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Saturday, April 30, 2011
End of an Era? Grizzlies Eliminate Spurs
The Grizzlies did it. They beat the Spurs. If TBL had written this, the headline would have simply said, "Ballin': Zach Randolph." Zach had 31 points on 22 shots to go along with 11 rebounds as the Grizzlies completed their first round upset of the #1-seeded San Antonio Spurs. Randolph scored 17 of those 31 [...]
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Headlinin’: Ohio State releases complete Tattoogate inventory
Making the morning rounds.
? A little accounting. Ohio State has released the nine-page letter from the Department of Justice that initially alerted the school to NCAA violations involving five current Buckeyes uncovered in the feds' probe into drug trafficking at a Columbus tattoo parlor. The letter, dated Dec. 7, 2010, is mostly an inventory of dozens of OSU-related items confiscated from the shop, most of them coming from the four offensive starters ? Terrelle Pryor, Boom Herron, DeVier Posey and Mike Adams ?�suspended for the first five games of the 2011 season. Specifically:
? Four 2008 Big Ten championship rings, sold for a combined $5,000.
? Four sets of 2008 Gold Pants (commemorating a win over Michigan) sold for a combined $2,000.
? A 2008 Fiesta Bowl ring sold for $850.
? A Fiesta Bowl watch sold for $200.
? A pair of signed game-worn cleats sold for $1,000.
? A set of cleats, football pants, gloves and a Fiesta Bowl jersey sold for $1,000.
? A pair of football pants, 10 gloves (four of them signed), a signed Ohio State ball cap, two signed football helmets and a pair of signed cleats exchanged for free tattoos.
?�A 2009 Rose Bowl plaque, a 2010 Rose Bowl watch and three pairs of signed shoes worn against Michigan that were apparently given away as gifts.
? A 2010 Rose Bowl watch exchanged for a 2003 Chevy Tahoe purchased by tattoo shop owner Edward Rife for $3,500. (For which Rife also received four Rose Bowl tickets, although not the ring and game pants he was promised.)
Including the value of the Tahoe, that amounts to a grand total of $13,950 divvied among four guys. What's worse: That the players put their careers in jeopardy by pawning off irreplaceable keepsakes, or that their price was so low? [Cleveland Plain Dealer, Associated Press]
? Who hired you, again? In (hopefully) an effort to weed out some of the bottom-dwelling games that put the screws to second-tier programs in the name of a minuscule ratings boost for ESPN, the NCAA has put a moratorium on new bowl games for the next three years and established a "Bowl Licensing Task Force" to review "the purpose, criteria, process and oversight of the NCAA licensing procedures for football bowl games." The bowl explosion over the last decade has nearly doubled the number of active games (35 last year) since 1992, when there were eighteen.
The first on the chopping block could be the Ticket City Bowl (aka the "Zombie Cotton Bowl"), which joined the embattled Fiesta and Insight bowls Thursday as the only three postseason games that weren't renewed for 2011 by the NCAA Postseason Bowl Licensing Subcommittee. The subcommittee pushed back its decision on the Ticket City's license "pending further information and discussion of its business plan." [NCAA]
? Life on the hot seat. A day after calling out running back Washaun Ealey in front of a roomful of boosters, the elusive "Evil Richt" took the stage again Thursday night to set a disgruntled fan straight at a stop in Macon. "I see your frustration, I understand your frustration," Richt said in response to a question about Georgia's struggling running game. "I wasn't born yesterday, I've coached football for 25 years, so I know what the hell I'm doing, OK? I appreciate your passion, I appreciate your support for this football team. Everybody can just calm down and know that we're in good hands." [Macon Telegraph]
? Can't keep a good bro down. Another sign that we haven't seen the last of beleaguered South Carolina quarterback Stephen Garcia after his latest suspension from the team: Gamecock beat writer Travis Haney relayed Thursday that "Every single person I've spoken with expects Garcia to be allowed back on the team in June," in time to resume workouts and take aim at both a repeat SEC East championship and the school's career passing record. [Charleston Post & Courier]
Quickly… The NCAA strengthens academic credit requirements for eligibility. … Phil Taylor and Danny Watkins are the first Baylor teammates to go in the first round of the same draft since 1957, and neither one was even the Bears' best player. … Rutgers center Dallas Hendrikson will miss the entire 2011 season with a torn ACL. … And Tyron Smith is USC's highest first-round offensive lineman in 15 years, but he's not letting it go to his head.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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Meme Watch: In search of a running back for all seasons
Back in Alabama, they're busy comparing Mark Ingram to Emmitt Smith, another short, stout and prolific SEC star whose versatility, vision and balance more than made up for his less-than-awe-inspiring speed. And the scouts don't necessarily disagree: Ingram is almost unanimously considered the best back on the board as we approach the start of the NFL Draft on Thursday. So why is he suddenly on the verge of falling out of the first round altogether?
Maybe, as suggested by Yahoo! colleague Dan Wetzel, it's because no one in the quarterback-dominated NFL is looking for Emmitt Smith anymore:
The NFL has turned its back on its ball carriers. Modern thinking says the position is best handled by a pool of competent runners, not a single superstar that a high NFL draft pick — and subsequent high salary — would cost. Offensive coordinators want fresh legs and see backs as not just interchangeable but replaceable.
[…]
Previous generations of football executives loved running backs. In the 20 drafts held from 1971-90, 34 backs were taken in the first round, 18 of them in the top 5, including four No. 1 overalls. As recently as 2005 and 2006, Ronnie Brown and Reggie Bush, respectively, went second overall.Today, selecting a running back that high would be considered unorthodox. The rage is defensive lineman (Shutdown Corner's latest two-part mock predicts 11 will go in the first round). That's how quickly the game has changed and how, for the top backs of today, timing is a curse.
