The Very 1st......Pre-season Poll

The first of many......Here's USA Today's....pre-season rankings:

Aug. 4, 2011 - preseason poll
Rank	Team (first-place votes)	2010 record	Points	Final 2010 ranking
1.	Oklahoma (42)	12-2	1,454	6
2.	Alabama (13)	10-3	1,414	11
3.	Oregon (2)	12-1	1,309	3
4.	LSU (2)	11-2	1,296	8t
5.	Florida State	10-4	1,116	16
6.	Stanford	12-1	1,101	4
7.	Boise State	12-1	1,065	7
8.	Oklahoma State	11-2	933	10
9.	Texas A&M	9-4	885	21
10.	Wisconsin	11-2	829	8t
11.	Nebraska	10-4	814	19
12.	South Carolina	9-5	779	22
13.	Virginia Tech	11-3	767	15
14.	Arkansas	10-3	750	12
15.	TCU	13-0	687	2
16.	Ohio State	12-1	631	5
17.	Michigan State	11-2	536	14
18.	Notre Dame	8-5	440	NR
19.	Auburn	14-0	329	1
20.	Mississippi State	9-4	301	17
21.	Missouri	10-3	266	18
22.	Georgia	6-7	260	NR
23.	Florida	8-5	240	NR
24.	Texas	5-7	162	NR
25.	Penn State	7-6	161	NR
Others receiving votes
Arizona State (6-6) 158; West Virginia (9-4) 149; Utah (10-3) 50; Miami (Fla.) (7-6) 49; Iowa (8-5) 41; Northwestern (7-6) 30; Arizona (7-6) 28; Central Florida (11-3) 22; Michigan (7-6) 19; Air Force (9-4) 15; North Carolina (8-5) 14; Houston (5-7) 13; South Florida (8-5) 9; Hawaii (10-4) 8; Clemson (6-7) 7; Tennessee (6-7) 7; Southern Miss (8-5) 6; Brigham Young (7-6) 5; North Carolina State (9-4) 4; Northern Illinois (11-3) 4; Oregon State (5-7) 4; Pittsburgh (8-5) 3; Washington (7-6) 3; Georgia Tech (6-7) 1; Nevada (13-1) 1.

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The Gods Must be Crazy......NBA Style

The gods must be crazy.......at least the ones looking down on the NBA.

The Dallas Mavericks are not a great defensive team.   They live and die by 3 point shots.  They are not physical.....They have only one superstar player.    They don't rebound well.

Their second best player,  Jason Terry......comes off the bench.

Their coach,  Rick Carlisle .....has been fired twice.....in the last 10 years.

Their owner,  Mark Cuban.......is a billionaire goof-ball......

And they have never won a championship ......ever.

Yet these Mavs'.........swept the two time defending champion L A Lakers  in 4 games and now lead the Miami Heat 3 games to 2.......to come within a game of winning the whole dang thing.

Yep.......the gods must be crazy.....

From USA Today......Last night's recap:

Mavericks mount late run, push Heat to brink of elimination

 

The Dallas Mavericks' Jason Terry celebrates his three-pointer late in a Game 5 victory over the Miami Heat in Dallas.

 

 

• STORY: Jason Terry sparks Mavericks
• BOX SCORE: Mavericks 112, Heat 103
• PHOTOS: Top images from the NBA Finals
• SCHEDULE: NBA Finals dates and results

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An Oregon.....Fashion Statement

Nike.....makes sure....Oregon gets the best....and only the best..

From USA Today:

The University of Oregon and Nike unveiled new uniforms Tuesday that the Ducks football team will wear when they face off with Auburn on Jan. 10 in the BCS national championship game.

The uniforms, Nike's next generation of the Pro Combat line, are all white with black helmets. But the most dazzling part of the ensemble is probably the cleats and socks.

The uniform design emphasizes thermoregulation by featuring Nike Pro Deflex padding with two-way airflow to cool the body and wick away sweat. The jerseys are made of four-way stretch woven twill that sheds moisture. A Flywire collar eliminates two layers of fabric for improved breathability, providing a more stable anchor to keep the jersey in place.

The uniform also provides enhanced protection throughout the crucial "hit zone" -- between the knees and shoulders -- delivering robust padding without the bulk. Nike Pro Deflex padding has also been integrated in the hip and knee areas of the pant for crucial impact protection that stays in place. The base layer now features customizable protection, incorporating a thin, incredibly strong carbon fiber plate that comes in two different sizes and can be placed where needed.

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This News......is Bad News

The news is not good.....for one Larry Jones, Jr. 

Could this be the end?  

A knee.......torn up.....Chipper has been...."day to day"......for the past 3 years....and now?

A knee......torn up.


From USA Today:

Chipper Jones' career over after ACL injury?

 

Atlanta Braves head trainer Jeff Porter looks at the leg of Chipper Jones Tuesday night

CAPTION

By David J. Phillip/AP

In June, Chipper Jones gathered the news media together in the Atlanta Braves locker room to say there would be no more talk about the "R" word. News had leaked that he and the Braves had discussed aspects of his eventual retirement, and Jones didn't want the topic to be a distraction for the rest of the season.

"Any more talk of the 'R' word will be reserved until the end of the season," Jones said. "I'm here. I'm playing the rest of the year. Any decision I make on my future will be made in the offseason."

But the "R" word is on the lips of every Braves fan with today's news, via Jones' agent, that Chipper has a "badly stretched" ACL that likely will require season-ending surgery for the 36-year-old.

Jones injured the knee Tuesday night when he landed awkwardly and had to be helped off the field. Jones hasn't had a 150-game season since 2003, and more than ever his league-leading .364 year of 2008 seems like his last great hurrah.

He was hitting .265 this season, with 10 homers, and not doing much to pad his credentials for the Hall of Fame. He won't waltz into Cooperstown with his numbers -- 2,490 hits, 436 HR -- but retiring now will protect that .306 career average.
So where do you say Chipper should go from here?

 

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