Page 287 of 2956

Maybe it would be best for Ohio State if Terrelle Pryor moved on

June 1, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

For the moment, let’s refrain from calling Terrelle Pryor an entitled “punk kid” who just got his coached fired. That may be an accurate statement but that isn’t what this is about.

This is about the Ohio State football program and more specially, what’s best for the Ohio State football program. Gerardo Orlando touched on this briefly when Jim Tressel resigned on Monday but the statement is worth revisiting: Ohio State is bigger than just one player. It’s bigger than Terrelle Pryor and it was bigger than troublemaker Maurice Clarett. Whether the Buckeyes suffer the same fate as USC did for the Reggie Bush scandal remains to be scene but nevertheless, they will recover. Ohio State is still going to be Ohio State in the end, even though their rivals to the north would like to believe that the program is falling apart.

With that in mind, maybe it would be best if Pryor got lost – left Columbus with his bags packed and headed for destinations unknown. The Buckeyes have enough to worry about these days without fielding questions about whether or not their star quarterback will be under center after he serves his five-game suspension for trading his sports memorabilia for free tattoos.

Is Terrelle Pryor a special player? No doubt. Since he’s arrived in Columbus, the Buckeyes are 33-6, which includes two-straight bowl victories over Oregon and Arkansas. He’s the type of player that, had he and his tattoo buddies not been suspended for five games, could have taken the Buckeyes to a national title.

But again, he’s only one player. He also represents a massive headache for a program that needs to do some major damage control right now. After Tressel announced his resignation on Monday, Pryor, while being investigated for possibly receiving free cars from a dealership mind you, had the stones to show up at a players-only meeting driving a Nissan 350Z with temporary tags. I guess if he thinks he hasn’t done anything wrong then there’s no reason to take the bus or carpool with a teammate, but is he serious? That ride is valued around $30,000, which is hardly the type of money that a college athlete would have between his couch cushions.

Ohio State doesn’t need this. Not right now, not ever. Pryor might be able to help them win but, as rare as this is, winning might not be the most important thing right now. And again, the Buckeyes will recover.

USC is currently in year two of a two-year bowl ban thanks to the Bush infractions. And while their recruiting has taken a hit, Lane Kiffin isn’t going to have trouble getting California kids to come to Southern Cal. That’s not to say that they’ll win under him, but he won’t need to try very hard to convince high school athletes to be a Trojan.

The same can be said for Urban Meyer when he starts recruiting as the head football coach at Ohio State. (I’m kidding – relax.) Let me start over: The same can be said for whoever takes over as head coach of the Buckeyes. Even given the current state of the program, they’re still on the top step of the Big Ten ladder. Prospects in Ohio and surrounding regions aren’t suddenly going to flood Purdue, Illinois or even Notre Dame (which has high academic standards) because Ohio State is in turmoil. The Buckeyes will still be able to recruit after this.

That’s why it may be beneficial for OSU if Pryor applied for the NFL supplemental draft. Or was suspended indefinitely. Or drove one of his 12 new cars to South Beach to hang with LeBron and never return. Many people in Columbus are already blaming him for the program losing Tressel and chances are he is guilty of violating NCAA rules. With that in mind, maybe Pryor can do OSU a favor and exit stage left.

College Football, External Sports

college football scandals Jim Tressel Jim Tressel resigns ohio state scandal Terrelle Pryor terrelle pryor cars terrelle pryor investigation

Where the Mavs have to improve

June 1, 2011 / John Paulsen

The Dallas Mavericks had a real chance to win Game 1, but in the end, LeBron James and Co. were just too much. Dallas held Miami to 36% shooting from two-point range, but the Heat hit 11-of-24 from distance. If the Heat are going to shoot 40%+ from three-point range, it’s going to be very tough to beat them.

The Mavs’ bench was also a disappointment. Jason Terry (3-10), Peja Stojakovic (0-3) and J.J. Barea (1-8) combined to go 4-of-21 and Dallas lost by eight. And it’s not like the Heat forced them into a bunch of tough shots that they weren’t used to taking. These were all shots that Terry, Stojakovic and Barea had hit against the Blazers, Lakers and Thunder. The bottom line is that if Mario Chalmers (12 points) is matching Terry’s output, the Mavs are in big trouble.

Give credit to Miami’s Big 3, especially LeBron (24 points, nine rebounds, five assists) and Dwyane Wade (22 points, 10 rebounds and six assists), who combined to shoot 18-of-37 from the field. The rest of the Heat shot 13-of-43 (30%) from the field, so the duo stepped up when it had to.

