No Sleep Till Cleveland: Chad Zumock

Where does one begin when starting a new weekly column? Or anything new for that matter? Where do you start when you have a brand new team and a brand new boss? Two of Cleveland’s major franchises are in that position right now and so am I starting this weekly column for WFNY with my thoughts on all things Cleveland sports.

Why am I doing this again? You know me—stand-up gigs, hosting podcasts, traveling, producing…It’s like I’m addicted to chaos. But I wanted to do something a little more consistent for an outlet with the same passion that I have for Cleveland sports, particularly the Cleveland Cavaliers. And this upcoming season, one which many people around the world are eagerly awaiting (because Oct. 30 can not come soon enough) provides us with an opportune time to engage with fellow fans as it all unfolds.

People are scouring the web looking for news articles, updates, quotes—anything Cavaliers related and I’m no different. How can you not be excited with everything going on in my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio? Being apart of this journey could be one the greatest experiences for a Cleveland sports fan ever. There will be moments in time you’ll remember for the rest of your life, years from now. For example, Brian Hoyer is slowly making his mark on being one of the legendary Cleveland quarterbacks with his consistent play and his come-from-behind victories. The Cavaliers season will be no different with amazing performances and legendary games night in and night out, but with fewer come-from-behind wins and more, “holy crap, did you see that!?” moments in time.

What makes me qualified to write this weekly column on the Cavs? Besides being a super fan (just with less face paint and fewer cowboy hats), I happen to have had a few cups of coffee covering the Cavs on radio and in print. I am also a published author (you know you’re impressed), so with that I think I’m just as qualified as anymore. I also have a lot of knowledge of the all teams in town and have made a few contacts within the organizations over the years. I hope to document and journalize the journey because that’s what will be talked about, regardless of outcome. I want this to be forever documented on the world wide web so we can can go back years from now and make this space our very own little time capsule.

So how do I start this column? How about where this all started, with “Cleveland Pride”

Cleveland Pride is something that is, believe it or not, becoming a mainstream-fashionable badge of honor these days. Where did the Cleveland mainstream pride come from? I think it started with LeBron James. Not so much LeBron coming back to the Cavs recently but when LeBron left the first time for Miami four years ago.

Not to relive the past but the city at the time was hurt, embarrassed, and was tired of getting ripped on crossed the country by the national media. You saw Clevelanders starting to unite and stand-up for themselves shortly after LeBron left. It was apparent we were officially tired of the negativity and things started to change. I witnessed people starting to embrace the amazing things that were going on around the city other than sports. The celebrity chefs and fine dining around the town really started to become a thing and making noise around the country. The microbrewery culture exploded and became a competitive industry in just our area alone. The T-Shirt companies that were popping up promoting “Cleveland Pride” were selling just as fast as the popular “I love New York” shirts in New York. A young local rapper named Machine Gun Kelly made a name and a lot noise for himself with a viral video simply called “Cleveland”. Cleveland Browns cornerback Joe Haden slowly became “Super Fan” of all the professional sports teams in town and screamed “Cleveland Pride” everywhere he went despite being on a losing football team. Next thing you know the fleet of food trucks were infiltrating the city every Wednesday afternoon and the theatre district and arts were getting their due and praise—have you seen that chandelier?

This was all brewing for four years, setting the stage for what would be dubbed, “The Return” by Lebron James himself.

If you followed LeBron as closely as I have, you’ll know he has been accused of being “A Front Runner” since he was in high school. The Bulls. The Cowboys. The—yeah, I know—Yankees. With no disrespect to King James, it only made sense for him to come back to Cleveland when he did. Cleveland was the “Front Running” place to be and he knew it watching from afar, always keeping tabs on what was going on. LeBron likes winners and the latest trends. He wanted to be apart of what Cleveland was becoming and him coming home in his prime would bring it right to the forefront of the entire world. It was the perfect storm and now we are all here eagerly awaiting to see where all of this headed.

LeBron, Kyrie, Kevin Love and the gang are Cleveland’s best chance for a world title in years. I think a good place to finish up my first column is by saying, “Are you excited, Cleveland?” Go Cavs.