Sunday, 31 October 2010
Moreno's gifts
Jaime Moreno concluded his historic Major League Soccer career Saturday night in front of the Black-and-Red faithful at RFK Stadium. Moreno's career ended with a crescendo of emotion, as fans crowded the field to thank a true club hero for the final time. On his lap around the stadium field, Moreno...
World Series Game 3: Colby Lewis, Mitch Moreland Give Rangers First Win
Filed under: Giants, Rangers, MLB Playoffs, World Series
ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Texas Rangers made themselves at home, and now the World Series is looking a lot more interesting.In the first World Series game played at Rangers Ballpark, Texas knocked off the Giants 4-2 to halve San Francisco's lead in the best-of-seven series to two games to one.
"Now it's our turn," was a sign that one Rangers fan held up after closer Neftali Feliz, in his World Series debut, struck out two Giants to complete the victory.
The crowd, announced at 52,419, was the largest in ballpark history.
Building on his strong postseason, Rangers pitcher Colby Lewis checked a Giants offense that had amassed 20 runs in San Francisco across Games 1 and 2.
World Series Game 3: Colby Lewis, Mitch Moreland Give Rangers First Win
Filed under: Giants, Rangers, MLB Playoffs, World Series
ARLINGTON, Texas -- The Texas Rangers made themselves at home, and now the World Series is looking a lot more interesting.In the first World Series game played at Rangers Ballpark, Texas knocked off the Giants 4-2 to halve San Francisco's lead in the best-of-seven series to two games to one.
"Now it's our turn," was a sign that one Rangers fan held up after closer Neftali Feliz, in his World Series debut, struck out two Giants to complete the victory.
The crowd, announced at 52,419, was the largest in ballpark history.
Building on his strong postseason, Rangers pitcher Colby Lewis checked a Giants offense that had amassed 20 runs in San Francisco across Games 1 and 2.
UConn Shocks West Virginia in OT
Filed under: Connecticut, West Virginia
EAST HARTFORD, Conn. -- Simply stating that the University of Connecticut football team has had some distractions in recent weeks would be a little like pointing out that political campaigns have resorted to angry attack ads as election day approaches.
Suspensions, injuries and a new quarterback every week. Consecutive Big East losses to Rutgers and Louisville, defeats that left the Huskies 0-2 in the conference standings and wondering where their season was headed. Fans calling for the firing of head coach Randy Edsall. And then there was the spy, watching from a university dorm room, posting practice information online and forcing the Huskies to move their workouts indoors.
It was strange stuff, somewhat spooky for the start of a Halloween weekend. As 40,000 fans filed into Rentschler Field Friday night, it had to seem like the worst possible time for West Virginia to come calling. But one kick might have reversed the curse chasing the Huskies recently.
Dave Teggart's 27-yard field goal in overtime lifted UConn (4-4, 1-2) to a 16-13 victory, giving the Huskies their first win ever over the Mountaineers (5-3, 1-2) and drastically changing the direction of UConn's season. When it was over, UConn fans -- some costumed like Teletubbies, penguins and other scary creatures -- stormed the field to celebrate the unlikely outcome.
Saturday, 30 October 2010
Reckless Predictions for Oct. 30
Filed under: General CFB Insanity
Halloween weekend offers up all kinds of possibilities, but we're not going to risk angering the ghosts and goblins and others who cause havoc. We'll get straight to the point with some reckless predictions for Halloween Eve:In Philadelphia, Penn (5-1) risks its 11-game Ivy League win streak against the only other esteemed academic institution undefeated in league play, Brown. The Bears are without, due to injury, last year's first-team All-Ivy quarterback, Kyle Newhall-Caballero. What that portends, we don't know, but it's fun to say Kyle Newhall-Caballero.
In Lincoln, the rash of helmet-jarring hits that has plagued college football all season is so prevalent that it appears that not only do No. 8 Missouri and No. 12 Nebraska have "M" and "N" on their helmets, respectively, but also, at times, "W" and "Z."
In Iowa City, punter Aaron Bates of No. 5 Michigan State completes all nine passes he attempts -- the Spartans twice line up to punt on second down -- to shock No. 19 Iowa and remain the lone undefeated team in the Big Televen.
Ricky Barnes Leads Asia Pacific Classic
Filed under: PGA
SELANGOR, Malaysia (AP) -- Ricky Barnes shot an 8-under 63 Thursday to take the lead after the first round of the inaugural Asia Pacific Classic, the first PGA Tour-sanctioned event in Southeast Asia.The 29-year-old American, seeking his first professional victory, had what he called a "stress-free" round sprinkled with eight birdies.
"I got off to a good start by making some good swings and had a 10-foot look at eagle on three which kind of got my round started," Barnes said.
Ryan Moore (64) trails by one stroke, while Canadian Open winner Carl Pettersson (65) was two back along with Brian Davis and Charlie Wi.
Moore, who arrived in Malaysia on Friday to acclimatize to the time change and humid weather, had seven birdies. He has earned more than $2 million this season on the PGA Tour but has no victories.
