Opinion - Times-Union Newspaper

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Chip Shots: I Told You So

Approximately two years ago I told you to be careful because if you ask me how I’m doing, I’ll tell you exactly how I’m doing. One of my older sisters told me it’s the definition of a bore, but I disagree.
The Penalty Box: Spring Season Is The Code Violation Season

As winter turns to spring in the Northern Indiana Lakes Region, winter sports change over to spring sports.
Chip Shots: Darn! That’s The End

This week’s launch of postseason basketball reminded me of the Schoolhouse Rock animated clip, “Interjections!” The very end of the clip, specifically, already hit me after Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday night’s action.
History Of Warsaw Airport Dates Back To 1946
The Penalty Box: This Is Purdue’s Big Chance

I was spending time with my family Saturday night, which is a rare thing for me from November to March.
Chip Shots: Channeling NSYNC, Bye Bye Bye… Bye

The Hoosier State has a problem with its basketball class alignment affecting its postseason product, Hoosier Hysteria.
Podcast Invites Listeners Into The ‘Clearly Kosciusko’ Story
The Penalty Box: Sports Should Always Be About Merit

I love talking with fans.
Chip Shots: The Midwest Is Stuck With Me

Happy 88th birthday to my Uncle Hal, Harold Alonzo Esterwood, Jr., known as Mr. E. among people in Cleveland’s Old Brooklyn neighborhood since the 1960s, and among generations of fourth-graders in a Cleveland suburb where he taught for decades. I get excited about his birthday because his longevity defies the odds among other relatives in my maternal lineage.
Chip Shots: Another Super Bowl Column?

I strongly believe every angle and take on tomorrow’s Super Bowl has been covered, and adding my two cents on the keys to winning for each team would be white noise this morning. Moving the focus toward food analytics, the estimated units consumed among avocados, tortilla chips, jars of salsa, and whether more flapper or drummy chicken wings will be devoured is also off the table.
Can Connor Cover? The King, The Big Game And The Final Pick

After spending the last five to six months picking every NFL game every week, oftentimes unsuccessfully, we have finally reached the biggest game of them all.
The Penalty Box: Playing Hard

Last week I was watching a college basketball game while working on my “homework” for an upcoming basketball broadcast and I heard an announcer say “that guy plays hard all of the time!”
The Penalty Box: Breaking Records Revives Our Past

The seasons that the Warsaw boys and girls basketball are having have done a lot of positive things.
Chip Shots: Full Measure

Breaking Bad, the popular series running from 2008 to 2013 with several anti-heroes among its core cast, contains at least two specific episodes where two different characters talk about their respective regret for not conducting matters in full measure.
Can Connor Cover? Nostalgia and Sectional Fever

Apologies for the somewhat rushed introduction this week.
The Penalty Box: Colts And Bears Might Need Each Other

As the Bears’ and Colts’ seasons came to an end a couple of weekends ago, the emotion that came pouring out of both teams and their fans was a sense of relief.
Chip Shots: The Shield Owns January In My Brain

I’m sure college basketball, the NBA, the NHL, and scholastic winter sports are sharing space in each of your heads in January, but in my brain, the Shield, another moniker for the NFL, takes up most of the space in my brain while the other aforementioned seasons are tucked into cozy spaces.
Can Connor Cover? A Masterpiece Of Titanic Proportions

We’ll get to football in a second, but I’m going to start us off this week with some exciting personal news.
The Penalty Box: The Day The Buckeyes Came To Town

In the fall of 1996, I was broadcasting Tippecanoe Valley football with Rita Price on WRSW.
Chip Shots: I’m Getting To My Beef, Just Hold On

I watched two Warsaw Lady Tiger basketball games during the past week. I enjoyed myself at each road venue, but I’ll get to my beef when I feel like it.
Can Connor Cover? A Great Sunday To Be The Worst

I’ll start us off with the bad news this week and just rip the Band-Aid off: We only have 13 games of football left this season.
The Penalty Box: Sometimes There Isn’t A Manual

