In Soviet Russia, Sports Chowdah Updates YOU- USA Leads Medal Count in Sochi; Team Canada/USA to Duke it Out On The Ice; Topless Lebanese Skiier in Hot Water; Bruins Shut Down Sens Before Olympic Break; BC Takes The Fifth in Beanpot; Syracuse Falls to Boston College

I swear, I'm not boycotting the Olympics- although a casual glance of this blog since the Winter games got underway in Sochi might lead one to that conclusion. On the other hand, Wyatt Earp of Support Your Local Gunfighter is keeping track of the compelling human-interest stories concerning the athletes competing in Sochi.

WINTER OLYMPICS- Despite the highly publicized gaffes such as reporters checking into hotels still under construction and a technical miscue during the opening ceremonies, the Winter Olympiad at Sochi got off and running last week.

US Snowboarder Sage Kostenburg won the first gold medal of the games in the men's slopestyle event back on Feb 8th. Well beyond the halfway point of the 2014 Sochi games, Team USA currently leads the overall medal count with 23 (7 gold, 5 silver and 11 bronze). Both Russia and the Netherlands trail the USA in the medal count by one while Norway has the most gold medals with a grand total of nine.

Of most interest to me is the Team USA Men's hockey- which got off to a stellar start with a 7-1 thumping of Slovakia on Feb 12th for their Olympic debut. On Saturday, the USA needed a controversial disallowed goal and OT to get past a heavily favored Russia team, with St Louis Blue Center TJ Oshie becoming something of a cult hero with his game-winning shootout goal to give Team USA the 3-2 win.

On Wednesday, Dustin Brown got the game-winning goal for Team USA as they cruised past the Czech Republic by a 5-2 final while host Russia was eliminated from medal contention by Finland in a 3-1 loss. Team Canada got by a very game Latvia, winning 2-1 to set up a semifinal contest with Team USA on Friday. The winner of the USA/Canada men's game will go on to face the winner of the Sweden/Finland men's semifinal game for the gold.

For those of you who can't wait until Friday for some good ol' USA-on-Canada puck action, the women's hockey gold medal game will feature the USA taking on Canada on Thursday at 12:00 ET for all the marbles. The game will be televised on NBC and streamed on the NBC Olympics website.

ELSEWHERE IN THE OLYMPICS- Lebanese downhill skier Jackie Chamoun has reportedly raised the ire of politicians in Beirut after topless pictures of her were circulating online. Lebanon's interim Sports Minister reportedly called upon the Lebanese Olympic Committee to launch an inquiry and 'take the required steps to avoid harming Lebanon's international reputation'.

Chamoun has her defenders both inside and beyond Lebanon's borders, and after condemnation from Islamic clerics and demand for a parliamentary inquiry, social-media savvy Lebanese took to twitter and Facebook- sometimes posting pictures of them topless or seminude- using the hashtag #StripForJackie.

NHL- Of course, all these NHL All-Stars mean that there's no NHL for nearly 3 weeks. In fact, we're still nearly a week away from the resumption of NHL play- and that is a single game between the Buffalo Sabres and Carolina Hurricanes that was postponed earlier in the year due to a blizzard before being rescheduled to Feb 25th.

Thanks to the Olympic break, the Boston Bruins have a grand total of five games in the month of February- including a Feb 26th matchup against the Sabres at the First Niagara Centre. After a quick 1-game road trip to St Louis, the Bruins returned home to the Garden to face off against the Ottawa Senators for the final game before the Olympic break. The B's jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the first thanks to goals from Patrice Bergeron and Chris Kelly- and they never looked back, adding on to their lead with goals from Bobby Ryan, Jarome Iginla, Carl Soderburg, Brad Marchand and Milan Lucic to cruise to a 7-2 victory.

Although the Bruins head into the 3-week long break leading the Atlantic Division, they're still 5 points behind the Penguins for the Eastern Conference lead.

While we still have to wait for a whole week for the next Bruins game, the good news is that it will be televised nationally on NBC Sports Network on Feb 26th with the puck scheduled to drop at 7:30 ET.

NCAA HOCKEY- For the fifth straight year, the Boston College Eagles are the Beanpot champions, having defeated Northeastern during the Beanpot Finals on Feb 10th.

Although Boston College got out to a 1-0 lead, Northeastern managed to tie the contest back up at 1-1 in the closing minutes of the second period. However, BC senior forward Patrick Brown would get what would prove to be the game winning goal with just under 5 minutes to go in regulation before the Eagles added on with an empty netter from Junior Johnny Gaudreau with less than two minutes to go in the game and another tally from Brown.

The 5-straight titles for BC is the first since the 1999-2000 season when the BU Terriers had won their 6th straight. Boston College came into the 2/10 Beanpot final ranked the #1 program in the USA according to a USCHO poll.

NCAA HOOPS- As awesome as a fifth straight Beanpot title for the men's hockey program might've been, the BC Eagles made headlines on Wednesday night when they toppled previously undefeated Syracuse in OT at the Carrier Dome. Sophomore Olivier Hanlon led BC with 20 points and three assists.

The Eagles went on a 29-12 run in the second half to take a 46-42 lead and Junior Lonnie Jackson had 10 points, making three out of his four free throws in OT to help BC go on to their 62-59 win. The win by Boston College means that the Wichita State Shockers are now the sole undefeated Division I men's basketball program in the nation.

Pole Dancing Sports Chowdah Update- South Africa's 'Blade Runner' Accused of Killing Girlfriend; Bruins Manitoba Up in Winnipeg; Boston College Wins Record 4th Straight Beanpot; Danica Patrick Sitting Pretty For Daytona 500

NASCAR- Danica Patrick made history over the weekend by becoming the first woman to win the Daytona 500 pole on Sunday with a 196.434 MPH lap [and thus provided me with a contrived opportunity to post some swimsuit pictures of Patrick- NANESB!]. The closest anyone came to knocking Patrick off the pole was 4 time Cup champion Jeff Gordon, who quipped that at least he was the fastest guy on the track that day.

Prior to her 2012 NASCAR Sprint Cup Series debut, Patrick became the first woman to win a major IndyCar race after she won the Japan IndyCar 300 series in 2008.

The Daytona 500- the first race of the Sprint Cup ciruit- will get underway on Saturday afternoon at 1:30 PM ET.

TRACK AND FIELD- In all honesty I didn't pay much attention to the track and field events during the 2012 London Olympics due to a combination of being distracted by the volleyball event and my disappointment that neither bouncy Aussie hurdler Michelle Jenneke or smoldering Greek fascist fangirl Voula Papachristos.