"For me, this is my last chance to get a win and finish off the year the way I want to," the American said. "It was a good season. I feel like it was better than last year, and last year I had a win. That's what I'm coming here for. It's my last tournament of the year."
The 40-man tournament at The Mines Resort and Golf Club, which has Ernie Els (67), Luke Donald (67) and Retief Goosen (69) in the field, is also sanctioned by the Asian Tour. The winner will receive $1 million from the $6 million purse.
George: PGA Tour Taps Into Asian Market
MLS Eastern Playoff Preview: The Sprint to the Cup Begins
Filed under: MLS, Colorado Rapids, Columbus Crew, New York Red Bulls, San Jose Earthquakes
After playing 30 matches over the course of seven months, eight MLS teams now find themselves just four games away from the league title.
It's like having the eight leading runners in a marathon restart the race 10 yards from the finish line. Absolutely anything can happen, and previous MLS Cup tournaments suggest that it probably will.
In each of the past two years, the eighth seed has advanced to the championship game. In 2008, the New York Red Bulls shocked the Houston Dynamo in the first round, won the Western Conference crown and were defeated by Columbus in the final. Last year, Real Salt Lake turned the tables on the Crew before winning both the Eastern Conference and MLS Cup on penalties. RSL managed just one goal over the 240 minutes of semifinal and final play, yet walked away with the title.
Magic vs. Wizards: Orlando Enjoys Easy Warmup Before Heat
ORLANDO, Fla. -- This regular-season opener looked like nothing but an extension of a cushy exhibition schedule, which the Orlando Magic breezed through by winning all seven games by an average of 26 points.The real first game -- and the one they've been targeting since the summer -- will come Friday night in Miami when they expect to show what they really think about the endless hype surrounding the Heat.
Remember Quentin Richardson's comment from earlier this month: "F**k the Heat.''
The Magic squished the Wizards Thursday like they were stepping on some Florida cockroaches, rolling to a 112-83 victory that never was seriously contested.
Washington rookie John Wall -- the No. 1 pick of the draft with a world of potential -- had some shining moments, but they were dulled badly by an embarrassing performance by his team. The Wiz were never competitive, looking like a very young team with a very, very long way to go.
Wall finished with 14 points and nine assists, but he made only six of 19 shots. And he didn't get to the free throw line until early in the fourth quarter.
Dwight Howard led everyone with 23 points and 10 rebounds, getting serenaded by the sellout crowd with chants of "MVP, MVP.''
It was the biggest margin of victory on opening night for the Magic.
The only real spice to the game was when Magic third-string point guard Jason Williams was ejected in the final minute for his second technical foul after he grabbed the arm of official Tony Brothers. He played only eight minutes, but he was angry after getting his first technical under the NBA's new low tolerance rule.
Either the Magic are going to be really good, or the Wizards really bad.
Friday, 29 October 2010
Tony Stewart Says Repaved Daytona Will Feature Even Closer Racing
Filed under: Tony Stewart, Daytona Int'l Speedway, NASCAR Tracks, Sprint Cup, Stewart-Haas Racing, NASCAR
The repaved Daytona International Speedway might as well be a brand-new track, two-time Sprint Cup champ Tony Stewart said Thursday. Although the project is still only about 75 percent complete, Stewart had a chance to run a production car through turns three and four before a ceremonial appearance at the 2.5-mile speedway Thursday to help paint the new start-finish line.
"I got to rip through three and four and it's not the same race track, I can promise you," Stewart said before taking a roller in hand and joining track president Joie Chitwood III to paint the first few black-and-white squares of the start-finish line. "This place is going to have a totally new look to the drivers and the teams. We're going to fill every square inch of the race track because the surface is so even now."
"tt's going to have a ton of grip," he said. "Before, you had to really work on your handling" because it was so bumpy. "Now, handling is not going to be as crucial. You're going to have more cars in a tighter pack, as wide as they can get, and literally you'll be able to use every inch of the track. And guys will be comfortable doing it, knowing how smooth this surface is now.
"It's going to allow us to go places we've not been able to go and run a lot closer width-wise."
Dale Earnhardt Jr. Sees a Glimmer of Racing Sunlight
Filed under: Dale Earnhardt Jr., Chase for the Sprint Cup, NASCAR Fans, Sprint Cup, Danica Patrick, NASCAR
MARTINSVILLE, Va. -- The legions of fans of Junior Nation rose as one on lap 285 of the Tums Fast Relief 500 at Martinsville Speedway Sunday, waving the little green flags passed out by the race sponsor and screaming their lungs out against the din of the more than three dozen race cars circling the half-mile track here. Their man, Dale Earnhardt Jr., had clawed his way to the front and taken the lead from Jeff Gordon during a green flag run at the midpoint of the NASCAR Sprint Cup race.
And he led 90 of the next 93 laps -- more than his total for the entire year before Sunday's race. Coming into Martinsville -- where Earnhardt has never won -- he had led a total of 71 laps in five races.
But after more than doubling his laps led total Sunday, Earnhardt was only partially satisfied. He faded during the long green flag run over the final 98 laps and finished seventh.
