Sunday, September 30, 2007

NFL Week 4 Observations

The NFL season is now one quarter over. Its pretty obvious that a few teams are really good, and its pretty obvious that a few teams are really bad. Here are a few of my other observations after week 4.

1) That damn Chevy commercial with the John Mellencamp song is really getting old.

2) The Patriots cheating scandal is over. They got a slap on the wrist and it is time to move on. I am tired of hearing about it.

3) Man, it is so much fun to watch Brett Favre play football.

4) I wonder if anybody in the San Diego Chargers' front office is starting to wonder how much money it would take to bring Marty back.

5) I guess it's Kyle Orton time in Chicago.

6) Joey Harrington finally got some protection in Atlanta and he turned in a quality game.

7) I've decided the reason Donovan McNabb is having a sub par year so far is because he has too many white players around him in the Eagle offense. How can we expect McNabb to put up good numbers when his number one wide receiver is white, his number two tight end is white, his left offensive guard is white, and his right offensive tackle is white? We all know that white guys are just too slow to compete at the NFL level.

8) I wonder which Browns team will show up next week against New England. Something tells me that it probably won't matter, though.

9) The Patriots have looked really good so far. But, let's not forget that the Patriots have beaten the Jets (1-3), the Chargers (1-3), and the Bills (1-3). New England has a remarkably easy schedule this year and won't even be tested until they play Dallas in week 6.

10) The Colts are 4-0, but they still don't look good on defense. Now it looks like they may have lost Rob Morris for the year and Bob Sanders is starting to show signs of wear and tear already.

Friday, September 28, 2007

9/28/07: Ronny Thompson

In case you missed it, good old Ronny is at it again. There was a story about Ronny and Ball State in the USA Today newspaper yesterday.

The new story still seems to try to place all the blame on the University and paint Ronny as an innocent victim of a hostile environment. But, it is written a hell of a lot better than the "story of lies" that Michael Wilbon published awhile back.

I'm going to wait a little while before I post my opinion on this latest article about Ronny because I want to see what other writers' reactions are to this latest story.

If you want to see some of the other postings I have made on the Ronny Thompson/Ball State situation, I have placed some links below. The stories are linked by the dates that I posted them. Be warned, though. I am not a Ronny Thompson fan. You won't find anything "pro Ronny" down there from me. Many of my posts do, however, include links to many articles written by other people about Ronny.

8/17/07
8/16/07
8/16/07
7/20/07
7/09/07
7/17/07
7/16/07
7/13/07

9/28/07: Colts Update

Outside linebacker Rob Morris returned to practice on Wednesday after missing the last two games because of an abdomen injury. He is expected to play this Sunday against the Broncos.

Offensive tackle Tony Ugoh sustained an ankle sprain last week against Houston but is expected to play Sunday against Denver.

Offensive guard Ryan Lilja strained his knee last week but is also expected to play this week.

Wide receiver Roy Hall has a separated shoulder and is expected to miss at least 3 weeks.

Thursday, September 27, 2007

9/27/07: UK Basketball Update

Former Cats in the News:

The East Kentucky Miners of the CBA have drafted Lukasz Obrzut with their final pick in the first ever CBA draft Tuesday night. The Miners took a chance by drafting Lukasz because the 7 footer has recently been working out with the Pacers and has at least a small chance of catching on with the NBA team. But, the Miners now own the CBA rights to Obrzut should he not make an NBA roster. The Miners' first game this season will be November 16th.

Boston Celtic, and former UK point guard, Rajon Rondo has a blog. You can check it out here.

UK recruiting news:

There are rumors that Rotnei Clarke has crossed UK off his list of possible schools.

It is being reported that Sylven Landesberg has decided to attend Virginia. You can read the report here.

9/27/07: Browns Update

Kellen Winslow missed practice on Wednesday because of a shoulder separation injury that he suffered in last Sunday's game against the Raiders. Coach Crennel says it isn't a serious separation, but Winslow's status for this Sunday's game still hasn't been announced.

As a former tight end who suffered several shoulder separations in my career I can tell you that Winslow's status for Sunday's game probably still hasn't been decided. Shoulder separations are a tough injury to deal with. A mild separation would probably allow Winslow to play this Sunday, but he will probably be wearing some kind of a harnass to keep his shoulder from separating again. The type of harnass that I wore in my career was extremely annoying and limited my shoulder movement, which made it difficult to catch passes that were thrown high.

My bet is that Winslow plays this Sunday, but I don't know how effective he will be if he is still having problems with a sore shoulder. Once a person suffers a shoulder separation it becomes easier for it to happen again.

Wednesday, September 26, 2007

Jason Whitlock Hits The Nail On The Head

Jason Whitlock published an article last night about the whole Mike Gundy/Bobby Reid/Jenni Carlson fiasco.

I think it is the best opinion piece I have read on the subject so far. Go check out Jason's article for yourself. It is definitely worth reading.

Tuesday, September 25, 2007

Jenni Carlson today

OK. Jenni Carlson wrote another article today.

The title of the article: Carlson stands by her facts, citing sources, observations.

I read that title and thought Jenni Carlson was going to take her gloves off and actually name her sources for her original story. But, at the end of her article today she writes; "Again, my answer came from sources and observations. I stand by those facts."

She had the chance to set the record straight and tell us where the "facts" came from, but she didn't.

