Bleacher Report - Articles by Arthur Gaston

New Coaches Bigger Than This Year's NFL Draft

Arthur Gaston — Sat, 24 Jan 2009 23:52:42 -0500

With over eight teams this year with new coaches, they will have more impact on the NFL as a whole than any player drafted to a team.

This to me makes the draft really not as important as its to who will be coaching.

Has the NFL started a new trend?

With two teams going to the super bowl with head coaches that have been with there teams for only two years (Tomlinson and Whisenhunt).

Three first year head coaches going to the playoffs (Sparano with the Dolphins, Harbaugh with the Ravens, and Smith with the Falcons).

May of caused an epidemic in the NFL owners wanting turn stir the pot a little, give their teams a fresh look.

Hoping to turn their teams into next year's dolphins of this year.

Are we going to just start rotating coaches every five years?

Eric Mangini coached the NY Jets for three years had one loosing season, now coaches for the Cleveland Browns.

Jeff Fisher of the Tennessee Titans has been head coach there for 13 years, strong pillar in the community he lives there his kids go to school there he is involved in the community.

Not many coaches will do that because they might not live there within five years.

Being a coach has to be one of the most stressful jobs, knowing that you are so disposable that they can replace you like a car part.

What an interesting season 2009 will be for the NFL.

College Basketball Has an Excessive Celebration Problem

Arthur Gaston — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 16:20:19 -0500

We either love it or we hate it.

How many times have we seen college football give penalties for excessive celebration after a touchdown, or for taunting?

How come college basketball doesn’t have these same rules?

I can understand running on the court celebrating after a game-winning shot at the buzzer.

I can see celebrating after an upset over a top-ranked team.

Do you really need to pound your chest, scream, and give chest bumps because you dunked a ball over someone?

This isn’t the NBA; they are not getting paid for being entertainers.

We all know these guys can dunk, and we all know they are athletic, but it doesn’t make you look tough at all by flexing, yelling, and staring down the guy you dunked on, or talking trash.

I really wish the NCAA would take a look at some of these actions the players are using on the court and how they are representing their schools.

For instance, Jarrett Johnson of Anderson University in South Carolina dunks over Mason Ambler from Coker College.

This dunk is playing over and over again on YouTube or ESPN.

This has to be the worst call I have ever seen. I cannot believe the referees did not call that a charge.

Jarrett Johnson goes up for a dunk, putting his right knee into Mason Ambler's shoulder.

Afterward Jarrett acts like it's the greatest dunk ever. I think he even did a lap around the court.

I'm sitting there saying, "You didn't win the game yet, it's only two points, and you got away with a charge."

Second, of all the taunting and celebration afterwards, what really gets me is how can they not call a technical foul on the teammates for jumping around and yelling in Mason Ambler's face as he lay on the ground, wondering where the whistle was for the foul.

This is just one recent incident that has really bothered me.

This isn’t the playground; you are not on the "And One" basketball tour.

This is organized NCAA basketball, and if they are going to let this go on, they need to stop giving penalties to the football players for throwing a ball into the air after a touchdown or for excessive celebration.

Next time you watch a college basketball game, watch the players, and watch their actions.

Not Your Typical Par Three At The FBR Open

Arthur Gaston — Fri, 23 Jan 2009 09:49:16 -0500

As I make my up to the tee box at my local golf club, on this 50 degree heat wave day in the Midwest.

The atmosphere, calm, no one in site just me, the birds, the course, and my offseason swing.

There is nothing like a nice quite, pleasant day, and 18 holes of golf.

As I stand there on the tee I imagine putting myself at the 16th at the FBR Open in Scottsdale.

The loudest and craziest par three on the PGA tour.

Can you even imagine trying to hit a 162 yard shot with 15 to 20,000 golf fans watching?

These aren’t your typical golf fans.

If you have never watched this event before just imagine twenty thousand football fans drinking all day just waiting to scream, and yell as you walk to the tee.

If you miss the green you get booed, if you hit the green you get cheered, you make a hole in one you will be remembered as one of the greatest golf shots.

This year they have added three thousand new general admission seats. It is fully enclosed with bleachers, and skyboxes.

Before you walked from the 15th green to the 16th green through a tunnel, now when you leave the 16th green you also walk through a tunnel, making this the first true stadium hole in golf.

The feeling these guys must get walking out of that tunnel has to be surreal.

