Krishawn Hogan: Small-School Stud Ready for the Big Time

Beginning Thursday night, dreams will come true for over 200 young men in the NFL Draft. The
usual suspects will have multiple names called - Alabama, Clemson, USC, etc. - and there will be those from non-Power 5 Division I programs as well. However, there might be one name called from a school never heard from before. Krishawn Hogan of Marian University - Indianapolis.

Hogan, a 6-4, 225 pound wide receiver, wrapped up an illustrious career at Marian in November and he leaves the NAIA as one of the greatest players in history. And he did it all in three seasons. A graduate of Warren Central High School in Indianapolis, Hogan played just one season of varsity ball and ended his high school career with 20 catches and one touchdown. Suffice to say, he was lightly recruited and left Walsh University after just one season.

He came back home and took classes at Ivy Tech while working the night shift as a janitor. He enrolled at Marian University, fell in love with the weight room as he likes to say and started tearing up the NAIA competition. Hogan was a touchdown machine, finding the end zone 67 times in 40 games. He won a national title and finished runner-up a season later. All of his work and success led to a Combine invite where he was nearly flawless. Now, the Draft looms.

Stories like Krishawn Hogan's aren't necessarily new. There are guys like him every year in the Draft. But I don't and won't know them. I've had the pleasure of working with Krishawn for the past year at Marian so forgive me if my bias shows through.

Count on Hogan to make it in the league. Will he be drafted or eventually see playing time? That's not something I consider myself an expert on. But will he put in the work and do it the right way? Yes, that I know. Hogan wasn't born with an NFL body. He's made his into one with hours in the weight room at Marian. Last Saturday, the Marian football field was empty (a rare occasion at a school with 24 sports) around 3 p.m. in the afternoon except for one guy - Hogan. There's a million other things a 22-year-old kid could be doing on a Saturday afternoon, but for a guy trying to make the NFL, he was right where he needed to be, putting himself through various drills and exercises.

His journey and unlikely story has drawn national attention. The Indy Star ran a feature on him prior to the Combine and Sports Illustrated featured him as well.  ESPN came to campus last week and will run a story on him during Sportscenter this Saturday. On a small campus, it would be easy for the spotlight to go to Hogan's head. However, he has remained as humble as can be through the entire process and never big times anybody.

Plenty of teams are interested in Hogan, who has been projected as high as the fourth round. But despite all his talent, he must shed the small-school label as the Draft begins. The skills are there and the team that drafts him will get a steal, but it will take a risk. Yet it's a risk worth taking for a guy who can dominate on the field, but also be a quality individual off of it.

A lifetime of work has led up to this for Hogan. An unlikely story, but a story that is about to begin its greatest chapter.

It's Okay To Not Stick To Sports

On this blog we talk about sports. You name it and we've probably touched on it, but sometimes there are current events in this world that take precedence over the games and the athletes. Here on our blog, Nate and I have sometimes ventured out (examples here, and here) beyond the borders of sports and written about those, like Carmelo Anthony, who chose to step out of the sports bubble. Sometimes there are things that are simply too important to brush to the side, although we try while escaping to sports.

Athletes, coaches and sports media figures are stepping out of the sports bubble more than ever and giving the media and fans their thoughts on the world's current issues, leaders and political debates. Check the comment or replies section after any of these opinions are given and there's the same old comeback of "stick to sports."

Gregg Popovich, Steve Kerr, the USWNT and a whole host of NFL and NBA players have given their opinion on Donald Trump, Black Lives Matter, race and equal pay matters. Reporters like Richard Deitsch, Seth Davis and others are willing to talk politics on their social media networks. Every time each person listed above strays from sports topics they are told to just "stick to sports."

Sports is an outlet for people. It's a place to get away from the political debates and the issues of the world we live in. For three hours, a fan's worries can just be about the bad call the umpire made or the dropped catch by their favorite wide receiver. Sports is an escape, but it seems some would like to completely forget that there is more to an athlete, coach or media member than their job. They have earned a platform and they are entitled to use it how they see fit.

These are turbulent times in our world. Political leaders in multiple countries pose a threat, violence is on the rise both at home and abroad and the divide between the American people seems to be at an all-time high. Now, more than ever, it would be great if we could just stick to sports.

But we can't. There's more to this life than just sports and there are decisions being made by our leaders that will greatly affect the trajectory of this country and this world. These are no small matters when we talk about people's freedoms, equal pay, race relations, etc. More than ever, sports figures are taking responsibility for their cities and the happenings in them. The platforms they have are massive, reaching millions of people each day. Thankfully, most choose to use them for what they believe in.

