Alex Barrett

UCF v. USD, 9/4/10

2010-09-04T16:38:00.000-07:00

The University of Central Florida Knights kicked their season off on a humid evening Saturday against the University of South Dakota.

UCF got on the board early, grinding out a second-possession, 75-yard touchdown drive capped off by a Johnathan Davis dive from the one yard line.

After the teams battled at midfield for much of the remaining quarter, UCF again punched into pay-dirt on a seven-yard run around the corner from Jamar Newsome, set up by a 31-yard reception by A.J. Guyton, one of eight passes caught for 127 yards in the game.

South Dakota opened up the second quarter with a Marcus Sims kick return that placed the Coyotes within striking distance. Three plays later USD running back Chris Gainous exploded through the line to put South Dakota on the board.

After a Nick Cattoi field goal, UCF forced another Coyote three-and-out to line up great field position, with Guyton catching his first touchdown pass of the game with a little over a minute remaining on the clock before the half.

The Coyotes came out stale again in the third period, another three-and-out allowed the Knights to attempt to grind out another solid drive, however resulting in a UCF punt. QB Calabrese completed his first nine passes of the game before throwing two incompletions on the drive.

A huge, 24-yard sack on the ensuing Coyote drive forced a punt out of their own end-zone, giving UCF great field position even after a muffed punt return. The Knights used the opportunity to free Brendan Kelly near the end zone to drive the score to 31-7, UCF.

South Dakota started the final quarter much like the previous ones, falling short on assembling a drive and punting from their own territory again. Starting from the Coyote 41, it was only 2 minutes before UCF entered the red-zone and scored on a six yard touchdown pass from backup-quarterback Jeff Godfrey, giving the Knights a 38-7 lead with just over nine minutes remaining in the game.

Following another poor drive that stumbled after just four plays, South Dakota punted away only to watch Guyton continue to get open down the field, catching 2 more throws on the drive including a 27-yard completion on third down. UCF's drive faltered as they decided to go for the first down on fourth-and-three from the Coyote 27 to drain the clock, rather than kick a field goal; the attempt was un-successful, and the Knights turned the ball over on downs, their first turnover of the game. The Knights also continued fundamental football by only committing 3 penalties the entire game.

As the clock wound down, few fans were left in the stands with the rout in progress to see the Coyotes finally make a few good plays to reach the UCF red-zone for only the second time in the game, but were unable to score any more points as time ran out. UCF begins the season 1-0, the Coyotes falling to 0-1.

Game Notes:

— This was the first time UCF and USD have faced each other in history, UCF will play another team it has never played in week four at Kansas State.

— All 8 of UCF's drives made it into Coyote's territory.

— Junior A.J. Guyton set career highs in single-game receiving yards with 127, and receptions for a game with eight. He finished last season with 44 catches for 572 yards.

GAME BALL:

Receiver A.J. Guyton shredded the defense tonight, and seemed open over the middle almost all night. He was making life easy for quarterback Rob Calabrese and taking heat off the running game consistently.

Valencia Voice first collegiate publication on iPad

2010-04-16T11:00:00.000-07:00

I am a bit late with this, but congratulations to the Valencia Voice student publication for being the first ever collegiate publication on the iPad! The team all banded together to get a iPad friendly app product working and ready for display a mere hour after the iPad was available to purchase. It took a lot of effort, but to be part of a groundbreaking outreach in student media was great. I look forward to continuing to be on the fore-front of student media and it's advancements!

Mass Effect 2 can't find it's place in Citadel Space

2010-01-28T09:53:00.000-08:00

Commander Shepard is becoming something of an icon, a figure that stands out in the galaxy, one person that elicits hate or love from every species in space.

And he isn’t even real.

Mass Effect 2 was released last Tuesday, and I haven’t been able to put it down since it came in my home. The epic sequel to the first Mass Effect from Bio Ware delivered on many fronts, and failed on very few. Again you control the iconic Shepard, already a hero for the defeat he handed the Reapers in the first episode whilst also dispelling the geth and rogue Spectre Agent Saren. Perhaps the most interesting feature about ME2 is it’s ability (and highly recommended) feature allowing you to import your career from the original Mass Effect into the second installment, bringing your perks, a bonus for character level, and appearance with it. It also alters the way NPC’s interact with you and shapes the progression of the game greatly. In the first few hours of play I could already tell my decision to let the Council die so the Citadel could survive in the first game was not perceived well by some of the other alien races walking around.

If you played the first game, you probably crossed paths with the human supremacy group Cerberus, in fact, if you followed the way of the Paragon you most likely mowed down many of their associates in a few different missions; so you can imagine how you feel when Shepard wakes up on a Cerberus operating table after his body was uncovered following the wreck of the Normandy. You will have to learn to love Cerberus; they saved your life and now the association, along with their cryptic leader the Illusive Man (Voiced by Martin Sheen,) enlists your assistance to quell another brewing Reaper threat that the Council seems to be turning a blind eye to.

Already you’re hooked, I can tell. The game did get a bit more difficult as far as the play goes, the firefights are much more intense and ME2 relies heavily on squad combat, almost forcing you to place your team strategically before the fighting starts if you wish to survive. The graphics are better, your controlled character runs faster, and there is much more story to sift through and people to talk to; there better be, the game takes up two discs.

All in all, it is a great game. The user interfaces and upgrading procedures have been all but been killed off, and this is where my complaint list begins. Fans of the RPG aspect of the first game will be sorely disappointed, as the point allocation system for your character has been severely cut back. Also limited, the weapon customization and allocation itself; all your troops use the same gun and you have to find it in the world to upgrade to it. No more finding the right gun, armor or upgrade in the universe by looting, keeping your stash and selling back the trash. In fact, there is no more recovery of goods, period. You don’t have a backpack, and can’t switch weapons unless there is a load-out crate nearby; it almost seems as though by trying to simplify the game, Bio Ware horribly limited the uniqueness of what made ME1 great to begin with. Customization has been revoked in a game where customization is key. (They do allow you to change the color of your armor now, however.)

In the two years that Shepard was missing in action, the universe realized it would be a good time to take a step backwards in technology and go back to using clips of ammo in weapons, making you have to reload often. Frequently I found myself having to use a gun I shouldn’t be simply because you run out of ammo during every fight. There are also no more ambushes or nearly as much exploring. You’re either fighting an epic, repetitious battle or you’re talking to someone in a hallway.

This game could have been amazing. It could have broken boundaries. It could have been one of the greatest games ever made, and that may even be an understatement. Taking the time to make so many improvements, yet at the same time destroying what made the game great is quite disappointing. Its incredibly hard to give this game a rating for that reason; if it was the first game in a series it would be a solid 9, no questions asked (and if you have read my other reviews, that is beyond amazing.) But failing to deliver on what made the franchise great in large quantities has crushed this game.

In memory of the original Mass Effect, I am all but forced to drop this game down quite a bit, I would say around a seven. Imagine Elder Scrolls, or Knights of the Old Republic (another Bio Ware creation) without treasure chests or enemy drops. Great advances were made with this title, but it came with too great a cost. I’m not mad at you, Bio Ware; just very disappointed.

Miami V. Wisconsin; Harris can't keep the Badgers off his back

2010-01-12T07:50:00.000-08:00

Orlando, Fla. -- When the Wisconsin flag-carrying parachuter botched his landing before the opening kick, the Badgers hoped things would only get better.
Then they had to kick the ball to Miami.
Sam Shields ran the opening kickoff back to the house on a designed kick reverse, only to have it called back to the Wisconsin 16 for an illegal block in the back. The next play from scrimmage and 23 seconds was all it took for Graig Cooper to get the Hurricanes on the board, rushing to the right sideline for six.

Luckily, this would be pretty much the end of the Badgers' bad luck.
After a few punts, Wisconsin tailback John Clay gave the Badgers hope as he rushed left end for a touchdown from three yards out to tie the game at 7-7, with 7:12 left in the first; the quarter would come to an end at that score.
With the swirling winds possibly affecting the coaches' decisions to kick a field goal, the Miami defense forced a turnover on downs in their own territory, but were forced to punt it away after two sacks and a botched snap.
After a Miami punt, Clay took the first play from scrimmage 51 yards to the Miami 12, where three plays later he scored from the Miami three yard line once again for his second tour of Orlando Pay Dirt of the night, 14-7 Badgers.
After a quick Miami punt, Wisconsin led a balanced attack down the field with the clock winding down, and with 18 seconds left before the half, Wisconsin kicker Phillip Welch scored on a 37 yard field goal to put the men in red up 17-7 at halftime. After a very quiet third quarter, Miami recovered a fumble as the Badgers drove into the red zone 50 seconds into the fourth, but again Miami was forced to punt after pressure from the Wisconsin D-line continued to pester Miami QB Jacory Harris. After another Welch field goal, Miami took control and headed an 80 yard touchdown drive, taking less than two minutes off the clock. Miami controlled the ball again with 1:20 left in the game thanks to a brilliant onside kick recovery, but Harris came up empty as the Badgers forced him into a sack and three incompletions to win the 2009 Champs Sports Bowl, 20-14. The game set a few records, including longest kick return in Miami bowl history, and a venue record 56,747 in attendance. John Clay finished with over 100 yards rushing and two touchdowns despite missing much of the third quarter and finished as the MVP of the game.

Ah, NBA, how I have loved thee...

2009-05-24T20:20:00.000-07:00

Until recently. No one is unaware of my referee bashing, especially in the last NFL season, but some of these refs need to be FIRED.

Watching the Cleveland Cavaliers play at home is nauseating at best. What these zebras are doing to the game is almost disgraceful; it is almost as bad to see them play anywhere else. The series with the Magic has been a prime example. The reason you havent heard from me yet was because the Cavs are heads over heels better than the last teams they have faced in the postseason, but against a notably better team, the Orlando Magic, the Cavaliers have had to rely on their 6th man...

The boys in stripes.

I think it is because the NBA... and David Stern... all want to see LeBron vs. Kobe. The TV ads have been pushing it, both the NBA's own advertisements, and others providers like Nike. Still, to a hardcore sports fan, this is unacceptable. The best team, the one that proves it deserves to win should win the game. Politics run the world, and that includes sports; but a smaller market, lesser known team should never be cast aside in favor of something people would just like to see. This is what XBox is for, so you can play 23 vs. 24 all night long, where the calls don't kill the faith and heart of thousands of fans who see this happening to their team, and are powerless to stop it.

As I write this, the Magic are about to take a 2-1 series lead, (should be 3-0), and Howard just fouled out on what could be the worst call I may have EVER seen. (look it up. It will be on SportsCenter tomorrow. It was that bad.) It was so bad I forgot I was in parenthesis. Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis' heroics in game one were overshadowed, and rarely mentioned by the media, but LeBron's last second buzzer beater in game two has been played at least once every few minutes somewhere across the globe. It probably just passed a couple million or so YouTube hits while I am writing this.

Nothing against LeBron James, ever. He is a player that words cannot really describe. Maybe just simply put, amazing. I was not too young to remember, or even see Michael Jordan play, but I was too young to see the refs look the other way for him. I am a "WITNESS" to this now. The Magic will try to dig out of this hole, but I fear this is all for naught unless Orlando can win the next two games by 40 points, keeping it far enough away so that the officials cannot determine the outcome.

So what is really happening? It seems that the calls are going one way, and you stop to take a look, and realize they REALLY are.

Why was there no retroactive flagrant foul against Mo Williams after he chucked the ball at Howard in game two? Its funny that everyone in the arena saw that happen except the stripes, who took their eyes off the ball for the first time ever. All at once. Where is the NBA, and Stuart Jackson, that were handing out so many retroactive fouls during the first two rounds of the playoffs? They gave more of those away than Chinese Restaurants give free samples in the mall to passers. I know they saw that clip.

In summary, "King James" never fouls, and the rest of the league fouls him if they get within a foot of him. James challenged at least 3 fast break layups / dunks the Magic turned, and hit the hands of the shooter on all of them. All fouls, and one goaltend. Guess which plays didn't get calls? All of them.

I wish Charles Barkley would become an NBA official. He always calls it like it is- "Ball don't lie."

NFL Rule Changes

2009-05-20T12:11:00.000-07:00

*Note: this column has been chosen to represent myself in the National Collegiate Journalists' Association, or something like that. Hope you like it!

