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Bar Chat

03/04/2024

Hoops and Remembrances

Add-on posted early Tues. a.m.

College Basketball

--AP Poll (records thru Sunday)

1. Houston (52) 26-3
2. UConn (6) 26-3
3. Purdue (4) 26-3
4. Tennessee 23-6
5. Arizona 23-6
6. Iowa State 23-6
7. North Carolina 23-6
8. Marquette 22-7
9. Duke 23-6
10. Creighton 22-8
11. Baylor 21-8
12. Illinois 22-7
13. Auburn 22-7
14. Kansas 21-8...down 7
15. Kentucky 21-8
16. Alabama 20-9
17. South Carolina 24-5
18. Washington State 23-7
19. Gonzaga 24-6...moving back up...
20. BYU 21-8
21. San Diego State 22-7
22. Utah State 24-5
23. Saint Mary’s 24-7
24. South Florida 24-5
25. Dayton 22-6

9 Duke then beat N.C. State in Raleigh on Monday, 79-64, to improve to 24-6, 15-4.  The Blue Devils host North Carolina on Saturday for the ACC regular-season title.

11Baylor (22-8, 11-6) defeated Texas (19-11, 8-9), 93-85, as senior forward Jalen Bridges had a career-high 32 points.

NBA

--After I posted Sunday, the Knicks pulled off an amazing 107-98 win at Cleveland (39-21), as star point guard Jalen Brunson went down in a heap in taking a jump shot less than a minute into the game.  It looked awful...very serious.  Knicks fans immediately thrown into a deep state of depression.

But what we also love about this team, despite all its major injury issues, is its grit, and so Miles McBride came in for Brunson and proceeded to play the remaining 47 minutes, 16 points, 5 assists and zero turnovers!

The incredible Josh Hart once again was the toughest guy on the court, 45 minutes, 13 points, 19 rebounds, 10 assists.  Remember, the dude is just 6’4”.  The trade last year to get Hart was a stroke of brilliance, the guy epitomizing the New York attitude, ditto Jalen Brunson.  Hart has now played 40+ minutes five straight games.

So we then learned Brunson’s injury was not serious, a bruised knee/contusion and he should not be out long, like a few days.  He possibly could play tonight against Atlanta.

If the Knicks stay in the first six in the East, they’ll point to a Sunday night in Cleveland as being critical.

Meanwhile, Mitchell Robinson (ankle surgery) hasn’t played since Dec. 8; Julius Randle (dislocated shoulder) hasn’t played since Jan. 27; and O.G. Anunoby (elbow surgery) has also been out since Jan. 27.

At least it was good to see all three travel to Cleveland, the first time any of them went to a road game since suffering their respective injuries.

Still no definitive word when any of the three will return, but it seems like Randle and Anunoby will be back by April 1st.

--Back to Boston’s 140-88 destruction of Golden State which I noted just as I was posting, it was the Celtics’ third 50-point win of the season, a new NBA record, as well as 11th straight.  Will anyone beat them?

MLB

--The Phillies extended starter Zach Wheeler for three years, $126 million, the highest annual average salary in a contract extension in baseball history.

Wheeler has done everything asked of him in Philadelphia since signing as a free-agent following the 2019 season...43-25, 3.06 ERA.  One of the dumber Mets moves of the century in letting him go.

College Baseball

Baseball America Top Ten

1. Wake Forest
2. LSU
3. Arkansas
4. Oregon State
5. TCU
6. Florida
7. Tennessee
8. Virginia
9. Vanderbilt
10. Clemson
12. Duke
16. North Carolina
17. N.C. State
22. Coastal Carolina...Deacs w/ home and away against J. Mac’s Chants
24. Florida State

So, this weekend conference play starts, Wake hosting Duke.  The key in the loaded ACC is to win 2 out of every 3, like Wake did last year in ACC play.  You do that, you get a top 8 seed and home field advantage for the NCAA Tournament, both regionals and super regionals. Wake showed it was a huge advantage last season in getting to the College World Series.

But the Deacs play all of the ACC teams listed above...it’s not easy. What we do have is three outstanding starters who I’m guessing are all first-round draft picks (Hartle, Burns, Massey).  The offense, though, is nowhere near as good as last year, at least thus far.  [Forget the runs scored total.  It’s deceiving.]

Golf Balls

--Austin Eckroat won the Cognizant Classic in a Monday morning finish, the 25-year-old’s first PGA Tour title and with it he gains entry into all kinds of events, including the upcoming Signature tournaments with the massive purses.  This was no fluke, Eckroat winning by three over Erik van Rooyen and Min Woo Lee.

Shane Lowry and David Skinns (by far his best-ever finish on the tour), along with Cameron Young, last week’s winner Jake Knapp and K.H. Lee were in a log jam at T4.

--Joaquin Niemann received a special exemption into the PGA Championship.

NFL

--Tampa Bay wide receiver Mike Evans opted not to test the free-agency market and signed a new two-year, $52 million contract with $35 million guaranteed to stay with the Bucs.

Evans, 30, earned his fifth Pro Bowl nod in 2023, catching 79 passes for 1,255 yards and a league-leading 13 touchdowns.

