Illinois Considers Adding D1 Hockey

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Interesting news out of the Land of Lincoln yesterday, where the University of Illinois released the results of a study into the feasibility of launching a Division I men’s ice hockey program. The feasibility study results state:

[T]here is growing excitement and anticipation about the University of Illinois starting Division I intercollegiate ice hockey. With a growing passion for ice hockey at all levels in the state of Illinois, the foundation appears to be in place for the University of Illinois to develop an intercollegiate men’s hockey program that will be financially successful and competitive on a conference and national level.

The University of Illinois Division of Intercollegiate Athletics said yesterday that no final decision had been made yet on whether or not to add a varsity men’s hockey program. If it were to launch a varsity men’s hockey program, the University of Illinois would become the tenth Power Five school to sponsor the sport, and the third to add it since 2012.

Penn State, which launched its program in 2012, has shown that success on the ice can come sooner rather than later. The Nittany Lions men’s hockey team showed improvement in each of its first four years and made the NCAA tournament for the first time in year four. This year the program is in good position to get back to the tournament again in year five. Progress for Arizona State, which launched its program in 2015, has been a little slower but that could change if/when they find a hockey conference to call home. Life as an independent can be tough for everyone other than Notre Dame football.

The University of Illinois wouldn’t have to worry about life as an independent, though, as they would be able to slide into the Big Ten hockey conference when they’re ready. As Penn State has already shown in that conference, being a newcomer to the sport doesn’t mean being a cellar dweller for years and years. And the University of Illinois could very well have a good amount of talent on its team in a short amount of time.

It was pointed out in the study results that Illinois produced 85 Division I hockey players in 2017. Only Minnesota, Michigan and Massachusetts produced more. Of the eight states that produced the most Division I hockey players, Illinois is the only one without a Division I program. Illinois is also home to an Original Six NHL franchise, the Chicago Blackhawks, so the interest in hockey is there.

If college hockey operated like professional hockey, investors, city leaders and fans would all be demanding the next “expansion” franchise be placed in Champaign. College hockey in Illinois just makes too much sense. There’s no way that program wouldn’t be successful. Adding a Big Ten team in the third largest media market in the country can only mean more exposure for the sport, and there’s nothing to not like about that.

Unless you’re a New England fan. Just one more midwest powerhouse for BU, BC and Maine to compete against for talent.

The Stars Are Aligning for Richard Sherman to Join the New England Patriots

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It would appear that the stars are aligning for Richard Sherman to join the New England Patriots. The Seahawks informed Sherman that they planned to release him on Friday, per Adam Schefter. It hasn’t happened yet, but Schefty’s word is God as far as NFL circles are concerned so its coming. Sherman will now enter Free Agency with a certain team just south of Boston in the market for a cornerback. Why does the fit make sense? A few reasons:

    • Richard Sherman has always been very vocal about his immense respect for Tom Brady and the Patriots.

  • He’s a veteran coming off an injury who’s likely looking for a short term “prove it” deal as he’s unlikely to get the big money long term deal he would want.
  • The Patriots have a history of buying low on veteran players from Corey Dillon to Rodney Harrison, Randy Moss, to more recent examples like Chris Long, Dion Lewis, and Martellus Bennett.
  • Sherman is TALL for a cornerback. He’s 6’3″ and as Bill Belichick is known to do, he routinely constructs his roster for the upcoming year tailored to the types of teams they’re playing. In 2018 the Patriots will play the Packers, Vikings, and Texans who feature receivers over 6’0″ including:
    • Jordy Nelson – 6’3″
    • Stefon Diggs – 6’0″ / Adam Thielen 6’2″
    • DeAndre Hopkins – 6’1″
    • Not to mention teams in their division like the Bills who feature a 6’5″ Kelvin Benjamin.
  • You could see it last year when they went out and signed Stephon Gilmore (6’0″) and in the other cornerbacks they’ve started to fill the team with:
    • Johnson Bademosi – 6’0″
    • Duron Harmon – 6’1″
    • Eric Rowe – 6’1″
  • The only Patriots cornerback to crack the top 10 in snaps played last year was Malcolm Butler who was? Yup, 5’10” The Pats may look to go a route similar to the way they built their defense in 2014 when they featured big, tall, physical corners in Darelle Revis (6’0″) and Brandon Browner (6’4″).
  • Not to mention this:

So it seems like it would be a great fit, assuming Sherman’s achilles is up to snuff, I don’t see a way this doesn’t happen. A team like the Jets or the Browns could blow him away with big money, but I can’t see a competitive freak like Sherman, after years playing on arguably the best defense in football, suddenly playing for the Jets just because of a bigger paycheck.

