OPEN CONFESSION by ST

I must admit to being clueless about Oregon's next head basketball coach. The 'source' that mentioned Billy Donovan of Florida is hitting the crack pipe pretty hard. Billy D is a New York guy who played at Providence, was an assistant at Kentucky, turned down NBA dollars and just said no to St. Johns in the Big East. You really think he's coming to Oregon?
Lot of talk about Steve Alford of New Mexico. I like this guy, but his resume is spotty. Had one good season in the Missouri Valley Conference with S.W Mizzou State, made the Sweet 16 then got the gig at Iowa in the Big 10, obviously a major league. Made the Dance 3 times, won one game, never advancing past the 2nd round and eventually got canned for lack of success. Now in the Mountain West, which just had a career hoop season. They just upgraded their Pit. Is he a definite upgrade.
Way too many of you are taking this arrogant, matter of fact stance about dismissing Ernie Kent. It's not a done deal the next guy is better and has more success.
Please use Oregon State as a cautionary tale. They had the greatest coach in program history, Ralph Miller. From 1980 through 1990 they made 8 appearances in the NCAA Tournament. Got run in the 1st round 20 years ago by Ball State. Haven't been back since. Miller retired, Jim Anderson took over and they've made zero progress. Craig Robinson might turn out the be the right guy, but after playing .500 ball last year, they finished under the break even mark this season. It's a cliche, but be careful what you wish for. Oregon is treading on dangerous ice. This is the Pac 10. Might be down in 2010, but don't forget, the conference sent 6 teams to the Big Dance a year ago. You know UCLA and Arizona are bouncing back huge, Arizona State has the right guy in Herb Sendek. Do not assume the Ducks automatically get better with a new coach and new arena. I may be wrong and so might you!

ELDRICK THE GOLFER by ST

Now that he's held his token press conference and given a pair of interviews, we can get back to the business of thinking about Tiger's pursuit of Jack's 18 majors. He's at 14. Last took one home at the 2008 US Open at Torrey Pines. I don't give him much of a chance at the Masters which gets rolling 2 weeks from Thursday. History says forget it. You don't take nearly 5 months off from competitive golf, even if you're Woods, then jump back in at a high level. As mentioned on SportsTalk, TW tried that after his dad passed in 2006 at our Open at Winged Foot. Not only did he fail to contend, but he missed his first cut as a professional. Of course he bounced back to win the British Open at Royal Liverpool and the PGA Title at Medinah. I believe his return at Augusta is about a secure venue that protects it's players from media scrutiny with it's tight rules and guidelines. It's also critical to understand the US & British Open will be held at 2 of his favorite venues, Pebble Beach and St. Andrews. Tiger re-wrote the record book when the U.S Open was held at Pebble back in 2000 and 2 of his 3 British crowns took place at The Olde Course. Who am I to say he doesn't have the game to pull off the minor miracle by winning his 5th green jacket? Just don't see it happening. I would be really surprised if he got beat by anyone in either Open. Let's give away some from eats. E-mail the correct answer to the following question to stevetannen@live.com
Chance for a $100 gift certificate to Sunsational Tanning in Eugene. Nice spring time present. I mentioned Tiger winning the 2000 Open at Pebble and the two victories at St. Andrews. What was his margin of victory in each of these major victories? Good Luck!

EUGENE, NEW JERSEY by ST

Since when are the fine people of Eugene, OR more cynical than we Jersey folk? I was at the press conference where it was announced Mike Bellotti is leaving Oregon to become an analyst for ESPN. Most of the reaction has been he's "running" away or other ulterior motives. Am I nuts? The guy is a college football junkie, it's in his blood. Does anyone out there who follows this man closely ever even remotely get the feeling he had a passion for being an administrator? He himself said, he misses gameday Saturday's and some of the camaraderie but as for the Monday through Thursday grind of coaching, no thanks. He became very emotional when speaking about departing the University, but the level of enthusiasm and joy in his demeanor when discussing the new ESPN gig was like a little kid who just found out he's going to Disney World!
Trust me, he's gonna be a terrific analyst. Hopefully he'll replace that no nothing cheater, Lou Holtz down the road. If you are a Bellotti fan and appreciate all he's done for the Ducks, you should be really happy for him.

DONE DEAL by ST

So they finally got around to admitting the worst kept secret in Oregon athletics. Ernie Kent is out as basketball boss. We've often discussed what big biz Duck sports has become and if Mike Bellotti's gig as A.D is part C.F.O he probably couldn't totally ignore the dip in attendance. Down 800 per game from a year ago represents a more than 10% drop. The team was certainly improved from last year but the 2008-2009 edition was really, really bad. I'm sure M.B agonized over this decision. It was kind of interesting to see the late ground swell of support for E.K on some blogs, in the Guard letters to the Sports Editor and some polls. Between those and the talk on our show, I'd say it was about half and half, or really close. Now Oregon must "lure" a talented coach to Eugene. They dismissed the guy who considered this his dream job. Can't flat out say it's the wrong decision, but there is no guarantee the next coach will do better. I'm sorry Ernie will not get to coach at least a year in the new arena. I totally trust Mike Bellotti and know he's way more qualified than you or I to make this kind of decision. With coach Kent we got to be a big part of March Madness, the greatest annual event on the American sporting landscape. He made Oregon basketball relevant because it was a non-entity prior to his arrival. Expectations are high and that's great. I wish he and his family well down the road and hope he knows many will always be appreciative of the great work he did here.
I hope you'll join us at Sam's Place on Wilson Street off West 11th for today's show. My old partner in crime, Adam Ulrey will join me for some bracketology, as well as baseball, the NFL and more. We will be giving away lot's of loot including baseball tickets for this weekend's set versus Nevada courtesy of Guaranty RV. Also hand out a pair of seats for this weekend's Oregon Preview T & Field event at Hayward. Not to mention a bunch of Duck gear. Don't forget to come down & fill out your bracket for a chance to win a pair of season's tickets to the new Matt Knight Arena. Gotta have it in by midnight tonight. Happy St. Patrick's Day. Hope to see you there.