For his sterling 10-year career, all with Tampa Bay, he has 1,000 yards receiving in all ten seasons, 762 receptions, 11,680 yards, a 15.3 average, 94 touchdowns.

--Jason Kelce called it quits after 13 seasons as an All-Pro center for the Eagles.  The college walk-on at Cincinnati done well, a future Hall of Famer.  His six AP All-Pro nods (the one that really matters) tie him with Hall of Famer Dermontii Dawson for most all-time among centers.

Kelce also holds the Eagles’ record for consecutive starts at 157.

--The Broncos are moving on from Russell Wilson, as expected.  The team notified him they will release the QB at the start of the new NFL year on March 13.

Cutting Wilson will leave Denver with a whopping $85 million in dead cap charges but save a reported $37 million in 2025.

Stuff

--I watched my New York Rangers lose another last night to a good team, this one 4-2 at home to the East’s best, the Florida Panthers.  It’s games like these that has Rangers fans wondering if we’re headed to another deeply disappointing Stanley Cup Playoffs finish.

--The Devils fired coach Lindy Ruff on Monday in a move to attempt to spark the team the rest of the way, replacing him with assistant Travis Green.

The Devils are eight points out of a playoff spot, but beat the Rangers in the first round of the payoffs last year and have a ton of young talent.

--Kyle Larson won his second consecutive race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway late Sunday, his 24th career Cup victory, holding off Tyler Reddick.

Next Bar Chat, Sunday p.m.

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[Posted Sunday p.m. after golf coverage finished...]

Baseball Quiz: A belated Black History quiz...Name the 15 Black pitchers who have won 20 games in a season.  [I’ll give you one...Sam Jones.] Answer below.

College Basketball Review

--Just a few upsets since my Add-on...Tuesday, BYU (20-8, 8-7) had a biggie at 7 Kansas (21-7, 9-6), 76-68.

Wednesday, Kyle Filipowski, supposedly grievously injured during the Wake Forest ‘stampede’ the prior Saturday, played against Louisville, 9 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, as the Blue Devils won 84-59 to go to 22-6, 13-4. 

4 Tennessee (22-6, 12-3) had a big win over 11 Auburn (21-7, 10-5), 92-84, as Dalton Knecht had 39 points, 5 of 8 from 3.

--In one of the more depressing games in recent memory for Wake Forest fans, the Deacs saw their NCAA tournament hopes suffer a devastating blow when they lost at Notre Dame on Tuesday, 70-65. The Deacs (18-10, 10-7), for the fourth time this season, were up in the second half on the road, in this case 48-39, only to totally fall apart, shooting 8 of 30 after the intermission, 2 of 10 from 3.  It was the same pattern as we’ve seen earlier in road losses to Florida State, N.C. State and Pitt.

Inexcusable.  It’s not coach Steve Forbes fault, the players have just choked, and the bigger offender Tuesday was Hunter Sallis, who after his All-World performance last Saturday against Duke, was held to seven points (first time all season under double digits) on 2 of 11 shooting, 1 of 5 from 3, and he looked out of it the entire time.  Pathetic.  Freshman guard Markus Burton was superb for the Fighting Irish with a career-high 31.

It just freakin’ sucks.

So the Deacs then went to Virginia Tech Saturday, with a shred of hope if they won their last three (including the final two against Georgia Tech and Clemson at home, where they are 15-0), and Wake did it again. 

The Deacs came out on fire, up 40-25 with 6:22 left in the first half, shooting 9 of 10 from 3!

And then we went 2 of 15 from beyond the arc the rest of the way, up 46-37 at the half and falling 87-76, as the Wake defense was nonexistent. The Hokies (16-13, 8-10) shot 59.6% from the field for the game.

Hunter Sallis was a non-factor a second time, 11 points, plus he got into stupid foul trouble early, his first-team All-ACC status up in flames.

It’s over, literally unless we win the two at home this week and get to the ACC Tournament finals, which would mean we beat either North Carolina or Duke in the process.  But Wake hasn’t played well in the tournament since literally 1995-96, when we won back-to-back with Tim Duncan and Randolph Childress.  Seriously awful stuff.

Moving on...yesterday, Duke and North Carolina separated themselves from the rest in the conference, 10 Duke (23-6, 14-4) defeating Virginia (21-9, 12-7) 73-48, after the Cavaliers had another atrocious first half, 18 points. Kyle Filipowski, who we were led to believe, including by the national news media, was finished with basketball due to that godawful injury suffered when Wake fans celebrated a win over his team, had 21 points and 7 rebounds.

9 North Carolina (23-6, 15-3) beat NC State (17-12, 9-9) 79-70.

Notre Dame continued to play better down the stretch, defeating Clemson (20-9, 10-8), 69-62, the Fighting Irish 12-17, 7-11, but winners of five of their last six.

ACC standings....

