Easter Lull

There is no more high school sports until school starts back up next Monday.  Baseball will begin the final push to end the regular season by the end of the first week in May.  The first round of the playoffs begin May12-13-14.  One game that first week which is crazy.  Whoever makes it all the way to the Regional finals will have to play possible four games in one week..

The 4th round would be played on May 23/24 and the winner starts the two out of three for the regional on the 26-27-28.  Can somebody please tell the NCHSAA how stupid that is.  There is only a couple of things that happen when a team plays four games in a week.  A coach pitches his best pitcher too much and by game four the loser scores ten runs when both teams are out of pitchers.  Is that how we want to determine a State Champion.

I must say bravo to Kent Cox for the way he has used Benton Moss this year.  Early in the year when the weather was not perfect he had him on a pitch count and when he arrived at that number he took him out of the game.  The week in which we played Hunt on the Saturday night  he could have thrown him a second time during that week but chose to not wear him out.  He has chosen safety over victories. 

This young Gryphon team has shown to be a average hitting team and when Benton does not pitch maybe be below average pitching.  One great arm does not reflect well for  a long run in the playoffs.

We are a week away from the NFL draft and rumors have it that the Carolina Panthers are heading to draft Cam Newton.  I am no expert on how players will do in the pros but to me Newton is a carbon copy of JaMarkus Russell.  If I am Carolina I would stay clear of Newton.  There are just too many red flags flying about him.  Carolina is already in a mess, they can't afford spending all the money the #1 pick will get that is not going to be a 10 year every play guy.  They can't afford to gamble but be safe.

The NFL released the 2011/2012 regular season schedule yesterday.  They also are in negotiations with the players in front of an arbitrator this week trying to get a settlement in the lockout.  Any time there is talks both sides shoot for the moon and hope the other side gives up first.  Most of the time they meet in the middle and we move on.  It is time to find the middle.

I mentioned this a couple of weeks ago in the NCAA playoffs where teams who were down late in the games  by one or two points were settling for long three pointers.  Where do the college players learn from but the pros. Carmelo Anthony held the ball for the last ten seconds without  passing it just so he could throw up a 28 foot  three point attempt in trying to beat Boston in the first round of the NBA playoffs. He passed up on trying to go inside to tie and maybe  get the game in overtime just so he could be the hero.   Way to set an example for others.