Scott D. Pierce: Clemens looked guilty in front of Congress

Sometimes seeing is not believing.

That was certainly the case when Roger Clemens appeared on camera this week to deny allegations that he used steroids.

Appearing before a congressional committee on Wednesday, Clemens looked like, well, a liar. His tone, his demeanor, his stammering — if he was trying to convince a jury, Clemens was doing a terrible job of it.

I'm not suggesting that Clemens actually is guilty. I don't know. Like just about everybody else, I have my own opinion about the veracity of his claims vs. the veracity of what both ex-trainer Brian McNamee and former teammate and friend (former friend?) Andy Pettitte had to say.

But Clemens sure looked guilty. And reading what he had to say isn't the same as seeing it on TV, when his entire demeanor screamed, well, liar.

Who would have thought that Clemens, who stood up so well under questioning by Mike Wallace on "60 Minutes," would fall apart while being questioned by a bunch of congressmen and congresswomen — several of whom made fools of themselves?

Bryant Gumbel isn't exactly my favorite sportscaster, but he made some great points in his closing commentary on HBO's "Real Sports" on Monday about Clemens making "a number of personal house calls on Capitol Hill" before his formal appearance.

"Given Clemens' well-earned reputation for surliness, his transparent charm offensive was to many — exactly that. ... You do have to wonder why someone who'll be under oath and claims he's innocent would engage in what looks like the political equivalent of jury tampering to try to influence his reception before a House committee. You could argue it's good insurance. Or you could conclude that on the heels of an interview, a press conference, a taped phone call and a deposition — he doth protest too much."

R.I.P., "Inside the NFL." HBO has canceled the show after 31 years on the air.

Apparently there's no place on TV — even pay-cable TV — for a football show in which the on-air personalities don't yell and scream at each other and generally act like buffoons.

CSTV WILL BE called CBS College Sports Network starting next month — an outward sign of the channel being fully integrated into the CBS Sports family.

The whole look of the channel will be upgraded. And a nightly wrap-up show, "College Sports Tonight," will be added.

My only question is — what will we call it? College Sports Television was easily shortened to CSTV, but how do you shorten CBS College Sports Network?

CBSCSN is a bit cumbersome, isn't it?

And still counting: Today marks the 531st day that the Mountain West Conference, CSTV and Comcast do not have a deal to put The mtn. on satellite systems Dish or DirecTV.

---

E-mail: pierce@desnews.com