sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
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Welcome to National Caramel Popcorn Day!
Combining popcorn and molasses began in the early 1800s. However, caramel was prevalent as well, and with the production of Cracker Jack, the popularity was ever-increasing. Invented by Frederick Rueckheim, the popcorn merchant dabbled with creating a new snack. An immigrant from Germany to Chicago, he enlisted his brother, Louis, to help. After adding molasses and nuts, their snack was ready for an introduction to the masses.
Like many famous foods, Cracker Jack gained popularity on the stage of the 1893 World’s Fair. Other foods to grab the public’s attention at similar expositions include cotton candy and the ice cream cone. While they weren’t invented there, nor did they make their debut, they sure did capture the imagination and make a lasting impression there.
However, in 1908, something happened to connect Cracker Jack and baseball permanently in the American psyche, while also launching the business into high gear. A young entertainer by the name of Jack Norworth penned a catchy tune referencing Cracker Jack and the American pastime. The song “Take Me Out To The Ballgame” not only caused sales of the snackfood to soar but the fans of the game continue to sing the song at every game.
SU News
Axe: Syracuse basketball’s watch party for 2003 title game was just what we needed (PS; Axe)
We should have been watching the 2020 Final Four on Saturday night but is there any way that could have been as good as what we experienced instead?
Syracuse University’s Facebook Live watch party of the 2003 national championship game gave us a walk down memory lane narrated by those that lived that 81-78 win over Kansas on April 7, 2003.
Jim Boeheim, Carmelo Anthony, Hakim Warrick, Gerry McNamara, Josh Pace, Kueth Duany, Mike Hopkins and so many more may have been sequestered in separate locations but were united by technology as one team again.
Viewers were lucky to be digital flies on the wall.
Oh, the stories we heard.
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McNamara doesn't go a day without thinking about 2003 championship (PS; Waters)
It’s been 17 years since Gerry McNamara was a freshman at Syracuse.
McNamara is now an assistant coach at his alma mater, but in 2003, he was still just a freshman and a starting guard on the SU basketball team.
On April 7, 2003, McNamara and his teammates played Kansas for the NCAA championship at the Superdome in New Orleans.
"I don’t think a day goes by where you don’t think about that moment,'' McNamara said recently in a video interview. "It doesn’t matter how much time goes by.''
McNamara said down with Syracuse.com for a video interview about the 2003 team and the 2002-03 championship season.
He discussed the game that convinced him the 2003 Orange was a championship-caliber team. The players’ attitudes after losing to Connecticut in the Big East tournament and the play he considers to be the pivotal moment in SU’s win over Kansas in the national title game.
Syracuse lost its season-opener to Memphis at Madison Square Garden, but McNamara said his confidence wasn’t shaken. In fact, he felt just the opposite.
"Even though we lost, it was a confidence boost for me,'' he said. "I belong here.''
Syracuse went on an 11-game winning streak, including a 92-65 romp over a Georgia Tech team that included future NBA star Chris Bosh.
"I knew how talented that team was,'' McNamara said. “Good enough to go to the national championship game the next season without Chris Bosh and we beat them handily at the Dome. I thought ‘We might be really good.''’
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Recruiting Roundup: Alan Griffin commits to Syracuse; Patrick Tape recommits to Duke - The Juice Online (the juice; Cheng)
Syracuse basketball split the weekend recruiting doubleheader.
On the one hand, the Orange landed a huge commitment from a position of need, getting Illinois wing Alan Griffin. Griffin, who announced his commitment via Twitter on Sunday, is a 6-foot-5 wing, and will certainly help make up for the departure of Elijah Hughes to the NBA.
On the other, Syracuse also lost out on a recruit to Duke for a second time, with Columbia transfer Patrick Tape recommitting to Duke on Sunday (more on that below).
In just 18.4 minutes per game in his sophomore season, Griffin averaged 8.9 points and 4.5 rebounds on 48.3 percent shooting from the field and 41.9 percent from beyond the arc. Watch Stadium’s Jeff Goodman ranks Griffin as the No. 7 transfer that was in the portal.
The NCAA is taking up legislation to make players immediately eligible upon their first transfer rather than needing to sit out the mandatory year as in the past. But CBS Sports’ Jon Rothstein reports that the rule, if approved later this month, will not go into effect until the 2021-22 season, which means that Griffin would need to apply for a waiver to play in the next season.
As for the recruitment itself, Griffin picked Syracuse over interest from other schools like Dayton, Miami, Arizona, Texas and Iowa State. Griffin is familiar with the Orange, having played high school ball at Archbishop Stepinac High School in White Plains, NY.
“The main reason was that their plan matched mine,” Griffin said to the Post-Standard’s Mike Waters. “They were straight-forward (with) what needed to be done.”
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https://accsports.com/acc-news/another-change-patrick-tape-recommits-to-duke/ (accsports.com; Geisinger)
Back like he never left: According to multiple reports, Patrick Tape has recommitted to Duke. Tape, a graduate transfer from Columbia, initially committed to Duke back on March 24. Less than two weeks later (April 2), however, Tape elected to de-commit from Duke. And three days later, on Sunday night, Tape once again committed to Duke.
Columbia grad transfer Patrick Tape has recommitted to Duke, he tells ESPN.
Originally committed last week, decommitted the other day. Now back in the fold.
— Jeff Borzello (@jeffborzello) April 6, 2020
Over the course of three seasons with the Lions, Tape appeared in 69 games; as a junior during the 2018-19 season, Tape averaged 11.3 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game.
Tape shot 58.7 percent on post-up attempts as a junior, too, per Synergy Sports. He could be a key piece of the puzzle as Duke looks to rebuild a post game that likely won’t include Vernon Carey Jr.
A native of Charlotte, N.C., Tape sat the 2019-20 season out as he prepared for a potential grad transfer season.
Other
When should professional sports restart? Cuomo says to let the experts decide (PS; Weidner)
Andrew Cuomo offered a short discourse on cabin fever during Sunday’s news briefing on the coronavirus pandemic, but the New York governor said it was too early to discuss restarting the country’s stalled professional sports seasons.
“I would love to see sports back. It would help with cabin fever,” Cuomo said in a response to comments by President Donald Trump, who said he would like to see people back in stadiums as soon as August or September. “But this is not about hopes and dreams and aspirations, and what you would like to see.”
Cuomo was asked about comments made by Trump, who Saturday held a conference call with commissioners of most of the country’s top sports leagues, including Major League Baseball, the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League - whose seasons are currently on pause - and the National Football League.
“I want fans back in the arenas,” Trump said later during a news briefing, according to ESPN.com. “As soon as we can, obviously. And the fans want to be back, too. They want to see basketball and baseball and football and hockey. They want to see their sports.”
Trump said he wanted the NFL season to start on time in September.
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