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"Sports Quote of the Day"
"I feel so fortunate, so honored, to have played this game that I love for so long, with so many great players, and in front of so many wonderful fans. I fulfilled a childhood dream the first time I stepped on an NFL field, and the league did not let me down one time." ~ Drew Bledsoe, Retired Fourteen Season NFL Quarterback
Trending: Bears 'leak' in second half, fall to Texans in opener, Lose 23-14. (See the football section for Bears and NFL updates).
Trending: Reasons for optimism, questions facing Blackhawks. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks and NHL updates).
Trending: With fans ready to buy in, it's clear Illini not 'ready for primetime' ... yet. (See the college football section for NCAA football news and updates).
Trending: Mickelson: U.S.A. has 'real game plan' for Ryder Cup. (See the golf section for PGA and Ryder Cup Tournament news and updates).
Trending: Cubs and White Sox road to the "World Series".
Cubs 2016 Record: 91-51, Cubs Magic Number 5
White Sox 2016 Record: 68-74
(See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).
NFL SCORES, 09/11/2016
Carolina Panthers 20
Denver Broncos 21
Green Bay Packers 27
Jacksonville Jaguars 23
Buffalo Bills 7
Baltimore Ravens 13
Chicago Bears 14
Houston Texans 23
Cleveland Browns 10
Philadelphia Eagles 29
Tampa Bay Buccaneers 31
Atlanta Falcons 24
Minnesota Vikings 25
Tennessee Titans 16
Cincinnati Bengals 23
New York Jets 22
Oakland Raiders 35
New Orleans Saints 34
San Diego Chargers 27
Kansas City Chiefs 33
Miami Dolphins 10
Seattle Seahawks 12
Detroit Lions 39
Indianapolis Colts 35
New York Giants 20
Dallas Cowboys 19
New England Patriots 23
Arizona Cardinals 21
Pittsburgh Steelers Monday Night's Game, 09/12/2016
Washington Redskins
Los Angeles Rams Monday Night's Game, 09/12/2016
San Francisco 49ers
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Bears 'leak' in second half, fall to Texans in opener.
By John Mullin
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
One member of the Bears’ offense told CSNChicago.com this week that the Bears would be “a lot better than people think,” and that he considered four games to be swing games in this season.
One of those games he named came Sunday against the Houston Texans. And it was indeed there for the Bears, leading a division champion going into the fourth quarter on the road. It’s only one game but don’t try selling patience around Halas Hall.
“We don’t have time,” said guard Kyle Long. “Our house is on fire and we’ve got to put it out.”
Lots of fires, actually.
Enough mistakes were made, early and late, in all phases, to let a game slip away into a 23-14 loss to the Texans, the fourth in four games against the one-time expansion franchise. Teams that lose fourth-quarter leads rarely play more than 16 games in a season. There was no feel-good from getting close, and the frustration was palpable afterwards, particularly from new Bears not accustomed to losing.
“We know how dominant we can be,” said former New England defensive lineman Akiem Hicks, shaking his head. “We expect better of ourselves.”
Said linebacker Danny Trevathan, not accustomed to coming up short from his years with the Denver Broncos: “We’ve got to a better job of finishing. I know we are so much better than that.”
But until they are better than that, they aren’t. And until they show they’re finishers, they’re not. The Bears were 2-3 last season when leading or tied after three quarters, so this was a disturbing flashback. And the season clock is ticking.
The Bears answered some questions and created others. And in a bit of troubling irony, even some of the apparent positives revealed negatives lurking beneath.
The offense managed two first-half touchdown drives totaling 150 yards. They amassed just 108 in their other 10 possessions and crossed midfield just once in the second half in Dowell Loggains’ first game as offensive coordinator.
Listed among the supposed high points will be Alshon Jeffery’s 105 receiving yards. But that now makes the Bears 4-9 in games in which the franchise wideout goes for a century, meaning that few if any others are taking advantage of Jeffery, who had those 105 through three quarters. None in the fourth, when with the game on the line, the Bears netted just 41 yards.
Houston ran just three plays longer than 20 yards. Normally good, limiting big plays. The defense that was built to stand up to elite offenses was pushed around for 131 rushing yards and 231 passing by a Houston offense that was in the NFL’s lower half last year, and which converted 12 of 20 third downs.
The Bears bled to death.
“We just couldn’t stop the ‘leaking’ yardage,” said nose tackle Eddie Goldman.
One of those games he named came Sunday against the Houston Texans. And it was indeed there for the Bears, leading a division champion going into the fourth quarter on the road. It’s only one game but don’t try selling patience around Halas Hall.
“We don’t have time,” said guard Kyle Long. “Our house is on fire and we’ve got to put it out.”
Lots of fires, actually.
Enough mistakes were made, early and late, in all phases, to let a game slip away into a 23-14 loss to the Texans, the fourth in four games against the one-time expansion franchise. Teams that lose fourth-quarter leads rarely play more than 16 games in a season. There was no feel-good from getting close, and the frustration was palpable afterwards, particularly from new Bears not accustomed to losing.
“We know how dominant we can be,” said former New England defensive lineman Akiem Hicks, shaking his head. “We expect better of ourselves.”
Said linebacker Danny Trevathan, not accustomed to coming up short from his years with the Denver Broncos: “We’ve got to a better job of finishing. I know we are so much better than that.”
But until they are better than that, they aren’t. And until they show they’re finishers, they’re not. The Bears were 2-3 last season when leading or tied after three quarters, so this was a disturbing flashback. And the season clock is ticking.
The Bears answered some questions and created others. And in a bit of troubling irony, even some of the apparent positives revealed negatives lurking beneath.
The offense managed two first-half touchdown drives totaling 150 yards. They amassed just 108 in their other 10 possessions and crossed midfield just once in the second half in Dowell Loggains’ first game as offensive coordinator.
Listed among the supposed high points will be Alshon Jeffery’s 105 receiving yards. But that now makes the Bears 4-9 in games in which the franchise wideout goes for a century, meaning that few if any others are taking advantage of Jeffery, who had those 105 through three quarters. None in the fourth, when with the game on the line, the Bears netted just 41 yards.
Houston ran just three plays longer than 20 yards. Normally good, limiting big plays. The defense that was built to stand up to elite offenses was pushed around for 131 rushing yards and 231 passing by a Houston offense that was in the NFL’s lower half last year, and which converted 12 of 20 third downs.
The Bears bled to death.
“We just couldn’t stop the ‘leaking’ yardage,” said nose tackle Eddie Goldman.
Arrows up? Or down?
The Bears started nine players with zero or one year of NFL experience. So this was more than a casual referendum on the young foundation of the Bears, the players who will determine the outlook for the organization beyond this week and even this season.
Some was good; if you didn’t know Cody Whitehair was a second-round rookie playing his first game at center, it was far from evident in his play against one of the NFL’s best fronts.
Whitehair failed to get a fourth-and-one direct snap into Jay Cutler’s hands, resulting in a fumble and missed fourth-down conversion. “That’s on me,” Whitehair said. “It’s up to me to get the ball up higher for him.”
Some was bad; if you didn’t know Kevin White was a No. 1 pick, the guess might have been a practice-squad call-up. White back-slid from an optimistic finish to his preseason, with drops, a pre-snap penalty and a costly route-running mistake that ended in an interception.
Cutler swung his arm in apparent frustration in the direction he expected White to run on the pattern. “We’ve just got to watch it on film and move on to the next play,” said White, who caught just one of four Cutler targets through three quarters and three of seven for the game for 34 total yards.
Linebacker Leonard Floyd shared a sack with Goldman, but Floyd was impact-lite overall and too often failed to get close to Houston quarterback Brock Osweiler often, and that against a second-tier left tackle in backup Chris Clark. Floyd did share a sack with Goldman.
“I’ve got a lot to learn,” said Floyd, initially credited with six tackles (two solo). “But I think this is going to be a great defense.”
Maybe. And while mistakes are expected from youth, successful teams are the ones where young players make impact early. The Bears did not get enough from theirs on Sunday.
Leadership role’ing
Some outsiders expressed surprise when Jeffery and not Kyle Long was voted by teammates as the other offensive co-captain along Jay Cutler. But inside the locker room the lack of surprise was telling, and reflected very well on Jeffery, a man of few words but who has quietly this training camp and preseason won over any doubters among teammates.
On Sunday, Jeffery played and acted like a team captain.
“The guy is a stud, and all the guys really look up to him,” one offensive player said privately. “He’s a leader on this team for a lot of guys, and not just the receivers.”
Jeffery led by example, putting 105 receiving yards on the Texans in the first half. He did drop a key third-down throw in the third quarter and put the responsibility squarely on himself.
“I think I should’ve caught that with my hands instead of my body,” Jeffery said. “I feel like that was a turning point right there.”
But one of Jeffery’s biggest contributions may be to the psyche of Kevin White after the latter struggled mightily in his first NFL game. As far as White's catastrophic wrong route that led to an interception, “that’s going to happen,” Jeffery said. “[I told him] ‘Next play,’ gotta always be ‘next play.’”
Bears Grades: Too early for conclusions about offense.
By John Mullin
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The debut of Dowell Loggains as Bears offensive coordinator did not go as planned; any game that ends in a loss by definition did not go as planned.
But against one of the NFL’s premier defenses, particularly in the front seven, the Bears did manage two extended touchdown drives in the first half. Then in the second half, they managed no possession longer than 24 yards.
Conclusion? Insufficient data.
“I don’t know,” conceded quarterback Jay Cutler. “You don’t see defenses like [Houston’s] week in and week out. Just going to get home [pass-rushing] with four or five. They’re going to play a couple of coverages. It’s not that hard, but the guys that they have are really, really good at it.
“We’re going to get a lot better but I don’t want to pin exactly what this offense is going to be or what direction we’re going to go until we get a little more involved.”
Quarterback: B
Jay Cutler’s line – 16-for-29 passing, 216 yards, one TD, one INT – was decidedly mediocre taken overall. But he was a stellar 10-of-13 in the first half for 156 yards, meaning something happened in the second half. Or rather, didn’t happen.
Cutler’s receivers stopped catching key passes and running correct routes in crucial situations. He was 0-for-5 in the third quarter, one pass being intercepted, and in the fourth quarter, with the game slipping away, Cutler was sacked three times and hit on other occasions.
Cutler too often held the ball long enough for the rush to get home. But equally too often his receivers were not gaining sufficient separation from a pressing Houston secondary, and Cutler could be excused for having confidence questions about inexperienced wideout Kevin White in particular.
Running back: C-
The post-Matt-Forte era began with Jeremy Langford rushing for 57 yards on 17 carries (3.4 ypc.) against a very good Houston defense. Langford managed no run longer than 15 yards and did contribute two pass receptions, with a 19-yard screen pass wiped out by an interference call against tight end Zach Miller.
The Bears expect to run the football more than 18 times with their tailbacks (Ka’Deem Carey carried once for four yards), and the plan is to rotate backs. But Houston controlled the ball more than 36 minutes and “we didn’t need to spell him a whole lot because of the [defensive] fronts we were seeing,” said coach John Fox.
Receiver: D+
One grade – A- – for Alshon Jeffery, another – D – for the rest of the receiver group. Jeffery, who blew up the Houston secondary for 105 yards in the first half, set an early tone with a back-shoulder catch for 29 yards, followed by drawing a pass-interference flag two snaps later, to set up the Bears first TD. Jeffery then embarrassed the Texans pass defense for a 54-yard catch on the drive that finished with a 19-yard Eddie Royal TD catch just before halftime.
But other than Jeffery and the Royal catch, Jay Cutler did not get much help from any of his receivers while the quarterback contended with the rush from a strong Houston front. Cutler was forced to hold the ball too long, commonly a reflection of a lack of confidence on route-running.
Kevin White had a very poor NFL debut, with a false-start and two catchable balls off his hands in the first half, then failing to break a route back outside on the Bears’ first possession of the second half, resulting in an interception by safety Andre Hal. A defensive stop held Houston to a field goal off the turnover, but the chance for momentum was squandered by the Bears.
“You can’t change what happened,” White said. “So we have to move on and just get ready to play the Eagles [next Monday at Soldier Field].”
Zach Miller negated a big gain on a screen pass to Jeremy Langford with an offensive pass-interference call.
Offensive line: D+
Facing one of the NFL’s elite front-seven’s, the Bears acquitted themselves passably if unspectacularly for the most part through three quarters, particularly with an offensive line that had never taken the field as a group before. Houston scrambled looks with All-Pro J.J. Watt moved to all points on the front and eventually finished with five sacks after a jail-break period in the fourth quarter with the Bears down two scores.
