Super Bowl Champions Shuffle: Why it's so hard to repeat

The Super Bowl captivates everyone. Americans relish this annual event as essentially a national holiday, drawing in 111 million viewers last year when the Seattle Seahawks thrashed the Denver Broncos by a score of 43-8. The Seahawks dominance on Sept. 4 over the Packers came against one of the best offenses in the league, making many people ask the question of how the Seahawks can be stopped from returning to the top of the pedestal in the most watched event in all of sports.

There have only been eight repeat Super Bowl champions in back-to-back years in the 48 Super Bowls that have been played. The world has not seen a repeat champion since the 2003 and 2004 New England Patriots.

The Seahawks have displayed a dominance at home that is rare in the National Football League. Since 2012, the Seahawks are 19-1 when playing in Seattle. The team’s stadium has been measured at a record 137.5 decibels––150 decibels is known to rupture human eardrums. As impressive as the Seahawks are at home, the Super Bowl is in fact played on a neutral site; keeping teams away from their advantageous and raucous home crowd.

Super Bowl champions generally struggle with trying to repeat their success from the previous year. The 2013 champion Baltimore Ravens followed their championship season with a record of 8-8, missing the playoffs entirely. The 2011 champion New York Giants put up a mediocre 9-7 record the next season, also missing the postseason.

Why is this feat is so hard? If the point of a champion is to crown the best team in the league, then how do teams such as the 2010 Packers (10-6) or the 2011 New York Giants (9-7) end up being crowned as the best team in the nation’s most popular sport?

The NFL lacks an oligarchy of teams that constantly dominate from year-to-year, while the other major sports display a pattern of repetitiveness in their championships. The Boston Celtics dominated an entire decade in the 1960s in the National Basketball Association, winning eight championships in a row before being unseated from their throne.

So before one starts penciling in the Seahawks for a date with Super Bowl XLIX, keep one thing in mind: history has shown that nothing is certain in the NFL—and that’s why more than 100 million people will tune in to see who takes home the Lombardi trophy this February. After all, who was that team that squeaked into the playoffs in 2010 with a losing record of 7-9? The Seattle Seahawks.

Out of Bounds: Backwards NFL drug policy is too harsh

The National Football League is bigger than ever. With the Super Bowl being one of the world’s most-watched television events, the revenue goal for the 2014-2015 season is about $10 billion. The NFL’s biggest competitor is the National Basketball Association, which has about half the revenue of the NFL. The owners of the NFL and commissioner Roger Goodell have created an insurmountable empire that provides first-class American entertainment on Thursday, Sunday and Monday nights from September to December. The revenue of the league isn’t the only thing getting bigger in the sport. Headlines about NFL players running afoul of the law seem to have become daily occurrences. From quarterback Michael Vick’s involvement with dog-fighting to wide receiver Donté Stallworth’s drunk driving, players commonly tarnish their reputations with criminal acts.

Some players get their reputations damaged by using recreational drugs. The Cleveland Browns wide receiver Josh Gordon was suspended for the entire 2014-2015 season for testing positive for marijuana several times. The NFL tests for 15 ng/ml of THC in urine tests for marijuana. All other competitive sports in the United States test for 50 ng/ml of THC. If this were the case in the NFL, Gordon would have passed his test and wouldn’t have been suspended for his drug use.

Denver Broncos wide receiver Wes Welker also made the news by testing positive for unprescribed Adderall despite first being accused of taking MDMA. Goodell suspended Welker for four games.

The NFL’s strict policy for marijuana and other drugs would be understandable if it held its players to the same standards for performance-enhancing drug use. This is not the case. The NFL does not test for human growth hormone. This hormone allows muscles to grow and regenerate much faster than the natural human rate, letting players become massive in size and strength. That could be the difference between a league minimum salary or a multimillion dollar deal.

Imagine the benefits from the following scenario: the NFL and the National Football League Players Association agree that the NFL will lower its standards of testing for marijuana and other recreational drugs and start testing for HGH. Not only will this save players like Gordon from suspension, but players would be discouraged from cheating.

This could directly affect the concussion problem in the NFL. Smaller players don't hit as hard as bigger players. Fewer injuries means the games’ stars can stay on the field instead of on the injured reserve list. The world has heard of changing the rules, the equipment and even the game clock to decrease injuries. What hasn’t been heard is changing the players themselves.

