Gary Hesse Personal Web Site

The Washington Redskins are looking more and more like an East Coast version of Your Seattle Seahawks - with the exception, of course, that they’ve actually won more games  than their West Coast counterparts may win all season.

The transformation began when the Redskins hired Jim Zorn away from the Seahawks to serve as head coach, followed by assistants Stump Mitchell, Seattle’s running back coach, and Sherman Smith.

The Redskins already had DB Shawn Springs, DE Philip Daniels and G Pete Kendall. Today, they added not one, not two, but three more players with Seattle histories.

Top of the list is Shawn Alexander, finally signed to an NFL roster after being dropped by the Seahawks last spring. Also added was Ryan Plackemeier, the regular Seattle punter until a pair of 22-yard punts early in the season made him expendable. Rounding out the trio is safety Mike Green.

For the sake of completeness, we should point out that Redskins cheerleader Anna was a SeaGal for three years.

When the two teams meet on the field November 23, it may play like a gridiron version of Star Trek VI: The Undiscovered Country, where Kirk battles the shape-shifter that has taken on his appearance. This time around, though, barring an unforeseen turnaround, the shape-shifting Washington Redskins may be the decisive victor.

The Seattle Mariners announced yesterday that they have declared some sections of Safeco Field nut-free zones.
This development, taken ostensibly to protect those with allergies to the common legumes, should have the welcome side benefit of limiting access to Boston Red Sox fans and members of the Seattle City Council.

Shaun Alexander was released today by the Seattle Seahawks.

Thanks, Shaun, for eight seasons of great memories… for being a man of great character as well as remarkable accomplishment.

Link to Seahawks | Statement of Shaun Alexander on his release from the Seahawks | Seattle Times Newspaper

Have to admit, I didn’t see that coming. Former Sonics owner Howard Schultz must’ve read those e-mails detailing the Oklahoma Raiders’ plans to move the Sonics while they were publicly assuring him — and us — that they’d do all they could to keep the team in the Northwest.  Now we hear that Schultz is planning to sue them to get the team back.

The Seattle Times’ Jerry Brewer breaks it down pretty well; success in the lawsuit is a long shot, but with potentially positive results short of keeping the team in Seattle.

With the courts involved in two different suits (the other between the owners and the city of Seattle concerning the KeyArena lease), I don’t see how the team can be relocated in time for the beginning of the next NBA season.

The longer the issue lingers, the more visibility the story gets in national media, and the greater the black eye for the owners, and for Stern as well, who seems to be willing to do anything to get his crony Bennett into the NBA owners’ club. It should, at minimum, raise the cost of cancelling the current lease to release the team before 2010. And, depending how embarrassing the whole soap opera becomes to the NBA, may even shake loose an expansion team.

How many teams (with the possible exception of the Knicks) can say their front office creates more entertainment than the team they put on the floor?

It all started out so promising… like the Mariners in April. Then reality throws a cold blanket of spring snow over the whole mess.

Not talking about the Leavenworth weather (although that fits as well). My March Madness bracket started out somewhere around the 85% percentile but has slowly slid toward mediocrity. Going into the Final Four weekend, I sit around 60%, in 12th place of 24 teams in my group.

However, it doesn’t take anything away from the tourney itself, which as usual has had some fantastic moments. The Davidson-Kansas game today was one of those — exciting from start to the last-gasp missed shot at the buzzer.

The Sweet Sixteen have been selected in another fantastic series of contests. No wonder we love this tournament! For the most part, with the most notable exception of North Carolina’s demolition of its two opponents, even when top seeds are winning they are within a few seconds of being upset.

My bracket has slipped a bit now that the weekend is over. My top bracket is now in sixth, my second bracket in eighth (of 24 total). I did call Davidson over Georgetown, and West Kentucky to make the Sweet Sixteen,  so I’ll lobby the commish for bonus points.

I still have ten teams in the hunt in one bracket and eleven in the other, so there’s still hope for a big finish.

The first round of the NCAA Tournament is over; time to check in with my group on ESPN. Let’s see: tied for fourth, out of 24. That will do for a start…