I'm aware that I'm long overdue for a Sports Chowdah update, but right now about all I have time for is a quick rundown of the upcoming NCAA Bowl games starting Saturday.
Saturday, Dec 20th
R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Nevada vs. UL Lafayette
11:00 a.m. ET ESPN
Gildan New Mexico Bowl
Utah State vs. UTEP
2:20 p.m. ET ESPN
Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl
#22 Utah vs. Colorado State
3:30 p.m. ET ABC
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Western Michigan vs. Air Force
5:45 p.m. ET ESPN
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl
South Alabama vs. Bowling Green
9:15 p.m. ET ESPN
Monday, Dec 22nd
Miami Beach Bowl
BYU vs. Memphis
2:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Tuesday, Dec 23rd
Boca Raton Bowl
Marshall vs. Northern Illinois
6:00 p.m. ET ESPN
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
Navy vs. San Diego State
9:30 p.m. ET ESPN
Wednesday, Dec 24th
Popeyes Bahamas Bowl
Central Michigan vs. Western Kentucky
12:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Sheraton Hawaii Bowl
Fresno State vs. Rice
8:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Friday, Dec 26th
Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl
Illinois vs. Louisiana Tech
1:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Quick Lane Bowl
Rutgers vs. North Carolina
4:30 p.m. ET ESPN
Bitcoin St. Petersburg Bowl
NC State vs. UCF
8:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Saturday, Dec 27th
Military Bowl
Cincinnati vs. Virginia Tech
1:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Hyundai Sun Bowl
#15 Arizona State vs. Duke
2:00 p.m. ET CBS
Duck Commander Independence Bowl
Miami, FL vs. South Carolina
3:30 p.m. ET ABC
New Era Pinstripe Bowl
Boston College vs. Penn State
4:30 p.m. ET ESPN
National University Holiday Bowl
Nebraska vs. #24 USC
8:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Monday, Dec 29th
AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Texas A&M vs. West Virginia
2:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Russell Athletic Bowl
#17 (17) Clemson vs. Oklahoma
5:30 p.m. ET ESPN
AdvoCare Texas Bowl
Arkansas vs. Texas
9:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Tuesday, Dec 30th
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl
Notre Dame vs. #23 LSU
3:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Belk Bowl
#13 Georgia vs. #21 Louisville
6:30 p.m. ET ESPN
Foster Farms Bowl
Maryland vs. Stanford
10:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Wednesday, Dec 31st
Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl
#9 Ole Miss vs. #6 TCU
12:30 p.m. ET ESPN
Vizio Fiesta Bowl
#20 Boise State vs. #10 Arizona
4:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Capital One Orange Bowl
#7 Mississippi State vs. #12 Georgia Tech
8:00 p.m. ET ESPN
Thursday, Jan 1st
Outback Bowl
#19 Auburn vs. #18 Wisconsin
12:00 p.m. ET EPSN2
Goodyear Cotton Bowl
#8 Michigan State vs. #5 Baylor
12:30 p.m. ET ESPN
Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl
#25 Minnesota vs. #16 Missouri
1:00 p.m. ET ABC
Rose Bowl**
#2 Oregon vs. #3 Florida State
4:30 p.m. ET ESPN
Allstate Sugar Bowl**
#1 Alabama vs. #4 Ohio State
8:30 p.m. ET ESPN
Friday, Jan 2nd
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl
Houston vs. Pittsburgh
12:00 p.m. ET ESPN
TaxSlayer Bowl
Iowa vs. Tennessee
3:20 p.m. ET ESPN
Valero Alamo Bowl
#11 Kansas State vs #14 UCLA
6:45 p.m. ET ESPN
TicketCity Cactus Bowl
Washington vs. Oklahoma State
10:15 p.m. ET ESPN
Saturday, Jan 3rd
Birmingham Bowl
East Carolina vs. Florida
12:00 ET ESPN
Sunday, Jan 4th
GoDaddy Bowl
Toledo vs. Arkansas State
Monday, Jan 12th
College Football Championship Game
Semifinal [Rose Bowl] Winner vs. Semifinal {sugar Bowl] Winner
**denotes national championship semifinal under new NCAA Football playoff format
8:30 p.m. ET ESPN
Showing posts with label Big Ten. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Big Ten. Show all posts
Friday, December 19, 2014
Friday, March 28, 2014
Quickie Sports Chowdah Update- Bruins Shut Out Hawks After Win Streak Snapped; Bills Owner Ralph Wilson Passes Away; NLRB Rules Northwestern Football Players Can Unionize
Three captains: Toews, Chara and HOFer Johnny Bucyk post before the game. #CHIvsBOS pic.twitter.com/i0waap6S1d
— Chicago Blackhawks (@NHLBlackhawks) March 28, 2014On Thursday night, Boston would host the defending Stanley Cup Champion Chicago Blackhawks- the first time the Hawks had visited the Garden since their Series-clinching Game 6 at the end of the 2013 season.
Patrice Bergeron got the Bruins on the board with 8:10 to go to open up the scoring on a very crisp and free-flowing game. After a scoreless second period, the Bruins managed to score two goals less at 13 seconds apart from Carl Soderberg and Patrice Bergeron to give the Bruins a 3-0 lead early in the 3rd. That seemed to change the tempo of the game and the Bruins would go on to win by a 3-0 final. Tukka Rask turned aside all 28 shots he faced while Cory Crawford stopped 20 of 23 shots.
Part of the reason the game seemed so brisk and open was that there were only three penalties throughout Thursday night's game- the Blackhhawks went 0 for 2 while the Bruins went 0 for 1.
The Bruins hit the road once again this weekend for back to back games. On Saturday afternoon, they'll return to Washington DC's Verizon Center to take on the Capitals. Puck is scheduled to drop at 12:30 PM and the game will be televised on NESN. On Sunday, the Bruins will travel up to Philadelphia for a 12:30 game that will be nationally televised on NBC.
NFL- Ralph Wilson, the sole owner of the Buffalo Bills, has passed away at age 95 in his Grosse Pointe Shores, MI home. Wilson, who grew up in Detroit and attended the University of Michigan law school before enlisting in the US Navy in WWII. After the end of the war, Wilson took over his family's successful insurance and invested in manufacturing and mining throughout Michigan and was a minority stakeholder in the Detroit Lions.
In 1959, Wilson reportedly got wind of the oilman Lamar Hunt's plans to establish the American Football League to compete with the NFL and wanted in. The Buffalo Bills officially became an AFL team in October 1959 and have remained in Buffalo ever since. Wilson reportedly even lent money to the Patriots and Raiders in the early years of the AFL, ensuring that the none of the organizations in the AFL folded between its 1959 inception and the 1969 merger with the NFL.
Wilson was also something of a pioneer- as early as 1972, he begrudgingly allowed the naming rights to the Orchard Park, NY stadium the Bills called home to be leased to Buffalo-based Rich Foods. When the agreement lapsed in 1998, the stadium was simply referred to as Ralph Wilson Stadium
Although considered a 'small market' team, the Bills had their heyday in the 1990s when they won four straight AFC titles- only to lose four straight Super Bowls. The team's poor performance in recent years coupled with Wilson's ailing health and playing one 'home' game a season in Toronto's Rogers Centre starting in 2008 led to speculation that the team was preparing to move north of the border and become Canada's first NFL franchise. In 2009, Wilson was elected to the pro-football Hall of Fame as one of the founding members of the AFL, although he was notably absent from an October 2009 ceremony during halftime between the Bills and Browns where he was to receive his Hall of Fame ring.
However, even though Wilson left no clear heir apparent, Wilson made arrangements to extend the team's lease on Ralph Wilson stadium through at least 2019.
ELSEWHERE IN THE AFC EAST- The New York Jets and free-agent QB Michael Vick have agreed to a 1-year $5 million contract. Vick and last season's starter Geno Smith are expected to compete for the starting spot after the Jets cut former 1st round draft pick Mark Sanchez. Vick had finished the 2013 campaign for Philly on the bench with 7 TDs, 3 INTS and 1,215 yards in 7 games. Interestingly, shortly after the Jets announced the signing of Michael Vick, the Eagles announced that they had signed Mark Sanchez to a 1-year, $4 million contract.
One of the top draft picks of the NFL's 2001 draft, Vick spent the first five years of his NFL career with the Atlanta Falcons until his name came up in a narcotics and dogfighting investigation in Virginia. In 2007, Vick pleaded guilty to charges of operating an illegal dogfighting operation on his property and spent 23 months in a federal penitentiary. In 2009, the Philadelphia Eagles gambled and signed a recently-released Vick who would go on to lead the Eagles to the playoffs as well as leading the NFC in a number of offensive categories.
NCAA FOOTBALL- In a decision that will likely send shockwaves throughout NCAA Football, the Chicago office of the National Labor Relations Board ruled that football players for Northwestern University can unionize. District director Pete Sung Ohr ruled that because of the time commitment required and on-field performance being tied to some of the scholarships the university awarded.