“It’s probably those struggles that occurred a little bit more in the second half,” said coach John Fox. “Especially when you get into backyard football where you have to throw to catch up. Whenever you get one-dimensional like that, I think it’s problematic for anybody.”
Jay Cutler took a number of significant hits but was only occasionally sent scrambling; Cutler’s problems were more from receivers not gaining separation.
Cody White got the expected start at center, pitting him against veteran nose tackle Vince Wolfork. Whitehair handled himself reasonably well in his first NFL start at a position.
“I felt comfortable,” Whitehair said. “Jay helped me with stuff and had me feeling comfortable out there. Obviously there were a few mistakes but we’ll get those cleaned up.”
Bobby Massie and Charles Leno were each beaten cleanly to the outside for third-down sacks by Whitney Mercilus.
Coaching: C
The offense was unable to break out other than two 75-yard drives in the first half. The problems were compounded by three dropped passes in crucial situations, and coordinator Dowell Loggains was able to keep the offense balanced through three quarters (17 runs, 20 pass plays) before needing to resort to catch-up passing in the fourth quarter.
“I thought Dowell put a heck of a game plan together,” Cutler said. “There was nothing out there that we weren’t prepared for or weren’t ready for. [The Texans] did exactly what Dowell and coaches said they were going to do. We’ve just got to execute.”
Houston did what a number of Bears opponents did last season, that being to show nickel personnel to get the Bears out of their base 3-4 defense and into nickel with two linemen and two linebackers, then running the football. The result was Houston grinding out 131 rushing yards, albeit needing 35 rushes to do it.
But the lack of pass rush was a critical problem, and the Bears were unable to bring looks that upset the Houston offense often enough. Blitzes were rare but could have helped getting into run gaps as well.
Special teams created openings and got an average of nearly 21 yards per kickoff return, plus a punt return of 31 yards by Eddie Royal to give the offense good field position.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Reasons for optimism, questions facing Blackhawks.
By Brian Hedger
The goal for the Chicago Blackhawks never changes, no matter how much the roster does.
They continue to put faith in a core group of championship-caliber veterans, headlined by forwards Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, along with a front office annually tasked with replenishing talent in order to stay competitive under the NHL salary cap.
Andrew Shaw and Teuvo Teravainen were traded this offseason, along with Bryan Bickell, so there's a shortage of experienced forwards. Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman did manage to patch up the defense, signing 25-year-old Michal Kempny from the Kontinental Hockey League on May 24, and puck-moving veteran Brian Campbell on July 1.
Multiple forward roles will be in flux, but Chicago has championship aspirations. Losing to the St. Louis Blues in the Western Conference First Round last season left a bad taste but provided a longer summer to rest and recharge.
Here are four reasons for optimism entering this season:
1. The best offense is a deeper defense
Hampered by inexperience, the bottom two defense pairs struggled to clear their zone last season and it caught up to the Blackhawks in the playoffs. Waning puck-possession placed young defensemen Trevor van Riemsdyk and Erik Gustafsson in situations they weren't ready to handle, and it proved costly.
Adding Kempny and Campbell, still an effective skater at age 37, should provide balance. Some variation of Campbell, Duncan Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson and Brent Seabrook is expected to make up the top two pairs, and Kempny and Van Riemsdyk are expected to be the third. Michal Rozsival, 37, was retained and three more NHL-ready defensemen (Gustafsson, Viktor Svedberg and Ville Pokka) likely will await a call-up from Rockford of the American Hockey League.
"You can never have too many defensemen," Bowman said. "I don't want to go into a year with just seven defensemen. You've got to go in with at least 10 to 12, knowing that there's never been a year when a team uses just seven defensemen all year long."
2. Patrick Kane makes everyone around him better
Kane and Toews could start out playing on the top line, but that would leave a vacancy on the second line for left wing Artemi Panarin and center Artem Anisimov.
Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville doesn't like to tinker with line combinations that mesh, and none worked better last season than Panarin, who had 77 points (30 goals, 47 assists); Anisimov, who had 42 (20 goals, 22 assists); and Kane, who had 106 (46 goals, 60 assists). Kane won the Hart Trophy as the NHL most valuable player, the Art Ross Trophy as the League's leading scorer, and the Ted Lindsay Award as most outstanding player voted by the NHL Players' Association.
Kane's chemistry with Panarin was a large factor, and the same can be said for Kane's effect on Panarin winning the Calder Trophy.
3. Corey Crawford is a big-time backstop
One area the Blackhawks rarely worry about is their goaltenders; Crawford quietly has become one of the NHL's best. He had a .924 save percentage in each of the past two seasons, has won the Stanley Cup twice (2013 and 2015), and managed to keep solid numbers the past two seasons despite a significant drop in Chicago's puck possession.
Crawford sustained an upper-body injury that kept him out the final month last season, but was headed for career-high numbers prior to it. There's no reason to believe that won't continue.
4. Coaching continuity
Quenneville, who has the second-most coaching wins in NHL history (801), is heading into his ninth season with the Blackhawks. Assistant Mike Kitchen has been in Chicago for the past six seasons, and assistant Kevin Dineen and goaltending coach Jimmy Waite each enters his third season.
They work well together as a staff and often give Chicago an X-factor opponents struggle to match, especially in the playoffs.
Here are three key questions facing the Blackhawks:
1. Who will play with Jonathan Toews?
Last season, the biggest question for the top line was left wing. This season, with Quenneville hinting he'd like to keep right wing Marian Hossa on the third line, it's unclear who will flank Toews on either side.
Richard Panik is a possibility, and there's a crop of rookies hoping to seize a coveted top-six role, including Nick Schmaltz, Vincent Hinostroza and Tyler Motte. It's possible Kane starts as Toews' right wing, but Quenneville likes to separate his top two forwards for balance, and the dynamic second-line combination of Panarin, Anisimov and Kane is a proven commodity.
2. Can Marian Hossa regain his scoring touch?
Hossa had 33 points (13 goals, 20 assists) in 64 games last season. He remains stuck on 499 NHL goals and had his second straight drop in goal-scoring since 2013-14, when he scored 30 goals in 72 games.
Hossa, 37, rediscovered his offense in the playoffs and flourished after being moved to the third line to help shadow Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko. Hossa had three goals and two assists in the seven-game series, and there's a chance he'll stay on the third line to start the season. If so, he'd likely be reunited with center Marcus Kruger, a defensive specialist.
"I won't say for sure they'll start together this year, but I'd like to see it," Quenneville said. "Maybe [Hossa] carves out a different niche."
3. Will Artemi Panarin re-sign?
Panarin is entering the final year of his two-year entry-level contract and can become a restricted free agent July 1.
The Blackhawks traded left wing Brandon Saad in 2015 under similar circumstances, and fans are concerned Panarin could be traded rather than signed.
"Hard to predict that one," Bowman said. "There's two parties involved. Obviously there's the team side and the agent side. We can't do a deal by ourselves, so a part of it's going to be what their outlook is on things. Obviously, we want to bring him back and keep him in Chicago."
Team Canada responds against Team USA.
By NHL Media
They continue to put faith in a core group of championship-caliber veterans, headlined by forwards Patrick Kane and Jonathan Toews, along with a front office annually tasked with replenishing talent in order to stay competitive under the NHL salary cap.
Andrew Shaw and Teuvo Teravainen were traded this offseason, along with Bryan Bickell, so there's a shortage of experienced forwards. Blackhawks general manager Stan Bowman did manage to patch up the defense, signing 25-year-old Michal Kempny from the Kontinental Hockey League on May 24, and puck-moving veteran Brian Campbell on July 1.
Multiple forward roles will be in flux, but Chicago has championship aspirations. Losing to the St. Louis Blues in the Western Conference First Round last season left a bad taste but provided a longer summer to rest and recharge.
Here are four reasons for optimism entering this season:
1. The best offense is a deeper defense
Hampered by inexperience, the bottom two defense pairs struggled to clear their zone last season and it caught up to the Blackhawks in the playoffs. Waning puck-possession placed young defensemen Trevor van Riemsdyk and Erik Gustafsson in situations they weren't ready to handle, and it proved costly.
Adding Kempny and Campbell, still an effective skater at age 37, should provide balance. Some variation of Campbell, Duncan Keith, Niklas Hjalmarsson and Brent Seabrook is expected to make up the top two pairs, and Kempny and Van Riemsdyk are expected to be the third. Michal Rozsival, 37, was retained and three more NHL-ready defensemen (Gustafsson, Viktor Svedberg and Ville Pokka) likely will await a call-up from Rockford of the American Hockey League.
"You can never have too many defensemen," Bowman said. "I don't want to go into a year with just seven defensemen. You've got to go in with at least 10 to 12, knowing that there's never been a year when a team uses just seven defensemen all year long."
2. Patrick Kane makes everyone around him better
Kane and Toews could start out playing on the top line, but that would leave a vacancy on the second line for left wing Artemi Panarin and center Artem Anisimov.
Blackhawks coach Joel Quenneville doesn't like to tinker with line combinations that mesh, and none worked better last season than Panarin, who had 77 points (30 goals, 47 assists); Anisimov, who had 42 (20 goals, 22 assists); and Kane, who had 106 (46 goals, 60 assists). Kane won the Hart Trophy as the NHL most valuable player, the Art Ross Trophy as the League's leading scorer, and the Ted Lindsay Award as most outstanding player voted by the NHL Players' Association.
Kane's chemistry with Panarin was a large factor, and the same can be said for Kane's effect on Panarin winning the Calder Trophy.
3. Corey Crawford is a big-time backstop
One area the Blackhawks rarely worry about is their goaltenders; Crawford quietly has become one of the NHL's best. He had a .924 save percentage in each of the past two seasons, has won the Stanley Cup twice (2013 and 2015), and managed to keep solid numbers the past two seasons despite a significant drop in Chicago's puck possession.
Crawford sustained an upper-body injury that kept him out the final month last season, but was headed for career-high numbers prior to it. There's no reason to believe that won't continue.
4. Coaching continuity
Quenneville, who has the second-most coaching wins in NHL history (801), is heading into his ninth season with the Blackhawks. Assistant Mike Kitchen has been in Chicago for the past six seasons, and assistant Kevin Dineen and goaltending coach Jimmy Waite each enters his third season.
They work well together as a staff and often give Chicago an X-factor opponents struggle to match, especially in the playoffs.
Here are three key questions facing the Blackhawks:
1. Who will play with Jonathan Toews?
Last season, the biggest question for the top line was left wing. This season, with Quenneville hinting he'd like to keep right wing Marian Hossa on the third line, it's unclear who will flank Toews on either side.
Richard Panik is a possibility, and there's a crop of rookies hoping to seize a coveted top-six role, including Nick Schmaltz, Vincent Hinostroza and Tyler Motte. It's possible Kane starts as Toews' right wing, but Quenneville likes to separate his top two forwards for balance, and the dynamic second-line combination of Panarin, Anisimov and Kane is a proven commodity.
2. Can Marian Hossa regain his scoring touch?
Hossa had 33 points (13 goals, 20 assists) in 64 games last season. He remains stuck on 499 NHL goals and had his second straight drop in goal-scoring since 2013-14, when he scored 30 goals in 72 games.
Hossa, 37, rediscovered his offense in the playoffs and flourished after being moved to the third line to help shadow Blues forward Vladimir Tarasenko. Hossa had three goals and two assists in the seven-game series, and there's a chance he'll stay on the third line to start the season. If so, he'd likely be reunited with center Marcus Kruger, a defensive specialist.
"I won't say for sure they'll start together this year, but I'd like to see it," Quenneville said. "Maybe [Hossa] carves out a different niche."
3. Will Artemi Panarin re-sign?
Panarin is entering the final year of his two-year entry-level contract and can become a restricted free agent July 1.
The Blackhawks traded left wing Brandon Saad in 2015 under similar circumstances, and fans are concerned Panarin could be traded rather than signed.
"Hard to predict that one," Bowman said. "There's two parties involved. Obviously there's the team side and the agent side. We can't do a deal by ourselves, so a part of it's going to be what their outlook is on things. Obviously, we want to bring him back and keep him in Chicago."
Team Canada responds against Team USA.
By NHL Media
(Photo/chicagoblackhawks.com)
John Tavares scored twice, and Corey Perry, Drew Doughty and Steven Stamkos each had two assists for Team Canada in a 5-2 win against Team USA in a World Cup of Hockey 2016 pretournament game at Canadian Tire Centre on Saturday.