UNC 15-3
Duke 14-4
UVA 12-7
Syracuse 11-8 ...double-bye in ACC Tournament
Clemson 10-8
Pitt 10-8
Wake 10-8

In other games Saturday, 12 Creighton (22-8, 13-6) continued its schizo act, beating 5 Marquette (22-7, 13-5), 89-75, as Baylor Scheierman had a monster game, 26 points (6 threes) and 16 rebounds.

7 Kansas (21-8, 9-7) lost again, this time at 15 Baylor (21-8, 10-6), 82-74.  For the Jayhawks, Hunter Dickinson, who along with Baylor Scheierman, was said, in preseason, to be one of the two top transfers, had 20 points and 6 rebounds, continuing his really so-so play.  He’s averaging 18 points and 11 rebounds, fine stats, but the 7’ 2” center is no lottery pick.  Actually, I just looked at a mock draft...ESPN doesn’t have him going in the first two rounds.  Never mind.  [Scheierman is a second rounder.]

In looking at the draft, I saw that Bobi Klintman was a projected late first-rounder.  Yes, Wake fans, that Bobi Klintman, who suddenly up and left after his freshman season last year, Steve Forbes furious with Klintman’s agent for not dealing with Wake honestly.  Klintman would have been a huge factor this season.  He left to play in Australia and has obviously impressed, but he could have freakin’ done it here!!!  A-hole.

Big 12 standings....

Houston 13-3
Iowa State 12-4
Baylor 10-6
BYU 9-7
Kansas 9-7
Texas Tech 9-7

--If you are a Los Angeles-area college hoops fan, what an awful season it’s been for you.

UCLA, after three straight appearances in the Elite Eight, is 14-15, 9-9, while USC, after four straight 20-win seasons, is 12-17, 6-12. [Brony James is averaging 5.0 ppg, 27.5% from three, while earning $5.8 million in NIL money, last I saw.]

--Today, Sunday, 3 UConn (26-3, 16-2) blasted Seton Hall (18-11, 11-7) 91-61.

--Caitlin Clark entered play Sunday just 17 points shy of Pete Maravich, having set the all-time women’s scoring record this week, passing Lynette Woodard at 3,650, after breaking Kelsey Plum’s sanctioned NCAA scoring record of 3,527 points, Clark with 33 points (on eight 3-pointers), 12 assists and 10 rebounds in 6 Iowa’s 108-60 demolition of Minnesota on Wednesday.

She then set the record with a free throw, end of the first half, surpassing Pistol Pete’s 3,667, and went on to have 35 points as the No. 6 Hawkeyes had a big win over 2 Ohio State, 93-83.

On Thursday, Clark announced she will skip her final season of eligibility to enter the WNBA draft, where the Indiana Fever have the first pick, and they have already indicated they intend to select her.  It’s the perfect fit for Clark’s talents, a basketball-crazy state, and a chance to grow the sport, specifically the WNBA.  You don’t want her in New York, for example, where there are a ton of other professional teams in all seasons competing for the media.

NBA

--It’s been a very tough stretch for the Knicks. Tuesday, as they faced the Pelicans at home, Jalen Brunson was out with neck spasms and Isaiah Hartenstein sat with his Achilles issue, New York then pounded 115-92.

The Knicks then lost Thursday to the Warriors at the Garden, 110-99, Brunson and Hartenstein back, but new acquisitions Bojan Bogdanovic and Alec Burks shot a combined 2 for 13, 1 of 7 from 3.

Since the trade with Detroit, Bogdanovic is shooting only .413 from the field, and Burks a mere .316.

New York is in Cleveland tonight.

--Milwaukee has gotten its act together since the All-Star break, winning five straight, including Friday at Chicago, 113-97, as Giannis had 46 points and 16 rebounds.  So, Doc Rivers is over .500, 8-7, since the big move.  Will the editor have to eat his own words that hiring Doc was a dumb decision?  Stay tuned.  Wouldn’t be the first time I have nearly choked to death.

--Friday, Philadelphia (34-25) beat the Hornets (15-45) 121-114, making them 8-17 without Joel Embiid, 26-8 with him.

Embiid said the other day he plans to return this season from knee surgery (displaced flap of the meniscus in his left knee), but he had no timeline.

Well, the Sixers are now tied with the Knicks after today’s 120-116 win at Dallas (34-27), despite Luca Doncic’s third consecutive 30-point triple-double, 38-11-10, the Mavs, however, losing two of them.

Eastern Conference standings (prior to Celts-Warriors*, Knicks-Cavs)....

1. Boston 47-12
2. Cleveland 39-20...8
3. Milwaukee 40-21...8
4. New York 35-25...12.5
5. Philadelphia 35-25...12.5
6. Miami 34-26...13.5
7. Orlando 34-26...13.5
8. Indiana 34-27...14

As in the Knicks are suddenly in deep merde, and Anunoby and Randle’s returns aren’t that imminent.  Ugh.

*I’m not adjusting the standings, but in a stunning game, Boston was up 82-38 at the half, Steph Curry 2 of 13, 0 for 9 from 3.  Boston was 15 of 24 from downtown.

And after three, Curry long shut down, it was 115-62! Goodness gracious.  Final score...Boston 140...Golden State 88...Celtics 25 of 49 from 3, Warriors 7 of 41. 