Last Monday, I flipped on my TV to see what the score was on the Monday Night Football game between the Bills and Bengals.
Chip Shots: SAC, Lady’s Sports, Then Sour Grapes For The Dismount

The Summit Athletic Conference, as I mentioned earlier this year, has a new conference and non-conference football schedule format so the teams are not spending their entire regular seasons cannibalizing each other.
Kosciusko Is An Ideal Place For People To Grow Personally, Professionally
A Significant Number Of Public Works Projects Is Coming This Year
Can Connor Cover? The Games Will Be Played, But None Seem To Matter

I don’t quite know how to begin or finish the column this week.
The Penalty Box: Warsaw, Penn To Revive The Old Tiger Den

Next Tuesday, Penn and Warsaw will play a boys basketball game in Warsaw, but it will not be in the Tiger Den at Warsaw Community High School.
Chip Shots: NFL Viewing Thoughts

Thank you for a fun 2022, Times-Union readers and subscribers. I hope each of you has a happy, healthy, and prosperous 2023.
Can Connor Cover? A Look Back At The Ups And Downs Of 2022

There have been a ton of things that happened in the sporting world this year that deserve mentioning as we move on to 2023 next week.
The Penalty Box: Notre Dame Bowl Game This Year Should Be Treasured

It is no secret that I love Notre Dame.
Chip Shots: Seasons Of Surprises

Merry Christmas to each of you.

Every Christmas is a good Christmas for me because I finish the day with at least one pleasant surprise.
Can Connor Cover? Christmas Came Twice For Sports Fans This Year

There are some days, and I swear this on everything I hold dear, that the sports gods will look down upon us, look back at each other, nod their heads and make the decision to give us a day we will be talking about for years to come.
The Penalty Box: Santa’s Visit

Sunday nights are pretty quiet at the Grossman Compound.
Can Connor Cover? A Fresh Piece Of Humble Pie Coming Right Up

Some weeks, being a Football Guy isn’t as glamorous and fun as it may look on paper.
The Penalty Box: A Christmas Buffet Of Stories

Tis the holiday season, and a big part of that (for better or for worse) is that we eat big.
Chip Shots: CFP Expansion Timing – Savvy Or Dumb Luck?

The 2022-2023 College Football Playoff selection committee got it right this year, and furthermore, their selection greased the skids for those clamoring for a need to expand the field to twelve teams – not eight, mind you.
Can Connor Cover? Enjoying A Much-Needed Victory Lap

Hello everybody. I’m writing this column live from the top of the world.
The Penalty Box: Expectations Are A Fool’s Paradise

Working part-time for financial planners Alderfer Bergen for six years made me more aware of the stock market and all the things that go with it.
Chip Shots: It’s Pruning Season

Greetings from West Des Moines, Iowa, PF Chang’s specifically where I’ll share my thoughts in a tighter-than-usual race against my deadline.
INDOT Announces PEL Study, Says It Will Be Collaborative
Can Connor Cover? Rivalry Weekend, Changes, And Saying Goodbye

First things first, I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving with friends, family or whomever else you may have spent the day with.
The Penalty Box: My Bucket List

Everyone has something they would like to do or some place they would like to see or visit before their life ends.
Chip Shots: Thank You Tiger Football

I hope each of you enjoyed a happy Thanksgiving.
The Penalty Box: Reliving The Roar Of A Dynasty

My friend, Matt, loves the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Chip Shots: Lessons Learned, An NFL Sunday Surprise

Recent Sundays have been very busy, but I decided to step on the brake, putz around the house with simple tasks, and watch some NFL football a little more closely than I have.
Can Connor Cover? The Mind-Boggling Annoyances Of Writer’s Block

There are few things that annoy me more than a bad case of writer’s block.
The Penalty Box: Cutting Yourself Is A Waste

Occasionally, a parent or grandparent will come ask me for my thoughts on the prospects for a family member in their sport.
Chip Shots: I Promised You….

