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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/13916 | Golf • Sweden’s Lingmerth in lead as two stars feud in rain-delayed third round.
Published: May 11, 2013 12:15PM
Updated: December 7, 2013 11:31PM Sergio Garcia of Spain hits from the ninth hole fairway during the third round of The Players championship golf tournament at TPC Sawgrass, Saturday, May 11, 2013 in Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)
Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla. • Tiger Woods was surrounded by four rows of fans who stood shoulder to shoulder, curious to see how he was going to escape from the trees on the second hole at The Players Championship. Cheers erupted when he pulled out a 5-wood, a risky shot off the pine straw through a 15-foot gap of pines.
Woods said he didn’t hear Sergio Garcia hit his shot from the fairway. He didn’t see Garcia stare in his direction.
But he heard Garcia on television during a storm delay.
The Spaniard said the burst of cheers disrupted his swing, and he suggested that Woods was the instigator by thinking only of himself.
“Not real surprising that he’s complaining about something,” Woods said.
“That’s fine,” Garcia said when told of Woods’ comments. “At least I’m true to myself. I know what I’m doing, and he can do whatever he wants.”
A storm was brewing Saturday at Sawgrass even before the real storms rolled in and caused a two-hour delay, keeping eight players from finishing their round. And in the midst of the latest chapter in this Woods-Garcia rift, Swedish rookie David Lingmerth quietly went about his business and wound up atop the leaderboard.
Lingmerth finished a wild day with an 8-foot eagle putt on the par-5 16th and a 10-foot birdie on the island-green 17th to reach 12-under par when the third round was suspended because of darkness.
He was two shots ahead of three players who have won The Players Championship — Woods, Garcia and Henrik Stenson.
“I’m aware of where they’re at,” Lingmerth said. “I try not to look at the leaderboard when I’m out there. I’m just trying to do my thing. But having those guys behind me, I know they’re going to try to hunt me down, of course. But I’m just going to try to forget about all that and just try to do my thing.”
That starts just after sunrise. Eight players — including the top four — have to return Sunday morning to complete the third round. Woods and Garcia were on the 15th hole.
The best action Saturday was during the rain delay when Garcia was asked about the par-5 second hole.
“Well, obviously Tiger was on the left and it was my shot to hit,” Garcia said. “He moved all of the crowd that he needed to move | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/13924 | News in Education Advertise with Us Key penalty, weak offense led to Patriots' loss
New York Jets outside linebacker Quinton Coples (98) knocks the ball away from New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady (12) during the second half of an NFL football game Sunday, Oct. 20, 2013, in East Rutherford, N.J. Patriots player at center is unidentified. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens) ORG XMIT: ERU115AP
By HOWARD ULMAN
FOXBORO — Bill Belichick is taking the blame for the overtime penalty that led to the Patriots' latest loss.There's still plenty to go around for his team's mistake-filled performance.
Tom Brady and the offense continued to struggle. The battered defense couldn't contain Geno Smith.Even Rob Gronkowski failed to catch a key pass in his much-anticipated return from offseason forearm and back surgeries.The result: a 30-27 overtime loss to the New York Jets on Sunday."Just a lot of plays we left out there that we have to, moving forward, learn from," New England defensive end Rob Ninkovich said Monday.The most glaring was the unsportsmanlike conduct penalty on rookie defensive tackle Chris Jones as Nick Folk tried — and missed — a 56-yard field goal attempt.Jones was called for violating a new rule this year that prohibits a defensive player from pushing a teammate forward into the offensive formation on a field-goal try.So Folk got another shot two minutes later and connected on a 42-yarder for the victory.Afterward, Jones, who didn't join the Patriots until he was claimed off waivers Sept. 11, blamed himself.On Monday, his coach absolved him."I think Chris is obviously trying to do the right thing by stepping up and taking responsibility, but that's not his responsibility, it's ours," Belichick said. "We just have to do a better job of coaching that. It's not his fault, that's on me (and) the coaching staff."And, Belichick said, "What he did was basically what he was being told to do."After the game, Belichick was upset that the call was made. He said the push didn't come from the second level of the defense, the group behind the front line. But the rule doesn't mention where the player who does the prohibited pushing is lined up."Obviously, we are wrong," he said Monday. "What else is there to say? We're wrong."His players were eager to move past that. They're focusing on next Sunday's game against the Miami Dolphins in what suddenly looms as a key game in the AFC East that New England has dominated for a decade.The Patriots (5-2) lead the Jets by one game, the Dolphins by 1½ games and the Buffalo Bills by two."You'd have to ask Bill about the (penalty) call," safety Steve Gregory said. "I've moved on. I'm on Miami now.""I want to move past it because it's over with," Ninkovich said. "You live and you learn and now we're looking forward to Miami and just leaving the Jets behind."Especially with all those mistakes.On offense, the Patriots were 1 for 12 on third-down conversions and trailed nearly 2-to-1 in time of possession. Brady completed fewer than half his passes for the third time this season, already his single-season high.He did, however, throw a pick-6 when Antonio Allen intercepted a pass intended for Gronkowski and returned it 23 yards."That's a ball I shouldn't throw," Brady said. "You can't do that, throw interceptions for touchdowns."On defense, Ninkovich let Smith scramble past him for an 8-yard touchdown and a 24-21 lead in the third quarter."With a (quarterback) that can run, as a defensive lineman it's our job to keep him in the pocket," he said. "That's my fault."Gronkowski was supposed to give the offense a big lift. And he did catch eight of the 17 passes thrown his way."He opens it up for the outside receivers," wide receiver Aaron Dobson said. "He's a big target in the middle of the field so I feel like defenses have to respect that."But Gronkowski couldn't make a one-handed catch down the middle of the field with the ball at the Jets 26-yard line with 36 seconds left and the Patriots trailing 27-24. They had to settle for a tying field goal."I had it. I brought it in. And I dropped it," he said.But the play that probably will be remembered the most was the pushing penalty that was called for the first time against any team."I don't really know what was going on," Dobson said, "but it was definitely a tough thing just to have it happen like that at the end of the game." | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/13930 | Sunderland Secure Mangane Loan
Sunderland have completed the signing of Senegal international Kader Mangane on loan.
Kader Mangane: Completes Sunderland loan move
The 29-year-old has agreed personal terms and Sunderland on loan from Saudi Arabian club Al-Hilal until the end of the season, with a view to making the move permanent in the summer.
Mangane becomes their second signing of the transfer window after Alfred N'Diaye joined from Bursaspor last week.
Mangane began his career in his native Senegal before spending six years in Switzerland. He played for Lens and Rennes in the French Ligue One before moving to Saudi Arabia in 2012.
Sunderland manager Martin O'Neill said: "Kader is player who will add to the overall strength of our squad and give us options. He will improve competition for places and we are delighted to welcome him to the club." | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/13932 | SBJ / February 23 - 29, 2004 / Finding the looks that thrill
Boston's sign of strengthMarathon sponsors rally around eventResearch on endurance sportsEndurance stories to watchOctagon feasts on the possibilitiesSports events fit for foodiesStill tasty after 23 years Chefs fired up for sportsSeller's market for teamsBank on it
SBJ/February 23 - 29, 2004/SBJ In Depth
Finding the looks that thrill
The following is a sampling of NFL, Major League Baseball, NBA and NHL teams that have tweaked or overhauled logos and uniforms during the last five years.
Change: 1999
Overview: The Ravens revised their primary logo, settling on a profile head of an attacking raven. Red was added to the eyes to give the bird a more menacing look, and a "B" was incorporated into the design to play up the home city. The search for a new logo began when a federal jury ruled that the team's primary logo had been copied from the work of an amateur Baltimore artist. Milwaukee Brewers
Overview: The Brewers were counting down to the 2001 opening of Miller Park but couldn't wait until then to update their logo and uniforms. The logo features blue, gold and a new "reddish brown." Uniforms feature a cursive script and a barley sprig. "Milwaukee" no longer appears on the front of uniforms, only "Brewers." The team ranked near the bottom of MLB merchandise sales, so it was looking for a spark. New York Giants
Overview: The Giants unveiled uniforms featuring retailored jerseys that are a deeper shade of blue, slick gray pants and helmets with the old "ny" logo. Road numbers are red instead of blue. Team executives said the change had nothing to do with trying to increase profits. Instead, they had been considering the changes since 1994, the year the Giants wore throwback uniforms.
Overview: The Devil Rays wanted a more traditional look, so the team changed its uniform style and color scheme, and shortened its name on uniforms to just "Rays." The team also tossed the logo that featured a multicolor scheme and purple trim. Team officials said the new uniforms "look sharp," with green piping on the front and sleeves and a black logo of a ray on the left sleeve. The alternate jersey is a white, sleeveless vest.
Overview: Older was better for the Pistons, who changed the team's colors back to their original red, white and blue in time for the 2001-02 season. The primary horse and basketball logo received the color update and the team placed more emphasis on an updated "Pistons" word mark. The color change replaced the teal, black, yellow and red that were introduced prior to the 1996-97 season. Said one team executive, "I was never a fan of the teal."
Overview: The Mavericks said they would play on the road the next season in navy blue tops with "Dallas" on the front, a small star on the back and a horse's head on each side of the shorts. Home uniforms would be white, with "Dallas" on the front rather than "Mavericks." The redesign was incorporated into merchandise ranging from hockey sweaters and bowling shirts to tank tops and pajama bottoms. Mavericks owner Mark Cuban said the new uniforms emphasize fashion rather than big logos and the team name.
Overview: The Indians introduced new uniforms that include silver-trimmed jersey logos and a new home vest reminiscent of the 1960s. A new navy cap uses the letter "I" instead of the team's usual Chief Wahoo. Team officials were quick to say they weren't trying to phase out the chief. Instead the move was intended for fans who want to wear an authentic hat that doesn't feature the chief. It was the first change in the team's uniform style since 1994.
Overview: Uniforms introduced for the new season feature a crimson-hued wine color and a metallic gold, the club's original colors from 1970 to 1983. Dark blue is used as an accent color on the new logo and uniforms, in recognition of the Cavs team of the 1990s. The team received 12,000 responses in an online survey to choose from six color combinations. The team re-emphasized the full Cavaliers nickname instead of Cavs.
Overview: For a new home jersey, the Flames returned red as the primary color and added a new black flaming "C" on the chest. The NHL allowed teams this season to wear dark colors for home games. The new jersey replaced the black jersey, which became the alternate uniform to be worn six to eight times this season.
Overview: The Rockets turned to Eiko Ishioka, who won the 1993 Academy Award for costume design for "Dracula," to design a new logo. The result was a twin-tailed "R" that's blasting off. The logo was the first step in a redesign that culminated in September with the debut of red and silver uniforms. Team executives said they wanted something that people would feel good wearing and something that would look good on television.
Overview: The Blue Jays introduced a logo that features a newly styled blue jay extending to the left from three-dimensional, metallic silver "Jays" lettering. "The old logo from our research was tired and outdated," said Paul Godfrey, Blue Jays CEO. "We've had this logo under consideration for two years." He brushed aside the suggestion that the redesign was driven by merchandise sales. "This is not a big cash grab because merchandise, of all the revenue a club gets, is almost near the bottom, if not at the bottom."
Source: The Sports Business Daily Return to top
Baltimore Ravens, Baseball, Basketball, Calgary Flames, Cleveland Cavaliers, Cleveland Indians, Dallas Mavericks, Detroit Pistons, Football, Hockey, Houston Rockets, Milwaukee Brewers, New York Giants, In-Depth, Toronto Blue Jays | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/13935 | Home / L.A. / Ex Lakers champ Brian Shaw gets his due with Nuggets
Ex Lakers champ Brian Shaw gets his due with Nuggets
Former Los Angeles Lakers champion Brian Shaw will finally get the job he deserves as the next heat coach of the Denver Nuggets, the Denver Post reported on Monday. As he’s done his entire career, the NBA’s newest first-time head coach was gracious in his acceptance.
“I can’t express my appreciation enough,” Shaw told The Denver Post by phone Monday evening. “It’s been a grind to say the least, but I’m just very appreciative of the opportunity to lead this team. … It’s been years, 11-12 interviews I’ve gone through. And I’ve felt I’ve been prepared by the best of the best. You know, everything that’s worth something, a lot of times you have to wait for it. I feel like I’ve waited and paid my dues.
He’s paid more than his share of dues, and it’s about time someone recognized him as a viable candidate to lead a team. Shaw had been the associate head coach for the Indiana Pacers under head coach Frank Vogel for the last two seasons. The 47-year-old was on the Lakers’ bench for six seasons prior to that. But the man known as “B-Shaw” to many of his former teammates will best be remembered around Laker-land as a key role player on the Lakers’ first three championships in the Phil Jackson era. As one of the most highly-regarded assistants in the NBA over the last several years, it was only a matter of if, not when, Shaw would get his opportunity. He was consistently mentioned for every head coaching vacancy this offseason, and now the Nuggets will get to see first-hand why. As a Bay Area native and product of UC Santa Barbara, the West Coast is an area of familiarity for Shaw, so it’ll be interesting to see how he does at altitude with his new, young squad. The Nuggets are stacked with talent and poised to be a formidable challenge for all comers come playoff time. Photo Credit: White House Office of the Press Secretary
Brian ShawDenver NuggetsGeorge Karl
Phil Jackson officially joins the Knicks’ front office
Lakers suffer blowout loss to Nuggets, 137-115
Brian Shaw used Kobe Bryant to influence Paul George | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/13955 | Ilhabela added to the Formula Windsurfing World Tour
12 October 2009 | Windsurfing Wind Brasil 2009 has grown and now includes two Formula Windsurfing Grand Prix events. Ilhabela has been added to the world tour and precedes the tour finale in Fortaleza, in Ceara State.
Ilhabela, or Beautiful Island, on Ilha de Sao Sebastiao in the state of Sao Paulo, (see the interactive map from Expedia) certainly lives up to its name. About 85% of the island's almost 350,000 square miles is within Ilhabela State Park, with further development not allowed. Most of the development is on the west coast facing the mainland, and the | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/13965 | 4 Vets To Receive Custom Golf Clubs At Transitions Championship At Innisbrook Today
Posted Mar 13, 2012 by Howard Altman
It’s been a long, long time since I played golf.
I used to enjoy smacking the ball around and I was good enough to break 80.
On the front nine.
Golf fans probably already know about the Transitions Championship at the Innisbrook Resort off of U.S. 19 in Palm Harbor. But they may not know that this afternoon, four wounded veterans are being fitted for golf clubs.
Birdies for the Brave, the PGA Tour, and Callaway Golf have teamed up to custom fit military veterans for new Callaway clubs on the range at 12 PGA Tour events this season.
This week’s fittings will take place around 3 p.m. on the driving range at the Transitions Championship Innisbrook Resort. Callaway’s tour trailer technicians—the same guys who fit the likes of Phil Mickelson and Ernie Els for clubs—will administer the club fittings and Callaway will subsequently be gifting sets of clubs to the three wounded warriors. I’m stuck in the office on this lovely day, but I wanted to give you an idea of who will be getting the golf clubs, from bios provided by three of the vets and in one case from the Ride 2 Recover website.
*Matthew Bilancia served in the United States Air Force as an Aerospace Propulsions Journeyman from March 2000 - May 2004 after graduating from Pequannock Township High School in 1998. He served at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base in Tucson Arizona from August 2000 – May 2004. In July of 2002 he was rear-ended by a car while on his motorcycle when he was heading back to Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. After he was Medically Discharged from the Air Force he started fulfilling the American Dream of being a business owner, and opened his own mortgage company in June of 2005. He built a very successful business and a strong reputation in the Tucson Community based on the Air Forces core values he learned while in the service. Integrity First, Service Before Self, and Excellence in All We Do. In 2008 Matt had a medical relapse from injures he sustained on active duty that caused him to close down his businesses and move to the Washington DC area and focus on his health. In November 2010 he was the first person in his family to complete a college education and graduate from the University of Phoenix with a Bachelors Degree in Business Management. Since early 2009 he has been an inspiration to many Wounded Warriors and Disabled Veterans by overcoming life’s challenges during his rehabilitation and under going a total of 30 surgeries since his injury. Today he has been going back to school learning how to create video documentaries of our Nations Hero’s and Promotional Videos for Non-Profit organizations that support those Wounded Warriors. He looks for the support from us, the people of the United States to help him continue his dream of making Moving Warriors Media successful in telling and showing the world what Wounded Warriors and Disabled Veterans can do, and not what they can’t do.
*Kyle D. Margelofsky was born and raised in Wisconsin by his mother and father and older sister, I enjoyed working on farms, playing sport, hunting and fishing. I joined the Army 03 January 2001, schools and training I have graduated from are but not limited to, Infantry Basic Training, Advanced Individual Training, Basic Airborne School, 75th Ranger Regiment’s Indoctrination Program, Combat Lifesaver’s Course, Pre-Ranger Course, US Army Ranger School, I earned the Expert Infantry Badge, attended the Ranger Team Leader Course, Static Line Jump Master School, Primary Leadership Development Course on the Commandant’s List, I am a Nationally Registered Emergency Medical Technician-Intermediate (EMT-I), graduated as the Honor graduate of the US Army Sniper School, Graduated from Basic Non-Commissioned Officer’s course on the Commandant’s List and also had the highest PT test score, I am Basic, Advanced, Master, and Structural Breacher qualified using manual, ballistic, thermal, and explosive techniques, graduated from the DOD’s Advanced Land Navigation Course, attended numerous live tissue/tactical trauma management courses, graduated as the Honor Graduate of the Maneuver Advanced Non Commissioned Officer’s Course, and am a graduate of the US Navy’s Military Free Fall Course.
I deployed nine times with First Ranger Battalion, three times to Afghanistan and six to Iraq, I was awarded a Bronze Star with Valor, two Bronze Star Medals for meritorious service, the Purple Heart, five Army Commendation Medals, Joint Meritorious Unit Award, the Valorous Unit Award, the Army Good Conduct Medal with three clasps, the National Defense Service Medal, the Afghan Campaign Medal with two stars, the Iraqi Campaign Medal with four stars, the Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal, the Global War on Terror Service Medal, the Army Service Ribbon, the Over Sea’s Ribbon with the numeral “2”, the Ranger Tab, the Expert Infantry Badge, The Combat Infantry Badge, Master, Senior, and Basic Parachutist badge, the Military Free Fall Badge, Australian and German Jump Wings. Currently I serve as the Airborne Operations NCOIC at USSOCOM where I coordinate and execute the Command’s Static Line and Military Free Fall Operations. I am a member of the Para-Commandos, USSOCOM’s demonstration parachute team. I am attending college completing the prerequisites for the Military’s Physician’s Assistant Program and I am six classes away from a Business Management degree. I am married and have two children; a 2-and-a- half year old daughter and a 1-year old son, my wife and I are expecting a third child in July 2012.
*Randy Nantz was riding for the first time since he had his leg amputated, after an EMP device ripped thru his Humvee in Iraq. Randy was burned very badly and lost his leg after a 19 month long struggle in Rehabilitation. Randy has taken longer to recover because of nerve damage and scaring from burns that covered both legs. Although he had been struggling for 19 months, you would not know it by the attitude and excitement he had at the start of the recent Florida Challenge. Finally, he felt like a normal person doing a normal activity. He had hope of trying out for the triathlon, but for now, completing the Florida Challenge was his goal. Randy was not sure he would be able to complete the first day, let alone the 6 days – a 350 mile ride. Well, Randy completed the ride and was with the front half of the ride. Randy’s smile was from ear to ear as he pulled into the parking lot of the hotel, with his family and volunteers cheering for him. It was simply priceless.
*LTC Stuart W. Smead I was assigned to USCENTCOM from Aug 2001 to Apr 2005. During that time I deployed twice to the Forward Headquarters in Qatar, in May 2003 and mid to late 2004. During those deployments I served as the Director of the Joint Intelligence Center. In that role, I deployed forward to Baghdad to visit my servicemen and analysts working in the different intelligence efforts there. At the end of conventional combat operations, and before the onset of improvised explosive device (IED), there was a significant threat of surface to air missiles (SAM) around the city. On the flight from Qatar to Baghdad, we were shot at by a SAM and the pilot executed a combat landing. Because of my position in the cockpit at the moment of execution, I experienced significant pain in my lower back upon landing. I did not seek immediate relief but after the pain became unbearable, I sought medical attention from the physician supporting the CIA element where I was working. I redeployed back to HQ, USCENTCOM and continued normal duties. During this time I continued to experience significant lower back pain. Having many years in the Army I was used to a certain amount of pain. The Army runs on Motrin. This pain was different. I did suffer from bone spurs from constant wear of the desert combat boots, as many soldiers experienced. I had surgery to remove them in the Spring of 2004 so I could redeploy to the forward headquarters in Qatar later that year. I served at the Headquarters for several weeks but the back pain became unbearable. My commander arranged for my redeployment in December of 2005 in order for me to receive the attention I required to relieve the pain in my back. I transferred to USSOCOM in April 2005 and began the long process of X-Rays, MRI’s, and referrals to different doctors. I finally saw Dr. Scott Cutler, who upon reviewing my MRI’s, recommended surgery immediately. This is annotated in his notes of 4 October 2005.
In early 2009, I began having re-occurring disabling back pain. MRI’s showed that my lumbar region demonstrated increased degeneration; much sooner than Dr. Cutler had projected. When examined, he had more concern about significant stenosis of the canal with cord compression at C5-6 and C6-7, which he operated on 13 May 2009. When that region was stable, he operated on L3-L5 on 26 August 2009. A hematoma developed requiring emergency surgery on 8 September 2009. After weeks of extreme pain with no improvement, a granulomatous lesion was found in the epidural space at the L3-L5 level during exploratory surgery on 10 November 2009. Recent X-Rays and MRIs show continued degeneration of the lumbar region from L1 to S1. Pain management and physical therapy have had only relative success due to the status of the degeneration.
Prior to deployment in 2003, I was considered to be in very good shape for my age as I regularly participated in anaerobic and aerobic activities up to six times per week in order to meet height/weight and physical requirement of my service. I am many times less healthy now and this state is not consistent with my level of physical well-being and conditioning. When time permitted over my 25 year career, I enjoyed playing golf. Most sports came very easy to me but golf has always presented such a challenge to continue mastering a stroke or a shot that you thought you had mastered prior to a long deployment or field training. I also was always amazed at the distinct difference between where I was; the jungle or the desert, and the absolute beauty and peacefulness of a golf course. My hope is that when I recover from my final lower back surgery at Walter Reed Medical Center where they are completing three procedures that will permanently fuse the degenerated discs, golf will be a major contributor to regaining some measure of physical wellness. I believe that golf, particularly with custom fitted clubs, will be the perfect sport to motivate and challenge my beleaguered body and mind while giving a measure of peace after a very difficult decade of pain. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14028 | Postgame Quotes: ASU 71- Hartford 63
Recap | Final Stats | Notes
HEAD COACH Herb Sendek Opening Statement
"I thought our guys played tremendous defense in the second half to hold a team who executes as well as Hartford does, offensively 29% in the second half, is a real badge for our team. Hartford is a good basketball team, for those of you who just watched the game don't need me to tell you that. The way they moved the basketball, and cut, they are difficult to defend. It seems that they are playing a combination of 5 guards and 5 forwards on the court. With all of them being able to play on the perimeter, pass, dribble and shoot it a unique as well as difficult match up. They make you defend for 35 seconds, and you could do a great job for 22 of those 35 seconds, and if there is one guy who has a break down, someone who is beat off the dribble on a quick ball reversal close out. You don't talk on a dribble hand off, which happened to us serval times a night, and they make you pay. I was really pleased with our defense in the second half, i thought that was the difference. Offensively, we continued to be very efficient. We shot a high percentage at 56%. We had our season low with 10 turnovers, coming off a game of 11 turnovers, the Achilles heel is obviously our free throw shooting. We make free throws, maybe we have just a little different feel at certain junkers of the game. But all in all good gut check win for us in the second half. Give Hartford a lot of credit, they are a well coached team, with a lot of young players. They can only get better, with having a lot of sophomores who are playing."
On Carrik Felix's performance...
"I can't talk about him enough about Carrick Felix. I can't remember coaching the guy. I know it has been guys who give great effort, but it's hard to think of anybody right now, with every possession, offensively and defensively is given the kind of energy and effort that Carrick Felix gives. He is laying his heart out. He's fun to watch and easy to cheer for. He's given incredible effort, and he now has consecutive double doubles, which isn't easy to do, he's shooting a high percentage, literally playing every facet of the game for us."
On keeping Eric Jacobsen on the floor...
"The thing that Eric Jacobsen is able to do, he is able to bring defensively versatilely, we also talk about the sense of versatilely. Small utilities, big utilities, multi-dimensional, but it is equal valuable to have multi-dimensional on defensive. With these opponents that we had, who are playing 6 6 post, who can shoot three's off the dribble. Eric provides us with someone who can as a big guy, go out on the perimeter and guard, of course he can guard in the post, and that allows us to run our offensive at the other end of the floor. His contribution has been valuable because of his defensive versatilely."On Eric Jacobsen offensively...
"He does go to the hoop. We're able to kick it to him a few times, on post action as well as pick and roll stuff."
On over coming a tough night of free throws...
"You just have to keep working on it, and shoot the next one. The good thing is, we are getting to the free throw line. With today's 11 makes, and they 7 attempts, we are one short of making more of what our opponents have attempted. So i love the fact that we are getting to the line. We are playing good defensive without fouling. We only fouled 10 times, and held them to 29% in the second half, that's phenomenal defensive.
On what changed in the defense between halves....
"We just had a much greater sense of urgency. I think we got rib -shoted when we realized how they move the ball and how they cut. That ball moves from side to side then into the post, and then once they reverse it three times they do a great job of driving it and spacing it. We did a very poor job at times talking in transition. We did a poor job communicating on ball screens and dribble handoffs. We still had a few of those miscommunications in the second half, but not as many."
On Eric Jacobsen's performance tonight...
"Eric has given us great minutes; I am really proud of his contribution. His defense versatility is outstanding."
On his thoughts so far this season on the defensive play...
"I think our half court defense has been very good, with a couple of exceptions. I think the best thing we have done all season is play pretty good half court defense. Our defensive numbers have been pretty good. Our transition defense has not. Our ability to limit our opponents to one shot and come up with lose balls has not, but the basic structure of our half court defense has been pretty good.
On the offensive execution...
"We ended up shooting a really good percentage. We were shooting 62% in the first half and it's hard to get better than that. We are getting to the foul line but still we have too many positions where we settle, where the ball sticks. If we can eliminate those processions where we settle, we can improve offensively. To me a really encouraging thing is, the last two games our turnovers have been down. We went from 18 turnovers three games ago and now we are 11 and 10 over the last two games. We had a low turnover game against Arkansas and had a number of games where we have been in that 10 to 12 turnover range and if we can stay there consistently that is a good sign. I think this is a result of a multitude of things. Needing to do better on our outlet passes, catching the ball, making a simple play, turnovers are one of those things that if everybody put one up on the board it would fill up with the reasons why they happen. I don't get the sense that any one way or category causes them"On Hartford's forward, Nate Sikma...
"He played a great game and got going right away. He got going right out of the gates and did a heck of a job with taking advantage of the matchups. He was out on the perimeter coming off of flares, knocking down threes and when we would switch on a dribble handoff he would slide into the post and take advantage there. He had a great game."
JAHII CARSON On Eric Jacobsen's play...
"I think he stepped up. He stepped up big. He's physical down low. He's proved that in every single game. Tonight I think he took advantages of the mismatches they had down low. Us guards tried to find him down low and capitalize."
On being aggressive early in the game...
"I just try to come out and give our team a boost of energy. If that's scoring or if that's passing the basketball, or if that's stepping up my defensive intensity, I do whatever I think will bring energy to the team."
On feeling better compared to the last two games...
"Oh yeah I do. I'm getting over a little cold but I don't make excuses for those kinds of things. They don't really matter."
On Carrick Felix...
"He's a high-energy guy. He's always there when we need him. Whether it's rebounds, blocked shots, or the open shots that he hits, he's the component that we need when we need big stops. He comes through in the clutch every time."
On the slow opening to the game...
"We had some mis-match problems. Those guys can step out and shoot the 3-ball. When they weren't quick, they were deceptive. It took us a while to get used to them putting the ball on the floor and shooting those three-pointers."
On the foul shooting...
"When the whole team is shooting bad, somebody has to step up and just make a few. It got everybody's confidence. I think Eric stepped up and hit some clutch shots for us. That also gave us the boost to get on a run. When he hit those free throws, it gave us a confidence booster on the other end to come down and score the basketball."
On where he thinks the team is so far...
"I think we were more hyped coming out in the beginning of the season. People underestimated us and we felt like we had to prove a point and make a statement. These last couple games, I think we got a little more comfortable. I think we have a little bit of an ego coming out now. I think if we stick to how we were at the beginning of the season, hungry and ready to come out and make an impact and just beat teams. At the beginning of the season, we handed it to them. Now I think we're letting off the gas a little bit and just being content about where we are now. We're looking to get better."
ERIC JACOBSEN On what got the game going in the second half...
"We just kept playing hard. We kept attacking. We got a couple defensive stops and they helped a lot."
On Jahii Carson getting him the ball...
"That was nice. I liked that."
On being able to finish the game as a freshman...
"I'm just out there playing as hard as I can. I'm doing whatever it takes to win. If that means that I'm on the floor then I'm on the floor."
On his confidence going into the game...
"I was pretty confident but I try not to get too confident. I try to stay humble. I go out there and do whatever it takes to help the team win."
On his biggest adjustment going from high school to college basketball...
"Probably the speed of the game. College basketball is a lot faster. I'm starting to adjust a little better. I have great teammates that help me out a lot so it's been a good transition." Arizona State Sun Devils Men's Basketball
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14030 | ‘It is 14 years on and still they look for the next Andy Cole and Dwight Yorke’
Ultimate Premier League guide
Yorke, left, and Cole celebrate with the Premiership trophy in 1999, the year United won the treble with the strikers at the height of their powers
Matthew Peters/Getty
Rory Smith
Last updated at 12:01AM, April 6 2013
There is such a thing as too much information. Dwight Yorke, hunched forward, eyes bright, is reminiscing about the relationship that came to define his career. “There was even a point,” he says, looking at the man seated to his right, “when we had the exact same car, in the same colour.”
Where Yorke is all smiles and effervescent enthusiasm, his interlocutor is harder to read. Initially, it is not hard to see why Paul Scholes once described Andy Cole as “miserable”. He is aloof, distant, perhaps slightly wary. Once he gets going, though, the contrast is remarkable. As soon | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14062 | Pitt out to extend win streak at Syracuse
BY NATALIE BIGLEY
[email protected]
PITTSBURGH — Pitt and Syracuse were both off last weekend, which gave both ample time to prepare for tonight’s Big East Conference game, and one team will leave the Carrier Dome with its first conference win of the season.
And for Pitt (2-2), a win signifies the Panthers have reversed the fortunes of a horrific start to the season.
For Syracuse (1-3), a win means the Orange are a step closer to getting their program back on solid ground.
Momentum appears to be in Pitt’s corner. The Panthers are coming off back-to-back strong outings against Virginia Tech, which was ranked No. 13 at the time, and Gardner-Webb, an FCS school.
“Yes, we haven’t won in the Big East yet, but I think there’s also a lot more to it,” Pitt coach Paul Chryst said.
Just like there’s a lot more to Syracuse’s record. One of the Orange’s losses came against USC, and the game was competitive for three quarters.
“They’ve had some tough games,” Chryst said. “They’ve also played some really good teams.”
Pitt has looked like a good team since losses to Youngstown State and Cincinnati to open the season.
Something clicked following those losses, however, as a suddenly confident Pitt team has outscored its last two opponents, 90-27.
With this quick shift in momentum, the damage inflicted by a series of coaching changes could be fading.
“There’s a lot of things that happened before and you have to be aware of it as a coach,” he said. “The only thing you can do is focus on the now and where we’re at. I think stability by nature is something that you can only bring over a course of time. We’re trying to do all we can, and are taking steps to get there.”
Marrone is in his fourth season at Syracuse. He was hired in 2008, after the Orange won only three games under Greg Robinson.
But in his four seasons, results have not met expectations. Marrone’s coaching record is 18-23, with only one bowl game appearance. That came in the 2010 Pinstripe Bowl, and Syracuse beat Kansas State.
Marrone repeatedly blamed himself during the week for this season’s slow start, using phrases like “my fault” and “poor job.” He said the Orange needed to work on a multitude of areas. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14075 | UCSD Triton Athletic Camps›
UCSD Camps & Clinic Schedule›
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Swimming & Diving Camps›
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UC San Diego Tritons Website›
University of California, San Diego Triton Athletic Camps
Nestled on the bluffs above the Pacific Ocean just north of San Diego, UC San Diego is known as one of the most attractive and livable campuses in the country. Just over 25,000 students are spread across UC San Diego’s 1,200 wooded acres. With near-perfect weather year-round and boundless recreational activities to choose from, San Diego truly lives up to its motto of “America’s Finest City.”
Join the UC San Diego coaches and student-athletes for fun and educational instruction at the various 2014 Triton Athletic Camps. Using the menu to the left, select a sport to view camp dates, times and fees. All online credit card registrations are secure using My Online Camp.
The UCSD Athletics Facilities are known throughout the nation for their
quality playing surfaces and architectural beauty. The facilities include:
RIMAC Arena
The Recreation, IntraMural, Athletic Complex (RIMAC) is the cornerstone of the UCSD sports facilities. This nearly 200,000 square foot facility is located just south of the 12-acre North Campus Recreation Area Field on the northwest corner of the campus. Opened in January 1995, RIMAC is a multi-purpose facility with the most advanced forms of quality control and state-of-the-art equipment. READ MORE
Triton Ballpark
Triton Ballpark is one of the premier fields in all of San Diego County. The facility is located on the east side of campus off of Voigt Drive, across the street from Scripps Memorial Hospital. Features include: A complete lighting system installed in 2011, two covered dugouts (with lighting and power), a scoreboard (located in right center field), fenced batting cage with power available and bleacher seating for approximately 1,200 fans. READ MORE
Canyonview Aquatic Center
Located on the eastern end of campus, between Eleanor Roosevelt College and Warren College, the Canyonview Aquatics Center features two outdoor, Olympic-Size Pools, each of which can be divided into eight lanes of 50 meters in length or 19 lanes of 25 yards in length. Canyonview is home to the UCSD men's and women's water polo teams, as well as the men's and women's swimming and diving teams. READ MORE
Triton Softball Field
The renovated softball field, including new dugouts, a netted backstop, fencing and a press box, was made possible by a $250,000 contribution from Dana Chaiken (UCSD Class of 1991). It was the largest contribution ever made by an alumni athlete. The first official game on the new field took place on Feb. 12, 2010. READ MORE
Triton Soccer Stadium
The RIMAC Fields are home to the UCSD men's and women's soccer teams. Located just north of RIMAC Arena, the large open area can accomodate up to five soccer fields at the same time. Triton soccer calls the northwest corner its home. With a built-in seating capacity of 750, which is expandable up to 1,750 for NCAA postseason games, UCSD enjoys a tremendous home advantage. READ MORE
Triton Track & Field Stadium
UC San Diego's Track and Field Complex is known as one of the top facilities in the country. The facility includes a nine-lane track surface in Triton Stadium, a world-renowned throwing facility, spacious locker rooms and a weight room. Large grass fields and a eucalyptus forest with trails surround the stadium providing endless possibilities for training. Near the track is a state-of-the-art, multi-million dollar RIMAC athletic event center. READ MORE
UC San Diego Boathouse
The UCSD rowing teams call San Diego Mission Bay home for all workouts and regattas. Consisting of 4,600 acres, the "World's Finest Aquatic Playground" is a rower's paradise. In addition to several dual meet competitions, UCSD competes on Mission Bay in the San Diego City Championships and the San Diego Crew Classic, the largest spring regatta in the United States. READ MORE
Northview Tennis Courts
The Northview Tennis Courts are located at the northern tip of the UC San Diego campus. The tennis courts are featured in a dramatic setting, with a view to the Pacific Ocean. The men's and women's tennis teams play about 10 home matches each, per season, on the La Jolla campus. Bleacher seating is located at the west side of the Northview Tennis Courts. READ MORE
UCSD Weight Room
The Athletic Performance Program is geared toward teaching each student-athlete how to achieve the highest level of athletic development through enhancement of all components of strength and conditioning. The Tritons work out in the RIMAC weight room that is over 12,000 square feet in size with state of the art equipment. The weight room is truly designed with the student-athlete's enhancement in mind. READ MORE
© 2014 UC San Diego - Camps | | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14077 | Chris Burkhalter
Hometown:Stafford, Texas
High School:Stafford HS
Position:Associate Athletics Director for Communications
Texas State '89:Louisiana-Lafayette '92
Houston native Chris Burkhalter is in his 11th year as the Associate Athletics Director for Communications at the University of Houston. In this capacity, he oversees sports information, media relations, publications, the Internet and radio and television services.
In addition to his role as the SID, Burkhalter serves as the administrative liaison to the softball program and serves as the department's radio/TV liaison to the Conference USA office.
Burkhalter was recently named to the NCAA Softball Committee, a four-year term beginning September of 2009. In this capacity Burkhalter will help select the softball teams that will participate in the NCAA Regionals each season.
In 2008, Burkhalter served as the tournament director for both the NCAA Houston Regional and NCAA Houston Super Regional hosted by the nationally ranked Cougar softball team, which won two straight Conference USA regular-season championships
and captured the 2007 C-USA Tournament title.
He also served as the media coordinator for the NCAA Men's Basketball South Regional, held at Reliant Stadium in the spring of 2008.
Burkhalter returned to his hometown in 1998-99 after serving as the Assistant Athletics director for Media Relations at UTEP. While in El Paso, he oversaw the Media Relations office while serving as the primary contact for the Miner football, men's basketball teams and men's and women's golf programs.
Burkhalter went to UTEP after spending two years at Indiana State, where he was the Assistant AD for Media Relations. In his administrative role at Indiana State, Burkhalter managed the sports of men's and women's tennis, assisted the Director of Athletics with football scheduling, resurrected the ISU Hall of Fame as the Chair and served as the Tournament Director for the 1998 Missouri Valley Conference Women's Tennis Championships.
He also has worked with the Texas Terror of the Arena Football League and the NBA's Houston Rockets, Northern Arizona and Wyoming.
Burkhalter began his sports information career as a graduate assistant at Louisiana-Lafayette. He earned his master's degree in European history from Louisiana-Lafayette in 1992 and received his bachelor's degree in broadcast journalism from Texas State in 1989, where he was named Who's Who Among Students in American Universities and Colleges.
He is a member of the National Association of Collegiate Directors of Athletics, the Football Writers' Association of American, the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) and the Touchdown Club of Houston.
Burkhalter and his wife, Kristi, have two sons, Mack and Carson. He also has a daughter, Alexis who is a freshman at Texas Tech. The family lives in Sugar Land. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14102 | STAY CONNECTED » Mike Vollmar
Position:Sr. Associate AD, Football Administration
Experience:2nd Season
Alma Mater:Siena Heights University, '88
THE VOLLMAR FILE
Hometown: Riverview, Mich Education: Siena Heights University, 1988
» 2013-present:
Tennessee, Senior AD of Football Administration
» 2011-12:
Michigan, Associate AD for Football
Alabama, Associate AD for Football
Michigan State, Assistant AD and Director of Football Operations
Syracuse, Recruiting and Administration
Michigan, Recruiting and Administration
A veteran of 26 years in college athletics, Vollmar is responsible for oversight of the Tennessee football program and is a member of the athletic department's executive staff
He has been a part of 17 bowl games during his career while helping his teams to four conference titles and a national championship
Comes to the Vols from Michigan, where he spent the last two years as the associate athletic director for football helping guide the Wolverines to back-to-back bowl appearances including a 2011 BCS Sugar Bowl Championship as Michigan finished the year with an 11-2 record
Spent 2008-10 at Alabama where he oversaw the administration of the football program during a time in which the Crimson Tide went 36-5, won the 2009 BCS National Championship and SEC title and appeared in three consecutive bowl games
Worked as an assistant athletic director and director of football operations at Michigan State from 1996-2007, overseeing all phases of the Spartan football program's operations while also managing construction of a new $12 million football facility
The Spartans appeared in six bowl games during his tenure
Prior to Michigan State, worked for five years at Syracuse (1991-95), during which time the Orangemen finished 41-15-1, won three bowl games in his five years ('92 Hall of Fame, '93 Fiesta, and '96 Gator Bowls) and captured the Lambert Trophy championship in 1992
At Syracuse, Vollmar was responsible for oversight of recruiting and administration, and four players recruited during his tenure were named to the Syracuse All-Century Team (Donovan McNabb, Kevin Abrams, Donovan Darius, and Kevin Johnson)
Began his career from 1988-90 with Michigan serving as assistant recruiting coordinator and in athletic administration under the late Bo Schembechler and Gary Moeller.
During his Michigan tenure, the Wolverines went 28-7-1, winning three Big Ten Championships, with two Rose Bowl appearances and a Gator Bowl appearance
Mike's father, James, was a running back at Michigan from 1956-58
Earned a master's degree in sport management from the United States Sports Academy in 1999, where he was recently named Alumnus of the Year for 2010.
Vollmar currently serves on the Rose Bowl Advisory Committee, the AFCA National Committee for Directors of Football Operations and U.S. Sports Academy Alumni Board
Received a bachelor's degree in history with a minor in speech communication from Siena Heights University in 1988, where he was a pole vaulter on the Saints track and field team
A native of Riverview, Mich., Vollmar graduated from Riverview High School in 1983, the same school that produced former University of Michigan head coach Lloyd Carr, former Vanderbilt head coach Woody Widenhofer and former Colorado head coach Bill McCartney
He and his wife, Tami, have a daughter, Bailey Lauren | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14113 | LoCascio, O'Neil Selected in 2014 Major League Lacrosse Draft
Seniors Chosen 26th and 63rd Overall in Collegiate Draft Friday Night
Kevin O'Neil
PHILADELPHIA, Pa. - Senior defenseman John LoCascio (Fairfield, N.J.) and attackman Kevin O'Neil (Cockeysville, Md.) were chosen as the 26th and 63rd overall picks in the 2014 Major League Lacrosse Collegiate Draft, held on Friday evening at the U.S. Lacrosse Convention in Philadelphia, Pa.
LoCascio was selected during the fourth round by the Rochester Rattlers while O'Neil was picked up by the Charlotte Hounds in the eighth and final round. Both players will be eligible to sign a contract with Major League Lacrosse after the 2014 college season. A total of 64 seniors were selected over eight rounds during Friday's draft.
LoCascio was named a Third Team All-America selection to cap an outstanding junior season and collected 85 ground balls and caused 53 turnovers in 2013. He was named the 2013 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, was an unanimous selection to the All-BIG EAST First Team and also earned a spot on the 2013 BIG EAST Championship All-Tournament Team. The junior ranked first in the NCAA averaging 3.79 caused turnovers per game and also registered two goals and six assists for eight points as a dominate force in the Villanova backfield last season. Through his three seasons as a Wildcat, LoCascio has collected 164 ground balls and caused 87 career turnovers and currently ranks 2nd all-time at Villanova averaging 1.93 caused turnovers per game. Additionally, the defenseman ranked 3rd in the BIG EAST averaging 6.07 ground balls per game in 2013. LoCascio will return for his final season as a Wildcat in the coming weeks and will once again serve as a team captain for his senior campaign.
O'Neil has appeared in 39 games while making 11 starts as a lefty on the Villanova offense and has tallied 29 goals and 24 assists for 53 points through his junior season. He's collected 17 ground balls and caused three turnovers while posting two game-winning goals and seven man-up scores. He'll be heavily relied upon this season as a veteran on attack and hopes to follow up a junior campaign that featured 15 goals and 12 assists for 27 points.
LoCascio and O'Neil's picks mark the fourth consecutive year that Villanova has had at least one player drafted into lacrosse's professional league. 2011 graduate Brian Karalunas is currently a member of the New York Lizards while 2012 graduate Kevin Cunningham is rostered with the Florida Launch. 2013 graduate Jack Rice was recently selected third overall in the supplemental draft by the Boston Cannons to round out Villanova alumni currently playing in the pros. Men's Lacrosse Home | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14149 | Posted: Thursday, 09 May 2013 8:24PM
Former player suggests Bills and Byrd are $2M apart
(WGR 550) -- All has been quiet on the Jairus Byrd front since the Buffalo Bills placed the franchise tag on him before the start of free agency in early March. Byrd has yet to sign his tender, and the Bills have been mum on where negotiations have been.
A few days before the start of the team's first voluntary OTA session, the gap between the two sides might have a little bit of a clearer picture. By no means is this an official report, but the comments made by one former player on The John Murphy Show (which airs on WGR 550 nightly from 7-9) suggest that Byrd and the Bills are $2 million apart at this point in time.
Mark Kelso, the former Bills safety and current color analyst of the team's official radio broadcast, made a plea to Murphy about Byrd during his guest appearance.
"I got a comment on Jairus Byrd: sign the dang contract and get in to camp," Kelso started. "He's the leader on the defense, you've got to be leader on the defense or the defense is going nowhere. So sign a contract and get in to camp. I mean we're talking… we're quibbling over $2 million here. I mean I know $2 million is a lot of money but not when you're making $6 [million] or $7 [million]."
Later on during his segment, the former Bills safety went on about the current Bills safety.
"It's unfortunate. It is what it is though," Kelso remarked. "Honestly, I had the conversation with him. 'What's the difference between $7 million and $9 million?' Two million, I realize that. I'm smarter than a fifth grader but in the realm of professional sports, I think there are a lot of things more important than that $2 million."
