Ultimate Sports Blog Pipe
– Pipes Output
Calipari On Buccigross: “He’s A Jagoff” [Media Meltdowns]
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:10:45 PDT]
![Click here to read Calipari On Buccigross: "He's A Jagoff"](http://cache-04.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/11/2010/03/160x120_7c99dcb01e1ae7c1f4.jpg "Click here to read Calipari On Buccigross: "He's A Jagoff"")
Kentucky coach John Calipari talked with SportsCenter today. Wrapping up, he had the chance to say something to ESPN’s John Buccigross. Calipari proceeds to call him a “jagoff” yet again. H/t reader Tyler for the video. More »
Foote offers Steelers depth, flexibility
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:22:10 PDT]
Free-agent linebacker Larry Foote returned to the Pittsburgh Steelers by signing a three-year contract Monday. According to ESPN.com senior writer John Clayton, the deal is worth $9.3 million.
The Steelers now have good depth at middle linebacker with starters James Farrior and Lawrence Timmons to pair with veteran backups Foote and Keyaron Fox. Signing Foote also gives Pittsburgh the flexibility to move Timmons to outside linebacker, his natural position, in the event James Harrison or LaMarr Woodley get injured.
Last year, Foote wanted his release from Pittsburgh because of a reduced role that eventually led to putting Timmons in the starting lineup. After one season with the Detroit Lions, Foote learned the grass isn’t always greener on the other side and returned to a team and a system he’s most comfortable with.
Featured Advertiser
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:32:30 PDT]
Gilbert still likes Tiger Woods
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:32:30 PDT]
Finally, a Gilbert Arenas apology that actually sounds like Gilbert Arenas. The Six Shooter gave a lengthy interview to Esquire in which he apologized for the gun incident and talked about the after effects, and unlike his previous apologies issued through his lawyers and in a WaPo op-ed, this one was pure Gilbert. Which, of course, meant that he wound up commenting on Tiger Woods, saying his legacy should not be tarnished by his infidelities. Via the AP’s account of the Esquire article, which will hit newsstands next week: “Say it’s all true,” Arenas said. “At the end of the day, that’s not the reason I love Tiger. I got three Tiger Woods games for my Xbox just in case one gets scratched. On the cover, it doesn’t have him walking next to his wife. It just has Tiger Woods, hitting shots.” It’s an innocent notion of why fans love
Federal employees warned about March Madness
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:47:21 PDT]
A federal employee attempted to enter The Post’s bracket challenge at the workplace and was denied. The employee sent along this e-mail from the employee’s agency, sent out last Friday. It provides high comedy. Gambling in the Federal Workplace College basketball teams are now playing in their respective league championship tournaments and soon the “NCAA March Madness” brackets will be announced. Many sports fans are accustomed to placing a friendly wager on a favorite team. While betting a few dollars on sports is often viewed as a harmless social pastime, if done at work it runs afoul of the Federal regulations that prohibit gambling for money or property in the Federal workplace. Predicting teams that will advance in a college basketball bracket purely for fun or picking winners to claim bragging rights in the office are not the types of conduct that generally raise concerns. Federal rules on gambling are
Today In Ridiculous High School Dunks [High School]
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:55:01 PDT]
On his way to leading Springfield Hillcrest to the Missouri state championship, Trey Starks took some time to jump over a much taller opponent for a vicious dunk. It’s a recurring thing for him. H/t David K. for the video. More »
30 epic beer pong dunks
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 06:00:00 PDT]
The word epic gets overused but it applies in this case. What caught me in all this is the number of guys playing beer pong shirtless. Is that a new rule or something?H/T: Uncoached
View this post in its entirety at EpicCarnival.com.
Monday Bullets
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:00:44 PDT]
- Nate Robinson says he doesn’t think of himself as short. (Insider)
- Josh Smith and Anderson Varejao are essentially non-shooters, but defenders still bite on the mid-range pump fake, which gives those athletes ways to get good looks at the rim.
- Digging deep into Magic Johnson and Larry Bird, in print and on the screen.
- PG-13 for language, but kind of funny: A joke report that Rasheed Wallace has decided against running the Boston Marathon.
- The Lakers reportedly aren’t relying on the triangle as much as they have in the past. If they aren’t using it, will anyone? Could the end be near for the offense that has accounted for ten titles?
- Is it time for Alexander Johnson to return to the NBA?
- It’s not a good sign if your team’s players are denying they’re tanking. I mean, seriously, think about that. What argument would you have your players make? The winning point is something along the lines of: No seriously, we’re playing hard, but we’re just not good.
- A new, super-long Brandon Jennings commercial. It’s fresh-feeling, and motivating. Although, I’m aware that Jennings is a big deal in Europe, where I can guarantee you basketball fans there will be upset by the slow-motion travel — a shuffle of the pivot foot — that occurs about 1:40 in.
- Worth saluting Luis Scola’s game against the Nets, in which he made 20 of his 25 shots for 44 points.
- Watch how this very nice game-sealing Andrew Bogut backdoor play unfolded.
- The D-League wrestles with the question of whether or not it’s good to have your home teams televised. I’d be interested to see some smart analysis, but I’d have to believe that being in the conversation is the most important thing for a newish league, even if it costs you a ticket sold here or there.
- HowlinTWolf: “Why isn’t [Ramon] Sessions playing more minutes than Flynn on a nightly basis? He doesn’t necessarily need to start but his production off the bench was superb tonight. He was playing defense — [Tyreke] Evans actually started cooling off when Sessions came in the game in the third — and he ran the offense correctly, all while hitting open shots from all over. He finished with an impressive 13 points, four assists and four rebounds in 27 minutes. As for Flynn, he had 12 points, five were during garbage time at the end of the fourth quarter, and didn’t record his first assist until the clock hit 1:20 left in the game.”
- Great John Starks quote, on Reggie Miller: “Man, did this dude just did this?”
- A nice collection of Tyreke Evans videos from Sunday night’s win Kings over the Timberwolves.
- Looking at the Nets’ remaining schedule, and feeling optimistic they won’t earn the NBA’s worst record ever.
- I don’t really understand the point of asking whether or not the Thunder are ready for the playoffs. Does that matter? They’re going to the playoffs. When they get there, they will play basketball. If they play it well, they will win, and be happy. If they play it poorly, they will learn a lot, and fight another day.
- The Kirk Hinrich maneuver, which got him tossed and suspended, was, he says, unintentional. He kind of implies that, in fact, the ref initiated contact with him.
- Food for thought for the Magic: The Bobcats were without their best rebounder, Gerald “Crash” Wallace, but still outrebounded the Magic. Brett of Queen City Hoops: “Dwight Howard grabbed 16 rebounds — yet the Bobcats out-rebounded the Magic 46-34 for the game. Theo Ratliff and Tyrus Thomas each had nine for Charlotte, and then the Stephens (Graham and Jackson) followed them with six apiece. The Bobcats were making a concerted effort to attack the glass (and to surround Howard to limit his rebounding opportunities) and it paid off with a 12 to nine offensive rebounding advantage. The Bobcats winning the rebounding battle without Crash has to be almost as improbable as the win — if not more so.”
- David Berri has some things to say that will anger Kobe Bryant fans.
- Pau Gasol, now without braces.
- If a picture’s worth a thousand words, a picture of Mike Dunleavy’s face might be worth 1,250. If that’s true, here are 31,250 words. Let no one ever say the man didn’t care.
Maya Moore Rejects DeMarcus Cousins Despite His Crush on Her
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 04:26:23 PDT]
The hottest story in women’s college hoops is UConn and their utter domination in the sport. The Huskies have now won 72 straight games — all by double digits — and one of their star players is Maya Moore. One of the hottest stories in men’s college hoops is Kentucky and their studly play the entire season. Their two star players are freshmen John Wall and DeMarcus Cousins. Wall and Moore collaborated for an interview with USA Weekend. Wall got a chance to interview Moore for a question and attempted to play matchmaker, as Diamond Leung pointed out:
John: You know anything about my teammate, DeMarcus Cousins?
