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"Sports Quote of the Day"
"Wisdom consists of the anticipation of consequences." ~ Norman Cousins, Political Journalist, Author, Professor and World Peace Advocate
TRENDING: Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Chicago Bears: Prediction, preview, pick to win. (See the football section for Bears news and NFL updates).
TRENDING: Five takeaways from Blackhawks' 6-1 win over Red Wings in preseason home opener. (See the hockey section for Blackhawks updates and NHL news).
TRENDING: Bulls the worst team in NBA? (See the basketball section for Bulls news and NBA updates).
TRENDING: As Cubs move closer to division title, Jake Arrieta looks ready for October; Why the White Sox are optimistic about their middle infielders' potential. (See the baseball section for Cubs and White Sox updates).
TRENDING: Stanley (64) takes early lead at Tour Championship. (See the golf section for PGA news and tournament updates).
TRENDING: Weekend schedule: NASCAR Cup, Trucks (Loudon); Xfinity (Kentucky); NASCAR Power Rankings: How much should we penalize Chase Elliott? (See the NASCAR section for NASCAR news and racing updates).
TRENDING: Fire fans are throwing a killer party for the club's 20th birthday; Top Storylines for Premier League Week 6. (See the soccer section for Fire news and worldwide soccer updates).
TRENDING: College basketball season starts in 50 days, so here's 50 fun facts to get you ready. (See the NCAABKB section for college basketball news and team updates).
Bear Down Chicago Bears!!!!! Pittsburgh Steelers vs. Chicago Bears: Prediction, preview, pick to win.
By The Sports Xchange
PITTSBURGH STEELERS (2-0) AT CHICAGO BEARS (0-2)
KICKOFF: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET, Soldier Field. TV: CBS, Greg Gumbel, Trent Green, Jamie Erdahl (field reporter).
SERIES HISTORY: 27th regular-season meeting. Bears lead series, 17-8-1. The Bears have won the past two meetings, including a 40-23 win at Heinz Field in 2013. The Bears are 11-1 in games played in Chicago. The only time the Steelers beat the Bears in Chicago was 1995. They won, 37-34, in overtime en route to an AFC championship.
KEYS TO THE GAME: The Steelers established a running game against the Vikings and that opened up some one-on-one matchups in the passing game that they were able to take advantage of for big plays. Look for a similar approach in Chicago. Le'Veon Bell, who had 87 yards rushing last week, said he is close to breaking out, and the passing game has been efficient, if not spectacular.
On defense, the Steelers have to pressure Bears quarterback Mike Glennon. He is coming off a game against the Buccaneers when he finished with a quarterbacking rating of 23.2. The Steelers have nine sacks through two games and will look to get a few more against Glennon.
Considering Pittsburgh's defense has allowed only 237 yards in each of the first two games, the Bears' own defense can't afford to take many risks. They've got to play it as close to the vest as possible in order to keep the game close and have a chance to win at the end.
Offensively, there needs to be a commitment and emphasis on getting the ball downfield at least a few times early to loosen up the defense. The Bears need to also counter with quick slants or skinny posts on short drops to keep Pittsburgh's blitz from loading up.
The Bears want to run Jordan Howard, but the Steelers are going to have eight or nine in the box like previous defenses. Throwing passes in the flat to Tarik Cohen won't keep anyone off the line of scrimmage. It will only fuel Pittsburgh's desire to blitz. The running game may have to alter its preferred slow-developing outside run blocking scheme to try to punch holes for quick gainers inside against a blitzing defense.
MATCHUPS TO WATCH:
--Bears RB Tarik Cohen vs. Steelers LB Ryan Shazier. Cohen has been Chicago's most productive offensive player through two weeks with 181 yards from scrimmage (79 rushing yards and 102 receiving yards). Shazier is one of the Steelers' most athletic defenders and will be charged with limiting Cohen, especially in the passing game.
--Steelers WR Antonio Brown vs. Bears S Quintin Demps. Demps has nine tackles and no passes defended. Brown has 16 catches for 244 yards. On film, the Steelers see Demps cheating to one side of the field deep against Atlanta on the key long TD scored by the Falcons. Demps will be tested. The Steelers will challenge the Bears deep with Brown, who can line up on either side of the formation or in the slot. Demps can be physical. Whether he can go vertical well enough to stay with Brown remains to be seen. The Bears allowed only one catch longer than 20 yards against Tampa Bay after yielding four at least that long in the opener, and Demps' layer of security over the top will be key in making sure Brown doesn't pile up deep yardage.
PLAYER SPOTLIGHT: Bears TE Zach Miller. Although the Bears want to get Markus Wheaton involved for the first time, his full participation seems unlikely because he has had little practice time. Miller has averaged 8.1 yards a catch and is starting to find his way back into the attack after a foot injury led to injured reserve last year. His ability to get downfield or beat man-to-man coverage as a hot receiver against the blitz will be important. The Bears likely will target him or Kendall Wright the most.
FAST FACTS: Steelers QB Ben Roethlisberger owns a 33-15 career record against NFC opposition and has averaged 299.4 yards per game in his last five meetings against NFC teams with 10 TDs and three INTs. ... Steelers rookie LB T.J. Watt is one of three NFL players with at least two sacks and an interception through two weeks. ... Bears QB Mike Glennon threw for 301 yards and a TD last week in a 29-7 loss at Tampa Bay. In his last three games against AFC teams, Glennon is averaging 292 yards per game with six TDs. ... Bears rookie S Eddie Jackson notched a team-high eight tackles last week.
PREDICTION: Chicago could really use a soft touch right now. But it doesn't get one until a date with New Orleans in late October. Pittsburgh's early schedule has been cushy with Cleveland, Minnesota minus Sam Bradford and now the Bears. These teams continue to head in different directions.
OUR PICK: Pittsburgh, 24-14.
--Bucky Dent
Will Mitch Trubisky make a start soon? History is on his side...
(Photo/USA TODAY)
The question of when Mitchell Trubisky would make his first career start was always going to be a storyline this year, but Mike Glennon’s rough showing in Week 2 against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers brought it to the forefront of Bears-centric debate this week.
Coach John Fox doesn’t want to deal in hypotheticals, and offensive coordinator Dowell Loggains shot down a question Wednesday about if Trubisky was taking snaps with the first-team offense in practice: “Mike Glennon is the starter.”
But when will Glennon not be the starter and give way to Trubisky? History shows you might want to circle Week 5 or Week 6 for Trubisky’s debut.
Since 1997, there have been 33 quarterbacks taken in the first 10 picks of that year’s NFL Draft (we’re using top 10 here as a rough cutoff point for drafting a guy expected to be the future of the franchise). Trubisky and Kansas City’s Patrick Mahomes haven’t played yet. Among the 31 quarterbacks who have played, three waited at least one year to make their first start (Carson Palmer, Philip Rivers and Jake Locker). Of the 28 remaining quarterbacks, there’s an even split: 14 started from Game 1 of their rookie year and 14 made their first starts sometime between Games 2 and 17.
Of those 14 quarterbacks who didn’t start immediately, they on average made their first start in their team’s sixth game of the season, which for the Bears would be Oct. 15's trip to face the Baltimore Ravens. The median of that group is Week 5, which is the Bears' home Monday night game against the Minnesota Vikings.
Interestingly enough, none of them started their first game immediately after a bye week or even with an extra day of rest (i.e. the week of a Monday Night Football game). The Bears have 11 days off between facing Green Bay on Thursday, Sept. 28 and Minnesota on Monday, Oct. 9.
| Quarterback | Draft year (pick) | First start game # | QB rating |
| Tim Couch | 1999 (1) | 2 | 73.2 |
| Donovan McNabb | 1999 (2) | 7 | 60.1 |
| Akili Smith | 1999 (3) | 5 | 55.6 |
| Michael Vick | 2001 (1) | 8 | 62.7 |
| Joey Harrington | 2002 (3) | 3 | 59.9 |
| Byron Leftwich | 2003 (7) | 3 | 73.0 |
| Eli Manning | 2004 (1) | 10 | 55.4 |
| Alex Smith | 2005 (1) | 5 | 40.8 |
| Vince Young | 2006 (3) | 4 | 66.7 |
| Matt Leinart | 2006 (10) | 5 | 74.0 |
| JaMarcus Russell | 2007 (1) | 16 | 55.9 |
| Blaine Gabbert | 2011 (10) | 3 | 65.4 |
| Blake Bortles | 2014 (3) | 4 | 69.5 |
| Jared Goff | 2016 (1) | 10 | 63.6 |
Most of these quarterbacks didn’t have success parachuting in during the middle of a season — the highest quarterback rating among the group (Matt Leinart’s 74.0) is lower than the average quarterback rating for the 14 players who were starters from Week 1 (75.4). The three quarterbacks who waited at least a year to start had an average quarterback rating of 81.1, though that’s a small sample size.
Among the last 10 top-10-picked quarterbacks, only two made their starting debuts in the middle of a season — Blake Bortles in the Jacksonville Jaguars’ fourth game and Jared Goff in the Los Angeles’ Rams 10th game — while Cam Newton, Ryan Tannehill, Robert Griffin III, Andrew Luck, Marcus Mariota, Jameis Winston and Carson Wentz started from Week 1 (Locker is the 10th guy here and started his first game a year after being drafted). So Trubisky, in not starting immediately for the Bears, would be somewhat of an outlier in recent history.
The Bears will have to hope that Trubisky is an outlier, too, in terms of initial success among quarterbacks who make their debuts mid-season, too.
For Bears' receivers and Mike Glennon, dropping the ball misses the point.
By JJ Stankevitz
(Photo/USA TODAY)
The Bears classified six of Mike Glennon’s incompletions against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as drops, something coach John Fox used to bolster his argument that the entire offense needs to be better, not just the quarterback. Had those six passes been caught, Glennon would’ve finished with 37 completions on 45 attempts for probably somewhere in the neighborhood of 330-350 yards with at best a touchdown or two more than the one he threw.
But that misses the point: Glennon still threw two interceptions and lost a fumble. Whether he completed 69 or 82 percent of his passes wouldn’t have really changed anything. And it leaves out when those incompletions happened, too.
Only one pass that could possibly be classified as a drop happened in the first half — that when Glennon threw behind running back Jordan Howard, who couldn’t contort his body and hands to make a catch in the second quarter. But that was an inaccurate throw from Glennon. Could it have been caught? Possibly, but the ball placement could’ve been better.
Other than that, the rest of the drops came in the second half — when the game was well out of reach. Wright, Bellamy and Deonte Thompson didn’t drop anything in the first half, and each made some solid catches in traffic.
That doesn’t absolve anyone here, though, and that most of those drops came late in the game reflects poorly on the team’s effort level, even if that wasn’t necessarily a problem.
“You could make a number of excuses,” tight end Zach Miller said. “You get late in the game, it’s playing down in a different environment, heat — it doesn’t really matter. You’ve just got to catch the ball.”
Four of those six drops were egregious, with accurate passes hitting receivers Kendall Wright, Josh Bellamy and Tanner Gentry in the hands only to have the ball wind up on the ground. All of those came in the fourth quarter.
Fox did bring up the two passes the Bears dropped from inside the five-yard line in Week 1 against the Atlanta Falcons, which are more relevant for evaluating Glennon. Had Bellamy or Howard caught passes that hit them in the hands — Bellamy in the end zone, Howard at the one-yard line — the Bears likely would’ve been 1-0 heading to Tampa. But had any of those six balls been caught on Sunday, it only would've served to pad Glennon's already-flawed stat line.
Under Center Podcast: Should Bears start Trubisky at QB? What's Your Take?
By CSN Staff
(Photo/USA TODAY)
On the latest edition of the Under Center Podcast, JJ Stankevitz and Mark Schanowski analyze the quarterback question.
The two weigh the pros and cons of starting Mitch Trubisky over Mike Glennon. Listen to the podcast below.
Under Center Podcast
Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Take: Mitch Trubisky was the #2 overall pick in the 2017 NFL draft because he has talent, accuracy, mobility and smarts. He will get his chance to start in the NFL and probably later this season or next season. Our position is that he should not be put in right now. We say that for two reasons: 1) The offensive line has injuries which makes it suspect and could put Trubisky in a position to be injured and 2) He played thirteen games at UNC and 2 1/2 games in the preseason so he needs to carry the clipboard, study film and learn to read defenses. NFL defenses are faster, stronger, quicker and able to disguise their coverages. It worked for Aaron Rodgers at Green Bay as Brett Favre's understudy, among other quarterback situations and it will work here. Lets teach him to win instead of frustrating him and programming him to lose. Let's build a team that will sustain a long range winning ability instead of looking for instant gratification and a few wins this year. We aren't going to win the division or go to the Super Bowl this year but if we're patient and do it right, we'll be there for several years to come. Continue to build through the draft and just watch and see.
There you have it our take. Please go to the comment section at the bottom of this blog and share your thoughts with us so that we'll know, "What's Your Take?" We anxiously look forward to hearing from you and truly respect and value your opinions.
The Chicago Sports & Travel, Inc./AllsportsAmerica Editorial Staff.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? Five takeaways from Blackhawks' 6-1 win over Red Wings in preseason home opener.
By Charlie Roumeliotis
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Here are five takeaways from the Blackhawks' 6-1 win over the Detroit Red Wings in Thursday's preseason home opener:
1. DeBrincat-Schmaltz-Kane were electric.
Yeah, this line could work. We realize the Red Wings sent over many of their fringe players, but Alex DeBrincat, Nick Schmaltz and Patrick Kane are all on the same wavelength offensively and it was evident in their first preseason game together.
The trio combined for four points (one goal and three assists), and created several quality scoring chances at even strength throughout the game. Kane was Kane, Schmaltz was one of the best players on the ice and DeBrincat cashed in for his first career (preseason) goal in the NHL.
This is certainly something to keep an eye on as roster cuts get underway and final decisions on the Opening Day lineup approach. Will DeBrincat be a part of the big club? It was considered a long shot before training camp started, but it's hard to ignore the chemistry he's developing on that second line.
2. Brandon Saad picks up where he left off in Blackhawks uniform.
It's like he never left. In his first game back in a Chicago sweater, Saad netted a hat trick — albeit, it's preseason so it won't count in the books — and he could have had a fourth, and maybe even a fifth, if you want to look further into the chances he had. All three goals that he did score though he found himself parked in front of the net, which is a great sign for the Blackhawks because it's something they lacked last year.
"The puck seemed to be finding me," Saad said after the win. "Regardless of what kind of game it is, you want to get your confidence rolling. It’s good to be back out here. It's always nice to be wanted and welcomed, and these fans are the best fans in the league, so it’s good to be back."
Saad finished the game with a game-high eight shots on goal and a plus-3 rating, and he did it without Jonathan Toews, who did not play due to an illness.
3. Connor Murphy developing chemistry with Duncan Keith.
The Blackhawks' new top pairing featuring two-time Norris Trophy winner Keith and 24-year-old Murphy was solid in their first game together.
Murphy wasn't afraid to be aggressive and take chances by pinching in, joining the rush, and quarterbacking the power play with confidence. He also didn't make any glaring defensive mistakes, which is a plus in Quenneville's book.
"I thought everybody played well on our back end," Quenneville said. "Then we went down to five, I thought they looked very good." (Luc Snuggerud suffered an upper-body injury in the second period, and did not return. Quenneville said they will know more about his status on Friday).
