Can the winning continue in New England?

It’s an age-old question in sports…does the player make the coach, or the coach make the player? Would Auerbach have been as successful without Russell? How about Coach Wooden without Lew Alcindor and Walton – or Lombardi without Bart Starr and Paul Hornung?

That’s the question being asked today in New England, as the Brady-less Patriots take the field for the first time in 129 games without the MVP and all-world quarterback.

In case you’ve been in a coma the past few days, Tom Brady is out for the season with a knee injury that occurred in the first quarter of week-1 in the NFL. Since his insertion into the Patriots lineup, after a Bledsoe injury in 2001, Brady started 128 consecutive games – and won 81 percent of them. During that time, the Pats won 3-Super Bowls and played in 5 AFC Championship games. And, outside New England, the Pats became the most hated team in the NFL. Winning will do that.

As Brady’s career blossomed, the ongoing question was – did the Belichick “system” make Brady, or did Brady’s greatness make Belichick? We’ll soon find out.

While a huge fan of both Auerbach and Wooden, I think both men would admit that you can’t win without great players. Sure, with hard work, a coach can get lucky one year. However, to be an ongoing champion, a coach needs players. Great coaches are really good coaches with great players.

The Patriots have multiple great players, so winning should continue, albeit not at an 81 percent clip. However, make no mistake about it. The true greatness of the Patriots lay in Brady. Without him there will be no championship. Without him all the Belichick-haters will become vultures awaiting prey.

Belichick has been a great coach since 2001. He may return to being a good coach in 2008.

For those thankful to the Cleveland Indians for beating the Yankees in the MLB 2007 Division Series to save us from yet another Boston - New York confrontation … here we go again. But, this time, it’s the NFL and the biggest spectacle in sport. The Super Bowl.

Yes, America, those fanatic sports fans from Boston and New York, who have anointed themselves as the two greatest sports-towns in the country, will be going at it one more time. And, needless to say, one city will once again be hanging another championship banner. It’s the Patriots versus Giants, round 2.

So, which team do you hate more now…the Yankees or the Patriots? Just think, if the Patriots pull off the unbelievable task of a perfect 19-0 season, they will become the greatest team in NFL history. And with Brady a mere 30 years old, the Patriots’ organization will become the greatest all-time NFL franchise by the time he retires, if they’re not already.

Thank God for the Montreal Canadiens. Of the four major pro sports in North America, it appears only hockey eludes Boston and New York from holding the “grand-slam” of greatest sports organization crowns. The Yankees, with their 26 championships, have been the king of baseball since the days of Ruth and Gehrig - then DiMaggio, Mantle, and Jeter. The Celtics and their 16 championships have held the reign as the greatest NBA franchise due to the likes of Russell, Havlicek, Cowens, and Bird. Now the Patriots and Brady are on the threshold of becoming the elite of the NFL. As the saying goes, “the rich get richer.”

To make matters worse, if the Patriots win another Super Bowl this year, Boston teams will have won six championships in football and baseball combined during the last seven years. The Sox in 2004 and 2007, and the Patriots in 2001, 2003, 2004 and 2007. And, to make matters worse, the Celtics are making noise again in the NBA.

So while most American sports fans are admitted New York-Boston haters, rest-assured, millions of them will be tuned-in Super Sunday to watch Super Bowl XLII. They just need to remember that Boston or New York will win another championship. Pick your poison.

My San Diego friends have experienced a whirlwind of emotions the past year. It began with the Chargers’ playoff loss to the Patriots last season. After that demoralizing game, fans called for coach Marty Schottenheimer’s head. Soon, thereafter, ownership disposed of Schottenheimer. Then, earlier this season, the Chargers proceeded to loose a few games, and fans sarcastically chanted Marty! Marty! Marty! at Qualcomm Stadium. Today they’re saying, Marty who?

While most NFL experts were anticipating the next Pats-Colts round, the Chargers put a damper on things. And while I can hear the cheering in southern California and see the smiles throughout New England, is a Patriots–Chargers game really what America wanted to see? I’m sure it’s not what CBS wanted – nor the millions of Patriots’ haters. Hell, I’ve already heard a friend of mine saying, “The Patriots just got a ‘free ride’ to another Super Bowl.”

