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      Mike Holmgren named Browns club president

      December 21, 2009 /

      Mike Holmgren has accepted the Browns’ offer to become the team’s new club president, according to Cleveland Plain Dealer.

      Holmgren said on his weekly radio show last Friday that if he took the job, he’d give Browns coach Eric Mangini a chance to prove himself. He said “it’s not fair” to come in and fire a coach after one season, but that he understands sometimes tough decisions aren’t fair.

      A league source said Lerner was hoping that whoever he brought in would see that Mangini’s plan was working — and there’s been evidence of that in recent weeks, including back-to-back victories over Pittsburgh and Kansas City.

      Mangini also has the support of executive advisor Jim Brown, who said he deserves to keep his job.

      Terms of Holmgren’s deal were not disclosed, but previous reports estimated it could be around $5 million a year. On Saturday, Holmgren turned down an offer for a high-level post with the Seahawks, which, according to the Seattle Times, was the president’s role.

      Holmgren now has decide whether or not to give Mangini a chance to prove himself past one season, or start fresh and hire someone new to coach his team. It’s human nature to want to start with a clean slate, so I would imagine that Holmgren will let Mangini go and hire someone who is familiar with the West Coast Offense (the offense Holmgren ran in his coaching career). But then again, who knows – maybe Holmgren sees that Mangini has the Browns moving in the right direction and values him as an asset.

      Regardless of what he decides to do with Mangini, this was absolutely the right hire by the Browns. Holmgren has already proven that he can win in this league and Cleveland needs someone that can build from the ground up. Great hire.

      NFL

      Controversial finish to Butler/Xavier game [video]

      December 21, 2009 /

      The clock stopped for a split second (as the ball goes into the backcourt), which put Butler’s game-winning bucket into question.

      He scored with 1.2 seconds to play and I don’t think the clock stopped for that long. Obviously, it would be better had the clock not stopped, but I think the right team won. However, the Xavier coach has a right to be upset. If Butler had an extra 1.2 seconds to score, shouldn’t Xavier also get the remaining time to try to win the game? And how did the refs determine that only 1.2 seconds went by when the clock was stopped?

      College Basketball, Television, Video

      2010 BCS National Championship Official Smack Talk Thread: Texas vs. Alabama

      December 21, 2009 /

      The 2010 BCS National Championship Game pits No. 1 vs. No. 2, as the Alabama Crimson Tide will take on the Texas Longhorns on January 7. To get you primed for the game, here’s a snapshot look at the title match.

      2010 BCS National Championship Game Information:
      Matchup: Alabama (13-0) vs. Texas (13-0)
      Venue: Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA
      Kickoff: 8:00PM ET
      TV: ABC
      Odds: Alabama –5

      Key Stats:
      Led by quarterback Colt McCoy and receiver Jordan Shipley, the Longhorns have the third best scoring offense in the nation, the 14th best passing attack and are ranked 19th in total offense. McCoy is 10th in total offense with 296.92 passing yards per game and 26.77 rushing YPG. Defensively, the Longhorns boast the No. 1 rush defense in the country and are ranked No. 3 in total defense. Texas also ranks ninth in turnover margin and fourth in kickoff returns.

      Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide have the second best defense in the nation and the second best run defense. Junior linebacker Rolando McClain has been the soul of Alabama’s defense, racking up over 100 tackles (51 solo), 10 tackles for loss and four sacks. Offensively, Heisman Trophy winner Mark Ingram heads a rushing offense that ranks 12th in the country and is 26th in scoring. Ingram is averaging close to 120 yards per game and has racked up 1,542 total yards of offense and 18 total touchdowns.

      The Bottom Line:
      After struggling with consistency for much of the season, quarterback Greg McElroy looks to build off a solid performance in the SEC title game and carry it into the national championship. While Ingram remains the backbone of the offense, McElroy might be the key to whether or not ‘Bama is victorious on January 7. He, and the Crimson Tide defense of course. And much like McElroy, fellow signal caller Colt McCoy will have to perform much better than he did against Nebraska in the Big 12 Championship for Texas to be successful. This will be the first time since time since the 2005 thriller between Texas and USC that two unbeaten teams square off in the title game. Who will come out on top?

      n

      Who will win the 2010 National Championship?
      Total Votes: 620 Started: December 21, 2009 Back to Vote Screen

      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      College Football

      Florida, Ohio State could be down players for bowl games

      December 21, 2009 /

      According to a FOXSports.com report, Florida will be without Brandon James for the Sugar Bowl after the all-purpose player had surgery on his right foot.

      James, a senior from St. Augustine, broke a bone in foot against Alabama in the Southeastern Conference title game and had surgery last week. Florida coach Urban Meyer says Chris Rainey, Jeff Demps and Joe Haden will take over James’ punt and kickoff return duties against No. 4 Cincinnati on New Year’s Day.

      James finished with 1,324 total yards and two touchdowns this season. He had 109 yards rushing, 215 yards receiving and a score, 756 yards and a touchdown on kickoff returns and 244 yards on punt returns.

      FOX is also reporting that three Ohio State players will likely be ineligible to play in the Rose Bowl.

      Seniors wide receiver Ray Small and defensive lineman Rob Rose and sophomore running back Bo DeLande are likely to miss the Jan. 1 bowl game against Oregon due to a violation of team rules, the Columbus Dispatch reported on its Web site.

      Freshman receiver Duron Carter was declared ineligible last week.

      As of Monday morning, the school had not issued a statement regarding the status of the three players, meaning the decision may not yet be final.

      Both Rose and Small had academic issues at the start of spring practice this season, although each player had talked about overcoming their problems to turn in successful seasons. Ohio State has officially confirmed that the players will be held out, but it doesn’t look good.

      Losing Rose would be a hit to the Buckeyes’ defensive line depth, while Small would sorely be missed in the return game and as the team’s No. 3 wideout. Taurian Washington would likely take over as OSU’s No. 3 receiver with Carter also being held out of the Rose Bowl with academic issues.


      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      College Football

      Is it time for the Bears to show Lovie Smith the door?

      December 21, 2009 /

      To his credit, Lovie Smith has one Super Bowl appearance under his belt as a head coach. But how long should one Super Bowl appearance last someone if he fails to reach the playoffs the following three seasons?

      After losing to the Colts in the 2006 Super Bowl, the Bears have gone 7-9, 9-7 and are now currently 5-9. Despite trading for Jay Cutler in the offseason, Chicago is regressing and what’s worse is that it doesn’t have a first round pick in either of the next two drafts and also doesn’t have a second round pick next year.

      The Bears are floundering, not prospering. So where does that leave Smith?

      For all intents and purposes, Cutler’s turnover woes, the offensive lines’ blocking issues and all of the injuries on defense aren’t Smith’s fault. He can’t run, tackle and punt for his team, so maybe it’s not fair for him to be fired at the end of the season when it’s clear that the Bears’ problems run deeper than the head coach.

      The problem is that his players have given up. The 31-7 shellacking they took in Baltimore on Sunday was the fourth time that the Bears have been blown out this season. They’re just 1-6 on the road this year and the problems that haunted them in Week 1 are still haunting them in Week 15. That’s a problem – a coaching problem. Even the dreadful Browns and Redskins have cut down on the mistakes that cost them earlier in the season.

      The Bears finish the season at home against the Vikings in Week 16 and at Detroit in Week 17. If Chicago shows the same ineptitude over the next two weeks as it has over the past couple months, even a cheap ownership like the Bears might decide that enough is enough and hand Smith his pink slip at the end of the season.

      Photo from fOTOGLIF

      NFL

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