All About Detroit Sports

Vikings cruise thru Lions 24-10

2010-09-27T13:13:00.000-07:00

Coming off of back to back dramatic endings that resulted in L’s, the Lions decided to give fans a rest and simply hand the game over to the Vikings at the end. This was clearly a game that Detroit missed injured starting QB Matthew Stafford. Sean Hill completed 67% of his passes but only averaged 8 yards per completion. Minnesota once again struggled through the air but did just fine on the ground thanks to Adrian Peterson. This game also saw 6 combined turnovers that led to all 10 points scored by the Lions and 7 points for the Vikings.

The Lions offense was dealt yet another injury blow when Jahvid Best went out in the 1st quarter with a toe injury. The Lions only managed 63 yards on the ground and have averaged just 83 yards per game for the season so far. The passing game showed the effects of losing starting wide receiver Nate Burleson. Hill was forced to rely on screens and safety check downs that led to 21 catches by non receivers. Hill was also responsible for the final nails in the coffin by throwing back to back end zone interceptions late in the 4th quarter.

The Vikings on the other had no problem running the ball with Adrian Peterson going for 160 yards and 2 scores on 23 carries. The front seven of the Lions could only hold up so long against the constant pounding by Peterson. This inevitably led to his longest scoring run of his career on an 80 yard score late in the 3rd quarter.

Brett Favre on the other hand won’t be feeling to well Monday morning. He was only sacked once but had constant pressure in his face. The defensive line knocked him down several times and forced several errant throws that resulted in two interceptions. Even when the Lions didn’t get pressure on him his lackluster chemistry with the receivers continued. He was clearly frustrated and not on the same page as his receivers were running routes and reading the defense.

The Vikings can walk away from the game knowing they avoided a disastrous 0-3 start but still have work to do on offense. The Lions on the other hand are seeing yet another season goes by the wayside and will complete their road division schedule against Green Bay next week.

Lions lose heartbreaker to Bears 19-14

2010-09-13T15:40:00.000-07:00

This game has so many storylines I almost don’t know where to start. I could talk about the Bear’s overwhelming edge in total yards 463 to 168 for the Lions. I could bring up the 4 turnovers the Bear’s had that led to 14 points for the Lions. I could actually defend the Lion’s defense for giving up that many yards but holding the Bears scoreless for 95% of the 2nd half. I could also bring up the Lions went from being up 14-3 with 1:30 left in the first half to total disaster in the remaining 90 seconds of the half.

All of the above starting points are valid yet pale in comparison to the single biggest factor/play/story of the game. The old cliché “if it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, it is a duck” comes to mind. Just insert if Lions wide receiver Calvin Johnson has 2 feet down in the end zone, clearly displays possession to the refs, has his knee and rear end hit the ground, it’s a touchdown right. Wrong according to the mystifying rules of the N.F.L. none of that was good enough to “quote” complete the “process” of the catch. I guess they wanted Calvin Johnson to gift wrap the ball complete with a bow and present it to the officials. There is not a football fan from here to Timbuktu that would watch that play and not say it’s a touchdown.

The Lions running game and offensive line that looked so good in pre season provided an anemic 20 yard game total. And in case you’re wondering, that wasn’t a typo only 20 total rushing yards or as many yards Chris Johnson can get blindfolded with one hand tied behind his back. The Bears offense showed the growing pains of going thru year 1 of the Mike Martz offensive system. Jay Cutler was completely out of sync with his receivers on numerous occasions and others just wildly inaccurate. Jay Cutler has a weak Lions secondary to thank for his 23 completions on 35 attempts for 362 yards, 1 touchdown, and 1 interception day.

As a lifelong Lions fan myself what occurred in the last 1:30 falls into the typical “it’s the Lions” category of bad luck, bad calls, bad injuries etc… After scoring their second touch down off of a Bears turnover a 14-3 halftime lead seemed all but guaranteed right. Not so fast because this is the Lions and one 89 yard screen pass touchdown pass to Matt Forte later it was 14-10 all of a sudden. Ok, disheartening and momentum killing but still a four point lead and starting the third quarter with the ball. But wait a minute, here comes Julius Peppers around the corner to sack Matt Stafford and cause a potential season crushing shoulder injury to Stafford. Initial reports have him missing several weeks pending further medical testing. Lion’s fans can take heart that it’s not the same shoulder he hurt last year right, oh never mind it is his throwing shoulder this time around.

I would not want to be a Bear’s fan right now either, if it took all of this to eek out a win against the Lions. Jay Cutler has a very steep learning curve to run this offense. The defense will eventually play teams that run an actual N.F.L. caliber offense to test their mettle. The Lions on the other hand have no hope if they are forced to rely on their back up QB Sean Hill for any length of time.

U of M opens up with 30-10 win over University of Connecticut

2010-09-06T11:46:00.000-07:00

The newly renovated Big House was christened by the Denard Robinson show. U of M’s dual threat quarter back ran for 197 yards and passed for 186 yards for 383 total yards of offense. Connecticut’s offense did their defense no favors and let Michigan control the ball for 37 minutes overall. UConn’s defense saw a steady dose of quarterback runs and screen passes throughout the game.

The game opened up with several dazzling runs by Robinson that helped Michigan gain 287 yards on the ground for the game. The offensive line showed itself to be a unit of strength, paving the way for Robinson and the running back duo of Michael Shaw and Vincent Smith who combined for 99 yards themselves. Michigan’s offense used the running game to set up the passing game to perfection. Robinson threw a healthy dose of screen passes with a few deep balls going 19 of 22 completed passes for 186 yards and 1 touchdown. Michigan knows what it has with his legs but his improvement throwing the ball could make or break the entire season.

Unfortunately as impressive as the Michigan offense was their defense was equally unimpressive. The defensive line is average at best. The secondary is very weak to say the least. The halftime score would have been much closer if Connecticut’s wide receivers had not dropped several wide open deep passes. This put a lot of pressure on the UConn defense that it could not withstand. The defense can only hope that the offense will be able to put up shoot out like point totals game in and game out to bail them out. Of course, this will be much easier in non-conference play compared to conference play but only time will tell.

Jason

Detroit Lions Victorious in Great Lakes Classic

2010-08-29T15:19:00.000-07:00

On Saturday night in that ever important 3rd pre season game against the Cleveland Browns the Lions did just enough to capitalize on 3 Cleveland turn overs to emerge as winners 35-27.

I do have to say coming on the heels of a pretty good first 2 games this one was pretty disappointing for the most part with a few bright spots and exposing more problems down the road.

The good was a lightning quick 1:28 3 play scoring drive on their first possession of the game highlighted by Jahvid Best 51 yard opening run followed by a 10 yard reception and capped nicely by a Stafford to the other Johnson,Bryant touchdown pass. The other pleasant trend that continued is good run blocking by not only the starters but also the second unit (omg could this mean actual talented depth)that helped Aaron Brown to a very nice 5 carries for 34 yards and 2 td game. This along with his 4 solid kick off returns for 95 yards may have just cemented his roster spot. Another bright spot was the return of Louis Delmas at safety who saw his first pre season action in the first 2 defensive series of the game. He responded with a couple of nice red zone pass coverage plays and had 1 tackle for loss in run pursuit.

The bad of course is that Best came out of the game after his spectacular first series with tightness in his legs and one can only hope it is just a minor couple day thing and Kevin Smith given his first significant playing time was largely disappointing. He got 8 carries for just 20 yards and 1 touchdown but fumbled once and slipped on another rushing play. The Defense was just all around terrible giving up 414 total yards of offense is unacceptable pre season game or not. Even the starting defensive line got done in by a good offensive line anchored by Pro-Bowler Joe Thomas and some nice game planning by the Browns. It was evident that Cleveland watched the tape and decided to go up tempo no huddle quick short throws to negate the pass rush as evident by Jake Delhomme starting connecting on 10 of his first 13 throws for only 73 yards. I sure hope this is not a trend of things to come in the regular season.

The Lions also added to their injury list by placing Jared DeVries on the Injured Reserve list for the list and watching their starting middle line backer DeAndre Levy go down with a pulled groin muscle on the very first play of the game. In what could be a truly debilitating loss to an already weak line backing unit.

Jason

1st Lions Pre-season game ends with Pittsburg claiming a 23-7 Victory

2010-08-15T10:28:00.000-07:00

The Lions visited Heinz field and not only had to contend with the Steelers but Mother Nature reared her ugly head and forced a 73 minute weather delay due to lightning and excessive rain.

2 areas jumped out at me from the game, the play of the starting defensive line and the play of Stafford and his developing chemistry with Calvin Johnson.

Kyle Vanden Bosh led the charge of the D-line and showed why Coach Jim Schwartz was on his front porch at 12:01 of the Free Agency signing period. His motor was revved up and pumping from the opening play as he made 2 plays in the backfield on Pittsburgs 1st offensive series. His play was contagious as his defensive end counterpart Cliff Avril followed up with a nice speed rush sack on Leftwich. Holding the Steelers to 25 yds in the 1st quarter was a very nice way to start out. It also seems our defense might be able to generate some turnovers as they forced 2 fumbles early on. Of course I didn’t see the linebackers or secondary do much of anything thru out the entire game but that was more or less expected. Of course no pre-season game is complete without a key injury and up and coming 2nd year 1st rnd Linebacker Jordan Dizon obliged by going down in the 2nd quarter with an apparent knee injury. With Jim Schwartz offering the comment that it could be of the serious variety but will have to wait for the full medical evaluation to come.

