The unwritten story here is that both McKenzie and Rick Smith of the Denver Broncos are black, which is a sign that we're entering an era where African American front office execs are being considered for higher positions because they're well-acquainted with the head coach. In this case, both McKenzie and Smith played with and worked with new Texans Head Coach Gary Kubiak
GM candidate McKenzie familiar to Texans brass
Personnel man, Sherman teamed with the Packers
By MEGAN MANFULL
Tuesday, May 23rd, 2006 - Houston Chronicle
When Reggie McKenzie arrives in Houston for his interview, the introductions won't take long.
The longtime director of pro personnel for the Green Bay Packers is scheduled to visit the Texans to discuss the general manager vacancy on Wednesday. Before he arrives, coach Gary Kubiak hopes to sit down with Mike Sherman, now the Texans' assistant head coach/offense, to get a report on the latest candidate.
Kubiak is familiar with McKenzie, but it goes back to their days as players in the NFL. Sherman worked closely with McKenzie, 43, just last season when Sherman was the Packers' head coach.
"They did such a great job in Green Bay, and (McKenzie) was such a big part of that," Kubiak said. "We know each other, and I respect him very, very much and the job he's done. Mike's the one that knows him very well on the business standpoints, so I'll catch up on that."
Sherman said he hasn't spoken to McKenzie since the interview was scheduled but wasn't surprised the Texans are pursuing McKenzie for the job.
"Here or somewhere else, yes, I think he's at a point in his career where that is certainly his next step," Sherman said.
Rising fast
McKenzie joined the Packers after a seven-year career as a linebacker with the Los Angeles Raiders (1985-88), Arizona Cardinals (89-90) and San Francisco 49ers (1992). McKenzie and Kubiak first met as players when Kubiak was the backup quarterback for the Denver Broncos from 1983 to 1991.
While Kubiak went into coaching after his playing career ended, McKenzie headed almost immediately to the front office. He was named the Packers' pro personnel assistant in 1994 and was promoted to director of pro personnel just three years later.
In 2000, Sherman was named the Packers' head coach and started working closely with McKenzie.
"I relied on him an awful lot," said Sherman, who spent six years as the Packers' head coach and three as their general manager. "He was a guy who always had a good pulse on our team, as well as other teams in the league.
"He's a diligent worker. You could ask him about any player in the league, and he'd know the player inside and out because he was constantly looking at tape. I don't think I've ever walked in his office and he didn't have tape on watching teams around the league and studying players. That's obviously what his job is, but to do it as often as he did was a credit to his work ethic."
Sherman and McKenzie had a tremendous amount of success in Green Bay, compiling winning records in five seasons. The Packers won the NFC North division titles in 2002, 2003 and 2004.
"I think he's an excellent evaluator of players," Sherman said. "Not just on the talent side, but on the character side as well. He's just a good judge of people and of football players."
Texans owner Bob McNair traveled Monday to the owners' meetings in Denver and will return to his office Wednesday. The Texans are still lining up other candidates in the search for Charley Casserly's replacement.
Rick Smith still in running
The top two candidates are McKenzie and Rick Smith, the Denver Broncos' assistant general manager, who interviewed for the job last week. McNair has made it clear that the person hired must be able to work well with Kubiak, a criteria Sherman said he can clearly understand.
"It seems like that's a focus of this to make sure we have everybody on the same page, seeking the same things," Sherman said. "I think that's a big part of the process, having somebody you can communicate with on a daily basis as a head coach that knows what you want in your defense and your offense."
megan.manfull@chron.com
Tuesday, May 23, 2006
2006 NFL Draft Recap Part Two - Bill Chackles
The 2006 Draft Recap Part II-Prospecting for Draft Gold
So just who are these players who get picked on the second day of the draft each
year? Are they the guys who were the stars of their class in high school, and went to college on that big fat scholarship, but sometime during their 4 years (or 5 or 6) they fell back to the rest of the pack and became "ordinary" or "average." Or possibly they had a "sub-standard" season as a sophomore or junior, and didn't improve enough the following year to erase memories of the past. So many of them go from "can't miss 1st round selections to "lucky to be drafted at all." Some however are rare but raw unpolished bodies of work that could become the backbone of a championship contender.
Some players who might have that type of impact are: Georgia's Max Jean-Gilles, an OG selected by the Eagles with the 99th Pick (#2 in round 4) and Jason Avant, the WR from Michigan selected by the Eagles 10 picks later. Both these players will bolster the Birds passing offense. The Niners selection of the versatile Michael Robinson (WR/KR/RB/QB) will also help San Francisco's crumbling offense.
The Jets and Giants both had two choices in round 4. Gang Green selected Brad Smith, a QB/WR from Missouri, and RB Leon Washington from Florida State. The Giants selected Barry Cofield, a DT from Northwestern, and Guy Wimper, an OT from East Carolina. Both teams appear to be drafting from the need for depth at those positions, but all four are capable of stepping in as starters should the need arise. The Dolphins chose OT Joe Toledo from the University of Washington. Many scouts had Toledo ranked in the top 10 tackles in this class, and his value had only risen in the days before the draft.
Round 5 saw two players who could become the steals of the entire draft, let along the second day. Dallas selected Florida State FS Pat Watkins, who is both fast and strong enough to contribute in several special teams roles. Cincinnati selected Florida State OLB A.J. Nicholson. A.J. had some problems of a personal nature, but if that is truly behind him, he could be the best LB in this class. Seattle chose USC's David Kirtman, the FB who cleared the way for Reggie Bush and LenDale White. Kirtman was also a long snapper in high school. Also in the round, the Eagles went for WR/KR Jeremy Bloom from Colorado. Bloom is noted for his Olympic Skiing career, but he claims he is now committed to football.
Round 6 & 7 saw lots of players go who were considered higher selections just days before. Some will develop into solid players, and some will contribute briefly before becoming afterthoughts of this class. The cowboys selection of DT Montavious Stanley of Louisville (#182 in rd 6) bears special mention, as he has a boatload of talent, but must live up to his upside potential. The Bengals took QB/WR Reggie McNeal from Texas A&M, who could develop into a solid receiver if he learns to focus on the ball. The also selected WR Bennie Brazell, the LSU wide out. The Bears selected Penn State's Tyler Reed, who had a good career at OG for Penn State. Atlanta took local product DJ Shockley, the QB from Georgia. Many had him as the 4th best QB in the draft after Jay Cutler, but fall to round 7 he did. What all these second day players have in common is that some scouts and personnel directors saw enough Film on them to moe then just take a chance, or else they'd have been signed as free agents instead of being drafted.
So just who are these players who get picked on the second day of the draft each
year? Are they the guys who were the stars of their class in high school, and went to college on that big fat scholarship, but sometime during their 4 years (or 5 or 6) they fell back to the rest of the pack and became "ordinary" or "average." Or possibly they had a "sub-standard" season as a sophomore or junior, and didn't improve enough the following year to erase memories of the past. So many of them go from "can't miss 1st round selections to "lucky to be drafted at all." Some however are rare but raw unpolished bodies of work that could become the backbone of a championship contender.
Some players who might have that type of impact are: Georgia's Max Jean-Gilles, an OG selected by the Eagles with the 99th Pick (#2 in round 4) and Jason Avant, the WR from Michigan selected by the Eagles 10 picks later. Both these players will bolster the Birds passing offense. The Niners selection of the versatile Michael Robinson (WR/KR/RB/QB) will also help San Francisco's crumbling offense.
The Jets and Giants both had two choices in round 4. Gang Green selected Brad Smith, a QB/WR from Missouri, and RB Leon Washington from Florida State. The Giants selected Barry Cofield, a DT from Northwestern, and Guy Wimper, an OT from East Carolina. Both teams appear to be drafting from the need for depth at those positions, but all four are capable of stepping in as starters should the need arise. The Dolphins chose OT Joe Toledo from the University of Washington. Many scouts had Toledo ranked in the top 10 tackles in this class, and his value had only risen in the days before the draft.