Ingram's slide may be an extreme version of the trend, if there's a trend at all —�some 20 running backs have come off the board since 2005, when Ronnie Brown, Cedric Benson and Cadillac Williams all went in the top five —�but it does reflect the reality of a league that passed on more than 55 percent of all downs last year for two-thirds of its total yards. In that context, the selling point for top backs like Ingram and Oklahoma's DeMarco Murray is less their ability to rack up big, workhorse-like numbers than their value as a "three-down" back —�a guy who can run, catch, pick up blitzes and never have to leave the field because he doesn't fit the call or the situation. "Versatility is what I always try to do," Ingram told Wetzel. "I try to control every facet of the game. I take pride in being able to break a 70-yard run and being able to get one yard on third and one."
Obviously, the standard for staying on the field in college isn't quite as high: You don't have to be 220 pounds to handle 20 carries per game or pick up a yard in a spread offense. But that doesn't make the true all-purpose back —�the guy who does everything well enough that you want him on the field under almost any circumstances — any more�prevalent or any less valuable. In 2011, you've got maybe a handful of those guys coming back, at best:
? MARCUS LATTIMORE, South Carolina. Other guys may run for more yards, but there won't be a better back in the country this fall because no one else ranks so near the top by so many different criteria. As a freshman, Lattimore managed the rare feat of emerging as both one of the nation's most reliable between-the-tackles workhorses — in Carolina's biggest games, he shouldered 37 carries against Georgia, 23 against Alabama, 29 against Tennessee, 40 at Florida and 23 at Clemson, all Gamecock wins —�and one of its best route-runners out of the backfield, averaging a wide receiver-like 14.2 yards on 29 catches.
He was also a machine in short yardage, plowing ahead for 15 first downs on 18 carries with three yards or less to go on third down. With the possible exception of a halfback pass, there are no situations in which Lattimore wouldn't be one of the first two or three guys you'd pick to have in your backfield regardless of the system, and I only single out the halfback pass because he hasn't attempted one.
? TRENT RICHARDSON, Alabama. Injuries dramatically slowed Ingram's heir apparent after Halloween, but Richardson has flashed the full range over his first two seasons as a power runner, a home-run threat, a receiver, a return man, and a pass blocker. The only thing he hasn't done yet is put all of it together as the Tide's feature back.
? DOUG MARTIN, Boise State. Think of the infamous Muscle Hamster as Ingram's Rocky Mountain doppelg�nger: 5-foot-9, 215 pounds, and equally capable of breaking a game open as a runner or receiver, which he did last year to the tune of 1,600 yards and 14 touchdowns for an offense that didn't have any extra touches — or spotlights — to spare.
? STEPFAN TAYLOR, Stanford. If the Cardinal offense begins and ends with quarterback Andrew Luck, much of the overlooked middle sections belong to Taylor, a sturdy 210-pounder who racked up 1,400 yards from scrimmage as a sophomore and consistently kept the chains moving: Seventeen of his 22 touches on third/fourth-and-short resulted in Stanford first downs.
? BRANDON BOLDEN, Ole Miss. He's always looked the part of a first-rate workhorse at 5-11, 220 pounds, but Bolden's first season in a feature role also left him as the Rebels' most frequent target with 32 catches. If he matches his junior production (976 yards rushing, 344 receiving, 17 total touchdowns) Bolden will leave as Ole Miss' all-time leader in rushing yards, all-purpose yards and touchdowns, knocking two other all-purpose stars — Deuce McAllister and Dexter McCluster —�out of the books in the process.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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NCAA approves official meddling with game clock in final seconds. What could possibly go wrong?
As expected, the NCAA's top rules committee has formally approved a new rule that mimics the NFL's mandated 10-second runoff on clock-stopping penalties in the final minute of a game, in direct response to the bizarre circumstances that allowed North Carolina to beat Tennessee in December's Music City Bowl. Officially, per the NCAA release:
Another new football rule that will be enforced is a 10-second rundown of the game clock if a team commits a foul that stops the clock in the final minute of both halves.
The opponent has three options in these instances:
?� Take the yardage penalty and the 10-second rundown.
?� Take the yardage penalty without the 10-second rundown.
?� Decline both the 10-second rundown and the penalty yardage.
In practice, it shall henceforth be known as the "Dooley Rule," for the coach whose pain willed it into existence. In the bowl game, North Carolina ?�out of timeouts and needing a field goal to tie in the closing seconds ? managed to stop the clock with one second left by spiking the ball amid a chaotic fire drill of substitutions that resulted in at least six extra Tar Heels on the field at the snap. UNC was flagged for having too many men, but, because the spiking stopped the clock, was still able to line up for the tying field goal and eventually prevail in overtime ?�victory by staggering ineptitude. Under the new rule, the penalty would have automatically ended the game.
All legislation is subject to the law of unintended consequences,�but the caveat in this case is less about the unforeseen results of the change than it is the specifically intended consequences. In the first place, the 10-second runoff isn't solving a rampant problem. It's only going into effect now because there was only just now a situation that seemed to call for it. It also escalates the consequences of a penalty to a degree that doesn't apply at any other point in the game, and can't be applied evenly to both sides. One team jumps offsides with 1:10 on the clock, it's just a 5-yard penalty; the other team commits the same offense 30 seconds later, and it's a 5-yard penalty plus 10 seconds of critical game time suddenly vanished into thin air.
