Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica
"America's Finest Sports Fan Travel Club, May We Plan An Event Or Sports Travel For You?"
We offer: Select opportunities, For your convenience, At "Very Rare but Super Fair" pricing
We offer: Select opportunities, For your convenience, At "Very Rare but Super Fair" pricing
Because it's all about you!!!
"Sports Quote of the Day"
"People don't understand that when I grew up, I was never the most talented. I was never the biggest. I was never the fastest. I certainly was never the strongest. The only thing I had was my work ethic, and that's been what has gotten me this far." ~ Tiger Woods, American professional golfer who is among the most successful golfers of all time
Trending: Panthers-Broncos Preview: 50 things to know about Super Bowl 50. (See the football section for Super Bowl updates).
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? NHL suspends Jonathan Toews one game for missing All-Star weekend due to illness.
By C. Roumeliotis
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
After sitting out the third period in Tuesday's 5-0 loss to the Hurricanes due to an illness, Jonathan Toews will not attend the NHL All-Star Game this weekend in Nashville.
By rule, the Blackhawks captain must sit out the team's first game back on Feb. 2 against the Colorado Avalanche.
"[Toews] was pulled from Tuesday night’s third period because of an illness and remains symptomatic today," Blackhawks team physician Michael Terry said in a statement. "Rest over the break is most important for him to properly recover and be fully healthy heading into the rest of the season."
Predators forward James Neal has been added to the Central Division roster as Toews' replacement.
By the numbers: Are Blackhawks ahead of last season's Stanley Cup pace?
By Tracey Myers
When the Blackhawks were in the midst of their 12-game winning streak not that long ago – i.e., last week – I was asked one question several times: are these Blackhawks better than the 2014-15 Blackhawks?
Yes, I know they’ve lost three out of their last four games. That’s going to happen. But considering that 12-game winning streak was the Blackhawks’ longest in franchise history, they’re obviously doing something – make that a lot of things – right this season.
Coach Joel Quenneville doesn’t like to compare one season or one team to another. That’s understandable.
Still, that’s not stopping me. Comparing numbers is always fun, isn’t it? So since we’re starting the All-Star break and there sure as hell wasn’t anything to write about for the Blackhawks out of last night’s game, let’s look at the Blackhawks’ first 53 games this season compared to their first 53 (through Feb. 8, 2015) last season:
33-16-4 – Blackhawks’ record through 53 games this season (70 points).
33-18-2 – Blackhawks record through the same number of games last season (68 points).
12 – Longest winning streak this season, a franchise record.
8 – Longest winning streak last season.
28-12-2 – Corey Crawford’s record so far this season; that includes a league-best seven shutouts.
21-12-2 – Corey Crawford’s record to this point last season; that includes one shutout.
179:17 – Blackhawks’ longest road scoring drought this season (from Artem Anisimov’s goal 43 seconds into their game vs. Tampa Bay through Tuesday, which includes shutout losses to Florida and Carolina).
149:25 – Blackhawks’ longest road scoring drought last season (the final 6:35 against Anaheim on Jan. 30, 2015 until 2:50 into the second period against Winnipeg on Feb. 6, 2015. The Blackhawks were shut out twice in between, by San Jose (2-0) and Minnesota (3-0).
73 – Points Patrick Kane has through this season’s first 53 games; that includes a career-high 30 goals.
59 – Points Kane had through his first 53 games last season; that includes 26 goals.
7 – Blackhawks who made their NHL debut this season: Artemi Panarin, Erik Gustafsson, Dennis Rasmussen, Vincent Hinostroza, Tanner Kero, Viktor Svedberg and Mark McNeill.
7 – Blackhawks who made their NHL debut last season: Trevor van Riemsdyk, Kyle Baun, Phillip Danault, Ryan Hartman, Michael Paliotta, Adam Clendening and Klas Dahlbeck.
10 – Players who were in the Blackhawks’ lineup in Game No. 53 last season who weren’t on Tuesday’s playing roster due to trade, reassignment or injury: David Rundblad, Patrick Sharp, Marcus Kruger, Brandon Saad, Johnny Oduya, Ben Smith, Bryan Bickell, Joakim Nordstrom, Brad Richards and Antti Raanta.*
*You can technically make this 11; Kris Versteeg was injured (broken hand) in early February 2015.
Five Things: Blackhawks will benefit from some time off.
By Tracey Myers
The Blackhawks didn’t want to repeat their pre-Christmas outing, but that’s pretty much what they did when they lost to the Carolina Hurricanes, 5-0, on Tuesday night. It was a forgettable outing entering the All-Star break, a respite the Blackhawks clearly need. So before we all power down for a few days, let’s look at Five Things to take from the Blackhawks’ loss to Carolina.
1. This team needs a rest. The Blackhawks didn’t want to talk about the break or how much they might need the break. They didn’t have to: It was pretty clear from their play the last few games, and especially Tuesday’s outing, that they need to recharge. In their three recent losses, the Blackhawks have just one goal. Yep, whether they’re heading to a beach or heading home, the Blackhawks need to take advantage of the next few days.
2. Jonathan Toews fighting through it. Toews, who was fighting illness the past few days, did not play at all in the third period. Toews had taken some morning skates off which, considering how much hockey he’s played, wasn’t a huge surprise — he was still playing every game. But with the Blackhawks losing, 5-0, after two, it was a good time for Toews to shut it down.
3. Corey Crawford pulled, but ... Crawford’s early exit was not about him. He’s been stellar these last few weeks. But with the Blackhawks having an awful outing in front of him, coach Joel Quenneville looked to stoke the team fire by benching Crawford. It didn’t really work, but if nothing else, Crawford got another 40 minutes of well-deserved rest.
4. Joakim Nordstrom scores against his former team. Nordstrom is getting an opportunity with the Hurricanes — second line currently — that he probably wasn’t going to get with the Blackhawks. And lately he’s made the most of it. Nordstrom scored his fifth goal of the season, and his third in as many games, against the Blackhawks on Tuesday. Nordstrom was always a hard worker. Good to see him taking advantage of the chance he’s received in Carolina.
5. No goals again. This is likely another sign of fatigue, but this was the second of their three losses in which the Blackhawks were held scoreless (Florida beat them 4-0 on Friday). When the second line isn’t even anywhere on the score sheet, you know it’s a bad night.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session... Bulls have a little showtime against Lakers in Los Angeles
By rule, the Blackhawks captain must sit out the team's first game back on Feb. 2 against the Colorado Avalanche.
"[Toews] was pulled from Tuesday night’s third period because of an illness and remains symptomatic today," Blackhawks team physician Michael Terry said in a statement. "Rest over the break is most important for him to properly recover and be fully healthy heading into the rest of the season."
Predators forward James Neal has been added to the Central Division roster as Toews' replacement.
By the numbers: Are Blackhawks ahead of last season's Stanley Cup pace?
By Tracey Myers
When the Blackhawks were in the midst of their 12-game winning streak not that long ago – i.e., last week – I was asked one question several times: are these Blackhawks better than the 2014-15 Blackhawks?
Yes, I know they’ve lost three out of their last four games. That’s going to happen. But considering that 12-game winning streak was the Blackhawks’ longest in franchise history, they’re obviously doing something – make that a lot of things – right this season.
Coach Joel Quenneville doesn’t like to compare one season or one team to another. That’s understandable.
Still, that’s not stopping me. Comparing numbers is always fun, isn’t it? So since we’re starting the All-Star break and there sure as hell wasn’t anything to write about for the Blackhawks out of last night’s game, let’s look at the Blackhawks’ first 53 games this season compared to their first 53 (through Feb. 8, 2015) last season:
33-16-4 – Blackhawks’ record through 53 games this season (70 points).
33-18-2 – Blackhawks record through the same number of games last season (68 points).
12 – Longest winning streak this season, a franchise record.
8 – Longest winning streak last season.
28-12-2 – Corey Crawford’s record so far this season; that includes a league-best seven shutouts.
21-12-2 – Corey Crawford’s record to this point last season; that includes one shutout.
179:17 – Blackhawks’ longest road scoring drought this season (from Artem Anisimov’s goal 43 seconds into their game vs. Tampa Bay through Tuesday, which includes shutout losses to Florida and Carolina).
149:25 – Blackhawks’ longest road scoring drought last season (the final 6:35 against Anaheim on Jan. 30, 2015 until 2:50 into the second period against Winnipeg on Feb. 6, 2015. The Blackhawks were shut out twice in between, by San Jose (2-0) and Minnesota (3-0).
73 – Points Patrick Kane has through this season’s first 53 games; that includes a career-high 30 goals.
59 – Points Kane had through his first 53 games last season; that includes 26 goals.
7 – Blackhawks who made their NHL debut this season: Artemi Panarin, Erik Gustafsson, Dennis Rasmussen, Vincent Hinostroza, Tanner Kero, Viktor Svedberg and Mark McNeill.
7 – Blackhawks who made their NHL debut last season: Trevor van Riemsdyk, Kyle Baun, Phillip Danault, Ryan Hartman, Michael Paliotta, Adam Clendening and Klas Dahlbeck.
10 – Players who were in the Blackhawks’ lineup in Game No. 53 last season who weren’t on Tuesday’s playing roster due to trade, reassignment or injury: David Rundblad, Patrick Sharp, Marcus Kruger, Brandon Saad, Johnny Oduya, Ben Smith, Bryan Bickell, Joakim Nordstrom, Brad Richards and Antti Raanta.*
*You can technically make this 11; Kris Versteeg was injured (broken hand) in early February 2015.
Five Things: Blackhawks will benefit from some time off.
By Tracey Myers
Well, that was a forgettable one, wasn’t it?
The Blackhawks didn’t want to repeat their pre-Christmas outing, but that’s pretty much what they did when they lost to the Carolina Hurricanes, 5-0, on Tuesday night. It was a forgettable outing entering the All-Star break, a respite the Blackhawks clearly need. So before we all power down for a few days, let’s look at Five Things to take from the Blackhawks’ loss to Carolina.
1. This team needs a rest. The Blackhawks didn’t want to talk about the break or how much they might need the break. They didn’t have to: It was pretty clear from their play the last few games, and especially Tuesday’s outing, that they need to recharge. In their three recent losses, the Blackhawks have just one goal. Yep, whether they’re heading to a beach or heading home, the Blackhawks need to take advantage of the next few days.
2. Jonathan Toews fighting through it. Toews, who was fighting illness the past few days, did not play at all in the third period. Toews had taken some morning skates off which, considering how much hockey he’s played, wasn’t a huge surprise — he was still playing every game. But with the Blackhawks losing, 5-0, after two, it was a good time for Toews to shut it down.
3. Corey Crawford pulled, but ... Crawford’s early exit was not about him. He’s been stellar these last few weeks. But with the Blackhawks having an awful outing in front of him, coach Joel Quenneville looked to stoke the team fire by benching Crawford. It didn’t really work, but if nothing else, Crawford got another 40 minutes of well-deserved rest.
4. Joakim Nordstrom scores against his former team. Nordstrom is getting an opportunity with the Hurricanes — second line currently — that he probably wasn’t going to get with the Blackhawks. And lately he’s made the most of it. Nordstrom scored his fifth goal of the season, and his third in as many games, against the Blackhawks on Tuesday. Nordstrom was always a hard worker. Good to see him taking advantage of the chance he’s received in Carolina.
5. No goals again. This is likely another sign of fatigue, but this was the second of their three losses in which the Blackhawks were held scoreless (Florida beat them 4-0 on Friday). When the second line isn’t even anywhere on the score sheet, you know it’s a bad night.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session... Bulls have a little showtime against Lakers in Los Angeles
By Vincent Goodwill
The stars come out in Los Angeles and the Lakers have played easy fodder for visiting teams, even during Kobe Bryant’s farewell tour.
It took some prodding but the Bulls played 30 minutes of cohesive ball and 90 seconds of devastating play after an extended lull that gave the Lakers hope, concluding matters with a 114-91 win at Staples Center.
Pau Gasol got more cheers than the Lakers’ starting center Roy Hibbert all night, and the crowd’s appreciation belied the fact he was better than any frontcourt player wearing gold, as he toyed with his former team for 21 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in 31 minutes.
Gasol caught his former teammate Bryant on the post on an opening possession and spun on him for a layup, much to the outward delight of both. Bryant had some bright spots but like he has all season, struggled from the field to score 10 points on four of 13 shooting.
The Bulls’ backcourt, who barely combine for half the playing experience of Bryant, played some of the most efficient basketball of the season. Derrick Rose made his first five shots of the game and scored 16 with seven rebounds and five assists in 29 minutes.
Butler, who was announced as an All-Star reserve earlier in the day, lived up to the billing with 26 points, 10 assists and five rebounds, hitting 11 of 17 shots in 31 minutes and was a game-high +31 while on the floor.
The Bulls lead by 22 late in the second quarter and held the lead for most of the night, even sitting Butler and Gasol as the game seemed secure and the Bulls were laughing it up on the bench in their first game without Nikola Mirotic, who’s out until the All-Star break with acute appendicitis.
But you couldn’t tell he was missing with the way the Bulls shared the ball better than they had all season, with 29 assists and before their extended lull, one could say they played their most serious ball of the year, given their tendency to play down to their opponent.
Then Nick Young, Jordan Clarkston and Julius Randle turned up the energy enough to cut the lead to 15 and leave Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg perplexed at his team not being able to effectively put the game away.
Then the Bulls couldn’t close out the Lakers and the Lakers couldn’t continue to close in, until Butler and Gasol re-entered the contest with six minutes left and the game stagnant on the scoreboard but the Lakers clearly carrying the pace with their energy.
Then order was restored, with Butler scoring on a backdoor dunk from Gasol followed by Rose going behind the back on a pass to E’Twaun Moore for a layup to push it back to 19 and send Bryant, who emerged to head to the scorer’s table, back to the bench.
It was expected, and it was decisive but it was necessary given the state of affairs.
Bulls: Jimmy Butler named to All-Star team while Pau Gasol misses out.
By Vincent Goodwill
Jimmy Butler has tried his best to hide the disappointment from not being selected a starter on the Eastern Conference All-Star team after the results from fan voting were revealed last week, but there was little doubt he’d be named as a reserve.
“Nope. I have no idea what’s going to happen,” said Butler at the Bulls’ morning shootaround held at UCLA’s campus.
“If I’m an All-Star, God meant for it to happen. If I’m not, I’m going on vacation with my brothers.”
Butler will have to put off that vacation in some sunny warm environment and pack up his parka for Toronto, since he was selected by the coaches as a reserve along with Detroit’s Andre Drummond, Atlanta’s Paul Millsap, Toronto’s Chris Bosh, Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan, Boston’s Isaiah Thomas and Washington’s John Wall Thursday afternoon.
“Nobody knows what is going to happen, let’s get that out of the way now,” Butler said. “When the time presents itself, we can talk about it then.”
TNT’s Charles Barkley called Butler the best shooting guard in the NBA and said he deserved to be in the starting lineup but fans voted for Miami’s Dwyane Wade and Toronto’s Kyle Lowry for the guard spots. Butler’s numbers have risen again for his second consecutive All-Star appearance, averaging 22.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.2 assists in a league-leading 38.3 minutes per contest.
“He has his opinion along with everybody else so it’s fine with me,” Butler said. “Everybody knows how hard I play, what I’m trying to accomplish. Just being an All-Star period is enough for me.”
Pau Gasol made a late push in the fan voting and almost repeated as starter but missed out by 360 votes. Earlier in the day he was optimistic the coaches would vote him in, while rightfully bemoaning the big men being shut out in the voting due to the NBA removing the center position from the ballot.