Maya: Besides watching you guys play? No. Why?
John: I think he’s got a little crush on you.
Maya: Thanks! But I’m not looking.
That might be the first time DeMarcus was rejected the entire season. Poor guy. I’m guessing that this is more about Maya’s current love interest than DeMarcus, so Cousins shouldn’t take it personally. Should Maya change her mind, the two would undoubtedly overtake Shelden Williams and Candace Parker as the basketball supercouple. I am all in favor of that.
Sources:
One-on-one with March Madness’ top hoopsters [USA Weekend]
Wall playing matchmaker with Cousins? [College Basketball Nation Blog]
Related posts
Chuck Liddell Naked Workout Video Was Filmed at Brad Penny’s House
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 04:55:28 PDT]
A few weeks ago when a stunning video of Chuck Liddell and his girlfriend Heidi Northcott working out naked hit the internet, I didn’t know how to react. After hearing that the video turned out to be a viral ad for an athletic clothing company, I felt like an idiot for being duped. I don’t feel as dumb as the company that paid for the ads because not one in one hundred people would have figured out that this was an advertising ploy. It also became quite curious when a naked video of Chad Ochocinco was released days later, making it obvious that something was up. The act was old by then.
Now it’s become pretty clear that a late night talk show host was in on the act, not to mention our friends at The Big Lead who first released the vids. It also makes a lot more sense that other large sports blogs failed to post the video — perhaps they were offered the opportunity to partner up and declined so they weren’t about to get caught up in the “oh my goodness” sentiment. So what’s the point of this rant other than for me to vent my frustration over being duped and to laugh at the company who paid for the ads but didn’t get the product mention? In an interview shared by The Big Lead, Chuck Liddell revealed that the video was filmed at his buddy’s house — pitcher Brad Penny. And once again we see that Brad Penny’s priorities are clubbing, mixing it up with celebrities, mixing it up with celebrities at clubs, and making money. Somewhere way down the line after those items listed above is baseball. Hope the Cardinals enjoy their new arm.
Sources:
Chuck Liddell, Chad Ochocinco Nude Videos Were Viral Ads [The Big Lead]
Related posts
Eva Longoria gives all of us a gift
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 07:00:00 PDT]
Eva Longoria attended something called the Noble Gift Gala the other day wearing what I like to call one freaking great dress. Yeah, I just made that term up. No idea what this event was for, but Eva has never been one to miss a chance to attend a party… Luckily for us.
View this post in its entirety at EpicCarnival.com.
Clark Kellogg Renamed The Midwest Bracket The “Bang Bus” Bracket For Some Reason [College Basketball]
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:00:29 PDT]
![Click here to read Clark Kellogg Renamed The Midwest Bracket The "Bang Bus" Bracket For Some Reason](http://cache-02.gawkerassets.com/assets/images/11/2010/03/160x120_clepyu4ocf0.jpg "Click here to read Clark Kellogg Renamed The Midwest Bracket The "Bang Bus" Bracket For Some Reason")
Clark Kellogg’s mind must be in the gutter. Or he has some nefarious plans for Evan Turner and the San Diego State cheer squad. H/t Hernando for the video. More »
Digging deeper into NFC North offseasons
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:01:30 PDT]
Sometimes the NFL offseason moves so quickly that we don’t have a chance to consider the causes, meaning, repercussions and lingering questions created by each move. So while we have a chance, let’s consider four NFC North-related topics on Day 11 of Free Agency 2010.
Why was Green Bay so committed to retaining 30-year-old nose tackle Ryan Pickett a year after drafting defensive lineman B.J. Raji, who ostensibly plays the same position?
Raji finished his rookie season splitting time between nose tackle and defensive end in the Packers’ 3-4 scheme, an assignment that seemed designed to groom him for a full-time role in 2010. That progression would have been logical for a highly drafted player. I presumed Raji’s destination would be nose tackle, but the Packers first placed their franchise tag on Pickett and then signed the veteran to a four-year extension worth $28 million.
Pickett’s new deal will pay him $10 million in 2010, a clear sign they intend for him to start. I suppose it’s possible he could move to end, but it’s more likely he’ll be anchored on the nose.
Where does that leave Raji? Either as a starter at end, which might not be his best position, or in another year as a swing player who spells Pickett and also plays defensive tackle in the nickel formation.
Given how infrequently the Packers play their 3-4 defense, I suppose the “starting” designation isn’t as important as it might be on other teams. But when you draft a player as highly as the Packers took Raji, you expect him to quickly find a consistent and full-time role — somewhere.
Speaking last month at the NFL scouting combine, general manager Ted Thompson said: “We feel like Ryan’s a good player. We feel like he’s a good teammate, a good leader of that group. I personally like him quite a bit.”
In an uncapped environment, there’s no penalty for paying a player $10 million for those attributes. But the decision leaves Raji’s short-term status less predictable.
Under the Cap: Reviewing the Mega-Money Deals
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:03:34 PDT]
J.I. Halsell shows how the big contracts from the beginning of free agency don’t differ much from years past.
Gleason: “Nothing wrong” with Ovechkin’s style
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:11:35 PDT]
(By Gerry Broome – AP) The first suspension of Alex Ovechkin’s career came earlier this season after a knee-on-knee collision with Carolina defenseman Tim Gleason. That was the hit that launched the days of “reckless” talk, and that certainly contributed to Ovechkin’s reputation as a suspendable player. And that’s no small thing, because even if you defend Ovechkin’s latest blow, it’s obvious that “reputations” are built as much by headlines and national chatter and suspensions as by actual behavior. Anyhow, there will be dozens of players asked about Ovechkin’s style this week, and many — including at least one in the Capitals dressing room — think he should occasionally tone it down a bit, for his own health if nothing else. But when I caught up with Gleason before last week’s meeting with Carolina and asked him about Ovechkin’s style, he suggested the opposite. “I think it’s one of
Why aren’t teams coming after McNabb?
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:34:33 PDT]
When the Cowboys recorded back-to-back wins over the Eagles last season (three in all), there was a school of thought (led by the Philadelphia Daily News’ Rich Hofmann) that Donovan McNabb had taken his last snap in Philly. Eagles coach Andy Reid insisted that McNabb would be his quarterback in 2010, but then, what else did you expect him to say?
But as the draft approaches, it’s becoming more and more likely the Eagles will put off the Kevin Kolb era for at least one more season. Today in his award-winning (I assume) Monday Morning Quarterback column, Peter King wondered aloud why more quarterback-needy teams aren’t lining up to trade for McNabb. And I couldn’t agree more with Peter on the theory that trading a first-round pick for McNabb is actually safer than spending $35 million or so on a rookie quarterback such as Notre Dame’s Jimmy Clausen. Here’s a portion of Peter’s column:
“A playoff quarterback near his prime can be had for a premium price,” writes King. “The fact that there’s a real chance the Eagles could deal McNabb, and that McNabb is a half-year younger than Peyton Manning and apparently intends to play four or five more seasons, and also apparently has kicked the injury bug, leads me to this question: What in the world are all these quarterback-needy teams doing? Why aren’t teams running to deal for McNabb?
“The prime object of this game in the personnel area is to get a quarterback who can win games and lead your team, and a good, proven one is out there. The Eagles aren’t shopping him, but they surely are listening. I asked a coach with a quarterback need about McNabb, and the coach said because McNabb is on the last year of his contract and would probably need to be re-signed, and the fact that Philadelphia would want a high draft choice for him in a very good draft, and the fact that he doesn’t have a lot of years left, all combine to make it a tough trade. Understood. Good factors all. But McNabb is 33.
