I guess George O’Leary still has Notre Dame on his mind. When asked about USF in today’s press conference, O’Leary said Jim Leavitt gets USF “to play to the echo of the whistle.” Um, if a referee blows a whistle in the middle of the forest and no one’s around ...
Anyway, here’s today’s report:
With the University of South Florida having nothing more to gain in playing UCF, Saturday’s contest in Orlando will be the last in the short four-game series.
If it was up to Knights coach George O’Leary, however, the rivalry would continue.
“I think it is a natural game, but that is not my decision. I think that possibly once [conference] geography changes in a couple of years that it may be a game anyway,” O’Leary said. “They are a good football team. I think [USF coach] Jim [Leavitt] has done a great job as far as getting them to play to the echo of the whistle. … We had an opportunity two years ago and fell short. It is a 60-minute game, and we have to sustain. I feel like it is a big attitude game, and that a lot of these kids have played against one another in high school.”
INJURY UPDATE: RBs Ben Williams and Mike Ford (ankle), who was out of his protective boot, were in full pads Tuesday but did not practice.
“We’re not going to have them do anything until maybe [Wednesday],” Leavitt said.
With Williams and Ford sidelined, Jamar Taylor and Moise Plancher are getting the bulk of the work with the first-team offense.
TE Trent Pupello (ankle) was off crutches, but watched practice with a boot on his right foot and is doubtful for UCF. DL Cory Grissom practiced “a little bit,” Leavitt said, which indicates there’s a chance Grissom could be ready to go Saturday.
JOB WELL DONE: After struggling against Division I-AA opponents in the past two season openers, the Bulls were relieved they had no such problems in their 56-7 win against Tennessee-Martin.
“I’m just happy we came out and played well and put a lot of points on the board and moved the ball just about whenever we wanted to,” USF QB Matt Grothe said. “It’s always a good start to the year when you can do that. We just have to take the good things and the bad things from the game and learn off of them.”
First-year Cambridge Christian coach John Kelly had plenty of reasons to smile after the Lancers’ first test last Friday in a Kickoff Jamboree at Winter Haven All Saints’ that featured the Lancers, CDS Prep and the host school.
The Lancers won 21-6 against CDS Prep and played All Saints’ to a 0-0 tie.
“There were a lot of positives,” Kelly said. “We tried to do a couple of different things. In the first game [against CDS Prep] we tried to work on our passing, and then against All Saints we tried to work on our running game. We obviously still need to work on our running game, but we did some good things.”
The passing game definitely stood out behind the solid play of senior quarterback Etienne Turner, who accounted for two touchdowns in the win over CDS Prep. Turner had a 40-yard touchdown run and threw a 35-yard scoring strike to junior Dixon Phillips, who made a leading, one-handed catch over a defender.
“It was just a beautiful catch,” the coach said.
The Lancers also got a big play in that game from their special teams, with Ryan Campbell returning the opening kickoff 80 yards for a touchdown.
Cambridge Christian is scheduled to play it season-opener at Jacksonville University Christian on Friday, but Kelly said both schools are keeping an eye on Tropical Storm Hanna. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Tuesday the storm’s forecast track would carry Hanna toward “the east coast of Florida, Georgia or South Carolina in two to three days,” meaning the Jacksonville area could be affected.
Kelly said a determination on whether the game would be played likely would be made in the next day or two.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
TAMPA - The Bucs have made an exchange of centers, adding Sean Mahan in a deal with the Steelers and letting go of Dan Buenning, who was dealt to the Bears.
We’ll bring you more details as we get them
Greetings from the Trop, where the Rays are taking batting practice in preparation for a three-game set against the floundering Yankees that opens what still could be a defining stretch of their season.
They’ll have an extra few bodies on hand now that rosters have expanded, with Troy Percival activated from the DL and John Jaso and Fernando Perez joining the team from Durham. Jaso will wear 28 and Perez 38, with the outfielder figuring to get more playing time as a defensive replacement and pinch-runner.
Percival will move back into the closer’s role, but Maddon said it remains to be seen whether the frequency with which Percival is used will change. Dan Wheeler certainly has proven himself an adequate backup there.
One more note before the lineups: Fox has picked up the Sept. 20 Rays-Twins game, which means the start time will move up to 3:55 p.m. It will be the Rays’ third Fox appearance since Aug. 23 after they got only two showings on the network in their first 10 seasons.