"Well, this isn't quite good enough," Earnhardt said. "We have to run way better than this. I can come in here and get a top-10 unless we have a major, major issue in the setup."
Mason Raymond Poke-Check Turns Into Overtime Winner
Filed under: Avalanche, Canucks, Western, NHL Videos
After blowing a late lead against division rival Colorado Tuesday night, Vancouver was able to pick up the extra point in overtime. It happened without a shot actually being taken by a Vancouver player.
Mason Raymond picked up that game-winning goal for the Canucks, and he didn't even have to shoot the puck to make it happen. Instead, he poke-checked a puck off the stick of defenseman Jonas Holos' stick, and the puck went through the legs of goalie Peter Budaj to give Vancouver a 4-3 win.
Pac-10 Report: League May Not Be Able to Fill Its Bowl Commitments
Filed under: Arizona, Arizona State, Boise State, California, Oregon, Oregon State, Stanford, TCU, Temple, UCLA, USC, Washington, Washington State, Pac 10
For the all the strength at the top of the Pac-10, there's a strong chance the conference may not be able to fill out its bowl commitments.With USC out of the bowl picture because of NCAA sanctions and Oregon squarely in the national championship conversation, it is increasingly unlikely that the Pac-10 can fill its six bowl slots.
Here's a look at the nine Pac-10 teams with postseason possibilities. Only Washington State at 1-7 is out of the picture. But by the end of the weekend, the bowl positions of a handful of teams will become more clear.
Thursday, 28 October 2010
Stampede at Kenyan Soccer Match Leaves 7 Dead
Filed under: International Soccer
Seven people died in a stampede outside a Kenyan Premier League soccer match on Saturday. The crowd was trying to gain access to the game in Nairobi between two of of the country's most popular teams.Kenya Red Cross official Taitus Mong Mungo'u said that six people died at Nyayo National Stadium and a seventh passed away after being taken to Kenyatta National Hospital, according to the Associated Press.
Golfer Dies Days After Struck by Ball
Filed under: Golf Odds and Ends
A man died days after he was struck in the head by a golf ball at a Southern California golf course.Hiroshi Tango, 69, of Brea, Calif., complained of head and neck pain after he was struck in the head at Los Serranos Country Club in Chino on Oct. 7, The (Riverside) Press-Enterprise reported. Tango was transported to Loma Linda University Medical Center, where he "succumbed to his injuries" on Saturday, according to the San Bernardino County coroner's office.
The coroner's office has not specified an exact cause of death.
Big 12 Report: Defenses Still Playing Catch Up With Offenses
Filed under: Baylor, Colorado, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Missouri, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Texas A&M, Texas, Texas Tech, Big 12
Coming to Texas Tech this season from the SEC, coach Tommy Tuberville knew he was going to have to acquire a different appetite for offensive football.What Tuberville perhaps didn't anticipate is that his philosophy on what is acceptable on defense would have to change as well. The proliferation of spread offenses across the country has had the effect of producing once unthinkable numbers and that has certainly been the case in the Big 12.
The conference has five teams that currently rank among the top 25 in the nation in total offense and seven teams total that are averaging 424.65 yards per game or better. Big 12 schools are also scoring at a high rate, with five teams ranking among the nation's top 25 in scoring.
Oklahoma State and its spread offense are second in the nation in scoring (48.29 points per game) and third in total offense (529.57 yards per game).
Those numbers are enough to give a defensive-minded coach like Tuberville some sleepless nights.
"You have to be patient on defense, that's what I've found out about it," said Tuberville, a longtime coach at Auburn before taking a year away from football then heading over to Tech. "In the SEC, it's pretty much the bull in the china closet. You have to pretty much stop the run first and the games are always going to be one or two touchdowns difference.
"But in this league, no matter who you play, you might have a great offense, but if your defense doesn't step up and cause some turnovers it can get away quick."
Auburn Overcomes Stormy Past to Sit Atop BCS Standings
Filed under: Auburn
AUBURN, Ala. -- The biggest bull's-eye in college football has found a new home.
The Auburn Tigers, fresh off a 24-17 win against sixth-ranked LSU, found themselves atop the Bowl Championship Series standings Sunday night. A team that began the season outside the bright Southeastern Conference spotlight will enter the final week of October as the league's lone unbeaten team.
Rankings mean nothing during the regular season, of course, but simply earning top billing in anything related to football hasn't happened here since 1985.
Still, a fan base savoring its team's renaissance rejoiced.
A locker room full of players born during the 1990s didn't flinch.
"I wouldn't say it changes things. You've still got to go out there and win games," senior guard Mike Berry said. "But now everybody is respecting us."
Wednesday, 27 October 2010
Report: Jeff Gordon's New Sponsorship Deal to Be Announced Wednesday
Filed under: Jeff Gordon, NASCAR Sponsors, Sprint Cup, NASCAR
The AARP Foundation and Jeff Gordon will team up in 2011, with the charity arm of the retired persons organization becoming the primary sponsor on Gordon's No. 24 Chevrolet for most of the NASCAR Sprint Cup races to promote a major anti-hunger campaign, the Charlotte Observer reported Monday.The paper reported that the campaign will be coordinated by the foundation and will eventually involve other companies.
