ESPN's College Gameday will have a new face this fall. Samantha Steele will be called up to the Majors and take the spot vacated by Erin Andrews, who recently left to join Fox Sports.
Steele has been working at the Longhorn Network and worked sideline duty at various college football and basketball games for ESPN.
With the departure of Michelle Beadle and Andrews, she will most likely be the new female face of ESPN along with Charissa Thompson and Sara Walsh.
We fill you in on Steele's background and attach a mini photo gallery to help you get to know her a little better. Steele, 26, is a graduate of Liberty University and her father is a football coach. She worked for Fox Sports Net and Fox College Sports before landing a job at the Longhorn Network.
She will be hosting the pre-Gameday show on ESPNU at 9am, helping at the College Gameday broadcast on ESPN, and take over sideline reporting duties during the Thursday and Saturday night football games. She will be thrust into the spotlight and college boys will surely be giving her the same rude catcalls they yelled at Andrews for years.
She's the perfect addition to the broadcasts. She's professional, extremely likable, and cute as a button.
I have made my fair share of "Skip Bayless is a Douche" posts on this site. I even posted 10 videos of him being a douche bag earlier this month...hell, I even compared him to Glenn Beck.
ESPN's "First Take" is usually broadcast out of a studio in Bristol, Connecticut, but the show traveled to Miami for the NBA Finals. So it was easy to get Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban as a guest on the show.
"First Take" is usually a decibel battle between Stephen A. Smith and Skip Bayless. I hear they play the show to torture inmates at Guantanamo Bay, but that is beside the point.
Cuban absolutely destroys Bayless for making blanket statements and speaking in generalities when he bashes players. The video is amazing and quite possibly my favorite video of someone calling out Skip Bayless.
The video is after the jump...
Let me know if this video gets taken down...I'm sure ESPN will do that very soon.
If you would like to become a friend of the White Boy, have a link you would think I'd like, or want to advertise on the site...email bobbymcrib@gmail.com.
Over the last three years, I have written three separate posts about Skip Bayless. I believe that he is the Glenn Beck of ESPN and I am proud to have went on a rant about it on this blog.
YouTube is full of Skip Bayless videos of him doing Skip Bayless things. He plays the role of devil's advocate and makes empty opinions about polarizing athletes. He was once a very respected journalist, but he has turned into a 'talking head' on a television show where the loudest person wins the argument. When he shares the debate desk with Stephen A. Smith on "First Take", I instantly change the channel and watch some "Party of Five" re-runs on Lifetime.
Here are 10 videos of Skip Bayless being a douchebag.
Terrell Suggs calls Skip Bayless a 'douchebag' on ESPN's First Take
Jalen Rose calls out Skip Bayless on his embellished High School basketball career
Chad Ochocinco owns Skip Bayless and calls him a 'Vegetable'
Stephen A. Smith goes off on Skip Bayless after he says stupid remark about Aaron Rodgers
Skip Bayless questions Chris Broussard's journalistic integrity
Skip Bayless apologizes for questioning Broussard's objectivity
Skip Bayless attempt to turn the city of Denver against Mark Schlereth
Skip Bayless makes borderline racists comments about Blake Griffin
Skip Bayless says Nelly is better than Jay-Z
DJ Steve Porter remixes a Skip Bayless rant about Tim Tebow
Michelle Beadle has been the co-host of 'SportsNation' with Colin Cowherd since its inception three years ago. Her contract with ESPN ended on May 31st and she announced that she has signed a contract with NBC.
She didn't waste any time before she appeared on the 'Dan Patrick Show'. She appeared during the last hour on Friday, June 1st. She discussed her time at ESPN, her rumored feud with Erin Andrews, and what she will be doing at NBC. She also announced that she will be receiving her own sports show that will appear this fall.
Now that Beadle has left the network, what is the fate 'SportsNation'? Who will be replacing her as co-host?