Again, to be clear, this is not an official report of the exact standing between Byrd and the Bills, but it might be a look in to what could be holding things up. Long-term deals for franchised players can only be negotiatied through July 15. If he signs his franchise tag, he'll be due $6.916 million this upcoming season. Byrd will be entering his fifth year in the NFL after making the Pro Bowl twice through his first four. He has yet to show up to any offseason workouts in 2013.
You can listen to the full interview below:
Filed Under : People : Byrd, Mark Kelso advertise with us | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14152 | Whitecaps FC Girls Elite head to Final Four Showcase Grade 10 and 11 'Caps girls prepare for North America’s best November 26, 2012 Lev Jackson Vancouver Beacon Whitecaps FC grade 10 and 11 Girls Elite players will be flying out to San Diego this week to compete in the Final Four showcase tournament, which will also allow the girls to watch the NCAA women's semifinals. The girls will play a game every day from November 29 to December 1.
It appears the hard work of the year-round, five-day training week that the U-18 Whitecaps FC girls are subjected to is paying dividends.
Due to the lack of professional opportunities on the women’s side of the sport, Whitecaps women’s and Girls Elite head coach Jesse Symons stresses the important of opportunities such as this.
“On the female side of the game, not a lot will become professional players but a lot will be given the opportunity to get their school paid for, which is obviously a huge benefit to each player,” he said. “Going down to the US gives a lot of NCAA schools a chance to see our players. They are aware of our program from past years. It’s great they will be seen at the biggest showcase in North America.”
Whitecaps FC are aware of the importance of scholarships to female athletes and have moulded their senior women’s program around this.
The 'Caps women’s team plays a three-month summer season, leaving the year open to pursue education or career opportunities.
“On the girls side the focus is predominantly in getting a scholarship or making the national team. So what we try and do is create a vehicle for that on the senior side,” said Dan Lenarduzzi, director of soccer development for Whitecaps FC. “Girls that get scholarships can come back from university and play for our women’s team in the summer, or they can be selected to different national teams.”
While this weekend it will be the grade 10 and 11 girls trying to get noticed internationally, three of the Whitecaps grade 12 players recently returned from the FIFA U-17 Women's World Cup.
Striker Summer Clarke, forward Jasmin Dhanda and defender Aman Shergill all represented Canada, who impressively went 2W-0L-1D in the group stage before exiting the tournament in the quarterfinals.
With a smaller pool of talent, there are more opportunities for local girls to play for Whitecaps FC teams than the boys.
“It’s a little bit different on the girls side than it is on the boys side being that the development pool isn’t as big as the boys side,” said Lenarduzzi.
So why is women’s soccer so hot in Canada right now? Coach Symons says everyone is riding the hype train.
“There’s been a lot of hype with the Olympic qualifying tournament in town, the national team doing so well at the Olympics and with us hosting the U-20 world cup in 2014 and women’s world cup in 2015 there’s just so much hype right now.”
For more stories on youth soccer in British Columbia, visit http://beaconnews.ca/vancouver.
Academy Youth WomenVancouver Whitecaps FC Related Links | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14153 | Whitecaps FC U-18 Residency take on New York Red Bulls at Academy Finals Week Pivotal match vs. once-beaten New York. Live stream at 4 p.m. PT July 16, 2013 Sandy Beeson whitecapsfc.com Jackson Farmer Residency
Photo Credit: Bob Frid/Vancouver Whitecaps FC HOUSTON, TX – Vancouver Whitecaps FC U-18 Residency resume action at United States Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) Finals Week on Tuesday as they take on New York Red Bulls. Kickoff is set for 4 p.m. PT at Houston Amateur Sports Park Field #6 and will be streamed live online at hi-podcasts.com.
Alternatively, fans can follow the match on Twitter through @WhitecapsMatch. You can also get into the conversation by using the hashtag #BackForMore.
The 'Caps go into their second match sitting in top spot in Group 1.
The team will be buoyed by a confident performance in the first match of Finals Week as they dispatched Northwest Division rivals Seattle Sounders FC with a 3-1 win. Brody Huitema’s first half goal was cancelled out midway through the second period, but goals in the last 10 minutes from Huitema and Marco Bustos wrapped up the three points.
A second victory in as many matches would go a long way to securing a spot in Saturday's championship final. Only the teams that finish first in each group after the completion of the group stage will progress to the final.
New York, the USSDA East Conference "Style of Play" award winners, opened their tournament campaign with a 3-3 draw against Northeast Division rivals Albertson SC. Both New York and Albertson have lost only once all season. After going down a goal early on, New York battled back with two goals from Alex Muyl. Albertson staged their own comeback to make it 3-2 before Jhon Estama rescued a point for the Red Bulls with five minutes remaining.
The Red Bulls, a fellow MLS club, won the East Conference Northeast Division with 69 points, equal to Vancouver’s haul, and a points-per-game average of 2.46, the highest in the USSDA.
Many New York players have experienced previous success at Academy Finals Week, as the club emerged triumphant from last season’s U-15/16 USSDA championship. Much of the squad have become key members of this year's U-18 squad.
New York look likely to again be without the services of the East Conference’s U-18 Player of the Year, Matt Miazga, as the centre back has been providing cover for the first team of late. Despite Miazga’s absence, New York can still rely on the likes of classy midfielder Adam Najem to supply chances to 17-goal top scorer and U-17/18 East Conference Starting XI member Muyl.
In their final match of the group stage, Vancouver face Albertson SC on Thursday, July 18 at Houston Amateur Sports Park Field #2. Kickoff will be at 6:30p.m. PT and will again be streamed online at hi-podcasts.com.
Academy YouthNew York Red Bulls Vancouver Whitecaps FC Related Links
Finals Week Preview | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14169 | Adirondack Ice Bowl gets under way at Fourth Lake By
KEITH HUNT
INLET, N.Y. (WKTV) - This weekend, the destination is Fourth Lake in Inlet, as the annual Adirondack Ice Bowl gets under way - an event expected to draw dozens of hockey players, as well as fans.With snowmobiles zipping behind them, the staff of this year's Adirondack Ice Bowl are busy grooming the ice surface for the Fourth Annual Outdoor Hockey Tournament in Inlet. There are 40, six-man teams from across the United States, there and ready to play."The competition is at a high level and the open division is very competitive," said Matt Hayes of the ADK Ice Bowl.That's a good thing for not only the event, but for the owner of the Woods Inn, which was last year's host site."It's definitely the most excitement we can have in the winter," said Joedda McClain of Wood's Inn.However, if you're thinking about spending the night..."There is no room at the inn," McClain said. McClain is quick to add, though, that there are still other rooms available in the area.Over 100 games will be played on Fourth Lake with two vintage Zambonis from Hamilton College called into service to keep things level, and lights will be on for the evening games.With the ice approaching a thickness of a foot, and temperatures hanging around 30 degrees, conditions should be perfect for players and spectators alike.
Next Article Utica police search for suspect in Oneida Street homicide | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14185 | Dothan SONIC Skating Carhop Named Finalist for National Competition
By: Press Release Posted: Wed 5:02 PM, Aug 08, 2012
/ Article Oklahoma City, Okla. – Stevie Jones of Dothan isn’t letting the opportunity of a lifetime skate by. SONIC Drive-In announced he is one of seven finalists in the 2012 SONIC Skate-Off, a national competition presented by Dr Pepper and RC Sports that crowns the top SONIC skating Carhop in the country.
As a finalist, Jones has earned an all-expense-paid trip to SONIC World Headquarters in Oklahoma City to compete in the finals competition Friday, Aug. 17. Jones will show off his skating and Carhopping skills in front of a panel of judges and SONIC corporate employees for a chance to win the gold, silver or bronze medal, cash prizes and ultimate bragging rights as the best skating Carhop in America. In addition, each Finalist receives a pair of skates valued at $1,000 and an all-expense-paid to trip to perform at SONIC’s National Convention in September, where the winner of the competition will be announced.
“The SONIC Skate-Off shines a much-deserved spotlight on one of SONIC’s most beloved brand treasures, the skating Carhop” said John Salama, vice president of training for SONIC. “These seven finalists combine the best in skating and Carhopping skills while exemplifying the fast, fun and friendly service our customers love.”
Jones was selected from more than 300 hundred video entries submitted by SONIC skating Carhops across the country. Among the criteria used by judges to determine the finalists were personality, Carhopping and guest service skills, and skating flare. Click here to view a video recap of last year’s Finals competition.
About SONIC Drive-In
SONIC®, America’s Drive-In® (NASDAQ/NM: SONC) started as a hamburger and root beer stand in 1953 in Shawnee, Okla., called Top Hat Drive-In, and then changed its name to SONIC in 1959. The first drive-in to adopt the SONIC name is still serving customers in Stillwater, Okla. As the nation’s largest chain of drive-in restaurants, SONIC has more than 3,500 drive-ins in 43 states coast to coast. Approximately 3 million customers eat at SONIC every day; and with more drink combinations than any other quick-service restaurant –398,929 – SONIC is Your Ultimate Drink Stop®. For more information about Sonic Corp. and its subsidiaries, visit SONIC at SonicDriveIn.com. Through Limeades for Learning®, SONIC and its franchise partners have donated more than $2 million to public school classrooms in local communities across the country. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14198 | MORICE EYEING RENNES FUTURE
RYAN BACIC - Friday, September 14, 2012
Just last year, Max Morice found himself a freshman at Yale University, trying to carve out a balance between the commitments of playing for the soccer team and navigating the school's tough academic slate.
But after signing a one-year contract in May with Stade Rennais F.C. of France's Ligue 1, Morice will only have the first of those two issues to deal with from now on. That challenge, however, will be an entirely new beast, as he'll leave the 101 classes behind and head straight to the advanced seminars of professional soccer.
Morice told Yanks Abroad that he had had a trial with Rennes back in the summer of 2011 before heading off to Yale, and he returned in March of this year for another shot. The St. Paul native would be offered a deal two months later, but, despite the great opportunity that lay front of him, the choice to leave Yale was not an easy one to make.
"It was a really tough decision, because I really liked Yale," he said. "I had great coaches, a great team, and it's obviously an amazing university. So it was a tough decision, but it's been my dream since I was a little kid to play professionally in Europe."
That dream first began to grow within Morice thanks to his father, Pierre, who played for several teams in Ligue 1 during his playing days, including seven seasons for current Ligue 2 side FC Nantes.
Growing up with a professional soccer player in the house spurred on the young Morice to try to follow in his dad's footsteps, a path that has led him back to the same country where his father grew up and plied his trade.
"He's been my coach since I was a kid, [and] I definitely wouldn't be here if it weren't for him," said Morice. "He's taught me most of what I know. He was my idol when I was [younger], and that obviously made me want it more."
And that hunger has helped put him right on the doorstep of top flight European soccer.
A left midfielder last year for Yale, Morice said that he has been moved to the backline since arriving in France, being deployed now for Rennes more as an attack-minded wingback. He noted that he will be playing primarily with the reserves during the 2012-13 campaign, but if he impresses, he could work his way up before the season is over.
So, while the insecurity that comes along with short contracts is often tough for athletes, a levelheaded Morice explained that he is ready just to leave everything he has on the field and see what happens.
"On a one-year deal, I have to prove to the coaches and to the club that I can play in the first division," he said. "There's a few younger players on the pro team that don't usually play in all the matches but [that] practice with the first team, so realistically, this year, that's my goal."
And if he does end up training with French international Yann M'Vila and the rest of the Rennes first team, a U.S. U20 call-up could very well be in the offing for the 19-year-old. Morice has yet to feature for any of the American youth national teams, but with Terrence Boyd getting senior-team appearances while still playing for the Borussia Dortmund reserves, it would seem likely that the former Bulldog will be hearing from Tab Ramos some time soon.
When the idea was brought up, he did not hide his excitement at the thought of getting the opportunity to don the Stars and Stripes.
"I mean I haven't really thought about it that much, but it would be amazing. I would love to wear the U.S. jersey some day. If that ever happens, I would be honored," Morice said.
With a new soccer dream in mind, then, the Minnesotan is looking to make an impression at USMNT captain Carlos Bocanegra's old stomping grounds. The ivy-covered walls of Yale behind him, Morice now looks toward what could potentially be a very bright future.
Max Morice
Wednesday September 19, 2012 1:11 pm
What's weird is if he gets called up to the US U-20's, and I think that's a ways from happening, there would be 3 Minnesota kids on that roster. Cropper, Miller and Morice. That wouldn't be so odd for California, Texas or Florida, but from Minnesota? That would definitely have be a first.
Tuesday September 18, 2012 5:37 pm
If he gets consistent playing time with rennes reserve team then he'll get called up.
2tone
Tuesday September 18, 2012 10:25 am
Nice. doesn't hurt to have more options at LB for the U-20's and potetnially the USMNT.
Friday September 14, 2012 12:21 pm
left mid, moved to the back as a wingback. do i dare dream of a marauding LWB for the USMNT?
Aron Johannsson, Eredivisie, Alejandro Bedoya, Aston Villa, Holland, Stoke City, FC Nantes, Ligue 1, Charles Kazlauskas, Utrecht | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14215 | FC Twente defender Douglas delighted with Holland call-up Last Updated: 09/10/12 10:44am
Douglas: Defender hoping to make a positive impression with Holland
Douglas has admitted it was a 'special' feeling to get drafted into the Holland squad after working hard to gain citizenship.
The Brazil-born centre-half was called into the Oranje party on Monday for the World Cup qualifiers against Andorra and Romania.
And he believes it was justification for turning his back on his native country and pursuing an international future with Holland.
He told ANP: "I'm very happy, this is such a special, special day. I had to do so much to become a Dutch citizen. I'm glad I'm here now, I've studied hard.
"It has lasted about three years and everything was difficult. But now my Dutch is a lot better and I know a lot of the country."
The 24-year-old is now hoping to make a positive impression in front of coach Louis van Gaal.
"My goal was always to be called up by the Oranje," Douglas added.
"Now I have to make sure that I stay here for a long time. I must do this by continuing to work hard, especially in the coming days.
"I will do everything to show that I deserve a place in the squad."
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Celtic's Kris Commons has been nominated for Player of the Year. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14225 | Fencers stumble at Ivy North
By Karan Arakotaram
The second round of the Ivy League Fencing Championships was a mirror image of the first for the Bulldogs, as the men’s squad went without wins and the women’s squad posted a 1-2 record. During the first round of the conference competition, it was the women’s squad that lost all three of its matches while the men’s squad won one of three battles.
Although both the men’s and women’s teams fell flat during league play, the season as a whole has been an important one for the Bulldogs. The women’s squad defeated Princeton en route to a 11-9 record and the men finished 10-10 in one of their most impressive seasons in recent history. The women had lost to Princeton each year since the 2001-’02 season, and the men had gone five years without posting a .500 record.
Last Sunday’s Ivy North competition at Harvard gave the Elis plenty to be hopeful about. In the match against Princeton, impressive performances from one of the best freshman classes in recent years carried the women’s squad. The Bulldogs defeated the No. 10 team in the country 18-9. Sabres Katherine Arden ’10 and Farrah Kimovec ’10 posted a combined 5-1 record against the Tigers, and Arden swept all three of her bouts. The two freshmen were coming off of memorable showings at last weekend’s Junior Olympics, where they finished 55th and 52nd, respectively. In addition to the two freshmen, Erin Frey ’08 won all three bouts to pace a sabre squad that finished 8-1 against the Tigers. Frey was rewarded for her confidence in her team; she had predicted that the sabre squad would rebound from a disappointing performance in the Ivy South competition and “kill Princeton.”
In addition to Arden and Kimovec, epeeist Rebecca Moss ’10 and foilist Lidia Gocheva ’10 also gave the Elis reason to be excited about the future of the program. Moss led all freshmen with a 14th place showing at the Junior Olympics, and carried over her strong finish to last Sunday. She swept all three bouts and was the deciding factor for an epee squad that ultimately defeated Princeton 6-3.
But for all their success against the Tigers, the Elis still fell to Cornell 18-9 and to Harvard 20-7.
“I think we were good enough to beat Cornell, but things didn’t really go our way,” Moss said. “With Princeton we really pulled it together and we did a great job cheering on our teammates.”
Columbia won the women’s championship with a perfect 6-0 record. The Lions were clearly the most dominant team at the tournament and consistently blew away opponents — their closest margin of victory came with a 15-12 defeat of Penn. As a whole, Columbia won 119 of 162 bouts for an aggregate 119-43 record. In the most recent version of the USFCA College Fencing Coaches’ Poll, the Lions retained their No. 2 national ranking, right behind national powerhouse Penn State.
On the men’s side, the Bulldogs lost a nail-biter to Princeton, 14-13, and fell 18-9 to the eventual Ivy co-champions from Harvard. The team locked in its first .500 record since the 2001-’02 season with a victory over Brown in the first half of the Ivy League Fencing Championships, but could not notch a win in the final round.
The men’s match against Princeton was almost as close as a fencing match can get. The foil squad won 5-4, but the epee and sabre squads both lost by identical scores and the team fell 14-13. If any Bulldog had won one more bout, the team would have notched a victory against the No. 8 team in the country. Foilist Andrew Holbrook ’10 did his part by sweeping all three of his bouts, but freshman sensation John Gurrieri ’10 came up short in his effort to cap his impressive rookie campaign with a match-clinching victory.
“It was my fault that we didn’t beat Princeton,” Gurrieri said. “I blew it. My bout was the last bout and we were tied 13-13. The rest of the team performed really well, better than they usually do.”
Columbia and Harvard split the Ivy League men’s title after posting identical 4-1 records. The Crimson edged out the Lions last Sunday but had dropped a close match to Princeton in the first round, which knocked them from their lofty No. 1 perch in the national rankings.
The Bulldogs will compete next weekend at the IFA Championships in Lawrenceville, N.J. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14248 | Opportunities at hand
UGASports.comEven with Isaiah Crowell still a part of the Georgia football program, offensive coordinator Mike Bobo said both freshmen Keith Marshall and Todd Gurley were going to get their opportunity to play.With Crowell now playing at Alabama State following his recent dismissal, playing time is a concrete fact. But how much?"We knew we needed depth when they were recruited and we told them there would be an opportunity to play," Bobo said during a Friday sit-down with reporters. "Obviously, there's a bigger opportunity for both Marshall and Gurley now."They won't be the only ones.Bobo said he's been very pleased with the continued progress of redshirt sophomore Ken Malcome, who even with Crowell still on board, topped the Bulldogs' post-spring depth chart at the position heading into fall drills.Richard Samuel also returns.Samuel, who missed the final six games of 2011 after severely spraining his ankle on the final play against Florida, was originally slated to move to fullback. But with no Crowell, Bobo said coaches have decided to move the senior back to tailback for additional depth."Richard wants to do whatever is best for the football team," Bobo said. "During the spring game, he was able to run the ball with some success and he told us not to forget about him at tailback, and we won't because he has a role for that. He had some nagging injuries the past two seasons, so he needs to stay healthy. But If he can stay healthy, he can be productive."But Bobo said just because Samuel is back at tailback, that doesn't mean that Marshall and Gurley are going to be 'babied' when it comes to getting them ready for early playing time this fall."It's just going to depend on how much they can handle," Bobo said. "Obviously, they know how to run the football, but we're still going to have to do some things to help them get the most out of their abilities and help them be successful."At 5-10 and 210 pounds, Marshall missed most of spring while recovering from a hamstring injury, but the fact he's been on campus since January has given him an early leg up on playing time."Keith being here the entire spring, even though he didn't practice the whole spring, has been a big plus because he's been able to study the system and knows the verbiage when it comes to understanding what to do, because he's been in the meeting rooms with Coach (Bryan) McClendon," Bobo said. "Todd is obviously a little bit behind but I've seen him, I know he's studying, plus both know the opportunity they have. They both came to play and they will get their chance."In other news:• Bobo said walk-on fullback Merritt Hall - who is listed atop the depth chart - is up to 235 pounds and is a legitimate contender for playing time. He also cited Zander Ogletree as definitely being in the mix and said that freshman Quayvon Hicks - who is up to 270 pounds - will also get his opportunity to impress this fall. "He's solid as a rock," Bobo said. "I hope he can pick it (the system) up because physically he's a guy who can help us at that position."• Walk-on offensive lineman Hugh Williams has been moved to tight end to provide depth and could help the Bulldogs in short-yardage situations.• In regards to freshman offensive lineman John Theus, Bobo said his position "is not set in stone until we get out there. I can't answer that question right now."• Bobo said that freshman linebacker Josh Harvey-Clemons will be given the opportunity in camp to see if he can "make some plays" on offense.Although plenty of questions remain as to who will make up the Bulldogs' offensive line, Bobo did say he did learn something about the largely untested group."I learned that they will fight you. We did not start our spring particularly well, which happens in spring sometimes against a very good defense. It took those guys a little time to adjust. For some guys on the first team, going against those two big guys in the middle (John Jenkins and Kwame Geathers) made for some tough sledding," Bobo said. "But they got better and improved, didn't quit and we ended up having our share of days at the end. If you've got an offensive lineman that will fight, claw and scratch, you've got a chance to be pretty good."Bobo said the prevailing notion by some outside the program that Georgia's offensive line will be a weakness, could perhaps serve the team in a positive way."You've got the whole world telling them how bad they are, so they're bonding together," Bobo said. "Plus, they've got Coach Friend driving them and that's making them tighter. I think they'll be ready to go this fall."Follow Anthony Dasher on Twitter ...More... To continue reading this article you must be a member. Sign Up Now! | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14249 | November 16, 2013Frustration mounts in narrow defeat
InsidetheGators.com Senior Writer
Related Links:Instant AnalysisGame Day CentralUF-SC Game ThreadTalk about it in Alligator Alley
COLUMBIA, S.C. - Florida knew the battle it was facing Saturday night when it stepped into Williams-Brice Stadium, and that battle had as much to do with its own locker room as it did No. 11 South Carolina. Injuries have been a story all season for the Gators, but they have never been worse than they were against the Gamecocks. Florida was missing its usual 10 players out for the season, plus pseudo starting quarterback Tyler Murphy (shoulder), junior cornerback Marcus Roberson (suspension) and left tackle D.J. Humphries (knee). "This is not excuses. It's real," Florida coach Will Muschamp said. "It really is. You can say what you want to say and you can write whatever the hell you want to write, but it's real. It's frustrating. It's frustrating for that locker room." It was that kind of frustration that led Muschamp to punch "a chalk board" at halftime and cut his hand, which was bandaged after the game. "Dumb," he sighed. Frustration that stemmed from a shorthanded offense getting stripped even further to its core, starting a redshirt freshman quarterback who had never taken a collegiate snap and started the season as a third-string emergency option. Florida knew what it had - and didn't have - in Skyler Mornhinweg, so offensive coordinator Brent Pease scripted an offense straight out of the early 20th century. The Gators threw the ball twice in the first half against 21 run plays. Mornhinweg wasn't ask to attempt a pass longer than five yards until the fourth quarter. The damndest thing of all? It almost worked. Florida led 14-6 at halftime thanks to an overachieving offensive line that shrugged off injuries, went all hands on deck and pushed freshman Kelvin Taylor to touchdown runs of 20 and 29 yards - both on direct snaps. The Gators ran 11 wildcat plays to offset an inexperienced quarterback. Muschamp's defense made stops when it counted in the red zone, keeping the Gamecocks to five field goal attempts with only one offensive touchdown. "We had a meeting, a team meeting and Muschamp talked to us," junior running back Mack Brown said. "He said just remember your name on your back and the Gator on your shirt." "We followed the script in what we felt like we needed to do to win the game. Ball possession, field position, eat the clock, good defense." Muschamp said. "Extremely proud of our players and the way they continued to fight in the game. A lot of negativity out there, and these guys pulled together and showed you what those guys are about." Three days after receiving a statement from Florida athletic director Jeremy Foley and UF president Bernie Machen, Muschamp thanked both publicly for seeing the big picture and understanding "what's right." He pointed to nights like Saturday and a season of setbacks to describe the circumstances in which his team finds itself. Muschamp's voice lifted above quiet dejection as he pointed to the players he represents and shared his thoughts on the ever-growing "outside" that tends to be most suffocating in a 4-6 season. "To hell with me. I worry about the kids," Muschamp said. "These kids have fought their butts off. There's a lot of negativity out there, and some of our fans need to get a grip. They really do. They've got a bunch of kids in that locker room fighting their butts off. They can criticize me all they want. I can deal with that. They pay me enough money to deal with that. Those kids don't."FEATURED PRODUCT | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14256 | September 10, 2012Stoneburner finds redemption with his play
COLUMBUS, Ohio - When Urban Meyer accepted Ohio State's head coaching position in November 2011, perhaps no player on the Buckeyes' roster figured to benefit more from the two-time national champion's presence than Jake Stoneburner. A 6-foot-5, 245-pound tight end, Stoneburner had far from reached his full potential in his first four years at OSU, tallying 37 receptions, 445 yards, and nine touchdowns. Having coached a John Mackey Award winner in Aaron Hernandez at Florida in 2009, Meyer figured to use Stoneburner in a similar role, and perhaps help him double some of his career statistics in the process. But with two months remaining until OSU's first fall camp under Meyer, Stoneburner's status with the team appeared to be in doubt. According to police reports, on June 2 Stoneburner, OSU offensive lineman Jack Mewhort, and a third man were caught urinating outside of a bar in Shawnee Hills, Ohio. When initially approached by police offers, the three men ran, but were eventually caught and charged with obstruction of justice. A day later, Meyer suspended Stoneburner and Mewhort indefinitely, before eventually taking them off of scholarship for the remainder of the summer after the two players pled guilty to lesser charges of disorderly conduct. Still allowed to work out with their team during a portion of that time, both players found themselves in the Buckeyes' starting lineup when fall camp opened in August, and earned back their scholarships for the start of OSU's fall semester. And for that, Stoneburner is grateful. "How your actions, no matter how big or how little affect the entire team," Stoneburner said when asked what he had learned from the first and only off the field incident of his career. "It's a team thing and I made a mistake and everyone had to pay for it." Having known Stoneburner since his days as a wide receiver at Dublin Coffman high school, OSU wide receivers coach Zach Smith wasn't surprised to see his fellow Dublin native work his way back into Meyer's good graces. "I've known Jake since he was way younger than Buckeye Nation knows him being a Dublin guy, so he's always been a hard worker and has always been someone who is going to go hard," Smith said. "Nothing has changed as far as his mentality. He's a kid who is going to give you what he's got." After spending the final two months of what seemed like the longest offseason of his career wondering about his status with the team, Stoneburner said that what happened in June was the furthest thing from his mind once fall camp began. "It was business as usual once practice started," Stoneburner said. "It was just back to football and worrying about football." Then again, the fifth-year senior probably hasn't had much time to think about non-football topics for the past two months. Shortly after fall camp opened up, Meyer announced that Stoneburner had been converted back to the position he played throughout his high school career- wide receiver. But to call Stoneburner a wide receiver would be just too simple. Although he often starts games lining up in the slot, he also spends time attaching to the offensive line as a tight end and dropping into the backfield as an H-back. The versatility that Stoneburner has brought to the OSU offense is reminiscent of the multiple ways that Meyer used Hernandez during his time as the Gators' head coach. "They have me listed as starting wide receiver, but I play tight end, play a little fullback. I play probably a majority of the time at receiver," Stoneburner said. "They just want to use me in different ways. I'm fine with that." The 6-foot-5 pass catcher admitted that there are some negatives that come along with wearing so many different hats in Meyer's spread offense, but that ultimately the positives outweigh the negatives for him. "You just have to make sure you know a lot, because I have to know three or four different positions," he said. :Sometimes when I'm tired, I get some mental lapses. Otherwise, besides that, I love it. It gives me the ability to be out there and make some plays." So far, Stoneburner's looked like a natural in his new role. Through the first two games of his senior season, the Mackey Award watch list member has caught four receptions for 48 yards, but perhaps no play was more meaningful to Stoneburner than the 12-yard reception that he caught against Central Florida on Saturday, which resulted in his lone touchdown so far in 2012. After the offseason that he's been through, the end zone has never felt so sweet for the Dublin native. "It's been a while. A tough summer, to finally get out there and score, it's a great feeling," Stoneburner said. "It really feels great."
Talk about it in Tiger Penthouse | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14261 | Gall meets the new staff
BuckeyeGrove.comclass="st_facebook_hcount" displayText="Share">displayText="Email"> Follow Noon on Twitter | Rowland | GivlerSince the winning the Offensive Lineman MVP award at Ohio State’s two-day underclassmen camp back in June, Cincinnati (Ohio) Moeller product Alex Gall has been firmly on Ohio State’s radar. Gall was back in Columbus for another unofficial visit last Sunday and was able to meet with the new coaches for the first time. “It was a good visit,” said Gall. “It was nice to finally hear what Urban Meyer had to say about Ohio State. I got to listen to all of the new coaches that came in, what their philosophy is, and what they do as a coach. I got to hear the strength coach’s (Micky Marotti) philosophy which was a great thing to me. He had a great program going and he has built some of the best athletes and he’s just a great strength coach. Urban Meyer put together a great stuff and he’ll continue building and making things better.” Gall was able to meet briefly with new offensive line coach Ed Warinner who had previously been recruiting him as a member of Notre Dame’s coaching staff. “I got to talk to him for a minute or two,” he said. “There were a lot of offensive linemen there, there were like 10-12 offensive linemen up there. He wanted to talk to us all, and there were also a couple of seniors there (Kyle Dodson and Stefon Diggs) that they were trying to get to commit. He got to talk to us for a couple of minutes about what his philosophies are and I had got to talk to him before when he was at Notre Dame so I knew what he did already.” The big lineman had been to Ohio State during the fall for a football game but got his first real taste of Ohio State basketball as the Buckeyes defeated rival Michigan. “The game was great,” he said. “The student section was obviously nuts, I mean it’s OSU/Michigan, it’s a big rivalry, one of the biggest in the nation.” Over the next two months, Gall will be busy heading out on unofficial visits to several of the schools that are recruiting him. “I am going to West Virginia in two weeks,” he said. “Then I’m going to Kentucky for a junior day and then I’m going to Pitt and then after that spring practice starts to come up and there are a bunch of schools that want me to come for that. Boston College is a school that I couldn’t make their junior day so they want me to come to a spring practice so I’m going to try and do that.” [rl] ...More... To continue reading this article you must be a member. Sign Up Now! | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14262 | Hokies are first offer in for 2012 lineman
HokieHaven.comVirginia Tech is in the early stages of offering for the 2012 class. A new prospect landed a scholarship from the Hokies on Friday and has already talked to the coaches about his first offer. "It happened around 1 o'clock on Friday," Lynchburg (Va.) Brookville 2012 defensive tackle Korren Kirven said. "Coach Stinespring told my coach and I gave him a call."Coach Stinespring told me how much the coaches like me and liked my film. They enjoyed seeing me up there and felt like I could play a lot. They liked me a lot. They just had to have Coach Beamer sign off to make it official."What does Kirven think of the offer?"I was real excited when they told me, I had been waiting on it a long time," he said. "I actually wanted to text my dad right there. I wanted to tell a lot of people. All the teachers at school knew and the administration was excited for me."Coach Kidd and everybody knew how excited I was. I was happy to hear it."The 6-foot-4, 260-pounder has made it no secret he is high on the Hokies, what does it mean to get the offer from them?"It means a lot," his father Keith. "I'll tell you, when Korren was five-years old we always asked him what school he wanted to play college football at, his answer always came back, Virginia Tech. Now he has a chance to let it play out."Kirven added."Right now they (Virginia Tech) are No. 1, they've been No. 1 and the first offer always means a lot," he said. "I like everything, the football team, academics, the campus, the students and the atmosphere; going up there, I have fun."While he's high on the Hokies, a decision looks to be far from imminent."I'm planning to visit Penn State on November 6th, Saturday," he said. "I'm considering a visit to Rutgers or North Carolina on the 20th of November and maybe Virginia on the 13th."I think I'm close to more offers possibly. Virginia wanted me to call them a couple days ago, so that may be one. Connecticut may be one too."Kirven has already been to a few games at Tech this season and plans to return for the Georgia Tech game Thursday as well as the late November game between Virginia Tech and Virginia in Blacksburg.Meanwhile, on Friday, Kirven helped his team to a 41-14 victory over E.C. Glass. ...More... To continue reading this article you must be a member. Sign Up Now! | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14266 | Rod Talks Hands, Feet, and Snaps
Brian Welch
WVSports.com MORGANTOWN-- West Virginia head coach Rich Rodriguez took the opportunity to dispel a few incorrect notions that some have expressed concerning the Mountaineers' offensive hand signals, as well as the speed of tailback Steve Slaton and the snaps of center Mike Dent, during his weekly conference call on Sunday afternoon. During the first quarter of Saturday's win over Rutgers, ABC sideline reporter Bonnie Bernstein reported the Scarlet Knights had deciphered the hand signals used by the WVU offense, causing Rodriguez to scramble to change his calls in time for the game. When asked about the validity of the report, Rodriguez scoffed. "Coaches always worry about other teams figuring out their calls," Rodriguez said. "We always use multiple guys to signal in plays from the sideline. (Bernstein) may have talked to someone who had talked to one of our former coaches back in the summer or something, which they're allowed to do, but we weren't overly concerned about it. We were ready for all the scenarios." Pressed for clarification as to whether that meant there was a concern prior to the game, Rodriguez responded, "That's not correct. That's not true." ...More... To continue reading this article you must be a member. Sign Up Now! | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14267 | January 2, 2014Walkon Bowman takes the long road to NU
Aric DiLalla
WildcatReport.com Editor
Talk about it in The RockWhen Malcolm Bowman is finally preparing to play in his first Big Ten football game, don't you dare tell him to 'break a leg.' After all the injuries Bowman suffered in the past few years, it's just not worth the risk. Back in 2011, the Dallas (Texas) St. Mark's running back was hearing from the likes of Oregon, Texas A&M, Vanderbilt and Baylor. The 5-foot-11, 190-pound back had just completed his sophomore season, in which he used his 4.5-speed, hard-cutting ability and soft hands out of the backfield to demand the attention of college coaches. But over the course of the next two seasons, he would see the field just five times in his school's next 19 games. A stress fracture in his foot caused him to miss most of his junior season. Then, during the summer before his senior year, he tore his ACL, sidelining Bowman for the entire season. Even when Bowman was on the field, he wasn't 100-percent. He suffered from a stress fracture in his shoulder that spanned the course of his freshman and sophomore seasons. "I truly believe that I just had some really bad luck as a high school athlete," Bowman says. "Uncommonly bad luck." Perhaps understandably, interest from the slew of schools began to fade. As Bowman entered his senior year, an offer from Cornell was the only one he had to his name. When he tore his ACL, even that one disappeared. "A lot of them lost interest after the injuries," Bowman says. Northwestern, however, stuck around. The Cats began recruiting Bowman during his sophomore year, and though they never officially offered, running backs coach Matt MacPherson and director of player personnel Chris Bowers stayed in contact with him even after the injuries piled up. And it's a good thing they did, because Northwestern was Bowman's favorite all along, even as he was hearing from top-notch programs. "Northwestern's actually been No. 1 since I was a sophomore," Bowman says. "For me to be able to go here now, it's wonderful. It feels like a dream come true." That dream came to fruition in the fall of 2013, when Bowers told Bowman that if he got into Northwestern, he would "have a spot on the team, no question." So, when he got word on Dec. 12 that he'd been accepted, he knew where he'd be spending his next four or five years. And while he traveled a long, complicated path to arrive at Northwestern -- he says he likely would've gone to Brown or Cornell if he didn't get into NU -- Bowman says he's happy the way it all turned out. "Northwestern was my first love," Bowman says. Even better for Northwestern's fans, he says he'll arrive in Evanston with something to prove. "I'll definitely have a chip on my shoulder. Getting all that attention early on helped me realize that I do belong and I can compete on this level," Bowman says. "I'm very confident in my abilities to make an impact. "Very few people know what I can actually do. I definitely have something to prove to myself and others." If Bowman does end up making an impact in a Big Ten game, it won't happen this coming season. He and the coaching staff made a dual decision that he would redshirt his freshman year in order to "shore up his knee" and make the necessary physical transition to play in the Big Ten. After all, if he's going to be a difference-maker, he's got to stay healthy. Though Bowman says he was committed to the weight room throughout high school and has always been one of the stronger players on the field, he admits that position-specific lifting and training should help him become a more durable back. Right now, though, he says he's feeling close to 100 percent. He's two months ahead of schedule on his recovery from ACL surgery, which took place four months ago, and he's confident that he'll regain the mobility that makes him a "one hard-cut back." If he does, he could have a good chance to earn some scholarship money as his career progresses. One-hundred percent of the walkons who spend their entire time at Northwestern on the team get some sort of financial support, Bowman was told, and that can start as soon as a player begins to get some sort of playing time. Before he gets to that point, however, Bowman says he eagerly awaits the chance to showcase his strengths -- which he says include elusiveness, pass protection and receiving -- out on the practice field. "All I've been waiting for is really an opportunity to compete. I really don't concede that anyone is automatically better than me," Bowman says. "I honestly don't know how good I am because I haven't had a healthy season in high school football." If he's able to get back to the level of play that impressed Oregon and Texas A&M, Northwestern might've just found it's latest diamond in the rough. And though he's still months away from arriving in Evanston, it's clear that he's the type of kid that Pat Fitzgerald loves to bring to Northwestern. "I'm ready to go to work," Bowman says. "And Go 'Cats."FEATURED PRODUCT
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14273 | May 22, 2011The debut of the LSR Top 100 for 2013
Talk about it in NorthgateAlthough they won't officially sign letters of intent for another 621 days, it's not too early to start thinking about rankings as it relates to the Class of 2013 in the state of Texas. With summer camps less than a month away and with fall just around the corner, the names of tomorrow are about to become the names of today in the blink of an eye.All that being said, it's time to unveil the first set of Lone Star Recruiting Rankings for the Class of 2013.The battle for the top spot in the rankings came down to a discussion between five players - Sealy athlete Ricky Seals-Jones, Whitewright quarterback Tyrone Swoopes, Killeen Harker Heights offensive lineman/defensive tackle Darius James, Rosenberg Terry athlete Derrick Griffin and Forth Worth Arlington Heights offensive lineman/defensive tackle A'Shawn Robinson.With no clear-cut selection for the top spot, the initial No.1 spot in the rankings goes to Seals-Jones - the 6-5, 215-pound dynamo who scored 11 touchdowns last season as a sophomore at wide receiver, while also registering eight sacks and five interceptions on defense."He's an incredible talent, there's no doubt about that," one college coach who recruits the state of Texas said this week when asked about Seals-Jones. "It doesn't matter where he plays or what he sport he's playing because it takes about two seconds to figure out who he is, where he is and what he can do. I didn't need three clicks with him, just one."While there's no doubting Seals-Jones' overall upside as a prospect, the decision at the top was a close one, as every member of the top five received serious consideration for the No.1 overall ranking and at various moments in the last week, two different players (Swoopes and Robinson) sat at the top of the first two mock drafts."I didn't see anyone in Texas this month more impressive than Swoopes," an out of state coach mentioned this week. "He has the 'it' factor and then some. Everyone is going to make him a priority I would imagine."Rounding out the rest of the initial top 10 is Dallas Kimball defensive tackle Justin Manning, Baytown Sterling wide receiver Jamar Gibson, Dallas Jesuit wide receiver Jake Oliver, Lake Highlights lineman Kent Perkins and Pearland Dawson running back James White. Look here here for the full debut of the Lone Star Recruiting Top 100 list for the Class of 2013..FEATURED PRODUCT
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14277 | October 6, 2011Thursday's practice report: Ingram doubtful
GamecockCentral.com
Talk about it in The DawgventAs tough as it is to tell Superman that he can't fly, 18th-ranked South Carolina may have to do exactly that.Defensive end Melvin Ingram, a back-to-back winner of the SEC Defensive Player of the Week award and already posting All-American numbers, is unlikely to play on Saturday when Kentucky (2-3, 0-2 SEC) visits Williams-Brice Stadium. While defensive head Ellis Johnson didn't definitely rule Ingram out of the game, he seemed to be saying that sitting Ingram as a precaution would be the right move."It's not a real serious thing, but it's something you have to take seriously," Johnson said, alluding to Ingram's sprained right foot. "It looks a lot better than they thought it would. I just don't know if he'll have a shot this Saturday. He hasn't practiced much. But it's more optimistic than it was."Ingram was in a walking boot and on crutches on Tuesday, but was down to one crutch on Wednesday and walking rather quickly into the practice field. He said on Tuesday that he was "day-to-day" and Johnson backed that up on Thursday.While it's galling to have to sit a player playing so well (Ingram is third on the team with 26 tackles, he leads the SEC with 7.5 tackles for loss and 5.5 sacks and has two interceptions, a fumble recovery, and three touchdowns on the season), it seems to be the best move at the best time. The Wildcats have the worst offense in the league (255.6 yards per game) and will be playing a defense that has been dominant in each of the past two weeks.In short, Ingram shouldn't be needed, and he can be fully healthy by the time the Gamecocks (4-1, 2-1) head to Mississippi State next week. While Johnson certainly wasn't discounting Kentucky, it's probably the best news possible under the circumstances - if Ingram can't play, at least it's against a team that has been worse offensively than USC."Kentucky is very capable of moving the football on anybody," Johnson cautioned. "They moved it up the field on Florida a couple of times. When they do get stopped, they either shoot themselves in the foot or make another mistake here or there, but they got good players. They're a very capable football team."Kentucky was only able to put up 10 points and 299 yards against the Gators, while Florida scored 31 first-half points in what became a 48-10 whipping. The Wildcats mustered a scant 155 yards and seven points last week against LSU, which has one of the best defenses in the country.USC has given up 77 and 358 yards, respectively, and 19 combined points to its last two opponents. The Gamecocks are hoping that streak continues against Kentucky, with or without Ingram.If Ingram sits, Chaz Sutton or Jadeveon Clowney will start in his absence. Clowney, held to a quiet two tackles last week, missed two days of practice this week and despite the hype, is still a freshman, which may push Sutton, a redshirt sophomore, into the role."(Clowney) had to run home on an issue, then he was held out of one practice because he had to go to an academic meeting," Johnson said. "He hasn't had as much practice. For a young freshman, you get concerned about him being clean on the game plan."Other than Ingram, USC remains healthy on defense. Brison Williams continues to improve and will again back up DeVonte Holloman at strong safety, and the cornerback positions have solidified despite Akeem Auguste still being in limbo.Auguste, battling a foot arch strain, has only played in one game (Georgia). A decision may be made in the next two weeks about whether or not the injury will heal enough to get him on the field, or if it's more advisable for him to redshirt."It's getting to that point, but no decision has been made," Johnson said. "I think we're kind of looking at the open date (Oct. 22)."Otherwise, Johnson simply wants his defense to keep improving. While playing an absolutely perfect game will probably never happen, Johnson sees no reason why the Gamecocks can't be very close to it. "I'm very proud of the way we've played, effort-wise," Johnson said. "My biggest concern is we've had some mental mistakes and technique errors, sometimes at some point in the game, where we can cut somebody off and we're just not pulling that string. That's the step I'd like to see us take this week, is to finally finish something."NOTES: Kenny Miles has a torn tendon in his wrist and is unlikely to play.
Kyle Nunn (back) is also doubtful, although it could be a game-time decision. Rokevious Watkins is set to start in his place at left tackle, with Cody Gibson taking over for Watkins at right tackle.
Jason Barnes, out the past two weeks with a strained hamstring, was in a regular practice jersey on Thursday and could play.
As expected, quarterback Stephen Garcia did not practice on Thursday as he attended his grandfather's funeral. He is expected back in Columbia tonight or early on Friday.If you have any questions about this feature or wish to discuss it, visit The Insiders Forum: https://southcarolina.rivals.com/forum.asp?fid=1824 Follow us on Facebook at facebook.com/GamecockCentral Follow us on Twitter at twitter.com/GamecockCentralFEATURED PRODUCT | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14313 | December 6, 2012Rankings of Yore: Brown a find for Eagles
MORE RANKINGS OF YORE: Nov. 28 | Nov. 16 | Nov. 9 Each week, Rivals.com's national recruiting analyst Mike Farrell will take a look at what we got right -- and what we got wrong -- in our past player evaluations. We call it Rankings of Yore.
