Tag: local

Tony Vitello previews Tennessee-Vanderbilt series

Tony Vitello previews the Tennessee-Vanderbilt baseball series.

No. 20 Tennessee (23-14, 5-10 SEC) will host No. 4 Vanderbilt (29-8, 13-2 SEC), Friday-Sunday, at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

Rankings reflect the latest USA TODAY Sports Coaches Poll.

First pitch for game No. 1 between Tennessee and Vanderbilt on Friday is slated for 6 p.m. EDT (SEC Network+).

Game No. 2 is scheduled for noon EDT on Saturday (ESPN2), while Sunday’s series finale will take place at 1 p.m. EDT (ESPN2).

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The Vols enter its weekend series versus Vanderbilt after losing to Tennessee Tech, 12-5, Tuesday at Lindsey Nelson Stadium.

Indiana State defeated Vanderbilt, 10-2, Tuesday in Nashville, Tennessee.

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College baseball bracketology: Week 10 NCAA Tournament regional projections

PHOTOS: A look at the Tennessee-Vanderbilt baseball series through the years

Ahead of the series-opener between the Vols and Commodores, sixth-year Tennessee head coach Tony Vitello met with media. Vitello’s series preview can be watched below.

Tennessee football’s 2023 homecoming game announced

Tennessee football’s 2023 homecoming game and date have been announced.

Tennessee announced its 2023 homecoming game will take place Nov. 4.

The homecoming contest will represent Tennessee’s first meeting against UConn.

The Vols will kick off its third season under head coach Josh Heupel on Sept. 2 against Virginia at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

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Tennessee went 11-2 (6-2 SEC) last season with its only losses coming to South Carolina and two-time defending national champion Georgia.

Tennessee ended its 2022 campaign by defeating ACC champion Clemson (11-3, 8-0 ACC), 31-14, in the Capital One Orange Bowl in Miami Gardens, Florida.

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The Vols concluded spring practices April 15 with their annual Orange & White Game.

Tennessee football: A look at 2023 way-too-early game-by-game predictions

Giants open to different variety of trades during 2023 NFL draft

The New York Giants are open for business in the draft, willing to make a trade if the value is right.

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen is feeling more comfortable heading into next week’s NFL draft than he was a year ago.

Last spring, Schoen was walking into an organization that had a mess of a roster and a cap situation that seemed impossible to get out from under.

This year, he’s got most of that under control and is dealing from the top of the deck again. Schoen has been building on a strong rookie season in which he a) got the Giants out of salary cap hell and b) to the postseason for the first time since 2016.

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Schoen is far from done. He will continue to build and tweak his roster until it’s among the best in the NFL. And he will utilize all options at his disposal to do so. That means the Giants are open for business as the draft approaches.

“I’d be open to any of that,” Schoen said about trading picks to move up in the draft or fro players.

“I’m never going to rule it out. If it’s the right player and the value aligns, I’d move up. If it was a future pick, I would do that, too.

“Last year, just where we were financially, we needed as many depth pieces as we can. So moving back a couple times last year just made sense. It got us some more bodies that – so that was a little bit of the thought process that went into that.”

That could mean anything: a trade up for a player they love this year, or even a veteran as they did with tight end Darren Waller.

The draft has become more and more like a true industry convention where anything is possible. Schoen is now in a position to make the most of things.

The Giants have 10 selections this year, seven on Day 3. In an offseason where Schoen has hit it out of the park, he appears to be far from done.

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Giants’ Joe Schoen: We have ‘viable’ in-house candidates to play center

New York Giants GM Joe Schoen may be content with the players the team has along the OL, including those who could move to center.

Many NFL draft experts expect the New York Giants to select a center in next week’s draft.

However, general manager Joe Schoen, speaking at his pre-draft press conference on Thursday, didn’t tip his hand, instead inferring that the Giants might already have the solution to their center dilemma already in the building.

The Giants’ two most experienced centers from last season — Nick Gates and Jon Feliciano — have signed on with other teams this offseason leaving the team with mostly unproven options.

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The only players with center experience are guard Ben Bredeson and the recently signed ex-Pittsburgh Steeler, J.C. Hassenauer, who played for Giants head coach Brian Daboll when both were at Alabama in 2017.

The Giants have met with two draft prospects this spring — Minnesota’s John Michael Schmitz and Juice Scruggs of Penn State. If they have designs on Schmitz, they will need to act quickly as he is projected to go no later than Round 3.

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Giants used some top-30 visits to potentially eliminate prospects

New York Giants GM Joe Schoen implied that some of the team’s top-30 visits may have been used to weed out players they don’t deem a fit.

With 10 picks in the 2023 NFL draft, the New York Giants and general manager Joe Schoen have a lot of tough decisions to make over the next week-plus.

Do they make all 10 picks? Do they end up trading some of those to maneuver within the draft or acquire a veteran player? All of those options are open.

But one thing is for certain: the Giants and Schoen have done their due diligence this offseason via intense scouting and the allotted top 30 visits.

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Not all prospect visits were of a positive nature, however. During his pre-draft press conference on Thursday, Schoen admitted that some visits may have been used to weed out players the Giants don’t believe are team fits.

Understandably, Schoen did not elaborate on which of the team’s 30 visits may have been used for that intel. However, given their wide range of meetings, his comments are certainly interesting and will be open to speculation.

