Kent Howerton Neil Hudson Ryan Hughes Georges Jobe Gunnar Johansson
Monday, February 28, 2011
There was also a PGA Tour event this weekend. Really.
Pity poor Johnson Wagner. Guy gets a PGA Tour win at the Mayakoba Golf Classic, and who's paying attention? Nobody, that's who, because all eyes in the golf world are focused on the Accenture Match Play.
No matter. Wagner matched Spencer Levin stroke-for-stroke to finish at a 17-under 267, then parred the first sudden-death playoff hole for the victory. Here, check it out if you don't believe me:
And Wagner knows how to be political. When asked about returning next year, he had this gem of graciousness: "Unfortunately, it’s opposite the World Match Play, so the only way I would not be here is if I was in the top 64 in the world ... But if I’m 65th, you can dang sure bet I’m going to be here. I’ve loved it here, and it would actually be sad if I did get to 64 in the world and didn’t get to come back and defend. I’ve loved every minute I’ve been here."
Then again, Wagner pocketed a $666,000 check for his victory, so we don't need to feel too bad for him. Levin, though, has never won a PGA Tour event, so we tip our cap his way. Better luck next year, Spence.
Antonio Cairoli Trey Canard Håkan Carlquist Ricky Carmichael Danny Chandler
Next-Gen Windows UI previewed: Kinect, Windows Phone & bubbly tablets [Video]
Microsoft has previewed a next-gen UI for smartphones, tablets and PCs, which evolves the traditional windows and icons into bubbles of information which can be manipulated with motion-tracking hardware. The video, presented by Microsoft Chief Research and Strategy Officer Craig Mundie, shows how gadgets like Kinect and multitouch displays like Surface can be used for more naturalistic interaction with data.
Videos after the cut
The demonstration follows Microsoft’s announcements for the Kinect SDK, which will be released later this year. In a second video, shown below, Microsoft demonstrated some of the potential interactions between Kinect and Windows Phone.
All of the UI work is being billed as experimental and described as “futuristic demos,” with Microsoft cautious not to set up too many ambitious expectations for Windows 8. Still, with the company’s desktop OS lagging in finger-friendliness on tablets, and the integration between Windows, Windows Phone and Xbox all still relatively rudimentary, the company could do worse than follow through on some of these concepts.
Microsoft Research UI predictions:
Windows Phone and Kinect integration demo:
[via Slashdot]
Relevant Entries on SlashGear
- Microsoft Opens Kinect SDK Up To Hackers
- Microsoft Kinect Could Connect with Windows Phone 7 Some Day
- REDFLY Mobile Companion – like Palm Foleo for your Windows Mobile devices
- Windows 7 Previewed; beta to come in December
- Microsoft Looking to Bring Kinect Drivers and SDK to Windows
Source: http://feeds.slashgear.com/~r/slashgear/~3/n4PyJ2Vb9xg/
Travis Pastrana Gautier Paulin David Philippaerts Mickael Pichon Jim Pomeroy
Saturday, February 26, 2011
HTC Merge gets official: QWERTY Android World Phone due spring
HTC has officially announced the HTC Merge, a phone we first heard rumors of so long ago we were beginning to think it had been cancelled. Headed to “multiple North American carriers” in Spring 2011, the Merge has a 3.8-inch WVGA touchscreen, 5-megapixel camera and slide-out QWERTY keyboard.
There’s WiFi, GPS and 720p HD video capture, along with HTC Sense running on top of Android 2.2 Froyo. Although HTC isn’t saying which exact carriers will be picking the Merge up, the fact that it’s a CDMA World Phone – i.e. will operate on EVDO Rev.A networks in the US, and GSM HSPA networks while abroad – does imply that Verizon and Sprint are the likely candidates.
No word on pricing, nor specific availability, but we should find out for sure in a few months time.
Press Release:
HTC Introduces the Powerful, Feature-Rich HTC Merge
The HTC Merge? Smartphone Brings Android? and HTC Sense? to HTC’s First CDMA Android World Phone
BELLEVUE, Wash., Feb. 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — HTC Corp., a global designer of smartphones, today announced that the new HTC Merge smartphone will be made available through multiple North American carriers beginning in spring 2011. The HTC Merge smartphone combines a full QWERTY slide-out keyboard with the power of Android 2.2, the HTC Sense experience, a large 3.8-inch touch-screen display and a 5 megapixel camera to create a complete mobile experience for those looking for a truly complete smartphone. The HTC Merge is also HTC’s first Android-based CDMA world phone.
“HTC prides itself on creating unique solutions that meet the needs of different customers, and with features like a full keyboard and global 3G roaming, the HTC Merge smartphone is the perfect example of this commitment,” said Jason Mackenzie, president, HTC Americas. “Combining the functionality of Android with the HTC Sense experience, the HTC Merge is the perfect device for those customers who are looking for a reliable mobile experience with the features and functionality of a smartphone, whether it’s at home or travelling around the world.”
Customers will appreciate seamless integration with Exchange ActiveSync, enjoy quick and easy access to Flickr� for sharing and viewing pictures, and find new ways to customize their experience with the Android Market? with more than 100,000 applications. With a full slide-out QWERTY keyboard, customers will be able to keep in touch with friends and family no matter where they are, as well as stay in the loop with Flickr, Facebook� and Twitter? updates through HTC FriendStream?.
In addition, the HTC Merge smartphone has a 5 megapixel camera with auto-focus and flash that captures outstanding images, while 3G connectivity makes sharing those special moments with friends and family quick and easy. The HTC Merge smartphone also comes with integrated GPS, Wi-Fi connectivity and even the ability to capture high-definition 720p video.
Availability
HTC Merge is slated to be available from multiple North American operators beginning in spring 2011.
Relevant Entries on SlashGear
- Verizon HTC Merge gets premature preview
- Sony PlayStation Phone coming in spring 2011?