But I did hear about South African sprinter Oscar Pistorius- dubbed the 'Blade Runner' due to his prosthetic legs. Pistorius, a double amputee, was the first amputee runner to compete in the Olympic games and was the flag bearer for the South African team during the closing ceremonies. His limbs during the competition were carbon fiber prosthetics, leaving some to claim he had an unfair advantage over able-bodied atheletes.

On Valentine's Day, Pistorius was arrested by police for the shooting death of his girlfriend in their suburban Pretoria home. The Olympian allegedly fired a handgun at his girlfriend Reeva Steenkamp through a closed bathroom door after a heated argument. Pistorius' lawyer insist that the shooting of Steemkamp was accidental.

The shooting death has shocked South Africans and many around the world who idolized Pistorius for overcoming adversity to become a sports champion, competing in the London Olympics last year in track besides being a Paralympian. Steenkamp, 29, was a model and law graduate who made her debut on a South African reality TV program that was broadcast on Saturday, two days after her death.

Nel said the couple had had a shouting match and Steenkamp fled to the bathroom, down a seven-yard passage from the bedroom, and locked herself in. He said the 26-year-old Pistorius got up from bed and had to put on his prosthetic legs to reach the toilet door.

Nel told the court the door was broken open after the shots were fired. Pistorius' lawyer insisted there was no evidence to substantiate a murder charge.

South African media also report that police found a bloodied cricket bat in Pistorius' home and were running tests to determine whose blood it might have been.

 

Canadian Press, Trevor Hagan

NHL- After a 2-game losing streak, including an overtime loss against the Rangers at home and their second regulation loss against Buffalo, the Boston Bruins travelled to Manitoba for the first time this season.

After the Jets got out to a 1-0 lead thanks to a Alex Burmistrov tally early in the second period, Tyler Seguin knotted things up at 1-1 midway through the second period. Winnipeg briefly took a 2-1 lead late in the 2nd on an even-strength Evander Kane goal, but with just 2 seconds remaining in the period, Danny Paille evened the score at 2-2.

The Bruins got off to a good start in the 3rd after Brad Marchand drew a tripping penalty on Ron Hainsley just 9 seconds in- after the game, Marchand said he thought he should've been awarded a penalty shot. With the man advantage, it was marchand himself who scored the go-ahead goal for the Bruins 25 seconds later. However, instead of pressing their advantage the Bruins ended up defending a late onslaught from the Jets with Tukka Rask turning aside 10 shots (out of a total of 24 that he faced) successfully to preserve the 3-2 win for Boston.

The Bruins will continue their 5-game road trip on Thursday at Tampa Bay, but on Monday the team made an intermediate stop in western Connecticut before continuing to Florida.

Monday, Presidents Day, was the Bruins’ day to do what they could to lift spirits in Newtown — bringing the Stanley Cup with them for an earlier session from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m.

Head coach Claude Julien — fresh off a plane from Winnipeg that got the team in to Boston around 3:30 a.m. — came to town along with players Chris Bourque, Andrew Ference, Hamilton, Adam McQuaid, Daniel Paille, Rich Peverley and Tyler Seguin.

All wore black Bruins jerseys made specially for the occasion, with green Sandy Hook School ribbons over the right breast. They were to be donated to Newtown after the event.

In addition to the appearance in Newtown, the Bruins will honor Sandy Hook Elementary School Vice Principal Natalie Green Hammond at their game against the Montreal Canadiens March 3 at the TD Garden. Green Hammond, a lifelong Bruins fan, will drop the ceremonial first puck.

The Bruins played floor hockey with dozens of kids, signed autographs, took photos with kids and their parents and even ended the day by donning blue and gold Newtown High School Nighthawks jerseys for more photos. All around the room, people smiled a lot.

“I know that when the tragedy hit — I’m not going to lie — I cried like everybody else,” Julien said. “When you look at the faith and the strength of this town and how they bonded and support each other, that’s amazing.”

Ference, a Bruins defenseman who is the father of a 7-year-old and a 3-year-old, said that “everything that happened here ... hits close to home. ... It’s not that hard to imagine it happening to you. ... So it’s an opportunity as a sports team in New England where we can come down and obviously make a lot of kids happy and a lot of parents happy.

“So how do you not come down?” he said.

Asked what he hoped kids might get out of the visit, Ference said, “Hopefully, they’re just having fun. ... I just want the kids to have a good day and smile and have fun and hopefully have some good memories of today.”

The appearence, which was closed to the general public, also featured Bruins alumni Bobby Sweeney and Tommy Songin conducting hockey clinics along with the Bruins Youth Hockey Development team.

NCAA HOCKEY- The Boston College Eagles won their 4th consecutive Beanpot title- a first in the 61 year history of the Boston area collegiate tournament.

The final game featured the 17-7-2 Boston College Eagles against the Northeastern Huskies, who are currently dwelling in the Hockey East basement. Eagles Sophmore Johnny Gaudreau led the scoring with two goals and an assist while Senior Steven Whitney notched the game winner in Boston College's 6-3 win over the Northeastern Huskies last week.

Meanwhile, Harvard topped Boston university by a 7-4 final in a high-scoring Beanpot consolation game. The win was the Harvard Crimson's first win in nearly a month

Sports Chowdah Update, Intercep-ticon Edition- Last Second Calls in Seattle, Baltimore Cause Stir; Mighty MAC has 'Big' Weekend; Northeastern Sweeps All New England V-Ball Tourney

 

ESPN.com Photo

NFL- Three weeks into the regular NFL season and I've apparently made little to no mention to the fact that the league is operating with replacement referees due to an NFL lockout. Rather naiively, I thought it was a non-issue that would be quietly resolved before anything substantial could take place.

However, after Monday night's game it looks as though I was wrong on both counts. The nationally televised game from the Emerald City pitted the host Seattle Seahawks against the Green Bay Packers.

It was a low-scoring affair, and Seattle's defense punished Green Bay QB Aaron Walker by saking him 8 times in the first half. Despite the relentless harrassment of Rogers, the Packers were leading 12-7 late in the 4th and pinned deep in their own territory with less to two minutes to go. After going three and out, Green Bay was forced to punt from their own 4 yard line. The ensuing kick gave the Seahawks the ball at mid-field with 46 seconds to go in the 4th quarter.