You might not agree with their opinion and that's okay. You may disagree with Colin Kaepernick kneeling for the National Anthem or you might disagree with Derrick Rose and LeBron James wearing "I Can't Breathe" shirts in warmups. That's okay. You might not understand why the US Women's National Team is asking for equal pay with their male counterparts. That's fine. But what is not fine is telling them to just stick to sports. Appreciate the fact that they are using their platform for what they see as positive change.

Can you imagine if no one used their platform for change? Why do we ask sports figures to stay in a box, but not others? If everyone confined themselves to their profession then Martin Luther King would have just been a preacher. No person in today's world thinks that MLK should have "just stuck to his day job." Chance the Rapper is very dedicated to seeing Chicago prosper and recently donated $1 million to Chicago Public Schools. No one suggested he "just stick to music."

Rather than asking these sports figures to stick to sports, we should commend them for speaking up. When young black men are being killed unjustly, we should respect the fact that men with a platform speak out. When women aren't earning equal pay, we should appreciate that some of the most influential women in the US are setting an example and enacting change. When our President is causing strong divisions among the American people and a coach says it's wrong, bravo to the coach for taking a stand.

Sticking to sports is a tired comeback to those who choose not to. It's asking sports figures to put themselves in a box and not use the platform they have been given. Don't like it? The unfollow button isn't far away. Go ahead and give it a click.

Like Jeter and Manning, Kobe Leaves Us With Thrilling Finish

The great ones don't need to leave the sports world with an exclamation point in their final game. Their body of work speaks for itself and the one final memory isn't necessary to cement greatness. It is an added bonus. Some of the best have struggled with retirement, unsure of when to call it quits. Brett Favre and Michael Jordan come to mind. Others, like Barry Sanders, seem to leave us too soon. In the past few years, we have been blessed to watch three stars in three different sports retire at the right time, and give us one more memory to hold on to.

Kobe Bryant became the latest superstar to close out his career -- 20 years with the Los Angeles Lakers that included five championships, an MVP award and back-to-back scoring titles. His 60-point game in the season finale was a vintage Kobe performance that included deep threes, fadeaway jumpers and enough bricks to build a house. But nevermind the bricks or the inefficiency because the point is this: Kobe gave us one more lasting memory. Sports are meant to be fun and Wednesday night at the Staples Center was fun with a extra side of amazing.

Earlier this year, Peyton Manning closed the book on an illustrious career, riding off into the sunset after a Super Bowl victory over the Carolina Panthers. Manning, who has gone through his fair share of injuries in recent years like Bryant, wasn't the Manning of 2008, but he was still something to marvel at.

In 2014, Derek Jeter finished his 20 year career with an opposite field walk-off single in the final game of the regular season. The hit was textbook Jeter and added to an already rich legacy in Yankee pinstripes. Sure, it wasn't 2001 Derek Jeter diving into the seats and going to the playoffs, but it was a final memory that we will never forget.

For me, I don't know the NBA without Kobe Bryant, I don't know the NFL without Peyton Manning and I did not know the MLB without Derek Jeter. Those three have been in the league since I was a young boy. I have binders at home with their trading cards, I have worn their jerseys and I have watched them play countless times. It never gets old watching the great ones.

But when Jeter hit the ball through the right side on September 26, 2014, I knew I would never see him swing a bat again. As Peyton held up the Lombardi trophy in February, it was clear that this was it. And as Kobe poured in basket after basket Wednesday night, I wanted the game to last forever. I wanted three overtimes and I never wanted to stop watching Kobe play. But the clock hit zero on the game and simultaneously hit zero on Kobe's career.

After 20 years for Jeter and Bryant, and 17 for Manning that's it. There is no more, but there are the memories and the final ones are memories I'll have forever.

The Greatest Stretch in Sports

A sadness crept over me Tuesday morning as I realized college basketball was out of my life until November. The game had been so good to we the fans, producing unscripted drama throughout the NCAA Tournament that culminated with Kris Jenkins' title-winning 3-pointer to defeat North Carolina Monday night. For three weeks it was hoops heaven, but suddenly it was gone for seven months.

Fear not though, baseball and the Masters have come to the rescue. MLB Opening Day was conveniently placed in between the NCAA Final Four and National Championship, while the Masters began Thursday. The sadness of college basketball being over quickly faded as baseball and golf started up. In addition, the NBA and NHL playoffs are looming and that begs the question: is this the greatest time of year for a sports fan?