The Lions offense tried setting the tone early with a heavy dose of newly minted 1st round RB pick Jahvid Best between the tackles and the results were far from overwhelming. The offensive line as usual needs to show some improvement for Best to do better than 4 rushes for 10 yards early on featuring a failed 3rd and short rush on the first drive. Best did show off his speed on his best carry of the night when he got around the corner and down the sidelines in a display all Lions fans hope to see plenty of this season. Best also showed a very nice acumen for catching the ball and picking up his blitzing blocking assignments on passing downs, 2 crucial areas for any running back starting of in the NFL.

Matthew Stafford showed he is very capable of making that big 2nd year leap that so many Lions fans are craving from our bonus baby 1st round pick. Everyone knows he has a rocket of an arm and that was clearly on display with one laser pass after another. However, I came away most impressed with his precision and accuracy as he went 8 for 11 for 68 yards and a touchdown to who else but Calvin Johnson. I only counted 2 throws that were off target, one that went off the receivers fingertips and was intercepted and an under throw to Johnson in the end zone. It was great to see him targeting the Lions top threat in Calvin Johnson so often including 3 end zone throws that led to the td.

It wasn’t all roses though with the back ups needing a lot of work in an effort to build up much needed depth on the defensive end. The 1st team only committed 2 penalties when they were in but the rest of the team drew an alarming 9 more the rest of the game to go with all of there missed tackles that let Pittsburgh’s back ups march down the field at will.

All in All a very good overall result for the beginning of Pre-season football and a sign of good things to come for the up coming season.

Jason Behr

Detroit Tigers go on roll at just the right time

2010-05-20T11:00:00.000-07:00

The Detroit Tigers have shown impeccable timing with there current hot streak that coincides nicely with them becoming the sole team sport that Detroit still has going.

Last week was particularly rewarding with series wins at home against the Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees in a variety of ways. Some of them were from dominating pitching performances others was pure ball mashing and one awesome Saturday night comeback to save a disastrous Dontrelle Willis performance.

Of course they have had the very good fortune of an older vet going down in Guillen only to see a rookie phenom in Brennan Boesch come up and start hammering the ball. Who would have thought that the first 2 rookie of the month winners would come from the Tigers with Austin Jackson winning the first and Boesch winning the second. Jackson sure has done a lot to make us forget about the Curtis Granderson trade. The ultimate question of course is can one or both of these rookies keep this up for the entire season.

The strongest and most consistent part of the team so far has been there bullpen far and way. They have been lights out so far with Zumaya learning how to become a pitcher instead of just a thrower but still the capability of hitting triple digits on the radar gun when needed. The biggest question mark is the starting pitching with only Justin Verlander shining on a consistent basis and lots of inconsistency with all the rest. It also seems like Miquel Cabrera has taken some huge steps in maturing as a person and cleaning up his personnel life. I don't think his MVP start to the season coming on the heels of him giving up alcohol is a coincidence.

Here's to another fun and exciting summer of Tigers Baseball

Red Wings Season comes to an end

2010-05-10T11:46:00.000-07:00

The title pretty much says it all and we are left with a slightly longer summer without hockey than most fans are accustomed to after Saturdays 2-1 defeat by the Sharks.

This certainly has been one of the most difficult seasons to judge in recent Red Wing history given all the adversity they had to fight thru. Of course I felt a profound sense of disappointment and sadness but it was more of a resigned contentment. This season had so many obstacles to it from the rash of early season injuries, compressed Olympic year schedule and the wear and tear of the last 3 deep playoff runs in the last 3 years. Needless to say aside from Pittsburgh with its much younger roster there isn't another team in the NHL that has played more hockey than the Red Wings these past 3 years. It was strange going into the Playoffs without the usual Stanly Cup or bust realistic expectation but that was the reality this year. There wasn't the usual finger pointing about this star or that one under performing or riding the goalie out of town. Jimmy Howard did a remarkable job as a rookie and showed he has the mental toughness to take on the toughest position in Detroit Sports (along with Lions QB of course). I don't even blame the refs with all of the missed calls and bad penalties thru out the playoffs. The Red Wings just had the unfortunate timing of running into a team that finally learned how to turn regular season success into playoff success after many years of disappointment in the San Jose Sharks.

Of course this summer will be very very busy for Ken Holland and the Red Wing brain trust with all the issues they have to deal with. From dealing with player's free agency with Lidstrom at the top of the pile to long time Wings like Maltby and Holmstrom and not so long time Wings player Bertuzi. They also have a host of restricted free agents in Helm, Eaves and Miller. I also can't imagine "the captain" deciding he wants to tackle that open GM job down in Tampa Bay and leaving the only organization he has ever known.

For a nice wrap up on The Red Wing Season feel free to look up this link.

Ernie Harwell Passes Away at age 92

2010-05-05T13:46:00.000-07:00

Life has a funny way of putting things into perspective and last night was certainly one of those moments. The passing of such an iconic figure not only in Detroit sports but to legions of Baseball fans across this great nation certainly does just that. Today the sadness or fond memories being recalled or the happiness of our youth has nothing to do with the scores from last night but all about Ernie Harwell leaving us late yesterday evening.

The man from Georgia with that Southern drawl enlightened generations of baseball fans and stories of his kindness to each and everyone that met him are truly inspiring.

I can imagine that I am amongst the 1000's in the blogosphere all writing about this same topic and here is just one link from the "National" perspective that I have read today from across the board whether it is from radio, print media, or the internet.
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Ernie Harwell

March Madness opens with a Weekend to Remember

2010-03-22T08:56:00.000-07:00

What an exhilaration, breath taking, heart pounding, phenomenal (feel free to add any other hyperbole) start to March Madness. Never in all my years of watching the Mens NCAA College Basketball Tournament can I recall a weekend with more buzzer beaters, overtime games, and Cinderella upsets.

The first day had drama and suspense from the very beginning to the very end. It started in fine fashion with Old Dominion knocking of the Fighting Irish by a mere point. Even though my disdain of Notre Dame is more geared toward there football program, it still rubs of onto there basketball team as well. Then there was the near historic upset of #2 seeded Villanova by Robert Morris who had the lead and control of the game all the way up to the very end before they succumbed in overtime. Helped mightily by there 40 free throw attempts to 26 by Robert Morris, can you say big school bias anyone. Lets not forget about the Racers of Murray State that calmly knocked off #4 seeded Vanderbilt on a 15 foot buzzer beater by Danero Thomas who was only the 3rd option on the play. Maybe its my anti SEC football bias creeping in but always nice to see the SEC fall flat no matter the sport.

As incredible as these 1st afternoon round of games were, the evening session said hold up we have some sprinkles to add. Now normally I would not be caught dead giving props to any school that has Ohio in its name but when its #14 seeded The State University of Ohio toppling a powerhouse like #3 seeded Georgetown I will happily make an exception. A precursor of things to come for the Big East that saw only 2 of 8 teams advance to the sweet sixteen.

These games were just the tip of the Iceberg for the weekend which saw three double digit seeded teams advancing to the Sweet Sixteen. With #9 seeded Northern Perhaps topping all of that by taking down overall #1 seeded Kansas on a cold blooded 3 point shot that will undoubtedly make its way into the NCAA archives and live on for years to come. It was #12 seeded Cornell becoming the first Ivy league school in over 30 years knocking of Wisconsin handily to advance to next weekend. It was Pac-10 regular season winner Washington storming back against Marquette in the 1st round and then soundly taking out #3 seeded and very new to the party New Mexico. Then the little school that could out of the San Francisco area Saint Mary's College knocking of everyones darling mid-major Richmond first and then beating the aforementioned over rated Villanova next.

I most certainly did not forget the Drama that our home state M.S.U. Spartans brought to the table as the advanced not so easily or healthy to the Sweet Sixteen for the 3rd straight year. However I will be forth coming with another update this afternoon that will give there Spartans there due and I would be remiss if I did not give a very special honorable mention to what the Red Wings accomplished this weekend. Scoring 2 goals with less than a second to go on back to back nights to force the 1st game into overtime and to win in overtime the next night, seemed to fit in nicely with the weekends theme.

Jason Behr

Red Wings defeat Calgary 2-1 in key match up

2010-03-16T13:27:00.000-07:00

Wow what an exciting late night game. Talk about a great way to start off the week by watching the Wings deliver a full 60 minute effort that results in a 3 point lead on the Calgary Flames for the 8th and final playoff spot.

For an official recap go here

Going on this 3 game winning streak and being 5-2 post Olympic break is just what this team needed. Of course the entire game hinged on that crucial sequence when the Red Wings went on an early third period power play and inexplicable gave up a penalty shot to Calgary that Howard stopped and we came back and tied it with a power play goal 30 seconds later. For once it was nice to see the Wings on the receiving end of this type of momentum shift instead of the other end that has happened so frequently this year.

It seems that our star players like Pavel and Hank have definitely heeded Mike Babcocks "our stars have to play like stars" mantra with both of them skating hard and making plays on both ends. I just marvel at a player like Holmstrom that can stand in front of that net take the physical abuse he does and still be so deft with his stick at deflecting in wide shots to the nets. The game winner with 1:19 left had to be a heart breaker for the Flames.

