SportSpectator Blog

March 30, Week in Sports

:: NCAA TOURNAMENT DOWN TO “FINAL FOUR” TEAMS (College Basketball)

:: TIGER WOODS WINS ARNOLD PALMER INVITATIONAL (Golf)

:: UCONN ACCUSED OF RECRUITING VIOLATIONS (College Basketball)

———-

FINALLY! FOUR TEAMS LEFT IN NCAA TOURNAMENT

The second weekend of the NCAA tournament has come to a close, and the field of 64 teams has been narrowed down to just four, known as the “Final Four”–UConn, Villanova, Michigan State, and North Carolina.

Two of the four teams–North Carolina and UConn–are one seeds in the tournament. Meanwhile, Pitt and Louisville, the two other one seeds, were eliminated by Villanova and Michigan State, respectively. In a year that has only seen a handful of truly great tournament games, perhaps the best of them all took place on Saturday night, when Villanova’s Scottie Reynolds muscled up a last second shot to knock off the Panthers. However, there were practically no memorable upsets from this year’s tournament–which is a shame, since other than office pools, one of the nation’s favorite parts of the tournament is rooting for the underdogs.

Within a week, two of these Final Four teams will be sent home. On Saturday, Michigan State plays UConn and North Carolina plays Villanova. The two teams that survive Saturday’s games will play for the national championship on Monday.

Quote of the Week: “It’s going to go down as one of the great games in NCAA tournament history, that’s for sure” — Seth Davis, CBS analyst, on the Pitt-Villanova game

Further Reading: “Pecking order hard to decipher in this year’s Final Four ” — Mike Lopresti, USA Today

———-

DON’T CALL IT A COMEBACK
Tiger Woods, who recently returned from recovery from knee surgery, won the Arnold Palmer Invitational at Bay Hill in dramatic fashion on Sunday afternoon. Once again, Woods drained an improbable putt on the green of the 72nd and final hole of the tournament to seal the victory.

Woods started the day five shots back, and by stealing the win he matched his career-best comeback, which came on the PGA tour in 2000. Today’s stunning finish came at the expense of Sean O’Hair, who was tied with Woods going into the final hole of the tournament. O’Hair went into Sunday’s round with a big lead, but like so many others before him, he was unable to prevent the onslaught of Woods, who is almost undoubtedly the most dominant athlete of his generation.

There were certainly analysts out there who doubted whether Woods had fully recovered from his surgery, but Woods put those fears to rest today. Next comes the big test for Tiger: is he sharp enough to win the Masters, the first Major Championship of the year, which starts in two weeks? One thing is for sure, all eyes will be on Tiger, and everyone will be expecting nothing less than the miraculous.

Quote of the Week: ”The guy is the greatest pressure putter who has ever played the game.” — Johnny Miller on Tiger Woods

Further Reading: “Tiger returns to winning at Bay Hill ” — Associated Press, via Golf.com

———-

SORRY, UCONN’T DO THAT…

According to a report released last week by Yahoo! Sports, the University of Connecticut–known as UConn–was guilty of major recruiting violations in the acquisition of former player Nate Miles. Getting busted for “recruiting violations” is a nightmare for any collegiate team, in that it often results in suspensions for coaches, limited recruiting allowances for years to come, and scholarship restrictions at the very least.

This comes at the worst possible time for UConn, who just reached the Final Four in the NCAA tournament. The goal of every college basketball team is to get to this point in the tournament, and for that moment to be tarnished by reports of recruiting violations is unfortunate for the Huskies. According to the report, Nate Miles came to UConn after being recruited by Josh Nochimson, a professional sports agent and former UConn student manager. Furthermore, Nochimson reportedly paid for food, lodging, and transportation for Miles during the recruitment process, and members of the UConn coaching staff knew what Nochimson was doing. After the initial Yahoo! report surfaced, other sources dug up even more damaging information. ESPN, for instance, discovered that Nochimson had committed similar infractions in the recruitment of at least one other player, and the Tampa Tribune claimed that Nochimson even paid for a knee surgery for Miles in 2007.

