Mike Woods News and Views column: NBC makes as much sense as the BCS
Taking a spin around the sports world wondering if Tiger Woods will even bother to watch the PGA Tour anymore this year.
News: NBC renews its television contract with Notre Dame football through 2015. NBC sports prez Dick Ebersol says: "We're big believers in how Notre Dame time and time again over all these generations has maintained its strength. I don't see that going away. We go into this thinking that if the vast majority of the years has Notre Dame competitive in that top 10 or for that top 10 through the majority of the season, then we'll be very happy."
Views: Dick must be a very sad man. Dick should also watch his own network. Notre Dame has finished the season ranked 10th or higher just three times in the 17 years its home games have been televised on NBC. Maybe he stinks at math. Or maybe he spends his Saturday afternoons watching good college football teams like USC (ABC) or LSU (CBS).
And considering the vast recruiting advantage Notre Dame receives with its own network, and the fact it still can't win, not to mention it even has Touchdown Jesus on its side, leads us to one happy conclusion: God is not a Notre Dame fan.
News: Louisville asks for $450,000 in damages against Duke after the Blue Devils' football team pulls out of the remaining three years of a four-year contract. Duke argues its football team — 6-45 the past five years — is so bad that any Division I team should suffice as a replacement. A Kentucky judge agrees, meaning Louisville must find a replacement and Duke will not incur any penalty.
Views: When your fans and alumni say you stink, that's one thing. When it becomes a matter of law, it's time to seriously consider disbanding the team and find something else for the kids to do. Since it's Duke, varsity chess seems like a viable alternative.
News: Outgoing UW chancellor John Wiley helps push through a $150,000 raise for athletic director Barry Alvarez, pushing his annual compensation to $750,000. In justifying this move, Wiley reasoned Alvarez was not only worth every penny, but argued that if he tried to hire an AD at a salary below that of the chancellor — incoming chancellor Biddy Martin will make $437,000 — he couldn't find a guy that could keep the department in the black and keep winning.
Views: We know what you're selling Mr. Wiley, but we're not buying. First, you might consider attempting to better compensate your professors, who make nearly $47,000 less on average than the raise you just gave your AD.
Second, you might want to check your own history books. Five years ago retired AD Pat Richter, the man who had to get his hands dirty and is wholly responsible for turning around an athletic department that was bleeding red and an athletic program that was largely atrocious, was paid $237,360 in his final year. That same year, the UW chancellor made $248,350. So your argument holds no value.
Third, if you're a believer in the golden rule — that he who has all the gold, rules — why would any university make its athletic director, and not the chancellor, the most powerful man on campus?
News: Cowboys cornerback Adam "Pacman"
Jones now wants to simply be called by his given name and drop his nickname. "There's really just a lot of negativity behind it," Jones said.
Views: I take offense. I loved the Pacman game as a kid. Just a friendly little pixilated dude with a big appetite. What's so bad about that? Personally, I think the Pacman clan is getting a bad rap here. But if he wants to take the edge off, so be it. But it's only fair then to refer to him as Adam "Ms. Pacman"
Jones. No negatives there that I can see.
News: The Packers express interest in acquiring Dolphins defensive end Jason Taylor to improve their pass rush, but Taylor reportedly has little interest in Green Bay because it is not close to either Florida or California — where he hopes to go Hollywood some day — and is not a top television market.
Views: Green Bay does fit the other criteria, that it's a team that could go deep into the playoffs, but the whole Aaron Rodgers question is still to be answered. As for being a small television market, got us there Jason. But not being close to the whole Hollywood scene, c'mon. Didn't anyone tell you Johnny Depp just spent a whole bunch of time in Oshkosh?
News: Comcast and the Big Ten Network agree to get hitched, though Time Warner — which serves the Fox Cities — and the BTN continue to play hardball.
Views: Maybe some of you hope this agreement will nudge Time Warner and BTN toward an agreement. But I also surmise that many of you who found better things to do on all those beautiful fall Saturday afternoons, or are just worn out by the whole ridiculous situation, really just don't care one way or the other anymore.