Its not like your first tee jitters with your friends at your local course, or your local golf tournament, times that by 20,000.

The FBR Open tees off January 26 - February 1.

Please Remain Seated As the Refs Call the Game

Arthur Gaston — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 16:49:18 -0500

Providence Friars vs. Marquette Golden Eagles Jan. 17, 2009

Jeff Xavier gets hit by Joseph Fulce and Xavier's brother walks on the court afterwards.

If you watched this game and the replay, Joseph Fulce stood straight with his arms straight in the air, and Jeff Xavier drives to the basket, and put his head right into the defender's arms.

Not only did he walk on the court to give the referees a piece of his mind, he motioned like he is going to call a timeout, acting like he is the head coach.

Like, "Hey Ref! What were you thinking about that last call?"

We all wish to give the referees a piece of our minds now and again, but we do not. I guess since it was his brother that makes it okay.

I think most people were just shocked as to what was happening. They just sat there like deer in headlights.

"Hey, did they get a new coach?"

Or, "Who is the mental patient walking on the floor?"

Jeff Xavier did more acting on that play than actually getting fouled. I think his brother didn’t understand that because he thinks if anyone touches Jeff Xavier it is a foul.

He should be banned from all games in the future.

If he cannot stay in his seat and watch the game, and hate some calls the referees make like the rest of us.

If he can't keep his opinion and temper under control, he should sit at home and watch it on his couch or hospital bed for his mental illness.

Thank God we didn’t have another Pacer-Piston outbreak—going after Joseph Fulce for fouling Jeff Xavier.

Pretty soon they are going to make people sit 20 feet back from the court with gates and security surrounding the court.

Thanks for trying to ruin it for the rest of us.

Next time you are at a game and you really want to give the referees a piece of your mind, please remember this guy and stay off the court.

Else you will have a great seat in a jail cell instead.

Super Bowl XLIII: Don't Count Out the Arizona Cardinals

Arthur Gaston — Thu, 22 Jan 2009 15:48:41 -0500

So why is everyone outside of Glendale counting the Cardinals out?

Does anyone remember how the Giants upset the Patriots last year?

The Pittsburgh Steelers are only favored by seven points. The Patriots were favored by 12.5 points. No one thought the Giants had a chance last year and we all know how that game ended. Even non-football fans that watched the game were amazed.

The game was actually better than the commercials, even better than the Janet Jackson wardrobe malfunction.

Kurt Warner has won two NFL MVP awards(1999,2001), as well as a Super Bowl MVP award. He is ranked third in career passing and could most like be on his way to the Hall Of Fame.

Cardinals coach Ken Whisenhunt has a pretty good understanding of Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers offense. Whisenhunt was the Steelers offensive coordinator from 2004 until 2007.

Pittsburgh's defense is undoubtedly the best in the NFL, ranked first in points, yards, pass yards, and only second in rush yards allowed.

The Steelers have a great football history, loved by so many fans from coast to coast. That is equating to those fans expecting this to be a blowout, a shutout, no contest, game over. But the Steelers know better than to just think they can just show up and have the Cardinals hand it over.

This is set to be another great Super Bowl.

The kind where you put the kids to bed and watch both teams scratch, crawl, fight, and hard-nose their way to a win.

My pick?

Arizona by three.

The BCS... Again

Arthur Gaston — Wed, 21 Jan 2009 17:44:01 -0500

The BCS is still on everyone's mind.

No one can seem to agree on, should there be, shouldn't there be a playoff?

They say the season is a playoff, well let's make it more of a playoff.

The first few weeks of college football is a joke, teams playing easy games, no name teams.

Let's change it up a little, how about the first part of the season start with conference play instead. Play the conference then a conference playoff, top four teams move on. (The rest can finish the last couple weeks playing for the last spots in the conference.)

Take those top four teams and play the other top four teams from other conferences.

I think it would draw a little bit more demand for watching college football earlier in the season an stay strong all the way to the end.

I cannot grasp the concept of teams being off for two-four weeks during the holidays to play one game that they are not even the same team.

Granted there are going to be some conferences that should only alloy just two teams, or teams like Notre Dame that don't have a conferences, but there use to playing in this format.

This format should give teams like Utah a real fighting chance. I'm not a fan of Utah, but I think they earned the right to play Florida for a true national championship.