The reports so far have been extremely detailed, well-documented, and thorough, which means that an NCAA investigation is very likely. The kicker, for UConn, is that Nate Miles was expelled from the team for violating a restraining order before he even had a chance to play for the team.

Quote of the Week: ”I’ve heard the expression that clear skies don’t fear thunder. I feel very good after talking to my athletic director and talking to the people working on the situation right now. But could it be hurtful? Yeah, it could be hurtful.” — Jim Calhoun, UConn coach

Further Reading: “Probe: UConn violated NCAA rules ” — Adrian Wojnarowski and Dan Wetzel, Yahoo! Sports

——-

 WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK

:: COLLEGE BASKETBALL: The NCAA Tournament has been narrowed down to four teams–the Final Four. The next round of the tournament will be played on Saturday when Michigan State plays UConn, and the University of North Carolina plays Villanova.

———-

ALL-SPORTS UPDATE

ACTIVE SEASON

 :: BASKETBALL

NBA (Pro. Basketball): The 2008-09 season is currently underway. It runs from late October to April of 2009, when the playoffs commence.  [Official NBA Website]

NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL (College): “The Tournament” is currently underway. Four teams, known as the “Final Four” are currently left in the tournament. [CBS Sports]

———-

:: FOOTBALL

NFL (Pro. Football): Now that the Super Bowl is over, the next major NFL event is the draft, which takes place in late April. [Official NFL Website]

NCAA FOOTBALL (College): The college football season is now over, with Florida defeating Oklahoma in the national championship game. [NCAA Football, ESPN]

———-

:: GOLF

MEN’S GOLF: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Major Championships: The Masters, U.S. Open, The Open (The British Open), and the PGA Championship. The Masters is scheduled for the first week of April. [Official PGA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson

———-

:: HOCKEY

NHL (Pro. Hockey): The hockey season is currently underway and runs through April of 2009.  [Official NHL Website]

———-

:: TENNIS

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. The next event is the French Open, which takes place in May. [USTA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic

———-

OFFSEASON

:: BASEBALL

MLB (Pro. Baseball): The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in this year’s World Series. During the off-season, baseball news will focus on major trades and player signings. [Official MLB Website]

March 23, Week in Sports

:: ‘MARCH MADNESS’ NCAA TOURNAMENT REACHES SWEET SIXTEEN (College Basketball)

:: JAY CUTLER SAGA CONTINUES IN DENVER (Pro. Football)

:: JAPAN KNOCKS OUT U.S. IN WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC (Pro. Baseball)

———-

 OH MY SWEET SIXTEEN

Over the weekend, the first two rounds of the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship were played. This tournament, known as “March Madness,” is one of the most popular and exciting sporting events of the year. The field has been narrowed from 64 teams to just 16, known as the “Sweet Sixteen.”

So far, there have not been any truly shocking upsets so far in the tournament, but there were certainly a handful of surprises and several thrilling finishes in the opening weekend. No. 13 Cleveland St. knocked off Wake Forest in the biggest upset of the first round of the tournament, which was fun while it lasted, but they then lost to Arizona in the second round. Arizona, a 12 seed, is the lowest ranked team still in the tournament. The next lowest ranked is Purdue, a 5 seed. Arizona has not reached “Cinderella” status yet, but a victory over No. 1-ranked Louisville on Friday would make them the underdog story of the tournament.

None of the four top-ranked teams in the country–-North Carolina, Louisville, Pitt and UConn–-have been knocked out of the tournament so far. That being said, there have already been a couple of scares, and the level of competition is increasing with every round, so look for a big upset sometime next weekend.