- HTC Android CDMA/GSM smartphone tipped for Verizon early 2011
- Sony NEC’s optical drive department merge
- Altek Leo 3.5G 14MP Android smartphone official PR surfaces
Source: http://feeds.slashgear.com/~r/slashgear/~3/lB4ZW-xW8p4/
Michele Rinaldi Joël Robert Ken Roczen Stephane Roncada Gerard Rond
Meme Watch: Meet your first Pac-12 South favorite ... Arizona State?
Tracking the buzz of college football's hive mind.If there's any team whose presence really sticks out like a sore thumb in those knee-jerk, "pre-preseason" polls that immediately followed the end of the season, it has to be Arizona State, especially relative to the rest of the their new division mates in the Pac-12 South. Barely a month removed from their straight non-winning season – an unremarkable stagger to 6-6 that didn't qualify ASU for a bowl game or a single vote in any of the final polls – the Devils showed up near the bottom of virtually every early top-25 effort last month. In every one of those cases, ASU was the top-ranked team in the South Division, and usually the only ranked team in the South Division.
That says a lot about the competition. Utah is an uncertain newcomer, and has to replace most of its defense. Arizona is rebuilding both its offensive and defensive lines, nearly in their entirety. Colorado and UCLA have shown no sign of snapping out of their continuing strings of mediocrity going into transition years to new schemes. USC is nowhere to be found in the early polls for the first time in nearly a decade. And even it was, pending the results of its appeal to the NCAA to lift the second postseason year of a two-year postseason ban, the Trojans are still ineligible to represent the division in the inaugural Pac-12 Championship Game in December.
The only team in the division riding an unambiguously upward trajectory into 2011 is Arizona State. In the first place, the Devils were closer than their 6-6 finish suggests to a breakthrough last year, when four of their six losses came by four points or less. That included one-point losses to USC and Rose Bowl-bound Wisconsin – both involving a blocked extra point that supplied the final margin – and a 17-13 loss to Orange Bowl-bound Stanford, a game ASU led with six minutes to play. They were also one of only two teams in the regular season (along with Cal) to keep the damage against Pac-10 overlord Oregon within two touchdowns.
In terms of on-field experience, Arizona State stepped into that cauldron as the greenest outfit in the Pac-10 at the start of the season, and came out of it as one of the most battle-hardened lineups in the country: Twenty-four Devils are back this fall after starting at least five games in 2010, 18 of whom will be seniors or fourth-year juniors. (Among that group is the best player on the team, fifth-year senior Omar Bolden, a unanimous all-conference pick at cornerback and a second-teamer as a return man last year.) Two of the up-and-comers, head-hunting linebacker Vontaze Burfict and freshman defensive lineman Junior Onyeali, anchored the middle of the best run defense in the conference and were honored with an All-Pac-10 nod and the league's Defensive Freshman of the Year award, respectively.
Personnel-wise, the worst you can say about the Devils' prospects is their lack of a notable playmaker on offense, despite cobbling together the Pac-10's No. 3 scoring offense last year at 32 points per game. There's still the ongoing quarterback issue between interception-prone senior Steven Threet and relatively inexperienced junior-to-be Brock Osweiler, who only supplanted Threet last year for the last two games (both ASU wins). And there's the fact that it's, you know, Arizona State, home of a single conference championship in the last 25 years and only two top-20 finishes in the last thirteen. It was only a little over a year ago that coach Dennis Erickson sounded like he wanted to quit in the waning weeks of a 4-8 flop in 2009. His charges have turned in losing records against the nine-game conference slate three years in a row.
If the soon-to-be 64-year-old is going to take another team around the corner before he's eligible to begin drawing Social Security, this is obviously the one, with a lineup composed overwhelmingly by Erickson's first two recruiting classes to Tempe in 2007 and 2008. This time next year, the prevailing theme will be the mass exodus of those seniors. If this outfit can't push through to the championship game with experience and a middling lineup of division rivals, it might well be another decade before the next opportunity cycles back around.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
Craig Dack Roger De Coster Ken De Dycker Yves Demaria Gilbert De Roover
Fight of the Century: Smokin' Joe Frazier's Smashing Success
PHILADELPHIA -- Richard Nixon was rooting for Joe Frazier.
That fact can be interpreted a number of ways, even by those who weren't born when Frazier took on Muhammad Ali at Madison Square Garden in the "Fight of the Century'' on March 8, 1971. So much more was on the line that night than the undisputed heavyweight championship of the world -- politically, socially and emotionally -- that you could easily form an opinion on the fight based on who else was rooting for or against one of the fighters.
At the time, Nixon's support was important to Frazier for one reason: Frazier had gone to the president to convince him to get Ali's boxing license reinstated. The governing bodies had revoked it following Ali's refusal to enter the military based on his opposition to the war in Vietnam due to religious beliefs.
"That's the only way he was able to fight,'' Frazier recalled Thursday as he sat behind his desk in his business office, a suite on an upper floor of a hotel three blocks from Independence Hall. "And I went up to President Nixon to let his license go free, so we can get it on. And (Nixon) said, 'Joe, do you think you can take him?'
"I said, 'I got him in my back pocket.' I told the president that.'' Frazier chuckled, something he did a lot during an hour-and-a-half conversation that traveled all around the world, from his poor upbringing in the Jim Crow South to his adopted Philadelphia hometown to the 1964 Tokyo Olympics (where he won a gold medal at age 20) and, eventually, to the Garden.
Source: http://boxing.fanhouse.com/2011/02/25/fight-of-the-century-smokin-joe-fraziers-smashing-success/
Greg Albertyn Jeff Alessi Mike Alessi Thomas Allier Håkan Andersson
Jerry Jones addresses Super Bowl seating snafu for the first time
Almost three weeks after the Super Bowl, Jerry Jones made his first public statement about the seating problems that plagued Cowboys Stadium and forced 400 ticketholders to miss the game.
Way to get out ahead of the story, Jerry. We should expect to hear his thoughts about Christina Aguilera's national anthem any day now.