Instead, Carlson spends most of the article criticizing Coach Gundy because he wouldn't go on the record and tell her which "Three-fourths" of her article he felt was inaccurate. Carlson apparently feels that Gundy has insulted her credibility by questioning the validity of her story.

I find it interesting that Carlson is offended and feels that Gundy has wronged her. I wonder if she put any thought into how Bobby Reid was going to feel after she wrote the article that basically questioned his manhood and made him look like a momma's boy who wasn't mentally tough enough to compete on the collegiate level? I think Bobby has the right to know who would say these kinds of things about him. If Jenni won't tell us who said these things, then I think the "source" should be man enough to step up and admit to what he has done. That is, if there really is a source.

Carlson is so concerned about Coach Gundy questioning her credibility that she hasn't listened to anything else the man is saying. Coach Gundy isn't upset with her questioning Bobby Reid's play on the field. He is upset with the way she turned her story into a personal attack on Bobby's character. Just go back and listen to his press conference again.

Jenni Carlson needs to read her original story again and think of how she would feel if someone had written those things about her. She could have written that story without making Bobby Reid look like a baby. From her reaction to Coach Gundy's press conference I think it is fairly obvious that Ms. Carlson doesn't like to be the subject of criticism herself. It sure does appear that she likes to dish it out, though.

I don't know, but maybe Jenni's criticism of others is a way of making her feel better about herself.

I sincerely hope Jenni Carlson hasn't been reading any of the posts that people are writing about her on the sports message boards. If she has been, she will find out that there are a lot of people out there who don't think very highly of her as a sportswriter. She better hope those people aren't mad enough to stop subscribing to her newspaper. She also better hope that she hasn't offended all the other coaches and athletes out there enough to keep them from granting her any future interviews.

Mike Gundy

When I was a junior in high school I missed an extra point in my school's biggest football game of the season. Our team was rated #2 in the State at the time, and we were playing our crosstown rival who was ranked #5 in the State at the time. It was in the fourth quarter when our team scored a touchdown that would have tied the game, except I missed the extra point and we went on to lose 21-20.

The next day the headline in our city newspaper stated that I "Choked." I suppose it grabbed the readers' attention, but it was pretty far from the truth. The author of the story wrote the piece like he was trying to win some Pulitzer Prize. It was full of all kinds of artistic prose and even a few metaphors here and there. I bet he stayed up late that night trying to decide which words were prettier in the context of the story.

But, he never came close to understanding what really happened that night.

What the author of the story failed to realize or mention was the fact that I played the entire game that night and I was exhausted by the fourth quarter. We had some injuries on our team so I was asked to play full time on offense and on defense that night. I also handled the kicking duties, so the only time I came off the field that night was on punts and kick returns. It was also a very warm night, so my ass was dragging by the end of the game. In addition to be being tired, we were also playing the game on artificial turf. That was the only game we played all year on artificial turf and I was wearing a pair of brand new turf shoes which I normally didn't wear during the season. I didn't have much practice kicking in those shoes. And yes, the shoes can make a difference.

The newspaper man wrote the "choke" story without ever interviewing anybody associated with our team.

I was 17 years old when I missed that kick. I was just a kid who suddenly had been labeled a "choker." The author of the story was in his 30's and had never played a game of football in his life. I know he never played football in his life because I asked him the next time he requested an interview with me. After he answered my question, I reminded him of the "choking" story and then politely declined his interview request. I think he was shocked to find out later that none of my teammates would give him an interview for the rest of the season. I don't think the newspaper man had any clue about the strength of the bond between teammates. That missed kick was never mentioned in our locker room again. That was about 20 years ago and I still consider most of those guys to be the best friends I ever had.

In case you were wondering, we met up with our crosstown rivals again later that season during the State playoffs. We beat them 27-3. The newspaper man didn't even try to get any interviews with our team after the game.

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On Saturday, Oklahoma State football coach Mike Gundy lost his temper in a post game press conference. He lost his temper because of a story that had been printed in the Oklahoman newspaper that morning about a player (Bobby Reid) on the Oklahoma State football team. That story was written by Jenni Carlson, and she was present at the press conference when Coach Gundy exploded in her direction.

It seems Coach Gundy took offense to some of the things that Ms. Carlson wrote in her story about Bobby Reid losing the starting quarterback job. If you haven't read the story, click on the link above.

I haven't watched Oklahoma State play this year. I'm not familiar with Bobby Reid. But, I do think what Jenni Carlson wrote was unprofessional and bordered on just plain mean. What purpose was served by mentioning Bobby's mother "feeding him chicken"? I'm not saying it was untrue. But, I'd be willing to bet that Bobby Reid's life will never be the same as a result of what Ms. Carlson wrote.

I'd also be willing to bet that Jenni Carlson never played a game of football in her life. She probably knows nothing about a Cover 2 defense or a Zone Blitz. She probably has no idea what kind of pressure is involved with being a starting quarterback on a Big 12 football team. I bet she attacked Bobby Reid as a person because she didn't know enough about football to criticize the way he plays the game. That's as much an indictment of the Oklahoman newspaper as it is an indictment of Jenni Carlson as a sports writer. Jenni Carlson shouldn't be covering sports if she doesn't know enough about the sports she is covering to write an intelligent article.