“The way it is now, it’s point guards, shooting guards and small forwards in the starting lineup. It’s unfair for the bigger guys who play well and work hard, but we don’t have that type of shot,” Gasol said. “It is a game where people want to see those flashy guys. I fell short so let’s see what happens if the coaches pay justice (laughs). Either way, I’m happy and proud of how I’m performing this year, at a high level, regardless of whether I’m on the team or not.”
Sacramento’s DeMarcus Cousins said the same thing earlier this week in an interview with Yahoo’s Marc Spears, as he wasn’t voted despite averaging over 27 points and 11 rebounds.
“It’s disrespectful to big men,” Cousins told Yahoo Sports. “It’s not really fair. But that’s how it is.”
“Of course, it’s going to be most winning teams’ [players], the most popular players [selected]. The other guys that play for the Milwaukee Bucks, and in our case the Sacramento Kings, who are playing just as good basketball, will never be seen. I don’t think it’s fair.”
Cousins was named as a reserve, somewhat righting the wrong but Gasol was on the outside looking in, missing out on his sixth All-Star appearance while Butler made his second.
Bulls: Nikola Mirotic out until All-Star break with appendicitis.
By Vincent Goodwill
Bulls forward Nikola Mirotic is out until after the All-Star break after he underwent an appendectomy in Chicago for acute appendicitis.
On the eve of the Bulls going on a seven-game western swing, Mirotic’s condition was announced and he won’t make the trip that will take the Bulls right to the end of the first half of the season.
Mirotic had showed signs of breaking out of his seemingly season-long slump in the last two games, only to have this halt his personal progress and eliminate another scoring and frontcourt option. He'd just been named to the NBA's Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star weekend hours before by the league.
Mirotic scored 17 and 15 points, respectively, after going through massive struggles the last three weeks and after going back to the bench, it appeared he could’ve found his footing as a scorer in the second unit.
Thankfully for Mirotic, the acute appendicitis was discovered soon enough and he’ll be able to recover fully, it appears, despite the surprise.
For the Bulls, it strips them of more depth after the season-ending injury to Joakim Noah, and coach Fred Hoiberg will have to do more lineup shuffling, after having to do plenty in the first 42 games as is.
Derrick Rose is listed as probable after missing the second half of Monday’s loss to the Miami Heat, but aside from that, the Bulls are running out of healthy bodies and productive players.
More will be counted on from Doug McDermott and Tony Snell, but nobody’s sure what they can contribute given the sample size of inconsistency, captured by missed open shots all over the floor.
Hoiberg may have to turn to Cristiano Felicio or Cameron Bairstow, both of whom who’ve had stints in the D-League. Or he may have to play small all around the floor, shifting Jimmy Butler to small forward and giving more playing time to Aaron Brooks and E’Twaun Moore, who should be available after returning back from his injury.
Either way, a hard trip just got harder for the Bulls, as a valuable piece has been lost for the foreseeable future.
It took some prodding but the Bulls played 30 minutes of cohesive ball and 90 seconds of devastating play after an extended lull that gave the Lakers hope, concluding matters with a 114-91 win at Staples Center.
Pau Gasol got more cheers than the Lakers’ starting center Roy Hibbert all night, and the crowd’s appreciation belied the fact he was better than any frontcourt player wearing gold, as he toyed with his former team for 21 points, 12 rebounds and seven assists in 31 minutes.
Gasol caught his former teammate Bryant on the post on an opening possession and spun on him for a layup, much to the outward delight of both. Bryant had some bright spots but like he has all season, struggled from the field to score 10 points on four of 13 shooting.
The Bulls’ backcourt, who barely combine for half the playing experience of Bryant, played some of the most efficient basketball of the season. Derrick Rose made his first five shots of the game and scored 16 with seven rebounds and five assists in 29 minutes.
Butler, who was announced as an All-Star reserve earlier in the day, lived up to the billing with 26 points, 10 assists and five rebounds, hitting 11 of 17 shots in 31 minutes and was a game-high +31 while on the floor.
The Bulls lead by 22 late in the second quarter and held the lead for most of the night, even sitting Butler and Gasol as the game seemed secure and the Bulls were laughing it up on the bench in their first game without Nikola Mirotic, who’s out until the All-Star break with acute appendicitis.
But you couldn’t tell he was missing with the way the Bulls shared the ball better than they had all season, with 29 assists and before their extended lull, one could say they played their most serious ball of the year, given their tendency to play down to their opponent.
Then Nick Young, Jordan Clarkston and Julius Randle turned up the energy enough to cut the lead to 15 and leave Bulls coach Fred Hoiberg perplexed at his team not being able to effectively put the game away.
Then the Bulls couldn’t close out the Lakers and the Lakers couldn’t continue to close in, until Butler and Gasol re-entered the contest with six minutes left and the game stagnant on the scoreboard but the Lakers clearly carrying the pace with their energy.
Then order was restored, with Butler scoring on a backdoor dunk from Gasol followed by Rose going behind the back on a pass to E’Twaun Moore for a layup to push it back to 19 and send Bryant, who emerged to head to the scorer’s table, back to the bench.
It was expected, and it was decisive but it was necessary given the state of affairs.
Bulls: Jimmy Butler named to All-Star team while Pau Gasol misses out.
By Vincent Goodwill
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
“Nope. I have no idea what’s going to happen,” said Butler at the Bulls’ morning shootaround held at UCLA’s campus.
“If I’m an All-Star, God meant for it to happen. If I’m not, I’m going on vacation with my brothers.”
Butler will have to put off that vacation in some sunny warm environment and pack up his parka for Toronto, since he was selected by the coaches as a reserve along with Detroit’s Andre Drummond, Atlanta’s Paul Millsap, Toronto’s Chris Bosh, Toronto’s DeMar DeRozan, Boston’s Isaiah Thomas and Washington’s John Wall Thursday afternoon.
“Nobody knows what is going to happen, let’s get that out of the way now,” Butler said. “When the time presents itself, we can talk about it then.”
TNT’s Charles Barkley called Butler the best shooting guard in the NBA and said he deserved to be in the starting lineup but fans voted for Miami’s Dwyane Wade and Toronto’s Kyle Lowry for the guard spots. Butler’s numbers have risen again for his second consecutive All-Star appearance, averaging 22.3 points, 5.3 rebounds and 4.2 assists in a league-leading 38.3 minutes per contest.
“He has his opinion along with everybody else so it’s fine with me,” Butler said. “Everybody knows how hard I play, what I’m trying to accomplish. Just being an All-Star period is enough for me.”
Pau Gasol made a late push in the fan voting and almost repeated as starter but missed out by 360 votes. Earlier in the day he was optimistic the coaches would vote him in, while rightfully bemoaning the big men being shut out in the voting due to the NBA removing the center position from the ballot.
“The way it is now, it’s point guards, shooting guards and small forwards in the starting lineup. It’s unfair for the bigger guys who play well and work hard, but we don’t have that type of shot,” Gasol said. “It is a game where people want to see those flashy guys. I fell short so let’s see what happens if the coaches pay justice (laughs). Either way, I’m happy and proud of how I’m performing this year, at a high level, regardless of whether I’m on the team or not.”
Sacramento’s DeMarcus Cousins said the same thing earlier this week in an interview with Yahoo’s Marc Spears, as he wasn’t voted despite averaging over 27 points and 11 rebounds.
“It’s disrespectful to big men,” Cousins told Yahoo Sports. “It’s not really fair. But that’s how it is.”
“Of course, it’s going to be most winning teams’ [players], the most popular players [selected]. The other guys that play for the Milwaukee Bucks, and in our case the Sacramento Kings, who are playing just as good basketball, will never be seen. I don’t think it’s fair.”
Cousins was named as a reserve, somewhat righting the wrong but Gasol was on the outside looking in, missing out on his sixth All-Star appearance while Butler made his second.
Bulls: Nikola Mirotic out until All-Star break with appendicitis.
By Vincent Goodwill
Bulls forward Nikola Mirotic is out until after the All-Star break after he underwent an appendectomy in Chicago for acute appendicitis.
On the eve of the Bulls going on a seven-game western swing, Mirotic’s condition was announced and he won’t make the trip that will take the Bulls right to the end of the first half of the season.
Mirotic had showed signs of breaking out of his seemingly season-long slump in the last two games, only to have this halt his personal progress and eliminate another scoring and frontcourt option. He'd just been named to the NBA's Rising Stars Challenge at All-Star weekend hours before by the league.
Mirotic scored 17 and 15 points, respectively, after going through massive struggles the last three weeks and after going back to the bench, it appeared he could’ve found his footing as a scorer in the second unit.
Thankfully for Mirotic, the acute appendicitis was discovered soon enough and he’ll be able to recover fully, it appears, despite the surprise.
For the Bulls, it strips them of more depth after the season-ending injury to Joakim Noah, and coach Fred Hoiberg will have to do more lineup shuffling, after having to do plenty in the first 42 games as is.
Derrick Rose is listed as probable after missing the second half of Monday’s loss to the Miami Heat, but aside from that, the Bulls are running out of healthy bodies and productive players.
More will be counted on from Doug McDermott and Tony Snell, but nobody’s sure what they can contribute given the sample size of inconsistency, captured by missed open shots all over the floor.
Hoiberg may have to turn to Cristiano Felicio or Cameron Bairstow, both of whom who’ve had stints in the D-League. Or he may have to play small all around the floor, shifting Jimmy Butler to small forward and giving more playing time to Aaron Brooks and E’Twaun Moore, who should be available after returning back from his injury.
Either way, a hard trip just got harder for the Bulls, as a valuable piece has been lost for the foreseeable future.
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Panthers-Broncos Preview: 50 things to know about Super Bowl 50.
The Super Bowl is perhaps the most glorified spectacle in American sports, and this year marks its golden anniversary. So to celebrate Super Bowl 50 -- an awesome matchup between the Carolina Panthers and the Denver Broncos -- here are 50 facts (not stats) to know. After reading, you'll have plenty of ammunition to impress everyone between refrigerator runs and bathroom breaks during your Super Bowl party.
1. Cam Newton will hit the trifecta if the Panthers win Super Bowl 50.
1. Cam Newton will hit the trifecta if the Panthers win Super Bowl 50.
Newton could become the first quarterback ever to have won a national championship (FBS) in college, the Heisman Trophy and a Super Bowl. Newton also won a junior college national title with Blinn College in 2009. Yeah, he'd be the first quarterback do all that, too.
2. There's a John Fox tie-in to Super Bowl 50.
Both head coaches, Carolina's Ron Rivera and Denver's Gary Kubiak, replaced current Chicago Bears head coach John Fox.
3. We'll witness an epic age gap.
The age difference that separates Cam Newton and Peyton Manning is 13 years and 48 days. It is the biggest age difference between starting quarterbacks in Super Bowl history.
4. There's a good chance Cam Newton will also hit a pretty nice double if he wins Super Bowl 50.
If Cam Newton wins the Super Bowl and the NFL MVP, he will be the 11th player in league history to do so in the same year, and the first since Kurt Warner double-dipped in 1999.
5. Manning could set another record if he wins Super Bowl 50. This time, about his age.
He'd be the oldest Super Bowl-winning quarterback in NFL history. Manning's boss, John Elway, beat the Falcons 34-19 in Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999 as a 38-year-old QB.
6. As expected, the cost for a Super Bowl commercial will be the highest ever.
The cost for a 30-second advertisement during Super Bowl I was $42,500. The same 30-second spot will cost $5 million for Super Bowl 50.
7. Second time as the Super Bowl host for NorCal.
Super Bowl 50 marks the second time the game will be played in Northern California and the first time it's been played in that region since 1985 when Super Bowl XIX was played at Stanford Stadium.
The 49ers beat the Dolphins 38-16 and Joe Montana won Super Bowl MVP.
8. There's a significant draft tie-in.
Super Bowl 50 will pit two quarterbacks against each other who went No. 1 overall in the draft for the first time.
9. There are a ton college teammates who will face each other in Super Bowl 50.
10. Superstition will live on in Super Bowl 50.
The Broncos are 0-4 all-time wearing their orange jerseys in the Super Bowl. They'll wear their white threads against the Panthers in Super Bowl 50. The Panthers will wear their black uniforms. They wore white when they lost to the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVIII in 2004.
In fact, 10 of the last 11 Super Bowl winners were wearing white uniforms.
11. If the Panthers win the Super Bowl, Cam Newton will become the third African-American quarterback to have a Super Bowl ring.
Doug Williams led the Redskins to a win in Super Bowl XXII in 1988. Russell Wilson led the Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014.
12. The Broncos will either lengthen their lead in a bad category or move into some good company.
As an organization, the Broncos already have the most Super Bowl losses (five) in NFL history. If they win Super Bowl 50, they'll be the ninth franchise with at least three Super Bowl titles.
13. If the Panthers win Super Bowl 50, Ron Rivera will become the fourth guy to have earned a Super Bowl ring as a player and a coach.
Mike Ditka, Tom Flores, and Tony Dungy are the others.
14. The chance to stand alone in history is on the line for John Elway, too.
If the Broncos win Super Bowl 50, John Elway will be the first GM with a Super Bowl ring as a player and general manager. Packers president and CEO Mark Murphy won a Lombardi when he played for the Redskins.
15. Ron Rivera is the second head coach of Hispanic heritage to roam the sidelines in a Super Bowl.
The first was Los Angeles Raiders head coach Tom Flores in Super Bowl XV in 1981. He also won the Super Bowl with the Raiders three years later.
16. No. 1 vs. No. 1.
The Panthers-Broncos matchup marks the second time in Super Bowl history that the No. 1 scoring offense will play the No. 1 scoring defense. Two years ago, the Broncos had the top scoring offense and the Seahawks had the top scoring defense.
17. Two college football programs will be especially proud.
Cam Newton is the first quarterback who attended Auburn University to play in a Super Bowl. Peyton Manning is the only quarterback who went to the University of Tennessee who's started a Super Bowl.
18. Panthers receiver Devin Funchess was 4 months old when Peyton Manning played in his first game at the University of Tennessee.
Manning's first college football action came on Sept. 24, 1994. It was a relief appearance in 24-21 loss to Mississippi State. Funchess was born May 21, 1994.
19. The Broncos are tied for the most Super Bowl appearances ever.
The Broncos are making their eighth Super Bowl appearance. The only other teams with that many are the Patriots, Steelers and Cowboys.
20. No first-rounders starting on the offensive lines.
Super Bowl 50 marks the first time since Super Bowl XLIV in 2010 between the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts that neither team will start an offensive lineman it drafted in the first round.
But this isn't a regular occurrence. Before Super Bowl XLIV, it hadn't happened since at least 1980.
21. Panthers starting right tackle Mike Remmers has an amazing story.
He entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2012 and was actually signed by the Broncos. The Panthers are the fifth team he's played on. Before coming to Carolina, he was on the St. Louis Rams practice squad.
22. Two of the game's most established veterans share some draft-day history.
DeMarcus Ware was the No. 11 overall pick in the 2005 draft. Thomas Davis went three spots later at No. 14 overall. This was the same draft that saw three running backs taken in the top five. Can you imagine that happening today?! Football Twitter would erupt.
23. Hurney's major impact.
Fired after the 2012 season, former Panthers GM Marty Hurney had a major impact on the 2015 Panthers. He acquired eight of the 10 Panthers who made the Pro Bowl this season. The only guys he didn't add who made the Pro Bowl were Trai Turner and Kawann Short.
24. One of the latest Super Bowls.
Super Bowl 50 being played on Feb. 7 ties it for the latest starting date in Super Bowl history. Super Bowl XLIV was also on Feb. 7. Officially, that kickoff happened at 6:32 p.m. ET. So if this Super Bowl is just three minutes late, it'll technically be the "latest start" in Super Bowl history.