NFL CHANGES THE GAME
Apr 1st, 2009
By Alex Barrettabarrett@valenciavoice.com
As with most years, the NFL has decided to do their best this off-season to attempt to assure the safety of players in the league. They do this, of course, by implementing rule changes that butcher the game’s core competencies, and rarely ever make any sense.
This year, another Tom Brady rule has been put forth. Hooray! You may remember the original ‘tuck rule’ that was put in place the year after the Raiders were robbed in the AFC Championship game after a clear fumble by Brady. This rule is a little more involved. Following the season-ending injury to Toy-Boy Brady, the league has now made it illegal to hit a quarterback below the hip pads, and illegal to hit the quarterback if you are on the ground as well.
This rule, joined with a legit rule, not being able to strike above the shoulder pads, now makes the only place for rushers to make contact with the QB from the lower shoulders to the belly button.
Thus, after years of seasons, hundereds of games, and millions of fans who tune in to big hits and grimacing quarterbacks, the league has finally decided to use twohand touch on the field generals of the league.
I have a better idea; let’s give the quarterback a set of flags so the defenders don’t even have to risk touching the frail, breakable QB. It is sad that players like Steve McNair, who injured virtually every bone in his body was able to go out week after week and play, but the first time a flagship player like Tom Brady goes down, all of a sudden there’s a problem.
Poor Brady, who is still dating a supermodel, and who still managed to take pictures for endorsemets of clothing, cologne, and feminine hygiene products during his vacation away from the league.
This guy isn’t a football player, he is a pansy. It’s not like the first player in the backfield against the Patriots this year is going Steven Segal Tom’s knee and kick it in backwards to prove a point. Safties aren’t Chuck Norris roundhouse-kicking receivers coming across the middle. Football is a tough sport where contact is completely necessary. If you’re having problems with your QB staying healthy, maybe they should choose a new line of work, or hit the weight room to bulk up and prevent injuries.
Unfortunately, the No Fun League has struck again, making sure we have another diluted contribution on Sundays. No more “Jacked Up!” No more leveling hits to pollute ESPN’s Top 10 countdown. Players on the gridiron are going to get hurt, no matter how many adaptations to hits you make. Sooner or later, we will find ourselves on a path to abolising contact in sports altogether. No matter how many punishing blows you put on a player, there are still more injuries in other sports, such as basketball, where the players don’t even wear pads with the exception of the occasional face protector, or Horace Grant’s famous goggles.
My advice to the league: end this now; I understand you have to protect your investments and players, but the one thing that keeps you going are the fans. Once they fly for greener pastures, it will be hard to pay those players millions of dollars each year. People love football, not sort-of football. Maybe if the league saw this, they would think a little longer about making decisions as potentially hap-hazard as this one.

Why do rape victims' names get withheld from presses?

2009-03-23T11:38:00.000-07:00

Anonymity for rape victims

FOLLOW THIS STORY AT www.valenciavoice.com

By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO - It seems that every time a rape crime, or supposed sexual battery incident occurs, there is always one missing piece of information that no one can identify; the victim's name.

You may think that the names are just lost in translation, or kept from the public, but the truth is, there is no law that prohibits the release of information pertaining to the supposed victims name outside of two states, Florida, and South Carolina. In these states, the law prohibits the publication of rape victims’ names and the constitutionality of those statutes is uncertain. The Supreme Court is considering the Florida statute this term in light of a 1974 high court ruling that struck down a similar Georgia law, stating it was alright to print the names of victims in a manner that is not degratory in any way.

In states outside of Florida and South Carolina, the names of victims aren't printed either, but for a different reason. Simply put, to be respectful to those who have been violated. Orlando Lawyer Emma Ubanks has had some background in criminal trials and admits the law is kind of shaded when it comes to rape crimes. "The real law says that no names should be divulged, either the name of the alleged victim, nor the name of the alleged assaulter," Ubanks said. "The name is normally retained by the authorities or by the council that is representing the victim, and subsequently withheld from the media print due largely out of respect for the parties involved. They really don't need any more stress, much less seeing the media and other people making assumptions about their already trying situation." Ubanks added, "rape crimes are still, for some reason, one of the primary crimes where people continue to lay blame on the victim, sometimes more than the person who committed the crime."

Ubanks is one of many attorneys in the state seeking to have this law used in a proper way to defend not only the victims, but all parties involved. "Take the Kobe (Bryant) case, here we see an individual accused of rape, and he was found to be innocent of the crime. Having his name in the media everwhere cost him sponsorship contracts, and he gained negative feedback from many people over something he was found to be not guilty of, while the woman involved recieved virtual anonymity. That just isn't fair, and it can work both ways in these instances."

All the while, many believe that names should be completely confidential, the only parties that should have knowledge of the people involved should be them, immediate family, and whatever authorities have been assigned to the matter. Still more people feel it aids in what has most likely been a traumatic experience to an individual. Rape is considered one of the more heinous crimes that can be committed, and many individuals don't see anything that can be gained by causing random media and other walks of life to come knocking on a victims door for whatever reason.

"It takes alot of strength to work through something as serious as rape, for both parties. People that are involved have a right to be protected from further harm or damages that may be brought on by individuals looking for a scoop, or a paycheck." Said Ubanks. "In almost all cases, they just want to be left alone. People should respect that request."

Brain Bowl coverage

2009-03-02T13:10:00.003-08:00

It was a long day at Valencia Community College for 24 teams from more than 6 states, ranging from VCC’s hometown Red and Black teams all the way up to J. Sergeant Reynolds, Hailing from Richmond Virginia. For some teams, it was a longer process than others.
Valencia fielded two teams for this competition, the Red Team, or their first team, and the Black Team, their secondary team. The Red Team, led by captain Nolan Bensen, had a great day with a final competition record of 10-2, enough to put them in a three-way tie with Chipola College’s A team, considered one of the toughest challengers at the tournament, and the South East Alabama team.
These three teams competed in a playoff scenario, with JSR’s two man team getting a first round bye for their outstanding play. What makes this team so unique, is that it only fields two competitors rather than the traditional four, which is completely legal. in fact, this is the first time JSR’s leading Brain Bowler George Berry has even had another player.
“It puts us at somewhat of a disadvantage, but I try my hardest and put in a lot of study time,” said Berry. His assistant, as he called himself, Gautham Premkumar, competed at Berry’s side, but had to admit he was only a side show. “I am firm saying this, that he (Berry) is the main man. I am just the help.” Just the help or not, the tandem, in a great effort and was able to sit back and rest while the three teams in second duked it out for a chance to face him. What made this rest sweetest, possibly, was the win by JSR less than an hour before the finals where he beat a then-undefeated Chipola team, knocking them into second place and securing his much needed mental health time.
In the first round of the playoffs, the Chipola team faced off against a tough team from the South East Alabama Community College, and from the onset it wasn’t much of a competition. Dominating practically the entire round, Chipola posted a victory with a final score of 155-50, and moving on to try and tackle Valencia’s Red Team.
Valencia started off srong, with Chris Muto nailing three questions in a row, and with Patrice Newkirk grabbing a couple of toss-ups, but the inability of VCC to convert coveted bonus questions left the door open for Chipola. It was a tightly contested match, but Chipola proved too much for Valencia, and defeated the Red Team with a final score of 155-135
Securing third place, the Valencia team was proud of their performance, and optimistic about upcoming tournaments as well.
“We expected to be around the top six or seven, but three is great!” Remarked Mercedes Gosnell in a post-tournament interview.
Valencia was happy with their placement, but the final between JSR’s two man squad, and the highly favored Chipola A team was underway. To say this wasn’t even a real contest would be accurate, as JSR rolled over Chipola for the second time in three matches to secure a first place finish, the best finish in Berry and Premkumar’s Brain Bowl carrers.
After the game had finished, Berry and Premkumar were basking in reflective glory of their triumph. “It means a lot, to come out and be able to beat Chipola. We were aiming for the top seed, but who doesn’t? And then we got it. I couldn’t be happier,” said Berry.
A great victory capped a tiring two days for all of the teams, and when asked about their upcoming plans, more than one team said “food.” “We’re going to Ruby Tuesday immediately,” said Muto.
After that, almost all of these teams will ready themselves for an upcoming tournament in Dallas, Texas, where the national tournament will take place.

NAQT President Hentzel

2009-03-02T13:10:00.001-08:00

Many people know about the Brain Bowls, like the one held on Valencia’s West Campus this week, some people even call them Quiz Bowls. Although they identify with many different names, there’s always one company behind the questions; the NAQT.
NAQT stands for National Academic Quiz Tournament, and they have been expanding the minds of collegiate and high school students via their Quiz Bowls since 1996. A big part of the emergence of the NAQT is their president, R. Robert Hentzel, and he was availible at the Valencia championships in Orlando this week to see the competitions and lead the administrative side of the operations.
The Voice had a chance to speak with Hentzel during breaks in the action about how he runs the ship at NAQT, and why Valencia was chosen as the location for the tourney this year.
“Valencia has had the premier community college team now for the better part of the decade,” said Hentzel. “Orlando is clearly a place that people want to visit around this time of year due to the climate, and Chris Borglum (Valencia’s Brain Bowl team captain) really knows how to run a program and commit staff and volunteers to the competitions. He has been invaluable.”
This tournament represented 24 teams, those that made it through the sectionals tournament which narrowed the field down from 50 teams. “We were only looking at 14 teams originally, but Chris (Borglum) knew he had the manpower to have a few more invitees,” remarked Hentzel.
“We have a lot of teams here, from as close as in town, obviously, to as far away as Allen County, Kansas. It is great to be able to get all of the students together to further education in a competitive manner.” When asked about who can field the best teams, Hentzel was split for a few reasons.
“Ivy league schools can field good teams, but realistically, good teams can be found anywhere, either in two or four year colleges. You would be surprised how well some teams perform, especially when pitted against a tougher team. It isn’t always knowledge that makes a winner, speed and balance is a huge part of perservering as well.”
Hentzel has been growing the program for many years, seeking to add not just teams, but states full of teams to the bill, trying to expand the competitions as much as possible. Even though many states are represented, NAQT has only begun what they have set out to accomplish, and that is for every school, large or small, to have a quiz team to compete with. “We definitely want to get more, really as many people and schools as possible involved; from the smaller ones all the way up to the Harvards and Yales. Diversity plays an interesting role in the competitions as well.”
Hentzel thinks that continued exposure is a great way to get other schools interested in fielding a team, whether they have one, two, or 40 people availible to compete. Seeing tournaments and attending them, and word of mouth has helped the NAQT grow to what it is now, and there’s much more room to expand. The big part of the quizzes of course, are the questions themselves, which are formulated in-house and follow a basic format. Think of it as like when you play the NTN quiz games at the bar, where you get hints and the clock ticks down; same concept. “Questions start out with subtle, difficult hints then get easier as the question is read, hence speed and recognition are key to success in the tournaments. The questions then finish with a much easier hint that puts the question in a much easier state to understand, giving contestants a last chance to get some valuable points, and then get to the bonuses.”
Hentzel works hard to make sure everything runs smoothly, and at trying to develop the NAQT until it is a household name, and widely recognized program. “If we can just keep getting a few more teams a year, we can really bring the Brain Bowl to as many audiences as will grant it.” It is a cheap way to get your school’s name out there, and another way to contribute to the competition that makes college great. The way it seems to be growing everyday, under the caring and stoic arms of president Hentzel, it won’t be long before his dream eventually reaches reality. Until then, you can keep cheering on your local Brain Bowlers here at Valencia.

