If you ever wanted to teach a young football player how to play the game of football, all you have to do is show them game footage of Bruce Smith. The Norfolk native played the game with passion and great intensity. When he got down in a three point stance, he was like a loaded bullet ready to fly.

Bruce was a left tackles nightmare! Defensive coordinators around the AFC spent countless hours scheming ways to somehow try to slow him down, but it rarely worked. Once play began, it was only a matter of time before number 78 was in the backfield causing trouble for the offense. I can only imagine that quarterbacks went to bed at night thinking of that fast bullet of a man on the left side closing down at ramming speed.

Big, fast and talented, Smith was the energizer bunny who’s battery never seemed to stop. He would ware down the left side of the offensive line and set his sights on the quarterback. He was lightning quick but could bull rush with the best of them. He finished his brilliant career with 200 sacks. Bruce excelled despite playing in a 3-4 defense. Most of the time he was double and triple teamed. Nineteen years in the league and easily one of the greatest and most dominate defensive players in the modern era.

I first met Bruce on the practice field at Virginia Tech back in 1981. We were part of the Hokies freshman class. Not much was know about the soft spoken player from Booker T. Washington, but he made a huge impression on the coaching staff when he was timed in the 40 yard dash. How could a player that big, move that fast? But Bruce was not even close to hitting his stride. He trained harder and longer than most young players and results were amazing.

Bruce made the most of what he was given. He got great advice along the way and not just listened to it, he lived it. Once in the pro ranks, Bruce study endless hours of tape looking for cracks along the offensive line. If he could find a weakness to exploit, Bruce would find it. He learned how to take care of his body and despite 9 knee and 2 shoulder surgery’s he always bounced back stronger. In The off season, Bruce became a permanent fixture at Waring’s Gym in Virginia Beach.

Being a former teammate, I would watch Bruce on the field and look for some part of his game to critique, but he would never give me anything. What I quickly came to realize watching him play was how much hustle he brought to the game. Bruce Smith never seemed to take a play off. He was relentless on the field of play. Quarterbacks and tackles knew this and facing him was not an easy proposition. Playing him in backgammon was a different story!

The Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton, Ohio is full of great football players. You don’t get to Canton without hard work and hustle. The greatest players to ever play the game will be proud to have a player like Bruce Smith at their side.

Congratulations Bruce! You deserve it.

I’m sure Stewart Cink has his share of fans, but even they were rooting for Tom Watson to win the British Open. How could anybody not want to see Watson pull off the improbable?

One would think that history will not be so kind to  Cink’s breakthrough victory at Turnberry. Lets face it, Watson was the story! And when he missed that 8 foot putt at 18, it seemed like he was done. The look on Watson’s face said it all. He knew he had lost the Open. Yes for the first time all week Tom Watson looked 59 year old. It was as if all the air in Scotland had vanished. When Watson’s feeble putt came up short and right of the hole, it meant new life for Cink who had time to compose himself and prepare for his victory march.

What a shame for Stewart Cink. He’s long been known as one of the nice guys on tour. But who could blame him. He began the day 3 shots behind Watson and at the end of the playoff, he was 6 strokes better. The great Hollywood finish was not to be for Tom Watson. Cink snuck in the back door to capture the senior moment.

But what a great Open championship. Great drama with an unlikely finish. Now that all have left Turnberry’s twisted shoreline, Watson’s name will not be added to the Claret Jug for a 6th time. Instead it reads Stewart Cink, 2009 champion. Not what the world wanted, but that’s just fine for Cink.

What a sight in St. Louis. Three home grown Hampton Roads baseball stars playing for the National League in the All-Star game. It was a moment easy to dream, but hard to imagine. Sure we know that David Wright, Ryan Zimmerman and Justin Upton are talented and great players, but  seeing them play in the summer classic was amazing.

Young baseball players across Hampton Roads had their big league dreams stoked last night each time they saw Upton, Zimmerman and Wright come to the plate. You can’t blame a kid for thinking that if they can do it, so can I. Upton, Wright and Zimmerman had the same dreams when they were cutting their teeth on local dirt infields. They payed their dues. They put in the countless hours and look where it led them. Honored as All-Stars. Seventy-two players make up both the American and National league rosters. Wright, Zimmerman and Upton found their spot with the sports elites.

Add the efforts of Michael Cuddyer and BJ Upton to the list and it’s hard not to think that these are the banner days for local baseball. And how do you think having these young stars in the spotlight will ripple down to young players here following in their footsteps?

