During the #10 Arkansas - Vanderbilt football game Saturday afternoon, Arkansas gunner Marquel Wade LAID OUT Commodores' punt returner Jonathan Krause - so much so that Krause was writhing in pain after that hit.
Deservedly so, Wade was ejected from the game - you can see in the above video that he was showboating, taunting and gloating after his hit - UNCALLED for in this day and age of football safety.
The play reminded me of a similar hit the Carolina Panthers gunner Dante Wesley made on punt returner Clifton Smith. The only difference was that a fight did not break out in this weekend's college football game.
It's now two hours until kickoff, and as we get ready for the 2-1 Redskins (WOOT, WOOT!) to face off against the 0-3 Rams at the Edward Jones Dome, I fear the inevitable will happen: the favorites (Redskins), picked by many to win this game, create mistake-after-mistake to cost them a victory against the heavy-underdog Rams team. It's happened before - actually two times the last three years:
2008 The Pete Pickup-and-Fumble Game
Click the above picture to see highlights from this game
Yikes! And to add insult to injury, Rams offensive lineman Richie Incognito blew his fuse and got a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty near the end of the game, but kicker Josh Brown nailed a 50-yard field goal (instead of a 30-some-yard FG) to win the game.
2010 We-Didn't-Come-to-Play Game
Click the above picture to see highlights from this game
This game involved the 0-2 Rams against the 1-1 Redskins (again, favorites for this game). But this time, w/ McNabb at QB, the Redskins didn't show up. The big 40+ yard run by S-Jax (Steven Jackson) in the 1st quarter was the big dagger/big hole that we were unable to overcome come the second half. Despite him leaving with a groin injury in the 2nd quarter, we just could not stop the Rams offense offensively.
So, my question to you is this: Which Redskin team will show up? The one that defeated the Giants, or the one that created multiple blunders against the hapless 2011 Cowboys team/2008 + 2010 Rams teams of the past three years?
The Johnny Knox TD that would have made the game only a one-score deficit was not to be; there was a holding penalty that brought the whole play back and cost the Bears a chance of a comeback.
But, WHAT A FAKE by punt returner Devin Hester!
One of the better offensive linemen this past decade has passed away at the young age of 40 - ex-Raven and Cleveland Brown, Orlando "Zeus" Brown - according to NFL Network's Jason LaCanfora:
If the name sounds familiar to you, then you must remember the Ravens in their glory years. Once he left the Ravens for their not-so-great division rivals the Cleveland Browns, he had an incident with referee Jeff Triplett.
Triplett threw a flag that "accidentally" hit Brown in his right eye.
ARE YOU READY FOR SOME FOOTBALL? I sure am. With the start of the NFL season just hours upon us, I thought it would be a good time to unveil the 2011 Ultimate NFL Player Bracket. If you remember during this past summer, NFL Network aired its 100 Top NFL Players in chunks of 10. In addition, various other networks/blogs/websites made their "own" Top-100: CBS Sports, Bleacher Report, Sports Illustrated's Peter King and Scouts Inc. I, too, made my own top-100 with no biases (*Note: NO rookies were used in any of the rankings, and non take in part the offseason changes over the past month*). I then compiled the rankings and sorted based on an average ranking.
Since you guys LOVE brackets, I took the top 64 of those NFL players to make a 2011 Ultimate NFL Player Bracket. Below, you will see a downloadable Excel bracket:
Once completed, please send me your Final Four AND Top NFL Player to: sameermalla@gmail.com (email); @skinsballr (Twitter) or post your comment below this post.
During yesterday's high-scoring preseason game between the high-powered Saints and the lowly Raiders, former Redskin quarterback Jason Campbell passed the ball to former Redskin and Maryland Terrapin lineman Stephon Heyer. Take a look:
If you remember, after USA's victory in group play over North Korea in the 2011 Women's World Cup, the North Korean head coach blamed the loss to the fact that his players got hit by lightning - now, there's MORE to that story:
After a test found two of their players caught using steroids, the FIFA governing body tested all of the North Korean women on the team and found three more instances of using 'roids. The reason? Because they were "hit by lightning", these players needed medicinal treatment that had 'roids to help them recover.