“I have my own problems with McNabb. I don’t consider him on the Manning-Brady-Brees plane. I think the Eagles should go with Kolb and make the best deal they can for McNabb this offseason, because, basically, it’s Groundhog Day in Philadelphia. Every year’s the same, and I don’t see McNabb getting Philly over the hump and into another Super Bowl. So why would I want to pawn him off on another quarterback-needy team when I don’t think he’s a top-five quarterback? Simple. Because he’s a top-10 or top-12 quarterback, and they’re too hard to find to let one pass when he’s just sitting there for the taking.
“McNabb would shore up any team’s most important position for the next half-decade. Some team’s going to take Jimmy Clausen between, say, the fourth and 20th pick in the first round, and whoever takes him is going to have no idea if he’s the long-term solution at quarterback.”
In the case of the Vikings, they can’t make a play for McNabb until they hear from Brett Favre. But even if they’re willing to offer a first-rounder for McNabb, the Eagles might not want to help out a team that competes in the same conference. But if teams such as the Bills or Rams (same conference but not a true threat) put a nice package together, surely the Eagles would be interested.
A scenario in which McNabb, Kolb and Michael Vick all return to the Eagles still seems unlikely despite what you’re hearing on at least one network. Courage awards aside, Vick had no choice but to say all the right things in ‘09. But I could see him becoming extremely frustrated during another season of limited Wildcat reps. I don’t think it makes any sense for the Eagles to bring him back. Do we think that Reid and offensive coordinator Marty Mornhinweg will spend much of this offseason trying to develop an expanded Wildcat package?
Former Eagles general manager Tom Heckert is now with Cleveland, so I thought he might make a play for McNabb. But now the Browns have signed former Panthers quarterback Jake Delhomme, a man coming off by far the worst season of his career. Perhaps a team will finally panic when we get closer to the draft and make a strong offer for McNabb.
But if not, it looks like the Eagles are prepared to go with a lame-duck quarterback in 2010. I think you’re asking for problems with that approach, but maybe the Eagles are willing to take the risk. Meanwhile, Kolb continues to say all the right things publicly. Something tells me, though, that he won’t be thrilled with yet another season on the sideline. Call it intuition after watching how much he enjoyed those two starts in ‘09.
One last note from King: Eagles quarterbacks coach James Urban and Mornhinweg were in the Bronx on Friday to watch Fordham quarterback John Skelton’s pro day. Doesn’t that seem like a little overkill for a late-round prospect from a school not known for being an NFL farm system? (apologies to Fordham grads Alex Wojciechowicz and Vince Lombardi of Seven Blocks of Granite fame).
Crazy Jay Bilas Has Cornell in Elite Eight
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 05:35:18 PDT]
I’ve seen a lot of nonsense before in my life but I haven’t seen as many ridiculous notions as the one Jay Bilas suggested on Selection Sunday. Analyzing the brackets for ESPN, Bilas revealed his pick of Cornell to reach the Elite Eight in the East Region. I know March Madness got its nickname because of the improbable upsets in the tourney and the insanity it causes for fans making picks, but nonetheless I think it’s nothing short of absurd to say Cornell will reach the Elite Eight.
Can they beat Temple in the first round? Possibly. Wisconsin in the second round? Unlikely — not the way the Badgers play defense. If they got some help from Wofford, yeah, Cornell could reach the Sweet Sixteen, but I doubt that would happen. Then, should Cornell reach said Sweet Sixteen, they would theoretically have to beat Kentucky to reach the Elite Eight. That would never happen in the college basketball universe as I know it.
I know March is about picking upsets and finding sleepers, but calling Cornell to the Elite Eight is something reserved for Ivan from Ithaca who calls my radio show, not supposed credible analysts like Jay Bilas. I know ESPN encourages their analysts to go out on a limb with predictions but it should never get to the point where it hurts one’s credibility as this likely will for Bilas. If Jay turns out to be correct, I’ll rename this site Jay Bilas Sports for a week and apologize to the man personally. If not, I reserve the right to question Bilas’ credibility moving forward. By the way, Jay, the reason why everyone’s picking chalk isn’t necessarily because they’re afraid of picking upsets; it’s because all the good teams got jammed in the Midwest for some inexcusable reason.
A reasonable take on Ovechkin’s hit
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:41:28 PDT]
OvecBecause there are a lot of extremely passionate words being said about Alex Ovechkin this week, let me briefly highlight a radio interview with Toronto Star columnist Damien Cox, who began his discussion about the hit with something a lot of players in the Caps dressing room have been mentioning: Ovechkin’s strength. “You almost get the sense that this guy doesn’t know how strong he is sometimes,” Cox told The Fan 590’s Don Landry and Gord Stellick Monday morning. “You know, Brian Campbell is a great skater, a guy who’s strong on his feet, a guy who’s made a living in the league — even though he’s a little guy — by having a low center of gravity and not being able to get thrown around. And I mean, [Ovechkin] just rag dolls him into the end boards. And I think it’s one of those hits that’s really borderline, and
Untitled
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:45:59 PDT]
Mike Holmgren just made the biggest mistake of his life. The Cleveland Browns will never emerge from the dregs of the NFL until they learn how to properly handle a franchise quarterback. In what has to be the team’s worst move since they unceremoniously dropped Tim Couch, GM Mike Holmgren shipped former first [...]
Happy Birthday to Us
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:52:39 PDT]
Today is Mr. Irrelevant’s recognized blog birthday — we’re 6! — as it was birthed this week of March Madness 2004. Thanks to AOL Journals, those posts are lost in time, but trust me when I say we’ve come a long way. We thank you for sticking with us through the years. It’s been our pleasure, [...]
Lombardi projects Clausen to Skins
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:55:21 PDT]
A week after Mel Kiper said Jimmy Clausen would be “an ideal fit” for the Redskins at No. 4 in the first round, another national has weighed in with a similar opinion. This time it was Michael Lombardi, whose first mock draft for the NFL Network has the Skins passing on any offensive linemen in favor of the QB from Notre Dame. “Shock pick here,” Lombardi says at No. 4. “My man Mike Shanahan, he sat there in Dove Valley all those years with quarterbacks, he moved over to the Tech Center [neighborhood] where he had an office. Jimmy Clausen, scouted him a lot, went through all the quarterbacks. He knows he needs a quarterback. He is the pro style. Fits him perfectly.” Guessing the fan reaction to this won’t be much better than the reaction was last week. (Via Matt Mosley)
The NBA’s fastest man
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:10:31 PDT]
Layne Murdoch/NBAE/Getty Images
Chris Paul’s teammate, rookie Darren Collison, says the contest is over.
There are several different ways to judge speed — with or without the ball, for instance. Or over the full length of the court, or slicing through the lane.
Any way you look at it, though, there is an ever-evolving list of players who are among the NBA’s fastest.
A few years ago Tony Parker, Leandro Barbosa, T.J. Ford and Allen Iverson headlined any debate about the NBA’s fastest player. Barbosa and Ford are still amazingly fast, but this is one category where the stars move along quickly. Youth is a huge advantage.
Within the last couple of years, Rajon Rondo, Monta Ellis, Chris Paul and Derrick Rose have all been popular picks, but each of them has endured an injury or two, which has either taken them off the court, or at least slowed them down a hair.
With nods to Aaron Brooks, Dwyane Wade, Kevin Martin and LeBron James, any current list would have to focus on newcomers Ty Lawson and Darren Collison. And Collison says there is no debate. In the current issue of HOOP magazine, the Hornets rookie tells Josh Gordon:
I definitely think I’m the fastest player. I got a chance to watch Ty Lawson’s game and he is probably up there. I’d definitely say I’m the fastest.
THE CURIOUS INDEX, 3/15/2010
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 06:15:16 PDT]
THE T-FORMATION EXPLAINED WITH CROCKERY. THIS OREGON QB WOULD NOT HAVE STOLEN THEM. Happy birthday to Norm Van Brocklin, Oregon Ducks quarterback from 1948-49 and NFL Hall of Famer who played for the Rams alongside Elroy “Crazy Legs” Hirsch. Simply being that close to a such a superlative nickname is illustrious enough, but Van Brocklin did have the impressive feat of being the quarterback on the first PCC team to play in a bowl game besides the Rose Bowl when the Ducks played in the 1949 Cotton Bowl against SMU. (They lost 20-13, and somehow Craig James is to blame.)
