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Less than an hour ago, it was announced that Disney-owned ABC has entered into a deal with Hulu to provide programming content. However, Eye on Sports Media has confirmed with an ESPN spokesperson that this deal does not include any ESPN owned and generated content.

What does this mean for sports fans? The immediate thing that comes to mind is that unlike Fox Sports, which has made the BCS Bowl games available on Hulu after the games are over, ESPN will not be doing this.

So strike another blow against the average sports fan as ESPN gobbles up properties in the continued "cablization of television sports properties"

Related Link(s)

The Cablization of Television Sports Properties - Part I
The Cablization of Television Sports Properties - Part II

NBC Sports, fresh off of their Sports Emmy Award juggernaut, has the coverage for this weekend's Kentucky Derby at Churchill Downs. That means if Larry Conley is covering a baseball game somewhere, he WILL leave the television booth to watch the race. That's OK though, he does it every year and his booth partner always fills in admirably

Casual race fans who have little or no interest in the blue-blood stables that usually dominate the race will want to keep an eye on General Quarters. This horse was bought for $20,000 and is owned by a retired high school principal. After all, we all love underdog stories, right?

Here are the post postions, jockey, trainer, and current odds (as of April 29, 2009) for this year's "Run for the Roses."

If you just want to see the race live, tune in around 6:00 PM ET or so (post time is estimated for 6:04 PM ET).

If you want to see all if the rest of the hoopla and extraneous things like Al Roker and the red carpet entrances, you can find all of the details in the following NBC Sports release.

NBC Sports broadcasts exclusive coverage of the 135th Kentucky Derby this Saturday starting at 4 p.m. ET. NBC Sports' broadcast will bring the spectacle of the Kentucky Derby, which has been contested annually since 1875, home to viewers with behind-the-scenes access, celebrities and fashion surrounding the legendary Run for the Roses. The Red Carpet will feature celebrity interviews as the stars arrive to Churchill Downs to enjoy the greatest day in horse racing.

Bob Costas and Tom Hammond co-host the Derby alongside three-time Derby winner Gary Stevens. NBC Sports' broadcast team also includes race-caller Tom Durkin; contributing analysts Mike Battaglia and Bob Neumeier; reporter Kenny Rice and on-track reporter Donna Brothers, who retired in 1998 after an impressive 11-year career as a jockey. The Kentucky Derby on NBC is produced by Sam Flood and directed by David Michaels. Additionally, the TODAY Show's Al Roker will contribute reports and Nancy O'Dell, co-host of "Access Hollywood" and author of "Full of Life: Mom-To-Mom Tips I Wish Someone Had Told Me When I Was Pregnant," and Tiki Barber of "Football Night in America" will handle Red Carpet arrivals.

THE DERBY ACCORDING TO NEUMEIER: "Conventional wisdom suggests the Kentucky Derby is annually a wide-open, ultra-competitive race, with many of the 19 entrants enjoying a reasonable chance for success. But lately the Derby has been controlled by highly-rated favorites and this year's edition figures to be won by one of the top three choices. They would include Pioneerof the Nile, I Want Revenge and the lightly raced but talented Dunkirk. Each has legitimate merits, which makes 'just-who-will-go-off-the-favorite?' an interesting subplot in the run-up to the race.

"As usual, the Derby is rich with fascinating storylines. Can newly elected Hall-of-Fame trainer Bob Baffert win his fourth Derby with Pioneerof the Nile? Will conditioner Todd Pletcher break a 0-for-21 Derby slump with Dunkirk? Is it possible that an underdog could come from the one-horse barn of former high school principal Tom McCarthy with General Quarters, who he claimed for the bargain-basement price of $20,000? These are just a few of the many stories that dot this year's Derby."

STEVENS TOP FIVE:
• Fresian Fire
• I Want Revenge
• Desert Party
• Regal Ransom
• Pioneerof the Nile

"There are 20 horses in the Kentucky Derby and they all have a chance, don't throw any of them out. I would be very happy riding any of the 20, but those five would be my top picks."