Round 5 saw two players who could become the steals of the entire draft, let along the second day. Dallas selected Florida State FS Pat Watkins, who is both fast and strong enough to contribute in several special teams roles. Cincinnati selected Florida State OLB A.J. Nicholson. A.J. had some problems of a personal nature, but if that is truly behind him, he could be the best LB in this class. Seattle chose USC's David Kirtman, the FB who cleared the way for Reggie Bush and LenDale White. Kirtman was also a long snapper in high school. Also in the round, the Eagles went for WR/KR Jeremy Bloom from Colorado. Bloom is noted for his Olympic Skiing career, but he claims he is now committed to football.
Round 6 & 7 saw lots of players go who were considered higher selections just days before. Some will develop into solid players, and some will contribute briefly before becoming afterthoughts of this class. The cowboys selection of DT Montavious Stanley of Louisville (#182 in rd 6) bears special mention, as he has a boatload of talent, but must live up to his upside potential. The Bengals took QB/WR Reggie McNeal from Texas A&M, who could develop into a solid receiver if he learns to focus on the ball. The also selected WR Bennie Brazell, the LSU wide out. The Bears selected Penn State's Tyler Reed, who had a good career at OG for Penn State. Atlanta took local product DJ Shockley, the QB from Georgia. Many had him as the 4th best QB in the draft after Jay Cutler, but fall to round 7 he did. What all these second day players have in common is that some scouts and personnel directors saw enough Film on them to moe then just take a chance, or else they'd have been signed as free agents instead of being drafted.
USC Throws Monkey Wrench Into NFL / LA Coliseum Planning Process - LA Times
In perfect California fashion, there's always some person or organization that feels slighted or left out and in an effort to remind everyone of its importance, runs to the press, rather than express its concerns and work toward a resolution behind the scenes. In this case, it's USC.
Part of the blame for this rests with the LA Coliseum execs, who may have forgot about their National Championship-winning tenant while basking in the glow of a possible NFL franchise deal. If so, they do owe USC an public appology for an enormous blunder.
Meanwhile, will the Raiders return to LA? More here.
Letter Expresses USC's Concerns With NFL Deal
By Alan Abrahamson, LA Times Staff Writer
May 23, 2006
DENVER -- Even as NFL owners convened Monday to mull a return to the greater Los Angeles area, at the Coliseum or in Anaheim, USC President Steven B. Sample raised concerns that the university could be left "totally vulnerable" should the league return to the Coliseum without a deal also being reached for USC to keep playing there.
In a letter dated last Friday that apparently was not delivered until Monday to the Coliseum Commission, Sample asks for "assurances" that the commission "will not sign any lease deal with the NFL unless a sublease deal has also been reached between USC and the NFL that is acceptable to USC."
Failure to do so, he says, could "forever" force USC out of the Coliseum, "with our athletic program reduced to shambles."
Sample, out of the country Monday, could not be reached for comment. Stanley P. Gold, chairman of the USC board of trustees, also could not be reached for comment.
The letter comes as an unexpected development in the long-running saga involving the league's potential return to the nation's No. 2 television market after a 12-year absence, painting a doomsday scenario for USC without offering evidence or rationale for such concerns but nonetheless injecting a further complication into what has long been an enormously complex matter.
The letter surfaced as an 11-owner NFL committee, dubbed the "L.A. working group" and meeting at a downtown Denver hotel, reviewed the variety of extensive construction projects now ongoing in and around downtown Los Angeles. A similar review of Anaheim developments is on tap in the near future, league officials said.
"From our perspective," said Pat Lynch, general manager of the Coliseum, referring to the NFL and USC, "we've always put them in direct contact with each other.
"The NFL is negotiating directly with USC. We talk to both sides continuously and have been assured negotiations are progressing satisfactorily. Frankly, we were surprised at the letter."
A full complement of NFL owners is due today to consider a proposal that would authorize Commissioner Paul Tagliabue to direct the spending of $5 million to $10 million for extensive design and architectural studies at the Coliseum, in Anaheim — or both.
An NFL delegation, perhaps including Tagliabue, is due to visit Southern California, tentatively June 14 and 15, to gauge business support for an NFL return. The area has been without an NFL team since after the 1994 season, when the Rams moved to St. Louis and the Raiders moved back to Oakland.
The working Coliseum plan is for the NFL and the Coliseum Commission to enter into a lease — the commission as landlord, the NFL as tenant for a 25-year lease extendable to 55 years. USC would be a sub-tenant.
USC and the NFL have been involved in "on-again, off-again discussions" for two years without reaching an agreement, Sample says in the letter.
He acknowledges that the university has not been given a copy of "the draft Coliseum lease agreement" but nonetheless says USC believes "the NFL's latest draft of the lease" says only that the league and the university "will work together to attempt to develop a mutually satisfactory arrangement."
He also says it is his belief that the draft lease suggests the NFL and USC would have two years to work out deal points; if they could not do so in that time, USC "could be forced out of the Coliseum forever."
Sample says, "We need the commissioners to confirm in writing the promise that there will be a single signing day for the NFL lease and the USC sublease."
He also asks that renovation not force USC out of the Coliseum for more than two seasons and that seating for USC games not fall below 80,000.
The remodeled Coliseum project, approved last Friday by the Los Angeles city council, would see the 92,000-seat bowl reworked around the famed peristyle end into a 68,000-seat stadium, expandable to 80,000 for Super Bowls and USC games.
Monday, May 22, 2006
LSU / Colts RB Joseph Addai Making Progress In Mini-Camp - Vets Say All He Has to Do Is Listen
Addai Must Watch, Study and Learn, Veterans Say
INDIANAPOLIS – The first days have made an impression on Joseph Addai.
Asked this week to describe his first NFL mini-camp, the Colts’ rookie running back said there were three things that stood out.
1) The NFL is faster, he said.
2) Coaches expect more from you than in college.
3) You can’t make the same mistake twice.
Beyond that, the player the Colts made the No. 30 overall selection in last month’s 2006 NFL Draft said he hasn’t changed his approach much in the last two weeks.
That means he’s still not trying to replace Edgerrin James.
“I don’t look at it like I have to stretch myself,” Addai said during the Colts’ 2006 mini-camp, which concluded Sunday at the Union Federal Football Center. “I’m going to go out there and just do what I have to do.”
That’s good news to the rest of the Colts’ offense, members of which said this week it was far too early to comment extensively on what Addai’s potential impact on the unit this season.
What they did say this week was Addai – who played collegiately at Louisiana State University – appears to have the ability to be the Colts’ feature back sometime in the future. And mostly they said this:
His approach is just right.
He doesn’t need to replace James, the franchise’s all-time leading rusher, immediately, and he doesn’t need to worry about earning a starting position.
He needs to study. He needs to learn.
And mostly, he needs to get ready.
“The best thing for him to do is get a feel for how things are going and try to take as many notes as possible, so that at least mentally he can try to stay on top of what he can,” said Colts two-time Pro Bowl left tackle Tarik Glenn.
Addai, who rushed for 2,576 yards and 18 touchdowns at LSU, is expected to be part of a running-back-by-committee system next season with veterans Dominic Rhodes and James Mungro. Rhodes, Dungy said, is expected to open training camp as the starter.
Addai said this week he doesn’t view Rhodes, who rushed for 1,104 yards as a rookie in 2001, as competition.
“I don’t look at it like that,” Addai said Friday. “Earlier today he was helping me on some stuff. Everybody wants to be that person (the starter), but at the same time, we’re just helping the whole team out.”
Glenn, like several other Colts’ linemen, said the Colts’ offense is so complex it is unfair to expect a rookie to grasp it immediately. Addai, Glenn said, was drafted for a reason, something he said the rookie will have to remember in the coming months.