4. Jordan Oesterle catches Joel Quenneville's attention.
Of those six defensemen noted above, the one that really stood out to the Blackhawks coach was Oesterle. The 25-year-old blue liner signed a two-year contract with Chicago over the offseason, and is fighting for a spot on the bottom pairing.
He made a strong early case by registering two assists and leading the team with three blocked shots in 21:49 of ice time, playing on both the power play and penalty kill units.
"I liked him. A lot," Quenneville said. "I liked his thought process, jumping up in the play, positionally very strong, quick and headsy. He did a really good job. He's got some flexibility and the ability to play both sides is a great asset to have."
5. What to make of abundance of penalties
We mentioned the NHL's desire to crack down on slashing penalties and faceoff violations in our five takeaways after Tuesday's preseason opener, and it remained the same Thursday. There were another 13 penalties called, three of which were slashing, and handful of centers getting tossed from the dot.
So what should we make of it all?
Well, it's hard to imagine the amount of penalties will stay the same once the actual regular season starts. It seems like a tactic to lay down the hammer extra hard in an effort to get players to adapt to the new enforced rules as quickly as possible. It will be interesting to follow how things may change over the course of the season, with referees having the tendency to swallow their whistles as the important games roll around, especially in the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Blackhawks’ likely backup Anton Forsberg passes first test.
By Tracey Myers
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
For Anton Forsberg, the challenges were going to come early. It wasn’t just getting the start for the Blackhawks’ first preseason game, it was getting tested early and often in that game on Tuesday night.
A small sample size, but Forsberg had a strong preseason debut. And if he can continue off that start, he’ll be the latest in a successful run of backup goaltenders here.
With a young Blackhawks group in front of him, Forsberg was a steady presence in net. He stopped 38 of 40 shots in the Blackhawks’ 5-2 victory; that included 14 shots in the first period, when penalties added up and the Blackhawks were on the short end of a 5-on-3 for 54 seconds.
“It’s always nice to get a couple of shots. The first one hit my chest so I got the feel for the puck and I feel like it’s nice (rather than) standing there and waiting for the first shot,” he said. “It was coming a couple quick ones there right away. After that I was in the game and it was pretty easy to keep going.”
Coach Joel Quenneville said Forsberg looked comfortable immediately.
“For the guys who played in front of him, I think he showed a lot. Organizationally it was nice to see him battle through a lot of traffic and action around his net. He fought through a busy game and did an outstanding job,” he said. “It gives you confidence as well knowing, going forward, you’re comfortable in your new surroundings and go off of these levels, which would be a good beginning.”
The Blackhawks hope Forsberg is the latest in a recent line of successful backup goaltenders they’ve had. It’s been quite a run, from Ray Emery to Antti Raanta to Scott Darling. Forsberg’s NHL experience is minimal – he played in nine games for the Blue Jackets the last two seasons. But neither Raanta nor Darling had played an NHL game prior to joining the Blackhawks and clearly that didn’t prove to be an issue.
General manager Stan Bowman said in July, when the Blackhawks traded for Forsberg as part of the deal that brought Brandon Saad back, that Forsberg had earned the chance at the backup job. The Blackhawks signed Jean-François Bérubé on July 1 but, as of now, it looks like the backup job is Forsberg’s to lose. Whoever earns the job has to be prepared because the Blackhawks have had to rely on their backups for extended times. Corey Crawford has been sidelined several times in recent seasons, including last year when he missed nearly all of December with appendicitis – Darling started 11 consecutive games during that stretch.
“We know the emphasis on goaltending is huge and having confidence and trust no matter who’s in the net. For the team, just having that confidence in that guy in the net is a big factor. Coming in here early and demonstrating that can help him as well, getting comfortable with his teammates,” Quenneville said. “We’d love to see him continue on, knowing that he could be a big part of our team.”
Playing against his former team was motivation enough on Tuesday. But for Forsberg it’s about the opportunity ahead of him, not the one he didn’t really get in the past. The Blackhawks have done well in this department the last few seasons. If Forsberg can continue to advance past Tuesday’s start, the Blackhawks could have another strong 1-2 punch in goal again.
“It's always fun to play old teammates and my old team, but it’s a game and it’s my first game [with the Blackhawks]. I've got to [give] a good first impression and I do whatever I can to do that,” he said. “I felt like it turned out pretty well.”
Five takeaways from Blackhawks' 5-2 win over Blue Jackets in preseason opener.
By Charlie Roumeliotis
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Here are five takeaways from the Blackhawks' 5-2 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets in Tuesday's preseason opener:
1. Anton Forsberg sharp in debut.
The former Blue Jackets netminder who was acquired by the Blackhawks in the Artemi Panarin-Brandon Saad offseason deal shined in his first game action with his new club, stopping 38 of 40 shots he faced. Many of them were quality saves, too.
He was a perfect 14-for-14 in the first period, with eight of those coming while Columbus was on the power play, which also included a 5-on-3 stretch. He stood tall and looked comfortable in net, and it's an encouraging sign for the Blackhawks who are hoping he can become a reliable backup goaltender to ease the load off Corey Crawford.
2. Cody Franson, Jan Rutta stand out on defense.
The Blackhawks brought in Franson on a professional tryout agreement, and he didn't waste any time making his presence felt. The 30-year-old defenseman recorded four of the team's nine shots in the opening frame, all of which came on the power play, and the fourth one found the back of the net to open up the scoring. He served as a solid quarterback on the man advantage, and wasn't afraid to utilize his heavy shot.
Rutta was no different. He led all skaters with 23:52 of ice time, and was rewarded with a goal in the second period after his slapshot from the point bounced off the boards, ricocheted off the back of Blue Jackets goaltender Joonas Korpisalo's skate and trickled into the net. The 27-year-old Czech defenseman also registered two blocked shots and had two of the club's seven takeaways.
3. Nick Schmaltz's confidence and game continues to grow.
There is a noticeable difference in Schmaltz's confidence and game this year compared to last year. He looks bigger, faster and more confident with the puck, and his strong showing at training camp translated into the first preseason game.
Serving as the first-line center, Schmaltz led all Chicago forwards with 18:03 of ice time and spent time on both the power play and penalty kill units. He showed off his wicked wrist shot with a goal in the second period to make it 4-0, and displayed his playmaking ability by recording a primary assist on Franson's goal. He was one of four Blackhawks who had multi-point efforts in the win (Franson, Tomas Jurco and Graham Knott).
4. Blackhawks finish strong in faceoff department after rough start.
The Blackhawks ranked second-to-last in faceoff win percentage last year at 47.5, and they appeared to be headed down that path again. They opened the game 0-for-8 at the dot, but ended up finishing strong by winning 37 of the next 60 draws for a win percentage of 61.7. Matthew Highmore, Vinnie Hinostroza, Graham Knott and John Mitchell led the way by combining to go 19 of 25 (76 percent) at the circle.
5. NHL cracking down on several rules.
The league has made it clear about its intentions of laying down the law regarding a few rules and it was evident Tuesday that they won't be messing around. Seventeen penalties were called in the game, including five slashing and two faceoff violations.
Those are the two areas that will be focused on closely, the former in an effort to protect the NHL's stars and the latter to ensure a fair chance for both centers. Prepare for more whistles and power plays early on.
Just Another Chicago Bulls Session..... A 'woke' Doug Collins returns to provoke thought — and we'll find out who's asleep in Bulls' front office.
By Vincent Goodwill
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
Doug Collins made it clear, that his return to the Bulls organization won’t result in a return to the sidelines as head coach, meaning Fred Hoiberg has nothing to worry about in the way of looking over his shoulder.
What Collins did admit, though, is he’s back with the Bulls to provoke thought. Anyone who’s listened to Collins as a broadcaster for ESPN or Turner Sports, or talked to him in any basketball capacity, knows he’s not only a hoops lifer but also someone who can have strong opinions, capable of quick dissection of a complex picture in a moment’s notice.
“I’m not here to be a decision-maker. I want to provoke thought. My mind is very active,” Collins said Tuesday afternoon at the Advocate Center. “And I think to get into a room and to bounce ideas off each other or whatever, at the end of the day, Gar, Michael, Jerry, Pax will make those decisions. The beauty of it is is that when there’s a level of trust when you’re talking about things, you can speak openly and honestly with people knowing the only thing that matters is that whatever happens is the best for the franchise.”
Announcing Collins as a senior advisor to executive vice president John Paxson adds another voice to the Bulls’ braintrust and is probably an admission this rebuild will require more than what the Bulls already have, be it in terms of connections, observation and even innovation.
Collins’ connection to Paxson and Jerry Reinsdorf, a growing relationship with Michael Reinsdorf and ability to relate with Hoiberg due to the misery of coaching should align a front office to the floor in ways that has been in doubt for the past several seasons.
“Given Jerry's relationship and my relationship with Doug over the years, we thought, hey, let's see if maybe this isn't a good time for Doug to come back into the fold,” Paxson said. “So we approached him and it was very casual, no expectations other than he's been a friend of ours for so long. But the more we kind of dug into the prospects of this and what it means, the more we kept asking ourselves, why wouldn't we do this?”
Collins made it clear he won’t be giving up his family life, as he already has residence in Chicago and his son Chris is coaching Northwestern and a son-in-law coaching a high school team outside Philadelphia.
“The hours and the time commitment that Fred Hoiberg puts in on a day and the energy that he spends and being on the road and being away from his family,” Collins said. “(This) worked perfectly in my schedule when I talked to Pax that I could be a part of something special, the Chicago Bulls, and I love the Chicago Bulls.”
His energy and passion can light up a room, and though he tried his best to say that’s died down at age 66, claiming “I can sit and do a crossword puzzle for three hours now”, people wired like Collins don’t lose their fervor for the game.
“I think there’s this feeling that I’m a guy who’s always on and fired up,” Collins said.
But that fire and passion and presumably a willingness to be uncompromising with the truth should be something that’s welcome inside the Advocate Center. In addition to his acumen, one of Collins’ greatest strengths is his fervor, and it shouldn’t be scaled back.
That’s not how rebuilds work successfully. Lines have to be crossed and people have to be made uncomfortable in their line of thinking, even if it’s Paxson or Hoiberg or general manager Gar Forman.
It’s not hard to see the Bulls following the thinking of the Golden State Warriors when they added Jerry West in an advisory role years ago, resulting in several key moves being made, most notably West’s objection to Klay Thompson being traded to Minnesota for Kevin Love before Love was eventually moved to Cleveland.
West’s guidance played a part in the Warriors’ upward trajectory to championship status, and he hopes to have a similar affect with the Los Angeles Clippers.
Comparing West with Collins on its face is a bit unfair, considering West’s experience as an executive and championship pedigree dating back to his days with the Lakers.
At least with West, he’s not trying to convince anyone he isn’t anything but a tortured basketball soul at age 79. Collins reminded everyone he’s a grandfather of five and at a spry 66, West would call Collins a “spring chicken.”
What Collins can bring is a keen eye for observation, and expecting him to be a passive personality doesn’t quite seem right, especially leaving the cushy job at ESPN that allowed him maximum exposure and a schedule to his liking.
Perhaps the way Collins left the NBA, with a massive gambit in Philadelphia falling flat when Andrew Bynum’s knees rendered him useless and sending the 76ers franchise into “The Process,” left him with a bad taste in his mouth.
Maybe his competitive juices got him going again and the broadcast booth just wasn’t cutting it, along with having a front seat to the injury that changed the course of the Bulls franchise when Derrick Rose tore his ACL in 2012 against Collins’ 76ers.
Maybe the crossword puzzles just couldn’t get it done anymore. After all, the man once cried on the sidelines as his Detroit Pistons beat the Bulls in a regular-season game in 1997. Curbing that passion would be a disservice.
“See how things quickly change? The NBA is cyclical now,” Collins said. “Other than the San Antonio Spurs, over the last 20 years, every elite franchise has gone through this moment. And so now what you got to do, you got to dig yourself back up.
“We got to start doing all the things that are necessary to gain assets day by day, to put all the work, so we’re going to give ourselves a chance, when we continue to get better players and more talent, that you’re going to win more basketball games.”
Collins said he has old-school values, all while being caught up with the times that he called himself “woke” as a nod to the current culture.
If he truly is, we’ll also find out who’s asleep in the front office, in desperate need a loud wake-up call.
SportsTalk Live Podcast: Bulls the worst team in NBA?
By CSN Staff
(Photo/USA TODAY)
David Haugh (Chicago Tribune), Nick Shepkowski (670 The Score) and Dan Cahill (Chicago Sun-Times) join Kap on the panel. Jake Arrieta will return to the rotation to face the Brewers. Can he recapture his pre-injury form? Mike Glennon gets another start Sunday but should he get the hook if he struggles again?
Plus, the guys discuss the one metric that says the Bulls are the worst team in the NBA.
Please listen below.
SportsTalk Live Podcast
CUBS: As Cubs move closer to division title, Jake Arrieta looks ready for October.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/AP)
This was the type of game Jake Arrieta visualizes, a loud atmosphere with 35,114 fans on their feet and an opponent that really doesn’t like the Cubs at all.
This one would ultimately be out of his hands, lasting 10 innings and almost 4 hours on Thursday night at Miller Park, but Arrieta looked like a Game 1 starter as the Cubs roared back for a 5-3 win over the Milwaukee Brewers.
Those playoff plans are coming into focus, the magic number to win the National League Central title down to six and Arrieta managing the Grade 1 right hamstring strain that has been one of the biggest question marks hanging over the defending World Series champs.
“It’s just good to be back out there,” Arrieta said. “These are big games, and I want to be a part of as many as I can, especially to try and clinch the division as quick as possible and then kind of line things up for us in October. But we got to get there first.”
Arrieta threw his first real pitch in 18 days at 7:16 p.m., firing a 92-mph fastball toward Brewers leadoff guy Eric Sogard and giving the Cubs a shot of adrenaline. That always wears off, but the Cubs are a different team when Arrieta sticks his chest out and triggers his perfect posture into a crossfire delivery.
Arrieta looked sharp in his first real action since Labor Day, even as his five-inning, 71-pitch limit exposed how fragile this pitching staff might be right now. If it’s not Jon Lester laboring at the top of the rotation, it’s the softer spots in the middle of the bullpen, or questions about how much wear and tear the Cubs can take after a deep playoff run in 2015 and last year’s World Series madness stretched into early November.
But Arrieta basically picked up where he left off as the NL pitcher of the month for August, realigning his unique mechanics and generating enough power from his right leg, restarting the momentum in a second half where he’s shown the flashes of dominance you saw during his 2015 Cy Young Award season.
Arrieta exited this game with a 2-1 lead – before it spun out of control – and passed one test by hustling to cover first base to complete an inning-ending 3-6-1 double play in the fifth. He walked just one of the 20 hitters he faced and could really only regret one pitch in the fourth inning, the 92-mph fastball Domingo Santana drilled off the batter’s eye in center field.
“I felt OK,” Arrieta said. “I can tell that something happened. I think it’s just the residual feeling of something like a hamstring strain. But no pain, really no discomfort. That’s a good sign.
“Tomorrow is the biggest indicator moving forward of how we’ll be able to approach this. I don’t see any reason that I won’t feel good tomorrow.”
Arrieta is scheduled to make two more regular-season starts, but this dramatic comeback means the Cubs might be able to treat those as controlled experiments instead of must-win situations.
“Just an incredible baseball game,” Arrieta said. “This is a really awesome time to be in an organization like this, in a division like the NL Central, where there’s a couple teams that have playoff aspirations in mind. If we take care of business here over the next few days, we get a couple steps closer.”