Of course we still have 2 key match ups with Nashville coming up and still need some teams in front of us to lose a game or two but all in all I like where the Wings are headed. I can't imagine either Chicago or San Jose looking forward to first round match up with a Wings team firing on all cylinders.

As always feel free to comment good, bad or otherwise

Jason

Michigan State bows out in big ten tourney

2010-03-14T09:25:00.000-07:00

Does anybody remember that classic quote from Rob Schneider in the movie Necessary Roughness?

"Coach, nows not the time to make sure everybody has played. Hey, I haven't played yet, maybe I should go in."

That was actually one of his many classic quotes as announcer Chuck Neiderman.

It's the not the time to make sure everybody played that was eerily similar to the way Michigan State coach Tom Izzo handled his team on Friday. The Spartans loss to Minnesota in the Big Ten Tournament left many fans, media and even a few players scratching their heads over the way Izzo managed the player rotation.

With Chris Allen suspended for mysterious reasons, the Spartans were definitely in need of a lift at the guard play. For some reason though Durrell Summers was benched most of the second half again for mysterious reasons. In his place were seldom used Austin Thorton and walk-on Mike Kebler which left Spartan fans wondering why in the world is Izzo benching Summers for those two. Yes, Kebler did help the defense improve in the 2nd half, but offensively he was a liability. The stat line: 20 minutes, zero points, 2 missed free throws and two costly turnovers. One of those miscues was on a fast break where Kalin Lucas passed to him and he basically couldn't wait to release it back to a Minnesota player as if he were holding a hand grenade. The other was while grabbing a rebound after a Minnesota miss and basically tripping over his own feet out of bounds. Lucas was standing right near him and you could see the look of disgust on his face when they showed the replays.

So at the risk of making the offense look bad, Izzo thought at least he would make their defense look good. But Izzo didn't need to contribute to the offensive demise - the players did that on their own with all the missed free throws. Sparty was an aberration from the charity stripe in Friday's loss in which they were slightly over 50% including four straight crucial misses in overtime. Minnesota obviously didn't have issues with the basket as they were close to 75% in free throws. And did anybody notice how a few of the Minnesota players just step up to the line and calmly shoot it in no time? Usually their results are all net. Smooth and secure. The Spartan players stand at the line, stare at it too long, measure it, and almost aim it. Even a lot of their makes were rim rattlers that were fortunate to bounce in. Make a few more free throws and Michigan State could have been the ones facing the battered and bruised Boilermakers, which Minnesota dismantled on Saturday.

MSU's defense has actually improved over the last 4 or 5 games thanks in part to Chris Allen and due to Raymar Morgan playing up to potential. Get Allen back in. Get Summers some more playing time. And get the continued solid play from Morgan. Get all those in place and the Spartans can forget about the Minnesota meltdown and focus on a respectable run in the upcoming NCAA.

U.S. defeats Canada 5-3 in Olympic Hockey

2010-02-22T15:44:00.000-08:00

Wow what an exciting game that was last night for both countries. In Canada they estimate that 2/3 of the entire population watched portions of the game and MSNBC recorded there 3rd highest show rating ever with only Presidential debates topping it.

For an official recap see US stuns Canada 5-3 to win Group A

This game really reminded me of old fashion playoff hockey pre-Lockout with the physical hard skating nature of the game and the officials just letting them play. I did not see to many ticky tack holds or interference penalties being called and the faster and more aggressive team coming out on top with the U.S. team. I found myself waiting for the announcers to mention names like Crosby, Iginla, Thorton, etc but instead it was mostly the 3rd and 4th line muck and grind types for the Canadian team being called. It did bring joy to my heart seeing Crosby sprawled out on the ice in front of his own net after a U.S. score.

The United States team used the tried and true formula of hot goal tending by M.S.U.'s own Ryan Miller stopping 42 of 45 shots with lots of effort and work in there own zone fighting of the Canadians and taking advantages of turnovers and mistakes on the other side. I am not sure where Dearborn's own and current Detroit Red Wing Brian Rafalski found all of this offense with 2 goals and an assist in the game coming on the heels of scoring the last two American goals the game before. The United States team really used there youth and speed to take it to the big guns of the Canadians who have only known the new NHL and never had to fight through the vaunted New Jersey Devils neutral zone trap and deal with defenders obstruction, hooking and holding til there hearts content. And yes I am talking to you Mr. Crosby, Nash, and Iginla you might want to talk to some of the older players on the team to get a handle on just how much effort and work is required in those tight checking games.

Now Canada faces the unenviable position of facing the Russians in the Quarterfinals and they better be ready to give all they can or the unthinkable could happen by missing the medal round completely.

Jason

Olympic Hockey gets under in Vancouver

2010-02-17T12:25:00.000-08:00

In light of the NHL Olympic break and the NBA All Star break plus the sad rebuilding state of the hometown Pistons I feel compelled to jot down some random Olympic musings.

The biggest story line from the Olympics for me is the mens Hockey Tournament which is sure to feature some dynamite games from powerhouse's like Russia, Canada, U.S. and Sweden and of course the ever present dark horse that is just 1 hot goalie away from a run in this one and done format.

It is such a crap shoot between the Russians, Canada and Sweden because they all feature such top level talent from with Russia featuring Ovechkin and Malkin along with Datsyuk and Canada with all world goalie Martin Brodeur along with Crosby, Nash, Iginla etc... just to many names to mention and of course the Red Wings affiliate Sweden team with hometown hero's Zetterburg, Lidstrom, and Franzen. The main strength of the U.S. team is youthful exuberance with just a veteran or two thrown in like Brian Rafalski, the sort of team that just might not know how nervous they should be. I predict the preliminary rounds will go according to form with all the favorites easily making it thru and I see 3 of the 4 in the medal round with Sweden or United States losing in the quarters.

I believe we will see a rematch of the famous 1972 Summit Series between Russia and Canada in the finals. A finals that will shatter many many Olympic Television rating records with the same result as it was in Mother Russia with Canada winning the biggest Hockey Game ever played anywhere.

On a foot note I think for once the Olympic break will greatly benefit the Red Wings given the precarious health of the team all year. I think the 3 weeks off will really allow the players staying home a good long recovery time and a player like Franzen just coming back from a major knee injury a great chance to get his conditioning and timing back. I expect a very hot start for the Wings after the break to safely put them in that 5th or 6th seed slot.

Feel free to comment on any other Olympic moments that stand out to you

Jason

Michigan State plays Purdue in conference contest

2010-02-09T13:30:00.001-08:00

Today we are going to talk about turnovers.

Not the kind bakeries churn out to satisfy the sweet tooth. It's the kind that happens in sports when you give up your possession of the ball to the opponent. When talking about Michigan State's basketball team, they've been churning out plenty of turnovers lately and how sweet that has been for their opponents.

This season's State basketball squad has been giving the ball away to their opponents at an alarming rate. Following Saturday's 78-73 loss at Illinois, the Spartans are the leaders in the big ten in turnovers. In their 11 conference games, MSU has 157 total turnovers. The next closest is lowly Iowa who are near the bottom of the big ten standings. MSU is the conference leader in the standings, but also the conference leader in miscues.

The total turnovers would not be as concerning if they were forcing their opponents into even more miscues. Unfortunately for State, their opponents aren't coughing it up as much. Their opposition is at 122 turnovers which puts State at 8^th place in that category. In only 2 of their 11 conference games thus far, they've turned it over less than their opponent (in that category, less is good).

Turnovers are a double edge sword in which you're taking away an opportunity for you to score, but then handing your opponent an extra chance to score. Empty at your end, but a bonus possession at the other end. It's kinda like carrying around a handful of money on a windy day—you're going to get poorer, but chances are someone is going to find those bills and they'll get richer.

So who is to blame? Are big ten defenses that good? Or is MSU's ball handling that bad? Smart money is on the latter. While State may be the epitome of carelessness, several big ten teams are the cornerstone of carefulness. An amazing 4 big ten teams are in the top 20 nationally at fewest turnovers. National statistics here folks, not conference. Wisconsin turns it over less than anybody in the land and Michigan coughs it up the 10^th fewest times. Michigan State's next opponent, Purdue, is also a top-20 member of the protecting-the-rock club.

This seems to go against the grain of one of coach Tom Izzo's greatest traits….discipline. His Spartans aren't showing the discipline needed when it comes to maintaining the ball. That will be crucial against Purdue on Tuesday. If State can maintain the ball better, chances are they'll get a win to maintain their conference lead better.

Saints defeat Colts 31-17 in Super Bowl 44

2010-02-07T20:02:00.000-08:00

The NFL concludes its season with a very exciting Super Bowl game. Saints pick off Manning, Colts to win Super Bowl Drew Brees definitely laid claim to his place in the elite Quarterback conversation and Congratulations to Who Dat Nation in New Orleans.

Jason

Spartans lose tough road game it Illinois

2010-02-06T23:49:00.000-08:00

I have to admit right off the top that I don't watch a whole lot of regular season college basketball, but I did watch Saturdays ESPN's College Game day feature game pitting the hometown Michigan State Spartans vs the Fighting Illini.

Of course there was a major subplot of M.S.U. being without its All American Point Guard Kalin Lucas due to a sprained ankle suffered against Wisconsin earlier in the week. I know during last years magical run to the title run Korie Lucious was a definite spark plug and came up big in some unexpected spots, but being counted on running the attack for the number 5 team in the nation is a whole other matter. Unfortunately he did let his inexperience bubble to the service by to often rushing the plays as opposed to letting the game come to him and this resulted in him having 6 of the 18 total turnovers for M.S.U. Of course he was not alone in the turn over department with several other players chipping in for 3 or 4 turnovers.

