Good morning Fanatics and a happy December to you!
Yesterday was a busy Monday full of press conferences and transcribing. I thought that this morning, I’d let you all know what is on my mind. So here we go.
Men’s Hoops
I’m going to start off with a few men’s basketball tidbits. First of all, when Greg McDermott mentioned that Marquis Gilstrap has been fighting bronchitis and that Craig Brackins may be “coming down with something” during yesterday’s press conference, I don’t think that anything major was meant by it. A very small representation of Cyclone fans overreacted this news yesterday. I fully expect both to be in the lineup against Northern Iowa tomorrow night.
As for LaRon Dendy, I don’t have an updated health status on him since the press conference, but I’ll be surprised if he plays. I am pretty sure that the general consensus among Cyclone fans is to get this guy 100 percent for the Big 12 season. From the information I’ve been able to gather, this second knee injury was a bit of a fluke. I wouldn’t get too worked up about his injury problems just yet.
In all honesty, through seven games, this team has remained fairly healthy, other than the whole Dendy situation of course. I am knocking on wood right now.
Some Wrestling Thoughts
I’m about to do what many are guilty of every single year. I am going to write about wrestling the week before the Iowa match.
I respect the sport of wrestling like you wouldn’t believe. I don’t understand it as much as I’d like, but I really, really appreciate it. Wrestling is something that I could NEVER do. I would cry like a little girl within one minute of being in a wrestling match. It would be ugly. Just not my thing. A handful of my best friends in high school wrestled and a couple of them were state champs. I loved going to watch them. I just don’t feel like I have enough knowledge of the sport to write about it intelligently on a daily basis. I hope that makes sense.
I’m looking forward to Sunday’s dual between the second-ranked Cyclones and number one Iowa. Believe it or not, in 25-years of life, I have never been to an Iowa State-Iowa dual. I will attend my first on Sunday. I’m pretty jacked up for this event too.
Regardless of what I know, I’ve been extremely impressed with head coach Kevin Jackson so far this year. Jackson is a great talker. He’s very careful with his words but lets you know what is on his mind. He’s an intense man who has a passion for Iowa State. Let’s hope that the Cyclones are healthy on Sunday. Yesterday, Jackson told reporters that Nick Fanthorpe (133) and Nick Gallick (141) are currently listed as questionable. Luckily for Cyclone fans, there is a lot of time between now and Sunday.
See Ya Coach
In another off topic note, I am sad today about the news that broke last night in Tallahassee. Reports indicate that Florida State head football coach Bobby Bowden will retire today. Bobby Bowden is one of my favorite figures in the history of sports. I love the guy. It all started back in 1993 when his Seminoles beat Nebraska in the Orange Bowl. I was nine. I didn’t know who this guy was or who Florida State was for that matter. All I knew is that they were beating up on the Huskers. I was hooked.
I realize that this is an Iowa State site so I won’t elaborate on this topic anymore. But I am depressed to see the real “Ole’ Ball Coach” go.
Is this right? I have mixed emotions. I am a firm believer that guys like Bowden earn the right to do things on their terms. But how many more chances can the man get? He is not bigger than the program itself.
Coach Bowden stepping down is probably the right thing. I just hope that it was actually his decision.