If that's the case, then I feel sorry for the people who have to rely on that newspaper to get their local sports news.

I agree with Coach Gundy on this one. Ms. Carlson could have written that story without making it sound like Bobby Reid's mother was still breast feeding him and changing her son's diapers every day. That's how a professional newspaper sports journalist would have written the story. And, that's how a newspaper sports journalist that expected to interview other Oklahoma State football players in the future would have written that story.

If I was Coach Gundy I would do everything in my power to make sure that Jenni Carlson NEVER got a decent interview with any coaches or players on the Oklahoma State football team again. In fact, I would request that the newspaper assign a different reporter to cover the team. That's if the team doesn't decide to boycott the newspaper entirely. I wouldn't blame them if they did.

And as far as Coach Gundy goes, I only wish that I had played for a coach who cared about his players as much as it appears that he does.

I would have to think that this whole issue will help his recruiting in the future.

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In the end, Jenni Carlson needs to remember that she is writing about college kids playing a game. She also needs to remember that her livelihood as a sports reporter depends on these same kids. Its OK for her to be critical as long as she doesn't lose sight of the fact that even though these kids may look like men, they are still mostly 18-21 year old kids.

They are still kids! Most of them aren't even old enough to buy alcohol. Some of them, like Bobby Reid, apparently still love their mothers. What the Hell is wrong with that?

Ms. Carlson's whole article just makes me wonder if she doesn't have some kind of unresolved psychological issues that cause her to lash out against others. If so, I wish her the best and I hope she has the inner strength to seek help and try to resolve those issues in a positive manner.

And Jenni if you're reading this, sometimes it helps to just get a big old hug. If you don't have any friends that would be willing to give you one, I bet your mother would help you out if you asked her. Mothers are good for that unconditional love thing. I would just make sure that there aren't any newspaper reporters around when she gives you the hug. Lord knows what some newspaper idiot might write about you if they see you getting a hug from your mother.

Monday, September 24, 2007

NFL Week 3 Observations

I think week 3 told us a little bit more about who is a contender and who is a pretender. Here are a few of my thoughts after week 3.

1) New England, Indianapolis, and Pittsburgh look like the cream of the crop. Its still pretty early though, and none of them have faced a proven opponent yet. New England has blown out the Jets, Chargers, and Bills. The Colts have blown out the Saints and narrowly escaped the Titans and the Texans. The Steelers have annihilated the Browns, the Bills, and the 49ers. I initially thought the Chargers and Saints were going to be really good this year, but they both apparently suck.

2) I thought the AFC North was going to be the toughest Division in football this year, but I'm starting to think the AFC South may be the toughest. Jacksonville really made Denver look bad yesterday and Houston and Tennessee both look like they are really improved this year. If Tennessee beats New Orleans tonight, all 4 teams in the AFC South will have a winning record after their first 3 games. No other Division in the NFL has more than 2 teams left with a winning record.

3) I'm still not sure what to think of Green Bay. Beating the Eagles, the Giants, and the Chargers to start the season seems really impressive. I'm just not sure how good the Eagles, Giants, and Chargers are gonna be this year.

4) Dallas has been fun to watch, but I'm not too sure about their defense yet.

5) Detroit looked like Detroit again. They did score some points, though. I don't think they are ready for the playoffs yet, but anything could happen in the NFC.

6) What the hell is going on in Chicago? I think "Bad Rex" needs to take a seat. In 3 games he has 1 touchdown pass and 6 interceptions with a quarterback rating of 45.2. I think they need to give Griese a chance before they are eliminated from playoff contention.

7) Matt Schaub threw 2 interceptions yesterday and he still looked pretty good overall. I bet the Falcons are kicking themselves in the ass for letting him go.

8) I am starting to think that Eli Manning is showing some improvement this year. And don't look now, but the Giants 2 losses to Dallas and Green Bay are beginning to not look so bad. The Cowboys and the Packers are the only 2 undefeated teams left in the NFC.

Friday, September 21, 2007

9/21/07: Kentucky Basketball Update

Joe Crawford's knee surgery last week apparently went well. Billy Gillespie is reporting that Joe should be ready by the time the Big Blue begins practicing on October 12th. Billy did, however, express concern over the fact that Joe is missing a substantial amount of conditioning time.

Billy also said that Jared Carter and Derrick Jasper are recovering well from their off-season surgeries and they should both be returning to "full speed" in October.

Thursday, September 20, 2007

UPDATE: Floyd landis Loses!!!

Read the ESPN story here.

He will have to forfeit his Tour de Farce title and he will be banned from competition for two years. I'll try to have more on this later.

And no, I didn't accidentally misspell France.

Wednesday, September 19, 2007

Dirty, Dirty, Dirty!

I'd like to say I'm surprised, but I'm not. I firmly believe that Rodney Harrison is a very bad person.

According to law enforcement sources, Rodney Harrison was ordering HGH from the Palm Beach Rejuvenation Center as far back as 2004. You may remember that the Patriots went on to win the Super Bowl that year over the Panthers. And, you may also remember that Harrison was outstanding all throughout the playoffs that year.

Didn't Rodney try to tell us just a few days ago that he only took the HGH the past two seasons "to try to accelerate the healing process" from his various injuries?

Wouldn't the playoffs and Super Bowl in 2004 be a little before the past two seasons?

