This hasn't been a good day to be a Hoosier.  Forget about the close loss to Wisconsin tonight.  With the multiple rule violations that the NCAA alleged against the university (and most specifically head coach Kelvin Sampson), I'm just embarrassed to have a diploma from Indiana University tonight.

For years, we could always hold our head high and say that, regardless of our on-court performance (which was usually pretty good anyways), we kept it clean.  There was never any hint of impropriety.  No longer.  Now we're just another NCAA school, playing the same dirty game that the worst of the worst is engaging in.

Don't get me wrong; I knew this was coming at some point, and likely sooner rather than later.  Unlike our esteemed athletic director, Rick Greenspan, I was actually aware of Sampson's sordid history at Oklahoma (amazingly, at the press conference announcing his hiring, my brother asked Greenspan if he was worried about Sampson's history, and Greenspan acted like he was completely unaware of his past).  I knew the lengths to which Sampson would push the boundaries of the NCAA rules, and I wasn't surprised that the NCAA came back in 2007 and alleged that Sampson had continued his improper behavior while at Indiana.

What upsets me is that it didn't have to be this way.  Not to be arrogant, but we're freaking Indiana University; we shouldn't have to resort to hiring a coach with such a shady past.  I know that the school pursued Texas head coach Rick Barnes.  I don't think he's a particularly fantastic game coach, and his teams aren't always the most exciting, but he runs a pretty clean and successful program.  Why Sampson and not Barnes?  Why not another coach?  Was Sampson really the only option out there for us?

The problem now is that Sampson's probably not going anywhere.  Greenspan's already made one major mistake when he didn't fire Mike Davis when he should have.  Had he fired him after the 2005 season, they would likely have had a great shot of getting Thad Matta as their head coach.  Instead, they allowed the 2005-2006 season to become a complete fiasco, due mostly to Davis' instability.  Sampson is Greenspan's guy.  If he fires Sampson, it's a clear admission that he screwed up yet again, and he'll likely be following Sampson out the door.

So, until school president Michael McRobbie decides to say enough is enough and fire Greenspan, this cluster is going to continue.  And the reputation of Indiana basketball is going to sink further and further.  Meanwhile, the NCAA is just licking its chops, waiting for its chance to nail the school to the wall.

I didn't even bother to watch the game tonight.  I actually wanted this team to lose.  How screwed up is that?  I want my alma mater to lose out the rest of the season, just to stick it to Sampson.

I don't want Bob Knight back; he wore out his welcome and we just got tired of defending him anymore.  The Davis era, that I don't want to relive.  It's time for a whole new regime.  It's time for a fresh start.

For now, I'm just embarrassed to be a Hoosier.

Two facial injuries within ten days to each other, one to a referee and another to Florida Panther player Richard Zednik has some calling for neck guards in the NHL.

Jassen Cullimore, Zednik's teammate who helped him off the ice after Zednik had his necck slit open by a blade felt that a neck guard is something to be worn by junior or amatuer players but not the pros.  Cullimore himself has scars on his neck where blades have almost cut his neck had this to say.

“I’ve gotten skates up there,” Cullimore said. “It’s just something that happens. You could wear a whole armor suit out, there but you’re still going to have broken bones and stuff like that.”

Zednik was cut during the third period Sunday in Buffalo when Panther captain Olli Jokinen was upended and his skate swung up, hitting Zednik in the right side of the neck, nearly severing his carotid artery. He underwent emergency surgery and required five units of blood, and is recovering in a hospital. The accident happened almost 20 years after Sabres goaltender Clint Malarchuk severed his jugular vein when an opposing player’s skate clipped him. He also recovered.

NASCAR waited until it took the death of someone like racing great Dale Earnhardt to mandate the neck harnass which had been suggested several years earlier.

But since hockey is such a macho sport where goalie's didn't even wear masks until the 1960's it might take someone getting killed before they are willing to make a neck guard part of the sport.

A year and a few days ago two former PRIDE superstars were about to enter the UFC’s Octagon for the first time at UF 67: All or Nothing. Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic and Quinton “Rampage” Jackson were set to come over and take the UFC by storm.