The top two dunks of this year's playoffs goes to Chicago Bulls' backup power forward Taj Gibson, who had two monstrous slams in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals against the Heat today.
After 21 years of coaching the University of Maryland basketball team, legendary head coach Gary Williams has retired - first reported by Fox Sports.
We, Maryland students, alumni and former players and fans alike are: "stunned", "surprised" and "shocked" by this sudden departure. One ESPN user, 1951 USF Dons, said it best:
"Nobody EVER did more with less. He is the only coach to win a National Championship without an [McDonald's] All-American on his roster. All the best, Coach. Fear the Turtle!!!"
What I am really enjoying about this Redskins draft is the way the Redskins are doing their business - the Bruce Allen + Mike Shanahan method - of trading back picks to fill in the multiple holes both on offense and on defense. I am so used to the Vinny Cerrato + Dan Snyder method of picking players on where they are at and becoming busts - because they don't try as hard - the Shanahan system will force these players to earn their spot instead of players with guaranteed money playing half-as-hard for the team. From eight 2011 picks to now 12, the Redskins are moving against what they normally do during the draft and instead trying something new.
1st Round Pick (#16 overall)
OLB Ryan Kerrigan
A great pick-up by the Redskins, who trade their #10 overall pick to the Jaguars for the #16 pick and #49th overall pick. They: a) Did NOT go after fast-falling quarterback Blaine Gabbert, who did not fit their system and b) Solidified a horrible defense with a great pass-rusher. Think the white version of Orakpo.
I am so glad the Redskins did not draft a QB in the first three rounds - like four of the top 12 teams in the draft were doing on Thursday night. The common Redskins/NFL fan would be like: "WTF? Why aren't the Redskins drafting someone like Ryan Mallet or Collin Kaepernick? Are they stupid? Let's fire Shanahan and Snyder and Allen. They can't be resorting back to Rex Grossman again, can they?"
My answer, along with the Redskins coaching/managerial staff, is this: We already have two decent quarterbacks in Rex Grossman and John Beck. None of the passed 2011 QB's seem franchise-worthy and fit our West Coast Offense/Zone Scheme. Don't forget, we traded a player to the Ravens to get Beck, who was a 2nd round pick by the Dolphins. He has talent, and possibly enough to be our temporary franchise quarterback for the future. Just take a look at this video:
2nd Round Pick (#49 overall)
DE/DT Jarvis Jenkins
Using the Jaguars 2nd round pick, the 'Skins picked up a solid defensive line player in Jenkins - ESPN980 has said that two other teams behind the Redskins' pick would have picked up JJ had they not grabbed him. He's Haynesworth without the heavy baggage and complaints. He is great on run defense, but weak on the pass rush. I'm glad they chose him and NOT his teammate defensive end DeQuan Bowers, who has a history of leg problems.
NOTE: The Redskins traded their own second-round, third-round, fourth-round and fifth-round picks for later picks in the draft.
3rd Round Pick (#79 overall) - from Miami
WR Leonard Hankerson
This pick was probably the best and safest pick the Redskins have made in the draft. One of their biggest holes on offense over the past decade was the lack of a big-time tall wide receiver. We tried that with the 2008 draft debacle with both Malcolm Kelly (likely to be released by the team) and Devin Thomas (now with the NY Giants). If Moss returns to the team - a BIG if, since he is a free agent this season - we could go far, with Moss, Armstrong, Cooley and Hankerson as our receivers.
4th Round Pick (#105 overall) - from Houston
RB Roy Helu Jr.
The Redskins traded up a couple of spots ahead in the fourth round to nab Helu. He's most likely the backup to starting running back Ryan Torain and has more of a Darren Sproles/Noel Devine kind-of-feel. He's small, quick and elusive and fits perfectly for the Shanahan zone-running system. The downsides are that he's not Clinton Portis in terms of pass-protection (no one can PP [pass-protect] like CP; and he's not a durable, strong runner that gains yards-after-contact (YAC)).
I don't know much about Gomes, other than that he fills a backup/possible starting position at safety and possible cornerback, and it's the second consecutive Cornhusker pick.
From ESPN Insider: "Gomes is a SS-type player who excels against the run with good angles and technique as a tackler. He will have some limitations on the backend due to lack of fluidity and top-end speed."
