“He spoke not a word and went straight to his work.” - Clement Clarke Moore (or Bill Belichick)
By TERRY LYONS
BOSTON - When there’s 52+ weeks of Sunday notebooks to review, there are plenty of topics, notes, tidbits and remembrances to point out as we look back at the strange year of 2021 and look forward to (hopefully) better days ahead in 2022.
Upon quick review, here’s the most prominent items included in TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | While We’re Young (Ideas) over the past 52 weeks:
January 2021:
A Few of My Favorite Things
Diggies: Outstanding TV Ads and Hard Knocks NFL Jinx
Tons of NFL Talent (Unfortunately, many were hurt in 2021)
Hank Aaron Tribute
Sekou Smith Tribute
February 2021:
Super Bowl | Salute to Tom Brady
Baseball Spring Training | Red Sox Equipment Truck Heads South
Second Chances in Life, Sports | Alex Cora
NBA Logo | Great Logos and Branding
March 2021:
NBA All-Star Notes | International Players | Zion was an All-Star
The Concept of TIME | Precious TIME of a sporting career
1 in 9,223,372,036,854,775,808 | March Madness Brackets
March Madness without Duke and Kentucky
Sportico News: NBA Franchise Valuations; Fanatics $ Merch
April 2021:
MLB Opening Day Brings Excitement, Joy | Underrated Events
The Masters | Rick Welts Announced retirement from GS Warriors
MLB’s Jackie Robinson Day | Mark “The Bird” Fidrych
European Super League Flop
May 2021:
Must Win Time in NHL and NBA | Kentucky Derby
NFL Franchise Valuations | IVY League Sports Comeback
Basketball: Hall of Fame | WNBA 25th | Africa League
ATL: Us Against the World and NBA
Fan Behavior | Mark Eaton RIP
June 2021:
Fragile Nature of Sports | Sports Perfection
The Sports Window of Opportunity | PGA Tour : The Travelers
Father’s Day | USA Swimming/Nick Fink
Red Sox: Dustin Pedroia Tribute
July 2021:
Name, Image, Likeness | #SportsBiz
NBA/ESPN Reporter Bickering | Olympics on Horizon
The Open
Memories of Olympic Games Past
August 2021:
More Great Olympic Games Memories
Modified Stableford Scoring for Hoops
PGA Tour’s FedEx Cup Playoffs
Northern Trust = No Pro Golf in Boston
September 2021:
The Most Wonderful Time of the Year for Sports
US Open Tennis: 18-year old Emma Raducanu of Great Britain defeated 19-year old Leylah Fernandez of Canada
Ryder Cup Golf and Hard Knocks NFL
More Ryder Cup Golf | Hope for BC Eagles Football
October 2021:
NBA at 75 Tip-Off
NBA at 75 Impact: Off the Court
NBA at 75 | Final List | #SportsBiz Sports Gambling Update
Preseason College Basketball Preview
November 2021:
30 Year Look-Back at Earvin “Magic” Johnson
Best Sports Towns in America
Olympic Boycotts - Athletes & Diplomats
Paying Thanks on Thanksgiving Day 2021
December 2021:
A Look at Deep, Dark December | NFL Power Rankings
#Sports - The Land of Confusion | Bill Russell Auction
Dreaming of a “Wilt” Christmas | NBA Christmas Day Preview
2021 Year-End Review
It’s somewhat daunting to look back at the year in sports. So many things happened - good and bad - in such a challenging year. It’s even harder to look back at the year in news. The “real world” headlines absolutely drop us to our knees, considering the way things began the year on January 6th, 2021. Nevertheless, we must move on and move forward. And, with that in mind:
HERE NOW, THE NOTES: Despite the fact this is being written between games of the NFL schedule of December 25, now is the time for TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | While We’re Young (Ideas) to do its second installment of NFL Power Rankings.
A reminder of my last Power Ratings (dated December 4):
Buffalo Bills
Kansas City Chiefs
Dallas Cowboys
Arizona Cardinals
Green Bay Packers
Baltimore Ravens
New England Patriots
Tennessee Titans
Cincinnati Bengals
Tampa Bay/SF 49ers/Washington/Miami/Others
Here is the current view of the NFL’s Top 10 (dated December 24):
Kansas City Chiefs: Both on offense and - surprisingly on defense, the KC Chiefs have stepped-up.
Green Bay Packers: The (12-3) Pack are healthy and have Aaron Rodgers primed for a playoff run, most likely with a much-needed first round bye.
