Sports Blog: 07/08/21 – Radically Rational

Sports Blog: 07/08/21

The upcoming Olympics are a travesty. This is insanity. Somebody cue the O’Jays. “Money, money, money, money….MUUH-nay!”

And speaking of legal tender, college sports are all about money, too. The only change is who’s now going to pocket the change. Get used to the acronym “NIL”—Name, Image and Likeness. A big-cigar University of Miami booster is about to rock college football like a hurricane. MMA promoter and American Top Team entrepreneur Dan Lambert says he will pay every Miami Hurricane scholarship football player $500 this season for promoting his gyms on the players’ social media accounts. You don’t need an MBA from the U to calculate Lambert’s “investment” in Hurricane football at $540,000 for the upcoming season. Perfectly legal in this Brave New World. I’m not Chicken Little. I don’t think the sky is falling. But there could be some clouds on the horizon as the gulf widens between the Haves and the Have Nots.

Think about this. Local car dealers will no longer have to deal in the shadows in lining players’ pockets. That might take some of the fun out of it for SMU football.

You could take everything I know about hockey and inscribe it on the head of a pin with room enough left over for War and Peace. But I do appreciate how hard it is to win back-to-back Stanley Cups. That’s manly, Lightning.

I love basketball. Except for one thing. Look, every sport has officiating controversies, but hoops is the only game in which every single player, coach and fan bitches about every single call. That is NOT manly. I like you, Budenholzer. But put a sock in it.

Pats’ receiver N’Keal Harry wants to be traded, at least according to his agent. Agent is griping that Harry has only been targeted 86 times in his first two years in the league. Uhh…he only played seven games in his rookie year because of injuries. And then last season he was shackled by Cam Newton’s inability to throw the ball. Might wanna think this one over, N’Keal. Life could be way different with Mac Jones. You may have heard something about Belichick being a pretty decent coach, too. I liked Mr. Harry A LOT coming out of Arizona State in 2019. Patience, young man.

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Paul's Bio

I clearly have the attention span of your median fruit fly.Look! Airplane!

Sorry. I’m back.

It’s both a curse and a blessing. I’ve never bought this stuff about, “He who dies with the most toys wins.” But I do think that a wide range of life experiences helps us grow as people, and helps us better relate to other people. I’ve been fortunate. And I am beyond grateful.

I show up on time. I go like hell. I’m a good listener. I hold myself accountable. I own my mistakes. And I have a natural and an insatiable curiosity. I’m never afraid to say, “I don’t know,” when I don’t. But then I try to find out.

The flip side is I’m a lousy ballroom dancer and my clothes sometimes fit me funny.

Stuff matters to me. I care. But while I take that stuff seriously, I try hard to never take myself seriously. As a result, I have sometimes been told, “Paul, it’s hard to tell when you’re serious and when you’re just having some fun. Which is it? Serious or fun?”

My answer is “yes.” But I think that is a legitimate criticism. I promise I’m going to work on that.

This has been the quickest and strangest half-century I’ve ever experienced. During that period, I’ve been afforded amazing opportunities in news and sports journalism across all platforms. I have taught wonderful students at the high school and collegiate level. Always, I learned more from them than they did from me. I’ve been a high school administrator. I spent ten seasons as a high school varsity football coach. I’ve been an advertising executive. I’ve hosted nationally syndicated television entertainment shows. In maybe the biggest honor I ever received, I was selected by NASA to be “Chet The Astronaut” for the “Land The Shuttle” simulator at Space Center Houston. (All I can say there, is “Do as I say, not as I do.” I put that thing in the Everglades more often than not.) Most recently, I just wrapped up a decade as a television news director, during which time our teams distinguished themselves in holding the powerful accountable, achieving both critical and ratings success.

What does all that mean? It means I am profoundly grateful. It also means I’m ready for “next.” So here we are. Radically Rational. It’s an idea I woke up with in 2017. I scribbled “Radically Rational” on a piece of notebook paper and used a magnet to stick it on our refrigerator. I saw it every day, and it just would not leave me alone.

I am second in charge at Radically Rational, LLC. My wife, Jo (also known as BB), is the president. Clearly, I have failed in my attempt to sleep my way to the top of this organization.

I hope you will learn that I’m loyal as a Labrador. But I will admit that this doggie can bite every now and then. My promise to you? I will show up on time. I will go like hell. I will listen to you earnestly and attentively. I will hold myself accountable. I will never be the least bit hesitant to say, “I don’t know,” when I don’t.

But then I’ll try to find out. Let’s do it.