Back In The Spring Training Saddle

 BY SCOTT MORGANROTH 

When I woke up Sunday Morning, I truly felt that Baseball Was Back!

It didn’t matter that the most recent lockout amounted to nothing despite the bickering back and forth that led to great content for 99 days. 

In the end, there would be a shorter Spring Training and a 162 Game Schedule was going to take place.

Despite doing podcasts and writing stories, today was a different feeling because now I was attending my first Spring Training game since 2020, pre-pandemic. 

That game was a Cactus League Contest between the Milwaukee Brewers facing the Los Angeles Dodgers in Glendale, AZ at Camelback Ranch.

Back then, I didn’t know how to record a video and the South Florida Tribune was in its infancy stages. We didn’t have an account with the MLB Credentialing System.

I started covering the Marlins during the Summer of 2020 and Zoom Calls were the only access we had with the team. 

It was a fun experience learning new technology, but there were other things I had to get used to as there were no exclusive interviews. 

Everyone had to use the raise your hand function to ask a question. 

It was harder to get feature stories and everyone shared the same quotes to compile their own stories.

That year, was my first covering the Miami Marlins and I was learning a new team on the fly. 

I did speak with two Marlins Communication members and no final decision has been made whether there will be Zoom Calls this year for the media since there will be more traveling with the team. (Copy and Paste this at the end of the Story)

This was my first interaction with Marlins Manager Don Mattingly, who guided the team to the MLB Playoffs with a 31-29 record.

Now in my third season, I’m much more familiar with the club and some of the media members.

One thing hasn’t changed! I still believe that Mattingly belongs in the Hall of Fame! 

Perhaps, I’ll be alive to see this!

Before the game, I had a chance to address the manager about the Universal DH, Shortened Spring Training getting used to some of his new players, the rosters being expanded until May 1 and his team’s progress so far before the Marlins Game vs the Houston Astros.

During the off-season, the Marlins were wheeling and dealing.

Miami made three trades before December 1, acquiring Gold Glove Catcher Jacob Stallings from Pittsburgh, 2022 All-Star Joey Wendle, and reliever Louis Head in separate deals with Tampa Bay. Miami also signed OF Avisail Garcia to a four-year contract and agreed to extensions with RHP Sandy Alcantara and INF Miguel Rojas.

I’m sure that you’re going to enjoy what the manager said about these subjects.

(Insert the Video)

The Houston Astros defeated the Miami Marlins 4-3 in front of 3,942 fans at Roger Dean Stadium.

Miami left-handed starting pitcher Jesus Luzardo, formerly of Marjory Stoneman Douglas, had a solid performance by pitching four innings, giving up five hits, one run, but it wasn’t earned, with five strikeouts and one walk. He left the game leading 3-1.

The Astros won the game in the top of the sixth as Yuli Gurriel hit a three-run homer off of Richard Bleier.

Former Marlins outfielder Lewis Brinson, who was non-tendered by the club on November 30, 2021, signed a Minor League Deal with the Astros on March 12, 2022. He had two plate appearances and did get a hit.

Copy and Paste Marlins Communications ———————————-

It was great being Back In The Spring Training Saddle.

Scott Morganroth can be reached at southfloridatribune@gmail.com and his broadcasts can be seen on the South Florida Tribune You Tube Channel. There is no cost to subscribe and also follow him on Twitter @TribuneSouth.

Information From Unexpected Sources

BY SCOTT MORGANROTH

Nowadays, everyone uses Social Media for specific purposes.

There are certain ones that I get more out of than others.

I’ve had an extraordinary amount of success using Facebook, LinkedIn and Twitter.

When I started working with Peter Wein at the Wei Network, I leaned heavily on LinkedIn to get guests for the Sports Exchange. The professional contacts that I’ve made on LinkedIn have been amazing and I just found out about it about 12 years ago. LinkedIn has been helpful meeting other Media Relations Directors and I’ve covered Sporting Events around the country.

Twitter has been an asset enabling me to post stories and share broadcasts from the South Florida Tribune. I’ve also landed some great guests for my shows. To date, I’ve had 18,000 tweets.

Finally, there is Facebook. I initially went in there to keep in touch with family, friends from my childhood and longtime colleagues around the country. I’ve actually visited some longtime friends and colleagues when I have been in there areas.

As time progressed, I’ve been able to land guests for my broadcasts by using Messenger. This is something that I never visualized but it’s been an unexpected asset. Now I’m using Facebook to stream my shows.