Which brings us to the basic premise, the bizarre idea of subjecting arguably the least arbitrary element of the game�to the most arbitrary element, an official's flag. A game is 60 minutes long, 3,600 seconds, in the same way that the field is 100 yards long, and a field goal is worth three points, etc. It's one of the inviolable boundaries that guides strategy and planning. That's the rule. Not only is it unwise to give a ref the authority to abruptly reduce the length to 3,590 seconds (or less): In practice, it's punitive. It's punitive when the NFL does it, too. A runoff always explicitly favors the team that holds a late lead, by imposing circumstances that didn't apply when it built that lead.
How popular will those vanishing seconds be when a bogus holding call costs a team a chance to run another play in the red zone, or kick a game-winning field goal? Does it make sense to suddenly declare "game over" over an intentional grounding call? It's like ending a game with a disqualification.
A situation like the end of the Music City Bowl bothers me a lot less than ending�a game on a runoff, because the rules and the consequences apply equally to both teams at all times. A penalty is a penalty is a penalty, period. Start futzing with the clock, and you're manufacturing a whole new brand of screw job: Death by micromanagement.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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Breakfast Buffet: Tickets will be scarce for aircraft carrier game
1. The first-ever college basketball game not to be held on land won't be an easy ticket. Almost all 7,000 seats for the Michigan State-North Carolina game to be held on an aircraft carrier next November in San Diego will either go to military personnel, to sponsors or to high-profile boosters from either school.
2. The star attraction in the University of San Diego sports bribery scandal made a surprise appearance at a San Diego federal court on Monday. Brandon Johnson, USD's all-time leading scorer, pleaded not guilty at his arraignment, then returned home to Houston without speaking to reporters.
3. If it seemed strange that George Washington would fire coach Karl Hobbs more than a month after the Colonials capped a 17-14 season, there was an explanation for the unusual timing. Hobbs' firing comes less than a week after former America East Conference commissioner Patrick Nero was introduced as George Washington's new athletic director.
4. Just in case anyone wasn't already satisfied that Bob Knight was erroneous in his criticism of Kentucky's program, the Lexington Herald-Leader compared how the Wildcats did in the classroom this year to other schools. The verdict: Kentucky's 2.824 team GPA was second best of the seven SEC schools willing to report their scores, a shade behind Alabama's 2.83.
5. A future member of college basketball's all-name team will decide what school he'll attend later this week. Erie Community College forward God's Gift Achiuwa will not make any more recruiting visits and will choose between Washington, St. John's and Cincinnati. For those curious, here's my piece from last year on how Achiuwa got his unusual name.�
There's a reason Baylor signee Deuce Bello is known as perhaps the best dunker in the class of 2011. The springy wing shows it here with this smooth behind-the-back near-360 during warmups before the Jordan Brand Classic earlier this month in Charlotte.
"The one part that made my thought process even a lot easier was ... my 12-year-old who lives in Miami called me. And he said 'Daddy, I know the University of Miami needs a coach. I don't want you to come here. I want you to stay at Kansas State because I like it there better." -- Frank Martin reiterating why he's content at Kansas State after Miami showed little interest in bringing him back to his hometown. (810 WHB)
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2011 Recruiting: Greg Brown
Previously: none this year, but this is an annual series. Check out last year's.
| Fremont, OH - 5'10" 180 | |||
| | Scout | 3*, #50 CB | |
| Rivals | 3*, NR, #54 OH | ||
| ESPN | 3*, 77, #35 CB | ||
| Others | NR | ||
| Other Suitors | Michigan State | ||
| YMRMFSPA | Grant Mason | ||
| Previously On MGoBlog | Commitment post. FNL video and scouting. | ||
| Notes | Early enrollee. Same HS as one Charles Woodson. | ||
| Film | |||
| (Brown stuff at the two minute mark.) Scouting Ohio has junior film. | |||
Greg Brown committed to Michigan a long, long time ago. This site's "Hello" post dates back to September of 2009, mere days after new Hurricane Tate Forcier had made his debut at Michigan. At the time we had little to go on except Jim Stefani's comprehensive database ("very quick, speedy, athletic, great body control, fine ball skills and has fluid hips? impressive at the 2008 Michigan summer camp and was rated by some onlookers as the second best CB at the camp as a mere freshman") and some message board post wherein Brown is declared Fremont's "next big professional athlete" by someone who is probably not an NFL scout. The mere fact he had a committable Michigan offer?and reported another one from Michigan State?before his junior year even started was the most powerful evidence we had at the time that he was going to be some variety of Big Time.
It didn't really work out like that. He never even looked like emerging from the Pit of Generic Three Stars, spent most of his senior year playing linebacker, and seemed like yet another questionable move by Rich Rodriguez when it came to defensive recruiting. Rivals doesn't even bother to rank him outside of "you'll get three stars and like it." When he had a brief flirtation with Syracuse at the tail end of 2010 that seemed like a development that would inevitably lead to Brown and Michigan parting ways like various other "whoops, you committed" players(e.g., Dewayne Peace, Jordan Barnes) had under Rodriguez.
He stuck, though, and was the only member of this recruiting class to enroll early. No one expected much from him, but there he was in the spring game?
?giving up a touchdown, sure. But giving up a touchdown that seemed like offensive pass interference after being close enough to be shoved by the wide receiver. I don't have to remind Michigan fans about what happened last year and how being in the same timezone as a wide receiver is an improvement.
This would be a hilarious reach but for Brown getting consistent praise in the spring. It's still a bit of a stretch but three things make a trend, right? (1) Hoke after spring:
"He has improved every week," Hoke said of Brown, from Fremont (Ohio) Ross. "I think he's got a great future. Sometimes when there's an opportunity and a guy comes in there and competes, he might just win (the job).
(2) Hoke two weeks earlier:
Freshmen contributing this fall: "Really haven't thought about it much yet." Depth concern at OL and DL might provide some opportunities, but it's too early to say. Corner? "Maybe. We'll see. Greg Brown's really, in the last week and a half he's really stepped up." Courtney Avery has stepped up as well.
