The "10" Spot

2011-10-20T12:15:00.001-06:00

Dear Ranger Nation,
Please leave your overreactions to the Cowboys. Ron Washington has this World Series thing under control. See u at Game 2! -Tovash

2011-05-26T10:57:00.001-06:00

I wonder what's going thru Jerry's mind amidst all this recent DFW success. Hmmm. Feeling left out at all there Mr. Jones??? -Tovash

Defending champs fall deep in the heart of Texas, 103-90

2009-12-22T23:05:00.004-06:00

The first ever basketball game in Jerry Jones’ crib went off without a hitch before a fairly small crowd of 38,052. Keep in mind that place can fit up to 105,000 as we’ve seen at football games. The two lucky teams: The Texas Longhorns and the North Carolina Tar Heels christened the place with the smell of synthetic leather, sneaky shoes, and the feel of March-style basketball. Among the viewers at this event was former president George W Bush who got a good look at the domination by the Horns and their impressive physical play in the paint and good perimeter play as well over the defending champion Tar Heels and their much respected head coach Roy Williams.

The first half began as Texas immediately showed that a 20 foot shot is all they wanted to shoot. After shooting off the cobwebs, the Horns quickly jumped out to a sizable lead as Dexter Pittman and his 300 plus pounds took over the paint for Texas. Pittman, who is listed at 290lbs looked pretty nimble as he powered thru the Tar Heel front court. The senior easily set the tone for the Horns in the 1st half with a big block and good window work on the offensive boards. The way he patrolled the inside for Texas was reminiscent of how Greg Oden looked at Ohio State. Pitman looked even quicker than Oden on this day as he finished with a season in points and rebounds with 23 and 15 respectively. When asked about playing in Cowboys Stadium Pittman admitted, “It’s my first time feeling small”.
As the 1st half came to an end, it was senior forward Damion James who made back-to-back plays before the horn went off by recording a bucket, stealing the ensuing inbounds pass, and scoring again. James had his best outing as well on Saturday with 25 points and 15 rebounds.

Carolina tried to make a game of it in the 2nd half as they came storming back from a 14-point deficit. At the 7 minute mark a Tar Heel jumper off the backboard by Marcus Ginyard trimmed the Texas lead to just 4 points at 82-78. Ginyard was not a factor for Carolina as he scored just 2 points in the first half. The senior finished with just 13 points on 5/12 shooting for the Tar Heels. UNC also had a chance to bring the game even closer as Larry Drew II missed a 3-pointer at the top of the key that would have brought the Carolina faithful to their feet. It was Texas however that went on a 7-2 spurt in less than 3 minutes to get the lead comfortably to 89-80 as they put a strangle hold on any attempts of a Tar Heel rally.

Timely 3-point shooting and dominating inside play was the story for a Texas win as they made an ACC team look average. Texas improved to 10-0 in this early part of the season but it doesn’t get any easier as Tom Izzo brings his Michigan State Spartans to the Erwin Center in Austin.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

2009-11-25T23:42:00.001-06:00

Its funny how people use Stephen A Smith to speak for them. Isn't that what T.O. did too?? We all see what you're doing Mr. Iverson! -Tovash

2009-08-14T20:30:00.003-06:00

Will someone let me know when the new Michael Vick jersey comes out? I'm a Cowboy fan but I WILL rock that jersey. -Tovash

2009-08-14T20:30:00.001-06:00

Will someone let me know when the new Michael Vick jersey comes out? I'm a Cowboy fan but I WILL rock that jersey. -Tovash

2009-07-30T11:49:00.001-06:00

As we all suspected, David Ortiz was named to the steroids list. "Getting my eyes checked" Ha!! -Tovash

2009-07-22T21:52:00.001-06:00

What a shocker!!! ESPN has FINALLY uttered the words "Ben Roethlisberger" and "sexual assault" in the same sentence! What coverup?? LMAO. -Tovash

Welcome Home Quinton Ross, Mavs Sign Veteran Defender

2009-07-08T19:44:00.003-06:00

No, Martin Lawrence isn’t going back home to his country ass family in this movie. This is home, home for one of Dallas’ best NBA talents in the last 10 years. In fact, this is a movie about an individual who we all admire for being a nice guy and refusing to finish last. This is about Quinton Ross, your new Dallas Maverick.

Ross comes back home to a team that is currently at the crossroads. The Maverick organization is a group that has seen a near championship and a decade’s worth of playoff appearances. In 2006 the Mavericks did all but dot the “I’s” and cross the “T’s” as they saw a title slip thru their fingertips. Recently, Dirk Nowitzki and Mark Cuban have been getting much criticism as the faces of the franchise. We all know of Cuban’s run-ins with the gray shirts of David Stern’s goons with whistles. We also have recently heard about Nowitzki and his woman problems. And we’ve even heard of Josh Howard and recreational use of a certain recreational drug. But this team is obviously going in a different direction by adding a player like Ross who carries a good-guy trait with him across the league.

Ross will be entering his sixth season in the Association and still has much to prove. On a Memphis Grizzlies team last season Ross played in nearly 70 games and averaged 3.9 points per contest. He started 7 games for the Grizz primarily stepping in for Rudy Gay while Gay was injured. Ross will have 2 years to be a rock on Rick Carlisle’s bench and a solid contributor. He’ll also be reunited with swingman James Singleton as both players spent a stint in LA with the Clippers.

While having a reputation as lock down defender in a league where defenders seemingly get overlooked, Ross can fill up the nets with the best of them. In a Western Conference semifinal game against the Phoenix Suns, Ross gave an MVP point guard known as Steve Nash fits on both ends of the court. “Game 6 was a defining game for me,” says the 28-year old. “I felt like I had something to prove because Phoenix thought I couldn’t score.” Ross tallied up 16 first half points including a buzzer to end the 2nd quarter. After the shot went in, he simply turned around and high- fived several season ticket holders.

Ross brings that passion and defensive paralysis to a Mavericks team that desperately needs it. What Bruce Bowen was to the Spurs, what Michael Cooper was to the Lakers back in the 1980s, and what Raja Bell was in Dallas just a few short years ago, Ross will also try to be that type of player here as well.

As a kid, Ross was a natural born scorer and a true offensive talent. I saw a 10-year old Quinton score 36 points in a playoff game at St. Philips gym in South Dallas. As a 6th grader I saw him imitate almost every move that Michael Jordan did as a Chicago Bull in 1992. By middle school the name Quinton was cut short to just “Q” as our middle school coach kept getting tired of calling his name on the court. Just 5 short years later, Q was a state champion at Kimball High School. As an SMU Mustang, Ross provided job security to then head coach Mike Dement. Shortly after Ross left, so did Dement. He also finished as the WAC player of the year.

Who says nice guys finish last, Quinton Ross is the newest Dallas Maverick. Welcome home Q.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

2009-06-15T07:43:00.001-06:00

Congrats to Kobe Bryant and the LA Lakers in winning that elusive championship that's escaped them since 2002. Bryant named Finals MVP. -Tovash

2009-06-15T07:41:00.001-06:00

The Rangers lose 2 of 3 to the LA Dodgers over the weekend. They rest Monday before hosting Houston Tues-Thurs. -Tovash

2009-06-05T17:05:00.003-06:00

So David Ortiz and the Saux have to go public and say that he's having his eyes checked? Do we care? That's a smoke screen, but I see what's going on. -Tovash

2009-06-05T17:05:00.001-06:00

So David Ortiz and the Saux have to go public and say that he's having his eyes checked? Do we care? That's a smoke screen, but I see what's going on. -Tovash

2009-06-02T22:22:00.001-06:00

The battle of the amusement parks kickoff on Thursday night as the Lakers (Disney Land) go up against the Magic (Disney World) in game 1 of the NBA Finals.

Astros Maturing, Looking to Make a Push Towards a Repeat

2009-06-01T22:26:00.000-06:00

Let’s do a quick recap; the Desoto Astros is a team full of 9-year olds playing in a league of 10 year olds. This team hangs its hat on pitching and hitting. Any fan of baseball will tell you that winning is as simple as hitting and catching the ball. That is exactly what this team is doing. In last week’s tournament games the Stros continued their high octane offensive showing as players hit balls to the fence, stole bases as if they jugs of water flying off store shelves just before a hurricane, and touching home plate with regularity. They’re getting some unbelievable pitching from middle relievers as well. It’s just that easy. And last week the Astros were beaten at their own game as the Outlaws posted late inning runs on the board and put the pressure on the Stros. All losses aren’t bad losses, especially if your team put up a valiant effort to even reach a tournament championship game.

Tell me something, how many little league teams in this state can actually say that they are a complete team? And not to sound like a homer, but any time baseball can be played in the field by getting routine outs and forcing opponents to make mistakes spells victory in the easiest of ways. There is plenty of time and growing that this team will develop. Look for it in the form of good coaching and terrific parenting in the downtime during the season.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Rangers Take 3 of 4 Against Oakland

2009-05-31T19:52:00.002-06:00

Rangers lose to A's 5-4 to finish May 20-9. They currently have the best record in AL at 30-20. Next up is the NY Yankees on Tues, Wed, Thurs.

-Tovash

Astros Heat Up, Improve to 2-1

2009-04-06T21:25:00.003-06:00

After capturing their first win in the chilly Texas spring temperatures against the Cedar Hill D Backs last Tuesday, the Astros geared up for another offensive breakout as they took the field Saturday afternoon against the Duncanville A’s.

As the fans and families took in the bright sun and the 80 degree sun rays, their team on the field remained as hot. The Astros put up 14 runs last Tuesday night as they beat the D Backs with inside-the-part-homeruns and timely hitting. One delighted mom in the crowd yelled out “He needs his own theme music!!” as #11Jordan Trotter quickly rounded the bases when he belted a pitch to centerfield.

Another success that they use is the quality pitching that coach Dexter Nelson appreciates. On Saturday, pitcher Nigil Rodriguez showed a side of him that impressed the Astros faithful in the crowd. Rodriguez shut the door on the A’s by facing 5 batters and recording 3 strikeouts. He also forced the A’s best hitter to ground out and end the game. “That’s the kind of pitcher Nigil is,” says coach Nelson, “he won’t overpower hitters, but gets the job done.” Astros pitching has been a joy to watch so far this season as Nelson and his staff continues to push the right buttons. On last Tuesday, it was #27 Henry Wilborn who pitched his way out of jam to seal the deal for the first win of the year for the bright-eyed 9 year olds.

“We are looking like ourselves more and more”, Coach Nelson told his team on Saturday afternoon as they cruised past the A’s by a score of 9-2. What Nelson didn’t realize is that he meant that literally as well because his team finally played in the new uniforms that had been promised to them. The red shirts, striped white pants, and Reebok cleats made me jealous since my little league days were spent wearing anything that we could find in our drawers and closets. Nelson and his kids look good on the field and hope to continue that as they take on another Astros team from Ovilla this Tuesday night under the lights.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Astros Lose A Heartbreaker In The 2009 Opener

2009-04-02T21:26:00.002-06:00

The Desoto Astros do not have much time to get over their first loss to the Desoto Braves. On Sunday afternoon the ‘Stros suffered a tough defeat to the hands of a 10 & under team by the score of 10-9 in a slugfest. The Astros started the game comfortably by jumping out to a 5-0 lead in the top half of the 1st inning when the first two hitters of the game – #3 Jalen Sweeny and catcher Henry Wilborn who both reached on errors. The Astros then saw their early 5-0 lead evaporate as the Braves eventually got their act together.

As the afternoon winds picked up, so did the pace of the game. Both teams took turns posting runs on the board as #25 Dylan Nelson maintained a hot bat by collecting two hits in his first two at-bats. The slugger also stole 3 bases and scored twice. In all, the ‘Stros swiped 15 bases on Sunday.

The Braves pitcher who pitched the entire game on Sunday was very successful almost every time he faced an Astros hitter. The right hander struck out 9 Astros batters.
Head coach Dexter Nelson said it best when he told the told his team, “We didn’t do the things we needed to do.” He adds, “One game will not lose us the championship.”

The young champs have a quick turnaround as they take the field on Tuesday night March 31 barring any major weather events.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Cowboys Lose Last Game at Texas Stadium, My Theory

2008-12-21T23:36:00.001-06:00

Have you heard of the “Curse of the Jimster”?? Funny huh? It’s just a theory that good friend Randy Galloway coined after noticing that the Dallas Cowboys haven’t won anything (playoff game) since Jerry Jones and Jimmy Johnson angrily parted ways back in the 1990s. And no I am not counting the Barry Switzer days the season after Jimmy left either. Have you noticed that the Cowboys get plenty of unlucky breaks to be such a talented football franchise? Randy calls it “hoodoo voodoo” and “ying-yang stuffings” when something unfortunate happens. I don’t want to keep your attention too much longer, but I’ve noticed something as I sat in my seat at Texas Stadium and watched the building and possibly the 2008 version of the Cowboys flatline.

There is a curse surrounding this team and it lingers in that building. Good thing for the Cowboys that they no longer have any games scheduled there.

Back in Week 2 of the 2005 season Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman, and Emmitt Smith also known as “The Triplets” were supposed to be celebrated during halftime of that game as they got inducted in the Ring of Honor. The opponent was the Washington Redskins. The Triplets got their time to shine at halftime as they had their names unveiled together and secured football immortality. The game was going just as Dallas hoped that it would go. The score was 13-0 late into 4th quarter when lightning struck in the form of Redskins wide receiver Santana Moss…twice. Moss got past coverage on two consecutive drives and Washington left Dallas by stealing a guaranteed win from the Cowboys by the score of 14-13.

Here’s where it gets a little spooky.

In the final game at Texas Stadium the Baltimore Ravens come in for the first time and gave the Cowboys all they could handle. The first half looked just as we all thought it would considering both teams are supposed to have exceptional defenses. But in the 4th quarter the Ravens scored on two LONG runs on consecutive drives that put the game away and sent Texas Stadium off with a bittersweet celebration.

Coincidence? How is it that every important celebration game ends in tragedy? I’ve seen the weirdest things happen in that stadium and now the doors of Texas Stadium are now closed for good.

As this team prepares to move down Highway 360 and Randol Mill Road, hopefully the Curse of the Jimster does not follow.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

One Game At A Time

2008-09-06T21:03:00.000-06:00

How cliché was the title? But how true is it? An NFL game for your team is played once every 6 or 7 days. Long, I know. However, your Dallas Cowboys go to Cleveland to take on the Browns who didn’t look too hot in the preseason. With a roster that looks young and talented, the Cowboys will get a break in Week 1 due to a team who is not quite together. With Kellen Winslow, Derek Anderson, and Braylon Edwards, this team is a ticking time bomb ready to explode on the field. Too bad that it won’t be for another 3 weeks or so.

