Now that Aaron Rodgers has brought the Lombardi Trophy back to Green Bay with a 31-25 Super Bowl victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers, he has placed thoughts of his predecessor glory years in the back of most Packer fan’s memories.

Of course, there may still be the delusional few, who refuse to accept the decision to insert Rodgers as the Packer’s starter three years ago, but these are the same few still rocking a mullet and their finest Def Leppard T-shirt.

Everybody is familiar with the former Packer signal caller’s penchant for offseason indecision.  It was no different in 2008, when he informed the Packer’s that he intended on retiring, and Green Bay’s front office, led by Packer GM Ted Thompson, decided to move on.

The decision was not a popular one at the time but it is now very clear that it was the correct one.  On the one hand, you had a legend; the undisputed, albeit aging, NFL Iron Man who had an impressive consecutive game streak finally halt at 297 games.   On the other, you had a backup QB in Rodgers, the much-disputed and inexperienced player that more than twenty teams passed on three years earlier.

Fortunately for Packer fans, Thompson knew what he had, and he knew what he had to do.

Thompson is owed an apology from most of those same fans, and he is due credit for his forethought.  His decision to call the former QB’s bluff ranks up there in player personnel moves with former GM Ron Wolf’s signing of Reggie White in the mid 90’s.  The latter decision propelled the Pack to a Super Bowl victory.

While Rodgers became the MVP of Super Bowl XLV after completing 24-of-39 passes for 304 yards with three TD’s and no picks and the former QB expresses his desire to hang up his cell phone (ahem) and cleats to retire. . . rest assured, Packers fans will never forget you, Brent.

Used with permission of the author.

Pat Schueppert is a contributor to Sports Climax who grew up on the frozen tundra and bleeds Packer green and gold. The Wisconsin native, while staying loyal to his teams in his home state declares he has never worn a ‘Cheesehead’ and “The Bears still suck!”

Copyright ©2011 Sports Climax, LLC

Brett Favre has allegedly informed teammates that he intends on retiring.  This not so surprising development has fans of the purple and gold facing the reality of a season led by ….gulp, Tavaris Jackson.

If true, even a storybook season last year that ended one win shy of a trip to the Super Bowl, isn’t enough to convince the future first ballot Hall of Famer that he’s up for one more shot at the Lombardi Trophy.  But, it is Favre we are talking about, and it is a big “if”.

The same story has played itself out over and over again during the better part of the last decade.  First with the Packers; then with the Jets and now the Vikings. There have been tearful press conferences, secretive jet rides to Mississippi, and even confirmed reports from Chris Mortensen, only to have football’s version of the ironman lace them up again in September.

It’s become almost comical.  Favre again has sports fans everywhere wondering if it is April Fool’s Day or Groundhog Day.  One thing is for sure, Favre’s uncertainty has joined the Fourth of July as a rite of summer.

Personally, I refuse to drink the Kool-Aid. 

Brett may just be crying “Wilf”, Zygi Wilf, trying to get the owner to dig a little deeper into his deep pockets. Until I see Brett sporting a mustard yellow blazer in Canton, I fully expect him to show up throwing passes to local Hattiesburg high-schoolers and fueling talk of his impending return. 

Apparently, Brad Childress is not convinced either.  When asked about the possibility of having to find a replacement for Favre, Childress stated “I’ve got to hear it from the horse’s mouth”.  My question to Childress is what does John Elway know that even Mort doesn’t? 

Used with permission of the author.

 Pat Schueppert is a contributor to Sports Climax who grew up on the frozen tundra and bleeds Packer green and gold. The Wisconsin native, while staying loyal to his teams in his home state declares he has never worn a ‘cheesehead’ and “The Bears still suck!”

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

As South African, Louis Oosthuizen, approached the 18^th green at St. Andrews, a beaming smile crossed his face, and why not, he led by seven strokes and was about to be crowned The British Open Champion. It was quite an impressive gap.  Not the distance between he and runner-up, Lee Westwood, but rather the noticeably vacant space between Louis’ upper incisors. 

Oosty’s excitement was to be expected, but its parents everywhere that should be thrilled, because a less than perfect smile is no longer a surefire precursor to a life filled with failure, and a second mortgage to pay for children’s braces and retainers is no longer necessary. 

The ability to eat corn on the cob through a picket fence is not the only skill the bucktoothed brethren enjoy.  The group of talented toothies include musicians Madonna, Elton John and Seal, actors Laurence Fishbourne, Arnold Schwarzenegger and Anna Paquin, comedians David Letterman and Eddie Murphy and now athletes.

As The Open Champion, Oosthuizen joins a list of accomplished athletes that are afflicted, but not inhibited by diastema, a technical dental term defined as a gap or space between two teeth.  Other orthodontic-challenged athletes include New York Giants Super Bowl Champion Michael Strahan and former Heavyweight Champion Mike Tyson.   