--On Thursday, in the Spurs’ 132-118 win over the Thunder, Victor Wembanyama did something unprecedented.  The rookie sensation had 28 points (including five 3-pointers), 13 rebounds, seven assists and five blocks.

He was the first player ever with 25 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, five blocks and five 3-pointers in a game.  First ever. Wow.

It was also his third game with 25 points, 10 rebounds, five assists, and five blocks, passing Tim Duncan and David Robinson (both Spurs legends) for most by a rookie in NBA history.

--Wednesday, the Lakers (32-28) beat the Clippers (37-20) 116-112, despite trailing by 21 in the fourth quarter.  That’s when, as L.A.’s D’Angelo Russell put it, “‘He’ did him.”

LeBron James, that is.  James scored 19 of his 34 points in the quarter while dishing out four late assists, as the Lakers walloped the Clippers 39-16 in the final frame.

Thursday, LeBron had 31 as the Lakers moved to 33-28, defeating the Wizards (9-50) 134-131.

That brought the 39-year-old to 39,991 career points. Nine points to become the first player in NBA history to hit the 40,000 mark.

And last night against the Nuggets, LeBron scored 26, but Denver, for an eighth straight time, defeated L.A., 124-114, Nikola Jokic with 35 points, 10 rebounds.

Nonetheless, LeBron had cause to celebrate.

“Being the first player to do something, that’s pretty cool in this league.  You just know the history, the greats that’s come through the league,” James said. “For me, the main thing is always the main thing, and that’s the win. I hated that it had to happen in the defeat, especially versus the team that plays extremely well.”

So you want to score 40,000?  All you have to do is play 21 seasons and average 27.1 points per game.  One of the amazing things is that LeBron has not only hit over 50 percent of his field goal attempts the last four seasons, but this year is shooting a career best, .408, from three!

As Larry David would say, while catching the game, “Pretty, pretty, pretty good.”

Western Conference standings (thru Sat.)

1. Minnesota 42-18
2. Oklahoma City 41-18...0.5
3. Denver 42-19...0.5
4. L.A. Clippers 38-20...3.0
5. New Orleans 36-25...6.5
6. Phoenix 35-25...7
7. Sacramento 34-25...7.5
8. Dallas 34-26...8
9. Golden State 32-27...9.5
10. L.A. Lakers 33-29...10
11. Utah 27-34...15.5

Golf Balls

--At the Cognizant Classic at The Palm Beaches, PGA National (Jack’s place), it was not a distinguished leaderboard with Bud Cauley leading at -11 after 36 holes.

But Rory McIlroy, Shane Lowry, Cameron Young, and last week’s winner and new tour darling, Jake Knapp, were all at -8.  We needed them to make further progress on Saturday to make for compelling viewing Sunday.

Lowry did his part and entering today’s final round....

Lowry -13
David Skinns -13
Austin Eckroat -13

The next group way down at -10.

David Skinns?  What a potentially great story.  The 42-year-old journeyman from England is making his 33th career PGA Tour start (13 made cuts in the first 32, no top tens), missing his first four cuts this season.  During Covid, to help pay the bills he was a Doordash driver and bouncer.

But Saturday, Rory McIlroy made his move, got it to -10, two shots back of the lead at the time, only to hit the Bear Trap, Nos. 15-17, often a nightmare for tour players, and he bogeyed 15 and triple-bogeyed 16, finishing the round at -7.  Not a way to gain confidence for the Tour Championship and The Masters...a tradition unlike any other...on CBS....

Heading into Sunday, the PGA Tour blew it royally. They knew thunderstorms were in the forecast and refused to start early and go off in threesomes to allow for a 2-hour or so weather delay.  Absolute idiots.

The delay then came at 12:49 p.m., the leaders far from teeing off, they restarted at 4;20, and it’s a Monday morning finish...those playing in the Seminole Pro/member, very pissed off...a field including Tiger and Rory, Tom Brady....but Rory finished his round.

And so the leaderboard when play was suspended for the day....

Eckroat -15...thru 7
Erik van Rooyen -14...F...a 63, including a 28 on the front nine...
Knapp -13...15
Keith Mitchell -12...F
Billy Horschel -12...17
Alex Noren -12...12
Lowry -12...5

--If you didn’t see it, look up ‘Thomas Detry, 6-putt’ in the second round.  His first putt, a 51-foot birdie attempt, was fine, running about six feet past.  And then it took him five putts to get in from there.  A snowman on the par-4 sixth. He was last after two rounds.

--Camilo Villegas was voted the new chairman of the PGA Tour’s player advisory council by his tour peers.

Villegas takes over for Jordan Spieth, and will replace Spieth beginning Jan. 1, 2025.  The PAC works with the tour’s board and commissioner Jay Monahan on issues affecting the league.  Villegas joins Patrick Cantlay, Peter Malnati, Adam Scott, Webb Simpson and Tiger Woods.

--Anthony Kim’s long-awaited return to professional golf was a bust, a six-over par 76 at the LIV Golf Jeddah event...last out of 54 golfers, 14 shots behind co-leaders Jon Rahm and Adrian Meronk.