Quote of the Week: “Pittsburgh beat Oklahoma State and Louisville beat Siena, meaning all four No. 1 seeds have advanced to the Sweet 16 for the fifth consecutive season. The last time a No. 1 seed didn’t advance to the Sweet 16 was 2004, when both Kentucky and Stanford lost in the second round (to UAB and Alabama).” — Gary Parrish, CBS Sports

Further Reading: “Sports Illustrated Bracket “

———-

BRONCOS BABY

In the past week, the Jay Cutler situation has gone from bad to worse in Denver. Cutler is the starting quarterback for the Broncos, and after feeling slighted by new coach Josh McDaniels, he is demanding to be traded.

Cutler is one of the most talented quarterbacks in the league, though by no means does he have the kind of star power of Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, or Tony Romo. However, Cutler also has a reputation for being a prima donna and a real whiner. Given his behavior in this current debacle, Cutler will never live that reputation down. It all started when McDaniels, the newly introduced 32-year old coach of the Broncos, reportedly tried to trade for Matt Cassel–the second quarterback for the New England Patriots, where McDaniels used to coach. When Cutler caught wind of the fact that McDaniels was pursuing another quarterback, he started to publicly bellyache about it. McDaniels and Cutler had a meeting, which was supposed to smooth things over but actually made things worse, and now Cutler is demanding to be traded.

In reality, whether or not Cutler gets traded will ultimately be the decision of the Broncos organization. However, Cutler has become such a distraction for the team that if he doesn’t make any effort at reconciling with his coach, they will have little choice but to trade him. A young quarterback with Cutler’s proven talent doesn’t appear on the market very often in the NFL, so if he does get traded, he will go for a high price.

Quote of the Week: ”I understand Jay’s feelings got hurt, but it’s too bad it has got to where it is. I wish Jay would have got some better advice from whoever he was getting advice from.” — John Elway, former Broncos QB

Further Reading: “Don’t Destroy Franchise ” — Woody Paige, Denver Post

———-

THE LAND OF THE RISING FASTBALL

On Sunday night, Japan knocked the U.S. out of the World Baseball Classic, the biggest international tournament for baseball. Japan will face Korea in the finals on Monday.

Though Major League Baseball is considered the highest level of baseball in the world, the U.S. team was not favored in their game against Japan. While many American players shy away from competing in the WBC out of fear that they will get injured before the start of the MLB season, Japanese players take a great deal of pride in playing well during the tournament. The game between Japan and the U.S. was surprising close, but Japan pulled away in the final innings to seal a 9-4 victory.

The Monday night game should be extremely competitive. Japan, one of the best baseball countries in the world, is defending their WBC championship from 2006. However, the Korean team, which won gold at the 2008 Olympics in Beijing, is one of the best teams when it comes to international play.

Quote of the Week: “Japan’s 9-4 victory in the semifinals of the World Baseball Classic against Team USA won’t be seen as a shifting of the international baseball world toward Asia.That shift already took place some time ago.” — Devin Clancy, USA Today

Further Reading:  “Japan Has a Date with Korea in Final” — Rhett Bolinger, MLB.com

——-

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK

:: COLLEGE BASKETBALL: The NCAA tournament continues this Thursday, as the Sweet Sixteen attempt to fight their way to the Elite Eight. The action will continue all weekend, and the schedule will be updated regularly on the CBS Sports website .

———-

ALL-SPORTS UPDATE

ACTIVE SEASON

:: BASKETBALLNBA (Pro. Basketball): The 2008-09 season is currently underway. It runs from late October to April of 2009, when the playoffs commence.  [Official NBA Website]

NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL (College): “The Tournament” is currently underway. Sixteen teams, known as the “Sweet Sixteen” are currently left in the tournament. [CBS Sports]

———-

:: FOOTBALL

NFL (Pro. Football): Now that the Super Bowl is over, the next major NFL event is the draft, which takes place in late April. [Official NFL Website]

NCAA FOOTBALL (College): The college football season is now over, with Florida defeating Oklahoma in the national championship game. [NCAA Football, ESPN]

