GREG COTE'S RANDOM EVIDENCE BLOG: MIAMI. SPORTS. AND BEYOND
1) It's MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 7. Happy Labor Day, all! Please remember: COVID-19 doesn't take the holiday off. Be safe. Be smart. 2) The Greg Cote Show podcast is now separately on Twitter and Instagram. Follow us on both! 3) In The Previous Blogpost (ITPB): Kirk Cousins' cavalier comments on pandemic, Our columns off Heat-Bucks Games 1 and 2, Greg Cote Show podcast Episode 26 & more. 4) Join us on Twitter and Instagram.
GREG COTE SHOW PODCAST: NEW EPISODE 27 STARRING CHUCK TODD OUT NOW!: Our Miami Herald podcast, "The Greg Cote Show With Greg Cote," debuted in March and we're back with new Episode 27, out now! New episodes drop early every Monday morning on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, Megaphone, iHeart or wherever you pod, and of course at MiamiHerald.com. Find all 27 we've done so far RIGHT HERE for free! Please listen, subscribe, rate and review. In new Ep26 we welcome in very special guest Chuck Todd, the NBA Meet the Press moderator who also happens to be Miami born and raised and a huge Hurricanes fans. He talks growing up in the 3-0-5, UM football and also a bit of politics. What was his pinch-me moment? The answer will surprise you. Greg and Chris also talk Heat-Bucks. And of course there's a new Mount Gregmore -- the royal J's. Here all that and more on the the Greg Cote Show podcast now!
Our most recent columns: 'If I Die, I Die.' QB Cousins' Shamefully Cavalier Attitude On Pandemic and our columns off Heat-Bucks Games 1 and 2: Lifting Spirits And A City: Heat, Up 2-0, Continue Pandemic Playoff Run and Heat Beat Bucks In Game 1, In A Series Also About '21 Free Agency. Also: Boycott Of NBA Playoffs Shows Nation That Injustice Is Bigger Than Sports Right Now and Having Fans at Dolphins, Canes Games A Bad Idea And Big Risk.
HOT BUTTON TOP 10 (SEPTEMBER 6-7): WHAT SOUTH FLORIDA SPORTS FANS ARE TALKING ABOUT: Our blog-exclusive Sunday-into-Monday feature is part week-in-review, part look-ahead. Hot Button means what's on our minds, locally and nationally, from a Miami perspective, as the sports week just past pivots to the week ahead. This week's HB10:
1. HEAT: Broom denied, but Miami still up 3-1 on Milwaukee: Underdog fifth-seed Heat were denied a series sweep Sunday but still hold a commanding 3-1 lead over top-seeded Bucks in NBA Eastern Conference semifinals. Heat go for the win and a ticket to the East finals in Game 5 Tuesday if necessary. Miami last reached the East finals in 2014, the last season of LeBron and the Big 3.
2. HURRICANES: College football is back! Miami opens Thursday night: The Canes open their season vs. 16-point underdog UAB (Alabama-Birmingham) Thursday night at 8 at Hard Rock Stadium, where coronavirus protocols will limit attendance to a max 20 percent of capacity, or 13,000. Seven Top 25 teams are in action this coming week including No. 1 Clemson at Wake Forest. The only state school in action besides UM is Florida State hosting Georgia Tech next Saturday.
3. DOLPHINS/NFL: Rosen released, now, ready or not: Kickoff in 6 days: Dolphins open their 55th season and first in a pandemic next Sunday at New England with Ryan Fitzpatrick again expected under center as rookie first-rounder Tua Tagovailoa waits his turn. Miami cut third-stringer Josh Rosen on Friday after failing to find a trade partner. Opener will be instant measure of Miami's improvement and a new AFC East after offseason that saw Patriots decimated by Tom Brady's departure and coronavirus opt-outs. The quick test for Fins's improved defense? One Cam Newton. King Sport kicks off this Thursday night with Houston at champ Kansas City.
4. MARLINS: Alcantara helps end skid vs. Rays, then Fish fall Sunday: Nifty outing by Sandy Alcantara lifted Miami on Saturday and ended a nine-game losing streak vs. Tampa Bay. But then Fish fell Sunday to tumble 17-18 in midst of six-game road trip that heads now to Atlanta. Miami has fallen to third in NL East but is still in the hunt. Trade-deadline acquisition of outfielder Starling Marte added a potent bat to the lineup to aid the playoff push.
5. NBA: Yes, there are three other playoff series, and all are tied: Miami awaits winner of Boston-Toronto, which leveled at 2-2 Saturday with Raptors' second straight win; Game 5 is tonight. Out west, L.A. Clippers and Denver are tied 1-1- after Nuggets' win Saturday, with Game 3 tonight. Houston and James Harden and LeBron's L.A. Lakers are tied 1-1, with Game 3 Tuesday.
