The NFL Scouting Combine. You’ve likely heard the words on your radio or television, probably more than once. The combine. What is it? It’s a chance for football players hoping to turn professional to showcase their skills in front of scouts, members of the media and anyone bored enough to tune in to the NFL Network. The big draw is the 40-yard dash. Everyone wants to know who the fastest prospect in the upcoming NFL draft will be. They run for those four to five seconds, and then the entertainment value is gone. They bench press, vertical jump, broad jump and do various drills. Every second could be the difference between getting a job or falling back on their (hopefully) college degree. The biggest kick in all of this? It turns out the numbers athletes post at the combine don’t always translate onto the NFL field. Quarterback JaMarcus Russell had what some experts refer to as “the best Pro Day workout in draft history.” If you follow professional football, you know how that turned out. (Russell played three seasons, won just seven of 18 games and was later arrested on drug charges – though he did snag a contract with $32 million guaranteed.) On the opposite end of the spectrum, Tom Brady posted one of the worst performances in recent memory. He looked out of shape and slow and fell to the sixth round of the NFL Draft. Oops. A lot of hype goes into the Scouting Combine and Pro Days. I can understand fans being excited at the thought of their team improving by drafting one of these potential Pro Bowl athletes. I’m a Tampa Bay Buccaneers fan (sad I know) and you better believe I’m paying at least a little bit of attention to what Marcus Mariota and Jameis Winston are doing. Personally, I prefer Winston to be the Bucs selection with the number one pick, but covering the Pac-12 I can’t help but like Mariota. I’m veering away from my soon-to-be point. Here goes. Listening to CBS Sports Radio ramble off the latest results from the Scouting Combine had me thinking: what if we all had to go through a Scouting Combine or Pro Day? Picture it with me: “Here we are in the desk to copier dash. Jane has some excellent footwork as she makes it there in 13.2 seconds.” “Scouts are knocking Steve for his lackluster numbers in the words per minute category. He mustered only 24 and had four errors!” “Saturday saw an all-time record fall as Billy bagged 13 bags of groceries in an outstanding 35 seconds!” The majority of us are required to go through some sort of interview process, typically meeting with our potential employers face to face. Sometimes we are put to the test in a sort of scouting combine, proving that we are up to the task. Law officials and military members have certain physical requirements they must pass. Apparently you can’t become a pilot astronaut without at least 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time in a jet aircraft. Even I had a pro day when I interviewed for my position here at KVOA. After meeting the news director and various producers, I was taken into the studio where I was to do a mock sportscast. Halfway through the teleprompter went out. I assumed my potential employers wanted to see how I would respond to a crisis so I ad libbed my way through the remainder of the sportscast. Turns out, they didn’t do it on purpose, but they were impressed with my ability to keep going without missing a beat. It was a funny thought imagining us “regular folk” performing in front of scouts and having our results discussed for hours on end on social media. In my case, my little pro day worked out for the better. I’m still waiting for that multi-million dollar contract though…
0 Comments
There was something different about Thursday, February 12. The sun came up the same. The doves cooed their morning hum like they always do. Cars sped down the interstate, people buzzed about their jobs and eventually the sun went down the same. Yet, something was different. Not bad, just different. That's when I saw it. I quickly refreshed my Twitter feed in disbelief. “The Streak” refers to the Fairfield Lady Eagles incredible run of 120 consecutive basketball victories, the longest such win streak in the nation. Here it was, over in four short quarters. Tears flowed from the Lady Eagles as they huddled in an emotional embrace. Parents were quick to dab the moisture from their own eyes, needing to stay strong for their daughters. Coach Dustin Gordon was congratulating the Choteau coaching staff. Social media exploded. Cell phones buzzed with the news. “The Streak is over!” Updates poured in from local media outlets to the likes of ESPN. Fairfield’s rival, the Choteau Bulldogs, had solved the equation that so many teams before them had failed to do. It was the first time in 14 tries the Bulldogs would wind up victorious against mighty Fairfield. “The Streak” had nearly ended on numerous occasions. Days earlier, Fairfield outlasted Class C powerhouse Belt only to stave off Class A’s Havre High hours later. But there was something different about Thursday, February 12. As the news reached the eyes and ears of former players, memories of the 120 were refreshed in their minds. They reminisced about their favorite moments in Fairfield white and blue. While the current Lady Eagles exited the locker room with their heads held high, ex-teammates were sharing those incredible moments of the past. There was the time Jill Barta connected on a deep three pointer to force a second overtime against Malta in the 2014 state championship. Barta would score 41 points to cap an undefeated prep career. There was the time the Lady Eagles and Townsend played toward midnight in the 2013 title game as the previous boys championship lasted three thrilling overtimes. There was Destiny Palmer’s three pointers in the 2012 championship win over Malta. There was Molly Klinker standing at midcourt with a first place trophy and Most Valuable Player award. There was Jordyn Johnson dishing out assists. There was Skylar Steinbach’s tenacious defense, while cousin Sydne was igniting the fast break. There were the Coverdell twins and Linnea Zier showcasing their athleticism on each end of the floor. At the center of it all was Gordon. The longtime coach was admittedly relieved that “The Streak” would no longer be mentioned in postgame interviews. Still, it’s a feat he will look back on years from now and smile as a proud coach. But “The Streak” won’t define Gordon or his Lady Eagles. “The Streak” holds much more value than just wins or championships. The memories, good or bad, will stay with the program forever. Its coach will remember the girls’ happy faces as they shared their bond on the court. “The Streak” is also about more than basketball. I have known Gordon since his days at Chester High School and his tutelage goes beyond X’s and O’s. I have been at the practices, inside the huddles and witnessed the postgame speech from many of the 120. Basketball is an afterthought in those messages he expressed. The Fairfield Lady Eagles of past, present and future learn more than zone defenses or pick and rolls. Gordon stresses the importance of hard work and dedication, a message that extends to the classroom. The Fairfield athletes learn how to be a good teammate and how every individual needs to perform her own role. Most importantly, and perhaps most difficult, the Fairfield Lady Eagles learned to remain humble. As the wins piled up and “The Streak” was extended, Gordon’s student-athletes entered each game with a modest attitude, always hungry for more. I was there when Fairfield broke “The Original Streak” set by Great Falls High’s Mighty Bison of coach Dick Kloppel in the early 1980s. As I approached Gordon and his team, eager to hear their thoughts on breaking a near 30-year-old record, they shied away from the camera and microphone. “You guys (in the media) are the only ones making a big deal about this,” Gordon told me when the cameras were done recording. “We just want to win, no matter how many consecutive games it is. It became 120 Gordo, a number we will always remember as “The Streak.” Basketball fans will always remember the names of the players, the shots that they hit and the records that they broke. Even though there was something different about Thursday, February 12, we will remember less about the night “The Streak” ended and more about the path to reach it. |
AuthorRichie is a small-town boy chasing big-city dreams. When he's not involved with sports, he's spending time with his wife, Fallon; their yorkie, Tinker; and their Rhodesian Ridgeback, Rosie. Archives
April 2016
Categories
All
|