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There are two things about this story that I find interesting:

#1) There were several Panther players in that same Super Bowl game who were also apparently hopped up on HGH and steroids. So, its not like the Panther players or fans can whine about Rodney Harrison cheating during the Super Bowl. Who says cheaters never win? How many Super Bowl rings does Rodney have now?

#2) How will Roger Goodell handle this situation if Rodney Harrison didn't tell the Commissioner the whole truth about his HGH use?

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I would think that the Commissioner would have no choice but to lengthen Harrison's suspension if it can be proven that Rodney did, in fact, lie to the Commissioner about how long he has actually been taking performance enhancing drugs.

I wonder what kind of lies are gonna come out of Rodney's mouth this time.

So What's Dan Patrick up to?

The countdown has begun.

I guess we'll find out approximately 11 Days and 20 Hours from now. I'll just be glad to see an end to all the Dan Patrick rumors.

The link above is to Dan's website.

Tuesday, September 18, 2007

Leftwich Signs With Atlanta

I think Joey Harrington is a really nice guy, but I'm starting to think he is not an NFL quarterback. Apparently, Arthur Blank is losing confidence in Joey as well.

The Atlanta Falcons signed Byron Leftwich today to a two year, 7 million dollar contract.

I find it interesting that Atlanta signed Byron to a two year contract. The length of the contract pretty much tells me that Michael Vick will not be welcomed back in Atlanta and that the Falcons think that Leftwich has something legitimate left in his tank. I don't think the Falcons were 100% convinced that leftwich was their guy, or they would have offered a longer contract. But, I bet you they open up the checkbook again real fast if Byron delivers like I think he will.

I think this signing is a good deal for the Falcons and for Leftwich. I just hope the Falcons can fix their offensive line issues before they ask Byron to take the field in a game. Leftwich can pick apart defenses if you give him some time, but he is notoriously slow of foot in the pocket. He also has an agonizingly long delivery on his throws. He won't be any more successful than Harrington if they can't give him the time he needs.

I'm still shocked that it took this long for somebody to sign Leftwich.

In Case You Haven't Heard

"The Mike Tirico" show will debut on ESPN Radio this Thursday and will fill part of the old "Dan Patrick Show" time slot. The Tirico Show will run from 1pm to 3 pm Monday through Friday. The remaining hour of the old "Dan Patrick Show" time slot will be filled by Stephen A. Smith and will run Monday through Friday from 3 pm to 4pm.

I really like Mike Tirico and I can't wait to hear his new show.

I'm not so excited about Stephen A. Smith. In fact, I'm pretty disappointed.

But, I have already done some checking and I have discovered that FOX Sports Radio has a show called "The Drive" that runs Monday through Friday from 3 pm to 7 pm. "The Drive" features Chris Myers and former NFL star Bryan Cox. So, I guess it will work out for me. On the days that I am working out of my truck I will listen to Tirico from 1 pm to 3 pm, and then I will switch over to Fox Sports Radio and catch "The Drive."

If you are like me and can't stand Stephen A. Smith, you might want to check and see if you can get Fox Sports Radio in your area. I have never listened to Fox Sports Radio, but it has to be better than listening to Stephen A. Smith!

McNabb Plays the Race Card

I was disappointed when I read the Donovan McNabb story on ESPN's website today.

It seems that Donovan did an interview for HBO's "Real Sports" where he claims that African-American quarterbacks face more pressure and criticism than white quarterbacks.

Let me start here by saying that I really like Donovan McNabb. I enjoy watching him play football and I thoroughly enjoy listening to him whenever he gets interviewed. But, I am going to have to disagree with Donovan on this one.

All quarterbacks, whether white or African-American, get criticized. Hell, even Peyton Manning has taken a lot of heat over the years for having "happy feet" and "not being able to win the big game." Joe Montana, Dan Marino, John Elway, and Tom Brady all have been criticized. The quarterback is the most visible player on the football field. He gets the credit when his team succeeds and he gets the blame when his team fails. Right or wrong, that is the way it has always been. Maybe Donovan should give Rex Grossman a call and get "Bad Rex's" opinion on the subject. The last time I checked, Rex was white, and he seems to take more criticism than any quarterback in the league. And Rex went to the Super Bowl last season.

I think Donovan might feel like African-American quarterbacks are being singled out for criticism right now because of the whole Michael Vick thing and because of McNabb's own current situation.

Donovan has been playing hurt for awhile and by his own admission he is probably only performing at about 75-80 %. It is obvious that he is not the same player that he was when he was healthy. I don't think Donovan is taking any more criticism than anyone else in his shoes would be taking right now given his recent performances. Plus, he plays in Philadelphia. Every athlete thats plays in Philly is under pressure from the crazy fan base and the ridiculous expectations.

I think Donovan McNabb needs to take a step back and look around the rest of the League. He isn't the only guy under pressure and being criticized right now. Joey Harrington and Eli Manning come to mind.

I'm not gonna sit here and say that African-American quarterbacks have never been judged unfairly because of the color of their skin (I firmly believe that Warren Moon never gets the credit that he deserves as one of the best quarterbacks who ever played the game). But, I think you could also easily make the argument that sometimes African-American quarterbacks might get more credit than they deserve. I'm not saying that is a true statement, but I think it holds about as much water as what Donovan McNabb just said.

