Enjoy the weekend.
Media:ESPN Executive on Deadspin's Influence: 'We Publish Less Memos Internally': Walsh was referring to Deadspin's habit of obtaining and publishing ESPN memos, and I should add that I think Walsh was at least partly joking -- he's probably not quite as paranoid about Deadspin as that quote makes him sound. And my own unscientific poll of various ESPN types indicates that the attitude in Bristol is mostly pro-Deadspin.
ESPN the Hamburger? 'We Have Not Done Any ESPN Food Products': Although the answer seems to be no ("We have not done any ESPN food products. Don't know if we ever will" was the ESPN senior vice president's answer), the mere fact that people can ask and answer -- with a straight face -- a question about a Berman Burger or other ESPN-oriented foods is amazing.
Can Ron Jaworski Make You Want to Be the Fourth Man in the Booth? I don't know many football fans who would have wanted to be the fourth person in last year's booth of Theismann, Tony Kornheiser and Mike Tirico. Tirico was fine, but Theismann and Kornheiser felt about as comfortable together as recently divorced parents
ESPN's Future: Every Game Available Live on Your Cell Phone: It's having a phone that allows you to watch ESPN, live, with a clear picture on a three-inch screen. Last year Dan Shanoff explained this perfectly:
ESPN *ON* a phone is hot.We're all familiar with the horror that is selfish uncles dying during the football season and forcing us to miss games with their funerals.
ESPN *AS* a phone is not.
ESPN Wants to Make Matthew Berry a Star: That probably isn't the first name you would have guessed. Heck, it probably isn't the 50th name you would have guessed. But there's no doubt in my mind that people at ESPN think Berry can become for fantasy sports what Mel Kiper is for the NFL draft: The generally recognized leading expert and go-to guy for sound bites about every single player you can think of.
ESPN Fantasy Guru Matthew Berry Got His Start on Married ... With Children: Hooking up with ESPN and actually getting to the point where fantasy sports was a better gig than writing the screenplay for Crocodile Dundee in L.A. was a recent development.
Iowa High School Football Players Suspended for Team Photo Shocker: The three players made the shocker sign in the team photo, and the local paper Photoshopped them out of the picture.
Jay Glazer Got The Memo; Apologizes To People Of Kentucky: He pulls out the "I was just poking fun, not really trying to be mean" card ... and even acknowledged that in his story of Kentuckians misspelling words, he had misspelled a word. And, apparently, it was Glazer who asked that the story be pulled.
NASCAR:Next! Rejected by Kasey Kahne, Paris Hilton Sets Sights on Denny Hamlin: I don't have any details about how their evening ended, but I know it wasn't with Hamlin telling Hilton, "I have a girlfriend." The driver, who has recently been freed to fully embrace his playboy tendencies since closing the book on an 8-year relationship, is giving Dale Earnhardt Jr. a run for his money for NASCAR's Most Eligible Bachelor title these days.
MLB:
Bud Selig Is Sticking His Nose Where It Doesn't Belong: Now, I'm not arguing with the fact that baseball doesn't have enough black managers, which was part of Selig's reasoning behind saying Cooper deserves to keep the job beyond and interim gig, but just giving a guy a job doesn't help fix baseball's problem either. And it looks seriously bad to have the commissioner on TV telling teams who should manage them.
NBA:
Cuban Was Close to Getting Garnett: I like to think that "Dirk and KG and three guys named Moe" is a subtle dig at Boston, though they managed to stir a third All-Star into the mix. It could also be interpreted as a diss of some current Mavs, which would explain Cuban's hyperbole later in the interview.
Tennis:
Men's Tennis Scandal Gains Weight: Obviously, this report would be a bit more credible if these players didn't speak under anonymity. But nevertheless, these claims seem wholly believable.
NFL:
Did Romo and Carrie Underwood Get Married? If they did, it wouldn't have been the first time some celebrities tried to get hitched in secrecy. And we did tell you a few months ago that the two were talking marriage. Anyways, the following ambiguous selection is the root of the rumor. From The Dallas Morning News via sports gossip god, Ben Maller.
Myspace Creep Busted for Stalking Adam Archuleta's Girlfriend, Jennifer Walcott: Check out some of the messages this creep wrote to Archuleta's girlfriend, Jennifer Walcott, who was Plaboy's Miss August in 2001.