Now that I’ve discovered how valuable this is, I’ve tried to keep my friends total above 4,990. 

You never know who you’re going to meet and what you can learn when it comes to dealing with other people’s hardships.

I have one friend that is dealing with extensive head trauma named Kelly Gautreaux Lindberg. I wished her prayers and told her that I sympathize what she’s going through.

A few months ago, I suffered my first major concussion when an old water bottle leaked and I took a nasty fall in my house. I was out for a couple seconds but felt wobbly. Thankfully, my wife Candy, who was stunned at the nature of the fall was home, but she wasn’t sure how to help me. I got up and she helped me get into bed.

The nature of that fall resulted in increased headaches, sensitivity to too much sound as well as occasional dizzy spells. 

Being a person that likes to drive, this doesn’t happen as much because I experience headaches more often and struggle after 15-30 minutes. Things are so bad with the sound that I turn off the commercials when I’m watching my television shows.

A few days after my fall, the problems continued to persist and as a result, My wife and in-laws finally convinced me to go to the hospital to get checked out. The doctors officially diagnosed what we already knew and that I did have a bad concussion.

Being in Sports Media, I enjoy covering Sporting Events and now that’s been compromised because of my condition as most of the venues are more than 30 minutes away. Unless I take my wife to an event to take photos, then I don’t go.

I did go to my family doctor and told him about my concussion diagnosis 30 days after the injury. The doctors at the hospital told me the only way to get through this was to stay off the road and rest. I did just that.

After I saw my family doctor, I decided to go to a networking event at the West Palm Beach Airport Hilton. It took 30 minutes from that appointment to experience my second concussion as after I parked my vehicle, I didn’t see a curb and took a nasty fall and hit my head badly into the concrete. 

Another guy who was attending the event was with me and helped me get back on my feet. This guy stayed with me until I got my bearings straight.

I did manage to get through this event and got some things accomplished. 

I called my wife and explained to her what had happened. 

In her cool demeanor, we talked and I told her how frustrated I was by what happened. She told me to contact her when I got home and has done the majority of the major driving.

I wasn’t going back to the hospital. This time, I knew what was wrong. 

Seeing Kelly’s challenges made me understand what she was going through.

As I was communicating with her, former football player QB Coach Bill Howe saw my response to Kelly and offered his support. He’s had numerous concussion issues so he knew what I was going through.

Bill told me that I never healed from the first one and have what’s called “Second Impact Syndrome or SIS.” My brain never had time to heal before taking another concussion. Bill was definitely right.

Having covered sports for 42 years, I’ve seen athletes that have had concussions. But until you experience these injuries, these are nothing to take lightly. I’m finding that out the hard way. I’m extremely tentative when I walk and a bit more nervous when I drive. 

Driving has always been my source of meditation and that’s been compromised. 

To date, there is some dizziness and I’m sensitive towards darkness and light. Headaches are the norm and I’m frustrated I have to deal with them. But I’m learning how to be more patient.

I’ve been doing more broadcasts but do miss going to Sporting Events. 

I’ll be going back in time but I have to pick my spots and cut back. 

Despite gas prices going up, I do miss driving. If I go on a long trip, then My wife goes with me if I have to relinquish the wheel. By no means, do I want to get hurt or injure anyone else. My drives are limited to 30-45 minute increments when going to local restaurants.

We all know that Social Media is here to stay. You get out of it what you can.

But if there is one thing that I’ve learned when I think of Kelly and Coach Bill Howe, with Social Media, at least you can sympathize and learn from an unexpected source that wasn’t as predominant 20 years ago. 

I’m very thankful to coming in contact with Kelly and Coach Bill. They have helped me gain a better understanding of the seriousness of head injuries by their experiences to go along with what I’ve seen in Sports Media with the athletes that I cover.

I’ll definitely remember the words, “Second Impact Syndrome” because I didn’t hear these words from a doctor and they have much more meaning coming rom Coach Bill Howe.

The Information came from an Unexpected Source.

Scott Morganroth can be reached at southfloridatribune@gmail.com.

To see his broadcasts, Subscribe to the South Florida Tribune You Tube Channel at no charge.

Defacto General Managers

 BY SCOTT MORGANROTH 

For many years, I used to watch a lot of game shows.

I always enjoyed watching; Let’s Make a Deal, The Price is Right, Jokers Wild, Family Feud and many others.

But one that stands out is when Regis Philbin hosted his classic “Who Wants to Be A Millionaire?”