Wade Davis is the big-game hunter Cubs need now - and maybe in the future.
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/USA TODAY)
The origin story of Wade Davis transforming into a dominant closer goes back several years ago and involves a black bear on Canadian hunting grounds about 90 minutes outside of Toronto.
This is the rare animal that didn’t make the video tribute the Tampa Bay Rays cut for Cubs manager Joe Maddon when their ex-zookeeper returned this week to Tropicana Field. But if Davis could stay cool facing a 300-something-pound beast, Maddon reasoned, then a late-inning jam shouldn’t seem so daunting.
“You don’t get much reaction from Wade,” Dave Martinez, Maddon’s longtime bench coach, said on the Cubs Talk podcast. “What you see is what you get. I (asked): ‘Hey, I got a place to go bear hunting, you guys want to go?’
“If you can imagine (Wade) and Jeff Niemann — Jeff Niemann’s 6-10 — they sat up in a tree stand. They saw a black bear come out and he shot it. I wish we had the video. The video’s floating around somewhere.
“We were just talking about it the other day. (Former Rays travel director) Jeff Ziegler went with us, too, and he never did get his bear rug. And he got a little bent out of shape about it.”
Martinez doesn’t know where that trophy wound up. But Davis remains the big-game hunter the Cubs need now — and maybe for the future.
“I’m not thinking past the next two weeks, honestly,” team president Theo Epstein said. “It’s bad form to be talking about offseason stuff at this time of the year.
“He’s had a great year. He’s been perfect in save situations. He’s been a leader out there. Any team would love to have him. But we’re not into the winter yet.”
Are the Cubs willing to pay the price for an All-Star, World-Series-tested closer? Can they afford not to?
Epstein’s front office has been philosophically opposed to making long-term investments in closers. But the Cubs are running out of young hitters to trade for short-term fixes, shipping an elite prospect (Gleyber Torres) to the New York Yankees in last summer’s blockbuster Aroldis Chapman deal and getting Davis by moving a diminishing asset (Jorge Soler) to the Kansas City Royals in a winter-meetings swap.
The Cubs also haven’t seen that alternative ninth-inning solution organically develop this season. It’s hard to picture the Cubs just handing Carl Edwards Jr. the closer’s job heading into his second full season in the big leagues. Pedro Strop also looks more like a very good setup guy than a first-choice candidate to be the 2018 closer.
Justin Wilson (5.79 ERA) hasn’t distinguished himself since coming over from the Detroit Tigers at the July 31 trade deadline, the Cubs now using the lefty reliever in low-leverage/mop-up situations to help restore his game. Hector Rondon — who has 77 saves in a Cubs uniform and a checkered medical history — is dealing with right elbow inflammation.
All those moving pieces make Davis (32-for-32 in save chances) an anchor heading into the four-game showdown against the Milwaukee Brewers that begins Thursday night at Miller Park, where Jake Arrieta will be making his first start since straining his right hamstring on Labor Day and limited to 75-80 pitches.
The Cubs have a 3.5-game lead on a Brewers team that hasn’t gone away yet and a single-digit magic number (eight) to clinch the National League Central. Maddon has already signaled that he will deploy Davis for multiple innings when necessary.
“It’s a good feeling to know that he can do it,” Martinez said. “But all in all, you still have to have these other guys contribute, which they have, and get all the bullpen onboard.
“Now each moment is critical and moving forward they’re going to be put in some pretty tough situations. Each one of them has to step up and do their jobs.
“Do we count on Wade? Absolutely. But we also count on these other guys to go out there and perform.”
During the All-Star festivities in Miami, Davis said “some of that seems unrealistic” when asked about the massive free-agent contracts the Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers gave Chapman (five years, $86 million) and Kenley Jansen (five years, $80 million) last winter.
But this October will be another huge platform for Davis, who said it already felt like that all season at Wrigley Field.
“Every game, there’s always a constant buzz here,” Davis said. “They’re into it. They’re getting loud. It’s a great atmosphere all year long.”
What’s wrong with Jon Lester? And is there enough time for Cubs to fix it?
By Patrick Mooney
(Photo/USA TODAY)
Even in the good times, Jon Lester doesn’t really have great body language, trying to channel his emotions, use that competitive anger and stay focused on the next pitch, so there was no way for him to hide his frustrations this time.
Lester handed the ball to manager Joe Maddon on Wednesday night at Tropicana Field and trudged back toward the visiting dugout with his head down and his team down six runs in the fifth inning of an 8-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays that left the Cubs searching for answers.
What’s wrong with Lester? That question snapped the Cubs out of a seven-game winning streak, the talk about playoff rotations and the computer simulations that project the defending World Series champs as a 90-something percent lock to make the postseason again.
The good news for the Cubs is the Milwaukee Brewers failed to gain ground heading into the four-game showdown that begins Thursday night at Miller Park. The magic number to clinch the National League Central is eight after Milwaukee’s 6-4 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates.
But it’s difficult to see the Cubs going on a long October run when Lester – a three-time World Series champion and the Game 1 starter in all three playoff rounds last year – looks this lost. Since coming off the disabled list – the Cubs termed it left lat tightness/general shoulder fatigue – Lester has made four September starts vs. non-contenders and given up 27 hits and 12 walks in 21.1 innings.
“We’re not going to go make excuses and say that’s why I didn’t throw the ball well,” Lester said. “Physically, it’s September. You’re going to have ups and downs. I feel fine. There’s no lingering effects from anything. No, there’s nothing physically wrong.”
Are you convinced Lester is 100 percent healthy?
“He’s not saying anything,” Maddon said. “I don’t see any grimace and I don’t see any like hitch in the giddy-up. I don’t see anything. Since he’s come back, he’s had some wins, but none of them have been necessarily Jon Lester sharp.”
At a time when the $155 million ace is supposed to be building toward October, Lester didn’t have any rhythm – Steven Souza Jr. launched a 92-mph fastball over the fence in left-center field in the first inning – or the stuff to finish off the Rays (zero strikeouts, 23 batters faced).
Lester did his John Lackey impression in the second inning, screaming, stomping and staring when Brad Miller chopped a ball that bounced past first baseman Anthony Rizzo’s glove and into right field for a 2-0 lead.
The Rays have enough history with Lester after their battles against the Boston Red Sox in the American League East and appeared to try to get in his head. Peter Bourjos dropped a perfect bunt, Kevin Kiermaier knocked another RBI single up the middle and Lester escaped only when second baseman Javier Baez started an inning-ending double play on the other side of the bag.
By the fifth inning, Lester was hesitating and making two wobbly throws while Souza stole second and third base. Lester then drilled Evan Longoria’s left foot with a pitch and walked Logan Morrison to load the bases. Wilson Ramos finally knocked out Lester after 86 pitches with a two-run single into right field.
“Obviously, there is some concern,” Maddon said. “I don’t have any reason to give you – other than he had a tough night – and I don’t know why. It just looked different from the side, because we’re normally used to seeing sharp-cornered pitches and a little bit better velocity with everything. It just wasn’t there.”
Lester now has only two regular-season starts left to find it and fix this.
“I’m not worried about it,” Lester said. “When you pitch a long time, and you play this game a long time, you’re going to have the ups and downs. Anybody can have one good year. It’s a matter of going out there and consistently doing it.
“You got to take the good with the bad. We’ll make an adjustment and figure it out. The good thing is it’s not physical. It’s just a matter of getting back to what has been working for me in the past and making those adjustments.”
WHITE SOX: Why the White Sox are optimistic about their middle infielders' potential.
By Dan Hayes
(Photo/USA TODAY)
After both started slow, the White Sox middle infield of the future has heated up at the plate. Tim Anderson and Yoan Moncada have also made steady gains in the field.
It’s the kind of play the White Sox think they’re going to see plenty of from the extremely talented pair over the next few years. Their combined production admittedly has excited the White Sox brain trust, which knows Anderson and Moncada have hardly tapped into their potential and are only now building rapport.
“We should be optimistic,” manager Rick Renteria said. “Those two guys in the middle continue to improve. They’re getting along. They’re becoming understanding of each other, their idiosyncrasies, the things they like and don’t like. When you have a combination in the middle that is over time going to grow together, it can be something special.”
The potential is limitless.
Anderson, who extended his hitting streak to 12 games in a 3-1 win over the Astros on Thursday, was rated as high as the No. 45 prospect by Baseball America ahead of the 2016 season. Moncada -- who’s had an outstanding road trip -- rose to the No. 1 ranking in baseball before he was promoted two months ago.
Bench coach Joe McEwing said he appreciates the raw tools each player brings to the field. Both possess outstanding range and have strong, accurate arms. He also likes how each is accountable when they make mistakes and has seen each improve immensely.
Anderson’s improvement has been more about letting his instincts and talent take over after a rough first half in the field. Meanwhile, Moncada’s has been more about technical adjustments --- footwork, jumps, knowledge of hitters. Moncada has also widened his base, which has led to steadier fielding, McEwing said. And now they’ve begun to learn how to work with each other.
“They’ve developed a bit of chemistry and it started early,” McEwing said. “They gravitated to each other and started working together early.
“You’re seeing them growing together and it’s been fun to watch.”
“We’re extremely excited.”
Anderson thinks the pair works well together because they have similarly easygoing personalities. The shortstop said he and Moncada have liked to joke around with each other since the outset. Prior to Moncada going on the disabled list late last month, Anderson’s Instagram featured a photo of him treating his teammate’s shins in the trainer’s room.
Anderson also thinks the players’ proximity in age -- he’s 23 months older -- is helpful.
“We’re easy to get along with,” Anderson said. “We’re just having fun. I’m easy to play with. He’s easy to please with. He understands me very well and I understand him very well. It’s just get as many reps as we can get and get comfortable and have fun with it.
“He’s kind of like me. We don’t talk much but there’s some energy in there, some excitement. We’re always joking and playing and laughing.
“Definitely someone I can play up the middle with for a while and going to enjoy every minute of it. Very special kid and very talented.”
Jose Abreu's gift to Yoan Moncada just keeps on giving.
By Dan Hayes
(Photo/USA TODAY)
Yoan Moncada took Jose Abreu’s advice to switch to a lighter bat and the White Sox rookie has been on a tear ever since.
The veteran first baseman thought Moncada would benefit from a slightly smaller piece of lumber and purchased it. Moncada began to use the bat at the start of the team’s current 10-game road trip and has since produced the best stretch of his career. Moncada is hitting 432/.488/.649 with 16 hits, including a triple, two home runs, six RBIs and 11 runs scored in 37 plate appearances.
“I just thought he wasn’t using the bats for him to take advantage of his swing,” Abreu said through an interpreter. “These new bats have better balance with the weight and are a little shorter than the other ones. I just did it thinking of him taking advantage of his power, his hands and to feel more freedom in his swing.”
Neither Abreu nor the White Sox have wavered in their faith in Moncada since his promotion from Triple-A two months ago. Baseball’s top prospect flashed plenty of talent in spring training and further convinced them by showing a consistently good eye at the plate after arriving in the majors.
But while Moncada had his share of highlights early on, he still hadn’t begun to receive the desired results on a consistent basis. Abreu saw him missing his pitch from time to time and suggested that Moncada use a smaller bat.
Moncada previously a 34-inch, 32-ounce bat. The ones purchased by Abreu are 33 1/ 2-inches and 31 ounces. Moncada has said the bats have produced a more fluid swing and he feels like he has a stronger swing since.
Manager Rick Renteria thinks it’s a combination of the new bat and Moncada having a better understanding for how teams are approaching him at the plate.
“Lighter bats can help you manipulate the barrel a little more, keep you on the ball,” Renteria said. “You don’t think you have to force yourself to get out in front too much. You can allow the ball to travel and do what it does, so you can see it as much as possible. Just in general, the at-bats and the experience and the sequence of pitches he’s been seeing over time now, he’s starting to understand and get a feel for hitting in the big leagues.”
Abreu said his own bat size has varied during a red-hot second half depending upon how he feels. Moncada’s mentor started the season with a 34-inch, 32-ounce Albert Pujols-model bat, but also began to use the 33-inch, 33 1/2-ounce at the All-Star break.
Abreu has enjoyed watching his protégé have consistent success over the past nine days.
“I knew he had the talent,” Abreu said. “I never had a doubt about it. It was just a matter for him to get to know this process and to get to know the league and for him to use the proper tools to take advantage. We are just seeing what he’s capable of doing and it’s a good sign for him building for next season.”
Why Yoan Moncada's hot streak is important for the White Sox confidence and his.
By Dan Hayes
(Photo/USA TODAY)
Don’t think the White Sox front office isn’t enjoying every second of Yoan Moncada’s tear.
Everyone can breathe a little easier knowing there are fewer questions for baseball’s top prospect to answer headed into 2018. Pleased as they’d been with Moncada’s patient plate approach, the club desired a breakthrough before Oct. 2 for the confidence boost it would provide him alone. Moncada continued a torrid run on Wednesday night that should have him bristling with poise when he arrives in Glendale, Ariz. next February. He homered as the White Sox fell 4-3 to the Houston Astros at Minute Maid Park.
“We’ve been looking for him to continue to try and make adjustments,” manager Rick Renteria said. “There was probably a point there where people were a little concerned. Truthfully, when you see some of the talent these kids have, you recognize that their skillset is going to play up, it’s just a matter of getting the repetition.”
The White Sox have been impressed with Moncada’s improved awareness as he gains more experience.
One area in which Moncada has made the most gains is pitch recognition. The book has been that second baseman has had trouble with offspeed since he arrived in 2016, hitting .154 against sliders and .238 against curveballs entering Wednesday, according to Brooksbaseball.net.
But Moncada is trending upward. The first-pitch slider from Astros starter Brad Peacock that Moncada ripped for a go-ahead, two-run homer in the fourth inning was his fifth hit of the trip on a slider or curveball in 11 at-bats. On the trip, Moncada -- who has 189 plate appearances this season -- is hitting .415/.477/.683 with three homers, eight RBIs and 12 runs in 41 plate appearances.
Given Moncada’s struggles in a brief 2016 tryout with the Boston Red Sox, having success is certainly helpful as he won’t head into another offseason wondering when it might happen for him. Moncada doesn’t compare the two situations because of playing time -- he was limited to 20 plate appearances over a month in 2016. But he agrees his recent play is good for the psyche.
“It’s important for my confidence, especially thinking about next year,” Moncada said through an interpreter. “With this run, I have been able to have more confidence and believe in myself and my talent, and I think that’s something I can carry into next season.”
“This offseason is going to be different because I’ve been able to play almost every day. I have more confidence in myself. I know the game better. Last season I had an opportunity to be at this level a little bit, but it wasn’t the same. This year is the opposite because I’ve been playing a lot and have been able to handle good and bad stretches at this level.”
While a reduction in strikeout-rate is still needed to be more effective, Moncada has begun to establish himself as a major league hitter. It’s exactly how teammate and mentor Jose Abreu hoped Moncada would spend his time this season.
“He has to get to know a lot of things at this level,” Abreu said through an interpreter. “The game, the pitchers, the culture here -- there’s a lot of little things he has to get to know here. The way you can work through it is give your best every day and try to learn as much as you can and try to use all your knowledge and to pool your knowledge on each play in the game. That’s the only way you can get results and you can build on those results and this experience for the future. I think he’s finally doing it and that’s important for him and for us thinking of the next season and beyond.”
Renteria not only likes the pitch recognition but the way that Moncada has tried to hit through the shift several times against Houston. Though the White Sox never wavered, they’re certainly happy to see Moncada produce the way they thought he eventually would.