The problem for the Cleveland Browns is that they’ll have to face a loaded team of players who have sort of a sense of “incompleteness” from what happened last season. The Dallas Cowboys and their staff have 16 regular season games that they’ll have to prove they belong in the NFL’s elite and should have been playing deeper into the post season of last season. I have a feeling the Browns will be sort of the whipping boy for Dallas in Week 1. Look for an impressive defensive game for Ware and company as they make an early statement to the rest of the NFC. For the next 17 weeks they’ll have to prove it and its going to have to be one game at a time.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

One Shining Moment

2008-04-03T20:36:00.000-06:00

Let me be the first to tell you that college basketball is at the top of the sports world during this time. I also would like to say that I’m a fan of the sport and not just the Duke Blue Devils.

With that being said, this year’s tournament is exciting and history making. This is the first time in NCAA tournament history that the top four teams in the nation are still playing for the championship. Kansas, Memphis, North Carolina, and UCLA are the number 1s who are set to duke it out this weekend in beautiful San Antonio. And as a side note, will the people of San Antonio please omit the Alamo for future references? I understand that there was a battle there hundreds of years ago and that the building is rich in history, but please stop calling that place “The Alamo City”. There are even buildings down there that are built in the image of the Alamo. There are car dealerships called Alamo Ford and Alamo Dodge. Enough is enough. Let’s call it “Spurs City” instead. That’s where the history is. Move on San Antonio, move on.

Sorry for jumping off track there. As I was saying, this year’s tournament is a good one to watch due to the expectation. What I mean is that this weekend there will be teams playing that have finally met expectations and haven’t disappointed us this season. If you ask me, this is how it should be every March instead of the Cinderella stories that we regularly get to see. And yes, I was pulling for Davidson and young Stephen Curry to go as far as possible. I personally think that story of Curry’s Davidson team to get to the Elite 8 was bigger than the George Mason team of a couple of years ago.

This is the most wonderful time of the year…for me that is. This is my Christmas, my birthday, and my Halloween. March Madness is cliché but this time of the year has my heart pounding like a virgin boy paying for a hooker. Enjoy!

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Mavs Fans on Suicide Watch?

2008-03-21T12:53:00.001-06:00

Mavs fans, you guys amaze me. This is a rant so bear with me before you log off your computers or hit the “X” button in the top right portion of this screen.

First off, the Jason Kidd trade WILL work!! Many of you Mavs fans fell in love with Devin Harris because he looks like a little kid and had so much energy here as a point guard. But did you take the time out to see why he continues to roll his ankles? In fact, didn’t he re-injure his ankle again last night? If you want a point guard who can consistently remain on the court and provide the best chance to win, go with the veteran.

Two things that Harris has over Kidd: Speed and a jumpshot. Other than that, give me Kidd.

Next, just ask your MVP who makes this team go. When Harris was here, he was only good enough to stop Tony Parker. He was also faster than Parker and made him work on the defensive end. Jason Kidd is a player that knows who to get the ball to and also how. Nowitzki is a happier player now that Jason Kidd is with this team. And no I don’t worry about Josh Howard and his lack of production since Harris has departed. Howard needs no excuse to his play in the recent weeks. Where has this “All-Star forward” gone?

The Mavs have lost to quality teams since the veteran point guard has come back to Dallas. They have also beaten teams that they were supposed to beat as well. So where is the credit on that? The Lakers, Spurs, Rockets, Hornets, Jazz, Suns, and other contenders still respect the Mavericks because they have the potential to get things done in the playoffs. And the Mavericks are currently in danger of not making the playoffs this season as well. But with less than 15 games remaining on the schedule, I doubt that they’ll be left out.

A few things to also keep in mind are that your head coach has been making critical mistakes lately. Do recall the Miami comeback to win the championship? Coach Avery blamed officiating instead of getting his team’s mindset back on basketball and concentrating on winning the next game. Or what about the opportunity to AVOID the Golden State Warriors in last year’s playoffs? He sat his starters in the 2nd to last game in the regular season against the Warriors when he could have attempted to bury them and keep them out of the playoffs and thus facing the Clippers, which would have made for a much easier first round of play. And don’t forget that he took out Jason Kidd in his first game versus the Spurs in a Mavs uniform. I’m just saying, not all the blame can be put on the Kidd-for-Harris trade.

And have I mentioned that Jason Kidd can’t shoot?

The Mavericks will be amongst the Western Conference’s best team in this year’s playoffs and all a team needs is a chance to win. Notice that this team competes at a high level just like Tuesday’s game against Kobe and the Lakers and just like the Spurs game. If you’re up in arms because this team is missing potential game-winning shots, then you have a good problem on your hands.

I have a feeling that this team will be in it for the playoffs and as long as they have a chance to put up a game-winner every now and then, you should be content.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

UTA Mavs Make History!!

2008-03-19T21:19:00.001-06:00

Scott Cross should feel like a million bucks. After all, he’s done something in the school’s history that any other coach could have done. In fact, the last time the Mavs have been in any position to qualify for the NCAA tournament, Cross was the team’s point guard.

As a guest on the Michael Irvin Show on ESPN Radio in Dallas/Ft. Worth, Cross made sure to let everyone know that the Mavs are in this tournament to win. Have you done your NCAA bracket yet? If not, take a good look of who the 16th seeded Mavs have on their hands.

Cross referenced the fact that Goliath was undefeated until David came along and it made me go to the “good book” for research. Not only was Goliath unbeaten, but he literally KILLED people during his reign of terror. On the basketball court Memphis damn near did that to the 34 opponents they’ve faced this season. Their only loss came to the Tennessee Volunteers who later loss a few days later to Vanderbilt.

Memphis is a team with a potential Hall of Fame coach in John Calipari and also is a team of studs. Just look out for the freshman known only as ROSE. The boy can play. Oh, and did I mention that they cannot shoot real well? The scouting report for Coach Cross is a simple one: Put em on the line.

UTA is a team that hasn’t missed a meal. Larry Posey, Anthony Vereen, and Tommy Moffitt would make anybody’s football team. My man Tony Romo may also want to take a look at this trio of swift, scorers. They may be able to provide him with a little protection if the new deal with Flozell doesn’t work out.

Good guards are hard to find and UTA rolls out an assembly line of them. Lead by Rog’er Guignard (its French folks) and senior Rod Epps, this team can put the ball in the hole from way beyond that 3-point line. Tommy Moffitt is a forward that can also shoot and Jeremy Smith slashes can provide quality minutes.

This Mavs team lacks fear and that is the main reason that the good folks over at UTA are proud of Coach Scott Cross and the rest of the 2007-08 Mavs team.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

So…How was New Orleans?

2008-02-20T21:15:00.000-06:00

I’ll say this in the opening sentence of this article that I did not attend the 2008 NBA All-Star festivities. And even though New Orleans is my birthplace and that it’s only a 42 minute flight away from D/FW airport in Dallas, I stayed home and did some re-decorating. As a sports writer, I realize that if I want to gain credibility with you, the reader, I’ll have to go to the field to gather information. However, some circumstances will keep me from going out sometimes. My reasoning for not going this year was just bad timing, relying on the unreliable and poor preparation. My bad. However, I’m not a dumbass and I know the game of basketball from a lot of angles, including from the streets.

Over the weekend I pretended that I was in New Orleans. Well not really. But I did ponder the atmosphere that should have been going on in the Crescent City. First off I want to address all the hundreds and hundreds of “I’m going to find my baby-daddy” wishing women. I would like to say congratulations to the 3 or 4 women that winded up pregnant by one of these idiot pro athlete. If you were successful at “finding your baby daddy” with a healthy contract, good job! However, if you were not, I’m sorry for you. And I hear it all the time, “I’m not a groupie” or “I’m not a hoe”. You wouldn’t believe some of the reasoning for “hoe-ish” behavior that some women exhibit. Let’s just say some behaviors include food preparing tools, condoms with microscopic holes in them, and playing God. Makes you shake your head huh?

Last season, I was among the many women that actually looked better than Halle Berry and Beyonce and couldn’t believe my eyes at what I saw. I saw some of the same chicks flock from athlete to athlete like 8 year olds going door to door on Halloween night for candy. It’s a sad sight to see too.

In Texas, we call those types of women “boppas or boppers”. They “bop” on the pro athlete, give him all types of attention (ass too), and act as if she loves this poor guy. He then gets home, screws her brains out, and then she gets pregnant. And once she’s knocked up, the true woman comes out and she moves on. She also brings “the man” into the pro athlete’s life (meaning the government) including child support, alimony if they got married, and even conspiracies and robberies. And all this stems from a weekend amongst the stars. There are numbers of athletes that have fallen victim to these types of women. You may know one of them or you could even be this type of woman.

Here’s the scary part, she’s gorgeous as hell!! In Vegas I don’t think I saw unattractive woman. And I laugh because these women knew exactly who you were and what you did for a living. I even saw a female approach former Chicago Bull Scottie Pippen with his playoff stats for the 1996-97 season, just so that he knew she was more than just a fan.

Oh, and did I mention that there was a game in New Orleans on Sunday? I totally forgot about that. Sorry basketball fans, I just had to bring something to the light. I just hope my fellow athletes are paying attention. I guess the devil does wear Prada huh?

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Playoffs Equal One And Done For Cowboys; I Rant On!

2008-01-15T20:34:00.000-06:00

At the end of the Cowboy/Giants divisional playoff game on Sunday I found myself amongst 60,000 fans shocked and appalled at the way the Cowboys blew a golden opportunity at a chance to reach the Super Bowl. This is what my heart poured out from the seats of Texas Stadium. Picture me sitting in my seat at the stadium with a pen and paper in hand writing with tears and embarrassment in my face. Enjoy.

This team is a sideshow. We LOVE to be in the spotlight. Owens was mild this year by not throwing anyone under the bus. But he still demands the spotlight from time to time. Nobody needs to hear 81 telling people to “getcha popcorn ready”. Has anyone noticed that each game after he’s made that declaration, that he really doesn’t do shit? Sure he was “injured” and caught a TD pass, but where did the offense go?

Don’t let me get started on Antonio Romo. His girl is worth crazy money and her name alone is a reporter magnet. So everywhere he goes with her, there WILL be paparazzi there. And it doesn’t matter if it’s Mexico, LA, Southwest Center Mall, Big T Bazaar, Six Flags, or the Potter’s House. They WILL be followed by some college aged white dude with a camera.

And if Roy Williams plays defense like he praises Pastor Rickey Rush, he’d be unstoppable. It sickens me that this dude gets beat on a play and comes up pointing the finger at other teammates. Hell, he even blamed me on one of them plays and I was at the concession stand. Get him out of here as fast as you can Jerry!!

Anthony Henry isn’t fast enough to bump/jam receivers. He’s a ball hawk but a slow one. Move him to safety and go get Asante Samuel from New England!

Marcus Spears and Julius Jones did more complaining about Bill Parcells and his schemes and they didn’t do shit either this season!! Spears hits more nightclubs than Lindsay Lohan and Paris Hilton combined, but the idiot can’t get to the QB on 3rd down. Trivia question: What’s the difference between Demarcus Ware and Marcus Spears? There is no “D” in Marcus.
Did Julius Jones even pick up a first down this season??

The coaching staff can’t even prepare for a playoff game. These boys going on interviews during the week of the biggest game this city has seen since the Super Bowl in Tempe, AZ. And it’s funny that Jason Garrett is going on all these interviews THE DAY AFTER THE DAMN GAME!! We lost Jeff Ireland, about to lose Tony Sporano, and Jason Garrett has just been offered the Baltimore job. Stay tuned on that one.

Will somebody tell me why does Jerry Jones have to be in all those commercials?? This franchise is a sideshow and Jerry is at the top of it. The Texas tycoon demands the camera more than Owens does. And for every big game that we had this year, (ie Patriots, Packers, and Giants) this idiot has to call a freaking press conference. FOR WHAT JERRY??? Stay off my TV screen and pay attention to getting some horses in here that can play and not demand the camera.

Is Patrick Crayton a big game player?? The boy dropped 2 passes, under ran a route that could have won the game, and dropped a punt that he could have gained 15-20 yards on. And he talked more trash than anyone this season.

12 Pro Bowlers?? On paper this team should be 16-0 but this franchise is a joke. They are built strictly to entertain folks and not to win. They remind me of another big named team up in New York. The Yankees are a joke as well. They have Hollywood type players who demand attention on their team. They had Sheffield at one point who talked too much. A-Rod lead the way with the BS he brought. And now the greatest closer of all-time in Mariano Rivera is talking money instead of performing like he used to.

The Dallas defense is so overrated. We have a defense full of 1st round draft picks and can’t even stop Eli Manning from in 40 second drives. Hell, I would have even accepted a field goal but they punched it in 50 seconds.

It makes no sense how Hollywood this team is. We need horses to get far in the playoffs not pretty boys. That’s why we at home and not playing on Sunday. We are more talented than anyone in the National Football League, but can’t get it done in the postseason?? We got problems! Makes no sense to me. I love my team but this one hurts.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Romo and Jessica

2008-01-09T22:13:00.000-06:00

Cowboy fans, you guys are idiots!! I’ve been a Cowboys fan since I was a little boy and even then I called Cowboys fans idiots.

Just listen to the method behind my madness. First off, the Dallas Cowboys football team goes through changes each season, new players and sometimes new coaching. I’m tired of some fans saying that the present Cowboy team is nothing like the Cowboys teams of the past. Hello, those teams and rules are way different then than they what we see today.

Today’s world is a little different. Gas is up, women outnumber men 4 to 1, and God has been banned from schools. It seems that teachers and parents just don’t their kids to utter the words “one nation under God”. Even the way we use our money is way different. Some people save their money for the hard times that come up and others take expensive trips out of the country with hot blonde chicks that can sing (or not).

If you are Tony Romo and Jessica Simpson’s poster has been on your wall throughout high school and college, what do you do once you finally get to meet her? I personally know that if Beyonce wants to come to one of my softball games or basketball games, I would definitely have to take a couple of glances into the crowd. And if she wanted to go to take a trip to Mexico, nobody could stop me from going. Nobody!! Cowboy fans will tell him to leave her be and go win ballgames. However, if you Cowboy fans have that one person whom you’ve been waiting all your life to drop out of the sky, you would take a trip out of the country too to relax and have fun. If you disagree, then you’re an idiot! I’m sick of hearing dumb opinions about another man and his hot celebrity girlfriend. Does Tony Romo need to be gay in order to be a Cowboy’s quarterback? He can’t have a girlfriend during the season? And let’s forget about the word “focus” for a minute. Romo’s life is on the line every play so I know there is a little focus from this 27 year old kid.

I think I get it now. You guys see the photos and internet pictures of Romo and Simpson in the airports holding each other, or the picture where Tony is sitting in the chair and she brings him a drink and you go crazy.

