Management Decisions

I think we all in life want to be the big dog. The person in charge who controls everyone's movements.

Maybe not in today's world, where layoffs are announced every day. Who wants to control thousand of peoples lives by scratching a line on a roster and saying everyone below this line goes.

I heard today the the CEO of General Motors made $15 million last year in losing $70 billion for GM. What a waste. They could have paid me $100,000 and I guarantee I would only lose 450 billion.

Decisions. They happen every day. With its lost today, the N.C. State women's basketball team finishes a season in which is probably the most rewarding ever for the program as far as national attention. Every sports media in the USA focused on N.C. State for a week in January.

Unfortunately, all of that focus came because of the death of Kay Yow, a woman who fought cancer for everyone to watch and to give hope that they could beat cancer.

You know this ends five years of a rough road for the Lady Wolfpack after Yow was diagnosed with a recurrence of her breast cancer in 2004.

Right now, I would not want to be Lee Fowler, the Athletic Director at State. He has to make a decision on who will replace Kay Yow.

This will be the third hire for Fowler of the four major sports in Raleigh.

Basketball still has a major question mark whether he has made the right choice in Sidney Lowe. I think all Wolfpackers are very satisfied with Tom O'Brian in football.

Fowler has announced there will be a national search for Yow's replacement. There is an old saying about not wanting to be the the one to replace a legend.

Stephanie Glance has been Kay Yow's top assistant for 15 years. The last five, with Yow in and out of hospitals, she has stood tall keeping the program going.

All of us who pull for the Wolfpack nation have to be honest with ourselves. In the triangle these days Wolfpack basketball is third fiddle to Duke and Carolina - that's men and women's.

For all she has done for the program, Stephanie deserves to be given the job. But, as the top assistant the last 15 years, name a Wolfpack women's player that when you heard the name as a State, was a national-type player?

In women's basketball, you get a 6'5" player who can dominate the middle. State's players have been project players who normally have only played when they developed up through their senior seasons.

I think Stephanie deserves the job, but I don't know if she can win the way I want the program to win.
Decisions... I'm glad I am well down the totem pole where they tell me the decisions and I live with it.

Defending champs off And running

Hobbs Johnson, a Rocky Mount Academy transfer, opened the baseball season for the Rocky Mount Gryphons pitching four innings of shutout baseball. But he also got the hit to get a rally started in the bottom of the fourth as RMHS opened with an 8-4 win over South Granville Wednesday afternoon at Gryphon Stadium.

Senior Brian Goodwin picked up right where he left of last season by going 2-for-4 on two singles , two RBIs and three stolen bases.

Dillion Cockrell, Ben Fish and Johnson also had two hits a piece while Gabe Brown had the other Gryphon hit.

Rocky Mount's rally in the fourth produced seven runs. Parker Helms came on to pitch the fifth, but needed relief help from Nick Hahula, who just started baseball this week having just finished basketball season.

Hahula pitched the last 2 1/3 innings to get the save.

The Gryphons return to action Saturday as they play in the Impact Baseball Invitational being held at the USA Baseball Facility in Cary. Game time is 4.30 p.m.. They will be joined by Northern Nash which plays Saturday morning at 11.

The Gryphons return to Gryphon Stadium next Tuesday as they host Greenville Rose.

I would like to thank Wes Bradshaw with all the details on today's game and announce that Bella (Wes' dog) has yet to lose a game as a Gryphon fan having helped today in the press box.

Tonight ,Carolina got a big win at Virginia Tech. Coupled with Duke's win last night, Duke and Carolina play for the No. 1 seed Sunday. Carolina can win the No. 1 seed outright ,while Duke can force a tie.

North Carolina State wins at home over BC in its last home game of the year. Tonight's victory qualifies the Pack for the NIT as they now are guarenteed a winning season.

The snow hasn't quite gone away yet, but the ACC baseball season has their first ACC weekend. State plays at Miami, while Carolina opens conference play at home against Clemson.

It is hard to believe, but Rocky Mount native Billy Godwin has been at East Carolina already long enough to win 121 games. That moves him to sixth all-time in Pirate coaching wins after their win today over ODU.

Way to go, Billy!

Behind the Mic

If the weather cooperates, the defending state 3-A champion Rocky Mount Gryphons will try to open the season Wednesday at 4.30 p.m. at home against South Granville. Thursday forecast looks much better.

