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Bear Down Chicago Bears!!! Bears look to make jump with revamped defense.
By ANDREW SELIGMAN (AP Sports Writer)
Given their history, last season sure was an odd one for the Chicago Bears.
Just as they finally managed to get things right on offense, their defense pulled off quite a disappearing act.
Well, it's back. At least, the Bears think it's back.
They believe thanks to a major overhaul that they now have the defense to support a prolific offense and make a run at the playoffs after an 8-8 season.
They missed the postseason for the sixth time in seven years since a Super Bowl run because they could not stop anyone. But they believe that's about to change because they made a series of moves, most notably signing Jared Allen.
They're deeper. They're healthier. There still are some holes, but they also have a five-time Pro Bowl defensive end in Allen.
He replaced an accomplished player in Julius Peppers. But unlike him, Allen has not really shown any signs of slowing down.
''I've got plenty. I've been healthy throughout my career,'' he said. ''I feel great. I'm in great shape. I'm excited for this season. I think we can do something this year that's really special.''
Here are some things to look for from the Bears in 2014:
LINE 'EM UP: With Allen anchoring the line, the Bears are looking for more from their defense. It would be hard not to improve, considering how bad they were in that area.
The Bears ranked 30th overall and last against the run while tying Jacksonville with a league-low 31 sacks. Not exactly Monsters of the Midway numbers.
Allen should boost a pass rush that was sorely lacking and a run defense that gave up 2,583 yards and 5.3 per carry - both club records.
With a healthy Jeremiah Ratliff and newcomer Lamarr Houston, the line has the potential to create havoc.
CUTLER, CONTINUITY: The Bears improved from 29th to fifth in passing and 28th to No. 8 in total offense last season, their first under coach Marc Trestman.
Throw in the fact they have all their starters back and things sure look good for Jay Cutler - if he stays healthy. That's a big ''if.''
Cutler hasn't played a full 16 games since 2009, his first season in Chicago after being traded from Denver, and he missed five last year because of injuries. When he was on the field, he was as productive as he's ever been. His rating was a career-high 89.2 and his sack total got cut in half, dropping from 38 in 2012 to 19 behind a rebuilt line.
The reward for Cutler was a seven-year contract that kept him off the free agent market.
WHO ARE THE BACKUPS?: The Bears won't have Josh McCown to turn to if Cutler gets hurt again.
McCown played his way to a starting job with Lovie Smith in Tampa Bay. Jimmy Clausen and Jordan Palmer battled for the backup job in the offseason, but that's not the only area of concern when it comes to depth on offense.
The Bears don't have a proven backup to running back Matt Forte. They scrambled to find a third receiver behind Brandon Marshall and Alshon Jeffery, particularly after Marquess Wilson broke his collarbone. They decided to give former Steelers and Jets receiver Santonio Holmes a try.
Depth behind tight end Martellus Bennett might be an issue.
TUCKER'S TIME: Defensive coordinator Mel Tucker came under criticism last season, his first in Chicago, and the heat will really intensify if the defense struggles again. The cover-2 is gone. The Bears are sticking with a 4-3 set, but the language is different. Tucker is putting his stamp on things. He has another chance after injuries and poor execution left Chicago with one of the worst defenses in franchise history.
SAFETY NET: For all the changes the Bears made on defense, there are still some big questions at safety.
Chris Conte and Major Wright both struggled last year. Wright reunited with Smith in Tampa Bay. Conte missed the start of the preseason after having shoulder surgery, and the Bears brought in competition. They added Adrian Wilson, Ryan Mundy and M.D. Jennings to the mix.
Jimmy Clausen’s future with Bears may not be all that long.
By John Mullin
The selection of Jimmy Clausen over Jordan Palmer was expected, for all of the reasons coach Marc Trestman laid out and which were evident over the past month-plus — age, upside, mobility, experience, even leadership, where Clausen appeared more confident on the field both in practices and in games.
But for the Bears it may be a good news/bad news situation, with the good and bad being actually the same.
If Clausen, who is on a one-year Bears contract, is needed in the event of an injury to Jay Cutler, or even if he is not, this may well be his only season in Chicago. It’s happened before.
What Jason Campbell showed in the 2012 preseason effectively placed him back on NFL radars, even with a poor performance in his one game chance (San Francisco). After that season Campbell was off to Cleveland and a lucrative two-year contract.
Josh McCown was a late pickup in 2011 and sat behind Caleb Hanie through the problems of that lost season. The Bears brought him back in 2013, that season played out as it did for him, and he was off to Tampa Bay for a two-year contract.
Clausen, a former No. 2 draft pick, already has done what Campbell, a former No. 1 draft pick, did in 2012: re-establish himself in preseason, which Campbell told CSNChicago.com was his “real” season at the time. Campbell completed 64 percent of his preseason passes and finished with a 91.3 rating. Clausen through his three games so far (he may play in Cleveland but only if needed) has completed 64 percent of his passes and posted a passer rating of 94.4.
The not-for-long tag could be applied to any backup, but not really. A backup at most positions is not the same as a quarterback, which is at a premium. Clausen arguably already has stamped his ticket for next offseason.
It may be only preseason but for NFL personnel evaluators, it establishes that Clausen is healthy and capable of playing like a second-round draft choice. Clausen also established, if he needed to, and like Campbell and McCown did, that he can get along with an organization’s franchise quarterback in place. Not sure if Johnny Manziel would score the same on every team’s compatibility scale.
Ironically, Clausen had something of a brash-punk image with some. So did that quarterback he’s now supporting and the relationship, like Cutler-McCown, has started very well.
“[Cutler has] helped me tremendously,” Clausen said. “First day I got here, he was in here helping me. In the morning, came picked me up and we started getting to work. Just to see him doing that for a guy they just brought in is something special. I really appreciate it.”
From all indications, Cutler has grown and matured, maybe a function of just getting a little older. Same for Clausen.
“You know, it helped,” Clausen said. “One of the big things is sitting and looking back on the sidelines the past few years in Carolina just sitting and learning really did help. I didn’t have that in college. I didn’t have that in high school. Just to sit back and take a step back and look at everything help the game slow down a little bit for me and just learned how to play in the NFL, because it’s totally different from college.”
It's NFL time, we want you in our office pool. It just wouldn't be the same without you. We hope you'll consider getting in. We're looking forward to sending you your winnings!!!!!
Attached is CS&T/AA first week's selection (Pick) sheet. "Competition breeds excellence" so you have to get in our office pool to test your skills and win some cash!!! What are you waiting for? If you don't want to go at it alone, get a partner, two heads are better than one. 8 days until kick-off, you don't want to be left out. Commit and sign up now!!! All of the pertinent information is listed below. It's a seventeen week pool and conducted over the internet. All pool information (stats, winners, info and news) are available 24/7. Good luck.
| Game ** = Pick cannot be edited, picks deadline has past. | Away Team | Home Team | Ranking [?] (Your goal is to get the most points.) | Game Date / Time | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Green Bay |  Seattle | 9/4/2014 7:30 PM* | |||
| 2 | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | |||||
| 3 | New England | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | ||||
| 4 | Tennessee |  Kansas City | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | |||
| 5 | Washington | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | ||||
| 6 | Buffalo | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | ||||
| 7 | Oakland |  New York J | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | |||
| 8 | Cleveland | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | ||||
| 9 | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | |||||
| 10 | New Orleans |  Atlanta | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | |||
| 11 | 9/7/2014 12:00 PM* | |||||
| 12 | Carolina |  Tampa Bay | 9/7/2014 3:25 PM* | |||
| 13 | San Francisco |  Dallas | 9/7/2014 3:25 PM* | |||
| 14 | Indianapolis |  Denver | 9/7/2014 7:30 PM* | |||
| 15 | New York G |  Detroit | 9/8/2014 6:10 PM* | |||
| 16 | San Diego | 9/8/2014 9:20 PM* | ||||
The 2014 NFL season starts September 4, 2014. It's going to be a fun year. Create some excitement for yourself and test your skills against other NFL fans. What have you got to lose? Enjoy one of Chicago's finest confidence pools. Remember, you can't win if you aren't in!!! Read the invitation below and take the plunge. We're looking for 35 players with 36 opportunities to win, what have you got to lose? Sign up now, Good luck and good picking!!!