The lineups:
Yankees
Damon CF
Jeter SS
Abreu RF
Rodriguez 3B
Giambi 1B
Nady LF
Matsui DH
Cano 2B
Molina C
Mussina P
Rays
Iwamura 2B
Upton CF
Pena 1B
Floyd DH
Aybar 3B
Hinske LF
Bartlett SS
Gross RF
Riggans C
Garza P
By RAY MARKHAM
Passing storms have a tendency to shake things up and move fish around. During the past couple of weeks, Tropical Storm Fay and Hurricane Gustav changed the inshore scene dramatically. Water temperatures have bounced up and down like a yo-yo. All the rain and cloudy weather caused the temperatures to fall into the low 80s, but between storms the temperature moved into the upper 80s on the flats.
High winds on the open water of the Gulf stirred up the bottom, making the water cloudy and limiting visibility. The turbidity in the Gulf made its way into Tampa Bay on each flood tide. Coming off the new moon, we have had some big high tides. As a result, I have been working the backwaters of Terra Ceia Bay to find some cleaner water. We’ve been finding some snook around the mangroves, decent trout fishing in holes on the flats and redfish sunning themselves on shallow sand bars.
The open waters of Tampa Bay have produced trout, bluefish and gag and red grouper. While fishing with Pam Kirk of Pensacola and Wendy and Bob Bloomer of Madeira Beach, we picked up trout to 21 inches and juvenile red grouper on MirrOlure Top Dogs and DOA Shrimp while fishing the John’s Pass area inside the Intracoastal Waterway on the incoming tide.
When trying to find out where the fish have moved to, the most important factor is finding the food sources that your target species is seeking. Some clues that could indicate good fishing locations are spots with diving birds, showering bait schools and bird roosts where the partially digested remains from roosting birds are excreted.
Ray Markham co-hosts “Florida Sportsman Magazine Radio Live,” Saturdays from 8-9 a.m. on WWBA, 1040 AM, and may be reached for charter at (941) 723-2655.
Plant senior guard Sheldon Cooley is up to nine offers and is in the process of scheduling his official visits, Plant coach Mike Phillips said.
So far, Cooley has offers from Houston, Longwood, East Tennessee State, Savanna State, George Mason, Stetson, FAU, Colorado State and St. Francis. His top choices include George Mason, which advanced to the Final Four a few years ago, and FAU.
Wesley Chapel has filled some holes, including the one as girls basketball coach. Karim Nohra, the former Cambridge and Tampa Catholic coach, will take over the Wildcats program.
In 11 season at TC (1990-91 to 2000-01), he led the Crusaders to a 200-113 record. In five season at Cambridge (2001-02 to 2005-06), Nohra led the squad to five district titles and a 140-18 record.
He takes over for Warren Jones, now an assistant with the Saint Leo women’s basketball team, who led the team to an 85-24 mark in five seasons.
Wesley Chapel also added former University of South Florida volleyball coach Perri Hankins as its volleyball coach. Hankins, who played volleyball for Ball State from 1975-78, also coached at Virginia Commonwealth University for three seasons (2002-04), where she collected a 13-31 record. Hankins spent eight seasons at USF, gathering a 189-72 record.
Also, Kristen Broecker and John Hoffman will take over the girls and boys cross country teams, respectively.
TAMPA - The Bucs will open the 2008 season in New Orleans, as planned.
The Saints, in conjunction with the Louisiana Superdome, announced Tuesday plans to host the regular season opener with the Bucs, as scheduled at 1 p.m. ET Sunday at the Louisiana Superdome.
“There were a number of critical issues that needed to be addressed before we could make this announcement,” said Saints Owner Tom Benson, who directed the process of making this game happen for Saints fans from the team’s temporary location in Indianapolis. “We have been assured by Superdome officials that the stadium is ready to host our fans and our team for a sold out game this Sunday and we have been assured by our political leaders that we have their support in making this happen.”
The team will return to New Orleans on Friday afternoon and will practice the remainder of the week at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
“As we stated yesterday, we want to thank Jim Irsay, Bill Polian and the Indianapolis Colts in making the transition to Indianapolis seamless,” said Saints Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis. “We are pleased that we will be back in New Orleans to play our game in our hometown in front of our fans on Sunday.”
The team has worked in a collaborative effort with state and local officials as well as with Superdome officials making sure that the Superdome was available, safe and ready to host and staff the game. In addition, the team is working20within the guidelines set out by state and local officials on when residents can return to their homes.
“Our number one priority was making sure that the people of our community were safe during the storm and are now able to return safely. There is a critical re-entry process that we all must follow and we must do that as efficiently as possible,” said Benson. “We will once again showcase to a national audience that the city of New Orleans is made up of resilient people and that we are ready to stand our city back up as quickly as possible, put this storm behind us and move on with our lives.”
The Superdome had no major damage when Hurricane Gustav struck near New Orleans Monday.