Bryce is nice One of the more interesting stories in the NFL is taking place in Philadelphia. Amid the disappointing performance on the field, a sparkle of hope has emerged in the name of Bryce Brown. For fans of high school football recruiting, Brown is no mystery, but the route he took to get to where he is now is long and winding. Coming out of Wichita East High School in Kansas, Brown caught everyone's attention with a freshman season that saw him finish with 1,472 yards and 12 touchdowns. He took that to an entirely new level during his sophomore season when he rushed for 2,039 yards and 26 touchdowns, and his legend began to grow. However, this is also the point when everything began to turn into a circus. Being considered the top running back prospect to come out of Kansas since Barry Sanders comes with a great deal of publicity and stress, and the Class of 2009 prospect did not necessarily handle this well. Being advised by Brian Butler, who referred to himself as Brown's trainer and handler, became his first mistake. A website was born, charging people $9.99 per month to receive recruiting updates, rumors surfaced that Brown may go straight to the Canadian Football League instead of attending college, and not surprisingly NCAA investigations followed. In February of 2008, a full year before Signing Day, Brown verbally committed to Miami, which was where his older brother, Arthur Brown, had signed the previous year. Back then, this was a very early commitment. However, Brown de-committed after things with his brother started to go sour in Coral Gables and he dragged out his recruiting process beyond Signing Day. Official visits followed to Missouri, Oregon, Clemson, Tennessee and LSU. On March 16, 2009, Brown pulled the trigger with his official commitment to Tennessee and head coach Lane Kiffin. Brown's freshman year at Tennessee did not go as expected, as he shared carries with Montario Hardesty and finished the season with 460 yards and three touchdowns. On the first day of spring practice at Tennessee in 2010, Brown announced that he would transfer from Knoxville -- by which time Derek Dooley was coach. Following his brother Arthur, who had already transferred out of Miami to Kansas State, Brown went to Manhattan in August 2010. After sitting out the 2010 season, Brown rushed for 16 yards on three carries at the start of the 2011 season before leaving the Kansas State program and subsequently declaring for the NFL Draft in January 2012. After not being invited to the NFL Combine, Brown was drafted in the seventh round by the Eagles. Not much was expected, considering his past and the fact that LeSean McCoy had anchored the starting RB job for the Eagles. But after McCoy was ruled out of action due to post-concussion symptoms, Brown got his first start against the Carolina Panthers on Monday Night Football two weeks ago. He finished with 178 yards and two touchdowns on 19 carries, and followed that up with 169 yards and two touchdowns during their 38-27 loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday. His 347 rushing yards in two games are the most by an Eagles player in consecutive games since Steve Van Buren rushed for 379 yards in 1949. What happens with Brown from this point is unknown, since McCoy is obviously a vital part of the Eagles future. But his recent play has definitely shown the NFL and its fans the skills he showed everyone else at Wichita East High School in Kansas. Coming out of high school, Brown was both the No. 1 running back and No. 1 recruit in the country, earning the latter distinction during our last rankings cycle, pushing ahead of wide receiver Rueben Randle. The running back group featured current NFL players such as Trent Richardson, David Wilson and Lamar Miller, who were all ranked in the top 10, plus current college stars such as Eddie Lacy, Christine Michael, Stepfan Taylor and Cierre Wood, who were all ranked in the top 20. Behind Brown and Randle in 2009 among the five-stars are D.J. Fluker, Sheldon Richardson, Matt Barkley and Manti Te'o, to name a few. [ Watch: Looking back: Bryce Brown ]
Laughs for Lache The journey for running back Lache Seastrunk of Baylor is yet another one filled with detours and confusion, but everything finally seems to be coming together for him. In a 41-34 victory over Oklahoma State on Saturday, Seastrunk finished with 178 yards on 16 carries, including a memorable 76-yard touchdown run that saw him hurt his hamstring and still hobble over the goal line. It is safe to say that Seastrunk has come into his own at Baylor over the second half of this season. Over the past five games, he has rushed for 693 yards and five touchdowns, while helping the Bears become bowl eligible. A five-star Class of 2010 prospect out of Temple, Texas, Seastrunk became a legend in his state. He rushed for 1,532 yards and 19 touchdowns as a sophomore and 1,541 yards and 14 touchdowns as a junior, while showcasing his freaky athleticism and speed along the way. While high school fans in Texas were already well aware of Seastrunk's abilities by the time he showed up to the Nike Camp in Fort Worth in April of 2008, national recognition followed. Several impressive college camps followed that summer, at schools such as LSU and Texas A&M, and from that point the offers came flooding in. Auburn, Oregon, LSU and USC were the major draws for Seastrunk, with each seemingly leading at different times. A week before National Signing Day in 2010, Seastrunk pulled the trigger with a commitment to Oregon as other schools aside from USC had all but dropped out due to off-field concerns. It seemed like a natural fit with his speed and athleticism, Oregon's high-octane offense, and the Ducks previous recruiting success in Texas. But as sometimes happens, things did not work out for Seastrunk in Eugene, and after redshirting during the 2010 season, he decided to transfer and take his talents back home to Texas and the Baylor Bears. Seastrunk's recruiting was not good for Tennessee and Oregon as the Vols have just been hit with extended probation due to the reimbursement of expenses to talent scout/handler Will Lyles, who brought Seastrunk and his mom to Knoxville for an unofficial visit in 2009. Oregon is still being investigated for a $25,000 payment to Lyles following Seastrunk's commitment. In the Class of 2010, Seastrunk was a five-star prospect, the No. 26 player nationally, No. 3 running back and No. 2 player in Texas. In the running back rankings, he placed behind both Marcus Lattimore and Michael Dyer, while finishing just in front of Silas Redd.With his No. 26 national ranking, he was the last five-star in his class (a controversial one at that), finishing just behind both Matt Elam and DeMarcus Milliner. Many felt Seastrunk was overrated and that Rivals was crazy for keeping him as a five-star, but his recent Big 12 Newcomer of the Year Award and bright future with the Bears has Rivals.com laughing last, at least for now.
[ Watch: Looking back: Lache Seastrunk prospect video ]
Silky Lacy Eddie Lacy had to wait his turn at Alabama, as Trent Richardson churned out the yards during the 2011 season. With Richardson moving onto the NFL, Lacy realized that it was finally his time to shine. And he has not let that opportunity slide. Lacy has put together an extremely impressive season thus far, showcased again by the 181 yards on 20 carries he totaled in the victory over Georgia in the SEC Championship on Saturday. While playing alongside Richardson last fall, Lacy began to come into his own with 631 yards and seven touchdowns on only 84 carries. Lacy took the lead this fall, and despite sharing carries with freshman T.J. Yeldon, he has rushed for 1,215 yards and 16 touchdowns on 184 carries. At the high school level, Lacy excelled during his junior season at Geismar (La.) Dutchtown with 1,800 yards and 26 touchdowns. Offers began to roll in for Lacy, but at the end of the day it came down to Alabama and Tennessee. Lacy took official visits to both schools in January 2009 and soon after he committed to the Crimson Tide, although it was up in the air until the very end. The big back finished off at No. 116 in the overall player and as the No. 13-ranked running back in the Class of 2009. Looking back at the ratings, Lacy likely deserved to be ranked higher, but he still was behind other top backs such as Trent Richardson, Bryce Brown, David Wilson and Lamar Miller. Lacy and Richardson were both part of the same recruiting class for Alabama and could go down as one of the best 1-2 punches in the same class at the position.
[ Watch: Looking back: Eddie Lacy prospect video ]
'Nole way Karlos Williams of Florida State arrived at Tallahassee as a five-star safety, and was also regarded as one of the more athletic and versatile players in the country. Williams was able to showcase that versatility on Saturday, when he moved over to linebacker for his first extensive action at the position this season. Williams finished the game with 11 tackles and an interception with about a minute remaining in the game during a 21-15 victory over Georgia Tech in the ACC Championship, which propelled the Seminoles to the Orange Bowl. A Class of 2011 prospect out of Davenport (Fla.) Ridge, Williams first jumped onto the recruiting radar during the 2009 Nike Camp in Tallahassee, where he mainly worked as a wide receiver. By the summer of 2009, Williams had already become one of the more sought-after rising juniors in the country, and offers began to pour in. After his junior season, Williams became one of two five-star safeties from Florida, joining Hasean Clinton-Dix, who ended up at Alabama. As National Signing Day approached in 2011, it came down to USC and Florida State, with Williams taking an official visit to both. However, Williams had been committed to FSU for almost a year, and in the end the Seminoles won out. Williams finished as the No. 2 safety in the country, No. 2 player in the Florida and No. 8 player nationally. For the first two honors, he only trailed the previously mentioned Clinton-Dix, while for that national ranking he was behind other top-notch talent such as Jadeveon Clowney, De'Anthony Thomas and Cyrus Kouandjio. It was said Williams would end up growing into a linebacker, but he would be special at either position and now it is clear that is beginning to take form. [ Watch: Looking back: Karlos Williams prospect video ]
Getting noticed Playing at Northern Illinois, it obviously can take a player a little longer to get the attention and publicity that he deserves. For dual-threat quarterback Jordan Lynch that publicity is finally coming his way, and deservedly so. Lynch threw for 212 yards, while rushing for 160 yards, during a 44-37 double overtime victory over Kent State in the MAC Championship. The victory ended up sending the Huskies to their first ever BCS bowl, and a matchup against Florida State in the Orange Bowl. Lynch's performance last Friday night was just a small sample size of what he has been accomplishing all season long. During the game, he broke the record for the most rushing yards by an FBS quarterback in a single season, which was previously set during the 2010 season by Denard Robinson of Michigan. Lynch is at 1,771 yards and counting. Coming out of Chicago (Ill.) Mount Carmel in the Class of 2009, Lynch never really received the recruiting attention he hoped for. He received some minimal interest from programs such as Iowa and Northwestern, and then hit the summer camp circuit before his senior season with stops at Purdue, Northern Illinois, Ball State and Central Michigan. Despite impressing at the camps, the Huskies were the only school to offer, which resulted in his commitment in June of 2008. Rated a two-star prospect in his class, Lynch is the perfect example of a player who found the right fit for his abilities coming out of high school. If he waited a few more months back in the summer of 2008, additional offers might have come his way, but it is hard to imagine that Lynch would question any of his decisions back then, considering how everything has turned out. ---------
Mike Farrell is the national recruiting analyst for Rivals.com. Click here to follow him on Twitter. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14372 | The Long Winded Journey Of P.J. Tucker
By Kristofer Habbas
@Kris_Habbas
July 18, 2012; Las Vegas, NV, USA; New Orleans Hornets shooting guard Xavier Henry (4) guards Phoenix Suns forward PJ Tucker (2) during the first half of the game at Thomas & Mack Center. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-US PRESSWIRE
From Germany to the Summer League to the NBA would be the cliff notes in the long story that tells how P.J. Tucker has finally made it.
There is something about reaching the end of the long winding journey to the NBA for a guy like P.J. Tucker after years abroad. It is not the carbon copy one-and-done fantasy that most players enjoy.
Anthony Leon Tucker played three standout years at Texas. The P.J. comes from his father who was an aspiring baseball player who nearly made it to the major leagues. His father's nickname; Pops because of the sound the ball made jumping off his bat, hence "Pops Junior" or P.J. for short became the new name for Anthony Leon Tucker.
Tucker's father did not make the major leagues, but after his son went through the highs and lows of going 35th overall in the 2006 NBA Draft to leaving the league he grew up dreaming of playing in it paid itself off full circle.
His first go around lasted a total of 17 games with the Toronto Raptors in the franchises most successful year as they made the playoffs. Instead of building off of that, Tucker did not get the other side of basketball.
In his youth he made the simple and common error of youth by not having the knowledge of the business side of the NBA. That led him to adding five stamps to his passport.
"A lot of stuff goes into play," said Tucker about his rookie year. "It definitely was different from Texas being the man and pretty much running stuff to having to be a rotation player in the league. It was definitely an adjustment."
In the growth as a basketball player these speed bumps are a necessary evil. For most players the path to the NBA is a journey, and in some cases a long one.
Over the past five years Tucker has enjoyed the sun in Puerto Rico, the sights in Italy, Greece, and Israel before landing in Germany. It was his play in Germany that turned enough heads to where he actually had the option of going to Russia or getting back to the NBA.
After a great year in Germany where he was named the "Import Player" and "Forward of the Year" on top of being first team all-league performer. It was a year to remember for Tucker as the second leading scorer (16.2) and fifth leading rebounder (7.1) in the league. That performance was enough to lead his team -- Brose Baskets -- to a Championship in Germany.
The right people saw him play leading to a contract in Russia and an opportunity to play for the Phoenix Suns Summer League. "This was the deal from the beginning," said Tucker about playing for the Suns. "I knew where I wanted to fall."
His comfort level with the organization made this an easy decision for the 27 year old Tucker.
"I know a lot of people in the front office from prior relationships. I know a couple of guys on the team already. A lot of guys leaving and a lot of guys coming, and there is a lot of energy and a lot of newness."
With his basic one plus one deal Tucker is now a part of that new energy that has been buzzing around the arena all summer. This is the culmination of a long journey, "For me it proves that I'm supposed to be in this league and I was always supposed to get in this league."
Overall this is a new chapter for Tucker to prove exactly that. In 2006 he did not attempt a single three, but that is a new wrinkle he brings to the Suns after shooting 47% from deep in Germany this past season.
The strong bullish wing plays a tough power forward style that will be welcome in Phoenix. He can defend four positions well giving the team depth and a welcome defensive presence. A lot of players getting "categorized" as Tucker phrased it, but the versatility Pops Junior adds to the team is a familiar tone among the 2012-2013 Phoenix Suns.
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14373 | Arpan
Run A Mile
Run A MileAs the New Year 2009 begins and we all try to feel a sense of newness and perhaps some personal transformation, we tend to think of resolutions or promises we can make to ourselves to change for the better. Trying to become more fit or healthier through diet, exercise, meditation, and other healthy activities is a very popular way to at least start the year. I would suggest for those who choose fitness as one of their goals to try to get into the habit of going outside every day or most days, even colder days, and walk or jog if you can, for a specified amount of time. Starting with ten minutes, if you are a beginner, then increasing it after a week or so, you will see immediate results that will be very personally satisfying.I am not a doctor who can tell you all the physical benefits this will have on your health, but there are many. Mentally and psychologically the benefits will be evident to you as you begin to become less stressed and more relaxed in body and spirit. Spiritually there will be an opportunity to have moments of deep reflection and even a dynamic meditation as you can move in a mantric-like fashion with a steady stride and calm mind. For those who like to think while exercising, you may find that you will have the most creative thoughts while running or walking. Problem solving may come more naturally when the body is in motion instead of statically stuck in front of a computer or television screen. For those who like to run or even walk a mile or more for whatever personal reasons, it is also helpful to remember how much Sri Chinmoy loved running and loved to see people run, no matter what the distance. For those who are more interested in the physical health benefits of walking and running there are many books by experts on the subject. But for spiritual benefits and inspiration, Sri Chinmoy was truly a Master and expert both from the inner and outer perspective. His book, ‘The Outer Running and the Inner Running’ offers endless wisdom and extremely helpful advice and inspiration for seeker-runners who wish to make genuine progress both in their spiritual lives and in their outer lives. http://www.srichinmoylibrary.com/books/0645In this short excerpt from the introduction one can see how success and progress both can be achieved from running: “The outer running is a burning desire to achieve everything that we see here on earth. The inner running is a climbing aspiration to receive from Above a vast compassion-sky and to give from below a tiny gratitude-flame.The outer running is an extraordinary success on the mountain-summit. The inner running is an exemplary progress along Eternity's sunlit Road. Success is the ready and immediate acceptance of the challenges from difficulties untold. Progress is the soulful and grateful acceptance of the blessingful joy from prosperities unfathomed.” http://www.srichinmoylibrary.com/books/0645/1/1Sri Chinmoy also offered advice and inspiration for running through poetry and songs.In this now famous poem which became a popular running song as well, Sri Chinmoy offers meaningful advice on running and its inevitable result:“Run and Become,Become and Run,Run to succeed In the outer world.Become to proceed In the inner world.” Whether it is with poetry, music, or just running itself, we all have to be motivated to get out and transform our own lives for the better. There is no better time than the present to do so, whether it is the start of a new year or just the beginning of a new day or even a new moment. So find yourself a good running book such as ‘The Outer Running And The Inner Running’ http://www.srichinmoylibrary.com/books/0645Then get a good pair of running shoes and go outside to enjoy the moment in motion.Here is one more poem for those who want to cover a mile or eventually attempt to run a marathon or beyond. But no matter how long or how much you wish to move and go forward, there will always be something good waiting for you at the ‘finish line.’ Try it and see for yourself. This short poem is for anyone who loves to run from a mile to a multiday. In a few short lines I tried to embody the essence of each distance, simply and sweetly. If anyone else get inspiration from their running to write poetry I would encourage them to share that creative urge with us. Also encouraged are any of Sri Chinmoy’s poems about running or any other author that inspires your involvement in this uniquely personal sport. Run A MileRun a mile.You will acquire a smile.Run 26.2 miles.You will smile for days.Run for days.Your smile will earnHis Heavenly Gaze.Smilingly,Arpan
Marathon: A Story, A Question, A Poem- by Sri Chinmoy
The following are three short, illumining and entertaining creations of the hundreds of writings Sri Chinmoy offered about running. His running and his writing, among the many other activities that he mastered, have inspired many people over the years, myself included.The Sub-Three Marathoner Today one of the disciples was telling me that he met a very good runner while running in Flushing Meadow Park. This man had told the disciple that he often sees me running and that he thought I was a sub-three-hour marathoner because I was so thin and I looked like I was in such good shape. The disciple was very polite and told the runner that I was hoping to break three and a half hours in the New York Marathon. He didn't tell him my previous bullock-cart marathon times. -16 October 1979 Question: How can we benefit spiritually from training for and running marathons? Sri Chinmoy: The marathon is a long journey. Of course, there is also the ultramarathon, but the marathon is unique and it will always remain unparalleled among long-distance runs. Just as the marathon is a long journey on the outer plane, so is spirituality a long, longer, longest journey on the inner plane. Your own spiritual run is birthless and deathless; it is endless. When you run a marathon, you are trying to accomplish on the physical plane something most difficult and arduous. When you do this, it gives you joy because it reminds you of what you are trying to accomplish on the inner plane. As you are determined to complete the longest journey on the outer plane, the marathon, so are you determined to reach the Goal in your inner journey. The one journey will always remind you of the other. The outer journey will remind you of your inner journey toward God-realisation, and the inner journey will remind you of your outer journey toward God-manifestation. “The spiritual life is a marathon, An inner marathon which never ends. The Supreme is begging All His seeker-children To be excellent runners- To run speedily, like deer- In this eternal inner journey.” Sri Chinmoy
Sri Chinmoy’s Running, Part 1
When Sri Chinmoy was a young man in his teenage years and throughout his twenties he grew up in a spiritual community called the Sri Aurobindo Ashram in Pondicherry, southern India. Sports was an integral part of daily disciplines for many members of this unique ashram, including Sri Chinmoy who loved running on a track, barefoot most of the time. He was also a very good soccer and volley ball player, developing his speed and strength through these various disciplines. But his favorite sport was running, track and field in particular. He was the decathlon champion for ten years and the fastest sprinter for many years as well. But during this time of his life in the ashram, even a half mile or 800 metre race was a long run for him. After leaving the ashram at age 32 in April of 1964 and coming to the United States, Sri Chinmoy ended his running career, or at least for a time anyway. Many years later, in the late 1970’s, Sri Chinmoy felt inspired to get back into running, but this time it would be long, slow distance compared to his running career from decades before. In his oneness with his disciples, many who were inspired by him to train for long distance racing, he also trained for longer distances. His first official long distance race was in September 1978 in Greenwich, Connecticut, where he ran the Sri Chinmoy Ten-Mile Race in 1 hour, 45 minutes and 21 seconds, which translates into a 10:31 per mile pace. This was quite a feat for a 47 year old Spiritual Master who always had been a fast sprinter in the past and had not been running for decades. I remember that race, as I also ran it. It was a very hilly course, totally different than running on a track. I lived and worked in Greenwich for a while and I was used to training on these roads. But Sri Chinmoy was not used to all the hills and he worked very hard to get in shape to survive this long and difficult course. There was a point in his training where Sri Chinmoy got very serious about training on hills. He would ask some of his disciples to look for long hills to train on. Some of them were one mile long hills or courses with many miles of up and down hilly terrain. Many years after Sri Chinmoy ended his running career we had a four mile race on one of his hilly training courses. It was one of the toughest middle distance races I ever ran! Soon after his long distance racing career got started, Sri Chinmoy began seriously challenging himself to run faster and longer. He ran another ten mile race on Dec. 1, 1978, this time in 1 hour, 28 minutes and 22 seconds, an 8:49 per mile pace. In a little over two months he was able to improve his ten mile time by 17 minutes, or 1 minute 42 seconds per mile faster! Unbelievable progress for anyone at any age in that short amount of time between races. Only 30 days later, on Dec. 31, he ran a 7 mile race in 56:24, or an 8 minute and 3 seconds per mile pace. One could easily see at this point how serious and determined Sri Chinmoy was in his newly found sport of long distance racing. That was just a warm-up for what was to come in the following year of 1979. Training quite seriously throughout the coldest months of January and February, Sri Chinmoy prepared himself for his greatest running challenge up to this point, a full marathon race, 26.2 miles, or 42 kilometers. Fortunately, the race was held in a relatively warmer climate than his hometown of New York City. On March 3 in 1979 Sri Chinmoy ran the Bidwell Classic Marathon in Chico, California. It was quite a memorable, historic and exciting day as this middle-aged former sprinter and track star who was an adept at meditation and a great Yogi of the highest caliber, took on the challenge of running what was then the most revered and feared, long distance race ever. He finished the race in a respectable time of 4 hours, 31 minutes and 34 seconds. Considering his age, the amount of time he prepared, and his lack of distance background, it was an excellent first time marathon. Many of his disciples started training for and attempting to run marathons now as they were inspired by their running Guru and his many songs and poems he had composed about this particular distance race. But most importantly, here he was now bravely challenging his own body and mind to struggle through the months and months of training and the hours and hours of actual racing that is involved in this epic event. Sri Chinmoy considered the marathon distance very special and unique, and now he was experiencing it firsthand. Here are some comments about the marathon that he made in 1979: “The marathon is a long journey. Of course, there is also the ultramarathon, but the marathon is unique and it will always remain unparalleled among long-distance runs. Just as the marathon is a long journey on the outer plane, so is spirituality a long, longer, longest journey on the inner plane. Your own spiritual run is birthless and deathless; it is endless.” He goes on to say, “When you run a marathon, you are trying to accomplish on the physical plane something most difficult and arduous. When you do this, it gives you joy because it reminds you of what you are trying to accomplish on the inner plane. As you are determined to complete the longest journey on the outer plane, the marathon, so are you determined to reach the Goal in your inner journey. The one journey will always remind you of the other. The outer journey will remind you of your inner journey toward God-realisation, and the inner journey will remind you of your outer journey toward God-manifestation.” Sri Chinmoy’s incredible accomplishment in this first marathon in Chico was just the beginning of his own personal challenges that were to follow. True to his own philosophy of ‘self-transcendence’, where he says that ‘today’s goal is tomorrow’s starting point’, Sri Chinmoy immediately began to train for another marathon that very same month. Usually after a marathon, especially the first one that a person runs, one needs at least a few weeks of recovery time before starting a training schedule again. But in only three weeks time Sri Chinmoy not only recovered from his first marathon but also trained for another marathon, trying to improve upon his first time and demonstrate the true meaning of self-transcendence in the running world. On March 25 Sri Chinmoy ran the Heart-Watcher’s Marathon in Toledo, Ohio. He finished in an amazing time of 3 hours, 55 minutes and 7 seconds! In three weeks he had taken more than 36 minutes off of his previous and first marathon time. This was an incredible 1 minute and 23 seconds per mile faster for the whole 26 miles! The term ‘Self-Transcendence’ was never more evident to me and others at this point. Sri Chinmoy ended up running thirteen races that year, 1979. He ran seven marathons in the short span of nine months, as well as five shorter races, and an ultra marathon race of 47 miles! Although his marathon times did not improve after the stellar 3:55:07 in Toledo, he did improve upon his ten mile time every time he ran it. Many people may not appreciate or understand just how special this is. In less than a year after his very first long distance race of ten miles, he improved on that distance by almost 22 minutes, which means that his pace per mile improved by more than two minutes per mile faster. From a 10:31 per mile he went down to an 8:23 per mile pace for ten miles in just under one year. More amazingly, he did that with 11 other tough races in between, including four marathons and an ultramarathon. But he did not stop there. He finished off the last three months of 1979 with three more marathons, one of them being the very difficult Phidippides Marathon in Athens, Greece, where the marathon was ‘born’. The following is a poem that he also set to music in a song that expresses the spirit of the Olympic Marathon: “Marathon, marathon, marathon, Eternity’s dawn. O kindling, streaming flames Of great Olympic Games, O Greece-world vision-height, Cosmos-oneness-delight! Humanity’s transcendence-race, Divinity’s supreme Grace.” It is obvious from his races in the following year,1980, that Sri Chinmoy was trying to develop more speed at the middle distances instead of focusing on the grueling and slower marathon. He did not start racing again until March 23 when he ran a 3.5 mile race in 25:29, at a 7:16 per mile pace. A week later he ran a seven mile race at almost the same pace, clocking a 51:18 at a 7:19 per mile pace. Only a week after that he ran a 5K(3.1mile) race in 22 :16 at a 7:11 per mile pace. One could see how he was seriously progressing as he focused only on the ‘shorter’ long distance races. Running as many marathons as he did in his first year of racing at his age can really be tough on the legs and slow down a runner’s ‘edge’ in terms of speed. But Sri Chinmoy worked and raced hard to get some of his speed back as he was determined to make progress as long as his body could stand the amazing demands he put on it. In May,1980, he improved his time once more, running a 7:09 per mile pace in a 5K race, running it in 22:12. Then at the end of May and the beginning of June he ran two marathons in a one week period. Sri Chinmoy’s reborn running career in its first year or so was like a whirlwind of strength, endurance and speed which showed no signs of stopping. He also started running two mile races quite seriously in 1980. His first two mile race was run in August in hilly Prospect Park in Brooklyn, New York City. He ran a 13:53 there which was not bad for his first attempt. Again, in keeping with his own philosophy of self-transcendence, Sri Chinmoy set his goals very high, and in 1981 he ran 21 more two mile races. His personal best was 13:42 for two miles which is quite good considering his age and all the other longer races he was also doing at the time which tends to slow down the shorter race pace. In the two mile race world, Sri Chinmoy ended up running a total of 76 races, his last one for the 80’s was in 1986 and then he revisited the two mile race again in 1995 and 1996 running 11 more of them. His last official two mile race was on 10 Feb. 1996 in Goose Pond Park, Queens where he ran and walked it in 23:21. Sri Chinmoy also ran many one mile races during the 80’s mostly. I will continue from this point in Part 2 of this series about Sri Chinmoy’s remarkable running career. Gratefully, Arpan Posted by
Learning to Love Running- Sri Chinmoy’s Inspiration
There are certain aspects of our being do not like to put out the effort and the adjustments we must make as well as the sacrifice of our 'comfort zone', to go out and run. Also, once we do get over the mental and physical hurdles that prevent us from running if we are capable of doing so, it may be difficult to describe the wonderful experiences we get, during our runs and even after we finish. What is the best way to understand the fragrance and beauty of a flower, or the delicious taste of a fruit? It is not through the mind’s explanations or through detailed words. We have to experience them for ourselves, through the act of smelling, of tasting, or of running, to truly understand the beauty and joy that they offer. One reason why Sri Chinmoy has encouraged many of us to run was because he knew of the joy that resulted from it even through all the discipline and sometimes unenjoyable efforts and pains that had to be experienced along with it, like the rose having its thorns. If we run with the proper attitude, with a spiritual approach, and to please the Supreme Being who resides in our bodies, minds and hearts, then we find it to be another great opportunity to make spiritual progress while also reaping the fitness and health benefits. I cannot convince anyone of the ‘unimaginable joy experience’ as Sri Chinmoy says in one of his running songs, that we can get for our heart and soul through running. It is by getting past the lethargy of the mind and body and patiently developing the strength in the will and in the body to get out regularly and run, whether it is easy or hard running. Most of my running is easy and that is why I have endured through 35 years of running and racing. But I attribute most of my longevity in running to my love of running and racing, encouraged and inspired by my Guru, Sri Chinmoy. I am thrilled to be able to inspire others, especially young, strong and promising runners to get out and train and even enjoy the thrill of racing. Sri Chinmoy loved track racing in his youth in the Ashram as we all know. But it wasn’t until 1978 when he was 47 years old that he started long distance training and racing in 1979. A 47 year old Spiritual Master does not need to discipline himself in the ways of long distance running or to make the commitment and efforts it takes to race marathons and many other distances. But Sri Chinmoy did just that, mostly to inspire us to do the same, but also to experience the outer joys of the long distance running disciplines. I have been researching Sri Chinmoy’s racing experiences and I am writing an article about his running for the April issue of ‘Self-Transcendence-Fragrance Sports’, which will come out next month. I am getting tremendous inspiration from seeing all the races and knowing a little about the training that Sri Chinmoy did in the nine or ten years he dedicated to middle and long distance running and racing. I am sure that this magazine, which will be dedicated solely to Sri Chinmoy’s personal sports, will inspire all of us, no matter what age, gender or capacity, to get out and discipline our lethargic bodies in ways that will surprise us and benefit our spiritual lives. Just as a little teaser, I can tell you that Sri Chinmoy ran about 268 races [unofficial stat] mostly from 1979 to 1986 and again in 1994 thru 1996. During that time he also spent countless hours training on the roads and at home with other types of exercises. Since 1985 he also spent lots of hours weightlifting as well. I will tell much more about his running during this time in the magazine next month. The act of researching and writing about Sri Chinmoy’s running and racing mostly has inspired me tremendously and inspires me to get out and race more. He has run 22 marathons, 5 Ultras, over 75 two-mile races and countless other races as well in 10 years of running. If was able to do it, especially at the time and at the age that he did run so much, then what is wrong with us? So try to get out there on a regular basis, at least four or five days a week if not more, to really find out what running has to offer in the ways of spiritual and health benefits. If you are serious about marathons or other races you can refer to my training manual: ‘Seven Steps to a Successful Marathon’. You can find this online at Arpan.us More to share later about the love of running, Arpan
Ashrita’s Latest Record-No Drag!
This past Thursday, 6 March, 2008, I was fortunate and grateful to be part of the crew, along with Homagni and Medur, who helped Ashrita with his latest Guinness World Record. He currently holds 79 records including the record of holding the most records. The record that he was attempting to break today was to push a car more than 12 miles within a 24 hour period. Ashrita had practiced quite a bit in New York and here in New Jersey at a flat and straight car raceway. It was a quarter mile ‘drag strip’ at the Old Bridge Raceway Park in New Jersey where he would attempt to push a small car which had to weigh at least 1600 pounds or 726 Kg. This car weighed a little over 1800 pounds or 817 Kg., almost one ton. It was our friend Homagni’s birthday that day and he was the designated driver for most of the record. I gladly took over ‘driving’ for him after the first three and a half hours during which Ashrita still had not taken a break. It was a very peaceful, relatively warm and sunny day out at the race track which is usually bustling with activity and noise. The race cars usually travel here at hundreds of miles per hour along this short strip of flat concrete. Ashrita’s car was travelling about 3 miles per hour, but was much more peaceful, quiet, and fuel conserving than the dragsters. You could say that it was an ‘eco-friendly’ record. He had to push the car along the shoulder of the drag strip because the main part of the track was so sticky from the melted rubber of the tires and the chemicals they spray for traction during the races. Your shoes almost stick to the pavement as you walk along the track, which is not very conducive to pushing cars manually. I started out by walking in front of the car to look for dangerous metal pieces which could cause a flat tire, something that Ashrita could not afford during this very serious world record attempt in which every second counted. I found at least 30 bits of metal including screws and bolts and even pieces of broken gears from some of the race cars. I did get to steer the car for over an hour, during which he broke the old record of 12 miles. It was very peaceful and thrilling to ‘drive’ a car in this way: nice and slow, with no noise or exhaust fumes or traffic. Ashrita passed the old record of 12 miles only after a little over four hours of pushing. He finally took a little to eat at this time, only having drank water up to that point. Although he started tiring quickly after that and getting a bit sore in the hip and arms, he did not really take any breaks even though he could have stopped as much as he wanted to. Three different groups of people also came during the six hours and ten minutes that it took him to push the car a total of 17 miles. There were two local newspapers with reporters, photographers and a videographer, all who took sincere interest in Ashrita’s endeavors. They asked very insightful questions and were quite happy and entertained as they followed along with Ashrita. He was also quite pleased with their presence as it inspired him to think of all the reasons that he was expending so much energy, instead of dwelling on his tiredness and soreness. The third group that came to interview him and photograph him was the Raceway Park’s officials who were with the newspaper which they publish regularly to a wide audience of racing fans. The officials at the Raceway Park have been very kind to Ashrita, allowing him to practice there a few times and not charging him to use the track for the record as well. The reporters were also very kind and considerate as they followed him for a few laps. Ashrita stopped at 17 miles after six hours and ten minutes of pushing the car, breaking the old record by a full five miles. He could have gone longer as he had a full 24 hours at his disposal, but we wanted to get back to New York for Homagni’s birthday party. I am sure that Ashrita did not mind stopping when he did though, as he was quite tired and sore, but happy and grateful at the same time. The whole experience was very uplifting to me and all those who came to witness this incredible spiritual athlete push himself and a car to another world record. But he did not do it with the aggressive or egotistic attitude of a self-centered star athlete. His demeanor is always very kind, mild and humble. He strives with much dedication and focus, always considerate of those around him. He makes you feel that you are as important to the record as he is. His perspective on why he is doing such unusual events is never lost in the glory of his incredible achievements. Ashrita knows and demonstrates quite clearly that his achievements are not merely for self-glorification. Rather they are to achieve a personal self-transcendence inspired by his mentor and Guru Sri Chinmoy who has himself achieved amazing feats of self-transcendence in many fields during his 76 years on earth serving humanity. I am all gratitude to them both: Sri Chinmoy for bring the best out of those who aspire inwardly and outwardly, and Ashrita for showing us that we can achieve things beyond what we may imagine is possible, as long as we have faith and dedication in our action. Gratefully, Arpan
Still seeking, running and singing | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14384 | Home > 2013 > September > 26 (page 11) Daily Archives: September 26, 2013 New county counsel: no BCDC appointment power
September 26, 2013 Comments Off Komando
Rich Komando, Baker County’s new legal counsel from the Orange Park-based law firm of Kopelousos, Bradley & Garrison, started earning his pay the minute he joined county commissioners on the dais his first day on the job on September 17.
BCHS Principal Tom Hill’s e-mails regarding concussion allegations
September 26, 2013 Comments Off What follows are e-mails from BCHS Principal Tom Hill to Press editor Joel Addington regarding his investigations into allegations that Coach Ryan Sulkowski disregarded an athletic trainer’s advice by putting a JV player back into a football game after he sustained a hard hit to the head.
Dear Mr. Addington,
At 1:35 PM on Friday, September 13, 2013, Mr. Jim Mackie emailed me a digital copy of a letter making an allegation that Mr. Ryan Sulkowski allowed a player to return to a football game in the fourth quarter of a junior varsity game the previous night after the player had experienced head trauma.
I am unaware of how to check to see when I originally read this email, but by 5:30 PM on Friday, September 13th, I had directly spoken with the parent of the student mentioned in the allegation, Mr. Jim Mackie, Mr. Ryan Sulkowski, Ms. Cassie Register, Mrs. Melody Coggin, and Mrs. Robin Mobley about this situation. In addition, I had called to speak with Mr. Justin Harrison at the FHSAA related to this matter. He was not in the office on Friday.
The statements made by Mr. Mackie did not match the statements from Ms. Register and Mr. Sulkowski. Both Ms. Register and Mr. Sulkowski stated and provided documentation that discounted the allegation made by Mr. Mackie. Mr. Sulkowski provided me with a copy of a SCAT2 document (completed by Mr. Mackie) that showed the student had no symptoms of head trauma. According to Mr. Sulkowski and Ms. Register, Mr. Mackie stated that the student could return to the game if he was needed. The SCAT3 and injury report (attached to the email from Mr. Mackie) was not created until the day after the junior varsity contest. There are multiple discrepancies between the SCAT2 which was the assessment during the game and the SCAT3 which was created the following day.
The student did return in the fourth quarter. He scored a touchdown, and his name was announced over the loud speaker. Mr. Mackie was aware of his return. Mr. Mackie did not approach anyone about the situation. If he believed the student shouldn’t return to play, why did he not say anything to a referee, coach, administrator, or athletic director? All were present and easily contacted if necessary.
In an attempt to completely investigate whether or not there was a concussion suffered by the student, I instructed Mrs. Coggin to not allow the student to practice or participate in any sports until he was seen by a doctor. On September 17, 2013, the student was seen by a medical doctor. The doctor gave the student clearance for “full contact sports.” There were no symptoms of a concussion.
Follow-up conversations with Mrs. Melody Coggin and Mr. Justin Harrison have led to a plan for clarifying discussions with first responders and athletic trainers. Coaches will be asked to receive a clear “yes” or “no” from the medical professional as to whether or not a student may return. The safety and well-being of students is of prime importance for staff members of Baker County High School.
If you need further information related to this specific concern, please do not hesitate to contact me at the high school. Sincerely,
Tom Hill
BCHS Principal
Mr. Addington’s follow-up questions and responses from Mr. Hill:
Mr Addington: It would appear that Ms. Register cannot perform the functions of an athletic trainer under state law. If that’s true, what can she do in her capacity as a athletic trainer?
Mr. Hill: She administers first aid, oversees hydration of student athletes, orders first aid supplies, and performs first respond-er duties at many athletic events. She maintains documentation on all physicals and doctor’s notes for the football team members. She has a bachelor’s degree in sports medicine.
Mr. Addington: You stated, that per Mr. Sulkowski and Ms. Register, Mr. Mackie stated that the student could return to the game if he was needed. That does not sound like a definitive “yes” or “no,” as they will be instructed to ask for in the future. Given the wishy-washy recommendation from Mr. Mackie, shouldn’t coaches have exercised an abundance of caution until a doctor was able to clear the player? Wouldn’t that show that student health is of “prime” importance?
Mr. Hill: A certified athletic trainer, Mr. Mackie, evaluated the student in question during the contest. This athletic trainer found the student to have 0 of 22 symptoms of a concussion. The athletic trainer’s response was not vague during the contest. That is why the student was allowed to return to the game.
As the SCAT3 will show, the athletic trainer changed his diagnosis from Thursday’s SCAT2 to the SCAT3 he created on Friday. There are multiple discrepancies between these reports. Our coach and first respond-er could only use the SCAT2 information provided Thursday night. It wasn’t vague Thursday night. It became vague the next day with the baffling creation of the SCAT3 where his symptoms appeared to worsen. As you can see from the doctor’s note previously attached, there was no concussion suffered by this athlete. Please do not hesitate to contact me at the high school via email. Sincerely,
Did Sulkowski defy trainer’s advice regarding player’s potential head injury?
September 26, 2013 Comments Off Baker County’s head football coach Ryan Sulkowski is once again facing allegations of wrongdoing, but this time for his conduct on the field.
9-26-13 BCP
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14401 | MLB Trade Rumors: Ryan Dempster to Athletics Would Be Great Move for Cubs
By Eli Greenspan
Ryan Dempster remains on the market, and it appears the Dodgers are the only viable trade partner. The blame has fallen on Dempster, who has given the Cubs a narrow field to work with in this trade season.That doesn't mean he is to blame, but the Dodgers' lack of strong prospects makes them hesitant to deal any of their good ones for the 35-year-old veteran—a veteran who has the second-best ERA in baseball behind Ryan Vogelsong.The deal that was in place with the Braves was the best deal for the Cubs, but that scenario has been covered, and everyone has moved on (via ESPN). That is, unless Dempster decides he will accept a deal to Atlanta for Randall Delgado.I've already written about how I think Dempster to the Dodgers is a bad move for the Cubs, and since the Braves are out of the question, it would be worth the Cubs' while to approach the prospect-rich Oakland Athletics, who happen to be in the midst of a playoff spot.The Athletics are in the market for a shortstop, but a veteran pitcher would be a lift to a strong rotation that will need to rally if they have any hope of making the playoffs.Dempster could be that guy, and the A's have young pitching that could entice the Cubs.Twenty-three-year-old Dan Straily is having an unbelievable season between Double-A and Triple-A and will likely earn a call-up to the majors very soon.He owns a combined 8-6 record with a 2.60 ERA in 22 games with 175 strikeouts to 37 walks. He's actually pitched better in Triple-A, owning a 1.36 ERA with 67 strikeouts in eight starts.Straily was a virtual unknown coming into the season but has emerged as dominant pitcher who projects as a solid middle-of-the-rotation starter in the majors.Whether the A's would deal him for Dempster, or even consider this year as the year they have a legitimate shot at making the postseason, is up for debate.But a deal for Straily would help both clubs and would not deplete the A's of pitching depth like it would the Dodgers, who are seemingly holding up a trade. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14402 | Boston Red Sox's Clay Buchholz Speaks Up on Controversy He's Doctoring Baseballs
Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Clay Buchholz is getting tired of the controversy involving him potentially doctoring baseballs en route to his terrific start. He made it clear to Nick Cafardo of the Boston Globe that he's moving on from all the talk.
It's getting old and I'm not going to talk about it anymore. I'm sick of talking about it. I haven't done anything wrong. I'm doing things within the rules of the game.
Buchholz, who's 6-0 with a 1.60 ERA and 1.03 WHIP through seven starts, made the comments after a report from Jeff Passan of Yahoo! Sports suggested 90 percent of pitchers are using a sunscreen-based mixture to improve their grip.
The report states that a brand known as BullFrog has become commonplace throughout the league. Since it goes on clear and it would be tough for Major League Baseball to rid itself of sunscreen, it's a popular choice for pitchers.
One American League pitcher said (via Passan):
Sunscreen and rosin could be used as foundation for houses. Produces a tack, glue-like substance that engineers would be jealous of.
Buchholz doesn't deny using sunscreen on the mound in the past, but he told Cafardo it wasn't to gain any type of advantage. He was just using it for its intended purpose.
I haven't used that [sunscreen] all year. I've used in the past when I need to use sunscreen on a sunny day on the mound. Is there anything wrong with that? Isn't that when you're supposed to use it?
Courtesy of Yahoo! Sports.
The 28-year-old starter is coming off a down season in which he posted a 4.56 ERA and allowed opposing hitters to post a .263 batting average.
Those numbers have improved significantly this season. And when a player's numbers suddenly improve, people start paying much closer attention.
Do you believe doctoring baseballs is prevalent in MLB?
Yes, the league should investigate.
No, the issue is overblown.
It's basically a part of the baseball culture now. Skeptics are going to emerge if a player who didn't perform well last season is now performing at an All-Star level.
That's the case for Buchholz. It's important to remember he did go 17-7 with a 2.33 ERA over 28 starts in 2010. So it's not like he's never had success in the majors before.
Michael Silverman of the Boston Herald reports pitch data from Buchholz's outings this season show no major differences from previous seasons. The team and Buchholz, who says slick baseballs are an issue, both say rosin, which is legal, is the only substance being used.
If nobody has ever touched a Major League Baseball, most of the time it’s really slick for the simple fact they rub it with that mud, and when it sits in a bag all it feels is like a ball of dust. If it’s going to your mouth and wiping it off to get a grip on the ball, or going to your arm because you have rosin on your arm, or put the rosin on your arm, that’s what it’s meant for.
The league hasn't said Buchholz is breaking any rules, or even suggested they are investigating him, and the starter doesn't plan on talking about it moving forward.
Buchholz is next scheduled to take the mound Saturday against the Toronto Blue Jays. The last time he faced the AL East rivals is when the hoopla began. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14404 | Gardner Won't Work As a Starter
By Andrew Sanders
Nick Laham/Getty Images 311
After a few days of looking at a few clips of Brett Gardner's performance over the past year, I really don't buy Gardner being a starter in 2010 for the Yankees.
First of all, he can't hit. He hit with a .270 average, hit 3 Home Runs, and only hit 67 pitches. Those stats don't really make him look like someone who was the skill to be a starter.
He may have some speed, but he definitely doesn't have the stuff to be a starting outfielder of the New York Yankees.
If I was Brian Cashman, I would go out and maybe get someone like Jermaine Dye, Rick Ankiel, Vlad or even Damon.
Earlier this offseason, Yankees GM Brian Cashman said, "We just aren't willing to give that kind of money for Damon's services." Whether the Yankees really will make an offer or not is not something I have insight on. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14412 | Archive for the ‘Tomas Enge’ tag
2006 New England Grand Prix
When opportunity knocks, you have to jump on it. NASCAR racing has, for the most part, been a major part of my life since a young age. In fact, for the longest time, stock car racing was the only form of motor sports I would entertain myself with. I’ve been lucky enough to witness some of NASCAR’s biggest legends before they retired: Pearson, Petty (Richard), Allison (Bobby), Gant, Yarborough, Baker (Buddy), and countless others. I witnessed Petty take home his 199th win at Dover in May of ’84, and one of Yarborough’s last wins, in a Ford, at Talladega in ’85. Venturing into other forms of auto racing took time, and within the last dozen years, I have taken a strong liking to road racing, even open wheels.
Having recently moved from my native Connecticut, buried knee-deep in boxes and packing material – not to mention remodeling the house we just purchased – it was a welcomed break to attend the New England Grand Prix at Connecticut’s Lime Rock Park. Fresh from their 24-hour endurance race in Le Mans, 24 teams quickly made their way home for stop number four on the North American continent. After watching the American Le Mans Series on television the last few year’s, I couldn’t wait to witness the Aston Martins battle it out with the Corvettes, and the Porsche/Ferrari on-track combat.
Early morning on the infield hill looking towards Big Bend
Arriving at the 1.54-mile facility at seven in the morning, we found ourselves in thick fog, though it was quickly burning off in the early morning light. The infield hill was quiet, affording us the opportunity to stake out a perfect spot to view the days main event, and six support races. After placing our chairs and cooler, we wondered down the hill and into a quiet paddock – the teams were slowly making their way into the track as well.
The new Penske Porsche team begins to prepare their LMP2 racers: They occupied the front row with drivers Sascha Maassen/Lucas Luhr in #6 and Timo Bernhard/Romain Dumas in #7.
The empty paddock provided us the opportunity to get an unobstructed view of some of the other teams that would compete later in the day.
The LMP1 Dyson Racing Lola driven by Chris Dyson and Guy Smith
LMP1 favorite, the famed Audi R8 making its final start with Allan McNish and Rinaldo Capello behind the wheel. The car wore all of its victories from its storied career as the R10 waits its turn
In GT2 Class, Jorg Bergmeister, Michael Petersen and Patrick Long would pilot their Porsche 911 GT3
Team Ferrari 430 GTs from Risi Competizione during the early morning hours
Aston Martin DBR9 #007 to be driven by Tomas Enge & Darren Turner
Team car #009 driven by Pedro Lamy & Stephane Sarrazin As the morning hours progressed, the paddock began to fill with team members and fans alike. By nine in the morning, the first of the support races were underway, and pre-race inspections were in full swing by late morning.
