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No. 20 Miami 33, No. 14 Georgia Tech 17 L.A. Angels 4, Boston 3
Miami’s
LaRon Byrd
caught five
passes,
including this
40-yard TD, as
the Canes ripped
the Yellow
Jackets to end
a four-game
losing streak
to Tech. FRIDAY CHARLES KRUPA / AP
Page 6 SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 A frustrated David Ortiz struck out in
SEE A DIFFERENT GAME the ninth as the Red Sox fell to their
HANS DERYK / AP VOLUME 2 ISSUE 58 likely ALDS opponent. Page 35

Trojan force Postseason power poll

If Matt Barkley can’t go, Aaron
Corp will give USC something it
hasn’t had in the Carroll era: A QB
who can hurt you with his legs.
Matt Hayes, Page 8
Mythbusters What’s real and what’s fiction
about Week 2’s best matchups
How MLB’s playoff probables
rank with two-plus weeks
remaining in the regular season:

1. Yankees. Powerful lineup,

Mariano Rivera and home-
BY ALBERT BREER New Orleans at Philadelphia field advantage make them the
abreer@sportingnews.com Sunday, 1 p.m. (FOX)
Scoreboard favorites.

College Football
Top 25
Five sets of 1-0 teams
go head-to-head this
Myth: The Saints’ defense is no match for the Eagles’ offense.
Reality: The Saints’ D played better last week than the 2. Red Sox. Three reasons
they are ranked this high:
lineup, rotation, bullpen.
weekend. Four of those scoreboard showed, and coordinator Gregg Williams is sure
No. 20 Miami 33, No. 14 Georgia Tech 17
matchups hit the
marquee (sorry, 49ers,
to attack QB Kevin Kolb, if he makes his first NFL start. 3. Phillies. Late-inning relief is
a big concern, but with their
offense, they might not have many
Baseball
American League Seahawks ... but we’ll Baltimore at San Diego close games.
Sunday, 4:15 p.m. (CBS)
Kansas City 9, Detroit 2
Seattle 4, Chicago White Sox 3, 14 innings
wait and see).
Too early to float the
Myth: The Ravens’ offense can’t keep up with San Diego.
4. Cardinals. They have Albert
Pujols and arguably the best
1-2 pitching punch (Chris Carpenter
term “Showdown”?
Tampa Bay 3, Baltimore 0 “This is the ‘New Reality: San Diego got pushed around by the Raiders last and Adam Wainwright). But they are
L.A. Angels 4, Boston 3 week, and then there’s Baltimore’s suddenly balanced, pro- 6-10 vs. Philly, Colorado and L.A.
England Factor’ for
Oakland 5, Cleveland 2 us,” Jets safety
Kerry Rhodes
lific offense that went for 501 yards in Week 1.
5. Angels. They hit, run, pitch
and play defense as well as
anyone. But they can’t beat Boston.
National League said. “Whenever New England at N.Y. Jets
Milwaukee 7, Chicago Cubs 4
Philadelphia 4, Washington 2
they come in
here, it’s going to
Sunday, 1 p.m. (CBS) 6. Dodgers. Lack of an ace is
their only flaw, but that’s a
significant October flaw.
be turned up Myth: The Patriots have a big edge in personnel.
Cincinnati 3, Florida 2
Atlanta 7, N.Y. Mets 3
naturally.”
Real or imagined,
Reality: At QB and receiver, yes. Things are even else-
where offensively, and the Jets’ defensive personnel is far
7. Rockies. The N.L.’s hottest
team since June (63-35)
might be running out of steam.
Tony Romo superior. But don’t overlook Bill Belichick’s matchup ability.
even in Week 2, these
NHL
Preseason
four games are getting
AP
8. Tigers. Their best—Justin
Verlander and Miguel

Results, schedule, Page 39

plenty of hype. Here’s a
quick guide to cut
through some of it (all
WNBA times ET):
Playoffs
Results, schedule, Page 42
14 PAGES Myth: Tony Romo struggles against the Giants.
Reality: Romo didn’t play well in the January ’08 playoff
Cabrera—aren’t as good as other
contenders’ best.
NFL WEEK 2 game, but is 4-0 in the regular season vs. New York, the last
— Stan McNeal
COVERAGE N.Y. Giants at Dallas three double-digit wins. The Giants are relentless. “Hopefully,
PAGES 18-31 ALDS debate: Red Sox
Sunday, 8:20 p.m. (NBC) we can account for guys and make them pay,” Romo said.
or Angels? , Page 33
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com See a Different Game FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 2
GUIDE

Tune In Today AUTO RACING

Noon
SPEED—NASCAR, Sprint LeBron leaping to big screen
OFF THE FIELD

A quick look at the best sports on TV Cup, practice for Sylvania

— all times Eastern
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
No. 10 Boise State
at Fresno State
9 p.m., ESPN
Two wins down, 11 to go for the Broncos in
their quest for an unbeaten season and a possible
BCS bowl berth. Boise State has allowed just
eight points all season, and its offense seemed
to click last weekend in a drubbing of Miami
(Ohio). Fresno State plays tough at home and,
after its performance in a double overtime loss at
Wisconsin, might rank as Boise’s toughest remain-
ing game. The Broncos have lost only two WAC
games since 2002; one came in 2005 at Fresno.
— Dave Curtis
GENERAL
Today Show
7 a.m., NBC
Before we get our first official look at the
Cowboys’ new $1.2 billion stadium on Sunday
Night Football, Matt Lauer and Al Roker will be
broadcasting live from the venue this morning.
Lauer and Roker are getting a guided tour of
the facility by former Cowboys great Emmitt
Smith, while Lauer will be interviewing team
owner Jerry Jones. But Roker has perhaps
the best assignment of all—interviewing the
Cowboys cheerleaders.
— Roger Kuznia
BASEBALL
The Faces of RBI 2009
8 p.m., ESPN2
With this year’s RBI (Reviving Baseball in Inner
Cities) World Series in the books, it’s time to take
a deeper look at the kids who play in RBI, the
coaches that teach them, and the volunteers and
MLB executives that help make the program go.
The show, hosted by former RBI alumnus and
current Arizona Diamondback Justin Upton, will
feature a number of kids, most notably two from
L.A. and one from Houston.
— Roger Kuznia
300, at Loudon, N.H.
3 p.m.
ESPN2—NASCAR, Sprint
Cup, pole qualifying for
Sylvania 300, at Loudon,
N.H.
10:30 p.m.
VERSUS—IRL, Indy Japan
300, at Motegi, Japan
BOXING
9 p.m.
ESPN2—Junior feather-
weights, Giovanni Andrade
(52-11-0) vs. Guillermo
Rigondeaux (2-0-0), at
Miami
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
9 p.m.
ESPN—Boise St. at Fresno
St.
GOLF
9 a.m.
TGC—European PGA Tour,
Austrian Open, second
round, at Vienna, Austria
3:30 p.m.
TGC—Champions Tour,
Greater Hickory Classic, first
round, at Conover, N.C.
6:30 p.m.
TGC—Nationwide Tour,
Boise Open, second round,
at Boise, Idaho (same-day
tape)
8:30 p.m.
TGC—LPGA, Samsung
World Championship,
second round, at La Jolla,
Calif. (same-day tape)
RUGBY
11 p.m.
SPIKE—NRL, playoffs,
semifinals, Gold Coast vs.
Parramatta, at Sydney,
Australia (same-day tape)
SOCCER
11 p.m.
ESPN2—MLS, Colorado at
San Jose
LeBron James is leaving Cleveland—for
Hollywood.
The Cavaliers superstar and reigning NBA
MVP will make his feature film debut by play-
ing himself in an upcoming comedy.
James will appear in Fantasy Basketball Camp by
Universal Pictures. The movie is about five guys
from different backgrounds who come to Las
Vegas to live out their fantasy by attending James’
basketball camp. Production will begin next sum-
mer, when James can become a free agent.
James is experienced in front of the camera.
Along with appearing in numerous TV com-
mercials, he has hosted Saturday Night Live.
New claim from QB
Lawyers for Ben Roethlisberger claim in new
court documents that the woman accusing the
Steelers QB of raping her at a Lake Tahoe hotel-
casino concocted the story in part to try to
shield herself from possible layoffs at the
ANDY KROPA / AP
Producer Brian Grazer says LeBron James, above, can
resort. easily make the transition from NBA star to movie star.
Crimes and courts case of sophomore lineman Max Gilpin’s death from
A judge in California ruled that Lakers star Kobe heat stroke. Prosecutors contended that Stinson,
Bryant’s former housekeeper can continue her 37, withheld water from players and ran them
wrongful discharge case but can’t sue for emo- excessively in a series of sprints known as “gas-
tional distress. Maria Jimenez says she was denied sers.” Defense attorneys, however, presented for-
health insurance and was forced to quit because mer Kentucky chief medical examiner George
the Bryants demeaned and humiliated her. Nichols and Daniel Danzl, chairman of the University
of Louisville department of emergency medicine,
Former Detroit Lions wide receiver Charles who testified Gilpin was not dehydrated and that
Rogers was arrested on a drunken-driving charge excessive running did not contribute to his heat
after he refused a Breathalyzer test. Rogers was stroke.
arraigned Thursday on charges of operating
while intoxicated and operating without a valid Quick hit
license. He was ordered held on $50,000 bond. The Suns and Phoenix’s Metro light rail system
A pretrial conference is set for Monday. have partnered on a new program—the first of its
kind, according to the team—in which customers
A Jefferson County (Kentucky) jury acquit- who buy tickets to a Suns game or any other event
ted former Pleasure Ridge Park High School foot- at US Airways Center will receive free transpor-
ball coach Jason Stinson on charges of reckless tation on the Metro on the day of the event, Sports-
homicide and wanton endangerment in the death Business Journal’s John Lombardo reported.
of a player in 2008, according to The Courier-Jour-
nal. The jury reached the verdict approximately MORE COVERAGE from sportingnews.com
90 minutes after beginning deliberations in the Sporting Blog: sportingnews.com/blog/the_sporting_blog/
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com My Profile FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 3

YOUR TURN
Want to sound off on a sports topic
in the news? Sporting News Today
welcomes reader-submitted stories
of 150 words or less. E-mail them
to yourturn@sportingnews.com
Bo Pelini THE WORLD’S FIRST DIGITAL
DAILY SPORTS NEWSPAPER

and be sure to include your name

Nebraska football coach CHAIRMAN & CEO . . . . . . . Ray Shaw (1989 to 2009)
and hometown. We’ll pick the best PRESIDENT . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Whitney Shaw
ones and run them regularly in PUBLISHER . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Ed Baker
the world’s most comprehensive (What you won’t find on Facebook … even if you are approved as a friend)
daily sports section. EDITOR-IN-CHIEF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Jeff D’Alessio
Born: Dec. 13, 1967, in Youngstown, Ohio MANAGING EDITOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Paul Kasko
Status: Married CREATIVE DIRECTOR . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Keith Wood
Alma mater: Ohio State DIRECTOR, DIGITAL MEDIA. . . . . . . . . . . . Geoff Shaw
What’s on TV: Sports, Seinfeld, 24 VP, MARKETING & SALES DEVELOPMENT . .Eric Karp
QUICK HITS What’s in my iPod: Springsteen
What I drive: Nissan Armada EDITORIAL OFFICES
Football factories Favorite flick: Braveheart 120 West Morehead Street, Suite 200
What I’m reading: Lone Survivor: The Eyewitness Charlotte, NC 28202
The 10 college programs that produced the
most players on 2009 NFL opening day rosters: Account of Operation Redwing and the Lost Heroes 704-973-1550
of SEAL Team 10, by Marcus Luttrell 1-800-443-1886
1 (tie). LSU 41
Magazine subscriptions: Sports Illustrated, Sporting
1 (tie). Miami 41
News Letters to the editor:
3. Texas 37
Bookmark: ESPN.com yourturn@sportingnews.com
4 (tie). USC 36 Worst habit: Staying up too late
4 (tie). Ohio State 36 On my office walls: Pictures of my family and General feedback:
6. Georgia 35 Nebraska photos editors@sportingnews.com
7. Tennessee 30 Love to trade places for a day with … A Navy Seal or
8. Michigan 29 Tiger Woods National Digital Sales Managers
9 (tie). Notre Dame 28 First job: Coach/scout for San Francisco 49ers Joey Glowacki, 704-973-1546
10 (tie). Florida State 28 in 1993. Provided me with a great base in jglowacki@sportingnews.com
On the defensive coaching—working with George Seifert, Ray Gary Strauss, 212-500-0672
Average points allowed per game by BCS teams Rhodes, etc. gstrauss@sportingnews.com
with all-time most wins: Talent I’d most like to have: Love to be a great golfer
Favorite meal: Spaghetti and meatballs
Michigan (874 wins) allowed avg. 10.9 ppg
Favorite athlete to watch in another sport: Michael ON NEWSSTANDS NOW
Texas (834 wins) allowed avg. 12.6 ppg Jordan
Notre Dame (832 wins) allowed avg. 12.2 ppg Favorite city to visit: Destin, Fla.
Favorite teams as a kid: Indians, Browns, Celtics
Nebraska (829 wins) allowed avg. 12.8 ppg Favorite value in others: Honesty
Ohio St. (809 wins) allowed avg. 11.9 ppg Dream date: My wife, Mary Pat
My greatest love: My family
Penn St. (803 wins) allowed avg. 12.3 ppg My heroes: My parents
*Through Sept. 13 My bucket list: Watch my kids succeed in
Source: World Features Syndicate whatever they choose to do!!
My mottos: “Stay focused on the process” and
“Compete every day”
— Jeff D’Alessio NATI HARNIK / AP
CORRECTION
The photo published with the Sept. 17 You know who’s in college football’s top
Michael Jenkins “My Profile” was of for- 20. But what about college football’s top
mer Falcons WR Joe Horn, not Jenkins. 20 jobs? The latest issue of SN Magazine
takes you to work.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com Next Gen: Recruiting FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 4
RECRUITING DISH CLASS OF 2010

Four-star California RB
chooses Washington
TOP 25 RECRUITS
Washington coach Steve Sarkisian
1. Marcus Lattimore, RB
6-0/207,
Byrnes (Duncan, S.C.)
8. Jackson Jeffcoat, DL
6-4/233,
Plano West Senior
14. Xavier Grimble, TE
6-5/245,
Bishop Gorman (Las Vegas)
might have landed his best recruit Considering: North Committed to: USC
(Plano, Texas)
for 2010 this week, quite an accom- Carolina, Oregon, South Considering: USC, Texas,
plishment considering he has added Carolina, Penn State,
some big prospects of late.
Consensus four-star RB Deontae
Auburn
Oklahoma, Arizona State,
Houston 15. Jake Heaps, QB
6-2/195,
Skyline (Sammamish, Wash.) COURTESY OF LACHE SEASTRUNK
Cooper out of Citrus Hill (Perris,
Calif.) committed to the Huskies—a 2. Lache Seastrunk, RB
5-10/183,
Temple (Texas)
9. Demarco Cobbs, WR
6-2/200
Committed to: BYU Lache Seastrunk

big pickup only a couple of weeks

after Sporting News Top 100 offen-
sive lineman Erik Kohler chose
Considering: Auburn,
Florida, LSU, Oklahoma, Texas,
Tulsa Central (Tulsa, Okla.)
Committed to: Tennessee 16. Christian Jones, LB
6-4/215,
Lake Howell (Winter Park, Fla.)
21. Eduardo Clements, RB
5-11/185,
Booker T. Washington (Miami)
USC
Washington.
Cooper (6-0, 205) also was being 10. Trey Hopkins, OL
6-4/260,
Considering: Florida State,
Alabama, Florida, USC
Considering: Miami,
Georgia, Michigan
heavily recruited by Nebraska, Ari- 3. Seantrel Henderson, OL
6-8/301,
North Shore
zona State and Fresno State. Others
who were pursuing him included Ari-
Cretin-Derham Hall
(St. Paul, Minn.)
(Galena Park, Texas)
Committed to: Texas 17. Chris Martin, DL
6-4/222,
The Hun School
22. Lamarcus Joyner, DB
5-9/162,
St. Thomas Aquinas
zona, Colorado, Stanford and Utah. Considering: Florida, Ohio
“I see great things happening at
Washington,” Cooper told Sporting
JOHN FROSCHAUER / AP
Washington coach Steve Sarkisian, left, is building quite a recruiting class for 2010.
State, USC, Oklahoma, Notre
Dame, Minnesota 11. Malcolm Jones, RB/LB
6-0/210,
Oaks Christian
(Princeton, N.J.)
Committed to: Notre
Dame
(Fort Lauderdale, Fla.)
Considering: Florida State,
Ohio State, Florida
News Today. “The coaches have got
(Westlake Village, Calif.)
me believing in them and what
they’re doing. I think this is the way
it is with all of us recruits. The
come in as a true freshman and try
to compete for a starting spot,”
Faustin told Rivals.com. “They like
nal) is all about being a family.”
Duckett (6-0, 205) rushed for 595
yards and eight touchdowns as a
4. Matt Elam, DB
6-1/205,
Dwyer (Palm Beach
Considering: Stanford,
UCLA 18. Brennan Clay, RB
6-0/190, 23. Devin Gardner, QB
6-4/196,
Scripps Ranch (San Diego) Inkster (Mich.)
coaches there do a good job of bond- the way I play physically and they junior but is playing quarterback as Gardens, Fla.)
ing with all of us. They’re younger think I have good feet. a senior. He is expected to make the Committed to: Florida
12. Michael Dyer, RB
5-10/195,
Committed to: Oklahoma Committed to: Michigan

and they relate to you.”

Cooper put up numbers as a
junior that led the state of Califor-
“... I think I can cover well and
support the run well. But I think
things I need to work on are my
switch to defense in college.

Two junior college safeties 5. Justin McCay, WR

6-4/200,
Little Rock Christian
Academy (Little Rock, Ark.)
Considering: Arkansas,
19. Phillip Sims, QB
6-2/215,
Oscar Smith
24. Jamel Turner, DE
6-2/205,
Ursuline (Youngstown, Ohio)
nia—he finished with 2,953 yards technique and my ball skills.” have committed to Kentucky. Mychal Bishop Miege Auburn, Oklahoma, Notre (Chesapeake, Va.) Committed to: Ohio State
and 47 touchdowns. Bailey is no stranger to the Wildcats, (Shawnee Mission, Kan.) Dame Committed to: Alabama
Committed to: Oklahoma
“I’m a team player, and I’m going Encinal (Alameda, Calif.) DB having signed with them out of high
to do whatever it takes to win,” Coo-
per said. “I have a positive attitude
in the huddle and I’m not selfish.”
Tyrone Duckett has committed to
Washington
reported.
State, Scout.com
school in 2007. Josh Gibbs is from the
College of the Canyons in Califor-
nia. Bailey (6-5, 205), from
6. Corey Nelson, LB
6-1/200,
13. Zack McCray, DL
6-4/235,
Brookville (Lynchburg, Va.)
20. Erik Kohler, OL
6-5/265,
Oaks Christian
25. Blake Bell, QB
6-6/215,
Bishop Carroll
Skyline (Dallas) Committed to: Virginia
Fresno State and San Diego State LaGrange, Ga., has played for Committed to: Texas A&M (Westlake Village, Calif.) (Wichita, Kan.)
Tech Committed to: Committed to: Oklahoma
Lely (Naples, Fla.) CB Jhony Faus- also recruited him, but the Cougars Southwest Mississippi Community
Washington
tin (5-10, 170) has committed to Pur- were the only program to offer a College. Gibbs (6-0, 200) also had
due, Rivals.com reported. He also
reported scholarship offers from
scholarship.
“That family vibe—that really
received interest from New Mexico
State, Nevada, Louisville and Syra-
7. Gabe King, DL/LB
6-5/260,
Northern Guilford
— Brian McLaughlin

Maryland, Middle Tennessee, Iowa captured me,” Duckett told Scout. cuse. Kentucky has eight commit- (Greensboro, N.C.)
State, Pitt and Florida International. com. “Everyone there was just one. ments for 2010. Considering: Alabama, MORE COVERAGE from sportingnews.com
“They told me they’d like me to That was big for me because (Enci- — Brian McLaughlin California, Oregon, Tennessee Top 100 recruits: sportingnews.com/blog/TheRecruitnik/tag/160168/sn100
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
BASEBALL / AMERICAN LEAGUE
Oakland 5, Cleveland 2
Suzuki cleans up in key spot
OAKLAND—Kurt Suzuki thinks
defense first. When the catcher
makes a rare appearance as Oak-
land’s cleanup hitter, though, he
slides into the role of run
producer.
Suzuki hit a three-run homer to
help the Athletics beat the Cleve-
land Indians 5-2 on Thursday.
“When you’re not trying to do
too much it seems the ball goes
farther,” Suzuki said. “We’re hav-
ing fun and it’s showing on the
field.”
Suzuki batted fourth for the
fifth time this season, and
improved his slugging percentage
in the spot to .667. He’s hitting
.286 there with a pair of home
runs and eight RBIs.
“He doesn’t strike out much
and puts the ball in play,” A’s
manager Bob Geren said. “That’s
how you pick up runs when you
have a man at third.”
Suzuki has driven in 21 runs
over his last 17 games despite hit-
ting .219 over that span. He leads
the A’s with 78 RBIs and is trying
to become the first catcher to lead
the team in the category since
1944.
“I just want to be productive,”
he said. “Last year I hit .279 and
had half as many RBIs (42). I want
to put the ball in play and make
the defense work.”
Adam Kennedy doubled twice
and drove in a run for the A’s,
who have won four straight and
nine of 11. Clayton Mortensen
(2-2) pitched five innings to win
his second consecutive start.
— The Associated Press
Overnight Report FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 5
NHL PRESEASON
Calgary 5, N.Y. Islanders 4, SO Dallas 1 0 0 —1 N.Y. Islanders 1 2 1 0 — 4
Colorado 0 2 1 —3 Calgary 1 2 1 0 — 5
Fleury gets winner in return
First Period: 1, Dallas, Morrow 1 (Robidas,
Ribeiro), 11:45 (pp). Penalties: Barch, Dal, major
(fighting), 3:29; Koci, Col, major (fighting), 3:29;
Calgary won shootout 1-0
First Period: 1, Calgary, Dawes 1 (Langkow), 4:53.
2, N.Y. Islanders, Smith 1 (Bailey), 11:51. Penalties:
Tucker, Col (hooking), 10:38. MacDonald, NYI (hooking), 9:13; Haley, NYI, minor-
Second Period: 2, Colorado, Svatos 1 (Hejduk, major-misconduct (instigator, fighting), 13:49; Jokinen,
Athletics 5, Indians 2 Peltier), 2:13 (pp). 3, Colorado, Stoa 1, 8:38. Pen- Cal, major (fighting), 13:49.
Cleveland AB R H BI BB SO Avg. CALGARY, ALBERTA—Theo Fleury, alties: Morrow, Dal (slashing), 1:11; Robidas, Dal Second Period: 3, N.Y. Islanders, Comeau 1 (Martinek,
Brantley cf 5 0 1 1 0 2 .317 (hooking), 5:58; Galiardi, Col (goaltender interfer- Okposo), :59. 4, N.Y. Islanders, Moulson 1 (MacDonald,
J.Carroll 2b 4 0 0 0 0 0 .289 returning to hockey after being ence), 13:25; Peltier, Col (holding stick), 17:47. Hillen), 4:24 (pp). 5, Calgary, Jokinen 1 (Dawes, Sarich),
Choo rf 2 0 1 0 1 0 .302 away for 6 years, scored the only Third Period: 4, Colorado, Wolski 1 (Stastny, 6:53 (pp). 6, Calgary, Jokinen 2 (Dawes, Moss), 14:35
Jh.Peralta 3b 3 0 0 0 1 1 .270 Hejduk), 6:39. Penalties: Petersen, Dal (hook- (pp). Penalties: Giordano, Cal (hooking), 2:52; Mor-
Hafner dh 3 0 0 0 1 1 .272 goal of the shootout to lead the ing), 1:57; Hannan, Col (holding), 11:46; O’Neill, ency, NYI, minor-game misconduct (roughing), 5:35;
LaPorta 1b 3 0 0 0 1 1 .255 Calgary Flames to a 5-4 pre- Col (tripping), 14:37; Barch, Dal, misconduct, Kiprusoff, Cal, served by Van der Gulik (leaving the
Valbuena ss 4 0 0 0 0 2 .235 16:26; McLeod, Col, misconduct, 16:26. crease), 5:35; Phaneuf, Cal (roughing), 5:35; Martin, NYI
Marson c 4 1 3 0 0 0 .294 season victory over the New York Shots on Goal: Dallas 3-8-8: 19. Colorado (roughing), 9:06; Jaffray, Cal (roughing), 9:06; Haley, NYI,
Crowe lf 4 1 1 1 0 2 .227 Islanders on Thursday night. 9-8-11: 28. major (fighting), 11:54; Jaffray, Cal, major (fighting),
Totals 32 2 6 2 4 9 Power-play opportunities: Dallas 1 of 5; 11:54; Martin, NYI, minor-major (roughing, fighting),
Olli Jokinen had two goals and Colorado 1 of 3. 13:54; Giordano, Cal, major (fighting), 13:54; Aulie, Cal
Oakland AB R H BI BB SO Avg. an assist for the Flames, but it Goalies: Dallas, Auld 0-1-0 (14 shots-12 saves), (hooking), 15:01; Regehr, Cal (high-sticking), 16:50.
Kennedy 3b 5 2 2 1 0 1 .288 Climie (10:14 second, 14-13). Colorado, Anderson Third Period: 7, N.Y. Islanders, Moulson 2 (Hillen,
R.Davis cf 4 0 1 0 0 2 .313 was the 41-year-old Fleury who 1-0-0 (19-18). Streit), 3:10 (pp). 8, Calgary, Moss 1 (Jokinen, Phaneuf),
R.Sweeney lf-rf 2 1 0 1 2 0 .287 had the crowd chanting his name. A: 0 (18,007). T: 2:16. 7:09 (pp). Penalties: Fleury, Cal (hooking), 1:43;
K.Suzuki c 3 1 1 3 1 2 .267 Referees: Tim Peel, Dan O’Rourke. Linesmen: Klementyev, NYI (slashing), 5:40; Haley, NYI (tripping),
Powell dh 4 0 0 0 0 2 .236 He was first off the bench to hug Lyle Seitz, Vaughan Rody. 8:58; Iginla, Cal (elbowing), 12:40; Haley, NYI, miscon-
Cust rf 2 0 1 0 1 1 .235 goaltender David Shantz after he duct, 15:14; Jaffray, Cal, misconduct, 15:14.
Hairston lf 1 0 0 0 0 0 .236 Overtime: None. Penalties: Witt, NYI (roughing),
M.Ellis 2b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .270 turned aside Greg Moore’s final San Jose 1 0 0 0— 2
3:34.
Los Angeles 0 0 1 0— 1
D.Barton 1b 3 0 0 0 1 1 .239 attempt to clinch the victory. Shootout: N.Y. Islanders 0 (Moulson NG, Smith NG,
Pennington ss 2 1 1 0 2 0 .289 Moore NG), Calgary 1 (Dawes NG, Fleury G).
Totals 30 5 7 5 7 10 “I don’t miss those chances San Jose won shootout
Shots on Goal: N.Y. Islanders 4-13-4-1: 22. Calgary
First Period: 1, San Jose, Ferriero 1 (Dan-
ever,” the 5-foot-6 Fleury denault), 12:52. Penalties: Murray, SJ 11-8-17-7: 43.
Cleveland 000 020 000 — 2 6 0 Power-play opportunities: N.Y. Islanders 2 of 5;
Oakland 104 000 00x — 5 7 0
declared. “Not in the big (boarding), 1:56; Helminen, SJ (hooking),
Calgary 3 of 7.
5:53; Dandenault, SJ (interference), 8:44;
moments. Never have, never Nichol, SJ (roughing), 15:37; Cliche, LA Goalies: N.Y. Islanders, Biron (17 shots-15 saves), Poulin
LOB: Cleveland 8, Oakland 8. 2B: Marson (2), Kennedy 2 0-0-1 (10:49 second, 26-24). Calgary, Kiprusoff (14-11),
(25). 3B: Crowe (2), Pennington (2). HR: K.Suzuki (13),
will.” (roughing), 15:37.
Shantz 1-0-0 (13:40 second, 8-7).
Second Period: None. Penalties: Frolov,
off Masterson. RBIs: Brantley (7), Crowe (13), Kennedy Islanders forward Kyle Okposo LA (hooking), :49; San Jose bench, served by A: 19,289 (19,289). T: 2:46.
(56), R.Sweeney (49), K.Suzuki 3 (78). SB: R.Davis (39). Referees: Tom Kowal, Kelly Sutherland. Linesmen:
CS: Brantley (3), D.Barton (2). Runners left in scoring
was removed from the ice immo- JACK DEMPSEY / AP Mashinter (too many men), 1:59; Staubitz,
Ryan Galloway, Brian Mach.
SJ, major (fighting), 10:37; Ivanans, LA,
position: Cleveland 4 (Crowe 2, LaPorta, Brantley); bilized on a stretcher after a hit Dallas D Ivan Vishnevskiy (59) and Colorado RW Darren Haydar tangle for the puck. minor-major-misconduct (instigator, fight-
Oakland 4 (D.Barton, K.Suzuki, R.Davis, Hairston). from Flames defenseman Dion ing), 10:37; Drewiske, LA (cross-checking), Vancouver 1 2 0 — 3
10:50; Demers, SJ (tripping), 12:15; Mash- Anaheim 0 0 0 — 0
Cleveland IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Phaneuf early in the second San Jose 2, Los Angeles 1 SO Dallas Stars. inter, SJ, major (fighting), 14:29; Clifford, LA,
Masterson L, 4-8 4 6 5 5 4 6 93 4.49 period. First Period: 1, Vancouver, Bernier 1 (Wellwood,
J.Lewis 2 1 0 0 0 3 22 4.34 ONTARIO, CALIF.—Jason Demers Brendan Morrow scored for major (fighting), 14:29; Johnson, LA (closing
Oberg), 7:09. Penalties: McIver, Van (interference),
hand on puck), 15:47; Doughty, LA (interfer-
Gosling 2⁄3 0 0 0 1 0 8 4.82 Okposo, the seventh pick in scored the shootout winner and the Stars, who were playing their ence), 16:21; Joslin, SJ, major (fighting), 1:20; Ramsey, Van (tripping), 2:51; Kesler, Van, major
Veras 1 1⁄3 0 0 0 2 1 24 5.72 the 2006 draft, remained (fighting), 8:08; Perry, Ana, major (fighting), 8:08;
Oakland IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA the San Jose Sharks won in their second preseason game in as 20:00; Johnson, LA, minor-major (slashing,
McIver, Van (interference), 8:23; Bolduc, Van, major
fighting), 20:00.
Mortensen W, 2-2 5 4 2 2 3 4 91 6.14 motionless on the ice for more preseason opener. many nights. Third Period: 2, Los Angeles, Brown 1 (Lok- (fighting), 11:54; McCue, Ana, major (fighting), 11:54;
Kilby H, 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 10 0.00 Calder, Ana (high-sticking), 15:57.
Breslow H, 13 1 1⁄3 1 0 0 0 0 23 3.59 than 6 minutes as he was attended Thomas Greiss had 24 saves for tionov), 19:50 (pp). Penalties: Henderson,
Second Period: 2, Vancouver, Bieksa 1 (Wellwood),
SJ (tripping), 4:22; Joslin, SJ (interference),
Wuertz H, 22 2⁄3 0 0 0 1 2 15 2.85 to by trainers from both teams San Jose and stopped all four Los Vancouver 3, Anaheim 0 10:32; Loktionov, LA (cross-checking), 16:56; 9:44 (pp). 3, Vancouver, Rome 1 (Raymond, Samuels-
A.Bailey S, 25-29 1 1 0 0 0 3 19 1.95 son), 17:47. Penalties: Glass, Van, minor-major-
and other medical personnel. Angeles skaters in the shootout. ANAHEIM—Defenseman Kevin Hinote, SJ (cross-checking), 19:40.
misconduct (instigator, fighting), 2:47; Wisniewski,
Overtime: None. Penalties: Drewiske, LA
Inherited runners-scored: Veras 1-0, Wuertz 1-0. A CT scan showed Okposo had He came close to starting the pre- Bieksa scored on a power play, (tripping), :20; Clifford, LA (hooking), 3:43. Ana, major (fighting), 2:47; Niedermayer, Ana (holding),
HBP: by Breslow (Choo). WP: Wuertz. Umpires: Home, 8:45; Parros, Ana (slashing), 11:37; McIver, Van, major
Gerry Davis; First, C.B. Bucknor; Second, Mike Everitt; a mild concussion, Islanders season with a shutout but Dustin Aaron Rome and Steve Bernier Shots on Goal: San Jose 5-9-4-8: 26. Los
(fighting), 15:15; McCue, Ana, major (fighting), 15:15.
Angeles 10-5-9-1: 25.
Third, Angel Campos. T: 2:50. A: 10,873 (35,067). spokesman Seth Sylvan said in a Brown tied the game at 1 with 9.5 added goals and Kyle Wellwood Power-play opportunities: San Jose 0 of Third Period: None. Penalties: Perry, Ana, minor-
text message to The Associated seconds left in regulation. had two assists to lead the Van- 8; Los Angeles 1 of 8. misconduct (cross-checking), 20:00.
Goalies: San Jose, Greiss 1-0-0 (25 shots-24 Missed Penalty Shot: Marchant, Ana, 11:02 third.
Press. Sylvan said Okposo couver Canucks. saves). Los Angeles, Quick 0-0-1 (26-25). Shots on Goal: Vancouver 12-12-12: 36. Anaheim
accompanied the team on the Colorado 3, Dallas 1 Roberto Luongo played the A: 6,245 (9,736). T: 2:37. 8-11-9: 28.
Referees: Justin St. Pierre, Brian Pochmara. Power-play opportunities: Vancouver 1 of 3; Ana-
flight to Saskatoon, Saskatche- DENVER—Marek Svatos and first two periods and stopped all Linesmen: Shane Heyer, Jay Sharrers. heim 0 of 4.
wan, where the Islanders are Ryan Stoa scored goals in the 19 shots he faced. Cory Schneider Goalies: Vancouver, Luongo 1-0-0 (19 shots-19 saves),
C.Schneider (0:00 third, 9-9). Anaheim, Giguere 0-1-0
conducting training camp and second period, and Wojtek Wol- took over with a 3-0 lead and (16-14), Pogge (9:44 second, 20-19).
where these teams play again ski added another in the third as made nine saves. Thursday’s other A: 14,258 (17,174). T: 2:30.
Angels avoid sweep, rally Referees: Dennis LaRue, Brad Watson. Linesmen:
for victory, Page 35 Saturday the Colorado Avalanche beat the — The Associated Press preseason games, Page 39 Don Henderson, Thor Nelson.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com College Football FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 6
No. 20 Miami 33, No. 14 Georgia Tech 17 winning.”
Since taking a 24-0 lead against No. 10 Boise State (2-0)
at Fresno State (1-1)
Tech’s hex broken by poised Harris Clemson last Thursday night,
Georgia Tech has been outscored
60-23.
Tonight, 9, ESPN