I cannot stand it when fans go stir crazy about their favorite team’s players. Let this 27 year old millionaire football player live his life outside of the stadium. While he’s on the field, you as the fans own him. So while he’s not playing, shut up and let the man throw passes to his little tight end that looks good in jeans.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Cowboys Hit Cruise Control Entering Playoffs

2007-12-30T23:05:00.000-06:00

We all know how the playoffs ended for the new look Dallas Cowboys team. Let me paint a picture real quick for you if you’ve forgotten.
Cowboys need a FG to take a lead in boisterous Seattle. Antonio Romo is the holder. The snap comes back to him and… Well you know the rest. The Colts win the championship behind the leadership of Peyton “Mr. Commerical” Manning.

This year Romo and company has made this a pretty good run for themselves and Cowboys fans alike. Some fans like myself were still in grade school around the time they last won a playoff game. In fact, many “fans” can remember who the Cowboys beat back then.

Romo and the Cowboys now stand at 13-2 going into a meaningless game in Maryland against the Redskins this coming Sunday. But some would say that the game does carry a little meaning. “We want to win 14”, says Cowboys head coach Wade Phillips. The jolly head coach hangs his hat on setting a record in wins for a historic team that has never accomplished a 14 win season.

And then there’s the upcoming playoffs situation. How many players on this team are actually primed and ready for a Super Bowl run? Based on my knowledge only Terrell Owens has been to the big game more recently than any other player. In fact, he and the other wideout Terry Glenn are the oldest of all the active players. Flozell Adams and Greg Ellis are up there in age as well but haven’t come close at all to the big game or even the conference title game for that matter.

The Cowboys have home field advantage for this year’s playoffs in the NFC. So as long as the team wins they get to play in a building that I call the “Mecca of Football”. You may know it as Texas Stadium. Hopefully, these guys don’t get too full of themselves here in the Metroplex because there will be a lot of people smiling in their faces and telling them how good they are.

If you happen to spot your favorite player in the stores, malls, or restaurant, please refrain from making it a lick-fest. Instead say something that could get their blood pumping just a little. If you need help with that, give me a call.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Patriots Stand Alone

2007-10-17T22:19:00.000-06:00

Tom Brady…need I say more? Sunday’s game was supposed to be the game that featured both AFC and NFC powerhouses. However, Brady and the rest of the New England Patriots came to Dallas and showed the league that they are truly in a class by themselves. I took my time to write this article AFTER the game. I didn’t want to jump the gun either. I wanted to evaluate, reevaluate, and over evaluate the game before I made any comments.

First off, Tom Brady scares me. The Derek Jeter of the NFL is amazing. He has a plethora of receivers who are willing to go that extra mile for him. Tom Brady is living the life too. Have you seen the women he dates?? One is an actor and the other parades around all day in underwear. Oh, and both women have recently gave birth to his babies. And I’m pretty sure the kids are going to be good looking, talented, and can throw a football. The rich keep getting richer huh?

Tom Brady also looked like a brain surgeon on Sunday as well. He carved, sliced, and gashed the Dallas defense with his scalpel better known as his right arm. He tossed 5 touchdowns and the Patriots posted 48 points on the Texas Stadium scoreboards. He also threw for 388 yards on 31 completions. The man is on pace to throw 56 touchdowns, which would break Peyton Manning’s single season record of most touchdowns.

The Dallas defense threw up their skirts against Brady and let the Patriots have their way in Irving, Texas. And that offensive line that the Patriots have could protect anyone from celebrities to Buckingham Palace. Dallas did manage to sack #12 twice, but for the most part Brady remained upright.

New England cruised to a 6-0 record and NBC’s Chris Collinsworth is starting to think that this team “could be the best ever”. He may have a point but, I thought this was a 16 game season.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Cowboys Still A Good Team

2007-10-17T22:15:00.000-06:00

Cowboy’s fans can sometimes be notoriously known to be fair-weather fans. They degrade the team when things go bad and praise them when all is good. A lot of fans even commit Cowboy-suicide by jumping off the bandwagon for a few seasons. I’ve seen it first hand and it’s bad when the team loses at home. And it saddens me to see more visiting jerseys inside Texas Stadium compared to home team colors.

Even though the New England Patriots rolled into Texas Stadium and disposed of the Cowboys, Cowboys fans can be assured that their team is still a good team in the NFL. Coming into the Sunday’s game, the media had the Cowboys as the 3rd best team in the NFL. Almost 90% of the experts picked New England to win. Dallas is now 5-1 but many media members are writing off this team. The defense was torched by Tom Brady but isn’t he one of the two greatest QBs in the league? The Cowboys knew that the Patriots’ passive game is stellar, so why is everyone up in arms?

Ok, it’s pretty obvious that the secondary is suspect. They cannot defend the pass and decent QBs have had success against Dallas when they throw the ball. Eli Manning was able to shred the Dallas defense by tossing 4 touchdown passes and Brady drilled them for 5 TDs. I know and you know that this area of the defense needs to be addressed real soon before we can start predicting Arizona.

Speaking of predicting Arizona, WR Patrick Crayton told the Dallas media that they would face the Patriots again. And if you ask Crayton if he realizes that he indirectly guaranteed a Super Bowl to a city that will remember that in February, he’ll tell you that he didn’t bite his tongue.

This week the Minnesota Vikings come to town and the Cowboy defense has a tough Viking running game to deal with. RBs Chester Taylor and rookie Adrian Peterson run circles around the Chicago Bears defense. How does 20 carries for 224 yards and 3 touchdowns sound? This Peterson kid is like a wrecking ball with speed. The Vikings gained 311 yards on the ground in Chicago. And that’s what the Dallas defense has to look forward to? The Cowboys should be able to contain Peterson but expect to see a very physical game. The bye week (Oct. 28) couldn’t come any sooner for Dallas.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

"The Jena 6" Rant

2007-09-21T06:11:00.000-06:00

I don’t bitch, I just vent.

It’s just too much going on in the world to sit on my narrow butt and not give you my two cents so here we go.

I first want to let you know that black is my favorite color. I think that it’s the sleekest, sexiest color of them all. It makes women look and feel better, and the word to describe the color is mysterious. When it comes to race however, that’s a whole different ballgame. The topic on my mind is the Jena, Louisiana high school issue. If you haven’t heard about it there are 6 African American boys who beat a white boy senseless for taunting. On the Jena High School campus, white students normally gather under a huge tree to congregate and hang out. “Traditionally” is word that officials use referring to how the white kids hang out under the tree.
One day a black kid decides to himself that he wants to sit underneath the same tree that the white kids sit under. I wasn’t there, so I don’t know how the confrontation went but I assume that the white kids may have given this guy dirty looks. Heck, some may have even verbally had words with him. The next day at the same tree hang nooses dangled from it. If you can read this you should already know what a noose is, what it was used for, and the significance and symbolism behind it. If you don’t know, just check with me or another black person in the month of February.

Well as the story has it a white boy begins to taunt and mock black people. That’s when he proceeded to get attacked by 6 black students. They would later be known as the “Jena 6”. What’s so important about these boys you ask? Well they beat the poor, defenseless white boy really bad and the cops got involved. The problem with this whole story is that the 6 high school black boys in an 88% predominantly white town are now facing ATTEMPTED MURDER CHARGES.

If a person gets his ass whooped due to taunting a race, that’s not attempted murder. Those boys could have done him a lot worse than what the photos suggest. I saw just one black eye, and a few other bruises. I don’t truly know if the white kid had any broken bones. If he did, I still don’t think they tried to kill the poor kid.

At this very second that my pen strokes this pad there are literally thousands of protesters in Jena including your usual Al Sharptons and Jesse Jacksons. Also, by word of mouth people across the country are wearing all black in support of the Jena 6 and the protesters. I’m all for support in the black community but we as black people need to support other issues and other NON-black people as well. There are other issues that are equally as big as the Jena 6 issue. Kids are being set on fire by their idiotic, stupid, “I’m bipolar” moms. The United States judicial system is so messed up that 6 black kids can possibly get attempted murder charges for kicking a little ass and a mom that ATTEMPTS murder on her kids can get a slap on the wrist or a few months in a mental hospital.

As a writer I feel that this country and its rules and laws are laughable. And it’s funny to me that I can sit back, comment and get rich off of what’s happening in law and “justice”. No I do not feel safe living in a country where judges let attorneys and lawyers influence their thinking of handing down the correct punishments for criminals. Those 6 boys deserve punishments, but there’s no way they should be facing attempted murder charges. Nobody wants to be in jail for more than a few weeks or even months for whooping ass.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

A Scoring Machine

2007-09-16T20:57:00.001-06:00

The last time the Cowboys scored more than 40 points in a season opener was 1999 when Troy Aikman found Rocket Ismail down the middle of the field in a stunning overtime victory for Dallas on the road in Landover. That was also the last season that WR Michael Irvin played in.

This season is off to a sizzling start for Cowboys’ QB Tony Romo who set a career high in passing yards in Sunday’s victory against the dreaded Giants with 345 yards. Romo’s main targets, Jason Witten and Terrell Owens combined for 9 receptions and 203 yards. Owens also caught 2 touchdown passes and Witten had one. After Week 1 Dallas sits on top of the hill as the NFL’s best offensive team. The Indy Colts were the other team in Week 1 to score 40 or more points.

Romo has the luxury of having one the largest guys up front protecting him. Leonard Davis, Flozell Adams, Andre Gurode, Marc Colombo, and Kyle Kosier are without a doubt the largest starting offensive line in the NFL and it showed on Sunday night. Romo was sacked only once.

The fire power that the Cowboys put on the field is an impressive list. Terry Glenn is another weapon that hasn’t yet set foot on the field due to knee surgery performed this week. Glenn will probably be sidelined for a while. The other weapons lead by Witten and Owens frightens opponents. When on the field, Owens commands a double team that allows Witten and other receivers to roam free in opponents’ secondaries. This in turn lets Romo and that Cowboy offense look like an offensive juggernaut. A true test is this Sunday when a stronger Dolphins defense attempt to protect their homefield in Miami. Look for Romo and the Cowboy offense to put up points against the Dolphins secondary.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Season Begins With East Opponent

2007-09-09T20:28:00.000-06:00

Cowboy fans, you’ve waited long enough and now the 2007 season is about to kickoff with the hated New York Giants coming to town on Sunday. The Cowboys are picked by some to have a successful regular season and possibly good fortunes in the playoffs. I know that some you had to get talked down from the ledge when Romo, well you know what he did, but he is also giving fans a reason to believe that he will have an even better season.

Tony Romo will lead the 2007 Dallas Cowboys offense and should be able to do it in grand style. Romo is a gun-slinging quarterback that has a ton of ammunition. With receivers such as Owens, Glenn, and Jason Witten, the offense should move quickly. The Cowboys had an effective offense last season and finished top 3 in scoring and yards. The running game gained over 1700 yards in the form of Julius Jones and Marion Barber. The running game should open up the passing game and vice versa. I look for Romo and company to make defenses work to get stops.

Let’s not forget about Wade Philips’ new 3-4 defense. With off-the-wall blitz packages and newly acquired safety Ken Hamlin, passing on this revamped secondary should be tough. Demarcus Ware and Terence Newman will hold the defense down and give opponents fits.

Injuries are always concerns in the world’s greatest game and the Cowboys have their unfair share of them. Terence Newman is doubtful for Sunday’s game against New York with a foot injury. Greg Ellis is still suffering due to the Achilles injury that he suffered last season and WR Terry Glenn is sideline for the first game with a knee injury. That was the same knee that Glenn had scoped in the off-season.

Sunday night will be interesting to see since the Cowboys have injury problems. Last season Dallas dodged a major bullet when they only lost starter (Greg Ellis) midway through the season due to injuries. This season the injury bug has set up camp at Valley Ranch and has worked its way into the lower extremities of key component type players for Wade Philips.

Sunday Night Football will be exciting and interesting to see when divisional foes tangle in the season opener. See you at the stadium!

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Cowboys update: Preseason

2007-08-15T20:56:00.000-06:00

Wade Phillips was successful in his debut as head coach of America’s Team. The setting was Texas Stadium where the temperature was nasty, sticky, and just downright too damn hot!! On the field the temperature reached a torrid 100 degrees. The players were crisp and played a clean game. For the first preseason game of the season many fans and members of the media were surprised on how smooth the game went. Tony Romo and the offense drove down the field in the first quarter with regularity. Even though the offense didn’t put the ball in the endzone, there were no turnovers and Romo was as sharp as he could be in his first game. Romo went 10/11 with 93 yards and even hooked up with everyone’s receiver on the first play of the game.

The first team defense looked like it still needed more practice time against crossing patterns. Nonetheless, they still only gave up 3 points to the starting offensive group of the world champs of 2006. Starting safety Ken Hamlin was sidelined due to a concussion that he suffered in training camp. Wade Phillips has confirmed to the media that Hamlin has been cleared to play and should see some action in the next preseason game against the Denver Broncos on Saturday 8/18. Safety Keith Davis gave himself a great deal of job security by intercepting a tipped ball and running it in for a defensive touchdown. Davis was once a starting safety on this Cowboys’ defense under legendary coach Bill Parcells in 2004 and some in 2005.

The Cowboys will be welcoming in the Denver Broncos who will be in town over at the Cowboys’ practice facility starting on Wednesday to work in with the Cowboys during practices. The two teams will conclude on Saturday in preseason game number 2 for Dallas. See you at Texas Stadium!!

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Dynasty IS the Word!!

2007-06-15T17:37:00.000-06:00

Forget what Spurs’ head coach Gregg Popovich says about his team, the Spurs ARE a dynasty. They impressively knocked off the Cavs in 4 straight games to win their 4th NBA title in 9 seasons.

How many teams have hovered around a championship "dynasty" for the past 9 years? Only the New England Patriots have been pretty close with their 3 rings. The Yankees and Lakers are both has-beens. The Cowboys have fallen off the face of the earth and that’s all that I can think of right now.

The Spurs can actually be called a “dynasty” because they win championships consistently. And I’ve heard some credible on-air personalities say that a team has to win back-to-back championships before they could be called a dynasty. The Spurs won a title in 2005. The following season [2006] they were ousted by the Mavericks in the Western Conference Finals in Game 7 on a controversial call when Manu Ginobili fouled Dirk Nowitzki with less than 30 seconds to go in the game. Personally I feel that San Antonio would have beaten the Heat in the Finals if they would have advanced that far. If that was the case, I believe that we would have a 3-peat on our hands in the NBA.

Next year will be very interesting to see how far the Spurs can go with the Western Conference being so beefed up. The NBA Draft is quickly approaching and don't forget that Kevin Durant and Greg Oden will also be a part of the Western Conference next year with the Blazers and Sonics having the #1 and #2 picks.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

****Read more on Qwickly.com****

Spurs Are One Step Closer

2007-06-13T17:50:00.000-06:00

Let me take a second to clear the internet waves, LeBron DID get fouled. First off, I have a couple of questions about the no-call. If the three goes in, would there have been a continuation? Or was the foul even a shooting foul? And if the officials in fact would have called a foul, would LeBron actually make three consecutive free throws with no time on the clock? To be honest, I don’t think he wanted to even be in that type of situation.

