It’s Great To Be...

By: Jimbo Brown

            Sports as a whole have had something jaw dropping each month. Every time you tuned in to watch your favorite sports channel, a story on there made your heart stop. From Golden State blowing a 3-1 lead, Kevin Durant going to Golden State and Lionel Messi receiving 21 months for Tax Evasion. No matter what part of the world you live in the industry has turned your life upside down for the good/bad. Today we will quickly discuss matters that I want to revisit.

UF Men Track & Field Team: Back on Top

            "It means so much," Hall said. "We won my freshman year, and the past couple of years we've been all over the place. And we've had a great team. Just coming in here, people counted us out from the get go, and we came out on top.”

            After winning the NCAA Outdoor Track and Field national championship in 2012, the Gators had a plethora of talent that couldn’t figure it out. The team lacked belief that it could accomplish the mission once again. After the conference finals, where UF placed 7^th, Coach Holloway (Mouse) challenged himself, staff and athletes to believe that they will make amends at nationals. UF became just the third team since 1992 to win the NCAA Outdoor Championships after finishing outside the top five at the NCAA Indoor Championships.

Arman Hall accomplished his goal of winning a title in the 400m. He is the first gator to accomplish this feat since Tony McQuay. 4000-meter hurdles Eric Futch and Tj Holmes finished 1-2 gathering 18 points for the team. They are second pair of teammates to take first and second place in the 400-meter hurdles since Kamani and Michael Smith of Baylor (2001).

This National Championship extends the universities streak of winning one to 7 years. Even when the expected sports, baseball and softball, didn’t live up to the hype.

Gators Olympic Run

Rachel Longfors- Women’s Discus Throw

Darrielle McQueen- Women’s Long Jump & Triple Jump

Najee Glass- Men’s 400-Meter Dash

Arman Hall- Men’s 400-Meter Dash

Tony McQuay- Men’s 400-Meter Dash

Ebony Eutsey- Women’s 400-Meter Dash

Robin Reynolds- Women’s 400-Meter Dash

Shayla Sanders- Women’s 100-Meter Dash

Jeff Demps- Men’s 100-Meter Dash

Noah Lyles- Men’s 100-Meter Dash & 200-Meter Dash

KeAndre Bates- Men’s Long Jump & Triple Jump

Marquis Dendy- Men’s Long Jump

Ciarra Brewer- Women’s Triple Jump

Mark Parrish- Men’s 3,000- Meter Steeplechase

Fawn Miller- Women’s Javelin Throw

Will Claye- Men’s Triple Jump

Omar Craddock- Men’s Triple Jump

Christian Taylor- Men’s Triple Jump

Bridgette Owens- Women’s 100-Meter Dash

Dedric Dukes- Men’s 200-Meter Dash

Ryan Clark- Men’s 200-Meter Dash

Claudia Francis- Women’s 400-Meter Hurdles

Cory McGee- Women’s 1,500 Meters

Kerron Clement- Men’s 400-Meter Hurdles

Eric Futch- Men’s 400-Meter Hurdles

TJ Holmes- Men’s 400-Meter Hurdles

Kyra Jefferson- Women’s 200-Meter Dash

To see which Gators made it to Rio click here. 

Deeper Than Sports!

Athletes have become more than just players on the field or court. We grew up wanting to shoot, catch, and run like them for years, now we can even dream to emulate them off the playing field. Athletes are proving themselves to be more human than ever pushing for more success just as do we. Aside from the die-hard dedication given to their own devoted sport they are making plays in the board rooms.

Once I saw Serena Williams “twerking” in Beyonce’s new anthem video “Sorry”. I knew there was nothing she couldn’t do. Seriously, we are coming to see more and more athletes venturing into other avenues and we’re here for it! Of course a feature in a video has been done this not her only endeavor.  Williams has been serious about branding herself. Delving in fashion she has her own clothing line and her collections have been seen at critically acclaimed fashion shows.  She is part owner of the Miami Dolphins and has done voice overs and appearances on multiple television shows. All while dominating the tennis court. See any signs of Serena Williams slowing up? …. 

Boy BYE!

Serena is not the only athlete that we know holding it down on and off the court. Many athletes are using their initial sports recognition to take them down other paths.

 I asked Siri how many sources of income the average millionaire had and dozens of articles read "seven or more". I think some of these athletes asked Siri the same question and got the memo. Endorsements are nothing new to the sports world but they are not relying on those alone.

Sports do not last forever and though the case may be true for former Laker Kobe Bryant, he’s not done working. It is said that he will be trademarking the name “Black Mamba” and has founded Kobe Studios. He intends to bring the story of others’ to life through an assortment of media outlets. 

Stories of athletes going further and pushing the limits are important because they are idolized by our youth. Kids want to be like Lebron or Curry more than they do FAMU graduate and Microsoft Chairmen, John Thompson. 

Having any of those individuals as an idol is great but letting the youth know not to set limitations on themselves is the ultimate lesson and best example they could give. 

Lets talk about athletes doing more than just their first job and show the world brains and bronze can be the perfect recipe. The boundaries to our creativity and passions can be endless so why limit ourselves? Athletes have shown us how perfecting our craft can take us to higher places but once your there the climb does not end. We have to strive to be better and allow ourselves the opportunity to manifest multiple opportunities and showcase all of the many talents we possess. Challenge yourself to be more than just enough. I'm more than a striving college student. What are you more than?  