The new deal, however, doesn't mean that fans will no longer see Gordon's longtime primary sponsors, Dupont and Pepsi, on his No. 24 Chevrolet. Those two powerhouse companies are expected to sponsor the races that AARP Foundation doesn't cover, the Observer said.
More details of the sponsorship are expected to be announced at a Wednesday news conference.
Dupont is one of NASCAR's longest-running and most dedicated sponsors.
If Dupont steps away completely from some of the 2011 races, it will be the first time since the company began sponsoring Gordon beginning with his very first race at Atlanta at the end of 1992.
Derrick Harvey Losing Jaguars Starting Defensive End Spot to Jeremy Mincey
Filed under: Jaguars, AFC South
Derrick Harvey appears to be losing his starting position.Harvey, a Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end and a first-round selection in the 2008 NFL Draft, had seen his playing time dwindle early this season, with his former University of Florida teammate -- Jeremy Mincey -- getting increased plays.
Now, the switch is occurring in the starting lineup.
Magic Johnson Helps Out ESPN With Lakers Sale
by Milton Kent
More than one critic or fan has rapped ESPN on the corporate and journalistic knuckles for the various ethical binds it gets into when it cozies up to athletes and sports power brokers. Well, the Worldwide Leader got out of a rather sizable conflict of interest Tuesday and it didn't have to lift a finger.
UPDATE: Magic Johnson Could Bring NFL to Los Angeles
Magic Johnson's sale of his piece of the Los Angeles Lakers closes a huge ethical loophole for ESPN, if Johnson returns to its NBA telecasts on ABC this season. Incredibly, ESPN permitted Johnson to serve as a commentator on NBA games and events while he owned a piece of a league franchise.
Indeed, Johnson was seen quite prominently on the podium in June when the Lakers claimed their latest championship trophy, not as a member of the ESPN broadcast team, but as a member of Lakers management.
Filed under: NBA Media Watch, Sports Business and Media
More than one critic or fan has rapped ESPN on the corporate and journalistic knuckles for the various ethical binds it gets into when it cozies up to athletes and sports power brokers. Well, the Worldwide Leader got out of a rather sizable conflict of interest Tuesday and it didn't have to lift a finger.UPDATE: Magic Johnson Could Bring NFL to Los Angeles
Magic Johnson's sale of his piece of the Los Angeles Lakers closes a huge ethical loophole for ESPN, if Johnson returns to its NBA telecasts on ABC this season. Incredibly, ESPN permitted Johnson to serve as a commentator on NBA games and events while he owned a piece of a league franchise.
Indeed, Johnson was seen quite prominently on the podium in June when the Lakers claimed their latest championship trophy, not as a member of the ESPN broadcast team, but as a member of Lakers management.
Jaime Moreno Leaves D.C. United The Best MLS Player Ever
Filed under: MLS, D.C. United
WASHINGTON, DC -- It's a shame when someone is afraid to take a stand. To go all in.
This week has been full of qualifiers, hedges and careful semantics from people unwilling to just come out and say it. So we'll do it for them:
Jaime Moreno is the best player in MLS history.
Anyone who reads that sentence carefully and considers the competition will realize that it's irrefutable.
More talented players have graced the league's football-lined fields, sure. Lothar Matthäus, Roberto Donadoni and Youri Djorkaeff may have been better with a ball at their feet. But they proved that abroad, not here. They accomplished little in an MLS uniform.
Tuesday, 26 October 2010
Jamie McMurray Wins Bank of America 500 at Charlotte
Filed under: Denny Hamlin, Greg Biffle, Jamie McMurray, Jimmie Johnson, Kyle Busch, Chase for the Sprint Cup, Sprint Cup, NASCAR
CONCORD, N.C. -- Jamie McMurray battled past Kyle Busch on the final restart of the Bank of America 500 Saturday night at Charlotte Motor Speedway and won his third race of the year, stealing the thunder of the drivers in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.McMurray added the Charlotte fall race to his impressive non-Chase record of 2010, which also includes victories in the Daytona 500 and the Brickyard 400.
Busch finished second after dominating the race and leading 217 of the 334 laps. But Busch had to hold off a determined challenge in the final laps from Jimmie Johnson, who finished third.
Johnson's finish gave him a 41-point lead over Denny Hamlin at the halfway point in the Chase for the Sprint Cup championship.
Denny Hamlin finished fourth, followed by Greg Biffle.
"As I was catching Kyle at the end of the race, when the caution came out, I really wasn't sure whether we had enough speed to outrun him the last 25 or 30 laps," McMurray said. "But the car was unbelievable those last 25 or 30 laps, it was effortless to drive and it had a lot of speed."
Jaime Moreno Leaves D.C. United The Best MLS Player Ever
Filed under: MLS, D.C. United
WASHINGTON, DC -- It's a shame when someone is afraid to take a stand. To go all in.
This week has been full of qualifiers, hedges and careful semantics from people unwilling to just come out and say it. So we'll do it for them:
Jaime Moreno is the best player in MLS history.