MIAMI—Jacory Harris watched
Georgia Tech run over, past and
around Miami’s defense on the
opening series of the game, barely
showing any emotion on the
sideline.
He saved it all for the field.
And Georgia Tech’s hex over
Miami? It’s over.
Cool and in control throughout,
Harris completed 20-of-25 passes
for 270 yards and three touch-
downs, and the 20th-ranked
Hurricanes snapped a four-game
losing streak against No. 14 Geor-
gia Tech with a 33-17 victory
Thursday night.
Miami scored on its first three
possessions, built a 24-3 lead
shortly after halftime and out-
gained the Yellow Jackets by
nearly a 2-to-1 margin.
“One thing I congratulate this
team on is how we stay focused,”
Harris said. “You know, there’s a
lot of people around campus and
in the community, they praise us
now and they’ve got our back and
all this. But the thing I know
about this team, we’re not (let-
ting) anything go to our head.”
Miami (2-0, 2-0 Atlantic Coast
Conference) matched its best
league start since 2004, out-
gained Georgia Tech 454-228
and set up a Coastal Division
showdown at Virginia Tech on
Sept. 26. Graig Cooper ran for 93
yards, Javarris James rushed for
72 more and a touchdown, and
LaRon Byrd caught five passes
for 83 yards and another score.
It’s the first time Miami has
won consecutive games against
ranked opponents since the end
of the 2003 season.
QB Jacory Harris, right, helped Miami win consecutive games against ranked opponents for the first time since 2003.
“Big win for us tonight,” Miami
coach Randy Shannon said. “Big,
huge win. Big for this football
team and this program.”
Georgia Tech (2-1, 1-1) blew
Miami out a year ago, dooming
the Hurricanes’ conference title
hopes by rushing for 472 yards.
This time, Miami handled the
triple option with relative ease,
holding the Yellow Jackets to 95
yards rushing—60 of those com-
ing on the game’s first drive.
Tech’s reigning ACC player of
the year, fullback Jonathan
Dwyer, was slowed by a shoulder
injury—only a stinger, he said
afterward—and finished with 7
yards on five carries. Josh Nesbitt
completed 6-of-15 passes, all to
Demaryius Thomas, for 133
yards, including a 56-yard touch-
down midway through the fourth
quarter.
“We could never get them off
the field,” Georgia Tech coach
Paul Johnson said. “In a game
like that, you better maximize
and we didn’t. We played very
poorly on offense.”
Miami didn’t.
Other than two late missed
HANS DERYK / AP
field goals by Matt Bosher, there
wasn’t much for Miami to com-
plain about, and the Hurricanes
sauntered off celebrating their
most significant win in years.
Even tight end Jimmy Graham—
who spent four years on Miami’s
basketball team—got into the act,
catching a 14-yard touchdown
pass in the third quarter.
Graham was the only Miami
player ever to beat Georgia Tech
before: He was 4-1 against the
Yellow Jackets in basketball.
“This offense is not selfish,”
Byrd said. “As long as we’re
“We just killed ourselves,” The line: Boise State by 7½.
Dwyer said. “We didn’t play Series record: Boise State leads 7-4.
Georgia Tech football. I think we Last meeting: 2008, Boise State 61-10.
finally learned our lesson. We Announcers: Joe Tessitore and Rod
realized that if we don’t go out Gilmore
here and work hard, we’re going
to get our butts kicked.” What’s at stake
Georgia Tech ran the ball on its The Broncos must win to keep their
first 12 plays, quickly forcing hopes alive for another BCS berth. The
Miami into a series of frantic Bulldogs know if they want to win a share
substitutions. of their first WAC title since 1999, they
Eric Moncur—Miami’s sixth- likely must start with a win tonight.
year defensive end who was
injured most of last season and Key matchup
was held out of this year’s Boise State CB Kyle Wilson vs. Fresno State WR Seyi
opener—got a big stop on third- Ajirotutu. Ajirotutu has yet to make it into
and-6, forcing Tech to settle for a the end zone in two meetings with the
field goal. Broncos and will have one of the nation’s
— The Associated Press top cornerbacks in his way this week in
Wilson.
Georgia Tech 3 0 7 7 — 17
Miami 7 10 16 0 — 33
Players to watch
First Quarter Boise State: WR Titus Young. Young had
GaT: FG Blair 32, 8:09.
Mia: Byrd 40 pass from J.Harris (Bosher kick), 6:30. six catches for 114 yards and two touch-
Second Quarter downs last week against Miami (Ohio). He
Mia: Epps 13 pass from J.Harris (Bosher kick), 13:33.
Mia: FG Bosher 34, 5:45. was suspended for 10 games last season for
Third Quarter undisclosed reasons. His speed gives Boise
Mia: J.James 3 run (Bosher kick), 11:50.
GaT: Allen 3 run (Blair kick), 8:07. the ability to stretch opposing defenses.
Mia: Graham 14 pass from J.Harris (Bosher kick), 3:08. Fresno State: QB Ryan Colburn. Colburn
Mia: Safety, :32.
Fourth Quarter makes his third career start against one of
GaT: D.Thomas 56 pass from Nesbitt (Blair kick), 8:37. the nation’s stingiest defenses. He com-
A: 45,329.
pleted 22 of 36 passes for 289 yards last
GaT Mia week against Wisconsin but also threw
First downs .......................................................12....................21
Rushes-yards .............................................. 39-95............39-184 three interceptions.
Passing ............................................................133..................270
Comp-Att-Int .............................................6-15-0...........20-25-0
Return Yards........................................................ 0....................14 Facts & figures
Punts-Avg. ................................................. 3-45.7............. 1-41.0 Boise State outscored Fresno State 48-0
Fumbles-Lost ...................................................3-0...................0-0
Penalties-Yards ..............................................8-44.................9-74 in the second half last year on its way to a
Time of Possession.......................................26:25...............33:35 third straight win in the series. ... The Bull-
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS dogs have beaten the Broncos only once in
RUSHING: Georgia Tech, Allen 6-42, Nesbitt 14-29, Jones 6-18, eight tries since Boise State joined the WAC,
Wright 3-7, Dwyer 5-7, Lyons 1-6, Cox 2-6, Peeples 1-3, Team
1-(minus 23). Miami, Cooper 17-93, J.James 14-72, Benjamin a 27-7 home win in 2005. ... Boise State has
1-13, Chambers 2-12, J.Harris 1-0, Team 4-(minus 6). allowed fewer than 200 total yards in each
PASSING: Georgia Tech, Nesbitt 6-15-0-133. Miami, J.Harris
20-25-0-270. of their first two games.
RECEIVING: Georgia Tech, D.Thomas 6-133. Miami, Byrd 5-83, — The Associated Press
Epps 3-37, Cooper 3-32, Benjamin 3-29, J.James 2-12, Hanker-
son 1-35, Graham 1-14, P.Hill 1-14, T.Johnson 1-14.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
GAME OF THE WEEK: Florida State at No. 7 BYU, 7 p.m. Saturday, Versus
Mendenhall seeking changes
to BCS system that hurts BYU
A home win for No. 7 BYU on Saturday
against Florida State would keep the
Cougars in the conversation for (gasp!)
a spot in the BCS national champion-
ship game. Coach Bronco Mendenhall
discussed that quest and the BYU-related
history behind it on this week’s Mountain
West Conference teleconference:
Q: This is the 25th
anniversary of the lone
national championship team at
BYU. How special is it,
considering BYU is the only
team to do that from outside
Notre Dame or the BCS
automatic qualifier
conferences?
A: It’s very special. And in
fact, no one has ever said
this, nor do I think the correlation
has ever been drawn, but the
current system might be in place
because of what you just alluded to.
So, it’s interesting because it’s 25
years later. BYU was part of the
motive to create this system, and
now we’re now trying to break the
system down. So we find ourselves
in a unique situation.
Q: How do you feel about
that knowing the wheels
were basically set in motion
after that championship to
have what we have today?
A: You have to take it as a
compliment to start with,
that the program had to be viewed
PATRICK SEMANSKY / AP
Cougars coach Bronco Mendenhall said the
BCS system is unfair to schools like BYU.
in that way and demand attention.
But then, there becomes a level of
maybe injustice or being unfair
from the standpoint that the times
are quite different now. When you
look at the number of teams
playing, and just because of
conference affiliation, it’s supposed
to mean that league is better or that
team is better. We’ve proven as a
league and as a football team that
that is no longer the case. And the
system needs to be revised.
Twenty-five years is a long time.
College Football
It’s clearly time to look at it again
and update it.
Q: If this system was in
place back then, would
BYU have won that
championship?
A: Not under the current
circumstances. We just
learned last year the University of
Utah went undefeated and wasn’t
allowed to play for the national
championship. I think the answer
to that is no.
Q: With the win over
Oklahoma, is there a
carrot out there besides
winning the conference?
A: If you’re talking about a
carrot beyond what a
conference championship is, and a
chance to be considered for (a
national championship), that’s our
ultimate goal. It is for every
program in the country. Timetable
is the only thing they wouldn’t
acknowledge. If teams are saying
their goal is not to do that, I would
have an issue with that. Any time
programs in our league claim
center stage against a quality
opponent and have success, we
come one step closer. But I won’t
allow us to consider or think about
anything else right now other than
Florida State, and certainly not
anything beyond our conference.
— Dave Curtis
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 7
WHAT WE LEARNED Sporting News Today’s Matt Hayes analyzes
what Thursday’s buzz means to college football
Arm in arm
John Marinatto has been on the job
as Big East commissioner for all of
upset loss to Houston.
Gundy told reporters Bryant
“needs to become a better team
three or four deep breaths, yet already
he’s falling in line with the rest of his
BCS brethren. Or more specifically,
the party line.
player,” and not be so concerned with
celebrating before and during the
game. It was Gundy who became a
YouTube sensation with his “I’m a
In an interview with The Birming- man” speech while defending
ham News, Marinatto says there may benched quarterback Bobby Reid,
not be a BCS in five years, and if there but this one—without the emotion
isn’t, it likely means college football and passion of a postgame press con-
has gone old school: reverting to the
previous backroom bowl deals and
conference tie-ins. You know, the very
ference—carries even more weight.
“Yes, he is a terrific player for us,
and Dez will play this game for a long
mess the BCS was supposed to clean time, but we’ve got to get him to con-
up with its No. 1 vs. No. 2 matchup.
“You see what’s going on with Con-
trol himself some. He needs to
DAVID ZALUBOWSKI / AP become a better team player and play
gress in regards to the playoffs, and Dez Bryant was called out by coach Mike
you know how the schools and con- Gundy following OSU’s loss to Houston.
ferences across the country feel rela-
as well without the ball as he does
with the ball.”
Think of the impact of this state-
tive to that issue,” Marinatto said. “At some point or ment, this early in the season. Gundy is calling out his
another, I think people are going to be going back to the team’s best player after the biggest upset of the early sea-
old system.” son. It’s a Cardinal sin to blame players in public, and
What Nebraska chancellor Harvey Perlman began Gundy doesn’t have a reputation of doing so.
this summer by telling Congress the very same thing,
Marinatto continued in a seemingly innocuous inter-
In other words, this is Motivation 101.
“Dez is the biggest cheerleader we’ve got,” Gundy
view: It’s either the BCS, or old school. There’s no said. “If you really watch the tape of when we have
in-between. somebody score a touchdown and he’s away from the
“The BCS was really instituted as an attempt to get ball, instead of finishing the block, he’s signaling touch-
away from all that and create a 1-2 championship game,” down and celebrating.”
Marinatto told the newspaper. “It may not be perfect. I
think we all acknowledge it’s not perfect. But we all felt Banking 101
it was better than what was before.” Look, every coach does it. It’s just that, you know, no
Meanwhile, the folks in Pasadena already have made coach does it as well as Mike Leach.
it clear to new Pac-10 commissioner Larry Scott that Only Leach, Texas Tech’s dry-witted, deep-thinking
there will be no national playoff. coach, could pull this one off. Apparently, Leach pro-
So any hope of new blood infusing different ideas— motes a bank in Lubbock, Texas, and the Vista Bank
Plus One?—into the game is gone. The power brokers of commercials are entitled “Banking 101.”
college football enjoy their perfectly imperfect world One of the classics: Leach, on the practice field in his
that produces more revenue than they could dream. black Texas Tech T-shirt, looking into the camera with
Why change now?
Making a statement—again
sage advice for those with credit cards. Shoot, Dave
Ramsey would be proud.
“Today,” Leach says, “We’re going to talk about credit
It has been a couple of years since we’ve heard some- card smarts. You don’t just swipe it, sign it and take it.
thing like this from Mike Gundy. But understand this: You have to pay credit cards back. That’s just the way
For Gundy to publicly call out All-American wideout
Dez Bryant, it has to be an issue that has been festering
longer than the past few days since Oklahoma State’s
the deal
And
is.
then,
Priceless.
Pay your credit cards off monthly.”
we fade to black.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Corp getting a chance wouldn’t be bad thing
Sporting News Today’s Matt Hayes previews the five
biggest story lines of the weekend in college football:
1. The dreaded quarterback controversy
I’m not exactly sure what was more perplexing last
week: that, on third and long and the game on the line,
Ohio State had linebacker Ross Homan covering speedy
tailback Joe McKnight, or that ABC’s
Brent Musburger acted like a queasy
schoolgirl with his man crush on
freshman Matt Barkley.
Despite what Musburger and many
others have proclaimed about The
Next John Elway, Joe McKnight won
that game last week. Ask Homan. Or
Matt Hayes Jim Tressel.
COLLEGE FOOTBALL Why is this significant? Because
the last thing USC needs right now is
a quarterback controversy. And if Barkley can’t go
against Washington this weekend because of a bruised
shoulder, backup Aaron Corp will take over and the
offense suddenly will have an added dimension it hasn’t
had since Pete Carroll arrived at Troy in 2001.
Yes, everyone, the Trojans will have a quarterback
who can hurt you with his legs, too. Remember, Corp
won the job in spring practice—clearly won it—and was
the leader going into fall camp and Com-Pete was gush-
ing about Corp’s potential. Then Corp broke a bone in
his leg and got Wally Pipp’d.
2. Bluster and blowouts
Let’s go back six months—not all the way back to
Lane Kiffin’s gigging of Florida that started this fabri-
cated nonsense of Florida getting paybacks … ooooooh
… for the way mean Lane talked about the Gators. But
back to the spring, when I was sitting in Monte Kiffin’s
corner office in the Tennessee football complex and he
already was breaking down tape of the Gators.
His greaseboard was full of Florida’s personnel and
plays and specific sets and looks. Monte Kiffin had
back surgery this spring, and was supposed recuperate
for a week before returning to work.
He left the hospital the day after surgery, went to his
office and started breaking down Florida.
“Have you seen this team?” Kiffin asked this spring.
“I’m not wasting any time.”
College Football
JAY LAPRETE / AP
Even if Matt Barkley, right, is unable to play Saturday because of a bruised shoulder, Aaron Corp’s mobility could give Washington fits.
All this talk about a Florida blowout, and all I can way now.
think about is Florida hasn’t found a go-to receiver yet, Does BYU deserve to be in the BCS national champi-
hasn’t played a meaningful snap against a legitimate onship game if it wins out? The fact that we’re even
team yet, and hasn’t faced a Monte Kiffin defense. The addressing this so early is absurd, but because the Cou-
Vols aren’t going to beat Florida, but it certainly won’t gars could get another boost this weekend with a vic-
be the beatdown everyone expects. tory over BCS big boy Florida State (which, at this point,
is no better than a win over any other middling BCS
3. The BYU question team; but that’s a story for another time), we must at
Frankly, we’re getting way ahead of ourselves. But least all come face-to-face with our BCS snobbery.
since this is the 25th anniversary of BYU’s national Let’s say every BCS team had one loss with the excep-
championship season, and since Utah and Boise State tion of Cincinnati. There’s no doubt the Bearcats would
have been banging on the BCS door the previous five be in the BCS national championship game.
seasons, we may as well go ahead and get it out of the If that’s the case, why wouldn’t unbeaten BYU be just
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 8
as, if not more, a legitimate pick for that big game? We
can all agree that the Mountain West is at least as good
or better than the Big East. And BYU would have wins
over Oklahoma and Florida State and a MWC schedule
that includes ranked TCU and Utah. Cincinnati’s
resume couldn’t match that.
4. Letdown from the showdown
I don’t know about you, but I’ve watched Toledo twice
now, and even though the Rockets’ defense couldn’t
stop my local high school team, the offense behind
senior quarterback Aaron Opelt (nine total TDs) is flat-
out ridiculous.
The reality is, Ohio State’s defense is much better than
the Purdue and Colorado units, which Toledo torched
for 85 points and 1,117 total yards. So let’s say Ohio State
still is in the jar about the loss to USC, a game it should’ve
won and let slip away in the last two minutes.
Let’s say Tressel’s dressing down of lunatic Buckeye
fans earlier this week has created a distraction, and
suddenly his still-maturing, still-uneasy quarterback
Terrelle Pryor presses too much, commits a couple of
turnovers and the next thing you know Ohio State is
trailing by a couple of scores and has to actually, you
know, score points with its offense.
5. Payback time
Two plays, two hard-to-imagine plays kept Texas from
the BCS national championship game last season. That
and the weird other story line (see: 45-35) I’m sure Texas
already has forgotten.
The Longhorns get their first crack at redemption this
weekend when they play host to Texas Tech. You remem-
ber last year’s game, right? Tech used a dropped intercep-
tion by one Texas freshman safety (Blake Gideon) and a
missed tackle by another Texas freshman safety (Earl
Thomas) a play later to upset the Longhorns in Lubbock.
But this is a Tech team with Joaquin Phoenix, I mean
Taylor Potts, as its starting quarterback and a whole lot of
newness on defense. In other words, this game in Austin
will look a whole lot like the previous five under coach
Mack Brown vs. Texas Tech in Austin. In those five
games, Texas has scored 58, 42, 43, 52 and 59 points.
This one may hit 60. Not because Texas is trying to
prove a point or anything.
mhayes@sportingnews.com
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com College Football

ACC
INSIDE DISH

Florida State needs to find running game against BYU

Florida State figures it is headed for trouble Satur-
day at BYU if its running game doesn’t show big
improvement.
The Seminoles, with their offensive line returning
intact from last season, has managed just 188 yards
rushing through two games.
“If we want to get up to the next level, we’re going to
have to improve our line blocking and our running
game,” coach Bobby Bowden told reporters earlier this
week.
Jermaine Thomas, the starting tailback in the opener
against Miami, has just 18 yards on 9 carries. The
Seminoles’ leading rusher is RB Ty Jones, with 99 yards,
and next is QB Christian Ponder, with 35.
“We would love to have the running game where it
needs to be to keep defenses honest,” running backs
coach Dexter Carter said in a report by The Associated
Press. “The running game is imperative to our PHIL COALE / AP
success.” Jermaine Thomas, left, started FSU’s opener against Miami, but now
likely will play behind Ty Jones.
Virginia Tech’s defense finds itself in an unusual
position entering Saturday’s game against Nebraska— had asked for his release so he could transfer. But the
80th in the country in yards allowed. school later said Dye is staying with the program.
Coordinator Bud Foster’s group has ranked in the top Swinney and Dye met Thursday afternoon.
10 nationally each of the past five seasons. Dye began the season as a starter but dropped a pass
Tech’s biggest problem in its first two games? Giving in the opener against Middle Tennessee. He was
up big plays. The Hokies were gashed for 310 yards on moved to second team at practice last week and did
seven plays over the Alabama and Marshall games, not play in a 30-27 loss to Georgia Tech.
according to a report by The Virginian-Pilot. On the Brandon Clear has replaced Dye in the starting lineup.
other 133 plays, Tech allowed an average of 3.3 yards. Swinney said Dye would not play Saturday against
Foster said he saw improvement in Week 2’s 52-10 Boston College.
win over Marshall but reminded his unit there still
were too many mistakes. He pointed to a 61-yard Maryland, implementing a more aggressive scheme
touchdown run by Marshall’s Darius Marshall, who on defense under first-year coordinator Don Brown, is the
bounced outside after a missed tackle up front and only ACC team that hasn’t forced a turnover through two
took advantage of a linebacker being out of position. games. The Terps’ defense ranks 108th or worse nation-
“They can’t feel good about themselves,” Foster said. ally in four statistical categories.
“We’ve got to always have an edge. We’ve got to let “After being in a defensive system for nine years, we
them know what our expectations are around here.” have been in it for two weeks,” Brown said in a report
by The Washington Post. “I think that is showing up a
Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said during a radio little bit. Everywhere I have been there has always
interview Thursday morning that junior WR Xavier Dye been that little period of growing pains.”
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
‘We’ve had three straight quarterbacks who can play’
BY DEKODA WATSON
For SN Today
I think BYU is going to be a great
challenge. They just beat Oklahoma
recently, and that was big time. It’s
going to be a tough situation, play-
ing in that atmosphere. The altitude
will be tough. When we played at
Colorado a few years back, I had
extra oxygen whenever I could
because I have asthma. It was
extremely tough for me to breathe
at that high altitude.
With Utah being just like Colo-
rado, high up, I know it’s going to
be a big challenge for me. I’m sure
my breathing will be all right, but at
the same time it’s going to be differ-
ent from what I go through week to
week, something I’m not used to.
I’m just going to try to control my
breathing and go hard.
BYU’s offensive line is great, and
the running back—Bryan Kariya—
is a hard runner. The quarterback,
Max Hall, is mobile, too. For us, it’s
like we’ve had three straight quar-
terbacks who can play and move—
Jacory Harris from Miami, Ryan
Perrilloux from Jacksonville State
and now BYU’s quarterback. As far
as quarterbacks are concerned, it’s
been a challenge the first three
weeks.
With no disrespect to Perrilloux,
I feel like BYU’s quarterback is a lot
more accurate than what we faced
last week. They pass a lot more than
Jacksonville State, and I think that’s
what they’re going to do in this
game. I think it’ll be more of a pass-
ing game, but at the same time, they
have running backs who can run
the ball and do some damage.
Overall, I think they’re a sound
PLAYER DIARY
Dekoda Watson says BYU QB Max Hall, above, is an accurate thrower and mobile, as well.
team—period. They’re very disci-
plined, not just on offense but on
special teams and defense, too. They
go hard, they have good technique
and they’re very fundamentally
sound. That’s one of the reasons
they’re undefeated right now.
Our Jacksonville State game was
close. You would like to have a week
or so to prepare for any team, and
obviously we didn’t have a week to
prepare for Jacksonville State—
since we’d played Miami that Mon-
day night. I didn’t think I was very
well prepared, and it was something
new for the freshmen and sopho-
mores. Two years back when we
played Miami on that Monday, we
had to fight for four quarters that
next weekend to beat Troy. But then
again, a win is a win in my eyes. It
doesn’t matter how you do it.
College Football
PATRICK SEMANSKY / AP
One thing we haven’t been this
year is consistent. I know that was
my goal this year, consistency. I
didn’t want to just make one big
play and then that’s it. I want to be
consistent in all games.
— As told to Brian McLaughlin
About the author
Dekoda
Watson,
Florida State
LB
A 6-2, 226-
pound senior
from Aiken,
S.C., Watson
had nine
tackles and 3.5 sacks in Saturday’s
win over Jacksonville State. He
currently ranks fifth nationally with
4.5 sacks in two games.
Coach Bible is ‘like my brother and my dad’
BY RUSSELL WILSON
For SN Today
There aren’t many more impor-
tant relationships for a quarter-
back that the ones he has with his
quarterback and his offensive
coordinator. For me, it’s the same
guy—coach Dana Bible. And he’s
one of the big parts of any success
I’ve had at N.C. State. Basically,
he’s like my brother and my dad.
He’s with me every day, out at
practice, in the film room. The only
way that I can get better is to listen
to him and let him teach me.
I’ve known coach Bible for a
few years now. I had made a ver-
bal commitment here when the
coaching change happened and
the new staff came on board.
Coach Bible came out to my school
before I signed and told me how
much they wanted me to come to
N.C. State.
That was big for me, that he
came out and recruited me as
well. Plus, I knew the other quar-
terbacks he had coached, espe-
cially Matt Ryan and those guys
at Boston College. I was hoping he
could have the same effect on me.
Since I’ve been here, we’ve
really grown to trust each other.
He has a lot of knowledge that can
help me, and it really comes
through with all the time we
spend together. We’ll play Satur-
day, and the day after, Sunday,
he’ll help me start preparing for
the next opponent right way.
Then, it’s lots of time in the film
room, and, of course, the time
we’re on the practice field.
The other good thing is that
coach Bible works with the
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 10
PLAYER DIARY
PEYTON WILLIAMS / N.C. STATE
N.C. State offensive coordinator Dana Bible also coached in the NFL with the Eagles
and Bengals.
receivers, too, so all of us are in something like, “That was a
the same meeting room together. decent play.” Or, “That was an
That really helps us get on the OK throw.”
same page for the next game. That’s one of the things I like
Out at practice, Coach is a real about him, actually. He’s always
hands-on guy, and he’s very pushing me, and I’m sure he
focused on what we have to do. always will be.
We definitely laugh and joke a — As told to Dave Curtis
little bit, but it’s usually all busi-
ness. He’s helped me in so many
About the author
areas, but the biggest thing prob-
ably has been learning to make Russell
Wilson,
reads and move through a play. N.C. State
He’s also made me more accurate QB
and helped me with my mechan- A sopho-
more from
ics and fundamentals.
Richmond,
He’s also a very humbling guy.
Va., Wilson
He’s never satisfied. He’ll say, threw for
“You were good, but you’ve got to 228 yards and four touchdowns
be better.” Sometimes, in a game, last week as the Wolfpack
thumped Murray State 65-7. Next
I’ll make what I think was a great
up Saturday at home is Gardner-
play, and then I’ll come to the
Webb, the Pack’s second-straight
sidelines and get on the phone I-AA opponent.
with him. And he’ll say
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
BIG 12
INSIDE DISH
Tannehill’s role a work in progress for Aggies
Ryan Tannehill lost the quarterback competition with
Jerrod Johnson in the preseason, then caught three passes
for 40 yards against New Mexico in A&M’s season
opener.
So what happened when Johnson was replaced late
in the Sept. 5 game with the Aggies leading, 41-6? Red-
shirt freshman Tommy Dorman got the call, even though
Tannehill is listed as No. 2 quarterback on the depth
chart.
Coach Mike Sherman said he went with Dorman
because he considers Tannehill a first-stringer—
whether or not he’s playing quarterback.
“I just didn’t see any need,” Sherman said. “He had
been playing in the game and we had exposed him to
some risk. I didn’t want to do that any further in the
ballgame, to put a starter—and I consider Ryan a
starter—in that late in the ballgame. That was the rea-
son to go with Tommy.”
Sherman wouldn’t say how much Tannehill will play
at wide receiver against Utah State Saturday, reiterat-
ing that he’s walking “a very fine line” in the way he
uses him.
The Texas Longhorns will be bracing for an air
raid Saturday when they play host to Texas Tech. But
so will the Red Raiders.
Tech CB Taylor Charbonnet has a hunch the Red Raid-
ers’ secondary will be equal to the task of stopping
Texas QB Colt McCoy and his stable of wide receivers—
they have certainly had plenty of practice.
“I think we’ve been challenged enough all camp,
because we’ve played against our offense—and who’s
better at passing the ball than our offense?” Charbon-
net told the Lubbock Avalanche-Journal. “We’ve played
against the best passing offense in the nation, so I think
our secondary is ready to play.”
Just in case anyone was wondering—and many
were—Oklahoma coach Bob Stoops made it official
Thursday when he told the Tulsa World that injured QB
Sam Bradford will not be playing Saturday against Tulsa
College Football
Seats are ‘soft and wide in first class’
BY NDAMUKONG SUH
For SN Today
I’ve heard a lot about the game-
day atmosphere at Virginia Tech,
and how it’s so tough to play
there. But I love away games; I
love everything about it from the
travel to the game to being put in
the position where it’s you against
the world, you can take the home
crowd out of the game, mess with
their day and make them mad.
We love going on the road
because we have a group of fans
that travel with us and stay at the
same hotel and it makes it excit-
ing. This trip is an alumni trip, so
we’ll take a big jumbo jet to the
game because alumni will also be
on board. It’s one of those double-
deck planes.
MATT SLOCUM / AP I love to fly, especially now that
It’s unclear how much time Ryan Tannehill will see at WR on Saturday. we get to sit in first class and don’t
have to sit in coach and take those
Two days after Bradford hurt his shoulder in OU’s long plane rides in those small
14-13 season-opening loss to the BYU, Stoops specu- seats. We charter a plane, and
lated that “two to four weeks” was the prognosis. have it to ourselves. Seniors and
But when Stoops refused to provide a progress report starters get first-class seats, and
Tuesday on Bradford, some wondered if the Sooners the luxury of being up front is
were playing coy with their quarterback’s condition. tremendous. That’s just another
Not so, Stoops said. cool thing about (Nebraska)
Landry Jones, who threw for 286 yards and three touch- Coach Bo (Pelini): He wants the
downs in his first start last week against Idaho State, best for us, and wants to give us
will get the call again Saturday. the best.
This time, with the double-deck
Nebraska coach Bo Pelini announced that RB Collins plane, the entire upper deck is
Okafor has left the football program. first-class seating. There are first-
Okafor, a redshirt freshman, is the second back to class seats in the lower deck, too,
leave the team this fall. Quentin Castille was dismissed for but up top it’s nothing but first
violating team rules. class. When you’re up there,
A spokesman said Okafor’s decision to leave was a you’re kind of secluded and can
personal one and did not involve disciplinary issues. do your own thing. You could
Okafor had been expected to compete for playing time have your own party up there; it’s
this fall, but was locked behind junior Roy Helu and great. I usually bring my iPod
freshman Rex Burkhead on the depth chart. and watch movies and just try to
PLAYER DIARY
Ndamukong Suh has 12 tackles in two games, including four for loss and 1 ½ sacks.
relax. Right now, I’ve got Casino
Royale and American Gangster on
there, and another random
movie.
When you’re an underclass-
man and not a starter, and you
see the upperclassmen riding in
first class, you definitely get a lit-
tle jealous. In coach, it’s really not
that bad because there are so
many seats that you get a seat
between you and the next guy.
But the seats aren’t the same, no
way. They’re soft and wide in first
class. It’s definitely one of the
perks of working hard and doing
the right thing.
We’ll fly into Roanoke and bus
to Virginia Tech. I’m excited to
see the stadium and hear the fans
and just get pumped for the game.
On the ride over, I usually listen
to some R&B on my iPod to kind
of slow it down a little bit and
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 11
DAVE WEAVER / AP
conserve energy. But once we get
into the locker room at the sta-
dium, that’s when I turn it to rap
and get ready.
I’m excited now just thinking
about it. We’re ready to go play in
a rowdy environment and show
everyone what we’ve got.
— As told to Matt Hayes
About the author
Ndamukong
Suh,
Nebraska DT
Suh, who is
projected
by some
as the top
overall pick
in the 2010 NFL draft, helped
the Huskers rout Florida Atlantic
and Arkansas State the first two
weeks. A much more difficult
task awaits Saturday: Virginia
Tech in Blacksburg.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
BIG TEN
INSIDE DISH
Tressel: I should have kept my mouth shut
Ohio State coach Jim Tressel, who sarcastically referred to
a segment of hard-core Buckeyes fans as “miserable” on
Wednesday, said Thursday he regrets his comments.
He told reporters he gets critical e-mails, then added,
“They’ve got to be some of the most unhappy people in
the world, and I feel bad because we just made them
less happy, and I hate to be a part of making someone
less happy. I mean, they’re already miserable.”
A day later, Tressel was the one feeling miserable.
“My dad taught me a long time ago, you’ll have a
thousand chances to keep your mouth shut, use every
one of them,” Tressel said.
He said he wasn’t aware of any fallout to his earlier
comments.
“But no one could have better fans than we do,” he
said. “And if anyone was half as miserable as we were
on Sunday (and) Monday, I could understand them
being miserable.”
Almost always in control of the situation in his public
appearances, Tressel added, “You live and learn.”
In other Buckeyes news, starting RT Jim Cordle, the
most experienced lineman for Ohio State, will miss the
next 3-4 weeks with an ankle injury.
Tressel disclosed the injury on Thursday, saying
Cordle had complained of pain in his ankle and it got
steadily worse. Tests showed the severity of the injury,
though nobody was sure whether it occurred in Satur-
day’s game against USC or in practice.
J.B. Shugarts and Mike Adams are the top candidates to
replace Cordle, a fifth-year senior. The Buckeyes play
Toledo on Saturday.
It took a while—and required a little prodding
from ESPN broadcasters on Pardon the Interruption—
but Michigan coach Rich Rodriguez finally admitted that
he’s sleeping a little better these days and feeling a little
more relaxed after last year’s unsightly season.
It was that last-minute win over Notre Dame—plus
the Wolverines’ 2-0 start—that relieved the pressure.
“Well, I’m sleeping better now than I did two weeks
College Football
BIG EAST
Anderson no longer bothered by cruel billboard
It’s not the way Louisville RB
Victor Anderson envisioned getting
his face on a billboard. But there
the sophomore is, plastered on a
sign not far from Cardinal Sta-
dium, his No. 20 getting crushed
by a handful of Kentucky defend-
ers as part of the Wildcats’
aggressive advertising campaign
in the state’s largest city.
It serves as a painful reminder
of Anderson’s first college game
last fall as Kentucky whipped the
Cardinals 27-2.
“When I first saw it, I was kind
of shocked, I ride past it every day
TONY DING / AP to come to the stadium,” Ander-
A 2-0 start has Rich Rodriguez, left, feeling better about his program. son told The Associated Press.
“But, you know? I ride past it. It
ago,” Rodriguez said. “And certainly better than I did a goes right over my head. When
year ago. ... It’s kind of neat for my family, for my wife. I’m riding, it just keeps going.
She loves to DVR the games but she only watches the When I first saw it, it kind of
ones we win, of course. She’s probably watched the last bothered me.”
couple games 30, 40 times already.” Not anymore. Besides, he
knows if the Cardinals can upset
Illinois coach Ron Zook said Thursday that starting the Wildcats on Saturday, he
LB Martez Wilson will have surgery to repair a herniated could make a case that the bill-
disk in his neck and miss the remainder of the season. boards are false advertising.
Zook said he feels especially bad for Wilson because “Hey, it’s an honor to have
he worked hard in the offseason to move from outside another team have you on their
to inside linebacker. He didn’t play in Saturday’s win billboard, but we’ve got a great
over Illinois State. The Illini have this weekend off team and for them to just have me
before heading to Columbus to face Ohio State. on the billboard and not a team
photo of our team, that’s what
The Muncie Star Press reported that Ball State bothers me the most because they
wants to drop its 2010 football game against Iowa. should respect our whole team,”
Ball State athletic director Tom Collins said coach Stan he said.
Parrish is not wild about playing Purdue and Iowa on
back-to-back weeks, even though the school would Cincinnati coach Brian Kelly
stand to make about $800,000 by playing in Iowa said the two-game series with
City. Oregon State has worked out well
INSIDE DISH
ED REINKE / AP
Victor Anderson and the Cardinals will try
to avenge a 27-2 loss to Kentucky last year.
for both teams.
“We’re both trying to break
through. Both of us want to move
up the echelon, and these are the
kind of games you want to play,”
he told reporters.
Kelly said he tries to set up BCS
opponents for the Bearcats. The
Big Ten has been difficult for him
to land, but Oregon State was
amenable.
Cincinnati defeated Oregon
State 34-3 in 2007, the first game
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 12
of the series.
The Bearcats’ ranking this time
around, as well as Oregon State’s
growing profile, make this half of
the series especially important,
said Cincinnati WR Mardy Gilyard.
“We know we’re going to get a
lot of national attention toward
this game,” he said. “They’re a
good team at home. They beat
USC last year. ... It’s not going to
be a walkover.”
West Virginia is looking for
answers to its special teams fol-
lies and other simple mistakes
entering the toughest stretch of
its nonconference schedule. Jock
Sanders and Brandon Hogan mishan-
dled first-half punts that led to
East Carolina scores. The Moun-
taineers managed to overcome
those gaffes and a 10-point deficit
Saturday to beat the Pirates
35-20.
West Virginia (2-0) at least has
temporarily fixed its long-stand-
ing problem of consistently allow-
ing long kickoff returns. But the
punt return problems and 11 pen-
alties for 104 yards stood out with
tough tests looming at Auburn
next Saturday, followed by an
Oct. 1 home game with Colorado.
“We’ve got a long way to go,”
West Virginia coach Bill Stewart
told reporters. “We’re not close
enough to being a good football
team, but I’m happier to be where
we are today than where we were
a year ago (after a 1-1 start).”
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
PAC-10
Back to reality of being one of many stars for McKnight
Joe McKnight finally appeared ready
to take his place in USC’s star-stud-
ded lineage of tailbacks last week,
rushing and receiving and relent-
lessly driving the Trojans to their
victory at Ohio State.
Then the junior calmly got back
in line this week, vying with five
talented teammates for a few car-
ries at practice.
There’s nothing singular about
Tailback U any longer: The No. 3
Trojans (2-0) are overflowing with
talented running backs again this
season under Pete Carroll.
After emerging as the starter in
camp, McKnight again is threaten-
ing to embrace his enormous
potential.
Yet he claims he’s content to be
one part in the USC machine.
“The competition is one of the
great things about ’SC,” McKnight
told The Associated Press. “It’s
never frustrating, because it saves
your body. We’re all healthy and
happy here. It’s the perfect situation
for me.”
Even after seven straight Pac-10
titles and BCS bowl games, one of
Carroll’s most underrated achieve-
ments might be his ability to keep
almost every ball-carrier in his pro-
gram happy, even at the expense of
individual stardom.
“We’re all friends,” junior C.J.
Gable said. “We all joke around
every day still. It’s not a personal
thing. The best man wins the job,
basically. Coach Carroll wants one
of us to do that. He told us he wants
INSIDE DISH
MARK J. TERRILL / AP
Joe McKnight rushed for 60 yards and caught
two passes for 45 yards against Ohio State.
somebody to get in front of some-
body and step it up every week, but
I guess we’re pretty equal every
week, too.”
Meanwhile, freshman CB Brian
Baucham will miss Saturday’s game
after getting into a car accident.
Carroll says Baucham was cut in
the freeway accident Thursday
morning on the way to school.
T.J. Bryant and Marshall Jones will
compete to be the Trojans’ No. 3
cornerback.
Washington State WR Jeshua
Anderson is quitting football to focus
on track, another blow to the strug-
gling Cougars (0-2).
College Football
Anderson is a two-time NCAA
champion in the 400-meter hurdles
and finished ninth at the U.S.
Olympic trials last year. He caught
33 passes and had two touchdowns
while starting 11 games in 2008.
He had four catches in two starts
this season.
Cougars coach Paul Wulff said
Anderson is a “once-in-a-lifetime
athlete” and that he respects his
dedication to try to be best in the
world in the hurdles.
Stanford becomes the final
Pac-10 team to play a home game
when the Cardinal play host to San
Jose State in the Bill Walsh Legacy
Game at Stanford Stadium.
The matchup between the Cardi-
nal and Spartans has been named
in honor of the late Hall of Fame
coach and his association with both
schools.
Walsh received his bachelor’s
degree from San Jose State in 1955
and his master’s in 1959.
He then served as an assistant at
Stanford in 1963 and 1964, before
two head coaching stints with the
Cardinal—1977-78 and 1992-94.
Walsh went 34-24-1 as head coach
at Stanford.
“His stamp is all over the game,”
Stanford coach Jim Harbaugh told The
AP. “He had a special influence on
Stanford, the tradition of players
that have played in this program
through the years. Part of the fabric
and tradition of Stanford football is
his legacy.”
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 13
PLAYER DIARY
USC win was good for Pac-10
BY ALTERRAUN VERNER
For SN Today
I thought Tennessee was just an amazing arena for
college football. I would have to say if you’re a college
football player, it’s so essential to go to that place and
play in front of that crowd. They bleed football in
Tennessee, and the crowd was so great. That place
has so much tradition: Peyton Manning, Reggie
White, and so many great SEC players have played
there.
I didn’t know it was close to the river, so seeing that
was pretty cool. All the boats—I’ve never seen that
before, people coming in by boat in all orange. We get
to the game more than two hours before kickoff, so
we saw plenty of that.
The fans were really respectful. I was catching
punts before the game, and the fans were entertain-
ing us. They were cheering for us when we caught
them, booing us when we didn’t.
But once the game started, it was just a regular ol’
football game.
It was a great win. We take a lot of pride in our
defense. We try to win things on defense. We know
every game this season is gonna ride on how we play.
No matter what, how we shut teams down, that will
determine if we win no matter what the offense does.
We haven’t mentioned what happened after the
Tennessee win last year (a 59-0 loss to BYU) too much
as a team. People that were here, they know about it.
You can’t rest on a big win. We know that.
We were all very in tune with the USC game on Sat- WADE PAYNE / AP
urday night. It was exciting. It was very similar to our Alterraun Verner, right, found playing in Tennessee to be
game, but just flipped—their offense had it last. That a great experience.
last drive Joe McKnight and Stafon Johnson took
over. It’s the resiliency of that program, how they just
won’t let themselves lose. It was a good win for our About the author
conference. I tip my hat to them. Alterraun Verner, UCLA CB
A lot of people give respect to USC already. But all Verner, a senior from Carson,
the other teams in this league are competing well. Calif., chipped into the Bruins’
19-15 win at Tennessee last
Washington played LSU pretty tough. We beat Ten- week with six tackles and an
nessee, Oregon beat Purdue. We’re competing with interception, which he returned
the other conferences, but we have a little further to 26 yards. The Bruins face Kansas
go. State on Saturday.
— As told to Derek Samson
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
SEC
Bulldogs comfortable with 2-QB system
You can count at least two people
who don’t have a problem with the
two-quarterback system Dan Mullen
is running in his first season at Mis-
sissippi State: the Bulldogs’ two
quarterbacks.
Tyson Lee and Chris Relf are both on
board as Mississippi State prepares
for Saturday’s game against Van-
derbilt in Nashville.
“I wouldn’t say it’s really hard to
master,” Lee told The Clarion-Ledger
of Jackson, Miss.
Lee is 15 of 24 passing for 150
yards and a TD. He’s added 12 yards
on the ground. Relf is the Bulldogs’
leading rusher, gaining 134 yards
on 19 carries with a score. He’s 12 of
21 for 152 yards passing with three
scores and two interceptions.
“It’s not a big deal for me,” Relf
told the newspaper. “I guess it’s not
a big deal for Tyson, either.”
Florida WR Andre Debose had
surgery to repair a torn hamstring
tendon in his left thigh and is
expected to fully recover in 4-6
months, making it possible for him
to return for spring practice. Debose
was coach Urban Meyer’s prized
recruit in February.
Arkansas defensive coordina-
tor Willy Robinson told The Morning
News of Northwest Arkansas he’s
interested to see how his unit reacts
if Georgia strikes big Saturday.
“We got punched in the mouth
early last year and we didn’t
INSIDE DISH
ROGELIO V. SOLIS / AP
Chris Relf, above, has no problem sharing
snaps with fellow Bulldog QB Tyson Lee.
respond very well,” Robinson told
The Morning News.
Tennessee offensive lineman
Vladimir Richard will play against
Florida, despite wearing a brace on
his left foot to brace his sore Achil-
les’ tendon, the Knoxville News Sen-
tinel reported. Also, center Josh
McNeil, who’s battled various knee
injuries, will be available if needed.
At one point, it was thought McNeil
might miss the entire season.
The status of Alabama receiver
Julio Jones and RB Roy Upchurch still is
uncertain, Nick Saban said.
“Even if he is physically ready to
play in the game because he’s not
practiced all week, he’s probably
College Football
not really prepared to play in the
game like he needs to be,” Saban
told The Tuscaloosa News in regards
to a player being able to play after
an injury.
Also, freshman WR Kenny Bell was
non-contact and has missed time
with shin splints. LB Jerrell Harris,
who is ineligible, wore No. 42 on the
scout team, mimicking North Texas
LB Craig Robertson, the paper
reported.
Georgia sophomore DE Justin
Houston, who had to sit out the first
two games as his punishment from
coach Mark Richt for an undisclosed
violation of team rules, returns this
week. He returns as the replace-
ment for starter Rod Battle, who suf-
fered a season-ending knee injury
last week vs. South Carolina.
Vanderbilt RB Jared Hawkins told
The Tennessean that he still hasn’t
recovered from a foot injury and is
unsure when he can play. He prac-
ticed Tuesday and Wednesday.
Heisman Trophy winner and
former QB for Steve Spurrier at Flor-
ida, Danny Wuerffel, visited South
Carolina’s practice Wednesday and
talked to the team.
Wuerffel told the Gamecocks he
had watched them the past two
games and thought they had the
makings of a good team if they put
it all together and play more mis-
take-free.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 14
PLAYER DIARY
‘We want to be sure we’re hitting on all cylinders’
BY MIKE JOHNSON
For SN Today
Any time you can pick up a win
in college football, it’s a big thing
for you. You try to focus on one
game at a time. We’re playing
North Texas this week, and they
have a really good, quality
defense. In fact, they should be
undefeated coming in here; they
lost a tough game last week in
overtime.
We know that the SEC sched-
ule is right around the corner. But
the biggest thing we’ve got to do is
make sure we play well and bring
some momentum into that, and
the best way to do that is to win
this week. We just want to be sure
we’re hitting on all cylinders
heading into the Arkansas week.
A lot of what we’re focused as
offensive linemen is actually just BOB LEVERONE / SN
working together. I’ve got new Mike Johnson, left, said communication is paramount along the offensive line.
guys on each side of me, and it’s a
lot of talking to them. Just mak- Sometimes defenses will try communicating, then usually we
ing sure we’re on the same page is and confuse us so we’re not on can come out with a positive play.
a BIG thing for us. And I think the same page. You see that some- — As told to Bob Hille
our communication has paid off times on TV, but we try to make
in the last couple of weeks in as few mistakes as possible. A lot About the author
terms of yardage and success. of people say we started out slow Mike
Especially with the new guys against Florida International. Johnson,
Alabama
on the line, as an older guy, I like What people might not under- OG
to make sure they’re talking to stand is that was their first game Johnson,
the guys next to them. It’s a lot of and they came out doing a lot of a senior
‘you’ve got to know what I’m stuff that we weren’t expecting. three-year
doing, and I’ve got to know what It was one of those times you letterman
from
you’re doing,’ and it starts with had to make adjustments, and Pensacola, Fla., has 29 career
the center and fans out from you had to do it on the run on the starts for the Crimson Tide. A
there. As soon as we identify our sideline. It all worked out in the preseason All-American, he is
guys, I’m talking to James Car- end; we started running the ball a part of an offensive line that has
penter next to me and making lot better in the second half. helped No. 4 ’Bama roll up more
than 1,000 yards of offense—543
sure he’s got the right call for the We can’t panic in situations like on the ground—in just two
tight end next to him. People don’t that when they do something we games. He is on the watch lists
get to hear that on TV, but it’s a haven’t seen. We communicate, for the Lombardi Award and the
huge part of what we do. and if everyone is Outland Trophy.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Tulsa’s Graham to coach from press box vs. Sooners
Look for Tulsa coach Todd Graham
on the sideline Saturday afternoon
against Oklahoma and you won’t
see him.
Graham decided to coach from
the press box last week and liked
the view in the Golden Hurricane’s
win at New Mexico.
“From a strategical standpoint,
there’s probably a lot of advantages
to being up there,” Graham said in a
report by The Associated Press.
“You sit there. It’s a quiet room,
you’ve got a headset on, you’re
watching, you can see the score-
board, you can see everything that’s
happening on the field. You can
manage the clock and do all those
things.”
Graham said he was on the side-
line for the opener at Tulane in case
new starting quarterback G.J. Kinne
needed hands-on instruction.
Another reason for Graham’s
move upstairs—he has a degenera-
tive disk condition that causes him
chronic pain in his neck and back,
and he eventually will need sur-
gery. But he said he was prepared
to spend the season on the sideline.
“I did not go upstairs because I
physically can’t be on the sideline,”
Graham said. “… My deal is that I’m
going to do whatever’s best for my
team to win, and right now I think
that’s what it is.”
Notre Dame is looking forward
to facing a more conventional
offense Saturday against Michigan
State after opening against the
spread attacks of Nevada and Mich-
igan. The Spartans’ base offense is
a pro-style formation that the Irish
are more used to defending.
“It ain’t as much razzle-dazzle
College Football
INSIDE DISH
BILL HABER / AP
Tulsa coach Todd Graham said sitting in the press box affords many advantages.
and tricky,” LB Toryan Smith told The Honolulu Star-Bulletin.
AP. “Michigan State, what you see McMackin said defensive line-
is what you get.” man John Fonoti (bruised kneecap) is
Notre Dame is ranked 88th in the unlikely to play.
nation against the run, giving up
171.5 yards a game. Coach Charlie Charlotte is moving ahead with
Weis said the Irish plan some plans to start a football program in
“tweaks” on “some of those inside 2013 despite lagging sales for per-
rush lanes that exist.” manent seat licenses and the shaky
economy.
Kent State freshman QB Spencer Chancellor Philip Dubois unveiled a
Keith will start Saturday’s game new $23.5 million stadium proposal
against Iowa State in place of Giorgio Thursday that was greeted with
Morgan, who has a sprained left enthusiasm by the board of trust-
ankle. Keith came off the bench last ees. It calls for building a temporary
week against Boston College and field on the site for the proposed
threw for 71 yards and a permanent, on-campus stadium,
touchdown. instead of converting the soccer and
track and field facility.
Hawaii coach Greg McMackin said Athletic director Judy Rose said the
LB Paipai Falemalu injured an ankle school had sold 2,573 PSLs worth
in practice Wednesday in Las Vegas $3.27 million, far short of the $5
and play in Saturday’s game at million it originally hoped to have
UNLV, according to a report by the committed by Thursday.
‘The atmosphere we’ll see
at Oregon is what it’s all about’
BY ZANE BEADLES
For SN Today
Oregon has great athletes and
is a great team. Both of our teams
are in the same situation where
we feel we haven’t played our best
game yet. Our teams are very
similar, and both of us could use
this game to spring into the rest of
the season and show the nation
what this year’s team is all about.
I’ve never played at Autzen Sta-
dium, and I’ve never seen it, but
I’ve heard a lot about it. I’ve heard
they’re right on top of you, and
the noise goes straight to the field.
It’s not the biggest stadium in the
country, but they get into it and
make it a very hostile place to
play.
The kind of atmosphere we’ll
see at Oregon is what it’s all about.
Game day is your reward for
practicing all week. Running out
of the tunnel on to the field—
whether it’s your crowd cheering
for you or you’re being booed
when you’re on the road—just
creates a rush that you can’t
explain. It’s something every-
body who plays football lives
for—when you’re out on the field
in the thick of battle and you can’t
hear each other.
This will be the best team we’ve
played—and it’s going to be one of
the best teams we play all season.
We expect them to be ready to
play, and we’re going to give them
our best shot. Our team is going
to be focused on cleaning up the
PLAYER DIARY
Zane Beadles is looking forward to playing at Autzen Stadium for the first time.
little things we’ve been doing to
ourselves.
We don’t feel we’ve played our
best game, and we’re still making
mistakes. It’s not necessarily our
opponents beating us but us beat-
ing ourselves. We’ve had five
turnovers in two games now, so
we’ve been trying to cut down on
those and mental mistakes here
and there—that’s what will make
a team a champion. If you can
perfect those small things, that’s
what makes you one of the best
teams in the nation.
I know lots of people talk about
the little things but don’t explain
what they’re talking about. But
here’s an example of what I mean:
Let’s say you’re 3rd-and-1 and
you’re at a pivotal point in the
game and you don’t have a lot of
momentum going your way. You
have a pretty good drive going
and there’s one small missed
assignment on the play—let’s say
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 15
JAY DROWNS / SN
somebody has bad technique on a
block and allows the quarterback
to be pressured, and he has to get
rid of the ball too early. A cham-
pionship team will learn to take
care of that kind of thing.
It’s easy to do the big things on
the football field. Focusing on the
little things is what makes a
player great and a team champi-
onship-caliber.
— As told to Brian McLaughlin
About the author
Zane
Beadles,
Utah OT
A 6-4,
312-pound
senior from
Sandy,
Utah,
Beadles is
mechanical engineering major.
He has started all four seasons
and is on the watch list for the
Lombardi Award.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com College Football FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 16
POLLS Scores and schedule Betting lines
FAVORITE TODAY UNDERDOG

