Dark night reflections

A lot of us who are motivated to love and serve God really get upset with ourselves when we revert to behaviors and attitudes that make other people wonder if we're really what we represent ourselves to be.

I certainly feel that way tonight.

It's not that I behaved publicly in a way that would call negative attention on myself. Incredible as this may sound about me, it's not even because I said something to somebody that hurt or demoralized someone.

In this case, it's because I've done things in a difficult part of my life to effectively master that I vowed never to do again.

I can almost hear a lot of you saying as you read this...big deal, I do stuff like that all the time! Stop kicking yourself and move on already.

Well, it's not that easy...if I purport to be someone who obeys God for direction in my life, how can I NOT be upset with myself for doing things that I know better than to do?

And if you're like me in that regard, you do the same thing...don't tell me you don't.

And if we use the Bible as the guide for our lives, isn't that a comfort, in a way?

For didn't the apostle Paul write that he would boast in his weakness, for as he puts it, "When I am weak, then I'm strong."

In other words, it's precisely in THOSE moments that we're exactly where God wants us, fully dependent on Him, and knowing that we can't come anywhere near where we need to be to be what we want to be.

And knowing that, it's in those times that we're actually as close to God as we ought to be.

And since that's where I am right now, that's why I still have hope, despite my circumstances...hope that everything will be all right.

So if you feel that way right now, be thankful! You're in a good place!

UPDATE: To those of you who are curious, no, I didn't do anything illegal or sinful here, just something that didn't exercise the best judgment(not that I don't do sinful things periodically...but you know what I mean...I hope!).

Enough Brett Favre talk already!

As a sports fan, I've been inundated with the story about Green Bay Packers QB Brett Favre.

This despite the fact that we're in the middle of baseball season....a day away from their annual All-Star game.

But the NFL-crazed sports media insist that pro football is the #1 sport in America, and they need to keep it on the front page of the papers and the lead story on the various TV and radio sports shows, so we're saddled with Favre, whether we care or not.

Do I care? What does it sound like?

But to be fair, it's not so much the NFL that is keeping the flames of this story burning...unfortunately, it's Brett Favre himself, in an attempt to spin this story to keep his carefully cultivated image as the quintessential Packer, competitor, team man, and great quarterback intact.

What's the matter, John? Don't you respect the accomplishments and abilities of one of the best NFL quarterbacks of this generation?

Let me make myself clear on that point. I absolutely respect Favre for his fine career, his physical prowess, and his track record as one of the NFL's better quarterbacks. No one can argue with that.

What I can argue with is the set of myths that have developed around Favre in recent years.

Favre did not put the Green Bay Packers franchise on the map. They were among the league's best teams in the 1930s and 1940s, with names like Don Hutson and Curly Lambeau prominent in that tradition. It is Lambeau who Green Bay's home football field is named for.

And then, in the late 1950s, the great Vince Lombardi assumed control of the Packers, and made that franchise synonymous with excellence in football....to the extent that many fans to this day(yes, including me)feel that those great Packer teams were among the finest football teams to ever take the field. It was during this era that the truly greatest Packer quarterback ever, Bart Starr, led the Packers during those successful salad years, so to speak.

Now to be fair, the franchise had fallen into a decline phase when Favre joined the team from the Atlanta Falcons in the 1990s...and he did lead them to one Super Bowl title in 1997. And during the majority of that time, Favre was among the NFL's leading passers, even if the Packers didn't win another Super Bowl.

But time takes its' toll on all of us, and in recent years, Favre showed an increasing inclination to force his passes, and as a result, threw an alarming 36 interceptions in 2006. This began an annual ritual where Favre and the fans would wonder aloud whether it might be time for Favre to step down and call it a career.

Each year from then on, the football media would print articles as to whether Favre would retire or not. Favre never tried to quash that talk, and my feeling is that he didn't do so because he enjoyed the attention, and the subsequent discussions would nourish a legacy that he and his fans would nurture at every opportunity. I don't know that that's what he wanted, but from his actions it certainly appeared so.

Last year, the Packers posted an NFC best 13-3 record, and fell one game short of a Super Bowl, losing to the eventual champion New York Giants on a freezing afternoon in Green Bay. The Giants clinched their come-from behind win on a late interception of Favre by Cory Webster, and it seemed to not a few observers that Favre was rattled by the cold, and a strong Giants pass rush.

The Packers have always known that a Favre retirement might be imminent at any time during the last three seasons, and Favre did nothing to discourage that impression...in fact, he always inferred that that was a possibility. To prepare for that day, two years ago the Packers drafted highly touted Cal QB Aaron Rodgers in the first round. Rodgers never had much of a chance to show what he might do, because Favre insisted on starting every game to pad his record for starting in consecutive football games, regardless of their importance or his physical condition. In other words, even if Favre had small injuries, he would always at least start each game.

