USC & KIFFIN SUED, DEZ SAYS NO TO HAZING, SERGIO SERIOUSLY INJURED, VICK IN THE CLEAR & I GUESS I'M A LAKER FAN AGAIN
I told you over the weekend Jeff Fisher & the Titans management were really ticked off at Lane Kiffin stealing a coach from the Titan staff just six days before camp opened. He was upset Kiffin never called to ask permission to speak with running backs coach Kennedy Pola, it's always been considered a professional courtesy. Well the Titans just announced they are filing suit against USC, Kiffin & Pola. Coaches break their contracts all the time for better jobs, but it has to be with the approval of whatever team said coach is currently employed with. Fisher is a USC alum, another reason he felt slighted. It will be interesting to see how new athletic director Pat Haden handles this newest mess Kiffin has created. The State of Tennessee is probably rejoicing, geographically, this is Kiffin's least popular spot on the map after he repeatedly embarrassed himself & the program in his one season as Volunteer head coach. Those bad feelings toward Kiffin amped way up when he walked out on the Tennessee program to coach the Trojans. I doubt he'll be there long. When Al Davis canned Kiffin, I thought it was Al being Al, but now I'm fairly certain it was Kiffin being Kiffin.
One of the time honored traditions in NFL training camps is the rookie hazing rituals. They are forced to stand on their chairs in the dining hall & sing their school's fight song. They are ordered to pick up donuts or specialty coffees for the veteran players at their position. Usually once during camp they are tied to a goal post & then suffer thru being doused in ice water or just left out there while the team goes to the locker room. Friday, the day before Dallas' camp opened, #1 draft pick Dez Bryant told reporters that "starting isn't important right now, learning the offense & helping the team is more important." He said he could learn a lot from current Cowboy starting wideouts Miles Austin & Roy Williams, he would "listen to the veterans & soak up their knowledge." Yesterday, Roy Williams told Bryant to carry his pads to & from the locker room everyday until he was told to do otherwise, another common rookie task dictated by veteran players. Bryant refused saying "I'm here to play football, not be somebody's personal servant." So much for tradition, so much for respecting the veteran players, so much for keeping a low profile. Many of the veterans weren't impressed with Bryants' refusal. Roy Williams has been a major disappointment since owner Jerry Jones peddled 1st, 3rd & 5th round picks to Detroit for Williams. Then he signed Williams to a 6-year, $38 million contract. Williams caught only 38 passes last season for Dallas, not exactly the kind of production Jones had in mind when he pulled the trigger on this deal. Bryant was drafted to supplant Williams either now or certainly sometime soon. Their relationship has started off on the wrong foot to be sure, antagonizing other vets isn't smart either.
The last two teams that admitted they have an real interest in Terrell Owens, the Rams & Bengals, have been pared down to one, Cincinnati. The Rams backed off this morning. Cincinnati's owner, Mike Brown, said today "it's up to him, the ball is in his court", which leads me to believe they have offered Owens a contract. Quite simply, there isn't a big market for a locker room cancer who turns 37 in December. I didn't understand the interest from the Rams. If they intend to start rookie Sam Bradford at quarterback, why bring in a whiny, demanding, selfish, close to over-the-hill wideout to ruin Bradford's huddle? The Bengals always seem to take 2 steps forward followed by one large step backwards, this would fit the mold.
Ravens rookie Sergio Kindle sustained a serious head injury Thursday night when he fell down 2 flights of stairs in a friends' home. Kindle has a skull fracture & can't travel for at least three weeks, so it's pretty doubtful he will participate in much of Baltimore's training camp. He hadn't signed his rookie contract, he was the first of Baltimore's two 2nd round selections. The other, nose tackle Terrence Cody, signed today. Last year I told you about Kindle's bizarre accident on the Texas campus where he ran his car into an apartment, literally, his car was completely in the ground floor structure's living room. He told police the following day he was too tired to hang around waiting for them, so he went home & went to bed. No charges were filed, his insurance paid for everything. He was also cited for pot possession & a DUI on campus his sophomore year in Austin. So when he says he lost his way in the dark & fell down two flights of stairs, there's going to be more than a few people who doubt his story. This will be another blow to the Ravens chances this season, Kindle was expected to play in the regular linebacker rotation as well as special teams.