Anyone who reads that sentence carefully and considers the competition will realize that it's irrefutable.
More talented players have graced the league's football-lined fields, sure. Lothar Matthäus, Roberto Donadoni and Youri Djorkaeff may have been better with a ball at their feet. But they proved that abroad, not here. They accomplished little in an MLS uniform.
FOX Goes to Musical Bullpen for MLB Playoffs
Filed under: MLB Playoffs
If you were confused at the end of innings during National League Championship Series telecasts on FOX last week, thinking that you heard the network's football theme music rather than its baseball jingle, you were correct.The network quietly swapped out its baseball theme, which includes a quick reference to its football theme, for the tune that has accompanied its NFL coverage since the sports division opened for business in 1994.
Eric Shanks, the new FOX Sports President, said during a Monday conference call, that the music the network had used for baseball postseason coverage the last 10 years had been slower, perhaps more "cathedral" and that FOX wanted to perk things up.
"When we were taking a look at recent tapes, we decided that baseball deserves a faster pace and more upbeat music," Shanks said. "There's no better music than the FOX Sports theme for the NFL."
Shanks said viewers should count on hearing what we've come to know as the FOX NFL theme across all the network's sports telecasts going forward, including NASCAR.
"It's becoming a real FOX Sports theme," Shanks said. "And it gives all of our sports sort of that marquee feel and it gives us a more upbeat way to come on the air."
Moreno's curtain call
To say that Jaime Moreno?s final match at RFK Stadium was emotional is a huge understatement. Tears were flowing around the old stadium - from fans, from Moreno?s five children, from teammates, and even from the legend himself. All of the people who shed a tear or two knew long before...
Monday, 25 October 2010
Yankees Fire Pitching Coach Dave Eiland
Filed under: Yankees
The Yankees' pitching was a huge letdown in their ALCS loss to the Rangers, and general manager Brian Cashman announced Monday that pitching coach Dave Eiland won't be brought back in 2011. The staff's ALCS performance had nothing to do with Eiland's dismissal, Cashman said, but he refused to elaborate on what led to the decision.
"I'm not going to comment on what the reasons are," Cashman told reporters. "They're private."
Cashman said the decision was his alone and he informed manager Joe Girardi of the move. The GM will meet with Girardi's agent Tuesday in an effort to hammer out a new contract for the manager.
Fantasy Football Booms From Curious Hobby to Mainstream Marvel
by Nando Di Fino
Fantasy football used to be an exercise in friendship. Groups of guys would gather in their married friends' garages, drink a few beers, order pizza and draft their teams. Scoring was done by hand every week. They were considered obsessive nerds.
This season, no less than 10 major companies are sponsoring fantasy in some way, and they are making it well-known. A vitaminwater ad for Norman Tugwater, a fictitious fantasy sports attorney played by Gary Busey, hangs prominently in Times Square. Fantasy Sports Trade Association president Paul Charchian -- yes, this organization exists and it has over 400 members, including representatives from ABC, CBS and NBC -- estimates that over 20 million people will play fantasy football this season. In June, the NFL announced it would be hosting a league-backed fantasy football game on NFL.com. In July, Sirius XM satellite radio launched a 24-hour channel dedicated to fantasy sports. Jacksonville Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew hosts a weekly show on the channel.
Filed under: Sports Business and Media
Fantasy football used to be an exercise in friendship. Groups of guys would gather in their married friends' garages, drink a few beers, order pizza and draft their teams. Scoring was done by hand every week. They were considered obsessive nerds. This season, no less than 10 major companies are sponsoring fantasy in some way, and they are making it well-known. A vitaminwater ad for Norman Tugwater, a fictitious fantasy sports attorney played by Gary Busey, hangs prominently in Times Square. Fantasy Sports Trade Association president Paul Charchian -- yes, this organization exists and it has over 400 members, including representatives from ABC, CBS and NBC -- estimates that over 20 million people will play fantasy football this season. In June, the NFL announced it would be hosting a league-backed fantasy football game on NFL.com. In July, Sirius XM satellite radio launched a 24-hour channel dedicated to fantasy sports. Jacksonville Jaguars running back Maurice Jones-Drew hosts a weekly show on the channel.
Rypien Incident's Ridiculous Blame Game Misses the Net on Deeper Issues
Filed under: Canucks, NHL Fans, NHL Discipline
Wednesday night when Rick Rypien reached into the stands, the NHL department of Twitter exploded. Later that night and into the next day, hockey blogs devoured the news. Everyone had an opinion - not a negative, that's what we all do best - and debated about how long the impending suspension would be. After all of that subsided, we started to go off the deep end and point blame at anyone and everyone. Justifiably, Rypien himself took a lot of the heat. The Canucks announcers and Manny Malhotra were convinced the fan came after Rypien. Others went after the arena staff that had not pulled out the tarp that covers the runway to the locker room. The tide even turned against the assaulted fan when he decided to lawyer up. Then there's the targeting of the NHL to 'take a stand' and 'get back control of the league'.
No one is safe in this blame game.
