equal time Phil Mushnick Our sports culture is being redefined — one disgusting lowlight after another By Phil Mushnick Published Oct. 1, 2026, 7:22 p.m. ET Texas defensive lineman Colin Simmons (1) celebrates after a sack of Tennessee quarterback Faizon Brandon. USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect I’ve become a sour old grump? You bet your tapped-out DraftKings credit card I have. I’ve devolved from my younger version. And if you don’t like it, turn the page.
If you think what has happened to our sports — most of it by authoritative and greed-sickened design — is good for sports, then hah! “Sports!” — there’s little here for you.
Saturday afternoon, within five minutes of landing on ABC/ESPN’s Texas-Tennessee game, I went searching the remote for a DNR (Do Not Resuscitate) button.
Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit had already given notice that they too no longer speak clear, concise football English. Instead of simple tackled for a “loss” (adding the old-school, sense-based yards lost), Herbstreit went with the vague, longform “negative play” before resuming his, and so many others’, worn and empty “run downhill” expertise.
