Stand up person of the week

The first "Stand Up Person of the Week" Award goes to John Harper, of WMEL Radio in Melbourne, Florida. John is one of the few people, in this day of radio consolidation, (One of the greatest mistakes the Washington politicians have ever forced upon us) to go it alone with an AM stand-alone news/talk station. John and his staff serve the Space and Treasure coast on the Atlantic-side of Florida like few stations do anymore. With a good selection of both local and national talk shows, sports and more, WMEL, known as the "Talk to Me Station," is a shining example of what radio used to (And still should) be. When the rough weather rolls in, or another space shuttle goes up, WMEL is the station people in the Melbourne area tune to. John cares about his listeners and his community deeply. And I have never worked for a station owner who values his employees (past and present) more.

It is indeed a pleasure and an extreme honor to give the first "Stand up Person of the Week Award" to John Harper of WMEL Radio in Melbourne, Florida. Thank you John, for all you do, for your listeners and for the Duchess, the News Hounds and I. You're simply the best!

Visit John's website, at http://www.wmelonline.com

Late night musings

Here I am, at 11:30p.m., sitting at my computer. I've got mlb.com fired up, keeping track of the Tampa Bay-Seattle game. Two of my three favorite teams. And all three of them aren't doing so hot. San Francisco has been nothing more than the Barry Bonds home run chase all season long; Tampa Bay was the last major league team I've been to see and it seems like Seattle was in the wild card lead just the other day and while still mathematically in the hunt, are about as out of it as you can get. Boy, the bottom sure fell out for them pretty quickly, didn't it?



Speaking of hockey(Was I?), I just finished reading a story about the computers at the rink in Saginaw, Michigan (Home of the OHL's Spirit) not doing their jobs correctly and as a result, the ice completely, not partially, but completely melted away. Fortunately, for them, they have enough time to rebuild the ice before the start of the season. In the WHL, Portland, after the dismal season they had last season, have a new coach, more new players and apparently, a new attitude. We'll see just how many wins that all translates into. The fans, hats off to them, continue to stick by them. We'll see what difference, if any, it makes with this season's entire home schedule being played in Memorial Coliseum. The team's new (in their second year) ownership is finally starting to make some progress in getting the city to begin to follow through on promised improvements to the building, including brand-new video replay screens. Hopefully, the grand ol' "Glass Palace" will return to it's glory days and the fans, who think the team should be playing in the 20,000 seat Rose Garden, will see that the Coliseum is still an excellent place to watch a hockey game.

Finally, (Since it's late, I'm yawning and the Rays are pounding the Mariners) I just want to say how happy I am right now. I have the best wife and children (four-legged variety)that any man could possibly have. I sure know how to pick 'em!

Well, that's it for now. I'd be heading off to bed as soon as I post this, but there's two outs in the bottom of the 8th and Seattle has a rally going. Talk to you later everybody.

**Editor's note: Seattle, down 5-0 in the second rallied, scoring 5 in the 8th, including 3 with two outs, to win 8-7. Sure, too little, too late (most likely) to make the post season. But, still, it's fun to see the home team come back and win like that. And then, to see J.J. Putz come in in the 9th and blow down the Rays in order. I love baseball!

U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame unveils new logo

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact: Dave Fischer (davef@usahockey.org)

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

USA Hockey Unveils New Logo for U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame
New Mark Set to Debut During U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Weekend, Oct. 12-13



COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. – USA Hockey today unveiled a new logo to represent the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame. The new mark will formally debut at the 2007 U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame weekend, set for Oct. 12-13 in Grand Forks, N.D.

The logo was designed by Denver-based Adrenalin in cooperation with USA Hockey.

“This logo gives a fresh face to an extremely important entity associated with hockey in our country,” said Dave Ogrean, executive director of USA Hockey. “Adrenalin is among the elite when it comes to brand identity and we were pleased to work with them on this project.”

“In the world of sports, there are those who define their sport, and, through great accomplishments, separate themselves from the crowd,” said Daniel S. Price, principal/president of Adrenalin. “Adrenalin was pleased to be involved in the logo development that recognizes these athletes in a sport rich in tradition and class.”

The U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame weekend is comprised of the induction ceremony and dinner on Friday, Oct. 12, at 7 p.m. CST in the Betty Engelstad Sioux Center on the University of North Dakota campus. The following evening, defending national champion Michigan State will take on host North Dakota at 7 p.m. in the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game at the Ralph Engelstad Arena.

NOTES: Tickets for the induction dinner and ceremony are $65, while tickets for the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Game are $28. Tickets for both events may be purchased by calling 701-777-6609 … In May, USA Hockey assumed responsibility for the selection process and induction event associated with the U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame.

College football season underway

The 2007 college football season is underway. My favorite team, the Oregon State Beavers, are off to a 1-1 start. The Beavers, behind Yvenson Bernard's 165 yards rushing on 29 carries and two touchdowns, beat Utah 24-7, in front of over 40,000 at Reser Stadium in Corvallis. Week two was a much different story, as Cincinnati totally shut down the Beaver offense, holding Bernard to 30 yards on 16 carries, while picking off five passes, in rolling to a 34-3 victory. The Beaver defense has showed itself to be one of the best in the nation during the first two weeks, consistantly putting pressure on opposing quarterbacks and stringing out running plays, allowing little, if any positive yardage on many plays. The Beavers though, have struggled a bit at both quarterback and the kicking game. Sean Canfield and Lyle Moevao have struggled to gain control of the offense, while third-stringer Ryan Gunderson has so far seen only a bit of mop-up action in the Utah game. Alexis Serna, one of the best place kickers in the country, has yet to hit his stride as the team's new punter. Oregon State has a chance to contend for the Pac-10 title and perhaps a BCS bowl as well. But more than anything, improved play at the quarterback spot will be a must.

The biggest upset in all of college football in many years, of course, was Appalachin State winning at Michigan in week one. While Michigan looks like they may well have been way overrated to start the season, the Mountaineers are the defending 1-AA champions and should never be taken lightly. Michigan will have to step things up if they hope to be taken seriously this season. Notre Dame is in the same boat, after getting hammered in their opener.

One team that should be well worth watching, will be Portland State. The Vikings, members of the 1-AA Big Sky Conference, have Jerry Glanville on staff as their new head coach, following the departure of Tim Walsh, who took the offensive coordinator's position at Army, after 14 years at the PSU helm. Running the Viking offense is Mouse Davis. Davis, a former PSU head coach and inventor of run and shoot offense, should bring back life to the program, which has it's eyes set on not only a Big Sky title, but in becoming closer to being considered on the same level as the Pac-10 programs in Corvallis and Eugene.

And since I reside in the middle of the reddest state in the nation, I must say something about the Nebraska Cornhuskers. They look like a real solid football team, worthy of their top-25 ranking. The Huskers are off to a 2-0 start, hammering Nevada last week and squeaking past Wake Forest on the road earlier today. Nebraska hosts top-ranked USC next Saturday in what should be an excellent football game. Unless, of course, the Trojans come flying out of the gate offensively and control the Big Red offense. Then, it could get ugly quick. However, I expect the big red-clad crowd at Memorial Stadium in Lincoln to inspire their team to a big effort. It'll be a fun game to watch.

While I mainly just follow Oregon State football, I may have to expand my scope of following the college ranks. This could be a really fun season.