The NFL is most concerned with revenue. With more stars on the field, revenue should be higher. Injuries to players like St. Louis Rams quarterback Sam Bradford put a terrible product on the field for the NFL. New Rams quarterbacks Shaun Hill and Austin Davis just can’t bring in the same type of money. The NFL needs to allow its players to have a little more fun in exchange for their safety on the field. If the players can get a little high, the NFL’s revenues can get even higher. That’s a pretty even exchange.

As October looms, MLB pennant race heats up

As September rolls on, so does the countdown to the end of the Major League Baseball regular season. This is a critical time for teams to “rev up their engines” and hopefully push their way into the postseason. Some teams are vying for the right to play in October, while others are trying to ruin that opportunity for their rival. While the reigning World Series champions, the Boston Red Sox, are all but eliminated from playoff contention, the Kansas City Royals––who have the longest active postseason drought at 28 years––are in first place for the American League Central division. As a point of reference, the last time the Royals made the postseason, Ronald Reagan was beginning his second term as president. Baseball is full of surprises, however.

In the AL East, the Baltimore Orioles are the only team with a comfortable lead. The Royals and the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim are both in danger of having their leads taken away from them in the next few weeks. Over in the National League, the Washington Nationals, St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Dodgers all have leads that could be gone come October.

With the recent addition of a two-team Wild Card system, there are even more teams with an opportunity to play in October. The Oakland Athletics, Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners are the top teams in contention in the AL with the Cleveland Indians, New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays just behind them.

The San Francisco Giants, Milwaukee Brewers, Atlanta Braves and Pittsburgh Pirates are all within a few games of the NL Wild Card spots. Even the Miami Marlins are still alive, just a few games behind that group.

With time running out on this race to the postseason, each team has to perform at their best and pray to the baseball gods for all injuries to heal. Success at this time of the year in baseball is largely determined by hot streaks and cold streaks. If a team gets hot at the right time, they can ride it all the way to the World Series.

Yankees fans think it’s only right to make it to the postseason for Derek Jeter’s final season (it’s Derek Jeter––he is a demigod, right?). They could at least win the Series for him and make it a record 28 titles.

On the opposite end of the universe, Royals fans are sick and tired of 28 years of cussing at the television and seeing Kauffman Stadium look like a Minor League park after the All-Star break.

With its high level of uncertainty, baseball is hard to predict. If someone said they could, they’re indeed wrong (unless someone says that the Houston Astros are not going to be a first place team). The Orioles, Tigers and Angels, however, could win their respective divisions and the Mariners and the Yankees could take the AL Wild Card spots. As for the NL, the Nationals, Cardinals and Giants are poised to take their divisions with the Dodgers and the Braves sliding in via the Wild Card.

Even though it is more painful to admit than it is for Alex Rodriguez to love a human being other than himself, the Orioles could win it all this year. Now all there is to do is wait and let things play out as fans strap in for the unpredictable ride of October baseball.

The Frugal Foodie: Cheap eats for even the stingiest students

Are you tired of spending an exorbitant amount of money to eat that delicious (not) but healthy kale or the same old stir-fry from Fusion every week? With the prices of produce and healthy foods continually rising, it is hard to prepare nutritious and enjoyable meals while staying on a college-friendly budget. At less than $2 per serving, these healthy meals are both wallet and waistline-friendly. Also, unlike some healthy foods, these recipes don’t taste like cardboard or feature an ingredient that sounds like it’s probably meant to stay in the woods––always a plus. Migas, essentially Mexican frittatas, are a huge hit in my circle of friends. They are full of flavor and super easy to make. This recipe is healthy and vegetarian friendly. The cost per serving is only $0.78.

Recipe for Migas

6 eggs 1/4 cup of fat-free or low fat milk A pinch of salt 2 tablespoons olive oil 3 6-inch corn tortillas, cut into 1/4-inch strips 1/4 green bell pepper, diced 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped 1 garlic clove, finely chopped 1 medium tomato, diced 3 ounces grated pepper jack cheese

Directions: Whisk together eggs, milk and salt in a medium bowl and set aside. Heat olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Add tortilla strips and cook, stirring occasionally, until strips begin to crisp. Once crisp, add pepper and onion and cook until softened. This should take about three minutes. Add whole garlic and clove and cook for about one minute longer. Add egg mixture, tomato and cheese to the skillet. Using a spatula, cook mixture for about three minutes, scraping up cooked eggs and allowing liquid to flow to bottom of pan. Once eggs are completely set, garnish the dish with some grated cheese and serve immediately.