Seahawks rookie QB Russel Wilson got the ball as far as the Packers 24 yard line as the clock ticked down. As time expired, Wilson threw a Hail Mary pass to WR Golden Tate in the end zone where the ball was momentrally lost among a sea of defenders and when everybody hit the ground, one official was signalling touchdown while another had signalled interception & touchback [shown above- NANESB!].



A further review of the replay showed that Packer's safety MD Jennings had snatched the ball out of the air as Tate was pushing off, but the touchdown call was upheld and after 10 minutes, the Packers were summoned out of the locker room for the point-after attempt to seal the Seahawk's controversial 14-12 win over Green Bay.

Before the game had even technically ended, the replacement officials game-deciding call had prompted fans, coaches, players and sports columnists to demand the NFL bring the ongoing lockout with the original officials to a close. Former Tampa Bay Buccaneers coach John Gruden and former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Steve Young- both working as commentators for ESPN- voiced their displeasure with the in-game officiating right away both in-game and on the Monday Night Football postgame shows.

There is still a considerable gap between the NFL and the locked out referees over the issue of salary, but the call to close out Monday Night's game could prove to be the catalyst to take it off the back burner. Reportedly some of the replacement officials used by the NFL this season had been dismissed by the Lingerie Football League [a league which by rights I should probably know more about but am only marginally aware that it even exists- NANESB!] earlier this year.

It's also worth pointing out that the call on the field by the replacement referees was subject to review by NFL replay officials who weren't replacements. Earlier in the game there had been a number of penalties that kept what would turn out to be scoring drives alive.

The replacement officials issue will no doubt be revisited countless times before Thursday night's game between the Browns and Ravens.

Nick Wass/ AP Photo

NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS- Should Monday Night's game proved to have been uneventful, the sports media would no doubt still be discussing New England's Sunday Night Game against the Baltimore Ravens and the officiating that was done there.

Sunday night's game between two perennial division leaders would be the Patriots' first prime-time contest of the 2012 campaign. After the Patriors got out to a 13-0 lead in the first quarter, the Ravens came back to briefly take the lead in the 2nd thanks to two lengthy, sustained drives led by QB Joe Flacco to give Baltimore a 14-13 lead with less than two minutes to go in the opening half. However, after getting the ball back on their own 19 with 1:41 left in the 2nd quarter, New England hit paydirt on a short Brady pass to WR Julian Edelman with 2 seconds left to make it 20-14 at the half.

The Ravens opened up the second half by re-taking the lead on a three and a half minute drive that was capped by a short TD rub by RB Ray Rice to make it 21-20. The Patriots replied in kind, taking nearly 5 minutes off the clock as they marched down the field thanks mostly to relatively short passes by Brady or short runs by RB Danny Woodhead who was finally able to punch it in from the Ravens three yard line and give the Patriots the 27-21 lead. Although the Patriots would make a return trip to the Ravens end zone on their next posession, they would have to settle for a short Gostkowski FG to make it 30-21. The score would remain that way until the 4:01 mark of the 4th when the Ravens managed to punch it in for a TD after starting off on their own 8 yard line, making it a 28-30 Patriots lead.

New England would get the ball back and advance as far as midfield before Brady was sacked and the Patriots had to punt right around the 2 minute warning. With just under a minute to go in the game, Patriots CB Devin McCourty was called for a pass-interference penalty, giving the Ravens the ball inside the Patriots 10 yard line with the clock ticking. After calling one timeout in an attempt to freeze Ravens rookie kicker Justin Tucker [his first kick DID unambiguously split the uprights, too- NANESB!], Tucker's next kick soared over the right upright and was ruled good, giving Baltimore the 31-30 win as time expired.

Unsurprisingly, Patriots head coach Bill Belichick was unsatisfied with both the officiating and result of the game, leading him to track down an official and grab him while asking for a review of whether or not Tucker's kick was good. Much was made of the on-field confrontation until Monday Night's 'Touchdeception' in Seattle. Both Belichick or Ravens head coach John Harbaugh had made clear their displeasure with the officiating from the replacement referees during Sunday night's game as well. Belichick can reportedly expect a fine and some sort of reprimand from the league this week.

Sporting a rare losing record, the Pats will travel to Orchard Park, NY next Sunday to take on the 2-1 Buffalo Bills- their first AFC East matchup of the 2012 season. The game gets underway at 1:00 PM ET and will be televised on CBS.

ELSEWHERE IN THE NFL- Although there was one overtime game in week 1, Week 3 of the NFL season featured no less than three contests that went to overtime. The Tennesee Titans made a key stop on 4th and 1 to get their first win of the season- a 44-41 victory over the Detroit Lions at Nashville on Sunday. The Miami Dolphins scored late in the 4th to tie the game up at 20-20 before the Jets would get the Game winning FG with just over 6 minutes remaining in OT. And the Kansas City Chiefs stunned New Orleans by scoring 11 unanswered points in the 4th quarter to climb out of a 24-13 hole to beat the Saints on a 31 yard Ryan Succop FG with 6 and a half minutes to go.

This has been the first time there has been two or more overtimes since the NFL modified the rules for OT. Beginning this season, there will be no more sudden death overtime- each team will have at least one posession. If a team scores on their opening posession, the other team will have the opportunity to match or beat that score. If neither team has managed to score, then the next team to score will win [unless the clock runs out, meaning the game will end in a tie- NANESB!] making it 'sudden death' of sorts.

Charlie Niebergall/AP Photo

NCAA FOOTBALL- Saturday turned out to be a good day for much of the supposedly lowly Mid America Conference. The Central Michigan Chippewas pulled off what was easily the biggest upset of the day. Trailing the Iowa Hawkeyes 23-31 with less than a minute to go at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, the Chippewas managed to score nine unanswered points in the final 50 seconds- including a 13 yard TD pass from QB Ryan Radcliff to WR Titus Davis followed by a 47 yard FG from David Harman with 3 seconds left to give Central Michigan the narrow win over the Hawkeyes. Prior to the game, the Hawkeyes had been favored to win by as much as two touchdowns.

The Chippewas wouldn't be the only MAC team from Michigan to take down a favored oppoenent on Saturday. The narrowly-favored UConn Huskies fell to the Western Michigan Broncos thanks to a 4th quarter sack and strip of Huskies QB Chandler Whitmer. The loose ball was picked up by Broncos LB Desmond Bozeman and returned all the way for a TD to make it a 30-17 lead for Western Michigan.

The visiting Huskies would score a late TD with just 1:15 left in regulation, but UConn would fall to Western Michigan by a 30-24 final.