For a look at the numbers see the Box Score

Of course the most startling number is the fact that the Spartans shot over 50 percent from the field and still managed to lose thanks to the aforementioned 18 turnovers. Hopefully they can right the ship for the showdown against Purdue at East Lansing on Tuesday and maintain a little breathing room atop the Big 10 standings.

Take care and enjoy the SuperBowl

Jason Behr

Alamo finally ends on sunday morning

2010-01-05T10:12:00.000-08:00

Got Freep? Then you got nothing.

Well nothing when it comes to Alamo Bowl game story in Sunday's Free Press sports page. Even though the game didn't end until after 1am Sunday morning, it would not have been out of the realms of reality for the Free Press to delay printing of their Sunday edition. Given today's modern technology, the Free Press could have composed a little summary and cut and paste a box score in no time.

The issue though would be space. They would have needed a lot of space to print the box score from Saturday's Alamo Bowl. By now everyone is probably aware that Michigan State lost 41-31 to Texas Tech in a day after new year's shootout. Would you have expected anything less than a shootout in the Alamo? And in true Alamo fashion, State found themselves in the same predicament as Davy Crockett and company were in -- they were simply outgunned. Coming into the game, Texas Tech was one of the top passing teams in the country. State was in the bottom 20 of pass defense in the country. Not only was State outgunned, but they were also out-manned. For the past month, State had the stigma of 14 players suspended due to their alleged criminal actions.

Texas Tech saw State's suspensions and raised them a coach suspension, only to be followed by that coach being fired 3 days before the game. The outside activity by both teams made tv coverage more suited to be done by CNN rather than ESPN.

All off-field controversy aside, the game was able to provide plenty of action on the field. Texas Tech's offense was well known, but MSU's wasn't exactly chop liver. State came into the game as the top passing team in the big 10 and in the top 50 in the country. Perhaps Texas Tech coach Mike Leach even slipped MSU a few play calls too, because the Spartans used a slew of trick plays to their advantage. A punter throwing passes, quarterbacks catching passes, and a wide receiver throwing for a touchdown. Down the stretch State actually led with 8 minutes left, but once Texas Tech made the QB switch, the Spartans could no longer hold back the Red Raiders at The Alamo.

For State to improve next year, the solution is simple -- shore up the secondary. Mark Dantonio may have developed the passing offense sooner than expected, but that positive doesn't outweigh his negative. This off season will give him a chance to try to regain some balance.

Detroit Lions losing while worse are winning

2009-12-29T23:30:00.000-08:00

The bad are getting better. While the worst seem to be getting worse.

About 2 months ago the NFL seemed to be inundated with a lot of really bad football teams. Surprisingly, the Lions weren't at the top, err, bottom of that list. Who would have thought that teams like Oakland, Tampa, Cleveland and Washington (to name a few) would be looking worse on the field than the Lions? Sure, Detroit had a similar record to all those teams, but they weren't looking and loosing as badly as all those teams. After all, the Lions actually beat Washington and Cleveland.

The win over Cleveland seen by a few thousand at Ford Field was definitely the turning point of the season. But not the momentum turning point the local media and Lions loyalists hyped it up to being. Since that made-for-local-blackout moment, the Lions have been outscored 156-58.

How bad are the Lions? They lost at home to St. Louis, a 1-14 team!

How bad are the Lions? They got blown out at Seattle, who in turn got blown out at home by Tampa. Tampa also won at New Orleans last week! Whereas Detroit was destroyed at NOLA in week 1.

Other dismally looking teams besides Tampa have been making progress. Oakland is 5-10 and have won at Denver and at Pittsburgh. Cleveland has just won 3 straight, including a win over Pittsburgh. The common denominator there? Pittsburgh, of course they actually beat Detroit. Washington is up to 4-11 and have beaten Denver.

So while some of the dismal teams of this season have been pro-gressing, leave it to the Lions to be re-gressing. On a positive note, at least they've been backing into the number 2 pick in the next NFL draft.

Tigers Season comes to a crashing end

2009-10-07T12:50:00.000-07:00

Well has everyone recovered from yesterdays classic/heartbreaker one game playoff yet. I don't know about you but watching the highlights just made it more and more depressing to me. This game had it all classic Metrodome "house of horrors" see one of my very very early posts along with classic season long problems.

For an official recap see this ESPN article and for my rant on it please keep reading

Well good riddance to the metrodome and all those artificial turf high hoppers (ala should have been game ending double play in 10th between Polanco and Everrit) and the classic losing the ball in the outfield (thanks to rookie Dan Kelly) and the ever friendly outfield bounce (compliments of Ryan Raburn's attempted sliding catch with bonus points going to Curtis Granderson not taking proper back up angle). Of course all that does is gloss over the most glaring hole the team has had from beginning to end and that is lack of clutch hits over and over again. It was dizzying how my runners got stranded at third with less than two outs not only in this game but thru out the season.

As always people will second guess the manager for the 100's of small decisions that are made in any given season and serve as the seedy underside of many wins and losses thru out the season. I do wonder why he "rested" Polanco in the 4th to last game of season and how he only played Magglio (Mr. 380 batting average in September/October) 6 innings on the day of the Monday White Sox double header. But the most glaring error in judgment was being married to his righty/lefty batter/pitcher match ups where he started Aubrey Huff and is one hundred and change batting average instead of starting Ryan Raburn and his season ending 291 batting average.

In the end one of the analyst had it right when he said "it seemed like so many players had 4 to 5 times to change the course of this game" and when our line up regularly feature 3-4 sub 250 hitters and the Twins simply did not you end up with this result.

Good Luck DD on construction next years team and building on the momentum of this season.

Detroit Red Wings Season on the Cusp

2009-09-30T15:39:00.000-07:00

Believe it or not another NHL season is just days away from kicking off and once again the Detroit Red Wings are prohibitive favorites to make there 3rd straight Stanley Cup Finals and a rubber match with the Pittsburgh Penguins.

Coming on the heels of some pretty sweet accolades by the Sporting News naming Nick Lidstrom player of the decade, Mike Babcock coach of the decade (granted it also counts his stint with the Ducks), and Ken Holland Executive of the decade, I say bring on the Pens again and all injuries being equal I see a different result this time around.

For a complete run down on the Red Wings see there preview on there home page for the entire 2009-10 season player break down.

Afraid it will have to be short and sweet tonight because its time to root on the Tigers tonight against those Twins.
Jason

U of M vs M.S.U. week and oh yeah Tigers Pennant Chase enters final Week

2009-09-28T14:40:00.000-07:00

Ahhhhh Yes its time for all of Michigan to stand up and take sides Wolverine maize and blue or Spartan green and white. The Battle lines are drawn for the annual showdown of State supremacy with pardons to the Chippewa's of course (sorry admitted Big Blue bias here)

Wow does the phrase "thats why they play the games" ever apply here with the topsy turvy routes both teams have taken this season. You would be hard press to find the hard core Blue Hair Alum that could have predicted a 4-0 start by U of M. Like wise who could have predicted the chaos and wreckage that has so far defined M.S.U.'s 1-3 start to their season.

Of course the other cliche when it comes to bitter rivals "throw out the records" certainly takes on an ironic meaning with the sudden record reversal. I certainly was the last one that thought Michigan would be marching into East Lansing with all the confidence and momentum and with a Freshman Quarterback no less. Unless the weather dictates otherwise I see a whole lot of points being scored on both sides with neither sides defense being all that impressive. Which is not to surprising from the Michigan perspective with only one stare Brandon Graham on the Defensive Line and a secondary with a lot of talent but also very young. States defensive woe's are very surprising coming on the heals of Greg Jones being named pre-season All Big-10 and all those returning starters.

Of Course there is the matter of Tate Forciers shoulder that got banged up some but by all accounts he will be good to go.

The Detroit Tigers start there showdown series with the Minnesota Twins to determine the Central Division Crown. With Rick Porcello and Justin Verlander due up for the 1st two games. I like our chances of getting out to a 2-0 series start and putting the pressure on the Twins. This week is truly what makes Baseball so great.

As always feel free to post any comments good,bad, or otherwise.

Jason

Lions Grab First Win of Season

2009-09-27T19:29:00.000-07:00

The Lions picked up their first win of the season today as they defeated the Washington Redskins, 19-14.

Matthew Stafford put out a solid performance as he connected on 21-of-36 passes for 241 yards and a touchdown for a quarterback passer rating of 87.8.

Stafford “It’s awesome. It’s great for not only the guys in the locker room, but the fans, the town everybody. Hopefully we can keep this thing going. We played well on offense, defense and special teams. It wasn’t just one part of our team that got it done today. Defense stopped them when they needed to. We mustered up enough points in the second half to get the job done and it’s just a tribute to everybody sticking together and pulling through.” Head Coach Jim Schwartz was pleased with the team’s performance and the fact that the weight of last season’s record has now been lifted.

Jim Schwartz “We weren’t 0-2. Our guys were carrying the burden of 0-19, and it was unfair to them. But this gets us off of that and puts it behind us. Half our team was new, so they didn’t have the burden, but I think the organization had a burden and the city of Detroit felt it. Honestly, that game shouldn’t have been that close. We had a couple of plays that we left on the field that we could have not had to hold on at the very end of that game.”