Kim is playing as a wildcard for the remainder of the 2024 LIV season and not on one of the league’s 13 teams.

And in the end, Kim finished last among those who finished, +16, or 33 shots behind winner Joaquin Niemann, -17, who won by four over Louis Oosthuizen and Charl Schwartzel.

Thanks to a reminder from Pete M., I flipped on the taped coverage of the final round, about midway through, and you could not see any fans...like zero.  Really. And the announcers sounded  like they were in a phone booth.  Pathetic.

--Golf Digest has a column, “The Undercover Pro,” where they grant anonymity to people in golf who’ve got something to say.  This installment was with a current PGA Tour player, interviewed by Joel Beall.

The tour player talks about the issues surrounding LIV and how “PGA Tour players have never really had personal issues with any of the guys who left (except for the ones who, you know, tried to sue the tour out of existence).”

But when it comes to Jon Rahm:

“From afar, you might think Rahm’s defection to LIV was better received by his peers than past jumpers. The truth is, not really.  The reason most guys are pissed has a lot to do with our selfishness. Tour pros are like most fans in that we want this drama to end.  A lot of us think Rahm’s departure will prolong this schism, and now that the tour has its private-equity investment in place with Strategic Sports Group, both sides feel like they have the upper hand.  Having all this drag into another summer is something we didn’t want, and if it continues, Rahm, rightfully or not, will receive blame.

“Rahm broke an unwritten code. Both sides had a hands-off approach to recruiting during the period when negotiations were being banged out and – maybe this is me being naïve – it seemed like everyone understood that.  It’s like Jon (or Jon’s team) thought they were above the détente.  As the best player in the world, Jon could maybe claim he shouldn’t be lumped in with us. But, man, if there was one upshot from the past half year, it was this feeling of tour players coming together for a common cause.  When a guy breaks from the pack to actively hurt that cause, that burns.

“We also don’t buy this notion that Jon thought his defection could ultimately be what brings the golf world together, like he’s a human olive branch.  Please.  He is not what got the SSG deal to the finish line, or what will bring PIF and the tour together.  Jon did this because he got half a billion dollars.  Full stop....

“I’ve seen Jon do a lot of good.  He’ll donate time to guys who are struggling and need help with their games, both on tour and at home in Scottsdale. He’s also a professional, not one of these grab-ass, frat bros the tour occasionally churns out.  But Jon hurt a lot of us by what he did, and even if the tour is in a slightly better shape post-SSG deal, that hurt towards Jon remains. I do hope this fight between the tour and LIV ends soon, and if Jon comes back, I’ll still treat him with respect. But pros aren’t good at forgetting, and Jon’s defection is something we’ll remember.”

MLB

--One of the top remaining free agents signed...third baseman Matt Chapman, who agreed to a three-year, $54 million contract with the Giants.  The deal includes two opt-outs and pays him $20 million in the first season, $18 million in the second, and $16 million in the third.

Chapman, 30, has won four Gold Gloves at third base, but while he hit 27 home runs in each of 2021 and 2022, he batted only .210 and .229, and then last season with Toronto, through the first 27 games of the season, he was hitting .384 with a 1.152 OPS.  But it was downhill from there, a .663 OPS after the All-Star break, just 17 home runs in all.

Chapman was one of the “Boras four” – the other three, Blake Snell, Jordan Montgomery and J.D. Martinez – all unsigned.

--I subscribe to the Los Angeles Times and it was funny seeing all the articles after Shohei Ohtani announced, rather surprisingly, that he was married to a ‘regular’ Japanese woman.  He’s right in keeping things rather quiet, and intensely private.

More importantly, the Dodgers have said Ohtani will bat second ahead of Freddie Freeman.  So what a first three in the order.

1. Mookie Betts
2. Ohtani
3. Freeman

--The A’s move to Las Vegas is far from a done deal, kind of shockingly.  What a s---show. The Nevada State Education Association, which represents teachers and educators throughout the state, is filing an injunction (soon, if it hasn’t officially done so as I post) to stop $380 million in public funds from being distributed to the A’s on the grounds that it is unconstitutional.

The NSEA’s lawsuit will require 102,362 signatures by June 26 to force a referendum on the November ballot to overturn the $380 million in public funds for the A’s.

NFL

--The NFL Draft is not that far away, April 25th, and all the talk today is about the Bears and, more specifically, Justin Fields.  Do the Bears keep him or go with Caleb Williams with the first pick.

The thing is, no one knows what Williams wants or where he even wants to be.  He’s a strange guy.  A tremendous talent, potentially Mahomes-like, but with baggage.  His father, Carl, runs the show, and Carl has made waves by inquiring about possible equity in any team which drafts Caleb.  He’s even quizzed agents about possible loopholes in the NFL’s rookie quarterback contract scale.

But if the Bears aren’t sold on Fields, they could package him (they also have the No. 9 selection) and still take a terrific quarterback further down in the draft (though I’d stay away from Drake Maye).  You know where I stand...if you can’t get Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix is your man!