Buffalo Bills: The Bills can prove they’ve earned this high ranking on Sunday when they face the New England Patriots at Foxborough. Let’s see where each club ends up?
Dallas Cowboys: Dak Prescott and the ‘Boys are lurking, and in good position to do some damage in the NFC Playoffs.
Tennessee Titans: The Thursday night win over the epic collapse of QB Jimmy Garappolo and the San Francisco 49ers placed Tennessee (10-5) in prime position for the AFC Playoffs. A loss would’ve been trouble.
Indianapolis Colts: The Colts (8-6) won a huge game last weekend over the New England Patriots and it thrust Indiana into contention.
Arizona Cardinals: At (10-4), the Cards remain a team no other wants to see in the NFC Playoffs. The question? Can QB Kyler Murray, RBs James Conner/Chase Edmonds/WR AJ Green remain healthy?
New England Patriots: As the NBA’s great Hall of Famer Rudy Tomjanovich once said, “Don’t EVER underestimate the heart of a champion.” … The question is whether that champion is on the sidelines in Foxborough, Mass or at QB in Tampa?
Cincinnati Bengals: After dropping two important games (Chargers and 49ers), the Bengals bounced back with a 15-10 win over Denver last week. They’re in MUST win territory with their next two games (Ravens and Chiefs). The AFC North is up for grabs and is in the midst of the tightest NFL divisional race in 44 years.
Everyone Else, including the LA Chargers, Rams, SF 49ers.
G-LEAGUE PUSH BACK: With dozens of NBA teams signing players to 10-day contracts to fill-out rosters, the G-League was forced to delay their season. The league noted in a statement of December 24: «The NBA G League will delay its regular season, originally scheduled to tip-off on Dec. 27, will now begin on Jan. 5, 2022. The delay will give teams an opportunity to safely return players to market after the Christmas holiday and to replenish their rosters following NBA call-ups. Information regarding games originally scheduled between Dec. 27 and Jan. 4 will be provided at a later date.»
NO HAWAI’I in HAWAI’I BOWL? - The lone sporting event of December 24 was abruptly cancelled when the powers that be cancelled the EasyPost Hawaii Bowl. The University of Hawai’i could not play in the game due to players and staff with COVID-19+ test results. Hawaii’s college football bowl opponent, Memphis, had travelled to Honolulu for the game. … "The health and safety of our student-athletes is the most important part of this decision," David Matlin, Hawaii AD, said in a statement. "The recent surge in COVID-19 cases has forced us to not participate in the game.”
REVERSE DECISION: The BIG EAST Conference modified its game cancellation policy for men’s and women’s basketball for the 2021-22 season. The adjustment was the result of the recent sudden and significant increases in the number of COVID-19 cases nationally and within BIG EAST programs due to the spread of the Omicron variant. … Under the modified policy, a Conference game will be canceled in the event a school has fewer than seven scholarship players and one countable coach available for a game. The BIG EAST conference office will attempt to reschedule any such game(s) in accordance with parameters approved by BIG EAST Directors of Athletics. … In the event the rescheduling parameters cannot be fulfilled, the canceled game(s) will be designated as a no contest. … To date, four BIG EAST men’s Conference games had been designated as forfeitures under the previous COVID-19 game cancellation policy. The forfeiture classification will be removed from these games, and efforts are now underway to reschedule them at a later date. (Since then, two other games were scrapped: St. John’s and Butler in Jamaica Estates, Queens; and Georgetown at Creighton. No women’s games to date have been designated as forfeitures. … The new ruling seems much more in line with the rest of the sporting world, all doing the most to get complete season scheduled played in their entirety.
NHL BUYS ANOTHER DAY: From a formal statement released December 24/Christmas Eve, the National Hockey League said its regular-season schedule will not resume prior to Tuesday, Dec. 28. The league had planned to resume its schedule on Dec. 27, but in order to allow adequate time to analyze league-wide testing results and to assess clubs’ readiness to play, the target date for resumption of game play will be pushed back an additional day. Teams will return to practice on Dec. 26 and it is expected that the league will provide an update on its return to play plans by the end of day on Sunday.
The league plans to stage its annual outdoor Winter Classic on January 1 at 6pm ET with the St. Louis Blues visiting the Minnesota Wild at Target Field.
BOOKS CLOSED ON THE STAPLES CENTER: The Los Angeles sports scene will now watch concerts, conventions and sporting events at the Crypto.com Arena, after cryptocurrency website Crypto.com purchased the naming rights to the arena, formerly known as The STAPLES Center.