In one game though, Favre was having one of his worst games in his career in Dallas against the Cowboys when he was injured, and Rodgers had to come in and replace him. Rodgers was outstanding in nearly leading Green Bay to a come from behind victory...but unfortunately, Dallas hung on to win. Rodgers' performance assured the Packers that Rodgers had the ability to run the team should he have to.

Running a major league sports team is a full-time, 12 month a year operation. And again the talk of Favre retiring became a topic in Green Bay. The Packers asked Favre this past March to inform them of his plans. After all, to make the moves necessary to prepare a team for a coming season, they're not able to wait until training camp to make those moves...there's no time or way.

So, in a press conference in March, a teary-eyed Favre told the Packers and the public that he was finally going to call it a career. Assured that this was his decision, the Packers drafted a couple of good young college quarterbacks to increase their depth at the position, and their talent.

Now, as can be expected from a longtime athlete accustomed to success and the notoriety gained by his career, Favre is understandably having second thoughts about his decision, and has indicated his desire to return.

But the team is not the Brett Favre Packers, it's the Green Bay Packers. The organization made the moves it did this spring based on what Favre told them and the rest of the world at his March press conference. Does Favre actually expect them to just pre-empt their plans to accommodate his personal wishes? This is the "ultimate team player"? I don't think so.

I understand completely if Favre wishes to keep playing football...if playing for the Packers is what he loves most, I can see why he is apparently having the regrets he is about his decision.

But he has to realize this is a world of adults, and not kids on a playground. If he wants the Packers to realize that he might want to change his mind, he has to be grown up enough to realize the Packers have the right to decide whether they want him to keep playing for their team. Favre can't have it both ways.

Tonight with Greta Van Susteren, Favre claims that the Packers pressured him into an early decision about his future, claiming also that he said in that press conference, "I can still play". Favre said no such thing. The overwhelming impression he gave in that press conference was that he was retiring, however reluctantly, and that the Packers could go on without him.

Now, Favre is trying to play the media for sympathy, and manipulate public opinion into putting pressure on the Packers to allow him to come to camp again as their #1 quarterback.

I find this most disingenuous, and all too typical of ego and pride driven athletes in this day and age. If Favre is all about sport's best values, why won't he take responsibility for his words and decisions, instead of trying to make himself the issue and putting the team he claims to love so much in an awkward position?

Would Bart Starr...or any Packer during the Lombardi era...do anything like this? No.

If Favre is what his fans and the majority of the sports media claim he is, he'll put the Green Bay Packers' interests first and proceed accordingly, accepting responsibility for his behavior and moving on from there.

This story doesn't deserve the kind of attention it's been getting.

A man we can all sing “Happy Birthday” to…

I heard on the radio this morning that Mitch Miller turned 97 years of age today.

97! At a time when we seem to be losing more and more of our pop culture icons to one thing or another, it is somehow comforting to know that one of them remains with us.

At this point, maybe I ought to introduce Mitch Miller to those of my readers who are completely unfamiliar with him, for it has been over 40 years ago since he has been a significant name in our pop culture.

Mitch Miller's main popularity with most comes from his four-year stint as the host of the weekly TV program "Sing Along With Mitch", a corny but popular program that featured Miller conducting a male vocal chorus(also at times featuring male and female soloists)singing arrangements of popular melodies that was interactive for the time...in that the words to the songs appeared on the screen as they were being sung, with a bouncing ball landing on each word so all of us could "sing along" at home with the singers.

Miller's always genial, friendly personality and the familiarity of the featured songs made the program a hit with national TV audiences, and only the realization that the program's demographics tilted too much toward older viewers caused the show to be cancelled while it was still a ratings hit...presaging the cancellations a few years later of shows that had similar demographics.

But I want to point out here what relatively few people know about Mitch Miller.

He is primarily responsible for the phenomenon of the record producer whose guidance and expertise can make or break an artist.

In fact, it is arguable that Mitch Miller was the very first hit record producer...and as such, he needs to receive the credit due him.

How did this happen?

Miller's own musical career began in the 1930s as a musician for the house orchestras at CBS. He was primarily known then for his proficiency on the oboe. Miller was a well-trained, disciplined classical musician...he even cut some sides for Columbia Records Masterworks label(their classical label). At that point there was little sign that he would become so entrenched in the world of pop music.

Aside from occasional appearances with Duke Ellington's orchestra and other jazz combos, Miller was a well-respected and gifted classical musician. Then in the late 1940s, he was hired as the Artists and Repertoire(A&R)director at Mercury Records, an up-and-cmoing record company. Suddenly Miller was charged with making hit records for the label.

