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One of the most fascinating social experiences is something many of us do every single day – riding in an elevator. I recently sailed on Royal Caribbean’s Allure of the Seas, the largest cruise ship in the world. This ship contains several elevators, and you see just about everything when you ride on them.

When someone enters an elevator, they look to see who else is on it. They then make their way to an open space if there are others on-board. If the elevator is almost full, everyone on-board must move to make room for the newcomer. If there is not enough room, riders must wait for the next available elevator to arrive.

An interesting part of riding an elevator is that most people remain quiet while on-board. People who are having a conversation while waiting for one tend to put those discussions on-hold when they get on an elevator with strangers. But they’ll start yakking away once they reach their desired floor and make their way out of the elevator. Riders also tend to stand so that they are facing the elevator doors. This is why eye contact is quite uncommon among riders who don’t know each other.

Some people seem to consider an elevator to be just like their home. They leave trash on it, spill crumbs on it while grabbing a quick snack during a ride, and they even leave wine glasses on-board. I saw one on my cruise. I can’t imagine what these individuals’ homes look like if they feel the need to litter on an elevator. You never see trash cans on them, but people must think they are giant waste baskets that are also used – secondarily – to transport people from one floor to another.

Finally, I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention the fear that some people have of getting stuck in an elevator. I’ve never really had this fear myself, but after seeing the video from a few years ago of a New York man who was trapped in elevator for 41 hours, it definitely makes me wonder how awful it must be to be enclosed in a bubble for any unreasonable amount of time. My fingers are crossed that this won’t ever happen (and that this blog post won’t jinx me).

You might not think much of a 30- or 45-second ride in an elevator, but think about these things the next time you press the “up” button to go to your office or apartment. There is nothing like an elevator, and it’s funny how these transporting systems change the behavior of every person who walks through those heavy doors for a vertical trip.

A few years ago, I wrote an article for the USF St. Petersburg student newspaper (“The Crow’s Nest”) about how women’s sports deserve more respect and coverage than they currently receive.

After recently watching the USF Bulls women’s softball team compete in the College World Series, I thought it only made sense to expound on this a bit. I had never watched more than a few seconds of a softball game on TV until watching the Bulls play Hofstra in their first of three Super Regional games. You have to give these girls a ton of credit for how they compete. Sure, it’s “slow-pitch” softball. Sure, they aren’t tackling each other like football players do. Sure, they aren’t ramming each other into walls like NHL players do. But you cannot deny that these young ladies are putting forth tremendous effort in each and every game in which tye compete.

I remember how the University of Connecticut women’s basketball team strung dozens of victories together and set a record for consecutive wins over the course of two seasons. From what I recall, women’s college basketball got the most press out of this. Does it really take a women’s team to set unprecedented records for female sports to get any decent coverage at all? Does a women’s college basketball game mean nothing, while a men’s college basketball game might get a great timeslot on a major broadcast network?

ESPN recently promoted what is apparently a new website – ESPNW.com – during one of the softball game broadcasts I saw. It’s great to see a website that is entirely devoted to covering women’s sports. With the hundreds of TV channels out there on digital calbe these days, I would love to see just one channel that dedicates all of its programming to women’s sports, much like WE (Women’s Entertainment) airs shows geared toward a female audience. Unfortunately, I doubt that will ever happen any time soon. There is still a great deal of gender bias when it comes to media coverage. Until that changes, the status quo will remain in our society.

A few months ago, I wrote on this blog about how awful the 2011 college football season treated the Sunshine State. The regular powers like Florida, Florida State and Miami barely had a heartbeat. Even up-and-comers like USF, UCF and FAU failed in their efforts to beautify the football landscape in the state.

Many restaurants and food services do promotions that award contest winners “free food for a year.” What this phrase really means can vary greatly. It could mean that you get a free meal every day. It could mean getting free food every other day, or perhaps once a week or even once a month. What this “food” is can also vary from one place to another.

Last Friday, some disturbing news surfaced out of the NFL that the New Orleans Saints were involved in what the mainstream media has termed “Bountygate.” According to an ongoing investigation, Saints defense coordinator Gregg Williams and fellow players have been paying the team’s defensive players money for their performance on the field. However, the investigation revealed that players have received money – or “bounty” – for intentionally injuring opposing players. The words used to describe these vicious hits are “knockouts” and “cart-offs,” which means the opposing player had to be carted off the field on a stretcher.

As a sports fan, I am absolutely disgusted by this news. I have heard a number of former NFL players say that this kind of thing has gone on for years but has always been kept private among players and coaches. I just find it hard to accept the fact that these athletes feel getting paid is a reason to hurt other players. How can any football fan feel good about wearing the jersey of a player involved in this outrageous scheme? How could a season ticket holder feel compelled to put hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars into an organization if they knew that the team was involved in these shenanigans? Granted, this news is so recent and hindsight is 20/20. But going forward, I have to believe that fans will change their tune about the NFL and how they view its players.