Braves spring training look

2009-03-02T13:09:00.001-08:00

The Atlanta Braves have once again returned to Disney’s Wide World of Sports for their spring training games in 2009.
Entering the 12th season in Central Florida, the Atlanta Braves will hope to answer some questions about their upcoming season through rigorous training and exhibition games played at the sprawling Disney complex. In Champion Stadium, the Braves compete in front of about 9,500 fans, not including the luxury boxes, or the special lawn seating in left field, which allows ongoers to unfurl the blanket and enjoy the game like it was happening at the park; just remember your sunscreen because there’s no roof out there.
Inside the locker room and on the field, however, the Bravos have a lot of kinks to work out aside from taking in some sunny weather. The Braves managed to bolster their rotation this year, signing ace pitcher Derek Lowe away from the Dodgers, and again pulling Javier Vazquez away from the Chicago White Sox. These two will join up with Kenshin Kawakami, a new comer to the league, fresh from Japan at 33 years old. The Braves hope Kawakami can add another experienced arm to the rotation while providing new material no one in the league has seen before. Add that to second-year ace Jair Jurrjens, and older than dirt Tom Glavine, and the Braves have a seemingly deep rotation, not to mention Tim Hudson’s possible return at sometime in the season after having successful Tommy-John elbow surgery early last year.
When it comes to hitting, Atlanta is going to have to try a bit harder. Leading the league in mediocrity last year with the bat, aside from Chipper Jones, of course, the Braves had a league low 27 homers from their entire outfield last season, including the platoon-based approach they took in left field after Matt Diaz, who has showed good progress, went down with a freak knee injury. While Jeff Francoeur cannot possibly be as terrible as he was last year, (.239 batting average) he has tweaked his stance and posture while spending plenty of time in Triple-A last season, a great disspointment after and outstanding outing the year before, and a successful World Baseball Classic appearance; the Braves will be hoping for Francoeur to bounce back strong.
While all of these factors look promising, the Braves are trying to enhance their team even more, not wishing to drop another 90 games in the loss column this year again, fielding a far cry from the teams that posted a league record 14 straight division titles through the 1990’s.
Another variable to toss around, this will be Bobby Cox’s 23rd season with Atlanta, and he will celebrate his 68th birthday during the season, and has already hinted at the fact that this may be his last season coaching. The 8-time Manager of the Year has been one of the reasons the Braves made that incredible run at the playoffs so many years in a row.
Whatever the result of this season, the Braves are in Central Florida until the beginning of April, and with ticket prices averaging in the $20.00 range, there’s no reason not to go enjoy a hot dog and beer while taking in a baseball game, something you would normally have to drive to Tampa to do, and see the Rays play; but can baseball ever really be played in a dome? There’s almost nothing better than a beautiful day and America’s greatest past-time.

Backe Readies the Astros

2009-03-02T13:08:00.000-08:00

The National League Central can be a hard place to get ahead these days, putting out two to three playoff hopefuls a year the past few seasons.
Just ask Brandon Backe, one of the Houston Astros’ starting pitchers. Backe is in Central Florida with the rest of his team during spring training in Florida. The Astros will be playing again this year in Kissimmee, at the Osceola County Stadium, where they have been holding spring training since 1985. The stadium was renovated to hold more on-lookers and cater to their needs more fully in 2003.
“It’s great to get out here, to get back in shape. It can be hard at first, but it really gets you going forward as far as the season goes. And it’s better to play here than in Arizona,” said Backe. “More humidity here, but no where near as hot.” Backe will be pooling his skills to a pitching rotation featuring ace Roy Oswalt, and new-comer, injury-master Mike Hampton, whom the ‘Stros signed from Atlanta. Already in spring training, Hampton had to leave a practice due to an irregular heartbeat and fly back to Houston to be cleared to play again, and the Astros will pray that will be the extent of his problems this year.
The Astros will need Hampton healthy this year, and the rest of the team needs to follow suit, because the NL Central can eat you alive. There is already talk about the Chicago Cubs’ playoff chances, without much regard to Houston, but you also have to take in account for prennial competitors in the St. Louis Cardinals, and also in the up-start Milwaukee Brewers, who have been starting to make waves as well with their young bats.
As for the challenge, Backe says he is used to it for the most part, and just tries to get better when he can. This will be his third year in the Houson organization, but is not new to Florida after starting his career with the then Tampa Bay Devil Rays (the devil moniker has since been dropped, now they are just referred to as the Rays) when he was drafted in 1998.
The Astros will be taking a powerful lineup into their 2009 campaign, boasting a few of the league’s elite hitters, including Lance Berkman and Carlos Lee, who came on strong towards the end of last year, and hopes to further his talents this year. Also in the lineup is Miguel Tejada, whos production has fallen off a bit in recent years, but is still one of the more dominant defensive short stops in the league, as long as he can stay away from his immigration issues and all of the steroid talk surrounding him.
Houston is looking to improve upon the third place finish from last season, finishing 11 games behind the division leading Cubs, and falling only eight games back of the Brewers in claiming the final playoff spot. Much about this team has remained un-changed, and Backe likes it that way.
“We have a good core of guys out there. We were to close not to make it last year, but I guess you really shouldn’t let it be that close of a race anyways. We are going to have to try much harder to win the tough and tight games and try to get to the playoffs this year.” Backe and the Astros have a gameplan, and their expectations are still high. “We expect to win. We want to win, I want to win. I can play better, and I still think we have a good enough team to compete with the best in the league. We play to win a championship, but doesn’t everybody? It should be.”
Regardless, Houston will have it’s work cut out for them, chasing an upset Cubs team that fell short last year, and has been in the loss column for World Series wins since well before any player on the Astro’s team’s parents can remember, a remarkable 100 years of drought for one of America’s favorite, and most fan-friendly teams.
“We will all just have to work hard, it’s never easy, but once you get rolling and shake off the cobwebs, there’s only one goal in mind, only one goal that matters.”

NBA Comissioner, David Sell-Out.

2009-02-06T15:00:00.000-08:00

Wow, now I've heard it all

Recently, the NBA decided to add H-O-R-S-E to it's All-Star weekend lineup, and I was stoked. I mean, why not? It will be fun to see athletes revert to the games of their youth and see what they can accomplish now.

One problem. now, bureaucracy has taken over, and Geico has bought the rights to rename the game G-E-I-C-O.

ARE YOU SERIOUS?

Hey, Geico, way to take a classic and screw it up. You're already a corrupt organization of crooks - who takes people's money in case they get in trouble, then keeps it even if you don't? You do, Geico. And now you have tarnished a classic. Everyone already knows who you are thanks to your cruddy gecko spokesperson and crappy cavemen commercials. No one will be watching the competition at home then suddenly declare, "Oh, they're spelling G-E-I-C-O! Man does that make me want to go buy car insurance!"

I hear that Travelocity wants to buy the Around-The-World competition to promote their travel company. And hey, while were at it, how about calling Donald Trump, who has plenty of money to toss around and asking him if he wants to buy the rights for the name "basketball."
Kids will no longer play in basketball tournaments, they will play in Trump tournaments. "Hey, Alex, wanna go out front and play Trump?" No. I'm good, ill pass on that. Will the NTA (Formerly the National Basketball Association, now the National Trump Association,) provide more money for The Donald?

One thing is for sure. I would rather give my money to Mr. Trump than to Geico. Someone use their insured car to run over that freaking Gecko. Might as well cost them some money since they have enough from stealing from all of us to buy an entire competition. Ridiculous. Or just sad.

Bad calls plague NFL season

2009-01-27T14:43:00.001-08:00

By Alex Barrett

This NFL season may forever be known for many things; Miami’s improbable playoff run after last season’s 1 win outing. The Detroit Lions, finally becoming as bad on paper as we knew they were on the field. New and stoic coaches patrolling the sidelines. Possibly, and hopefully, the end of Adam Jones’ career.

But there’s one thing that I will always remember this particular NFL season for —and that’s the horrifically blown calls. It started early, and never looked back - and affected almost all of the officiating crews; even those tagged for being the elite flag-tossers of the league.

The first of many, an early meeting between Denver and San Diego, was most likely the sorest spot of Ed Hochuli’s lengthy career. With one minute and change remaining in the 4th quarter, an otherwise decorated official of over 10 years was involved in the worst call of his career, and it was only exacerbated by the fact that it changed the outcome of the game. Even after reviewing a clear Jay Cutler fumble call on the sidelines, Hochuli returned to the field, ruled an incomplete pass, and Cutler capitalized; scoring the go-ahead touchdown after what was sure to be a clincher for the San Diego defense.
While this was a huge call in the game, it was proven to be instrumental all the way to the last game of the season, where the Chargers had to play the Broncos in a rematch to decide who went to the post-season. Had the Chargers been the benefit of a correct call, the game could have been used to rest starters for San Diego’s playoff push.

Speaking of the playoffs, you would think that the zebras would taper it down and make sure calls were right to the best of their abilities, right?
Then you can’t overlookthe Titans playoff game against the Ravens, where bad calls ran rampant.
Now, Tennessee lost this game because of their 3 turnovers in the redzone. But it wasn’t helped by the fact that an obvious forward pass call was botched on third-and-long, allowing the Ravens to run out the clock instead of facing a punt situation, which would have given the Titans ample time to drive for a score.

Even in the Eagles game, a streaking Kevin Curtis was tangled up intentionally, and tripped. No flags were thrown for pass interference against the Cardinals. Curtis almost made the catch to spite, but the no-call erased an almost 70 yard gain through the air. None of these were tough calls to make, every single one of them were reviewed, and still were called incorrectly.

Unfortunately, referees aren’t super-soldiers, they are going to get just as many calls wrong as they are right, but this clearly needs to be addressed by the NFL’s competition committee in the off-season.

And with Jeff Fisher’s Titans on the receiving end of one of these erroneous calls, you can bet the Committee head (Fisher) will bring the problems to light as soon as possible. So let’s say a prayer for the next NFL season, hoping for better, more accurate calls from veteran officiating crews; especially in game-changing scenarios - and just maybe, a better vision plan from the NFL benefits package.

Valencia Students Gather for Obama

2009-01-22T08:50:00.000-08:00

As many as 2 million people from around the globe gathered in Washington to witness President Barack Obama’s inaugural address. Millions more watched from home on television screens, Internet feeds, anxiously awaiting the 44th president to be sworn in and give his first Presidential speech.

There aren’t nearly 2 million people on Valencia’s West campus, but the HSB building could have been as bustling as the Washington monument spire if there were room.

Theater 105A was crammed full of professors, students, and staff seeking to spy the event. Students popped in and out hastily as they went between classes, if only to get a glimpse of history; not just a presidential swear-in — the first African American President in the history of the United States.

Among these individuals, Linda Ramirez was anxious to see the speech, and was patiently waiting to view the event.

“He represents change on many topics, and we need it,” said Ramirez, when asked what she thought the new president would represent for this country.

“It is great to be able to watch a piece of history like this.”

Andrew Jammer, another student catching the speech, didn’t get the luxury of sitting down to watch the event.

“I ran all the way here from building five, and now I have to go back,” said Jammer. “But the volume wasn’t working on the TV there and I wasn’t about to miss any more of this speech.”

In the auditorium, onlookers alike gathered to gaze upon the giant screens showing the live CNN coverage on location via an internet feed, and that included Xenia Conquy, professor of environmental science on the West Campus.

“This means a lot to me specifically because we finally have an environmentally friendly president in office. He won’t rely on oil as much and will limit wasteful expenditures.” said Conquy. She took her class away from the daily teachings down to see history unfold, and they were there in numbers. “He genuinely seeks peace as well. We can’t overlook that as being vitally important.”

And if that wasn’t enough, the overflow from the classroom went into the Little Bean Cafe across the hallway, with another hundred people gathered to view the proceedings on the cafe’s sole, 27 inch television screen. There were refreshments provided by the SGA, and a scribble-board so those that chose to could write their name for support. There was plenty of support to be seen, as the crowds erupted in unison as soon as now-President Obama completed his oath.

Adam Jones

2009-01-14T17:53:00.000-08:00

See blog post; 8-28-2008 of this page.
I called this. That's how good I am.

*Ok, so I didn't necessarily predict Pac-Man calling in a hit on someone. But I never put it past him. Hey Adam, take a cue from Biggie. "I would never wish death upon anyone, because there ain't no coming back from that."

Golfer Defies Adversity

2008-12-09T15:04:00.000-08:00

Newest LPGA Tour member defies adversity
By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO, Fla. - A wedding. Celiac Disease. Stiff Competition. Just a few of the trials Sarah-Jane Kenyon, an Australian-born golfer has had to overcome to further her career recently.

Placing well in the Duramed Futures Tour, a developmental series used by the LPGA, Kenyon rocketed herself from virtual anonyminity to a full Tour member.

Standing in her way of accomplishing this feat, besides the other members of the tour fighting for their membership, Celiac Disease posed a problem to Kenyon, and forced her to change her eating habits. "I was just too tired at the end of the day," said Kenyon. "but I think the diet helped that."

