Sport’s ’07 year ends with a slim sense of hope after overall negative year
Dogfighting, refs, steroids, upsets, and disappointments plagued 2007

By Adam Krebs, of The Lakeland Times

When I look back in the world of sports over the the Gregorian calendar year of 2007, I tend to see a lot of negatives followed by little positives, some hope and a lot of interesting tidbits.
Over the past 365 days, we’ve witnessed the NFL’s most exciting player (Michael Vick) get sentenced for 23 months in federal prison because he led a dogfighting ring.
Not that I’m not offended by the abuse and murder of dogs, but the gambling that went on at these events seems debatably minimal when compared to the NBA gambling scandal that involved a veteran referee.
I’ve already discussed this in a previous column, so I won’t dip into it much more than I think this story alone is the most disturbing of all in the sports world to me.
The undefeated Patriots started their season with a cheating scandal. Since being caught in the first quarter, they have gone on to win every single game this season – and I don’t think they will stop anytime soon.
The one story that has seemed to grip the nation all year long, though, was Barry Bonds, steroids, and the Mitchell Report.
The day the report came out, I read through all 409 PDF pages in one quick sitting, analyzing every name involved – some surprising, most not.
Barry Bonds didn’t surprise me, but I still could not care less. Andy Pettitte and Roger Clemens somewhat surprised me, but, like Bonds, I could still not care less.
To me personally, steroids don’t affect my love for baseball.
Sure, I would love to see everyone in the game clean, but I don’t mind if someone is using something to help them out. Football players do it all the time, no one says a word.
I take the 85 names in the Mitchell Report with a grain of salt. It’s mostly based on speculation, and many of the names came from a few rats, locker room attendants, and personal trainers.
Of the 85 names, over 60 came from three sources. Most of the rest were already busted, suspended, or talked under oath (Giambi, in which Mitchell watched in person).
What about the other teams and other players? It has been my estimation all along that over 80 percent of pro players used SOMETHING. Be it steroids, HGH, amphetamines or pain killers. Nearly everyone was on something.
Brett Favre’s famous pain-killer drug is now banned in the MLB, and includes a 25-game suspension, which is nearly 1/6th of the season. Say good bye the start-streak then.
The Mitchell Report was based off of steroids and HGH alone, that adds to the reason why the number of people listed were so low.
Had they counted amphetamine users, they wouldn’t have started their search in 1992; they would have had to start in the 1950s. From then until now, players like Mickey Mantle, Roger Maris, Hank Aaron, Willie Mays, Pete Rose, Roberto Clemente, and various others had all used amphetamines.
They popped the pills like a doctor in Seattle downs Starbucks. It was so commonplace in clubhouses that reporters would bring in their own coffee, because the players “coffee” was juiced with pain killers or other amphetamines to help themselves play that day.
I’m not saying steroids, HGH, and drugs are OK, because they aren’t, I’m just saying that I don’t care. It happened, lets move on. It’s still happening, so we search for those who are breaking the rules and punish them.
There are no asterisks in the game of baseball.
Barry Bonds is the home run king. Roger Clemens is the best pitcher I’ve ever seen. And Brady Anderson is still the poster-boy for one-year steroid wonders.
I wasn’t worried about ‘roids spilling into JUCO baseball when I played. I’m sure there were kids juicing or using something, but I didn’t care. I figured if I was good enough, I would beat him and vice versa.
Regardless, the Mitchell Report of 85 names is likely only a mere percentage of the actual number. I’m guessing the real number for steroids and HGH alone is about 5-10 times higher. If you add amphetamines, the number is higher than 10,000.
In football, the cheaters are let off easier. Shawn Merriman and Rodney Harrison were each busted with steroids and HGH, yet we are chastising Andy Pettitte, Clemens, and Bonds on a daily basis? Completely unfair.
And I don’t buy this “integrity of the game” nonsense, either.
The Patriots were busted for recording the Jets defensive signals in the first game of the season – in the first half!
Season then, they have looked as unbeatable as any team - ever.
Even though I love the Miami Dolphins and the cherished ’72 season, I want the Pats to win it all. They are the greatest team ever assembled.
Say what you wish about being glad you Packer Fans don’t have Randy Moss. For a fourth round draft pick, you would be undefeated instead, and the favorite to win the Super Bowl.
The best thing that did happen to Green Bay this year was that they learned to play defense and Brett Favre has become patient and smart in the pocket.
Ryan Grant has been a nice surprise, but to me he is nothing more than this year’s Samkon Gado – except a little bit faster.
Miami has no one fast, except for that awesome first-round, ninth overall, selection of returner Ted Ginn, Jr. Thanks Cam Cameron, Nick Saban, and Miami upper management. I’m glad Bill Parcells in down on the beach these days – maybe the Fish can draft someone useable with the first overall pick in April.
In college football, this year was the upset.
It started with Michigan losing to Appalachian State and continues to this very bowl day.
I love upsets, but when they happen every week, it becomes too much and I lose respect for programs and the coaches who run them.
Then again, when coaches jump from team to team after signing long, lucrative contracts, I begin to get a little uneasy about a coaches ego. That’s when the coaching staff loses the players.
Thank your spiritual leader then for the UW-Whitewater football team. They bring hope to college football (and Wisconsin citizens) that quality team football still exists. However, so see it, you have to find the 2,500 capacity stadiums in small-town campuses throughout the states.
I don’t watch basketball anymore. Not because I don’t like the sport, but because I haven’t had cable since I moved to the Northwoods.
However, from what I’ve read, LeBron is the greatest thing ever in the NBA (I won’t disagree), the Celtics are phenomenal (I won’t disagree), and Kevin Durant is still the second-coming of Tracy MacGrady (I won’t disagree).
It’s because of the high-shot rate that he scores so many points. I’d rather have Chris Paul, or Greg Oden, or LeBron, or Dwight Howard on my team than Durant. In fact, I’ll take Travis Deiner, too.
Because I don’t have cable, I have almost no idea about what’s going on in college basketball. I couldn’t even tell you what the Badger’s record or ranking is right now.
I couldn’t tell you who’s number one, who’s a sleeper, and who’s a surprise team this year.
All this is new to me.
In fact, without cable, I can’t even watch the ESPN stat line for hockey scores to see just how well Sidney Crosby, the Penguins, or even my hockey hero Jeremy Roenick are doing. It’s a shame.
But throughout the year, the main headlines have been negative. Little has seemed positive. I sure hope this all changes in 2008. I feel we could really go for a happy and positive ’08.