“We are happy to report the Superdome sustained only minimal damage from Hurricane Gustav; primarily to exterior marquees,” said SMG Regional Vice President/General Manager Doug Thornton. “It takes significant resources to run the Dome for a Saints game and we are very pleased that our employees, subcontractors and suppliers will all be available when the doors open on Sunday.”
Here is a press release I just received from the NFL:
Saints to Host Tampa Bay Buccaneers at Noon on Sunday at Louisiana Superdome
September 2, 2008
The New Orleans Saints, in conjunction with the Louisiana Superdome, have announced today that the regular season opener between the Saints and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers will be played as scheduled at Noon (CT) - 1 PM ET - on Sunday, September 7 at the Louisiana Superdome.
“There were a number of critical issues that needed to be addressed before we could make this announcement,” said Saints Owner Tom Benson, who directed the process of making this game happen for Saints fans from the team’s temporary location in Indianapolis. “We have been assured by Superdome officials that the stadium is ready to host our fans and our team for a sold out game this Sunday and we have been assured by our political leaders that we have their support in making this happen.”
The team will return to New Orleans on Friday afternoon and will practice the remainder of the week at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.
“As we stated yesterday, we want to thank Jim Irsay, Bill Polian and the Indianapolis Colts in making the transition to Indianapolis seamless,” said Saints Executive Vice President/General Manager Mickey Loomis. “We are pleased that we will be back in New Orleans to play our game in our hometown in front of our fans on Sunday.”
The team has worked in a collaborative effort with state and local officials as well as with Superdome officials making sure that the Superdome was available, safe and ready to host and staff the game. In addition, the team is working within the guidelines set out by state and local officials on when residents can return to their homes.
“Our number one priority was making sure that the people of our community were safe during the storm and are now able to return safely. There is a critical re-entry process that we all must follow and we must do that as efficiently as possible,” said Benson. “We will once again showcase to a national audience that the city of New Orleans is made up of resilient people and that we are ready to stand our city back up as quickly as possible, put this storm behind us and move on with our lives.”
The Superdome had no major damage when Hurricane Gustav struck near New Orleans Monday.
“We are happy to report the Superdome sustained only minimal damage from Hurricane Gustav; primarily to exterior marquees,” said SMG Regional Vice President/General Manager Doug Thornton. “It takes significant resources to run the Dome for a Saints game and we are very pleased that our employees, subcontractors and suppliers will all be available when the doors open on Sunday.”
Tyler Gimbert admitted emotions almost got the best of him last Friday night.
Playing in his first football game in over a year, the Alonso defensive lineman/linebacker helped contribute to his team’s Kickoff Classic victory over Countryside. The Tampa Tribune documented Gimbert’s long road back to the football field, a journey that included sustaining a serious neck injury in last year’s Kickoff Classic that led to the discovery of brain tumors.
Gimbert contributed a couple of tackles, including one for a loss that signaled his return.
“There was just one play that I thought of the hit from last year and I just got so pumped up that before the opposing offensive tackle came off the ball, I was already in the back field and I just completely crushed the running back for a five yard loss,” Gimbert said. “That was the point in the game where I was just going nuts. I was yelling and screaming and
just feeling alive again.”
The CDS Prep football team wasn’t able to come out with a victory in its first test in 11-man football last Friday, but that doesn’t mean Patriots coach Lane McLaughlin wasn’t pleased with his team’s effort.
“I was really impressed with our determination and our fight,” McLaughlin said.
The Patriots fell 12-0 to Winter Haven All Saints’ and 21-6 to Cambridge Christian (CDS Prep played one half against each team in a jamboree-style format). The Patriots’ lone score came via the defense when Darius Bing scooped up a lateral and returned it for a touchdown against the Lancers.
The offense had some success moving the ball, but the unit shot itself in the foot at the worst times. McLaughlin said the Patriots had a dropped pass on a fourth-down play on one occasion and another dropped pass that would have resulted in a touchdown.
“We just made little mistakes,” McLaughlin said. “It’s nothing we can’t correct.”
McLaughlin said arguably the biggest positive was the play of the Patriots’ offensive line, which includes three eighth-grade starters – Anthony Suarez, Jarred Smith and Camden Coe.
The Patriots host Leesburg First Academy on Friday at 4:30 p.m.
Sickles boys basketball coach Renaldo Garcia said on Tuesday the team has accepted an invitation to play in the Trusted Choice Tournament of Champions in Illinois during Thanksgiving weekend.
Sickles will play in the National Invitation Classic, a four-team bracket that includes teams from Illinois and texas. The tournament will include some of the top teams and players from the country.