Kenyon has dedicated so much time to her career, that even an impending marriage has been sent to the side burner. Kenyon, set to wed later this year, will take a "mini-moon" and get back to training quickly before she makes her LPGA debut in Hawaii on February 9th.

Kenyon is also an advocate to other women who may want to pursue golf as a career, but she remains humble to the fact that women golfers aren't taken as seriously as their male counterparts, noting to women in her position to "be patient, it's worth it." She also doesn't see a problem with the fact that women are taken lighter than men in the sport, "I don't think women will ever get to the point that male golfers are," but she continues to amaze with her determination and poise.

Roger "Bad-dell"

2008-11-20T09:14:00.000-08:00

When to say “Uncle”
By Alex Barrett

It almost seems like being an NFL Commissioner would be an awesome job, right?
Regulating the league, making important decisions, like weather to increase the season at the cost of preseason games, if we should play more games abroad, and there’s that $11.2 million he makes a year in salary which doesn’t hurt the pocket any.

It would seem like you have a lot on your plate, but it would also seem like you would be completely involved in your work; just ask late commissioner Paul Tagliabue, whom served the NFL for 16 years. Tagliabue was responsible for 16 years without a strike or a lockout, had a huge hand in the collective bargaining agreements, brought in major endorsements and exclusivity deals, strengthened revenue sharing, and saw to massive internal expansion, including NFL Europe, several new expansion teams, and 17 new stadiums during his tenure, which shows his uncanny ability to get government backing for such undertakings.

Goodell, surely has some big shoes to fill, and it seems like he may never come close. As we look at Goodell’s performance so far, all we see is mistakes and confusion. First, there was Adam “Pac-Man” Jones and his antics. Jones was arrested more times than years Tagliabue served in office, and that is only in his first 3 years as a member of the Tennessee Titans. Because of these arrests, we have seen Jones more or less not able to stay away from the gentleman’s clubs, and for some strange reason, he likes to pick fights with bouncers and encourage other people to shoot their guns. Because of his off-field involvement, Goodell suspended Jones for the entire 2007 season, which seemed like an appropriate penalty, and then informed Jones that there was “zero-tolerance” for any more off field issues. Last month, after being re-instated earlier this season, Jones got in a fight with a bodyguard at a hotel. That was it for Jones’ career, right? Apparently not. Goodell suspended Jones for 4 more games and recently reinstated him this week. Note to the Commish: If you can’t make “Good-ell” on your promises, these guys are going to walk all over you.

Lets look at another issue with Goodell in office, the whole “Spy-Gate” issue revolving around the New England Patriots. The Pats were accused of, and found to be recording sessions of practices and games in which they had a member of their staff on the opposing sideline stealing signs and recording classified material. Having been found doing this at least twice before, this was the end of the road for Bill Belichick, right? Apparently not. The Patriots and Belichick were docked a mediocre 5th round draft pick, and fined a total of $750 thousand dollars in pocket change. The assumption around the league was, if you get caught cheating, you’re disqualified; one of those foundation rules you learn in little league. Goodell let the Patriots off easy, and their subsequent season they posted an 18-1 record, losing to the New York Giants in the Super Bowl. Karma?

It almost seems like Goodell would have suspended Michael Vick, whom was indicted for dog fighting charges earlier this year, for 4 games and fined him a measly $100k if he wasn’t in jail and unable to play. It remains to be seen if Goodell will reinstate Vick after his 2-year prison sentence has been carried out, but hasn’t it already tarnished the league?

Roger Goodell has been given the office of a $30.6 billion dollar conglomerate, and seems as though he is making it out to be a circus. Non-conforming suspensions, fines and penalties aside, his face time with the media is always teased and made to be a farce as he simply repeats his previous words when asked about controversial issues. Tagliabue may have cast a big shadow, one that is far too large for Goodell to even think about leaving for his successor. Only time will tell if Goodell will shake off his ill-advised decisions and return the league to it’s well-oiled machine ways.

Movie Review: "Quantum of Solace"

2008-11-20T08:22:00.001-08:00

"Quantum" Needs More Bond, Less Solace.

007 does it again; but this time, he has his work cut out for him.
In Quantum of Solace, an ailing James Bond is struck between exacting revenge on those who have hurt him from Casino Royale, and saving a country’s water supply from a greedy environmentalist. While this seems like a good plot, it skews what makes Bond movies great. We can all admit that 007 has never really been a box-office favorite, but the movies are always fun to watch with their amazing gadgets and explosions, beautiful women and impossible situations.

The explosions and women are here in Solace, but the others are gone. No more crazy contraptions, not even an appearance by a “Q” of any sort to give Bond cool things to tinker with. There’s about 5 minutes of James’ Aston Martin speeding around, and that as well is pretty sad. The movie had an overbearing feel to it, and a darkness that was felt through the flick, which is great, but I miss my old Bond.

Director Mark Forster obviously wanted this movie to be a hit with critics, and strayed away from the closet humor used in previous movies, and went with more periods of speaking between off characters that made the movie not only drag, but make little sense at some junctures as well. As far as acting goes, Daniel Craig (Bond) did a great job yet again; He’s no Sean Connery, but he is probably the best since then, and his intensity and charm are a good fit for Bond’s overwhelming persona. M is again played by Judi Dench, and I don’t really think it should be otherwise, she has done a fantastic job in her roles as the leader of MI6 to this point.

Overall, it was a good showing, but I expected more. If Forster can somehow combine this movie and Casino Royale for the next installment, it will be a blockbuster, But for now, the lack of historical Bond elements combined with shoddy acting by those other than who is listed above, and the loss of an upbeat, happy and funny action movie has made me somewhat disappointed. I may watch it again, but I would be happier popping in just about any other movie just as much. I give it a 6 out of a possible 10. It is worth a view at the theaters simply for the explosions and overall feel, but unless you’re a Bond maniac, saving this one for a rainy day at home will make for a much better showing.

Perfect Halfway.

2008-11-06T12:36:00.001-08:00

Remember These Titans
By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO, Fla. - The 2008 Tennessee Titans aren’t a glamorous team; they don’t score a ton of points, don’t throw the ball 50 yards down the field, and haven’t had a win margin this season over 24 points. They do, however, have the league’s top three interceptors on defense, a defensive line that could send all 4 members to the pro bowl, a grizzly veteran quarterback, and a rookie running back that is in the tops of rushing in the NFL.
Let’s throw some names out there… Berman. Young. Aikman. Collinsworth. Madden. All analysts for the NFL and their perspective companies; all of them, and others as well, picked the Titans to finish dead last in the AFC South division race this year. Not many Titans fans chose their team to be atop one of the notoriously toughest divisions in football at the midway point of the season. Even the die-hard fans that could have predicted this in a clear conscious would have retracted their thoughts after the Titans chose not to address their receiving corps in the draft, and felt even more worrisome after Vince Young, the future of the franchise, succumbed to injury in week 1. The only bright spot, it seemed, was the first-round pick they would receive at the beginning of next year. Nothing could be further from the truth.
In fact, the 2008 Tennessee “Tyrants” have gone on the warpath. They lead almost every statistical category defensively in the NFL, and the ones they’re not on the top of the list for, they are at a very close second. The Titans have defeated all members of their division already once this year, and because of the Titan’s dominance, the league is seeing something rather odd this year, The Colts, normally a powerhouse in the division, has lost it’s stranglehold. The Jaguars have been wallowing in mediocrity all season, and the Texans are again bringing up the rear.
To have the NFL’s top rushing offense and stingiest defense are luxuries 14-year head coach Jeff Fisher has dreamt of ever since the 1999 Super Bowl loss to the Rams. Remind you of another team that won games with this same scheme? How about the 2000 Baltimore Ravens, with an emerging Jamal Lewis, a cruddy quarterback in Trent Dilfer, and a downright scary defense featuring MLB Ray Lewis. Replace cruddy quarterback with Kerry Collins, who’s consistency hasn’t put up fascinating numbers, but has delivered when necessary, and change Ray Lewis to Albert Haynesworth, whom is making his MVP of the league bid this season, and you have essentially the same championship makeup.
Tennessee hasn’t been winning huge, but they have been winning strong, forcing opponents to try whatever they can to shut down the “Smash and Dash” combo of LenDale White and Chris Johnson, and no one has been effective. The best statistic of them all? The Titans are a staggering 100% in Red Zone offense. If they've made it to your 20 yard line, you might as well go ahead and put some digits on the scoreboard. After 8 weeks of the regular season, you can make comparisons to the last two teams to start 8-0 - the Patriots, and Colts. Both went on to win Super Bowls. In fact, of the last 8 teams to start the first half of the season undefeated, half of them have won the big game. It is because of this tight-knit group of players, who were cast aside as cellar-dwellers, that the Titans have been able to dominate the league to this point. If these figures continue, with the momentum the Titans have built, it’s now difficult to look at the second half of the season and imagine those prominent analysts from above, continuing to predict the Titans to finish last. Unless, of course, by last you mean the last team standing. Now when you get asked the question; “Do you remember the Titans?” It isn’t the feel-good movie with Denzel Wahington, it’s the real-life story of the 2008 shouldn’t-have-been’s, the 2008 Tennessee Titans.

Front Page, "McCain Ba-racked!"

2008-11-06T11:53:00.000-08:00

By Kyle Beard and Alex Barrett
Valencia Voice
The crowd was a mixture of tears and cheers as an announcement naming the 44th President of the United States boomed from the speakers. At approximately 11 o’clock, Sen. Barack Obama was announced the projected victor against opponent Sen. John McCain after 21 long months of campaigning. Hundreds of cheering supporters and volunteers gathered together to celebrate a historic victory in downtown Orlando at the Orange County Regional History Center. The evening kicked off with several local Democrats rallying together to offer their support and endorsements in favor of Obama. The first speaker was Senator Bill Nelson who, having nothing at stake during the Election Day race, spoke words of encouragement and gave thanks to all the volunteers and supporters of the Obama campaign. Following Nelson and declaring victories were Alan Grayson and Darren Soto respectively. Mayor Buddy Dyer also made an appearance to announce a new Sheriff, Jerry Demings. The festivities continued inside the museum where Obama supporters partook in the drinking of spirits and hors d’oeuvres while viewing exhibits and discussing the coming victory. “I’m very excited to be part of history,” said Orlando Army veteran, Sergio Tuifarro. “I was amazed by McCain’s voting in the Senate concerning veteran benefits,” Tuifarro explained, mentioning in particular McCain’s opinion of the Montgomery G.I.
Bill, a bill that pays veterans of the armed services and their families seeking to further
their education. The trend continued throughout the night as individuals who could be considered “typical” McCain supporters raised their voice in support of Obama. Some of the groups included Republicans for Obama and Veterans for Obama. Ironically, the theme of the night was not “Change,” but equality. Voters of all colors, creeds and affiliations gathered together, seemingly oblivious of their differences in the spirit of the campaign. “Simply historical,
monumental… powerful,” said Angelica Pineiro. “You feel that you’re a part of a major
movement.” Later, the crowd moved outside as the results began to pour in. Nancy Warlick, who
first voted in 1960 for John F. Kennedy was thrilled by the hype. “I think there’s a great excitement around Barack Obama, just in the same way there was with JFK” Warlick explained when comparing the campaigns. “My husband and I spent 27 years in Africa, so this is particularly an exciting night and our friends there are really thrilled.” The
feeling was mutual among the crowd as supporters around her wholeheartedly agreed.
As the evening drew to a crescendo, the crowd turned its attention to the stage, where
a huge television screen showed a broadcast of McCain delivering his concession speech. In a honorable and sportsmanlike manner, McCain announced his dropping from the
race to a deafening cry of victory as the attendees stomped, shouted and whistled. “We have come to the end of a long journey. The American people have spoken, and they have spoken clearly,” he announced. “A little while ago, I had the honor of calling Senator Barack Obama to congratulate him. To congratulate him on being elected the next president of the country that we both love.” McCain continued on to thank all of his supporters and colleagues with the mention of Sarah Palin drawing boos from the Orlando crowd. Shortly after, as the party organizers’ allotted time at the historic center expired,the party moved on to Wall Street to watch Obama deliver his victory speech on the Wachovia Bank Building jumbotron. Orlando
police quickly moved in to block the intersection at Jefferson and Orange in order to support the massive throng of celebrators, trapping a few unfortunate cars in the middle. Though stuck in a gridlock, many drivers left their vehicles and joined the celebration —one woman even getting out to dance on the hood of her minivan. As though not even phased by the hours of waiting and celebrating earlier in the evening, the crowd once again roared as the image of Obama appeared on the screen. “If there is anyone out there who still doubts that America is a place where all things are possible; who still wonders if the dream of our founders is alive in our time; who still questions the power of our democracy, tonight is your answer,” Obama stated to tumultuous
applause. He continued to thank supporters, family members, volunteers and colleagues all, but most of all adding his gratitude to the American people. “This is our chance to answer that call.
This is our moment. This is our time to put our people back to work and open doors of
opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim
the American Dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth —that out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope, and where we are met with cynicism, and doubt, and those who tell us that we can’t, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: ‘Yes We Can.’” Think the election this year was close? Take another look at the local results.
On Tuesday, Sen. Barack Obama made a huge push in Florida, and Orange County gave him a rather large boost as well. In the tight Florida Presidential race, Orange County was a convincing win for Obama. How convincing? How about 60/40 in support of Obama, beating Sen. John McCain by well over 100,000 votes and sealing a Democratic victory in one of the highest populated areas of Florida. Winning the populous areas of the states is vital to winning the state itself, especially when 27 electoral votes are on the line. The rest of the state was divided almost evenly, with Obama or McCain leading by only a few percentage points, with the exception
of our backyard. If you were to glance at the map of Florida last night, you would have noticed a lot of GOP red splattered across the map, but it was the blue areas that sealed the deal for Obama. Areas such as Orlando, including Orange, Osceola, and Volusia counties, and other major metropolitan areas such as Tallahassee, Miami, and Tampa posted a huge disparity between the
parties, all leaning towards Obama. In other states, it seems the same can be said. New York, for example, looks like it has chicken pox with all of its red blotches, but it was an Obama state when it was all said and done simply because New York City and other large cities were so swung to the Democratic side, it completely nullified the GOP-controlled outskirts. These statistics can also be used when you look at states such as New Mexico, Ohio, and Iowa, all of which, coincidently, voted strongly for George W. Bush in the last two elections. They are among the states that swung from the GOP over to the Democratic side, presumably seeking that everawaited change that Obama has used to fuel his campaign. While America has swung to
the left, only time will tell if was in the right direction.

