College Softball World Series Shows True Sports Spirit (Because It Has To)

Here's one I admit that will label me a real laugher among the working press and the sporting public.

Doing without television these days, I tune into ESPN 3 (a freebie through my AT&T U-Verse account) to watch assorted sporting events. Admittedly, most contests are the obscure type that few sporting fans would "give a darn" about.

Case in point: The College Softball World Series tournament.

I admit I tuned it in because I was kind of bored. Bored with so much i hear in the mainstream, major-sports world. There's the NFL lockout. Greed. There's the NBA Finals. Big-name, prestigious, and seemingly "larger-than-life" sports figures. There's Major-League Baseball. And all the egos that go along with it.

In any mainstream sports, there's a plethora of the working press and the assorted media. There's the sheer mass of fans. There's a lot of people involved or caught up in a lot of big things.

Ironically, I feel, perhaps the heart of what true sport is about can get lost in all that commotion.

I see something different when I watch the current College Softball World Series tournament unfolding. I admit I never saw -- or had a bit of interest in -- college softball. Who in their right sporting mind would? No one I've known.

But when I see these games, I see these young people who must be dedicated to the sport itself. There's no fame. There's no fortune. There's no publicity for their achievements. There's few rewards for what they do, except the pride that must come with true athletic competition. Notably, I was impressed with the Alabama Crimson Tide, and they quickly became the one I'm pulling for (especially after the devastating Tuscaloosa tornado damage).

Most of these young ladies won't go to the Olympics. I researched Professional Softball Leagues, and that looks quite lean. So, the College Softball World Series represents the summit of their playing careers. And it's reflected by their level of play which matches any you'll in any major college or professional sports.

Consider the teams' supporters as well. Look at the home crowds. There's an air that's different from other major sporting events. Even fellow-college events. It seems like tight-knit groups. Family, friends, classmates and alumni. There's a noted lack of ugliness that can often mark sporting crowds, as we all know.

There's not the proverbial masses. There's not fans living their lives through the teams and players, or needing them to provide them with their own self esteem. And such audiences appear to really watch the game, instead of being at "an event," as can be in other major sports.

Women's college athletics are among the "who gives a darn" in sports. Since such aren't revenue generators, then only the sport itself apparently matters. Again, I find the College Softball World Series as a good change of pace from the egos, greed, personalities and various characteristics that make the game itself secondary to the institution of the sport.
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The NCAA College Softball World Series bracket can be found here:
http://www.ncaa.com/brackets/softball/d1/2011

LeBron James And Dirk Nowitzki: The Bigger They Are, The Harder They Fall

Although I don't follow the NBA, I'm aware of what goes on through sports-talk radio. Also, by catching the playoff games online through ESPN3.com and NBA.com, I've seen both the Miami Heat's and the Dallas Mavericks' recent contests.

I'm not a sports guru for sure, but I am an observer of human nature. As I see it, both LeBron James And Dirk Nowitzki are currently exalted. They're both placed at the top of the game. As such, I'd advise they enjoy where they are right now. While they can.

Because, for one of them, that level of prestige will prove fleeting.

The sporting world, the working press and the public embraces winners. On the contrary, the same group shuns the losers. This Series will be the classic clash of the Titans. One team will win. The other team will lose. There's no gray area. And no forgiveness for the latter.

Call me pessimistic, which I feel I'm not, but I feel the "hero and the bum" scenario coming on with James and Nowitzki. The member of the winning team will be credited for earning the victory -- and celebrated. The member of the losing team will be blamed for the failure -- and slammed. Especially in how he "let so many people down." Those who're dependant on such to give them their own pride, self-worth and self-esteem. You know how well supposedly "loving, loyal fans" can turn sour! And turn on their "heroes."

Both players are now very big. And, by the time the championships are decided, the harder at least one of them will fall. Welcome to what i perceive as the often fickle, but predictable, nature of major sports.

Perhaps what I've noted above is ridiculous because I sound clueless about such major sports. This always goes on, and I just realized that? But I see the James and Nowitzki, "hero and bum" scenario emerging as the real story -- and the epitome -- of what this Series will be about. When all is said and done.
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