The ruling contradicts a number of case laws in which courts have established that student-athletes are not considered employees in the eyes of the law. However, the scope of the NLRB's ruling is somewhat limited, applying to only 17 of the more than 100 universities they compete against. Not only does this week's NLRB ruling seem to establish a different set of rules for private colleges with a football program than public ones, many of the arguments made in favor of unionization directly contradict the rationale behind why scholarships aren't taxed, ESPN's Darren Rovell points out. Assuming the NLRB's decision does in fact survive an appeal, this means that the tax implications alone could make unionization unfeasible.
Saturday, December 21, 2013
South Beach Sports Chowdah Update- AFC East Tightens Up as 'Fins Thwart Patriots Late Rally; Sabres Metrics- Bruins Split Home & Away Series With Buffalo
J Pat Carter- APNFL- Well....the late drive giveth, the late drive taketh away.
After a fairly low-scoring first half in which the Patriots headed to the locker room with a 10-7 lead over the Dolphins, the second half of Sunday's contest opened up in the 4th quarter. After a Caleb Sturgis FG in the 3rd to tie the contest up at 10-10, Miami took the lead to open up the 4th quarter thanks to a quick 2 yard TD pass from Ryan Tannehill to RB Danny Thomas to make it a 17-10 game. New England would then take the lead thanks to a short Gostkowski FG and a 24 yard TD pass and run from Brady to Julian Edelman to give New England a 20-17 lead with just over 4 minutes to go in regulation.
After getting the ball back on their own 40, Miami seemed to sputter when DT Sealver Silliga sacked Tannehill for a 6 yard loss on 2nd and 10, bringing up 3rd and 16. While it was definitely 4 down territory for Miami, it was made a little easier by an 11 yard completion to WR Brian Hartline to bring up 4th and 5. On 4th down, Tannehill found TE Charles Clay for a 6 yard pickup to keep the drive going [and Clay's only reception of the day, no less- NANESB!] and with 1:15 to go, the Dolphins hit paydirt on a 14 yard TD reception from Tannehill to RB Marcus Thigpen, putting New England behind 24-20.
After starting out on their own 20, the Patriots were able to move the ball as far as the Dolphins 14, setting up a 4th and 5 with 0:07 seconds remaining, Brady's pass was intercepted by Miami safety Michael Thomas in the end zone to salt the game for Miami.
The win adds new life to Miami's once-fading playoff hopes and throws the outcome of the AFC East playoff picture into doubt and makes the come from behind wins against Denver, Houston and Cleveland all the more significant....but it was only a matter of time before the last-second heroics would come up short. The last minute rally make one wonder what might've been if only the Patriots still had Gronkowski at TE or Gronkowski's 48 yard FG attempt in the 3rd quarter had been good.
For the second straight week, the Patriots will face a team struggling to make the postseason- the defending Super Bowl champion Baltimore Ravens in a rematch of last year's AFC title game. Kickoff is scheduled for 4:25 ET from M&T Bank Stadium and the game will be televised on CBS.
Winslow Towson- APNHL- The Boston Bruins are back from their western road trip and came into Saturday night's game having dropped two out of their last three games, including a 6-2 blowout in Vancouver and 4-2 loss against the Sabres.
Reilly Smith put the B's on the board thanks to a 1st period power play goal before Buffalo's Zemgus Girgensons got the Sabres on the board with just over a minute to go in the first. This would end up being the only goal that Rask would allow on the night [although Buffalo had a few 5 on 3 power play opportunities- NANESB!]. David Krejci would get what would be the game winner less than two minutes into the second period before Milan Lucic would make it a 3-1 game in the 3rd before Smith would get his second tally on the night, an empty-netter with 22 seconds left in regulation.
Interestingly, there was no Ryan Miller in net for Buffalo although it was most likely a night off as opposed to preparations for a blockbuster trade. Instead, it was Jhonas Enroth who turned aside 25 of 28 shots faces while Rask stopped 33 of 34 shots faced.
The Bruins have one more game before Christmas- they travel to the Music City to take on the Nashville Predators on Monday night. Puck is scheduled to drop at 8:00 ET and the game will be televised on NESN.
NCAA VOLLEYBALL- It was an all Big 10 matchup for the NCAA Volleyball finals as Penn State took on Wisconsin for the 2013 NCAA Women's Volleyball championship. Penn State would go on to defeat the Badgers 3 sets to one
Friday, December 20, 2013
Big Heaping Bowls of Sports Chowdah Update- Quickie Rundown on This Season's Bowl Games
There's some other big news concerning NCAA Football that I haven't gotten around to yet, but I figured I might as well go ahead and post the complete schedule for the upcoming Bowl games on the eve of the first batch of games:
SAT, DEC 21ST:
Gildan New Mexico Bowl-
Washington State vs Colorado State 2:00 ET [ESPN]
Las Vegas Bowl-
(20) Fresno State vs (25) USC 3:30 ET [ABC]
Idaho Potato Bowl-
San Diego State vs Buffalo 5:30 ET [ESPN]
R+L Carrier New Orleans Bowl-
Tulane vs LA-Lafayette 9:00 ET [ESPN]
MON, DEC 23RD:
Beef O'Brady's Bowl-
Ohio vs East Carolina 2:00 ET [ESPN]
TUE, DEC 24TH:
Sheraton Hawaii Bowl-
Boise St vs Oregon St 8:00 ET [ESPN]
THURS, DEC 26TH:
Little Caesar's Bowl-
Pitt vs Bowling Green 6:00 ET [ESPN]
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl-
Utah State vs (23) Northern Illinois 9:30 ET [ESPN]
FRI, DEC 27TH:
Military Bowl-
Marshall vs Maryland 2:30 ET [ESPN]
Texas Bowl-
Syracuse vs Minnesota 6:00 ET [ESPN]
Fight Hunger Bowl-
BYU vs Washington 9:30 ET [ESPN]
SAT, DEC 28TH:
New Era Pinstripe Bowl-
Rutgers vs Notre Dame 12:00 ET [ESPN]
Belk Bowl-
Cincinnati vs North Carolina 3:20 ET [ESPN]
Russell Athletic Bowl-
Miami (FL) vs (18) Louisville 6:45 ET [ESPN]
Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl-
Michigan vs Kansas State 10:15 ET [ESPN]
MON, DEC 30TH:
Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl-
Middle Tennessee vs Navy 11:45 AM ET [ESPN]
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl-
Mississippi vs Georgia Tech 3:15 ET [ESPN]
Valero Alamo Bowl-
(10) Oregon vs Texas 6:45 ET [ESPN]
National University Holiday Bowl-
(14) Arizona State vs Texas Tech 10:15 ET [ESPN]
TUE, DEC 31ST:
AdvoCare V-100 Bowl-
Arizona vs Boston College 12:30 ET [ESPN]
Hyundai Sun Bowl-
Virginia Tech vs (17) UCLA 2:00 ET [CBS]
Auto Zone Liberty Bowl-
Rice vs Mississippi St 4:00 ET [ESPN]
Chick-Fil-A Bowl-
(24) Duke vs (21) Texas A&M 8:00 ET [ESPN]
WED, JAN 1ST:
Taxslayer.com Gator Bowl -
Nebraska vs (22) Georgia 12:00 ET [ESPN2]
Heart of Dallas Bowl-
UNLV vs North Texas 12:00 ET [ESPNU]
Capital One Bowl-
(19) Wisconsin vs (9) South Carolina 1:00 ET [ABC]
Outback Bowl-
Iowa vs (16) LSU 1:00 ET [ESPN]
Rose Bowl-
(5) Stanford vs (4) Michigan State 5:00 ET [ESPN]
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl-
(15) UCF vs (6) Baylor 8:30 ET [ESPN]
THURS, JAN 2ND:
Allstate Sugar Bowl-
(11) Oklahoma vs (3) Alabama- 8:30 ET [ESPN]
FRI, JAN 3RD:
AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic-
(13) Oklahoma State vs (8) Mizzou 7:30 ET [FOX]
Discover Orange Bowl-
(12) Clemson vs (7) Ohio St 8:00 ET [ESPN]
SAT, JAN 4TH:
BBVA Compass Bowl-
Vanderbilt vs Houston 1:00 ET [ESPN]
SUN, JAN 5TH:
GoDaddy.com Bowl-
Arkansas State vs Ball State 9:00 ET [ESPN]
MON, JAN 6TH:
BCS Championship Game-
(2) Auburn vs (1) Florida State 8:30 ET [ESPN]
SAT, DEC 21ST:
Gildan New Mexico Bowl-
Washington State vs Colorado State 2:00 ET [ESPN]
Las Vegas Bowl-
(20) Fresno State vs (25) USC 3:30 ET [ABC]
Idaho Potato Bowl-
San Diego State vs Buffalo 5:30 ET [ESPN]
R+L Carrier New Orleans Bowl-
Tulane vs LA-Lafayette 9:00 ET [ESPN]
MON, DEC 23RD:
Beef O'Brady's Bowl-
Ohio vs East Carolina 2:00 ET [ESPN]
TUE, DEC 24TH:
Sheraton Hawaii Bowl-
Boise St vs Oregon St 8:00 ET [ESPN]
THURS, DEC 26TH:
Little Caesar's Bowl-
Pitt vs Bowling Green 6:00 ET [ESPN]
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl-
Utah State vs (23) Northern Illinois 9:30 ET [ESPN]
FRI, DEC 27TH:
Military Bowl-
Marshall vs Maryland 2:30 ET [ESPN]
Texas Bowl-
Syracuse vs Minnesota 6:00 ET [ESPN]
Fight Hunger Bowl-
BYU vs Washington 9:30 ET [ESPN]
