Since my colleague Jordan Beane has gone to London and taken "Beane Ball" with him, each week, I'll let you know what I'm burning on in the weekly installment, "Two Truths and a Lie." I'll comment on some of the hottest topics in sports, telling you what's really going down, and what's just sideline banter.
Truth: The Seahawks and Broncos will meet in the extra-large Super Bowl XL. These two teams are playing the best, and no matter how many Steve Smiths or Ben Roethlisbergers there are, you can't mess with what works, and what works right now is Matt Hasselbeck and Jake Plummer. The career mediocres are studs at this point and will lead their teams to home victories this weekend.
Shaun Alexander will come back from his concussion and be the MVP he was all season, rushing for 150 yards and two scores, while Mike Anderson and Tatum Bell run all over the Steelers defense. The real truth? Hasselbeck and Plummer will win these games, though, in the final quarter, leading their teams to victory with huge passing plays to provide the outcome.
Truth: Some prominent baseball start will get injured in the upcoming World Baseball Classic, costing him the 2006 season and setting off a vicious debate about whether or not this spectacle should've been allowed to happen.
Whether it's newly patriotic A-Rod breaking an ankle or Roger Clemens tearing his rotator cuff, one of the nation's pastime's superstars will get hurt, throwing good guy Bud Selig under the bus one more time for caring more about the attention his sport receives rather than the intimacy of the game.
I personally side with the baseball purist and think this show should be stopped. Quite frankly, the fans don't care. I'm proud to be an American, and if Brad Lidge blows a save to Miguel Tejada and the Dominican Republic wins, I'll still love the red, white and blue. Or if Bobby Abreu takes Tim Hudson deep and the Venezuelans reign, I'm pretty sure I won't volunteer to switch spots with jailbird Ugie Urbina in Caracas. The WBC is pointless and should be stopped after this year. Here's to hoping my beloved Braves Tim Hudson and Chipper Jones don't get hurt.
Lie: The AU men's and women's basketball team are in the bottom half of the Patriot League. Call me a homer. Call me an optimist, but both of AU's teams are going to make a run come tournament time.
Jeff Jones' boys are coming off consecutive wins and look poised to put together a solid second half of the season. A brutal opening schedule combined with rotating in new freshman and transfers set the Eagles back, but the maturation of Andre Ingram and Brayden Billbe into the team leaders will make AU a force to be reckoned with. While they won't knock off Bucknell, they'll be there in the final four of the league.
And the AU women are young, but scarily talented. With the return of pure shooter Nicole Ryan expected in the near future, the Eagles will hope to peak at the right time. With no depth in the league, they should have a chance to pull off a couple upsets. Senior Tala Hadavi is ultra-motivated to make some noise at the end of her career, and she will look to lead AU up against the PL heavyweights.
Take my word for it, because it's the truth... and a lie.
