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“AAF-Good-Bad-The Ugly”

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They got thru the first weekend of spring football with the debut of the Alliance for American Football.

Some good football….some bad football….lots of work to do.

My evaluation of what I saw.

QUARTERBACKS….They had four weeks of training camp in San Antonio. Mike Bercovici of the San Diego Fleet, is what he was at Arizona State and in NFL camps, wild, big plays and lots of turnovers. He got battered, threw interceptions, fumbled once, took a lot of hits, showed a lot of guts. He competed, and just needs more time, but his track record is scary, for he had 33-picks at Arizona State in two years.. The worst outing of the weekend might have been failed high draft pick Christian Hackenberg , with two years of NFL experience with the Jets, going just (10-23) throwing the ball. Memphis has alot of work to do with him. Atlanta got blitzed too, so they have QB problems.

OFFENSES….They threw the ball a lot. It sure looked liked Video game football, with defenses worn out by no huddle-fast track gameplans. Tight ends were dominant around the league, including the Fleets Gavin Escobar and Marcus Baugh. Not much from the running backs. Sometimes it resembled Arena League football.

OFFENSIVE LINES…When you give up 6-sacks and 10-hits on your QBs, not a good day. Blitzing is allowed up inside in the AAF, but the offensive tackles could not contain edge pass rushers, in a whole number of the weekend games. Pass protection will improve. The Fleet lost their starting center in a Thursday walk-thru and had banged up tight ends, during the protection packages.

DEFENSIVE LINE…Was impressed with Fleet pass rusher Demontrae Moore who had 1-and-half sacks, 2-pressures, and a tackle for loss. High motor, he’s an ex-NFLguy, so he should do well based on experience. But like everyone else, on the field an awful lot because the Fleet offense played so poorly.,

DEFENSIVE BACKS…Under seige all night long, but there are athletes in the secondary around the league, who held up in man coverages.

FIELD GOALS….We know who Nick Novak, Nick Folk are, so we expected longtime NFL kickers to do well. Donny Hageman hit two long field goals in his Fleet debug and was solid.

THE STATS….Offense ahead of defense, don’t know about that. In the four opening games, QBs threw 5TD passes and 9-interceptions, and took 15-sacks. Top games came from Birmingham’s Luis Perez (252P), the Division II star, who is from San Diego. Add in ex Toledo star Logan Woodside (255P) for San Antonio, and Arizona’s John Wolford-Wake Forest (275P-3TD). Big trouble with Salt Lake City losing QB-Josh Woodrum-Liberty left with a hamstring injury just 2-quarters in, and the mess Memphis has with Hackenberg. The QBs went a combined (135-248)….that’s 54%-not quite Tom Brady like stats.

THE STATS…Ex Chargers Brandon Oliver had (50R) for Salt Lake City; ex Chief Akeem Hunt had (73R) for Orlando. NFL teams will take note of San Antonio’s big-size-big speed WR-Mekale McKaye (80Y) receiving.

OFFICIATING….They let a lot of contact go in the secondary. Maybe that is what the league will be all about, won’t throw yellow flags on ricky-tack contact, holding calls. Not much in the way of holding calls either by O-lineman. One big problem, a lot of big time hits on QBs, hits that would have drawn flags in an NFL Sunday. The worst was Mike Bercovici getting blasted and pancaked by a 1st quarter sack-fumble against San Antonio. Should have been a penalty, for the pancake hit. If it’s a quarterback league, you better do a better job protecting them from over the top hits.

THE RULES….Most everyone likes the (:35) play clock to get the ball snapped..it speeds up the game….Do think the limited blitz rules (no corner-safety blitzes) will take time to get used too….No kickoffs-ideal to keep players healthy…..2-point rules-works for me instead of the PAT-kick….No onside kick rule-waiting to see how this 4th and 12-conversion attempt to retain the ball works out…..The look in on the TV instant replay evaluation seems like a cheap stunt.

