New Twists to NFL Labor Talks

The NFL Labor Talks have had several new recent developments which provide some hope that we will have professional football next season. Late yesterday, both sides agreed on a 24 hour extention, which extends the deadline and could also be a sign that a middle ground is becoming more of a reality between the players and owners.

It appears as if the players' union has gained the upper hand in the talks at the moment. It is now being reported that Peyton Manning, Tom Brady and Drew Brees are now backing the NFL Players Association's DeMaurice Smith, an unexpected and somewhat shocking move. Star players almost never side with the NFLPA, and this can only help Smith's side gain more leverage.

The owners are becomming increasingly more disorganized, and are also growing frustrated with NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and his inability to take immediate action. Goodell has frequently urged the owners not to let this dispute go to court, as the owners have historically come up short when these disputes are settled with legal action. Hopefully a new collective bargaining argeement can be reached soon, as both sides continue to negotiated.

KU Wins Seventh Straight Big 12 Title

In the year that KState was supposed to win the Big 12 and many "experts" picked KU to finish as low as fourth, at least a share of the Big 12 title is heading to Lawrence once again. The Jayhawks now have back to back to back to back to back to back to back league titles, a ridiculous streak that no one else in the nation seems to notice.

To win another piece of hardware for its crowded trophy case, KU had to go through a tough, tournament bound Texas A&M team coached by former KU player Mark Turgeon. It wasn't always pretty, but the Jayhawks finally wore down the Aggies 64-51. It was senior night in Lawrence, as KU said goodbye to Tyrel Reed, Brady Morningstar and Mario Little and possibly the Morris twins as well. KU has now won 28 straight senior nights.

Another interesting fact: KU's Bill Self only has seven home losses in his tenure as KU head coach. For at least until next season, Self has seven consecutive league titles and only seven home losses: something no other coach in recent basketball history has come close to duplicating. How has this not gotten more national attention? If Duke or UNC had done anything close to this, we would see a montage hailing Coach K before every Big Monday game for the next two years. Just look at last night - KU wins a seventh straight title and the front page of ESPN.com features an article about the UNC - Florida State game (yawn).

Think if any team in college football won its league more than 3-4 years in a row. It'd be all over the news. KU does it seven straight times with a national title during its streak and hardly anyone raises an eyebrow. One problem is the nature of basketball - the regular season doesn't mean a whole lot when everything is settled with a crazy single-elimination tournament. Bill Self has now captured three league titles when his team wasn't the preseason favorite, and officially owns the Big 12 (usually one of the toughest college basketball conferences). Its time for ESPN and other media outlets to stop its love affair with the east coast teams and give KU the respect it has earned.

Mizzou Finishes Road Conference Season at an Embarassing 1-7

Mike Anderson's Missouri basketball team plopped another turd on the court Tuesday night to end their Conference road season at 1-7. Now, we MU fans are generally not nearly as reactionary as KU fans, but that is F'n ridiculous! There is no way in hell this team should be only muster one stinking road win.

Even worse perhaps, was the way they lost on Tuesday night. The Tigers were out-rebounded 32-18 while tying the Cornholers in the turnover battle 17-17. Mizzou had ZERO second chance points. You're not going to win many games with those kind of stats. Really, to me, it seems they just don;t have their heads in the game - almost like the opposing crown is getting to them. That should not happen at this level and Coach Anderson is to blame.

That's not to say something stupid like Mike Anderson should be fired, but he is definitely having a down year and we should expect better from him in the future. The good news is that Missouri has no more road games left, and they have been decent on neutral courts. With just one home win over rival Kansas standing between them and an undefeated season at home, Missouri could sure make their faithful breathe easier if they take care of business on Saturday at Mizzou Arena. This team could still do some damage in the tournament and salvage the season.

Kansas City Mayor's Race a Boring Affair

Mike Burke (pictured to the right) and Sly James held their first Mayoral debate, post primary, Tuesday night. They agreed with each other so much that at one point Sly James jokingly accused his opponent of getting answers off his website. Both candidates are currently lawyers in private practice - both made reference to the city being their only "client" if elected. Mike Burke even declined to explain how he would be a different mayor than James. It's enough to make you want to puke.

Mike Burke seems content in letting his endorsements win the race for him. With three ex-mayors and several civic and community leaders endorsing Burke, I think he believes he just needs to keep from doing something stupid in order to win. He may be right. Sly James biggest name endorsement is the Kansas City Star - nobody reads The Star anymore, so I can't see that helping much. Former Mayor Cleaver won't even help a brother out - he has refused to endorse anyone.

I sure do miss Mayor Funkhouser's presence in this race - he sure knows how to stir the puddin'. I predict voter turnout will be embarrassingly low for the March 22nd election. Few people care normally, with these two bores, no one will care. Maybe they should cancel the election and just be co-mayors. Unless something interesting happens, I won't be paying attention.

Kansas State Beats Texas, KU Now First in Big 12

Kansas State wrapped up a spot in the NCAA Tournament and officially turned around its season with a 75-70 win over the Texas Longhorns. The Wildcats were left for dead after a 1-4 start to conference play, but have salvaged its once heralded season with an impressive five game winning streak. The win moves KState to 9-6 in league play, 21-9 overall and fourth in the Big 12 standings. Now the question isn't whether KState will make the NCAA tournament, but how good of a seed it can secure.

Texas has now lost three of its last four, watching its strangle hold on the Big 12 division evaporate into thin air in two short weeks. The Longhorns have a history of late season collapses under Rick Barnes, and it looks like once again a talented Texas team is struggling at the worst possible time. Also, I think it is now safe to say that KState officially owns Texas. Despite the Longhorns success in both football and basketball, it seems that every year the Wildcats upset them, at home or on the road. Forget Oklahoma and Texas A&M, its time for Texas fans to worry about KState, especially since the two teams will play more often in the new Big 12.

During the chaos that is the Big 12, Kansas has quietly continued to hammer inferior teams, despite various injuries and suspensions. When the smoke from the last two weeks cleared, it was the Jayhawks who once again found themselves on top of the Big 12 standings. KU has a tough remaining schedule, but a win tomorrow night against Texas A&M would give KU at least a share of its seventh consecutive Big 12 title. Seven in a row. How has this not gotten more media attention? If Duke or UNC had accomplished more than three, I guarantee ESPN would have a montage on it running before every college basketball game. Bill Self has his team in position to add to what has already been a rediculous decade for KU basketball, thanks to a little help from its in-state rival.