Posted by: Tara Ryan on September 27, 2009 – 9:44 pm

So many Sports So little time

2009-09-25T09:36:00.000-07:00

Quite the week in Detroit Sports that we are wrapping up from the hapless Lions going 0-2 and not coming close to selling out this weeks game to the Tigers hanging on for a 3 game lead and our two College football teams going in very different directions.

Apparently the Cleveland Indians have become the perfect salve for erasing Tiger slumps thanks to their second straight series sweep. It was awfully nice to see the offense come back around and start producing some clutch hits finally. They could still use some more plate discipline though, to cut down on there strike out totals, especially to pitches out of the strike zone. The bullpen has once again become rock solid and I will give them a pass on the 3 runs they gave up last night. It was also great to see the one two punch of Edwin Jackson and Justin Verlander come out on top.

This weekend also features the Michigan Wolverines and Michigan State Spartans opening up there conference schedules with the Wolverines playing the lowly Hoosiers at home and the Spartans with a tough road test against Wisconsin. The two teams are certainly on divergent paths from most pre-season predictions with UM off to a terrific start and the Spartans struggling to get there feet underneath them. You don't have to look much further than each team's quarterback situations. The Wolverines have found there bonafide #1 in Tate Forcier and State still fiddling around with a two quarterback situation. I sure hope D'antonio settles on Kirk Cousins quickly because a quarterback rotation really just indicates that you don't have a true number one. I wish the Spartans good luck in the always tough Camp Randell Stadium even with Wisconsin being a little down.

I suppose I am obligated to at least mention the Lions even as there home game with the Washington game this Sunday being blacked out. Is it really any surprise than a team on a 19 game loseing streak that is feeding a rookie QB to the lions is having a hard time holding onto there fan base. Thank you Mr. Ford for interfering when we don't want you to do with Stafford and not interfering when we wanted you to fire the unnameable one (Matt Millen) for anyone outside the metro Detroit area that might be wondering.

As always feel free to post any comments good,bad, or otherwise

Jason

Go Time for the Tigers

2009-09-18T10:52:00.000-07:00

Well the stretch run is upon us just a mere 16 games left in the season with the Tigers possessing a 4 game lead currently. The most important of those 16 being the 7 against the second place Twins 3 on the road and 4 at home. The Twins get the Royals for 6 games and the Tigers conversely play the White Sox for 6 games with each team having a 3 game series against the Indians to round things out. You have to think the Twins are under a lot more pressure to pull off a 5-2 or better record in those 7 games to really apply the heat to the Tigers . Conversely the Tigers can come out ahead by simply breaking even at just 4-3 or at the worst going 3-4 and only lose 1 game in the standings with 9 other games to play.

Of course all those stat break downs would not be needed if the Tigers hadn't come of there 6 game winning streak and proceed to go ice cold in every area. Even there reliable pitching both starters and bullpen have taken huge dips with the overall E.R.A. going north of 6.00 in the last 10 games and an offense that has reverted back to there beginning of the season woes. Even our ace Justin Verlander has lapsed into his habit of having that one bad inning amongst an otherwise dominating performance. If baseball kept a stat for how many individual innings a pitcher allows a single run or more, I believe Verlander would be at the top of the list. It also scares me to no end the number of no doubt about it home runs Edwin Jackson is giving up. He really needs to find his command on his secondary off-speed pitches very very quickly. As good as Porcello has been and seeing Robertson make a strong come back from injury, I would still rather see Jackson as the solid #2 starter behind JV.

All in all I am going to believe in this team til the day I look into the standings and don't see the Tigers atop it. Our bats can easily warm back up just at the right time in an instant. In some respects maybe its a good thing that our bullpen gets those bad outings out of the way now rather than later. After all Rodney and Lyons have been lights out 99% of the time this year and perfection is hard to maintain.

All that being said I still believe we are going to the playoffs and that our pitching will come around and the hitting will do just enough to get us by.

P.S. Good Luck to those Spartans against Notre Dame as they try and add the final nail in Charlie (Cry Baby) Weis's coffin.

As always feel free to post any comments good, bad , or otherwise

Jason

U of M 38 Notre Dame 34 Go Blue

2009-09-14T15:31:00.000-07:00

A great Saturday afternoon in Ann Arbor, MI for Big Blue at the "Big House". What a thrilling game against Notre Dame with the fate of both coaches hanging in the balance. Rich Rodriguez finally gave the fans and alums a reason to stand up and cheer. And let me tell you just from watching it on television, I could tell the noise level was at an all time high. Nothing makes me happier than adding a nail in the coffin of the "genius" Charlie (never saw a cheeseburger he didn't like) Weis and flushing the supposed BCS game hype down the drain. I just don't know how Lou Holtz will go on living on ESPN oh wait he will just have more time to shill for the SEC and there new network.

I know legions of Wolverine fans were with me in shocked awe watching a mobile quarterback actually playing for our team and not against it. I know I don't need to list the litany of tortuous games and losses we have suffered from running quarterbacks here. In one afternoon Tate Forcier put his stamp on this program's revival and showed us how the offense is suppose to run. I found myself saying so this is want his (the coach's) offense is suppose to look like with Forcier faking hand offs, pitching it wide, rolling out, scrambling out of trouble and still throwing darts down field.

Now I am not saying Forcier is gonna pull a Barkley and go into his first hostile road game and pull of a victory in East Lansing against the Spartans October 3rd, but he just made that game a whole lot more intriguing. Oops did I just reference another painful Buckeye lost in yet another big game, I am so sorry for that really I am (yeah right hey Pryor learn how to run and actually throw down field like Tate Forcier). Who knows what will happen between now and O.S.U. but wouldn't it be sweet revenge for Forcier to out duel Pryor on that last game.

P.S. A slightly rough stretch for the Tigers but they still hold a 5.5 game lead with JV on the mound and well the Lions were the Lions need I say more. On a personal note please please put Culpepper back in Stafford is not ready no matter how good he looked in preseason.

As Always feel free to post your comments good, bad, or otherwise.

Jason

Chips to much for Spartans to Handle

2009-09-13T08:08:00.000-07:00

On Saturday, newspaper headline writers in Michigan were probably throwing up all over themselves in anticipation of all the possibilities they could put to print: Spartans stricken ill with LeFevour. Central Michigan has the fever for LeFevour. LeFevour too hot for MSU to handle.

And so on and so forth.

This post will try to refrain from such headlines writing hype. Yes, Michigan State's 29-27 loss to Central was due in part to CMU quarterback Dan LeFevour's performance. But the senior QB was not the sole reason that led to State's demise. Self-destruction played a part in that. Sloppy play and sloppy penalties were key culprits in MSU's meltdown. It seemed there were many long pass plays where the wide receivers had distance on the defense, and yet State QB's (they do it by a committee) just overthrew them. On the times they did throw on target, the receivers made some key drops.

And the last straw that stifled State was the off-sides penalty on MSU while CMU attempted a late-seconds field goal. Who commits an off-sides penalty on a game-winning FG attempt? Any team who wants to gift-wrap the game to their opponent, that's who.

CMU also had one other motivational move on their side....They wanted to avoid the weekend sweep of Michigan-based MAC schools by Big 10 opponents. Indiana had beaten Western Michigan and Northwestern beat Eastern Mich. Central was able to prevent a tri-fecta of Michigan "directional" schools all being beaten by Big 10 foes.

Tigers lick there wounds and NFL season kicks off!!!

2009-09-11T11:32:00.000-07:00

Well I guess my previous statement of the pennant chase being potentially over on Labor Day was off by just a little bit.

Thanks to the Detroit Tigers getting swept by the last place Kansas City Royals following early season trends of bad offense and bad relief. It was a real shame to see Justin Verlander's 6 inning one earn run performance go to waste. Even though it was a short outing by his standards this season, I don't blame Leyland at all for pulling him after 110 plus pitches. Of course Porcello showed his rookie strips a little bit by giving up four earned runs in five innings but I am not worried. When the offense did manage to take a couple of late game leads our normally reliable bullpen managed to blow it shortly there after. Fortunately the Toronto Blue Jays did us the favor of splitting there four game series with the Minnesota Twins and still left us with a 5.5 game lead with fewer and fewer games remaining. The biggest danger being having the race go right down to the end but that might not be such a bad thing. There has been quite a few examples of teams that do have to play every game like its last going into the playoffs and riding there success all the way to the top.

The NFL kicked off its season last night with a tightly contested game between the Steelers and Titans coming down to the all mighty overtime toss going in the Steelers favor. The Lions travel down to the bayou to take on New Orleans Saints with there prolific offense but suspect defense. I will be impressed if the Lions defense keeps them under 30 points for this game but doubt the offense will muster more than 20 points. I sure hope our offensive line continues to look good like they have in the pre-season and keeps Stafford from getting his bell rung continually.

As always feel free to post any comments good, bad or otherwise.

Jason

Schwartz taps Stafford to Start, Tigers sweep the weekend and oh yeah CFB kicks off

2009-09-07T11:54:00.000-07:00

Guess Lion's coach Jim Schwartz didn't want to let the suspense build and named Matthew Stafford to start the opener against the New Orleans Saints this Sunday.

