Opining on Tiger's trysts, Syracuse hoops and Yankee acquisitions

Playing a round has taken on a whole new meaning with golfer, sex addict Tiger Woods.

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Someone asked me if anyone in sports has plummeted as far and as fast as Tiger and the names O.J. Simpson and Pete Rose came immediately to mind.

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Some columnists have opined that Tiger can slowly play his way out of this sex mess and back into the good graces of fans and sponsors the way Kobe Bryant did after his affair and rape case, but I’m not so sure. Yes, I believe Mr. Eldrick Woods (yes, that's his real name) will find the focus needed to break Jack Nicklaus’ record for major victories, but the magnitude of his “transgressions’’ will forever taint him.

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Let this be a reminder that we may think we know our celebrity heroes, but we really don’t. Hey, O.J. was fabulous to me – he once even called me from a Hollywood movie set to do an interview. I and the rest of America thought he was the most gracious sports celebrity going. But we only knew O.J. the legend not O.J. the man.

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So, you ask yourself: Why the heck did Tiger bother getting married in the first place?

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Enough Tiger talk, let’s move onto more harmless subjects, such as Terrell Owens signing on with a modeling agency. I just hope T.O. negotiates the catwalk better than he has the gridiron. And let’s hope they don’t load him down with too many props given his propensity for drops. I guess this new gig underscores the fact that T.O. has, for the most part, been a model citizen with the Bills. (Sorry, couldn’t resist the bad pun.)

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Some people have accused me of jumping the gun with this year’s Syracuse University basketball team, but I don’t think so. I love their depth, their unselfishness on the offensive end and their tenacity on defense. And Wesley Johnson is something really special. Even if the Orange lose tonight on the road to Florida, I’m not going to change my mind. I have good vibes early about this team the way I had good vibes early about the national championship team in 2003.

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The one thing working against the Cuse and all Big East teams is the strength of the conference itself. The breath and depth of talent in the league has never been better. But you wonder if any of the Big East representatives will be able to win a national championship after beating up on one another for the two months leading up to the NCAAs.

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Speaking of the NCAAs, there’s talk again of expanding the tournament field from 64 to 96 or even - egads! - 124. Here’s hoping that doesn’t happen. In too many sports, the regular season has been rendered meaningless because virtually everyone makes the post-season. One of the appeals of March Madness is that it is darn tough to make – and that’s the way it should be.

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Whereas the NCAA has it just right regarding postseason hoops, it has it all wrong concerning football. I’ve been arguing for years that Division I football needs a playoff, and this year further underscores the need. Should Cincinnati, TCU or Boise State finish the season undefeated they have every much a right to claim they’re No. 1 as the winner of the alleged championship game between Texas and Alabama.

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If I’m the Bills, I might take a chance on Notre Dame quarterback Jimmy Clausen. Ferocious Nebraska tackle Ndamukong Suh (don’t ask me how to pronounce his name) also would look good in a Buffalo uniform.

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I was happy that Derek Jeter was named Sports Illustrated’s 2009 Sportsman of the Year. But you could have made as strong an argument - if not stronger - for his teammate, Mariano Rivera. It would have been kind of cool to have named them co-winners, considering they’ve been the two most important cogs in the Yankees five World Series titles in the past 13 years.

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I’ve been a fan of the Bronx Bombers since 1961, but I’m not nearly as much of a fan as I used to be. The trading for centerfielder Curtis Granderson and the possible acquisition of all-star pitcher Roy Halladay just underscores how the rich get richer, and how the current competitive balance structure of baseball is way out of whack.

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Finally, some good news for fans of the Pittsburgh Pirates: The team announced this week that for the eighth consecutive season it won’t be raising ticket prices. The bad news is that the Pirates haven’t fielded a winning team since the Eisenhower administration. (O.K., so I was being facetious. It’s only been 18 years, which would make it the Clinton administration - that's the Bill Clinton, not DeWitt Clinton administration.)

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I normally refrain from politics in this cyberspace because I’d rather deal with the less bizarre world of sports, but I couldn’t help but notice how once again the politicians have had our backs regarding health care. Congress spent more than a year wrangling over a new plan that allegedly would bring some relief to we working-class stiffs. And instead apparently have come up with a plan that permit health care costs to continue spiraling out of control. I don’t mean to sound greedy or hard to please. Heck, I’d happily settle for the medical and retirement plan that our congressmen and senators receive. There, I feel better, now that I've vented. I'll try not to injure my ankle climbing down from my soap box. Wouldn't want to drive up those health care expenses any more than they are.

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Finally, I'd like to ask you all to keep Mark Muench in your thoughts and prayers. Mark, a dedicated volunteer with the Fairport Challenger Little League Baseball program for nearly two decades, underwent surgery last month to remove a tumor from his brain and will begin radiation treatment next week. He's a fabulous, caring guy who has done a tremendous job helping mentally and physically challenged young people experience the joys of playing baseball. I saw him yesterday at the Rochester Press-Radio Club children's charity luncheon and he looked and sounded great. You can follow his progress at his website: www.markmuench.blogspot.com.