The fact stands that the San Antonio Spurs are in the driver’s seat of a bus that is heading toward a destination of NBA supremacy. Take nothing from the Cavs because they took advantage of a very weak Eastern Conference and made it this far but the Spurs are too good. I think the Spurs are the NBA’s version of the Patriots and I don’t see them easily going down in the next 2-3 years. The Western Conference is very competitive and should be in the next few years, but San Antonio has been the best team in the league since the fall of the loved or hated LA Lakers. The Spurs need more credit for being such a dominant team and they should wrap this thing up in Game 4.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

****Read more on Qwickly.com****

Spurs to Sweep??

2007-06-11T22:06:00.000-06:00

The television screen went black last night. Nope, not for the ending of the Sopranos but for the ending of Game 2 for the Cleveland Cavaliers. The Spurs were dominant in every single way against the Eastern Conference Champs. And while the Sopranos are still fresh on our minds, didn’t you think that your cable or satellite provider slipped on the controls as the show went off? A collective cuss word rang out all across the entire country as the credits began to roll across our screens. I couldn’t do anything but laugh. As I turned back to ABC I noticed that San Antonio had their hands around the neck of the Cavs only to see Cleveland storm back near the end of the 4th quarter.

I heard ESPN’s Michael Wilbon call the Cavs’ late rally a “cosmetic comeback”. Truer words couldn’t have been uttered. The Spurs are so good as a team that any combination of back-to-back buckets by an opponent looks good. San Antonio had a lead of almost 30-points only to see the Cavs come raging back off a few 3-points by Damon Jones and Donyell Marshall. Too much hype is being made because of that “comeback” because the Spurs went cruise control for the entire 48 minutes. There was no way that the Cavs could have won that game. And if they don’t find an answer for Tony Parker in the paint, we may see two more blowouts. ESPN analyst Jalen Rose actually informed the world that Parker led the league this season with points in the paint. No, not Shaq, Dwight Howard, or anyone else either. Surprising stat huh?

Game 3 is tomorrow and only one word can describe it…pivotal. If the Spurs are able to hush Drew Carey and that Cleveland crowd, then another Texas team will be making parade route plans again. The Spurs will show their instate rival, the Dallas Mavericks how to wrap up a series.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

****Read more on Qwickly.com****

Nuggets’ Smith ejected…from vehicle

2007-06-11T21:59:00.000-06:00

Let me be the first to say that being in any car accident is the worst. I’ve been blessed and lucky to be able to walk away from the 3 fender-benders that I’ve been involved in. Oh, and yes I was wearing a safety belt on all three occasions.

Over the weekend word got out that Denver Nuggets guard J.R. Smith was involved in an auto collision in New Jersey on Saturday night. According to a police report Smith illegally passed a car that was at a stop sign and proceeded into the path of an oncoming vehicle. The car driven by 49-year-old Lynn Sinatra struck Smith’s SUV throwing him from the vehicle. Smith escaped the crash with only scratches and scrapes. Smith’s front passenger and good friend Andre Bell, 21, was not so lucky. He was hospitalized with “life threatening injuries” and is currently listed a critical. Another passenger in Smith’s SUV was ex-Seton Hall basketball player Carroll Marshall who was not ejected from the vehicle. Marshall and Sinatra were treated and released from the hospital. Smith and Bell did not have on their seatbelts and could face charges once all investigations are over. Buckle up people and please follow the rules!!

I’m Tovash Hatcher

****Read more on Qwickly.com****

Game 1 Preview

2007-06-07T18:31:00.000-06:00

I’ve already made my series pick but if you want to know what it is again, I’m going with the Spurs to win in 6. Notice that I did give the Cavs 2 wins in this series, however. I think that the NBA’s oldest team is capable of playing young. In fact, the Spurs are like that little lizard with the eyes going separate ways and that tongue that is twice the size of it’s body and is able to change colors at any giving time. The chameleon is a unique creature because it will change looks in a split second to get the meal that it wants…flies!! And have you ever seen it eat anything else but flies?

The San Antonio Spurs can mix and change and switch up their game to get that one fly, the Larry O’Brien trophy. In the Phoenix series, the Spurs put on their ski masks and all black gear and bullied the Suns around. In the Utah series they made like the new Ashley Judd movie “Bug” by getting into the heads of the Jazz players forcing them to self destruct. If you haven’t seen the movie yet, I want to wish you good luck.

The Cavs on the other hand got frequent flyer miles for flying in on the back of King James Airlines. “Boobie” Gibson, Drew Gooden, and Zydrunas Ilgauskas are role players who need to be even larger in this coming series. And for Gibson, the Eastern Conference Finals could not have been any more special. But he’s back home in the Star and I’m eager to see how well he plays in his own backyard.

I’m going with the Cavs to win tonight just to make this series interesting from the get-go. The NBA would love to keep the viewers in suspense. Enough with the conspiracy theories, let’s watch some hoops. Enjoy Game 1!!

I’m Tovash Hatcher

*****Read more on Qwickly.com*****

No Foul LeBron

2007-05-25T17:52:00.002-06:00

The closing seconds of Game 2 of the Eastern Conference should not be controversial at all. LeBron James was operating against Richard Hamilton on his way to the basket but Hamilton played good enough defense to stop James from scoring. While James was in the act of shooting, Hamilton put his hands straight up in the air. There little contact, but not enough to warrant a foul. Remember, in the closing seconds of a game, the officials normally let the teams decide the outcome instead of an official blowing the call. If there is a totally obvious foul where Stevie Wonder knows it’s a foul, then don’t call it.

To me it seems as if there is a code of ethics among the players and officials around the league and the play last night was a good no-call. Normally, the officials will figuratively put the whistles in their pockets during the final plays of ballgames especially if the game is close. LeBron James who was heavily criticized for not taking the game winning shot in Game 1 is getting his fair share of support for not getting the call on Hamilton on Thursday night. As a result, the Pistons took care of business on their home floor and head to Cleveland for games 3 & 4.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

*****Read more on Qwickly.com*****

On my mind: Going Out, Why is it a problem?

2007-05-24T14:04:00.000-06:00

Partying, going out, and hanging out are all terms that are associated with nightlife. I’m 26- years old and I still enjoy going out. In fact, I like to go out and drink with my friends and get silly with all the other out-going people in the metroplex.

I have a question for you though. Why is going out such a problem?

When I was a kid, I couldn’t wait to get older so that I could go out and hang until the wee hours of the morning. I went to my first night party at the age of 17. I know, I know, that’s a long time to wait to go party right? But don’t worry, I’m making up for lost ground now. Let’s see, there’s LA, Dallas, Vegas, Houston, Miami and a few other cities that have been graced with my party going presence.

There’s an old saying, “Aint nothing good happening after dark”. Or the one that the ladies are more familiar with, “Aint nothing open after midnight but legs.” Embarrassing, funny and sometimes very true!! Crime tends to happen after a certain time in the evening. Perfect example is Cowboys’ safety Keith Davis who told police that he was shot by some random people on the freeway one late, late night. Davis was leaving a club and was obviously followed by someone in a car. While on the LBJ freeway in Dallas, someone opened fire on him, striking him in the leg. Davis was ok but the question still stands; why is going out such a problem?

I don’t want to make this a race issue but it helps make my point. Black people are finding themselves getting into all kinds of problems after dark. Strip clubs are really a point of interest when it comes to black people and going out. Pro sports players are normally getting into trouble at these topless joints. The Indiana Pacers know all too well about trouble and strip clubs. Point guard Jamal Tinsley, Josh Daniels and other Pacer players are in trouble as we speak about happenings at strip clubs. Golden State Warriors forward Stephen Jackson also was involved in a strip club incident as a member of the Pacers. Adam “Pacman” Jones was also involved in a ruckus in Las Vegas back in February when he brought $81,000 in cash to shower over strippers while they danced on him and his entourage. Sad huh?

Well what about those who don’t go to strip clubs?

Those of us who don’t find the strip clubs tend to find that regular clubs or bars are just fine. But our pleasure is to drink and get out of character while we are there. I’ve found that white people have a bigger problem with drinking and driving while they’re out. How many times do you see someone being killed by a drunk driver on the news, and find that the driver is or was white? And doesn’t it seem that the only person that survives in those types of accidents is the drunk driver?

Or what about the spouse at home? I know some of you out there go out partying and then come home to all types of arguments. I USED to have that problem but not anymore. It just seems that women hate for their men to go out and men hate for their women to go out. Martin Lawrence’s “You So Crazy” featured Martin doing a skit on going out when the women goes out too much and the crazy, jealous boyfriend comes in the club with pajamas and footies on. Funny stuff, but we have a huge problem on our hands that needs to be addressed. Just please don’t involve the government or law enforcement because they tend to go overboard like curfews and banning alcohol. We, the people need to check ourselves before we go out on the town to hangout.

If you’re going to hang with me, please know how to act and no, we cannot go to a strip club either!!

I’m Tovash Hatcher

The Portland Trailblazers select…

2007-05-24T10:01:00.000-06:00

Kevin Durant is a brilliant young talent. Greg Oden is a terrific center. So who will Portland pick up in the upcoming NBA Draft? Sometimes getting the 1st pick in a draft can be a bitter-sweet ordeal. The Boston Celtics are a perfect example. Don’t let the face of Celts’ GM Danny Ainge fool you. This guy was spotted talking to the parents of then UT super freshman Kevin Durant at the Big 12 Tournament and was fined by the NBA. That’s a no-no and if it wasn’t for those nosy CBS cameras, Ainge wouldn’t be less $30K. Well, in defense of CBS, their cameramen were just doing their jobs and Ainge was caught cheating.

I suspect the Blazers will take Greg Oden in the draft. But I think that Durant is the kind of player that will have a bigger impact in his career. Durant reminds me of LeBron and Carmelo Anthony in a way because of all the hype, but if you look at all the players that came out of college “too early” or simply didn’t go, you’ll see nothing but dominant players. You can thank Kobe Bryant, LeBron James, Tracy McGrady, Dirk Nowitzki, Kevin Garnett, and a few more for that. Durant will be just fine.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Dirty Ball?

2007-05-14T16:55:00.000-06:00

Writer’s note: Another version of this article can be seen on www.spurszone.com.

Enough is enough. I’ve been keeping a close eye on these playoffs especially since we have some interesting happenings going on.

I want to first address those of you who despise the play of one Bruce Bowen of the San Antonio Spurs. Bowen is a type of player that people dub as a “dirty player”. Bowen is known for giving Seattle guard Ray Allen hell on the court. We all know that Allen is one of the great shooters in the game and he is my favorite shooter next to JJ Redick of the Magic. The form and technique of the jump shot should be bottled up by those two and sold to people like me that can’t shoot. Whenever Allen and Bowen get together, you start to roll tape on that matchup. They need their own cameras away from the action when they get together. Allen calls Bowen dirty and Bowen calls Allen a baby for complaining. And there you have it, that’s when the matchup begins.

Now Bowen has been contacted by the league office informing the 35-year-old defensive stopper that he is “on notice”. On Saturday, Bowen was caught with his hand in the cookie jar once again. He was seen kneeing two-time MVP Steve Nash where the sun doesn’t shine, at least to my knowledge. After reviewing the footage hundreds of times myself, Bowen made a normal triple-threat move. However, the knee was abnormally high. To me Nash is the type of defender that likes to take charges. And knowing the NBA officials, Nash and other superstars will get the call if they do a good acting job. The play resulted in an offensive foul and today the league upgraded the foul to a Flagrant-1. So, if he picks up another Flagrant-1 foul in this year’s playoffs then he’ll have to sit 1 game. Personally I don’t think that Bowens is a dirty player. Superstars tend to think that a defender is supposed to let them score their 30 points and then go home. To Bowen and other good defenders around the league, that’s not the case. Bowen is getting paid $3.7 million in 2007 to guard this piss out of people and that’s what he does. I commend him on getting up in people’s jocks and guarding them. No pun intended.

Baron Davis is a player that’s been on my radar for a while. Earlier in the season Davis and Clippers’ defensive guard Quinton Ross got into a tangle when they both got up in each other’s faces after a Davis elbow to the chops of Ross. After being separated by other players and officials, Ross and Davis were contacted by league officials to get both sides of the story. I asked Ross about it after the incident and he had this to say. “I didn’t like what he did out there”, Ross says “But after the game he came up to me and apologized so everything is cool”. After watching Game 4 last night I noticed that Davis sent a cheap shot to Derek Fisher after he missed a 3-point shot late in the 4th quarter. The TNT cameras caught Davis extending his elbow into the face of Fisher well after the play. After seeing that, I went into a rage. I just feel that Davis is a dirty player that gets away with a little bit. And yes, he should be fined and suspended 1 game for that cheap shot on Fisher. I’ll say this, his shot on Fisher was MORE blatant than Bowen’s knee on Nash. Just watch the footage of both if you disagree.

I don’t work for the league office, but I feel that there will be a problem if Baron Davis gets anything less than a 1-game suspension. Some players just don’t know how to lose gracefully.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Roller Coaster Series: Mavs v Golden State

2007-05-02T17:36:00.000-06:00

The series is now 3-2 in favor of the Golden St. Warriors. The NBA has a slogan of “will you be watching when?” Take it from me, there isn’t a better slogan than that. If you are a casual NBA fan and you don’t know how the NBA Draft process works, or if you just like watching tall, sweaty men put an orange ball into an orange rim, then the Dallas Mavericks and Golden State Warriors playoff series is totally entertaining you.

Last night was game 5 on the Mavs’ home court in Dallas and I found myself sitting in section 215. No, not at the American Airlines Center either, but at the Rangers Ballpark in Arlington. I thought I was going to get a chance to witness history because the Yankees’ rookie pitcher Phil Hughes was throwing a no-hitter, but the hurler injured himself in the 7th inning. Don’t worry basketball fans, I kept my eye on the closest television set which was in a suite immediately above my seat.

After getting home, I was able to park my butt on the couch and start to have an in-game text message party. I get about 8 friends who know the game and I text them a general message every time a bigtime play happens. I ended up sending over 300 messages combined and enjoyed every response I received. Thanks to the Mavericks and the Warriors for providing such an awesome series!! To the Maverick fan out there, don’t worry about the Mavs on tomorrow night because they’ll show up. And while I’m on the topic of showing up, we can now de-activate the Amber Alert on Dirk Nowitzki. The “Big German showed up in a major way in the 4th quarter of last night’s game by scoring a game-high 30 points including 14/15 from the charity stripe. The local Dallas media as well as Mavs Coach Avery Johnson called out Nowitzki for being un-Dirk-like in this series. With 48 seconds remaining in the 4th, Nowitzki made two very important free throws that put Dallas back up by 1. If he had missed either free throw, the Steve Nash Award (MVP trophy that is) would have slipped through his fingers.