5th Round Pick (#155 overall) - from New Orleans
WR Niles Paul
The pick of Paul makes it three straight Nebraska Cornhuskers chosen in a row and the second WR picked in the draft. I really thought the Redskins would go offensive line here, since their big-play threat was filled by Hankerson's pick yesterday. Don't get me wrong - Niles may be just as good of a player, but the Redskins really need to fill their weak offensive line sooner rather than later. The good part about Niles is that he is great in pass/run blocking - a plus for any team's offense and special teams.
From ESPN Insider: "Paul is a big, physical WR with a RB's build who can contribute as a receiver after the catch and bring added value on special teams a returner. However, he is a bit tight as a route-runner and is a bit inconsistent catching the ball outside of his frame."
The Washington Redskins schedule was released moments ago, and if you don't know it, here it is:
(that is, if we have an NFL season). White = Predicted Loss; Green = Predicted Win
We have an early, EARLY bye week (week 5), and the meat of the schedule (Cowboys/Seahawks/Jets/Pats/Vikings/Eagles) is not until the end of the season
The supposed easy part of the schedule is in the middle, where we face the Panthers/Bills/49ers in consecutive weeks
There are A LOT of 1:00 games this year - 12 of the 16 games are the early afternoon version
We, the Redskins, need to be up and running as the season starts, as we face two NFC East foes to start the season - including @ the Cowboys on Monday Night Football
We have to face the Jets and the Pats in CONSECUTIVE WEEKS, and BOTH in December? Talk about a double-whammy there! (the one good thing is that both games are at home...)
Prior to those games, we are at Quest Field and face the noisy - and I mean the REALLY NOISY - twelfth man
If McNabb is somehow traded to the Vikings, we don't face them until the penultimate game of the regular season - on Christmas Eve. Hopefully, McNabb will be McSanta Claus and give the Redskins faithful a gift that day!
We have to face the pesky Rams again - the last three times we faced them, we got BLITZED by Bradford (last year) and then we had the Pete Kendall incident (2008) that is still branded into my brain to this very day
Luckily, the guy who returned the fumble for a 75-yard TD is on our team now (Oshiomogho Atogwe)
We have the 29th hardest schedule - which means easy, but not when we hit the winter season!
Last time we beat the Pats at home was the loss that sparked their 21-game winning streak
I am predicting an 5-11 season... with some losses coming against the terrible teams (happens to the 'Skins every friggin' year) and some surprise wins - even though we have the sixth-easiest schedule in the league. We have too many holes offensively (RB/WR/OL/QB - basically, our entire offense outside of TE) and we had one of the worst defenses in the League last year. We might blow another top-10 pick come next April.
After a tumultuous season - one in which we saw "Ben Wallace with Range" - a.k.a. Kevin Love and an NBA player (Blake Griffin) dunking on people (I'm looking at you, Timothy Mozgov), it's time for the NBA Playoffs. Before I get ahead of myself, I will do a recap of a certain sort. You've seen the top blocks/assists/steals/dunks/plays/WTF moments of the year before, so I'll do something different: the top NBA fights of the year. So, here we go!
With India winning the 2011 Cricket World Cup on the swing of MS Dhoni - and the fact that the NCAA tournament has officially ended, I present to you the last few moments of the final between India and Sri Lanka, with One Shining Moment being sung in the background:
Yes, according to ESPN980 - the local ESPN radio station - "Sophomore Jordan Williams has filed paperwork to enter his name into the NBA Draft, Maryland head coach Gary Williams announced Tuesday."
The most likely case is that he is just 'testing the waters', and this year being a bad year in terms of star-studded-caliber players joining the draft, there is a slim chance that he will be drafted.
But because Jordan did not sign with an agent, there is a strong likelihood that he will come back and play for the Terps in his junior year.