We also have video of Beadle's appearance on the 'Dan Patrick Show' and her final segment on 'SportsNation'. I will always have soft spot for 'SportsNation'. My Twitter page and tweet was featured in the first episode. I think I was one of the first tweets that was read on their airwaves. Even though the show has changed considerably, I would still watch it because Beadle is such a likable person. She even made Cowherd seem human.
I have been in contact with a person who has worked on the show since the beginning. We direct message each other on Twitter and he would ask me what I thought of recent changes to the show. I would always be very honest and usually say that I didn't like them.
Beadle will be the new co-host of 'Access Hollywood', appear at various NBC sporting events, and she announced on the 'Dan Patrick Show' that she will have a new sports show on NBC this fall. Here is her appearance on the show...along with an 'Against the Grain' segment she did with Andrew 'McLovin' Perloff.
In Michelle Beadle's last segment, many ESPN personalities make cameos. Matthew Berry, Eric Mangini, and Skip Bayless pop up to wish her well. The show teases the show's next co-host, but only shows her legs. It is rumored to be Charissa Thompson, who has filled in for Beadle numerous times. She is the current host of ESPN's 'Numbers Never Lie'.
'Numbers Never Lie' is rumored to be changing to a format most resembling 'First Take. The network believes that she would be a better fit on 'SportsNation'.
Thompson has experience as a sideline reporter for Fox and was a fill-in co-host on Fox's 'The Best Damn Sports Show Period'.
She has a natural chemistry with Cowherd, who is rumored to be leaving the show at the end of 2012 for his own half-hour show. It is unknown how much longer 'SportsNation' will last without Beadle and Cowherd. Let's hope that it isn't as awkward as when Jimmy Kimmel and Adam Carolla left 'The Man Show' only to be replaced with Joe Rogan and Doug Stanhope.
Here is Beadle's last segment on 'SportsNation' along with the Thompson teaser at the end.
Best of luck goes out to Michelle Beadle at her new gig at NBC. Let's hope that she is able appear at some WWE events in the near future. She will be based in NYC and next year's 'Wrestlemania' will be held at the new Meadowlands in the NJ/NY area. We know that she is a big fan. Maybe she can talk them into reviving 'Saturday Night's Main Event' which aired on the network.
The Miami Marlins have suspended manager Ozzie Guillen for five games for comments made in which he expressed respect for Cuban leader Fidel Castro. Miami has a very large Cuban population and the majority of the population detests Castro. It could be the worst thing that Guillen could have said, since this is his first year on the job and the Marlins recently opened up a new ballpark. They need the locals to come out and support the team. The Cuban population will not back a manager that supports a dictator that has suppressed their families for decades. Is five games enough to quench the fans' anger? Will Guillen finally learn from his mistake? This is not the first time that Guillen has been caught in a scandal that involved his mouth. He is extremely blunt and his opinions are usually a tough pill to swallow. His personality is the reason why he is no longer the manager of the Chicago White Sox. He lead them to their first World Series win since the "Black Sox scandal." GM Kenny Williams finally had enough and had to let his former teammate go to another team. He had a couple sub-par seasons, but nothing that would be deemed as bad. If he kept his mouth shut, Guillen would have been entrenched as the manager of the White Sox. Keeping one's mouth shut isn't in Guillen's instruction manual, so he landed in Miami as their skipper.
ESPN's Dan LeBatard said it best, "Fidel Castro is our Adolph Hitler," in reference to the Cuban population in South Florida. He added, "even a pro-Castro music act cannot play in Miami," which sums up the community's united front against the Cuban dictator. Guillen's comments sting much harder in that area than anywhere else in America. Immigrants from Cuba float on rafts and risk their lives to make it to Florida. If you hate a man enough to risk your life and float on a piece of rubber for hundreds of miles, you're not a huge fan of Guillen at this moment.
