Archive for November, 2017

NFL $89 Mill To Social Justice, Herm Edwards To Arizona State, LaVar Claims Lonzo Better Than Curry

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The NFL announced it is committed to putting up $89 million dollars over 7 years to social justice issues important to the African American community, such as community relations and criminal justice reform. The agreement is not considered a quid pro quo for the players stopping demonstrating during the anthem. Some players are still not happy, however. They believe Malcolm Jenkins and Anquan Boldin did not handle the negotiations to their satisfaction.

Former Kansas City Chiefs coach, and since 2008 ESPN Analyst and motivational speaker Herm Edwards, has reportedly been offered the head coaching job at Arizona State. Many were surprised by the potential hire as Edwards has been out of the NFL coaching game since ’08 and hasn’t been on the field for college since 1989.

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LaVar Ball can’t help getting headlines, and on Wednesday night he made another nonsensical comment. He continues to claim his son, Lonzo Ball is a better player than two-time MVP Steph Curry. He said, “Until I die, I will always think my son is better than Steph Curry. Always! … I’ve trained my son, I know what he’s about. You know what Steph’s about. … He could be a 10-time MVP! I still don’t think he’s better than my son!” Curry had 28 points (to Lonzo’s 15) in the Golden State Warrior 127-123 win over Los Angeles on Wednesday night.

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Manning Benched, CFP Rankings, LeBron Ejected

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After two Super Bowl wins and two Super Bowl MVP’s, could the Eli Manning era be over in New York? Giants coach Ben McAdoo announced he was benching quarterback Eli Manning this weekend to enable Geno Smith or Davis Webb to get some needed playing time. McAdoo gave Manning the opportunity to start the game to keep his 210 consecutive games streak alive, but Manning declined saying it would devalue the streak. Will Geno Smith be the new QB or Davis Webb or will they be drafting a QB in next year’s draft? According to reporters, Eli fought back tears when speaking about his future with the team.

The new College Football Playoff rankings were announced and, with Alabama and Miami losing last weekend, Clemson climbed to #1 with Auburn at #2 and Oklahoma, Wisconsin and Alabama rounding out the top five. Selection day is December 3rd and, with one more weekend of exciting matchups, it’s still a toss-up as to which teams will make the final four.

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The Cleveland Cavaliers’ LeBron James was ejected for 1st time in his career for arguing a non-foul call . Tuesday’s matchup was LeBron’s 1,082 career game. The Cavaliers beat the Miami Heat 108-97.

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Crabtree/Talib Suspended 2 Games, Cavs Win Streak, Griffin Suffers Scary Injury

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In a follow up to the Michael Crabtree and Aqib Talib fight on Sunday, the NFL suspended both players for 2 games. The punishment is one of the harshest the NFL has issued. According to Football Zebras, if these suspensions are upheld, it will be only the 7th time in NFL history the League has issued multi-game suspensions.  The punishment seems unusually harsh to some, but many believe the League is trying to send a message that violence will not be allowed, particularly with all the negative attention the NFL has received this season.

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The Cleveland Cavaliers continued their win-streak with a hard fought victory over the Philadelphia 76ers. The Cavs have now won eight straight games. The Sixers are putting fear in their opponents this year, however,  and in the last seven games have only lost to the Cavs and Golden State Warriors. Cavs 113, Sixers 91.

The Clippers’ Blake Griffin suffered a scary looking knee injury in a win over the Los Angeles Lakers. Griffin will have tests to determine how severe the injury is and how long he’ll be out. Last summer Griffin signed a five-year $173 million to stay with the Clippers.

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Auburn Upsets Alabama, Miami Falls, Schiano Deal Done, Crabtree/Talib Ejected, Alabama Plays With Only 3

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In the college football world where the top teams are vying for divisional playoffs and bowl games, Saturday’s games were intense. The biggest upset of the day came in the Iron Bowl where the Auburn Tigers beat the Alabama Crimson Tide. It was the second time in 3 weeks the Tigers beat #1 ranked teams.  Auburn is now in the running for a bid for the College Football Playoffs. The #2 ranked team, Miami, also fell this weekend to Pittsburgh leaving the College Football Selection Committee in a tailspin.  The new top 25 in the College Football Poll will be announced Tuesday evening.

