I had no idea that Pau was so tough

It was unintentional, but check out this elbow he caught Kobe with last night. I wonder if he will get suspended like Bryant has for actions like these.

Bob Dylan wrote every popular song, Karaoke Contest tonight at Coaches

These guys put together a great mockumentary about the Dylan influence on music. I watch all of those music shows on the VH1 channels, and this is perfect. Enjoy. Thanks to Kevin for the heads up. Be careful if you are gonna watch this at work.



Come and hang out with Me, Gary, Roser, and other listeners tonight at COACHES SPORTS BAR for our 730 Idol contest. Huge prizes for the winner, $100, a Gibson guitar, singing the anthem at a Grizzly game, etc. 6164 Hacks Cross, where Hacks Cross meets Goodman Rd. Please get out there.

Dave Winfield on the show today

HOF baseball player Dave Winfield will join us on the show today at 3:20. When I was growing up in New York, the Mets were the team to root for. It is strange to think about it now, considering how the Mets are almost second class citizens now in New York. The Mets had almost all of the beloved players. Lenny Dykstra, Hernandez, Strawberry, Gooden, etc. The Yankees had Mattingly and Winfield, and they never won a thing. Dave Winfield is one of the best all-around athletes in the history of sports. The guy was drafted by four different leagues. In fact, the only guy ever to be drafted by four leagues. The Vikings drafted him and he didn't even play college football. Anyway, I am glad to have him on the show today. Check it out.

Also, I need to mention that we are having our huge karaoke contest at Coaches Sports Bar at Goodman Rd and Hacks Cross tomorrow night. Please get out there if you can. Gary Parrish and I will be two of the judges for the contest. The winner will win $100, a new Gibson guitar, and a chance to sing the anthem at a Grizz game in a few weeks. GET TO COACHES. Tomorrow night @ 6:30 (after the show). Tomorrow night. Hacks Cross and Goodman Rd. Win the 730 ESPN Karaoke Idol.

Tigers in the Final Four? That is my bet.

Memphis was incredible against Texas A&M. They had clutch plays, did a great job on A.C. Law, and played an overall great game. This is second consecutive trip to the Elite Eight for the Tigers. They proved not only that they can compete with top level competition, they can beat top level competition. I like the match up with Ohio State. Memphis is going to the Final Four. This team has already exceeded expectations, now everything is lining up perfectly. I thought A&M was a worse match up for Memphis than Ohio State would be, and they got past them.

Ohio State has played two down to the wire games in the last 2 rounds now. You have to give them credit for gutting those out, but it also makes them look vulnerable.

Quick analyseez on Memphis vs. Ohio State. Against Ohio State, people always want to bring up Greg Oden. He is not going to kill you on offense. He has not killed anyone. Lewis and Conley Jr. can, but I like what Memphis can throw at those guys defensively. You have to do a better job than Tennessee did of keeping Conley out of the lane. You have to guard Lewis 30 feet away from the basket. I think Memphis is equipped to do these things. Drive the ball into Oden like Xavier and Tennessee have and get him in trouble. Offensively, Ohio State has been better with Oden not in the game. Defensively, you want him out of the game esp. when so much of the Tiger offense is based on penetration. I like the match up against Ohio State and think Memphis will be in the Final Four. Unreal. I will be honest and tell you that I never thought I would write the words "Memphis will be in the Final Four" this year. Next year, yes. But this team just may screw around and get to Atlanta.

I picked Tennessee to beat Ohio State and felt really good about the pick... and then they played the second half. I think I can count on my hand the number of stops that the Vols got in the second half. No stops leads to no running. It killed them and their offense. They simply got no stops and therefore could not get in transition, could not score, and then could not set up a press. Memphis can get stops. You have to give it up to Ohio State. That was a serious comeback. How do you not get the ball to Lofton with the game on the line? Hey I have an idea... how about you drive it into Oden. Really? Is that what he did?

If you have thoughts... leave them in the comments section.

p.s. Kobe threw 60 on the Grizz.

Why Memphis fans should root against Tennessee

Yesterday on the show we goofed on the idea of Memphis fans singing Rocky Top in San Antonio. John Calipari said that Memphis fans should root for UT, and vice versa. He said that it is a "state thing." Cal has spent 7 years jabbing at SEC fans and SEC fans have spent 7 years hating Cal, so now lets have everyone get in a circle, hold hands, and sing Kumbaya. Ha! Beyond the idea of how hard it would be for a Tiger fan to root for UT, there is a better reason not to root for Tennessee if you are a Memphis fan.... You want to go to the Final Four.

I know what happens when Tennessee matches up with Memphis. Memphis loses. I saw how that story plays out. Before you say it, let me go through a few things about that game. I know Cooper and Mack were not contributors, I know Dorsey got a tech, I know that Lofton went crazy (he does that a lot if you have not noticed), and I know that the game was in Knoxville. There, have we gotten all of the excuses out of the way?

The fact of the matter is that Tennessee is a bad match-up for Memphis. It would be easier to be objective as a fan if UT was in a different jersey, and I understand that. Now, lets get to the analysis.