(3) Craig Ross was also pleasantly surprised:
In a huge surprise to me, I saw some really good play from Greg Brown?at corner?in the last Saturday scrimmage [ed: ie, the Saturday before the spring game]. This was mentioned by the coaches, so it is not a secret or my insanity.
That sort of praise did not pop up about the departed Cullen Christian, for one. So it means something. How much it means is something we'll have to wait four years to find out, but at the very least it suggests Brown has a chance to be someone other than Darnell Hood.
As for what kind of player he is, the scouting reports read like the opposite of the ones we got for Avery and Talbott last year. Those praised the kids' athleticism and worried about their smurfiness; Brown's think he's got good enough size but don't know about those hips. ESPN($):
Has average height with good overall body length; should continue to fill out well. Plays bigger and taller on film than listed measurables. A bit high and rigid in pedal and opening and turning but uses his hands well and can stick to receivers in man-to-man without giving up much separation. Looks to be a better zone and underneath corner. Closes with above average speed and quickness. Displays more-than-adequate change-of-direction skill and overall footwork. ? Very effective in deep coverage as well and defends the jump-ball well with his good leaping and high-point skills. Comfortable around the football and his polished receiving skills show. However, we do question his transitional skills and ability to flip his hips fluidly when matched up versus fast major college wideouts; not real explosive as a runner and speed could get challenged vertically as well.
When Tim covered the playoff game between Brown and OL commit Jack Miller he found Brown playing linebacker(!):
He's a bit stocky, and played exclusively outside linebacker on defense for Fremont Ross. Even at a position closer to the ball, he rarely seemed to be in on any plays, despite having a chance on some of them. As a linebacker, he only covered tight ends from the slot in pass coverage and did an adequate job staying with a guy half a foot taller than him. ? His speed wasn't that impressive.
Those reports are in opposition Allen Trieu's, but Trieu caught him right at the start of his junior year?Tim saw him in his last HS game. Trieu($):
The report I had read coming into the game was that he did not have great timed speed, but watching him, I saw that he played fast. He also plays with a lot of aggressiveness and attitude and that showed in run support. He isn't afraid to come up and make tackles. He isn't a particularly powerful tackler, but he went low and got the job done. As a receiver and return man, he showed his quickness and open field elusiveness.
Areas for Improvement: Brown plays bigger than his size, but he is undersized.More Trieu($):
FWIW, local Ohio observers had a slightly higher opinion than Tim or the rankings at large. Ohio Varsity made him the #5 DB in the state, ahead of OSU commit and high three-star Dejuan Gambrell.
Etc.: Impressive games against Marion Harding and Findlay. This is not Greg Brown. He was All-Ohio in his division, the largest, as an "end" on offense.
Why Grant Mason? Mason was around 5'11" and was not athletic enough to get an NFL sniff, but he was a useful piece as an upperclassman after his transfer from Stanford and started as a senior. Like Mason, Brown is a good student (3.5 GPA) and projects as a guy to develop in the hopes he ends up a useful piece behind a star.
Guru Reliability: You'd think high since he's been fairly high profile?evaluators had two years of games to check him out in the full knowledge he was a Michigan commit. The spring stuff might bring that into question.
General Excitement Level: If you asked me on Signing Day I was going to politely suggest that not everyone can be a starter and Brown was probably going to be Darnell Hood, but one spring ball later Brown looks like a viable threat to crack the two deep and is 50-50 to be a starter at some point. A bit below moderate, then.
Projection: also 50-50 to redshirt. Michigan's starters should be Woolfolk and Avery and they are apparently going with Thomas Gordon, not a corner, as a dedicated nickelback. So it's JT Floyd, Terrance Talbott, and the three freshmen competing to be the two guys who rotate in. I'm guessing only one freshman plays?Brown may not have the hype but he showed up early.
As far as the future goes, he'll be in a war to replace Woolfolk next year. He probably loses that to someone, at which point he'll have to wait for Avery to graduate before he gets a shot.
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Tressel probe is costing Ohio State more than bad headlines -�and more than Tressel’s fine can cover
Almost from the moment it broke last December, the Ohio State "Tatgate" scandal has cost the Buckeyes at every turn. Initially, it cost them four senior starters for the first five games of the upcoming season for allegedly exchanging autographs and memorabilia for cash and free ink. Personally, it's cost Tressel the same five games on top of a $250,000 fine and a tarnished reputation for remaining silent and then actively covering up his knowledge of the violations. Eventually ? depending on the mercurial response of the NCAA ? it may cost the Buckeyes their Sugar Bowl win over Arkansas in January, most or all of their 11 regular-season wins in 2010 and/or future scholarships and bowl games.
For the moment, though, the ongoing internal investigation is mainly costing the athletic department a boatload of money:
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)?Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said Tuesday that the $250,000 fine levied against coach Jim Tressel for violating NCAA rules may not even cover the cost of the investigation.
"It'll probably eat up the whole $250 (thousand)," Smith said. "I'm not sure. We haven't done any projections."
[…]
Smith would not say how much the investigation into Tressel's NCAA troubles would cost, although the university has hired two what he called "expensive" companies to help. He said Ohio State may have to make up the difference by dipping into the money the Buckeyes made from their appearance in the Sugar Bowl.
"It's a nightmare," he said.
Smith also admitted that he had to rope Tressel into a public apology on March 14, a full week after the coach failed to say "I'm sorry" as planned on March 7, the night he, Smith and university president Gordon Gee held a press conference to come clean about the emails Tressel received alerting him to potential violations months before the start of the season.