Stepping into 88 Blessings Recap

The love mothers have for their child is indescribable by words. No matter the circumstances their family is in you can count on the mother to find a way to make it happen. Over the weekend Erica Wilson held the inaugural event of her 88Blessings foundation that’s geared towards helping single moms.  Ms. Wilson is the mother of Jacksonville Jaguars newly re-signed wide receiver Allen Hurns. She is a single mom that pushed her son to follow his dreams and she’ll take care of the things he couldn’t control.

A portion of the event dedicated to honor Hurns resigning to a new 4-year/40 million dollar deal. The amount of the contract hasn’t changed the person Hurns has been his entire life. He is humbled and appreciative of the deal. “Its only the beginning” Hurns utters as fans congratulate him on the success. Special guest Drew Rosenhaus (Allen’s Agent) gave a few remarks on Erica and Hurns relationship, “I never seen a mother/son relationship like this; I wish me and my daughter grow to have a relationship like there.” The unconditional love between the two is what drove Hurns to work hard to gain this substantial amount in the contract.

An silent auction was held to raise money for the foundation. Thousands of dollars was raised for the foundation to kick-off their charitable duties. 

It was a marvelous event to honor 88 single mothers throughout the state of Florida. The mothers were showered with gifts and recognition of their hard work and dedication to their respective families. Jacksonville native and American Idol contestant Tyanna Jones added a stellar performance of Fantasia’s Lose To Win song. Her voice led many of the audience members to become emotional with tears of joy. The song empathizes what single mothers go through to make sure their family have the essentials of everyday life.

Blue Chip Collections Presents The Bombers VS The Birdmen

By: Jimbo Brown 

Blue Chip Collection has put a twist to one of their previous designs that was influence the motion picture Above The Rim. BCC believes that the movie shows America that the road for the minority athlete has many obstacles. The athlete has decide whether their going to take the positive or negative route on the journey to success. 

The Blue Chip Bombers & Birdmen jerseys are symbolic of those triumphs and struggles. The championship game of the Shootout Tournament summarizes the film and BCC's collection. No matter what someone says, stay true to your beliefs and it will play out in your favor. 

You can pre-order your jersey starting tomorrow 05/31 at BlueChipCollection.net and receive 20% off by using the code: NutSo. 

Believe. Love. Unite. Empower

Tannehill’s Place Amongst the Best NFL Quarterback’s

            Ryan Tannehill recently signed a 6-year contract extension worth $96 million with $45 guaranteed. This confirms that the Dolphins are 100% behind their franchise quarterback. Some would say that is a lot of money for an inconsistent QB with a losing record that has never taken his team to the playoffs. I’ll even admit that. But I don’t think that was the point of the contract, to reward his performance over the past 3 years. I see it as a proactive & good business move from the Dolphins to lock up their quarterback sooner rather than later at a bargain price. And it was important to do so before other quarterback’s from the 2012 draft class such as Andrew Luck, Russell Wilson & RGIII got their contracts. There is a Super Bowl victory, multiple playoff wins & an Offensive Rookie of the Year between those QB’s and Tannehill hasn’t been nowhere close to reaching those achievements. Their extensions will be well over $100 million, especially Luck, who just might be the highest paid quarterback in the league when his time comes. So of course, in terms of on-field performance & contract value, Tannehill isn’t on their level (except RGIII). But if the Dolphins waited until after another good season from Tannehill & contract extensions from the other QB’s, that new contract would’ve been worth way more than they are giving him now. 

            There’s been a lot of talk about Tannehill’s performance, his worth, & his rank among the starting quarterbacks in the league after the contract numbers went public. I’m a big Tannehill supporter & I believe we found our quarterback for the next decade. Yes, he has to work on his pocket presence & deep ball. Despite another 8-8 record, he is trending upwards & has improved in every relevant statistical category in each of his 3 seasons. This past season, he threw for 4,045 yards & 27 touchdowns with a 66.4 completion percentage & a 92.8 passer rating. If you ask me, those are generally good numbers for a quarterback in his 3^rd year and the Dolphins could have easily went 10-6 if it wasn’t for a few late drives from Green Bay, Detroit & Denver. So I know we’re good enough to achieve it & the talent is definitely there, the Dolphins just have to get tougher physically & mentally and finish games better.

            If we get a better record (playoffs) from the Dolphins & better play from Tannehill, Miami will be in a better situation than other teams with $100 million quarterbacks that haven’t played up to their big contracts. Colin Kaepernick & Jay Cutler signed $100 million contracts within the past couple years but have regressed since then. Tannehill might not have the athleticism of Kaep or the big arm of Cutler, but Tannehill had a better year than both of them in 2014. If you ask me, we have a top 15 quarterback in Tanny. He’s not in that elite bracket with Brady, Manning, Rodgers, Luck & Brees but he’s better than the average quarterback. Cam Newton, Philip Rivers, Big Ben, Matt Ryan & Russell Wilson would round out my top 10. The rest of the top 15 with Tanny included would be Matthew Stafford, Tony Romo, Eli Manning & Joe Flacco. Ryan Tannehill could creep into the top 10 real soon & could be worth more than his new contract with a couple more good, consistent seasons & some playoff wins under his belt.