Yes, NHL players are running amok like the wild zombies in the movie 28 Days Later and are destroying the world as we know it. It's almost like this was an apocalypse and Rypien was another zombie that had been discovered. Then again, we're already in the middle of another apocalypse - the headshot debate. And before that, we spent a lot of oxygen and keystrokes debating the place of fighting in hockey. It's the debate du jour.
Rypien is the latest media-manufactured fire the NHL has to put out. Sure, Rypien created the situation by making contact with a fan and that's an obvious no-no. But you'd think he poured gasoline on him and was reaching for a lighter the way the reactions have come in.
For example, a headline on Hockey Independent reads "Gary Bettman- Take Back Control of Your League". It makes me wonder if it's simply trying to stir up pageviews with such sensationalism implying that after the Rypien incident the league is somehow spiraling out of control. That idea was confirmed in my mind when I saw the accompanying picture, a photoshop of Colin Campbell forcing Rick Rypien to kiss Gary Bettman's behind a la Vince McMahon of the WWE.
The article itself is actually very thoughtful and intelligent and I love a good joke or a funny photoshop as much as anyone else. I also enjoy thoughtful debate. The two don't always mix well, at least if your aim is to be taken seriously. However, the title and picture do seem to encapsulate the ridiculousness that seems to permeate from some circles these days.
Wes Goldstein of CBSSports.com declares the Rypien incident a "black eye" for the NHL and calls it nothing like Ron Artest's foray into the stands and at the same time exactly the same.
"This wasn't anything like the incidents involving former Bruins tough guy Mike Milbury and NBA brawler Ron Artest , which saw those players wade into the stands to take on fans -- but it was just as threatening."
Wait - it's not like the Artest incident but it's just as damaging? He's saying it's not the same but also it is the same. OK, I'll bite.
Goldstein is referring to the impact the Rypien incident will have on how hockey is perceived by hockey fans, sports fans and outsiders. I'm pretty sure the Rypien incident isn't going to have nearly the impact the Artest incident did. That was on every news show, every channel, the lips of every person in the country. The sports world stopped. The 24 hour news networks stopped to cover it.
Rypien? The hockey world stopped. Everyone else went on about their business. There's a big difference. The story about Rypien on Deadspin - a decent barometer for sports in America - hasn't even cracked the top seven stories at the top of the page. In fact, a story published two hours before the Rypien story entitled "Ever Wonder What It's Like When The Police Get You Stoned And Make You Drive Around?" has 2,000 more hits.
Goldstein goes on to play the 'OH GOODNESS THINK OF THE CHILDREN!!!' card.
"In addition to tussling with Staubitz, Rypien had the audacity to push a linesman. You can just imagine what the fan felt like seeing a beefy-looking and angry Rypien training his sights on him... This isn't what the league's marketers mean by family entertainment. It's certainly not what they are thinking about when they talk about bringing fans closer to the game."
Please, please, PLEASE can we cut the family crap? Who are we kidding, really? This is a sport that still has fighting, is very physical, has players giving lewd gestures on camera and will bring beer directly to your seat. Sure, the NHL wants to be more family friendly and it's a good idea but they're also selling themselves to many other demographics. As much as the NHL has become about a family atmosphere, it's still targeted to many more not so family friendly demographics.
Hockey is a brutal, physical, trash-talking, almost-no-holds-barred, knock down, drag out battle watched by thousands who often times carry on - drunkenly, mind you - those brutish characteristics of the sport in the stands.
Now before you jump on me for calling out hockey fans, I don't mean all hockey fans. I don't mean every single person out there is a boozed up low-life looking to pick a fight. Let's be clear about that.
The point that I'm trying to make is that the game is what it is. The game is physical. The game is tough. There is trash talking and lots of it. Many times, all of that is going on in the stands as well. Everyone, players and fans alike plays a part.
Over decades and decades this game has become what it is. This game is never going to get rid of every headshot. Even if you managed to, there would still be concussions. Ice is hard. Someone is bound to fall on it the wrong way.
No matter how hard Gary Bettman comes down on Rick Rypien a player will - WILL - have another altercation with a fan.
James Wisniewski's action was unprecedented. We will - again, will - see something obscene that we haven't seen before on an NHL rink. That's one of the things that makes sports great is that, for better or worse, there's always another 'first' right around the corner.
The fact is that this sport was not built solely upon skill or speed or shooting ability. It was built upon those things, but it was also built upon -- or became very closely allied with -- physical strength, scare tactics, retribution, retaliation and anger.
People are drawn to hockey to see highly skilled players make amazing plays. They are also drawn to it to yell at their rival teams and fans and cheer when their boys get in a fight and lay a big haymaker on a rival goon.
Despite the 'human' tag, somewhere, deep down, however small, there is a part of us that makes us animals with animal instincts. This is a sport that, at times, plays to some of the darker and hot-headed of those instincts. Take Rypien. He looked like a Tiger at the zoo taking a swipe at a tourist that had gotten a little too close to the cage for his liking. That's not to excuse him or anyone else. It's simply stating the hot-headed, reactive, reflexes that are involved.