Unlike certain other people closely monitoring the Senator's status from the outside, I still refuse to believe his job is in any real jeopardy until the NCAA comes down with the same hammer it used to wallop USC last year, or until the Buckeyes stop landing in BCS bowls every single year. But an athletic director who's beginning to sound more than a little perturbed by the whole business isn't exactly a vote of confidence if it comes to that, is it?
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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Headlinin’: Oregon declares victory in the fashion wars
Making the morning rounds.
? The sincerest form of flattery. After years of ridicule and scorn, Oregon's commitment to pushing the fashion envelope has won the war, according to local columnist George Schroeder, who points to recent uniform changes at Arizona State and Washington State as proof that other programs are conceding the success of the "the Oregon Way" in an effort to emulate the Ducks' emergence as a national power. "Last month, I visited Stillwater, Okla., where they're abuzz about what the Cowboys are about to do," Schroeder writes. "No one's saying, not officially. But one highly placed official says: 'We're going to be the Oregon of the Midwest.' We'll have to wait awhile to know for sure, but I suspect Oklahoma State's football team won't be wearing the same outfit twice (in a row) again." [Eugene Register Guard]
? Mr. President, we must close the statue gap! Auburn, no doubt noticing the headlines this spring over statue unveilings at Florida and Alabama, has announced plans to unveil bronze statues of its three Heisman Trophy winners outside Jordan-Hare Stadium later this year, as well as a bust of one-time Auburn coach John Heisman. Actually, sculptor Ken Bjorge secretly began work on the graven images of 1971 winner Pat Sullivan and '85 winner Bo Jackson last spring, and added Cam Newton to the queue when he hoisted the trophy in December. The finished products will be 150 percent of each player's actual size and weigh 1,900 pounds apiece. [al.com, War Eagle Reader]
? We have ways of making you talk, such as: Conceding to your demands. In less uplifting Auburn news, former Tiger linemen Chaz Ramsey — reversing his previous stance —�has agreed to meet with NCAA investigators next week over his on-camera claims that he accepted cash from Auburn boosters. Ramsey told HBO's Real Sports and later the Birmingham News that he received $200 to $300 in "cash handshakes" after at least three games in 2007, but initially balked at talking to the NCAA because Auburn wanted its attorneys to be present at the meeting; there won't be anyone from the university in the room next week, but that doesn't mean he's going to name names. [al.com]
? That sound you hear is Larry Scott licking his chops. The Big 12 and Fox Sports announced a 13-year deal Wednesday that will reportedly pay the league about $90 million a year for rights to television, online, mobile and wireless content. And that's largely for secondary TV rights: Along with its existing deal with ABC/ESPN, the conference is now due roughly $130 million in annual TV rights through 2015-16, and the doubling of the number of games on Fox's cable channels (FSN and FX) means every football game played in a Big 12 stadium this fall will be available on a screen near you. [Associated Press]
? Behind the curtain. Writing for Deadspin, a former BYU sociology professor estimates that a staggering 80 percent of Cougar athletes punished for violating the university's honor code since 1993 are minorities, several of whom tell him on the record that they felt deceived about the importance of the honor code as recruits and were later targeted for behavior they describe as common among white athletes who are rarely punished. One former football player, Ray Hudson, claimed he was repeatedly interrogated and spied on for having an out-of-wedlock child that the university knew about when it recruited him (his girlfriend was pregnant at the time); the father of a Jewish player, Ryan Kessman, said his son was questioned by coach Bronco Mendenhall and handful of players over a violation of the school's ban on caffeine (he was spotted drinking a cappuccino at Starbucks) and later transferred rather than appear before the honor code office.
BYU didn't comment on any specific cases, but its not hard to erect a defense: The professor who co-authored the article, Darron Smith, was dismissed from the university in 2005 after the publication of his book, Black and Mormon, and most of the players he quotes played under former head coach Gary Crowton, who was fired following a wave of violations in 2004, including two separate instances of group sex that resulted in rape accusations against football players, none of whom were convicted. [Deadspin]
? It's a natural complement to grass. Here is a picture of Les Miles kissing a pig:
That is all. [WBRZ, NBC 33 TV]
Quickly… Keyshawn Johnson is running a 7-on-7 business, and not for the money. … Quarterback Nathan Stanley is transferring from Ole Miss after falling from starter to fourth-string. … Indiana lineman Aaron Price is giving up football due to a degenerative back condition. … On Cam Newton's progression in the three stages of quarterback development. … Auburn's Heisman-dropping gymnast says her mid-routine pose has nothing to do with Auburn's quarterback. … Notre Dame and Northwestern will renew their rivalry in 2014. … RIP Bob Shaw, a former Ohio State All-American and World War II vet who died Saturday at age 89. … Mack Brown meets the oldest living Longhorn. … An officer who shot and killed a football player from Division II Pace University is voted Officer of the Year by his peers. … And Braylon Edwards gives Brady Hoke his blessing to hand out the No. 1 jersey to whoever he wants.
Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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Video: FAU players out-scheme a field full of inert construction equipment
Construction crews have been hard at work since last year on Florida Atlantic's first on-campus stadium in Boca Raton, a 30,000-seat addition that will put an end to the Owls' half-hour treks to the smaller venue it currently shares with a pair of high schools in Fort Lauderdale and complete the 11-year-old program's maturation into a real live boy. The new stadium is expected to be finished in time for the 2011 season.
In the meantime, though, there's really no hurry — armed with their training as foot soldiers in coach Howard Schnellenberger's decades-long war against heavy machinery, the players are fully prepared to hit the field under pretty much any circumstances:
Attention Coach Schnellenberger: Alfred Morris' unbridled enthusiasm and commitment to perfection in the face of tetanus, Porta-Johns and the aluminum equivalent of Terrance Cody is impressive. Continue to get that man the ball.
