Month: September 2020

Report: Pittsburgh Steelers at Tennessee Titans to air on CBS, Monday or Tuesday

CBS is going to still show the Steelers-Titans game, should it be played Monday or Tuesday

The postponed Pittsburgh Steelers-Tennessee Titans game appears to be heading for CBS television, per a report.

Andrew Marchand of the New York Post tweeted the game will be on CBS and would be played either Monday at 5 p.m. ET or Tuesday at 7 p.m. ET. As an AFC matchup, CBS would have the TV rights to the game in almost all occasions.

The Monday game would be prior to — but could overlap — with the MNF game between the Atlanta Falcons and Green Bay Packers.

The game was postponed because four Titans players and five personnel tested positive for the COVID-19 virus.

“This week’s game between the Pittsburgh Steelers and Tennessee Titans, originally scheduled to be played at 1 p.m. ET on Sunday, has been postponed, a league source told NFL Network Insider Ian Rapoport. The game is expected to be played either on Monday or Tuesday.

“The decision to postpone the AFC matchup comes after four Titans players and five Titans personnel tested positive for COVID-19 in the days following their Week 3 win over the Minnesota Vikings in Minneapolis. No member of the Vikings has tested positive.

 

Adam Silver eyes return of fans “prior to full distribution of a vaccine”

SportsPulse: Adam Silver addressed the media at Game 1 of the NBA Finals and says that while not much has changed as far as the dangers of Covid-19, he still envisions a return of fans to arenas next season.

SportsPulse: Adam Silver addressed the media at Game 1 of the NBA Finals and says that while not much has changed as far as the dangers of Covid-19, he still envisions a return of fans to arenas next season.

Michigan loses another true freshman to NCAA transfer portal

The 4-star linebacker is already out of Ann Arbor, as he looks to transfer from Michigan football without having even seen padded practice.

[jwplayer Kh6kklUV-XNcErKyb]
Make it two now.

Not long after all the true freshmen reported to campus, it was something of a surprise that defensive end Aaron Lewis had opted to transfer, having put his name into the NCAA transfer portal before deciding to return to his home state of New Jersey and attending Rutgers. On Wednesday evening, yet another 2020 signee is on his way out of Ann Arbor.

Baltimore (MD) St. Frances Academy linebacker Osman Savage was the first of four from the school to commit to the Wolverines — OT Micah Mazzccua’s commitment didn’t stick, as he flipped to Baylor — but he won’t ever play a down in Ann Arbor. Per reports, Savage is already in the NCAA transfer portal and will look to play elsewhere.

Given that his former high school teammate, LB Nikhai Hill-Green has been drawing rave reviews this offseason, as have West Bloomfield (MI) three-star Cornell Wheeler and Massachusetts-based four-star Kalel Mullings, there were a lot of linebackers in the mix, even in the 2020 class.

We don’t yet know the reason for Savage’s departure. Stay tuned as the story develops.

CFB analyst Joel Klatt breaks down Sam Ehlinger’s performance against Texas Tech

Fox Sports’ Joel Klatt broke down why Ehlinger was successful in the fourth quarter against the Red Raiders. You can watch the clip here:

When SaRodorick Thompson broke away for a 75-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter to extend the lead to 15, Texas seemed to be out of the game. However, quarterback Sam Ehlinger told Tom Herman the Longhorns were going to score twice and win the game in overtime.

Ehlinger backed up what he told Herman, playing incredible football down the stretch. In the final two drives, excluding overtime, the senior quarterback went 6-of-7 passing for 93 yards and two touchdowns. Ehlinger added 15 rushing yards and a game-tying two-point conversion to Brennan Eagles.

In overtime, Joshua Moore caught the game-winning touchdown from Ehlinger to give Texas a 63-56 win in Lubbock.

The quarterback’s play down the stretch is one of the reasons the Longhorns won their fourth consecutive Big 12 opener. He finished with six touchdowns: five in the air and one on the ground.

Fox Sports’ college football analyst Joe Klatt has been high on Ehlinger all season, ranking him the third-best quarterback going into the season. He broke down why Ehlinger was successful in the fourth quarter against the Red Raiders.

You can watch the clip here:

If Texas wants to reach its goal of winning a Big 12 championship, Ehlinger will need to continue to perform the way he did against Texas Tech. Oozing confidence, the quarterback never thinks the Longhorns are out of a game.

Offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich knows he has a special quarterback and must let Ehlinger continue to thrive. Those kinds of decisions will come in handy in Texas’ bigger Big 12 matchups.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

Seahawks WR Tyler Lockett named Snickers ‘Hungriest Player’ for Week 3

Seattle Seahawks wide receiver Tyler Lockett has been named SNICKERS “Hungriest Player” for his Week-4 performance against the Cowboys.

Aaron Jones, last week’s SNICKERS “Hungriest Player,” is passing the SNICKERS Chain to the next player who has shown hunger for more on the field. Following this weekend’s games, Tyler Lockett has been named SNICKERS Hungriest Player for Week 3 after totaling 100 yards on nine catches and three touchdowns, in a 31-38 win over the Cowboys.

Lockett is also the first player to receive the SNICKERS chain twice, having been named Hungriest Player last season for his week 9 performance.

This year’s chain is bigger and better, including more than 31 carats of 2,374 brilliant-cut diamonds, blue sapphires and red rubies. Throughout the season, SNICKERS and NFL players will be passing the SNICKERS chain – an iced-out chain that highlights the word “HUNGRY” and the iconic “S” from the SNICKERS brand logo, created by famed jeweler Ben Baller – from one player to the next. Past weeks’ chain recipients include:

Fans can win exclusive rewards by following @SNICKERS and #SNICKERSchain on social. Towards the end of the regular season, SNICKERS fans will weigh in on selecting the league’s ‘Hungriest Player of the Year,” and proceeds from the sale of the chain will be donated to benefit heroes on the frontlines fighting COVID-19.

[lawrence-related id=67705]

Notre Dame ranked what in Sagarin Ratings

The latest Sagarin ratings are out for college football and Notre Dame lands in a confusing spot.

Remember back in the day when the BCS was decided by computer ratings and that’s how we decided who would play for the national championship each year?

At least in part that’s how things were done.

One of the most-known of those “Computer Rankings” was the Jeff Sagarin Ratings and all these years later, Sagarin is still pumping out his rankings.

The latest that is out after the fourth week of college football games is interesting to put gently.

Where Notre Dame ranks is perhaps dumb-founding.

Sagarin’s system has Notre Dame ranked 22nd in the nation with their 2-0 mark.

A few of the teams you’ll find listed ahead of them are:

  • No. 19 Kansas State despite the Wildcats losing at home to Arkansas State
  • No. 14 LSU who just opened their season with a loss on their home field to Mississippi State
  • No. 13 Clemson who is for some reason ranked 12 spots lower than the major polls have them, despite dominating in their two wins.
  • No. 10 Michigan who is yet to play a game with the same going for No. 18 Washington, No. 9 Oregon, No. 8 Wisconsin, No. 5 Penn State and No. 1 Ohio State

I get strength of schedule mattering and the strength of your opponents schedule also counting for something.  Perhaps it’s just a small sample size throwing things off a bit but for the life of me I don’t get how a computer program can rank teams that have played games the same way they can rank or judge teams who are yet to play.

NBA’s Adam Silver on lack of Black head coaches: ‘I know we can do better’

SportsPulse: NBA Commissioner Adam Silver responded to a question about the lack of Black head coaches in the league and if he’d consider implementing a ‘Rooney Rule’ for minority head coach candidates.

SportsPulse: NBA Commissioner Adam Silver responded to a question about the lack of Black head coaches in the league and if he’d consider implementing a ‘Rooney Rule’ for minority head coach candidates.

NBA Finals: Dwight Howard starts at center for Lakers in Game 1 vs. Heat

The Los Angeles Lakers are sticking with what worked in the final games of the Western Conference Finals.

It’s definitely not the way he imagined it, but Dwight Howard is starting for the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 1 of the NBA Finals and he’s doing so in the city he represented 11 years ago as a member of the Orlando Magic. According to the box score, Dwight Howard is officially listed as the starter at center, as he was in the last few games of the Western Conference Finals. Frank Vogel declined to reveal his starting lineup during his media availability 90 minutes before the game.

Howard was crucial in helping the Lakers earn three of their four victories in the Western Conference Finals, being physical with Denver’s Nikola Jokic. He will have to do more of the same, while staying focused, against Miami’s All-Star center Bam Adebayo.