SAT, DEC 28TH:
New Era Pinstripe Bowl-
Rutgers vs Notre Dame 12:00 ET [ESPN]
Belk Bowl-
Cincinnati vs North Carolina 3:20 ET [ESPN]
Russell Athletic Bowl-
Miami (FL) vs (18) Louisville 6:45 ET [ESPN]
Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl-
Michigan vs Kansas State 10:15 ET [ESPN]
MON, DEC 30TH:
Bell Helicopter Armed Forces Bowl-
Middle Tennessee vs Navy 11:45 AM ET [ESPN]
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl-
Mississippi vs Georgia Tech 3:15 ET [ESPN]
Valero Alamo Bowl-
(10) Oregon vs Texas 6:45 ET [ESPN]
National University Holiday Bowl-
(14) Arizona State vs Texas Tech 10:15 ET [ESPN]
TUE, DEC 31ST:
AdvoCare V-100 Bowl-
Arizona vs Boston College 12:30 ET [ESPN]
Hyundai Sun Bowl-
Virginia Tech vs (17) UCLA 2:00 ET [CBS]
Auto Zone Liberty Bowl-
Rice vs Mississippi St 4:00 ET [ESPN]
Chick-Fil-A Bowl-
(24) Duke vs (21) Texas A&M 8:00 ET [ESPN]
WED, JAN 1ST:
Taxslayer.com Gator Bowl -
Nebraska vs (22) Georgia 12:00 ET [ESPN2]
Heart of Dallas Bowl-
UNLV vs North Texas 12:00 ET [ESPNU]
Capital One Bowl-
(19) Wisconsin vs (9) South Carolina 1:00 ET [ABC]
Outback Bowl-
Iowa vs (16) LSU 1:00 ET [ESPN]
Rose Bowl-
(5) Stanford vs (4) Michigan State 5:00 ET [ESPN]
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl-
(15) UCF vs (6) Baylor 8:30 ET [ESPN]
THURS, JAN 2ND:
Allstate Sugar Bowl-
(11) Oklahoma vs (3) Alabama- 8:30 ET [ESPN]
FRI, JAN 3RD:
AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic-
(13) Oklahoma State vs (8) Mizzou 7:30 ET [FOX]
Discover Orange Bowl-
(12) Clemson vs (7) Ohio St 8:00 ET [ESPN]
SAT, JAN 4TH:
BBVA Compass Bowl-
Vanderbilt vs Houston 1:00 ET [ESPN]
SUN, JAN 5TH:
GoDaddy.com Bowl-
Arkansas State vs Ball State 9:00 ET [ESPN]
MON, JAN 6TH:
BCS Championship Game-
(2) Auburn vs (1) Florida State 8:30 ET [ESPN]
Monday, December 5, 2011
Monday Night Sports Chowdah for Dec 5th- March on the Penguins; Pats Barely Avoid Indy Trap; Colonial Football's Maine Event; Spartan/Badgers Redux
Jamie Sabau/Getty ImagesNHL: The Bruins winning ways continue as the calendar flips over from November to December, with Boston beating the Toronto Maple Leafs at the Garden for Game 2 of the home and away series over the weekend.
The Bruins won by a 4-1 final with Tukka Rask turning aside 21 of the 22 shots he faced from the team that drafted him on Saturday night. Currently the Bruins are 4-0 against the Maple Leafs and won't be seeing them again until March 2012.
Saturday's win was a preamble to an important matchup on Monday night that would pit the Bruins against the top team in the Eastern Conference- the Pittsburgh Penguins. Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin were in the lineup for the Pens on Monday and had gone 5-1-1 since Crosby's return.
After a scoreless 1st period, Greg Campbell got the Bruins got on the board with a goal at about the 3 minute mark in the 2nd period, beating Marc Andre Fleury.
However, shortly after taking the 1-0 lead, the Bruins would find themselves having to kill a 5-on-3 penalty for 50 seconds- a power play that Pittsburgh ultimately was unable to cash in on.
Benoit Pouliot would then score for the Bruins to give them a 2-0 lead, but late in the second, the Pens would have another 2-man advantage as Pouliot went to the bin for goaltender interference and Rich Peverly would get two minutes for hooking. Once again, the Bruins were able to successfully kill both penalties, shutting out the Pens 2-0 and heading into the 3rd period with a power play on a Jordan Staal interference penalty.
The Pittsburgh penalty would lead to Boston's 3rd goal of the night, this time off the stick of Tyler Seguin. The Pens would end Thomas' shutout bid with about 11 minutes to go in the 3rd period, but Boston would go on to win by the 3-1 final. Tim Thomas stopped a season-high 45 of 46 shots, Thomas' 10th consecutive win between the pipes. The Bruins went 1 of 5 on the power play for the night as well.
Monday night's win pulls the Bruins to within one point of the Eastern Conference leaders- which at this time is still the Penguins.
From Pittsburgh, the Bruins will be heading to Manitoba for the first time December 1995 to take on the Winnipeg Jets. This will be Boston's first-ever visit to the MTS Centre. Currently, Winnipeg has an 11-11-4 record and is riding a 2 game win streak.
MLB: Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine's departure from ESPN created an opening on that network's Baseball Tonight program. Within days, that opening was filled by Valentine's Red Sox predecessor, Terry Francona.
ESPN announced on Monday that Francona would be joining the network as a baseball analyst for Baseball Tonight, Sunday Night Baseball as well as contributing to shows on the ESPN radio network and ESPN.com.
NCAA FOOTBALL: Well, the Army/Navy game notwithstanding, the regular season pretty much wrapped up this weekend with various championship games and a few belated 'rivalry' games.
Championship weekend kicked off with the inaugural PAC-12 championship game on Friday night, pitting #Oregon against UCLA. This one was pretty much all Oregon as the Ducks blew UCLA out of the water by a 49-31 final.
In a much closer but more overlooked contest on Friday night, Northern Illinois rallied late, scoring 23 unanswered points in the second half to win the Mid-America Conference Title Game by beating the Ohio Bobcats 23-20.
Things got off to a pretty turbulent start on Saturday, with Southern Mississippi upsetting #7 Houston in the Conference USA championship, upending the Cougars by a 49-28 final.
After trailing for most of the first half, the #1 LSU Tigers came back strong in the second half and ran roughshod over the #12 Georgia Bulldogs, winning that one by a 42-10 margin.
Over in the ACC title game, the Clemson were matched up against the #5 Virginia Tech Hokies after the Tigers lost three out of their last four contests (including a 37-13 drubbing by NC State and a 34-13 beating from in-state rival South Carolina). After a 10-10 tie at halftime, Clemson went on to score 28 unanswered points against the Hokies to runa away with the ACC Title.
The closest Championship contest on Saturday afternoon was no doubt the inaugural Big 10 Championship Game, which was pitted Wisconsin against Michigan State. This was a rematch of a regular season game that saw the Spartans win on an improbable Hail Mary from QB Kirk Cousins as time expired back in October.
Although the Badgers got out to an early 21-7 lead in the 1st at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis, the Spartans came right back on two TD Passes from Cousins and another TD from RB LeVeon Bell to make it 29-21 Spartans at the half.
With the Spartans leading 39-34 in the 4th, the Badgers got to start from their own 36 after a good return. The Badgers started a 10-play drive, including converting on a 4th down and 6 to take the 42-39 lead (the 2 point conversion was good).
After a 3 and out by the Spartans, the Badgers would get the ball back with just under 3 minutes left and bleed away the clock, getting a pivotal first down on a Michigan State penalty. Badgers win the first-ever Big 10 football title game by a 42-39 final, avenging the earlier loss to Michigan State.
AP PhotoELSEWHERE IN NCAA FOOTBALL: It wasn't Championship Saturday everywhere, though. There were still some regular season games to be played in the Big East, Mountain West, Big 12 and Western Athletic Conference.
UConn was playing for bowl eligibility while the Cincinnati Bearcats were positioning themselves for a share of the Big East title in the regular season finale on Saturday afternoon.
The Bearcats took advantage of some early UConn errors to get out to an early 14-0 lead thanks to fumbles and interceptions by Huskies QB Johnny McEntee. It would be a 28-6 halftime lead for the Bearcats at the half, with Uconn getting on the board thanks to two David Teggart FGs.
UConn would start to make a game of it in the 2nd half, ultimately closing the gap to 35-27 thanks to a pair of Teggart FGs in the 3rd and two TD passes from McEntee in the 4th, but Cincinnati would go on to win by the 35-27 final.
This leaves UConn with a 5-7 record meaning that just one year after going to the Fiesta Bowl in Arizona, UConn Football will be staying put for Bowl season. This also sets up a curious scenario where Cincinnati, West Virginia and Louisville are all co-titleholders in the Big East.