The Marlins suspended Guillen for five games and bench coach Joey Cora will take over during that period. We have seen authority figures come down on Guillen for his comments, but nothing has changed. He started his managerial career with the Marlins and he was making stupid comments during that time. Dan Patrick admitted that he interviewed Guillen during that time. He had to omit part of the interview, because he said something very derogatory about a player on his team. After the interview, the Marlins public relations representative came over and said that he didn't mean that last part and that Patrick should leave it out. The quote didn't make it into ESPN magazine, because Patrick thought that it was off-the-record and he didn't want to take advantage of Guillen. This was only the beginning of his miscues as a team's public figure.
Guillen publicly apologized, in English & Spanish, for his latest miscue during a nationally televised press conference. He admitted that this has really bothered him and he couldn't sleep for the last few days. Guillen said, "I feel like I betrayed my Latin community," which considering the circumstances, is an accurate statement. He looked defeated and physically bothered by the public backlash.
Miami Marlins fans will have to walk a very thin line over the next few years. Guillen will turn the franchise around, but he'll say a few dumb things along the way. You'll have to learn to push the mute button when he addresses the media. Marlins fans may need to confide in a few White Sox fans over the next few years. What Guillen said was extremely offensive and ignorant, but as a fan, you need to decide if you will be okay if he messes up again...because it will happen.
I was unfortunate this morning and flipped the channel to ESPN's "First Take." I was lucky enough to only deal with a few moments of Skip Bayless trolling America. He is one of the reasons why ESPN programming is no longer viewed as being elite. Bayless drains an ounce of what's left of their journalist integrity every day that he is on the air. Can a write-in campaign stop his madness? Here's some of what I witnessed today and why ESPN needs to get rid of Skip Bayless.
The few moments that I witnessed of today's show blew my mind. It wasn't the kind of mind-blowing television that I enjoy, it blew my mind that someone can make such stupid uninformative opinions on a mainstream outlet. The single thing that he said was that "the best place for Tim Tebow is Cleveland. Bayless added, "he would flourish there because they don't have any decent quarterbacks on their roster." Lets analyze this insane comment and dissect it.
First, he believes that Tebow has a shot in Cleveland. If you look at the Browns roster, they lack a running game and have been adding parts in their receiving corps for the last few season. Greg Little has a shot at being an elite wide receiver, but not with Tebow at quarterback. I understand that Colt McCoy isn't the long-term answer there, but Tebow would be taking a step backward. Also, the Browns have two first-rounds picks this year, their early pick won't likely be a QB, but there will a few nice options with their later pick. Ryan Tennehill may still be available or they could trade down, gain some other picks, and pick either Brandon Weeden, Brock Osweiler, or Kirk Cousins.
Secondly, he's assuming that Tim Tebow is more than a system quarterback. John Fox helped design a system that fit Tebow's strengths. They relied on their defense to generate favorable field position, which the Browns currently lack. The Broncos would be asking for a high draft pick for Tebow, which I don't see that happening.
I know that Skip Bayless says nothing but contrarian statements in hopes of drawing ratings. From all accounts from people who have met him, they have nothing but positive things to say about his personality. It sounds like the exact same thing that you hear about Glenn Beck. They both go on television & radio and say things to cause a stir. Once the microphone is off, they put their characters away and become sane people.
I don't agree with ESPN changing their "First Take" format. I don't enjoy hearing Stephen A. Smith yell over Skip Bayless for a few hours. ESPN needs more programming like "Outside The Lines," "E:60," & "The Sports Reporters." I understand that those shows aren't exactly ratings monsters, but they need more of those shows to bolster their image. I'm saying that ESPN should feature a guy like Bob Ley over Colin Cowherd (no offense Michelle Beadle, you're still my girl).