Just ask David Wright, Ryan Zimmerman and Justin Upton and I’m sure they will tell you, “The dream is alive!”

Three, two, and one. Sound up full, take intern!

Hi, I’m Kelsey, the Wavy sports intern for the summer. I started this internship back in May and was quickly introduced to the sports team. Brian Parsons, Chris Reckling, Ahmed Fareed, and of course Bruce Rader. When I first started this internship I was told, “At the end of the summer, you may not know if the media world is where you want to be, but you’ll definitely know if it’s NOT where you want to be.” Needless to say I was a little scared because, well, I have no plan B. Fortunately, this internship has proved not only informative and educational, but also a whole lot of fun, because there really is never a dull minute within the sports department.

So, what does a Wavy sports intern actually do? It’s a lot of observing, whether I’m watching interviews with Tides athletes, horse trainers, or World Series bound poker players or simply watching the news from the control room, I’m learning a lot. And I hope I can take all I’ve learned so far and put it to good use tomorrow, when I conduct my own interview. I came up with some questions, but needless to say I’m still a little nervous. However, I think I’ve had some pretty good teachers, I mean if Bruce Rader can do it so can I. Well, I wish I could make it look that easy.

In Portsmouth, Kelsey Webb, for the sports blog.

You ever camped out before?  It can be fun.  But, it probably won’t be for the media (including us) that will be camped outside Mike Vick’s Hampton home tonight.  I hear the ABC in Richmond brought the s’mores.

As the 24-hour news cycle attacks this story, it has been somewhat difficult for us in the sports department for one main reason: nothing is changing.

Sure, Mike will now serve out his sentence from home.  But, that does nothing to clear up his NFL future.  The commissioner, Roger Goodell refuses to say anything new until Vick’s sentence is fully up.  Of course, individual NFL teams are not commenting on their interest in Vick.  From a sports angle, nothing is different now than it was 19 months ago.  When nothing is new, it’s hard to make news.

But we do, mostly with speculation.   Outside of maybe, possibly, and if, there’s not much more we can add.  Will the NFL  let Vick come back? Probably.  Could Jerry Jones take a chance on him? Maybe.  What about the Steelers? Possibly.   Other than that, we can’t add much.

The silver lining for us is that soon, everything will change.  After his release, he will be reinstated.  The Falcons will be forced to trade or cut him.  Then, Vick will start negotiating with teams.  He will receive offers.  Vick will fly around to different camps.  Finally, he will pick a team.  Then, he’ll try to make that team.  Vick will suit up in a game.  And so on.  Then we will have some actual sports news to talk about.

Please, get here soon.

Is it too late to call 911? Or should the  next phone call be to the local morgue!

Did we really witness the final Michelob Ultra Open at Kingsmill this past weekend? Was the likable Cristie Kerr the final champion to stroll the grounds of the River Course? If so, what a shame! For 7 years, the worlds greatest female golfers graced our local links giving local golf  moms a great Mothers day to enjoy some exciting golf. How about the nearly 15 hundred volunteers who gave up their time to help make a successful tournament. What about the thousands of dollars pumped into local charity’s? How about the little girl who plays golf with her mommy or daddy and has dreams of one day playing like Lorena Ochoa? That little dreamer just lost a chance to see her role models.

I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard one of the golfers tell me how much they like the tournament at Kingsmill. Take a vote amongst the players and almost all of them will say the Michelob Ultra Open is their favorite on tour. I’ve always wondered if that was thier canned line they use at each venue, but take a close look at what Kingsmill and everything that Williamsburg has to offer and it’s easy to understand that the ladies mean what they say. Yes the tournament staff throws a first class event. They should be very proud.

The Hampton Roads sporting scene has scene it’s share of professional teams come and go and yes now the latest to join the list may just be the Michelob Ultra Open. No decision has been made about the tournaments future, but the warning signs are not good. Bad economy. A new and frugal owner for sponsor Anheuser-Busch. Did I mention the bad economy? How much exposure does $2.2 million dollars buy for Michelob Ultra?

I guess we’ll know soon enough if the LPGA is coming back to Kingsmill or professional golf will follow so many other failed ventures here in Hampton Roads. Remember the Norfolk Nighthawks, the Roadsters or even the Mariners. (The Roadsters were professional fast pitch softball! Give yourself some extra credit if you remember the Roadsters!) Now I’m not comparing the LPGA to fast pitch softball, but when fans see their favorite sport come and go, it hurts.