25. The Broncos have a big edge in Super Bowl experience.
Denver has 18 players who were on a Super Bowl roster, while Carolina has seven players. Of those players, 16 current Broncos have actually played in a Super Bowl, and five current Panthers have played in a Super Bowl.
26. Everybody in the Super Bowl wins ... financially.
Players on the winning team can receive up to a $97,000 bonus. While the players on the losing team receive a bonus of $49,000.
27. Panthers owner Jerry Richardson has an awesome and unique story.
He used the bonus money he received from playing in the 1959 NFL Championship as a wide receiver on the Baltimore Colts to co-found the Hardee's restaurant chain. He's gone on to make millions elsewhere, but that's how he built his fortune.
28. There isn't much familiarity between these two teams.
Cam Newton has faced a Wade Phillips-run defense one time. It came when the quarterback was a rookie. His Panthers beat the Texans 23-13 in November of 2011 when Phillips was Houston's defensive coordinator.
Peyton Manning and Newton have squared off once. That game was in November of 2012 and the Broncos beat the Panthers 36-14.
29. Plenty of five-star recruits.
In last year's Super Bowl there were zero former five-star high school recruits. Not the case this time around.
The Panthers have five former Rivals five-star recruits: Cam Newton, Ted Ginn Jr. Greg Olsen, Jonathan Stewart and Shaq Thompson. The Broncos only have one: Andre Caldwell.
30. Media day in prime time.
This year's Super Bowl Media Day will be a prime-time event -- starting at 8 p.m. ET on Feb. 1 -- for the first time ever.
Media day was typically held on Tuesday morning before the big game.
31. There's extra hardware for this year's Super Bowl winners.
To commemorate the 50th Super Bowl, outside of receiving the Vince Lombardi Trophy, the winning team will get 18-karat gold numerals "5" and "0."
32. Four of the last five Super Bowls have come down to the last play.
Not counting kneel-downs, of course.
Last year's Malcolm Butler interception. Two years before that, Colin Kaepernick just missed Michael Crabtree in the back of the end zone against the Ravens. The year before that, Tom Brady heaved a Hail Mary attempt that went incomplete against the Giants. A year prior, the Steelers didn't convert on fourth down as the Packers hung onto a six-point lead.
33. Levi's Stadium gets the fans close to the action.
Really close.
It's designed to place about two-thirds of the fans in the lower bowl, the largest fraction of that kind in the NFL.
34. The naming rights for Levi's Stadium were not cheap.
Levi's will pay the city of Santa Clara and the 49ers a whopping $220.3 million over 20 years.
35. For the third year in a row, the two No. 1 seeds will meet in the Super Bowl.
It's the sixth time since the NFL's playoff structure was expanded to 12 teams.
36. Eighteen within reach.
If the Panthers win, they'll be the second team in NFL history to finish with 18 wins. The Patriots finished 18-1 in the 2007-2008 season but lost that year's Super Bowl to the Giants. The 1972 Dolphins went undefeated but only won 17 games.
37. There are no former Panthers on the Broncos and no former Broncos on the Panthers.
... who played for either team in the regular season, that is. Right tackle Mike Remmers was technically a member of the Broncos starting in May of 2012, but he was cut that August.
38. The two head coaches in Super Bowl 50 faced off against each other as players.
Well, kind of.
Kubiak actually threw six passes in a 1984 game against the Bears, which was Rivera's rookie year in Chicago. But Rivera didn't play in that contest.
The Broncos and Bears met again in 1987. Rivera was on the field and hand and interception, but Kubiak was backing up John Elway. Both were members of those respective teams in 1990 when the Bears and Broncos met again, but neither played.
39. Broncos backup center is James Ferentz, the son of Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz.
James went to Iowa and entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2014 with the Houston Texans.
40. Beyonce is making history.
She's performing at halftime of Super Bowl 50, making her the first female to repeat as a Super Bowl halftime performer.
41. Ohio State is the most well-represented college in the Super Bowl.
There are five former Buckeyes. Bradley Roby on the Broncos and Ted Ginn Jr., Kurt Coleman, Philly Brown and Andrew Norwell on the Panthers.
42. For the first time in Super Bowl history, the No. 1 and No. 2 overall picks from the same draft will square off in the Super Bowl.
Cam Newton went No. 1 overall in 2011. The Broncos took Von Miller with the next pick. Imagine if Andrew Luck decided enter that draft. Things may have looked a lot differently today.
43. A return trip to the Super Bowl.
Panthers wideout Kevin Norwood is the only player on one of the Super Bowl 50 teams who was a member of either the Patriots or Seahawks in last year's Super Bowl 49.
Unfortunately for Norwood, who played for Seattle, he was inactive for the game. Fortunately for him, he'll always be the answer to this trivia question.
44. Billions in bets.
According to the American Gaming Commission, American's will wager a total of $4.2 billion on Super Bowl 50. The AGC also predicts just $4.1 billion will be illegal gambling.
45. This matchup was a long shot.
According to 5Dimes, a Broncos-Panthers Super Bowl matchup was 184-1 before the season started. Quite the long shot, that's for sure.
46. Demaryius Thomas is already in the Super Bowl record books.
In his only other Super Bowl appearance two years ago, the Broncos receiver set a Super Bowl record with 13 receptions.
Unfortunately for him, it came in the 43-8 beatdown the Seahawks put on his Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.
47. Peyton Manning needs to throw 21 passes to move past John Elway.
... in most career passes in Super Bowl history. Elway is currently in second with 152. Manning has thrown 132 passes in his Super Bowl career.
48. Peyton Manning needs 140 passing yards to become the sixth quarterback ever with at least 1,000 career passing yards in the Super Bowl.
The others? Terry Bradshaw, John Elway, Joe Montana, Kurt Warner and Tom Brady.
49. Peyton Manning only has two career Super Bowl touchdowns.
Which isn't even in the Top 10 all-time. If he throws two touchdowns against the Panthers, he'd move into a tie for ninth place with Russell Wilson, Doug Williams and Jim Plunkett
50. The Panthers are traveling a long way for Super Bowl 50.
The trip is 2,680.6 miles from their headquarters in Charlotte, N.C.
The Patriots, coming from Foxborough, Mass., to Glendale, Ariz.,for Super Bowl XLIV in 2008 and last year's Super Bowl amount to the furthest trips in Super Bowl history at 2,980.4 miles.
How Cubs rebuilt their pitching staff without a David Price.
2. There's a John Fox tie-in to Super Bowl 50.
Both head coaches, Carolina's Ron Rivera and Denver's Gary Kubiak, replaced current Chicago Bears head coach John Fox.
3. We'll witness an epic age gap.
The age difference that separates Cam Newton and Peyton Manning is 13 years and 48 days. It is the biggest age difference between starting quarterbacks in Super Bowl history.
4. There's a good chance Cam Newton will also hit a pretty nice double if he wins Super Bowl 50.
If Cam Newton wins the Super Bowl and the NFL MVP, he will be the 11th player in league history to do so in the same year, and the first since Kurt Warner double-dipped in 1999.
5. Manning could set another record if he wins Super Bowl 50. This time, about his age.
He'd be the oldest Super Bowl-winning quarterback in NFL history. Manning's boss, John Elway, beat the Falcons 34-19 in Super Bowl XXXIII in 1999 as a 38-year-old QB.
6. As expected, the cost for a Super Bowl commercial will be the highest ever.
The cost for a 30-second advertisement during Super Bowl I was $42,500. The same 30-second spot will cost $5 million for Super Bowl 50.
7. Second time as the Super Bowl host for NorCal.
Super Bowl 50 marks the second time the game will be played in Northern California and the first time it's been played in that region since 1985 when Super Bowl XIX was played at Stanford Stadium.
The 49ers beat the Dolphins 38-16 and Joe Montana won Super Bowl MVP.
8. There's a significant draft tie-in.
Super Bowl 50 will pit two quarterbacks against each other who went No. 1 overall in the draft for the first time.
9. There are a ton college teammates who will face each other in Super Bowl 50.
- Broncos offensive guard Evan Mathis and Panthers safety were teammates at Alabama from 2002 to 2004.
- Broncos left tackle Ryan Harris and Panthers long snapper J.J. Jansen were teammates at Notre Dame in 2005 and 2006.
- Broncos offensive tackle Michael Schofield and Panthers wide receiver Devin Funchess were teammates at Michigan in 2012 and 2013.
- Broncos defensive tackle Sylvester Williams and Panthers safety Tre Boston were teammates at North Carolina in 2011 and 2012.
- Broncos safety T.J. Ward and Panthers running back Ed Dickson were teammates at Oregon from 2006 to 2009. They were both teammates with Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart in 2006 and 2007.
- Broncos center Sam Brenner and Panthers defensive tackle Star Lotulelei were teammates at Utah from 2010 to 2012.
- Broncos linebacker Corey Nelson and Panthers offensive guard Daryl Williams were teammates at Oklahoma from 2011 to 2013.
- Broncos edge-rusher Shane Ray and Panthers defensive lineman Kony Ealy were teammates at Missouri in 2012 and 2013.
- Broncos cornerback Bradley Roby was a teammate of Panthers offensive guard Andrew Norwell 2011 to 2012 and a teammate of Panthers receiver Philly Brown from 2011 to 2013.
10. Superstition will live on in Super Bowl 50.
The Broncos are 0-4 all-time wearing their orange jerseys in the Super Bowl. They'll wear their white threads against the Panthers in Super Bowl 50. The Panthers will wear their black uniforms. They wore white when they lost to the Patriots in Super Bowl XXXVIII in 2004.
In fact, 10 of the last 11 Super Bowl winners were wearing white uniforms.
11. If the Panthers win the Super Bowl, Cam Newton will become the third African-American quarterback to have a Super Bowl ring.
Doug Williams led the Redskins to a win in Super Bowl XXII in 1988. Russell Wilson led the Seahawks in Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014.
12. The Broncos will either lengthen their lead in a bad category or move into some good company.
As an organization, the Broncos already have the most Super Bowl losses (five) in NFL history. If they win Super Bowl 50, they'll be the ninth franchise with at least three Super Bowl titles.
13. If the Panthers win Super Bowl 50, Ron Rivera will become the fourth guy to have earned a Super Bowl ring as a player and a coach.
Mike Ditka, Tom Flores, and Tony Dungy are the others.
14. The chance to stand alone in history is on the line for John Elway, too.
If the Broncos win Super Bowl 50, John Elway will be the first GM with a Super Bowl ring as a player and general manager. Packers president and CEO Mark Murphy won a Lombardi when he played for the Redskins.
15. Ron Rivera is the second head coach of Hispanic heritage to roam the sidelines in a Super Bowl.
The first was Los Angeles Raiders head coach Tom Flores in Super Bowl XV in 1981. He also won the Super Bowl with the Raiders three years later.
16. No. 1 vs. No. 1.
The Panthers-Broncos matchup marks the second time in Super Bowl history that the No. 1 scoring offense will play the No. 1 scoring defense. Two years ago, the Broncos had the top scoring offense and the Seahawks had the top scoring defense.
17. Two college football programs will be especially proud.
Cam Newton is the first quarterback who attended Auburn University to play in a Super Bowl. Peyton Manning is the only quarterback who went to the University of Tennessee who's started a Super Bowl.
18. Panthers receiver Devin Funchess was 4 months old when Peyton Manning played in his first game at the University of Tennessee.
Manning's first college football action came on Sept. 24, 1994. It was a relief appearance in 24-21 loss to Mississippi State. Funchess was born May 21, 1994.
19. The Broncos are tied for the most Super Bowl appearances ever.
The Broncos are making their eighth Super Bowl appearance. The only other teams with that many are the Patriots, Steelers and Cowboys.
20. No first-rounders starting on the offensive lines.
Super Bowl 50 marks the first time since Super Bowl XLIV in 2010 between the New Orleans Saints and Indianapolis Colts that neither team will start an offensive lineman it drafted in the first round.
But this isn't a regular occurrence. Before Super Bowl XLIV, it hadn't happened since at least 1980.
21. Panthers starting right tackle Mike Remmers has an amazing story.
He entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2012 and was actually signed by the Broncos. The Panthers are the fifth team he's played on. Before coming to Carolina, he was on the St. Louis Rams practice squad.
22. Two of the game's most established veterans share some draft-day history.
DeMarcus Ware was the No. 11 overall pick in the 2005 draft. Thomas Davis went three spots later at No. 14 overall. This was the same draft that saw three running backs taken in the top five. Can you imagine that happening today?! Football Twitter would erupt.
23. Hurney's major impact.
Fired after the 2012 season, former Panthers GM Marty Hurney had a major impact on the 2015 Panthers. He acquired eight of the 10 Panthers who made the Pro Bowl this season. The only guys he didn't add who made the Pro Bowl were Trai Turner and Kawann Short.
24. One of the latest Super Bowls.
Super Bowl 50 being played on Feb. 7 ties it for the latest starting date in Super Bowl history. Super Bowl XLIV was also on Feb. 7. Officially, that kickoff happened at 6:32 p.m. ET. So if this Super Bowl is just three minutes late, it'll technically be the "latest start" in Super Bowl history.
25. The Broncos have a big edge in Super Bowl experience.
Denver has 18 players who were on a Super Bowl roster, while Carolina has seven players. Of those players, 16 current Broncos have actually played in a Super Bowl, and five current Panthers have played in a Super Bowl.
26. Everybody in the Super Bowl wins ... financially.
Players on the winning team can receive up to a $97,000 bonus. While the players on the losing team receive a bonus of $49,000.
27. Panthers owner Jerry Richardson has an awesome and unique story.
He used the bonus money he received from playing in the 1959 NFL Championship as a wide receiver on the Baltimore Colts to co-found the Hardee's restaurant chain. He's gone on to make millions elsewhere, but that's how he built his fortune.
28. There isn't much familiarity between these two teams.
Cam Newton has faced a Wade Phillips-run defense one time. It came when the quarterback was a rookie. His Panthers beat the Texans 23-13 in November of 2011 when Phillips was Houston's defensive coordinator.
Peyton Manning and Newton have squared off once. That game was in November of 2012 and the Broncos beat the Panthers 36-14.
29. Plenty of five-star recruits.
In last year's Super Bowl there were zero former five-star high school recruits. Not the case this time around.
The Panthers have five former Rivals five-star recruits: Cam Newton, Ted Ginn Jr. Greg Olsen, Jonathan Stewart and Shaq Thompson. The Broncos only have one: Andre Caldwell.
30. Media day in prime time.
This year's Super Bowl Media Day will be a prime-time event -- starting at 8 p.m. ET on Feb. 1 -- for the first time ever.
Media day was typically held on Tuesday morning before the big game.
31. There's extra hardware for this year's Super Bowl winners.
To commemorate the 50th Super Bowl, outside of receiving the Vince Lombardi Trophy, the winning team will get 18-karat gold numerals "5" and "0."
32. Four of the last five Super Bowls have come down to the last play.
Not counting kneel-downs, of course.
Last year's Malcolm Butler interception. Two years before that, Colin Kaepernick just missed Michael Crabtree in the back of the end zone against the Ravens. The year before that, Tom Brady heaved a Hail Mary attempt that went incomplete against the Giants. A year prior, the Steelers didn't convert on fourth down as the Packers hung onto a six-point lead.
33. Levi's Stadium gets the fans close to the action.
Really close.
It's designed to place about two-thirds of the fans in the lower bowl, the largest fraction of that kind in the NFL.
34. The naming rights for Levi's Stadium were not cheap.
Levi's will pay the city of Santa Clara and the 49ers a whopping $220.3 million over 20 years.