Over in DeKalb County, IL the Northern Illinois Huskies staged a come-from-behind win over the Kansas Jayhawks. Kansas opened up the 4th quarter by running back a Jordan Lynch interception for 54 yards for a touchdown and a 23-13 lead over the Huskies. However, Northern Illinois would go on to score 17 unanswered points and pin the Jayhawks deep in their own end to close out the game and 30-23 win.

Of course, not all the games went so swimmingly for teams in the MAC on Saturday. While Eastern Michigan managed to keep the Michigan State Spartans out of the end zone for the first half and headed into the locker room with a 7-3 lead, the Spartnas scored 20 unanswered points in the second half to cruise to a 23-7 win over the Eagles. Meanwhile, in Knoxville, TN, the Akron Zips looked like they were too much for the Tennesee Volunteers to handle for most of Saturday night's contest, heading into the locker rooms tied 23-23 at the half before the Vols pulled away in the 4th quarter to make it a 47-26 final.

The UMass Minutemen's debut in MAC intraconference play was a little less noteworthy. They travelled to Oxford, OH to take on the Miami of Ohio Redhawks. While the final score was a bit more respectable than losing their first three games by a composite 145-19, the Minutemen still remain winless after their latest trip to the Midwest, falling to the Redhawks by a final of 16-27. This upcoming weekend, the Minutemen will host the undefeated Ohio Bobcats at Foxbourough. The Bobcats are currently favored in by as much as 24 points.

In fact, all three New England FBS teams will be playing at home this upcoming weekend. 2-2 UConn will host the 1-2 Buffalo Bulls at noon eastern time in East Hartford while Boston College comes off their weekend off to host the Clemson Tigers in ACC play. Kickoff in Chestnut Hill gets underway at 3:30 ET.

Georgia Tech Yellowjackets Librero/Defensive Specialist Nicki Meyer- Photo via Georgia Tech Volleyball on Facebook

NCAA VOLLEYBALL- After an all-New England tournament hosted at Northeastern earlier this month, most of the participating schools- UConn, Boston College, Northeastern and Harvard- began intraconference play in earnest [altho BC already has a win over Maryland from the Spring Hill Suites at Arundel Mills Invitational earlier this month- NANESB!].

Although Boston College dropped the first two contests to Northeastern and UConn, they managed to salvage a win in the New England Volleyball Challenge Tournament over Harvard on the final day.

The Eagles opened up ACC play against the Georgia Tech in Atlanta last Friday, challenging the Yellowjackets early but ultimately getting swept in 3 straight sets. BC Outisde Hitter Katty Workman- who had already garnered Freshman of the Week honors from the ACC had 13 kills in the losing effort for Boston while Ramblin' Wreck Librero Nicki Meyer (daughter of Ohio State Buckeyes head football coach Urban Meyer) was uncharachteristically quiet as Senior Bailey Hunter had 9 kills, leading the Yellowjackets. The Eagles then travelled to Clemson the following day, only to once again get swept, leaving them with a 7-8 record and 1-2 in ACC play.

This weekend, the lady Eagles will play host to Virginia (5-8) and Virginia Tech (9-4)at Chestnut Hill.

Meanwhile, the Northeastern Huskies managed to sweep the New England Volleyball Challenge Tournament defeating Harvard, Boston College and UConn before going on to face opponents from the Colonial Athletic Association. The 12-3 Huskies are 1-0 in CAA play (defeating Hofstra immediately after the New England Challenge Tournament) and will host UNC Wilmington and William & Mary at Solomon Court in Boston this upcoming weekend. Currently, only the 14-3 Towson Tigers sport a better record in CAA Volleyball.

UConn came away from the New England Classic with a 2-1 record and has gone 3-0 since then, defeating Sacred Heart, Villanova and Georgetown. Their overall record is 11-6, good for 3rd overall in the Big East behind Seton Hall and St John's- their upcoming opponent this weekend, as it turns out.

MLB- While nobody in the American League has clinched a playoff berth yet, at least two Division pennant winners came through this weekend.

Over on the West Coast, the San Francisco Giants secured the NL West pennant after taking two out of three from the San Diego Padres while the Cincinnati Reds secured the NL Central title after shutting out the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-0 at the Great American Ballpark- their only win in the 3 game weekend series against LA.

There will be no less than two playoff teams coming from the NL East as the Washington Nationals- sporting the best record in the league with 93 wins- are four games up on the Atlanta Braves who still aren't mathematically eliminated frmo winning the NL East pennant. The worst case scenario for the Braves currently is thet they'll secure the next-to-last playoff spot.

With just under a week to go in the regular season, the St Louis Cardinals currently hold the lead for the final NL Wild Card berth. With eight games to go for each team, the LA Dodgers and Milwaukee Brewers are 4 and a half games behind St Louis.

Quickie Sports Chowdah Update: Knockaround Guys- Former Sox Hitters Feast on Boston Pitching; Gone in 60 Seconds- Minutemen Flat in MAC Football Debut

RED SOX- What a way to head into the final month of the season- and make no mistake about it; September WILL be the final month of the Red Sox 2012 season.

Following Monday's win against Kansas City at Fenway, the Sox made their way to the West Coast where they proceeded to get swept by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim, including closer Alfredo Aceves blowing a 1-run lead in the bottom of the 9th on Tuesday.

As bad as that was, it paled in comparison to Friday night's series opener against the Oakland A's. A number of former Sox players and prospects came back to haunt the Old Towne Team in a 20-2 drubbing.

Aaron Cook didn't even last three innings in Friday night's start, leaving the game as the Sox trailed 6-0. Limiting my mentions of Oakland's offensive contribution to just the former Red Sox or farm hands, catcher George Kattaras went 3-5 with 2 homers and 5 RBI, Brandon Moss went 4-5 with a homer and 4 RBI, Josh Reddick went 2-5 with 4 RBI and a homer and Coco Crisp had a relatively quiet night, going 0-5 with a walk and a run scored....but hey- why do down when the former Red Sox now in green and gold accounted for 13 RBI against their former team.

The A's bats burned through Cook, Tazawa, Aceves, Bard, Breslow, Melancon and Padilla during Friday night's romp. So far on this west coast road trip, the Red Sox are winless and have been outscored by a 31-12 margin in three games against the Angels and the Labor Day weekend series opener against Oakland.

For those of us who inexplicably feel that the remaining month of Red Sox baseball will be a worthwhile investment of our time, Saturday's game from Oakland gets underway at 9:05 PM Eastern, 6:05 Pacific. Felix Doubront [10-6; 4.79 ERA] will get the start against AJ Griffin [3-0; 2.42 ERA] and the game will be televised on NESN.

