UFC 93 Broadcast @ 3:00 Eastern Time!

Dublin, Ireland - Just a quick reminder for all of our MMA fans out there that the broadcast of UFC 93 will not be in it's usual 10:00 p.m.-1:00 a.m. timeslot today. Instead, at 3:00 go ahead and tune in to ChannelSurfing.net and watch it for free live streaming on your computer screen. Of course, if you're an honest person...in which case you probably don't read this blog, you could always order it on Time Warner Cable and then call customer service 20 times throughout the day to find out why it isn't on your television and you're still being charged for it. My two favorite CSR's over there are Ja'Kuanda and Rochelle, so if you're having any issues ask for them, they're real good at telling you to keep it on the channel and it should "Pop On" at some point.

Anyhow, today's card features a few interesting fights. UFC newcomer Dennis Kang is fighting Alan "The Talent" Belcher in a bout that could have Middleweight Title implications. Of course, the main event between Rich Franklin & Dan Henderson leaves the winner as the coach of Season 9 of TUF, and a finale battle with England's own Michael Bisping. Franklin is coming off a dominant victory over Matt Hamill, where he threw a victorious body kick that "The Hammer" didn't see (Or hear) coming. Henderson is coming off a boring win over some submission guy that nobody cares about.

The problem here for Franklin is that winning this fight would bring him back to middleweight to fight Bisping, and in line for a 3rd fight with Anderson Silva. If someone did this to you...would you want to hop back in the Octagon with them a third time? Although Franklin is my favorite fighter in MMA, and a man crush of mine that has lasted over 6 years now, I almost would prefer that he lost today in order to stay away from the path of destruction that Anderson Silva always leaves...hell his last fight Patrick Cote tore his ACL trying to throw a kick..fighting Silva is just bad news I'm telling you.

Almost forgot, Mark Coleman, who turned 62 years old yesterday, is fighting Mauricio "Shogun" Rua today as well. If Coleman can fight through the arthritis and Alzheimer's he's been battling, he should be able to bore us all to death laying on top of Rua. If not, he may die in the ring today, leaving the writers here at CursedCleveland.com a whole slew of jokes and references over the next few weeks. Stay tuned for a biased, wordy, and potentially incredibly negative recap of today's event.

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ESPN Radio Shakeup

Big changes are afoot at ESPN radio, as industry reports say Sports Nation and its curious pairing of John Seibel and Orestes Destrade has finally come to an end, making way for Doug Gottlieb to take over the drive time slot from 4 -7 PM.

The program shift completes the most forgettable span of ESPN programming since Beg, Borrow and Deal. ESPN radio's senior VP Mo Davenport explained the move:

"The overall strategy is to focus on strong personality-driven sports content between 6 a.m. and 7 p.m."

Meaning: John Seibel, you've had three hours a day for the last four years to actually grow your audience. Nobody's failed with this much exposure since Alan Colmes. So take your Air Force experience and fly the hell out of this timeslot.

ESPN radio wasn't done tinkering there. Colin Cowherd will have another full hour to urge listeners to blow up The Big Lead's servers (although one person can do as much damage posting a single comment). Cowherd will now piss off Big Ten football fans from 10 AM to 2 PM daily.

But wait, there's more. Mike Tirico's lifeless brand of non-entertainment is shifting an hour and will air from 2 to 4 PM- causing Scott Van Pelt to lose his one-hour show all together. Brian Kenny will be hosting from 8 to 10 PM. Sweet, that means more boxing and baseball, two sports that couldn't be losing more steam in the public's consciousness.

While Doug Gottlieb is yet another ESPN commentator that operates in the world of forced conviction, his basketball expertise is second to none. He can relate to the present day athletes based on his history of credit card fraud. He can also relate to many of today's best lawmakers as an army deserter. Either way, he's very inciteful and doesn't avoid controversy the way Mike Tirico has.

Speaking of Tirico, when will ESPN radio acknowledge that nobody sits around the radio these days to hear uninspired platitudes and endless colleague adulation? At one point we wondered if his pairing with Michele Tafoya was a plot by ESPN execs to entrap the NBA's lead play-by-play man into another scenario with sexual harrassment potential.

And I have to question how ESPN continues to bury one of its best talents - Ryen Russillo. The guy is funny, quick-witted and has no problem hitting on other radio personality's daughters.

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20-0 at home...Are you kidding me?

CLEVEAND, OH - Less than 24 hours after losing a heartbreaker to a Bulls team full of last year's Cavs rejects, the boys in Gold came back to the comforts of "The Q" and beat a very good Hornets team this evening...actually let's be honest, they would have beaten the Western Conference All-Star squad tonight coming out shooting 8 of 13 from the 3-point line. Brian Winhorst always talks about unwinnable games, and this certainly would fall into that category. Second night of a back to back, no Delonte West, no Zydrunas Ilgauskas, and no idea why I'm home on a Friday night writing this article.

This team is just solid, and who doesn't like to see the entire team coming off the bench when Lebron James fakes another injury? I mean, if you're going to fake an injury after taking a routine fall, might as well have all of your boys huddle around you and try to look up there shorts...right? Ok...so this Hornets team may not be the same team that won 50+ games last year, but they're still a tough matchup for the Cavs, and had already beaten them once this year. Is it just me, or does Lebron just walk right past James Posey, who for some ungodly reason Kobe Bryant can't seem to beat off the dribble?