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Hat tip: The man with the mike, Chuck King.
Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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The All-Undrafted Team: The best draft-day snubs of the last 20 years, defensive edition
An annual homage to the best college players of the last 20 years who didn't make the cut on draft day. Previously: The All-Undrafted Offense. Part Two: The All-Undrafted Defense.
For college fans, the NFL Draft extravaganza unfolding over the next four days is often as fascinating for who doesn't come off the board as for who does, or when and where they happen to go. Every spring, dozens of All-Americans, record-breakers and campus legends are passed over by the scouts, sometimes for obvious limitations ? too small, too slow, played in the wrong system, got hurt ? and sometimes for no discernible rhyme or reason at all.
Not all of these former stars represent baffling oversights by the scouts, but they are the best college players at their respective positions to be left behind since Mel Kiper Jr. began his plot to take over all media in 1990.
? Defensive Line: TIM COLSTON, Kansas State.
Colston was the best player on the nation's top-ranked statistical defense in 1995 and was voted Big Eight Defensive Player of the Year over the likes of fellow All-Americans and future draft picks Tony Brackens, Cedric Jones, Jared Tomich, Brandon Mitchell, Zach Thomas, Grant Wistrom, Mike Mickens and Nebraska's Peter Brothers, Christian and Jason. Colston's tenure corresponded with the "Mildcats" great breakthrough under coach Bill Snyder, from "America's Most Hapless Team" to a reliable 10-game winner for the better part of a decade, based mainly on the ferocious defenses Colston helped pioneer from 1993-95.
? Defensive Line: MITCH KING, Iowa.
The slightly undersized tackle was a two-time All-Big Ten pick in 2007-08 and an All-American by several outlets as a senior, when he anchored the conference's best scoring defense ? a unit blitz-averse coordinator Norm Parker built largely around King's ability to disrupt blocking schemes and keep linemen off of the linebackers. At 6-foot-1, 280 pounds, though, the measurables weren't there for draftniks. King a season on the Titans' practice squad in 2009 and bounced around among three different teams in 2010, eventually landing (tentatively) with the New Orleans Saints.
? Defensive Line: CHRIS HUTCHINSON, Michigan.
Not to be confused with the Canadian poet, the big Texas native played in every game of his career and started every game for teams that won back-to-back Big Ten championships in 1991 and 1992. Hutchinson went out on an All-American campaign in '92 that tied the single-season school record with 11 sacks and left him second on the career sack list with twenty-four. On top of being voted team MVP that year, he was awarded a postgraduate scholarship to enroll in Michigan's medical school.
? Linebacker: DARYL BUSH, Florida State.
An amateur poet, saxophone player and 4.0 finance student, Bush was never a star on the dominant FSU defenses that featured more than a dozen eventual draft picks from 1994-97. But he was a three-time All-ACC pick and remains among the best defenders of the Bowden era, about as high an endorsement as they come given the competition.
? Linebacker: PAT FITZGERALD, Northwestern.
Before he was one of the youngest (and brightest) head coaches in the country, Fitzgerald was one of the most decorated linebackers in Big Ten history, a two-time All-American and back-to-back winner of both the Nagurski Trophy and the Bednarik Award as the nation's best defensive player in 1995 -96 ? not coincidentally, the same years Northwestern broke its 25-year losing streak to capture its first and second Big Ten titles since 1936. Fitzgerald was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2009, but only managed a year with the Dallas Cowboys before hitting the fast track as a coach.
? Linebacker: VINCE HALL, Virginia Tech.
There were valid reasons for teams to avoid Hall in the 2008 Draft ? he was too short (6-feet even), he was coming off major postseason knee surgery to repair a dumb injury he suffered on a jet ski before the '08 Orange Bowl (he still played) and he wasn't able to work out to put to rest lingering doubts about his speed. But there was no doubting his sheer production at Tech: A three-time All-ACC pick, Hall started from his second game onward as a true freshman, starring as the most active member (more than 400 career tackles) of defenses that finished in the top five nationally in total and scoring defense all four years he was on campus from 2004-07, with a pair of conference championships for their trouble. Longtime Hokie defensive coordinator Bud Foster called Hall the best player he's ever had, but the scouts have seen at least 30 others they apparently like more.
? Linebacker: JARRETT IRONS, Michigan.
Along with Rob Swett, Sam Sword and Glen Steele, Irons was the most decorated of the gloriously-named front seven stars on the overwhelming Wolverine defenses of the mid-nineties, despite graduating a year too soon to enjoy its greatest glory, the 1997 national championship. Irons left Ann Arbor as an All-American and the owner of the school's career tackle record, but may be remembered most fondly for his prominent role as a freshman in a critical goal line stand to beat Penn State in 1993 (he's No. 37):
Before he was passed over, Irons apparently expected to go in the first three rounds of the '97 draft, and later contributed an interesting article to a website called "Scholar-Baller" about his decision to eschew the free-agent route for a graduate degree at Michigan after the shock of the snub began to wear off.
? Safety: JIM LEONHARD, Wisconsin.
Leonhard set the interception standard for the last decade by picking off 11 passes in 2002, then added another 10 over the next two years to go with his reputation as the Big Ten's most productive punt returner. Leonhard earned exactly one All-America nod from a major selector as a sophomore (CNNSI), a junior (ESPN) and a senior (Pro Football Weekly) before becoming the poster child for "too small, too slow, too white" DBs everywhere by working his way into a regular gig with the New York Jets, for whom he now starts on one of the best defenses in the NFL.
? Safety: J.T. THATCHER, Oklahoma.
