Letters

As a Rams fan I was very excited that St. Louis had the first pick and drafted Sam Bradford (A Shoulder to Lean On, April 26). Now I'm just hoping Bradford will survive the curse of the cover. Why did you do that? With just six wins in the last three years, haven't the Rams suffered enough?

Jim Mielziner, Saint Charles, Mo.

While the list of the five greatest quarterback drafts was excellent (Class Acts, April 26), SI overlooked a more recent—and quite possibly a superior—crop of QBs: the rookies of 2004. Eli Manning, Philip Rivers, Ben Roethlisberger and Matt Schaub have a combined five Pro Bowl appearances and three Super Bowl championships. And that's after only playing for six years.

Jason R. Shippy

Harrisonville, Pa.

Biting Back

Austin Murphy doubted the Sharks during the series against Colorado (That Sinking Feeling, April 26), but San Jose seems to have shaken off some of its playoff demons. Joe Pavelski, Ryane Clowe and Devin Setoguchi are carrying the team now, so let's allow the 2010 Stanley Cup postseason to play out before we write off the Sharks.

Ramsey Barker, Sacramento

No Big Deal

Jermaine Dye's refusal to play for $3 million a year (INSIDE BASEBALL, April 26) goes to show that he's only in it for the money. What happened to playing for the love of the game? I still hold fond memories of running out an infield single and of stealing second. I hope no one offers Dye a contract and that he has to "suffer" on the mere $75 million he's made during his 14-year career.

Ross Drishinski

Dupuyer, Mont.

Icing the Controversy

David Epstein's article (SCORECARD, April 26) gives yet another black eye to the NHL. Even if the steroid allegations are proved and involve one of the league's stars, I don't believe commissioner Gary Bettman will take appropriate action. I'm beginning to ask myself why I continue to care about a league that doesn't care about itself.

Tim Baumgardner

Rockford, Mich.

Reform School

I hope that every educator and administrator in Division I reads Phil Taylor's column on the problem with one-and-done athletes in college sports (POINT AFTER, April 26), but I'm not sure they'd get the satire. When Taylor mentions the Domino's Pizza Regional, he may be giving these officials an idea.

Ron Flanders, Coronado, Calif.

As a former intramural athlete at Dartmouth, I too would have preferred to be one-and-done before becoming a doctor. Instead I was forced to attend classes to complete my chemistry major, sit for the MCAT, go through a rigorous interview schedule and spend four years in medical school, then undergo a prolonged internship and residency. I am gratified that, as Phil Taylor describes the situation in 2210, we will have successfully eliminated the need to get educated before beginning a career.

Erik Roskes, Baltimore

Students can major in music, drawing and dance, so why not let athletes major in football or basketball? Mix in some courses on player management, sports medicine and broadcasting so that they have training in subjects that could help them in their careers. Why aren't we preparing these young men to deal with the responsibility of wealth, power and fame?

Chris Shupe, Hull, Ga.

I am a sports fanatic, but I share Phil Taylor's concern about the significant expansion of money in college athletics and the focus on developing a successful "program" versus developing successful and enlightened human beings. Thank you, Mr. Taylor, for making the problem clear to the readers of SI—let's now hope that the NCAA, universities nationwide and our society as a whole will develop a solution that places education before sports.

Dave Otfinoski, Chester, Conn.

Bond of Brothers

Thanks to L. Jon Wertheim for writing about the Bryan brothers (Togetherness, April 26) and portraying yet another aspect of tennis: doubles. The many ways you can play—as an individual, as a team, coed—truly make tennis "the sport of a lifetime." Too often we channel our children into football, baseball and basketball, and then when they reach age 25 they are all done. If they had Wayne Bryan as a dad, they still could be competing at 95!

Arnold Bradshaw

Montgomery, Ala.

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