Ron Mexico's flavored water

I thought my man Mike Vick was smarter than his little bro Marcus, but apparently not. According to an article on SI.com, police in Miami are examining a water bottle that The Great One tried to bring onto a flight out of Miami International Airport. It seems there was a secret compartment built into the water bottle that had been used to store marijuana. The worst punishment McVick could get is a misdemeanor, punishable by up to a year in jail and a $1,000 fine...don't bet on the jail time.

The latest news continues a troubling slide for The Great One. At Virginia Tech, he was untouchable, but since becoming a star for the Falcons, he's been accused of spreading an STD (and using the alias Ron Mexico), flicked off fans, been labeled a "coach killer" and now this. Marcus' rap sheet suddenly doesn't look quite as bad: relations with an underage girl, possession of marijuana, a gun charge and "The Stomp."

I never said the Vicks were saints, but it's getting harder to defend them. This is especially true when you consider their unrealized potential. Marcus had many chances at VT before being kicked out of school, and he has yet to do anything in the pros. Mike looked like a sure Hall of Famer in his first couple years, but setting QB rushing records doesn't cut it any more. If he doesn't straighten up, this will be his last year in Atlanta. Perhaps he'll end up like his cousin Aaron Brooks, washed up and playing for the Raiders...a fate worse than jail time.

Hokies in Top 25

For the first time in 11 years, Virginia Tech was ranked in the AP Top 25 for men's basketball. It wasn't a complete shock, and no one can say the Hokies aren't deserving of their No. 23 spot after beating No. 5 Dook and No. 1 Carolina in the same week. In the next week, Tech plays at Florida State and at home against Maryland, we'll see if the Hokies come back to Earth and play at the level of their competition as they're prone to do.

For more on the ranked Hokies, check this out.

Hokies and Heels

For the first time in many Virginia Tech-UNC matchups, I didn't know who I was going to root for on Saturday. Typically the Hokies and Heels make it easy on me: Tech is usually the best in football while UNC stinks, and UNC usually rules in hoops while the Hokies are weak. That meant that I could cheer for the team that had more riding on the specific game. A loss at Keenan Stadium would have ruined the Hokies football season this year, so I rooted for them. Last year, a defeat against Tech in basketball would have truly hurt the Heels' ranking, so I went for UNC. The Hokies win last week over No. 5 Dook tossed all that out the window.

UNC came into the game at Cassell Coliseum ranked No. 1 in the country and would surely lose that ranking if it lost. But the Heels were bound to lose at sometime, and it might as well be to the Hokies early in the season. Tech coming off one of its biggest upsets ever, could get its biggest ever and announce that it could really compete in the ACC. It ended up the Hokies won 94-88, and instead of ecstatic for Tech like I was after the Dook win, I was kind of just numb.
A few thoughts on the game:

• The Cassell was really rocking for the game with a sellout of nearly 10,000 fans. I've only been to a few games there when it was that packed...the ACC opener against UNC in Tech's inaugural season in the league and the NCAA women's tournament when Tech hosted two rounds come to mind. When Hokie Nation fill the Cassell, it really is one of the toughest places to play in the ACC. The way the arena is built, with the stands rising at a sharper angle than in typical arenas, makes for louder crowd noise than at the Dean Dome and it may be comparable to Cameron. If only the fans would come out when the Hokies play weak competition like VMI, then maybe they wouldn't blow those games.



• Seth Greenberg and the Hokies have done a good job approaching the ACC like they are a mid-major team. Instead of trying to compete with the Carolinas, Dooks and Marylands for the McDonald's All-Americans, they've recruited solid guys who will stay all four years. That may make for some lean years early on, but the Hokies are reaping the rewards now by being more polished than the young Carolina and Dook teams.



• The Heels' comeback was almost one for the books. They were down by 20 points with 4:30 remaining in the game and almost made it all the way back. I was getting images in my head of the game in 1992 when UNC came back from 22 down against Wake Forest and the game in 1993 when UNC came back from 21 down against Florida State. In those comebacks, however, the Heels had nearly the entire second half to rally. There just wasn't enough time against the Hokies.



• The final result was probably the best thing that could have happened. Now the Hokies have proven they can beat anyone, and they may actually have a shot at making the NCAA Tournament for the first time since 1996. The Heels will bounce back and have plenty of time to return to No. 1. Ahhh the beauty of college basketball, a tournament decides the champion instead of some random BCS voters.

For your viewing, reading pleasure:

• A great photo gallery of the game.
• The Heels' lack of experience.
• The Hokies' emotions.

Hokie Nation travels

On Jan. 6, I was lucky enough to be in attendance at Cameron Indoor Stadium as Virginia Tech upset No. 5 Dook 69-67 in overtime.
A few thoughts on the game:

• Maybe it was because of global warming or perhaps Durham's proximity to hell, but it was 75 degrees outside. And despite all their fancy book learning, the Dookies obviously don't know how to work a thermostat because it was easily 105 degrees inside the cramped arena. I was wearing jeans and short sleeves and began sweating profusely as soon as I entered the door. It finally made sense to me why so many Cameron Crazies choose to go shirtless. By the time I got home that afternoon, my fiancee Susan insisted that I remained at least 3 feet from her at all times until I showered.

• It was my first trip to Cameron and I was impressed by the overall atmosphere, but it was not overly intimidating. As a favor to my friend Mike, who is a Dook fan and was nice enough to bring me along to the game, I only wore a maroon collared VT shirt. I left the gobbler noisemaker at home. The octogenarians in our section shot me a few dirty looks, but the biggest reactions I got were from fellow Hokies. There was a pretty strong Tech contingent there, because as everyone knows, Hokie Nation travels.

• As for the Cameron Crazies, I didn't think they were everything that Mr. Vitale makes them out to be. The VT players didn't seem bothered by the preppy kids' coordinated cheers or flailing arms either. Final free-throw count: VT 13-18; Dook 18-28. My thought is: You can't intimidate thugs. A couple of years ago, the Hokies had a player named Terry Taylor who admitted that he had previously sold drugs while basically living on the streets. Do you think a guy like that is going to care if a 140-pound beanpole with a 1,600 SAT yells "airball" at him? The Crazies did do one thing during Hokies free throws that seemed totally out of line. They pulled their shirts over their heads and jumped around like monkeys. The Crazies have to be smart enough to realize there are racial undertones to such behavior, and with the recent uproar over Dook lacrosse in the community, I'm shocked nothing has been said about this.

• Coach K once again revealed himself as a ridiculous blowhard. After the Tech win, Zabian Dowdell pulled his jersey out in the direction of the Crazies in celebration. This move is done all the time by players nowadays, and seeing as how Dowdell was on the court the previous year when Dook beat Tech on a last-second half-court shot by Sean Dockery, it seemed a more than reasonable celebration. Of course Coach K pulled him aside, and according to Dowdell, said "You're too classy a guy to be carrying on like that." Yeah K, your sideline cursing and your players' pompous behavior really shows you to be the picture of class.

• In the end it was one of the biggest wins in VT basketball history and certainly the best Tech game I've ever been to. It just made it all that much sweeter that it was at Dook.