The Saints won a rather thrilling Super Bowl last night, and the majority of the East Coast got to drink themselves to sleep after learning of most business calling an audible day-off for workers because of snow. Now that the haze has worn off, there are three rather interesting stories that happened over the Super Bowl weekend that I'm looking at today. In order they are Michael Irvin's rape allegation and firing from ESPN Radio, Warren Sapp getting arrested and being dropped from NFL Network's coverage and Steve Phillips sitting down with Matt Lauer this morning. First up....Michael Irvin....
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On the same day that his former teammate Emmitt Smith was getting into the Hall of Fame, Michael Irvin was getting fired from his ESPN Radio job after another alleged rape charge was levied against him Dallas. Not only that but ESPN decided to fire the former Cowboy WR from his gig at 103.3 FM even though Irvin's contract was set to expire at the end of the week. There were reportedly no plans to renew it, but ESPN opted to fire him anyway. Irvin (unlike Sapp) made his appearances on NFL Network over the weekend, spoke briefly about the allegation to reporters, and then filed a $100 Million counter suit against his alleged victim. Via ESPN....

Former Dallas Cowboys wide receiver Michael Irvin made his first public appearance since he was accused in a civil suit of rape. He filed a $100 million countersuit against his accuser.

Irvin worked the Hall of Fame ceremonies for the NFL Network on Saturday. He was subdued at times but also emotional, especially when former teammate, running back Emmitt Smith, was selected for induction.

"It's not about me, but that's it," Irvin told a small group of reporters before they had a chance to ask questions. Irvin said he would only talk about the Hall of Fame.

Irvin's suit, filed in Dallas County, Texas, asks for $100 million in damages for allegations filed in a lawsuit that claim Irvin raped a woman identified as "Jane Doe" at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Hollywood, Fla., in 2007.

The countersuit claims that the civil suit filed by the woman caused him to be fired from his radio job.

It's interesting that ESPN decided to follow up with the story after taking no time in firing Irvin. Like the story said, no charges were filed against him and his contract was set to run out, so it really makes no sense as to why ESPN Radio decided to fire him right away.
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The day after Michael Irvin got his walking papers, another analyst in Miami spent the night in jail. A crazy story came out of South Beach that NFL Network Analyst Warren Sapp had been dropped from the network's coverage of the Super Bowl, and after NFL-N confirmed the claims, Sapp spent the night in jail on a domestic abuse charge. Via the Sun Sentinel....

Police arrested Sapp on Saturday on one charge of misdemeanor domestic battery. An arrest affidavit says the incident happened around 5 a.m. Saturday in the former defensive tackle's hotel room at the Shore Club on Miami Beach.

Sapp's attorney said the former player is taking the matter seriously and will cooperate with authorities.

"He sincerely apologizes to the NFL family and fans for taking away any distraction from today's big game," Christopher Lyons said. "We ask that everyone reserve judgment on the matter until all the facts come out in a court of law."

The woman said she had been dating Sapp about two years. She told officers the two were partying with a large group of friends when she got tired and went to lay down.

Sapp entered hours later, pulled her out of bed and tried to get her out of the room, according to the complaint. The complaint says he yelled at the woman about men she had been hanging out with and men listed in her cell phone. The woman told police Sapp choked her, threw her down on a couch, then picked her up by her shirt and neck and threw her down again — injuring her leg. The victim had a swollen knee and bruises on her neck, the affidavit says. She was taken to the hospital.

Just a messy situation all around. According to Sports by Brooks, Sapp had been seen around Miami with a certain lady friend, but as of now the accuser wants to remain anonymous.
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As far as Steve Phillips, the former ESPN Baseball analyst made an appearance on the Today Show this morning to talk about his sexual addiction. Phillips, who is giving his first public interview since leaving the same rehab clinic Tiger Woods reportedly has been staying at, told Matt Lauer that he, "I couldn't stop myself from doing the things I was doing, even knowing the consequences." Here's the clip....


Man, what a weekend!

I almost didn't post this, because Sean Salisbury has been through enough these past few years, but I figured I had to for closure. After vehemently denying the claim that he photographed and mailed a picture of his "nether regions", he confirmed to USA Today what everyone already believed. He really did do it....

