Joey Gamache on Teofimo Lopez: ‘There are parallels between him and Lomachenko’

Count Joey Gamache as being very impressed with Teofimo Lopez after having worked in his training camp for seven weeks.

Facing the toughest fight of his life, Teofimo Lopez decided to set up his training camp in the secluded suburbs of Flemington, New Jersey, far away from a host of distractions back home in Las Vegas.

The lightweight sensation, who takes on titleholder Richard Commey on the Terence Crawford-Egidijus Kavaliauskas undercard Saturday at Madison Square Garden in New York, also brought in a new assistant trainer: former two-division titleholder Joey Gamache.

Gamache says the change of locale meant that Lopez was able to train under proper conditions, which wasn’t the case leading into his fight with Masayoshi Nakatani in July. The Japanese fighter proved to be tougher than expected, as Lopez had to settle for a wide decision. Gamache says that was an aberration.”

“To judge Teofimo in that last fight, you really can’t,” said Gamache, who also trains Swedish heavyweight contender Otto Wallin. “He wasn’t himself. There were a lot of distractions and issues there. This camp has been really smooth. No distractions or problems around him.”

Gamache also pointed to the quality of Lopez’s sparring partners during this training camp. Lopez brought in former 140-pound titleholder Ivan Baranchyk and Abraham Nova, as well as a few other standout prospects from the Philadelphia area. Having spent seven weeks with the Lopez team, Gamache came away thoroughly impressed. It reminded him of another elite talent he once helped train.

Teofimo Lopez could be on a collision course with Vasiliy Lomachenko if he can beat Richard Commey on Saturday. Matt Heasley / Top Rank

“Teofimo has all the tools,” Gamache said. “I worked with (Vasiliy) Lomachenko a few years back and he has all the tools as well. Both fighters got so much to work with, so very, very talented. It’s interesting when you see that kind of quality of fighter.”

Should Lopez defeat Commey on Saturday night, that will set up a potential fight with Lomachenko in 2020. Gamache likes Lopez’s chances.

“It would have been hard envisioning anyone beating Lomachenko – he’s such a big talent,” Gamache said. “But after going through this camp with Teofimo and seeing the talent that he has, I couldn’t be more impressed. It’s a real fight. A very dangerous fight for Lomachenko in a lot of ways. The kid is a fantastic boxer. But it’s a real fight.”

Commey, of course, is no slouch.

“Commey’s had two title fights and stopped both guys,” Gamache said. “Defensively speaking, he don’t have much defense. But he’s a good puncher, so he’s dangerous on that end.”

At the same time, Gamache believes his charge is on a different level from the New York-based Ghanian.

“You’re looking at a guy (Lopez) that’s got a a big amateur background, which Commey didn’t have,” Gamache said. “The power that he has, the speed, the footwork, the defense: He’s very, very special. There are parallels between him and Lomachenko.”

Sixers to be without Al Horford against Celtics, will miss return

Philadelphia 76ers big man Al Horford is out for the team’s matchup with the Boston Celtics.

The Philadelphia 76ers head to Boston to take on the rival Celtics on Thursday night in a game that should give the team a sign of where they’re at in the season, sort of like a litmus test. Unfortunately, they will have to do so without their big free-agent acquisition.

Al Horford, who is making his first trip to Boston since signing with the Sixers over the summer, was initially listed as questionable for the matchup, but after he has now been announced as out for the game. He underwent knee and hamstring treatment at the morning shootaround on Thursday at the TD Garden.

Horford did say he went through his normal pregame routine in terms of warming up and the like, but he said it did not do well enough for him to give it a go.

The Sixers and the Celtics tipoff at 8:00 p.m. EST in what is expected to be a playoff-type atmosphere in Boston. [lawrence-related id=21145,21138,21118]

Ravens wearing all-black uniforms vs. Jets on Thursday Night Football

The Baltimore Ravens busted out the black-on-black look for the Jets and the national audience under the lights of Thursday Night Football

The Baltimore Ravens have busted out the all-black look under the lights of M&T Bank Stadium. In front of a national audience on Thursday Night Football, the black-on-black uniforms are easily one of the hottest the Ravens have in their arsenal and should show up well on camera.

