TEBOW TRADE OFFICIAL!

Tim Tebow is now officially a New York Jet! The fact that his choice was between my team & my brother's team was nerve racking. Tebow played for Danny's college team, Florida & now he's on my pro team, the Jets! As mentioned before my replica Tebow Jets jersey will be shipped and arrive at my house by Saturday! Come football season, I'm probably going to turn into Skip Bayless with the support I have for Tebow! I feel that him & Sparano in one system is a good mix. Good night everyone!

WWE at MSG

I started on this article when I got home from the WWE show at MSG last Sunday night & due to work/school I've had to delay it a few days so here's what I got:

 I've mentioned before that I'm a WWE fan and while some of you may ridecule me for liking it, it's not going to change my opinion. While it's no big secret that WWE isn't real, sorry if I burst anyone's bubble but I do find WWE to be very entertaining. Sunday night I attended a WWE Supershow at Madison Square Garden and it was nothing short of a great show. I'm not the only Sports Journalist to have an interest in WWE, Bill Simmons, Robert Flores, Michelle Beadle...just to name a few. This was my 4th time seeing WWE Live (1 RAW Houseshow, 1 SmackDown! Houseshow, 1 Supershow Houseshow & the 7/11/05 editon of Monday Night RAW) and 1st time at MSG for a WWE event. I was entertained throughout the evening and not bored once. The only bad thing (if you can call it that) was being behind the titantron, I actually was able to see more then I was suppose to (see below).

My friend Tom & I were talking about all the different WWE T-Shirts we were seeing in Penn Station. As I was going up a Penn Station escalator to the Garden I was behind the parents of WWE Superstar Zack Ryder (ironically I was telling Tom about Zack Ryder's new t-shirt & how it incorporates the Statue of Liberty in the form of the Statue of LiBROty) and I waited for someone to address Zack's dad before I did (I'm not the guy to draw unwanted attention to someone) I shook Mr. Ryder's hand and then he went over to will call, my guess is to pick up his tickets that Zack probably left for him. Then during the show's intermission I met another member of the Z! True Long Island Story cast, Big O. Big O was a great guy & put his sandwich on hold to take pictures & greet fans. For those of you unfamiliar with Z! True Long Island Story, it's a YouTube show that saved Zack Ryder's job & started the Ryder Revolution. I can cross Mr. Ryder & Big O off the list of Z!TLIS cast members I've met, so now there's only: Chiappetta, Scott Stanford, Dolph Ziggler & Zack Ryder. I've gotten tweets from Stanford & Chi but seeing them in person would be really cool.

(Big Unit & Big O! I obviously wasn't ready for the pic)

Now to the Road To WrestleMania Supershow!

I got to my seats and the show opened with Justin Roberts & Scott Armstrong walking to the ring, the National Anthem played & the RAW intro played (no pyro though).

In the first match, Zack Ryder defeated The Miz. Good start, the match got the crowd hot, the crowd was really behind Ryder from the first WOO WOO WOO until the last. Excellent choice by WWE to start the show with this one. NOTE- It was great to see Long Island Iced Z live!

In the next match, Primo & Epico (w/Rosa Mendes) defeated R-Truth & Kofi Kingston to retain the WWE Tag Team Titles. Truth & Kofi initally won but John Laurinaitis reversed the refs decision after Primo had his foot on the ropes. Then the champs took advantage of the confusion with Primo hitting the backstabber and picking up the win. NOTE- I could barely hear Laurinaitis with all the heat he got, he was without Otunga.

In the next match, Santino Marella defeated Jack Swagger (w/Vickie Guerrero) to retain the US Title. Similar result as the last title match but this time Laurinaitis stood on stage and applauded Swagger before Teddy Long reversed the decision because Swagger used the ropes for leverage and Hornswoggle made an appearance biting Swagger which allowed Santino to hit the Cobra on Swagger to retain. Marella, Long and Hornswoggle celebrated and danced after the match.

Between matches I noticed Vince McMahon standing backstage with some of the road agents.