Other than its decidedly 21st-century angles, Sean Salisbury's story is timeless: Show spur-of-the-moment stupidity, deny it in hopes it will be forgotten — then find it follows you around instead.

"I was ashamed, and I didn't want to say anything," says Salisbury, who was an NFL quarterback for eight years and an ESPN NFL analyst for 12. "I thought it would go away and let my ego get in the way. Since then, I've beat myself up about it more than 10 baseball bats could. A stupid mistake can cost you, and this has really cost me. I should have been having this conversation a long time ago."

But what Salisbury, 46, is admitting simply substantiates what's already an urban legend on the Internet: that he took cellphone photos of his private parts and showed them.

Yuck. Salisbury says it only happened once — "a sophomoric mistake" in a Connecticut bar in 2006 — for which ESPN suspended him for a week for then-unspecified reasons.

Now, Salisbury feels better from having had anger-management therapy — "I needed help. I had a lot of inner anger for years." He says he's trying to champion the cause of accuracy in online reporting in a lawsuit against Deadspin that he insists is anything but frivolous.

"It was stupid —dumb!— but not malicious," he says. "How can it ruin a good career? … I've gone from being on six days a week to disappearing. And it's not like I wanted to disappear. … But it feels good getting it off my chest."

Well there you have it. Someone who went on the Internet to deny the claim, and wanted you to feel sorry for him, has no come out to say that all reports were true and he wants you to feel sorry for him. I wish Salisbury no ill will, but if you make your bed....you have to lie in it. There's always someone out there to replace you, and don't expect people to miss you when you're gone.

Salisbury aims to move on after admission (USA Today)

God I hate to have to write stories like this, and this one could be the worst announcer arrest in quite some time. We've had drunk driving, drug addiction and tax evasion, but possessing and receiving child porn is just about as low as you can go. University of Florida announcer Steven Michael Babik (left) has been picked up for just that, and here are your details. Via The Gainesville Sun....

Steven Michael Babik, host of the "TailGator Pre-game Show" and the "Urban Meyer Post-Game Show," was charged Tuesday in federal court with receipt and distribution of child pornography and possession of child pornography.

Babik also reported from the sidelines during game broadcasts and was the longtime network coordinator for University of Florida athletics.

Investigators said he was arrested as part of an ongoing global effort to find and prosecute those who share child pornography online.

Babik, 50, of 3501 N.W. 75th Terrace in Gainesville, has been fired from his UF job. He made his first court appearance at 1 p.m. Tuesday at the federal courthouse in Gainesville, where he pleaded not guilty to the charges.

According to the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Florida, Babik "knowingly received, distributed and possessed materials depicting minors engaged in sexually explicit conduct" on several occasions from Nov. 2 to Nov. 30.

Obviously Babik is innocent until proven guilty, but no one should have tolerance of people with any possession of children in compromising positions. It's just downright sick.

Broadcaster for Gators faces child porn charges (Gainesville Sun)

Steve Phillips has gone into hiding after being dumped by ESPN for various "transgressions", but he could be making a return back into your lives real soon. No not on television, but rather as a voice for MLB 2K10. An early preview of the game has Gary Thorne as your play-by-play man, with John Kruk and Phillips the analysts. There is not word if it's too late to delete the former ESPNer from the game. Via Pasta Padre....

Included in the preview is talk about the My Player mode which appears to be primarily focused on clutch situations, the formula for pitching with the right stick being made more accessible, a defensive swing addition, and “hurry-up baseball” option which removes all the presentational elements. Also new is the “Batter’s Eye” which intends to provide the more talented hitters an advantage.

Just as in real life, standout hitters in MLB 2K10 can see certain pitches coming as the ball is released from the pitcher’s hand. You’ll get a quick text pop-up that says “fastball,” “breaking ball” or “changeup” depending on the pitch and the hitter.

Of note is the commentary which has added John Kruk while keeping Steve Phillips along with Gary Thorne. The decision to hold onto Phillips will be somewhat controversial considering the circumstances of his firing from ESPN and that he is currently without any employment or association with baseball. Given that he remains it comes as little surprise that 2K did not advertise the commentary team in the features list.