I don't want "First Take" very often, because it just raises my blood pressure. More sports radio shows are getting their own morning/afternoon television shows, so there are more options to watch. I'm a big fan of "The Dan Patrick Show" and have been a listener since before they took the show to DirecTV. I would rather hear a guy be honest, who tells both sides of the story, and have guests on who are knowledgeable about specific topics (Chris Mannix, Bruce Feldman, Tony Dungy, etc). Don't even get me started on "Mike & Mike In the Morning," that is an entirely different post.
BenMaller.com, which is a rumors page ran by the weekend late-night radio host for Fox Sports Radio, posted a rumor about Joe Theismann that has left me speechless. He is rumored to be in the running to replace Pat Haden as the color commentator for Notre Dame games on NBC. Haden left to be the athletic director at his alma mater, USC, so a replacement will need to be added by this fall. Can I go an entire season without driving to South Bend and cussing out Theismann? Let's find out...it could be a long season
I have had a long history of hate when it comes to Joe Theismann. I am too young to remember his playing days, but listening to him as a color commentary analyst during football games have been atrocious. He worked on the broadcast of ESPN's "Sunday Night Football" from 1988 to 2005 and then one failed year on "Monday Night Football" when ESPN bought the rights. The sheer tone of his voice leads to the hairs standing up on my arms and a rise of my blood pressure by 20%.
I know that I am over-reacting and I am a bit tongue-in-cheek about it, but I just think that he isn't good at his job. He is too critical of the teams and often tries to overshadow the game by hogging airtime away from the play-by-play commentator. There was a reason why ESPN let him go from MNF, he clashes with nearly ever on-air personality. He doesn't clash on a personal level, I've never heard anything about him not getting along with crew, but his style doesn't fit with many people. Tom Hammond is the play-by-play commentator for Notre Dame broadcast and he is a true professional. He has covered nearly everything on NBC sports from football to the Olympics. If Theismann is chosen as Haden's replacement, I'm sure Hammond will do his best to make it work.
I guess I am a little biased when it comes to how critical Theismann is on the teams during the games. He has called many Indianapolis Colts games over the years and all the quarterbacks during that time, Jeff George to Peyton Manning, he has ripped for not being polished. Yes, he ripped Manning for not being polished, even though this was early in his career, it's ridiculous. Anyone who has watched a game in which he is broadcasting knows how worked up I get, it's almost comical.
Theismann isn't the only former Notre Dame album rumored for this position, but is the only one that has national appeal. I hate to say this, but he would probably be the best choice if Notre Dame is looking to increase their ratings.
I read on Deadspin that Bill Simmons would like to start up a website and become the underdog once again. He is currently under contract with ESPN, but this is something that he could possibly do once his contract ends. I am here to offer him a position here at America's White Boy. Why spend the capital to start a new website when you have a fairly okay one right here. I have to admit, he probably has more perks at ESPN, even if he is rarely in Bristol, CT. Here is my failed attempt at luring Bill Simmons to write for us.
"America's White Boy" isn't the biggest sports blog on the internet, it's only has a page rank of 4 on Google, but hey I won't censor you. You can talk about basically anything, I'll allow it. If you want to write a 540,000 word post about how Christina Hendricks' boobs are better than Salma Hayek's boobs, go ahead! You could even invite a porn star in your fantasy basketball league, although considering your possible bad blood with your soon-to-be former employer ESPN, you may have to use Yahoo for your league.
You probably won't be able to land huge interviews for podcasts, I don't have the bandwith for downloads. Although I will give you creative freedom to do some nice "Top 10" posts, I hear they do well on Digg and Reddit. Think about it...
As far as pay goes, you have enough money, right? "The Book Of Basketball" is going sell a few million copies and I'm sure you'll end up as an NBA GM at some point. I know the Milwaukee gig didn't work out, but once the Zombie Sonics GM quits, the job is all yours. Also, please disregard my post on Gunaxin.com about your possible General Manager position with an NBA team. It was meant as tongue-in-cheek, like your constant ribbing of Mike Dunleavy. If you get enough traffic, maybe I can get a pair of Columbus Crew tickets, 'cause I hear that you like soccer.