I am keeping my word about the timeline for evaluating my preseason NFL picks.
Can Connor Cover? Some (Not So) Fun Facts To Pass The Time

In recent weeks, I’ve been writing the introduction to this column last, after I finish up all of my picks for the week.
The Penalty Box: Saying Goodbye To A Friend

Saturday night, I was sitting at my broadcast location at Norwell’s gym, getting ready to launch my 33rd season of girls basketball coverage on the radio here in Warsaw.
Chip Shots: Bouncing Around With Indian Summer Energy

I believe what we’re experiencing outdoors will be our Indian summer, and its welcome weather adds bounce to my step, boosting my energy.

Join me as I topic hop this morning.
Can Connor Cover? Winter (And Basketball) Is Coming

If you’re coming to this article after reading the front page of our sports section you’ll have seen that high school basketball is now underway, at least on the girls side.
We’ve Lost Our Imagination

I was watching the World Series, and for some reason I started to think back to the days of my youth.
Chip Shots: Lots Goin’ On, But...

I like discussing how the sausage is made, like it or not. With this said, consider the following:
Can Connor Cover? The Horrors Of Costumes, Scary Movies And Bad Beats

Halloween is probably my favorite holiday.
The Penalty Box: What I Want For Christmas

If you have listened to the radio or read this column for any length of time, you remember that I get visited in the week leading up to Christmas by a very famous plump guy from the North Pole.
Chip Shots: Recent Tiger Football Win A Program Victory

There have been some big wins among the previous four seasons since Bart Curtis took the reins of the Warsaw Tiger football program, so I could understand if someone asked me what my fuss is all about regarding last Friday’s 35-21 win over Northridge.
Can Connor Cover? The Wonderful Ways To Spend A Saturday

There is usually only one day a week I’m not at my office, not checking email and not doing anything work related. That day is Saturday, and I usually spend it the same way each week.
The Penalty Box: If I Were King Of Sports — Fall 2022 Edition

I was watching sports over the weekend (imagine that) and some things came to mind that, if I were universally in charge of all sports, I would change.
Chip Shots: Postmortem Of A High School Football Article

Accountants often say among themselves the nice thing about accounting is if something is incorrect, and caught in time, it can be reversed. It might take triple the time due to rework, but the mistakes identified are reversible, nonetheless.
Can Connor Cover? It’s The Most Wonderful Time Of Year

Trees are changing color, the air is getting colder and the days are getting shorter. It can only mean one thing: Fall is in full swing and our sports calendars are quickly filling up.
The Penalty Box: Football Teams Need To Practice

The old adage “practice makes perfect” was on my mind as I watched professional football games this weekend.
Chip Shots: A Great Saturday To Be A (Lady) Tiger

It’s a great weekend to be a Warsaw Tiger… specifically, a Warsaw Lady Tiger.
When Disaster Strikes, Homeland Security & FEMA Respond
Can Connor Cover? Deebo Is Still Running, I’m Still Struggling

We’re back to the drawing board once again.
The Penalty Box: The Best Laid Plans

I watched both football and baseball games this weekend, and there was a strange theme that seemed to be running through the middle of almost every game I stopped at—a head coach had a decision go horribly wrong.
Chip Shots: Dusting Off NLC Football, MLB Takes

I have the polish and rags out for cleaning dust off a recent take in Northern Lakes Conference (NLC) and a summer take on the potential of six 100-game winning teams in MLB.
Breaking Through Barriers To Innovation In Our Local Entrepreneurial Community
Can Connor Cover? The Machine, Depressing Football and an Epiphany

First off, a tip of my cap to Albert Pujols and his joining of the 700 home run club.
The Penalty Box: “W” Game Is A “W” For Everyone

It’s “W” Trophy Week.
Chip Shots: Beginning Of The End? All I Can Offer Is A Hug

The end begins now.
Can Connor Cover? A Lesson In Humility & The Legend Of Joe Flacco

I’m going to get a bit personal with you good people for a minute here, so I apologize in advance.