Williams finally addressed the press at the combine.  “I don’t think I’m not going to be No. 1.  I put in all the hard work. All of the time, effort, energy into being that. I don’t think of a Plan B. That’s kind of how I do things in my life. I don’t think of a Plan B. Stay on Plan A and then when things don’t work out find a way to make Plan A work.”

But as Nate Davis of USA TODAY Sports noted:

“(Williams’) mindset is not a luxury afforded to the league’s quarterback-needy teams, which must always be in contingency mode. And it must be acknowledged that alternate routes often bear sweeter fruit.  One doesn’t even have to go back a year, when the Houston Texans were picking second overall in 2023 – many of their fans angered by the fact that former coach Lovie Smith pulled out a win in the 2022 season’s regular-season finale, a victory that cost the franchise the No. 1 pick. So instead of taking Alabama quarterback Bryce Young, the Texans were, uh, stuck with Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud...who merely led them to a stunning AFC South title in 2023 while earning Offensive Rookie of the Year honors following a campaign in which he thoroughly outperformed Young and every other freshman passer.”

--In the Combine, Texas wide receiver Xavier Worthy ran a 4.21 40-yard dash, breaking former Washington wide receiver John Ross’ previous record of 4.22.  [Ross had 62 receptions in five seasons in the NFL.]

--The second annual NFL Players Association player survey was the first time head coaches and ownership groups were ranked and graded.

More than half of the league’s head coaches were given an A- or better, but three head coaches stood out as among the best bosses in the business.

Andy Reid was first, Minnesota head coach Kevin O’Connell second, and Dan Campbell of the Lions, third.

Fired Raiders head man Josh McDaniels was graded the worst, and former Washington coach Ron Rivera received the second-lowest grade.

The Jets’ Robert Salah was rated 24th.  Bill Belichick 29th.  Brian Daboll of the Giants 15th.

--The Jets granted quarterback Zach Wilson permission to seek a trade. Bye-bye.

--FedEx struck a $205 million deal in 1999 to have its name on the stadium of Washington’s NFL franchise, but this week it ended its naming-rights agreement with the team two years early, depriving the Commanders of roughly $15 million of remaining revenue from the deal and leaves them without a naming-rights partner for their Landover stadium while they search for a new home in D.C., Maryland or Virginia.

In July 2020, FedEx played a role in the franchise’s decision to change its controversial former name. FedEx notified the team in a letter that it would remove its signage from the stadium after the season if the team didn’t change its name.  Later that month, the team announced it would “retire” the name. 

By the way, the only two NFL stadiums that do not have naming-rights sponsorships are also the league’s oldest: Soldier Field in Chicago and Lambeau Field in Green Bay.

--Sports Illustrated had a piece on home field advantage in the postseason.  NFL teams are 18-6 at home over the past two years.

But home teams in baseball were 15-26 in the postseason last year. Then again, home teams in the regular season had a winning percentage of just .521, the worst in any full season since 1971.

Of course, last year, the Texas Rangers were an astounding 11-0 on the road in the postseason.

--We note the passing of legendary Steelers linebacker Andy Russell, 82.  A cause of death wasn’t immediately known.

Russell was a seven-time Pro Bowl selection while part of the famous Steel Curtain defense.  He won two Super Bowl rings, SBs IX and X.

Russell first played for Pittsburgh in 1963, a 16th-round pick out of Missouri, but sat out 1964 and ’65 due to military service. He then returned to play from 1966 to 1976 and put together a streak of 168 consecutive games played, never missing a single game during his career.

In the 1975 postseason, Russell set a playoff record for longest fumble return when he picked up the ball and ran 93 yards for a touchdown against the Baltimore Colts.  The record stood until Sam Hubbard of the Bengals had a 98-yard return against the Ravens on Jan. 15, 2023.

Russell was part of a star-studded trio of linebackers featuring Jack Lambert and Jack Ham.

“If you want to be a great linebacker, you also have to be smart out there, and he taught me the mental part of the game,” Ham told the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.  “I think that’s what set him apart and made his career such a great career here in Pittsburgh.”

Russell suffered through the lean years Coach Chuck Noll fully instituted his system and the organization had one successful draft after another.

It’s easy to forget that Noll started out 1-13, 5-9, and 6-8, before 1972’s breakout year of 11-3, highlighted by Franco Harris’ Immaculate Reception in the first playoff game against the Raiders; the first playoff game for the Steelers since 1947.

Pittsburgh then went on their run, four Super Bowls in six years.

Andy Russell was part of the inaugural Steelers’ Hall of Honor class in 2017.

He was also one of my first football cards.  I’ve got it in a box someplace...time to find it.

--Longtime ESPN football insider Chris Mortensen died today of cancer, age 72.  This guy was good at his profession.  Prayers for his family.

Premier League

--Liverpool had a dramatic 1-0, 99th-minute goal, a Darwin Nunez header, to snatch three points at Nottingham Forest on Saturday.  It was Liverpool’s fourth win in 11 days, including a fifth-round FA Cup win over Southampton and a victory over Chelsea in the Carabao Cup final.  And Jurgen Klopp’s boys have been dealing with injuries including to star Mohamed Salah.

