Congrats on a truly tall accomplishment by my West Coast brother!
Friday, December 12, 2014
Wednesday, December 10, 2014
ISU Redbirds Win Rematch In Football Playoff, Reach National Quarterfinals
Unthinkable when I was an undergrad there. Go 'Birds!
NORMAL — Tre Roberson attributes his performance Saturday at Hancock Stadium to simply being "more comfortable in the offense."
With Roberson battering the Northern Iowa secondary for a career-high 382 yards passing and four touchdowns, Illinois State moved comfortably into the quarterfinals of the FCS playoffs.
Roberson engineered touchdown drives on the Redbirds' first three possessions, and ISU survived three second-half lost fumbles to dispatch UNI, 41-21, in a second round playoff game before a crowd of 5,575.
"The last game I didn't take advantage of what I was given," Roberson said of completing 15 of 35 for 127 yards in a 42-28 loss at Northern Iowa on Nov. 1. "We played pretty well on offense. The offensive line blocked very well."
With its 13th consecutive victory at Hancock Stadium, No. 7-ranked ISU tied the school record for wins in a season while advancing to 11-1. The Redbirds meet No. 4 Eastern Washington (11-2) at 3 p.m. (Central) Saturday in a quarterfinal matchup in Cheney, Wash.
"We played pretty well in all phases," said ISU coach Brock Spack. "It was rewarding we played better. We didn't play like us the last time. We were the better team today. It's satisfying. These guys deserve it."
The Redbirds riddled a UNI defense that had surrendered an average of 295.5 yards for 564 yards of total offense. Junior tailback Marshaun Coprich set the ISU single-season rushing record (1,831 yards) while compiling 148 on 30 attempts.
"They had a better plan. They executed well," Panthers' coach Mark Farley said. "He (Roberson) made throws and completed passes he didn't the last time. He did a nice job. We couldn't get them out of rhythm."
Roberson found Jon-Marc Anderson for a 24-yard completion on the initial play from scrimmage and connected with Cameron Meredith on a slant for the final 6 yards of a 73-yard march.
A 21-yard Coprich run while dragging UNI tacklers the final few yards and a 28-yard completion to Anderson set up Coprich's 1-yard touchdown surge for a 14-0 Redbird lead.
Meredith snared a 2-yard scoring pass from Roberson to cap a 15-play, 87-yard ISU drive that forged a 21-0 margin early in the second quarter.
"He (cornerback Makinton Dorleant) played it deep, and I cut across his face," said Meredith, who hauled in seven Roberson passes for 115 yards. "Tre got us the ball, and we were able to make moves in space."
ISU closed the first half with a gaudy 345-52 advantage in total offense. Nick Aussieker's 45-yard field goal at the halftime horn sent the Redbirds into the locker room embracing a 24-0 lead.
Farley benched quarterback Brion Carnes, who had completed 4 of 12 passes for 36 yards, in favor of Sawyer Kollmorgen for the second half.
Kollmorgen immediately got the Panthers (9-5) on the scoreboard with a 75-yard drive. Kollmorgen scooped up a fumbled exchange with tailback David Johnson and took it 3 yards for a touchdown.
The Redbirds inflated their edge to 34-7 with a 39-yard Aussieker field goal and a 26-yard scoring toss to tight end James O'Shaughnessy before ISU sloppiness gave UNI an opening.
Johnson charged 2 yards for a touchdown after the Panthers' Ray Buchanan Jr. recovered a Lechein Neblett fumble.
ISU's Tevin Allen mishandled the ensuing kickoff, Deiondre' Hall fell on it and UNI scored its second touchdown in 34 seconds on a 20-yard pass from Kollmorgen to Brett LeMaster to pull within 34-21 with 11:23 remaining.
"We haven’t panicked all year," Spack said. "I don't think the players ever lost their poise."
Roberson lost a fumble pounced upon by Max Busher, but Kollmorgen threw four straight incomplete passes from the ISU 30-yard line.
UNI's last gasp was a lateral from Kollmorgen to LeMaster, who tried to pass back to Kollmorgen. Redbird defensive end Teddy Corwin intercepted the trick play with 2:58 to play.
