Bring on 2012

Well, it's safe to say that 2011 has turned out to be, by and large, a very miserable and forgettable sports year for Cleveland.

When your two best moments are LeQuit Shames and his Miami (C)Heats choking away the NBA Finals to Dallas and the Pittspuke Squeelers losing to Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers in the Super Bowl, that's when you know you've had a pretty terrible year.

Even, by and large, the best thing to happen to area sports -- Ohio State hiring Urban Meyer as its new football coach -- occurred because of some terrible news. That is, Jim Tressel's ouster due to his attempted coverup of Tattoo-Gate, which paved the way for ringleader Terrelle Pryor leaving via the NFL's supplemental draft, the 6-6 season under interim coach Luke Fickell and the bowl ban for the 2012 season -- Meyer's first as a Buckeye.

The Indians teased us with a 30-15 start, which was good enough for first place in the American League Central Division. But, in typical Tribe fashion, they melted down over the course of the season, were lapped by Detroit and wound up 80-82. They gave up, arguably, their two best pitching prospects for Ubaldo Jimenez, who was inconsistant to say the least during his two months with the Wahoo Warriors, and -- while it certainly helped the gate during the month of September -- the reacquision of Jim Thome provided great feelings but not much else.

The Cavs, without LeQuitter, lost a sports-record 26 straight games, en route to a 19-63 season. They went from the best record in the NBA to a tie for the worst. At the very least, a shrewed trade by Chris Grant gave the Cavs the Los Angeles Clippers' first round pick, and the lottery turned that pick and the Cavs' own first rounder into the No. 1 and No. 4 picks overall. Kyrie Irving and Tristan Thompson, come on down!

The Browns finally had a uniform philosophy from the top of the organizaiton all the way to the bottom with the triumverate of Mike Holmgren, Tom Heckert and Pat Shurmur. That gave fans a reason for some optimism heading into the season. But, like it has 10 out of the 12 years since the Browns returned from the abyss, that optimism was stomped on and turned into mush by another terrible season, a season where questions didn't get answered and more questions popped up. Shurmur has shown he's not quite ready to be an NFL head coach -- at the very least, not one ready to serve in the dual role of head coach and offensive coordinator -- and Colt McCoy hasn't given fans enough of a reason to believe he'll be the long-term answer at quarterback.

Let's just press down on the plunger now and blow 2011 to smithereens. Time to put it in the past and look forward.

What's in store for 2012? Unfortunately, it may be more rebuilding by all three teams. However, there are reasons to see the glass as being half-full on all of them (here Joe Cleveland goes again with his damn optimism).

I'll start with the Browns. What better way for a new year to begin by upsetting the hated Stillers (and sending those Black and Yellow frontrunners who will probably make up half of Cleveland Browns Stadium home angry). OK, that may not happen. But Consentlessberger's status is still uncertain thanks to that high ankle sprain he suffered against the Browns a few weeks ago, so that's a ray of hope. Also, the Browns were very competitive in their earlier game with the Stillers, and also nearly upset the Cardinals and the Thieving Bastards (the Ravens, for those not familar with the vernacular) on the road.

Even if they don't win (a distinct possibility), the Browns will end up with a top-five pick in the NFL draft and will have two first rounders. Heckert has promised to be more active in free agency (this is what happens when you have an offseason). And Holmgren may force Shurmur to hire an offensive coordinator to ease the stress. The Browns have had two very good drafts under Heckert thus far, but this one is a key. If the Browns fail to show any improvement (and 5-11 will not be improvement from 4-12), it's time to seriously look at the coach and also time to look at the Big Show in charge as well.

The Cavs will take their lumps this season with a rookie point guard in Irving running the show. However, they should be better than they were last year. They ended the season on an upswing (a lot of that is due to veteran Baron Davis, who was injured and released before the season began), which is positive momentum. They will likely be in the NBA lottery again, and this draft appears to be very deep, especially if Harrison Barnes, Jared Sullinger and Perry Jones all declare for it. Plus, I firmly believe Dan Gilbert wants to win, and will do whatever it takes to win.

The Indians have a nice young nucleus in place. However, thus far, the Tribe has been relatively quiet during the "Hot Stove" season. A team that is sorely needing at least one big bat shouldn't be quiet during the offseason, and minor league signings of guys like Felix Pie does not guarantee a parade down Euclid Ave. Once again, the Tribe brass appears to be all talk but little action. Remember when Chris Antonetti and Mark Shapiro said that the Dolans were prepared to spend more this offseason, and then recall that the big acquisions have been an over-the-hill Derek Lowe and the damaged goods that is Grady Sizemore. Antonetti exclaimed to beat reporters during the Winter Meetings that he was getting "phenomenal" trade offers, but then never pulled the trigger on those offers (in which he's never revealed what names were being bandied about). The window of opportunity is about to slam in the Indians' faces once again, which is a shame.

Of the three, the Indians are probably the closest to winning "right now." However, they seem content to see if they can get lightning in a bottle like last season and hope for an 82-82 season. Shame on them!

Ohio State fans have every reason to be optimistic about their future. Meyer has already beefed up the recruiting class and run out a lot of Tressel's cronies that were dragging the playcalling down. The bowl ban hurts. However, that should give Meyer a "grace year" where there will be little pressure on him to win and win now. A win over Michigan will probably as good as a bowl berth, especially after losing to them this season, and Meyer should have the Buckeyes in contention for both Big Ten and national title conversations by 2013.

The 47th anniversary of Cleveland's last major professional sports championship (the Browns beating the Baltmore Colts, 27-0, in the 1964 NFL Championship Game) came and went the other day. I would hope that that drought doesn't go to 48 years. From 1920-1964, the Indians won twoWorld Series titles, the Cleveland Panthers won one NFL title, the Cleveland Rams won one NFL title and the Cleveland Browns won eight football titles (four AAFC, four NFL) for a grand total of 12 major championships during that span.

Perhaps 2012 will be the year we finally land No. 13. Or, at the very least, 2012 will give fans of all three teams hope that No. 13 isn't too far around the corner, and that drought gets snuffed out before it reaches 50 and beyond.

Joe Cleveland certainly hopes so.

I'll be at the Browns game New Year's Day, ready to see if a new year can bring some new positive energy to our three professional franchises. And, hopefully, not getting any fights with front-running Stiller fans. We shall see.

Thanks for reading Joe Cleveland all throughout 2011. I hope it was as entertaining to read as it was to write. Here's wishing you and yours a very Happy New Year and Go Browns, Go Cavs and Go Tribe!

Until next time, remember that Cleveland Rocks!