2010-11 Colorado Avalanche Preview: No More Sneaking Up

Filed under: Avalanche, Western

Virtually anyone who attempted to predict the results of the 2009-2010 NHL season before it began missed on the Colorado Avalanche.

Don't worry. Colorado's opponents seemed taken aback by the young team's quick rise from the cellar of the Western Conference to a playoff position.

"We had the fortune of sneaking up on some teams," second-year Colorado coach Joe Sacco told FanHouse this week. "We came out of the gates strong, played well, and we deserved to be there (the playoffs).

"We don't have that luxury this year."

No, they definitely don't. The Avalanche went 10-2-2 in October last year, getting them started on a 43-win season that was enough to get them the eighth seed in the Western Conference. After putting quite an impressive scare into top-seed San Jose, the Avalanche saw their season end in six games.

 

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Chris Rainey Accepts Plea in Stalking Case, Status at Florida Unclear

Filed under: Florida

Chris Rainey reached a plea agreement with prosecutors that will allow the University of Florida receiver to avoid jail time for his arrest on aggravated stalking earlier this month.

Under the deal, Rainey will have to avoid any more legal trouble for six months, perform 10 hours of community service and undergo anger management classes, The Gainesville Sun reported on Monday.

Florida coach Urban Meyer, who had kicked Rainey off the team after the arrest, said earlier Monday that Rainey would not play against the University of Alabama on Saturday.

"Chris Rainey is still not a part of this team," Meyer said. "He's definitely out this week."

 

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George Blanda, Oakland Raiders Legend, Dead at 83

Filed under: Raiders, NFL Hall of Fame

Former Raiders quarterback and kicker George Blanda, known as an ageless wonder during a 26-year NFL career, passed away, the Oakland Raiders announced on Monday. He was 83.

Raiders owner Al Davis called Blanda "the greatest clutch player the game of pro football has ever known," a reputation he earned largely for his exploits as both a quarterback and placekicker with the team.

The Raiders said a private funeral service will be held for family and a public memorial will be conducted, although the team didn't announce a specific time and date.

"Our heart goes out to his wife Betty and the Blanda family and we grieve with them for our great friend," the Raiders said in a statement."

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Also See: More on George Blanda's Career Achievements

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Mike Singletary Places 49ers Failures 'All' on His Shoulders

Filed under: 49ers, NFC West

San Francisco coach Mike Singletary faced the 49ers media Monday morning, just a few hours after it was announced that he'd fired Jimmy Raye as the team's offensive coordinator following an 0-3 start to the season and a 31-10 loss at Kansas City Sunday.

Asked how much of the responsibility falls on his own shoulder, Singletary didn't duck the question.

"I would put it all on my shoulders,'' he said.

There's not much gray area there. Still, the vast bulk of the season is yet to be played out and if the 49ers -- the preseason pick by many to win the NFC West this year -- have any hope to pull out of their tailspin and be competitive for the title in what is admittedly a weak division, new offensive coordinator Mike Johnson will have to get the offense revved up.

Singletary was asked about the qualities of Johnson, who was the quarterbacks coach under Raye, and what makes him the right man for the turning the offense around.

"Well, when I look at Mike, I think Mike will do a good job of bringing the staff together,'' Singletary said. "I think Mike is a great communicator. I think Mike is a great teacher. I think he's a visionary. I think he understands what we're trying to accomplish and I think the players will embrace him.''

Much was made in training camp of Raye coming back to the 49ers for a second season. It was the first time that quarterback Alex Smith had the same offensive coordinator two years in succession, and that brought the signal caller a certain amount of comfort.

Presumably that comfort won't evaporate any time soon because of Smith's close work with Johnson, but this is clearly going to have an impact on how things work in San Francisco, right?

"I think we will work hand-in-hand, but it is his offense,'' Singletary said. "And when I say it is his offense, I know that Mike will do a great job of involving every coach on the offensive staff.

"I knew he would do a great job of making sure that everyone has input, and it's a collaborative effort. And I know he will work his tail off to make this the best offense that it can possibly be. So I'm excited about that.''

Less exciting is the prospect of yet another offensive philosophy, particularly one that has to be imported midway through the season.

"The thing that I want to do, the most important thing to me, is winning,'' Singletary said. "How we do it, I really don't care. Yes, we can talk philosophy, we can talk opening up, closing it up, whatever it is. But the bottom line is winning. I want to do what we need to do to win football games. That's the philosophy that I want to become very familiar with.

 

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Weekend in Review: Rangers Clinch, Chapman on Fire, Yankees Struggle

Filed under: Giants, Rangers, Reds, Yankees, MLB Video, Executive Take

Going into the final last week of the regular season, FanHouse TV's Steve Phillips tells us what we learned from this weekend's games as the Rangers played without Josh Hamilton, the Padres and Giants put up a fight in the NL West and the Yankees struggled. Click to watch:

 

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2010-11 NBA Uniforms Improve Performance, Not Looks

by Chris Sesno

Filed under: Magic, Nets, Sports Business and Media

NEW YORK -- I wouldn't call it a revolution, but adidas' new 2010-11 NBA team jerseys could still be game-changers.

At the NBA store in Manhattan on Wednesday, adidas premiered the "Revolution 30" jerseys, with Dwight Howard, Jordan Farmar, Brook Lopez and Wilson Chandler giving media and fans a live walk down "center court" to show off the new get-ups, before working the registers to sell the $350 (suggested retail price) limited-edition jerseys, pictured above, to a few lucky fans.

All 30 teams are switching to the new, redesigned jerseys that are headlined by material that is 30 percent lighter and dries twice as fast as last season's uniforms.

"The old jerseys were a little bit heavier ... especially when they got wet. You sweat in them, they got wet, they got heavy," Farmar said in front of fans and media at the NBA Store. "The numbers were pretty bulky so this just feels a lot sleeker, a lot lighter, the material breathes a lot easier, so it's night and day difference."

Indeed, the most notable change is on the numbering. The old solid, heavy material has been replaced by a new breathable mesh numbering that increases ventilation to one of adidas' targeted "hot spots." The improvement is impossible to miss when you're standing in front of two mannequins with hands-on fabric new and old. The new material is thinner, lighter and stretches more than last year's heavier, denser uniforms.

Combine that with CLIMACOOL fabric (reduces heat by absorbing and drying sweat) and Formotion technology cutting down on seams and friction, and the P.R. pitch about boosting performance on the court is probably true.

But the question is, are people off the court going to care? Fans are more concerned about what these unis are going to look like rather than the intricacies of their creation. Think about the hype surrounding this year's World Cup soccer kits: was the public concerned about the inseam mesh increasing ventilation? No, it was much more about color combinations and aesthetics.

 

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Justin Upton's Headed to Dr. James Andrews for a Look at His Shoulder

Filed under: Diamondbacks, NL West, MLB Injuries

There are few words that strike more fear into the hearts of professional athletes than when a physician tells them "I think we need to see Dr. Andrews for a second opinion."

Justin Upton heard those words recently and he's going to head to Birmingham for a consultation with Dr. James Andrews about his sore left shoulder. Andrew Pentis of MLB.com reports that Upton was on his way to the appointment while the Diamondbacks were playing Sunday's home finale.

Upton hasn't played in 20 of the last 24 Diamondbacks games and hasn't started a game since Sept. 14. He's had just seven at-bats this month after being removed from a game in late August after feeling a twinge in his shoulder during a swing. He had an MRI earlier this month that was clean, but things haven't improved over the last couple of weeks.

 

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