"In Defense of Ryan Braun" by Charles P. Pierce - Grantland.com

I didn't get a chance to read this but I trust Charles Pierce and some of my dudes got all riled up about it today so I say read it. I haven't been really following this story but I don't see how if the dude didn't get any bigger or heavier or faster or whatever, how could he have been doing steroids? I'm no scientist but that shit doesn't make any sense to me. Was he taking duds? Because taking shitty steroids shouldn't be illegal. Dude's just shrinking his nuts with no upside. My two cents.

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/7620049/in-defense-ryan-braun

"Black Voters Told 'Relax, Don't Vote'" by Sherrilyn A. Ifill - TheRoot.com

The internet Gods took the day off. That being said, I just found this, and ... holy shit! Worth a read, worth a listen. Real-life Baltimore politicians make Baltimore politicians in The Wire look like George Washington. "I can not tell a lie, sir. I sent an automated phone message to to 110,000 mostly black households three hours before the 2010 elections ended telling people to "relax" and stay home because there's no need to vote tonight, "Obama has been succesful."

That's dirty pool.

Of course, if you were wondering about it, Obama wasn't on the ballot in the 2010 elections, so maybe if that voicemail put your mind at ease it's better you left the voting responsibilities to an (even mildly) informed electorate?

I don't know. Still though. Holy shit!

http://www.theroot.com/views/black-voters-told-relax-don-t-vote

"Jerry Sandusky, Joe Paterno, and Why Good People Fail to Do the Right Thing" -Deadspin.com

This Penn State shit blows my mind. Like really, really gets to me. Professional clowns, high school art teachers, swim coaches. These are the people you expect to be buttfucking little boys. Not legendary defensive coordinators at revered football institutions who make their name on "doing the right thing." Like, Sandusky was just so brazen about it too. He didn't get a hotel. He didn't lure little Johnny into his rape basement where no one could possibly find him and there would always be plausible deniability.

No. He buttfucked kids, kids, right in the goddam Penn State locker room. With no closed doors, and apparently enough people milling around that some poor graduate assistant could walk in on his old pervert balls just slapping away.

Fuck that guy. If this is all true, I hope he goes to prison and gets raped right back. Hard and repeatedly. I do. His crimes are about the worst you can commit. There are good reasons in this life to murder someone. (He raped your ten year old child, for example.) There are no good reasons to sexually abuse a kid.

And Joe Paterno, if he knew about it, and it sounds like he sure as shit did, then fuck JoePa too. Fucking hypocrite grandad asshole. Nice all-time wins record bro, hope you enjoy the mention of pedophilia in the first paragraph of your obituary. Just disgusting.

http://deadspin.com/5857014/jerry-sandusky-joe-paterno-and-the-failure-of-adult-institutions-everywhere

p.s. Ask me how I really feel.

"The Impossible, Inevitable Redemption of Micahel Vick" by Will Leitch - GQ.com

Don't have a lot of time to post but wanted to get this up. It's an interview with/profile of Mike Vick in the newest GQ. He says a bunch of controversial stuff and quotes from this interview will be everywhere by tonight. Haven't given it a good gander yet though. Anyway, you heard it here first.

http://www.gq.com/sports/profiles/201109/michael-vick-gq-september-2011-interview

"Nevin Shapiro's Revelations Leave Miami Staring at a Football Program's Death" - BigLeadSports.com

Miami is royally screwed. They did all sorts of bad stuff. But I'll tell you what the real crime was here. Miami was doing all this under-the-table shit and they've still sucked for the past ten years. Like, if you're gonna cheat, cheat to win. Christ, you'd think they'd have that down by now. It's The U after all. They basically invented this shit. Shame.

Insightful article on the "scandal" by BigLeadSports here. Don't think we've ever posted them before. Good stuff.

http://thebiglead.com/index.php/2011/08/17/nevin-shapiros-revelations-leave-miami-staring-at-football-programs-death/

thanks to JDR

"Blindsided: The Jerry Joseph Basketball Scandal" by Michael J. Mooney - GQ.com

So this 22-year-old cat named Guerdwich Monimere popped up at Permian High in Texas (yes that Permian High) a few years back claiming he was 16. And everybody believed him and he ended up wrecking shop in high school basketball until getting found out. Probably laid the shlong on some underage bitties too, but that is neither here nor there.

This story is pretty much my dream (sans the statutory rape part of course(of course!)). Feel like I could play the four real hot right now in the high school ranks. Granted I have no handle, shot, or basketball savvy. So what. I'd just plant my 30-year, barrel chested ass under the basket and rock the boards like a shorter, fatter, whiter Rodman in his prime. Get a few put-back garbage buckets. Have you seen 16 year olds these days? They look like they're 12. I'd swat those little bitches away like flies. I'd be a 20-10 guy (20 boards). Probably get myself a scholarship somewhere big time. Maybe go pro. I dunno. The world's your oyster when you're in you're pretending to be 16.

http://www.gq.com/sports/profiles/201107/jerry-joseph-scandal-hs-basketball

"Pryor's departure could help save Ohio State from sins of Tressel era" by Andy Staples - SI.com

Andy Staples finds a different angle on the Terrelle Pryor case. Kind of vindicates the kid. Interesting article, well researched. Let's hope Pryor doesn't turn out like Maurice Clarett.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/writers/andy_staples/06/07/terrelle.pryor.leaves.ohio.state/index.html?eref=sihp&sct=hp_t12_a2

p.s. best way to remember how to spell Terrelle Pryor's name? It's the fanciest way to spell Terrelle you can think of. Two R's, Two L's, and and E. You'll never forget it now. Even if everyone forgets about him.

"SI investigation reveals eight-year pattern of violations under Tressel " By George Dohrmann with David Epstein - SI.com

You may have heard a little about this story if you have testicles and/or haven't been living under a rock studying for the CFA exam for the past two months. Big scandal at the THE Ohio State University. Tressel stepping down. Tattoos for all. Can't wait for this all to pan out. Mainly because as my man Glennzo recently said, "It's going to come out that boosters paid for Terrelle Pryor to have sex dungeons or something." No, it really is.

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2011/magazine/05/30/jim.tressel/index.html?eref=sihp&sct=hp_t12_a2

p.s. If you havent' seen the South Park from last week that just nailed the NCAA right in the poopshoot, you need to get on that like now.