Unfortunately for athletes, the locker room can be home to the harshest of hazing, and in fact, one of Strahan’s former teammates once referred to his grill as “antlers in his mouth”.  While that may be a little unkind, what Kirstie Alley is to Jenny Craig, Strahan could be to Invisalign.  And, while the golfer is currently known to many of his fellow competitors as “Shrek”, it’s only a matter of time before the comparisons to Alfred E. Newman are made.  

Sunday’s win was the first major victory for the young South African, but just as important, it was a victory for the dentally-retarded everywhere.   Let’s hope the sudden success does not go to his head, literally, and Louis feels the need to spend any of his winnings on veneers, because the gap-toothed grin is in.

Used with permission of the author.

 Pat Schueppert is a contributor to Sports Climax who grew up on the frozen tundra and bleeds Packer green and gold. The Wisconsin native, while staying loyal to his teams in his home state declares he has never worn a ‘cheesehead’ and “The Bears still suck!”

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

While 2010 is The Year of the Tiger in the Chinese calendar, it’s safe to say that it is The Year of the Pitcher in Major League Baseball.

Last night, Arizona Diamondback Edwin Jackson pitched baseball’s fourth no-hitter this season, and two of the four gems have been perfect games; three if you would like to include Detroit’s Armando Gallaraga who was robbed of his by newest Three-Blind-Mice recruit, umpire Jim Joyce.

Jackson’s no-hitter was anything but perfect, but it will go down in history as the second no-no in D-back’s history. Jackson threw 149 pitches and issued eight walks in the process, loading the bases in the third before escaping without allowing a run and preserving the shutout. It turned out to be a very good thing; Arizona beat the Rays 1-0.

According to STATS, LLC, Jackson’s no-hitter marked the 25th time this season an MLB game ended in a 1-0 score.

Colorado’s Ubaldo Jimenez has been off to one of the best starts in MLB history, winning 13 of his first 15 starts and holding opponents near the Mendoza line. On April 17, he held the Atlanta Braves hitless and started the recent string of pitching prowess.

In early May, last night’s Rays were also on the wrong end of the Oakland Athletics Dallas Braden’s perfect game. Until then, Braden’s only headline grab was declaring the pitching mound his own and off limits to any hitter, especially A-Rod. That day in May, Braden owned the mound, the Rays, and the 19th perfect game in MLB history.

Three weeks later it was Philadelphia Phillie Roy Halladay’s turn, as he shut down the Florida Marlins on his way to perfection and a place in the history books. It marked the shortest span between perfect games in the modern era.

mTwo perfect games in less than a month, and it would have been three were it not for a momentary lapse in judgment on the part of umpire Jim Joyce as mentioned above. That brings us back to Gallaraga and his imperfect perfect game. Joyce’s blown call with two outs in the ninth prevented the Tiger pitcher from joining the perfect party.

The season is not even to the midway point, but it is clear that Dallas Braden is not the only pitcher staking his claim.

Re-printed with permission of the author.

Pat Schueppert is a contributor to Sports Climax who grew up on the frozen tundra and bleeds Green Bay Packer green and gold. The Wisconsin native, while staying loyal to his teams in his home state declares he has never worn a ‘cheesehead’ and “The Bears still suck!”..

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

As the month of June comes to a close, it’s time to reflect on one of the best months in sports in recent memory.  A few of the highlights include:

• The NHL Stanley Cup Finals pitted a Cinderella Story versus one of the Original Six.  The #7 seeded Philadelphia Flyers defied all odds and overcame an insurmountable deficit in their opening playoff series only to reach the Stanley Cup Finals.  It took the Chicago Blackhawks, thirsting for their first sip from the Cup in 49 years, six games to turn this Cinderella into a pumpkin.
• The NBA Finals added another chapter to the storied rivalry between the Lakers and the Celtics.  It was another classic in this lengthy story between two teams that between them own over half of the NBA titles ever won.  The cast of characters included the Celtics’ Big Three (plus Rondo) versus Kobe.   The series went back and forth and lasted seven games, only to conclude with LA adding another banner to the rafters and a ring for Phil’s big toe.
• Golf’s US Open was played at the always breathtaking Pebble Beach Public Course.  The conditions again made some of the world’s greatest golfers look like us common folk.   On Sunday, the leaderboard included a couple lesser knowns, a pair of former Open Champions, Tiger and Ernie Els, and perennial runner-up, Phil Mickelson.  In the end, it was Northern Ireland’s own, Graeme McDowell, who outlasted the field and ended Europe’s 40 year drought without a US Open Champion.
• Wimbledon recently got under way, and despite the Queen’s first visit in 33 years, the talk of the tournament is the epic battle between American John Isner and France’s Nicolas Mahut.  The match lasted over eleven hours and ended with Isner taking the fifth set 70-68.
• The World Cup is in full swing, and despite the best efforts of a few inept referees, the American squad has emerged with their first group stage victory since 1930.  And, all it took was a dramatic goal by Landon Donovan in the 91^st minute that is being called the biggest goal in US soccer history, and I guess what you could call “The Miracle on Spikes”. 

June will be a hard act for July to follow, blow your Vuvuzela to that!

Re-printed with permission of the author.