Take a look at Baltimore in their fresh uniforms as they prepare for the New York Jets in Week 15.

The Ravens are looking to clinch the AFC North tonight. With a win, they’ll lock themselves in as the division leader for the second consecutive season.

Quarterback Lamar Jackson is also looking for the NFL’s single-season rushing record. Jackson needs just 23 more yards to surpass Michael Vick for the most rushing yards by a quarterback in a single season.

With so many big things potentially happening tonight, Baltimore chose the right uniforms for the job.

Tracker: Follow Tiger Woods, Justin Thomas’ foursomes match at Presidents Cup

Follow along for shot-by-shot updates from Tiger Woods and Justin Thomas’ foursomes match at the Presidents Cup in Australia.

U.S. playing captain Tiger Woods wasn’t planning on playing too much at the 2020 Presidents Cup at Australia’s Royal Melbourne, but after Day 1 he may have to take out the earpiece more often than he hoped.

Woods and Justin Thomas earned the sole U.S. point during the four-ball matches on Day 1 of the biennial event, and the pairing are back in action on Friday (Thursday night in the U.S.) for the foursomes matches, teeing off at 7:41 p.m. ET against the Internationals’ Hideki Matsuyama and Byeong Hun An.

Follow along for shot-by-shot updates from Woods/Thomas vs. Matsuyama/An as the Americans look to cut into their 4-1 deficit.

PRESIDENTS CUP: Scores | Best photos
MEET THE TEAMS: USA | Internationals

Pre-round

Longhorns’ Tim Beck Linked To Head Coach Opportunity

Former Offensive Coordinator Tim Beck is linked to the head coaching job for the Lamar Cardinals.

Following the Texas Longhorns recent changes to the coaching staff, former offensive coordinator and now quarterback’s coach has been linked as a possible head coach for the Lamar Cardinals. The Cardinals play in division one of the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS).  This was reported by Football Scoop in which Tim Beck was named as one of the potential candidates.

The Lamar Cardinals football team played from 1923-1989 before shutting down the program until 2010. They are located in Beaumont, Texas which is a reason that Beck would make sense. They need someone who can recruit in the state of Texas. From 1999-2004, Tim Beck spent his time as a high school football coach before pursuing a coaching career in division one. He has coached at Kansas, Nebraska before joining Ohio State and following Tom Herman to Texas.

It might not be a big time program but after the recent demotion for Beck, this could be a way to get a fresh start and to run his own program as head coach. If Tim Beck wants to eventually run his own program in FBS, this could be the stepping stone that moves him in that direction.

Film Room: What happened to the Raiders’ offense versus Titans?

Raiders Wire takes a deep dive into the Raiders offense second-half woes and why they struggled to even score a point.

After another loss to the Tennessee Titans, the Oakland Raiders playoffs dreams have faded, and fans are looking towards the NFL draft. The Raiders team, however, is preparing the Jacksonville Jaguars and attempting to find a way to end this three-game slide to finish the season strong.

The offense had been dead to rights until the first half last week. They put up 12 points in the previous two games with the only touchdown coming late in garbage time. They were looking to bounce back at home, and Gruden had a great game plan to start off the game.

In the first half against the Titans, the offense was able to move the football at will averaging 6.8 yards per play. Their success rate on all offensive plays was 62%, with the passing attack coming in at 69%.

The Raiders were able to create explosive plays with four in the first half according to sharp football stats. The passing game was indeed flowing, converting three of their four third-down opportunities through the air, helping them keep up with the Titans when the defense was playing awful.

The second half was a completely different story. The Raiders’ success rate total fell to 52% in the second half and did not convert one third down. The offense had two straight three and outs that led to back to back touchdowns by the Titans. The trains completely derailed when Darren Waller fumbled, and it was returned for touchdown 42-21.

What went wrong in the second half? Let’s take a deep dive into the offense woes in the second half that ruined the playoff chances for the Raiders.

Derek Carr Seeing Ghost

Derek Carr’s numbers under pressure have always been a concern, but this season has been a revelation. Carr is third in the NFL in passer rating under pressure at 95.1, according to PFF.com, and has thrown five touchdowns and zero interceptions on the year. Against the Titans, the old Carr crept back up with a lousy performance under pressure.

