Deadspin: sportshuman of the year

Your SHOTY Winner: Isiah Thomas

Leitch — Fri, 11 Jan 2008 14:20:53 EST

We would like to congratulate Isiah Thomas on his ascendence to the lofty perch of 2007 Deadspin Sportshuman Of The Year.

Isiah's heroic rise from a No. 8 seed was inspiring to anyone whose heart is not cold, withered and dead. He joins the late, great Barbaro as SHOTY winners. Hopefully Isiah survives the title.

Also, a great run for Kige Ramsey, who finished as the runner-up. There's always next year, Kige.

Thanks everyone for voting.

(Graphic by the moonwalking Jim Cooke.)

SHOTY Title Game: Kige Ramsey Vs. Isiah Thomas

Leitch — Mon, 07 Jan 2008 14:20:23 EST

Well, we've come this far, and now it's time to crown a 2007 Sportshuman Of The Year. Fortunately, it didn't take very long.

Voting is open until Thursday night. So you have plenty of time to mull. Our honored finalists.

No. 2 Seed Kige Ramsey
Carried around every book he ever owned in a belt.
Visited Wal-Mart.
Actively did some campaigning.
Expanded his commercial techniques.
Enjoyed Halloween.

No. 8 Seed Isiah Thomas
Don't give a shit about these white people, bitch.
Understands what black people can say, and what white people can't.
Explained sexual harassment to James Dolan.
Got gotten by the bitches.
Successful avoided Stephon Marbury's "dirt."

The vote is in your hands.

SHOTY Final Four: Elijah Dukes Vs. Isiah Thomas

Leitch — Mon, 31 Dec 2007 17:15:19 EST

Because it's New Years Eve, and we're taking tomorrow off, we figured we'd go ahead and let this post ride the rest of the night and all day tomorrow. (At least until we do our "ZOOOOK" post after the Illini shock the world in the Rose Bowl.)

The title matchup will be on Monday, and it looks like Kige Ramsey has himself a slot. But this one should close. Screw Iowa: The polls are already open here.

No. 4 Seed: Elijah Dukes

Explored the possibilities lent to us by cellular technology.
Impregnated a foster child.
Became a sports radio star.
You divorced, dawg.

It's a big week coming up, very busy, so vote tonight and on New Years Day, and we'll be back with a full slate on Wednesday. Be safe out there tonight.

SHOTY Final Four: Kige Ramsey Vs. Pac Man Jones

Leitch — Wed, 26 Dec 2007 14:20:35 EST

This is it, folks: We're at the Final Four. Look out: There's Billy Packer! Bah! Grrr!

Again, a matchup of polar opposite human beings. But, in that Tennessee Titans way, they are teammates. Voting is open for about a week, and we'll occasionally remind.

No. 2 Seed Kige Ramsey
Carried around every book he ever owned in a belt.
Visited Wal-Mart.
Actively did some campaigning.
Expanded his commercial techniques.
Enjoyed Halloween.

No. 3 Seed Pac Man Jones
Introduced the phrase "Make It Rain" to a nation of grateful white people.
Scared his family.
Missed out on watching Vince Young play quarterback this season.
Didn't rassle, darnit.

Get on there and vote, folks.

SHOTY Elite Eight: Pac Man Jones Vs. Sean Salisbury

Leitch — Thu, 20 Dec 2007 15:10:41 EST

As we eye that looming upset, we look at our final Elite Eight matchup.

By the way, the first final four matchup with be posted Wednesday, the day after Christmas — yes, we're working — and the second final four matchup will be posted on New Years Eve. We're working then too.

No. 6 Seed Sean Salisbury
Displayed his photographic skills.
Accidentally said "Jew."
Met The Balls.
Established a Web presence.

So, who makes the Final Four?

SHOTY Elite Eight: Ron Mexico Vs. Isiah Thomas

Leitch — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 14:20:13 EST

In the first round, No. 1 seed Ron Mexico/Michael Vick/Ookie was more wobbly than we might have suspected. He could be ripe for an Elite Eight upset.