AP PhotoNCAA FOOTBALL- FCS: The FCS championship got underway in late November, and heading into the weekend, two New England schools from the Colonial conference were still very much in the hunt.
At first, the Maine Black Bears looked like they had a tall task of taking on the Appalachian State Mountaineers on the road in Boone, NC. However, after taking a 13-6 lead into the half, the Black Bears broke the game wide open in the second half, with RB Pushuan Brown's 31 yard TD run serving as the exclamation point in Maine's 34-12 win over Perennial FCS/Division I-aa favorite App State.
The victory eliminates the Mountaineers and sets up a showdown with the Georgia Southern Eagles in Statesboro, GA at 2 PM ET on Saturday. Georgia Southern had already beaten the Old Dominion Monarchs (another CAA team) to advance and face the winner of Maine/App State.
ELSEWHERE IN THE FCS: The Montana State Bobcats survived a late scare from the UNH Wildcats in Bozeman, MT on Saturday. Montana State's Darius Hones intercepted a pass from UNH's Mark Becker at the Bobcat 3 yard line. A shanked punt then gave the Wildcats the ball back with 17 seconds remaining in the 4th, Becker connected with WR Justin Mello to make it a 26-25 game with 7 seconds to go in regulation. However, instead of tying the game up on the point after, Mike MacArthur's kick clanged off the upright, allowing Montana State to squeak by.
This sets up a meeting between the Bobcats and Sam Houston State university in Huntsville, TX this weekend.
NFL: Altough they got out to an early 31-3 lead over Indianapolis, the Patriots ended up sneaking by the hard-luck Colts on Sunday. With no Manning in sight, Indy nevertheless managed to put up 21 unanswered points in the 2nd half, including two TD passes from current Colts QB Dan Orlovsky to WR Pierre Garcon. Still, New England managed to hang on for the 31-24 win.
Tom Brady went 29-38 with 289 yards and 2 TDs while Orlovsky went 30 for 37 with 353 yards, 2 TDs and an interception.
Boston Hearld PhotoAn interesting side note to Sunday's game was that injured Colts QB Peyton Manning showed up at Gilette Stadium before the game and briefly chatted with rival QB Tom Brady and head coach Bill Belichick before talking with fans and some of the minutemen in period cosutmes along the sidelines.
“I signed a tons of autographs for Patriots fans before the game and they couldn’t had been nicer,” Manning said. “They were all wishing me a healthy recovery and missed seeing me out there and I really do appreciate that. I’ve been getting a lot of support from my Colts fans and people across the country. But when it comes from fans of probably your biggest rival, and I’m sure some of them have probably said stuff that wasn’t so nice over the years, I thought it was pretty classy.”[I could've told you that, Peyton- but then again, I'm incredibly biased- NANESB!]
Of course, anybody in Foxbourough on Sunday could see for themselves that the Colts/Patriots rivalry had lost much of its luster without the Colts MVP quarterback.
The Patriots have one more NFC East opponent in the regular season- the 4-8 Washington Redskin, who they'll take on this Sunday at 1 PM ET on CBS.
Tuesday, October 25, 2011
Sports Chowdah Update- Napoli Ever After, Texas 1 Win Away From Word Series; Ain't Over 'Til the Fat Lady Lansings;
Ezra Shaw/Getty ImagesWORLD SERIES: Well damn- it looks like I owe you not one, not two but three World Series updated.
Saturday night's game brought the World Series to Arlington, TX for the second time in two seasons. It was a pretty one-sided blowout with the 16-7 Cardinals win being more reminiscent of the final for a Cowboys-Rams game. However, the contest was noteworthy in that Cards 1st baseman Albert Pujols put himself in some very distinguished company (i.e. Babe Ruth and Reggie Jackson) by becoming the third ever player to belt 3 home runs in a World Series game. Pujols went 5-6 with 6 RBI on the night in the St Louis rout.
The following night, however, Rangers starter Derek Holland would go 8 and ⅓ shutout innings allowing just two hits (both of them off of Lance Berkman who was in the DH role) while a 1st inning RBI double from Josh Hamilton would be all the run support Holland needed- altho' he would get more insurance in the form of a 3-run Mike Napoli blast off of Cards reliever Mitchell Boggs in the bottom of the 6th. Texas would go on to win by the 4-0 final on Sunday.
For Game 5 on Monday night, the Cards would get out to an early 2-0 lead in the top of the second, thanks to a Yadier Molina RBI single and Skip Schumaker groundout with a runner on 3rd.
Texas would cut the lead in half with a solo homer from 1B Mitch Moreland and another one from that 3B Adrian Beltre hit from his knees off starter Chris Carpenter to knot the game at 2-2. Then, in the bottom of the 8th with the bases loaded and 1 out, C Mike Napoli scalded a double to deep center field where it bounced off the wall and drove in two more runs for Texas.
Neftali Feliz would then come on in the top of the 9th and after the leadoff batter, got Pujols to stroke out and cut down Allen Craig as he attempted to steal 2nd base. Matt Holliday was walked and Lance Berkman struck out to end the game and give Texas the 3-2 World Series lead.
The World Series heads back to St Louis on Wednesday night, although the forecast calls for extended rain showers throughout the day, so this must-win game for the Cardinals might be postponed for another day.
OTHER MLB NEWS: The Philadelphia Phillies have declined to pick up the 2012 options on starter Roy Oswalt and closer Brad Lidge. Both pitchers are coming off of an injury plagued 2011 season. Although both are free agents, Phillies brass hasn't ruled out either one of them returning under a new, renegotiated contract.
RED SOX: Boston GM Ben Cherington announced that starter John Lackey will miss the 2012 season after undergoing reconstructive surgery on his elbow. Lackey was 12-12 with a 6.41 ERA this season- the second year into his 5 year, $85 million contract.
OTHER RED SOX NEWS: The Toronto Blue Jays issued a statement in which they announced they "would not grant permission for lateral moves", a reversal of the previous policy where the organization permitted any employee from talking to any organization about any job.
The announcement came amid speculation that manager John Farrell was being sought after by the Red Sox as a replacement for Terry Francona. Farrell spent four years as Boston's pitching coach and led the Blue Jays to an 81-81 record his first season as Toronto manager.
CHICAGO CUBS: Theo Epstein was officially introduced by the Cubs as their newest president of Baseball Operations on Tuesday.
NCAA FOOTBALL: Man oh man....what is it with Michigan State and these dramatic finishes?
With about 4 seconds to go in regulation against the #4 ranked Wisconsin Badgers, Michigan State Spartans QB Kirk Cousins heaved a Hail Mary Pass from mid field and after caroming off the facemask of Spartans WR BJ Cunningham found its way into the arms of Spartans WR Keith Nichol, who managed to break the plane of the goal line for the 37-31 Spartans win.
The win vaults the Spartans from #15 to #9 in the AP Top 25 poll.
ELSEWHERE IN NCAA FOOTBALL: Meanwhile, Boston College's futile quest for a win against a FBS opponent continued after falling 14-30 to Virginia Tech in Blacksburg on Saturday. The BC Eagles will next face Maryland at College Park, MD at 3:00 PM ET.
UMass, whis is the only team the Eagles have managed to beat this season, was defeated by the UNH Wildcats by a 27-71 final in the Colonial Clash at Gilette Stadium in Foxborough, Ma on Saturday. This could be a preview of 'home' games once the UMass Minutemen join the MAC starting in 2012.
UConnhad the weekend off, but plays Wednesday night against Pitt at 8 PM ET. The game will be televised on ESPN.
NBA: Speaking of UMass, Basketball hall of famer and UMass alumni Julius Erving is putting up his championship rings and MVP trophies up for auction after being sued for $200,000 by a Georgia bank.
Erving purchased an Atlanta-area golf course in 2006 and moved to the area a few years later. Using a Gwinnett county home as collateral, Erving secured a $1 million loan from Georgia Primary Bank in 2009. In 2010, the line of credit was reduced to $750,000 and the maturity date was extended to July 24th. However, the bank is suing Erving over the outstanding balance.
Among the items up for auction include his 1974 and 1976 championship ring from the ABA as well as a 1983 championship ring with the Philadelphia 76ers and 1980-81 NBA MVP trophy.
NHL: And just as quickly as Boston's offense showed up against Toronto, it seemed to abandon them as they hosted the San Jose Sharks on Saturday.
Coming off a 4-3 shootout win against New Jersey, the Bruins hosted Joe Thornton for career game #1001, but it was Essex, MA native and former BC Eagle Benn Ferriero that would put the Sharks up on top after Tyler Seguin had managed to knot the contest up at 2-2 in the 3rd.
Ferriero managed to bury a rebound past Thomas late in the 3rd to make it a 3-2 contest before a Patrick Marleau empty-netter in the final minute would ice the 4-2 win for San Jose.
Interestingly, while Thornton was playing career game #1000 in New Jersey, Ferriero was being called up from the Worcester Ice Cats of the AHL for his NHL debut.
To mark the occasion of Thornton's return, the Bruins played a video tribute at the garden in the 1st period congratulating the San Jose center on the career milestone.