———-

:: GOLF

MEN’S GOLF: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Major Championships: The Masters, U.S. Open, The Open (The British Open), and the PGA Championship. The Masters is scheduled for the first week of April. [Official PGA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson

———-

:: HOCKEY

NHL (Pro. Hockey): The hockey season is currently underway and runs through April of 2009.  [Official NHL Website]

———-

:: TENNIS

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. The next event is the French Open, which takes place in May. [USTA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic

———-

OFFSEASON

:: BASEBALL

MLB (Pro. Baseball): The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in this year’s World Series. During the off-season, baseball news will focus on major trades and player signings. [Official MLB Website]

March 16, Week in Sports

:: TEAMS SELECTED FOR ‘MARCH MADNESS’ NCAA TOURNAMENT (College Basketball)

:: FINAL MONTH OF NBA SEASON BEGINS (Pro. Football)

:: U.S. TEAM KNOCKS OUT NETHERLANDS IN WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC (Pro. Baseball)

———-

BUST OUT YOUR BRACKET: IT’S TOURNEY TIME

On Sunday, March 16th, the NCAA Selection Committee announced the competitors in this year’s NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship. This tournament, which marks the climax of the college basketball season, is one of the most popular and exciting sporting events of the year.

The tournament includes 65 teams, although that will be immediately narrowed to 64 on Tuesday when the two lowest-ranked teams (Alabama State and Morehead State) battle it out for the 64th spot. The remaining 64 teams are then divided into four regional mini-tournaments with 16 teams in each region. These teams are ranked, or “seeded,” #1-#16. In the first round of the tournament, the highest-ranked teams in each regional tournament (#1) play the lowest-ranked teams (#16), the second-highest team (#2) plays the second-lowest team (#15), and so on. This arrangement continues through the next rounds of the tournament, which means that the higher-ranked teams theoretically have an easier path to the championship; conversely, it is much harder for the lower-seeded teams to advance. For a more detailed explanation of the way the tournament works, or for help with your office pool, check out SportSpectator’s guide to March Madness.

Since there are four regional brackets, there are four sets of teams ranked #1-#16. This year, North Carolina, Louisville, Connecticut, and Pitt are the four #1 seeds, which makes them the “favorites” to win the tournament. However, it is incredibly difficult to go deep in the tournament, even for the best teams in the country, so expect a couple of those top-ranked teams to fall sooner or later. That being said, no #1 team has ever lost to a #16 team in the first round of the tournament.

The first and second rounds of the tournament will be played Thursday through Sunday. From the second weekend of the tournament until the championship, the games will get even more intense.

Quote of the Week: “Emerging from its Westin Hotel bunker on Sunday night, the NCAA tournament selection committee unveiled a bracket that is worthy of its selection chair, Mike Slive. That is to say it looks like an attorney made it — it’s balanced, reasonable and devoid of a whole lot of sex appeal.” — Dana O’Neil, ESPN

Further Reading: “Tournament Bracket ” — CBS Sports

———-

THE HOME STRETCH: NBA TEAMS PREPARE FOR FINAL MONTH

Tuesday marks the start of the final month of the NBA regular season. During this month, competition will heat up as teams jockey for position in the playoffs.

The NBA regular season began in October of last year–which means that competition has already been underway for almost half a year. That being said, the NBA season is pretty slow-paced, and many teams save up their energy to make a run near the end of the season. Several teams have already clinched spots in the playoffs, and many other teams are fighting just to get in. However, one big focus of the next 30 days will be who secures home advantage for the playoffs. Home court advantage is hugely important in the NBA, and it can often make the difference in the playoffs.

The four best teams in the country right now are Los Angeles, Cleveland, Boston, and Orlando. All four of those teams have already clinched their spots in the playoffs, and for the next month they scrap every day to try to secure the best record in the league. One of the subplots of this final month will also be the battle for the league MVP honors. There are only three real candidates for the MVP award: LeBron James, Dwyane Wade, and Kobe Bryant.

