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| | Thursday, April 19 Chat wrap: Gene Wojciechowski | |||||
 Welcome to ESPN.com's moderated chat room. On Thursday, ESPN reporter Gene Wojciechowski dropped by to take user questions and talked about his new book "About 80 Percent Luck". Wojciechowski, a senior writer for ESPN The Magazine and frequent contributor to ESPN SportsCenter, College Gameday and ESPN.com, is fluent in several sports languages: college football, college basketball, as well as baseball, which is the subject of his recently published novel, About 80 Percent Luck, based loosely on his experiences covering the Chicago Cubs as a beat reporter for the Chicago Tribune (Click here to purchase the book). Think of it, he says, as "Tommy Boy meets Major League Baseball." Before joining ESPN in December 1997, the award-winning Wojciechowski worked at The Tribune and before that, the Los Angeles Times. He has authored or co-authored six books, including autobiographies with Utah coach Rick Majerus, NBA legend Bill Walton and Indiana Pacers star Reggie Miller. Below is a transcript from Wojo's April 19 chat:
 Gene Wojciechowski at 4:02pm ET
Great to be here. Ready to answer any and all questions. This is multiple choice, right? Russ from [198.83.168.4], at 4:03pm ET So, who are the favorites for the Heisman this season? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:06pm ET
The usual suspects: Eric Crouch from Nebraska, Ken Dorsey from Miami, Damien Anderson from Northwestern, Lee Suggs from Va. Tech, whoever get the QB job at Texas, Ken Simonton at Oregon State. Darkhorse candidate: Woodrow Dantzler from Clemson. I really like Florida's Jabar Gaffney, but he probably won't have the numbers to be a serious candidate. I'll be very interested to see what happens with Carson Palmer at USC. Buddy L. from [198.83.168.4], at 4:06pm ET Gene...A friend suggested the book to me and it was great. I know you covered the Cubs before and the baseball scenes were fantastic. How much of that is true life and how much of it is fiction? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:08pm ET
First of all, thank you for buying the book. I hope you paid full price. It's a fictional plot, but much of the baseball in the book is more authentic than the Cubs would probably like it to be. Baseball players might be the funniest pro athletes around: they certainly are the best rip artists. Nothing is sacred to those people including sportswriters. Double from [216.216.213.125], at 4:09pm ET Do you think Carson can keep the starting job? With the new coordinator and all. Gene Wojciechowski at 4:11pm ET
Absolutely. Buy a book, get an answer. (just kidding) Palmer didn't have a great year last year -- 16 TDs, 18 INTs -- but he still completed about 55 percent of his passes for almost 3,000 yards. Those numbers will only go up now that Norm Chow is on campus. Chow did wonders with the freshman at N.C. State and everybody knows about his reputation at BYU. Palmer has to be the guy because no other quarterback on USC's roster has ever thrown a pass in college. HuskerFaithful from [129.118.40.192], at 4:12pm ET What is your top 5 for next year, and how do you see my Huskers doing? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:18pm ET
Top five, but don't hold me to this: Nebraska (sucker, just kidding) 1-Miami, 2-Florida, 3-Nebraska, 4-Oklahoma, 5-Tennessee As for Nebraska, I, of course, can't wait until the pivitol Sept. 1 game against Troy State. Good to see the Huskers upgrading their schedule. That's a cheap shot, especially with the Huskers playing Notre Dame the following week in Lincoln. I like Nebraska, but there's no denying that they lost a lot of quality, beginning with 30 letterman (7 starters on offense, 5 starters on defense plus their kickers). But they still have Crouch, still has Wistrom, still have an offensive line to die for and are coming off a very impressive win against Northwestern in a bowl game. leo from [204.27.106.193], at 4:19pm ET do you think jordan is giong to come back? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:23pm ET
I talked to former Cubs great Ernie Banks a few days ago, who's a big buddy of Jordan. Ernie says that Michael doesn't belong in an owner's suite, wearing tailored suits and trying to stay awake as his team botches another game. He thinks he belongs on the court and I agree. I also talked to a pro coach who actually saw Jordan scrimmaging against an ABA team recently in Chicago. The coach said Jordan was still a few pounds overweight, but his game is still there. After the scrimmage, Jordan was sighted going up to the weight room where he worked out for about another hour and a half. Does that sound like a guy just trying to lose a beer belly? I also don't think it's an accident that Doug Collins is the replacement for Leonard Hamilton, who was so far over his head he needed a periscope to see ground level. I hope he comes back. It will finally give me a reason to watch an NBA game. Matt from [144.78.1.254], at 4:25pm ET As a sportswriter, what has been your greatest accomplishment? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:27pm ET
Winning the biathlon in the '84 Olympics is of course my personal favorite. Journalistically speaking, my three favorite moments have been covering Larry Bird at the Boston Garden, being at courtside when Christian Laettner hit the shot against Kentucky in the NCAA East Regional (Best game i've ever seen), and playing against and with Jordan for a story on his senior flight school in Las Vegas. Greg from [65.80.1.230], at 4:29pm ET Is your new book in all bookstores or available on line only? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:30pm ET
Depending on how many you buy, I'll hand deliver them to your house. But you can definitely get it on amazon.com or barnesandnoble.com or most of your major bookstores. I don't want to pressure you, but for every book sold, we move a little bit closer to getting that heart and lung machine my wife desperately needs. Canes from [65.11.241.241], at 4:31pm ET what is your favorite college stadium? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:32pm ET
There are four no-brainers: North Carolina, Washington, Notre Dame and Tennessee. NJSteve from [12.41.204.3], at 4:33pm ET Any interest in the XFL? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:34pm ET