“The bottom line is coming into this offense, you’ve got a lot to retain,” said Glenn, a 10-year veteran who played in the last two Pro Bowls. “The best thing you can do is, on the plays you do know what to do, do them to the best of your ability. Be yourself. Don’t try to live up to anyone. Don’t try to live up to Edge. Just be Joseph. Come in and contribute.
“He has to trust that (Colts Head Coach) Tony (Dungy) and Mr. (Colts President Bill) Polian brought him in there because they felt he will eventually be our feature back.
“If he takes that approach, he’ll be a good player.”
When Glenn spoke of Addai this week, he spoke with a calmness shared by many on the Colts’ offense in recent weeks. Although James – who signed as a free agent after last season with the Arizona Cardinals – made four Pro Bowls in his seven seasons with the team, and although he was respected by teammates, Colts offensive players said this week there’s little reason his absence should mean a drop-off in the offense.
That, tight end Dallas Clark said, stems from a confidence not only in Addai, Rhodes and Mungro, but in the entire offense.
“The mentality we have had from Day One is we can’t just say, ‘Well, we lost him, so we’re done,’’’ Clark said of James. “Everybody’s mature enough to realize that things are going to be a little different, but to throw in the towel or say we’re not going to be as good I think is unfair to the other 10 guys.
“Edge was a great back and he’s going to do great down in Arizona, but we’re going to move on and change what we have to do to replace him. The other running backs are super excited, and they’re going to do a great job when they get the chance.”
What separated James from NFL backs, Colts linemen said this week, was his consistency. While James rarely broke long runs, he also rarely was tackled for losses.
James, in seven seasons with the Colts, averaged 1,318 yards a season – including the 2001 season when he missed 10 games with a knee injury and the following season, when James rushed for 989 yards while recovering from the injury. He averaged 96 yards rushing a game, and last season, he rushed for at least 89 yards in each of the first 13 games.
“Edgerrin was a consistent player and we knew what we were going to get every time we gave him the ball,” Colts right tackle Diem said. “He was going to run hard, and give us consistency.”
For Addai, Diem said, “Learning what we do will be a big factor. If he can learn to hit the holes in the right spot and be consistent about that, not try to change things up and do things his way, I think we’ll be very successful.”
Diem said he’s confident that will happen, not only because he believes Rhodes and Addai are capable, but because he believes the offensive line capable of making them productive.
“All the guys we have are hard runners,” Diem said. “We’re confident in ourselves that we will get the job done and make holes for them.
“They’ll make us look good and we’ll make them look good. It works both ways.”
Glenn said although James was key to the offense, he’s far from the first key player the Colts have lost in recent seasons. Tight end Marcus Pollard left after the 2004 season, as did guard Rick DeMulling. On defense, the Colts have lost linebackers Mike Peterson, Marcus Robinson and David Thornton as free agents in recent seasons.
“We’ve experienced that in a lot of different areas,” Glenn said. “Even though Edge was a focal point of our offense, we have to learn we’re playing within a salary cap and trust Mr. Polian and Coach Dungy are going to bring in the personnel to help us win and help us be successful.
“We’re all confident of that and we know Joseph and Dominic are going to be able to continue and do the job well enough where it gives our offense a chance to win games.”
For Rhodes, that process began five years ago, and next season, he will get his first chance since 2001 to play in a backfield that didn’t include James. For Addai, the process began this weekend, and his teammates said although it’s far too early to judge how he will play next season, the early signs that his approach is right.
And for now, considering his circumstances, they said that’s all you can ask.
“He has to show eagerness to learn and you just have to really be patient,” Clark said. “It’s a tough offense, and a tough position to learn, especially when Edgerrin played before you and kind of set the bar pretty darn high. He just has to understand he’s not going to learn it overnight. If he makes a mistake, he just has to try to not make the same mistake twice. He has to realize he can’t get in the dumps, he can’t get upset with himself, or mad or discouraged.
“He just has to stay positive, remember it next time and not make the same mistakes. So long as he does those things, he’ll be alright.”
INDIANAPOLIS – The first days have made an impression on Joseph Addai.
Asked this week to describe his first NFL mini-camp, the Colts’ rookie running back said there were three things that stood out.
1) The NFL is faster, he said.
2) Coaches expect more from you than in college.
3) You can’t make the same mistake twice.
Beyond that, the player the Colts made the No. 30 overall selection in last month’s 2006 NFL Draft said he hasn’t changed his approach much in the last two weeks.
That means he’s still not trying to replace Edgerrin James.
“I don’t look at it like I have to stretch myself,” Addai said during the Colts’ 2006 mini-camp, which concluded Sunday at the Union Federal Football Center. “I’m going to go out there and just do what I have to do.”
That’s good news to the rest of the Colts’ offense, members of which said this week it was far too early to comment extensively on what Addai’s potential impact on the unit this season.
What they did say this week was Addai – who played collegiately at Louisiana State University – appears to have the ability to be the Colts’ feature back sometime in the future. And mostly they said this:
His approach is just right.
He doesn’t need to replace James, the franchise’s all-time leading rusher, immediately, and he doesn’t need to worry about earning a starting position.
He needs to study. He needs to learn.
And mostly, he needs to get ready.
“The best thing for him to do is get a feel for how things are going and try to take as many notes as possible, so that at least mentally he can try to stay on top of what he can,” said Colts two-time Pro Bowl left tackle Tarik Glenn.
Addai, who rushed for 2,576 yards and 18 touchdowns at LSU, is expected to be part of a running-back-by-committee system next season with veterans Dominic Rhodes and James Mungro. Rhodes, Dungy said, is expected to open training camp as the starter.
Addai said this week he doesn’t view Rhodes, who rushed for 1,104 yards as a rookie in 2001, as competition.
“I don’t look at it like that,” Addai said Friday. “Earlier today he was helping me on some stuff. Everybody wants to be that person (the starter), but at the same time, we’re just helping the whole team out.”
Glenn, like several other Colts’ linemen, said the Colts’ offense is so complex it is unfair to expect a rookie to grasp it immediately. Addai, Glenn said, was drafted for a reason, something he said the rookie will have to remember in the coming months.
“The bottom line is coming into this offense, you’ve got a lot to retain,” said Glenn, a 10-year veteran who played in the last two Pro Bowls. “The best thing you can do is, on the plays you do know what to do, do them to the best of your ability. Be yourself. Don’t try to live up to anyone. Don’t try to live up to Edge. Just be Joseph. Come in and contribute.
“He has to trust that (Colts Head Coach) Tony (Dungy) and Mr. (Colts President Bill) Polian brought him in there because they felt he will eventually be our feature back.
“If he takes that approach, he’ll be a good player.”
When Glenn spoke of Addai this week, he spoke with a calmness shared by many on the Colts’ offense in recent weeks. Although James – who signed as a free agent after last season with the Arizona Cardinals – made four Pro Bowls in his seven seasons with the team, and although he was respected by teammates, Colts offensive players said this week there’s little reason his absence should mean a drop-off in the offense.
That, tight end Dallas Clark said, stems from a confidence not only in Addai, Rhodes and Mungro, but in the entire offense.
“The mentality we have had from Day One is we can’t just say, ‘Well, we lost him, so we’re done,’’’ Clark said of James. “Everybody’s mature enough to realize that things are going to be a little different, but to throw in the towel or say we’re not going to be as good I think is unfair to the other 10 guys.
“Edge was a great back and he’s going to do great down in Arizona, but we’re going to move on and change what we have to do to replace him. The other running backs are super excited, and they’re going to do a great job when they get the chance.”
What separated James from NFL backs, Colts linemen said this week, was his consistency. While James rarely broke long runs, he also rarely was tackled for losses.
