1. LeBron didn’t do anything wrong by leaving Cleveland. Athlete’s do it all the time. BUT never under this circumstance, he was the King of Ohio and he threw it all away because he “wanted to take his talents to South Beach.” That was his choice to make and there’s nothing wrong with that. However it does show that he is number one and he feels no pity or love for Cleveland.

2. He is now a sidekick. He is content with being one Dwayne Wade’s team. He doesn’t have the killer instinct of players in the past.

3. Only time will tell when it comes to the LeBron legacy.

4. Check out this great parody.

The reality of the situation is that FIFA does not allow political interference by the nation on the teams. Teams must not be operated by politicians and Nigeria is breaking a rule. However, the Nigerian President isn’t completely crazy. President Jonathan believes that there is some funny business going on within the organization of the national team. He suspects illegal funds are going into the organization and wants a full investigation. This wouldn’t be the first time something like this has happened. (Watch ESPN’s 30 for 30 “The Two Escobars.”) President has till Monday to revoke the suspension or the Nigerian’s are banned.

If Nigeria tries to appeal the ban on the suspension I believe FIFA will only ban them further.

The game was gut-wrenching but it seems like we didn’t have a chance. Ghana simply wanted the win more than we did and fought harder and longer. Their defense was amazing. The only goal we scored was a PK by Landon Donovan coming from a foal on Clint Dempsey. (I’m a fan Clint but it seemed like you spent the whole game on the ground. I need to go back and watch it because you were either flopping a lot or you got the snot beat out of you.)

Ghana had the weight of Africa on their shoulders, were the underdogs and beat us. They were younger, faster and hungrier. The goal we gave up in the beginning of the game was the killer. Ghana isn’t a huge scoring threat and when they stole the ball and went in for the kill it broke my heart. I knew that scoring on Ghana would be tough and it was.

Many people are calling for Bradley’s head but to be honest I’m not knowledgeable enough to know if we could actually get a better coach. Bradley made lineup mistakes, that’s for sure, but who could we get to replace him? In the end, I think Bradley didn’t put the right lineup out on the field and that mistake will haunt him. But he’s done a lot of things for the US team. I’m sure someone could replace him but the question is still who. I think the team did well, they could have advanced but weren’t able to strike. I’m proud of them but you have to give credit to Ghana for playing with heart and wanting it more.

Lately, I’ve had a bit of a change of heart. I’ve slowly become more and more interested in the sport and have been doing my research. I know that the number of American’s that are interested in soccer are steadily increasing and to most soccer fans I’m just one more American jumping on the bandwagon. But I don’t care too much. I’ve been excited about the World Cup and couldn’t wait for it to start today.

So starting today I hope to write a little more about soccer. I set my alarm this morning and woke up early…and I’m on vacation. That never happens. That rarely happens when I’m at home. But I woke up and watched South Africa and Mexico battle it out and the result be a draw. What!? The game was tied at the end of regulation…and that was it. It ended. Tie game. That confused the mess out of me. I’m not used to sports that end in a draw. But I think I can get used to it. (I know the big games will have a clear winner.)

Another thing that confused me was the fact that I was confused as to who I should cheer for. And it really did take me a hot minute to realize I was American. I was doing my research and reading up on the teams trying to find one that I could identify with; then I realized that these are countries not just teams. I felt rather foolish because cheering on your country is one of the best parts of the World Cup. Please forgive me Coach Bombay and Team USA from the Mighty Ducks 2, I have not forsaken the lessons of nationalism you have taught me. So don’t worry, I’m not a terrorist, I am cheering on USA (although I can’t stand Landon Donovan). But I do have some other countries I will be rooting for of course.

So here I am. After day one of the World Cup still trying to figure out exactly what I should be doing to correctly watch this awesome event. I shall keep you updated and if I ever find myself with enough knowledge or even a barely strong opinion I’ll give you my thoughts/predictions. Here’s to the WC and the awesomeness (or at least intrigue) of soccer.

Let me clear up one thing: I am a huge Astros fan. I love the Astros. I will always be an Astros fan. However, I’m holding Drayton McLane and Ed Wade accountable for what they’re putting on the field. I love them and I want them to succeed but I’m a huge critic of what has been going on the last couple of seasons. 5th, 3rd and 4th place in our division over the last three years isn’t anything to write home about.  This team is a long shot for a wild card slot right now.

The Astros are a team in the middle of rebuilding that is not acknowledging that they are rebuilding.  McLane would protest that this team is rebuilding but it should be and it looks like it is trying to rebuild without anyone noticing.  I’m hoping the Astros play up the potential or else it will be another year at the bottom of the NL Central. As an Astros fan I’ll post some things about–believe it or not–my favorite sport and my favorite team. But it saddens me that most of it won’t be pretty…

Arizona at New Orleans

I don’t really know what to think of this game off the bat. The Saints have been my pick to go to the Super Bowl for most of the season. But the Cardinals offense, even without Anquan Boldin, is perhaps unstoppable. Their defense however seems to be pushovers. I’m going with the Saints because they have both a potent offense and defense. The only way the Saints can lose is if they break down.

Baltimore at Indianapolis

The Colts are a great team. Forget all that benching the starters stuff. Forget that they didn’t be part of history. All you have to know is that they want one thing and one thing only. They want to win the Super Bowl. That’s why they benched starters and decline an invitation to be ‘historic.’ The Colts are going to be ready to play. The Ravens aren’t chumps though and are ready to smack around the Colts offense. I think this will be a lower scoring game than most people think. However, Peyton ‘MVP’ Manning is going to pull through and win it for the Colts.

Dallas at Minnesota

No matter how hot the Cowboys are, I still think Vikings are a better team. I’m still waiting for the Cowboys and Tony Romo to fall apart and I’m picking that this is the game. The Vikings defense is intense and Jared Allen has put a target on Romo’s jersey. And how I forget to mention The Ol’ Gunslinger. Gunslinger is going in this game willing to do anything to win, even ignore Brad Childress’ playcalling…

New York Jets at San Diego

So right now I’m thinking to myself, I haven’t picked a wild card team to go on to the next round. And it’s not changing now. I think the Chargers are going to expose the Jets. The Jets play with a lot of emotion but are not as great of a team as they are made out to be. The Jets are a good story and have become media darlings but that doesn’t make them a good playoff team.

There it is.