NCAA FOOTBALL- The UMASS Minutemen football program's debut as a member of the FBS Mid-America Conference took off with a resounding *splat!* Thursday night after getting shut out by former Yankee conference archrival UConn 37-0 at East Hartford, CT.

UConn's sophomore QB Chandler Whitmer threw for 219 yards going 15-25 while UConn scored touchdowns on offense, defense and special teams against the Minutemen. The Minutemen hope to rebound next week with a 'home' game at Gillette Stadium in Foxbourough, MA against the Indiana Hoosiers. Curiously, the away game at East Hartford was closer to UMASS' Amherst campus [where they played for decades as a FCS and Division 1AA team- NANESB!] than upcoming home games in Foxbourough- on the opposite end of the Bay state from Amherst.

UConn, meanwhile, will host the North Carolina State Wolfpack at East Hartford next weekend. NC State is coming off a 21-35 loss to Tennessee on Friday night.

Meanwhile, New England's better know FBS College Football team- the Boston College Eagles- will kick off their regular season on Saturday against archrival Miami at the home opener on Chestnut Hill.

NCAA VOLLEYBALL- The Lady Eagles trek out the the West Coast has been a little more successful than the Red Sox- although now that I think about it, that's not saying much.

Mississippi State freshman Middle Blocker Sarah Nielsen had 13 kills for the Bulldogs in Friday night's losing effort against Boston College at the Luxe City Center Trojan Invitational in Los Angeles. Mississippi State Bulldogs Photo

The Lady Eagles started out their West Coast road trip by dropping their opening match against the Northern Iowa Panthers 3 games to 1 on Friday, but rebounded against the Mississippi State Bulldogs later on in the day to win by a 3 games to 1 margin and improving their record to 4-2.

Boston College's Katty Workman lived up to her surname with 20 kills against the Bulldogs on Friday- Courtney Castle added to that total with a strong performance of her own including 16 kills. On the Mississippi State side of the court, freshman Sarah Nielsen led the Bulldogs with 13 kills followed by Taylor Scott with a dozen to her name.

The Lady Eagles will take on host USC on Saturday afternoon before their next match is set to take place at the Spring Hill Suites Invitational at College Park, MD next weekend where they will face Maryland, George Washington and Tennessee.

ELSEWHERE IN NCAA VOLLEYBALL- The defending NCAA women's champions got their regular season off to a rather unique start with an exhibition game against professional Chinese volleyball club Jiangsu ECE at the John Wooden center earlier this week. The Chinese club would win the contest in five sets, with the professionals from the other side of the Pacific never trailing in the decisive fifth set.

On Friday, the defending national champions faced off against Northeastern at the UCSB Invitational- just up highway 101 from their campus- where they handed the Lady Huskies their first defeat of the season with a 3-0 sweep, winning 25-21, 25-18 and 25-21. The Bruins head into the 2012 season ranked #3 in the nation while Northeastern is 4-1 despite the loss. On Saturday, Northeastern will take on the tournament host UCSB Gauchos followed by the Idaho Vandals before facing off against the Cal Poly Mustangs on Sunday.

Massachusetts State Representative Facing Charges of Assault, Kidnapping and Witness Intimidation

Freshman State Representative Carlos Henriquez seen with US Senate Candidate Elizabeth Warren

A first term Massachusetts state representative was released on $1000 bail earlier this month after being accused of punching and strangling his girlfriend during an argument.

In a sworn affidavit, 23 year old Katherine Goncalves of Somerville, MA said that Henriquez picked her up in a rental car from her mother's home and after a tense conversation about their relationship, she asked that Henriquez return her home. He reportedly became agitated and began slapping and shouting at her, refusing to let Goncalves to leave the car as he drove around Boston. The affidavit also states that he attempted to choke her and took her cell phone away, removing the battery and SIM card. While Henriquez was driving near Northeastern university, Goncalves was able to jump out of the car and flag down a campus police officer. Included in the police report were the fact that officers documenteded bruises on Goncalves' wrists, arms and shins.

Goncalves and Henriquez met when the college student wanted to interview him for an upcoming term paper earlier this year. The two began dating shortly afterwards.

Although he didn't comment specifically on the charges he was facing, Henriquez has denied any wrongdoing and expressed confidence that he would be exonerated. The Freshman Democrat representing Dorchester and Roxbury has even scheduled a community meeting for early August.

A government watchdog group also reported that Henriquez owes at least $800 in fines to the Massachusetts Office of Campaign and Political Finance. The fines stem from Henriquez improperly using an ATM to withdraw a couple hundred dollars of campaign funds from the bank- which is not allowable under the office's guidelines.

Henriquez is also the son of Sandra B Henriquez, an official in the Department of Housing and Urban Development under Barack Obama.

Yet Another All Star Sports Chowdah Update: Wheeler and Dealing- Busy B's Snap Skid; BC Helps Themselves to Another Beanpot; Little Rhody's Home Plate

NHL: The Boston Bruins acquired defenseman Tomas Kaberle from Toronto on Thursday in exchange for prospect Joe Colborne and a pair of draft picks (1st round in 2011 and 2nd round in 2012). This comes around the same time Boston sent RW Blake Wheeler and defenseman Marc Stuart to the Atlanta Thrashers in exchange for C Rich Peverly and defenseman Boris Valabik.

On the ice, there was bound to be something of a letdown after that Montreal game last week- and that was evident when the Bruins went on a 3 game skid, getting swept in the home & away series against the Red Wings and losing to before beating the Islanders 6-3 at Nassau County Colosseum on Thursday night. Not a bad way to start off your 6-game, 2-nation road trip, right?


On Firday night, the B's travelled to the Canadian capital to take on the Mr Carrie Underwood-less Ottawa Senators, with somewhat predictable results. No Tim Thomas in net for the games against the Islanders and Senators- giving Tukka Rask back to back wins.

Bobby Butler got the Sens out to a 1-0 lead in the 2nd, but Boston came right back with four goals- 2 from Brad Marchand, one from Dennis Seidenberg and one from Nathan Horton to put them up for good and give them the 4-2 win over the struggling Sens on Friday.
The Bruins next game will be on Tuesday night, 9 PM ET against at the Scotiabank Saddledome in Calgary against the Flames.

NCAA HOCKEY: Just like round one of the Beanpot, Boston College would ultimately prevail, but it would require OT to do so.