Well that's convenient. Obviously it would take countless hours to go back and delete him, AND to make the commentary easy to follow, but it will be hard not to hear him in the game and get a little sick to my stomach. More on this when the game comes out on March 2nd.

First MLB 2K10 Preview (Pasta Padre)

There was a play earlier in the season which ended in Devin Hester showing his posterior to the world, but that's nothing compared to this one. Raiders DT Tommy Kelly made a heck of a stop on Knowshon Moreno near the goal line, but was pants'ed in the process....

Ummm....yeah. I don't really have anything to add to that one.

Never Want To See This Again (Statue Left)

Well it took the weekend for a decision, but late Sunday night, ESPN officially fired Steve Phillips citing his inability to be an effective representative for the network. VP Mike Soltys has the announcement on his Twitter page....

I really hope they didn't feel pressure from Deadspin's stunt near the end of last week, but there was really no other choice for the "Leader". You would think this line of reasoning would be used more often by ESPN. (More tomorrow when the full release comes out)

ESPN MikeS (Twitter)

(Top image via WEEI)

The brain is a funny little organ. Most of the time, it keeps you out of trouble, but occasionally it fails you. That's exactly what happened to Phillies' announcer, Chris Wheeler last night in the bottom of the ninth last night. Check it out....

Oh that sure was a great song! That along with "Jailhouse Cock", and "Jingle Bell Cock", were my favorites!!! Too funny.

I try to pick and choose these days when it comes to Erin Andrews, but I couldn't pass on this one. Fanhouse caught a camera angle of the sideline princess that has to be seen to be believed, but first some back ground....

Monday during the College World Series game between Arkansas and LSU, ESPN2 had a bit of a snafu with their footage of America's sideline princess. For 20-30 seconds the network, according to a viewer who e-mailed the screen grab on the right, switched to a camera angle that featured a, how shall we put this delicately, derrière shot of Ms. Andrews. Doubtless ESPN has an awful lot of cameras covering the on-field action, but this one ... not so much.

Hmmm....sound intriguing. So what can I see this angle that they speak of?


Ohhhhhhh....so that's the angle. Well then. The EA Butt Cam could possibly have a shelf life with the "Leader". And thanks to reader JL, we also have the video!



ESPN Tries New Angle With Erin Andrews (Fanhouse)

With the holiday weekend, I'm a little late getting to this, but this definitely deserved a post. Dennis Eckersley is filling in for Jerry Remy on NESN, and twice during last Friday's Mets-Red Sox game, the former major leaguer used some interesting commentary to describe the action. The first involves Eck using the "S" word, and the second is him somehow turning Justin Masterson's name, into "Justin Masterbates". Enjoy!

Now that is one heck of a bad night. I can just picture Orsillo rolling around in the booth, and making fun of him every single break. Too funny.

Dennis Eckersley's Golden Sombrero (CBSB Media)

I don't know how much I would bid on a diamond pendant, but I'm pretty sure it's worth more than sixty-nine dollars. Steelers' Fan and gynecologist, Michael Bummer was asked that exact question on the Price Is Right, and that was his response. Via PSAMP....

Now that my friends is comedy. I'm so glad Drew Carey was there, because Bob Barker would have had that man escorted out of the building.

Steelers Fan Gynecologists Are Funny, 15 Years Old (Pittsburgh Sports And Mini Ponies)

It wasn't that long ago that we were sharing with you the Super Bowl Edition of channel's that randomly switch to porn, and today we've got the ESPNU edition for you. Via Deadspin....

There can't be that many people watching ESPNU at 3:17AM, but on Saturday there was at least one, and he got a little surprise while hunting for a late-night sports fix (very NSFW).

An insomniac Deadspin reader was flipping through the channels in his south Texas abode early Saturday morning (or late Friday night, if you prefer) when this not-unpleasing-to-the-eye image gave him pause. Thankfully, for the good of humanity, he had a camera handy. Either Time Warner Cable is having trouble keeping the porn out of their non-porn feeds or an ESPNU employee was making a strong statement about Duke basketball.

Well that's certainly unfortunate. Although, I'm pretty sure that less than ten people were watching ESPNU at three in the morning. The bigger question though, is how this actually happens. I've never seen anything like this happen on my cable, and of course, am completely jealous of said accounts.

