Well, it's better than finding out posthumously

I'd like to introduce you to Evonne Goolagong, a tennis player from the 1970s.

You don't hear much about her these days, but boy, she went on a tear in 1976, winning six tournaments, including the Australian Open.

But she never quite summited the top of the WTA rankings -- until now.

Some stathead for the WTA plugged all the numbers into a computer (rumor has it they relied heavily on the abacus until the early 1990s), and determined that Goolagong rightfully deserved the #1 ranking for a two-week period.

Two weeks. Thirty years ago. And they sent her a trophy for it. I'm glad credit has been given where credit was due, but I'm plagued by a burning question on the subject.

Who was the geek digging around in 30-year-old stats that found this?

Meaninglessness brought to the masses

If you're dying to watch the New England Patriots make history Saturday night -- but can't afford NFL Network -- you're in luck.

But now that the NFL has made an allowance for CBS and NBC to simulcast the game, it begs the question: how many of us care?

Patriots fans have plenty of reason to watch, but not in the same way we all gathered around the talking box when Big Mac went for 62. History will unfold before our eyes, to be sure, but it all seems like such a foregone conclusion.

In addition to the perfect 16-0 season, New England has a couple of opportunities to make its mark on the record book.

• With two TD passes, Tom Brady will pass Peyton Manning for the single-season TD record (currently at 49).
  
  
• With two TD catches, Randy Moss would eclipse Jerry Rice for the all-time mark (currently 22, set in a strike-shortened season of 12 games).
  


• And with a mere touchdown, the Patriots will pass the '98 Vikings as the most prolific scoring team in history (the current points record is 556).

But are these records you need to see broken? Could you have picked the NFL's highest scoring team on a multiple choice test? Even the perfect season doesn't seem as big a deal, since we all figured out about Week 9 that the Patriots couldn't be beaten.

Furthermore, the game is of no consequence to the Giants, who have already clinched a Wild Card berth and stand to gain nothing by winning. So basically, it will be a regular season game for the Patriots and a preseason game for New York. Riveting!

I'm as much a fan of history as anyone else, and normally the opportunity to watch a record-setting sports event would make my hair stand on end. Saturday will be different, though. I'll probably flip on the game and watch a quarter or two, but if my wife asks me to accompany her to the grocery store, I won't object.

Vote Now (in poll to the right): Will you watch the Patriots go for 16-0?

If you're going to a bowl game, Watch your back

Chalk it up to filler on a slow news day, if you like, but I find this AP piece about terrorism at sporting events more than a little unnerving.

The story points out that while professional sports have stepped up their security measures, NCAA events have security barely superior to than a junior league soccer game at the park. Numbers aren't necessarily the problem, however.

Because most college and universities outsource its security and ushering duties, the types of personnel available in the event of an emergency aren't always top drawer. Picture the saggy-cheeked grandpa or the pimply-faced teenager. Are those the guys you want watching your back while you watch the game?

I've often thought when I walked into a stadium (college or professional) that this could be a prime target for terrorist action. At least 30,000 -- sometimes up to 100,000 -- people in one confined space. How hard would it be for one individual with weapons or explosives to make it past security and carry out a suicide mission? How vulnerable would fans be with no easy exits and no plans for evacuation?

It's sad we've come to need this, but Southern Miss has developed a center for Spectator Sports Security Management, which is charged with the task of training security professionals across the country for just this type of scenario.

I just hope it isn't too late.

Security experts worry about safety at college stadiums (AP, via Yahoo! sports)

Bizarre behavior from the Flying Tomato

If you're a fan of winter sports, you may remember Shaun White as a gold medal winner.

If you're a pop culture junkie, you may recall White as the Flying Tomato in this issue of Rolling Stone.

But if you're a Summit County (Colorado) sheriff, you probably know White as the punk who set off the fire alarm and looks suspicious in the theft of a 2000 Audi.

A security camera caught someone who looked very much like White setting off the alarm in the game room at Beaver Run Resort in Breckenridge, and a little sleuthing showed White's boot prints tracking away from the scene of the crime.

White was questioned in the theft of the Audi, which took place the same day, but later ruled out as a suspect for reasons unclear. Just guessing here, but perhaps it had to do with the fact that White probably has more than enough endorsement money to buy his own 2000 Audi.

White is still only 21, and besides his second-degree criminal tampering citation will probably be dismissed or otherwise forgotten. But you have to wonder, after White's bizarre and disappointing behavior, who will all the young, pasty white, freckled red-headed snowboarders look up to now?

White cited with criminal tampering (AP, via si.com)
"Flying Tomato" cited in Breckenridge (Denver Post)