Boston College 19, Baylor 15, Clemson 10, Oregon 5, Arizona 4, Arkansas 52, Northern Arizona 45, Gardner-Webb 42, Brown 36, Prairie View A&M 33,
Thursday
USA Today / Coaches 3, Colorado State 2, Florida State 1, Minnesota 1, South Florida 1. Stephen F. Austin 28, Western Illinois 26, Valparaiso 23, Sam Houston St. 19,
SOUTH Today
Record Pts Pvs Southern 18, Georgia Southern 15, Tennessee St. 15, Tennessee-Martin 13,
Florida A&M 48, Howard 10
Miami 33, Georgia Tech 17
Top 25 Boise St. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Fresno St.
1. Florida (56) 2-0 1,472 1 Butler 12, Lafayette 8, Southeastern Louisiana 8, North Carolina A&T 7, North
2. Texas 2-0 1,399 2 Dakota State 7, Alabama State 6, Jackson State 6, North Dakota 6,The Citadel Today Saturday
3. USC (3) 2-0 1,368 3 Sporting News 5, Albany 4, Drake 4, Rhode Island 4, Northern Colorado 3, Tennessee Tech 3,
Today No. 10 Boise State at Fresno State, 9 p.m.
FAR WEST at Army. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Ball St.
4. Alabama 2-0 1,277 4 Record Pvs Missouri St. 2, Saint Francis 2, Murray St. 1, San Diego 1,Yale 1. Boise St. at Fresno St., 9 p.m. at Purdue. . . . . . . . . . . . .  13. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . N. Illinois
5. Penn State 2-0 1,216 5 1. Florida 2-0 1 Saturday at Michigan. . . . . . . . . . .  24. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .E. Michigan
6. Mississippi 1-0 1,060 8 2. USC 2-0 4 Saturday No. 1 Florida vs. Tennessee, 3:30 p.m. at Pittsburgh. . . . . . . . . .7½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Navy
7. LSU 2-0 1,051 9 3. Texas 2-0 2 AFCA Division II Coaches EAST No. 2 Texas vs. Texas Tech, 8:05 p.m. Northwestern. . . . . . . . . . .3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Syracuse
7. California 2-0 1,051 10 4. Alabama 2-0 3 Record Pts Pvs Ball St. at Army, Noon
No. 3 Southern Cal at Washington, 3:30 p.m. at Clemson. . . . . . . . . . . . . .7. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Boston College
9. BYU 2-0 941 12 5. California 2-0 13 1. Grand Valley St. (Mich.) (25) 3-0 625 1 Delaware St. at Delaware, Noon
No. 4 Alabama vs. North Texas, 12:20 p.m. at Penn St. . . . . . . . . . . .29½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Temple
10. Boise State 2-0 913 11 6. Mississippi 1-0 5 2. Abilene Christian (Texas) 3-0 592 2 Duquesne at Monmouth, N.J., Noon
Temple at Penn St., Noon at North Carolina . . . . . .7½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .East Carolina
11. Ohio State 1-1 855 7 7. LSU 2-0 9 3. North Alabama 3-0 577 3 No. 5 Mississippi vs. SE Louisiana, 7:30 p.m. at W. Michigan . . . . . . .16½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Miami (Ohio)
4. Bloomsburg (Pa.) 3-0 541 5 Dayton at Robert Morris, Noon No. 5 Penn State vs. Temple, Noon p.m.
12. Oklahoma 1-1 794 14 8. Georgia Tech 2-0 7 Bucknell at Cornell, 12:30 p.m. at Vanderbilt . . . . . . . . . . . .9. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Mississippi St.
13. Georgia Tech 2-0 771 13 9. BYU 2-0 11 5. Central Washington 3-0 526 6 No. 7 BYU vs. Florida State, 7 p.m.
Yale at Georgetown, D.C., 1 p.m. at Colorado  . . . . . . . . . . . . .7. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Wyoming
14. Virginia Tech 1-1 709 15 10. Penn State 2-0 8 6. Northwest Missouri St. 2-1 510 7 Harvard at Holy Cross, 1 p.m. No. 8 California at Minnesota, Noon p.m. at Iowa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Arizona
15. TCU 1-0 648 16 11. Virginia Tech 1-1 10 7. Minnesota St.-Mankato 3-0 432 8 Youngstown St. at Northeastern, 1 p.m. No. 9 LSU vs. La.-Lafayette, 7 p.m. at Akron . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Indiana
16. Utah 2-0 533 17 12. Ohio State 1-1 14 8. Minnesota-Duluth 2-1 418 9 Colgate at Dartmouth, 1:30 p.m. No. 11 Ohio State vs. Toledo at Cleveland, at Kansas . . . . . . . . . . . .22½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Duke
17. Oklahoma State 1-1 485 6 13. Boise State 2-0 15 9. Delta St. (Miss.) 1-1 392 10 Winston-Salem vs Morgan St. at East
Noon at Southern Miss.. . . . .15½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Virginia
18. Nebraska 2-0 471 18 14. Oklahoma 1-1 12 10. Texas A&M-Kingsville 3-0 388 11 Rutherford, N.J., 2 p.m.
The Citadel at Princeton, 3 p.m. No. 12 Oklahoma vs. Tulsa, 3:30 p.m. at Oregon. . . . . . . . . . . . .4½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Utah
19. North Carolina 2-0 341 19 15. Cincinnati 2-0 21 11. Pittsburg St. (Kan.) 2-1 355 4
Rhode Island at Massachusetts, 3:30 p.m. No. 13 Virginia Tech vs. No. 19 Nebraska, 3:30 Southern Cal . . . . . . . . .18½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .at Washington
20. Georgia 1-1 333 21 16. Georgia 1-1 19 12. Central Missouri 3-0 320 13
Maine at Albany, N.Y., 4 p.m. at UCLA. . . . . . . . . . . . . .12½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Kansas St.
21. Cincinnati 2-0 328 23 17. Miami 1-0 17 13. Albany St. (Ga.) 3-0 301 12
Fla. International at Rutgers, 5 p.m.
p.m. at Virginia Tech . . . . . . . . . .5. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Nebraska
22. Miami 1-0 291 22 18. Houston 2-0 — 14. Catawba (N.C.) 3-0 262 17 Columbia at Fordham, 6 p.m. No. 15 TCU vs. Texas State, 7 p.m. at Notre Dame  . . . . . . . .  10. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Michigan St.
23. Kansas 2-0 195 25 19. Oklahoma State 1-1 6 15. Chadron St. (Neb.) 2-1 258 15 Liberty at Lafayette, 6 p.m. No. 16 Oklahoma State vs. Rice, 7 p.m. Ohio St.-x. . . . . . . . . . . .20½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Toledo
24. Oregon State 2-0 118 24 20. TCU 1-0 — 16. Valdosta St. (Ga.) 1-1 230 18 Navy at Pittsburgh, 6 p.m. No. 17 Cincinnati at Oregon State, 6:45 p.m. at Auburn. . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . West Virginia
25. Missouri 2-0 104 — 21. North Carolina 2-0 22 17. Tuskegee (Ala.) 2-1 211 14 Brown at Stony Brook, 6 p.m.
Villanova at Penn, 7 p.m.
No. 18 Utah at Oregon, 3:30 p.m. at Florida  . . . . . . . . . . . .29½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Tennessee
22. Kansas 2-0 — 18. Ashland (Ohio) 2-1 183 19
Dropped out: Notre Dame (20) Northwestern at Syracuse, 7 p.m. No. 22 Kansas vs. Duke, Noon SMU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6. . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Washington St.
23. Utah 2-0 23 19. Tarleton St. (Texas) 3-0 178 22
Others receiving votes: Michigan 84, Houston 69, Texas Tech 68, Coastal Carolina at Towson, 7 p.m. No. 23 Georgia at Arkansas, 7:45 p.m. San Diego St.. . . . . . . . . .3½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .at Idaho
24. Michigan 2-0 — 20. Wayne St. (Neb.) 3-0 157 23
Pitt 40, Notre Dame 32, Auburn 30, Iowa 27, Florida State 19, Oregon No. 24 North Carolina vs. East Carolina, Noon Nevada. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Colorado St.
16, West Virginia 16, South Florida 13, UCLA 13, Kentucky 9, Arizona 25. Oregon State 2-0 24 21. Indiana (Pa.) 3-0 136 t24
SOUTH No. 25 Michigan vs. Eastern Michigan, Noon Bowling Green . . . . . . . . . .3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Marshall
4, Central Michigan 2, Colorado State 2, Minnesota 2, Northwestern 22. Washburn (Kan.) 3-0 113 NR Boston College at Clemson, Noon
Dropped out: Notre Dame (16), Michigan State (18), Oregon (20), California . . . . . . . . . . . . .  14. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Minnesota
2, Arkansas 1, South Carolina 1, Tulsa 1. Missouri (24). 23. Saginaw Valley St. (Mich.) 2-1 88 16 Louisville at Kentucky, Noon at UCF . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .4. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Buffalo
24. Midwestern St. (Texas) 3-0 69 NR East Carolina at North Carolina, Noon at Oklahoma St. . . . . . .32½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Rice
25. Augustana (S.D.) 3-0 66 NR North Texas at Alabama, 12:20 p.m. at Oklahoma . . . . . . . . .17½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Tulsa
The Associated Press Division I-AA Old Dominion at Jacksonville, 1 p.m.
at Baylor. . . . . . . . . . . . . .  10. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Connecticut
Record Pts Pvs Record Pts Pvs Morehead St. at N.C. Central, 1:30 p.m.
1. Florida (56) 2-0 1,491 1 1. Richmond (122) 2-0 3,607 1 Chattanooga at Presbyterian, 1:30 p.m. at Texas A&M. . . . . . . . . .  19. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Utah St.
2. Texas (1) 2-0 1,404 2 2. Villanova (13) 2-0 3,369 3 TV schedule Miles at Samford, 3 p.m.
Tennessee at Florida, 3:30 p.m. Savannah St. at McNeese St., 8 p.m. SOUTHWEST
at Kentucky . . . . . . . . . .13½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Louisville
Iowa St.. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .3. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . at Kent St.
3. USC (1) 2-0 1,396 3 3. Northern Iowa (6) 1-1 3,271 4 Tenn.-Martin at Memphis, 8 p.m. Tulsa at Oklahoma, 3:30 p.m.
Today Virginia Tech, ABC Middle Tennessee at Maryland, 3:30 p.m. at BYU. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Florida St.
4. Alabama (2) 2-0 1,328 4 4. Montana 2-0 3,075 5 Hofstra at Richmond, 3:30 p.m. Connecticut at Baylor, 5 p.m.
5. Mississippi 1-0 1,145 6 5. William & Mary (2) 2-0 2,865 7 9 p.m. No. 18 Utah at Oregon, ESPN at Arkansas  . . . . . . . . . . . . .1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Georgia
Virginia at Southern Miss., 3:30 p.m. MIDWEST Rice at Oklahoma St., 7 p.m.
5. Penn State 2-0 1,145 7 6. New Hampshire (1) 2-0 2,701 9 No. 10 Boise State at Fresno *Arizona at Iowa, ABC Duke at Kansas, Noon Texas St. at TCU, 7 p.m. Air Force . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  17. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  at New Mexico
State, ESPN Michigan State at Notre UAB at Troy, 3:30 p.m. UTEP . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  14. . . . . . . . . . . . . .at New Mexico St.
7. BYU 2-0 1,122 9 7. James Madison 0-1 2,618 6 Nebraska at Virginia Tech, 3:30 p.m. E. Michigan at Michigan, Noon Utah St. at Texas A&M, 7 p.m.
Dame, NBC California at Minnesota, Noon Texas College at Texas Southern, 7 p.m. at Texas. . . . . . . . . . . . . .17½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Texas Tech
8. California 2-0 1,058 10 8. McNeese State (1) 2-0 2,358 16 Saturday Indiana at Akron, ESPNU Grambling St. at Jackson St., 4:30 p.m.
9. LSU 2-0 951 11 9. Southern Illinois 0-1 2,296 8 Campbell at Davidson, 6 p.m. N. Illinois at Purdue, Noon Georgia at Arkansas, 7:45 p.m. at UNLV. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Hawaii
Noon 6:45 p.m. Ohio St. vs. Toledo at Cleveland, Noon Texas Tech at Texas, 8 p.m. at Stanford. . . . . . . . . . . .  17. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  San Jose St.
10. Boise State 2-0 945 12 10. Appalachian State 0-2 2,241 2 *Temple at No. 5 Penn State, No. 17 Cincinnati at Oregon VMI at James Madison, 6 p.m.
Ark.-Pine Bluff at MVSU, 6 p.m. Wofford at Wisconsin, Noon at Oregon St.. . . . . . . . . . . .1. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cincinnati
11. Ohio State 1-1 840 8 11. Elon 2-0 2,219 10 Big Ten Network State, FSN Hanover at Butler, 1 p.m. FAR WEST
No. 8 California at Minnesota, 7 p.m. Hampton at N. Carolina A&T, 6 p.m. at Rutgers  . . . . . . . . . . .15½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Fla. Int’l
12. Oklahoma 1-1 835 13 12. Cal Poly 1-0 1,885 12 Gardner-Webb at N.C. State, 6 p.m. Furman at Missouri, 2 p.m. Portland St. at Montana, 3:05 p.m.
13. Virginia Tech 1-1 749 14 13. Weber State 0-2 1,719 11 ESPN Florida State at No. 7 BYU, at Alabama  . . . . . . . . . . .  38. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .North Texas
William & Mary at Norfolk St., 6 p.m. Indiana at Akron, 3:30 p.m. Wyoming at Colorado, 3:30 p.m.
14. Georgia Tech 2-0 683 15 14. Wofford 1-1 1,612 14 Duke at No. 22 Kansas, Versus Versus Alcorn St. at Cent. Michigan, 3:30 p.m. Utah at Oregon, 3:30 p.m. at Maryland. . . . . . . . . . .6½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  Middle Tenn.
East Carolina at No. 24 North Louisiana-Lafayette at No. 9 Elon at Wake Forest, 6:30 p.m. at South Carolina . . . . . .  21. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Fla. Atlantic
15. TCU 1-0 609 16 15. South Carolina St. (1) 2-0 1,515 15 Jacksonville St. at Alabama A&M, 7 p.m. Michigan St. at Notre Dame, 3:30 p.m. Southern Cal at Washington, 3:30 p.m.
Carolina, ESPN2 LSU, ESPNU Arizona at Iowa, 3:35 p.m. Marist at San Diego, 4 p.m. at Troy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6½. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  UAB
16. Oklahoma State 1-1 445 5 16. Central Arkansas 0-1 1,503 13 *Eastern Michigan at No. 25 7:45 p.m. Tennessee Tech at E. Kentucky, 7 p.m.
17. Cincinnati 2-0 407 23 17. Massachusetts 1-1 1,346 17 W. Carolina at Georgia Southern, 7 p.m. Murray St. at Missouri St., 4 p.m. N. Colorado at E. Washington, 4:05 p.m. at LSU . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .  27. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . La.-Lafayette
Michigan, Big Ten Network No. 23 Georgia at Arkansas, St. Francis, Pa. at N. Iowa, 5:05 p.m. Nevada at Colorado St., 5 p.m. at Arizona St.. . . . . . . . .19½. . . . . . . . . . . . .  Louisiana-Monroe
18. Utah 2-0 405 17 18. South Dakota State 1-0 1,089 21 Louisville at Kentucky, ESPNU ESPN Louisiana-Lafayette at LSU, 7 p.m.
Nicholls St. at Louisiana Tech, 7 p.m. Drake at South Dakota, 5:05 p.m. San Diego St. at Idaho, 5 p.m. x-at Cleveland
19. Nebraska 2-0 365 22 19. Texas State 1-0 977 19 *Northern Illinois at Purdue, West Virginia at Auburn, ESPN2 Iowa St. at Kent St., 7 p.m. SMU at Washington St., 5 p.m.
Big Ten Network 8 p.m. Bowling Green at Marshall, 7 p.m.
20. Miami 1-0 364 20 20. Maine 2-0 973 20 North Dakota at Northwestern St., 7 p.m. Wagner at N. Dakota St., 7 p.m. S. Utah at N. Arizona, 5:05 p.m.
21. Houston 2-0 341 — 21. Eastern Washington 1-1 572 18 *Wofford at Wisconsin, Big Ten Texas Tech at No. 2 Texas, ABC Cal Poly at Ohio, 7 p.m. Cincinnati at Oregon St., 6:45 p.m.
Network Kansas State at UCLA, FSN Florida Atlantic at South Carolina, 7 p.m.
22. Kansas 2-0 271 24 22. Eastern Kentucky 0-1 505 22 Charleston Southern at South Florida, 7 p.m. Indiana St. at S. Dakota St., 7 p.m. Florida St. at BYU, 7 p.m.
23. Holy Cross 2-0 476 25 3:30 p.m. *—Regional telecast SW Baptist at S. Illinois, 7 p.m. Air Force at New Mexico, 7:30 p.m.
23. Georgia 1-1 260 21 Tennessee at No. 1 Florida, CBS Tennessee St. at Southern U., 7 p.m.
24. North Carolina 2-0 250 19 24. Jacksonville State 0-2 471 23 Mississippi St. at Vanderbilt, 7 p.m. E. Illinois at SE Missouri, 7 p.m. UTEP at New Mexico St., 8 p.m.
*No. 3 USC at Washington, ABC Miami (Ohio) at W. Michigan, 7 p.m. Idaho St. at Weber St., 8:05 p.m.
25. Michigan 2-0 169 — 25. Harvard 0-0 267 24 Tulsa at No. 12 Oklahoma, FSN Cent. Arkansas at W. Kentucky, 7 p.m.
SE Louisiana at Mississippi, 7:30 p.m. Stephen F.Austin at W. Illinois, 7:05 p.m. San Jose St. at Stanford, 9 p.m.
Dropped out: Notre Dame (18), Missouri (25) Others receiving votes: Eastern Illinois 241, Liberty 205, Florida A&M 182, *No. 19 Nebraska at No. 13 Austin Peay at Illinois St., 7:30 p.m. Louisiana-Monroe at Arizona St., 10 p.m.
Others receiving votes: Missouri 93, Pitt 87, Oregon State 64, Texas Delaware 177, Furman 124, Colgate 100, Grambling St. 89, Hofstra 82, Ala- Buffalo at UCF, 7:30 p.m.
West Virginia at Auburn, 7:45 p.m. Kansas St. at UCLA, 10:15 p.m.
Tech 54, UCLA 44, Notre Dame 40, West Virginia 30, Auburn 26, Iowa 23, bamaA&M77,Samford71,MontanaSt.64,YoungstownSt.53,Pennsylvania Hawaii at UNLV, 11 p.m. Conference standings, Page 17
Edward Waters at Alabama St., 8 p.m.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com College Football FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 17
Conference standings
ACC BIG EAST BIG TEN BIG 12 CONFERENCE USA MAC
Atlantic Conference All Games Conference All Games North East East
Conference All Games W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA Conference All Games Conference All Games Conference All Games
W L PF PA W L PF PA Cincinnati 1 0 47 15 2 0 117 18 Indiana 0 0 0 0 2 0 42 32 W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA
Boston College 0 0 0 0 2 0 88 7 Pittsburgh 0 0 0 0 2 0 92 30 Iowa 0 0 0 0 2 0 52 19 Kansas 0 0 0 0 2 0 83 10 Southern Miss. 1 0 26 19 2 0 78 19 Akron 0 0 0 0 1 1 48 31
N.C. State 0 0 0 0 1 1 68 14 West Virginia 0 0 0 0 2 0 68 40 Michigan 0 0 0 0 2 0 69 41 Missouri 0 0 0 0 2 0 64 29 UAB 1 1 77 59 1 1 77 59 Bowling Green 0 0 0 0 1 1 51 41
Wake Forest 0 0 0 0 1 1 45 41 Louisville 0 0 0 0 1 0 30 10 Minnesota 0 0 0 0 2 0 43 33 Nebraska 0 0 0 0 2 0 87 12 East Carolina 0 0 0 0 1 1 49 59 Buffalo 0 0 0 0 1 1 50 71
Maryland 0 0 0 0 0 1 13 52 South Florida 0 0 0 0 1 0 40 7 Northwestern 0 0 0 0 2 0 74 38 Iowa St. 0 0 0 0 1 1 37 52 Marshall 0 0 0 0 1 1 41 80 Kent St. 0 0 0 0 1 1 25 34
Clemson 0 1 27 30 1 1 64 44 Connecticut 0 0 0 0 1 1 33 28 Penn St. 0 0 0 0 2 0 59 14 Kansas St. 0 0 0 0 1 1 36 34 Memphis 0 0 0 0 0 2 28 76 Ohio 0 0 0 0 1 1 47 53
Florida St. 0 1 34 38 0 1 34 38 Syracuse 0 0 0 0 0 2 27 51 Wisconsin 0 0 0 0 2 0 62 51 Colorado 0 0 0 0 0 2 55 77 UCF 0 1 19 26 1 1 47 50 Temple 0 0 0 0 0 1 24 27
Rutgers 0 1 15 47 0 1 15 47 Ohio St. 0 0 0 0 1 0 31 27 Miami (Ohio) 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 90
Coastal Purdue 0 0 0 0 1 0 52 31 South West
Conference All Games Saturday’s games Illinois 0 0 0 0 1 1 54 54 Conference All Games Conference All Games West
W L PF PA W L PF PA Louisville at Kentucky, Noon Michigan St. 0 0 0 0 1 1 71 32 W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA Conference All Games
Georgia Tech 1 1 47 60 2 1 84 77 Connecticut at Baylor, 5 p.m. Texas Tech 0 0 0 0 2 0 93 23 SMU 1 0 35 33 2 0 66 56 W L PF PA W L PF PA
Miami 2 0 38 34 2 0 71 51 Fla. International at Rutgers, 5 p.m. Saturday’s games Texas 0 0 0 0 2 0 100 30 Tulsa 1 0 37 13 2 0 81 23 Cent. Michigan 0 0 0 0 1 1 35 46
North Carolina 0 0 0 0 2 0 52 16 Navy at Pittsburgh, 6 p.m. Wofford at Wisconsin, Noon Baylor 0 0 0 0 1 0 24 21 Houston 0 0 0 0 2 0 100 42 N. Illinois 0 0 0 0 1 1 61 35
Duke 0 0 0 0 1 1 51 43 Cincinnati at Oregon St., 6:45 p.m. Temple at Penn St., Noon Texas A&M 0 0 0 0 1 0 41 6 UTEP 0 0 0 0 0 2 24 57 Toledo 0 0 0 0 1 1 85 90
Virginia Tech 0 0 0 0 1 1 76 44 Northwestern at Syracuse, 7 p.m. Ohio St. vs. Toledo at Cleveland Browns Stadium, Noon Oklahoma St. 0 0 0 0 1 1 59 55 Rice 0 1 24 44 0 2 34 99 Ball St. 0 0 0 0 0 2 26 43
Virginia 0 0 0 0 0 2 28 56 Charleston Southern at South Florida, 7 p.m. N. Illinois at Purdue, Noon Oklahoma 0 0 0 0 1 1 77 14 Tulane 0 1 13 37 0 2 16 91 E. Michigan 0 0 0 0 0 2 38 54
West Virginia at Auburn, 7:45 p.m. E. Michigan at Michigan, Noon W. Michigan 0 0 0 0 0 2 26 54
Thursday’s game Nebraska at Virginia Tech, 3:30 California at Minnesota, Noon Saturday’s games Iowa St. at Kent St., 7 p.m. Saturday’s games Bowling Green at Marshall, 7
Miami 33, Georgia Tech 17 p.m. Indiana at Akron, 3:30 p.m. Duke at Kansas, Noon Rice at Oklahoma St., 7 p.m. East Carolina at North Carolina, p.m. Saturday’s games Cal Poly at Ohio, 7 p.m.
Virginia at Southern Miss., 3:30 Michigan St. at Notre Dame, 3:30 p.m. Furman at Missouri, 2 p.m. Texas Tech at Texas, 8 p.m. Noon Buffalo at UCF, 7:30 p.m. Temple at Penn St., Noon Iowa St. at Kent St., 7 p.m.
Saturday’s games p.m. Arizona at Iowa, 3:35 p.m. Wyoming at Colorado, 3:30 Kansas St. at UCLA, 10:15 p.m. UAB at Troy, 3:30 p.m. Tenn.-Martin at Memphis, 8 Ball St. at Army, Noon Miami (Ohio) at W. Michigan,
Duke at Kansas, Noon Gardner-Webb at N.C. State, Northwestern at Syracuse, 7 p.m. p.m. Tulsa at Oklahoma, 3:30 p.m. p.m. Ohio St. vs. Toledo at Cleveland 7 p.m.
Boston College at Clemson, 6 p.m. Tulsa at Oklahoma, 3:30 p.m. Virginia at Southern Miss., 3:30 UTEP at New Mexico St., 8 p.m. Browns Stadium, Noon Bowling Green at Marshall, 7
Noon Elon at Wake Forest, 6:30 p.m. Nebraska at Virginia Tech, 3:30 p.m. N. Illinois at Purdue, Noon p.m.
East Carolina at North Carolina, Florida St. at BYU, 7 p.m. p.m. SMU at Washington St., 5 p.m. E. Michigan at Michigan, Noon Buffalo at UCF, 7:30 p.m.
Noon Connecticut at Baylor, 5 p.m. Rice at Oklahoma St., 7 p.m. Indiana at Akron, 3:30 p.m.
Middle Tennessee at Maryland, Utah St. at Texas A&M, 7 p.m. Alcorn St. at Cent. Michigan,
3:30 p.m. 3:30 p.m.

MOUNTAIN WEST PAC-10 SEC SUN BELT WAC INDEPENDENTS

Conference All Games Conference All Games East Conference All Games Conference All Games W L PF PA
W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA Conference All Games W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA W L PF PA Army 1 1 46 49
BYU 0 0 0 0 2 0 68 16 Stanford 1 0 39 13 1 1 56 37 W L PF PA W L PF PA La.-Lafayette 0 0 0 0 2 0 59 34 Idaho 1 0 21 6 1 0 21 6 Navy 1 1 59 45
Colorado St. 0 0 0 0 2 0 47 40 Arizona 0 0 0 0 2 0 53 23 Georgia 1 0 41 37 1 1 51 61 Arkansas St. 0 0 0 0 1 1 70 38 Hawaii 0 0 0 0 2 0 63 40 Notre Dame 1 1 69 38
Utah 0 0 0 0 2 0 59 31 California 0 0 0 0 2 0 111 20 Florida 0 0 0 0 2 0 118 9 La.-Monroe 0 0 0 0 1 1 78 59 Boise St. 0 0 0 0 1 0 19 8
TCU 0 0 0 0 1 0 30 14 Oregon St. 0 0 0 0 2 0 57 28 Kentucky 0 0 0 0 1 0 42 0 Middle Tenn. 0 0 0 0 1 1 45 51 Fresno St. 0 0 0 0 1 1 82 34 Saturday’s games
Air Force 0 0 0 0 1 1 85 20 Southern Cal 0 0 0 0 2 0 74 18 Tennessee 0 0 0 0 1 1 78 26 North Texas 0 0 0 0 1 1 50 41 Nevada 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 35 Ball St. at Army, Noon
San Diego St. 0 0 0 0 1 1 49 52 UCLA 0 0 0 0 2 0 52 29 South Carolina 0 1 37 41 1 1 44 44 Fla. International 0 0 0 0 0 1 14 40 San Jose St. 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 56 Michigan St. at Notre Dame, 3:30 p.m.
UNLV 0 0 0 0 1 1 59 26 Ariz. St. 0 0 0 0 1 0 50 3 Vanderbilt 0 1 9 23 1 1 54 23 Fla. Atlantic 0 0 0 0 0 1 3 49 Utah St. 0 0 0 0 0 1 17 35 Navy at Pittsburgh, 6 p.m.
Wyoming 0 0 0 0 1 1 39 63 Oregon 0 0 0 0 1 1 46 55 Troy 0 0 0 0 0 2 20 87 Louisiana Tech 0 0 0 0 0 2 27 69
New Mexico 0 0 0 0 0 2 16 85 Washington 0 0 0 0 1 1 65 54 West W. Kentucky 0 0 0 0 0 2 20 98 New Mexico St. 0 1 6 21 0 1 6 21
Washington St. 0 1 13 39 0 2 33 77 Conference All Games
Saturday’s games W L PF PA W L PF PA Saturday’s games Today’s game
Utah at Oregon, 3:30 p.m. Saturday’s games Auburn 1 0 49 24 2 0 86 37 North Texas at Alabama, 12:20 p.m. Boise St. at Fresno St., 9 p.m.
Wyoming at Colorado, 3:30 p.m. California at Minnesota, Noon LSU 1 0 23 9 2 0 54 32 UAB at Troy, 3:30 p.m.
San Diego St. at Idaho, 5 p.m. Utah at Oregon, 3:30 p.m. Alabama 0 0 0 0 2 0 74 38 Middle Tennessee at Maryland, 3:30 p.m. Saturday’s games
Nevada at Colorado St., 5 p.m. Southern Cal at Washington, 3:30 p.m. Arkansas 0 0 0 0 1 0 48 10 Fla. International at Rutgers, 5 p.m. San Diego St. at Idaho, 5 p.m.
Texas St. at TCU, 7 p.m. Arizona at Iowa, 3:35 p.m. Mississippi 0 0 0 0 1 0 45 14 Louisiana-Lafayette at LSU, 7 p.m. Nevada at Colorado St., 5 p.m.
Florida St. at BYU, 7 p.m. SMU at Washington St., 5 p.m. Mississippi St 0 1 24 49 1 1 69 56 Cent. Arkansas at W. Kentucky, 7 p.m. Utah St. at Texas A&M, 7 p.m.
Air Force at New Mexico, 7:30 p.m. Cincinnati at Oregon St., 6:45 p.m. Florida Atlantic at South Carolina, 7 p.m. Nicholls St. at Louisiana Tech, 7 p.m.
Hawaii at UNLV, 11 p.m. San Jose St. at Stanford, 9 p.m. Saturday’s games lina, 7 p.m. Louisiana-Monroe at Arizona St., 10 p.m. UTEP at New Mexico St., 8 p.m.
Louisiana-Monroe at Arizona St., 10 p.m. Louisville at Kentucky, Noon Mississippi St. at Vanderbilt, San Jose St. at Stanford, 9 p.m.
Kansas St. at UCLA, 10:15 p.m. North Texas at Alabama, 12:20 7 p.m. Hawaii at UNLV, 11 p.m.
p.m. SE Louisiana at Mississippi,
Tennessee at Florida, 3:30 p.m. 7:30 p.m.
Louisiana-Lafayette at LSU, 7 Georgia at Arkansas, 7:45 p.m.
p.m. West Virginia at Auburn, 7:45
Florida Atlantic at South Caro- p.m.