In 1948, Miller took a big-voiced young crooner named Frankie Laine, found a song that Tennessee Ernie Ford had just made a hit of, added the sound effects of cracking whips and yells, and "Mule Train" became a million-seller for Laine. This was probably the first hit RECORD produced.

Notice I said "hit record"...certainly there were record hits prior to "Mule Train". But up to 1943's "Peg' O My Heart" by the Harmonicats, which featured an echo chamber, no one had made record productions. Records to that time were essentially re-creations of live performances in the studio without the benefit of a live audience to add atmosphere.

But Miller was a gifted musician with a creative flair. He wanted to make a record that was an experience unto itself. So by adding sound effects and other audio techniques, he made hit records. Laine followed "Mule Train" with "The Cry Of The Wild Goose" and soon became a top American recording artist.

Then, with the creative use of a then new technique called multi-tracking, he did the same for a young female artist named Patti Page, and suddenly, word got around that Mitch Miller could make you a record star.

Miller then went to Columbia Records and did the same thing with artists like Tony Bennett, Rosemary Clooney, Doris Day, and Guy Mitchell. Frankie Laine soon joined Miller at Columbia, and they worked their magic all over again there.

By 1953, Miller was generally recognized as the "kingmaker" of the pop music world. He certainly was the first "star" producer of hit records.

Not everyone was enamored with Miller and his guidance, though. Frank Sinatra was going through a rough period in his career, and he chafed under Miller's hands-on approach to making his records. Miller had a penchant for finding and recording novelty songs, and Sinatra felt his career was ruined by having to make such sides as "Mama Will Bark" and "The Hucklebuck". Sinatra left Columbia in 1952 and rewurrected his career with Capitol Records the year after.

But Bennett, Day, and Clooney kept having hits with Miller up through the mid 1950s, and Mitchell became an instant hitmaker for Miller and Columbia about that same time.

Why aren't we more aware of Miller's genius as a producer?

Like so many others, the rise of rock n' roll in the mid 1950s pushed the previous generation of hit artists off the charts...and apart from a few successes with Marty Robbins(!)and Mitchell, Miller never could adapt to the new music. As a trained classical musician, Miller could never get a grasp of rock n' roll and quickly gave up trying. He made many statements critical of the music and became the symbol for all the oppostion to rock n' roll music that was quite prominent at that time.

Miller's unwillingness and seeming inability to adjust to rock n' roll's popularity is the primary reason he was let go from the top at Columbia Records in 1961...this despite recommending a young folksinger named Bob Dylan to the label before his departure to his successor, John Hammond.

Miller also made hits of his own for Columbia beginning in the late 1950s with the same formula he would take to TV with in the 1960s...his records with male choruses singing popular classic melodies made him a recording star as well as being a top producer.

Miller began his TV show after leaving Columbia, and remained a national celebirty for many years.

I just thought that on his 97th birthday, Mitch Miller ought to get his due recognition for his contributions to recorded music.

After all, he was the first man to actually make hit records, making him almost as big a contributor to our pop culture as the artists who sang them were.

And many adults, still with us today, remember fondly the breezy innocence Miller gave us when he invited us all to sing along with him every week. And who among us over the age of 45 can forget the ubiquitous bouncing ball, which became almost a symbol for the times?

Mitch Miller still reportedly makes occasional public appearances to conduct orchestras, and make music for those who enjoy hearing it.

Happy 97th, Mitch.

Champions!

Just what the doctor ordered.

To the surprise of most fans of college baseball(including this one), most sports observers, and even many in their own community, the Fresno State baseball team defied the prevailing odds, did their jobs as they were taught, and made sports history by winning the 2008 College World Series in most convincing fashion, thrashing a good Georgia team 6-1 tonight to make it official.

But that's not all they did.

The sports experts will remind us forever about the fact that this Fresno State team was the lowest ranked team to ever make the CWS, let alone win it. Along the way, they'll also remind us that their 62 runs scored tied the all time record for most runs scored in a series. They'll also remind us that the team was 5-0 in elimination games, meaning that every time they needed to win a game to remain in the series, they did....and how!

And the local sociologists will tell us that this particular win by this particular team was a shot in the morale department for a community that for far too long has harbored a completely unwarranted inferiority complex, and in these days of high gas prices(Fresno's are the highest in the nation), high food prices, and economic change and uncertainty, these kinds of victories can lift the spirits and confidence of a community, and rally them to persevere against the odds in the same way their college baseball team did. And it did!

