Life In The DPC!

Dear Wolf Pack Chat.com;

 I will never apologize for being me and accordingly this may rub some folks the wrong way but I really don’t care. Before I go on a random tangent I need to give props to PackBacker for being a gent and a mediator. Also Warren seems to feel my pain.

Anyway the amount of angst you fellas have conveyed in the various posts about me makes me glad that I have a chip on my shoulder. Say what you will about me, and it is likely true, but ultimately I am a Nevada fan. The irony of it all is the simple notion that you preach community, comraderie and The Pack but when challenged you go for a myriad of juvenille insults, including using my whole name (this still makes no sense to me), and try to chop me down.

Judge me if you want but keep in mind that I am not going anywhere and that I will not be quiet. Hopefully we can learn to live together in some odd form of harmony.

Be peaceful, be courteous, obey the law, respect everyone; but if someone puts his hand on you, send him to the cemetary. - Malcolm X

Dear Wolf Pack Chat.com;

  First and foremost I want to thank you for validating my claim that DavidPatrickCastro.com is for forward thinking University of Nevada fans. The various responses I skimmed in your topic showed that you and your readers are threatened by any disention and accordingly act like a lynch mob. Well I for one welcome those that challenge the status quo and provoke forward thinking.

I am a Nevada alumnus and a Wolf Pack fan. Do I bleed silver and blue? Of course I do because it was the collective efforts of all the student athletes that gave me many fond memeories of my time in Reno. I can also assume that I am the only one involved in this strange parade that actually worked at Legacy Hall. My loyalty to Nevada can not be questioned but I am also not a mindless dolt or a lemming. What I am is a concerned fan that refuses to accept the Ault regime as beneficial to the Pack. To protest is patriotic and if you find my words and concepts threatening maybe you need to look at your own notions before casting the scarlet letter.

Oddly enough you referred to “Pack Football Bites” and myself as nimrods that could provoke you into saying something stupid. Well referring to us in a such manner shows me that maybe you aren’t as apt as you claim to be. But I’m not here to admosnish you for your sins because I will just assume that you are the best of a lousy lot. 

                        Without Reservation;
                        David Patrick Castro 

PS: I am available on Wolf Pack Chat. DPC! 

Somehow he’s been able to maintain a level of respect from the community ‘earned’ 20 years ago, against lesser competition. He’s a dinosaur in a pre historic town - Cliff on Wolf Pack football Head Coach Chris Ault

Cliff’s quote stems from the University of Nevada releasing their 2007 football schedule today and the absolute shock that they scheduled Divsion I AA powerhouse Nicholls State, the pride of Thibodaux, LA. Ault has been maintained that he wants to raise the bar on Wolf Pack football since he instated himself as head coach.

“When you add those non-conference games to our existing conference games and UNLV each year, it certainly raises the bar,” Nevada head coach Chris Ault said. “We are anxious to meet those expectations.”

The Pack start their season on the road against Nebraska and Northwestern. By the time they host Nicholls State they will be 0-2 but well on their way to thrashing a lesser opponent. Which I guess is no different then the Cornhuskers taking on the Wolf Pack.

I attended Nevada from 2002-05 and since then they  produced one decent player, Nate Burleson. Their is some NFL Draft buzz going around about quarterback Jeff Rowe, who recently completed his senior season at the grip of The Pistol, but he is the product of a gadget offense in a bad conference. I can’t remember Rowe playing well against the better teams (i.e. Boise State) but I guess 6′4″ QB’s are in demand.

With that said, Nevada football is stagnant and has been so for twenty years. They’re not on the rise and they have really haven’t bottomed out, essentially they’re a average squad in a bad conference.

The Las Vegas Police Department are recomending that Pacman Jones be charged with one count of felony coercion and and misdeamenor counts of battery and threat to life. The charges stem from Pacman’s run in at a Las Vegas strip club last month. The strip club incident included three people getting shot and one stripper having her head bounced off the stage.

“It took approximately five weeks to investigate this and it’s not something we took lightly,” Lt. George Castro said. “We had to look at a lot of video and it came from five sources.You can only imagine what it was like that night, very violent, very chaotic, so some of the information we had was very sketchy.”

At this point it is only specualtion on what happened that tragic night in a strip club. Pacman was there, that hasn’t been refuted but his role has been dsiputed. At this point this case could go against Pacman and lead to some serious jail time but it could also end up like when Ray Lewis was charged with double homicide in 2000. Ultimately Lewis was fingered as the murderer but in reality he was the rich celebrity whose associates went to trial for the charges. They too were exonerated. To this day Lewis is defending his honor even though he never stood trial for the murders and was never penalized by the NFL.