I know as I am writing this legions of Lions fans are screaming Noooooooo not another rookie QB who will get pounded into submission. I find the coach's reasoning very suspect that after 15 pass attempts to Calvin Johnson from Stafford he already envisions a Manning to Harrison, Montana to Rice, Kelly to Reed comparison. I would give him credit if he spoke of the improvements on the offensive line and the improved running game as major factors that allow a rookie quarterback to learn the ropes. At least the Saints aren't known for there defensive but I am sure the Vikings, Steelers, and Redskins will be happy to properly introduce Mr. Stafford to the NFL.

Meanwhile the Tigers just ho hummed there way to a 3 game weekend sweep of the Tampa Bay Rays and saw the Twins lose 2 of 3 to the hapless Indians. They say the pennant chase truly starts on labor day but with a 7 game lead it may well be over already. The most stunning of there 3 come from behind victories being last night with Mr. 3 strikeouts already, bum knee Brandon Inge hitting a GRAND SLAM in the top of the ninth to give the Tigers a 5-3 lead. It also featured a very solid outing from Edwin Jackson who had been getting hit pretty hard lately and Brandon Lyon wrapping up things in the ninth for the second night in a row.

Of Course College Football kicked off and both the Wolverines and Spartans took care of business quite nicely. U of M fans saw more plays from the QB position in one game as the did all of last season seemingly and the Spartans showed they could have quite the aerial attack this year. Of course it is hard to read a lot into it based on the competition of a MAC school for Michigan and a sub-division team for Michigan State but hopefully both games are a good sign for the season ahead.

Detroit Tigers Sweep Cleveland Indians

2009-09-03T15:56:00.000-07:00

This week saw some fantastic weather for baseball and a clean sweep over those hapless Indians. Boy are they a bad team right now just playing out the string it seems.

Each game did take on a life of its own though with a nice offensive outburst to start things off on Tuesday with a 8-5 win. I know Edwin Jackson got victimized by low run support earlier on in the season but he seems to be making up for it now with his last couple of outings. I really don't like seeing him relying so heavily on his fastball and losing control of his secondary/off-speed pitches. I hope it is just a matter of our pitching coach helping him make a small adjustment here and there.

I actually had the pleasure of attending game 2 and saw the Indians toss the ball around up close and personnel with 4 errors leading to 2 unearned runs. The Tigers still were 2 for 3 in sacrifice fly situations (nice to see) and made the Indians pay for those extra outs. I also am trying to forget the Rodney roller coaster of a 9th though and chalked it up to an ugly win but a win none the less made even sweeter by the Twins coughing up 4 runs in the 9th to lose earlier that day.

Food for thought Twins closer Joe Nathan 35/40 in save op's vs Rodney's 30/31 which one would you rather have?

The Tigers then wrapped up the sweep in a day game with the most difficult game of the 3 by far. Fausto Carmona really had our number today and if not for 5 walks which included a mind boggling 3 to the number 9 hitter Adam Everett, I don't know if we would have pulled it out. It was great to see Clete Thomas get the clutch 2 RBI triple in the 7th and Zach Miner going 2 1/3 scoreless for the win.

We head to Tampa this weekend with a nice 5 game lead over the Twins

As always feel free to post any comments good bad or otherwise

Jason

A fine weekend for Detroit Sports

2009-08-31T10:22:00.000-07:00

What an awesome weekend for Detroit sports. The Red Wings hosted there 2 day Hockeyfest at Joe Louis Arena, the Lions played there all important 3rd pre-season game, and the Tigers took 2 of 3 games from the Rays to maintain there lead.

The Tigers head into the stretch drive thru September in great shape with a very nice 4.5 games lead on the Twins and 6 game lead on the fading White Sox. I can't see the White Sox recovering from those 2 disastrous series against the Red Sox and Yankees and posing much of a threat down the stretch. Now don't get me wrong when I say "threat" I mean to take over 1st place but I still expect them to put up a fight in the games against the Tigers. I know the Twins have the duel threat of the M & M boys in Justin Morneau and Joe Mauer but I just don't see enough consistency in there pitching staff to take 1st place from us.

This weekend games just continue that good feeling and momentum that seems to be rolling more and more in our favor. Saturday's game being a perfect example because we lose but so do both teams behind us and no ground is lost. Then in the wins we get 2 great pitching performances one from our rookie sensation Rick Porcello and one from our stud number 1 Justin Verlander. Porcello continues to prove that he is up for the rigors of an entire season at the tender age of 20 and Verlander wraps up his 15th victory of the season tieing C.C. Sabathia for the league lead. Of course there is the matter of those big hits and home runs that keep on coming from unlikely power sources. Placido Polanco being the latest example with his 3-run barely made it blast in the 8th that put us ahead 4-3 and let Rodney come in and slam the door shut for his 29th save.

The Lions also won on Saturday beating the Colts 18-17 which isn't nearly as important as the players who finally got back on the field. It was great to see Calvin Johnson back out there in all his glory and rookie tight end Brandon Pettigrew seeing his first action all pre-season. The Offensive line played great against the Colts 1st team and opened up big holes for Kevin Smith and gave our QB's time to throw. Both Stafford and Culpepper had good outings and are making the decision very difficult on Jim Schwartz to name a starter. Even though a good offensive line and a healthy Calvin Johnson give Stafford all the tools to be successful, I still take the calm and poise of a savvy veteran like Culpepper who is looking more and more like his old self. I won't spoil things by bringing up anything about the Defense because this was a great weekend overall.

As Always feel free to post any comments good, bad, or otherwise

Jason

Detroit Tigers Lead Charmed Existence

2009-08-27T12:21:00.000-07:00

Maybe its just good fortune Maybe its a sign that the stars are aligned just right or Maybe its just baseball being baseball.

But even with the Tigers losing rather meekly 4-2 to the Angels in the wrap up game it was still good times in Detroit. First off as stated in my last post they just won there 1st road series since June against the division leading Angels no less. Plus the White Sox lose a heart breaker to the Red Sox on a walk off home run for there 3rd straight loss to the Red Sox. Plus the Twins suffer there only loss to the Orioles on the same day and they have the wild card contending Rangers coming up. Granted the Tigers have a home and home series with the Tampa Bay Rays coming up that won't be easy but at least all the teams will be playing tough opponents.

So my Tigers still have a nice 4.5 game lead on both the White Sox and Twins and all is right.

As always feel free to post any comments good, bad or otherwise.

Jason

Detroit Tigers defeat Los Angeles Angels 5-3

2009-08-26T01:34:00.001-07:00

Sweet Tigers have just sown up there first road series victory since sometime back in June!!!!!

What a nail biter of a game with plenty of defense, big hits, and a bend but don't break bullpen. Curtis Granderson might be in the box score for his career high 25th home run and follow up triple and run scored but his defense was just as big. His awesome running into the gap catch that prevented a double and run scored and his late inning grab of a shallow pop up was huge and kept the 2 base runners from tagging up and scoring. Miguel Cabrera continued his tear with a 3 for 5 night with a solo home run that tied the game and 2 R.B.I.'s. Jared Washburn scattered 8 hits over 6 innings by escaping a couple of threats and had one big mistake that turned into a 3 run home run for the Angels.

The Bullpen on the other hand was a whole other matter and they deserve there own special section for making this late night fan sweat a whole lot more than was necessary. Just when I thought Zach Miner was gonna blow it and drop the match to blow up the mess he created he is saved in the unlikeliest of ways. A pitch in the dirt that bounced away from the catch and the runner coming home from third is tagged out by Miner at the plate. I was shocked/stunned when Leyland let him come back out the next inning the 8th but him and Bobby Seay got us thru a scoreless 8th. Rodney then came in and promptly gave up a single and walk to put 2 on but as usual secured his 28th save in 29 opportunities.

This puts the Tigers 4.5 games ahead of both the White Sox and Twins who never seem to go away. I can't wait for September to role around and watch the Tigers march straight into the playoffs.

As always feel free to post your comments good, bad or otherwise

Jason

A Mixed Bag this Weekend for Detroit Sports

2009-08-24T10:30:00.000-07:00

By mixed bag I mean really searching hard for a silver lining out of the weekend action that took place.

The primary silver lining is that yes your Detroit Tigers are still in 1st place by 2.5 games over the Chicago White Sox which is a huge deal. I like the Tigers chances to stay on top with the difficult road series the White Sox have coming up against Boston and New York right before the stretch run of divisional games to end the season. Of course I would still love to see the Tigers win a road series sometime this year unless by not winning one they set some sort of goofy statistical record. The offense might struggle at times but I do not know of a line up out there that would look forward to seeing our duo of Justin Verlander and Edwin Jackson on full rest multiple times in a 7 game series or to start a 5 game series. I am really glad to see our horse Miguel Cabrera coming around with those clutch hits and big runs again and a nice resurgence from Placido Polanco at the plate. Is it me or is getting those walk offs from the likes of Clete Thomas and Brandon Inge along with the nice pop from recent call up Alex Avila remind you of those 2006 heroics of Craig Monroe and Brandon Inge.

Now for that silver lining you really really have to look for in the Lions absolute disaster of a game against Cleveland. The first and foremost of course is that it is only pre-season but a total lack of tackling, protecting, quarterbacking and the like is pretty disappointing and really calls into question all the good things they did against Atlanta. The only other good thing to come out of this is the poor play of Stafford should greatly increase the chances of him starting the year on the bench and hopefully a lot longer. Which is fine with me and most other lions fans I suspect. The offensive line really needs to come around to give either Culpepper or eventually Stafford and chance at all and we desperately need Calvin Johnson and rookie Brandon Pettigrew back.