Adidas has posted a new advertisement/commercial on Youtube that has NBA MVP in-waiting and Chicago Bulls guard Derrick Rose, Argentina and Barcelona stud Lionel Messi, former England player and current Los Angeles Galaxy player David Beckham, pop singer Katy Perry, and rapper B.o.B. Check it out:
Like I do every year, I make multiple NCAA basketball brackets to see how my predictions fare. Year-in and year-out, I am disappointed. Last year, I had Kansas in the National Championship game - when Ali Farokhmanesh and Northern Iowa upset them in the second round, I, along with millions of other competitors, were severely shocked. The same was true with Kentucky as well, as they bowed out early. But 2006 was the exception: I had predicted the PERFECT Final Four and National Championship game of Florida versus Ohio State.
Enough about the past. It's all about the present. If you want to compare my picks with a friend's, check out The Daily Darsh.
Now with my selections, going from East to Southwest:
(Upsets in BOLD)
In case you have not heard about the biggest story the past two hours, it was how Rutgers University got robbed of a chance to tie or possibly win in their first-round matchup against St. John's at the famous Madison Square Garden; I'll also discuss how this game reminded me of the "Ruffin the Puffin" problem that took place nine years ago.
First, some background:
The referees at this game, Jim Burr, Tim Higgins and Earl Walton, have been calling a very inconsistant game - or so I have heard. I just tuned in the last 17 seconds left of the game. But what happened in the last seven seconds will live in infamy.
Rutgers is set to inbound the ball from the opposing end and no timeouts left. They are down by two points with seven seconds left in the game. The player throws it to their own three-point-line, where the ball is deflected by one Rutgers' player and two St. Johns' players (mistake #1) into the hands of Rutgers forward Justin Brownlee. Brownlee, not knowing how much time is left on the clock, streaks down the left side of the court - without dribbling (mistake #2) - and steps out-of-bounds (mistake #3) with 1.7 seconds left.
The referees at this point are: a) Talking to the Rutgers' head coach about mistake #1; b) Looking half-heartedly at Brownlee; c)Not paying attention to the game.
The refs called nothing as the buzzer sounded - walking into the tunnel immediately while the coaches and players were shaking hands. As one of my friends would say: "Un-F***ing-believable."
Here's the last seven seconds, in real speed:
The referees should NOT be allowed to ref any Big East tournament game in the near future (basically, they should be suspended indefinitely), based on what they did in this important first-round match. ESPN college basketball analyst Jay Bilas also agrees with me:
Here's what ESPN's Scott Van Pelt and Bill Simmons also tweeted:
@notthefakeSVP: To be fair, Rutgers still would have needed to make a bucket with 1.7 but my God - the refs just stopped working the game. Pitiful
@sportsguy33: Tim Donaghy thinks the 3 Rutgers-Johnnie's refs were superb today.
This Big East game reminded me of a game that occurred in the NBA nine years ago - the infamous Michael Ruffin game. In this case, the Raptors, down by 3 (99-96), were inbounding in a similar situation to the Rutgers game. Washington Wizard power forward Michael Ruffin immediately caught the pass at the similar spot, then flung the ball straight up in the air. Ex-Toronto Raptors' guard Morris Peterson then flung a miracle three-point shot that banked in to tie the game. (The Wiz, out of bewilderment, ended up losing badly in OT)
In both cases, there was some stupidity involved with a certain person on the court, and that there was a terrible, egregious ending for one team (the Wizards and the Scarlet Knights).
So, that's the Controversial Sports News of the Day.
Annually, during the tail end of the NFL Combine in late February, NFL analyst Rich Eisen runs the famed 40-yard dash - then NFL Network shows the same clip plastered on with other scouting combine invitees - from quarterbacks to running backs to wide receivers and even the big guys - the offensive linemen.
This post will show the current and past editions of Eisen's 40-yard dash:
As a die-hard Redskins fan, I used to love watching Clinton Portis suit up for the team on a weekly basis. We got CP at the perfect time - he was just about to excel for the Denver Broncos when we did a two-for-one deal for him, sending coveted corner Champ Bailey and a 2004 draft pick (running back Tatum Bell, who did well for only a couple seasons with the team) for Portis.
I remember his first carry with the 'Skins - a 64-yard touchdown run right up the middle, with perfect blocking to the left and right of him:
But, the best of all was his blocking. No running back in the league could block as well as Portis. That was why he was so vital to the team from 2005-2007. His pass-blocking ability could not be matched - which is why we loved him.
