diehard who is working on his
masters in aerospace engineering at Texas A&M.
What's giving you a rash this week?
The out-of-control arrogance in professional sports today? The latest in labor? The price of a lousy stadium hotdog?
An overpaid player? An underhanded agent? An owner who would sell the carpet from underneath his own mother's feet for the right amount of PSLs and luxury boxes?
Where can you get off your chest something boiling inside your belly?
Right here. Right now. Buckshots, a weekly dish-it-out-and-duck feature, is designed to give you, the subscriber, a chance to take your best shot at Ray Buck, national columnist for SportsLine USA.
Agree or disagree, let 'er rip. Sign your name -- if you dare -- and tell us a little about yourself: age, city, state, occupation/student. Just remember, Buck has the last word.
E-mail your comments to buckshots@sportsline.com
E-mails over cocktails, shots all around on me:
"OK, OK, I READ your cry for all of us to understand your twisted logic,"
e-mails Eric Kinser, a 24-year-old Louisville native and
self-professed Kentucky
basketball diehard who is working on his
masters in aerospace engineering at Texas A&M.
"Come on! UK is in a class by itself. If all that mattered was who beat whom, and by how many points, then we could get rid of the voters and let some computer algorithm compare records and spit out some meaningless answer like 'UMass is No.1.'
"The computer is just a dumb machine. It will see that UK was beat by UMass and conclude UMass must be better. But teams do change. Some get better. Some get worse. UK is clearly better now than in November. Everything could change next week, but UK is clearly the best in the land right now -- period.
"P.S -- Keep the UK articles coming."
BUCKSHOT: Last November while the rest of us were still eating leftover turkey, the former top-rated Minutemen went out and beat the now-No. 1 Wildcats on a neutral court 92-82. Three months later, both teams have only one loss. UK is No. 1 (as you describe) based solely on conjecture. I must warn you, Eric, my computer takes exception to your smear campaign on software. Better lay off, pal!
"I THINK BRYAN COX will be loved in Chicago, much as Dennis Rodman is," writes John Gluesin, a 27-year-old systems analyst from Iowa City, Iowa. "If Cox goes into Green Bay and spits at their crowd or gives them the finger, they'll be building a statue of him in front of Soldier Field (or wherever they end up playing) instead of labeling him a moron or childish like the patsy fans and media in South Florida have.
"(Cox) brings some much needed passion to the Bears' timid defense."
BUCKSHOT: There's one notable difference, Johnny G. Rodman is a freak who also happens to do one thing -- rebounding -- better than anyone else, living or dead, who has played his sport. Cox does absolutely nothing better than anyone else in his sport -- unless you count spitting and flipping people off. If the Bears do erect a statue of Bryan Cox, as you suggest, it can also serve as a fountain.
"NEVER BEFORE HAS a 'commentator' done so much to prove the point of another through ignorant criticism," writes Jeff Jones. "Good thing you are not a lawyer, because you took the words of Brian (sic) Cox and showed how right he was about unfair media coverage by slamming his conduct in Buffalo.
"Since when is a player condemned for spitting on national TV? Charles Barkley spat on a little girl; Cox spat on the Rich Stadium carpet. The headlines the next day claimed 'Cox spits on Buffalo' -- and that may have been the intent, but you guys don't know which end is up!
"Carwell Gardner tried to take the fight to the locker room and parking lot, where Cox was ready to return to humanity. Which one is the poor sport?
"If you want to criticize the guy for foul language in an interview, being a baby -- and yes, a whiner -- that is fine, but you microphone fumblers can't get enough of him in the locker room. You jump on those four-letter tirades and put them all over the sportscast as if they are more important than the competition.
"That guy brought more emotion and effort to the Dolphin D than anyone since the Killer B's. Don't forget to look in the mirror."
BUCKSHOT: You need to learn how to spell the names of those you try to defend, big guy. And thanks for the grooming tip.
"AS A GREEN BAY PACKER fan, I was pleased to hear that the scum-sucking Bears signed Cox," says Ron Fry, a you-know-what head. "Hope he enjoys playing in the NFC Central Division. Wait until he comes to Green Bay and starts his spitting act
"The Cheese Hats will fly!!!!!!!!!!!!"
BUCKSHOT: Ooohhh! But you make a good point, Ron. I bet Cox pulls out of the Green Bay trip altogether. Nobody gets away with wearing something more stupid-looking on his head than Bryan's backwards helmet.
"MR. BUCK, I COULDN'T agree with you more, which is a switch," writes Greg Holmes, a 24-year-old electrician's apprentice from Forest, Ontario.
