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Buckeyes tip PSU, 38-14

admin — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 13:28:21 +0000

Associated Press

Devon Torrence #1 of the Ohio State Buckeyes intercepts a pass in the third quarter against the Penn State Nittany Lions at Ohio Stadium on November 13, 2010 in Columbus, Ohio. Torrence returned the interception 34-yards for a touchdown in the Buckeyes' 38-14 win over the Nittany Lions.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — As the Ohio State Buckeyes left the field trailing 14-3 at halftime on Saturday, their fans really let them hear it.

By the end of the game, those boos had turned to cheers.

Devon Torrence tipped and snagged an interception and returned it 34 yards for the go-ahead touchdown, and the Buckeyes (No. 9 BCS, No. 8 AP) ran off the final 35 points for a 38-14 win.

“We know how much our fans are obsessed with Ohio State football,” said wide receiver Dane Sanzenbacher, who caught a ricochet off a defender for a quirky 58-yard score in the 21-0 fourth quarter. “Booing us? I probably would have booed us.”

Travis Howard added another interception and brought it back 30 yards for a TD, also in the fourth.

“Obviously, I didn’t pay attention to it,” defensive end Cameron Heyward said of the boos. “It’s going to happen. But we had to respond in the second half.”

They certainly did. The two defensive scores gave Ohio State six interception returns for touchdowns in the last seven meetings with Penn State (6-4, 3-3 Big Ten).

The victory sent the Buckeyes (9-1, 5-1) into a critical showdown at Iowa next week tied for first place in the conference with Michigan State and Wisconsin.

Instead of win No. 401 for Nittany Lions coach Joe Paterno, the second-half scores tagged him with his 133rd loss.

“There were a lot of things involved,” he said of his team’s second-half collapse. “I didn’t think they [the Buckeyes] did much different in the second half.”

The comeback from an 11-point deficit was the biggest in coach Jim Tressel’s 10 years in Columbus.

“They played their fannies off in the second half,” Tressel said of his Buckeyes. “I’m awfully proud of them.”

The game swung on one play.

With a 14-10 lead on second-and-9 at the Nittany Lions 37 midway through the third quarter, Penn State quarterback Matt McGloin fired a pass into the left flat meant for Michael Zordich. Torrence, a former outfielder in the Houston Astros system, had slipped off coverage of another receiver, sliding inside and streaking in front of Zordich.

“I saw it and jumped it,” Torrence said. “I had to tip it to myself.”

He flicked the ball up in the air once, juggled it off his shoulder and then finally collected it, racing for the touchdown and a 17-14 lead.

“He kind of baited me,” McGloin said. “At first he was rolling with Derek [Moye] and he came off. He just made a nice play.”

Ohio State then forced a punt and on second-and-23 from his own 42, Buckeyes quarterback Terrelle Pryor lobbed an arching pass down the middle of the field for DeVier Posey, with D’Anton Lynn and Drew Astorino pounding him as the ball arrived. But the ball squirted directly to Sanzenbacher trailing the play.

Lynn stood, hands on his hips, stunned as the Buckeyes celebrated in the end zone.

Howard then stepped in front of McGloin’s pass to end any drama.

Pryor, who was 8 of 13 for 139 yards with one interception and two scores, also hit Jake Stoneburner with a late TD pass.

The Buckeyes, down 14-3, were pinned deep in their own territory in the third quarter. But they covered 96 yards — actually 98 because they had a false start penalty before they ran a play. For the most part, they stayed on the ground, with Boom Herron, who had a career-best 190 yards on 21 carries, going the final 5 yards through a gaping hole for a TD.

Then came the interception that flipped the game.

Tressel improved to 27-4 in November games as Ohio State’s head coach — and 3-4 in the week after a bye.

The Nittany Lions, angry that they were listed as 2 1/2-touchdown underdogs, appeared to be the team that was rested and focused early.

McGloin, who finished 15 of 30 for 159 yards with the two interceptions, hit Justin Brown on a 23-yard score and Moye on a 6-yarder. They were the first touchdown passes Penn State had thrown in Ohio Stadium since joining the Big Ten in 1993, and gave the Lions the most points they’ve scored there in that span.

Torrence’s return helped the Buckeyes forget about the ugly first half and the torrent of boos.

“The halftime locker room was not a fun place,” Tressel said. “But it was not a place that looked like there was any quit in anybody.”

Reds’ Daniel Ray Herrera arrested for public intoxication

admin — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 01:08:24 +0000

By Michael Grant / The Louisville Courier-Journal

Louisville Bats pitcher Daniel Ray Herrera was arrested early Wednesday morning in Clark County for misdemeanor public intoxication, the Indiana State Police said.

