Mumbling into a microphone defeats the purpose of the mumble
Mumbling out loud - I must admit I do it; I didn’t always, but I do now. What is said I’m saying to myself, but if it is heard then I have to own it! A USA Today reporter went way stupid asking University of Kentucky’s Karl-Anthony Towns about stopping Wisconsin’s Frank Kaminsky, causing UK teammate Andrew Harrison, one of five players sitting at a table with a microphone in front of him, to mumble “F*** that n***a.” This is tricky stuff. The first thing I’d do is throw the reporter out of the locker room and send him to Syria to do some interviews. Harrison dropped the dreaded N-word into a live microphone toward a Polish guy nicknamed Frank the Tank. This was not in any way racial, but if Kaminsky had mumbled it about Harrison, it would have been way different. The more analysis this gets, the further from “no harm, no foul” we will stray. Sometimes I think the rest of us should just stay off the playground. A quote from Mike Tucker, Afro-American and Cape class of 1992, “Kaminsky didn't say it ... so let's not play the what-if game. Don't ask a player about another player that sent them packing, not an excuse ... we all say some pretty dumb things in the heat of the moment.”
Come get some! - Ranking teams is for entertainment purposes only, and now there are all kinds of computer systems for ranking the strength of teams against teams they have never played. These formulas have reality come state tournament time, both for seeding and inclusion in the tournament. The flip side is when someone asks you, “Oh, you know a better way?” I always answer that question, “Yes, I do,” unless it involves solving a medical or mechanical problem. In sports, the only way to prove who is the better team is to play the game and see what happens. Kentucky was an unbeaten and seemingly unbeatable basketball team until it got beat. Sports is tough between the lines, but it’s more about playing the game than going into anxiety overload over projected outcomes.
Somebody/anybody please stay - It's not up to me to live someone else's life, but I’ll let you in on a secret that screams out loud if you're paying attention, “The older you get, the more you speculate how others should live their lives.” Grandparents are major purveyors of this behavior. I would like to see just one guaranteed NBA first-round pick announce, “I am staying in college and playing basketball and going to class until I get my degree. How can anything be a better life than this? I’m learning stuff, learning to use my mind, having conversations with other intelligent people. I don’t want to fly around the country with a bunch of tattooed tall guys playing high-stakes Tonk to take my mind off crashing."
Snippets - Luke Benson (Cape) got his first lacrosse collegiate start on attack for Jacksonville and contributed an assist in a 9-6 loss to High Point. Stepping onto the field as a starter for a Division I team ain’t no joke for a freshman. Way to go, Luke. Meg Lingo (Worcester) has started all 11 games for the Furman Paladins and has scored 23 goals with 8 assists. Furman is 8-8 overall. Kat Judge (Cape) has started 10 games for Winthrop University lacrosse and leads the team with 32 ground balls and has 38 draw controls. Allie Yeager (Cape) has 10 goals for Winthrop. Kristin Shriver (Worcester) has 20 goals and 8 assists on the season for Winthrop. The University of Delaware spring football opened March 24. The team will scrimmage Saturday, April 18, at 10 a.m at Smyrna on Downstate Delaware Day. Cape’s Andrew Grau is on the roster as a 6-foot-4, 200-pound redshirt freshman. The Cape boys' lacrosse team will host the Bel Air Bobcats (2-1) at home Wednesday, April 8, at 5 p.m. JV will play at 3:30 p.m. The girls' lacrosse team will host Archmere Thursday, April 9, at 2 p.m. JV will play at 12:30. Baseball will play at Lake Forest Thursday, April 9, but rain is in the forecast. When did sports people start overusing the word surreal? Grand Mom Rose, “Life's journey is never surreal, but sometimes it’s just really strange.”
Go on now, git!