One of the Flying Lizard Porsche 911s, to be driven by Lonnie Pechnik & Seth Nieman, is scrutinized during pre-race tech inspection
The Ferrari driven by Mario Dominguez & Marc Gene waits its turn with inspectors. Note the damage to the right rear fender from contact during Friday’s practice.
Multimatic Motorsports Team Panoz brought two Fords.
The morning warm up went without noteworthy incident, and by mid-afternoon, the cars were brought to the front stretch for staging. For a brief 15 minutes, fans were allowed to walk among the racing machines until the call to clear the grid was given. At precisely 3 PM, the engines were started, and the 2-hour, 45-minute sprint race came to a rolling start after two parade laps.
LMP2 Penske Porsche #6 (in 2nd place) leads the LMP1 Audi on the opening lap heading into the Esses, while the rest of the field exits Big Bend.
In GT1, Ron Fellows in the Corvette #3 leads the #007 Aston Martin early in the sprint race. The Aston Martin would eventually overtake the Corvette, and a race-long battle ensued between the two teams.
The GT2 Class was hotly contested throughout the day, especially early on. Early contact sent the Ferrari to the pits for a tire change relegating them to an 11th place finish overall, and 5th in class
Overall and LMP2 leading Penske Porsche caught the backmarkers early.
The first full-course caution flew when the GT1 Corvette #4 (Oliver Gavin/Olivier Beretta) was side-swiped by Chris Dyson (LMP1 #20) exiting the Esses. Both were able to continue after repairs.
Ron Fellows sits 3rd in class behind the Aston Martins.
After a second full-course caution flew for an accident involving a Ferrari in the back stretch (heavy contact that damaged the wall behind the tire barrier) the Audi found itself in contention for both class and overall victory, here in 2nd place between the two Penske’s entering the Esses.
Meanwhile, the Aston Martins opened a sizable lead over the Corvette, seen nearing the exit of Big Bend. The Corvette would eventually close the gap, split the Astons, and become the best battle on the track in the last 5 minutes of racing.
The Audi fights its way around the LMP2 Porsches, lapping the Penske #6 three times before the finish. Only the Penske #7 finished on the same lap as the LMP1 Audi.
The Audi R8 after taking its 48th overall win, and 50th class victory since arriving in the American Le Mans Series.
The Audi was driving to victory by Allan McNish after passing Romain Dumas in the Penske Porsche with 30 minutes remaining in the race. While it looked like the LMP2 Porsche would upset the Audi favorite, the eventual margin of victory was nearly 12 seconds.
The Audi R8 is to be replaced by the R10 at Miller Motorsports Park, race 5 of the season. The R10 has already seen action, winning at both the 12 Hours of Sebring and the recently completed 24 Hours of Le Mans. Dumas and the Penske team took home the LMP2 class victory.
The Corvette dominance came to an end in the tightest finish of the day in the GT1 class. Aston Martin picked up its first win of the season with driver Pedro Lemy in the teams #009, which crossed the finish line 0.033 seconds ahead of the Corvette driven by Johnny O’Connell.
In GT2, Jorg Bergmeister and Patrick Long pushed their new #31 Porsche to the class win for Petersen Motorsports/White Lightning Racing. Coming in second was the Flying Lizard Porsche with drivers Johannes van Overbeek and Wolf Henzler.
For full results can be found on the American Le Mans Series Web site, as well as the remaining 2006 schedule.
Written by Matt Litwin Jul 5th, 2006 at 5pm
Posted in HMN blog
Tagged with Allan McNish, American Le Mans Series, Aston Martin DBR9, Aston-Martin, audi, Audi R8, Bobby Allison, Buddy Baker, Cale Yarborough, Chevrolet, Chevrolet Corvette, Chris Dyson, Darren Turner, David Pearson, Dyson Racing, Ferrari, Flying Lizard Porsche, Guy Smith, Harry Gant, Johannes van Overbeek, Johnny O'Connell, Jorg Bergmeister, Lime Rock Park, Lola, Lonnie Pechnik, Lucas Luhr, Marc Gene, Mario Dominguez, Michael Petersen, NASCAR, New England Grand Prix, Oliver Gavin, Olivier Beretta, Panoz, Patrick Long, Pedro Lamy, Penske Porsche, Porsche, Porsche 911 GT3, Richard Petty, Rinaldo Capello, Risi COmpetizione Ferrari 430 GT, Romain Dumas, Ron Fellows, Sascha Maasen, Seth Nieman, Stephane Sarrazin, Timo Bernhard, Tomas Enge, Wolf Henzler | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14413 | You Don’t Have to Be Sixteen…
July 6, 2012Winnie Hsia Comment
0 Actually, you do have to turn sixteen within the year of competition in order to be eligible to compete for the Olympics; however, the general perception of all Olympians being teenagers largely comes from the popular sport of women’s gymnastics, which in the past three Olympic Games has had no competitors over the age of 26. However, the mid-twenties are a prime age group for Olympic competition. In fact, most medalists (and gold medalists) are in their twenties.
Check out this cool interactive chart from the Washington Post and see which Olympic sports you may be most competitive in at your age.
And here’s some notable Olympians who have hit their peak later in life:
Dara Torres, who at 41, is the oldest swimmer to ever earn a place on the US Olympic team (2008 Summer Olympics). She’s a mom of one, who at 40 beat her own American record for the 50-meter freestyle (she originally set the record when she was 15).
John Dane III, owner of Trinity Yachts, the country’s largest mega-yacht builder earned a spot on the 2008 US Olympic sailing team at age 58. He had been trying out for the Olympics since he was 18 and achieved his dream after 40 years!
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14421 | Friday cyber surfing: Wilson proving to be a steady weapon; Hester out for Bears Good morning, and here’s what’s “out there” about the Seahawks for today, November 30.
Danny O’Neil of the Seattle Times takes a look at what has accounted for the club’s struggles in defending the run, “The first sign of trouble defending the run came on a Thursday night game in San Francisco in Week 7. Frank Gore rushed for 92 yards in the second half of Seattle’s loss, but that was chalked up to San Francisco’s scheme. The 49ers ran a trap play that Seattle didn’t adjust to. When Adrian Peterson gained 182 rushing yards against Seattle two weeks later, it was a testament to Peterson’s MVP-caliber season. But when Reggie Bush and Daniel Thomas each averaged more than 6 yards per carry Sunday, it’s a sign of a fairly serious problem. ‘Last week wasn’t any new concepts,’ Bradley said. ‘It was just lack of trust. Some guys trying to do too much. We lost our gaps a couple of times, and then you saw some of our veteran guys try to do too much to compensate for them. Our defense is built on trust.” Now some of that trust needs to be rebuilt. ‘We’ve just got to find a way to get the job done,’ safety Earl Thomas said. ‘That’s all I can say really about that. We’ve got to win when our number is called. It’s really the little details. We just haven’t been able to get the job done.’ “
Eric Williams of the Tacoma News Tribune has his practice report from Thursday, noting Seahawks defensive end Red Bryant and linebacker Leroy Hill sat out for the second consecutive day. Williams also has the Bears’ injury report, who have ruled out return specialist Devin Hester for Sunday’s game with a concussion, along with former Seahawk offensive lineman Chris Spencer, who suffered a torn meniscus in the Bears matchup with the Minnesota Vikings a week ago.
Williams also recaps a media session with quarterback Russell Wilson, who celebrated his 24th birthday yesterday, “Wilson understands he’ll face a tough challenge on the road against an experienced, physical Chicago defense at Soldier Field. Wilson played at Soldier Field last season while at Wisconsin against Northern Illinois, so he’s familiar with the stadium. ‘I have so much respect for guys like (Brian) Urlacher, (Lance) Briggs, (Julius) Peppers and (Charles) Tillman – all of those guys that I’ve watched over the years,’ Wilson said. “So it’s going to be pretty awesome for me to play against them. But it’s no different. I won’t be star struck, that’s for sure. I think that you have to play smart. You have to know that they’re very, very intelligent in terms of knowing how to play the game, in terms of their coverages and everything. They do a great job of being in the right spots at the right times. So you have to trust what you see, and just play the game the way it’s supposed to be played.’ “
John Boyle of the Everett Herald labels Wilson as the Seahawks most consistent weapon of late, “Wilson…has been very good since talk of his job security eight weeks ago. He has been exceptional the past three games, becoming the first rookie in NFL history to register a passer rating of 125 or better in three straight games. Since Seattle’s Week 5 win in Carolina, Wilson has 13 touchdown passes and just four interceptions, good for a passer rating of 105.3. Only Aaron Rodgers, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees, Tom Brady and fellow rookie Robert Griffin III have had better ratings in that span. That’s pretty heady company, particularly for somebody who a lot of Seahawks fans wanted to see sitting on the bench not too long ago.”
Michael Rushton of The Sports Network previews Sunday’s matchup with the Chicago Bears, “Though the Seahawks have won their last two regular-season trips to Chicago, they have twice been bested at Solider Field in the divisional playoffs, including a meeting in the 2010 playoffs. That seems to indicate that Seattle struggles when Chicago’s fans are bringing the noise. A victory this weekend by Seattle would show it is a playoff-caliber team and would keep the club in the hunt for the division title, but that is easier said than done given recent road issues. ‘You don’t know how this is going to go, but we do know we need to take care of business. We don’t have many chances left, we have five games to get it done, and we can’t just lock in that we’re going to win all our home games either. It ain’t going to be that easy. But right now, it’s Chicago,’ said Carroll. The Bears are one of only two teams this season that give up fewer points per game than the Seahawks and home cooking should work in their favor this Sunday. Sports Network Predicted Outcome: Bears 20, Seahawks 13″
Bill Swartz of 710Sports.com has his report from Thursday’s practice, recapping a conversation with defensive coordinator Gus Bradley, “The Chicago Bears use running back Matt Forte on toss sweeps and screen plays very effectively, according to Bradley. They also have a larger back, Michael Bush, for the power plays. Seattle’s secondary will have its work cut out covering the Bears’ primary receiver, Brandon Marshall. Bradley said the fact Seattle has faced Calvin Johnson of the Lions and Arizona’s Larry Fitzgerald should help them against Marshall. The Bears’ patched-up offensive line is not asked to pass protect very long. Bradley says they run more quick plays which makes it difficult for the defense to get pressure on Jay Cutler, who can also extend plays with unusual side-arm and underhand shovel throws.”
Tim Booth of the Associated Press visits the Seahawks’ road woes, “The road problems aren’t new. Seattle’s struggles outside the Northwest are a long-standing issue that is a mix of having to travel more than any other team in the NFL and often playing what feels like a morning start when going to the Eastern or Central time zones. And those issues become more glaring because of how good the Seahawks are at home. Since Seattle opened its new stadium before the start of the 2002 season, the Seahawks are 56-29 at home, including an 8-0 mark in 2005 on their way to the Super Bowl and a 7-1 home record in 2007. On the flip side, Seattle is just 31-55 on the road during the same time span and 12-34 since 2007. In the Eastern time zone alone, Seattle is 7-20 over the last 10 years. ‘We just have to learn how to get over that hump, know that we’re a good team and finish games no matter whether home or on the road. We have to figure out how to win those games and until then we’ll just be middle of the pack,’ [Leroy] Hill said.”
Doug Farrar of YahooSports.com has an interesting read on “underdog” quarterbacks winning the locker room, and ultimately, the starting job, “In March, the Seattle Seahawks signed former Green Bay Packers backup Matt Flynn to a three-year, $19.5 million contract and penciled him in as the quarterback of the near future. They selected Wisconsin’s Russell Wilson in the third round a month later, with the idea that Wilson would learn Seattle’s offense over time. But a funny thing happened on the way to the regular season. Flynn didn’t play badly in minicamps and practices, but it was clear from Day 1 that Wilson had attributes Flynn didn’t possess. The rookie outstripped the veteran in mobility, velocity, accuracy, and the most important thing a quarterback must possess — the faith of his teammates. From the summer on, Seahawks players were telling me about Wilson’s intangibles. ‘When Russell’s in there, we just feel like something good’s going to happen,’ one player said.”
Mike Sando of ESPN.com has a look at the Seahawks’ offensive production against NFC North opponents.
Sando also breaks down the progression of Wilson this season, whose QBR (82.4) trails only Tom Brady (85.1) since Week 5.
Doug Kretz of ESPN.com previews several key elements to watch for in Sunday’s game against the Bears. You must have an ESPN Insider subscription in order to view the entire article, but here is an interesting snippet: “Key positional battle — Seahawks’ O-line vs. Bears’ D-line: In a lot of ways, these two lines are similar in their approach to the game. Both are extremely physical and like to set the pace for their respective units. Seattle loves to dominate up front with a powerful line that opens up holes for Lynch. Chicago relies on a powerful interior and athletic ends to limit run lanes and collapse the pocket. Case for the underdog: The Seahawks need a big game from Lynch and their running game if they hope to come out ahead on the road. They have not been a great team away from the friendly confines of their home stadium and a strong ground game is the best recipe to correct the issue. Few teams can strike as quickly as Chicago with its Cutler-to-Brandon Marshall connection, and Seattle needs to do everything possible to keep these guys off the field.”
NFL Films previews Sunday’s matchup with the Bears in this short video.
Here at Seahawks.com Clare Farnsworth recaps “Thursday in Hawkville” with a focus on offensive lineman Frank Omiyale, the former Chicago Bear who signed with Seattle this past offseason, “The veteran offensive lineman played the past three seasons with the Bears, starting 31 games at left guard, left tackle and right tackle. With the injury problems the Bears are having on their line, there’s a pretty good chance he’d be starting this week against the Seahawks. Except that Omiyale signed with the Seahawks in free agency in March. ‘It’s not a big deal, but I’m excited to see some of the guys,’ he said today of returning to Soldier Field as a member of the visiting team. ‘Other than that, we’re trying to win a game. So that’s what this week is all about.’ “
Farnsworth also highlights quarterback Russell Wilson as he prepares to face the Bears, and rehashes the rookie’s numbers over the past three games, “Wilson’s three-game totals are worth a second look: 70 percent completions (49 of 70) for 585 yards, with seven touchdown passes and no interceptions for a 128.6 rating. This November to remember got Wilson nominated for NFC Rookie of the Month. Even though the honor went to Redskins rookie QB Robert Griffin III, it doesn’t diminish what Wilson accomplished. ‘The surprise, I guess, is it’s so hard for a rookie to demonstrate that kind of consistency,’ coach Pete Carroll said. ‘We’ve seen him grow. We’ve seen him emerge. Now we’re able to watch him show a consistency of performance where each game looks like an extension of the next one. That’s really powerful. I think that’s the surprise – he’s done something that nobody’s ever done before in those three (games). We wouldn’t have anticipated that.”
Tony Ventrella has his “Seahawks Daily” emphasizing ball security this week against a Bears defense that has forced the most turnovers (33) in the NFL.
We have Wilson’s full video press conference from Thursday available here, and coach Bradley’s full video press conference available here.
Finally, our team photographer Rod Mar has a look at the week of practice in photos here.
By Tony Drovetto
November 30, 2012 – 9:37 am Tags: Darrell Bevell, Frank Omiyale, Gus Bradley, Leroy Hill, Marshawn Lynch, Pete Carroll, Red Bryant, Russell Wilson Comments Off Powered by WordPress.com VIP | 体育 |
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America’s Cup Program Released
Posted on August 8, 2012 by andrew The program for the 2013 America’s Cup season in San Francisco will include up to 55 days of racing in the Louis Vuitton Cup, America’s Cup Finals and Red Bull Youth America’s Cup as four teams take up the challenge against ORACLE TEAM USA, the defender.
With the passing of the challenge deadline at midnight on August 1, the team line-up for the Louis Vuitton Cup is set. The challenging teams for the 34th America’s Cup are a formidable foursome and collectively as strong a group as any Defender has faced since the beginning of the multi-challenger era of the Cup in 1970.
Artemis Racing (SWE), Emirates Team New Zealand (NZL), Luna Rossa Challenge (ITA) and Team Korea (KOR) will battle each other in the Louis Vuitton Cup, the America’s Cup Challenger Series, for the right to face ORACLE TEAM USA in the America’s Cup Finals.
“The four challengers who will take on the 34th America’s Cup are an imposing group,” said Regatta Director Iain Murray. “They are talented, they know how to win, and they will be a threat to the defender.”
Running from July 4 through September 1, the Louis Vuitton Cup will provide two full months of racing on San Francisco Bay.
In parallel to the challenger series, ORACLE TEAM USA will hold Defender Trials to strengthen its bid to defend the Cup. Jimmy Spithill, the skipper of ORACLE TEAM USA when it won the Cup in 2010, will helm one of the boats, while Ben Ainslie, multiple Olympic Gold Medalist from the UK will helm the other. They will go head to head on the same racetrack and on the same days as the Louis Vuitton Cup challengers.
The America’s Cup Finals, with ORACLE TEAM USA against the winner of the Louis Vuitton Cup, will run from September 7 to September 22 and features a new format with nearly twice as much racing. Previous Cup Finals have seen the teams race in a ‘first to five’ format, where the winning team needed to collect five victories. In 2013, there will be two races per day, with nine victories required to win the America’s Cup.
In between the Louis Vuitton Cup and America’s Cup Finals the future stars of the sport will take to the water in the Red Bull Youth America’s Cup.
“The amount of racing we’re going to have on San Francisco Bay next summer is simply phenomenal,” said Stephen Barclay, the CEO of the 34th America’s Cup. “The competition is going to be spectacular, the racing will be close, and spectators will be a part of the action with the shoreline along the city front literally making up one of the race course boundaries.”
The AC Village for the 2013 season will be at Piers 27-29 and is currently under construction.
The first Cup racing in San Francisco will take place later this month with the first event of the 2012-13 AC World Series from August 21-26, with up to 11 crews competing. The AC Village for August will be at Marina Green. Racing on Sunday August 26 will be broadcast live, coast to coast in the United States, on NBC, from 11:30am – 1:00pm PDT.
Download the 2013 racing program
Courtesy of www.americascup.com
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14581 | Kobe Bryant to star in documentary
AM PT
By Ramona Shelburne | ESPN.com
A documentary on the life and career of Los Angeles Lakers star Kobe Bryant will air this fall on Showtime.
In the past, Bryant has resisted projects that demand an all-access look into his life, choosing to keep the methods behind his success mysterious. But with his career threatened by an Achilles injury last spring, and the knowledge that his time in the NBA is coming to an end within a few years, he changed his mind.
The feature-length documentary is executive produced by Bryant and director Gotham Chopra, whose work also includes an upcoming ESPN 30 for 30 film "The Little Master." "As a lifelong Boston Celtics fan, never did I imagine I would collaborate with Laker great Kobe Bryant," Chopra said in a statement. "Kobe's quest for greatness transcends rivalries and I'm excited by his and Showtime's willingness to go down this rabbit hole together. I'm confident audiences will be intrigued by what comes out the other side."
Bryant has granted the production access to his daily life and private training sessions, which will intensify next week after he returns from an anniversary trip to Europe. He has also allowed the crew to follow him to business meetings as he prepares for life after basketball.
In an exclusive interview last month with ESPN.com's Darren Rovell, Bryant revealed that he has formed a company called Kobe Inc., and is building a team around him to start new businesses and evaluate investing in others. Bryant's first investment was with upstart sports drink Bodyarmor.
(Read full post) LeBron James tops jersey sales
By Darren Rovell | ESPN.com
LeBron James once again has the NBA's best-selling jersey, but Kevin Durant is as close as he has ever been to the top, finishing the regular season in second place for the first time.
The rankings are based on sales during the season at NBAStore.com, figures that were released by the league on Thursday.
Despite playing in only six games this season, Kobe Bryant still finished third in jersey sales. Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose, who played in only 10 games, finished fourth, and Golden State Warriors guard Stephen Curry rounded out the top five.
Thanks in part to James, who has finished with the top-selling jersey in six of his 11 seasons in the league, the Heat are the best-selling team. The Lakers, Knicks and Celtics finished second, fifth and sixth in merchandise sales, respectively, despite all missing the playoffs.
One surprise name on the list is San Antonio Spurs center Tim Duncan, who squeaked into the top 15 at No. 14. It's the first time Duncan has been in the top 15 since 2007.
By Dave McMenaminESPNLosAngeles.comArchive
.329 -- The Lakers' final winning percentage -- after going 27-55 -- was the worst in the history of the team since the franchise moved from Minneapolis to Los Angeles. 2 -- Pau Gasol passed Detlef Schrempf to become the second-highest scoring European player in NBA history (Dirk Nowitzki) with an 18-foot jumper against Brooklyn in November. Gasol finished the season with 16,576 points, ranking him 89th overall on the all-time scoring list.
3 -- The number of times the 40-point plateau was reached by a Lakers player this season with Jodie Meeks scoring 42 in a win against the Oklahoma City Thunder and Nick Young hitting for 40 and 41 in two games in April.
4 -- The number of eligible players the Lakers ended up with in a game against Cleveland after they had a limited roster because of injuries and after Chris Kaman and Robert Sacre fouled out.
7 -- Young had seven four-point plays this season, tying him with Kyle Korver for the NBA lead while setting a new Lakers franchise record.
8 -- The number of players to set new career-high scoring games for the Lakers this season including Meeks (42 points), Jordan Farmar (30), Jordan Hill (28), Xavier Henry (27), Ryan Kelly (26), Kent Bazemore (23), Kendall Marshall (20) and Sacre (15).
9 -- The Lakers failed to sell out Staples Center for nine of their 41 home games this season. Their streak of 320 consecutive sellouts (playoffs included) was snapped in November.
14 -- Marshall was second in the league with nine games of 14 assists or more this season. Chris Paul was first with 10.
19 -- L.A. set a franchise record for most 3-pointers in a regulation game, making 19 against the Sacramento Kings in February.
35 -- The number of different starting lineups the Lakers used in 82 games this season.
40 -- Steve Nash, the oldest active player in the league, turned 40 on Feb. 7, scoring a season-high 19 points during a 112-98 win over Philadelphia on his birthday.
48 -- The number of points the Lakers lost to the Clippers by in March, the biggest blowout loss in franchise history.
51 -- L.A. set a team record for points in a quarter, hanging 51 in the third quarter of a blowout win over the New York Knicks in March.
319 -- Lakers players missed 319 games combined because of injury this season, which led the NBA.
408 -- Over a three-game span in early March, the Lakers allowed New Orleans to score 132 points, the L.A. Clippers to score 142 points and Denver to score 134 points. The 408 points combined accounted for the most porous three-game stretch of defense the team has ever allowed.
10,335 -- Nash moved up to No. 3 on the all-time assists list by registering his 10,335th assist of his career, passing Mark Jackson.
$172,055 -- The amount of money Kobe Bryant made per minute played this season after only appearing in 177 minutes over six games.
Season is over, but is D'Antoni?
SAN ANTONIO -- The Los Angeles Lakers won on Wednesday, bookending the season with a win over the league's No. 1 team in the San Antonio Spurs much the same way they started things off with a surprising win over the Los Angeles Clippers on opening night.
You wouldn't know it from talking to Mike D'Antoni after the game. The coach stood in the cramped AT&T Center hallway outside the visitor's locker room looking as glum as Eeyore, sounding as beaten as an old rug.
[+] EnlargeChris Covatta/NBAE via Getty ImagesMike D'Antoni had nothing but good things to say about his players after the end of a tough season for the Lakers.His team did everything he always asked them to do. They shared the ball, with eight out of the nine players to get in the game scoring in double digits. They outrebounded with hustle and heart, even though they were undersized. They spaced the floor, giving their shooters the room and rhythm necessary to go 11-for-27 on 3-pointers (40.7 percent).
It was beautiful basketball, a real life interpretation of the vision how D'Antoni believes the game is meant to be played.
And it cloaked D'Antoni in melancholy as it played out, making him wonder if this would be it for him. Maybe he should take it in one last time, make like Walter White as he revels in the perfect functionality of his lab equipment in his final moments.
It's no secret that his coaching seat has gotten mighty warm in the last couple of months. From the Lakers stumbling to a 27-55 record, the worst season in the history of the franchise since the team moved from Minneapolis to L.A., to Kobe Bryant -- whose relationship with the coach has deteriorated to the point where the two rarely speak to each another -- openly questioning whether D'Antoni should be retained or not, it wouldn't shock anyone if the Lakers showed him the door as they go into one of the most important summers they've ever had.
Yes, the Lakers owe D'Antoni $4 million for next season and yes, several Lakers players -- Jodie Meeks, Nick Young, Kent Bazemore, even Jordan Hill -- had career years playing in his system.
But sometimes there needs to be a scapegoat, and in a league that saw 12 of its head coaches fired last season -- including several who led their teams to the playoffs -- the coach is usually the one to go.
Rapid Reaction: Lakers 113, Spurs 100
SAN ANTONIO -- How does that saying go again? Don't cry because it's over, smile because it happened?
Or in the Los Angeles Lakers' case, there were surely plenty of fans smiling Wednesday night because their dismal 2013-14 season is finally over.
They were a team that just couldn't get things right this season all the way to the bitter end, when all that was left to play for was draft seeding -- and they even messed that up with a two-game winning streak to finish things.
Before the Lakers knocked off the league's No. 1 team in the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday (albeit a Spurs team that did not dress Tim Duncan and played Tony Parker only 16 minutes), coach Mike D'Antoni was asked to reflect on the season that went awry.
"It’s something that -- we could have played better, obviously, but I don't know if we were good enough to win," D'Antoni said. "They tried their best. They were in a horrible situation. They were in a tough situation to start with, then it got horrible on them. But, I think overall, they competed."
For the nine guys still standing from the Lakers' 15-man roster, there was something to feel good about, at least knowing that they at least made their coach's claim ring true.
Time will tell just how much competing all the way to the end will hurt them when the draft lottery results are revealed next month, however.
How it happened: The Lakers saw their 13-point first-half lead disappear by intermission, but they were able to build their balloon back to 11 heading into the fourth. L.A. was able to keep its cushion large enough that MarShon Brooks played nine minutes in the final frame.
What it means: It's over. It's all over. The Lakers can only go up from here.
Hits: All five Lakers starters and eight of the nine players who got in the game overall scored in double digits, with Jordan Hill leading the charge with 18 points and 14 rebounds.
Wesley Johnson (11 points, 10 rebounds) and Kendall Marshall (15 points, 11 assists) also chipped in with double-doubles.
L.A. had just nine turnovers.
Misses: Johnson shot just 5-for-17 from the field. Stat of the game: 319. With both Steve Nash and Chris Kaman joining Kobe Bryant, Pau Gasol, Kent Bazemore and Xavier Henry on the injured list for the season finale, the Lakers' season total for combined games missed because of injury rose to a staggering 319.
Up next: An offseason rife with question marks. What will become of D'Antoni? Where will their spot end up being in the draft lottery? Whom will they select with their pick? How many out of their 12 free agents will be back on the team next season? Will Bryant return healthy? How about Nash? Will he retire? What will the Lakers do with all that cap space they've hoarded? How long will it take for this franchise to get back on track?
Hill leads Lakers over Spurs in finale, 113-100
SAN ANTONIO -- Jordan Hill had 18 points and 14 rebounds and the Lakers closed their worst season since they moved to Los Angeles with a 113-100 victory over the San Antonio Spurs on Wednesday night.
Nick Young scored 16 points and Kendall Marshall added 15 points to help Los Angeles close the season with a two-game winning streak.
The Lakers (27-55) are expected to look dramatically different next season after finishing with their worst record since moving to Los Angeles.
Kawhi Leonard had 14 points to lead San Antonio, which did not have anyone play more than 27 minutes. The Spurs (62-19) had an opportunity to match their best record, but opted to rest in preparation for defense of their conference title.
(Read full post) Kobe to begin program next week
Kobe Bryant has been cleared to resume running and shooting and will begin an intense, six-month training program next week upon his return from a short family trip to Europe, sources with knowledge of the situation told ESPN.
Bryant has been ramping up his activity level in recent weeks as he continues to recover from a fracture in his left knee suffered during the Lakers' victory Dec. 17 at Memphis, just six games into his return from a ruptured Achilles.
While he is in Europe, Bryant will visit the clinic in Germany where he had the platelet-rich plasma treatment known as Orthokineon on his knee, according to a source.
The visit to the clinic is a check-up to ensure all is structurally sound with his knee before he resumes intense training.
Bryant has rarely traveled with the team or appeared in public since, preferring to focus on his rehabilitation instead of a team wrapping up the worst season in Lakers history. He vented his frustrations with the team's struggles when he was declared out for the season in mid-March. He made his feelings known on Twitter on Wednesday:
S*** season. Flush it. Forget it #amnesia Next Season will be epic #blackout #bussfam
- Kobe Bryant (@kobebryant) April 16, 2014
(Read full post) Mike D'Antoni's future uncertain
By Dave McMenamin | ESPNLosAngeles.com
SAN ANTONIO -- The Los Angeles Lakers played their final game of the worst season in franchise history on Wednesday against the San Antonio Spurs, a 113-100 win. Will it also be the final game of Mike D'Antoni's tenure with the team?
The coach says his future is still undetermined.
"The next step will be to sit down with Jim [Buss] and all them and Mitch [Kupchak] at the end of the year and talk things out, see where things are," D'Antoni said after shootaround Wednesday morning.
D'Antoni is scheduled to have his exit interview with team management Friday. He has one year remaining on his contract worth $4 million, plus the Lakers have an option for the following season. Kupchak, the team's general manager, told USA Today last week that no decision has been made about retaining D'Antoni.
"No. No," Kupchak said. "In fact, I told Jimmy, let's get to the end [of the] season, take some time off ... then review the season."
While Kupchak preached patience, D'Antoni said he was unaware of any extended timeline for a decision on his fate.
"We haven't talked," D'Antoni said. "So that will be done in the next couple days and then we'll just see."
Guard Nick Young, who has the inauspicious distinction of being the team's leading scorer in such a lackluster year, said D'Antoni didn't have a chance to succeed.
"I think he handled everything well," Young said. "He came in on a bad situation -- getting picked over Phil Jackson. He already had a target on his back. So I think he handled all that well. From the boos and 'Fire D'Antoni!' I think he still comes in here with a smile and you can't ask for nothing more from Mike D'Antoni."
No matter what happens against the Spurs, the Lakers (27-55) have already assured themselves the worst season in the 66-year history of the franchise. When asked what he would remember about the season, D'Antoni replied, "Nothing," in deadpan fashion before elaborating.
"You forge individual relationships that have been great," D'Antoni said. "Watching Robert [Sacre](Read full post) Can Lakers make the spinning stop?
Noah Graham/NBAE/Getty ImagesWith their dreadful season all but over, the Los Angeles Lakers now must face the long road ahead.
Pau Gasol has been in a bad way for the past few weeks. Vertigo might seem like a fancy word for dizzy, but anyone who has ever suffered from it knows the truth.
It's scary. Up is sideways. Down is backward. After an hour, all you want is to make the spinning stop.
"It feels like you're seasick," Gasol said on his walk out of Staples Center after a recent game, "like you're floating in a cloud."
His eyes were glassy. Staying upright wasn't easy. A security guard walked with him, just to make sure.
There is a clarity that forms in desperate moments like this, a distillation of what matters and what doesn't. After the worst season in Los Angeles Lakers history, one that's left everyone in the franchise and the city feeling as dizzy as Gasol, this feels like one of those moments.
The Lakers have missed the playoffs just three times in the past 30 years, but they've never bottomed out with as little to build back up with as this season.
"Things didn't work out," Gasol said as he stopped for a moment to steady himself. "It's not just about talent sometimes. It's about getting your pieces to work together in one direction and having good chemistry, and obviously it didn't happen.
"I'm not big on thinking on what if. Things happen, and then you just move on."
How the Lakers do that, how they move on and use this moment, will set the course of their future for years to come.
(Read full post) The Forum: Kobe Not On Lakers Bench
Mark Willard and Arash Markazi give their thoughts on Kobe Bryant not on the Lakers bench with teammates for the last three months of the season. Have The Lakers And Clippers Switched Bodies?
Now that all the excitement and attention in Los Angeles has shifted from the Lakers to the Clippers, Bill Simmons and Jalen Rose answer the question, "Have the Lakers and Clippers switched bodies?" | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14582 | - Atlantic Division on the line in Death Valley
NCF Nation
Atlantic Division on the line in Death Valley
Posted by ESPN.com’s Heather Dinich
CLEMSON, S.C. -- The tailgating is in full swing here in Death Valley, and it’s a beautiful evening for it -- finally. It has rained at some point during each of the first five Clemson home games this year. If the game lives up to the pregame excitement and buzz, it should be a great one. The Atlantic Division standings are on the line, and it’s Clemson’s division to lose. FSU has some momentum, though, and can still sneak in. The Noles will move into second place with a win.
Here are three keys to this game:
1. Pressure on Ponder. This is the biggest key. Florida State quarterback Christian Ponder has been one of the top performers in the country in recent weeks, but only he knows how much pain he’s truly in from the bruised ribs he suffered in last week’s win over NC State. Clemson’s defensive line is one of its deepest units and biggest strengths. Their backup defensive ends are good enough to start for some other ACC teams. Guys like Kevin Alexander, Malliciah Goodman and Andre Branch are still going to bring the heat. Clemson leads the ACC in sacks.
2. Turnovers and penalties. These could be the X factor. Clemson is the least penalized team in the ACC. Florida State is the worst. All Florida State needs in this kind of game is a little bit of help from a fumble or an interception. Clemson quarterback Kyle Parker has shown marked improvement over the past couple of weeks, but he’s also got eight interceptions and 10 touchdowns this year. FSU has a plus-four turnover margin, but Clemson is one of the best teams in the country when it comes to interceptions with 15.
3. Will FSU’s defense show up? It was an emotional week with the announcement of Mickey Andrews’ retirement, so you’d think the Seminoles would be driven to play for him in one of their most critical games of the season. You don’t morph from one of the country’s worst defenses, though, into one of the best in a matter of four quarters. What the Noles need to do is stay fundamentally sound, make their tackles, stay away from penalties, and limit the big plays from Jacoby Ford and C.J. Spiller. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14583 | Newcastle United news
Ben Arfa 'could have been like Messi'
By Ian Holyman, France Correspondent
Newcastle United midfielder Hatem Ben Arfa believes he could have been as good as Lionel Messi if only he had grown up more quickly.PA PhotosBen Arfa has struggled with injury for much of this season• Blog: Remembering Sir BobbyThe France international, 25, has had the reputation of a precocious bad boy in his home country ever since he came to public attention as a teenager in a TV documentary about his time at the elite training centre in Clairefontaine alongside the likes of Arsenal's Abou Diaby and Montpellier's Ligue 1-winning goalkeeper Geoffrey Jourdren. Tempestuous ends to his stays at Lyon and Marseille merely reinforced his negative public image, and Ben Arfa admitted he is - in part - to blame for not yet fulfilling his undoubted potential."I regret not being mature earlier, because I think that today I would be playing at a higher level," the Paris-born midfielder told Surface magazine in an interview to be published on Thursday. "Perhaps I would be like [Messi] today. But I've still got time, I can catch him up."Though his stay on Tyneside has been badly disrupted by injury, Ben Arfa has certainly shown flashes of skill the Barcelona star would be proud of. The former teenage prodigy returned to first-team training this week after another enforced injury lay-off, and now hopes to catch the eye of French national team coach Didier Deschamps, who jettisoned Ben Arfa while in charge of Marseille, and force his way onto the plane for the next World Cup in Brazil."In my head, I've still got the 2014 World Cup. For me, it's impossible I don't play in it," Ben Arfa, who was part of Laurent Blanc's Euro 2012 squad, said. "The current generation has a lot of talented players. But I think they lack leaders." | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14584 | Forward Johnson hopes Europe comes calling
HAMBURG, Germany -- Striker Eddie Johnson says it is hard to be a professional soccer player in the United States, where the world's most popular sport is a poor cousin to
American football, basketball and baseball.The 22-year-old Kansas City Wizards forward wants to help
the U.S. enjoy a long run at the World Cup but is also keen to
put himself in the shop window so that, as he candidly admits,
he might attract attention from the leading European clubs."I want to feel like a professional soccer player," Johnson
told reporters at the U.S. team's base in Hamburg on Monday. "In
the United States you don't because you've got basketball,
football and baseball. Those sports just overpower us."I want to be in an environment where there's just soccer,
where every training session is intense like a game, where the
quality and expectations are high. I want to be around the best
players in the world and I want to play in sold-out stadiums."Johnson is one of Major League Soccer's top strikers but
missed much of 2005 through injury and is struggling to regain
the form he showed in late 2004 and early 2005 when he scored in
each of his first four appearances for the U.S.Dangerous when running at defences, Johnson has got nine
goals in 18 appearances for Bruce Arena's team. He finished the
World Cup qualifying campaign with seven goals in seven matches,
the same number as playmaker Landon Donovan."My dream is to play in Europe. Hopefully, after the World
Cup there will be more interest. I don't have anything against
the MLS. My life is good. I'm not complaining. I'm blessed. But
I want to be the best I can be. I want to go to Europe."Johnson said he was not worried about becoming homesick and
hopes to sign for a club inm England, France, Spain, the
Netherlands or Germany in the near future."I want to deal with the pressures of Europe in an
environment where soccer is huge and you have to be consistent
every week," he said. "There's definitely some interest. If I
have a good World Cup it would make everything a lot easier." | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14585 | Friday, November 14, 2008ESPNsoccernet: December 5, 11:58 AM UK
Puskas, the Galloping Major
Short, one-footed, lacking in pace, belly bulging over his waistband, Ferenc Puskas was one of the greatest players of all time. November 17 will mark two years since he passed away at age 79, back home in the city from where he had once been exiled for three decades. A generation-defining man with a left foot that plundered over 600 goals, Puskas was mourned across the footballing world, his standing as a key man with both the greatest club side of all time and the best team to have never won the World Cup marking him out as a genuine great. In Britain, two matches, at Wembley in 1953, and Hampden Park in 1960, made an indelible mark on the game in these isles.
Hungarian football's greatest hero, from a time when the Magyars were truly mighty, Puskas's playing career was divided into two separate but equally distinguished parts. As well as his 84 goals in 85 international appearances for his country, a record only surpassed by Iran's Ali Daei over forty years later, he is also a Real Madrid great, scoring 157 goals in just 182 games during eight years at Spain's most decorated club. Puskas, known from childhood as "Ocsi" (little brother), was an international star in a very different era. Hungary was part of Europe's Soviet bloc and Puskas' first club Kispest AC were assimilated in 1949 by the Hungarian Ministry of Defence, making them the army's team. Honved, as they became known, soon acquired the country's best players through conscription and Puskas was given the all-but honorary rank of major. "The Galloping Major" was the other nickname that would stay with him for life. Honved swept to five league titles on the domestic scene but by then Puskas had made his name on the world stage. Having made a scoring international debut at just 18, he became a regular for his country from then on. Accompanied by team-mates of the class of Zolt�n Czibor, S�ndor Kocsis, J�zsef Bozsik and N�ndor Hidegkuti, Puskas became a gold medallist at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics, though it was at Wembley in 1953 that Puskas made his name in Britain. When captain Puskas and his team travelled to London, England had never been beaten at Wembley by a team outside the 'Home Nations'. Hungary desecrated that record with a 6-3 thumping that had English football wringing its hands for years. Amid all the talk of Hungary's formation, Puskas' left foot became the most feared implement in world football after a drag-back to flummox England captain Billy Wright was followed by a thunderous shot that gave goalkeeper Gil Merrick no chance. Puskas left Wembley with two goals while Hidegkuti grabbed a hat-trick. A return game was even more catastrophic for England as they were pummelled in Budapest, 7-1 the scoreline this time, Puskas grabbing another brace. After that game in May 1954 few could see the Hungarians not winning a World Cup that started the following month in Switzerland. When West Germany were given the England treatment in an 8-3 group-stage thrashing, the Jules Rimet trophy looked all but Hungarian. Yet a hack to Puskas' ankle by defender Werner Liebrich changed destiny. Puskas limped from the field, only to return in the final against Liebrich and his team-mates. Rushed back to fitness ahead of any normal schedule and with Puskas' dedication to fitness never the strongest, the final in Berne saw the half-fit skipper have an early impact by scoring the opening goal but thereafter appear below-par. He was responsible for a series of mis-hit shots as the Germans pulled ahead and had a late equaliser chalked off for offside. One of the greatest shocks in football history, the "Miracle of Berne" occurred via a 3-2 West German victory. An unbeaten run of 33 matches had ended for the "Golden Team", yet another record. They would never get the chance to right such a perceived wrong. Their international careers were soon to be over.
As stars of a communist regime, Puskas and his colleagues had enjoyed favours never granted to their compatriots, able to live a life of luxury denied to the common man. Though Puskas said until his death that he was "non-political", he was also used as propaganda for the country. Unlike their fellow Hungarians, Honved's players were granted foreign travel by being sent on tours of Europe. December 1954 saw them travel to face English champions Wolverhampton Wanderers, who had staged 'friendlies' with a series of leading European clubs. After Wolves won 3-2 at Molineux the English press hailed them as "Champions of Europe".
It was on another foreign trip, this time in the fledgling European Cup, that Puskas and his colleagues found themselves fugitives from their own country. While Russian tanks rolled into Budapest in 1956 to crush an "October Rising" led by Imre Nagy, Honved had been playing Athletic Bilbao. With their position as symbols of a lax regime now crushed by hardline Soviets, few of the team wanted to return home. A return 'home' leg with Bilbao saw Honved crash out of the competition in Brussels. The exiles made ends meet and supported their families by taking on more tours, travelling to Italy, Portugal, Spain and even Brazil. The matches played by Honved were recognised by neither FIFA nor UEFA and Puskas found himself banned for two years by the European body for refusing to return to Budapest, thus denying him moves to AC Milan and Juventus. The ban had taken its toll on Puskas by the time it was over. By 1958 he was 31 and years of good living had further expanded his waistline. Italy was no longer an option. After a spell guesting at Espanyol, he made his home in Spain despite mooted interest from Manchester United. Real Madrid were prepared to gamble on his fitness and application in the same way they had done with Alfredo Di Stefano on his arrival from the outlawed Colombian league five years earlier. Real were rewarded with goals galore. Puskas' left foot was still as powerful as ever and he bagged four hat-tricks in his first season, beginning a run of 20 or more goals in his first six seasons in Madrid. Denied the chance of his first European Cup in 1959 through injury after scoring the decisive goal in the semi-final, Puskas made a surely unsurpassable impact on Real's triumph of 1960.
May 13 1960 was another day in the education of British football fans. Real's 7-3 dismantling of Eintracht Frankfurt at Hampden Park was watched by 130,000 enraptured spectators. Puskas scored four goals, with Di Stefano unable to claim the match ball after his own three. It is still hailed as the best final of the tournament's 53-year history. Though he missed out on repeating that amazing feat, Puskas managed to score a first-half hat-trick in the 1962 final as Benfica beat Real 5-3 in Amsterdam. Puskas remains the only player to have scored a hat-trick in two European Cup Finals. Real won the European Cup in Puskas' last season, with him scoring five goals over two legs the first round against Feyenoord though by the time the 1966 final came, Puskas was pushing 40 and Real had a new and vibrant team. So began a nomadic coaching career which saw him take Panathinaikos to the 1971 European Cup Final. Puskas could not revive the Wembley wizardry of 1953 as his team perished at the hands of Johan Cruyff's Ajax. Five years at Panathinaikos brought him two Greek titles but he could never sustain that success at any of his other clubs. Spells with Murcia, Chile's Colo Colo, back in Greece with AEK Athens, El-Masry in Egypt, Club Sol de Am�rica and Cerro Porte�o in Paraguay and South Melbourne Hellas in Australia all saw him fail to find a home. Despite over 30 years of exile he was eventually welcomed home and became caretaker coach of Hungary as they tried - and failed - to qualify for the 1994 World Cup. During exile he had become a naturalised Spaniard, even featuring for his adopted country at the 1962 World Cup. Spain may well be the only team he never scored for, Puskas being off-target in his four internationals. The fall of communism allowed him to return to his country of birth and the city he made his name. The chubbiness of his youth gave way to corpulence in old age but the cheeriness that once made him the darling of Hungary saw him retain his popularity after all that time away. In 2001, Hungary's national stadium was named after him.
When Puskas died in 2006, it was after years of illness. The horror of Alzheimer's Disease had laid him low for some years. Real Madrid courted genuine controversy in 2005 when they pocketed �892,000 for a friendly game in Budapest which was trumpeted as a fundraiser for their ailing former star; his family received just �7,000 from the company who set up the match. Though they themselves may well been misled, Real were decried across the football world for their perceived avarice. When his passing came, the memories and tributes piled in from across the world. Known equally in South America as in Europe, Puskas was remembered as perhaps the first world football star. And still one of the greatest. ESPNsoccernet: Help | Media Kit | | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14607 | Early lessons helped hook Tennis on music
With lawbooks as a backdrop, Greig Tennis is pictured with his favorite instrument, the string bass. He also plays drums, the electric bass, guitar and banjo. (Photo by Cliff Buchan)
Local attorney believes music sharpens skills
Editor’s note: The following is the third and final article in a series on movers and shakers in the local music scene.
Greig Tennis admits it. He’s hooked on music.
He’s been hooked since his band teacher taught him to play the drums as a kid, since he first heard bagpipes in college, since he learned to play the bass and the banjo as an adult.
