SportsFilter: Thescoop's blog

QB turns grayshirt into NFL internship

thescoop — Wed, 23 Jun 2004 09:09:04 -0400

Paul Suhey signed with Penn State this spring but won't be in State College this fall. Instead, as a "grayshirt," he'll be in Detroit, where former Nittany Lion Matt Millen got him an internship with the Lions. "So, while other players around the country in the same situation live at home and work out on their own or go to school part time and pay their own way, Kevin Suhey will be an intern with the Lions, working in the equipment department. When he's not working, he will be throwing passes to professional receivers before practice, sitting in on quarterbacks meetings and working out in an NFL weight room."

More than three years ago, Clemson tailback Javis Austin put a gun to his head and pulled the trigger.

thescoop — Sun, 11 May 2003 19:50:49 -0400

Now, nearly blind but a college graduate, the former prep star tells the story of his suicide attempt, his recovery and his bitterness toward Clemson coach Tommy Bowden, who demoted Austin from his starting job. Nice piece of writing by Bob Gillespie of The State.

The Chicago Cubs: Baseball's Enron?

thescoop — Thu, 01 May 2003 16:05:25 -0400

Seems the Cubbies are taking advantage of Illinois' scalping law to "sell" $45 tickets to their games to a brokerage agency staffed by team executives. The broker can sell the tickets for up to $1,500 a pop. Under baseball's revenue sharing plan, the Cubs should send 30 percent of revenues into the pot, but selling the tickets to the agency means they contribute 30 percent of $45, not $1,500.

The next LeBron James is coming.

thescoop — Sun, 27 Apr 2003 20:19:03 -0400

O.J. Mayo, a 6-5, 15-year-old point guard from Ashland, Kentucky, is transferring to Cincinnati's North College Hill School. "North College Hill is already bracing for what could be an unprecedented media storm, at least on the Cincinnati prep level. Mayo's games routinely sold out Rose Hill's 1,000-seat gym, and NCH is already thinking of moving games from its similar-sized gym to larger venues."

The Life of an NBA Referee

thescoop — Wed, 23 Apr 2003 09:16:11 -0400

Today and Thursday the Sacramento Bee has a two-part series on the fishbowl professional life of NBA refs. "From within, where secrecy sometimes rules to such an extreme that the league won't release the annual salary ranges, the check-and-balance system is extensive." Bee reporter Scott Howard-Cooper got to spend a day with a game crew to prepare his stories.

Meet the "the nation's best player in the high school class of 2009."

thescoop — Mon, 24 Feb 2003 09:31:24 -0500

Kendall Marshall, all 5-foot-2 and 95 pounds of him, has been tabbed as the top sixth-grade basketball player in the nation by one recruiting analyst. He starts for his private school's varsity team and averages a team-high 12.8 points. Is this, as some folks say, cruel or just a result of a competitive recruiting industry? Or both?

Nebraska lawmaker pushing pay for college football players.

thescoop — Tue, 11 Feb 2003 11:30:05 -0500

Sure it's a familiar refrain, but I found it interesting that the chancellor of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, who appeared before a state legislative committee holding a hearing on the proposal, said he couldn't testify in support of the bill because doing so "would put Nebraska in violation of NCAA rules." Why can't college officials talk about this in a public forum?

It's Signing Day!

thescoop — Wed, 05 Feb 2003 12:51:43 -0500

College football fans, mostly slumbering for the past month, will take note of the high school seniors and junior college transfers that signed with their favorite teams today. More than 200 folks showed up at Georgia to see coaches tape the names of players who signed to a board, while other schools and players had less to celebrate: a WashPost story tells about Mike Hull, a Pitt signee who was involved in a car accident that killed another man and left Hull injured. The family of the man killed is suing Hull, and he could still face criminal charges. Pitt said it would honor his scholarship offer even if he cannot play.

Kansas high school coach paddles his players.

thescoop — Wed, 15 Jan 2003 09:41:40 -0500

Raytown South basketball coach Bud Lathrop has employed a wooden paddle to punish players during practice since the 1960s. This week he got a five-day suspension after he used the paddle on players in the presence of a newspaper reporter. Corporal punishment is outlawed by the school district. Six former players told the Kansas City Star that "the paddlings sometimes left red marks on their rears, but those went away after a few hours. Nobody reported knowing of anyone seriously hurt from the spankings."