“He’s starting to slow it down a little more,” Renteria said. “He’s starting to see more of the landscape and making adjustments in general. It’s been a good run for him. We thought he would show signs of growth at the end of the season and he’s doing that.”
Golf: I got a club for that..... Stanley (64) takes early lead at Tour Championship.
(Photo/csnchicago.com)
The final event of the season is off and running, but there's a surprising name at the top of the leaderboard. Here's how things look after the first round of the Tour Championship, where Kyle Stanley holds a two-shot lead:
Leaderboard: Kyle Stanley (-6), Webb Simpson (-4), Daniel Berger (-4), Brooks Koepka (-4), Paul Casey (-4), Jordan Spieth (-3), Jon Rahm (-3), Justin Thomas (-3)
What it means: Spieth started the week as the top seed, and the top five players in the season-long points race will win the FedExCup with a tournament victory. But the top spot after Round 1 belongs to Stanley, whose win at the Quicken Loans National in June was his first since 2012 and who started the week at No. 22, making him a relative longshot to lift the season-long trophy.
Round of the day: Stanley has had a quietly consistent season, with five top-10 finishes and only six missed cuts. He is now in contention for the biggest win of his career after opening with a 6-under 64 at East Lake, a round that included seven birdies against just one bogey. Stanley raced to the top of the leaderboard with four straight birdies on Nos. 3-6 and added three more in a five-hole stretch from Nos. 12-16.
Biggest disappointment: It wasn't that long ago that Hideki Matsuyama was routing elite fields, but the Japanese phenom continues to struggle in the postseason.
Matsuyama finished T-47 among a 70-man field last week and opened Thursday with a 5-over 75 that left him ahead of only one player. He made three double bogeys, including two during a front-nine 41 that didn't include a single birdie.
Main storyline heading into Friday: Stanley currently holds the top spot, but there's no reason to move the spotlight off of Spieth. It was an adventurous round for the No. 1seed, filled with plenty of errant tee shots, but a 67 still left him in fine position with three rounds to go. Spieth often talks about trying to peak for this event, and if he improves on his opening-round ball-striking there's every reason to believe he'll challenge for both trophies come Sunday.
Shot of the day: Berger made a late move up the standings with a closing eagle after carving his approach from 234 yards on the par-5 18th hole to within 14 feet and making the subsequent putt.
Quote of the day: "I feel like the key to this course is if you can get it in play off the tee, you can score." - Stanley, whose 64 came in his first competitive round at East Lake.
Tour releases 2017-18 schedule of nearly 50 events.
By Rex Hoggard
(Photo/Rex Hoggard's Twitter)
The PGA Tour released next season’s schedule on Tuesday, a lineup that includes 49 events, two more than this season, and some questions.
The first half of the schedule remains virtually unchanged, with the West Coast and Florida swings the same as they were in 2017, with the addition of the Corales Puntacana Resort & Club Championship, March 22-25, which will be played the same week as the WGC-Dell Technologies Match Play.
There is, however, uncertainty after that, with the Houston Open, March 29-April 1, and The National, July 28-July 1, both in need of a title sponsor. On Monday, members at Congressional Country Club were informed that the Tour had terminated its contract to hold the event at the Washington, D.C.-area course in ’18 and ’20.
“This is a scenario that we've faced oftentimes. Oftentimes you don't see the back and forth and the length of time and the complexity that these discussions and these decisions take and this is no different,” said commissioner Jay Monahan of The National, which currently doesn’t have a venue or a title sponsor.
“I'm not in any way suggesting we're giving up on that. We've put the event on our schedule and in any situation like this we expect to be successful. I think this is fairly commonplace.”
The only other significant change was the shift of the bye week to after the BMW Championship. Normally, the bye week comes between the Dell Technologies Championship and BMW, but with some top players headed directly from the Tour Championship, Sept. 20-23, to the Ryder Cup in France the circuit shifted the schedule to give them a break.
The year’s majors will be played at Augusta National (Masters, April 5-8), Shinnecock Hills in New York (U.S. Open, June 14-17), Carnoustie in Scotland (Open Championship, July 19-22) and Bellerive in St. Louis, Mo. (PGA Championship, Aug. 9-12).
The Tour also added the CJ Cup, Oct. 17-20, in South Korea to the 2017-18 schedule.
Tour expands anti-gambling reach as it monitors daily fantasy.
By Rex Hoggard
The PGA Tour unveiled a new integrity program on Monday, sublimating its long-held policy of forbidding players from gambling and expanding its reach.
The new policy now includes players, their support teams, tournament staff and volunteers, and all Tour personnel. The Tour also has teamed with London-based Genius Sports, which has created a system which tracks betting in real-time.
On Tuesday, Tour commissioner Jay Monahan said the new policy was a sign of the times, not a response to a specific incident or issue.
“Our brand is sacred and our brand has been established by the legends of the game and it goes back for decades,” Monahan said. “We established this program not because we think there's a problem, it's just the world is dynamic, gaming is a reality in every sport.
“We think it's the right thing to do when your brand is as strong as ours is to really understand what the activities are and to be proactive.”
In fact, Monahan said the policy, and partnership with Genius Sports, is part of the Tour’s ongoing analysis of online betting websites like DraftKings.
“That's something we have been and we'll continue to take a hard look at, but as of right now I would say two things. One, that's not the reason we've made this move, and two, you have to continue to see how daily fantasy continues to evolve,” Monahan said. “We're intrigued by daily fantasy, we're intrigued by gaming. Fan engagement I think it’s important for any sport and you look at the activity in other sports and you look at the activity in golf, it's significant.”
NASCAR Power Rankings: How much should we penalize Chase Elliott?
Welcome to Power Rankings. As always, Power Rankings are far from a scientific formula. In fact, it’s the perfect blend of analytics and bias against your favorite driver. Direct all your complaints to us at nickbromberg@yahoo.com and we’ll try to have some fun.
1. Martin Truex Jr.: We’ve mentioned this before in Power Rankings, but it’s worth bringing up again now that the playoffs are here: it may be more important for Truex to win races and stages to prevent other people from getting playoff points than it is for Truex to accumulate them himself.
With every stage and race victory Truex nets, he prevents another driver from doing the same. With an already massive playoff point tally (58) and a berth to the second round, Truex is already in great shape to get to the final round of the playoffs. He can make it harder for everyone else — especially in the third round — if he keeps vacuuming them up.
2. Kevin Harvick: It sure felt like Kevin Harvick was a man who just wanted to get to the finish line with his car in one piece on Sunday. Harvick’s made a habit of making the first round dramatic in recent years. And let’s be real, Stewart-Haas Racing hasn’t shown the outright speed to make up for poor finishes in 2017.
Harvick was third on Sunday, so perhaps the team is going to be a threat at the front of the field every week. But if you thought Harvick was one of the two or three favorites to win a race in the first round before Sunday’s race, you’re a die-hard No. 4 fan.
3. Denny Hamlin: Hamlin led one measly lap and didn’t have the blazing speed that Kyle Busch or Martin Truex Jr. had. But he wasn’t far behind — or simply didn’t have the clean air they did. Hamlin was a mainstay in the top five and finished fourth.
4. Kyle Busch: It’s ironic when a team swaps pit crews to help its pit crew performance and the new pit crew makes two massive mistakes, right?
After he dominated the first stage, Busch had to pit at the beginning of the second stage because he thought he had a loose wheel. As he came down for that problem to be fixed, his gas man had his feet in the pit stall while he wasn’t holding a gas gun. That was a penalty for being over the wall too soon and Busch had to come down pit road under green a second time.
He got one of his two laps back and ended up finishing 15th.
5. Kyle Larson: Larson get the honor of being the fastest Chevrolet among Chevrolets who weren’t penalized after the race. Larson finished fifth.
6. Chase Elliott: Hey, here’s the guy who had the fastest Chevy but ended up getting docked 15 points for unapproved aerodynamic adjustments his team made. Was it tape or something similar on the spoiler?
And if it was tape on the spoiler, what does it say about the aerodynamic sensitivity of the Cup Series cars that something seemingly so inconsequential could have such an impact?
7. Brad Keselowski: Keselowski started fifth and finished sixth and stayed in that neighborhood all day. He didn’t seem to have a car capable of challenging those that finished ahead of him, but at the same time, he was better than nine other playoff drivers.
8. Jamie McMurray: McMurray had quite the comeback after his spin, though it should be noted that the caution NASCAR threw for his harmless spin down the backstretch did wonders for the comeback. Because NASCAR threw the caution, McMurray was able to stay on the lead lap. Meanwhile, two screwups by Kyle Busch’s pit crew meant he was fighting for the final two-thirds of the race to get back on the lead lap.
9. Jimmie Johnson: Chad Knaus probably uses tape so awesome on Jimmie Johnson’s spoiler that you don’t even know it’s there. Invisible tape is the new wave of NASCAR spoiler tape.
Johnson finished eighth. And no, before you start looking for your sense of humor, we’re not accusing Johnson’s car of having illicit tape.
10. Matt Kenseth: Kenseth finished ninth, one spot behind Johnson. He’s also ninth in the points standings now. But we have him in 10th. Sorry Matt.
11. Ryan Blaney: Blaney finished 11th, right behind McMurray.
12. Joey Logano: Logano gets the courtesy spot reserved for a driver not in the playoffs after he finished seventh on Sunday. Will he get a win in the playoffs? He’s by far the best bet of any non-playoff driver, though it may not be a good bet overall.
The Lucky Dog: Paul Menard’s 14th-place finish was his best since finishing third at Daytona in July.
The DNF: Erik Jones’ spin relegated him to 33rd, between Reed Sorenson and Jeffrey Earnhardt.
Weekend schedule: NASCAR Cup, Trucks (Loudon); Xfinity (Kentucky).
By Jerry Bonkowski
(Photo/Getty Images)
For the rest of the NASCAR season, it’s all about the playoffs for the three major series.
This weekend, the NASCAR Cup Series moves into the second race of the 10-race playoffs with Sunday’s ISM Connect 300 at New Hampshire Motor Speedway.
Also at New Hampshire, the NASCAR Camping World Truck Series opens its seven-race playoffs with Saturday’s UNOH 175.
The NASCAR Xfinity Series begins its seven-race playoff series with Saturday night’s VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300 at Kentucky Speedway.
Here is the weekend schedule
(All times are Eastern):
Friday, September 22
At NEW HAMPSHIRE
9 a.m. – 7 p.m. – Cup garage open
11:30 a.m. – 12:55 p.m. – Cup practice (NBCSN)
11:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m. – Truck garage open
1:30 – 2:25 p.m. – Truck practice (FoxSports1)
3:30 – 4:25 p.m. – Final Truck practice (FS1)
5:15 p.m. – Cup qualifying (multi-vehicle, three rounds) (NBCSN, Performance Racing Network)
Friday, September 22
At KENTUCKY
1:30 – 9 p.m. – Xfinity garage open
4 – 4:55 p.m. – Xfinity practice (NBCSN)
6:30 – 7:25 p.m. – Final Xfinity practice (NBCSN)
Saturday, September 23
At NEW HAMPSHIRE
6:30 a.m. – Truck garage opens
7:30 a.m. – 4 p.m. – Cup garage open
9 – 9:55 a.m. – Cup practice (CNBC)
10:05 a.m. – Truck qualifying (FS1)
11:15 a.m. – Truck driver/crew chief meeting
11:30 a.m. – 12:20 p.m. – Final Cup practice (NBC Sports App)
12:30 p.m. – Truck driver introductions
1 p.m. – UNOH 175 Truck race (175 laps, 185.15 miles) (FS1, Motor Racing Network, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Saturday, September 23
At KENTUCKY
1:30 p.m. – Xfinity garage open
5:35 p.m. – Xfinity qualifying (multi-vehicle, three rounds) (NBCSN)
6:45 p.m. – Xfinity driver/crew chief meeting
7:30 p.m. – Xfinity driver introductions
8 p.m. – VisitMyrtleBeach.com 300 race (200 laps, 300 miles) (NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
Sunday, September 24
At NEW HAMPSHIRE
8:30 a.m. – Cup garage open
12 p.m. – Cup driver/crew chief meeting
1:20 p.m. – Cup driver introductions
2 p.m. – ISM Connect 300 NASCAR Cup race (300 laps, 317.4 miles) (NBCSN, PRN, SiriusXM NASCAR Radio)
After Chicago, Larson, Harvick lead winless drivers in first round.
By Daniel McFadin
For the second year in a row, Martin Truex Jr. won the playoff-opening race at Chicagoland Speedway to advance to the second round of NASCAR Cup Series postseason.
With his win, Kyle Larson and Kevin Harvick are the top-two drivers among the 15 still competing for the remaining 11 spots in the second round.
There are five drivers primarily in danger of being among the four eliminated following the next two races at New Hampshire and Dover.
Austin Dillon and Kurt Busch are tied with 2,026 points, though Dillon is listed as 12th and Busch in 13th on the grid.
Following them are Ricky Stenhouse Jr., who is four points back from Busch/Dillon, Kasey Kahne (-5) and Ryan Newman (-7).
Below is the full playoff grid following the first race of the first round.
SOCCER: Fire fans are throwing a killer party for the club's 20th birthday.
By Dan Santaromita
Most MLS teams are too young to have substantial history, but Fire fans are doing their part to celebrate the 20 years of Chicago Fire soccer.
A group of supporters is putting the work in to throw a party for the club in the vein of a fan convention — except this one isn’t run by a team. The small group of fans from the Fire’s independent supporters’ association, Section 8, is pooling efforts to throw a killer birthday bash and inviting former players and coaches to return for the celebration.
The Chicago Fire 20th Anniversary will take place on Oct. 8 at the Chicago Cultural Center. That’s 20 years to the day since the club’s first general manager, Peter Wilt, announced the name of the then-MLS expansion team at Navy Pier. Wilt will be among the star-studded list of attendees.
“You’re basically taking a fan convention and cramming it into four hours,” said Scott Greene, the chair of Section 8’s board of directors.
Greene was at the anniversary party five years ago and the plan is to continue them every five years. He said the 15th anniversary was “pretty flawless” in the way it ran and they are hoping to replicate that this time around with a similar type of program.
“It was astounding from the fact of what the Fire means for former players,” Greene said. “I think that always takes you aback at their experience at what the Fire means... Their willingness to come out to Chicago to interact with the fans is remarkable.”
The list of confirmed guests already boasts some of the biggest names in the team’s history and more are expected, although still unconfirmed. Five players from the original 1998 team, which won both the U.S. Open Cup and MLS Cup, are already confirmed to be attending: Lubos Kubik, Diego Gutierrez, Jerzy Podbrozny, Roman Kosecki and current broadcaster Frank Klopas.
“It’s always great, the ability now to reconnect with all the old friends,” Klopas said during the broadcast of the D.C. United match this past Saturday. “I pretty much run into a lot of my old teammates that are still involved in the league here, but the ability to spend some time with Kosecki and Podbrozny, guys that you don’t see that much. It’s fantastic to reconnect with some of our old fans and some of the new fans and talk about some great moments from the past, but also some fantastic moments where the team is now.”
Longtime Fire defender Gonzalo Segares, 2013 MLS MVP Mike Magee and 1994 Ballon d’Or winner Hristo Stoichkov also will be attending.
In order to get the players to come to Chicago, Section 8 has worked to raise funds to fly the players in, which is especially tricky with those coming in from out of the country. Greene said ticket sales are the main revenue portion, but they are also accepting donations and there is a silent auction.