Tuesday, January 4, 2011
Sports Chowdah w/Sugar On Top- Sooners Pound Puppies; Cry TimberWolf!; Soggy Classic; B's Skid Stopped by Leafs; Pats Go (1st Round) Bye Bye
NCAA HOOPS: I blame myself- almost as soon as I pointed out UConn's record breaking performance in women's hoops, they lose on the road to the #8 ranked Stanford Cardinals by a 71-59 final last week. I blame myself for jinxing them and take full responsibility- my apologies.
Still, it will be interesting to see if any men's or women's team can come close to threatening the UConn Women's record and Stanford might end up usurping Tennessee as the lady Huskies main rival.
NCAA FOOTBALL: Let's face it- it simply hasn't been that good a week for UConn on the hardwood or gridiron. The men's hoops (currently ranked #8) lost to Notre Dame on Tuesday night.
But out in the desert on the first night of 2011, the UConn football team demonstrated that mammals were capable of oviparity when the Huskies went out and laid an egg against the Oklahoma Sooners in the second half of the Fiesta Bowl.
Three years after getting blown out by another Big East team (West Virginia) and four years after Boise State's shocking upset over the Sooners in the very same Fiesta Bowl, Oklahoma started strong and finished strong against the UConn Huskies, taking a 20-10 lead into halftime.
Oklahoma got out the the early 14-0 lead when UConn CB Dwayne Gratz intercepted Sooners QB Landry Jones and returned it 46 yards for paydirt. Dave Teggart would follow that up with a 37 yard FG towards the end of the first half.
As tenacious as UConn was in the first half, they were pretty much completely absent (aside from a 95 yard kickoff return from Robbie Frey) in the second as the Sooners got two pick-6s from Huskies QB Zach Frasier for the 48-20 Sooners win.
Keep in mind that UConn still hasn't scored an offensive touchdown since the 4th quarter of their Nov 27th game against the Cincinnati Bearcats. So that didn't really bode well for a UConn team that made it to a BCS game on the basis of tie-breakers and Big East rivals screwing the proverbial pooch. While they no doubt had their moments, by and large UConn had this 'not-quite-ready-for-prime-time' feel to their lackluster performance in the Fiesta Bowl.
ELSEWHERE IN NCAA FOOTBALL: As lacking as UConn's performance in the Fiesta Bowl might've been, imagine a whole conference faring worse than the Huskies did as a team on New Year's Day. You don't have to, since there was the Big Ten's woeful results from the various Bowl games on New Year's Day:
Ticket City Bowl:
Northwestern 38- Texas Tech 45
Outback Bowl:
Florida 37- Penn State 24
Capital One Bowl:
#15 Alabama 49- #7 Michigan State 7
Gator Bowl
#21 Mississippi State 52- Michigan 14
Rose Bowl
#4 Wisconsin 19- #3 Texas Christian 21
Actually, the Outback Bowl was a little closer than the score would indicate if not for a late Penn State drive that ended in an interception being run back for a TD with just over a minute remaining in the 4th. As you might suspect, the Rose Bowl actually made for some fine viewing even for those who didn't have a stake in the outcome. Still, that's 0-4 in one day for the Big 10.
ORANGE BOWL: The Orange Bowl on Monday night featured a matchup between #5 Stanford and #12 Virginia Tech amid speculation this could be head coach Jim Harbaugh's last game as a number of NFL teams expressed an interest in his services.
In the first half, things didn't quite seem to be going the Cardinals way, with a missed PAT by kicker Nate Whittaker (one of two missed on the night), a fluky play that would've resulted in a safety no matter what and Hokies QB Tyrod Taylor making an 11 yard TD pass when it looked for all the world like he was being chased backwards and out of bounds. Still, the Cardinals would head into the locker room at the half with a 13-12 lead after Virginia Tech got a FG with 7 seconds remaining in the half.
But that would be the last time the Hokies would find the end zone or uprights. Stanford would score 27 unanswered points to take down Virginia Tech by a final of 40-12.
SUGAR BOWL: Ladies and gentlemen, there's been a Big 10 sighting! The 2011 Sugar Bowl pitted #6 Ohio State against #8 Arkansas on Tuesday night, and the Buckeyes fared much better than the rest of the Big 10 on New Year's Day. Granted that's not saying much....
Although the Buckeyes got out to a pretty commanding 28-10 lead at halftime, the Razorbacks held them to just 3 points in the 2nd half as Arkansas clawed back to make it a 26-31 game in the 4th. After attempting to bleed the clock late in the 4th, the Buckeyes decided to punt on 4th and 3 from their own 38 yard line. However, the punt was blocked, giving the Razorbacks the ball with good field position and very little time.
The first pass attempt from Arkansas' Ryan Mallet was incomplete- the second was picked off and the Buckeyes absolutely dodged a bullet there. Ohio State hangs on to win by the final of 31-26.
ELSEWHERE IN NCAA FOOTBALL: Here are some finals from what some would refer to as the 'lesser' Bowl games [not me, tho'- NANESB!] prior to New Year's Day:
December 30:
Music City Bowl:
North Carolina 30- Tennessee 27 (2 OT)
Holiday Bowl
#17 Nebraska 7- Washington 19
December 31:
Meineke Bowl
South Florida 31- Clemson 26
Sun Bowl
Notre Dame 33- Miami (FL) 17
Liberty Bowl
Central Florida 10- Georgia 6
Chick-Fil-A Bowl
#19 South Carolina 17- #23 Florida State 26
NFL: Not that much to report as far as the Pats are concerned. Some of the starters got some rest on Sunday's 38-7 rout of the Miami Dolphins in South Florida, sweeping the season series. This is the 8th straight win for New England and also the 8th straight game where they scored more than 30 points, finishing with a 14-2 regular season record.
Now all that's left is to wait and see who New England gets after Wild Card weekend.
ELSEWHERE IN THE NFL: Speaking of- here's the Wild Card weekend schedule:
Saturday- 1/8
New Orleans Saints @ Seattle Seahawks- 4:30 PM ET
NY Jets @ Indianapolis Colts- 8:00 PM ET
Sunday- 1/9
Baltimore Ravens @ Kansas City Chiefs- 1:00 PM ET
Green Bay Packers @ Philadelphia Eagles- 4:30 PM ET
NBA: Well....while I was watching all this football, it seemed to escape my attention that Rajon Rondo is back. He had a fairly low-key return in Sunday night's 93-79 win over the Toronto Raptors with 8 assists, a rebound and 4 points (8? Maybe not that low-key, then).
Interestingly, the Celtics have never lost to the Timberwolves since the acquisition of Kevin Garnett in 2007 (KG is still on the disabled list however, and did not play against his former team).
The C's have a tough one coming up Wednesday night at the garden as they'll play host to the San Antionio Spurs as they come to Beantown with the NBA's best record.
NHL: After back-to-back shootout losses against Atlanta and Buffalo (where they at least got a point for their trouble) the Bruins went north of the border to take on the Maple Leafs.
Tim Thomas had the night off and the elusive Tukka Rask got the start between the pipes for the B's instead. Although Toronto got on the board first with a Mikhail Grabovski goal, Rask turned aside 36 shots on goal- many of them coming from former Bruins teammate Phil Kessel.
Nathaniel Horton and Marc Savard would score in the second to put the Bruins up for good by a final of 2-1, snapping their 2-game slide.
The B's will next take on the Minnesota Wild at the Garden on Thursday night, 7 PM ET.
The original start time of 1 PM Eastern was pushed back to 8 PM ET [might this be a sign of things to come for future Winter Classics? -NANESB!] in the hopes that the rain would clear by then. But it was a very wet Winter Classic indeed as the Penguins got out to a 1-0 lead on a Evgeni Malkin goal in the 2nd. However, the Caps would come right back with a power play goal from Mike Knuble and follow that one up with a tally from Caps RW Eric Fehr to take the 2-1 lead in the second. Fehr would provide Washington with some insurance in the 3rd with another tally to make it 3-1 Washington- the final score.
Washington's Semyon Varlamov turned aside 32 of the 33 shots he faced while Pens netminder Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 29 of 32 shots faced.
IIHF WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS: Jeez- I had no idea that these were underway until Monday night when the Maple Leafs announcers were updating the score of the USA/Canada game.....which alas, the USA lost 4-1. This means that the host USA will play Sweden in the Bronze medal game on Wednesday afternoon while Canada will take on Russia in the Gold medal game at Buffalo's HSBC Arena on Wednesday night.
MLB: Free agent and former Red Sox and Mariners 3B Adrian Beltre and the Texas Rangers have reached a preliminary agreement on a six-year, $96 million contract pending a physical late on Tuesday.
Still, it will be interesting to see if any men's or women's team can come close to threatening the UConn Women's record and Stanford might end up usurping Tennessee as the lady Huskies main rival.
NCAA FOOTBALL: Let's face it- it simply hasn't been that good a week for UConn on the hardwood or gridiron. The men's hoops (currently ranked #8) lost to Notre Dame on Tuesday night.