In the next match, Alberto Del Rio defeated Mason Ryan. Quick match to say the least as Del Rio was able to get Ryan to tap within 5 minutes. NOTE- Hearing Del Rio's entrance in English isn't the same...I wish Ricardo Rodriguez would have shown, he was advertised on TheGarden.com.

In the next match, CM Punk, Randy Orton & Triple H defeated Chris Jericho, Cody Rhodes & Dolph Ziggler. As soon as the match started Jericho grabbed a mic and reminded everyone that he was the true "best in the world at what he does". Punk went after him the whole match and Jericho grabbed a chair playing the cowardly heel very well. Towards the end of the match, Jericho broke Triple H's cover on Ziggler and Punk chased him down and threw him into the titantron. Orton RKO'd Rhodes to take him out & Punk hit the GTS on Ziggler. Triple H picked Ziggler up and appeared to be going for a Pedigree until he did an Undertaker Throat Slash & hit Ziggler with a Tombstone. NOTE- I was expecting at least a message from Undertaker after the match.

INTERMISSION

After Intermission Eve came out to a loud "HOESKI" chant from the MSG Crowd. She tried to apologize for her recent actions and no one would give her a chance. So she set up the next match...

In the next match, The Divas of Doom (WWE Divas Champ Beth Phoenix & Natalya) defeated Tamina & Kelly Kelly. Good filler match to get everyone back from intermission. Kelly was about to get Beth for the win but Eve interfered while the ref was distracted (inciting more HOESKI chants) and Beth hit a Glam Slam on Kelly for the win. NOTE- Camera battery was low at this point so I saved it for the main event matches

In the next match, Daniel Bryan defeated Big Show & Mark Henry in a triple threat match to retain the World Heavyweight Championship. Daniel Bryan entered and everyone chanted "YES YES YES" with him (personal favorite chant of the night). Formal ring introductions for this one and even some "Sexual Chocolate" chants towards Mark Henry. Big Show hit Henry with a chokeslam but Daniel Bryan chopblocked him so he could pin Henry and retain. After Show & Henry got up, Show hit the WMD on Henry and left.

In the Main Event, John Cena defeated Kane in a Last Man Standing Match. As soon as Mark Henry started walking up the ramp the "Let's Go Cena, Cena Sucks" chants were going and Cena's music hit. He looked at 111 & 113 before he did his salute and hit the ring. Cena & Kane brawled for a little bit then they got weapons into the match. A few chair shots to the back by both guys to each other then Kane grabbed a microphone & hit Cena in the head with it (I was shocked because it's the "PG Era"). Kane introduced 2 tables to the match: the first he used to throw Cena through in the corner, the second he set up in the ring. Kane went for a chokeslam but Cena reversed it into an Attitude Adjustment for the win. After the match Cena actually hyped up the crowd & there weren't any loud "Cena Sucks" chants(well except for the little girl who sat behind me & cried when Cena won).



I was blown away by how well done the show was and the new stage introduces a TV like feel but at the same time keeps the simpleness of a house show. Overall there were only 2 major errors I found in the show:
1. When Ryder's music hit, Miz's entrance video played for about 45 seconds before they fixed it
2. John Cena may have been playing to the New York crowd but he really needs to remember where WrestleMania 29's going to be taking place: MetLife Stadium: East Rutherford, New Jersey. And when he said "New York" he got a lot of heat from the New Jersey members of the crowd, even from people wearing his shirt. Also this is the first WWE event I went to without seeing Edge, I got the privilege to see him & high 5 him last year during his final reign as World  Heavyweight Champion & I'll show the picture I got below:

I was shocked & disappointed to not see: Sheamus, Christian, Ricardo Rodriguez & Great Khali

Here's some other good pictures that I took:

I was expecting a message from The Rock to hype up RAW but he was too busy with "Team Bring It Philly"...not exactly the best place to be when WWE's in NY. Now I'm hearing that this year's Money In The Bank PPV will be held at iZod Center in June, house shows may be great for more in ring action but nothing beats a ladder match live but then of course I'm hearing at the same time No Way Out will be at iZod Center. That'll do it for today's post and since I talked a little Zack Ryder earlier I'm gonna close this post out "Long Island Iced Z" style:

LIKE ME ON FACEBOOK: http://www.facebook.com/mikestalkssports
FOLLOW ME ON TWITTER!: https://twitter.com/#!/Mike_Iannaccone & /mikeisportstalk
GO BACK AND VIEW ALL MY OTHER POSTS!
&
TAKE CARE...BUZZ YOUR HAIR! (threw in a little Chiappetta on ya!)