Logan Couture, Jay Bouwmeester and Matt Duchene scored to give Team Canada a split of back-to-back games. Team USA won 4-2 in Columbus on Friday.
Goaltenders Braden Holtby and Corey Crawford split the game for Team Canada. Holtby faced 13 shots and gave up two goals, and Crawford made 10 saves, including a spectacular glove save on Team USA forward James van Riemsdyk.
Team Canada captain Sidney Crosby was a healthy scratch. Perry took his place.
Ryan McDonagh and John Carlson scored for Team USA. Goaltender Cory Schneider played the first two periods and gave up four goals on 24 shots. Ben Bishop played the third period and surrendered one goal on 14 shots.
Duchene scored at 12:11 of the second period to put Team Canada ahead 4-2.
Carlson scored 38 seconds into the second period on a 5-on-3 power play when he took a pass from forward Patrick Kane and one-timed a shot by Holtby.
Team Canada led 3-1 after a penalty-filled first period. It scored power-play goals by Couture and Tavares.
Team Canada coach Mike Babcock said he thought his team was guilty of overpassing the puck before the power play started to click.
"I mentioned that a couple of times," Babcock said. "That's what happens every time. When you get to this level, you're trying to give it to your teammate instead of just shooting it and getting to the net. That's how you score, shooting it and getting to the net and finding seconds.
"These are skilled players and they're used to scoring and they want their touches. When they score a little bit, they start to relax and make better plays and see things better. When you don't score, you press. At every level you play at, you've got to find your confidence. I think that was a positive thing for us tonight."
Bouwmeester gave Team Canada a 3-0 lead when he took a sharp pass from behind the net from Ryan Getzlaf and scored with a wrist shot at 15:38.
McDonagh scored at 16:35 to make it 3-1 on a shot that looked like it deflected off Team Canada defenseman Brent Burns, who was jostling with van Riemsdyk and Team USA forward Blake Wheeler in front of Holtby.
Tavares scored his second goal on the power play at 8:01 of the third period when he put a loose puck into the open side of the net to Bishop's left.
The tournament begins Sept. 17 in Toronto.
Goal of the game: Team Canada forward Tyler Seguin refused to be checked by Team USA forward T.J. Oshie to set up Duchene for the goal to make it 4-2. Seguin fought off Oshie's strong backcheck and passed the puck to Duchene in the slot.
Save of the game: Less than two minutes after Duchene scored, Crawford made a great glove save on a hard shot by van Riemsdyk from the left wing.
Unsung moment of the game: Babcock moved Seguin between Duchene and wing Joe Thornton in Claude Giroux's spot and that resulted in Seguin combining with Duchene for that fourth goal. "I thought that was important putting Seguin back in the middle tonight," Babcock said. "I thought it helped give him a little tempo, a little speed. That was positive."
Highlight moment of the game: Thirty-eight seconds into the second period, Carlson scored on a perfectly executed one-timer with Team USA on a two-man advantage, making it 3-2. Carlson's hard shot off Kane's perfect setup beat Holtby to the stick side.
Logan Couture, Jay Bouwmeester and Matt Duchene scored to give Team Canada a split of back-to-back games. Team USA won 4-2 in Columbus on Friday.
Goaltenders Braden Holtby and Corey Crawford split the game for Team Canada. Holtby faced 13 shots and gave up two goals, and Crawford made 10 saves, including a spectacular glove save on Team USA forward James van Riemsdyk.
Team Canada captain Sidney Crosby was a healthy scratch. Perry took his place.
Ryan McDonagh and John Carlson scored for Team USA. Goaltender Cory Schneider played the first two periods and gave up four goals on 24 shots. Ben Bishop played the third period and surrendered one goal on 14 shots.
Duchene scored at 12:11 of the second period to put Team Canada ahead 4-2.
Carlson scored 38 seconds into the second period on a 5-on-3 power play when he took a pass from forward Patrick Kane and one-timed a shot by Holtby.
Team Canada led 3-1 after a penalty-filled first period. It scored power-play goals by Couture and Tavares.
Team Canada coach Mike Babcock said he thought his team was guilty of overpassing the puck before the power play started to click.
"I mentioned that a couple of times," Babcock said. "That's what happens every time. When you get to this level, you're trying to give it to your teammate instead of just shooting it and getting to the net. That's how you score, shooting it and getting to the net and finding seconds.
"These are skilled players and they're used to scoring and they want their touches. When they score a little bit, they start to relax and make better plays and see things better. When you don't score, you press. At every level you play at, you've got to find your confidence. I think that was a positive thing for us tonight."
Bouwmeester gave Team Canada a 3-0 lead when he took a sharp pass from behind the net from Ryan Getzlaf and scored with a wrist shot at 15:38.
McDonagh scored at 16:35 to make it 3-1 on a shot that looked like it deflected off Team Canada defenseman Brent Burns, who was jostling with van Riemsdyk and Team USA forward Blake Wheeler in front of Holtby.
Tavares scored his second goal on the power play at 8:01 of the third period when he put a loose puck into the open side of the net to Bishop's left.
The tournament begins Sept. 17 in Toronto.
Goal of the game: Team Canada forward Tyler Seguin refused to be checked by Team USA forward T.J. Oshie to set up Duchene for the goal to make it 4-2. Seguin fought off Oshie's strong backcheck and passed the puck to Duchene in the slot.
Save of the game: Less than two minutes after Duchene scored, Crawford made a great glove save on a hard shot by van Riemsdyk from the left wing.
Unsung moment of the game: Babcock moved Seguin between Duchene and wing Joe Thornton in Claude Giroux's spot and that resulted in Seguin combining with Duchene for that fourth goal. "I thought that was important putting Seguin back in the middle tonight," Babcock said. "I thought it helped give him a little tempo, a little speed. That was positive."
Highlight moment of the game: Thirty-eight seconds into the second period, Carlson scored on a perfectly executed one-timer with Team USA on a two-man advantage, making it 3-2. Carlson's hard shot off Kane's perfect setup beat Holtby to the stick side.
CUBS: Cubs move closer to clinching NL Central with win over Astros..
By Associated Press
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Jorge Soler and Addison Russell homered to lead Chicago to a 9-5 win over the Houston Astros on Sunday night, moving the Cubs closer to clinching the NL Central.
Soler hit a solo home run as part of Chicago’s four-run third, and Russell hit a two-run shot — his 20th of the season — in the fourth as the Cubs built a 9-0 lead.
Chicago extended its lead in the NL Central to 16 games over St. Louis.
Houston fell 9 1/2 games behind Texas in the AL West and 3 1/2 back of Toronto and Baltimore in the wild-card race.
Jake Arrieta (17-6) allowed three runs on four hits with three strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings.
Jose Altuve, Yulieski Gurriel and Evan Gattis hit solo homers for the Astros. Mike Fiers (10-7) was tagged for seven runs on seven hits in 2 1/3 innings.
Cubs will keep their foot on the gas pedal with chance to clinch in St. Louis.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The Cubs celebrate every win with loud music and dance moves, the fog machine pumping so much that it sometimes sets off the fire alarms inside Wrigley Field’s underground clubhouse. So imagine how much this group would love to clinch the division at Busch Stadium, party in front of The Best Fans in Baseball and trash the visiting clubhouse, spraying bottles of champagne everywhere and dumping beers all over each other.The St. Louis Cardinals are still the gold standard in the National League Central, and would be a dangerous team in a best-of-five series – if they can make the playoffs and win the wild-card game. The Cubs actually have a losing record (6-7) against the Cardinals, a hard-to-read, bridge-year team with a losing record (32-39) at home. With the magic number at five, it would take a three-game sweep for the Cubs to fly back to Chicago on Wednesday night as division champs.
“We’ve proved that regardless of what our lead is, we got the gas pedal down,” second baseman Ben Zobrist said. “I don’t see anybody letting up.”
Clinching at Busch Stadium would be an exclamation point to the Cubs eliminating the Cardinals from last year’s playoffs and signing Jason Heyward and John Lackey as part of a $290 million spending spree – or another middle finger in a heated rivalry that began in 1892 and has seen St. Louis win 11 World Series titles.
Cubs manager Joe Maddon, who grew up as a Cardinals fan in Pennsylvania’s coal-mining territory, used his first year on the job to play mind games with St. Louis (“I don’t know if Tony Soprano was in the dugout…we’re not going to put up with that from them or anybody else”) and emphasize how a young team needed to go into hostile environments and learn how to win, the way his Tampa Bay Rays teams couldn’t become intimidated in Yankee Stadium and Fenway Park.
Except for misunderstandings between Cubs fans wearing his “Try Not To Suck” T-shirts in April – and ushers enforcing ballpark policy on clothing with explicit language – Maddon has mostly let his team do the talking at Busch Stadium. The 2016 Cubs are a fully formed contender with blue-chip talent, a relentless attitude and a unique clubhouse culture.
“I anticipate hair on fire,” Maddon said. “I don’t care what our record indicates – I expect our guys to go out there and play the game right.
“From spring training right to now, man, I’ve been really pleased and impressed with our ability to come ready to play every night.”
The Cubs responded to their worst month (12-14 in July) with their best month (22-6 in August), giving them a chance to clinch before Week 2 in the NFL, in a division that produced three teams with at least 97 wins last year.
As much as the Cubs feasted on the rebuilding/tanking Milwaukee Brewers and Cincinnati Reds (20-8), they also ruined 2016 for the Pittsburgh Pirates (winning 12 of those 15 division games) and won the season series against the Washington Nationals, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Francisco Giants.
“I don’t think that anybody is looking at where we’re at and celebrating,” Zobrist said. “We celebrate after the wins, one at a time. But outside of that, we know that there’s a lot of work to do. We come to play every day. And we come to get better every day.
And we feel like our work is still a long ways from over.”
Zobrist earned a World Series ring last year with the Kansas City Royals and had been a key piece of the Rays team that shocked the baseball world by winning the 2008 American League pennant. The Cubs wanted that focus and experience to help them get back to October.
“The contributions are coming from everywhere, so everybody wants a piece of the pie,” Zobrist said. “In a way, you feel like if you haven’t done anything recently, you haven’t done anything, because there’s so much good play happening around the clubhouse here.
“You look at the starters, to the relievers, to the starting position players, to the bench players, there’s been contributions everywhere. So everybody’s kind of hungry to contribute and do what they can and prove that they (belong) on that postseason roster.
“That’s a good thing. That’s a good problem to have.”
The Cubs have lined up their rotation for St. Louis with two Cy Young Award candidates going on Monday night (Kyle Hendricks) and Wednesday afternoon (Jon Lester), with Jason Hammel in between trying to show he’s a viable option for the playoffs. A Cardinals team that’s a half-game out of a wild-card spot will try to keep pace with Mike Leake (9-9, 4.61 ERA), Jaime Garcia (10-12, 4.58 ERA) and Carlos Martinez (14-7, 3.05 ERA).
Whether or not it happens near the Gateway Arch, it’s almost time for the Cubs to get their goggles ready.
“We haven’t slowed down since Day 1,” Hammel said, “so there’s really no reason to see why we would now.”
WHITE SOX: Chris Sale sets franchise record but White Sox get shut out by Royals.
By Paul Roumeliotis
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Chris Sale set a new franchise record on Sunday afternoon by becoming the first White Sox pitcher to have 200-plus strikeouts in four consecutive seasons, but the White Sox offense had only two hits in their 2-0 loss to the Kansas City Royals at U.S. Cellular Field in front of 20,107.
The White Sox ace fanned 12 more batters, increasing his strikeout total to 205 this season. Max Scherzer is the only other pitcher with 200-plus strikeouts in each of his last four seasons, according to CSN stats guru Chris Kamka.
Sale enjoys the accomplishment, but his mind is taking him somewhere else.
"I don't want to act like it's not cool or like I'm unappreciative of it, but there's not a single part of me that wouldn't give all that to be in the playoffs four years in a row," he said.
It was Sale’s 34th career game with 10-plus strikeouts, also a team record. He has twice as many than Ed Walsh, who is second on the list with 17, according to Kamka. Sale believes that this is the strongest he's ever been at this time of year.
"I feel good. There was a lot of work that went into that, not only by myself but people I'm surrounded by," Sale said. "It starts in the offseason and then gets into spring training. I like where we're at right now, the way my body's feeling and how it's reacting. You just try to keep riding it out."
Sale pitched eight solid innings and allowed two runs – both solo homers – on eight hits and one walk. Homers came from Kendrys Morales in the second and Eric Hosmer in the sixth. Hosmer’s home run was the third of his career off Sale, the most the White Sox southpaw has allowed by a left-hander.