Daniel Ray Herrera was arrested, his blood alcohol level was .228.

Sgt. Jerry Goodin of the Indiana State Police said troopers were dispatched to US 31 northbound following a complaint from a taxi driver that he had an irate passenger in his car. According to Goodin, when officers arrived at the scene, Herrera was arrested for public intoxication at 3:35 a.m. and was taken to the Clark County jail.

Maj. Chuck Adams of the Clark County sheriff’s office said Herrera was scheduled to be released on his own recognizance about 7 p.m. provided that his blood alcohol level registers 0.00.

According to Adams, when Herrera was arrested his blood alcohol level was .228.

The 25-year-old left-hander has been with the Bats since being sent down by the Reds on June 30. He is 1-1 with a 3.31 ERA and two saves. He pitched in Tuesday night’s victory 19-6 home victory over Charlotte. He worked one scoreless inning with two strikeouts.

Bats spokesman Nick Evans said the team was aware of the arrest but had no immediate comment. A message left for Reds farm director Terry Reynolds was not immediately returned.

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Bengals’ Mike Brown predicts no lockout

admin — Tue, 27 Jul 2010 17:31:39 +0000

By M.Bowman / Staff Contributor and Wire Reports

CINCINNATI—Mike Brown, Cincinnati Bengals owner, offered a prediction about the NFL labor dispute between the owners and the players’ union.

Mike Brown thinks NFL will avoid lockout in 2011

Brown doesn’t thinks there won’t be a lockout next year. “I just think we have to be patient. Both sides want the same thing which is an agreement,” Brown told reporters Monday.” I think there will be an agreement but that’s in hands other than mine. I have to be like you – sit and watch and wait.

Brown added “We’re aware that there’s a threat and we have tailored certain things to meet that possibility, but in my heart of hearts I just think we’re going to be out there playing.”

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Pryor Named to Davey O’Brien Award Watch List

admin — Fri, 16 Jul 2010 03:19:31 +0000

Associated Press

Terrelle Pryor is among 30 of the nation's top collegiate quarterbacks who were selected to the 2010 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award watch list.

COLUMBUS– Ohio State junior quarterback Terrelle Pryor is among 30 of the nation’s top collegiate quarterbacks who were selected to the 2010 Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award watch list. Preseason consideration is based on player performance during the previous year and expectations heading into the 2010 college football season.

Last season Pryor passed for 2,094 yards with 18 touchdowns and led the Buckeyes with 779 yards and seven TDs on the ground. The Rose Bowl MVP passed for a season-high 266 yards and two touchdowns, rushed for 72 more and set an Ohio State bowl game record with 338 yards of total offense as the Buckeyes upset the Oregon Ducks on New Year’s Day, 26-17. He enters his junior year with more than 4,800 yards of total offense and is the fifth Buckeye quarterback to rush for more than 1,000 career yards with two years of eligibility remaining.

Pryor is one of 13 juniors to make the list and joins counterparts Ricky Stanzi (Iowa) and Scott Tolzien (Wisconsin) from the Big Ten.

Appearing on the Watch List is not a requirement for a player to be awarded The O’Brien. Quarterbacks from all 120 NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) schools are eligible for the award until the field is narrowed to 16 semifinalists Monday, Oct. 25. The Foundation and the Selection Committee will announce three finalists Monday, Nov. 22. The 2010 winner will be announced on The Home Depot ESPNU College Football Awards Show Thursday, Dec. 9.

The 34th Annual O’Brien Awards Dinner will be held Feb. 21, 2011 at The Fort Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas.

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Browns Rogers avoids felony gun charge

admin — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 15:58:28 +0000

Associated Press

CLEVELAND—Cleveland Browns nose tackle Shaun Rogers will enter a diversion program to resolve a felony charge that he tried to carry a gun through airport security.

Shaun Rogers will enter a diversion program to resolve a felony charge that he tried to carry a gun through airport security.

Under the deal approved Thursday in a Cleveland court, the gun charge will be dismissed if Rogers completes the program, which includes volunteer service and 10 hours in a gun class.

Police say Rogers had the semiautomatic handgun in a carry-on bag at Cleveland’s Hopkins International Airport in April.

Attorney Pat D’Angelo says Rogers has consistently given the same explanation—that he had forgotten he had the weapon in the bag.

D’Angelo says the diversion program could last up to one year and could include helping out at a program aimed at reducing school truancy.

