Category: General Sports (Page 45 of 112)

      NFL News & Notes: Willis McGahee to play, not start

      September 20, 2008 /

      Willis McGahee– The Baltimore Sun is reporting that Ravens running back Willis McGahee will play in Week 3 against the Cleveland Browns, but won’t start or be the feature back. The Ravens will likely go with a running back-by-committee approach with McGahee and rookie Ray Rice sharing carries.

      – Rotoworld (via Chargers’ beat writer Kevin Acee on NFL Network) is reporting that Darren Sproles is likely to see more carries than LaDainian Tomlinson, who is batting a toe/foot injury. LT didn’t run last week against the Broncos, so it’s probably a wise move to limit his workload.

      – The Cleveland Browns’ official website notes that receivers Braylon Edwards (shoulder) and Donte’ Stallworth (quads) are both listed as questionable this weekend against Baltimore. That certainly doesn’t bode well for a Browns’ offense that has struggled mightily in the team’s two losses this season.

      – The Green Bay Packers official website is reporting that RB Ryan Grant has been upgraded to probable for the team’s Sunday night matchup with the Cowboys. Grant didn’t fare too well against a brutal Detroit front seven last week and he’ll need to step up to help take the pressure off of QB Aaron Rodgers.

      Fantasy Football, General Sports, NFL

      The official LSU-Auburn smack talk thread

      September 20, 2008 /

      The year was 1999 and Auburn had just handed LSU a devastating 41-7 loss in Baton Rouge. To celebrate the victory, as well as head coach Tommy Tuberville’s birthday, Auburn players and coaches smoked cigars on the field at Tiger Stadium. The act didn’t sit well with LSU players or fans, and many consider that as the day the LSU-Auburn rivalry officially began. Auburn has not won in Baton Rouge since.

      The LSU-Auburn rivalry is set to renew again as the two teams meet this Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium, where LSU has not won since 1998. The last time LSU did battle in Auburn, JaMarcus Russell and the Tiger offense was held to only a field goal in a 7-3 loss.

      Last year, LSU shocked Auburn in Baton Rouge after LSU head coach Les Miles decided to try to go for a touchdown instead of attempting a 41-yard field goal with time running out in the fourth quarter. Demetrius Byrd made a last-second grab in the end zone to give LSU a thrilling 30-24 victory.

      Last year’s game also stoked the flames of this rivalry after Auburn guard Chaz Ramsey chop blocked at the knees of former LSU DT Glenn Dorsey. The incident is still fresh on the minds of some LSU players, including defensive linemen Ricky-Jean Francois:

      “Is the game really that serious or that important that you’d go out and ruin somebody’s career?” Jean-Francois said. “I wasn’t really worried about it happening again until somebody mentioned it (Tuesday). Now it’s something you have to think about. I hope whatever happens this week, they let a pancake block be the worse thing they do.”

      Ramsey won’t play this Saturday because of a back injury, but LSU doesn’t need what happened last year or the 1999 cigar incident to motivate them. Just seeing the AU on Auburn’s helmets is all the motivation LSU needs to want to stick to one of their most hated rivals.

      Below is a list of LSU and Auburn blogs and information sites to get you primed for the matchup.

      Top LSU Tigers Sites
      TigerBait.com
      TigerDroppings.com
      And The Valley Shook
      Tigers Sports Zone.net

      Top Auburn Tigers Sites
      Auburn Tigers Official Website
      Track Em Tigers.com
      Tigers Corner
      AuburnSports.com

      Eleven of the last 18 meetings between these two teams have been decided by a touchdown or less, with the home team winning the last eight games. With how bad Auburn is currently struggling on offense, LSU shouldn’t have many issues on defense. But they might have problems moving the ball on Auburn’s defense, which is currently one of the best units in the nation.

      Oddsmakers have made LSU a 2.5-point road favorite.

      College Football, General Sports

      Couch Potato Alert: 9/19

      September 19, 2008 /

      37th Ryder Cup
      The three-day match-play competition between the United States and Europe has a way of making the world’s elite golfers wilt under the pressure of trying to capture the Ryder Cup. Over the last 25 years, it has become a hotly contested event, with the U.S. record at four wins, seven losses, and a tie, including three straight match defeats to the Europeans (the Ryder Cup takes place every two years). The competition will begin this morning at 7 AM EST on ESPN from the Valhalla Country Club in Louisville, Kentucky, and continue throughout the weekend on NBC.

      Wake Forest vs. Florida State
      Neither school has distinguished itself as a contender for securing a spot in the ACC championship game. Wake Forest would love to duplicate their last trip to Tallahassee, when they shutout the Seminoles 30-0 two years ago. Florida State has been playing short-handed due to player suspensions and will welcome back star wide receiver Preston Parker to the lineup on Saturday. Coverage begins at 7 PM EST on ESPN2.