The White Sox are 2-8 in Sale’s 10 starts since the All-Star break despite nine being quality starts. Sunday’s outing lowered his overall ERA to 3.03 on the season.
With three or four starts remaining, manager Robin Ventura thinks Sale still has a shot to win the American League Cy Young Award. As for Sale, he's not really thinking about it.
"Like I said before, I let all that stuff work itself out," Sale said. "I go up there and I pitch for this team, and I pitch for my teammates and the fans and myself. Anything other than that, I don't worry about it."
Sale (15-8) pitched himself out of a couple big jams in the fifth and seventh. He allowed the first two batters to get on in the fifth, but struck out the next three to escape the inning unscathed. Again in the seventh, Sale gave up a single and a double to lead off the inning. But he struck out the next batter and forced a double play to end the inning.
"He gets in a jam he can strike people out," Ventura said. "I think that’s where he reaches for a little bit more and goes after. I think his slider is sharper at that point. He’s learned to kind of pace himself and go along but he always has the ability to strike people out. That’s what makes him dangerous, that’s what makes him good.
"For him to wiggle himself out of it, he doesn’t need anybody else to help him with that. He can do it."
The White Sox offense didn’t do him any favors, either.
Their only two hits of the afternoon came from Adam Eaton – in the first and ninth inning. The White Sox bats were shut down for a majority of the game.
"(Royals starter Ian Kennedy) was working the corners really well," Eaton said. "Working the corners, doing what he does. He sinks it, he cuts it and he's got a good curveball. That kept us off-balance today. That's no excuse. Sale goes out and pitches a heck of a game, does what he does, we need to scrap across a few runs.
"We've been swinging the bats well, though. Not to say that one day out of five we can falter. With that being said, we've got to do better for Sale."
The White Sox ace fanned 12 more batters, increasing his strikeout total to 205 this season. Max Scherzer is the only other pitcher with 200-plus strikeouts in each of his last four seasons, according to CSN stats guru Chris Kamka.
Sale enjoys the accomplishment, but his mind is taking him somewhere else.
"I don't want to act like it's not cool or like I'm unappreciative of it, but there's not a single part of me that wouldn't give all that to be in the playoffs four years in a row," he said.
It was Sale’s 34th career game with 10-plus strikeouts, also a team record. He has twice as many than Ed Walsh, who is second on the list with 17, according to Kamka. Sale believes that this is the strongest he's ever been at this time of year.
"I feel good. There was a lot of work that went into that, not only by myself but people I'm surrounded by," Sale said. "It starts in the offseason and then gets into spring training. I like where we're at right now, the way my body's feeling and how it's reacting. You just try to keep riding it out."
Sale pitched eight solid innings and allowed two runs – both solo homers – on eight hits and one walk. Homers came from Kendrys Morales in the second and Eric Hosmer in the sixth. Hosmer’s home run was the third of his career off Sale, the most the White Sox southpaw has allowed by a left-hander.
The White Sox are 2-8 in Sale’s 10 starts since the All-Star break despite nine being quality starts. Sunday’s outing lowered his overall ERA to 3.03 on the season.
With three or four starts remaining, manager Robin Ventura thinks Sale still has a shot to win the American League Cy Young Award. As for Sale, he's not really thinking about it.
"Like I said before, I let all that stuff work itself out," Sale said. "I go up there and I pitch for this team, and I pitch for my teammates and the fans and myself. Anything other than that, I don't worry about it."
Sale (15-8) pitched himself out of a couple big jams in the fifth and seventh. He allowed the first two batters to get on in the fifth, but struck out the next three to escape the inning unscathed. Again in the seventh, Sale gave up a single and a double to lead off the inning. But he struck out the next batter and forced a double play to end the inning.
"He gets in a jam he can strike people out," Ventura said. "I think that’s where he reaches for a little bit more and goes after. I think his slider is sharper at that point. He’s learned to kind of pace himself and go along but he always has the ability to strike people out. That’s what makes him dangerous, that’s what makes him good.
"For him to wiggle himself out of it, he doesn’t need anybody else to help him with that. He can do it."
The White Sox offense didn’t do him any favors, either.
Their only two hits of the afternoon came from Adam Eaton – in the first and ninth inning. The White Sox bats were shut down for a majority of the game.
"(Royals starter Ian Kennedy) was working the corners really well," Eaton said. "Working the corners, doing what he does. He sinks it, he cuts it and he's got a good curveball. That kept us off-balance today. That's no excuse. Sale goes out and pitches a heck of a game, does what he does, we need to scrap across a few runs.
"We've been swinging the bats well, though. Not to say that one day out of five we can falter. With that being said, we've got to do better for Sale."
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session..... This is a big year for Doug McDermott.
By Jay Patt
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(Photo/Mike DiNovo-USA TODAY Sports)
Doug McDermott’s first two seasons with the Chicago Bulls were mostly underwhelming, especially considering his age and the loot the Bulls gave up to acquire him on draft night in 2014. The first year wasn’t entirely his fault as he underwent knee surgery in the middle of the season and was stapled to the bench when he returned, but he was also really bad when he did play, so Tom Thibodeau’s reasoning for keeping him pinned to said bench was at least justified.
Last season saw some tangible improvement, mostly in regards to his three-point shooting. He shot 42.5 percent from long range and had several games where the “McBuckets” moniker was truly apt. (Hi, Trashtors!)
Last season saw some tangible improvement, mostly in regards to his three-point shooting. He shot 42.5 percent from long range and had several games where the “McBuckets” moniker was truly apt. (Hi, Trashtors!)
However, Dougie still left a lot to be desired, unless your thing is watching Vines of a clueless defender running around like his head was cut off. McDermott can still be a somewhat useful player if all he ever provides is elite three-point shooting (that rings even more true on a Bulls squad that’ll sorely need his outside shooting), but Ian Levy over at Nylon Calculus outlined yesterday some specific aspects of his game that need improvement if he wants to make a significant leap in his pivotal third season in the league.
McDermott’s defense obviously needs a lot of work, and maybe those offseason workouts with Jimmy Butler will help in that regard. McDermott’s defense is so bad that even an improvement to slightly below average or merely mediocre would be a big plus. Levy of course pointed out that that kind of improvement is necessary for McDermott to be “an important player on a good team,” but he also noted that Doug needs to make his offensive game more well-rounded:
Although McDermott shot a robust 42.5 percent on three-pointers last season on a high number of attempts, he didn’t offer much else on the offensive end. He had nearly as many turnovers (53) as assists (59) and shot 55.4 percent inside the restricted area, 152nd of 186 players with at least 150 attempts in that area.
If we look at granular usage statistics, McDermott used just 26 possessions as the ball-handler in the pick-and-roll, just 21 in post-ups and less than 10 as the screener in the pick-and-roll. Almost all of McDermott’s half-court offensive opportunities were spotting up or coming off screens and curls. His jump shot was reliable this season but he had less than 100 drives on the entire season and shot just 39.1 percent on those drives — a reflection of how ineffective he was attacking closeouts or doing something other than shooting off the catch.
All these numbers, plus his poor rebound/steal/block rates, back up the assertion of many that McDermott really doesn’t do anything besides shoot it well from outside. (I will admit he had some sweet dunks last year.) And if McDermott wants to make a significant impact on a really good team, he’ll have to develop some of his other skills. Levy brought up the Kyle Korver/J.J. Redick comparisons, which I don’t like but are inevitable, and pointed out how both guys turned into true impact players by becoming capable passers, defenders and finishers around the basket, among other things, to go along with their elite shooting.
Of course, a big question is what kind of opportunities McDermott will get on this Bulls roster. As mentioned, his already elite skill, spot-up shooting, will be vital to Chicago. But will he get more chances in some of these other areas?
I’m doubting we see him used much as a ball handler given the other ones on the team, but the Bulls should look at getting him more chances in the post when the matchups call for it, and using him as a screener in screen-and-pop situations could be deadly. An increase in drives off the catch when defenders close out hard on him would also be helpful (plus, you know, finishing), and that could also lead to more free throw attempts.
It’d be a huge boon to the Bulls if McDermott can develop some of these skills and be a legitimate positive player rather than a liability who can occasionally get hot with his jumper. But if all else fails, he just needs to fire away from three as much as possible to justify playing him significant minutes. I’m talking like five or six three-pointers a game, because if the development in those other areas doesn’t come, what’s the point of playing him?
Golf: I got a club for that..... D. Johnson cruises to 3-shot win at BMW.By Will Gray
(Photo/nbcsports.com)
After overpowering Crooked Stick for four straight days, Dustin Johnson has his third win of the season. Here's how things ended up at the BMW Championship, where Johnson cruised to a three-shot victory:
Leaderboard: Dustin Johnson (-23), Paul Casey (-20), Roberto Castro (-17), Adam Scott (-12), Matt Kuchar (-12), Charl Schwartzel (-12), Ryan Palmer (-12)
What it means: Johnson opened the day with a three-shot lead, but two bogeys over his first three holes allowed Casey to catch up. Johnson reeled off four birdies in the next five holes to regain his advantage, then closed things out with an eagle on No. 15. This is Johnson's third title of the year, likely inching him closer to Player of the Year honors, while Casey was a runner-up for the second straight week, and Castro's finish was enough to get him back to East Lake.
Round of the day: A back-nine rally earned Schwartzel a trip to the season's final event. The South African entered the week at No. 43, but after an 8-under 64 he snuck in as the final player in the 30-man field by less than a point over Rickie Fowler. A winner earlier this year in Tampa, Schwartzel made the turn in 3-under 33 before reeling off five birdies in a seven-hole stretch from Nos. 11-17.
Best of the rest: It wasn't the lowest score, but Castro's 5-under 67 made the biggest difference since it clinched his spot at the Tour Championship. Castro quickly shook off a third-round 74 by making the turn in 32, and after starting the week at No. 53, he heads to Atlanta No. 21 in the FedEx Cup race. One year after reclaiming his card at the Web.com Tour Finals, Castro will play just a few miles down the road from his alma mater, Georgia Tech, in two weeks.
Biggest disappointment: World No. 1 Jason Day withdrew after just eight holes of the final round and his status for the Tour Championship is officially in doubt. Day has a long history of battling both injury and illness, and his agent indicated that the Aussie is now dealing with a pinched joint capsule in his lower back that is causing muscle spasms.
Shot of the day: After Casey rolled in a 25-foot eagle putt on No. 15, Johnson stepped up and coolly made an 18-foot eagle putt of his own. The response maintained his three-shot lead and allowed Johnson a stress-free walk over the final three holes.
Quote of the day: "I've got a lot of confidence in every part of my game, especially all the work I've put into my wedges, it's really paid off this year. This week, the putter really worked." - Johnson, who put a new putter into play for Thursday's opening round.
Leaderboard: Dustin Johnson (-23), Paul Casey (-20), Roberto Castro (-17), Adam Scott (-12), Matt Kuchar (-12), Charl Schwartzel (-12), Ryan Palmer (-12)
What it means: Johnson opened the day with a three-shot lead, but two bogeys over his first three holes allowed Casey to catch up. Johnson reeled off four birdies in the next five holes to regain his advantage, then closed things out with an eagle on No. 15. This is Johnson's third title of the year, likely inching him closer to Player of the Year honors, while Casey was a runner-up for the second straight week, and Castro's finish was enough to get him back to East Lake.
Round of the day: A back-nine rally earned Schwartzel a trip to the season's final event. The South African entered the week at No. 43, but after an 8-under 64 he snuck in as the final player in the 30-man field by less than a point over Rickie Fowler. A winner earlier this year in Tampa, Schwartzel made the turn in 3-under 33 before reeling off five birdies in a seven-hole stretch from Nos. 11-17.
Best of the rest: It wasn't the lowest score, but Castro's 5-under 67 made the biggest difference since it clinched his spot at the Tour Championship. Castro quickly shook off a third-round 74 by making the turn in 32, and after starting the week at No. 53, he heads to Atlanta No. 21 in the FedEx Cup race. One year after reclaiming his card at the Web.com Tour Finals, Castro will play just a few miles down the road from his alma mater, Georgia Tech, in two weeks.
Biggest disappointment: World No. 1 Jason Day withdrew after just eight holes of the final round and his status for the Tour Championship is officially in doubt. Day has a long history of battling both injury and illness, and his agent indicated that the Aussie is now dealing with a pinched joint capsule in his lower back that is causing muscle spasms.