You see, even though Fresno is the fifth most populous city in the most populous state in the United States, the fact that for many years it was simply a pleasant medium sized agricultural city has affected the local mindset to the degree that even now locals feel that Fresno is still a small farm town. Having attended every Great Western Southern Gospel Fan Festival that has ever appeared in Fresno, let me tell you that the many singers who visit us to sing here(many of whom DID or DO come from small farm towns)are impressed with the size and amenities that Fresno currently has.

And in the world of collegiate sports, Fresno has always grabbed on to whatever national attention it could generate through its fine college football teams coached by Pat Hill and its' fine basketball programs of bygone years coached by the likes of Boyd Grant and Jerry Tarkanian. And it is still mistily nostalgic about the 1992 Freedom Bowl football win over a mediocre USC team(compared to its championship teams), and its' 1980 NIT basketball title in New York's Madison Square Garden, giving Fresno its' requisite 15 minutes of fame.

This is different. This is a real championship. They are not just famous for a month or two...they will be known as the BEST college baseball team in the nation for the year 2008.

Now the team has been saying in their numerous interviews that they had every expectation of making it to the CWS, that they saw themselves doing exactly what they did.

Well, not to rain on anyone's parade...but no, they didn't.

And no one else in this area thought they would either.

In fact, the local community was strangely indifferent to this team all season. Fresno has a long and proud baseball heritage, spawning such big leaguers as Tom Seaver, Jim Maloney, Dick Ellsworth, and Ted Lilly.. And the school has turned out talent such as Dick Ruthven, Terry Pendleton, Jeff Weaver, Steve Hosey, Tom Goodwin, and Bobby Jones. It has long been a celebrated baseball program on the West Coast, and appeared in three previous CWSs...not going nearly as far as this team did. And the two coaching predecessors to current coach Mike Batesole, Pete Beiden and Bob Bennett, were among the most successful college baseball coaches of all time. But after Bennett's retirement and in Batesole's first five years, enthusiasm had cooled significantly because of mostly mediocre teams(despite a pair of WAC titles), and attendance was at an all-time low this year.

And after an 8-12 start against a relatively weak schedule, the preseason high ranking this team had seemed a cruel joke to baseball fans expecting much more. And frankly, the team was not playing very well, sometimes appearing sloppy and undisciplined.

Even at season's end, it seemed all the Bulldogs could do to hold off schools like Nevada and Hawaii to simply win the regular season league title. And they dropped two of three games to Sacramento State in their season ending series, backing into the league title.

At some point here, the fire seemed to have lit into this Bulldog team...for at the conference tournament in Ruston, LA(home of last-place Louisiana Tech), the Bulldogs swept through the tournament with ease, much to the chagrin of even us at KMJ, who were hoping the Bulldogs would be beaten so our ratings wouldn't continue to suffer by covering their games.

The team's record was good, not great...and the fact is that the team would not have even made the postseason if not for its winning the WAC tournament title(giving them an automatic berth). We all knew they would be exposed, being placed in the West's toughest regional, with three nationally ranked teams, Long Beach State, Cal, and the University of San Diego.

But a funny thing started happening...this team began to gell. Their sloppy, undisciplined play became inspired and determined. The team was not intimidated in the least by their opponents. They began by smacking the host Dirtbags 7-3, and followed that up with a shutout win over the Toreros.

The following day, though, the Toreros extracted revenge with a 15-1 shellacking of the Bulldogs. We figured OK, the first games were cute, and they've played well, but the run is over...and their season will end with their next game.

In the start of what would be common behavior for this team, they rebounded with a gutty win over the Toreros...giving them the regional title! It was on to Tempe, AZ...and the #3 team in the country, an Arizona State team that had only lost three times on its' home field.

Well, that's it, we figured. Surely they can't beat the powerful Sun Devils...especially on thir field, in front of their fans.

Sure enough, ASU smacked the Bulldogs 12-4 in the opening game of that super-regional, preparing us(we thought)for the inevitable. But again, these weren't the same Bulldogs we thought we knew. The Bulldogs came back to win not one, but TWO slugfests at Packard Stadium! They were now on their way to the College World Series for the first time in 17 years!

Finally, I was beginning to "get it"...this team had something going! I realized at last that I couldn't just dismiss this sudden success as a mere fluke. The Bulldogs had gone through the toughest path to the CWS possible, and made it. Despite the seeming tendency to favor teams from the Southeast(especially Florida), Fresno State was in the CWS...and like many of their predecessors(including defending champion Oregon State)they were a force from the West that needed to be reckoned with!

It's perhaps too incomplete an analysis to say that the Bulldogs were doing so well because there was no pressure on them...due to the fact that almost no one thought they'd be there, and thus, there were no expectations on them. But certainly it would explain their refusal to crack in pressure situations, and their supremely relaxed, confident demeanor on and off the field. They seemed to just enjoy playing baseball against the nation's very best teams...and the more they realized they were more than competitive against them, it boosted their confidence exponentially.

