In San Jose, Mark Purdy wrote former 49ers Owner EDDIE DEBARTOLO's selection to the Pro Football HOF "should happen without much debate." Purdy: "My general standard, though, is that if you are writing the history of a sport and can't do it without including a certain person's name, then that certain person is a Hall of Famer." If any future "pro football historian produces a book about the NFL with no references to DeBartolo, then that historian deserves to be sacked." DeBartolo belongs in the HOF because in the '80s he and former coach BILL WALSH "virtually invented the modern way of doing NFL business in terms of upgrading every aspect of an organization to eliminate excuses and promote winning" (SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS, 1/30).
OLD COLLEGE TRY: Ohio Univ. won the '12 Case Cup Competition at the National Sports Forum in Oklahoma City. The case, developed by Navigate Marketing, focused on elevating an NCAA Championship through awareness, attendance and ratings growth. Eight MBA programs participated in the Case Cup and were given 24 hours to research and develop their findings before presenting in front of judges for 20 minutes each. Ohio and George Washington Univ. were the finalists, and both presented in front of the full group of eight judges. Ohio is now a two-time winner of the Case Cup. JIM KAHLER is Exec Dir of Ohio's Center of Sports Administration (THE DAILY).
MUSIC FESTIVAL: MLB.com's Evan Drellich noted Red Sox manager BOBBY VALENTINE, GM BEN CHERINGTON and Cubs President of Baseball Operations THEO EPSTEIN "were all on hand at the ballpark Monday for 'Hot Stove Cool Music.'" The annual charitable event benefits Epstein's and MLB Network's PETER GAMMONS' Foundation to be Named Later. Pirates GM NEAL HUNTINGTON and MLB Network analyst SEAN CASEY also attended (MLB.com, 1/30).
MARATHON MAN: Marlins President DAVID SAMSON will run 50 miles to raise funds in honor of the construction workers who helped build Marlins Park. One-hundred percent of the proceeds raised will be donated to 10 "Charities of Choice" (Marlins). To date, the run has raised over $500,000. Samson will begin his run in Pompano Beach and end at Marlins Park prior to the team's April 27 game against the D'Backs (MIAMI HERALD, 1/31).
COMING ATTRACTIONS: MLB Giants Senior VP & General Counsel JACK BAIR said that in the "same way the Giants reinvigorated the China Basin neighborhood with a new ballpark, he and his front office colleague ALFONSO FELDER would like to reinvigorate city neighborhoods by purchasing and restoring classic theaters through their San Francisco Neighborhood Theater Foundation." Blair's nonprofit in '07 took over the Vogue Theatre, now home to the Mostly British Film Festival. This year's film festival opens Thursday (S.F. CHRONICLE, 1/30)....Warner Bros. on Sept. 28 will release "TROUBLE WITH THE CURVE," a film about an "ailing baseball scout who takes his daughter on one last recruiting trip." The film stars CLINT EASTWOOD and AMY ADAMS (HOLLYWOODREPORTER.com, 1/30).
NAMES: Knicks G BARON DAVIS will make a cameo appearance in an episode of the TV Land sitcom "HOT IN CLEVELAND" (ESPN.com, 1/29)....Sporting News has named Packers GM TED THOMPSON NFL Exec of the Year (GREEN BAY PRESS-GAZETTE, 1/31)….The family of the late JOE PATERNO said that they will be selling DVD copies of the former Penn State football coach’s memorial service and "donating the proceeds to charities." The family said that they will “soon launch a website where copies can be purchased” (AP, 1/30)….Cyclist LANCE ARMSTRONG has “snapped up a stake in Mobli, a social networking startup," and he will try to "help the company gain traction in the competitive field of mobile apps.” The exact amount of the investment is unknown (N.Y. POST, 1/30)…Multichannel News named ESPN Senior VP/Strategy & Business Operations LORI LEBAS and WWE CMO MICHELLE WILSON to its list of ’12 “Wonder Women” (MULTICHANNEL NEWS, 1/30)….The Super Baskets of Hope project “created about 7,000 gift baskets for hospitalized children in the NFL’s 32 cities.” Organizers said that it is the “first project by a Super Bowl host city to reach across the country” (INDIANAPOLIS STAR, 1/31)….Oilers Owner DARYL KATZ has sold a “big chunk” of his privately owned pharmacy business Drug Trading Company Limited to McKesson Corp. for C$920M (EDMONTON JOURNAL, 1/31)….Golfer PHIL MICKELSON and his wife, AMY, have listed their 9,500-square-foot, five-bedroom Tuscan-style home in Rancho Santa Fe, Calif., for sale for $7.095M (THE DAILY).