35. For the third year in a row, the two No. 1 seeds will meet in the Super Bowl.
It's the sixth time since the NFL's playoff structure was expanded to 12 teams.
36. Eighteen within reach.
If the Panthers win, they'll be the second team in NFL history to finish with 18 wins. The Patriots finished 18-1 in the 2007-2008 season but lost that year's Super Bowl to the Giants. The 1972 Dolphins went undefeated but only won 17 games.
37. There are no former Panthers on the Broncos and no former Broncos on the Panthers.
... who played for either team in the regular season, that is. Right tackle Mike Remmers was technically a member of the Broncos starting in May of 2012, but he was cut that August.
38. The two head coaches in Super Bowl 50 faced off against each other as players.
Well, kind of.
Kubiak actually threw six passes in a 1984 game against the Bears, which was Rivera's rookie year in Chicago. But Rivera didn't play in that contest.
The Broncos and Bears met again in 1987. Rivera was on the field and hand and interception, but Kubiak was backing up John Elway. Both were members of those respective teams in 1990 when the Bears and Broncos met again, but neither played.
39. Broncos backup center is James Ferentz, the son of Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz.
James went to Iowa and entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2014 with the Houston Texans.
40. Beyonce is making history.
She's performing at halftime of Super Bowl 50, making her the first female to repeat as a Super Bowl halftime performer.
41. Ohio State is the most well-represented college in the Super Bowl.
There are five former Buckeyes. Bradley Roby on the Broncos and Ted Ginn Jr., Kurt Coleman, Philly Brown and Andrew Norwell on the Panthers.
42. For the first time in Super Bowl history, the No. 1 and No. 2 overall picks from the same draft will square off in the Super Bowl.
Cam Newton went No. 1 overall in 2011. The Broncos took Von Miller with the next pick. Imagine if Andrew Luck decided enter that draft. Things may have looked a lot differently today.
43. A return trip to the Super Bowl.
Panthers wideout Kevin Norwood is the only player on one of the Super Bowl 50 teams who was a member of either the Patriots or Seahawks in last year's Super Bowl 49.
Unfortunately for Norwood, who played for Seattle, he was inactive for the game. Fortunately for him, he'll always be the answer to this trivia question.
44. Billions in bets.
According to the American Gaming Commission, American's will wager a total of $4.2 billion on Super Bowl 50. The AGC also predicts just $4.1 billion will be illegal gambling.
45. This matchup was a long shot.
According to 5Dimes, a Broncos-Panthers Super Bowl matchup was 184-1 before the season started. Quite the long shot, that's for sure.
46. Demaryius Thomas is already in the Super Bowl record books.
In his only other Super Bowl appearance two years ago, the Broncos receiver set a Super Bowl record with 13 receptions.
Unfortunately for him, it came in the 43-8 beatdown the Seahawks put on his Broncos in Super Bowl XLVIII.
47. Peyton Manning needs to throw 21 passes to move past John Elway.
... in most career passes in Super Bowl history. Elway is currently in second with 152. Manning has thrown 132 passes in his Super Bowl career.
48. Peyton Manning needs 140 passing yards to become the sixth quarterback ever with at least 1,000 career passing yards in the Super Bowl.
The others? Terry Bradshaw, John Elway, Joe Montana, Kurt Warner and Tom Brady.
49. Peyton Manning only has two career Super Bowl touchdowns.
Which isn't even in the Top 10 all-time. If he throws two touchdowns against the Panthers, he'd move into a tie for ninth place with Russell Wilson, Doug Williams and Jim Plunkett
50. The Panthers are traveling a long way for Super Bowl 50.
The trip is 2,680.6 miles from their headquarters in Charlotte, N.C.
The Patriots, coming from Foxborough, Mass., to Glendale, Ariz.,for Super Bowl XLIV in 2008 and last year's Super Bowl amount to the furthest trips in Super Bowl history at 2,980.4 miles.
How Cubs rebuilt their pitching staff without a David Price.
By Patrick Mooney
The Cubs didn’t make one huge splash this winter, hoping the ripple effect from their smaller moves will create a pitching staff that can win a World Series.
David Price put the word out that he wanted to come to Chicago, play for Joe Maddon again and be part of the team that finally rides down Michigan Avenue for a championship parade. But the Cubs already had five more seasons to go on Jon Lester’s $155 million megadeal and didn’t feel as desperate as the Boston Red Sox.
So much for Price having a problem with David Ortiz and the fans at Fenway Park. President of baseball operations Theo Epstein told Boston’s WEEI that the Cubs finished “a distant third” in the bidding war, or roughly $50 million less than the $217 million the Red Sox guaranteed.
Three seasons of Shelby Miller would have cost the Cubs at least a young, middle-of-the-order hitter (Jorge Soler) and the organization’s best pitching prospect (Duane Underwood), and the Atlanta Braves still would have wanted more.
The Arizona Diamondbacks met Atlanta’s demands at the winter meetings, giving up last year’s No. 1 overall pick (Dansby Swanson), a good pitching prospect (Aaron Blair) and a legitimate big-league outfielder (Ender Inciarte).
That same week in Nashville, the Cubs completed the Starlin Castro-for-Adam Warren trade they pitched to the New York Yankees at the July 31 deadline. Even before most of the industry checked into the Opryland, the Cubs had already agreed to a two-year, $32 million contract with John Lackey.
The Cubs wanted to close the Lackey deal before Zack Greinke made his anticipated decision between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants and reset the market. Hours after the Lackey news broke, word leaked out that the Diamondbacks had shocked the baseball world with a six-year, $206 million offer Greinke couldn’t refuse.
“We really came to feel like the price of poker was very high to acquire starting pitching,” Epstein said. “Years and dollars were really significant for starters of note in free agency — and came with a significant amount of risk, frankly, that we weren’t completely comfortable with.
“(In) the trade market, we felt like in a lot of cases we would have had to pay like two dollars on the dollar almost in return.
“I think Lackey on a two-year deal, Warren with three years of control with the ability to start and also be effective (out of) the ‘pen made a lot of sense for us as a reaction to what was going on in the market.”
Lester kept recruiting Lackey, who had already done a big contract with Epstein when he ran the Red Sox and wanted to win a third World Series ring. Yankee insiders raved about Warren’s guts and unselfish attitude, while Cubs people think this swingman can be sneaky good outside the American League East.
“We believe he can be a starting pitcher — and a good one — in the National League Central,” Epstein said. “But we also think he can be extremely effective out of the bullpen. His ability to do both makes him incredibly valuable to us.”
Whether or not Warren becomes a glue guy for the entire pitching staff, the Cubs bought insurance by bringing back Clayton Richard, Trevor Cahill and Travis Wood for less than $13 million combined. Richard has 132 starts and two 14-win seasons on his big-league resume, while Cahill and Wood each made an All-Star team before reinventing themselves as relievers.
Pitching coach Chris Bosio even said Cahill turned down a two-year offer to start for the Pittsburgh Pirates — an organization that’s had so much success with pitching reclamation projects — and took a one-year, $4.25 million deal to return to the Cubs in a hybrid role.
“We have four guys that have really four pitches — some guys (have) five — it depends on a righty-lefty matchup and the numbers,” Bosio said. “But the versatility — teams are starting to try to follow what we’re doing. Other teams coveted guys that we had. But guys wanted to come here because they’re comfortable with what they’re doing.”
The Cubs still have their intricate game-planning system, reigning Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta and a manager with a great feel for in-game decisions as well as big-picture concerns about workload and overuse.
The farm system hasn’t come anywhere close to delivering enough pitching talent and matching what’s been an unbelievable run for the organization’s young hitters. But the Cubs still put together a pitching staff that won 97 games and led the majors in WAR (24.2), WHIP (1.152) and strikeouts (1,431) last season.
“You can have impact pitching without necessarily having all household names (or) bona fide top-of-the-rotation guys,” Epstein said. “Knock on wood, we have to go out and accomplish this. But if you have a (really deep) staff where there’s no negative contributors, no replacement-level pitchers, all solid pitchers who throw strikes and can follow a game plan and miss bats and be effective, that can make you one of the better pitching staffs.
“I’d like to think if everyone pitches up to their potential (this) year, we’re getting close to that ideal.”
Cubs prospect Dan Vogelbach can't worry about the DH or Anthony Rizzo.
By Tony Andracki
You know the baseball world is going stir-crazy when a new story pops up almost hourly about whether or not the designated hitter will - or should - come to the National League.
With less than a month until pitchers and catchers report to spring training, the DH debate rages on, with Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred clarifying his comments this week and admitting pitchers will still be hitting in the NL for the foreseeable future.
That can't be the news Dan Vogelbach wanted to hear. Not if he still has dreams about breaking into the big leagues with the Cubs.
Vogelbach has to keep improving and would need either a trade or an Anthony Rizzo injury to eventually find his way into a big-league lineup spot. There's no other way around it until the DH comes to the NL.
"Quite frankly, I can't worry about that type of stuff," Vogelbach said during Cubs Convention earlier this month. "I'm just going to continue to play first base and be the best first baseman that I can and learn from Rizzo.
"Obviously, Rizzo is the first baseman of the Chicago Cubs and that's not going to change. So I can't worry about what he does or how he performs. I can only worry about what I do. So if [the DH] opens up, that's another chance and another bat in the lineup. But right now, I'm just going to continue to try to be the best first baseman I can be."
Rizzo is only 26, a two-time All-Star and under team control through the 2021 season. And Vogelbach hasn't forced the issue yet, reaching the Double-A level for the first time in 2015 before missing a month-and-a-half with a torn oblique.
Vogelbach said he's 100 percent healthy and ready for what figures to be a pivotal year in his development. Now 23, he hasn't really shown off the kind of power the Cubs expected when they drafted him in the second round in 2011, 59 spots after Jim Hendry's front office took Javier Baez with the ninth overall pick.
In five minor-league seasons, Vogelbach has hit 60 home runs, or roughly one every 25 at-bats. It hasn’t quite been the light-tower power he was known for during his high school days in Florida.
But Vogelbach has proven he’s more than just a power hitter, putting up a career .382 on-base percentage in the minors with 239 walks and only 292 strikeouts in 411 games.
In some ways, Vogelbach resembles Rizzo as a left-handed hitter. That's by design.
"The way Rizzo hits, he's not scared to go to two strikes," Vogelbach said. "He knows when he needs to hit and when he can let it go to hit a home run.
"That's the stuff that I look at. Everybody hits differently, but when it comes down to it, approach-wise is how you're going to hit and how you're going to be successful."
Vogelbach talked about understanding the situation, how swinging for the fences in a tie game with a runner on second and two outs is silly when a single can give his team the lead.
Vogelbach is an intense competitor, the type of guy who hates to lose and won't try to hide it. But he prefers a quiet approach when putting in the work.
"I'm not big on asking questions," Vogelbach said. "I just like to watch [Rizzo], how he battles with two strikes, how he doesn't do too much. That's why, every single year, he hits for a high average and his on-base percentage is so high.
"And that's what I pride myself in. I get to watch him and the way he takes pitches the other way. He doesn't chase pitches and that's the way I like to be."
It would make sense if Vogelbach returned to Tennessee to begin this season before making the jump to Triple-A Iowa. He is listed at 6-foot, 250 pounds on his Baseball-Reference page but looks more streamlined now. He also heard all the Kyle Schwarber comparisons throughout Cubs Convention weekend.
"Coming out of high school, I was obviously overweight and I wasn't in shape," Vogelbach said. "In high school, you can get away with anything. So coming here, they had a plan for me and basically told me I didn't have a choice.
"So I took that to heart. I have to do whatever I can to play. That was the first step. I had to change my eating habits. I worked out a lot more and kind of made it a lifestyle.
"Since losing weight that year, it's really helped me in every aspect of the game. I'm healthy, I feel good and I'm ready for the season."
Stay tuned to see if that means wearing a Cubs uniform or becoming part of a bigger trade for pitching.
Analysts think White Sox ready to compete in 2016.
David Price put the word out that he wanted to come to Chicago, play for Joe Maddon again and be part of the team that finally rides down Michigan Avenue for a championship parade. But the Cubs already had five more seasons to go on Jon Lester’s $155 million megadeal and didn’t feel as desperate as the Boston Red Sox.
So much for Price having a problem with David Ortiz and the fans at Fenway Park. President of baseball operations Theo Epstein told Boston’s WEEI that the Cubs finished “a distant third” in the bidding war, or roughly $50 million less than the $217 million the Red Sox guaranteed.
Three seasons of Shelby Miller would have cost the Cubs at least a young, middle-of-the-order hitter (Jorge Soler) and the organization’s best pitching prospect (Duane Underwood), and the Atlanta Braves still would have wanted more.
The Arizona Diamondbacks met Atlanta’s demands at the winter meetings, giving up last year’s No. 1 overall pick (Dansby Swanson), a good pitching prospect (Aaron Blair) and a legitimate big-league outfielder (Ender Inciarte).
That same week in Nashville, the Cubs completed the Starlin Castro-for-Adam Warren trade they pitched to the New York Yankees at the July 31 deadline. Even before most of the industry checked into the Opryland, the Cubs had already agreed to a two-year, $32 million contract with John Lackey.
The Cubs wanted to close the Lackey deal before Zack Greinke made his anticipated decision between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants and reset the market. Hours after the Lackey news broke, word leaked out that the Diamondbacks had shocked the baseball world with a six-year, $206 million offer Greinke couldn’t refuse.
“We really came to feel like the price of poker was very high to acquire starting pitching,” Epstein said. “Years and dollars were really significant for starters of note in free agency — and came with a significant amount of risk, frankly, that we weren’t completely comfortable with.
“(In) the trade market, we felt like in a lot of cases we would have had to pay like two dollars on the dollar almost in return.
“I think Lackey on a two-year deal, Warren with three years of control with the ability to start and also be effective (out of) the ‘pen made a lot of sense for us as a reaction to what was going on in the market.”
Lester kept recruiting Lackey, who had already done a big contract with Epstein when he ran the Red Sox and wanted to win a third World Series ring. Yankee insiders raved about Warren’s guts and unselfish attitude, while Cubs people think this swingman can be sneaky good outside the American League East.
“We believe he can be a starting pitcher — and a good one — in the National League Central,” Epstein said. “But we also think he can be extremely effective out of the bullpen. His ability to do both makes him incredibly valuable to us.”
Whether or not Warren becomes a glue guy for the entire pitching staff, the Cubs bought insurance by bringing back Clayton Richard, Trevor Cahill and Travis Wood for less than $13 million combined. Richard has 132 starts and two 14-win seasons on his big-league resume, while Cahill and Wood each made an All-Star team before reinventing themselves as relievers.
Pitching coach Chris Bosio even said Cahill turned down a two-year offer to start for the Pittsburgh Pirates — an organization that’s had so much success with pitching reclamation projects — and took a one-year, $4.25 million deal to return to the Cubs in a hybrid role.
“We have four guys that have really four pitches — some guys (have) five — it depends on a righty-lefty matchup and the numbers,” Bosio said. “But the versatility — teams are starting to try to follow what we’re doing. Other teams coveted guys that we had. But guys wanted to come here because they’re comfortable with what they’re doing.”
The Cubs still have their intricate game-planning system, reigning Cy Young Award winner Jake Arrieta and a manager with a great feel for in-game decisions as well as big-picture concerns about workload and overuse.
The farm system hasn’t come anywhere close to delivering enough pitching talent and matching what’s been an unbelievable run for the organization’s young hitters. But the Cubs still put together a pitching staff that won 97 games and led the majors in WAR (24.2), WHIP (1.152) and strikeouts (1,431) last season.
