Above the Fold - Enough of the "Will he or won't he?" speculation

The 2 huge blogosphere stories today are in regard two subjects I couldn't care less about, the Congressional Mitchell Report hearings, and Steve Jobs' Macworld keynote.

Both are overrated, with plenty of flash and little to no substance. Considering our congress is all show, and no go, doing little to stem the PED tide, and most computer users don't have a need to drop 2 grand for what is essentially a slick operating system running on standard PC hardware, their importance in the big scheme of things seem more than a tad overblown.

Nothing will change because Congress puts on a steroid dog and pony show, and Apple will always be a niche player in everything but MP3 players. So what's the big damn deal?

Detroit has it's own share of overblown stories.

The most overblown being the unhealthy, almost obscene, fascination over high school football recruit Terrelle Pryor. Michigan or tOSU? What school's hat/sweatshirt is he wearing today? Is he the next coming of Vick and Young combined? Michigan will win a 4 national titles with Pryor under center! Michigan is toast if Pryor doesn't commit!

As much as we've heard otherwise, Pryor is a high school kid, not football Jesus!

For example, the Freep has 2 long form articles about Pryor in today's web edition. One is an article looking at the success/failure of #1 QB recruits...

If Michigan gets its coveted commitment from Terrelle Pryor, the nation's No. 1 recruit according to Rivals.com, is the dual-threat quarterback guaranteed to be a star?

Most people who have seen Pryor play would say yes. But history isn't exactly on their side.

OK, that's fine. A well researched article confirming the mercurial nature of high school recruits. You can never be sure what you are going to get, no 18 year old football player, no matter how talented, is a sure thing.

But there is also a breathless Chicago Tribune article that's a fluff piece on Pryor "mania." Any article that quotes Drew Sharp as an expert leaves much to be desired.

Michigan was barely in the picture until Rodriguez — “Rich Rod,” Pryor calls him — took the Wolverines job. Rodriguez phoned Pryor with the news before letting almost anyone else know.

Now hardcore Michigan fans are in freak-out mode over Pryor.

Detroit Free Press columnist Drew Sharp wrote that Rodriguez “must keep Pryor away from Jim Tressel. He must do whatever it takes. Failure is not an option.”

Please. One recruit is NOT going to make or break Michigan, even if the biased Sharp claims otherwise. Michigan will survive if Pryor commits elsewhere, even tOSU. It may take a couple of seasons to get the Rodriguez spread running at full speed, but long term, the Wolverines will still be the Wolverines, with or without, Pryor.

All this talk about a high school kid just confirms what how sleazy and overblown college recruiting can be. And we wonder why bit time college football players have a sense of entitlement, that they are above everything. You head would get quite large if you had the eyes of the MSM watching and reporting your every move.

The other story that is getting entirely too much push is Chris Webber's odyssey, another "will he, or won't he?" story.

What got me going was WXYT spending a couple of hours on this non-topic during their mid-day show, will Webber be a Piston? Why spend so much time on something that has little chance of happening? It's 1 hour plus I'll never get back, and will get called out for when I arrive at the pearly gates. "You wasted your life listening to a nonsensical topic on sports talk radio! That's gonna buy you some time in purgatory, son!"

The Freep is also far from blame free, as they also write about Webber's nothing quote to a Sactown reporter.

Former Piston Chris Webber said in a Sacramento TV interview Sunday that he expected to be playing "in two weeks." He wouldn't name teams but said a handful had offered him a spot.

The Pistons have maintained that they are speaking with Webber and his agent but would only bring him back as the team's fourth big man. They also would need to clear a roster spot because they are at the league limit of 15.

It wasn't a long article, but it is a useless waste of bandwidth. Webber doesn't fit on the Pistons, not this season. Webber is going to go where he can get PT, and he's NOT going to get it in Detroit.

First off, does anyone seriously believe Webber would agree to the the Pistons 4th big man? For that matter, that the Pistons would want to waive someone to sign a once great player who is a shadow of his former self, who could give you maybe 8 minutes a game? Me neither.

Hell, at this point of their careers, Primoz Brezec is a more useful player for the Pistons, and Brezec won't harp about playing time. Unlike Webber...

Re-signing Webber would go against everything Joe Dumars and Flip Saunders have said about developing the youth on the bench. That's just what the Pistons need, another old big man to take time away from Jason Maxiell and Amir Johnson. (Not that Johnson is getting much anyway...)

I like the current chemistry of this Pistons team, don't go mucking it up with a shadow of his former self Chris Webber.

That's "Above the Fold" for Tuesday, 1-15-07!