“If you’d told me 12 days ago we would win all four games I would have said no chance, it was impossible,” Klopp said.  “In the circumstances winning the games is ridiculous.”

For Forest it was potentially disastrous.  They need points, residing just above the relegation line.

Also Saturday, Tottenham stayed in the Champions League hunt, 3-1 winners over Crystal Palace, while Aston Villa maintained the fourth spot, 3-2 at Luton Town.

Sunday, Manchester City hosted Manchester United and City prevailed 3-1 to pull within a single point of Liverpool.

Standings...26/27 of 38...played – points....

1. Liverpool...27 – 63
2. Man City...27 – 62
3. Arsenal...26 – 58
4. Aston Villa...27 – 55
5. Tottenham...26 – 50
6. Man U...27 – 44

17. Nottingham...27 – 24
18. Luton Town...26 – 20

--In an FA Cup match this week, Erling Haaland scored five goals as Man City thrashed Luton, 6-2, to reach the quarter-finals.

--Juventus midfielder Paul Pogba’s career hangs in the balance after Thursday he was handed a four-year doping ban but the France international said he would try to clear his name by appealing the decision at the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

The 30-year-old Pogba was provisionally suspended by a tribunal of Italy’s national anti-doping organization in September after testing positive for testosterone – a banned substance and hormone that increases athletes’ endurance.

“I am sad, shocked and heartbroken that everything I have built in my professional playing career has been taken away from me,” Pogba said in a statement.  “As a professional athlete I would never do anything to enhance my performance by using banned substances and have never disrespected or cheated fellow athletes and supporters of any of the teams I have played for, or against.”

Pogba tested positive back on Aug. 20, and the doping test was confirmed in a counter-analysis on a second sample in October.  The ban could effectively end Pogba’s career at the highest level.  The Frenchman was among the sport’s highest-earning players at his peak after he completed a then-world record transfer of over $108 million in 2016 to Manchester United.

Stuff

--The New York Rangers were a sterling 10-1 in February, including Wednesday’s 4-1 win over Columbus that avenged their only loss of the month days before.

But they had a great test up in Toronto Saturday night, facing Auston Matthews and Co.  Goalie Igor Shesterkin, always the key to any Rangers Cup hopes, was having a very so-so season by his standards, but was 7-0 last month with a 1.72 goals against average.

Alas, the Rangers lost in a shootout, 4-3, Matthews held goalless. 

--Max Verstappen is already on his way to a fourth consecutive Formula One title, winning the season opener in Bahrain by a commanding 22.4 seconds over Red Bull teammate Sergio Perez.  This is not exactly what the sport needs...another dominating season by Red Bull and Verstappen.

Ferrari’s Carlos Sainz finished third.

--In Men’s FIS World Cup Alpine skiing in Aspen this weekend, Marco Odermatt extended his staggering winning streak in the giant slalom to 12 (9-0) this season, with two wins in the GS.  I totally by chance caught one of his final runs, after catching him last weekend in Palisades Tahoe (scene this weekend of the humongous snows), and Odermatt has an incredible ability to make up for mistakes late in his run...like seemingly every time.

Ingemar Stenmark holds the all-time winning streak at 14 for any one event (also the GS).

Mikaela Shiffrin supposedly returns next weekend for the women.

--Rajah Caruth, 21, became just the third Black driver to win a NASCAR national series race when he captured the Truck Series race at Las Vegas Motor Speedway on Friday.  Very cool.  He joins Wendell Scott and Bubba Wallace, Wallace saying it was “a monumental win for our sport!” on social media, calling Rajah his little brother.

Caruth had won the pole as well for the event.

I just read that Caruth is a senior at Winston-Salem State University...home of Earl ‘The Pearl’ Monroe and Coach Clarence ‘Big House’ Gaines.  Great stuff.  He said he was graduating in December and hoped he didn’t have any homework this weekend.

When I was at Wake, WSSU had an outstanding basketball team, with Carlos Terry and Reggie Gaines getting drafted; Terry playing bits of three seasons in the NBA.

--We note the passing of comedian Richard Lewis, 76.  Us “Curb Your Enthusiasm” fans have enjoyed his appearances in this final season, and then we learned the other day of his death, which adds to the melancholy feeling surrounding the last episodes.

Larry David said in a statement: “Richard and I were born three days apart in the same hospital and for most of my life he’s been like a brother to me. He had that rare combination of being the funniest person and also the sweetest. But today he made me sob and for that I’ll never forgive him.”

Lewis had a terrific career, the black-clad stand-up comic who mined guilt, anxiety and neurosis for laughs – naming some of his cable specials “I’m in Pain,” “I’m Exhausted” and “I’m Doomed,” while playing a semi-fictionalized version of himself on Curb.

As an obituary by Harrison Smith and Brian Murphy put it in the Washington Post:

“A self-deprecating comic with a head of thick, dark hair that he often ran his hands through nervously, Mr. Lewis rose to national prominence through his 1980s television specials, telling stories about his failed romances and tumultuous childhood while reminding audiences that ‘life isn’t supposed to be great all the time.’....