Obama in Central Florida

2008-11-04T19:08:00.000-08:00

Central Florida for Obama
By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO, Fla. – Think the election this year was close? Take another look at the local results.

On Tuesday, Barack Obama made a huge push in Florida, and Orange County gave him a rather large boost as well. In the tight Florida Presidential race, Orange County was a convincing win for Obama.

How convincing? How about 60/40 in support of Obama, beating McCain by well over 100,000 votes and sealing away a democratic victory in one of the highest populated areas of Florida. Winning the populous areas of the states is vital to winning the state itself, especially when 27 electoral votes are on the line.

The rest of the state was divided almost evenly, with Obama or McCain leading by only a few percent, with the exception of our backyard. If you were to glance at the map of Florida last night, you would have noticed a lot of GOP red splattered across the map, but it was the blue areas that sealed the deal for Obama. Areas such as Orlando, including Orange, Osceola, and Volusia counties, and other main city areas such as Tallahassee, Miami, and Tampa posted huge disparity between the parties, all leaning towards Obama.

In other states, it seems the same can be said; New York, for example, looks like it has the chicken pox with all of it’s red blotches, but it was an Obama state when it was all said and done simply because the major metropolitan areas were so swung to the democratic side, it completely nullified the GOP controlled outskirts.

These statistics can also be used when you look at states such as New Mexico, Ohio, and Iowa, all of which, coincidently, voted strongly for Bush in the past few elections. They are among the states that swung from the GOP over to the democratic side, presumably seeking that ever-awaited change that Obama has used to fuel his campaign. Only time will tell if their swing was in the right direction.

Alan Grayson; Congress-elect

2008-11-04T13:53:00.000-08:00

Alan Grayson Represents Central Florida Proudly
By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO, Fla. – Right now, incumbent congressman Ric Keller is hoping Central Floridians will keep him in office for a fifth consecutive term. The man he is running against, Alan Grayson, Is looking to end that streak.

In today’s election, the race for District 8 will be tightly contested between these two men, and to this point it has been an ugly race in which both sides have had to dig deep to persevere. Alan Grayson is looking for the upset, and promises to serve all members of Central Florida, but his quest does not end there.

You may remember Grayson from his television ads, speaking of how he has fought to recover millions of ill-gotten money from companies seeking to profit illegally off of the war in Iraq. Grayson earned his law degree from Harvard, and has put his papers to good use thus far. Now, he seeks to take the District 8 seat away from Keller, and his campaigning has not gone un-noticed.

“We’re very excited,” said Darren Vierday, the Grayson campaign spokesperson. Vierday was available to answer questions about the campaign Tuesday afternoon from the campaign headquarters. “We’re looking to regroup Central Florida as a whole, and welcome the new change in which all the classes not only here, but across the country are equaled, and no one will be able to throw their weight around. Alan Grayson looks out for all of the people.”

The overall mood of the Grayson campaign is positive, which is great in a time where we as a country have been having problems getting individuals out of the house to vote. This year is much different; record numbers of early polling have been confirmed, and as more and more people turn out at voting centers all over the country, we are most likely looking at a record setting voter turnout. Vierday is very pleased with seeing these results, and even remarked about the absentee ballots tripling this year, and attributes it to Americans, and Central Floridians, being ready for a change.

Reporters were able to touch on a few issues in their conversations with Vierday, and a few concerning collegiate students that may shine a light through some cloudy weather. With the cost of tuition rising every semester, not to mention the cost of about everything else, it is getting harder and harder to pay for college. This is even more disturbing considering the masses had begun to assume that the value of a degree is dropping rapidly. Vierday was very interested in this topic, especially since Grayson has put addressing Federal Aid increases near the top of his “To-Do” list. “We need to help the people want to help themselves. We can do this by assisting high-schoolers more efficiently, and by building more comprehensive student loans. It’s the up and comers that need to be helped in this situation, not the already wealthy, larger corporations. We want more people to be able to better themselves.”

Vierday also touched on raising minimum wages across Central Florida; stating that it is common sense to look at the economy and realize “more money in people’s pockets means more money to be spent. It all goes around and around to different places, but the end result is the same; we all spend money.” Grayson also believes in monetary relief for tipped employees as well, such as servers and bartenders whom only make around 3 dollars an hour. “It is chilling to look at the wages for tipped employees and see they haven’t risen to a competitive rate in some time. They (tipped employees) should not have to rely on random tips as has been expected of them thus far."

As the race got closer here in Central Florida, it took a few rough turns and “a lot of dust has been kicked up,” said Vierday. “We need to unite this country again, and that starts locally. We expect Grayson to be elected term after term, and Alan is a great man who is willing and able to address our problems and help to solve them. He is the right man for the job.”

(#1 for Reporting)

Halloween on Campus

2008-10-30T08:37:00.000-07:00

Valencia Gets Dressed Up for Halloween
By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO,Fla. - As the cool breezes blow in October, the changing seasons bring many memorable things with it, the most, of course, being Halloween.

You always know when Halloween is getting close, because all of those random buildings and stores that have been vacant for 7 months start popping up with bright orange Halloween costume banners, and more people are out on the road canvassing traffic with big neon signs. Adult novelty stores stop advertising what they're known for, and start pushing costumes, some of which are surprisingly still culturally acceptable outside of the bedroom. (That doesn't mean they all are though.)

So it only feels right to see what people have decided to dress up as this Halloween, and what they are doing with their night. Many people go downtown, while some stay in for house parties and work get-togethers. For some, the decision on what alter-ego to inherit comes easy, but for others, it may be a little difficult. That's not the case if you have someone deciding for you, however. "Marilyn Monroe is my idol. and that's why I chose to go as her," said Kristen Candio. Next to Candio, Antonio Gaskin informed us he was going as Justin Timberlake. "I'm making him do that. it's a joint thing," added Candio.

Still, others have opted for a more direct approach, having no clue; such as Vinnie Oliveira. "I have no idea. I just don't know yet.
Gaby Salmon has her eyes on a certain outfit though; "Its a female Spongebob costume. Some people think it's stupid, but I think it's cute. I'm going to have to go back and get it."

Other Valencia students have a much tougher time deciding on their costume, like Jay Rodriguez. "Well, I'm throwing a Hooters Halloween party this year, so if I have to dress up, I guess I'll go as a vampire, that way I can just throw on some fangs and look cute around a bunch of girls."

There's bound to be some people out there who are wearing their costumes and may take the role a little too far, so you should always be safe on Halloween and be aware of your surroundings. it won't just help you stay secure, it will help you take advantage of the best part of Halloween - people watching. After all, you need to start thinking about ideas for next year, right?
(#2 story for reporting class)

Odd Man Eats All Fruit at Local Event

2008-10-23T11:39:00.001-07:00

What's Double Dip Mean?

ORLANDO, Fla. - At a local speaking event Thursday at Valencia's West Campus, an odd man was spotted raiding the fruit bowls.

This unidentified gentleman was seen using one fork to skewer fruit pieces un-sanitarily while returning the utensil from his mouth to the community bowl just as the event was ending.

Despite the availibility of plates nearby, (you can see them in the picture,) the man decided to help himself and spread his saliva over the rest of the remaining food in the bowl, assuring no one else at the event could enjoy the small delicacies they had been eyeing during the speech, given by Mike Murphy, former Op-Ed writer for the Orlando Sentinel.

"Its like he's putting his whole mouth in the fruit," says Tim Tomals; "it can't be clean." The speech was barely broken out for more than 2 minutes when the man attacked the public fruit display like a lion on a steak at Busch Gardens, mercilessly feasting upon the innocent bricks of tasty goodness.

One on-looker at the event said that it was as painful as watching baby seals get clubbed in real life. "I couldn't watch, the horror was too great and I had to look away. those poor honeydews. What did they do to deserve their life being ended so abruptly by such a monster!"

"It was like watching a vaccuum cleaner with a fork. I was disgusted. So much for anyone else getting any fruit pieces;" said Ben Chancers, who also attended Murphy's speech. "If I never see anything like that again, I would be thanking all that is holy. That man had to be possessed."

After orchestrating quite possibly the most disturbing genocide of a mixed fruit platter in Valencia history, the man dissapeared, and is still at large. You may consider him armed with sharpened sporks and extremely dangerous, and authorities say if you encounter this person, you should contact them and not try to apprehend yourself. Especially if you have a pear-shaped figure, or are wearing any fruity-smelling body spray or cologne.

NBA Power Rankings

2008-10-23T09:11:00.000-07:00

NBA POWER RANKINGS

First power rankings of the season, based off of last year's accomplishments, off-season movement, and pre-season play.

