myerstownherald.com

By ERIC FISHER
The summer of 2009, nearing its end, has been notable as much for what didn’t happen as for what did happen. Tiger Woods didn’t win a major. Lance Armstrong didn’t win the Tour de France. Roy Halladay wasn’t traded. Brett Favre didn’t end his retirement and sign with the Minnesota …
Well, we’ve got to scratch that last item about Favre, but you get the idea. Many of the major stories this summer were about things that didn’t happen. In fact, all of golf’s major tournaments were as much about who didn’t win as who did win.
As we wrap up the “Summer of Non-Events,” the following is a list of some other things that didn’t happen.
Eagles offensive lineman Shawn Andrews didn’t make it to the practice field during the entire training camp at Lehigh University. Andrews, making the move from guard to tackle, injured his back during the camp’s opening-day run, then never showed his face again.
The Phillies didn’t have to give up rookie of the year candidate J.A. Happ or any of their top prospects to acquire former Cy Young Award winner Cliff Lee and outfielder Ben Francisco.
Cliff Lee didn’t lose a game as a Phillie.
Cliff Lee didn’t give up more than one earned run in his five starts as a Phillie.
There weren’t any challengers for horse racing’s Triple Crown.
Most of America didn’t notice that there weren’t any challengers for horse racing’s Triple Crown.
Carl Edwards didn’t win a race. The preseason choice of many, including me, to oust Jimmie Johnson from NASCAR’s championship throne, Edwards has not won a race all year.
Nobody called a sports talk station to discuss the 76ers.
Penn State didn’t have a competition to be the starting quarterback.
Eagles head coach Andy Reid didn’t announce that middle linebacker Stewart Bradley’s knee injury was a season-ending ACL tear because he was perturbed that reporters did their jobs and tried to find out the severity of the injury before King Andy read the official proclamation.
The Arena Football League didn’t survive.
The Baseball All-Star Game didn’t end in a tie.
Two preseason voters in The Associated Press preseason college football poll didn’t vote for Florida as No. 1.
South Carolina head football coach Steve Spurrier didn’t vote for Florida’s Tim Tebow, the leading Heisman Trophy candidate, as the preseason all-SEC team quarterback.
Point guard Andre Miller, arguably the team’s most valuable player the past two seasons, did not re-sign with the 76ers.
Barry Bonds didn’t sign with a Major League team, even though plenty of them, especially the San Francisco Giants, could use another big bat in their lineup.
Eagles president Joe Banner didn’t really say that the Eagles have the best roster in the NFL, did he?
The Eagles didn’t really sign Michael Vick, did they?
Charles Barkley didn’t mince words when asked his opinion.
Charles Barkley didn’t mince words when nobody asked his opinion.
Charles Barkley didn’t improve his golf game.
The New York Mets didn’t get any better.
Phillies fans and broadcasters didn’t miss any opportunity to point out the Mets’ failures.
The Pittsburgh Pirates didn’t have a winning record – unless they play incredible baseball in September and climb back to .500 – for the 17th consecutive season, breaking the record they shared with the Phillies (1933-48) for the most consecutive losing seasons by a North American professional sports franchise.
Danica Patrick didn’t win a race. But that didn’t prevent her from being far and away the most visible Indy Car driver in the United States.
Boxing didn’t make the slightest dent in the consciousness of the average sports fan.
Mike Tyson didn’t get arrested (as far as we know).
Phillies pitcher Brett Myers didn’t sustain an injury in the vicinity of his left eye while having a catch with his son, as he originally told the Phillies.
Brett Myers didn’t mention that he sustained the injury on the same night he had been in a bar where a friend of his got into an altercation.
Brett Myers didn’t tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.
The Eagles’ projected starting offensive line didn’t take one snap together, not even in practice.
Nobody wrote a column or started a Web site calling on Joe Paterno to retire.