I think most of the media covering the LPGA over the weekend feel the tournament will not return to Kingsmill. I’m not one of them. I think it will be back. If not, bring on the Senior Tour!

What compels a fighter to enter the octagon? Is it glory? Is it for the love of pain? Whatever the reason, it takes a special breed to agree to such violence. Sure there are rules in Mixed Martial Arts, but really once that bell rings, make no mistake about it, it’s a brawl.

Nearly 5000 fans saw 10 fights this past weekend at CageFest Xtreme All-In at the Ted Constant Center. Most of the nights fights didn’t make it out of the first round. Even the main event was quick. Kyle Baker defeated Drew Fickett with a tap out just 1:37 in the first round.

The crowd seemed to enjoy the quick action, quick results from some of the undercard.  The women’s fight between Stacy Grant and Linda Cunningham went the distance. Grant won by decision.

While going the distance prolongs the excitement, fight fans love to see fights won by submission. You know the arm bar, leg bar and the choke. Virana Brown from Richmond was choked out by Robert Conner. Brown told me after the fight that his time out was “peaceful.” Brown said he felt refreshed after regaining his senses.

It’s easy to see how this type of fighting is not for everyone. And it’s also just as easy to see the appeal of man to man combat. Fight promoter Ricky Piece says he can’t wait to bring MMA back to Hampton Roads. And that’s good news for local fight fans.

Tiger Woods is human after all! He finally hit a tree.

It seems that when Tiger misses the fairway he’s often wide right or left in the jungle, but he almost always manages to escape with a great shot. But not on Sunday on the final hole of the Masters. Tiger’s second shot was a low screamer that bounced off a Georgia white pine and into the other fairway. With one swing of the club, the worlds greatest golfer now  looks a lot like all of us other duffers! I mean really, everybody hits trees! It just seems that Tiger Woods never connects with wood when it matters most. But we saw him do it on golf’s grandest stage.

Of course it didn’t really matter at that point. Tiger was not going to win his 5th green jacket.

Funny thing was, Angel Cabrera hit a tree on the 18th and final hole and still went on to win the Masters. Unlike Tiger, Cabrera’s shot ricocheted off the pine and back into the middle of the fairway at 18. He would get up and down to save par. As if saving par at 18 after hitting a tree wasn’t lucky enough, Cabrera then sat back and watched as Kenny Perry and Chad Campbell struggled with their own demons. Cabrera would shoot par, par in the sudden death playoff to win his second major championship.

Yes great drama at this years Masters. I’m still trying to get over seeing Tiger hit a tree.

Our hometown hero’s have been getting a ton of press lately. Most of it has not been good.

A gun possession case against Virginia Beach native Plaxico Burress was adjourned until June. The state of New York is trying it’s best to throw the former Green Run star in prison. As if the embarrassment of shooting yourself in the leg isn’t punishment enough!

And then there’s our other source of NFL pride from the Peninsula. Newport News native Michael Vick will be let out of jail to return home to Norfolk this week for a bankruptcy hearing in a Norfolk courthouse. The notorious Vick of dog fighting fame was once the highest paid player in the NFL and now he’s bankrupt! The press will have a field day with each and every move Vick makes from here on out.

Vick and Burress will command a ton of national attention. That’s what happens when a star falls from grace. But what about the good guys? How come their good deeds don’t get as much attention? You know, good guys like Alonzo Mourning. The pride of Chesapeake is a true class act. He saw his jersey number retired in Miami. Zo was the first to be honored by the Heat. Zo won the NBA Championship along with an Olympic gold medal. He even defied the odds when he battled back from a kidney transplant. Alonzo Mourning is a true credit to Hampton Roads, but his latest news will get a fraction of the attention of Vick and Burress.

Same for LaShawn Merritt. The Portsmouth native continues to make public appearances following his 2 gold medal win at the summer Olympic games. His message last week to a group in Virginia Beach was loud and clear, “make good choices.” Vick and Burress could learn a great deal from Mourning and Merritt. It’s a real shame the efforts of both Mourning and Merritt don’t get as much attention as that of the dog fighter and gunslinger!

In case you haven’t heard, it looks like the University of Virginia has a new basketball coach.

His name is Tony Bennett, he is 39 years old and for the last three years he has been the coach at Washington State.

People say he is one of the top young coaches in the country, in fact a couple of years ago he was named the AP College of the Year.  In his first two years he took the Cougars to the NCAA basketball tournament twice.  This past year he only won 17 games.

He is expected to be introduced on Wednesday.  Hope he can do the job.