LESAProject

Lance Armstrong, shamed ex-Tour de France winner and all-around snake, is on a public relations campaign to save what is left of his name. Armstrong, who finally admitted to using performance-enhancing drugs, blood doping and a whole amusement park full of bad behavior, recently appeared in an exclusive interview with Oprah Winfrey where he admitted to most of his malfeasances with the contrition of a lion dining on an elk. Or as my mother would say, “He wasn’t sorry; he was sorry he got caught.” Armstrong is just another in the disturbingly long line of so-called role models and celebrities ...

Lord Tennyson famously wrote, “'Tis better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.” In the realm of romance and friendship, this statement is profound. But does it apply to other walks of life? What about the sports world? I am a diehard fan of the New Jersey Devils, who just lost to the Los Angeles Kings in the NHL’s Stanley Cup Finals. The Devils were a team that was not predicted to make it all the way to the championship round, but beyond expectations, there they were. The consolation should be that my team gave ...

The NCAA tournament has a grip on this country for a few reasons. I’d like to believe that the main reason is the love of basketball, but I’m afraid that’s just not it. The culprit is this country’s obsession with gambling. Not just Las Vegas gambling, but office pools, online competitions and the like have permeated our national fabric. Accountants, housewives and politicians who may not watch a single college basketball game still attempt to fill out a bracket for whichever prize is offered. Why do they do it? I believe the answer is a mix between the aforementioned love ...

The NCAA tournament has a grip on this country for a few reasons. I’d like to believe that the main reason is the love of basketball, but I’m afraid that’s just not it. The culprit is this country’s obsession with gambling. Not just Las Vegas gambling, but office pools, online competitions and the like have permeated our national fabric. Accountants, housewives and politicians who may not watch a single college basketball game still attempt to fill out a bracket for whichever prize is offered. Why do they do it? I believe the answer is a mix between the aforementioned love ...

So you’ve got your bracket printed out and you’re about to embark on the task of predicting the NCAA tournament. For some of you it’s about the money and others it’s the bragging rights. For me it’s both. As the old saying goes, being right is nice, but being paid for being right is divine…someone said that, right? Half of your office will go with the chalks and put all the No. 1 seeds in the Final Four, while the other half will go with a mixture of love and hatred for teams and the need to pick upsets just ...

Convicted Ponzi-scheme proprietor and current inmate Nevin Shapiro is talking, and the NCAA is listening. Shapiro is giving accounts of benefits received by dozens of Miami recruits, which include everything from prostitutes to cash.These violations are not being taken lightly, and if Shapiro possesses the proof he claims to possess, the “U” could be in for the infamous “death penalty,” akin to the one Southern Methodist University received in the late '80s. With the recent exposure of Ohio State’s dalliances into “Tattoo Gate” resulting in the resignation of head coach Jim Tressel, an unlikely circle is now complete.The two national-championship ...

This past July 7, 39-year-old firefighter Shannon Stone took his young son to a Texas Rangers game in Arlington, TX, to see their Rangers play the Oakland Athletics.This perfect imagery of father and son bonding took a tragic turn at the middle of the second inning, when Rangers All-Star outfielder Josh Hamilton threw a ball into the stands towards Stone and his son. Stone reached over the railing to catch the ball and lost his balance, falling 20 feet, head first, to the concrete below behind the stadium scoreboard.This fall, caught on tape, morbidly played out for those in attendance ...

I recently turned 38 years old. Not old by most standards but certainly not young.With all these years under my belt, a small bit of wisdom has crept to the top of my psyche through all the sports statistics and Simpsons’ quotes. I’ve learned that in life, most of the time you get what you put into it, you reap what you sow, etc.I’m fairly content with my life, but I’m sure there’s more out there for me if I work for it. I’ve also learned that life isn’t always fair and with apologies to John Lennon and the Beatles, ...

Some guys can just rub you the wrong way.A select few rub everyone the wrong way, including their own fans. But among those, the hatred sometimes creates an unusual fan base.Throughout history, athletic competition has provided us with countless heroes and villains. It seems now, more than ever, these men can be one in the same. Here are the top 10 most simultaneously hated and loved sports personalities.Begin Slideshow

My girlfriend doesn’t know anything about basketball. She’s generally repulsed by sports in general—but basketball, more than the others, she just isn’t into. I, on the other hand, am a basketball junkie—especially college basketball. I don’t really watch the NBA that much anymore because I don’t believe it’s a good product, but that’s another story. Throughout this basketball season I’ve been trying to stir up interest in my girlfriend to at least watch a game or show the least bit of interest in something I’m interested in, but it has all been to no avail. She just doesn’t like it. I was reserved ...