[It's LIVE CHAT WEDNESDAY! Click HERE to join us today from noon to 1 p.m. or to post questions early. Also, join the following at Twitter.com/gregcote. Note: See the "PS1: Tampa Bay at Dolphins" post directly below this to comment specifically about Saturday night's preseason opener].
UDONIS' EVENTFUL SUNDAY DRIVE: Florida Highway Patrol stopped Heat veteran Udonis Haslem for speeding on Sunday. Also, for weeding. The apparent distinctive aroma of marijuana emanating from the vehicle led cops to arrest Haslem and a friend and charge both with possession of pot -- although Haslem was cited for having more than 20 grams, a third-degree felony. I'm curious what you all think. Hence, the poll below. Me? Because marijuana use is common throughout the NBA (the commissioner should be Cheech & Chong), the idea that Udonis might smoke doesn't surprise me. Disappointing? Yeah. Especially that he (apparently/allegedly) would drive under the influence. Also, he's a respected veteran and team leader, not some flaky kid-rookie like Michael Beasley. But I think Udonis has built a good enough name to withstand this. I also think there's more to this yet to come out. Already, Haslem's friend has said the pot was his, leading the player's attorney to claim his client will be vindicated. [Monday night update: Haslem released a statement saying, "I am confident that once the judicial process runs its course, I will be cleared.”] Your thoughts welcome.
"I'M-A TAKE MY TALENTS TO SOUTH BEACH" -- THE VIDEO: Click here for a worthwhile new vid by DJ Steve Porter for ESPN's SportsNation show, a montage of sports clips to a hip-hoppy vibe. Good dose of LeBron James and his famous line from "The Decision." D-Wade with some facetime, too. [Tuesday afternoon update: Piece on LeBron in the September GQ (click here) in which King does not rule out ending his career back in Cleveland, post-Heat. Meantime he says Cavs owner Dan Gilbert's infamous decision-night open letter gives him fuel. High octane].
UM BASEBALL DOESN'T PLAY, LOSES: I was down at UM Tuesday to interview Randy Shannon and bumped into Jim Morris, the baseball coach. He was lamenting losing five top recruits to MLB contracts on deadline-day for them to sign. Thought he had a shot at all five, but they followed the money. "We could have been the Miami Heat," he told me, half-kiddingly, "Instead we're the Cleveland Cavaliers." : .
GATOR CAPGATE: Reporter fired for wearing Gators ballcap (she's an alum) to an opposing school's football press conference. She's Renee Gork, fired by Hog Sports Radio two days after wearing her UF chapeau to an Arkansas media session at which coach Bobby Petrino glared and said he'd not answer any more questions from someone in an enemy hat. My scorecard: Reporter was mildly unprofessional for wearing the hat. Coach was OK to say what he did kiddingly, but not mean it. Radio station was was out of bounds for thinking this a firing offense. (Pictured left: A scene from the press conference, minus Gork and the press conference).
OB CLASSIC ALIGNING WITH DISCOVER CARD: After two decades as the FedEx Orange Bowl Classic, the annual college football bowl game's new title sponsor will be Discover Card, according to a CNBC report today. You know I hate corporate sponsors in stadium, arena and event names and don't use them in columns. Discover Card strikes me as a B-list alignment. It's fourth-banana in its field behind American Express, Visa and MasterCard, and its previous most prominent sponsorships have been with the second-tier Arena Football League and WNBA.
DUSTIN JOHNSON'S BRAIN FART: Dustin Johnson gave away the PGA Championship yesterday because of a two-stroke penalty for touching the blade of his club on a sand trap prior to striking the ball. Now golf is full of sometimes maddening persnickety rules, and this might be one, but Johnson blew it here. Wasn't the PGA Tour's fault. Wasn't the fault of officials on the course. It was the player's fault. Period.
FOR THE HIGH-FASHION LUMBERJACK?: It has come to my attention that companies once associated only with pricey high fashion are now delving into blue-collar products (see photo). You'd buy this product, for example, if your shopping list included a pampered celebrity who eschews a gardening staff and chooses to prune the trees on his estate himself.
[Click back. Will be adding much more stuff to this post shortly and throughout the day...]
THE LIST: DOLPHIN PRESEASON OPENERS: Did some research to discern whether there is any correlation at all between winning or losing the exhibition opener and the season that follows. Conclusion: No correlation. Closer to the opposite. Of note, Miami lost its exhibition opener the year of the 1972 Perfect Season, and won in 2007 before going 1-15. The overall results from 1966-2009:
When Miami wins exhibition opener (20 times):
12 winning seasons
6 losing seasons
2 .500 seasons
9 playoff appearances
When Miami loses exhibition opener (23 times):
17 winning seasons
3 losing seasons
3 .500 seasons
13 playoff appearances
Note: Miami tied its exhibition opener once and a losing sesaon followed.
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