The Nets: Coming To A Brooklyn Palace Near You

First off let me point out that the title of this may be somewhat misleading.  Technically, the Nets would only be coming to YOU if you lived in the New York Metropolitan area, so I apologize for that mislead.  However, don't think I was being mislead when I used the word "palace".  The Nets new arena is an absolute palace.  And for those of you who don't believe me, or think I'm some sort of bias Nets fan even though I'm far from one, see for yourself. 



If this doesn't make you want to move to Brooklyn of all places, what will.  This arena is an absolute gem and will easily give the traditional and historic Madison Square Garden, and home of the New York Knicks, a definite run for it's money in many different areas.

Back to the Nets though.  Was anyone else surprised that they decided to keep the name "Nets"?  Or even more importantly was anyone shocked that they decided to make their hometown Brooklyn and not New York?  This blogger was surprised on BOTH of those decisions. 

I remember watching CNBC yesterday and seeing a segment talking about how big of a branding opportunity they missed out on by naming themselves the "Brooklyn Nets."  You will rearely see this from me, but I actually agree with the "industry" for once.  This is a huge opportunity to change the culture around a franchise who has struggled in the previous few years and give them a brand new identity with a brand new arena.  Why wouldn't you take advantage of that?

I can see the argument about keeping the name "Nets".  The franchise has had that name ever since their inception in the American Basketball Association and their eventual move to the NBA.  But I don't agree with putting the name Brooklyn.  I can see giving the team a specific identity but it's not just Brooklyn that will be coming to see this team.  You have Long Island.  You have Queens.  You have Harlem.  You might even have a couple converters from Manhattan who are tired of the Knicks. 

I agree with keeping the Nets.  I agree more with the idea of being from New York instead of Brooklyn.  The Nets may prove to be competitive and there's no doubt the Barclays Center will be packed every night.  But just like their previous NBA Finals appearance, the Nets really "choked" on this one. 

The Fall of the Buckeyes

Oh how the mighty have fallen. Come to think of it, maybe we should put an emphasis on the "OH" part. (Somewhere in the blogging universe some loyal fan just yelled IO after I typed that. Way to buck up there. Ha. I kill myself sometimes.)

For all you non college football followers who we're in hibernation period this offseason, or if you were like me and curled up in the feetle position and wishing football would come back, may have missed the epic fall of the Ohio State University football program.  Wasn't this the same program that won the Sugar Bowl about 8 months ago?

Jim Tressel, one of the best head coaches in all of college football resigned.  Star quarterback, and "Pride of Jeanette" (cough overrated cough) Terelle Pryor decided to leave the team and enter the NFL supplemental draft.  4 of the team's best players we're suspended for the first 5 games of the season, Pryor would've made it 5 players but of course decided to take the easy way out, oh and to make matters even worse, the Michigan Wolverines are apparently taking the best prospects in the state of Ohio and getting them to come there.  I'm sorry.  A university that Ohio State has dominated for the past 10 years is invading their territory?  Can you say spit in the face?

Now all seemed well at first this season after the Buckeyes handled their first 2 opponents with ease.  Then came the game against the University of Nevin Shapiro Hurricanes.  Oh wait, I'm sorry I meant to say Miami, although technically, no that'd be cruel to kick Miami when they're down right now.  Kind of like the respect the sporting world use to have for "The U".  But that's for a different time. 

Anyways back to the Blackeyes, whoops there I go again.  For the first time since 2004, the Ohio State University Buckeyes are no longer in the Top 25 poll after losing to Miami this past Saturday.  Now is it a result of some of their better players not being there? Obviously.  However, there's a much bigger purpose that lies with this loss.  If you want to keep a winning program intact, you have to maintain some sort of authority and at least have some sort of moral code.

Then again what do I know, some lawyer in Columbus probably just paid a player for a game used football. 


Thanks for reading
Gregory R. Malek

The Legend of Brady

One of the more underrated aspects of professional football being back is the fact that Monday Night Football on ESPN also returns.  While the games may not feature our favorite teams, there's a reason why this certain game was picked to be on national television at the beginning.  And just from a fan's perspective, if you tell me you don't get pumped up when you hear Hank Williams Jr. string up his guitar and asks America "Are you ready for some football?" then there truly must be something wrong with you.  But I digress.

