BEST QUOTE
Nebraska Head Coach Darin Erstad joking with me on his team’s winning ways Friday: “My wife has a reunion going on this weekend, so I wanna keep playing, no disrespect to the family, but I wanna keep playing baseball, we’re having fun.”

They were. And were fun to watch.

TALL ORDER
Had to improvise when interviewing 6’10″ Hoosier hurler, and the B1G Pitcher of the Year, Aaron Slegers. Photo courtesy: Indiana … a handful of these (from different angles) were taken in the Hoosier dugout as this interview was going on. Apparently, they have never seen a reporter stand on a bucket before!?! What gives?

HOOSIER CHEMISTRY
Indiana baseball had something special brewing even last year. Coaches and players always talk about growth and maturity. What does that look like?

Head Coach Tracy Smith painted the picture to me last year at the 2012 B1G tournament:
“We’re sitting on the bus, driving to the field to play, and the team is just back there talking anything and everything. I said to my assistants, ‘Listen to that. It’s driving me crazy, but I’m not going to say anything because that’s kinda the personality of this team. As long as they’re getting the job done and playing the way we want …”

Indiana got to the championship game last year, but fell short of the championship.

The story changed just a bit going into this year’s B1G tournament: “Their reaction to success has really been the true example of their maturity,” Smith said. “After we beat Louisville, they were silent on the bus ride. (And after Indiana won its first outright title since 1932), they were silent on the bus back from Columbus. I was shocked, but it just shows they have loftier goals than what they have accomplished.”

Senior shortstop Michael Basil agreed, adding those goals were made last Fall, when the team set out to win the B1G regular season, the tournament title, and then get to Omaha.

So far, 2-2.

SUPERSTITIONS GALORE …
Don’t get me wrong, these Hoosiers still have fun.

The latest and greatest Indiana superstition began on the last weekend of the regular season. It was called “Dub for the Stub”. Meaning, get a win, or a “W”, or a “Dub”…and you can grow a stub, or don’t shave until you lose.

So Indiana players (and coaches, mind you) had grown some impressive stubble after about a week’s worth of work. (The no-shave period stretched from the Ohio State regular season finale to this past Saturday’s championship game vs Nebraska). Indiana lost Saturday night to the Huskers, and Tracy Smith told me going into Sunday’s championship game, “I didn’t remind them, I didn’t say a word, but when all the players came down for breakfast this morning, they were all clean-shaven,” he laughed and said, “I knew at that point, we were ready.”

Coming from the man who should know. Coach Smith puts the “super” in stitious. He is the ultimate superstitious baseball guy, and you have to wonder if there is something to it. Every TV game when he did an in-game interview this year, the opposing team scored in that inning. It wasn’t until Saturday night, when Smith brought it up on the air to Eric Collins and Scott Pose in the booth, that the streak was snapped. Smith told me later, “That’s all I had to do to break the jinx, was to address it.”

This, coming from the guy who wears a #13 jersey to coach in because, “it counters all the other bad luck out there.”

One more.

Smith admitted to me Thursday, before the Hoosiers first game, that he forgot to pack his “long johns.” No problem, he just wore two pairs of baseball pants to stay warm. And after Indiana won that first game, he had to continue to wear two pairs of baseball pants for the rest of the tournament.

But there’s more to it.

After Saturday’s loss to Nebraska, Smith admitted to me he screwed up the process. For Saturday’s game, he wore his gray baseball pants underneath his white game pants. For all the other games, he had worn white on white. You better believe, it was white on white for Sunday’s championship game, and yes, Indiana did win.

MOTHER’S DAY … AGAIN
A quick Nebraska note … about that Saturday night walk-off thriller.

Tanner Lubach was the hero. He hit a solo shot in the 11th, on the third pitch of the inning, and for his first hit of the tournament. The ball sailed into the left-field seats to end the game, and sent Nebraska and Indiana to another Championship game Sunday afternoon.

His father, Bruce, had alerted me earlier in the day that it was Tanner’s Mom’s birthday. As we got setup for the postgame interview, I looked up into the stands and saw Laura Lubach watching us from afar. I motioned for security to bring her down to the field. It created this moment, after the interview:

Tanner Lubach reacts to hitting walk-off HR

You can’t tell by the video, but Laura Lubach told me what Tanner said to her during that hug: “Mom, I am sorry I didn’t get you anything for your birthday. But here is the homerun ball for you to keep.”

With tears in her eyes, Laura Lubach added to me, “I have spent many of my birthdays at the baseball diamond, but this one, I will always remember.”

And that, is why my job can be so cool.

In fact, “snow” fell on both Saturdays for the Michigan and Michigan State spring games.