The Nature Boy Ric Flair was invited by University of Florida Gators head coach Billy Donovan for a pep talk before their victory over Butler in the NCAA Tournament.  Flair is the 19-time world champion, 16 by the WWE, and according to my brother is likely the greatest wrestler of all time but is third in popularity behind Hulk Hogan and Stone Cold Steve Austin. I’ll take his word for it because he is a wrestling fan and I haven’t really watched it since all the Von Erichs were alive, including the modern Greek Tragedy Kerry. But on a related note we saw Flair and Arn Anderson get out of a cab in Oakland. We were waiting in line to go see an NWA show and that was our brush with greatness.

Flairs random appearance at a college basketball game brought up the issue between my brother and I on who are the greatest athletes from North Carolina. I maintained it was Michael Jordan, Dale Earnhardt Sr., Richard Petty and Ric Flair. His assertion was Jordan, Flair and Earnhardt. This simple debate, via text messages, brings up the issue of what an athlete is. By most accounts pro wrestlers are entertainers and NASCAR drivers turn left for four straight hours but this is short sighted.

Flair for the most always seemed to be out of shape when competing but managed to get 19 championship belts by a combination of guile and experience. He never seemed to dominate a match but usually cheated or outsmarted his opponent and got them in a figure four leglock and won by submission. I give pro wrestlers the credit of being athletes because they abuse the crap out of themselves and don’t have an off season to heal.

Earnhardt and Petty are the considered two of the best stock car has seen and their respective legacy’s still cast over the modern Nextel cirsuit. I give drivers credit for being athletes due to the fact that the interior of their cars are over 100 degrees and it takes a certain amount of concentration to drive 180 mph with another car 18 inches in front of you.

Sports Illustrated produced a list of the top 50 athletes from North Carolina. Jordan was first, Petty was second and Earnhardt was sixth. Flair was not mentioned and was apparently beaten out Meadowlark Lemon of the Harlem Globetrotters(41st) and Wimpy Lassiter(31st). It’s bad enough when you’re not considered to  be an athlete compared to a Harlem Globetrotter but to be shot down by a pool player named Wimpy, well that is true injustice.

Indianapolis Colts Head Coach Tony Dungy showed his support for banning gay marriages. Dungy’s remarks came during an acceptance speech at the Indiana Family Institute where he was receiving a Friend of the Family award. The IFI is trying to amend their states constitution to define marriage as being between a man and a woman.

“I appreciate the stance they’re taking, and I embrace that stance,” Dungy said during his speech. 

The normally soft spoken coach of the Super Bowl Champion Colts has created a fire storm. Known more for being a church going family man now Dungy stands to alienate many of his teams’ fans by invoking his own social agenda.

“We’re not trying to downgrade anyone else.” Dungy said. ”But we’re trying to promote the family — family values the Lord’s way.”

Athletes are always free to express themselves. This intrinsic for anyone but Dungy must also keep in mind that for all the support that he stands to gain from his remarks he will also lose the supports of just as many.

“It is unfortunate that coach Dungy has chosen to align himself with the Indiana Family Institute,” Bil Browning of Bilerico.com. “The Colts were supported this season by all of their fans — gay and straight.”

At this point I have nothing but absolute disdain for Dungy. My original misgivings were predicated on the Colts beating the Bears in the Super Bowl but that aside Dungy is using the platform of Christianity to show that he is nothing more than a narrow minded bigot that hides behind a veil of family values to express his true hate.

To all you gay Colts fans out there, bet you wished you’d rooted for the Bears, huh?
- Dylan Vox

Newly appointed NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell may suspend Pacman Jones for the entire 2007 season before he is found guilty for any of the charges or misgivings that have surrounded the Tennessee Titan. A source close to the Commissioner stated before the NFL holds their annual owner’s meetings in Scottsdale this week.

“We can’t tell the Titans that he won’t play for them ever again,” The anonymous source stated. “Because the Titans, at the end of the day, will determine his long-term future. But the league will determine his short-term future. You should see something within a two or three-week time frame, and I would think you could expect a multiple-game suspension, or as much as a year or beyond.”

Pacman is getting railroaded by a league that is trying to clean up its image. Pacman is now the fall guy despite the fact that he has never been found guilty of anything since he joined the NFL. Oddly enough you can use steroids, Shawne Merriman, get suspended for four games and make the Pro Bowl.

To this man you may want to start with the nine members of the Cincinnati Bengals that were arrested last season and the harshest suspension was two games for Chris Henry. Tank Johnson is looking at four months in prison for probation and will be afforded to opportunity to hit the field eventually in 2007. Pacman is innocent until proven otherwise and the NFL is not giving him the freedom and justice that any man should receive.

The day to renew Arizona Cardinals season tickets has come and gone and there will be no renewal. If I wasn’t moving back to Nor Cal I’d be back at University of Phoenix Stadium in picturesque Glendale, Az. I have openly admitted that my time in Phoenix has been less than stellar but the Cardinals’ game were always a welcome distraction and it’s easy to root for them because they’re never any good. They’re not lovable losers like the Cubs. The Cards are like NFL’s orphans but unlike Little Orphan Annie or Arnold and Willis they never rise above the segment they were born into.