“You can have impact pitching without necessarily having all household names (or) bona fide top-of-the-rotation guys,” Epstein said. “Knock on wood, we have to go out and accomplish this. But if you have a (really deep) staff where there’s no negative contributors, no replacement-level pitchers, all solid pitchers who throw strikes and can follow a game plan and miss bats and be effective, that can make you one of the better pitching staffs.
“I’d like to think if everyone pitches up to their potential (this) year, we’re getting close to that ideal.”
Cubs prospect Dan Vogelbach can't worry about the DH or Anthony Rizzo.
By Tony Andracki
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
You know the baseball world is going stir-crazy when a new story pops up almost hourly about whether or not the designated hitter will - or should - come to the National League.
With less than a month until pitchers and catchers report to spring training, the DH debate rages on, with Major League Baseball commissioner Rob Manfred clarifying his comments this week and admitting pitchers will still be hitting in the NL for the foreseeable future.
That can't be the news Dan Vogelbach wanted to hear. Not if he still has dreams about breaking into the big leagues with the Cubs.
Vogelbach has to keep improving and would need either a trade or an Anthony Rizzo injury to eventually find his way into a big-league lineup spot. There's no other way around it until the DH comes to the NL.
"Quite frankly, I can't worry about that type of stuff," Vogelbach said during Cubs Convention earlier this month. "I'm just going to continue to play first base and be the best first baseman that I can and learn from Rizzo.
"Obviously, Rizzo is the first baseman of the Chicago Cubs and that's not going to change. So I can't worry about what he does or how he performs. I can only worry about what I do. So if [the DH] opens up, that's another chance and another bat in the lineup. But right now, I'm just going to continue to try to be the best first baseman I can be."
Rizzo is only 26, a two-time All-Star and under team control through the 2021 season. And Vogelbach hasn't forced the issue yet, reaching the Double-A level for the first time in 2015 before missing a month-and-a-half with a torn oblique.
Vogelbach said he's 100 percent healthy and ready for what figures to be a pivotal year in his development. Now 23, he hasn't really shown off the kind of power the Cubs expected when they drafted him in the second round in 2011, 59 spots after Jim Hendry's front office took Javier Baez with the ninth overall pick.
In five minor-league seasons, Vogelbach has hit 60 home runs, or roughly one every 25 at-bats. It hasn’t quite been the light-tower power he was known for during his high school days in Florida.
But Vogelbach has proven he’s more than just a power hitter, putting up a career .382 on-base percentage in the minors with 239 walks and only 292 strikeouts in 411 games.
In some ways, Vogelbach resembles Rizzo as a left-handed hitter. That's by design.
"The way Rizzo hits, he's not scared to go to two strikes," Vogelbach said. "He knows when he needs to hit and when he can let it go to hit a home run.
"That's the stuff that I look at. Everybody hits differently, but when it comes down to it, approach-wise is how you're going to hit and how you're going to be successful."
Vogelbach talked about understanding the situation, how swinging for the fences in a tie game with a runner on second and two outs is silly when a single can give his team the lead.
Vogelbach is an intense competitor, the type of guy who hates to lose and won't try to hide it. But he prefers a quiet approach when putting in the work.
"I'm not big on asking questions," Vogelbach said. "I just like to watch [Rizzo], how he battles with two strikes, how he doesn't do too much. That's why, every single year, he hits for a high average and his on-base percentage is so high.
"And that's what I pride myself in. I get to watch him and the way he takes pitches the other way. He doesn't chase pitches and that's the way I like to be."
It would make sense if Vogelbach returned to Tennessee to begin this season before making the jump to Triple-A Iowa. He is listed at 6-foot, 250 pounds on his Baseball-Reference page but looks more streamlined now. He also heard all the Kyle Schwarber comparisons throughout Cubs Convention weekend.
"Coming out of high school, I was obviously overweight and I wasn't in shape," Vogelbach said. "In high school, you can get away with anything. So coming here, they had a plan for me and basically told me I didn't have a choice.
"So I took that to heart. I have to do whatever I can to play. That was the first step. I had to change my eating habits. I worked out a lot more and kind of made it a lifestyle.
"Since losing weight that year, it's really helped me in every aspect of the game. I'm healthy, I feel good and I'm ready for the season."
Stay tuned to see if that means wearing a Cubs uniform or becoming part of a bigger trade for pitching.
Analysts think White Sox ready to compete in 2016.
By Dan Hayes
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Though fans may be disappointed they haven’t added another signature piece, several prominent sabermetric analysts think the 2016 White Sox already are a contender.
ESPN analyst Dan Szymborski wants the White Sox to add another free agent before camp opens Feb. 19 to address potential depth issues. The additions of Todd Frazier and Brett Lawrie, along with two veteran catchers, demonstrate to Szymborski that the White Sox are committed to winning this season. Yet with several projected holes, he’d like them to be even bolder and acquire another league average player or two.
But Szymborski also believes that the White Sox can compete as constructed -- if they hit on many of their moves. A day after Fangraphs.com released his ZiPS (Szymborski Projection System) White Sox projections, Szymborski said Wednesday that the club already is at or near the top of the American League Central. ZiPS projects the White Sox to win 84-85 games this season, the club’s highest projection since 2011.
“They have reason to be happy,” Szymborski said. “Not overjoyed, but happy.
“They’ve had a good offseason. I would still like to see them go after Ian Desmond, Dexter Fowler, at least one of them. It’s a franchise that still has some holes and it’s a division that’s ripe for the taking.”
Szymborski has run projections with his system since 2004. He projected 78 White Sox victories in 2015 (they won 76 games) and 70 in 2014 (73).
Whereas individual projections are easier, teams are made tricky because projecting who receives plate appearances and innings pitched is largely unpredictable.
Szymborski had the 2014 Texas Rangers winning 85 games before they suffered a rash of injuries and finished 67-95. When Szymborski plugged in the variables after the season (which players would receive X amount of at-bats, etc.), his system suggested a 68-94 record.
His system likes the White Sox rotation -- Chris Sale is projected for 5.9 Wins Above Replacement, Jose Quintana is at 4.1 and Carlos Rodon is at 3.2 -- the bullpen (4 WAR) and three hitters are expected to be worth at least 3 WAR (Jose Abreu, Adam Eaton and Frazier).
While there isn’t a single player projected between two to three wins, the White Sox have a strong foundation from which to compete. Fangraphs’s Eno Sarris agrees with Szymborski’s assessment the White Sox can contend.
“The standard deviation projection on teams is about five wins,” Sarris said. “That means they’re a contender because they could win 90 games. If they’re projected for 84, 90 would not even be an outlier. Any team that is projected over 81 wins is a contender.”
Where the White Sox could run into issues is depth. They appear to have a thin margin of error, with perhaps only top prospect Tim Anderson ready to contribute in 2016.
The White Sox have a good history of health and once again led the league in 2015 in fewest days lost to the disabled list, according to hardballtimes.com. But one significant injury could derail them.
“If you knew that everybody was going to be healthy all season, than it looks like probably the best team in the division,” Szymborski said. “But when you get past to some of the depth issues once you start losing outfielders, or start losing a pitcher it gets bleak pretty quickly.”
Sarris sees second baseman Brett Lawrie (1.8 WAR), outfielder Avisail Garcia (0.1) and Rodon as the keys to the season. He likes how Rodon adjusted and thinks the left-hander’s higher first-half walk rate could be the outlier given his numbers in college, the minors and late in 2015.
“That (group is) what the season is all about,” Sarris said. “As the team is right now … if two of the three work out, then one can be not as good as the others. But if all three work out, then you’re talking about team that really doesn’t have any holes and is ready to go far into the postseason.”
Szymborski won’t offer an endorsement for Garcia any time soon. Even though Garcia is slightly expected to improve his OPS-plus from 89 to 95, Szymborski would like to see Fowler, who has a career on-base percentage of .363. He isn’t ready to make any predictions because it’s still January.
But as of right now the White Sox already are on the cusp. So why not add one more?
“(Garcia) is someone you want in an emergency capacity, maybe a pinch hitter off the bench occasionally,” Szymborski said. “You don’t want him to be a Plan A. The White Sox could still use a few more Plan A’s. They don’t have to be six-win guys or four-win guys, but a few average adds here would really improve the chances of the White Sox and kind of even out that risk.
“Fortune favors the bold.
“Baseball’s structure favors the teams that are bold because .500 teams don’t get the high draft picks and they don’t make the playoffs.
“I think they could do more simply because of the opportunity. It’s kind of almost like being pot-committed in a way -- they’ve thrown in most of their chips, and at some point you’re going to throw in all your chips.”
ESPN analyst Dan Szymborski wants the White Sox to add another free agent before camp opens Feb. 19 to address potential depth issues. The additions of Todd Frazier and Brett Lawrie, along with two veteran catchers, demonstrate to Szymborski that the White Sox are committed to winning this season. Yet with several projected holes, he’d like them to be even bolder and acquire another league average player or two.
But Szymborski also believes that the White Sox can compete as constructed -- if they hit on many of their moves. A day after Fangraphs.com released his ZiPS (Szymborski Projection System) White Sox projections, Szymborski said Wednesday that the club already is at or near the top of the American League Central. ZiPS projects the White Sox to win 84-85 games this season, the club’s highest projection since 2011.
“They have reason to be happy,” Szymborski said. “Not overjoyed, but happy.
“They’ve had a good offseason. I would still like to see them go after Ian Desmond, Dexter Fowler, at least one of them. It’s a franchise that still has some holes and it’s a division that’s ripe for the taking.”
Szymborski has run projections with his system since 2004. He projected 78 White Sox victories in 2015 (they won 76 games) and 70 in 2014 (73).
Whereas individual projections are easier, teams are made tricky because projecting who receives plate appearances and innings pitched is largely unpredictable.
Szymborski had the 2014 Texas Rangers winning 85 games before they suffered a rash of injuries and finished 67-95. When Szymborski plugged in the variables after the season (which players would receive X amount of at-bats, etc.), his system suggested a 68-94 record.
His system likes the White Sox rotation -- Chris Sale is projected for 5.9 Wins Above Replacement, Jose Quintana is at 4.1 and Carlos Rodon is at 3.2 -- the bullpen (4 WAR) and three hitters are expected to be worth at least 3 WAR (Jose Abreu, Adam Eaton and Frazier).
While there isn’t a single player projected between two to three wins, the White Sox have a strong foundation from which to compete. Fangraphs’s Eno Sarris agrees with Szymborski’s assessment the White Sox can contend.
“The standard deviation projection on teams is about five wins,” Sarris said. “That means they’re a contender because they could win 90 games. If they’re projected for 84, 90 would not even be an outlier. Any team that is projected over 81 wins is a contender.”
Where the White Sox could run into issues is depth. They appear to have a thin margin of error, with perhaps only top prospect Tim Anderson ready to contribute in 2016.
The White Sox have a good history of health and once again led the league in 2015 in fewest days lost to the disabled list, according to hardballtimes.com. But one significant injury could derail them.
“If you knew that everybody was going to be healthy all season, than it looks like probably the best team in the division,” Szymborski said. “But when you get past to some of the depth issues once you start losing outfielders, or start losing a pitcher it gets bleak pretty quickly.”
Sarris sees second baseman Brett Lawrie (1.8 WAR), outfielder Avisail Garcia (0.1) and Rodon as the keys to the season. He likes how Rodon adjusted and thinks the left-hander’s higher first-half walk rate could be the outlier given his numbers in college, the minors and late in 2015.
“That (group is) what the season is all about,” Sarris said. “As the team is right now … if two of the three work out, then one can be not as good as the others. But if all three work out, then you’re talking about team that really doesn’t have any holes and is ready to go far into the postseason.”
Szymborski won’t offer an endorsement for Garcia any time soon. Even though Garcia is slightly expected to improve his OPS-plus from 89 to 95, Szymborski would like to see Fowler, who has a career on-base percentage of .363. He isn’t ready to make any predictions because it’s still January.
But as of right now the White Sox already are on the cusp. So why not add one more?
“(Garcia) is someone you want in an emergency capacity, maybe a pinch hitter off the bench occasionally,” Szymborski said. “You don’t want him to be a Plan A. The White Sox could still use a few more Plan A’s. They don’t have to be six-win guys or four-win guys, but a few average adds here would really improve the chances of the White Sox and kind of even out that risk.
“Fortune favors the bold.
“Baseball’s structure favors the teams that are bold because .500 teams don’t get the high draft picks and they don’t make the playoffs.
“I think they could do more simply because of the opportunity. It’s kind of almost like being pot-committed in a way -- they’ve thrown in most of their chips, and at some point you’re going to throw in all your chips.”
Golf: I got a club for that..... Spieth near lead in Singapore Open.
Jordan Spieth is one back after day one. (Photo/USATSI)
The world's top-ranked player had arrived at the Singapore Open exhausted and complaining of fatigue after playing in the Middle East last week, but Spieth looked revitalized as he grabbed a share of third place in Thursday's opening round.
With his agent filling in as his caddie, Spieth began with a birdie at Sentosa Golf Club and birdied three of his last 10 holes to complete a bogey-free round of 4-under 67 at the co-sanctioned Asian and Japan Tour event.
That left him just one stroke behind the clubhouse leader, South Africa's Keith Horne, and Berry Henson of the United States, who still had one hole to finish when play was suspended for the day because of a thunderstorm.
Byeong-hun An of South Korea, the next highest-ranked player in the field at 26 in the world, matched Spieth's 67. They were joined at 4 under by Japan's Shintaro Kobayashi and Thailand's Namchok Tantipokhakul, who were among 57 players still on the course when play was suspended.With his agent filling in as his caddie, Spieth began with a birdie at Sentosa Golf Club and birdied three of his last 10 holes to complete a bogey-free round of 4-under 67 at the co-sanctioned Asian and Japan Tour event.
That left him just one stroke behind the clubhouse leader, South Africa's Keith Horne, and Berry Henson of the United States, who still had one hole to finish when play was suspended for the day because of a thunderstorm.
Spieth, who has played his past five tournaments in five different countries, turned to his manager and agent, Jay Danzi, to carry his bag after his long-time regular caddie, Michael Greller, injured an ankle in Abu Dhabi last week and canceled his trip to Southeast Asia.
''I thought Jay stepped in extremely well,'' Spieth said. ''It's a tough place to caddie when you are not used to carrying the bag, with the weather, but he took it like a champ.''
By his own standards, Spieth was not at his best, missing four fairways off the tee and misjudging most of his approach shots to the green.
''I felt like the entire day today was very stress-free driving the ball, which is the most important part out there, but from there I just couldn't get it on the right tier,'' the 22-year-old American said. ''I just couldn't quite get the right distance. My distance control was just off, trying to judge the wind, the humidity and the heat.''
Spieth escaped the worst of Singapore's stifling humidity when he teed off just after sunrise and made a perfect start when he made a 20-foot birdie putt on his first hole. He struggled to get his yardage right on the unfamiliar Serapong course but birdied each of the three par-5s and did not three-putt a single hole.
''It's just the first round,'' Spieth said. ''Coming here, to a different country, a different time zone, it's still an adjustment and I think each day should get a bit better.''
Golf-Brown and Loupe upstage big guns at Torrey Pines.
Reuters; By Mark Lamport-Stokes, Editing by Frank Pingue
American journeyman Scott Brown stole the limelight from some of golf's biggest names as he recovered from a shaky start to charge into a share of the lead at the Farmers Insurance Open outside San Diego on Thursday.
While defending champion Jason Day struggled after the turn to card a level-par 72 in the opening round at Torrey Pines and world number four Rickie Fowler carded a 73, Brown reeled off eight birdies in his last 11 holes to fire a 66.
Despite playing on the more difficult South Course, Brown caught fire over his closing stretch after making two bogeys in the first six holes to end the day level with fellow American Andrew Loupe, who set out on the easier North layout.