I mentioned the other day running back Harvey Unga was drafted in the NFL's supplemental draft last week & was already signed on Saturday. The other player selected in that draft was Illinois defensive tackle Josh Price-Brent. He signed Saturday & then promptly broke his hand yesterday. Great start to his pro career.
Florida State linebacker Nigel Carr was arrested yesterday for a one-man crime spree he unleashed in Tallahassee. Carr faces five felony charges, burglary(2 counts), property damage, theft of a credit card & fraud. New head coach Jimbo Fisher said he would refrain from suspending Carr until after he is arraigned, but that a "suspension is likely."
One more genius to update you on, Dolphin wide receiver Brian Hartline. Last week he crashed his pickup truck into a parked Escalade & then left the scene on foot. His attorney called the Florida Highway Patrol the following day to tell them Hartline would come by to answer questions about the hit & run incident. An FHP spokesman said today Hartline hadn't shown up as of this morning. What are they waiting for? A truck registered to Hartline was found imbedded in an Escalade, this is hardly the crime of the century, bring the guy in for questioning. If he doesn't give you the answers you're looking for, charge him like you would anyone else.
The NFL said today there was no evidence in the Michael Vick birthday party shooting pointing to Vick, so he's in the clear as far as the league is concerned. He still faces the re-opening of his bankruptcy case after more evidence was brought to light recently.
Way, way back when, I was a huge fan of the Los Angeles Lakers. When I was stationed outside L.A. back in '71, the Lakers had one of the great teams of all-time, Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Gail Goodrich, Terry McMillan, Happy Hairston, Pat Riley etc. The Lakers, then owned by Jack Kent Cooke, gave away a lot of free tickets to servicemen & they weren't nosebleed seats either, they were behind the baskets, really close to the endline. I attended a number of Laker games that season & became quite a fan. Later on in life, working on the Las Vegas Strip, I had occasion to have dealings with several Lakers as well as their current owner, Dr. Jerry Buss. Shaq was as nice a guy as I ever dealt with, the other players & their owner weren't so nice, one was insufferable, a gigantic pain in the ass. As my interest in the Lakers plummeted, so did my interest in NBA Basketball. Despite my total disdain for all things Lakers, for the last two seasons I've rooted like hell for the Lakers & I'll be pulling for them again next season. I'm certainly not a front-runner but I am loyal to my family. Yesterday, my niece Erin was selected to be a Laker Girl for the 3rd year in a row & since we love her dearly, we will grit our teeth & once again pull for the Los Angeles franchise. We're so happy for Erin, she really takes this job seriously & she's quite good at it, a talented dancer with such a positive attitude. Linda & I have four beautiful, caring, talented & intelligent nieces, Erica, Cara, Erin & Megan & proud of each one of them. Our five nephews are pretty great too. Here's a picture of our Laker Girl & her tired old uncle.
One of the time honored traditions in NFL training camps is the rookie hazing rituals. They are forced to stand on their chairs in the dining hall & sing their school's fight song. They are ordered to pick up donuts or specialty coffees for the veteran players at their position. Usually once during camp they are tied to a goal post & then suffer thru being doused in ice water or just left out there while the team goes to the locker room. Friday, the day before Dallas' camp opened, #1 draft pick Dez Bryant told reporters that "starting isn't important right now, learning the offense & helping the team is more important." He said he could learn a lot from current Cowboy starting wideouts Miles Austin & Roy Williams, he would "listen to the veterans & soak up their knowledge." Yesterday, Roy Williams told Bryant to carry his pads to & from the locker room everyday until he was told to do otherwise, another common rookie task dictated by veteran players. Bryant refused saying "I'm here to play football, not be somebody's personal servant." So much for tradition, so much for respecting the veteran players, so much for keeping a low profile. Many of the veterans weren't impressed with Bryants' refusal. Roy Williams has been a major disappointment since owner Jerry Jones peddled 1st, 3rd & 5th round picks to Detroit for Williams. Then he signed Williams to a 6-year, $38 million contract. Williams caught only 38 passes last season for Dallas, not exactly the kind of production Jones had in mind when he pulled the trigger on this deal. Bryant was drafted to supplant Williams either now or certainly sometime soon. Their relationship has started off on the wrong foot to be sure, antagonizing other vets isn't smart either.