Here is Van Brocklin working through the T-Formation offense with Oregon coach Jim Aiken. Unlike SOME OU quarterbacks, Aiken didn’t need to count the plates after Van Brocklin left.
If you’re thinking “Hey, that looks like Rich Brooks,” then why, you’re right my god what if they’re AAARRRGGGHH <—is garroted by the 8183 year old immortal you call “Rich Brooks.”
THAT OTHER, SLIGHTLY THIEVE-ISH OREGON QB. Twitter wags suggested Masoli would be back in time from his year-long suspension from Oregon football in time for the Stanford game, but remember that LeGarrette Blount, insane as his Ron Artest with a better hang clean act was, did not lie to Chip Kelly. Andy Staples’ piece on Kelly’s decision to discipline Masoli is rife with intentional sustained mock outrage, and does contain one rock-solid piece of decapitating prose hurled Nutt-ward:
In 2008, he tossed safety Jamar Hornsby after police accused Hornsby of spending almost $3,000 on a credit card that had belonged to teammate Joe Haden’s recently deceased girlfriend. Fortunately for Hornsby, Ole Miss coach Houston Nutt doesn’t have the same qualms about stealing from the dead
GIGGI-OW. As long as he could sign, it’s all good, and you know what he likes about En-rickey HE’S FAST! (This is followed by a smezmerizing stare.)
ABOUT THAT TEAM THAT HANDILY DONATED A FELONIOUS BRO BECAUSE WE HAD EXTRAS. Team-fluffy and spring practice boilerplate in the Miami Herald does remind you of one obvious but still notable observation on the state of Florida’s football union: its status at quarterback is as strong as it’s been in recent memory, with B.J. Daniels at USF, John Brantley at Florida, Jacory Harris at Miami, and Christian Ponder at Florida State. Ponder in particular sits poised to have a spectacular year barring any further injury; before his injury last year he was the only thing standing between FSU and complete oblivion, and was the most valuable player in college football for his team. Yeah, we said that. It doesn’t mean we don’t want to see a hailstorm of safes rain on him for wearing garnet and gold, but his singular value in 2009 for the ‘Noles transcends our hate. It would be superb to see him have a splendid eleven game season, and then immediately throw 8 interceptions in the Florida game.
BAMA SHUFFLING AS PART OF THE PROCESS. Alabama’s losing Terry Grant, who appeared at one time to be the prize pony of Alabama’s stable of running backs, to what will likely be a medical exemption. Nick Saban is also switching some underclassmen over from offense to defense, and that can’t possibly be a bad thing because the preseason number one isn’t just the national champion advanced forward in a blind and unthinking act of mass poll idiocy, no?* Hey, look! Godzilla wrestling Mark Ingram! Pay no attention over here!
HE HAS THE MOST DIFFICULT TO DEFEND STRATEGY OF ALL. BYU lost Max Hall to graduation, meaning three new qbs are politely duking it out without profanity or caffeineated anger in BYU’s spring practices. The EDSBS money is on James Lark winning, since he recently finished a three year mission in St. Petersburg, Russia, and therefore has something the other two qbs likely don’t have: performance-enhancing antibiotic-resistant tuberculosis. Makes ‘em lusty!
IF I DON’T SEE MAXIMUM EFFORT FROM YOU I’LL BEAT YOU LIKE I USED TO BEAT CRACK DEALERS BACK WHEN I WAS A COP ON THE STREETS OF RICHMOND. Mike London’s speeches as Virginia kicks off spring practice must be a thousand times better than Al Groh’s muttering, if only because they all end with “…and I was a cop in a bad part of Richmond, Virginia, so this ain’t shit, y’all.”
WE’RE ALL RUNNING OUT OF TIME IF YOU WANT TO GET MORBID ABOUT IT. This is pretty vanilla spring practice stuff, and contains Rich Rodriguez’s moniker for this year, Rich Rodriguez “Who Is Running Out Of Time” “And is On A Hot Seat” “In a Must-Win” year. Why share it, though? Because we’re trying to inoculate you for the eight to nine months of this coming at you, reader. Read it until your eyes grow a callous and cease to see the words at all.
THAT FAKE THING WE CREATED TO REPLACE THE REAL THING IS BAD FOR YOU, PART 83828932. When are you and stock angry grand-uncle on the same page? When it’s talking about how much FIeld Turf sucks, him because “EHHHH horses can’t eat it,” and you because “EHHHHH it makes knees explode at an alarming rate.” Surprisingly, the Field Turf CEO disagrees with your numbers and fact-y things, because it costs him money.
THEY’RE BACK. If Storm Johnson’s continuing improvement isn’t a good enough sign by itself, the U has other reasons to be optimistic: two fights in last week’s scrimmage. They will fight you in a tunnel/ they will fight you in the dome/ they will fight you on the road/ they will fight you at home.
THE EXTREMELY MOVING PHYSICAL EXPERIENCE OF HUMAN SKILL IN MOTION. No words but the minimum: health and the expression of it are the foundation of the human experience. Accept this, and you will agree that this footage is the insane house made of beer cans and particle board built on that foundation.
*Precisely what it is.
UCLA Snubbed by the N.I.T.
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 06:18:13 PDT]
Quit your whining, UConn and Carolina fans, a UCLA fan wishes to opine. In what completes the most disappointing season for Bruin basketball in the Ben Howland era, UCLA stumbled out of the gate and bumbled to a 14-18 record. Forget making it to the Big Dance, the losing season left the Bruins far short of even qualifying for the N.I.T., where 32 teams battle for the right to be called the 66th best team in the country. Adding insult to injury is that our three top players are with other teams — Jrue Holiday is on the 76ers, Chace Stanback is starring for UNLV, and Drew Gordon is playing for team Mom.
Though I can hardly blame Howland for Holiday’s exile to the NBA — Darren Collison’s return for a senior season screwed up the point guard and scholarship situation — it’s difficult to fathom that the program sunk to these depths and that the season was only saved by an equally pathetic conference. Adding up the evidence however, can present a potentially ugly issue at hand. Is it any coincidence that Jordan Farmar and J’rue Holiday left early for the NBA and that Stanback and Gordon both transferred out of the program? I think it’s fair to say that both Farmar and Holiday could have built up their draft stocks by staying an extra year but they chose not to. Stanback could have been unhappy with playing time and Gordon could have been a “me first” jerk, but I think there is an underlying tie that might bind all four: UCLA is not a place where one can showcase his offensive talent.
Sure, UCLA has produced loads of talent for the NBA the past few years — Russell Westbrook, Kevin Love, and Darren Collison certainly fit that bill, not to mention Farmar and Luc Richard Mbah a Moute, but the program seems to lack a true scorer. Tyler Honeycutt and Reeves Nelson appear to be the cornerstones of a tough frontcourt around whom the program can build the next three years. The question is if the Bruins need more guys like Mbah a Moute who took pride in defense and were willing to do the dirty work the way Nelson appears to be doing, or do the Bruins need to open up offensively to attract the elite scoring guards? I think the answer is a little of column A and a little of column B and it better happen fast. One year of this was unbearable. Two years is inexcusable. Three is fireable. Here’s to a turnaround in ‘10-’11.