James, in seven seasons with the Colts, averaged 1,318 yards a season – including the 2001 season when he missed 10 games with a knee injury and the following season, when James rushed for 989 yards while recovering from the injury. He averaged 96 yards rushing a game, and last season, he rushed for at least 89 yards in each of the first 13 games.
“Edgerrin was a consistent player and we knew what we were going to get every time we gave him the ball,” Colts right tackle Diem said. “He was going to run hard, and give us consistency.”
For Addai, Diem said, “Learning what we do will be a big factor. If he can learn to hit the holes in the right spot and be consistent about that, not try to change things up and do things his way, I think we’ll be very successful.”
Diem said he’s confident that will happen, not only because he believes Rhodes and Addai are capable, but because he believes the offensive line capable of making them productive.
“All the guys we have are hard runners,” Diem said. “We’re confident in ourselves that we will get the job done and make holes for them.
“They’ll make us look good and we’ll make them look good. It works both ways.”
Glenn said although James was key to the offense, he’s far from the first key player the Colts have lost in recent seasons. Tight end Marcus Pollard left after the 2004 season, as did guard Rick DeMulling. On defense, the Colts have lost linebackers Mike Peterson, Marcus Robinson and David Thornton as free agents in recent seasons.
“We’ve experienced that in a lot of different areas,” Glenn said. “Even though Edge was a focal point of our offense, we have to learn we’re playing within a salary cap and trust Mr. Polian and Coach Dungy are going to bring in the personnel to help us win and help us be successful.
“We’re all confident of that and we know Joseph and Dominic are going to be able to continue and do the job well enough where it gives our offense a chance to win games.”
For Rhodes, that process began five years ago, and next season, he will get his first chance since 2001 to play in a backfield that didn’t include James. For Addai, the process began this weekend, and his teammates said although it’s far too early to judge how he will play next season, the early signs that his approach is right.
And for now, considering his circumstances, they said that’s all you can ask.
“He has to show eagerness to learn and you just have to really be patient,” Clark said. “It’s a tough offense, and a tough position to learn, especially when Edgerrin played before you and kind of set the bar pretty darn high. He just has to understand he’s not going to learn it overnight. If he makes a mistake, he just has to try to not make the same mistake twice. He has to realize he can’t get in the dumps, he can’t get upset with himself, or mad or discouraged.
“He just has to stay positive, remember it next time and not make the same mistakes. So long as he does those things, he’ll be alright.”
As The City of Oakland Sleeps, LA Plans To Alter The LA Coliseum For The NFL
While the City of Oakland -- once again in 27 years - faces a stadium crisis, the LA City Council acts to gain an NFL team.
L.A. approves improvements to lure NFL team
NFL.com wire reports
LOS ANGELES (May 19, 2006) -- The Los Angeles City Council voted to spend $25 million on improvements around the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in hopes of luring an NFL team back to the city.
Under the plan, the city Community Redevelopment Agency would issue $25 million in bonds for street widening, site clearing and other work near the Coliseum, which would be paid for by expected tax revenue from the stadium.
In coming years, the city estimates it could spend up to $121 million more for additional transit and other improvements, which would also be funded by stadium taxes.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has said public funds will not be used for a proposed $800 million renovation at the Coliseum. The city-funded improvements approved by the Council amount to incentives to make the city's NFL pitch more attractive.
"The dollars will be limited to improvements around the stadium, not the actual construction," said Villaraigosa spokesman Joe Ramallo.
City officials hope NFL owners, who meet in Denver next week, will bring a team to the Coliseum by the 2009 season.
Under the city plan, the Coliseum would be extensively renovated with money from the NFL.
The Coliseum is used by the University of Southern California football team. It hasn't hosted a professional team since the Raiders left after the 1994 season.
L.A. approves improvements to lure NFL team
NFL.com wire reports
LOS ANGELES (May 19, 2006) -- The Los Angeles City Council voted to spend $25 million on improvements around the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum in hopes of luring an NFL team back to the city.
Under the plan, the city Community Redevelopment Agency would issue $25 million in bonds for street widening, site clearing and other work near the Coliseum, which would be paid for by expected tax revenue from the stadium.
In coming years, the city estimates it could spend up to $121 million more for additional transit and other improvements, which would also be funded by stadium taxes.
Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has said public funds will not be used for a proposed $800 million renovation at the Coliseum. The city-funded improvements approved by the Council amount to incentives to make the city's NFL pitch more attractive.
"The dollars will be limited to improvements around the stadium, not the actual construction," said Villaraigosa spokesman Joe Ramallo.
City officials hope NFL owners, who meet in Denver next week, will bring a team to the Coliseum by the 2009 season.
Under the city plan, the Coliseum would be extensively renovated with money from the NFL.
The Coliseum is used by the University of Southern California football team. It hasn't hosted a professional team since the Raiders left after the 1994 season.
QB Trent Dilfer Comes Home To San Francisco - Oakland Tribune
49ers fan as youth, Dilfer is in heaven
By Roger Phillips, STAFF WRITER - OAKLAND TRIBUNE
SANTA CLARA -- The timing could not have been better for Trent Dilfer.
Thursday night, the veteran quarterback and Aptos native was acquired by the San Francisco 49ers in a trade with the Cleveland Browns. Friday afternoon, the 34-year-old Dilfer watched his new team's first minicamp practice.
And Tuesday, he will host a golf tournament there to benefit the TD4HIM Foundation, which was set up following the death from a heart ailment in 2003 of his 5-year-old son, Trevin.
Back in his home base as a member of the team he followed when growing up, Dilfer was clearly elated.
"I always dreamed of being a 49er," Dilfer said. "This is a dream come true for me as a Bay Area guy."
The trade, for quarterback Ken Dorsey and a seventh-round draft choice, is contingent on Dilfer passing a physical. Dilfer is coming off a patellar-tendon injury last season that required surgery, and the 49ers are hoping he will be ready for action well before training camp begins in late July.
"I'm really starting to get healthy," said Dilfer, who hopes to participate in organized team activities at the end of the month. "In the last three weeks, I've made great strides."
Dilfer was acquired to give the 49ers an experienced backup for Alex Smith, and at least as importantly to serve as a mentor for the young quarterback.
"He's a guy I look to kind of pick up a lot of things from," Smith said.
Dilfer said he understands his role.
"The approach I take is whether I'm the starter or backup is to do whatever it takes to help the team win football games," Dilfer said. "I'll perform to the best of my ability, work my tail off and by doing that, I'll be a mentor to Alex Smith as a quarterback."
Coach Mike Nolan and personnel chief Scot McCloughan both said they are counting on Dilfer to be more than merely a tutor. "I'd like to think if something happens to Alex that he can perform, and perform at a high level," Nolan said.
McCloughan, who got to know Dilfer when both were in Seattle, added, "He's been through a lot, he's been through big-time success and big-time failure. You can't teach that. ... It gives another sounding board for people to talk to."
During his Seahawks days, part of Dilfer's role was as a mentor to Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. He said he is looking forward to working with Smith.
"He's such a great kid, smart, a guy that's going to be able to digest information you give him and learn quickly from his mistakes and a guy that has some natural leadership skills," Dilfer said.
Dilfer is also glad on a personal level to be back home. The upcoming fundraiser will enable Aptos High to install artificial grass at its stadium, which will be renamed in honor of Trevin.
If things work out as he hopes, Dilfer's stay with the 49ers will be an extended one, "a nice ending to a satisfying career."
OUT OF ACTION: Several veterans are still recovering from injuries they suffered last season.
Running backs Frank Gore (both shoulders) and Kevan Barlow (knee), and left tackle Jonas Jennings participated in individual drills but not team activities. Nolan is hoping they will be available for organized team activities.
Safety Tony Parrish (broken leg), however, could be ready for OTA, though possibly will have to wait until the start of training camp to get back on the field. Receiver Derrick Hamilton, nearly a year removed from his injury, is still "a little while" from being ready, Nolan said.