The Warriors’ guards are ridiculously talented. They hit 3 after 3, in other words, they “made it rain”. In fact, the barrage of 3’s seemed like hail storm in Texas. For those of you that don’t live here in the Star, a hail storm here is horrifying to endure. It seemed like each 3 point shot was like a series of bricks being thrown at you at once. I kind of felt sorry for the Mavericks at one point. It looked like they were under attack.

Earlier in the first half the Mavericks and their lack-luster crowd were enjoying a 20-point lead. But at halftime, frustration mounted as Nowitzki and his team was hit with a technical foul as they headed to the locker room.

In the 2nd half those pesky Warriors began to be a thorn in the Mavericks’ side because they ended up taking the lead in the 4th quarter. Things also got a bit testy as Jason Terry and Baron Davis got into a minor pushing match resulting in Davis falling hard to the ground like a soccer player. Stephen Jackson was also sent to the showers earlier than usual after getting ejected for the 2nd time in this series. Reports also circled that Warriors’ guard Michael Irvin, uh, I mean Jason Richardson shoved a fan after falling into the crowd after a loose ball. The unidentified fan told NBA security that he was pushed by Richardson. Richardson told the Dallas media that he did not push the guy. Sounds like a preview to the next fight in Las Vegas to me.

So where has old man momentum shifted now? Many think that the Mavs have the edge since the Warriors blew a 9 point lead late. A lot of people think that Golden St. will use their home court advantage to pull off the upset. I do know that the crowd that will be over at the Oracle Arena will be rocking. And don’t worry, I will be home to cover the ENTIRE game this time. Will someone just remind me not to go to another meaningless Rangers game?

I’m Tovash Hatcher

On My Mind: The Madden Jinx

2007-04-19T10:58:00.000-06:00

People who know me know that I’m quick to jump to a conclusion. They also know that I sometimes overanalyze things just to start an argument or a heated conversation. And now something else has caught my attention.

Raise your hand if you’ve owned or played the Madden Video game in the past. Hell, even some of you women have your own connection with this game. I’m willing to bet that your husband or boyfriend or whatever you call his ass has ignored you at some point because of the John Madden football game.

Today EA Sports released the cover of its 2008 edition. And the lucky person is…Vince Young of the Tennessee Titans. Congrats to Vince Young for possibly ruining his upcoming sophomore season. See here’s the thing, whoever has been on the cover of the John Madden game has been injured or has had an “unlucky” next season. Ever since Barry Sanders (2000) has been assigned to the game’s front cover, weird things have happened. Think I’m lying? Just take a look below:

Marshall Faulk (2003)- Has anyone seen Faulk since the Rams were winning? The Rams used to call themselves “the greatest show on turf”. But ever since the running back went down with minor injuries such as knee and neck injuries, his career has come to an abrupt end.

Michael Vick (2004)- Mr. Razzle-Dazzle-QB-guy is joy to watch when he gets in the open field but its been reported that this man has given Herpes to another individual. In addition to that, Vick has broken one of his legs in the subsequent season following his Madden cover debut. And the 2006 season wasn’t good to Vick either who was busted in an airport with marijuana in a water bottle? Coincidence?

Ray Lewis (2005)- This fiery linebacker is know for reeking havoc on the field. But can anyone tell me how his 2005 and 2006 season went?

Shaun Alexander (2007)- The 2005 league MVP broke his hand and was out a significant part of last season.

Donovan McNabb (2006)- This poor guy had to deal with a busted ACL this season, a broken ankle two seasons ago, Jeff Garcia flourished in place of him, and to top it off, McNabb had to put up with one Terrell Owens. He’s had it worse than all the Madden cover boys I think.

Eddie George (2001)- He just sucked after he made the Madden cover. Enough said.

Daunte Culpepper (2002)- Did you see how Randy Moss was able to wreck that team in Minnesota? Plus Culpepper has just rebounded from an ACL injury himself to have a HORRIBLE season with the Dolphins.

See what I mean? And to go even deeper, have you ever seen a white person on the cover of Madden? Makes you think huh? Peyton Manning has just won a Super Bowl and has been the best player in the NFL for about 4 years and there hasn’t been any sign of Eli’s big brother. Tom Brady is the poster boy for the NFL with his boyish looks, his number of championships, and that Derek Jeter-like celebrity status. How come neither one of those two have been on the cover of this ever popular video game? Maybe the good folks at EA Sports don’t want to see the NFL’s most attractive personalities wind up injured. Reverse racism you ask? Nope, it’s just a theory of mine.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

On My Mind: Sad Day in American History

2007-04-16T17:42:00.000-06:00

I found myself working when I heard the news of the shooting at another school. All I could do is shake my head. Just in case you haven’t heard, the single gunman went on a killing spree at Virginia Tech University. ABC news confirmed that one idiot with a gun has killed over 30 people and possibly himself. One report confirmed that he did all that damage because of a girl. Is all that carnage necessary?

I’ve always said that this is a white woman’s world. Not a white man’s world, not a black man’s world, and definitely not a black woman’s world either. I am willing to bet that if this was over a girl, “I’ll bet she was a white woman. Got your attention huh? Here’s my theory and then I’ll get back into my rant:

White women run this world because they are the anchors of their white husbands. They are smarter than their husbands and all they want to do is control their lives. Nothing wrong with that either, but when you add controlling their lives, you also have to add in their significant others as well. Time after freaking time I hear a story about a guy and a woman, and for some reason there’s a white woman involved somewhere in the picture. Just ask OJ, Kobe, Mike Tyson and even the king, Michael Jordan. Hell, even in the movies a white woman is the cause of a major city being wrecked by a massive gorilla (King Kong). And I’m no racist by the way because I think that Scarlett Johansen is unbelievable.

But since this guy decided that no life is important during his violent shooting spree, I feel that if you have a white wife, girlfriend, or significant other, please keep a level head and don’t do anything silly. They say all jokes have some truth in them, so take that last line for what its worth.

On a serious note, I am shocked and hurt that we are living in an age where it took someone to kill over 30 people before he was actually stopped. Is that the new thing where people kill themselves after they have killed others? Columbine High School will never be the same nor will the students who were there on that day forget how their classmates were gunned down. And yes, the killers then turned the guns on themselves. Even the September 11th hijackers took their own lives after they ruined America. Something has to be done faster to prevent all these people from losing their lives. After 7 people were shot, that guy should have been put down like a horse with a broken leg. The Virginia Tech security and the city’s PD should have been there faster. I wasn’t there so I can’t really say that the cops should have been there faster. But the shooting started happening at about 7:15am EST. I was asleep around that time but the reports then say that 2 hours later, the gunman made his way to a classroom where he slaughtered 30 more people. I don’t think that the students there had any idea that there was a fool with a gun headed there to spray bullets all over the place. I really hate it for them. My heart hurts and it’s sad that our response in this country is still slow after what happened 6 years ago. During the next few days, keep your eyes on this developing story, I have a feeling that we will learn a lot more than what we’ve heard today.

If you are reading this, I want to let you know to be careful wherever you go because people are crazy. Let someone know that you love them as well.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Bad Vibes Surround the Texas Rangers

2007-03-28T17:34:00.000-06:00

“How come every time I’m in the kitchen, you in the kitchen?” Everyone should know what that quote means. For those that don’t own a single black-starred movie, that’s from the movie Friday with Ice Cube and Chris Tucker. That kitchen quote reminds me of my favorite baseball team the Texas Rangers. How come every time an incident makes news headlines, current or ex-Rangers are in the center of it all? Here are a few examples.

Today I read some disturbing news about Ugueth Urbina. The former Red Sox turned Ranger turned Phillies’ pitcher has fallen on some hard times. This guy is crazy!! Urbina was sentenced to 14 years in prison due to his involvements with attempted murder on 5 employees at his home. The report says that Urbina used machetes on the workers and also was accused of dousing them with gasoline. Damn!! And of course he denied it. I didn’t know that farm-hands were also used for firewood. I remember when Urbina used to strikeout players with his heated fastball. Now, this dude is trying to LITERALLY turn somebody into a fireball. A few years ago Urbina’s mother was kidnapped by someone down in Mexico who also demanded ransom money for her. Of course, with Urbina being rich that would make her the perfect target. Urbina just created a plot for a real good movie. Man of Fire starring Denzel Washington was a good kidnap/revenge type movie. I guess Urbina is auditioning for the sequel.

Remember 1998? Sammy Sosa was being called the man of Chicago. Together, he and Mark McGwire saved the baseball world from a collapse. When that steroids issue arose in 2004, Sosa was the first to use “me no speakie English”. Where the hell did that come from?? And this was in front of Congress too. So you can smash balls over a fence 500 times but can’t say “sidewalk”, “ice cream truck” or “damn she’s fine”? Dude, give me a break. This season Sosa will be on the Rangers roster and Sunday he was on SportsCenter talking about the team and his role. He didn’t use one word of Espanol either. In fact, his English was so good that if you weren’t looking at the TV but heard him speak, you could swear that he’s known English his entire life. I promise you if I was to use that line to the authorities, they would hang my ass.

Gary Matthews Jr. just recently had his name also involved in the steroids debate. Matthews had a remarkable 2006 season that was overshadowed by the Rangers’ horrible play. He also turned in some unbelievable highlights. That one season landed him a $50 million dollar deal with the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Matthews didn’t bulk up or anything but he did elevate his game. And an ESPN.com report said that he got the illegal from an area inside the Dallas/Ft. Worth area. Hmmm. Makes you think huh??

-Ivan Rodriguez is one of the greatest catchers of all time. He was a Ranger for a very long time. While he was here, he put the bat on the ball an awful lot. He also increased his muscle mass while doing so. Now with the Detroit Tigers Rodriguez has a World Series ring during his one year with the Marlins. He has also decreased in size. But I thought that you gain weight as you get older. Rafael Palmeiro told congress that he “never used steroids period”. But the paper trail points to Palmeiro and so do ex-teammates. Jose Canseco, also an ex-Ranger announced in his book that he was responsible for personally injecting the drugs into Palmeiro. Scratching your head now huh? This means that Canseco himself stuck the needle into the ass of Palmeiro. And that’s how you use steroids boys and girls.

Kenny Rogers is a brilliant pitcher…that cheats. Last season’s World Series told us that when a mysterious green substance appeared on his pitching hand. The 40-year-old has an excellent curve ball that cannot be touched by opposing hitters. I wonder why. Fox cameras don’t lie and they did a good job in finding that green gunk on his hand. The gunk is supposed to help a pitcher get really good grip on the ball enhancing the command on his pitches. And I’m supposed to like the Rangers? A wise woman once told me that “you can’t help who you love”. I guess I’m in love with a franchise that produces cheaters. And can someone answer this question for me? How come the Rangers aren’t winning more games since their players find a way to cheat so well?

Coincidence?? I don’t think so. One thing about the Rangers is that their ownership seems to never want to do anything about building a winning, and quality team. From a fan’s eye, the Rangers are just about hitting homeruns and then trading away players that end up becoming great players somewhere else. Ex-Ranger players always make news that involves this team but negatively. Do like I’m going to do, that’s keep an eye on them to see what good player they have now become a news worthy spectacle a little later.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

On my mind: Kobe is Amazing!!

2007-03-28T08:44:00.000-06:00

Ok, ok. I know that Kobe Bryant is an amazing player. I do know that he is totally unstoppable in this day and age. I’ve actually heard my boy Q Ross tell me that Kobe is THE hardest player to guard. No shit. From what I’ve seen last week, Kobe is the best player in the league.

With performances of 65 points, followed by a 50, then a 60 and another 50 again had me shaking my head. Ridiculous!! Kobe your game is nice. Okay there, I said it. This just in, Tovash Hatcher has just given Kobe Bryant his props.

But seriously, how many players in this lifetime can you actually say is that good? Big G has blessed me to be a “witness” to Michael, Magic, Bird, Isaiah Thomas and Lebron. But I do have to say that Kobe is the next best thing to being called “greatest to ever play the game”. MJ to me is a King and just ask the rest of the black community. Check this out, whenever a person would go as far to kill another over your shoe, That means that your name means something. That’s how BIG Michael Jordan’s name is. Kobe won’t get that close.

If you just look at the amount of the tenacity that Mr. Bryant shows on the court you could only shake your head. If you drive down to the nearest Blockbuster Video, rent the movie Jaws. Every time I see this man attack on the offensive end I want to get everyone out of the water and yell “SHARK!!!” Kobe is just like a shark when he plays. When he smells blood, look out. It’s like he sinks his teeth into opponents whenever he gets ready. That’s what I think about when I play too. But if you’ve seen me play, just yell “guppy” or even “goldfish”. My game doesn’t even come close.

Kobe said it himself last week that March 16-23 was the best week of his career. Really Kobe?? But something is bothering me yet again. I keep hearing how this man is being compared to the King. Not Lebron either. I’ve heard on certain radio stations that Kobe may already be deemed “better” than His Airness. NO WAY!! I got four words for those of you that say that Kobe is better than MJ: WATCH THE DAMNED GAMES!! Watch games that Jordan played in and watch games that Kobe plays in. Take a glance over at the bench when Jordan scored and then look at the Lakers bench when Kobe scores. Tell me who was more special to his teammates. Jordan is the actual measuring stick that greatness is compared to. For instance, the Cadillac is called the “Michael Jordan of cars”. Jordan had people breaking biblical rules when they praised him. Does this sound familiar? “Thou shall have no other Gods before me.” Whenever a people start to worship and follow a man for what he’s done with a basketball means something bigger than the word “special”.

Kobe is an extraordinary player and I thought that I would never see another MJ come along. I still don’t think that we will ever see another one come through, but boy is Kobe ever close.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Viva Las Vegas Part 3

2007-03-23T10:08:00.000-06:00

Day 3

Did I ever mention that we drank as if alcohol was going out of style? After a long Friday, Saturday afternoon we all decided to take a long walk to get some grub. We walked the strip and headed to everyone’s favorite restaurant, McDonald’s. This place was crowded too. We got our food and sat inside the restaurant and made noise just like any group of loud-talking men. I think people were starting to get a little irritated by our loud conversations. Darius got on to Damien’s but for being the loudest person in the group. He was upset that other people started to look over at our table. They didn’t say anything but their faces told me what they were thinking. Darius pretty much said that we needed to act like we have some home training. After that, Damien was quiet. And if you know Damien, you know that that’s hard to do. It’s hell just getting me to hush up, so Darius had his hands full. He is a bigger dude so keeping us quiet was not really that hard. But I’ll explain why Darius had to stay in the McDonald’s theme and “eat” his words later in the evening.

Back to the Wynn we headed where the casino was jumpin, jumpin. Q and Manzell asked me if I happened to know how to play 21. You may know it as Blackjack. It just so happens to be my most favorite game in the casino because you control your own destiny in the game. The object is to beat the dealer’s hand without going over 21. It sounds easy but the game wouldn’t be inside a casino if the house didn’t have the odds. Just remember that the next time you head to your nearest gambling shack.