In other big college football news, the Tennessee Titans backed out of a deal to bring Ohio State defensive coordinator Greg Schiano to Tennessee as their head coach. The deal appeared to be final until the social media universe blew up with criticism of Schiano’s ties to Penn State and Jerry Sandusky. Schiano has always claimed he knew nothing of Sandusky’s abuse of children, but Tennessee now looks like it will go in a different direction.

In the NFL, one of the most frustrating plays of the day (frustrating if you have Crabtree on your fantasy team like me) came when Oakland Raiders wide receiver Michael Crabtree got into a brawl with the Denver Broncos Aqib Talib on the second offensive possession of the game. Crabtree was getting back at Talib for snatching his chain during a game last year. Both players were ejected and will certainly expect to hear from the League with more punishments on the way. For more NFL news, click here.

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#25 Alabama and #16 Minnesota played one of the craziest college basketball games on Saturday. During the second half, a fight broke out, and all five of the Alabama players left the bench and were immediately ejected (rules state players are never allowed to leave the bench area when there’s a situation on the court). Shortly after, another Alabama player fouled out and then another hurt his ankle, leaving on 3 players on the court for the final 10 minutes of the game. The Crimson Tide actually made a game of it and came close to winning, but ultimately couldn’t hold on, and Minnesota  went on to win 89-84.

 

 

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College Football Rivalries, Adam Berns Pulls Off One Of Greatest Pranks Of All Time, NFL Turkey Lineup

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We’re in the last week of the college football regular season (known as rivalry week). Not only will some teams make the playoffs while others lick their wounds until next year, but based on the heated rivalries and, in some cases implications for the post-season, we tend see some of the best football of the whole year.  The most exciting and drama filled game of the weekend will be the Iron Bowl (Alabama vs Auburn on Saturday 3:30 pm EST) as the team that loses could be eliminated from the playoffs. Plus, these teams and fans traditionally hate each other so must-see TV!

For a recap of one of the greatest pranks of all time after The Big Game (traditional rivalry between the Stanford Cardinals and the California Bears) in 1982 when the Stanford band ran on the field, check out this entertaining article. My clever brother, Adam Berns, masterminded the prank which is now ranked #5 by Sports Illustrated on its list of greatest sports pranks of all time.

In the NFL, here is the Thanksgiving Day lineup:

12:30 pm Minnesota vs Detroit

4:30 pm Los Angeles Chargers vs Dallas Cowboys

8:30 pm New York Giants vs Washington Redskins

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Heisman Favorite Mayfield On Sidelines, Falcons Snap Seahawk MNF Streak

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Heisman trophy favorite Baker Mayfield will start on the sidelines of Oklahoma’s matchup against West Virginia this weekend. In Kansas last Saturday, the OU quarterback got agitated during the pre-game handshake leading to some obscene gestures during the game. Mayfield may only miss a series or two, but his antics could hurt his chances of winning the coveted Heisman. The description of the award states, “The outstanding college football player whose performance best exhibits the pursuit of excellence with integrity. The winners of the trophy epitomize great ability combined with diligence, perseverance, and hard work.” This isn’t Mayfield’s first infraction, so it will be interesting to see if any of this affects his chances.

The Monday Night Football matchup between the Atlanta Falcons and the Seattle Seahawks came down to the wire. The Falcons got a got a much needed win and the Seahawks snapped their 11 game win streak on Monday night football.  Falcons 34, Seahawks 31.

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Bills’ QB Situation, Belichick Third Most Wins By Head Coach, Trump Tweets Agst Lynch & LaVar

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The Buffalo Bills will be re-evaluating their quarterback situation this week. Coach Sean McDermott benched their starting QB Tyrod Taylor for rookie 5th round pick Nathan Peterman in Sunday’s 54-24 loss to the Los Angles Chargers. Peterman had a disastrous debut with five interceptions in just the first half, the first QB since the 1970 AFL/NFL merger to throw five picks in the first half of a game. Peterman had a good attitude after the game saying, “Coach always says, ‘We never lose, we learn,’ and that will definitely be my mindset moving forward. I’m going to learn a lot from this and make sure it never happens again.”

New England Patriots coach Bill Belichick notches another accolade in his legendary carreer. With the Patriots’ win over the Oakland Raiders on Sunday, Belichick passed the former Hall of Fame Dallas Cowboys coach Tom Landry for third most wins of an NFL Head Coach. Belichick gives credit to his arsenal of great players, but according to his players and owner Robert Kraft, Belichick works tirelessly to get his team prepared and comfortable before games.