BREAKING NEWS: TIM TEBOW TRADED TO THE NY JETS!

(Credit TMZ.com for the picture, it's so perfect I just had to use it)

Tim Tebow has just been traded from the Denver Broncos along with a 7th Round 2012 draft pick to the New York Jets for a 4th & 6th round draft pick in 2012. As a Jets fan, I'm beyond confused on this one, even though I've taken advantage of the JetsShop.com Reebok firesale & customized a Tebow #15 Jets jersey, I still wanna hear Mr. T & Woody's plans of the move were. More to come as this story develops...

Sibling Rivalry

Me & my younger brother Danny, we don't really look alike & we don't agree in 3 of the 4 majors sports. Sure we're doing our father proud by being Yankee fans but when it comes to sports, that's all we agree on. I've been a lifelong Jets, Knicks & Rangers fan. I base the Jets on my dad, I started watching Knicks games at a young age with my Uncle Rich and became a fan, I became a Ranger fan because of my mom being a Ranger fan and I like the color blue so the Broadway BlueShirts became my NHL team. My team choices were simple and local.

Danny's team origin stories are mostly interesting. Danny became a New Jersey Devils not because we live in New Jersey but rather in a similar fashion to me becoming a Ranger fan in terms of color, he became a Devil fan because of the color red. He chose the Bulls for the exact same reason, at least he wasn't a front runner though. 

Then there's football...when Danny was 2 my dad took him to a Jets game back in 1998 vs the Ravens & Danny got everything he wanted: Popcorn, a Keyshawn Johnson jersey, team trading cards & ice cream...but Danny wanted something else, a helmet. Plastic helmets back then were $15 at Giant Stadium & my dad saw some at Value City for $10 and told Danny he'd get a helmet later that day. So when my dad came home, Danny didn't want to take the ride down Route 9 & I did. When we got to Value City there were only 2 team helmets left...the Oakland Raiders & Jacksonville Jaguars. I thought the Raiders helmet was pretty cool so i took that one because I took the ride, I got to pick. Little did I know what I really decided on because as soon as we got home Danny put on his Jaguars helmet & became a Jaguar fan. My Uncle Rich bought him a Mark Brunell jersey (when he came to the Jets, Danny got pissed) & the rest is history. Oh how I wish my dad would have spent 5 more dollars.

Whenever our teams play each other Danny & I either watch or go to the games. Knicks-Bulls has mostly gone in Danny's favor but the Knicks have had their moments. Now that both teams are heating up, so's the rivalry with me & Danny.

Our true basketball rivalry has grown in the last few years ever since Danny committed to St. Joseph's High School in Metuchen back in 2010. I graduated from Cardinal McCarrick High School in 2011 after spending 4 great years there. McCarrick & St. Joe's have played each other in the Greater Middlesex Conference tournament for the last 2 years with St. Joe's coming away in 2 close games. I may be an alum now but the loss a few weeks ago hurt me the same as it did last year. McCarrick & St. Joe's have had their share of Alumni in the world of sports. Cardinal McCarrick's (formerly St. Mary's) notable sports alumni included: the first pair of twins on the same team in MLB history The O'Brien brothers who played together for the Pirates, former World Champion Yankee Allie Clark (who I've met a few times), 2 Time World Series Manager Tom Kelly & last but not least former Florida Marlins World Champion Manager Jack McKeon. St Joe's famous sports alumni are more modern: John Carlson of the Washington Capitals, Jay Williams of ESPN (former Chicago Bull) & Lakers All-Star Center Andrew Bynum. Danny & I are baseball players, being in seprate fan sections was fun but it would have been great to see him on my team or another team that McCarrick played last year. It's truly a shame McCarrick didn't play St Joe's in baseball last year, no doubt McCarrick would have gotten mercy ruled. The point of that was, while i was being confused with being a coach & Danny was on Freshman...it would have been nice to have his team on one side of the diamond & mine on the other. Back to pro sports!