Of course the 2006 season was supposed to be different. They had a new , respectable home. Edgerrin James chose to play for them and they lucked out and grabbed Matt Leinart. Of course these shiny new toys hid the flaws of the collective. Namely a bad offensive line, an aging Kurt Warner, a crappy secondary and of course Dennis Green at the helm. I fell for it and I believe I predicted a 10-6 campaign. Of course they finished the season 5-11 but on a positive note I won some coin by taking them against the 49ers.

The appeal of the Cardinals this year was their ability to lose in creative ways. In their first four regular season home games the Cards blew victoriesthree times in ways rarely, if ever, seen before. In week three against the Rams Marc Bulger fumbled a hand off as they were trying to run out the clock for a certain victory. The Cardinals recovered in the red zone needing a field goal to take the lead. Warner fumbled while trying to hand off to James and the Rams recovered and won the game.

In week five against the Chiefs Neil Rackers shanked a 51-yard field goal with two seconds left. Rackers played in the 2006 Pro Bowl and holds the record for most field goals in a season.

The following week they hosted the Bears on Monday night. Everything has already been written about this game but I must say that this is the greatest thing I’ve seen in person and that includes seeing Sinbad getting his own luggage at O’Hare Airport. My brother witnessed this watershed moment too and I can only assume he realized we were in the shadow of true greatness.

The season went down hill from there, if it is possible to fall farther from grace when you’re 1-5 after six games and in three of those losses were by three points or less. From my perch in section 451, row 11 it seemed that the Cardinals had given up on themselves and chalked the season to another typical atrocity of football but still there was promise.

Matt Leinart  took over for Warner in week five against the Chiefs. In his debut he threw a pair of touchdowns and throughout the season showed why he won the Heisman and two national titles at USC. Of course he spent most of the year running for his life but the talent is there and he validated the hype. Specifically against the Bears he looked tip top while 24-42 for 232 yards, two TD’s and no picks against a very stout Chicago defense. Ultimately he finished the season with 2,547 passing yards, 11 TD’s and 12 picks but one must keep in mind that he was a rookie that skipped a lot of training camp and plays for a bad team.

Will I root for the Cards after I leave The Valley? Of course, I spent too much time, money and effort to not  stay with them. I have an odd love for the Cards. This is likely due to the simple notion that we’re both vagabonds and they’re ability to always beat the 49ers.

Nevada lost to Memphis in the second round of the NCAA Tournament, 78-62. The score seems to indicate that it was a blow out and yet it wasn’t. The Wolf Pack trailed by four at the half but were outscored 14-1 in the final 6:17 after getting within three points of the Tigers.

In all honesty the game was never close, even though the Pack always seemed to be within two or three possesions of taking the lead. They were out of sync, flawed and looked like about as bad any squad could. But still they were in the game because Memphis wasn’t playing particularly well either. While watching the defeat you sort of knew that Memphis would win no matter what Nevada threw at them. I’ve watched a lot of basketball, specifically The Pack, over the years and you always get a sense when a team is in control and will ultimately win despite any bumps in the road. Memphis was in control and toyed with Nevada.

The 2007 NCAA Tournament was supposed to be both revenge for last season’s early exit and the absolute vindication of Nick Fazekas against all of his naysayers. Yet all the doubts about Nevada team were proven right: A big fish in a small pond that will fall to ‘real’ Top 25 squads.  Fazekas can dominate the Idaho Vandals but line him up next to a legit big man and lets see what happens…

I had heard all these anti-Nevada notions before and blew them off as hyperbole from journalists that were unfamiliar with a team hidden in the Sierras but they were right all along. Nevada dominated a weak conference. They fell to any team on their level or greater, with the exception of Gonzaga, and for the most part Fazekas disappeared when his team needed him to step up and prove that he truly belongs aside the upper echelon players in America. There was little fire in Fazekas as the final minutes of his career dwindled away.

“That’s the way I’ve always been, win or lose. I just stay levelheaded,” said Fazekas. “I’m not the type of guy who gets vocal. I keep it the same.”

Throughout the game there was no spirit or fire for Nevada. Fazekas needed to be the take charge player that he should be and yet the team languished in a display of mediocrity that tarnished what could have been a truly memorable season. At this point Fazekas will likley be remebered as the greatest player in the history of The University of Nevada and his numbers prove it:at least 20.4 ppg the last three season to go along with at least 9.4 rpg, three straight All WAC Team and of course three straight WAC Player of the Year awards. But he will also be remebered as the guy that could not lead his team past the second round of the NCAA Tournament. It his harsh to make him the axis for all Nevada’s post season flops but he is the leader and face of the team and blame always starts at the top.   At this point I will maintain that Kirk Snyder is the best Nevada has ever had but also keep in mind I might have Kevinn Pinkney ahead of Fazekas because he seemed to take every loss personal and he stepped up when the Pack needed him.

