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He was released from jail, but won’t play in this coming Sunday’s game. From AP-
INDIANAPOLIS — Indianapolis Colts starting defensive tackle Ed Johnson was arrested early Wednesday on a drug possession charge.
Colts president Bill Polian said the team was still gathering facts about the case before determining how it will discipline Johnson, but Johnson will not play Sunday at Minnesota.
“He will not play this week, for sure,” coach Tony Dungy said.
Polian said Johnson was stopped for speeding between midnight and 1 a.m. on Interstate 465 just north of Indianapolis. Police also charged him with marijuana possession.
He later was released on bond from the Hamilton County Jail.
Johnson was temporarily expelled from Penn State in 2005 for violating the school policy on sexual misconduct and confining another student against the student’s will. He was reinstated in 2006, but later suspended for the Outback Bowl for violating team rules.
Sounds to me as if Johnson hasn’t grown up yet. Maybe this will wake this football player up, but I doubt it.
Giardello held the title for two years in the 1960′s, including a victory over Rubin Hurricane Carter controversially depicted in a movie. The AP obituary is below the fold. RIP Champ.
CHERRY HILL, N.J. — Boxing Hall of Famer Joey Giardello, a former middleweight champion who sued filmmakers over a depiction of a title bout against Rubin “Hurricane” Carter, has died. He was 78.
Giardello died at a nursing home in Cherry Hill on Thursday, the International Boxing Hall of Fame said in a statement. He had been suffering from congestive heart failure and diabetes, Giardello’s family told The Philadelphia Inquirer.
Giardello won the middleweight belt with a 15-round decision over Dick Tiger in December 1963. After a pair of non-title victories over Rocky Rivero, Giardello successfully defended his title against Carter. Giardello lost the title to Tiger in a 1965 rematch.
Giardello retired in 1967 with a pro record of 101-25-8, including 33 knockouts. Born Carmine Orlando Tilelli in Brooklyn, N.Y., Giardello started his professional career after moving to Philadelphia in the late 1940s. He was inducted into the boxing hall in 1993.
The December 1964 fight between Giardello and Carter was part of the 1999 movie “The Hurricane” starring Denzel Washington that told the story of how Carter served 19 years in prison after being convicted in 1967 of three murders. The conviction was later overturned.
It was the movie’s depiction of the bout, which suggested that Giardello had won a unanimous decision unfairly, that sparked a federal defamation lawsuit from the former champ.
He settled for undisclosed terms with Universal Pictures, Beacon Communications and Azoff Films.
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According to Golfweek, Wie has mailed in the application that is the first step in her quest to join the Ladies golf tour on a full-time basis.
Michelle Wie’s latest move is one most folks can agree on: As first reported by Golfweek she’s headed to LPGA Qualifying School.
The application deadline is 5:30 p.m. Sept. 9, and multiple sources confirmed with Golfweek last week that Wie’s check was in the mail.
Wie, who turns 19 on Oct. 11, has been spotted in Rancho Mirage, Calif., gearing up for the first sectional qualifier, Sept. 16-19 at Mission Hills Country Club, a course where she has enjoyed much success.
In four appearances at Mission Hills for the Kraft Nabisco Championship, Wie’s worst finish is a tie for 14th in 2005. She finished T-9 in ‘03, fourth in ‘04, and tied for third in ‘06, when she played in the final group as an eighth-grader.
“I think reality set in,†said Wie’s swing coach, David Leadbetter, when reached by phone Sept. 9. “She needs to play more tournaments. And not make those tournaments PGA Tour events. …
I agree with Leadbetter, Wie’s future is on the ladies tour, not competing against the men.
Rancho Mirage is only the first step to Michelle getting a LPGA Tour card, a second and final qualifier takes place in Daytona Beach Florida this December. I’m betting Michelle gets full LPGA privileges for 2009.
This to replace the team’s present kicker, Mike Nugent, who got injured in last Sunday’s game.
Jay Feely watched Sunday’s Jets- Dolphins game from his home about 20 minutes away from Dolphins Stadium. Once he saw that Jets kicker Mike Nugent suffered a leg injury in the first half, Feely felt ready to spring into action.
*****
He’ll do the next best thing; Feely will be the Jets kicker when they host the Patriots on Sunday at the Meadowlands. The Jets signed the former Giants, Falcons and Dolphins kicker to a one-year deal yesterday. He will replace Nugent, who injured his kicking leg in the first half Sunday.
Feely, 32, was signed after a workout yesterday morning.
Jets coach Eric Mangini declined to specify how long Nugent might be out. Mangini said Nugent injured his kicking leg on his second kickoff Sunday following Brett Favre’s 56-yard touchdown pass to Jerricho Cotchery.