WEEKDAYS 10AM–1PM ET
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SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com NFL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 18
INSIDE DISH

Colts’ Gonzalez could miss half the season with knee injury
WIN
2009 SCOREBOARD LOSS
* MONDAY † THURSDAY ‡ SATURDAY § THANKSGIVING DAY
^ IN LONDON ° CHRISTMAS DAY ◊ IN TORONTO

AFC EAST AFC NORTH AFC SOUTH AFC WEST

NE NYJ MIA BUF BAL PIT CLE CIN IND TEN HOU JAC SD DEN KC OAK
W-L 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1 1-0 0-1 0-1 0-1 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1
Pct. 1.000 1.000 .000 .000 1.000 1.000 .000 .000 1.000 .000 .000 .000 1.000 1.000 .000 .000
PF 25 24 7 24 38 13 20 7 14 10 7 12 24 12 24 20
PA 24 7 19 25 24 10 34 12 12 13 24 14 20 7 38 24
Div. 1-0 0-0 0-0 0-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-0 0-0 0-0 0-1 1-0 0-0 0-0 0-1
AFC 1-0 1-0 0-0 0-1 1-0 1-0 0-0 0-1 1-0 0-1 0-1 0-1 1-0 1-0 1-0 0-1
1 BUF* @HOU @ATL @NE* KC TEN † MIN DEN JAC @PIT † NYJ @IND @OAK* @CIN @BAL SD*
2 @NYJ NE IND* TB @SD @CHI @DEN @GB @MIA* HOU @TEN ARI BAL CLE OAK @KC
3 ATL TEN @SD NO CLE @CIN @BAL PIT @ARI @NYJ JAC @HOU MIA @OAK @PHI DEN
4 BAL @NO BUF @MIA @NE SD CIN @CLE SEA @JAC OAK TEN @PIT DAL NYG @HOU
5 @DEN @MIA* NYJ* CLE CIN @DET @BUF @BAL @TEN IND @ARI @SEA — NE DAL @NYG
6 TEN BUF — @NYJ @MIN CLE @PIT HOU — @NE @CIN STL DEN † @SD* @WAS PHI
7 TB ^ @OAK NO @CAR — MIN GB CHI @STL — SF — @KC — SD NYJ
AJ MAST / AP 8 — MIA @NYJ HOU DEN — @CHI — SF JAC @BUF @TEN OAK @BAL — @SD
With Anthony Gonzalez, above, hurt, the Colts are expected to sign ex-Eagle Hank Baskett. 9 MIA — @NE — @CIN @DEN* — BAL HOU @SF @IND KC @NYG PIT* @JAC —
10 @IND JAC TB @TEN @CLE* CIN BAL* @PIT NE BUF — @NYJ PHI @WAS @OAK KC
WR Anthony Gonzalez may be out longer receptions for 1,052 yards and six TDs. 11 NYJ @NE @CAR † @JAC IND @KC @DET @OAK @BAL @HOU* TEN* BUF @DEN SD PIT CIN
than the Colts first feared, and the team 12 @NO* CAR @BUF MIA PIT @BAL @CIN CLE @HOU ARI IND @SF KC NYG § @SD @DAL §
appears to have a replacement for him. After Jets coach Rex Ryan said he’s not 13 @MIA ◊ BUF † NE ◊ NYJ † @GB* OAK SD DET TEN @IND @JAC HOU @CLE @KC DEN @PIT
Coach Jim Caldwell said the third-year receiver kissing Bill Belichick’s rings, S Kerry Rhodes 14 CAR @TB @JAC @KC DET @CLE † PIT † @MIN DEN STL SEA MIA @DAL @IND BUF WAS
could miss up to two months after spraining went a step farther in heating up Sunday’s 15 @BUF ATL @ TEN NE CHI GB @KC @SD @JAC † MIA @STL IND † CIN OAK CLE @DEN
ligaments in his right knee during the 14-12 matchup at the Meadowlands. Rhodes said 16 JAC @IND HOU @ATL @PIT BAL OAK KC NYJ SD° @MIA @NE @TEN° @PHI @CIN @CLE
victory over Jacksonville Sunday. Indianapo- he not only wants to beat the Patriots, he 17 @HOU CIN PIT IND @OAK @MIA JAC @NYJ @BUF @SEA NE @CLE WAS KC @DEN BAL
lis will sign former Eagles WR Hank Baskett to wants to “embarrass” them. Since 2003,
take Gonzalez’s place, ESPN reported. the Patriots are 11-2 against the Jets, includ-
“Since Anthony’s going to be out a while, ing a playoff win in 2006.
hopefully we can catch him up as soon as pos- “You go out from the first quarter on, from followed by a two-week team suspension. Patriots ILB Jerod Mayo is wearing a The Kansas City Star reported that
sible,” QB Peyton Manning said about Baskett. the first play on, and try to embarrass them,” Other than stating he has been completely brace on his injured right knee and walk- Chiefs QB Matt Cassel (knee) was limited in
“It’s a lot of offense to learn in a couple of days, Rhodes told the New York Daily News. “Not healthy “a long time,” Marshall talked in ing with crutches. Last year’s NFL Defen- practice Thursday and that his status for
but he’s a veteran, so he could help us.” just go out there and try to win, try to embar- circles, deflecting every question about his sive Rookie of the Year walked through Week 2 is uncertain. Cassell said he is mak-
The Colts play Miami on Monday night. rass them. Try to make them feel bad when personal situation and relationship with New England’s locker room and into the ing good progress and his mobility is
Losing Gonzalez for an extended period is a they leave here. We want to send a message to the franchise and teammates. training room on Thursday. He did not talk improved greatly over last week.
big blow to the Colts, who expected their 2007 them: ‘We’re not backing down from you and In the opener in Cincinnati, he had two with reporters.
first-round pick to replace Marvin Harrison in the we expect to win this game, and it’s not going drops, including a deep ball down the seam Mayo sprained the MCL in the first quar- Texans CB Dunta Robinson has been
lineup. Harrison was released in February. to be luck, it’s not going to be a mistake.’ ” that went through his hands. Marshall ter of Monday night’s 25-24 win over the fined $25,000 by the team for the “pay me
Baskett gives the Colts some intriguing needs to prove he still has the downfield Bills and could miss up to eight weeks, The Rick” shoes he wore during Sunday’s
possibilities. At 6-4, 220 pounds, he’s big- Broncos WR Brandon Marshall spoke to speed to gain separation from cornerbacks Boston Globe reported. The Patriots said game. It was first reported by the Houston
ger than any other Indy receiver. In three the media for the first time since his well- and be classified as a top-tier receiver. only that he had a knee injury and did not Chronicle. The shoes targeted G.M. Rick
years with the Eagles, he has 72 career publicized fit at practice Aug. 26 that was — Lee Rasizer practice Wednesday. Smith.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com NFL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 19
INSIDE DISH

Eagles aren’t ruling out McNabb for Sunday

WIN
2009 SCOREBOARD LOSS
* MONDAY † THURSDAY ‡ SATURDAY § THANKSGIVING DAY
^ IN LONDON ° CHRISTMAS DAY ◊ IN TORONTO

NFC EAST NFC NORTH NFC SOUTH NFC WEST

NYG PHI DAL WAS GB MIN DET CHI NO ATL TB CAR SEA SF ARI STL
W-L 1-0 1-0 1-0 0-1 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1
Pct. 1.000 1.000 1000 0.000 1.000 1.000 0.000 0.000 1.000 1.000 0.000 0.000 1.000 1.000 0.000 0.000
PF 23 38 34 17 21 34 27 15 45 19 21 10 28 20 16 0
PA 17 10 21 23 15 20 45 21 27 7 34 38 0 16 20 28
Div. 1-0 0-0 0-0 0-1 1-0 0-0 0-1 0-1 0-0 0-0 0-0 0-0 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1
NFC 1-0 1-0 1-0 0-1 1-0 0-0 0-1 0-1 1-0 0-0 0-1 0-1 1-0 1-0 0-1 0-1
1 WAS @CAR @TB @NYG CHI @CLE @NO @GB DET MIA DAL PHI STL @ARI SF @SEA
2 @DAL NO NYG STL CIN @DET MIN PIT @PHI CAR @BUF @ATL @SF SEA @ JAC @WAS
3 @TB KC CAR* @DET @STL SF WAS @SEA @BUF @NE NYG @DAL CHI @MIN IND GB
4 @KC — @DEN TB @MIN* GB* @CHI DET NYJ — @WAS — @IND STL — @SF
5 OAK TB @KC @CAR — @STL PIT — — @SF @PHI WAS JAC ATL HOU MIN
6 @NO @OAK — @KC DET BAL @GB @ATL NYG CHI CAR @TB ARI — @SEA @JAC
7 ARI @WAS* ATL PHI* @CLE @PIT — @CIN @MIA @DAL NE ^ BUF — @HOU @NYG IND
8 @PHI NYG SEA — MIN @GB STL CLE ATL* @NO* — @ARI @DAL @IND CAR @DET
9 SD DAL @PHI @ATL @TB — @SEA ARI CAR WAS GB @NO DET TEN @CHI —
BARBARA JOHNSTON / AP
10 — @SD @GB DEN DAL DET @MIN @SF † @STL @CAR @MIA ATL @ARI CHI † SEA NO
If Donovan McNabb, right, is out this week, Jeff Garcia, left, will back up QB Kevin Kolb.
11 ATL @CHI WAS @DAL SF SEA CLE PHI @TB @NYG NO MIA † @MIN @GB @STL ARI
The Eagles aren’t giving up hope of having serve one more week of his league-man- 12 @DEN § WAS OAK § @PHI @DET § CHI GB § @MIN NE* TB @ATL @NYJ @STL JAC TEN SEA
Donovan McNabb on the field when they play dated suspension, split the remaining snaps 13 DAL @ATL @NYG NO BAL* @ARI @CIN STL @WAS PHI @CAR TB SF @SEA MIN @CHI
their home opener Sunday against the Saints. and worked with the scout team. 14 PHI @NYG SD @OAK @CHI CIN @BAL GB @ATL NO NYJ @NE @HOU ARI* @SF* @TEN
McNabb, who fractured a rib in Philadel- 15 @WAS* SF @NO ‡ NYG* @PIT @CAR ARI @BAL DAL ‡ @NYJ @SEA MIN TB @PHI @DET HOU
phia’s 38-10 win at Carolina Sunday, made a Chris Canty’s return to Dallas is in doubt. 16 CAR DEN @WAS DAL SEA @CHI* @SF MIN* TB BUF @NO @NYG @GB DET STL @ARI
brief appearance on the practice field Thursday The Giants’ defensive tackle missed practice 17 @MIN @DAL PHI @SD @ARI NYG CHI @DET @CAR @TB ATL NO TEN @STL GB SF
afternoon but did not take part in any drills. on Thursday with a calf injury and his status
“You know Donovan, he’s doing every- for Sunday night’s game at the Cowboys’ new
thing in his power to get back out there, make stadium in Arlington is uncertain.
it to this game,” offensive coordinator Marty Canty, who left Dallas to sign with the tice Thursday. said. “But we can’t dwell on it. I can’t dwell The Bears have placed CB Trumaine McBride
Mornhinweg said. “He’s played with a broken Giants as a free agent, was hurt in practice Bryant had arthroscopic surgery in early on it. The city is obviously a little bit disap- on the waived/injured list and claimed CB
ankle, a broken sternum and all these things. on Wednesday. He received treatment on August to repair a torn meniscus in his left pointed as well. We’re going to bounce back. DeAngelo Smith off waivers from the Browns.
Donovan is a very tough man.” Thursday while the team practiced. LB knee and left the season-opening game I’m going to bounce back. We’re going to get Smith was drafted by Dallas in the fifth round
If McNabb isn’t available, the Eagles will Michael Boley (hip) showed improvement and against Dallas early because of knee fatigue. better, that I can promise you.” in the spring but did not make the final cut.
go with Kevin Kolb, the team’s second-round has a shot to play. He spent 10 days with Cleveland before get-
draft pick in 2007. Kolb would make his Coming off his four-interception debut The Lions have acquired DE Turk McBride ting waived on Wednesday. The Bears will
first start and would be backed up by vet- Buccaneers WR Antonio Bryant has with the Bears, Jay Cutler says he is “confi- on waivers from the Chiefs. McBride had won’t have two starters—TE Desmond Clark (rib)
eran Jeff Garcia, who as signed Tuesday. regressed in his recovery from preseason dent” he’ll play better Sunday against Pitts- been playing outside linebacker in Kansas and OLB Pisa Tinoisamoa (knee) available on
Kolb took nearly all the reps with the first knee surgery, and he isn’t sure to play Sun- burgh, NFL.com reported. City’s new 3-4 scheme after being a starter Sunday, the Chicago Sun-Times reported. Greg
team on Thursday. Garcia and Michael Vick, day at Buffalo, The Tampa Tribune reported. “I’m disappointed in my performance. I most of last year at end. He was a second- Olsen will fill in at tight end, and Nick Roach will
who is on the active roster but still must Bryant didn’t participate in the team’s prac- let the guys down (with) four picks,” Cutler round choice by the Chiefs in 2007. start at outside linebacker.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com NFL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 20
Standings
Former Lions coach Clark dies at 72 Injury report PATRIOTS: DNP: LB Jerod Mayo (knee). LIMITED: C Dan
Connolly (back), WR Julian Edelman (ankle), LB Rob AFC
NEW YORK—The National Football League
Ninkovich (calf), DT Myron Pryor (calf), WR Matt Slater
injury report, as provided by the league (OUT - East W L T Pct PF PA Home Away AFC NFC Div
DETROIT—Monte Clark, who coached the Definitely will not play; DNP - Did not practice;
(elbow), LB Adalius Thomas (foot), WR Wes Welker
Detroit Lions for seven years and led (knee), CB Terrence Wheatley (knee). FULL: QB Tom New England 1 0 0 1.000 25 24 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0
LIMITED - Limited participation in practice; FULL - Full
Brady (right shoulder). JETS: LIMITED: DT Kris Jenkins N.Y. Jets 1 0 0 1.000 24 7 0-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
them to the playoffs in 1982 and 1983, has participation in practice): NOTE: An injury report for
(back), DT Sione Pouha (ankle), T Damien Woody (ill- Buffalo 0 1 0 .000 24 25 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0
died. He was 72. Monday’s game was not included.
ness), WR Wallace Wright (hamstring). FULL: QB Kellen Miami 0 1 0 .000 7 19 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0
SUNDAY
He died Wednesday night at Henry ARIZONA CARDINALS AT JACKSONVILLE
Clemens (right elbow), DE Mike Devito (hamstring),
Ford Hospital in Detroit, the team said RB Shonn Greene (rib), LB Bryan Thomas (ankle), LB South W L T Pct PF PA Home Away AFC NFC Div
JAGUARS — CARDINALS: DNP: WR Steve Breaston
Jamaal Westerman (quadricep).
Thursday. He had a bone marrow malig- (knee), DE Kenny Iwebema (ankle), LB Chike Okeafor
NEW ORLEANS SAINTS AT PHILADELPHIA Indianapolis 1 0 0 1.000 14 12 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0
nancy associated with lung and liver (shoulder), S Matt Ware (shoulder). LIMITED: WR
EAGLES — SAINTS: DNP: T Jammal Brown (hip), T Houston 0 1 0 .000 7 24 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
Anquan Boldin (hamstring), WR Early Doucet (ribs),
Jermon Bushrod (ankle), DT Kendrick Clancy (knee), TE
Jacksonville 0 1 0 .000 12 14 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0
disease. WR Sean Morey (ribs), QB Brian St. Pierre (back). FULL: Tennessee 0 1 0 .000 10 13 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
Darnell Dinkins (foot), CB Tracy Porter (knee), TE Jeremy
Clark was the offensive line coach for G Reggie Wells (thumb). JAGUARS: DNP: TE Zach Miller
Shockey (ankle). LIMITED: S Roman Harper (thigh,
the Miami Dolphins team that went 17-0 (knee), CB Brian Witherspoon (hamstring). North W L T Pct PF PA Home Away AFC NFC Div
hamstring). FULL: RB Pierre Thomas (knee), S Usama
BALTIMORE RAVENS AT SAN DIEGO CHARGERS
in 1972. He became the Lions’ coach in — RAVENS: DNP: LB Terrell Suggs (concussion, chest),
Young (shoulder). EAGLES: OUT: G Todd Herremans Baltimore 1 0 0 1.000 38 24 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
1978. (foot). DNP: S Quintin Demps (hamstring), LB Joe Mays Pittsburgh 1 0 0 1.000 13 10 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
S Tom Zbikowski (concussion). LIMITED: S Ed Reed (con-
(shoulder), QB Donovan McNabb (rib). LIMITED: WR Cincinnati 0 1 0 .000 7 12 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
“Monte will always be remembered as a cussion), TE L.J. Smith (hamstring). FULL: LB Tavares
DeSean Jackson (groin). FULL: WR Kevin Curtis (knee), Cleveland 0 1 0 .000 20 34 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0
consummate football man,” Lions presi- Gooden (knee). CHARGERS: Practice Not Complete.
T King Dunlap (elbow), G Max Jean-Gilles (knee), T
CAROLINA PANTHERS AT ATLANTA FALCONS — West W L T Pct PF PA Home Away AFC NFC Div
dent Tom Lewand said. “He knew football Winston Justice (shoulder).
PANTHERS: DNP: S Chris Harris (knee), DT Nick Hayden
OAKLAND RAIDERS AT KANSAS CITY CHIEFS —
inside and out, and had a passion for it. He (toe), CB Sherrod Martin (knee), RB Jonathan Stewart San Diego 1 0 0 1.000 24 20 0-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0
RAIDERS: Practice Not Complete. CHIEFS: LIMITED: QB
played the game at a high level and had suc- (heel). LIMITED: DE Everette Brown (ankle), DE Charles Denver 1 0 0 1.000 12 7 0-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
Matt Cassel (knee), CB Brandon Flowers (shoulder).
Johnson (knee), T Jeff Otah (shoulder). FALCONS: Kansas City 0 1 0 .000 24 38 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
cess wherever he coached.” PITTSBURGH STEELERS AT CHICAGO BEARS —
Oakland 0 1 0 .000 20 24 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0
LIMITED: K Jason Elam (left hamstring), S William
Under Clark, the Lions went 43-63-1 STEELERS: DNP: S Tyrone Carter (not injury related),
Moore (hamstring). FULL: DT Peria Jerry (chest).
S Troy Polamalu (knee), DE Aaron Smith (not injury
and made back-to-back postseason RICHARD SCHEINWALD / AP CINCINNATI BENGALS AT GREEN BAY PACKERS
related), WR Hines Ward (not injury related). LIMITED: NFC
appearances for the first time since their Monte Clark was an assistant coach for the unbeaten — BENGALS: OUT: CB David Jones (foot), T Andre
WR Limas Sweed (foot), LB Lawrence Timmons (ankle). East W L T Pct PF PA Home Away NFC AFC Div
‘72 Dolphins and led the Lions to the playoffs twice. Smith (foot). DNP: DE Jonathan Fanene (not injury
three straight playoff runs from 1952-54. related), G Nate Livings (knee). LIMITED: RB Brian
BEARS: DNP: DE Mark Anderson (toe), TE Desmond
N.Y. Giants 1 0 0 1.000 23 17 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0
The Lions lost both games. Clark (rib), S Danieal Manning (back), CB Trumaine
Leonard (chest). FULL: T Scott Kooistra (knee). PACKERS: Dallas 1 0 0 1.000 34 21 0-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
McBride (knee), LB Pisa Tinoisamoa (knee). LIMITED: S
Seven players were named to 14 Pro Clark also was on Shula’s staff when OUT: S Atari Bigby (knee). DNP: RB Brandon Jackson Philadelphia 1 0 0 1.000 38 10 0-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
Al Afalava (shoulder), DT Tommie Harris (knee), G Frank
Bowls during Clark’s stay in Detroit, Miami again won the Super Bowl in 1973. (ankle). LIMITED: K Mason Crosby (abdomen), WR Greg Washington 0 1 0 .000 17 23 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0
Omiyale (ankle).
Jennings (wrist). FULL: CB Will Blackmon (quadricep),
including lineman Al “Bubba” Baker, After his coaching stints in San Fran- SEATTLE SEAHAWKS AT SAN FRANCISCO 49ERS
DT B.J. Raji (ankle). South W L T Pct PF PA Home Away NFC AFC Div
— SEAHAWKS: OUT: LB LeRoy Hill (groin). DNP: WR
running back Billy Sims and kicker Eddie cisco and Detroit, Clark returned to CLEVELAND BROWNS AT DENVER BRONCOS —
Deion Branch (hamstring), CB Travis Fisher (hamstring), New Orleans 1 0 0 1.000 45 27 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
Murray. Miami as director of pro personnel in BROWNS: OUT: G Rex Hadnot (knee). DNP: RB James
WR T.J. Houshmandzadeh (back spasms), T Walter Atlanta 1 0 0 1.000 19 7 1-0-0 0-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0
Davis (shoulder). LIMITED: LB David Bowens (knee),
Clark was born in Kingsburg, Calif., and 1990. RB Jamal Lewis (neck), WR Mohamed Massaquoi
Jones (knee), C Chris Spencer (quadricep), LB Lofa Carolina 0 1 0 .000 10 38 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
starred as an offensive lineman at Southern Clark served as offensive line coach at Tatupu (hamstring). FULL: S C.J. Wallace (rib). 49ERS: Tampa Bay 0 1 0 .000 21 34 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
(shoulder), RB Cedric Peerman (thigh), DT Shaun Rog-
Practice Not Complete.
California before San Francisco drafted Stanford in 1993-94 and was Miami’s ers (foot). FULL: RB Jerome Harrison (knee), TE Steve
ST. LOUIS RAMS AT WASHINGTON REDSKINS North W L T Pct PF PA Home Away NFC AFC Div
him in 1959. He spent three seasons with offensive line coach in 1995, Shula’s final Heiden (knee), P Dave Zastudil (right knee). BRONCOS:
RAMS— DNP: S Craig Dahl (hamstring), T John Greco
Practice Not Complete. Green Bay 1 0 0 1.000 21 15 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0
the 49ers and one with the Dallas Cowboys season as coach of the Dolphins. He spent HOUSTON TEXANS AT TENNESSEE TITANS —
(wrist). REDSKINS: LIMITED: LB Robert Henson (illness).
Minnesota 1 0 0 1.000 34 20 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0
TAMPA BAY BUCCANEERS AT BUFFALO BILLS
before playing for the Cleveland Browns the 1998 season as offensive line coach at TEXANS: DNP: DT Shaun Cody (knee), WR Andre Davis Chicago 0 1 0 .000 15 21 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0
— BUCCANEERS: DNP: CB E.J. Biggers (shoulder), C Detroit 0 1 0 .000 27 45 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-0-0
from 1963-69. Cal-Berkeley and joined the Lions that (concussion), RB Vonta Leach (knee), CB Antwaun
Jeff Faine (triceps), DE Kyle Moore (groin). LIMITED: WR
Molden (quadricep). LIMITED: DE Antonio Smith
Clark served as an assistant in Miami year for the first of 11 seasons as a Antonio Bryant (knee), TE John Gilmore (ankle). BILLS: West W L T Pct PF PA Home Away NFC AFC Div
(illness). FULL: CB Jacques Reeves (fibula), WR Kevin
from 1970-75 before becoming head coach consultant. DNP: DE Chris Kelsay (knee), LB Paul Posluszny (fore-
Walter (hamstring), CB Eugene Wilson (knee). TITANS: San Francisco 1 0 0 1.000 20 16 0-0-0 1-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0
arm). LIMITED: TE Derek Fine (hamstring), CB Drayton
in San Francisco in 1976, leading the After his coaching career, Clark was a DNP: TE Jared Cook (ankle), TE Bo Scaife (knee), LB
Florence (knee). FULL: DE Aaron Schobel (back). Seattle 1 0 0 1.000 28 0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0 0-0-0 1-0-0
49ers to an 8-6 record. football broadcaster in Detroit and color David Thornton (knee). FULL: P Craig Hentrich (back). Arizona 0 1 0 .000 16 20 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0
NEW YORK GIANTS AT DALLAS COWBOYS —
MINNESOTA VIKINGS AT DETROIT LIONS — St. Louis 0 1 0 .000 0 28 0-0-0 0-1-0 0-1-0 0-0-0 0-1-0
Don Shula, whose 26 years as coach in analyst for the University of Michigan. He VIKINGS: DNP: LB Erin Henderson (calf). LIMITED: LB
GIANTS: DNP: S Michael Johnson (shoulder), T Adam
Miami included the perfect 1972 season, was a sideline reporter for the Michigan Koets (ankle), WR Hakeem Nicks (foot), S Kenny Phillips
Heath Farwell (hamstring), G Anthony Herrera (back).
called Clark an “outstanding coach.” State radio network in 1992. FULL: TE Jim Kleinsasser (hand). LIONS: DNP: DE Cliff
(knee), CB Aaron Ross (hamstring), RB Danny Ware Schedule
(elbow). LIMITED: LB Michael Boley (hip), DE Chris
Avril (hamstring), QB Drew Stanton (knee). LIMITED: Sunday Cincinnati at Green Bay, 1 p.m. Cleveland at Denver, 4:15 p.m.
“Monte was an outstanding teacher and Survivors include Clark’s wife of 52 Canty (calf), CB Kevin Dockery (hamstring), LB Clint Houston at Tennessee, 1 p.m. New Orleans at Philadelphia, 1 p.m. N.Y. Giants at Dallas, 8:20 p.m.
DT Andre Fluellen (knee), DT Grady Jackson (knee), CB
knew how to present information to his years, Charlotte, three sons and eight Sintim (groin). COWBOYS: DNP: S Michael Hamlin Minnesota at Detroit, 1 p.m. Arizona at Jacksonville, 1 p.m.
William James (foot), CB Eric King (shoulder). FULL: K
(wrist), LB Jason Williams (ankle). FULL: LB Curtis Carolina at Atlanta, 1 p.m. Monday
players in a way that made it interesting grandchildren. Jason Hanson (right knee).
Johnson (hamstring), QB Stephen McGee (knee), QB
Tampa Bay at Buffalo, 4:05 p.m.
Indianapolis at Miami, 8:30 p.m.
NEW ENGLAND PATRIOTS AT NEW YORK JETS — St. Louis at Washington, 1 p.m. Seattle at San Francisco, 4:05 p.m.
and exciting for them,” he said in a state- Funeral arrangements are incomplete. Tony Romo (ankle), S Gerald Sensabaugh (chest). New England at N.Y. Jets, 1 p.m. Pittsburgh at Chicago, 4:15 p.m.
ment released by the Dolphins. — The Associated Press Oakland at Kansas City, 1 p.m. Baltimore at San Diego, 4:15 p.m.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com NFL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 21
Tips for the office pool The confidence pool
Everything you need to know to talk trash at the water cooler: For those in weekly “con-
fidence pools,” where you
AFC game of the week Packers (-9) over Bengals. For deliver more often away from get more points based on
Patriots (-3 1/2) at Jets. New the second consecutive week, the face of the pass rush. which picks you’re most con-
Cincinnati draws a 3-4 team fident about, here’s how our
York hopes that the rookie com-
with a ballhawking secondary Upset special prognostication panel feels Vinnie Dennis Steve Russ Clifton Albert Real
bination of coach Rex Ryan and about this week’s games:
that can silence Chad Ochocinco. (straight up and vs. the spread) Iyer Dillon Greenberg Lande Brown Breer Scouts
quarterback Mark Sanchez 14-2 14-2 15-1 12-4 12-4
Ravens over Chargers (-3). Balti- 13-3 13-3
finally will change their for- The Packers will swarm Carson
tunes against Bill Belichick and Palmer, and Green Bay QB more proved it can win by throw-
Tom Brady. The home team Aaron Rodgers will provide the ing often last week, and with its
should hang in there with their offensive spark with more big prolific ground game and play- 1. Packers over Bengals
running game and improved plays downfield. making defense still intact, it is a
defense, but count on Brady to better overall team than San 2. Vikings over Lions
Diego at the moment. Look for Joe
make one more clutch play. Shootout of the week Flacco to outduel Philip Rivers
(over the over/under)
NFC game of the week Steelers at Bears (37 1/2 o/u). late to steal a big road victory. 3. Redskins over Rams
Giants at Cowboys (-3). Dallas will The running games likely will
be inspired to break in its new sta- be slowed by two physical front Trap of the week 4. Falcons over Panthers
dium with a win, and Tony Romo sevens. But with Pittsburgh Cardinals at Jaguars (-3). Arizona
will deliver against New York’s safety Troy Polamalu and Chi- is trying to shake off the Super
banged-up secondary. Eli Man- cago middle linebacker Brian Bowl hangover, which showed up 5. Titans over Texans
ning also will play well, but his lack Urlacher both out, it will be on in Week 1 with a shaky perfor-
of a go-to receiver will keep him quarterbacks Ben Roethlis- mance by Kurt Warner. Jackson- 6. Bills over Buccaneers
from a successful late comeback. berger and Jay Cutler to exploit ville will get physical to try to keep
the middle of the field. Roethlis- the Cards folding. Still, the visi-
berger has the better downfield tors’ firepower and the Jags’ lack 7. Steelers over Bears
Lock of the Week thereof makes the outcome iffy.
(survival pool pick and vs. the spread) options and also will get to
— Vinnie Iyer
8. Broncos over Browns
The spread
Week 2 schedule 9. Patriots over Jets
OVER/UNDER CLOSING LINES
at Kansas City (-3 1/2) ........................38 1/2 ...............Oakland ...............................Raiders have covered in 5 of past 6 at Kansas City. Sunday
Houston at Tennessee, 1 p.m.
at Tennessee (-6 1/2)..........................40 1/2 ...............Houston...............................Texans have won only 2 of past 11 road games. Minnesota at Detroit, 1 p.m. 10. Colts over Dolphins
New England (-3 1/2) ........................46 ......................at New York Jets..................Patriots have covered in 7 of past 10 games vs. Jets. Carolina at Atlanta, 1 p.m.
at Green Bay (-9).................................42 ......................Cincinnati.............................Bengals haven’t covered in past 5 games vs. Packers. St. Louis at Washington, 1 p.m.
New England at N.Y. Jets, 1 p.m. 11. Raiders over Chiefs
Minnesota (-10)..................................46 1/2 ...............at Detroit..............................Lions have covered only once in past 9 home games. Oakland at Kansas City, 1 p.m.
at Philadelphia (Pick‘em)...................46 1/2 ...............New Orleans........................Eagles QB Donovan McNabb (ribs) questionable for game. Cincinnati at Green Bay, 1 p.m.
at Atlanta (-6 1/2)...............................43 ......................Carolina................................Falcons have won 9 of past 10 home games.
New Orleans at Philadelphia, 1 p.m. 12. Giants over Cowboys
Arizona at Jacksonville, 1 p.m.
at Washington (-10) ...........................37 ......................St. Louis................................Redskins have covered only once in past 6 home games. Tampa Bay at Buffalo, 4:05 p.m.
at Jacksonville (-3) ..............................42 1/2 ...............Arizona.................................Jaguars have covered only once in past 8 home games. Seattle at San Francisco, 4:05 p.m. 13. Cardinals over Jaguars
Pittsburgh at Chicago, 4:15 p.m.
at San Francisco (-1 1/2) ....................39 1/2 ...............Seattle..................................Seahawks have covered in 4 of past 5 games. Baltimore at San Diego, 4:15 p.m.
at Buffalo (5)........................................42 ......................Tampa Bay...........................Bills have failed to cover in past 5 home games. Cleveland at Denver, 4:15 p.m. 14. Eagles over Saints
at Denver (-3) ......................................37 1/2 ...............Cleveland.............................Browns have failed to cover in past 5 games. N.Y. Giants at Dallas, 8:20 p.m.

at San Diego (-3).................................40 1/2 ...............Baltimore.............................Ravens have covered in 5 of past 6 games. Monday
Pittsburgh (-3).....................................37 1/2 ...............Chicago................................Bears have won 6 of past 7 home games. Indianapolis at Miami, 8:30 p.m.
15. 49ers over Seahawks
atDallas(-3).................................................441/2...................NewYorkGiants ......................Cowboyshavecoveredin4ofpast5homegames.
Indianapolis (-3)..................................42 ......................at Miami ..............................Colts have won 10 of past 11 games. 16. Ravens over Chargers
— Vinnie Iyer
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com NFL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 22
WEEK 2: FANTASY FOCUS

Start ’em or sit ’em

For more Start ‘em, Sit ‘em advice,
check out Vinnie Iyer’s
‘The Decider’ column at
GEORGE BILL BRAD MATT KYLE
WINKLER BENDER PINKERTON LUTOVSKY WHITFIELD
fantasy.sportingnews.com/football
Senior Editor, Assoc. Editor, Assoc. Editor, Assoc. Editor, Fantasy
Fantasy Fantasy Fantasy Fantasy Intern VERDICT
QB Trent Edwards vs. TB Start Start Start Sit Start Bucs’ defense gave up three long passing TDs to Dallas in Week 1
RB Willie Parker at CHI Sit Start Sit Sit Sit Big Ben is taking over as the focal point of the Steelers’ offense.
RB Leon Washington vs. NE Start Start Sit Start Start Pats’ LB injury leaves short passing game open for Washington.
WR Lance Moore at PHI Sit Sit Sit Sit Sit Moore seems to be losing action in fight for Drew Brees’ attention.
PAUL CONNORS / AP TE Greg Olsen vs. PIT Start Sit Start Start Start If Jay Cutler’s smart, (that’s debatable) he’ll go with safer passes to the TE.
Reggie Wayne torched the Jags last week, and
that bodes well for Larry Fitzgerald, above.