So, let's get right to it:

No. 1 Seed Ron Mexico
Suffered some weed-stashing problems.
Appears to have electrocuted puppies.
Fessed up.
Mercifully suspended by the NFL.
Checked into prison.

So, let's see how this turns out.

SHOTY Elite Eight: Kige Ramsey Vs. Brady Quinn

Leitch — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 12:25:41 EST

UPDATE: Poll is now fixed. Sorry about that.
Only in this deranged universe of ours could these two human beings compete against each other in anything. One thing they do have in common: Neither has ever thrown an NFL pass.

Should be a fun one.

No. 2 Seed Kige Ramsey
Carried around every book he ever owned in a belt.
Visited Wal-Mart.
Actively did some campaigning.
Expanded his commercial techniques.
Enjoyed Halloween.

No. 7 Seed: Brady Quinn
Sat in a crowded room, then left.
Grabbed some underage crotch.
Went all dance party marathon on us.
Rocked out.

So, who's on the way to Final Four?

SHOTY Elite Eight: Elijah Dukes Vs. Gilbert Arenas

Leitch — Tue, 11 Dec 2007 14:20:24 EST

At last, we have completed the endless first round of the 2007 Sportshuman Of The Year tournament. It only took a month. Now we're down the nitty-gritty: The Elite Eight.

All seeds held in the first round, which just proves the seeding committee did a good job. (Note: This does not actually prove this.) So the big dawgs are all set for the second round ... and we've got a tough one right off the bat.

No. 4 Seed: Elijah Dukes

Explored the possibilities lent to us by cellular technology.
Impregnated a foster child.
Became a sports radio star.
You divorced, dawg.

No. 5 Seed Gilbert Arenas
Dunked off a trampoline.
Stole a joke.
Helped you with your love life.
Talked to us.

So, who makes the Final Four? Vote, vote like the wind.

SHOTY First Round: Isiah Thomas Vs. Marques Slocum

Leitch — Thu, 06 Dec 2007 15:10:20 EST

We come, AT LAST, to the end of the first round of SHOTY voting. Yes, it's taken a while; just be glad we have 16 competitors, rather than 64. We would have had to start in June.

Nothing has been close so far — though that Vick race was intriguingly close — but this is the 8-9 matchup. And it's two of our favorites; both are probably underseeded. So:

No. 9 Seed Marques Slocum
got a fuck lion now come fuck wit me.

So, vote: We're excited to see the results of this one.

SHOTY First Round: Ron Mexico Vs. Mark Mangino

Leitch — Tue, 04 Dec 2007 14:20:01 EST

Pretty much every first-round SHOTY matchup has been a blowout. And we doubt this No. 1 vs. No. 16 matchup will be much different.

The biggest trouble with this one? Whether to go with Vick, Mexico or Ookie.

No. 1 Seed Ron Mexico
Suffered some weed-stashing problems.
Appears to have electrocuted puppies.
Fessed up.
Mercifully suspended by the NFL.
Checked into prison.

No. 16 Seed Mark Mangino
Fat.

So, make your picks. The final first-round matchup is Thursday.

SHOTY First Round: Pac Man Jones Vs. Norby!

Leitch — Thu, 29 Nov 2007 15:10:03 EST

Every single SHOTY first-round matchup has been a blowout. We are not sure this will be any different; the Deadspin Planet is of one mind these days.

Anyway, here are two people who have probably never sat down together for tea, which is a shame; they might learn they have more in common than they think. Or maybe not.

No. 14 Seed Norby!
Co-authored a rather awesome memo
Has funny name.
"Hey, how are ya? Couple of things ..."

So, who's making it to the next round?

SHOTY First Round: Sean Salisbury Vs. Rick Ankiel

Leitch — Tue, 27 Nov 2007 14:20:25 EST

After almost a week off, the 2007 SHOTY Tournament returns with a matchup of two very different human beings.

All we know is that we're in love with them both.

No. 6 Seed Sean Salisbury
Displayed his photographic skills.
Accidentally said "Jew."
Met The Balls.
Established a Web presence.

No. 11 Seed Rick Ankiel
Returned.
Amazed.
Inspired.
Absolutely nothing else happened whatsoever, nope.

So, vote, kids.