Related posts
Ryan Howard for Albert Pujols? It May or May Not Have Been “Kicked Around,” Depending Who You Believe
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 07:45:39 PDT]
Albert Pujols for Ryan Howard?: “It’s not fully clear whether the Phillies actually have approached the Cardinals with the idea, and even if St. Louis were to seriously consider such an offer, executives with the Cardinals would have to swallow very hard before dealing Pujols, a player widely regarded as the best in the sport.” Philly GM Ruben Amaro called Buster Olney’s report a “lie.” Buzz Bissinger, a St. Louis Cardinals shill fan, called it “fiction.” Can anyone come up with one reason why the Cardinals would entertain this? [ESPN]
Ballin’: Chris Bosh Goes Off on His Teammates; Thunder, Bucks, & Bobcats Keep Hot Streaks Going
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 07:59:45 PDT]
Toronto 98, Portland 109: Here’s Chris Bosh after the loss Saturday night in Golden State. “Act like you care. We need to do the things that win. We don’t do the things that win. I’m going down and playing offense on their side of the court and their (bench) is louder than we are. That doesn’t make any sense. They’re not playing for anything. We’re trying to make the playoffs. We’re trying to get the fifth seed but that is, like, slipping away every day … We’re supposed to be gearing up for playoff basketball and this is not playoff basketball. Their bench is more active than ours is. Their players are getting more stops. They’re getting more offensive rebounds. Everybody is doing everything. If you look on the schedule now and see Toronto, I’m sure people are checking the win box. I can understand if we lose a game going down fighting, but we’re not fighting at all.” A night later, his rant fell on deaf ears as the Raptors lost for the ninth time in 10 games.
Utah 111, Oklahoma City 119: That’s 17 wins in 20 games for the Thunder, who shot 60 percent (!) against the short-handed Jazz, who were without Okur (back) and AK-47 (calf). According to a reader, here’s a great stat: Only six times in league history have two teammates under 22 years old scored 30 or more points. The Thunder own all of them. Durant (35 points) and Westbrook (30 points, 11 assists) have five, and Durant and Jeff Green the other. Amazingly, the Thunder are only 1/2 game behind Utah for the 4th spot in the West.
New Orleans 106, Phoenix 120: The Suns pick up their 41st win of the season behind 36-12 from Amare. They’ll be at full strength Tuesday when Leandro Barbosa returns to the court for the first time since mid-January. More interesting that this result – Chris Paul is about a week away from returning from injury, and what will become of Darren Collison, who has had a surprisingly strong rookie season? The Hornets had a sneaky good draft – Marcus Thornton, their 2nd round pick from LSU, scored 28 points last night and is averaging 13 a night off the bench.
Indiana 94, Milwaukee 98: No clue how the Bucks keep winning. None. When Jerry Stackhouse is pumping in 20 off the bench in this his 15th season in the league, you know something strange is afoot. That’s six in a row and barring something wacky in the last 17 games – 5th seeded Milwaukee has a five game lead over the 9th seeded Bulls – the Bucks will be in the playoffs.
Charlotte 96, Orlando 89: Rashard Lewis and Jameer Nelson (combined 3-for-17) were busy paying attention to the selection show and forgot about the Bobcats, who could be Orlando’s first round playoff opponent. To do it on the road without Gerald Wallace? Impressive. Stack Jack had 28. Dwight Howard had 27 points and 16 rebounds.
MARK MANGINO’S HOUSE. AGAIN.
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 08:00:23 PDT]
MARK MANGINO’S HOUSE. AGAIN.
The last time Mark Mangino’s house was for sale, we posted pictures–publicly available pictures–on this fine website. The pictures showed the interior of the man’s home, including his fine chillaz of champagne he had stuck up in that bitch like a balla. Nothin’ you’d get enraged over if you truly enjoyed flossin’ like you bossin’.
Mark Mangino did not, and he blew up at his realtor, who then called us and told us how angry his client was that publicly available pictures were being used, um, publicly. In the spirit of cooperation we’re not using the pics of his new house on the market in Lawrence, but there’s the link, and it’s his house, and sadly there’s no champagne chillin’ anywhere in the pics.
Jets Let One Aging Running Back Leave … to Sign Another Old One, For Nearly the Same Money
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 08:45:41 PDT]
LaDainian Tomlinson to the Jets: Not thrilled. Here’s Tomlinson’s rushing stats the last three years: 1,474 yards, 4.7 yards-per-carry ; 1,110 yards, 3.8 ypc; 730 yards, 3.3 ypc. He’s trending downward and turns 31 in June. The Jets are paying him $5.1 million over two years. Here’s the last three years worth of stats for Thomas Jones, who turns 32 in August: 1,119 yards, 3.6 ypc; 1,313 yards, 4.5 ypc; 1,402 yards, 4.2 ypc. They didn’t want to pay him 5.8 million over two years. This was pointless and makes zero sense. Another highly questionable offseason move by the Jets. Jones was a commanding locker room presence. When do the chemistry issues kick in? [Union Trib]
2010 NCAA Tournament: Midwest (Also Known as the Dream Bracket for NBA Scouts)
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 09:15:58 PDT]
We hit the South this morning. The Midwest is probably the most challenging bracket featuring the 2nd best No. 2 seed (Ohio State), the best No. 3 (Georgetown), the regular season ACC Champs (No. 4 Maryland), and a Final Four team from last year (No. 5 Michigan State). This bracket probably has the most individual talent in the field, too.
Haven for NBA Scouts: Cole Aldrich (Kansas), Greivis Vasquez (Maryland), Greg Monroe (Georgetown), James Anderson (Oklahoma State), Derrick Favors (Georgia Tech), Evan Turner (Ohio State).
Team at a Crossroads: Michigan State. Just 5-5 in their last 10 games. Delvon Roe isn’t 100 percent and will have surgery when the season’s over. Guard Chris Allen has been suspended. Kalin Lucas, so brilliant last year, has been overshadowed by Evan Turner in the Big Ten this year, and is probably only the third best point guard in this half of the bracket behind Sherron Collins and Grevis Vasquez.
Rematch? Remember the outstanding Kansas-Michigan State game last year in the Sweet 16? Lucas vs. Collins in the clutch with Gus Johnson on the call. Could happen again.
Rematch, Part II: Remember when Ohio State and Georgetown met in the Final Four three years ago? It was billed as Oden-Hibbert.Oden nearly destroyed Jeff Green (props for jumping in there to take the charge).
How is This a 1st round Matchup?: Tennessee vs. San Diego State. The 3rd best team in the SEC (but much more dangerous than the Vandy), which beat Kansas and Kentucky at home, somehow fell to a 6th seed and draws San Diego State, which just won the Mountain West Conference tournament, knocking off New Mexico (3) and UNLV at home (8). The Aztecs could have been as high as an 8/9 seed; Tennessee should have been at worst a 5 (ahead of Texas A&M).
Best Name (tie): Kwadzo Ahelegbe (Northern Iowa) and Adetunji Adedipe (Northern Iowa).
First roundup individual matchup to watch: Aubrey Coleman (Houston, nation’s leading scorer) vs. Greivis Vasquez (ACC Player of the Year). We’ll probably take Houston in most brackets.
Double Digit Seed that Could Escape the 1st Weekend: Georgia Tech. Have the athletes (Shumpert, Oliver) to hang with Cowboys in the first round, and the size inside (Lawal, Favors) that could give the Buckeyes trouble in round 2. Too bad the Yellow Jackets are wildly inconsistent (lost to Georgia, haven’t won a road game since Jan. 16).
Gun-to-head Pick: Kansas over Georgetown.
Non-chalk Pick: Georgia Tech over Michigan State.
Brady Quinn to the Broncos … Can They Keep Brandon Marshall?
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:00:03 PDT]
Brady Quinn: In Mike Holmgren’s quest to nuke the Browns, he traded Brady Quinn to Denver. (Jake Del’homme will be lustily booed by the Dawg Pound in his third home game, book it.) We’ve long been bullish on Quinn, who has only played 12 games (and parts of two more) in three years with one of the worst franchises in the league. The big knock is that he’s an inaccurate passer; consider his surroundings and personnel. Quinn should be a much better fit in the Denver offense. Kyle Orton remains the starter … for now. When the schedule’s out, we’ll guess the week Quinn takes over. The next big question: Can they retain Brandon Marshall? He’d certainly help Quinn. [Denver Post]
FULMER CUPDATE: THE BIG BOARD GETS AN OVERDUE UPDATE
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:15:01 PDT]
The Fulmer Cup has gone far, far too long without an update. The Big Board is brought to you shiny and updated courtesy of Brian, whom you may recall as the man whose genitals are huge enough to recall the enormous donkey-rope of Reggie Nelson himself. Tabulations and justifications follow.
