By Darrell Manning I have a quick story about Mr. Ray Guy that has nothing to do with his athletic ability. Eight years ago, my wife’s father, Bob Pike, was told he had terminal lung and brain cancer. He was 67 at the time. He was a well-known restaurant owner in the Clarksdale area. He […]
So, it’s Super Bowl Sunday, who you got? I got barbecue ribs fixin’ to go on for a slow smoke. I have libations. I got a high def TV. I have friends and family coming to watch. As always, we have Mississippi connections on both teams. The way I got it figured, I can’t lose. […]
This will be the 48th Super Bowl. I’ve watched all 47, 29 in person, 27 as a working journalist. People often assume the NFL’s showcase game would be the ultimate assignment for a sports scribe. Not so — at least not for this one, mainly because everything about the Super Bowl is so dreadfully overblown, […]
(Ray Guy just texted friends that he has been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame.) I’ve read many versions of what qualifies one for the Pro Football Hall of Fame. The one that makes the most sense is asking this question about the candidate: Can you you tell the history of pro football […]
Peyton Manning stands as the NFL’s gold standard, the highest paid player in football who just completed the best season of one of the greatest careers in the history of the sport. Chris Clark, his teammate, is a walking, talking definition of an NFL journeyman. He wasn’t highly recruited out of high school, wasn’t drafted […]
When Mississippian Jerry Rice crossed the goal line for one of his career-record seven Super Super Bowl touchdowns Jan. 29, 1995, back judge Jack Vaughn, a Mississippi State grad and Starkville resident was there to throw up his hands and signal the touchdown. A Sports Illustrated photographer snapped a photo that Vaughn keeps in his […]
(Writer’s note: I’ve watched all 47 previous Super Bowls, including 27 in person as a working journalist. Mississippi Sports Hall of Famer Jerry Rice provided three of the greatest individual Super Bowl performances I have witnessed. The following column was written after one of those on January 29, 1995, 19 years ago today, at […]
(The weather outside reminds me of Feb. 2, 2011, when I was in the Dallas area to cover the Super Bowl at JerryWorld, only I couldn’t get there because of the roads. Today, in New Jersey, they actually are charging folks admission to go sit through Media Day. Unbelievable. Anyway, of all the Super Bowl […]