SHOTY First Round: Gilbert Arenas Vs. Steely McBeam

Leitch — Wed, 21 Nov 2007 15:10:25 EST

It's SHOTY frenzy this week; two in two days. You now can spend your Thanksgiving playing around with online polls. Fun!

We haven't had any close races in the SHOTY yet. We'll see how this one goes.

No. 5 Seed Gilbert Arenas
Dunked off a trampoline.
Stole a joke.
Helped you with your love life.
Talked to us.

No. 12 Seed Steely McBeam

Introduced as FABULOUS.
Impersonated a Village Person.

So, who wins?

SHOTY First Round: Kige Ramsey Vs. Joey Chestnut

Leitch — Tue, 20 Nov 2007 14:20:18 EST

Because Thursday is, you know, Thanksgiving, we're gonna have voting both today and tomorrow. It'll put you in the mood for tryptophan.

It's No. 2 seed Kige Ramsey vs. No. 15 seed Joey Chestnut. We think in real life, these guys might be friends.

No. 2 Seed Kige Ramsey
Carried around every book he ever owned in a belt.
Visited Wal-Mart.
Actively did some campaigning.
Expanded his commercial techniques.
Enjoyed Halloween.

No. 15 Seed Joey Chestnut

Became an American hero.

So, get out there and vote!

SHOTY First Round: Brady Quinn Vs. Alex Rodriguez

Leitch — Thu, 15 Nov 2007 13:35:33 EST

The first matchup, on Tuesday, was a blowout. We suspect this one will be a little closer.

It's No. 7 seed Brady Quinn against No. 10 seed Alex Rodriguez. We don't know if these two are friends, but maybe they should be: They probably would have a lot to talk about.

No. 7 Seed: Brady Quinn
Sat in a crowded room, then left.
Grabbed some underage crotch.
Went all dance party marathon on us.
Rocked out.

No. 10 Seed: Alex Rodriguez
"Wrote" a children's book.
Dug deep.
Made friends with "she-male, muscular types."
Opted out while we were occupied with other matters.
Changed his mind. Maybe.

So, who's gonna make the Elite Eight? Vote below.

SHOTY First Round: Elijah Dukes Vs. Jeff Reed

Leitch — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 14:20:51 EST

OK, folks ... it's time for the voting to begin. Let's all give big-up to the genius that is Jim Cooke for his official SHOTY graphic. The 2007 SHOTY voting will run every Tuesday and Thursday until, well, 2008 probably. We love Kige there.

Voting will remain open until the end of the first round ... so let's get started. It's No. 4 seed Elijah Dukes vs. No. 13 Jeff Reed. A look at the nominees:

No. 4 Seed: Elijah Dukes

Explored the possibilities lent to us by cellular technology.
Impregnated a foster child.
Became a sports radio star.
You divorced, dawg.

No. 13 Seed Josh Reed

Revealed some kicker dong.
Partied.
Partied some more.

So, go vote: Who makes it to the Final Eight?

Time For 2007 SHOTY Nominations

Leitch — Tue, 06 Nov 2007 18:45:11 EST

It might seem a little early to you, but trust us, we did the math: It isn't. It's time to start taking nominations for the 2007 Sportshuman Of The Year. You should have seen this coming when the ads for Santa Claus movies started popping up.

Last year's winner, of course, was the great Barbaro, though he was forced to abdicate his throne. (Because he died. You see.) Who will this year's winner be? We shiver in anticipation, and because it's cold.

The voting itself will begin a week from today, but we ask for your nominations for the 16-human bracket. We have a few thoughts on potential nominees ourselves, but we ask, first, for yours.

And yep: It gets later earlier, every year.

Your SHOTY Winner: Barbaro

Leitch — Mon, 08 Jan 2007 14:00:07 EST

All right, well, after nearly two months of voting, we finally have a winner of the 2006 Sportshuman Of The Year tournament ... and, alas, it is not a human.

With a last-day surge that reeks of voting irregularities, the great Barbaro has overcome Chris Berman's October surprise and won the 2006 SHOTY Tournament. As with the Carl Monday voting, Barbaro came from behind late: Even with a bum leg, the fella can finish.