Homemade Mexican pizza is not only delicious but approximately $0.97 per serving. Also, it only takes about 30 minutes to make which is a great time-saver for college students who would obviously rather be studying or learning how to solve all of the world’s problems.

Recipe for Homemade Mexican Pizza

Dough: 1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour 1 1/4 teaspoon active dry yeast 1 teaspoon olive oil 2 teaspoons sugar 1/2 teaspoon salt 1 cup warm water

Toppings: 1 cup black beans 1 large red or green bell pepper, diced 1 14.5 ounces diced tomatoes 1/2 pound ground turkey 1 teaspoon olive oil 1 tablespoon chili powder 1 tablespoon ground cumin 1 tablespoon hot sauce 1 cup shredded Mexican style cheese

Directions: For the dough: In a medium-sized mixing bowl, stir together all dry ingredients. Combine warm water, sugar and yeast and let sit until foamy. When yeast mixture is ready, add to flour mixture with oil and knead until elastic-type consistency is formed. Then cover and let sit while preparing pizza toppings. Once toppings are prepared, roll out to fit a 14-inch pizza pan.

For the toppings: In a large pan, sauté ground turkey in vegetable oil until just about halfway cooked. Add cumin, chili powder, hot sauce and diced tomatoes. Continue cooking until half of the liquid in the pan has been reduced. To assemble the pizza, spoon tomato/turkey mixture onto the base of the pizza. Top with black beans, cheese and diced bell peppers. Once assembled, bake at 375 degrees for 20-22 minutes.

Under the Knife: IGC promotes greek unity, support

With rush coming to a close and Bid Day around the corner, there’s no better time to learn more about the organization that serves as the heart of Greek life on campus: the Inter-Greek Council. About 1,000 students are currently involved in roughly 30 different Greek organizations at Geneseo. The IGC ensures that despite all these factions, Greek life on campus remains cohesive and organized.

Senior Valerie Woedy described IGC as “the governing board for all Greek life.”

Within IGC, different members represent different facets of Greek life on campus so that both local and national sororities and fraternities can have their voice heard at meetings. IGC also has a recruitment chair and representative for the multicultural groups on campus, as well as a member devoted solely to campus involvement. During the first few weeks of the fall and spring semesters when recruitment efforts are strongest, the IGC assists all involved organizations in their efforts.

“When rush is going on [we] make sure things are running smoothly,” Woedy said. “We plan Round Robin, which is when all the sororities can go and meet people in Newton … what we do depends what time of the year it is,” Woedy said.

When bids are given out to potential members, the IGC will assist in making the bids and speak with residence hall staff to make sure organizations can deliver the bids and pick up new members.

This time of year is definitely busy for IGC, but even larger recruitment events happen in the spring, when more organizations are willing to take on new members.

In addition to planning events that involve exclusively Greek life, the IGC hosts and contributes to a variety of events that involve the entire campus.

“Every year we play a big role in Relay for Life because we have most of Greek life go,” Woedy added. “We usually help Colleges Against Cancer with the tailgate before.” One of their biggest events is Greek Week, which typically correlates with Relay for Life and unites all of the Greek organizations in a fundraising competition. Another one of their largest events is a block party on Wadsworth Street complete with a live band, which any organization or student can attend.

Woedy and other members of the IGC attempt to topple the harsh stereotypes Greeks face, especially regarding inclusivity and competition.

“My favorite part of rush season is just getting to know more girls,” Woedy said. “It’s not even to rush them into your own sorority but to inspire them to become Greek for all the aspects because there are different Greek organizations. There’s a medical fraternity on campus, a service fraternity, a co-ed one––there are a lot of different opportunities.”

In addition to welcoming new members, the organizations that compose IGC support each other through co-hosting and co-fundraising during many smaller events throughout the year. “We’re all united, and I think that’s just a good thing to have on campus,” Woedy said. We all learn from each other … it’s not as divided as people think.”