The auction includes a game-worn Michael Bradley national team jersey from a Gold Cup semifinal this year. Bradley is the son of the Fire’s first coach, Bob Bradley, and grew up in Chicagoland while his dad coached the team. There is also the press of the Bastian Schweinsteiger poster that ran in the Chicago Tribune.
“It’s a ton of coordination, but from a fan’s point of view it’s pretty awesome to email people,” Greene said. “I sponsored Andy Herron and it’s really cool to interact with him. I’m interacting with my sporting heroes. That’s really cool from being a volunteer and organizing this, the logistics of who’s coming.”
The club has helped provide videos and photos as part of the program and the beer list would make some brew fests envious. Chicagoland breweries Half Acre, BuckleDown (which has a Section 8 Pale Ale), Two Brothers (which will have a 20 Twenty-Plus Pilsner Lager which is named for the founding year of the brewery, which matches the Fire’s founding year) and Goose Island will have beers at the party. Goose Island is making a black lager made exclusively for the party.
Top Storylines for Premier League Week 6.
By Daniel Karell
(Photo/Getty Images)
After a week of League Cup action domestically, the Premier League returns this weekend with a myriad of interesting matchups and storylines.
Let’s take a look at some of this week’s top story’s to follow:
Can Manchester City continue its torrid form?
Manchester City has finally found its groove under manager Pep Guardiola.
The club has won five successive games, the last three coming on the road while scoring a combined 19 goals. Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus are a terrific 1-2 punch while David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne have been stars in midfield, with De Bruyne pulling the strings for Man City all season.
There’s every likelihood that Man City will continue its impressive run on Saturday. The club hosts floundering Crystal Palace, which is still adjusting to new manager Roy Hodgson.
Can Liverpool stop its slide?
Liverpool’s red-hot August has become an ice-cold September.
Since the end of the transfer window, Jurgen Klopp‘s side has failed to record a win in all competitions, with draws against Sevilla and Burnley and losses to Manchester City and most recently Leicester City in the League Cup.
Now, Liverpool make the same trip east to Leicester for the second time in five days, hoping to regain momentum and change the negative feeling around the team.
Everton, Bournemouth in early-season relegation scrap.
Everton’s below-par form has been well documented this season but what hasn’t gotten a lot of mention has been the disappointed and disjointed performances of AFC Bournemouth.
Both teams are currently in the relegation zone and will be looking for a big three points on Saturday to lift them out of the danger area. Despite their places in the table, this is a game between two coaches who like expansive soccer, so expect plenty of good passing and perhaps a good team goal or two before the whistle is blown.
Former Sunderland forward Scocco scores five goals for River Plate.
By Daniel Karell
Nearly three months since joining River, Scocco scored an incredible five goals in the second leg of his team’s Copa Libertadores quarterfinal matchup with Bolivian side Jorge Wilstermann. Scocco scored a first half hat-trick and added two more in the second half as River turned around a 3-0 deficit heading into the second leg.
Scocco had a mostly frustrating spell in 2014 ahead of the World Cup with Sunderland, joining the club as they staved off relegation by one point. Scocco failed to score for Sunderland in eight appearances, all off the bench.
However, since then, he returned to his native Argentina and starred for his hometown club Newell’s Old Boys before moving this summer to River as a replacement for Sebastián Driussi, who completed a transfer to Zenit St. Petersburg.
Serie A: Mertens scores unreal goal; Napoli, Milan, Juve win.
By Nicholas Mendola
Juventus and Napoli remain perfect, with the latter above the former in the Serie A table this early season following Wednesday wins.
Roma and Atalanta posted blowout wins, while AC Milan won a day after their Milanese rivals Inter needed a 77th minute penalty to draw at Bologna.
Lazio 1-4 Napoli
There were five goals in this one, but the only one you need to witness comes on this unreal shot from an odd angle by the world’s top under-appreciated scorer: Dries Mertens.
Juventus 1-0 Fiorentina
Mario Mandzukic scored the lone goal as The Old Lady slipped further behind Napoli in goal difference.
AC Milan 2-0 SPAL
I Rossoneri scored on a penalty in each half, with new boys Ricardo Rodriguez and Franck Kessie converting the chances.
Benevento 0-4 Roma
Edin Dzeko buried a pair of goals and the hosts gifted i Lupi a pair of own goals.
Elsewhere
Bologna 1-1 Inter Milan — Tuesday
Cagliari 0-1 Sassuolo
Genoa 1-1 Chievo
Verona 0-0 Sampdoria
Udinese 2-3 Torino
STANDINGS
NCAAFB: NCAA approves waiver to allow UCF to schedule Austin Peay as hurricane replacement game.
Let’s take a look at some of this week’s top story’s to follow:
Can Manchester City continue its torrid form?
Manchester City has finally found its groove under manager Pep Guardiola.
The club has won five successive games, the last three coming on the road while scoring a combined 19 goals. Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus are a terrific 1-2 punch while David Silva and Kevin De Bruyne have been stars in midfield, with De Bruyne pulling the strings for Man City all season.
There’s every likelihood that Man City will continue its impressive run on Saturday. The club hosts floundering Crystal Palace, which is still adjusting to new manager Roy Hodgson.
Can Liverpool stop its slide?
Liverpool’s red-hot August has become an ice-cold September.
Since the end of the transfer window, Jurgen Klopp‘s side has failed to record a win in all competitions, with draws against Sevilla and Burnley and losses to Manchester City and most recently Leicester City in the League Cup.
Now, Liverpool make the same trip east to Leicester for the second time in five days, hoping to regain momentum and change the negative feeling around the team.
Everton, Bournemouth in early-season relegation scrap.
Everton’s below-par form has been well documented this season but what hasn’t gotten a lot of mention has been the disappointed and disjointed performances of AFC Bournemouth.
Both teams are currently in the relegation zone and will be looking for a big three points on Saturday to lift them out of the danger area. Despite their places in the table, this is a game between two coaches who like expansive soccer, so expect plenty of good passing and perhaps a good team goal or two before the whistle is blown.
Former Sunderland forward Scocco scores five goals for River Plate.
By Daniel Karell
(Photo/Getty Images)
Veteran forward Ignacio “Nacho” Scocco is quickly endearing himself to the River Plate faithful.
Nearly three months since joining River, Scocco scored an incredible five goals in the second leg of his team’s Copa Libertadores quarterfinal matchup with Bolivian side Jorge Wilstermann. Scocco scored a first half hat-trick and added two more in the second half as River turned around a 3-0 deficit heading into the second leg.
Scocco had a mostly frustrating spell in 2014 ahead of the World Cup with Sunderland, joining the club as they staved off relegation by one point. Scocco failed to score for Sunderland in eight appearances, all off the bench.
However, since then, he returned to his native Argentina and starred for his hometown club Newell’s Old Boys before moving this summer to River as a replacement for Sebastián Driussi, who completed a transfer to Zenit St. Petersburg.
Serie A: Mertens scores unreal goal; Napoli, Milan, Juve win.
By Nicholas Mendola
(Photo/AP Photo/Alessandra Tarantino)
It’s early but signs of an actual title race in Italy are truly delightful.
Juventus and Napoli remain perfect, with the latter above the former in the Serie A table this early season following Wednesday wins.
Roma and Atalanta posted blowout wins, while AC Milan won a day after their Milanese rivals Inter needed a 77th minute penalty to draw at Bologna.
Lazio 1-4 Napoli
There were five goals in this one, but the only one you need to witness comes on this unreal shot from an odd angle by the world’s top under-appreciated scorer: Dries Mertens.
Juventus 1-0 Fiorentina
Mario Mandzukic scored the lone goal as The Old Lady slipped further behind Napoli in goal difference.
AC Milan 2-0 SPAL
I Rossoneri scored on a penalty in each half, with new boys Ricardo Rodriguez and Franck Kessie converting the chances.
Benevento 0-4 Roma
Edin Dzeko buried a pair of goals and the hosts gifted i Lupi a pair of own goals.
Elsewhere
Bologna 1-1 Inter Milan — Tuesday
Cagliari 0-1 Sassuolo
Genoa 1-1 Chievo
Verona 0-0 Sampdoria
Udinese 2-3 Torino
STANDINGS
| Team | GP | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Home | Away | PTS |
| Napoli | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 19 | 3 | 16 | 2-0-0 | 3-0-0 | 15 |
| Juventus | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 3 | 11 | 3-0-0 | 2-0-0 | 15 |
| Inter Milan | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 11 | 2 | 9 | 2-0-0 | 2-1-0 | 13 |
| AC Milan | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 3-0-0 | 1-0-1 | 12 |
| Torino | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 1-1-0 | 2-1-0 | 11 |
| Lazio | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 1-1-1 | 2-0-0 | 10 |
| Roma | 4 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 3 | 6 | 1-0-1 | 2-0-0 | 9 |
| Sampdoria | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 1-0-0 | 1-2-0 | 8 |
| Atalanta | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 9 | 7 | 2 | 2-0-1 | 0-1-1 | 7 |
| Fiorentina | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 1-0-1 | 1-0-2 | 6 |
| Cagliari | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 6 | -2 | 1-0-1 | 1-0-2 | 6 |
| Chievo | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 5 | 8 | -3 | 0-1-1 | 1-1-1 | 5 |
| Bologna | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 7 | -3 | 0-2-1 | 1-0-1 | 5 |
| SPAL | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 8 | -5 | 1-0-1 | 0-1-2 | 4 |
| Sassuolo | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 8 | -5 | 0-1-1 | 1-0-2 | 4 |
| Udinese | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 7 | 10 | -3 | 1-0-2 | 0-0-2 | 3 |
| Genoa | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 9 | -4 | 0-1-2 | 0-1-1 | 2 |
| Verona | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 11 | -10 | 0-1-2 | 0-1-1 | 2 |
| Crotone | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 11 | -10 | 0-1-2 | 0-0-2 | 1 |
| Benevento | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 1 | 14 | -13 | 0-0-3 | 0-0-2 | 0 |
NCAAFB: NCAA approves waiver to allow UCF to schedule Austin Peay as hurricane replacement game.
By Bryan Fischer
(Photo/Getty Images)
Hurricane Irma forced a lot of shuffling and cancellations on the college football schedule but perhaps no team was more uniquely affected than Central Florida.
The Knights had two home games cancelled as a result of the storm, last weekend against Georgia Tech and a contest against Maine that was bought out as a way for the team to play their full AAC conference slate. Dropping the games left UCF with only 10 games for the 2017 season and a not ideal five home games as a result.
That has been cleared up somewhat however, as the school announced on Thursday that the NCAA has approved a waiver and that Austin Peay is now scheduled to go to Orlando for a Oct. 28th contest.
“I can’t thank Oliver Luck and the staff at the NCAA enough for their help and understanding of our situation,” UCF athletic director Danny White said in a statement. “We greatly appreciate Austin Peay being willing to visit Spectrum Stadium. We’re thrilled for our student-athletes, who deserve every opportunity they can get to go out and compete. I know our fans will be excited about the opportunity to have another Saturday at Spectrum Stadium.”
The Knights are currently 1-0 heading into their trip to play Maryland on Saturday. With the addition of an 11th game to their 2017 slate, UCF needs to go at least 6-5 in order to become bowl eligible as a result.
Billion dollar club: Ohio State, Texas, Oklahoma named most valuable CFB programs.
By Bryan Fischer
The Knights had two home games cancelled as a result of the storm, last weekend against Georgia Tech and a contest against Maine that was bought out as a way for the team to play their full AAC conference slate. Dropping the games left UCF with only 10 games for the 2017 season and a not ideal five home games as a result.
That has been cleared up somewhat however, as the school announced on Thursday that the NCAA has approved a waiver and that Austin Peay is now scheduled to go to Orlando for a Oct. 28th contest.
“I can’t thank Oliver Luck and the staff at the NCAA enough for their help and understanding of our situation,” UCF athletic director Danny White said in a statement. “We greatly appreciate Austin Peay being willing to visit Spectrum Stadium. We’re thrilled for our student-athletes, who deserve every opportunity they can get to go out and compete. I know our fans will be excited about the opportunity to have another Saturday at Spectrum Stadium.”
The Knights are currently 1-0 heading into their trip to play Maryland on Saturday. With the addition of an 11th game to their 2017 slate, UCF needs to go at least 6-5 in order to become bowl eligible as a result.
Billion dollar club: Ohio State, Texas, Oklahoma named most valuable CFB programs.
By Bryan Fischer
(Photo/Getty Images)
Alabama is No. 1 in just about every college football poll… except one.
That would be the Wall Street Journal’s annual ranking of college football programs. While you might think that the paper gives Clemson the edge instead, you have to know that they are not examining teams’ performance on the field in 2017, but rather their overall evaluation. Much like Forbes does in ranking NFL franchise values, WSJ attempted to find out how much college football programs were worth and came to the conclusion that Ohio State reigns supreme in the sport with a nearly $1.5 billion sticker price.
The Buckeyes’ value shot up nearly 60% in just a year so you can thank a College Football Playoff appearance and that huge new Big Ten television package for boosting their bottom line. The WSJ came to the conclusion by citing a study performed by Ryan Brewer, an associate professor of finance at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus.
Not far behind Ohio State and still in the billion dollar club were Big 12 rivals Texas and Oklahoma. The Longhorns were an annual mainstay atop estimates like this for years but the team’s recent malaise on the field seems to have held them back lately. While the SEC did not have a team crack the 10 figure mark (shockingly), the league did make up half of the top 10. All said, the most valuable conference in college football averaged nearly $523 million per team overall.
Here’s the overall top 10 teams and how much they’re worth per the report:
By Ben Kercheval
Some early-season Big Ten games could shake up the national standings.
There are bad weeks for upset predictions and there are good weeks. Last week was, um, a bad week. However, I'm feeling confident about the law of averages because Week 4 of the college football season looks like it'll shape up to be a good week.
It starts in the Big Ten with No. 4 Penn State and No. 8 Michigan on the road at Iowa and Purdue, respectively. The Hawkeyes have been awfully good at home against top-five opponents and coach Jeff Brohm has the Boilermakers playing at a much higher level three games into his tenure. In fact, four of this week's five upset alert games feature road games for top-10 teams.
With all of that in mind, we're here to give you the top five upset alert games each week of the 2017 season based on matchups, injuries/suspensions and other factors. As a general rule, we try to avoid games whose lines are well within a touchdown with exceptions being made for cases that warrant them.
Toledo at No. 14 Miami (FL)
When: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET | Where: Miami, Florida | Opening Line: Miami (FL) -14
Why it's listed: I went back and forth between this game and TCU-Oklahoma State. Then I remembered how badly the Cowboys burned my upset alert pick last week against Pitt. The upset potential is still there for the Pokes, but the fact that Miami hasn't played in three weeks is an interesting angle to this Week 4 nonconference matchup. How will the Hurricanes, who have actually moved up four spots from their preseason poll ranking for basically not existing, look when basically starting the season over? Our only tape on this team is against Bethune-Cookman from three weeks ago, which is almost like not having tape at all.
Toledo wins if: It's a shootout. The Rockets can score -- that much is obvious -- and quarterback Logan Woodside is under-appreciated as one of the more accomplished signal-callers outside the Power Five. He already has 1,000 yards through the air with a 10-to-1 touchdown-interception ratio and 11 yards per attempt. The Miami defensive front seven will have to swarm and get to Woodside if they're going to keep this thing from getting out of hand.
