6 Dec 2009
by admin
NEW YORK (AP)—Alabama will head into the postseason as the No. 1 team in the AP Top 25 for the first time since 1973, while Southern California dropped out of the ranking Sunday after an eight-year run.
The Crimson Tide claimed the top spot in the media poll in overwhelming fashion, receiving 58 first-place votes after its emphatic 32-13 victory against previously No. 1 Florida in the Southeastern Conference title game.
Texas moved up one spot to No. 2 and received two first-place votes, after squeaking past Nebraska 13-12 in the Big 12 title game Saturday night. TCU is No. 3, followed by Cincinnati, Florida and unbeaten Boise State.
The Trojans dropped out to snap a streak of 130 consecutive polls in which they were ranked, after completing their worst regular season since 2001. USC (8-4) was ranked 20th before losing 21-17 to Arizona on Saturday.
Southern Cal’s streak was the second-longest active in the country behind Texas’ 156 weeks in the poll. Ohio State is now second with 83 straight AP rankings.
While the Trojans dropped out, No. 25 Central Michigan earned its first AP ranking in school history. The Chippewas (11-2) won the Mid-American Conference for the third time in four seasons with a 20-10 victory over Ohio on Friday.
The Crimson Tide was No. 1 for a week earlier this season, but spent the previous three at No. 2 before defeating the defending national champions. The last time Alabama went into a postseason game No. 1, the Tide lost the Sugar Bowl 24-23 to Notre Dame.
On Saturday, Alabama locked up a spot in the BCS national championship game with its SEC title, and is expected to play Texas on Jan. 7 at the Rose Bowl.
TCU has its highest rankings since winning the 1938 national championship.
The rest of the top 10 was Oregon at No. 7, followed by Ohio State, Georgia Tech and Iowa. The 11-15 spots were held by Penn State, Virginia Tech, LSU, BYU and Miami.
Pittsburgh dropped two spots after losing 45-44 to Cincinnati in a game that decided the Big East title. Oregon State dropped four spots to No. 17 after losing 37-33 at Oregon in a game that decided the Pac-10 championship.
West Virginia moved up six spots to 18 and Stanford moved up four spots to No. 19.
No. 20 Nebraska moved up one after nearly knocking the Longhorns out of the national title game in the Big 12 championship.
The final five were Oklahoma State, Arizona, Utah and Wisconsin—all of which have been in and out of the rankings this season—along with Central Michigan.
Falling out with USC were Clemson, Houston and California. Unbeaten Montana, which plays Appalachian State in the FCS semifinals on Saturday, received one point in the poll.
5 Dec 2009
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5 Dec 2009
by admin
COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP)—Ohio State star Evan Turner will miss 8 weeks after breaking bones in his back when he fell while dunking during Saturday’s game against Eastern Michigan.
Initial X-rays indicated no serious injuries, but Buckeyes athletic trainer Vince O’Brien said later tests found transverse process fractures of the second and third lumbar vertebra of Turner’s spine.
“My primary concern right now is Evan’s long-term health and well-being,” said Ohio State coach Thad Matta. “Evan was to this point in the season the best player in college basketball. We have been through tough situations before and our guys will regroup and prepare for the rest of our season starting with Butler next week in Indianapolis.”
The injury occurred after the junior swingman drove the lane and was fouled going up for a dunk with 13:27 left in the first half of the No. 15 Buckeyes’ game against Eastern Michigan.
Turner missed the dunk and hung on the rim with his feet flying into a nearly horizontal position, before falling on his back under the basket. He spent several minutes on the floor before walking with help to the locker room.
The Buckeyes (7-1), leading 15-5 at the time of the spill, went on to a 111-60 victory.
Turner, who came into the game averaging 20.6 points and 12.9 rebounds, was taken to The Ohio State University Medical Center for X-rays of his lower back. Initial tests showed no broken bones or substantial damage, but Matta said Turner would undergo more intensive tests before leaving the hospital. That is when the spinal breaks were noticed.
After the game, Matta said it appeared Turner would be fine.
“Everything looked good on the X-ray,” Matta said. “I haven’t seen the fall yet, but we’re obviously thinking about him and hoping that everything’s going to be OK.”
Turner’s injury marks the second year in a row at almost the same point in the season that one of the Buckeyes’ top players has been sidelined.
Last season, David Lighty, the team captain and most experienced player, broke his foot in the seventh game and missed the rest of the season. The Buckeyes, with Turner playing an increasingly larger role, went 22-11 before losing in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
Turner’s stock rose so high that he considered jumping to the NBA after the season, but elected to return. He recorded two triple doubles in Ohio State’s first five games—the second and third triple-doubles ever for a Buckeye.
Ohio State is off the next week for final exams and will play next at Butler on Saturday.
3 Dec 2009
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3 Dec 2009
by admin
RENTON, Wash. (AP)—Tim Ruskell has been pushed out as president and general manager of the Seahawks, leaving the door open for Mike Holmgren’s possible return to Seattle.
Ruskell announced his resignation Thursday, weeks before his five-year contract with the team ends. He asked the team if he was going to be retained so he could begin planning for offseason moves. Owner Paul Allen, the ailing Microsoft Corp. tycoon, and Seahawks chief executive officer Tod Leiweke told Ruskell no, so he left.
“Obviously there’s great sadness today but I will leave here with great memories of this place and the people. It’s been the people for me,” Ruskell said, his voice breaking and holding back tears during a news conference attended by his sister and the team’s staff.
