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Week 15 fantasy pickups include Toby Gerhart, Jordan Todman, Da’Rick Rogers

December 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

dennis-pitta-ravensFor those of you who have made it to this point, congratulations. By now almost all fantasy football leagues have begun their playoffs. If you’re still in the hunt, you still need to be working the waiver wire. There were a ton of injuries across the NFL last weekend, but it doesn’t have to be a death sentence. We’re here to help. Here are your Week 15 fantasy pickups.

Toby Gerhart, RB, Vikings: Adrian Peterson received good news this week in that he reportedly avoided any fractures or structural damage with his foot injury. However, he has been wearing a walking boot. The Vikings are 3-9-1 and out of the playoff hunt. They’re not going to risk Peterson suffering a serious injury, so he’s questionable at best for this weekend’s game against the Eagles. Gerhart would handle the bulk of the carries in AP’s absence and could make for a solid spot start.

Jordan Todman, RB, Jaguars: Maurice Jones-Drew suffered a hamstring injury last Thursday night against the Texans. While he says the injury is nothing serious, hamstring tweaks can be problematic for running backs. Todman carried the ball seven times for just 14 yards when MJD went down against Houston, but he could be in for more work against Buffalo’s 26th-ranked rush defense this weekend. It’s a tasty matchup and Todman would make for an intriguing start if Jones-Drew is unable to go.

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Nick Saban paged over intercom at Texas airport as a joke

December 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Nick-SabanAlabama will not have the opportunity to compete for a third straight national championship this season. Mack Brown is expected to announce by the end of the week that he has stepped down as the head coach of the Texas Longhorns. What does one thing have to do with the other? If nothing else, it means the rumors about Nick Saban potentially leaving Alabama to coach at Texas aren’t going to stop.

Saban has brushed aside talk of him joining the Longhorns in the past. On Tuesday, some jokesters had a little fun with the speculation at Austin-Bergstrom International airport in Texas. Chase Goodbread of NFL.com rounded up several tweets from people who were at the airport and confirmed that Saban was paged over the intercom system.

Of course, Saban was not in Texas. He was actually in Ohio making some recruiting rounds earlier in the day. Yes, recruiting for the Crimson Tide.

Saban’s agent reportedly said back in January that Texas is the only job that could make Saban consider leaving Alabama. Now that Brown is expected to step down, Saban is going to be peppered with questions about the Longhorns. He’s not going to like it.

Filed Under: College Football Tagged With: ,

Hockey player Sebastian Courcelles shows off horrific scar after taking skate to face

December 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Hockey-player-skate-to-face

There are very few injuries in sports that are more terrifying than those involving the blade of a hockey skate. In a recent Ligue Nord-Americaine de Hockey (LNAH) game in Quebec, a player named Sebastian Courcelles took a skate to the face that left him with with a gash that is not for the squeamish. Courcelles’ face looked like it was straight out of a horror movie, and one of his teammates nearly passed out when seeing the wound.

Below you will see an uncensored version of the gash. If you have a weak stomach, you’ve been warned. This is really, really bad:

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Mack Brown will reportedly step down at Texas

December 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Mack Brown TexasMack Brown is stepping down as the coach of the Texas Longhorns, according to Chip Brown of Orangebloods.com. Texas is 8-4 this season after a 30-10 loss to Baylor over the weekend. The Longhorns will face Oregon in the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 30. Brown is expected to make the announcement by the end of this week.

“Mack Brown loves Texas and wants what’s in the best interest of Texas and what’s in the best interest of Mack Brown,” a high-level source reportedly told Orangebloods.com. “I don’t think it’s been an easy decision. But he doesn’t want negativity around the program he helped unify.”

Last week, a report from Sports Illustrated’s Pete Thamel indicated that Brown was likely to step down.

The 62-year-old is expected to coach in the Alamo Bowl, which will cap off his 16-year career as the head coach of the Longhorns. His 158 wins are second only to Darrell Royal, who had 167 wins in his career at Texas.

Brown is under contract through 2020, but he will reportedly receive a $2.75 million buyout and other considerations. His contract states that he is to be “reassigned to another significant position” within UT’s athletic department if he voluntarily relinquishes his duties as head coach. That position would pay an annual salary of $500,000.

Since losing to Alabama in the 2010 BCS National Championship Game, Texas has gone 30-20 and not exactly been the national powerhouse Brown had built in the earlier part of the 21st century. Brown won a national championship with the Longhorns in 2005, which was the school’s first title since 1970.