This was a wild one at the Garden on Monday night, with Northeastern tallying the game-tying goal with 1:46 to go in the 3rd to make it a 6-6 game. 6 minutes into the OT, BC's Jimmy Hayes scored to give the Eagles the 7-6 OT win, good for Boston College's 16th Beanpot title.

NBA: To hardly anybody's surprise, the C's easily handled the NJ Nets in their last game before the All Star break on Wednesday. Paul Pierce had an impressive 31 points in the 94-80 win over the Nets, leaving the Celtics and Miami Heat in a virtual tie headed into the All Star break.

Rajon Rondo, Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett and Ray Allen spent the weekend in Los Angeles for the 60th NBA All Star game (which the West downed the East by a final of 148-143). The rest of the team will make their way out for the West Coast in time for Tuesday night's game against the Golden State Warriors.

MLB: OK....so most of you I'm sure are no doubt looking around and can't help but feel that the world is going to hell in a handbasket.

But fear not! Pitchers and catchers have reported to their respctive MLB training camps in Florida and Arizona, and with the rest of the team to follow, that can only mean Spring Training is around the corner!

There? See...that should put all those riots in the Middle East into perspective.

RED SOX: A Rhode Island state representative has submitted legislation that would authorize the Rhode Island DMV to issue Boston Red Sox liscence plates.

Representative Brian Kennedy (D- Hopkinton) has once again submitted legislation that would allow the liscense plates to bear the trademark Red Sox logo. Similar legislation was stalled in the RI State general assembly over concerns that the funds raised ($40 on top of the normal registration fees) were being directed out-of-state. However, in 2009 the General Assembly approved of special New England Patriots plates with the teams logo, with the proceeds going to Rhode Island chapters of charitable organizations like Meals on Wheels.

[hat tip: Providence Journal]

Hot and Cold Sports Chowdah Update- Black and Bleu at the Garden; Lakers Drain Celtics; Stirring the Beanpot

Two Boston sports institutions going up against arch rivals in the regular season, but with buzz- both before and after- more reminiscent of the postseason.

Did I already mention how fortunate I consider myself to be a New England sports fan at this point in history?

The undercard

NHL: If there was only one B's game to be nationally broadcast this whole season, Wednesday night's home game against arch rival Montreal would've been the one.
Apparently last week's game against Dallas was just a warm-up. Nothing like some Original 6 brawling- and not just figuratively- to get the blood going, huh?

With Montreal starting to close the gap in the Northeast division, the folks over at VS network thought Wendesday night's game was important enough to be boradcast on their network coast-to-coast (even though they were just carrying the TSN feed).

And man oh man was I glad I was able to tune in.

A good chunk of the first period seemed to feature the Bruins spending a disproportionate amount of time in Montreal's end of the ice, but with Montreal getting the better shots on goal (however infrequent). My perceptions changed somewhat after the 13 minute mark in the 1st when Brad Marchand and Dennis Seidenberg each scored 22 seconds apart (Seidenberg's tally coming off of a high bounce that the Montreal defener tried to corrall by swatting at with a stick). So Boston heads into the 1st intermission with a 2-0 lead.

Now on most nights, you'd be in pretty good shape if you could manage to get two by Montreal's Carey Price- especially if your own backstop is shutting them out. Not so on Wednesday night. The following video clips say it much better than I could-


For those of you who want to jump straight into the fisticuffs, hockeyfights.com was thoughtful enough to archive the melee towards the very end of the 3rd.


Most teams have every reason to expect to come out on top in a contest where they get six past Tim Thomas, but not Wednesday night. Both teams combined for 14 goals and 182 penalty minutes- nearly twice what was assessed in last week's game vs Dallas. As you can see from the video evidence, it's no exaggeration when I say that Boston absolutely beat the Habs down by a final of 8-5. The brawl at the end was simply the exclamation point.

The save percentages of both Price and Thomas also took a beating, with the Montreal backstop stopping 26 of 34 shots faces and Thomas stopping 27 of 33 shots faced. Micheal Ryder had two goals (one of them on the power play) and Milan Lucic had two goals (one of them shorthanded) and an assist on the night while Marchand, Seidenberg, Nathan Horton and Adam McQuaid also had tallies for the B's.

The win gives Boston a little bit more breathing room against the Canadiens (still the next closest team in the Northeast standings), and the Bruins lead over Montreal in the Division standings after Thursday night was 3 points after Montreal lost in a shootout to the NY Islanders but still got the 1 point.

The original 6 mania will continue this weekend when the Bruins have a home-and-away series against the Detroit Red Wings, with the first half taking place in the TD Banknorth Garden on Friday night at 7PM ET and be broadcast on NESN and the NHL Network.

The second half of the weekend series will take place at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit on Sunday afternoon, 12:30 PM ET- this game will be nationally televised on Comcast's NBC network.

OTHER BRUINS NEWS: Marc Savard is expected to miss the remainder of the season with a concussion. Savard had been sidelined with another concussion after being hit by former teammate Matt Hunwick in the Jan 22nd game against Colorado.
ELSEWHERE IN THE NHL: Eureka! I think the Nashville Predators have devised one of the most devious and effective methods of luring NHL talent to Music City- it's even more effective than the Underpants gnomes' business model!

Phase one would be to send out fetching starlets along the lines of Carrie Underwood to romance forwards like....oh...I dunno....Mike Fisher. Then, after the wedding, honeymoon, and a few atrocious seasons in the division's basement playing in the Canadian capital, you're hot, popular and musically talented spouse gets it in your head that perhaps you would be better off elsewhere- maybe somewhere closer to where she spends a good deal of the year. Like....oh...say Nashville, TN. And since your team is dead last in the conference, and Nashville happens to have a team that's doing pretty good this season (trailing the Red Wings by 5 points for #2 in the Central divison and 5th overall in the Western conference) it sounds like to good a deal to pass up.

Well played, Predators.....well played. [Now all that's left is to convince them that Nashville is in dire need of lazy, talentless bloggers and I'm sure a stampede of country music starlets will be stampeeding a path to my doorway- NANESB!]

The Predators acquired Mike Fisher in a trade that will send a 1st round draft pick and a conditional pick to Ottawa. Fischer was tied for the lead in scoring for the Sens with 14 goals and 10 assists in 55 games this season, and the Predators are hoping he'll be ready in time for Friday night's game against Colorado.


NBA: I have to confess, I was intentionally holding off on doing another sports update until after Thursday night's Lakers/Celtics game- a move that didn't pay off despite getting off to a promising start.

Most noteworthy was Ray Allen surpassing Reggie Miller to become the NBA's all time career leader in 3 pointers, with 2,561 on Thursday night (see above). After hat, it was kinda downhill for the C's.

