Thom Loverro
Columns by Thom Loverro
LOVERRO: Snyder’s cozying up to Jones sends defiant message to NFL
Washington Commanders owner Dan Snyder flew to Dallas Sunday morning on one of his private jets with a mission in mind. It was to get a photo on the field at AT&T Stadium with powerful Cowboys owner Jerry Jones. Published October 3, 2022
LOVERRO: Late father is a ‘hard voice to replace’ in boxer’s corner
The late Buddy Harrison was going to be in his son Dusty Hernandez-Harrison's corner Saturday night before it got unexpectedly postponed. "He will be a hard voice to replace," Dusty said. You would need a choir to replace the voice of Buddy Harrison. Published September 29, 2022
LOVERRO: Commanders’ shiny new rebrand sustains a few dings in ugly loss to Eagles
They keep telling us the new Washington Commanders brand stands for a franchise on the upswing. But on Sunday, the Philadelphia Eagles takeover at Ghost Town Field just felt lik more of the same. Published September 25, 2022
LOVERRO: From D.C. sandlots to MVP, Maury Wills changed baseball for the better
Maury Wills, who died this week at 89, came out of the District as maybe the greatest athlete from this city who impacted the game of baseball when he set the basepaths on fire as a record-setting Most Valuable Player for the Los Angeles Dodgers. Published September 22, 2022
LOVERRO: Commanders’ open criticism is new ground for Rivera
Unlike in coach Ron Rivera's first two seasons, safety Darrick Forrest's comment came during the postgame locker room media availability Sunday -- a practice that wasn't allowed by the NFL in 2020 or 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Published September 19, 2022
LOVERRO: New QB, new optimism and maybe even a new era of football
Wentz threw two dramatic fourth-quarter touchdown passes to lead his team to a 28-22 victory in the Commanders' inaugural performance and sent the raucous crowd home happy and perhaps hopeful. Published September 11, 2022
LOVERRO: Winning on the field is one way to turn down the noise around Commanders
The Washington Commanders have so many "Ghosts of Christmas Past" investigating the franchise that they could haunt a house the size of Skipper Dan Snyder's mansion. Published September 7, 2022
LOVERRO: Taking cash for beatdowns ain’t much of a living, HBCUs
Historically black colleges and universities are popping up on big-time college football program schedules for all the wrong reasons. Published September 5, 2022
LOVERRO: No excellence in Hall of Fame award if it’s not given to or named for Petitbon
This "Awards of Excellence" honor though speaks exactly to Richie Petitbon's credentials. It's as if the award was created for him -- ergo, my question is why it wasn't named after Petitbon. Published September 1, 2022
LOVERRO: An honor long overdue from a franchise that, these days, doesn’t have a clue
The Washington Commanders announced they are going to retire Hall of Fame and franchise legend Sonny Jurgensen's famous No. 9 jersey. Published August 25, 2022
LOVERRO: Prince George’s Valor owner absorbing hits, but still taking her best shots
After two years of game cancellations and postponements, struggling through COVID-19, LaDonna Smith is about to enter a new season as owner of the minor league basketball franchise. She has survived a pandemic, coaches and roster turnover and different venues -- and outlasted a list of those she believes tried to put her out of business. Published August 24, 2022
LOVERRO: Passion and purpose meet in the sneaker resale market
Sneaker Con -- the celebration of resale sneakers -- is a world that grew out of the generation of youths enamored with Michael Jordan and his Air Jordans in 1985. That was almost 40 years ago, and that generation and others will gather this weekend in Washington to share their passion and their money. Published August 18, 2022
LOVERRO: What’s love got to do with it? A nice tribute video, maybe, not much more
Juan Soto felt the love when he came up to the plate Friday night in a San Diego Padres uniform for the first night of Juanstock, three days of Soto peace and love at Nationals Park. Published August 14, 2022
LOVERRO: An unfortunately Commanders-esque start to the season
So what happened to Sam Mills III? He left for Canton last week to attend his late father's posthumous induction into the Pro Football Hall of Fame as the Washington Commanders defensive line coach and returned to Ashburn to find out he was fired. Published August 11, 2022
LOVERRO: Vin Scully, Gil Hodges and a Hall of Fame oversight (finally) fixed
Vin Scully reading the phone book would be something, regardless of where you are on any spectrum. Published August 10, 2022
Add Soto to list of Nationals sent away too soon and forced to leave memories behind
All Nationals fans have left of Juan Soto, the 23-year-old superstar who was traded Tuesday, is just more material for the scrapbook that fans carry in the hearts and minds that connects them to the players they fall in love with on the field, only to watch them leave. Published August 2, 2022
LOVERRO: Bill Russell built his legacy off the court from life lessons
Bill Russell will no longer walk this earth, but his words and deeds will resonate for years to come. Published August 1, 2022
LOVERRO: The weight on Rivera’s shoulders is inevitably about much more than football
Rivera's right, there's a football team to be curious about -- if we could just look past the train wrecks, multi-car pileups, collapsing buildings and falling pianos that also come with trying to follow the Commanders. Published July 28, 2022
LOVERRO: Brig Owens ceremony a celebration fit for a leader both on the field and in life
Those who were fortunate enough to know Brig Owens will gather Tuesday at the Kennedy Center to celebrate his life. It was a life worth celebrating. He was a force in the Washington community long after his NFL career ended in 1977. Published July 25, 2022
LOVERRO: Lerners, who won by losing before, double-down on futility
When I arrived at the Washington Nationals' spring training earlier this year in West Palm Beach, I wrote about how the clubhouse had the feel of the 2008 season -- extra lockers, unrecognizable players and last-gasp veterans looking to extend their careers. Published July 21, 2022