Quote of the Week: ”Tuesday isn’t merely St. Patrick’s Day. It also starts the countdown of the final 30 days of the regular season.” — Marc Stein, ESPN

Further Reading: ”Best Yet to Come” — Marc Stein, ESPN

———-

GOING DUTCH

On Sunday night, the U.S. defeated the Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic, a major international baseball tournament. The U.S. team is one loss away from elimination, and the Dutch were knocked out of the tournament with Sunday’s loss.

The Netherlands became the Cinderella story of the WBC last week, when they defeated the powerhouse team from the Dominican Republic in the first round of the tournament. However, their luck finally ran out against a U.S. team that is stacked with major leaguers. That being said, the U.S. team has had its own struggles–a combination of injuries and fatigue, as well as the fact that U.S. ballplayers in general do not take very much pride in the WBC. That is to say, most of the players on the U.S. team are focusing instead on preparing for the 2009 MLB season.

The next game for the U.S. team will take place on Tuesday, when they will face either Puerto Rico or Venezuela. Either game should be extremely competitive, as the U.S. is still one game away from elimination.

Quote of the Week: “I said, ‘I don’t want to come play for one night.’ I want this to last a little while.” — Brian Roberts, who joined the U.S. team as a replacement

Further Reading:  “U.S. bounces back from loss to avoid elimination at WBC ” — Associated Press, via ESPN

——-

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK

:: COLLEGE BASKETBALL: The NCAA tournament begins this week, and it will be the main topic of conversation around the country. The tournament techincally begins on Tuesday with the “play-in” game, but things will really heat up on Thursday, when the tournament really kicks off. Thursday through Sunday will be packed with games, and you can find the schedule on the CBS Sports website .

———-

ALL-SPORTS UPDATE

ACTIVE SEASON

:: BASKETBALL

NBA (Pro. Basketball): The 2008-09 season is currently underway. It runs from late October to April of 2009, when the playoffs commence.  [Official NBA Website]

NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL (College): The college basketball season is currently underway and runs through “the Tournament,” which begins this week. [CBS Sports]

———-

:: FOOTBALL

NFL (Pro. Football): Now that the Super Bowl is over, the next major NFL event is the draft, which takes place in late April. [Official NFL Website]

NCAA FOOTBALL (College): The college football season is now over, with Florida defeating Oklahoma in the national championship game. [NCAA Football, ESPN]

———-

:: GOLF

MEN’S GOLF: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Major Championships: The Masters, U.S. Open, The Open (The British Open), and the PGA Championship. The Masters is scheduled for the first week of April. [Official PGA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson

———

:: HOCKEY

NHL (Pro. Hockey): The hockey season is currently underway and runs through April of 2009.  [Official NHL Website]

———-

:: TENNIS

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. The next event is the French Open, which takes place in May. [USTA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic

———-

OFFSEASON

:: BASEBALL

MLB (Pro. Baseball): The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in this year’s World Series. During the off-season, baseball news will focus on major trades and player signings. [Official MLB Website]

March 9, Week in Sports

:: MANNY RAMIREZ RE-SIGNS WITH DODGERS (Pro. Baseball)

:: TWO NFL PLAYERS LOST AT SEA (Pro. Football)

:: TERRELL OWENS CUT BY COWBOYS (Pro. Football)

———-

MANNY REJOINS BOYS IN BLUE

After a long and ugly process, Manny Ramirez re-signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers on Wednesday for $45 million over two years. Ramirez, the former Boston Red Sox star slugger, is one of the best players in Major League Baseball.