Roberson located O'Shaughnessy over the middle for a 36-yard connection at the 2:04 mark for the final touchdown.
"No one got nervous or frustrated," Roberson said of the Panthers' rally. "We have a lot of guys who have played a lot of football."
Kollmorgen passed for 234 yards while completing 18 of 31 second-half passes. ISU held Payton Award finalist Johnson to 48 yards on 18 carries.
NCHS Ironmen Start Fast, Coast To 6th Straight Win
NORMAL — Getting off to a fast start was something Normal Community High School's undefeated basketball team stressed Tuesday night.
Once the Ironmen accomplished that they didn't let off the accelerator, either.
Fueled by a 14-0 opening surge, NCHS kept coming at Limestone in a nonconference game. Zach Thompson's 13 points paced the Ironmen, ranked No. 7 in the Class 4A state poll, to an easy 62-29 victory at the NCHS Gym.
"We've had a couple slow starts before that. Just getting off to a quick start definitely was a momentum builder," said Thompson, a senior guard who went 5 of 7 from the field. "I thought our team handled that really well, just keep pushing the intensity the whole game."
Thompson was the only player to score in double figures for NCHS (6-0), which didn't need a lot of production from stars Alex Peacock (six points) and Tyler Seibring (four). There were 11 Ironmen players who had baskets.
"We have other guys who can score. Ty and Alex didn't have to carry the load which they've been doing for us," said NCHS coach Dave Witzig. "It was a good opportunity for other guys to step in there and make some good plays."
Limestone (3-4) dug itself a huge hole by missing its first five shots and committing three turnovers.
When David Boyd scored on a fast-break layup, the Ironmen were two touchdowns ahead with three minutes left in the first quarter.
"There have been some games they've been able to score well and their point guard (Chris Dixon-Williams) is really quick," said Witzig. "I thought we did a great job on him. David Boyd, Tyler Vance and Duane Farrington did a good job kind of tag-teaming him."
Limestone finally scored with 2:51 left in the first quarter on Calvin Peacock's 3-pointer. The Rockets trailed 18-7 heading into the second quarter before NCHS scored the first 12 points en route to a 35-11 halftime lead.
The Ironmen outscored Limestone, 12-2, in the first five minutes of the third quarter as Witzig pulled his starters early.
Austin Wood, who didn't play until the second half, led Limestone with nine points.
NCHS has one more game, Dec. 19 at Big 12 Conference-newcomer Peoria Central, before the State Farm Holiday Classic. The Ironmen are the No. 1 seed in the large school division.
Jeff Samardzija Joins White Sox
CHICAGO -- Jeff Samardzija on the Chicago White Sox is a deal that passes the smell test.
As in, the native son of Northwest Indiana and erstwhile Chicago Cub actually likes the fragrant odors of the South Side.
"It's just so close to home," Samardzija said in September when his Oakland A's were in town to play the White Sox. "You go out and step in the outfield to shag, or pitching, or whatever you're doing outside, you take a deep breath and it smells like I'm on the Valparaiso High School field playing."
Breathe it in, Sox fans. A blockbuster Tuesday at the winter meetings and it smells like ... hope?
Give the White Sox, who have had back-to-back terrible seasons, credit. They might draw like a small-market team, but they act like a big-market one.
[+] Enlarge
Brian Kersey/Getty ImagesJeff Samardzija pitched for the Cubs from 2008 to '14, but he grew up a White Sox fan.
No, that's not a dig at the Cubs, just the truth for a team that is a perennial second banana in its own market, struggling nowadays to draw 20,000 a game and get anyone besides friends and family to watch one on TV. Losing 188 games in the past two seasons hasn't helped.
Rumored for days and all-but official Monday, the Samardzija trade, a handful of prospects for one year of "Shark" and pitching prospect Michael Ynoa, is just the latest example of the Sox acting like they own the city.
Of course, all the bluster rarely turns into playoff seasons.
No one expected much from the 2005 White Sox, who will be feted at SoxFest this year, but the Sox have made the playoffs only once in the ensuing decade.
While activity and achievement don't always mix, it's always better to be active than inert.
And no, that's not a shot at the Cubs.