Who will win the Super Bowl and be this year's NFL Champion???
The wait is over, the time is now, football is here.
Attention: Diehard NFL Fans: It's going to be a great year!!! Good luck to your favorite team. Enhance your season and support your team with the challenge below. Try it, you'll love it. Good Luck.
How 'bout them Chicago Blackhawks? 30 in 30: Projected lineups, fantasy hockey previews.
By NHL.com Fantasy Hockey Staff / Fantasy Spin Blog
Throughout the month of August, NHL.com will break down each NHL team with a package of stories and videos. Among the features will be a projected lineup for 2014-15 by Corey Masisak and fantasy previews by Pete Jensen and Matt Cubeta.
Check out each team's outlook for this season by clicking on the logos daily.
Note: Please bookmark this article as the team pages do not become available until the date on the calendar. Today's team (27) Phoenix Coyotes, Thursday's team (28) L.A. Kings, Friday's team (29) San Jose Sharks and Saturday's team (30) Anaheim Ducks.
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Just another Chicago Bulls Session… Bulls one of many teams represented at FIBA World Cup.
By Mark Strotman
Team USA director Jerry Colangeo (with microphone) and coach Mike Krzyzewski picked 12 players from a much larger pool to play in the FIBA World Cup in Spain. Click through for their choices.
All 12 members of Team USA will suit up for NBA teams in the fall, but they won't be the only ones.
Rosters aren't official until Friday, but as of now there are 46 NBA players and four free agents representing 22 different teams in 18 different countries in the 2014 FIBA World Cup, which begins Saturday in Spain.
Both the Cleveland Cavaliers and Houston Rockets lead the way with four players - ironically LeBron James and Kevin Love aren't on any rosters.
The Bulls, Brooklyn Nets, Indiana Pacers and Minnesota Timberwolves are teams with three players while 10 more teams each have a pair of current players on the roster.
Here's a quick rundown of each NBA team and their participating players:
Cleveland Cavaliers (4)
Players: Kyrie Irving (USA); Matthew Dellavedova (Australia); Anderson Varejao (Brazil); Erik Murphy (Finland)
Skinny: Irving is likely to start at point guard over Rose, while Murphy was traded this offseason from the Bulls to Cleveland.
Houston Rockets (4)
Players: James Harden (USA); Francisco Garcia (Dominican Republic); Donatas Motiejunas (Lithuania); Kostas Papanikolaou (Greece)
Skinny: Harden becomes a go-to scorer with Team USA without Kevin Durant and Paul George, while Garcia led all scorers in Dominican Republic's exhibition loss to USA last week in New York.
Chicago Bulls (3)
Players: Derrick Rose (USA); Pau Gasol (Spain); Cameron Bairstow (Australia)
Skinny: Rose and Gasol will be key cogs on their respective teams, while the second-round pick Bairstow could see minutes.
Brooklyn Nets (3)
Players: Mason Plumlee (USA); Jorge Gutierrez (Mexico); Bojan Bogdanovic (Croatia)
Skinny: Plumlee was the biggest surprise to make the USA roster, but being a Coach K disciple and strong defensive play helped his cause.
Indiana Pacers (3)
Players: Luis Scola (Argentina); Ian Mahinmi (France); Damjan Rudez (Croatia)
Skinny: Scola had the worst NBA year of his career in 2013-14 but his game is perfectly suited for international play; Scola began playing overseas in 1996, where he stayed until 2007.
Minnesota Timberwolves (3)
Players: Ricky Rubio (Spain); Gorgui Dieng (Senegal); J.J. Barea (Puerto Rico)
Skinny: Rubio is one of the most exciting players in this year's tournament, while Dieng showed plenty of progress in his rookie season.
Golden State Warriors (2)
Players: Stephen Curry (USA); Klay Thompson (USA)
Skinny: One of two NBA teams with a pair of USA teammates, the Splash Brothers will provide crucial outside shooting.
Memphis Grizzlies (2)
Players: Marc Gasol (Spain); Nick Calathes (Greece)
Skinny: Both players will play key roles on their respective teams; Gasol is an international veteran and Calethes played in Greece before coming to the NBA.
Milwaukee Bucks (2)
Players: Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece); Miroslav Raduljica (Serbia)
Skinny: The 21-year-old Greek Freak is going to put on a show in Spain. You've been warned.
New Orleans Hornets (2)
Players: Anthony Davis (USA); Omer Asik (Turkey)
Skinny: Davis is locked in as the starting center for Team USA, while Asik, a former Bull, will do the same with Turkey.
New York Knicks (2)
Players: Jose Calderon (Spain); Pablo Prigioni (Argentina)
Skinny: Calderon is an international veteran, having won gold at the 2006 World Championship and silver medals at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics.
Portland Trail Blazers (2)
Players: Nicolas Batum (France); Victor Claver (Spain)
Skinny: Batum will run with an underrated French team, while Claver played for Valencia in Spain for six years before his NBA clock began and also won silver at the 2012 Olympics. Point guard Damian Lillard was a surprising cut with Team USA.
Sacramento Kings (2)
Players: DeMarcus Cousins (USA); Rudy Gay (USA)
Skinny: The other NBA team with a pair of USA teammates, Gay became an important part when George and Durant left the team.
San Antonio Spurs (2)
Players: Boris Diaw (France); Tiago Splitter (Brazil)
Skinny: One would expect the international-rich Spurs to have more than two players, but Manu Ginobili (Argentina) and Patty Mills (Australia) are each out with injuries and Aron Baynes (Australia) is a restricted free agent with San Antonio.
Toronto Raptors (2)
Players: DeMar DeRozan (USA); Jonas Valanciunas (Lithuania)
Skinny: The Raptors will be well represented by a pair of solid NBA players, and DeRozan's inclusion shows just how far the reigning All-Star has come.
Utah Jazz (2)
Players: Dante Exum (Australia); Rudy Gobert (France)
Skinny: The rookie Exum will be fun to watch after an impressive run in the NBA Summer League.
Denver Nuggets (1)
Players: Kenneth Faried (USA)
Skinny: He's gone somewhat under the radar, but Faried's penciled in as Team USA's starting power forward.
Detroit Pistons (1)
Players: Andre Drummond (USA)
Skinny: Drummond was a pleasant surprise to make the USA roster, and while he doesn't fit the traditional international center role he'll give them a different look on defense when he plays.