We think this vote might be a little bogus and have a feeling some creative scripting was done to stack the vote totals ... but we're not going to get worked up about it. As we said with the "Run Dinosaur Run" Hall of Fame induction: "Stuffing online ballot boxes for an obscure phrase about a furry dinosaur seems like the very definition of the Deadspin way." The same goes for a horse.

Congratulations, Barbaro. From champion, to potential glue, to the SHOTY Champ. Heckuva year.

SHOTY Final: Chris Berman Vs. Barbaro [Deadspin]

(Note: Contrary to what Barbaro's Wikipedia page might say, we do not, in fact, earn a ride on Barbaro because he won this tourney. But a man can dream!)

SHOTY Final: Chris Berman Vs. Barbaro

Leitch — Thu, 04 Jan 2007 16:30:54 EST

Well, while we were gone, the late rush of Barbaro votes came in, and he edged out Carl Monday right after the new year, sending him into the final with, of course, Chris Berman, who has yet to be challenged. We suspect he's in for one now.

This whole tourney has gone on too long already — it is 2007, after all — so this will run until Monday at noon ET, at which time we will crown the inaugural champ. You know the rules. Get to voting.

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Carl Monday Vs. Barbaro

Leitch — Thu, 21 Dec 2006 14:00:29 EST

And here we are, the matchup we are personally most curious about, the one featuring the infamous Carl Monday and good ole Barbaro, who would be a late charger if only his hoof would grow. We have been looking forward to this one since this got started.

The polls for the semis will be open all the way through the holidays, until January 4, so feel free to take your time making up your mind. Because it's for all the marbles, as they say. And we mean marbles: We're going to send marbles to the winner. Here's the most recent bracket:

The matchup breakdown:

No. 2 Seed: Carl Monday
2006 Highlights
Blew the lid off a nationwide epidemic.
Inspired one of the few amusing Dilbert parodies we've ever seen.
Went after poor Mike Cooper one more time, just for good times' sake.
Inspired his own minor league baseball promotion.
Hit the big time of "The Daily Show."
Became a popular Halloween costume.

No. 3 Seed: Barbaro
2006 Highlights
Crashed out at the Preakness.
Inspired some amazing letters (and haiku!).
Banged a woman, fictionally.
Didn't die. In fact, got, uh, a few more letters.

So, go vote: Who is headed for the SHOTY Title Game?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Chris Berman Vs. Harold Reynolds

Leitch — Tue, 19 Dec 2006 14:00:00 EST

All right, here we are: It's time for the Final Four. We have our ESPN side of the bracket, and then our Masturbator Locator Vs. Horse side of the bracket. All four candidates are worthy. It's time for some tough decisions, people.

The matchup breakdown:

No. 1 Seed: Chris Berman
2006 Highlights
Changed the way you thought about pickup lines.
United Tony Kornheiser, Keith Olbermann, TRL, prime-time NBC programs and an awesome teenager who's "stupid, just stupid."
Spawned the first piece of Deadspin clothing.

No. 5 Seed: Harold Reynolds
2006 Highlights
Fired from ESPN for "undisclosed" reasons.
Hugged the wrong person at the wrong time.
Played awfully dumb.
Sued ESPN's ass.

So, go vote: Who is headed for the SHOTY Title Game?

Last Call For All SHOTY Voting

Leitch — Mon, 18 Dec 2006 15:15:41 EST

Tomorrow, the finals of the Sportshuman Of The Year tournament begin, and there's still some rather tight matchups. The semifinals themselves will run throughout the holiday season, and we'll continue with the finals on January 4, when we come back from vacation (which we'll also get into later this week).

So if you want to vote on any of the quarterfinals matchups, this is your last chance. (That Mariotti-Reynolds matchup is still awfully close.) Voting in polls is fun, after all.

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Jay Mariotti Vs. Harold Reynolds [Deadspin]

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Barbaro Vs. Ben Roethlisberger

Leitch — Thu, 14 Dec 2006 14:00:44 EST

We're to our final quarterfinal matchup, with the semis taking place next week in a torrent of voting mania. (Or something.) We encourage you all to vote on the extremely tight Mariotti-Reynolds matchup. First, a reminder of the bracket.