But out in the desert on the first night of 2011, the UConn football team demonstrated that mammals were capable of oviparity when the Huskies went out and laid an egg against the Oklahoma Sooners in the second half of the Fiesta Bowl.
Three years after getting blown out by another Big East team (West Virginia) and four years after Boise State's shocking upset over the Sooners in the very same Fiesta Bowl, Oklahoma started strong and finished strong against the UConn Huskies, taking a 20-10 lead into halftime.
Oklahoma got out the the early 14-0 lead when UConn CB Dwayne Gratz intercepted Sooners QB Landry Jones and returned it 46 yards for paydirt. Dave Teggart would follow that up with a 37 yard FG towards the end of the first half.
As tenacious as UConn was in the first half, they were pretty much completely absent (aside from a 95 yard kickoff return from Robbie Frey) in the second as the Sooners got two pick-6s from Huskies QB Zach Frasier for the 48-20 Sooners win.
Keep in mind that UConn still hasn't scored an offensive touchdown since the 4th quarter of their Nov 27th game against the Cincinnati Bearcats. So that didn't really bode well for a UConn team that made it to a BCS game on the basis of tie-breakers and Big East rivals screwing the proverbial pooch. While they no doubt had their moments, by and large UConn had this 'not-quite-ready-for-prime-time' feel to their lackluster performance in the Fiesta Bowl.
ELSEWHERE IN NCAA FOOTBALL: As lacking as UConn's performance in the Fiesta Bowl might've been, imagine a whole conference faring worse than the Huskies did as a team on New Year's Day. You don't have to, since there was the Big Ten's woeful results from the various Bowl games on New Year's Day:
Ticket City Bowl:
Northwestern 38- Texas Tech 45
Outback Bowl:
Florida 37- Penn State 24
Capital One Bowl:
#15 Alabama 49- #7 Michigan State 7
Gator Bowl
#21 Mississippi State 52- Michigan 14
Rose Bowl
#4 Wisconsin 19- #3 Texas Christian 21
Actually, the Outback Bowl was a little closer than the score would indicate if not for a late Penn State drive that ended in an interception being run back for a TD with just over a minute remaining in the 4th. As you might suspect, the Rose Bowl actually made for some fine viewing even for those who didn't have a stake in the outcome. Still, that's 0-4 in one day for the Big 10.
ORANGE BOWL: The Orange Bowl on Monday night featured a matchup between #5 Stanford and #12 Virginia Tech amid speculation this could be head coach Jim Harbaugh's last game as a number of NFL teams expressed an interest in his services.
In the first half, things didn't quite seem to be going the Cardinals way, with a missed PAT by kicker Nate Whittaker (one of two missed on the night), a fluky play that would've resulted in a safety no matter what and Hokies QB Tyrod Taylor making an 11 yard TD pass when it looked for all the world like he was being chased backwards and out of bounds. Still, the Cardinals would head into the locker room at the half with a 13-12 lead after Virginia Tech got a FG with 7 seconds remaining in the half.
But that would be the last time the Hokies would find the end zone or uprights. Stanford would score 27 unanswered points to take down Virginia Tech by a final of 40-12.
SUGAR BOWL: Ladies and gentlemen, there's been a Big 10 sighting! The 2011 Sugar Bowl pitted #6 Ohio State against #8 Arkansas on Tuesday night, and the Buckeyes fared much better than the rest of the Big 10 on New Year's Day. Granted that's not saying much....
Although the Buckeyes got out to a pretty commanding 28-10 lead at halftime, the Razorbacks held them to just 3 points in the 2nd half as Arkansas clawed back to make it a 26-31 game in the 4th. After attempting to bleed the clock late in the 4th, the Buckeyes decided to punt on 4th and 3 from their own 38 yard line. However, the punt was blocked, giving the Razorbacks the ball with good field position and very little time.
The first pass attempt from Arkansas' Ryan Mallet was incomplete- the second was picked off and the Buckeyes absolutely dodged a bullet there. Ohio State hangs on to win by the final of 31-26.
ELSEWHERE IN NCAA FOOTBALL: Here are some finals from what some would refer to as the 'lesser' Bowl games [not me, tho'- NANESB!] prior to New Year's Day:
December 30:
Music City Bowl:
North Carolina 30- Tennessee 27 (2 OT)
Holiday Bowl
#17 Nebraska 7- Washington 19
December 31:
Meineke Bowl
South Florida 31- Clemson 26
Sun Bowl
Notre Dame 33- Miami (FL) 17
Liberty Bowl
Central Florida 10- Georgia 6
Chick-Fil-A Bowl
#19 South Carolina 17- #23 Florida State 26
NFL: Not that much to report as far as the Pats are concerned. Some of the starters got some rest on Sunday's 38-7 rout of the Miami Dolphins in South Florida, sweeping the season series. This is the 8th straight win for New England and also the 8th straight game where they scored more than 30 points, finishing with a 14-2 regular season record.
Now all that's left is to wait and see who New England gets after Wild Card weekend.
ELSEWHERE IN THE NFL: Speaking of- here's the Wild Card weekend schedule:
Saturday- 1/8
New Orleans Saints @ Seattle Seahawks- 4:30 PM ET
NY Jets @ Indianapolis Colts- 8:00 PM ET
Sunday- 1/9
Baltimore Ravens @ Kansas City Chiefs- 1:00 PM ET
Green Bay Packers @ Philadelphia Eagles- 4:30 PM ET
NBA: Well....while I was watching all this football, it seemed to escape my attention that Rajon Rondo is back. He had a fairly low-key return in Sunday night's 93-79 win over the Toronto Raptors with 8 assists, a rebound and 4 points (8? Maybe not that low-key, then).
Getty imagesOn Monday night's game at the Garden, they got some unexpectedly stiff competiton from the Minnesota Timberwolves as Kevin Love had 24 points for the visiting T'Wolves. After trailing at halftime 47-43, Paul Pierce scored 15 of his 23 points in the 3rd quarter to help close what was once a double-digit gap before the C's went ahead and held on to win by the final on 96-93.
Interestingly, the Celtics have never lost to the Timberwolves since the acquisition of Kevin Garnett in 2007 (KG is still on the disabled list however, and did not play against his former team).
The C's have a tough one coming up Wednesday night at the garden as they'll play host to the San Antionio Spurs as they come to Beantown with the NBA's best record.
NHL: After back-to-back shootout losses against Atlanta and Buffalo (where they at least got a point for their trouble) the Bruins went north of the border to take on the Maple Leafs.
Tim Thomas had the night off and the elusive Tukka Rask got the start between the pipes for the B's instead. Although Toronto got on the board first with a Mikhail Grabovski goal, Rask turned aside 36 shots on goal- many of them coming from former Bruins teammate Phil Kessel.
Nathaniel Horton and Marc Savard would score in the second to put the Bruins up for good by a final of 2-1, snapping their 2-game slide.
The B's will next take on the Minnesota Wild at the Garden on Thursday night, 7 PM ET.
Justin K. Aller/ GettyELSEWHERE IN THE NHL: The 2011 Winter Classic belatedly got underway Saturday night between the Pittsburgh Penguins and Washington Capitals amid intermittent rain showers at Heinz Field in Pittsburgh, PA.
The original start time of 1 PM Eastern was pushed back to 8 PM ET [might this be a sign of things to come for future Winter Classics? -NANESB!] in the hopes that the rain would clear by then. But it was a very wet Winter Classic indeed as the Penguins got out to a 1-0 lead on a Evgeni Malkin goal in the 2nd. However, the Caps would come right back with a power play goal from Mike Knuble and follow that one up with a tally from Caps RW Eric Fehr to take the 2-1 lead in the second. Fehr would provide Washington with some insurance in the 3rd with another tally to make it 3-1 Washington- the final score.
Washington's Semyon Varlamov turned aside 32 of the 33 shots he faced while Pens netminder Marc-Andre Fleury stopped 29 of 32 shots faced.
IIHF WORLD JUNIOR CHAMPIONSHIPS: Jeez- I had no idea that these were underway until Monday night when the Maple Leafs announcers were updating the score of the USA/Canada game.....which alas, the USA lost 4-1. This means that the host USA will play Sweden in the Bronze medal game on Wednesday afternoon while Canada will take on Russia in the Gold medal game at Buffalo's HSBC Arena on Wednesday night.
MLB: Free agent and former Red Sox and Mariners 3B Adrian Beltre and the Texas Rangers have reached a preliminary agreement on a six-year, $96 million contract pending a physical late on Tuesday.
Wednesday, November 24, 2010
Pre Holiday Sports Chowdah- Peyton's Misplaced; Recchi-ng Ball Hits NHL Milestone; BC, UConn Can Go Bowling; C's Oversee Net Losses
NFL: Wow....I've been meaning to get caught up on this for awhile now.So...did any of you see that Colts/Pats game on Sunday? And with less than a minute to go in the 4th, Peyton Manning was all 'I think I'll put us in position for the game tying field goal or even get a game winning TD' and James Sanders was like all 'Nuh-uh!' and 'Yoink!' when he intercepted Manning's 1st and 10 pass attempt at the Pats 6 yard line?
Yeah- that was pretty awesome.
