BREAKING NEWS!

Washington Wizards guard Gilbert Arenas has been charged with a felony stemming from the locker room confrontation with a teammate.

Arenas is already on indefinite suspension without pay by the NBA and this felony charge is just adding insult to injury.

If convicted, Arenas will most likely have to serve the maximum 5 years in prison.

I figured that the authorities were going to file charges eventually because of the seriousness of the issue. The gun issue has also brought an issue among the public as they are wondering how many athletes actually have guns in the locker room.

All I can say is that Arenas is a bonehead for even pulling his gun out, let alone bringing a gun into the locker room, no matter what the reason is for bringing a gun.

Skip Holtz to coach USF football

South Florida Fans, do not fear, we now have a new head coach!

Skip Holtz has agreed in principle to be the new head coach of the South Florida Bulls this afternoon. Earlier reports on several sports outlets said that the East Carolina AD stated that Holtz is not leaving East Carolina.

Holtz will be replacing former Bulls coach Jim Leavitt after his immediate firing earlier this month for placing his hands on one of his players and then lying about it.

Holtz won two Conference USA titles with East Carolina, compiling 38 victories with the program. He previously coached at Connecticut before they came into Division 1 football. He is the son of Lou Holtz who last coached at South Carolina, and now is a college football analyst for ESPN.

Personally, i believe that this is a very good hire as he can take this program to the next level, which would be winning a Big East title and possibly playing in a BCS bowl game for the first time in program history. The one notable player that he has coached at East Carolina is Titans running back Chris Johnson, who happens to be the NFL offensive player of the year.

I'm not saying that Holtz is going to turn our program around right away, but the truth of the matter is, Jim Leavitt took the program as high as it could possibly go. It was about time he stepped down, but in this case, he was fired.

Maybe this will be the beginning of a new era for South Florida football.

Lane Kiffin to USC?

So I was sitting on my couch looking through all the sports news when I see "BREAKING NEWS: KIFFIN TO USC." I did a double take as I couldn't even believe the fact that Lane Kiffin, the same guy who claimed that he was going to sing "Rocky Top" all night long when he beat Florida (he never beat Florida) decided to jettison to sunny Los Angeles to take over the Southern California program that was previously under the control of Pete Carroll.

As I am reading the news on several sports outlets and listening to sportscenter, I'm thinking, what did Lane Kiffin do to deserve a top job like USC. Sure he did a great job recruiting talent to Tennessee and for a few months, put Tennessee on the map, but he honestly caused so much drama in his short tenure as the Tennessee head coach. He rubbed Georgia coach Mark Richt, Alabama coach Nick Saban, South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier and Florida coach Urban Meyer the wrong way, calling them out about them trying to steal a recruit or two or just simply attacking their program.

Kiffin has caused a whole lot of problems since he was in Oakland. The fact that I have to look back and think that Al Davis was right about one of his coaches is sickening. But the fact remains, that Kiffin pulled a "Bobby Petrino" in the college ranks by leaving his own program without even a warning.

I just hope that USC wont suffer the same fate that Tennessee did this entire season.

I'm Back!

To all my fellow readers,


Have no fear, i am back and ready to diagnose all the ongoing activities in the sports world!

Sorry for the delay!

To all my readers,

I am sorry that I haven't been posting on my blog lately, I have been dealing with some personal issues that I had to attend to. As soon as these issues clear up, I will begin posting new posts! Thank you all for your support!


-Dr. Doop

Observations from the first week of the 2009-2010 season

Some of the key observations from the first week of the new college football season:

• The Florida Gators are clearly the team to beat with their team playing well collectively as they thrashed Charleston Southern 62-3. Even though this wasn't a good enough test to truly determine whether the Gators are the team to beat, both sides of the ball played balanced throughout the game.
  

• Oklahoma clearly needs Sam Bradford more than we originally thought. Bradford's shoulder sprain in the middle of the second quarter against BYU was the turning point in the game and the Sooner offense wasn't the same as Oklahoma ended up losing 14-13. On Monday morning, coach Bob Stoops stated that Sam Bradford won't need surgery on his shoulder. The Sooners have a managable schedule with Idaho State and Tulsa before they travel to Miami to take on the Hurricanes where they hope Bradford will be back.
  

• Ohio State is in for a long night next week against USC if they play defense the same way they did against Navy. The fact that the Buckeyes even allowed Navy to come back when they had a 13 point lead with less than five minutes left in the game makes me wonder whether Ohio State is worthy of their No. 6 ranking in the top 25. Terrelle Pryor is a freak of an athlete with surprising strength, but his offensive line needs to protect his weak side even better if they are going to put up a fight against USC.

• The ACC had 7 teams lose their first game of the season with Duke and Virginia losing to Richmond and William & Mary, respectively. This is the same conference that had 10 out of the 12 teams represented in bowl games last postseason. It may only be the first week of the new college football season, but one has to worry when two teams in your own conference can't beat teams in the former Division I-AA.
  

• Cincinnati is the team to beat in the Big East after watching the Bearcats dismantle Rutgers in the early game on Labor Day. They had one holdover from last year's championship team and yet their defense looks quicker and nastier than last year. The Bearcats have two tough road games at South Florida and Pittsburgh and possibly two tough games at home against Connecticut and West Virginia. I believe the Bearcats first test will be against South Florida on October 15, but their road game in Corvallis against Oregon State could be a trap game for the Bearcats.
  

