Highlight of the Year 2011

The college football season ends a week from Monday with the LSU Tigers facing off against the Crimson Tide of Alabama in the BCS Title game but one highlight from this past season seems to stand well above the rest in my opinion.  It was homecoming week in East Lansing and the Spartans had high hopes of taking down the #6 ranked Wisconsin Badgers.  A back and forth game, the score was all tied up at 31 a piece with just four seconds left in regulation when coach Mark Dantonio put on his thinking cap and came up with a doozy.  He called "Rocket", the standard all go route hail mary play and after QB Kirk Cousins let the ball fly from the 44 yard line, it deflected off of BJ Cunningham's face mask and right into the hands of Keith Nichol who scratched and clawed his way across the goal line.  Initially ruled down before the end zone, a replay won the game for the Spartans who would go on to win the Legends division only to lose in yet another shocker against who else but Wisconsin in the inaugural Big 10 championship game.  The bowl selections have upset many MSU fans this year but this highlight shines a great light on a wonderful season for the winningest senior class in Spartan history and we'll all be cheering them on come January 2nd in the Outback Bowl.

The Spartans will take on the Bulldogs of Georgia live from Tampa on ABC January 2nd, 2012 kicking off at 1pm EST.

MJ to Wed; Air Bride II

u mad??

The prince of Air announced today that he is engaged to long time girlfriend, model Yvette Prieto.  The infamous bachelor is moving on to his second wife after divorcing his previous old lady in 2006.  As a life long Blazer fan I can say that one of the biggest tragedies in sport was the drafting of Sam Bowie over Jordan in the 1984 draft but I won't hold that against his Air-ness.  I'd like to send great wishes the happy couple and will toast their long and happy lives!

Blazers Out to 1-0 Start

RIP CITY BABY!

After splitting their pre-season double team vs the Utah Jazz, the Portland Trail Blazers (1-0) looked solid on Monday taking down the 76ers (0-1) 107 - 104 at home; despite coach Nate McMillan's worries about their physical conditioning due to the NBA lock out.  The highlights show the team running hard in transition though, Lamarcus Aldridge led the way with 25 points and a couple of alley oops; Gerald Wallace added 21 points and 9 boards.  Hopefully this winning trend continues as the Blazers look to take down the best in the west while rising to the top of the table in the Northwest Division.  Next up for Portland, the Kings will head to the Rose Garden tonight, tip off is at 7pm.

Ready For Conference Games To Start

HERE COMES THE LAYUP!

Senior Casper Ware is poised to lead the Long Beach State 49ers to a strong run in the 2012 Big West conference.  The competitive Ware along with fellow seniors TJ Robinson, and Larry Anderson, are looking to reclaim the coveted top spot and trip to the NCAA tourney in March.  Competition will be stiff though with last years champs, the Gauchos of UCSB, an always pesky Pacific Tigers squad, and UC Irvine looking good.

The 49ers begin conference play on January 2nd at the Bren Events Center in Irvine against the Anteaters; then in the Walter Pyramid three days later on the 5th taking on Cal Poly.  GO BEACH!

01/02/12	at UC Irvine	Irvine, Calif.	7:00 PM PT
01/05/12	vs. Cal Poly	Long Beach, Calif.	7:05 PM PT
01/07/12	at Cal State Northridge	Northridge, Calif.	7:00 PM PT
01/12/12	vs. UC Davis	Long Beach, Calif.	7:05 PM PT
01/14/12	vs. Pacific	Long Beach, Calif.	4:05 PM PT
01/19/12	at Cal Poly	San Luis Obispo, Calif.	7:00 PM PT
01/21/12	at UC Santa Barbara	Santa Barbara, Calif.	8:00 PM PT
01/26/12	at UC Riverside	Riverside, Calif.	7:00 PM PT
01/28/12	vs. Cal State Fullerton	Long Beach, Calif.	8:00 PM PT
02/04/12	vs. Cal State Northridge	Long Beach, Calif.	TBA
02/09/12	at Pacific	Stockton, Calif.	7:30 PM PT
02/11/12	at UC Davis	Davis, Calif.	7:00 PM PT
02/18/12	BracketBuster	TBA	TBA
02/22/12	vs. UC Santa Barbara	Long Beach, Calif.	8:00 PM PT
02/25/12	vs. UC Riverside	Long Beach, Calif.	4:05 PM PT
02/29/12	vs. UC Irvine	Long Beach, Calif.	8:05 PM PT
03/03/12	at Cal St Fullerton	Fullerton, Calif.	4:00 PM PT

(Long Beach State)

NBA Up And Running!

"Sup..." - Kobe

Kobe may have topped Chris Paul in the stat line, the Clippers have the last laugh as the NBA Preseason is off to a running start in Los Angeles.  The Clips took down their in house rivals, toppling the Lake show 114 - 95.  In a shortened season this may mean a little more but I won't be holding my breath just yet as the prolonged lockout and trade drama has been wearing on the Lakers.

As for Rip City, they handily defeated the Jazz 110 - 90.  Wesley Matthews led the way with 17, new signee Jamal Crawford was making things happen off the bench for 8 points and 7 assists.  Check out highlights HERE from the NBA.