This got me thinking as I was preparing for a Sports Exchange when describing today’s modern day athlete, “Who Wants To Be A General Manager” so I decided to title the show, “Defacto General Managers.”

This wasn’t a show that I wanted to bombard our listeners with a lot of facts. Just opinions.

We did have some interesting facts in the show and I assembled a great crew to address the subject.

We had former NFL Player Mel Farr Jr., Steve Balestrieri, who covers the New England Patriots and Rick Curti aka Mr. Opinion and I had a blast talking about this! In fact, I felt bad for Balestrieri that he had to talk about the NBA because he was out of his comfort zone but I made it easy for him and generalized the subject matter.

During the show, we all raised our hands that we enjoyed the outspoken nature of NBA Legend, now turned TNT Commentator Charles Barkley with his harsh criticism of today’s NBA Players. I often refer to the NBA as the National Drama League because that’s what it has become where these players are the most outspoken athletes of the four major sports. 

I certainly respect them utilizing their platform to talk about social issues. During the millennium, I never heard about the term “Load Management” until players started taking games off at key points during the regular season and at times during Nationally Televised Games. 

Late Commissioner David Stern cringed at this and had to work to rectify this problem. Stern inherited a league that was close to bankruptcy back in the late 1970’s and was on tape delay. When Magic Johnson and Larry Bird entered the league, followed by Michael Jordan, Isiah Thomas and Barkley, the interest began to increase drastically. 

During the Sports Exchange, my crew talked about the college transfer portal, Magic Johnson, Aaron Rodgers, Tom Brady, LeBron James, the creation of super teams that I actually feel began when NBA Players participated in the Olympics.

There has been the drama of Ben Simmons, James Hardin, Kyrie Irving, plus we talked about Isiah Thomas and former Jack Eichel formerly of the Buffalo Sabres.

If you’re looking for a great debate with your friends, family, etc… then I encourage you to watch this show. Our opinions varied and it was great having a guy like Farr Jr to get a players perspective when dealing with athletes.

The names that we mentioned covered the past and the present therefore, that’s what made this a fun topic to talk about. There are shows that I like to create that are extremely informative and my goal is to make sure that everyone can learn something! There are other shows where my goal is to keep the fan’s wheels turning! Then there are shows that accomplish both objectives.

So check out this show and we encourage your feedback. 

For those individuals that respond, I would definitely consider inviting you to be a guest on a future show.

Scott Morganroth can be reached at southfloridatribune@gmail.com.

You can find this broadcast as well as others on our website and we ask if you would please Subscribe to the South Florida Tribune You Tube Channel to view them or you can listen to them where ever you get your podcasts.

We look forward to hearing from you!

The Damage Is Done!

 BY SCOTT MORGANROTH 

Did MLB and the MLBPA really need this lockout?

What individuals will sympathize with both sides.

Regardless of whether you’re a casual fan or a member of the media, we’d do anything to earn what the players and owners are making?

What did we learn from the 1994 Strike?

First, the World Series was cancelled and it left a bad taste in the mouths of the fans.

Second, this turned out to be the beginning of the end for the Montreal Expos who eventually moved to Washington DC and became the Nationals.

Third, former MLB Commissioner Bud Selig was determined to break the union and there hasn’t been a meaningful work stoppage since, until now.

What saved Baseball? 

Say what you want about Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire taking PED’s but their 1998 Home Run Chase was one for the ages. McGwire and Sosa broke Roger Maris (61) by slugging 70 and 66 respectively. 

The owners profited dearly as fans would come to the games early and watch these guys in batting practice. As a result, the concession and souvenir stands made out well financially.

While McGwire and Sosa never sniffed Cooperstown and became Hall of Famers, there accomplishments are still revered.

On September 6, 1995, a record that appeared to become unbreakable was broken. 

Baltimore Orioles Hall of Famer Car Ripken Jr passed Lou Gehrig’s consecutive game streak by appearing in his 2131 game. The game between the Orioles and California Angels on ESPN still ranks as one of the network’s most-watched games. 

Cal’s children, Rachel and Ryan, threw out the ceremonial first balls. Both President Bill Clinton and Vice President Al Gore were at the game.

The celebration at Camden Yards was memorable. Had MLB decided to use replacement players during 1994, this record would have never been broken.

As I mentioned, there will be no sympathy from the fans.

Since 1994, people have more things to do as far as entertainment. 

Social Media is making both MLB and the MLBPA look bad. There are millions of podcasts to compliment old school media. There are no shortage of opinions!

