9 ratio and 10.3 K/BB walk ratio. He’s unstoppable. When UVA was preparing to face Strasburg last week, Karl Kuhn said he was told, “God isn’t going to give you more than one run.” You know what’s the best part of Strasburg? They’re calling him major-league ready. Some are saying he’s just going to skip the minors, and start playing for the Nats this summer.

But be careful, Stephen, you’re not there yet. You may be the greatest thing to walk on a baseball diamond, but take note of your supposed comparables, Mark Prior and Brien Taylor. Sure, Prior was dominant for awhile, but what’s he up to these days? And Taylor? He was the second first overall pick to never make the majors. Are there No. 1 draft pick success stories? Sure there are plenty of them. But there’s also of plenty mediocre players who never quite got there (and some who married crazy wives).

So there it is Mr. Strasburg. You’ll have your chance to be great. I hope, for your sake, you follow through.

So, back to Rose and his SATs. Who’s fault is it? Memphis’. And Kansas’. And Florida’s. Tennessee’s. UConn. Kentucky. UNC. All of them. And of all of us too.

When did we decide that tertiary education was more about athletics than academics. And also, when did we decide that college and professional athletes were demi-gods that happen to have to walk around a college campus for at least a year before they can start getting paid like demi-gods.

A good article I read at By the Horns discussed all of the extra privileges that student-athletes get while at their selected University. Sure, there’s lots of money in collegiate sports, but do these schools have to self-respect with regards to the diplomas they hand out?

And as far as the fans go, we’re just as bad. Every time we hear of a college student benched because he couldn’t maintain his C average, I have to listen to constant complaints of “just let the kid play” and I cringe. Those “kids” go to whatever school they do to be both a student and an athlete. And they have to keep up both ends of the bargain if they want to be there. It’s pretty simple: If you want to play, you do your homework. And that’s that.

Obviously the big news today was that after the Rockies tough start, their manager Clint Hurdle was fired. Some people are really pumped about it. If you didn’t read about it yet, you can find the details here. Of all the news sources, I decided to give the link to the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, pretty much ’cause they could probably use the extra hits on their website/newspaper.

Cubs Pitcher Carlos Zambrano received a six-game suspension today for his ejection and ridiculous outburst. If you haven’t watched it yet, it’s definitely a good viewing, especially the bit at the end when he really decides he hates gatorade. This guy makes a case that it’s unfair that pitchers get a six-game suspension so they lose a start when a hitter only gets one. It’s an interesting point I sort of agree with (I think rather than give pitchers a two-day suspension, they should just give more hitters three-game suspensions).

I always get frustrated when I hear casual fans talking about Derek Jeter’s gold gloves and his amazing defense. Apparently Colin Wyers of the Hardball Times does too, as some of his readers actually thought Derek Jeter’s defensive play was worthwhile.

Another story on Hardball Times caught my eye. This one talks about the winning and losing teams in the selection of the 64-team NCAA Division I baseball tourney, which started today, as well as each team’s statistical odds of making the trip to Omaha. I suspect a particular sect of our readership will be pleased to note that Elon has been given just over a 12 percent shot of making the final eight.

Interesting piece of news regarding Chien-Ming Wang’s injury problems, which might have something to do with a piece of advice from Brian Cashman. I found it particularly noteworthy since I fully expected Wang to recover this season.

Lastly, today brought the much-awaited arrival of Orioles’ catching prospect Matt Wieters. As one writer aptly put it, “Matt Wieters has already been crowned the savior of baseball, the greatest ballplayer that ever lived and a first-ballot HOF’er… .” Needless to say there is a lot of expectation on this kid.