New York Giants to get "blue carpet" treatment at film screening

Super Bowl winners Eli Manning, Jason Pierre-Paul, Antrel Rolle, Mario Manningham and Hakeem Nicks will be strutting down the "blue carpet' at tonight's screening of a new DVD that captures the New York Giants season leading up to their upset victory over the New England Patriots in  Super Bowl XLVI.

Some might even call the DVD a remake of the Giants Super Bowl XLII win because there are so many similarities between the two championship runs.

In both scenarios, the Giants' season seemed to be over before the underdog squad gets hot down the stretch and defies all odds by making the playoffs.  Combine that with freakish last minute catches and comeback wins— over the Patriots— in both Super Bowls and you can see how the two championship runs look alike.

The two-time Super Bowl MVP Manning and the other players will be getting front-row seats for tonight's event at the Regal Theater in Times Square for the V.I.P. showing of NFL Films and Vivendi Entertainment's "Super Bowl XLVI Champions: New York Giants" which will be released today.

According to a sneak peak by The New York Post, the DVD begins with clips of the Giants' stunning upset of the Patriots in Super Bowl XLII then fast-forwards to to reveal how "eerily similar" the first championship was to the second.

The game by game account of the season highlights themes like Manning's ascension to "elite" status, the emergence of Victor Cruz and the steady hand of head coach Tom Coughlin.

After the comeback win over the Dallas Cowboys, Coughlin exclaims to his jubilant players in the locker room, "Take the star down off the mountain, put the NYG on top."

There is a slo-mo replay of Cruz's game-breaking 99-yard TD catch and run against the New York Jets and, of course, Manningham's unbelievable catch in the big game.

If those scenes don't get tonight's crowd cheering, nothing will.

Sprinkle those season-turning plays in with poignant sideline shots like Brandon Jacobs, sitting next to Manning, saying, "You're a beast, man, I can't say that enough" and there won't be a dry eye in the house.

Especially Patriots fans who will give it two thumbs down.

Even Bill Belichick gets a supporting role.  The Pats' coach commands his defense to concentrate on Cruz and Nicks before Manning lands the perfect pass to Manningham on the winning drive.

The only problem with this movie is everyone knows the ending but— as the credits roll over shots of the Giants parading up Broadway with ticker-tape raining down— Big Blue fans will already be waiting for a third installment in the series.

70-year-old man qualifies for Olympics

A 70-year-old Japanese man has qualified for the London Olympics and — if he competes— would become the second oldest Olympian in history.

Equestrian Hiroshi Hoketsu qualified by winning an international dressage meet in France on Thursday.  Japanese equestrian officials said today they will make an announcement soon on whether or not the septuagenarian will mount up at the London games.

Hoketsu will turn 71 on March 28.

The oldest Olympian in history is Swedish shooter Oscar Swahn who won a silver medal at the 1920 Antwerp Olympics at the age of 72— his sixth medal in three games.

Hoketsu is already Japan's oldest Olympian after competing in the 2008 Beijing Olympics at the age of 67.

At those games, Hoketsu finished ninth in the dressage team event and the individual competition.  He also qualified for the 1988 Seoul Olympics but was unable to compete after his horse was quarantined.

It sounds like Hoketsu is the Gordie Howe of the horsey set.

Johan Santana gets 'trashed' at practice

The New York Mets season hasn't even started and the team's ace, Johan Santana, may already be preparing fans for the dumps.

Santana joked around with photographers yesterday by putting a big gray garbage can over his head during an idle moment at practice.

Call it garbage time in Port St. Lucie.

Maybe the left-hander should have been wearing one of those blue recycling bags since Santana— who missed all of last season while recovering from shoulder surgery— faced hitters Thursday for the first time since tossing four innings in an Instructional League game on Sept. 30

"I felt pretty good," Santana said after the outing. "I was able to throw for the first time having batters standing up at the plate and swing the bat.  It was pretty good."

Santana threw 43 pitched during two stints Thursday, resting in between. 

He is expected to throw a light bullpen session today and have a long-toss before starting s split-squad game against the St. Louis Cardinals on Tuesday.

If Santana's arm doesn't gain full strength by the season opener, expect to see a lot of Mets fans sporting garbage cans over their heads this season.

Meet the Meh'ts?

Domenik Hixon wants to "repay" Giants for re-signing him

Domenik Hixon is one happy man tonight and vowed to "repay" the New York Giants for signing him to a new contract even after only playing four games— due to two ACL tears on his right knee— for the team over the past two seasons.

The speedy wide-out was in New York this morning to have his knee examined before meeting with Giants GM Jerry Reese at the team's facility in New Jersey.

He signed an undisclosed contract to return for a sixth season with the Giants.

Hixon couldn't contain his enthusiasm and tweeted,"I Just got done officially signing back with the Superbowl champs!!! #blessed #readytoplay."

How doubly refreshing for a pro athlete to know when he's been given an opportunity to play on a great team and for a pro franchise to show confidence in a player with a good work ethic and bad luck by giving him another shot.

"They gave me an opportunity when I got released from Denver (in 2007)," Hixon said in a press release after the signing.  "And then these past two years with knee injuries.  They stuck with me.  They could have cut me and let me be on my way and be done with me.  But they didn't do that.  They treated me the same and I really appreciate that."

Hixon is confident he'll be ready for the start of training camp and was told by the team physician Russ Warren he'll even be able to get some work in during the off-season workouts, OTAs and minicamp.

