Pens Game 3

What a game! The Penguins almost gave me a heart attack, however they pulled through in the end. I do not like the Capitals but I give them credit. Down 3-0 would have been easy to roll over and just focus on the next game. They were able to make it 3-2 but just could not find the back of the net again to tie the game. I expect Penguins to win game 4, but they must be able to close out the game. With a team as talented as the Capitals, the Penguins must get a lead and close the game out.
LETS GO PENS!

Steelers NFL draft 2016

YESSSSSS, the Steelers drafted a corner back! Not just a corner back, but a highly versatile and athletic corner back that can make plays. Defense is where the Steelers struggle, however when you have Ben Roethlisberger, Antonio Brown and Leveon Bell you really need a sub par defense. I cannot wait for Steeler football to start up again. I bleed black and gold and I am very confident a Super Bowl Ring is coming the Steelers way. If we stay healthy and our defense picks up their game expect big things and big rings for the Steelers!

Spurs

The Spurs absolutely dominate game 1. The game was not even close. Are the Spurs really that good? They have not lost a playoff game yet this season, however I do expect Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook to bring it in game 2. Game 2 is a must win for the Thunder now, when you go down 2-0 to the Spurs you got a big hill to climb. My predictions for game 2 is Spurs 98 Thunder 92. Spurs and Mr. Fundamental, Tim Duncan, will prevail.

Guinos tie the series!

This series is looking very promising and as a die hard Pittsburgh Fan I could not be happier. Tied 1-1 in the 2nd round heading back to Consol what else could I ask for? Game 3 is the most important game in the series hands down. It is said the winner of game 3 wins the series about 70 percent of the time. Obviously past statistics do not control how players play, but your everyday fan can see how big this game is. I expect game 3 to be tough, but at the same time I expect the Penguins to prevail and win game 3.

Cavs Sweep the Pistons

LEBRON JAMES! They sweep the Pistons and now get to rest. Lebron made a statement that he feels like he is in his earl 20s again?? Wow, that is scary especially now that it is playoff time. I guess his strategy of managing his body through the regular season has paid off. I always thought Lebron was kind of "soft". However, if his strategy of managing his body works for this playoffs, I will take back my comment of him being "soft" but with how big of a name he is he has to win the NBA Championship or it is a waste.

Steph Curry

Warriors fans hearts stopped once they saw Steph Curry go down. However, they did blow out the Rockets without Curry last night, but will they be able to continue? I am curious to see how the Warriors respond, do they have the talent to take them to the Western Conference Finals without Curry? I believe IF Steph Curry is injured and cannot play the rest of playoffs, the Warriors will be able to make a run to the Western Conference Finals, but I do not believe they can get past the Conference Finals. I think Curry will sit out unless they absolutely NEED him. The Warriors need to finish the series out with the Rockets ASAP and make sure they get some rest and avoid other potential injuries.

GUINOS

Finally we took down the Rangers! I believe that we can now make a run to the cup, however a run to the cup will not be easy. Standing in our way is the Capitals. Good old Ovechkin. Wow do I dislike Ovechkin. I am not taking away from his talent, he is extremely talented. I just do not like him, maybe because I am a Pens fan. I am excited for this series, Penguins kept losing to Rangers and feels so good to beat them. I expect Crosby to have a great series and best part is one cannot spell Ovechkin without the letters CHOKE!

College Coaches Salaries

The average salary of an NCAA Division 1 basketball coach in the national tournament was 1.7 million. This amount of payment trumps even college presidents and some people may disagree with the amount of money put into towards college coaches. However, with the amount of money a Division 1 NCAA basketball generates towards the school, why not pay them a big salary? These coaches have success and are earning their pay checks. As a head coach of the program every time you travel, go to dinner with your team or just giving back in the community they are representing the University. Division 1 NCAA College Coaches are recognizable figures around the country. They are bringing in money for the school and if they are successful with making the NCAA Tournament why not pay them?

NBA Playoffs

The NBA playoffs is underway and it has taken a turn last night. Golden State Warriors took a tough loss with a score of 97-96. I am excited for this series now because you cannot count out the Rockets! James Harden and Dwight Howard that is a duo that can cause problems. Dwight Howard has put up double digit points in the first 3 games and I am curious to see how this series goes if he gets going. Although he is older now, but if he can find ways to get buckets with Harden this series could be very exciting.

Penguin playoffs

We are up 3-1 the Series against the Rangers! Finally, could this be the year we take them down?? You cannot predict the future but I have full faith in the Guinos this year. I believe they can do it and I am hoping they due. I would love to see the Penguins make a run this year. They have gotten hot at the right time and I believe they can make it to the Eastern Conference Finals, however cannot forget about Ovechkin and the Capitals. Potentially Ovechkin up against Crosby in the playoffs, does it get better than that??

Thank you Kobe

I remember in Elementary School watching Kobe Bryant score 81 points! 81 points?! WOW. Could not believe that. Kobe Bryant is my favorite player of all time in the NBA not because of his performances and the MVP's but simply for the fact of his drive and love for the game. He gave everything he had to the sport and to the Lakers organization. He obsessed over the game and fell in love. That is what I take away from Kobe Bryant, not just his awards and peformances but the simple fact he had a drive and was a competitor. He did not rely on his god given talents he worked hard and that could be an under estimate. He was training for the Olympics and called the trainer at 3am to help him with some conditioning. The trainer arrived around 5am and said he was already drenched in sweat. That is what I will take away from Kobe Bryant, his hard work and commitment to the game he loved. He gave everything he had and as a fan I could not ask for more. Once again, Thank you Kobe.