"I knew I was hitting it good," Brown, 32, told Golf Channel about his mindset after his stumbling start. "I was hitting good shots, I just made a couple of stupid bogeys.
"I hit a ball in the hazard and made bogey on a par-five but I really hit some close iron shots and fortunately made some putts. And it turned into me birdieing eight of my last 11 (holes,) so that was nice."
Brown, whose only PGA Tour victory came at the 2013 Puerto Rico Open, planned to maintain a strategy of attack on the North Course for Friday's second round.
"The rough is still high over there and thick and you've still got to drive it good to get yourself into position," he said. "But you can make a few more birdies over there so I'll just try to keep the aggressive mind-set."
Americans Billy Horschel, Patton Kizzire, Tom Hoge, Rob Oppenheim and Harold Varner III all opened with 67s on the North Course while three-times champion Phil Mickelson rebounded from a double-bogey on his second hole to card a 69 on the South.
"I really didn't feel the stress," Mickelson, who tied for third at last week's CareerBuilder Challenge in his first event of the season, said of his stumbling start on Thursday. "I knew that I had been playing so well.
"I tried to be patient ... and the round just slowly progressed. I just kept hitting good shots. I hit a lot more good shots on the back and had a few tap-in birdies. It was a good start."
American Fowler, who won the European Tour's Abu Dhabi Championship on Sunday, said of his 73: "Terrible. I think that sums it up pretty easily. It was just bad golf. I couldn't get anything going."
"I tried to be patient ... and the round just slowly progressed. I just kept hitting good shots. I hit a lot more good shots on the back and had a few tap-in birdies. It was a good start."
American Fowler, who won the European Tour's Abu Dhabi Championship on Sunday, said of his 73: "Terrible. I think that sums it up pretty easily. It was just bad golf. I couldn't get anything going."
Australian world number two Day, who withdrew from the pro-am competition on Wednesday because of flu-like symptoms, looked fatigued throughout his opening round and declined to speak to reporters afterwards as he returned to his hotel room to rest.
Is there going to be a PGA-LPGA event in the future?
By Kyle Porter
That was my reaction too, Michelle. (Photo/USATSI)
LPGA commissioner Mike Whan told Golf Digest it's going to happen at some point.
"Yes, I believe we will [have a mixed event]," Whan told Golf Digest. "When we first started discussing with Tim Finchem, he pulled out his 2016 schedule from his jacket pocket and there wasn't a whole lot of space on it. I said, ‘We don't even have next year's schedule.'
"So it's a matter of date challenges, finding open windows, but it'd be good for game, there would be a chance to bring together young and old players and I know they'd enjoy it. And we know fans have genuine interest in it, so hopefully things will align.”
I'm not sure that Finchem would be as fired up as Whan is, but it's a show I'd love to see. The JCPenney Classic was held up until 1999 and had male/female teams.
The last duo to win it at Innisbrook? How about John Daly and Laura Davies.
NASCAR: Daytona 101: Everything you need to know about America’s 24-hour endurance race.
By Stephen Edelstein
(Photo/Richard Prince/Chevy Racing)
For most people that have heard of it, endurance racing means the 24 Hours of Le Mans, a grueling French contest that is still considered the pinnacle of motorsport. But there’s a proud endurance-racing tradition on this side of the Atlantic too.
Every year, before the NASCAR teams arrive, Daytona International Speedway plays host to a 24-hour race of its own. It attracts top drivers and manufacturers eager to show off their cars, even if the January start date means it doesn’t typically attract large crowds. Daytona remains one of the most important events on the racing calendar, and if you want to learn more about it, read on.
Every year, before the NASCAR teams arrive, Daytona International Speedway plays host to a 24-hour race of its own. It attracts top drivers and manufacturers eager to show off their cars, even if the January start date means it doesn’t typically attract large crowds. Daytona remains one of the most important events on the racing calendar, and if you want to learn more about it, read on.
The History
Known by various names over the years, the 24-hour race at is the first major motorsport event of the year in the U.S., and arguably one of the most prestigious. It’s one of a handful of 24-hour endurance races in the world, and there are few events like it in the U.S.
The current race can trace its roots back to 1962, when NASCAR impresario Bill France Sr. decided to emphasize the “International” in “Daytona International Speedway.” Completed in 1959, the massive oval track was the crown jewel of France’s American-bred stock-car racing empire, but he wanted to attract European-style sports car racing as well.
So France organized the Daytona Continental, a three-hour race on a road course that incorporated parts of the NASCAR “tri-oval,” and featured a diverse mix of drivers and cars. It attracted luminaries from Formula One and FIA sports car racing, as well as home-grown NASCAR and USAC stars. The grid featured everything from purpose-built racers to produced based sports cars from Ferrari, Lotus, and Jaguar, and even a trio of Pontiac Tempests.
The race remained a three-hour event until 1964, when it grew to 12 hours. Organizers expanded it again to 24 hours in 1966, and that format has been maintained more or less consistently ever since. Very little else has, but from classic sports racers like the Ford GT40 and Porsche 917 in the 1960s, to the monstrous turbocharged cars of the 1980s, to today’s high-tech racers, Daytona has always been a pretty good show.
Daytona started out essentially as an American detour on the European racing calendar, and in the early days featured the same cars one would find racing at prestigious events on the Continent, such as the 24 Hours of Le Mans. In the 1980s, though, Daytona reached the apex of its popularity when, under the aegis of the International Motorsport Association (IMSA), it broke away from the European establishment with IMSA-specific “GTP” prototype and “GTO” and “GTU” production-based cars, with outrageous performance and looks.
Rolex took over sponsorship of the race in 1991, and since then it’s been known as the Rolex 24 at Daytona. The dawn of the 90’s also marked the beginning of a decline from Daytona, as isolation from the international racing scene made it something of a backwater. It eventually became part of the NASCAR-backed Grand Am series, which merged with the competing American Le Mans Series in 2013 in an attempt to unify and strengthen sports-car racing in the U.S. Daytona is now the signature event of the IMSA WeatherTech Sports Car Series.
The race
Regardless of who’s running it, the format remains the same. The Daytona 24 still uses a road course that winds its way through the infield of Daytona International Speedway, but also uses parts of the banked NASCAR oval. This helps cars pick up some serious speed, and provides a novel sensation for drivers used to completely flat tracks. In its current configuration, the course is 3.56 miles long.
The shindig kicks off on Thursday, with practice sessions and qualifying sessions, which determine each car’s place on the grid. As in other forms of racing, the fastest cars are placed at the front, while cars that fail to qualify but are still able to start the race go to the back. There’s additional practice time on Friday, before the main event on Saturday. The green flag drops at 2:40 p.m., and the checkered flag waves at 2:40 p.m. the following day. The team with the most miles covered by that time is the winner.
There are four classes of cars of varying performance, meaning the faster cars have to add navigating slower traffic to the list of challenges. The classes comprise purpose-built “prototypes” and production-based “GT” cars that resemble models actually sold in showrooms, with an all-professional and “Pro-Am (professional-amateur)” class for each.
The all-pro classes are Prototype (P) and GT Le Mans (GTLM), and are the faster of their respective car types. The Pro-Am classes – Prototype Challenge (PC) and GT Daytona (GTD) – team pros with “gentleman drivers” who pay for race time. This year, there are 13 Prototype entries, eight in Prototype Challenge, 11 in GTLM, and 22 in GTD.
The cars
Daytona provides the perfect stage for drivers to demonstrate their talent in some spectacular cars, and 2016 is shaping up to be a particularly impressive year. They’re not the fastest, but the spotlight is on the GT half of the field thanks to a flood of new machinery.
Headlining things is the racing version of the new Ford GT supercar, which rocked the 2015 Detroit Auto Show last year. This is the first time the new GT will compete in North America, and it’s got some big shoes to fill. The original GT40 won the first 24-hour Daytona race in 1966, before winning the 24 Hours of Le Mans in the climax of an epic rivalry with Ferrari.
The GT won’t be competing for an overall win this time around, but Ford is hoping for
class wins at both Daytona and Le Mans on the 50th anniversaries of the GT40’s triumphs. To do that, the GT will face off against Ferrari’s new 488 GTE and BMW’s new M6 GTLM, as well as the battle-hardened Chevrolet Corvette C7.R and Porsche 911 RSR in the GTLM category. Porsche has the best record at Daytona, with 18 victories, including the first overall win for the 911, taken by a Carrera RSR in 1973.
In the lower-level GTD class, there’s plenty to be excited about as well. The Lamborghini Huracán GT3 will make its North American racing debut at Daytona, showing Lambo’s growing commitment to motorsport. Lamborghini doesn’t have the racing pedigree of rivals like Ferrari and Porsche, but the Huracán should look damn good on the track. It will be joined by the second-generation Audi R8 LMS, which already has an overall win at the Nürburgring 24 hours to its credit. Rounding out the GTD field is an assortment of BMWs, Porsches, Ferraris, Aston Martins, and Dodge Vipers.
Not to be outdone, the Protoype class remains the fastest at Daytona. This class is actually divided into two types of cars—P2 and Daytona Prototype—which both carry over from predecessor series. The P2 cars are based on European FIA rules, while the Daytona Prototypes were created specifically for U.S. racing.
The European/American split is evident in the cars’ designs. The Daytona Prototypes are relatively simple, and emphasize power over finesse, while the P2 cars tend to be less powerful, but more sophisticated in other areas like aerodynamics. The fastest Prototype cars can hit up to 200 mph.
The Daytona Prototype sub-class is dominated by V8-powered Corvette and EcoBoost V6 Ford cars. A Ford Ecoboost prototype won last year, so between the Daytona Prototypes and GT production cars, Ford is angling for a two-pronged victory with its EcoBoost-powered cars this year. The twin-turbocharged 3.5-liter V6 in the GT is actually similar to the one used in the Daytona Prototype.
The P2 side features Honda and Nissan-powered prototypes, as well as the two Mazda Prototypes that just made an impromptu switch from diesel to gasoline power. In a class of its own is the oddball, and somewhat phallic, DeltaWing, based on a design that raced at Le Mans under Nissan’s aegis, and is being considered for a future production car.
Prototype Challenge is what’s called a “spec” class, meaning all cars are identical. Each team fields an open-topped Oreca FLM09 with a Chevy V8 engine. This car features a carbon-fiber chassis, 430 hp, and a top speed of 175 mph. Spec classes are employed throughout racing to keep costs under control. Since all cars have to be the same, there’s no chance of team gaining an advantage by spending more than its rivals.
How to watch it
Anyone looking to catch the entire race will need dedication, plenty of caffeine, and a remote control at the ready. Live coverage airs on Fox Sports 1 from 2:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. EST on Saturday, then switches to Fox Sports 2 from 4:00 p.m. to 10:00 p.m. Coverage restarts on Sunday at 7:00 a.m. on Fox Sports 1, switches to Fox Sports 2 at 10:30 a.m., then back to Fox Sports 1 at 1:00 p.m. Streaming will also be available through Fox’s app, if you have a participating cable provider. Live timing and standings will also be available on IMSA’s website.
International Speedway Corp.’s annual report lists capacities for its tracks.
By Dustin Long
(Photo/nbcsports.com)
International Speedway Corp.’s annual report was released Wednesday. Among the information in the report is the capacity for each of its tracks. Those capacities are:
Daytona International Speedway … 101,000 seats with 124 suites
Talladega Superspeedway … 78,000 seats with 30 suites
Michigan International Speedway … 71,000 seats with 46 suites
Auto Club Speedway … 68,000 seats with 80 suites
Kansas Speedway … 64,000 seats and with 56 suites
Richmond International Raceway … 59,000 seats with 40 suites
Darlington Raceway … 58,000 seats with 13 suites
Chicagoland Speedway … 55,500 seats with 24 suites
Martinsville Speedway … 55,000 seats with 20 suites
Phoenix International Raceway … 51,000 seats with 45 suites
Homestead-Miami Speedway … 46,000 seats with 66 suites
Watkins Glen International … 33,000 seats with 4 suites
Other items in the annual report:
— NASCAR-sanctioned races at its tracks accounted for about 88.8 percent of ISC’s total revenues in fiscal 2015.
— The breakdown of broadcast money remains the same as previous years with NASCAR receiving 10 percent, teams 25 percent and tracks 65 percent.
— In regards to the future, the report stated: “Looking ahead, we expect the continuing slow, but uneven, recovery in the broader U.S. economy to provide an environment for improved attendance- related and corporate partnership revenues. Our industry will further benefit from NASCAR securing its broadcast rights through the 2024 season with the largest broadcast rights deal in the sport’s 66-year history. Consistent with major sports properties throughout the world, broadcast rights represent our company’s largest revenue segment. Expanding and extending this contracted revenue will provide us unparalleled long-term cash flow visibility. We also believe the strategic initiatives we and the motorsports industry have undertaken to grow the sport will continue to strengthen the long-term health of our company.”
— On the subject of downsizing seats, the report stated: “Adjusting seating capacity is another consumer-focused strategy to promote sellouts, create excess demand and in turn increase capacity utilization at our major motorsports facilities. Over the past few years, we have reduced capacity at our major motorsports facilities. A significant portion of the capacity reduction was a result of our goal to provide improved fan amenities such as wider seating, create social zones with greater fan interaction/engagement for our guests, and remove sections that do not provide adequate sight lines. Based on our experience and the continual evolution of modern sports facilities, ticket demand relies strongly on creating a more personal experience for the fans. Enhancing the live event experience to compete with the at-home television experience is a critical strategy for our future growth. Other benefits derived from capacity management include improved pricing power for our events; enticing more customers to renew or purchase tickets earlier in the sales cycle; increasing customer retention; driving greater attendance to our lead-in events, such as NASCAR’s Xfinity and Camping World Truck series events; generating stronger interest from corporate sponsors; and creating a more visually compelling event for the television audience.”
— On fan amenities, the report stated: “Other key strategic focus areas designed to build fan engagement and augment the live-event experience include providing enhanced at-track audio and visual experiences, additional and improved concession and merchandise points-of-sale, creating more interactive social zones and offering greater wireless connectivity. We continuously monitor market demand, evaluate customer feedback, and explore next generation live-sports entertainment fan amenities, all of which could further impact how we manage capacity and spend capital at our major motorsports facilities.”
To read the annual report (form 10-K), you can download it from International Speedway Corp.’s site.
SOCCER: Fire first-rounder Jonathan Campbell adjusting to life as a professional.
By Dan Santaromita
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Brandon Vincent got more of the headlines on draft day as the higher pick, but Jonathan Campbell also figures to be a key part of the Chicago Fire’s future.
The center back who the Fire selected 12th overall in the MLS SuperDraft plays a position of need for the club and is the only young option at the position. While his 2016 role may be to learn the ropes of MLS and being a professional athlete in general while only filling in when needed, Campbell represents an important piece of the longer-term future of the club.
“I don’t think you should look at it as pressure,” Campbell said of being a first round draft pick. “I think it’s just nice that we have a good opportunity here. A lot of change here going on so I think some other guys (in the draft) can go somewhere else that maybe they don’t have very high chances of playing. I think it’s very positive here.”
The center back who the Fire selected 12th overall in the MLS SuperDraft plays a position of need for the club and is the only young option at the position. While his 2016 role may be to learn the ropes of MLS and being a professional athlete in general while only filling in when needed, Campbell represents an important piece of the longer-term future of the club.
“I don’t think you should look at it as pressure,” Campbell said of being a first round draft pick. “I think it’s just nice that we have a good opportunity here. A lot of change here going on so I think some other guys (in the draft) can go somewhere else that maybe they don’t have very high chances of playing. I think it’s very positive here.”
