Author: Anthony Stalter (Page 804 of 1503)

      Peppers signs franchise tender

      June 24, 2009 /

      The wait is finally over for the Panthers, as defensive end Julius Peppers will sign his tender on Wednesday according to the team’s official website. He’ll earn $16.683 million this season.

      The Panthers could still try and trade him, but it’s doubtful that they find any suitors who will be willing to give up draft picks and long-term money. It’s more likely at this point that the Panthers sign Peppers to a long-term deal than trade him. Carolina wants to win now and with John Fox and GM Marty Hurney’s jobs seemingly on the line every year, draft picks for future years don’t help them in the present.

      Peppers wanted to play outside linebacker in a 3-4 scheme, but the grass isn’t always greener on the other side. The Panthers hired Ron Meeks to replace Mike Trgovac as defensive coordinator and while Meeks isn’t necessarily a scheming genius, Dwight Freeney excelled under him in Indianapolis so Peppers could thrive in Carolina’s new scheme.

      It’ll be interesting to hear what Peppers says once he reports to training camp in a month. If he’s going to be bitter all season about the Panthers franchising him, then it’s going to be a long year. But if he shows up hell bent on having a great year so he could hit the market and prove his free agent worth, then maybe both he and the team can get what they want out of the situation.

      NFL

      Beloved Iowa HS football coach shot and killed at school

      June 24, 2009 /

      An Iowa high school football coach who helped get current pro players Casey Wiegmann, Jared DeVries, Brad Meester and Aaron Kampman to the NFL was shot and killed in the weight room of the school on Wednesday morning by a former player.

      Ed Thomas, who has produced four NFL linemen as the football coach at tiny Aplington-Parkersburg High, was shot and killed Wednesday inside the school’s weight room, authorities said.

      The gunman, identified by authorities as 24-year-old Mark Becker, shot Thomas multiple times just before 8 a.m. local time, authorities said. About 50 students were in the school, including several in the weight room, at the time. School was not in session, and no one else was injured in the attack.

      Thomas, the 2005 NFL High School Football Coach of the Year, was airlifted to Covenant Medical Center in Waterloo, where he died, his family said in a statement. He was 58.

      Becker, a former student and football player at the school, was arrested shortly after the shooting and charged with first-degree murder, authorities said. He is being held in Butler County jail.

      “No kids were hurt, we’re thankful for that,” superintendent Jon Thompson told KOEL radio. “They did witness this and so we have counselors at the site to talk with the kids.”

      Thomas made national headlines last year when he insisted that the high school’s football field, named in his honor, be rebuilt as a way to help restore community pride in Parkersburg after it was hit by a powerful tornado in May 2008 that killed six people and destroyed the high school.

      “A lot of people know coach Thomas for his success as a football coach, but a lot of people here locally know him as a person, as a dad and grandfather, and that’s where our thoughts are right now, with Coach Thomas,” Thompson said.

      It’s sad that a man who obviously had such an impact on so many lives was lost this way. Thankfully no students were harmed, but a man lost his life for absolutely no reason.

      My heart goes out to Thomas’ family.

      High School Sports

      Is Matt Holliday the answer to the Giants’ offensive woes?

      June 24, 2009 /

      It’s been five years since the San Francisco Giants have made a postseason appearance, so you’ll have to pardon their fans if they’re overly optimistic about the chances of their club possibly making the playoffs this year despite a lineup that often employs Edgar Renteria as its two-hole hitter.

      The G-Men are currently 8.5 games back of the Dodgers in the NL West and with the PED Predator coming back from his suspension soon, L.A. is surely to stay well ahead of San Fran in the division. But the Giants are currently one game up on the Brewers for the NL Wild Card and if GM Brian Sabean could add a player or two before the July 31 trade deadline to help mask San Fran’s biggest flaw, then the five-year playoff drought could end.

      What’s the Giants’ biggest flaw you ask? Well if anyone can look at their lineup without doubling over in side-splitting laughter, then some kind of award is deserved.

      Continue reading »

      MLB

      Jungmann, Texas beat LSU to tie CWS

      June 24, 2009 /

      Taylor Jungmann took it upon himself to ensure that Texas wasn’t going to lose the 2009 College World Series to LSU in two games. Jungmann threw his first complete game of his collegiate career, allowing just one unearned run on five hits to improve to 3-0 in the CWS. He also struck out nine.

      Offensively, Russell Moldenhauer led the Longhorns with a third inning solo blast to put Texas up 3-1. He entered the CWS without a dinger, but he’s now tied a record for homers in a single CWS with four.

      In 15 CWS appearances, this was the first time LSU has lost in the championship round in school history. Texas became the fourth team to force a deciding game in the seven years of the best-of-three CWS finals, with the last two teams also winning Game 3 (Oregon State in 2006, Fresno State in 2008.)

      The deciding game will be tonight at 7:00 p.m. ET.

      General Sports

      Jennings, Packers close to contract extension

      June 24, 2009 /

      The Packers and Greg Jennings are in the process of finalizing a three-year extension that would allow the receiver to make $27 million in new money and could be worth as much as $30 million if he plays at a Pro Bowl level.

      Jennings will earn slightly in excess of $16 million in guarantees, a source told ESPN.com’s Len Pasquarelli. The source also said that the structure of the contract is more front- than back-loaded.

      Though both sides have come to an agreement on the numbers, a couple things have to be worked out as far as the language of the contract. First, it must be approved by the NFL Management Council. Second, it has to be signed by both parties. The plan is to try to get the final draft ready in the next couple of days.

      Jennings will roughly earn $7.63 million per year, which is quite fair for a young receiver coming off an 80-catch, 1,292-yard season. Considering T.J. Houshmandzadeh will receive $8 mil a year in his new deal with Seattle, Packers GM Ted Thompson did well with Jennings’ contract.

      NFL

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