ATTENDANCE…Thought it would be better the first weekend. They averaged a shade over 20,087 the first weekend. Only time will tell if they are relevant in their now markets. Fans seems to like the wide open play. .the limits in number of timeouts, and the passion of the players.

TV RATINGS….A good Saturday night debut (2.1) rating, but poor on Sunday night (0.4) on NFL network. The novelty of a new league likely attracted football junkies, so we’ll see what happens in weekend two. The XFL, years back, had a (10.5) rating its first weekend and seemed to have much more marketing behind it. The old Arena League had a (2.5) rating in its debut….Thought the network broadcast teams were involved in too much hype ‘how great all this is’….’it’s about opportunity’..and on and on and on. The quality of the product on the field will sell itself to the fans, not the announcing teams preaching every minute-every night.

IN TOWN TV RATINGS….Betrayed Chargers fans obviously were intrigued. The Fleet game at 5:30 on Saturday on CBS-8 dominated the TV ratings, a (5.8) rating for the entire broadcast…inlcuding a (6.0) rating at kickoff and a (7.0) rating at start of second half….NBA rating on KGTV 10 was a (0.4)…the other stations were in news-blocks and went from a (3.2) NBC-7…to (2.2) for KUSI-Fox 5…to KPBS (1.2)….to (0.2) for CW6-syndicated reruns….Strong debut-will see if its keeps up.

UNIFORMS….Give the Arizona Hot-Shots the award for team colors (Green-Gold) and team logo (firefighters insignia)….with the Fleet colors (Battleship Gray-California Gold) plus their logo a strong runner-up…..Birmingham Iron, no logo, no stripes, just black and white-kind of like Mike Tyson entering the ring in black trunks-no socks from back in the day.

TROUBLE SPOTS….Atlanta-Memphis-San Diego got beat by a combined score of (66-6), but the Fleet will rally under Mike Martz….Atlanta has issues, having lost coach Brad Childress, who quit midway thru camp, and then Offensive Coordinator Michael Vick who stepped away 48-hours before kickoff….and Memphis seems to have real skill talent deficiencies.

MY TAKE…Worried about injuries, if teams start losing more and more starters, where will quality replacements come from….Give them time to grow the product on the field. We’ll see if the teams make a big jump in improvement between weeks 1-and-2….See me after week 4-as to how much the QBs have developed, and if the novelty has worn off. Overall, thought weekend one was fast paced, exceptional action, and a work in progress for sure. For having been together for just 4-weeks, I thought the action was crisp. This pretty good group of coaches will now try to grow what they have. AAF-weekend one, good-bad-ugly.

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Subject: 1-Man’s Opinion on Sports–Tuesday. “Ducks Fire Head Coach-Can’t Fire Players”

It was an ugly ending to what had been a pretty good coaching run.

The Anaheim Ducks fired Coach Randy Carlyle in the wake of a horrid 7-game losing streak, and a stretch in which they had lost 19-of-21 games.

Carlyle, in his second tenure as Ducks coach, had led them to the Stanley Cup finals once, and to the playoffs 7-times in the last 8-seasons. His record on this return to the Ducks bench was (111-74-35)…but the good times were replaced by horrid times. The playoff losses when they had home ice advantage. The shoddy outings this year when they let their goalies get bombarded night after night with ridiculous shot totals. The lack of energy on the bench.

But this was a disaster. Stretches where it looked as if the team had quit on the coach. Horrible games in which goaltender John Gibson had to be pulled from games, including one game where he had to face 30-shots on goal in 1-period.

Injuries devastated the team. 9-players had major injuries or illness issues since last year, and they never were able to get a full roster on the ice ever this year.

GM-Bob Murray, who has rebuilt the team twice, takes over as coach for the rest of the season, and will not hire a coach to finish out the year. Though he has loaded the farm system with goal scorers like Maxime Comtois-Troy Terry-Sam Steele-Isac Lundestrom and Max Jones, none really appears ready to play at the NHL level yet.