There has already been much debate about what kinds of penalties should be handed down by commissioner Roger Goodell. This may sound harsh, but I think any players who have directly been involved in severely injuring another player should be banned from playing the game. I also think Goodell should ban Gregg Williams from coaching, especially since he was warned about this in the past and kept allowing it to go on. I doubt the punishments will climb to this level of severity, but I believe they should.

Whether it’s “Bountygate,” steroids, or any other controversy in sports, I think it is an absolute shame how so much news about under-the-table dealings has broken in recent years. I hate to say it, but I think we are only a few more of these major bombshells away from the unraveling of American professional sports as we know them. It is quite disturbing as a sports aficionado. The most effective way to prevent this will have to be some major overhauls within each sport. I certainly hope it will not come to that someday.

The last time the USF men’s basketball team was in the NCAA Tournament, many current players and students were not even born. The year was 1992. The Bulls played Georgetown in the first round and lost, 75-60. Two years earlier, they also had a first-round exit with a 79-67 defeat to Arizona.

Now, 20 years later, the Bulls could be headed back to the big dance. As of this writing, head coach Stan Heath’s club is 17-10 overall with a 10-4 Big East mark. As terrific as the team has played in conference games, its victories have come against teams it would be expected to beat if the team wants consideration for the tournament. On the other hand, the Bulls suffered some tough losses to inferior teams during their non-conference schedule. They have also struggled against tougher competition in the Big East, including a 30-point loss at Georgetown and a 20-point defeat at Marquette.

Most college basketball analysts believe USF must win at least 20 games to have a legitimate shot at earning a berth in the NCAA Tournament. With four regular season games left, USF will need to pick up at least one or two signature wins. Their road test at Louisville could be their best chance to do so, and beating West Virginia and Cincinnati at home will also bolster their resume. The team will also play in the Big East Tournament in New York. Winning games in this 16-team competition will certainly help the team make a better case to play with the big boys and be a part of everyone’s brackets.

The Bulls’ success has come as a result of everyone chipping in each game, not just one star carrying the team on his back. If ESPN’s Dick Vitale hasn’t labeled freshman point guard Anthony Collins a “diaper dandy” yet, he should add him to his list. Collins has had a tremendous season as a freshman and will be a shining star for the Bulls throughout his career. Other notable players include seniors Ron Anderson Jr. and Hugh Robertson, both of whom have played exceptionally well defending the basket and getting defensive stops. Meanwhile, Shaun Noriega has been clutch with his three-point shooting. Jawanza Poland and Victor Rudd have had some great offensive performances, and senior Augustus Gilchrist has been a consistent force on both sides of the ball all year long.

No matter how USF’s season turns out, it has been one of the most successful campaigns on the court in school history. Since the football team went 5-7 in the fall, the basketball team is now giving Bulls fans a reason to be excited. They should also be looking forward to the newly renovated Sun Dome that is set to reopen next season. Although USF has won nearly every home game playing off-campus at the Tampa Bay Times Forum this year, the team has struggled to draw fans to the games. So it should be more convenient for students, alumni, and fans alike to attend games at the Sun Dome and cheer on what should be an even better Bulls basketball team next season.

The Gatorade Bath

Yesterday’s dramatic NFL conference championship games made it clear that Super Bowl XLVI should be just as dramatic.

In the first game, the New England Patriots and Baltimore Ravens went down to the wire, as expected. It was Baltimore placekicker Billy Cundiff, who had a very solid kicking record, who yanked a 32-yard field goal wide left with only a few seconds remaning on the clock. This sent the Patriots to their fourth big dance in the last decade. Quarterback Tom Brady did not have his best game, particuarly in the first half. But New England did just enough to score 23 points on the Ravens’ vicious defense to secure the victory.

In Sunday’s nightcap, the San Francisco 49ers and New York Giants played well into the overtime period before the winner was determined. The rain-drenched Candlestick Park looked like a monsoon as the game progressed, but it didn’t seem to have an effect on the outcome. 49ers quarterback Alex Smith had his chances to finally prove himself to be an “elite” quarterback, but he was unable to do so down the stretch, taking numerous sacks and skipping balls to receivers who had no chance to catch them. Meantime, it was Eli Manning who had a better game than his QB counterpart, ultimately setting up his Giants for an easy game-winning field goal. But it was a muffed punt on the part of San Francisco that led to this point.

So we now have our Super Bowl matchup set. It is a rematch of Super Bowl XLII in which the Giants stunned the Pats in dramatic fashion, ending their perfect season. It was Eli Manning’s hail-mary-esque pass to David Tyree that set up the winning score for New York. You have to believe that Bill Belichick and his crew are out to seek revenge and claim their fourth title under his watch. And for Manning, he has the chance to add a second ring to his hand, which would be one more than his older brother Peyton. There is a great deal on the line as always in a Super Bowl, and if the game is anythign like the conference championships were, it will be exciting. At least the brass at NBC hope so.