Oklahoma City Thunder (1)
Players: Serge Ibaka (Spain)
Skinny: Ibaka's improvement on the outside has only helped his international game, which he'll show off in a starting role with Spain.
Orlando Magic (1)
Players: Evan Fournier (France)
Skinny: Fournier came over in an offseason deal for Arron Afflalo and, as a career 38 percent 3-point shooter in two NBA seasons, will play a key role with France.
Phoenix Suns (1)
Players: Goran Dragic (Slovenia)
Skinny: Dragic will lead a Slovenia team without much chance, but he'll be putting up big numbers.
Washington Wizards (1)
Players: Nene (Brazil)
Skinny: A talented Brazil team is made all the better by Nene's presence; he had 11 points and five rebounds against Team USA at the United Center.
Free agents (4)
Players: Gustavo Ayon (Mexico); Leandro Barbosa (Brazil); Andray Blatche (Philippines); Aron Baynes (Australia)
Skinny: Barbosa (13 points, four assists) turned heads in Brazil's exhibition loss to Team USA in Chicago, while Ayon and Blatche are showcasing themselves for NBA deals. Baynes is a restricted free agent with the Spurs.
NBA unveils new rules to make baselines safer.
By BRIAN MAHONEY (AP Basketball Writer)
The NBA is expanding the area that must be clear behind the basket and cutting the number of photographers along the baseline in an effort to improve player safety.
The new regulations, calling for an extra foot of open space on both sides of the basket stanchion, were sent to teams Tuesday by league president of operations Rod Thorn and executive vice president of team marketing and business operations Amy Brooks in a memo that was obtained by The Associated Press.
Thorn says clearing the congestion behind the playing area was planned even before Indiana's Paul George broke his right leg when he crashed into the stanchion last month during a USA Basketball exhibition game.
''The conversations about this topic preceded Paul's injury by several years,'' Thorn said. ''As a matter of fact, at our league meetings in July we informed our teams this was the direction we were going. But of course when an injury occurs like the one to Paul, it reaffirms the changes we have made and the need to continue to evaluate our policies.''
The ''escape lanes,'' the unoccupied area on either side of the stanchion to the closest photographer spot, will increase from 3 to 4 feet.
Only 20 camera positions, 10 on each baseline, will remain, down from 24 last season and 40 during the 2010-11 regular season. Each baseline can have six photo spots on one side of the basket and four on the other, and dance teams or other entertainers cannot be stationed along the baseline.
''We have been studying this issue consistently over the last four years and these are just the latest adjustments to make the baselines an even safer area for our players, our team attendants and the photographers,'' Thorn said. ''Many of the incidents of contact between players and photographers are around the basket area, so we felt it made sense to increase the open area between the baskets and the first photographer to four feet.''
Players have often been at risk of crashing into a camera when tumbling out of bounds behind the basket. The NBA experimented with limiting photography spots during last season's playoffs before deciding to make those changes permanent and mandating the bigger escape lanes.
''We will continue to examine this to ensure the safety of our players while at the same time allowing for the networks and media to properly capture images from our games,'' Thorn said. ''We feel we have balanced those needs very well but will continue to review our processes throughout the season.''
Wood helps Cubs beat Reds 3-0.
By MARK SCHMETZER (Associated Press)
Travis Wood pitched six innings of two-hit ball against his former team for his first win in two months, leading the Chicago Cubs to a 3-0 victory over Johnny Cueto and the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night.
Wood helps Cubs beat Reds 3-0.
By MARK SCHMETZER (Associated Press)
Travis Wood pitched six innings of two-hit ball against his former team for his first win in two months, leading the Chicago Cubs to a 3-0 victory over Johnny Cueto and the Cincinnati Reds on Tuesday night.
Arismendy Alcantara hit a two-run shot and Anthony Rizzo connected for his 30th homer for the Cubs, who have won four in a row for the first time since June 30-July 4.
Cincinnati was shut out for the 12th time this season. Cueto (15-8) struck out eight in 6 1-3 innings in his second straight loss after winning seven consecutive decisions.
Wood (8-11) struck out five and walked one in his first victory since he pitched eight innings in a 3-0 win at Philadelphia on June 15. The left-hander, who made the All-Star team last season, was 0-6 with a 5.45 ERA in his previous 12 starts.
He improved to 2-5 with a 3.30 ERA in nine career starts against the Reds, who selected him in the second round of the 2005 draft.
Neil Ramirez struck out the side in the seventh, Pedro Strop pitched the eighth and Hector Rondon finished for his 22nd save.
Rizzo went deep with two out in the first, driving a 2-1 pitch into the seats in right. The All-Star first baseman joined Miami's Giancarlo Stanton as the only two National Leaguers with at least 30 home runs.
Starlin Castro, in his first game back from the bereavement list, followed with a single as the rain increased, forcing a 50-minute delay just five minutes into the game.
Alcantara followed Matt Szczur's leadoff single in the seventh with his fifth homer of the season and second in two games. He also homered on Sunday against Baltimore in Chicago's final home game before embarking on a seven-game, six-day road trip.
UP NEXT
Cubs: RHP Jacob Turner makes his first start for Chicago after two relief appearances since being acquired from Miami on Aug. 8.
Reds: RHP and new father Mat Latos, hurt by blown saves in two of his last three starts, makes his second start of the season against Chicago.
TRAINER'S ROOM
Cubs: RF Ryan Sweeney left after the top of the second. He grabbed his left hamstring while running out a grounder. Rizzo left the game in the eighth with lower back tightness.
Forgiveness for Pete Rose? Not in this lifetime.
By Joe Posnanski
Pete Rose (Getty Images)
The 25th anniversary of Pete Rose’s banishment – if you can call that an “anniversary” – came and went over the weekend, and to commemorate the event I read my 10 bajilllionth Pete Rose story. This one made the case that Rose should be reinstated in baseball and made eligible for the Hall of Fame. No, my mistake, the story I read made the case that Rose broke baseball’s cardinal rule and should never be reinstated because lifetime bans should last a lifetime. No, I’m sorry, right the first time, the story argued that Rose has served his time and that he should be remembered for how he played the game. Or, wait, actually, now that I think of it, the story was more about how Rose knew the punishment for gambling on baseball, and he did it anyway, and he has never really shown any remorse, and if you do the crime you have to do the time.
To be honest, I can’t even remember anymore.
I have long found Pete Rose and his story utterly fascinating. Rose the indomitable player compelled me to write The Machine about the 1975 Reds. Rose the con man motivated me write a hundred pieces through the years and to visit him many times. I have at different times started writing a one-man play about Rose – the opening scene is of him sitting at a folding table, a “Pete Rose: Hit King” banner behind him, and barkers in the background shouting, “Come see Pete Rose! Come see the Hit King! Come talk to the man who cracked more hits than any man in the history of the game!” The trouble with the play, like the trouble with Rose’s life, is that there’s no second act.
In any case, I read the Rose stories this time like I do every time he pops into the news for some reason or another, but it was different. For the first time, I found myself utterly bored by them. I guess many people (most people?) passed that line years ago, but it took me longer. It occurred to me this time around that we have run out, we have officially passed the point where there’s anything enlightening to say about Pete Rose. Some people think he should be forgiven. Some people think he should not be forgiven. Some people think his gambling did not impact how he played or managed the games. Some people think his gambling did impact the way he played or managed the games. Some people think it doesn’t even matter because gambling on baseball creates dangerous ripples.