Negotiations between the Dodgers and Ramirez began nearly four months ago, and those four months have not been pretty. Though Ramirez is an extraordinary player, he is also well known for letting his mood swings and attitude problems interfere with his performance on the field and his relationship with his team. It doesn’t help that he is represented by Scott Boras, who is universally regarded as one of the most egotistical agents in baseball. That being said, Dodgers ownership has not been blameless in this process, as team owners Frank and Jamie McCourt have made strange public comments about free agency, suggesting that it might be immoral to offer fat contracts to baseball players. In any case, the turmoil between the two parties is now over, which is good news for the Dodgers, since Ramirez was a huge factor in their playoff run last season.

In other baseball news, doctors discovered that Alex “A-Rod” Rodriguez had a torn labrum and he is having surgery to correct the problem. As a result, Rodriguez will miss at least the first month of the season.

Quote of the Week: “Hurray for Mannywood. Concluding a four-month run that was part slapstick, part soap opera, and completely surreal, the drama between the Dodgers and Manny Ramirez is finally over.” — Bill Plaschke, L.A. Times

Further Reading: “Manny takes physical, completes deal ” — Associated Press, via ESPN

———-

DAY OF MOURNING FOR THE NFL

Last Tuesday, the Coast Guard called off the search for three men, including two NFL players, who were lost at sea when their fishing boat capsized in the Gulf of Mexico. One member of the fishing trip, Nick Schuyler, was found alive.

The Coast Guard found Schuyler clinging to the capsized boat, and he was in surprisingly good condition, considering the fact that he had been in the water for almost two full days. The three other members of his group, which included pro football players Marquis Cooper and Corey Smith, were also hanging onto the boat for hours after it capsized. However, according to Schuyler, two of the men eventually took off their life jackets and allowed themselves to be carried off by the waves, and the third man eventually swam off when he mistakenly thought he saw rescuers approaching.

After the Coast Guard called off the search, the families of the missing men mounted a private effort to continue looking for their loved ones. However, those efforts have reportedly come to an end, as well.

Quote of the Week: ”To stay in the water for 46 hours and be alive afterwards I think is a miracle.” — Dr. Mark Rumbak

Further Reading: ”Families hunt for closure as Gulf search for players ends ” — Sean Leahy, USA Today

———-

BILLS, BILLS, BILLS: T.O. BUFFALO BOUND

In a surprising move, the Dallas Stars cut star wide receiver Terrell Owens, commonly referred to as “T.O.” Two days later, the Buffalo Bills picked Owens up, in a one-year deal for $6.5 million.

T.O. has a reputation for being a stubborn, spotlight loving player with a “me first” attitude. That being said, he is one of the best wide receivers in the game, and in his three years with Dallas he played extremely well. Furthermore, in spite of the general opinion that Owens is a “clubhouse cancer,” he fit in with his teammates surprisingly well compared to his conflicts with previous teammates, despite reported conflicts with quarterback Tony Romo and tight end Jason Witten. Last year, though, the Cowboys were expected to be one of the best teams in football, but they completely flopped and many critics blamed Owens for the team’s poor chemistry. Now, as Jean-Jacques Taylor of the Dallas Morning News said, “It’s time for every player who blamed T.O. for the problems on this team to put up or shut up.”

The fact that the Bills picked up Owens so quickly was almost as surprising as the fact that Owens was cut. Many expected Owens to go to a playoff-ready team looking for a missing piece of the puzzle, but the Bills are young and inexperienced. In short, without veteran players and coaches with strong personalities in Buffalo, everyone is already predicting that Owens will butt heads with his new teammates.

Quote of the Week: “I’m leaving America’s team [for] North America’s team.” — Terrell Owens

Further Reading:  “Out route: Terrell Owens had to go ” — Jean-Jacques Taylor, Dallas Morning News

——-

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK

:: COLLEGE BASKETBALL: As Championship Week moves forward and the tournament draws near, we are entering into “March Madness,” the peak of the college basketball season. The madness will continue this week, as the champions of conference tournaments across the country are decided. This is all leading up to next Sunday, when the NCAA Selection Committee announces the competitors in the NCAA Men’s Division I Basketball Championship.

