This has gotten a bunch of play, and rightfully so. But I had to add it here because my faith in professional coaches was renewed the minute I heard this. If the 49ers will let him, Singletary will produce “winners”.
Mike Singletary….Amen
I made my annual trek to Chapel Hill this weekend to see a couple of UNC basketball practices. Before the evening news on Thursday night, I expected to see two crisp, well-organized practices. All that changed, however, once the news of Tyler Hansbrough’s injury was released. (Quick aside: What in the world is a stress reaction? Give the medical folks at UNC huge props for catching this before a full blown stress fracture occurred). I don’t think I’ve done this before, but I feel like it would be appropriate to give what amounts to a medical report before I discuss what I saw at the two practices. Read the rest of this entry »
It was Meet the Players Day at UNC on Saturday. We had a great time, and we got to play a little pitch-and-catch. I think the Heels may have a budding star at wide-out. Check out the video.
Ryan makes a tough grab in the end zone
So, yes, this would be bragging on my son. Ryan won his age group golf title at his home golf course. It was a two day event against two other boys. He really won the title on the first day. His putting was tremendous and he drove the ball fairly straight and very long all day.
Ryan was a little more erratic the second day, but he did a nice job of keeping it together. I could tell he was getting excited on the last couple of holes (I think he knew he was close to winning). The other two boys were great kids and a lot of fun. As the picture shows, Ryan was an extremely happy kid. The parents were pretty happy too.
Ryan is pretty happy, huh?
With some time (brief albeit) to reflect, I have some opinions on how to fix the Heels. This suggests that there is something “wrong” with Carolina’s basketball team. On the surface, that would be a tough thing to prove. UNC set a school record for wins in a single season (36), had won 15 in a row coming in to the game with Kansas, and won both the ACC regular season and tournament titles for the second consecutive year. All of this was capped off with a nice run to the Final Four. If something is “wrong” with the Heels then I imagine a lot of teams would love to be “wrong”. Read the rest of this entry »
This is a provocative piece. I’m not sure if I agree with the overall premise, but Mandel makes some nice points about Duke’s scheduling and it’s recruitment of McD’s A-A’s.
A few comments on the big battle between Memphis and Tennessee on Saturday:
- The atmosphere was great, the play was erratic. Both teams acted like this is the biggest game of all time. Of course, the kids from UNC and Duke do this same thing a couple of times (at least) each year. And that was the difference. The beginning of the game was so hectic it was tough to watch. It looked like a high school game with better athletes.
- Bruce Pearl said that he hoped Vitale was giving it to the nation like he (Pearl) was feeling it. The problem, of course, is that Vitale has seen way too many UNC-Duke games to think this was some abnormal occurrence. Dickie V rarely got excited. He even remarked at one point how passive the crowd had become when the Vols took a little control midway through the 2nd half. That doesn’t happen in Cameron or the Smith Center during a close game.
- Did you notice how gassed the players were? The shot of Rose bent over near exhaustion was classic. You just don’t see that from the UNC-Duke game. The players (and coaches) are used to the whole deal. UT dealt with it better, and that’s way they won – that, and the fact that Memphis is a horrible shooting team.
At the end of it, I came away thinking that Tennessee was good, but not great. The Vols have a spotty half-court offense, and they don’t always defend with purpose (to steal a Jimmy Dykes phrase). Memphis lost, but they’re really good – especially Rose and Douglas-Roberts. CDR is a 1st Team A-A. However, the Tigers cannot win the title unless they get seriously hot from outside the paint (3 ball and FT’s). If their shooting stats hold true in March, they won’t make it to the FF. Remember my March Mantra: To win, you must shoot well and not turn the ball over. The Tigers are ok with TO part, but they suck at the shooting part.
It’s amazing how tough the Heels have become. UNC has more holes than could be listed here. But, but, but….they keep winning games. And – here’s the truly amazing part – the games are much slower. Carolina has become content to move very deliberately around the court. Yet, they’re scoring in the high 80’s every night. The Heels miss Lawson’s 4-5 easy buckets. But, you know, Q has become a better on-ball defender than Ty. I was skeptical that Q could match Smith and Teague tonight. He did, though. The pick of Teague in the 1st half was a clear indication that Thomas was unafraid. Sure, there was lots of penetration. And Teague did convert some seriously sweet baskets. Even with that, it was not easy for Wake to get to the hole. The fact that almost every second half shot was contested (aside from a few Johnson buckets) is a great testament to UNC’s improved D. And all of that starts with Q. Read the rest of this entry »
Seriously? A boring blowout on the road? Against State? After kicking them all around Chapel Hill five weeks ago?
Yes, yes, yes, and yes.
To be honest, though, Sidney Lowe gave the game away. Read the rest of this entry »
I believe I’ll take a little credit for Wake’s win last night. About a week ago I predicted the Deacons would drop the Devils. It was nice to see how Duke responds (not well) when a good many close calls go against them. Obviously, Wake received a nice dose of “homer” whistles – you rarely, if ever, see guys cut off the baseline so aggressively without a foul being called. But, Nelson and Henderson stepped out bounds with a little “help” several times without a call. So you see what happens – Duke’s entire first five fouls out.
There were two more important things that occurred, though. Read the rest of this entry »
UNC is the #1 basketball team in October. Over the weekend, I got to take a look at this group (as I do each year). And, there are a few reasons to believe they might well be the top ranked team in April too. I saw 6 hours of practice over two days. For the first time I can remember, all the bodies were healthy (essentially). The practices were spirited, and Roy Williams was not interested in folks messing up (more on this in a bit). But before I dive in to the ‘07-’08 Heels, it’s worth noting that this is a bit of a milestone year for the Tar Heels - specifically, for Coach Williams. Read the rest of this entry »
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