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So here it is. I figure I have to be the 2,383,973,216 person to blog about Brett Favre retiring, but after much deliberation, I feel it is quite deserving. I can count on my right hand how many current athletes deserve this much media attention, and Brett is undoubtedly one of those fingers. He wouldn’t be the pinky. Brett is just too hard-nosed to be a useless pinky. He sure isn’t the middle finger. because southern boys are just too courteous to ever toss that gesture around. The index and the thumb work together on just too many tasks for Brett to be associated with anybody else. That leaves the ring-finger.
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Is it just me, or can you feel IT in the air? The feeling you get when you see upsets galore, bubbles burst, and a whole lot of screaming from Dicky V. Now that it is March, the countdown may begin to arguably the most exciting event in sports every year. After a dreadful February of zero football or baseball, the sports world has re-found it’s glory every March in the form of a 64-team all-or-nothing tournament where children are exposed and men are made. Every March we are graced with clips of Christian Laettner’s brilliance and Chris Webber’s stupidity, and every year another clip is added to the timeline of immortality for NCAA athletes. And with David Stern adding a new rule legislating all high-school athletes must be one-year removed from graduating high-school to jump to the NBA, some of the most elite basketball players in the world will be showcased on a national stage come tourney time.


Last year was dubbed the “Year of the Freshmen”. We had Kevin Durant, Greg Oden, Gerald Henderson, Tywon Lawson, Brandan Wright, and plenty of other true froshes that took college basketball back to the days where legends were made before they hit the NBA. For the first time in years, the best high-school basketball players were forced to play for a college team, effectively bringing more attention to these teams lucky enough to acquire these fine athletes. If that was last year, then what would they call this year? The year of the…..uhhhh….sup…..super freshmen? Last year marked the first time ever a Freshman received the AP Player Of The Year Award when Kevin Durant ran away with the prize, and this year’s award will probably go to another fabolous freshman in Michael Beasley. Don’t get me wrong though; there’s plenty of other freshmen that are just as deserving of the title “super”. Indiana’s Eric Gordon is averaging 21 points and leads a talented Indiana team into the tourney as a sleeper team poised to do damage on opposing higher seeds.

Derrick Rose, projected as a top 5 pick in this year’s upcoming draft, is the speedy point-guard leader behind an extremely talented Memphis team. Already leading Memphis to a near perfect regular season, his game has elevated to a level rarely seen by true freshmen. Able to run the offense in John Capilari’s dribble-drive oriented scheme, Rose has adapted and proved his athleticism can translate to a more serious level come draft time. Granted he has some incredible recruits to help him win games, there will be no difference in the NBA when he is playing at an even faster pace with more talented shooters to balance his style of play.

Then there is O.J. Mayo. Once dubbed the “next” Jordan, or “next” LeBron, he has excelled at the college level well enough to be considered a lottery pick. Now that he is not overwhelmed with the media trying to hype up his ability, Mayo has relaxed in his role in USC and has proved to scouts he isn’t just a highlight reel. While his defense may need tp improve, his solid play still al’ows me to call him “super” in this class of freshmen.

Now I have a personal vendetta against Donte Greene. As a Syracuse fan, waching Donte play is extremely frustrating as he is unable to use his 6″10 frame on the boards and in his post game. Tossing up 10 3’s a game and shooting zero free throws in his last two games is just unacceptable for a person his size and skill. Now regardless of my personal (sigh), mild hatred, for his playing style, most scouts believe he has the ability to translate his game to the NBA level. If he wants to leave school early, he can leave without many missing him. But if he stays, Syracuse has a chance at making another run at the title.

Back to Michael Beasley, he is by far the most talented freshman in the country. Coming in as the number 1 ranked recruit by many sources, he has only exceeded expectations in breaking the Big 12 rebounding record in his first NCAA game, and then breaking the Big 12 points record, once held shortly ago by another fantastic freshman, Kevin Durant. Beasley is poised to be the number 1 overall pick in the upcoming draft, proving that freshmen truly are taking over the game.

As Dicky V would say, these diaper dandies are big P.T.P’ers that can Slam, Bam, Jam AND dish the rock.

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My first post for The Bocker and it’s only fitting that it should be about the college I currently attend, Syracuse University. For the second straight year, Syracuse has shocked the world and upset Georgetown at home while G-Town was ranked in the top 10. For the second straight year Syracuse was faced with a do-or-die situation that would determine their chances for a NCAA tourney bid. And for the second straight year, I was sitting on the couch watching, as 30,000 Syracuse fans rushed the court and piled on top of the Cuse basketball team. Shame on me.

Two opportunities to feel the ultimate greatness as a fan and two opportunities blown because of the inability to awaken after a long Friday night. So as I watched the usually disappointed Cuse fans indulge in a moment of prosperity, I began to wonder if deja vu was about to actually occur. At the close of the 2007 selection show, fans were left asking questions such as how is this possible? How did the Georgetown win not solidify our chances? and Wasn’t Syracuse supposed to be a NCAA tourney lock? Even the front page for the Daily Orange, the schools daily newspaper, headlined The Big Dance after the beat down of Georgetown last year. So what is in store this year. The Orange is currently 9th in the Big East with five games left. Two against ranked opponents and one against a surging Louisville with a healthy David Padgett. Its gut check time for the Orange and this Georgetown win effectively has not changed their chances for a tourney bid. A big win against Georgetown gets canceled by their embarrassing beat down by South Florida.

So as I sat on the couch and watched fans celebrate for a few minutes before getting thrown off the court, I wondered whether the excitement was for nothing. Being very pessimistic, I expect only the worse from Boeheims squad. They have been a disappointment since Carmelo left, and if not for McNamara’s heroics they would have been a bubble team every year for the last 5 years. If these last five games go sour, Syracuse might not even make the Big East tourney, let alone the big dance. The season has been a long road for this youthful team, and another letdown come Selection Sunday will be disastrous for the future. Donte Greene might jump to the NBA if he can not taste March Madness, and pieces may fall slowly like a domino effect. The last freshman to lead ‘Cuse to the big dance from Maryland was Carmelo Anthony. And we know how that story ended.

We’d love to hear your thoughts on this, or any other post. Email us at editor@thebocker.com