You know what else was awesome? When Danny Woodhead scrambled for that 36 yard TD run to make it a 28-14 New England lead towards the end of the third quarter. Seriously, thank you Jets for giving up on the diminutive RB and cutting him loose at the start of the season.
Anywhoo, granted that this is old news, but I thought worth re-visiting by virtue of the outcome. The Pats led by as much as 21-7 until the closing seconds of the first half and 31-14 early in the 4th quarter. However, New England would watch its once sizable lead evaporate when Peyton Manning put together two TD drives, each clocking in at about two and a half minutes and working on what could very well have been a 3rd touchdown drive were it not for Pat's safety James Sanders timely interception at the New England 6 yard line.
Seriously- even tho' Manning almost managed to dig himself the early hole with those two earlier interceptions, did anybody think that the Colts would jusr roll over like spayed cocker spaniel? Me neither...
New England hangs on to win by the final of 31-28- not pretty or the strongest of finishes, but certainly effective. Brady went 19-25 with 186 passing yards and two TDs. Danny Woodhead had 7 carries for 69 yards and the TD while Brandon Merriweather, Devin McCourty, and of course James Sanders, each had interceptions on the day.
The Pats will travel next to Ford Field to take on the Detroit Tigers on Thanksgiving Day at 12:30 PM ET, 9:30 AM Pacific
Joel Auerbach/GettyComing off of a brief 2-game skid in which they lost in overtime at home to the LA Kings over the weekend and were downed by the Tampa Bay Lightning 3-1 on Monday night, the Boston Bruins would continue their swing through the sunshine state in the hopes of halting their losing streak- or at least having Mark Recchi score his 1500th career point- while visiting the Florida Panthers Wednesday night.
Hmm...How about both?
After falling behind 1-0 late in the 2nd, the Bruins responded by scoring a shorthanded goal from Brad Marchand only 8 seconds into the third period to tie the game up at 1-1. Just under 3 minutes later, Recchi got the go ahead tally on an even strength goal as well as an insurance goal that came on a Bruins power play with 4 minutes remaining in the 3rd. Bruins win by the final of 3-1. Tim Thomas now has an 11-1-1 record after stopping 31 shots faced and Mark Recchi now becomes the 13th player to reach the 1500 point mark.
The Bruins will next take on the Carolina Hurricanes at noon Eastern on Friday, Nov. 26.
NCAA FOOTBALL: After dropping five straight, including four against ACC opponent, who would'vc thought the Boston College Eagles would be bowl-eligible?
But that's exactly what happened after BC's 17-13 win over Virginia on Saturday, although with one game remaining against Syracuse this season, it begs the question of whether or not BC will even get an invite.
Speaking of Syracuse, that's exactly who the UConn Huskies had as their opponent at an away game inside the Carrier Dome on Saturday night. With the 23-6 win, Connecticut is now bowl-eligilbe as well, with a 6-4 record. The Huskies will take on the Cincinnati Bearcats at home on noon Saturday before closing out regular season play on the road against the South Florida Bulls the following weekend.
ELSEWHERE IN NCAA FOOTBALL: Two different ballparks were put to use in the offseason by the NCAA as football venues. Wrigley Field hosted it's first football game in nearly 40 years when the Wrigleyville Classic between Northwestern and Illinois. Less than 36 hours before kickoff, Big 10 officials announced that due to the tight confines of the East end zone up against a brick wall, plays would only be run towards the west end zone (Wrigley's 3rd base dugout). The only time there was any action in the West End zone was when Northwestern safety Brian Peters returned an interception 59 yards to the forbidden end zone in Northwestern's 27-48 loss to Illinois.
Halfway across the country, the Notre Dame Fighting Irish beat down the US Army Black Knights in the Bronx in a game that was primarily noteworthy for being the first NCAA football game in the new Yankee stadium. The 27-3 win for the Irish means that they are now bowl-eligible after garnering a 6-5 record while Army came into Yankee stadiun already bowl-eligible after their 45-28 win over Kent State on Nov. 13.
NBA: After losing two fairly close games to a Kevin Durant-less Oklahoma City Thunder and the Toronto Raptors, The C's won back-to-back games starting with a 99-76 blowout of the Atlanta Hawks on Monday night.
Perhaps the biggest surprise of Wednesday's mathchup against the Nets was how well Shaq was playing (9-10 with 25 points and 7 of 13 from the free throw line) after losing Rajon Rondo to a hamstring injury while losing Delonte West to a broken right wrist in the 89-83 win over New Jersey.
The C's next game will be at home against the Toronto Raptors on Friday night
Monday, November 8, 2010
Fall Back Sports Chowdah Update- Pats Dog Pounded; OT Has B's Blue in the Face; C's Doing OK on Road Trip; BC Sees the Wake Forest for the Trees
NFL: Wow.....that sure sucked. A week after beating the Minnesota Vikings at Foxboro, the Pats travelled to Cleveland to take on the 2-5 Browns.
Don't let their record fool you, though. Prior to their bye week on Halloween, the Browns ran roughshod over the defending Superbowl Champion New Orleans Saints by a final of 30-17.
On Sunday, it wasn't even that close. Former Hawaii QB Colt McCoy made the most of his NFL debut, and if McCoy didn't make the dog pound forget about former Cleveland Browns #1 draft pick Brady Quinn, RB Peyton Hillis would.
Hillis and a 6th round draft pick in the 2011 draft were acquired by Cleveland from the Denver Broncos in exchange for Quinn. On Sunday, Hillis had 29 carries, 184 yards and a pair of TD's while Colt McCoy went 14 for 19 and 174 yards while rushing for 20 more and a TD.
On the Pats side of the ball, Tom Brady was 19-36 with 224 yards and two TDs, both of them to TE Aaron Hernandez, for the only Pats scoring on the day.
The Browns win this one handily by a score of 34-14 and leave the Pats scratching their heads wondering what the hell went wrong before facing the Steelers at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field for NBC's Sunday night game. The Steelers held on to win their Monday night contest against the Cincinnati Bengals by a 27-21 final.
ELSEWHERE IN THE NFL: You had to figure it was only a matter of time, but after Sunday night's 45-7 loss to Green Bay at Lambeau Field, the Dallas Cowboys fired head coach Wade Phillips. With a 1-7 record, this marks the first time that a Dallas head coach was dismissed midseason. Offensive coordinator Jason Garrett will take over head coaching duties on an interim basis.
The Lions rallied from a 21-7 halftime deficit to score four unanswered TD's in the second half for the come from behind for the 35-21 win. The win is the 3rd in a row for Penn State and gives them a 6-3 record (3-2 in the Big 10) and most importantly, gives Penn State head coach Joe Paterno career win #400- the first ever NCAA football coach to reach that milestone.
[Congrats to JoePa for a milestone that nobody else will ever come close to- NANESB!]
ACC: After snapping their losing streak in a home game against the Clemson Tigers, the Boston College Eagles made it back to back wins in the ACC when they travelled to Winston-Salem, NC to take on the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.
Eagles QB Chase Rettig went 14-16 for 133 yards, but the MVP Saturday was undoubtedly RB Montel Harris, who had 36 carries for 183 yards and 3 TD's on the day for Boston College's 23-13 win over Wake Forest.
The BC Eagles head back to the Tarheel State for another road game, this time in Durham, NC against the Duke Blue Devils.
NBA: The Celtics winning streak of five games was snapped on Monday night at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX with the Mavericks getting the go ahead jumper from Dirk Nowitzki with less than 20 seconds left in regulation for the 89-87 win over Boston.
Even with the loss, Boston's 6-2 record is still good enough for 1st place in the Atlantic division. The Celtics will travel next to Miami to take on the Heat Thursday night on a game that will be broadcast on TNT at 8PM Eastern, 5 Pacific.
Don't let their record fool you, though. Prior to their bye week on Halloween, the Browns ran roughshod over the defending Superbowl Champion New Orleans Saints by a final of 30-17.
On Sunday, it wasn't even that close. Former Hawaii QB Colt McCoy made the most of his NFL debut, and if McCoy didn't make the dog pound forget about former Cleveland Browns #1 draft pick Brady Quinn, RB Peyton Hillis would.
Hillis and a 6th round draft pick in the 2011 draft were acquired by Cleveland from the Denver Broncos in exchange for Quinn. On Sunday, Hillis had 29 carries, 184 yards and a pair of TD's while Colt McCoy went 14 for 19 and 174 yards while rushing for 20 more and a TD.
On the Pats side of the ball, Tom Brady was 19-36 with 224 yards and two TDs, both of them to TE Aaron Hernandez, for the only Pats scoring on the day.
The Browns win this one handily by a score of 34-14 and leave the Pats scratching their heads wondering what the hell went wrong before facing the Steelers at Pittsburgh's Heinz Field for NBC's Sunday night game. The Steelers held on to win their Monday night contest against the Cincinnati Bengals by a 27-21 final.
ELSEWHERE IN THE NFL: You had to figure it was only a matter of time, but after Sunday night's 45-7 loss to Green Bay at Lambeau Field, the Dallas Cowboys fired head coach Wade Phillips. With a 1-7 record, this marks the first time that a Dallas head coach was dismissed midseason. Offensive coordinator Jason Garrett will take over head coaching duties on an interim basis.