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Chris Henry Suffered Brain Injury

admin — Mon, 28 Jun 2010 13:53:36 +0000

Associated Press

Chris Henry suffered from a chronic brain injury that may have influenced his mental state and behavior before he died last winter, West Virginia University researchers say.

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. —Cincinnati Bengals receiver Chris Henry suffered from a chronic brain injury that may have influenced his mental state and behavior before he died last winter, West Virginia University researchers say. The doctors had done a microscopic tissue analysis of Henry’s brain that showed he suffered from chronic traumatic encephalopathy.

Neurosurgeon Julian Bailes and California medical examiner Bennet Omalu, co-directors of the Brain Injury Research Institute at WVU, were to publicly announce their findings Monday afternoon alongside Henry’s mother, Carolyn Lee Henry. Her 26-year-old son died in December, a day after he came out of the back of a pickup truck his fiancee was driving near their home in Charlotte, N.C. It’s unclear whether Henry jumped or fell.

Toxicology tests found no alcohol in his system, and an autopsy concluded he died of numerous head injuries, including a fractured skull and brain hemorrhaging. But Bailes, team doctor for the Mountaineers and a former Pittsburgh Steelers physician, said it’s easy to distinguish those acute traumatic injuries from the underlying condition he and Omaha found when staining tiny slices of Henry’s brain.

Bailes and fellow researchers believe chronic traumatic encephalopathy, or CTE, is caused by multiple head impacts, regardless of whether those blows result in a concussion diagnosis. A number of studies, including one commissioned by the NFL, have found that retired professional football players may have a higher rate than normal of Alzheimer’s disease and other memory problems. What’s interesting, Bailes said, is that Henry was only 26, and neither NFL nor WVU records show he was diagnosed with a concussion during his playing career.

CTE carries specific neurobehavioral symptoms, Bailies said – typically, failure at personal and business relationships, use of drugs and alcohol, depression and suicide.

Henry’s personal struggles were well documented. Although he was a vital part of the Bengals’ offense as a rookie, he ended that season with an arrest for marijuana possession. After a playoff loss to Pittsburgh, he was arrested on a gun charge in Florida. Henry was suspended for half a season in 2007 as the league cracked down on personal conduct. When he was arrested a fifth time, a judge called Henry “a one-man crime wave” and the Bengals released him. But Henry got a second chance and played 12 games in the 2008 season.

Teammates said they’d noticed a change his demeanor, and at the start of the 2009 season, he described himself as “blessed” and said he was turning his life around. Bailes said he and Omalu have now analyzed the brains of 27 modern athletes, and the majority showed evidence of CTE. But it’s found in only a small number of players, he said. “I think football is a great sport, and we want to make it safer,” Bailes said, “but we have to continue to move forward with changes made recently and take the head impacts out of the sport as much as possible.”

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Warfield retires as Browns adviser

admin — Fri, 25 Jun 2010 03:17:41 +0000

Associated Press

BEREA, Ohio — Browns Hall of Fame wide receiver Paul Warfield has retired from his position in Cleveland’s front office.

Paul Warfield retires as Browns adviser

Warfield has served as a senior adviser to the club’s general manager for the past six seasons. He previously worked as a director of player relations with the Browns.

Warfield’s retirement comes one week after the team stripped Jim Brown of his title as executive adviser. Brown had served as a consultant for Browns owner Randy Lerner the past few years. He will remain involved with the team.

Warfield played for Cleveland from 1964-69. He was enshrined in Canton in 1983, following a 13-year career with the Browns and Miami Dolphins. He finished with 427 catches for 8,565 yards and 85 touchdowns.

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Zimmer receives the Halas Award

admin — Tue, 08 Jun 2010 16:15:23 +0000

Associated Press

NEW YORK, N.Y. – Bengals defensive co-ordinator Mike Zimmer was among the winners of the Professional Football Writers of America annual awards.

Defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer has been honored by the Professional Football Writers Association’s Halas Award, which is for the individual in the NFL who overcame the most adversity to succeed last season.

Zimmer, whose wife, Vicki died suddenly on Oct. 8 in the family’s home, got the Halas Award, which is for the individual in the NFL who overcame the most adversity to succeed. The couple had been married 27 years.

Three days later, Zimmer was with the team for it game in Baltimore, which the Bengals won, 17-14. For the 2009 season, the Bengals ranked fourth in the NFL in total defence, their highest ranking since 1993.

“Anytime your name is mentioned with George Halas, and all the other people who have won this award in the past, it’s a terrific honour,” Zimmer said. “It’s a credit to our players and coaches, (head coach) Marvin (Lewis), and my kids. They helped me hang in through the adversity. If I hadn’t had them, it would have been harder to continue on.