6. INTER MIAMI: Expansion team goes nil-nil with Nashville: Inter Miami is 1-6-2 after a second straight 0-0 draw, this Sunday night at home vs. fellow expansion team Nashville. Game marked the Miami debut of Blaise Matuidi, formerly of reigning Italian champions Juventus and before that Paris St. Germain. Of greater note: Inter Miami reportedly is close to agreeing to terms with Juventus striker Gonzalo Higuain. It would be the biggest signing yet for David Beckham's struggling first-year club.
7. HORSE RACING: Authentic with big upset win in Kentucky Derby: Authentic outraced heavy favorite Tiz the Law to win the 146th Kentucky Derby on Saturday at Churchill Downs. With John Velazquez aboard, Authentic led from start to finish to give trainer Bob Baffert his record-tying sixth Derby champion in the race delayed by four months. There were protests outside track over the Breonna Taylor killing by Louisville police.
8. GOLF: U.S. Open gets under way Thursday: The virus-delayed U.S. Open is this coming Thursday through next Sunday at Winged Foot in New York. Betting favorites are Dustin Johnson along with Jon Rahm, Bryson DeChambeau, Rory McIlroy and Brooks Koepka. Tiger Woods is tied for seventh favorites, because a stunning number of bets are placed by sentiment ad hope.
9. TENNIS: Depleted U.S. Open reaches its midpoint with Djokovic controversy: Faced with her earliest ouster at the U.S. Open since her debut 22 years ago, Serena Williams rallied from a set down to beat American rival Sloane Stephens 2-6, 6-2, 6-2 in the delayed, no-fans major. Serena stays alive in hunt for her record-tying 24th major at the open's midpoint. Sunday, men's favorite Novak Djokovic was ousted by default after he hit a ball in anger that struck a line judge in the neck.
10. NHL: Final four! Conference finals set: The Florida Panthers filled their general manager opening by hiring Bill Zito away from the Columbus Blue Jackets. Teams not needing to fire their GM because they're really good: the NHL's Final Four! Out west, Dallas took a 1-0 lead on Vegas Sunday. In the East, Tampa Bay and N.Y. Islanders begin skating Monday. Meanwhile, yet another year of no Stanley Cup for Canada.
Missing the HB10 cut: NASCAR's 16-driver playoffs get underway Sunday at Darlington. Kevin Harvick and Denny Hamlin are betting favorites among the field qualified for the 10-race playoffs that end with the Championship Four racing for the season crown Nov. 8 in Phoenix, ending Homestead's 18-year run as title-race host ..... Lionel Messi is staying at Barcelona! It ends a week's tempest of his own doing. (Keep his phone number handy anyway, David Beckham) ..... Vikings QB Kirk Cousins, who doubts the efficacy of mask-wearing, says, "If I die, I die." About a coronavirus pandemic that has already killed more than 185,000 Americans. What a cavalier, callous expression from a supposed team leader ..... The Tour de France is at its midpoint and I can't bring myself to pretend I've heard of a single cyclist ..... Match made in gambling heaven: Michael Jordan is a new equity partner in DraftKings ..... Welcome to Twitter, Vin Scully! Social media does not deserve but dearly needs your civility ..... Brooklyn Nets hired Steve Nash as new coach ..... Florida Panthers owner Vincent Viola was named a part of a new NHL anti-racism initiative ..... The Greg Cote Show podcast's new Episode 27 is out Monday morning ..... R.I.P. to the greatest Met of all, Tom Seaver, gone at 75 ..... Update: Countdown now 2,122 days (give or take) until Miami hosts its first match in soccer's 2026 World Cup. We will all still be six feet apart then?
Most recent other columns: Pat Riley's Grand Plan On Track As Heat Close In On Playoff Advance / For Marlins, A Home Opener -- And First Place -- In Mid-August / Fractured College Football Mirrors America's Divide On How to Handle a Pandemic / Fall Without Football: Big Ten, Pac-12 Set Moral Compass for NFL, Others to Follow / As Panthers Move on From Tallon, Who's Next Miami Team Executive on Hot Seat? / and 'Perfect Storm For Virus Transmission': Why Football Is Struggling to Lift Off.
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THE COTE ARCHIVES:
Marlins Hell Week Trilogy: Are Marlins To Blame For Own Outbreak? If So It Would Mirror America's Struggle / Marlins Outbreak Worsens, Sports Should Rethink Playing Again in 2020 / and Marlins Delaying Home Opener For COVID Outbreak a Scary Lesson For All Sports.
Special Don Shula tribute: Don Shula, 1930-2020, R.I.P. / and What Shula Meant to a Father & Son. They Boy Was Me.
