The sports opinion

The Talon has never run a sports opinion column – I suppose I am kind of a pioneer in that moderately impressive sense.

Since there is no template for a sports opinion section, I am, in a way, defining the section as I go. I make the rules (within reason), so I have decided to begin a new tradition. My last article will be made up of 50 sports opinions, starting now.

1. Barry Bonds used steroids, anyone who says otherwise is kidding themselves.
2. NASCAR is not a real sport.
3. Baseball should not have replays; part of the greatness of the game is the umpire’s call – the only pure call left in sports, until now.
4. Tiger Woods is done, he will never be the same dominant Tiger he once was. Golf is too mental.
5. We need to stop changing teams’ mascots because they are Indian tribes.
6. Pete Rose should be in the Hall of Fame; the only reason he is not is because Peter Ueberroth held a grudge.
7. There is just something about being a Yankee.
8. At the rate we are going, in 10 years the NFL is going to be two-hand touch.
9. Russell Westbrook is not meant to be a point guard.
10. Roberto Clemente could have very well been the best baseball player ever, if his plane would not have crashed.
11. The Thunder screwed up when they signed Ibaka and sent Harden on his way.
12. Nolan Ryan is the reason why the Rangers became good. Jon Daniels should not have been the one to stay.
13. Kevin Costner set the standard for baseball movies.
14. Johnny Manziel will get eaten alive in the NFL.
15. College football is the best sport to watch.
16. Yasiel Puig will be the next Manny Ramirez, both in his hitting ability and in his antics.
17. Chris Paul is the best point guard in the league, he is also the most fun player to watch.
18. One of the best sports moments of all time was when George W. Bush threw a strike in the first pitch at Shea Stadium after 9/11.
19. Bill Buckner is not to blame for the Red Sox losing the 1986 World Series; there were a handful of other blunders leading up to that moment.
20. The slam-dunk contest is stupid now. Just do away with it.
21. If Pete Rose deserves to be thrown out of the game, so does Alex Rodriguez.
22. The NBA needs to start calling lane violations again; they have gotten ridiculous.
23. Defensive linemen need to calm down when they make a sack; do not make the sack into an impromptu dance party afterwards.
24. Michael Jordan earned every bit of his accolades.
25. LeBron James has done everything he can to make people resent him.
26. Mariano Riviera could have been an effective closer for five more years, if not more.
27. Jay-Z, although undoubtedly motivated by personal reasons, made a good move in taking the Nets to Brooklyn.
28. Sept. 28, 2011 was the greatest night in sports in my lifetime. Look it up.
29. The Texas Rangers would have won the World Series if Nelson Cruz was not afraid of the right field wall.
30. Professional soccer has some of the best highlights on television. If they made up more than 20 seconds in the span of three hours I would definitely be a huge soccer fan.
31. The Oakland Raiders are the coolest team in the NFL; I just wish they were good.
32. Professional baseball has the most promising future of all the major sports if you compare young talent.
33. It is not Coach Calipari’s fault that he has one-and-done teams, it is the NCAA’s.
34. College football needs a full playoff system… badly.
35. The NBA’s new jerseys with sleeves are the most atrocious things I have ever seen.
36. Nick Saban is a winner.
37. I think in 10 years no starting pitcher will throw less than 95 miles per hour.
38. Vince Young should have won the Heisman Trophy over Reggie Bush.
39. If Oregon was not in the corner of the United States they would have the most dominant athletic program in the entire country.
40. Jimmer Fredette would have been the most frustrating teammate.
41. The NCAA went too far when they outlawed BESR bats from college baseball. BBCOR bats have turned the game in the direction that the fans do not want to see.
42. There is no rivalry greater than Red Sox vs. Yankees.
43. Dwight Howard is going to single-handedly make himself the most hated player in all of basketball.
44. Roger Clemens was the most disheartening figure on the list of those who were discovered to have taken steroids.
45. When the NBA made its players wear suits instead of “street clothes,” they made one of the best decisions of all time.
46. The Oakland A’s should be the only team on the planet with access to white baseball cleats.
47. Kobe Bryant did not rape that girl.
48. Cal Ripken, Jr. has the most impressive record in all of sports, and no one will ever even get to the halfway point.
49. “God Bless America” during the seventh-inning stretch is one of the best traditions in sports.
50. Derek Jeter is the man.

So long, sports fans. God bless.

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