And wasn't it JD Sumner who always said that the secret of hitting low notes is simply relaxing and believing you COULD hit them?

The Fresno State baseball team was the athletic extension of JD's bass singing philosophy. The more they played good teams and beat them, the more aware they became of their ability to do so. And the best was yet to come.

Fresno's first opponent in the CWS was Rice, long one of the nation's elite baseball teams, and a former thorn in the Bulldogs' side when they were in the WAC, beating Fresno State annually.

Then the incredible stuff started happening.

The Bulldogs built an 11-0 fourth inning lead en route to a 17-5 dismantling of the pitching-rich Owls...and the city of Omaha(home of the CWS since 1950)fell in love with the unheralded team from the West. Later that week, they beat the 2nd ranked team in the country, North Carolina, by a 5-3 count. Suddenly, the Bulldogs were just one win away from the CWS finals. No Fresno State team had ever gone this far before.

The nation was beginning to notice this bunch of determined upstarts, and marvelled at their scrappy, overachieving attitude.

Saturday, the Tar Heels won a 4-3 decision over the Bulldogs on a late home run. Were the Bulldogs finally overmatched, and about to have their bubble burst at last?

The Tar Heels had the nation's finest pitching, and some of the finest players in the country. Plus, they had been to the finals the past couple of years, and their depth and experience seemed to be more than even the cinderella Bulldogs could overcome.

Once again, the Bulldogs faced elimination. But once again, the Bulldogs got off the floor and flattened their supposedly superior foe, Sunday's 6-1 win over the excellent Tar Heels put them into the finals against another team of underachieving Bulldogs, the unbeaten(in the CWS)University of Georgia.

Fresno's pitching was stretched to the limit. Plus, several players, including power hitting third baseman Tom Mendonca, were battling severe injuries and playing right through them(in Mendonca's case, a late-season wrist injury that left him unable to even shake hands with you). Mendonca's four CWS home runs(tying a record)and his seeming channeling of Brooks Robinson defensively showed the gritty, never say die determination this Bulldog team had most definitively.

The opening battle of the Bulldogs saw Georgia prevail with an eighth-inning rally in a 7-6 victory keyed by a late home run from their best player, Gordon Beckham(a future major league star..write it down!). Again, Fresno State faced elimination...and the Atlanta area media was full of theories why Fresno was doomed. Such a heartbreaking loss would break Fresno's spirit once and for all, they opined.

I suppose we can forgive the ignorant media in Georgia for not paying attention to the story of this Fresno team....but by this time, all of us at KMJ had learned our lessons about doubting this team....and very soon, they would as well.

In Game 2, Georgia dashed out to a 5-0 lead by the third inning, but they knew that Fresno State would not give up, and sure enough, a six-run fourth inning precipitated a burst of 15 runs over the fourth through sixth innings, powering the Fresno State baseballers to a 19-10 victory...putting it down to one final game.

Who was broken now, Atlanta media?

Tonight, Fresno State quickly and efficiently took the lead and never looked back, crushing Georgia beneath the feet, 6-1, and became the 2008 College World Series champions!

I had learned my lesson, finally...I knew the 'Dogs would take it tonight!

I wrote here why sports fans and the local fair-weather Fresno community got a charge by Fresno State's improbable victory, but why did I get so inspired by it?

Well, those of you who know me well and read this blog know that I have had my share of challenges of late. And I have felt much like the Fresno State baseball team did in April, when they struggled just to keep their heads above water, so to speak.

But like so many things in life, if we just step back, realize what our task is, and then simply commit ourselves to doing it, and not be concerned about how big our obstacles might be, it's surprising how much we can get done! And sometimes, we can even exceed our dreams!

And the Fresno State baseball team hunkered down, visualized what they needed to do, then simply went out, relaxed, and played baseball....and did it better than anyone else in the country for two big weeks, fulfilling their dream!

So no matter what you or I face, if we just do the same sort of thing the Fresno State baseball team did...we can not only win all our "elimination" battles, we might even win our "championships", whatever they might be for us.

The comparisons have been made to a #14 seed winning the NCAA basketball championship, and to other athletic longshots, and Fresno State's baseball team did all that...and even more!

Congratulations to the 2008 Fresno State baseball team, this year's national champions.

I’m still here!

Just stopping in to wave "hi" from my little corner of the web...and reassure you all that I'm still alive and functioning!

Again, real life gets busy sometimes, and when I'm immersed in it, I don't always take the time to post things here. And I've said many times here that I don't believe in posting for its' own sake...I try to wait until I actually have something important(at least to me)to say before I share it here.