Speaking to a group of reporters inside his Indianapolis hotel room, Jones took responsibility for the incident but stopped short of offering any sort of apology:
"I do, along with the NFL, take responsibility for the seating issue. Some of the things we would like to improve on regarding the seating issue, informing the fans that were involved, all of those areas, the NFL and I take responsibility for.
"You always like to look at areas you can be better, get better. We certainly intend to and will get much better in terms of the seating and how that is handled. I don't have a lot of details for you, relative to specifics, but that's part of the process of the work ahead to do it better."
Because of the pending lawsuit against Jones and the NFL, the Cowboys owner was likely restricted in what he could say about the incident. He didn't answer questions about why the seats weren't ready or whose fault it was that they weren't. Why say anything if you're going to say nothing at all?
Jones makes it seem like the problems at Cowboys Stadium were minor. Getting better is cutting wait times at concession stands and streamlining security lines to get into the stadium. It's tweaking the volume of the loudspeakers and showing more engaging videos during timeouts. It's not forcing ticketholders into the bowels of the stadium because somebody didn't get the proper permit in time.
The Cowboys owner doesn't seem worried, though. He told reporters that he thinks his stadium will host another Super Bowl in the future.
Fritz Schneider Darrell Schultz Tommy Searle Gary Semics Andrew Short
Friday, February 25, 2011
Video: UConn's backup QB is a Jedi master of meaningless accuracy
If some marketing genius ever puts together the gridiron equivalent of the Harlem Globetrotters, UConn's third-string quarterback, Johnny McEntee, is going to make a serious run to be the No. 1 overall pick, MGMT soundtrack and all:
(Video courtesy of HardcoreHuskies)
Obviously, you don't want to run up against this guy during the Dr. Pepper Halftime Challenge. But how well do those amazing quarterbacking skills lend themselves to actual quarterbacking? Enough to get McEntee on the field to execute a few handoffs in a blowout win over Rhode Island in 2009, but not to get a toe in the Huskies' constantly revolving door under center the last two seasons. Maybe one day the new coaching staff will even let him throw a real pass.
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Hat tip: Penn State running back Evan Royster (@eroyster22
Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
Tony DiStefano Jamie Dobb Gert van Doorn John Dowd John Draper
NHL Trade Deadline: St. Louis Blues
Filed under: Blues, Trade Deadline
By landing last year's Stanley Cup hero, goaltender Jaroslav Halak, in a deal with the Montreal Canadiens in the offseason, the Blues had hoped for a better year than the previous one which saw them finish ninth in the West. But, alas, some of their key players have been battered by injuries during 2010-11, making their drive for respectability that more arduous.They've enjoyed a fine season from their young leader, right winger David Backes (right), and center Alexander Steen. After 59 games, St. Louis still has breath, as they are five points out of a playoff spot, but there are also four teams between them and the coveted eighth spot in the wild, wild West.
Cap-wise, the Blues have room to play with and they've been quite busy in the past couple of weeks. But one wonders whether general manager Doug Armstrong has yet another deal up his sleeve.
Source: http://nhl.fanhouse.com/2011/02/24/nhl-trade-deadline-st-louis-blues/
Doug Henry Broc Hepler Rob Herring George Holland Jeremy van Horebeek
11-year-old earns free pizza for a year with half-court heave
To an 11-year-old kid, there might not be many things cooler than getting free pizza for a year.
Now, Cody Collins gets to find out just how amazing it is.
Collins hit a half-court shot at halftime of Thursday's game at Kennesaw State, earning him complimentary pies from Papa John's through next February.
It's often joked about that prizes given away for hitting promotional half-courters at basketball games can be weak, but to an 11-year-old, pizza is pretty much currency.
The reaction by Collins and his buddy under the basket, who provided the "It's in the hole!" reaction while the ball was still in flight, was just awesome. Now, they're welcome to literally be fat and happy for a year at no charge.
You've just got to hope that, for the delivery guy's sake, Collins has already been taught how to properly tip on a free meal.
Ryan Greene also covers UNLV and the Mountain West Conference for the Las Vegas Sun. Read his Rebels coverage and follow him on Twitter.
Bobby Moore Blair Morgan Gaylon Mosier Marvin Musquin Brian Myerscough
Headlinin': Nate Montana mulls inevitable transfer to ... Montana
Making the morning rounds. • Best. Transfer. Ever. (Potentially.) Perennial FCS power Montana didn't even get the chance to host its first high-profile quarterback target, former Michigan starter Tate Forcier, who cut his scheduled tour of schools (including Montana) short Wednesday to sign with Miami. But the Grizzlies appear to be very much in the running for another notable Midwestern QB: Notre Dame backup Nate "Yes That Montana" Montana, whose Hall of Fame father, Joe, was in Missoula with his wife Wednesday to meet with head coach Robin Pflugrad – presumably, to discuss Nate's potential for joining the team in the most name-appropriate transfer of all-time.