———-

ALL-SPORTS UPDATE

ACTIVE SEASON

:: BASKETBALL

NBA (Pro. Basketball): The 2008-09 season is currently underway. It runs from late October to April of 2009, when the playoffs commence.  [Official NBA Website]

NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL (College): The college basketball season is currently underway and runs through “the Tournament,” which takes place in March. This Sunday is “Selection Sunday,” when the NCAA Selection Committee announces the competitors in this year’s tournament. [CBS Sports]

———-

:: FOOTBALL

NFL (Pro. Football): Now that the Super Bowl is over, the next major NFL event is the draft, which takes place in late April. [Official NFL Website]

NCAA FOOTBALL (College): The college football season is now over, with Florida defeating Oklahoma in the national championship game. [NCAA Football, ESPN]

———-

:: GOLF

MEN’S GOLF: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Major Championships: The Masters, U.S. Open, The Open (The British Open), and the PGA Championship. The Masters is scheduled for the first week of April. [Official PGA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson

———-

:: HOCKEY

NHL (Pro. Hockey): The hockey season is currently underway and runs through April of 2009.  [Official NHL Website]

———-

:: TENNIS

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. The next event is the French Open, which takes place in May. [USTA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic

———-

OFFSEASON

:: BASEBALL

MLB (Pro. Baseball): The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in this year’s World Series. During the off-season, baseball news will focus on major trades and player signings. [Official MLB Website]

March 2, Week in Sports

:: REDSKINS LAND HAYNESWORTH IN RECORD DEAL (Pro. Football)

:: MARBURY TRADED TO CELTICS (Pro. Basketball)

:: PATS TRADE CASSEL TO CHIEFS (Pro. Football)

———-

WAIT’LL WE GET AL HAYNESWORTH ON YOU

Free agent defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth signed a 7-year, $100 million deal with the Washington Redskins, including a record $41 million in guaranteed money this past week. Haynesworth is one of the NFL’s best, and he was the hottest free agent in this year’s off-season.

NFL free agency, the period when players no longer tied to contracts can begin to field offers from other teams, began on Friday. As soon as he hit the market, Haynesworth reportedly received huge offers from more than six teams, and it’s no wonder why: Haynesworth has been a dominant defensive presence throughout his 7-year career with the Tennessee Titans. Though he has been dogged by injuries and suspended by the league for on-field conduct, he is unquestionably one of the best at his position.

Though the Redskins secured Haynesworth early on Friday, it was actually the second major deal the team had made in this year’s free agency. Earlier on Friday, they signed cornerback DeAngelo Hall to a contract for $54 million over 6 years. With those two mega-deals in place, the Redskins will be expected to improve dramatically on defense this year.

Quote of the Week: “Excluding Peyton Manning, nobody made his teammates better last year than Albert Haynesworth.” — Seth Wickersham, ESPN: the Magazine

Further Reading: “Haynesworths’ Choice: Redskins ” — John Clayton, ESPN

———-

DON’T LET THE DOOR HIT YOU ON THE WAY OUT

On Tuesday, bad boy New York Knicks guard Stephon Marbury agreed to a buyout, and the team released him to waivers. Marbury was snatched up by the defending champion Boston Celtics on Friday.

The Knicks franchise, though still very popular, is among the most disastrous in professional sports. During the past several years, they have been mediocre at best on the court and a disgrace off the court, where their egomaniacal coaches and players have run the team into the ground. Other than former coach Isiah Thomas, Marbury has most often been at the center of the team’s negative image. During the sexual harassment lawsuit filed against Thomas, for example, Marbury’s seedy behavior was also brought to light. He bickered with teammates and coaches since he arrived in 2004, and his hostile relationship with the organization culminated with his feud with Knicks coach Mike D’Antoni this season. In the first game of the season, D’Antoni benched Marbury in favor of the team’s younger players, and since then, the stubborn guard has refused to play. Since then, Marbury and the Knicks had been in the midst of an ugly negotiation process, which came to an end this week.