Finally, a few quick thoughts about the end of this game:

• With two Hornets having been kicked out of the game, did Mike Brown think it was a good idea to leave Lebron on the court? Oh yeah, he was "flirting" with a triple double.
• Why don't the Cavs fans understand that chanting "MVP" when another Cavalier is on the free throw line just doesn't make sense? Their timing is as good as our webmaster begging for laughs on a podcast.
• Why did nobody get in Posey's face when he tossed Mo Williams to the ground?

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Where Are They Now: Marty Cordova

It's not often we write about baseball on Cursedcleveland.com, mostly because MMA has supplanted America's pastime in our books as our third favorite sport. But one of our favorite players in college was the 2001 Cleveland Indians leftfielder Marty Cordova. Not just because of his .301 batting average on a Tribe team that should have beat the 116-win Seattle Mariners (you and your 76 mile fastball can burn in hell Jaime Moyer), but because he spent more time in a tanning bed than George Hamilton. .

So what's he up to now besides not spending time in a plastic surgeon's office to make obviously needed repairs to his King of Pop looking shnoz? He's busy letting the burly Dana White outrace him in a mile with ten grand on the line. Cordova's time: 7:15. Come on Marty, I last clocked in at 6:15, and that was with me shouldering all the other writers of this site on my back.

By the way, anyone else wondering how Cordova could go from batting .216 with 7 homers to .341 and 28 homers and 131 rbi in just two years? This guy skates and guys like Jason Grimsley get caught? Nevermind his nine-seasons of mostly injury plagued ball. .

By the way, we're a day away from Henderson vs. Franklin. Get excited!

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Newzin'

Wedge still sounds like a kid on Christmas morning who dreamed of getting a 10-speed bike" - really Terry? If Wood, Derosa, Smith and Valbuena is a 10 -speed bike, then what would Sabathia, Texteira and Burnette be like? A flying lexus? Wedge gets all he wants.

Another script Ohio. Now all we need is Maurice Wells to run into the back of the line and this would feel like a real game at the Shoe.

Broncos GM wants Browns opening. If he's responsible for bringing in Maurice Clarett, then we're sold. Sunquist campaigning for job

Another Buckeye bolting for the pros. Washington joins NFL draft picture

Delonti West is pissed that WFNY did a story on him and not CursedCleveland. West injures wrist

If you don't think Zydrunas and LeBron's mom has something to do with these record numbers, you're crazy. Ohioans spend recored amount of Liquor.

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Crabtree To the League

Lubbock, Texas -Michael Crabtree has decided to forgo his next two season with the Red Raiders and enter the 2009 NFL draft. The Raiders will also be without their handsome star QB Harrell, which could have also helped with this decision. Either that, or he realized his General Studies major would land him back in poverty. The 6'3" 214 lb WR has become one of the sexier picks in the draft. Seattle, Oakland, and Cleveland would all love this phenom. "As far as I've seen, top 5. That's what I'm striving for," said Crabtree when asked where he would go in the draft. Here are some Crabtree Highlights for those who haven't seen much of him. He is the prototypical WR and will be the first wide receiver taken, although Hartline's decision to go pro could effect this. He has been said to have the size of Braylon Edwards, the hands of Jerry Rice and the cock of Visanthe Shiancoe.

Crabtree had 231 catches for 3,127 but with only 41 TD's. His numbers are a little jacked up because Texas Tech throws the ball 247 times a game. The Red Raider offense can be compared to playing a video game against your buddy, you throw the ball every down and run the exact same streak plays over and over. Cant blame the guy, he has accomplished more in two years with that team than most others have in four. "It was hard when I was little. Money was a big problem," Crabtree said. "I feel like this was the best decision." Couldnt agree more with him and cannot wait to see him with his shirt off in the combine. New friends Deion Sanders and Michael Irvin are now advising Crabtree on what he needs to get himself ready for the next level. This couldn't be more important, might as well ask Brian Blades how to get rid of his competition.

I have nothing left to say about this guy because nobody really cares or will read this. This is my first article and probably my last. The site sucks and so does my article. Time to figure out which Asian teen pornstar I'm going to jerk off too.

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Dirty Napping

This totally unrelated post is brought to you by guest writer J.Fine.

I apologize for the premature title, but I was under the impression that Patrick Swayze had already done his finest work by literally reenacting Ghost. It turns out, "The Comeback Kid" still has something left in the tank. Is this guy staying or going? The same can be asked of Cavalier, Wally Szerbiak. After hearing numerous reports that Swayze had already died or was on his deathbed, it's time for him to do the right thing….and die.

Whether they want to admit it or not, everyone loved "Dirty Dancing", "Road House", "Point Break" and "Ghost". The most recent of which was released in 1991, probably around the time LeBron received his first gang affiliated tattoo. "Dirty Dancing" prompted me to get out on the dance floor, with moves that more closely resembled those of Jean Claude in "Kickboxer". "Road House" made me want to work in a bar so badly that I actually did for three and a half years. Unfortunately, I also have to fault this flick for the 5th and 6th years of my undergraduate study (What is Todd Boeckman's excuse?).

If "Point Break" didn't rouse the ambition to rob banks and surf all day, then you are lying to yourself and "Ghost" just plain made me want to kill myself. Reading the aforementioned titles will remind many of the captivating and successful career this actor enjoyed. Some may even question why Swayze lacked any relevant work over the past decade. The answer can be found in six words, "Too Wong Foo, Thanks for Nothing!"

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