I have one condition of employment, you would have to move to Columbus, OH. I know, it could be a dealbreaker, but I have to know what my possible employers are doing. I do watch NFL games every weekend, but I doubt my 27-inch Sanyo television compares to Jimmy Kimmel's set-up, but hey, free Raising Cane's chicken fingers and White Castle to eat and all the Old Style that you can drink.
In closing, I am the definition of an underdog. I am an accountant during the day and I write for three websites at night. I would write if only one person would read my posts. Sure, I do get some advertising money, but I've used it to upgrade my laptop, buy my URL, and be able to attend a blogger conference this weekend. I write to explain my point of view and I hope to make a career out of it at some point. If it's either here on this site or somewhere else, I love writing. I have been a sports fan since I was a little boy and my fondess memories were watching Chicago Cubs games with my dad. I know athletes aren't perfect and most are barely role models, but there are times that I forget that and get lost in games that make me feel like a kid again. To modify a quote from "Almost Famous,"What Do I love about sports?....Everything."
A young man by the name of Blake Hall wanted to get into ESPN's "Fantasy Focus" league really bad. The podcast puts together a 20-team league each year and receives hundreds of submissions from people trying to get in. This year's contests included "What would your wrestler entrance music be?" type of questions, but one man said that he would dump 10-gallons of yogurt on himself for an entry. Check out the video of the yogurt avalanche.
I think the best part about the video is that they don't even catch the first try. The camera man didn't record it, so they have to re-shoot it again. I hope those guys let him in, I'm guessing that they do. Matthew Berry, Nate Ravitz, and Pod Vader have a fondness for yogurt.
NFL Hall of Fame speeches are great to listen to and everyone can take something from them. Former NFL Network, and currently ESPN football analyst, Adam Shefter knew this and he compiled a book of some of the best excerpts from speeches given in Canton, OH at the NFL Hall of Fame inductions throughout the years. Inductees always talk about the principles of life and lessons learned while playing the game and growing up within it. Check out the review of the book, "The Class of Football" edited by Adam Shefter, published by Harper Collins.
Listening to a Hall of Fame speech in any sport is great theater. They have spent hours, days, and weeks prepared his Hall of Fame speech and he knows that what he says at that podium will resonate with their fans. They talk about their mentors, their childhood, the history of the game, family, and teamwork. It's as if each inductee has a checklist that every speech must have to ensure a great moment. They always dream of this very moment and is probably one of the first foe (nervousness) could get the very best of them.
"The Class of Football" is such a great book to have if you love the history of the NFL. All of the players that you grew up watching is in this book, in their own words, describing some of the principles of life and the game of football.
Mike Singletary's speech was one of the best. He spoke about growing up poor in Houston, TX. Two of his brothers passed away and his mother sat him down and told him that "there was a greatness in him." He ended up going back to his room and wrote down a set of goals. He described that that day, his life began. Harry Carson took the stage and pleaded for the NFL to take care of the players on the field, after their careers were over. John Mackey took the stage to tell people and players to make sure that you have "your feet on the ground." Bill Walsh's speech was about how not only does teamwork bring players together, but could help unite the city in times of need. Each of these speeches read like a "Bartlett's Book of Quotations for NFL fans." It's a great book for fans of the NFL or any sport and is a go-to book for those who coach teams and need to get a few lessons through to your players.
You should go out and buy this book. Even if you aren't an avid reader, it reads very fast, since most of the speech excerpts are just a few pages long. Shefter had a great idea with this book and carried out his plan with perfection. He just started at ESPN and I'm sure he will help the company with great ideas like "The Class of Football."
For more exclusive audio and video of these speeches, go to ClassOfFootball.com.
I recently wrote an article over at Gunaxin.com about Bill Simmons, "The Sports Guy," possibly becoming an NBA GM. It's more of a "What could happen if he ever landed his supreme gig." It deals with some of his "theories" and his obsession with things like "The Real World" and "Teen Wolf."