"The Oilers are crying over spilled milk instead of picking up the damn bottle and stopping the flow. Maybe they should take the cash they're saving on (Jeff Fisher's) salary and buy some free-agent talent. Nothing worse than a whiner -- except maybe a stupid whiner.
"I really like that 'good riddance' slogan. It shows the just fate of the Houston Oilers: 'They suck, therefore they are.'
P.S. -- Can ya tell I'm not an Oilers fan?"
BUCKSHOT: You could've fooled me, Greg. One of the most exclusive clubs in America today is "Fans of Bud Adams" -- only slightly bigger than "Fans of Ken Behring" and "Friends of Art Modell." And what do these three vagabond owners have in common? Their franchises have never been to a Super Bowl.
"WHY ARE YOU EVEN wasting your time with the Oilers. Nobody cares -- not even the people of Houston care," critiques Sean Fox. "When they had a rally to keep the Oilers in Houston, only 42 people came to show their support.
"Why is this even a topic of conversation for you? No one cares about the Oilers. You could've talked about the fact that the media jumped all over the Tommy Morrison news before he even had a chance to talk with his family and friends about it."
BUCKSHOT: If you're my editor, you should speak up sooner. If you're not, you should mind your own damn business.
"Yo Ray, I agree with you that the Oilers just don't get it," Charles Coe, a 43-year-old freelance writer who lives in Boston and works in the publication department at Northeastern University.
"The Niners and Cowboys aren't quality teams by accident; they're good because their owners know how to run first-class operations and treat their players right. For example, I read that the Niners management sends the players' wives huge flower bouquets on their birthdays. Maybe that's not such a big deal in dollars and cents, but it makes the wives feel special and sends a good message to the player.
"The Cowboys and Niners travel first class, stay in the best hotels, eat the best meals, have the best training facilities, ad infinitum. By contrast, teams like the Oilers and the Bucs always pinch pennies on travel arrangements and facilities. And if you're treated second class, guess how you're gonna play?"
BUCKSHOT:When I buy my wife flowers, all I get in return is a suspicious look.
"I DO NOT THINK you can ever say that something is a bad move until you get the end result," argues Chris Miller, a 24-year-old assistant facilities manager at a private law school in San Diego. "At the end of every year, the 29 teams that do not win the Super Bowl try to figure out ways to make their team better.
"The 49ers saw that their offense was struggling since the departure of Mike
Shanahan (to Denver following Super Bowl XXIX), so they hired the man who started it all -- Bill Walsh. If they win the Super Bowl next year, you will
probably be bragging about how good of a move it was for them. Give them a
chance.
"I think that Bill Walsh and the free agent market will bring the Lombardi Trophy back to it's rightful home in the Bay."
BUCKSHOT: Actually, I agree with you, Chris. The Niners became my pick to win Super Bowl XXXI once the Cowboys had to sweat out Super Bowl XXX. As a first-year offensive coordinator for the 49ers last year, Marc Trestman was shy and slightly intimidated; I don't think Bill Walsh will be either.
"DON SHULA IS ONE of the greatest coaches ever in professional sports," writes Gene Piekarski, a 57-year-old unemployed computer manager from Niagara Falls, N.Y. "Coaching is his blood. He has a lot of pride and certainly would want to prove that he can build a champion again.
"I think he can! And, personally, I think that he should give it a shot given the opportunity.
"P.S. -- Did the Colts screw Ted Marchibroda or what?"
BUCKSHOT: You're one-for-two, Gene. Shula should stay retired (even when the first job comes open next season) because he has nothing more to prove -- or to give. Marchibroda did an excellent job coaching; Colts management did an terrible job recognizing it.
"TOM OLIVADOTTI WAS a household name in Florida," writes George DeBaby. "Unfortunately it was preceded with four-letter words.
"The only defensive household names I care to hear are Baumhower, Bokamper, Betters, Duhe, Stanfill, Den Herder, Scott, Swift, Anderson, Buoniconti, Matheson, Fernandez. Get the picture!
BUCKSHOT: Uh, I think so, George. Olivadotti did a crummy job and got himself and a living legend fired. Am I close?
"DO YOU THINK THE STEELERS have a shot a XXXI?" asks 10-year-old John Braymer "And do you think they'll get Dan Marino? I hope so. I wish Kevin Greene wouldn't go to San Fran. The Blitzburgh might fall apart and lose."
BUCKSHOT: Relax, John. As long as the Steelers are in the AFC, they always have a chance.
Copyright © 1996 SportsLine USA, Inc. All rights reserved.