The 6-foot-2 defender is getting settled into training as the Fire’s preseason began on Monday. The upcoming trips to Tampa and Portland are just two more stops on a busy stretch of travel for Campbell.
The former North Carolina standout endured the busy month of travel for MLS rookies. First, Campbell made the trip to Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., for the MLS Combine. After playing three games in five days, which Campbell described as stressful, he flew to Baltimore for the draft.
“I actually didn’t pack well for the draft weather,” Campbell said. “Obviously going from warm to cold and now I come to Chicago and then we’re going to go to Tampa and Portland. There’s no chance you can pack properly for being in three completely different cities.”
Living out of a suitcase for the time being is the least of Campbell’s worries. He’s been working on preparing himself for his first taste of professional soccer.
“I think the next level just from college to pro comes down to how many plays you can make right versus wrong and just getting that percentage as high as possible,” Campbell said. “That can be in possession or just making the right play defensively. I don’t think guys are going to be that much different athletically. I think you’ll play against some very athletic guys in college, but I think the tactical decisions is the next level.”
One thing Campbell said he is working on is being more aggressive attacking the ball on offensive corner kicks. He is confident in his ability defensively on corners, but wants to be more of a threat on the attacking end.
As for the team, Campbell believes the Fire need to get off to a fast start to avoid a repeat of 2015.
“As a team, obviously last year was hard for them so I think the main thing is a switch in mentality,” he said. “If you don’t start off on the right foot, I think it can lead to some negative attitudes, but I think we can get off on a good start and that will be very positive for us.”
Van Gaal seems to fear sack ahead of FA Cup showdown.
By Joe Prince-Wright
Louis van Gaal lambasted the media on Thursday but seemed to admit that a defeat to Derby County in the FA Cup fourth round on Friday could end his managerial career at Manchester United.
Widespread reports claimed that Van Gaal, 64, had offered to resign following United’s 1-0 defeat to Southampton at Old Trafford last weekend.
The Dutchman vehemently denied those claims on Thursday, as he came out swinging at the assembled media ahead of United’s clash at second-tier Derby.
Despite his brazen persona, the veteran boss seemed to admit defeat could mean the end.
Despite sitting inside the top six of the Championship and chasing promotion to the PL, the Rams have lost three of their last four games and have conceded seven times in their last two outings.
Surely defeat to Derby would be the end for LVG.
But does anybody else remember another United manager who saved his job thanks to an FA Cup win? Yeah, the parallels between Sir Alex Ferguson‘s rocky start to life at Old Trafford and the pain LVG is currently experiencing is clear.
It certainly won’t have a similar ending but United, and especially LVG, now need morale-boosting runs in the FA Cup and Europa League plus at least a fourth-place finish to help them salvage a hugely disappointing season.
The former North Carolina standout endured the busy month of travel for MLS rookies. First, Campbell made the trip to Ft. Lauderdale, Fla., for the MLS Combine. After playing three games in five days, which Campbell described as stressful, he flew to Baltimore for the draft.
“I actually didn’t pack well for the draft weather,” Campbell said. “Obviously going from warm to cold and now I come to Chicago and then we’re going to go to Tampa and Portland. There’s no chance you can pack properly for being in three completely different cities.”
Living out of a suitcase for the time being is the least of Campbell’s worries. He’s been working on preparing himself for his first taste of professional soccer.
“I think the next level just from college to pro comes down to how many plays you can make right versus wrong and just getting that percentage as high as possible,” Campbell said. “That can be in possession or just making the right play defensively. I don’t think guys are going to be that much different athletically. I think you’ll play against some very athletic guys in college, but I think the tactical decisions is the next level.”
One thing Campbell said he is working on is being more aggressive attacking the ball on offensive corner kicks. He is confident in his ability defensively on corners, but wants to be more of a threat on the attacking end.
As for the team, Campbell believes the Fire need to get off to a fast start to avoid a repeat of 2015.
“As a team, obviously last year was hard for them so I think the main thing is a switch in mentality,” he said. “If you don’t start off on the right foot, I think it can lead to some negative attitudes, but I think we can get off on a good start and that will be very positive for us.”
Van Gaal seems to fear sack ahead of FA Cup showdown.
By Joe Prince-Wright
Louis van Gaal lambasted the media on Thursday but seemed to admit that a defeat to Derby County in the FA Cup fourth round on Friday could end his managerial career at Manchester United.
Widespread reports claimed that Van Gaal, 64, had offered to resign following United’s 1-0 defeat to Southampton at Old Trafford last weekend.
The Dutchman vehemently denied those claims on Thursday, as he came out swinging at the assembled media ahead of United’s clash at second-tier Derby.
Despite his brazen persona, the veteran boss seemed to admit defeat could mean the end.
“It is the third time I am sacked and I am still sitting here,” Van Gaal scoffed. “Now I cannot lose any more – then for the fourth time that I have been sacked.”
“When you lose it is worse. I predicted before Southampton. Now I cannot lose any more because then for the fourth time I have been sacked… Then it might be the truth.”If United do lose to Derby the pressure on LVG will be unbearable.
Despite sitting inside the top six of the Championship and chasing promotion to the PL, the Rams have lost three of their last four games and have conceded seven times in their last two outings.
Surely defeat to Derby would be the end for LVG.
But does anybody else remember another United manager who saved his job thanks to an FA Cup win? Yeah, the parallels between Sir Alex Ferguson‘s rocky start to life at Old Trafford and the pain LVG is currently experiencing is clear.
It certainly won’t have a similar ending but United, and especially LVG, now need morale-boosting runs in the FA Cup and Europa League plus at least a fourth-place finish to help them salvage a hugely disappointing season.
NCAABKB: Texas A&M's first league loss adds suspense to the SEC race.
By Jeff Eisenberg
Texas A&M head coach Billy Kennedy expresses frustration with a call in the first half of an NCAA college basketball game against Arkansas in Fayetteville, Ark., Wednesday, Jan. 27, 2016.(AP Photo/Sarah Bentham)
Maybe they got caught looking ahead to Saturday's marquee clash with Iowa State. Maybe they overlooked an Arkansas team they beat by 23 points three weeks ago. Maybe they let their frustration with the officiating affect their performance.
There are all sorts of excuses for Texas A&M's 74-71 loss in Fayetteville on Wednesday night, but none of them erase the fact that this was a damaging outcome for the fifth-ranked Aggies.
With a cushion of two or more games in the loss column over every other team in the SEC entering play on Wednesday night, Texas A&M appeared to be firmly in control of the league title chase. Not only is that lead now cut in half, the Aggies also still have games left on the schedule against fellow contenders Kentucky, LSU and South Carolina.
That Texas A&M's first SEC loss came at the hands of Arkansas has to be especially frustrating to coach Billy Kennedy and his staff. The Razorbacks are tough to beat at home and nearly won at Dayton, LSU and Georgia earlier this season, but they're also just 10-10 overall including non-conference losses against Akron and Mercer.
The galling aspect of Wednesday's loss for Texas A&M is that it had a handful of chances to tie or take the lead late in the game despite committing 21 turnovers, getting whistled for 25 fouls and shooting a meager 39.6 percent from the field.
With less than a minute to go and his team trailing by two, Texas A&M's Alex Caruso was called for a charge even though it appeared the Arkansas defender who took it wasn't set. Had the call gone Caruso's way, he would have gone to the foul line with the chance for a go-ahead three-point play.
That call was probably the single biggest play of the game, yet Texas A&M still had three more possessions in which it could have tied or taken the lead.
On the first, Caruso made an ill-advised turnover. On the second, Arkansas fouled intentionally to prevent a 3-point attempt and Danuel House sank two free throws to cut the deficit to one. And on the third, D.J. Hogg missed a fairly clean attempt at a game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer.
How quickly Texas A&M can regroup and purge this memory from its mind will be key for the Aggies moving forward. They host the Big 12-contending Cyclones on Saturday and then face talented Vanderbilt and much improved South Carolina next week.
Texas A&M is still probably the favorite in the SEC, but Wednesday's loss erased much of the Aggies' margin for error in the coming weeks. Now their path is just a little bit tougher.
No. 24 Duke looking to break out of worst slump since 2007.
By JOEDY McCREARY
There are all sorts of excuses for Texas A&M's 74-71 loss in Fayetteville on Wednesday night, but none of them erase the fact that this was a damaging outcome for the fifth-ranked Aggies.
With a cushion of two or more games in the loss column over every other team in the SEC entering play on Wednesday night, Texas A&M appeared to be firmly in control of the league title chase. Not only is that lead now cut in half, the Aggies also still have games left on the schedule against fellow contenders Kentucky, LSU and South Carolina.
That Texas A&M's first SEC loss came at the hands of Arkansas has to be especially frustrating to coach Billy Kennedy and his staff. The Razorbacks are tough to beat at home and nearly won at Dayton, LSU and Georgia earlier this season, but they're also just 10-10 overall including non-conference losses against Akron and Mercer.
The galling aspect of Wednesday's loss for Texas A&M is that it had a handful of chances to tie or take the lead late in the game despite committing 21 turnovers, getting whistled for 25 fouls and shooting a meager 39.6 percent from the field.
With less than a minute to go and his team trailing by two, Texas A&M's Alex Caruso was called for a charge even though it appeared the Arkansas defender who took it wasn't set. Had the call gone Caruso's way, he would have gone to the foul line with the chance for a go-ahead three-point play.
That call was probably the single biggest play of the game, yet Texas A&M still had three more possessions in which it could have tied or taken the lead.
On the first, Caruso made an ill-advised turnover. On the second, Arkansas fouled intentionally to prevent a 3-point attempt and Danuel House sank two free throws to cut the deficit to one. And on the third, D.J. Hogg missed a fairly clean attempt at a game-tying 3-pointer at the buzzer.
How quickly Texas A&M can regroup and purge this memory from its mind will be key for the Aggies moving forward. They host the Big 12-contending Cyclones on Saturday and then face talented Vanderbilt and much improved South Carolina next week.
Texas A&M is still probably the favorite in the SEC, but Wednesday's loss erased much of the Aggies' margin for error in the coming weeks. Now their path is just a little bit tougher.
No. 24 Duke looking to break out of worst slump since 2007.
By JOEDY McCREARY
None of Duke's players have gone through anything like this at the school.
The 24th-ranked Blue Devils are mired in their worst slump in nearly a decade. The reigning national champs have dropped four of five and are in danger of dropping out of the national rankings for the first time since 2007.
''We have to get wins, and we have to get them fast,'' guard Matt Jones said Thursday. ''The sense of urgency in practice has to heighten, and it has been.''
It's been an uncharacteristically tough stretch for the Blue Devils (15-6, 4-4 Atlantic Coast Conference), who have won two national titles since they last lost this frequently. With no games until next week, they're putting the focus on self-improvement.
Guard Grayson Allen said ''it's just keeping a tremendous belief in'' Hall of Fame coach Mike Krzyzewski because ''he's been through it all.''
The first three losses of this slump all were one-possession games in the final minute but after the last one, an 80-69 setback at Miami earlier this week, Krzyzewski said the Hurricanes ''were better than we were.''
The Blue Devils knew they were in for some rough patches after losing four starters from the most recent national title team - including three one-and-done freshmen - and asking two newcomers to play key roles this time around.
Only two returning players logged significant minutes during the entirety of last season. When one of them was injured last month, things got much tougher.
High-energy forward Amile Jefferson was lost indefinitely with a broken foot just nine games into the season and Duke is just 7-5 without him. Krzyzewski said Jefferson, who averaged a double-double before his injury, is making progress but still does not have a timetable for a return.
Jefferson's absence has put even more stress on an already thin rotation that's now effectively down to six players. In each of the four most recent losses, the seventh man - either freshman Chase Jeter or transfer Sean Obi - played no more than four minutes while the other one played even less, or not at all. Jeter needed just four minutes to foul out of the loss at Clemson that started this slide.
That's put the Blue Devils in a tricky spot. They're confident that Jefferson will make them a better team when he returns, yet when that happens mindful of not putting too much pressure on him to save the season.
''Nobody around him is putting that pressure on him to come back and kind of be like, 'You're the savior,''' Jones said. ''We can win without Amile. We can win with Amile. Right now, we have to win without Amile.''
In another sign of the team's youth, it's playing a point guard that could still be in high school: freshman Derryck Thornton reclassified his class status and came to school a year ahead of schedule.
It's added up to their worst stretch since they dropped four in a row to end the 2006-07 season. That's also the last time they dropped out of the Top 25 - though that appears likely to change next week when the votes are counted again. With no game until a visit to Georgia Tech next Tuesday night, Duke doesn't have that last chance to make an impression on the voters the way it did in beating North Carolina State last weekend.
The schedule's only going to get tougher.
In mid-February, Duke will play four straight games against nationally ranked teams, with a home-and-home with No. 16 Louisville sandwiching matchups with No. 11 Virginia and at No. 2 North Carolina. The Tar Heels also visit for the annual regular-season finale in March.
''We're approaching this with a positive attitude, but we've got to keep working,'' Allen said. ''This week is about improving ourselves.''
NCAAFB: The Big 12's biggest concern should be it's football talent drain.
By Jon Solomon
Put aside for a moment the talk about Big 12 expansion and a potential Big 12 football championship game for the purposes of more money and College Football Playoff reasons. Those are big-picture issues the Big 12 will obviously continue to examine.
Dig deeper, though, and there's a much more important issue that has set Big 12 football back -- talent. Where have all the players gone for the Big 12?
In 2010, the Big 12 made history by becoming the first conference in the history of the NFL common draft to have the first four players selected. The day represented a remarkable achievement for the Big 12, which ended up having five of the first six draft picks.
These are the tallies for first- and second-round NFL picks by conference in the past two years: SEC -- 34, Pac-12 -- 24, Big Ten -- 23, ACC -- 21, Big 12 -- 6.
Six? Do you know who else has six picks in the first two rounds since 2014? The American Athletic Conference and Mountain West, that's who. (CBS Sports currently projects two Big 12 first-round picks for the NFL Draft this season, both by Baylor later in the first round.)
As more outsiders compete for recruits in Texas -- we're looking at you, SEC -- the Big 12 talent drain is happening again in this year's recruiting classes. Currently, the highest-ranked Big 12 school in 247Sports Composite rankings is No. 13 Baylor, followed by No. 18 TCU, No. 26 Oklahoma and No. 37 Texas.
The Longhorns and Sooners are still in play for several high-profile recruits that could boost their rankings before National Signing Day on Feb. 3. But these are programs that traditionally hover around the top 10 one week out, not trying to crack the top 25. From 2002-10, Texas and Oklahoma both had top-10 classes at the same time in seven of those nine years. Next week could mark the third time in four years they are both outside the top 10.
For the first time on record in 247Sports' rankings (dating to 2000), someone other than Texas or Oklahoma could be ranked as the Big 12's best class. The Big 12 talent could certainly return if those programs consistently win big again. But this talent drain is something to consider when examining Big 12 expansion. Getting into new states opens the door to access for new recruits.
So what's going on with the Big 12?
Focus on the state of Texas, because that's the heart of Big 12 football and a huge source of talent.
Dig deeper, though, and there's a much more important issue that has set Big 12 football back -- talent. Where have all the players gone for the Big 12?
In 2010, the Big 12 made history by becoming the first conference in the history of the NFL common draft to have the first four players selected. The day represented a remarkable achievement for the Big 12, which ended up having five of the first six draft picks.
These are the tallies for first- and second-round NFL picks by conference in the past two years: SEC -- 34, Pac-12 -- 24, Big Ten -- 23, ACC -- 21, Big 12 -- 6.