      LSU vs. Auburn
      There’s no better way to start off the SEC season than with a LSU-Auburn showdown. The “Tiger Bowl” winner could establish itself as the team to beat in the SEC West, though Alabama might have a say in the matter down the road. LSU and Auburn have split their last four meetings, with each game decided by six or fewer points. Coverage begins at 7:45 PM EST on ESPN. Click here for the official LSU-Auburn smack thread.

      Georgia vs. Arizona State
      The luster has been taken off this game by the Sun Devils’ overtime loss at home to UNLV last week. It’s still a big game, as the Bulldogs are in the national title hunt despite being passed in the polls by USC and Oklahoma. ASU could get back in the BCS bowl picture with an upset in Tempe on Saturday night. Coverage begins at 8 PM EST on ABC.

      Baltimore Orioles vs. New York Yankees
      This Sunday night, the final major league baseball game will be played at historic Yankee Stadium. The House That Ruth Built has been the home office for post-season success come October, as 100 World Series games have been played at the Stadium. This event will be nationally televised on ESPN beginning at 8 PM EST.

      Bullz-Eye Sports Channel, College Football, Couch Potato Alert, General Sports, Golf, MLB, NFL, Television

      Ed Hochuli received hate mail over blown Chargers-Broncos call

      September 18, 2008 /

      Ed Hochuli, the referee that blew the call in last Sunday’s Chargers-Broncos game, is receiving hate mail from angry San Diego fans.

      Ed Hochuli“I’m getting hundreds of e-mails — hate mail — but I’m responding to it all,” Hochuli wrote to several Chargers fans, according to The San Diego Union-Tribune. “People deserve a response. You can rest assured that nothing anyone can say can make me feel worse than I already feel about my mistake on the fumble play. You have no idea … Affecting the outcome of a game is a devastating feeling. Officials strive for perfection — I failed miserably. Although it does no good to say it, I am very, very sorry.”

      It’s not surprising that Hochuli is receiving hate mail, but that doesn’t mean it makes it any less ridiculous. It’s a freaking football game. He made a mistake and yes he’s a profession who blew what should have been an easy call, but everyone makes mistakes. This guy doesn’t make enough money referring games to receive (presumably) personal attacks on his character. Charger fans have every right to be upset, but maybe they should focus their energy on why San Diego’s defense allowed Jay Cutler to throw for 350 yards and four touchdowns. Or why Brandon Marshall was able to catch 18 passes on what was supposed to be a solid secondary.

      For Hochuli’s sake, I hope the Chargers rebound and cruise to a playoff berth. Because if San Diego fans are anything like Cubs fans are, they’ll turn Hochuli into the next Steve Bartman.

      General Sports, NFL

      Did the Cowboys play dirty on Monday night?

      September 18, 2008 /

      Dan Daly of the Washington Times is convinced that the Dallas Cowboys purposely played dirty against the Philadelphia Eagles in their 41-37 win on Monday night. More specifically, Daly talks about the three times Dallas defenders grabbed Eagles’ RB Brian Westbrook’s facemask and it was never called.

      Brian WestbrookWhat a coincidence, too, that he’s the Eagles’ best offensive player, a back who led the league in yards from scrimmage last season (2,104) and gained 299 of those yards in two games against Dallas. It couldn’t possibly be that the Cowboys’ defensive coaches spent the week telling their players, “We have to be physical with this guy if we’re going stop him. [Wink, wink.]” I mean, when has a football coach ever suggested that?

      If you ask me, the Cowboys are taking this “Hard Knocks” business a little too literally. Football is a nasty game, sure, and people are going to get hurt, but there’s never been any place for trying to yank a guy’s head off.

      And make no mistake, there was nothing inadvertent about any of the episodes, nothing incidental; if there had been, the defenders (Jason Hatcher, Pat Watkins, Jay Ratliff) would have released the mask sooner. No, this was just good, old fashioned Street Ball – Oakland Raiders, circa 1976.

      The no-calls Daly is talking about definitely should have been penalties. The first time Westbrook got his facemask tugged, his helmet almost spun around to where he would be looking out his ear hole.

      I think part of the problem is that the league did away with the 5-yard incidental facemask penalty. Now they’re all 15-yard penalties, so refs are gun shy to blow their whistle because they want to make absolutely sure that the guy had malice while grabbing the facemask. Thus, more facemask penalties are being missed this year than in previous seasons. (And the calls haven’t just missed in the Dallas-Philadelphia game; missed facemask calls are happening all around the league.)

      Or maybe Daly is right and the Cowboys are just plain ol’ dirty.

      General Sports, NFL

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