OREGON: Okay, the Ducks’ total needs some fine tuning due to the legal maelstrom surrounding them. Retallied for your convenience after the flurry of plea deals this past week, and with the requisite bonus points awarded.
Rob Beard: one point for harassment and one point for street fighting head-kicking ensuing. Beard’s bonus point is also justified by the pushing of a girl to the ground, which is why he got both the charges and the free visit to the hospital after the complimentary head-booting. Incident total: two points.
LaMichael James: misdemeanor harassment plus one point for hitting girls= two points. Again, we can only work with the charges here, and James’ incident works out to the same total as Beard’s due to the misdemeanor incident total: two points.
Kiko Alonso: Oregon LB whose quiet, orderly arrest for DUI ends up getting the same tally as Beard or James’ offenses. Two points for garden variety DUI.
Jeremiah Masoli: misdemeanors are typically a single point, but second degree burglary and a season-long suspension have to merit some kind of bonus points if only because Masoli, your starter, just frizzle-fried his whole season thanks to the theft of a laptop. Two points total.
Now, the team bonus. Every single Duck player involved offered no opposition whatsoever, and in fact pled down to get misdemeanors while admitting, “Yeah, I pushed a girl/choked a girl/ stole a laptop.” Plea deals have long been a sticking point in scoring, since the initial scoring has always looked felony huge while the final result for admitted crimes has been puny in comparison.
Therefore, Red Queen Orson proposes the awarding of a single point for each plea deal, since you’re still admitting you did said shitty thing and are working with the overtaxed judicial system in order to speed things along and keep the bullet point “convicted felon” off your CV.
In Oregon’s case, this would add a point for each plea, and thus take the eight points already allocated and add in three, thus taking the Ducks’ total to eleven points in the Fulmer Cup. Thus we attempt to walk the line between sticking to the rules and reflecting the substantial achievements of the Oregon football team this season.
(The Duke charges still stand, and will until they’re resolved. Nine’s really just an estimate at this point since the info’s vague.)
BUFFALO: In terms of a single, well-diversified score, no one can approach Buffalo junior linebacker Sherrod Lott’s February 14th arrest total. Due to the circumstances of the situation–”a domestic situation”–the exact details haven’t been released, but the charges read like an episode of “Family Night With Gary Busey.”
- Unlawful imprisonment in the second degree -Criminal trespass in the second degree – Criminal mischief in the fourth degree – Endangering the welfare of a child – Harassment in the second degree
After a quick check of the handy NY online legal code index, they all check out as misdemeanors, and thus five points to Buffalo.
Gary Busey Family Night. Always Fun, And Always Involving The Cops. (via blogs.houstonpress.com)
WASHINGTON STATE: Everyone who graduates with a degree from Washington State must also get an additional certificate at graduation in barfighting, since a quick read of Wazzu’s Fulmer Cup history is nothing more than a litany of Wild West-style fisticuffsmanship spilling out into the street. Those exact words are used in the description of Jamal Atofau’s striking of a woman, which though a misdemeanor does pick up the “hitting girls” bonus. Two points for Washington State, the team whose players seem to have found someone they can push around physically.
TULSA: Anthony Foster, defensive back, was hammered at a dorm and subsequently booted off the team last week, thus earning Tulsa one point. Coincidentally, there is also mention of an assault at a dorm involving an underage student assaulting two other students, so perhaps the relatively harsh (even by Urban Meyer’s standards) punishment has something HINT HINT to do with this.
OKLAHOMA STATE: Great moments in copywriting happen every day.
Martinez, expected to compete for the starting job at left tackle, was arrested at 2:35 a.m. Sunday, a police spokesman reported…Martinez had his 21st birthday last week.
Cause and effect, baby. Nick Martinez’s arrest for public intox gives OSU one point. A Mike Gundy joke referencing age in a loud voice goes here.
NEVADA: One point for a piddly traffic citation gone bad via parental miscommunication. Thanks, dad.
UTAH STATE: Weed and weed-related stuff gets you two points, but in a fair world they’d let you do whatever drugs you wanted to in Utah, because it’s Utah and we’d be licking toads to stay sane if we lived there.
WASHINGTON: No charges filed yet, but as soon as they match the boot print on that poor kid’s face to Andru Pulu’s, we’ll be able to get to the…sole of this case. YEAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
Recipe Corner : Martin Atkins’ Metal Box Brownie
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:26:36 PDT]
I suppose a Gluten Free version is too much to ask for? Video courtesy former PiL/Killing Joke drummer Martin Atkins, who can now add brownie chef to an impressive resume that includes running a label, writing books and being the subject of a very hard to find tribute album.
Need Help With Your Final Four Projections? A Good Place to Start Might Be Ken Pom’s Top 5
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 10:30:44 PDT]
Ken Pomeroy is a well-respected college hoops guy who is heavy on the stats. We decided to look at his “Top 5 rated teams” going into the tournament from 2004-2009 (Pomeroy kindly passed along the pre-tourney ratings) to see how they wound up doing in the NCAA tournament. Of the 30 teams (Top 5 from 2004-2009), only four didn’t reach the Sweet 16 (Kentucky and Cincinnati in 2004; Florida in 2005; Kansas in 2006). The last three years have been especially prescient – of his “Top 5 rated” teams, all of them advanced to the Sweet 16 or beyond. Before filling out your bracket tonight, see Pom’s current Top 5 (posted at the bottom).
2004 (Top five in Ken Pom heading into the tournament)
Duke – lost in Final Four.
Connecticut – won title.
Kentucky – lost in 2nd round to UAB.
Cincinnati – lost in 2nd round to Illinois.
Georgia Tech – lost in Final Four
Missing Final Four team: Oklahoma State, which was 7th in Ken Pom.
2005
UNC – won national title.
Illinois – lost in title game.
Duke – Lost in Sweet 16.
Florida – Lost in second round.
Oklahoma St – Lost in Sweet 16.
Missing Final Four teams: Michigan State, which was 10th in Ken Pom, and Louisville, which was 7th.
2006 (the year no No. 1 seed reached the Final Four)
Texas – lost in Elite 8.
Kansas – lost in first round.
Connecticut – lost in Elite 8.
Duke – Lost in Sweet 16.
Villanova – Lost in Elite 8.
Missing Final Four teams: George Mason (23rd in Ken Pom), Florida (8), UCLA (7) and LSU (1oth).
2007
North Carolina – lost in Elite 8.
Kansas – lost in Elite 8
Florida – won title.
Ohio State – lost in title game.
Texas A&M – lost in Sweet 16.
Missing Final Four team: UCLA (8th in Ken Pom) and Georgetown (6th).
2008
Kansas – Won title game.
Memphis – lost in title game.
UCLA – lost in Final Four.
Wisconsin – lost in Sweet 16.
UNC – lost in Final Four.
2009
Memphis – lost in Sweet 16.
UNC – won title.
Connecticut – lost in Final Four.
Louisville – lost in Elite 8.
Gonzaga – lost in Sweet 16
Missing Final Four teams: Michigan State (13th in Ken Pom) Villanova (19th).
2010 Top 5
Duke – Given the draw, Duke seems like a lock to win two games, and is a heavy favorite to get to the Final 4.
Kansas – Almost universally considered to be the best team in the league.
Wisconsin – Last time it beat tourney team was Feb. 2. Tough draw, having to play Temple/Cornell in round two.
Ohio State – Brutal draw, with potential 2nd round game against ACC tourney finalist (GT), then either Big East tourney finalist (Georgetown) or a team that beat KU and UK (Tennessee).