Nate, a former walk-on at his dad's alma mater, will be on scholarship in South Bend this fall as a fourth-year junior, but will also be planted firmly on the bench as a third-stringer, at best. (Incoming freshman Everett Golson is likely to push Montana even further down the depth chart.) He's never been a regular starter, even in high school or a one-year stint in junior college in 2009, but looks the part at 6-foot-4/215 pounds and has an opening with the graduation of the Grizzlies' 2010 starter, former Oregon transfer Justin Roper. "[Joe Montana] has four kids and we talked about them all," Pflugrad told the student paper, but considering two of the four are daughters and the third, Nick, is in serious competition for the starting job at Washington, only one would be of immediate interest to him. [The Missoulian, The Kaimin]
• He said, he said. And speaking of Tate Forcier, the Miami-bound sophomore told the Detroit Free Press after signing with the 'Canes Wednesday that he really never wanted to leave Michigan, but athletic director Dave Brandon wouldn't give him the time of day after Forcier came up short academically in the fall semester. "Dave Brandon made his mind up. We tried hard (to stay). … The incompletes, I took care of those. Dave Brandon still wouldn’t let me stay. He refused to even meet with us." Brandon's side of the story: He was unavailable when the Forciers tried to meet with him and tried to reschedule, to no avail. [Detroit Free Press]
• This is not what we meant by 'Cavalier Attitude.' Three Virginia players suspended from the team earlier this week have been charged with multiple counts stemming from a fight at James Madison University on Jan. 30. Sophomores Ausar Walcott, Devin Wallace and Mike Price each face three misdemeanor charges of simple assault or battery and one felony charge of entering a house to commit assault and battery, according to court records. The trio was arrested on Tuesday, the same day the suspensions were announced. [Washington Post]
• The first one was good for us, thanks. Rose Bowl winner TCU turned down a rematch with Wisconsin in the 2011 season opener, according to sources on both sides, because the deal called for a single game in Madison, Wis., with no return date in Fort Worth. A "third party" (almost certainly ESPN) tried to broker the game, and received approval from Badger coach Bret Bielema in "about .5 seconds." TCU athletic director Chris Del Conte, though, said no dice. "We do one-off games if they make the most sense. This did not make any sense with a one-off game in their back yard, but we had no return game." Del Conte told the Dallas Morning News. "I have no interest in ever playing a one-off game unless there is a return game in Fort Worth." [Dallas Morning News]
Quickly… Rivals already has its tentative list of the top-250 high school seniors to watch this fall. … The Associated Press rounds up pending anti-agent initiatives from sea to shining sea. … The Wall Street Journal on Stanford's success with the smart set. … The NCAA nixes Michael McAdoo's appeal to return to North Carolina after missing the entire 2010 season. … More predictions that Texas A&M will be in the SEC within five years, or sooner if Texas makes the leap to independence. … Pat Haden on Mitch Mustain's "stupid, stupid move." … No, Tennessee receiver Gerald Jones didn't push Gabe Wright to Auburn. … Lane Kiffin may be feeling the squeeze from the NCAA. … And even though it's "unauthorized," I gather this forthcoming account of Mike Leach's exit from Texas Tech will have the Cap'n's full endorsement.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
Torao Suzuki Gareth Swanepoel Ivan Tedesco David Thorpe Rich Thorwaldson
Phil Simms wants to fight Desmond Howard over honest assessment of Matt Simms
Say whatever you'd like about Phil Simms: He's been around the block, and he can take it. He won two championship rings with the New York Giants, one as MVP of Super Bowl XXI. He's spent the last 17 years as an NFL analyst for NBC and CBS. He's acted. He's a man. He's 55. He's not a kid.
Take a shot at one of his quarterbacking spawn, however, and Phil Simms just might hunt you down and make you answer to his fists. Or so says one of his fellow Super Bowl MVPs, ex-Heisman Trophy winner turned ESPN analyst Desmond Howard, who wrote in a series of tweets this afternoon that police had to intervene to keep Simms from threatening and possibly attacking him during pre-Super Bowl festivities in Dallas, apparently over a comment Howard made on ESPN GameDay about Simms' son, Matt, before the younger Simms led Tennessee against LSU on Oct. 2. Per Howard:
At NFL-Xperience and Phil Simms just threatened 2 hit me b/c I said his son was 1 of the worse [sic] QBs in the SEC. I told him "LET'S GO!" … I am DEAD serious about the Phil Simms thing. We all thought he was joking, but he kept going and said he wanted 2 take a swing at me!! … During the season we talked about the Tenn v LSU game and I said "u will see 3 of the worse [sic] QBs in the SEC" That's what Phil did not like. … It ended w/ police stepping in between so I could continue my appearance w/ fans.
Syntax notwithstanding, if you're on the side of journalistic integrity, it's hard to argue with Howard: Simms went 2-6 as a first-year starter for Tennessee – the two wins coming over Tennessee-Martin and UAB (in overtime) – and was benched for the final month in favor of true freshman Tyler Bray, who proceeded to lead four straight wins to get the Vols into a bowl game. Against LSU specifically, Simms was 12-of-23 for 121 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions in a 16-14 Tennessee loss.
For his part, Simms issued a statement through CBS Sports about three hours after Howard's tweets: "Desmond and I were having a private conversation that became heated. But at no time was there ever a chance of any physical confrontation, or that I felt the police officer assigned to me by the event planners for my appearance needed to separate the two of us." So there you go.
Simms isn't the first father to defend in his son in overheated fashion, or even with violence/threats thereof. Within that category, though, he's probably at the top of the list of dads who should obviously know better.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
Gert van Doorn John Dowd John Draper Doug Dubach Ryan Dungey
Oklahoma City shores up its frontcourt, quite expertly
The Oklahoma City Thunder didn't trade for any All-Stars. The team didn't pick up a third transcendent scorer to move in alongside giants like Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. They still have to deal with Kobe and Pau, Tim and Manu. But they did get a lot better Thursday. A whole heck of a lot better.
In a pair of moves, the Thunder grabbed burly center Kendrick Perkins and all-around bench scorer Nate Robinson from the Boston Celtics, and veteran pivotman Nazr Mohammed from the Charlotte Bobcats for the price of two starters in Jeff Green and Nenad Krstic, along with young forward D.J. White, and the nearly retired Morris Peterson.
The Thunder lost two starters, but they also took in significant upgrades at both the power forward and center position. OKC coach Scott Brooks dutifully started Green for years at big forward, after the Thunder traded for the Georgetown forward in return for Ray Allen back in 2007. But for a good chunk of last season and all of this year, reserve forward Serge Ibaka has been better on both ends than Green, a fact often lost as Green pulled up for jumper after jumper as a member of the Thunder.
And though Krstic's touch from the outside will be missed, Perkins' defensive presence and ability to make do offensively will help the Thunder return to the defensive roots that they established last season, before abandoning them at times in 2011-12.
Mohammed may come off as the ultimate journeyman, but he's a significant contributor on both ends. Per 36 minutes of play, he averages around 16 points, 12 rebounds and two blocks a contest. Nazr won't play 36 minutes a night, you say? Well, of course. But spread out over two games, he's going to give you the production levels of a 16 and 12 guy (two blocks) in 18 minutes a night. Don't dismiss that. There was a reason Charlotte's bench kept them in so many games this year.
