Final Four Showdown

Well, Elvis week turned out to be every bit as boring as I thought it would.

Here is my rundown:

Taylor #1 (Jailhouse Rock) - This was every thing that I hate Elvis for. It was boring, it was stupid, it was Taylor dancing, it was bad karaoke, it was everything Simon said and so much more. I would score it a 5.Chris #1 (Suspicious Minds) - I thought I would be happy living the rest of my life never hearing this song again. After being butchered time and again by country singers and wannabes everywhere, I have been tired of it for years. But, this was outstanding. Chris did a great vocal on this and abandoned the angry attitude for one tune. He made it his own and I liked it a lot. I would score it a 9.Eliott #1 (If I Can Dream) - I am not familiar with this song, and in typical Elliott style, he started off very slow. It picked up by the end and was solid in closing. I really didn't care for it, but he did an ok job. I would score it a 7.Katharine #1 (Hound Dog/All Shook Up) - I don't care if she dropped a line or not. This was great. It was fun, it was energetic and once again, she looked amazing. If she hadn't told me she forgot a line, I would never have known. I thought she had gotten out of breath and couldn't get the words out. She had been dancing so hard. I would score it an 8.
2nd round rundown:
Taylor #2 (In the Ghetto) - Booooooorrrrrriiiiiiiiiiing. Taylor should never sing anything that plays at less than 120 beat per minute. I would score it a 6.Chris #2 (A Little Less Conversation) - Not nearly as good as his first song. By the nature of the song itself it drones on for the first half and is pretty monotone. It did finally pick up, but I wasn't impressed. And did I catch a flash of GWAR at the end? I would score it a 6.Elliott #2 (Trouble) - Well, apparently everyone else saw a different show than I did...my wife included. I thought it was the same dull shit that Elliott has plagued us with week after week. I certainly didn't think it was a reason to vote him through or his best vocals. I would score it a 6.Katharine #2 (Can't Help Falling In Love) - Well, for the second week in a row Kat has shown weakness. Personally I don't think this one was her fault. It was Elvis week. She's a girl. A very, very hot girl. She shouldn't be restricted to singing songs sung by men. I thought the arrangement was a bit much and left the vocals sounding dissappointing. If the guitar hadn't been so strong I think she would have sounded better with it. I would score it a 6.

Tallies for the week:

Chris - 15Katharine - 14Elliott - 13Taylor - 11

Nobody was a runaway this week. Nobody was outstanding all the time, but then again, neither was Elvis.

I think coming into the week it was Elliott's time to go. But after the judges praises, I think he may get through. I hope I'm wrong, but I'd be just as happy with Taylor going home. Even though she hasn't had her "A" game through all of the last 4 songs, I still think this is Kat and Chris' show and that it will be them in the Finals.

Their absence will be felt deeply

I try never to write negative. There is so much positive about high school sports and only so much space available, it is better to write about the good things.

But enough has happened recently that I was prepared to make an exception (the first version of this column reflected much more anger). You can see some of that frustration on display on page 9A. But Jeff Kaufmann (see related story on 1B) put me a little back in my place. Don't get me wrong, I am incensed with some of what has happened recently. And it has done nothing to refute my long-time feelings that there are only two types of people on school boards: those with a power streak with selfish desires and those pure of heart who don't believe the first group really have bad intentions. But I digress.

If teaching is the most noble profession, than coaching is for zealots. Why give so much of yourself for so little in return? If you have coached a team without your kid on it then you know why.

This column is written for more than those named in it. It is for the athletic directors and coaches who give so much. And it is for those who had their hearts broken because of politics.

Paul Moses has been the Olmsted Falls athletic director for the past 13 years. During his tenure, The Bulldogs won 45 SWC championships, multiple sectional/district championships, have seen a couple of final four teams and won a state football championship. And they didn't do it with "dumb jocks" either. The athletic teams throughout his tenure have a combined 3.1 grade point average. He founded a program called "Character through Sports." The athletic department taught about more than just winning. There were anti-steroid and supplements information on display and nutritional information and education addressed for specific sports. Without the use of school funds, a new stadium was embarked upon through the Alumni Association. The school has unrivaled community support and the community's youth programs continue to foster under the direction of the school's head coaches and the community center. And no student has ever had to pay to play at Olmsted Falls.

Paul was informed by the Superintendent Todd Hoadley that the school district is going in a different direction and he would no longer be the athletic director. Paul was told that they had a difference of philosophy. Hoadley won't say anything else other than he made his reasons clear to Paul. It is hard to imagine what different philosophy someone could want other than what Paul has stood for and delivered at Olmsted Falls. If someone has any complaints about what Paul has done during his tenure, they have not expressed them to me. In the coming weeks, we will find out if a certain rumor is true on who the new athletic director will be. If it becomes true you will read about it here.

