Let's hope the day will finally come when Brett Favre and the Packers don't automatically dominate Wisconsin sports news.
In July, however, the melodrama in Packerland has to be rated the top story in the state.
We all know the story too well. Cue the sappy music right here.
Favre has decided to come out of retirement -- if he ever intended to remain in it. The Packers say he can come back as the backup to Aaron Rodgers -- sort of the equivalent of Abe Lincoln serving as George W. Bush's vice-president.
Favre wants to be released from his contract with the Packers, who are figuring if he wants to play elsewhere they might as well get something for him via a trade. As of this writing, a deal seems likely, but progress was painfully slow. Stay tuned.
An era has ended in Green Bay. Undoubtedly, talk about the melodrama will continue into and throughout the season. But that story really is yesterday's news -- the old Wisconsin sports scene. There really is a bigger story brewing at Miller Park.
CC and the Crew: The Brewers traded for the American League Cy Young Award winner and came out of the All-Star Game with a sizzling 7-0 trip followed by a fizzling 1-6 homestand that ended with a four-game sweep by the rival Cubs. In this writer's estimate, this is the real No. 1 story.
Brewers general manager Doug Melvin, thanks to Mark Attanasio's ownership group's deep pockets, didn't stop with getting CC Sabathia. He also picked up veteran infielder Ray Durham as insurance against a Rickie Weeks' implosion.
This is going to make for a great couple months of the baseball season and the best chance for October baseball in Milwaukee for a couple decades.
U.S. Bank Championship: Richard Johnson of Sweden won his first PGA tournament at the U.S. Bank Championship in July. The tournament continues to be plagued by that other tourney, over the pond in Britain.
This year, they were held on the same dates, and for some reason most of the name PGA golfers found Britain a more appealing place than Milwaukee.
That aside, the golf at Brown Deer still is outstanding. The tourney is a nice addition to the state sports scene.
Bogut signs extension: The Bucks made bigger news with their draft and big trade in June, but signing Aussie big man Andrew Bogut to a five-year extension showed the direction they hope to follow under a new regime.
Bogut, meanwhile, plans on sticking around Milwaukee for quite some time. "I bought a house here," he said. "I love the people and have brought my family here numerous times and they only have glowing things to say about Milwaukee as a city. Basketball-wise, the last two years have been a bit of a struggle, but I look forward to things going in an upward direction."
State Olympians: Bogut will be one athlete with Wisconsin ties to compete in the Olympics, but for his native Australia team. Meanwhile, the real feed good state Olympic story started when West Allis' Chellsie Memmel was named to the U.S. gymnastics team.
After serving as an alternate four years ago, Memmel made the squad July 19. "The first emotion I felt was relief," Memmel told the media when her selection was announced. "Now it's very overwhelming. It's so special (to be an Olympian)."
The Olympics start next weekend, so get ready to watch Bogut, Memmel and other athletes with state ties compete. It will not include Paul Hamm, who had to pull out of the Games because of injuries.
There were other big sports stories in July. Feel free to add your picks or use the Talkback feature to add more.