The other reason to celebrate was Michigan Wolverine football media day reminding us that college football is right around the corner. Can't wait to see Michigan rebound from the year I shall not speak of and even Michigan State football continuing to establish there program.

As always feel free to post any comment good, bad or otherwise

Jason

Lions defeat Falcons 27-26

2009-08-16T14:34:00.000-07:00

Whoopee lets celebrate Detroit we finally won a game oops forgot it was just pre-season but boy was it nice seeing that first unit out there for over a quarter!!!

First of all I have to start by stating pre-season wins or losses mean absolutely nothing (do I really have to bring up the 4-0 record last year) as proof. However there were several bright spots that I found very exciting and was really glad to see. The play of the Offensive Line stood out head and shoulders over everything else I saw including the quarterback competition. They really showed a lot of continuity and team work by opening up nice running holes and giving up no sacks all night. No team will get far without solid play in the trenches on both sides of the ball. Even on plays where the Falcons had good secondary coverage the line still gave Culpepper time to scramble and make something positive happen.

Of course there is a certain matter of our brand new #1 draft pick with record setting contract in Matthew Stafford making his first appearance at 6:31 of the second quarter. I believe both Stafford and Culpepper were handicapped with having the Lion's top 4 receivers arguably all injured but they both had really good games. Culpepper looks to be in awesome shape and shows the same mobility he had when chucking the rock to Randy Moss in his hey day hello Calvin Johnson!!! That guy looks like he can really take a hit and lay a good lick on those linebackers or safeties trying to take him down on those mad rushing scrambles down field. Stafford showed his poise and calmness along with his big arm that has been all the rave from training camp reports. It takes a natural leader to have so quickly won the confidence of the current veterans even on a 0-16 team. As I stated early his 7 for 14 passing performance was hurt by the depletion of wide receivers which led to several drops on very nice throws. I see this QB competition as being very close and coming right down to that all important 3rd pre-season game and may the best player win it on the field and not off it. Of course seeing an improved offensive line play makes me feel better about going with Stafford and not seeing him get pummeled early on like David Carr was in Houston.

Some random highlights for me was the nice show of speed on the return game by Derrick Williams out of Penn State. It was nice seeing decent kick off returns for a change and solid play on the coverage teams. The secondary also showed some real promise and kept the Falcons passing attack at bay for the most part. Looks like some of those veteran Free Agents we brought in will have a very nice impact. No offense to the departed Paris Lennon but man was it nice seeing a real linebacker core out there along side Ernie Sims with Larry Foote and Julian Peterson. Of course there was a fair share of bad tackling but that is always the last thing that comes around from live play action.

Overall they gave us plenty to cheer about and offered us plenty of hope that the turn around has begun!!!

As Always feel free to post your comments good bad or otherwise

Jason

Detroit Lions Training Camp Injuries

2009-08-13T21:58:00.000-07:00

Well It is the proverbial "spoke to soon" jinx of training camp injuries past.

I swear both Jared DeVries and Calvin Johnson both participated in the open practice and I did see them with my own eyes this past Saturday. Granted recent draft picks Brandon Pettigrew and Louis Delmas were both on the side lines with supposed minor injuries but every indication was they would be back on the field any day. Then of course on the very day I open up my big mouth and say "knock on wood" no major training camp injuries boom Defensive End Jared Devries ruptures his achillies' tendon and is done for season and possibly career and Calvin Johnson shows up with a soft cast on his thumb which is just a fantastic injury for a wide receiver to get. That coupled with neither Delmas or Pettigrew being back on the field and lump in recent free agent signees Bryant Johnson and Maurice Morris being dinged up and it seems like the same old Lions luck.

The DeVries injury is really a shame because he is one of the few "motor is always running" guys left over from last years rubble. He might not be the most talented guy out there but he had guts and always gave it his all. This hurts the Lions at one of there weakest positions the defensive line where we already had precious few quality incumbents. Whoever would have thought our wide receiver position could be so decimated by the #1 guy going down when the Lions have spent more #1 picks on WR that should ever be allowed.

So I guess Lions fans can look forward to the first training camp game against the Falcons and look forward to Stafford strutting his stuff (cross fingers, knock on wood, pepper over the shoulder) oops I probably did it again oh well...

Feel free to post your own comments good, bad or otherwise

Jason

P.S. Tigers still in 1st 2.5 game lead thx to Justin Verlandar's stellar performance against the BoSox to salvage 1 game from series.

Detroit Lions Training Camp

2009-08-10T09:20:00.000-07:00

Its that part of the dreary summer sports calendar that all non-baseball fans around the country crave for: NFL training camp time!!!

Even in Detroit with our 0-16 Lions this past weekend hosting an open Autograph session and practice at Ford Field attracting a staggering 15 thousand fans. I was among the 15 thousand many of whom waited in line up to 2 hours ahead of time in the rain no less to get that first taste of football. This happened to be my first time ever watching and/or participating in any football practice and I must say the TV does not do justice to the enormous statures of the players. Seeing the players stand next to various media types and even there own coaches really gave you a sense for how big these athletes are relative to the average person. Which made the display of speed, cuts, and footwork in the positional practice groups all the more impressive. All though it is impossible to walk away from the practice with any real sense of was it a good/bad practice how did this player or that player look it was still a very cool experience.

The brightest spots of training camp so far is no major injuries knock on wood and what the coaches have said in various interviews. Hearing Jim Schwartz say the defense is going to be week to week and not married to a particular system (Hello out-dated Tampa-2) is a breath of fresh air. I mean my god a coach capable of making adjustments week to week and not having an ego that its the players and not the system is earth shattering. Then the offensive coordinator saying the old fade jump ball to corner of end zone is going to be put back in nearly causes me to faint. Its not like we don't have a certain 6 foot something can jump out of his shoes athlete in Calvin Johnson or anything. A coach and coordinator actually taking advantage of his players skills what a concept. That by itself is good enough to get me excited about this new regime and the hopes that we have finally hired the right people.

Jason

P.S. The Tigers are still in 1st place with 3 game lead on White Sox and the Offense might be waking up thanks to Cabrera, Granderson and Polanco getting hot SHHHHHH!!!

Detroit Tigers take series against Chicago Whitesox

2009-07-27T10:29:00.000-07:00

The roller coaster season continues right out of the gate after the All Star break. They lose there 1st place lead by losing 5 of 6 with the White Sox coming into town in a virtual tie and all they do is take 3 of 4 and end up with a 2 game lead. And memo to ESPN can you please keep my Tigers off your network nothing like getting all geeked up to watch them on a Wednesday or Sunday night ESPN game and watching them get smoked.

Once again the pitching comes up huge and there offense does a nice job playing small ball and getting a couple of key hits with runners on this weekend. This team is really putting the "pitching and defense wins" mantra to the test. It is very scary seeing almost half of the starting line up being filled in by platoon/minor league call ups. Then to learn that Guillen won't be completely healthy this year and will also be in a platoon situation from just 1 side of the plate as a switch hitter is especially discouraging. The importance of defense really showed in this series on both Saturday and Sundays games with 1st inning errors leading to early runs for the Tigers first and then the White Sox respectively. It was a little encouraging seeing Porcello settle down after the 1st but the offense scoring just 1 one run really made it a mute point. A team can't score just 1 run in 5 of there last 6 losses and expect to stay atop of the standings.

I can only hope that this disastrous offensive display after the All Star break will be a motivating factor in a trade deadline deal for another bat. I don't even care who they get as long as they just get some help because it would be a real waste of a very very good pitching staff.

Jason

Detroit Tigers at the half

2009-07-14T18:27:00.000-07:00

Watching the All Star game makes me reflect on a somewhat turbulent but very successful 1st half of the season. They had a very nice run going into the break winning back to back series for a 48-39 record and a 3.5 game lead in the division. The pitching and defense has been very solid overall and the offense just needs to do a little bit. It is a formula that worked out well for them in 2006 and I see no reason why that formula can't work again.

The pitching got a very nice boost thanks to the lopsided trade of Edwin Jackson for Matt Joyce. He has been apart of the best 1, 2 starting pitching duo in the league with his 2.52 ERA good for 2nd in the league and our ace Justin Verlander having a 10-4 record good for 2nd in wins for the league. Combine this with the surprise run of the rookie Rick Porcello and it helps make up for the very sad state of the #4 and #5 starters. It is nice seeing Armando Galarraga come around lately and Luke French coming up from the minors and snagging a couple of wins. Of course the bullpen has been solid-shaky by my account. Fernando Rodney has not blown a save as the closer but his non save ERA is quite elevated. As odd a statistical annomaly this may be I will not fault him for doing his job as "closer".

All the offense needs to do is ride the big bat of Miguel Cabrera and have some stalwarts like Placido Palonco and Carlos Guillen trend up to there career averages. In the mean time the line up has gotten a nice shot in the arm from the Clete Thomas's and Marcus Thames of the world. As long as line up regulars Curtis Granderson and Brandon Inge (both All Stars tonight) continue there solid seasons the offense should be just fine.

Here's to some exciting pennant chase baseball leading us into the Playoffs!!!

Jason

Detroit Pistons newest coach John Kuester by Joe Dumars

2009-07-10T20:24:00.000-07:00

So much to to say. So little time. If you're John Kuester though, you do have time.