Within a month there is the NCAA Tournament, beginning of the NBA and NHL playoffs, The Masters and MLB Opening Day. Depending on your taste in sports, MLS also starts up and the European soccer leagues are coming down to the wire. The NFL Draft will take place April 30 and for those college football fans, spring football has begun.

Whether it's the best time of the year or not, there's no denying that your remote gets a workout around this time of the year.

Here are some other potential candidates for best time of the year...

October - November
The weather becomes a little unfriendly, but the games are wonderful in the fall. NFL and NCAA football are in full swing, which occupies America for the entire weekend. The MLB playoffs take us through October and the World Series caps the postseason in the beginning of November. In addition, the NHL, NBA and NCAA basketball seasons all get underway sometime during the two month stretch. For soccer fans, MLS season is winding down and European soccer leagues are just starting up.

May - August
The summer months are kind to sports fans as several sports give us championships. The NBA and NHL playoffs are played during May and June, while the MLB season is in full swing and the weather is perfect for attending a game. Golf gives us three majors within a six-week stretch and tennis also has three majors in the span. The Triple Crown horse races are run at the beginning of the summer and, depending on the year, the Olympics or the World Cup are played.

December - February
December and February sometimes get lost in the shuffle, but there's plenty to watch in the thick of winter. NCAA football bowl season takes us through Christmas time before the NFL playoffs take over, which leads to the Super Bowl in early February. NCAA basketball conference play gives us enticing matchups every week and the NBA season is in full swing. NHL and European soccer are also in the middle of the season and the Winter Olympics come once every four years. The winter months also feature some of the best stand alone days in sports. Besides Super Bowl Sunday, Christmas Day is fantastic for NBA games, the Premier League takes over Boxing Day with a full slate of games and New Year's Day is must-see TV with college football bowl games and the NHL Winter Classic.

Which time of year is the best? Did we miss anything? Let us know by commenting below with your opinions and be sure to vote on our Twitter poll @WorldofWadley.

Johnny Victim: Manziel's Performance Drawing Far Too Much Criticism

By now the less-than-impressive performance that Johnny Manziel put on this past Sunday is playing second fiddle to the Chicago Bears' decision to bench Jay Cutler against Detroit this week. Yet amidst the news of Jimmy Clausen getting the start for the Bears this Sunday there has still been plenty of talk about Manziel's future both in the coming week and the seasons ahead. Sure the Browns took a ruthless beating from the Cincinnati Bengals, but is it really worth all of the emotion and analysis?

Hoyer's performance quickly fell off after week 10

Going back to Manziel's days at Texas A&M, I found it hard to be a fan of him. I loved his game, but his antics off the field really dissuaded me from supporting him. He was exciting to watch and gave the college football world a very special and unique talent, but the constant media attention to every little thing he did while at A&M got annoying real quick.

When he was finally drafted late in the first round this past April, the quarterback competition began immediately in Cleveland. It was believed by some that Manziel would be named the starter to begin the season yet Mike Pettine chose to go with Brian Hoyer as the first-string quarterback. Though Manziel still managed to find his way into headlines throughout the first half of the season, he had begun to fade into the background as Hoyer had the Browns in playoff position. Through the first nine games, Hoyer led Cleveland to a 6-3 record while completing ten touchdown passes in comparison to just four interceptions.

However, it was in week 11 when Hoyer's season started unraveling. After the 6-3 start, the Browns dropped three of their next four behind very poor performances from their starting quarterback. In those four games, Hoyer threw for only one touchdown while tossing eight interceptions. With the Browns playoff hopes dwindling, Pettine decided to go with Johnny Manziel in week 15, which brings us now to this past week of embarrassing commotion.

Most everybody knows how Johnny Football's debut went. No touchdowns, two interceptions, 10-18 passing, and 13 yards rushing on 5 attempts. Not exactly your Hall of Fame statistics by any means. However, the debut of Johnny Manziel was so hyped, so over-analyzed, and so highly-anticipated that the only way Manziel could have lived up to it all was to have a Manning or Brady-like performance. Instead, the AFC North-leading Cincinnati Bengals chewed Manziel up and spit him out. They taunted him. They crushed him. They flat-out embarrassed him. Yet I find it incredibly unfair and wrong that the news networks, specifically ESPN, have gone to the extent of questioning whether or not Johnny Manziel belongs in the league.