Since they blew-out the Chargers, 38-14, earlier this season, I don’t expect the Patriots to falter this week on the road to perfection. However, I do expect a good game … for a half. Then it’s on to Glendale, Arizona for a chance to become the NFL’s greatest team ever.

By the way, there is another side of the playoff bracket. The Giants will have an uphill battle facing media-favorite Brett Favre and his Packers. New York’s win against Dallas wasn’t a big surprise for me, as I picked that one. But, I also picked the Seahawks, so Vegas isn’t calling me to help set any odds this week. However, no matter who wins in the “junior bracket” does anyone really think the NFC has a shot at a championship? Maybe – but, San Diego will have to come up with an even bigger upset this week for NFC fans to have hope.

So, to all my Chargers friends – congratulations and enjoy this week’s build-up to a game that could resemble the AFL Championship game played January 5, 1964 at San Diego’s Balboa Stadium, which was won by the Chargers in a blow-out against the (then) Boston Patriots 51-10. However, the victor will also be playing home this time – at Foxboro’s Gillette Stadium. And after the loss – please, no whining like last year. Also, don’t be calling for Norv Turner’s head. The Patriots are simply the better team.

Unless you’ve just awakened from a coma, you know the New England Patriots completed the first undefeated regular season in the National Football League since 1972. It’s an amazing accomplishment in professional sports. Hell, it’s a great feat at any level of sports. For those who have played on an undefeated team, you understand the feelings Patriots’ players are having – or will have as the years pass.

Granted, the Pats’ season will be considered a failure if they don’t close-out the year with a Super Bowl victory. Great pro teams don’t hang regular-season banners, or even division championship banners. Just ask the Yankees or Celtics. Being 16-0 will lose its luster unless it turns into 19-0. However, I can tell you first hand that even if the Patriots lose in the playoffs, each player will always remember his undefeated regular season and his teammates – especially as the players grow older. Age promotes nostalgia. Just ask the ’72 Dolphins.

Now, let me preface my undefeated experience by saying I never played professional sports. The comparison is regarding sentiment – not the level of performance.

The year was…well, you guess. A stamp cost a nickle. Gas was about 35-cents and bread a quarter. My favorite songs were Groovin’ by the Young Rascals, All You Need is Love by the Beatles, Light My Fire by the Doors, and Brown-Eyed Girl by Van Morrison. The number one song of the year was To Sir With Love by Lulu. Best movie was A Man For All Seasons, but mine was Cool Hand Luke.

It was my junior year, and I was the starting point-guard for a high school rich in basketball tradition. As the season began, we thought we’d be good and had hopes of making it to the state tournament, which required 14 wins. As practice commenced, there was absolutely no thought of going undefeated. So, we were obviously ecstatic and extremely proud to finish the regular-season 20-0.

There were many wonderful memories that year, but what I remember most is that as the year progressed, practice became more fun…and more intense. And, unlike the Pats, we began thinking and talking about an undefeated season around the tenth game. Hey, we were just kids getting caught up in all the hoopla at school, around town, and in the local newspaper. But, with all the attention came pressure. It mounted with every win.

As game 20 approached, the school and town were abuzz. I remember the excitement, but, mostly, I recall the tension. We were playing a non-league game against a very good team that featured an impressive record of their own at 16-3. One of their losses earlier in the year was against us in a close game, so this was no automatic win.

Needless to say, we won the game to finish our perfect regular season. And while I remember the joy, I also remember the relief that emerged. The pressure was much too great for any 16-year-old to endure. However, after winning, the excitement and shared feelings with teammates and coaches made it all worthwhile. It was a moment in my life that I will forever remember.

Like the Patriots, the story didn’t end with the regular season. 20-0 was great, but, unfortunately, we had little time to enjoy it. We returned to practice the day after our 20th win to prepare for the state tournament. I remember practice being more fun than focus. And while our coach let us enjoy ourselves, he reminded us at the end of the session that there was yet more to accomplish. Subsequent practices returned to normal, as we became focused on the next game and a state championship. We had to put 20-0 behind us.