By Roger Phillips, STAFF WRITER - OAKLAND TRIBUNE
SANTA CLARA -- The timing could not have been better for Trent Dilfer.
Thursday night, the veteran quarterback and Aptos native was acquired by the San Francisco 49ers in a trade with the Cleveland Browns. Friday afternoon, the 34-year-old Dilfer watched his new team's first minicamp practice.
And Tuesday, he will host a golf tournament there to benefit the TD4HIM Foundation, which was set up following the death from a heart ailment in 2003 of his 5-year-old son, Trevin.
Back in his home base as a member of the team he followed when growing up, Dilfer was clearly elated.
"I always dreamed of being a 49er," Dilfer said. "This is a dream come true for me as a Bay Area guy."
The trade, for quarterback Ken Dorsey and a seventh-round draft choice, is contingent on Dilfer passing a physical. Dilfer is coming off a patellar-tendon injury last season that required surgery, and the 49ers are hoping he will be ready for action well before training camp begins in late July.
"I'm really starting to get healthy," said Dilfer, who hopes to participate in organized team activities at the end of the month. "In the last three weeks, I've made great strides."
Dilfer was acquired to give the 49ers an experienced backup for Alex Smith, and at least as importantly to serve as a mentor for the young quarterback.
"He's a guy I look to kind of pick up a lot of things from," Smith said.
Dilfer said he understands his role.
"The approach I take is whether I'm the starter or backup is to do whatever it takes to help the team win football games," Dilfer said. "I'll perform to the best of my ability, work my tail off and by doing that, I'll be a mentor to Alex Smith as a quarterback."
Coach Mike Nolan and personnel chief Scot McCloughan both said they are counting on Dilfer to be more than merely a tutor. "I'd like to think if something happens to Alex that he can perform, and perform at a high level," Nolan said.
McCloughan, who got to know Dilfer when both were in Seattle, added, "He's been through a lot, he's been through big-time success and big-time failure. You can't teach that. ... It gives another sounding board for people to talk to."
During his Seahawks days, part of Dilfer's role was as a mentor to Seattle quarterback Matt Hasselbeck. He said he is looking forward to working with Smith.
"He's such a great kid, smart, a guy that's going to be able to digest information you give him and learn quickly from his mistakes and a guy that has some natural leadership skills," Dilfer said.
Dilfer is also glad on a personal level to be back home. The upcoming fundraiser will enable Aptos High to install artificial grass at its stadium, which will be renamed in honor of Trevin.
If things work out as he hopes, Dilfer's stay with the 49ers will be an extended one, "a nice ending to a satisfying career."
OUT OF ACTION: Several veterans are still recovering from injuries they suffered last season.
Running backs Frank Gore (both shoulders) and Kevan Barlow (knee), and left tackle Jonas Jennings participated in individual drills but not team activities. Nolan is hoping they will be available for organized team activities.
Safety Tony Parrish (broken leg), however, could be ready for OTA, though possibly will have to wait until the start of training camp to get back on the field. Receiver Derrick Hamilton, nearly a year removed from his injury, is still "a little while" from being ready, Nolan said.
Sunday, May 21, 2006
"Tar Baby" - On Video, Tony Snow, President Bush's New White House Press Secretary, Really Stuck His Foot In It
According to this definition, "tar baby" more often than not refers to someone of dark skin and in an unpleasant way. So, when White House Press Secretary Tony Snow said "I don't want to hug the tar baby" last week, he was in effect expressing a dislike for anyone dark.
I can't understand how President Bush could let this go, or what was in the deep inner mind of Snow as he said this. It's scary to know that someone would just blurt out such a statement in this supposedly more advanced day and age, let alone the White House Communications representative.
You may hold that I'm being hyper-sensitive, but I counter that I'm being appropriately sensitive. Remember, Snow used a comment historically offensive to blacks. In today's society, it's hurtful to insult anyone because of the color of their skin. At times, because such comments have been deeply installed in the mind of some in Americans as "ok" to make, it's that much more important to be hyper aware of the use of them and work to dismiss their application in the future. Snow's the highest ranking communications official in America, and must be held to a higher standard.
Snow may not have intended his comment to be offensive, but he made it, and here's the video to prove it:
I can't understand how President Bush could let this go, or what was in the deep inner mind of Snow as he said this. It's scary to know that someone would just blurt out such a statement in this supposedly more advanced day and age, let alone the White House Communications representative.
You may hold that I'm being hyper-sensitive, but I counter that I'm being appropriately sensitive. Remember, Snow used a comment historically offensive to blacks. In today's society, it's hurtful to insult anyone because of the color of their skin. At times, because such comments have been deeply installed in the mind of some in Americans as "ok" to make, it's that much more important to be hyper aware of the use of them and work to dismiss their application in the future. Snow's the highest ranking communications official in America, and must be held to a higher standard.
Snow may not have intended his comment to be offensive, but he made it, and here's the video to prove it:
Saturday, May 20, 2006
Jacksonville / UCLA RB Maurice Drew Named In Civil Lawsuit; Released On $30,000 Bail - Florida Times Union
Wow, what a way to blow a signing bonus, or at least part of it. Or, this could hurt the size of whatever signing bonus Drew might get. This story reveals that Drew may have been hanging out with the wrong person. I mean, who gets into stupid scrapes like this?
Civil suit filed against Drew
Jaguars rookie surrenders on an assault charge, is released on $30,000 bail.
By BART HUBBUCH, The Times-Union
Jaguars rookie Maurice Drew is included in a civil lawsuit stemming from an April incident that resulted in him being charged with felony assault Thursday.
Drew, a running back and return specialist from UCLA drafted in the second round last month, surrendered Friday morning in Los Angeles and was released on $30,000 bail. He's scheduled to be arraigned June 16.
Drew is charged along with Chicago Bears cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. and former college teammate Tyler Ebell for allegedly beating Sabzi Soroush, 25, at a Los Angeles-area restaurant on April 23, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
Drew, Manning and Ebell each were charged with one count of assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury, a felony. Drew, who admits he was at the scene but denies any involvement in the incident, faces probation or 2 to 4 years in state prison if convicted.
Soroush, a UCLA student, also responded to the incident by suing Drew and the two other players in Los Angeles this week.
The civil suit, filed Tuesday, doesn't state the amount that Soroush is seeking because California law prohibits it, but his Los Angeles-based attorney said Friday that his client is pursuing punitive damages, and "they will be huge."
"This is truly reprehensible conduct, and it needs to be punished," attorney Aviv L. Tuchman said. "We're very confident in our case against Drew."
Drew's agent and attorney, Adisa Bakari, said Friday that he hadn't seen the lawsuit but considers it without merit. Bakari said he most likely would file a countersuit accusing Soroush of a frivolous claim.
"I'll say it again: Maurice Drew was not involved," Bakari said. "He was not out with [Manning], didn't witness the incident and went home once he saw the verbal altercation begin. The kid isn't stupid. This happened one week before the [NFL Draft], and Maurice knew to avoid nonsense like that. This will all come out in the wash."
A Jaguars spokesman declined comment, and vice president of personnel James Harris didn't return a telephone call Friday.
Tuchman said his client was eating at a Denny's restaurant near the UCLA campus when Manning began taunting him "for being a geek'' because Soroush was using a laptop computer.
When Soroush complained to a manager, Tuchman alleges that his client was cornered in a restaurant bathroom, then forced outside and beaten unconscious in the parking lot.
Manning was arrested immediately, but Tuchman included Drew in the lawsuit after interviewing witnesses. Tuchman said three witnesses signed statements that identified Drew as punching Soroush in the face and stomping him in the head.
Soroush is seeing a neurologist and might require knee and shoulder surgery because of the beating, Tuchman said.