Carr was an abysmal 2 for 8 for 15 yards and a YPA of 1.5. Brandon Parker was a factor in this performance losing early to Jurrell Casey, blowing potential big plays. This came into effect in the third quarter causing Carr to get jittery in the pocket.

The first play where you saw this was the opening drive of the second half. The Raiders had a huge third and two at the Titans 39 with the Raiders in position to take the lead. The Raiders are in 11 personnel with a bunch set to Carr’s left. Waller will be running a delayed slant and is the primary target on this play, which is a staple for Gruden on third down against man coverage.

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The Titans show man pre-snap, and Carr thinks he is about to throw an easy first-down pass. After the snap, everything changes, and the Titans are in cover 2, and the Corner is right there in the lane for the slant.

Carr has a clean pocket and has time to go through his reads and find the opening in the zone. Instead, he panics and believes he can run for the first down but ends, allowing an easy sack for Jeffery Simmons. This was a massive play for the offense that set them back that could have helped them keep up with the Titans.

It didn’t stop there. In the fourth quarter, the Raiders were already down by 21 and driving to get a quick score to get back into the football game. The Raiders were running all hitches out of 11 personnel and ran this play earlier in the game.

On the previous time they ran this play, Carr stepped up and hit Waller for a first down. This time he feels the corner blitz and starts to react to it. However, the pocket was clean, and he could have been poised, but instead, he panics and throws a lousy check down to Deandre Washington, allowing him to be pummeled.

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Carr blew opportunities in the second half for the Raiders to stay in the matchup. He must play better for the Raiders to end this season on a good note.

Jon Gruden Not Adjusting

One of the issues that come up when people discuss Gruden is his lack of halftime adjustments. After one half, you get an idea of how a team is playing your offense, and corrections should be made at halftime. Gruden is still displaying this is his Achilles heel, and Raider nation saw it again last Sunday.

The Titans played Cover 1 early in the game, and the Raiders were able to move the ball and convert third downs. Late in the second, the Titans were adjusting to displaying man and switching to zone post-snap. Gruden kept calling the same concepts leaving his quarterback in no man’s land, forcing check downs.

One example is the play that made this game out of reach, which is the Waller fumble. The Raiders are in 11 personnel and will be running a Corner route mixed with a delayed flat to the tight end after a chip block.

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Zay Jones on the corner route runs right into the cover 2 zones, and the late chip allows the corner to fall back and cover the route. Since it is a half-field read, Carr is forced to check down to Waller. This, of course, led to a fumble that made the lead insurmountable.

Gruden can’t be a stubborn play-caller. He has to find ways to adjust and attack the defense when they change as well. Even if the Raiders replace the quarterback going into 2020, it won’t matter if Gruden still can’t adjust on the fly and find ways to win late in games.

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LaDainian Tomlinson believes Melvin Gordon will get paid, but not by Chargers

LaDainian Tomlinson believes Melvin Gordon won’t be a part of the Los Angeles Chargers in 2020.

Chargers running back Melvin Gordon sat out the entire offseason and the first quarter of the season in hopes of a new contract that paid him $13 million annually, in which he never got.

Gordon came back in Week 5 knowing that the only way to prove he’s worth that kind of money is to be on the playing field. It took a month to dust the cobwebs off, but he finally started to build some steam.

His first four games back, Gordon wasn’t efficient at all, amassing 31, 18, 32, and 31 yards in those games, respectively, averaging 2.5 yards per carry, with one game of over 10 receiving yards and two total touchdowns.

Since then, the former Wisconsin product has gotten on track, generating 100-plus scrimmage yards in three of the past five contests and averaging 4.67 yards per carry.

Gordon, who will be an unrestricted free agent after this season, has three games left to show he’s worth top-dollar running back money.

Former Chargers great RB LaDainian Tomlinson believes that he will receive a hefty contract after this season. But Tomlinson doesn’t think it will be Los Angeles paying him.

“I think he will get paid. There will be some team that says, ‘Hey, we see the value in what this guy can bring to the team. We’ll see what happens. But it certainly doesn’t look like he’ll belong to the Chargers after this season,” Tomlinson said.

