Bobby is currently the General Manager and Assistant Publisher at the Daily Statesman after serving his term as Managing Editor. He wears many hats in the office, including coordinator of all things online, but his real passion is sports.

Reality Showdown

Posted Monday, August 17, 2009, at 2:52 PM

With each new television season comes a new reality show....or 20!

Two shows seem to stand out above the rest with a sports theme in mind: Shaq Vs. and Terrell Owens Reality.

Shaq Vs stars NBA player/rapper/actor/policeman/comedian Shaquille O'Neal. Shaq takes his athletic ability beyond the basketball court, attempting to become a champion in a new sporting event each week.

Each episode follows the 7-foot 1-inch, 325-pound O'Neal and his opponent through training and pre-game hype, including news conferences, all leading up to the final competition. To level the playing field, O'Neal will negotiate a handicap.

Mike Goldberg and Pat Tomasulo host, while Charissa Thompson serves as sideline reporter.

O'Neal will be taking on NFL quarterback Ben Roethlisberger, swimmer Michael Phelps, tennis' Serena Williams, boxer Oscar De La Hoya, beach volleyball stars Kerri Walsh and Misty May-Treanor and St. Louis Cardinals slugger Albert Pujols. At a news conference in St. Louis last week to discuss his upcoming home-run derby with Pujols, O'Neal discussed his baseball ability. "When I was little, I was known as Shaqqie Robinson," he told AP. When he pitched, he says he was called "the big black unit." O'Neal also promised there would be no head games with Pujols, noting: "Usually, I try to get into the mind of my opponent, but I don't think it's wise to talk smack to a man who always has a bat in his hands."

Terrell Owens also hopes to score with a new cable reality show.

The Buffalo Bills' controversial wide receiver is starring in his own show on VH1 this summer, giving fans a look into his life off the field.

T.O.'s best friends and publicists _ Monique Jackson and Kita Williams _ will help him re-examine his personal life. The two will work as "matchmakers and therapists" for Owens.

Owens, who caught 69 passes for 1,052 yards and 10 touchdowns last season, was prominently featured on HBO's "Hard Knocks" that tracked the Cowboys in training camp last year.

Which show (if any) will be more successful? Are you watching either of these shows? What would make a great sports based reality show?

Comments

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Who cares.....

In a way, this crap represents much of what is wrong with sports these days and another reason I am thankful to have grown up in a different era. Great reality shows would be:

Strip Clubs 101....All sports invited

Bigger, Faster, and Stronger...How to shoot 'roids

Say what, ____? Spousal abuse for all sports

Show me the money! again, all sports represented

How to Suck. A day in the life of the Cubbies.

-- Posted by shannonhoon on Mon, Aug 17, 2009, at 3:29 PM
Dangit, Bobbie, Hoon beat me again...but to add to his comments...I have a relatively good sense of humor, but I do NOT find stupidity funny, and it absolutely amazes me how some people in this country fight for the right to humiliate themselves in front of millions of viewers on a weekly basis...not to mention those very millions of viewers who validate said stupidity.

So, in answer to your question, no I will not be watching those two, or any other so-called reality shows...

-- Posted by BarbaraNTexas on Mon, Aug 17, 2009, at 3:40 PM
Rock of Love Rules

Daisy of Love=Vh1 Porn

Helk Yeah!

-- Posted by shannonhoon on Mon, Aug 17, 2009, at 4:28 PM
I'm with Hoon, who cares. But, if you want an answer, I think the Big Cactus will do better than T."I can't get along with any of my teammates"O. Shaq is the bigger star and never stirs the pot with teammates or the media in a negative way. Once again though, who cares.

-- Posted by BonScott on Mon, Aug 17, 2009, at 6:02 PM
Bobby, I'm afraid this one may be dead in the water...

-- Posted by BarbaraNTexas on Tue, Aug 18, 2009, at 3:58 PM
I agree...it has assumed room temperature.

-- Posted by shannonhoon on Tue, Aug 18, 2009, at 8:13 PM

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