Fans will not pay outrageous costs to go to games figuring the game ticket, parking, concessions and souvenir stands. They would prefer to watch the games at home with the MLB Ticket on TV.

Will the owners care that much that they won’t get local TV revenue at the end of April?

Perhaps, but then again, they won’t be paying the players so this could be a wash.

What players better realize is that when Covid-19 slammed the sports world with no fans allowed to attend games, the owners bit the bullet with revenue. Do you think these billionaires are worried about cancelling games since only 60 were played in 2020?

I would say no! The owners could decide to break the union again and this time they know the fans will eventually return. They always do after things settle down. 

The owners will try to get a handle on salaries continuing to get out of control. After all, once the players continue to lose paychecks and the bills don’t get paid, we’ll see who cracks.

In the meantime, The Damage Is Done!

Scott Morganroth can be reached at southfloridatribune@gmail.com and you can view his broadcasts on www.southfloridatribune.com. There is no charge to subscribe to the South Florida Tribune You Tube Channel.

Playing For Something

 BY SCOTT MORGANROTH

When I went to the Jacksonville Jaguars finale vs the Indianapolis Colts finale on Sunday, January 9, 2022, what I thought I was going to see compared to what I saw were totally different things.

During the Sports Exchange on Thursday, January 6, I told my co-hosts, Rick Curti, Greg Fuchs, Steve Balestrieri and Mel Farr Jr. that I was looking forward to seeing Colts stand out running back Jonathan Taylor in action. 

The Colts entered this game at 9-7 and had a chance to cement a playoff berth with a win. All they had to do was win in Jacksonville in a game they were favored by two touchdowns.

Many of us knew that Indianapolis walked into Jacksonville having lost six straight games in Northern Florida. Would this be the time the streak would be snapped?

The answer was a costly no as Jacksonville defeated Indianapolis 26-11 and the Colts road losing skid hit seven games to the Jags. The Colts finished the season 9-8 and missed the playoffs.

The Jaguars snapped an eight-game losing streak and improved to 3-14. Even in the winning effort, because the Detroit Lions defeated the Green Bay Packers 37-30 at Ford Field, the Jaguars still secured the top pick in the 2022 NFL Draft.

You talk about a win-win-situation. This was it.

What were the Jaguars playing for on this 80 degree sunny afternoon?

1. Interim Coach Darrell Bevell was looking to earn his first win as a head coach and get serious consideration for the full-time job or at least an opportunity to stay with the organization.

2. The players were looking to put enough good film on tape and have jobs next season. One guy that stood out was running back Ryquell Armstead. 

He was drafted in the fifth round of the 2019 Draft, 140th overall and the 5-11, 220 pounder out of Temple had nine carries for 52 yards The 25-year old exploded for 26 yards on one play and provided some spark. He also caught two passes for 10 yards.

3. QB Trevor Lawrence wanted to end the season on a high note and go into the off-season thinking of a fresh start in 2022. Lawrence completed 23 of 32 passes for 223 yards and two touchdowns, his first game with multiple TD passes since the season opener.

Once again, the Colts were looking for a playoff spot and the loss eliminated them from competing in the tournament.

What went wrong for Indianapolis?

1. NFL rushing champion Taylor was held to 77 yards and QB Carson Wentz was sacked six times and turned the ball over twice leading to 10 points.

The 15 point Jacksonville win should have been much higher had the Jaguars scored touchdowns instead of settling for two chip-shot field goals from inside the 5-yard line.

As for Wentz, he did little to help his cause for being the starting quarterback next season as the Colts were limited to 233 yards in total offense. 

Wentz completed 17 of 29 passes for 185 yards with a garbage time touchdown and an interception. He also fumbled. He had another throw nearly picked off by safety Daniel Thomas, but the officials huddled and ruled the ball touched the ground.

When the game was over word relief was an understatement for what the Jaguars went through in 2021 with the tumultuous year by former Coach Urban Meyer.

I asked Bevell to comment about players having a chance to put film on tape and mentioned that Armstead stood out to me.

Bevell said that he was impressed with Armstead in the short time he’s known him.

“It’s amazing sometimes the stories that these guys go through. The story for him with the COVID and all the stuff like that, how bad it was for him and hit him, obviously he got cut right when we got here, and be able to come back and play like that, it’s exciting. 

“It shows the fortitude that these guys have and how much they love this game, how committed they are to it, to fight back from what he did, and then be able to make those plays out there. I just think it’s really cool.”

