Scrivener.net

[] Pro Football Reference.com continues to beat the spread.


[] The famous neurosurgeon says hockey should be sissified have the contact and violence taken out of it to reduce injuries. The famous former hockey player and current game commentator, voted "the seventh greatest Canadian" (by Canadians!), says hockey should be even more "rock 'em, sock 'em" than it is. Who's right? Discussed.


[] The Tax Foundation proposes a jobs creation program:

...one policy that would definitely create a lot of good-paying American jobs:

"The N.L. Should Be More Like the A.L. Act of 2009," which would "mandate that the National League enact a designated hitter rule or MLB lose its anti-trust exemption; and that the total number of roster spots increases by one."

At first, this would create 16 new jobs (number of N.L. teams). But think of all the other jobs. There will likely need to be more balls and bats ... more uniforms will be produced ... pitchers will probably be more likely to be hurt during the season due to more wear and tear (every 9th batter won't be essentially a free pass). Therefore, more replacement pitchers will be needed. Plus, this wear and tear will create more jobs for medical trainers. That can only be a good thing...

[] How most colleges lose money sending their football teams to Bowl games: They have to buy thousands of tickets to the game, then can't sell them except at a loss...

Last year, Virginia Tech earned a berth in the Orange Bowl and was required to buy 17,500 tickets at $125 each. It only sold 3,342 of them, leading to a loss of $1.77 million for the university and the Atlantic Coast Conference, records show...

Which raises questions: Then why did they go? Why do any of these schools go to games where ticket sales prospects are bleak?

The answers are longer-term revenue and prestige.

“Seemingly, universities will do whatever they need to so everyone knows they’re a successful, big-time football power,” Richard Southall [director of the College Sport Research Institute] said. “Whether it’s playing on any night of the week or buying ticket allotments, it doesn’t matter. On some level, the bowl committee folks know this. The (athletic directors) know this. Nobody can say no to the bowl fix.” ... [San Diego Union-Tribune]

Of course, money from these games is being made by somebody.

[HT: the Sports Economist]