Music has long been a way of life for Tennis, 62, who has carved out a career in Forest Lake working in real estate and as an attorney for the past 30 years. During the day, he is the head of Tennis Law Office, 20 N. Lake St., but when the business day ends, you’ll find him with the Riverside Trio, the Riverside Jazz Band or Savanna Blue.
As a professional who once closed real estate transactions and now practices law, Tennis firmly believes his music has been a valued companion to his daily work in the Town Square Building.
To be a good lawyer, Tennis said, one has to have discipline and be persistent in your work.
“It’s the same with music,” he said. “You have to be disciplined to be good at it.”
An early start
Tennis knows exactly when he came to love music. It’s all due to Rollie Nelson, the beloved band leader at Forest Lake High School. Nelson, now retired and living in Wyoming, would come to the Tennis home one night a week to help teach the fifth-grader to play drums. The Tennis home was just one block west of the school, and that made Nelson’s visits easy.
“That played into my early music involvement,” Tennis said of the convenience of where he lived. Nelson would give music lessons to Tennis and other kids in the neighborhood. “It was a half an hour a week with Rollin Nelson,” Tennis said. “That was a major influence on my life.”
Tennis did not have drums at the time, and he learned to play by drumming his hands on a table. When his parents realized the lessons would stick, a drum set was purchased. To make sure he was vested, Tennis was required by his parents to pay $5 per week to Schmidt Music for more than a year to pay for the purchase.
Tennis never strayed from drums during high school. By the time he was in the eighth grade, he had joined the marching band.
“This was the golden era of marching band,” Tennis said.
He played a variety of drums during his high school career and blossomed under Nelson’s leadership. The band traveled widely in the 1960s and Tennis was part of a trip to New York City. There were school functions involving the band and Tennis was also with the pep band. On the rare occasions when Nelson could not attend after-school events, he would hand the baton to Tennis, who filled in as director.
Teen band
That love of music led Tennis and a group of friends to form a garage band, The Yunger Set, when he was a sophomore in high school.
“We formed a band before any of us could play an instrument,” he said, smiling.
Joining Tennis in the band were brothers Mark and Mike Schmidt, Nick Wojtowicz and Kevin Casey. With Tennis on drums, the Schmidts on guitars and Casey and Wojtowicz handling the vocals and playing guitars, the band was hired for frequent school sock hops.
At dances during the fall, Casey, a star athlete, would often be late because of his gridiron duties.
“When Kevin came, the dance would start,” Tennis said. “We’d maybe go home with $10 in our pockets.”
The band stayed together for five years. By the time it broke up, Tennis had finished two years at Macalester College.
It didn’t take Tennis long to find a new outlet for his music. As a freshman at Macalester, he was exposed early to the sounds of the Macalester Bagpipe Band. As a percussion fan, it was sweet music to his ears.
“I was hooked,” he said.
Tennis spent four years with the bagpipers and performed at many events, including the school’s annual Highland Games.
He graduated with a degree in psychology in 1972, but used the training for only a short period. He completed an internship at Hazelden in Center City working on a one-year research project. During this period, he was hired to manage a co-ed housing project at the University of Minnesota.
Leslie Bruckner of St. Paul was one of the 26 students living in the housing project. They met and were married a year later. Needing steady work, Tennis settled in with his father, Doug Tennis, as an associate in Tennis Realty. He would eventually buy the business from his father and remain in real estate for eight years.
It was all business for Tennis as he concentrated on making a living in real estate. Music would take a backseat.
Tennis learned to play the banjo when his two kids were young, but had done nothing more with music. That changed in 1996 when Jasmine, now 34, and Kyle, now 30, gave him an electric bass and a small Fender amplifier as a Father’s Day gift. It was just the nudge he needed to reach out for music again.
“I was off and running,” Tennis said. “I was hooked.”
He took lessons on the bass from Randy Gildersleeve and soon became skilled. “Within six months we had a little band,” Tennis said.
It was in 1997 when Tennis teamed with Randy and Sandy Gildersleeve, Chuck Corliss and Jimmy Beatson to form Savanna Blue. As he jumped back into music, Tennis also dabbled in bluegrass music and helped form Swenson’s Pickin Parlor. Each month a dozen or so bluegrass fans would gather at the Scandia grocery store to play. He would later start the Tennis Jazz Project and that led to the formation of the Riverside Swing Band and the Riverside Trio.
A busy time
It was a busy time for Tennis. After eight years of selling real estate, he sold the business to Barb and Doug Goerss and enrolled in the Hamline University Law School in St. Paul. It was a move he felt would bring stability.
“I dealt with a lot of lawyers as a real estate broker,” Tennis said. “I wanted to stay in Forest Lake. I felt this was something I could do.”
He completed the four-year law degree in just over two years and joined the Hebert-Jergens Law Office in Forest Lake in 1983. On Jan. 1, 1987, he went on his own, forming Tennis Law Office. He has used his background in real estate as a key area of his law practice.
It didn’t take long for Leslie and Greig Tennis to learn that their son, Kyle, would excel in music. By the time Kyle was 4, Forest Lake music teachers recognized the talent.
“Kyle couldn’t do anything but music,” Tennis recalled of Kyle’s early days.
It was his son’s love of music and desire to pursue a career in music that pushed Greig Tennis to new avenues with his music. By the time Kyle was 14, he had joined Savanna Blue as drummer. But classical guitar was Kyle’s true forte, Greig Tennis said.
After graduating Forest Lake High School in 2001, he went to the University of Wisconsin at River Falls where he earned a degree in classical guitar music performance in 2005. He now works as a worship music leader at a church in Eagan, where contemporary Christian rock is the main music on Sunday mornings.
Greig Tennis was on bass while son Kyle Tennis played drums during a performance by Savanna Blue at Forest Lake’s Arts in the Park event on Tuesday, July 23. (Photo by Cliff Buchan)
Since finishing college and returning home, intent on a music career, Greig Tennis has turned over the jazz bands to Kyle to run.
“This is his band,” Tennis said.
And the formula is working under the father-son partnership. In addition to regular gigs and private performances, the Tennis music makers also play weddings.
For some weddings, Kyle Tennis will provide vocals and guitar music for the ceremony. The Riverside Trio will step in for the reception before the Riverside Swing Band will play the wedding dance. Kyle Tennis will also serve as the disc jockey for the evening while his wife, Sara, runs the photo booth.
“These are all-day events,” Greig Tennis said. “We have tons of fun together.”
When Kyle Tennis needed help setting up a limited liability company, Greig Tennis provided the professional help.
The various Tennis musical groups will play nine dates in July and 60 engagements in a year.
It is not Kyle Tennis alone that has benefited from his father’s mentoring. Jasmine has followed her father’s career path, too. She now lives in Seattle, Wash., where she works with an aunt selling high-end real estate.
Music has been a natural for the family.
“She’s (Leslie) been very good about this because it’s time spent with Kyle,” Greig Tennis said.
“It’s a hobby, but it’s more than a hobby,” Tennis added.
Still, he firmly believes he is a better attorney because of the benefits he soaks in from music.
And it’s not just performance time that Tennis enjoys. He will use quiet time at home for practice and relishes those sessions.
“It’s not drudgery,” he said. “I look forward to it. I love practicing.”
He will still pick up the drumsticks, but for Greig Tennis today, it’s the string bass that he loves the most.
Perhaps it was those early lessons taught by Nelson that sealed the deal on his love of music. He believes he is at a point where music has never meant more; it is an art that remains a challenge and demands discipline and diligence.
“I’ve enjoyed the music,” he said. “I’m playing with five people who were music majors in college, and I can barely read music. I have to pay the price by practicing to perform with these people because I can’t wing it.”
It’s all part of being hooked on music, he said.
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14628 | Checkers Game in Norfolk Postponed
Created: January 28, 2014 - 11:42 am Written by Paul Branecky The Checkers’ game against the Norfolk Admirals, originally scheduled to be played Tuesday night, is postponed due to inclement weather. With officials expecting between five-to-eight inches of snow in the hours leading up to and during the game in Norfolk, the contest between the two regional rivals will now be played on Tuesday, March 4, at 7:15 p.m. As such, the Checkers’ expected five-game road swing is now down to four, with the team planning to take a return bus trip to Charlotte this afternoon before flying out Thursday to face Lake Erie and Abbotsford.
The makeup date of March 4 comes in the midst of what will now become a four-game road trip starting Feb. 26. Charlotte begins that journey with a game in Norfolk before busing up to Hershey for two games and then playing the new date in Norfolk on the way home. The new date extends what was supposed to be a nine-game road swing made up of three separate trips from Feb. 21 to March 12 to 10 games, setting a new franchise record.
The postponement is the first faced by the Checkers this season, though the parent Carolina Hurricanes suffered the same fate on two previous days this month. Defenseman Ryan Murphy, assigned to Charlotte for the first time this season just last week, has experienced all three.
Tuesday’s game would have been the fifth in the GEICO Challenge Cup series between Charlotte and Norfolk. With a record of 3-1-0, the Checkers currently hold a 6-4 points lead in the competition to see which team can earn the most at the conclusion of the eight-game season series. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14642 | Parise and Harding Lead Wild to 1-0 Win
Created: 01/20/2013 10:02 PM KSTP.com Zach Parise scored his first goal with the Wild and Josh Harding stopped all 24 shots he faced in his first start since being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and Minnesota beat the Dallas Stars 1-0 on Sunday.
Parise notched his third point with the Wild a night after getting two assists in Minnesota's season-opening win against Colorado.
Parise's first goal of the season came at 8:11 of the first period just as a 4-on-3 advantage for the Wild expired.
He one-timed a pass from Pierre-Marc Bouchard past Cristopher Nilstorp from the slot.
Nilstorp, who signed with the Stars in June after playing the previous four seasons in the Swedish Elite League, stopped 31 shots in his first career NHL start for Dallas.
Each team was coming off a four-goal performance the night before, but struggled to find any sort of an offensive flow.
The Stars were 0 for 4 on the power play and never found a rhythm against the Wild's defense and Harding, who earned his seventh career shutout.
Harding became one of Minnesota's feel-good stories last fall when the team announced his intentions to manage his illness and continue playing.
Earlier in the summer, he passed on the chance to leave and instead re-signed with the Wild to play behind Niklas Backstrom again.
Notes: Stars captain Brenden Morrow left during the first period after taking a puck to the face, but returned for the second. ... Harding's last shutout came against Vancouver last March 19. ... Parise has six goals and seven assists in 10 career games against the Stars, the organization for which his father, J.P. Parise, played and coached. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14674 | Tag:Matt Ryan
L.T. is fine
Just to bring you up to date on some news from this past weekend, Chargers RB LaDainian Tomlinson said his injured right knee is fine and at 90 percent. That's great news since he will remain the No. 1 overall pick in nearly every draft. If he's healthy, he will be dominant. And he also said he might play in the preseason. You don't want to see him get hurt, but you do want to see if he's able to go.
Also in San Diego, QB Philip Rivers said his knee, which had ACL surgery, is fine. If he's healthy, with quality weapons like Tomlinson, Antonio Gates and Chris Chambers, he can be a great sleeper QB. He will be drafted as a backup, but he could be a starter by the end of the season. We still don't know about Gates and his toe, but he will likely also be fine to start the year.
Giants RB Brandon Jacobs had surgery on his wrist. He was spotted at Madison Square Garden wearing a cast. He expects to be fine for training camp, but you never want to see a bruising back have minor aches and pains before the season even starts.
It appears the Jets are going to draft Darren McFadden. It would be the best landing spot for him in the Top 10. He has a great offensive line in front of him with the addition of Alan Faneca, and he will be expected to produce as a rookie. If it happens, consider McFadden a starting Fantasy option. Thomas Jones also will still be a factor, but McFadden will be a star in New York.
Look for Baltimore to take Matt Ryan as their franchise quarterback. He will compete with Kyle Boller to be the starter this year, but Ryan will thrive with the Ravens as long as Cam Cameron is the offensive coordinator. Cameron can't coach a team, but he can run an offense and teach young quarterbacks.
Tags: Brandon Jacobs, Darren McFadden, Fantasy Football, LaDainian Tomlinson, Matt Ryan, Philip Rivers Add a Comment | Comments (1) | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14697 | Lessons From The NFL Bullying Scandal
Share Tweet E-mail Comments Print By editor Originally published on Sat November 9, 2013 9:24 am
Listen Transcript DON GONYEA, HOST: Time now for sports. (SOUNDBITE OF THEME MUSIC) GONYEA: The basketball and hockey seasons are just getting going, and the big story in sports is still the drama inside the Miami Dolphins. We're referring, of course, to the bullying of second-year lineman Jonathon Martin, by veteran offensive lineman Richie Incognito. The story revealed a history of racial slurs. Well, joining us now to discuss the NFL's locker room culture is Howard Bryant, of ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine. He's in the studios of New England Public Radio. Welcome, Howard. HOWARD BRYANT: Good morning, Don. How are you? GONYEA: Good, good. So a lot of what has been said about these allegations is that they tell us something larger about macho culture, and race and ethnicity. Do you think that's right? BRYANT: Yeah, I do. And at the beginning of the week, I think that one of the big issues was actual semantics, this conversation of bullying; where when you think about bullying, you think of something that happens in a schoolyard when actually, what I really felt was it's not bullying. This is harassment. This is something where you've got a player receiving text messages and phone calls and such, from outside of his house. And if we were using different terminology, I think people would have taken it more seriously. By the end of the week, however, this was a real conversation about the male code, about fitting in and not fitting in, about class, about race, about power, masculinity; what it means to be a man, in terms of now we're seeing that Incognito was holding meetings at strip clubs and that sort of locker room male culture where you're going to fit in to some of these really kind of silly - to me - some of these conventions. But once again, they are used as barometers inside that locker room, to decide whether you're with us or whether you're not. GONYEA: And it seems important to note here that these two guys were not of equal status within the organization. Martin was the rookie. BRYANT: And that's the power dynamic as well. There's a fair amount of rookie hazing. Every sport does it. In baseball, at the end of the season and on at least one road trip - I think one of the last road trips of the season - the players, you know, rookie players are, you know, they're forced to like, wear costumes - like Halloween, usually. You know, you have to dress up as a ballerina or something, and walk through the airport; or do something in public like that, to sort of - it's a rite of passage, and a lot of it is kind of silly. And it just proves that you belong, and you're supposed to take it in a good-natured fashion. And then some players reject it, and I think Dez Bryant - with the Cowboys - a couple years ago refused to carry the water of a veteran; and he was taken to task for not playing along, and not taking it in the right spirit. And so there's certainly a power dynamic there. And Incognito having rookies pay 15-, $30,000 for dinners - I mean, this is the kind of stuff that if you reject it, then people are looking at you like you're in the enemy camp when actually, maybe it's a practice - or definitely, it's a practice that shouldn't exist in the first place. GONYEA: Are we talking here about something specific to football locker room culture? I know in baseball, we see the relief pitchers being forced to carry - you know - Hello Kitty backpacks out on the field. But is there something football-specific here? BRYANT: Well, yeah, there's something football-specific but actually, I think what it really is, it's this conversation, this evolving conversation of what it means to be a man in a culture where being physical is being more and more discredited in a lot of ways. We're not a physical society, whether it's in manufacturing or whether we're talking about football. It's more of an intellectual society. However, there is this area for physicality and where those lines are constantly moving, they're constantly changing. And when you have something like this take place - one of the big questions that makes it a football conversation is the shock that people have that things like this go on in the locker room. And when I talk to players all the time, they'll tell me, sure, coaches have always told us to toughen up players that they think are soft. The fact that Jonathan Martin left the team and made this public is one of the big things that the players are sort of blanching at; and it opens up the larger question of how much about the NFL do you really want to know? GONYEA: Just quickly, what about the NFL brand? They were already dealing with bad news about concussions. More bad news. BRYANT: Yeah, it's a bad year for the NFL; and I think the big issue with them, actually, is that the NFL is trying to appeal to mothers out there that this is a sport that you want your kids to play. First, you're going to end up with dementia. We're seeing that happen with Tony Dorsett and Mark Duper now. And then on top of that, you have to worry about your kid being pushed around by some 320-pound guy who wants you to go to strip clubs or you're not part of the deal. So they've got a lot of fence- mending to do, in terms of their image. GONYEA: Howard Bryant, of ESPN.com and ESPN The Magazine. Thanks, Howard. BRYANT: Thank you. (SOUNDBITE OF MUSIC) GONYEA: You're listening to WEEKEND EDITION, from NPR News. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14718 | Baseball » Schedule » Roster » News » Coaches » 2014 Statistics » 2014 Quick Facts
McClurg wins his first A-Sun Pitcher of the Week Award
Share Monday, March 17, 2008March 17, 2008
MACON, Ga. - Lipscomb's Brandon McClurg helped the Bisons to a series victory over the previously undefeated Jacksonville Dolphins.
On Monday, the Atlantic Sun Conference office honored the standout with his first career weekly award. It is the first Pitcher of the Week award for a Lipscomb arm in 2008.
McClurg, a mechanical engineering major from Hendersonville, Tenn., pitched seven scoreless innings in his first start of the season as the Bisons won 10-0 over Jacksonville on Saturday, the second of two wins in the three-game series. The losses were the first for Jacksonville in the A-Sun this season. The junior struck out nine and surrendered just three hits in the victory.
The Atlantic Sun Conference is a 12-member league committed to Building Winners for Life, with a focus on academic and athletic integrity and a balance between the two for the student-athlete, and maintaining a high level of sportsmanship. Headquartered in Macon, Ga., the A-Sun encompasses six of the top eight media markets in the Southeast. The A-Sun consists of some of the most dynamic private and public institutions in the region: Belmont University, Campbell University, East Tennessee State University, Florida Gulf Coast University, Gardner-Webb University, Jacksonville University, Kennesaw State University, Lipscomb University, Mercer University, University of North Florida, University of South Carolina Upstate and Stetson University. Baseball Archives
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Bisons Defeat Tennessee In Front Of Record Crowd | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14728 | No Votto, roster move made
Fri lineup vs. HOU
Cabrera 6Cairo 3Phillips 4Rolen 5Gomes 7Bruce 9Stubbs 8Hanigan 2LeCure 1
*Joey Votto is missing from the lineup for the third-straight day (stiff neck).
Asked about whether the disabled list was possible for Votto, manager Dusty Baker couldn’t really say.
“I don’t know. I ain’t no doctor. I hope not,” Baker said. “I hope it’s just a stiff neck. It was better yesterday than the day before. We’ll wait as long as we can.”
*Miguel Cairo is 5-for-9 with a homer over the previous two games in Votto’s place, which has been a solid picking up of the slack.
“You want to contribute and do the little things that help the team win games,” Cairo said. “You don’t play every day so when one of the big boys, the regulars, gets a day or something happens to them, you’ve got to be ready to go out there and help the team.”
Cairo will be making his fourth start this season at first base, a position he hasn’t previously played since 2008 with the Mariners. Of his 727 career games in 14 seasons, 131 have been at first base.
*Arthur Rhodes, who has had been bothered by a sore foot the last couple of days, said he was ready to pitch tonight.
*To make room for Sam LeCure on the roster, Enerio Del Rosario was optioned to Triple-A Louisville.
Filed in: Dailies Tags: Arthur Rhodes, Dusty Baker, Enerio Del Rosario, Joey Votto, Miguel Cairo, Sam LeCure Leave a Reply Cancel reply | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14760 | Wednesday, September 4th, 2013
St. Louis Cardinals @ Cincinnati Reds
(Sports Network) - The Cincinnati Reds have picked a good time to finally find some success against the St. Louis Cardinals. The Reds try to secure their first series victory against their division rivals in over a year as the NL Central clubs play the third contest of a four-game set on Wednesday night in Cincinnati. The Reds came into this big series having lost 10 of 15 versus the Cardinals this year, but Monday's victory, coupled with a win in the finale of a three- game set last Wednesday, gave Cincinnati its first winning streak over St. Louis since winning four straight last year. That run included Cincinnati's last series triumph over St. Louis, a three- game sweep at home from July 13-15, 2012, and the Reds pushed their current win streak in this series to three straight with Tuesday's 1-0 victory. 'Maybe the worm has turned, hopefully in our direction,' Reds manager Dusty Baker said. Billy Hamilton's Major League debut for the Reds highlighted Tuesday night's contest, as he scored the only run of the game after coming on as a pinch- runner in the seventh inning. Following three pick-off attempts by Cards reliever Seth Maness, Hamilton swiped second base and then scored on Todd Frazier's double to left. Baker had sent Hamilton out to pinch-run with just one goal in mind. Hamilton set a professional baseball record with 155 steals in 2012 and led Triple-A with 75 this season. 'I haven't been that nervous in a long time in my life,' Hamilton said. 'When I got on first base, I had chills running down, but I knew I couldn't be afraid. This was a big situation, so I knew I had to get to second base because it was my job, and it happened for me.' While the Reds won for the fourth time in six games, the Cardinals have lost five of their last six and fell two games behind the Pittsburgh Pirates for first place in the NL Central. St. Louis is also just 1 1/2 games up on Cincinnati as the two NL wild card leaders chase the top spot in the division. The Reds own a 7 1/2-game edge for the league's second wild spot. Cincinnati looks to lock up a series victory behind Bronson Arroyo, but he is winless in four starts versus St. Louis this season. He has a 5.96 earned run average in the season series while losing three decisions. That includes a 13-3 loss in Cincinnati on Aug. 2, when Arroyo gave up seven runs and eight hits over 3 2/3 frames versus the Cardinals. The 36-year-old righty then allowed just seven runs over a four-start winless streak, but had that run snapped on Friday in Colorado. Arroyo lasted a season-low 3 1/3 innings, giving up six runs on nine hits and a walk. Shelby Miller counters for the Cardinals and is 12-9 with a 3.13 ERA in 26 starts. Miller capped his August with his worst outing in two months, matching season highs with five runs and eight hits allowed in a loss to the Pirates on Friday. 'I made some mistakes with some pitches and they put good swings on it,' the 22-year-old Miller said of his outing, which lasted 4 1/3 innings. The righty has faced the Reds just once this season, beating Arroyo on Aug. 2. Backed with plenty of support, Miller allowed three runs and struck out eight over five innings. About the Game | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14762 | 3/28 Parisi decides Cubs best fit
Mike Parisi was a free agent for 24 hours, and decided he wanted to stay with the Cubs. The Cubs acquired the right-hander in the Rule 5 Draft last December but didn’t have a spot for him on the 25-man roster. It gets a little technical, but he was placed on waivers, and cleared. Then, he was outrighted. The Cardinals had the chance to accept Parisi back but he would’ve been assigned to their Triple-A Memphis team. Parisi said no. Because it was the second time he was outrighted, he became a free agent and chose the Cubs.
This was not a typical situation for Rule 5 players, but most have never been on a team’s 40-man roster before. Parisi had with St. Louis.
“I feel like if I work hard here and put up some good numbers and a spot comes up, I feel hopefully I have a shot here,” Parisi said Sunday. “That seems the right move for me right now. Being a free agent, for the first time ever being a free agent, I had to learn the rules. If I pitch well here, I can pitch well in Triple-A. I’ve been [with the Cardinals] for a couple years so I know what to expect. I hope I go down there and pitch well and get my shot here.”
One of the reasons Parisi wanted to stay was his relationship with Minor League pitching coordinator Mark Riggins, who was in the St. Louis organization when Parisi was drafted. He will go to Triple-A Iowa, where he’ll be a starter. He’s also learning from the Cubs veterans.
“Just look at the amount of work they put in and the amount of fun they have doing it,” Parisi said. “That’s another reason I wanted to stay. I feel real comfortable here. I’ve only been here a month or so but I feel comfortable. It’s a fun atmosphere. That definitely goes into the equation. I love to play baseball and I love to have fun playing baseball.
“I feel if I pitch well here, I will have an opportunity so that’s where we are,” he said.
Filed in: Dailies Tags: Cubs, Mark Riggins, Mike Parisi 1 Comment
I am so happy to hear he chose to stay with the team! I’m sure a lot of people are disappointed in how he pitched this spring, but those people obviously didn’t go to any spring training games. Parisi signed autographs for fans for HOURS before games and was always striking up conversations with each fan, creating an atmosphere that I have never seen before between a player and fans. He seems to be a truly great person who feels blessed by what he has and he is definitely an asset to the Cubs. I have no doubt he will continue to get better as a player and be rewarded for all of his hard work. Carrie, please let Mike know that the fans really do appreciate that stuff, and yes, I know I need to change my screen name on here…
By jakefoxfinally on March 28, 2010 8:11 pm - Reply | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14767 | Hawks’ Josh Smith believes he is worth a max contract
Atlanta Hawks, Ben Golliver, Danny Ferry, Josh Smith
Josh Smith believes he is a max player. (Jonathan Daniel/Getty Images)
The 2013 free agency period might still be more than five months away, but Hawks forward Josh Smith opened contract talks over the weekend.
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports that Smith, set to become an unrestricted free agent next summer and regarded as one of the top players in this year’s class, believes he should command a full max contract.
“I feel like I’m a max player,” Smith said Friday. And yes, that is the first time he has said that.
“I feel I bring a lot to the table. I have a lot of versatility. For what I do and what I give this ball club, I feel like I’m worth it.”
Smith again: “There shouldn’t be any hesitation. I’m Josh Smith, I’m not anybody else. I ‘m not Michael Jordan, I’m not LeBron James, I’m not Brook Lopez. I’m Josh Smith. You can’t look at what might’ve happened with another person. Let’s say Joe [Johnson]. You can’t say, ‘I’m skeptical of giving another person that’ because of whatever they feel like happened.”
The paper pegs a max deal for Smith at $94 million over five years.
ESPN.com reported Sunday that Hawks GM Danny Ferry and Smith’s representatives plan to discuss Smith’s future this week.
Smith, 27, is averaging 16.8 points, 8.3 rebounds, 4.0 assists, 2.2 blocks and 1.3 steals per game this season. He’s shooting 44.8 percent from the floor and his 17.4 PER, his lowest mark since 2008-09, currently ranks No. 74 in the league. While Smith has yet to make an All-Star team and will draw knocks until he retires for his poor shot selection, he did earn All-Defensive second-team recognition in 2010 and he has been a key starter during five consecutive playoff runs, three of which advanced out of the first round of the playoffs.
Less than two weeks ago, Smith was suspended briefly by the Hawks for conduct detrimental to the team after being thrown out of a practice by coach Larry Drew. His name has been persistently floated in trade rumors this season and the the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported back in March 2012 that Smith requested a trade because he didn’t believe the organization was committed to winning a championship. CBSSports.com reported that Smith’s agent stopped short of issuing a trade request following the recent suspension.
Since Smith’s reported unhappiness last season, Ferry took the reins as GM and immediately began taking apart a high-priced roster piece-by-piece. He traded Joe Johnson to the Nets and Marvin Williams to the Jazz, taking back short-term salaries that leave him heading towards one of the most flexible salary cap positions in the league entering next summer. The only meaningful future commitments on the books are to Al Horford and Lou Williams.
The question facing Ferry is whether Smith is worth retaining at deep eight-figure levels or whether it’s time to pursue a different path. Smith is generally regarded in the class of “very good but not great” fringe stars who represent a risky proposition at max or near-max dollars. The 2013 free agency class is fairly weak, especially if top names like Chris Paul, Dwight Howard and Andrew Bynum stick with their current teams. It’s possible, if not likely, that Smith winds up being the biggest name to truly hit the market. Those conditions could easily spell big pay day.
Over-paying to retain a key player is one of the easiest mistakes to make; Ferry’s quick moves to ship out large salary commitments seem to suggest that he’s not likely to fall into this particular trap. The writing on the wall has suggested a parting of ways between team and player was possible for some time: Smith has reportedly expressed frustration in the past, Ferry has no particular ties to him, the franchise seems headed in a different direction under its new management, and the Hawks’ ceiling this season took a hit when Williams was lost to a season-ending injury. Under those conditions, Smith’s public belief in his max worth feels a bit like he’s forcing — or at least nudging — Ferry’s hand in “pay up all the way, trade me, or I walk” fashion. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14772 | New York News Schedule Standings Stats Injuries Home
Report: Matt Harvey Placed on Disabled List With Partially Torn Elbow Ligament, May Need Tommy John Surgery
by Zack Cox on Mon, Aug 26, 2013 at 4:17PM
The Mets’ miserable season just got a whole lot worse.
New York ace Matt Harvey, who started this year’s All-Star Game as a rookie, has been placed on the disabled list with a partially torn ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow — an injury that often requires Tommy John surgery to repair.
WFAN’s Mike Francesa first reported the news Monday afternoon, and a team source later confirmed the report to ESPN.
In his first full season as a starter, Harvey has been the lone bright spot for a Mets team that sits 19 games out of first place in the National League East. The right-hander has posted a 2.27 ERA and 0.93 WHIP in 26 starts, ranking second in the NL in both categories behind the Dodgers’ Clayton Kershaw.
Harvey will almost certainly be shut down for the rest of the 2013 campaign, and if surgery is necessary, he could miss a significant chunk of next season, as well. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14847 | HAGEL, ICEHOGS KICKOFF READING PROGRAM
By: Program involves Kishwaukee Elementary School
Rockford, Ill.- Rockford IceHogs winger Kyle Hagel has organized a reading program with the fourth and fifth grade classes at Kishwaukee Elementary School in Rockford. “Stick to Reading” kicked off today with a visit from Hagel, and fellow IceHogs Simon Danis-Pepin, Peter LeBlanc, Alec Richards and Ben Smith.
Hagel, a member of Hockey Players For Kids (HP4K), reached out to Kishwaukee Elementary School to start the program. “Stick to Reading” is a competition that will include incentives for the students including tickets to an IceHogs game, a chance to meet IceHogs players and an opportunity to participate in a floor hockey game with other members of the IceHogs at the conclusion of the program.
“Myself and the other guys on the team are really looking forward to “Stick to Reading”, said Hagel. “The kids and the teachers are pumped up for it too. It's going to be a lot of fun and hopefully everybody learns something in the process.”
The program will end on Tuesday, Feb. 15 with a floor hockey game at Kishwaukee Elementary. HP4K is a non-profit organization founded by professional hockey player Dustin Sproat. The organization consists of nearly 40 professional hockey players in the National Hockey League, American Hockey League, ECHL, Central Hockey and more. For more information regarding HP4K, visit hp4k.org. Next Home Game: Friday, Jan. 7 vs. the Toronto Marlies. Game time is slated for 7:05 p.m. Rockford returns home for the first time in 2011 for their annual home tilt against Toronto. The game is the first of two on the campaign with the Marlies. | | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14855 | Last modified 511 days ago (Nov. 22, 2012)
Warrior band will miss 'Parade of Lights'
Steven Wilson, Peabody-Burns High School instrumental music instructor, has announced the Warrior marching band will not participate Dec. 6 in the annual Christmas Parade at Newton.
“There is a pre-season basketball tournament at Marion this year and the students will be participating there,” Wilson said. “We hope to return to the Parade of Lights next year. But it would be great this year if everyone got out to support the Warriors in the tournament.”
The schedule of dates and times the PBHS teams will play in the Marion Basketball Classic is available on the school calendar. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14872 | 2012 London Olympics Results: Michael Phelps, USA Earn Gold In 400m Individual Relay
Michael Phelps' storied Olympic career came to a close in the most fitting fashion possible. Phelps and the United States earned another gold medal in the 400m individual relay -- an event the United States has never lost. Phelps was joined on the team by Matt Grevers, Brendan Hansen and Nathan Adrian. The quartet of American swimmers finished the race with a time of 3:29.25 -- nearly two seconds better than the Japanese, who earned the silver medal with a time of 3:31.26. Australia finished in third, earning bronze with a time of 3:31.58. For Phelps, the gold medal represents the 18th gold of his legendary Olympic career. Phelps also has four silver medals to his credit, giving him a staggering 22 career medals. Phelps earned six of those medals at the 2012 Olympic Games, where he has taken home four gold and two silver. It's truly the only way Phelps' career could end.
For the latest on the 2012 London Olympics, be sure to check out SB Nation's Olympic hub.
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2012 Olympics Medal Count: Team USA Narrowly Pulls Ahead Of China | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14945 | Missouri-St. Louis Tritons Basketball Tickets
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St. Louis Billikens Basketball Tickets - Overview
The Billikens of St. Louis University compete in the Atlantic Ten Conference against rivals mostly on the eastern seaboard of the United States. St. Louis Billikens Basketball Tickets give fans the opportunity to see action against the likes of Charlotte, Rhode Island, Xavier, Temple, Massachusetts and other conference and non-conference foes. Take in the action at the Chaifetz Arena on the campus of St. Louis University and see the Rick Majerus led Billikens compete on the hardwood for a chance to reach the Big Dance, a feat the men's basketball team has done only six times in school history, the most recent coming back in 2000. Grab your St. Louis Billikens Basketball Tickets today and don't miss the action!
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Posted: Fri January 11, 2013 7:14AM; Updated: Fri January 11, 2013 12:38PM
Roundtable: Assessing the damage in Laker Land
Lakers Roundtable (cont.)
The Lakers would need to finish 30-17 to reach 45 wins -- a potential total needed to make the playoffs.Noah Graham/Getty Images
The Lakers' problems continue to mount. They entered Friday's game against the Thunder with a five-game losing streak, leaving them 11th in the Western Conference and five games behind the No. 8 seed. Dwight Howard is out indefinitely with a shoulder injury, and Pau Gasol remains sidelined after a concussion. At 15-20, can they turn it around and make the playoffs? Can they do anything to shake up the team during the season? Our NBA analysts examine those questions and more.
1. What's been the single biggest problem for the Lakers this season?
Ben Golliver: Continuity. That's probably the cleanest way to sum up the tumult of a coaching change, the constantly evolving lineups because of injuries and the lack of cohesion on defense. There are a good 10 playoff teams around the league that have settled into their respective identities and will likely keep their current trajectories unless ransacked by major injuries. The Lakers, on the other hand, are about as far from regular success as possible. Kobe Bryant has been the only consistent player and he's been far better on offense than defense. Howard and Gasol, both currently sidelined with injuries, have looked uncomfortable, less than 100 percent healthy and not totally sure what is expected from them on offense. Steve Nash has sat more than he has played. None of the role players have proved useful on a night-to-night basis. On the whole, this team looks like it was woken up in the middle of the night and asked to run on a treadmill that's set to four notches too fast.
Lee Jenkins: Defense. The Lakers are old, slow and don't work hard. All of those deficiencies are most evident on the defensive end, where they rank 21st in points allowed per possession. They've been a mediocre defense for a couple of years now, but Howard was supposed to erase a lot of their problems, especially dribble penetration. Whether he's not able or not willing, Howard hasn't been the stopper the Lakers expected, and when he jumps out for blocks his teammates are constantly late to rotate and help.
Rob Mahoney: Poor health. Problems abound, but they all fit into something of a web with injuries at the true center. If Howard were completely healthy, then perhaps L.A.'s defense wouldn't be so abysmal. Had Nash not fractured his leg, then maybe Mike Brown would still have a job or Gasol would be more comfortable on the floor. Even Steve Blake's presence throughout the season could've helped, as every bad break and torn muscle seemed to exponentially increase the speed of the Lakers' downward spiral.
Chris Mannix: Health is easy, defense and depth are obvious. But I firmly believe this team would be a lot better if it had a coach who emphasized its strengths. This is not a read-and-react team. This is not an up-tempo team. This is a team with two elite low-post players that should be pounding the ball inside at every opportunity. Howard has not cracked double digits in attempts in four of his last six games. Gasol is attempting the fewest shots of his career and, according to Hoopdata, is taking fewer shots at the rim (3.3 per game) and from between 3-9 feet (2.0) than at any point in his career. The coach is responsible for that.
Ian Thomsen: Health. They haven't been able to realize their potential because Nash was out for weeks and because Howard has been limited in his recovery from back surgery last season and sidelined by a recent shoulder injury. They haven't been able to establish Gasol in the low post. The lone healthy star has been Bryant, who came into the season expecting to share the ball and has emerged as the NBA's leading scorer. Nothing has gone to plan.
[The Point Forward: Bryant, Howard mock report of feud]
2. Was Mike D'Antoni the right choice to replace Mike Brown? Will he survive the season as coach?
Golliver: I still like the D'Antoni hire because there's no question he's the right man to get the most from Nash, he has a good relationship with Bryant and his offense will look a lot better once those two and a fully healthy Howard settle in together. Phil Jackson, as great as he is, wasn't going to solve all of these problems by himself, at least not overnight, and he definitely wasn't going to be pulling wins out of the likes of Robert Sacre and Earl Clark. As for D'Antoni, I don't see any way the Lakers fire him before this season is out. He simply doesn't have the same burden of monstrous expectations that engulfed Brown. Ownership, management and the fan base have surely come to the conclusion that, regardless of who is coaching, there's not enough depth and cohesion on this roster to make a playoff push unless all four stars are healthy and clicking. Could D'Antoni get axed in an offseason housecleaning? I suppose, but Lakers ownership should resist that temptation and spend this trade deadline and offseason reshaping the roster with role players who will be of more use in his system.
Jenkins: I thought he was a good choice, but I also thought the Lakers would win the championship, so I'm terribly wrong on two counts. D'Antoni's offense demands accurate outside shooters who can space the floor and the Lakers are not a great shooting team. I assumed D'Antoni would tweak his system to maximize his two big men, but so far he's done the opposite, marginalizing Gasol. D'Antoni will probably make it to the end of the season, but not much longer.
Mahoney: I don't know that he was the definitive choice for the gig, but I do think he was one of several solid options. His relationships with Nash and Bryant alone make him a worthy manager of this group, and if management was indeed displeased with Brown's offense, then D'Antoni seemed a fair selection. He's tweaked his trademark system as needed, and though the execution isn't infallibly consistent or precise, the Lakers' offense generally churns on (L.A. ranks sixth in points per possession). D'Antoni's teams have historically been merely average defensively, and though this particular squad is riddled with defensive problems, the scheme is hardly to blame.
Mannix: D'Antoni is a good coach, but this is not the roster he should be coaching. He is inflexible; we saw that in New York. It broke down there because D'Antoni could not get Carmelo Anthony to buy into his pass-first philosophy. In Los Angeles, as I mentioned above, he has two players -- three, if you count Kobe -- who don't mesh with that style, either. The Lakers went after a big name, and they got one. But they didn't get the right one.
Thomsen: Well, I've been on record since Brown's dismissal that D'Antoni was the right coach. I wonder if he'll have the opportunity to prove it this season. If this team isn't able to play together for an extended period of health -- and I'm talking months -- then I don't see how the Lakers could blame D'Antoni unless they were to decide that they want to bring back Jackson after all (and he decides he wants to coach again). The easiest way to gauge D'Antoni's success will be whether he is able to engage Gasol in the offense. If their four stars are healthy and playing together, Gasol should be a valuable complementary star.
Amid injuries to stars such as Steve Nash (left) and the early-season hiring of coach Mike D'Antoni, the Lakers have yet to put it all together yet.Noah Graham/Getty Images
3. What, if any, moves could the Lakers make to save their season?
Golliver: The lesson from the last few years for the Lakers should be that there are bigger issues than merely "saving the season." Band-Aid solutions, taking on bad contracts and signing veterans to overpriced deals have put the Lakers behind the salary-cap eight ball until July 2014, when their books are on pace to be extraordinarily clean and clear. Until then, their contract commitments are huge and their flexibility is limited. That's fine for a championship contender, but it's death for a non-contender. GM Mitch Kupchak needs to start thinking and planning now for the next era of Lakers basketball. Who are the best, most attainable players to surround Bryant (who looks to have plenty of basketball left in his tank), Howard and Nash? What is the best method for creating the flexibility necessary to obtain those types of players? As has been the case for some time now, that process likely starts with Gasol's being moved. Using the amnesty clause on Metta World Peace this summer would make a lot of sense as it would reduce the Lakers' payroll and luxury-tax obligations. Tearing this down isn't going to happen overnight, but beginning the process of accumulating better assets needs to start as soon as possible.
Jenkins: There's not a lot they can do, beyond trading Gasol, and his value is at the floor. They need a tough perimeter defender and a stretch power forward. Gasol might be able to net a player who fills one of those needs, but not both. Unless the right deal presents itself, the Lakers are better off holding on to Gasol than dumping him for 50 cents on the dollar, because he can still be an excellent insurance policy if Howard leaves or if his shoulder injury is worse than believed.
Mahoney: There is no deal that is going to save the Lakers. Not one. I'm normally not a proponent of "pull yourself up by your bootstraps" rhetoric, but this team's problems are far too deeply rooted in effort and focus to be remedied by, say, dealing Gasol. Howard and Bryant aren't going anywhere this season, and defensively they fail to maintain any kind of accountability. At some point, the Lakers will have to come to terms with the defensive shortcuts they take (gambling, swiping at the ball without moving their feet, etc.) and how easily they veer from their game plan, and only then will they start to make legitimate progress.
Mannix: If you are not going to make a coaching change -- and I've received no indication from Lakers sources that they are considering one -- then you have to make a deal. Gasol, despite his recent spate of injuries and fat contract, remains the most likely to go. L.A. won't get max value for Gasol, not now. But maybe you look to Toronto and Andrea Bargnani. Maybe it's Boston and Jeff Green. Neither player is Gasol, but one (Bargnani) is a stretch 4 and the other (Green) is athletic, can run the floor and shoot the three, too.
Thomsen: There is nothing they can do. Kobe isn't going anywhere. Howard is their hope for the next era. Nash is too valuable, and Gasol's value is currently too low (in relation to his $19 million salary) to benefit from trading him. They can't fire the coach for the second time in three months. All they can do is try to develop some kind of faith in one another and hope for better health over the second half of the season.
[Court Vision: Sappy song begs teams to trade for Gasol]
4. Will the Lakers make the playoffs?
Golliver: Through Thursday, Basketball-Reference put their playoff odds at 26 percent and John Hollinger's system had them at 27.4 percent. Both see seven teams (Spurs, Clippers, Thunder, Grizzlies, Nuggets, Rockets and Warriors) as virtual playoff locks. Even if we account for the fact that the Rockets and/or Warriors could collapse from their current standing, the Lakers are fighting with them plus the Jazz, Timberwolves and Blazers for one of -- at most -- three available spots. For context, the West's No. 8 seed won 50 games in 2010, 46 games in 2011 and 45 games in 2012 (if you adjust to a full 82-game schedule from the lockout-shortened 66-game schedule). The Lakers are 15-20, meaning they would need to finish 30-17 to get to 45 victories. That's not impossible by any stretch, but it sure sounds like a tall order in the middle of a five-game losing streak. In sum, I'd say the computer models are underestimating the Lakers a bit because there's always the possibility that everyone gets healthy and they string together a lengthy winning streak. If I were forced to bet money on this one, I'd pick against them (but I'd be shaky about it). Betting hard against the Lakers' winning a playoff series in the West would be a much, much more comfortable proposition.
Jenkins: The math says no, but I'll still say yes. As long as they remain engaged in D'Antoni's system, and avoid utter mutiny, they should be prolific enough offensively to dig out of this hole and squeeze into the No. 8 seed. But they will have to play far better in the second half than they did in the first, avoid the injuries that have hounded them and win a race in April against teams like Minnesota, Utah and Portland. It's just incredible that we're having this conversation, but it's very feasible that they miss the playoffs.
Mahoney: I think so, though it says plenty about the Lakers' season that it's even an open question. Frankly, there's little empirical reason to believe in L.A. at this point; the team's performance certainly isn't playoff worthy, and its current injuries will only make things harder as the schedule amps up. I'm just not quite prepared to concede their place in the postseason with Utah and Minnesota also dealing with injuries, not to mention Portland poised for a schedule-induced drop.
Mannix: I remain optimistic that L.A. will find a way to sneak in. Call it blind faith, but as Howard gets healthier and as the team starts to adjust to Nash and D'Antoni, the Lakers will start playing better. It's almost impossible for the Lakers to crack the top four, but they will barely get there and be the team that no one really wants to play in the first round.
Thomsen: The only way they'll miss the playoffs is if their health further crashes and burns. If Nash goes down again, they won't be good enough to recover. But if Nash stays healthy and they're able to get production out of Howard or Gasol in addition to Bryant, they'll be too talented to stay below the poverty line; they'll develop a rhythm and go on a winning streak in the second half of the season.
Dwight Howard is set to be an unrestricted free agent in the offseason.Getty Images
5. Will Dwight Howard re-sign with the Lakers this offseason?
Golliver: Trying to predict what the flaky Howard will do is an exercise in self-inflicting pain. If he's able to think big picture, the Lakers -- and the city of Los Angeles -- represent all sorts of opportunities that he can't find in a vast majority of NBA cities. If he is truly impatient with a lack of meaningful playoff success and anxious to play for a ready-made contender, waiting the years (plural) it will take for things to develop in Los Angeles might be a tough sell. I tend to think this question will come down to two factors. First: How well does he actually get along with Bryant and do both of them believe they can win a title together? Second: Does L.A. wind up being irresistible from a marketing and exposure standpoint or can he find another situation where he can get enough attention and have a better shot at winning? I'm fine with calling this a coin flip.
Jenkins: Yes, but I am wavering on that more by the day. He'd have to hate this system -- and hate playing with Bryant -- so much that he is willing to forfeit $25 million and many more millions in endorsements. If Howard takes the long view, he'll see that Bryant is only under contract for one more year, and then the team will be his. But if his relationship with Bryant deteriorates further, and the team crumbles, it may be worth $25 million to escape.
Mahoney: Given that Howard spent the better part of two years in indecision, flirting with this team and that, being swayed by candy and opting in only to want out, I don't think there's any way to know. There are few forces in the universe more fickle than Howard's wants, and even if we could peg his preference as of today, his choice will likely have changed dozens of times by season's end.