As for what Bevell told his players going into the contest, he told them to push hard for 60 minutes and good things will happen.

“I talked all week just about all the many reasons why we should play this game and we should go out and play this game with heart,” he said. “One is that we all love this game, and you think back to all the training you go through in the off-season to be able to get to this point and you get 17 opportunities to play a game.

“That’s one good reason to go out. Everybody, as I have told you many times in here, we’re all being evaluated by what you’re putting on tape. You want to go put your best opportunity and best self on tape. We’re playing a divisional opponent that had a chance to get in the playoffs. We want to be able to knock them out and have a sweet taste for us and a rough taste for them. I thought the guys responded. I told them today just a few minutes ago that I was inspired. It’s an inspiring game to see guys go out and play as hard as they did with so much heart, with as much spirit, with as much passion, and it really showed, and I couldn’t be much happier for all those guys.”

Lawrence was glad this season was behind him but was proud of his teammates for what appeared to be a playoff bound squad.

“The confidence that this builds going forward, that’s a good football team that we just beat and really dominated the game and (I’m) just really proud of our guys,” he said. “Everybody was locked in. This could have gone two different directions, could have gone like today or could have gone really bad, know that tomorrow starts the off-season. We’re not playing in the playoffs. This is our last game. Going to see a lot of different faces. 

“Just knowing all those things and to have a group that comes out ready to go, locked in and dominates the game, especially when you’re playing against a team that is playing for everything. They win this game, they’re in, the stakes don’t get any higher, and just to come out and dominate, it really feels good to finish the season that way.”

After the game, Lawrence talked about momentum and the fact there is a lot to build on during the off-season.

“There is 100% momentum. I think this was a game where, one, you’re playing for pride, to get another win on the season,” he said. (We) only had two wins. Obviously, that wasn’t the plan. To play for that pride to get another one for this group, and just to feel good. Then you look at it from an individual perspective, everybody want to show what they can do.

“You want to show your value and what you can add to an organization, whether that’s here, whether that’s somewhere else, and for everyone to just do that, to play for the team, to play for themselves, you’re playing for everything, and that’s how it should be every week. And just to do that and execute and have success, it feels good. But yeah, that’s definitely some momentum and we want to build on this off-season.”

Unfortunately, after the finale, the Colts had to deal with their critics when they left Jacksonville. They were ridiculed all over the Pro Football World. 

Owner Jim Irsay, GM Chris Ballard and Head Coach Frank Reich felt the sting of this loss. While Ballard and Reich weren’t in danger of losing their jobs, Wentz didn’t get a glowing endorsement of returning as the starter in 2022. 

The Colts traded for Wentz on March 17, 2021 in exchange for a 2021 third-round pick and a 2022 conditional second round pick which later became a 2022 first round pick to be reunited with his former Philadelphia Eagles Offensive Coordinator, Reich.

Unfortunately for Wentz, his former team the Eagles made the playoffs under his his replacement Jalen Hurts.

As things stand with Wentz, the Colts are planning to release or trade him by March 19 as he’s owed $15 Million and could get another $7 Million when the league year starts. 

Things don’t look good for the QB that once played for newly hired Jags Doug Pederson during the team’s Super Bowl Winning Season. 

Due to an injury, Nick Foles guided the Eagles to a 41-33 win in Super Bowl LII over the New England Patriots on February 4, 2018 in Minnesota. 

If a potential departure from Indianapolis does occur, I would highly doubt it that Wentz and Pederson would reunite in Jacksonville since it appears that Carson burned his bridges.

The Jaguars, the hiring of former Philadelphia Eagles Super Bowl winning Coach Doug Pederson is essential to Lawrence’s development! 

First of all, Lawrence won’t have to worry about the drama that Meyer created. 

Secondly, playing for a coach that won a Super Bowl adds instant credibility and excitement.

Pederson is walking into a situation where the Jaguars own the No.1 pick in April’s NFL Draft.

On the surface, this looks like a good hire because Pederson was the first coach interviewed in a search that lasted over a month then was subsequently hired. 

Time will tell but this situation isn’t a quick fix. 

But you can rest assure, things will be calmer in the building.

Check out our Inside The Pigskin Podcast “Did Jacksonville Get It Right with the Hiring of Doug Pederson” included in this story.

It’s worth noting that Tom Coughlin is the only coach in Team History that has a winning record with a 68-60 mark with a .531 winning percentage from 1995-2002. The second coach in franchise history, Jack Del Rio amassed a 68-71 mark from 2003-2011 and a .489 winning percentage.

