Just as it was beginning to be Déjà Vu all over again, it wasn’t. Alabama would not stand for having another dream crushed by Clemson….so the defending champion Tigers were sent home one game shy of THE game. In similar fashion, there would not be a crushing defeat in the last nanosecond. In what was by far one of the purdiest passes I’ve seen, the University of Alabama hurt the feelings of Dawg Nation in the blink of an eye. Considering my Sooners suffered the same fate at the hands of Georgia, the “one good turn deserves another” phenomena which ultimately played out, didn’t exactly bring tears to my eyes. Congrats ‘Bama!
Alas, an All-American Semifinals Déjà vu was not to be, in Melbourne. In direct contrast to the season ending US Open, the season’s opener left three of the four contenders—Venus Williams, Coco Vandeweghe & champion Sloan Stephens—with a lot more free time the first day of the Australian Open.
Word on the street has it that Tiger Woods is, undoubtedly—wait for it, back! Having felt that his previous attempts were ahead of his physical condition, it is my hope there is indeed fire behind the smoke. If a not completely ready Tiger won five tourneys…trust and believe, the healed version is chomping at the bit to carry on with the Majors chase. A Déjà vu in ratings for a Sunday afternoon with Tiger on the course, is something the sport would undoubtedly welcome with outstretched arms.
Having won 13 consecutive Big 12 Championships, Déjà vu is somewhat of an understatement for the basketball team from Lawrence. This year though, the tried and true University of Kansas has its hands full with the new kids from the other side of the Mississippi. West Virginia is doing its part to make it far from a forgone conclusion that the Jayhawks will be dropping another conference championship banner from the beams at Allen Fieldhouse.
If we’ve reached the NBA’s midseason, then it must be time for a dramatic interpretation of team cohesiveness only the Cavs can produce. Opinions abound as to whether Kevin Love was ill during a game. Only he truly knows. What I do know is— exiting an arena, while your team is playing, sans medical emergency apparatus—is a non-verbal way of asking to be the focal point of an “I Know You Didn’t” team meeting!
Nevertheless, no matter how this saga unfolds…there are 28 teams…some with a more realistic shot than others…who are over the Déjà vu effect & doing their darnedest to ensure this year’s NBA Finals are not a reenactment of the 3 previous seasons.
Ahhh, Déjà vu seasons and championships are what reality is made of for New England fans. Only time will tell whether the Patriots will be stopped by the team with souvenir goose eggs from their previous Super Bowl appearances. If relishing one’s role as an underdog…for weeks on end….has any correlation to winning, the Philadelphia Eagles have this thing in the bag!