The last two teams that admitted they have an real interest in Terrell Owens, the Rams & Bengals, have been pared down to one, Cincinnati. The Rams backed off this morning. Cincinnati's owner, Mike Brown, said today "it's up to him, the ball is in his court", which leads me to believe they have offered Owens a contract. Quite simply, there isn't a big market for a locker room cancer who turns 37 in December. I didn't understand the interest from the Rams. If they intend to start rookie Sam Bradford at quarterback, why bring in a whiny, demanding, selfish, close to over-the-hill wideout to ruin Bradford's huddle? The Bengals always seem to take 2 steps forward followed by one large step backwards, this would fit the mold.
Ravens rookie Sergio Kindle sustained a serious head injury Thursday night when he fell down 2 flights of stairs in a friends' home. Kindle has a skull fracture & can't travel for at least three weeks, so it's pretty doubtful he will participate in much of Baltimore's training camp. He hadn't signed his rookie contract, he was the first of Baltimore's two 2nd round selections. The other, nose tackle Terrence Cody, signed today. Last year I told you about Kindle's bizarre accident on the Texas campus where he ran his car into an apartment, literally, his car was completely in the ground floor structure's living room. He told police the following day he was too tired to hang around waiting for them, so he went home & went to bed. No charges were filed, his insurance paid for everything. He was also cited for pot possession & a DUI on campus his sophomore year in Austin. So when he says he lost his way in the dark & fell down two flights of stairs, there's going to be more than a few people who doubt his story. This will be another blow to the Ravens chances this season, Kindle was expected to play in the regular linebacker rotation as well as special teams.
I mentioned the other day running back Harvey Unga was drafted in the NFL's supplemental draft last week & was already signed on Saturday. The other player selected in that draft was Illinois defensive tackle Josh Price-Brent. He signed Saturday & then promptly broke his hand yesterday. Great start to his pro career.
Florida State linebacker Nigel Carr was arrested yesterday for a one-man crime spree he unleashed in Tallahassee. Carr faces five felony charges, burglary(2 counts), property damage, theft of a credit card & fraud. New head coach Jimbo Fisher said he would refrain from suspending Carr until after he is arraigned, but that a "suspension is likely."
One more genius to update you on, Dolphin wide receiver Brian Hartline. Last week he crashed his pickup truck into a parked Escalade & then left the scene on foot. His attorney called the Florida Highway Patrol the following day to tell them Hartline would come by to answer questions about the hit & run incident. An FHP spokesman said today Hartline hadn't shown up as of this morning. What are they waiting for? A truck registered to Hartline was found imbedded in an Escalade, this is hardly the crime of the century, bring the guy in for questioning. If he doesn't give you the answers you're looking for, charge him like you would anyone else.
The NFL said today there was no evidence in the Michael Vick birthday party shooting pointing to Vick, so he's in the clear as far as the league is concerned. He still faces the re-opening of his bankruptcy case after more evidence was brought to light recently.
Way, way back when, I was a huge fan of the Los Angeles Lakers. When I was stationed outside L.A. back in '71, the Lakers had one of the great teams of all-time, Wilt Chamberlain, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Gail Goodrich, Terry McMillan, Happy Hairston, Pat Riley etc. The Lakers, then owned by Jack Kent Cooke, gave away a lot of free tickets to servicemen & they weren't nosebleed seats either, they were behind the baskets, really close to the endline. I attended a number of Laker games that season & became quite a fan. Later on in life, working on the Las Vegas Strip, I had occasion to have dealings with several Lakers as well as their current owner, Dr. Jerry Buss. Shaq was as nice a guy as I ever dealt with, the other players & their owner weren't so nice, one was insufferable, a gigantic pain in the ass. As my interest in the Lakers plummeted, so did my interest in NBA Basketball. Despite my total disdain for all things Lakers, for the last two seasons I've rooted like hell for the Lakers & I'll be pulling for them again next season. I'm certainly not a front-runner but I am loyal to my family. Yesterday, my niece Erin was selected to be a Laker Girl for the 3rd year in a row & since we love her dearly, we will grit our teeth & once again pull for the Los Angeles franchise. We're so happy for Erin, she really takes this job seriously & she's quite good at it, a talented dancer with such a positive attitude. Linda & I have four beautiful, caring, talented & intelligent nieces, Erica, Cara, Erin & Megan & proud of each one of them. Our five nephews are pretty great too. Here's a picture of our Laker Girl & her tired old uncle.
Comments