Inspiration Blog

While eating lunch with fellow bloggers Bob and Ed, the back of a navy blue t-shirt caught my attention. It had the following phrase in big, bold stand-out letters:

NO TIME-OUTS

NO SUBSTITUTIONS

Needless to say, I was intimidated. I made a point to see what all this intensity was about, so I peeked around to see the front of the shirt, to find out it was for Notre Dame Swimming.

Those four dudes in the back are living the dream.

Now, when I think intense competition, no subs, and no time-outs, swimming is not on my list.

Survey Says: No Way.

Don't get me wrong, I think swimmers are very talented athletes, and train just as hard as any other sport to achieve success. This brings me to my larger point, underrated sports. It seems as though lately ESPN has been covering the big four...Baseball, Basketball, Football, and more Basketball. I miss the golden days when hockey was a part of that big four. Those were simpler times, gas was under $1.50 a gallon, stamps were 35 cents, and I still thought wrestling was real.

This shit's real....BROTHER!

A blog that I frequent is ThePensBlog (thepensblog.blogspot.com). They discuss hockey, specifically the Pittsburgh Penguins. A few months ago they did a comparison as to how much actual playing time occurs in a game of football compared to a game of hockey, the two contact sports of the "big four". In a given game of football, lets say the offense is on the field for 30 minutes. That 30 minutes is mostly comprised of dead time after the play is over. If you generously spot each play 7-8 seconds, they really only have about 5-6 minutes of actual physical activity per game. Meanwhile, on the ice, players regularly play 20-25 minutes a game.

Selloutblog

And don't even get me started on overpaidblog (baseball) or overratedblog (basketball). Why don't people appreciate hockey as much as they should? Of the big four, they are by far the hardest worked, and the lowest paid. If there was only a happy place where hockey ruled all, and each sportscenter would start with 30 minutes of hockey.....

I understand they call it sportscentRE.

Final Thoughts: Watch hockey, at any level. Don't watch basketball, unless it's at or below the collegiate level, and even that is marginal at best. And to make good with my swimming friends, go to a swim meet or two, you might find yourself a single seaman (or woman).