Anyways, this past Monday night featured a battle between two division rivals in the New England Patriots and the Miami Dolphins.  What normally would be considered a true battle between rivals, basically escalated into one man show.  That man was Tom Brady, Quarterback for the Patriots. 

With one of the greatest performances in NFL history, Brady through for a whopping 511 yards passing and 4 touchdowns.  Wow.  If this perfromance doesn't 'etch Brady's place in history as one of the greatest Quarterbacks of all time, then what exactly will?  This blogger is sure of one thing though, I wish I would've drafted Tom Brady for my fantasy football team when I had the chance. 

I bet alot of you followers are thinking the same. 



Thanks for reading
Gregory R. Malek

College Football: Super Conferences Coming Soon!

First I would like to acknowledge that my prayers go out to the family members of the KHL team that died in a plane crash Wednesday.  Truly words will not bring their loved ones back, but it's nice to let them be aware we will always keep them in our minds and our hearts. 

The business that is College Football has completely taken a U-turn from what it used to be.  We've gone from the debate about whether the BCS is the right way to determine a true national champion, to the plucking of collegiate teams from their respective conferences with the promise of more revenue to come. 

We witnessed the beginning of this last year when the Big Ten & Pac 10, seeing the potential profitability of a conference championship game and bigger TV contracts, both decided to expand their rosters.  The Pac 10 added Utah from the Mountain West Conference and Colorado from the Big 12.  That resulted in 2 divisions being created and the renaming of the conference to the Pac 12.  The Big Ten added Nebraska from the Big 12 and thus created a 2 division conference.  Congratulations are obviously in order to both commissioners of those conferences for their work, however when looking at this more closely, this may signify the end of the Big 12 conference.

The University of Texas recently inked a long term contract with ESPN to create the Longhorn Network in order to expand the brand that is the Texas Longhorns to even more homes across the country.  This event didn't make the Texas A&M to happy as they immediately sought to leave the Big 12, siteing an unfair playing field with the University of Texas when it came to revenue and recruiting.  The Aggies of A&M recently got their wish as the SEC formally announced Texas A&M's invitation to join the conference.  The once stable Big 12 is now unofficially sitting at 9 teams.

It's amazing how the college football landscape has changed over this past summer.  Conference expansion is now a hot topic among any casual college fan.  Will the Pac 12 and Big Ten expand even more? Will the Big 12 fall apart completely? Will the ACC and Big East try to get in the expansion game as well?  Will an "independent" school be willing to join a larger conference worth more potential revenue?  No one knows exactly what's going to happen but if you ask this blogger, 2 things are for sure. 

1)  We haven't seen the end  of conference expansion.  Not by a long shot.

and 2)  Conferences are going to need at least 14-16 teams in order to stay afloat financially. 

May the era of the Super Conferences begin.  And what an era it will be. 


Thanks for reading. 
Gregory R. Malek

Welcome Everyone!!

Good morning planet Earth!  For those of you who couldn't catch the Robin Williams pun, you really need to get out more.  Anyways, welcome to the newest internet blogging sensation that will surely have sports fans talking for decades to come.  My name is Greg Malek and I am a sophomore at Slippery Rock University in Slippery Rock, PA.  Right now I am studying for my Bachelor's in Sport Management.  I'm probably gonna be mocked for this but I truly haven't decided exactly what I want to have a career in.  I've literally flip-flopped between marketing, finance, law, collegiate sports so many times that my head might explode.  For those curious about the name of my blog, I was born and raised in Pittsburgh, PA, which is where I still reside during my non academic terms and I decided what better way to connect to the masses than through my hometown on the three rivers.  Growing up in Pittsburgh, it's safe to say that I became accustomed to cheering for the Steelers, Penguins, Panthers, and my beloved Pirates (don't laugh).  I promise you I will not be the casual home town junkie who claims my team is better than yours.  I truly love the concept of sport, why else would I be spending four years of my life studying it?  Anyways, I encourage you to enjoy my posts and feel free to comment as you please.  Everyone has an opinion.  I just like to put mine in large paragraphs. 


Hope You Enjoyed Reading
Gregory R. Malek