Oklahoma City won't be breaking the bank for these players, either. Both Perkins and Mohammed are free agents after this season.
The "penalty" for making this deal comes in needing to take on Nate Robinson's below-average contract for one year next season, but I only call this a penalty because of Nate's limited role as he joins a very crowded Thunder backcourt. With Westbrook, Eric Maynor (a fine young backup point guard), James Harden and Thabo Sefolosha, the Thunder are stacked in the backcourt, and Nate is going to struggle to find minutes. Robinson has tons of game, though, and his basketball patience grows every year. It's a bummer we won't see him working as the first spark off the bench for a playoff team this year, but that doesn't mean he won't have his moments this spring.
Where does this put Oklahoma City amongst the elite out West? This team is still a clear step behind both the Spurs (especially) and Lakers on paper, but the Thunder have given the Lakers all they can handle recently, and even the most fair-weather of NBA followers can recall that the Thunder were one secured rebound away from taking the Lakers to a seventh game in the playoffs last season. At worst, with Nate Collison shoring up that frontcourt, and Kevin Durant's ever increasing ability to slide over to power forward, this is a team on par with the Dallas Mavericks.
At best? The Thunder could save their best run of the year, in an up-and-down year, for spring. It's quite feasible.
This is another in a long line of heady moves for Oklahoma City GM Sam Presti. The team didn't give up any draft picks, it didn't affect its salary outlook (it'll be under the cap this offseason, the amount depending on what it does with Perkins) in any meaningful way, and nobody is going to want to touch these guys come May.
Careful planning leads to the ability to take advantage of great timing. Sam Presti's team is certainly an example of that.
Heinz Kinigadner Dusty Klatt Arne Kring Brad Lackey Arthur Lampkin
Breakdown: The Cam Newton media workout you didn't see
Heisman Trophy and BCS championship-winning quarterback Cam Newton continued his preparation for the upcoming NFL draft Thursday with a public workout for approximately three dozen very impressed members of the media at a San Diego high school. Here's some of what they saw:
And here are some of the highlights you haven't seen:
• Newton missed on seven passes. Three of those, however, were drops, and three of the other four were balls that had been secretly filled with nonperishable food and medical supplies, cleared by the Federal Aviation Administration and launched by Newton into the open cargo holds of humanitarian planes already en route to aid flood victims in Pakistan.
• To demonstrate his improved mechanics, Newton's movements were initially tracked by software designed to measure balance, torque and velocity. The plan had to be abandoned, however, when the program admitted it could no longer be objective, because it had fallen in love.
• To give them the full effect, Newton randomly zipped several balls just inches from the heads of the dozen or so reporters who "upgraded" to the 3D glasses Cecil Newton was selling before the show.
• Eleven high school girls (and one boy) were escorted from the field after breaking out in prolonged fits of Beatle-like hysteria. Hundreds more were found just outside the stadium's perimeter, having fainted on sight.
• Upon discovering an undercover pro scout in their ranks, reporters interrupted the proceedings to give the interloper a red belly, a squirreler, two snoring dragons and a prickly ankle before leaving him taped to a goal post, where he continued to be pleasantly surprised by Newton's mechanics from under center.
• After the workout, Newton joked with reporters that he liked San Diego so much he planned to "have a surfing party at the house," even though he'd never been on a surfboard. By sundown, he was ranked as the No. 1 surfer in the world.
• At one point, Newton interrupted a drill to save Hall of Fame mentor Warren Moon from a sudden attack by a trio of coyotes, which he achieved by patiently capturing each animal's gaze with his own and silently ordering them back into the wilderness.
• Over the course of the afternoon, Newton was variously offered a key to the city, a congressional seat, his own talk show, Trent Dilfer's Super Bowl ring, honorary membership in the Rolling Stones, a spot in the bullpen of the San Diego Padres, unlimited access to the entire stocks of five local car dealerships, a seat on the first human mission to Mars, several hundred head of cattle, thousands of hands in marriage, and an automatic spot on every U.S. Olympic team, including archery, the decathlon and beach volleyball. (Especially beach volleyball.) Newton claimed to be unaware of any of the offers, however, and asked if he could stop for some ice cream on the way home.
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Clip via Bryan Fisher.
Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
Gerard Rond Jean Sebastien Roy Alex Salvini Donny Schmit Fritz Schneider
Disney Buys Kids Social Network Togetherville
Disney has bought social network Togetherville today for an undisclosed amount. Disney is combining the popularity of social networks with its popularity amongst kids. Togetherville operates just like other social networking sites and uses Facebook to enable connections, but the target users are kids aged 10 and under.
Togetherville allows parents to monitor their kid’s activity and gives kids a more secure environment to socialize online. Parents can approve their kids friends request and can even connect with other parents of children on Togetherville if the parents are on Facebook. Parents can choose pre-selected messages for their kids or have those messages checked by the parent before being sent out.
Kids can form ?neighborhoods? with their Facebook friends where they can form their own group of friends and watch videos, play games, and create art. Parents and children can connect to their school communities, which will allow parents and children to interact with friends from school without having the parents to connect through Facebook.
[via TechCrunch]
Relevant Entries on SlashGear
- Disney buys a stake in Hulu
- Disney digicam adds Pluto to your portraits
- Gowalla Disney deal announced as the Magic Kingdom checks-in
- Disney Netpal netbook to be made by Asus
- Hulu might be getting ABC shows
Source: http://feeds.slashgear.com/~r/slashgear/~3/vauh2j-C3o8/
Thursday, February 24, 2011
Coming Attractions: Shayne Skov, Stanford's other big man on campus
Assessing 2011's most intriguing players, in no particular order. Today: Junior Stanford linebacker Shayne Skov.• Typecasting. Skov is your run-of-the-mill 6-foot-3, 235-pound, blue-chip brainiac, initially choosing Stanford over the likes of Boston College, Duke, Northwestern, Notre Dame and Vanderbilt. In fact, he was not only the earliest member of the Cardinal's 2009 recruiting class – he committed at the beginning of his junior year of high school in 2007, a day after the Cardinal's 45-17 loss to UCLA in Jim Harbaugh's first game as head coach, and two full years before Skov's own debut – but he was also the most hyped, arriving as the No. 1 prospect from New York and the No. 3 inside linebacker in the nation.
