Taking stock of sports stuff, a day before Halloween, when weird and spooky is status quo.
Early 2025 World Series contenders to watch: Colorado, Kansas City and the team currently in Oakland. Why? They all lost at least 103 games this season.
Two years ago, Texas and Arizona had triple-digit losses. Now they are tied 1-1 for the greatest prize in their sport.
Remember when in the middle of the 2014 season, Sports Illustrated anointed the pathetic Houston Astros as the 2017 World Series champions? The Astros, who at that point were 187-358 since the start of 2011?
You ‘Stros fanatics, and lots of the rest of us, recall who won that 2017 Series crown 4-3, over the Dodgers? For the first of four World Series appearances in the next six years? Those trash-can banging Astros (sorry, the truth stings). They also won it while not using garbage receptacles in 2022, a year after losing in the Series. They’ve played in the last seven American League Championship Series.
So much for the infamous SI cover jinx.
Sports are weird. Take this year’s Series. With 90 regular-season wins, Texas looked up at Atlanta, Baltimore, Tampa Bay, and the LA Dodgers, all with 99 or more W’s. Arizona? The Snakes were barely above .500, with 84 wins. They were 16 games back of the Dodgers in the National League West.
Does not compute.
Neither does Sunday’s NFL final in the snowy Mile High City. Sean Payton’s first huge win as Denver’s coach, 24-9 over the mighty Kansas City Kelce-Swifts. Taylor wasn’t there. Good call by her. Neither was the Chiefs’ offense.
Broncos fans couldn’t have expected to beat the Chiefs for the first time in 17 games, since Peyton Manning’s last season in 2015, in their “Wildest Dreams.” But at 3-5, they need to heed her 2019 hit “You Need to Calm Down.” As for Kansas City, of course, “Shake It Off.”
“You miss off an inch in this league,” said KC coach Andy Reid, “and it’s a mile.”
The NFL means “Not For Long.” Count on inconsistency. Look for the Saints’ logo next to that word in Websters’.
Sunday, New Orleans rang up 38 points while outracing the Colts 38-27. Same Pete Carmichael-designed offense that hadn’t cracked 20 points in five games, and was averaging 22 only on the strength of that divine 34-0 slaughter of New England. Granted, the Dolts have surrendered 37, 39 and now 38 in their last three outings, but doubt many bet the 43.5-point over in this one.
Sports. Cannot predict them with much accuracy. Witness my ALCS Game 7 pick (Houston) right here last week (but I did say, Astros fans should not feel good about that prediction).
I’ve been around sports all my life. I have 8mm home movies of Mother Ireland throwing me BP when I was 2. She had a pretty good heater. I eventually caught up, when I was 15.
Sports give us entertainment, inspiration, life lessons, loyalty tests, disappointment and joy, just to mention a few. We get to read folks like John James Marshall, Teddy Allen, Ron Higgins – three of the greatest scribes ever in our state – telling us about sports, and that’s just right here in the Shreveport-Bossier Journal.
Sports brings us unforgettable moments, and with Halloween tomorrow, in this neighborhood, the fabled Billy Cannon 89-yard punt return to lift top-ranked LSU over No. 3 Ole Miss 7-3 on Oct. 31, 1959 in Tiger Stadium is THE iconic moment.
Cannon wasn’t supposed to field it, not that close to the end zone, per coach Paul Dietzel’s standing orders. Ole Miss punter Jake Gibbs wasn’t supposed to give him the chance, per Rebels’ coach Johnny Vaught’s specific order to punt it out of bounds.
But it happened, and after breaking seven tackles on that classic run, Cannon went on to win the Heisman Trophy.
I didn’t see that. So here’s my favorite Halloween sports memory.
Halloween night, 2008. Sixth Street, Austin. My Northwestern Demons were teeing it up the next afternoon down in San Marcos, in what was a 34-31 overtime victory at Texas State.
That Friday night, we were sightseeing on Sixth Street. Think Bourbon Street, but tamed to family-friendly levels. Most people, adults and kids were in costume – but only one of us, the late, great Jack “Britt” Brittain Jr., in his standard Scream gear.
I looked across the street, and on the corner, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman and Flash were having a conversation.
I’ve never, ever, ever felt safer. Hope I find them tomorrow night.
Contact Doug at sbjdoug@gmail.com