LESAProject

Far too many sports fans are consumed by the fortunes of the teams they live and die with. Ask any member of Red Sox Nation pre-2004, or engage in a heart-to-heart with a Cubs fan. Such focus on who won or lost the night before, who’s in a slump and who’s red hot, and how highly ranked your school’s recruiting class is causes us to lose sight of what’s truly important. Thankfully, those teachings are right there under our noses. All we have to do is look. The best part is we can learn those lessons from the most unlikely of sources. In my case, ...

Far too many sports fans are consumed by the fortunes of the teams they live and die with. Ask any member of Red Sox Nation pre-2004, or engage in a heart-to-heart with a Cubs fan. Such focus on who won or lost the night before, who’s in a slump and who’s red hot, and how highly ranked your school’s recruiting class is causes us to lose sight of what’s truly important. Thankfully, those teachings are right there under our noses. All we have to do is look. The best part is we can learn those lessons from the most unlikely of sources. In my case, ...

One of my early Bleacher articles was about Tommy Simpson, an English professional cyclist who died while competing in the Tour de France, and who was found to have taken banned amphetamines.I had starting researching Simpson's death with the belief that he was a druggie and a fool, who had knowingly pedaled to his early death. But I finished feeling very sympathetic to him, and confused about my views on drugs in sport.The confusing question I could not answer was this; If an athlete knows he cannot reach the top of his sport without using drugs, is he a hero ...

One of my early Bleacher articles was about Tommy Simpson, an English professional cyclist who died while competing in the Tour de France, and who was found to have taken banned amphetamines.I had starting researching Simpson's death with the belief that he was a druggie and a fool, who had knowingly pedaled to his early death. But I finished feeling very sympathetic to him, and confused about my views on drugs in sport.The confusing question I could not answer was this; If an athlete knows he cannot reach the top of his sport without using drugs, is he a hero ...

Today is July 16, the time is 10:55 PM in the Eastern Time Zone. After a long day of working 10 hours, I get home and, after a nice shower and meal, turn on ESPN News. On the bottom line it is in fact flooded with "whether or not Manny will be booed in his return to Dodger Stadium," "David Beckham and Landon Donovan's continuing feud," and "an analysis of  where Allen Iverson will end up." Now, to me, those headlines don't scream "Man am I glad to be playing in a team sport." They in fact scream "Man I ...

Today is July 16, the time is 10:55 PM in the Eastern Time Zone. After a long day of working 10 hours, I get home and, after a nice shower and meal, turn on ESPN News. On the bottom line it is in fact flooded with "whether or not Manny will be booed in his return to Dodger Stadium," "David Beckham and Landon Donovan's continuing feud," and "an analysis of  where Allen Iverson will end up." Now, to me, those headlines don't scream "Man am I glad to be playing in a team sport." They in fact scream "Man I ...

With Alabama’s Rose Bowl victory, The Atlanta Journal  proudly proclaimed that “The Crimson Tide no longer belonged exclusively to Tuscaloosa and the State of Alabama. It belongs to the whole South, just like the Stone Mountain Memorial.”   Among all Southerners, including middle-class and upper-class, the extravagant recognition they draped over the Crimson Tide was, in so many ways, filled with references to the South’s chivalric past.    Southerners began considering Alabama’s Rose Bowl victory as the renewal of the positive traditions of the “Old South.”   University of Georgia President Sanford stated that Alabama “upheld the tradition and fighting spirit of the Old ...

With Alabama’s Rose Bowl victory, The Atlanta Journal  proudly proclaimed that “The Crimson Tide no longer belonged exclusively to Tuscaloosa and the State of Alabama. It belongs to the whole South, just like the Stone Mountain Memorial.”   Among all Southerners, including middle-class and upper-class, the extravagant recognition they draped over the Crimson Tide was, in so many ways, filled with references to the South’s chivalric past.    Southerners began considering Alabama’s Rose Bowl victory as the renewal of the positive traditions of the “Old South.”   University of Georgia President Sanford stated that Alabama “upheld the tradition and fighting spirit of the Old ...

One of the greatest things about sports is their history. The players of the past have affected all of the players of today in a special way. There have been several generations of athletes, and with those athletes are the fans that followed them throughout their careers. The fans remember everything about them, and the experiences they had of them. What about the youthful generation of today? What about those of us born in the mid-to-late '80s that missed so much? All we have are the highlights and stories of others from those historic eras. As a fan today, I feel grateful ...

One of the greatest things about sports is their history. The players of the past have affected all of the players of today in a special way. There have been several generations of athletes, and with those athletes are the fans that followed them throughout their careers. The fans remember everything about them, and the experiences they had of them. What about the youthful generation of today? What about those of us born in the mid-to-late '80s that missed so much? All we have are the highlights and stories of others from those historic eras. As a fan today, I feel grateful ...