As it turned out, Skov was also the only member of that class to play a major role in the on-field breakthrough that fall, finishing third on the team in tackles from one of the inside linebacker spots in Stanford's 3-4 scheme. He followed that up last year by leading the team in total stops as a sophomore, setting himself up as the leader of a unit that will clearly be expected to hold the line against the loss of five starters and much of its depth in the front seven in pursuit of Pac-12 and BCS championships.
• Best-Case. Non-Pac-10 fans – and maybe some Pac-10 fans, too – may recognize Skov from one of two moments: a) Timing Notre Dame's snap count to the nanosecond for a sack last September (pause it at the right moment, and you'll see he's not offsides, in spite of Mike Mayock's protestations):
… and b) His star turn in January's Orange Bowl, where he was in on 12 tackles, five tackles for loss and four sacks in the Cardinal's methodical, 45-12 bludgeoning of Virginia Tech. That was the ninth opponent in 13 games Stanford held below 17 points, including three shutouts, leaving the Cardinal as the conference's stingiest defense in terms of points allowed and among the top-25 nationally in rushing, pass efficiency, total and scoring D – in all, an improvement of 80 total yards and nine points per game over 2009.
Skov's growth was a key part of that leap forward, but don't get the idea from that clip or his postseason stat line that he's a wild blitzer – aside from the unfettered run on Dayne Crist in South Bend and his assault on Tyrod Taylor in the bowl game, he only logged three sacks on the season, after notching none as a freshman. (He's also yet to record a college interception.) Instead, he's most active patrolling between the tackles to clean up against the run, which was where the defense really made its bread last year: Outside of being gashed by Oregon for 388 yards rushing in early October, the Cardinal yielded a paltry 107 yards per game on the ground in their other 11, on just 3.3 per carry, on par with the top 10 run defenses in the country.
• Worst-Case. Skov isn't a burner, and he assumes a greater leadership role this fall without his key running mates between the tackles, fellow middle linebacker Owen Marecic and space-eating nose tackle Sione Fua, a second-team All-Pac-10 pick last year (after earning an honorable mention nod in 2009) despite barely registering on the stat sheet. Making his middle linebackers look good is part of a solid two-gap defensive tackle's job description, and the fact that league coaches chose to honor Fua's talent for keeping blockers occupied while Skov and Co. made the plays could be a subtle signal that he was as much a beneficiary of the front line's success as he was a benefactor.
• Fun Fact. Officially, Skov is Stanford's "Ginger-African-Caucasian American." Oh, and "Mexican, also":
Give him a math problem, and the guy in the ridiculous mullet-hawk will still embarrass you on the whiteboard. Ah, college.
• What to expect in the fall. The key phrase to this point may be, "Outside of being gashed by Oregon…" arguably the great theme of the 2010 season: If not for the Ducks' 49-10 run over the last three quarters, Stanford would have finished undefeated and played for the national championship. With Oregon coming to Palo Alto in November and all-universe quarterback Andrew Luck back on the other side, they Cardinal will likely open the season in the top five, and certainly be favored to win their first nine games, which probably won't include another ranked opponent.
As good as Luck is, the difference in another very good season and a championship (conference or national) could very well come down to the difference (or lack thereof) in the Cardinal's adjustment to the Ducks' warp-speed offense. Skov will be a key figure in that effort, if not the key figure, and the verdict on his junior season – as good a shot as Stanford's going to have at major trophies of any kind for another decade, at least – will hinge as much on his response in his team's biggest game as it will on the all-conference accolades that figure to come his way a month later.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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Tale of the Tape: Alex Tanney vs. Johnny Mac in the battle of obscure trick-shot quarterbacks
It took a little longer than I expected, actually, but inevitably, the instantly viral "trick shot" video by UConn quarterback Johnny McEntee that made the rounds earlier this month has spawned a successor. This entry comes from Alex Tanney, a Division III All-American at Monmouth College in Monmouth, Ill., and matches McEntee virtually blow for blow:
With Tanney's addition, it appears we have a burgeoning genre on our hands. Which can only mean one thing: It's time to go to the tape.
• Production values. McEntee has a steadier cameraman and crisper editing, but I'd be willing to call it a push if we didn't have to take Tanney's word that he hit the guy in the moving truck on the "Country Fade." The camera probably should have been in the truck. Advantage: McEntee.
• Most impressive throw(s). With respect to McEntee's blindfolded routes and cross-arena swish, nothing he offered rivals Tanney's essentially blind heave across the weight room, much less the impossible through-the-door, over-the-track, into-the-garbage-can throw Tanney hits at the 4:20 mark. Advantage: Tanney.
• Originality. Tanney upped the degree of difficulty on a couple of throws, but his video wouldn't even exist without McEntee's. It's a competent cover of the original with an extra solo. Advantage: McEntee.
• Soundtrack. Even if you hate instantly recognizable, "aw, this is mah song" hits by MIA and/or MGMT, they have to top generic, less-catchy versions of the same thing. Advantage: McEntee, unless/until YouTube pulls the clip for copyright infringement or MIA and MGMT's labels come looking for royalties.
• Supporting cast. Both quarterbacks have very game friends willing to serve as human targets, but the spontaneous, disbelieving enthusiasm of Tanney's crew trumps the Huskies' casual, "screwing around on a Monday" vibe. Plus, unlike anyone in McEntee's video (the finished, edited version, anyway), those bikers actually got drilled. Advantage: Tanney.