This is all about perspective. The grass is always greener on the other side. etc. etc. etc.

Donovan needs to stop being so sensitive and start playing ball.

"There's no room for crying in football!"

Monday, September 17, 2007

Stern Still Doesn't Get it!

It was announced today that the NBA has reinstated Joey Crawford.

In case you forgot, Joey had been suspended indefinitely for the "improper conduct and lack of professionalism" that he displayed during a game between the Spurs and Mavericks back in April. Joey is the ref who assessed two technicals on Tim Duncan in a span of 76 seconds. The second technical appeared to have been assessed to Duncan simply because he was laughing while he was sitting on the bench. Then Joey apparently tried to challenge Duncan to a fight.

I just don't understand why David Stern would let a ref with Joey's reputation back into the League right now. I think most sports fans would probably agree that Joey Crawford might be the worst referee they have ever seen. I know he is the worst ref I have ever seen. I think the decision to reinstate Crawford is just further proof that David Stern just doesn't see the big picture.

David Stern needs to resign!

In case you haven't guessed, I don't think much of David Stern. I have included the links to some of my previous posts about the idiot below. If you check out the "Stern Sucks" post at the bottom you'll notice that I posted that one on April 18th, 2007. I think you might find it kind of prophetic since I posted it well before the Donaghy story broke.

Pompous Ass
David Stern Should Resign
Sterns Press Conference
You Gotta Read This
David Stern's Email Address?
David Stern Is An Idiot!
I Knew It!
Stern Sucks & So Does The NBA

Sunday, September 16, 2007

Observations From Week 2

Here are some of my thoughts after week 2 of the NFL season.

1) I bet there are some people in San Diego who think that Marty Schottenheimer doesn't look so bad right now. I sincerely hope there are some people in Cleveland who agree and might be willing to give Marty a job next year.

2) I'm thinking I might have been way off base when I predicted that the Saints were going to the Super Bowl this year. They looked absolutely putrid again.

3) Don't look now, but the Lions are still undefeated.

4) I'm thinking the Steelers might go undefeated through the regular season this year. Take a look at their schedule. It looks like New England might be their only tough game.

5) I think I might change my Super Bowl prediction to New England over Dallas. Not that Dallas is that great, but the rest of the NFC is looking pretty bad (again).

6) I know it is still early, but I think the Patriots have already clinched the AFC East. The other East teams are a combined 0-6 after the first two games.

7) I wasn't really surprised there were 96 total points scored in the Bengals/Browns game. I was just surprised that the Bengals didn't score all 96 of them.

8) The Vikings may want to take a look at Byron Leftwich.

9) Jeff Fisher is a great coach. I am convinced the Colts would have 3 or 4 Super Bowl Championships by now if Fisher had coached in Indy instead of Houston/Tennessee.

10) Derek Anderson turned in a great performance against the Bengals. Can he do it again?

11) Atlanta's offensive line sucks. Joey Harrington got sacked 7 times Sunday. In case you were wondering, he was sacked 6 times in the game last week. Those are David Carr numbers.

Wednesday, September 12, 2007

Something To Think About

Which NFL coach do you think makes the best half time adjustments?

I bet most of you said Bill Belichick.

When you think about it, it would be easy to make half time adjustments if you had a videotape of the opposing coaching staff signaling in plays to their team in the first half. This isn't the first time that a Patriots coach has been caught with a video camera aimed at opposing coaches during a game. I'm not making any accusations here, I'm just giving you something to think about. Maybe Belichick isn't really a coaching genius. Maybe he is really just a gifted cheater.

Its also being reported (again) that the Patriots may have somehow intercepted and/or jammed the Jets radio signals during the game. When you think about it, it would probably give you a competitive advantage if you could listen in on the opposing team's play calls. Or if you could talk to your quarterback via a radio during the game but the opposing team couldn't talk to theirs. Didn't the Jaguars complain about this very same thing after they lost to the Patriots in the playoffs a couple years ago?

I hope Roger Goodell throws the book at the Patriots and Bill Belichick. I wouldn't feel that way if there weren't so many stories out there about the Patriots getting away with this kind of crap for years. I am not talking about the Patriots defenders holding opposing receivers or running sprinklers on Gillette Field for days before the Colts come to play. I'm also not talking about letting the grass in Foxborough grow long to slow down opposing players or having a snow blower clear a path for the hometown kicker to make the game winning field goal. Do a Google search and spend the rest of your day reading stories about some of the other things the Patriots are alleged to have done under Bill Belichick. I don't think that taking a draft pick away from the Patriots will be much of a penalty. I really think that taking multiple draft picks and/or forfeiture of the Jets game is what needs to happen to ensure that Belichick and Robert Kraft don't do this kind of crap again. I think that Belichick also needs to be suspended for multiple games and the assistant coach who ran the video camera needs to be banned from the League forever. I also think that if Belichick gets caught doing this kind of crap again that he should be banned from the League forever.

How about preventing them from having any home field advantage in the playoffs this year? Yeah, every game they would play would have to be on the opposing team's field.