NBCSPORTS.COM AT THE DERBY: NBCSports.com will be streaming the draw live on Wednesday at Noon, ET and the site will also live stream the tote board during the pre-race broadcast Saturday so fans can get up-to-the-minute information on the latest odds directly from Churchill Downs.

Additionally, NBCSports.com, in conjunction with Icue, will present a video-quiz application that tests knowledge of past Kentucky Derby winners and events, and is available on NBCSports.com and Facebook.

SEE THE DERBY ON YOUR MOBILE PHONE: Users on the go can watch the Kentucky Derby live on their mobile phones exclusively through NBC 2Go and NBC Sports Mobile. Plus, fans can watch exclusive video and race replays on-demand on NBC Sports Mobile Video (check your carrier for availability).

LUCKY U GAME: NBC Sports and Churchill Downs are joining together to present The Kentucky Derby Lucky U Game for the third consecutive year. Last year, the Lucky U Game generated more than 500,000 entries. Lucky U is a contest where a lucky fan can win a cash prize and a trip to the 2010 Kentucky Derby. Once the field for the Derby is set on Wednesday, horse racing fans will be able to vote for the horse that they think will win. The winner will receive $10,000 in cash and a 2010 Kentucky Derby VIP Experience provided by Churchill Downs, including tickets to the Derby, round-trip transportation, and accommodations. Viewers of NBC's Kentucky Derby broadcast and other horse racing fans will be invited to enter by sending a text message for their choice from their cell phone. Standard text messaging charges apply. Fans can also enter by going online to NBCSports.com/luckyu.

LADIES FIRST: BRAVO AT THE KENTUCKY DERBY: Bravo will feature the very best in food, fashion and the celebrity experience associated with the great spectacle of Kentucky Derby weekend including Kentucky Oaks 135 on "Ladies First: Bravo at the Kentucky Derby," a one-hour special produced by NBC Sports, LIVE this Friday at 5 p.m. ET/PT. The special, hosted by NBC's Costas, "Access Hollywood's" O'Dell, and "The Real Housewives of New York City's" Bethenny Frankel, daughter of horse trainer Bobby Frankel, celebrates a day for women and gives viewers a history on the fashion and festivities before and after the Oaks race. NBC's Barber will check-in live from the Infield Club with "Top Chef" series five finalist Stefan Richter, and season four and five "Top Chef" winners Stephanie Izard and Hosea Rosenberg. "Top Chef: The Tour," a state-of-the-art customized traveling kitchen with expansive space to accommodate cooks and fans alike, will make a special stop at the Kentucky Oaks – in the Infield Club.

Frankel, a racing aficionado and best-selling author, will provide a female perspective to handicapping and betting at the Kentucky Oaks, and along with O'Dell will take viewers through the spectacular fashion and hats on display over the weekend.

KENTUCKY DERBY A RATINGS SUCCESS: NBC's coverage of the 2008 Kentucky Derby grabbed 11.5 million viewers, equaling its best delivery in six years. Since 2001 when the Kentucky Derby moved from ABC to NBC, average viewership has increased more than two million viewers (24 percent) over the previous eight years on ABC.

KENTUCKY DERBY ON NBC: NBC Sports began its exclusive coverage of the Kentucky Derby, the longest continuously held sporting event in North America, in 2001. In May 2005, NBC Sports and Churchill Downs Incorporated reached an agreement giving the network the exclusive broadcast rights to the Kentucky Derby beginning in 2006 and continuing through 2010.

by Christopher Byrne, CISA, IBM CAAD, IBM CASA, IBM CASP

The Internet world certainly had a good laugh yesterday at the expense of ESPN. An application/web developer inserted an Easter egg into the ESPN web site back before April Fool's Day that exploded on the Internet when written about on the Kotaku blog yesterday afternoon.

While funny on its face, the episode exposes a flaw in the information technology governance which puts Disney, ESPN's parent company company at potential risk of non-compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, as well as PCI security standards for credit card transactions associated with ESPN Insider subscriptions.

How does this put ESPN and Disney at risk?