We won our first game in the tournament and were only one victory away from playing at the legendary Boston Garden on the famous parquet floor. We were two victories away from the state finals – most likely versus a Catholic school from our local area and against friends with whom we had competed for years as kids in the playgrounds. The head-to-head battle was greatly anticipated by both schools and multiple communities. Remarkably, they also ended their regular season 20-0, so a championship game versus two undefeated teams was a high school basketball match-up for the ages in the state.

Unfortunately, the game never happened. We lost. What made it worse is we lost to a team from our league that we had beaten twice that year.

So, was our year a failure? At that moment it was. We were devastated. Being 20-0 meant little to me for a long time. However, as time passed, I quickly realized that the year would always be one of the most cherished of my life. I will always remember my teammates, plus the joy, hard work, and success we experienced together. We accomplished something very special. And despite the tournament loss, we will always be remembered as one of the great teams in our high school’s illustrious basketball history.

So, if the Patriots unexpectedly lose in the playoffs, I know they, too, will be devastated and consider the year a failure. But, I also know that as the years pass and they become nostalgic, they will eventually look back at this year with great pride – and remember the bond they’ve made with their teammates and coaches during their special undefeated regular season.

By the way, the year was 1967.

I was a big fan of Johnny Unitas and the Baltimore Colts. Many football insiders still consider him the greatest NFL quarterback ever. I actually remember watching him on black and white television in what’s called “the greatest football game ever played” in 1958. The Unitas-led Colts won the NFL Championship by defeating the New York “football” Giants with an exciting 23-17 sudden death overtime win. It’s hard to believe that was nearly 50-years ago.

So when Don Shula took over the coaching reins of the Colts in 1963, I quickly became a fan of Shula, too. While with the Colts, Shula won NFL Coach of the Year three times – in 1964, 1967, and 1968.

In 1970, Shula moved on to the Miami Dolphins, and I enjoyed watching Larry Csonka, Jim Kick, and Nick Buoniconti. When the Dolphins went undefeated in 1972, winning Super Bowl VII and later Super Bowl VIII, I thought Shula and his team were, respectively, the greatest of their time. His induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1997 was certainly well deserved.

Shula has always been considered a class act, as his 1993 Sports Illustrated Sportsman-of-the-Year Award would indicate – despite that he and his 1972 team drink champagne after the last-standing undefeated NFL team falls each year. I’ve always felt that tradition to be questionable, but no big deal.

However, Shula’s recent “asterisk” comments about the possibility of the New England Patriots going undefeated this season is off base and causes me pause as to his sportsmanship image.

“The Spygate thing has diminished what they’ve accomplished,” Shula said in an interview with the New York Daily News. “You would hate to have that attached to your accomplishments. They’ve got it.”

Shula has certainly gained enough cachet in the NFL to have his opinion about “Spygate” deemed significant. However, to relate “Spygate” to this season and the Patriots’ run at becoming the second undefeated team in NFL history is irresponsible and appears more self-centered.

First, if the Patriots indeed go undefeated, it doesn’t remove the ’72 Dolphins from the record book. They will simply have to share that great distinction. And, secondly, if the Pats accomplish the feat, shouldn’t Shula and his Dolphins take the high-road as did Henry Aaron and show some class acknowledging the feat with congratulatory remarks?

As we all get long-in-the-tooth, we need to project wisdom more than bitterness.

Okay…let me get this straight. Last Saturday QB Demetrius Jones dressed for Notre Dame’s home game against Penn State, which the Irish lost. This Saturday ESPN reported that Jones has enrolled at Northern Illinois University where he hopes to play football next year. Now, I am not an expert on NCAA regulations. However, assuming that Jones is not paying his own tuition, room, board and fees to attend NIU, am I supposed to believe that within five school days (Sept 10 –14) the following events took place:

1. Jones contacted NIU and initiated contact with the coaching staff who would have told him he needed a release from Notre Dame.
2. Jones contacted the Notre Dame athletic department and asked for a release from his scholarship.
3. The release was granted.
4. Jones filled out an application to NIU.
5. NIU reviewed the Jones’ application and financial paper and granted him admission for classes at NIU which began on August 27.
6. Charlie Weis learns the Jones’ has “missed the bus” for the Friday team trip to Michigan. Somehow he is surprised (see item # 2)

Someone out there, please explain to me how all this can happen. There is nothing at the NIU admissions website that indicates that such a rapid transfer of students is even possible. Maybe Jones has only enrolled. Maybe he won’t begin classes until January. Maybe he will be coming to school as a walk-on player, paying his own way. But I doubt it. Every single stinking word of this story. Where is the NIU Athletic Director? Where is the NIU President? Where is the NCAA?

