The discovery of the TextMap

I would assume that TextMap is pretty popular in some media circles. I've just been turned onto it recently.

This is something very interesting. Instead of trying to explain it myself, this is TextMap's own definition (and a much more understandable one than the one I would've tried to throw out) of what they do:

TextMap "tracks references to people, places, and things appearing in news text, so as to identify meaningful relationships between them. TextMap monitors the state of the world by analyzing both the temporal and spatial distribution of these entities. We currently analyze over 1000 domestic and international news sources every day. TextMap uses natural language processing techniques to identify entity references and a variety of statistical techniques to analyze the juxtapositions between them."

With that in mind, just for fun, check out the textmaps for:
Rick Pitino
Billy Gillispie
Kelvin Sampson
Steve Kragthorpe
Rich Brooks
Terry Hoeppner

and hell, while we're at it, let's throw out a real interesting one--Tubby Smith.

Enjoy.

Random thoughts... long time coming

My apologies for having not posted in awhile. And I appreciate the e-mails (even the critics who say "freakin blog or delete the blog you retard") that asked/demanded that I put up a blog post every once in awhile. The fact that you care is cool... all apologies.

There's been one question that I've received a lot as of late, and that's "do you see the people ripping you on the message boards?"

The answer: absolutely.

I think it's great. It always make me think about how when I was little, I wanted to be in sports radio. And when I was younger, I idolized college basketball in this area. LaBradford Smith was my hero. I would try and imitate Jamal Mashburn on my backyard basketball court.

Now, message boards came around much later than LA and Mash, but I've got to be honest. It's an honor, knowing that I've always wanted to do something in sports, that I'm even a topic of any thread on a college sports message board. I had no idea I had any influence at all, but I guess I do. To some the influence is negative, to some it's positive. Some think I'm great. Some think I suck. It's all okay either way.

To me, it's just a laugh. All I care about is that you listen. When my bosses see the message boards, all they see is people that are listening, which is all they want--and all I need--to keep my job.

My main purpose for visiting the message boards is to check the pulse of the "lunatic fringe" fan base. You guys are passionate. You care.

But I can't take you seriously all the time. You are a fraction. A SMALL fraction, of the fan base. You all are just the only ones with the time and energy to post on your favorite teams. For most boards, even the listed record number of posters wouldn't fill up an ordinary D2 basketball gym.

Nothing wrong with that, but to answer the number of e-mails and phone calls I'll get from friends and listeners: yes, I see people blast me on the message boards, and no I don't care. There's certainly not enough of them to care, and at least they're listening, and at least they care enough to post about me...

which I think is really cool.

Now, hopefully my next post won't be that far off.

Greetings from Georgia, UK's got a new coach

I got to be honest, there's a part of me that was glad I wasn't in the middle of all of the hoopla today when Billy Gillispie was named the new head basketball coach at the University of Kentucky.

Don't get me wrong, I thought it was an outstanding hire. He's turned programs around in short time at both UTEP and A&M.

I'll say this. He IS in for something a little different when he coaches in basketball-crazy Kentucky for a living. Playing second fiddle to everyone who plays football while in Texas had to be a little easier on the heart.

But I'm very excited for Gillispie. Class guy who deserves to be treated with class as well. I hope UK fans will do that. But I fear some of the wacky ones (and there are many) will always be upset that Donovan didn't come.

Also, you got to hand it to Mitch Barnhart. He had all of his ducks in a row when he found out that Donovan was going to stay at Florida. He had already been in contact with Barnes' people and Gillipie's people before ever hearing from Donovan post-championship. And many fans were nervous to see how long the post-Donovan search would last. It didn't last long, which means that Barnhart was prepared. I like that.

Here's to another UK tenure. Hope this one is not as wacky.

After a short layoff, here are some thoughts...

Obviously, it's been a very busy week. And after being out of town for Final Four weekend, and leaving again tomorrow to head down to Georgia for another weekend of fun.

Here are some things that I want to mention.

1. Billy Donovan spoke today at a press conference at Marshall University, where he is speaking at an event tonight. Still no news. Here are some quotes.

“I understand everyone’s got a job to do, but this is not the time or place for me. Tonight is all about Marshall and all about myself trying to help them. That’s all I came here to do.”

“I didn’t leave the University of Florida today to come down here and give a press conference for myself. I could’ve stayed at home. I came here for Marshall to try to help them.”

“I have not even spoken with our athletic director since I got back.”

“It hasn’t even been 48 hours since the game, so there will be a time for that.”

