Travis Leslie to Remain a Dawg

Georgia's second 'Human Highlight Film' will play college basketball for at least one more season. The University announced today that Travis Leslie will pass up the upcoming NBA Draft and remain in college. The Bulldog's sophomore forward could have easily been the most improved player in the Southeastern Conference this year, and even bigger and better things will be expected from him next year. Now the Bulldog Nation will hold its collective breath until Trey Thompkins, another super sophomore, decides whether or not he will forgo his college career and enter the draft. The NBA decline for college underclassmen to declare for the draft is April 25th. Thanks Travis, we're glad you're staying around!

Matt Diaz: The Consummate Professional

Matt Diaz is not upset that Jason Heyward is the starting right fielder for the Atlanta Braves. Even though this revelation sends Matty back to a part-time or platoon type role, you won't hear the veteran outfielder complain. In fact, Diaz is excited about what Heyward brings to the ball club. He's also been playing for Bobby Cox long enough to know that the Braves skipper always finds a way to get his roster players playing time. With "Matty D" being the type of hitter who can really get hot at the plate and literally carry a team for a stretch, Cox always seems to get his guys who are on a roll into the lineup. No matter how this all works out for the four Braves outfielders, it's great to have a class act like Matt Diaz in your clubhouse. And not to worry, Diaz will play often and he'll play well.

Are NASCAR Drivers Really Athletes?

To the sometimes asked question, Are NASCAR drivers athletes, my answer would be that most of them are somewhat 'athletic'. Most of the drivers now work out to some extent, and that certainly hasn't always been the case. Unless you count them doing those "16 ounce curls" over the long history of the sport. I'm sure the young guys of the sport are into jogging, lifting weights, and/or some type of cardio workouts. But let's face it, it does not necessarily take an athlete to drive a race car (And no, I have never driven one in a race. Only occasionally on the interstate!). There have been some 'bellies' in NASCAR that made you wonder how they ever fit under a steering wheel. But the guys today seem pretty fit to handle the rigors of sitting on their rear ends for several hours on a Sunday afternoon. If you think about team sports such as baseball, basketball, football, hockey, soccer, etc. you have to be in shape to compete. The same holds for individual sports like golf, tennis, track & field, etc. About as far as I can go with this debate is to give race car drivers credit for being athletic, but you're not necessarily an athlete because you're a race car driver. Skilled, yes most definitely. In shape to compete, no. The car is the only one of the two that has to be in shape to compete. But this is merely An Opinion On Sports !

Tom Verducci's Top 10 Teams

Tom Verducci has a list of his All-Time Top 10 baseball teams. Interestingly, only four teams from baseball's 'modern era' made in onto his list. Those four are the 1998 Yankees, the 1975 Reds, the 1961 Yankees (see Maris & Mantle above), and the 1970 Orioles. It is also intriguing that all those huge, big payroll Yankee teams of the 2000s failed to appear as one of Verducci's selections. The oldest team on the list is the 1902 Pirates who went 102-36 and never lost more than two games in a row. Talking about standing the test of time, this Honus Wagner led group is still considered one of the greatest more than 100 years later.

Ernie Els: "Els For Autism"

Ernie Els has just won the rain-delayed Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill for his second consecutive PGA Tour victory. It's good to see the "Big Easy" playing well as the pros approach the Masters next week in Augusta. Els has three major championships in his portfolio, but his best finish in the Masters is the runner-up spot in both 2000 and 2004. But to touch on something more important than even major golf championships to Els is the fact that his young son Ben has been diagnosed with Autism. Now, the passion of Ernie Els and his wife Liezl, has been shifted to "Els for Autism", and its goal of building a 300 student school and research facility in Florida. The school will be called the Center For Excellence, and will be targeted to all aspects of autism treatment and study. He already has in place a Pro-Am golf tournament to help raise funds for the project, which is expected to run around $30 million. The tournament, just two years in existence, has already raised almost $2 million for the center. My best goes out tot Ben Els, as well as his families efforts in researching and treating autism. You're a class act, Ernie Els.

Fred Couples: What A Birdie Binge He's On...

Fred Couples is indeed a "Super Senior". Yesterday, he won the Cap Cana Championsip in the Dominican Republic for his third consecutive Champions Tour title in only four starts. He's the first player in the Tour's history to win 3 of his first four events, and the eighth Champions Tour player to win three straight events. Chi Chi Rodriguez set the record of four straight back in 1987. The 50 year old Couples had two stretches, holes 2 thru 6 and 11 thru 15, of five birdies in a row, and finished his Sunday round with eleven total. His earnings for the four events are $931,000, and we're not even into April yet! I would have to say that Couples is aging quite nicely, especially since he's playing some of the best golf of his career. That's a career that includes 15 PGA Tour victories, as well as a Masters championship. This week he will play the PGA Tour's Houston Open before heading to Augusta and another attempt at a green jacket. I hope he continues to play at such a high level. It would be great to see him high on the Master's leader-board all that week.