I had a post earlier today about Jerod Morris at Midwest Sports Fans. I thought that I would embed the video of his appearance. If you actually read his article and then watch the video, you can question Ken Rosenthal and the reporter from the Philadelphia Inquirer if they have even read his article.
At points in the interview, Rosenthal rolls his eyes. I believe he may have just read the Inquirer's article and not the source, which would have been at Midwest Sports Fans site.
Midwest Sports Fans had a story a few days ago that lead to speculation about Raul Ibanez and performance-enhancing drugs. The story was thorough and well thought-out. The writer tried to convey both side of the argument and gave interesting facts that support both sides of the opinion. Jerod Morris, the writer of the post on Midwest Sports Fans, is getting wrongly accused of throwing out accusations that he believes that Ibanez is on something illegal. If people would just read the entire article, and not just snippets, they would leave with the opinion that Morris doesn't know the answer himself, but understands why someone would think something is fishy. This isn't really a story about Ibanez as much as a story about the past ghosts that will continue to haunt Major League Baseball players until they allow blood testing for testing. Until the public have 100% certainty that players are clean, it will always be the elephant in the room.
On the otherhand, I love Ibanez's response to the post. If the alleged accusation was a Stephen Strasburg heater, he hit it out of the park. He is taking the approach that I wish Bonds, McGwire, or any other player should have taken. I do admit that Ibanez's "mother basement" line was out-of-line, but I do acknowledge his passion for proving his innocence. I want him to go a step farther. I would like to see him ignore the player's union and accept an independent drug-test, the kind that would be as strict as the Olympic-testing.
This story is very unique. You don't see a blog causing a stir, unless your Deadspin, let alone this kind of exposure. It proves that bloggers are increasing their reach and gaining more notablity in mainstream media. I love it. I do think that about 85% of sports blogs are poorly written and are just out to slam sports figures, but there are some great ones out there.
Before I finish this post, I would like to submit my opinion on Ibanez. I believe he had something to prove. He has never been on a contender before, most of his career was with Kansas City and Seattle. The motivation to do well and finally win a championship was there this year, more than past seasons. He also knew that he was in a line-up with Utley, Howard, and Rollins, the pressure isn't going to be there, as he has bats around to protect him. My last point would be that he went from the American League to the National League. History tells us that players who take the leap over to the National League do better. I think all these factors add up to Ibanez's hot start to the season. We have to remember that the season isn't even halfway over. Many players have had just as good 2nd-halfs, but it flies under the radar usually, since most fans just look at the season average and totals.
I would like to congratulate Jerod Morris for the great article. The response is a little mixed as a whole, but this will go down as the top blog post of 2009.
I have written about Skip Bayless in the past and my opinion of him has not changed. I think he's overly-opinionated, takes stands on issues that is purposely against the minority, and he's a pompous jerk. This week we are "lucky" to have Stephen A. Smith as Skip's opponent on ESPN's 1st and 10. Having Stephen A. and Skip on the same show is like having the Iron Sheik vs. Nikita Koloff going against each other. Sorry to reference an old-school WWF reference to describe the scenario, but it fits. I don't like either of these guys and I really want Skip and Stephen A. end up hitting each other with a steel chair.
Today's episode was insane. Skip screamed for the first 15 minutes and then tagged Stephen A. in and he screamed for the rest of the show. I can't imagine these guys eating dinner with each other, they would have to put them in their own food and give each other riot masks to protect themselves against flying spit. The highlight of the show was when they got in a heated argument against and for Brett Favre in New York. I will DV-R the episodes on Tuesday and Wednesday in hopes of Stephen A. finally pulling out a folding table and sending Skip through it via Powerbomb.
Here is an old clip of the two going at it, I hope it gives you an idea of how insane it is to have both of these guys on the same show. You may need earplugs, the decibels alone could do some ear damage.