Shot of the day: After Casey rolled in a 25-foot eagle putt on No. 15, Johnson stepped up and coolly made an 18-foot eagle putt of his own. The response maintained his three-shot lead and allowed Johnson a stress-free walk over the final three holes.
Quote of the day: "I've got a lot of confidence in every part of my game, especially all the work I've put into my wedges, it's really paid off this year. This week, the putter really worked." - Johnson, who put a new putter into play for Thursday's opening round.
Mickelson: U.S.A. has 'real game plan' for Ryder Cup.
By Ryan Lavner
(Photo/nbcsports.com)
U.S. Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III will announce three of his four wildcard picks Monday morning, but Phil Mickelson insinuated Sunday that the decision has already been made.
Perhaps even weeks ago.
Mickelson said that the difference with this team is that the Americans have a "real game plan" which suggests that Love isn't waiting until the 11th hour to make a decision.
“We know who is going to be playing with who, when they’re going to be playing, what matches,” Mickelson said.
The 12-man European Ryder Cup team was announced Aug. 29. Rory McIlroy said recently that it was a “little strange” that the Americans are waiting so long to finalize the team – three of the four picks are made Monday, with Love reserving the final selection until Sept. 25, after the final round of the Tour Championship.
Mickelson described the protracted process as merely a “contingency” plan.
“Just in case somebody gets really hot,” he said, “we still have the option to add somebody that we didn’t expect to play at that level and we want to ride the hot hand.”
Ryder Cup 2016: Breaking down Team USA's potential captain's picks.
Sporting News
Matt Kuchar, Bubba Watson and Rickie Fowler are the biggest American names still without a spot on the Ryder Cup team.
Unites States Ryder Cup captain Davis Love III will make three of his four roster picks after the conclusion of the BMW Championship, and fans have been waiting with bated breath for the big reveal.
NASCAR: Denny Hamlin wins at Richmond as Chase field is set.
By Jay Busbee
Denny Hamlin (Photo/Getty Images)
It wasn’t pretty, but for Chris Buescher, Austin Dillon and Chase Elliott, the Federated Auto Parts 400 will rank as one of the loveliest races of their lives.
None of them won the caution-filled tire skrag that was the Saturday night Richmond race—that honor went to Denny Hamlin—but all three of them will make their very first Chase for the Sprint Cup, sweating out a 400-lap race that was, by turns, infuriating and exhilarating.
Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin cemented their status as two favorites for the Chase, dueling right on through overtime. Hamlin.
Martin Truex Jr. and Denny Hamlin cemented their status as two favorites for the Chase, dueling right on through overtime. Hamlin.
The Chase scenarios coming into the race broke down this way:
-Chris Buescher, the first driver ever to be in danger of missing the Chase for slipping out of the top 30, held an 11-point lead over David Ragan for 30th place, meaning his easiest route to a Chase spot was finishing 11 points ahead of Ragan.
-Chase Elliott and Austin Dillon sat 18 and 9 points ahead of Jamie McMurray in the 16th and final Chase position; Ryan Newman was 22 points behind McMurray thanks to a penalty levied earlier in the week.
-Kasey Kahne, Ryan Blaney, and AJ Allmendinger all entered the night more than one full race’s worth of points behind the 16th position, and each, among many others, needed a victory to reach the Chase.
One by one, though, the challengers fell out of the hunt. Blaney skipped up into the wall on Lap 10, heavily damaging the rear of the car. Allmendinger spun on Lap 86. Kahne suffered a speeding penalty on pit road, the same place where Newman found himself pinned in behind Denny Hamlin.
Kyle Larson, who very nearly caught Hamlin at the end of the race, is the fourth rookie to make the Chase this year.
Kevin Harvick ends NASCAR regular season as point leader.
Kelly Crandall
Harvick leads the series with 21 top-10 finishes, including a fifth-place finish Saturday at Richmond International Raceway. He leads the points by 42 over Brad Keselowski.
Twelve drivers inside the top 20 in points changed positions following the Federated Auto Parts 400.
SOCCER: Fire come up short in comeback bid against Toronto.
By Dan Santaromita
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
David Accam has been a difference maker all season for the Chicago Fire and that continued Saturday.
The problem was Accam didn't start the match and by the time he entered the match the Fire trailed by two goals. Toronto came to Toyota Park and left with a 2-1 victory.
The problem was Accam didn't start the match and by the time he entered the match the Fire trailed by two goals. Toronto came to Toyota Park and left with a 2-1 victory.
Accam returned this week after playing two games for Ghana, most recently a substitute appearance in Russia on Tuesday. Coach Veljko Paunovic inserted Accam in the 56th minute and he made an immediate impact.
Accam dribbled into the box and found John Goossens just two minutes after subbing on. After a deflection, Michael de Leeuw, ever the opportunist, was there to head in the loose ball.
Not starting a player fresh off international duty has been mostly common practice for Paunovic this season so it wasn't necessarily a surprise or controversial decision. Still, when asked if starting Accam would have made a difference in the result, Paunovic admitted it "probably would have."
"But that’s something we can’t go back and regret because the decision was common," Paunovic said. "We spoke before the game. David said that after the break with the national team and the long travel, he didn’t feel like starting and that’s it. We want our guys to participate in the decision."
Accam said he is always ready, but did not complain about coming off the bench.
“I feel great and for me I was happy to go on the pitch to help the team, but it wasn’t enough," Accam said. "For me personally I feel really good.”
Jozy Altidore stayed hot with his sixth goal in eight games to give Toronto (13-8-7, 46 points) the lead. Fire forward Luis Solignac drew a reaction from the home crowd when he danced around the ball to get free in Toronto’s half, but he immediately followed that up with a bad pass that allowed Toronto to counter. TFC’s Tosaint Ricketts later centered a ball to Altidore, who tucked it away for the opening goal in the 33rd minute.
Toronto doubled the lead in the second half with one Sean Johnson will want to forget. The Fire goalkeeper had no pressure on him and had the ball in his hands, but his throw went right to Altidore, who teed up Jonathan Osorio for the finish into the open net.
The Fire (6-13-8, 26 points) pressed for the equalizer, but were not able to score again against the league’s second stingiest defense. The Fire have 57 percent possession, a season-high, and had nine shots, three on target, in the second half.
“It’s of course a downer because I think the first half we played very well," de Leeuw said. "We created chances. At the end we did this to ourselves."
Toronto took the lead in the Eastern Conference while the Fire missed out on three much-needed points. The Fire had a 12-match unbeaten streak at home between MLS play and the U.S. Open Cup.
Premier League roundup: Derby delight for Man City; Spurs, Liverpool win in routs.
By Andy Edwards
(Photo by Alex Livesey/Getty Images)
A roundup of all of Saturday’s action in the Premier League…
Manchester United 1-2 Manchester City — FULL RECAP
Saturday’s Manchester derby lived up to every bit of the two weeks’ worth of hype, and maybe more. There were no fisticuffs between Jose Mourinho and Pep Guardiola — only a warm embrace and a pair of handshakes — but the two sides more than made up for it on the field, particular in a first half that saw all three goals scored in a span of 27 minutes. Kevin De Bruyne scored the opener, and then nearly Man City’s second if not for striking the post to set up Kelechi Iheanacho for the tap-in. Zlatan Ibrahimovic answered with an effortless side-volley (WATCH HERE) not long before halftime, but that’s as close as the Red Devils would get.
Stoke City 0-4 Tottenham Hotspur — FULL RECAP
Seemingly nothing has changed since Tottenham were 4-0 victors away to Stoke last April. Mauricio Pochettino‘s side simply overwhelmed Mark Hughes‘ Potters in sending out a fair warning to the rest of the PL: “Excuse us, please don’t forget about us.” Heung Min-Son bagged a brace with a goal either side of halftime, and Dele Alli and Harry Kane each scored their first goal of the season. Spurs are the only side to have conceded just two goals through their first four games of the season (both Chelsea and Everton have conceded two through three games).
Liverpool 4-1 Leicester City — FULL RECAP
Jurgen Klopp‘s Reds are downright terrifying, once in full-flight. We saw it on the opening day of the season, and we saw it again on Saturday. The defending champions looked a shell of the title-winning side of last season, again, as Roberto Firmino (twice), Sadio Mane and Adam Lallana blitzed them for four goals, two on either side of halftime.
Arsenal 2-1 Southampton — FULL RECAP
Arsenal came from 1-0 down to top Saints in controversial fashion (you’ll have to judge for yourself) and keep pace with Spurs, Liverpool and Man United in the race for the top four. Laurent Koscileny was the scorer of perhaps the most unlikely bicycle-kick goal of all time, but only after the Gunners went a goal behind when Dusan Tadic‘s free kick found the back of the neck via Petr Cech‘s back, via the crossbar.
West Ham United 2-4 Watford — FULL RECAP
West Ham went 2-0 up on Watford after Dimitri Payet‘s ridiculous rabona assist (just click the link below already), and that was the last time a professional footballer wearing claret and blue was seen all day. Odion Ighalo and Troy Deeney brought the Hornets back to 2-2 in a five-minute stretch just before halftime, and Etienne Capoue and Jose Holebas bagged their side’s third and fourth goals, respectively, after halftime.
Middlesbrough 1-2 Crystal Palace — FULL RECAP
Christian Benteke opened his goalscoring account for Crystal Palace on Saturday, heading home Wilfried Zaha‘s delicately lofted cross for the game’s opening goal in the 16th minute. Boro hit back through Daniel Ayala in the 38th minute, but Zaha grabbed what proved to be the winning goal in the 47th minute, a powerful left-footed striker from the top of the penalty area which Victor Valdes hadn’t the faintest hope of saving.
Bournemouth 1-0 West Bromwich Albion — FULL RECAP
Bournemouth striker Callum Wilson is back from the torn ACL that cut short his promising 2015-16 season, and looking once again like the man who scored five goals in seven games a year ago. Saturday’s late winner, which came via the deftest, silkiest, smoothest of backheel flicks in the 79th minute, was the 24-year-old’s first goal of the season.
Burnley 1-1 Hull City — FULL RECAP
The season is only four games old (10.5 percent of games played), and Hull (7 points) are already 17.5 percent of the way to the magical marker of 40 points, at which point they’ll be nearly impossible to relegate. On Saturday, Mike Phelan’s side looked destined for their second straight defeat after winning back-to-back games to begin the season, but Robert Snodgrass scored a 94th-minute equalizer to salvage a draw and inch the Tigers one point closer to safety.
La Liga roundup: Valencia loses again, Sporting Gijon continues strong start.
By Kyle Bonn
(Photo/Getty Images)
The La Liga season is just three matches old, but already one Spanish team is in a deep dark place, while the other has surged to new heights.
Valencia remains without a single point after falling at the death to Real Betis at home. Pako Ayestaran’s squad fell two goals and a man down just after halftime, but completed a stunning comeback with goals from Rodrigo and Ezequiel Garay to even things up. Unfortunately, it wouldn’t hold as Ruben Castro found himself inexplicably wide open at the far post and grabbed his second of the game two minutes into stoppage time to give Betis the 3-2 road win.
After finishing a disappointing 12th last year, Valencia fans would have thought that was rock bottom, but the club continues to slide deeper into the depths of La Liga. They will take on Athletic Bilbao next weekend, another club without a point thus far.
While Valencia struggles, Sporting Gijon continued its strong start with a 2-1 home win over newly promoted Leganes thanks to a pair of first-half goals from Nacho Cases and Duje Cop. Sporting narrowly avoided relegation last season, finishing 17th, but are unbeaten through three matches this season and sit on seven points.
Elsewhere, Eibar defeated Granada 2-1 despite falling to 10 men after just a half-hour.
Eibar goalkeeper Asier Riesgo was sent off in the 32nd minute, but Pedro Leon opened the scoring just 11 minutes later, and Sergi Enrich hit the winner in the 93rd minute, beating Guillermo Ochoa one-on-one from a tight angle to earn all three points. The win gives Eibar six points through three matches, while Granada has just a single point thus far.
After finishing a disappointing 12th last year, Valencia fans would have thought that was rock bottom, but the club continues to slide deeper into the depths of La Liga. They will take on Athletic Bilbao next weekend, another club without a point thus far.
While Valencia struggles, Sporting Gijon continued its strong start with a 2-1 home win over newly promoted Leganes thanks to a pair of first-half goals from Nacho Cases and Duje Cop. Sporting narrowly avoided relegation last season, finishing 17th, but are unbeaten through three matches this season and sit on seven points.
Elsewhere, Eibar defeated Granada 2-1 despite falling to 10 men after just a half-hour.