Mannix: Barring a sign-and-trade, Howard would be leaving some serious money on the table if he walked at the end of the season. But if L.A. gets smacked in the first round or, worse, misses the playoffs, I think Howard bolts. Dallas -- with an appealing owner in Mark Cuban and a coach in Rick Carlise who likes to play in the half court -- would be my bet. But don't discount another team's emerging as a possibility this offseason. Howard's "list" of teams for which he'd play could always expand if things go south in L.A.
Thomsen: Where else is he going to go? The Lakers aren't going to participate in a sign-and-trade with him; if he insists on leaving, I'm sure they'd rather let him walk in order to take their chances with the gobs of cap space they'll have in 2014. The only team with cap space from his original list of destinations will be the Mavericks, and they haven't been sounding like the most optimistic organization either. I think Howard is going to stay. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/14978 | FRESH RAPIDS ON THE OLD RARITAN
Larry Keith
For most of its 210 years Rutgers has been outside the mainstream of sport but the current Knights are unbeaten and rising—fast
Rutgers is fast, very fast. Get the ball, break downcourt, pass, shoot, score. Press, steal, score again. The Scarlet Knights have turned their basketball schedule into a relay race and lapped their first 13 opponents. They are quick of hand, fleet of foot and swifter than the Old Raritan.
When the Knights are not attacking an opponent from one direction, they come from another, scoring 97.2 points a game on offense and forcing 27 turnovers on defense. After Boston College absorbed a 105-82 licking at home last month, Eagle Coach Bob Zuffelato said he had never seen a faster team.
Other coaches are not too sure what the blur was. A game can be in doubt, when suddenly Rutgers revs up and starts burning rubber, turning close contests into routs (23 points is its average margin of victory) and leaving skid marks up and down the court. "It's just a matter of time before it happens," says play-maker Ed Jordan. "When it does, it's fun just to watch," adds reserve Guard Mark Conlin. "Like going to the circus," concludes Assistant Coach Joe Boylan.
Led by All-America candidate Phil Sellers, the Scarlet Knights already have broken the school single-game scoring record with 119 points against Seton Hall and won Rutgers' first tournament ever, the Poinsettia Classic. With a schedule that does not include an opponent in the current Top 20, the Knights also have a good chance for their first unbeaten regular season. As for the NCAA tournament, Penn Coach Chuck Daly was boosting Rutgers for the final four even before his Quakers were blitzed 95-80.
This kind of get-up-and-go excitement is long overdue at the New Brunswick, N.J. university. Only 17 miles from Princeton, it has suffered a sub-Ivy inferiority complex for most of its 210 years. And despite its long history, Rutgers' athletic accomplishments are surprisingly few. It did host the first college football game, against Princeton in 1869, but the site of that grand occasion is now a parking lot. Similarly, the nearby birthplace of alumnus Joyce Kilmer is an American Legion hall. (I think that I shall never boast/My home is now the Legion post.)
Rutgers had maintained such a low profile athletically that when Coach Tom Young arrived from American University in 1973 he did not realize that it was New Jersey's state university. "I just knew it had a great location for recruiting," he says.
That location—halfway between the basketball hotbeds of New York and Philadelphia—seldom has been exploited. From 1950 to 1965 the Knights enjoyed only one winning basketball season. There have been 10 straight .500-plus years since then, with the greatest success coming after Young's arrival.
He coached Rutgers to 18 victories and an NIT bid in his first year, and 22 wins and the school's first NCAA invitation the next. But Young's public recognition has lagged behind his accomplishments. He played and roomed with All-America Gene Shue at the University of Maryland and, following an interruption for Army service, returned to co-captain the Terps to their only ACC championship in 1958. He spent the next 15 years coaching in the Washington area, starting as the 24-year-old head man at Catholic University, returning to Maryland for two seasons as an assistant and finishing at American.
Young has guided his teams to 248 victories in 388 games, clinging all the while to any old towel he can find and usually squatting in front of the bench. It may look funny but it works.
So does his lenient attitude toward his players. The Scarlet Knights may stay out late, grow beards, stuff the ball in practice and even drink beer on the team bus after games. His coaching philosophy also suits them. "The players got excited about full-court pressure defense when they realized it was the quickest way they could get the ball back and score again," Young says.
Big East Players to
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Stuck in a winning rut RUTGERS WOUND UP WITH A PERFECT SEASON AND THE NATION'S LONGEST WINNING STREAK, BUT WHEN IT... - December 06, 1976
Tom Young | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15041 | Meet The U.S. Olympic Team: Laura Bennett
By Tawnee PrazakPublished Jul 27, 2012 Photo: Delly Carr/Triathlon.orgIf you try to draw correlations among the five U.S. triathletes going to the Olympics this year, good luck. There are some parallels, like their willingness to work hard and make sacrifices, as well as a few stories of overcoming adversity. But their journeys to where they are now are all over the map. Each day this week we’ll introduce you to a different member of the U.S. Olympic triathlon team. Today we’re telling to story of Laura Bennett, who will race with the support of her husband, and fellow triathlete, Greg.
At one point we were all wondering if triathlon’s leading couple would be the poster kids for the 2012 Olympics. Greg and Laura Bennett practically do everything else together; surely they’d want to take on London as a team. “Going to the Games together would have been a great experience but not worth the sacrifice of Greg having to run around and chase points to get there,” said Laura. “Greg is far too successful at the other disciplines to do that.”
So while Greg “dabbles” in long-course racing (he will take on both the 70.3 and Ironman World Championships this fall), it’s time for Laura to do what she does best: Olympic racing. That is her game, and unlike Greg she has no desire to focus on anything but as a result. “The Olympic format is where my talent lies,” she said. “I haven’t ever put much focus into other disciplines to find out; I have always found this to be the most entertaining. I love the game of it.”
Laura’s words and demeanor exude passion for the sport, making it hard to believe there was a time when she was ready to hang it up. In 2000 she wasn’t sure if she wanted to continue as a pro. She was single then, and happened to be training with a group in Canada, among them Greg Bennett, who was also questioning his desire to continue on with triathlon. When the two met, a void was filled and they were complete—ready to continue on with triathlon, together. “[If we hadn’t met in 2000], I really don’t believe I would still be in triathlon,” Laura said. “I am not sure where my life would have taken me had we not met, but I am so grateful every day that we did.”
PHOTOS: U.S. Olympic Team Member Laura Bennett
Since then, Laura’s accomplishments are too many to list, but among the highlights are a fourth-place finish at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, three-time U.S. National Champion, ITU World Championship medalist and holding more top-10 ITU race finishes than you can count. And this year she said, “I am going to London for a medal.” Beneath this all-American girl’s soft-spoken nature, mile-wide smile and thin frame, you know she means business when she says those fighting words.
At 37, she’s beating women whom she has 10-plus years on, like in her third-place finish at ITU San Diego that secured her Olympic spot. Likewise, Greg, at 40, is beating guys much younger than he at all distances. One must wonder what they cook for meals together at their home in Boulder, Colo. As cliché as it may sound, she says a lot of her talent lies in being one of the best well-rounded triathletes because she’s evolved with the sport over the years. “When I first started in ‘98, and through to 2004, it was all about the swim-bike, and then the best runner of that group won,” she said. “Then 95 percent of the swimmers retired and it was all about the run, so we made a shift and from 2004-’08—it was how fast could you run after an average swim-bike. Then from 2008-‘12, there’s still a lot of weight on the run, but with a bit more effort in the swim-bike… To take gold in London, you will have to be strong across all three disciplines, and be the fastest runner on the day.”
She knows that Greg is a huge part of her success—not only does he coach her, but he helps her stay mellow and not waste precious adrenaline before racing. That said, maybe it’s a good thing that Greg will serve as sherpa rather than fellow competitor.
RELATED VIDEO: Laura Bennett’s Olympic Qualifying Race
See the profiles on Sarah Groff, Manny Huerta, Hunter Kemper and Gwen Jorgensen. Check back tomorrow for a profile on Laura Bennett.
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FILED UNDER: Athletes / Olympics TAGS: Laura Bennett / USA Triathlon | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15052 | March 12, 2013: World champion Robert Hurley joins today's edition of The Morning Swim Show to talk about his visit to the United States to train with Olympians in his bid to compete for a spot on the Australian world championship team. This is the first part in a two-part interview with Hurley on the show. Hurley, the 2012 short course world champion in the 50 backstroke, talks about the people who helped convince him to visit Tucson, Ariz., for three months to train, and what he’s experienced while working with the college and postgraduate swimmers at the University of Arizona. He has a unique physical capacity in the pool, able to do a sprint race and distance swim well at the elite level – though he will say he is more built to be a sprinter. He talks about the competition he’ll face next month at the Australian world championship trials and what the 800 freestyle relay needs to race the best countries in the world.
darian townsend
rick demont
thomas fraser-holmes
Lindsey and Lauren Norberg on The Morning Swim Show @AuburnSwimming
Connor Black and Rahul Sethna on The Morning Swim Show
Ivy Martin on The Morning Swim Show
Dave Wharton on The Morning Swim Show
Brittany MacLean on The Morning Swim Show
Jasmine Millan on The Morning Swim Show
Daniel Woodall
Yvette Baker | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15063 | Potgieter, Stephan Andries Email
[email protected]
Exploring rock climbing discourses Degree
Dr L H Human
discursive resources
discursive strategies
social constructionism discourse
discursive analysis
discursive psychology
Climbing has been part of human nature since time immemorial, our ancestors used it to escape predators, to flee from flooding valleys, to gather food and to move to new territories. However it was not until the middle 1700�s that man started to use climbing not as a means to ensure survival, but as a source of pleasure and desire to climb and explore.
For almost two centuries climbing has evolved through, what has often been referred to as a trial and error method, into a state of the art, modern day sport with various sub disciplines like sport climbing, trad - climbing, ice climbing, free climbing and bouldering. In its purest form it is one of the most awe inspiring sports to watch and take part in, and for those select few that dedicate their lives to it, it is a means to make a living, and a way to live on into eternity.
Over the past 15 years climbing has become a widely practised and one of the fastest growing sports around the world, and is practised by people from all walks of life, from pre-primary school children right through to retired pensioners, from unemployed students to the most successful business men and women. With this growing interest among the population there also came a growing interest in the use of climbing for various other purposes like psycho-therapy, rehabilitation, team building. But more importantly, for this study, it has urged the researcher to ask what are the discursive resources and strategies that are employed by modern day climbers, seeing as the climbing community consists of such a large variety of people.
This study was done from a Discursive Psychology perspective, and was strongly influenced by the work of Jonathan Potter and Derek Edwards, as well as the work of the Rhetoric Group from Loughborough University.
The Discursive Psychology approach focuses on management and accomplishment of action and interaction through talk. Discourse is viewed as a resource that functions to accomplish action and Discursive Analysis focuses on the manner that discursive resources are being employed to achieve certain actions in interaction.
For Discursive Psychology it is important to view both the material context and embodiment as important in the construction of action. So too in Rock Climbing are these two aspects very important and very relevant because of the prominence of physical activity in the sport. The research focused on how climbers talk during climbing and what discursive resources and strategies they employ during rock climbing discourses. The most prominent of these resources and strategies that were found in the analysis were laughter, pauses and delays, intensifiers ( words that are used to emphasize and pinpoint other words), loud uttering of words, change-of-state tokens, disclaimers, discourse markers, extreme case formulations, agreement-implicative acknowledgement tokens, hedge words / devices, speech-overlapping, previous experiences, and footing.
This research hopes to offer alternative explanations in sport and psychology, by studying naturally occurring conversations between climbers, instead of the more traditional pre � and � post experience testing that has dominated studies in psychology for so long.
� University of Pretoria 2006E1114/ag | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15109 | hide Paul Gascoigne travels to U.S. treatment center
Ex-Rangers' player Paul Gascoigne reacts to the supporters' reception for him at half time during their Scottish Premier League soccer match LONDON (Reuters) - Former England midfielder Paul Gascoigne, who has lapsed in his battle with alcoholism, will receive treatment in the United States after "willingly" travelling there, his management company said on Monday.
"Paul has been extremely touched and overwhelmed by the generous offers of help and support over the past few days," GamePlan Solutions said in a statement, adding that Gascoigne was an alcoholic with "complex issues."
"He is motivated to fully understand and control his addiction problem under guidance."
No details about the location of the clinic were given.
Players' union chief Gordon Taylor said earlier on Monday that Gascoigne needed 24-hour attention.
The 45-year-old's agent Terry Baker said at the weekend that Gascoigne needed "immediate help" and called on the English Professional Footballers' Association (PFA) to intervene.
"He sounds as if he needs almost a 24-hour watching brief at the moment," PFA boss Taylor told BBC Radio 5 live.
"It seems as if he needs somebody with him all the time just to make sure that he's looked after and is not going to do anything silly."
Taylor said he had spoken to Gascoigne after the PFA paid for the former Tottenham Hotspur, Lazio and Rangers player to attend a detox program at a well-known clinic for sportsmen suffering from addictions.
"I've spoken to Paul over the weekend and he's said it's just a blip. But it really is down to him. We just don't want this to be another George Best tragedy," he said.
"He does need a big support system and he's got it from lots of friends. But there is a frustration that when things look to be improving, it all goes off wire."
Taylor refuted suggestions by former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel on Twitter that the PFA had not done enough to help Gascoigne.
"There isn't a player we've done more for over my time at the PFA," he said.
"In fact, we've been criticized for doing as much as we have, because he has not made the improvements that some of our other members have."
Former Manchester United great Best died after a long struggle with alcoholism in 2005.
(Reporting by Martyn Herman and Tom Pilcher, editing by Mark Meadows and Ed Osmond) | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15114 | Weiner says increasing drug penalties possible
FILE - In this Nov. 28, 2012 file photo, baseball union head Michael Weiner speaks during a news conference in New York. Weiner says, Monday Feb. 25, 2013, there's active discussion about increasing the penalties for violating baseball's drug testing program. Weiner says players have very little patience for seeing their peers try to cheat the system. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II, File) MARK DIDTLER
DUNEDIN, Fla. (AP) -- Baseball union head Michael Weiner said Monday there have been talks about increasing the penalties for violating baseball's drug testing program."There are certainly some players who have expressed that," Weiner said. "We've had discussions with the commissioner's office. If it turns out that we have a different penalty structure because that's what players are interested in, that's what the owners are interested in, it will be for 2014."Weiner spoke to the media after he met with the Toronto Blue Jays as part of his annual tour of spring training camps."On one hand, we do have the toughest penalties of any team sport," Weiner said. "Fifty games is more than you'd see for the first time in football and hockey and basketball. More and more players are vocal about the desire to have a clean game. More and More players are vocal about being willing to accept sacrifices in terms of testing in order to make sure we have a clean game."Changes to the drug program must be approved by both Major League Baseball and the players' union."One of the strengths of our Joint Drug Testing Program is that the bargaining parties have an ongoing dialogue about the program and potential changes that can make it even more effective," MLB spokesman Pat Courtney said in an email. "We look forward to discussions with the MLBPA about changes that may be needed to respond to recent developments."One area where increased attention helped encourage change was in testing for human growth hormone."The players approved this change, and it was an important change to have year around blood testing to improve the possibility of detection for the use of HGH," Weiner said. "It was something the players felt very strongly about. The players at this point have very little patience for players that are trying to cheat the system, and understand that year around HGH testing is an important component."HGH testing began last year but was limited to spring training.Also, Weiner says he will be speaking with the players who were named in a report by The Miami New Times as having allegedly purchased performance-enhancing drugs from a defunct Florida anti-aging clinic."Whether there's anything to these stories or not, they're (the players) sick of this issue," Weiner said. "So, it's natural for a lot of guys to say, maybe we need different penalties. We'll have that discussion over the course of 2013."Weiner succeeded Donald Fehr as union head in 2009, and this tour is his first of spring training since announcing in August he is being treated for a brain tumor.NOTE: Former major league outfielder Jose Cruz Jr. has joined players' union in the player services department as special assistant. Cruz, 38, will help provide additional education and communications support to Spanish-speaking players. A Gold Glove winner, Cruz played 12 seasons in the big leagues with eight teams. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15116 | hide Jamie McMurray takes Chase race at Talladega
Monday, October 21, 2013 6:01 a.m. EDT
Chase for the NASCAR Sprint Cup TALLADEGA, AL (WTVB) - Jamie McMurray ended a three-year winless streak by holding off Dale Earnhardt Jr. in the closing laps of yesterday’s Camping World RV Sales 500 at Talladega Superspeedway. Ricky Stenhouse Jr. finished third while Paul Menard and Kyle Busch rounded out the top five. Jimmie Johnson crossed 13th, allowing him to overtake Matt Kenseth for the lead in the Chase. Kenseth finished the race in 20th and now trails Johnson by four points with four races to go.
The series heads next to Martinsville and Sunday’s Goody’s Headache Relief Shot 500. Tweet | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15119 | E-mail Print Comments Share Tweet Google+ The Two-Way Tokyo Will Host The 2020 Summer Olympics, Beating Out Istanbul
Originally published on Sat September 7, 2013 5:51 pm By Bill Chappell View Slideshow
Tokyo will host the 2020 Summer Games, IOC officials said Saturday. In Tokyo, five-time Paralympian Wakako Tsuchida, left, and former Olympic athletes Hiromi Miyake, center, and Yoshiyuki Miyake cheer the news.
Atsushi Tomura
Turkish officials had hoped to bring the 2020 Olympics to Istanbul. Here, the city's Hagia Sophia Museum is seen in the background, with Sultan Ahmed Square in the foreground.
It will be Tokyo, not Istanbul or Madrid, who hosts the 2020 Summer Olympics, the International Olympic Committee and its president, Jacques Rogge, announced in Buenos Aires Saturday. Rival city Madrid was eliminated in the first round of voting. We have updated this post with the latest news. Update at 4:55 p.m. ET: Voting Tally Detailed Madrid and Istanbul had been tied after the first round with 26 votes each, according to the Games Bids site. After Istanbul was chosen over Madrid in a runoff, Tokyo won 60 votes in the third round, to Istanbul's 36. Update at 4:20 p.m. ET: Tokyo Is It Tokyo has been chosen to host the 2020 Olympic and Paralympic Summer Games, the IOC said in an announcement that was streamed live online Saturday afternoon. In selecting Tokyo, IOC officials ended a recent trend that had favored holding the Olympics in cities or regions that haven't previously hosted the games. Tokyo hosted the Summer Olympics in 1964; the Winter Games were held in Nagano in 1998. But Tokyo officials also promoted their city's bid as symbolizing a new chapter for Japan, which is still recuperating from the tsunami and earthquake that devastated swaths of the country in 2011. Organizers have said they plan to have Olympic torchbearers run through areas hit by the tsunami. After the initial round of voting, Istanbul won a runoff over Madrid, leaving Tokyo firmly in the favored spot. The final announcement came as a striking turnabout for the Turkish delegation, which had earlier believed it had won not just the runoff vote but the competition itself, reports the Inside the Games website. Our original post continues: Officials from the three cities made their final pitches today. We'll update this post with the news of the winning city. We expect the announcement just after 4 p.m. ET. As of earlier this week, oddsmakers saw Tokyo as a slight favorite to win. All of the finalists have submitted recent bids to host the Olympics. And all three were widely seen as having flaws that endanger their chances: Istanbul saw a crackdown on anti-government protesters in June; last month, 31 Turkish athletes were suspended for doping. And worries over regional crises may play a role. Tokyo officials have sought to reassure Olympic representatives that their venue is free from any ill effects from recent radioactive leaks at the Fukushima nuclear power plant. Madrid has pursued its bid under the cloud of Spain's ailing economy and high unemployment rate, as well as its own doping problems. Bids from the cities of Baku, Azerbaijan, and Doha, Qatar, were not selected for the final round. In coming days, the IOC meetings will also produce the final list of sports that will be part of the 2020 Games. Wrestling, squash, and a combined bid from baseball and softball are in contention for one remaining slot. And IOC officials will also select a new president to replace the outgoing Jacques Rogge.Copyright 2013 NPR. To see more, visit http://www.npr.org/. View the discussion thread. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15134 | Three Head Coaches Receive Extensions Tools
COLUMBIA, S.C. (USC SID) – The University of South Carolina Board of Trustees has approved several contracts for head coaches in the Athletics Department, it was announced today.The Board of Trustees approved contract extensions for Head Men’s and Women’s Track & Field Coach Curtis Frye, Head Equestrian Coach Boo Major and Head Men’s and Women’s Swimming & Diving Coach McGee Moody. Each received a four-year extension that takes them through the 2016-17 seasons.“I am proud of how our athletic teams have competed on the national level and in the Southeastern Conference,” said Athletics Director Ray Tanner. “These contracts are indicative of the commitment that the University has to our coaches in their efforts to compete for championships.”Frye has been the Gamecocks’ head track & field coach for 17 years. He has coached or overseen over 60 NCAA champions, more than 100 SEC champions and approximately 450 NCAA All-Americans. Earlier this year, he was tapped as one of four coaches to assist with the U.S. World Championship staff at the 14th IAFF World Outdoor Championships in Moscow, Russia. A three-time United States Track Coaches Association (USTCA) National Coach of the Year, Frye brought South Carolina its first team NCAA championship in any sport when his women's team captured the 2002 NCAA Outdoor Championship crown.Major, who has received state, regional and national recognition as a premier equestrian instructor for over 30 years, just completed her 16th year as head coach of the South Carolina equestrian team. During her tenure, Major has coached the 2005 and 2007 overall National Equestrian Champions, three consecutive Hunter Seat National Champions (2005-2007), and the 2006 VENC Reserve Championship. The 2006-07 Hunter Seat Team went undefeated on its ride to a third consecutive national championship. She was named the SEC Coach of the Year in 2013 after leading the Gamecocks to the first conference title in equestrian.Moody has mentored the Carolina swimming & diving team for the past six years, steadily improving the programs each year. During his time at Carolina, his swimmers have virtually rewritten the school record books while posting dozens of NCAA qualifying times. His progress has not gone unnoticed, as Moody was recently named to the U.S. men’s swimming coaching staff for the 2013 World University Games.
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15144 | homesports news
Posted: Thursday, October 3rd 2013 at 8:53pm
Falcons' O-line still trying to get comfortable
FLOWERY BRANCH -- If the Atlanta Falcons are going to get back on track Monday night against the New York Jets, they'll have to do it with an offensive line that has not yet proven to be ready for prime time.
Left tackle Sam Baker did not practice Thursday is likely to miss his second game, leaving Atlanta with two tackles - Lamar Holmes on the left and Jeremy Trueblood on the right - who were not expected to be starters.
The Falcons (1-3) have fallen short of preseason expectations and most of their problems have been on offense, especially in the red zone where blocking issues are magnified. The Jets (2-2) use a dizzying array of pass-rushing schemes, and are tied for third in the NFL with 14 sacks.
"The front seven is the strength of their team," said Falcons coach Mike Smith. "They have four first-round draft choices in that front seven."
New York defensive linemen Muhammad Wilkerson, Kenrick Ellis and Sheldrick Richardson and linebackers Quinton Coples, DeMario Davis, David Harris and Calvin Pace are not all that the Atlanta blockers are trying to familiarize themselves with.
They're still getting used to working with each other.
Left guard Justin Blalock is the only Atlanta O-lineman playing in the same spot where he finished last season. Holmes, Blalock, center Peter Konz, right guard Garrett Reynolds and Trueblood are trying to learn one another's habits and those of the Jets.
"It takes time to get used to how certain people react to certain situations. They might (make) a different call perhaps," Blalock said. "Things like that you have to iron out, and it does take time, unfortunately.
"You can get an idea from watching film but no matter how much you watch . . . it's a little bit different when you go out there."
Atlanta is 23rd in the NFL in rushing (82 yards per game), and the Jets are allowing just 79.3 yards on the ground.
While quarterback Matt Ryan has been sacked a modest seven times and Atlanta is third in passing yardage (317 per game), their schemes have modified to where Jets coach Rex Ryan commented that the Falcons have gone more to a quick-passing attack to protect the passer.
"That's the way it's been up to this point," Matt Ryan said. "We've done some things getting the ball out fairly quickly. We've been pretty effective. We haven't scored as much as we'd like to. We've gone against some good front sevens, and when you do that you have to get the ball out."
Atlanta is throwing downfield a little less frequently, and troubles mount once inside the opposing 20-yard-line. Atlanta has scored on just 7-of-18 red zone attempts (38.5 percent, No. 28 in the NFL) and just one of those has come on a run.
The Falcons are having a hard time getting push up front.
Trueblood started 84 games for the Buccaneers from 2006-'12, and he's a right tackle by training, but his learning curve has been steep.
"The more reps you get together, you get a comfort level with the guy that's next to you . . . just little things like footwork, and how a guy sets up a (combination) block for you," Trueblood said. "There's definitely more to look for in the pass rush, and you don't want to get your quarterback killed."
For the Falcons, the only solution may be time . . . in practice and in games.
"That's why we go out there each day, trying to get comfortable with the guy next to you," Blalock said. "You want to be in a situation where you're not thinking too much, mainly you're reacting. There is some thought process that goes into it, especially in a week like this where we're going to see a plethora of defensive fronts."
Notes: Baker, starting linebackers Paul Worrilow (knee) and Akeem Dent (right foot), and cornerback Asante Samuel (thigh) did not practice. Only Baker and Dent were ruled out. Dent was wearing a walking boot. Running back Stephen Jackson did not practice, either, but head coach Mike Smith said, "We're not going to rule him out." Wide receiver Julio Jones (knee) returned to practice after missing Tuesday's session.
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15204 | Updated Oct 18, 2013 - 2:06 pm Six Points: Cardinals manhandled by Seahawks in Thursday night tilt
Comments | Print By Vince MarottaOriginally published: Oct 17, 2013 - 10:49 pm Vince Marotta
Co-host Dan Bickley Show with Vince Marotta, Web Content Editor - ArizonaSports.com School: Arizona State University
When you started with Bonneville Phoenix: October 2011
Favorite sports memory: Watching Cardinals win NFC Championship over Philly in January 2009 with my Dad...ASU wins 1987 Rose Bowl...Suns defeat Lakers in 1990 NBA Playoffs...2001 World Series
Favorite all-time athletes: Don Mattingly, Jeff Hornacek, Walter Davis, Anquan Boldin
Favorite sports movies: Friday Night Lights, The Natural, Hoosiers
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Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson (3) gets a pass off as Arizona Cardinals inside linebacker Karlos Dansby (56) brings him down during the second half of an NFL football game, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2013, in Glendale, Ariz. (AP Photo/Rick Scuteri)
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- There was plenty of talk about the opportunity that laid ahead of the Arizona Cardinals Thursday night. Their game against the Seattle Seahawks represented a chance. A chance for the Cards to announce themselves as real players in the NFC West. A chance to continue their home dominance over their division rivals from the Emerald City. A chance to rinse the bad taste over last week's loss to San Francisco out of their mouths.
That taste is still present as the Seahawks jumped on the Cardinals early, building a 14-0 lead en route to a 34-22 win in front of 61,200 fans at University of Phoenix Stadium.
Here are six things that stood out from Thursday's game:
1. I know there is an issue at quarterback...again - Without having taken a snap this season (or for the last three years, for that matter), Drew Stanton is the most popular guy in town right now. That's because the fans' frustration with starting QB Carson Palmer has reached Skeltonian levels.
Palmer threw two more picks Thursday night, although the first one was probably a penalty and was definitely an unbelievable play by Seattle safety Earl Thomas. That brings his season total to 13 in seven games -- a pace for just about 30 picks on the season! Nobody's thrown that many since Vinny Testaverde threw 35 in 1988 for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
I'm far from impressed with what Palmer has done in Cardinal Red this season, but I can assure you, he's the best option for the team at this point. Consider this: Stanton is a favorite of head coach Bruce Arians, as the two spent the 2012 season together in Indianapolis. Yet, Arians said he didn't consider making a move Thursday despite the Cardinals' sputtering offense.
Stanton didn't do much to instill confidence in training camp either, as interceptions were a common occurrence in the team's daily workouts.
2. The offensive line - Seattle racked up seven sacks in a game that conjured up nightmarish memories from 2012, when the Cardinals' offensive line couldn't block anything on passing downs.
But when you look deeper, you see A) the Cardinals fell behind early and B) they couldn't run the ball to save their lives. Arizona gained 30 yards on 18 carries. During the first half, Rashard Mendenhall had a seven-carry stretch in which he netted zero yards.
While I think this year's line is better than the 2012 version (and I know that isn't saying much), if the formula of digging early holes and failure to run the ball continues, it'll be a long season for the guys up front.
3. Can't absolve the defense - I know the Cardinals' defense is light years ahead of the offense, but they didn't play a great game against Seattle. I shared this opinion on Twitter during the game and several responded with something along the lines of "Well, you can't expect the defense to do anything when they're out on the field the whole game!" That is certainly true, generally speaking -- but it was far from the case Thursday night.
The Cardinals actually had a 4:40 advantage in time of possession for the game!
The defense's biggest problem was not getting off the field on third down, allowing Seattle to convert 58 percent (7-of-12) of their conversion opportunities.
4. John Abraham's play - The Cardinals picked up the NFL's active sack leader right before the start of camp to boost their pass rush, but that hadn't happened in the first six weeks of the season. Actually dating back to last season, the veteran had gone nine straight games without a sack.
That changed Thursday as Abraham sacked Russell Wilson twice for 18 yards and forced two fumbles on the night. The 35-year-old was undoubtedly the Cardinals' best defensive player -- with apologies to defensive end Calais Campbell, who had a game-high eight tackles and recovered a fumble that led to a score just five days after being carted off the field in San Francisco.
5. Back to the running game - With Mendenhall's growing ineffectiveness (2.5 yards per carry over last five games) I don't understand why the Cardinals won't at least give Ryan Williams a shot to run the football.
I'm not at practice on a regular basis, but Coach Arians told Dan Bickley and myself Monday that Williams is "busting his tail" every day. The third-year player hasn't even dressed for a game this season -- isn't time to see if the kid can play in the league? The common refrain is that Williams doesn't play special teams. Neither does Mendenhall, by the way. 6. Russell Wilson....SMH - Due to the fact that they play in the same division and that they're both dual-threat, read-option quarterbacks, there are constant comparisons between Wilson and San Francisco's Colin Kaepernick.
Having seen Kaepernick a week ago and Wilson on Thursday, there is no doubt in my mind who I'd rather have quarterbacking my team...and it's the guy wearing the neon green of the Seahawks.
Wilson didn't put up gaudy numbers (he rarely does), completing 18-of-29 passes for 235 yards and three touchdowns against Arizona. But his command on the football field is astounding for a third-round pick who is only in his second year. Not to mention, he's one of the best on-the-run passers to come into the league in quite some time. Facing a third-and-eight from his own 49-yard line, Wilson rolled right to escape pressure and threw an absolute laser beam to Sidney Rice, who made the catch for a 16-yard gain, extending a drive that ended in a Steven Hauschka field goal in the closing seconds.
Wilson is the real deal, and unfortunately for Cardinals fans, he resides in the NFC West. Vince Marotta, Co-host Dan Bickley Show with Vince Marotta, Web Content Editor - ArizonaSports.com
When it comes to 'Draft Day', punt Hey Adam Silver, leave the NBA jerseys alone Everybody's bashing basketball, so why don't we fix it? Goran Dragic has been amazing, but Markieff Morris is key to Suns' success Radio Row interviews painting a dark picture of life in NFL Most Popular Sports KTAR News Videos Photos Suns GM: Waste for teams to pursue Bledsoe | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15205 | Cats Rally In 9th To Sweep Cougars
April 18, 2010 Final Box Score (PDF) | Arizona Overall Stats (PDF)TUCSON, Ariz. – The No. 21 Arizona baseball team rallied with four runs on four hits in the ninth inning, including Rafael Valenzuela’s game-winning single with two outs, to win 12-11 and complete a series sweep of Washington State on Sunday afternoon at Kindall Field/Sancet Stadium.With the Wildcats trailing 11-8 entering the bottom of the ninth and facing left hand pitcher Adam Conley, Steve Selsky chopped an unassuming single through the left side of the infield. Robert Refsnyder followed with a single to right, and Selsky was able to score all the way from first base as the ball rolled under the glove of WSU right fielder Derek Jones. Bobby Rinard drove in Refsnyder, who advanced to third on the previous error, and suddenly Arizona trailed by just one run at 11-10. Seth Mejias-Brean reignited the rally with a single as he represented the tying run. After a line by Alex Mejia, the Wildcats were suddenly down to their final out when they called on Cory Bernard to pinch hit for Jacob Meskin. Bernard delivered with a single up the middle – the first hit of his career – to move Mejias-Brean to second base.Joey Rickard tied the game with a single to right field as Mejias-Brean scored and Ethan Chavez, who was inserted to pinch run for Bernard, advanced all the way to third base. Valenzuela then delivered the game-winning single, a liner to left field as Chavez came in to score.Arizona (26-9, 7-5 Pac-10) seemed to be poised for the series sweep much earlier in the game, but the Cougars stormed back from a three-run deficit and ultimately took a three-run lead.The Wildcats held a 7-4 lead in the fifth inning when Matt Argyropoulos hit a two-run home run off UA reliever Joe Allison. The teams traded single runs in the bottom of the fifth and top of the sixth, leaving the Wildcats with an 8-7 lead after six innings.Washington State (19-14, 3-6 Pac-10) surged ahead in the top of the eighth inning as it scored three runs off UA relievers Tyler Hale and Nick Cunningham. The big hit came from Jones, who hit a two-run triple off Cunningham to put the Cougars ahead by a run. Jones scored on a sacrifice fly by Matt Fanell and the Cougars led 10-8.Vincent Littleman took over in the ninth inning for the Wildcats and, despite giving up a solo home run to Cody Bartlett, which put the Cougars on top 11-8, earned his second victory thanks to the rally in the home half of the inning.The Cougars led 3-0 after an inning and a half, but the Wildcats knocked out WSU starter Spencer Johnson with five runs in the bottom half of the second frame. Arizona collected four hits in the inning, including a two-run double by Jett Bandy.Bryce Bandilla started for the Wildcats, but lasted just 2.0 innings after allowing four runs on four hits. Allison took over in the third and pitched 3.1 innings as he gave up three runs – two earned.Arizona added two runs in the fourth innings and a single run in the fifth to lead 8-6 after six innings.The Wildcats collected 17 hits in the game and had six players with two or more hits, while three had two RBI. Nine different players scored a run as the Wildcats won their first game in eight tries when trailing after eight innings of play.Arizona will step away from Pac-10 conference action to play a non-conference road game against league and intrastate rival Arizona State, which is ranked No. 1 in the nation in the USA Today/ESPN coaches poll, on Tuesday, April 20. The game, which is the first of two non-conference games between the schools this season, will begin at 6:30 p.m. in Tempe, Ariz. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15225 | SPOOKY'S TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL EXPRESS
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SPOOKY EXPRESS BOWLING FOR DOLLARS SELECTION AND ANALYSIS THREAD TOSTITOS FIESTA BOWL
OREGON vs. KANSAS STATE Thursday, Jan 3, 8:30 pm
ESPN It has seemed likely for several weeks that the Ducks and Wildcats would meet in the BCS. As soon as Alabama lost to Texas A&M, though, it seemed most likely they would meet in the BCS National Championship Game, not in the Fiesta Bowl. But then within an hour of each other both programs suffered huge losses. Oregon fell to Stanford in a close one, while Kansas State was crushed by Baylor. The Wildcats still won the Big 12 despite that setback, and they secured the Fiesta Bowl bid automatically as a result. Oregon couldn’t even play for the Pac-12 Championship because they lost to the eventual champions, but they were a very attractive at-large team. While some of the luster has come off these two teams because of the losses, there is no doubt that this is still a thrilling matchup between great teams. In fact, I don’t think there is a better game on this year’s bowl menu. Each team is very good at what they do, and each is the product of a strong system run by an outstanding coach — albeit two coaches who are about as different as it is possible to be. The teams will be prepared, and there will be fireworks.
The Kansas State Wildcats were 11-1 on the season, and their 9-2-1 ATS record makes them among the most profitable teams in the country. They had a 10-game winning streak before losing at Baylor. They were sluggish starting off in their final game against Texas, which came after the loss and a bye week, but they shook it off in the second half and were dominant. They will find the path much tougher in this game if they start slow due to rust again. Kansas State’s schedule didn’t wind up being as impressive as it looked early on — only their win at Oklahoma stands up as truly impressive. The driving force of the team is QB Collin Klein. The Heisman was the senior’s to lose, and he lost it against Baylor. Despite his outstanding play, though, this is not a dominant offense.
The Oregon Ducks also wound up 11-1, though the public obviously expected more of them than of the Wildcats because they were just 7-5 ATS. They not only lost to Stanford, but the 14 points they scored in that loss was four touchdowns fewer than they scored in any other game. Their schedule also wasn’t as tough as it looked like it could be thanks to down seasons by Cal and especially USC. The season-capping win at bitter rivals Oregon State stands up nicely, though. Coach Chip Kelly, who is strongly rumored to be coaching in his last BCS bowl game with the NFL beckoning.. He will be playing in his fourth BCS game. He lost the Rose Bowl and BCS Championship Game before winning the Rose Bowl last year. The team is full of stars, but perhaps the brightest all year has been running back Kenjon Barner. As Stanford alone showed, if you can contain the Ducks offensively you can beat them. Oregon is only competent through the air, but the Ducks are truly elite at running the ball, setting the tempo and, of course, scoring a pile of points — more than 50 per game. Kansas State, thanks to playing in the Big 12, has had more experience with explosive offenses than many teams, though. There are a couple of big differences, however. First, Oregon should be very sharp in this one, while West Virginia and Texas Tech were already inconsistent and troubled when the Wildcats faced them, and Oklahoma State hadn’t been consistent from the start of the year. More significantly, those programs rely more heavily on the passing game to score points. Kansas State has not faced a team nearly as fast or dominant on the ground as the Ducks. They have the 17th-ranked run defense at 117 yards per game, but that statistic is skewed by the opposition they have faced. Kansas State will have to get very creative to try and slow the run and not let the Ducks control the tempo. That’s a massive task. Chip Kelly flirted seriously with the NFL last year. This year the league will throw even more money at him, and all indications seem to be that he’ll take it. With the coach on his way out combined with the disappointment of not playing in the championship game or even the Rose Bowl, it’s possible that this team will struggle with their focus in the days leading up to this game. As strong as this team has been for the last four years, their biggest issues have come when they have not mentally been in a game. Handicappers need to get a feel of the mental state of the Ducks when making their selection.
If the Ducks can run they can win. I see no reason why they shouldn’t be able to run all day in this one. The Wildcats aren’t suited to contain them, and I don’t think they’ll be able to keep pace in what should quickly turn into a shootout. If the Wildcats hadn’t shown some frailty in losing to Baylor — a team that is, in a few keys ways, a lesser version of what Oregon has built — then I would be more confident in their chances. As it is, as much as I respect them I can’t give them much of a shot to win the game. But having Oregon winning this game by almost a touchdown, giving up more than a touchdown is not something that jumps at me as a play and right now I am going to sit back and wait until closer to kickoff to make a determination. Although Oregon should be a play if you are utilizing teasers or money line parlays. Well this became an easy selection for me. Line has come way down and when everyone zigs I zag. I am jumping on Oregon to help continue with the hot streak I am on and also definitely believe on the Under in this game as well for a much lesser amount of course. OREGON -7 OREGON vs. KANSAS STATE UNDER 75 POINTS Home of the Spooky Express | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15226 | McCulloch Park - BR Bullpen
McCulloch Park
Jump to: navigation, search A color sketch of the McCulloch Park grandstand in late 1940s. (larger image below)
McCulloch Park is located in Muncie, Indiana. The park was named for local industrialist George F.McCulloch. Although baseball had been played in the park for over thirty years, the Grandstand, with a seating capacity of 4100 was not built until 1931. The field hosted two professional teams, the Fruit Jars in 1906 and 1908 and the Reds from 1947 to 1950. The grandstand burned down in 1952 and has never been replaced.
The Park's history began in 1892 when McCulloch, a local business man, newspaper publisher, philanthropist and one of Muncie's most prominent citizens, made a gift of 118 rolling, green riverside acres, to the community, for the use of parks and recreation. Mr. McCulloch died on March 15, 1915 and it was remarked at his eulogy, that the establishment of this park was the crowning achievement of McCulloch's benevolent life.
It did not take baseball long to become one of the parks main attractions. The first issue of the Muncie Star newspaper, founded by McCulloch on May 29, 1899, showed that the McCulloch field was home to a Muncie team's victory by a score of 7 - 3 over a Wabash, IN team in the semi-pro Indiana-Illinois League on the previous day. In 1906 Muncie fielded its first professional baseball team, the Muncie Fruit Jars, playing in the class C Interstate Association. The team returned for the 1908
season in the class D Indiana-Ohio League which folded on June 8 with the team in last place. Over the following years the McCulloch diamond was home to numerous semi-pro clubs. In 1931 a permanent wooden grandstand was erected. Following this a local team named the Muncie Citizens was founded and enjoyed many successful seasons, especially during the depression years. During the 1930s several Major League teams visited the ballpark and on one occasion the St. Louis Browns suffered defeat at the hands of the local squad. On July 4, 1938, McCulloch Park was overwhelmed with an estimated crowd of 80,000 people, more than the population of the entire city. They came for an Independence Day church gathering, a baseball double-header, along with what has been described as the greatest fireworks display in the history of the park. During World War II, as part of an effort by Major League Baseball to reduce travel expenses, the Pittsburgh Pirates came to Muncie for spring training. The National League club would call McCulloch Park its spring home from 1943 to 1945. During this era the Pirates were led by manager Frank Frisch and coach Honus Wagner, both Hall of Famers, who gained many fans for the team. These spring training years brought several other big league teams to the park for exibition games. It is said that Detroit Tiger Rudy York hit the longest home run ever out of McCulloch Park. Following the war, professional baseball returned to McCulloch Park in the form of the Muncie Reds, a class D team, who called the park home from 1947 to 1950. During these years the team was an affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds.
After the Reds disbanded in 1950, the field went back to being used by Amatuer and semi-pro clubs. On Friday,
June 13, 1952, fire struck the grandstand, completely destroying it. While the grandstand has never been replaced, the field was refurbished and has been maintained throughout the years.
Click on Muncie Reds to visit that page.
[edit] Image
A color sketch of the McCulloch Park grandstand in late 1940s.
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15248 | New York Giants By The Numbers
Giants By The Numbers: 94 Is For ...
Michael Brooks.
Signed as a free agent from the Denver Broncos, was a good linebacker for the Giants from 1993-95. He had 92, 91 and 95 tackles in his three seasons in New York. Was a guy then-coach Dan Reeves brought with him from Denver.
Cedric Jones was one of the more disastrous first-round picks in franchise history. Selected fifth overall in 1994, Jones was pretty much a disaster right from the beginning. He played five seasons with the Giants and recorded 15 sacks, the first one not coming until his third season in the league. He did manage to work his way into the team's starting lineup his last two seasons, and was part of the 2000 Super Bowl team. Had a 7.5-sack season in 1999.
When the Giants took Jones, they thought they were getting "the most complete defensive player in the draft." Instead, they got a player who was troubled by eye and leg issues, and did not begin to play like an even competent player until his fourth season in the league.
William Joseph, of course, was another disastrous Giants' first-round pick who wore No. 94. Taken 25th overall in a 2003 draft that saw a huge first-round run on defensive tackles, Joseph never played up to his draft status. He compiled only seven sacks in four Giant seasons and had a career-best 20 tackles in 2004. He spent a few seasons after the Giants let him go bouncing on and off the roster of the Oakland Raiders.
Curtis Garrett, a defensive tackle, seems to be the first Giant to wear No. 94. He started three games in 1987, then disappeared from the NFL.
Mathias Kiwanuka wears the 94 currently, of course. Considering the number's recent Giants' history maybe that is not a good idea. Good luck with it, Kiwi! | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15258 | Home All Articles Expos Relocation: No A's to San Jose
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Expos Relocation: No A's to San Jose
PoorBest Maury Brown Article Archive Written by Maury Brown Monday, 11 October 2004 12:00 The Expos move to DC doesn’t mean the A’s get into San Jose
How MLB's payoff and provisions to Peter Angelos for moving the Expos to DC fueled talks of the Oakland A's moving to San Jose, and Peter Magowan of the San Francisco Giants will kill off that notion
By Maury Brown
Peter Angelos is good.
Well, he’s good at getting his way, and that’s about it.
For well over two years Angelos, the owner of the Baltimore Orioles, railed on about how a team in Washington, D.C. would harm him—irreparably, mind you—if MLB decided to relocate the Montreal Expos to Washington or Northern Virginia. Angelos had won cases involving big tobacco and the asbestos industry—two industries viewed as unbeatable in the courts. MLB feared that Angelos and the City of Baltimore might get into court to challenge this encroachment on the Orioles’ Territory due to losses created by a new DC franchise, should MLB decide to move there.
Wait a minute … “Orioles’ Territory”?
Angelos used the term to good effect. But the fact is that none of the D.C. or Virginia site locations was ever in the territorial limits for the Baltimore franchise that are outlined in the Major League Agreement, Major League Rules, or the league constitutions, the governing documents of Major League Baseball
What was the threat based on? Where was the real impact? Cable and over-the-air TV market reach.
Angelos’s claim that attendance at Camden Yards will be hurt is true—to an extent. Baseball analysts predict anywhere from 5–15 percent of the Orioles attendance might be siphoned off by a Washington franchise. While this is nothing to scoff at, it’s not where the real impact would be felt.
The Orioles’ vast cable market would get sliced up like a Thanksgiving turkey with the addition of a Washington team. That’s the key factor. The Orioles won’t divulge what they currently net with Comcast, but USA Today estimates their total revenue from all local broadcast sources at $21 million for 2002.