For all those who felt Barbaro was robbed in the Hall of Fame voting, here's another chance to show your support. Meanwhile, Ben Roethlisberger was dangerously close to becoming glue several times himself this year.

The matchup breakdown:

No. 3 Seed: Barbaro
2006 Highlights
Crashed out at the Preakness.
Inspired some amazing letters (and haiku!).
Banged a woman, fictionally.
Didn't die. In fact, got, uh, a few more letters.

No. 6 Seed: Ben Roethlisberger
2006 Highlights
Showed us just how to drink like a champion.
Celebrated winning a Super Bowl by cutting his hair.
Crashed his helmetless head into something made of concrete.
Lost an appendix.
Accepted that his team wasn't very good anymore.

So, go vote: Who is headed for the Final Four?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Jay Mariotti Vs. Harold Reynolds

Leitch — Tue, 12 Dec 2006 14:00:57 EST

We return to the SHOTY Tournament, with the final two quarterfinal matchups, today and Thursday. Of all the Elite Eight matchups, we think this might end up the closest. (The first two have been runaways, though you can still vote.) First, a reminder of the bracket.

It seems strange that of the two people involved this week, Harold Reynolds is the one who doesn't work for ESPN anymore. In fact, he's suing them. And we can never figure out if Jay Mariotti would vote for himself in these tournaments; after all, it does make him more famous.

The matchup breakdown:

No. 4 Seed: Jay Mariotti
2006 Highlights
Brought together the Cubs and the White Sox.
Shrunk from Ozzie Guillen's manly challenge.
Inspired a loving fan site.
Reveled in all the fame.
Declared war on Wikipedia using the famous "whining" method.

No. 5 Seed: Harold Reynolds
2006 Highlights
Fired from ESPN for "undisclosed" reasons.
Hugged the wrong person at the wrong time.
Played awfully dumb.
Sued ESPN's ass.

So, go vote: Who is headed for the Final Four?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Carl Monday Vs. Stephen A. Smith

Leitch — Thu, 07 Dec 2006 14:00:08 EST

All right: Time for the next step in the Elite Eight. This thing is gonna fly by now, by the way; the final two Elite Eight matchups will be next week, and then it's Final Four time, and then, jeez, then this whole virtual construction is completed. To remind you, here's the bracket (Berman's got a considerable lead over Leinart, but there's still time to vote.)

The lone break of seed in the first round involved Stephen A. Smith taking down Ozzie Guillen, a matchup that probably had the seeds reversed anyway. But he's got an awfully daunting foe this time: The infamous Carl Monday, who is everywhere, watching everything, keeping the streets safe. But you know that by now.

The matchup breakdown:

No. 10 Seed: Stephen A. Smith
2006 Highlights
Called David Letterman "Jay."
Begged for audience members.
Enjoyed many Cheesy Doodles.
Encouraged his audience to boo his guests.
Attempted to blame previous transgression on us.
Solved the crisis in the Middle East.

So, go vote: Who is headed for the Final Four?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Chris Berman Vs. Matt Leinart

Leitch — Tue, 05 Dec 2006 14:00:17 EST

At last: The first round is over, and we have our eight winners. For all the talk of potential upsets and the supposed mis-seeding of certain competitors, there was only one first round "upset": Stephen A. Smith took down Ozzie Guillen, and that was a shaky seed in the first place.

But now we're to the final eight, the Elite Eight, if you will, and it's gonna get tight. The updated bracket, from the great Jim Cooke:

So, time for the nitty-gritty. The final eight commences, with Chris Berman, who cruised past Farney in the first round, against Matt Leinart, who had little trouble with Rick Sutcliffe, who was unable to solve that thing. The tale of the tape.

No. 8 Seed: Matt Leinart
2006 Highlights
Drafted by The Buzzsaw That Is The Arizona Cardinals.
Consumated sexual relationship with Paris Hilton.
Impregnated USC basketball player.
Discovered what life with the Buzzsaw is really like.

