Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 1058 of 1503)

      Tennessee’s next head coach: Cincinnati’s Brian Kelly?

      November 19, 2008 /

      Brian KellySince Phillip Fulmer made the decision to step down at the end of the year, speculation has run rampant on who will replace him as the next head coach at the University of Tennessee. While The Oregonian suggests that Oregon State’s Mike Riley could be in line for the position, I’ve got another name to keep your eye on: Cincinnati’s Brian Kelly.

      Five years ago, Kelly was a nobody winning multiple Division II championships at little old Grand Valley State in Grand Rapids, Michigan. From there, he was hired at Central Michigan University, which had won more than three games only once in the previous four seasons. After finishing with a 4-7 record in 2004 (his first year in Mt. Pleasant) and 6-5 in 2005, Kelly led the Chippewas to a MAC Championship in 2006 before jetting to Cincinnati before coaching CMU in the 2006 Motor City Bowl.

      In his first season at Cincinnati, Kelly led the Bearcats to their second ever 10-win season (first since 1949) and a top 25 ranking. He was named Big East Coach of the Year and currently has the Bearcats ranked 19th in the nation despite having to play a total of four different quarterbacks this season due to injury.

      Tennessee needs a confident, offensive-minded leader and Kelly fits the bill. Many in the Mt. Pleasant area hate him for the way he left CMU in the lurch after winning the MAC Championship in 2006, but the fact of the matter is that he made that program relative again (the Chips are going for their third straight MAC title this season). He was the one that converted Joe Staley (who is currently starting for the 49ers right now) from tight end to offensive tackle, and also the one who recruited Heisman candidate Dan LeFevour. And the job Kelly has done at Cincinnati in his two years has been remarkable to say the least.

      When talking to people who have worked with him in the past (like Mt. Pleasant Morning Sun columnist and Central Michigan beat writer Drew Ellis, who is a close friend of mine), you get the impression that Kelly is a cocky, but confident coach. The Vols need someone headstrong that can turn the program around in only a few short years. No offense to Riley or any other candidate Tennessee may consider, but Kelly has won everywhere he’s gone and he seems like a coach that can light a fire under that program’s ass.

      College Football

      No. 17 Ball State’s season on the line vs. Central Michigan

      November 19, 2008 /

      Nate DavisNo. 17 Ball State puts its season on the line Wednesday night in Mt. Pleasant when they take on MAC rival Central Michigan at 7:00PM ET.

      I know, I know – it’s MAC football. Who cares right?

      Most will look at this game and shrug it off as just another useless game in the middle of the week, but the ramifications for both teams are pretty high and it should make for an exciting game. First and foremost, Ball State is 10-0 and trying to prove that its an elite program, although if last week’s performance against Miami of Ohio was any indication, the Cardinals are who we think they are – a great MAC team, but one that would get destroyed by the likes of any team ranked ahead of them in the polls.

      Meanwhile, the Chippewas are 8-2, but more importantly (at least to them), they’re 6-0 in the MAC. A CMU victory would not only be a huge upset, but it would also catapult the Chips into first place in the MAC West Division and a chance to win the conference for the third straight year. This isn’t just a MAC game – it’s the MAC game of the year.

      The Cardinals have essentially steamrolled their competition this season, but also haven’t played any truly tough opponents, unless you consider Navy and Indiana as tough. They did crush Northern Illinois – who has vastly improved this season – 45-14 on November 5th, but the Huskies are still far from an elite team right now.

      An upset might be in order tonight. At one point this season, CMU quarterback Dan LeFevour was considered a candidate for the Heisman Trophy but an ankle injury sidetracked his season. He led the Chips to win over NIU last week and appears to be healthy again.

      The key in this game, however, will be whether or not CMU’s defense can slow down Nate Davis and the BSU offense, which is averaging close to 40 points a game. The Chips certainly have the offense to compete with the Cardinals, but their no-huddle approach only gets BSU’s explosive passing attack back on the field quicker. And CMU has been known to allow opponents to sneak back into ball games in the second half (see their game at Northern last week as proof), which certainly would spell disaster against a solid Cardinal team.