To placate Angelos, baseball is reportedly negotiating the following (subject to change):
A guarantee that will keep Baltimore’s annual revenues no lower than $130 million. If they do drop below that threshold, MLB will make up the difference;
A minimum franchise value for the Orioles at around $360 million; and
A 60-percent equity in a proposed new regional sports network (RSN) to the Orioles while the Washington franchise would receive only 40 percent.
MLB is about to move forward on a compensation package the likes of which has never been seen in the history of the sport because of the threat of litigation that had little chance of success. Quite bluntly, MLB was scared enough to give in to Angelos to avoid releasing documents in discovery that would create a PR nightmare for MLB.
The bad news is that MLB is setting a precedent that will affect relocation or expansion for many years to come. MLB could not move into a single city in the U.S. without affecting another franchise’s television market.
Noted economist Andrew Zimbalist saw this when we interviewed him in September of 2004. “[Under this scenario], whenever you contemplate adding a team you’d be interfering with somebody’s television market,” Zimbalist said. “And if you held that argument as decisive that, ‘Oh, you’re taking away part of this guy’s television market,’ then you’d never be able to have expansion. Not now and not in forty years. Even when the U.S. population might be 350 million instead of 290 million.”
From now on, every consideration of a move or expansion will come with the knowledge that the hands of the nearest team’s owners will be outstretched. “What was good for Peter Angelos is good for us. Let’s negotiate our compensation.”
Some locales (Portland, San Jose and New Jersey) are looking to recruit relocating franchises. Other locales (such as Oakland and Florida) seek to hang on to franchises. Meanwhile owners of existing franchises (San Francisco and the New York teams) seek to stymie relocations near them. Even as newspapers in potential host cities ran stories about how the move to D.C. would open the door for further relocations—with Oakland leading the pack, those potentially involved in relocations scrambled to figure out the impact of the new paradigm on them.
The Giants control most of the Bay Area. Their territory includes San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Monterey and Marin Counties, plus Santa Clara County with respect to another major league team. By comparison, the Athletics' territory includes only Alameda and Contra Costa Counties.
When Bob Lurie was looking to get out of Candlestick Park in the late 80’s, baseball expanded the Giants territory to include Santa Clara County where there were efforts to pass funding to build a new ballpark in San Jose. The voters in Santa Clara County rejected tax hikes to fund the stadium in both 1990 and 1992, yet baseball reaffirmed those rights when Peter Magowan purchased the team in 1995 and built PacBell Park.
Now, Oakland owners Steve Schott and Ken Hoffman are looking to get out of the aging Network Associates Coliseum that they share with Al Davis’ NFL Raiders.
The A’s want to develop a new stadium in Santa Clara County and San Jose is trying to lure them. It’s a perfect fit since Schott hails from there.
Peter Magowan, the owner of the Giants and one of the newer members on MLB’s executive committee, thinks otherwise.
Magowan doesn’t want to give up the lucrative Silicon Valley. Surely a new ballpark in Silicon Valley’s backyard would draw the strong corporate base away that yields suite sales and lucrative naming right possibilities.
Magowan played the diplomat when the issue started to gain steam on March 2 of 2004. “[Steve Schott] wants to get out of the Coliseum, and I don't blame him. He wants to get a new stadium. I think that's a noble objective. But there are plenty of places to put it in the Bay Area that are not in the Giants' territory. Good places. That's where I'd like to see him concentrate, but I don't run the A's."
Five days later, Schott fired back: "I believe that when Charlie Finley moved the A's out here, and the Giants were already here, there was no questions and no discussions about territorial rights. The only way the Giants ended up with territorial rights was because they were going to build a stadium down in San Jose.
"There was no question about whose territory it was. They had to get permission from the A's,” Schott said. “They didn't pay for those territorial rights, by the way. Now, in the meantime, they built a stadium closer to Oakland than they were before. And now, if we talk about another stadium down in that area, they go berserk. It's like my four-year-old granddaughter says sometimes, ‘Crybaby, crybaby.' They like to cry a lot about it. They get nervous about it, you know."
The City of San Jose has further fueled this fire. San Jose Mayor Ron Gonzales introduced a resolution to San Jose's City Council on October 5, 2004, officially requesting that Major League Baseball release the city from the Giants' territorial rights, freeing the A's to relocate there. San Jose is looking to expand its visibility with another sports franchise, while the A’s are having trouble in Oakland getting a new facility built. The timing of the Expos relocation played right into Baseball San Jose Chairman Mike Fox’s hands—or so he thought.
Fox, a San Jose beverage distributor, and others formed Baseball San Jose “to attract a Major League Baseball team to San Jose.” While the Athletics were never directly mentioned, the implication was obvious. “You had an owner in Peter Angelos in Baltimore who has clearly stated he did not want the Expos to move into his area,'' said Fox Jr. “From our standpoint, that's a hopeful sign that there might be an ability to get a Major League Baseball team in San Jose.''
To the layman, the Expos move sets a precedent for relocating a franchise in close proximity to another. Moving to San Jose, proponents argue, would put the A’s farther away from the Giants. All that was required was a payoff to Magowan and Co.
The problem is that the A’s/Giants situation and the Baltimore/Washington franchise situation are quite different from each other.
MLB, which was pushing collectively to get into D.C., placated Angelos. The A’s are standing alone. For the relocation scenario to work, the A’s need a ¾ majority vote by the other owners.
That’s not in the Giants interests. If they hold out, the A’s may move out of the Bay Area all together and the Giants will reap a massive windfall.
However, even were MLB pushing for the A’s to move to San Jose but Magowan wasn’t budging, the resulting scenario would be much the same as with Angelos and Washington. Magowan and the Giants would have the territories defined in MLB’s charter to stand upon in a court of law, not just a television market. The difference is huge—especially in the eyes of the Lords of Baseball.
In the end, Selig put the kibosh on comparing the Washington/Baltimore situation with the San Jose/Giants one. "San Jose is part of the San Francisco Giants territory," Selig said. "The clubs' territories really have always been treated with great respect. And so when a team is sold and a territory exists near theirs, we don't change that. This is a completely different thing, so it is not a proper analogy, frankly."
So, the A’s are concentrating on building a new facility in the parking lot next to their current home in the East Bay. Lew Wolff, their VP of Venue Development, summed it up this way, "I have no idea whether [a move to San Jose] could happen or not. That's up to San Jose and Major League Baseball," Wolff said. "But we're going forward by concentrating on the Coliseum area. We do need a new venue at some point. Our first effort is to see if we can get it in the East Bay."
As to pushing the A’s out of the Bay Area altogether to either Portland or Las Vegas, both of whom are still pushing hard for a team, Selig sends an ominous message touting history.
“When Charlie Finley moved the A's to Oakland, the American League didn't care about the National League and vice versa," Selig says. "That was sad because the A's hurt the Giants. At the time the theory was, 'So what, that's the National League.' Well, come on. This is baseball."
It’s not baseball, Mr. Commissioner. This is business.
Edited by John Ruoff and Gary Gillette. < Prev | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15260 | Game 8: La Salle Preview
@Chad_BSD
LaSalle's Ramon Galloway could have a big hand in ruining Pat Chambers' homecoming. - Howard Smith-US PRESSWIRE
Penn State travels to Philadelphia for a showdown with La Salle at the historic Palestra.
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La Salle Explorers(4-1)
Today, 9:00 PM
Coming off a relatively comfortable win against Penn on Saturday, Penn State will face La Salle on the Quakers' home floor and the home of Big 5 hoops, the Palestra. This matchup represents the Nittany Lions' second trip to Philadelphia under Pat Chambers, who was born and raised in Philly, and a return home for D.J. Newbill, who played his high school ball just a few miles away from the Palestra at Strawberry Mansion. The Explorers will be unveiling special throwback uniforms for the occasion, so this contest should be aesthetically pleasing if nothing else.
Dr. John Giannini, in addition to having the most Philadelphia basketball coach's name ever, has his team coming into the game having won three in a row, including an overtime victory over Villanova on November 25th. Giannini is in his ninth season at La Salle and has staked his claim as the most successful coach in the program's A-10 era, despite the fact that they've never made the Big Dance under the Doc's reign (Too bad his PhD isn't in Bracketology! I will see myself out).
The Explorers' roster features a few names that should be recognizable to Penn Staters -Taylor Dunn, a reserve guard, is the son of former PSU head coach Jerry Dunn, and center Steve Zack was a high school teammate of Jermaine Marshall's at Red Land High in Lewisberry.
Like most Big 5 teams, La Salle boasts a very talented backcourt. Junior Tyreek Duren leads the team in scoring through five games averaging just over 16 points per contest, 37% of which come from the free-throw stripe. Senior guard Ramon Galloway is the team's biggest three-point threat, shooting 38% from behind the arc on the season. He'll be a major focus for the Nittany Lions' defense, as they have struggled to close out on open shooters all season.
As far as post players are concerned, sophomore forward Jerrell Wright has been La Salle's biggest threat thus far. The 6'8" 240lb'er has been the team's best rebounder, averaging seven boards in 26 minutes of action per game. Zack also presents a challenge for Jon Graham and Sasa Borovnjak at 6'11" 245lbs. The sophomore center is blocking over one and a half shots a game thus far.
In order for Penn State to give themselves a good chance at winning this game, they'll likely need to get major scoring contributions from someone other than Jermaine Marshall (14.4 ppg) and Newbill (14.7 ppg). Freshman Brandon Taylor has shown promising signs towards being that capable third scorer, who leads the team in three point shooting (41%) and adds a unique dimension to the Lions' offense at 6'7" 235lbs.
Jon Graham has been largely unreliable scoring-wise this season, but we've seen him be a capable scorer in spurts as evidenced by his back-to-back buckets from textbook post moves against Penn resulting in an #ATTITUDE EmbraceTM. Ross Travis is coming off what is arguably his most impressive outing of the season, where he refused to settle for a mid-range shot that hadn't been falling and instead attacked the rim where he seems to be much more effective. The sophomore leads the Big Ten in total rebounding (7.7 rpg, 54 total) at this early stage. Chambers has also hinted that freshman forward Donovon Jack is in line for more playing time sooner rather than later, though this isn't an ideal situation to throw an inexperienced player into the fire.
This is the first ever Penn State game to be broadcasted on NBC Sports Network, and our ears will be graced by the dulcet tones of former Orlando Magic coach/San Fernando Valley legend Stan van Gundy (video SFW) on color commentary. So that should be entertaining at the very least.
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Penn State Nittany Lions (4-3) vs La Salle Explorers (4-1)
Game 8: La Salle Recap
Jermaine Marshall
Tyreek Duren
Steve Zack | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15338 | Ototivo, Pulliam named national Scholar-Athletes
BY JESSICA JACKSON
WASHINGTON D.C. — With equal dedication in the classroom as on the floor, two players on the USAO women’s basketball team earned national accolades as a student-athlete.
Senior Tashina Ototivo and junior Paige Pulliam were named Daktronics-NAIA Scholar-Athletes this week.
“We are very proud of them. They work very hard and are certainly deserving of this recognition,” said Jennifer Hayden, head women’s basketball coach. “They set a very good example for students and athletes to follow on the court and in the classroom.”
Ototivo and Pulliam are two of just six Oklahoma natives to earn the honor for women’s basketball this season. In total, the NAIA honored 124 student-athletes nationwide.
Tashina Ototivo
Ototivo — USAO’s only four-year senior — was a integral part of the Drover system since she joined the team as a true freshman. She maintained a busy schedule, staying active in student organizations as well as exceling on the court and as a student.
Ototivo led the 2012-13 squad in rebounds, collecting 172 on the season, and in blocks with nine. Additionally, she had one of the best shooting percentages on the team and scored more than 200 points. She had a season total of 40 steals as well.
For her career, she’s scored 730 points and is second in school history in career rebounds with 659. In her four years, she has played in every single game for the Drovers.
Ototivo has maintained a 3.82 grade point average, majorin | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15360 | Issue Date: March 2007 Car Talk Tori Woods Ten years ago, the Cavaliers retired Brad Daugherty’s No. 43 — his nod to NASCAR legend Richard Petty and evidence that the NBA’s 1986 No. 1 overall draft pick always had his heart divided between two sports. Even after making the NBA’s All-Rookie Team, the 7-foot center started building a racing team during his second year in the league. With a childhood friend behind the wheel, Daugherty’s team went on to become the first rookie owner/rookie driver combo to win a Busch Series race. Last month, Daugherty turned his asphalt obsession into a job as a commentator for ESPN2’s new daily “NASCAR Now” program and the cable network’s pre-race “NASCAR Countdown.” We recently talked to him about cars, Cleveland and the Cavs bobblehead doll bearing his likenessOn the roots of his race obsession: “You go [to a race] and you see the colors, you see the speed and you smell the smells … you’re enveloped by everything involved.” On being the Cavs’ “43”: “I had some great teammates and got to play for a great coach in Lenny Wilkens. I had a lot of fun, and I thought we brought basketball back to more respectability in Cleveland.” On meeting the other “43” as a kid: “[Richard Petty] actually spent about 10 minutes talking to me about what I like and who I am and where I’m from. It’s not necessarily the words that he spoke to me. It was the way he had time for me. Here I am, this little African-American kid walking around with my dad. No one else stopped to speak to us. He didn’t have to do that. It made an impression on me.” On getting behind the wheel: “Physically, it’s not pretty, me getting in a race car. The Good Lord made me this size to keep my behind out of race cars.” On the Cavs Brad Daugherty bobblehead doll: “You’ve really arrived when you’ve got your own bobblehead doll. … My wife uses it. I think she thinks it’s a voodoo doll.” | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15371 | Dave Heeke
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Heeke Videos
Dave Heeke has instilled his vision of a “Championship Culture” at Central Michigan University.
Athletic success, academic excellence, national media exposure, record fund- raising and a commitment to facilities have defined Heeke’s tenure as CMU’s director of athletics.
Under Heeke’s guidance, Central Michigan athletics attained new heights of success during the 2012-13 seasons. Six teams – football, soccer, women’s basketball, wrestling, gymnastics, and softball – qualified for the NCAA postseason. The football team made its fifth bowl appearance in the last seven years, winning the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl in Detroit in front of a national television audience. The soccer program became the first in MAC history to earn an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Women’s basketball claimed a third-straight 20-plus win season, a Mid- American Conference Tournament title and the program’s first NCAA Tournament appearance in 29 years. Gymnastics advanced to the NCAA Regionals for the fifth straight year, earning its fourth consecutive MAC championship along the way. Overall, Central Michigan finished 88th in the Learfield Sports’ Directors Cup, second best in the Mid- American Conference.
In April, the CMU football program captured the national spotlight once again, as offensive tackle Eric Fisher made history when he was selected No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft by the Kansas City Chiefs.
Heeke is contributing to the national landscape as a member of the NCAA Division I Baseball Committee and the Division I Football Issues Committee, serving as chair of the football committee in 2012-13, his fifth and final year. He had previously served on the baseball committee from 2006-08.
In June 2013, Heeke was appointed to the Division I Athletic Director Advisory Group. One of just 11 Division I athletic director’s nationwide to be selected for the appointment, the group will meet periodically with NCAA President Mark Emmert and his staff to provide feedback and perspective on issues affecting DI athletics.
The Chippewas earned the Mid-American Conference’s inaugural Cartwright Award after the 2008-09 academic year as the league’s top overall institution, capturing the annual honor given to the program that most exemplifies excellence in academics, athletics and citizenship.
The 2009-10 academic year brought conference championships in football, women’s soccer, wrestling, gymnastics and baseball. The Chippewas added conference tournament titles in women’s soccer, wrestling and baseball while the men’s basketball program repeated as the MAC West Division champion.
The department captured the 2007 Reese Trophy for MAC men’s all-sports competition, and they have finished in the top three in four of his five years. In 2010, CMU placed second in the Reese standings and third in the Jacoby Trophy (women’s all-sports) standings, following one of the most successful years in recent history, and the women’s standing improved to second in 2011.
The Chippewa football program made four consecutive bowl appearances from 2006-09 and won three MAC West titles during that span. CMU’s wrestling program has finished in the top 15 at the NCAA Championships each of the last five years, including a seventh-place finish to cap a 2008 season that saw the Chippewas ranked as high as No. 2 nationally. In 2010, they became the first squad in MAC history to qualify all 10 wrestlers for nationals. Both the volleyball and women’s basketball programs have experienced their most successful seasons in nearly two decades in recent years, advancing to postseason play each of the last two years, while the soccer team won back-to-back MAC regular-season and tournament titles, winning a first-round NCAA Tournament match in 2009.
The athletic exploits of CMU’s student-athletes are topped only by their academic accomplishments. The Chippewas have earned the MAC’s Institutional Academic Achievement Award 10 times in the last 13 years, and CMU’s women’s varsity programs combined to win the conference’s inaugural Faculty Athletics Representative Academic Achievement Award following the 2007-08 academic year. The Chippewa soccer program posted the highest grade-point average in the country for eight consecutive years, while softball routinely ranks among the nation’s highest team grade point averages. In 2012, the field hockey program posted the highest GPA in the nation, a collective 3.61, to earn a Division I National Academic Team Award for the fourth consecutive season and fifth time in the last six years.
Facility upgrades and renovations for all sports have been staples under Heeke’s leadership. Highlighting his efforts is the ongoing capital campaign to fund the new CMU Events Center, which opened December 1, 2010. The $22.5 million project includes a complete renovation of the arena in the Rose Center, as well as the addition of a dynamic entryway and new practice facilities for basketball, volleyball and wrestling.
Among the first facility improvements Heeke oversaw was the installation of permanent lights at Kelly/Shorts Stadium to allow for flexible scheduling and television appearances for football. A new $2.5 million video scoreboard system, funded fully through private contributions, debuted during the 2007-08 seasons in both Kelly/Shorts and Rose Center. The Rose Center court was refinished with an updated floor design in 2006. Other additional facility improvements have included a $700,000 gymnastics practice facility, the naming and renovation of Margo Jonker Stadium for softball, stadium seating at the Field Hockey Complex, the resurfacing of the Jack Skoog Indoor Track and construction of a suite of track offices overlooking the Jack Skoog Indoor Track.
An increased focus on fund-raising has led to five consecutive record-breaking years - the most successful yearsof giving in the department’s history. The 2007-08 school year marked the first time in school history that $1 million was generated for annual funds thanks to an all-time high in number of donors. In the past six years, the department’s fund-raising numbers have doubled, increasing to $1.2 million in 2010-1. Heeke has reorganized athletic fund- raising through a new umbrella organization called the Chippewa Athletic Fund (CAF). In addition to the traditional Chippewa Club, the CAF includes the Championship Fund program that provides opportunities for donors to give directly toward a sport program’s specific needs. The CAF also focuses on generating capital gifts to help improve and maintain facilities for the demands of tomorrow.
In 2009, Heeke announced an agreement between the athletics department and Adidas on an exclusive apparel and shoe contract. All of CMU’s varsity athletics programs are now outfitted by Adidas, bringing consistency to color, design and logo usage on all uniforms and apparel. The contract marks the first time all of CMU’s varsity athletics programs have been included in a single, all-encompassing apparel agreement, and it includes special apparel pricing for club sport programs, intramurals and other campus groups.
Heeke was introduced as the Chippewas’ athletics director at a press conference Dec. 8, 2005, and took over the reins on Jan. 16, 2006. He replaced Herb Deromedi who retired after 11 years as athletics director and 38-plus years of total service to the university.
The East Lansing, Mich., native spent 18 years at the University of Oregon, including serving as senior associate athletics director/chief of staff. There he assisted the athletics director with the daily operation of the Ducks’ $40 million budget and 17 sports. His primary role was revenue generation through external operations. He also was the direct administrative supervisor for football, men’s basketball, women’s soccer and softball.
Heeke received a bachelor’s degree from Albion College in 1985 and a master’s degree from Ohio State University in 1987. At Albion, he was a co-captain of the baseball team and a member of the club hockey team. He was a three- sport athlete at East Lansing High School.
Heeke received the Distinguished Alumni Award from the East Lansing Educational Foundation in 2007. He and his wife, Liz, have three boys, Ryan, Max and Zach. Privacy Policy | Site Map | Contact Us | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15373 | Bush mixes diplomacy, sports in BeijingStory Highlights President Bush visited Beijing for Olympic opening ceremonies, to cheer on athletes Bush pressed for cease-fire in Georgia during meeting with Russian PM The president met with Chinese president, pressed for more religious freedom Next Article in Politics » Read VIDEO From Elaine Quijano CNN White House Correspondent BEIJING, China (CNN) -- While playing the role of fan-in-chief, President Bush mixed diplomacy and sports as he wrapped up his trip to Asia on Monday. President Bush, Laura Bush and their daughter Barbara watch Olympic swimming races Sunday. While visiting Beijing, China, for the start of the Olympic Games, much of the president's attention was focused in the intensifying conflict between Russia and Georgia. Bush pressed Vladimir Putin, the Russian prime minister, to accept a cease-fire when the two leaders were in Beijing, saying, "this violence is unacceptable." "I was very firm with Vladimir Putin -- he and I have got a good relationship -- just like I was firm with the Russian president," Dmitry Medvedev, Bush told NBC on Sunday. "I expressed my grave concern about the disproportionate response of Russia and that we strongly condemn, you know, bombing outside of South Ossetia," Bush said, referring to the region in Georgia that has seen some of the heaviest fighting. "It was just interesting to me that here we are, trying to promote peace and harmony, and we're witnessing a conflict take place." Watch Bush condemn the bombing in Georgia » But the president also had time to show his support for America's Olympic athletes over the weekend. He attend the U.S.-China basketball game, congratulated swimmer Michael Phelps for winning his first Olympic gold medal and hit the beach volleyball court. Don't Miss Bush, Cheney signal support for Georgia
U.S.: Russia trying to topple Georgian government
Bush talks of religious freedom while in Beijing
But even in these informal settings, the president made time for business. At the men's basketball game, he chatted with China's foreign minister; and during a break in the action, he consulted with former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. Human rights advocates criticized Bush for going to China during the Olympics, saying the presidential visit rewarded a country that is often criticized for having a poor human rights record. But Bush's Olympic diplomacy sent a clear message: While relations are complex, the United States must remain engaged with China, a rising global power. "In the long run, America better remain engaged with China and understand that we can have a cooperative and constructive, yet candid, relationship," Bush told NBC. "It's really important for future presidents to understand the relationship between China and the region, and it's important to make sure that America is engaged with China, even though we may have some disagreements." Watch Bush push for close ties with China » While saying, "I don't need the Olympics to advance America's agenda," the president said he pressed Hu Jintao on a number of issues during his formal meeting with the Chinese president, including human rights and the nuclear programs of North Korea and Iran. He also prodded Hu on religious freedom. "As you know, I feel very strongly about religion, and I am so appreciative of the chance to go to church here in your society," Bush said.
All About George W. Bush • China • Republic of Georgia • Summer Olympics | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15374 | FREE SORT OF PASS
Playing on a sponsor's exemption can be heavenly or hellish—and sometimes both—as the five chosen ones at the FBR Open showed
BUFF, BLOND Ricky Barnes was a hit at last week's FBR Open outside Phoenix. He clung to the leader board for four rounds, bashed drives of up to 350 yards and left women swooning in his wake. (" Ricky Barnes has plenty of admirers," clucked The Arizona Republic. "Some of them even like his game.") When a buxom young thing stopped him along the ropes last Friday and asked him to sign her form-fitting, pearl-white, Kenneth Cole shirt, Barnes hesitated. "Really?" he asked. "That's a pretty nice shirt." � "Who cares?" she squealed. "It's you!" � Credit tournament director Greg Hoyt for knowing what plays in Phoenix. Barnes, a pro for only six months, made the FBR field by way of a sponsor's exemption—a spot awarded to an otherwise nonexempt player at the discretion of the tournament director. "We tend to go with the young-gun type," says Hoyt, which pretty much describes Barnes, an amiable hunk who won the
2002 U.S. Amateur and made the cut in last year's Masters and U.S. Open.
That's the sunny side of sponsor's exemptions, which some players refer to derisively as "free lunch." To see the other side you only need to hang out with 42-year-old Jim Carter as he sorts the morning mail at his Scottsdale home. "You see the logo on the envelope and your heart doesn't know whether to jump or sink," he says. "It's like what happens when kids apply to college."
Carter, a 17-year Tour veteran, hasn't worried about logoed envelopes since he was a teenager receiving his acceptance letter from Arizona State. Last year, however, he finished 172nd on the money list and lost his Tour card. To crack a field now, he has to swallow his pride and approach tournament directors with hat in hand. "Nobody wants to be in this position," Carter said last week, savoring his first sponsor's invite, "but I guess it's my turn."
Some sponsor's exemptions get more attention than others. Recent recipients are LPGA superstar Annika Sorenstam and 14-year-old phenom Michelle Wie, but over the years tournament directors have rolled out the red carpet for high-profile amateurs such as NFL quarterback Mark Rypien, baseball Hall of Famer Johnny Bench and NBA enforcer Bill Laimbeer. At the very minimum a celebrity entrant draws media coverage and gives a slight boost to ticket sales. Sorenstam and Wie provided an even bigger payoff—huge television ratings.
None of the five sponsor's exemptions at the FBR Open created that kind of buzz, but Hoyt got full value out of Barnes, who drew serious face time on ABC's weekend telecasts. Hoyt was on solid ground as well when he invited the young English star Paul Casey, a three-time winner on the European tour who is ranked 27th in the world.
Both players, it should be noted, had followings among the college crowd that floods the spectator mounds at the TPC of Scottsdale. ( Barnes was a two-time All-America at Arizona. Casey starred at Arizona State in nearby Tempe.) Local interest was also a factor in Hoyt's other three selections. Per-Ulrik Johansson, the Swedish star and two-time Ryder Cupper, played with Phil Mickelson on Arizona State's 1990 NCAA championship team. Ted Purdy, a Phoenix native and two-time All-America at Arizona, is still celebrated in cactus country for winning the 1996 Ping Arizona Intercollegiate by six strokes over a Stanford kid named Eldrick Woods. As for Carter, he won the 1983 NCAA as an Arizona State walk-on, took the Arizona Amateur and the Arizona Open twice each, and four years ago bagged his only Tour victory in—where else?—Tucson. "Jim's not one of the young guys," Hoyt explained, "but for 18 years he played every one of our Monday pro-ams. If I need a player for
a radio interview, he's there. I wanted him in the field."
A player's social skills, you see, are almost as important as his playing ability in garnering an exemption. It is considered good form to swing by the sponsor's hospitality tent to shake corporate hands and pose for pictures. The pro is also expected to play in one or even two pro-ams. "You do anything you can to help the tournament director because he's helping you," says Barnes, who took time out on the Tuesday of FBR week to partner with a Special Olympics kid in a charity putting contest.
To do less is to jeopardize one's standing with other tournament directors, whose eyes narrow to slits when they read about players who take a sponsor's exemption and then refuse to schmooze, or skip the pro-am, or complain about the late starting times assigned to invitees, or abandon the courtesy car in the airport parking lot, or—worst sin of all—shoot a bad round and angrily withdraw from the tournament. "The most common abuse is to be arrogant," says retired pro Frank Beard, whose son Michael, a Nationwide tour rookie, got a sponsor's exemption at last month's Bob Hope Chrysler Classic. "Their thinking is, I deserve this because I'm good. So I'm not going to the parties. I'm not doing a clinic."
Few players sink to that level of boorishness because they recognize the sponsor's exemption for what it is—a free ticket to a $5 million lottery in which more than half the entrants win cash. A gifted but unpolished golfer like Barnes, who failed last fall in the second stage of Q school, can play as many as seven events a year on a sponsor's exemption. If he gets hot, he can earn enough money to play on Tour the next year. That's the route Woods took in 1996, when he won the Las Vegas Invitational. (Woods, David Gossett, winner of the 2001 John Deere Classic, and Adam Scott, who took the 2003 Deutsche Bank Championship, are the only players to win on a sponsor's exemption since 1991, when Mickelson won the Northern Telecom Open as an amateur.)
The exemptions are even more precious if you're a Tour journeyman with school-age kids and a mortgage to pay. That's why Carter spent a week in December writing letters to more than 35 tournament directors. "I used to handwrite all my thank-you letters to pro-am partners, but this was the first time since college that I actually had to type something," says Carter, who parked his laptop on the dining-room table every morning and wrote in his pajamas and slippers. "I wrote something personal to each tournament director. I didn't simply write a form letter and send it to everybody." Carter wrote again after practicing in the morning, and he wrote yet again after dinner, trying to ignore the background clamor of his three preteen sons. "Toward the end my back would be aching and my hands, too. I now understand how people get carpal tunnel syndrome."
Cool Hand Lucas Unruffled by rain delays, a soggy course, weird tee times and a half-dozen late challenges from... - June 29, 2009
Upping The Ante More Tour cards to Nationwide pros - November 17, 2008
Ricky Barnes MY BAG - May 28, 2012
Greg Hoyt
Jim Carter | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15407 | Home > News > Sachin Tendulkar says he’s yet to come to terms with retirement
By Press Trust of India
December 16, 2013, 8:38 pm Tweet
Tags:India, Rajinikanth, Sachin Tendulkar, Sachin Tendulkar 200 Tests, Sachin Tendulkar 200th Test, Sachin Tendulkar retirement
Sachin Tendulkar has maintained that he will not remain far away from cricket © IANS
New Delhi: Dec 16, 2013 Sachin Tendulkar might have retired from all forms of cricket last month but the Indian batting legend says the feeling is yet to sink in that he would not playing the sport anymore.
“It still has not hit me yet that I am not going to play cricket anymore for India. But I manage to play with my son. It has been fun,” Tendulkar told NDTV.
After nearly a quarter of a century of cricket, Tendulkar bade an emotional adieu to international cricket after playing his 200th Test against West Indies in Mumbai last month.
“It has been hectic. There has been things happening around. Since last month, I have spent a fair amount of time with my family, which I was looking forward to it,” he said.
“I enjoy watching cricket and so is my son and I know cricket cannot be far away from me,” he said.
Tendulkar, who was awarded along with star actor Rajinikanth by NDTV for being among the top 25 living legends, said: “It has been a fantastic experience meeting him [Rajinikanth]. What a man. There are many players who come to the Indian team from southern India. So there are unbelievable fans of Rajini sir and so am I.
“It was a pity that I was not able to meet him earlier because I didn’t have access to him. It was kind of him to meet me this morning. I am absolutely floored by his humility,” the 40-year-old batting icon said.
“I was really happy to know that he watches cricket, we discussed about various matches like India-Pakistan matches,” he added.
First Published on December 16, 2013, 8:21 pm
Last updated on December 16, 2013, 8:38 pm | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15443 | The Grand Challenge
Chuck Murray, Senior Technical Editor11/7/2005 Post a comment
One of the biggest technology stories of the past 20 years zipped right past us on October 8th with little more than a yawn from world of television news. The story�driverless vehicles racing across the rugged terrain of the Mojave Desert for a $2 million purse�could have provided the kind of visuals that TV news crews crave. But the race was run on a Saturday, pitting it head to head with the weekend college football lineup, and the seemingly arcane story of robotic vehicles in the desert received far less news exposure than it deserved. Still, there's plenty of race coverage remaining on the Web. And that's important, because the results of this race could forever change the way we look at land vehicles. Five vehicles finished the 132-mile course, rolling over sand dunes and rivers, traversing mountain roads and avoiding obstacles with nary an iota of human intervention. It's entirely possible that this race could be viewed as a technology landmark a century from now.
For those who want to learn more about the vehicles�particularly their sensing, computing, and by-wire capabilities�there's ample information on the Web. To learn about the race's qualifying teams, its vehicles, and its technology, go to http://rbi.ims.ca/4400-531. The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) has provided a brief synopsis of each team here. Similarly, DARPA has posted race results for each team at http://rbi.ims.ca/4400-532. Some of the most intriguing information is available in the form of video clips at various sites. DARPA offers race video at www.grandchallenge.org. Race clips of Stanford University's victorious vehicle, known as "Stanley," show it navigating gravel roads and hills on the desert course, and can be obtained by clicking on "downloads."
Some of the most telling video clips, however, are the pre-race clips posted at Stanford University's site. Those clips show Stanley at the Grand Challenge's National Qualifying Event days before the race, speeding around plastic cones and parked cars. For video of Stanley on each of seven National Qualifying Event days, go to Stanford's site: www.stanfordracing.com.
Those who want deeper technical detail can find that, too at http://rbi.ims.ca/4400-533. White papers written by each team describe their sensing and computing technologies, as well as the size and geometry of their vehicles. Finally, you can find race post-mortems at some of the individual team sites. Carnegie Mellon, which designed and built the second and third place finishers, offers "race logs" on its site. The logs explain some of the technical difficulties the vehicles experienced, even to the point of showing graphs explaining how and why they slowed down at certain points. For Carnegie Mellon's post-mortems, go to http://rbi.ims.ca/4400-534.
To be sure, there's a mountain of information available on the Web from other race teams, as well. We've just scratched the surface here.
So if you missed the spotty national news coverage of a month ago, don't worry. Thanks to determined efforts by DARPA and by the teams themselves, an important day in history has been intelligently chronicled on the Web. Reach Senior Technical Editor Chuck Murray at [email protected]. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15453 | The Daily Hunter
Thoughts and opinions from Dispatch sports columnist Bob Hunter
Rumblings xtra: Items that didn't make print edition
By: Bob Hunter
The Columbus Dispatch - February 07, 2014 09:01 AM
Auburn is considering going the way of other schools – including Ohio State – in claiming national championships in football in years that are not recognized by most news organizations.
Just as OSU counts 1961 (Football Writers Association) and 1970 (National Football Foundation) among its titles, Auburn athletic director Jay Jacobs told 247.com that his school should do likewise.
The school currently flies flags at Jordan-Hare Stadium to commemorate Auburn’s national titles in 1957 and 2010. The school might add flags for other years, such as 1983, 1993 and 2004.
“If other schools are using these same polls to declare a national championship, we should at least consider it,” Jacobs said. “I don’t think there’s a better time for the Auburn family to consider it than right here at the end of the BCS era. As we transition into another playoff format for the national champion, I just think we need to look hard at it.”
For Cavs fans fretting about the possible of LeBron James returning to Cleveland when the window of opportunity opens for him after this season – for or against -- ESPN.com quoted a “James’ associate” this week as saying he isn’t thinking about that stuff at all.
"LeBron is not thinking about free agency right now, he's totally focused on the season," the James’ associate said. "In the summer he knows he can get to any team he wants to."
Michigan coach Brady Hoke made it clear this week that there will be an open competition next season for the starting quarterback job, even though Devin Gardner is a senior and started until he suffered a broken bone in his foot in the third quarter of the 42-41 loss to Ohio State. Shane Morris started the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl in Gardner’s absence and performed well: he hit 24 of 38 passes for 196 yards and an interception and also ran 4 times for 43 yards.
But Hoke is thinking in terms of the big picture, not a small one.
"I think (the starting quarterback for next season is) an unknown," Hoke told mlive.com. "We were 7-6 (last season). And we've got a lot of young guys (on the team). We've got a lot of competition.” In his final appearance of the season against OSU, Gardner went 32 of 45 for 451 yards and 4 touchdown. Again, Hoke prefers to look at all of the games, not one or two.
"I think this, we were 7-6 as a football team," Hoke said. "I think that we have a lot of young guys still on this team who are making progress. Russell Bellomy, who is back in the mix, Wilton Speight came in here in January and his learning curve will be pretty good. . . I thought (Morris) did a really good job of being composed (in the bowl game). He did a great job with his preparation and I thought he represented himself well in that game."
In other words, after 7-6 he’s going to take a hard look at all of them.
With spring training bearing down on him, former Reds starter Bronson Arroyo is still a free agent. The Boston Globe reported that the Arizona Diamondbacks are the latest team to take a look at him, but a source says the holdup – with everybody – is a vesting option and/or a three-year contract.
The Dodgers are reportedly interested in signing him, but not for three years. If he gives in and is willing to consider a straight two-year deal, he is likely to have several serious suitors. A USA Today report listed the Diamondbacks as "slight favorites" ahead of the Dodgers and Orioles to land him.
College Football Talk’s Chris Huston named UCLA, Michigan and Virginia Tech as the biggest losers on football national signing day. Here’s what he wrote about Michigan:
“The Wolverines felt the effects of a disappointing 7-6 season and their class slumped to 31st in the national rankings. Michigan needs some instant help this fall and, outside of top corner Jabril Peppers, it fell short.” | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15456 | Janet A. Hines, Senior Reporter
NBA Catalog Continues Focus on High-Ticket Items
How much will catalog customers pay for used clothes? The National Basketball Association thinks it depends on who wore them previously. The league's spring/summer catalog, which mailed last month, features apparel worn by players in the 2001 NBA.com Slam Dunk Contest for $125,000. The 56 items -- a mixture of jerseys, shorts, warm-up jackets and pants -- are part of an ongoing display of high-ticket items that the cataloger features in its books. The fall/winter catalog offered the All-Star game floor for $250,000. The Upper Deck, a trading card company, purchased the floor. "One of our goals is to feature an item or items that are unique, or one of a kind in the catalog that would separate it from being just a bunch of merchandise on pages," said Sal LaRocca, senior vice president at the NBA's global merchandising group. "Generally we know there's an interest in that type of merchandise, and that's why we offer it." The spring/summer catalog mailed to 750,000 consumers, including buyers from previous catalogs, shoppers at the NBA's Web site, season ticket holders and fans who had purchased game tickets online. The 24-page catalog featured 140 items and differs slightly from previous books, LaRocca said. The most notable addition is a two-page spread of sale items. The pages' edges have an orange banner with "spring sale" written on them to make the section more noticeable. "We felt it was important to the customers and fans that things featured in the fall catalog are now on sale in this catalog," LaRocca said. "It's a nice element and one we feel will give customers an incentive to purchase items they might have been unable to get in the previous catalog." The catalog also expanded its assortment of Women's National Basketball Association merchandise from two to three pages in response to growing product demand. This is the third catalog to feature WNBA items. The catalog's Hardwood Classics section, which is a line of classic merchandise from current and former teams, also has been expanded to include additional merchandise. Each page has a mixture of two to five items as well as photographs of popular current and former basketball players. "The catalog is an ongoing creative process from the front cover to the inside pages," LaRocca said. "Most people who are fans of the NBA recognize players, and we include players throughout the catalog." | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15527 | Minor League Keeper Thoughts: Colorado Rockies
By Craig Goldstein
@cdgoldstein
Craig Goldstein takes a look at a few of the more interesting fantasy prospects from the Colorado Rockies organization.
Over the coming weeks, Jason and I will be taking a look at some of the more relevant prospects in each of the 30 MLB organizations. We won't be looking at each prospect in every organization, but rather to provide brief profiles of players that are either expected to make an impact as soon as next season, or are worth watching in dynasty and keeper formats. In general, they will be sorted in the order of when they are anticipated to be in the Majors, even though it is no guarantee that they will get there.
Our goal is to speak more to each prospect's fantasy value, so while we do look at a player's defense, it is really only in the context of where they will end up when they get to the Majors, and how that may affect their long term outlook. We will be going roughly in alphabetical order, and planning to have the series completed by the end of the year.
NL West: ArizonaNL Central: Chicago, CincinnatiNL East: AtlantaAL East: Baltimore, BostonAL Central: Chicago
System Overview
The Rockies system entered 2012 in rough shape, and didn't get appreciably better over the course of the season. They had several top prospects graduate, and while they did draft high ceiling talent David Dahl, the losses of the likes of Drew Pomeranz, Wilin Rosario, and Josh Rutledge leave this system lacking impact talent, talent at the upper levels or much depth. They do have some bright spots in the lower minors in Dahl and potential 5-tool player Trevor Story, but both are a ways from helping. This isn't the worst system in the minors, but it is likely to be relegated to the bottom third of the league.
Graduates in 2012
Drew Pomeranz (SP), Wilin Rosario (C), Josh Rutledge (MI), Rex Brothers (RP), Charlie Blackmon (OF), Jordan Pacheco, Christian Friedrich (SP), Adam Ottavino (RP), DJ LeMahieu, Andrew Brown (OF), Edgmer Escalona (RP)
AAA or Higher in 2012
These are prospects who either reached the Majors, or the Rockies' Pacific Coast League affiliate in Colorado Springs. These players are likely to see time at some point during the 2013 season, although it may not be until the end.
Edwar Cabrera (BBRef Statistics)
Cabrera dethroned Matt Moore in 2011 as the minor league strikeout king after Moore had won the two previous years. Given his hefty strikeout totals, one might think more of Cabrera than they should. His best pitch is a plus to plus-plus change up that he's used to tear through the lower minors. While he sustained success at Double-A in 2012, he was hit around in his brief major league cameo. This is to be expected to some extent with pitchers who pitch off their change up. Unless Cabrera develops a consistent above-average breaking ball, he's going to struggle to sustain any success in the major leagues. He will likely be the first starter turned to in case of injury in Colorado, but between his home ballpark and lack of a viable third offering, he can be safely ignored.
AA or Higher in 2012
These are prospects who reached AA during the 2012 season, playing for the Rockies' Texas League affiliate in Tulsa. These players could see time in Colorado in 2013, but generally will be more likely to appear in 2014.
Nolan Arenado (BBRef Statistics, Profile)
Arenado might have been one of the hottest names entering 2012, coming off a .298/.349/.487 slash line as a 20 year old in Hi-A, with 20 home runs hinting at some developing power. There was even talk of Arenado breaking camp with the Rockies, and a mild expectation that he'd see time in the second half of the season at worst. However, there were some concerns that his power output was environmentally driven, as he benefited from playing in the high octane California League. Unfortunately, those concerns bore themselves out as Arenado saw his home runs decrease from 20 to 12, and his slugging from a robust .487 to a more moderate .428. Not that we should be denigrating a 21-year old for posting a .285/.337/.428 slash line in Double-A, but 2012 seemed to be a bit of a let down for Arenado. Additionally, Arenado had to confront issues with his makeup this season, as there were several reports that the Rockies had taken issue with his maturity level. It's hard to say how that could affect him going forward, as it is difficult to believe that the Rockies would hand a starting gig to someone who has questionable maturity, but if he proves himself he could be up in a hurry. I'd expect to see Arenado in Colorado at some point in 2013 either due to injury or performance, but it will be 2014 before he establishes himself in any way shape or form. Arenado is a good contact hitter who could flourish in the thin air of Coors field, although he doesn't have the power that would be standard in a third base prospect. He'll still have plenty of value as a high average, solid power third baseman.
High-A in 2012
These are prospects who reached Hi-A during the 2012 season, playing for the Rockies' California League affiliate in Modesto. These players are likely at least 3 seasons away from reaching the Majors.
Tyler Matzek (BBRef Statistics)
You may see Matzek's 4.62 ERA at Hi-A Modesto and wonder what exactly went wrong. Well, it turns out, so many things had to go right just for Matzek to get to this point. He more than halved his ERA from his last go round in Hi-A, and also halved his BB/9 from an unsightly 12.5/ to a still unpalatable 6, all while maintaining a K/9 of just under 10. Matzek achieved this by going back to his high school coach in an effort to rediscover the mechanics that got him drafted 11th overall. I still have some hope for Matzek, it's going to be a tough road to hoe, as he continues to struggle with control and command to an overwhelming degree. While adjustments were made, there are more needed for him to continue to progress. As a lefty who throws in the low-to-mid 90s there will always be some hope for him, but entering 2013 as a 22-year old, Matzek will have to show some improvement this season else people start jumping ship.
Kyle Parker (BBRef Statistics)
A late first round draft pick in 2010, Parker made an interesting deal with Colorado. He signed with the team for less money, contingent on them allowing him to finish his senior season as the quarterback of the Clemson Tigers. That being the case, Parker did not play at all in 2010, and so only has 2 full seasons under his best. He had a relatively quiet start to his 2012 season but caught fire in the second half, finishing with 23 home runs to go along with his .308/.415/.562 slash line. Parker has above-average power generated by good bat speed, but despite his good OBPs is an aggressive hitter who swing and misses too often. To his credit, after 133 strikeouts in his first season, Parker cut his strikeouts by 45 in 2012 (in 55 fewer at-bats) while also moving up a level. Part of Parker's impressive campaign is surely due to the hitter friendly environs of the Cal League, but he's got plenty of talent to back it up as well. Speed is not a part of his game, as he's stolen three of five bases over 835 minor league at-bats. 23-years old to begin 2013, the Rockies won't hold Parker back, so if he hits, he could move quickly.
Low-A in 2012
These are prospects who reached Low-A during the 2012 season, playing for the Rockies' South Atlantic League affiliate in Asheville. These players are likely at least 3 seasons away from reaching the Majors.
Trevor Story (BBRef Statistics)
This is where the Rockies have a little glimmer of hope. Story had a red hot start to the season and while he did cool off, the numbers are still enticing to prospect lovers as he recorded a .277/367/.505 slash line as a 19-year old in Lo-A. Story has the potential for at least an average grade on all five tools. With 18 home runs as part of a 67 extra base hit season, Story demonstrated his power stroke. While .277 isn't going to win batting titles, it's more than good enough for a shortstop with the type of power that Story has. While he is an aggressive hitter, Story also maintains a mature approach as evidenced by his 10.9% BB%. This could be the year to grab him for value as he will advance to the Hi-A California League where his power numbers could go through the roof. Defensively, he has good instincts which allow his other tools to play up, though a move to third down the line is a possibility. That would put more pressure on the stick, and would take him from a potentially special prospect to an above-average one. Story added 15 stolen bases with only 3 caught stealing, so speed remains part of his game as well. I wouldn't expect him to move quickly in this system, despite it's dearth of premium prospects. While the Rockies aren't afraid to challenge their prospects, they're also not afraid to let them go level by level, as evidenced by Nolan Arenado's full year stint at Double-A in 2012.