Jason Heyward: Number 22

Ladies and gentlemen, starting in right field and batting sixth for the Atlanta Braves, number 22, Jason Heyward. Get used to the sound of that because you'll be hearing it for a long time (except for the part about batting sixth in the order). Yesterday, the Braves ended the suspense of whether Heyward would open the season in Atlanta or in Gwinnett with the organization's Triple A club. Ponder no more Braves Fans. Heyward will be your everyday right fielder in Turner Field 'til death, or free agency, do us part. The kid can play, the kid is very good. He's hitting .366 for the spring with a .537 slugging average, with a .500 on base percentage in 41 at bats. We'll all enjoy watching this kid showcase his talent and abilities in Atlanta. The best is yet to come.

Nate McLouth: What's Up, Dude?

This spring, Nate McLouth is hitting a frigid .071, as a result of reaching base safely a measly three times out of 42 attempts. It is now so bad that the Braves have sent him to minor league games so he can get more at bats. This pre-season performance comes on the heels of a season ending 12 for 73 slump last year. Not a good run for a guy who has never even scratched the surface of being the player Atlanta expected him to be when they acquired him from the Pirates.
Braves skipper Bobby Cox is known to give his veteran players a lot of playing time to work through slumps, but in the case of McLouth, I hope Cox has him on a short leash. Newly acquired Melky Cabrera is waiting in the wings to play center field and bat in the lead-off spot.

After all, the season begins in eight days.

Urban Meyer: Your the One Who is a "Bad Guy"...

Urban Meyer accused a reporter of being a "bad guy". This label came after the reporter, Jeremy Fowler, published a quote made by Gator receiver Deonte Thompson. Fowler didn't offer his opinion, he just wrote what Thompson said. And for that, Meyer goes off on the guy and threatens him. Thompson referred to incumbent quarterback John Brantley as a "real quarterback", as opposed to former QB Tim Tebow not being a traditional style quarterback. Was Meyer actually taking up for Thompson, or was he still babysitting his true love Tebow? I select the latter reason. As a Georgia fan, I really try to respect Meyer as a coach with a darn good winning percentage everywhere he has coached. However, he really makes it hard for me to respect him as a person when he gives off the impression that he is above everyone and everything. I now think his talk of retirement was a hoax, his leave of absence was a farce, and his claims of stepping back and/or cutting down his areas of responsibility were merely rhetoric. He's either more emotionally healthy than he led everyone to believe several months ago, or his micro-management tendencies dictate and control the actions of his life regardless of the consequences. I think Urban Meyer is an out of control jerk. In fact it's hard to determine if he is in control at all. And I, for one, could care less.

Paul Hewitt: No to St. Johns; Buyout Next?

Much to the dismay of many Georgia Tech basketball faithful, Paul Hewitt has turned down an opportunity to be the head coach at St. Johns University. Hewitt, a native of New York, decided he would rather remain in the good ole South as opposed to returning home to coach. He has been the Jackets' head man for ten years now, and a lot of the alumni and supporters feel that he has overstayed his welcome. If Tech wants Hewitt out, it looks like they will have to pay that big buy-out clause in his contract. No one denies the fact that Hewitt can flat our recruit, but many believe his 'game' and 'floor' coaching leave a bit to be desired. In other words, the Techie Nation doesn't feel that the coach gets all the effort and talent out of his players. As a Bulldog, I kind of like the style of his underachieving hard court guys. Once UGA coach Mark Fox gets his talent up to par with Tech's, the Bulldog Nation believes Fox will have Hewitt for lunch. It might not taste so good, but won't that box score look Divine!

Kris Durham: From 8th Grade to UGA Practice

Kris Durham isn't making all his spring practice meetings on time. He's also coming in a little "over-dressed" for the meetings when he gets there. All of this is because Durham is doing his practice teaching this semester. He's an education major scheduled to graduate from UGA in May, and his student teaching assignment came up during the spring semester. So the UGA senior wide receiver reports to school at Oconee Middle School at 7:30 sharp and his responsibilities with his 8th grade students don't end there until 3:3o in the afternoon. Then it's a mad dash to the Bulldog practice facilities for spring drills. All of these efforts should prepare him well for the career of teaching and coaching to which he aspires. He's also found out that he wasn't getting away with as much as he thought he was back in his own 8th grade days!

New NCAA Eligibility Rule: Right or Wrong?

A new rule proposal would allow foreign athletes who have competed in professional sports but have not received compensation to be eligible immediately with colleges in America. This would do away with any waiting periods, suspensions or delays in the players playing status. The rule,if adopted, would go into effect August 1, with the University of Kentucky becoming the most immediate benefactor of the rule. The Wildcat basketball program recently received a commitment from Turkish big man Enes Kanter, who has played for a Turkish club team. The only problem I have with this is that U.S. college student/athlete who declares for a professional draft automatically becomes ineligible as a collegian at the time of his declaration. This is before he ever plays a single minute or earns a single professional dime. Why can't that same athlete have the option of declining his draft position and using up his college eligibility if he wanted to? The draft doesn't always work out for players the way they expected. I understand this illustration is not exactly the same as the new rule proposal, but it nevertheless is also a question of eligibility. Just something else for you to ponder...right or wrong.