While at the tables, Q and Manzell began to win a little money. I on the other hand took the day off from losing my money and began texting on my cell phone. The waitress in the little mini-skirt began to circle our table for some reason. She hovered around our table like a shark getting ready to feed. Let me tell you, bless her heart but the poor little thing made me the nastiest lemon-drop in the world. EEEWWW!! It tasted like a Thera-flu. Just for her I slammed it down my esophagus and licked the rim where the sugar was. I hurried up and made another order for a Hurricane to chase the nasty flavor. So drinking at the table and sending text messages was my thing that day. After Q decided that enough was enough, we went up to the room to get ready for the nightcap.

Damien had a friend that he knew from Dallas that came over to gamble at the hottest hotel in Vegas, the Wynn. Jacquerae was Damien’s friend, and a couple of other chicks that she hardly knew rode with her over to the Wynn. Jac, as her I call her was actually real cool after you get past the stuck up AKA-ish look that she wears on her face. Just joking Jac!! Once it was time to step out we ATTEMPTED to go to some NBA party over at Caesar’s Palace. Once we got to the door we realized that we were not going to get in because we were not millionaires. It’s funny, but true. Try $200 a head. There were 8 of us in a group for goodness sakes!! So we kept walking and if you’ve been inside Caesars, you know that it’s HUGE. After numerous tries to get in, we opted to go to a bar nearby. This spot was called The Seahorse. Appropriately named for the big assed aquarium in the center of the bar filled with nasty looking seahorses, the bar was actually quite nice. This is also the place that trouble almost reared its ugly head.

It’s amazing how alcohol can take over your emotions. We all were drinking at this place. Q, Damien, and Darius were over at the bar drinking. Me, Manzell, and the ladies were at a table. Going on behind us was Phoenix Suns forward Shawn Marion and newly crowned slam dunk champion Jerald Green were over at a blackjack table. Flash bulbs and women surrounded them as well. While Q and the others were over at the bar, I noticed that he motioned for me to join him at the bar. While we’re at the bar, Q puts me in a headlock and starts to ramble on and on about how we’re going to be so successful in the future. He made it a point to let me know that I’m his boy and that he was drunk as hell. Funny stuff too. When Q gets to drinking, it is some of the best comedy known to man. And you have to really listen to what he says because Q is a bit of a mumbler. Hell, I’ve known him for 17 years and I still have to have him repeat himself sometimes.

In the midst of our drunken male bonding, Jac walks up behind us very upset. She tells us that the white people are looking at our group and shaking their heads. Apparently, Darius and Damien were out of control. Damien couldn’t stop laughing and Darius had come out of his shirt and was emotional under his shades. Jac told me that Darius was yelling at her and bragging that he has $108,000 in his bank account. I tried hard to keep from laughing too. The Las Vegas PD was not far from our table and they had a close eye on us too. Trust me, they knew we were drunk. So after a bit of loud talking, Manzell, Jac and I attempted to round those fools up and to get them out of there. So you have a tearful Darius, a laughing out of control Damien, and a playful Q to deal with. Thank God for Manzell. Q told Manzell to escort Darius back to the hotel and put his ass in the bed. Manzell literally had to carry Darius back to the room which was about 2 ½ miles.

After Manzell left with Darius, I pulled Q and Damien together to have a talk. I felt like Peyton Manning calling plays to his teammates. I basically yelled at Q at told him that if something breaks out within our group that HE would be the only one getting in trouble. I told him that ESPN would run his name across the bottom of the screen for the nation to see. That shit would go something like this: “Clippers G Quinton Ross in trouble with the league for incident at a Las Vegas nightclub.” That’s exactly what I told him, but you know what he did?? He shooed me away like I was kindergartner. I threw my hands up and said that I’m done with the issue and walked away. Jac knew I was upset and tried to calm me down. So we eventually left the massive hotel and attempted to catch a cab.

Jac saw a limo parked on the side and went to ask the driver to take us to the rooms. After that she waved us over and the ladies jumped in first. I’m going to make some bogus dude’s day by mentioning him in this story as well because, the dumbass stuck his head inside the limo and said something to the women inside that didn’t sit well with them. He didn’t know that 3 dudes were behind him because he bumped right into me. I gave him a quick get-the-f@*k-outta-here push and away he went. Plus he stepped on my pinky toe which was already sore.

We got back to the hotel around 5am and parties are jumping and the casino is lit up. Stars and celebrities and athletes were all in there. I whispered over to Q that we wasted our time leaving this place. By this time Q and I kind of “made up” if you will, and everything was good. We went up to the room to change and quickly came back down. When I jumped off the elevator, we ran smack dab in movie star Gabrielle Union. I’ve always thought that Ms. Union was a beautiful woman but damn! She would have been a knockout but just like in her movies, she was a bitch. I didn’t even get an “excuse me” or a “hi”. And I spoke first!! I guess she was still in character huh?? Whatever!!

Jac, Q and I decided to give it one last shot at the tables and the slots. I stashed the money that I had won earlier in the week in my bag and played $25 in cash that was in my wallet in a slot. I quickly lost it. I then joined up with Q over at the 21 table. Q won just a little before we decided to head up to the room to eat. On the way to the elevator something weird happened.

There was a guy that was being denied by the elevator security who was talking very loudly. All of I sudden we heard, “There go some black people right there”. We then look over at him and he then says, “What’s up ya’ll, I’m a nigga too.” Confusingly, we looked at each other and were like, “ok?” Then the dude turns on us like a pit bull turning on his owner. He starts to cuss us out. Jac and I immediately got raged and started to get ready to brawl. I don’t know what the hell happened to Q’s ass. I think he ran like a little bitch to the elevator. I can still see him sticking his head around the corner. If you want to me demonstrate it, just ask me to do so. If you let Q tell it, I was the one that ran and hid.

Well the security quickly escorted him out and hotel reps immediately started to apologize to us. So you know we had a laugh or two on the elevator. We ordered room service that night or morning or whatever the time of day it was and fell asleep. I don’t know where Damien went. Darius was passed out in the other room. Jac said that she cabbed it back to the Flamingo and Manzell was already sleeping from having to lug a 250-pound emotional black man for 2 miles.

Did I ever tell you how playful Q and Damien are? These dudes pranked each other all trip long. One night Damien came to the room drunk. He passed out on my bed. During Damien’s drunken stupor, Q grabs a few slices of pizza and decorated Damien like a Christmas tree with pizza sliced ornaments. He also doused Damien with a bottle of baby oil. My camera doesn’t lie either.

Day 4

Sunday was all about getting ready to head back to the real world. We didn’t get to go the actual All-Star game because, well, no one wanted to go. We were having too much fun at the casino that we lost track of time. At 5pm we checked out of the hotel and headed to the truck with all of our bags. All I left in Vegas was the devil in me. That’s my story and I’m sticking with it.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

On My Mind: “Starting Out Young”

2007-03-08T18:27:00.000-06:00

Check this out, I just watched some of the most horrifying footage that I’ve seen in a good while. No, not the Sadam Hussein hanging either but I just saw some little kids smoking weed as if it were popsicles. What the hell?? I’m sure you saw it as well, but if you noticed, the young toddler who looked to be about 1 or 2 years old looked more experienced in the smoking than anyone in the whole video. Damned shame!!

Not only that, but the two 17-year-old boys were supplying the drugs to the kids like that was normal thing to do. And when we all see the footage, what do we usually say…”where were the parents?” This time one of the parents was actually there in the house but that dumb bitch was “sleeping” in the other room. That’s where I started to speculate. I’m thinking that the mom herself had something to do with having her two babies take drags from the weed. She was probably in the other room doing something worse than just weed. Or maybe she is young herself and was just being negligent. Or maybe it was sex. Whatever it was her kids were being exposed to stuff that even I have no access to.

It disturbs me that on the news, the grandfather is on there talking to the reporter with black lips and a cigarette in his right hand. And they say that high blood pressure runs in the family. He told the reporter that was the ONLY time that those little kids were smoking. But the way that two-year-old had the joint in his hand with the pinky finger tucked in, made him look like a weed smoking pro!

In 2000-lucky (that’s my nickname for 2007) I’ve seen some dumb stuff on the television set. And boy do I wish that I started that youtube.com website. The camera is starting to catch a lot of stuff.

Those boys need to have their asses beat for giving babies drugs. They thought it was funny too. But will they think it’s funny when they cannot get jobs when they are 21 and 22-years-old without high school/college degrees, surviving off welfare, and blaming others for their lack of “brain cells”??

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Mavs headed to glory?

2007-03-06T16:50:00.000-06:00

Remember last June? Remember Avery Johnson complaining to one of the Dallas writers that the refs had motive? Or what about the planned parade rout that the city of Dallas already had mapped out for the “championship” drive? Dallas Maverick fans were calling into work sick because their beloved Mavericks allowed the Miami Heat to use the American Airlines Center as a temporary celebratory stage.

What a difference one year makes. The Dallas Mavericks are a scary team. I used the term “scary” because it is scary that last year’s runner-up is now by far the best team in the league. It makes me think that since the Heat are cold, if the Mavs really did beat themselves in last season’s finals. My grandmother, a fair-weather Mavericks fan told me one day that it seems that no one will stand in the way of the Larry O’Brien trophy coming to Dallas. I didn’t think that my grandmother would ever agree on anything in the world of sports.

Winners of the last 11 games, the Mavs host the woeful Atlanta Hawks tonight at the AAC. As a writer, I cannot take the side of a team without delivering the facts about them. In other words, I refuse to say that I’m a Mavericks’ fan just because they are good and because I reside in Dallas. But I do want to say that I like to watch this team play the game. The Mavs and Spurs both keep me watching pro basketball. I like when a team plays TEAM basketball. That’s why I’m an avid college basketball fan because coaches in the NCAA do a great job of having their players buy in to their system. Collegiate games are so much more fun to watch than the NBA. But for some reason the Mavs have my attention and head coach Avery Johnson plays an important part in that.

We all know that Avery has that “defense first” mentality, but to have the Mavericks scoring points and playing defense is remarkable. This team has put together 3 win streaks of 10 games or more this season. Only 3 other teams have done so in league history with recent team being the 1999-2000 Lakers.

And with MVP candidate Dirk Nowitzki leading this team, who knows how far Dallas go? Last Thursday night the Mavericks hosted the Miami Heat in a game that was supposed to be a Dirk versus Wade showdown. Well, Wade got injured the night before down in Houston and Nowitzki and company rolled the Heat on national television. The Mavericks front office started a campaign by printing out tee shirts that read “Dirk for MVP”. The crowd even did their part of chanting “MVP MVP” for Nowitzki. That’s how important this season is to this franchise. Normally, a team would roll over after making it as far as they did last season without winning the title, but the Mavericks got even stronger this season. The record of 46-9 should explain just that. Avery Johnson made the declaration at the beginning of this season to “finish” what they started last season. Remember, Dallas was just 2 wins away from winning its first ever championship and it looks as if this season may just bring them the success. Just imagine there is still a possibility that this team could win 70 games.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Viva Las Vegas Part 2

2007-03-01T18:49:00.000-06:00

Day 2 con’t

…So after we ate, it was time to go back to the casino to try our luck. Being the “stars” that we were for that weekend, we decided to catch some eyes by playing craps at the table that was close to the elevator. It was Damien’s idea that we play at that particular table since every person had to pass by us to get to where ever they were going. It worked too! We attracted them all; women, men, those who thought our table was hot, and even a few stars. In fact, we were joined by Chicago Bulls point guard Chris Duhon and ex-Duke player Jay Williams. They actually jumped on the craps table right next to us and made their own noise. And noise they made!

After the casino Q had an appointment to meet some white girl who was supposed to come pick us up from the hotel. Q remained tight-lipped about the whole thing so I shut up and didn’t ask any questions. We arrived at a CVS pharmacy on the strip where there were banners and signs welcoming “Clippers star Quinton Ross” to the store. He was there to sign autographs, take pictures, and hand out free stuff to the patrons visiting the store. I had the time of my life!! Me, Q, and Damien were three stars that day. People not only asked Q for his John Hancock, but asked me for mine as well. I gave them that “I don’t do shit” look but some of them still insisted. People saw the commotion that we drew and more and more started to come to the CVS. Women approached Q asking the star to sign just about every piece of paper they could find. I even saw a chick ask my boy to sign her shoulder blade. Q even warned her that it’s going to wash off but she said that she didn’t care. Wild stuff I tell you. While we were there Damien got hungry and went into a pizza joint right next door and ordered us something to eat. The whole trip long eating became a chore. We felt as if we didn’t even have the time to fill our stomachs. I couldn’t count the number of pictures that I took for those people. Kids rushed Q for autographs and I couldn’t help but to get a little emotional watching my boy sign away. While watching him sign those autographs I thought about the times when we were kids and how we used to rush NBA and NFL players for their signatures. We used to talk about how fun it would be to sign autographs for people when we grew up. I’m here to say that Big G has blessed us to do what we wished to do all our lives. Of course I’m not the NBA player but just to be able to share this story with you is an honor to me. Sorry, but I had to get that off my chest. And no I didn’t cry either. But the CVS experience was fun and they even paid Quinton an appearance fee. WOW!! The good folks at CVS got their money’s worth that day and so did we.

We got back to the hotel around 3:30pm on Friday just to chill and by this time, our party of three went to a quintuplet. Q’s little brother Manzell and their first cousin Darius joined the fray. I couldn’t wait till they got there because we really looked resembled an entourage. That was funny to me. And to you women that read this, the guys in the “entourage” are not all dogs. We may be the kindest members of a group than anyone with a star for a friend. And to squash the myth, we are not all about the women.

A few hours passed by and it was now time to get ready for the nightcap. Once we got ready to go, we hit the elevator to go outside of the hotel. In the casino lobby, Manzell who loves to gamble was on the craps table and for some reason he had a lot of chips to his name. Green chips were worth $25, black chips were worth $100, and pink chips go for $500. He had a few green, a couple of blacks, and one pink one. He told me that he won a guy $31,000 and that guy tipped him with a pink chip. Shit, I wish I was there. So we left Manzell and Darius at the tables and went to look for TNT analyst and former Houston Rocket Kenny Smith’s shindig. Damien was SO amped to find out where Kenny Smith’s party was that we almost missed out on other fun trying to find this place.