Tennessee is a bad match-up because of their tireless press. Remember how UAB was always the toughest match up for Memphis under Mike Anderson? Think UAB, only with much more talent. They do not get tired and fatigued like the normal team. UT can expose a few of the Tiger weaknesses (probably the only Tiger weaknesses). Those weaknesses include having a lack of really good ball-handlers, making good decisions in a transition game, and the ability to stop the dribble-drive.

Memphis likes to play fast. Tennessee likes to play fast. Tennessee is better at it.

Ohio State will walk the ball up the court and the game turns into a battle. Memphis can play like that. Memphis will have an advantage when the tempo speeds up against Ohio State, they will not against Tennessee. Memphis can drive the ball into Oden 500 times and get him in foul trouble. The advantage for Memphis many times is there style of play and their ability to tire their opposition out. That helps them against a team like Ohio St., it does not against UT.

Its all about how you match-up. The Tigers match-up better against Ohio State.

If Memphis fans want the Tigers to go to the Final Four, they better root for Ohio State. The Tigers could beat Ohio State, but they cannot beat Tennessee.

What I Got... (COME TO GILL'S ON HIGHLAND TODAY FROM 3-6)

I am not gonna go through the whole bracket, but this is what I have from the Sweet 16 down.

Sweet 16 Teams-- Florida, Maryland, ND, G Tech, Kansas, S. Illinois, Duke, UCLA, UNC, Tex, Vandy, GTown, Xavier, Tenn, Tex A&M, Memphis.

Elite 8-- Florida, ND, Kansas, Duke, UNC, GTown, Tenn, Tex A&M

Final 4-- Florida, Kansas, Georgtown, Tex A&M

Finals-- Kansas over Texas A&M

My bracket will be ripped up by tonight I am sure.

TODAY I AM AT GILL'S ON HIGHLAND FROM 3-6 PM. TOMORROW I WILL BE BROADCASTING FROM PAT OBRIENS IN THE FRENCH QUARTER LIVE IN NEW ORLEANS. IF YOU ARE IN NOLA, COME BY FROM 4-6.

How flattering (CV Show Fan Network?)

One of our listeners, Ryan, has put together a website for fans of the show. It looks pretty cool considering it is about me. The fact that there is a message board is cool because, as many of you know, that is something I lost when I changed over from a website to a blog. You can meet other people that dig the show at chrisvernon.ning.com/. Go check it out and sign up if you like. And a big thanks to Ryan for the flattering gesture. If 5 people admit they listen I will be thrilled (and Ryan will know he is not the only one that listens, shhhhhh). Anyway, you might meet some cool people of like-mind, and thanks.

I am out for Monday, Eric Hasseltine (voice of Grizz) will fill in. Call in and send him some emails and make it easier on him than you do me.

Great Parody of New Nike Ad Campaign

R.C. Johnson on the show (3-5-07)

Memphis Athletic Director R.C. Johnson was on the show today. R.C. was on for quite a long time and answered every question that we threw at him. There was good information about football scheduling, the CUSA tournament, the possibility of Memphis moving to a different conference, etc. A good portion of the questions were about the stadium issue (and Harold Byrd's stance on the issue). I am confident that there will be a lot of different opinions about R.C.'s stance. Gary and I attempted to ask the questions that people would want answered and hopefully we did. Here is the full interview...

(R.C. Johnson on The Chris Vernon Show 3-5-07)

Memphis Athletic Director R.C. Johnson Today @ 5

R.C. Johnson is scheduled to be on with Gary Parrish and me at 5pm today. RC will bust Gary up for his rankings and where he has the Tigers. We will also talk about the CUSA tournament, the football schedule, and the highly controversial stadium issue. Should be interesting. If you have questions that you would like to hear RC asked... email me at verno@730espn.com.

In other news... The most embarrassing dunk contest attempt of all time. European dunk contests are awesome. I have always said that someone should dunk on someone in a dunk contest, but not a girl. It is ridiculous how funny/ uncomfortable this is. This dude is not even close...

What a day, what a day

Craig Brewer (Director of Hustle and Flow) joined us in studio for over an hour on the day of the nationwide release of his new movie Black Snake Moan. We talked about the movie itself, the movie business, Hustle and Flow, and then got into a conversation of movies to rent. This guy could not have been more cool or down to earth. This was one of the greatest thrills for me and if you did not catch it, I think you will dig it. Its so long, we had to break it up. I got my tickets online to go see the movie tonight. Go see the movie and support a Memphis filmmaker and great guy.

Here is the interview

In Studio with Craig Brewer Part 1

In Studio with Craig Brewer Part 2

MEMPHIS DIRECTOR CRAIG BREWER IN STUDIO TODAY

Director Craig Brewer, whose new film Black Snake Moan opens in theatres nationwide today, will be joining us in studio at 3 pm. I loved Hustle and Flow and cannot wait to go see this movie this weekend. I must be livin right for something like this to work out. Here is the trailer if you have not seen it yet.