A question for you: Let’s say that 25 years ago, someone did something rotten to you personally. Let’s say they cut you out of a deal or they publicly embarrassed you or they stole your girlfriend/boyfriend. Would you forgive that person? I have friends who would not forgive, could not, no matter how many amends made (were they sincere?), no matter how many apologies offered (were they real?), no matter the history before. I have other friends who would forgive. At some point, the question of forgiveness moves beyond the act itself because the act never changes. At some point, it becomes a simple and very personal question. You would have the right to never forgive. You always have that right. But you also have the right to forgive at any time.
The other day, we were talking about Buck O’Neil and his seemingly inexhaustible supply of forgiveness. I told the story again of the time I was with Buck and a wonderful Negro Leagues player from his era. The question of black hotels came up.
This other player talked how degrading it was to be turned away from the white hotels.
Buck talked about how much better the food was at the black hotels anyway.
The other player talked about how these white hotel clerks would make him feel like less than a man.
Buck talked about how he would run into Joe Louis or Ella Fitzgerald at the black hotels.
The other player talked about the endless and sometimes frightening hours spent looking for places to stay.
Buck talked about they could stop in any black neighborhood and be treated like kings.
They were talking about exactly the same time, exactly the same experiences, but Buck chose to see it the way he saw it. I use the word purposely: Chose. It wasn’t natural. It wasn’t easy. You don’t think he felt the bitterness of a lifetime being denied? He was turned away from the white high school in Sarasota. He was not allowed to even try and play in the Major Leagues. He was never given the chance to do the baseball thing he was born to do, manage in the Major Leagues – he was passed over again and again for inferior men.
I hear people say, ‘Why should I forgive?” There’s no right answer anyone can give you. Buck CHOSE to see the strides being made. Buck CHOSE to believe in the goodness of people. Buck CHOSE to forgive the people who had treated him cruelly or, worse at times, callously. He remembered that boy in North Dakota, the one who screamed the N word at him from across a street. Buck called that boy over, asked him why he did that, explained to him what that word meant, gave him tickets to the game that night. He CHOSE to forgive because, otherwise, well, he had his reasons. Faith. Hope. The belief that hate eats you from the inside.
I’m certainly not comparing Pete Rose to anything in Buck’s life, I’m only talking about forgiveness here. That impulse to forgive or not forgive now seems at the heart of every single thing anyone says about Rose. One of the stories I read in this latest go-around went into excruciating detail about the terrible evils of gambling on baseball, the calamitous effects Pete Rose had on the game even if he never bet against the Reds. OK. Another story I read delved deep into Rose’s lies, half-truths and unseemly responses the last 25 years. Fine. “If only he had said I’m sorry …” one commenter wrote in agreement, which is not quite right because no human on planet earth has said “I’m sorry” more than Rose – the guy would autograph baseballs with the words. What the commenter meant was that, beyond Rose’s words, he just never SEEMED sorry.
But all of these stories really needed only five words: “I don’t forgive Pete Rose.” And all the positive stories – the ones I’ve written often about how good a player he was, about how you should look at a whole life, about how he has more than repaid his debt – needed one fewer word: “I forgive Pete Rose.” That’s all any of us are saying at this point. We will explain our positions – I don’t forgive because he’s not remorseful, I do forgive because so much time has gone by, and so on – but more and more I believe the positions come first, then the explanations. I have long ago forgiven Pete Rose. I’m just coming up with arguments for why.
At the beginning, I mentioned the “lifetime ban” that is written about so often. This concept leads some people to say that Rose should be inducted into the Hall of Fame someday, but only after he is dead. Hey, makes sense, right? There’s just one problem with this. It’s not a “lifetime ban.” It’s a “permanent ban.”
In the matter of Peter Edward Rose, manager of the Cincinnati Reds.
Agreement and Resolution 5a: Peter Edward Rose is hereby declared permanently ineligible in accordance with Major League Rule 21 and placed on the Ineligible List.
Permanent. There was a lot written unwritten in that agreement, promises made and not kept, thoughts and plans no doubt carried to the grave by commissioner Bart Giamatti. But let’s be clear: The word “lifetime” does not among the 881 words in the agreement. So why do people keep calling it a lifetime when it’s actually a permanent one? I can’t help but think it keeps coming up because some people are willing to forgive Pete Rose … he just has to die first.
Golf: I got a club for that… Broken club: What's allowed under the rules?
By PGA.COM
When Zach Johnson repaired his driver during Sunday's final round of The Barclays, it set off an interesting rules discussion among golf fans. What's allowed and not allowed if you happen to unintentionally damage a club?
Here's a synopsis of Rule 4-3a: If a player's club is damaged in the normal course of play, he has three options. One, he can continue to use the club for the remainder of the round. Two, he can repair it or have it repaired without unduly delaying play. Three, if the club is unfit for play, he can replace the damaged club with any club, with three caveats: you can't borrow a club from anyone playing the course, you can't fix it by carrying around spare parts and you can't delay play while making the switch.
MISTER FIX-IT: Zach Johnson makes quick repairs on a damaged driver
We asked Bryan Jones, co-chairman of the PGA of America Rules Committee, to interpret Rule 4-3.
What if you happen to break a club on the range before your round? If you have time to go back to the car for a spare or buy one from the pro shop, it's not an issue.
"That's certainly not a problem because a player may choose his 14 clubs all the way up to the start of his stipulated round," Jones said.
But what if you bend a shaft, lose a grip or crack the driver during the round, like what happened to Johnson? It comes down to how you define "damaged" and "normal course of play."
RULE 25-3: Why the rules can keep you from being a hazard to yourself and the course
Obviously, we've all been with someone who's snapped a shaft against a tree or tossed a club into a pond in a fit of anger. That does not constitute "normal course of play," as you get no relief from temper tantrums.
Instead, Rule 4-3a is more about unexpected equipment failure. I've had a driver head snap off the bottom of a graphite shaft in the middle of a round, and under the rules, I would have had three options, the first -- keep using it -- would not have been much help. Neither was fixing it, and remember, you're not allowed to carry "spare parts," just in case.
So here's where the third option comes into play, Jones said.
"If the damage escalates to the rules category 'unfit for play' -- which is defined as a dented or broken shaft; loose, detached or significantly deformed club head or a loose grip -- then the player may replace the club with any club he or she chooses," Jones said.
GROUND UNDER REPAIR: When you're allowed to take a free drop
That means if you break a driver, you don't have to replace it with a driver, or a wedge with a wedge. You can add any club as a replacement, as long as it keeps you at the 14-club limit. And you can't borrow it from anybody in your foursome, or delay play while you go back to the parking lot.
Besides, there aren't many of us who have a spare driver head lying around nearby, like Johnson did Sunday.
Fortunately I had a back up in my locker! Thankful for @Titleist @TitleistonTour!
--- Zach Johnson (@ZachJohnsonPGA) August 24, 2014
Obviously, there's a fourth option: play a club short for the rest of the round, and make do with what's left in the bag.
And if you're just playing "relaxed rules" with friends -- without the club championship or money at stake -- and you wind up driver-less or putter-less, it's only good sportsmanship to share.
Tiger Woods splits with swing coach Sean Foley.
By Shane Bacon
Tiger Woods and Sean Foley are no more (Getty Images)
Woods announced on Monday that he and swing coach Sean Foley, whom he began working with four years, are going in a different direction, taking to his website to break the news that Woods will once again be looking for a new swing coach.