So we caught a cab to go to the MGM Grand to catch the party which we thought was a Club 54. We get up to the bouncer and Damien asked him, “Is this Kenny Smith’s party?” The guy then says, “That this is MJ’s party”. I then jump in. “You mean the king??!!” And he confirmed with a simple head nod. So me and Q instantly became groupies ourselves and asked the guy what we had to do to get in. He told us that the price was $200 a person. PLEASE!! But we told him that Q is an NBA player and he went to the door manager. He came back and told us that we could get in for free but that we had to buy a bottle of champagne of some sort. I was giddie just like a little kid but not knowing the price of the bottle, we decided to walk away. You read that correct, WE TURNED DOWN MICHAEL JORDAN’S PARTY!!! I told you we were big-time didn’t I? So after that, we caught the tram over to the Mandalay Hotel to attend Dwayne Wade’s party. The line was too long and it was hot in there. I know this because every time the door opened, the heat came out with it. Besides, there were a lot of people that stood outside the club mingling so we decided to mingle along with everyone else. An older fan of the Clippers spotted Q and asked him for a picture. She went back to her husband and told him who she posed with and all of a sudden we drew a crowd. Guys that we didn’t even know approached us talking about sports and how wild it was in Vegas. And just like guys, we all kicked it. We found a table and drank our asses off.

I have a friend named Esha who I spotted walking into the Jordan party so I shot her a text message. Esha and I literally bumped into each other outside on the sidewalk of the MGM Grand. We were walking out and she was going in. I know her from my alma mater UTA. We took classes together. She told me that Terrell Owens, Regina King, and others were in there chilling with the basketball god. She also texted that we shouldn’t have left. I sent back “LOL”.

So we left the Mandalay and hopped in a taxi and gave our own taxicab confessions. I confessed that I was hungry as hell, Damien admitted that he was horny, and all Q said was “ZZZZZZZZ”. He was passed out folks!

After we got back to the Wynn, Damien went up to the room and Q and I went over to the bar. I have pretty good eye sight and I spotted movie star Regina King and songstress Keyshia Cole. Surprisingly we walked over without being shy. I guess the liquor had us like that. We walked over and bought another drink. “Miss King” as I called her, walked between us and I had to stop her. I told her that my boy and I are real big fans. After that, we couldn’t get her to leave. She told Q that he looked familiar and being a hype-man that I am, I told her “That’s Q Ross from the LA Clippers!!” She then starts up with me and we are joking and talking shit to each other. I’m telling you, she was cool as a fan. After an hour and a half, I had to pee so I asked her will she be down there while I went up to pee. She told me that she was about to leave. I said ok and flew to the elevator to go to the room to pee. By the way, Keyshia Cole sneaked away from the group. On the elevator, I ran into the set of twins that played in the movie “ATL” with rapper TI. If you’ve seen the movie, the girls pretty much talk non-stop to each other. They both talked at the same time and did not stop to take a breath either. I just sat back on the mirror in the elevator and giggled softly partially because I was a little star struck. I know guys normally don’t admit being star struck but what the hell, I’m grown! My floor came up and I left the two chatterboxes on the elevator by themselves.

Shaking my head and laughing all the way to my room, I did my business and grabbed my camera on the way back down to the casino. I regret not getting a picture of Miss King and Miss Cole too but what can you do? I came back down to the casino and spotted another “King”. Lebron James was on the Blackjack by himself and he didn’t move. I heard that he was on that one table for hours. Q went up to the room to crash and I stayed in the casino lobby for a long time myself. The gamble monster finally caught up with me that night. I found myself betting $50 and $100 per roll!! I didn’t hurt myself but I wasn’t winning either so I made myself leave the table. I “broke even” which is a lie for some gamblers who just don’t want to admit that they’ve been losing. So anytime someone tells you that they “broke even” just know that they are lying their asses off. I forced the sun to set on Day 2…

Viva Las Vegas!!

2007-02-27T16:38:00.000-06:00

You know the rule “whatever happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”? Well today I’ll bend the rule but won’t break it. I attended the 2000-lucky NBA All-Star festivities in Sin City and had the time of my life!!

I have a quick story for you. Since my childhood days, you know, those sandbox days, I’ve been blessed to be around a few guys that I’ve called friends. Among them, Quinton Ross of the Los Angeles Clippers has been there every step of the way. We’ve cried together, laughed together, and we’ve been truly blessed to be where we are today.

One of the perks of having a friend in a very unique spot is to enjoy some of the finer things in life. I haven’t had too many chances to enjoy such things but now I’m like a kid that just got a brand new bike. We recently took a trip to Las Vegas to go to the All-Star game. All I can say is “WOW!!” I was told that I would enjoy the city but goodness!! It’s like the Disney World for grown ups!!

The slot machines, the parties, the drinking, the crap tables, blackjack, no sleep, and let’s not forget the beautiful people there. Oh my!!

Day 1
When we pulled into the hotel a concierge opened my door. That’s when I knew that I made it. The Wynn Hotel is the newest hotel in Las Vegas and that’s where we stayed. After minor confusion at the front desk, we were given our room keys and directed to the elevators. You know you’re big-time when there is a guard at the elevator door. We got up to our rooms and since there were two rooms, we had two showers for 3 people. We still had to wait 40 minutes to get our bags from the valet guys downstairs. After 3 calls to the front desk, a 6-foot-2 inch, 180 pound black girl brought the bags to the door. I was expecting a small scrawny white guy to be on the other side of the door so after talking shit, the door opened and my mouth shut. Damien, the other friend who completed our trio ran in the bathroom after he looked in the peep hole. You better believe that she got a good tip too.

Shaq’s Party
After getting dressed we hit the elevator, we pressed the “L” button for lobby, and hit the strip. If you’ve never been to Vegas let me tell you that the people were everywhere. Have you ever kicked an ant bed and watched the ants crawl everywhere? That’s what Las Vegas Blvd looked like. Damien then answers a call on Q’s cell phone and it was Quinton’s teammate James Singleton. He was also there and he stopped by to scoop us up to take us to Shaquille O’Neal’s party at the Mandalay Hotel. I didn’t see Shaq there but after 3 shots of whatever that drink was, I didn’t care anymore to see Shaq. I did run across ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith while I was there though. I wanted to yell at him for saying that Dwayne Wade is the front-runner for the MVP this season but I let him make it. I did however give him that “I want your job” stare down however. On the mini stage performing was rapper Twista doing all his old hits. Nothing but white girls were at the lip of the stage reaching out for the young lyricist. While leaning against the bar, I was listening to another conversation of females to my right. When I turned to my right, I came in direct eye contact with R&B renegade Bobbie Brown. Nope, Whitney was not there either. Once we saw Bobbie I knew it was time to go. Mama always told me not to hang around people that my have a negative influence on our lives, so it was time to move around. Lol.

Its 4am and we are now intoxicated in the back of James’ Escalade. The soothing bass of the massive speakers in the back put me straight to sleep. Once we pulled into the hotel it was time to crash and start day 2.

Day 2
After 4 ½ hours of sleep, I get rudely awakened with lemon lotion doused on my face. You see, when guys get together for a weekend, we tend to play and play and play. We sometimes go too damned far and I blame Q and Damien for the lotion-face. I still don’t know who did it and I won’t rest until I find the culprit. We left the room around 11ish to head downstairs to the casino. The gamble monster was ready to jump out of me as well. I felt like Marge Simpson who has the biggest gambling problem of all cartoon characters in cartoon history. We headed straight to the craps table where I had to grab a how-to-play-craps handbook. There is no such book by the way. Damien actually had to teach me how to play. Don’t worry, it didn’t take me long to learn how to play the game that we used to sneak to the back of our high school to play. The game ended up being kind to me on that day because I actually walked away from the table up $125. That was a lot to me so don’t laugh.

After we left the table we went across the street to the food court which was inside the mall. We went to Wendy’s where we grubbed like bums who hadn’t eaten in 3 weeks… (to be cont’d)

V-Day Recap

2007-02-15T16:48:00.000-06:00

Ok folks, I got some free time to rant for just a second. I know that Valentines Day just passed and now balloons are losing air, flowers are starting to wither, and all the chocolate should be eaten by now. If not, I know a chocolate lover that would love to polish off any of your remaining sweets.

I saw a lot of women carrying balloons, bears, and flowers to their cars and to their desks. And while we’re on the topic of balloon and flowers, the same stuff that you had delivered to you cost your significant other a pretty penny. The day after Valentines Day should tell you that the day is worthless because the same stuff that cost him 80 bucks will be on sale for $15. Poor guy. And you don’t care because you got to show off your stuff on your desk with all the other women at work.

I felt like Mr. Scrooge today. Bah humbug!! And the day was lousy too because the weather here in the Dallas area was cold and gloomy.

Ladies, we love you but hear me out for just a moment. I’m going to speak for a certain group of people that would like for me to get this out in the open.

Here are a few quotes about one of your favorite holidays.

“To hell with Valentines Day!!”
“I really don’t care about this stupid holiday”
“Cupid who?”
“I’m only going through with this crap for her”
And my personal favorite quote: “Overrated!!”

Those were not my quotes but they all came from the lips of guys, men, husbands, and boyfriends. Here’s the thing, guys flat out hate Valentines Day! We only act like we like it for the sake of not arguing with our women. And ladies, what do you really want? Chris Rock said it best during one of his comedy specials when he said that women want “EVERYTHING”. And isn’t it funny that woman call men selfish when something doesn’t go their way?

The next time that V Day rolls around, I want all women to look their men in the eye and ask him what he wants for Valentines Day. He’s going to reply with “nothing”, “doesn’t really matter”, and “just to be with you”. Let me translate that for you real quick. HE DOESN’T WANT ANYTHING BECAUSE HE HATES THE HOLIDAY!! And if sex was out of the question, men would really boycott the holiday. I could see George dumb ass Bush signing off on a bill that would veto love day. But since we know that we can score easily, men keep the lie alive.

Ladies can save themselves a lot of money, time, effort, and emotions by not expecting anything big from your man or men, for some of you.

I just thought of something, maybe if the government ever found a day to give to us in return for Valentines Day. What if the government made Super Bowl Sunday a national holiday? The rule would be to have all men (21 and up) across the country miss work and school the following Monday to recover from the big game. Give that to me and we can call it even.

Here’s to Valentines Day, THE most overrated holidays of all-time!!

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Anyone but Parcells

2007-02-09T08:36:00.000-06:00

Three days ago I bought a season ticket for $530 to attend every Dallas Cowboy’s game for the 2007 season. “Legendary” head coach Bill Parcells led the Cowboys for four years and couldn’t get them past the first round of the playoffs. He struggled while he was here to barely keep his head above the .500 winning percentage waters. Is it coincidence that I purchased the tickets as soon as Parcells hit the exit door?

In actuality it took me 2 years to finally get my hands on a season ticket and I will enjoy this season no matter who the coach is. And that happens to be the mentality of tons of Cowboy fans in the metroplex and ultimately the country. The fans just want to win and like Cindy Lauper’s famous song in the 1980’s would say, Cowboys fans “just wanna have fun”. I can certainly say that this season will be fun with Parcells out the door. Does it sound like I’m anti-Bill?

After a four-year period in Big D, the Tuna didn’t do anything while he was here except complain, complain, and complain. He did lead the Cowboys to two playoff berths (2003 and 2006) however. Heck, my grandmother even could have taken this year’s team to the playoffs. Tony Romo was a huge reason why Dallas went to the playoffs this season. But I blame Parcells for the downfall of the Cowboys’ continued lack of success. Here’s my logic. I was ecstatic when I heard the news in January of 2003 that Jerry Jones was bringing Bill to Dallas. I thought, “Hey this is all we needed to get back to supremacy!!” Boy was I wrong. Parcells was a grumpy old man while he was here and after every season, the media chased him around to see if he was returning. The 65-year old legend faced the media everyday regarding the retirement question. Anytime a coach has to decide whether he would come back after EVERY season spells trouble. Frankly, as a Cowboy fan I wanted him out because I was tired of waiting and waiting on a decision from Parcells. Dude, if you’re going to coach this team then do it!! Now with Parcells out the Cowboys have a new leader.

Enter Wade Phillips. The former defensive coordinator of the San Diego Chargers steps in to fill the shoes of Parcells. Oh and by the way, that San Diego defense was nasty. Remember when you were a kid and you got curious and threw a rock at a bee hive and then the swarm of bees attacked you? Well that’s how that Chargers’ defense was.

Phillips’ resume is not all that impressive either. A 0-3 playoff record and a 45-35 regular season record don’t ruffle my feathers. But if you think about it, it’s damn sure better than Parcells’ record here in Dallas. Cowboys’ fans did want a sexy name to add to the coaching fire and the name “Phillips” doesn’t do anything. However, winning and getting that defense better than what we saw this past season is what I want to see. 152 is the number of points that the defense gave up in the month of December and that needs to be corrected…and fast.

I welcome Phillips to Dallas. And I say that because he’s anyone but Bill Parcells.

Jerry Jones and his drama filled coaching search remained in the headlines throughout the duration of Super Bowl week. Norv Turner, Mike Singletary, Ron Rivera and whoever else Jones interviewed were just a figment of Jones’ imagination and out of nowhere comes this Phillips cat. Welcome Mr. Phillips, you are anyone but Parcells.

I’m Tovash Hatcher

Hook, Line, and Sinker: Retirement Catches "The Tuna"

2007-01-25T15:04:00.000-06:00

This just in, well not really, but the Dallas Cowboys need another head coach. That’s right ladies and gentlemen; the great Bill Parcells has stepped down as the leader of America's Team. The announcement came down on Monday morning of January 22 and not a moment too soon. Actually, I think that Parcells took WAY too long to come up the statement that he was quitting.

The Dallas Cowboys played their last game on January 6 against the Seattle Seahawks. Parcells made his decision on January 22. So you're telling me that it took 16 days for you to make a decision, Coach? To paraphrase the statement that he emailed to the Cowboys was that he appreciated the opportunity to coach the Cowboys and that he would not leave the Cowboys in worse conditions. Newsflash coach, you did leave the Cowboys in a bad position. In fact, you let just about all the assistants go before you made your decision. Selfish??

Everyone's favorite wide receiver Terrell Owens told the media that Parcells reminds him of his grandmother, basically meaning that Parcells is an old and stubborn guy who is stuck in his ways. I'm here to tell you that Owens is on to something in that statement. I lived with my grandmother from the time I was born until age 18 when I went away to college. She treated me just like a child age 15, 16, 17, and even 18. She still wanted me to come in the house before 9pm. WTF?? That meant no parties, and ultimately no fun. That’s why I chose to live ON CAMPUS BABY!! And believe me, Owens isn’t the only player on the team that felt like that. He's just the idiot that everyone decides to listen to. Plus he makes dumb statements when he has a microphone in his face. And if you that think that Owens doesn’t know what he's talking about, on this situation he is absolutely right.