Let's start with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. This hastily crafted legislation requires more control around business processes that have a material impact or could have a material impact on the corporate financial statements.

Obviously, there is not a lot on the ESPN web sites that could have a material impact on Disney's financials. But the problem lies in Section 404 of the legislation, which states

Section 404

Management Assessment Of Internal Controls

(a) RULES REQUIRED- The Commission shall prescribe rules requiring each annual report required by section 13 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (15 U.S.C. 78m) to contain an internal control report, which shall--

(1) state the responsibility of management for establishing and maintaining an adequate internal control structure (emphasis added) and procedures for financial reporting; and

(2) contain an assessment, as of the end of the most recent fiscal year of the issuer, of the effectiveness of the internal control structure and procedures of the issuer for financial reporting.

(b) INTERNAL CONTROL EVALUATION AND REPORTING- With respect to the internal control assessment required by subsection (a), each registered public accounting firm that prepares or issues the audit report for the issuer shall attest to, and report on, the assessment made by the management of the issuer. An attestation made under this subsection shall be made in accordance with standards for attestation engagements issued or adopted by the Board. Any such attestation shall not be the subject of a separate engagement.

The key section is 404(a)(1) concerning the establishment and maintenance "of an adequate internal control structure," This is where information technology auditors have been having a field day, especially when it comes to general IT controls. And while many smaller organizations could kind of push this under the rug, the visibility of ESPN makes it difficult to ignore.

The general IT controls applicable here address segregation of duties, and the hard and fast rule for large IT organizations that developers never have access to production code or production systems. This is so malicious code cannot be inserted into the system.

It is also a control put in place to ensure that unauthorized personnel do not have access tom information such as credit card information and other personally identifiable private information that can be misused, stolen, or otherwise compromised.

So while this prank was fairly innocuous, it exposed at least the appearance that ESPN does not have a strong IT governance structure in place, and that their processes and procedures need to be revisited, reviewed, and adjusted.

And let's not think ESPN is alone with these problems. I have spoken to another major sports body about security holes in their public facing systems more than once in the past few years. Yet, they have done nothing to close them.

ESPN should not follow that organization's example. ESPN should take as an opportunity to sit back and do a control self-assessment, identify weaknesses, and make their processes stronger. It may take time and resources up front, but is nothing compared to the damage that can be done if something more serious happened with or on their information systems.

If The Big Lead takes the time to quote someone as saying:

"I do love nerd humor and obscure video game references. At the same time you cant be pulling sh** like this in production, there’s a time and a place and espn’s home page isn’t it.”

and Deadspin is all over the story, you really know it is not a problem you can easily blow off.

You can read more about information technology governance on our sister site, The Business Controls Caddy.

You can also read the blog of Keith Lam, the ESPN employee who was charged with removing the offfending code from their systems.

About The Author

Christopher Byrne is the managing editor of Eye on Sports Media and The Business Controls Caddy, and is a Certified Information Systems Auditor (CISA). He works with large and small organizations to examine their business and information technology process controls to identify weakness and implement cost-effective controls to enable business get a stronger return on their technology investments. He has written numerous articles for business and technology trade magazines, been a member of the editorial advisory board of Corporate Compliance Solutions Advisor Magazine, and speaks about information technology process controls at conferences in the United States and abroad. He can be reached via e-mail at cbyrne at thecayugagroup.com (replace the " at " with "@").

Posted April 28, 2009

From Southeastern Conference Associate Commissioner for Media Relations Charles Bloom (via Facebook) comes news that former UNLV men's basketball star, NBA player, and long-time UNLV radio and television announcer Glen "Gondo" Gondrezick has died at the age of 53.

Here is the press release issued by the UNLV Running' Rebels sports information department.

Referred to fondly in the sports world simply as "Gondo," former UNLV men's basketball star, NBA player and longtime radio and TV announcer Glen Gondrezick will be remembered first and foremost as a true Runnin' Rebel.

Gondrezick died Monday in Henderson at the age of 53. He had undergone a heart transplant on Sept. 20, 2008.