LeBron James and the Lakers have talked about their belief in Dwight Howard all season. He has rarely started during his second stint with the Lakers, but it’s a stint he said he wanted to give his everything to. That effort has now landed him in the starting lineup of the NBA Finals 11 years since his last Finals start.

[lawrence-related id=34791,34788]

 

UFC 253 ‘Fight Motion’: Israel Adesanya’s technique reigns supreme

Check UFC 253 highlights, including Israel Adesanya and Jan Blachowicz’s title victories in super slow motion.

UFC middleweight champion [autotag]Israel Adesanya[/autotag] put on a masterclass display of technique in his winning effort against [autotag]Paulo Costa[/autotag] at UFC 253 this past Saturday.

After a round of technical boxing, leg kicks and footwork, Adesanya (20-0 MMA, 9-0 UFC) and Costa (13-1 MMA, 5-1 UFC) moved into Round 2 – what proved to be the final round of the fight. Adesanya finished Costa with punches. A left hook was the beginning of the end for Costa, who fell to the canvas. A few follow-up shots later, Adesanya retained his belt in his second successful UFC title defense.

Also featured in UFC 253 “Fight Motion” is new light heavyweight champion Jan Blachowicz earning gold with a second-round TKO of Dominick Reyes, sequences from a wild “Fight of the Night” bonus-earning fight between Brandon Royval and Kai-Kara-France, as well as a whole host of undercard battles.

UFC 253 took place Saturday at Flash Forum on Yas Island, Abu Dhabi. The main card streamed on ESPN+ pay-per-view after prelims on ESPN2 and ESPN+.

Check out UFC 253 “Fight Motion” in the video above.

[vertical-gallery id=554924]

[vertical-gallery id=554922]

Lakers or Heat? Chris Paul, Russell Wilson make NBA Finals predictions

On Russell Wilson’s podcast, Chris Paul made a prediction for the NBA Finals.

Perhaps it’s not surprising given his close friendship with the star of the team, but Chris Paul thinks the Los Angeles Lakers will win the NBA Finals.

The Oklahoma City Thunder guard revealed his prediction that the Lakers and LeBron James would win the championship when he appeared on DangerTalk, the podcast of Seattle Seahawks quarterback Russell Wilson, on Wednesday.

“The Lakers,” Paul said. “My brother LeBron over there.”

Los Angeles enters the Finals as the favorite. The No. 1 seed in the Western Conference, Anthony Davis and James led the Lakers to 4-1 victories in all three playoff series leading up to the Finals.

But the Heat likely pose the best matchup of any team they’ve faced this postseason. They have a wealth of versatile defenders, namely Jimmy Butler and Bam Adebayo, and have a deep rotation even in the playoffs.

Paul spoke glowingly about the Heat without being prompted.

“I play all season long and there’s sometimes we lose games, and I’ll be like, ‘Man, we should have beat them’ … One of the losses this year, when we lost to this team, I was like, ‘Man. They beat us. They beat us bad.'” Paul said.

“… It was Miami. Miami. And they, they just beat the hell out of us. And it wasn’t like we were just missing shots and all that. They had all these little tricks … They just played so good together as a team.”

Oklahoma City lost to Miami this season on Jan. 17. The Heat scored 40 points in the first quarter, and it was never really a contest afterward even though the Thunder cut the score to single-digits in the fourth quarter. Seven different Heat players scored double-digit points yet none scored more than 22.

[lawrence-related id=438015,438006]

Paul said there are some teams that if you slow down the star and force other players to make shots, they’re beatable.

The Heat and the Denver Nuggets are two teams who, in Paul’s experience, are major exceptions.

“Miami’s on a whole nother level cause they don’t have a guy you know is going to drop 20, 25 (points) every game,” he said.

Yet even though the best way to stop the Lakers is to stop James, that’s easier said than done.

James, entering his 10th finals appearance, has the most points and steals, third-most assists, sixth-most rebounds and second-most 3-pointers in playoff history.

He now has star center Davis next to him.

Paul thinks the Lakers can win their 17th championship as a franchise.

Wilson went with the Heat, but he didn’t sound convinced. He acknowledged that he was choosing them publicly more to make things more interesting with Paul as his guest.

“I don’t know man, I think LeBron’s gonna win it, but I’m gonna go with the Heat just to make it interesting in a six-game, seven-game series,” Wilson said.

[lawrence-related id=437985]