Top 10 wide receivers Five stats to exploit Insurance policies

1. Larry Fitzgerald, ARI, at JAC
2. Andre Johnson, HOU, at TEN
Johnson had four catches for 35
yards in Week 1 and faces Tennessee’s
physical cornerbacks. He’s still not worth
benching. Johnson had 207 yards and a
TD in the last meeting with the Titans.
3. Calvin Johnson, DET, vs. MIN
4. Randy Moss, NE, at NYJ
5. Reggie Wayne, IND, at MIA
6. Greg Jennings, GB, vs. CIN
7. Marques Colston, NO, at PHI
8. Roy Williams, DAL, vs. NYG
9. Steve Smith, CAR, at ATL
10. T.J. Houshmandzadeh, SEA, at SF
— Bill Bender
For a full look at the rankings, go to
sportingnews.com/fantasy/football
1. Buffalo’s Lee Evans is a big-play specialist,
and the Bucs allowed four 20-plus yard
completions to the Cowboys last week.
Jason Campbell, QB, Redskins. If Donovan McNabb
owners are in a bind, they should consider
Campbell’s matchup against the Rams. But if
2. The Lions allowed 46 yards and two TDs
to tight ends in Week 1. Expect Visanthe
Shiancoe to be Brett Favre’s No. 1 receiver on
McNabb owners have a solid backup and are just
looking for a No. 3, Mark Sanchez has better
long-term value than Campbell.
Sunday.
3. The Panthers committed seven turnovers
in Week 1; the Falcons caused four
turnovers. Simple math says Atlanta’s D/ST is a
Jerheme Urban, WR, Cardinals. Anquan Boldin or
Steve Breaston owners should consider Urban
as a bench piece. He had five receptions for 74
good play against Carolina this week. yards playing for the injured Breaston and
4. The 49ers tied for second in most fantasy
points allowed to kickers last year (10.1),
and they’re tied for No. 1 after one week this
while Boldin wasn’t 100 percent. This week’s
matchup versus Jacksonville should be
favorable.
year (12.0). Have Seattle kicker Olindo Mare in
your lineups. Hank Baskett, WR, Colts. If you’re looking for a
5. The Patriots were burned by Fred Jack-
son’s 83 receiving yards in Week 1. This
week, they face Leon Washington, who’s an
potential sleeper in deep leagues, Baskett
certainly is an option now that Anthony Gonza-
lez will miss significant time with his knee
even better receiver out of the backfield than injury.
Jackson. — George Winkler
— Matt Lutovsky TIM LARSEN / AP
For all game-time decisions, check out sportingnews.com/
Jason Campbell’s matchup against the Rams may be one fantasy owners want to exploit. blog/FantasySourceBlitz.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Pittsburgh (1-0) at Chicago (0-1)
When: Sunday, 4:15 p.m. ET
TV: CBS/DirecTV 715
Weather: 75, mostly cloudy
Line: Steelers favored by 3
Last meeting: Steelers, 21-9 (2005)
Steelers’ keys to success
1. Corral the pass rush. The offen-
sive line did not play as
poorly as it might have appeared
against the Titans, even though Ben
Roethlisberger was sacked four
times. He also attempted 43 passes
and, by his own admission, probably
was responsible for at least two of the
sacks by holding the ball too long.
The Bears had four sacks against the
Packers in Week 1, including a safety,
and applied lots of pressure.
2. Confuse Bears QB Jay Cutler.
If Cutler had a tough time
finding receivers and figuring out
the Packers’ new 3-4 defense, he
might have an even more difficult
time against the team that plays the
3-4 better than anyone. Cutler
threw four interceptions in his
Bears debut, mostly because he and
his receivers were out of sync. Steel-
ers coordinator Dick LeBeau is the
master at disguising coverages.
3. Contain Devin Hester in the
return game. This will be
the first time the Steelers will face
the Bears’ Pro Bowl returner, which
should make for the ultimate test
for their improved coverage units.
The return of punter Daniel Sep-
ulveda has been a plus because he is
able to kick directionally and hang
punts toward the sideline, a neces-
sity against Hester.
Bears’ keys to success
1. Get a stronger push. Ben
Roethlisberger is at his
Ben Roethlisberger makes his share of plays, but he can hang on to the ball too long, too.
best when buying time by moving
in the pocket, especially stepping
up into the pocket and finding
receivers over the middle. DTs
Tommie Harris, Anthony Adams
and Marcus Harrison must get a
better push up the middle to force
Roethlisberger to the outside and
toward Adewale Ogunleye, Alex
Brown and Mark Anderson.
2. Get Matt Forte more involved.
The offense looked its best
last week when Forte was the focal
point, taking pressure off Jay Cutler.
Offensive coordinator Ron Turner
must do a better job early in the game
NFL
GENE J. PUSKAR / AP
with plays that feature Forte—espe-
cially as a receiver—because it’s diffi-
cult to run on the Steelers, who have
been in the top three against the run
for five consecutive years.
3. Get Cutler, receivers on the
same page. Cutler certainly
is going to be flushed out of the
pocket by the Steelers’ blitz on Sun-
day afternoon. When Green Bay
did this to him using the same 3-4
scheme, Cutler thought his receiv-
ers were going one way while they
actually went the other. It led to two
of his interceptions.
— Gene Chamberlain & Gerry Dulac
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 23
Q&A with ... Bears OLB Lance Briggs
‘As far as we’re concerned, we’re fine’
The loss of Brian Urlacher, who’s out for the season after dislo-
cating his wrist in the season-opening loss at Green Bay, means
Pro Bowl outside linebacker Lance Briggs and the rest of the
Chicago defense will have to ratchet up their games to compen-
sate. Sporting News Radio’s 2 Live Stews talked to Briggs about
losing Urlacher, Jay Cutler’s rough start and Briggs’ passion for
comic books.
Q: Did you want to go over and yell at Jay
Cutler when he was throwing all of those
interceptions?
A: No, it’s not like that. We all have our bad games.
The thing I’m not worried about is our offense,
and I’m definitely not worried about Jay Cutler. This is
a guy I played against in the Pro Bowl. To me, we have
games like that. Whatever is going on with the offense,
they’ll get their stuff fixed and we’ll jell and continue
on. No matter what happens, defensively we had a
chance to win the game and didn’t do it.
Q: When you see Cutler going through
struggles, as a team leader, do you go
over and encourage him?
A: We’re all grown men out there. For one, I talk
to the guys who are on the defensive side of the
ball. For two, I talk to younger guys who aren’t as
experienced out there. Us older guys, the guys I’ve
been playing with for a while, they know. I don’t need
to go up to Tommie Harris or Adewale (Ogunleye) or JAY DROWNS / SN
Alex Brown and tell them, ‘Hey, you’re screwing up, Lance Briggs says the Bears’ D will be OK without Brian Urlacher.
pick it up.’ They know that. Lovie Smith preaches us
to be accountable, and that’s what we are.
A: You know what we’re going to do? We’re
going to do exactly what we did when Brian
Q: Has Lovie said anything to you about
being more of a team leader now that
went down. We’re going to play great defense.
We’re going to continue to do that week in and
Brian Urlacher is out for the season?
A: As far as we’re concerned, we’re fine.
week out.
Obviously, we lost a crucial part of our
defense, but Hunter (Hillenmeyer) has been in this Q: Talk to us about your social
networking site for comic books.
defense almost as long as I have and Brian has
been. We came into this season with depth at
linebacker. We don’t have a lot of depth now, but we
A: I’m a comic-book head. I got into it when I
was a younger kid. My mom and I were
always into trading baseball and football cards. To
have guys that can fill in and play well. be honest with you, we’ve got boxes of old baseball
and football cards in mint condition. As soon as
Q: How are you going to cope without
Urlacher?
this (economy) comes back, we’re going to look to
make some money off of these cards.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
N.Y. Giants (1-0) at Dallas (1-0)
When: Sunday, 8:20 p.m. ET
TV: NBC
Weather: Retractable dome, 77, partly
cloudy
Line: Cowboys favored by 3
Last meeting: Cowboys, 20-8 (2008)
Giants’ keys to success
1. Contain the Cowboys’ receiv-
ers. The depleted second-
ary—again likely to be without
cornerback Aaron Ross and per-
haps both safeties—kept the Red-
skins in check, limiting Santana
Moss to two catches for six yards
and the other starting receiver,
Malcolm Kelly, to one catch for six
yards. The next test will be much
tougher, as Dallas QB Tony Romo is
coming off a career-best 353-yards
passing game and fired three long
touchdown passes, one apiece for
wide receivers Miles Austin, Roy
Williams and Patrick Crayton.
2. Convert on short yardage.
This was a major headache
last season and was so again in the
opener. The Giants had seven plays
against the Redskins where they
needed 2 or fewer yards and picked
up two first downs. Running back
Brandon Jacobs was held without a
first down on four of those plays.
Moving the pile against the Cow-
boys is essential, as the Dallas
defense allowed 159 rushing yards
and two touchdowns to the Bucca-
neers’ Cadillac Williams and Der-
rick Ward.
3. Throw more to Mario Manning-
ham. In the past, the Giants
were able to exploit the Cowboys’
smallish cornerbacks with tall receiv-
ers but that’s not the physical attri-
bute of this year’s receivers. The best
run-after-catch player on the roster is
Manningham, and Eli Manning will
Mario Manningham, right, had four catches all of last season, and had three in the ‘09 opener.
try to put Manningham in positions
where he gets the ball in his hands on
the move with room to maneuver.
Cowboys’ keys to success
1. Control Jacobs. The Cow-
boys allowed 174 yards
rushing and a 5.6 average per carry
last week. They played poor gap
control and had limited success run
blitzing. Now, they must deal with
Jacobs, who has a 5.0 average and
more than 1,000 yards rushing
each of the past two seasons. Nose
tackle Jay Ratliff is the key. If he
can’t play strong at the point of
attack—even against double-
teams—the defense has no chance
to slow Jacobs.
2. Maintain good run-pass ratio.
The Cowboys had 24 runs
and 27 passes in the opener, which
NFL
BILL KOSTROUN / AP
marked the fourth time since Romo
became the starter he’s had as few as
27 pass attempts. The Cowboys, who
ran the ball 60 percent of the time
last season, vowed to run the ball
more to take the pressure off Romo
and limit his opportunity to make
poor decisions. If they run the ball 24
times against the Giants, even if they
don’t rush for 100 yards, it’ll be a
positive because they’re controlling
the tempo and keeping their defense
off the field and fresh.
3. Get big plays on offense.
Romo had five completions
of 20-plus yards to four receivers
last week. The Cowboys must hit
big plays to beat the Giants because
it’s unlikely they’re going to be able
to consistently drive 80 yards
against the Giants’ defense.
— Jean-Jacques Taylor & Paul Schwartz
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 24
Carolina (0-1) at Atlanta (1-0)
When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
TV: FOX/DirecTV 709
Weather: Dome
Line: Falcons favored by 6 1/2
Last meeting: Falcons, 45-28 (2008)
Panthers’ keys to success
1. Rebuild Jake Delhomme’s
confidence. The Panthers’
quarterback has turned the ball
over a ridiculous 11 times in his
past 22 possessions (not counting
a kneel down). The key—to not
only this game but the season—is
to get his head right. Mostly, that
means running well and protect-
ing him against the blitz, which
the protection scheme failed to do
against the Eagles.
2. Return the favor. There
were moments last week
when the Panthers were effec-
Carolina QB Jake Delhomme (17) has 11 turnovers in his past 22 possessions.
BOB LEVERONE / SN
tive pass-rushing Eagles quar- 24-9 victory over the Falcons last
Falcons’ keys to success
terback Donovan McNabb.
Atlanta’s Matt Ryan is not nearly
as mobile as McNabb, so making 1. Create turnovers. Carolina
has been having big-time
season. They were able to control
the clock and keep Atlanta’s offense
off the field. With Delhomme strug-
him move out of the pocket will turnover issues, and the Falcons’ gling in the passing attack, the Pan-
have a bigger impact. The Pan- defense had four takeaways in the thers will have no choice but to lean
thers also owe Ryan one for the opener. They had only 16 take- on Williams and Stewart.
aways all of last season, and they’d
45 he dropped on them in the
teams’ second meeting last
season.
like to keep the turnovers coming
against Carolina. Newly acquired
3. Keep Muhsin Muhammad
under control. Muham-
mad put on a clinic in the first
linebacker Mike Peterson had his
3. Defend the middle. The
Panthers have tradition-
ally struggled with tight ends in
hand in two of the turnovers last
week, and middle linebacker Cur-
meeting last season, catching
eight passes for 147 yards and a
touchdown while Brent Grimes
tis Lofton forced one. In Delhom-
the passing game. And now that tried to defend him. We’ll likely
me’s past seven quarters, he has 11
the Falcons have added Tony see that matchup a lot on Sunday.
turnovers, including nine intercep-
Gonzalez, they’re looking at a
tions in his last 51 passing attempts.
Though newcomer Brian Wil-
potential matchup nightmare.
With strong safety Chris Harris
struggling with a balky knee (he
The goal is to get a pick early and
keep him reeling.
liams starts at left cornerback for
Atlanta, he slides to the slot in
nickel situations and Grimes
dressed but didn’t play last week),
the Panthers have to make sure 2. Defend the duo. The Pan-
thers’ excellent running
back duo of DeAngelo Williams
comes in to man the outside. The
Falcons mixed in a heavy dose of
their linebackers are sharp in
their assignments or Gonzalez
could light them up.
and Jonathan Stewart combined for
109 yards on 30 carries in the team’s
zone coverages to help out their
corners last week against Miami.
— D. Orlando Ledbetter & Darin Gantt
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com NFL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 25

Baltimore (1-0) at San Diego (1-0) New Orleans (1-0) at Philadelphia (1-0)
When: Sunday, 4:15 p.m. ET When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
TV: CBS/DirecTV 717 TV: FOX/DirecTV 710
Weather: 87, sunny Weather: 73, mostly sunny
Line: Chargers favored by 3 Line: Pick’em
Last meeting: Chargers, 31-14 (2007) Last meeting: Eagles, 38-23 (2007)

Ravens’ keys to success Saints’ keys to success

1. Be unpredictable. The
Ravens’ offensive line is
1. Create pressure on offense. The
Saints’ strategy every Sun-
day is to put a ton of points on the
young and still getting comfortable
with each other after adding center board—ideally early in the game,
Matt Birk and right tackle Michael forcing an opponent to play catch-up.
Oher in the offseason. This group QB Drew Brees doesn’t need to throw
won’t overpower opponents, but it’s for six touchdown passes every
an extremely athletic unit. The week—but he’s capable of it, whether
Chargers are big on the defensive he’s in the lead or coming from BILL FEIG / AP

front, so the Ravens won’t be able to behind. He has more weapons than TE Jeremy Shockey grabbed his first two TDs with the Saints last week.
muscle these guys and thus must ever before with receiver Marques
keep them off-balance. The plan:
Run when expected to throw, and
Colston, tight end Jeremy Shockey
and running back Reggie Bush
healthy, in addition to dangerous
3. Clean up the mistakes. The
Saints should have beaten
Detroit by 30 points in Week 1, if not
for DeSean Jackson on the outside.

2. Add another wrinkle. The

throw when expected to run. beauty of having a first-
receiving threats Lance Moore, Dev- 50, but kept giving charity points to year defensive coordinator is that

2. Improve on special teams. San

Diego certainly will go after
Ravens punts, especially since the
Chiefs did it with ease last week. The
Ravens must tighten up protection on
the right side of the line. Baltimore
also must be better at returning punts.
Returner Chris Carr seems timid and
needs to run straight instead of side-
line to sideline. Field position will be
an important part of this game.
3. Stop the run. Chargers starter
LaDainian Tomlinson
(ankle) could miss the game, so that
just means more pressure on the
perimeter defense because of backup
Darren Sproles’ burst and pure
speed. Few opponents can run inside
against the Ravens because of the
outstanding play from tackles Haloti
Ngata, Kelly Gregg and Justin Ban-
nan. The Ravens also have outstand-
ing speed, but they do have small
linebackers. Outside linebackers Jar-
ret Johnson and Tavares Gooden
Despite being the underdog, Ravens QB Joe Flacco could help his team have a big day.
must hold their ground and turn
Sproles back inside.
Chargers’ keys to success
1. Pressure Ravens QB Joe Flacco.
The Chargers didn’t show
much of the promised pass rush in
Week 1. Maybe they didn’t want to
give much away against an inferior
quarterback. Maybe, as it appeared,
they were simply beat in many situa-
tions they shouldn’t have been. Flacco
will have an easier time completing
passes than the Raiders’ JaMarcus
Russell—if he has all day to throw.
2. Stop the tight end. Inside
linebacker Kevin Burnett
and strong safety Clinton Hart must
play better, and/or coordinator Ron
BOB LEVERONE / SN
Rivera needs to find them help. The
Chargers gave up six passes to the
tight end last week, including five
for first downs. Uh-oh: Baltimore’s
Todd Heap caught a 10-yard touch-
down pass with 34 seconds remain-
ing to give the Ravens a 16-13 victory
when these teams met in ’06.
3. Run with more consistency.
Be it misdirection or better
blocking or more help, the Chargers
must do better. Sproles and Michael
Bennett likely will carry the load
Sunday. The Chargers could also
have two backups (Scott Mrucz-
kowski and Brandyn Dombrowski)
starting on the interior in place of
center Nick Hardwick (ankle) and
right guard Louis Vasquez (knee).
— Kevin Acee & Mike Preston
ery Henderson and Robert Meachem.
The Saints have shown the potential
to run efficiently with Mike Bell
emerging as a workhorse. But the
Eagles’ defense—with good pass
rushers, a good secondary and an
aggressive, versatile scheme—will
present a stiff test.
2. Create pressure on defense.
The Saints will face another
inexperienced quarterback if Kevin
Kolb starts for Philadelphia in place
of injured starter Donovan McNabb
(broken rib). The Saints will blitz
from different angles and mix up
fronts. New Saints defensive coor-
dinator Gregg Williams loves to
switch from 4-3 to 3-4 alignments,
moving players around on the line
and in the secondary. The Saints
only sacked Lions rookie Matthew
Stafford once last week but kept
him off-balance all day, forcing
three interceptions and several
errant throws.
the Lions with turnovers and sloppy
special teams play. The Lions
returned a Bell fumble for a touch-
down, and they took over possession
in scoring position three times
thanks to Bush’s muffed punt return,
an 87-yard kickoff return and a
43-yard punt return. Brees also
threw an interception when he tried
to force a ball deep after a flea-flicker.
Those kinds of miscues will be unac-
ceptable on the road.
Eagles’ keys to success
1. Ground control. It never has
been coach Andy Reid’s
style to lean heavily on the running
game, but in the absence of McNabb
it’s important that he simplifies the
offense in Kolb’s first career start.
Heavy doses of Brian Westbrook,
LeSean McCoy and fullback Leon-
ard Weaver will set up play-action
passes for Kolb, who can warm up
with some man-to-man matchups
opponents have little film with
which to study his schemes. Sean
McDermott is a Jim Johnson disci-
ple and has carried over a blitz-
heavy philosophy, but McDermott
added his own twist last week
against Carolina when he blitzed
Trent Cole from the middle line-
backer spot, resulting in a sack, a
forced fumble and a touchdown
return. McDermott will add new
trinkets each week, and he’ll need
to be creative against Brees.
3. Attack the backup. The
Saints will protect Brees
with an inexperienced left tackle in
Jermon Bushrod. This should
sound an alarm for every pass
rusher on the Eagles’ defense, espe-
cially Cole. The Eagles should over-
load some blitzes toward Bushrod’s
side and make the Saints add tight
end and running backs protection,
limiting their offensive weapons.
— Geoff Mosher and Mike Triplett
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com NFL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 26

New England (1-0) at N.Y. Jets (1-0) Houston (0-1) at Tennessee (0-1)
When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
TV: CBS/DirecTV 706 TV: CBS/DirecTV 707
Weather: 74, sunny Weather: 78, scattered thunderstorms
Line: Patriots favored by 3 1/2 (40%)
Last meeting: Jets, 34-31 (2008) Line: Titans favored by 6 1/2
Last meeting: Texans, 13-12 (2009)

Patriots’ keys to success

Texans’ keys to success
1. Go on without Mayo. Star inside
linebacker Jerod Mayo (knee)
will be out for at least a month, which 1. Stay committed to the run-
ning game. Last season,
means other players must adjust. only one running back rushed for
Gary Guyton, who moved from the at least 100 yards against the
outside to the inside in Mayo’s Titans. And it wasn’t Minnesota’s
absence, has to be tougher against the Adrian Peterson; it was the Tex-
run. Perhaps playing Adalius ans’ Steve Slaton—and he did it
Thomas in the middle would help. twice. Slaton had only nine carries
for 17 yards against the Jets. Unless
2. Control the Jets’ blitzes. New
York’s linebackers will line
up anywhere and come from all
the Texans fall behind, coordina-
tor Kyle Shanahan has to stay com-
GENE J. PUSKAR / AP
The Titans need RB Chris Johnson to play like he did last season against the Texans.
mitted to him. Slaton is capable of double-edged sword in Chris John- of opportunities against Pitts-
angles. On Monday, the Pats’ offen- breaking long ones. The coaches
sive line gave up a sack and Brady son and LenDale White, who com- burgh, and the duo struggled in the
need to give Chris Brown more bined for 214 yards rushing in two preseason. The Titans need to
threw an interception into the arms carries, as well, in his first game
of Bills defensive end Aaron Schobel. games against the Texans last sea- change that and will try to force the
against his former teammates son. The Texans have to be disci- issue against the Texans. Tackles
One way to maximize protection and
security is to move Brady from the
pocket, if he’s mobile enough. Using a 2. Get production from Andre
Johnson. In the Titans’
31-12 victory over the Texans at LP
plined on the outside to keep
Johnson from cutting and getting
around the corner. They have to get
David Stewart and Michael Roos
will play a big role on outside runs,
but center Kevin Mawae will need
running back to help in pass block-
ing may be another big factor. Field last season, they limited a helmet on White early to tie him to get a body on Texans middle
Andre Johnson to two catches for up in traffic. linebacker DeMeco Ryans, a tack-

3. Make the rookie feel like a

rookie. Jets quarterback DAVID J. PHILLIP / AP
29 yards. In the Texans’ 13-12 vic-
tory at Reliant Stadium, Johnson Titans’ keys to success
ling machine.

Mark Sanchez was impressive in his

first game as a pro. He shook off a
The Patriots must make Jets QB Mark Sanchez feel more like a rookie than he did last Sunday.
times last week instead of just once. something is taken away from him,
had 11 receptions for 207 yards and
a TD. He faces a tough competitor 1. Stop Slaton. Slaton put
together back-to-back 100-
3. Slow down Andre Johnson.
Andre Johnson has had
big days against many NFL
pick-six and earned the win. But the in cornerback Cortland Finnegan,
He will face many more confusing and the Jets’ defense will have to yard games against the Titans in teams, but he had a monster per-
big-ticket rookie was allowed to get who will also get a lot of help. John-
looks than he saw against the Tex- counter. 2008. The Titans plan to stop him formance against the Titans last
comfortable at Houston. Bill Belichick son (6-3, 220) has a big size advan-
ans. With Mayo out, however, San- in his tracks on Sunday, and all year. In Houston’s 13-12 win in
must ratchet up the pressure, even if
it means leaving other areas vulnera-
ble. With Richard Seymour gone, the
chez should be able to exploit New
England underneath.
3. Give Sanchez help. The Jets’
running game didn’t get
cranked up until the second half
tage over Finnegan (5-10, 188), but
Finnegan is quick, smart and feisty.
signs point to them accomplishing
their mission. The Titans stuffed
December, Johnson had 11 catches
for a career-high 207 yards. The
Johnson needs to come up big if the the run against the Steelers in Week Titans will likely match up
defensive line may not get enough
pressure by itself. 2. Make adjustments. Several
Jets defenders noted after
against Houston; New York must get
it in gear earlier this week. Leon
Texans hope to win. 1 while the Texans couldn’t run the
ball vs. the Jets. Titans middle line-
Finnegan on the physical John-
son. Although Johnson rolled up

