Robert Shields
It’s summertime and you can tell people are looking for things to talk about when on sports-talk radio they entertain a guy who talked about playing college football on his Playstation 2 (not even a PS3) and how the Hogs are going to win it all according to how he played the video game.
In the absence of no good controversies coming out of SEC media days, I was tempted to write another listing of the best cheerleader schools (#11-20), but you get this column instead.
The theme is, what has been good about this summer?
It just keeps getting uglier and uglier for Ohio State even after having to vacate the Sugar Bowl. The summer started with their coach resigning, and the NCAA will drop the big hammer soon enough. Some Razorback fans probably think vacating is the same as forfeit, and that is fine because in reality it is.
Auburn stays in the news over the recruitment of Cam Newton and mostly due to its own coach not keeping his mouth shut. It was the underlying talk for SEC media days. Wally Hall even wrote his Sunday column about it. It’s hard to explain how Newton’s dad wanted $180,000 from Mississippi State for Cam to play for them, yet he ended up at Auburn. Auburn fans contend he arrived for nothing. This doesn’t jive in the economic reality for some people. An Auburn fan would probably explain it away by saying Newton’s dad must have had a change of heart about wanting money.
Summer always brings some old topics back up, and this summer it’s been conference realignment. Two teams on the list to join the SEC according to callers on radio shows have been Texas A&M and Oklahoma since they were the favorites last year before the Texas Longhorns roped them back into the Big Whatever conference after Colorado and Nebraska bolted. If by chance these two schools ever come to the SEC, I propose they are in the SEC West and Alabama and Auburn are shipped to the SEC East, and then Vanderbilt slips over to the SEC West to balance it at seven teams on each side.
It was fun doing the cheerleading list. It was also one of my most popular columns.
The lack of rain has made it very sunny allowing all of us to enjoy most of your nights to do whatever you want. If you are a big-time high-school recruit, that still means just hanging out at the Gas ‘N Sip.
The preseason magazines make pontificating and arguing with opposing fans fun thanks to their predictions. It helps most of us get through the summer while waiting for football, and the magazines have been good this year. I love the Arkansas Sports 360 preseason magazine since it’s free and it’s done extremely well.
So what has been bad about this summer?
Anthony Oden getting kicked off the team. This will cause some musical chairs now on the offensive line hurting unity as the line has to get reacquainted. There is no other area that requires teamwork like the offensive line. I have a feeling fans are going to be uttering his name well into the season whenever something goes wrong. He is the new Peanut Adams.
Women’s soccer disappointed many people in the end. Soccer is disappointing anyway.
The lack of rain has made the heat sometimes unbearable.
You can fill out the rest of what has been bad. I’m a positive kind of guy.
Send your negatives from the summer to fromthebench@yahoo.com and follow me @rsfromthebench on Twitter to win a chance at a pancake breakfast cooked by me or one dollar determined by me.
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