Asked on how long he needs, he jokingly responds “Probably a month or two,” then laughs hysterically.

“I really need time to think. Decompress is probably a good word.”

“I don’t feel pressure to be rushed. I’m very happy at the University of Florida… I still, to this day, haven’t talked to anybody… If it takes me longer, that’s fine.”

2. According to FoxSports.com, Louisville assistant basketball coach Kevin Willard has been named the new head coach at Iona.

3. From the Cincinnati Reds:

"Cincinnati Reds outfielder Ken Griffey, Jr. called Commissioner Allan H. (Bud) Selig and received permission to wear uniform Number 42 on Sunday, April 15th to honor Jackie Robinson on the 60th anniversary of his Major League debut."

Just some stuff I wanted to throw out there. Going to grab dinner. Hope you guys listen to my God-forsaken show tomorrow.

A busy Tuesday night

I must say that I'm the kind of guy that needs entertainment 24-7. Whether it be in the form of a game in person or on TV, a good television sitcom (What About Brian on ABC is totally underrated), or a sports podcast on my iPod. I've GOT to be stimulated constantly. I can't just sit and nap or relax, ever, for better or worse.

So in between listening to PTI on my iPod and doing some research on some of the players for the McDonald's All-American Game broadcast that we got on 1570 tomorrow night, I came across some things that may or may not be of interest to you.

(1) I'll be talking about this on the show tomorrow, but a little heads up... John Wooden sincerely thinks Ben Howland can flat coach. When all of your opinions on an underdog can be confirmed by THE BEST COLLEGE BASKETBALL COACH OF ALL TIME, it makes you sleep a little easier.

(2) Not to knock on dead people, but I think it's very interesting that Anna Nicole Smith's anus "is unremarkable" according to her autopsy report. I think that's their opinion.

(3) Ridiculously-good 1570 The Zone contributor Keith Conrad writes a very good blog post on his newly-revived blog. Definitely a good read. And for the record, Kent Taylor is one of the most fun Louisville sports media members to be around.

(4) Subscribe to The Big EZ Show podcast for free. Here's how. You can either just download it directly by clicking here, or you can go to iTunes, click on the "Advanced" menu, then click on "Subscribe to Podcast..." and then type in http://feeds.feedburner.com/bigezshow. Simple as that.

That's all for now. Louisville football coach Steve Kragthorpe will be on tomorrow, along with Yahoo! Sports National NFL Writer Charles Robinson to talk about what's up at the owner's meetings. And Greg Hammond from WTVQ in Lexington (and no, he didn't leak any false UK coach information) to talk about the most popular job vacancy EVER in Lexington. 10 AM to 1 PM tomorrow.

Final Four set... I've got three

Well, some great games over the Sweet 16 weekend. And some funny moments with my dad as well (check previous post).

How about Georgetown!?! Roy Hibbert is a friggin monster. He's one of my favorite players in the entire NCAA Tournament, if not my absolute favorite. Florida's Corey Brewer is right there as well.

In fact, Corey was my favorite, until he hit a free throw with two seconds left in the Oregon game that pushed the Gators past the spread. They covered the seven-point spread, and I lost some donuts. Brewer, you owe me. When you go to the NBA, I want your first paycheck.

I did feel bad for Roy Williams and the Tarheels. It's a helpless feeling when your team can't hits a drought like I've never seen before from a 1-seed in the tourney.

My final four were Florida, UCLA, Georgetown and Texas A&M. A&M should've been in there... damn you Acie Law.

However, after all my magnificent picks, I still trail in the Big EZ Bracket Battle, but not by much. Thanks to all of the 50+ participants, and good luck in the Final Four. Here's how it shakes out at the moment.

Group Standings
Rank Team Name Score Correct Best PS Best PC Champion
1 Rick Decker 276 50 346 53 Georgetown (145)
2 Scott Brooks 274 48 342 51 Florida (154)
3 James Glass (1) 269 48 321 50 UCLA (145)
4 Terry Cook 267 48 335 51 Ohio St. (122)
5 Big EZ         261 46 331 49 UCLA (133)
6 nathan gibson 257 47 326 50 Georgetown (136)
6 scott porter 257 47 325 50 Florida (145)
8 George Martin 254 44 322 47 Florida (133)
9 Jeffrey Stanley 252 47 322 50 Georgetown (134)
10 John McGarry (2)250 47 317 50 Florida (161)
10 Ryan Lykins 250 46 317 49 Florida ()