Jets’ keys to success

Sunday’s win that finesse-oriented
Houston didn’t make many adjust-
ments against the Jets. They also said
Washington had 15 carries in the
opener and needs to get plenty of
action again this week. He can loosen
3. Contain the combo. In three
preseason games, the Tex-
ans allowed 148 yards per game
backer Stephen Tulloch, who had a
team-high 12 tackles in Week 1, will
big numbers last December,
Finnegan has been able to hold
be a key factor. his own in one-on-one matchups
1. Be on the Mark. Sanchez
needs to keep improving.
He could have been picked off three
they know that won’t be the case
against Brady and New England.
Brady usually adapts well if
things up for downhill runner
Thomas Jones.
— J.P. Pelzman & Ian R. Rapoport
rushing. In the opening loss to the
Jets, they surrendered 190 yards.
Now they go against the Titans’ 2. Run the ball. Chris Johnson
and White didn’t get a lot
in the past.
— Jim Wyatt & John McClain
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Minnesota (1-0) at Detroit (0-1)
When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
TV: FOX/DirecTV 711
Weather: Dome
Line: Vikings favored by 10
Last meeting: Vikings, 20-16 (2008)
Vikings’ keys to success
1. Unleash the passing game.
The Vikings should be able
to crank up the passing attack
against the Lions, who gave up six
touchdown throws to the Saints’
Drew Brees in the opener. This
would be the perfect time for Brett
Favre to establish rhythm with his
receivers after a sluggish start
against Cleveland. The Lions were
27th against the pass in 2008 and
didn’t fare any better against Brees.
2. Feed the beast. Until Favre
gets going, the Vikings need
to give the ball Adrian Peterson, who’s
coming off a 180-yard, three-touch-
down performance against Cleveland.
Most of that production came in the
second half after the Vikings started
using more two-tight end sets to coun-
ter Cleveland’s run blitzes. Peterson
should be in for another big day
against a defense that finished last
against the run in 2008.
3. Stay in your lanes. Several
Vikings special teams players
got out of their lanes during a 67-yard
punt return for a touchdown by Cleve-
land’s Josh Cribbs. It was a nightmar-
ish flashback to 2008 for Minnesota,
which allowed four punt returns for
TDs last season. Detroit’s Dennis
Northcutt (43-yard punt return) and
Aaron Brown (87-yard kickoff return)
were dangerous in the opener.
Lions’ keys to success
1. Run if it’s there. The coaching
staff will have to decide very
Until he’s stopped, the Vikings should go to RB Adrian Peterson, right, over and over and over.
quickly if the Lions have any chance
running against the Vikings’ stout
front seven. They can’t burn a lot of
early possessions by getting a feel for
the game. If the Lions really think
they’ve got a shot at controlling the
ball, they have to go for it. If they don’t,
they have to come out very aggres-
sively and use the passing game to
control the tempo of the game.
2. Keep blitzing. The Lions
didn’t blitz nearly as much
as expected in the first game, and
the results were predictably bad.
Yes, Favre has seen every blitz on
the planet, but that doesn’t mean it
can’t be effective. The Lions have to
get creative and force the ball out of
the pocket in a hurry because if
NFL
MARK DUNCAN / AP
they allow Favre to scan the field,
they’ll give up 50 points. The Lions
must at least try to force some bad
passes because what they’re doing
now isn’t working.
3. Use countermoves and bull
rushes. When Detroit doesn’t
blitz, the ends must do a better job of
using countermoves and bull rushes
to get to the quarterback. Dewayne
White and Cliff Avril are decent out-
side speed rushers, but quarterbacks
are stepping up to avoid trouble.
White and Avril have to take a more
direct line to the QB, and the tackles
must get some push so QB can’t step
up so easily. The linemen also have to
start winning one-on-one matchups.
— Tom Kowalski & Rick Alonzo
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 27
Cincinnati (0-1) at Green Bay (1-0)
When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
TV: CBS/DirecTV 704
Weather: 74, partly cloudy
Line: Packers favored by 9
Last meeting: Bengals, 21-14 (2005)
Bengals’ keys to success
1. Be patient in the passing
game. The Packers are
going to keep their safeties deep
to stop the long ball, so QB Carson
Palmer must take what Green
Bay gives him. He needs to chip
away until strong safety Aaron
Rouse inches closer to the line of
scrimmage as the eighth man in
the box. Then Palmer can take
his chances deep with wide
receivers Chad Ochocinco and
Chris Henry running post and
corner routes.
2. Be strong up front. With the
Packers’ safeties deep, the
middle of the field should be open
MORRY GASH / AP
Green Bay has to do a better job of protecting QB Aaron Rodgers, right, than it did last week.
for the Bengals’ running game. The
Packers’ keys to success much better chance of winning.
line’s challenge will be to crease the
They can’t count on every blitz
Packers’ front three at the point of
attack, then scrape off and reach
the linebackers to create running
1. Be patient with their blitzes.
Palmer plays twice a year
against the Steelers-type 3-4 defense
working, so their safety play has to
be better than it was in the opener.
Rouse will replace Atari Bigby
room. Running back Cedric Ben- the Packers run, so he won’t be
(knee) and will be tested. The Ben-
son could have a big game if the line fooled by much. He’ll run the play gals will want to take advantage of
can do that.
clock down as far as he can to make
the Packers show their blitzes
Rouse’s lack of speed.
3. Win the mind games. No team
snatches defeat from the
jaws of victory like the snakebit Ben-
before the snap. It will be important
to get heat on Palmer and make him
3. Keep Aaron Rodgers upright.
The Bengals, who have
been working on improving their
gals. It’ll be difficult for them to uncomfortable in the pocket so he pass rush, sacked Kyle Orton three
rebound from last week’s crushing pick out holes in the coverage. This times last week. Rodgers was
won’t be the turkey hunt the Pack-
loss to the Broncos. This young team
must maintain its poise in the hostile ers had with Jay Cutler.
bruised and battered as his line
allowed four sacks and five quar-
environment of Lambeau Field. The
team’s margin for error is extremely
small, and it can’t repeat mistakes
2. Take away the deep ball.
Ochocinco, Henry and
Laveranues Coles give the Bengals
terback hits against the Bears. That
can’t happen again. No changes
will be made in the line, but if the
from last week and expect to win. a lot of options in the passing game. pressure comes again, coach Mike
Taking an 0-2 record into a Week 3 If the Packers can keep their safe- McCarthy will have to use his tight
home game against the Steelers
would be potentially disastrous.
ties back and make Palmer settle
for shorter passes, they’ll have a
ends to help protect Rodgers.
— Tom Silverstein & Chick Ludwig
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Tampa Bay (0-1) at Buffalo (0-1)
When: Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET
TV: FOX/DirecTV 713
Weather: 72, mostly sunny
Line: Bills favored by 5
Last meeting: Bucs, 19-3 (2005)
Bucs’ keys to success
1. Clean up play in the secondary.
The Bucs lost their opener
primarily because every defensive
back except cornerback Ronde Barber
played miserably. These guys missed
tackles, missed assignments and bit
on pump fakes. In doing so, they gave
up four big plays, including three for
touchdowns. The Bills don’t have the
weapons that Dallas has, but Terrell
Owens will beat them up if they aren’t
on their keys and don’t stick to their
assignments. The secondary must
bounce back and play sound. If it
doesn’t, the Bucs will lose another
game against another beatable team.
2. Stick to the running game.
Coaches showed a tendency
in Week 1 to abandon the run after
falling behind early. The Bucs have
some big-play weapons in the pass-
ing game, but that’s not their strength.
Their line is good enough and their
backs are good enough to gain big
yardage and wear down defenses.
They always should be looking first
and foremost to suck an extra
defender into the box and then throw
deep off play-action fakes.
3. Capitalize on scoring chances.
The Bucs missed one field-
goal try and had another blocked last
week. That can’t happen. They have
a pretty good offense, but their
defense is suspect. Thus, they can’t
afford to leave points on the field. The
offense was 3-for-3 getting touch-
downs in the red zone last week, but
that type of efficiency won’t last.
Terrell Owens could exploit a Buccaneers secondary that gave up several big plays in Week 1.
Sooner or later, they’ll run into some-
one that stops them down near the
goal line, and that’s when field goals
made on drives that stall out around
the 30 become important. If the Bucs
can do a better job capitalizing on
scoring chances, they stand a better
chance of winning.
Bills’ keys to success
1. Get T.O. involved. Terrell
Owens had a quiet debut as
he was thrown to four times in 25
pass attempts and finished with two
catches for 46 yards. Owens is known
to sulk when he doesn’t get enough
opportunities. Offensive coordinator
Alex Van Pelt must dial up more
plays for Owens, and QB Trent
Edwards also must look in Owens’
direction more often. The Buccaneers
gave up three touchdowns of 40-plus
yards, so there could be opportuni-
ties for Owens—not to mention Lee
Evans—to stretch the field.
2. Bring more pressure. The Bills
had one sack Monday but
NFL
WINSLOW TOWNSON / AP
were effective in creating pressure
before wearing down late in the
game. Defensive end Aaron Schobel
showed he’s back from last season’s
foot injury. Rookie end Aaron May-
bin should get more time with starter
Chris Kelsay (knee) out. But the
coaches should be more aggressive
and blitz more against QB Byron
Leftwich, who is vulnerable to sacks
because of a lack of mobility and his
slow, wind-up delivery.
3. Win on special teams. All eyes
will be on return ace Leodis
McKelvin to see how he bounces
back after his fumble of a kickoff
return set up the Patriots’ winning
touchdown Monday. McKelvin is
confident but needs a big return or
two to get him going. He and punt
returner Roscoe Parrish can change
a game with their big-play ability.
Punter Brian Moorman excels at cre-
ating field position. If he can do that
Sunday, the Buccaneers will be chal-
lenged to sustain long drives.
— Allen Wilson & Roy Cummings
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 28
Arizona (0-1) at Jacksonville (0-1)
When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
TV: FOX/DirecTV 708
Weather: 87, scattered thunderstorms
(40%)
Line: Jaguars favored by 3
Last meeting: Jaguars, 24-17 (2005)
Cardinals’ keys to success
1. Get the passing game going.
Arizona struggled to move
the ball through the air in the final
two preseason games, and it car-
ried over to last week against the
49ers. Kurt Warner has been off,
and his protection wasn’t great
against San Francisco. The Cardi-
nals need to get the ball to Larry
Fitzgerald earlier in the game. He
didn’t catch a pass until late in the
second quarter last week.
2. Control the Jaguars’ running
game. The Cardinals did a
great job against the 49ers’ Frank
MATT YORK / AP
Kurt Warner needs better protection from his offensive line against Jacksonville.
Gore last week and need a repeat
against the Jaguars’ Maurice Jones-
Drew. Inside linebacker Gerald
Monroe struggled against the
Colts’ Dwight Freeney last week,
needs to get his eyes downfield—
even if scrambling—and take
Hayes excels against this kind of
and Garrard rushed throws on at advantage of opportunities.
team. He’s a physical player, and he
least 11 occasions. Under constant
and Karlos Dansby do a nice job
with run blitzes.
pressure, Garrard tends to lock on 3. Pressure Kurt Warner. Jack-
sonville’s experimenta-
3. Reduce the stupid penalties.
Coach Ken Whisenhunt
receivers, which leads to incomple-
tions and increases the chance for
interceptions. The Jags must iden-
tion with the 3-4 scheme hasn’t
yielded enough pressure on the
can live with the occasional pass-
interference call or hold. What he
tify weak spots in pass protection
early Sunday and make adjust-
QB, but the club might not have
any choice in using the front now
because left end Reggie Hayward
can’t tolerate, however, are the off- ments, using a running back to
(broken leg) is out for the season.
side and false-start penalties. The chip or keep more receivers in on No matter the scheme, the club
Cardinals had 12 penalties last passing downs.
week, and half were of the false
start and offside variety. The tight
2. Take chances downfield.
Garrard must capitalize
must disrupt Warner’s rhythm
because Arizona’s receivers are
explosive and the Jags will have
ends, Stephen Spach and Anthony
on the deep speed he has on the rookie cornerback Derek Cox start-
Becht, had two false starts and
outside with Troy Williamson. ing opposite Rashean Mathis. Jack-
didn’t do that greart in blocking.
Because of Jacksonville’s rushing sonville might be best served
attack, opponents tend to crowd moving around outside linebacker
Jaguars’ keys to success the box to stop the run. That often Quentin Groves so he can blitz
1. Protect QB David Garrard.
Rookie left tackle Eugene
puts Williamson and Torry Holt in
man-to-man coverage. So Garrard
from a variety of locations.
— Michael C. Wright & Kent Somers
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
St. Louis (0-1) at Washington (0-1)
When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
TV: FOX/DirecTV 712
Weather: 73, partly cloudy
Line: Redskins favored by 10
Last meeting: Rams, 19-17 (2008)
Rams’ keys to success
1. Run Steven Jackson early and
often. Despite all the
buildup about the Rams’ featuring
Jackson and the running game, he
had only 16 carries in the 28-0 loss
at Seattle. No matter the score or the
game circumstances, the Rams
need to get him more involved—
even if it’s against a Washington
team that is built to stop the run.
2. Avoid penalties. Eight offen-
sive penalties doomed the
Rams last week. Many of them
scuttled early-game drives in which
the Rams had a chance to take the
lead. The team’s lack of receiving
punch makes long-yardage situa-
tions a considerable challenge.
Coach Steve Spagnuolo was hired
in part because of his ability to run
a tight ship at Rams Park, which
made the undisciplined play all the
more surprising.
3. Contain Clinton Portis. If
Julius Jones is capable of
putting up 117 yards against St.
Louis, Clinton Portis might double
that total. The only way the Rams
have a chance against the Redskins
is to keep Portis bottled up as much
as possible and force quarterback
Jason Campbell to throw a lot.
Redskins’ keys to success
1. Don’t get cute. The Redskins’
offensive identity should
be tied to its running game. The line
is better suited for run blocking and
The Redskins need to run and run often with Clinton Portis, left, against the Rams.
Portis is a good back. Against the
Giants, they tried a receiver pass on
the second play of the game. It lost
11 yards and the offense sputtered.
If the Redskins intend to be in the
playoff picture, they must be able to
outmuscle an inferior opponent.
2. Attack the young linebackers.
Another reason for the
emphasis on running the ball is
how it sets up the team’s play-action
game for Campbell. That’s one
thing the Redskins could not do
against New York—and it’s one
thing they have to do against a
young St. Louis linebacking unit.
Ramsmiddle linebacker James Lau-
rinaitis and strongside ’backer
David Vobora have combined for
NFL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 29
Seattle (1-0) at San Francisco (1-0)
When: Sunday, 4:05 p.m. ET
TV: FOX/DirecTV 714
Weather: 82, sunny, windy (11 mph)
Line: 49ers favored by 1 1/2
Last meeting: Seahawks, 34-13 (2008)
Seahawks’ keys to success
1. Pressure 49ers QB Shaun Hill.
Seattle had five or more
sacks in only two games last sea-
son, and those were the two games
against San Francisco. The Sea-
hawks didn’t blitz on more than
half a dozen plays last week against
St. Louis because they got consis-
tent pressure from four linemen.
Seattle must dial up the pressure
against San Francisco, which will
load up on its protection.
2. Throw more to tight end
John Carlson. Tight ends
can be a quarterback’s security
blanket, but Carlson is a play-
maker. He’s big enough to out-
FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP
muscle a cornerback, too fast for
most linebackers and the Sea-
hawks consistently put him in the
slot to create mismatches. He ELAINE THOMPSON / AP
three NFL starts. Laurinaitis bit on
lined up as a wide receiver for his For the 49ers to beat Seattle, they must hassle QB Matt Hasselbeck.
a play-action pass last week that
33-yard touchdown last week.
resulted in a touchdown.
blitzes on nearly every play in 49ers mix coverages well, and line-
3. Bring the heat. The defense
did not get enough pressure
3. Keep running. The Seahawks
will need half the season to
get fully acclimated to the new zone-
Week 1, and yet the 49ers stub-
bornly continued to try to pound
backers Patrick Willis and Manny
Lawson are particularly adept at
in the opener, and that must change the ball inside. There needs to be dropping into coverage and break-
blocking scheme, and they showed
this week. Of course, it should be a better mix of runs and passes ing on the ball.
easier considering the Rams’ offen-
sive line is nowhere near the level of
steady improvement over the course
of the first game. Seattle averaged 3
yards per carry in the first half, 6.4
this week. If the Seahawks com-
mit a safety to stopping the run 3. Be aggressive up front. The
49ers’ offensive line strug-
the Giants’. If the Redskins’ D-line is like Arizona did, it means a
in the second. Specifically, backup gled in Arizona because the Cardi-
as good as they think, they should be receiver should be open.
center Steve Vallos showed more nals’ defensive linemen were
able to get pressure with four-man
fronts. Because Rams rookie right
tackle Jason Smith plays upright at
mobility and was impressive in the
final two quarters. 2. Hurry Seattle QB Matt Hassel-
beck. The best thing the
49ers did in Week 1 was disrupt
getting off the snap quickly and
initiating contact. Part of that was
because of the crowd noise in Glen-
times, he is vulnerable against speed the timing of Kurt Warner and the
rushers. Look for the Redskins to
target him.
49ers’ keys to success Cardinals’ receivers. They’ll need
dale, which won’t be a factor at
Candlestick Park. Still, the offen-
— John Keim & Jim Thomas 1. Neutralize the blitz. The
Cardinals called run
to do the same against another
savvy veteran in Hasselbeck. The
sive line must show more urgency.
— Matt Barrows & Danny O’Neil
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Oakland (0-1) at Kansas City (0-1)
When: Sunday, 1 p.m. ET
TV: CBS/DirecTV 705
Weather: 76, showers (30%)
Line: Chiefs favored by 3
Last meeting: Chiefs, 20-13 (2008)
Raiders’ keys to success
1. Pound the ball. The Raiders’
offense is built around the
run, and for several reasons, it’s
imperative the running game suc-
ceeds. For one, it would take the
pressure off quarterback JaMarcus
Russell to make a ton of plays. Rus-
sell’s inaccuracy and penchant for
making poor decisions make it dif-
ficult for the Raiders to succeed if
they are forced to rely heavily on
the pass. Secondly, the Raiders’
defense wouldn’t be on the field as
much, which figures to be impor-
tant in humid conditions. Finally,
the Raiders can wear down the
Chiefs’ defense the way they did at
Arrowhead Stadium last year.
2. Keep the game close. The Raid-
ers can’t afford to let the
Chiefs get ahead by too much or else
they will be faced with having to deal
with deafening crowd noise at one of
the league’s loudest venues. The
Raiders also have a history of com-
mitting a lot of penalties when it gets
loud, and they aren’t talented enough
offensively to overcome a slew of mis-
takes. They need the down and dis-
tance in their favor so they can run
the ball more than they pass.
3. Stop the run. The Raiders
need to commit eight or nine
men to stopping the run because
that’s what the Chiefs do best. That
could persuade the Chiefs to throw
downfield against one-on-one cover-
age. That wouldn’t bother the Raid-
ers because cornerbacks Nnamdi
NFL
MARCIO SANCHEZ / AP
Oakland’s ground game has to produce and help take pressure off QB JaMarcus Russell.
Asomugha and Chris Johnson are
two of their most talented defenders.
40 minutes and ran 85 plays last
week because in large part the Chiefs
had too many three-and-out posses-
sions. Sometimes, it was a matter of
Chiefs’ keys to success
the receivers running their routes
1. Find a way to cover TE Zach
Miller. The Ravens’ Todd
Heap was a major problem for the
just short of the first-down marker.
Those types of issues have to be fixed
Chiefs last week, and Miller pres-
because the Raiders can control the
game with the running game if given
ents a similar challenge. Strong
safety Mike Brown isn’t as fast as
too many opportunities.
he once was and outside linebacker
Tamba Hali is a liability in cover-
3. Win the early downs on
defense. Kansas City’s
age, so Miller could do some dam-
age. Whether it’s with free safety
chances of forcing Russell into
making mistakes goes up dramati-
cally if he has to face long-yardage
Jarrad Page or one of the other line-
situations on second and third
backers, the Chiefs need to clamp
down. That means stopping Oak-
down on the tight end.
land’s running game on first down,
2. Convert on third down. Balti-
more controlled the ball for
something that won’t come easily.
— Adam Teicher & Steve Corkran
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 30
Cleveland (0-1) at Denver (1-0)
When: Sunday, 4:15 p.m. ET
TV: CBS/DirecTV 716
Weather: 75, partly cloudy
Line: Broncos favored by 3
Last meeting: Broncos, 34-30 (2008)
Browns’ keys to success
1. Don’t let Brady Quinn’s confi-
dence crash. Quinn’s start
last week bordered on awful. He
seemed to grope his way through
the game. He must recapture the
spark of his first NFL start, Nov. 6
last season—against Denver.
Quinn was poised and assertive,
going toe-to-toe against Jay Cutler
in a shootout. Quinn’s finest
moment was steering the Browns
to a late, go-ahead TD. Cutler
answered with a long drive of his
own to win the game. Avoiding
penalties that ruptured any chance ED REINKE / AP
of continuity is a must. Correll Buckhalter proved to be the more effective RB last Sunday against the Bengals.
2. Get a better play-calling.
Brian Daboll’s first game
intensity fell off after halftime,
when Peterson ran with more 2. Get more out of the running
game. The coaches rotated
as offensive coordinator was dis-
jointed, but he gets somewhat of a
pass since he was sending a young
purpose. Denver’s tandem of vet-
eran Correll Buckhalter and
rookie Knowshon Moreno hardly
Buckhalter and Moreno about
equally last week and didn’t adjust
even though Buckhalter was the
QB against an elite defense. He did equals the impact of Peterson, but more effective early. Moreno should
earn points for being unpredictable. Moreno is talented enough to benefit from the experience, how-
He’ll be in quite a chess match worry the Browns, whose tack- ever, and he should add a spark to
against Broncos coach Josh McDan-
iels. They coached together in New
England, where Bill Belichick chose
ling at the second level is suspect.
Broncos’ keys to success
the running game as he gets health-
ier and more comfortable.
McDaniels over Daboll as offensive 3. Disrupt Quinn. Last week
against the Bengals,
coordinator after Charlie Weis left
for Notre Dame.
1. No turnovers. Yes, Orton
was perhaps a little too Denver wanted to stop big plays.
3. Play two halves of run
safe at times against Cincinnati.
But that’s what the team wants
The Broncos shouldn’t have the
same concern against the Browns,
who don’t have a great downfield
defense. It’s not as if the
Browns got battered early and
often in yielding 180 rushing
out of him. Coaches do not want
turnovers, and they stress that to
QB Kyle Orton repeatedly. Even
passing game. What they must
do is make sure Quinn doesn’t
complete a high percentage of
yards to Adrian Peterson last though their season opener was
passes, perhaps by flooding his
week. They used frequent run decided on a fluky touchdown,
passing lanes, and allow Cleve-
blitzes and a fly-to-the ball men- they said Orton’s turnover-free
tality in holding Peterson to 25
yards in the first half. The
game was a big reason they were
in it at the end.
land to sustain drives.
— Steve Doerschuk & Frank Schwab
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Indianapolis (1-0) at Miami (1-0)
When: Monday, 8:30 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Weather: 82, isolated thunderstorms
(30%), windy (12 mph)
Line: Colts favored by 3
Last meeting: Colts, 27-22 (2006)
Colts’ keys to success
1. Tame the Wildcat. Whether
it’s running back Ronnie
Brown or QB Pat White at the con-
trols, the defense must limit the
effectiveness of Miami’s Wildcat
offense. The Colts haven’t faced a
true Wildcat threat since the wrin-
kle hit the league last season, but the
defense was exposed to a similar
scheme when it faced Titans QB
Vince Young. Frequently, he was
more of a threat with his legs than
arms.
2. Force the action. The Dol-
phins’ 11-win season of ’08
was in large part a result of tying an
NFL record for fewest turnovers
with 13. But in their last two games,
including the playoff loss to Balti-
more, they’ve turned the ball over
nine times. Colts defensive ends
Dwight Freeney and Robert Mathis
can create havoc and force turn-
RELEASEPRODUCTSANDEXCLUSIVEOFFERSFROMOURPARTNERS
overs with pass-rush prowess.
3. Forget the stretch. The team’s
running game remains in
neutral after averaging just 2.3
yards per carry last week. Part of
the problem is neither Joseph Addai
nor Donald Brown was effective on
the team’s patented stretch play. Too
often, the offensive line was unable
to provide the back with a crease.
The running game is more effective
when it allows Joseph Addai or
Donald Brown to attack between
the tackles.
MONDAY NIGHT FOOTBALL
Colts DE Robert Mathis, right, will try to cause havoc in the Dolphins’ backfield.
Dolphins’ keys to success
1. Get the base offense going.
When the Dolphins suc-
ceeded running the Wildcat last year,
it was mainly because the base offense
already had some success at earlier
parts of the game. So if Miami wants
to still use innovations like the Wild-
cat (via Brown) and the spread (via
White), the team must first find some
rhythm in a more traditional sense.
The coaches should lean more on
Brown in the running game and feed
him the ball. That didn’t happen last
week, and the result was obvious.
2. Improvetheoffensiveline.When
last year’s first-overall pick,
left tackle Jake Long, gives up two
tough sacks, it’s never a good thing.
When the rest of the line doesn’t look
all that much better, the problem is
compounded. No doubt, the Dolphins
must get their highly paid line into a
groove. Coach Tony Sparano said he
wants to see Long and right tackle
NFL
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Cubs’ Zambrano not expected to waive his no-trade clause
Amid speculation that the Cubs
will try to trade P Carlos Zambrano
this offseason, sources told the Chi-
cago Tribune that the righthander is
unlikely to waive his full no-trade
clause. Zambrano was upset about
the rumors following his poor out-
ing Tuesday (five earned runs in
five innings pitched), though the
newspaper noted he was joking
about the situation a day later. Man-
ager Lou Piniella told the Chicago Tri-
bune that Zambrano is capable of
pitching better and must conquer
his inconsistency himself. In other
rotation news, the newspaper
reported the Cubs have decided to
shut down struggling P Rich Harden
for the season. Harden, a pending
free agent, is 9-9 with a 4.09 ERA
in 26 starts this season but 1-2 with
a 4.76 ERA and 15 walks in his past
four starts.
The Los Angeles Times reported
Major League Baseball is reviewing
some of the statements from Angels
manager Mike Scioscia and some of
the Angels players following
Wednesday’s loss to the Red Sox.
Those comments were critical of
the umpiring crew that night, hint-
ing that the umpires were showing
favoritism toward Boston. Angels P
Brian Fuentes told the Los Angeles
Times, “It’s frustrating, especially
here and in other places where they
seem a little timid to make a call. It
just seems like that’s the way it is
here, time and time again.”
The Denver Post reported Rock-
ies P Huston Street (biceps) will throw
a simulated game today. Barring a
setback, Street will return to action
Sunday, though he will be eased
INSIDE DISH
back into the closer role. Before
being sidelined on Sept. 2, Street
converted 33 of 34 save chances and
posted a 2.96 ERA. In place of
Street, P Franklin Morales has con-
verted all six of his save chances.
According to The Philadelphia
Inquirer, Phillies P J.A. Happ (ribcage)
will start today. Happ, who is 10-4
with a 2.77 ERA in 31 games (19
starts) this season, hasn’t started
since Sept. 2. In other Phillies news,
P Brad Lidge told the newspaper that
he doesn’t believe his season-long
struggles can be attributed to him
tipping his pitches. After Lidge
posted a 5.28 ERA with Houston in
2006, an opposing player informed
Lidge that he had tipped his pitches.
The Phillies also said reliever Chan
Ho Park will miss 2-3 weeks with a
strained right hamstring.
With P Jarrod Washburn (knee)
scratched from his Sunday start
against the second-place Twins, the
Tigers’ website reported P Nate Robert-
son is the top candidate to replace him.
According to The Boston Globe,
Red Sox P Tim Wakefield (back/legs)
could start Monday. Wakefield has
pitched only twice since July 9 and
admitted the strength in his legs—a
side effect of the bulging disk in his
back—actually is getting worse. He
likely will have surgery this offseason.
The San Jose Mercury News
noted Giants 1B Ryan Garko hasn’t
started since Sept. 6 and has only
two at-bats since then. Acquired
from Cleveland in late July, Garko
has hit just .232 with two homers
and 12 RBIs with San Francisco.
Baseball
Carlos Zambrano has three years and $54 million remaining on his contract.
With the red-hot Juan Uribe taking
over at third base recently, Pablo San-
doval has shifted from the hot corner
to first base, leaving Garko as the
odd man out.
Braves manager Bobby Cox told the
team’s website that P Derek Lowe (blister)
should make his next scheduled start.
Lowe left Wednesday’s game after
only two innings. If Lowe isn’t ready
Monday, the site speculated the team
could move P Kenshin Kawakami back to
the rotation. Kawakami was shifted to
the bullpen when P Tim Hudson joined
the rotation recently.
Former Cubs SS Shawon Dunston
has filed an objection in Delaware
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 32
THE LAUNCHING PAD
What to expect in the major leagues today
Minnesota magic?
Thanks to a four-game winning streak, the Twins are within four games of
the A.L. Central-leading Tigers. The two teams will begin a critical three-game
series tonight at the Metrodome (with four games remaining at Comerica
Park in late September/early October). Minnesota leads the season series 7-4
and has won five of the six games at the Metrodome. The Twins will be with-
out first baseman Justin Morneau, who hit .340 with three homers and 10
RBIs against Detroit this season, but will have catcher Joe Mauer (.349-3-11)
and outfielder/first baseman Michael Cuddyer (.333-3-9) in the lineup.
One more chance
Like the Twins, the second-place Rangers have a huge home series against
the team leading their division this weekend. Unlike the Twins, the Rangers
are ice-cold. Texas has lost five of its past six games (all at home) and has
scored only one run in its past four games. The reason for hope: The Rangers
are 9-3 this season against the A.L. West-leading Angels. In those 12 games
against Los Angeles this season, Texas has hit 28 homers and scored 78 runs.
New Angels lefthander Scott Kazmir will try to stop the onslaught and put
the Rangers’ playoff hopes to rest.
Giant problem
Facing an 8 1/2-game deficit in the N.L. West, not even a sweep of the
Dodgers this weekend will make a division title a realistic possibility for
the Giants. However, a sweep at the hands of the Dodgers could kill San
Francisco’s wild-card hopes. Los Angeles has won nine of the 15 games
between the teams this season, including four of six since Aug. 10. The Giants
will need a strong effort from lefthander Jonathan Sanchez in tonight’s
opener at Dodger Stadium, but Sanchez is 0-3 with a 6.04 ERA in four starts
vs. L.A. this season.
GENE J. PUSKAR / AP
— Chris Bahr
bankruptcy court to the Tribune
Co.’s sale of the team, saying he’s
still owed college scholarship
money. The family of billionaire Joe
Ricketts, founder of TD Ameritrade,
has agreed to buy a 95 percent stake
in the team and its Wrigley Field
home for $845 million, but the deal
must be approved by the bank-
ruptcy court and Major League
Baseball.
Put away the coin: MLB.com
reported teams’ head-to-head
records will determine home-field
advantage in any necessary one-
game playoff scenarios. Prior to this ANN HEISENFELT / AP
year, coin flips determined home- Justin Morneau is out, but Joe Mauer, above, has hit .349 against Detroit.
field advantage in such cases.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
In this year’s probable ALDS matchup, the Angels will ...
McNeal says
Lose to
Boston again
BY STAN MCNEAL
smcneal@sportingnews.com
As we saw in their three-game
series at Fenway Park this week, Red
Sox vs. Angels promises to be this
year’s can’t-miss divisional series.
Both teams have dynamic lineups,
pressure-tested pitchers and excel-
lent managers. You can count on
(long) edge-of-
your-seat games
with thrilling
finishes.
You also can
count on the Red
Sox to prevail.
Again.
Stan McNeal This week’s
BASEBALL series provided
three more rea-
sons to believe these teams’ upcom-
ing October series will end the same
way as the previous three this
decade: with the Red Sox advanc-
ing to the ALCS.
The Angels have a closer problem. As
misleading a stat as a pitcher’s wins
can be, a closer’s saves total can be
just as deceiving. Brian Fuentes has
42 saves, as many as anyone in the
majors. He also has seven blown
saves and a 4.35 ERA, and he has
allowed 72 baserunners in 49 2/3
innings. He has been shaky from the
start and his 7.11 ERA this month is
his highest of the season. Because the
lefthander lacks an overpowering
fastball, he works without much
margin for error. When he doesn’t
Baseball
MICHAEL DWYER / AP
A healthy Daisuke Matsuzaka would give Boston a formidable trio of pitchers for the playoffs.
throw his curveball for strikes, he Read what Torii Hunter told the Los
has to hope that hitters will chase. Angeles Times after the Angels lost a
The Red Sox don’t chase. heartbreaker Wednesday night:
“You have to play to win, play the
The Red Sox’s rotation is getting right game, have fun, do what you do
at just the right time. A leaner, perhaps against every other team. Don’t
meaner Daisuke Matsuzaka returned change anything because it’s the
from a 13-week absence Tuesday and Red Sox or the Yankees. If you play
pitched as well as ever. His approach nervous, you’re going to make mis-
was as impressive as his six shutout takes. Show some (guts)!”
innings against the Angels. Dice-K Hunter understandably was speak-
worked with confidence, he worked ing in frustration after the Red Sox
fast and he showed great stuff. Put walked in with the tying run on what
him with Josh Beckett, the best post- should have been a game-ending third
season pitcher of this decade, and Jon strike to pinch hitter Nick Green. But
Lester, who leads the majors with a Hunter’s comments prove the Red Sox
1.81 ERA since August, and the Red have firmly entrenched themselves in
Sox have three power starters well- the Angels’ heads. The Angels won’t
equipped for the first round. Three beat the Red Sox when it matters until
starters are all they will need in the they can get rid of that mindset.
best-of-5 first round. And the Angels have given us no
reason to think they will shake it
The Red Sox have the mental edge. anytime soon.
Bahr says
Finally solve
the Red Sox
BY CHRIS BAHR
cbahr@sportingnews.com
It has to feel like Groundhog Day.
Once again, the Angels put together
an outstanding regular season—
this time in the midst of a horrible
tragedy—yet once again their
reward actually is a penalty. Boston
has owned the Angels in the post-
season this
decade, winning
nine of the 10
games between
the teams and
eliminating Los
Angeles in three
ALDS match-
Chris Bahr ups. As a result,
BASEBALL the Angels of the
2000s quickly
are becoming the Braves of the
1990s: postseason regulars with
one World Series win to show for it.
After the Angels beat the Red
Sox in eight of the nine games
they played in the 2008 regular
season, it appeared they were set
to break Boston’s postseason
stranglehold. Although L.A.
managed to win one game in last
season’s ALDS, it suffered the
same fate as in 2004 and 2007.
Why this season will be
different:
Starting pitching. A weakness
for the Angels earlier this season,
the rotation is peaking at the per-
fect time. John Lackey, Ervin
Santana and Joe Saunders are
Ervin Santana has gone 4-2 in his past nine starts, showing he’s ready for the postseason.
rounding into form, and Jered
Weaver has been solid all season.
In addition, new acquisition Scott
Kazmir has been outstanding.
Meanwhile, the Red Sox aren’t
sure what to expect from ace Josh
Beckett. Jon Lester has been
great, but there are real questions
about who will serve as the No. 3
starter (the injured Tim Wake-
field? The enigmatic Daisuke
Matsuzaka? Clay Buchholz, who
never has pitched in the
postseason?).
Offense. Unlike in past sea-
sons, the Angels won’t be con-
cerned about whether they can hit
and drive in runs. Los Angeles has
the majors’ best batting average
and has scored more runs than
every team except the Yankees. At
one point this season, everyone in
the Angels’ lineup was hitting
.300. With Kendry Morales put-
ting up Mark Teixeira-like num-
bers, L.A. will finish with its
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 33
CHARLIE RIEDEL / AP
highest homer total since 2000.
And it still ranks second in the
majors in stolen bases.
Lessons learned. The Angels,
aggressive to a fault in last sea-
son’s ALDS, were one botched
suicide squeeze away from rally-
ing in Game 4 and potentially
forcing a Game 5 back on the
West Coast. Manager Mike Scio-
scia won’t make that kind of mis-
take again, and with the improved
offense, Los Angeles won’t need
to get creative to drive in runs.
Last season’s loss left such a bad
taste in the Angels’ mouth that
they will be hungrier than ever to
clear the Boston hurdle. Lackey
and center fielder Torii Hunter
were quite vocal about their dis-
appointment in 2008, and both
will be in prime position to do
something about it in ’09.
Los Angeles’ bullpen remains a
concern, but not enough of one to
cost them the ALDS.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com Baseball FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 34
Fantasy Focus LEAGUE LEADERS
American League standings
Batting Average Home Runs East W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home Away
Start ’em, Sit ’em New York 94 53 .639 — — 7-3 W-1 52-23 42-30
A.L. N.L. A.L. N.L. Boston 86 59 .593 7 — 8-2 L-1 52-22 34-37
Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Tampa Bay 74 73 .503 20 13 2-8 W-1 43-26 31-47
Mauer Minnesota .374 HaRamirez Florida .356 CPena Tampa Bay 39 Pujols St. Louis 47 Toronto 66 80 .452 27½ 20½ 5-5 L-1 38-36 28-44
Baltimore 60 86 .411 33½ 26½ 5-5 L-1 36-39 24-47
ISuzuki Seattle .353 Pujols St. Louis .333 Teixeira New York 35 Reynolds Arizona 42
MiCabrera Detroit .332 Sandoval San Francisco .322 Bay Boston 33 Fielder Milwaukee 39 Central W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home Away
Jeter New York .330 Helton Colorado .318 NCruz Texas 32 AdGonzalez San Diego 38 Detroit 78 68 .534 — — 3-7 L-1 48-26 30-42
Minnesota 74 72 .507 4 12½ 6-4 W-4 43-32 31-40
Bartlett Tampa Bay .326 DWright New York .315 AHill Toronto 32 Howard Philadelphia 38 Chicago 72 75 .490 6½ 15 4-6 L-2 40-32 32-43
MYoung Texas .322 Braun Milwaukee .310 Branyan Seattle 31 ADunn Washington 37 Cleveland 61 85 .418 17 25½ 1-9 L-5 31-41 30-44
Cano New York .320 Coghlan Florida .309 Five tied 30 Werth Philadelphia 34 Kansas City 59 87 .404 19 27½ 8-2 W-1 30-44 29-43
West W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home Away
Runs Stolen Bases Los Angeles 87 59 .596 — — 6-4 W-1 44-27 43-32
BEN MARGOT / AP Texas 80 65 .552 6½ 6 4-6 L-4 45-30 35-35
Start ’em A.L. N.L. A.L. N.L. Seattle 76 71 .517 11½ 11 4-6 W-2 41-31 35-40
Oakland 68 78 .466 19 18½ 8-2 W-4 35-36 33-42
Edgar Renteria SS Giants. Renteria, Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team
above, returned from a sprained Figgins
Damon
Los Angeles
New York
107
102
Pujols
Braun
St. Louis
Milwaukee
119
103
Ellsbury
Crawford
Boston
Tampa Bay
61
58
Bourn
Morgan
Houston
Washington
57
42
National League standings
shoulder Wednesday. He is East W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home Away
8-for-19 (.421) with a pair of Jeter New York 102 Utley Philadelphia 103 Figgins Los Angeles 42 Kemp Los Angeles 33 Philadelphia 85 60 .586 — — 8-2 W-5 42-32 43-28
BRoberts Baltimore 102 Zimmerman Washington 99 RDavis Oakland 39 Rollins Philadelphia 29 Atlanta 78 68 .534 7½ 4½ 8-2 W-7 38-33 40-35
homers against Dodgers right- Pedroia Boston 101 HaRamirez Florida 94 BUpton Tampa Bay 37 Fowler Colorado 27 Florida 78 69 .531 8 5 6-4 L-1 40-35 38-34
hander Vicente Padilla. Scutaro Toronto 100 Victorino Philadelphia 94 BAbreu Los Angeles 29 Pierre Los Angeles 27
New York 63 84 .429 23 20 1-9 L-5 36-36 27-48
Washington 50 96 .342 35½ 32½ 4-6 L-3 29-43 21-53
Tim Stauffer SP Padres. Stauffer has Cano New York 95 Three tied 91 BRoberts Baltimore 29 Three tied 25
allowed one run in each of his Central W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home Away
St. Louis 85 62 .578 — — 4-6 L-2 44-31 41-31
past three starts and is 3-1 in his RBIs Pitching Chicago 75 70 .517 9 7 7-3 L-2 44-30 31-40
past four road outings. Start him Milwaukee 71 75 .486 13½ 11½ 5-5 W-2 34-37 37-38
A.L. N.L. A.L. N.L. Houston 70 76 .479 14½ 12½ 4-6 L-4 42-33 28-43
at Pittsburgh. Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Cincinnati 68 79 .463 17 15 5-5 W-4 35-37 33-42
Mark Teahen OF/3B Royals. Teahen Teixeira New York 112 Pujols St. Louis 127 Sabathia New York 17-7 Wainwright St. Louis 18-8 Pittsburgh 55 89 .382 28½ 26½ 2-8 L-3 36-34 19-55
is an ideal desperation play. He is Bay Boston 106 Fielder Milwaukee 126 Feldman Texas 16-5 CCarpenter St. Louis 16-4 West W L Pct GB WCGB L10 Str Home Away
24-for-53 (.453) with nine extra- Longoria Tampa Bay 104 Howard Philadelphia 118 Verlander Detroit 16-8 JoJohnson Florida 15-4 Los Angeles 88 59 .599 — — 7-3 W-3 46-29 42-30
Lind Toronto 103 DLee Chicago 102 FHernandez Seattle 15-5 De La Rosa Colorado 15-9 Colorado 83 64 .565 5 — 6-4 W-1 45-27 38-37
base hits against White Sox San Francisco 79 67 .541 8½ 3½ 4-6 L-1 48-26 31-41
Morneau Minnesota 100 Braun Milwaukee 101 Beckett Boston 15-6 Marquis Colorado 15-11 San Diego 66 81 .449 22 17 6-4 W-1 39-37 27-44
lefthander Mark Buehrle. Two tied 98 HaRamirez Florida 100 JerWeaver Los Angeles 15-6 Lincecum San Francisco 14-5 Arizona 64 83 .435 24 19 3-7 L-1 32-40 32-43
ADunn Washington 99 Halladay Toronto 15-9 Haren Arizona 14-8 z-first game was a win
Sit ’em
Rafael Furcal SS Dodgers. Furcal Hits Strikeouts
Pitching matchups Today’s games (All times Eastern)
who is hitting .250 in September A.L. N.L. A.L. N.L. American League The Line
is 0-for-12 with three strikeouts Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Boston (Buchholz 5-3) at Baltimore (Guthrie 10-14) 7:05 p.m. Bos -145 at Bal +135
against San Francisco’s Jonathan ISuzuki Seattle 205 HaRamirez Florida 188 Verlander Detroit 239 Lincecum San Francisco 244 Toronto (Richmond 6-9) at Tampa Bay (J.Shields 9-11) 7:38 p.m. at Tam -165 Tor +155
Sanchez. Jeter New York 194 Braun Milwaukee 175 Greinke Kansas City 224 JVazquez Atlanta 216
L.A. Angels (Kazmir 8-8) at Texas (Tom.Hunter 8-3) 8:05 p.m. LA -115 at Tex +105
Jeremy Guthrie SP Orioles. Boston Cano New York 188 Tejada Houston 172 Lester Boston 211 Haren Arizona 201
Detroit (Porcello 13-8) at Minnesota (Duensing 3-1) 8:10 p.m. at Min -135 Det +125
has abused Guthrie this season. MiCabrera Detroit 180 FLopez Milwaukee 170 FHernandez Seattle 193 Gallardo Milwaukee 197
AHill Toronto 176 Pujols St. Louis 170 Halladay Toronto 189 Wainwright St. Louis 183 Kansas City (Hochevar 6-10) at Chicago White Sox (Buehrle 12-8) 8:11 p.m. at Chi -230 KC +210
He is 0-2 with an 8.00 in three Markakis Baltimore 175 Two tied 168 Beckett Boston 187 De La Rosa Colorado 179 Cleveland (D.Huff 10-7) at Oakland (Bre.Anderson 9-10) 10:05 p.m. at Oak -145 Cle +135
starts against the Red Sox. Mauer Minnesota 173 Sabathia New York 178 WRodriguez Houston 176 N.Y. Yankees (A.Burnett 11-9) at Seattle (F.Hernandez 15-5) 10:10 p.m. at Sea -115 NY +105
Skip Schumaker OF Cardinals.
Schumaker is hitting .211 against Doubles Saves National League The Line
lefties and is 1-for-12 (.083) against A.L. N.L. A.L. N.L.
San Diego (Stauffer 4-6) at Pittsburgh (Morton 3-8) 7:05 p.m. at Pit -120 SD +110
Cubs southpaw Ted Lilly. Player Team Player Team Player Team Player Team Florida (VandenHurk 2-2) at Cincinnati (H.Bailey 5-5) 7:10 p.m. at Cin-115 Flo +105
— Bill Bender BRoberts Baltimore 52 Sandoval San Francisco 41 Fuentes Los Angeles 42 Cordero Cincinnati 38 Washington (J.Martin 4-4) at N.Y. Mets (Pelfrey 10-10) 7:10 p.m. at NY -140 Wa +130
Butler Kansas City 46 Ethier Los Angeles 40 Nathan Minnesota 41 Franklin St. Louis 37 Philadelphia (Happ 10-4) at Atlanta (T.Hudson 1-0) 7:35 p.m. at Atl -115 Phi +105
MORE COVERAGE Lind Toronto 46 Tejada Houston 40 MaRivera New York 40 HBell San Diego 37 Houston (Norris 5-3) at Milwaukee (Narveson 1-0) 8:05 p.m. at Mil -115 Hou +105
Longoria Tampa Bay 44 Hawpe Colorado 39 Papelbon Boston 36 Broxton Los Angeles 35 Chicago Cubs (Lilly 12-8) at St. Louis (Smoltz 1-1) 8:15 p.m. at STL -120 Chi +110
Get everything you need to Pedroia Boston 44 Pujols St. Louis 39 Aardsma Seattle 35 BrWilson San Francisco 34 Colorado (Marquis 15-11) at Arizona (Mulvey 0-1) 9:40 p.m. Col -145 at Ari+135
dominate your fantasy league at Cano New York 42 HaRamirez Florida 39 Rodney Detroit 33 Street Colorado 33
sportingnews.com/fantasy/baseball San Francisco (J.Sanchez 6-12) at L.A. Dodgers (V.Padilla 3-0) 10:10 p.m. at LA -160 SF +150
Markakis Baltimore 42 Rollins Philadelphia 38 Jenks Chicago 29. Hoffman Milwaukee 33
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com Baseball FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 35
AMERICAN LEAGUE
L.A. Angels 4, Boston 3 Tampa Bay 3, Baltimore 0

‘Winning cures everything’ now for Angels Rays party after Davis’ win
BALTIMORE—Wade Davis had Rays 3, Orioles 0
Angels 4, Red Sox 3 Tampa Bay AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
BOSTON—The Los Angeles Angels just thrown a four-hit shutout
Los Angeles AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Bartlett ss 4 2 1 0 1 0 .326
couldn’t afford to give the Boston Red Figgins 3b 5 0 2 1 0 1 .301 to earn his first major league Crawford lf 4 0 2 1 1 0 .303
Sox yet another psychological advantage E.Aybar ss 4 0 1 0 0 1 .308 win, and getting the game ball Longoria 3b 4 0 3 1 1 0 .280
B.Abreu dh 4 0 0 0 0 2 .300 Zobrist 2b 3 1 1 0 2 0 .283
in their budding postseason rivalry. Tor.Hunter cf 4 0 0 0 0 1 .310 wasn’t nearly enough to mark Burrell dh 4 0 1 0 0 0 .228
One night after a ninth-inning col- K.Morales 1b 4 0 0 0 0 2 .301 the occasion. W.Aybar 1b 3 0 1 0 0 0 .248
J.Rivera lf 3 0 0 0 1 0 .289 Ch.Richard 1b 2 0 0 0 0 2 .154
lapse, the Angels rallied behind Howie 2-T.Evans pr-rf 0 1 0 0 0 0 --- During the postgame televi- Kapler rf 1 0 0 1 0 0 .231
Kendrick’s tie-breaking blooper in the Matthews Jr. rf 3 0 0 0 0 0 .238 sion interview, the rookie got a a-Gross ph-rf 2 0 0 0 0 1 .240
b-Willits ph-lf 0 0 0 0 0 0 .206 Navarro c 4 0 1 0 0 0 .226
ninth to beat Boston 4-3 on Thursday H.Kendrick 2b 4 2 3 2 0 0 .298 shaving-cream pie to the face F.Perez cf 2 0 0 0 0 1 .130
night and avert a three-game sweep. J.Mathis c 2 1 1 0 0 0 .210 from Tampa Bay teammates b-B.Upton ph-cf 2 0 0 0 0 1 .232
a-M.Izturis ph 1 0 1 0 0 0 .297 Totals 35 3 10 3 5 5
Brian Fuentes, who blew the previous 1-Pettit pr 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- Matt Garza and Evan Longoria.
game, earned the save and snapped Bos- Bo.Wilson c 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- That was followed by a beer Baltimore AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
Totals 34 4 8 3 1 7 B.Roberts 2b 3 0 0 0 1 1 .287
ton’s seven-game winning streak. shower in the clubhouse. Pie cf 4 0 1 0 0 2 .259
“Winning cures everything,” out- Boston AB R H BI BB SO Avg. With Davis leading the way, Reimold lf 3 0 1 0 1 1 .279
Ellsbury cf 4 1 1 1 0 0 .301 Markakis rf 4 0 0 0 0 1 .297
fielder Torii Hunter said. “I have already Pedroia 2b 4 0 1 0 0 0 .295 the Rays beat the Baltimore Mora 3b 3 0 0 0 0 2 .264
forgotten about the Red Sox and am V.Martinez 1b 3 1 1 0 0 1 .297 Orioles 3-0 Thursday night to Scott dh 3 0 0 0 0 1 .256
Bay lf 4 1 2 2 0 2 .265 Wieters c 3 0 0 0 0 1 .270
thinking about our series with Texas.” D.Ortiz dh 4 0 0 0 0 3 .232 salvage a split of the four-game Aubrey 1b 3 0 2 0 0 0 .324
Los Angeles improved to 6½ games Lowell 3b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .292 series. Andino ss 2 0 0 0 0 0 .228
3-Gathright pr 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333 c-Fiorentino ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 .286
ahead of Texas in the A.L. West, and the J.Drew rf 2 0 0 0 1 0 .267 Making his third big league C.Izturis ss 0 0 0 0 0 0 .253
Red Sox hold a six-game lead over the c-Baldelli ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .255 start, Davis (1-1) struck out 10 Totals 29 0 4 0 2 10
Varitek c 3 0 0 0 0 1 .212
idle Rangers in the wild-card race. If the Ale.Gonzalez ss 3 0 0 0 0 1 .290 and walked two in his first Tampa Bay 001 100 001 — 3 10 0
standings hold, Boston will open the Totals 32 3 6 3 1 9 complete game. The right- Baltimore 000 000 000 — 0 4 0
playoffs in Anaheim; the Red Sox have Los Angeles 001 010 101 — 4 8 0 hander worked out of a bases- a-grounded out for Kapler in the 6th. b-grounded out
beaten the Angels in 12 of their last 13 Boston 000 300 000 — 3 6 0 loaded jam in the first, then for F.Perez in the 7th. c-struck out for Andino in the
a-doubled for J.Mathis in the 7th. b-sacrificed for Mat- 8th. LOB: Tampa Bay 12, Baltimore 4. 2B: Longoria
postseason games dating to 1986 and are thews Jr. in the 9th. c-popped out for J.Drew in the permitted only one runner past (44), Zobrist (22), Pie (8), Aubrey (3). 3B: Bartlett (7).
4-0 all-time in postseason series against 9th. 1-ran for M.Izturis in the 7th. 2-ran for J.Rivera in first base over the final eight RBIs: Crawford (63), Longoria (104), Kapler (28). SB:
the 9th. 3-ran for Lowell in the 9th. LOB: Los Angeles Bartlett (25), Crawford (58). S: Kapler. Runners left
them. 6, Boston 4. 2B: Figgins (28), J.Mathis (8), M.Izturis innings. in scoring position: Tampa Bay 7 (Zobrist, Navarro,
“Let’s get there first,” Angels manager (20). HR: H.Kendrick (9), off Beckett; Ellsbury (7), off Davis capped his outstand- Burrell 4, Ch.Richard); Baltimore 3 (Scott 2, B.Roberts).
E.Santana; Bay (33), off E.Santana. RBIs: Figgins (49), DP: Tampa Bay 1 (Bartlett, Zobrist, W.Aybar); Baltimore
Mike Scioscia said. “No messages to H.Kendrick 2 (55), Ellsbury (51), Bay 2 (106). SB: Figgins ing performance by striking 1 (Andino, B.Roberts, Aubrey).
send tonight or feelings to get. Our first (42). CS: Bay (3). S: Willits, Bo.Wilson. Runners left in out the side in the ninth. He
scoring position: Los Angeles 4 (E.Aybar 3, Figgins). Tampa Bay IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA
goal is to make the playoffs.” DP: Los Angeles 1 (J.Mathis, J.Mathis, E.Aybar). threw 124 pitches. W.Davis W, 1-1 9 4 0 0 2 10 124 4.34
Kendrick also homered in the third Los Angeles IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Then came the antics. It was Baltimore IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA
E.Santana 7 4 3 3 1 6 111 5.43 Hendrickson L, 5-5 3 1⁄3 5 2 2 0 0 56 4.47
and score the tying run in the seventh, Jepsen W, 6-3 1 1⁄3 1 0 0 0 2 14 4.44 only the second win in 15 games Sarfate 1 1⁄3 0 0 0 3 1 32 6.48
and Fuentes rebounded from Wednes- Fuentes S, 42-49 2⁄3 1 0 0 0 1 11 4.35 for the Rays, who desperately Meredith 1 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 0 12 4.37
Boston IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Bass 2⁄3 2 0 0 0 0 18 4.97
day night’s collapse to hand the Red Sox Beckett 8 7 3 3 0 7 114 3.80 needed a reason to smile. Henn 1 1 0 0 1 2 31 6.23
their first loss at Fenway in 11 games. Wagner L, 1-1 1 1 1 1 1 0 13 2.45 “The shaving cream didn’t C.Ray 2⁄3 1 1 1 1 1 16 6.53
HBP: by E.Santana (V.Martinez). WP: Beckett. A.Castillo 2⁄3 1 0 0 0 1 12 2.25
Kevin Jepsen (6-3) got four outs, then Umpires: Home, Jeff Kellogg; First, Tim Timmons; taste very good,” Davis said.
Fuentes got the last two batters to earn Second, Mark Wegner; Third, Rick Reed. T: 2:38. A: “But it’s fun. It’s supposed to Inherited runners-scored: Sarfate 2-1, Meredith 3-0,
38,157 (37,373). Henn 2-0, C.Ray 1-0, A.Castillo 1-0. HBP: by Hendrick-
his major league-leading 42nd save and be.” son (Burrell). Umpires: Home, Ron Kulpa; First, Dale
end Los Angeles’ three-game losing The 24-year-old was coming Scott; Second, Rob Drake; Third, Mike DiMuro. T: 2:47.
streak.
American League off a horrid outing in Boston in
A: 12,436 (48,290).