Meanwhile, Sickles senior John Henson, the No. 3 ranked player in the nation according to several recruiting sites, said on Tuesday he is a solid verbal committment to North Carolina. Henson said he will make an official visit to UNC on Oct. 24, and will not visit any other school. The Tar Heels have the No. 1 rated recruiting class for 2009, according to ESPN.com.
USF moved up two spots from No. 19 to No. 17 in today’s Associated Press rankings. Below is this week’s AP Poll followed by how I voted in the AP Poll.
AP Top 25
RANK TEAM RECORD PTS PVS
1. USC (21) 1-0 1539 3
2. Georgia (20) 1-0 1506 1
3. Ohio State (15) 1-0 1497 2
4. Oklahoma (2) 1-0 1432 4
5. Florida (5) 1-0 1415 5
6. Missouri (1) 1-0 1301 6
7. LSU (1) 1-0 1207 7
8. West Virginia 1-0 1108 8
9. Auburn 1-0 1033 10
10. Texas 1-0 1028 11
11. Wisconsin 1-0 849 13
12. Texas Tech 1-0 842 12
13. Alabama 1-0 834 24
14. Kansas 1-0 748 14
15. Arizona State 1-0 672 15
15. Brigham Young 1-0 672 16
17. South Florida 1-0 588 19
18. Oregon 1-0 508 21
19. Penn State 1-0 467 22
20. Wake Forest 1-0 414 23
21. Fresno State 1-0 242 NR
22. Utah 1-0 214 NR
23. UCLA 1-0 151 NR
24. Illinois 0-1 147 20
24. South Carolina 1-0 147 NR
Others Receiving Votes: Clemson 143, East Carolina 108, California 91, Boston College 36, Tennessee 30, Virginia Tech 14.
Dropped From Rankings Clemson 9, Virginia Tech 17, Tennessee 18, Pittsburgh 25.
How I voted:
1. Georgia, 2. Ohio State, 3. USC, 4. Florida, 5. Missouri, 6. Oklahoma, 7. LSU, 8. West Virginia, 9. Auburn, 10. Texas, 11. Texas Tech, 12. Penn State, 13. Alabama, 14. South Florida, 15. Arizona State, 16. BYU, 17. Kansas, 18. Oregon, 19. Wisconsin, 20. Wake Forest, 21. South Carolina, 22. East Carolina, 23. Clemson, 24. Utah, 25. Illinois.
Warren Sapp says he is looking forward to his next role—analyzing players instead of hunting ‘em down.
After a 13-year career that could land him in the Pro Football Hall of Fame, Sapp begins a new job Sunday at 10 a.m. on the NFL Network’s “GameDay Morning’’ show in Los Angeles, where Sapp will share a platform with former Pro Bowl RB Marshall Faulk.
“I’m not a person who woke up on Sunday mornings to watch the pre-game shows,’’ Sapp said Tuesday. “I told the people on the show that I’ll be like a big ball of clay and they can mold me, but there’s no doubt I’m bringing Warren to the table. And I know one thing about this show—it’s absolutely live. We’re going to have fun. I don’t plan on not having fun.’’
Sapp, 35, will also contribute to “Inside the NFL,’’ a weekly program on Showtime, and he will team with Australian ballroom dancer Kym Johnson later this month for a new season of “Dancing With the Stars.’’
“My kids were excited about me dancing, so everybody’s on board,’’ said Sapp, the dynamic defensive tackle who earned seven consecutive Pro Bowl berths with the Bucs before joining the Raiders as a free agent in 2004. “They gave me 2 1-2 inch heels and it was a pleasure to be around Kym for a few days.’’
Later in the conversation, Sapp talked about his potential Hall of Fame status, shared his thoughts on Buccaneer fans and gauged Tampa Bay’s chances to repeat as NFC South champions this fall.
Wednesday’s Tribune will feature Sapp’s complete comments as No. 99 begins a new career, still in the public spotlight.
Hours away from the start of the 2008 volleyball season, here are my predictions , district-by-district:
Class 6A-District 7
Winner: Countryside
Runner Up: Mitchell
Class 6A-District 8
Winner: Lakeland
Runner Up: Durant
Class 5A-District 8
Winner: Brandon
Runner Up: Armwood
Class 5A-District 10
Winner: Plant
Runner Up: Chamberlain
Class 4A-District 9
Winner: Bartow
Runner Up: Kathleen
Class 3A-District 11
Winner: Berkeley Prep
Runner Up: Academy of the Holy Names
Class 2A-District 9
Winner: Tampa Prep
Runner Up: Indian Rocks Christian
Class A-District 9
Winner: Canterbury
Runner Up: Carrollwood Day
Class A-District 10
Winner: Bayshore Christian
Runner Up: Cambridge
Whar are your predictions?
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