The graduate of Boulder (Colo.) High School was one of Jerry Tarkanian's first recruits at UNLV and lettered from 1973-74 through the 1976-77 season. Gondrezick went on to finish as the 16th-leading scorer in UNLV basketball history with 1,311 points and played a major role in the Runnin' Rebels advancing to their first NCAA Final Four in 1977.

"From being a great player for some great teams to spending almost two decades announcing Runnin' Rebel basketball, Gondo was an institution here at UNLV," Director of Athletics Mike Hamrick said. "He will be sorely missed by everyone who has worked with him as well as all of the fans who have followed his career and listened to the games. Our thoughts and prayers go out to his family."

Gondrezick's determination and hustle made him an instant fan favorite, and his style of play almost always resulted in scrambles on the floor and collisions in the scorer's table while chasing down loose balls. His jersey number 25 was retired in a halftime ceremony at the Runnin' Rebels game against UCLA at the Thomas & Mack Center on Dec. 27, 1997.

"He was as competitive and as tough a player that I have ever coached," said Tarkanian. "He was one of the most loyal people I have known, and that is one attribute I always use when talking about him. He is one of my all-time favorite people. I loved the guy."

Gondrezick averaged 11.4 points per game during his four seasons in Las Vegas. He also is ninth (831) on the Runnin' Rebel career rebounds list. A 1977 honorable mention All-American and 1987 inductee into the Rebel Athletics Hall of Fame, he was a second round NBA draft pick and spent six seasons in the pro league - two (1977-79) with the New York Knicks and four (1979-83) with the Denver Nuggets. He averaged 5.8 points, 4.5 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game over his career.

His best season in the NBA was 1981-82 when he averaged 8.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 1.9 assists per game in 80 games with the Nuggets.

Following his NBA career, Gondrezick played two years in Europe (1983-85), which culminated with a European championship and being named MVP. Gondrezick would later return to UNLV, spending the past 17 seasons as a radio and television analyst for his alma mater.

"Gondo is special to the Rebel family," UNLV head coach Lon Kruger said. "He was an outstanding player and maintained his passion and love for the Rebels throughout his NBA playing career and then with his broadcasting of Rebel games. He will truly be missed by everyone."

Gondrezick is survived by his three children: daughter Britt, and two sons, Kelan and Travis.

Services are pending.

Related Link(s)

Glen Gondrezick: It's All About Heart (National Basketball Retired Players Association)
For first time, his heart is in question (Las Vegas Sun)

As expected, NBC Sports dominated the 30th Annual Sports Emmy awards with their coverage of the 2008 Beijing Summer Olympics NBC took home five Emmy's, HBO took eight, and CBS Sports received 5.

But there were a couple of pleasant surprises as FSN's Sports Science took home two Emmy's.

Here are the winners from the 30th Annual Sports Emmy Awards given out on April 27, 2009.
for a more detailed list that includes full production credits, Ken Fang has this over at Fang's Bites.