ADMIRING AN ENEMY by ST

For the better part of this decade, Curt Shilling was a thorn in the side of Yankees fans. Co-MVP of Arizona's World Series victory with Randy Johnson in 2001. His legendary, gritty, bloody sock performance in the 2004 American League Championship series. He's rubbed some the wrong way with his outspoken manner but after today's interview on Dan Patrick, consider me a fan. He completely called out all the cheaters. Flatly went through the list and answered no when asked if they deserved to be in the Hall of Fame. Alex Rodriguez, Roger Clemens, Rafael Palmiero, Barry Bonds. None of them. No juicers or cheaters. He also pointed out his complete lack of respect for Bonds as a person as the Bay Area Baloonhead treated people like garbage. Interestingly enough he didn't feel he qualified as a Hall of Famer. I disagree. I will make my case on today's show. In some ways the big righty is the epitome of what it takes to get enshrined in Cooperstown. We will also take a quick look around at certain teams and see how things are moving along thus far in Spring Training. Eye on the Braves, Mariners, the Pujols for Ryan Howard rumour and a few more surprises.
At 4:20, we will have an interview with Oregon Track & Field stud, Ashton Eaton. This past weekend in Arkansas, he set the world record in the Heptathalon. We continue to focus on all the great things happening with Oregon athletics, not simply the football clowns embarassing the university.
We're doing the show live today from Guaranty in Junction City, just off Highway 99. We're not at the RV lot per usual, but to celebrate their being named the official area Saturn service center. It's a little north of the RV lot. We'll be inside. Come on down, check out some of the great rigs and enter to win baseball tickets, Duck gear and a pair of tickets for track and field, this Saturday's Oregon preview. See you there.

WAH, WAH, WAH by ST

I'm always amused by the teams who hail from the major hoop conferences and whine about getting snubbed for an at large bid to the Big Dance. These programs have every opportunity to consistently post quality, resume building wins. Illinois lost 14 games, including the semi-final defeat against Ohio State in the Big 10 tournament when they blew a 20 point lead. They also lost to Bradley out of league. Virginia Tech landed pretty solid in the power ranking but got bounced by a so-so Miami team in the first round of the ACC Tourney. Their out of league schedule was kind of a joke with UNC Greensboro, Campbell, Charlston South and Baltimore Maryland County. They also had a 3 game losing streak from the mid to end of February when the value of those games was increased. They have no one to blame but themselves. Feel a bit for Mississippi State as they had the lead late and finally fell in overtime to Kentucky in the SEC Final. That said, they lost 11 times including horror show defeats to Rider and Western Kentucky. In the SEC they got dusted by mediocre Auburn and Arkansas teams. They also get no sympathy, just heartbreak. How much of a case does a team who finished 4th, 5th or 6th in their own conference really have? Hysterical.
Join us today at Sam's Place on Wilson Street just off West 11th for the 1st of 2 March Madness programs. We'll also do the show their on Wednesday. Fill out a bracket and a shot to win a pair of season tickets for Oregon Basketball in the new Knight Arena. We'll also give away some certificates for spots 2 through 5. Some free eats and services around town.
As for today, let's give away a pair of $50 certificates to Mekala's Thai Cuisine.
E-mail the correct reponse to the following question to stevetannen@live.com
Lot made of the role of Cinderella in the NCAA's, well it's not really accurate.
Since 2000, how many National Champs have been the #1 seed in their region? Good Luck!

SAD, ARROGANT AND MISERABLE by ST

Growing up in North Jersey, we had the New York Daily news delivered to our home when I was a kid. I looked forward every morning to grabbing it on our stoop and immediately flipping to the back page to see what the sports headline screamed about the Yankees, Giants or Knicks. It was a source of joy, kind of a daily present. In 2010, I still get the local paper delivered, but generally log onto a major sports website to get the latest. It's getting depressing. The lead stories on ESPN dot com are about an NFL QB denying sexual misconduct allegations(again), the death of Hall of Fame DE Merlin Olson, a jury finding a defendant guilty in the shooting of another NFL player, plus the local mess with Jeremiah Masoli. Ever get the feeling that the more we know, the more bad stuff we become familiar with. I'm not in favor of living in ignorance, but every few weeks it might be theraputic to just check the box scores and ignore the other stories.
I'm going to run the risk of being a jackass. If Jeremiah Masoli is guilty of the felony charges against him he's an idiot. I understand the arrogance of youth, but college seniors are not teenagers, they supposed to be young men. I'm also pretty big on risk versus reward. A laptop and a guitar? That's worth your college career, reputation, possible professional career and maybe even his freedom? There has been much made of coach Chip Kelly's handling of the players stepping outside the law. I think most of the media coverage has been self serving garbage. Cutting loose Masoli or LeMichael James before the legal issues ran their course when it's not even football season would have been pointless. Now after some fact finding he can render a rational, intelligent decision. If either guy is guilty, they have to go away. No ladders. No 2nd chances. This would be the time to send a message. We'll see what happens tomorrow.