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The Review Magazine
2004
Year in Review - Sports
By Jack B. Tany
Review Sports Columnist
Reviewing the world of sports - both the amateur and professional
variety - should include jottings of accolades that happened on the field of
play.
But in the past few years (and 2004 is no
different) actions off the field of play drew the most headlines . . . and
headaches.
Here's the highlights and lowlights for the
year 2004:
* For the second consecutive season Charles Rogers of the Detroit Lions broke
his collarbone. A year ago the former Michigan State University standout caught
22 passes for 243 yards and three touchdowns in his first five games before
being sidelined for the season with a broken right clavicle (collarbone). This
year Rogers, a Saginaw High grad, injured the collarbone again - this time in
the Lions first game of the season. Skeptics say the jury is still out on
whether he can be a productive NFL receiver and live up to his potential.
* Midland County's Bullock Creek High School turned in an impressive football
season. The Lancers, coached by Darren Kalina, made its way through the playoffs
until they were upended in the Division 5 state championship game at the Pontiac
Silverdome. Bullock Creek finished unbeaten in the always-tough Tri-Valley
Conference West Division and captured a thrilling 21-20 overtime victory over
Nouvel Catholic Central in a semifinal clash of unbeatens.
* The Saginaw County Sports Hall of Fame inducted its third class in front of
over 650 people at the Horizons Conference Center. Individuals making the grade
in 2004 were Steve Brady, Bob Chapman, Leo 'Sam' Franz, Lori (Gnatkowski)
Vondette, Herb Korf, Gary Lee, Ralph Minnis, Brian Pruitt, Patti (Shook) Boice,
Tom Slade and Tony Smith. In addition, Buena Vista High School's back-to-back
state championship basketball teams of 1991-92 and 1992-93, winners of 55
consecutive games, were also inducted.
* LaMarr Woodley turned in an outstanding sophomore season starting at defensive
end for the University of Michigan. If the Saginaw High grad continues his
strong play, many say he'll be suiting up on Sundays. Another former Trojan
gridder, Ron Stanley, had an outstanding senior season for Michigan State
University. He was a three-year starter at middle linebacker for the Spartans.
* The Saginaw Valley League celebrated its 100th birthday this past fall. The
prestigious league, which is rich in talent, debuted in 1904-05 as the Saginaw
Valley Conference and boasts being the longest continuous running league in the
state.
The charter members were Flint High School
(later to become Flint Central), Bay City (Bay City Central), West Bay City,
Saginaw High and Arthur Hill. The first league champions were Bay City in
football and Saginaw in track. Flint won the first baseball crown in the spring
of 1906. By 1933, the conference had grown to seven teams and stayed that way
until the 1950ís when the baby boom cause another growth spurt as the SVL peaked
with 12 members.
It currently has 10 schools in the league.
Valley teams have claimed 108 state titles to date, including 19 mythical
football crowns that were decided by media voting before the playoff system
debuted in 1975. A total of 78 of those state titles have come in three sports -
football (22), basketball (18 boys and 11 girls) and track (22 boys and five
girls).
* For the first time since 1997, Tiger Woods will not end the year ranked No. 1
in the world. With the 2005 season just around the corner, Woods is chasing
someone else, Vijay Singh, for the top ranking.
* A funny thing happened on the way to the rink . . . no one showed up. A
standoff between the National Hockey League players' union and the owners
forced a lockout. Both sides are battling over - what else - money. Among items
on the bargaining table are a luxury tax, revenue sharing, a lower cap on
entry-level contracts and changes in the arbitration system. Despite the players
are doing their part by offer a one-time 24 percent rollback on salaries, the
sides are so far apart it doesn't look as if the season will be salvaged.
* Buena Vista High School's Boy's Basketball Team won the Class C state
championship by knocking off Charlevoix 63-52. In doing so, Knights' coach Chris
Chaffer became just the second person in Michigan State High School Athletic
Association history to play on a state championship team and then coach his alma
mater to a state title. Chaffer was a member of the 1985-86 state title team at
BV that beat Flint Beecher 33-32 on Chris Coles' three-quarter basket as the
buzzer sounded.
* The revolving door - better known as the Saginaw Spirit head coaching job -
reared its ugly head again in 2004. In less than three seasons the Saginaw icers
are now on their fourth head coach. Dennis Desrosiers (14-52-6-7) lasted a
season and a half before giving way to Moe Mantha (8-20-1-1). When Mantha chose
not to live in the Saginaw area, Spirit owner Dick Garber gave him the boot and
brought in Doug Lidster. Lidster went 6-13-1-3 before an unfortunate incident
with over-rated/ spoiled/
egotistical netminder Mike Brown. General Manager Bob Mancini is the new man
behind the bench . . . for now.
* The Metro Detroit area put its best foot forward when Oakland Hills Country
Club hosted the annual Ryder Cup Golf Match between the United States and the
Europeans. The old course never looked better. Celebrities such as Samuel L.
Jackson, Kevin Costner and Steve Yzerman to name a few were present to watch
Saginaw High's nationally-known drumline perform at the opening ceremonies. Oh
yeah, good old USA got their butts kicked (again).
* The Detroit Pistons - displaying an aggressive defense - slammed the door on
the heavily-favored Los Angeles Lakers to win the NBA championship in five
games. The Kobe Bryant/Shaq O'Neal-led Lakers are lucky they weren't swept in
four games. Led by Chairman of the Board(s) Ben Wallace, the Pistons displayed
one of the finest defensive performances in the history of the league. And who
could forget Tayshaun Prince's block heard round the world on Reggie Miller of
the Indiana Pacers in the Eastern Conference finals?
* The top sports story of the year also has to do with the Detroit Pistons . . .
but it deals with events off the hardcourt. Five Indiana Pacers and seven fans
were charged in one of the worst brawls in U.S. sports history. The ugly melee
began innocently enough November 19 at The Palace of Auburn Hills when Ben
Wallace of the Pistons gave Ron Artest of the Pacers a two-handed shove after he
was fouled aggressively. With referees trying to restore order on the court,
Artest, who was laying on the scorers' table, was pelted with a thrown cup of
liquid substance by a Pistons fan. Artest rushed into the stands and began
pummeling a fan (albeit the wrong fan). Teammates David Harrison, Anthony
Johnson, Jermaine O'Neal and Stephen Jackson soon followed and Fight Night at
the Palace was center stage.
The brawl spread through the stands and then back on the court as some fans
walked down to confront the players.
The national media, and ESPN in particular, went bonkers showing flip clips of
the incident literally thousands of times. Four Pacer players and five fans were
charged with one count of assault and battery, a misdemeanor that carries a
maximum penalty of about three months in jail and a fine of up to $500. O'Neal,
a three-time NBA All-Star, was charged with two counts of assault and battery.
One fan was charged with felony assault for allegedly tossing a chair.
Artest, who chose to wear uniform number 91 this season as a tribute to Dennis
Rodman, was suspended by the NBA for the rest of the season.
So long, 2004. We'll see you at the Ron Artest Fantasy Camp.
Ron Artest leaving the stands of the Palace after the brawl
Lori Vondette
Charles Rogers
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