Gordon is one of the better running backs in the league, but staying healthy has been an issue for him, which could be one of the reasons why Los Angeles is hesitant on paying him.

But Tomlinson believes there aren’t many players at his position that can do what Gordon does.

“Melvin is still a young man and he is going to get paid and it’s because he can certainly be a great all-around back,’’ Tomlinson said. “He’s shown he’s a willing blocker, he’s obviously been a very talented runner over the last couple of years and he can catch the ball out of the backfield. He can be a three-down back.’’

The Chargers also possess a talented backfield that consists of Austin Ekeler and Justin Jackson. The team would be able to roll into 2020 with those two, along with a draft selection that comes later on or even an undrafted rookie, which is the approach they took with Ekeler in 2017.

Gordon will be one of many notable soon-to-be free agents that L.A. will have to decide on when that time comes in the next few months. If they feel like he’s not in their future plans, look for teams like the Chiefs, Buccaneers, Dolphins and Texans to target him.

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Kyle Rudolph is Vikings’ nominee for Walter Payton Man of the Year award

It doesn’t come as much of a surprise with all the work Rudolph does in the community, especially with the Children’s Hospital.

Vikings tight end Kyle Rudolph is the team’s nominee for the 2019 Walter Payton Man of the Year.

It doesn’t come as much of a surprise with all the work Rudolph does in the community, especially with the Children’s Hospital.

The team went all-out in its efforts to get Rudolph the award last season. While Rudolph didn’t win, that doesn’t take anything away from what he did, and what he continues to do.

If you want a refresher on what Rudolph has done for the state of Minnesota, see the video below. Make sure to grab some tissues.

Rams injury report: Gerald Everett trending in wrong direction for Week 15

Gerald Everett seems like he’s on track to miss his third straight game on Sunday.

It’s looking more and more like the Los Angeles Rams won’t have Gerald Everett on Sunday against the Dallas Cowboys. He’s missed the last two games with a knee injury and hasn’t even begun practicing, which is obviously bad news for his chances of playing in Week 15.

To make matters worse, Everett has come down with a stomach bug and was sent home early from practice on Thursday.

“Gerald will be out [of practice]. He actually was sick today, as well, so sent him home with a stomach virus,” Sean McVay said before practice.

Tyler Higbee has been a stud in Everett’s absence, going over 100 yards receiving and catching seven passes in each of the last two games. Everett is a key contributor and is difficult to bring down in the open field, but the Rams have managed without him.

Rob Havenstein is moving closer to returning to the field, practicing once again on Thursday – his second straight day as a full participant. McVay still didn’t clarify whether Havenstein will slide back in as the starting right tackle or if that job will remain Bobby Evans’.

Nsimba Webster was a full participant, too, which is a good sign for his availability.

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Seven of nation’s top 10 teams highlight field at 2020 ANNIKA Intercollegiate

The ANNIKA Foundation announced the first 11 teams in the field for the 2020 ANNIKA Intercollegiate, with a 12th team to be announced later.

The ANNIKA Intercollegiate Presented by 3M boasts the most competitive field in women’s collegiate golf, and the 2020 event will be no different.

The ANNIKA Foundation announced on Thursday the first 11 teams who will be competing for the title Sept. 13-16 at Royal Golf Club in Lake Elmo, Minnesota.

Seven of the top 10 teams in the Golfweek/Sagarin rankings are in the field, including No. 1 Texas, 2019 champion Wake Forest, No. 2 Arizona State, No. 3 Arizona, No. 4 USC, No. 9 South Carolina and No. 10 Duke. Also in the field is 2018 ANNIKA Intercollegiate champion Alabama, UCLA, Vanderbilt and host Minnesota.

The 12th and final team will be announced following the 2020 NCAA Championship in May.

“For the seventh-consecutive year, we’re honored to welcome a collection of women’s golf’s most-powerful and storied programs,” said LPGA legend Annika Sorenstam. “Royal Golf Club has proven to be a great host venue for the last two editions, and we look forward to returning to Minnesota during an ideal time of year for weather and course conditions.”

To find out more about the work the ANNIKA Foundation does for women’s golf, go to annikafoundation.org.