On a Final Note, former Jaguars Executive Dan Edwards was honored with a plaque in the Press Box as he was one of the team’s original employees staying with the club 28 years. 

He oversaw the Media Relations Department and was an unbelievable person to work with but an even better friend of mine! I hope he enjoys his much deserved retirement and I’ll miss him when I go to Jacksonville!

Scott Morganroth can be reached at southfloridatribune@gmail.com and you can follow him on Twitter @TribuneSouth. Also, Subscribe to The South Florida Tribune You Tube Channel to see his broadcasts.

Jaguars, Turning The Page

 BY SCOTT MORGANROTH

When the Jacksonville Jaguars hired former Coach Urban Meyer on January 14, 2021 to turnaround the franchise misfortunes, there was excitement especially with the future arrival of Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence coming to town.

Meyer also drafted Lawrence’s running back Travis Etienne but unfortunately, he sustained a season ending injury therefore, didn’t play a down in his rookie campaign.

On Sunday, December 19, 2021, I finally had a chance to cover My first Jaguars game of the season vs the Houston Texans.

What should have happened was a meeting between two first year coaches, Urban Meyer vs David Culley.

What also should have occurred was a matchup featuring two former Clemson iconic QB’s, Lawrence vs DeShaun Watson. 

Due to off the field issues, Watson hasn’t played a down for the Texans in 2021.

But what we saw should have been Meyer roaming the sidelines.

Instead, Meyer was fired by Jacksonville for cause due to a myriad of incidents throughout his short tenure with the Jaguars.

There was the controversial hiring of former Iowa Coach Chris Doyle who left after one day after a track record with bullying and racism. 

Meyer kicked his kicker Josh Lambo during stretching exercises in training camp.

There were numerous feuds with players and coaches.

Lawrence called out Meyer for not using running back James Robinson citing the fact that the best players should be on the field.

But the biggest incident and undoubtedly the most embarrassing was when in early October, a video appeared to show Meyer touching a women who wasn’t not his wife while he was at his Columbus Area Restaurant. An incident that was a result of Meyer not flying home with his team following a 24-21 road loss to the Cincinnati Bengals on Thursday, September 30, 2021.

When you add up all of Meyer’s mistakes, you could hardly blame Jaguars Owner Shad Khan for ridding himself of all the drama that was created!

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During the week, on the Sports Exchange, Myself, Greg Fuchs, Rick Curti and Mel Farr Jr. discussed whether Meyer should ever get another coaching job. 

The link is included in this story and we encourage you to watch the show as everyone of us gave strong points of view about the coach who was ridiculed badly throughout the week on ESPN.

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Meyer was replaced Offensive Coordinator Derrell Bevel as interim coach. Bevell is no stranger to this roles because for the second straight season he’s in this situation.

A year ago, Bevell replaced Matt Patricia as the Detroit Lions interim coach.

Bevell calmed the Lions ship down and won is coaching debut defeating the Chicago Bears 34-30 on December 6, 2020. Bevell finished his tenure in Detroit with a 1-4 mark.

With a chance to audition for the Jaguars job, how did Bevell do against the Texas?

Not very good as Houston came away with a 30-16 win and the Texans have won eight straight games against Jacksonville. The Texans snapped a three game losing streak.

The Texans QB we did see was Davis Mills, who won for the first time in eight starts. The the rookie out of Stanford, who was drafted in the third round, connected with Brandin Cooks twice for touchdowns. The second touchdown pass was for 43-yards.

Cooks continued his success against Jacksonville. He finished with seven receptions for 102 yards and two scores and improved to 6-0 against the Jaguars, getting wins with New Orleans, New England and Houston. He has five 100-yard games in those six contests. He has 34 catches for 701 yards and five touchdowns against the Jaguars.

Houston improved to 3-11 while Jacksonville dropped to 2-12. The Texans have swept their rivals for the ninth time in 11 years.

As for Lawrence, he was 22-38 for 210 yards. He threw no touchdowns and had no interceptions.

Robinson had a solid day with 16 rushes for 75 yards and one touchdown.

Jacksonville led in total yards 296-281 but the only positive that came out of this game was Detroit defeated the Arizona Cardinals 30-12, and the Lions improved to 2-11-1, thus, at the moment, Jacksonville would own the top pick in the 2022 Draft.