Besides, later today, I'll be getting a new ISP along with cable TV installed(for the first time in 10 years), and so I'm inclined to wait until my new setup is complete before I start posting like mad here again.

Understand? Are you with me?

Very well...I promise I will return soon...in the meantime, keep the fires burning!

Go, Bulldogs!

I know it's been a few days since I last weighed in...well, that little ol' thing called real life has been getting a lot of my attention.

One thing that apart from just that that also has is something that I'm taking quite a bit of pride in, even though I never thought it would happen, and in so thinking, I was wrong.

But I don't mind admitting I'm wrong when I am...especially when I'm glad I was!

I'm very proud of the Fresno State baseball team, which will be playing in this year's College World Series, starting this weekend in Omaha. Although they were a preseason top-25 pick and the favorite to win in the WAC once again, they struggled for a good part of the season, and didn't catch fire until the very end of the year, clinching the WAC title and surprisingly looking forward to the postseason.

We at KMJ weren't sharing in their confidence, and as far as we could tell, local enthusiasm for the team was at an alltime low, causing ratings for their broadcasts on our station to suffer, and we could hardly wait for their season to end so they could be put out of their misery.

When they blazed through the WAC tournament to earn a postseason bid, it didn't seem that big a deal. The WAC has been a weak baseball league for some time, and we all felt that the team would be rudely sent crashing to earth in the regionals...where they would face quality competition for a change.

Well, wouldn't you know, the Bulldogs would be placed in what probably was the toughest of all the regional fields, in Long Beach to face nationally-ranked and co-Big West champion Long Beach State, nationally-ranked Cal(from the Pacific-10), and the nation's sixth-ranked team, West Coast Conference champion University of San Diego, who the Bulldogs upset last year in regional play.

Fresno State, not nationally ranked for some time, was the bottom feeder in this group(the #4 seed)and we all figured they'd be blown away in two straight. Imagine our shock when the 'Dogs thrashed the host Long Beach State team in their opening game, and shut out the Toreros the following night to earn a berth in the championship game out of the chute. Was this the same team that had lost 28 games during the season?

After the Toreros forced a deciding game with a 15-1 spanking of the Bulldogs, we all figured that it was fun while it lasted, and the dream would end the following night in the regional title game, so we could ALL get back to our regular routines. But the Bulldogs were determined to keep their dreams alive, and knocked USD off in the championship game, and incredibly, they won the regional.

This earned them the right to play the nation's third-ranked team, the powerful Sun Devils of Arizona State. Surely the charade would end now...how would a lowly #4 seed knock off a team that was not only the Pac-10 champion, but was 39-3 at home this year? And that had a 14-game winning streak there in the postseason? When the Dogs were thrashed 12-4 in the series opener, we figured this was surely the end of the Bulldogs' season.

But again, the Bulldogs never let go of their dream. With perseverance and execution seldom seen during the year, they stunned the Sun Devils the following day to force a deciding game this past Monday...by this time I was beginning to see the light...maybe Fresno State could actually pull off the upset!

Monday night came, and the Bulldogs used a six-run seventh inning to help them to a seemingly insurmountable 12-5 lead...EVERYONE at KMJ was stunned! Excited, but stunned....could the Davidlike Bulldogs slay the Goliathlike Arizona State juggernaut?

The Sun Devils, true to form, came back strong in the 9th inning...but they couldn't come back far enough...the 'Dogs held on for a 12-9 victory...and for the first time ever, a #4 seed emerged from the regionals all the way to the College World Series!

The win was important on many levels. First, Fresno State(a baseball program with a lot of tradition from the days of coaches Pete Beiden and Bob Bennett)was finally a player again on the national baseball scene. And coach Mike Batesole(the victim of a lot of the most ignorant second-guessing all year by alleged Bulldog fans[including, sad to say, me])has been finally vindicated and now appreciated for keeping the team on a level course, and not overreacting in the face of adversity.

And notably, in light of a number of lawsuits against the school's athletic department by opportunistic but otherwise fine female coaches(and ex-coaches), the school has something positive to dwell on. This team is in position to win a national championship...only the softball champions of 1998 have previously done that for the Bulldogs. This kind of thing makes a whole community feel good about itself.

Finally, credit must be given to fine athletes such as senior Steve Susdorf, whose name is now all over the Bulldog record book...and other dedicated players like Alan Ahmaty, Eric Wetzel, Tom Mendonca, and senior closer Brandon Burke...for their continuing belief in themselves and their disregard for the negative carping of those of us who thought we knew better. Way to go, guys...you taught us all a good lesson.