And, then, of course, there was his shenanigans - and by Portis's shenanigans, I'm referring to his multiple alter-egos he displayed in 2005.
We all, the Redskins Faithful, will miss you, Clinton Portis!
In case you did not hear, University of Maryland alumnus and current ESPN commentator/Radio Host Scott Van Pelt went on a three-minute, sixteen second tirade against the Maryland students and how they were NOT at yesterday's Florida State - Maryland basketball game (that included me).
Here's my take on yesterday's situation:
Yesterday was Wednesday and the start of exam week. So, many of my friends were studying for upcoming exams (that were not necessarily on Thursday); also, with the previous losses to Boston College and Virginia Tech (both sweeps), I, along with many other students, thought Maryland will NOT make the tourney (the NCAA tournament in mid-March); I usually tag along with my friends. If none of my friends on my floor of the dorm were going, then I wouldn't go and instead watch the game on tv; and the Duke game passed a month ago, so it's not worth going to even Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) games, because it won't amount to anything. Last year, the Duke game at home was the last home game, which is why most students went to every home game during the academic school year (excluding Winter Break games).
Picture taken by UMD student/Men's beat reporter Chris Eckard
As students, we do a scan-and-leave process, where we check in before the start of games and immediately exit, resulting in check-in 'points' for each game. Not going to games (while getting tickets for the game) results in a deduction of points - so if we get a free ticket, then we mainly do the scan-&-leave process - which is why the Comcast Center was 3/4 empty yesterday. But I should've gone to the game yesterday, since we won - 78-62 - in which we were only up by one at halftime.
I, along with thousands of other students, will make the final trek to Comcast Center on March 5 (a Saturday), since it's the last game of the season and the last game for Dino Gregory, Cliff Tucker and Adrian Bowie. And, it's against our cross-state rivals, the Virginia Cavaliers.
I thoroughly enjoyed yesterday's Sprite Slam Dunk Contest last night - it was 10X better than the previous 5 years of slam dunks combined. For those of you who did NOT watch the contest, here it is in its entirety:
The last time there was someone other than Jerry Sloan as head coach of the Utah Jazz, the first Bush was vice president, point guard Deron Williams was a wee 4 years old and a gallon of gas cost $1.08. The change was coming, since now the two longest tenured head coaches in the NBA and NFL have now been removed of their positions (the other being Tennessee Titans head coach Jeff Fisher, who was the only Titans head coach in their franchise history).
One has to be the fudged-up lyrics by famed singer Christina Aguilera during her 'rendition' of the "Star-Spangled Banner":
According to ESPN.com:
"When she was supposed to sing the line "O'er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming," she instead repeated an earlier line, with a slight variation.
She sang, "What so proudly we watched at the twilight's last reaming," repeating and mangling an earlier lyric, with the word 'watched' instead of 'hailed' and 'reaming' instead of 'gleaming.'"
And that was not all. The halftime show was a 'DUD', mainly because we have all heard the same songs sung by the Black Eyed Peas over and over and over again. Another reason was that the microphones/audio were semi-working, and without auto-tune, the songs that Fergie and all were belting at the top of their lungs were god-AWFUL. I watched the same songs being sung by the same group prior the 2010 World Cup festivities, and they were 1000X better than what I saw yesterday.
In case you didn't watch:
Thousands, if not, millions of people have proclaimed this Super Bowl halftime show as one of the worst ever. But the game and commercials were not half-bad.
Super Bowl? What Super Bowl? Oh, you mean the one that ended 31-25 Packers? Oh yeah, I watched that, but the highlights were of the commercials - some great and some awful. Here, I'll be showing my favorite sixteen advertisements from yesterday
Since today is the Super Bowl and a match-up between the Green Bay Packers and the Pittsburgh Steelers, two historic franchises, I thought it would be a good time to look back on a great battle between these same two teams two years ago late in the season:
Tonight, on the TNT pregame show at 7 PM EST, the commentators will announce the starting lineups participating in the 60th NBA All-Star Game held on February 20, 2011 at the renowned Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. (The reserves are announced in a week)
Here are my picks for the Western Conference - both the starting lineup and the reserve players. Here, the only position that is a given is the starting SG (Kobe Bryant). For every other position, two+ players could take the starting slot.