When I took the five hour trek north on I-95 for this game, I thought the Jaguars truly had a chance to win this game with Meyer no longer and Bevell auditioning for the full-time job.

Even gamblers put enough money on Jacksonville to make Houston a five point underdog at kickoff, according FanDuel Sportsbook. 

But none of that came to fruition.

During the post game press conference, Bevell talked about the preparation after Meyer’s departure.

“It really ends up being a normal week. We’re used to all kinds of things that change, so we have to be ready to make adjustments and be able to adapt to the situation. I thought our guys, whether it was the players of the coaches, did a good job putting a plan together. The guys were ready. They were into it. We just didn’t play a clean football game today.”

Bevell also addressed his teams struggles in the red zone and whether these problems are fixable.

“Yeah, I thought there was things that we did better today. There was a little bit of explosion. You were able to find guys—we were able to create some space for people again. But again, there were opportunities to make plays. We didn’t make some of them, and we’ve got to catch the ball, we’ve got to throw the ball. We’ve got to protect better, and we’ll be able to find the end zone.”

Lawrence talked about the difference between Meyer and Bevell.

“You know, obviously it’s different. Coach Bev and Meyer are different personalities, so it’s very different. But I thought the guys handled it well, we’re excited, ready to play. Had a lot of energy. Obviously didn’t turn out that way we wanted it to, but we had our chance. In that game, it’s a one possession game and didn’t finish. But I thought all the guys were ready. We had some good energy on the sidelines, very positive. It was nice having Bev on the sidelines so I could go talk to keep building on it, keep getting better.”

Lawrence was glad that Robinson turned out to be a factor in the offense.

“I thought it was great. Obviously we’ve talked about how good a player James is and just continue to build on that. We need all of our players to play well, and that goes back to what I said earlier. We’ve all got our part in it, and we’ve got to play better. But yeah, it was great to see James, obviously, very involved. Yeah, I thought we started off strong and we just, like I said, got to finish.”

Bevell talked about what it was like to be on the sideline with his team.

“Yeah, I thought it was really good. I thought the communication was clean with all the coaches being able to go back and fourth on the defensive line. Our analytics guy upstairs, I was able to talk to him pretty cleanly, so I thought it went well for the first time out.”

After the loss, Bevell dropped to 1-5 as an interim coach with the Lions and the Jaguars.

How would things turn out as the Jaguars hit the road to face the New York Jets in a battle of the top two QB’s selected in the 2021 draft with Lawrence and Zach Wilson?

New York defeated Jacksonville 26-21. Wilson went 14-22 for 102 yards and had one touchdown pass. The rookie signal caller from Brigham Young rushed four times for 91 yards and had a touchdown to win the showdown.

Meanwhile, Lawrence went 26-39 for 280 yards with zero touchdowns and interceptions but was sacked once and had a fumble loss.

But the big story in this game was Robinson, who suffered a torn Achilles Tendon early in the game.

The Jets improved their record to 4-11 while Jacksonville dropped to 2-13. 

Bevell is now 0-2 as the interim coach and 1-6 overall.

On Sunday, January 2nd, Jacksonville has a road date with the 9-6, New England Patriots.

Through Sunday’s action, the Jaguars still own the No.1 overall pick in the 2022 Draft.

Scott Morganroth can be reached at southfloridatribune@gmail.com and you can follow him on Twitter @TribuneSouth.

You can see his broadcasts by subscribing to The South Florida Tribune You Tube Channel for free.

Motor City Mad Mouth Meets Mr. Comedy

 BY SCOTT MORGANROTH 

The Motor City Mad Mouth returned to his radio roots on Saturday, December 4, 2021 as he made an appearance on the Steve Eskow Show from 11-Noon. The show was simulcast on 98.3, ESPACE FM and on Facebook: Steve Eskow.

Inside the West Palm Beach, FL., Studio, he wore a Michigan Wolverines hoody and baseball cap reminding folks that the Maize ‘N Blue were playing the Iowa Hawkeyes for the Big Ten Championship. The Wolverines did thrash the Hawkeyes 42-3 earning their first trip to the College Football Playoffs.

In addition to Eskow, Donna Borriello and Lindanna Morgana sat alongside of “The Motor City Mad Mouth.”

But how did the guest appearance originate?

Eskow has another business where he sells placemat ads and those appear at restaurants across South Florida.

I spotted Eskow’s ad at a Lake Worth, FL.,  business and contacted Steve to see if he was looking for a guest on his show. I introduced myself, told him that I owned The South Florida Tribune and was looking for a win-win situation to cross promote one another’s platform.