Outstanding LIVE SPORTS SPECIAL
108th U.S. Open Championship	NBC
NASCAR on FOX: Daytona 500	FOX
Super Bowl XLII	FOX
The Championships, Wimbledon (Gentlemen's Final)	NBC
X Games 14	ESPN
Outstanding LIVE SPORTS SERIES
ESPN College Football	ABC
ESPN Monday Night Football	ESPN
NASCAR (TNT Summer Series)	TNT
NASCAR on FOX	FOX
NBC Sunday Night Football	NBC
Outstanding LIVE EVENT TURNAROUND
2008 Bassmaster Classic	ESPN2 / Career Sports Entertainment
2008 Tour de France	CBS
2008 World Series of Poker: Final Table	ESPN
Games of the XXIX Olympiad	NBC
Inside the PGA Tour (The Deutsche Bank Championship)	Golf Channel / PGA Tour Productions
Outstanding EDITED SPORTS SPECIAL
2008 Beijing Paralympics	NBC
Calzaghe-Jones 24 / 7	HBO
The 2008 Ford Ironman World Championship	NBC / Ironman Productions
The Greatest Game Ever Played	ESPN
Varsity Rivals	CBS / Intersport / NFL Films
Outstanding SPORTS DOCUMENTARY
Big Ten Short Stories (Friends of Jaclyn Special Edition)	Big Ten Network
Breaking the Huddle: The Integration of College Football	HBO
Joe Louis: America's Hero Betrayed	HBO
Jose Canseco: Last Shot	A&E / The Trifecta Production Company
The Streak	ESPN2
Outstanding EDITED SPORTS SERIES / Anthology
America's Game: The Missing Rings	NFL Network / NFL Films
Baseball's Golden Age	FSN
De La Hoya / Pacquiao 24 / 7	HBO
HBO Boxing: Countdown Shows	HBO
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel	HBO
Road to Redemption	ESPN / NBA Entertainment
Sport Science	FSN
Outstanding STUDIO SHOW - WEEKLY
College Gameday (Football)	ESPN
Football Night in America	NBC
FOX NFL Sunday	FOX
Inside the NFL	CBS / Showtime / NFL Films
Monday Night Countdown	ESPN
Sunday NFL Countdown	ESPN
Outstanding STUDIO SHOW - DAILY
Baseball Tonight	ESPN
Inside the NBA - Playoffs	TNT
MLB Postseason Studio	TBS
Outside the Lines First Report	ESPN
Pardon the Interruption	ESPN
Outstanding SPORTS JOURNALISM
E: 60 (Gymnastics Abuse)	ESPN
Outside the Lines (Concerns in Happy Valley)	ESPN
Outside the Lines (O.J. Mayo's Inner Circle)	ESPN
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (Horse Slaughter: Running For Their Lives)	HBO
Real Sports with Bryant Gumbel (NFL Stadium Drinking)	HBO
Outstanding SHORT FEATURE
2008 NCAA Basketball on CBS (Jason Ray Feature)	CBS
E: 60 (The Power of One - Adam Bender)	ESPN
Outside the Lines (John Challis)	ESPN
Outside the Lines (Roller Derby Revival)	ESPN
Outside the Lines (Touching Them All)	ESPN
Outstanding LONG FEATURE
2008 NCAA Basketball on CBS - Final Four (Zambia's Hope Feature)	CBS
Outside the Lines (Kick for Nick)	ESPN
Outside the Lines (Louis Mulkey)	ESPN
Outside the Lines (Richard Jensen)	ESPN
Outstanding OPEN / TEASE
Indianapolis 500 (ESPN NASCAR)	ABC
Games of the XXIX Olympiad: The Clock of Their Lives	NBC
Chris Rock All-Star Tease (NBA All-Star Game)	TNT
Super Bowl XLII - Perfection (NFL on FOX: Super Bowl XLII)	FOX
Baltimore Ravens at Dallas Cowboys (Saturday Night Football)	NFL Network
Outstanding NEW APPROACHES SPORTS EVENT COVERAGE
Games of the XXIX Olympiad: Beyond the Broadcast	NBCOlympics.com / NBC Sports
NASCAR.com RaceBuddy	NASCAR.com / Turner Sports
NBA League Pass Broadband	NBA.com / Turner Sports
NBA.com - TNT OverTime 2008 All-Star Saturday	NBA.com / Turner Sports
NFL Sunday Ticket Experience	DIRECTV
NFL.com LIVE: Thursday and Saturday Night Football	NFL.com / NFL Network
Outstanding NEW APPROACHES SPORTS PROGRAMMING
Amazing Sports Stories	FSN
Ring Life	HBO.com
Sport Science	FSN
YouTube Baby	ESPN.com
Outstanding NEW APPROACHES - SPORTS PROGRAMMING - SHORT FORMAT
Anatomy of a Play	NFL.com / NFL Network / NFL Films
Back on Topps	BackOnTopps.com / The Tornante Company / El Chopper Quatro
Mayne Street	ESPN.com
NFL Ultimate Audio on NFL.com	NFL.com / NFL Network / NFL Films
No Love Lost	ESPN.com
Outside the Ropes	PGATOUR.com / PGA Tour Productions
Outstanding Sports Personality - STUDIO HOST
Bob Costas	NBC / HBO
Bryant Gumbel	HBO
Chris Berman	ESPN