Film isn’t the only thing that counts, Schoen said.

It’s not uncommon that top-30 visits are used to evaluate players on a more personal level but to be a fly on that wall… Keep that in mind when pouring over the Giants’ visits and what they may mean.

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POLL: Grade Mel Kiper, Todd McShay’s new mock draft for Cardinals

They have the Cardinals taking defensive players in the first two rounds and offensive players in third round.

A new collaborative mock draft from ESPN’s Mel Kiper and Todd McShay goes three rounds.

In four picks, the Cardinals go with defensive players with the first two picks and two offensive players in the third round.

They land these players:

  • Alabama EDGE Will Anderson Jr.
  • Michigan CB DJ Turner
  • Tennessee Cedric Tillman
  • Texas RB Roschon Johnson

All fill positional needs. All have good athletic traits.

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What do you think of this mock draft from the ESPN draft gurus?

Vote in the poll and give your thoughts.

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Listen to the latest from Cards Wire’s Jess Root on his podcast, Rise Up, See Red. Subscribe on Apple podcasts or Spotify.

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Giants, Dexter Lawrence remain engaged in positive negotiations

The New York Giants and All-Pro NT Dexter Lawrence remain actively engaged in positive negotiations that give off a “good” vibe.

New York Giants general manager Joe Schoen may not be in any rush to sign running back Saquon Barkley to a long-term deal but the same can not be said for nose tackle Dexter Lawrence.

During his pre-draft press conference on Thursday, Schoen said he and Lawrence’s representation have engaged in talks as recently as this week.

Asked how they were going, Schoen said the vibe was “good.”

Lawrence has thus far skipped the team’s voluntary offseason workouts, which began on Monday, but Schoen didn’t appear concerned. He quoted head coach Brian Daboll about the date on the calendar, ultimately dismissing Lawrence’s absence.

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Currently, Lawrence is set to play out his fifth-year option worth $12.4 million this season, but both sides would like to avoid that. The Giants want to lock down their generational defensive tackle and Lawrence, who is salivating from an exploding market, wants to be paid like one of the league’s best.

Ultimately, Schoen says, it takes two sides to get a deal done and the recent market reset won’t influence how the Giants approach negotiations.

Although a deal for Barkley seems like a long way off, the Giants and Lawrence appear much closer to an agreement. It just won’t come prior to the 2023 NFL draft, which is where Schoen and the Giants are currently focused.

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Giants’ Joe Schoen says there’s ‘no rush’ with Saquon Barkley

New York Giants GM Joe Schoen says there’s “no rush” to get something done with Saquon Barkley, whom he’s not spoken with in weeks.

New York Giants running back Saquon Barkley is “unhappy” and doesn’t intend to sign his franchise tender anytime soon but that hasn’t swayed general manager Joe Schoen.

Despite the standoff, Schoen told reporters during his pre-draft press conference on Thursday that nothing has changed and he’s in no rush to get a long-term deal done with his star back.

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After pulling his previous offer at the NFL owners’ meeting, Schoen said the two sides have not engaged in any additional negotiations. Furthermore, the general manager says it’s been weeks since he and Barkley personally spoke.

Schoen was understandably coy about the entire situation and wouldn’t provide any potential edge to Barkley’s side with a verbal misstep. And when asked specifically about Barkley’s 2023 plans, the general manager said reporters would have to ask the man himself.

Although he seemed a little cold, Schoen did admit that it’s difficult to separate the “human element” from the business side of football. He’s gotten close with many players on the team — Barkley included — and wishes there was no salary cap so that everyone could be paid and be happy.

Ultimately, any sort of resolution between the Giants and Barkley seems a long way off.

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Cardinals tease new uniform reveal

The team will hold an event Thursday night. It has been reported new uniforms will be revealed. The team teased it on Twitter.

The Arizona Cardinals have an event Thursday night in Phoenix for season ticket holders that will include a Q&A with head coach Jonathan Gannon.

It has been reported previously that the team will reveal new uniforms, although the team has said nothing.

However, they have teased something with videos featuring left tackle D.J. Humphries picking up a briefcase in the desert with the team logo and a Nike logo.

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On Thursday, the team Twitter account teased new uniforms in a word search.

Someone did the work for us.

Many fans have been waiting years for new threads. The last time the Cardinals updated their uniforms was in 2005, although since then they did add a black alternate jersey and then another black Color Rush jersey with red numbering.

Thursday night at 7(ish) p.m., we should see the new uniforms.

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Tennessee to play at Wisconsin in 2023

Tennessee will play at Wisconsin in 2023.

The University of Tennessee announced Thursday the Vols’ men’s basketball team will play at Wisconsin on Nov. 10.

Tennessee hosted the Badgers on Dec. 28, 2019, as the first game of a home-and-home series. The coronavirus pandemic postponed Tennessee’s return trip to Wisconsin in Nov. 2020.

The Vols trail the all-time series with Wisconsin, 3-2, dating to 1981. The Badgers won each of the last three meetings.

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Additional games for Tennessee’s 2023-24 schedule include playing in the Maui Invitational Nov. 20-22 and a home game against Illinois on Dec. 9.

The 2023-24 season will be Rick Barnes’ ninth as the Vols’ head coach.

PHOTOS: A look at Rick Barnes through the years