Bruce Pearl: A Leader of Men

University of Tennessee men's basketball head coach Bruce Pearl was already The Official Favorite Coach of Casselbloggy, Inc. for showing you can have a lot of fun while being also being successful. And you can't blame the man for being excited at halftime of last night's college basketball Thunderdome vs. Memphis, as his team was only down by one point despite his best player having a terrible shooting night. Fueled by adrenaline, Pearl did what just about every man in America would like to do: Hug Erin Andrews.



Well played, Coach. You continue to be a heroic figure in my world. Oh, by the way, the Volunteers went on to win the game, beating the #1 Tigers, 66-62.

(via The Big Lead)

Curses! The Buckeyes Foiled Me Again!

You know, if I wasn't already genetically and geographically disposed to dislike Ohio State, I might begin to hate those guys. They're really starting to bug me. Virtually every team I've rooted for over the past six months has been defeated/eliminated/etc. by the Buckeyes.

In football, they knocked Michigan out of the national championship race in November. In basketball, they ruined any chance Michigan had for an NCAA Tournament bid - twice in one week! And now, the Ohio State University has taken my bracket, crumpled it up, and thrown it into the garbage, by eliminating my homeboy Bruce Pearl and his Tennessee Volunteers in last night's regional semi-final.

Now that I think about it, did the St. Louis Cardinals beat the Detroit Tigers in the World Series, or did Ohio State? That happened back in October, so my memory's a bit hazy. I do remember the color red being involved, however, so I wouldn't be surprised...

Why do they enjoy hurting me? What did I ever do to piss those guys off -- oops, never mind, I know the answer to that.

I'm still not sure how the Buckeyes came back to win that game. (Yes, even though Rocky Top Talk has outlined a thorough explanation.) Weren't the Vols up by 20 at one point? I have a text message from Dr. Lil' Sis' fiancee that essentially confirms that scenario. And... and that Oden dude barely played in the game because he kept fouling people (though his fourth foul was a weak call). Yet there he was at the very end, blocking the Vols' last shot.

I suppose it's easy to say that Tennessee lost because all those three-pointers they made in the first half turned into bricks during the second half. (Those guards obviously have the green light from Coach Pearl to jack up all those threes. Otherwise, I don't know how the hell he could stand it. Maybe that's the way they always play, but I kept screaming "No! No! No!" at the TV every time JuJuan Smith or Chris Lofton hoisted it from near-NBA three-point range, only to say "Oh! Okay - well, keep doing that!" every time the shot went in.)

Anyway, so that happened. Thanks, Ohio State, for screwing me again. Dammit.

So let's bring this back home. Now that Tennessee's season is done, will their head coach be getting a call from the Michigan athletic department? Chalk this up to frivolous rumor (and a lot of those things have been swirling around over the past week), and that category could certainly apply here, but I've heard rumblings from the Volunteer State that Bill Martin plans to go after Bruce Pearl and go after him hard. Maybe even harder, now that Minnesota nabbed Tubby Smith (and if you haven't read Maize n Brew's account of that, get over there and go into your weekend with a smile). Of course, that could just be anxiety from Tennessee. Take it or leave it.

By the way, now that the shock has worn off, did Tubby Smith really leave Kentucky for Minnesota? I mean, that really happened? I just wanted to be sure. I don't have anything against Minnesota. I love Minneapolis; I almost moved there a few years ago. I'm just wondering when exactly the world I knew so well changed so drastically.

How's Your Bracket Looking?

Most people are doing fine on their brackets right now, I'm sure, unless you picked a lot of upsets. No double-digit seeds in the Sweet 16 for the first time in 10 years? But Texas (Trojan revenge for the 2006 Rose Bowl?) and Wisconsin both going home had to screw up some people up.

I'm still doing pretty well in my pool. I got 13 of the remaining 16 correct, which has me in second place. Though two of my Elite Eight are already gone, thanks to the Longhorns and Badgers.

But my main man Bruce Pearl has me looking good, after a 77-74 victory over Virginia, in what was the best game I watched yesterday. I took some ribbing over that pick (Crazy? How about crazy delicious?), but being right makes it all worth it.

Tennessee's run might come to an end against Ohio State, but the Vols certainly have a chance against a Buckeyes team that just squeaked by them earlier in the season and also came damn close to losing on Saturday.

I might have to ask Dr. Lil' Sis' fiancee to get me a Vols t-shirt. I'd probably keep it in the closet during football season, though. Unless I needed something to work out in.

Happy Hour 01/24: The coolest coach in America?

I don't know how I apparently became so busy over the last couple of days that I didn't post at least a paragraph on the Tennessee basketball coach's Maize n Brew and Rocky Top Talk showed me the way.

And since Dr. Lil Sis' boyfriend is a big Tennessee fan and has been trying to convert me (don't think I haven't noticed, pal), I just can't let this slide by without a comment.

C'mon - how cool is Bruce Pearl? (Okay, he wasn't exactly cool that time he sweated through one of his suits, but he seems to have discovered Degree since then.) How many other coaches in this country can you imagine smothering their torsos in paint and cheering with the students?

I love this. So many coaches look absolutely miserable, just sucking the fun out of their respective games. It's sometimes difficult to imagine these sourpusses being able to inspire any sort of enthusiasm from his players. So when a guy comes around who looks like he's actually having fun doing his job (USC's Pete Carroll also comes to mind), I feel like applauding.

Obviously, hijinks and hilarity don't go that far if a coach isn't winning games. But it's not like Pearl is just some attention-seeking clown who paints up to obscure a struggling team. No, he's revived the men's program in Knoxville.

Sure, I feel a little bit sorry for the poor student basketball manager who Coach Pearl probably asked to help him slather grease paint all over his chest and shoulders. But in the name of spirit and fun (which is supposed to be why we watch these damn sports in the first place), I think that's pretty damn close to awesome.

Am I about to call up Dr. Lil' Sis' boyfriend and sing "Rocky Top"? Hell, no. But I'll definitely hold my hands up in surrender. Your basketball coach is way cooler than either of the two whose games I keep forgetting to watch.