Syracuse – Assuming they survive the first weekend with Arinze Onuaku out, they’ve got a great crack at the Final 4.
Looking beyond his Top 5, you’ll see a couple surprises: BYU is 7th and Maryland is 10th, (ahead of Georgetown, Baylor and Villanova).
Should Ovechkin Be Suspended For This Hit?
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:15:19 PDT]
Alex Ovechkin: The NHL’s best player drilled Brian Campbell from behind into this boards this weekend. Ovechkin was ejected. Campbell is out for the season according to the Chicago Tribune. Should Ovechkin be suspended? He leads the NHL in points (96) and is second in goals (44). The Capitals have the best record in the NHL.
VOTE LANE KIFFIN FOR SEXIEST WOMAN ALIVE
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:45:11 PDT]
Lane Kiffin will always be so much more than a woman to us. He’s like the best driver ever, an offensive mastermind, a spectacular dresser, a ladykililng doofus-lothario, a master of the moral victory, a shit-talking prat, Petrino without the brain…all this and the man who will drag USC back into Paul Hackett-dom, and that’s if they’re lucky enough to dodge serious penalties from the NCAA in the Reggie Bush case. (They will, because this is the 21st century and we’re talking about the NCAA.)
He could be so much more with your help: he could be Esquire’s Sexiest Woman Alive, if only you’d go over to their brackets and vote. He’s currently facing Natalie Gulbis, and like WHO IS THAT COMPARED TO BIG BALLS LANE? No one, that’s who, which means you need to quickstep on the mouse and do your duty by voting America’s Most Exciting Coach With A Losing Career Record (Including the NFL) into the next round, the next, and eventually to the finals.
Additional note to Esquire writer who thought of this: we want to kiss you on the mouth for this in the straightest way possible. Be sure to vote in the others, too, in order to soften up the bracket. ERIN PAGEVIEWS is going up against Danica Patrick, who we suggest you vote for since the throngs of internet men what crave ERIN PAGEVIEWS would be difficult to vanquish once that particular snowball gets rolling downhill.
NCAA Tournament: West (The Bracket Where We’ll See the Most Double-Digit Seeds Advance?)
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 11:45:50 PDT]
We’ve been through the South (cakewalk) and the Midwest (minefield). The West? A collective shoulder shrug of a region featuring an injured No. 1 that has lost two in a row (Syracuse), a No. 2 that hasn’t been to the Elite 8 since 1988 (Kansas State), an overachieving No. 3 (Pittsburgh) and an unimpressive 4 (Vandy).
5 Future Pros: Wesley Johnson (Syracuse), Andrew Ogilvy (Vanderbilt), Gordon Hayward (Butler), Elias Harris (Gonzaga), Solomon Alabi (Florida State).
Injury situation: After the brackets were released, Jim Boeheim said Onaku “most likely” won’t play this weekend. With him out, Gonzaga has two players who could own the glass (Harris, Sacre) and Florida State has two, as well (Singleton, Alabi). Gonzaga would probably present the more difficult challenge to the Orange.
Rematch: Remember the last time Vermont and Syracuse met?
Best Name: This will probably only interest DC-area fans – Ledrick Eackles, Oakland. His dad? Ledell Eackles, who played for the Washinton Bullets in the 1980s.
Kansas State, Fraud?: Two experienced, talented guards (Pullen, Clemente) and active, agile bigs (Samuels, Kelly). What’s not to like? Well, three of their losses are to teams with quick guards (Ole Miss, Oklahoma State, Missouri). If Florida can beat Jimmer Fredette, the Gators have quick guards (Boynton, Walker) that could give the Wildcats’ problems. Pittsburgh,
Double-digit sleepers: UTEP, Minnesota, Murray State. Miners have a scoring machine (Randy Culpepper) and inside monster (Derrick Caracter), but probably aren’t disclipined enough to beat Butler (witness three straight turnovers late during their collapse against Houston Saturday). The Gophers, despite running out of gas in the 2nd half against Ohio State in the Big Ten championship, could beat Xavier in a 54-53 game. And Murray State because everyone loves the Racers and the last time Vanderbilt was in the NCAA tournament (2008), it was run out of the building (Siena).
Buckle Up, Rick Jackson: Vermont’s Marqus Blakely can dunk.
Gun-to-head pick: Syracuse over Kansas State.
Non-chalk pick: Pittsburgh over Gonzaga.
No, Jenrry: Why The Mets Are (Foolishly) Mulling Turning a Pitching Phenom Into a Setup Guy
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:02:36 PDT]
In a relief appearance over the weekend, 20-year-old Mets pitching prospect Jenrry Mejia gave up his first run of the Spring. It didn’t necessarily register as a big deal, given alleged number three starter John Maine’s far shittier outing on the same day, but the rest of Mejia’s Spring is going to bear as much watching as Maine’s or Oliver Perez’s. The difference, as pertains to the phenom, is that a lot of fans will be hoping that Mejia will be hit as hard as Maine will be, and that he’ll start handing out walks at an Oliverian rate. This is a strange thing, obviously.
In the long run, as someone who has chosen to put a not-insignificant portion of my warm weather leisure time in the hands of The Family Wilpon, I certainly hope that Jenrry Mejia will be a very good pitcher. During Spring Training, Mejia has been just that, and while facing Albert Pujols in an actual game is obviously a different thing than striking out Nook Logan in the seventh inning of a split squad game on the space coast, Mejia has admittedly been pretty fun to watch in the moment and exceedingly easy to daydream about as a 2011 or 2012 member of the Mets’ rotation. He’s basically a lanky kid with a dazzling cut fastball attached at the moment, people who know about stuff like this have Mejia down as a potential Big League ace. Again, maybe not for a year or two — Mejia has only thrown a handful of innings above Class A, and despite impressing everyone with his arm, he was pretty much torched in the Arizona Fall League — but probably in time to team with Johan Santana atop a very good rotation on a team that could conceivably play those elusive Meaningful Games in September. After last season, most Mets fans would take Non-Heartrending Games In Early August, so that’s not nothing, that promise. So why pull for Mejia to crash and burn in Spring Training?
Well, two reasons. One is that, despite the aforementioned stuff about how he’s barely pitched above Double-A and that his six innings of good Spring Training ball are outweighed by a bunch of other innings suggesting he’s not really ready, the Mets are apparently leaning towards bringing Mejia north with the club as a set-up guy. With that in mind, the team has announced that they will use Mejia strictly as a reliever for the rest of Spring Training; he’ll pitch as a starter in Double-A if he doesn’t make the club, once he gets stretched out.
The Mets are evidently doing this in the hopes that eventually Mejia could become either a closer or (presumably) some Island of Dr. Moreau non-starter/non-reliever in the mold of Yankees party beast and pitch count poster person Joba Chamberlain. Given that the Mets are messing with the potential development of a blue chip version of arguably baseball’s most valuable commodity, and given that everyone from Disgusting Virgin Stat Nerds to the average baseball fan understands that 200 innings over the course of a season from a starter are more valuable than even the best 70 innings from a closer, this is strange. Which is to say that most everyone who cares, up to and including Metsblog’s blurt-y italic-jockey Michael Baron thinks this is bullshit.
So, besides the fact that this is the Mets and that the choice to rush Mejia is probably a part of Omar Minaya’s ongoing Citifield installation art project, why would they do this? Well, “This is the Mets” carries a lot of (vague, elusive) significance for me, but I think Patrick Flood nails the real reason in this post at Exile on 126th Street. Here’s Flood:
Okay, now imagine that you, Mets manager Jerry Manuel — feel those glasses pressing on your nose — only have until Memorial Day to prove to your bosses that you shouldn’t be fired. Are you going to:
A.) Argue that the young flame-throwing right-hander Mejia needs to develop in the minor leagues so that he will be better suited to contribute to future Met teams. Mets teams you likely will not be managing.
Or
B.) Fight like all hell to have this kid baffle major league hitters for a month in April, maybe help win a few more close games, and preserve your job in the process. Just think what that could mean: more time to tell jokes!
