Maryland has to hit a home run … a long home run

MIKE BURKE Allegany Radio Corporation Sports It’s like this – Maryland’s men’s basketball team is playing better and better each game, even in successive losses at Iowa and Illinois. The Terps have direction; they have a plan; they’ll even get better as the season goes on, just you watch. It’s also like this – It…

Camden Yards a fine wine, yet still just a kid

MIKE BURKE Allegany Radio Corporation Sports From the inaugural game notes, “A traditional, baseball only, urban ballpark … “Oriole Park is a traditional ballpark located in a dense urban setting. The configuration of the playing field and seating bowl were dictated by geometry. The street trusses were modeled after older parks, a roof covers half…

In losses, Ravens fans must realize their gains

MIKE BURKE Allegany Radio Corporation Sports Last we spoke of the Baltimore Ravens here, we opined that Coach John Harbaugh deserved a ton of credit – whether we always agree with his analytics-based in-game calls or not – because, despite losing his team’s top three running backs to injury before the season even started, and…

Not many good looks for Terps basketball

MIKE BURKE Allegany Radio Corporation Sports On the night the University of Maryland honored the late, great Len Bias, the Maryland Terrapins once more failed to rise to the occasion in delivering an ugly 62-58 loss to Virginia Tech at Xfinity Center in front of a loud, enthusiastic crowd of just under 16,000 dressed in…

The Colts belonged to us, too

MIKE BURKE Allegany Radio Corporation Sports While watching #NFLTheTVShow last week at a local public house, a highlight was shown of the streaking Indianapolis Colts hammering the suddenly faltering Buffalo Bills and one of the older gentlemen seated at the bar (not me) began to spew unprintable unpleasantries about the Colts (okay, it was me).…

Terps football: Very correctable; but when?

MIKE BURKE Allegany Radio Corporation Sports With nine games down and three to go, it is clear the University of Maryland football team is nothing if not consistent; which is to say, that is not meant as a compliment. The 5-4 Terps are much improved; far more talented and skilled than they have been in…

They’ve heard; they know; they’re aware …

MIKE BURKE Allegany Radio Corporation Sports I spent the weekend in College Park for University of Maryland homecoming. Because of work, it had been years since I had attended homecoming at Maryland. For the same reason, it had been years since I missed homecoming in Cumberland. I’m sorry I missed Fort Hill-Allegany this year, particularly…

It was the end of the world as we knew it …

MIKE BURKE Allegany Radio Corporation Sports I’m so old I remember when they only started talking about moving the Allegany-Fort Hill football game from Thanksgiving day to the week following the ninth regular-season game. Something about these new-fangled state football playoffs they were talking about starting … and I say new-fangled with great sarcasm since…