“To younger viewers, he was probably best known as a morose mainstay of ‘Curb Your Enthusiasm,’ the heavily improvised sitcom starring and created by his childhood friend Larry David, a co-creator of ‘Seinfeld.’ In art as in life, the two were constantly kvetching, arguing and riffing: Episodes of the show, which debuted in 2000 and is now in its 12th and final season, feature Mr. Lewis’ character enduring the indignity of being carjacked by a New York Jets fan; persuading a deli owner to change the name of a sandwich from the Larry David to the Richard Lewis; and complaining about the unfiltered tap water served at a dinner party.

“‘L.D.,’ he tells David, ‘goldfish would commit suicide in this water.’

“The two comics met when they were 12, at a summer camp in Cornwall-on-Hudson, N.Y., and ‘hated each other,’ Mr. Lewis told the Washington Post in 2020.  ‘He was an annoying, lanky, obnoxious basketball player. I was a better shooter.’”

“I’m paranoid about everything in my life.  Even at home.  On my stationary bike, I have a rear-view mirror, which I’m not thrilled about,” he once joked onstage. To Jimmy Kimmel he said: “This morning, I tried to go to bed.  I couldn’t sleep.  I counted sheep but I only had six of them and they all had hip replacements.”

Singer Billy Joel has said he was referring to Lewis when he sang in “My Life” of an old friend who “bought a ticket to the West Coast / Now he gives them a stand-up routine in L.A.”

Lewis was born in Brooklyn on June 29, 1947, and was raised (or “lowered” as he put it) in Englewood, N.J.

Interviewed by the Record in 1988, he recalled a conversation with screen actor John Travolta, who went to the same high school in Englewood.  “He was saying that he was sure that they had named a gymnasium after him,” Mr. Lewis said.  “I figured that maybe I have a couple of bridge chairs named after me in the faculty lounge.  What I should have is a bench in the nurse’s office.

“I don’t want to sound like a big shot,” he continued.  “After 16 years of complaining and 45 shows on Letterman I should at least be able to have people sit on me.”

--South Africa recorded 499 rhinos poached in 2023, 51 more than the previous year, despite efforts to protect the animals, the government said this week.

This sucks.  South Africa is home to nearly half of the critically-endangered black rhino population in Africa and to the world’s largest population of near-threatened white rhinos.

Rhinos are poached for their horns, which are used in east Asian countries for making traditional medicines and jewelry. 

Rhino poaching often involves international criminal syndicates which rely on the help of local poachers and collude with park rangers.

South Africa’s environmental ministry said last year it was increasing healthcare, training and counseling services for rangers to discourage them from assisting the poachers.  [BBC News]

--So I forgot to mention that I went to Holstein’s, as I said I was going to do 10 days ago, and it was great...super burger, onion rings and a delicious milkshake. 

Ironically, just a week later, the booth where Tony Soprano and family sat for the “Sopranos” finale was then put up for auction and as of Friday, bidding was up to $66,000.  I was hoping when I first heard this that the family wasn’t selling the place and now I know it’s about a full renovation, the owner promising to keep it as close to the original as possible, but as he put it, the booths just needed to be replaced, after 60 years!  I definitely want to go back.

For those of you in north Jersey, right off of exit 151 on the Parkway. 

Top 3 songs for the week 3/2/74:  #1 “Seasons In The Sun” (Terry Jacks)  #2 “The Way We Were” (Barbra Streisand)  #3 “Spiders & Snakes” (Jim Stafford...terrific entertainer...)...and...#4 “Boogie Down” (Eddie Kendricks)  #5 “Jungle Boogie” (Kool & The Gang...badass...)  #6 “Rock On” (David Essex)  #7 “Until You Come Back To Me (That’s What I’m Gonna Do)” (Aretha Franklin...one of my three faves of hers...)  #8 “Love’s Theme” (Love Unlimited Orchestra...Barry White’s debut on the charts; he arranged and conducted this studio orchestra...)  #9 “Dark Lady” (Cher)  #10 “Put Your Hands Together” (The O’Jays...B week...)

Baseball Quiz Answer:  Fifteen Black pitchers (a fraternity coined by Mudcat Grant as the Black Aces) to win 20 games.

Don Newcombe (first to win 20 in 1951, Newcombe doing it two additional times), Sam Jones (second to do so in 1959), Al Downing, Mike Norris, Bob Gibson, J.R. Richard, Jim ‘Mudcat’ Grant, Dave Stewart, Dwight Gooden, Ferguson Jenkins, Vida Blue, Dontrelle Willis, Earl Wilson, David Price, CC Sabathia.

Some of these guys could hit.

Newcombe, in 1955, when Brooklyn won the World Series, not only was 20-5 on the mound, but he slammed seven home runs, drove in 23, batted .359, and had an OPS of 1.028 in 117 at-bats.  Newk had 15 home runs for his career, batting an outstanding .268.

Earl Wilson hit 35 home runs, including at least four in each of 1964-68.

Bob Gibson hit 24 homers, Fergie Jenkins 13.

In 1969, Gibson stole five bases!  You gotta love it.

 

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