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The Real Story Of The World Cup
After all the talk of diving in soccer yesterday, we couldn't possibly have been happier to receive this comprehensive study from "Information Builders." The point of the study is to look at the World Cup so far — up to but not including this morning's Germany-Argentina game — and tally which teams ...

Randy Walker, R.I.P.
Randy Walker, head coach of the Northwestern Wildcats, died last night of a heart attack. The former Miami of Ohio coach — that school has produced an amazing number of coaches, by the way, from Woody Hayes to Bo Schembechler to Ara Parseghian — had just signed a contract extension in April that wou...

Live Blog: Germany Vs. Argentina
And, at last, after a whole two days without soccer, the quarterfinals have begun, in what we think is probably the best quarterfinal matchup of all. The Argentinians have often looked like the best team here, but the Germans, you know, they're hosting, and they've looked doggone good themselves. ...

Eddie Griffin Needs To Mind His Surroundings
OK, so we formally apologize for taking until 10 a.m. today to get to this. It's been a busy morning....

Hirshey: Now It REALLY Begins
David Hirshey is writing throughout the World Cup....

Get Your Isiah Popcorn Here!
Just to be cheap and pile on, we found this site which allows you to "become a Dale and Thomas popcorn affiliate. According to the site:...

To Watch Tonight
What to watch after you've done your part for charity ... • NASCAR Busch Series: practice for Winn-Dixie 250, at Daytona Beach, Fla. Yeah, we tried to use that line to get out of a speeding ticket once. [Speed Channel] • Golf: PGA Tour, Buick Championship, first round, at Cromwell, Conn. This had be...

Illini Reunited In ... Utah! Go Jazz!
Forgive us a tiny bit of indulgence here, but our ultimate takeaway from the NBA Draft last evening was not the million Portland trades, Isiah Thomas' fumbling, Dan Patrick and David Stern's pissing contest or even the insane convergence of Michael Jordan and a guy who cries with two second left in ...

Diver Down
An oft-forwarded Slate piece written this week attempts to answer the question: What's wrong with diving in soccer? The mock, oh-lord-god-help-me-it-HURTS! soccer move that so infuriates Americans — most memorably demonstrated in a Dave Eggers essay — is probably the biggest roadblock to the sport c...

So Long, Wimbledon. See You Next Year!
Well, we missed possibly the greatest match ever in women's professional tennis. Damn it. Earlier today, Russia's Maria Sharapova met Ashley Harkleroad of the U.S. in Day Four Qualifying at Wimbledon, with the fourth-ranked Sharapova coming away with a 6-2, 6-2 victory (like the score mattered). M...

Knicks Fans Share The Love
Earlier today we introduced you (and several NBA GMs, no doubt) to Knicks' No. 1 draft pick Renaldo Balkman. We'd like to formerly thank Isiah Thomas for making this selection, as it makes our job here so much easier than if he, say, picked someone logical. Knicks' fans, however, are not quite as ha...

Isiah Thomas' Secret Genius
While digging through the breathtaking True Hoop coverage, and after watching Jay Bilas look flabbergasted on "SportsCenter" this morning, we are pleased to report that one of the top stories the day after the NBA Draft is a familiar one: Isiah Thomas is an idiot!...

To Watch Tonight
What to watch as Germany runs out of beer (sad, really) ... • Boxing: Heavyweights, Dominick Guinn vs. Tony Thompson, at San Jose, Calif. There's nothing like 300-pound men clinching in high-definition to get us through the middle of the week. [ESPN2] • MLB: N.Y. Mets at Boston. Perhaps a new rivalr...

Hirshey: France Is Dead, Long Live France!
Admit it: After weeks of watching the Beckhams , Ballacks , Figos and Tonis and the rest of the preening World Cup showponies parade their smoldering good looks and luxuriant manes around the field after a match, didn't it feel good yesterday to see a couple of ancient chrome domes like Zidane and B...

All Hail The Glorious People's Italian Football Collective!
Reverberations from Italy's 1-0 World Cup win over Australia on Monday continue. The Italians won on a disputed penalty kick in the final seconds of stoppage time, and it's caused a whole fuss. Australian assistant coach Graham Arnold told the Australia Daily Telegraph that "FIFA didn't want us here...

To Watch Tonight
What to watch as you question a world in which God allows this to happen... • Golf: ING Par 3 Shootout, final day, at Gaylord, Mich. We've been golfing for 15 years. What is this "par" you speak of? [ESPN2] • WNBA: Sacramento at Seattle. Let's see, OK ... the nicknames are, Monarchs, and ... damn it...

Last Post On Mariotti/Guillen, Honest
OK, we promise: Last Ozzie Guillen-Jay Mariotti related post of the week, unless one of them ends up being caught drunk on camera, forcing us all to become dirty voyeurs....

Live Blog: Spain Vs. France
A little way to keep yourself entertained during this World Cup if you happen to be the sort who has trouble retaining interest? Pretend the countries are their corresponding characters in "Mike Tyson's Punch Out." Therefore, this one is Don Flamenco vs. Glass Joe. There. Don't you feel better? Yo...

Jay The Joke: For All Your Jay Mariotti Mocking Needs
For skewering of our friend Jay Mariotti, quite frankly, we like to think we take a back seat to no one. Well, excepting perhaps Jay the Joke, a new blog dedicated to, as they put it "uniting Cubs fans and Sox fans through a common hatred of Jay Mariotti." And in so doing, does this blog not unite...

Just Can't Live Without Your Radio
MediaBistro's Fishbowl NY blog points out a brand new feature on Sirius Satellite Radio: It's Wimbeldon on the radio!...