When we play this media blame game, many times the blame goes a lot deeper than what happened in a given instance.
"The arena didn't put out the tunnel."
"The player shouldn't have gone after the fan."
All along, it was the sport at fault. The sport created the environment the player was in. It helped to mold his attitude throughout his life. It also created the necessity of shielding the visitors from the raucous home crowd and that someone needed to perform a duty to set up that shield.
The list goes on and on.
The problem and faults go a lot deeper than one character in one event. They are part of the history of the sport and are deeply ingrained in the culture of it. To satisfy all of the complaints and break the old habits you'd have to completely revamp the sport from the ground up. Punishing a player or an arena staff member isn't going to stop the next incident. Did Todd Bertuzzi take note when Dale Hunter got 21 games for intentionally injuring Pierre Turgeron? Did Chris Simon take anything from Bertuzzi's assault of Steve Moore? Obviously, even long suspensions are not sending messages to future generations.
So if we're serious about the blame game we are playing and the need to eliminate certain hits or certain altercations we need to stop being reactive and start being proactive. Either stop playing this ridiculous blame game or put your money where your mouth is.
If we are to be of the opinion that this is not what hockey is about and want to get rid of all the horrible injuries and long suspensions, we would have to change the sport itself at its very core. We would have to reset 50+ years of the aggression and testosterone.
That's an awfully big project.
Ilya Kovalchuk a Healthy Scratch for Devils
Filed under: Devils, NHL Coaching
The New Jersey Devils went to great lengths this summer to secure a long-term contract for Ilya Kovalchuk, eventually working out a 15-year, $100 million pact after a previous attempt was rejected by the league for circumvention of the salary cap.
And now seven games into the regular season Kovalchuk is a healthy scratch, sitting out Saturday's 6-1 loss to the Buffalo Sabres. Bet you didn't see that one coming.
The six-time 40-goal scorer entered this weekends action tied for the team lead with five points (two goals, three assists) in seven games, but was held off the scoresheet in each of the past two games. According to the Bergen Record's Tom Gulitti, Kovalchuk took part in the morning skate, but was not an active participant in pre-game warm ups.
Sunday, 24 October 2010
Clemson Overcomes Adversity to Snap Georgia Tech Hex
Filed under: Clemson, Georgia Tech
CLEMSON, S.C. -- For Dabo Swinney, adversity and Georgia Tech are practically synonymous.
Five days after Swinney took the reins of a reeling Clemson program following Tommy Bowden's forced resignation in October 2008, his Tigers battled the Yellow Jackets tooth-and-nail before falling 21-17, largely due to six turnovers.
Last fall, his team suffered a pair of disheartening defeats to Tech. First came a 30-27 loss in Atlanta in a game that saw Clemson spot the Yellow Jackets a 21-0 first quarter lead, rally to take a 27-24 lead and fall following two Scott Blair field goals.
Then came the ACC title game; the Tigers rode C.J. Spiller's 301-yard all-purpose effort for a 34-33 lead with 6:11 left, close enough to smell an Orange Bowl bid. Instead, Tech put together a 13-play, 86-yard touchdown drive for a 39-34 win.
So Saturday, by any measure, didn't get off to a real super start.
Early Saturday morning, the fire alarm went off at the team's hotel, rousing everyone.
When the pregame meal began at 11:30 a.m., Swinney noticed about 12 players were missing.
Turns out, they were stuck in an elevator between the second and first floors. And it wasn't as if these were kickers, cornerbacks or skinny wide receivers. They were offensive linemen and tight ends, some of the biggest players on the roster -- offensive linemen Antoine McClain, Chris Hairston and David Smith and tight ends Dwayne Allen, Chad Diehl and Drew Traylor, among others.
The group was trapped inside the elevator for almost 50 minutes, and the Anderson (S.C.) Fire Department was called to break the door open and hold it open so players could crawl to safety.
Heat Lose Mike Miller Indefinitely to Thumb Injury
Filed under: Heat, NBA Injuries, NBA Preseason
The Miami Heat could be without Mike Miller for several weeks after the swingman suffered a fluke injury to his shooting hand. Miller's right hand became tangled in a teammate's jersey during practice Wednesday, causing injury to his thumb. "It was just a drill," coach Erik Spoelstra told the South Florida Sun-Sentinel. "He got it caught in a jersey with some contact, on a post-up."
An exact diagnosis has not been revealed, but he was scheduled to visit a specialist and undergo an MRI on Thursday.
The Miami Heat have been no stranger to injury this preseason -- most notably, Dwyane Wade and LeBron James tweaking their hamstrings. But James has already returned to the lineup, and Wade was just cleared to resume full contact drills.
Jerramy Stevens Arrested on Drug Charges
Filed under: Buccaneers
Jerramy Stevens was arrested Saturday night for possession of marijuana with intent to sell, possession of marijuana, and possession of drug paraphernalia. Stevens, a tight end for the Bucs, will not play Sunday.Stevens was pulled over in his Ford pickup truck at 7:05 p.m. Saturday for loud music, Tampa police spokeswoman Andrea Davis said in a news release. The officer said he smelled marijuana inside the vehicle and found 38 grams, or 1 1/3 ounce, of marijuana.