"I'd like to thank Sean for his help as my coach and for his friendship," Woods said. "Sean is one of the outstanding coaches in golf today, and I know he will continue to be successful with the players working with him. With my next tournament not until my World Challenge event at Isleworth in Orlando, this is the right time to end our professional relationship."
The relationship between Woods and Foley was an interesting one. Foley came on when Woods' golf game was as down in the dumps as it ever was, and after struggling through 2011, saw Woods pick up three wins in 2012 and five in 2013 including PGA Tour Player of the Year.
It was the majors that continued to be a problem for Tiger, who had some good finishes at the big four, but was never really a factor late on a Sunday during his time with Foley. Critics across the golf landscape focused on the issues with Tiger's golf swing, especially this season when Woods went down with multiple injuries and basically had to sit out most of '14 because of different back problems.
The loudest of the criticism came from a former student of Foley, who said for Woods to "leave Foley on the range" as Tiger started his eventual missed cut showing at this year's PGA Championship.
The question now turns to Tiger and his next move with a coach. Woods had plenty of success with Butch Harmon, who he worked with from 1993-2003, and won majors with Hank Haney at his service from '04-10, but Woods has never seemed like the guy that would go back to someone, pride or otherwise.
The good news for Team Tiger and others is he has plenty of time to figure it out, as he isn't scheduled to really play golf until the 2015 season.
Butch Harmon nixes the idea of any Tiger Woods reunion.
By Shane Bacon
Power Rankings: Joey Logano's win gives him the top spot.Butch Harmon nixes the idea of any Tiger Woods reunion.
By Shane Bacon
Butch Harmon, Tiger Woods (Getty Images)
It might have been the Dream Team pairing of golfer and teacher over a decade ago, but don't think Tiger Woods will be returning to Butch Harmon after the announcement that he would be parting ways with Sean Foley.
This is all according to Harmon, the 70-year-old instructor that worked with Woods up until 2004 and was a part of eight of the 14 majors Tiger was able to win.
Harmon told the Golf Channel's Rex Hoggard that with Woods coachless once more, a reunion between the two isn't just unlikely, but it won't be happening.
“No I would not and he’s not going to call and ask,” Harmon told the Golf Channel. “I don’t think he needs a swing coach. If I were advising Tiger I’d tell him, ‘You’re the greatest player that ever lived, just go to the range and hit shots.'"
While it's a simple thought to put in the head of someone like Tiger Woods, Harmon's point is a pretty solid one. Woods used to pride himself on hitting every shot, showing it off on the range with something he called "The Nine Shots," where he'd hit low, medium and high fades, straight balls and draws. Woods has since transformed his golf swing into a miss-free move, something that focuses on just one side of the golf course in hope of completely taking out the left side of the golf course (draws are a no-no with this philosophy).
For Tiger, just going out and showing how great you are might be the best advice he could get. Go back to pulling off all the golf shots, if he's mentally and physically able to do so.
The issue with Foley wasn't so much the man behind the camera as much as it was the health of Tiger himself. Driving a Ferrari is a special experience, but it sure isn't as fun when the engine keeps dying and the transmission won't go into gear. That was Tiger for a lot of his time with Foley, a great golfer who just couldn't get all the parts to work perfectly at the same time.
No matter who Woods ends up going with as his next instructor, finding someone that will just allow Woods to go back to just golfing would be a smart choice.
Like Harmon said, this guy is one of the best to ever pick up a golf club. When healthy, he still has the ability to be that, and hopefully his next choice of instructor will think something similar.
By Nick Bromberg
1. Joey Logano (LW: 4): A rash decision? Nah, this isn't even close to the Power Rankings version of adding a 13th car to the 2013 Chase. Logano has been the most consistent driver of the last five weeks so this isn't simply a one race bump. And as we said on Saturday night after the race, if you don't think Logano is one of the top six favorites for the title right now, you're not paying attention.
2. Jeff Gordon (LW: 1): Gordon had a fast car at the beginning but after he pitted and most of the field stayed out, he was back in traffic from then on and never was a factor again. He then went a lap down two separate times, near the finish. Did Gordon's car suddenly get a lot slower? No. He just lost track position. Not every strategy call works out in your favor.
3. Brad Keselowski (LW: 5): After winning his first Truck Series race on Thursday morning, the car he primarily drives in the Nationwide race finished first thanks to Ryan Blaney on Friday and Keselowski was the runner up to Logano on Sunday. That's not too terrible, is it? Team Penske's IndyCar operation didn't come through in Sonoma, however. Had Penske won there on Sunday, it would have been the first NASCAR/IndyCar weekend sweep for Penske.
4. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (LW: 2): The left side of Junior's car was flat sheared off when he got hit by Denny Hamlin during Saturday night's race. If you were wondering why Junior's team worked so hard to get the car back on track for a few laps, crew chief Steve Letarte said after the race that it was practice for the Chase. A pretty good move. You never know when you'll need to salvage a point or two in the Chase.
5. Kevin Harvick (LW: 3): Harvick finished ahead of Gordon and Junior Saturday night but he drops two spots because his wound was self-inflicted. He sped on pit road, meaning he had to restart at the back of the field after a caution. Harvick worked his way up to 11th, but it's another entry in the big book of "things that have derailed strong runs for Kevin Harvick in 2014" journal. Actually, it's probably an encyclopedia at this point.
6. Matt Kenseth (LW: 8): Kenseth and his wife Katie released an anti-bullying children's book on Tuesday, two days after he finished third. Good for both of them for taking a stand against something that unfortunately happens amongst adults too. And hopefully they won't have to deal with any of the ridiculousness our next Power Rankings entrant did after he was part of the Girl Scouts' campaign to ban bossiness.
7. Jimmie Johnson (LW: 4): Kenseth moved ahead of Johnson because he got to stand on the podium and Johnson didn't. Wait, NASCAR doesn't have a podium? Never mind. It is interesting to see how motorsports with podiums treat and refer to second and third place finishes while in NASCAR second and third elicits thoughts of mandatory media center trips. Because winning is everything, of course.
8. Kurt Busch (LW: NR): Through the first 12 races of the year, Busch finished below 30th six times. In the next 12 races, Busch has finished below 30th just once. Progress! However, it's still too soon to consider Busch a legitimate championship threat. He finished fifth Saturday night and was third two weeks ago at Watkins Glen. But in between was that one finish below 30th. He's at the point where it's not surprising if he's in the third round of the Chase or if he's out after the first.
9. Carl Edwards (LW: 12): Will we remember Bristol as the best two-race track this season for Edwards? After winning in March he finished seventh on Saturday night. It's forgotten in the madness of what transpired last year, but Edwards won last year at Richmond too. However, the real Chase litmus test for the No. 99 isn't in two weeks. It's Sunday night at Atlanta.
10. Greg Biffle (LW: 10): Biffle gets to hold serve here, much like he's doing in the final spot of the Chase. If Biffle's favorite driver is himself -- and who would have a favorite driver that wasn't her or himself? -- he's got 12 drivers tied for second right now. As long as one of those 12 visits victory lane and Biffle can get top 15s, he's in pretty good shape.