      Either way, football is being played on a Wednesday night. And not only that, but a team is actually unbeaten and ranked…and is playing on Wednesday night. You can’t ask for more.

      College Football

      Is Dustin Pedroia the most unlikely MVP ever?

      November 19, 2008 /

      Boston Red Sox second basemen Dustin Pedroia won the AL MVP Award Tuesday and as Globe columnist Dan Shaughnessy writes, he might be the most unlikely MVP winner ever.

      Dustin PedroiaDustin Pedroia is the Most Valuable Player of the American League. This is simply one of the amazing sports stories of our time.

      He is a miracle. He is a hardball mutant. He is the most unlikely man to win this award in the history of major league baseball.

      Think about all the great Red Sox players who never won the award. Manny Ramírez was never MVP. Neither was Carlton Fisk. Nor Wade Boggs.

      Fisk and Boggs are in the Hall of Fame and Manny is going to Cooperstown. None of them won an MVP.
      And now the little big man has an American League MVP trophy – just like Jimmie Foxx, Ted, Jackie Jensen, Yaz, Freddie Lynn, Jim Rice, Roger Clemens, and Mo Vaughn.

      Pedroia did it by hitting .326 – same as Yaz in ’67. He made himself the first second baseman to win the AL MVP since Nellie Fox of the Chicago White Sox in 1959. Guru Gammons points out that, in August, Pedroia had more extra-base hits than Ramírez.

      Pedroia is no Manny Ramírez. But he’s MVP of the American League. Just Dustin being Dustin.

      Pedroia is the poster child for every kid that is told he’s too small to play and that he’ll never make it. He was a nobody before last year, but hard work allowed him to rise to the top and once he got there, he never stopped working. He does all the little things right and he competes on a nightly a basis. This truly is one of the better sports stories in some time.

      MLB

      Fountain of youth: Kurt Warner wants to play a few more years

      November 19, 2008 /

      The 2008 NFL Season has apparently rejuvenated Arizona Cardinals’ quarterback Kurt Warner.

      Kurt Warner“Kurt’s and my approach has been, ‘Let’s enjoy the moment,’ ” Bartelstein said. “Kurt does not want to be a distraction in any way with his contract. That’s not his personality.”

      Warner, 37, is in the last season of a three-year deal worth $15 million, not including incentives.

      Warner leads the league in quarterback rating (105.1) and completion percentage (70.9). He is second in yards (3,155) and touchdowns (20). More important, the Cardinals are 7-3 and could clinch the NFC West title this weekend.

      Clearly, it’s going to cost the Cardinals more to sign Warner now than it would have last summer, probably in the range of $8 million to $12 million a year.

      There is plenty of incentive for both sides to reach a deal. The Cardinals are still optimistic about Leinart’s future, but there will be a learning curve to endure if and when he be becomes a starter. With Warner playing the way he is now, the Cardinals will continue to be a force in the NFC.

      Warner knows, too, that he has found a place that suits him both professionally and personally. Not every team would give him the freedom and responsibility that the Cardinals have. And he’s not eager anxious to uproot his family to start all over again in a new city.

      I was wrong about Warner when I wrote this summer that the Cards were likely to sink with him at quarterback. He’s been one of the best surprises in 2008 and if he continues to play the way he has, there’s no reason to believe he can’t compete for another couple of years.

      But what do you do with Matt Leinart?

      Fantasy Football, NFL

      Donovan McNabb didn’t know about sister-kissing in the NFL

      November 18, 2008 /

      Donovan McNabb didn’t know that there were ties in the NFL.

      McNabb has received a lot of criticism for not knowing the rule, but I distinctly remember after the Steelers-Falcons tie in 2002 that several players didn’t know about ties, either.

      The real criticism here is that the NFL even has ties. I’m not saying the NFL should adopt the college football overtime system (although that would be fun), but at least play until somebody wins. Ties are ridiculous.

      NFL, Video

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