This is not the first run-in with the law for the 30-year-old. Stevens was suspended one game in 2007 after he was convicted of drunken driving in Scottsdale, Ariz. In 2003 he pleaded guilty to reckless driving.
Stevens had one catch for 13 yards in the Bucs 31-6 loss to the Saints. He has just three catches total on the season.
Kamari Charlton's Potential Caning Troubling to Former FSU Teammate
Filed under: Florida State
It was a few weeks ago when Ryan Sprague initially became alerted to the potential trouble facing former Florida State teammate Kamari Charlton. Sprague said urgent pleas posted by Charlton's wife on her husband's Facebook page were alarming.
"It was things like, 'I can't believe this can happen' or 'This could be happening' and she was generally broadcasting that she needed help," Sprague told FanHouse Saturday.
"Your initial reaction is this can't be true, or can't be happening, and reading about a friend makes it personal."
Charlton (right), who played at FSU from 1992-96, could be caned for staying in Singapore with an expired visa. Charlton's problems mounted on Friday, when he was charged with fraud for allegedly scamming an Australian man out of thousands of dollars.
Police also are investigating Charlton for money laundering, according to The Associated Press.
Charlton's bizarre saga also has caught the attention of the U.S. State Department, which has spoken out against caning and says it continues to monitor Charlton's situation.
Saturday, 23 October 2010
'Power of Twitter' Helps Chargers Sell Out Game vs. Patriots
Filed under: Chargers, Patriots, AFC East, AFC West
This never would have happened even three years ago, but the New England Patriots and San Diego Chargers can thank Twitter for helping sell out Sunday's game between the two teams at Qualcomm Stadium, thus avoiding a local television blackout.
As Thomas Grillo of the Boston Herald reported, after San Diego tweeted out Thursday on the team's official Twitter account that 1,000 general tickets still needed to be sold by 1:15 p.m. local time in order to lift the blackout, the Patriots followed suit with a tweet of their own.
"Hey Patriots fans on the West Coast, if you want to see the Pats play the Chargers, go to Chargers.com to buy tickets," the tweet read.
Jared Odrick Placed on IR by Dolphins
Filed under: Dolphins, AFC East, NFL Injuries
DAVIE, Fla. -- One day after hinting that they were going to monitor an injury to rookie defensive end Jared Odrick's left foot before making any rash decisions, the Miami Dolphins placed the first-round pick on injured reserve, ending his 2010 season.The 6-foot-5, 304-pound Odrick was getting closer to returning from the right fibula hairline fracture he suffered during Miami's season-opening win at Buffalo, when he hurt his other leg at the end of Wednesday's practice.
Odrick had earned the Dolphins' starting job at right defensive end in training camp, but Tony McDaniel took most of those reps in last Sunday's overtime win at Green Bay.
Kasey Kahne: 'It Was Time for Me to Move On'
Filed under: Brian Vickers, Kasey Kahne, NASCAR Rumors, Sprint Cup, Red Bull Racing, NASCAR
Discussing his abrupt departure from Richard Petty Motorsports this week, NASCAR Sprint Cup Series driver Kasey Kahne insisted Friday morning that it was a mutual decision. He dismissed reports that he was owed money from the team and challenged anyone to question his commitment despite the late-season split."It was time for me to move on,'' Kahne told reporters Friday morning at Martinsville (Va.) Speedway, where he'll begin his tenure in the No. 83 Red Bull Toyota in Sunday's NASCAR Sprint Cup Series race.
"It definitely went down differently than what a lot of people people expected, including myself. It's a big change for myself. I'm been doing the same thing for six and a half years. ... and now everything's different, but I'm looking forward to it. I've been looking forward to next year and now I've got a quicker start on it.
"I think it's good for me that it happened. And I think it's good for RPM also.''
Red Bull Racing general manager Jay Frye concurred and acknowledged the timing certainly benefited them as well. Kahne was already set to run the full 2011 season with the team before taking over the No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet in 2012. With one of Red Bull's lead drivers, Brian Vickers recovering from a blood clot, the No. 83 was available for Kahne now.
Lee Westwood Set to Pass Tiger Woods as Golf's Top-Ranked Player
ST. ANDREWS, Scotland (AP) -- Lee Westwood is set to replace Tiger Woods at the top of the rankings Oct. 31 after saying Sunday he does not expect to play again until November because of an ankle injury.The Englishman will climb to No. 1 if he does not return before the end of the month and Woods follows through with his intention not to play again until the HSBC Champions on Nov. 4-7.
Westwood has been struggling with a right ankle injury and finished tied for 11th at the Alfred Dunhill Links Championship.
Asked when he might play again, Westwood said: "At the earliest probably HSBC, maybe Dubai [Nov. 25-28]."
Woods has topped the rankings for over five years, since the week before the 2005 U.S. Open at Pinehurst. Woods will have been at No. 1 for 279 weeks in Monday's rankings.
Westwood said his injury had been troubling him for a while.
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