“Our veteran core group of players really helped me in a number of ways. They were a strength for me.”

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Rey Maualuga to be ready for training camp

admin — Mon, 07 Jun 2010 11:19:12 +0000

By M.Bowman/ Staff Contributor

CINCINNATI, OH —Cincinnati Bengals linebacker Rey Maualuga, who suffered a broken ankle that landed him on injured reserve in December, told Bengals.com that his upcoming rehab is supposed to take four weeks, “but since it’s me and I’m Samoan, make that two weeks,” he said.

Rey set for Georgetown return

Maualuga revealed through his Twitter account that he won’t be back on the field until the opening of training camp.

“Stuck on couch elevating my foot. Having surgery sucks,” Maualuga tweeted, adding that he had the surgery to take out a calcification that was building up around his fibula.

Reached later Thursday, Maualuga said he wanted to get something done so it wouldn’t interfere with camp.

Maualuga started 15 games as a rookie in 2009 before suffering the broken ankle. Early this offseason he was arrested for DUI, and he said 100 days later that he hadn’t had a drink since.

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Reds’ Chapman close to majors call-up

admin — Sat, 29 May 2010 21:58:10 +0000

Associated Press

Chapman's fastball reaching 103 mph

CINCINNATI — Cuban defector Aroldis Chapman is learning the important things in the minor leagues — how to control his pitches and how to order a meal in English.

The better he gets, the closer he gets to the big leagues.

The left-hander has reached 103 mph with his fastball while pitching for Triple-A Louisville, the place that the Cincinnati Reds felt was the most suitable to begin his season of adjustments. The 22-year-old had a lot to learn when he signed a six-year, $30.25 million deal in January.

He gave his best performance yet on Thursday night in Louisville, allowing only three hits in five innings and striking out seven in a 6-0 win over Gwinnett.

“He’s maturing and developing with his command [of pitches] and learning the intricacies of the game that he needed to learn,” general manager Walt Jocketty said. “He’s also getting more accustomed to living here in the United States. That was a big part of it.”

The Reds weren’t sure where Chapman fit when they signed him. They left open the possibility that he could make the rotation out of spring training, knowing it was a long shot. Back spasms in March sidelined him for a few days and ended his chances of heading to Cincinnati.

Instead, he’s been learning a new country, a new language and, in many ways, a new game with the Reds’ top farm club, less than a two-hour drive away. He’s been overpowering at times. Other times, he shows that he needs a lot of work before he’s ready for the majors.

So far, he’s making progress.

“I think everything has been excellent,” Chapman said, with trainer Tomas Vera translating. “The adjustment has been easy. I’ve got a good relationship with my teammates. I have a good relationship with the organization, with the people that surround me. Everything has been excellent. Everything has been good for me.”

He has to work on getting deeper into games.

The fastball is never a problem, hitting 100 mph from time to time on the radar gun at Louisville Slugger Field. He’s trying to get his slider and changeup sharpened. He also needs to put batters away more quickly. High pitch counts have limited his starts to an average of five innings. In nine games, he has lasted six innings only one time.

Chapman is 5-2 with a 3.55 earned run average. He has pitched 45 2/3 innings, struck out 55 and walked 25. He tends to go deep in counts to batters — he needed 90 pitches to get through five innings on Thursday.

“He only walked one, but he had a lot of three-ball counts,” Louisville manager Rick Sweet said. “He had better command, probably, than in most of the games he’s had. He pitched well, mixed his pitches well. I was very pleased with the use of his changeup and breaking ball.”

His worst start was May 14 at Rochester, where he gave up nine hits and six runs in five innings. In his two starts since, Chapman has gone 10 2/3 innings without allowing a run, giving up only six hits while fanning 14. His last start was pushed back three days after he developed a blister, which turned out to be no big problem.

He hit top speed right away, a difference from his other starts.

“At the beginning of the game, I wanted to be at the top of my speed,” Chapman said. “I want to use my speed at the beginning of the game and after that, I did what I was told to do. So I started mixing up my pitches and I started using more breaking pitches.”

The Reds view Chapman as a long-term investment, so they’re willing to be patient with him this season and let him develop at his pace. He wasn’t considered when the Reds needed a pitcher to replace the injured Homer Bailey — Sam LeCure was promoted instead and won his debut on Saturday night.

How close is Chapman to consideration for a promotion if another pitcher is needed?

“I think he’s pretty close,” Jocketty said.

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