Will Swanner (BBRef Statistics)
Can I interest you in a .302/.385/.529 slash line from a 20-year old semi-catcher at Lo-A? If that intrigues you, let me tell you a little more about Will Swanner. Drafted in the 15th round in 2010, Swanner had a rough 2011 in the rookie level Pioneer League causing him to slip a bit on the organizational depth chart. He bounced back strong in 2012 however, posting the aforementioned slash line along with 16 homers and 41 extra base hits in 325 at-bats. Swanner shows a good eye at the plate with at 10% BB% but does have some swing and miss in his bat, ending the 2012 season with a K% of 27.2%, the lowest of his career. Behind the plate Swanner has some glaring deficiencies. His arm action is long, though he does have good arm strength. He's struggled with blocking balls in the dirt in the past as well. There remains a solid possibility that Swanner will end up at first base, putting a massive amount of pressure on the bat. He remains an above-average prospect as a catcher and until they move him off of it, that's how we have to view him.
Short Season in 2012
These are prospects who reached Short Season Ball during the 2012 season, playing for either of the Rockies' short season affiliates in the Northwest and Pioneer Leagues. These players are likely at least 3 full seasons away from reaching the Majors.
David Dahl (BBRef Statistics)
The 9th overall pick in the 2012 draft, Dahl outperformed any expectations that were had of him by laying waste to the Pioneer League to the tune of a .379/.423/.625 slash line with 9 home runs, 10 triples and 41 extra base hits in 280 at-bats, to go along with 12 stolen bases. Talk about an assault. Dahl takes an advanced approach to the plate, spraying the ball to all fields and he projects to have a plus hit tool to go along with power that could range from average to above. In the field, Dahl saw time at every outfield position while in the Pioneer league, but profiles as a centerfielder as he sports solid arm strength and good speed. He has enough speed to steal double digit bags, but how many will depend on if he is able to improve his reads and jumps. Dahl is worthy of a high pick in any minor league drafts in fantasy.
Others of Note
Tim Wheeler (BBRef Statistics)
Wheeler had an explosive 2011 season in which he hit 33 home runs, with 67 total extra base hits. He struggles to gain traction on the national prospect tween because scouting reports peg him as more of a tweener, who doesn't profile defensively in center or offensively in a corner outfield spot. Consensus was that while Wheeler had some pop, the 33 home run season was going to be an outlier, and perhaps he benefited from his home environment. Wheeler didn't get to play a full season in 2012, logging 92 games where he saw his power all but evaporate with only 2 home runs and 33 extra base hits, despite playing at the elevated Colorado Springs ballpark. He'll be 25 next season, and I think he'll reach the majors, though I wouldn't anticipate much production. He'll join the mix of Matt McBride and Andrew Brown as players who see time next to Carlos Gonzalez and Dexter Fowler.
Chad Bettis (BBref Statistics)
Bettis ranked third on the Rockies top ten list entering 2012, with many still unsure if he would remain a starter or would move back to the pen by the time he reached the majors. Bettis used 2011 as a full fledged audition to remain a starter has he struck out 9.8 per nine innings and walked only 2.4 per nine in 169.2 innings pitched. Unfortunately, Bettis suffered a shoulder injury that kept him out for all of 2012. This puts the Rockies brass to a decision. He could be eased back and still challenged by moving him to the bullpen (a role he fulfilled in college) or they could move slowly and reintroduce him in a more valuable role to the organization as a starter. If he remains a starter, he has middle of the rotation upside, and if he relieves he should operate towards the back of a bullpen. His value to fantasy players hinges greatly on the Rockies decision. He's a wait and see guy for now, but if he starts, he might be a value play late in drafts.
Statistics from Baseball Reference and FangraphsScouting info drawn from BaseballAmerica, BaseballProspectus and Keith Law/ESPN
You can follow me on Twitter @cdgoldstein
Edgmer Escalona
Matt McBride
Tim Wheeler
Edwar Cabrera
Josh Rutledge
Charlie Blackmon
Jordan Pacheco
Wilin Rosario
Nolan Arenado | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15587 | David Ospina: Football's next goalkeeping legend
Ospina has been inspiring for Colombia. (©GettyImages).
by Lewis Henshall
David Ospina may be an unknown name to many football fans but he is a goal keeper that we should keep our eye on. He currently plays for Nice in France and is the Colombian number one keeper who produced some outstanding performances in goal for his club and county last season. Therefore he is a player that could become a keeper for one of the top teams in Europe in the next few years.
He is still only 24-years-old but has been number one choice for Nice for the last few seasons and during this time has grown as a professional. By gaining first team football he has learnt the art of goalkeeping and is now slowly but could surely turn into potentially one of best goal keepers in the next decade. Once the great keepers such as Casillas and Buffon have retired, there will be a new wave of outstanding goalkeepers aiming to make their mark on Europe and Ospina will be one of the front runners in this next generation.
Last season his performances managed to help Nice finish in a very respectable position of fourth, behind big spending PSG, Marseille and Lyon. Meaning they finished ahead of the likes of previous Ligue 1 winners Montpellier and Lille, which is a great achievement of a club like Nice who don’t possess the same quality of players or assets available as some of the clubs they are competing against. This position has offered them the chance to compete in the Europa League next season although they still need to try and qualify through the preliminary round.
If they are able to gain qualification this would offer a massive opportunity to Ospina to show off his talent to other European clubs. By playing in a European competition it will allow him to test himself against some of the best players in the world and make a reputation for himself.
His reputation has been given a boost thanks to the way his country has been performing in their World Cup qualification campaign. They currently sit in second position, three points behind Argentina with a game in hand. If they win that game by a margin of three goals, they will be top of the group with three games to go. In their campaign Colombia have only conceded seven goals in 12 games, which is the group’s best defensive record. This is largely down to the goalkeeping excellence of Ospina which will not have gone unnoticed by clubs all across Europe.
In terms of what type of player he is, he isn’t the tallest of goalkeepers in the world at 6ft but what he lacks in height he makes up for in reflexes. His ability to get down low and quick into the corners of the goal and either save or push the ball to safety is one of his greatest assets. He is able to come and collect a ball from crosses or set piece situations, In addition to this he is quite a commanding goalkeeper when it comes to set piece situations, so that they don’t concede a soft goal from a corner or free kick. In addition to this he has technical ability, which might have something to do from being from South America and allows him to distribute the ball from situations such as goal kicks quite effectively.
Overall he is an effective goalkeeper with the potential ability to become a leading goalkeeper in the next few seasons. For now he should remain at Nice and try and show off what an excellent goal keeper he is in the coming season's European competitions and then the World Cup in Brazil. If he performs well in these competitions, as well as in the league for Nice, then there is no reason why a move to a top European club won’t be on the cards in the near future. Write for GiveMeSport! Sign-up to the GMS Writing Academy here: http://bit.ly/12evFlH
#World Cup
#Ligue 1 | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15605 | Tiger Woods wins Chevron World Challenge for first title since 2009 - GOLF.com
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By Cameron Morfit, Senior Writer, GOLF Magazine Follow Cameron on Twitter.Published: Sunday, December 04, 2011 | 06:37:56 PM Tweet
Allan Henry/US PRESSWIRETiger Woods birdied the final two holes to win by one.
For the second straight year, Tiger Woods battled a gritty competitor who simply wouldn’t quit at the Chevron World Challenge at Sherwood Country Club. This time, Woods delivered the clutch putts at the end, making a 10-foot, downhill birdie putt to finally put away Zach Johnson.
Woods gave a violent fist pump as his second-straight birdie disappeared into the cup, perhaps reigniting one of the most storied careers in golf. Johnson and his caddie, Damon Green, looked at each other and smiled as the crowd erupted. It was a familiar sight, albeit one we hadn’t seen in more than two years.
“It feels good,” said Woods. “I’ve been in contention twice this year, which is not very often. I had the lead at the Masters on the back nine there, and obviously had a chance there at the Aussie Open.”
Woods was attempting to break the longest winless streak of his career, a 749-day dry spell that spanned 26 starts in which he had been unable to prevail in either an official or unofficial tournament. No one could have guessed on Nov . 15, 2009, when Woods won the JBWere Australian Masters, that it would be this long before he won again. But Woods’s golf game was no match for his personal problems and injuries.
“I felt that in order for me to play the way I know I can play, I had to get fully fit,” Woods said. “I had to get healthy and to where I was strong and explosive again so I could practice. It basically starts with that. I was finally able to practice.”
It wasn’t until two weeks after he missed the cut at the PGA Championship in August that Woods was cleared to practice as much as he wanted. He began playing 36 holes or more in a day at home in Florida, and seemed to have rediscovered his form at the Australian Open (third) and the Presidents Cup (2-3-0 ). It was at the Australian Open that Matt Kuchar played a practice round with Woods and noticed the return of his eye-popping speed through the ball, once an advantage he lorded over the Tour.
“I was impressed with how well he was keeping up with Dustin [Johnson] off the tee,” said Kuchar, who shot 71 on Sunday at the Chevron and tied for fourth place with Hunter Mahan. “He seemed to have refound the length again. I was surprised the last year or two how much distance he seemed to have lost. It’s fun to see him regaining form again.”
On the 10th hole, Woods dropped his approach shot to within three feet and made the short birdie putt, and then hit the green in two on the par-5 11th hole, setting up a two-putt for an easy birdie and a two-stroke lead over Johnson.
But while a two-shot lead with seven holes remaining used to mean an automatic victory for Woods, that’s not the case anymore.
Woods pulled his 6-iron tee shot on the par-3 12th hole and made bogey to cut the lead to one. After setting himself up perfectly off the tee on the par-5 13th hole, Woods mis-hit his approach shot from 250 yards and failed to get up and down from just in front of the green, missing a birdie try from about 10 feet. Johnson drained his putt from about 12 feet to tie and birdied the par-5 16th to take the lead.
Woods responded with a birdie of his own to tie on the par-3 17th.
There have been moments during the last two years when it appeared Woods was back on track. He went nine under par through 15 holes to beat Francesco Molinari at the 2010 Ryder Cup , and lost a playoff to Graeme McDowell at the 2010 Chevron. Woods tied for fourth at the Masters this year after a thrilling Sunday charge.
But for every encouraging development, there was an equally deflating false start. Woods hurt his oft-injured left knee while hitting from a bed of pine needles at the Masters, an injury that would sideline him for most of May, and all of June and July, and setting him back in his effort to rebuild his swing. When he came back at the WGC-Bridgestone Invitational, he tied for 37th place while his former caddie, Steve Williams, gloated after yet another victory, this time with Adam Scott.
Woods missed the cut at the PGA Championship, raising new questions about whether he would ever return to the player he once was. He had a new caddie, Joe LaCava, and a new swing, but he couldn’t seem to find his old groove. He finally began to recover his game with additional practice, firing a course-record 62 at Medalist Golf Club in Hobe Sound, Fla., before doing little more than making the cut at the Frys.com Open in October.
He looked much improved at the Presidents Cup in Australia last month, and in practice at Sherwood, but as coach Sean Foley said early in the week, “I don’t figure out my odds until Sunday at like 7 p.m.”
The former No. 1 player in the world will move from 52nd to 21st in the World Ranking after a day on which the other winners around the world included Rory McIlroy (No. 2) and Lee Westwood (No. 3). Woods looked mostly at ease with his new swing, which he’s been honing under Foley since August 2010, and his victory Sunday suggests big things for 2012.
“Every time he goes through some swing changes,” Johnson said, “it takes a little while. Then he gets into it and it’s, oh, boy, here we go.” | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15606 | The end of the belly putter?
Home > News > July 2012 >The end of the belly putter?
Belly putters are definitely the hot topic in golf this week.Ernie Els became the third major champion using a long putter at the 2012 Open Championship at Royal Lytham on the weekend, after Keegan Bradley at the 2011 PGA Championship and Webb Simpson at the 2012 US Open. The man who came runner-up to Els, Australian Adam Scott, also uses a belly putter and has credited it from turning around his game.The
prevalence of the longer putters that anchor to the body may be under threat. R&A chief executive Peter Dawson has said discussion on the legality of the club with the United States Golf Association began before the Open Championship took place.''We appreciate that there is much speculation about this and that we need to clarify the position as soon as possible,'' Dawson said Monday. ''And I think you're
going to see us saying something about it one way or the other in a few
months, rather than years.''A multitude of golfers from Luke Donald to Rory McIlroy to Tiger Woods have all called for the longer putter to be outlawed.But there's one man who's prepared to speak up for them, two-times U.S. Masters champion Bernhard Langer. “The
long putter has been out for 30-35 years now, so it’s a little surprising that they are trying to get rid of something that’s been around for so long and used by a number of people,” said Langer, who used the broomstick putter to such awesome effect over the last 14 years.“If it was an unfair advantage, why didn’t they ban it immediately or within a year or two when they saw the first few guys? That’s certainly one thing that bothers me. I also find it interesting that if the long putter is so easy to use, why doesn’t everybody use it?” | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15614 | 2014 Blues City Classic
2013 Final Statistics (HTML)
2013 Final Statistics (PDF)
Career History & Records
Natalie Poole Softball Camps
Ellen Roberts Named to Australian National Team
Team will compete in the Softball World Championships in August.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – University of Memphis senior pitcher Ellen Roberts was named to the 2014 Australian Women’s National Softball Team, Softball Australia announced on Thursday.
Roberts is one of 26 players to make the Australian National Team. The team will compete in the ISF XIV Women’s World Championship in Haarlem, Netherlands from Aug. 15-24.
“I am so grateful for the opportunity to represent my country at the highest level. Playing for my country has been one of my lifelong dreams,” Roberts said.
The senior is one of nine representatives from New South Wales, Roberts’ home state. During the 2013 winter break, Roberts competed with the New South Wales Blue Bloods and won a national championship.
“She wants these kinds of challenges,” Memphis head coach Natalie Poole said of Roberts. “If you give the ball to her, she is going to do everything she can. She really wants the ball and she really wants to win.”
Playing on the national team gives Roberts the chance to play with some of her lifelong idols as well as some of her friends she grew up playing with.
“I have looked up to some of the older players who will be on the team as well, and I am blessed to now be able to play alongside them,” Roberts said.
Kaia Parnaby, a pitcher and fellow New South Wales resident and friend of Roberts, also made the national team for the fifth straight year. Parnaby, a graduate from the University of Hawaii in 2013, pitched against Memphis last season in the Bank of Hawaii Invitational on Mar. 3, 2013.
Roberts will be making her first appearance on the senior national team, but has been in the Softball Australia system for several years. Roberts was a member of the Australian U19 Women’s Softball Team in 2010 and 2011.
“I am so thankful for the opportunities I have been given and I am so thankful for all the people who have helped me and supported me along the way,” Roberts said.
Poole believes Roberts’ character and work ethic helped her earn this recognition.
“I am grateful that she is a part of our team and that I get the chance to coach her. What a blessing for her to be recognized at the national level,” Poole said. “It says a lot about who she is.” Novak and Irvin Combine for 4-0 Shutout
@MemphisSoftball Closes Out Home Stand with Mississippi Valley State Tuesday
Memphis Wins in a Walk- Off, 6-5 Against Houston
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15621 | GrandOldTeam
Grand Old Team
Everton Forum
Ian Ross
Discussion in 'Everton Forum' started by D410, Dec 11, 2012.
Reputations:
I kid you not http://www.clickliverpool.com/sport...ing-for-liverpool-fc-communications-role.html
Ex-Everton chief Ian Ross is in the running to become Liverpool's new director of communications.
Club owners Fenway Sports Group are currently searching for a successor to Jen Chang, who vacated his post last month, and Ross is understood to have expressed his interest in the position.
Chang had arrived at Anfield as a replacement for the long-standing Ian Cotton in a bid to stem the tide of negative publicity generated by the Luis Suarez racism row last year.
But he left the club by mutual consent after just six months following allegations he had made threats to a supporter behind a fictional Twitter account he believed was leaking information.
Sean Cummins, who was behind the character 'Duncan Jenkins', claimed the then Reds director, who had no prior experience in football, had accused him of costing the club an additional £300,000 in the transfer of Fabio Borini through his tweets about transfer targets.
Chang was also said to have threatened a series of unsavoury actions towards Cummins during a meeting at a Manchester restaurant in August if he did not cease tweeting from the account.
Ross was head of communications at Everton for over a decade but controversially left the club last November after an email exchange, where he appeared to launch a scathing criticism of chief executive Robert Elstone and the club's overall operations, appeared in the public domain.
During the correspondence, which prompted an internal investigation by the Blues, the 56-year-old allegedly likened Goodison Park to "working in a kindergarten", claimed talk of "paranoia" and "financial meltdown" existed within the club and accused Elstone of being "unfit to lead".
He had initially been expected to assume a new role within the club following the furore but was eventually replaced by Paul Tyrrell, who was previously head of media at Liverpool.
Prior to joining Everton in 2001, Ross had enjoyed a 27-year career as a newspaper journalist, first with the Liverpool Echo before writing for The Times, the Daily Telegraph and The Guardian.
Despite the manner of his departure from the club, his reputation as one of the Premier League's toughest press operators remains intact, making him an ideal candidate for the position.
Liverpool have declined to comment on the selection process.
Read more at http://www.clickliverpool.com/sport...-communications-role.html#7kpCKrXSmpVZUUZL.99Click to expand...
D410,
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15682 | Keep up with the latest Hip Hop news, Industry Headlines and Breaking Stories. News updated Daily! 8 Iconic Hip-Hop Tours
Expectations are high for both Drake's "Would You Like A Tour" and Kanye West's "Yeezus" tour, which kick off this weekend, so we've decided to take a look back at some of the most iconic hip hop...
Jordan 1 Retro High OG "Bred"
Kevin Garnett Fires Back At LeBron For Dissing Him For Leaving Boston
Kobe Bryant Almost Starred In The Movie "He Got Game"
Origins: The Samples From Danny Brown's "OLD"
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8 Iconic Hip-Hop Tours
Expectations are high for both Drake's "Would You Like A Tour" and Kanye West's "Yeezus" tour, which kick off this weekend, so we've decided to take a look back at some of the most iconic hip hop tours in history.
While there are plenty of festivals and performances that will never be forgotten, we're focusing solely on tours, from Yeezy and Jay Z's Watch The Throne stint, to Diddy's No Way Out,...
The Air Jordan 1 Retro High OG "Bred" is one of the most anticipated released of the year, with a scheduled release about 2 months away.The iconic sneaker is dear to those sneakerheads who appreciate the history of the shoe, which is the exact model Jordan wore. With a release date of December 28th, you can expect a Holiday frenzy from now until then. We'll keep you posted with any new...
LeBron James called Kevin Garnett and Paul Pierce out for attacking Ray Allen for leaving the Celtics, and then leaving themselves. Now Garnett has a response for James. After Ray Allen bolted from Boston to join the rival Miami Heat, KG and Pierce were not too please. Now after they moved to the Nets, LeBron thought they were being a bit hypocritical, and both him and Dwyane Wade told the...
One of the greatest basketball players of all-time was nearly the star of one of the greatest basketball movies of all-time, as Kobe Bryant reveals he passed on "He Got Game." Originally, the movie was based on the exploits of Coney Island's Finest, Stephon Marbury, and Spike Lee had asked him to play the lead role of Jesus Shuttlesworth. a few actors tried out for the part as well, but Lee...
OLD is Detroit emcee Danny Brown's third studio project, released on October 8th via Fool's Gold Records. The audience rating on our review of the album stands at 85%, and we feel it's one of the better offerings of 2013, both sonically and lyrically. The production was handled by Paul White, A-Trak, SKYWLKR, Oh No, Corin Roddick, Rustie, JMIKE, Darq E Freaker and BadBadNotGood, a diverse...
Lil Wayne Calls Out Lamar Odom On "442" For Smoking Crack Oct 17, 2013
This off season just keeps getting worse for Lamar Odom, as yet another notable rapper drops his name on a track as Lil Wayne calls out Odom's reported drug use. Lamar's struggles with drug abuse have been well-documented, and although he claims to not be on drugs, there are various sources citing that he has been indulging in crack. Plus, at the end of August, LO and his wife, Khloe...
LeBron & Wade Blast Garnett And Pierce For Leaving Celtics Oct 17, 2013
When Ray Allen left the Boston Celtics in 2012 to join the Miami Heat, certain members of the C's spoke out against him fleeing the team. Now that Kevin Garnett, Paul Pierce, and Doc Rivers have left Boston themselves, LeBron James and Dwyane Wade think they were hypocritical in calling out Ray. LeBron James and the Miami Heat became the most hated team in the NBA, after LeBron defected to...
Jordan Says Playing Grizzlies Owner 1-on-1 Is "Comical"
Grizzlies owner Robert J. Pera challenged Michael Jordan to a game of one-on-one for a million dollars to charity, but Jordan calls is "comical." 35 year old billionaire, Robert Pera is the youngest owner in the league, and actually possesses a pretty decent jumpshot and game. He's been putting in work with the Grizzlies training staff and issued a challenge to Grizzly, Tony Allen to play ones...
Lakers Nick Young Slides Down Great Wall Of China & Crashes (Video)
The Lakers travelled to China and Nick Young wiped out on a toboggan at the Great Wall of China. Before matching up with the Golden State Warriors in Beijing, the Lakers went to the Great Wall and a few went down a huge slide on toboggans. Well, Nick Young decided to film himself while flying down the slide and was yelling about sliding down the Great Wall...until he crashed. Young's new...
Review: Game's "OKE: Operation Kill Everything"
45 Likes4 Dislikes
Game has held an interesting position in the rap game since his monstrous debut in 2005, The Documentary. He’s acknowledged as one of the premier acts from the West Coast, but he’s been hit-or-miss with his projects since that first album. He’s become known for his chameleon-like style and over-reliance on guest features - issues that have made it difficult to grasp Game’s personal style...
Jordan Summer '14 Releases
Every year Jordan Brand takes a handful of Retro models and releases classic OG and brand new colorways of them that end up getting scooped up off of shelves in an instant. 2014 is shaping up to be another huge year for the Brand and today we get a glimpse of what is to come next calendar year. A leaked shot of a catalogue hit the web today and has been stirring up a lot of interest. If the...
Kris Humphries Sold Kim Kardashian's $2M Wedding Ring For $750K
Kris Humphries has officially auctioned off the $2 million wedding ring he gave Kim Kardashian fornearly $750,000. In September it was announced that Humphries was unloading the ring in an auction with Christie's. Originally he had paid $2 million for the ring, but pre-auction speculation was that he would net a quarter of the price at $300,000 to $500,000, but Hump looks to have made out...
Win Tickets To "The Smokers Club Tour" And See Joey Bada$$ and Ab Soul!
1) Follow HotNewHipHop on Facebook + Twitter Follow @hotnewhiphop
// 2) Enter the comment below: "HotNewHipHop, send me to Smokers Club in CITY NAME!"
3) We will announce winners for each city 1-3 days before each show date. Winners will be contacted via their Facebook accounts and as a reply to their comment, so make sure to check this article when nearing...
Who Had The Best BET Cypher?
The BET Hip-Hop Awards always result in a lot of commentary the next day, from critics to fans, everyone has their thoughts on the show and in particular, on the BET cyphers.
This year we saw the TDE labelmates Kendrick Lamar, ScHoolboy Q, Ab-Soul, Jay Rock and Isaiah Rashad take the mic, as well as Slaughterhouse, the A$AP Mob crew, Jon Connor, Rittz, Rapsody, Lil Kim, Travi$ Scott, the Real...
New Images Of Air Jordan 5 Blackout
These sizzling hot pictures are of the Air Jordan 5 "Blackout" from Private Stock Gallery. The shoe resembles the classic "metallic black" 5's with its all black nubuck suede upper. The difference in the "Blackout" 5 lies in its use of an all black tongue and outsole, with the only hint of white being the outline on the 23 by the heel.As shown in the slides, DJ Khaled first brought this exclusive...
Grizzlies Owner Challenges Michael Jordan 1-on-1 For $1M
The owner of the Memphis Grizzlies, Robert J. Pera has taken to Twitter to challenge more people to a game of one-on-one including Mark Cuban, and even Michael Jordan. Turns out I was way off with my analysis of Pera's game. Last month he went on Twitter and challenged the Grizz' hard-nose defender, Tony Allen, to a game of one-on-one for $100,000 that would be donated to charity. I was not...
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15683 | ASU Football Bowl History: The 1941 Sun Bowl
Hascall Henshaw takes it to the house for ASU on a 94-yard scoring run - (Photo: ASU)
We continue our look at the Sun Devils' bowl history with their second trip to El Paso in as many years
On Sunday, Arizona State will learn where it will be heading for the 26th bowl game in program history.
Earlier this week, we took a look back at the school's first ever postseason trip, a thrilling 0-0 tie in the 1940 Sun Bowl. We know continue our look back at the Sun Devils' (and Bulldogs') bowl history with their second trip to a familiar location.
After coming up with a distasteful tie in their first bowl outing, Arizona State Teacher's College head coach Dixie Howell was determined to get the Bulldogs back to the postseason. The team was led once again by the defense, which was once again stout, allowing just 74 points over 10 games. That helped the team to a 7-1-2 record, and the good folks at the Sun Bowl were impressed enough to have ASTC back once again.
This time, the Bulldog's New Year's Day opponent was Case Western Reserve, who these days compete at the Division III level. Back then, the Spartans were a quality team and would give the 'Dogs all they could handle.
In front of an estimated 12,000 fans, the Spartans got on the board first thanks to a Steve Belichick one-yard touchdown run, and it being the 1940s, Belichick then kicked the extra point for a 7-0 lead.
The Bulldogs came back in the second quarter, first on a touchdown pass from Joe Hernandez to Wayne Pitts, but the extra point was no good. That was merely prelude to history, as ASTC's Hascall Henshaw then ripped off a dazzling 94-yard touchdown run to double the Bulldog lead. Henshaw's run would stand as the program's longest play from scrimmage for 28 years until Art Malone's 97-yard run in 1968, and it still ranks as the sixth-longest play in school history.
Arizona State took that 13-7 lead into halftime, but sadly, the second half was not kind to the Bulldogs.
The awesomely named Willis Waggle returned a block Bulldog kick 10 yards to tie the game in the third quarter's only score. In the fourth quarter, Case Western Reserve's Richard Booth and Joe Reis each scored on short runs to seal the Spartans' 26-13 victory.
Game Program from the 1941 Sun Bowl
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2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15753 | Home >Sale >Tire Tools >Tour De Lance - The Extraordinary Story Tour De Lance - The Extraordinary Story Item #: BK254H03 Buy Now Availability Please make a selection Choose Option -- Select SKU -- Quantity Out of stock. close Tell a friend! We'll send your friends the page and your message. Note: You and your friend's email addresses are only used once as a referral. We will not collect or store the email addresses. Friend's Name: Your Name: Friend's Email: Your Email: Message (500 char. max) Notify Me Receive an email when this product becomes available. Enter your name and email to be notified when this product is in stock and available to purchase. First Name: Last Name: Email: Description Reviews Store Availability Shipping An inspiration to many, Lance Armstrong become one of the most dominating cyclists ever. After battling and beating cancer, Armstrong won the Tour de France a record breaking 7 times and brought world wide attention to the cancer fight. Four years later, at thirty-seven, Armstrong decided to come out of retirement and go for the win yet again. He was racing for no salary, in a season when his greatest rival--Tour de France, Tour of Italy, and Tour of Spain champion Alberto Contador--was on his own team. The twenty-five-year-old Spaniard had been handpicked by Armstrong's own mentor, Johan Bruyneel, to be his successor. Now he would be his fiercest competition. Armstrong was about to suffer like never before--and, for the first time in recent memory, appear to be human on a bicycle. Author Bill Strickland follows Lance Armstrong and the rest of the team during the 2009 racing season and offers a penetrating glimpse into the life of Lance Armstrong. Follow Lance and the team during the 2009 Tour de France and catch all the behind the scenes action. "Cycling writer Strickland is all over the story of Lance Armstrong’s return in 2009, after a three-year absence, to the Tour de France....Strickland, who had access to Armstrong’s inner circle, enhances it with an eye for detail and an understanding of its importance in the context of cycling’s own physical demands and singular history. An irresistible account of a story that needed telling."
—Booklist, starred review Jenson USA ships worldwide, including APO/FPO addresses. For a quote, simply add the items you are interested in to your shopping cart and look for the "Shipping Options" box. You don't have to login or create an account to see shipping charges. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15823 | Listen Shows Contests Events People Advertise Advertiser Directory KOMO Newsradio Club Hotlinks Contact Gutierrez leads powerful Mariners offense to win
By SCOTT BAIR, Associated Press
Seattle Mariners' Franklin Gutierrez (2011 file photo)
PEORIA, Ariz. (AP) - Chris Capuano had problems with home runs for the second straight start.Trying to earn a job in the Los Angeles Dodgers' rotation, Capuano allowed long balls to Mike Zunino and Franklin Gutierrez during a three-run third inning Saturday in a 9-5 loss to the Seattle Mariners.Capuano started with two perfect innings that included three strikeouts before Zunino homered leading off the third.In a rotation led by Clayton Kershaw, additions Zach Greinke and Hyun-Jin Ryu, and Josh Beckett, Capuano is competing with Aaron Harang and Ted Lilly."I don't worry about getting a spot in that rotation," Capuano said. "It doesn't change what I do or how I go about my business. I'm going to get my work in, and I'm going to compete hard in every game. Ultimate decisions aren't up aren't up to us as players, and it doesn't behoove us to pay attention to the process of making them."The 34-year-old left-hander was 12-12 with a 3.72 ERA in 33 starts last year. He has allowed four homers in two spring training outings, and he went straight to the bullpen after the third inning to work on his fastball command."There will be a time to make some tough decisions, but that's a little ways down the road," Dodgers manager Don Mattingly said. "He needs to keep working and to keep refining."Seattle has won eight exhibitions in a row and has 20 homers in nine games."We have a lot of options, and a lot of talent we can mix and match into a lineup," manager Eric Wedge said. "If there was ever a year to play a lot of spring games and let guys show us all of what they can do, this is it."Gutierrez was 2 for 3 with four RBIs and raised his spring training home run total to three."It's still early, but the most important thing to take from these games is that we're doing something right," he said. "We have a lot of talent here, a lot of guys that can hit the ball a long way. I don't think anybody tries for home runs, but we're being aggressive within the strike zone. That's the key to success, no matter when the games are played."Seattle starter Hisashi Iwakuma allowed one run and two hits in two innings. Dodgers reliever Chad Billingsley gave up three runs and five hits in 2 1-3 innings.NOTES: Mariners RHP Felix Hernandez is to throw a bullpen session Sunday and to make his 2013 spring training debut on Thursday. The Mariners have two games that day, and Hernandez is expected to pitch against Kansas City rather than Oakland, Seattle's opening-day opponent. ... Dodgers OF Andre Ethier was scratched from Friday's lineup due to a blister but played Saturday and was 2 for 2. Ethier's right elbow was hit by a pitch from LHP Oliver Perez in the fifth inning. Ethier was immediately removed for a pinch runner, and Mattingly said he was not hurt.
Seahawker 5pts
"Seattle has won eight exhibitions in a row and has 20 homers in nine games".I hate to be negative but at some point in baseball a team that wins eight in a row............................... Yeah, you know what I'm thinking. I hope I'm wrong!
Takamine 5pts
Let's hope THESE Mariners are still around after Spring Training.
@Takamine Exact same thing I'm thinking. They can have a great spring training, but it doesn't mean a thing if it doesn't carry into the regular season. | 体育 |
2014-15/0970/en_head.json.gz/15836 | DeLaGarza continues to recover, participates in training drill on Wednesday
Beat CARSON, Calif. – A.J. DeLaGarza has not fully recovered from the MCL sprain in his left knee that has sidelined him since September, but on Wednesday, the central defender took a major step in his recovery.
DeLaGarza took part in the club’s training session on Wednesday participating in a passing drill with the team as well as warm ups and individual work with assistant coach Jovan Kirovski. According to DeLaGarza, the on-field portion of his recovery process—which began last week—is ongoing, but by no means complete.
“This has been the worse injury that I’ve ever had,” said DeLaGarza on Wednesday. “Being out six weeks is a long time for me so it’s different and I handle it alright at times, but sometimes you want to rush it and sometimes you get down on yourself because you want to help the team, but they’re winning right now. All I can do is support them, I’m happy because what they’ve been able to do is tremendous. When this team wants to turn it on, I don’t think many teams could stop us.”
While DeLaGarza has remained upbeat about his injury throughout his recovery, he admits that he has missed suiting up for the Galaxy, after a season that included a total of 30 Regular Season appearances for LA.
“I try to do stuff at home to loosen it up as well. When I first got the injury, they said six to eight weeks and I got an injection and it might take it down two weeks, so that’s why at the very beginning, I said four weeks I’ll be back,” said DeLaGarza. “That’s my mindset obviously; I guess that I guessed wrong. At around three weeks when I wasn’t running and it wasn’t getting much better, that’s when I was getting down on myself, but it takes time to heal.”
While his recovery remains a work in progress, DeLaGarza has set a goal of being available for the MLS Cup Final, should LA advance.
“That’s my goal, just to dress and if I’m called upon be able to help the team,” said DeLaGarza. “Whether it is off the bench or starting or not starting, not dressing, whatever it may be.”
Galaxy thankful for week-long respite ahead of Conference Championship Second Leg Beat CARSON, Calif. – The LA Galaxy were back on the training ground on Wednesday for the first time since their 3-0 victory over Seattle Sounders FC in the Western Conference Championship First Leg at The Home Depot Center on Sunday.
For the Galaxy, who have played seven games in the last 22 days, compiling a record of 5-1-1 over that time, the rest and a week-long period between games is a welcome change for the club.
“We needed it. We’ve been playing a lot of games,” said head coach Bruce Arena. “If we had to play in the middle of this week, it would have been tough. It’s good to have the time off and hopefully, we can slowly build our team back to Sunday.” Building the team back up to full fitness remains the primary concern as Landon Donovan (R hamstring tightness), Edson Buddle (L plantar inflammation), and Juninho (R Achilles inflammation) are currently listed as questionable for Sunday's match. Donovan and Juninho both suffered their injuries that led to their substitution from the first leg, while Buddle’s issue stems from a knock received in the second leg of the Western Conference Semifinal against the San Jose Earthquakes. While the team is upbeat that the trio can return, they’re confident that others can step in and contribute, if called upon.
“At this time of the year, everyone is battling a little something. It’s all about being smart, doing the right things to get healthy and if they can’t go and aren’t 100% then the next guy steps up,” said defender Sean Franklin. “It’s all about being smart and not putting players on the field in a position where they can get hurt worse so, as much as we want those guys to be healthy, if they’re not, we go onto the next player. Obviously though, we’d love to have those guys in our lineup this weekend.” 14
Geiger to officiate Sunday's Western Conference Championship Second Leg
Beat The Professional Referee’s Organization announced on Wednesday that Mark Geiger will officiate Sunday’s Western Conference Championship Second Leg between the LA Galaxy and Seattle Sounders FC at CenturyLink Field.
The 38-year-old served as the top official for just one LA Galaxy match and two Sounders FC matches this season. Seattle is 0-3 in their last three matches with Geiger as the referee; he served during Seattle’s 3-0 defeat to Real Salt Lake in the 2011 Western Conference Semifinal First Leg. Geiger brings a strong pedigree to the match having officiated two matches at the 2012 Olympic Games in London as well as four matches during the 2011 Under-20 World Cup in Colombia including the final. Geiger’s last postseason game was a wild Eastern Conference Semifinal Second Leg between New York Red Bulls and D.C. United. During the Conference Semifinal, Geiger called 26 fouls, issued three yellow cards and two reds in a match that saw D.C. advance to the Eastern Conference Championship.
Geiger’s complete breakdown of Galaxy and Sounders FC matches is below.
LA GALAXY (0-1-0)
5/19 – CHIVAS USA 1 LA GALAXY 0. FOULS: 22 (10 for Chivas USA and 12 for LA); CAUTIONS: 2 (one each.); RED CARDS: 1 (LA); PENALTIES: 1 (Converted by Chivas)
SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC (0-2-0)
5/12 – SOUNDERS FC 0 REAL SALT LAKE 1. FOULS: 28 (13 for Seattle and 15 for RSL); CAUTIONS: 2 (one each.)
6/16 – MONTREAL IMPACT 4 SOUNDERS FC 1. FOULS: 28 (18 for Montreal and 20 for Seattle); CAUTIONS: 4 (1 for Montreal and 3 for Seattle); RED CARDS: 1 (Seattle)
Injury Report update: Donovan, Juninho and Buddle questionable
Beat Both the LA Galaxy and Seattle Sounders FC released their midweek injury reports on Tuesday ahead of Sunday's Western Conference Championship Second Leg.
The Galaxy's report saw the additions of Edson Buddle, Landon Donovan and Juninho with different ailments while David Junior Lopes (L facial fracture) and Christian Wilhelmsson (R quad tightness) were removed from the report. Meanwhile, Seattle's list is unchanged from the week prior.
LA GALAXY -- OUT: DF A.J. DeLaGarza (L knee sprain); DF Leonardo (R knee inflammation); MF Kyle Nakazawa (back spasms); QUESTIONABLE: FW Edson Buddle (L plantar inflammation); FW Landon Donovan (R hamstring tightness); MF Juninho (R Achilles inflammation)
SEATTLE SOUNDERS FC -- OUT: FW Babayele Sodade (R knee ACL surgery); DF Andrew Duran (L ACL surgery); QUESTIONABLE: MF Mauro Rosales (R hamstring strain); DF Leo Gonzalez (R hamstring strain); DF Patrick Ianni (R calf strain)
View from Seattle: Schmid talks second leg game plan, Sounders injuries and more
Beat The LA Galaxy may be back on the practice field tomorrow, but Seattle Sounders FC returned to the training ground on Tuesday. Sigi Schmid caught up with reporters in Seattle to discuss his game plan in the first leg and how he will modify it in the second leg as well as the call up by Mario Martinez.
Watch the video below. 13
Franklin shines against Sounders FC, expects "crazy" second leg in Seattle
Beat CARSON, Calif. – Key to the LA Galaxy’s success in their 3-0 victory over Seattle Sounders FC in the Western Conference Championship First Leg was the play of right back Sean Frankin.
Against Seattle, Franklin had one of his finest game consistently terrorizing Seattle’s left back Zach Scott to the tune of two assists. To show just how effective the right back has been in the last two games, Franklin has more assists –three—than he had in his first 12 postseason games.
Franklin wasn’t certain if it was his finest game, but he was pleased with his performance going forward.
“Possibly, I was able to get in some good spots and David found me a couple times, Robbie played me some good balls,” said Franklin. “It’s all about picking the right time to go forward and maybe I could have had two or three assists in the first half if I play a better final ball, but I was able to get one in the second half.”
A considerable part of Franklin’s success was his ability to combine with right wing Christian Wilhelmsson. Throughout the match, the duo repeatedly overlapped to create problems for the Seattle left flank.
If Wilhelmsson and Franklin are placed on the right again, they might face a different Sounders group as midfielder Mauro Rosales is expected to return to the fold in the second leg at Centurylink Field, which would allow Brad Evans to resume his post on the left flank.
But ahead of the second leg, Franklin believes that despite LA’s three goal lead, the series is by no means over.
“We know it’s going to be a crazy game on the 18th,” said Franklin. “They’ve got a crazy fan base, they’re a pretty good side at home and we know they’re going to be coming to get some goals so we’ve just got to be sharp, stick to our game plan and be prepared for all that.”
DeLaGarza exploring options to suit up for Guam, not closing door on U.S.
Beat CARSON, Calif. – A.J. DeLaGarza is still working back from injury, but that has not stopped him from pursuing options internationally.
Two weeks ago, DeLaGarza confirmed to Guam’s Pacific News Center that he had named to Guam’s 30-man roster for the East Asian Cup semifinal round tournament in Hong Kong in December. The winner of the five-team tournament which spans from Dec. 1 to Dec. 9 will advance to the 2013 East Asia Cup which will take place in Seoul, Korea Republic from July 20 to July 28
DeLaGarza, who has two caps—his last coming earlier this January in a friendly in Panama— for the U.S. national team is eligible to play for “the Matao” through his father’s side of the family. If DeLaGarza does join Guam, he’d be the second MLS player to join the Matao this year as New England Revolution midfielder Ryan Guy chose to suit up for the South Pacific earlier this year.
With DeLaGarza still recovering from an MCL sprain in his left knee, the Galaxy defender admits that the opportunity may be put on hold for now.
“It’s just the preliminary roster for now,” DeLaGarza said last Saturday. They have some big games in December against Australia, Hong Kong, and a couple of other teams. The way that my knee is going, I’m probably not going to even risk it, but it’s just an opportunity that I have to maybe seek out. It’s nothing for sure, but maybe down the road.”
AM Notes: Seattle's Martinez called up, UCLA makes NCAA tourney
Beat Good Morning to all of y'all, a few notes to get you through your morning.
The LA Galaxy are off for the second straight day today, but we'll have plenty of coverage for you today, here are a few notes to be made aware of...
*Seattle Sounders FC midfielder Mario Martinez has been called up to the Honduran national team for this Wednesday's friendly at BBVA Compass Stadium in Houston against Peru . Remember, because it is a FIFA window, Honduras had the right to call up their full squad. *A pair of LA Galaxy Academy players Javan Torre and Grady Howe, and the UCLA Bruins have qualified for the NCAA Tournament and hold a six seed in bracket three. With the seed, UCLA have an bye into the second round and will face the winner of Cal-State Northridge and University of San Diego on Nov. 18 at 8 p.m. PT at Drake Stadium on the UCLA campus. Torre and Howe were the only Galaxy Academy product to advance to the tournament as Gyasi Zardes' Cal-State Bakersfield were unable to qualify *Down the hall, Chivas USA and Chivas de Guadalajara owner Jorge Vergara will speak at the SLS Hotel in Beverly Hills at 12:00 p.m. PT to discuss the future of the Rojiblancos. Vergara has already fired head coach Robin Fraser and much of his staff and is expected to announce more front office moves on Saturday. There is no video stream of the press conference.
Juninho announces positive results from MRI through Twitter
Beat After revealing that he suffered an injury to his right Achilles during Sunday's 3-0 LA Galaxy win over Seattle Sounders FC, Juninho announced via Twitter that he underwent an MRI on Monday and the results were positive. Update for my fans, had an MRI today on my Aquiles and it's nothing serious!
— Juninho (@Juninho19LA) November 13, 2012
Juninho told the LA Galaxy Insider on Sunday that he was positive that he could return from the injury that forced to leave at the half of LA's Western Conference Championship First Leg. If the results were as positive as the Brazilian attests than with a week between matches, Juninho may be able to regain his position in the starting lineup in Sunday's decisive Western Conference Championship Second Leg at CenturyLink Field in Seattle. 12
View from Seattle: Schmid confident in Sounders ability to erase deficit
Beat CARSON, Calif. – Before we completely turn the page from Sunday’s match, a few thoughts from Seattle Sounders FC head coach Sigi Schmid after Seattle was defeated 3-0 by the LA Galaxy in the Western Conference Championship First Leg.
Schmid stresses that his club has confidence in their ability to erase the three goal lead and history certainly shows –check out this piece by the Seattle Times – that they have experience of scoring a high number of goals at home.
Schmid’s thoughts are below…
(On what he was most disappointed in…)
SCHMID: “Just disappointed that we didn’t keep it at 1-0. I thought we had the ability to keep it at 1-0, and we should’ve kept it at 1-0 and played with a better mentality at that stage. But at the end of the day, guys on the field, they’re trying to do things. We were still possessing the ball, we were still getting some looks going forward, and we got caught on the counter. It’s typical. That’s the way Bruce likes to play, that’s the way LA plays, where they’ll sit back and they’ll counter-attack. When you’ve got the speed of Landon and the speed of Keane, and their creativity that they possess, they’re a team that very dangerous.”
(On the Seattle back line looking disorganized…)
SCHMID: :I think the movement was good for them, but I think more so than anything, it was us giving the ball away at times in midfield, which put us under duress. Guys getting caught in advance positions with the ball, as the ball turned over and therefore they had space to counter into. The thing is, guys like Landon and Keane and Beckham, they cheat sometimes on defense, and if you turn the ball over badly and they’re in good positions on the other end, they’ve got the quality to make you pay.”
(On the deficit being similar to RSL last year…)
SCHMID: “We also take solace in the fact that we beat LA earlier in the year 4-0 at our place. We know we’ve got to come up with the same sort of effort we came out the last time we played at home last year, and we’ve got to come out with a better result.”
(On whether the first goal changed the complexion of game…)
SCHMID: “I think we possibly pushed a little bit when we shouldn’t have pushed to try and get the goal back, because getting the goal back wasn’t important. 1-0 was fine. Obviously they’ve got some veteran guys. You add up just the three players I mentioned, they’ve got more caps times 20 than my whole team does. Or maybe times 100. From that standpoint, they’re a little more cagey, they’re a little more, ‘OK, this is all we need to do today,’ and for some reason maybe we didn't quite recognize that. But I think the goal at the end of the half certainly changed the complexion a little bit, and it’s over now.”
(On if Seattle learned anything from last year’s defeat to RSL…)
SCHMID: “Obviously we didn't learn much because we did the same thing this year. We talked about it, we talked at halftime, and we said 1-0 is OK. We walk away 1-0 we’re alright. I really tried to emphasize that at halftime, but then at the end of the day we didn't. So now we have to come back and we've got to play with the same attitude, the same conviction that we played with last year in the game two but we've got to score more goals.” | 体育 |