And why am I starting to think that Charlie Weis is the mirror image of his mentor Bill Belichick?

About a year ago, Erik Boal wrote a piece for HOFMAG.com about Jimmy Clausen, the hot shot California high school quarterback who predicted four national championships for Notre Dame when he committed to play football for the Irish beginning in September of 2007.

Well, Claussen made his college debut as the third string quarterback in Notre Dame’s embarrassing 33-3 loss to Georgia Tech at South Bend on Saturday. Forget a national championship. It’ll be interesting to see if the Irish can win more games than they lose this season. As for Charlie Weis, it looks as if the honeymoon is over for this career assistant coach. He was lucky he inherited Brady Quinn from Tyrone Willingham because his record in recruiting good players to Notre Dame has to be questioned. Weis appears to be just another blowhard.

Speaking of embarrassing debuts, how about Appalachian State sticking it to Michigan at Michigan. Lloyd Carr is another coach who had every resource in the world. Although he won 77 percent of his games at Michigan, he too must be considered an underachiever. See ya Lloyd.

ESPN announced on Friday that it was getting out of the “scripted programming business” after The Bronx Is Burning. ESPN’s problem wasn’t the format. The problem was the projects they picked and the actors they cast. Really, Tom Sizemore as Pete Rose in Hustle was dreadful. Brian Dennehy as Bobby Knight was even worse. Despite the dumbo ears, John Turturo was terrific as Billy Martin in The Bronx Is Burning. Yet again, terrible casting of Reggie Jackson, Graig Nettles, and especially Max Casella as the classy Dick Howser sucked all the credibility out of ESPN’s latest and final effort at scripted programming. Meanwhile ESPN’s sister network, ABC, launched 11 new series this summer and all of them failed. I’m guessing they can’t wait to unveil Cavemen on October 2. Wanna bet Cavemen is cancelled before the World Series is over?

How great is the FedEx Cup, golf’s first playoff series. Tiger Woods at #1 doesn’t even play in the first event, #3 K.J. Choi withdraws from the second week, and it really doesn’t matter one way or the other. The only thing that becomes more obvious every day is that Tiger Woods is golf. He is bigger than his sport now. Jack always had to contend with Arnie, or Trevino or a Tom Watson. If Jack had a bad couple of tournaments people still watched. If Tiger misses an event, the networks might as well broadcast bars and tone.

Speaking of classy champions, golf lost one this weekend with the passing of former Master’s champ Gay Brewer. Brewer was a classy decent man.

The jury trial of Michael Vick is set for November 26th, so don’t expect dogfighting stories to go away anytime soon. And let’s hope the shame stays in the public eye until the Feds can put an end to this horrific activity.

Since the Vick indictment, only a handful of Vick fans have come to his defense … and most of them only ask for the process to take its course. I can deal with their legal logic. However, I cannot deal with those who admit to attending dogfighting – and blow it off as being less offensive than those who create the activity. That’s nonsensical since, like any event, without patrons, the activity can’t occur. Watching dogfighting is also appalling. Period.

I’m the first to admit that I’ve done some dumb things in my life – especially during my college days. Most of us have skeletons in our closets. However, watching dogfighting is hideous to me because it goes beyond simply being young and stupid. Stupidity is a matter involving the organ above your neck. Watching dogfighting is a matter of the organ between your waist and neck. It’s a matter of the heart.

While recently listening to Boston’s leading sports talk-radio station WEEI, fill-in co-host Steve DeOssie admitted to attending a dogfighting event. DeOssie, a former NFL player with the Giants, Jets, and Patriots, told listeners he was 22-years old when he attended the dogfight. He wrote it off as being young and stupid and said that he regretted attending. However, he also admitted that he didn’t leave until 11 dogfights were done.