Smokers Choice lights up student interest

Student smokers will no longer have to make the trek to Rochester for their tobacco needs as smoke shop Smokers Choice recently opened its doors in the Geneseo Valley Plaza. Not only does Geneseo finally have a bonafide head shop, but also after Halloween, Ha Ha Hookah lounge will be opening in the back of the store. The spacious room will be stocked with large TVs, even larger speakers, comfortable seating arrangements and massive, delicious, lung-staining hookahs.

The shop is not independent and is proudly representing the caboose of a 53-store chain across New York and Pennsylvania. Because the company buys its products in bulk, the stores are able to offer low prices that independently owned smoke shops would label fiscally ludicrous. For example: a 48-inch, triple-tree percolated ked water pipe will be sold by Smokers Choice for under $300. This piece would normally run anywhere from $375-500 depending on the shop.

The items sold at Smokers Choice will be as diverse as they are affordable. They sell glass pipes along with nitrogen dioxide crackers for whippets, stink proof bags and false Pringle cans for those that still live in the dorms. Among their more intimidating products is a line of drinks called “Sippin’ Syrup,” an “herbal relaxer.” There are also Eric Cartman one-hitters, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Gandalfs and pink elephants on parade where the combustible item is inserted in the elephant’s rear and inhaled through the trunk.

Ha Ha Hookah lounge will be completely full-service. Waitresses will be on hand to pack and light hookah for customers for just five dollars a person.

Every surface of the store is covered in stickers reminding customers of consequences of using the products. Also, security precautions are being taken. The store will check the IDs of every person who makes a purchase as well as those in their group.

Overall, the prices are beyond fair, the staffers are knowledgeable and the products seem to be top notch. Be sure to check out the Smokers Choice next to Wegmans and Ha Ha Hookah lounge this Halloween.

"I Heart Female Orgasm" opens campus discussion on sexuality

Activities Commission presented the seventh iteration of its hit program “I Heart Female Orgasm” in Wadsworth Auditorium on Sept. 5. Both females and males alike crowded into the theater, anxious to discover what kind of event accompanied such a blunt, even risqué title. The program promotes both sexual education and woman’s empowerment, but with quite a humorous twist.

Author and sex educator Dorian Solot created the program, and she performed it alongside Connor Timmons.

“Different aspects that we talk about tonight are going to be relevant––or not relevant––to different people’s lives in different ways,” Solot said. This set the tone for the remainder of the talk. Topics varied from female sexual pleasure, sexual disease and even abstinence.

“Women need access to really good, accurate information about our bodies and our sexuality,” Solot said. “If we don’t have access to really good awareness, how will we know the symptoms of something like an STI or our readiness to be sexually active?”

Solot discussed her own struggles with sexual maturity, self-identity and breast cancer, which she battled at the age of 26. Now in remission, Solot has never been more comfortable with her body and she recommended that all people––male and female alike––learn to appreciate themselves similarly.

Timmons took a more gender-neutral approach on the subject, addressing how sexual education classes for both males and females are taught with such a rigid structure that even a driver’s education class provides a more flexible learning environment. Both presenters used comical computerized images that mocked the typical diagrams used in the traditional classroom atmosphere and provided accurate information on the human body.

“The outcome from it has been so positive,” event coordinator junior Olivia Wolfram said. “If you can take what they say and realize that you can choose whenever you are ready to have sex, the program will have succeeded.”

Merchandise sold at the event varied from t-shirts to books promoting “I Heart Female Orgasm.” Twenty-five percent of the proceeds will go directly to Breast Cancer Action, an organization that confronts the epidemic and works towards future cancer prevention.

“We hope to host ‘I Heart Female Orgasm’ in years to come,” Wolfram said. “It brings great things to this campus.”

GiveGab connects volunteers with local opportunities

Volunteering just became one click easier for Geneseo students thanks to the new website GiveGab: The Social Network for Volunteers. While the site itself is not new to Geneseo, the program was put into effect this past spring. Some clubs and local businesses were added as well as students, but advertising and more frequent use of the website began this year.

The need for a website like this arose out of the perceived benefits it would bring to the college as a whole. With GiveGab, not only can students easily find and track volunteer opportunities, but the college will also have a record of student involvement on campus and in the community.

“We’ve been looking for software and programs that would report and give students credit for the work they do in the community,” Associate Dean of Leadership and Service Thomas Matthews said.