11. Clint Bowyer (LW: 7): Sorry for jinxing you, Rawhide. We thought you had a chance at a good run, but once Kyle Busch went spinning off your bumper, all hope for a good finish was gone. On the bright side, Toyotas have won the last two races at Atlanta. But on the bad side, neither of them have been from Michael Waltrip Racing.
12. Jamie McMurray (LW: NR): It was a choice between Ryan Newman, who finished 13th, and A.J. Allmendinger, who finished 14th. So we went neither and picked a guy who led laps and was really good at Bristol again. Without something crazy in the next two races, McMurray is going to be the guy who won the Daytona 500 and Brickyard 400 in the same year and didn't make the Chase and the one guy who won a (non-points) race to not make the race-winner Chase. Tough.
Lucky Dog: Paul Menard is just setting us all up again to be mathematically alive to get into the Chase via points at Richmond, isn't he?
The DNF: Kyle Busch? Denny Hamlin? Do you want to just pick one?
Dropped Out: Allmendinger, Newman
Man United humbled in League Cup by 3rd tier Dons.
By ROB HARRIS (AP Sports Writer)
In just his third match in charge of Manchester United, Louis van Gaal oversaw one of the most humiliating losses in the club's illustrious history on Tuesday.
The record 20-time English champions timidly capitulated to MK Dons, losing 4-0 to the third-tier club in the second round of the League Cup.
Hired to halt the decline under David Moyes in the post-Alex Ferguson era, Van Gaal had already endured a loss and a draw in his first two Premier League matches before one of three possible routes to silverware ended in Milton Keynes.
A second-string United was playing in the League Cup second round for the first time since 1995 because Moyes failed to qualify for Europe during his only season in charge. He was replaced by the coach who led the Netherlands to third place at the World Cup.
Although Van Gaal made 10 changes from the team that drew at Sunderland, several international players including Danny Welbeck, Javier Hernandez and Shinji Kagawa were deployed.
Van Gaal kept his cool in public after the game and did not tear into his team's performance, despite poor defending that gifted goals to the Dons and the fact that United needed around 70 minutes to manage a shot on target.
''We didn't have the luck to score but at least we have created a lot of chances,'' Van Gaal said. ''You don't have to forget we have nine injuries and we had a very young team, I have seen them trying to their utmost best. You can't expect more of the players.''
Van Gaal urged fans to trust him to turn around the fortunes of a team that won the Premier League by 11 points in 2013 before Ferguson retired after more than 26 years in charge.
''(Supporters) have to believe in our philosophy,'' Van Gaal said. ''We are building up a team and you can't make in one month not in one year of course. It's very disappointing but I hope they shall maintain their confidence in the club and in our philosophy because that philosophy takes time.''
A United side featuring David Beckham lost 3-0 to third tier side York at this stage in 1995, going out of the then two-legged second round 4-3 on aggregate.
Nineteen years on, the humbling result took the gloss off United's pre-match announcement that it had broken the British transfer record by signing Angel Di Maria from Real Madrid for 59.7 million pounds ($99 million). With a summer spending spree that has now hit $215 million, Van Gaal will be expected to quickly restore United to the elite of English football and ensure that Tuesday's result becomes a long-forgotten blip.
''You have to analyze the problem and then you have to take your matches,'' Van Gaal said. ''We know exactly what we are doing.''
Benik Afobe, a striker on loan from Arsenal, and Will Grigg were gifted the openings to each score twice on a memorable night for the Dons, which was originally Wimbledon FC. The 1988 FA Cup winners as Wimbledon controversially uprooted 90 kilometers (56 miles) from south London to Milton Keynes, a large commuter town north of the capital, and was renamed a decade ago.
''I'm a little bit shocked to be walking off and seeing the score line,'' Dons manager Karl Robinson said. ''It's ridiculous. It's something that dreams are made of for these players. We work hard here and you've seen a youthful energy in the team ... this is a game for Milton Keynes as a city.''
United wasn't the only Premier League to be beaten by lower-league opposition, with misery also for West Ham and topflight newcomers Burnley and Leicester.
Sheffield Wednesday of the second tier won 1-0 at Burnley, while Leicester went down 1-0 at home to fourth-tier side Shrewsbury.
New signing Enner Valencia missed a penalty for West Ham as the London club lost a shootout 5-4 to Sheffield United of the third tier.
West Bromwich Albion narrowly avoided a similarly embarrassing shootout exit by beating Oxford 7-6 after a 1-1 draw in normal time. Jack Cork and Graziano Pelle scored their first goals for Southampton in a 2-0 victory at Millwall, while Newcastle beat Gillingham 1-0.
Althea Gibson: Tennis legend and so much more.
By Pat Murphy
The first black to play in what was then known as the US Nationals, Althea Gibson also played on the ladies professional golf tour.
Like Jackie Robinson who broke Major League Baseball's color barrier in 1947, Althea Gibson was a trailblazer, the first black to compete in the United States national tennis championship tournament three years later.
Both athletes made a name for themselves in different boroughs of New York City: Robinson for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Ms. Gibson on the tennis courts of Forest Hills in Queens.
Monday, Google published a special animated doodle in honor of Gibson's birthday, which coincides with the opening of the US Open tennis championships in New York.
Utilizing a five foot, 11-inch frame, the product of Silver, South Carolina saw her greatest triumphs in the late 1950s.
Gibson debuted in the 1950 US Nationals, reached her first finals in 1956, and won back-to-back singles championships in 1957 and '58. She also won the French Open in 1956. Gibson, who was inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame in 1971, won consecutive ladies singles titles at Wimbledon in 1957 and '58. She also reached the ladies final in the 1957 Australian Open.
However, at the height of her tennis prowess, Gibson found she could not make a living in the sport. Only amateur players competed in the Grand Slam tournaments. Professionals weren't allowed until tennis's "Open" era began in 1968. Prior to that, Gibson earned some money competing on a pro circuit and playing exhibition matches before Harlem Globetrotter basketball games.
After trying her hand at singing and acting, Gibson blazed another trail, becoming the first black member of the Ladies Professional Golf Association in the early 1960s. But she never enjoyed the same kind of success in golf that she had in tennis and retired in 1976.
Earlier this year, fellow LPGA golfer Marilynn Smith told a story about Gibson, her competitors, and a Texas golf course in the 1960s.
"She was the first black American to play on our tour and a great golfer, she didn't start golf until they was about 40. As you know, she was a great tennis player and I used to play some golf rounds with her and she was quite a nice person," Smith told a media gathering at the LPGA Tour's JTBC Founders Cup event this past March in Phoenix, Arizona.
"But there was a tournament in Texas, I won't mention the name of the city, that would not allow her to go into the clubhouse," Smith continued. "Lenny Wirtz was our tournament director at the time, and we all decided to move the tournament to a different venue and that's what's always been a class of the LPGA ... So we are so thrilled that Althea came and played."
"But there was a tournament in Texas, I won't mention the name of the city, that would not allow her to go into the clubhouse," Smith continued. "Lenny Wirtz was our tournament director at the time, and we all decided to move the tournament to a different venue and that's what's always been a class of the LPGA ... So we are so thrilled that Althea came and played."
After retiring as a competitive athlete, Gibson stayed involved in sports, serving as commissioner of athletics for the State of New Jersey for a number of years before health issues forced her from the sport courts and fields she loved.
15-year-old American Catherine Bellis stuns No. 12 seed at U.S. Open.
