The Stick-And-Ball Implosion Continues

At the beginning of the year, it appeared that NASCAR would once again take it on the chin. Where TV ratings were concerned, it had been a four year steady decline.

In 2010 the NFL had wiped NASCAR off the map where September through November ratings were concerned. Since then LeBron James had made his "decision," took his talents to South Beach and drove NBA ratings through the roof. It was not looking good for the left turn gang.

But a funny thing is happening as June approaches. The landscape of the many sports we classify as "stick and ball" is changing. It is not a change for the better. The list of ongoing problems and developing situations is amazing. The latest crisis just hit Monday afternoon.

Here is a brief overview of some current issues:

NFL: No end in sight to an ugly lockout by the owners. At the present time, there will be no NFL games come September. The argument is over approximately nine billion dollars in revenue to be divided between the teams and the players. The owners say they are prepared to sacrifice the entire season if needed.

NBA: Commissioner David Stern has stated 22 of his teams are on track to lose an estimated total of $300 million this season. There is little doubt that the NBA and the players are also headed for an extended lockout after the season is over.

MLB: Teams in the two largest TV markets, New York City and Los Angeles are in crisis. The New York Mets are on track to lose over $50 million dollars this year and may face bankruptcy. Commissioner Bud Selig was forced to take over the day-to-day operations of the Los Angles Dodgers. Team owner Frank McCourt recently had to take a $30 million dollar loan from LA-based FOX (TV) just to meet payroll.

Golf: Tiger Woods is on crutches. His lower left leg is in an orthopedic boot and he is unable to hit a golf ball. He failed at the Masters, pulled out of the Players Championship and has just withdrawn from The Memorial. There is no firm date for his return.

NHL: An outstanding playoff game seven between Boston and Tampa Bay drew very high viewership in those two TV markets, but only slightly over two million total viewers nationwide. While Comcast/NBC has secured the NHL rights for the long term, several years on the VERSUS TV network has left the sport in a lurch.

The most recent bombshell may start a very fundamental change in the perception of major college athletic programs. Click here to read the Sports Illustrated feature article detailing the amazing happenings within the Ohio State University football program.

Highly-regarded head coach Jim Tressel, who is pictured above, resigned on Monday. Reports suggested his only other alternative was to be fired. Tressel was trapped within a corrupt and unworkable system that major college football coaches around the country deal with every season.

Tressel basically ran a business that made millions of dollars for the university and gave only scholarships to the players. Decades ago, this might have been a trade that made sense. In today's reality, nothing could be further from the truth.

"Big-time college athletics appear to be spiraling out of control," says Pete Thamel of the New York Times in a Monday story. "Tressel’s resignation is the headline in a year that has had major investigations of the national champions of football (Auburn) and of men’s basketball (Connecticut)."

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, NASCAR has had three very different stories unfolding over the past two weeks.

First, Dale Earnhardt Jr. was leading on the final turn of the final lap of the most recent Sprint Cup Series race in Charlotte. His running out of gas made local sports TV highlights nationwide and was the lead story on ESPN's SportsCenter.

Secondly, superstar bad boy Kyle Busch was clocked at 80mph over the speed limit in a hot car with his hot wife in his own neighborhood. He wound-up with just a ticket, but news of the incident went viral. In a flash, the story was global. Imagine that, a NASCAR driver speeding down a two-lane Carolina road.

Finally, former Formula-1 driver Kimi Raikkonen decided he would like to sample NASCAR. His huge international fan base watched Raikkonen hold his own in a Camping World Truck Series race in Charlotte and finish 15th on the lead lap. The next weekend, he returned for a rent-a-ride in the Nationwide Series. Suddenly, rumors are swirling that "The Iceman" is coming to NASCAR with Red Bull in tow for 2012.

What an incredible swing of momentum for NASCAR through an amazing set of circumstances. You just can't make this up. The NFL is on strike with the NBA set to join them. The world's top golfer is injured, hockey can't get TV viewers and the Dodgers and Mets are essentially bankrupt.

As if on cue, NASCAR's top series heads to a sellout crowd at Kansas Speedway next Sunday afternoon. Saturday's truck series race may not have Raikkonen, but it is also sold-out. It will be fascinating to see if the sport can continue to build momentum, increase attendance and continue to slowly push up TV ratings.

Sometimes, things just happen. If there was ever a weekend for NASCAR to put on a good show, this might be it. You just never know what the ultimate reward for that might be.