Six? Do you know who else has six picks in the first two rounds since 2014? The American Athletic Conference and Mountain West, that's who. (CBS Sports currently projects two Big 12 first-round picks for the NFL Draft this season, both by Baylor later in the first round.)
NFL Draft Picks* by Conference, 2014-15
| |
Conference
|
Average Per School
|
SEC
|
2.4
|
Pac-12
|
2.0
|
Big Ten
|
1.6
|
ACC
|
1.5
|
Big 12
|
0.6
|
* First- and second-round picks
| |
As more outsiders compete for recruits in Texas -- we're looking at you, SEC -- the Big 12 talent drain is happening again in this year's recruiting classes. Currently, the highest-ranked Big 12 school in 247Sports Composite rankings is No. 13 Baylor, followed by No. 18 TCU, No. 26 Oklahoma and No. 37 Texas.
The Longhorns and Sooners are still in play for several high-profile recruits that could boost their rankings before National Signing Day on Feb. 3. But these are programs that traditionally hover around the top 10 one week out, not trying to crack the top 25. From 2002-10, Texas and Oklahoma both had top-10 classes at the same time in seven of those nine years. Next week could mark the third time in four years they are both outside the top 10.
For the first time on record in 247Sports' rankings (dating to 2000), someone other than Texas or Oklahoma could be ranked as the Big 12's best class. The Big 12 talent could certainly return if those programs consistently win big again. But this talent drain is something to consider when examining Big 12 expansion. Getting into new states opens the door to access for new recruits.
So what's going on with the Big 12?
Focus on the state of Texas, because that's the heart of Big 12 football and a huge source of talent.
The Longhorns' decline in recent years, first under Mack Brown and now Charlie Strong, coincided with the SEC expanding into Texas by adding Texas A&M. The Aggies haven't exactly won much on the field, but they've recruited well. One of the SEC's goals through expansion -- besides starting the SEC Network and commanding more money, of course -- was to broaden its recruiting into Texas.
It's working. How good has the Lone Star State been to the SEC? Take the Aggies out of the conversation for this next stat. Over the past three years, including recruits committed for 2016, the SEC minus the Aggies has landed more top-10 Texas players (nine) than the Big 12 (seven). That's staggering.
When the Longhorns reached their last national championship game in 2009, they signed 14 top-10 players from Texas between 2007-09. They have three top-10 Texas players signed or committed from 2014-16. Right now, Tom Herman has more top-10 Texas players committed to Houston this year than the Longhorns and Sooners have combined. Six SEC classes are currently ranked higher than the Big 12's top team.
Consider the talent that's planning to leave Texas for the SEC this year. Ole Miss has a commitment from offensive tackle Gregory Little, the nation's No. 3 player. LSU has commitments from Eric Monroe (No. 3 safety), Erick Fowler (No. 7 outside linebacker) and Rahssan Thornton (No. 13 weakside defensive end.) Alabama, which in 2013 signed star defensive lineman A'Shawn Robinson out of Texas after he decommitted from the Longhorns, has commitments this year from Chris Owens (No. 10 offensive guard) and Kendell Jones (No. 12 defensive tackle).
Why is this happening to the Longhorns? Several published reports have pointed to a toxic environment with entitled players that Brown recruited to Texas. Other reports described almost non-existent relationships between Texas high school coaches and Strong. Grantland reported last fall that Strong's assistants funnel their communications through the recruit rather than the high school coach.
Texas lately lacks playmakers compared to Baylor and TCU. The Longhorns had 11 players drafted by the NFL in the past four years -- including none in 2014 -- after having 19 during the previous four years.
“Texas' biggest problem right now is they don't know their identity at quarterback,” said Steve Wiltfong, national recruiting director for 247Sports. “The guys they're offering scholarships and taking are different types of players so we still don't know what they're looking for.”
Recruiting rankings aren't the end-all, be-all, of course. Oklahoma certainly has talent or it wouldn't have reached the College Football Playoff this season before losing to Clemson in the semifinals. The Sooners could be headed to their sixth straight class ranked outside the top 10 after finishing in the top 10 in nine of the previous 10 years.
The Sooners have had only one NFL first-round pick in the past five years after producing 12 first-rounders from 2000-10. Bob Stoops significantly reshuffled his coaching staff last offseason. Massive coaching changes can often impact recruiting.
“There was a time when Oklahoma was the ‘it' school,” Wiltfong said. “It certainly still is a big offer. I don't want to take away from that. But there was a time when that Oklahoma out-of-state offer was what kids now look at with Alabama.”
This year, Big 12 schools have only two commitments from top-100 national players, according to 247Sports. Baylor has both of those commitments. Baylor and TCU have taken advantage of the Longhorns' struggles, but so have other schools outside the Big 12.
The doors to recruits in the state of Texas are wide open. And it's sucking the talent out of the Big 12.
It's working. How good has the Lone Star State been to the SEC? Take the Aggies out of the conversation for this next stat. Over the past three years, including recruits committed for 2016, the SEC minus the Aggies has landed more top-10 Texas players (nine) than the Big 12 (seven). That's staggering.
When the Longhorns reached their last national championship game in 2009, they signed 14 top-10 players from Texas between 2007-09. They have three top-10 Texas players signed or committed from 2014-16. Right now, Tom Herman has more top-10 Texas players committed to Houston this year than the Longhorns and Sooners have combined. Six SEC classes are currently ranked higher than the Big 12's top team.
Texas Top 10 Players Signed by Big 12
| ||
| Team | 2011-13 Signees | 2014-16 Signees* |
| Texas | 12 | 3 |
| Oklahoma | 3 | 0 |
| Baylor | 2 | 4 |
| Texas Tech | 1 | 0 |
| TCU | 1 | 0 |
| Oklahoma State | 1 | 0 |
* Including 2016 unsigned commitments
| ||
Consider the talent that's planning to leave Texas for the SEC this year. Ole Miss has a commitment from offensive tackle Gregory Little, the nation's No. 3 player. LSU has commitments from Eric Monroe (No. 3 safety), Erick Fowler (No. 7 outside linebacker) and Rahssan Thornton (No. 13 weakside defensive end.) Alabama, which in 2013 signed star defensive lineman A'Shawn Robinson out of Texas after he decommitted from the Longhorns, has commitments this year from Chris Owens (No. 10 offensive guard) and Kendell Jones (No. 12 defensive tackle).
Why is this happening to the Longhorns? Several published reports have pointed to a toxic environment with entitled players that Brown recruited to Texas. Other reports described almost non-existent relationships between Texas high school coaches and Strong. Grantland reported last fall that Strong's assistants funnel their communications through the recruit rather than the high school coach.
Texas lately lacks playmakers compared to Baylor and TCU. The Longhorns had 11 players drafted by the NFL in the past four years -- including none in 2014 -- after having 19 during the previous four years.
“Texas' biggest problem right now is they don't know their identity at quarterback,” said Steve Wiltfong, national recruiting director for 247Sports. “The guys they're offering scholarships and taking are different types of players so we still don't know what they're looking for.”
Recruiting rankings aren't the end-all, be-all, of course. Oklahoma certainly has talent or it wouldn't have reached the College Football Playoff this season before losing to Clemson in the semifinals. The Sooners could be headed to their sixth straight class ranked outside the top 10 after finishing in the top 10 in nine of the previous 10 years.
The Sooners have had only one NFL first-round pick in the past five years after producing 12 first-rounders from 2000-10. Bob Stoops significantly reshuffled his coaching staff last offseason. Massive coaching changes can often impact recruiting.
Big 12 in the 247Sports Composite
| |||||||
| Team | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016* |
| Texas | 2nd | 3rd | 2nd | 20th | 20th | 10th | 37th |
| Oklahoma | 4th | 16th | 12th | 13th | 11th | 14th | 26th |
| Baylor | 40th | 50th | 25th | 25th | 27th | 36th | 13th |
| TCU | 55th | 29th | 29th | 34th | 48th | 42nd | 18th |
* Rankings for 2016 are not finalized
| |||||||
“There was a time when Oklahoma was the ‘it' school,” Wiltfong said. “It certainly still is a big offer. I don't want to take away from that. But there was a time when that Oklahoma out-of-state offer was what kids now look at with Alabama.”
This year, Big 12 schools have only two commitments from top-100 national players, according to 247Sports. Baylor has both of those commitments. Baylor and TCU have taken advantage of the Longhorns' struggles, but so have other schools outside the Big 12.
The doors to recruits in the state of Texas are wide open. And it's sucking the talent out of the Big 12.
Former NIU RB sues FanDuel, DraftKings over use of his likeness.
By Graham Watson
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Former Northern Illinois University running back Akeem Daniels filed a federal lawsuit against DraftKings and FanDuel on Wednesday seeking $5 million in damages.
In the suit, Daniels claims the daily fantasy site used his name to generate millions of dollars in revenue. He also said the daily fantasy sites opened himself and several other players up to allegations of point-shaving and fixing, and created “an unwanted state of fear and concern of the risk of being contacted by speculators who have a financial interest."
“[FanDuel’s] unlawful business model puts [Daniels and others] at unwanted risk of contact with speculators whose interests align with ‘corruption in the form of fixed outcomes and point-shaving,’” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit mentions 15 other Northern Illinois players who were named in the daily fantasy games.
The lawsuit is similar to the one Ed O’Bannon brought against the NCAA that claimed the collegiate sports entity was profiting off the names and likenesses of collegiate athletes. However, this is the first suit brought against daily fantasy sites with a similar claim.
Cleveland Cavaliers fire head coach David Blatt despite having best record in the East, Ty Lue takes over. What's Your Take?
In the suit, Daniels claims the daily fantasy site used his name to generate millions of dollars in revenue. He also said the daily fantasy sites opened himself and several other players up to allegations of point-shaving and fixing, and created “an unwanted state of fear and concern of the risk of being contacted by speculators who have a financial interest."
“[FanDuel’s] unlawful business model puts [Daniels and others] at unwanted risk of contact with speculators whose interests align with ‘corruption in the form of fixed outcomes and point-shaving,’” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit mentions 15 other Northern Illinois players who were named in the daily fantasy games.
The lawsuit is similar to the one Ed O’Bannon brought against the NCAA that claimed the collegiate sports entity was profiting off the names and likenesses of collegiate athletes. However, this is the first suit brought against daily fantasy sites with a similar claim.
Cleveland Cavaliers fire head coach David Blatt despite having best record in the East, Ty Lue takes over. What's Your Take?
By Nicholas Parco
David Blatt has been fired as head coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Cavaliers assistant Ty Lue has already agreed to a multi-year deal to take over the position, according to Yahoo Sports.
LeBron James was told about the move to let Blatt go earlier on Friday, but had no say in the decision, ESPN reported.
The Cavaliers were 30-11 — three games ahead of the Toronto Raptors for the best record in the Eastern Conference. But just a few days ago, Cleveland took a beating from the Golden State Warriors, falling 132-98 to Stephen Curry and company.
Blatt took the helm at Cleveland in 2014, the same season James returned to his hometown team after a four-year stint with the Miami Heat.
Blatt leaves the Cavaliers, his first NBA coaching job, with an 83-40 record. His .675 winning percentage was the best of any coach in franchise history.
"I am very grateful to have had the opportunity to serve as Head Coach of the Cleveland Cavaliers," Blatt said in a statement. "I am proud of what we have accomplished since I have been Head Coach and wish the Cavaliers nothing but the best this season and beyond."
Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Take: This is an issue that caught my attention and really bothered me. Coach Blatt interviewed with the owner's of the Cleveland Cavaliers and was hired as their head coach. I've spoken with several people in Cleveland that are in the know and they all state that Coach Blatt had a problem communicating with the players and that none of the veterans liked him. If that's the case, I'm sure that management was aware of it and should have nipped it in the bud. Say what you want to about him, he got the job done. He got the team to the NBA Finals last year (They lost to the Golden State Warriors). Their record while he coached them was 83-40 (A .675 winning percentage). Owners own, front office personnel run the show, coaches and managers coach and manage (The players) and players play (that's what they're paid for).
We've all had jobs or situations where we didn't care for the person we worked for or the person we reported to; how many of you complained and got your superior fired? I can tell you one thing, this team is talented, however, talent without discipline is talent wasted. The Bulls recently changed coaches. Many players say Coach Thibodaux was too hard on them; a few weeks ago, shooting guard Jimmy Butler said the new coach, Fred Hoiberg, needed to be harder on them..... The Bulls were in the playoffs for five straight years, hopefully, they'll make it again this year. I can say this, when the inmates start running the asylum, the asylum is in major trouble. Without casting aspersions, I see trying times ahead for the Cavaliers but I do wish them the best. For reference sake, I just can't see a Michael Jordan led team squabbling with the coach, Michael was actually the coach on the floor and his major job was to get the players playing together and doing their assignments in and effort to win championships. The coach established the team's culture, taught plays, distributed discipline, consoled players in times of need and demanded the best from each player for the unique talent that he possessed. There are and will always be problems and concerns but that's what the head coach is there for. Again, coaches and managers coach and manage and players play and that's the way it is and the way it should be, Period, paragraph, end of the story.
My feelings are exposed and I'd love to know what you think and what's your take? Please go to the comment section at the bottom of this blog and let it rip. Share your thoughts and your take with us because we value your opinion and love to hear from you.
Marion P. Jelks, Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Editorial Manager.
On
On
emoriesofhistory.com
1936 - The first members of major league baseball's Hall of Fame were named in Cooperstown, NY. They were Ty Cobb, Babe Ruth, Honus Wagner, Christy Mathewson and Walter Johnson.
1963 - The first members to the NFL's Hall of Fame were named in Canton, OH. The list included Sammy Baugh, Johnny Blood, Dutch Clark, Red Grange, Mel Hein, Pete Henry, Cal Hubbard, Don Hutson, Bronko Nagurski, Ernie Nevers, Jim Thorpe, Bert Bell, Joe Carr, George Halas, Curly Lambeau, Tim Mara, and George Preston Marshall.
1985 - Jari Kurri (Edmonton Oilers) set an NHL record when he scored his 100th point in the 39th game of the season.
1989 - Billy Joel sang the U.S. national anthem at Super Bowl XXIII.
1995 - The San Francisco 49ers became the first team in National Football League (NFL) history to win five Super Bowl titles. The 49ers defeated the San Diego Chargers 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX. San Francisco quarterback Steve Young threw six touchdown passes in the game.
2004 - Major League Baseball owners approved the $430 million sale of the Los Angeles Dodgers from News Corp. to Frank McCourt.
Please let us hear your opinion on the above articles and pass them on to any other diehard fans that you think might be interested. But most of all, remember, Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica wants you.
1963 - The first members to the NFL's Hall of Fame were named in Canton, OH. The list included Sammy Baugh, Johnny Blood, Dutch Clark, Red Grange, Mel Hein, Pete Henry, Cal Hubbard, Don Hutson, Bronko Nagurski, Ernie Nevers, Jim Thorpe, Bert Bell, Joe Carr, George Halas, Curly Lambeau, Tim Mara, and George Preston Marshall.
1985 - Jari Kurri (Edmonton Oilers) set an NHL record when he scored his 100th point in the 39th game of the season.
1989 - Billy Joel sang the U.S. national anthem at Super Bowl XXIII.
1995 - The San Francisco 49ers became the first team in National Football League (NFL) history to win five Super Bowl titles. The 49ers defeated the San Diego Chargers 49-26 in Super Bowl XXIX. San Francisco quarterback Steve Young threw six touchdown passes in the game.
2004 - Major League Baseball owners approved the $430 million sale of the Los Angeles Dodgers from News Corp. to Frank McCourt.
**********************************************************************
Please let us hear your opinion on the above articles and pass them on to any other diehard fans that you think might be interested. But most of all, remember, Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica wants you.
No comments:
Post a Comment