By Danielle Elliot
A 22-year-old man stood up and wiggled his hips like a child. Blue cap turned backwards on his head, jean shorts hanging low, he held his smartphone up with both hands. As Catherine "CiCi" Bellis' forehand landed just inside the line, the man stood, continuing to record. This was a moment he'd always remember. There was no time to clap. He needed to keep the camera steady.
15-year-old American Catherine Bellis stuns No. 12 seed at U.S. Open.
By Danielle Elliot
A 22-year-old man stood up and wiggled his hips like a child. Blue cap turned backwards on his head, jean shorts hanging low, he held his smartphone up with both hands. As Catherine "CiCi" Bellis' forehand landed just inside the line, the man stood, continuing to record. This was a moment he'd always remember. There was no time to clap. He needed to keep the camera steady.
"Oh my god, that's definitely an ESPN top 10! Send it!" the boy's friend yelled. "She turned 15 this year."
"She was 14 not long ago," another woman marveled out loud.
The time was 5:19 p.m. ET. Serena Williams was just about to take the practice court, a mere 200 feet away, where she'd warm up alongside Taylor Townsend, preparing for their match later Tuesday. Williams herself has dubbed Townsend the "future of American tennis."
At this moment, though, no one cared. They were watching the future of American tennis right in front of them. Her name is Catherine Bellis. She's 15. She's ranked 1,208th in the world. Earlier this month, she won the USTA Girls 18's national championships, which earned her a wild card to the main draw here.
On Tuesday, she knocked off 12th-seeded Dominika Cibulkova in the women's singles draw, the first major upset of this year's U.S. Open. Subsequently, she's unable to claim the $60,000 prize money for advancing to the second round because she wants to maintain amateur status.
Bellis came out strong, taking the first set 6-1. She fought hard in the second set, but seemed to be slowing down as she fell 4-6. Fans crammed five rows deep along the short fence that separates the court from an open food court. On the other side, they stood nine rows deep, many using the Court 5 bleachers to watch Court 6. In the bleachers, every seat was packed, with some fans sitting two to a single seat.
After trailing 3-1 in the third set, she seemed to get her footing back. She stopped shanking her shots wide. She started drilling her serves out of Cibulkova's reach. With every point, the fans jumped from their seats.
She held serve to go up 5-4 in the third set. The fans all held their breath. (Well, first they screamed. Then they held their breath.)
As Bellis took the court for what the fans hoped was the final game, a thunderous applause erupted from Court 4, barely 500 feet away. There, American Christina McHale had just defeated Chanelle Scheepers in three sets. Would Bellis follow suit?
She flew through the final game, stopping only to pump her fist after each point. Just like that, the 15-year-old won her first match in her first Grand Slam.
After the match, Bellis said she was as surprised by the result as everyone else.
"I went into the match thinking it was going to be such a great experience, but I never thought I would come out on top winning," she said. "Words can't describe it right now. Maybe tomorrow I'll be able to think of it better."
Then, she gave some of the credit to the crowd.
"It gave me more energy," she said. "I love it when people watch me. It gives me more energy and makes me play better."
She can be certain a lot of people will be watching her in the second round, where she'll face fellow U.S. Open rookie Zarina Diyas.
College Football's 25 Most Intriguing People in Suits.
By Pat Forde
Back by popular demand (or at least an absence of protest), we present the annual college football Most Intriguing Lists. The 2014 series wraps up with this list of the Most Intriguing People in Suits (And Stripes):
Jeff Long's role as chairman of the CFP selection committee makes him a huge player this season. (AP)
1. Jeff Long, Arkansas athletic director. Being boss of the Hogs is not why Long tops this list. Being chairman of the inaugural College Football Playoff selection committee is why. Welcome to the most pressurized, scrutinized seat in the sport, Jeff.
2. Jerry Jones, Dallas Cowboys owner. Has established JerryWorld as the capital of college football. The College Football Playoff championship game will be played in his building Jan. 12. The most interesting game of the opening weekend will be there, too: Oklahoma State vs. Florida State on Saturday. Between those big-time bookends are four other college games – including the Cotton Bowl – further stamping the massive stadium as more than just the home of the Cowboys.
3. Hugh Page, chairman of the University Committee on the Academic Code of Honor at Notre Dame. The university vice president and associate provost heads a group that will decide the appropriate punishment (if any) for four football players being investigated for academic fraud. The ruling could have a profound impact on Notre Dame's season.
4. Jon Duncan, NCAA Vice President of Enforcement. Has caught some flak for the lack of Division I Committee on Infractions hearings – now 14 months since the last one. But that may change in the near future, with several cases said to be working through the investigative phase. Will any of them impact the eligibility of current players? We'll see.
How big of a role will Condoleezza Rice play on the inaugural CFP playoff committee? (Getty)
5. Condoleezza Rice, College Football Playoff selection committee. The outside-the-box appointee to the selection committee generated some spirited (and chauvinistic) debate last year on whether she is suited for the job. Most of her work (and that of the other committee members) will be invisible to the public – but don't think for a minute that will shield her from criticism.
6. Jeremy Foley, Florida athletic director. His Cadillac program leaked a lot of oil last year. Now Foley could be faced with a major decision over whether to stand by Will Muschamp or change coaches in an effort to recapture the Tebow/Urban glory days of years past.
7. Dave Brandon, Michigan athletic director. See above. Just change the names of the school and the coach (Brady Hoke in this case) and Brandon is in virtually the same situation as Foley.
8. George Mitchell. The retired U.S. senator is in charge of annually updating the NCAA on Penn State's progress in implementing institutional changes in the wake of the Jerry Sandusky scandal. Last year, on Mitchell's recommendation, the NCAA reduced sanctions against the school. This year's report, if it is favorable, could result in a further reduction of sanctions – including possibly lifting the school's bowl ban. The depleted Nittany Lions may not be good enough to reach bowl eligibility this year, but they could get a huge motivational boost in September from Mitchell.
9. Drew Borland, Marty Couvillon, Scott Prather and Stephen Prather, SportSource Analytics. Came out of nowhere to be named the primary statistical resource of the College Football Playoff selection committee. Not associated with any of the more familiar computer ratings formulas, SportSource will provide mountains of data to the committee on all the teams under consideration. The data should be helpful in side-by-side team comparisons, but will statistical minutiae make the task of choosing the best four teams more clear or more complicated?
10. Mark Emmert, NCAA president. Hasn't been a great year for the head of the most controversial governing body in American sports. Will major rules changes ease the turmoil within the NCAA membership or exacerbate it? Will the assaults upon the amateurism concept subside or intensify? Will Emmert strengthen his embattled position, or lose even more support?
11. John Swofford, Atlantic Coast Conference commissioner. Ninja Swofford saw his league break up the SEC title dynasty, and defending champion Florida State starts this season No. 1. The league also made the biggest addition of 2014, bringing Louisville aboard. All signs point to continued gridiron prosperity for a conference that had underachieved for several years prior to 2013.
12. The eighth official. The Southeastern Conference becomes the latest league to experiment with an eighth official on the field. Is it an acceptance of the hurry-up, no-huddle offense? Or an enabler of it? How you feel may depend on how fast your favorite team likes to play.
13. Ramogi Huma, National College Players Association president. Wrongly dismissed by many in the sport as a lightweight, Huma earned some credibility by helping bring the Northwestern union movement to a vote. Will there be more "All Players United" statements during games this season? Stay tuned.
Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany has already taken shots at the NCAA and the season hasn't started yet. (AP)
14. Jim Delany, Big Ten Conference commissioner. His league may have performed competitive subtraction by addition, adding Maryland and Rutgers for 2014. And there already were competitive concerns before that. But the Big Ten Network continues to be a cash cow and will only produce richer milk with the added relevance on the East Coast.
15. Catherine Conti, official. She will be part of the officiating crew for the Southeast Missouri-Kansas game Sept. 6, becoming the first female to ref a Big 12 game. After years of working Mountain West games, she gets a significant opportunity to advance the cause of female officials everywhere.
16. John Skipper, ESPN. The most powerful man at the most powerful media entity in college football. Will ESPN's long-established penchant for cross-promotion of its own programming lead to a disproportionate championing of the SEC, whose new network rather aggressively launched in concert with ESPN earlier this month? The four other power conferences will certainly be watching to see if ESPN's August celebration of all things SEC carries over into the season.
17. Larry Scott, Pacific-12 Conference commissioner. Has a conference flush with talent and boasting its deepest coaching pool ever. If there is a league capable of challenge the overall supremacy of the SEC, this is it. But August talk is cheap; will the Pac-12 back it up on the field?
18. Judges To Be Named Later, Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. Will hear the appeal of the landmark O'Bannon v. NCAA ruling that was a victory for athletes seeking compensation that has been denied to them for eternity by the rules of college sports. If Judge Claudia Wilken's ruling is upheld, the floodgates could be opened for plaintiffs suing the NCAA for even more in other courts.
19. Bob Bowlsby, Big 12 commissioner. Sounded the alarm on the state of the NCAA earlier this summer, declaring that "cheating pays." Failed to back that up with any specifics, and notably did not mention the ongoing investigation at Big 12 member Oklahoma State. But Bowlsby got everyone's attention, and some believe he might one day make a better president of the NCAA than the current leader.
20. Tom Jurich, Louisville athletic director. Made the most controversial hire of the offseason, bringing back prodigal son Bobby Petrino. Will the move that delighted Louisville fans but appalled many outside the city pay immediate dividends heading into the ACC? Or does Jurich live to regret trusting one of the least trustworthy characters in recent college football history?
SEC commish Mike Slive saw the league's title streak end last season, but conference exposure has never been better. (AP)
21, Mike Slive, Southeastern Conference commissioner. Didn't enjoy seeing the SEC's incredible seven-year run of national titles end, but will enjoy seeing the playoff he championed for years finally come into existence. The question is how much longer Slive wants to go before ending one of the great commissioner tenures ever.
22. Jimmy Sexton and Trace Armstrong, CAA Sports. Powerhouse agent duo continues to spread their influence. Sexton clients Nick Saban and Gus Malzahn got richer with new deals to stay at their respective schools. So did Armstrong client Kevin Sumlin. Armstrong also helped client James Franklin upgrade from Vanderbilt to Penn State. If there are high-level coaching vacancies this winter, expect to see their clients involved.
23. Steve Patterson, Texas athletic director. First hire in the athletic shakeup in Austin didn't seem to have much control over Mack Brown's fate. But Patterson's future may be tied to Brown's successor, Charlie Strong, who has done a search-and-destroy operation on discipline problems in the locker room. If Strong succeeds on a Texas level, Patterson's life should be pretty simple. If Strong doesn't succeed, the AD could have a short shelf life in Austin.
24. Greg Schiano, temporarily unemployed. After a brief and miserable NFL experience, Schiano looms over the Rutgers program as it makes the daunting transition into the Big Ten. If Kyle Flood's third year goes badly, the lobbying will intensify to bring back the man who made the Scarlet Knights respectable. If Rutgers doesn't call him home, another school undoubtedly will make a run at him.
25. Kevin Plank, Under Armour CEO and prominent Maryland booster. Did lasting damage to the eyeballs of college football fans everywhere a couple of years ago with the introduction of the horrendous Maryland uniforms. But the outfitter's influence continues to spread, especially now that it has locked up Notre Dame as its biggest client to date.
Just Missed the List: Lee Fitting, coordinating producer of ESPN's "College GameDay"; Britton Banowski, Conference USA commissioner and chair of NCAA Committee on Infractions; Bill Hancock, College Football Playoff administrator; Shawn Eichorst, Nebraska athletic director; Julie Hermann, Rutgers athletic director; Kirk Herbstreit, ESPN college football analyst; Verne Lundquist and Gary Danielson, CBS SEC broadcast team; Sandy Barbour, Penn State athletic director.
Six college basketball players to participate in FIBA Basketball World Cup.
Raphielle Johnson
With the first FIBA Basketball World Cup (formerly the FIBA World Championships) set to tip off next weekend in Spain, most of the attention has been focused on the many professional players who will be participating. And rightfully so, when considering the fact that the rosters of favorites such as the United States, Spain and Argentina are loaded with NBA players.
But the event will also feature six college basketball players who will be on campuses in 2014-15, with New Zealand’s roster having two of those five players. One of those two, Nebraska sophomore guard Tai Webster, even played a key role in New Zealand’s surprising 102-96 win over Serbia on Sunday, as he scored 21 points. Professional veterans Kirk Penney (you may remember him being on Wisconsin’s 2000 Final Four team) and Mike Vukona led the way offensively, scoring 29 and 22 points respectively.
The experience of playing in the FIBA Basketball World Cup is an incredibly valuable one for the college players, as they get to sharpen their skills and compete against the best players in the world ahead of the upcoming season. And for Webster, who averaged 3.9 points and 2.0 assists per game as a freshman at Nebraska, a good tournament would provide the springboard needed to put together a solid sophomore campaign.
Terran Petteway and Shavon Shields return to lead the way for Tim Miles’ Cornhuskers, but they’re going to need more from players such as Webster if they’re to make a second consecutive trip to the NCAA tournament.
Joining Webster on the New Zealand national team is forward Isaac Fotu, who in his two seasons at Hawaii has emerged as one of the best front court players in the Big West. Fotu averaged 14.9 points and 6.1 rebounds per game last year, earning first team All-Big West honors as a result. And with leading scorer and rebounder Christian Standhardinger out of eligibility, Fotu stands to receive even more attention from opponents in 2014-15.
The other four current collegians participating in the FIBA Basketball World Cup are Minnesota State senior forward Assem Marei (Egypt; 16.3 ppg, 8.2 rpg in 2013-14), SMU senior forward Yanick Moreira (Angola; 6.0, 3.9), Kansas freshman guard Sviatoslav Mykhailiuk (Ukraine) and Ohio senior forward Maurice Ndour (Senegal; 14.1, 6.9). Marei, ranked 48th amongst NCAA seniors by DraftExpress, was a first team All-Northern Sun Intercollegiate Conference selection last season and Ndour earned second team All-MAC honors.
On This Date in Sports History: Today is Wednesday, August 27, 2014.
MemoriesofHistory.com
1889 - Boxer Jack "Nonpareil" Dempsey was defeated for the first time of his career by George LaBlanche.
1921 - The owner of Acme Packing Company bought a pro football team for Green Bay, WI. J.E. Clair paid tribute to those who worked in his plant by naming the team the Green Bay Packers.
1986 - Nolan Ryan, while with the Houston Astros, earned his 250th career win against the Chicago Cubs.
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