“This had what students would enjoy—the social networking part of it—and the college would like to keep better records of student hours,” leader of Student Employment Service and Community Outreach on campus Paula McClure said.

With GiveGab, departments and extracurricular organizations as well as local nonprofits can post pages for volunteer opportunities; specifying location, time and number of volunteers needed. Volunteers can create accounts and are matched with these opportunities based on their strengths and interests.

Every Geneseo student has access to GiveGab via their “geneseo.edu” email address and can log in anytime to activate their account.

Once logged in, students can find volunteer opportunities, track their hours, write reflections and share their profiles with friends. This not only helps students gain more volunteer hours, but it helps them to keep track of those hours in one easily accessible location.

“You would do it in here and then you have this whole collection [of hours and reflections] to use for a graduate application and at least have them stored all in one place,” McClure said.

The website also provides contact information and job applications for on and off-campus organizations, so students looking for work can easily find and contact possible employers.

As for organizations, they can create closed or open opportunities and can choose to invite anyone in Geneseo or only people in their own club. The centralized and easy-to-navigate nature of GiveGab makes it favorable for student organizations, especially Greek organizations that coordinate multiple events throughout the year.

GiveGab was tested out last week, when it was used almost exclusively to plan the annual Knights’ First Day of Service for first-year students. It sent reminders to students who signed up, made downloadable spreadsheets where students could sign in and out, allowed them to select t-shirt sizes and acted as a forum where any updates and conversations about the event could be posted. GiveGab can also be used to organize less traditional charity events.

“I can see this being great for some sort of run or walk,” McClure said.

While there is a specific Geneseo community that students logged in with their Geneseo people will automatically access, GiveGab can be used anywhere, making it useful on breaks and after graduation.

“Once you have a GiveGab account and you want to do something…over a break, it will pop up and you can volunteer,” Matthews said. “Once you leave Geneseo you can keep your account and it will always follow you.”

Matthews and McClure hope that GiveGab will eventually expand to the point where all students, clubs and community partners use it to plan events and recruit volunteers. “If we get the information in there, it will help everyone,” McClure said.

FIBA world cup gives young players big opportunity

Twenty four years old is the average age of a player on head coach Mike Krzyzewski’s United States National Team that is competing in the International Basketball Association (FIBA) World Cup. The team boasts huge names such as guards Kyrie Irving, James Harden, Stephen Curry and forward Anthony Davis. Every player on the roster is an all-star on their respective teams, coming together to represent our country in the “mini-Olympics.” This is a showcase of what the 2016 Summer Olympics could very well look like in Rio de Janeiro. “Lucky for us, our guys are very unselfish and seem to have a collective ego. I always tell them in order to win, you have to be worthy of winning,” Krzyzewski said in a USA Basketball interview. That’s exactly what this U.S. squad aims to do in a couple of days.

“It means a lot to support my country––to know that my country has faith in me as a professional athlete,” forward Kenneth Faried said. “As one of the few people to be able to put on the USA jersey and represent the country at the highest level, it is an honor.” Faried has played very well so far in the tournament and has been a spark for Team USA.

For those who are not familiar with the FIBA Basketball World Cup, it follows an identical format to the FIFA World Cup. There are four groups composed of six teams, with all groupings chosen at random. In order to make it to the elimination round of 16, a team must win at least two out of its five games. Once in the round of 16, it is single elimination until a champion is crowned.

This is important not only for the U.S. but for the other countries competing. It gives countries that are not traditional basketball powers a chance to fine-tune their game before Rio. It also allows players from countries like Turkey and Ukraine to play against the best in the world before returning to their European clubs. With the exception of the U.S. and a few others, only about one or two players on every other roster is good enough to play in the National Basketball Association.

Without major names like Cleveland Cavaliers forward LeBron James and Oklahoma City Thunder forward Kevin Durant on the roster, this is a huge opportunity for the NBA’s younger stars to showcase their skills and show they can compete on the international stage. It is mind-boggling to think of all the other American players that sat this World Cup out and how good the U.S. team will be in 2016. “We are going to cherish this moment, cherish this opportunity, I think this is really important for our team morale,” Irving said. “The competition is wide open but we still have some of the best players in the world on this team. There’s no reason we cannot go for gold.”