Georgetown is Back

When I was growing up in the DC area, Georgetown basketball was still king with John Thompson as their coach and 3 legit stars coming from the program in Mutombo, Mourning, and Ewing. I didn't witness anything great from Maryland until Joe Smith came along a few years later, so the Hoyas were one of the first teams I followed as a child. The Terps became the best team in this area, and have been media and fan favorites for most of Gary Williams' tenure. This meant a lot of attention that Georgetown had been receiving was now going elsewhere.

The team was still good under John Thompson, but they weren't memorable like his earlier teams. The Hoyas completely became non-factors under Craig Esherick, and barely any attention was paid to the program for about 5 years.

The hiring of John Thompson III brought some press back to Georgetown, but mostly because it was the legendary coach's son coming in to coach where his daddy was successful. It turns out that JT3 really is a great coach, and he deserves the job not just because of his name. I really respect John Thompson III, and part of it is that he didn't take the easy way to get where he is at Georgetown. Of course he has a built in advantage being named John Thompson, but he went his own way instead of having his father pull him along. He played away from his father's influence at Princeton, and learned how to coach under Bill Carmody and Pete Carril. He was successful at Princeton before landing at Georgetown, and I respect that a whole lot more than guys like Sean Sutton and Keno Davis being handed the job after their father steps down at Oklahoma State and Drake.

Not only is there a Thompson who knows how to win at Georgetown again, but the players on this team are fun to watch too. They have some great talent on the team, and its nice to see JT3 bringing in local kids to get the job done. Jeff Green, Roy Hibbert, and DaJuan Summers are all Maryland kids who fans could follow in high school and through college. Each one is a future NBA player and seems to represent themselves well on the court. The future also looks good for JT3 recruiting locally. He already has 4 committs over the next 2 recruiting classes from the DC area. Chris Wright and Austin Freeman are huge prospects for St. John's and Dematha who will be on the team next season. Chris Braswell from Dematha and Jason Clark from O'Connell are also verbally committed for the class of 2008, with Henry Sims and Sean Mosley from the Baltimore area on the radar screen as well. Interesting to note that Sims and Mosley are also being recruited hard by Maryland, so it will be interesting to see where the local kids want to go play. Is JT3 back to steal the thunder from Gary and the Terps, or can the DC-Baltimore area keep enough talent to support 2 big time college programs. I'm hoping for 2 great teams in the area, and hopefully an annual out of conference game between the two of them.

Archuletta to Bears

Interesting news from the Redskins today. The Bears traded away a 6th round pick to the Redskins for Adam Archuletta. Nice to see the Redskins acquire a draft pick for once. Now lets hope they don't trade it away in some deal that won't end up helping the team.
I'm happy to see Archuletta go. Unlike some Washington fans, I have nothing against the guy personally. However, he definitely wasn't the right fit for the organization. The Redskins made a mistake by signing a guy who excels at hitting and playing near the line of scrimmage to team up with another guy who does the exact same thing. Sean Taylor and Adam Archuletta are good players, but they certainly don't compliment each other.
The Redskins then announced that they signed Omar Stoutmire from the Saints. This is a great signing. The 'Skins picked up a guy who played for the organization before, and has a lot of experience in the league. Now he won't be an All Pro after 10 years in the league, but what he will do is stabilize Sean Taylor. He will allow Taylor to roam the field while he worries about getting beat deep. He is a cover safety, which Adam Archuletta has never been identified as one. He also isn't an expensive signing, which is good news. Getting rid of Archuletta's contract and picking up an affordable guy to help replace him will certainly help the Redskins prepare for this season and future years. It feels good as a Redskins fan to finally see a couple of smart moves put together for a team that hasn't been able to boast of success all season.

The Beginning

My name is John, and I have MD pride. That is Maryland pride of course. I am a 20 something male who has lived the majority of his life in the great state of Maryland. I grew up in Montgomery County, went to High School in Baltimore County, college in DC, and am now living in Prince George's County. I've jumped around the state a little bit but love everything about it, including its sports scene. I grew up rooting for the Redskins, Orioles, and Bullets professionally, as well as Maryland and Georgetown for college teams. My family moved to Baltimore in 1995, right before the Ravens came to town. I've come to love the Ravens as well, and don't have that stupid animosity towards the 'Skins that some Baltimorons have. Now with the Nationals coming to DC, I am looking forward to success from them as well, although my primary allegiance will always be to the O's. I basically want all Maryland and DC area teams to win, and I want to see local athletes succeed personally as well.

The reason I'm starting this blog is to post my thoughts on sports, which is my greatest passion. Hopefully I'll be able to draw some views from people who also love DC-Baltimore-Maryland sports. I would love to hear comments from people who follow the major pro and college teams in the region, as well as comments regarding small college, high school, and other local sports. Don't be shy about writing to me, because this blog will be a lot more fun if there is banter and interaction with other Maryland sports fans.