If you would like to see the porno, feel free to click over to Deadspin. It is definitely NSFW though.

ESPNU/Time Warner Cable Experiencing Technical Difficulties, Porn (NSFW) (Deadspin)

There's a pantheon of phrases that announcers should never use (i.e.- face raping), but I think this one moves to the top of the list. YES announcer, David Cone recently described Joba Chamberlain's loss of form as, "jerking off", and in fact this was the second time he's done so. Here's the video proof via NYAT....

Wow. I'm not sure if he means "jerked around" or what, but that's pretty disgusting, David. Hopefully someone sets him straight on that one before the YES Network starts getting FCC complaints.

Video Proof Of Cone Incident (No, You're A Towel)

Was watching Jimmy Kimmel Live last night, and the late night talk show host decided to have some fun at the Nationals expense. Take a look....

I don't care who you are....that's funny.

WXRR-104.5 FM was airing a webcast of the Southern Miss spring game over the weekend, when all of a sudden the commentary got extra filthy. Two DJs for the network were having a "private conversation" and they unfortunately didn't realize that it was actually being broadcast to a handful of people listening online. Now that wouldn't have been a problem, if the conversation hadn't been about blowjobs, transexuals, bathroom habits, and of course the N-word. Here's a portion of the audio, if you care to listen to the whole thing, EDSBS has the over thirty minute version. Oh and a reminder that it is VERY NSFW....

Wow. That one just kept going, and going. Here's what Blakely Communications, who owns the station, has issued as an apology...."The employees were not aware that their conversation was accidentally being picked up by a live microphone and could be heard by Southern Miss fans who were trying to listen to the webcast of the game."

Ah yes....the standard "it wasn't our fault" move. Forget having the two disgusting employees say something. We'll just pretend like it never happened and move on.

Southern Miss Had A Fun Spring Game (Every Day Should Be Saturday)
USM Broadcaster Apologizes (Clarion Ledger)

Thanks to the eagle eye of a few viewers of the final round of the Masters yesterday, Total Pro Sports can share with us a "boob grab like no other". Tiger landed his approach on the 15th green, and a gentleman in the crowd decided to celebrate just a little too much with his lady friend....

Beautiful! There's nothing better than a public breast grabbing to show your excitement. I was going to do a post on the great finish, and the great ratings the Masters received, but I think that video is much better.

Another day, another Sports personality in trouble over on-air comments. Alan Pardew was calling the Chelsea and Man City, and while describing a rough tackle by Chelsea’s Michael Essien, he decided to say that he "raped" Manchester City’s Ched Evans. Here is the video, complete with sketchy English fanboy commentary! Via SS Reporters....

Seems like an honest slip of the tongue, but according to the BBC website over thirty people called into complain, and Pardew has issued an apology....

Pardew used the word rape to describe a tackle while discussing a game between Manchester City and Chelsea.

The former Charlton manager said in a statement released by the BBC that he "apologises unconditionally for any offence caused" in Sunday's programme.

The BBC said it had not taken a decision on whether the pundit would be invited back to work on the show.

I truly think that whoever ends up saying the word, is actually trying to say "raked", but for some reason their thought process takes them right to rape. Maybe people should stop saying it all together because the word raked is almost always going to sound like raped to the listener's ear.

BBC Pundit in Trouble For “Rape” Remark (SS Reporters)
BBC pundit sorry for rape comment (BBC)

You would think that this story would have gone away by now, but Comcast is convinced that there was a bit of foul play involved in the showing of porn in Arizona during the Super Bowl. Comcast has now bypassed all lower level of law enforcement, and are heading straight to the top. The Federal Bureau of Investigation....

Comcast is turning to the FBI to help determine how pornography interrupted its feed of the Super Bowl earlier this month.

"We have shared all of our information on this situation with the FBI and will continue to provide our full cooperation to them throughout their investigation," company spokeswoman Kelle Maslyn said in a statement e-mailed to the Star.
Thousands of Comcast's Tucson-area customers who were watching its standard-definition feed during the fourth quarter of the Super Bowl on Feb. 1 were subjected to a 30-second clip from a pay-per-view porn channel.