• Applicability to actual football. While Tanney has draft-worthy size (6-foot-4/220 pounds) and a sensational career stat line – he entered his senior season as a D-III All-American with 10,158 yards and 118 touchdowns in his first three years as a starter, before going down with a season-ending shoulder injury in the Fighting Scots' second game last September – the closest either comes to replicating anything you'd see in an real game is McEntee's blindfolded pass routes. Advantage: Push. If I had to offer either a scholarship based on their YouTube submissions, it would probably come down to who had the better 40 time. Because we're running the option, son.
So there you have it: When you break it down scientifically, Johnny McEntee remains the true Jedi master of the burgeoning art form of trick-shot quarterbacking, mainly by virtue of being first.
Thus completes the 2011 edition of "Trick Shot Quarterbacks." Unless you're dropping a ball into a basketball hoop mounted in the back of a moving pickup truck while a) Skydiving or b) Riding an angry bull, horse or something from the family of large, predatory cats, please, save yourself the effort. Don't you have a test to study for or something?
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Hat tip: @GabetheWP, via @davidubben.
Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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Podcast: Hank Aaron talks baseball cards, home runs and Jeter
We've had a few cool Stewcast guests in our day — Dennis Eckersley, Freddy Sanchez, Craig Finn — but surely none of them will disagree that this week's "Why Is This News? guest trumps all of them combined.
Really, about the only way we'll ever equal our session with Hank Aaron on Wednesday is if he tells his friend Willie Mays about the enjoyable time he had appearing on WITN and recommends that he also get on the horn with Jay Busbee and me.
Mr. Aaron is currently doing some promotional work for Topps' 60th anniversary set — you might have just seen him on David Letterman — and he was extremely gracious in his time with us.
Over a memorable 15 minutes, we discuss ...
• Baseball cards and how Mr. Aaron saw them increase in popularity over the span of his career and beyond. (That's his 1954 Topps rookie to the right.)
• Which current player would have had enough mental fortitude to deal with the difficult march that Mr. Aaron made toward Babe Ruth's record of 714 career home runs.
• His plans if A-Rod comes close to breaking Barry Bonds' record of 762.
• Whether or not Pete Rose should be in the Hall of Fame.
... and much, much more including Jay and I both taking a moment to turn into fawning Chris Farleys while relating a few personal reflections. (Busbee talks about his connection to No. 715, while I tell a story about a very overdue library book that was a staple for me in second grade and helped grow my love for baseball. Busbee's wife calls the tale "charming.")
As I say near the end of the interview, it was an absolute honor and highlight to talk with Mr. Aaron — you really can't address him by anything else, can you? — and hopefully that comes through in our conversation. Hopefully you enjoy it as much as we did.
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To play the podcast, click the link below or save it on your computer. You can also click on the iTunes button below (or right here) to subscribe through iTunes, or the RSS button below (or right here) to run the feed to other players.
Why Is This News 32--Hank Aaron
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Meet the New Boss: Grading the under-40 coaching hires
A weeklong grade book for the offseason coaching hires. Part One: Established head coaches moving up the career ladder. Part Two: Old faces resurfacing in new places. Today: Up-and-comers in their first head-coaching jobs.
• DAVID SHAW (Stanford).
Age: 38.
Replacing: NFL-bound Jim Harbaugh, resurrector of Stanford Football from a 1-11 catastrophe in 2006 to 12-1 juggernaut four short years later. Only the most staggering program rehabilitation this side of Bill Snyder's miracle at Kansas State, and much faster.
Previously on: Shaw grew up with coaching – his dad, Willie Shaw, bounced all over the country as a college and NFL assistant for 30 years – and didn't take long to catch as the Oakland Raiders' quarterbacks coach at age 28. (His successor in Oakland? Jim Harbaugh.) Shaw joined Harbaugh's staff at the University of San Diego in 2006, and subsequently followed him a year later to Stanford, where he's spent the last four years as offensive coordinator.
Best resumé line(s): The year before Shaw took over the offense, Stanford was dead last in the Pac-10 in every major offensive category, finished 118th (out of 119) nationally in total and scoring offense and allowed more sacks than any other team in the country. Last year, the Cardinal averaged over 450 yards and 40 points per game, allowed fewer sacks than all but one other team nationally and sent the Heisman runner-up to New York for the second year in a row.
Biggest drawback: No head coaching experience at any level.
Stopping point or stepping stone? Shaw spent eight years on three different NFL staffs from 1998-2005, and no doubt will subject to rumors of a return to the pros if he sustains the Cardinal's success. With the exception of Tyrone Willingham, coaches who win at Stanford don't stay long – Bill Walsh was gone to the 49ers after two years, Dennis Green to the Vikings after three, Harbaugh to the 49ers after four – and even Willingham eventually left for Notre Dame.
But Shaw is also a Stanford alum (class of '94), and even sustained success over the next few years will come with the caveat that he's taking advantage of Harbaugh's infrastructure. Those two factors alone could keep him in the fold for at least five years.
Grade: A. In the short-term, Shaw offers stability for a serious run at the Pac-12 and possibly BCS championships with star quarterback Andrew Luck back in the fold this fall. In the long-term, he's been around the block, but still has roots in Palo Alto that should keep him from leaping at the first offer that comes his way. In-house promotions don't get much better.
• WILL MUSCHAMP (Florida).
Age: 39.
Replacing: Urban Meyer, owner of two SEC championships, two BCS championships and one very long shadow after just six years on the job.
Previously on: Muschamp comes from Texas, where he was groomed for three years to take over for Mack Brown at some point in the as-yet unforeseeable future. But his big break really came under Nick Saban, who hired the unknown Muschamp as linebackers coach in 2001, promoted him to defensive coordinator in 2002 and brought him to the NFL for a two-year stint with the Miami Dolphins.