Amazon Alexa is Scaring the Hell Out of People by Laughing Randomly

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Amazon – Amazon said they are working to fix Alexa devices’ laughter problem, after social media exploded Wednesday with users freaking out over what they described as random electronic laughter. “In rare circumstances, Alexa can mistakenly hear the phrase ‘Alexa, laugh,'” Amazon told ABC News in a statement. “We are changing that phrase to be ‘Alexa, can you laugh?’ which is less likely to have false positives, and we are disabling the short utterance ‘Alexa, laugh.'”

NOPE! If my Alexa or Google Home just randomly started fucking LAUGHING in the middle of the night I would rip it out of the wall and throw it in a fire so fast it would make your head spin.

I’m generally of the opinion that the government is watching all of us all the time anyways. So if they want to watch me watch The Office for the 7th episode in a row? Go ahead. They know my pornhub habits? I’ll survive. If I can trade a little bit of privacy for a whole lot of convenience then I will make that trade every day. BUT, I draw the line at robots becoming self aware. This laughing Alexa can go straight to hell along with the entire factory of Boston Dynamics, who will be responsible for Skynet. Guaranteed.

And how about Amazon’s explanation for why this might be happening?

“In rare circumstances, Alexa can mistakenly hear the phrase ‘Alexa, laugh,'” Amazon told ABC News in a statement. “We are changing that phrase to be ‘Alexa, can you laugh?’ which is less likely to have false positives, and we are disabling the short utterance ‘Alexa, laugh.’

Get the FUCK out of here. That thing is laughing because it can’t believe how stupid we are for having willingly allowed them into our homes. Its like inviting a vampire into your house. We’re all screwed and Alexa knows it.

Former Bengals Receiver T.J. Houshmandzadeh Drops in from the Clouds, Calls Bill Belichick and Patriots a “Dictatorship”

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NESN – “Former Cincinnati Bengals wideout T.J. Houshmandzadeh, who has been out of the NFL since 2011 and irrelevant for the past decade, was a guest on FOX Sports 1’s “Speak For Yourself” and jabbed Belichick for how he runs the organization.

“I think every team is player driven,” Houshmandzadeh said. “Every team is player driven. They’re just kind of fed up. I was watching football this past fall, and it just tripped me out when I’m watching the Patriots playing Miami Dolphins, and then I see a (Rob) Gronkowski interview. I couldn’t believe it. He’s, ‘Oh, I want to talk about the celebration but I’m scared that Bill is going to get mad at me. I really want to talk about, but I guess I can’t I’m scared.’…They are completely scared of Bill, it’s a dictatorship in New England

T.J. Houshmandzadeh, he of the 1 Pro Bowl, 1 playoff win and 8 playoff catches pedigree, recently came out of the clouds to criticize the way Bill Belichick runs the Patriots, calling it a dictatorship.

As much as I respect the opinion of TJ Hooshamazode

I’m gonna have to go ahead and disagree with him on this one. People see a more rocky than usual ship in New England and want to use it as an opportunity to criticize the Patriots so if they ever do fall off they can be the one to say I told you so. And don’t get me wrong, that day may come, but to criticize Belichick with comments like this are asinine:

“They are completely scared of Bill, it’s a dictatorship in New England. Things are going to have to change or he’s going to lose the team.”

Its literally been this way in New England for 17 years. Things aren’t going to have to change, TJ. Not after winning 5 Super Bowls. You know where things probably should change? Cincinnati, which is where TJ played for 8 seasons and won a total of 0 playoff games under Marvin Lewis. In fact, Cincinnati hasn’t won a playoff game since 1990, which is a cool 27 year stretch. Shit like that will lose you a team.