Now normally, on most teams, there exists a check-and-balance system to keep lame-duck managers from making lame-duck decisions. Lame-duck decisions like this one. Someone in the Mets organization should be using their better judgment to take Jerry’s shiny new toy away, because he might break it on his way out the door. Someone needs to say that Jenrry Mejia should start in the AA rotation because that’s a better decision for the future of the franchise. That someone should be Omar Minaya, who is the general manager. You know, the one with full autonomy and stuff.
Except Omar Minaya is also fighting for his job this season. Meaning he is also a lame-duck, prone to making lame-duck decisions. His seat may not be quite as hot as Jerry’s, but it’s probably uncomfortably warm.
So the two people making decisions about the 2010 Mets roster may be far more concerned with April 2010, than 2011 and beyond. So while you and I and other Met fans can look at Jenrry Mejia being turned into a reliever before our eyes and scream: “NO! WHY CAN’T YOU SEE WHY THIS IS A BAD IDEA! HE’S NOT GOING TO THROW ENOUGH INNINGS THIS YEAR! HE’S NOT GOING TO LEARN TO CONTROL HIS SECONDARY PITCHES! WHAT ARE YOU DOING? STOP LETTING JERRY DO WEIRD THINGS!”, the Mets brass can’t or won’t.
And this is how fans have wound up pulling for the best pitching prospect the team has developed in over a decade to get rocked — because that rocking is about the only thing that can save him from a royal Mets-style fucking up. When the Rangers brought up the electric Neftali Feliz at the end of last season to serve as a set-up guy, they were in the midst of a pennant race and very clear about Feliz’s eventual future as a starter. The Mets are mulling a similar move with Mejia, only with the urgency of pennant contention replaced by the urgency of Jerry Manuel not wanting to have to get a studio job at WGN in July, and all while entertaining the possibility of turning a potential Clayton Kershaw-style ace into Guillermo Mota. Yeah, this is definitely some sort of performance art piece.
LA Times Sports Editor Bemoans the Staffing-Coverage Situation
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:30:57 PDT]
LA Times: “Because our staff, space in the paper and resources are so much smaller than they used to be, we simply can no longer cover everything the way we once did. Consequently, we have to make the difficult decisions every day on what events and sports we do cover and those that we can’t. Our decision has been to try to make sure we reach the greatest number of readers we can with resources available, and regrettably, that means that some areas don’t get much regular coverage. So our energies are more focused toward the beats with high readership, such as the Lakers, Dodgers, USC and UCLA, the NFL and the Olympics.” Do the NHL fans have an argument here? [LA Times]
His Name Is Ozzie Guillen And He Wants To Recruit You…
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 12:54:39 PDT]
(l-r : Venezuelan Prez, famous thespian, brace themselves for Ben Schwartz claiming the former is actually Carlos Zambrano)
…for the purposes of blasting Hugo Chavez. The Sun-Times’ Rick Telander attended a White Sox/Cubs split-squad exhibition tilt in Las Vegas yesterday and observed a pregame Ozzie G. monologue in which the South Side skipper “launched into a tirade against, of all people, Sean Penn.”
I am oblivious to the context, but Guillen is shooting. Stand back!
Something about the actor having gone recently to Ozzie’s troubled homeland and said the place is OK. What this has to do with baseball is anybody’s guess.
”That [bleep]! [Bleep] the [bleep] [bleep]! Don’t go to Venezuela for two days, surrounded with bodyguards, look around, and say, ‘It’s good!’ It’s not good!”
Ozzie looks at the small group before him, ready for debate, but there are no takers.
Onion Bag: David Beckham Ruptures Achilles Tendon, Will Miss 2010 World Cup
[Mon, 15 Mar 2010 13:00:06 PDT]
The gods aren’t moved by romance. English star David Beckham ruptured his Achilles tendon with a misstep in the final minutes of AC Milan’s 1-0 win over Chievo. His international career is over. He will miss the 2010 World Cup.
The injury isn’t fatal for England, but it’s a blow. Beckham is still the best technical England player. His free kicks are dangerous. He can hit a moving stop sign with a cross from 40 yards away. One of the few players in the world who can create a goal from nothing, he was the ideal impact sub. Beckham’s absence limits England’s ability to change pace in desperation.
Fabio Capello will also miss his leadership and media presence. Beckham was the alpha dog, regardless of who was wearing the armband. The last thing England’s most immature generation needed was added spotlight and responsibility.
The Galaxy and MLS, however, should be the most concerned. Beckham could return in six months, it more likely will be nine months to a year, meaning he would miss the 2010 season. Beckham has no World Cup to stimulate him. He has an estimated net worth of more than $200 million. His endorsement deals would probably stay intact if he retired. Does he really want to go through a year of rehab to return for one last run in MLS at age 36?
Mixed Emotions: Clarence Seedorf’s goal, scored shortly after Beckham’s collapse, sealed Milan’s 1-0 win. Paired with Inter Milan’s 3-1 loss to Catania, the gap has closed to just one point at the top of Serie A. Consider it an indictment of Serie A itself, rather than testament to either team’s ambition.
Comforting Fishbowl: Spain’s top two clubs have looked pedestrian in Europe this season, but, domestically, they’ve dominated. Barcelona crushed third-place Valencia 3-0. Leo Messi had a hat trick, but Thierry Henry sparked the Catalans, coming off the bench to assist two of Messi’s goals in the second half.
Valladolid tried to kick Real Madrid off the pitch, literally (see Ronaldo’s leg), but the royals stayed composed. Manuel Pellegrini surrounded Cristiano Ronaldo with complimentary players, rather than Kaka and it worked. Ronaldo added to his highlight film with one of his trademark free kicks, one of the few that doesn’t travel 20 feet over the bar. Gonzalo Higuain followed up with a hat trick. Only an accidental own goal sullied Iker Casillas’ evening. The two giants remain tied.
More Americans: An American-based investment consortium, the Rhone group, is offering to buy 40 percent of Liverpool FC from Tom Hicks and George Gillett for $165 million in cash. The purchase would allow Liverpool to fulfill the club’s obligation to the Royal Bank of Scotland, reducing the $350 million debt by $150 million by this summer.
Improving Liverpool’s finances would allow Liverpool to refinance the remaining debt, to become a better prospect for other investors and improve the club’s credit rating, potentially allowing further developmental loans. Potentially, this would allow the Reds to start construction on the new Stanley Park stadium, to buy the players it needs to keep Fernando Torres and even fire manager Rafa Benitez, who reportedly has an absurd clause in his contract requiring the club to pay him the $24 million left on his contract within 24 hours if he’s fired.
Hicks and Gillett may scoff at the deal, however, as it values Liverpool at just $413 million. They feel they should profit handsomely for loading the club with debt and leaving it on the brink of a meltdown.
Going Dutch: After being fired when England failed to qualify for Euro 2008, Steve McClaren has thrived in the Netherlands with FC Twente, even adopting the accent. He led the club to a second place finish last season, narrowly missing the Champions League Group Stages. This year, they could qualify automatically.
McClaren has Twente five points clear at the top of the Eredivisie after a 3-1 win against ADO Den Haag. He signed a one-year extension with the Dutch club for next season, but should become a free agent afterward. Just three years after a high-profile catastrophe with England, McClaren could be one of the hot managerial commodities in Europe.
Asinine Research: Dutch researchers, using largely EPL data, have proposed that teams with unstable rosters are less likely to succeed. Teams that score higher on a yearly stability index tend to finish higher on the table. Teams that score lower tend to finish near the bottom. These budding Einsteins, apparently, didn’t consider that teams less likely to succeed have unstable rosters. They turnover because they are trying to improve, and that scrambling would intensify in the EPL, where relegation means losing tens of millions in television money.
Goal of the Weekend:Roberto Carlos (Corinthians) vs. Santo Andre
Popularity: 4% [?]
