Last night, I saw firsthand how fans are ready for some football. The Reds hot shot second baseman Brandon Phillips was outdone on stage by a kicker and a defensive end. And, all over some rubber duckies auctioned for a good cause, feeding the hungry.

So back to football...We know Bengals kicker Shayne Graham is a good guy with fast cars and a great, accurate leg. But did we know DE Frostee Rucker was a nice guy?

All I can say is that these guys are great! They stole the show from Phillips and his baseball compadres, and the dough--from frantic bidders--at last night's CelebriDucks Auction at Newport on the Levee. Both were charming, good natured and funny. They were there to raise money for a great cause by shilling signed rubber duckies. It was a packed house for the FreeStoreFoodbank and they made more than$20,000 in auctioning signed celebrity ducks.

Frostee decked out in his USC garb wouldn't fall to Local 12's Brad Johansen's ribbing about Carson's comments about the Buckeyes. He took the high road and pulled a pair of sideline passes to the USC vs. OSU game out of his hat. His duck sold for $1400.

Shayne went all out to match his teammate. Also raising $1400, he threw in two tickets to a game, lockerroom passes and dinner at Morton's after the game. The big whollop came when he offered the opportunity to drive his Lamborghini in a closed parking lot.

Check out their live auctions in action at www.youtube.com/user/gamedayjreau

Off to work on my fantasy football team...

As the NAACP convention winds down, both two presumptive nominees, McCain and Obama, were in Cincinnati this week talking to the convention delegates. It got me thinking about what they might do for sports in our country.

The current President Bush says he won't golf out of respect for the soldiers in Iraq and their families. He gets booed when he tosses a first pitch at an MLB game, so he sticks to the solice of his mountain bike in Texas. (Note: this is not a political statement, just an observation)

President Clinton did well for U.S. Sports. He attended Women's World Cup games, golfed with Greg Norman and hosted numerous sports celebrities at State Dinners. He think he got a kick out of meeting the athletes just as we all would.

As you know, Obama has revolutionized internet marketing for politicians. So with a quick search (http://my.barackobama.com/page/group?cat=27), you can find a number of on-line groups: Runners for Obama (200 members), Red Sox Nation for Obama (240 members) and my favorite: Beer Drinkers for Obama (154 members). This is great stuff! I didn't see a Republican counterpart to these groups as I searched.

There have been many great U.S. presidents who have embraced sports and their heritage and importance in our country. John Kennedy: yes, yachting is a sport and Ronald Reagan: yes, horse riding is a sport to name a few.

Here's to a new First Fan, a president who will promote U.S. sports and be a fan like the rest of us.

I am always intrigued by the charts in Sports Business Journal that outline the college athletic programs ranked by total revenue. When I see these lists, I am always reminded of the comment OSU President Gordon Gee made on a sports radio show in advance of the BCS game a few years ago: "We are not in the business of entertainment," he said of there athletic program. Uh huh!

So leading the list in this billion dollar industry among all colleges is your Ohio State Buckeyes...

1) Ohio State, $109,382,222 total revenue/$109,197,910 total expenses
2) Florida, $107,781,004 total revenue/$92,111,182 total expenses
3) Texas, $105,048,632 total revenue/$89,313,533 total expenses
4) Tennessee, $95,401,868 total revenue/$92,557,525 total expenses
5) Michigan, $89,079,982 total revenue/$68,292,190 total expenses
6) Notre Dame, $83,586,903 total revenue/$57,406,114 total expenses
7) Wisconsin, $82,579,472 total revenue/$81,401,732 total expenses
8) Alabama, $81,946,464 total revenue/$71,463,235 total expenses
9) Auburn, $81,696,758 total revenue/$68,907,966 total expenses
10) Iowa, $80,203,645 total revenue/$70,904,103 total expenses

So some $100 million in revenue from just 10 teams with all making a profit--some very significant with four Big 10 teams leading the way.

Interesting stuff...

For your summer reading, I highly recommend A Few Seconds of Panic by Wall Street Journal writer Stefan Fatsis. The subtitle presents the book neatly: A 5-foot-8, 170-pound, 43-year-old sports writer plays in the NFL.

The 340-page book chronicles Fatsis' journey toward being an NFL kicker (at the age of 43 and he is not a Grammatica descendent!!!). With consent from the NFL and after asking most every NFL team, the Denver Broncos are the only team to accept him into their locker room with no question or field--off limits to him and his notebook.

I learned many new things about the kicking game in which I have never ever thought:
-In 2005, NFL field goal accuracy hit a record high, 81%
-Kickers account for nearly half of the points scored in the NFL these days, compared to just over a third in the 1970s

With that in mind, Fatsis is very respectful of the players and his role as a kicker (the kicker jokes are great!), therefore, they dish with him and drop a lot of "f-bombs." He is also very respectful of the game and takes time to get into NFL shape and works with a renowned kicking coach on his technique.

The Bronco's Jason Elam and the kicking crew take him under their wings like a little brother so there is boyhood banter, during the boredom of training camp for kickers. He also spares little details of the life of an NFL player filled with numerous physical ailments along with the tough love of the business side of the game. Reading about the players as they learned they were cut from the team was heart breaking but as they say "it is what it is."

If you liked Michael Lewis' Blind Side, you will love this one.

Mike Shanahan and crew took a big blind side leap on letting Fatsis inside of their world. I am still deliberating on whether or not this book will endear fans. I applaud the Broncos for their courage on green lighting the project.

Read it and let me know what you think.

**A Side Note: I could do without the barbs on the Bengals and their off-field behavior!