Cheating is cheating. I think what the Patriots did is actually worse than a player taking performance enhancing drugs (and Rodney Harrison got 4 games for that). I wonder how many Patriot players were involved in this video taping thing. You know if this is all true that Tom Brady had to know about it. Stealing the signs from opposing defensive coaches would be meaningless if you couldn't pass the relevant info on to your quarterback. Wouldn't it be funny if Tom Brady suddenly became a bad quarterback now that Belichick has been caught and will no longer be able to give Tom a heads up on what the defenses will be doing on every play. I wonder if everybody would still consider him to be one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time if he now sucks for the rest of his career. I would think that would probably tarnish his image a little bit.

Just something to think about.

Tuesday, September 11, 2007

Pacers News

Indianapolis, Indiana

It was announced today that the Indianapolis Pacers plan to construct a jail cell and court room in Conseco Fieldhouse.

They will not be the first professional sports team to have a court room and detention center in their arena. About half of all NFL arenas now come equipped with their own prison. The Pacers, however, will not use their court room and detention center quite like other teams use theirs. While other teams use their jail cells mostly for unruly fans, the Pacers plan to use their detention center for their own players. That's right, the Pacers are planning on replacing their home team's locker room with a jail cell.

The Pacers' front office stated that they were making the changes to Conseco Fieldhouse in an effort to help their players feel more at home.
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OK, the story about the court room and detention center at Conseco is just a joke. But, it was announced today that Shawne Williams of the Pacers was arrested last night for possession of marijuana and driving without a license. That is not a joke. You can check out the ESPN story here.

More legal troubles for the Pacers. How many players have they had arrested now? The Pacers are a joke.

If Reggie Miller was already dead he would be rolling over in his grave right now. But, thankfully Reggie is still alive. I say the Simons should fire Larry Bird and offer the job to Reggie Miller. Lord knows he couldn't possibly screw up the roster any more than Larry has.

Browns Trade Frye!

It was announced today that the Cleveland Browns have traded Charlie Frye to the Seattle Seahawks. Details of the trade have not been released, but it is believed that the Browns will receive a draft pick in return for Frye.

Charlie will be the third string emergency quarterback on the Seahawks roster. So basically the guy that Romeo Crennel tabbed as the Browns starter for week one isn't even good enough to be second string for the Seahawks. Wow!

It is believed that the Browns are planning to re-sign Ken Dorsey this afternoon to fill Frye's now vacant spot on the roster.
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Does anybody else think that the Browns organization is starting to look like some kind of circus? What the hell is the coaching staff and management in Cleveland doing? They draft a quarterback in the first round of the NFL draft and declare him the savior of the franchise. Then, they don't play him because he might get hurt. Even though he is obviously the best quarterback on the roster. Then, the guy they named the starting quarterback after training camp and 4 pre-season games has one bad quarter of football in their first game of the season and they bench him and replace him with the guy that he beat out in the pre-season. Then they trade the original starter two days later for an undisclosed draft pick. The team that received the Browns' starting quarterback announces they plan to use the guy as a third string quarterback.

Are you shitting me? What the hell was the coaching staff doing during the pre-season? One quarter and then you give up on Charlie Frye and trade him to Seattle for an undisclosed draft pick? I can't believe that they ever had any real confidence in Charlie or they wouldn't have given up on him so quick this season. Which means, they must have no confidence in Anderson if they thought Charlie was better than him to start with. Now I'm hearing talk that the Browns may consider starting Ken Dorsey. Holy shit, didn't they just cut the guy? Who the hell is making the personnel decisions for Cleveland?

I'm freaking speechless.

Monday, September 10, 2007

NFL week one

Here are some of my thoughts and observations from week one of the NFL season.

1) My thoughts and prayers are with Kevin Everett and his family.

2) Surprise, surprise. It appears that the New England Patriots have been caught cheating again. This isn't the first time and it won't be the last.

3) If the NFL wants to stop end zone celebrations they need to negotiate it into their TV contracts. Nobody will even notice if Chad Johnson puts on a tutu and twirls a baton in the end zone after a touchdown if the League forbids the networks from showing the celebrations on TV. The League should also ban the replay of touchdown celebrations during sports highlight shows, ESPN included. Out of sight and out of mind.

4) The Patriots and Colts look like the teams to beat after week one. I'm pretty sure the Patriots would have clubbed the Jets even without cheating.

5) I'm not sure the Browns will win a game this season. I wonder who they will draft to sit on the bench and hold a clipboard next season. Hmmm. I wonder who their coach will be next season. I don't think Bill Cowher will take it. My money is on Marty.

6) The Bears lost two defensive starters for the year in their first game. Mike Brown (db) and Dusty Dvoracek (nt) are out for the year. If their defense takes any more hits they might not even win the NFC North. Lord knows they can't count on Rex Grossman to carry the load. I don't know if anybody else noticed, but the Lions, Packers, and Vikings all look like they improved from last season.

7) Why the hell isn't anyone signing Byron Leftwich? I would think that Atlanta would be beating down his door. There are quite a few other teams that I think will regret not giving him a look. The Browns might as well sign Leftwich if they're not going to play Brady Quinn.

8) Joey Harrington didn't look too good for Atlanta. But, its hard to throw a pass when you are running for your life. I think Atlanta needs to work on their offensive line a little bit. The poor offensive line play might be why Atlanta isn't going after Leftwich. Byron hasn't exactly made a name for himself as an elusive quarterback.

9) The Raiders signed JaMarcus Russell yesterday. I still think this guy will turn out to be a bust in the NFL. I don't know why I think that, I just do.