Ernie Johnson	TNT / TBS
James Brown	CBS / Showtime
Outstanding Sports Personality - PLAY-BY-PLAY
Al Michaels	NBC
Dan Hicks	NBC
Jim Nantz	CBS
Joe Buck	FOX
Mike Emrick	NBC
Outstanding Sports Personality - STUDIO ANALYST
Cris Collinsworth	NBC / Showtime / CBS / HBO
John Kruk	ESPN
Steve Mariucci	NFL Network
Terry Bradshaw	FOX
Tom Jackson	ESPN
Outstanding Sports Personality - SPORTS EVENT ANALYST
Cris Collinsworth	NFL Network / NBC
Doug Collins	TNT
John Madden	NBC
Johnny Miller	NBC
Ron Jaworski	ESPN
Tim McCarver	FOX
Outstanding TECHNICAL TEAM REMOTE
2008 Winter X Games	ESPN / ABC
ESPN Monday Night Football	ESPN
ESPN NASCAR	ABC / ESPN / ESPN2
Games of the XXIX Olympiad	NBC
NASCAR on FOX	FOX
Red Bull Air Race World Series	FSN
Outstanding TECHNICAL TEAM STUDIO
ESPN NASCAR	ABC / ESPN / ESPN2
Games of the XXIX Olympiad	NBC
MLB Postseason	TBS
Sport Science	FSN
Sunday NFL Countdown	ESPN
Outstanding CAMERA WORK
2008 Masters (Open)	ESPN
2008 NCAA Basketball on CBS - Final Four (Zambia's Hope)	CBS
Amazing Sports Stories	FSN / Red Line Films
Calzaghe-Jones 24 / 7	HBO
Games of the XXIX Olympiad: The Clock of Their Lives	NBC
Quest for the Cup	VOOM / NASCAR Media Group
Outstanding EDITING
Amazing Sports Stories (Joe Jennette: The Fighter Who Refused to Quit)	FSN / Red Line Films
Calzaghe-Jones 24 / 7	HBO
Games of the XXIX Olympiad: Olympic Profiles	NBC
Games of the XXIX Olympiad: Remember the Titans	NBC
NBA on TNT	TNT
The Championships, Wimbledon	ESPN
The Dick Schaap WRITING AWARD
Baseball's Golden Age	FSN / Black Canyon Productions
British Open	TNT
De La Hoya / Pacquiao 24 / 7	HBO
FOX NFL Sunday (Super Bowl XLII - Perfection)	FOX
NBA on TNT	TNT
NFL Films Presents: Lost in Confetti	NFL Network / NFL Films
Outstanding MUSIC COMPOSITION / DIRECTION / LYRICS
2008 Masters (Open)	ESPN
E: 60 (Homeless Hoops)	ESPN
ESPN Sunday Night Baseball - Final Game at Yankee Stadium (Opening Tease)	ESPN
Games of the XXIX Olympiad: The Clock of Their Lives	NBC
Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Dallas Cowboys	HBO / NFL Films
NFL on CBS (AFC Championship Game Tease)	CBS
Outstanding Live Event AUDIO / SOUND
ESPN NASCAR	ABC / ESPN / ESPN2
Games of the XXIX Olympiad	NBC
MLB on FOX	FOX
NASCAR on FOX	FOX
NFL on FOX	FOX
Outstanding Post Produced AUDIO / SOUND
Calzaghe-Jones 24 / 7	HBO
Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Dallas Cowboys	HBO / NFL Films
MLB '08: An Epic Season (Wireless)	ESPN / MLB Productions
Road to the Super Bowl	FOX / NFL Films
Outstanding GRAPHIC DESIGN
E: 60 (2008 Season)	ESPN
Games of the XXIX Olympiad	NBC
MLB on FOX	FOX
NBA on ABC (2008 NBA Finals)	ABC / ESPN
Sport Science	FSN
Super Bowl XLII / FOX NFL Sunday	FOX
Outstanding PRODUCTION DESIGN / ART DIRECTION
Amazing Sports Stories	FSN / Red Line Films
2008 World Figure Skating Championships	ABC / ESPN
NFL on CBS (AFC Championship Game Tease)	CBS
Sport Science	FSN
The Secret Game	ESPN Classic / Red Line Films
The George Wensel TECHNICAL ACHIEVEMENT AWARD
ESPN Axis	ESPN / ESPN2 / ESPNews
ESPN NASCAR	ABC / ESPN2
Games of the XXIX Olympiad (NBC's Three Screens Olympics (Beijing & at Home)	NBC
Virtual Playbook / Augmented Reality	ESPN
Outstanding SPORTS PROMOTIONAL ANNOUNCEMENT- INSTITUTIONAL
2008 Fantasy Football (Blues)	NFL Network / Restless Films
ESPN Monday Night Football - Is it Monday Yet? (Alarm Clocks, Customers, Cubicles)	ESPN / MJZ
MLB ALL Star Game 2008 (Raftors)	FOX / Buf / FOX Sports Design
NBA on TNT Playoffs ( Terrence Howard Tease)	TNT
This is SportsCenter (More Hips, Conditioning Coach, Explosive Speed)	ESPN / Hungry Man
Outstanding SPORTS PROMOTIONAL ANNOUNCEMENT - EPISODIC
2008 NFL Training Camp (In Rhythm)	NFL Network / NFL.com / NFL Network
2009 Winter Classic	NBC
ESPN Monday Night Football - Is it Monday Yet? (Alarm Clocks, Customers, Cubicles)	ESPN / MJZ
NASCAR on FOX 2008 (Engine City)	FOX / Buf
NBC Sunday Night Football - Kick-off Weekend ( Manning Brothers)	NBC

