“Kevin Sherrington’s A La Carte” is a weekly newsletter curated by DMN sports columnist Kevin Sherrington where he hits all of the latest sports topics around North Texas and all major sports.
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Kevin Sherrington’s A La Carte
– Nick Sirianni is on the outs in Philly despite a Lombardi Trophy barely out of the box, and Green Bay fans are no less fond of Matt LaFleur because he hasn’t reached the conference finals since back-to-back runs in 2019-20. John Harbaugh got canned in Baltimore after an 8-9 season, just his third losing record in 18 seasons. Meanwhile, here in La La Land, Brian Schottenheimer is as snug as a bug in a rug after a 7-9-1 debut. Probably helps when you can always blame the boss.
Cowboys
– Favorite moment in last week’s exit presser came when Jerry Jones revealed he wants to go out as the owner with the most Lombardis, to which his own son noted, “Got some work to do.” Robert Kraft has twice as many as Jerry’s three, and the Patriots are, you know, still playing.
– Speaking of which, remember when Mike Vrabel was my pick for the Cowboys? Pardon the boast, but I’m right so infrequently, I like to bring it up.
– Even before Anthony Davis got hurt again and ruined the Mavs trade deadline hopes, the problem was this: How do you make franchise-altering decisions without a full-time GM in place?
– Now that Davis is out, there’s no excuse for winning. Time to lose, lose and lose some more. The Mavs’ first-round pick this summer will be the last they control until 2031. Fortunately, this summer’s draft is considered a great one. Cooper Flagg needs a running mate.
– With pitchers and catchers reporting in less than a month, here’s how the West looks: Seattle rules, with the Rangers and Astros running a distant second. Don’t expect any big moves from Chris Young, unless the club is contending at the deadline.
– Texas’ GM trolled Texas Tech on social media after the Longhorns beat out the Red Raiders for Cam Coleman, the top WR in the portal. Tells you how far Tech has come. The Longhorns probably hadn’t wanted the same thing as the Raiders since David McWilliams.
– Given what Indiana did to Oregon over the weekend, maybe losing the Orange Bowl wasn’t so bad for Tech after all. Ask Sonny Dykes. Beating Michigan only got him too much of Georgia.
– Just sayin’: Once the people back in coach on American Airlines smell the Pecan Lodge ‘cue coming from first class, that little curtain ain’t gonna cut it.
– Story time: Of all the sportswriters to come and go from the DMN, few rank in skill, grace and wit with Bill Livingston. A Woodrow grad, class of ‘66, he went to Vanderbilt on a Grantland Rice scholarship, then earned a Master’s at Texas, thinking he might teach for a living. When Walter Robertson made him think better of it here, he got a warm welcome.
“You’re not another one of those damn T-sips Walt’s been hiring, are you?” Randy Galloway said.
Livy, as he would be known, enjoyed covering sports in his hometown, where his father didn’t think a football game was official until he’d read Blackie Sherrod’s take. But his talent wouldn’t wait, and he left in 1973 to cover basketball, his first love, at the Philadelphia Inquirer. There he also covered the 76ers and his favorite athlete, Dr. J, developing a reputation as a master on deadline.
In 1984, he moved to the Cleveland Plain Dealer, where he was the lead sports columnist for 34 years. He never forgave LeBron James for leaving for Miami, but they eventually resolved their differences. He was editing the final draft of his memoir last week after a series of health issues when he died of cardiac arrest at 77.
His son, Bill, Jr., told one of Livy’s Vandy classmates they were thinking of taking the title of the book from a line he once fed his wife, Marilyn. Back home with the kids while he was away at the 1994 Olympics in Lillehammer, she balled him out for taking unnecessary risks after learning he’d ridden in a bobsled for a column.
His defense? “It was a helluva story, though.”
Yes, it was.
More from Sherrington
– The curse of Nico strikes again: Latest injury leaves Mavericks stuck with Anthony Davis
– Modern college football gets a lot wrong, but it got the 12-team CFP right
– Uncommon bond, unbroken: Ex-high school coach stands by player who served time for murder
College basketball poll (Jan. 12): Texas Tech falls a spot in AP Top 25 ranking
SMU fell out of the AP poll after being ranked last week.
Muhammad Ali will be honored with a commemorative U.S. postage stamp
Ali once joked that he should be a postage stamp because “that’s the only way I’ll ever get licked.”
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