First Diagnosis

So the purpose of this blog is relatively simple. My name is Mic Durfee, and I want to be a sports columnist. I'm a Journalism Major at the University of Missouri, and even though I'm learning a lot there, I figure I should use this whole Internet thing to my advantage and get some practical column-writing experience.



As I noted earlier, the purpose of this blog is pretty simple- sports. A buddy of mine suggested that I use the sub-heading of "A daily dose of opinion and a prescription for cutting the crap" underneath my blog title. Only problems are A) Blogspot didn't give me a sub-heading option, and B) I don't think this will be a daily blog. Bi-weekly, possibly tri-weekly, is what I'm shooting for. But since it can't be a sub-heading, think of it more as my version of the Hippocratic Oath. When you read this column, you'll get my thoughts and opinions, as well as the relevant facts. As much as I love sports, I think every sports fan will agree that there is a lot wrong with the state of sports right now- baseball is just getting over the steroids era, the NBA still has Tim Donaghy hanging over its head, the NFL is trying to clean up its act while people like Pacman Jones seem hell-ben to destroy it, the NHL is fighting for relevance, College Football is still using a computer to determine the National Champion, and so on and so forth. So there's a lot to be upset about. But there is still a lot to love. The Tampa Bay Rays have a chance to complete the first worst to first turn around in Major League History. The NBA has dynamic young stars like Chris Paul, Deron Williams, and Kevin Durant, who are electrifying to watch and seem to be upstanding citizens off the court. The NFL has the most parity it's had since... well, as long as I've been alive anyway (Anytime the Arizona Cardinals are the best team in their division, and in the conversation of Top Five Teams in the NFC... there's a lot of parity). And the NHL... well, the NHL is still here. And thanks to Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin, and numerous other young stars, people are watching again. And while the BCS is still flawed, if Texas keeps playing the way they have been, it won't matter whether a human or a computer decides the champ.



I guess my point is that it's a great time to be a sportswriter. There's a lot of things happening, both good and bad, and that's exciting. I'm looking forward to picking stories, writing about them, hearing feeback, and just watching more sports than any one person possibly needs to watch, all in the name of "I need material for my next column." I hope that what I have to say provokes a response; whether you love it or hate it, I just hope it makes you think a little.



The Doctor is in.