Although Boston took a 53-45 lead into halftime, Kobe Bryant scored 20 of his 23 points in the second half as LA rallied to come from behind after trailing by as many as 15 points in 1st. Pau Gasol had 20 points and 10 rebounds for the Lakers while the only player in green on Thursday to score more than 15 points was Ray Allen- with 20.

The lack of offense in the 2nd paved the way for a 92-86 Lakers win at the Garden. This is Boston's 2nd loss in a row after losing 94-89 at Charlotte on Monday night. The Celtics will next host the Miami Heat on Sunday afternoon at the Garden, 1 PM ET on ABC. The C's and the Heat are tied for first place overall in the Eastern conference.

NCAA HOCKEY: The 2011 Beanpot got underway on Monday, with Northeastern making their presence felt in a 4-0 thumping of Harvard in the opening game.

This was immediately followed by the BC Eagles getting by the BU Terriers in OT thanks to Eagle's Junior Tommy Cross scoring the game winner 3:17 into the extra period.

The games Monday set up a BC/Northeastern final for the 2011 Beanpot on Valentine's Day.

AHL HOCKEY: Following the lead of the NHL and the Syracuse Crunch, the Connecticut Whale (formerly the Hartford Wolfpack- the NY Ranger's AHL affiliate) has set up an outdoor rink at UConn's Rentschler Field in E. Hartford, CT. The rink will be used for outdoor junior and high school games as well as a Whalers/Bruins alumni game leading up to the Feb 19th game where the Whale will host the Providence Bruins.

OTHER AHL NEWS: A Connecticut judge has ordered an East Hartford man to apologize and 10 days of community service after he tackled and punched Pucky, the Whale mascot.

MLB: Never mind that rodent in Pennsylvania! Truck Day was this week, which means that Spring was right around the corner. The 'official' Red Sox truck (which, unsurprisingly, has a corporate sponsor) carrying the team's equipment left Fenway for Ft, Meyers, FL on Tuesday.


NCAA FOOTBALL: This video of UConn reserve quarterback Johnny McEntee has been circulating around the web. Heavily edited showboating or an appeal to get more playing time- what's your call?

Sports Chowdah Recap for January 27th - Febuary 2nd: LA Downs Boston, LA Downs Boston AGAIN, DAMMIT! BC & BU to Meet in Beanpot Final, Truck Day Looms

NHL Poll still Up- Probably would've been better off putting it up a month ago, but the poll asking visitors about next years Winter Classic is still open, so visitors are free to put in their 2 cents worth.

After winning a grand total of two games since the 2010 Winter Classic, the Bruins woes continued into February, where they were beaten by the Capitals 4-1 on Tuesday night. The win marks 11 consecutive for Washington- a franchise record- while the Bruins have dropped 8 in a row and are 1-7-2 in their last 10 games.

Curious phenomenon took place over the weekend. On Saturday, the Bruins hosted the Los Angeles Kings at the TD Banknorth Garden in a contest where Boston lost 2-3 in the shootout to the Kings. Then, 24 hours later, the Lakers came to the Garden and went ahead 90-89 with 7.3 seconds left in regulation to beat the Celtics.

The Bruins look to stop their 8-game freefall Thursday night while hosting Montreal (who is now 3 points ahead of them in the standings). Despite the skid, the B's are within 3 points of Les Habitants in the Northeastern division, while Ottawa's been riding a franchise-best 10 game win streak to pull within 3 points of the Division leading Sabres this week.

NBA: The Celtics, on the other hand, managed to snap a 3 game losing streak with a 99-88 win over an Agent Zero-less Wizards Monday and added to that with a 102-107 win over Miami Wednesday. Rajon Rondo was 6 for 13 with 22 points and Ray Allen was 7 for 15 with 23 points against Miami. The Celtics will next host the hapless New Jersey Nets on Firday night.

(metromix.com)

NFL: OK- show of hands.....how many people tuned in for the Pro Bowl? Even if I wasn't working, it's not as though I would've seen such NFL luminaries as Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger playing. The AFC topped the NFC 41-34 and Houston's Matt Schaub threw for 189 yards, two touchdowns, completed 13 of his 17 pass attempts was was named Pro Bowl MVP. San Diego WR Vincent Jackson caught a 48 yeard TD pass from David Gerrard and had 122 yards total Sunday.

NCAA Mens Hockey: Boston College beat Harvard 6-0 in the Beanpot semifinal Monday night while the Boston University Terriers had a tougher time against Northeastern, clinging to a 2-1 lead despite a 6 on 4 onslaught from the Huskies in the final 1:28 of regulation for the win. This sets up a BC/BU Beanpot final on Monday, Febuary 8.

MLB: Just a reminder that truck day will be Feb. 12th, 2010.

The Red Sox have signed journeyman pitcher Joe Nelson and catcher Gustavo Molina to minor-league contracts that include an invitation to spring training. Nelson was 3-0 with a 4.02 ERA in 40.1 innings of work for Tampa Bay last year.

The Detroit Tigers and starting pitcher Justin Verlander have agreed to terms on a 5-year $80 million contract, the Associated Press reports. Both parties had agreed to bypass arbitration.

Massachusetts Senate Race Update: Obama Campaigns for Coakley, Brown Picks up More Endorsements From Unlikely Sources

The Cape Cod Times, hardly anybody's idea of a right-wing mouthpiece, has endorsed Massachusettes GOP Senate candidate Scott Brown this weekend. Another Massachusetts newspaper, the Lowell Sun also endorsed Brown while the somewhat misleadingly-named Springfield Republican announced their support of Coakley.

Elsewhere in the Bay State, the 212 member Cambridge Police Patrol Officers Association has endorsed Scott Brown. The announcement was made despite the fact that Martha Coakley's husband was a veteran Cambridge Police officer and a member of the same union. [No word from the President on whether or not he thought the Cambridge Police acted stupidly- NANESB!]

Meanwhile, President Obama showed up at Northeastern University over the weekend to support that candidate who thinks Curt Schilling is a Yankees fan, was standing not three feet away from a reporter getting roughed up by her aides after meeting with union, insurance and pharma lobbyists in DC yet saw nothing, can't spell Massachusetts correctly, thinks that Catholics have no place in the ER and who's name apparently isn't worth remembering for one member of the Kennedy clan. An estimated 2000 people showed up for the President's appearance while only 1500 were let in- others were redirected to a student center where they could watch a live feed of the event.