(I would have used Matteau but Danny wasn't born 

when that game happened so I went for something that we've both seen)

The Devils & Rangers Rivalry is closely watched in our house. They meet an NHL most 6 times a year but to me and Danny each game is like a playoff game. Until the next meeting Danny & I always remind each other who won in the last meeting. Last week we attended the Ranger-Devil game at Prudential Center (best Christmas present ever from Danny btw) and the Rangers lost. Danny snapped a picture of me on his BlackBerry after the Devils went up by 2 in the 3rd. I'm upset they lost but going to a game with my brother meant a lot more then the result.

While Devils-Rangers is a strong division rivalry, our strongest personal rivalry is Jets-Jaguars. The first time the Jets made the playoffs in my life was 1998-99 & after a first round bye their opponent in the Divisional round would be...the Jaguars. My dad & my Uncle Sal went to the game while Danny & I attended a birthday party in Brooklyn. When we got news of the Jets victory i was 5 and started running around in joy while my 2 year old brother was angry. Oddly enough besides that playoff game the only other times the Jets have beaten the Jaguars was when Danny & I went in 2003 and in 2011. The 2003 game was great, it was me, Danny and our dad we got Big Wally's subs and had a great time, I wasn't suppose to go but my dad wanted to try to scalp a ticket for me & when we stopped at Quick Check before we hit Wally's then the Turnpike a guy noticed my & my dad wearing Jets attire and Danny in his Brunell jersey and gave us a free ticket 3 sections down from ours, it was the luckiest and coolest thing ever. Danny attended the 2005 overtime game with my dad & my dad told me that being with Danny that day was unbearable in terms of him going on & on about how much better the Jags were. In 2006 I was happy the game was played down in Jacksonville, I did watch the game with Danny though, it was the worst loss for the Jets in my life...as far as the regular season goes. We weren't able to get tickets to the 09 game because my Uncle Sal gave up his season tickets following the 2007 campaign. Last year (2011) my Uncle Rich helped me & Danny get last minute tickets on StubHub and the 3 of us went (my dad's commitment to softball prevented him from going). Rich (a Colts fan) sat between us in the first quarter to avoid me & Danny from getting into it if the game got too close but it didn't and the Jets blew out the Jaguars 32-3 & started the Blaine Gabbert era in Jacksonville as he replaced Luke McCown in the 2nd half. Danny went to a Jags home game against the Colts in 2010 with my Uncle Sal and they said it was nice down there...the reason I bring that up is because the NFL has announced the Jets will travel to Jacksonville in 2012 to play the Jaguars & I have 1 thing to say about that...ROAD TRIP!

Spring Break Means More Posts!

It's Spring Break at MCC & that means I have a little more time for some posts! So coming up this week will be:

• A Review of Black Uniforms In Sports
• An Article on St Patricks Day & Sports
• 2012 MLB Logo & Uniform Preview
• Being A New York Fan
• & (Last but not least)
• Being A Fan When You See Your Team On The Road

Stay Tuned for these posts in the coming week!

Sorry For The Lack Of Posts

Sorry for the lack of posts in the last few weeks guys, between school & my new job I've mostly been either writing papers, eating a meal or sleeping. Remember I'm only an 18 year old college student, things can get overwhelming at times. Nonetheless I've been keeping my grades up at MCC & protecting lives at the South Amboy YMCA life-guarding & loving my new job and work environment. I'll be posting tomorrow morning before I get MLB 12: The Show. Sorry again for the waiting for something new on here. I'M BACK!

-Mike