Pat Schueppert is a contributor to Sports Climax who grew up on the frozen tundra and bleeds Green Bay Packer green and gold. The Wisconsin native, while staying loyal to his teams in his home state declares he has never worn a ‘cheesehead’ and “The Bears still suck!”..

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

SOMEWHERE IN WISCONSIN – The 2010 FIFA World Cup is upon us, and the entire country is pretending to be soccer crazy, including my editor on this website who before this month thought a ‘strike’ in sports only related to ten pins and a  bunch of drunks in a Tennessee bowling alley.

This aberration occurs every four years when everybody jumps on proverbial soccer mom’s minivan, but I refuse to submit to the hype.

It may be the world’s game, but it’s not mine. It’s boring and sucks–which is the least of my “Top 10 things I hate about the World Cup”–besides those f***ing Vuvuzelas!

1. The World Cup is like leap year, in that it occurs every four years. The only difference is it’s much less enjoyable. If it were up to me it would be every forty years, and I would award the upcoming 2050 games to Mars.

2. Players acting as if they have been shot by a sniper when in actuality they have only stubbed their toe. Now I know where Pau Gasol got his acting lessons.

3. Referees who wear ear pieces as if they’re secret service escorting the Pope through the national Boy Scout jamboree. All they need to complete the get up is a bustier with the pointy bra. Strike a pose?

4. Alexi Lalas’ smugness (and hairdo). Lex is the only English speaking person who buys Rosetta Stone to learn English. What do you suppose these announcers do with the other three years and eleven months?

5. Tie games. They’re like kissing your sister*. If I’m going to invest two hours of my life watching a nil-nil (see below) game, I’d rather visit my dentist (which reminds me, I need to make an appointment. It’s been four years, and it’s a more enjoyable use of my time).

6. The use of the stretcher to remove presumably injured (see above) players from the pitch (see below). They should play the M.A.S.H. theme song in the process; I swear I saw Hawkeye and Pierce carting a faker off the other day.

7. It’s called SOCCER. I played football. I love football. Football is a game we, as red-blooded Americans love. You, my friend, are no football. Quit pretending to be a cool sport, and go eat your orange slices.

8. The use of British terms: pace=speed, pitch=field, nil=zero, etc. It’s a bunch of bloody rubbish. See, there I go again. If we’re not careful, we’ll all be talking like Austin Powers and have bad teeth.

9. Those stupid headbands the players wear. They’re OK if you’re a 12 year-old girl, which now that I think about it, go ahead and wear them. They’re all you, dudes!

10. The excessive use of slow motion. Do I really need to see the Dutch coach scratch his balls at half the speed?

* . . . ’like kissing your sister analogy’ does not apply to residents of West Virginia.

MORE FIFA – It’s time for America to embrace FIFA horns &  U.S. ties England 1-1 in FIFA World Cup

Re-printed with permission of the author.

Pat Schueppert is a contributor to Sports Climax who grew up on the frozen tundra and bleeds Packer green and gold. The Wisconsin native, while staying loyal to his teams in his home state declares he has never worn a ‘cheesehead’ and “The Bears still suck!”.

Copyright ©2010 Sports Climax, LLC

MILWAUKEE – In one of the strangest managerial moves in MLB history, the Milwaukee Brewers fired their skipper, Ned Yost this past week.

The fact that a MLB manager was sent packing late in the year is not unusual. Coaches and managers many times get pink slips at the tail end of a season, or even in the middle of the night like in N.Y; but the timing of the move is utterly asinine.

The Brewers are TIED for the wild card lead with 12 games to go.

Yost’s Brewers were mired in their worst slump of the season, and most recently were swept by the Phillies. The Brew Crew has lost 11 of their last 14 games, and has blown a 5 ½ game wild card lead since the beginning of September but are still firmly in the middle of the playoff hunt.

Although I skipped my calculus classes as often as possible throughout my college drinking career, the math to this Brewer’s equation seems simple and calculates to this:

C.C. minus N.Y. = 0 playoffs.

Apparently, the Brewer brain trust feels third base coach, Dale Sveum, who has no major league managing experience, is the answer to their offensive woes. If Coach Sveum takes the next two weeks getting settled into his newly appointed position, like many MLB managers do, the season will be over.

When asked about the untimely move, Brew Crew GM Doug Melvin said, “I’m not sure if I have all the answers, and I’m not sure this is the right one, either.”

What makes this move even more baffling is this is the same front office, who in July, pulled off one of the greatest deadline trades of all time when they dealt coveted prospect, Matt LaPorta to the Indians for stud pitcher CC Sabathia.

In less than a half season worth of work, Sabathia has pitched well enough to be mentioned as a long-shot MVP candidate. Unfortunately, this masterful move may have been negated by today’s move that could trigger a new “Bonehead-of-the-Week” column.

It’s been 26 years since Milwaukee has sniffed the playoffs, and with Sabathia almost certainly lost to free agency upon season’s end, it may be a much longer wait.

After this Brewer’s “shake-up”, the best news today in Cheeseland is . . . the Favre-less Packers are 2-0.

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