So, go vote: Who is headed for the Final Four?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Barbaro Vs. Lamar Thomas

Leitch — Mon, 04 Dec 2006 14:00:00 EST

All right, we know this is supposed to just run Tuesdays and Thursdays, but we decided that we were too eager to finally get this first round overwith so we can start the second round tomorrow. (SI's curious pick of Mr. Wade made us decide to speed up the process a bit.) So, this is the final first round matchup, and it's the one many have been waiting for: The return of Barbaro, whose omission from the Deadspin Hall of Fame still rankles many out there. His inclusion here almost forced us into calling this the Sports Mammal Of The Year, but we thought that perhaps a bit too precious.

If you still want to vote for any of the other first-round matchups — and you can find them — today is your last day: All polls end at 10 a.m. ET tomorrow morning, with the second round also commencing tomorrow. So vote while you still can.

Anyway, our combatants today, in the final first-roundup matchup, are No. 3 seed Barbaro, who is everywhere and everything, and former Miami broadcaster Lamar Thomas, the No. 14 seed and decided underdog. (Especially considering that his famous video has been pulled off the Web.) But let's see how she goes.

No. 3 Seed: Barbaro
2006 Highlights
Crashed out at the Preakness.
Inspired some amazing letters (and haiku!).
Banged a woman, fictionally.
Didn't die. In fact, got, uh, a few more letters.

No. 14 Seed: Lamar Thomas
2006 Highlights
Redefined the notion of a "homer" announcer. Was fired.
Hell 2 Da Naw!

So, go vote: Who advances to the Elite Eight?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Ozzie Guillen Vs. Stephen A. Smith

Leitch — Thu, 30 Nov 2006 14:00:36 EST

Just two more first-round matchups left until the Elite Eight, and we've got a potential barnburner here today. (Does anyone other than Musberger use "barnburner" anymore? We like the term.)

It's No. 7 seed Ozzie Guillen — unfortunately in the opposite bracket of Jay Mariotti — against No. 10 seed Stephen A. Smith, two people whom, if they had a conversation, would be surprisingly boring, probably because it would be televised on ESPN 2 around 11 p.m., maybe, we think, whatever time they're running it now.

LET'S LOOK AT THE MATCHUP BECAUSE EVERYTHING IN THIS MATCHUP IS IMPORTANT.

No. 7 Seed: Ozzie Guillen
2006 Highlights
Controlled your ass.
Sent down a poor pitcher for not hitting someone on the other team.
Restored a somewhat damaged image by picking a fight with Jay Mariotti.
Drank down by several Chicago-area gay men.
Tried not to notice A-Rod's erection.

So, go vote: Who advances to the Elite Eight?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Jay Mariotti Vs. Darren Daulton

Leitch — Tue, 28 Nov 2006 14:00:40 EST

After nearly a week off, the Deadspin SHOTY Tournament kicks back up today — just three more first-round matchups left — with a guy who seemingly shows up every week around these parts, if just to make himself more famous, against a former Philadelphia hero who has only made Deadspin once, but in a rather glorious way.

It's No. 4 seed Jay Mariotti against No. 13 seed Darren Daulton, a matchup of two people who have never been in our kitchen.

Let's go to the videotape!

No. 13 Seed: Darren Daulton
2006 Highlights
Time-traveled in a way that was difficult for those of us who do not understand metaphysics to comprehend.

So, go vote: Who advances to the Elite Eight?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Chris Berman Vs. Farney

Leitch — Tue, 21 Nov 2006 14:00:14 EST

All right, after some wild voting irregularities yesterday — remember: The Deadspin way is not to raise too much issue with people cheering on their favorites in a poll on a silly blog — we have what we'd think would be a blowout today. But you never know: Someday a No. 16 WILL beat a No. 1. Probably not today, though.

By the way, voting for the first round will close the day after the final first-round matchup, in case you were wondering. So there's still time to vote if you haven't already.

But first, today's apparent mismatch: It's No. 1 seed Chris Berman taking on Farney, the imaginary friend of Cincinnati Reds utilityman Ryan Freel.

Let's go to the videotape!

No. 16 Seed: Farney
2006 Highlights
Advised his "friend" Ryan Freel to throw himself into walls.