— The Associated Press wild-card standings which he yielded eight runs in

CHARLES KRUPA / AP W L Pct. GB 2 2/3 innings.
Boston 86 59 .593 —
MLB looks into Angels’ incident, Page 32 Howie Kendrick’s RBI single in the ninth gave the Angels the lead for good. Texas 80 65 .552 6 — The Associated Press
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com Baseball FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 36
AMERICAN LEAGUE NATIONAL LEAGUE
Kansas City 9, Detroit 2 Seattle 4, Chicago White Sox 3, 14 innings Milwaukee 7, Brewers 7, Cubs 4
Milwaukee AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
Chicago Cubs 4 F.Lopez 2b 3 2 1 0 2 1 .308

Loss tightens Central race Sox miss out on opportunity Gerut does his
Gerut rf
c-C.Hart ph-rf
Braun lf
Fielder 1b
2 1 1 4 1 0 .217
2 0 0 0 0 1 .257
4 1 2 0 1 1 .310
4 0 1 0 1 2 .298
M.Cameron cf 4 1 1 1 0 1 .255
DETROIT—Jim Leyland was
unhappy.
Royals 9, Tigers 2
Kansas City AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
Mariners 4, White Sox 3, 14 innings
Chicago AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
part in rare start Gamel 3b
d-McGehee ph
3 0 0 0 0 1 .229
0 0 0 0 0 0 .304
Bloomquist rf 5 2 4 0 0 0 .273 Podsednik lf 5 1 1 0 2 1 .302 Counsell 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 .283
Leaning back in his chair Maier lf 4 0 0 0 2 2 .250 Beckham 3b 6 1 1 0 1 2 .272 CHICAGO—Jody Gerut welcomed Mi.Rivera c 4 0 1 2 0 2 .232
with his feet propped up on top Butler 1b 5 2 1 0 0 0 .298 Pierzynski c 6 0 0 1 0 0 .310 the chance to start and responded A.Escobar ss 3 1 0 0 1 0 .300
Jacobs dh 3 0 0 0 2 2 .234 Konerko dh 6 1 3 0 0 1 .285 Bush p 3 1 1 0 0 2 .121
of his desk, the Detroit manager Callaspo 2b 4 1 2 3 1 0 .299 2-Lillibridge pr-dh 0 0 0 0 0 0 .145 with one of his biggest hits since Coffey p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
didn’t relish discussing his Olivo c 5 1 1 3 0 2 .248 Kotsay 1b 6 0 4 2 0 0 .281 joining the Milwaukee Brewers. Villanueva p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .111
B.Pena c 0 0 0 0 0 0 .270 Dye rf 6 0 0 0 0 3 .248 e-Bourgeois ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .161
team’s latest loss to last-place A.Gordon 3b 4 1 1 0 1 1 .205 Al.Ramirez ss 6 0 1 0 0 0 .279 Gerut’s second career grand C.Vargas p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---
Lu.Hernandez 3b 0 0 0 0 0 0 .186 Getz 2b 2 0 0 0 4 1 .268 Hoffman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---
Kansas City. Rios cf 6 0 0 0 0 2 .242 slam lifted the Brewers to a 7-4
Y.Betancourt ss 5 1 2 0 0 1 .241 Totals 33 7 8 7 6 11
“There’s no excuses,” he said. J.Anderson cf 5 1 1 3 0 2 .241 Totals 49 3 10 3 7 10 victory over the Chicago Cubs Chicago AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
Zack Greinke lowered his Totals 40 9 12 9 6 10 on Thursday. It also helped Mil- Theriot ss 4 1 1 0 0 0 .289
Seattle AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Fukudome cf 4 0 1 0 0 2 .256
major league-leading ERA to Detroit AB R H BI BB SO Avg. I.Suzuki rf 6 0 2 1 1 1 .353 waukee earn a split in the four- D.Lee 1b 4 0 0 0 0 0 .304
Granderson cf 4 0 0 0 0 2 .248 F.Gutierrez cf 6 0 1 0 0 1 .275 J.Fox lf 4 1 1 0 0 0 .283
2.14 with five scoreless innings Jo.Lopez 1b 6 1 2 1 0 1 .270 game series between two teams
Thomas cf 1 0 0 0 0 1 .241 Bradley rf 2 0 1 0 0 0 .257
in a 9-2 victory Thursday over Polanco 2b 3 1 1 0 1 1 .278 M.Sweeney dh 5 0 2 0 0 0 .274 finishing disappointing 1-Scales pr-rf 1 0 0 0 0 1 .247
W.Ramirez rf 0 0 0 0 0 0 .364 1-M.Saunders pr-dh 1 0 1 0 0 0 .208 Je.Baker 3b 4 1 2 1 0 0 .296
the Tigers. Beltre 3b 5 1 1 1 1 1 .263 seasons.
C.Guillen lf 4 0 0 0 0 0 .239 Fontenot 2b 3 1 1 0 1 2 .237
Kansas City, an A.L.-worst Mi.Cabrera 1b 4 1 1 2 0 1 .332 Hall lf-2b 6 1 1 1 0 3 .238 “I’m happy for whatever I can K.Hill c 4 0 0 0 0 2 .237
Thames 1b 0 0 0 0 0 0 .250 Jo.Wilson ss 6 0 1 0 0 2 .250 R.Wells p 1 0 0 0 0 0 .167
59-87, has won six of its last Tuiasosopo 2b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .250 do,” Gerut said.
A.Huff dh 4 0 2 0 0 1 .246 a-M.Hoffpauir ph 1 0 1 2 0 0 .236
seven games against the Tigers Avila c 3 0 0 0 1 2 .286 a-Griffey Jr. ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 .217 Out of baseball for two years,
Langerhans lf 1 1 1 0 0 0 .220 S.Marshall p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .231
(78-68), whose A.L. Central Kelly rf-2b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .241 Moore c 5 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Gerut put together a decent sea- Heilman p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Inge 3b 3 0 1 0 0 2 .234 b-Johjima ph 0 0 0 0 0 0 .255 b-Ar.Ramirez ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .321
lead over Minnesota (74-72) was Dlugach 3b 1 0 0 0 0 1 .000 Totals 52 4 13 4 2 11
son for the Padres a year ago and Gorzelanny p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .222
cut to four games. Detroit starts Santiago ss 2 0 1 0 2 1 .259 then was traded to the Brewers Caridad p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Totals 33 2 7 2 4 13 Chicago 101 010 000 000 00 —3 10 0 Grabow p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
a three-game series at the TED S. WARREN / AP
Seattle 000 000 102 000 01 —4 13 1 in May for Tony Gwynn. Berg p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---
Metrodome today. Kansas City 203 003 010 — 9 12 0 Seattle’s Ichiro Suzuki delivers on his game-winning single in the 14th. One out when winning run scored. a-struck out for His start Thursday at Wrigley f-Miles ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .181
Detroit 000 002 000 — 2 7 0 Tuiasosopo in the 12th. b-was hit by a pitch for Moore Totals 34 4 8 3 1 7
“It’s going to be a playoff in the 14th. 1-ran for M.Sweeney in the 11th. 2-ran for Field was just his 18th in 71 Milwaukee 100 400 200 — 7 8 0
atmosphere,” Detroit’s Brandon LOB: Kansas City 11, Detroit 8. 2B: Callaspo (36). HR: SEATTLE—Manager Ozzie Jose Lopez and Bill Hall Konerko in the 12th. E: Hall (1). LOB: Chicago 12, Seattle appearances for the Brewers. Chicago 200 200 000 — 4 8 0
Olivo (21), off E.Jackson; J.Anderson (1), off Galarraga; 11. 2B: Konerko (29), I.Suzuki (31), Tuiasosopo (1). HR: a-doubled for R.Wells in the 4th. b-flied out for Heilman in
Inge said. Mi.Cabrera (30), off Chen. RBIs: Callaspo 3 (65), Olivo Guillen was at a loss for each homered off Sox closer Beltre (7), off Danks; Jo.Lopez (24), off Jenks; Hall (2), “If you look at his history, he’s the 6th. c-grounded out for Gerut in the 7th. d-was hit by
Greinke (14-8) gave up three 3 (58), J.Anderson 3 (23), Mi.Cabrera 2 (91). CS: Inge words after the Chicago Bobby Jenks in the ninth to off Jenks. RBIs: Pierzynski (46), Kotsay 2 (20), I.Suzuki done fine. So, a couple things he a pitch for Gamel in the 7th. e-popped out for Villanueva
(5). Runners left in scoring position: Kansas City (41), Jo.Lopez (89), Beltre (39), Hall (9). SB: Getz (25), in the 8th. f-flied out for Berg in the 9th. 1-ran for Bradley
hits, struck out eight and walked 6 (Olivo, Maier, Callaspo 2, A.Gordon 2); Detroit 3 White Sox’s latest loss. And tie it. Chicago, third in the Beltre (11). SF: Pierzynski. Runners left in scoring can do: He plays center field. He in the 6th. LOB: Milwaukee 7, Chicago 5. 2B: Braun (34),
two. He has allowed only one (C.Guillen, Thomas 2). he rarely is ever at a loss for division, trails Detroit by position: Chicago 7 (Kotsay, Beckham 3, Podsednik, plays all three positions, keeps Mi.Rivera (7), M.Hoffpauir (10). 3B: Fielder (3). HR: Gerut
Al.Ramirez, Dye); Seattle 4 (Tuiasosopo, F.Gutierrez 2, (7), off R.Wells. RBIs: Gerut 4 (29), M.Cameron (62),
earned run in his past four Kansas City IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA words. 6½ games and Minnesota Hall). DP: Chicago 1 (Al.Ramirez, Getz, Kotsay); Seattle himself ready. He’s a pro and Mi.Rivera 2 (14), Je.Baker (18), M.Hoffpauir 2 (31). SB:
starts, lowering his ERA from Greinke W, 14-8 5 3 0 0 2 8 77 2.14 With an opportunity to by 4 with 15 games to play. 1 (Jo.Wilson, Tuiasosopo, Jo.Lopez). he’s got some pop in his bat,” Theriot (20). SF: M.Cameron. Runners left in scoring
Chen 1 2⁄3 2 2 2 1 1 33 5.78 Chicago IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA position: Milwaukee 5 (Gamel, M.Cameron, Mi.Rivera,
2.43. Farnsworth 1 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 1 15 4.63 improve their slim shot of With one out in the 14th, Danks 8 4 1 1 2 3 97 3.59 Milwaukee manager Ken Macha A.Escobar 2); Chicago 3 (Fontenot, Theriot, Ar.Ramirez).
Greinke struck out two in the Soria 1 2 0 0 1 3 23 2.49 catching the Tigers in the Ryan Langerhans singled to Jenks BS, 6-35 1 2 2 2 0 1 13 3.71 said. DP: Milwaukee 1 (Gamel, F.Lopez, Fielder).
Detroit IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Thornton 1 1 0 0 0 0 10 2.73 Milwaukee IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA
first and three in the second. E.Jackson L, 12-7 5 6 5 5 1 6 96 3.37 A.L. Central on Thursday center off Scott Linebrink T.Pena 1 2⁄3 2 0 0 0 2 20 4.05 Mike Rivera also had a key Bush W, 5-7 5 2⁄3 8 4 4 1 4 90 5.88
The only real trouble he faced Galarraga 1⁄3 3 3 3 1 1 21 5.64 night, the White Sox blew a (3-7). Pinch-hitter Kenji Williams 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 1 4 6.08 bases-loaded hit for the Brewers, Coffey H, 24 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 0 8 3.09
Figaro 2 1 1 1 4 1 45 6.92 Dotel 1 2 0 0 0 3 26 3.32 Villanueva H, 9 1 0 0 0 0 1 10 5.46
was in the fourth, when the Bonderman 1 2⁄3 2 0 0 0 2 24 9.31 two-run lead in the ninth Johjima was hit by a pitch Linebrink L, 3-7 1⁄3 2 1 1 0 1 10 4.30 a two-run double in the seventh C.Vargas H, 9 1 0 0 0 0 1 11 2.06
Seattle IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Hoffman S, 33-36 1 0 0 0 0 1 10 1.91
righthander was struck on the Inherited runners-scored: Farnsworth 1-0, Figaro
inning then lost 4-3 in 14 then Suzuki hit his 205th Morrow 5 2⁄3 6 3 2 6 5 97 5.08 to push the lead to three.
Chicago IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA
upper part of his throwing arm 2-0, Bonderman 3-1. HBP: by Galarraga (Bloomquist). innings to the Seattle Mari- hit of the season, scoring J.Vargas 2⁄3 2 0 0 0 1 15 4.97 Gerut’s grand slam capped a R.Wells L, 10-9 4 5 5 5 5 4 80 3.18
WP: Soria. Umpires: Home, Paul Emmel; First, Scott Messenger 2⁄3 0 0 0 0 0 10 5.19 S.Marshall 1 1 0 0 0 2 11 4.46
by a liner off the bat of Miguel Barry; Second, Gary Darling; Third, Bruce Dreckman. T:
ners on Ichiro Suzuki’s Langerhans. Olson 1 0 0 0 0 0 13 5.78 two-out rally that started when
Heilman 1 0 0 0 0 2 12 4.09
Cabrera. Greinke gathered him- 3:05. A: 26,457 (41,255). game-ending single. As he rounded first base, Batista 1 0 0 0 0 0 7 4.41 Randy Wells (10-9) walked No. 8 Gorzelanny 2⁄3 1 2 2 1 1 14 5.29
Aardsma 1 0 0 0 0 0 12 2.06 Caridad 1⁄3 1 0 0 0 0 15 2.31
self and threw out Cabrera at “Go on and ask (the play- the Mariners spilled out of M.Lowe 2 2 0 0 1 2 33 2.89 hitter Alcides Escobar, gave up a
Grabow 1 0 0 0 0 1 10 3.09
first, then needed several war- ers),” Guillen said. “I don’t the dugout and chased the Kelley W, 5-3 2 0 0 0 0 2 26 4.75 single to Brewers starter Dave Berg 1 0 0 0 0 1 6 0.00
Inherited runners-scored: Williams 1-0, J.Vargas Inherited runners-scored: Coffey 2-0, Caridad 2-2.
mup pitches and a visit from a have any more quotes. Seri- star right fielder all the way 2-0, Messenger 2-0. HBP: by Linebrink (Johjima). Bush and another walk to Felipe
Umpires: Home, Randy Marsh; First, Lance Barksdale; IBB: off R.Wells (Fielder). HBP: by Bush (Bradley), by
trainer before he continued. ously, what am I going to into the outfield. Lopez. Caridad (McGehee). Umpires: Home, Brian Knight;
Second, Marvin Hudson; Third, Angel Hernandez. T:
— The Associated Press say?” — The Associated Press 3:59. A: 16,336 (47,878). — The Associated Press First, Hunter Wendelstedt; Second, Dana DeMuth; Third,
Doug Eddings. T: 2:49. A: 39,158 (41,210).
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com Baseball FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 37
NATIONAL LEAGUE
Cincinnati 3, Florida 2 Reds 3, Marlins 2
Atlanta 7, N.Y. Mets 3 Philadelphia 4, Washington 2
Florida AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
Coghlan lf 4 1 4 0 0 0 .309
Rookie ruins N.Johnson 1b
Ha.Ramirez ss
Cantu 3b
3 0 0 0 0 1 .300
4 1 1 1 0 0 .356
4 0 0 0 0 0 .278 Braves closer after 7th straight Hamels looks Phillies 4, Nationals 2
Washington AB R H BI BB SO Avg.

opportunity Uggla 2b
C.Ross cf
R.Paulino c
4 0 1 1 0 2 .246
4 0 0 0 0 2 .274
2 0 1 0 1 0 .270 Braves 7, Mets 3 solid again
Maxwell cf
C.Guzman ss
Zimmerman 3b 4 1
4 0
4 0
1
0
1
0
0
0
0
0
0
1
2
1
.233
.289
.289
c-Gload ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .265
for Marlins B.Carroll rf
d-Jo.Baker ph
A.Sanchez p
3 0 1 0 0 1 .267
1 0 0 0 0 1 .270
2 0 0 0 0 1 .000
New York
Pagan cf
L.Castillo 2b
AB
5
5
R
0
0
H
1
0
BI
0
0
BB
0
0
SO
1
1
Avg.
.304
.305 PHILADELPHIA—Cole Hamels is
Willingham lf
Dukes rf
Desmond 2b
4 0
4 1
3 0
1
2
0
0
1
1
0
0
1
1
0
1
.274
.259
.500
Morse 1b 3 0 1 0 0 0 .286
CINCINNATI—A rookie pitcher a-G.Sanchez ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .200 D.Wright 3b 3 0 1 0 1 0 .315 again pitching like Philadel- d-W.Harris ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .230
Badenhop p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Dan.Murphy 1b 4 2 3 1 0 0 .262 Nieves c 1 0 0 0 0 0 .258
with a bum finger and no career Pinto p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Francoeur rf 4 1 1 0 0 1 .276 phia’s October ace. J.Bard c 2 0 0 0 0 2 .232
T.Wood p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .500 Thole c 4 0 0 0 0 0 .367
wins kept the Florida Marlins e-Helms ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 .277 Hamels has turned his season Detwiler p 1 0 0 0 0 1 .071
Tatis lf 4 0 1 2 0 2 .272 a-J.Padilla ph 1 0 0 0 0 1 .100
running in place. Totals 34 2 8 2 1 9 W.Valdez ss 3 0 2 0 1 0 .254 around down the stretch for the Clippard p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
Cincinnati AB R H BI BB SO Avg. Figueroa p 1 0 0 0 0 1 .214
Emergency starter Matt D.McDonald cf-lf 3 1 2 1 1 1 .256 N.L. East-leading Phillies, put- S.Rivera p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .333
Janish ss 4 1 1 0 0 1 .218 a-Reed ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .253 Villone p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---
Maloney gritted it out for five Votto 1b 2 1 0 0 2 0 .303 Stoner p 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- ting himself in position for Kensing p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
innings to get his first big league B.Phillips 2b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .279 c-Sullivan ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .256 another postseason run. c-Alb.Gonzalez ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .254
Rolen 3b 2 0 0 0 2 1 .257 Totals 35 3 9 3 2 6 Estrada p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---
victory Thursday night, leading Gomes lf 4 0 1 0 0 0 .271 Hamels took a perfect game Totals 33 2 6 2 1 10
the Cincinnati Reds to a 3-2 vic- Cordero p 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- Atlanta AB R H BI BB SO Avg. into the sixth inning, master-
Bruce rf 4 0 1 2 0 2 .210 McLouth cf 4 2 2 0 0 0 .274 Philadelphia AB R H BI BB SO Avg.
tory that cost the Marlins a Hanigan c 3 0 0 0 0 1 .267 Prado 3b 4 2 3 2 0 1 .296 fully using his changeup while Rollins ss 4 0 2 1 0 0 .247
chance to gain ground in the Maloney p 2 0 0 0 0 1 .222 G.Anderson lf 4 0 1 0 0 1 .275 matching a season high with 10 Victorino cf 3 0 0 0 0 1 .296
R.Ramirez p 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- McCann c 2 1 1 4 1 0 .282 b-Ibanez ph-lf 1 0 0 0 0 1 .280
N.L. wild-card chase. Rhodes p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 Y.Escobar ss 4 1 2 0 0 0 .303 strikeouts and leading the Phil- Utley 2b 3 1 1 0 1 1 .296
b-Sutton ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .189 Ad.LaRoche 1b 3 0 1 0 1 0 .278
The Marlins remained 5 Masset p 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- lies to a 4-2 win over the Wash- Howard 1b 2 1 0 0 1 1 .269
M.Diaz rf 3 0 1 1 0 1 .320 Werth rf-cf 3 1 1 0 1 0 .272
games behind Colorado and 1 Stubbs cf 0 0 0 0 0 0 .252 Infante 2b 4 0 1 0 0 1 .305 ington Nationals on Thursday B.Francisco lf-rf 4 0 1 0 0 1 .246
Totals 29 3 6 3 5 8 Jurrjens p 3 1 1 0 0 0 .133
1/2 behind San Francisco, both Florida 000 020 000 — 2 8 0 night. P.Feliz 3b 3 1 0 0 1 0 .264
Cincinnati 300 000 00x — 3 6 0 O’Flaherty p 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 C.Ruiz c 3 0 0 1 1 0 .256
of whom were off. They couldn’t a-grounded out for A.Sanchez in the 6th. b-flied out for
JOHN BAZEMORE / AP b-Conrad ph 1 0 0 0 0 0 .262 “I think you have to enjoy it,” Hamels p 3 0 1 1 0 2 .127
break their extended slump at Rhodes in the 7th. c-grounded out for R.Paulino in the R.Soriano p 0 0 0 0 0 0 --- Hamels said. “Sometimes, the Lidge p 0 0 0 0 0 0 ---
9th. d-struck out for B.Carroll in the 9th. e-struck out
Brian McCann’s three-run homer in the fifth gave Atlanta a 6-2 lead. Totals 32 7 13 7 2 4
Great American Ball Park, games get a little bit more mean- Totals 29 4 6 3 5 7
for T.Wood in the 9th. LOB: Florida 7, Cincinnati 7. 2B:
where they’ve dropped nine in a Coghlan 2 (23), Uggla (24), Janish (18), B.Phillips (27), New York 000 200 010 — 3 9 0 ingful. The fans know it, we Washington 000 000 101 — 2 6 0
Gomes (13). HR: D.McDonald (2), off A.Sanchez. RBIs: Atlanta 002 041 00x — 7 13 1 Philadelphia 000 012 10x — 4 6 0
row. Ha.Ramirez (100), Uggla (80), D.McDonald (9), Bruce ATLANTA—The Atlanta Atlanta (78-68) is 4½ know it. It’s just going out there
Whenever they come to Cin- 2 (45). SB: D.McDonald (1). Runners left in scoring Braves and New York Mets games behind N.L. wild a-grounded out for Figueroa in the 6th. b-grounded and doing what we know best.” a-struck out for Detwiler in the 6th. b-struck out for
position: Florida 4 (Cantu, A.Sanchez, Uggla, C.Ross); into a double play for O’Flaherty in the 8th. c-lined out Victorino in the 7th. c-flied out for Kensing in the 8th.
cinnati, things never quite add Cincinnati 5 (Hanigan, Votto, Bruce, Rolen, B.Phillips). are streaking in opposite card-leading Colorado. for Stoner in the 9th. E: M.Diaz (3). LOB: New York 8, Hamels (10-9), the MVP of d-popped out for Morse in the 9th. LOB: Washington
DP: Florida 1 (Ha.Ramirez, N.Johnson); Cincinnati 1 Atlanta 6. 2B: Dan.Murphy (34), Prado (28), Jurrjens (2).
up. They fell behind 3-0 in the (B.Phillips, Votto). directions. “This is the best we’ve last season’s N.L. championship 5, Philadelphia 7. 2B: Maxwell (3), Rollins (38). 3B:
3B: Pagan (10). HR: Dan.Murphy (10), off O’Flaherty; Dukes (4). RBIs: Dukes (55), Desmond (5), Rollins (67),
first inning and never made up Florida IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Brian McCann hit a tie- played since I’ve been McCann (19), off Figueroa. RBIs: Dan.Murphy (56), Tatis series and World Series, allowed C.Ruiz (42), Hamels (4). SB: Rollins (29). Runners left
A.Sanchez L, 2-7 5 5 3 3 3 7 98 4.50 2 (42), Prado 2 (44), McCann 4 (84), M.Diaz (49). SB:
the ground in the N.L.’s most Badenhop 1 2⁄3 1 0 0 0 1 28 3.58 breaking three-run homer here,” McCann said. “It one run and five hits in eight in scoring position: Washington 3 (J.Bard 2, Zimmer-
Pinto 0 0 0 0 1 0 5 3.21 D.Wright (25), M.Diaz (10). S: Figueroa, McLouth. SF: man); Philadelphia 4 (Werth, Victorino, Rollins 2). DP:
hitter-friendly ballpark. T.Wood 1 1⁄3 0 0 0 1 0 18 1.89
in the fifth inning and the feels great because we McCann. Runners left in scoring position: New York strong innings. He even chipped Washington 1 (Zimmerman, Morse).
“It held up,” manager Fredi Cincinnati IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA Braves beat the reeling could have folded. That 5 (Francoeur 2, Pagan 2, L.Castillo); Atlanta 3 (Y.Escobar, in with an opposite-field RBI
Maloney W, 1-4 5 7 2 2 1 3 96 5.35 Jurrjens, Infante). DP: New York 2 (W.Valdez, Dan.Mur- Washington IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA
Gonzalez said. “You figure with R.Ramirez H, 2 1 0 0 0 0 1 6 6.00 Mets 7-3 on Thursday could have been it. I think phy), (Dan.Murphy, W.Valdez, Dan.Murphy); Atlanta 1 single to help the Phillies win Detwiler L, 0-6 5 4 1 1 1 6 87 5.80
the way we’re swinging the bats Rhodes H, 25 1 1 0 0 0 1 9 2.58 night for their first seven- we’re playing with a care- (Y.Escobar, Ad.LaRoche). their fifth straight game. Clippard 2⁄3 1 2 2 3 0 31 3.38
Masset H, 17 1 0 0 0 0 2 19 2.60 S.Rivera 1⁄3 1 0 0 0 0 6 5.40
and the ballpark, it wouldn’t.” Cordero S, 38-41 1 0 0 0 0 2 10 2.25 game winning streak since free attitude. There’s noth- New York IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA “There’s nothing better than Villone 2⁄3 0 1 1 1 1 16 4.29
The Marlins have lingered in Pinto pitched to 1 batter in the 7th. Inherited run- 2006. ing to lose. At the end (of Figueroa L, 2-6 5 9 6 6 1 4 81 5.21 pitching at home in September,” Kensing 1⁄3 0 0 0 0 0 710.55
ners-scored: Pinto 1-0, T.Wood 2-0. HBP: by Maloney Stoner 3 4 1 1 1 0 24 5.14 Estrada 1 0 0 0 0 0 1113.50
the wild-card race by winning (N.Johnson). Umpires: Home, Bill Miller; First, Adrian “Everything’s going the regular season), we Atlanta IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA he said. “The fans are great and Philadelphia IP H R ER BB SO NP ERA
Johnson; Second, Derryl Cousins; Third, Jim Joyce. T: Jurrjens W, 12-10 7 6 2 1 2 5 100 2.75
10 of their last 15. They’ve strug- 2:51. A: 9,685 (42,319). good right now,” manager hope it will be enough. it kind of gives you that extra Hamels W, 10-9 8 5 1 1 1 10 109 4.07
O’Flaherty 1 2 1 1 0 1 13 3.20 Lidge S, 30-40 1 1 1 1 0 0 16 7.21
gled against the Reds, losing 11 Bobby Cox said. We’ll see.” R.Soriano 1 1 0 0 0 0 19 2.67 motivation.”
of their last 14 since 2007. McCann also had a sac- The Braves, who moved Hamels finally ran into trou- Inherited runners-scored: S.Rivera 3-1, Kensing
National League HBP: by Figueroa (M.Diaz). Umpires: Home, Dan 1-1. HBP: by Detwiler (Howard). WP: Villone, Kensing.
The Reds sold only 9,685 rifice fly in his fifth game past Florida for second in Iassogna; First, Larry Vanover; Second, Sam Holbrook; ble in the seventh when he gave
tickets for the game, the second- wild card standings of the season with at least the N.L. East, host divi- Third, Mike Estabrook. T: 2:22. A: 20,192 (49,743). up a run and loaded the bases.
Umpires: Home, Paul Schrieber; First, Paul Nauert;
Second, Joe West; Third, Ed Rapuano. T: 2:43. A: 45,210
smallest gate in Great Ameri- W L Pct. GB four RBIs, helping the sion-leading Philadelphia The 25-year-old lefthander got (43,647).
Colorado 83 64 .565 —
can Ball Park’s seven-year San Francisco 79 67 .541 3½ Braves move 10 games for a weekend series begin- Mike Morse to fly out and struck
history. Atlanta 78 68 .534 4½ over .500 for the first time ning tonight. out Josh Bard to escape the jam.
Florida 78 69 .534 5
— The Associated Press Chicago 75 70 .517 7 since May 16, 2007. — The Associated Press — The Associated Press
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Report: Kessel trade will happen within a week
With the Bruins facing the loom-
ing threat of an offer sheet being
extended to restricted free agent Phil
Kessel, the Boston Herald is reporting
that the team is close to pulling off a
blockbuster trade for the 21-year-
old sniper.
Citing two “well-placed sources
in Toronto,” the newspaper said
that four teams still are in the run-
ning and that a deal should be final-
ized within the next week. Toronto
and Nashville are known to have
made offers and are the leading con-
tenders. But Minnesota and the
New York Rangers reportedly are
in the mix, too.
The Bruins had hoped to keep
Kessel, who scored 36 goals last
season. But he rejected what they
considered a lucrative offer and his
$5 million-plus asking price would
put them well over the salary cap. If
a team extends an offer sheet just
before the start of the season, Bos-
ton general manager Peter Chiarelli
would be forced to clear a lot of sal-
ary quickly to keep him on the Oct.
1 roster. A deal timed in that way,
the newspaper surmises, would
make it virtually impossible for
Chiarelli to match.
Kessel appears to be in the driv-
er’s seat because he can hold out for
a big offer sheet while rehabbing his
shoulder after offseason surgery.
He has started skating and report-
edly is ahead of schedule, but he
won’t be ready to play for at least
several weeks.
The San Jose Mercury News
reported that the Sharks are close to
signing free-agent C Manny Malhotra,
who has played the last five seasons
for the Columbus Blue Jackets.
Malhotra, the newspaper says,
immediately becomes the top candi-
date for a spot on the Sharks’ third
line—an opening created with last
week’s trade for Dany Heatley.
Malhotra scored 11 goals and 35
points in 77 games last season for
the Blue Jackets.
Welcome to the NHL, kid!
Tampa Bay coach Rick Tocchet didn’t
waste any time exposing No. 2 over-
all draft pick Victor Hedman to the rig-
ors of the NHL Wednesday night
when the Lightning played their
first preseason game—a 4-3 shoot-
out loss at Dallas’ American Air-
lines Center.
The Lightning’s prized Swedish
defenseman was on the ice for a
game-high 27 minutes, 15 seconds,
4:39 more than anyone else. Did he
pass the test?
“If I had to say who tried and
played hard, Victor would be in my
top, absolutely,” Tocchet told the St.
Petersburg Times. “Victor is an excel-
lent player. He makes mistakes like
everybody, and we’ll work with
him. But the poise of his is some-
thing you don’t teach.”
Hedman also showed some skill
in the interview room.
“It was great,” he told the news-
paper. “It was great to play those
minutes.”
After 10 years as captain of the
most celebrated franchise in hockey,
C Saku Koivu told The Orange County
NHL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 38
INSIDE DISH
Register that he’s ready for a quieter
existence as just another player for
the Anaheim Ducks.
While acknowledging that his
long run as captain of the Montreal
Canadiens was an honor and a
privilege, he also said that position
of responsibility in a city where
hockey is religion can be wearing
and frustrating.
“Montreal is a great place, but it
can be a tough place as well,” Koivu
told the newspaper. “Right now I
can focus on my own stuff and try
to help the team and the guys with-
out having to worry about the extra
stuff as a captain. I’m still going to
do things the same way that I did
when I was captain, but not having
that responsibility, it kind of feels
good.”
Koivu, who signed as a free agent
after 13 years in Montreal, says he
looks forward to skating alongside
longtime Finnish friend Teemu
Selanne and deferring to Ducks cap-
tain Scott Niedermayer on all team
matters.
Veteran G Manny Legace said he
knows it will be tough to win a ros-
ter spot with the Atlanta Thrashers,
but there’s no doubt his game is HANS DERYK / AP
NHL-ready and he can provide The Predators reportedly have offered a first-round pick, the rights to forward Alexander Radulov and another prospect for Phil Kessel, center.
valuable insurance in some team’s
net. “I talked to a lot of teams,” he told tion in my mind.” Sykora, 32, was the fourth-lead-
Legace, a former All-Star and The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, ing scorer last season for the Stanley
Stanley Cup winner, lost his start- “but (couldn’t find) what I was look- It didn’t take long for the Min- Cup champion Penguins. His 25
ing job in St. Louis last season and ing for. Atlanta said, ‘Why don’t you nesota Wild to decide they want to goals, giving him 300 over his
spent most of the second half in the come to camp?’ They were the first keep RW Petr Sykora. After two prac- 13-year career, marked his 10th
AHL. He is with the Thrashers on a ones to ask ... and I jumped at it. tices on a tryout basis in training straight season of 20 or more.
pro tryout, one of four goalies com- There is no question (that I can play camp, the team signed the veteran Sykora also has played in the Stan-
peting for a roster spot. at the NHL level). There is no ques- Thursday to a one-year contract. ley Cup finals five times.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com NHL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 39
PRESEASON
SPOTLIGHT
SUMMARIES
Washington 1 0 2 1 — 4 Atlanta 0 0 0 — 0
Preseason Glance
All Times ET
EASTERN CONFERENCE
Buffalo 0 0 3 0 — 3 Nashville 2 1 2 — 5 Atlantic Division
Washington 4, Buffalo 3, OT W L OT Pts GF GA
First Period: 1, Washington, Giroux 1 (Morrison, First Period: 1, Nashville, Laakso 1 (Eaves, New Jersey 1 0 0 2 3 2
Clark), 8:30. Penalties: Giroux, Was (slashing), Wilson), 14:14. 2, Nashville, Arnott 1 (Sullivan,
11:35. Suter), 17:43. Penalties: O’Reilly, Nas (hooking), Pittsburgh 1 0 0 2 5 4

Pothier benefits from Second Period: None. Penalties: Schultz, Was

(cross-checking), 3:33; Laich, Was (interference),
7:05.
2:03; Kulda, Atl (cross-checking), 6:31; Oystrick,
Atl (tripping), 7:25; Kulda, Atl (hooking), 17:34;
Wilson, Nas (diving), 17:34.
N.Y. Rangers 0 1 1 1 3 5
N.Y. Islanders 0 2 1 1 8 10
Philadelphia 0 2 0 0 1 7