If you do your best with what you've got, you'll go much farther than you could ever imagine...despite people who'll tell you you can't. Nobody but God knows what's going to happen...cast your lot with Him, and watch what might happen.

Do I think Fresno State will win the College World Series? No, but what does that matter? They've got as good a chance as the other seven schools, and we all know now they won't give up...so I'm not going to give up on them anymore, either.

Go Dogs!

THE car, period!

Maybe now ALL the drivers and fans of NASCAR will finally get it.

This is the first year that the so-called Car of Tomorrow(CoT for short)was introduced into the sport as the standard vehicle for the Sprint Cup series, the top series in NASCAR.

This after a year of criticism from drivers used to the old car's performance and looks, two things(especially the latter)that they said the newer car, heavier and boxier in shape, failed to measure up to by comparison.

The newer body style was developed in the wake of the death of the sport's biggest star, Dale Earnhardt, in 2001 after the legendary driver was killed in a crash against the wall in the Daytona 500.

Since then, the walls have been reinforced at NASCAR tracks as never before, and the cars have been built with various extra safety and restraint devices in order to prevent what happened to Earnhardt from happening again.

But it was felt that more than the extra safety devices, the cars themselves had to be built differently than before in order to better protect their occupants in the event of the inevitable high-speed mishaps endemic to stock cars in the sport.

Along with that, the feeling was that the older cars technological development had peaked, and that races tended to boil down more and more to how the cars were set up and the skill of the teams and manufacturers involved, and less on the skills of the individual drivers.

So the new cars have been built to more uniform and stricter standards, not just in terms of safety but in terms of their performance. The idea is to level the playing field, and make it easier for more teams and drivers to compete on an equal basis.

How well they've achieved the latter goal is still open to question, but after this weekend at the Texas Motor Speedway, there no longer can be any doubt that the newer car is better built for the driver's safety.

During qualifying for the Samsung 500 there this past Friday, rookie driver Michael McDowell inadvertently tested the car's safety features in a way he never intended.

He was going into a turn when it appeared that his car's tires slipped on the substance poured on the track after an oil spill, and his car careened almost headfirst into the wall at approximately 185 MPH.

The built-in barriers absorbed the impact, but the car nonetheless flipped over after the contact about eight times before it bounced down the track's banking and eventually settled in the infield below.

The car was totalled, but the driver compartment remained relatively intact. The crowd was hushed at what they saw, and they were quiet as much out of concern for McDowell's welfare as for the terrifying scene they had just witnessed. Was McDowell OK?

The crowd got its' answer relatively quickly, as McDowell was pulled from the car. To the astonishment of everyone near the track, in the stands, and no doubt the television audience watching the qualifying on the SPEED network, McDowell walked away from the mess to a waiting ambulance, waving to the fans as he did so.

Just moments later, McDowell was interviewed by a SPEED reporter, smiling and reassuring him that he was OK, but for a few bumps and bruises. He said he never lost consciousness during the incident, and that he "felt every roll" his car took. His tone of voice was like someone who'd endured nothing more serious than a fender bender, not like someone who went through the scary ordeal he actually went through.

Many of the drivers there feared for McDowell's welfare, if not his life. Two-time Sprint Cup champion Tony Stewart described the crash as the "hardest one I've ever seen", and pole sitter Dale Earnhardt, Jr. said it was a scary thing to witness.

Even McDowell conceded as such when he was shown the replay of the mishap. Yet, he was still smiling. The bottom line was, he was still there to see what had happened.

The commentators on SPEED were unanimous in their opinion that the design of the CoT was paramount in McDowell's being able not only to endure the crash, but to smile and discuss it just moments later with their reporters.

So, really, who cares if the newer cars ARE less attractive or less aerodynamic than their predecessors?

The fact is, they do what they're designed to do. If you still don't believe me, check out how competitive the races with the new cars have been.

And most important, ask Michael McDowell. Because the car is built the way it is, you can.

Credit where it’s due

As "March madness"(soon possibly to be renamed "April madness" for accuracy purposes)is winding down to a close for another year, I suppose it would be appropriate to recognize some history made there by the oft-maligned NCAA.

For the first time since the institution of a postseason tournament to determine its' NCAA men's basketball champion, each of the top-seeded teams in the four regional sections made it all the way to the semifinal round, or to put it in the now standard vernacular, the "Final Four".

The NCAA has gotten its' share of criticism, deserved or otherwise, over the years for its' selections to the tournament, and in many years, the seemingly inevitable upsets demonstrate that maybe their basketball selection committee is not the most well-informed collection of "experts".

Occasionally, I have been one of those critics, so in all fairness, I've got to congratulate the NCAA on "getting it right" this year.

Maybe the positive encouragement can motivate them to do such a prescient job every year.