Thatcher led the Big 12 in 2000 with eight interceptions and drew some All-America notice as one of the leaders of the outstanding Sooner D that shut out Florida State (led by Heisman winner Chris Weinke) to clinch a stunning national championship run in Bob Stoops' second season. But he's probably remembered just as fondly as one of the nation's best (and most frequently deployed, thanks to the defense) punt returners, an opportunity he exploited to maximum effect as OU's all-time leader in single-season and career return yards.
? Safety: LAWRENCE WRIGHT, Florida.
If you don't remember Wright as the "enforcer" of the Gator secondary in the mid-nineties, well, neither does Joey Kent:
Florida owned Peyton Manning, and the rest of the SEC: The Gators won four straight conference championships in Wright's tenure (1993-96), and his regular de-cleatings impressed the Jim Thorpe Award committee enough to vote him as the nation's best defensive back in 1996. Pro scouts were a tougher sell: Wright spent three years on and off the Bengals' roster before leaving the league in 2000.
? Cornerback: CARLTON McDONALD, Air Force.
McDonald made his name as a sophomore with a 40-yard interception return to clinch an upset over Ohio State in the 1990 Liberty Bowl, and left two years later as one of the most celebrated players in Academy history, a consensus All-American in 1992 by everyone who had a vote thanks to eight interceptions, tying the USAFA's single-season record.
- - -
Earlier today: The All-Undrafted Offense.
Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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Daily WOD
The Ensign
Complete as many rounds as possible in 3 minutes:
3 Power Clean 155 lbs
6 Push Ups
9 Air Squats / 9 Ring Dips
*Perform Air Squats on Rounds 1, 3, 5 and Ring Dips on Rounds 2, 4, 6.
*Repeat this sequence 6 times (6 rounds). Rest for 1 minute between the 3 minute rounds.
Post total rounds complete to comments.
CrossFit Football: Elite CrossFit - San Antonio, TX
Friday, April 29, 2011
Breakfast Buffet: Tennessee loses another Bruce Pearl recruit
1. In addition to guard Kevin Ware backing out of his letter of intent to Tennessee in favor of Central Florida earlier this month, the Vols will apparently lose another member of Bruce Pearl's final recruiting class. The Memphis Commercial Appeal reports Chris Jones will play�for former Vols assistant coach Steve Forbes at Northwest Florida State College next season.
2. Pac-10 fans hoping to earn more national respect next season will not be pleased with Gary Parrish's latest column at CBSSports.com. He correctly points out that the conference could again be the worst of the Big Six next season as a result of a rash of early departures from last year's top underclassmen.
3. The field for the fifth annual Puerto Rico Tip-Off will include a pair of second-round NCAA tournament teams and three of this past season's four NIT finalists. Purdue, Temple, Alabama, Colorado and Wichita State will be joined in Puerto Rico by Iona, Western Michigan and Maryland.
4. The Arizona Republic's Doug Haller notes that Pac-10 schools have signed 16 junior college players the past two years, the most during a two-year span since 2002-03. That number could increase to 17 if Washington lands Erie Community College forward God's Gift Achiuwa, who is slated to decide Thursday between the Huskies, St. John's and Cincinnati.
5. Two Winthrop players made headlines for all the wrong reasons on Wednesday. Robbie Dreher and Julius Francis have been suspended indefinitely after they were charged with two counts of sexual misconduct stemming from an April 17 incident involving a 19-year-old woman.
This space typically is reserved for college basketball clips, but the above video of a frighteningly huge tornado passing right by Alabama's Bryant Denny Stadium is too horrifyingly amazing to pass up. Best wishes to everyone in Tuscaloosa and other cities impacted by Wednesday's wave of storms.
"I feel like (Tyler) Honeycutt didn't perform like he could have. On the defensive end they really needed him on some plays but he seemed lost." -- UCLA signee Norman Powell assessing what went wrong for the Bruins in their second-round NCAA tournament loss to Florida. (ESPN Los Angeles)
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NFL Network Offers Deep, Explosive Draft Analysis
Hats of all kinds are off to the NFL Network for its eager first round coverage of the 2011 NFL Draft. However, despite being equipped with a large panel that came from all angles -- including tireless analysis of ends and backs -- it would be difficult to say the network went as deep as [...]
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Ice hockey punch-ups 'cause' brain damage
Study of fabled enforcer Bob Probert's brain highlights risks to NHL and NFL stars
Punch-ups are common in ice hockey matches, an almost obligatory part of the entertainment for spectators. But university researchers fear such brawls have damaged the brain of one of the game's most famous enforcers.
The Boston University report adds ice hockey to a list of sports with a strong risk of sustaining brain damage after examining the brain of Bob Probert, the Canadian who established a reputation in the NHL as one of the best enforcers, winning most of more than 200 fights on ice.
Researchers found he had suffered from the degenerative brain disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE).
He died last year of a heart attack at 45 and his wife, Dani, donated his brain to the university, which is conducting research into brain trauma in sport. The findings will add to growing calls in the US for sports to minimise the risk of brain damage, especially among young athletes in sports such as American football.
Probert, who played with the Detroit Red Wings and the Chicago Blackhawks, built a reputation on his fighting ability, though he was also a skilled player.
Chris Nowinski, co-founder of the non-profit Sports Legacy Institute, which is working with the university, said: "We are only beginning to appreciate the consequences of brain trauma in sports. Early evidence indicates that the historical decision not to discourage contact to the head was an enormous mistake, and we hope aggressive changes continue to be made to protect athletes, especially at youth level."
The only other hockey player who was studied was also an enforcer and also suffered from brain trauma. Nowinski acknowledged that further study, saying that Probert could have received brain trauma from incidents outside of hockey, such as a car accident.
The university's Centre for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy has studied the brains of 40 former athletes, of whom more than 30 have shown signs of CTE.
