Kansas City Chiefs in Houston Texans Colors - Sports Recoloring #7

There isn't much of a difference in terms of how the colors changed going from Chiefs to Texans on this one. But the red is a little darker and the outlines are in Texans blue (their shade is much darker than other blues normally seen in sports). 

Mississippi State in Auburn Colors - Sports Recoloring #6

The second edition of Auburnizing the SEC West. This one was done on Adobe Illustrator instead of Photoshop, as I had initially done. 

Alabama Logo in Auburn Colors - Sports Recoloring #5

Sorry Crimson Tide fans, but being an Auburn fan, this was soooooo fun to do! 

The original logo has a black strip circumnavigating the crest, which I took out. 

Black LSU Wordmark - Sports Recoloring #4

I had a halloween spirit going on when I made this. It seemed to be a logical color choice to replace the traditional purple that wouldn't be radically different. While I hope LSU never chooses to do anything black related to any of their uniforms, I could certainly see this as a possibility for casual usage. 

Baby Blue New York Mets Wordmark - Sports Recoloring #3

My original vision for this was for the orange outline to have a different color as well, but I just couldn't get myself to change it without thinking it wouldn't work with the new shade of blue. 

Philadelphia Eagles Kelly Green Helmet - Sports Recoloring #2

Experimenting with what the current Philadelphia Eagles helmet would look like with "kelly green" instead of the "midnight green" they currently use. I ultimately like the current helmet more, but that may be because I automatically associate the old Eagles wings with the "kelly green."

Red Falcons Helmet - Sports Recoloring #1

I always liked the red falcons helmet, but also the current logo. This is the two mashed together. The red may be a little bright. I never got to the part I really would've wanted to do; black and gold stripe on the top. 

An Up and Coming Soccer Fan's Reaction to Blatter's Resignation

As I've come to find of myself, I love soccer. I also am interested in the actions of the governing bodies of different sports. Last week, I became much more knowledgeable in the recent history & actions of FIFA. I learned that Blatter is essentially the head of Athletic Spectre. I became astounded that such corruption and ignorance could plague such a powerful and 'celebrated' organization, and still maintain a chokehold on the world. 

But with Sepp Blatter resigning ("Why now?", states former USA goalkeeper Kasey Keller), a door was opened that was thought would never be approached. Such an important organization requires transparency and the ability to be trusted, which is what FIFA lost after announcing the 2018 & 2022 World Cups, and especially after the 2014 World Cup (and this, http://youtu.be/DlJEt2KU33I). Soccer is too important on our earth to be clouded by a corporate political force that in fact valued money over the sport. Soccer is the sport with the most strings attatched to people's hearts. 

While I've vocally opposed Blatter on social media, Sepp's resignation proves to me that he loves soccer more than money, at least enough that he recognizes that resigning from one of the most powerful jobs in the world was worth it to him. It could've been because he was approached by the major sponsors of FIFA, peer pressure, or pure wisdom. Whatever it is that caused his resignation an hour ago, Mr. Blatter has bought a level of respect from me. This is a great step in the process of making the world of sport more healthy & prestigious. Let's go FIFA, let's go FIFA!!

2015 Braves Outlook

2014, it looked like a year with some possibilities until about August. Never did tying with the Mets for 2nd in the East look so bad when it did. Despite some great defense out of Jason Heyward & Andrelton Simmons, and a great offensive year out of Justin Upton, the Braves lacked a sense of spirit on the field and in the clubhouse. With the retirement of Chipper Jones and the departures of Brian McCann & Martin Prado, the team lacked any real veteran leadership last year, an essential ingredient to complement young blood on great baseball teams. 

The team needed a change, and both John Hart (Braves GM) & John Schuerholz (team president) executed changes a'plenty. Hart through trades and free agent signings acquired 40 players, notably Jim Johnson, Nick Markakis, Zolio Almonte, Eric Stults, Alberto Callaspo, A.J. Pierzynski, Shelby Miller, and Jason Grili. All while Mr. Schuerholz fully single handedly screwed over anyone in Metro Atlanta who wanted to go to any games in 2017, as the new stadium being built in Cobb County (ew!!) has started construction.

Looking at the upcoming 2015 season, the Braves' 140th season in franchise history, any major success looks quite slim. The Nationals have upgraded with Max Scherzer and former Brave Yunel Escobar, while thankfully losing Braves bruiser Adam LaRoche. If they can stay healthy as a team, the Nats will likely be the team to beat in the East. The Marlins have also made plenty of upgrades, locking up Giancarlo Stanton long term, trading for Dee Gordon, Dan Haren, Martin Prado, and signing Ichiro. The Marlins also get Jose Fernandez back, the young phenom who threw a no-hitter in his rookie season two years back (he had Tommy John surgery after the season, casuing him to miss all of last year). The Braves talent-wise just don't match up with Washington and Miami during a full season, especially if any injuries occur that would cause some AAA (Gwinnett) call-ups. 

If the Braves really want to compete, they need to make full use of Jim Johnson, Grili, and Craig Kimbrel. All three have been closers in the last three years, with Johnson tying Kimbrel in 2013 for most saves in the MLB. If the Braves are in closing situations, the Braves need to make a serious point of never losing in those situations. They can also serve as great 10th & 11th inning relievers. Freddie Freeman is the only serious dangerous bat on the team, but if they can get two or three guys to have above average seasons, the once homer happy team might have a shot for October talks. 

Expecting a playoff run is a faulty hope for any concious Braves fan this season. Heck even a losing season is extremely possible. In the end, like any season, it will come down to division games, injuries and pitching.