The team’s ownership gave Ruskell full authority to shape the franchise soon after he arrived before the 2005 season. Seattle made its only Super Bowl that season.
Since then, he has presided over failed top draft choices, expensive free-agent busts—and the awkward ouster of popular coach and former GM Mike Holmgren at the end of his contract this past January.
Ruskell brought in his own coach for 2009, Jim Mora. The 4-7 Seahawks are on their way to a second straight season without a playoff berth. Last season they finished 4-12, their worst record since 1991.
“Quite simply, we didn’t win enough games,” Leiweke said. “I work for a man, Mr. Paul Allen, who has exacting standards.”
Ruskell understood that.
“It didn’t happen quickly enough,” he said, “but it wasn’t because we didn’t do it right.”
Seahawks vice president for player personnel Ruston Webster will serve as interim general manager.
Leiweke added that he expects Mora to remain the coach, Webster would be a good GM candidate, and “stability is something we will try to push for.”
No conceivable candidate knows the Seahawks better than Holmgren, who became their longest-tenured and winningest coach from 1999-2008. The first four years, he was also their GM.
Holmgren has declared his desire to return to the NFL after one year away. He took 2009 off as a promise to his wife and family but now says he wants to return to football. He hasn’t specified where, or whether it is to coach or be an executive.
But the former Super Bowl-winning coach has long coveted a second chance to be a GM. He’s often said how much he admires the position Bill Parcells, a good friend and another former coach, now has atop the Miami Dolphins’ franchise. Holmgren still owns a home in the Seattle area.
When asked whether Holmgren is a candidate, Leiweke said, “I’m just not going to go there. I’m just not going to talk about that today.”
Ruskell arrived in February 2005 as a veteran of 20 years in scouting following a stint in Atlanta as the assistant GM, when Mora was the Falcons’ coach. Ruskell presided over three consecutive NFC West titles to begin his Seattle tenure, including that Super Bowl season of 2005 when he overhauled the defense and scored a major coup in drafting overlooked linebacker Lofa Tatupu(notes).
But the Seahawks have regressed since then.
Ruskell was part of the decision that allowed perennial Pro Bowl offensive lineman Steve Hutchinson(notes) to leave for Minnesota as a free agent soon after the 2006 Super Bowl; Seattle’s line hasn’t been the same since.
Ruskell signed running back Shaun Alexander(notes) to a $62 million, eight-year contract with $15.1 million guaranteed even though Alexander was about to turn 30—an age at which most running backs begin to decline. Just over two years and several injuries later, Alexander was released.
To replace him, Ruskell spent millions on veteran running backs Julius Jones(notes), T.J. Duckett(notes) and Edgerrin James(notes). Jones is fighting for his job with emerging Justin Forsett(notes), a seventh-round draft choice in 2008 whom the Seahawks cut last year then brought back. Duckett and James were released this season.
Seattle is 29th in the league in rushing.
Ruskell traded a first-round draft choice to New England in 2006 for wide receiver Deion Branch(notes), then gave the former Super Bowl MVP a $39 million contract with $13 million guaranteed. Branch has had seasons with 53, 49, 30 and now 26 catches—plus two knee surgeries, including a reconstructive surgery.
2 Dec 2009
by admin
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2 Dec 2009
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PHILADELPHIA (AP)—Brian Westbrook(notes) remains sidelined with a concussion and DeSean Jackson’s(notes) status for Philadelphia’s game at Atlanta is uncertain after he sustained a head injury.
Westbrook will miss his third straight game after sustaining his second concussion in a three-week span on Nov. 15. The former All-Pro running back saw concussion specialists this week in Pittsburgh and will be re-examined in a week or two. Westbrook is expected to increase his exercise regimen. He experienced a headache working out last Friday.
Jackson, the Eagles’ big-play wide receiver, was injured in a win over Washington last Sunday. Coach Andy Reid says Jackson is “making progress” recovering from his concussion and wouldn’t rule him out for Sunday’s game against the Falcons.
2 Dec 2009
by admin
LAS VEGAS (AP)—Promoter Bob Arum flew Wednesday to the Philippines with a proposed contract for a March 13 fight between Manny Pacquiao and Floyd Mayweather Jr.
The contract was agreed to by Mayweather’s representatives, but the boxer has yet to sign. Arum was to present the proposal to Pacquiao, but there are no guarantees he will agree.
Still, the fact Arum would make the trip to the Philippines to try and get his fighter to sign for the bout was an indication that the megafight was moving forward. It would match the two fighters regarded as the best pound-for-pound in the world in a bout at 66.7 kilograms (147 pounds).
The fight was originally projected for May, but Pacquiao’s candidacy for Congress in the Philippines forced promoters to move it forward to March. The Philippine national elections are in May, and Pacquiao wanted to be at home to campaign.
Promoters for both fighters had agreed to a blackout on negotiations for the bout, so no one would comment on the record. A person close to the promotion spoke on terms his identity would remain confidential.
If the fight is made, there would likely be a Jan. 11 press conference in New York to announce it. The bout could be the richest ever, assuming pay-per-view projections are accurate.
Representatives of the Superdome in New Orleans and the new Dallas Cowboys’ stadium have expressed interest in hosting the fight, as has the MGM Grand hotel-casino in Las Vegas, where the fighters have fought their biggest fights. There is also a proposal for a 30,000-seat temporary stadium on the Las Vegas Strip across from the Wynn resort.
Oddsmakers are already taking bets on the fight, with most making the undefeated Mayweather a slight favorite.
1 Dec 2009
by admin
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1 Dec 2009
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