I have been spouting out first downs and touchdowns on the radio since 1971. In that time frame, I've seen many a player pass by me in full view of the press box.

Not only have I gotten into games for free, but I have seen so many athletes perform. Most of them I had no idea while they were in high school that they would go on to bigger and better things.

On the home front while I was in the sticks of northeastern North Carolina, I saw Timmy Newsome play. Most of his high school career he had ankle problems and played defense. At Winston-Salem State, he became the all-time CIAA rusher and went one to become the starting fullback for the Dallas Cowboys.

There was one particular Monday night football game in which Howard Cosell stated that Newsome was a man among boys after he caught a screen pass at about the 50-yard line and proceeded to run over every Washington Redskin who attempted to get in his way.

The one thing that I always like about Timmy after a touchdown when others did their dances Timmy always handed the ball to the refs.

I was behind the mic for two Tarboro-Ahoskie games when Kelvin Bryant played for Tarboro.
The 1978 conference championship game was played in Ahoskie and it wasn't the yardage that Kelvin rushed for but the fumble rolling free in the Tarboro backfield in which Ahoskie was about to pounce on and put them in the lead late in the game. Bryant, who was the only Tarboro player anywhere close to the ball, as Ahoskie was about to scoop up the ball and score a touchdown Kelvin kicked the ball out of bounds, preventing a fumble. He got a penalty, but also a conference championship. Ahoskie didn't score.

In the 80's when I started covering Chowan College basketball, the best player that I saw was Nate McMillan. Nate played point guard at Chowan after graduating from Raleigh Broughton.
I never saw a better full-court passer in my life.

After getting a rebound or receiving an outlet pass, Nate could throw the ball to a teammate from halfcourt or more and hit his teammate in the air going up for a shot. I have always felt that Jim
Valvano never used Nate to his best ability while he spent his last two years at N.C. State.

In football you hear all the time he is a good deep passer, Nate McMillan was a full-court fast break passer. Today his number hangs in the rafters in Seattle or Oklahoma City. He was voted the favorite Seattle Supersonic of all time.

Coaches, players, gyms, ball fields, and stadiums. I have been in quite a few in my time. Whenever the old eyesight goes and I can no longer see the numbers on the jerseys, boy, do I have memories.

All-American

Rocky Mount High's Brian Goodwin has been named to The Sporting News 2009 High School All- America Baseball Team.

This award is either way too early being named as an All-American before the season starts or way too late after the season Brian had last year. If this is based on last year's performance, Brian is most deserving.

I suspect his play in the All-Star games at Dodger Stadium, where he was the MVP of the game, and getting two hits at Wrigley Field are the catalyst for this award.

Good job Brian!

Opening day for Gryphom baseball is now Wednesday after being snowed out today. The Greenville Rose game will be made up the last week of the season. With the economy being the way it is, neither team can afford to let this game get canceled. High school sports teams need every penny they can get nowadays to stay afloat.

Two NFL players remain lost at sea as of dark tonight in the Gulf of Mexico. Even though they are in 80 degree water, hypothermia sets in and now that they have been in the water for more than 48 hours. Corey Smith, who played at N.C. State, and two others were not found near the capsized boat as one was today.

I believe in the book of life and when the good book says it's your time, it's your time. Why on earth were four people in a 21-foot boat 30 miles from shore?

We are down to the wire as this is the last week of the ACC basketball season. The regular season will come down to Duke and Carolina Sunday.

Who is having the last laugh now?

Herb Sendek was pretty much run out of town by Wolfpack fans because he could only win 59 percent on his games. So what did they get in return? A 53 percent winning coach. The last time I looked, Herb was 21-7 with the Arizona State Sun Devils this season.

If you had to pick the Final Four right now, who would you pick?

I going with Carolina, Pittsburgh, Oklahoma and Louisville. We will know in five weeks. The national championship game is five weeks from tonight!

Can You Say N.I.T.?

They have been showing improvement over the past several weeks, but tnight will put an end to N.C. State's chances of making the NCAA tournament other than winning four straight games in the ACC in two weeks.

I just don't understand why Tracy Smith, who was a man inside all night, never put his hands on the ball the last seven minutes of the game.

There is still a possibility than nine ACC teams will go 8-8 in league play. If that happens, all nine need to be in the NCAA Tournament.

I have told you here before that my son Brooks is a contractor for NOAA and goes on fishing boats ranging from 50-footers to 900 footers and monitors fish catches.