The 27-year old will follow the doctor's orders and believes he can come back strong after tearing his knee during a spectacular catch in only the second game of the 2011 season.

"We're just fine-tuning things now," said Hixon.  "My goal when I get back is to be at full speed and show the training staff and everyone else I'm physically ready to play and play it for years to come."

It sounds like Hixon will be battling it out with Ramses Barden and Jerrel Jernigan for the third spot in the receiving corps behind Victor Cruz and Hakeem Nicks if free-agent Mario Manningham leaves.

Manningham— one of 20 free-agents on the Giants— is trying to cash in on his impressive postseason and big fourth quarter Super Bowl catch.  He has already stated that he thinks the odds of him returning to the Meadowlands are slim.

On the other hand, the Giants will be keeping a player hungry to play and who downplays missing the bulk of two seasons as "interruptions."

"I know a lot of times in the NFL loyalty isn't that big," said Hixon.  "But in this situation, I really felt like I wanted to be here.  They helped me  but time and time again.  I wanted to stay here and repay that."

Classy guy and classy organization.

Former Yankees prospect Brien Taylor arrested on drug charges

The former No. 1 overall pick in Major League's amateur draft by the New York Yankees, former pitcher Brien Taylor, was arrested in his home town of Beaumont, N.C. on drug charges.

The flame-throwing pitcher— who's career was snuffed out even before it had a chance to glow— was arrested and charged with various drug charges on Thursday.

After the Yankees selected the left-hander with the top overall pick in the 1991 draft— the East Carteret High superstar— who had 213 strikeouts in 88 innings during his senior year— signed a contract worth  $1.55 million with the Bombers— an unheard of sum back then for an untested prospect.

George Steinbrenner was so desperate for the Yankees to sign their own equivalent of Dwight Gooden, he reportedly told his GM if he didn't sign Taylor at any cost, he would be "shot."

If you never heard of the highly-touted prospect— you probably weren't a pinstripes fan in the '90's— and you're not alone.

Taylor's long and sad road to obscurity began after the normally mild-mannered Taylor injured his shoulder in an off-season bar fight in 1993.  After a couple of decent minor league seasons, he never lived up to expectations after the brawl and was released by the Yankees in 1998.

The current charges against Taylor include possession and intent to sell and distribute cocaine after investigators bought " a large quantity of cocaine and crack from Taylor over a period of several months," according to the Newark Star-Ledger.

"Taylor is charged with 2 counts of trafficking in cocaine by possession, trafficking in cocaine by selling, trafficking in cocaine by manufacture, trafficking in cocaine by transport, and felony maintaining a vehicle."

He was also charged with one count each of possession with intent to manufacture, sell and deliver cocaine.

Taylor was placed in Carteret County jail and scheduled for a court appearance today.

The Yankees went all-in on Taylor and lost it with that one fight.  Fans never got to see him on the mound at Yankee Stadium.

After brief stints of rehab in the minor leagues— he disappeared from the Yankees radar and out of sight within a couple of years.

Taylor was so highly regarded, he was expected to be in the Yankees rotation by the age of 19.   Now, Taylor's only legacy is what could have been.  His name has become synonymous with those few years of Yankees' futility.

After being released by the Yankees, Taylor supported himself with odd jobs and occasionally appeared in the news for various legal troubles.

Such a waste of talent and life.

Ref gets hit in the shnozz then lands on pom-poms

During Kentucky's rout of Georgia last night at Rupp Arena, a Bulldogs' errant pass was kicked squarely into the face of referee Antonio Payne who staggered back and fell but was lucky enough to land in a cushy pile of Wildcats cheerleaders and their pom-poms.

The wayward pass— which was accidently kicked out of bounds by a Kentucky player— seemed like one of many Georgia mistakes as top-ranked Kentucky steamrolled the Bulldogs, 79-49, to back up their No. 1 ranking.

While the Bullgogs were hitting the ref in the sniffer, Kentucky players hit 15 three-point shots.

The referee was fine— maybe too fine.

Obama: I knew about Lin before everyone else

You can agree or disagree that President Barack Obama knows more than most people when it comes to foreign policies or national budgets and will probably be the first person alerted to a nuclear attack but— on a podcast recorded earlier this week —the country's number one basket fan said he he knew about about Jeremy Lin long before Linsanity struck.

In an interview with ESPN's Bill Simmons, the President told him he knew Lin would become a star.

"I knew about Jeremy before you did, or anyone else did, because Arne Duncan, my Secretary of Education, was captain of the Harvard team," Obama said.  "And so way back when, Arne and I were playing and he said, 'I'm telling you, we've got this terrific guard named Jeremy Lin at Harvard.'  And then one of my best friends, his son is a freshman at Harvard, and so when he went for a recruiting trip he saw Lin in action.  So I've been on the Jeremy Lin bandwagon for a while."

Suddenly, Obama sounds less like the Leader of the Free World and more like Cliff— the know-it-all mailman— on "Cheers."

Duncan does know the game and was the MVP in last week's Celebrity Game at the NBA All-Star weekend in Orlando.

"What's interesting is the fact somehow folks were missing it in practice," said the Harvard-grad Obama about Lin.  "It's a terrific story.  He's seems like a wonderful young man.  And, look, it elevates this great game all around the world."

The President also revealed that he, and former top-aide Reggie Love, a former-Duke player, used to pass notes to his daughter's basketball coach during games— until she finally let them run practice.

Call it bi-partisan coaching.