10) I used to love Tiki Barber as a player. I hate him as a commentator.

11) Tony Kornheiser still isn't growing on me. I muted MNF in the first quarter again. I sure enjoyed the second MNF game last night, though. Greenie, Golic, and Ditka are much more enjoyable for me. I just wish the second game wasn't on so late.

12) Adrian Peterson sure looked good for the Vikings. I knew he would.

13) Vince Young still doesn't impress me as an NFL quarterback. I'm not saying the guy is bad, I just don't think he is as good as everyone apparently thinks he is. Vince went 11-18 for 78 yards passing with one interception against the Jags. Hardly Pro-Bowl material.

14) Did anybody else notice that the Lions hung 36 points on the Raiders? I know a lot of those points were scored late in the game, but the Raiders defense was pretty damn good last year. Maybe John Kitna knows what he is talking about. I guess we'll see soon enough. The Lions have the Vikings next week and the Bears in week 4. If they win both of those games maybe I will be a believer.

Sunday, September 9, 2007

Browns Suck, Again.

I didn't get to see the game today against the Steelers, and I'm kind of glad that I didn't. Everything I've read today makes it sound like the Browns may have had the worst showing of any team in the NFL this weekend. It sounds to me like they were lucky they only lost 34-7.

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5 turnovers in the game.

4 different penalties on their first punt which only went for 15 yards to begin with.

Their quarterbacks were sacked 6 times.

They averaged only 2.9 yards per carry on offense.

They totaled only 221 yards of offense for the entire game.

The offensive line apparently looked like a sieve.

And Crennel yanked Charlie Frye in the second quarter for Derek Anderson.
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So much for my optimism that the Browns might win 8 games this season. After that showing today I think its time that Cleveland fans stop chanting for Brady Quinn and start chanting for a new coach.

Peter King of Sports Illustrated reported today that the Browns coaches and management are going to sit down on Monday to discuss their quarterback situation. I think they need to seriously consider giving Brady Quinn some playing time next week. I'm not saying the kid needs to be named the starter, but I think he should at least move up to number two and he should get on the field if the Browns offense sputters again next week. I know that the Browns offensive line hasn't performed as well as we all thought they would and there is the potential that Brady might get hurt. But, he probably has more experience playing behind a piss poor offensive line than most quarterbacks in the NFL do. If you don't believe me go take a look at some of his game films from his career at Notre Dame. Brady spent most of his time at Notre Dame running for his life. Playing for the Browns should be no different.

Darius Miller commits to UK

Darius Miller became the 7th prospect to commit or sign with UK since Billy Gillespie took over the program in April. Miller is a 6'7" forward from Mason County where he averaged 18.5 points, 7.6 rebounds, and 3.6 assists as a junior last season. Scout.com lists Darius as a 4 star recruit and the #35 prospect in the country for the class of '08.

The other Gillespie recruits who have committed or signed with UK since April are Patrick Patterson (07), Alex Legion (07), Dakotah Euton (10), DeAndre Liggins (08), KC Ross-Miller (10), and GJ Vilarino (09). Click on the recruit's name to see his Scout.com profile.

Thursday, September 6, 2007

The Colts

OK. After watching last night's Colts/Saints game there are some things I'd like to say.

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1) NBC played that damn Chevy commercial with John Mellencamp's song way too many times. I pretty much decided last night that I will never buy a Chevy Silverado just because I am sick of that commercial and song.

2) The Colts appear to be better than I thought they were going to be. Especially on defense. Either that, or the Saints really got worse. Maybe my prediction of the Colts only winning 9 games this year was a little premature. The Saints didn't test the middle of Indy's defense as much as I thought they would, though. It was only one game so I'm not going to pass any judgement yet. I guarantee the Titans will test Indy's defensive middle next week.

3) Freddy Kieaho looks like he may be the real deal. He played fast, hit hard, and seemed to be in the right place most of the time. I think he could easily have 160-175 tackles this year if he stays healthy and continues to play the way he did last night.

4) That Colt's secondary already looks better than they did last year. They gave up a lot of underneath stuff last night, but they knocked the crap out of just about every receiver that caught a ball. By the 4th quarter there weren't too many Saints receivers that seemed brave enough to go over the middle. I really like that.

5) Here's the big one. Tony Ugoh looks like he may turn out to be pretty good in the NFL. I'm not going to say he played great like Chris Collinsworth and Tiki Barber tried to tell us at halftime. No, Tony was far from great. The three plays that Collinsworth/Barber showed us at halftime were probably the best three plays that Ugoh had in the first half. Anybody who watches the Colts on a regular basis can tell you that the Colts played two tight ends last night, especially in the first half, so they could put Ben Utecht next to Ugoh to help him block Will Smith. When Utecht wasn't there to help Ugoh, Will Smith was able to get around Ugoh pretty easily and cause Manning to throw the ball before he was ready. That screwed up the Colts' timing and caused a lot of incomplete passes. That is why Manning's completion percentage wasn't that great, especially in the first half. That severely limited the Colts offensive play calling last night. Tony will get a lot of holding calls this year if he doesn't correct his mechanics.