Eibar goalkeeper Asier Riesgo was sent off in the 32nd minute, but Pedro Leon opened the scoring just 11 minutes later, and Sergi Enrich hit the winner in the 93rd minute, beating Guillermo Ochoa one-on-one from a tight angle to earn all three points. The win gives Eibar six points through three matches, while Granada has just a single point thus far.
Swansea City 2-2 Chelsea: Costa bicycle kick rescues error-prone Blues.
By Kyle Bonn
(Photo/nbcsports.com)
Some things change, some stay the same. Chelsea may have a new manager, but Diego Costa will always be in the spotlight.
The Brazilian striker hit twice at the Liberty Stadium, the second an acrobatic bicycle kick that drew Chelsea level and rescued an error-prone Blues defense after two goals in three minutes had put Swansea stunningly ahead.
Chelsea had a nervous start to the match, but claimed the first dangerous moment 10 minutes in as Willian delivered a low cross into the box that Lukas Fabianski had to lay out to smother. The Blues would build as the game progressed, and took their lead 18 minutes in. The home side failed to clear as the ball pinged around the air in Swansea’s penalty area, and Oscar cut the ball across the top of the box to Costa who buried the opener.
The Swans had their best chance as Gylfi Sigurdsson whipped a long effort just wide. With the game lively only in little spurts, Swansea made a first-half change that appeared nothing more than tactical, bringing on Modou Barrow in favor of Neil Taylor. The Welsh international was visibly angry about being removed so early, rejecting a handshake from manager Francesco Guidolin in the bench and appearing quite heated.
Chelsea should have had a second but Costa registered a horrific miss. John Terry put in a beautiful flick across the face of goal, and Costa found himself unmarked on the far post for an easy tap-in, but somehow he missed the wide-open net, instead redirecting the ball back across the box.
Into the second half, yellow cards began to accumulate and the game started to boil over, forcing referee Anthony Taylor to have a chat with a number of players. Following a few uneasy moments, Swansea completed a stunning charge to take the lead.
A long ball by Barrow over the top sprung Gylfi Sigurdsson, and with nobody back, Thibaut Courtois came off his line to contest. As the ball swung along the edge of the box, Courtois realized he couldn’t use his hands to prevent the chance, so he attempted a tackle and brought down the Iceland international. With the foul just inside the box, the referee pointed to the spot, and Sigurdsson buried the spot-kick.
Just moments later, Swansea had the lead, although not without controversy. Gary Cahill sat on the ball just a few moments too long, and Leroy Fer charged him down and disposed the defender. Fer then beat Courtois one-on-one, trickling the ball into the back of the net. On replay, it appeared Fer’s thievery of Cahill was nothing more than a clear foul, hacking at the defender’s calves without contact on the ball, but the referee was unmoved.
The game exploded from that moment. Chelsea charged down the other end looking to right the ship, and Fabianski brought down Costa at the edge of the box, but no call was made. The Brazilian then fired an ambitious effort from a fair distance away that nearly found the top corner, but weaved just high.
The Blues continued to bomb forward, and they would earn an equalizer. Branislav Ivanovic weaved his way into the box, and his cross deflected high into the air, handing Costa the opportunity to bury a bicycle kick, which he did emphatically in the 81st minute. Both teams searched brightly for a winner in a wild end-to-end finish, but neither goalkeeper would relent. The draw marks the first dropped points of the season for Chelsea, but a point for Swansea doubles their season total thus far.
NCAAFB: 2016 NCAA Associated Press Football Rankings, 09/11/2016.
Associated Press
| RANK | SCHOOL (1ST VOTES) | POINTS | RECORD | PREVIOUS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Alabama (56) | 1,520 | 2-0 | 1 |
| 2 | Florida State (4) | 1,437 | 2-0 | 3 |
| 3 | Ohio State | 1,359 | 2-0 | 4 |
| 4 | Michigan (1) | 1,298 | 2-0 | 5 |
| 5 | Clemson | 1,284 | 2-0 | 2 |
| 6 | Houston | 1,264 | 2-0 | 6 |
| 7 | Stanford | 1,137 | 1-0 | 7 |
| 8 | Washington | 983 | 2-0 | 8 |
| 9 | Wisconsin | 893 | 2-0 | 10 |
| 10 | Louisville | 890 | 2-0 | 13 |
| 11 | Texas | 872 | 2-0 | 11 |
| 12 | Michigan State | 747 | 1-0 | 12 |
| 13 | Iowa | 694 | 2-0 | 16 |
| 14 | Oklahoma | 686 | 1-1 | 14 |
| 15 | Tennessee | 665 | 2-0 | 17 |
| 16 | Georgia | 584 | 2-0 | 9 |
| 17 | Texas A&M | 564 | 2-0 | 20 |
| 18 | Notre Dame | 526 | 1-1 | 18 |
| 19 | Ole Miss | 473 | 1-1 | 19 |
| 20 | LSU | 391 | 1-1 | 21 |
| 21 | Baylor | 305 | 2-0 | 23 |
| 22 | Oregon | 292 | 2-0 | 24 |
| 23 | Florida | 205 | 2-0 | NR |
| 24 | Arkansas | 198 | 2-0 | NR |
| 25 | Miami (Fla.) | 197 | 2-0 | 25 |
Dropped from rankings: TCU, Oklahoma State
Others receiving votes: TCU 62, Utah 62, San Diego St. 51, UCLA 47, Boise St. 42, Pittsburgh 39, Oklahoma St. 22, Nebraska 11, North Carolina 10, Auburn 7, Cent. Michigan 4, Colorado 2, Cincinnati 1, Arizona St. 1.
No. 17 Tennessee races past Virginia Tech in Battle at Bristol.
By Zach Barnett
It took a full game, an overtime and an extra quarter, but Tennessee finally arrived to the 2016 college football season. And now that they’re here… look out.
After a sloppy first quarter resulted in a 14-0 deficit, the 17th-ranked Volunteers raced past Virginia Tech for a 45-24 win in at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The Vols’ first three possessions lasted 10 plays — that’s one above the minimum, avoiding turnovers — while Virginia Tech mounted drives of 59, 62 and 77 yards, the last one largely a 69-yard Travon McMillan scoring jaunt. But, backed into their own territory, Virginia Tech botched a shotgun snap exchange and Tennessee recovered at the Hokies’ 5-yard line.
One play later, Tennessee cut the deficit to 14-7 on Josh Dobbs‘ first touchdown pass of the day. Four snaps after that, the Vols had shot 90 yards in four plays — largely on the strength of a 40-yard Dobbs dash and an on-the-money 38-yard scoring heave to Josh Malone — to tie the game. Another Virginia Tech fumble led to a short field goal drive, and Tennessee closed a blitzkrieg second quarter by moving 58 yards in nine plays to set up a 5-yard Dobbs touchdown run, turning a 14-0 hole to start the second quarter into a 24-14 lead at its close.
Dobbs’ third touchdown pass of the day, this one to Alvin Kamara, nudged the lead to 31-14 midway through the third quarter, and Virginia Tech at last stopped the bleeding with a Joey Slye 26-yard field goal on their next possession.
Any glimmer of Hokie hope evaporated with another lost fumble that turned into another Vols touchdown drive, and that pattern repeated itself one more time to push the lead to 45-17. Virginia Tech added a cosmetic score to close the scoring with 3:28 remaining.
Dobbs closed the night hitting 10-of-19 passing with three touchdowns and an interception while rushing 14 times for 106 yards and two more scores; Jalen Hurd added 22 carries for 99 yards.
Virginia Tech posted nice numbers offensively — 214 passing yards for Jerod Evans, 127 on the ground by McMillan — but five lost fumbles negated much of that progress.
Is there a dominant conference in college football in 2016? Results so far suggest no.
By Kevin McGuire
If you were to rank the conferences in a power ranking using whatever metric you chose, how would it look? Odds are you would place the SEC on top, because they are the SEC and anything lower than No. 1 would be uncivilized. But how would you rank the conferences after that? At this point, it may be safe to assume there is an argument to be made for and against just about every conference from No. 2 down to No. 5 among just the power conferences.
THE ACC
Overall, the ACC had itself a pretty decent weekend. Florida State was able to put a game on cruise control after coming alive against Ole Miss earlier in the week, and the conference picked up a pair of wins against the Big Ten with Pittsburgh defeating Penn State and North Carolina winning at Illinois. Clemson was sluggish but managed to avoid an upset as we continue to wonder just why Clemson is starting things off so slowly this season. But the losses took a toll on giving the ACC too much credit this week. Virginia Tech wasn’t able to bury Tennessee after taking a 14-0 lead in Bristol. North Carolina State lost on the road against East Carolina. Virginia traveled across the country and returned with an 0-2 record after losing at Oregon a week after being demolished at home by Richmond. The hits could keep on coming this week if the ACC is not careful. Miami visiting Appalachian State could be trickier than expected. Virginia is staring at a possible 0-3 at UConn (so long as the Huskies pay attention to the clock) and Duke has to travel to Northwestern, with the Wildcats now desperate for a win. Want a possible upset alert? How about Pittsburgh traveling to Oklahoma State? Speaking of the Big 12…
BIG 12
What’s up with the Big 12? We are two weeks in and already we have seen Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and TCU take a loss (even if the Oklahoma State loss should never have happened). The margin for error in the Big 12 in the College Football Playoff picture was already pretty thin as it was heading into the 2016 season, but with Ohio State coming to town to play Oklahoma and Pittsburgh visiting Oklahoma State, the Big 12 is in danger of a couple more potential losses to some teams expected to compete for the Big 12 title. Meanwhile, Texas is off to a good start but they hit the road to play California. This will be a good test for the Longhorns, who have jumped up the rankings quickly this season. A loss to the Longhorns would drop them down to Earth a little bit. Could the Big 12’s best playoff hope after this weekend fall on Baylor running the table? Do you trust Jim Grobe to lead the Bears to a 12-0 record?
BIG TEN
The hope for the Big Ten still falls on Ohio State and/or Michigan proving they are worth the hype. Neither has truly been tested yet, although that changes this week with the Buckeyes heading to Oklahoma. We’ll still have to wait a little longer for Michigan. Credit Wisconsin for getting the job done against LSU in the opener, but other than that there hasn’t been a tremendous amount to write home about for the Big Ten. Northwestern is 0-2 with home losses to Western Michigan and Illinois State. Penn State lost another in-state game on the road for a second straight season, this time against the ACC. Illinois also took a loss against the ACC. Iowa enters dangerous territory this week with mighty FCS giant North Dakota State looking to notch another victory against an FBS opponent. Nebraska will get a chance to boost the Big Ten a little bit this week at home against Oregon, and Michigan State travels to South Bend to face Notre Dame. To say this is an important week for the Big Ten is an understatement.
PAC-12
The season started off OK for the Pac-12, but the losses it took were tough to gloss over. USC was embarrassed by Alabama, and UCLA couldn’t finish the comeback against Texas A&M on the road. Meanwhile, Washington State is now 0-2 with losses to Eastern Washington and Boise State. Arizona was clipped by BYU, but Utah avenged that loss for the conference last night with a defensive stand to preserve the win. Overall, the Pac-12 turned in a good Week 2 despite a pair of losses to the Mountain West Conference on the road (Cal lost to San Diego State and Washington State’s road loss to Boise State). I’m still trying to figure out how Arizona trailed Grambling State 21-3 at the half (Arizona came back to win, 31-21). Some key games for the Pac-12 this week will see UCLA travel to BYU and Cal host Texas in addition to Oregon visiting Nebraska (and Colorado to Michigan). The biggest game, however, features USC hosting Stanford. Stanford is the team to beat in the Pac-12, but if USC chops them down, the Pac-12 could suddenly be on very thin ice in the playoff picture before getting into the bulk of the conference schedule.
SEC
Alabama aside, the SEC is still looking to gain some confidence points. Yes, the SEC won all the games it needed to this weekend, but Georgia being taken down to the wire by Nicholls State isn’t exactly going to go down as a quality win in anyone’s book. This is a conference that dropped seven games in the opening week and will later face some mismatches against ACC foes (Louisville-Kentucky, Clemson-South Carolina, Florida State-Florida?), and we haven’t even touched on conference play yet. Alabama has looked to be the strongest team in the country and they travel to Ole Miss this week. Ole Miss cracked against Florida State but still figures to be Alabama’s toughest test yet, and the game is in Oxford. An Ole Miss victory turns the entire SEC playoff outlook on its side, because it is unlikely anyone else in the SEC has what ti takes to go undefeated. An ole Miss victory would mean Alabama, LSU and Ole Miss each have a loss before October. Do you trust Tennessee to go 12-0, or 13-0? Or Florida? No, of course you do not.