Week 15 Stumbles

An undefeated season isn't in the cards this year for Rodgers

The Green Bay Packers (13-1) hopes for a big ole goose egg in the loss column came to a close yesterday when the fell the the Kansas City Chiefs (of all teams; 6-8) 19-14.  The Pack lead 7-6 after a third quarter TD from Rodgers to Donald Driver but that's the best they could do as the Chiefs surged back with 13 second half points.  Although a bit of a let down for Packer fans, this could spell something great for this team who ended their 18 game win streak dating back to last year's playoffs.  Their season won't be defined by the first 13 wins but by these last few weeks and their performance in the playoffs where it looks like they'll be playing at home in the Green Bay winter.  As a motivator this could be a great sign for the Packers who have looked close to perfect for the entire season.

Not even the Almighty could lead Denver past Brady's Pats

Still sitting pretty at 7-2 as a starter, I'm sure Tim Tebow is still quite grateful to his savior for the season he's having as a Bronco.  Despite falling to 8-6 on the season, Denver still leads the AFC west, just a game ahead of Oakland and San Diego.  This might be a talking point for a lot of the Tebow skeptics but the Patriots are on a level above a lot of the Bronco's previous competition; the Pats rattled off 34 unanswered points on their way to the 41-23 victory.  Like Rodgers I believe that Tebow and more importantly the Broncos as an organization, will bounce back after this loss.  At Buffalo next week and capping the season off at Mile High versus the Chiefs, they have the opportunity to take hold of their own destiny and go into the playoffs with a full head of steam.

These two QBs have led their teams in admittedly different ways but it's easy to see their similarities as leaders.  They are field generals and while Rodgers leads with the air attack, Tebow takes to a more tank style ground and pound.  Whether teams finally found their weaknesses or the season is beginning to wear on them I can't help but feel like both squads will find a way to keep winning.

Bonds Out Of Harms Way!

Awww yeah...beat that rap with a bat!

San Francisco Giants legend and future hall of famer* Barry Bonds was sentenced today to 30 days of house arrest--which he'll probably get reduced by the end of it all--for obstruction of justice stemming from a probe into his own steroid use.  Baseball's all-time home run leader* and winner of the largest head award is now moving forward with yet another appeal.

I really hoped that this whole steroid issue would end once Bonds' case was wrapped up but with allegations against 2011 NL MVP Ryan Braun surfacing earlier this month I can only assume there are many more cans of worms to be opened in the coming future of the MLB.  Let's hope Bud Selig has some more tricks up his sleeve.

* I hope it's obvious why these are here

Another Trail Blazer Addition

I Am A Trailblazer Fan is reporting that free agent guard Jamal Crawford has been picked up by Portland today.  A former 8th overall pick out of Michigan (2000), Crawford was named the NBA's most valuable 6th Man in the 2009 - 2010 season.  Along with that great distinction Crawford holds the NBA record for four point plays with 33.  Last season he averaged over 15 points and nearly 4 assists per game coming off the bench for the Atlanta Hawks.

A Pacific Northwest native, Crawford seemed excited by the move tweeting earlier in the day, "Rip city!!!"  Acting GM Chad Buchanan said of the new addition, "We've thought highly of Jamal for a long time and think he's a great fit for our team," let's hope his signature sparks adds something of grace to our beloved Blazers.

NBA mini-Pre Season, BIG Drama

"Where'm I Goin'?!"

While most NBA fans focus on the drama surrounding Chris Paul and Dwight Howard in this year's miniaturized pre-season madness; I'd like to draw some attention to Portland's latest acquisition, Kurt Thomas.  Thomas was drafted 10th overall by the Heat in 1995 after averaging 29pt/15rb in his senior season at TCU.  Last season with Chicago, Thomas averaged 4 points and 5.8 rebounds per game in 37 starts.  Here's hoping he will be a great addition to the Trail Blazers and not just another late 30s bench player taking up cap space.  Here's a video of Kurt Thomas on his move to the Blazers.

I'm personally hoping that the Blazers can make more moves given the recent news regarding Brandon Roy, Lamarcus Aldridge, and Greg Oden.  It seems like yet another season where Trail Blazer fans will be kicking themselves all the way till the summer watching the hated Lakers/Heat/Sacremento/Everyone move forward while we again continue to stagnate. (FINGERS CROSSED!)

TEEEEEEEEEEEBOWWWWWWW

This morning my mom and I had a long discussion on why we both appreciate Tim Tebow.  The man is a WINNER and that's my favorite quality in all athletes.  He makes the guys around him better and somehow the Broncos have lifted themselves from last to first under the leadership of Tebow.
Some people have a problem with him because he expresses his faith outwardly, people are afraid to hear about his relationship with God but I want everyone to know that I think this expression is phenomenal.  Good for him!  As long as he keeps winning, and I believe he will, he can say whatever he wants and I'm just glad he's talking about faith and responsibility in this world of players shooting themselves and getting arrested and taking enhancement drugs.

So I personally would like to give my stamp of approval to Tim Tebow (though it means nothing to anyone).  Keep on keeping on sir!  You just may convert me to a Broncos fan.

Hello World!

Today is the first day of the rest of my life.  So I decided today to start a sports blog where I can vent all my frustrations and worries about the sports world.  Just so you get to know who I am as a sports fan, I was a two sport Varsity athlete at Jesuit High School in Portland, OR.  Since graduating in 2004 I moved to Long Beach, CA to study media at CSULB and have kept up with all the teams who I love.  If you're curious about my favorite teams in various sports you can check out my links section on the right side of the page.  In the coming weeks we will discuss my frustrations with the BCS, the NBA, the games I enjoy in college Basketball and many other topics as I see fit.  So I hope you enjoy and tell all your friends to come on by and read!!!  Welcome to "200 Shots Per Day"!

Ted