This season was a failure because The Pack did not play upto their potential. The talent was there. The team was anchored by upper classmen and yet they will likely be remebered as a potentially great team that never came to fruition.

Don’t measure yourself by what you have accomplished, but by what you should have accomplished with your ability. -John Wooden

Nevada survived their first round matchup against Creighton with a 77-71 win in overtime. Marcelus Kemp led the Wolf Pack with 27 points, including nine in OT. All American Nick Fazekas seemed out of sync the whole time and fouled with 3:06 left in OT but as they have done before the Pack won without their star.

“He’s a great player and an All-American, but this team is more than just Nick,” Kemp said. “He would say that himself.”  

At this point one must wonder if Nevada is falling prey to the Ewing Theory. The Ewing Theory is from ESPN.com’s Bill Simmons:

What’s the Ewing Theory? Where did it come from?
The theory was created in the mid-’90s by Dave Cirilli, a friend of mine who was convinced that Patrick Ewing’s teams (both at Georgetown and with New York) inexplicably played better when Ewing was either injured or missing extended stretches because of foul trouble.

Dave introduced me to the Ewing Theory three years ago, and we’ve been tinkering with it like Voltaire and Thoreau ever since. Eventually, we decided that two crucial elements needed to be in place for any situation to qualify for “Ewing” status:  

1. A star athlete receives an inordinate amount of media attention and fan interest, and yet his teams never win anything substantial with him (other than maybe some early-round playoff series).  
2. That same athlete leaves his team (either by injury, trade, graduation, free agency or retirement) — and both the media and fans immediately write off the team for the following season.

When those elements collide, you have the Ewing Theory.

The Creighton game showed that Nevada can play for extended stretches without Fazekas and still triumph because of their backcourt of Kemp and Ramon Sessions. But Creighton is a true Mid Major and fell prey to Nevada because of their lack of depth and the Pack’s 2nd Round matchup against the Memphis Tigers will not be as easy. Memphis comes in as a 2nd seed with a 23 game winning streak. Going into Sunday’s game the Tigers are a 5 point favorite.

“It’s definitely another opportunity for us,” Fazekas said. “For them to be fifth in the country doesn’t mean a whole lot right now. What does mean something is they’re a two seed. They’re definitely a team to be reckoned with. There’s no doubt. They’re a very good team. They’re very athletic. Their record says how good they are.”

Memphis is beatable. Like the Wolf Pack, Calipari’s Tigers, are big fish in a small but unlike the Wolf Pack they are respected by the media. Both squads are the dominant teams in weak conferences. For Memphis they ran the table in Conference USA and were the only team to earn an NCAA bid from a conference that includes such powerhouses as East Carolina and SMU.

I readliy acknowledge that the WAC is not a powerful conference but they sent two squads to The Big Dance. At this point I consider Nevada and Memphis near equals because neither team had challenging schedules and their respective conferences were less than stellar. The Tigers earned a higher seed and national recognition because of their high profile coach John Calipari.

For Nevada to win they need a big game from Fazekas. The Pack struggled against Creighton as Fazekas went 5-13 with 17 points and 11 rebounds. Kemp saved the day and another first round exit with clutch free throw shooting and timely buckets. The Tigers are a different beast but they’re beatable if the Pack can execute to their potential and cut down on their turnovers, 19 against Creighton.

Kemp has proven to be a big game player. In his two games in the NCAA Tournament he has been Nevada’s leading scorer with 30.5 ppg. Fazekas’ scoring average has dropped to 13.7 ppg when the lights shine brighter at The Big Dance. Fazekas has never averaged less than 20.7 ppg in the last three seasons.

Cliff and me were chatting after the Creighton game and we surmised that these tournament are essentially job interviews for Fazekas.  Fazekas tanked against Montana in the Pack’s first round dismissal and accordingly his draft stock fell to the point where he went from sure first rounder to an after thought in second round uncertainty. If he can come up large on a national stage and Nevada wins he has a guaranteed paycheck from the NBA. Kirk Snyder did it in when the Pack ran wild to the Sweet 16 and he was their star.

This season will be a failure for Fazekas and Nevada unless they make it to the Sweet 16. The Pack have been ranked all season, and as high as 10th, and Fazekas is everyone’s All American but a loss to Memphis will show that Fazekas can’t raise his game when neccesary and that Nevada was overrated all season. A Nevada win proves that the high rankings in the national polls weren’t a fluke and that Fazekas belongs next to Kevin Durant on all of the post season all star teams.