Seemingly every offseason, whether it's vice president Kenny Williams or general manager Rick Hahn running the show, the Sox pull off some unexpected, brassy trade or spend too much on a free-agent need and everyone gets all goosed up around Chicago.
Jose Abreu turned out way better than advertised last season, and Chris Sale was a Cy Young candidate, but the Sox still stunk, losing 89 games.
This winter, it's all about the additions of Samardzija and closer David Robertson, a free agent who will sign for $46 million over four years -- or about $7 million more than the Sox will pay Abreu over the same period.
On Tuesday morning, before either deal was announced by the team, pitching coach Don Cooper got on the radio with his heavy-breathing excitement, and Williams made his media rounds, took his bows and promised an exciting team on the South Side, tickets still available.
Hey, I'd be excited too if I were Williams and Cooper.
But this isn't a new story. Whenever this happens, we draw the provincial lines between the Go-Go, 2005 World Series-champion, perennial underdog Sox and the rich North Side, underachieving Cubs. People choose sides, argue and we all realize it can be fun to live in a thriving baseball town.
And then, the baseball season starts. The Sox disappoint, 18,000 fans show up for weekday games -- maybe 23,000 when Sale starts -- and we spin the wheel again the following winter.
"This time, we'll get it right!"
But you can't let past results get you down. I think it's in the Grinder Rules somewhere. Oh, here it is. Grinder Rule 137: Past is prologue.
Cynicism aside, I love the Samardzija deal, even on a one-year rental before he tests free agency.
The 29-year-old right-hander (he turns 30 in January) joins lefties Sale, Jose Quintana, John Danks and, likely, thrilling left-handed rookie Carlos Rodon in what should be one of baseball's best rotations.
Samardzija will start the season behind the ace, Sale, and in front of Quintana in the rotation, giving the Sox a one-two-three punch that will frustrate opposing hitters. Imagine if Rodon is as good as advertised and is the No. 5 starter?
Scary to think about, and with a few holes still on offense, not to mention a potentially shoddy defense, the Sox will need these guys to dominate.
"I think we're going to be the most competitive rotation in the league and I mean that internally," Samardzija said on his conference call. "Obviously I have high hopes for how we're going to perform on the field. The best rotations are made when there's three or four guys that want to be the best."
Obviously, the geographical ties are the story with this move.
Samardzija grew up a Sox fan in Valparaiso, Indiana, so this is a dream come true. He said his Sox fandom is a "connection you have to a time that dates way back, really down to your core," and that will affect him with a sense of pride on the mound.
A local kid playing Notre Dame football and then for the Cubs and White Sox? He joked he might have to lace up his old cleats and get a few games in with the Bears.
The White Sox open the season at Kansas City and Samardzija said he promises he will be wearing the black jersey for that one. He wants the black striped uniform at home.
"I'm more excited to don the hat," he said. "I've owned a few of those in my day. It's going to feel real good to get that 7 3/8 formed to my head."
Samardzija has spoken lovingly and with great humor of TV broadcaster Hawk Harrelson in the past, poking fun at his penchant for silence when things go awry. He's thrilled about hearing Hawk call his games, too.
"I'm really thinking about these interleague games," he said. "I got to get some at-bats at a National League club. I got to hit a homer just so I can get it on tape with his call. He's not going to have to say 'stretch,' because that thing is going to be way over the wall, but you know what I mean."
Now if Samardzija wants franchise pitcher money, he's likely moving on after this season, but he said the Sox would've been on his radar no matter what.
The Sox have to win now, every year, if they want to lure fans to the Cell. If they can win, that gives them better odds to land Samardzija for the future.
Samardzija said after talking to Hahn, and watching previous moves like the signings of Adam LaRoche and Zach Duke, he's confident the Sox are ready to "win now, not in the future."
The pitcher clarified that's not a dig at the Cubs, who traded him to Oakland last July after he starred on the awful first three teams of the Theo Epstein regime. But he's admitted frustration with the Cubs' losing in the past, while praising the rebuilding plan.
"I just think with the parity in professional sports, every year you should be competing to win because everything's so close," he said.