two-man advantage Third Period: 2, Buffalo, Pominville 1 (Vanek,

BUFFALO—Brian Pothier scored
during a two-man advantage in
overtime to lift the Washington
Capitals to a 4-3 victory over
the Buffalo Sabres on Thursday
night in the preseason opener
for both.
Buffalo, which had not been
assessed a penalty until 39 sec-
onds remained in regulation,
incurred two in a span of 25
seconds to set up the overtime
power play. Pothier fired a slap
shot from the center point past
Buffalo goalie Jhonas Enroth.
“Eventually you get an oppor-
tunity and you win,” Washing-
ton coach Bruce Boudreau said.
Alexandre Giroux, Mike
Knuble and Jay Beagle scored
for Washington. Semyon Varla-
mov played the entire game in
goal for the Capitals and made
20 saves.
“Varly was pretty outstand-
ing in the first two periods,”
Boudreau said. “There were a
lot of good efforts. The defen-
sive veterans had a good game.”
Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff
agreed about the Capitals’
goaltending.
“Varlamov was the story in
the first period,” Ruff said. “We
could have ran away with the
game, but he made four or five
really good saves when we had
2-on-1s and outnumbered
situations.”
Jason Pominville, Clarke
MacArthur, and Tim Kennedy
scored third-period goals for
Buffalo. Patrick Lalime started
in goal for the Sabres and
stopped six of seven shots in
just over 33 minutes. Enroth
made 21 saves.
Montreal 3, Florida 2
MONTREAL—Scott Gomez and
Mike Cammalleri scored goals
to lead the overhauled Montreal
Canadiens.
Carey Price stopped all nine
shots he faced in the first half of
the game and Matt D’Agostini
also scored for Montreal, which
won its preseason opener before
a sellout Bell Centre crowd of
21,273.
Cammalleri got a kick out of
being announced as the game’s
first star in French.
“I’ve got to admit since I was
a kid I remember hearing, ‘La
premiere etoile!’” Cammalleri
said. “That’s something that me
and my dad would always tease
about, we’d say those words.
He’s here tonight so I’m sure it
was special for him as well.”
Toronto 4, Philadelphia 0
LONDON, ONTARIO—Lee Stemp-
niak and rookie Nazem Kadri
scored in the first period to lead
Toronto.
Mikhail Grabovski made it
3-0 in the final minute of the
second period with an offspeed
shot that beat Johan Backlund,
who played the second half of
Montreal’s Max Pacioretty, left, hits Florida’s Nathan Horton during an exchange
in the second period Thursday.
the game in place of Brian
Boucher. Christian Hanson
made it 4-0 with 5:34 left in the
third.
Kadri, a former member of
the London Knights, completed
a nifty behind-the-back pass
from Niklas Hagman for his
first professional goal on the
same ice he played most of his
junior career.
Nashville 5, Atlanta 0
NASHVILLE—Rookie Colin Wil-
son had a goal and two assists,
and Nashville captain Jason
Arnott had a goal and an assis.
Wilson signed with the Pred-
ators in the offseason after
PETER MCCABE / AP
capping his sophomore season
at Boston University with a
national championship.
Arnott gave Nashville a 2-0
lead at 17:43 of the first. On
Nashville’s third goal, Steve
Sullivan slid a pass to Arnott,
who sent a cross-ice pass to J.P.
Dumont, who scored on a wrist
shot.
Nashville defensemen Teemu
Laakso and Shea Weber also
scored.
Dan Ellis started in goal for
Nashville, stopping 13 shots.
Mark Dekanich replaced him
midway through the second
period.
— The Associated Press
Kostka), 2:16. 3, Buffalo, MacArthur 1 (Butler,
Stafford), 6:12. 4, Washington, Knuble 1 (Back-
strom, Pothier), 13:29. 5, Buffalo, Kennedy 1
Second Period: 3, Nashville, Dumont 1 (Arnott,
Sullivan), 8:02. Penalties: Olvecky, Nas (hook-
ing), 3:00; Sterling, Atl (goaltender interference),
13:38; Franson, Nas (hooking), 19:29; Suter, Nas
Boston
Montreal
Northeast Division
W L OT Pts GF GA
2 0 0 4 5 3
1 0 0 2 3 2
(Gogulla, Gerbe), 17:28. 6, Washington, Beagle (cross-checking), 19:59. Toronto 1 1 0 2 6 3
1 (A.Gordon), 17:51. Penalties: Clark, Was (trip- Third Period: 4, Nashville, Weber 1 (Hornqvist, Buffalo 0 0 1 1 3 4
ping), 13:50; Enroth, Buf, served by McCormick Wilson), 2:17. 5, Nashville, Wilson 1 (Jones, Horn-
(delay of game), 19:24; Weber, Buf (boarding), qvist), 4:40. Penalties: Valabik, Atl, misconduct, Ottawa 0 2 0 0 2 5
19:46. 7:34; Boulton, Atl (cross-checking), 9:23; Kulda, Southeast Division
W L OT Pts GF GA
Overtime: 7, Washington, Pothier 1 (Backstrom, Atl, major (fighting), 10:45; Franson, Nas, served
Bourque), :49 (pp). Penalties: None. by Dumont, minor-major (interference, fighting), Florida 2 1 0 4 7 5
Shots on Goal: Washington 7-12-13-1: 33. Buf- 10:45. Washington 1 0 0 2 4 3
falo 8-9-6-0: 23. Shots on Goal: Atlanta 7-8-7: 22. Nashville Tampa Bay 0 0 1 1 3 4
Power-play opportunities: Washington 1 of 2; 17-10-9: 36. Carolina 0 0 0 0 0 0
Buffalo 0 of 4. Power-play opportunities: Atlanta 0 of 5; Atlanta 0 1 0 0 0 5
Goalies: Washington, Varlamov 1-0-0 (23 shots- Nashville 0 of 4. WESTERN CONFERENCE
20 saves). Buffalo, Lalime (7-6), Enroth 0-0-1 Goalies: Atlanta, MacIntyre 0-1-0 (36 shots-31 Central Division
(13:13 second, 26-23). saves). Nashville, D.Ellis 1-0-0 (13-13), Dekanich W L OT Pts GF GA
A: 17,597 (18,690). T: 2:16. (10:39 second, 9-9).
Referees: Greg Kimmerly, Dan Marouelli. Lines- A: 14,103 (17,113). T: 2:19. Detroit 1 0 0 2 3 1
men: Brad Kovachik, Brian Murphy. Referees: Stephane Auger, Chris Lee. Linesmen: Nashville 1 0 0 2 5 0
St. Louis 1 0 0 2 3 1
Mark Pare, Pierre Racicot.
Philadelphia 0 0 0 — 0 Columbus 0 0 1 1 4 5
Toronto 2 1 1 — 4 Florida 0 0 2 — 2 Chicago 0 0 0 0 0 0
Montreal 1 2 0 — 3 Northwest Division
First Period: 1, Toronto, Stempniak 1 (Hagman, W L OT Pts GF GA
Kaberle), 4:12. 2, Toronto, Kadri 1 (Hagman, First Period: 1, Montreal, Gomez 1 (Spacek, Edmonton 2 0 0 4 7 3
Kaberle), 13:54. Penalties: Ondrus, Tor (hook- Cammalleri), 18:24. Penalties: Seidenberg, Fla Vancouver 2 0 0 4 5 1
ing), 1:41; Tollefsen, Phi, major (fighting), 5:50; (cross-checking), :42; Markov, Mon (hooking), Colorado 1 0 0 2 3 1
Ondrus, Tor, major (fighting), 5:50; Carcillo, Phi, 8:10; McArdle, Fla (elbowing), 11:13; Trotter, Mon Minnesota 0 1 0 0 1 3
minor-major (roughing, fighting), 9:26; Schenn, (tripping), 17:20; Booth, Fla, double minor (high-
Tor, minor-major (roughing, fighting), 9:26. sticking), 17:56. Calgary 1 1 0 2 6 8
Second Period: 3,Toronto, Grabovski 1 (Kulemin), Second Period: 2, Montreal, Cammalleri 1 Pacific Division
W L OT Pts GF GA
19:26. Penalties: Richards, Phi (elbowing), :32; (A.Kostitsyn), 8:21. 3, Montreal, D’Agostini 1,
Kalinski, Phi (hooking), 6:37; Kadri, Tor (high- 12:51. Penalties: Mink, Fla (holding stick), 3:37; Los Angeles 1 1 1 3 7 9
sticking), 8:20; Wallin, Tor (hooking), 11:16; Powe, Cammalleri, Mon (hooking), 3:37; Gomez, Mon Phoenix 1 1 1 3 9 9
Phi, double minor (high-sticking), 14:04; Timonen, (high-sticking), 12:07; Weiss, Fla (slashing), 12:29; Anaheim 1 1 0 2 3 5
Phi (high-sticking), 15:24. Subban, Mon (slashing), 13:08; Allen, Fla (rough- Dallas 1 1 0 2 5 6
Third Period: 4, Toronto, Hanson 1 (Rosehill, ing), 16:01; Lapierre, Mon (roughing), 16:01; San Jose 1 0 0 2 2 1
Bozak), 14:26. Penalties: Cote, Phi, major Booth, Fla (high-sticking), 18:27. Two points for a win, one point for over-
(fighting), 2:02; Rosehill, Tor, major (fighting), Third Period: 4, Florida, Booth 2 (Horton), time loss or shootout loss.
2:02; Kulemin, Tor (tripping), 5:16; Richards, Phi 5:27. 5, Florida, Dadonov 1 (Campbell, Mink),
(hooking), 9:35; Stephenson, Phi, minor-major 10:38. Penalties: Allen, Fla (roughing), 1:51;
(boarding, fighting), 11:57; Ondrus, Tor, major Campbell, Fla, major (fighting), 1:51; Duco, Fla, Thursday’s Games
(fighting), 11:57; Carcillo, Phi, double minor- minor-misconduct (cross-checking), 1:51; Lapi- Washington 4, Buffalo 3, OT
Toronto 4, Philadelphia 0
misconduct (roughing), 17:15; A.Rogers, Tor, erre, Mon (cross-checking), 1:51; O’Byrne, Mon,
minor-misconduct (roughing), 17:15; Kaberle, major (fighting), 1:51; Weiss, Fla, major (spearing, Montreal 3, Florida 2
Tor (hooking), 17:35; Asham, Phi, major-game match--deliberate injury), 11:31; McArdle, Fla Nashville 5, Atlanta 0
misconduct (charging), 19:20. (delay of game), 15:17. Colorado 3, Dallas 1
Shots on Goal: Philadelphia 9-8-11: 28. Shots on Goal: Florida 7-6-17: 30. Montreal Calgary 5, N.Y. Islanders 4, SO
Toronto 3-9-8: 20. 17-9-5: 31. Vancouver 3, Anaheim 0
Power-play opportunities: Philadelphia 0 of 0; Power-play opportunities: Florida 0 of 4; San Jose 2, Los Angeles 1
Toronto 0 of 0. Montreal 0 of 9. Today’s Games
Goalies: Philadelphia, Boucher 0-1-0 (6 shots-4 Goalies: Florida, Clemmensen 1-1-0 (26 shots-23
saves), Backlund (10:33 second, 14-12). Toronto, saves), Salak (0:00 third, 5-5). Montreal, Price Nashville at Carolina, 7 p.m.
MacDonald 1-1-0 (13-13), Reimer (10:33 second, 1-0-0 (9-9), Sanford (10:26 second, 21-19). Toronto at Pittsburgh, 7:30 p.m.
15-15). A: 21,273 (21,273). T: 2:25. Ottawa at Montreal, 7:30 p.m.
Atlanta at Tampa Bay, 7:30 p.m.
A: 9,090 (0). T: 2:29. Referees: Eric Furlatt, Stephane Auger. Lines-
Referees: Don Van Massenhoven, Frederick men: Pierre Champoux, Michel Cormier. N.Y. Rangers at Detroit, 7:30 p.m.
L’Ecuyer. Linesmen: Greg Devorski, Steve Miller. Colorado at St. Louis, 8 p.m.
Columbus at Minnesota, 8 p.m.
Florida at Edmonton, 9 p.m.
Anaheim at Phoenix, 10 p.m.
Fleury marks return by helping Flames win in SO, Page 5 Vancouver at San Jose, 10:30 p.m.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
NHL countdown
13
BY LUKE DECOCK
Sporting News Yearbooks
After a season that went longer than
expected, the Hurricanes did less than
expected over the summer.
Their big free-agent signings? Forwards
Erik Cole and Chad LaRose. Both were free
agents for about 48 hours before returning
to the Hurricanes.
By re-signing those two players, the Hur-
ricanes go into this year with essentially
the same team that made it to the Eastern
Conference finals last season before being
swept by the eventual champion Penguins.
Of course, the big changes for the Hurri-
canes happened in the middle of last sea-
son, when they replaced Stanley
Cup-winning coach Peter Laviolette with
his predecessor, Paul Maurice, and picked
Jussi Jokinen off Tampa Bay’s scrap heap.
Given how well Carolina played at the
end of the season, general manager Jim
Rutherford decided the best move was to
stand pat. Maurice, who replaced Laviolette
on an interim basis, was awarded a long-
term deal, and Cole and LaRose were re-
signed, even after they became unrestricted
free agents.
Other than a few minor departures—
Dennis Seidenberg and Ryan Bayda were
allowed to leave—and the addition of gritty
forward Tom Kostopoulos and defenseman
Andrew Alberts, the Hurricanes stuck
with the status quo, partially by choice and
partly because of financial necessity. Even
though they made money for the first time
in three years, their payroll budget is still
well below the league salary cap.
What’s left is a team built around goalie
Cam Ward, who showed his 2006 playoff
run was no fluke; an offensive-minded
NHL FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 40
Numbers
Every day in September leading into
CAROLINA HURRICANES CATEGORY TEAM STATS RANKS
the Oct. 1 season openers, Sporting
Goals per game 2.88 16
News Today will preview each of the 2008-09 record: 45-30-7, 97 points Penalty kill percentage 80.40 19
NHL teams, counting backward from Last Playoff: 2009 (lost in conference championship) Power play goals 70 10t
its July 24 Power Poll. Coach: Paul Maurice Power play percentage 18.72 18
Saves 2198 16
Save percentage .909 11
defense that failed to slow Pittsburgh’s for- Shorthanded goals for 8 12t
wards in the playoffs; and a veteran group Shots against per game 29.50 14
of forwards led by budding superstar Eric Shots per game 32.62 6
Staal. Shutouts 6 11t
The biggest variable in standing pat is Total points 645 15
whether the Hurricanes were a legitimately Faceoff percentage .513 8
good team that got off to a bad start last sea- Goals against per game 2.70 8
son, or a middle-of-the-pack squad that got
Power play
hot at the right time. In both word and 374 1t
opportunities
action, Rutherford is certain they are the Shorthanded goals
former. 9 9t
against
“We’re going to start the season with a Times shut out 1 30
pretty darn good team,” Rutherford said.
For the Hurricanes, everything starts in Offseason moves
net, where Ward had his best season since Additions
taking over the No. 1 job in the 2006 play- Andrew Alberts, D (Flyers); Zach Fitzgerald, D
offs. His fundamentals have never been in (Canucks); Steven Goertzen, RW (Coyotes); Jay
question, but Ward made giant strides in Harrison, D (Maple Leafs); Tom Kostopoulos, RW
his mental approach under the guidance of (Canadiens), Aaron Ward, D (trade, Bruins).
goalie coach Tom Barrasso.
And it showed down the stretch of the Subtractions
regular season, when he started 28 straight Patrick Eaves, RW (Red Wings); Mark Flood, D
games, and in the playoffs, where he added (Islanders); Dwight Helminen, C (Sharks); Frantisek
two more Game 7 wins to his resume. Kaberle, D (buyout).
Expect Ward to play in 65 to 70 games,
with Michael Leighton as a competent
backup. appears to have resurrected his career.
Ward was Carolina’s first-round pick in On defense, the Canes have a wealth of
2002. The Hurricanes’ No. 1 pick in 2003 puck-movers and power-play guys, but
has had a similar impact. Staal stepped BILL KOSTROUN / AP they could use a few more defensemen who
straight into the lineup that fall and hasn’t Eric Staal has the ability to carry the Hurricanes, as evidenced by his play in the first round of the playoffs last season. excel at playing defense. Joni Pitkanen (33
left since, missing only one game in his points) and Joe Corvo (14 goals, 38 points)
career. Staal, but he hasn’t had a playmaking pick Brandon Sutter—who started last sea- lead the way offensively, with Tim Gleason
Staal started slowly last season but picked winger since Cory Stillman was traded. son in the NHL but was derailed by a con- being the only defensive stalwart.
up his game when Cole came over from the Beyond Staal, there’s depth at center and cussion—could get a look as well. With Niclas Wallin and Tim Conboy the
Oilers at the trade deadline. He is Carolina’s on the wings. Matt Cullen has been an On the wings, Ray Whitney led the team only other blue liners with NHL contracts, the
most dangerous offensive player—by far— effective No. 2 center, while Rod in scoring despite playing most of the sea- Canes signed Alberts and traded for Aaron
and is capable of carrying the team, as he Brind’Amour is due to bounce back after son with a broken finger. Cole and LaRose Ward. Prospects such as Bryan Rodney and
did during the first round of the playoffs. injuries ruined the former Selke winner’s were welcomed back after briefly testing Brett Carson could compete for spots.
The biggest issue is finding wingers to 2008-09 campaign. the market. Tuomo Ruutu provides a physi- — For much more on the Hurricanes, purchase a copy of Sporting
complement Staal’s game. Cole’s speed has Jokinen is a useful utility winger or cal edge to go with his skill, Kostopoulos News Hockey ’09-10 yearbook by calling 1-800-380-7404. Or order it
proven effective when he’s paired with fourth-line center, and 2007 first-round adds toughness and Sergei Samsonov online at sportingnews.com or streetandsmiths.com
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Refs’ spokesman:
Lockout appears
‘imminent’
NEW YORK—The lead negotiator and spokesman
for the NBA’s referees union said Thursday a
lockout appears “imminent and unavoidable”
following the latest breakdown in talks.
Lamell McMorris said the officials made
another $1 million in concessions in their pro-
posal, but believes it’s evident the league is
not interested in further discussions. The
officials then headed home after spending the
last 24 hours meeting in Chicago.
“It’s become evident that the league would
not be interested in continuing conversation at
this time,” McMorris said.
The NBA had a similarly pessimistic view.
“I’m not going to handicap it, other than to
say there’s always time to make an agreement if
the parties want to do that,” NBA general coun-
sel and lead negotiator Rick Buchanan said.
“I’m not optimistic based on what happened
today. We’ll just have to see what happens.”
The contract between the NBA and its offi-
cials expired Sept. 1 and the sides have been
trying to reach a new two-year deal. McMorris
said they largely agree on salaries, but the
union has balked at the league’s attempt to
change retirement benefits.
Besides the severance and pension disagree-
ments, the officials are resisting a league devel-
opment plan for young officials.
Without a new deal, replacement officials
will be used when preseason play opens Oct. 1.
The NBA last began a season without its regu-
lar referees in 1995-96, when the caliber of offi-
ciating was roundly criticized.
“We’re prepared to be locked out by the NBA
but also remain open to ongoing dialogue,”
McMorris said, adding that negotiations have
been difficult because the league “has made
pretty clear they have a goal they are trying to
achieve as it relates to these long-term benefits.”
All 57 active referees arrived in Chicago on
Wednesday, meeting for more than seven hours
and unanimously rejecting a proposal the league
made earlier that day. McMorris said the officials
DAVID J. PHILLIP / AP
Joe DeRosa, center, has been an NBA referee for 20 seasons.
reconvened early Thursday morning to finalize
the counterproposal they made to the league.
Talks previously broke down after NBA
commissioner David Stern ended a meeting in
New York, saying the officials had reneged on
previously agreed to items. McMorris sounded
hopeful of a deal Wednesday night, but little
progress was made in Thursday’s talks.
“I would say that the parties had discussions
today. They made some new proposals, we
made some additional proposals. We didn’t
make a deal,” Buchanan said.
McMorris previously said the officials, sen-
sitive to the financial difficulties the league is
facing, agreed to $2.5 million in concessions,
but the league sought further cuts in areas such
as the travel budget and per diems. Stern said
the goal was to bring the referees’ budget in line
with other departments.
But McMorris said the officials are unwilling
to accept any further changes to their retire-
ment benefits.
“We’ve given so many concessions in other
areas, a line has to be drawn,” he said. “It has to
be fair and equitable for everyone in our group.”
McMorris said the referees won’t be in New
Jersey for their annual training camp, sched-
uled to begin Sunday. He praised them for the
efforts they made in Chicago at their own
expense, even while struggling to remain opti-
mistic they could eventually pay off.
“I’m extremely proud of the 57 individuals
that we represent. Their unity, the good-faith
nature that they have sought to negotiate with
their employee,” McMorris said. “We’re quite
proud and confident that we’ve given it our best
shot, that we’ve put forth a good-faith effort.”
— The Associated Press
NBA FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 41
INSIDE DISH
Arenas: Wizards ‘should have held me back’
Those who have seen G Gilbert Arenas
play this offseason say he looks in great
shape. Arenas, coming back from three
knee surgeries over the past two years,
doesn’t debate this point. “Nobody
could guard me before, and can’t nobody
guard me now,” Arenas recently told
The Washington Times.
But Arenas credits renowned trainer
Tim Grover of Attack Athletics, rather
than the Wizards, for his comeback. In
fact, Arenas told The Times the Wizards
should have held him back rather than
let him try to return from his previous
rehabs too quickly.
“If you have a kid that loves basket-
ball, that eats, sleeps, drinks and thinks
basketball and all he knows is basket-
ball and he gets hurt and he’s your
franchise player, you need to hold him
back from himself,” Arenas said. “If
I’m saying I feel good and you know it’s
supposed to take six months, instead of STEVE HELBER / AP
letting me at four months run ... they Gilbert Arenas, above, credits trainer Tim Grover for helping save his career.
should have held me back. Rather than
saying, ‘Let’s let this guy do what he Hawks F Josh Smith will sit out the Free-agent G/F Desmond Mason signed
wants and use him to sell tickets’— next 10 days after cutting his left hand a one-year contract with the Sacramento
sometimes you have to protect players while playing a pickup game with team- Kings on Thursday. His deal is not guar-
from themselves. I don’t feel like I got mates and other NBA players, The Atlanta anteed and will pay him the league mini-
that type of protection. But, I don’t Journal-Constitution reported. Smith mum of $1.18 million. Mason played only
judge them for that. Some things just needed seven stitches to close the cut. 39 games last season for Oklahoma City,
happen. I told them I felt OK because I missing the second half of the season with
wanted to play, and they did what they The Blazers signed F Juwan Howard a hyperextended right knee.
did.” to a one-year contract, the team
announced Thursday. Terms of the con- Spain easily moved past France
Developer Bruce C. Ratner, who tract were not disclosed. Howard, 36, and into the semifinals of the European
received final state approval Thursday has spent 15 seasons in the NBA. basketball championship, winning
to build an $800 million arena in 86-66 Thursday. Lakers PF/C Pau Gasol
Brooklyn for the Nets, is close to selling The Heat will retire former guard had 28 points and nine rebounds for
a majority stake to a Russian billionaire Tim Hardaway’s No. 10 jersey in a cere- Spain, while Spurs PG Tony Parker was
Mikhail Prokhorov, The New York Times mony Oct. 28, immediately prior to the kept in check for France, with only six
reported on its website Thursday night. season-opener against the Knicks. It points and three assists.
The deal, if completed, would not affect will be the second Heat jersey retired in In Thursday’s other quarterfinal,
the team’s planned move, The Times team history: Alonzo Mourning’s No. 33 Serbia used tough defense to upset
reported. went to the rafters last season. defending champ Russia 79-68.
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
INSIDE DISH
Suspensions result from rape investigation
Arkansas coach John Pelphrey said Thursday he will
suspend at least one player 2-3 games following a rape
investigation that did not result in charges. The school
released a statement from Pelphrey outlining punish-
ment in the aftermath of the allegations. The release
did not name any players and Pelphrey said he could
not disclose specific punishments because of federal
privacy laws.
Authorities decided against charges after investi-
gating a woman’s claim that she had been raped Aug.
27 at a fraternity house. The allegations were made
against three Arkansas basketball players.
“Although the student-athletes involved have been
cleared of any criminal wrongdoing, we expect Razor-
back student-athletes to adhere to a higher standard
and code of conduct,” Pelphrey said.
The school did not say how many players would be
suspended, though athletic department spokesman
Kevin Trainor said it could be more than one. The school
also said it would include educational programming,
community service, additional conditioning and “indi-
vidualized meetings with an appropriate professional
regarding decision-making choices” as part of its cor-
rective actions.
The school said the educational programs would be
provided to all players.
An 18-year-old freshman named three basketball
players in the rape complaint, saying one forced her to
commit a sex act and another began a sex act with her
a short time later in a locked bedroom.
Prosecutor John Threet said last week he wouldn’t file
charges in the case, saying the investigation didn’t
show that the woman was unaware a sex act occurred
or that she was unable to say no.
UCLA coach Ben Howland has undergone an appen-
dectomy. Howland was resting comfortably Thursday,
a day after he had what the school referred to as a
“standard appendectomy” performed at the Ronald
Reagan UCLA Medical Center by Dr. Joe Hines. How-
land said he expects to return to work Monday.
Pittsburg State coach Gene Iba will retire after the
upcoming season to spend more time with his family.
Iba, the nephew of legendary Oklahoma State coach
College Basketball / WNBA
ORLIN WAGNER / AP
Retiree-in-waiting Gene Iba is 22 wins away from 500 for his career.
Henry Iba, has a 252-154 record in 14 years at Pittsburg
State and a 478-357 record in 29 years of college coach-
ing. Before Pittsburg State, Iba coached for 7 seasons
at Baylor, 8 years at Houston Baptist and was Hall of
Famer Don Haskins’ assistant at Texas-El Paso.
Former Kentucky player Derrick Miller has pleaded
not guilty to theft by deception charges in connection
with an alleged ticket scam, The Lexington Herald-
Leader reported.
Judge Earl-Ray Neal said another felony count has been
filed in Bell County against the 42-year-old ex-Wild-
cat, according to the newspaper.
Miller also faces another felony theft by deception
charge in Fayette County. Lexington police say Miller
accepted payment in advance for tickets when they
weren’t available to him to sell. Former Kentucky star
Ed Davender was arrested Sept. 1 in a similar case.
Miller can be released from the Clark County jail on
10 percent of $5,000 bond, but Neal said Miller still
will have to post bond in Fayette and Bell counties.
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 42
Indiana 88, Washington 79
Fever take ownership of fourth quarter
COLLEGE PARK, MD.—Tamika Catchings said the Indi-
ana Fever had a simple mantra as they walked off the
court trailing after three quarters in their playoff
opener: “Pick It Up.”
From their offensive pace to their defensive inten-
sity, the top-seeded Fever did exactly that as they
opened the fourth quarter with a 17-3 run on the way
to an 88-79 victory over the Washington Mystics on
Thursday night in their Eastern Conference first-
round series.
“We have 10 more minutes, its all or nothing,”
Catchings, who had 26 points and 12 rebounds, said
in recapping the talk before the fourth quarter.
“Everybody came out and right off the bat we got like
four layups in a row. Our tempo went up and we have
to keep feeding off of that.”
Katie Douglas added 19 points and Briann January
was a spark off the bench with 16—all in the second
half—for the Fever, who entered the fourth quarter
down 58-56. ERIC GAY / AP
Indiana came into the playoffs having lost seven of Ann Wauters, left, and the Silver Stars fought for a Game 1 win.
its last 10 games, but the Fever turned up their noted
defensive pressure late and improved to 5-0 against Diana Taurasi, DeWanna Bonner and Pondexter all
the Mystics this season and 17-4 in their last 21 added 15.
meetings. — The Associated Press
“I think everybody came out real focused tonight,”
Catchings said. “As a team, one of the things we talked
about coming into the locker room right before the WNBA glance (Best-of-3)
game was coming out having fun, playing together, EASTERN CONFERENCE
sticking together no matter what.” Indiana vs. Washington
Thursday: Indiana 88, Washington 79 (Indiana leads series 1-0)
San Antonio 92, Phoenix 91 Saturday: Washington at Indiana, 7 p.m.
SAN ANTONIO—Sophia Young scored 24 points to lead x-Monday: Washington at Indiana, 8 p.m.
Detroit vs. Indiana
the Silver Stars to a victory over the Mercury in the Wednesday: Detroit 94, Atlanta 89 (Detroit leads series 1-0)
opener of the Western Conference first-round series. Today: Detroit at Atlanta, 7:30 p.m.
The previous two Western Conference champions x-Sunday: Detroit at Atlanta, 3 p.m.
will play Game 2 in Phoenix on Saturday night. WESTERN CONFERENCE
Edwige Lawson-Wade added 16 points for the Sil- San Antonio vs. Phoenix
Thursday: San Antonio 92, Phoenix 91 (S.A. leads series 1-0)
ver Stars, while Becky Hammon had 13, including the Saturday: San Antonio at Phoenix, 10 p.m.
clinching free throws with 2 seconds left, and Shanna x-Monday: San Antonio at Phoenix, 10 p.m.
Crossley 11. Los Angeles vs. Seattle
Down by 12 points in the third quarter, Phoenix cut Wednesday: Los Angeles 70, Seattle 63 (L.A. leads series 1-0)
the lead to 87-86 on a 12-foot jumper by Cappie Pon- Today: Los Angeles at Seattle, 10 p.m.
x-Sunday: Los Angeles at Seattle, 5 p.m.
dexter with 1:12 left, but that’s as close as the Mercury
would get. (x-if necessary)
Penny Taylor led the Mercury with 18 points and
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
INSIDE DISH
Martin to get Go Daddy sponsorship
An announcement was planned for this
morning that Sprint Cup points leader Mark Mar-
tin will have a new sponsor at the Sprint Cup
level in 2010—Go Daddy.com, Sporting News
Today has learned.
The new deal will be a major step for the web-
site hosting company. It has been involved in
NASCAR with Brad Keselowski in the Nation-
wide Series and IndyCar as a secondary spon-
sor for Danica Patrick for the last few years.
Neither of those deals would come close to the
exposure—or expenditure—of a high-profile
car like Martin’s No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports
Chevy.
The deal marks the rare emergence of a new
Cup sponsor in recent months in NASCAR.
The poor economy has hurt many companies
marketing programs, and several companies
have scaled back or left the sport completely.
— Matt Crossman
NASCAR is using its Chase format, which
starts this weekend at New Hampshire, only
for its Sprint Cup Series.
However, some Nationwide drivers think
their series is ready for a similar system instead
of deciding a championship over the course of
the full 35-race schedule.
“It’s been ready for one the last couple of
years,” Jason Leffler says. “I know (NASCAR is)
trying to put the Sprint Cup up on its own ped-
estal and do its own deal. But you have the
(NHRA) and some other racing series doing
the same format. I think we need to do it.”
But NASCAR is happy with the current sys-
tem in the Nationwide Series, spokesman Ram-
sey Poston says.
“We are not considering a format change for
the NASCAR Nationwide Series at this time,”
Poston says. “One of those reasons is that points
system now is working well for that series. It’s
also something that keeps a distinction between
that series and the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series.”
— Lee Montgomery, SceneDaily.com
Texas Motor Speedway president Eddie Gos-
sage said he feels like himself again after a bout
with cancer is now in “complete remission,”
The Associated Press reported.
Gossage made his first public appearance
Thursday since revealing in July that he had
cancer, though at the request of his family
NASCAR FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 43
Gordon sees positives
in being overlooked
NEW YORK—Jeff Gordon may have
already won four championships,
but the Hendrick Motorsports
driver may be one of the most over-
looked competitors in the Chase for
the NASCAR Sprint Cup.
Most of the attention seems to be
going to Hendrick drivers Jimmie
Johnson, who has won the last three
titles, and Mark Martin, who at age
50 tops the rankings heading into
the final 10 races. Meanwhile, Joe
Gibbs Racing’s Denny Hamlin is a
hot story, having won the most
recent race, and Red Bull Racing’s
Brian Vickers is a hot story, too.
So is Gordon being overlooked?
“I hope that’s the case,” Gordon
NAM Y. HUH / AP said at the Hard Rock Cafe, where
Count Jason Leffler among those who think the Nationwide NASCAR assembled the Chase
Series should adopt a Chase format like Sprint Cup. drivers for media sessions. “We’re GLENN SMITH / AP
going to try to make it work to our Jeff Gordon has 10 top-10 finishes in the last
hasn’t disclosed the type diagnosed last fall. advantage. Being under the radar 13 races entering this weekend’s Chase.
“I feel great, better than I have in years,” Gos- here helps us a little bit going into
sage said. New Hampshire, (or) at least the confidence and momentum, having
first few races. If we can go and finished in the top 10 in 10 of the
have strong runs there, it allows us last 13 races.

3
definitely made it more challenging. There is a greater
for the road potential for bumping, crashes and cautions, but you
Sunday’s race at New can gain or lose a lot of positions during the restarts as
well. And a lot of that can be out of your hands if you’re
Hampshire marks the not leading.”
opening of the Chase
for the NASCAR Sprint
Cup. Three Chasers talk
2. Kasey Kahne: “Loudon is a great track for us. I
had a top-four car there last spring and the rain
came and we ran 10th because of track position. If it
about what’s on their mind heading hadn’t rained, we’d have run top four; maybe even a
into the first of those 10 races. chance to win the race. We were pretty strong there.
It’s a great track for us.”
to get off to a good start.
“I want to be in one position or
the other. I’d either want to be in the
position I’m in with a strong team
and what I feel is a legitimate shot at
it—and a little bit under the radar,
or I’d like to be in Mark’s position
where you’ve got the most wins,
you’re leading the points going into
it, you’ve got a lot of positive things
FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP behind the storyline.”
Mark Martin goes for his fifth win of the season Sunday. Gordon won once this season,
meaning he had only 10 bonus
“If we can put together a good
Chase, the crucial race for us is
Phoenix,” Gordon said. “That has
been a very inconsistent track for
us, and we need to step it up there.”
Gordon was 25th at Phoenix in
April and hasn’t finished better
than 10th since his win there in
’07.
“The best team is going to win
this Chase,” Gordon said. “It hap-
pens every year. I’ve not seen one
guy that lucked his way into this

1. Jeff Gordon: “I think double-file restarts will

play a big role in this year’s Chase, and this
weekend’s race may be the most crucial. Double-file
restarts have changed the sport for the good, but it’s
3. Mark Martin: “Anybody that’s in the Chase can
win this thing. All they have to do is get on a
10-race roll. I’m telling you anybody in this Chase can
win. Watch out for Juan Montoya. I’m telling you the
guy is running good and they’ve been points racing.
They may go after it now. I know the last few weeks
we’ve raced to win, but we’ve been real careful, too.
points when the Chase contenders’
points were reset. That puts Gor-
don sixth in the standings, 30
championship in this format. Ten
races is still a lot of races. The best
team, in my opinion, wins the
Now we can go do our thing.” points behind leader Martin. championship.”
But he starts the Chase with some — SceneDaily.com
SPORTING NEWS TODAY www.sportingnews.com
Kim, Shin tied for Samsung lead at Torrey Pines
SAN DIEGO—Song-Hee Kim and Jiyai
Shin each shot a 6-under 66 to share the
lead atop the elite 20-player field in the
opening round of the Samsung World
Championship at Torrey Pines on
Thursday.
Kim was the runner-up in this tour-
nament last year, losing by one stroke to
Paula Creamer at Half Moon Bay in
Northern California.
Top-ranked Lorena Ochoa of Mexico
and Sophie Gustafson of Sweden were
one stroke behind the leaders.
OBERWALTERSDORF, AUSTRIA—Benn Bar-
ham of England shot an 8-under 63 to
lead the Austrian Open by one stroke
after the opening round.
Ryder Cup player Soren Hansen of
Denmark, the highest ranked player at
No. 42, shot a 67. Jose Maria Olazabal, a
winner of 23 European Tour titles, fin-
ished with a 70.
Olympics
LONDON—IOC president Jacques Rogge
said disputes with the U.S. Olympic
Committee will have “no negative effects
whatsoever” on Chicago’s chances of
landing the 2016 Summer Games.
Rogge also reiterated that he believes
the Oct. 2 decision will come down to a
handful of votes.
He said President Obama told him
that first lady Michelle Obama is the
best “stand-in” to push Chicago’s case at
the meeting in Copenhagen.
Rogge spoke in a conference call with
reporters two weeks days ahead of the
International Olympic Committee vote
in the tight race between Chicago, Rio
de Janeiro, Madrid and Tokyo.
Tennis
GENOA, ITALY—Coming off a five-set
Back Page
IN BRIEF
Major League Soccer
EASTERN CONFERENCE
W L
Columbus 11 4 9
Chicago 10 6 9
D.C. 8 6
Toronto FC 9 9
New England 9 8
Kansas City 7 11
New York 4 17
WESTERN CONFERENCE
W L
Houston 11 8 7
Los Angeles 9 5
Seattle 9 6
Colorado 10 8 6
Chivas USA 11 9 3
Real Salt Lake 9 9
FC Dallas 7 11
San Jose 5 12
NOTE: Three points for victory, one point for tie.
Sept. 13
Chivas USA 2, New England 0
Columbus 2, Houston 1
Today’s games
New England at New York, 7:30 p.m.
Colorado at San Jose, 11 p.m.
Saturday’s games
Chivas USA at Seattle FC, 3 p.m.
Real Salt Lake at Houston, 8:30 p.m.
FC Dallas at Kansas City, 8:30 p.m.
Toronto FC at Los Angeles, 10:30 p.m.
Sunday’s game
DENIS POROY / AP Columbus at Chicago, 3 p.m.
Jiyai Shin is coming off her tour-leading third victory of the year at the NW Arkansas Championship.
loss in the U.S. Open final, Roger Soccer later accused Adebayor of a “malicious
Federer will play every day when Swit- MANCHESTER, ENGLAND—Manchester City stamp.”
zerland faces Italy in the Davis Cup striker Emmanuel Adebayor was
playoffs. banned for three matches on a charge of The Europa League became the first
The top-ranked Federer, who reached violent conduct against former Arsenal European competition to use five match
all four Grand Slam finals this year, teammate Robin van Persie and will officials, with two extra assistant helping
believes his form can hold up after los- miss the showdown with Manchester the referee on an experimental basis by
ing to Juan Martin del Potro in New United. watching out for incidents from behind
York on Monday. The Football Association announced the goals for the 24 first-round games.
In the draw, Federer was picked to the punishment after a disciplinary U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard got a
play Simone Bolelli in today’s singles. committee had heard the case. shutout as Everton opened European
Stanislas Wawrinka will open the The charge arose out of an incident soccer’s second-tier cup competition
best-of-five series for Switzerland during Man City’s 4-2 victory over with a 4-0 victory over AEK Athens in
against Andreas Seppi. Arsenal in the Premier League on Sat- Group I on goals by Joseph Yobo, Syl-
urday after Van Persie had tackled the vain Distin, Steven Pienaar and Jo.
GUANGZHOU, CHINA—Anastasija Sev- striker. In Group E, American midfielder
astova of Latvia rallied to defeat top- As Van Persie slipped to the turf, Clint Dempsey and most of Fulham’s
seeded Anabel Medina Garrigues of Adebayor appeared to kick out and other regular starters didn’t play in a 1-1
Spain 3-6, 6-3, 6-1 in the second round caught him on the side of the head. Van tie at CSKA Sofia.
of the Guangzhou Open. Persie, who needed treatment for a cut, — The Associated Press
FRIDAY, SEPTEMBER 18, 2009 44
TRANSACTIONS
BASEBALL
American League
BALTIMORE ORIOLES: Placed RHP Kam
Mickolio on the 15-day DL, retroactive
Urquhart, D Nigel Williams, F Andres
Ambuhl, F Daniel Bartek, F Devin
DiDiomete, F Brodie Dupont, F Dan
LaCouture, F Matt Maccarone, F Justin
to Sept. 7. Soryal and F Dale Weise to Hartford
(AHL). Returned G Scott Stajcer to Owen
TEXAS RANGERS: Agreed to terms with
RHP Tanner Scheppers. Sound (OHL), D Tomas Kundratek to
T Pts GF GA American Association Medicine Hat (WHL), F Ryan Bourque
42 36 26 WICHITA WINGNUTS: Traded RHP Derek to Quebec (QMJHL), F Roman Horak to
39 34 29 Chilliwack (WHL) and F Ethan Werek to
12 36 39 38 Blacksher to Newark (Atlantic) for future
7 34 33 36 considerations. Kingston (OHL).
6 33 28 32 OTTAWA SENATORS: Assigned D Drew
BASKETBALL
6 27 25 32
National Basketball Association
Bannister, D Tomas Kudekla, F Erik Con-
4 16 20 42 dra, F Denis Hamel, F Jim O’Brien and G
HOUSTON ROCKETS: Promoted director
Chris Holt to Binghamton (AHL).
T Pts GF GA of player personnel Gersson Rosas to
PHOENIX COYOTES: Assigned D Mathieu
40 32 24 vice president of player personnel.
11 38 31 29 Brodeur to Cape Breton (QMJHL), RW
10 37 31 24 MINNESOTA TIMBERWOLVES: Signed G
Sasha Pavlovic to a one-year contract.
Jared Staal to Sudbury (OHL) and D
36 38 30 Michael Stone to Calgary (WHL).
36 25 24 NEW YORK KNICKS: Signed G Sun Yue.
7 34 36 28 SAN JOSE SHARKS: Re-assigned RW
6 27 39 40 PORTLAND TRAILBLAZERS: Signed F
Dan DaSilva, C Dean Strong and LW T.J.
5 20 27 40 Juwan Howard to a one-year contract.
Trevelyan to Worcester (AHL).
FOOTBALL ST. LOUIS BLUES: Assigned F Adam
National Football League Cracknell, F Mitch Love, F Chris More-
BUFFALO BILLS: Signed TE Jonathan house, F Anthony Peluso, F Adrian Veide-
Stupar to the practice squad. man, D T.J. Fast, D Justin Fletcher, D Alex
CHICAGO BEARS: Placed CB Trumaine Hellstrom, D Ryan Turek and G Sebastian
McBride on the waived/injured list. Dahm to Peoria (AHL). Returned F James
Claimed CB DeAngelo Smith off waivers Livingston to Sault Ste. Marie (OHL), F
from Cleveland. Tyler Shattock to Kamloops (WHL), D
DETROIT LIONS: Claimed DE Turk Mark Cundari to Windsor (OHL) and D
McBride off waivers from Kansas City. Brett Ponich to Portland (WHL).
JACKSONVILLE JAGUARS: Released DE
TAMPA BAY LIGHTNING: Assigned C
James Wyche. Signed DE Jeremy Navarre Mitch Fadden, D Scott Jackson, C Chris
from the practice squad. Signed DE Zach Lawrence and D Kevin Quick to Norfolk
Potter to the practice squad. (AHL).
HOCKEY ECHL
National Hockey League VICTORIA SALMON KINGS: Signed RW
BUFFALO SABRES: Returned F Zack Jason Deleurme.
Kassian to Peterborough (OHL), F International Hockey League
Luke Adam to Cape Breton (QMJHL), BLOOMINGTON PRAIRIE THUNDER:
F Marcus Foligno to Sudbury (OHL), F Signed D Brian Boulay.
Jacob Lagace to Chicoutimi (QMJHL), D TENNIS
Nick Crawford to Saginaw (OHL) and D U.S. OPEN: Fined Roger Federer $1,500
Brayden McNabb to Kootenay (WHL).
for using a profanity while arguing with
COLUMBUS BLUE JACKETS: Released F the chair umpire during the Monday’s
Tim Miller and G Andrew Loverock. men’s singles final.
EDMONTON OILERS: Assigned RW Jamie
COLLEGE
Bates, D Jordan Bendfeld, RW Kelly Czuy,
PITTSBURG STATE: Announced the retire-
D Jesse Dudas, LW Riley Emmerson, LW
ment of men’s basketball coach Gene
Colton Fretter, LW Bryan Lerg, RW Ryan
Iba, effective after the 2009-10 season.
MacMurchy, D Matt Dickerson, G Andrew
POTSDAM: Named Tim Crowley men’s
Perugini and D Cody Wild to Springfield
assistant hockey coach.
(AHL).
PROVIDENCE: Named Mike Mennenga
MINNESOTA WILD: Signed RW Petr
coordinator of men’s basketball coordi-
Sykora to a one-year contract.
nator of player development and video
NEW YORK RANGERS: Assigned G Miika
operations.
Wiikman, D Trevor Glass, D Brent Henley,
RIDER: Named Patrick Horvath and Ray
D Sam Klassen, D Mike Sauer, D David
Scipione assistant baseball coaches.