This was seemingly the best outcome for all parties involved. While it’s difficult for any coach to “step down,” it’s better for Brown and the school to have the relationship end mutually. No one wants to fire one of the greatest coaches in school history, and Texas is clearly ready to move on.

Filed Under: College Football, Headlines Tagged With: ,

Report: Daniel Snyder would not stop Mike Shanahan from benching RG3

December 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

Robert-Griffin-RedskinsRobert Griffin III may find himself standing on the sideline this weekend when the Washington Redskins take on the Atlanta Falcons. On Monday, Redskins coach Mike Shanahan told the media that he has considered benching Griffin for the remainder of the season to protect his health. Shanahan’s remarks were followed with speculation that team owner Daniel Snyder would never allow something like that to happen.

According to Mark Maske of the Washington Post, Snyder would not stand in Shanahan’s way if he chose to go with Kirk Cousins over RG3.

“He won’t step in and interfere with that,” a person familiar with the situation reportedly told Maske on Tuesday. “He’s not going to step into a personnel decision that way.”

The belief all along has been that the relationship between Snyder and Griffin has created problems for Snyder and Shanahan. In other words, Snyder expects RG3 to be the quarterback of the future for the Redskins. If Shanahan and his son — offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan — cannot find a way to win with Griffin, both will likely be fired. Most people expect them to be fired after the season ends, at the latest.

As Maske noted, Snyder may be inclined to let Shanahan bench RG3 because he agrees with the reasoning — not because he is opposed to pressuring his head coach into a certain personnel decision. Griffin has been getting hammered over the past several games and always looks one hit away from another major injury. The Redskins are currently 3-10. Why risk it?

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Curtis Granderson: ‘Real New Yorkers are Mets fans’

December 10, 2013 By Leave a Comment

curtis-grandersonCurtis Granderson wasted no time getting New York Yankees fans to turn on him when he was formally introduced as a member of the New York Mets on Tuesday. Granderson, who belted 184 home runs during his four seasons with the Yankees, signed a four-year, $60 million deal with the Empire State’s other team last week. He seems pretty excited about it.

“A lot of people have told me real New Yorkers are Mets fans,” Granderson said during his introductory press conference, according to Hardball Talk.

That’s not going to go over well in the Bronx, and I’m sure the Yankees’ faithful will let Granderson hear about it during interleague play.

I’ll admit, I’ve been saying the same thing for years. It’s one thing to be a dedicated Yankees fan who has lived and breathed pinstripes your entire life, but we all know there are plenty of fair-weather fans who root for the Yanks because it’s the trendy thing to do. The Yankees have won 27 World Series titles. The Mets have won two, with the last one coming in 1986.

Bottom line: It’s a lot easier to be a Yankees fan than it is to be a Mets fan. If you haven’t converted to the other side of the subway after all of these years of heartache and suffering, you truly are a diehard fan. That’s likely what Granderson was referring to. We’ll see if he’s still praising Mets fans when his 30-50 team is being booed come June.

Filed Under: Baseball, Featured Stories Tagged With: ,

Danica Patrick not planning on having kids anytime soon

December 10, 2013 By 1 Comment

danica-patrickDanica Patrick is a trailblazer. She has already accomplished a countless number of firsts in her career, most notably becoming the first female driver ever to clinch the pole position at the world famous Daytona 500. Patrick does not, however, intend to become the first stock car driver to participate in a race while pregnant.

Patrick recently opened up about her relationship with fellow NASCAR driver Ricky Stenhouse Jr. and how happy the couple is together. Earlier this week, Patrick was asked if we can expect to hear the sound of wedding bells or the pitter-patter of the little feet of future speed demons running around in the near future. She wouldn’t rule out marriage. However…

“I don’t think social services would feel good about me driving 200 miles an hour with a baby in my belly,” she told For the Win.

Patrick was also asked if she is bothered by her personal life being scrutinized so much, particular with constant questions about her relationship with Stenhouse.

“Well, that’s just because obviously everyone can see how much he loves me,” she replied.

We could certainly see how much Stenhouse loves her over the weekend when he joined Patrick in giving NASCAR Sprint Cup Series Award Ceremony host Jay Mohr an icy stare after one of his jokes.

Between driving, hosting events and starring in commercials, Danica probably doesn’t have time for kids at the moment. Unlike men, she’d need to take time off from racing to have a baby. For now, that will just have to wait.

Filed Under: Auto Racing Tagged With: ,