The same day, Brown held a competing rally in Worcester that drew roughly 3200 supporters and featured Curt Schilling, former BC and Patriots quarterback Doug Flutie and actor John Ratzenberger, best known for his role as know-it-all mailman Cliff Clavin on Cheers and host of Made in America on the Travel Channel.

Polls in the Bay State open in less than 24 hours.

Weekend Sports Chowdah Recap- Dolphin Safe Pats; BC Frisco Bound; Huskies Mush Past USF; Bs Rake Leafs; End of An Era @ Northeastern

LACES OUT!! (AP)

Now if it had been the same score against the Saints last week, I wouldn't have been the least bit surprised. Instead, the lowly Dolphins rally past New England to win 22-21 on a Dan Carptenter Field Goal. Miami QB Chad Henne went 29-52 and had a career-best 335 yards with two TDs and an interception. The win brings Miami to a 6-6 record- tied with the NY Jets and one game behind the Patriots in the AFC East standings.



Tom Brady was 19-29 for 352 years with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Wes Welker had ten catches for 167 yards, but Randy Moss was help to only two catches on the day. The Pats also failed to score twice inside Miami's red zone. The Patriots will host Miami at Foxboro on Sunday while the Dolphins will travel to Jacksonville and the Jets travel to Tampa Bay.

(Stephen Dunn/Hartford Courant)

In a Big East game that was likely overshadowed by the simultaneously broadcast ACC and Big XII Championship Games, the UConn Huskies gave up another late lead in a close game, trailing 27-26 to the South Florida Bulls thanks to an 8-yeard BJ Daniels TD run with only 40 seconds left in regulation. UConn moved the ball 31 yards on six plays to set up a 42-yard field goal attempt for redshirt sophomore kicker Dave Teggart. After missing a FG attempt earlier in the game, Teggart's kick split the uprights in the middle of an ongoing snow squall as time expired, giving UConn the 29-27 win at E. Hartford CT Saturday night. Huskies QB Zach Frazer was 20-30 for 225 years and 2 touchdowns while RB Andre Dixon (pictured above) rushed for 50 yards and 2 TDs. The Huskies won their final 3 games of the regular season (versus Notre Dame, Syracuse and USF) to finish with a 7-5 record.

Upcoming Bowl Schedule:


(Bold indicates New England team


double asterisks** indicates BCS matchup)

New Mexico Bowl- Dec 19:
Fresno State vs Wyoming


St. Petersburg Bowl- Dec 19:
Rutgers vs USF


New Orleans Bowl- Dec 20:
Southern Miss vs Middle Tennessee


Las Vegas Bowl- Dec 22:
BYU vs Oregon State


Poinsettia Bowl- Dec 23:
Utah vs Cal


Hawaii Bowl- Dec 24:
SMU vs Nevada


Little Caesar's Pizza Bowl- Dec 26:
Marshall vs Ohio


Meineke Car Car Bowl- Dec 26:
North Carolina vs Pittsburgh


Emerald Bowl- Dec 26:
Boston College vs USC


Music City Bowl- Dec 27:
Clemson vs Kentucky


Independence Bowl- Dec 28:
Texas A&M vs Georgia


Eaglebank Bowl- Dec 29:
Temple vs UCLA or Army


Champs Sports Bowl- Dec 29:
Miami vs Wisconsin


Humanitarian Bowl- Dec 30:
Idaho vs Bowling Green


Holdiay Bowl- Dec 30:
Nebraska vs Arizona


Armed Forces Bowl- Dec 31:
Houston vs Air Force


Sun Bowl- Dec 31:
Oklahoma vs Stanford


Texas Bowl- Dec 31:
Navy vs Missouri


Insight Bowl- Dec 31:
Minnesota vs Iowa State


Chik-Fil-A Bowl- Dec 31:
Virginia Tech vs Tennessee


Outback Bowl- Jan 1:
Northwestern vs Auburn


Capital One Bowl- Jan 1:
Penn State vs LSU


Gator Bowl- Jan 1:
Florida State vs West Virginia


Rose Bowl- Jan 1:
Ohio State vs Oregon


Sugar Bowl- Jan 1:
Florida vs Cincinnati


International Bowl- Jan 2:
USF vs Northern Illiniois


Papajohns.com Bowl- Jan 2:
UConn vs South Carolina


Cotton Bowl- Jan 2:
Oklahoma State ve Ole Miss


Liberty Bowl- Jan 2:
East Carolina vs Arkansas


Alamo Bowl- Jan 2:
Michigan State vs Texas Tech


Fiesta Bowl- Jan 4th: **
Boise State vs TCU


Orange Bowl- Jan 5th:**
Iowa vs Georgia Tech


GMAC Bowl- Jan 6th:
Troy vs Central Michigan


BCS Championship Game- Jan 7th:**
Texas vs Alabama


After 74 season, Northeastern University announced an end to it's football program at the end of November.

Northeastern football did not fall victim to the recession or a fund-raising crunch, university officials said. Instead, school officials came to terms with the hard truth that the $3 million-plus annual program needed more help - millions more each year - than Northeastern wanted to give.

President Joseph E. Aoun and the board of trustees endorsed the move Friday after an extensive, two-year review of the athletic program by its director, Peter Roby.

The move by Northeastern could leave the Colonial Athletic Association short a team for the 2010 Football season.

In the NCAA Football Championship Subdivison (FCS- formerly Division 1AA), two of the teams from the Colonial Athletic Association were eliminated while two will play this weekend to advance to play in the FCS championship game in Chattanooga, TN.

With the CAA teams in bold print, the finals from Saturday's FCS quarterfinals are:

William & Mary 24- Southern Illinois 3

New Hampshire 7 -Villanova 46

Appalachian State 35- Richmond 31

The winner of William & Mary vs Villanova will take on the winner of the Appalachian State vs Montana game for the FCS title at Chattanooga's Finley Stadium on December 18th.

(Getty Images)

Marc Savard notched his third career hat trick Saturday night in a 7-2 pounding of Toronto as Phil Kessel made his first appearance in the Garden since being traded to the Maple Leafs this offseason. Aside from Savard's hat trick, the Bruins got goals from Marco Sturm in the 1st, Zdeno Chara in the 2nd and Mark Recchi and Johnny Boychuk in the 3rd. Tukka Rask was gunning for his second shutout of the season, but allowed goals from Niklas Hagman and Mikhail Grabovski late in the 3rd. Rask stopped 31 of 33 shots faced.

The Bruins will take on the Maple Leafs at the Garden again on Thursday night.