1. Boston Celtics: The Defending Champs stay there until they screw up bad enough to lose it.
2. Los Angeles Lakers: The return of Andrew Bynum will make the Lake-Show even tougher.
3. Houston Rockets: Adding Ron Artest... either going to be amazing or terrible. Lets see how he gets along with Houston fans and T-Mac. Over-under; people Artest will punch this year- 3.
4. New Orleans Hornets: Chris Paul will challenge for league MVP again. He and Chandler have amazing chemistry.
5. Detroit Pistons: Window of opportunity closing fast for this veteran team. Stucky seems to be the only flash they have coming in after the geriatrics leave. Still not sold on Maxiell.
6. Cleveland Cavaliers: LeBron is eyeing real estate elsewhere if the Cavs cant win. NOW.
7. Utah Jazz: Big hole at 2-guard prevents this team from moving forward.
8. San Antonio Spurs: Trio of Duncan, Ginobli and Parker still scary good, but aging as well.
9. Orlando Magic: Much deeper than last year, More playmakers added. Great cast in Mickey's backyard.
10. Phoenix Suns: May be last hurrah for Steve Nash, Shaquille O'Neal.
11. Dallas Mavericks: Can Rick Carlisle put this team over the top?
12. Toronto Raptors: Perhaps best frontcourt in East with (healthy) Jermaine O'Neal and Chris Bosh.
13. Philadelphia 76ers: Signing of Elton Brand makes them much better.
14. Portland Trailblazers: Should round out West playoffs with (healthy) Greg Oden, and a young, tough team.
15. Washington Wizards: Agent Zero and Antawn Jamison should have jumped ship. They'll pay for staying, but they'll GET paid for staying as well. it's all about the Benjamins, baby.
16. Indiana Pacers: Rebuilding for the Pacers, they could sneak into the playoffs with solid performances.
17. Atlanta Hawks: They linger, but should be better for as young as they are.
18. Denver Nuggets: Can the Nuggets score 130 a game again this year and still lose?
19. Golden State Warriors: Losing Baron Davis was a big blow.
20. Los Angeles Clippers: Losing Elton Brand was a bigger blow.
21. Chicago Bulls: I have no clue what they're doing in Chicago. It must be nice to just not really care. Get rid of Gordon.
22. Miami Heat: Wade couldn't do it without Shaq, but he has Beasley and Marion now.
23. Minnesota Timberwolves: Kevin Love will be a draft bust as soon as everyone sees the wuss he is, and Ol' Al will be fending for himself again.
24. Sacramento Kings: They will be scary in two or three years. They're going nowhere this year.
25. Charlotte Bobcats: Lots of cap space screams LeBron bid in 2010 - go go gadget Michael Jordan!
26. New Jersey Nets: Trading Jefferson? Ouch. I want to say Yi is overrated, but he isn't. Just isn't that good yet...
27. Milwaukee Bucks: Michael Redd and R. Jeff are scoring machines. A little more help makes these guys real good.
28. Oklahoma City Thunder: They may look nice, and have a new home, but life is going to be tough for Durant and crew.
29. Memphis Grizzlies: These guys are going to get laughed at in the West.
30. New York Knicks: How about a season without one of the following: Sexual harassment charges, locker room drama, and 50 plus losses.

Smoking in the Breezeways

2008-10-23T08:36:00.000-07:00

Valencia Students Lighting Up Everywhere

By Alex Barrett

Every time you turn a corner in the breezeways at Valencia, a familiar sign hangs above your head; “Smoke-free breezeways.” It states that smoking is prohibited in the breezeways of the school for the courtesy of others who may not choose to light up. With smoking being dangerous to the person that is sparking it up, equally as dangerous as second-hand smoke, or the contaminants that are dispelled by the smoker you may be inhaling, even though you aren’t the one smoking.

Second hand smoke is more technically known as Environmental Tobacco Smoke, or ETS, and according to the American Lung Association, ETS lingers in the air hours after cigarettes, cigars, and pipes have been extinguished; meaning just because there isn’t a smoker next to you, doesn’t mean you aren’t being affected. ETS has also been confirmed to cause a wide range of health effects, including cancer, asthma, and respiratory infections. For you statistically inclined people, ETS claims approximately 3,400 lung cancer deaths, and anywhere between 22,700-69,600 heart disease deaths to non-smokers in the United States… Each year. With all of this in mind, It’s good to know that Valencia is taking a stand to try and keep our community airways cleaner for those who don’t really think cancer is fun; but there’s a problem here, no one is enforcing the rule.

If you were to start on one side of the campus and walk to the other, using nothing but the breezeways, you would find out that these signs that support a cleaner learning environment are often overlooked, and sometimes even flagrantly ignored or shunned.
“Ill smoke where I want, when I want. You can’t tell me how to live a part of my life; deal with it,” says David Gonzales on the West Campus of Valencia. When asked if he cared about the second hand smoke he was causing, and the harm that resulted from it to others, his answer was an emphatic and snappy “no.”

Maybe this is a deeper seeded problem than just Valencia. As you probably know, all establishments in Florida that are public areas are all smoke-free, with the exception of stand-alone bars, or bars that serve more alcohol per sales than food, making them different from a restaurant. “I smoke in the breezeways because it’s easier for me, and it keeps me in the shade. Other people should be mindful of the inconveniences that I have to deal with because I smoke. They should work around me;” says Sara Watson of the Osceola Campus. Sara, like many people, was completely unaware of the hardships caused by second hand smoke to others around her, and obviously feels that others should compensate for her choice to indulge in a smoke. So where do students of Valencia turn to get help for this matter? It seems as though many people are smoking on campus, but few have ever seen someone of authority ask a student, or faculty member, to put out their smoke; second year Valencia student Kyle Craig stated, “I have been smoking in the breezeways for the past 2 years, and no one has ever asked me to put out my cigarette, or even move to a designated area. It’s not that I want to cause harm, it’s just difficult for me to smoke between classes and move between them without using the breezeways. If I squatted at a smoking approved area, I would be late getting to my next class.” You would think the security office would monitor such behavior, and regulate the smoking in the breezeways here at Valencia; this is incorrect. When the security staff was asked about the regulation, they stated that it was more of a policy than a law, and that the Office of the Provost is the entity that is responsible for regulating the smoking. This is clearly a problem for students like Kyle, who need to be on time for their classes. However, there are others who abide by the regulations and feel that if a smoker chooses to smoke, than they should accept responsibility for their actions, like third-year student Jessica Meredith on the West Campus. “I am a smoker, and I smoke in the designated areas because I make the choice to put things in my body. I am not able to make that choice for others. When I schedule my classes, I allow enough time between them to smoke, relax for a few, and regroup before heading to the next session. I would advise others to do the same. It not only helps your smoking routine, it gives you a chance to wash your mind in between classes, which has been invaluable to me.”

Although we found substantially less people blowing smoke on the Osceola and East Campuses compared to the West Campus, we found Mike Glantz on the east side, who when asked about the regulations in place, plainly remarked; “It’s bullshit.” Glantz also added that he would puff wherever was convenient for him, and made quite a stand to have smoking legalized throughout the campus. He didn’t seem to mind that his second-hand smoke could be poisoning others, and maybe that is an issue here at Valencia. Across all campuses, the point remains; there are people freely smoking in breezeways, and it seems that nothing is being done about it. If you would like to make your voice heard; or if you have any questions or comments, possibly want to know more information, you may contact me at abarrett@valenciavoice.com. Special thanks to Louie Rodriguez for his contributions to this story.

Dan Shepherd

2008-10-21T09:35:00.000-07:00

"Six Digits in a Good Year"
By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO, FL - "Whatever the client wants to make them happy, you do it."
That's how Dan Shepherd has grown to be such a successful Freelance Producer. Living by that simple quote, and falling back on work well done. Since 1994, Shepherd has been a freelance field producer and remote coordinator for many aspects of the media world, including NBC, ABC, and CBS News and their affiliates, and has done work for the Oprah Winfrey show, Mohegan Sun Casino, FOX Sports and Clear Channel Communications, just to name a few. Throughout his career, Shepherd has covered some excellent stories, such as the September 11 attacks on the United States, and the devastation of Hurricane Katrina, garnering Emmy award nominations for these two stories.

Shepherd shared his freelance journalism knowledge and experience on Thursday afternoon at Valencia's West Campus.

Shepherd wasn't always a freelance worker; he started his career in 1984 as a photographer and tape editor for NBC, and in 1987 took those talents to CBS here in Orlando. His coverage of events and microwave truck operations eventually led him to Tampa for a brief 4 year stint, and then back to Orlando to begin his freelance work in 1994. he has been freelance ever since then.

Shepherd says there are many things you have to do to be a successful freelance worker, including taking somewhat less than glamorous jobs, being available at beck and call, and always being prepared for just about anything. Shepherd's stories have taken him as high as being in a P51 Mustang Fighter Plane, to as low as a submarine dive, and to be a freelancer, you must be willing to do the same when the news organizations call your number; you may not get a second chance. With freelance work comes some instability, however, in the monetary department. Dan stated that one could make "Six Digits in a good year," but also added that you could just as easily have a bad year and make next to nothing since you have no steady income.

Shepherd said the key to being successful, besides being prepared, was pitching good stories. Finding anything news-worthy and getting a broadcast company to bite on it is what keeps Shepherd hopefully close to that six figure range. Among the stories he has pitched include one of a dolphin with a prosthetic fin, one of his favorite stories, and a story of a small football team in Alaska that had been playing on gravel and flying everywhere to play their high school games. the porpoise prosthesis was picked up, unfortunately, the Alaskan football team wasn't; even though ESPN covered the team in detail after Shepherd had pitched the story unsuccessfully.

His eye for noteworthy news also plays a part in Shepherd's freelance work, and he uses it to his advantage, gathering knowledge any way he can. "Jump on the internet and let it be your friend," Says Shepherd, and "always be ready for the news, it can happen anywhere."

Shepherd established his own freelance company in 1998, named Soundbite Productions, and keeps his stories on time and under budget. he works effectively with National News networks, and encourages others who may want to do freelance work to be efficient and learn quickly, always be on your heels, and to "prepare yourself for anything, because it can happen at any time."

Oh, The Horror

2008-10-08T12:44:00.000-07:00

Oh, The Horror…

By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO – Since its inception in 1991, Universal Studio’s Halloween Horror Nights has been attracting flocks of people from all around to Orlando for one purpose… to get the crap scared out of them. This year, the event will hold it’s 18th successive presentation, hoping to maintain that which has made it stand out among the other theme parks and motivating people from all walks of life to return yet another year. With the Horror Nights already underway for two weeks, It is easy to forget that there has been quite a progression involved in the last 18 years; the event has undergone many changes, including flipping between Islands of Adventure and the original Studios, not to mention the new character base each year, and ever-changing “Scare Zones.”

To help take a look back into the past, Universal Studios Employee Donald Leinz has compiled a personal collection of artifacts and memorabilia from all 18 presentations. During the month of October, these tokens are on display at the main campus for the Orange County Library, located in downtown Orlando. On Tuesday, Donald was present to showcase his items and let the community take a step back in time to see how the event has grown over the years. “When you work with a project of this magnitude for so long, it starts to grow on you. I never thought it would be this big of a hit this far down the road.” Donald’s favorite piece of the exhibit is probably the cheapest one, but the most interesting. In a standup glass case, a brochure, button, pamphlet, and credential card for each of the 18 shows sit in order of their appearance, from the first presentation, originally called “Fright Nights,” to the newest one featuring Bloody Mary. Donald added, “It is amazing to look back and see what an integral part of Universal Studios this is. Normally, you never want to be scared, and yet, every year tons of people from basically everywhere come here with the sole purpose of not being able to sleep that night.”

The month long exhibit will feature a few presentations by Donald when he isn’t working out at the show, and from the lingering crowd at the library you can see how Orlando citizens love the Studio’s presentation as much as anyone else. Mary Schweintz of Winter Park was taken back by the exhibit and Donald’s presentation. “I have gone every year, and for the most part it keeps getting better. It’s really enjoyable to just look back and recall memories of past Horror Nights.” When I asked Mary about her favorite time, she remembered once when she was “much younger,” and how her friend had a little bodily fluid accident during the 2000 presentation, which featured Jack, an evil clown as its headliner. Jacob Tyner was also in attendance, and he was new to the experience. “I just moved here from Wisconsin,” he said, “We used to see the commercials all the time, but I never had the opportunity to go until this year. It is really sweet to look at the history and take a preview of what I am getting myself into next Saturday night.”

You can check out the exhibit in the Teen Center should you choose to go, and can look up any appearances by Donald online through the Orange County Library site, at www.ocls.info. It will remain in pieces until the end of October, but will only feature certain selections when Donald is there to present them.

I need Peasants

2008-10-04T20:32:00.000-07:00

I had around 1500 blog viewers on myspace... Here I have no followers, and I don't feel too special about it anymore. You should follow me. You know you want to. I added the App this afternoon, you can click on it on the right side of the page. It's down by the bottom, because my picture is too pretty to move it down at all. Here are some perks to being a follower of Alex:
1. You get to email me things you think I should either blog about or write about. I will DEFINITELY read and reply to all emails.
2. Come on. Being a follower of someone as awesome as myself is a perk in itself. You'll get more friends in your social life because of me. Note... it isn't what you know, it's WHO you know.
3. My brother, Jake, wont have to knock on your door. That's a visit you don't want. I promise.
4. Now, I am not saying that being my follower is going to make you independantly wealthy, but, I mean, COME ON.
5. The more followers I have, the more I will blog and the more I will be versed to doing personal favors for any of you. Remember, you are all special.
And finally, the number one reason-
6. My mom is eventually going to be a follower. If she's the only one at any point in time, then I may never be able to be with a woman again, and you wouldnt wish that on anyone. Just click the button. Thanks!