Although Drew turned himself in this week, the Los Angeles district attorney's office confirmed Friday that it mistakenly said in a news release Thursday that the Jaguars rookie was arrested and released on bail the morning of the incident.
District attorney's office spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons said the release, which received widespread national publicity, was incorrectly written by a junior staff member.
"It was our mistake, and it will be corrected," Gibbons said. "Drew was never arrested, but there was a warrant out for him."
Civil suit filed against Drew
Jaguars rookie surrenders on an assault charge, is released on $30,000 bail.
By BART HUBBUCH, The Times-Union
Jaguars rookie Maurice Drew is included in a civil lawsuit stemming from an April incident that resulted in him being charged with felony assault Thursday.
Drew, a running back and return specialist from UCLA drafted in the second round last month, surrendered Friday morning in Los Angeles and was released on $30,000 bail. He's scheduled to be arraigned June 16.
Drew is charged along with Chicago Bears cornerback Ricky Manning Jr. and former college teammate Tyler Ebell for allegedly beating Sabzi Soroush, 25, at a Los Angeles-area restaurant on April 23, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.
Drew, Manning and Ebell each were charged with one count of assault by means likely to produce great bodily injury, a felony. Drew, who admits he was at the scene but denies any involvement in the incident, faces probation or 2 to 4 years in state prison if convicted.
Soroush, a UCLA student, also responded to the incident by suing Drew and the two other players in Los Angeles this week.
The civil suit, filed Tuesday, doesn't state the amount that Soroush is seeking because California law prohibits it, but his Los Angeles-based attorney said Friday that his client is pursuing punitive damages, and "they will be huge."
"This is truly reprehensible conduct, and it needs to be punished," attorney Aviv L. Tuchman said. "We're very confident in our case against Drew."
Drew's agent and attorney, Adisa Bakari, said Friday that he hadn't seen the lawsuit but considers it without merit. Bakari said he most likely would file a countersuit accusing Soroush of a frivolous claim.
"I'll say it again: Maurice Drew was not involved," Bakari said. "He was not out with [Manning], didn't witness the incident and went home once he saw the verbal altercation begin. The kid isn't stupid. This happened one week before the [NFL Draft], and Maurice knew to avoid nonsense like that. This will all come out in the wash."
A Jaguars spokesman declined comment, and vice president of personnel James Harris didn't return a telephone call Friday.
Tuchman said his client was eating at a Denny's restaurant near the UCLA campus when Manning began taunting him "for being a geek'' because Soroush was using a laptop computer.
When Soroush complained to a manager, Tuchman alleges that his client was cornered in a restaurant bathroom, then forced outside and beaten unconscious in the parking lot.
Manning was arrested immediately, but Tuchman included Drew in the lawsuit after interviewing witnesses. Tuchman said three witnesses signed statements that identified Drew as punching Soroush in the face and stomping him in the head.
Soroush is seeing a neurologist and might require knee and shoulder surgery because of the beating, Tuchman said.
Although Drew turned himself in this week, the Los Angeles district attorney's office confirmed Friday that it mistakenly said in a news release Thursday that the Jaguars rookie was arrested and released on bail the morning of the incident.
District attorney's office spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons said the release, which received widespread national publicity, was incorrectly written by a junior staff member.
"It was our mistake, and it will be corrected," Gibbons said. "Drew was never arrested, but there was a warrant out for him."
John McCain Heckled At The New School in NYC - CNN
CNN reports that Senator John McCain was heckled at the New School. This video lampoons his appearance at Liberty University with Jerry Falwell, an extreme right-wing conservative. The CNN report follows the video.
McCain heckled at commencement speech
Some at New School booed, turned backs on Arizona senator
From Mary Snow
CNN
Friday, May 19, 2006; Posted: 9:19 p.m. EDT (01:19 GMT)
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Sen. John McCain was booed and heckled as he delivered the commencement address at The New School on Friday in New York.
The protesting students pointed to the Arizona Republican's speech last week at the conservative Liberty University run by the Rev. Jerry Falwell as proof that McCain clashed with the school's liberal ideals.
"McCain does not speak for me," read orange signs held by dozens in the audience, while dozens more turned their backs for the duration of McCain's speech. (Watch as students turn their backs on McCain -- 2:01)
Some students had petitioned New School President -- and former Democratic senator -- Bob Kerrey to withdraw McCain's invitation to speak, saying they didn't want the Arizonan to use their graduation ceremony as a platform for a potential run for president in 2008.
One student speaker, Jean Sara Rohe, tossed her prepared remarks to inject her own political beliefs.
"I do know that pre-emptive war is dangerous and wrong, and I know that George Bush's agenda in Iraq is not worth the many lives lost," she said to cheers.
For his part, McCain stuck to his script, which was basically the same speech he delivered at Liberty University to a warm reception. In Manhattan, however, he was jeered when he told the 2,700 graduates and others in the audience that he "supported the decision to go to war in Iraq.
"Many Americans did not," he said. "My patriotism and my conscience required me to support it and to engage in the debate over whether and how to fight it."
McCain, who was both cheered and booed at the end of his remarks, did not address the hecklers, but Kerrey did.
"You heard and saw two acts of bravery," the former senator said after the speeches of McCain and Rohe. "There will come a time when you will have to answer the question -- will you stand -- not heckling from an audience where no bravery is required -- but will you stand and say what you believe when you know that heckling and laughter and boos will arise?"
McCain heckled at commencement speech
Some at New School booed, turned backs on Arizona senator
From Mary Snow
CNN
Friday, May 19, 2006; Posted: 9:19 p.m. EDT (01:19 GMT)
NEW YORK (CNN) -- Sen. John McCain was booed and heckled as he delivered the commencement address at The New School on Friday in New York.
The protesting students pointed to the Arizona Republican's speech last week at the conservative Liberty University run by the Rev. Jerry Falwell as proof that McCain clashed with the school's liberal ideals.
"McCain does not speak for me," read orange signs held by dozens in the audience, while dozens more turned their backs for the duration of McCain's speech. (Watch as students turn their backs on McCain -- 2:01)
Some students had petitioned New School President -- and former Democratic senator -- Bob Kerrey to withdraw McCain's invitation to speak, saying they didn't want the Arizonan to use their graduation ceremony as a platform for a potential run for president in 2008.
One student speaker, Jean Sara Rohe, tossed her prepared remarks to inject her own political beliefs.
"I do know that pre-emptive war is dangerous and wrong, and I know that George Bush's agenda in Iraq is not worth the many lives lost," she said to cheers.
For his part, McCain stuck to his script, which was basically the same speech he delivered at Liberty University to a warm reception. In Manhattan, however, he was jeered when he told the 2,700 graduates and others in the audience that he "supported the decision to go to war in Iraq.
"Many Americans did not," he said. "My patriotism and my conscience required me to support it and to engage in the debate over whether and how to fight it."
McCain, who was both cheered and booed at the end of his remarks, did not address the hecklers, but Kerrey did.
"You heard and saw two acts of bravery," the former senator said after the speeches of McCain and Rohe. "There will come a time when you will have to answer the question -- will you stand -- not heckling from an audience where no bravery is required -- but will you stand and say what you believe when you know that heckling and laughter and boos will arise?"
Brianna Keilar's Now Anchoring CNN Saturday! I'm Watching Now!
Remember my friend Brianna Keilar, who at the 2005 NFL Draft said her dream was to be an anchor for CNN? Well, she's now hosting CNN Saturday, the weekend morrning show -- as I write this -- and if I can say so biasedly, is doing a pretty good job!
Last week, I saw her with Wolf Blizer on his show "Late Edition"
Wow, things can happen fast! I'm really happy for her.