We agreed to meet at a restaurant which uses his placemats after a couple of conversations on the phone.

At our meeting, Eskow was wearing a New York Giants jersey. It’s safe to say that I knew where his NFL allegiances were. It didn’t take him long to realize that I was no normal potential guest as my energy was endless and that I’ve been in the Media for 42 years doing on-air and newspaper throughout my career.

What made the timing of yesterday’s broadcast so significant was next week, I’ll be in Winston Salem, NC for the National Sports Media Association’s Awards Presentations.

During the course of the broadcast, I made it clear to Eskow and his audience that my roots are in Terrestrial Radio but that I’ve acclimated to Internet Radio as well as the newest kid on the block, Podcasting. 

The listeners found out that the South Florida Tribune is a Digital Platform that not only does it have Written Content but there is a strong focus on Videos and Podcasts to make it a versatile entertainment website. 

I mentioned on the air that our clients gain valuable Google Exposure and this enhances their Credibility on the World Wide Web.

During the course of the broadcast, it was evident that our styles were like night and day. 

The title of this story should automatically give you that indication.

We talked about Dallas Mavericks Owner Mark Cuban buying a city in Texas and Tampa Bay Buccaneers wide receiver misleading the NFL with a fake vaccination card. 

I also gave Eskow my baseball home run call which included his name in it.

He did a great job asking me questions about some of the top people that I’ve worked with in the business such as my Mentor former Detroit Tigers Hall of Fame Broadcaster Ernie Harwell, Muhammad Ali and the late Los Angeles Dodgers Manager Tommy Lasorda.

Eskow found out quickly that my focus on the air is like none others he’s ever seen. When I become animated, I’ve been know to pound on the desk and my one-liners come out fast and furious.

I enjoyed the numerous references that he made that not only do I talk fast, but I can maintain my train of thought, remain attentive with any question that gets thrown my way and am a good talker.

I quipped that caffeine is my version of PED’s, (Performance Enhancing Drink).

I made references that I talk as fast as cars drive at the Indianapolis 500 and Daytona 500.

You could tell throughout the course of the show, there was a tremendous amount of mutual respect!

During the course of the broadcast, it was neat to see producer Josiah Pierre become entertained while he was doing a dynamite job handling the technical behind the scenes work.

I appreciated the kind words that Eskow said throughout the day that acknowledged I can keep a show going easily with my background and locked in approach.

What I never had the chance to tell Eskow that in another lifetime, I was a co-host of a Terrestrial Radio Show in the 1980’s where we did a sports broadcast from 6-Midnight on Saturday Nights. His one hour show was a walk in the park.

But when the Motor City Mad Mouth matched wits ends with Mr. Comedy, for those that saw the show, the contrast between us was evident. I enjoyed Steve’s stories talking about the entertainment world and the people he’s met. 

Not only did he learn about my sports background but the one thing I had to make sure that I addressed was that because of COVID-19, I’ve been forced to acclimate to a much different change in the industry and leave my sports comfort zone and get into different topics.

I told him that our business approach is changing that I don’t go to as many Sports Events because the main access is via Zoom and as a result seek out other projects which provide direct interviews.

I have to admit that leaving my comfort zone and finding new challenges outside of it has been as much fun as the time being on Eskow’s show.

More importantly, one of the biggest messages I was able to convey was that there are only two things yet I want to accomplish while I’m alive.

First, I want to fulfill my dream and be a play-by-play announcer for a professional baseball team.

Second, I want to write a book that best defines my lifetime in the media with my experiences through the years.

But this appearance wouldn’t have happened if Steve Eskow didn’t have an open mind and talk to me about cross promoting our ventures.

What occurred on Saturday, December 4, 2021 was the ultimate win-win situation!

That’s what life is about and I’m glad that my wife Candy had an opportunity to watch all of this take place because I’m glad that Eskow and the station shared this to the audience in Social Media.

I’m confident that this working relationship with Eskow not only leads to more projects together, but it leads to other opportunities down the line.

But, Act One: The Motor City Mad Mouth Meets Mr. Comedy will leave a long lasting impression for all of those involved both the participants as well as the ones that saw the Steve Eskow show live from West Palm Beach, FL.

Scott Morganroth can be reached at southfloridatribune@gmail.com and you can find him on Twitter @TribuneSouth.

You can see his broadcasts by subscribing to South Florida Tribune You Tube Channel for free.