Don't Get Mad, Patriot Fans...

2008-10-04T20:25:00.000-07:00

I just picked random teams. Feel free to replace any team except the Patriots with your team.

On the first day of school a first grade teacher explains to her class that she is a Patriots fan. She asks her students to raise their hands if they, too, are Patriots fans. Wanting to impress their teacher, everyone in the class raises their hand except one little girl. The teacher looks at the girl with surprise, 'Janie, why didn't you raise your hand?' 'Because I'm not a Patriots fan,' she replied. The teacher, still shocked, asked, 'Well, if you are not a Patriots fan, then who are you a fan of? 'I am a Steelers fan, and proud of it,' Janie replied. The teacher could not believe her ears. 'Janie, please tell me why you are you a Steelers fan?' 'Because my mom is a Steelers fan, and my dad is Steelers fan, so I'm a Steelers fan too!' 'Well,' said the teacher in a obviously annoyed tone, 'that is no reason for you to be a Steelers fan. You don't have to be just like your parents all of the time. What if your mom were an idiot and your dad were a moron, what would you be then?' 'Then,' Janie smiled, 'I'd be a Patriots fan.'

Four football fans - a Cowboys fan, an Eagles fan, a Titans fan, and a Patriots fan - are climbing a mountain and arguing about who loves his team more. The Cowboys fan insists he is the most loyal. 'This is for the Cowboys!' he yells, and jumps off the side of the mountain. Not to be outdone, the Eagles fan shouts, 'This is for the Eagles!' and throws himself off the mountain.The Titans fan is next to profess his love for his team. He yells, 'This is for everyone!' and pushes the Patriots fan off the mountain.

Boys in Blue are back in action

2008-10-02T09:32:00.000-07:00

The Orlando Magic begin their new season this month, and already expectations are high. The players all know that new jerseys will not be enough to carry the team where they all believe they deserve to be, the NBA Finals.

Last year, GM Otis Smith was quoted as saying, "We're Kurt Thomas away from a championship," speaking of the power forward acquired by San Antonio before their playoff run. With the failure to court Thomas during the season, Smith didn't even focus on him in free agency in the off-season. Instead, Otis bolstered the defenses by bringing in free agent Mikael Pietrus from Golden State, a stingy defender that plays well in the Magic theme of hitting jump shots and three pointers, and puts yet another body in front of J.J. Redick. Also joining the new-look Magic this season, journeyman point guard Anthony Johnson, who will provide a solid veteran backup to improving Jameer Nelson, and filling the hole left from the departure of Keyon Dooling. Johnson will, ideally, help Jameer develop even more into one of the leagues' top point guards, which he proved he could be in the finals this past year. In the draft, the Magic acquired guard Courtney Lee out of Western Kentucky with the 22nd pick, and the team believes he can contribute right off the bat, and has looked stellar in the off-season workouts and the Summer leagues.

Last season, the Magic won the Southeast Division comfortably by 9 games, posting a 52-30 record en route to a second round loss to the Detroit Pistons, also known as the "Orlando Magic Playoff Run Killers." This year, expectations have grown, and so have the young players the franchise has built around. Dwight Howard is coming off an amazing season and off-season, and the organization is only expecting him to pick up his game even more after seeing Olympic competition and bringing home the gold. "We want to compete for a championship," Said Howard, and the NBA Finals are not out of reach for the blossoming team. Last season's biggest free agent pickup Rashard Lewis has had a full year in Coach Stan Van Gundy's system, and should be a much larger contributer now that he has started to build some chemistry in the team. Often shaky at times, Jameer Nelson keeps bettering his game and when he is on the ball, is one of the best in the league.

A power center, arguably the best in the league, the best outside shooting in the league statistically, more time together and the addition of a few key veterans makes this Magic team much like the team that challenged for the title back in 1995 with the Rockets.
These things, coupled with the return of Tony Battie from injury to help Howard get some break time, and the emergence in the playoffs of Polish-born Marcin Gortat, who displayed amazing heart and hustle, help round out a team whose depth was questioned last year.
Only time will tell if the Magic are ready to compete in the big games this season, but from what has been seen this off-season, the fans in Orlando have much to be happy about.

Week 5 NFL Power Rankings

2008-10-01T11:42:00.000-07:00

Week 5 Power Rankings

So were a quarter through this fresh NFL season, and we starting to see some tendencies developing, good and bad; some surprise wins and losses, and there’s still a boatload of pissed off Patriot fans. Here’s my Power Rankings through the first 4 games.

1. New York Giants (4-0) – I know, they should have been here since the beginning of the season. They are the defending champs, but lets remember, they have had a few nail-biters, and those are the ones that will make you or break you.
2. Tennessee Titans (4-0) – for the first time in franchise history, the Titans are unbeaten through a quarter of the season. The tandem rushing has never looked better, and any team giving up only 11 points a game is in amazing shape.
3. Buffalo Bills (4-0) – Buffalo is about to get really rowdy, now that the Patriots have already been counted down, and they are in a relatively weak division. Bills fans are in great shape, and it’s only going to get better.
4. Washington Redskins (3-1) – That tough DB core finally looked good against the ‘Boys last week, and LaRon Landry is already a feared player only a few years into his career.
5. Dallas Cowboys (3-1) – Losing a battle at home to a division rival is painful. Losing a battle at home to a division rival, while only handing the ball off 11 times to one of the leagues best tandems is just plain dumb. I would be pretty upset if I was Felix Jones or MB3 right now.
6. Carolina Panthers (3-1) – The Moose is resurrected, and that’s exactly what they wanted in Carolina. Ken Lucas gets a game ball from Steve Smith, and everyone loses their mind. How about, lets not kick the crap out of our own players anymore, and you can keep your own game ball.
7. Pittsburgh Steelers (3-1) – Winning. Very, very sloppily winning. But still winning.
8. Tampa Bay Buccaneers (3-1) – I have a bias towards Earnest Graham, because I attended school with him. With a few more handoffs and games like he has had so far this year, even with teams gunning for him, you too will all have “E-Geesus” biases as well.
9. New England Patriots (3-1) – The New England Matt Cassel’s are still in the top 10. Not a bad place to be when losing your franchise player.
10. Denver Broncos (3-1) – John Elway’s playbook? Oh Jay, Denver fans will be dancing in the streets; or puking in their living rooms.
11. Philadelphia Eagles (2-2) – I like DeSean Jackson. I really do. So, my friend, this note is for you – relax, take it slow. You are amazing, let it come to you. Your only mistakes on the year have been dumb, thoughtless goofs. You’re better than that.
12. Green Bay Packers (2-2) – Oh, Aaron… an injury is what you wanted the least, buddy. Get better. Fast.
13. San Diego Chargers (2-2) – The first series of the game might have been the biggest bonehead move of the year to this point, but I don’t think the Chargers are ready to drop yet.
14. New Orleans Saints (2-2) – Can we run the ball? PLEASE? Brees is going to throw out his arm and is on track to break Marino’s pass yards in a season record.
15. Chicago Bears (2-2) – I had a hard time putting these guys anywhere on this list. Their offense is still putrid, but their defense is outstanding when it commits.
16. Baltimore Ravens (2-1) – Quietly, deep inside, they’re calling out for “The Air.”
17. New York Jets (2-2) – A 2 point conversion was un-needed and ill-advised. What goes around comes around guys. Brett might be learning that playbook, huh?
18. Jacksonville Jaguars (2-2) – A barnburner with Houston last week, and they too allowed a score on every drive. I guess if you get tired of playing defense, as long as you can score every time you touch the ball, you’ll be ok. Maybe if we combine this highly vaulted defense with the offense we saw in the 4th quarter last week…
19. Indianapolis Colts (1-2) – Indy is thanking everything that is holy for the Bye this week. Peyton will right the ship. It’s only a matter of time.
20. Minnesota Vikings (1-3) – Frerotte couldn’t even last a whole game. Henderson goes down, and the Titans show the Vikings how bad life sucks when Peterson gets shut down. Minnesota is looking mighty depressing.
21. San Francisco 49ers (2-2) – Martz said J.T. O’Sullivan is the best QB he has ever had, I guess that means he has forgotten “The Greatest Show on Turf” orchestrator, Kurt Warner. Sad.
22. Miami Dolphins (1-2) – When you have the week off and everyone else sucks it up, you get to move up the ladder. Congrats, Sparano.
23. Atlanta Falcons (2-2) – I guess Michael Turner flips a coin before each game to see how he is going to play that day; amazing, or terrible. Jerious Norwood is making his chances count every week though.
24. Arizona Cardinals (2-2) – Ken Whisenhunt: Don’t send a marquee player into the middle with less than a minute left in a 100% losing effort. You win the Moron of the Week award. Anquan, prayers are with you, get back soon.
25. Seattle Seahawks (1-3) – Super Bowl MVP back in the lineup this week, but will Deion Branch himself be able to help this stagnant team?
26. Kansas City Chiefs (1-3) – Awesome win against a tough Denver team, but even that was messy.
27. Cleveland Browns (1-3) – Narrowly beat out Fitzpatrick in the “Battle for Ohio Mediocrity.” Derek Anderson is playing like Derek Anderson. Didn’t I predict this?
28. Houston Texans (0-3) – Where is this stingy defense that you have drafted a player to in the first round the last 3 years? Texans allowed a score on EVERY POSSESSION to the Jags in the 4th quarter last week.
29. Cincinnati Bengals (0-4) – Ryan Fitzpatrick is not the answer here. Neither is anything else the Bengals have been doing.
30. Detroit Lions (0-3) – Matt Millen is gone, and a new angel gets its wings. FINALLY.
31. St. Louis Rams (0-4) – The resurgence of Jim Haslett, missing since his New Orleans stint, and names Bulger the QB for the rest of the year. Anyone else getting a kick out of this?
32. Oakland Raiders (1-3) – Al Davis and his Tracksuit Mafia have done it again. Not only did this team NOT need anymore drama, but now they have to deal with their owner looking like a moron on national TV. By the way, watch that interview again, if you can. He never blinked. 5 head coaches since 2002. How can you expect to win with a new coach every year?

No milk with cookies? That's a travesty...

2008-09-25T09:42:00.000-07:00

FINANCIAL CRISIS HIT OR MISS AT VALENCIA

By Alex Barrett

Orlando, Fla. – With the economy in a state of disarray, many people of all walks of life are feeling strapped for cash, some more than others. On the West Campus of Valencia, even the students are affected somewhat. “I'm a server, so less people going out means less tips and less money in my pocket,” said Michelle Jacobs. Michelle is a server at outback, and when you live off of tips, people not having that extra money can be a big problem; even in a more stable environment, such as Ginn Security, Francelaine Prezil is feeling the crunch. “It’s terrible… I drive 45 minutes to work each day and gas is too expensive. I have to fill my tank every few days. It’s not fun.” Some of the students here are on financial aid, which make it a bit easier on the wallet, such as Nicole Bramwell, who says the crisis “hasn’t affected me yet, but I know it will soon.” Mehdi Elyacoubi and Eric Gomez, two friends on campus here, have mixed feelings. “Really, I am just waiting for the cold weather so the electricity bill gets cheaper. It’s horrible right now,” said Gomez. Elyacoubi added, “It isn’t too bad right now for me, I just can’t enjoy milk with my cookies at this time.” Shawna Stevens works downtown at a private firm, and even she is getting hit. “When it comes down to it, bills are just harder to come up with, cut and dry.”

Orlando Magic 20th Anniversary and Jersey Unveiling

2008-09-23T12:17:00.000-07:00

MAGICAL NEW UNIFORMS
By Alex Barrett

ORLANDO, Fla. – Fans of all ages gathered at the historic Cheyenne Saloon in downtown Orlando to be part of the Orlando Magic’s new jersey unveiling and 20th anniversary season. The Magic celebrated jerseys and memories of the past by having a fashion show runway-type presentation of the uniforms of their past, as Community Ambassadors Nick Anderson, and Bo Outlaw, Along with All-Star center Dwight Howard, sported the history of the Orlando Magic jerseys at the same location that the Magic unveiled their original duds back in 1989.