So while the Patriots locker room probably isn’t as fun as a Chucky Cheese birthday party like the Bengals may be under Lewis, I’d rather take the consistent systematic success for nearly 2 decades straight.

Grand Theft Auto 6 Rumored to Be a Return to Vice City

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Techspot – According to new rumors, we’re going to be waiting a few more years for GTA 6, which will be set in Vice City and feature a female protagonist. Citing an “inside source,” YouTube channel The Know says the next GTA will be released within the next three to four years. The game is being called ‘Project Americas’ internally by Rockstar and will be set in either Florida or GTA’s version of the sunshine state–Vice City. It will also see players fly to South America for some missions, suggesting a drug smuggling link. These few details bring to mind 2002’s GTA Vice City, and GTA 6 may even see the action return to 1980s. As with GTA V, the sequel is said to feature multiple protagonists, including the first female character.

So you’re telling me that one of the best video games of my generation may be making a comeback in the form of Grand Theft Auto 6?

Similar to the 2007 Red Sox, GTA Vice City proved that GTA 3 (i.e. 2004 Sox) was not a fluke and that GTA was an absolute powerhouse franchise that was here to stay.

Despite the sheer scope of GTA V and the humorous characters of GTA: San Andreas, the best Grand Theft Auto is hands down Vice City. If you think otherwise, you’re wrong. It had the best setting with 1980s Miami, the best storyline, and the best characters. In case people forget, Vice City featured a voice acting Hall of Fame cast that we had never seen in a video game before: Ray Liotta, Dennis Hopper, Burt Reynolds, Luis Guzman, William Fichtner, Tom Sizemore, Danny Trejo, Gary Busey, Jenna Jameson, Lawrence Taylor, AND Lee Majors.

In the course of looking these names up on IMDB my mind was just blown when I realized that Lance Vance:

was actually voiced by Philip Michael Thomas, who as we all know originally played Detective Rico Tubbs from Miami Vice.

Its little nods to pop culture like this that always made Grand Theft Auto games feel so ingrained with society. It felt like you were reliving a classic movie while exploring a wide open sandbox style video game world for the first time.

Also, apparently Cam Neely voiced a thug in the game as he gets an acting credit too. Seabass, guy just never takes a day off, god love him.

Released back in 2002 (holy shit) Vice City was given an average rating of 95 by Metacritic at the time. Not to mention the soundtrack was A+ and to this day remains the only video game soundtrack I have used my hard earned Schrute Bucks to physically purchase.

PS – I saw this going around the interwebs yesterday and its just not okay.

Conor McGregor is a Chicken….Sandwich Selling Machine!

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Adweek – Conor McGregor hasn’t fought in the UFC since winning the lightweight belt in November 2016 and then taking a detour into boxing—earning more than $100 million by fighting (and losing to) Floyd Mayweather Jr. last August. His hiatus from UFC has frustrated his rivals, who want a shot at the title—in particular, the Russian fighter Khabib Nurmagomedov, who called McGregor a “chicken” recently. That particular insult has only helped McGregor add to his riches, though—as Burger King used it as an opening to have McGregor hawk its new Spicy Crispy Chicken Sandwich.

God I miss Conor.

It’s been nearly two years since McGregor has fought in the Octagon and thats a damn shame. The guy is the most electric fighter since Chuck Liddell. I’m sure Joey B can touch on this with great insight, but I’ve heard rumors McGregor may even fight twice in 2018. Sign me up right now. Thats $120 for Dana White locked in. The UFC desperately needs more fighters like McGregor because if he’s not fighting there’s about a 20% chance I actually buy the fight, especially when a card is headlined by Cyborg. Not waiting until 1 am to watch the singer from the Muppet band beat a broad to death in 45 seconds.

The Bullpen Car is Returning to Major League Baseball!