We invite your comment on this topic. To add your opinion, just click on the comments button below. Thank you for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet.

TV Police: NASCAR On FOX From Charlotte Motor Speedway

On Memorial Day weekend, who better to investigate the long and complicated saga that was the Coke 600 on FOX than a Marine. NCIS Special Agent Leroy Jethro Gibbs does not mess around. The former Marine gunnery sergeant leads a cast of colorful characters who always seem to respond to even the most difficult challenge. Gibbs speaks few words and his "look" is enough to get any one's attention.

The NASCAR on FOX gang began with an interesting pre-race show. Rather than focus on the racing, the program ran through a wide variety of topics. Memorial Day and military themes were featured, including Jeff Hammond parachuting into the track.

Michael Waltrip appeared to announce that his book was being made into a movie and Darrell Waltrip got "Revved Up" about NASCAR and the US Armed Forces. Chris Myers played his normal role and everything was tongue-in-cheek funny. Unfortunately, what FOX did not do was preview the race.

That was left to Mike Joy, Larry McReynolds and eventually Waltrip from the TV booth. Despite McReynolds and his muted role this season, his explanations and race set-up were outstanding. It should be interesting to see what role he plays next season for FOX.

Pit reporters were Steve Byrnes, Krista Voda, Matt Yocum and Dick Berggren. Not much to do at times, but once again solid information relayed by personalities who know the sport. FOX has lots of talent waiting in the wings for new challenges while reporting on tires and fuel.

We are familiar with the FOX telecast production style. Hyper-tight shots, in-car cameras live on restarts and accidents. Single and double-car shots that show an individual battle without a race perspective. FOX loves it.

More aerial shots appeared, perhaps due to the solid amount of fans at the track. The low angle shots worked to reinforce speed and the split-screen effect is well-framed. The triple-split was rarely held for a full pitstop, but the info was solid in terms of positions leaving pit road.

FOX again had those strange in-race ads on an animated video board for a new movie. After watching the Indy500 with side-by-side commercials, it was tough to stomach that and the full-screen FOX breaks. Perhaps, that will change for 2012.

Late in the race, FOX snuck-in another side-by-side commercial. Instead of cutting the race, the video box only showed a tight shot of the leader. You could not even tell what turn he was in the camera was so tight. Even when innovating, it's always a struggle with this crew.

The racing picked up toward the end of the event despite the fact that several caution flags for debris resulted in no pictures of that debris making it to TV. In the end, the final 50 laps provided good racing and a solid storyline.

Waltrip in the booth is always interesting, but this season he had taken over the telecasts. On this Sunday, Joy stepped back into the lead role and actually directed traffic. He handled Waltrip effectively and called the action.

The problem was that Joy was consistently in front of the cameras where incidents were concerned. Joy would call out the corner, the issue and the cars before the cameras found the incident. By not following the best racing on the track and shooting hyper-tight, the NASCAR on FOX team has leaned on replays for incidents since Daytona.

It came down to fuel mileage once again and Waltrip admitted he did not know the fuel strategies of the teams on the track in contention with 20 laps to go. Ultimately, chaos ensued and it made for good TV. Video of the three RCR cars pushing each other was priceless. Junior ran out and Harvick stole the victory.

It was unfortunate that a profanity from Chad Knaus was aired live, but FOX is ultimately in control of what goes out over the TV. Using live team radios at a critical time can often result in just that type of moment.

It was a long day of motorsports capped by a long night of Sprint Cup Series racing. FOX has one race remaining with Kansas on the schedule next weekend.

This post will serve to host your comments on the FOX coverage of the Sprint Cup Series race from the Charlotte Motor Speedway. To add your TV-related race summary, just click on the comments button below. Thank you for taking the time to stop by The Daly Planet on this holiday weekend.

Live Blogging Sprint Cup Series From Charlotte (FOX - 5:30PM)

The final part of a motorsports tripleheader is on FOX. After F-1 on SPEED and IndyCar on ABC, it's time for NASCAR's longest race.

Chris Myers hosts with Jeff Hammond and Darrell Waltrip. Mike Joy calls the race with Larry McReynolds and Waltrip. Krista Voda, Steve Byrnes, Matt Yocum and Dick Berggren are on pit road.

This post will serve to host your comments on the race telecast. To add your TV-related opinion, just click on the comments button below. Thanks for stopping by.

Currently my internet access is limited, so please be patient.