Carrying the torch, well actually holding it

So what do I have in common with the 1980 USA hockey team, Muhammad Ali, Sidney Crosby, and even Shania Twain?

We have all carried the Olympic Torch. Granted they got to carry it when it was lit.

Today while attending a seminar held by the College of Charleston, I got to hold a torch from the 1996 and 2002 Olympic Games. Sharon Kingman (a CofC graduate might I add) is the director of a consulting firm that works with most Olympic Games. While she was speaking, all I could think about was running up there and grabbing one of the torches. When she finally finished, I powered walked to the stage and grabbed one.

As I held that torch, I felt something.

While I took the time to examine and marvel at each torch, I could not stop thinking about the famous people in history who have carried an Olympic Torch.

 In the 1964 Summer Games in Tokyo a man by the name of Yoshinori Sakai took on the task of carrying the torch. Being a well renown track and field athlete, there was no doubt he was worthy of carrying the torch. What makes his story different is how it began.

Being born on the day the atom bomb exploded is something to remember, but being born on the day the atom bomb exploded over his hometown Hiroshima is a different story. A day in which thousands lost their lives, Sakai started his. Sakai was the symbol of Japan's postwar reconstruction and peace.

Or what about Rafer Johnson? A gold medalist in the 1960 Olympic Games in the men's decathlon event. He was chosen to carry the torch in 1984, 24 years after his gold-medal performance. Like Sakai he was deserving to carry the torch just based on his athletic achievements. But as he climbed up the stairs at the Los Angeles Coliseum and lit the flame he wasn't only representing himself, he was representing all African Americans.

You see, Johnson was the first African American to carry the torch. He represented a race of people who had fought for their rights and won. He was the symbol of American equality.

I could go on and on with stories of torch carriers who each have their own stories, but to put it simply the Olympic Games are unifying. It's the only time we can throw politics and foreign affairs out the window and watch each athlete try and represent their country to the best of his or her ability.                                
                                                                                                                    
So yeah, I felt something while holding that torch, its called unity.
                                                                                                                             

Helping My Blog Get Noticed, Try It

Search Engine Submission - AddMe

Storming the court? Against Wofford?

Andrew Goudelocke.
82-79.
#9 North Carolina.
Carolina First Arena.

For any College of Charleston fan or anyone that watches college basketball in general, figuring out what those words mean are fairly simple. For those of you who live under a rock: This year on January 4, 2010 the College of Charleston upset #9 North Carolina at the Carolina First Arena in Charleston, SC.

As with any upset, everyone knew the fans/students (mostly students) would storm the basketball court after the final horn. Deservedly so, their Cougars had just pulled off one of the biggest upsets of the entire season.

Some even compared it with the Michigan-Appalachian State football upset two years ago.

But this past weekend when the College of Charleston defeated conference opponent Wofford 70-68, the students/fans thought it was appropriate to storm the court again. Granted the game was televised nationally on ESPN2, and granted that Wofford had upsets the likes of South Carolina and Georgia this season.

But Wofford?

Matt Norlander of Rivals.com said it best. "Wofford, a 13-8 powerhouse and fellow SoCon resident of C of C, made the unfortunate mistake of thinking it could come into the Cougars' house and run game. You make that kind of error, and you will pay for it".

As a CofC student this kind of mockery kinda upsets me. Our student section storming the court became a joke to sports networks such as Rivals.com and even ESPN.
.
And deservedly so, there was no reason to storm the court. NONE.

Being 8-0 in the conference, a win over Wofford, who was third in the SOCON standings, wasn't a huge victory for the college. It was a game that CofC was expected and supposed to win. It wasn't a surprise.

The only defense these networks have for CofC is that they think maybe it was poking fun at the other universities around the nation, who seem to make "storming the court" an every-game event. Hey ESPN and Rivals, it wasn't a joke. Most of the students here would not even understand the sarcasm in it.

Every time fans/students storm the court, it should be one worthy of a court storming. You aren't showing your team any respect by going crazy like they just won the national championship after beating a mediocre team.

So how bout next time we beat Francis Marion or USC Upstate how bout lets not storm the court. Our conference opponents don't deserve a court storming.

Maybe a conference title in March or a win over next year's home match with Tennessee. But no, not Wofford.




Links for articles:

http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/basketball/blog/the_dagger/post/College-of-Charleston-pulls-off-meta-filled-cour?urn=ncaab,215331

http://espn.go.com/blog/collegebasketballnation/post/_/id/2342/college-of-charleston-fans-storm-court-after-win-over-wofford

A Dream, Inaugural Post

J-E-T-S JETS JETS JETS....

As much as I absolutely hate the New York Jets (mainly because of their win over my San Diego Chargers last week) they are THE absolute model of a team with a dream. If you didn't know, the Jets were not supposed to be in the playoffs. Their late season rally allowed them to slip in as a Wild Card and this postseason run has been a dream. In the Wild Card game they defeated the Cincinnati Bengals 24-14, then a 17-14 upset over #2 seed the San Diego Chargers allowed them to have a match-up with AFC perennial power, the Indianapolis Colts.

But really how did this happen? How could a team that when all hope was gone, rally and win two playoff games with a rookie QB at the reigns. Its called a dream. In a team meeting before the Cincinnati game, head coach Rex Ryan handed out schedules for the full postseason, a schedule that included the date for a potential parade in New York celebrating their first Super Bowl win in 31 years.

Bold? Yes.

Cocky? Some might also say yes.

A man with a dream for his team? Most definitely.

Coaches and players always talk about winning a Super Bowl, a dream to be the best. But how many actually follow through and allow themselves a chance to accomplish this?

Rex Ryan knew how to inspire his team, to give them a chance to dream. But this Jets team isn't only dreaming, they are working to accomplish that dream.

This strategy Rex Ryan demonstrates is a little weird and a little different, but it's something something we could apply to our everyday lives. How many times to talk about a dream but never make it a priority? How many times do we just talk about it but never work for it?

It seems to me that we could take a little tip from Rex Ryan and the game of football, dreams are made to be achieved, they aren't just for fairy tales.