CYCLING

The lead story of day came from the cycling world.  Lance Armstrong is arguably the best cyclist who ever lived.  He has 7 Tour De France titles, some of which were obtained post a bout with cancer.  He was a true American hero, and praised as one of the best athletes of all time.  However, over the last few years, Armstrong has been dealing with claims that he cheated in those contests by taking performance enhancing drugs.  Armstrong has denied these claims from both cycling administrators and his peers.  He even had to pursue legal action at times.  Finally, Armstrong has had enough of the negative media attention and public battling.  He said he will not fight the claims any more, which will result in the retrieval of his 7 Tour De France titles.  They have been striped away from him.  Armstrong said the toll it’s taken on him and his family is too great.  Lance maintains his innocence, but he’s ready to move on from the media circus.

FOOTBALL

And in the NFL, the Indianapolis Colts have looked pretty good in pre-season.  Andrew Luck, the #1 overall pick, is playing fantastic, and the rest of the team seems to have a reinvigorated sense of urgency about them after a horrible 2011 season.  And now, there is a rumor going around that the Colts are getting ready to make a major trade.  General Manager Jim Irsay conveyed to his staff that the ‘Trade Winds Are Blowing’.  If they did swing a deal, it’s unclear whom they would obtain, but it’s likely that they would try and get some more weapons for their golden boy, Andrew Luck.  Maybe sending some draft picks for the rights to a great receiver.  That would help Luck, and possibly even get this team winning some close games this year.

Finally, after his dismissal from LSU, it was unclear what the future held for the Honey Badger, Tyrann Mathieu.  Mathieu was the biggest celebrity in college football last season, and it looked like some small Division 2 school had a chance of landing this incredible cornerback.  But now, with just one week remaining until the season, Mathieu will apparently not be playing football this year.  He’s currently in a rehab facility in Houston, getting treatment for drug and alcohol addiction.  Helping him along the way is former NBA player John Lucas, who also battled drugs and alcohol in his playing days.  Mathieu will disappear from the lime light this season, but this is a major comeback story in the making.