In contrast, Tom Faska has been the athletic director at Fairview for just one year. Tom lost his job because of the massive budget cuts the Fairview school system has implemented. On one hand, it is hard to argue against sports cuts when 25 percent of the districts teachers lost their job. But it is still disturbing. Besides having no athletic director, the retiring sports secretary is also not being replaced. Tom's duties will be shifted to the assistant principal. And with no offense to someone who I am sure is very capable in his current job, you wonder if his secretary knows she is becoming in essence the new athletic director. A school with the size of Fairview's sports programs can't function properly without detailed direction.

And the year started with such promise for the district. The new facilities from the passed Gemini project looked to be a godsend and a possible attraction to the city for families. Now I wonder why someone would choose to send their kids to Fairview. Many of the district's great young, enthusiastic teachers lost their jobs. Every program lost at least one assistant coach and some two. Many of the teachers who lost their jobs were coaches so their losses are a double whammy. The ones I know best are Eric Smith, Mark Tomecko and Jeff Kaufmann. The money saved in salaries can't come close to what will be lost in the classroom and in the locker room. This year a few Fairview Park residents competed for state titles for other schools. That is going to happen more and more. And they won't be leaving because of athletics but academics.

The worse part about Tom leaving is that while he was still working for the Berea school system, he was the chairman of the committee that got Gemini passed. He took the job as AD because he believed in the school and he wanted to watch his sons compete for the Warriors. This year he had a triple bypass and was still back to work in seven weeks. Now Tom is looking to fill 20 plus coaching positions with the gusto as if he will be back. He is a better man than I. And I wonder what kind of coach would accept a job for that program. Kaufmann filled me in on that answer. And it rips my guts out, that he is now headed for North Olmsted.

In my column on page 9A, I talk about Scott Sharp resigning as Bay basketball coach.

Scott is a very good coach and in my eyes, a stand-up guy with true class and character. He got every ounce he could have out of his team this year. All you could have asked for was one more basket or stop in a playoff game. For the last two years, Scott has been the one coach that I knew every week whether he won or lost, would send me an email where he found something positive to share about his student-athletes. Many coaches send emails when they win, Scott was classy and promoted his kids regardless. He also talked to every reporter at every game no matter the score and he did it the same classy way each time. Not every coach is like that.

Bay is a town filled with secrets, one of the worst kept is what coaches at the high school have to put up from those outside of the school. Someone from outside the district told me that "those coaches at Bay are nuts to put up with what they do." Whether that is truth or perception, is that how a school district wants to be viewed? The amazing thing is Sharp is not alone in his character. From top to bottom, Bay has great, dedicated coaches. But one wonders if history keeps repeating itself, how long will that last?

Now while quotes or non-quotes say other-wise, I am fairly confident I know what really happened to Scott Sharp. And like everyone else with the scoop, it makes me sick. But what has happened there is happening more frequently in school districts everywhere. Parents and board members (often a combination) everywhere now feel as if they have the right to impose themselves into coaching decisions. The list is long of every local coach hung out to dry. As one coach told me, "I was let go after a losing season. But when you hear parents complain about another coach who has won for over a decade, you wonder what will happen the first year he doesn't win. Coaches in our district saw what happened to me and now are scared it could happen to them."

I was even told that one local school board member used removing a local coach as one of his issues in his campaign. I pray that is urban legend, but if it isn't what world do we live in?

As I prepared for the end of the year special issue, I sent every athletic director a survey of six questions. One of those questions was what story did I miss this year? One said I got all of the sports stories, but maybe I should write about parents starting to cross the line with their actions and behaviors. So I am, but I need your help. Athletes, coaches, parents and fans send me your stories. What is going on in high school sports? Are parents placing undue and unfair pressure on coaches? Have politics replaced common sense? Has passion for your own kid surpassed the needs of the greater good? Email me at sports@westlifenews.com or call me at (440) 871-2214 option 1. I will not follow up or take seriously any phone calls without a name and number. We can talk off-record, and I can quote you anonymously if you want, but I need to know who you are.

Back from the Final Four

I'm back in town from Indianapolis, and happily back at work. I love my job: there's nothing like the feeling of starting a brand new project from scratch, having technical control over it, no bureaucracy at all, and then seeing it start to take shape into something that's semi-working. It might even fully work one day soon ;)

The Final Four (pictures) was cool. The games themselves weren't of the same quality as last year, but the energy and excitement was still there in the dome and around town. And the main purpose of the trip, a chance for my dad and I to just chill out together and enjoy sports, was well-served. The Gators played fairly well throughout, and deserved to win.

I got to see a few basketball icons up close: Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Bill Russell, Bill Walton, Roy Williams, Dick Vitale and the other CBS / ESPN news personalities, and a few of other figures familiar to those who follow the college game. The centers are soooo tall, it's amazing.