Jeremy Bloom has a busy holiday schedule.

thescoop — Thu, 19 Dec 2002 13:40:33 -0500

The Colorado kick returner finished fourth today in a World Cup mogul skiing event in Finland, where he arrived earlier this week. He'll return to Colorado on Saturday and will travel to San Antonio for the Buffs' bowl game against Wisconsin. The next World Cup event is two weeks later in Quebec. "He skied only three times this fall before training sessions Tuesday and Wednesday in Finland," reports the Denver Post. And you thought you had to travel a lot for the holidays.

Don't send mail to Roy Williams.

thescoop — Tue, 10 Dec 2002 16:06:14 -0500

From the Lawrence (Kan.) Journal-World: "All mail sent to Roy Williams' office will be treated as junk the rest of this season. Cards and letters will either pile up on the Kansas University basketball coach's couch or be tossed into the circular file - the waste basket. 'I'm never reading another piece of mail,' Williams said calmly Monday at his weekly news conference." Somebody sent him some critical comments after the Jayhawks got off to a 3-3 start, so Roy won't read his mail. My question is, why would he even bother to make the announcement? I just assumed most coaches/players don't read much of their fan mail.

thescoop — Tue, 10 Dec 2002 09:23:43 -0500

College Football Weekly RoundupAs the Oregonian's Ryan White put it: "What did we learn Saturday? That Miami's Willis McGahee is good?" Ah yes, the BCS has set up a true national title game. Now quit that bitching about having two Rose Bowls (is that really such a bad thing?). (more inside)

thescoop — Tue, 03 Dec 2002 09:40:52 -0500

College Football Weekly Report Fans of a national title game can say the BCS works: Miami, should it beat Virginia Tech this week, will play Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl. Pretty much everyone else can make a case that the BCS doesn't work so well. (more inside)

thescoop — Tue, 26 Nov 2002 09:44:46 -0500

College Football Report, Nov. 26All is right in the BCS world, thanks to Ohio State squeaking by Michigan on Saturday. That sets up a Fiesta Bowl matchup with Miami, provided the Canes take care of business against Syracuse and Virginia Tech (they should). more inside...

thescoop — Tue, 19 Nov 2002 08:19:00 -0500

College Football Wrap-Up, Nov. 19 Top Teams: A quiet weekend on the BCS front, with the exception of Ohio State's too-close-for-comfort win over Illinois. While some folks correctly projected the Buckeyes would lose ground to Miami (who did not play and hosts Pitt on Thursday) in the BCS standings, the difference is so slim it could reverse next week. But beware: the Buckeyes would throw the BCS standings for a loop if they lose to Michigan on Saturday. Conferences: Big 12: Texas Tech ran Texas out of the Big 12 championship race on Saturday with its spread offense and aims for Oklahoma this weekend. A win would put the Red Raiders in the conference title game on Dec. 7, despite four losses. Their opponent? Colorado, who behind a tremendous running game is also something of a bounce-back team this year. Buff fans might rather a second crack at Oklahoma, but that could be riskier from a bowl standpoint. Staying in the Big 12 for a moment, it has gotten this bad at Nebraska: the school is pushing punter Kyle Larson for all-conference honors. And he's the only NU offensive player that has a shot. Big Ten: Iowa (11-1), the season's newest darling, blasted Minnesota to finish unbeaten in the Big Ten for the first time since 1922, but won't play Ohio State this year -- unless, as Andrew Bagnato points out, they meet in a bowl game. That would require some help from the PAC-10, but it could happen. Also, Michigan has to beat the Buckeyes this weekend (but don't say "spoiler"). ACC: Isn't it basketball season? Florida State, despite what October told us. PAC-10: A bizarre attempted coup in Arizona fizzled and the Wildcats got their first conference win this year. The only teams that matter now are Washington State and USC, both of which face rivalry games. Look Ahead: Aside from Michigan-OSU, this week has some good matchups. There's the Apple Cup, where host Washington State is favored over Washington for just the sixth time in 46 seasons. UCLA's seniors have one last chance to beat USC. Or see how a wounded Auburn team recovers from losing to Georgia when it travels to Birmingham for the Iron Bowl. All Alabama did last week was dominate the nation's top defense against LSU. And all Georgia did was finally win the SEC East. By the Numbers: Saturday was a big offensive day: Penn State's Larry Johnson ran for 327 against Indiana. It was the third time this year he set the school's single-game record (hello, Heisman voters?). Arizona didn't need the run against California, winning 52-41 despite rushing for -5 yards. "They have an excellent receiving corps," Cal's Jeff Tedford said. Really, coach? But the stat of the week belongs to College of Marin quarterback Geary Davenport, who completed 44 of 64 passes for 781 yards and nine touchdowns. His team lost, 72-69.