Sam’s Commentary

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Back To Augusta

I heard somebody describe the Masters as “more Member-Guest than Major,” and that’s pretty close to the truth. Especially Monday through Wednesday. I walked into the press building last week to see many, no all of the same, familiar faces. Martha Wallace, in her familiar spot behind the counter looked up at me and said, […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Beach Boys Encounter

“Man, I have that same shirt,” Mike Love said to me as we were introduced and he pulled on my sleeve. “Really?” I responded. “No really man, I have that exact same shirt,” he offered again. “Well I was hoping you’d wear it tonight,” I told him, ” I was told it was a Beach […]

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John Daly’s Ok?

I know it’s become very popular to just bash John Daly. Say he’s tormented, he’s full of demons, and he’s a drunk and a disgrace to the game. You could make a case for all of those based on his actions, but as much as I think he’s responsible for a lot of his own […]

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Man and Myth

Before you get all over me, let me say I like Brett Favre. He’s in my top 7 or 8 quarterbacks of all time that if you said he was going to be my starter, I’d be happy. And he’s going to the Hall of Fame as one of the all-time greats. And yes, I’m […]

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Daytona Or Bust

It’s kind of a pilgrimage every year, returning to Daytona for the 500. This year was a little different, knowing that it was the 50th running of the race and they’d have plenty of special things line up to celebrate. (Not technically the 50th “anniversary, but the 50th running of the race). And they did […]

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Bad Words, Worse Consequences

There are a lot of angles to the Kelly Tilghman situation. She’s back on the air and Tiger said it was a “non-issue.” Fair enough but on the outside, a lot of things have happened. The editor of GolfWeek was fired for putting a noose on the cover of the magazine. He was just trying […]

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Australian For A Day

I’m sitting here watching the Championship games in the NFL and really enjoying it. Good games, both of them. But I’m also interested in the upcoming Rugby League game scheduled for this Saturday at UNF. The South Sydney Rabbitohs will face the Leeds Rhinos in what they call a “friendly” in soccer. My long-time friend […]

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Still A Game of Shadows

The Mitchell Report took a while to compile and $20 million of Major League Baseball’s money. So why then is every body in it denying the findings or just ignoring it completely? Probably because there is no real enforcement risk based on baseball’s current relationship with the players union. The current collective bargaining agreement runs […]

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Tim Tebow: The Legend Grows

I voted for Tim Tebow for the Heisman. In fact the final count followed my ballot: Tebow, Darren McFadden and Colt Brennan. It was a wide-open year but I thought Tim’s historic numbers put him at the top of the list. He’s not going to play in the National Championship game and the Gators lost […]

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Keep It Real

I don’t know what happened in the Sean Taylor murder and perhaps we’ll never know, but it’s not just a random burglary and shooting. Taylor had his scrapes with the law and at one point was charged with brandishing a weapon during some alleged gang activity. A week before the killing, there was a break […]

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Change For The Better

When I first heard of Fred Taylor, he was a prized recruit coming out of South Florida to the University of Florida. He really was just a kid. Raised by his grandmother in a house with dirt floors in a tough neighborhood, he was about as wide-eyed and impressionable as any freshman in college history. […]

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Personal Responsibility

I guess you could write this column every day. Athlete does something stupid, gets caught, pays a penalty, claims he didn’t realize it was a mistake, apologizes and moves on. I guess that’s accepted in today’s world and even expected. But I think fans have had just about enough. I know they have here in […]

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For A Year, It’s Ga/Fla

When Knowshown Moreno scored the Bulldogs first touchdown, his teammates flooded the end zone as directed by Head Coach Mark Richt. “Classless,” is how one Florida Gator described it. In a game that’s about showmanship and one-upmanship, it was right along with just about everything that’s gone on in the Florida/Georgia rivalry. No Gator fans […]

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Teams, Clint And The Rockies

One of the attractive things about sports for me has always been what it reveals about people. Whether it’s a team sport like football or an individual effort like golf, playing it, and observing others playing has always been as much of a mind game for me than a physical challenge. I still enjoy going […]

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Off The Field (And The Media)

Sometimes I’m amused when somebody on the phone or calling into a radio show tells me that we’re not asking hard enough questions of our sports interview subjects. (I also get calls telling me to lay off.) Covering professional and college sports means two completely different environments when dealing with players, coaches and the other […]

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Russell Crowe’s Rugby Adventure

I really didn’t know what to expect when I was invited to the press conference that Russell Crowe was holding at UNF. The Academy Award winning actor also holds a majority stake in the South Sydney Rabbitohs, a National Rugby League team in Australia. When my friend Spinner first brought the idea of bringing Crowe’s […]

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Stop Picking Sides

I keep hearing stories about Byron Leftwich and whether it was the right thing to do to cut him and go with David Garrard. “Is Leftwich happy?” is the over riding theme. The answer is: “Who cares?” I don’t have any beef with Byron and I didn’t have a huge opinion about whether he or […]

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To Buy or Not

There’s a lot of talk about blackouts and fan support for the Jaguars early this season. The team avoided a blackout in their opener against Tennessee, extending the deadline and selling just under 2,000 tickets in the last week. What’s behind the blackouts anyway, I’m asked on a regular basis. The league has their own […]

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Lambeau Experience

I’ve wanted to make the trip to Lambeau Field for a long time and it seemed a natural to take in the Jaguars/Packers game in August to accomplish that. I know it’s not the entire “experience” of the “frozen tundra” but it was special nonetheless. I flew to Milwaukee and drove the two hours up […]

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Ed Seay 1938-2007

His friends from Jax Beach called him “Poogie” an endearing name from his childhood and high school days at Fletcher. Around the world he was know as Ed or Mr. Seay and as Arnold Palmer’s golf course design partner. Today, Ed Seay died after a long illness at his home here in town. He was […]