“With this being our 20th anniversary season, the uniform change allows us to pay tribute to our history with the return to pinstripes, as well as look forward to our future with a modern approach,” Orlando Magic COO Alex Martins said. This is the fourth uniform change the Magic have made since entering the league before the 1989-90 season.

The adidas design team, along with input from the community and players alike, designed a new, reflective yet still modern looking jersey, bringing back the pinstripes that the fans loved so much, which now flare at the shoulders to accentuate the design, adding a new modernized letter and number font, and placing a secondary logo on the center back of the jersey by the neck, the first time this has been done in franchise history; the sides of the jersey have also been accentuated with contrasting mesh inserts. The new jerseys will lead the Magic into a new season full of expectations on the court, and into a new era in which they will also receive a new stadium, the Orlando Events Center, due to be ready for the 2010-2011 season.

Community Ambassador Nick Anderson, a former All-Star with the team and the Orlando Magic’s first draft pick on the franchise, said the jerseys have a good combination of all concepts on previous jerseys, from the first one on down the line. “I really wish they would have had these when I played…” and he added, “These jerseys bring a new excitement to our team, which was already exciting before. We have high expectations, and if everyone knows their roles and stays healthy this season, there’s no reason we can’t reach the NBA Finals this year.” When asked about the preseason pickups of Mikael Pietrus and veteran guard Anthony Johnson, Anderson added, “Otis [Smith] really hit a home run here. He knew exactly what he was doing, and he shored up our defense and played to our abilities to hit jumpers and three pointers, as well as giving us a seasoned veteran to back up Jameer Nelson. And don’t forget first round pick Courtney Lee, either; he could be the best addition of all of them.”

After the unveiling, gold-medal winning Dwight Howard was all smiles, as always. He received a standing ovation, but more importantly, a key to the city from Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer. Dyer also proclaimed September 23rd as “Dwight Howard Day” in Orlando, and Howard interviewed after the presentation; “We just saw these before you guys did, and I am so glad we got some new jerseys. I love the team chemistry at this point, even with our new players, and I know it’s just a shirt, but this helps bring us together as a team and as fans as well.” Dwight also noted the depressing post-season loss to the Pistons as something they have worked on this offseason, and the turnout today shows the fans care. Howard gave the jersey design an “A++” and has hopes for it to be “the only jersey to be seen at our games.”

The fan and community reaction was just as powerful as the players, and the reaction to the new jersey was nothing short of ecstatic. UCF students Rachel Scott and Alex Rivera, whom are long time Magic fans and were one of the first in line when the doors opened at the Saloon, loved the new look. “The pinstripes are my favorite, I’m glad they brought them back,” said Scott, a senior legal studies major. Rivera, a sophomore at the school thinks the Magic can take it to the playoffs this year, and noted; “We can win it all.”

Orlando Magic Fanatic Jerome Wilt was in attendance for the festivities as well, and was thrilled about the new look for the Magic. “It has a new-school style, but keeps the old-school appeal.” He went on to add “The 20th anniversary patch was a perfect addition to the jersey as well. I can’t wait to see those on the court. It’s just a jersey; but this is our year.”

The Central Florida Hawaiian Feast

2008-09-20T19:51:00.000-07:00

ORLANDO, Fla. - Or a luau, if you prefer, more in the middle of suburbia, less on a tropical island. I was perusing local events in which to attend for a recent assignment, and while looking abroad, I almost missed the party happening right under my nose. I recently moved into The Parks, a condo community in the Hunter's Creek area, and so far have thoroughly enjoyed my time there. Earlier today, the management company had a luau at the pool area for all of the residents and their families and friends, and I decided to attend and see what the feedback was for such an event.

When I arrived to the luau, I found it very well planned out; it was a family engagement, so there was no alcohol present, but there was a pretty extensive buffet, and even an open pit to mimic the cooking of a pig. There was live island music, and each person through the gates received a lei, just like they were getting off the jet plane in Hawaii. After making a few rounds to check out the scenery, I began to notice how much fun everyone was having; and how this party was bringing everyone in the neighborhood together. After all, even though we are in condominiums, we are still neighbors; just very, very close neighbors that don't always appreciate my Rock Band skills at three o'clock in the morning. After scoping some of the native talent on the deck, I came across Diane Mann, one of the head property managers for The Parks. She greeted me with an pleasant "Aloha," and I returned with the greeting myself. I asked Diane how they management company went about planning all of this, and the kind of coordination it took. "You would be surprised; it was very easy..." Diane stated. "We have had quite a few of these and there's always a huge turnout. It gets everyone out of their homes on a beautiful day, and it takes little more than a few fliers to advertise, and the dedication of the staff for a day." I recognized the dedicated staff. most of them were very dedicated to the volleyball game happening in the pool. "They deserve this as well," stated Diane, "And I think this may be our best turnout yet this year." I also asked Diane if she was down for a game of chicken later, but all I received from the request was a flattered look, followed by a little laughter.

As Diane said previously, this was an event for the people to get out and mingle, so I posed some questions to Mr. David Schoup, who happened to be the next person up to the massive punch bowl fountain. After a few minutes of defending my Chicago Cubs hat, I asked Mr. Schoup if he was enjoying himself. "Oh yeah. I can hang out in the sun, the kids can play, and the wife goes to gossip, so I can get a few moments of peace." He also added that he didn't even know who his neighbors in the home to his left were before this afternoon, much less know their children attended the same school. Courtney Wheeler felt the same way; a fellow bartender I found out after speaking with her for a bit. "Not only do I get to meet new people, some of them are regulars at my bar. I can hang out with them outside of work. It's awesome." I asked her if this was her first one of these little engagements, and she said that she had been to almost all of the special events The Parks puts on, and now actually requests off of work when she hears that an event is upcoming.

It was late afternoon now, and the sun was cracking the clouds, making for a very beautiful orange-red colored sky. As I grabbed another glass of punch, I heard the calls of my roommates by the poolside as they were entering the luau; it was at that point that Mr. Schoup returned to challenge myself, and whomever I would recruit to next game on the volleyball net. After hearing him banter about my Cubbies, I couldn't turn him down. I grabbed the Roomies, and hit the pool. My luau was just starting; and it was going to be a great night.

UCF Vs. Stanford, WVB, 9/02/08

2008-09-04T11:27:00.002-07:00

September 2nd, 2008
The Venue at UCF, Orlando, Florida
Attendance: 1568, (sold out)
ORLANDO, Fla. - Outside hitters Jeanine Williams and Erin Campbell led the way for the lady knights in kills and team attacks for the Lady Knights, however, the team as a whole led in total errors. The Knights welcomed in a stacked Stanford team on Tuesday night with the promise of guaranteed USF football tickets on Saturday, but that can’t account for the standing room only crowd in which close to one thousand people were turned away. The atmosphere in the gym was electric as the team bumped, set, and killed to chants of “U-C-F” and taunted the number two Cardinal with the same chants of “Go-Back-Home.” Unfortunately, after losing three sets in a sweep, (25-13, 25-17, 25-14) it was the crowd at the newly renovated Venue, and the Lady Knights, wishing Stanford would never have left California.
Of course, the Cardinal remembered to bring its superstars-- a whopping 10 letter winners from its 2007 campaign, including 2 times AVCA All-American Cynthia Barboza, and the 2007 National AVCA Player of the Year Foluke Akinradewo. In short order, the Knights were dispatched by a nearly perfect Stanford team; they committed only six errors the entire game, whereas the Knights had twenty-four. UCF might as well have brought a Caterpillar digger to the game, as Kristen Petrasic continued to dominate defensively for the Knights. In the end, no matter what the score, the girls were all smiles knowing they had stood up to a team composed of all stars and Olympians, and competed valiantly.
Both Campbell and Williams were available after the game, where they told the media they “Had nothing to lose” and were out there just “having fun”. They played hard and hung in against a tough squad and hope that fans will take this game and realize just how fun of a sport it is to watch, and hope that they can duplicate the attendance tonight through the season. Head coach Todd Dagenais, in his first season of coaching at UCF, added; “…this team showed amazing height for a new program…” and also noted that it “showcases a new era for our team. It was great to see them just go out there and play.” The Lady Knights will take their experience on the road next to face another ranked opponent, number 15 Oregon at the upcoming tournament in Kansas.
On another game note, the 1978 National Champion UCF women’s team was honored between the first and second sets; members of the team were present and cheered on their Alma Mater from the sidelines. A banner for their achievement to be displayed in the Venue is currently in the works.

OKC Thunder

2008-09-04T11:27:00.001-07:00

Oklahoma City is “Thunderstruck”
At least their team is now. After spending much of this offseason without a formal name on their jerseys, the newly-acquired franchise has a tag.
With the deal to allow the movement of the team, the old franchise, the Seattle Supersonics, and their color scheme of green and gold were not allowed to follow the team; they had to stay in Washington. Because of this, Oklahoma was able to concoct a brand new identity looking forward to next season in their new home.
This new name really wasn’t that large of a surprise, however, as potential names were leaked as early as six weeks ago, and the website of the Orlando Magic had already listed games on their schedule for next year as playing the “Oklahoma City Thunder.” It took a little longer to leak the colors, but even they didn’t last until the announcement. The Thunder will be sporting blue, orange, and yellow, combining such colors having meaning to the residents of OKC, as well as the cross between colors of current Oklahoma teams, such as the Sooners.
Thunder is a fitting team name for the new franchise, as the Tornado Alley resides in Oklahoma. Thunderbirds are a nickname for a city based infantry division, and even that draws from the state’s American Indian past. “The Thunder Rolls” was a Garth Brooks hit many years ago on the country music charts; Brooks is also an Oklahoma native.
Oklahoma didn’t get the franchise quietly; however, they were mandated to shell out $75 million in lawsuit charges during a point in time where the team wasn’t even sure if it was moving until the legal proceedings were concluded. Team chairman Clay Bennett had mentioned that the team name had been decided “quite some time ago,” but the names that Oklahoma City passed on included trademarks on five other possibilities outside of Thunder: the Wind, Bison, Marshalls, Energy, and Barons.
The Thunder revealed the new logo, colors and name while blaring AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” over the loudspeakers, and new teammates Damien Wilkins and Desmond Mason, a former Oklahoma State University forward, along with some children unveiled the new designs at a packed Leadership Square in Oklahoma City in the early evening of September 4th.
Coach P.J. Carlesimo was even quoted as saying; “The guys in the jerseys, if they play, the jerseys are going to look real good.”

Everything is bigger in Texas...

2008-08-28T11:01:00.000-07:00

Even the strip joints. I feel it only right to lead off my new blog site with a topic that is not only current news, but one that relates to my interests in sports; as well as my interest in my sports teams I may follow. So why am I bringing up strip joints? Adam "Pacman" Jones was given the green light from N.F.L. Commissioner Roger Godell to play week one for the Dallas Cowboys. You will, of course, recall the fiasco... er, "wonderful journey" that Mr. Jones has taken us on in the past year of his suspension. As a Tennessee Titans fan, I would like to point out that I never wanted this guy in the organization... Right after he called the press conference to formally request we all call him by his nickname, Pacman, I knew it was going to be bad; but I never thought that over ten arrests and depleated play time would be the result of our number six first round pick of just three years ago. (He would later call a press conference to request that we no longer even use "Pacman" when referring to him.) Shooting charges and felony coersion charges aside, this guy has just proven to be a miserable person- so far.

The Dallas Cowboys organization, and Jerry Jones specifically, have been in the spotlight many times for recruiting troubled players to the team; most notably before Adam Jones of course would be Terrell Owens, who shunned his past quarterbacks (going as far as questioning Jeff Garcia's manhood... have you seen Jeff Garcia's wife? I'll take male pattern baldness any day if I get a crack at her.)and has an outstanding reputation of caring only of himself. It is the aim, of course, for the Cowboys to bring out the best in Jones, and to assure the public that his days of creating rap labels and doing third-party wrestling appearances are over with. Again, as a fan of the game, I honestly would like to see Adam get his career back on track. I hate seeing an athlete with that gifted of talent throw it away because he cant stay away from a gentlemen's club; however, If the old saying is true, and everything IS bigger in Texas, the lure of "making it rain" in his new home may just be too much for Mr. Pacman.