• Miami and Florida State look as if they are coming back to relevance as they capped what was an eventful first week of college football with a thrilling finish with no time remaining as Miami escaped Tallahassee with a 38-34 win. Watching this game reminded me why college football is fun to watch. The drama that is involved as you're willing your team to win with every cheer and breath one exudes is something that every fan of any sport can relate to. It was one of those games where you didn't want either team to lose. This year's Miami vs. Florida State game is an instant classic that will be remembered as one of the best college football games of the decade.
  

• The NCAA needs to eliminate the pre-game handshake between teams, especially if they are rival teams as it takes away the fierceness and nastiness of a rivalry. I understand the NCAA is promoting good sportsmanship this week, but they already show good sportsmanship with shaking of the hands after the final whistle is blown. I don't see any other sport that does this and I believe it is pointless. Clearly, the handshake between Oregon and Boise State before this past Thursday's game didn't matter as there was a scuffle at the end of the game with Oregon running back Lagarrette Blount punching a Boise State defensive end and then getting into a verbal altercation with a fan as he exited the stadium with police escorts.
  

If this week is any indication, this year will be an exciting one as each game should be very competitive and drama-filled. Here's to an exciting year.

College Football season is underway

As many of you know, today is a national holiday for most fans.

College Football Opening Day is upon us and we must take part in the holiday festivities.

We should either be pigging out on junk food and drinking beers (or soft drinks for the under-age fans) while watching the glorious game we call football on the big screen or just do the even more traditional festivity and go to the stadium of your favorite team and tailgate with your buddies; grilling hot dogs and burgers, drinking a tall, cold beer while conversing about our predictions for our team and the season.

Fans across America mark their calenders for the first weekend of college football and we treat it with such reverence that anybody who thinks we're crazy about our team and should "have a life" needs to understand this:

Sports in general gives us an escape from our stressful lives and makes us believe that we
are a part of the team we root for every weekend.

Without theses crazy fans, sports would be boring.

So everybody who is a college football fan, or any sports fan for that matter, here is my message to you:

Represent your favorite team to the fullest. Don't let anybody tell you to calm down whenever your team makes an amazing play or a foolish one. Most importantly, have fun with whomever you watch the games with. These are the moments where fanhood is most appreciated and celebrated.

Should gambling be allowed in sports?

Many people across the United States rely on the Las Vegas odds when it comes to sports betting.

We read the over and under lines and look at the point spread to see who has the advantage. Sometimes we get lucky with our picks.

As far as gambling as a legal action, Nevada is the only state in the United States to have legalized gambling, especially sports betting.

Recently, Delaware has petitioned to become the second state to allow sports betting. The NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB and the NCAA are some of the few sports leagues and organizations that are filing a lawsuit against the state of Delaware.

According to a July 28th article on ESPN.com, it reported that the four major leagues plus the NCAA argued that allowing sports betting in Delaware "would in harms 'that cannot be remedied by subsequent monetary damages.' "

I believe that sports betting should be allowed in sports because it makes people watch the sporting events more attentively.

Look at the success of the NCAA Men's Basketball tournament. Many people throughout the nation participate in office pools and often place a certain amount of money to buy into the pool.

Even the most casual fan of college basketball takes part in this event for several reasons, mainly to win some money for their wallets. Nevertheless, the office pool brings even the casual fan an opportunity to watch the sport and take part in the madness.

This example proves how much more publicity and recognition the NCAA receives through sports betting. They continually bring in new, interested people and convert them into fans, with the help of sports betting.

I'm not saying that sports betting is the only way to gain more fans of sports, but if it helps your business, why be against it?

I personally take part in small sports betting like the NCAA Men's basketball tournament office pool and often times I do lose money because of my picks. Even though I lose my money, I have fun with the betting because it makes me be more attentive towards each and every game.

The four major leagues and the NCAA should consider the marketing opportunity with sports betting. For the NCAA, you don't need to advertise your players as it is against the rules. Simply, just encourage safe betting and make sure people have fun while they watch your events.

For now, the Supreme Court has rejected the sports betting plan that Delaware has put into play, but don't be surprised if sometime in the near future, sports betting will be legal in almost every state.

Vick makes impressive debute

Michael Vick, 18 months removed from his prison stay, started in his first NFL game since December 31, 2006 as his new team, the Philadelphia Eagles, defeated the Jacksonville Jaguars on a last-second field goal, 33-32.

Vick went 4-4 for 19 yards and also rushed for a yard in his debut.

Several fans and critics wanted to see how the long layoff had affected him. He was often criticized for having a big arm but hardly any accuracy. He answered those questions last night when on a third and seven play, he zipped a pass to one of the slot receivers for a 13 yard gain.

Like many fans across the NFL nation, I was ecstatic to see Vick play again. Before he left for prison, Vick was the most electrifying player in the NFL with his quick feet and his juking ability that made opposing NFL players' knees buckle.

Granted, he didn't have the speed like he had two years ago, but nevertheless, he still has that cannon for an arm and he threw crisp passes last night that made me think that he wasn't gone for that long.

This is going to be a long road to resurrect his career, but last night's game was a great start for the revival of Michael Vick.