George Floyd-related: Sports' Gradual Return Offers America Relief We Desperately Need / It Took George Floyd To Finally Wake Up White America / Goodell's NFL Response to Floyd Killing Is Hypocrisy At Its Most Ironic / and George Floyd Is Why Kaepernick & Sports Must Continue Fight For Social Justice
Other most recent columns: Here's Why Nobody Should Rule Out Heat Reaching NBA Finals / Marlins and Dolphins, In a Race For Relevance, Offer Hope At a Time We Need That / When Will Dolphins Unleash Tua? Exploring the Timetable as Rookies Report / Sports Resume, But Major Concerns Complicate Opening of Football Training Camps / He Made a Mistake, But Miami Knows Who Dwyane Wade Is And Knows It By Heart / Marlins Captain Miguel Rojas On Pandemic And Playoffs As Baseball Returns / Rest In Pieces, Redskins. Now Here Are Sports' Other Suspect Nicknames / 'Redskins Is Racist Nickname Based On a Lie. Time For It to Disappear / Money Or Health? NFL and Major College Football Face A Decision / Tough Times All Around, But Rise Of Miami Sports Offers Hope / The Face Of Miami Sports in 2020: Our Top 20 And Who's No.1 / Time to Abort Season Restarts and Call Off Sports For Rest Of 2020 / Uh-oh. Cam Newton means Belichick and Patriots Are Back / Saving the National Anthem From Sporting-Event Extinction / Baseball Joins In With Restart Plan. But Is Sports Walking Into a Giant Mess? / Noose Left For NASCAR's Bubba Wallace's Only Grows Resolve to End Racial Hatred / and Team That Signs Kaepernick Will Be Champions Of the Street
Select columns from earlier in 2020: Amid Pandemic And Protests, 'America's Pastime' Is Letting American Down / Return Of Sports Promises Historic TV Smorgasbord / Homestead Is Test Lab As NASCAR Gradually Welcomes Back Fans / R.I.P. Kurt Thomas, an American Gymnastics Pioneer / MLB Players Demanding More Millions, Right Now, Is A Bad Look / Amid a Pandemic, An Outrage in Alamance County / Welcome to Sports Without Fans, the New Normal / As NBA, MLB Plot Return, We Miss Them -- Yet Sports Have Never Seemed More Trivial / Anticipation of Relevance, Excitement Is Tua's Gift to Miami / Hall of Famer Andre Dawson On Baseball and Owning a Funeral Home Amid COVID-19 / Dolphins Aim High, Win Big With Tua Tagovailoa Pick / Greg Cote's 2020 NFL Mock Draft / Coronavirus, Tua Make This Dolphins' Weirdest, Most Interesting Draft Ever / NFL Draft Will Offer Blunt Verdict on Canes' Talent / Ultimate All-Time South Florida Major Sports Trivia Challenge / Sports Should Stop Pretending It Will Resume Anytime Soon As Coronovirus Rages / How a Longtime Herald Sport Writer Came to Own a Top Contender in Florida Derby / Time for NBA, NHL to Shut it Down, End Seasons / Le Batard Show Deals with Coronavirus-Related Upheaval / Brady Leaving Patriots for Tampa. Will Belichick Be Proved Right In Letting Him Go? / Miami Sports Now Utterly Engulfed By Coronavirus Threat -- But Precaution Is Justified / Inter Miami Is Market's Sleeping Giant As Home Opener Nears / Jeter Arrives At Camp, Calls Marlins 'Layered With Talent' / Dwyane Wade, His Transgender Daughter And A Lesson In Love / Time For Anonymous Lone Voter Who Denied Jeter To Step Forward / Heat And Gloriously Impatient Riley Win In Trade For Iguodala / Return Of Ed Reed, Even If Mostly Symbolic, Leads Surge By Canes Football / Kobe's Death Sends Sports World Reeling, But Immortality Is His / Jimmy Johnson's Biggest Triumph? Knowing When To Quit -- And Why / Announcing Miami Dolphins' 2010-19 All-Decade Team / and two-part series on how Dolphins' Glory Day happened: How One Man Long Forgotten Changed Everything For the Miami Dolphins and How Shula Made Dolphins Perfect and Made Miami Matter, And the Coach Today at 90
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Revisit this blog often because it updates regularly. The Associated Press Sports Editors writing awards ranked the blog's author a Top 10 national sports columnist in the major-outlet category. Greg is also a regular on the Dan Le Batard Show With Stugotz on ESPN Radio. Finding Greg Cote: Twitter. Instagram. Facebook. Columns. Podcast. Podcast on Twitter. Podcast on Instagram. LeBatard Show. Book: Fins At 50. Songs: Letting Go (audio) and The Ballad Of 1440 (video).
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