Mangini said the injury happened during the actual kick, which traveled only to the 19 and came off like a squib kick “that wasn’t called,” Mangini said. He wasn’t criticizing Nugent, just making the point that as Nugent started to swing through the ball, that’s where the injury happened.
Nugent returned and kicked the extra point after Thomas Jones’ 6-yard touchdown run with 1:08 left in the third quarter that made it 20-7, but was clearly in discomfort coming off the field.
The Dolphins released Feely after the first pre-season game in order to go with a rookie kicker, Dan Carpenter. To me it seemed like Miami’s new coaches wanted to go with their own players, rather than leftovers from the previous regime. This reminding me of when Miami in the mid-90′s under Jimmy Johnson dumped All Pro Placekicker Pete Stoyanovich for then novice kicker Joe Nedney. Nedney was so unimpressive, he lasted just one season in Miami and was replaced with Orlando Mare. Then Miami dumped Mare after 10 years as their starting kicker for Feely. Does anyone see a pattern?
Where as Nedney’s tenure was poor, Feely was one of the few good points for the Dolphins. Carpenter’s start last Sunday wasn’t impressive, particularly when a kickoff went out of bounds setting up the Jets with excellent field position. The Jets then drove down the field for a touchdown. Sunday was just one game, but Carpenter better show more the rest of the 2008 season or Miami may be looking for a new kicker for the 3rd straight season.
His left knee needs surgery, therefore the Patriots put their star QB on injured reserve. From AP-
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Tom Brady will miss the entire season with a left knee injury that needs surgery, leaving the New England Patriots without one of the game’s great quarterbacks and severely damaging their hopes of a return trip to the Super Bowl.
The 2007 NFL Most Valuable Player will be placed on injured reserve, the Patriots said Monday, one day after Brady’s knee collapsed under him when he was hit by Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard in the first quarter of a 17-10 victory over Kansas City.
“As a team we all just have to do our jobs. That really doesn’t change,” New England coach Bill Belichick said. “He played one position, he played it very well. We have somebody else playing that position now.”
A one-paragraph statement issued by the team confirmed that the two-time Super Bowl MVP will have surgery, ending a 128-game starting streak that is the third longest for a quarterback in league history. Belichick would not say what the injury is, but the play, Brady’s reaction and the prognosis all point toward a torn anterior cruciate ligament.
As I stated yesterday, I think New England will still win the AFC East. I however strongly doubt if the team can make it past the first round of the playoffs unless backup Matt Cassel performs better than he has to date.
On a day when the Yankees lost a series to the pitiful Mariners, Phil Hughes pitched Scranton into the International League finals.
“I can’t tell you how amazing it was watching Phil on the mound today,” Duncan said. “That’s the best I’ve ever seen him pitch. He commanded all his pitches. He kept the hitters off balance, threw it where he needed to throw it. It was a special thing playing behind him.â€
Some of the numbers are amazing, starting with the 94 pitches, 75 for strikes — “That’s unbelievable,” manager Dave Miley said — but those numbers get even more impressive when you look at just the fastballs. Chase Wright was charting tonight’s game and said Hughes threw 54 fastballs, 48 for strikes. That’s six balls. Six!
Hughes got better as the game progressed. He needed just 23 pitches to get through the sixth, seventh and eighth, and 21 of those pitches were strikes. Final four outs: He got Gil Velazquez by throwing three straight curveballs, he got Jeff Corsaletti to groundout on a good changeup, then he struck out both Keith Ginter and Jonathan Vane Every. Those two combined to go 0-for-6 with six strikeouts against Hughes. Adding Ginter’s strike out against Scott Strickland, they were 0-for-7 with seven Ks.
“I’ve faced (Pawtucket) a couple of times, but I didn’t have a great idea of what everyone could do, what their strengths were,” Hughes said. “First time through the order, I kind of got an idea of what they were trying to do and I adjusted accordingly.â€
The adjustment worked, because Hughes kept his velocity up in the late innings. Josh Wilson, who had three of Pawtucket’s five hits, singled on the first pitched of the sixth, but Hughes got the next batter to hit into a double play and retired the last eight batters he faed, three on srikes and only one in the air.
“Right from he get go, really, I felt like I had my best stuff and Colon was throwing the ball equally as well,” Hughes said. “Sometimes you’re going to run into that, when two guys are just on in the playoffs, and you’re waiting for one little thing that’s going to make the difference.â€
He took the school now known as Texas El Paso to an improbable major championship in 1966. Forty years later a movie, ‘Glory Road’, was made about Haskins and his team. The AP obituary is below the fold. RIP Coach.
EL PASO, Texas — Don Haskins, credited with helping break color barriers in college sports in 1966 when he used five black starters to win a national basketball title for Texas Western, died Sunday. He was 78.
