si Page 808 - Sports News, Headlines & Highlights

The Sports Guy Before ESPN: A 2000 Bill Simmons Column Is Unearthed
It's a curious quirk of the internet that almost nothing survives of Bill Simmons's pre-ESPN work. The formative years of one of the country's most successful sports writers are lost forever, all because AOL Digital City preserved nothing. But even then the "Boston Sports Guy" had fans devoted enoug...

The Verducci Effect Is Overworked And Broken Down
Sports Illustrated's Tom Verducci came out with his annual "Year After Effect" column yesterday, based on his hypothesis that that young pitchers tend to break down the season after an increased workload. Specifically, a pitcher 25 and under is supposed to be at risk if he pitched at least 30 more i...

Cuba Gooding Jr. Invites Linda Cohn To Rock Out With Her Cock Out
Cuba Gooding Jr. appeared on SportsCenter today to promote his new film Red Tails (which, as far as we can tell, is fully unrelated to sports) and performed some awkward impersonations, including one of Allen Iverson which ended in an aborted-too-late "rock out with your cock out!" We're pretty s...

Messi Had A Hand In Barça's 2-1 Win Over Real Madrid—A Hand That Pepe Stepped On
Despite Cristiano Ronaldo's opening goal, Barcelona claimed the first leg of their Copa del Rey quarterfinal against Real Madrid on a Eric Abidal goal set up by Lionel Messi—a goal that came ten minutes after Real's Pepe stomped on Messi's hand in an act that sent commentator Ray Hudson into apop...

Disney's ESPN's Bill Simmons Has Committed 98 Potential SOPA Violations On Grantland So Far
ESPN's just one of the prominently featured supporters of SOPA, the law that has your favorite non-Deadspin sites going black today....

The Banned Boca Raton Women's Professional Soccer Team Will Keep Playing In Zombie Form
Women's Professional Soccer's year-long battle with its ultimate nemesis, magicJack owner and giant motor-tricycle aficionado Dan Borislow, has finally come to a close. WPS may have escaped extinction last month, but they can't escape Dan Borislow....

Cristiano Ronaldo Went Five-Hole And Drew First Blood In <em>El Clásico</em>
It's a Copa del Rey quarterfinal matchup between Real Madrid and Barcelona, one on which Cristiano Ronaldo made an early mark with this nifty goal between the legs of Barça's José Manuel Pinto. [GOLTV]...

The Hockey Gods <i>Will</i> Have Their Bloody Vengeance
Earlier this month, Calgary winger Rene Bourque gave a dirty elbow to the head of Washington's Nicklas Backstrom. The Caps' leading scorer has been out ever since with a concussion, and Bourque was suspended five games by the league. But that's not justice. That's The Man's justice. The Capitals d...

100 Percent Of The NBA's Asian-American Population Now Plays In The D-League
That was quick. Adrian Wojnarowski is reporting that Jeremy Lin is headed for a stint with the Erie Bayhawks, along with Jerome Jordan. Lin apparent failed to impress the Knicks' front office with his 1.8 PPG in five appearances, and with Baron Davis' return looming, Lin looks like a long shot to re...
![Just As He Promised, Nick Saban Finds A Way Around The SEC's Oversigning Rules [UPDATE]](https://images.deadspin.com/tr:w-900/18j4nkvar8k5yjpg.jpg)
Just As He Promised, Nick Saban Finds A Way Around The SEC's Oversigning Rules [UPDATE]
Remember this? When the SEC reduced the annual signing limit from 28 to 25, in order to curb the growing scourge of schools signing more players than they could offer scholarships? And how SEC coaches voted unanimously against the new rule, because it limited their "flexibility," but the rule passed...

Ben Blood Upholds The Time-Honored Hockey Tradition Of Sucker Punching A Guy In The Handshake Line
His name is Ben Blood, for god's sake. Even if this wasn't the end of a contentious game between heated rivals Minnesota and UND, you should probably be guarding your grill any time you're within spitting distance of someone named Ben Blood. Regardless, Blood at least kept his integrity. Unlike Di...

There's A Hidden Message In The Names Of These Ole Miss Basketball Players
Your morning roundup for Jan. 16, the day we learned Rice Krispies can be dangerous. Photo via @tonyagolini. Got any stories or photos for us? Tip your editors....

Your NFL Playoffs Divisional Round Open Thread: Houston Texans at Baltimore Ravens
Welcome back for day two of the divisional round. As always, make yourselves comfortable down below in the comments....

Dwarf Tossing Is All Fun And Games Until Someone Loses The Ability To Walk Unassisted
Martin Henderson, a 37 year-old British man who suffers from dwarfism, was out celebrating his birthday and watching the Rugby World Cup when he was suddenly, and violently tossed by a "hooded thug" while trying to enjoy a smoke outside of the White Horse Pub in Wincanton, Somerset....

Somebody Let Tony Siragusa Know There's An "L" In The Word "Flag"
There are unfortunate misstatements, and then there is questioning the sexuality of an inanimate object. [Fox]...

UCF Basketball Team Can't Believe The Sorry State Of West Virginia Hotels Before Big Game Against Marshall
Tonight, at 7:00 p.m. inside the Cam Henderson Center, these two storied basketball programs will renew their rivalry on the court. Off the court, however, things got a 24-hour head start when several UCF player tweets sparked some spirited back-and-forth....

Here's ESPN's Heather Cox Reciting Lyrics To Rick Ross's "Fuck 'Em" Live On The Air
Maybe I'm missing the story. Maybe the story is that Heather Cox worked Tim Tebow, LeBron James, and Rick Ross into a single sentence. While previous ESPN on-air rap recitations have gone pretty smoothly, this instance (during last night's Heat-Nuggets battle) felt...wrong. [ESPN]...

Great Moment In Naked Condom Runs
Welcome to Great Moments in Drunken Hookup Failure, where we showcase three heartwarming true stories of drunken love gone horribly awry. Off we go....

How The Song "Seven Nation Army" Conquered The Sports World
The march toward musical empire began on Oct. 22, 2003, in a bar in Milan, Italy, 4,300 miles away from Detroit. Fans of Club Brugge K.V., in town for their team's group-stage UEFA Champions League clash against European giant A.C. Milan, gathered to knock back some pre-match beers. Over a stereo bl...

This One's For Anyone Who's Ever Wanted To Tell A Sideline Reporter "I Love You, You're So Pretty And Beautiful"
Greg from Lemont, Sarah Kustok from CSN, you two are just about the cutest couple and this isn't creepy at all. Make it happen. [CSN Chicago]...