Tonight he is in Key Largo, Fl. where he will be making one-day trips on boats this week. We were on the phone talking Pack basketball after tonight's game and the conversation drifted over to the two NFL players who are missing off Clearwater, Fl.

One of the players is Corey Smith, who played for the Pack up until 2001. Brooks said, ''Dad, I have been out of that port near Clearwater 16 times in the last few months." You know this is really a small world we live in.

It's a shame that the weather got to college baseball this weekend. College baseball is in its second week and ECU hosted the Keith LeClair Classic. ECU did manage to whip Oklahoma State once.

All of this impending weather we may get later tonight and early Monday has already put a damper on the official opening for high school spring sports for Monday, especially if there is no school.

I need to go put our front porch light on so I can start looking out the window. Morgan has already ask me 10 times whether it has started snowing yet.

Page One

I have just gone online to write this blog and I see that the greatest news man in the history of journalism news has died, PAUL HARVEY.

My first remembrance of him was in the mid-60s doing his news on TV. Hardly ever did he give an opinion only presented it, but you knew he was a conservative Midwesterner who thought like me.

It has become harder over the years to find a station in the area that carried him, but I knew that whenever I found him on the radio dial he would always say something like "self government will not work without self discipline." So true.

The closest thing to Harvey today is Bill O'Reilly. But, he can't hold Paul Harvey's jock strap. In honor of Paul Harvey....

Page Two and the rest of the story....

High school basketball playoffs are over for our local high schools and like football too many teams get in that don't deserve to be there.

During football season I suggested eliminating one round. There is no reason that a 2-8 team is in a playoff . In basketball, I say cut the field in half. Sixteen teams in each regional and play a double elimination instead of 32 and have a 5-16 get slaughtered in the first round. Just a thought.

Carolina looks like they got their groove back. But it was Georgia Tech.

Duke and Wake win on the road.

If State beats Maryland tomorrow night, it can still wish for the NCAA tournament but they need about a three-game winning streak to finish the season and about two wins in the ACC tournament. 20-12 maybe NCAA?

You know the economy is in bad shape when ACC Tournament tickets are on sale for face value. If you have never been, there may never be another chance. Tickets go on sale at the box office at the Georgia Dome Monday morning. I'm sure they are nosebleed seats.

Listened to the Carolina game some on the radio Saturday afternoon and heard that football season tickets are 15 percent behind last year. Times are tight everywhere.

The funeral for Grant Wilson is 3 p.m. Sunday at First Baptist Church. Please continue to pray for the Wilson family.

Finally, in honor of Paul Harvey,

GOOD DAY

Time To Put Away The Basketballs

One night after defeating Havelock by a 69-57 score in the sectional semi finals, the Lady Gryphons of Rocky Mount High fall at Beddingfield by the same score as last night 69-57.

There seems to me to be a disconnect for girls basketball by forcing the semi finals on Thursdays and no practice having to play the most important game of the year the very next night.

Why not give the girls a day of rest to prepare?

Next week during regional week games are going to be played Saturday.

RMHS girls finish the season 21-5. Having no girl taller than five ten or five eleven Pam Gainey has once again gotten more milage out of a team by playing to their strength(Quickness) over power inside.

The only boys representative still alive coming into tonight's games was Nash Central. They had the task of traveling to the defending state champions Kinston. Nash Central was in the game until the wire but fall 76-72 in the boys sectional finals.

Trey Sumler has 36 in his final game as a Bulldog. I think Sumler will be the NEw-6 Basketball player of the year.

The third team representing the NEW-6 tonight was Southwest Edgecombe girls. SWE had caught a break earlier in the week when they found themselves getting a home game when a #1 seed was upset but no break tonight as they traveled to Dudley and were eliminated from the sectionals 81-52.

So basketball season is over for the NEW-6. baseball starts Monday.

I understand due to the impending possibility of snow on Sunday night that Monday's opening day baseball game at Rose for the Rocky Mount Gryphons has already been postponed.

Least the folks in Greenville have TVs and are able to make a decision base on the forecast.

If you remember during football season the folks at Northern Vance were without knowledge of an impending hurricane and Rocky Mount's football game in Henderson was put off for a month since no one in Henderson knew a hurricane was coming. No TV's in Vance county.

The funeral for Grant Wilson the Rocky Mount High senior who died at home Thursday morning before going to school is scheduled for Sunday at 3.00pm .

Lets all pray together for the Wilson family and remember that none of us know when our time is coming.