Miami wins if: It's not a shootout. Compelling, I know, but Miami has the clear defensive edge. The talent in the front seven is there and Toledo's defense has been gashed by the likes of Tulsa. If the Hurricanes can make enough stops and let running back Mark Walton do his thing (Toledo allows five yards per rush) this should be a game of little contest. Run the dang ball and lean on your defense, Canes.
No. 5 USC at Cal
When: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET | Where: Berkeley, California | Opening Line: USC -16
Why it's listed: This is one of those classic upset potentials where in no universe is Cal actually a better team than USC. However, the Trojans have shown enough vulnerability that if they're not playing their best game, the Golden Bears might be able to do the unthinkable. Cal is 2-0 against the spread as a dog and USC is just 1-2 as a favorite. Cal's first-year coach Justin Wilcox has had a surprisingly good first three weeks with wins at North Carolina and at home against Ole Miss. Neither team is particularly good, but there's a real case that no first-year coach has done more right away than Wilcox has, especially with the visible improvements made on defense. However, this upset pick has a fine line. After USC, Cal faces Oregon, Washington and Washington State, and the first two are on the road. Cal has a lot of confidence right now, but a loss could just as easily start a downward spiraling effect.
Cal wins if: Wilcox works his magic on defense. The Golden Bears are doing a lot of little things right. Heck, even having defensive backs knowing how to play the ball downfield in coverage is an improvement. And though this 3-4 defensive base doesn't have the Poona Ford or Malik Jefferson types like Texas does, it could still have similar success against the run while bringing pressure from a variety of different spots against quarterback Sam Darnold. Wilcox has some familiarity with USC, too, since he's only a few years removed as the program's defensive coordinator.
USC wins if: The Trojans from Week 2's win over Stanford show up, as simplistic as that sounds. Granted, we know now Stanford has problems outside of running back Bryce Love, but that was USC playing near its apex. The running game was working and Darnold made some ridiculous throws. Plus, the defense showed excellent second-half adjustments. That's the USC that is a playoff-caliber team. If that's the team that shows up against Cal, this one probably isn't close. But we haven't seen that team two weeks in a row yet this season.
No. 8 Michigan at Purdue
When: Saturday, 4 p.m. ET | Where: West Lafayette, Indiana | Opening Line: Michigan -8
Why it's listed: Historically, it made sense for Purdue to be a road dog at Missouri. The Boilermakers weren't just abysmal on the road in recent years, but abysmal period. Still, that Week 3 upset pick was too easy. This one ... not as much. Michigan is obviously far better, especially defensively. That's going to be a tough outing for Purdue's offense which, for all its fun and glitz with coach Jeff Brohm, still finishes with a so-so six yards per play. The thing is, Michigan isn't any better on offense and horrific in red zone touchdown conversions (1-of-10). This one could be your classic Big Ten low-scoring fight.
Purdue wins if: It can get at least one, but ideally two, non-offensive touchdowns. Let's start with what's going right: Quarterback David Blough has been efficient with the ball with a 76.1 completion percentage, 8.9 yards per attempt and a 174.5 passer rating. Now for the other part: This is the toughest defensive test yet by a country mile for the Boilermakers. The 3.45 yards per play allowed by the Wolverines is tied for first in the Big Ten. Purdue will need help on defense and/or special teams, if for no other reason than to flip the field.
Michigan wins if: It overpowers Purdue and suffocates them until it runs out of air. The Wolverines have played in three tight games and then broke something open at the end with either a big offensive or defensive play. That's what raw talent will do. Unless the passing game improves, this is who Michigan is, I guess.
No. 4 Penn State at Iowa
When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET | Where: Iowa City, Iowa | Opening Line: Penn State -13.5
Why it's listed: Iowa's recent record against top-five opponents speaks for itself. The Hawkeyes are 4-2 vs. top-five opponents since 2008 and 3-0 when playing at home. Additionally, Iowa is on a two-game winning streak against Penn State (2008, 2009) when the Nittany Lions are ranked in the top five nationally. The past isn't the best indicator of future results, but, yeah, that's kind of noteworthy going into Saturday. As far as difficult places to play in the Big Ten, Kinnick should be up there.
Iowa wins if: The Hawkeyes have enough success passing the ball to open up the run. Running back Akrum Wadley left the Week 3 game against North Texas with an injury, but all signs point to him playing on Saturday. Wadley ranks sixth in the Big Ten with eight rushes of 10 yards or more -- only two behind Barkley. But Penn State has an excellent run defense that's given up only one touchdown and fewer than three yards per carry despite opponents averaging 42 attempts per game against them. Iowa's passing attack isn't prolific by any definition, but it is efficient and will be needed to open up those running lanes for Wadley.
Penn State wins if: Saquon Barkley does Saquon Barkley things. It feels as though we've almost become numb to how unreal of an athlete Barkley is. He's a complete running back and all, but his ability to create plays on his own that look dead is next-level. This catch-and-run against Akron is mind-bending ...
Penn State's offense has been able to take advantage of defenses keying in on Barkley by attacking through the air with tight end Mike Gesicki ... but Gesicki and Barkley are the team's two-leading pass-catchers. At the end of the day, this offense runs through Barkley, and in big games, the best player on the field needs to take over.
No. 7 Washington at Colorado
When: Saturday, 10 p.m. ET | Where: Boulder, Colorado | Opening Line: Washington -11
Why it's listed: It's #Pac12AfterDark, baby, what else did you expect? A rematch of last year's Pac-12 Championship Game could be closer than the 41-10 beatdown the Huskies gave in 2016. The revenge factor is certainly in play for the Buffs, but this is a game featuring two of the Pac-12's better defenses. The Buffs rank sixth in the country in stop rate percentage, per Max Olson of The Athletic, while Washington ranks 12th. Both defenses do a good job of limiting explosive plays (10-plus yards) as well. We think of late-night Pac-12 games as crazy shootouts, but this one is shaping up to be a lower-scoring brawl.
Colorado wins if: Linebacker Drew Lewis has a career game against his former team. Lewis began his career with the Huskies before being dismissed in 2015. He leads Colorado with 25 tackles and 15 solo takedowns, as well as three quarterback hurries. To get that type of disruption from an inside linebacker is key. If Lewis can get to quarterback Jake Browning, it will disrupt the play-action long ball that Browning loves to throw.
Washington wins if: Its defensive front breaks through. The Huskies have a formidable front seven -- arguably the best in college football -- and Colorado has had trouble protecting Steven Montez by allowing an average of three sacks per game. Only Washington State and Arizona State have allowed more in the Pac-12. In a defensive struggle, getting behind the chains is bad news for an offense that will likely have to chip away at yardage.
NCAABKB: College basketball season starts in 50 days, so here's 50 fun facts to get you ready.
That would be the Wall Street Journal’s annual ranking of college football programs. While you might think that the paper gives Clemson the edge instead, you have to know that they are not examining teams’ performance on the field in 2017, but rather their overall evaluation. Much like Forbes does in ranking NFL franchise values, WSJ attempted to find out how much college football programs were worth and came to the conclusion that Ohio State reigns supreme in the sport with a nearly $1.5 billion sticker price.
The Buckeyes’ value shot up nearly 60% in just a year so you can thank a College Football Playoff appearance and that huge new Big Ten television package for boosting their bottom line. The WSJ came to the conclusion by citing a study performed by Ryan Brewer, an associate professor of finance at Indiana University-Purdue University Columbus.
Not far behind Ohio State and still in the billion dollar club were Big 12 rivals Texas and Oklahoma. The Longhorns were an annual mainstay atop estimates like this for years but the team’s recent malaise on the field seems to have held them back lately. While the SEC did not have a team crack the 10 figure mark (shockingly), the league did make up half of the top 10. All said, the most valuable conference in college football averaged nearly $523 million per team overall.
Here’s the overall top 10 teams and how much they’re worth per the report:
- Ohio State – $1,510,482,000
- Texas – $1,243,124,000
- Oklahoma – $1,001,967,00
- Alabama $930,001,000
- Louisiana State – $910,927,000
- Michigan – $892,951,000
- Notre Dame – $856,938,000
- Georgia – $822,310,000
- Tennessee – $745,640,00
- Auburn – $724,191,000
By Ben Kercheval
Some early-season Big Ten games could shake up the national standings.
There are bad weeks for upset predictions and there are good weeks. Last week was, um, a bad week. However, I'm feeling confident about the law of averages because Week 4 of the college football season looks like it'll shape up to be a good week.
It starts in the Big Ten with No. 4 Penn State and No. 8 Michigan on the road at Iowa and Purdue, respectively. The Hawkeyes have been awfully good at home against top-five opponents and coach Jeff Brohm has the Boilermakers playing at a much higher level three games into his tenure. In fact, four of this week's five upset alert games feature road games for top-10 teams.
With all of that in mind, we're here to give you the top five upset alert games each week of the 2017 season based on matchups, injuries/suspensions and other factors. As a general rule, we try to avoid games whose lines are well within a touchdown with exceptions being made for cases that warrant them.
Toledo at No. 14 Miami (FL)
When: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET | Where: Miami, Florida | Opening Line: Miami (FL) -14
Why it's listed: I went back and forth between this game and TCU-Oklahoma State. Then I remembered how badly the Cowboys burned my upset alert pick last week against Pitt. The upset potential is still there for the Pokes, but the fact that Miami hasn't played in three weeks is an interesting angle to this Week 4 nonconference matchup. How will the Hurricanes, who have actually moved up four spots from their preseason poll ranking for basically not existing, look when basically starting the season over? Our only tape on this team is against Bethune-Cookman from three weeks ago, which is almost like not having tape at all.
Toledo wins if: It's a shootout. The Rockets can score -- that much is obvious -- and quarterback Logan Woodside is under-appreciated as one of the more accomplished signal-callers outside the Power Five. He already has 1,000 yards through the air with a 10-to-1 touchdown-interception ratio and 11 yards per attempt. The Miami defensive front seven will have to swarm and get to Woodside if they're going to keep this thing from getting out of hand.
Miami wins if: It's not a shootout. Compelling, I know, but Miami has the clear defensive edge. The talent in the front seven is there and Toledo's defense has been gashed by the likes of Tulsa. If the Hurricanes can make enough stops and let running back Mark Walton do his thing (Toledo allows five yards per rush) this should be a game of little contest. Run the dang ball and lean on your defense, Canes.
No. 5 USC at Cal
When: Saturday, 3:30 p.m. ET | Where: Berkeley, California | Opening Line: USC -16
Why it's listed: This is one of those classic upset potentials where in no universe is Cal actually a better team than USC. However, the Trojans have shown enough vulnerability that if they're not playing their best game, the Golden Bears might be able to do the unthinkable. Cal is 2-0 against the spread as a dog and USC is just 1-2 as a favorite. Cal's first-year coach Justin Wilcox has had a surprisingly good first three weeks with wins at North Carolina and at home against Ole Miss. Neither team is particularly good, but there's a real case that no first-year coach has done more right away than Wilcox has, especially with the visible improvements made on defense. However, this upset pick has a fine line. After USC, Cal faces Oregon, Washington and Washington State, and the first two are on the road. Cal has a lot of confidence right now, but a loss could just as easily start a downward spiraling effect.
Cal wins if: Wilcox works his magic on defense. The Golden Bears are doing a lot of little things right. Heck, even having defensive backs knowing how to play the ball downfield in coverage is an improvement. And though this 3-4 defensive base doesn't have the Poona Ford or Malik Jefferson types like Texas does, it could still have similar success against the run while bringing pressure from a variety of different spots against quarterback Sam Darnold. Wilcox has some familiarity with USC, too, since he's only a few years removed as the program's defensive coordinator.
USC wins if: The Trojans from Week 2's win over Stanford show up, as simplistic as that sounds. Granted, we know now Stanford has problems outside of running back Bryce Love, but that was USC playing near its apex. The running game was working and Darnold made some ridiculous throws. Plus, the defense showed excellent second-half adjustments. That's the USC that is a playoff-caliber team. If that's the team that shows up against Cal, this one probably isn't close. But we haven't seen that team two weeks in a row yet this season.
No. 8 Michigan at Purdue
When: Saturday, 4 p.m. ET | Where: West Lafayette, Indiana | Opening Line: Michigan -8
Why it's listed: Historically, it made sense for Purdue to be a road dog at Missouri. The Boilermakers weren't just abysmal on the road in recent years, but abysmal period. Still, that Week 3 upset pick was too easy. This one ... not as much. Michigan is obviously far better, especially defensively. That's going to be a tough outing for Purdue's offense which, for all its fun and glitz with coach Jeff Brohm, still finishes with a so-so six yards per play. The thing is, Michigan isn't any better on offense and horrific in red zone touchdown conversions (1-of-10). This one could be your classic Big Ten low-scoring fight.
Purdue wins if: It can get at least one, but ideally two, non-offensive touchdowns. Let's start with what's going right: Quarterback David Blough has been efficient with the ball with a 76.1 completion percentage, 8.9 yards per attempt and a 174.5 passer rating. Now for the other part: This is the toughest defensive test yet by a country mile for the Boilermakers. The 3.45 yards per play allowed by the Wolverines is tied for first in the Big Ten. Purdue will need help on defense and/or special teams, if for no other reason than to flip the field.
Michigan wins if: It overpowers Purdue and suffocates them until it runs out of air. The Wolverines have played in three tight games and then broke something open at the end with either a big offensive or defensive play. That's what raw talent will do. Unless the passing game improves, this is who Michigan is, I guess.
No. 4 Penn State at Iowa
When: Saturday, 7:30 p.m. ET | Where: Iowa City, Iowa | Opening Line: Penn State -13.5
Why it's listed: Iowa's recent record against top-five opponents speaks for itself. The Hawkeyes are 4-2 vs. top-five opponents since 2008 and 3-0 when playing at home. Additionally, Iowa is on a two-game winning streak against Penn State (2008, 2009) when the Nittany Lions are ranked in the top five nationally. The past isn't the best indicator of future results, but, yeah, that's kind of noteworthy going into Saturday. As far as difficult places to play in the Big Ten, Kinnick should be up there.
Iowa wins if: The Hawkeyes have enough success passing the ball to open up the run. Running back Akrum Wadley left the Week 3 game against North Texas with an injury, but all signs point to him playing on Saturday. Wadley ranks sixth in the Big Ten with eight rushes of 10 yards or more -- only two behind Barkley. But Penn State has an excellent run defense that's given up only one touchdown and fewer than three yards per carry despite opponents averaging 42 attempts per game against them. Iowa's passing attack isn't prolific by any definition, but it is efficient and will be needed to open up those running lanes for Wadley.
Penn State wins if: Saquon Barkley does Saquon Barkley things. It feels as though we've almost become numb to how unreal of an athlete Barkley is. He's a complete running back and all, but his ability to create plays on his own that look dead is next-level. This catch-and-run against Akron is mind-bending ...
Penn State's offense has been able to take advantage of defenses keying in on Barkley by attacking through the air with tight end Mike Gesicki ... but Gesicki and Barkley are the team's two-leading pass-catchers. At the end of the day, this offense runs through Barkley, and in big games, the best player on the field needs to take over.