The Bengals smothered Manziel this past Sunday

You'll be very hard pressed to win games if your quarterback doesn't perform well. That's the nature of the sport. But at the end of the day it was Manziel's first career start. You don't think that playing a playoff team in front of your home crowd with the playoffs on the line would cause a hint of nerves? It was obvious Manziel wasn't used to the speed of the NFL game. Passing windows close up much quicker, your decision-making has to be quicker, etc. It's not a situation most quarterbacks can just walk into and immediately succeed in, especially a game as pivotal as this one. Why are "analysts" now questioning whether or not Manziel has what it takes to play in the NFL?

It was almost comical to watch some of the guys on ESPN talk about Manziel's performance. Merril Hoge had the quote of the week when he said that Johnny Manziel "has first-round hype with sixth round talent." You're going to say that after ONE GAME? Take a look at the quarterbacks in the past who had poor debuts: Joe Montana was 5-12 passing for 53 yards and no touchdowns, John Elway was 1-8 passing for 14 yards and an interception, and Peyton Manning threw one touchdown, three interceptions, and was sacked four times. In no way is Johnny Manziel comparable to these three Hall of Famers, but if you want to base a young player's forthcoming career off of his professional debut then you don't belong in the business. That quote from Hoge had more immature emotion in it than a 13 year old girl that didn't get asked to a junior high dance. Give me a break. There's no reason to be that extreme.

I'm still not Manziel's biggest fan. However, I can't help but feel bad for the guy for all the skepticism he's currently experiencing. Did he bring some of the expectations on himself? Absolutely. He's got a bit of an ego and at the end of the day he's a Heisman Trophy winner. His personality alone has brought on these sky-high expectations but to expect him to live up to them in his first game? That's the society we live in; there's no patience whatsoever and there is constant criticism whether it's warranted or not. It's not a mistake that Johnny Manziel is in this position. He's going to adjust to the NFL game and he's got the talent to excel professionally. It takes time. Everybody needs to stop freaking out and allow Manziel's career to unfold. He'll have another chance to prove himself this Sunday against Carolina.

Topic of Gay Athletes Receiving Unnecessary Attention

Michael Sam and Jason Collins are two African-American athletes who are both trying to make it at the professional level. But there is just one thing that sets these two gentlemen apart from the rest of the field and that, as I'm sure you know by now, is that they are both gay. There. That's all you need to know...right? Well sadly news stations, specifically ESPN, believe it necessary to litter the headlines with a breakdown of every second of Sam and Collins' lives. Why? I understand that these two men are displaying immense amounts of courage by bringing their difference in lifestyle to the public eye, but why do we insist on alienating them even further by continually placing their names in the news and drawing attention to them?

Sam revealed he was gay after the college football season

Now I have a view on homosexuality but I refuse to express that in this post. This is not the place to discuss something like that and if you feel led to comment on this post I encourage you to be mindful of those who may have differing opinions. With that in mind, I fail to see how the announcements Sam and Collins have made warrant this kind of attention. Is it big news? Absolutely. Could it cause discomfort to the athletic world? Most definitely, but if we know that these two men will be viewed differently as it is, why do we continue to force their name into the news? Everyone on this earth, whether they're black, white, short, tall, rich, or poor is a human being and should be treated as such. Just because Michael Sam and Jason Collins are gay does not mean that we need to be acting like they're both charity cases that deserve special attention. They lace up their shoes and put their jersey on the same way heterosexual players do. There is no need for this kind of attention, let them worry about themselves and let them go and play the sport they love without all the extra attention. I'm sure that Sam and Collins don't want to have to deal with the constant interviews anyways.

Collins has played for multiple NBA teams

Another thing that bothers me is people seem to have changed their opinions on these two athletes just because of their sexual preference. I think that says a lot about society today and the same thing happened when basketball stand out Britney Griner revealed that she is lesbian last year. All of the sudden it was no longer about praising her success on the court, it became about her sexuality and whether or not WNBA teams would welcome her. Seriously? These athletes enjoyed stretches of success before people knew that they were gay. Now all of the sudden their entire careers are viewed differently because of their sexuality. Whether a player is homosexual or not should not change a fan's view of how they play the game. It's bothersome to see people turning on these athletes because of a difference that has no bearing on their ability in their sport.

The last thing I want is to come across as saying we should not talk about gay athletes. That is not my intent of this post nor is it a feeling that I have. My view is that we should treat gay athletes just like we do straight athletes. They are no different when it comes to how they play the game, so why add all the unnecessary drama to their lives that are already stressful enough? It's exciting that we have athletes like this that are willing to come out and are leading the way for future gay athletes. But the constant news coverage needs to be laid to rest.