Sports Blog of the Day

Sports Illustrated knows how to create additional hype when it comes to their Swimsuit Edition.

With an estimated 66 million readers awaiting the publication, S.I. stuck with tradition and did not release the cover until shortly before the mag was scheduled to hit the stands.

Their choice for the cover?

Bar Refaeli, the hot Israeli model and girlfriend of Leonardo DiCaprio.

The Swimsuit Edition began in February 1964. With the NFL season over in December and the NBA only having a handful of teams the publication decided to put a female on the cover and that decision has led to what is now known as the biggest magazine event of the year.

If you want to reminisce, visit SportsIllustrated.com and search their vault for past swimsuit editions. If you’re interested, you can flip through the entire magazine front to back. I located the first Swimsuit Edition I received in my mailbox back in 1973.

It was only a matter of time before the sports world were exposed to the laundry list of MLB players who have gone to the syringe using steroids.

With Alex Rodriquez admitting cheating while with the Texas Rangers during the 2001 through 2003 seasons and Miguel Tejada getting hit with charges for lying during a Congressional investigation on steroids the list will only continue to grow.

Getting most of the attention lately has been Barry Bonds who’s trial starts the beginning of March and Roger Clemens who is under intense investigation for perjury. Bonds has already entered a not-guilty plea last week.

The sorriest part of the A-Rod situation is that MLB knew he had failed tests for performance-enhancing drugs during his American League MVP season. That raises a very interesting question.

Although it is too late for the Rangers to take back their $250 million contract that the injecting player has received and possibly spent, should A-Rod be stripped of that MVP trophy and any records associated with it?

People were screaming for Bonds to have an asterisk next to his name and the ball that he hit over the fence breaking Hank Aaron’s home-run record.

Fair is fair, if Bonds has an asterisk, A-Rod certainly deserves one.

If Clemens is found to have used juice during his record-setting career and dozens of other star players who have admitted use, lets just call in a crew from HGTV to redecorate Cooperstown with an array of asterisks.

After seven seasons and an 85-27 regular season record and one Super Bowl title, Indianapolis Colts’ head coach, Tony Dungy said “the time is right” and is walking away from the sidelines.

Dungy will be replaced by assistant head coach Jim Caldwell who has been waiting in the wings waiting for a final decision.

Caldwell is extremely familiar with Dungy’s system having worked under him in Tampa Bay in 2001 then traveling to the Colts’ organization in 2002 as quarterback coach.

Dungy has had an illustrious career being the only NFL head coach to ever compile six straight 12-win seasons and 10 consecutive playoff seasons.

Caldwell signed a four-year deal. You can see his video press conference here.

Base-stealing wizard Rickey Henderson is expected to cruise into the Baseball Hall of Fame after Monday’s vote. The last left fielder elected was Boston Red Sox great Carl Yastrzemski and the year was 1989.

Although Henderson is a heavy favorite to make it in, several other players appear to be on the fence and will have to sweat it out until the votes are tallied. One of those players is another Red Sox star Jim Rice who is on the ballot for the 15th and final year.

That’s what is wrong with the HOF voting. How can a guy like Rice not be inducted after all those years of voting. Rice had 2,452 hits, 382 HRs and 1,451 RBIs in 16 seasons.

The question surrounding the baseball HOF voting is “What does a guy have to do to get in”!

There’s no specific answer but stealing a ML record 1,406 stolen bases, scoring a league-record 2,295 runs and compiling 3,055 hits over a long 25 year career like Henderson did should do it.

Others on the ballot are Andre Dawson and pitchers Tommy John and Bert Blyleven.

 When the Philadelphia Eagles and Donovan McNabb went into New York and upset the top seeded New York Giants 23-11, history was made. For the first time ever, all three top seeds failed to make it to the championship game.

The Eagles will travel to Arizona to take on the Cardinals who, like the Eagles have been surging these playoffs. The Cardinals upset the Carolina Panthers who were 10 point favorites by converting 6 turnovers into 23 points and coasting to a 33-13 win Saturday.

The Eagles managed to find a way to win with their star RB Brian Westbrook picking up only 46 total yards, 36 rushing and 10 passing.