Texas-El Paso spokesman Jeff Darby said the Hall of Fame coach died Sunday afternoon. He had no other details. UTEP was previously known as Texas Western.
“The word unique does not begin to describe Don Haskins,” former Texas Tech coach Bob Knight said. “There is no one who has ever coached that I respected and admired more than Don Haskins. I’ve had no better friend that I enjoyed more than Don Haskins.”
Haskins was an old-time coach who believed in hard work and was known for his gruff demeanor. That attitude was portrayed in the 2006 movie “Glory Road,” the Disney film that chronicled Haskins’ improbable rise to national fame in the 1966 championship game against Kentucky. The movie, which was preceded by a book of the same title, also sparked renewed interest in Haskins’ career.
“The myth that surrounds Don Haskins in the movie ‘Glory Road’ and what he did for black players is better said that he cared like that for all his players. To me that tells me more about the man than anything,” Knight said. “There was never anyone like him before and there will never be one like him again.”
Former Oklahoma State coach Eddie Sutton said Haskins “had a tremendous impact on the college game. Anybody who’s been around college basketball dating back to those days, they’ve seen how it changed after Texas Western won the national championship.”
Sutton said he hadn’t talked to Haskins for at least six weeks.
“Don had not been in good health and was having a hard time,” Sutton said. “He’ll be dearly missed. He was a great basketball coach.”
During his career, Haskins turned down several more lucrative offers, including one with the now-defunct American Basketball Association, to remain at UTEP as one of the lowest paid coaches in the Western Athletic Conference.
Haskins retired in 1999 after 38 seasons at the school. He had a 719-353 record and won seven WAC championships. He took UTEP to 14 NCAA tournaments and to the NIT seven times and briefly worked as an adviser with the Chicago Bulls.
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The British Formula One driver used some improper chicanery.
SPA-FRANCORCHAMPS, Belgium — Felipe Massa was declared the winner of Sunday’s Belgian Grand Prix after Lewis Hamilton was penalized for cutting a corner during a late duel with world champion Kimi Raikkonen.
Hamilton crossed the line 14.4 seconds ahead of Ferrari’s Massa in a dramatic finish that saw Raikkonen crash into a barrier, but the McLaren driver was penalized 25 seconds for his illegal maneuver.
Race stewards said in a statement that Hamilton “cut the chicane and gained an advantage” that allowed him to take the lead from Raikkonen in the rain-splashed finale.
The penalty from FIA demoted Hamilton to third, with BMW Sauber’s Nick Heidfeld promoted to second.
I honestly don’t follow auto racing enough to recall if this ever happened before. Back in the 1970′s I followed the sport quite a bit and remember a dispute at the 1972 Indy 500. Jerry Grant was leading when he a flat tire forced him to pit. He overshot his pit, and his car was re-fueled using another driver’s supply. Grant finished 2nd, but after the race was penalized for what happened and placed 12th.
It came in a game against Kansas City today. From AP-
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — Reigning NFL MVP Tom Brady left Sunday’s game against Kansas City after being hit on the left leg, depriving the New England Patriots of the quarterback who last year led them to a 16-0 regular season.
The two-time Super Bowl MVP, who has started 128 consecutive games, went to the turf clutching his left knee midway through the first quarter when he was hit in the pocket by Chiefs safety Bernard Pollard. After being tended to on the field, he walked off, limping, between two trainers.
Brady, 31, went to the locker room and was not seen again on the sideline as backup Matt Cassel led the Patriots to a 17-10 victory. The team announced that Brady had a knee injury.
The hit by Pollard was a clean one, and pardon the pun, one of those bad breaks often suffered by NFL players.
I heard on the NFL Network that Brady has a MRI scheduled for tomorrow. If Brady is out for the year, New England could struggle to make the playoffs. If anyone besides the Pats in the AFC East were any good, I’d definitively say New England would be out of the picture.
Update- Fixed typo in the post’s title.
Today marks the first Sunday of the 2008 NFL football season. The Miami Dolphins play host to the New York Jets. Both teams I either root for now or in the past. I grew up in New York before moving to Florida in 1976.
Both teams were dreadful in 2007, Miami(1-15) and New York(4-12), and are presently re-building. Both teams are fielding new Quarterbacks too. Bret Favre for the Jets and Chad Pennington for Miami. Today will also mark Tony Sparano’s of the Dolphins regular season debut as an NFL head coach.
I was 15-1 predicting Miami(11-5 in 2006) to win or lose last year. My only mistake being to pick them to win against Cleveland. 2008 will be a better year for fins fans, but how much? I safely think they can win 4 or 5 games. More is possible because the schedule is weak, but Miami on the other hand has too many gaping holes still.
If Miami doesn’t win today, their first win may not come till October. They play Arizona, New England, and San Diego in a row after this week. Going out on a limb, I predict Miami 20, New York 17.
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