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ESPN – The bullpen car is coming back after being gone for an entire generation of baseball fans. The Arizona Diamondbacks will use a helmet-clad golf cart for the first time since the vehicle left Major League Baseball more than two decades ago. “I think it wore out its welcome,” Diamondbacks president and CEO Derrick Hall said. “There were these new stadiums, and the focus shifted to the guys running through gates and onto the mound. We think the time is right to bring it back.” Hall said the Diamondbacks purchased two golf carts and had them retrofitted with big caps by SportsKartz, a company in Tampa, Florida. It’s not all for tradition. The Diamondbacks sold a sponsorship to OnTrac, a West Coast courier service, which will receive branding on the vehicles. “An ancillary benefit might be that it could speed up the game,” Hall said. “I expect a lot of teams to follow suit.”

Make Baseball Fun Again. One of the greatest idiosyncrasies of baseball was that the relief pitchers would get ferried from the bullpen to the goddamn mound like they were Xerxes invading Sparta.

I don’t want my Closer expending any energy at all commuting to work. Let the guy save his bullets for when the action really matters on the mound. It would seem the bullpen car was invented more out of necessity than entertainment.

“Nobody ran in from the bullpen,” said Dick Stigman, who pitched for the Cleveland Indians, Minnesota Twins and Boston Red Sox in the 1960s. “I don’t think we could’ve made it. We all smoked.”

Now its back and I could not be more excited. Of course we have to be careful of rogue mascots driving like total assholes:

Or the Marshawn Lynch’s of the world just running people down:

But aside from that I think we’re in for a renaissance. Will this speed up the game of baseball? Almost certainly not! What it will do though is encourage less and less conditioning among relief pitchers. Hopefully to the point that guys like El Guapo and Bartolo are a more common sight than a workout warrior like AJ Ramos.

Just like the good old days, when men smoked cigarettes in the dugout and drank whiskey in between at-bats. Health and well being be damned, Make Baseball Fun Again.

 

Happy Trails, Ed Hochuli

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Editor’s Note: We’ve experience a reblog today, but its Ed Hochuli; he deserves it.

It’s a sad day in the world of sports officiating, as 67-year-old Ed Hochuli has finally decided it’s time to hang up the boy’s medium referee uniform that he’s wearing for the past 28 NFL seasons.  It’s hard to believe that Guns McGee has been roaming NFL sidelines since before Tecmo Super Bowl for NES hit store shelves.

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Ed Hochuli is a legend in his own time. He’s the only official in sports that is known by name but not because he’s an insufferable bastard. [Looking at you, Joe West.] Countless hours at Gold’s Gym, before it was fashionable, is what made Hochuli a household name. That and his Juris Doctor degree.

Sure, some of Ed’s explanations could be a little bit long winded. But I always enjoyed a mini episode of Law & Order in between plays.

But every once in awhile, you’d actually learn something new about the NFL rule book from one of his soliloquies.

The good news today is that at least the NFL sidelines won’t be without a Hochuli next year. Back judge Shawn Hochuli has been promoted to referee and will take his dad’s place.

Only time will tell if Shawn, #83, will ever be able to fill his dad’s sleeves.

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Terrible News: Ed Hochuli is Retiring. Better News: His Son is Replacing Him

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ESPN – NFL referee Ed Hochuli has retired, the league announced Tuesday, ending a colorful career that made him one of the most recognized game officials in American sports. Known for his long-winded explanations and exposed biceps, Hochuli, 67, will serve as an independent consultant to the league. The NFL promoted his son, back judge Shawn Hochuli, to replace him.

What a sad, sad day it is here at The 300s. Ed Hochuli is retiring after 28 YEARS. The guy has been an NFL referee for literally my entire life. I’ve never known an NFL without Ed Hochuli. Ed Hochuli is and forever will be the most famous and popular referee in the history of organized sports. A lawyer from Monday to Friday (no, seriously)

Hochuli would over explain every call to a hilarious effect. Not to mention his absolute GUNS of course.

The guy had bigger biceps than half the players he was officiating. Ed Hochuli looked like he could throw on some pads and de-cleat someone tomorrow. I’ll miss you, Ed. Let us never forget the stories of him being an absolute curmudgeon when spotted out in public.

How about the fact that his son is taking his spot too? LEGACY! The Hochuli’s are about to establish a dynasty that could last 1,000 years.