Punch-out

By now, hopefully everyone has seen the footage of Oregon running back LeGarrette Blount punching out Boise State's Bryon Hout after No. 14 Boise State beat the No. 16 Ducks 19-8 on Thursday night.

If not, click above and you can watch it several times before ESPN confiscates it.

I have a few thoughts on this incident:

It didn't look as if Hout was congratulating Blount on a nice game with the shoulder pad slap. Without being on the field, or being able to read lips, my guess is Hout said something to the effect of, "How you like Boise now, chump?"

Despite his probable lack of class after an important win for the Broncos, Hout didn't deserve to get sucker punched.

Even still, it was a punch that was better than what you see in most boxing matches these days. And Blount dropped Hout like a sack of potatoes ... which seems appropriate, given the game was in Idaho.

As if punching out an unsuspecting opposing player weren't enough, Blount tried to take on every Boise State fan in the place and had to be basically carried into the locker room by security personnel, as well as Oregon players and staff.

Once subdued, Blount was, for some reason, allowed to talk to the press. "I will never lose my head again. I should have handled that situation a lot better than I did."

No kidding.

Detroit knock city

I’ve said it before, and I’m sure I’ll say it again: I don’t like the way sports journalism is headed. It seems a bit more TMZ than Sports Illustrated, which is perhaps the most respected publication out there. And even SI has stumbled a bit in recent years.

What irks me today is a story that ran Saturday in the Detroit Free Press involving Michigan head coach Rich Rodriguez. The story claims Rodriguez was not compliant with NCAA regulations when it came to the amount of work his players put in during the season and throughout the offseason.
In a tearful press conference, Rodriguez had to defend himself against said allegations.

“That is disheartening,” he said. “To say that is misleading, inaccurate and goes against everything that I have ever believed in coaching.”

I’m not saying one way or the other if Rodriguez broke several rules, which were set to ensure adequate study time and prevent schools from gaining an unfair competitive advantage. Truth be told, he probably did only because every coach in big-time football bends them to some degree. This is what needs to be done if teams want to compete for a national championship.

My issue is with Free Press writers Michael Rosenberg and Mark Snyder, who interviewed six former and current Wolverines, all of whom spoke anonymously for fear of repercussions from the coaches.

The way I see it, responsible journalism begins and ends with naming sources. Nothing bothers me more. As far as I’m concerned, if a source doesn’t want to be named, he or she is not a source. Why? Because who’s to say these writers aren’t making this up? Who’s to say these aren’t scorned players overlooked for a starting position?

Furthermore, Mr. Rosenberg and Mr. Snyder should be flat out ashamed they didn’t allow Rodriguez the chance to defend himself. Instead, they went ahead with a story with very little credibility.

The NCAA and the University of Michigan are conducting an investigation, and just for the sake of good and honest sports journalism, I hope they find nothing. I hope it completely and utterly ruins the reputation of these two writers, who I hope will think next time before penning another smear job.

Westmoreland under the knife

Former Portsmouth High School baseball star Ryan Westmoreland is in surgery right now to repair a broken left collarbone. The Boston Red Sox prospect suffered the injury last week when he caught a fly ball in the gap while crashing into the outfield wall for the Lowell Spinners.

Westmoreland will be sidelined for 6-8 weeks, meaning he'll miss the rest of the Spinners' season. But after recovering at home in Portsmouth for a few days, he is expected to rejoin the team. He went in to surgery about 2 p.m. and should be done by around 3:30, according to his dad, Ron.

Check back later this afternoon for an update.

End of an era: Bruschi calls it quits

When Tedy Bruschi announces his retirement today after a career that spanned 13 seasons — all with New England — it will mark the end of an era for Patriots fans. Bruschi, who was selected in the third round of the 1996 NFL draft out of Arizona, is the last remaining player on the 1997 Super Bowl team that lost to the Green Bay Packers.

The inside linebacker went on to play in four more championship games, winning three titles, and cementing his position as one of the greatest Patriots ever to play. Bruschi was voted to just one Pro Bowl — after the 2005 season, when New England beat the Eagles in Super Bowl XXXIX — and he never put up gaudy numbers. But he’s was the epitome of the Bill Belichick regime, a selfless player who was more about the team than the individual. It’s the reason why he was so beloved by fans.

Although he was never among the league leaders in tackles, sacks, etc., Bruschi always seemed to come up with the big plays at the biggest times. Take, for example, his interception return for a touchdown in the freezing cold against the Dolphins in 2003. He slid into the end zone on his knees, turning Gillette Stadium into a winter wonderland as the New England faithful tossed snow high into the air.

After playing in that Pro Bowl in 2005, Bruschi suffered a stroke 10 days later. It’s safe to say his legacy with the team was already cemented, and no fan would have griped had he walked away from the game. He’d done enough. But in typical Bruschi fashion, he was back on the field nine months later, earning the NFL’s Comeback Player of the Year award.

In a blue-collar town, Tedy Bruschi was the quintessential blue-collar player. And although his physical skills have diminished to the point where he can no longer compete at the highest level, the years when he could will not soon be forgotten.