As we end one year and begin another, it is proper to make resolutions. My resolutions are for the Top Ten things that I want to see in the Wonderful World of Sports. These are not all serious, but in my sometimes very wild dreams, these are the advances in sports that I want to see. Here you go.
1. The Ohio State Buckeyes are in the college football playoffs. This is an easy one as the Buckeyes will romp through the Big Ten and qualify for the new NCAA playoffs.
2. The Cleveland Browns will make the playoffs. If they would have learned to win earlier in the 2012 season, they would have qualified in 2012. Next year, the Browns are a shoe-in.
3. The Detroit Tigers win the World Series. It’s the law of averages. They lost in 2006. They lost in 2012. They are too talented to lose a third time.
4. Watch the New York Yankees finish under five hundred. Professional sports teams cannot live off their reputations forever. The Yankees are too old to keep winning. The younger Steinbrenners seem to be too cheap to keep up with expectations. Without money, they will not be competitive. Sorry Derek.
5. The Red Sox move to the International League. If you saw them play in 2012, you know they might think they are already there. The Columbus Clippers are a more talented team.
6. The Wolverines leave the Big Ten as the State of Michigan is forced to secede. Okay, I am a Buckeye and these resolutions are things I want to have happen. A guy can dream, can’t he? All Midwesterners have the same question: What value does the State of Michigan bring to the Nation? Encourage them to leave.
7. College conferences remain stable. With all the shuffling between conferences, soon DeVry will join the Big East and the Boston Police Academy will be in the Ivy League. Let’s make it a crime to change confererences.
8. Let the ice melt in the hockey arenas as we wait for the NHL to end their lockout. Does anyone still care about the National Hockey League? Forget professional hockey; too many lockouts; too many petty, selfish owners. The players can find a team in Europe and former fans can spend the winter watching NBA and learning curling.
9. Make fishing an Olympic sport. They took baseball out of the Olympics even though it is played in many countries, so why not substitute it with something done absolutely everywhere?
10. Eliminate the gutters in bowling. My score needs the help.