Sam’s Commentary

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Super Bowl Preview

In an odd twist, all three times the Patriots have made it to the Super Bowl; the game has been played in New Orleans. New England wasn’t competitive against the Bears or the Packers in their other two appearances and is already a 14-½ point underdog to the Rams. Fourteen and a half? That’s not […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Expansion Draft

Imagine this conversation at the Jaguars offices: Wayne Weaver: “Alright, who are we putting on the expansion draft list?” Rick Reprish (Personnel Director): “It needs to be somebody who’s actually taken off our hands. Somebody who can play.” Paul Vance (new capologist): “It needs to be somebody who clears a lot of cap room for […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Sweetness and Swagger

Full of hubris and humility, swagger and sweetness, Steve Spurrier owned the room yesterday in his first remarks as Head Coach of the Washington Redskins. If you wanted to like him going in, you loved him when you left. If you didn’t care for his style beforehand, you were gagging halfway through. It was classic […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Coaching Carousel

It’s been a week since Steve Spurrier resigned at Florida and the domino effect is still taking place. Ron Zook has replaced Spurrier, but the rest of the jobs that were real possibilities last week are still possibilities. The Vikings have a coach, the Chargers still do not. The front-runner for Steve’s services is Carolina. […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

More Zook

It was only uncomfortable a couple of times in the large meeting room yesterday under the stadium where the University of Florida makes their big athletic program announcements. New Head Football Coach Ron Zook was at the end of answering questions and was rambling on, telling a story about how he was hired in Pittsburgh. […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Zook

Finding the right coach to lead the Gator Nation was a tough enough job to begin with. Having to do the searching in public made the process a whole lot harder. What if Jeremy Foley had just kept everything to himself and then popped up yesterday and said “It’s Ron Zook.” Gator fans would have […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Replacing Spurrier

Finding a football coach for the University of Florida isn’t a hard job. Finding the right coach is a very difficult task. There are a lot of factors Athletic Director Jeremy Foley is dealing with, not the least of which is the next coach will have to follow Steve Spurrier. Spurrier was so successful at […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Hire Spurrier

Usually the Monday following the final weekend of the NFL regular season is pretty cut and dried. Certain coaches know they’re going to be fired, the playoffs are set and everybody is looking toward the playoffs. None of that’s true today as not even the playoff picture is set. If the Ravens win tonight they’re […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Spurrier Departs

When he decided to leave, he just left. After fifteen years as a college Head Coach and twelve at the University of Florida, Steve Spurrier just decided he’d had enough. And true to form when he made up his mind to leave, he left. He didn’t hedge, he didn’t negotiate, he just left. He didn’t […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Jaguar Outlook

In the middle of the locker room, Jaguars Linebacker Kevin Hardy stood, with the help of crutches, surveying the landscape. As he looked around, the sight was different than anything he’d seen in the past, and is different than anything the locker room will look like in the future. There are remnants of the Jaguars […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Christmas

Christmas is a time for family and friends, kids and relatives. Christmas sports traditions have evolved into the Blue/Gray game, a bowl game and Michael Jordan playing in an NBA Game. Of course, NBC wasn’t aware Jordan would be back this year, so he and the Wizards have the day off. I’ve always liked Christmas. […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

A-Rod’s Millions

There’s been a large outcry from sports fans this week about the $252-million contract Alex Rodriguez signed with the Texas Rangers. Over the next ten years, if he chooses, A-Rod will be the highest paid player in baseball. It’s in his contract. He has to be or he can leave. People are screaming about this […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Bad BCS

So who thought the BCS was a good idea from the beginning anyway? From the minds of, as my friend Cole Pepper says, “money grubbing fat cats” comes an idea that’s flawed from the start and has gotten worse as it’s gone along. Yes, I hate the BCS. It hasn’t achieved any goal, and what […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Groundhog Day

It took me a while, but I finally have figured it out: it’s Groundhog Day. You know, the movie where Bill Murray wakes up every day and it’s the same day over and over. He knows it, but nobody else does. The Jaguars version involves the other team though. The Jaguars might be the team […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Gift List

As you’re out at the malls and at your local shops on the busiest shopping days of the year, don’t forget some of the more notables on your list. What do you get a just un-retired NBA superstar who’s playing with a bunch of dolts? Or an NFL coach whose stars can’t stay healthy, and […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Happy Thanksgiving

Holidays are always a time of reflection and Thanksgiving is a good time for that, the essence of the day itself created around giving thanks for all of the blessings we have. Following the attacks of September 11th and the subsequent military action in Afghanistan, sports have new perspective in America, and they should. I […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Florida/Florida State

I don’t know if Rex Grossman will win the Heisman Trophy, but he was the best player on the field Saturday night in Gainesville. The Florida quarterback did not throw for 300 yards, but directed the Gators offense with the precision to break the will of Florida State and did the things necessary to give […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Parity Stinks

Is anybody else sick of parity in the NFL? I know I am. Everybody’s calling it a “crazy” year in the league but it’s not crazy it’s just mediocre. Really. When Dallas beat Washington on Monday Night Football a couple of weeks ago, everybody thought it might be the Cowboys’ only win of the year. […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Coughlin’s Challenge

This is a critical time for the Jaguars as a franchise, for the players on the 2001 team, for this year’s record, and for Head Coach Tom Coughlin. Not just the matter of playing games against Buffalo, Baltimore and Tennessee, but the franchise’s psyche hangs in the balance. The absence of Tony Boselli from the […]

Jacksonville Sports News, Sam Kouvaris - SamSportsline.com

Irish And Hozer

I was sitting at my desk on Sunday night when I heard the familiar sweet “ding-dong” from my computer, notifying me I had a new email message. It happens all the time, and five or six times a day, I go through the mailbox to cull out the junk and things that are actually sent […]