Month: February 2011 (Page 9 of 49)

Jon Fitch chasing B.J. Penn’s legacy

Jon Fitch is chasing B.J. Penn’s ghost at UFC 127 but as Spencer Kyte of HeavyMMA.com writes, he plans on finishing the legend and getting one more crack at the welterweight title.

Long before Jon Fitch became a part of the team at American Kickboxing Academy, the man he’ll face at UFC 127 was working with the same trainers who have helped make him one of the best fighters in the sport today.

Though the image many people have of B.J. Penn preparing for a fight has been crafted by various UFC Countdown specials showing the former two-division champion training in his native Hawaii, Penn indeed trained in San Jose, and Fitch has heard all the stories and uses them as motivation.

“It’s like chasing ghost almost, hearing stories about a guy you’ve never gotten to work with or train with or anything. When I first came to AKA was shortly after B.J. had left, and everybody who had trained him or trained with him was still around, and he was a pretty amazing athlete, so you’ve got a lot of stories about some of the things he’s done and what he’s capable of.

Read the full article.

Holy Family basketball coach collides with player in practice [video]

Holy Family University basketball coach John O’Connor was suspended after footage from a practice showed that he collided with a player during a rebounding drill. It looks from the footage like the coach intentionally threw his shoulder into the player, knocking him to the ground.

The footage from practice starts at around the 1:05 mark…

MyFoxPhilly.com scored an interview with the suspended coach.

O’Connor says in the midst of a practice drill called “combat rebound.”

“Now obviously, they’re coming to get the ball at the same time I am, so, I instinctively grab it with both hands and kind of in what they call basketball terms, and I just kind of cleared my space.”

The blow apparently drew blood and sent the player to the floor, injuring his wrist. The coach kicked him out of practice.

O’Connor says that the players are coming to get the ball the same time he is, although if you watch the drill, the coach is generally not involved in getting the rebound. It looks to me like he was unhappy with the way the player went after the ball and decided to level a blow even though the kid wasn’t expecting it. Coaches are not involved in drills for this very reason.

Did he go too far? Absolutely. If a coach wants to demonstrate how to box out or how to contest a shot, fine, but laying a kid out with a shoulder is not the way to coach.

Five players with something to prove at the 2011 NFL scouting combine

Honestly, there’s not one player who doesn’t have something to prove at this year’s scouting combine. Along with how they perform at their Pro Days, the combine might as well be a job interview for draft-eligible prospects. But below are five guys who stand out as players who have a lot on the line this week in Indianapolis.

Ryan Mallett, QB, Arkansas
Reports have surfaced that Mallett bypassed entering the 2010 draft because he had a drug addiction problem. There are also concerns about his decision-making, his leadership abilities and whether or not he can stand up to pressure when the pocket collapses. Some have even labeled him the next Ryan Leaf, which is the kiss of death for any quarterback prospect. But even with all the questions that surround him, he’s 6-6 and 238 pounds, is an ideal pocket passer and has a cannon for a right arm. He won’t run or do any of the agility tests at the combine, but he will throw and interview with teams. I have no doubt that he’ll impress scouts with his physical skills, but he better put his best foot forward during interviews because teams will want to know what kind of character he has. Passing the mandatory drug test wouldn’t be a bad idea either.

Robert Quinn, DE/OLB, North Carolina
Quinn missed the entire 2010 season for his involvement in an agent scandal. If he played well last year (or played at all), he may have been the top pass rusher taken in this year’s draft and a surefire top 10 pick. But because of his suspension, he won’t be able to live on his physical skills alone. There’s no doubt that he has the talent to be better than Aldon Smith, Da’Quan Bowers, Cam Jordan and the rest of the defensive ends in his year’s class, but the time is now for him to start erasing doubts about his character.

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Bengals to use top pick on a quarterback now?

Cincinnati Bengals starting quarterback Carson Palmer (9) throws against the Indianapolis Colts during the second quarter at Lucas Oil Field in Indianapolis on November 14, 2010. UPI /Mark Cowan

According to the team’s official website, the Bengals are taking Carson Palmer’s threat to be traded or retire “quite seriously” and will kick the tires on all kinds of quarterback options this offseason. One option might be to draft a quarterback with the No. 4 overall pick so that they’re not stuck with Carson’s brother Jordan at the top of their depth chart next season.

It figures that this report would surface three days after I put together a post titled, “Three reasons why Carson Palmer will remain a Bengal.” Timing is everything in life and mine is somewhere between horrendous and awful.

If the Bengals do decide to draft a quarterback, either Blaine Gabbert or Cam Newton could be available in the first round depending on what the Panthers and Bills do ahead of them. Many mock drafts have Carolina selecting Gabbert with the top overall pick and Buffalo picking Newton at No. 3. One option the Bengals have is to see how the first three picks play out and then go from there.

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