No. 7 Washington at Colorado
When: Saturday, 10 p.m. ET | Where: Boulder, Colorado | Opening Line: Washington -11
Why it's listed: It's #Pac12AfterDark, baby, what else did you expect? A rematch of last year's Pac-12 Championship Game could be closer than the 41-10 beatdown the Huskies gave in 2016. The revenge factor is certainly in play for the Buffs, but this is a game featuring two of the Pac-12's better defenses. The Buffs rank sixth in the country in stop rate percentage, per Max Olson of The Athletic, while Washington ranks 12th. Both defenses do a good job of limiting explosive plays (10-plus yards) as well. We think of late-night Pac-12 games as crazy shootouts, but this one is shaping up to be a lower-scoring brawl.
Colorado wins if: Linebacker Drew Lewis has a career game against his former team. Lewis began his career with the Huskies before being dismissed in 2015. He leads Colorado with 25 tackles and 15 solo takedowns, as well as three quarterback hurries. To get that type of disruption from an inside linebacker is key. If Lewis can get to quarterback Jake Browning, it will disrupt the play-action long ball that Browning loves to throw.
Washington wins if: Its defensive front breaks through. The Huskies have a formidable front seven -- arguably the best in college football -- and Colorado has had trouble protecting Steven Montez by allowing an average of three sacks per game. Only Washington State and Arizona State have allowed more in the Pac-12. In a defensive struggle, getting behind the chains is bad news for an offense that will likely have to chip away at yardage.
NCAABKB: College basketball season starts in 50 days, so here's 50 fun facts to get you ready.
By Matt Norlander
Nov. 10 will be here before you know it so here's what you need to know.
The 2017-18 college basketball season might seem far off, but it's closer than you think. We're already just 50 days from the start of it. It's not quite preseason yet, but we've got you covered. If you're antsy for some college hoops content for the year ahead, consider this the heartiest of appetizers. Here are 50 items, facts, nuggets, tidbits, opinions and reasons to get eager for the upcoming campaign, which starts Nov. 10.
1. It's the oak anniversary for the NCAA Tournament. This year's bracket will be the 80th iteration of March Madness. The first Big Dance wasn't so big: an eight-team field in 1939. Oregon defeated Ohio State 46-33.
2. It's also an 80th year of existence for Phil Knight, who co-founded Nike (first named Blue Ribbon Sports) in 1964. Now, Nike is the biggest sports apparel company in the world, the biggest shoe-company presence in college basketball, and supplies the uniforms for more than 100 programs. On Nov. 23, 24 and 26, in Portland, Nike is holding a one-time-only "PK80" event in Knight's honor. The two-bracket extravaganza is highlighted by the inclusion of Duke, North Carolina, Michigan State, Florida and Gonzaga.
3. Heading into the season, Arizona, Duke and Michigan State are the favorites to land the No. 1 spot in the preseason AP poll. The last time a preseason No. 1 team in the AP poll won the national title in the same season was UNC in 2008-09. Duke has been the No. 1 team in the preseason AP poll eight times, including a year ago. Arizona's earned the honor thrice, most recently in 2002. Michigan State has never been preseason No. 1.
4. Duke is going to be the story in college hoops this season, much like Golden State has been the same for the NBA in recent years. But whereas Golden State is filled with award-winning vets, this is the least-experienced Blue Devils team Mike Krzyzewksi's ever coached. The only player returning who averaged more than seven minutes per game is Grayson Allen.
5. Speaking of Allen, he returns for his senior season as the most well-known college athlete on the planet, and of course the most hated. Because he's tripped multiple players and lashed out on the bench in the era of social media and instant-reaction, you could make the argument no player, ever, has been subjected to as much widespread criticism -- from fans and the press -- as Allen. Plenty of it deserved. Will we see that side of him again, though? How Allen conducts himself will be a current that coincides with Duke's season on the whole, and has the potential to define the team's success. (By the way, he's good enough to be an All-American again.)
6. North Carolina, Gonzaga, South Carolina and Oregon will attempt to do the not-so-unusual in college hoops. It's downright commonplace for teams to make consecutive Final Fours. It's happened 15 times in the past 20 seasons alone.
2017: North Carolina
2015: Kentucky, Wisconsin
2013: Louisville
2012: Kentucky
2011: Butler
2010: Michigan State
2009: North Carolina
2008: UCLA (went to three straight)
2007: Florida
2003: Kansas
2002: Maryland
2001: Michigan State (went to three straight)
7. All four 2017 Final Four teams could have a rough go of getting back, though. South Carolina lost one of the best players in program history in Sindarius Thornwell, plus P.J. Dozier to early NBA draft entry. Oregon's three best players (Dillon Brooks, Tyler Dorsey and Jordan Bell) all left school early for the pros. Gonzaga brings back a good roster, but it too lost Zach Collins and Nigel Williams-Goss to the NBA. Collins was the first one-and-doner in GU history. UNC lost Justin Jackson as a junior, in addition to one-and-done Tony Bradley and the graduations of Isaiah Hicks, Nate Britt and Kennedy Meeks.
8. Even though the Tar Heels lost a lot, they do return Joel Berry II, who could wind up as the most important point guard this season. Berry will aim to become the fifth North Carolina player in program history to win a national player of the year award, joining Phil Ford, Michael Jordan, Antawn Jamison and Tyler Hansbrough.
9. Oregon's averaged 28 wins the past five seasons, all of them including a trip to the NCAA.
10. Will Villanova's Big East dominance continue? The Wildcats didn't make last year's Final Four, but they were a No. 1 seed after winning the Big East for the fourth consecutive season. If Berry at UNC doesn't wind up as the most valuable point guard in college basketball, Nova's Jalen Brunson could be the guy to take the moniker.
11. The chic, non-traditional preseason top-10 team: Wichita State. The Shockers outscored opponents by 465 points last season -- the highest differential in college hoops. All five starters return. Landry Shamet broke his foot in July, but is aiming to return in time for the start of the season. The Shockers are especially intriguing because they moved from the Missouri Valley to the American Athletic Conference. A well-timed move, as this is shaping up to the best most well-rounded Shockers team Gregg Marshall's coached.
12. There will be two major storylines not directly tied to basketball games: the NCAA cases regarding Louisville and UNC. Both teams should be in the headlines from start to March, as they're likely to land in the preseason top 15. Louisville's case is on track to be wrapped up before the season ends, and that could mean removing the 2012-13 championship banner, something the NCAA has never done to a basketball program. North Carolina's case is more convoluted, and could potentially not have final resolution until the middle of 2018.
13. How long until we hear from LaVar Ball about LiAngelo Ball's playing time at UCLA? Whereas Lonzo Ball was an undeniable college-level talent heading into last season (before his pro stock soared by the start of December), LiAngelo is seen as a four-year college player, even if his father insists on 'Gelo being one-and-gone. There will be a reckoning, one way or the other.
14. A lot of talent has left college basketball since last season, but stars always emerge. That's the great thing about the sport: we see flowers in bloom every season. For example, the top returning scorers in the ACC (Boston College's Jerome Robinson), Big 12 (Oklahoma State's Jeffrey Carroll), American (Houston's Rob Gray), SEC (Georgia's Yante Maten) and the Pac-12 (Arizona State's Tra Holder) aren't huge names, but could become big pieces and recognizable if their teams make big pushes into March.
15. Let's talk anniversaries. There are a few to recognize in 2017-18. The first: It's been 30 years since Danny and the Miracles. Danny Manning led Kansas to the 1988 national championship, securing his place among the 50 greatest college players ever.
16. Kansas is connected to a lot of notable anniversaries this season. The 2017-18 season will mark 15 years since Carmelo Anthony and Syracuse beat Kansas in New Orleans for the national title. Syracuse plays Kansas on Dec. 2 in the HoopHall Miami Invitational. (Syracuse and Kansas playing ... on a neutral court ... in Miami. This is the problem, college hoops.)
17. More Kansas: Come April, it will mark 10 years since "Chalmers for the tie!" which gave Bill Self his only national championship and vaulted his case to be a Naismith Hall of Famer. Self was inducted Sept. 8.
18. That Kansas title was won in San Antonio, which will host this season's Final Four. It's the fourth time River City has hosted the men's championship.
19. One more Kansas note. If you've lost track, Self will attempt to finish atop the Big 12 regular season for the 14th consecutive season. It's hard to compute that kind of dominance.
20. The only programs to have made at least seven straight NCAA Tournaments: Kansas, Duke, Michigan State, Gonzaga, Wisconsin ... and Cincinnati. The Bearcats are slept on so hard. But, with good reason. This program needs to make a Sweet 16. This team could be Mick Cronin's best one yet, and stands to be Wichita State's toughest competition in the American.
21. Can the mid-major conferences get back into the at-large conversation? If you consider the Major 7 leagues, plus the Atlantic 10, West Coast Conference and Mountain West to make up the 10 "multi-bid" conferences, there are 22 traditional mid-major leagues in college basketball. In 2017, none of those leagues received an at-large bid. In 2016, the only program from one of those leagues to get an at-large was Wichita State. In 2015, none of the 22 received at-large love. The same happened in 2014. With new selection criteria in place, will the trend buck?
22. The 2016-17 season brought an end to Northwestern's infamous NCAA tourney droughts. Other schools who didn't wait nearly as long included Virginia Tech (last there in 2007) and South Carolina (2004). Schools in big conferences still facing serious gaps since their last BIg Dance appearance are: Boston College (2009), Mississippi State (2009), Washington State (2008), DePaul (2004), Auburn (2003), TCU (1998) and Rutgers (1991).
23. With Northwestern off the board, here are the only original Division I schools that were in existence during the first NCAA Tournament that have still never made it to the big stage: Army, William & Mary, St. Francis (NY) and the Citadel.
24. You want to know who should get more credit for his coaching consistency? Purdue's Matt Painter. Among active coaches, only Painter and Arizona's Sean Miller have been to at least 10 NCAA Tournaments before hitting 50 years old -- and Painter's still just 46. Purdue is celebrating its 50th season at Mackey Arena, one of the truly underrated home-court environs in the sport, in 2017-18.
25. Think college basketball's quality of play is down? You're wrong. Stat master Ken Pomeroy tracks more data than you can count, and he reports that the 2016-17 season set men's college basketball records in free throw accuracy (70.4 percent) and 2-point percentage (49.3). Plus, 36.4 percent of shots were 3-point range, the most ever, and 30. percent of points came via 3s, also a record. College hoops' gameplay is getting better.
1. It's the oak anniversary for the NCAA Tournament. This year's bracket will be the 80th iteration of March Madness. The first Big Dance wasn't so big: an eight-team field in 1939. Oregon defeated Ohio State 46-33.
2. It's also an 80th year of existence for Phil Knight, who co-founded Nike (first named Blue Ribbon Sports) in 1964. Now, Nike is the biggest sports apparel company in the world, the biggest shoe-company presence in college basketball, and supplies the uniforms for more than 100 programs. On Nov. 23, 24 and 26, in Portland, Nike is holding a one-time-only "PK80" event in Knight's honor. The two-bracket extravaganza is highlighted by the inclusion of Duke, North Carolina, Michigan State, Florida and Gonzaga.
3. Heading into the season, Arizona, Duke and Michigan State are the favorites to land the No. 1 spot in the preseason AP poll. The last time a preseason No. 1 team in the AP poll won the national title in the same season was UNC in 2008-09. Duke has been the No. 1 team in the preseason AP poll eight times, including a year ago. Arizona's earned the honor thrice, most recently in 2002. Michigan State has never been preseason No. 1.
4. Duke is going to be the story in college hoops this season, much like Golden State has been the same for the NBA in recent years. But whereas Golden State is filled with award-winning vets, this is the least-experienced Blue Devils team Mike Krzyzewksi's ever coached. The only player returning who averaged more than seven minutes per game is Grayson Allen.
5. Speaking of Allen, he returns for his senior season as the most well-known college athlete on the planet, and of course the most hated. Because he's tripped multiple players and lashed out on the bench in the era of social media and instant-reaction, you could make the argument no player, ever, has been subjected to as much widespread criticism -- from fans and the press -- as Allen. Plenty of it deserved. Will we see that side of him again, though? How Allen conducts himself will be a current that coincides with Duke's season on the whole, and has the potential to define the team's success. (By the way, he's good enough to be an All-American again.)
6. North Carolina, Gonzaga, South Carolina and Oregon will attempt to do the not-so-unusual in college hoops. It's downright commonplace for teams to make consecutive Final Fours. It's happened 15 times in the past 20 seasons alone.
2017: North Carolina
2015: Kentucky, Wisconsin
2013: Louisville
2012: Kentucky
2011: Butler
2010: Michigan State
2009: North Carolina
2008: UCLA (went to three straight)
2007: Florida
2003: Kansas
2002: Maryland
2001: Michigan State (went to three straight)
7. All four 2017 Final Four teams could have a rough go of getting back, though. South Carolina lost one of the best players in program history in Sindarius Thornwell, plus P.J. Dozier to early NBA draft entry. Oregon's three best players (Dillon Brooks, Tyler Dorsey and Jordan Bell) all left school early for the pros. Gonzaga brings back a good roster, but it too lost Zach Collins and Nigel Williams-Goss to the NBA. Collins was the first one-and-doner in GU history. UNC lost Justin Jackson as a junior, in addition to one-and-done Tony Bradley and the graduations of Isaiah Hicks, Nate Britt and Kennedy Meeks.
8. Even though the Tar Heels lost a lot, they do return Joel Berry II, who could wind up as the most important point guard this season. Berry will aim to become the fifth North Carolina player in program history to win a national player of the year award, joining Phil Ford, Michael Jordan, Antawn Jamison and Tyler Hansbrough.
9. Oregon's averaged 28 wins the past five seasons, all of them including a trip to the NCAA.
10. Will Villanova's Big East dominance continue? The Wildcats didn't make last year's Final Four, but they were a No. 1 seed after winning the Big East for the fourth consecutive season. If Berry at UNC doesn't wind up as the most valuable point guard in college basketball, Nova's Jalen Brunson could be the guy to take the moniker.
11. The chic, non-traditional preseason top-10 team: Wichita State. The Shockers outscored opponents by 465 points last season -- the highest differential in college hoops. All five starters return. Landry Shamet broke his foot in July, but is aiming to return in time for the start of the season. The Shockers are especially intriguing because they moved from the Missouri Valley to the American Athletic Conference. A well-timed move, as this is shaping up to the best most well-rounded Shockers team Gregg Marshall's coached.
12. There will be two major storylines not directly tied to basketball games: the NCAA cases regarding Louisville and UNC. Both teams should be in the headlines from start to March, as they're likely to land in the preseason top 15. Louisville's case is on track to be wrapped up before the season ends, and that could mean removing the 2012-13 championship banner, something the NCAA has never done to a basketball program. North Carolina's case is more convoluted, and could potentially not have final resolution until the middle of 2018.
13. How long until we hear from LaVar Ball about LiAngelo Ball's playing time at UCLA? Whereas Lonzo Ball was an undeniable college-level talent heading into last season (before his pro stock soared by the start of December), LiAngelo is seen as a four-year college player, even if his father insists on 'Gelo being one-and-gone. There will be a reckoning, one way or the other.
14. A lot of talent has left college basketball since last season, but stars always emerge. That's the great thing about the sport: we see flowers in bloom every season. For example, the top returning scorers in the ACC (Boston College's Jerome Robinson), Big 12 (Oklahoma State's Jeffrey Carroll), American (Houston's Rob Gray), SEC (Georgia's Yante Maten) and the Pac-12 (Arizona State's Tra Holder) aren't huge names, but could become big pieces and recognizable if their teams make big pushes into March.
15. Let's talk anniversaries. There are a few to recognize in 2017-18. The first: It's been 30 years since Danny and the Miracles. Danny Manning led Kansas to the 1988 national championship, securing his place among the 50 greatest college players ever.