One key to the game was the Eagles defense stopping the Giants twice in the fourth quarter on 4th down, causing the Giants to turn over the ball on downs at a crucial point of the game.

Sunday’s NFC Championship kickoff in Arizona is scheduled for 3 p.m.

This year’s NHL All-Star game starting rosters reminds us why fans should not be choosing the players who play in these All-Star games. Last year there was an aggressive drive to get an unknown Buffalo Sabre in a starting spot, a move created to make a mockery out of the voting process. Although that drive failed, it was close and faltered in the final few days of the campaign.

The Western Conference team’s starting six consists of three Chicago Black Hawks and a few ‘lame Ducks’. While those two teams take the ice for the opening faceoff, the powerhouse Detroit Red Wings will be represented on the bench with two of the league’s premier players, Nicklas Lidstrom and Pavel Datsyuk. Lidstrom is also a heavy favorite to wear the ‘C’ for the West.

Like the West, the starting line-up for the Eastern Conference is also made up of just two teams, the Montreal Canadians who are hosting the game and the Pittsburgh Penguins.

To see the entire rosters and alternates, go to NHL.com here.

Eric Mangini has pulled a full circle after landing the head coaching job with the Cleveland Browns, the same team he started with as a ball boy at the age of twenty-three.

Mangini was fired by the New York Jets last month after his team dropped the final game of the season at home against the overachieving Miami Dolphins, knocking the Jets (9-7) out of the playoffs.

On that same day, the Browns (4-12) handed Romeo Crennel his pink slip creating the opening for Mangini.

The 37-year-old Mangini who compiled a 23-25 record and one playoff appearance over three years with the Jets, signed a four-year contract with his new team.

See Mangini’s video press conference here.

SCOTTSDALE - Indy racer Danica Patrick who has been the center of many sexiest female athlete galleries over the past few years found another way to gain national media attention.

Over the past year the sexy 26-year-old driver has been written two speeding tickets by the Scottsdale, Arizona police.

Last year for cruising 57 MPH in a 40 MPH zone and again last month for racing 54 MPH in a 35 MPH area.

To avoid a court appearance, Danica opted to pay the $196 fine for the most recent ticket but was required to attend driving school for the first offense last year.

According to the Associated Press, Scottsdale records also indicated the speedy driver has collected several more tickets in her hometown over the past three years.

You have to wonder how thick her pile of tickets could potentially be considering how many other times the sexy racer may have needed to talk her way out of getting written.

The Philadelphia Eagles have won 5 out of 6 games since five-time Pro Bowl quarterback Donavan McNabb was benched November 23rd during a 36-7 loss to the Baltimore Ravens.

McNabb bounced back from that benching with a vengeance, leading the Eagles on a hot streak beating improbable odds and snagging the final NFC wild-card spot.

After going into Minnesota last weekend and winning a playoff game with another strong performance, completing 23 of 34 for 300yds and one TD, Eagles owner Jeff Lurie said in an interview with ESPN, “All signs point to McNabb being back next season”.

McNabb’s agent said McNabb is interested but some items need to be ironed out during the offseason, specifically McNabb’s desire to get a new deal and an extension to include new guaranteed money.

The Eagles travel to the Big Apple to take on the NFL Champion New York Giants on Sunday. The Eagles won the last meeting between these two rivals 20-14 at the Meadowlands on December 7. Kickoff is at 1 p.m.

Baltimore Ravens rookie quarterback Joe Flacco and rookie head coach John Harbaugh became the first rookie QB/coach duo to ever win an NFL playoff game when their team went into Miami and defeated the overachieving Dolphins 27-9.

Flacco picked the perfect time to have a statistically-weak game.

The Ravens stellar defense forced five turnovers, including four interceptions, dominating Chad Pennington and the Dolphin offense. Prior to the game, the ‘Fins have only turned the ball over a total of 13 times all season and Pennington only had thrown 7 interceptions over 16 regular season games.

Flacco and Harbaugh will try to continue their streak when the Ravens travel to Tennessee to face the Titans on Saturday January 10.