Probert said her husband wanted to donate his brain after learning about the research: "His sole motivation was to make sports safer for our children."
CTE, which was referred to as "dementia pugilistica" because it was thought to only affect boxers, is a progressive brain disease thought to be caused by repetitive trauman, including concussions or subconcussive blows, the university said.
In recent years, there has been more interest in the risk of brain trauma in American football, in particular whether safer helmets can be found.
guardian.co.uk © Guardian News & Media Limited 2011 | Use of this content is subject to our Terms & Conditions | More Feeds
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Bob Knight apologizes for comments about Kentucky basketball
A day after Hall of Fame coach and current ESPN analyst Bob Knight came under fire for derogatory comments he made regarding the academic progress of the Kentucky basketball program, Knight issued a formal apology.
"My overall point is that 'one and dones' are not healthy for college basketball," Knight said in an article on ESPN.com. "I should not have made it personal to Kentucky and its players and I apologize."
During a speaking engagement in Wabash, Ind., last Saturday, Knight was talking about the things he finds most wrong with college basketball today. Knight noted that one of those things was Kentucky basketball players who play in the NCAA tournament, but don't go to class.
"There's a situation in college basketball that really bothers me beyond anything that's ever bothered me in my career," Knight said. "Kentucky, year before last, started five players in the NCAA tournament games that had not been to class that semester. And that's that one-and-done philosophy that we have now."
Knight had no evidence to back up his statement. Kentucky posted a poor 2.025 fall semester GPA and a 2.18 spring semester GPA, but there's no evidence to support Knight's claim that the Wildcat players didn't go to class.
Kentucky athletic director Mitch Barnhart said he took "great offense" to Knight's comments. He called the accusations "blatantly erroneous" and that all five of this year's starters finished in good academic standing.
This isn't the first time Knight has taken a shot at Kentucky coach John Calapari. In 2009, Knight claimed that Calipari was a sign of the lack of integrity in college sports.
"That kind of thing really bothers me, there's no one who appreciates the integrity of the sport more than I have,"�Knight said of Calipari while speaking at a engagement in Indianapolis in 2009.
"You got a coach at Kentucky that put two schools on probation," Knight said. "The University of Massachusetts and Memphis State, and he's still coaching."
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Daily WOD
Tabata Row
For 20 seconds row as far as you can. Rest 10 seconds. Repeat this 7 more times for a total of 8 sets. Your score is counted by total meters rowed.
*Goal is 1000 meters.
*Perform 1 burpee for every 5 meters below 1000 meters.
Post total meters rowed and penalties to comments.
Christoffer Dixen - Copenhagen Tomahawks
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Early entries may leave next year’s Pac-10 without an elite team
If the consensus had been that the 2011-12 college basketball season appeared likely to be a bounce-back year for the beleaguered Pac-12, the past three weeks have surely dimmed that optimism.
In a year in which Ohio State's Jared Sullinger, Baylor's Perry Jones and North Carolina's John Henson and Tyler Zeller have all passed up NBA riches and returned to school, the Pac-12 has not been so fortunate. More Pac-12 underclassmen have declared for the draft and hired an agent than any other league thus far, greatly diminishing the chances that the conference will produce an elite team next season.
The departure of Arizona star Derrick Williams on Wednesday ensured that at least six of the 10 members of the 2010-11 all-Pac-10 team won't return next season. Washington senior Matthew Bryan-Amaning will graduate, underclassmen Williams, Isaiah Thomas, Tyler Honeycutt, Malcolm Lee and Nikola Vucevic are turning pro and Washington State junior Klay Thompson could join them in a matter of days.
Even the Pac-12's two newest members have not been able to escape the attrition. Utah's leading scorer Will Clyburn transferred to Iowa State after the firing of coach Jim Boylen, while Colorado will definitely say goodbye to double-digit scorers Cory Higgins, Levi Knutson and Marcus Relphorde as a result of graduation and may lose all-Big 12 sophomore Alec Burks to the draft.
The result is a conference that certainly isn't anywhere near as talent-starved as it was two years ago, yet may not place a team in most preseason top 25s.
UCLA will have one of the nation's deepest and most formidable frontcourts, yet the point guard position was already a question mark and the departure of Lee and Honeycutt robs the Bruins of their two top wings.
Washington has elite recruit Tony Wroten coming in to help replace Thomas in the backcourt, but the Huskies don't have a back-to-the-basket scorer to fill Bryan-Amaning's void unless 7-footer Aziz N'Diaye develops quicker than expected.
Then there's Arizona, which returns an array of 3-point shooters and adds the conference's best recruiting class featuring guards Nick Johnson and Josiah Turner. It's possible the Wildcats could be elite by the end of the season, but everything Arizona did offensively ran through Williams this past season and it remains to be seen whether the 3-point shooters will get as many open looks without him.
It's possible one of this past season's also-rans could make a big leap, especially if both Thompson and top big man DeAngelo Casto return and Washington State keeps its entire roster intact. Thompson is reportedly leaning toward leaving for the NBA, while coach Ken Bone said last month that Casto may not return for his senior season.
In addition to Washington State, lower-division teams Cal, Stanford and Oregon also could be much improved. The Bears seem the most likely to make a big jump with the core of an NIT team back including all-conference guard Jorge Gutierrez, versatile forward Harper Camp and last year's Pac-10 freshman of the year Allen Crabbe.
There's no doubt that the Pac-12 still is in better shape than it was a couple years ago when coaching instability and early entries to the NBA draft left the conference at its weakest level in decades.
Still the departure of so many of this past season's stars will hurt. Every team appears to have major question marks entering the offseason, and it will be up to some new players to try to answer those.
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