Despite his many problems, Marbury is an excellent player who is expected to contribute to the Celtics. However, the Celtics are among the best teams in the league without him, so Marbury’s role with the team will certainly be different than it has been in the past, when he has often been the star of his team.

Quote of the Week: ”If there’s a guy who finally deserved a break, it’s not Stephon Marbury, who isn’t the devil incarnate but is the hardest-core, most clueless mercenary of his era.” — Mark Heisler, L.A. Times

Further Reading: ”Marbury and Knicks Agree on Buyout ” — Howard Beck, New York Times

———-

CHIEFS WELCOME MATT

The New England Patriots traded backup quarterback Matt Cassel and linebacker Mike Vrabel to the Kansas City Chiefs for a high second-round draft pick this week. Cassel had a hugely successful season in 2008, when he filled in for the Pats’ injured star quarterback, Tom Brady.

Earlier this offseason, the Patriots put a “franchise tag” on Cassel, which effectively prevented Cassel from becoming an unrestricted free agent. The Patriots did this, not because they planned on keeping Cassel, but simply because they hoped he could potentially bring solid talent to the team through a trade. As for whether a high second-round draft pick is the best they could have gotten, the opinions of Boston fans are divided. Some fans feel like they would have lost Cassel anyway, and some fans feel like they ended giving him away for practically nothing.

Patriots fans will also miss linebacker Mike Vrabel, who played an integral role in New England’s three Super Bowl victories. Vrabel was in the last year of his contract with the Patriots.

Quote of the Week: “No doubt, this is going to be a tough sell to Patriots fans. Cassel and linebacker Mike Vrabel to the Kansas City Chiefs for a high second-round draft choice (34th overall, No. 2 in the round) looks like a fleece job. It isn’t.” — Mike Reiss, Boston Globe

Further Reading:  “Chiefs get Cassel, hoping quarterback will be a standout ” — Adam Teicher, Kansas City Star

——-

WHAT TO WATCH THIS WEEK

:: FOOTBALL: Late in the weekend, it was reported that two NFL players, Corey Smith and Marquis Cooper, were reported missing at sea, along with two other men. Though no evidence has been found that anything happened to them, more than a day has lapsed since they were expected to return.

———-

ALL-SPORTS UPDATE

ACTIVE SEASON

:: BASKETBALL

NBA (Pro. Basketball): The 2008-09 season is currently underway. It runs from late October to April of 2009, when the playoffs commence.  [Official NBA Website]

NCAA MEN’S BASKETBALL (College): The college basketball season is currently underway and runs through “the Tournament,” which takes place in March. [CBS Sports]

———-

:: FOOTBALL

NFL (Pro. Football): Now that the Super Bowl is over, the next major NFL event is the draft, which takes place in late April. [Official NFL Website]

NCAA FOOTBALL (College): The college football season is now over, with Florida defeating Oklahoma in the national championship game. [NCAA Football, ESPN]

———-

:: GOLF

MEN’S GOLF: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Major Championships: The Masters, U.S. Open, The Open (The British Open), and the PGA Championship. The Masters is scheduled for the first week of April. [Official PGA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Tiger Woods, Phil Mickelson

———-

:: HOCKEY

NHL (Pro. Hockey): The hockey season is currently underway and runs through April of 2009.  [Official NHL Website]

———-

:: TENNIS

MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TENNIS: While there are professional tournaments throughout the year, the most important tournaments are the four Grand Slam tournaments: the Australian Open, French Open, Wimbledon, and US Open. The next event is the French Open, which takes place in May. [USTA Website]

NOTABLE PLAYERS: Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal, Maria Sharapova, Ana Ivanovic

———-

OFFSEASON

:: BASEBALL

MLB (Pro. Baseball): The Philadelphia Phillies defeated the Tampa Bay Rays in this year’s World Series. Spring training is currently underway, which means that the regular season is rapidly approaching. [Official MLB Website]