Samardzija is a winner, which is why then-general manager Jim Hendry threw so much money at him to give up football and pitch full-time. He thought Samardzija was a big city, bright lights kind of player. The gambit paid off, albeit after Hendry was fired. Samardzija is a franchise pitcher.
Now it's come full circle. Samardzija is back from "his trip out West," ready to reclaim a slice of home.
Jon Lester Joins Cubs
Prized free agent Jon Lester agreed to a six-year, $155 million contract with the Chicago Cubson Tuesday, sources told Yahoo Sports, launching the upstart Cubs’ return to the high-end free-agent market and rewarding the 31-year-old left-hander with the second-highest average annual salary ever for a starting pitcher.
Throughout the process, Lester was tugged in all different directions. Toward the Northeast, where his fond memories of two World Series victories with Boston carried great sentiment despite a lowball contract offer last spring that ultimately led to his trade to Oakland over the summer – and the free agency that turned him into one of the highest-paid pitchers ever. Toward the West, where the Giants, champions three times in the last five seasons, nearly poached Lester with the allure of their success. Even toward the South, where the Atlanta Braves could have made a run at Lester, who lives about 20 minutes from the site of their planned stadium and liked the idea of staying home.
Ultimately, he went to the North Side of Chicago, where he’ll join a reinvigorated franchise intent on winning its first World Series in more than 100 years. The young core put together by Epstein and Hoyer is unmatched in baseball, from first baseman Anthony Rizzo and shortstop Starlin Castro – youthful veterans with incredibly team-friendly contracts – to the swell of prospects on the come: third baseman Kris Bryant, shortstop Addison Russell, outfielder Jorge Soler, second baseman Javier Baez, utilityman Arismendy Alcantara, catcher Kyle Schwarber, outfielder Albert Almora and more.
The Cubs’ familiarity with Lester led them to bump their first offer of six years and $135 million up to $155 million – with a seventh-year vesting option – which puts Lester below only Clayton Kershaw in terms of annual salary among pitchers. He’s expected to start the first game of the major league season, a Sunday night affair against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 5, and front a rotation that includes breakout star Jake Arrieta, Kyle Hendricks, Tsuyoshi Wada and the just-signed Jason Hammel.
“I want to feel wanted,” Lester said at the outset of free agency. “I want to go to a place that appreciates what I do on the field and off the field, as far as with our charitable work, how we represent the team in the community.”
Over his nine years in Boston, Lester was a paragon in both areas. After beating lymphoma at 22 years old, he returned to win the clinching game of the 2007 World Series. He pitched even more brilliantly in the 2013 postseason and won his second championship before turning in his best year as a professional in 2014: a career-high 219 2/3 innings with a 2.46 ERA between Boston and Oakland.
All the while, Lester became a great ally of the pediatric cancer community with the NVRQT campaign. During meetings with teams, he stressed the importance of his charity work. The Cubs’ emphasis on it during their mid-November meeting – while most of his other get-togethers included strictly ownership and baseball-operations people, Chicago brought in community-relations personnel – stuck with Lester, as did the straightforwardness of Epstein and Hoyer.
“The thing I liked about ’em is it wasn’t forced and wasn’t a sales pitch,” Lester said after his meeting with the Cubs. “It was like, ‘This is what we can do.’ I don’t want BS. I don’t want show. I don’t want glitz and glamour. I don’t want to walk out to the field with your name and number on the JumboTron. I’m not 18 anymore. I want you to tell me what you can do for me and my family.”
Over the final days of negotiations leading up to this week’s Winter Meetings, the bidding turned feverish. Boston owner John Henry flew to Atlanta for a meeting with Lester, trying to personally persuade him to return to Boston after the team bungled its negotiations with him last season by offering a four-year, $70 million extension. San Francisco added the seventh year, a potential trump card, especially after Giants brass and franchise player Buster Posey wowed Lester during a meeting at his home.
Lester ached over the choice, aware each came with benefits and detriments. He made lists with pros and cons, talked it over with his wife, Farrah, and decided on a new home: the renovated Wrigley Field, rich with history and ready for him to make even more.
Monday, December 8, 2014
Saturday, December 6, 2014
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