Or it's worth a try in any case...so here's a pat on the back to one of the favorite whipping boys of sports fans across this country...the NCAA. Keep up the good work, and maybe American sports fans might take you off their "list".

A bit too far

The term "silly season" is used these days to denote more and more things.

I have heard it used on the NASCAR circuit to describe the rather long Sprint Cup season, the highest-ranking driver series on that circuit.

And I've also heard it used of late to describe the road to the Presidency of the United States, particularly the overly long and needlessly costly primary process used to select candidates from each of the major parties for the general election.

It's accounts like the following, perhaps, that has earned the election process that rather dubious distinction.

Both parties have had a difficult time coming up with an outstanding nominee to carry their flag this fall. It appears now that the Republicans have settled on Sen. John McCain as their standard-bearer, where on the Democrat side, the initial favorite, Sen. Hillary Clinton, has encountered surprsingly strong opposition from Sen. Barack Obama.

In fact, Obama, a relative unknown to most American voters, has seized upon recent successes in the primaries to take the advantage of late on the Democratic side.

Now, Hillary Clinton is not used to being on the losing side in a popularity contest. Her husband, former President Bill Clinton, was a two-time winner in his Presidential campaigns, and his wife won fairly easy election to her current Senatorial post in New York state.

Still, it would appear the Clintons might be a little nervous at this point. With convention time drawing closer, it would appear at this point that neither Democrat nominee will be able to secure a sufficient delegate advantage to earn a first-ballot nomination at the convention.

And in these waning days, a recent endorsement for Obama has caused the Clintons further consternation.

New Mexico governor Bill Richardson, himself an early candidate on the Democrat side before dropping out, has endorsed Obama for the Presidency. This has disturbed many in the Clinton camp, because Richardson has been seen as one of the staunchest Clinton supporters there is...some even contend that Richardson owes his political life to Bill Clinton.

One of the leading spokespeople over the years for the Clintons, James Carville(a prominent figure in the Clinton Presidential administration)has actually come out and called Richardson a "Judas" for switching his allegiance from Hillary Clinton to Sen. Obama.

For his part, Richardson just contends that there has been enough contentiousness in his party's nominating process thus far, and so he's siding with Obama as a sort of "unifying" move. He reaffirms his admiration of and for the Clintons.

But Hillary Clinton, as best I can tell, feels a sense of betrayal by Richardson's endorsement.

But what really alarmed me about this latest event in the campaign is Carville's incredible analogy.

If Richardson is a "Judas", what does that make Clinton in this analogy?

Look, whatever your feeling might be about either Bill or Hillary Clinton, it's an incredible stretch to liken either of them to Jesus. To say it's a curious choice of words on Carville's part is an understatement, to say the least.

As I type this, Carville continues to defend his analogy, arguing that he wanted to use something "strong" to adequately describe his shock at what he obviously feels is Richardson's ingratitude.

Well, he used something "strong", all right.

And these people wonder why many Americans tend to view their elected officials as arrogant and condescending toward their constituents.

There is no word on whether Sen. Obama has sent Richardson 30 pieces of silver(or its' modern equivalent)in the mail as yet.-:-)

Easter reflections

I hope that all of you had a very pleasant and fulfilling Easter. I did.

I was actually able to attend an Easter church service. OK, it was last night, and technically, NOT on Easter Sunday. But many churches have extra services on Good Friday all the way up to Easter Sunday.

And the one I attended was at the church I call home, Fresno's Northwest Church. Like me, the church has had it's share of challenges in recent years...but also like me, it's doing quite well, all things considered.

The theme of the service was "Hope:Beyond The Cross". That very theme triggered a whole series of thoughts in my mind, some of which I'm ruminating on even as I type here.

The idea apparently was that the very act of Jesus dying on the cross and subsequently being resurrected is not only the basis of eternal hope for every man, but the acceptance of Jesus as Lord and Savior is the foundation for hope to come in our lives is normative for fulfillment in our lives here on earth as well.

The theme was brought home by a lot of good music(a tradition at Northwest Church)and a fine sermon by the church's latest interim pastor.

That and seeing some dear people to me that I had not seen in years made the service a wonderful Easter gift to me.

Particularly so when one considers the very chaotic and "fluid"(as my boss would call it)set of situations going on in my life right now. I was reinforced in my basic belief that my identity and fate are not based on my job or my "image" or my circumstances but solely on my relationship to Jesus Christ.

Which is what all the gospel songs I love so much remind me, too...isn't it funny how those of us who spend so much time listening to gospel music or reading our Bibles forget that basic fact so often?

So even though I sometimes appear to be so different from everyone else, I'm really not.

Here's hoping at you...and thanking you all for indulging me this time out.

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