NHL: The Bruins caught their first whiff of overtime on Saturday night when they hosted the St. Louis Blues. The Blues led 1-0 on a Vladmir Sobotka goal in the first and that's the way the score would remain until 7 minutes into the 3rd quarter. This was thanks in large part to the play of St. Louis goaltender Jaroslav Halak, who (with a little help from the posts) stopped 33 of 34 shots faced, with the Bruin's only tally coming from Gregory Campbell in the third.
Tuuka Rask, for his part, would not allow another goal in regulation or OT and stopped 34 of 35 shots faced overall. However, the Blues would go on to win the shootout by a 2-1 margin (Tyler Seguin was the only B's tally in the shootout), giving St. Louis the 2-1 win, so Boston at least gets a point from Saturday's game.
The Bruins will travel to Pittsburgh's brand-new Consol Energy Center for Wednesday night against the Pittsburgh Penguins.
For the love of God, He's 83! Don't drop him!NCAA FOOTBALL: Normally, I'm not that dedicated a follower of Big Ten football, but I couldn't let Saturday's game between the Penn State Nittany Lions and Northwestern Wildcats at State College, PA pass without comment.
The Lions rallied from a 21-7 halftime deficit to score four unanswered TD's in the second half for the come from behind for the 35-21 win. The win is the 3rd in a row for Penn State and gives them a 6-3 record (3-2 in the Big 10) and most importantly, gives Penn State head coach Joe Paterno career win #400- the first ever NCAA football coach to reach that milestone.
[Congrats to JoePa for a milestone that nobody else will ever come close to- NANESB!]
ACC: After snapping their losing streak in a home game against the Clemson Tigers, the Boston College Eagles made it back to back wins in the ACC when they travelled to Winston-Salem, NC to take on the Wake Forest Demon Deacons.
Eagles QB Chase Rettig went 14-16 for 133 yards, but the MVP Saturday was undoubtedly RB Montel Harris, who had 36 carries for 183 yards and 3 TD's on the day for Boston College's 23-13 win over Wake Forest.
The BC Eagles head back to the Tarheel State for another road game, this time in Durham, NC against the Duke Blue Devils.
NBA: The Celtics winning streak of five games was snapped on Monday night at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, TX with the Mavericks getting the go ahead jumper from Dirk Nowitzki with less than 20 seconds left in regulation for the 89-87 win over Boston.
Even with the loss, Boston's 6-2 record is still good enough for 1st place in the Atlantic division. The Celtics will travel next to Miami to take on the Heat Thursday night on a game that will be broadcast on TNT at 8PM Eastern, 5 Pacific.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Sports Chowdah Update- #20 Wolverines Survive Last Minute-man Threat; They Might Be Little Giants in Lansing; Jets Take Flight vs NE
MLB: After finishing off a sweep of the Mariners in Seattle, the Red Sox travelled back to Boston for a weekend homestand against the Toronto Blue Jays. After dropping the first two games of the weekend series, leave it to Jon Lester to stop the bleeding. The starter went 7 shutout innings giving up four hits and striking out four while getting run support from homers by Victor Martinez and JD Drew as well as an RBI single from call-up Yamacio Navarro. Scott Atcheson and Robert Coello closed out the game and preserved the shutout for Boston's 6-0 win on Sunday afternoon.
The homestand continues Monday against Baltimore, with Daisuke Matsuzaka (9-5; 4.82 ERA)getting the start against Brian Matusz (8-12; 4.68 ERA).
NCAA FOOTBALL: Holy crap! I managed to tune in late to the Notre Dame/Michigan State game. Normally you'd think overtime games would be exciting, but the end of regulation and the 1st Irish possession of overtime were almost coma-inducing. The first three downs on the Spartan's possession were actually kinda painful to watch, culminating in a loss of 8 yards after Michigan State QB Kirk Cousins was sacked to bring up what appeared for all the world to be a lengthy field goal attempt on 4th and 13 with an inexperienced kicker.
What happened next defies easy written description, but good thing there's some video embedded.
Apparently Michigan State designates their trick plays with movie titles, and what you just saw was a successful execution of 'Little Giants'. But there would be more- and not just the sour grapes from Irish fans whining about the game clock. Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio was hospitalized with a mild heart attack on Sunday morning. The 54 year old coach underwent surgery to put a stent in one of the blocked blood vessels leading to his heart. It appears that Dantonio will be fine, but he'll be out indefinitely as he's recovering.
Both New York and New England are at 1-1 while Miami beat Minnesota at the Metrodome today to get them off to a 2-0 start.
The homestand continues Monday against Baltimore, with Daisuke Matsuzaka (9-5; 4.82 ERA)getting the start against Brian Matusz (8-12; 4.68 ERA).
NCAA FOOTBALL: Holy crap! I managed to tune in late to the Notre Dame/Michigan State game. Normally you'd think overtime games would be exciting, but the end of regulation and the 1st Irish possession of overtime were almost coma-inducing. The first three downs on the Spartan's possession were actually kinda painful to watch, culminating in a loss of 8 yards after Michigan State QB Kirk Cousins was sacked to bring up what appeared for all the world to be a lengthy field goal attempt on 4th and 13 with an inexperienced kicker.
What happened next defies easy written description, but good thing there's some video embedded.
Apparently Michigan State designates their trick plays with movie titles, and what you just saw was a successful execution of 'Little Giants'. But there would be more- and not just the sour grapes from Irish fans whining about the game clock. Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio was hospitalized with a mild heart attack on Sunday morning. The 54 year old coach underwent surgery to put a stent in one of the blocked blood vessels leading to his heart. It appears that Dantonio will be fine, but he'll be out indefinitely as he's recovering.
AP PhotoMEANWHILE, IN ANN ARBOR: Boston College has the weekend off, but another Massachusetts college football team caught the nation's attention- at least until Dantonio's 'Little Giants' play. Like the Spartans/Fighting Irish game in Lansing, the action took place in the Great Lakes state when the FCS UMass Minutemen of the Colonial Athletic Association paid a visit to Michigan's Big House in Ann Arbor. The Minutemen were actually leading 17-7 for awhile in the 2nd quarter, although Michigan would take a 21-17 lead at the half. Michigan was actually starting to pull away late in the 3rd to make it a 35-17 game, but UMass came charging back in the 4th to make it 42-30 when the Minutemen held the Wolverines to a 3 and out with just over 5 minutes left in the 4th before successfully blocking the punt and recovering on the Michigan 25. Using the short field, UMass got the touchdown on a Kyle Havens pass to TE Andrew Krevis to make it a 37-42 game with just over two minutes left. But before anybody could say Appalachian State, Michigan was able to successfully bleed the clock after getting a first down on their ensuing possession. I know that talk about 'moral victories' is pretty hackneyed and cliched, but overall I'd say the Minutemen acquitted themselves quite well on Saturday. UMass QB Kyle Havens was 22 for 29 passing with 222 yards, two TDs passing, one rushing TD and and interception while Michigan's Denard Robinson was 10 of 14 with 241 yards passing, 104 yards rushing with an interception as well as two TDs through the air and one rushing TD. Pretty safe to say that the other Big 10 teams will be watching the film from this one pretty closely. Michigan is 3-0 having beaten UMass, Notre Dame and Uconn while UMass is off to a 2-1 start, good enough for the current lead in the Colonial Conference and a #15 ranking from the FCS Coaches Poll. MEANWHILE, IN THE BIG EAST: UConn- perhaps somewhat surprisingly- fell to the Mid America Conference's newest member, Temple, by a score of 30-16 on Saturday. UConn will host the Buffalo Bisons this upcoming Saturday at East Hartford NFL: Well, that sure sucked. After Generating almost zero offense in last week's Monday night game against Baltimore, the Jets offense seemed to hit their stride against the visiting Patriots at the new and reportedly improved Meadowlands Sunday afternoon. New England headed into the locker room at the half with a 14-10 lead and were shut out for the entire second half (that one-handed grab by Moss for the TD was awesome, but didn't garner any style points). The Jets were aided considerably by two Brady picks (OK- one of them was kinda flukey) and some costly penalties (39 yards against the Pats D on one Jets posession in the 4th) in their 28-14 win, the Jets first of the season.
Both New York and New England are at 1-1 while Miami beat Minnesota at the Metrodome today to get them off to a 2-0 start.
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
Today's Train of Thought: Nothing Runs Like a Deere (On Flatcars)- Oct. 14th
The Iowa Northern has certainly been busy lately. A large part of that is due to the increase in ethanol production, but there's also a passenger train that shuttles Iowa Hawkeye Football fans to and from home games at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City. This has garnered the shortline enough attention to be featured on Bloomberg TV and The Big Ten Network
Railpictures.net contributor Craig Williams caught this trio of Iowa Northern GP38-2s lead by IANR #3803 en route to the Union Pacific interchange with a trainload of John Deere tractors on the last day of March 2004. If only there was some indication of the name of the town where this picture was taken.....some sort of subtle clue or reminder.
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