Tonight, on the TNT pregame show at 7 PM EST, the commentators will announce the starting lineups participating in the 60th NBA All-Star Game held on February 20, 2011 at the renowned Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. (The reserves are announced in a week)
Here are my picks for the Eastern Conference - both the starting lineup and the reserve players. Most sports writers and I agree on the starting five - but the key difference is the selection of the players coming off the bench.
This record has now been broken. I remember that during one NBA All-Star weekend, the "stars" tried to break the record of four in a minute. I went to Guinness Book of World Records to see the actual record, and lo and behold:
Now, I visit Hot Clicks every weekday and today I find out that a college basketball player has been working hard on beating the record. University of Green Bay’s Eric Valentin, a reserve point guard (only 5' 4") for the team did just that:
Valentin used up every second of the clock to make these half-court shots. Amazing that at the half-way-point, he only made three shots.
I also liked the fact that he wanted Rocky music in the background.
When there's only a few seconds left in either half of a Green Bay game, I would send Valentin to the court. I presume he's their best chance at making a long shot to beat the buzzer.
I know I am a day late with this post - reason being I couldn't find a good video recapping every made basket by LA Clippers' Blake Griffin - who scored a career-and NBA-Season-high 47 points (28 before halftime) in the Clippers' 114-107 victory over the Indiana Pacers on Monday. Take a look at the runaway Rookie of the Year:
During yesterday's Australian Open first-round match between #12 seeded Agnieszka Radwanska and unranked Kimiko Date-Krum, this happened:
Radwanska's expression instantly after her racket head broke was priceless.
She ended up winning the third set 7-5, defeating Date Krum 6-4, 4-6, 7-5; She will face Petra Martic of Croatia in the second round.
Unbelievable weekend of divisional playoff NFL games - every bird lost (Ravens, Falcons and Seahawks), all due to poor play by the team's offense (3 second-half turnovers for the Ravens, two costly first-half interceptions for the Falcons and a terrible all-around offensive performance by the Hawks)
But what was most shocking was the beat-down the Jets put on the New England Patriots today. Nearly every NFL fan (outside of the typical trash-talking Jets fan) and NFL writer had the Patriots going to the Super Bowl, including me, after their stellar run during the regular season. What was most shocking was the incapability of New England's passing game. Despite the trash talking by Jets' cornerback Antonio Cromartie and head coach Rex Ryan, the Jets prevailed - mainly through their shut-down pass defense.
This post-game interview by ESPN's San Paoantonio of Jets' linebacker Bart Scott sums up the Jets' emotional level after the game:
Next week should look like a great AFC Championship game - the physical, physical Pittsburgh Steeelers against the lots of bark and lots of bite New York Jets at 6:30 PM EST next Sunday!
No, that is not a misprint. The Lakers dominated the Cleveland Cavaliers last night, 112-57. Seven Lakers were in double-figures in points, while only two Cavs did the same.
If you do not know who Kemba Walker is, let me fill you in: he's one of the top players in the nation in college basketball, shoots lights-out, and is a one-man wrecking crew for the #9 Connecticut Huskies.
Today, he had one heck of a shot in overtime against the #12-ranked Texas Longhorns:
That was no ordinary shot with the shot clock expiring and the game tied at 77-all with two minutes left in the extra session.
That shot saved the game for the Huskies in a high-profile nonconference matchup - they ended up winning, 82-81.
Such a dominant performance was made by the Seattle Seahawks in their stunning 41-36 victory over the defending champs, the New Orleans Saints. What really sealed the deal was this miraculous 67-yard run by veteran running back Marshawn Lynch, who showed a little AP in him with the brute strength on his way to the end zone.
The NBA Dunk Contest - a tradition held during every NBA All-Star weekend - has revealed it's participants. According to Los Angeles Times writer Broderick Turner, these are the four that will be coming to LA next month: 6-foot-10-inch Blake Griffin PF for LA Clippers), 6-1 Brandon Jennings (PG, now injured, for Milwaukee Bucks), 6-10 Serge Ibaka (PF for Oklahoma City Thunder) and 7-0 JaVale McGee (C for the Wash Wizards).
Find out more about my analysis and videos of the participants after the jump:
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