Sports Media Musings: Katie Nolan vs. Rick Reilly; “Salk & Holley” Go Shankin’; Ordway Downplays WEEI Return

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Anna Kendrick is my number one right now. She’s a fun follow on Twitter, and seems like a great hang who’s down to earth. Can’t fight love; it’s just how I feel, man. But Katie Nolan rocked my world Wednesday afternoon. I’m still reeling.

The Framingham native and Fox Sports 1 personality launched a diatribe toward ESPN’s Rick Reilly during a Crowd Goes Wild segment. The spot was in response to Reilly taking a cheap shot at Nolan’s colleague, Regis Philbin, during a SportsCenter segment at Media Day, in which he called Philbin a “little man with makeup” that no one knew.

A few things here:

1. First and foremost, what happened to Reilly?  This guy was once considered one of the greatest sports writers in the game. That’s not an overstatement. Now, he’s a punch line. Other more-accomplished writers have wondered about his fall from grace. Is he just sick of his job? Does he hate it? Or, most damning, is he just a jerk? Truthfully, I always thought the whole thing was overstated. But, man, it’s been a train wreck for him, and part of you wonders if he dished Philbin because, deep down, Regis was the only target (he thought) was a slam dunk.

2. It wasn’t. Reilly going after Philbin is laughable. It was a case of an out of touch guy who lacks any semblance of self-awareness taking a pot shot at a dude who’s on his way out (Regis was never a good fit for FS1, and confirmed he is leaving the network). It’s sad, really: Reilly doesn’t realize his career outlook is closer to Philbin than it is someone like Nolan. An agism joke gone awry.

3. Meanwhile, Nolan going after Reilly is pragmatic. It makes you wonder why FS1 doesn’t take advantage of the endless opportunities to land punches on the four-letter network more often. Who wouldn’t watch a satirical version of First Take? Smaller entities – even ones with gobs and gobs of money – are perceived as underdogs, they win sympathy points, and the general public will support their crusade (You could make a strong case this is how “Toucher & Rich” took down “Dennis & Callahan.” I’d disagree. The 98.5 guys won out on wit, talent, and ingenuity, but I’d also argue that it certainly helped expedite the process.)

4. The suits at ESPN cannot be happy about Rick’s decision. In terms of payoff, his reportedly lavish contract is more on par with the likes of Barry Zito than it is Tom Brady. Guy has never fit in since joining the Bristol campus. So not only is he a sunk cost on the balance sheet, but his screw up led to some visibility for FS1, which like CBS and NBC’s 24/7 sports networks, has mostly been a non-factor since launching. I doubt this incident provides any sustainable momentum for FS1 (I still don’t know what channel the station is on here in Boston), but it was a gratuitous dig that prompted a response which went viral.

5. Back to Nolan for a second: I’ve been sporadically following her stuff since her days at Guyism, because I’m secretly a tool who reads sites like Guyism in my spare time. Judge me. Anyway, this was completely different, I’d be lying if I said I didn’t immediately think: “Could it be? A Miss Media Musings exists????” Just excellent stuff in her rant.

BONUS: All that said, my heart stays with Anna. She gets me. In my head we’d totally be the couple that finishes one another’s sentences. We’re dating. Again, only in my head. But still. It counts. If it doesn’t work out, it’s nice knowing there are other fish in the sea. Anna is “approachable girl hot,” you don’t take “approachable girl hot” for granted. You just don’t:

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Speaking of easy targets, “Salk & Holley” had a strong segment in which they questioned Dan Shaughnessy’s piece about David Ortiz’s comments regarding his contract extension in an interview with Steve “HOCKEY LOCKOUT IS OVER!” Burton. The duo, who have not been shy about calling out Shank since the Boston Globe columnist turned up the volume of his Troll-Amp to an Iron Maiden-esq 11 during the NFL playoffs, aptly pointed out Shaughnessy’s misrepresentation of Papi’s statements.

Whatever happened to simply honoring your contract? Especially when you are nearing the end of your career?

There’s reaching, then there’s reaching. Ortiz was asked a hypothetical – about the future – he answered it. It’s clear, at this juncture, that Papi complaining is nothing new. Rinse, dry, repeat – all of that. It’s annoying, and definitely selfish, but he’s not rallying a mutiny here, or stating a plan to hold out come Spring Training time. But that didn’t stop Shank from doing what Shank does. Not when there’s faux outrage to be had!

Swell. Way to go, Big Papi. Everybody loves you. But you have no leverage. Please stop talking about a contract extension and honor the deal you signed.

Wait, did Ortiz say he wasn’t planning to honor the deal? I’m confused.

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I killed Colin McGowan for his off-target, take-down piece about Kirk Minihane, Jenny Dell, and the sanctimony of “conflict of interest in sports journalism” the other day. It’s only fair to applaud him for his column about the media reaction to Marshawn Lynch’s eerie silence during media day. McGowan does well here in a missive that’s well worth your time. A few favorite excepts below:

It’s astounding that some people still don’t know to not use the word “articulate” in reference to a black athlete anymore, but that adjective has been invoked a lot this week. Journalists are, in their own blinkered way, trying to pat Sherman on the head for being good copy and allowing them to write easy Richard Sherman Is Not a Thug articles.

Predictably, he has been widely admonished by the people who had to stand around with tape recorders while he gave brief non-answers. CBS.com’s Gregg Doyel called Lynch’s Tuesday session “embarrassing.” The Daily News‘ Greg Meyers opined that it’s “really not all that hard” to answer simple questions. Strong take dispenser Pete Prisco tweeted that Lynch would be “begging for attention” in five years.

I don’t know about you guys, but I for one was waiting with bated breath for Lynch to tell me about the importance of execution, staying focused, and trusting the game plan. It’s downright disrespectful that he robbed the masses of that insight.

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My thoughts on the Boston Herald story claiming WEEI wants Glenn Ordway back on its airwaves? News like this engenders the same feeling we get when we hear Eric Mangini or Paul Westphal is a rumored coaching candidate: irritation.

It’s not that Big O is terrible. He’s fine. The rumor just lacks imagination. I feel like I’m talking to a buddy who wants to get back together with his longtime ex-girlfriend. Guys, there’s a reason you broke up with him in the first place. And seriously, that’s the best you can do? A retread? Run it back with the same formula? This isn’t Hollywood.

For what it’s worth, as much as Ordway downplays the report, you know he’s hot and bothered by the prospect of a return.

As always, thanks for reading. Feel free to say hello in the Twittersphere: @Hadfield__.