Best resumé line(s): Besides his willingness to wallow in blood and unleash booming expletives from the sideline, Muschamp's defenses have always backed him up with sound and fury of their own. At LSU, he oversaw three straight top-10 seasons in both total and scoring defense from 2002-04, including a No. 1 finish in both categories en route to a BCS championship in 2003. His defenses at Auburn under Tommy Tuberville were also top-10 efforts, helping the Tigers win 20 games in 2006-07 – including back-to-back wins over Florida – despite rolling out one of the SEC's limpest offenses both years.
At Texas, he unleashed a fast, aggressive D that led the nation in sacks in 2008 and then finished No. 1 against the run in 2009, on teams that combined to go 26-2 with top-five landings in the final polls. Even last year, amid the Longhorns' stunning collapse to 5-7, Muschamp's defense led the Big 12 in yards allowed.
Biggest drawback: No head coaching experience at any level.
Stopping point or stepping stone? Muschamp's brief foray into the NFL shouldn't fool anyone: He's a college coach, and an SEC coach, at that. Florida is a destination job in his hometown, and he should be around as long as they'll have him.
Grade: A–. The minus is mainly in deference to the expectations that come with succeeding Meyer, as tough an act as there could possibly be to follow in the business. But Muschamp was already prepared to follow one of the few contemporaries who comes close at Texas, and would already be a year or two into another high-profile job if the Longhorns hadn't pulled out the stops to keep him for as long they did. If there was anyone in the country worthy of a job as prestigious as Florida as his first head coaching gig, he's obviously the guy.
• HUGH FREEZE (Arkansas State).
Age: 40, though technically he does not age inside his cryogenic suit.
Replacing: Steve Roberts, whose nine-year stint from 2002-10 marks him as the second-longest-tenured head coach in Arkansas State history, and … well, that's about it. Freeze joined Roberts' staff last year as offensive coordinator.
Previously on: Freeze is best known as Michael Oher's head coach at Briarcrest Christian School in Memphis, Tenn., from 2003-05, as depicted in the bestselling book/hit movie "The Blind Side," where Freeze's character ("Coach Burt Cotton") is frequently upstaged in his duties by Sandra Bullock. (In reality, Freeze won two state championships at Briarcrest and was Region 8-AA Coach of the Year five times.) Freeze's relationship with Oher prompted an NCAA investigation when he joined Ed Orgeron's staff at Ole Miss three weeks after Oher signed with the Rebels in 2005. Technically, Arkansas State is Freeze's second college head coaching job: He spent two years as the top dog at Lambuth, an NAIA school in Jackson, Tenn., before signing on at ASU.
Best resumé line(s): Freeze was 20-5 at Lambuth, including an 11-0 regular season, NAIA playoff appearance and No. 6 final ranking in 2009.
Biggest drawback: He has exceedingly little experience at the Division I level (FBS or FCS), and the D-I teams he has worked for have combined to go 14-33 in four seasons.
Stopping point or stepping stone? Freeze didn't leave a wildly successful high school gig to coach in the Sun Belt. A couple winning records – Arkansas State hasn't finished better than .500 since 1987, five years before it moved up to Division I-A – and he's on his way up the ladder.
Grade: B–. Freeze has a good track record as a head coach on (much) lower levels and should know the Arkansas/Mississippi/Tennessee Delta region like the back of his hand. That may be faint praise, but frankly, it's about as good as Arkansas State is going to get.
• DAVE DOEREN (Northern Illinois).
Age: 39.
Replacing: Jerry Kill, who moved on to take over Minnesota after leading NIU to three straight bowl games and matching a new school record for wins in a season (10) last year.
Previously on: Doeren spent the last decade moving up the ladder from Montana to Kansas to Wisconsin, where he served as Bret Bielema's defensive coordinator for the last five years.
Best resumé line(s): His first defense at Wisconsin led the nation against the pass and finished in the top five in total and scoring D en route to a 12-1, top-five finish in 2006.
Biggest drawback: Bielema, a former defensive coordinator himself, always got most of the credit for the Badger D – and that wasn't always very much, considering it's only been an above-average unit at best over the last four years.
Stopping point or stepping stone? Doeren is young, comes from back-to-back stops at bigger programs and has no ties to Northern Illinois or the MAC. He'll be on the first bus out to a "Big Six" conference job.
Grade: C+. There's nothing bad to say about Doeren, except that there's not much to say at all. His resumé is short and bland. Then again, vanilla seems to suit NIU just fine.
• JAMES FRANKLIN (Vanderbilt).
Age: Just turned 39.
Replacing: Longtime Vandy assistant Robbie Caldwell, who could charm the pants off the media but turned out to be a pretty awkward fit in the top job after head coach Bobby Johnson abruptly retired last summer. The school officially dropped the interim tag from Caldwell's title in August, but not really: He was out – seemingly by mutual agreement – on the heels of a seven-game losing streak.
Previously on: Franklin spent eight of the last 11 years on Ralph Friedgen's staff at Maryland, the last three as offensive coordinator, and was tapped to succeed Friedgen in 2009. The problem: The athletic director who oversaw that arrangement, Debbie Yow, left last year, and her replacement, Kevin Anderson, clearly wanted no part of it. When it was clear Friedgen planned to return for the final year of his contract in 2011, Franklin took the opportunity to jump ship – allowing Anderson to take the opportunity to dump Friedgen and bring in his own man, Randy Edsall.
Best resumé line(s): Convinced Maryland he was coveted enough by the NFL to guarantee him the head coaching job as an incentive to stay.
Biggest drawback: Franklin's attacks since returning to Maryland have ranked 68th, 102nd and 80th nationally in total offense.
Stopping point or stepping stone? Considering he was in line for a more attractive job, Franklin is a good candidate to bolt if he has any success whatsoever with the SEC's perpetual doormat. Considering how unlikely success is, though, and how slow Vanderbilt typically is to fire coaches who didn't begin their professional as turkey inseminators, he may be around awhile.
Grade: C+. "Guy who was going to take over at Maryland" is a pretty good get for Vanderbilt. But Franklin doesn't have any specific success on his resumé that suggests he's going to fare better here than anyone else over the last 30 years.
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Matt Hinton is on Twitter: Follow him @DrSaturday.
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