Lance Armstrong Stops Fighting

According to USA Today, seven-time Tour de France champion Lance Armstrong will not challenge the United States Anti-Doping Agency's latest allegations that he used PEDs while winning his record number of races.  This has resulted, as of 11 PM on Thursday night, in Armstrong receiving a lifetime ban and being stripped of all seven of his titles.  More on the story can be read here.

Armstrong has released a statement on the matter, saying that this is not an admittance of guilt but rather a plea for people to let his hundreds of passed drug tests speak for themselves.  The man has never failed any type of drug test in competition or out of it and says he has grown tired of defending himself against people he feels will not listen.
Maybe I am just stupid and naive, but I have always believed that Armstrong is innocent - because of his story, his message, and his demeanor.  As I mentioned before, he has never failed a drug test and that seems to be damn near impossible to do unless you are innocent - considering the number of cyclists that have been stripped of their titles recently.
I guess we'll see.

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Human Element Strikes in the EPL

The calls for goal technology in soccer have been coming harder and faster than ever before in the last two and a half years.  Notable incidents in Spain, England, and the World Cup have increased the pressure on FIFA to introduce some sort of way to tell if players are a) offside on a goal or b) the ball even crosses the line. Here is our latest example, courtesy of Timothy Burke's website 30FPS.

Damn, son.

Chelsea would win the game 4-2 following this goal to make it 3-2.  They scored three goals in the final 25 minutes of the match to erase a one-goal deficit at half time and avoid an embarrassing loss to recently promoted Reading.  The Blues are now top of the table.

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Top 15 NFL Wide Receivers Heading In to 2012

As the NFL season draws nearer and nearer, I've decided to help kick off this new blog of mine by doing top player lists for different positions in the NFL. We continue at wide receiver with a top 15.

15. Dez Bryant, Dallas - Ever since the Cowboys traded up to get him in 2010, Bryant has failed to live up to the lofty expectations that followed him came from his electric career at Oklahoma State.  Last season was a marked improvement on '10; Bryant caught 63 passes for just over 900 yards and nine touchdowns, which shows his ability, physical tools, and massive potential.  But talented as Bryant is, he continues to have off the field issues and was plagued by hamstring woes last season.  He could have 1,200 yards this year, but he could also have 700.
14. Marques Colston, New Orleans - A model of consistency over his seven-year career, Colston has amassed at least 1,000 yards receiving in all but one pro season, only failing to do so when he played 11 games in 2008.  He's not particularly fast, but is smart enough to get open and uses his long reach well. Colston struggled a bit with injuries last season to his knees, and those are always a concern, but he's earned a top-15 spot with his constant excellence.
13. Dwayne Bowe, Kansas City - Bowe eclipsed 1,100 receiving yards for the second consecutive campaign last season, but only caught five touchdowns compared to his 15 in 2010-11.  That's why he may not have made headlines last season, but Bowe draws double coverage almost every play as KC's lone true ball-catching threat and still puts up big numbers.  He could be higher on this list if Matt Cassel wasn't throwing him balls.

The Greatest Moments in Sports

Another one of those videos I saw on Facebook.  Simply awesome as a sports fan.



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Manchester United Open With a Loss at Everton

After a crushing end to the 2011-12 campaign, you would think that Manchester United would come out firing on all cylinders in their opening fixture of 2012-13.
You would be wrong.
United were decidedly poor in the beginning of their quest to reclaim the title Monday evening at Goodison Park, falling to a determined Everton side by a 0:1 scoreline. The Red Devils lacked tempo and urgency from the outset, allowing the Toffees to dictate play and possession throughout the opening 45 minutes.  United relied on goalkeeper David de Gea on three separate occasions prior to half time, needing the Spaniard to make spectacular denials coming across the face of goal in the air.  Everton would also hit the post twice in the first half, and only Wayne Rooney would have a great chance in the frame for the visitors.  However, his off-foot strike from the middle of the penalty area was right into the hands of Tim Howard.