So this is a fun season for college football, because there is no dominant force, other than Alabama I suppose. Every conference has holes, from coast to coast. That’s what we have learned through just two weeks of the college football season. Let’s see which conference does the best job plugging those holes.
With fans ready to buy in, it's clear Illini not 'ready for primetime' ... yet.
No. 17 Tennessee races past Virginia Tech in Battle at Bristol.
By Zach Barnett
(Photo/AP)
It took a full game, an overtime and an extra quarter, but Tennessee finally arrived to the 2016 college football season. And now that they’re here… look out.
After a sloppy first quarter resulted in a 14-0 deficit, the 17th-ranked Volunteers raced past Virginia Tech for a 45-24 win in at Bristol Motor Speedway.
The Vols’ first three possessions lasted 10 plays — that’s one above the minimum, avoiding turnovers — while Virginia Tech mounted drives of 59, 62 and 77 yards, the last one largely a 69-yard Travon McMillan scoring jaunt. But, backed into their own territory, Virginia Tech botched a shotgun snap exchange and Tennessee recovered at the Hokies’ 5-yard line.
One play later, Tennessee cut the deficit to 14-7 on Josh Dobbs‘ first touchdown pass of the day. Four snaps after that, the Vols had shot 90 yards in four plays — largely on the strength of a 40-yard Dobbs dash and an on-the-money 38-yard scoring heave to Josh Malone — to tie the game. Another Virginia Tech fumble led to a short field goal drive, and Tennessee closed a blitzkrieg second quarter by moving 58 yards in nine plays to set up a 5-yard Dobbs touchdown run, turning a 14-0 hole to start the second quarter into a 24-14 lead at its close.
Dobbs’ third touchdown pass of the day, this one to Alvin Kamara, nudged the lead to 31-14 midway through the third quarter, and Virginia Tech at last stopped the bleeding with a Joey Slye 26-yard field goal on their next possession.
Any glimmer of Hokie hope evaporated with another lost fumble that turned into another Vols touchdown drive, and that pattern repeated itself one more time to push the lead to 45-17. Virginia Tech added a cosmetic score to close the scoring with 3:28 remaining.
Dobbs closed the night hitting 10-of-19 passing with three touchdowns and an interception while rushing 14 times for 106 yards and two more scores; Jalen Hurd added 22 carries for 99 yards.
Virginia Tech posted nice numbers offensively — 214 passing yards for Jerod Evans, 127 on the ground by McMillan — but five lost fumbles negated much of that progress.
Is there a dominant conference in college football in 2016? Results so far suggest no.
By Kevin McGuire
If you were to rank the conferences in a power ranking using whatever metric you chose, how would it look? Odds are you would place the SEC on top, because they are the SEC and anything lower than No. 1 would be uncivilized. But how would you rank the conferences after that? At this point, it may be safe to assume there is an argument to be made for and against just about every conference from No. 2 down to No. 5 among just the power conferences.
THE ACC
Overall, the ACC had itself a pretty decent weekend. Florida State was able to put a game on cruise control after coming alive against Ole Miss earlier in the week, and the conference picked up a pair of wins against the Big Ten with Pittsburgh defeating Penn State and North Carolina winning at Illinois. Clemson was sluggish but managed to avoid an upset as we continue to wonder just why Clemson is starting things off so slowly this season. But the losses took a toll on giving the ACC too much credit this week. Virginia Tech wasn’t able to bury Tennessee after taking a 14-0 lead in Bristol. North Carolina State lost on the road against East Carolina. Virginia traveled across the country and returned with an 0-2 record after losing at Oregon a week after being demolished at home by Richmond. The hits could keep on coming this week if the ACC is not careful. Miami visiting Appalachian State could be trickier than expected. Virginia is staring at a possible 0-3 at UConn (so long as the Huskies pay attention to the clock) and Duke has to travel to Northwestern, with the Wildcats now desperate for a win. Want a possible upset alert? How about Pittsburgh traveling to Oklahoma State? Speaking of the Big 12…
BIG 12
What’s up with the Big 12? We are two weeks in and already we have seen Oklahoma, Oklahoma State and TCU take a loss (even if the Oklahoma State loss should never have happened). The margin for error in the Big 12 in the College Football Playoff picture was already pretty thin as it was heading into the 2016 season, but with Ohio State coming to town to play Oklahoma and Pittsburgh visiting Oklahoma State, the Big 12 is in danger of a couple more potential losses to some teams expected to compete for the Big 12 title. Meanwhile, Texas is off to a good start but they hit the road to play California. This will be a good test for the Longhorns, who have jumped up the rankings quickly this season. A loss to the Longhorns would drop them down to Earth a little bit. Could the Big 12’s best playoff hope after this weekend fall on Baylor running the table? Do you trust Jim Grobe to lead the Bears to a 12-0 record?
BIG TEN
The hope for the Big Ten still falls on Ohio State and/or Michigan proving they are worth the hype. Neither has truly been tested yet, although that changes this week with the Buckeyes heading to Oklahoma. We’ll still have to wait a little longer for Michigan. Credit Wisconsin for getting the job done against LSU in the opener, but other than that there hasn’t been a tremendous amount to write home about for the Big Ten. Northwestern is 0-2 with home losses to Western Michigan and Illinois State. Penn State lost another in-state game on the road for a second straight season, this time against the ACC. Illinois also took a loss against the ACC. Iowa enters dangerous territory this week with mighty FCS giant North Dakota State looking to notch another victory against an FBS opponent. Nebraska will get a chance to boost the Big Ten a little bit this week at home against Oregon, and Michigan State travels to South Bend to face Notre Dame. To say this is an important week for the Big Ten is an understatement.
PAC-12
The season started off OK for the Pac-12, but the losses it took were tough to gloss over. USC was embarrassed by Alabama, and UCLA couldn’t finish the comeback against Texas A&M on the road. Meanwhile, Washington State is now 0-2 with losses to Eastern Washington and Boise State. Arizona was clipped by BYU, but Utah avenged that loss for the conference last night with a defensive stand to preserve the win. Overall, the Pac-12 turned in a good Week 2 despite a pair of losses to the Mountain West Conference on the road (Cal lost to San Diego State and Washington State’s road loss to Boise State). I’m still trying to figure out how Arizona trailed Grambling State 21-3 at the half (Arizona came back to win, 31-21). Some key games for the Pac-12 this week will see UCLA travel to BYU and Cal host Texas in addition to Oregon visiting Nebraska (and Colorado to Michigan). The biggest game, however, features USC hosting Stanford. Stanford is the team to beat in the Pac-12, but if USC chops them down, the Pac-12 could suddenly be on very thin ice in the playoff picture before getting into the bulk of the conference schedule.
SEC
Alabama aside, the SEC is still looking to gain some confidence points. Yes, the SEC won all the games it needed to this weekend, but Georgia being taken down to the wire by Nicholls State isn’t exactly going to go down as a quality win in anyone’s book. This is a conference that dropped seven games in the opening week and will later face some mismatches against ACC foes (Louisville-Kentucky, Clemson-South Carolina, Florida State-Florida?), and we haven’t even touched on conference play yet. Alabama has looked to be the strongest team in the country and they travel to Ole Miss this week. Ole Miss cracked against Florida State but still figures to be Alabama’s toughest test yet, and the game is in Oxford. An Ole Miss victory turns the entire SEC playoff outlook on its side, because it is unlikely anyone else in the SEC has what ti takes to go undefeated. An ole Miss victory would mean Alabama, LSU and Ole Miss each have a loss before October. Do you trust Tennessee to go 12-0, or 13-0? Or Florida? No, of course you do not.
So this is a fun season for college football, because there is no dominant force, other than Alabama I suppose. Every conference has holes, from coast to coast. That’s what we have learned through just two weeks of the college football season. Let’s see which conference does the best job plugging those holes.
With fans ready to buy in, it's clear Illini not 'ready for primetime' ... yet.
By Vinnie Duber
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
“I thought we were ready for primetime, and we’re not quite there yet. But we’ll get there.”
Lovie Smith has brought something to Illinois that’s been absent for a long time. But looking at the final score from Saturday night’s contest with North Carolina — a 48-23 blowout loss for the Illini — it hits home how long it might take for the winning to follow.
Smith has fans excited, real excited. Memorial Stadium was packed Saturday, sold out for the first time in five years as the Illini welcomed in their biggest and best non-conference opponent in just as long a time. When Ke’Shawn Vaughn scampered 65 yards for a touchdown on the third play of the game, the thought crept in that maybe things would be different for Illinois football now that Smith was the man in charge.
Lovie Smith has brought something to Illinois that’s been absent for a long time. But looking at the final score from Saturday night’s contest with North Carolina — a 48-23 blowout loss for the Illini — it hits home how long it might take for the winning to follow.
Smith has fans excited, real excited. Memorial Stadium was packed Saturday, sold out for the first time in five years as the Illini welcomed in their biggest and best non-conference opponent in just as long a time. When Ke’Shawn Vaughn scampered 65 yards for a touchdown on the third play of the game, the thought crept in that maybe things would be different for Illinois football now that Smith was the man in charge.
Of course, by the time North Carolina showed its superiority, that thought was a distant memory.
Illinois still has quite a ways to go under Smith. That might mean weeks or months for this year’s group. It most likely means years for future groups to reach the level of success that Smith’s predecessors found so elusive.
But without a doubt, Memorial Stadium was rocking. And that’s something.
“For our players, this is good for us to see, what it eventually will be once we’re playing top-notch ball,” Smith said after the game. “This is a university that can draw people like that and have that type of atmosphere. We had a lot of players here, a lot of recruits here today watching us, and I think what they saw is they saw a team that’s building, that wasn’t quite there tonight but hopefully will get there soon.”
Make no mistake, there weren’t many reasons for pats on the back following a generally concerning performance that made these Illini look all too similar to the teams coached by Bill Cubit and Tim Beckman and Ron Zook. Quarterback Wes Lunt was off all night long, the offense couldn’t get anything going, the defense was picked apart by Carolina, and even though Illinois remained within striking distance for a good deal of the game, they could never close the gap. That gap eventually got large enough to represent just how out of hand things seemed much of the evening. That's all without mentioning Lunt’s costly fumble and the whopping 13 penalties committed by the home team.
“It’s a learning experience. The mistakes that we made, we saw what happens when you do some of the things we did tonight,” Smith said. “I want to go back to penalties. When you’re playing a good football team, you need to be on top of your game. Can’t turn the ball over, need to win the turnover ratio, and you can’t make a whole lot of penalties like that. These situations should help us going forward. It’s the initial stage of our program, of what we’re trying to do. We’ll learn from these things tonight.
“Sometimes you have to see what they can do to your team. Tonight we saw what a penalty and another penalty can do. Penalties on top of penalties, what they do for you. You can’t do it. Winning teams don’t do it. We’ll clean it up.”
This primetime game wasn’t a big ESPN game or anything like that, but Smith is building to the day when that kind of showcase is a possibility. It isn’t right now, as North Carolina — hardly the country’s finest group — exploited every aspect of Illinois on Saturday night.
But the Illini faithful showed they are ready to jump on the bandwagon, ready to buy what Smith and athletics director Josh Whitman are selling.
Here’s hoping they have as much long-term patience as they did short-term gusto Saturday night.
“I think our fans kind of see where we are,” Smith said. “I thought we were ready to take that next step. We’re not quite there yet, but we’ll get there.”
NCAABKB: Graduate transfers expose the worst of the coaching community.
By Travis Hines
(Photo/Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
One of the great things about covering and writing about sports is that almost every day you see something you never had before. Even in the most mundane of games, usually something cool or interesting enough happens to at least pique your interest for a second.
One of the hilarious – or depressing, frustrating and infuriating – things of covering college athletics is to see the degree to which coaches and administrators will contort logic to justify the absurdity that has become the amateur-academic model.
The latest example of this comes from Jeff Goodman of ESPN’s piece this week on the ramifications the graduate transfer has had on college ball. The rule, which allows players who graduate with eligibility remaining to transfer without sitting out, is one of the few on the NCAA books that is unabashedly pro-player.
So of course coaches hate it.
One unnamed coach went as far as to admitting that he would be “slowing down the graduation process” by having his players take fewer – or no – summer classes to keep them from reaching graduation before their eligibility is exhausted.
The insanity of that is almost too much to comprehend.
