Porter’s penance too light
Porter’s penance too light PITTSBURGH – This and that about nothing in particular:
Steelers linebacker Joey Porter got off light, thanks to Terrell Owens, a desperate housewife and a few desperate network executives. You have to believe there would have been more backlash to the Porter-William Green incident had it not been for the Monday Night Football fiasco.
Porter was allowed to simply say he was sorry, that it won’t happen again, pay his fine and move on. We should all have such forgiving bosses.
Speaking of bosses, Steelers coach Bill Cowher’s initial reaction to the Porter incident was to support his player. Of course, the coach backtracked Tuesday, but what could he have been thinking when he said he supports a player who had been ejected from a game that hadn’t yet started for throwing a punch?
And to blame it on the heat of the moment is absurd. The incident occurred at least 45 minutes before kickoff. If Porter is that jacked up that early, he’d better cut down on the caffeine.
James Harrison became an interesting story. He played extremely well and nobody around the Steelers is calling Harrison’s game a fluke.
Could Porter become the next Wally Pipp?
Anyway, the whole thing was under-blown because of ABC’s insatiable quest for ratings. An executive from a rival network wondered if Walt Disney would have been proud of the MNF intro that featured Owens catching a naked actress as though she were a football. Good question. ABC, you know, is owned by the Disney company.
Some people can’t believe all of the free publicity the whole thing has gotten. Oops, here’s some more.
Cowher always talks about how long the NFL season is and he’s right. But has anyone else noticed that the WPIAL football championships won’t be played until tomorrow? All other falls sports have already crowned PIAA champions, while the football playoffs drag on and on and on.
Wasn’t it football that got to start practice a week early? Yes, that was done under the guise of preserving the integrity of the WPIAL playoff format. You know, the one that invites way too many teams and can’t seem to get them seeded properly.
So what we get is the PIAA football championship games being played the same weekend winter sports teams begin playing games. There are bound to be a few kids still playing football while their basketball, wrestling or swimming teammates are opening a new season without them.
If the state’s lawmakers really want to investigate the PIAA, the football playoffs may be a good place to start.
Let’s not forget, the WPIAL and the PIAA work for the school districts, not the other way around.
Hey athletic directors, while I have your attention, please send us your winter sports schedules if you haven’t already done so. Our fax number is 724-439-7559.
Speaking of phone numbers, here are two of them to pass along to coaches and statisticians to report games to the Herald-Standard. Our Sports Hotline number is 724-439-7556 and our toll-free number is 800-261-7147. Please copy these numbers into your scorebooks for easy reference.
Why don’t we end with a tough question: Where do I think the Steelers will finish this season? With credit to former co-worker Huddie Kaufman, they’ll finish in Buffalo, just like the schedule says they will.
Sports editor Mike Ciarochi may be reached at mciarochi@heraldstandard.com