Official photographer Andrew D. Bernstein recalled nine of his favorite memories of the original, going first with opening night with the great Bruce Springsteen.
1: Bruce Springsteen opens the arena 1999
2: Lakers championship 2000
3: Democratic National Convention 2000
4: LA Sparks WNBA championship 2001
5: Michael Jackson Memorial 2009
6: Blake Griffin Slam-Dunk at NBA All Star 2011
7: Grammys 2012
8: LA Kings first Stanley Cup 2012
9: Kobe’s final game 2016
10: LeBron James 2020
Check out Andy’s series of podcasts at Legends of Sport: HERE
CLOCK RUNNING on DECEMBER 2021 but THE OFFER IS STILL GOOD:
NOTES, NOTES, AND MORE NOTES: A year-long subscription to TL’s Sunday Sports Notes - While We’re Young (Ideas) is a perfect way to have the sports fan in your life look forward to an old-fashioned, weekly, notebook full of sports insights. All Year Long! Sign-up for this special offer: HERE
PGA TOUR BRUNCH AS CHAMPIONS RETURN OF THE TOUR: Plans are on-going to re-launch the popular PGA Tour Brunch newsletter when the pros tee-it-up at the Sentry Tournament of Champions (January 5-9, 2022) at The Plantation Course at Kapalua, Maui, Hawaii.
SIGN-UP HERE FOR PGA TOUR BRUNCH
“He spoke not a word and went straight to his work.” - Clement Clarke Moore (or Bill Belichick?)
"A Visit from St. Nicholas" - often referred to as “T’was the Night Before Christmas,” was cited above with a little joke about New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick’s work ethic.
The poem that is read by parents (and siblings) to children all the world over was reportedly written by Clement Clarke Moore who was born in New York City in 1779, the son of the Reverend Benjamin Moore and Charity Clarke Moore. In a bio written for the Poetry Foundation, Moore was chronicled as an only child, capably tutored at home by his father until he entered Columbia College in Manhattan. According to his biographer. Samuel White Patterson, Moore graduated in 1798 “at the head of his class, as his father had, thirty years earlier." In 1801, Moore earned his MA from Columbia University and was awarded an LLD (Doctor of Laws) in 1829. In 1813, 34-year old Moore married 19-year-old Catharine Elizabeth Taylor, with whom he eventually had nine children. A very religious man, he gave a large portion of the land that he had inherited, part of his Chelsea estate and now called Chelsea Square, to the General Theological Seminary where he was a professor of oriental and Greek literature from 1823 until he retired in 1850. After his retirement, he purchased a house in Newport, Rhode Island, where he died (at age 84) on July 10, 1863.
Parting Words & Music:
In Excelsis Deo: On this Christmas of 2021, I give you the genius of Aaron Sorkin and his work on the television drama - The West Wing - from 1999. Whether you were a fan/viewer of the show or not, I simply ask you to view this scene and the detail of every single word, every single cut, every single edit and every single decision made to produce the poignant scene.
The assembly of The West Wing cast at the White House, each viewing the choir celebration, is striking. Only one other character asked Tobias"Toby" Ziegler (played by Richard Schiff) to accompany him to Arlington National Cemetery and that was dear Mrs. Delores Landingham, the President’s executive assistant. This episode was one of the first when actress Kathryn Joosten’s character became such a focal part of a scene. Earlier in the episode, Presidential aide/body man Charlie Young (played by Dulé Hill) had asked why Mrs. Landingham was feeling “down,” and she opened up to him that she had “lost her two twin boys” in the Viet Nam war. (They died as medics in a fire-fight at Da Nang on Christmas Eve 1970).
The West Wing and Sorkin, in general, just ace the art of character development and this clip shows you one small reason why. In Excelsis Deo and Two Cathedrals are the two most powerful episodes in the entire drama series.
In Excelsis Deo’s most dramatic scene:
The West Wing won Emmy Awards for:
Outstanding Writing of a Drama Show - Aaron Sorkin and Rick Cleveland singled out for this episode.
Outstanding Single Camera Editing
Schiff won Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series
Outstanding Sound Mixing in a Drama Series
Sorkin and Cleveland won the Writers Guild of America Award for Television: Episodic Drama at the 53rd Writers Guild of America Awards
Merry Christmas everyone.
TL
Create your profile
Only paid subscribers can comment on this post
Check your email
For your security, we need to re-authenticate you.
Click the link we sent to , or click here to sign in.