I finally had time to compile a few videos of my favorite moments from both days:

Spring Football ’13 (Reporting)

QBs make prominent appearances in those videos, and in my thoughts …

For Michigan:

QB Personalities — Though Denard Robinson had/has an unforgettable smile, Devin Gardner has an undeniable spunk. Case-in-point, when he didn’t hesitate to poke fun at Denard for his botched “first pitch” at Comerica Park just days before the Michigan spring game. (see my spring game interview)

I like Gardner’s demeanor, some will debate whether it’s confidence or cockiness. If you win games, does it matter to Michigan fans? Maybe it’s the reporter in me, but I like a QB who has a little personality. Shows confidence and makes it more fun to cover. His style will advance this offense now to where Brady Hoke wants it to go. My colleague at BTN, Gerry DiNardo, made this point in that as talented as Denard was … his style impeded the growth of the Michigan program offensively. Devin advances that. Your thoughts?

For MSU:
Captain Kirk — The story was NOT that Kirk Cousins did well in his broadcasting debut for BTN. The story would have been if he had NOT done well. Cousins has the rare ability to be good at anything he puts his mind to — quarterbacking, broadcasting, becoming a doctor or politician.

By the way, if you haven’t seen the high school videos of Cousins singing, please check it out on my link above. And a special thanks to Cousins’ family (and to Kirk) for giving me access to those videos about 3-4 years ago. Those videos had only aired locally (on WLNS in Lansing) for a bowl-game preview show, before the Capital One Bowl between Alabama and Michigan State in 2011.

I thought it was time to give it a “bigger” stage, and to have Kirk directly react to it. He was, as usual, great about the blackmail. Here are some more fun links about how good of a “sport” Kirk is:

Washington Post: Teammates Tease Cousins on Singing Talents

And …

Detroit Free Press: Cousins Singing

See you in the Fall!

Michigan State gave full-access to its Spring Game, which had huddle access, trick-plays, and some fun characters roaming the sideline — not to mention the former QB, Kirk Cousins, who was in the booth. And in Ann Arbor, Michigan turned the QB page from Denard Robinson to Devin Gardner, and embraced Taylor Lewan turning down the NFL to play another year at Michigan. BTN’s Lisa Byington navigates through both spring football games. Enjoy!

Some of the moments of the 2013 Women’s Big Ten Basketball Tournament. BTN’s Lisa Byington shares with you some of the reactions from the coaches, some breakdowns from the games, and some special on-set interviews with some of the B1G’s biggest stars. Enjoy!

During the NHL lockout in December of 2012, BTN’s Lisa Byington visited with Bluejacket and former Buckeye R.J. Umberger during intermission of an OSU hockey game. He discussed playing the waiting game and a surprise he found on his helmet that week.

Michigan Wolverines’ women’s basketball team snaps a 12-game losing skid to Michigan State. BTN’s Lisa Byington and Stephanie White have the call.

I was working for BTN Sunday, at MSU’s Selection Show, when the Spartans’ opponent’s name appeared: Valparaiso.

Valpo. I remember them. And its current head coach.

I was in college at Northwestern when Bryce Drew hit that game-winner in 1998, and dove to the floor in celebration. I watched with my basketball teammates at the time. I was so moved by the moment, I told my teammates, “I’m going to write him an email thanking him.”

Thanking him?

Thanking him for taking the risk. Thanking him for dreaming the dream. Thanking him for providing a moment.

This IS the most wonderful time of the year. Full of lots of moments. There is no other event: the SuperBowl, World Series, BCS National title games, which captures my heart like March Madness.

One Shining Moment is my favorite song in the world. Like ever. When it first came out, I took my cassette tape recorder and held it up to the TV so I could record the song and play it whenever I wanted. When the song was released later, I kept it in the CD player of my car for two straight years, and never took it out. Today, I still cry watching the CBS montage.

Ironic, I guess, that the first year of “One Shining Moment” coincided with my all-time favorite memory of the tournament.

1987. Another buzzer-beater.

Indiana’s Keith Smart hit that corner jumper to win it all. I was a 5th-grader at the time, got to stay up late to watch, and I had a batch of brownies on the line, as a friendly bet I made with my gym teacher. When that shot went through the hoop, chills went through my body, and I think it was the first time I understood what it feels like to see a dream realized. It was late and cold that night, but I still proceeded to take the balloon I had blown up as a basketball, and dribbled it around the kitchen floor like it was my championship court.

I am older now, but this time never grows old.

They are my three weeks of tears, both happy and sad.

Of Cinderellas who inspire and Goliaths who impress.

Of little kids who watch their first game-winner, and adults who live through that moment.

Of heroes whose names were anonymous, but one twinkle in time turned them household.

Of a time that touches my every emotion, every year.

Of a Sunday which gave me chills again because my song is up next.

The Ball is Tipped …

John Beilein and Tom Izzo visit with BTN’s Lisa Byington after a historic rivalry matchup — the first in the series where both teams were ranked in the Top 10 in the country.