This should have been a weekend of celebration here in Athens, Georgia.

The University of Georgia should have been celebrating the selection of former football players Matthew Stafford and Knowshon Moreno in the first round of the NFL draft.

The city of Athens should have been celebrating the 30th Annual Twilight Criterium, a bicycle race unlike any other in the country.

Instead, we are mourning the loss of three people who contributed more to the community than any athlete has contributed, or will contribute, to the vibrant and cultural life of our small city. In an spike of anger that may never be totally understood, University of Georgia Marketing Professor George Zinkhan shot and killed his wife and two others before disappearing. In performing this selfish act he not only destroyed the life of his two young children, he has stolen the lives of three people who should not be forgotten.

Marie Bruce, Ben Teague, and Tom Tanner gave more to our community than can ever be repaid. They never sought the spotlight or to gain financially doing what they loved to do: community theater.

I met Ben when performing in Camelot back in the 1990's, and have met Marie in passing. I did not know Tom. But Athens is a small, tight-knit community in many ways, and many of my friends and colleagues were very close to these people.

So not only do I mourn the loss of these three souls, I mourn the deep loss that my friends and colleagues are dealing with at the present time.

That is much more important than who got selected in what round and by what team.

I said this when I first saw the news that UGA Quarterback Matt Stafford declared for the NFL draft, and I will say it again now. I do not think is is ready for the NFL, and I do not think he will be the savior of the Detroit Lions. I hope I am wrong, but only time will tell. After all, who do i think I am? Mel Kiper, Jr?

Of course, with a contract worth up to $70 million in his pocket, I do not think it really matters, does it?

Here are some pictures I took of Stafford over the past couple of years.

All Images Copyright 2007-2009 by Eye on Sports Media/The Cayuga Group, LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Marissa Friday is a lifelong New York Yankee fan. One of her dreams is to work for the Yankees one day. She thought an unpaid internship with the Sports Museum of America in lower Manhattan would help build her resume. Little did she know that she might lose her baby in the process.

The museum opened on May 7, 2008 with great fanfare in the New York sports community. But it did not do a good job marketing itself and opening its doors in a flashy way. In fact, unless you knew exactly where it was, you might only find it by accident.