Brianna Keilar Gets More Airtime | Brianna Keilar and Kyra Phillips | Brianna Keilar On CNN Saturday | Brianna Keilar Now CNN Anchor | Brianna Keilar At 2005 NFL Draft
Friday, May 19, 2006
Lou Dobbs Is Obsessed With Taking Spanish Out Of America - He Grills CNN's Suzanne Malveaux On The Spanish Version of White House Website
I just witnessed a weird exchange between CNN's Lou Dobbs and CNN White House Correspondent Suzanne Malveaux, where he was litterally grilling her on why the White House issued a Spanish Language version of their news on the White House website. Her response was reasoned and professional "Well the White House needs to communicate a message." But that wasn't enough for him; he just pressed on.
Suzanne explained that an executive order placed by President Clinton caused the installation of Spanish versions of the White House webpages that communicate news. Lou basically suggested that President Bush reverse that order.
Lou came off as a flaming racist. It was a terrible display and CNN should haul this guy in.
Commissioner Tagliabue Gives One Hell Of A Speech To Georgetown Graduates
I don't write this to be self-serving. It's a great speech. Great in that it's right for it's time and given by a person who's travels around the World and influnce not just on sports but modern industrial society give him the perfect platform of experience to give a message to young people just graduating from college. Commissioner Tagliabue wastes no time or energy in delivering the message of how important it is for all of us to understand and embrace diversity, adversity, and change. I hope it's a speech that will be replicated around the Internet.
Remarks by Paul Tagliabue
Commissioner, National Football League
at
Georgetown University
Senior Class Convocation
May 18, 2006
Thank you, and congratulations, everyone!
President DeGioia, distinguished members of the faculty and administration, parents and friends, and graduates.
It's always a joy to come back to Georgetown. I arrived here in 1958 on a basketball scholarship, back when Georgetown basketball was not exactly played at today's talent levels.
It's been more than four decades, and I guess some of you are thinking that I haven't traveled very far since I left here in 1962 -- all the way from the basketball court to the football field!
Actually, it's been quite an adventure -- and it's far from over.
My four years on this campus began a process of personal transformation that has never stopped.
I was the first in my family to go away to college. It was heady stuff to do so on a Jesuit campus, with gothic architecture and in the nation's capital.
Coming here, I was very excited about both my academic prospects and my basketball prospects.
I quickly learned that life inevitably requires making choices and setting priorities.
Over the objection of the admissions staff and everyone else who could read a high school transcript, I had insisted that I wanted to major in math. So I was admitted to Georgetown as a math major -- no doubt partly because I was a hot basketball recruit.
My first math mid-term exams were a disaster. That was a shock to me. The admissions staff had been right. By my second semester, I was headed to linguistics, philosophy or political science.
It was a real learning experience: expect adversity in life and always be prepared to recommit your talents to create new opportunities.
By my junior year, my love for basketball was losing out to my love for the library. I was more interested in debating communism and democracy with the political science faculty than in shooting baskets. Many of my professors had emigrated here from behind the Iron Curtain, and they had so much to teach me.
In my senior year, my most memorable basketball game was in Madison Square Garden. It's memorable because I missed it to participate as a finalist in the Rhodes Scholarship competition.
I didn't win the Rhodes, but I did land a full academic scholarship in a special inter-disciplinary program at NYU Law School.
See what I mean when I say that my four years here began to transform my life?
So here we are. You're graduating and I'm retiring! And we're all wondering what's next!
That's an exciting place to be in life. Especially when you're moving into the next stage of your life, armed with the fine education we have all received at Georgetown.
As you know, I've been very fortunate to have had several careers for about four decades -- as lawyer and chief executive -- in the remarkable business of football.
These decades have seen dramatic changes in professional sports. An explosion of leagues and teams in many different sports. Professional leagues for outstanding female athletes. The globalization of athletic competition.
But as dramatic as the changes have been, the pace of change and diversity is accelerating around the world. In America, it's being driven by sweeping demographic change and technological innovations, including the internet and digital revolutions.
This is really the crux of my message: this diversity and accelerating change in professional sports is only a microcosm of the world that you are entering.
In the years ahead, how you and your generation deal with change, and the pace of change — how you deal with diversity and human differences around the globe — these will profoundly shape your life, and the life of our nation and the world in this new century.
As the world shrinks, you will come face to face with competing cultures, faiths, traditions, economies and political systems. Your challenge will be to create the future with hope and vision -- with willingness to embrace difference and innovation -- not to retreat in fear or with a reactionary clinging to the status quo.
You have been grounded by this University in the intellectual and spiritual traditions of the Western Enlightenment and Christian, Islamic and Jewish beliefs and values. I hope you have also encountered the great traditions of the East in your work here.
At their best, our Western traditions teach us two fundamental habits of the heart:
First, to seek our common humanity and the values we share with those who differ from us, while staying fully connected to our own roots in family, friends, faith and community.
Second, to expect difference and change, and to welcome them with openness, founded on ever-deepening knowledge of ourselves and others.
To follow this path, it's essential that we continue the life of the mind throughout our lives.
Georgetown is where you and I seriously began developing this life.
Don't ever let it stop growing. Whatever field you're in, whatever endeavor you undertake, you will need it.
Today, you have only begun to know and understand the complex philosophical, cultural, economic, political, and religious forces that have shaped your life and the world up to this point.
For the rest of your life, you'll have many opportunities to deepen your knowledge of your own heritage and values, often by engaging with people who are different from you. Use those opportunities. Never stop being curious about the world.
Pursue multiple and varied careers -- in government, in not-for-profits, in law or academia, in business. And you'll be amazed how your varied careers will serve as a seamless learning journey.
That has been my experience.
At Georgetown, I learned a lot about the human condition and world affairs from books and professors. That changed when I left here.
In the spring of 1962, I graduated from this place.
My parents' way of saying thanks to me for a job well done was to send me on a trip. So that August, I went to Europe. I was in Germany for the first anniversary of the creation of the Berlin Wall. That was a stake in the heart of Germany designed to secure the Soviets' division of Germany and Europe.
As I look back, my visit at the Wall was the start of a series of memorable encounters with history in the making.
One year after my visit in Berlin, President Kennedy -- who had inspired all of us at Georgetown during his 1960 campaign -- spoke in Berlin about what that wall meant -- and how despicable it was for citizens in East Europe's Communist countries to be denied their freedom.
He spoke of the universal quest for freedom:
"You live in a defended island of freedom,
but your life is part of the main.
So let me ask you... to lift your eyes beyond the dangers of today,
to the hopes of tomorrow, ...
to the advance of freedom everywhere,
beyond the wall to the day of peace and justice,
beyond yourselves and ourselves
to all mankind."
Addressing the world beyond Berlin, President Kennedy responded to post-war change -- not with fear, but with openness and dedication to the values of free societies.
Fast forward to 1989.
In November of 1989, I became the Commissioner of the National Football League. In that same week, the Berlin Wall came down and the people of Germany intensified their quest for freedom.
To celebrate the Wall's demise we considered playing an NFL game in Berlin's Olympic Stadium in the summer of 1990.
Here I was, in another phase of my life, again encountering Berlin.
But wait. How could the NFL play in a stadium built by Hitler for the 1936 Olympics?
How could we have two NFL teams play in the venue where Hitler celebrated the supposed superiority of the Aryan people?
We couldn't -- not without fully understanding the history and weighing the competing values.
In fact, in Berlin's Olympic Stadium in 1936, the great African-American sprinter Jesse Owens demonstrated that Hitler's theories of racism and ethnic superiority were bunk. So we played the game to celebrate Jesse Owens' victory for human rights and our common humanity.
Fast forward to 2006.
We now have an NFL league in Europe with five teams in Germany. As a result, I was recently honored to be part of a small, private meeting with the new Chancellor of Germany, Angela Merkel.
That meeting completed my circle of experiences with freedom in Central Europe, dating back to my first visit to the Berlin Wall 44 years ago, less than three months after my graduation from Georgetown.