Good riddance to a coach that held Jerry Jones and the Cowboys organization hostage!! Parcells was a coach that didn’t let his assistant coaches address the media. What kind of blank is that? I heard Deion Sanders on a radio show in Dallas (ESPN 103.3 FM) say that you cannot force a grown man to be quiet. This is 2007 and a man, let alone a coach, should be able to address the media. Mike Zimmer, who was the defensive coordinator under Parcells, was once rumored to step in as head coach in Dallas on Parcells stepped down. But since Zimmer's defense took drastic turn for the worse, Parcells did not defend Zimmer and let him move on to the Atlanta Falcons. Parcells also forced out David Lee who was the quarterback coach in Dallas and who was also responsible for the development of quarterback Tony Romo. Lee went on record in saying that Parcells told him that he was still undecided in his coaching future. Lee did exactly what 90% of America would do…if you have a guaranteed job offer somewhere else, you'd take it. And after Lee and Zimmer fled the "Big D", special teams coach Bruce Dehaven also jumped ship. If you don’t know Dehaven, he was only one of the best special teams coaches in the NFL. Trust me, you'll notice a difference in the Cowboys special teams when the 2007 season approaches.

Who are the Candidates?
Bob Stoops, head coach at Oklahoma.
Wade Phillips, defensive coordinator for the San Diego Chargers.
Mike Martz, offensive coordinator for the Detroit Lions.
Norv Turner, offensive coordinator for the San Francisco 49ers.
Ron Rivera, defensive coordinator for the Chicago Bears.

And let's not rule out Bears head coach Lovie Smith either. Smith is due a big payday from the Bears since he has led the Chicago to its first Super Bowl appearance since the 1980's. I think that Jerry could make a play for Smith.

Now the Cowboys are the only team in the NFL without a head coach. A lot of the good coaches are taken but I expect Jerry Jones and the rest of the Cowboys brass to shake up the sports world when they select their new leader.

I'm Tovash Hatcher

Thinking Outside The Stadium

2007-01-19T17:20:00.000-06:00

When the game is over and you're headed back to your car on a Sunday afternoon do you ever think about what's going on in the real world? Let me give it to you in numbers sense: $20 to park your car, $90 each for two seats to the game, $37.50 for 3 hot dogs, 1 soda and 3 beers (one of which some idiot spilled forcing you to buy another). On average per sporting event, fans spend in upwards of about $200-$300 just to attend a regular season game.

When the game is over do you ever think that the $200 spent on that game could have gone to something else? What about that student loan payment that’s due? Or let's not forget that you still have to go to Wal-Mart to grab the weekly supply of grub. Gas prices are just under $2 but your car still needs to be filled up twice before your next payday. If none of this applies to you, then keep reading anyway because this may just affect your friend, child, spouse, sister, brother, or even mom and/or dad.

Here's what's on my mind. All last week I've been bothered that the LA Galaxy signed heartthrob David Beckham to a crazy 5-year $250 million-dollar deal. Ridiculous huh? Let's not forget that Beckham isn’t the only person in this United States that is making $200 million dollars to smack a ball around. Alex Rodriguez signed a ten year deal for $252 million in 2003 with the Texas Rangers. That contract is still the biggest ever in sports. Am I the only person in the world to shake my head when I see a person making this much money? I get absolutely upset that sports figures only in this country make that kind of money and do nothing with it. Sure, you have the athletes that open up charities in their names. But what kind of charities are these?

Look at this country outside of sports for a minute. Our politics suck and our poverty is still a problem as well. A year ago I had a rant about our money going to foreign countries and also racism. Now, I have a problem with the athletes in the US and their swollen salaries. They make enough money to make the "richest country in the world" the ACTUAL richest country in the world.

As an experiment, I looked at 3 of the richest sports figures in this country. Both Alex Rodriguez and Derek Jeter of the New York Yankees, and also David Beckham of the LA Galaxy have combined contracts of over $600 million, that's with an "M", and I came up with the assumption that all three of those guys can single-handedly end poverty in the United States. All they have to do is give a collection of money to an organization that can build more shelters and put some food in their stomachs and some new clothes on their backs. Instead of giving to charities like the one that’s STILL searching for a cure for AIDS, give to people that need it. I mean how much money can one charity have for research to a disease that the government cannot find a cure to? Authur Ashe died in the 1970s from AIDS and millions in Africa die from it everyday. I don’t think that the government is searching hard enough for this "cure". Maybe they're being tight-lipped about a cure that they already have, but that’s another rant for another day.

Just think about it, all the transients, bums, and other homeless people could be people like you and me with homes to go to if one thing happened…if those three guys just opened up their wallets a little. I'm not the wallet cop but if a celebrity or athlete just shed a little sunshine into the lives of those less fortunate, the country would be a better place. You don’t have to tell me because I already know, but that proposal is so farfetched.

If only Oprah could substitute her audience of already comfortable, successful, greedy women with smelly, haven’t have a bath in days, broke people without homes. Since she does shows where she normally gives stuff out for free, why couldn't she do the same for someone with nothing? I saw one show where she gave everyone in the audience a car. A car, are you serious?? I personally know of a guy that doesn’t have a place to live, doesn’t have a car, and he sings outside of a local supermarket. Oprah, where are you?

I know that I sometimes let my imagination can run wild with "what ifs" but wouldn’t you like to see some of this poverty stuff come to an end?

I'm Tovash Hatcher
Tovash10@yahoo.com.

A Well Oiled Machine

2007-01-16T19:05:00.000-06:00

What were you doing during the month of June of 2006? Many people in the Dallas/Ft. Worth area were rooting on the best team in the area. No, not the Dallas Cowboys but the Dallas Mavericks. Avery Johnson's first full season as the head coach of this team was indeed a success that ended in pure disappointment. Nonetheless, Johnson has this team rolling again and the fans are behind them 110%.

On last Saturday the city of Dallas saw one of the most popular teams in the history of team sports in the Dallas Cowboys lose a heartbreaker game to the Seattle Seahawks on a play that will live in Cowboys' infamy. Media darling Tony Romo dropped the ball during the hold of a go-ahead field goal attempt. Before the game started random people on the street had already counted out the Cowboys in their first playoff game since 2003 and focused their attention to the Mavericks. Good move.

The Mavericks have given their fans a lot to hold their chins up to. After making the NBA Finals and falling just shy of the ultimate goal, the Mavs are at it again. Only this time, Dallas has a full head of steam. Last season was a year of surprises. Coach Avery Johnson implemented in a "defense first" mentality which was a change from the previous Maverick teams that were spearheaded by current Golden St. coach Don Nelson. Johnson has this team sold on getting the defensive stop and making the extra pass on offense.

The changes that Johnson put in did not impact anyone more than one Dirk Nowitzki. Nowitzki took on the challenges brought on by Johnson and has this team clicking on all cylinders. A well oiled machine is an understatement. Let's just call it a Western Conference juggernaut. After the blowout win against Portland on Wednesday many people are calling this team "boring". That’s the best compliment someone can pay a team. With a 29-8 record, Dallas finds itself at the top of the league with just the Phoenix Suns breathing down their backs with their own current 8 game winning streak and a 27-8 record.

So will this be the year that the Larry O'Brien trophy comes to Dallas? What, you thought I was going to answer that question? I do think that General Johnson and his soldiers are marching to the same beat and it will be hard for this team not to sniff the Finals again this season. Maybe NBA fans will get the gift of seeing Suns/Mavs part 2 in the Western Conference Finals.

I'm Tovash Hatcher

Is it a Curse?

2007-01-14T22:04:00.000-06:00

Its 4th and goal and the Cowboys are lining up for a potential game-winning field goal to propel them to their first playoff victory in over 10 years. Gramatica was the kicker and Romo was the holder. The snap was perfect, Romo caught the ball, but the world changed after the catch. Tony Romo failed to put the ball down cleanly to give Gramatica a chance to kick the ball and the season went right out the window.

Let's take a small trip on the time machine real quick.

Monday September 19, 2005- The Cowboys faced the Washington Redskins in a home game where the three most famous Cowboys, Michael Irvin, Troy Aikman, and Emmitt Smith were getting inducted in the Ring of Honor at halftime. Just about everyone in the entire country, maybe except the people in Washington predicted a Dallas win. With 3:55 left in the 4th quarter the Cowboys had a 13-0 lead when all of a sudden lightning struck twice. Santana Moss burned the Cowboys secondary twice in the final 3 minutes of the game to lead the Redskins to a stunning 14-13 victory on Monday Night Football. That lost stayed with the Cowboys for the rest of the 2005 season who finished just one game out of the playoffs. Dallas needed just one more victory that season and that loss to the Skins in Week 2 haunted the Cowboys for the entire season.

Sunday November 15, 2006- This time Dallas went to Washington where just one week earlier head coach Bill Parcells made a quarterback change inserting Tony Romo into the fray. The Cowboys had just come off one of the biggest wins of the season at that point. Romo had just beaten the Carolina Panthers on the road and gave the Cowboys, their head coach, and the fans an opportunity to breathe the largest sigh of relief in Cowboy history. In the 3rd quarter of the game Dallas was up 19-12 when Terrell Owens got behind the Redskins' secondary for what seemed to be an easy touchdown pass from Tony Romo. BUT OWENS DROPPED THE DAMNED BALL!! If caught, the Cowboys go up two scores and would have pretty much drained all hope from Washington. The Redskins then tied the game in the 4th. Things got a little more interesting. The Cowboys were given another chance to win that game after a missed kick by Washington kicker Nick Novak. Mike Vanderjagt lines up for a kick and it gets blocked. The Redskins recovered the kick with 7 seconds left and ran it to the 50-yard line. A penalty flag came flying in and during that play the Cowboys got called for a 15-yard facemask penalty. That got Washington down to the 35-yard line. Novak then trotted out for a 50-yard kick and nailed it with no time on the clock. The Redskins win.

And who can forget the Seahawks game in the rain last season where Drew Bledsoe forced a pass that ended up getting picked off by a Seahawks' defender. Cowboys fans have images of kicker Josh Brown nailing a 50-yarder to steal a win away from the Cowboys.

Had enough yet? Back in the Barry Switzer days (1990s), the Cowboys were playing the Philadelphia Eagles in Philly and the Cowboys faced a critical 4th down and 2. On the first attempt Switzer called a run play to Emmitt Smith to try to get the first down. The only problem, EVERYONE IN THE STADIUM KNEW SMITH WAS GETTING THE BALL. The Eagles stopped Smith behind the line of scrimmage and Veterans Stadium went nuts. However, the play was whistled by the officials as a dead play before it even started. One official blew the whistle before the play started but the crowd was too loud. The refs made the announcement and the 70,000 fans didn't agree. So the Cowboys got another chance to pick up the first down and they ran that same run play with Smith. The Eagles sniffed it out and again they stopped him. The crowd went crazy again!! I went crazy in my mom's living room as a 7th or and 8th grader as well, but in a tearful and upset tantrum. Dallas newspapers and fans were all in an uproar. Why would a coach call the same play knowing that the other team already suspects the same play as well? Makes no sense to me.

As you can tell, tough losses stay with Cowboy fans. But one thing comes to mind when I think of silly endings to games where it looks like the Cowboys will win. That boys and girls is the Curse of the Jimster. Things have gone bad in crunch time when it looks as if the Cowboys will pull out the win and ironically, there have been weirder and painful endings to games since Jerry Jones fired Jimmy Johnson.

Furthermore, the Cowboys' playoff success also went out the window since Jimmy Johnson was fired. And yes I do realize that Barry Switzer won a Super Bowl, but he did it with players that the Jimster hand picked. Will the Cowboys ever be able to break this so-called curse? The Red Sox broke theirs. The Cubs had a chance to break theirs, but fan Steve Bartman reached out and took a foul ball away from Moises Alou that could have gotten the Cubs out of the inning and could have taken to their first World Series since the dinosaurs roamed the earth.

There are many more Cowboys' breakdowns, debacles, and disappointments that I could get into but we don't want to bring more negative energy to this discussion. My heart was broken by watching the game against the Seahawks on Saturday night. I can't wait to see how this franchise will turn this thing around in the near future.

I'm Tovash Hatcher

The Same Ole' Cowboys Team?

2007-01-14T15:22:00.000-06:00

Sixteen weeks have gone by for the Dallas Cowboys and what have we learned boys and girls? For the most part, nothing!! The Cowboys finished the 2006 season just the same as last season, both with 9-7 records.

So what's different from last season and this season you ask? Since the records are the same one has to ask if this team will ever be as good as it was back in the early to mid 90s. This 2006 team IS in the playoffs however. With the additions of Terrell Owens and Mike Vanderjagt, the Cowboys at the time thought that by adding the two would plug in much needed help. But no one knew that the kicker would be missing kicks and that the receiver would be dropping balls. In fact, Bill Parcells cut Vanderjagt after a woeful stint as a Cowboy after the kicker missed a chip shot against his former team the Colts in Week 11.

I've attended just about all the Cowboy home games and other fans in the stadium are booing this team and its additions. Owens has been dropping balls for the Cowboys since the first home game against the Washington Redskins where he let four balls go thru his hands. Since then, Owens has found himself at the top of the league with 16 drops. On the other hand, Owens does lead the entire NFL with 13 touchdown passes. One could argue that if Owens doesn’t have that many drops then his numbers would go thru the roof. A few games come to mind when I mention the drops. The game versus the Washington Redskins would have ended up in a win if Owens catches the deep, 70-yard throw from Romo. The Eagles came to Texas Stadium and beat Dallas 23-7 and it was Owens who again dropped a critical deep throw from Romo on 3rd and 19. If caught, the Cowboys would have been in that game. And the Monday Night Football game against the Giants still brings back bad memories when Owens dropped a 3-yard pass that would have kept an important drive alive. The Cowboys ended up losing that game as well. Owens was once one of the game's best receivers but now he's just average. The numbers don’t indicate how problematic he has been to his team. Bottom line is that he hasn’t stepped up in the "big games". I was one of the biggest TO apologists as a Cowboy, but whenever he would get in front of the cameras and tell the media that no one was getting him involved in the offense burned me up. TO makes too many excuses! If you want to argue TO and how important he is to his team, feel free to let me know at tovash10.com.

What about this Cowboys defense? Roy Williams is a pro-bowler again for the 2006 season, but many would argue to why he made it. Terence Newman did not get elected to the Pro Bowl even though he's had another impressive season at cornerback. And Demarcus Ware is also headed to the Pro Bowl. But why is this defense isn’t stopping anybody? One Sunday the Cowboys welcomed the 2-13 Detroit Lions to Texas Stadium for what should have been a massacre. For some strange reason the Lions left Irving, Texas a 3-13 team and a winner on New Year's Eve. They also managed to move the ball on the offensive side and put up a season high 39 points on a "good defense". The Cowboys' defense has problems and they need to address it quickly as they now have the Seattle Seahawks in their sights. I just wonder if Seahawks QB Matt Hasselbeck is licking his chops at the sound of the porous Cowboys' defense coming to the not-so-friendly confines of Qwest Field.

Tony Romo, this year's savior for the Cowboys will have his hands full in his biggest game as an NFL player so far. Bill Parcells will need to get his team prepared to perhaps get their first playoff win in over ten years.

I'm Tovash Hatcher