Indianapolis itself is not my favorite town. It's not bad: clean, spacious, decent traffic, a couple of nice buildings. But it's a little sterile, a little boring, not much character. I do have to say all the locals were very friendly, very helpful. Service everywhere was excellent, from restaurants to cab drivers to NCAA tournament volunteers. Thanks to all of you ;)

The fans were in good spirits, even after losing. My favorites were the kids from George Mason University who made the trip down to Indianapolis by bus. My dad and I hung out with the Patriot Platoon on the edge of the court before the first semifinal game, and coach Larranaga came over to say thanks to the fans, shake hands. That was cool, I got a good picture of my dad with the coach. Some fans had waited 27 hours (!!) in line to get tickets, then rode the bus for another 16 hours (!!) to get to Indianapolis at 4am the morning of the games. Much respect there.

I haven't been blogging much, but I'm going to try to get back into the swing of things...

Picture by Cora:

Close, but no cigar The legacy of the Ralph Sampson years at the ...

Close, but no cigar
The legacy of the Ralph Sampson years at the University of Virginia is that of the unfulfilled promise.
Long-time coach Terry Holland had said it out loud after Sampson signed - I think the national championship is within our reach.
But despite 122 wins and three Atlantic Coast Conference regular-season titles in Sampson's four years on Grounds, the Cavs brought home just one trophy - from the 1980 NIT. No ACC tournament championship banners were added to the one commemorating the improbable 1976 run, and the closest the program got to that national title that Holland had said was within reach was an appearance in the 1981 national semifinals.
"They just had unfortunate things happen at the end of each season. The big guys were a little bit green in Lamp's and Raker's final year, and then Al Wood had a phenomenal game against them in the Final Four. The next year, Othell Wilson got hurt at the end. The next year, it was N.C. State and their magical run. It was always something," long-suffering Virginia fan Bob Moje told me in an interview for Mad About U: Four Decades of Basketball at University Hall, which is on sale now.
There was the memorable upset loss in Hawaii at Chaminade in 1982 - still regarded by many as the biggest single-game upset in sports history. And the equally memorable win two weeks earlier over a Patrick Ewing-led Georgetown team that was followed days later by a victory over a Hakeem Olajuwon-led Houston team. And the aforementioned 28-game winning streak that ended on national TV in a game against giant-killer Notre Dame.
In a lot of ways, it was the best of times and the worst of times for University of Virginia basketball fans - who were thisclose to greatness and yet might as well have been a million miles away.
"They were so good that it's kind of amazing that they never won a national championship in that period - because they clearly were the best team in the country," Moje said.
Pre-orders for Mad About U are being taken now. The book will be in bookstores on Oct. 5.
- Chris Graham

Mayo's Going Abroad

NBA rules say high school junior O.J. Mayo, who would be the No. 1 overall pick if he were eligible for the 2006 draft, can't enter the draft until 2008. Fine. Rules are rules.

But Mayo has been pushing all kinds of envelopes since he was a seventh-grader in Ashland, Ky., averaging 23 ppg for his high school varsity and boasting his own website. It's time for him to push one more envelope, to cross a barrier as wide as the Atlantic Ocean.

Time to get paid, O.J. And if that means going overseas -- and it does -- fine. Do it. Drop out. Quit school.

O.J. Mayo's endorsement cash would make him a millionaire before he even gets to the NBA. (Provided to SportsLine)

O.J. Mayo's endorsement cash would make him a millionaire before he even gets to the NBA. (Provided to SportsLine)

It's time for all of us here in the United States to say goodbye to our best homegrown guard since Kobe Bryant. Time to wish Mayo well, and farewell. Arrivederci. Or bon voyage.

How do you say "hit the road" in German?

It's not goodbye forever. We'd see him again in two years. Mayo, a 6-foot-5 point guard now based out of North College Hill, Ohio, would return in 2008 to claim his rightful spot as the No. 1 overall pick in the NBA Draft. Mayo is that good. On the court, anyway. Off the court? Not so much. Which is why he needs to quit high school -- quit the charade that he's a high school basketball player -- and turn pro. Immediately.

That means going to Europe. Or South America. Asia? I don't care. Just go.

Mayo is about as "amateur" an amateur basketball player as Amare Stoudemire in 2002, LeBron James in '03 and Sebastian Telfair in '04. Proof? The biggest buzz of the current spring recruiting circuit came when Mayo played in the Kingwood Classic in Houston with the Miami Tropics instead of his longtime team, the D-One Greyhounds -- wearing the Tropics' Nikes instead of the Greyhounds' Reeboks. O.J. with a new shoe company? That's news.

Final Four

Final Four is a sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament. The oldest, and most common, use of the term is in reference to the final four teams in the annual NCAA basketball tournament. These are the champions of the tournament's four regional brackets, and the only teams remaining on the tournament's final weekend. (The term has been applied retroactively to include the last four teams in tournaments from earlier years, when only two brackets existed.)