Fewer players sat for the National Anthem this week, but one player in particular received the tweeting wrath of President Trump. Oakland Raiders’ running back Marshawn Lynch sat during the National Anthem during their game against the Patriots in Mexico but then stood for the Mexican anthem. Trump tweeted, “Great disrespect! Next time NFL should suspend him for the remainder of season. Attendance and ratings way down.”

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President Trump also used his twitter feed to respond to LaVar Ball, father of the recently released LiAngelo Ball from China for shoplifting.  Trump, as well as high powered executives including Joe Tsai (who recently bought 49% of the Brooklyn Nets), worked behind the scenes to release the three UCLA players. LaVar downplayed the role Trump played and said the shoplifting charge was “no big deal”. Trump did not take that so well and tweeted, “Now that the three basketball players are out of China and saved from years in jail, LaVar Ball, the father of LiAngelo, is unaccepting of what I did for his son and that shoplifting is no big deal.”

 

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Celtics Over Warriors, Brown Catches 3 TD’s, Thanks For The Memories “Mike And Mike”

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The Boston Celtics came back from a 17 point deficit to beat the Golden State Warriors on Thursday night to keep their 14 game win streak alive. Celtics 92, Warriors 88.

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In Thursday night football, the Pittsburgh Steelers’ Antonio Brown caught three touchdowns to lead his team to a big win over the Tennessee Titans. Unfortunately for the Titans, quarterback Marcus Mariota suffered four interceptions in the 17-40 loss.

OTHER

Mike and Mike” the popular morning ESPN sports show ends after 18 years today. Every sports fan has their great memories of waking up to Mike Greenberg and Mike Golic’s show. They transformed sports talk radio and sports TV talk shows by their interesting commentary, irreverent segments, and their entertaining rapport with each other and their guests. They spoke about their families, their quirks, their phobias and through it all, made people look forward to waking up and listening to their banter. For most sports fans, it was part of their daily routine. Greenberg and Golic were inducted into the National Association of Broadcasters Hall of Fame in 2016. Greenberg will be moving on to his own morning TV show called “Get Up” while Golic will pair with Trey Wingo for a new morning drive show. As the signature Bob Hope 1938 song said, Thanks for the Memory guys! #mikeandmike

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UCLA Players Suspended, Joel Embiid And 76ers On Fire, Kevin Hart Trust The Process

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The three UCLA basketball players who were caught shoplifting in China are back in the US and  have been suspended indefinitely from the team. According to their coach, “They will have to earn their way back.” President Trump tweeted the players were set for 10 years in jail if he hadn’t intervened with the President of China. All three players, LiAngelo Ball, Cody Riley and Jalen Hill, thanked President Trump for helping them out of the situation.

In the NBA, the Philadelphia 76ers have been transformed. Their young team, led by Joel Embiid and Ben Simmons, is causing a stir in the League. Embiid put on a show Wednesday night in Los Angeles in a big win over the Lakers with 46-points, 15-rebounds, seven-assists, and seven-rebounds.  After the game, Philly fan Kevin Hart, ran over to Embiid gave him a big hug and later tweeted “Trust the PROCESS!!!!! A healthy sixers team is a problem for the NBA!!! It’s all about growth!!!” 76ers 115, Lakers 109.

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Grayson Allen Is Back, LiAngelo Ball Left China, Alabama Tops CFR

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Duke’s Grayson Allen, the player everyone loved to hate last season, showed his critics he’s back and ready for a great season. With 37 points and 7 of 11 three-pointers in a win over Michigan State, Allen seems to have matured since last year and could be a high draft pick in the NBA at the end of the season. Duke 88, Michigan State 81.

LiAngelo Ball and his two UCLA teammates Jalen Hill and Cody Riley, are on their way back to the United States after their arrest for shoplifting in China. UCLA hasn’t said what the basketball players’ punishment will be, but expect LiAngelos’s dad, the outspoken LaVar, to weigh in on the verdict.  LaVar’s third son, LaMelo has already committed to play at UCLA, but if LiAngelo’s punishment is unacceptable to LaVar, he could decide to have LaMelo skip high school and go straight to the pros.

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In the latest College Football Rankings, Alabama took the #1 spot (in place of Georgia who lost to Auburn last week), with Clemson, Miami, Oklahoma, and Wisconsin filling out the top five.

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