Tony Ugoh was playing against an All-Pro caliber defensive end in Will Smith so I am going to cut him some slack. Tony actually did a really good job run blocking. He didn't do so good in pass protection, but his problems there appeared to be mostly mechanics. John Madden was correct when he said Tony's center of gravity was too high and he needed to lower his hips. Tony also needs to work a little more on his footwork so he can keep his shoulders square to the line of scrimmage a little longer on Manning's deep drops. Will Smith was exploding up field on pass plays and Ugoh's feet were too slow to keep up. So, Ugoh tried to compensate by turning his hips and shoulders too soon and trying to push Smith past Manning to the outside. Tony needs to be able to backpedal a little faster and keep his shoulders square to the line of scrimmage a little bit longer. If Tony keeps his shoulders square and his hips low it will take away the defensive end's spin move to the inside. If Tony learns to keep his shoulders square it will also basically force the pass rusher to try either the bull rush move or the shoulder under to beat Ugoh to the outside. Either way, Tony will have the advantage if he can keep his center of gravity lower than that of the pass rusher.

6) Hats off to Ben Utecht. That guy was a blocking machine last night.

7) I didn't see any drop-off in the Colts running back production. Addai and Keith did fine as far as I am concerned.

8) I feel your pain Saints fans. Jason David drove me absolutely crazy when he played for the Colts. That guy will make some big plays for you this year, but he will also get burned a lot. He is simply too aggressive on pump fakes and play action. He is a good cornerback when he has deep help, but he is vulnerable when the deep safety help isn't there.

9) Did anybody else notice how much holding the refs missed last night? Both teams were holding like crazy. Freeney was getting held on almost every play, as was Will Smith for the Saints. Of course, Will Smith also had a handful of Tony Ugoh's face mask on every play so I guess it balanced out.
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All in all, I think the Colts looked pretty good. Once Tony Ugoh gets better at pass protection I think we will see the Colts go more with a single tight end look which will allow Manning to spread out the defenses a little more with three wide receiver sets. We didn't see that much last night. You'll know when Tony Ugoh starts getting better because you will start noticing Anthony Gonzalez getting on the field more in a three wide receiver look.

More on UK basketball

The Courier Journal reported yesterday that Stacey Webster is expected to be named an assistant coach on Billy Gillespie's staff.

Stacey Webster was an assistant at Illinois but has officially resigned that position. Stacey played basketball for the University of Wisconsin and has also been an assistant coach at Purdue and Ball State. Stacey has the reputation for being a good recruiter, especially around the midwest and specifically in the Chicago area.

It was also recently reported that Alvin Brooks will join Gillespie's staff. There has been no official announcement on Brooks, but Brooks was on Gillespie's staff at Texas A & M. Alvin was seen last week at UK's photo day so it does appear that he will be around in some capacity.

It being reported that Brooks will probably be hired as an office administrator while Webster will be a basketball assistant.

Sunday, September 2, 2007

Kentucky basketball update

It is being reported that Kentucky has invited 6'11", 225 pound Garrett Stutz from Kansas City to Midnight Madness this year. Stutz played at a very small private school outside of Kansas City and just recently transferred to Kansas City North where he will play his senior season for Kirk Hinrich's dad. There isn't a lot of info available on Stutz yet, apparently because he is considered a late bloomer. Coach Hinrich says that Garrett has grown 4 or 5 inches in the last year or so. He went on to say that Stutz is pretty thin, but he posts up well. He also is reported to have decent range out to 19 feet with his jumper. Stutz is currently being recruited by Iowa State, Nebraska, Arizona State, Texas Christian, Kentucky, and Kansas. Garrett's father played college ball for Slippery Rock. Scout.com has Garrett listed as a 3 star recruit.

Former Wildcat Lucasz Obrzut has been invited to the Indiana Pacers pre-season camp this fall. Obrzut says he will move to Indianapolis later this month to begin working out and preparing for camp. Good Luck to Lucasz.

Saturday, September 1, 2007

Colts cut down to 53

Well, the Colts have made their roster cuts to get down to the mandatory 53 players, and there are some surprises.


Here's the list of guys who are no longer Colts:
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DeDe Dorsey (RB), Bo Schobel (DE), Ryan LaCasse (DE), John Standeford (WR), Matt Ulrich (OG), Clifton Dawson (RB), Brandon Archer (LB), Josh Betts (QB), Duane Coleman (DB), Tanard Davis (DB), Matt Farbotko (TE), Johnny Harline (TE), KaMichael Hall (LB), Joe Lobdell (OG), Ramel Meekins (DT), Antonio Perkins (DB), Gijon Robinson (TE), Trent Shelton (WR), Craphonso Thorpe (WR), Scott Ware (DB), Sam Wilder (OG), and Victor Worsely (LB).
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I think Bo Schobel and Ryan LaCasse getting cut were the two biggest surprises for me. Both of those guys spent a considerable amount of time on the Colts active 53 man roster last year.

Standeford and Dorsey getting cut was a mild surprise for me. I thought both of those guys played pretty well this preseason, but I think they ultimately just got beat out by better players. Standeford lost out to Moorehead and Dorsey lost out to Kenton Keith.

So who were the surprises that made the roster? Melvin Bullitt (DB), Jeff Charleston (DE), Ramon Guzman (LB), and Luke Lawton (FB) all made the roster as undrafted rookies.

Ed Johnson (DT) was also undrafted and made the roster but I can't say he was a surprise after I saw him play this preseason.

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Check out the cuts made by the other NFL teams here!