The clip, which included full male nudity, was the result of a malicious act, Comcast said last week.

"Our investigation has proven that our technical systems were working properly," Maslyn wrote.

I don't know how exactly someone could override Comcast's systems, but I guess it's possible. If I were the FBI, I'd immediately look at this being an "inside job". Ha, get it? Inside....porn??? Shut up.

FBI investigating cable porn intrusion (AZ Star Net)

About a year ago, the Golf Channel's Kelly Tilghman was briefly suspended for her "lynching" comments in regards to Tiger Woods, and today another analyst on the network has been suspended. Former PGAer Andrew Magee, who is an on-course reporter, has been "disciplined" for a comment made to analyst Gary McCord, about a funny t-shirt that he saw a fan wearing. Via CBS Sports....

Magee, serving as a roving reporter during the second-round broadcast, told the network he believed he was off the air when he mentioned to fellow analyst Gary McCord that he had just seen a fan wearing a T-shirt that read, "I got kicked out of the Boy Scouts for eating a brownie."

McCord, who works primarily for CBS Sports, didn't react verbally and there were several moments of dead air following the comment.

Golf Channel spokesman Dan Higgins said the network received several e-mail complaints from viewers about the remark. The Golf Channel's online message boards have been filled with fan feedback on the matter.

"He was disciplined for that," Higgins said, from Orlando. "It was a mistake. He's fairly new in the role of on-course reporter, which is no excuse, but he has been disciplined, yes.

"It was inappropriate."

I'm confused. Were there really that many people out there who were actually offended enough to contact the network? And on top of that, how many people do you think even get the joke? I admit that I myself had to think about it for a few seconds before it registered. While I have yet to hear how the presence of the t-shirt was exactly relayed over the airwaves, it seems like this is a non-issue. I think the Golf Channel's stance of the comment being "inappropriate", is the right one, and in no way should Magee be suspended.

Update: It appears that Magee has actually been suspended and will be off the air for one week starting today.

Golf Channel reprimands loose-lipped Magee (CBS Sports)

Not only did Arizona Fans have to deal with a heartbreaking loss, some of those in Arizona got a dash of porn mixed into their viewing of the fourth quarter. Immediately following Larry Fitzgerald's second TD, NBC affiliate KVOA, magically switched over to pay-per-view porn. Seriously....

Comcast continued this morning to investigate how pornography interrupted it’s feed during the final quarter of the Super Bowl on Sunday.

It is unclear how many viewers were affected by the clip, which lasted about 30 seconds, and featured full male nudity, said Kelle Maslyn, a Comcast spokeswoman.

“We are mortified by last evening’s Super Bowl interruption, and deeply apologize to our customers for the inappropriate programming,” Maslyn said in a statement. “We are aggressively investigating the situation including the possibility of foul play.”
Comcast is working on a plan to compensate customers, but nothing has been set in stone, Maslyn said.

The pornography clip was from Club Jenna, an adult cable television channel.

Ah Club Jenna, I know it wel.....waaaaaait a minute! Almost over-shared there. Anyway, I know all of you are deviants, so I decided to pull the clip up for you. However, I took out the nudity part because I don't really want that on the site and it's only a guy shaking his junk around. It's still extremely NSFW though, so be warned....



Unbelievable. The fact that Madden said, "they went to the perfect guy in the perfect situation," immediately following the clip, is so fitting! However, if you were sitting there with young kids, you might be a little pissed off today. Hopefully the remote was close enough that they could shut the power off.

Comcast investigating Super Bowl Porn feed (AZ Starnet)
Porn Invades The Super Bowl (Fleshbot)

Very odd video found over at Sports Crackle Pop this afternoon, and I really don't have words to describe it. Mike Tyson is at the Sundance Film Festival promoting a self-titled documentary, and during a speech he decided to use the perfect language to describe how he feels about the movie....

"I'm afraid of how much pussy, and how much money I'm going to get, and it's going to lead to a lot of problems. That really bothers me a lot. It sounds funny, but it's really detrimental to me."- Mike Tyson

What in the hell? His insanity knows no bounds, but I'm glad he's back in our world.

Tyson: I’m afraid of the money and the pu**y (Sports Crackle Pop)