So, go vote: Who advances to the Elite Eight?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Harold Reynolds Vs. Ned

Leitch — Mon, 20 Nov 2006 14:00:25 EST

Ordinarily, the SHOTY tournament will take place on Tuesdays and Thursdays, but this week, with that whole Thanksgiving business, we're going Monday-Tuesday this week. We hope your system can handle the shock.

Don't know if you've had a chance to look yet, but that Roethlisberger-Mikulik matchup? With more than 6,000 votes, Roethlisberger is up by four. That's four single votes. So if you haven't voted yet, go over there, because your vote will, in fact, count.

We've got another popular upset pick on the ballot today: ESPN outcast hugger Harold Reynolds takes on the legend that is Ned, the injured Florida International running back eager to hop on the field, crutches and all, and join the fight. It's a 5-12 battle, and we wouldn't be surprised if it's closer than you might think.

The tale ... of ... the tape!

No. 5 Seed: Harold Reynolds
2006 Highlights
Fired from ESPN for "undisclosed" reasons.
Hugged the wrong person at the wrong time.
Played awfully dumb.
Sued ESPN's ass.

No. 12 Seed: Ned
2006 Highlights
Had his teammates' back, totally.
Made it back out on the field.
Developed his own legend.

So, go vote: Who advances to the Elite Eight?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Carl Monday Vs. Ricky Manning Jr.

Leitch — Thu, 16 Nov 2006 14:00:00 EST

We're off to the next first-round matchup, and this one seems likely to be more of a blowout than the potential upset brewing in the Roethlisberger-Mikulik matchup. (Polls are open, by the way, until all first round matchups are completed.)

Today, it's No. 2 seed Carl Monday, who has gained a bit of notoriety around here, taking on notorious technophobe Ricky Manning, Jr., cornerback for the Chicago Bears.

It's a No. 2 vs. No. 15 battle; will we have a Iowa State-Hampton? Let's dig so deep into the faceoff that we won't be able to tell which end is up.

No. 15 Seed: Ricky Manning Jr.
2006 Highlights
Showed considerable displeasure with your computing technology.

So, go vote: Who advances to the Elite Eight?

Deadspin SHOTY Tournament: Ben Roethlisberger Vs. Joe Mikulik

Leitch — Tue, 14 Nov 2006 14:00:29 EST

All right, after what appears to be an easy victory for Matt Leinart last week, fellow losing-team quarterback Ben Roethlisberger enters the fray this week in the Deadspin Sportshuman Of The Year Tournament. (We're calling it "SHOTY.") He takes on famous freakout minor league manager Joe Mikulik in another first-round matchup.

The new graphic there, along with the full bracket after the jump, is another work from the genius mind of Jim Cooke, who famously did our Hall of Fame graphics. The man is, well, the man.

But for now ... to today's matchup. Here's the No. 6 vs. No. 11 tapetale!

No. 11 Seed: Joe Mikulik
2006 Highlights
Lost his goddamned mind. That's really enough. If you haven't watched the video, we highly encourage you to watch his meltdown again.

So, go vote: Who advances to the Elite Eight?

Introducing The Deadspin Sportshuman Of The Year Tournament

Leitch — Thu, 09 Nov 2006 14:00:17 EST

Since Sports Illustrated is making its unveiling of the 2006 Sportsman Of The Year award into a two-month enterprise, we figured we could do the same thing. Therefore, we are introducing the Deadspin Sportshuman Of The Year tournament, where 16 nominees will compete for the sainted title. We've put together the seeding, and you'll vote every Tuesday and Thursday to narrow the field down to one winner at the end of the year.

We'll have a fun bracket for you on Tuesday, filling in all the seeds, but we thought we'd start you off with an 8-9 seed battle. Only one can be crowned. Enjoy.

No. 9 Seed: Rick Sutcliffe
2006 Highlights
Partied with Bill Murray and then made the unfortunate decision to go live on the air. (Sadly, the video has been eradicated from the Internets, as far as we can tell.)
Suspended for going out there and trying to solve that thing.

So, go vote: Who advances to the Elite Eight?