Chancellor Merkel grew up in the former East Germany, as a Protestant and a physicist. Having lived in a totalitarian state, she knows the meaning of freedom in a way most of us will never experience. The collapse of the Berlin Wall allowed her to rise to a position of leadership in a free democratic society.
As I listened to Chancellor Merkel, I realized that we were in the presence of a leader with courage of conviction like President Kennedy. Despite their markedly different backgrounds, Chancellor Merkel -- like Kennedy -- is passionate about freedom and responding to new conditions with confidence, openness, and a deep understanding of both Western and other values.
Many of you will now pursue personal journeys of your own. As you do, I hope that your generation in America and elsewhere in Europe will learn to understand each other. Will you get to know each other? Or will you let differences over economic policies, the war in Iraq or human rights change and harden what we and the people of other nations think of each other?
Be curious and probing. Find out for yourselves whether Western Europe is now an "old Europe" with whom we have little in common, or an experienced Europe from whom we can learn a lot. Engage with your peers in European countries -- both West and East -- where our traditions are rooted.
And keep an eye on Angela Merkel and other emerging leaders who can be common heroes for your generation of Americans and Europeans. In my generation, we shared President Kennedy and West Berlin's Mayor Willy Brandt. In your generation, will you share Chancellor Merkel, Lech Walesa, Vaclav Havel and others who have pursued freedom and our common values.
There's another aspect to this business of looking outward, being open to differences and unafraid of change. It has to do with the great societies and religions of the Middle East and Asia, the emerging economic and political powerhouses of China and India, and the pace of global change.
As a business leader, it had become clear to me even before the horrors of 9/11, that those of us in the West needed to deepen our understanding of Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Taoism and the values we all share, whatever our faith or culture.
In my day, the emphasis at Georgetown was on Western faiths, culture and history, largely Christianity, Islam and Judaism. I am grateful for having been grounded in that tradition.
Because of that gratitude, my relationship with Georgetown didn't end with graduation. This school will always be part of your life. Stay connected to it. America needs universities like this one. You can help Georgetown evolve as the world evolves.
Georgetown's leaders recognize that the College I knew in the '60s would no longer meet the needs of today's world. Scholarship today must bridge East and West.
That's the belief that motivated my wife Chan and me to endow a Professorship in Interfaith and Intercultural Studies a few years ago. And we are thrilled to see the University's leaders run with this idea by developing an entire curriculum across the spectrum of the University.
It's great to see new programs like the "Building Bridges" Conference organized with the Archbishop of Canterbury… like scholarly panels on "Religion and Politics" ... and assessments of Islam in western democracies.
After traveling in Japan and China recently, I'm more certain than ever that we Americans need to engage in more interfaith, intercultural study and dialogue.
Your generation -- and mine -- needs to immerse itself in Asia. That's one reason Chan and I will be traveling to Bhutan and India this fall -- and why we are looking hard at living in China sometime in the near future, maybe associated with a university or other organization.
You know, many of us tend to think we're so different from the Chinese. And we certainly are in many respects. But in some very fundamental ways, we may soon be finding more similarities than differences. What are they, how do we identify them, and will our similarities develop into common interests?
Last spring, Chan and I traveled in China with an NFL group, including an Eagles all-pro player, Chad Lewis. Chad has lived in Asia and is fluent in Mandarin, so he helped explain American football to the school administrators, mayors and others we met in Shanghai and Beijing. We had a great experience, speaking at middle schools, parents' meetings and universities.
When I spoke about football, the Chinese were not shy about telling me that they thought our game represents the worst of American values: violence and unfettered competition at the expense of others. Their values, they told me, are all about collective interests, teamwork, support for comrades and non-violence.
"On the contrary," I explained. "Football isn't about violence. It's about dealing with adversity. It is a metaphor for life's challenges. It's all about commitment, work ethic, common goals pursued both individually and through teamwork."
They were fascinated. As we talked more, we both discovered that in sports, we have more in common with each other than either of us realized.
Along with their touted non-violent sport, table tennis, the Chinese thrive on Tai Kwan Do. They're as passionate about it as we are about football. And guess what. It's all about learning to deal with adversity -- pushing athletes in structured, physical competition to their physical and psychological limits.
You should see the equipment! Helmets, chest pads and arm braces that look like something the Green Bay Packers would wear. Taken straight from NFL locker rooms!
My point is, hidden beneath the differences of culture and decades of little dialogue or contact, we share the most basic interests and human impulses, including the impulse to test our limits and those of our colleagues in competitive sports.
That's not to say that our societies and nations don't have deep and abiding differences. We certainly do.
During our visit, we also met with many media and business leaders as well as government officials, including China's Foreign Minister, Li Zhaoxing. In earlier careers, he was a literature professor, Shakespeare scholar, and poet who has held senior positions at the Chinese embassy here in Washington.
In his office, Minister Li opened our eyes to aspects of China that resonated close to home. He gave us gifts, several books, one on Pandas for my grandchildren, and a volume of his own poetry. In leafing through this volume, we found one intriguing poem composed by Minister Li that had been inspired by his conversations with close American friends at the Sam Clemens Museum in Hartford, Connecticut. The poem recalls the Minister's experiences as a boy with his grandmother on her farm in China and relates them to the experiences of "the honest and lovable little boy Huckleberry Finn..."
Ping pong. Tai Kwan Do. Capitalism parading as socialism. A burgeoning middle class in coastal provinces. Poverty and unrest in rural areas. A cultured and sensitive Shakespeare scholar and diplomat who reads Mark Twain and knows Huck Finn. I ask you which is the real China?
I guess they could ask the same question about us. Red states, blue states. Christians, Jews, Muslims. Liberals, conservatives. Blacks, whites, Hispanics, Asians, immigrants from all over the world. Gays, straights. Which is the real America?
The real America and the real China are ever-changing at some levels and ever-constant at other levels. And how our society connects with theirs -- or doesn't -- will shape the century to come.
How we deal with the vast array of human differences in our own country and around the world — how we face the inevitable changes of a shrinking globe — will test our strength and challenge our capacity to work for the common good.
Will we seek connection based on our common humanity, or will we turn our backs on the core teaching of all the great faiths -- that the world's people are one?
Georgetown has provided you with a firm foundation of knowledge and skill with which to delve into questions such as these. Use it. Develop it.
Georgetown will continue to provide leadership and resources to enable Americans and others from around the globe to provide well-grounded and balanced perspectives on questions such as these.
Support Georgetown when it does so and participate in these efforts.
I've talked a lot today about freedom, and I should conclude now by letting you all go free to enjoy the rest of this very special weekend.
But first a concluding thought.
Martin Luther King -- one of my generation's most inspiring leaders -- was jailed in Birmingham, Alabama, in the spring of 1963 for his leadership in pursuing justice and equal rights for African-Americans. In a letter from this Birmingham jail, King emphasized the universality of the quest for freedom and justice. He wrote:
"I am cognizant of the interrelatedness of all communities and states… Injustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere. We are caught in an inescapable network of mutuality, tied in a single garment of destiny. Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly."
In the 21st century, this "interrelatedness" is far deeper, swifter and broader, so you too are tied together in a single garment of destiny -- with billions of others.
You are going forth now into a world of unimaginable openness and change and diversity. Hold tightly to a never-ending quest for knowledge, understanding and tolerance -- across continents, cultures, faiths and other differences -- and it will serve you well.
That should be your game plan, as we say in football. Now it's up to each of us to participate fully, to lead and to ensure continued human progress in the new 21st century global environment.
Today, more than ever, the world needs your gifts, your values, your integrity, and your willingness to explore.
The world needs your confident conviction when certainty is called for, and it needs your confident skepticism when new insights are called for.
You have my best wishes and sincere congratulations.
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