"I found out about the internship from my MIS professor at Montclair State University," said Friday in an email interview. "His sister worked at the museum and told us they were looking for interns. I thought it would be a great opportunity because I was graduating and had no internships. My dream is to work for the New York Yankees so I thought it being a sports museum that it would look good on my resume when applying for the Yankees."

The museum depended a great deal on the loans of artifacts from athletes and other museums, including the National Baseball Hall of Fame.

"Pretty much all I did while working there was catalog the items that were in the museum, "said Friday. "I opened the boxes of the artifacts when they arrived I took pictures and wrote down if there were any damages to the items. That way when they were returned if there was damage it could be proved it wasn't the museums fault. I then took all that information and put it into an spreadsheet. As the museum was being put together I also helped to put the proper signs on each display case since I was very familiar with the artifacts."

And here is where Friday's baby comes into the picture. One of her most prized possessions is a Beanie Baby (example pictured left) given out as a promotion the day of David Wells' perfect game against the Minnesota Twins on May 17, 1998. She loaned this to the museum to use in a display.

"I actually didn't even want to loan my Beanie Baby at first because it is really special to me," said Friday. "But the lady at the sport museum that I directly worked with convinced me to loan it because she really wanted it in the museum. So I gave in. There was a loan agreement that I had to fill out. It was supposed to be a 2 year loan."

But along the way something went wrong, and the museum closed on February 20, 2009. Friday had no idea that this would happen, and what has transpired since then is something has left her sad and disappointed.

"I found out about the bankruptcy first from my dad because he found something on the internet about it," said Friday. "So when I found out I tried to e-mail somebody at the museum but the e-mail addresses I had no longer worked."

"About a week or 2 after the bankruptcy I was contacted via e-mail from someone from the museum. He told me the person that had my Beanie Baby and gave me her e-mail address. This person was the lady who I worked directly with. However, when I e-mailed her she told me that she did not have my Beanie Baby and that all of the artifacts were in storage and could not be touched until a trustee was appointed."

One would hope that a simple loaned artifact like this could be returned in tact. But no bankruptcy case is simple.

"As of this week I had received an e-mail from the founder of the museum telling me what had happened that I had to pay in order to get my Beanie Baby back," said Friday.

Pay to get a loaned item back? Yes, that is the case as CNBC's Darren Rovell reported on his site yesterday:

"The Bankruptcy Trustee firm has filed a motion with the bankruptcy court contending that:

(1) Lenders of all artifacts will have to file an application for the return of their items and pay a processing fee, in addition to shipping costs, in order to have their artifacts returned to them – otherwise the artifact may be sold at auction. The processing fees would be assessed as follows:

· $250.00 for one piece

· $500.00 for two pieces

· $750.00 for three to five pieces

· $1,500.00 for five to twenty pieces;

· $2,500.00 for more than twenty pieces, plus $750.00 for every ten pieces in excess of twenty pieces

(2) Lenders of artifacts may not be able to recover their artifacts at all (and the artifacts may be sold at auction) if the trustee rejects the application. This raises the concern that if you have lost your loan documents, or if the agreements to lend artifacts to the Museum were handled by email or orally (and not by written loan agreement), the trustees would use that as a basis to “reject” a claim and sell all of your items.

So to get back her treasured Beanie Baby, which has a estimated street value of $10-20 according to KeyManCollectibles (via eBay), Friday will have to pay $250, provided she still has the loan agreement.

What adds to the absurdity is that Philip Schwalb, the founder of the Museum cannot afford the cost of litigation.

"He [Schwalb] did mention that was going to be a lawsuit and I could be a part of it by contributing some of the money to the lawyers because he was only able to give $2,500," added Friday. "So I gave $50. The trial is suppose to take place April 29th. So hopefully something good will come out it."

Some very good people like Friday acted in good faith and trust. Now they are being asked to go through more pain to get their belongings back.

Sure, Friday could by a replacement on e-Bay. But that would be a cheap substitute for the memories that go with the baby she got at Yankee Stadium on the day of the perfect game.

Related Link(s)

Next Time You Donate To A Museum... (Darren Rovell)
Philip Schwalb profile on Wikipedia