A Tiger By The Tail

How do you feel about Tiger Woods right now? We would love to know what you think about his situation, how it affects golf, sports in general and you. Does he owe you anything? We're looking at a major watershed event in history. Period. We're a sports and pop culture society, that's the people that make history in this age. So how big was this? Maybe it was nothing at all. After all, his first match back, whenever it is, will get a high T.V. rating. You know it will.

Role Model

Recently, the Philadelphia Phillies signed veteran catcher Brian Schneider to a two-year deal. It got virtually no notice on national sports shows and appeared in the agate type in the newspaper sports section under transactions. Schneider, a solid veteran who is most noted for his defensive prowess and ability to handle young pitching staffs, has played his entire career in the National League East. He debuted with the Montreal Expos, moved to the District of Columbia with the franchise as the starting catcher for the Washington Nationals, and joined the New York Mets in a 2007 trade (with Ryan Church for Lastings Milledge). When the Mets chose to go in a different direction, Schneider, who went to high school in Pennsylvania, grew up a Phillies fan (and as a National kept a Chase Utley jersey in his locker). What makes this a nice story is that Schneider is one of those guys who appreciates his role as a major league baseball player. Three seasons ago, I sat outside the players parking lot with my six-year old son after a night game at RFK Stadium. Every car passed by a small group of autograph seekers. But only one car stopped and it was right where my son stood. Schneider stuck his head out of the car window signed a picture for a thrilled six-year old boy, and then several others for other fans. I had the opportunity a few days later to speak to Schneider and thank him as a father. He smiled shyly, and said, "I was one of those little boys hanging outside of the Los Angeles Dodgers' spring training camp looking for autographs. I know what it's like to be passed by, so I always told myself I'd never take this life for granted and I'd never try to disappoint any of the kids." Brian Schneider is my kind of role model.

Super Puck!

This coming Sunday, NBC will show one of the biggest rivalry games in the country. Lakers-Cavs? No. Ravens-Steelers? No. The Game of the Week features Ovie-Crosby? You got it. For those not familiar with the National Hockey League, the Washington Capitals host the Pittsburgh Penguins at noon. It promises to be a classic. The two franchises have met a number of times in the playoffs and the Pens ousted the young Caps a year ago in an epic seven-game series. The two faces of the NHL - Sidney Crosby and Alexander Ovechkin - highlight the matchup. The two had a little dust-up in front of the Caps bench last year about this time, making the rivalry a little more heated. Fans of each team hate the other. Pittsburgh fans boo Ovechkin every time he touches the puck. Caps fans leave pictures of Crosby in the men's urinals throughout the Verizon Center. It gets intense. The Caps are in the midst of a 13-game winning streak, lead the league in points, and are scoring goals in bunches. Ovechkin leads the team with 39 goals but nine of his teammates have at least 10 goals this year, including Alexander Semin's 26 and Niklas Backstrom's 25. Pittsburgh has Crosby's 33 goals as well as Evgeni Malkin's 19. The last time they met, the Caps' Tomas Fleischmann and Backstrom each scored in less than a minute to break a tie in the third period on their way to a 6-3 win. But stats mean nothing going into this game. It'll be a high-speed, no-holds barred, hard-hitting contest between two teams that do NOT like one another. Even if you're not a hockey fan, check out the Capitals-Penguins on Super Bowl Sunday on NBC.

Katrina Bowl?

Well, pigs have flown and the hot place has it's snow... right, the New Orleans Saints have reached the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history. Even non-NOLA fans have somewhat of a sentimental feeling for the Saints, what with hurricanes and, quite frankly, just years of humiliation and frustration. But let's not surround this game with too much unnecessary sentiment. I mean, really, disasters happen. Tragedies arise. We all have them, individually and collectively. Katrina was horrible. A nightmare to haunt for a lifetime for sure. The Super Bowl has nothing to do with that. Why do we feel the need to combine events? Are the Saints really playing for a hurricane-stricken city? I don't think so. This is big bucks. This is big egos. Not that some of the players don't feel some satisfaction in bringing the city it's first championship. Surely they do. But is it really about the past? The 2005 season, yes. That was lovely indeed. The city rebounded nicely and it was heart-warming to watch the city embrace the team. That was four years ago. How long do we have to revisit that catastrophe? Just play the game.