With the news that Dirk Nowitzki (27 points, eight rebounds) has a torn tendon in his left hand, things are looking awfully grim for the Mavs. The good news is that it’s not in his shooting hand, but he’s probably going to be wearing a splint for the rest of the series, and that’s not going to help his game.

Game 2 is crucial for the Mavs if they hope to make this a series.

External Sports, NBA

2011 NBA Finals 2011 NBA Playoffs

Is it over already?

June 1, 2011 / Gerardo Orlando

News like this makes you wonder whether Dallas has a chance.

A torn tendon in superstar Dirk Nowitzki’s left middle finger made the Dallas Mavericks’ Game 1 loss to the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals on Tuesday night a little more painful.
Nowitzki suffered the injury when he was called for a foul after stripping Miami’s Chris Bosh with 3:44 remaining in the fourth quarter.
“I thought I stripped him clean, then I kind of looked down and I couldn’t straighten my finger out anymore,” said Nowitzki, who had 27 points on 7-of-18 shooting as the Mavs fell behind in a series for the first time this postseason. “So I tore a tendon in there. I guess it will be all right. I have to wear a splint probably the rest of the playoffs.”
Nowitzki, who is averaging 28.3 points per game in the playoffs, said X-rays on the finger were negative.
He downplayed concern about the injury, pointing out that it’s on his non-shooting hand.

The Mavs have to find a way to win game 2 in Miami. Hitting their threes would help . . . .

External Sports, NBA

Dallas Mavericks Dirk Nowitzki LeBron James Miami Heat Tyson Chandler

8 Ways to Track Your Fantasy Football Players

June 1, 2011 / Administrator

Football is one of the great American pastimes, with the Super Bowl each year drawing record numbers of spectators from all over the world. Of course, for most people, watching their favorite football players on NFL Sunday ticket is as close as they ever come to actually managing a team or being involved in the sport.

However, if you are really desperate to test out your football knowledge, you can always set up a fantasy team and see how many points you get at the end of the season. Following team members and individual players is a key aspect of this activity, and, luckily, there are a number of ways you can track your fantasy football players to see how many points they are getting each week.

1. Draft Analyzer

This is an award-winning piece of PC software that allows you to track the performance of football players and make sure your fantasy team is racking up as many points as possible. The product is sold by ESPN and CBS.Sportsline.com to ensure accuracy and even comes with recommendations for upcoming key players and teams.

The software also comes complete with rankings for each player which get updated as the season goes on – all you need to do is click a simple button and you get the most recent results and predictions for all the key football players. This is certainly a useful tool when you are picking a fantasy football team!

2. PCDrafter

This is another piece of computer software that can be downloaded onto your desktop or laptop. The tool works by using a complex mathematical algorithm to work out which players are performing well and which are struggling. Continue reading »

Fantasy Football

Despite having reservations about fit, Cardinals still expected to pursue Kolb

May 31, 2011 / Anthony Stalter

Despite Monday’s report by Scout.com that said the coaching staff has concerns about whether or not he’s a fit in Ken Whisenhunt’s offense, the Cardinals are still expected to pursue quarterback Kevin Kolb if/when he becomes available if/when the lockout lifts.

From the Arizona Republic’s Kent Somers:

*Whenever they are able, the Cardinals will pursue a trade for Eagles quarterback Kevin Kolb. Kolb had highs and lows last season, but if you are looking for reasons to be excited about him, check out this highlight video of his game against the Falcons. He completed 23 of 29 for 326 yards and three touchdowns against good defense.

Kolb is considered a prototypical West Coast offense quarterback and Whisenhunt’s system involves more downfield throws, which is where the supposed concern comes in from Arizona’s coaching staff. Also, Kolb only averaged 6.46 per pass attempt in his five starts in 2010.

But Somers knows his stuff and is an excellent beat writer, so I would be more inclined to believe him over Scout.com if I were a Cardinals fan. There are going to be concerns no matter which quarterback (Kolb, Marc Bulger, Kyle Orton or whomever) the Cardinals wind up acquiring this offseason. But there’s little doubt that Kolb represents an upgrade over John Skelton and besides, the Cardinals’ coaching staff doesn’t have final say anyway. The final decision on whether or not to acquire Kolb will ultimately be made by GM Rod Graves.