Rampage was brought over because of his charismatic attitude and because he was the only loss on Chuck Liddell’s record that hadn’t been avenged. Rampage is renowned for being a funny goofball, always cracking jokes. He will always give you a great interview, and is always entertaining.

Cro Cop is famous for kicking people in the head.  He knocked out Wanderlei Silva with a left high kick and split Silva’s head open. He is very dry, stubborn, shows little emotion, rarely takes interviews and would be a great stand in for a serial killer in a horror movie. Cro Cop is a scary dude. He was an anti-terrorism police officer in Croatia, he currently serves on the Parliament there.

Both men were victorious that night. But the similarities between them end.

After that night, Rampage was given a title fight with Liddell. Rampage quickly disposed of Chuck via strikes. He then went on to defend his title against his good friend, Dan Henderson. Rampage is 3-0 in the UFC with 2 KO’s and a title belt. He is set to be one of the coaches on the next season of The Ultimate Fighter, and then defends his belt against Forrest Griffin. Signing with the UFC is probably the best decision Rampage has ever made.

Cro Cop’s next fight was against Gabriel Gonzaga with the winner set to face then UFC Heavyweight Champion, Randy Couture. Gonzaga used Cro Cop’s stubbornness against him. In PRIDE, where Cro Cop spent virtually his entire career, you could not throw elbows to a downed opponent. In the UFC, it is legal and one of the best tools a fighter has. Cro Cop, a kick boxer, never did much ground training. It quickly backfired on him as Gonzaga took him down and elbows came down like rain on Seattle. The two were then stood up, a questionable move that was thought to give the advantage to Cro Cop. Then BAM! It happened, left high kick, just as many predicted.

Most guessed the end correctly, but very few got the winner right. Gonzaga was the one who unleashed the kick, and Cro Cop was the one knocked out cold. When he landed, Cro Cop’s leg bent awkwardly. It looked bad enough that referee Herb Dean had to look away when he adjusted his leg. Just like that, Cro Cop had been changed forever.

Cro Cop went on to lose a decision to Cheick Kongo the same night Rampage defeated Dan Henderson. After the loss, Cro Cop contemplated retirement. He was set to make a big announcement this week, and everyone was split on whether it was the end of Cro Cop, or that he was leaving the UFC. It was the latter.

Wednesday in Tokyo, Cro Cop announced he had left the UFC and had joined the upstart DREAM organization. The man who was supposed to dominate the UFC, was leaving it 1-2. In 3 years in PRIDE, Cro Cop lost 4 times, in 7 months in the UFC, he lost twice. When Cro Cop was in PRIDE, it had all the top heavyweights, the division was stacked.

Cro Cop leaving the UFC is like Albert Pujols going to Japan and not starting for a team. This is like Peyton Manning moving to the CFL and being a 3^rd string QB. PRIDE was thought to have better fighters than the UFC. Mirko was one of the first to come over, and one of the worst failures. Moving to the UFC was the worst move Mirko Cro Cop ever made.

UFC 67: All Or Nothing proved to be correctly titled. Rampage was given a huge opportunity and took it all. He is the reigning UFC Light-heavyweight Champion, is a coach on TUF and is one of the most popular fighters in the UFC. Cro Cop was given a similar opportunity and took nothing. He lost, wussed out, and left. Sadly, most fans will remember him getting KO’d by Gabriel Gonzaga, and losing a decision to Cheick Kongo rather than his dominance in PRIDE. A legend withered away in the prime of his career.

And Tom Davis while we're at it.  Listening to these pompous, self-serving imbeciles ramble on about "protecting the children" is intolerable.  It's not about the children, it's about wasting everyone's time and money on a relatively insignificant issue while subjects of far greater importance are placed on the back burner.  How about clearing neighborhoods of drugs like crack?  How about finding Osama Bin Laden?  How about reducing the national deficit?  How about anything that really makes a difference?  No, that would be hard, and this is easy.

After all, what's the point of all these Congressional hearings?  To find out if Clemens ever took PEDs?  We may never get the full truth on that.  Or is it so the politicians can get face time on numerous TV channels, looking good by scolding baseball for its misdeeds?  Now we're on to something.  This is about politicians being politicians, working for themselves instead of for us.

End this joke, please, Mr. Waxman, and go do some real work.