leitch-old Page 244 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

Blogdome: You Cannot Kill Norv
• The Cowboys wouldn't really hire Norv Turner as coach ... would they? [And Here Come The Pretzels] • What football play is this, exactly? [copyranter] • This is pretty much exactly how spring training is gonna go. [Kill All Poets] • The Yankees should probably cool it with this Phillip Hughes char...

The "Out" Scoop On Amaechi's Book
After we told you about John Amaechi's coming out in a few weeks as the gay former NBA player, the fine folks at OutSports, who had known about this for a while, released their story about the book, sections of which they have seen. Some fun tidbits:...

Ron Zook Will Turn Your Conventional Wisdom Upside Down
Our beloved alma mater, the University of Illinois, is having a mediocre year in basketball and has won, like, four games in two years, even forcing us to sit through a 33-0 loss to Rutgers last year that mostly resembled a cock fight between a rabid rooster and an egg. But worry not, fellow alums: ...

The Dakota Wizards Know How To Party
Not much on this sporting planet more glamorous than the NBA's Development League, nope. As evidence of the league's ability to raise the profile of a mere basketball player into an international superstar of unqualified proportions, we present this DraftExpress diary of Rod Benson, former Cal Golde...

Stephen A. Smith, Voice Of Reason In A World Of Insanity
OK, now we're not gonna get into politics this morning, but someone sent us this clip of Stephen A. Smith — listed as "Stephen Smith" — debating atheism on CNN. This isn't the first time he's debated non-sports topics on CNN, but this is the first time we've grabbed a clip....

It's Like The Wii, But With Your MIND
Fascinating story in The Washington Post yesterday: A psychologist watched a group of fans viewing the Super Bowl in Philadelphia a couple of years ago and came away convinced that fans think they can control what's going on in the game....

Stuart Scott Is Ready To Kick Some Mustache Ass
The Big Lead has a fun wrapup of media party-related stories from the Super Bowl — which was Sunday, by the way — and we enjoyed this one considerably....

Leftovers: You're Doin' A Heckuva Job, Hockey
• President Bush, obviously not much of a hockey fan. [Out Of Left Field] • A big night in Philadelphia hoops tonight. [Fortress Of Pillows] • If you want to have some Spring Training fun, this is the place to be. (It kills us that we can't do this ourselves.) [U.S.S. Mariner] • Another grand Varsit...

Kevin Pittsnogle, All-Star For A 2-26 Team
You were wondering whatever happened to former Pittsburgh West Virginia hoops start Kevin Pittsnogle, weren't you? WEREN'T YOU? ADMIT IT!...

Your Anonymous Gay Former NBAer Is Less Anonymous Now (But Only Slightly So)
Last week, a Chicago Sun-Times "blog" mentioned that a former NBA player was going to come out of the closet on Valentine's Day, because that's a day for love. (Or desperate loneliness and regret. Pick your poison.) We'd heard this rumor, and some others have been speculating as well, and every sour...

Remembering The Long-Dead "The National"
Old-time media people might remember the short-lived "The National," a daily national sports newspaper founded by Frank Deford and featuring a lot of names you probably didn't know in the early '90s but certainly do now (Chris Mortensen, Keith Olbermann, Scott Ostler). As romantic as the idea of a d...

Blogdome: George Mason Back In Its Place
• In case you were wondering how George Mason was doing this year, the answer is "not well." [The Big Picture] • Look who the Dunk Contest judges are this year. [WBRS Sports Blog] • Mo Vaughn, making a difference in NYC. [I Dislike Your Favorite Team] • Bill Veeck would be 93 this week. A look back ...

Also, He Hired Snipers Outside The Training Facility, Just To Make It "Interesting"
What boxers put themselves through while training for a fight can border on the inhuman; if Rocky IV is to be believed, it's so rough that sometimes they're forced to grow a beard just to survive. Current world cruiserweight champion O'Neil Bell added a new wrinkle to the training process: throwing ...

Just What This Guy Needs: Free Stuff
We forget this sometimes, but the winner of the Super Bowl MVP is awarded with a brand new gas-guzzler for peddling their wares on the world's largest stage. Therefore, we have the sublime pleasure of watching a man who makes eight figures a season decided which mammoth Cadillac he'll give to staffe...

A-Rod's Story Of A Sensitive Boy
We mentioned this when the deal was originally announced, and now, today, the day has finally arrived: Alex Rodriguez's children's book has hit the stands. "Out Of The Ballpark" is the story of a second baseman named Alex who makes an error and — get this — begins to play worse because he's putting ...

Bill Cowher Surprisingly Cool When You Accost Him On The Beach With A Video Camera
Via Sports By Brooks, here's a video apparently shot in February 2000 from an incredibly rude (but amusingly inquisitive) fan who ran into Bill Cowher and his wife on an undisclosed tropical locale....

Todd Bozeman Is Disappointed In Your Selection Of Deli Meat
We had to hold this story until the end of the day, because we can't stop laughing about it. Remember Todd Bozeman, the former California Golden Bears basketball coach who was fired and banned by the NCAA for eight years for paying a recruit's family $30,000. Well he's back coaching again, at Morgan...

Daulerio at SBXLI: Farewell, Miami
AJ Daulerio has been in Miami all week as the Deadspin "correspondent." This is his final post of the trip....

Leftovers: Breaking Down Reggie
• A comprehensive look at the Reggie Bush payoff situation. [Hall Of Fame Magazine] • The big KSK wrapup of Super Bowl XLI. [Kissing Suzy Kolber] • What Tommy John surgery really means. [Litmus] • Wait ... why should Florida residents pay for a new Marlins stadium again? [UmpBump]...

Rex Grossman Would Rather Not See Dudes Kissing
You might remember the above ad during the Super Bowl last night, in which two car mechanics "accidentally" kissed because of their intense desire for a Snickers bar. (It's the one where they start ripping out their chest hair in response, which is totally manly.) Well, Towleroad checked out the off...