Happy Festivus; my airing of grievances
My ’07 year could have been better if baseball had instant replay.
That way Kenny Lofton would have been correctly called safe on his double against the Red Sox. Cleveland then may have won he ALCS and then the World Series.
This next year will hopefully involve another Tribe postseason run, and hopefully *crosses fingers* a Brewers postseason run.
Ned Yost still owes me $100 for specifically losing over nine games himself because of managerial mistakes this past year. Had Milwaukee finished with more wins than Chicago, I would be able to play the cable bill for a month.
With David Riske, Salomon Torres, Eric Gagne, and Guillermo Mota, the Crew has the relief help (in names at least) to make a run.
All Milwaukee needs now is one more bat to put them over the top.
I say Kenny Lofton. If Milwaukee signs Lofton to play LF, the Crew can keep Billy Hall at CF and Braun at the hot corner.
Lofton would then bat second behind Weeks to have back-to-back leadoff hitters in the lineup. That’s great small-ball before the big bats come in.
Maybe then next year I won’t lose that bet with my Cubs fan friend.
Speaking of coaching mistakes costing me money, Gary Kubiak, the Houston Texans coach and longtime John Elway backup decided NOT to play Ron Dayne in the NFL’s Week 16.
Not a big deal to most, but to me, it’s a HUGE deal.
Kubiak listed Dayne as “probable”, and work leaked out that Dayne would “most definitely play” against the Colts last weekend.
Only two other times in the history of injury reports (OK, I’m guessing here) has someone listed as “probable” not played.
Dayne didn’t play.
Had he played, all he had to do was get one carry for just three yards, or catch one pass for three yards, or throw a pass for six yards, or score a two-point conversion and I would have won my fantasy league and $150 dollars.
Sure, I took second and $50, but the extra $100 would have gone towards my Brewers bet, with the other $50 going towards my new cable bill.
Three yards. I lost by .26 points, which is the equivalent in my fantasy league of 2.6 yards. Three yards. That was all.
One more extra point by Mason Crosby would have given me the win. Thanks, again, Brett Favre for leading that meaningless last minute scoring drive.
I am done venting now, just in time to go cover some more Lakeland sports. Thank God, Allah, Zeus and Jupiter that 2008 will start with some pure high school athletics. Karma knows I need some positive vibes during the snowy season.
I hope all your holiday went well. See you in the stands, sports fans.




*note, this is my column for our New Year's edition of the Lakeland Times. Sorry for the delay in updating. My internet capabilities have been slim to none, and hopefully with my new cable/internet being installed today, updates will get back to as close to daily as I can get them -- at least weekly...