As if 6 coaches in 10 years, wasn't enough, Joe Dumars has now changed his stance and brought someone in who he thinks has time on his side. At the press conference to announce the Pistons new coach (which seems to be a regularly scheduled event for him), Joe D. proclaimed "Our thing right now is to get headed in the right direction....we're going through a transition period right now"

Translation: Can you say rebuilding year next year Pistons fans?

Joe D then confirmed it by digging deep into the abyss of coaching candidates and plucked Kuester. I think a post I read on Yahoo a couple days ago summed it best. It said, "Who?" That's what i'd like to know too, is who is Kuester? Oh yeah, he's joe d's THIRD choice for coaching candidates and is the guy who is going to head them in "the right direction" What direction is that Joe? The 2010 Draft Lottery?

What I am basically likening this to is when Lions owner you-know-who bypassed other candidates for GM and basically promoted 2 no names from w/ in. Why? because after the Millen severance, he couldn't afford any high priced talent. So now Joe D. figures the same thing. Since we can't afford to bring in a proven coach, Joe went and scooped up the only thing the Pistons purse could afford.

So now Dumars has declared this a non-championship-contending campaign, he has basically planted his tenure in place, because now ownership has been informed in advance of what the expectations are. Promise mediocrity then deliver mediocrity and, in the current ownership's eyes, that'll probably be good enough.

Jason

Salary Cap finally hits Red Wings

2009-07-09T14:43:00.000-07:00

It took several years longer than many naysayers and doomsday predictors foresaw, but the "Yankees of Hockey" the Detroit Red Wings have officially been slapped by the cap. I still stand by the mantra "In Ken Holland we Trust" but loosing Jiri Hudler to the Russian Superleague on top of loosing Hossa, Kopecky, and Samuelsson made it official and guarantees a markedly different looking team next year. It is a testament to the Red Wing Organization thru drafting, signing free agents, and player development, that they kept getting better and better during the salary cap era. When most experts said the cap would affect high pay roll teams like the Red Wings the most.

It just wasnt realistic for a team that had 5 20 goal scorers plus Samuelsson at 19 goals and Tomas Holmstrom's production being greatly reduced by missing 30 games to injuries to stay intact. I still stand by the team's track record of bringing in talented, young, and cheap talent to replace the 80 goals and 160 points they lost to free agency. If the playoff production of players like Darren Helm, Johathan Ericsson, and Justin Abdelkader are a sign of things to come, the Wings are still in great shape. They might have to revert to a more defensive style and Osgood will show more focus during the regular season I have no doubt. They will still easily be among the pre-season Stanley Cup favorites for the umpteenth year in a row it seems. I still trust Ken Holland's judgment implicitly as the best GM of any sport and continuing the Wings run of unprecedented success for many years.

Jason

Minnesota Twins and Metrodome still a House of Horrors for the Detroit Tigers

2009-07-05T17:55:00.000-07:00

This weekend saw the Detroit Tigers continue to struggle on the road against the Minnesota Twins in the Metrodome. Whether its the high bounces of the artificial turf or balls disappearing in the outfield, the road woes continue.

When your only win is eeked out in a 16 inning marathon game, you know its been a rough weekend. Even with the good karma of Justin Verlander and Edwin Jackson's selection to the All Star team could not help us salvage more than 1 game. Jackson did loose a tightly contested game on Saturday where our bullpen could hardly be faulted after going 10 innings the night before. I sure hope Rick Porcello has not already hit the rookie wall because the staff will be in even more trouble. After seeing some of the subs they are trying to plug into there bullpen is really scary right now, I am seeing one guy after another that I have never heard of.

I am just glad that a division leader is a division leader no matter how bad the division is and all get a ticket into the playoffs. I really hope the all star break will give us some fresh legs and a good spark to starting the 2nd half.

Jason

Detroit Red Wings lose Hossa and Kopecky

2009-07-02T13:30:00.000-07:00

First of all there should be absolutely no panic in Hockeytown over this rather predictable outcome to free agency. Lets not forget the Wings did just win a cup without Hossa in 08 and lost the defacto Stanley Cup Finals to the Anaheim Ducks the year before in a very grueling Conference finals.

And by the for all those Pittsburg fans who think we are "scared" of there sudden decade long reign of being Stanley Cup favorites each and every year and having 1 superstar after another take less money to play there. You are simply on dream street and also come no where close to being "the city of champions". 1st of all Sid the Kid should be estatic that Hossa did not sign back with the Penguins so he would not be the 3rd best player on his own team. Its great to get all those goals cherry picking at center ice and taking advantage of the "new NHL" but all it does is make him a one way one trick pony. Get back to me when he decides to get his nose dirty in the Defensive Zone and decides to pay the price along the boards and in front of the net. I have all the respect in the world for the Pens best player in Malkin because I saw first hand how hard he worked on Defense and how strong he plays with the puck in and out of his zone against the Wings. Of course I realized I just broke the "Bettman Rules" and actually critizided his golden child but any true hockey fan who takes off his rose color glasses will know this is true.

Sorry about the small rant but seeing way to much hype about the Pens and Hawks right now.

Once again lets remember we have already signed one of the other top 5 forwards in the game to a very nice cap friendly deal in Zetterburg during the season and signed an emerging elite power forward in Johan 'mule' Franzen. BTW we also have the 2 year running Selke Award given to best 2 - way forward(take note Mr. Crosby) and Hart finalist locked up nicely. And please name me another team that had so many youngsters come straight out of the minors into the cauldron of the playoffs, due to a staggering amount of injuries, and perform as well as they did. Justin Abdelkader scored 2 huge goals in games 1 and 2 and was a punishing force up front. Darren Helm broke the record for most Playoff Goals before his 1st regular season goal and is a carbon copy of a younger and improved Chris Drapier. Not to mention players like Jonathan Ericsson on Defense to go with young and improving forwards Valteri Filppula and Jiri Hudler. So thank you Chicago for trying to close the gap and providing another batch of good hard fought games and good luck Pens in handling your Stanley Cup hangover.

I will always stand by Ken Holland and trust his every move impicitly. No GM or team has ever earned as much faith and trust in how they run a team as the Red Wings have. I of course was briefly disappointed but 3 years of 1 cup, 2 finals appearences, and 3 conference finals is pretty special.

Jason

Pistons fire Curry

2009-06-30T13:39:00.000-07:00

Today the Detroit Pistons fired Micheal Curry and ended a very short and ill-conceived experiment. Mainly being sticking a rookie head coach with an older and somewhat set in there ways veteran team. To be fair it is hard seeing any coach doing very well with this collection of players especially after the AI trade. I for one was for the AI trade as it related to basketball matters and not just salary cap ramifications. But I had no idea just how valuable Chauncey was as a clubhouse leader and clubhouse liaison with the coaching staff. It did turn me into a Nuggets fan and seeing there great playoff run was just more proof of Chauncey's value.

This has to be considered more of an indictment on Dumars than Curry and I really hope Curry is able to pursue other coaching avenues. Dumars can only get by with the "at least he cuts his losses quickly" reasoning for so long. Seems like for every success there is an equal failure be it sign and trade for Ben Wallace and then signing Nazr Mohammed to replace him. Drafting Tayshaun Prince but then drafting Jason Maxiell and seeing his growth get so stunted last year and simply giving up Amir Johnson for cap space after signing him to an extension the year before These 2 young players along with Rodney Stucky (Lottery pick 2 yrs ago via trade ending the infamous Darko saga) were suppose to be our transition for the future. I don't really see how trying to stick a shoot first to small for the 2 spot "combo" guard as your franchise face like Stucky is going to do any good

I really don't buy into the versatile Forward trend they went with in this years draft either. I actually like there 2nd round picks better than there first. Everyone looks at the NBA finals and sees Odom, Lewis and Turkoglu but forgets the most important part of both teams. Both of those teams were able to draft there Franchise Superstars and without Kobe or Dwight those versatile forwards means nothing.

I really do hope Dumars can turn things around with his next and probably should be last allowable coaching hire and his foray into the Free Agent Market with all of that cap space.

Jason

Seasons and Calendar Changes

2009-06-23T11:01:00.000-07:00

I cant help but notice that going into the 1st official week of summer that I have yet to turn my air conditioner on. I do not have children and/or pets in my household and am in good health for my age range. This does increase my threshold for higher temps as they progress but I still find this as a notable trend. Does it seem like we can all remember our youthful days of the 70's and 80's where snow in October and November was common place. Now it seems like we get major snow falls in February/March at least in the mid-west states like Michigan, Ohio, Indiana etc. Likewise it seems like our Septembers and Octobers have more and more summer temps overlap. I can remember a very warm weekend in September last year that I should have turned on the AC for my guests and I but I held steadfast to a very stubborn rule "no AC in Sept are you kidding me". But now seeing me go almost into July without my AC lets me see how the timing of the seasons have shifted and how silly I was to make that decision.

People can debate long and hard whether this seasonal shift is caused or not caused by pollution/natural phenomenons etc... but the main question is, if the normal seasonal temps/activity still occur does it matter?

My first Blog

2009-06-18T13:20:00.000-07:00

I never thought I would become a blogger in my lifetime. I hope my typing and grammar skills are up to the task. Just about all of my friends and family would be amazed if I simply emailed them this Blog. I look forward to a long and prosperous career in blogging. I look forward to utilizing the internet in my new found advertising career for products and services far and wide.

Jason