TONY'S hustle inductees

Saturday afternoon three members of the Rocky Mount tennis team qualified the the state tournament next weekend in Burlington.  George Shannon and Landon Norwood swept through their first three matches until they met up with the doubles team from Fike.  It was a struggle but the Gryphons prevail winning in two sets to win the 3A Eastern Regional at Barton College.  They will try for the state doubles title starting next Friday in Burlington.

Singles player Tyler Brice lost one match in two days and the one he lost was the Regional final.  It is his first singles lost of the season but by finishing second he qualifies for weekends state championships.

I have been covering sports in eastern North Carolina a long time before many of you were born.  During that time I have met many people who are special people in their support of others and their support of athletics.   Many young people who I have watched that I have grown fond of because the way the play the sport they participate  in.  I call those my all hustle team.  Here is a small list of some of some special people in my eyes and two new members to my all hustle team.

Richard Sarmiento :  I don't know if any person has effected baseball in Nash County more in the last 25 years.  His love of baseball with financial backing and his ability of getting others to help.  Many teams have played in tournaments in Cooperstown and was a vital link in Babe Ruth Baseball sending teams to the World Series and almost winning in 2005.

Bill Reece:  Is there anybody in Nash County who does not know Bill.  If there is a ball game tonight some where near he will be there.  Met him when our last daughter Morgan played teeball ball at Englewood  on the same team as Bill's grandson David Williams who by the way is on my all time hustle team and proud to say graduates from Duke next weekend.

Joe Bell:  Have worked with Joe all ten years that I  have done PA for Rocky Mount Legion Baseball.  You just  don't know the time and effort he has given to Legion baseball.  Three children have been involved through the years in Rocky Mount sports an I bet many of their games he has on film.

Don Johnson:  I met DJ in the 80's.  He was at Chowan College  being a ref and I did the PA.  If I remember correctly it was  a Region Ten Junior College tournament and I did any time Chowan played I did radio and any other games did PA.  It is hard to be around DJ without feeling better.  He just had that glow that more people need.

Now my two new all Hustle team members.

Leroy Edwards Southern Nash:  I have maybe seen him play maybe ten games altogether.  I bet  there are many people who when they watch him play never know he has a handicap.  He has learned to over come his disability an play the game of baseball one handed. That's my kind of player.

Logan Pearce Rocky Mount:  I saw him the day he was born as Pat and I are great friends with his mom and dad.  He has through the years been about smallest player in the field but one of the best and he could always hit.  His high high school days he is grown up but this year his hitting has been sporadic but one thing has not left him defense.  He has not allowed his hitting to effect his play.  Made error first game of season and hasn't made one since.  That's my kind of ball player.

Time to starting looking for more people who are friends of athletics and the next hustle ball players!

Is ESPN Dying?

The mad rush by the Power Five conferences to gobble up each other because ESPN was promising  trillions of dollars to have every sporting event on TV may be heading out the door like the clothespin.

There was a day when everyone hung their clothes out on the clothesline  and of course that meant to hold  them on the line you used clothes pins.  Along comes the electric dryer or gas dryer and now for 50 years there is no need to use clothes pins.  Tried to find a clothes pin in a grocery store lately? 

Every new invention at some point in time is replaced by another invention that improved on the first invention and after a while clothes pins are an after thought.  Wood matches replace by Bic lighters. The Sears catalog has been replaced by on line buying.  We can talk all day about the way it use to be  and how it is now.

ESPN had the audacity back in the early 1980's to go for 24 hours a day sports on TV which brought about rodeo, barrel jumping, Spelling Bee, all kinds of fill time while ESPN tried to figure out what to put in front of your eyes worth watching.  Nascar was the first big success brought on by the one  sports channel.  Does any body remember who played in the first college football game on ESPN???  East Carolina at N C State 1982 a 24-22 ECU win.

As ESPN got their feet on the ground they started putting hockey on the air, college basketball and as more games were seen by the audience the more people wanted to see it but times are a changing.  The Direct TV's of the world  which has every channel  you could ever want put ESPN on more cable  homes and the more homes ESPN got greedy and wanted more for their channels that what Discovery could ask the cable companies of the world.  Then there came a point where people had been sucked dry with cable expenses and many have ways to say goodbye to cable and with out subscribers ESPN who had become the Rich kid on the block that wanted more but already had every penny of your money.

In order to offer more football or basketball they convinced colleges to create huge mega conferences with the promise from ESPN that they will pay huge dollars because people want to see Clemson and Boston College and the more viewers the more money we will divide with you. So the greedy themselves colleges fell for this long everlasting  dream that the money tree will last  and every one will be happy ever after.

Now the  poor to keep cable for the high price people have gone to other ways to see TV.  Many are going to the stick which will give you 14 or so local channels and those that are computer savvy know where to find free TV.  It has come to the point Cable is too high I will down grade and take what ever I can get.

Who is hurting most of all from this new TV viewing  by those who have fallen in the trap of cable TV.  ESPN!  They have downsized twice in the last six months.  All of this promise to these mega conferences has to slow down especially if  ESPN has to file bankruptcy in years to come and that is quite a good possibility.

I wonder in just this completed basketball season has ESPN paid up to the ACC yet on what the ACC thinks should be getting in their cut.  If they haven't they may not be getting as much as they think their cut should be.    If the money falls what's going to happen to college having to pay their teams to fly to Miami or Boston.  I wonder then will they hold each school to the 50 million dollar buy out to jump from the conference?

I can see in my crystal ball that the day could the be coming where that eight team ACC could be born again.  South Carolina, Clemson the Big four North Carolina schools, Virginia Tech and Virginia.  I think Maryland will never be in the good graces of the ACC Gods.  If all this comes full circle we will all be wanting C D Chesley back to bring us the ACC.