DeOssie’s radio schtick is being an NFL tough-guy… and since sports talk-radio is entertainment (not sports journalism), schtick is what it’s all about. To be fair, Steve’s analysis of pro football gets good reviews. However, sadly, I will now always think of DeOssie as a dogfighting attendee.

DeOssie and others can write it off as being young and stupid all they want, but how do they answer to themselves and, more importantly, their loved-ones. Personally, I would have a difficult time relating to a friend or family member who attended dogfighting…at any age. But that’s just me.

“I don’t know if [Mike Vick] was fighting dogs or not, but it’s his property, it’s his dog. If that’s what he wants to do, do it. I think people should mind their business. … It can’t be too bad of a crime.”

This was a sampling of the idiocy that dribbled from the mouth of Washington Redskins running back Clinton Portis on Monday, as he so chivalrously defended the Atlanta Falcons quarterback, who owns a residence suspected of playing host to a dog fighting ring. Apparently that memo about the NFL cracking down on criminal behavior didn’t reach the nation’s capitol. Figures.

Before going on, I should come clean. For most of my life, my family’s been privy to the companionship of man’s best friend(s). When I was 10, my birthday present was Jake - a black Lab, who was my best buddy through adolescence and those awkward teen years. After that, we got Molly. Along the way came their son, Mickey.

Just about the saddest day of my life was the day we put Jake to sleep. Just about the saddest movie I’ve ever seen was Old Yeller.

Basically, I’m a dog kinda guy.

I think people, who in any way involve themselves with or condone dog fighting, are criminals and cowards. Sickening human beings, basically. Portis might be a helluva running back and Vick might be a helluva quarterback, but character, compassion and decency are certainly lacking with these two.

Dog fighting is disgusting and deplorable. It’s not boxing or mixed-martial arts, it’s not a fight. It’s animals, pitted against each other by men with dollar signs and bloodlust dancing through their heads, killing each other.

To allow such an act to occur shows a lack of compassion and respect for animals I can’t fathom. I understand there’s different cultures, there’s different beliefs. Some believe bull fighting is glorious. I think it’s legalized slaughter sprinkled with false bravery. Here in the good ole US of A, dog fighting is a crime, though. And with the NFL’s recent run of punishment, I’m hoping for Jake, Molly, Mickey and every pit bull that was only uncaged to fight for its life, that the NFL, right along with law enforcement, comes up with a fit punishment.

From everything I’ve ever heard or read, punishments involving crimes against animals aren’t all that steep. They’re just animals, after all. A rooster here, a pit bull there. Just animals who have no choice in life, but to react to the situations that immoral deviants put them into.

“In the recent interview I gave concerning dog fighting, I want to make it clear I do not take part in dog fighting or condone dog fighting in any manner,” Portis later said in a statement.

It was as if, like many an athlete before him, he let the media know the truth, and, after a stern behind-the-scenes talking to, scrambled to take back the words that had already revealed his true feelings. He didn’t agree with his coach’s play calling. He didn’t think the defense was holding up its end. But this isn’t anything like that. This isn’t about being a bad teammate or a bad role model, it’s about being a bad person.

Plain and simple.

I just read an interesting piece by Daniel Kaplan published in SportsBusiness Journal regarding the upcoming Super Bowl bid-process. Dan, who is also a contributor to www.HOFmagazine.com, tells us the Super Bowl selection committee is about to meet in Nashville to vote on the host site of the 2011 Super Bowl. The considerations include Dallas, Indianapolis, and back to Arizona. Take a look, it’s an interesting read.

Here’s my take … where? Whatever happened to the mind-set that Super Bowls belong in warm weather cities? While games might not be effected because of domes, what about the fans and the week-long parties?

Dallas? I’ve been there in the winter and have experienced some of the worst ice-storms ever. Indy? Great sports town, which hosts the NCAA and National Federation of High Schools corporate offices, but again, a bit chilly in February … ya think? Arizona? Warm, but…

The Super Bowl is more than a game - it’s an event - especially for those attending the game. If it were up to me, the game would always be played in San Diego, LA, Miami, or New Orleans - the ultimate Super Bowl party-city.

So, forget those cold-weather cities, and please … be sure to always keep our game in America.

My favorite sites…San Diego and New Orleans.