“Slowing down the graduation process” is just a sanitary what of saying “manipulating an unpaid student-athlete’s course load to keep him from earning his degree in the most expeditious manner in order to help me, the well-compensated coach.”
I mean, c’mon.
Maybe the best part of it is that while at least one coach will be slow-playing his players’ graduation plans, other coaches are using academic integrity as a reason to do away with the grad transfer rule.
The argument goes like this: Almost every graduate transfer has just one year of eligibility remaining while most graduate programs take two years to complete. So players aren’t using the rule for academic pursuits nor are they actually attaining post-graduate degrees because of the rule.
To which I say, d’ok.
Of course most of the transfers are sports-motivated, but who cares? The graduate transfer incentivizes earning a degree, which, last I checked, is a big part of the point of going to college. Even if it’s widely believed NCAA amateurism at the highest levels of football and men’s basketball is a charade, you can’t even pretend to maintain the position it’s about academics while simultaneously removing an incentive to graduate. And even if players aren’t immediately earning graduate degrees, those credits don’t just immediately disappear. If they’re halfway to a Masters, that’s a good thing.
Maybe the biggest gripe coaches have about the rule is tampering. Lists of potential graduate transfers float around coaching circles almost openly and unabashedly. Coaches complain of their colleagues reaching out to their players either directly or indirectly to express their interest should a player want to utilize the rule.
So to sum up, coaches want to restrict player movement because they can’t help themselves or trust each other.
Again, I say, d’ok.
Tampering will never go away, but you know what’s the best way to curb it?
Snitch.
Coaching is a tight community and that obviously won’t go over well, but if an established coach or two names and puts the spotlight on their peers working outside the bounds, it won’t take long to make coaches think twice about messing with another program’s players.
But I understand if coaches don’t want to do that. I then also don’t really put a lot of credence to cries of tampering if coaches can’t find a better solution to it that punishing players.
The graduate-transfer no doubt can hurt mid- and low-major programs due to up-transferring. It can take away their bests players at the height of their abilities. That’s a shame for them. It will alter careers of coaches. But, to me, it’s not fathomable to say that concern outweighs taking away the opportunity for a player who has earned his degree and has an aspiration to player at a higher level.
Coaches get paid a lot money not only to coach basketball, but to deal with difficult problems. This is just one of them.
Could NCAA eliminate transfer redshirts? What happens to college sports if they do?
By Rob Dauster
One of the hilarious – or depressing, frustrating and infuriating – things of covering college athletics is to see the degree to which coaches and administrators will contort logic to justify the absurdity that has become the amateur-academic model.
The latest example of this comes from Jeff Goodman of ESPN’s piece this week on the ramifications the graduate transfer has had on college ball. The rule, which allows players who graduate with eligibility remaining to transfer without sitting out, is one of the few on the NCAA books that is unabashedly pro-player.
So of course coaches hate it.
One unnamed coach went as far as to admitting that he would be “slowing down the graduation process” by having his players take fewer – or no – summer classes to keep them from reaching graduation before their eligibility is exhausted.
The insanity of that is almost too much to comprehend.
“Slowing down the graduation process” is just a sanitary what of saying “manipulating an unpaid student-athlete’s course load to keep him from earning his degree in the most expeditious manner in order to help me, the well-compensated coach.”
I mean, c’mon.
Maybe the best part of it is that while at least one coach will be slow-playing his players’ graduation plans, other coaches are using academic integrity as a reason to do away with the grad transfer rule.
The argument goes like this: Almost every graduate transfer has just one year of eligibility remaining while most graduate programs take two years to complete. So players aren’t using the rule for academic pursuits nor are they actually attaining post-graduate degrees because of the rule.
To which I say, d’ok.
Of course most of the transfers are sports-motivated, but who cares? The graduate transfer incentivizes earning a degree, which, last I checked, is a big part of the point of going to college. Even if it’s widely believed NCAA amateurism at the highest levels of football and men’s basketball is a charade, you can’t even pretend to maintain the position it’s about academics while simultaneously removing an incentive to graduate. And even if players aren’t immediately earning graduate degrees, those credits don’t just immediately disappear. If they’re halfway to a Masters, that’s a good thing.
Maybe the biggest gripe coaches have about the rule is tampering. Lists of potential graduate transfers float around coaching circles almost openly and unabashedly. Coaches complain of their colleagues reaching out to their players either directly or indirectly to express their interest should a player want to utilize the rule.
So to sum up, coaches want to restrict player movement because they can’t help themselves or trust each other.
Again, I say, d’ok.
Tampering will never go away, but you know what’s the best way to curb it?
Snitch.
Coaching is a tight community and that obviously won’t go over well, but if an established coach or two names and puts the spotlight on their peers working outside the bounds, it won’t take long to make coaches think twice about messing with another program’s players.
But I understand if coaches don’t want to do that. I then also don’t really put a lot of credence to cries of tampering if coaches can’t find a better solution to it that punishing players.
The graduate-transfer no doubt can hurt mid- and low-major programs due to up-transferring. It can take away their bests players at the height of their abilities. That’s a shame for them. It will alter careers of coaches. But, to me, it’s not fathomable to say that concern outweighs taking away the opportunity for a player who has earned his degree and has an aspiration to player at a higher level.
Coaches get paid a lot money not only to coach basketball, but to deal with difficult problems. This is just one of them.
Could NCAA eliminate transfer redshirts? What happens to college sports if they do?
By Rob Dauster
(Photo/AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)
The NCAA is currently facing a lawsuit from a pair of ex-college football players who are, more or less, suing the association to eliminate the requirement for college athletes to sit out for a year should they decide to transfer.
In other words, should Steve Berman, the lead attorney for the two former football players, win the case that he’s brought to court, any transfer in any sport would be immediately eligible. According to ESPN, the NCAA has moved to dismiss the case.
If the case isn’t dismissed, and Berman eventually wins in federal court, the ramifications would be … well, they would certainly be interesting.
In other words, should Steve Berman, the lead attorney for the two former football players, win the case that he’s brought to court, any transfer in any sport would be immediately eligible. According to ESPN, the NCAA has moved to dismiss the case.
If the case isn’t dismissed, and Berman eventually wins in federal court, the ramifications would be … well, they would certainly be interesting.
It’s something that a lot of people — myself included — have spent a lot of words and energy arguing for. It’s something that I believe is the right thing to have in place since we’re talking about unpaid, amateur student-athletes. A tuba player doesn’t have to sit out from the band if he wants to leave LSU and go to Alabama. An engineering student doesn’t have to taken history classes if he decides to leave Bucknell and head to Villanova. If the NCAA wants to ensure that college athletes have a real college experience, then they should be allowed to leave whenever and enroll wherever their grades allow them to enroll.
You’ll never convince me otherwise.
And I’m well aware of what this would mean for college athletics.
It would be a free-for-all, especially if students are allowed to transfer and be eligible immediately after the first semester.
In hoops, the tampering would be out of control, even more than it is now. The first two weeks of December would turn into a trading deadline. Don’t have enough interior depth? Go find a couple 7-footers. Need to bolster your perimeter shooting? There are plenty of guys at lower levels that can knock down jump shots. Need some insight into what Kentucky is doing offensively? Offer one of their walk-ons a scholarship.
That transfer window would not only help to serve the power conference teams in filling holes, but it would bring the kind of intrigue and speculation to college hoops that we never see before the end of conference season.
Or what about this idea (which was tweeted to me by a reader, and which I love): High-major teams form an alliance with a mid-major program to work as something of a minor league team. Let’s say Coach K gets Jon Scheyer hired as the head coach at UNC-Greensboro. Scheyer would run the same offense and the same defense as Duke, so that the two programs would be able to make the necessary transfers after the fall semester. Duke has a freshman that can’t get any burn? Send him to UNCG to play 30 minutes a night. UNCG has a senior wing that defends and is shooting 40 percent from three? Send him up to Durham to play a role for the Blue Devils.
It would be even crazier in football.
Let’s say, for example, that LSU somehow plays their way into the College Football Playoff despite the fact that their quarterback play would be more effective if I was running the show. How much do you think someone like Josh Rosen would be offered to transfer to LSU for the spring semester before transferring back to UCLA next fall?
It would be insane.
The distrust among the coaching community regarding tampering would reach a fever pitch, if it hasn’t already.
Would it change the way that college athletics looks and feels?
Probably.
But as long as the NCAA tournament always has full bracket and as long as it stays in March, people are always going to be watching.
This case will certainly be something to keep an eye on.
Wawrinka elevated his game, closed like a champion to win 2016 U.S. Open, third major.
By Jon Wertheim
(Photo/Sports Illustrated/Yahoo Sports)
Three quick thoughts from the 2016 U.S. Open men’s final.
• Stan Wawrinka gave us “good-to-great” in miniature today. After losing the first set of the men’s final, Wawrinka elevated his game, began caning his backhand, took advantage of the shaky serving of his opponent and ran away 6-7, 6-4, 7-5, 6-3 to win a wild and weird U.S. Open men’s final.
Coming into this match, Wawrinka was 4-19 against Djokovic (and 2-19 when facing the top-ranked player.) But that was a misleading stat. Two of Wawrinka’s four wins against Djokovic came in recent majors, in best-of-five format. In a match that had echoes of the 2015 French Open final—save the hideous plaid shorts—Wawrinka hit through Djokovic’s defense, served better and didn’t wilt. And for the third straight year, he was won a major title—one at age 29, one at 30, one at 31.
• Stan Wawrinka gave us “good-to-great” in miniature today. After losing the first set of the men’s final, Wawrinka elevated his game, began caning his backhand, took advantage of the shaky serving of his opponent and ran away 6-7, 6-4, 7-5, 6-3 to win a wild and weird U.S. Open men’s final.
Coming into this match, Wawrinka was 4-19 against Djokovic (and 2-19 when facing the top-ranked player.) But that was a misleading stat. Two of Wawrinka’s four wins against Djokovic came in recent majors, in best-of-five format. In a match that had echoes of the 2015 French Open final—save the hideous plaid shorts—Wawrinka hit through Djokovic’s defense, served better and didn’t wilt. And for the third straight year, he was won a major title—one at age 29, one at 30, one at 31.
• When he reflects on his career, Djokovic will likely recall this as his strangest major. He came in with a wrist injury sufficiently serious that—days before the event—members of his camp were uncertain whether he would even enter. Djokovic looked shaky in his first match. He would win his next two rounds by retirement. He next played an opponent (Kyle Edmund) ranked outside the top 80. In the quarters, he received another mid-match retirement (Jo-Wilfried Tsonga) and then won a bizarre semifinal over Gael Monfils. In all, he reached the final playing fewer than nine hours of tennis.
While good fortune seemed to smile on him, it was a disguised curse. The arrhythmic tournament bit him in the posterior this evening, as Djokovic looked like he was struggling with timing and groping to find rhythm. After winning the first set, his level dropped precipitously, on the serve in particular. Looking less fresh than his opponents—Wawrinka had logged almost twice as much court time but it was Djokovic who needed a medical time out for blisters—Djokovic dropped the third set 5-7 and then it was all but over. It's hard to consider tonight a deep disappointment, especially given the play of the opponent. It’s hard to consider this event a deep disappointment, especially given the injuries that disrupted his campaign. It's hard to consider this year a disappointment, given his two majors. But for the third event since the French Open, Djokovic has looked vulnerable. The plot thickens.
• “Stan the Man” is the cheesiest of nicknames. But Wawrinka plays physical, brawny relentless tennis that is very much emblematic of the men’s game in 2016. He mixed defense and vastly improved footwork (at age 31) with explosive offense off both wings. Consider Wawrinka’s 46 winners against Djokovic, the best defender in tennis. And for a guy who played almost double the tennis as Djokovic, Wawrinka was the fresher player. He closed like a champion as well. Three major finals; three titles. Roger Federer may not have been here, but we have another wholly deserving Swiss champ.
On This Date in Sports History: Today is Monday, September 12, 2016.
emoriesofhistory.com
1979 - Carl Yastrzemski of the Boston Red Sox became the first American League player to get 3,000 career hits and 400 career home runs.
1984 - Michael Jordan signed a seven-year contract to play basketball with the Chicago Bulls.
1984 - Dwight Gooden of the New York Mets set a rookie strikeout record with his 251st strikeout of the season.
2002 - A judge announced that a jury would have to decide who would get the ball that Barry Bonds hit for his record 73rd home run. The ownership of the ball, with an estimated value of $1 million, was being disputed between two men that had been in the bleachers.
2006 - Rick DiPietro (New York Islanders) signed a 15-year contract worth $67.5 million.
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