16. Kansas is connected to a lot of notable anniversaries this season. The 2017-18 season will mark 15 years since Carmelo Anthony and Syracuse beat Kansas in New Orleans for the national title. Syracuse plays Kansas on Dec. 2 in the HoopHall Miami Invitational. (Syracuse and Kansas playing ... on a neutral court ... in Miami. This is the problem, college hoops.)
17. More Kansas: Come April, it will mark 10 years since "Chalmers for the tie!" which gave Bill Self his only national championship and vaulted his case to be a Naismith Hall of Famer. Self was inducted Sept. 8.
18. That Kansas title was won in San Antonio, which will host this season's Final Four. It's the fourth time River City has hosted the men's championship.
20. The only programs to have made at least seven straight NCAA Tournaments: Kansas, Duke, Michigan State, Gonzaga, Wisconsin ... and Cincinnati. The Bearcats are slept on so hard. But, with good reason. This program needs to make a Sweet 16. This team could be Mick Cronin's best one yet, and stands to be Wichita State's toughest competition in the American.
21. Can the mid-major conferences get back into the at-large conversation? If you consider the Major 7 leagues, plus the Atlantic 10, West Coast Conference and Mountain West to make up the 10 "multi-bid" conferences, there are 22 traditional mid-major leagues in college basketball. In 2017, none of those leagues received an at-large bid. In 2016, the only program from one of those leagues to get an at-large was Wichita State. In 2015, none of the 22 received at-large love. The same happened in 2014. With new selection criteria in place, will the trend buck?
22. The 2016-17 season brought an end to Northwestern's infamous NCAA tourney droughts. Other schools who didn't wait nearly as long included Virginia Tech (last there in 2007) and South Carolina (2004). Schools in big conferences still facing serious gaps since their last BIg Dance appearance are: Boston College (2009), Mississippi State (2009), Washington State (2008), DePaul (2004), Auburn (2003), TCU (1998) and Rutgers (1991).
24. You want to know who should get more credit for his coaching consistency? Purdue's Matt Painter. Among active coaches, only Painter and Arizona's Sean Miller have been to at least 10 NCAA Tournaments before hitting 50 years old -- and Painter's still just 46. Purdue is celebrating its 50th season at Mackey Arena, one of the truly underrated home-court environs in the sport, in 2017-18.
25. Think college basketball's quality of play is down? You're wrong. Stat master Ken Pomeroy tracks more data than you can count, and he reports that the 2016-17 season set men's college basketball records in free throw accuracy (70.4 percent) and 2-point percentage (49.3). Plus, 36.4 percent of shots were 3-point range, the most ever, and 30. percent of points came via 3s, also a record. College hoops' gameplay is getting better.
26. For all that offense, there are teams still all-in on defense. West Virginia figures to be Kansas' toughest test in the Big 12 thanks to the return of national Defensive Player of the Year Jevon Carter. WVU forced turnovers on more possessions (27.6 percent) than anyone.
28. Division I men's basketball could use a big-time scoring output to spice up its season. We've had a handful of guys hit 50 in recent years -- but what about 60? It's only happened twice this century. Arizona State's Eddie House tossed up 61 on Jan. 8, 2000. The other, most recent occurrence came on Dec. 12, 2008, when North Dakota State's Ben Woodside dropped 60 on Stephen F. Austin. Will 2017-18 give us our third 60-pointer?
29. Those freshmen faces. Every season we get an influx of superstar one-and-done types. But, inevitably, one or two wind up staying another year in college for whatever reason (and we love that Miles Bridges is back at Michigan State). Here are the near-consensus projected first-rounders, as of now, who are first-year players: Marvin Bagley III (Duke), Michael Porter Jr. (Missouri), DeAndre Ayton (Arizona), Mo Bamba (Texas), Collin Sexton (Alabama), Jaren Jackson (Michigan State), Wendell Carter (Duke), Trevon Duval (Duke), Hamidou Diallo (Kentucky), Lonnie Walker (Miami), Troy Brown (Oregon), Nick Richards (Kentucky). Who among that group will wind up being back in college a year from now?
30. Let's expand on Bagley, because his inclusion to Duke's roster made the Blue Devils the favorites in Vegas to win the title. Bagley spent the summer taking online courses to graduate a year ahead of time, then looked damn good in LA playing in the Drew League against pros. He won't be asked to put up 25-and-15 lines for Duke, but on a given night he's going to be capable of it.
32. And how about some love for these seniors, guys who should be close to or at All-American levels in 2017-18: Bonzie Colson (Notre Dame), Trevon Bluiett (Xavier), Devonte' Graham (Kansas), Jaylen Adams (St. Bonaventure), Marcus Foster (Creighton), Joel Berry II (UNC), Grayson Allen (Duke), Jevon Carter (West Virginia), Angel Delgado (Seton Hall), Jock Landale (Saint Mary's), Vince Edwards (Purdue). There are plenty more still who will populate our annual top 100 (and one) players list next month.
33. Here's a bummer. For only the second season this century, North Carolina and Kentucky will not play in the regular season. The rivalry is on hiatus. That's no good for college hoops, which of course had that 103-100 epic last season at the CBS Sports Classic. UK won thanks to Malik Monk's 47 points. UNC leads the all-time series 24-15; Kentucky won five of the eight most recent meetings. It would've been six of eight, if not for Luke Maye.
34. The talented team that has to prove its worth: USC. Andy Enfield's team returns all five starters, and when factor in all players coming back, USC has more than 95 percent of its scoring, rebounding,3 -pointers, assists, steals and blocks from a team that set a school record with 26 wins last season. Final Four is the goal here. Senior PG Jordan McLaughlin should be the alpha.
35. Cameron Indoor Stadium will never be the same again: The crow's nest has been taken down. Duke fought this as long as it could, before safety concerns prompted a change. It was one of the cool, different vantage points in all of college basketball. It also called to mind climbing into the rafters of a high school auditorium.
36. College hoops is getting more international by the year, and Fairfield is the poster program for that. The Stags appear to have the most diverse roster in the sport this season. There are players from 10 countries who will suit up for Sydney Johnson. They hail from Kuwait, Egypt, Puerto Rico, Canada, Tunisia, Serbia, Sweden, Lithuania and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. And, of course, the United States.
37. There aren't drastic rule changes coming to college hoops, but two to keep an eye on in an effort to help game flow and coaching control. The first is this: when there is a foul committed and less than 20 seconds are showing on the shot clock, the shot clock will reset to 20, not 30. That should bring about more possessions and more scoring. The other rule is a 10-foot extension on each side for the coaching box, an increase of 28 to 38 feet. Coaches were already flagrantly abusing the box in the past. Now they'll practically be able to shake hands mid-game.
38. With less than two months before the first game of his junior season, can't help but wonder how Ethan Happ's offensive overhaul is going. Over the summer I sat down with Happ, who explained to me why he's changing his game and aiming to become a perimeter-capable player after attempting no 3-pointers in his career to this point.
39. With the passings of Jud Heathcote and Rollie Massimino in recent weeks, it's been said that the college basketball coaching community isn't as character-like as it used to be. That might be true, but thankfully this sport still has -- by far-- the most interesting, funny, compelling and thought-provoking coaches in all of major American sports. From Bob Huggins to Jim Boeheim, Greg Kampe to John Calipari. Toss in Gregg Marshall, Bill Self, Frank Martin, Chris Mack, Tom Izzo, Buzz Williams, Ed Cooley and Bruce Pearl, too. We're far from shy on coaching content.
40. As for coaches in new spots, here are the ones to track closely in year No. 1: Archie Miller at Indiana; Brad Underwood at Illinois; Cuonzo Martin at Missouri; and Will Wade at LSU. Some guys, like Kevin Keatts and NC State and Chris Holtmann at Ohio State, could need a year to find a stride.
41. Via my pal Jon Rothstein, how about this stat: The Miami Hurricanes' all-time record vs. Duke and North Carolina -- before Jim Larranaga became coach in 2011 -- was 4-31. Since then, the U is 10-8 against the top two programs in the ACC. And prior to Duke landing Bagley, I had Miami as the pick to win the ACC this season.
42. No program has won more national championships since 1999 than UConn's four. The Huskies were a disaster last season. Their league, the AAC, could really use a strong season. As could Kevin Ollie, who could hear footsteps if the Huskies miss the NCAAs again. Fortunately, Jalen Adams and Terry Larrier are back, as is Alterique Gilbert, who like Larrier missed much of last year with injury.
43. It's a rare season when three former Big East foes are all bad, yet UConn, Syracuse and Georgetown all missed the NCAA Tournament last season. It was only the second time in 45 years that happened. Georgetown brings in Pat Ewing in his first year of being a head coach, while Syracuse will field one of its youngest rosters ever under Boeheim.
44. It will be interesting to see if any team has a better point-guard-big-man combo than Notre Dame. Bonzie Colson and Matt Farrell could wind up as two of the top 20 players in college basketball. Colson averaged 17.8 points and 10.1 rebounds last season. Farrell scored 14.1 points, dished 5.4 assists and nabbed 1.4 steals per game. They both shot more than 42 percent from 3. If the pair winds up playing to their peak potential, Notre Dame's going to land a quality seed yet again in the NCAAs.
45. The only school celebrating 100 seasons as a program in 2017-18: Loyola of Chicago. The Ramblers are the dark horse pick in the Missouri Valley, which no longer has Wichita State sitting on its iron throne.
46. Looking for a team now that could be a lot better than its record? Check Texas A&M and its schedule. The Aggies could have the best blend of talent and experience in the SEC, so it's a credit to Billy Kennedy that he scheduled West Virginia, a road game against USC, a game against Arizona in Phoenix, plus getting Kansas in the Big 12/SEC Challenge. Those games on top of facing Kentucky, Missouri and Alabama (all teams that should be top-six in the SEC) twice.
47. Texas coach Shaka Smart had never won fewer than 20 gams in a season -- until last year. Texas, a preseason top-25 team a year ago, wound up 11-22. Now the Longhorns have a lot returning, plus the addition of Mo Bamba, who should be a top-10 pick in June. A tournament bid is the only acceptable outcome for UT fans.
48. Last season, the Atlantic 10, Mountain West and West Coast didn't have particularly strong years. If those three leagues want to keep up with Major 7 conferences, they're going to need to have at least two teams in the NCAAs, if not three. The A-10 appears to be Rhode Island's to lose, and of course the same can be said of Gonzaga in the WCC. The Mountain West is desperate for Nevada to be good again, and for someone else to challenge San Diego State.
49. The Pac-12 could be due for a huge year, as the league has five incoming McDonald's All-Americans. That's tied for the most in conference history, matching 2006 and 2012. Speaking of the Pac-12, a team we could all be sleeping on: Arizona State. Tra Holder (1,215 points) and Shannon Evans II (1,248) are the highest scoring returners in the Pac-12 this season. The Sun Devils last made the NCAAs in 2014.
50. Finally, a figure: 7,648. That's the distance, as the crow flies, from Georgia Tech to Shanghai. The Yellow Jackets will open the season on the other side of the world against UCLA in China. Meanwhile, in Germany, West Virginia and Texas A&M will inaugurate their seasons from Ramstein Air Base. The opening night will be a global, yet American, affair.
And there's only 50 days to go.
NBA implementing ‘Zaza Pachulia,’ ‘James Harden’ rules.
By Associated Press
(AP Photo/Eric Christian Smith)
NBA referees will be able to call flagrant or technical fouls on defenders who dangerously close on jump shooters without allowing them space to land, as Zaza Pachulia did on the play that injured Spurs star Kawhi Leonard in last season’s playoffs.
Officials will also make sure jump shooters are in their upward shooting motion when determining if a perimeter foul is worthy of free throws, which could cut down on James Harden‘s attempts after he swings his arms into contact.
Leonard sprained his ankle when Pachulia slid his foot under Leonard’s in Game 1 of Golden State’s victory in the Western Conference finals. After calling a foul, officials will now be able to look at replay to determine if the defender recklessly positioned his foot in an unnatural way, which could trigger an upgrade to a flagrant, or a technical if there was no contact but an apparent attempt to injure.
“It’s 100 percent for the safety of the players,” NBA senior vice president of replay and referee operations Joe Borgia said Thursday.
The NBA had made the freedom to land a point of emphasis for officials a few years ago, because of the risk of injuries. But the play got renewed attention during the playoffs because of Leonard’s injury, and also one in which Washington forward Markieff Morris landed on Al Horford‘s foot in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal, knocking him out of a game the Celtics rallied to win.
Officials can still rule the play a common foul if they did not see a dangerous or unnatural attempt by the defender upon review. Borgia said Pachulia’s foul would have been deemed a flagrant.
With the fouls on the perimeter shots – often coming when the offensive player has come off a screen and quickly attempts to launch a shot as his defender tries to catch up – officials will focus on the sequencing of the play. The player with the ball must already be in his shooting motion when contact is made, rather than gathering the ball to shoot such as on a drive to the basket.
“We saw it as a major trend in the NBA so we had to almost back up and say, `Well, wait a minute, this is going to be a trend, so let’s catch up to it,”‘ NBA president of league operations Byron Spruell said.
Officials will also make sure jump shooters are in their upward shooting motion when determining if a perimeter foul is worthy of free throws, which could cut down on James Harden‘s attempts after he swings his arms into contact.
Leonard sprained his ankle when Pachulia slid his foot under Leonard’s in Game 1 of Golden State’s victory in the Western Conference finals. After calling a foul, officials will now be able to look at replay to determine if the defender recklessly positioned his foot in an unnatural way, which could trigger an upgrade to a flagrant, or a technical if there was no contact but an apparent attempt to injure.
“It’s 100 percent for the safety of the players,” NBA senior vice president of replay and referee operations Joe Borgia said Thursday.
The NBA had made the freedom to land a point of emphasis for officials a few years ago, because of the risk of injuries. But the play got renewed attention during the playoffs because of Leonard’s injury, and also one in which Washington forward Markieff Morris landed on Al Horford‘s foot in Game 1 of their Eastern Conference semifinal, knocking him out of a game the Celtics rallied to win.
Officials can still rule the play a common foul if they did not see a dangerous or unnatural attempt by the defender upon review. Borgia said Pachulia’s foul would have been deemed a flagrant.
With the fouls on the perimeter shots – often coming when the offensive player has come off a screen and quickly attempts to launch a shot as his defender tries to catch up – officials will focus on the sequencing of the play. The player with the ball must already be in his shooting motion when contact is made, rather than gathering the ball to shoot such as on a drive to the basket.
“We saw it as a major trend in the NBA so we had to almost back up and say, `Well, wait a minute, this is going to be a trend, so let’s catch up to it,”‘ NBA president of league operations Byron Spruell said.
On This Date in Sports History: Today is Friday, September 22, 2017.
Memoriesofhistory.com
1927 - In Chicago, IL, Gene Tunney successfully defended his heavyweight boxing title against Jack Dempsey in the famous "long-count" fight.
1927 - In Chicago, IL, Gene Tunney successfully defended his heavyweight boxing title against Jack Dempsey in the famous "long-count" fight.
1934 - The NHL approved a new rule that allowed the awarding of penalty shots.
1968 - Cesar Tovar became the second major league baseball player to play all nine positions in one game.
1969 - Willie Mays hit his 600th career home run.
2006 - Barry Bonds (San Francisco Giants) tied Hank Aaron's National League home run record when he hit is 733rd.
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