I can't wait for the season to start. Matt from [144.78.1.254], at 4:35pm ET With all of the great hitters these days, who do you think is the most feared? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:37pm ET
If you're asking me which guy would pitchers least want to face, you're talking about five guys: Todd Helton, Troy Glaus, Jason Giambi, Manny Ramirez and when he's healthy, Big Mac. But Carlos Delgado is worming his way on to that list. Seth from [208.62.80.2], at 4:38pm ET Gene- What do you think about Alabama's decision to hire Dennis Franchione? How will he fare in the shadow of the Bear? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:40pm ET
The better question is how will he fare in the shadow of NCAA investigators on campus. Bama folks could do Franchione and themselves a favor by letting the Bear rest and judging these coaches on their own merits. I think the guy's a good coach -- he did wonders at TCU -- but given the NCAA situation there, it would be very interesting to see if he would have taken the job had he known what was coming down. Jim from [4.54.170.178], at 4:41pm ET Should San Diego take Tomlinson over Vick? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:42pm ET
Should Portland have taken Jordan instead of Bowie? Vick has once in a decade kind of physical tools. If San Diego can be patient, then they definitely should take him. But if they are going to force feed him, Vick won't have a chance. If that's the case, they should take LT. Matt from [164.58.10.126], at 4:43pm ET How do you like OU's chances at a repeat next year? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:44pm ET
I don't like them., but not because OU isn't a very good team. It's just because it's so difficult to win back-to-back. OU is going to take everybody's best shot and they are going to do it with a new QB. I think they'll challenge, but I still like Miami or Florida's chances. Garrett G. from [216.5.248.46], at 4:45pm ET How do you not include Sosa and Griffey on that list? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:47pm ET
You got me on Griffey, but Sosa still has a tendency to strike out too much and chase bad pitches. He still doesn't have the kind of protection that some of these other guys have in their orders, though that might change if the Cubs can somehow keep winning. But I think if you ask the better National League pitchers about Sosa, they'd tell you his swing still has holes. biggoof_99 from [208.2.169.157], at 4:48pm ET what about Luis Gonzalez???he's a stud and the guy can hit the daylights out of a baseball? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:49pm ET
Funny you should ask. When I covered the Cubs, Gonzo was on that team. He was a line drive hitter with occasional power and a sub-.300 average. He was good, but there wasn't anything that made you think he'd challenge for the home run record in a single month. He's making a believer out of me, plus he's one of the nicest guys in baseball. Jeff from [4.35.87.94], at 4:50pm ET Funniest story that DIDN'T make it into the book? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:54pm ET
I could tell you, but then three of the Cubs' players would kill me. Though I can remember during a rainout, someone put the movie "Stripes" on the clubhouse VCR. No lie, Mark Grace, who's big buddies with Bill Murray, knew every word of dialogue by heart. It was an amazing performance. Chicago-Dave from [64.236.233.243], at 4:55pm ET What do the White Sox need to do to rebound to the team they were last year? Gene Wojciechowski at 4:58pm ET
The Sox scored a ton of runs last year, but they were also able to overcome some defensive liabilities and patches of so-so pitching. This year, many of those same weaknesses are still there, but the hitting isn't -- at least not yet. What do they need to rebound? It would help is Eldred didn't have a five-inch screw in his elbow, if Baldwin was truly healthy and if Parque could control his temper and make it through the sixth inning. I'm not giving up on the Sox, but they'll only go as far as their starting pitching takes them. David Wells can't do everything. Monique Fredrickson from [216.241.240.3], at 4:59pm ET What are your surprise college football teams for the fall? Would you agree that of all sports today, College Football is most deserved of being America's New Pastime? Gene Wojciechowski at 5:01pm ET
I don't know if they qualify as a surprise, but the Vick-less Hokies will be better than people think. I expect Lee Suggs to rush for about a million yards. I'm also sweet on UNLV, Illinois and LSU. Swede from [63.93.139.215], at 5:03pm ET Can Penn State win the Big Ten Championship again while Paterno remains? Hope your wife has a speedy recovery. Gene Wojciechowski at 5:06pm ET
Thank you for your kind words. With your help, we can make it happen. Just because Paterno owns are AARP card doesn't mean he forgot how to coach. They have a killer schedule -- Miami, Wisconsin, at Iowa, at Northwestern, Michigan, Ohio State, So. Miss, at Illinois, at Michigan State -- but I still like their chances. The main reason? Eighteen lettermen returning on defense. I'm not ready to give up on JoePa just yet. Tom from [144.160.0.81], at 5:06pm ET Do you think Miller Park can make enough of a difference to help the Brewers have a chance in the NL? Gene Wojciechowski at 5:08pm ET
As someone whose family was born and raised in Milwaukee, I'm rooting hard for the Brewers. County Stadium was 10 of the worst facilities in Major League Baseball. I don't see any reason why Miller Park can't do for the Brewers what the Jake did for the Indians. Plus, I like the Indians-like strategy of tying up their young core players to deals. Homer from [205.232.132.12], at 5:08pm ET Loved the book. Is the Cubs manager in the book based on Don Zimmer? He seems way too interesting to have any resemblence to Jim Riggleman. Any former Cubs sprinkled in--or any writers--you want to say are in 80% luck? Gene Wojciechowski at 5:10pm ET
Riggleman is actually funnier than you might think. And former Cubs GM Ed Lynch was a fountain of one-liners. Yes, alot of it was based on real players, real front office people and real writers. Hope you'll plunk down your hard earned cash to see for yourself. Gene Wojciechowski at 5:11pm ET
My time's up. Thanks for all the good questions and enduring my transparent shilling for the book. And again, don't worry about my wife...I'm sure she'll be OK. No new messages | ||||||