talkin' sports & stuff


Well, after finally getting settled in after the move (I hope), I hopped right into the middle of the most popular things to do in B'burg this Winter :
(1) going to a lot of Tech women's b'ball games (currently ranked 11th in the nation, thank you)
(2) seeing The Dark Side of OZ (2 straight sell-outs)
(3) catching the flu.

The latter, however, has kept me from enjoying the former to the extent that I missed being a part of the largest crowd in history (so far). Still a couple of games left, though, and the possibility of hosting a couple of NCAA Tourney games in the Cassell around March 11-15.


Salem? Not this year.

While setting around this past week, I began to wonder just how the team scores might look this year, since some other school now has a real shot at taking the title. Ouch, big mistake.
I decided to play around with some numbers and see what I came up with. I didn't feel like digging through 13 years worth of state results, though, so I devised a simple scoring method based on what I call 'unperceptional performance'. Then, I went over to Datwink's website and got his list of the top 6 wrestlers in each weight class. If his rankings are good, and my scoring is close, then the team results could look something like this :
Poquoson ........180
William Byrd ....140
Brookville .......120
Christiansburg ...120
Sherando ........120
Turner Ashby ..120
Grundy ...........95
Marion ...........95

Don't say I didn't warn ya.


Ease on down the road

You may have heard about the Gov's plan for less speeding (or whatever) on I-81. Basics are that 50 troopers will be re-assigned (shoet-term) from other parts of the state. They'll concntrate on 1 area at a time... like Roanoke for 12 hours, then move on to another spot, like Staunton, for 12 hours. Also, aircraft from Manassas & Abingdon will be used to spot weavers and the like.


A Bruton by any other name

If there's money to be made, Bruton will do it. For the next 10 years, fans will get to see The Winston and/or The Coca-Cola 600 run at the Lowe's Motor Speedway in Charlotte. In return, SMI picks up $3.5 mil per year. Also, as a sister-(track)deal, we get to hear "Lowes, the official home improvement warehouse for the Bristol Motor Speedway" for the next 10 years, too.
It's also reported that more deals are in the works and will be announced before the end of the year. (The Food City Motor Speedway at Bristol ??? Could be.)
(FYI, Home Depot is the official h.i.w. of NASCAR)
Also, Tech has officially expressed an interest in a game at BMS for 2002 against UT. BMS studies estimate their cost would be around $1 million.


But will he play in Peoria ???

He's not touring for a while because he has a dream to chase... or should I say a fly to chase ... and shag. Could we soon be hearing "now playing right field for the Padres... Garth Brooks" ??? Well, only way to find out is to head down to San Diego's training camp in Arizona for the next few weeks and see how the former track and field star does with a bat in his hand instead of a javelin. He's so serious, he's already told the Grammy's he won't be there. Maybe this year they'll let him do more than pinch run once. After all, he really DOES need the practice (see below).


or perhaps the Peaks of Otter ???

Well, if not there, maybe some other locale close by. If you haven't heard, Virginia's 'Speed' gal (Sandra Bullock) is set to star in a new film, "28 Days". She's gone off to a drug rehab place and falls for a baseball player (yep, that's right).
Problem is, Columbia TriStar wants to make a few minor cosmetic changes (a temp. facade next to one of the lodge buildings and making a floating dock) before filming (which they want to start next month), but a National Park Service rep. said no, mainly because 'it would be too disruptive for visitors'.
Reps. Goode and Goodlatte are supposed to be meeting the execs. around the 15th to try and keep the shooting in the area, possibly at either Mtn. Lake or the Smith Mtn. Lake 4-H Center (at Wirtz?).


Princeton sounds good

Look for a loud group at Mercer Mall next weekend for the opening of "October Sky". The 'rocket boys' were Big Creek Owls in the early 60's.


check those VCR's

Tom Snyder's days as a talking head are dwindling. With only about 2 dozen shows left, Bob Costas dropped by for one last time this week. Seems his old show (Later) has crossed paths with The 60's, with the result being a May/June flashback period where Later will air some of Bob's better old shows (with updated intros and endings), along with some new shows using footage not yet seen on TV (Bob's 2 hour talk with The Boss a while back only had a few minutes used on Today, so there should be enough left for 3 nights).


Can Hokies contend for title?

The 1999 Va Tech football schedule is out. Look for the Hokies to end their homecoming jinx and MAYBE go 11-0.

9/4 JMU (could be best game... see how McCommons' knee is.)
9/11 UAB (blowout)
9/23 Clemson (Thur. 8 - ESPN)
10/2 @ UVA (Cavs moved it up on us)
10/9 @ Rutgers
10/16 Syracuse
10/30 @ Pitt
11/6 @ WVU
11/13 Miami
11/20 @ Temple
11/26 Boston College (Fri. 2:30 CBS )