The Bus Stops Here
Don Pierson in the Chicago Tribune, writing about how paranoid coaches are about being spied on by opponents:
“When Hamp Pool coached the Los Angeles Rams, fullback Joe Marconi said he was so wary of spies he held impromptu practices.
“The Rams would stay in Milwaukee during trips to play Green Bay or Chicago.
They would pile into a bus to go to a practice site, and Pool would suddenly tell the driver to stop. He would see a city park or parking lot and order players to practice on the spot.”
Can’t disappoint the fans
John McEnroe, on tennis fans’ expectations that he will show his trademark petulance when he plays: “Now, I get docked 10 percent-20 percent (of my appearance fee) if I don’t yell at some people and break at least one racket.”
Quit cheering in the press box
Bernie Miklasz in the St. Louis PostDispatch: “In Gotham, all the fast talk is about a Yankees-Mets Subway Series. This baseball Armageddon is a foregone conclusion, of course.
“The prospect of an all-New York World Series is being hyped by a breathless New York media that are all but showing up for games dressed in cheerleader skirts and face glitter.”
All-league neighborhood
Vice-president Pat Williams of the Orlando Magic, describing the posh neighborhood into which Grant Hill recently moved: “The bird feeders all have salad bars, the Girl Scouts go door-to-door selling croissants, and the boys play Little League polo.”
That about sums it up
Nick Canepa of the San Diego UnionTribune, writing on the winless Chargers: “Great players make plays. Bad teams find ways to lose. So simple this football.
“The Chargers don’t have many great players. And they’re a bad team. A lousy combination.”
He knows his man
Jim Armstrong in the Denver Post: “Turns out Allen Iverson isn’t such a bad guy after all. He’s turning over all the proceeds from his controversial CD to underprivileged hate groups.”
They need more than replay
Billy Ray Smith of “NFL This Morning” on Fox Sports Net, commenting on referee mishaps in a recent Pittsburgh Steelers game: “Now, they will be detecting (taunting) poses this week. They can’t detect touchdowns or sacks. They don’t know the rules. I’d rather have a monkey with an Etch-a-Sketch than a referee in front of a replay monitor.”
The last word …
“Marion Jones, Wonder Woman to C.J. Hunter’s The Thing, won a gold medal in the 200 meters, which she trained for by running around her husband twice.”