Lynn Swann

Lynn Swann one of the all time greats for the Pittsburgh Steelers has been named the Athletic Director for the University of Southern California. Lynn Swann is a former USC Trojan who will now lead the helm of the Athletic Department, However with no previous Athletic Administration experience I am curious how this will work. I think Lynn Swann playing for the Trojans during his college career will be a massive benefit to the University and the Athletic Department. I believe that having a former University of Southern California student athlete is a major benefit to the University and having an experienced competitor, Lynn Swann, will do the athletic department wonders. He will be able to provide the Athletic Department with his professional and championship experience, while mentoring the student athletes along the way. 

Best National Championship Ever??

What a game! Kris Jenkins just changed his life forever and Villanova basketball forever. When fans think of Kris Jenkins and Villanova the first thought fans will think is the 2016 National Championship Game and Jenkins's buzzer beater. He stepped into that shot so smoothly is something I find amazing. With the National Championship on the line he steps into a three with no hesitation and makes it look like an every day shot in practice. Just unreal in my opinion in that type of situation! In my opinion this could be one of the best National Championship game ever, not just because of the buzzer beater but the entire game from start to finish was a battle. The players competed and you could tell left everything on the court. North Carolina has nothing to hang their heads about! They just did not get the bounces they need and that is just the way it goes sometimes.

Should College Athletes be Paid?

As we all know the topic of Student Athletes receiving compensation for playing their sport is in debate. Northwestern football players started a process to become Unionized. However according to CBS Sports the movement for college athletes right has come to a stop.
My personal opinion about Student Athletes receiving compensation tends to be biased as I am a collegiate athlete myself. To give a better perspective of what a student athletes day is like I have no problem sharing mine and the schedule below is just our off season schedule.

Monday Wednesday Friday- Class from 11AM-2PM, lifting at 3 and practice at 6
Tuesday/Thursday- Class from 9AM-11AM, Practice at 12:30 PM

Now as you can see Tuesday and Thursday is a bit lighter then the other days but also during this time of week we are supposed to fit 4 hours of study hall that are only offered at night from 7PM-10PM. Including myself, many of the members of my team have jobs outside of their sport as well. If you take the times of soccer (2 hours of practice and an hour for lift), you get near about 13 hours of work outside of class. Add study hall into that and you have about 17-18 hours of obligation for our sport. Now take the amount of credit hours you take and add them to that amount of hours (I take 15) so that is approximately 43 hours and a working week is technically 40 hours a week. This is also just the off season during the season the hours go up based off traveling and team meetings. During the actual fall season the hours for practice/lift go from about 13 all the way 18 to 20 hours.

Now obviously it is our decision as the Student Athlete to put in the time and commitment. But before you judge a student athlete about receiving compensation make sure to understand the full ins and outs as to why they want to receive compensation.

Championship Monday

Well all of my picks to the win the National Title have been wrong. I went from Michigan State to Kansas and then put my hope in Buddy Hield and the Sooners, however none of these 3 teams pulled through. Tonight I am going with North Carolina, maybe the 4th pick is the charm????? I expect to see a very good match up. I expect Villanova to give North Carolina a tough match up but I just think they need to play there best game of the season tonight and I believe they did that Friday against Oklahoma when they beat them by 44! Can they do it again tonight? I don't believe so!
GO TARHEELS!

Stallings hired as Pitt Basketball Coach

Wow. The only word I can use to describe the hiring of Coach Stallings from Vanderbilt. Maybe wow is a bit dramatic but very average hire to say the least. For people who are not from Pittsburgh and don't root for the University of Pitt let me fill you in. Scottie Reynolds, 2009 Elite 8, dribbles full court and hits a buzzer beat to break the heart of the Panthers. It is now 2016 and Pitt has yet to be back in the Elite 8 and now arguably even plays in a tougher conference, the ACC. Two teams from the ACC are in the Final Four and Pitt goes and hires a very average coach with a decent track record. You look at his numbers he is not too bad, 455-283 coaching career record but the last 4 seasons one NCAA tournament bid and one winning season in SEC play. Now Jamie Dixon, one of the most accomplished coach's in school history, decided to depart to TCU. Jamie Dixon career record at Pitt includes two conference titles, two No. 1 seeds, one conference tournament title and 11 NCAA Tournament appearances. The hire does seem like a downgrade as University of Pittsburgh will go from having the best coach in school history to a very average coach who has only been to the NCAA tournament once in the past 4 seasons with one winning record in SEC play..

Buddy Hield

What a tournament this has been! Buddy Hield with 37 points in the Elite 8, what an unbelievable performance. He literally put the team on his back. Do you think he can carry his team to the National Championship? I personally believe that he can however he will have a tough match up against Villanova who just held Kansas to a season low 59 points. I do believe that Buddy Hield can put up big numbers, however with a defense like Villanova's he may need some help from players around him. I expect the Sooners to take down Nova and move onto the championship.

Men's NCAA Basketball Tournament

The best time of year has come, March Madness! How is everyone's bracket? Mine is completely shattered as I had Michigan State winning the whole thing. After the first weekend my biggest take is not only Michigan State losing but my biggest surprise has to be Gonzaga and Syracuse. Syracuse arguably could have not been selected for the tournament and then Gonzaga rolls over number 3 seed Utah by 23 points! I think Gonzaga could be a sleeper team that could be destined for a final four run!

Introduction

My name is Patrick Sullivan and I am a Junior Sport Management major. This is my blog for my Sport Communication and Technology and I will update my blog with different sport communication stories. I will be trying to find stories mostly dealing with collegiate athletics because my goal is to be a collegiate Athletic Director. I have a love for all sports and would love to see how the business side of collegiate athletics works.