After a horrible start to the season, the Cavs put together some nice games and won 5 in a row over the past 2 weeks. The offense seems to be coming together, for the most part, and the team has shown some signs of life. Certainly there’s no reason to panic and the Cavaliers currently sit at 4th in the Eastern Conference. This is all positive.

On the negative side, we’re already seeing some injuries start to pile up, in addition to the ongoing drama surrounding Delonte West. Even when Delonte has been on the floor, he’s not the same guy he was last year. I’ve seen an occasional defensive resurgence from him, but his offense is mostly atrocious and he looks consistently angry/frustrated and out of place. I honestly don’t know if he’ll make it back and he might be more trouble than he’s worth at this point. It pains me to say that because I loved Delonte last year. The good news is that bipolar disorder can “cycle” the other way from depressed to manic at random. In theory, Delonte could flip it around tomorrow. However, I think the uncertainty is a bit of a problem for the Cavs right now.

The future is now. Cleveland State seniors gave Norris Cole the nickname "The Future" last year as they could see that then sophomore would be the leader of the young Vikings in the coming years. Cole showed what they were talking about this evening leading the Vikings with 38 points in a 78-64 win over Florida A&M this evening. It was the most points that the Dayton Dunbar product has scored at any level. Cole said after the game:

"I took it as it came. I wanted to have the offense under control and take what the defense gave me. The shot was falling today and my teammates were coming to me and the shots were falling tonight."

Head coach Gary Waters noted:

"Norris' play today was tremendous. He controlled the offense and he scored some points and that shows that good things are ahead for him if he can continue to do those two things. He took control of the game out there and played the best that I have ever seen him play this year. Not only did he play well offensively, but he defended against their best player. But we can't win against the big boys with Norris scoring 38."

To enliven debates, here are the official lines on this weekend’s playoff games. Heaviest favorites are Mooney (25), Kettering Alter (21), Delphos St. John (19) and Glenville (17½). Here we go. Good luck to all the teams. Favorites on the left. Spread, Over/Under.

DIVISION I
Glenville 17½ 39 Solon
Canton McKinley 5½ 48 Massillon
Dublin Coffman 1 31 Hilliard Davidson
Cincinnati Elder 8 50 Cin. Anderson

DIVISION II
Lake Catholic 8 52 Ashland
Maple Hts. 2 43 Toledo St. Francis
Marion-Franklin Pick 45 Brookhaven
Cin. Winton Woods 9 55 Trotwood-Madison

DIVISION III
Cardinal Mooney 25 49 Poland Seminary
Col. DeSales 11 35 Col. Watterson
Steubenville 10½ 45 Dover
Wyoming 2½ 54 Springfield Shawnee

DIVISION IV
Chagrin Falls 8½ 51 Woodridge
Orrville 3½ 48 Ottawa-Glandorf
Ironton 7 35 Coshocton
Kettering Alter 21 47 Clinton-Massie

DIVISION V
Youngstown Ursuline 13½ 41 Cuyahoga Hts.
Hamler Patrick Henry 12 ½ 52 Defiance Timora
Fredericktown 1 50 West Lafayette Ridgewood
Coldwater 11 38 St. Henry

There is nothing in life that I hate more than a hypocrite. As this crazy season keeps on spinning further and further out of control there appears to be many of them.

It's confession time.

Not long after the Browns hired Eric Mangini I went against my gut feeling that hiring Mangini was huge mistake and penned a article by the name off "The Eric Mangini Project" opining why, after much deliberation, I felt Mangini might turn out to be a good coach.

I wish I can at least pretend that I was under the guise of "The Almighty Blogger", that like so many of my fellow bloggers I thought I supposedly new better than the average dude rocking a Lee Suggs jersey.

Unfortunately, in my case it was sheer stupid Cleveland sports fan bias. I knew Mangini was a terrible coach after closely following his exploits with the Jets. He was unimaginative, egotistical and pathetic.

My warped Cleveland mind came up with some crap that he was "struggling to reconcile his aggressiveness with his fundamentalistic approach to the game" to explain why he had previously been unsuccessful. I also "brilliantly" pointed out the similarities in character traits and career paths that Eric Mangini and Bill Belichik had.

Cleveland State volleyball was the top award winners today when the Horizon League announced its postseason volleyball honors. Head coach Chuck Voss was named Coach of the Year and Beth Greulich was a unanimous selection as Player of the Year.

Voss guided the Vikings to 25-7 overall record and 13-3 in the Horizon that earned the squad the top seed in the tournament that takes place at Woodling Gym this weekend.

Greulich led the league in hitting percentage (.341) while ranking fifth in kills per set (3.37) and seventh in points per set (3.79). The native of Troy, Ohio, is joined on the All League first team with teamates Jordan Goad and Liz Fazio. Kara Koch of CSU was named on the All-Newcomer.

Here is a list of all the award winners.

Cleveland Browns quarterback Brady Quinn has been fined by the National Football League for a chop block on Terrell Suggs of the Baltimore Ravens during Monday Night Football this week. According to a league source, an MRI exam showed that Suggs suffered a severe MCL sprain from the chop block.

Quinn revealed that he received a letter from the NFL on Wednesday, but wouldn't disclose the size of the fine. He simply commented that it was "a good amount." Quinn also adds that he was not trying to hurt Suggs, and has apologized to him and the Ravens.

Quinn threw the chop block at Suggs in the third quarter after an interception, rolling into his right knee. Suggs' agent, Gary Wichard, told press that he fears he could miss the rest of the season. A league source says that there is not yet a timetable for Suggs return, but that he would at least miss the next few weeks, if not more.

Wichard also said:

"That cat should be fined as much as anybody is fined that hits the quarterback. That's ridiculous. I don't understand what he was trying to do. It was blatant. It's absolutely criminal. It's about as nasty as it gets.

There is little doubt that Shaquille O'Neal is multi-talented. The Cleveland Cavaliers superstar is best known for his basketball skills but is also known as a rapper, actor, reality television star, and part time policeman. Now you can add art curator to the list. A press release states:

The FLAG Art Foundation is pleased to present "Size DOES Matter", curated by basketball legend Shaquille O'Neal. This exciting exhibition, on view from February 19, 2010 - May 27, 2010, includes works from international artists exploring the myriad ways that scale affects the perception of contemporary art.

Weighing 320 pounds and standing 7'1" atop his size 22 shoes, Shaq is one of the most dominant players ever to play in the NBA. Throughout his career, O'Neal has capitalized on his size and strength to overpower opponents for points and rebounds earning him nicknames such as Diesel and Superman. Now Shaq takes the opportunity to reflect on his size with an exhibition boasting works from microscopic to giant pieces that have the ability to dwarf and exaggerate everyone -- even Shaq himself.

As part of the Championship City Pilot program, the NCAA has teamed up with the “We Run This City” Youth Marathon Program as well as the John Carroll University Volleyball Team and local Elementary Schools as an effort to get the community involved with the Championships this week. These initiatives will also provide unique opportunities for youth from around the Greater Cleveland area to get involved in sports.

Boys and girls from eight local schools will participate in the “We Run This City” marathon program where finishers will run a one-mile race after the NCAA Cross Country Championships at Highland Hills Golf Course on November 21, 2009. All participants will receive an event t-shirt, a completion certificate and ribbons will be awarded to the winners. During the Championships, race youth participants will be divided into four groups and will rotate around the course and hear speeches by a student-athlete, coach, former Olympian runner and medical staff. The ‘We Run This City” Youth Race will begin at 1:00pm with the awards presentation to immediately follow.