Murray has to be held responsible for saddling the roster with a lot of hi priced veterans, some with no movement clauses, and a group of veterans loaded to play ‘heavy hockey’ when the rest of the NHL is all about speed and skill, in what has become a very different NHL game in just the last 24-months.

He had lots to say about where the Ducks are, and why he did, what he did.

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I thank Randy for being the winningest coach in our history
What’s happened here lately, it was time for change
This team has had a history of being a 2nd half team-did not see it happening

Dallas Eakins is a candidate he has done a great job in San Diego

I had to be here, I have to go downstairs and find out what has happened
I respect a lot of people I respect in this business-they told me I should have done it earlier..I wanted to wait and hope we could solve it-we couldn’t.

We have a lot of good things going in San Diego-want to leave Dallas there and have a real good end of year run with the Gulls younger players.

What’s bothered me the most-the lack of emotion-lack of push back
This team has always been a pride team-it’s gone away
Nothing else works if you don’t have pride and passion

I have to figure out why there is no leadership capability
Too many followers in the room
I am not giving up on these players-but very worried..
This team has a history of charging late-but it won’t happen this year

I have not coached before-but we have problems here..
It’s is my job…It’s got to be fixed
Trade deadline is coming-tough to change more parts

Thought about going down behind the bench for a while just to know what coaches go thru.
Looking forward to figuring out what the issues are

I take the responsibility, I need to determine what the problems are.
I want to get them to feel good about themselves and play hockey.
I am looking forward to find a leader, to get passion-emotion back

I don’t think it would be fair to put anyone (new coach) in this position right now
I thought I need to be in the trenches to learn about this

I talked to Randy at Honda Center early Sunday-we will continue to talk
We will talk about players and direction to go-he and I will continue to talk
Randy will be a senior consultant and stay in this organization

3-players have no movement clauses-I will figure this out in next 20-games
I have no fear of talking to these players about changing contracts

This is the hardest part-we have good players-but it’s not a good team
I’ve been listening a lot lately-we have to change some things
If we have to get younger-I will do it
We are not going thru 4-5 year rebuild-we have some good young players

Today was different for me-firing a coach for the first time-going in room
Wednesday I will be very nervous…Focused on watching my players

As a player-as you go thru different things-winning is much easier that losing
When players are losing-you learn about them-who steps up
Things get ugly when you lose-I will see how they react-who leads

Since 2005-we never accepted losing…they’ve been losing and seemed to accept it
When season is over, a full searching coach will take place

Losing-having been on teams with coaching changes…sometimes players get it in their head ‘it’s not their responsibility’ and others jumped on the band wagon….’that someone else was the cause’.

The 9-injuries, so many man games lost in the NHL. I have to look at everything…including why this is happening to us.

The players did not quit on Randy. There are players who care so much-we have to get their confidence back. I have always spoken to the players, and I will demand more.

I like the situation in San Diego a whole bunch…having a lot of success in AHL…I don’t think it’s wrong to bring the young draft picks up….give them a taste, get a feel for this. If we can get a positive environment going, I will call up Gulls players, but not right now. I want them to stay together and play as long as they can in San Diego.

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“Frank Robinson–Name It-He Did It”

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The words they use, describe who he was. The stats tell you what he accomplished.

Frank Robinson was fierce and fiery, Intense and intimidating. Fanatical and relentless. Menacing and methodical.

He played with a chip on his shoulder and was in a fury all the time.

The Hall of Fame slugger, the firebrand, the manager, the confidante of the Commissioner, has passed away.

The stats stand out in neon lights.

14-time All Star. An MVP in both leagues. A Triple Crown winner. Rookie of the Year. Manager of the Year.

He had 583-career home runs. A (.294) career hitter over is 21-years. 198-times hit by pitch. 11-times he hit 30-homers or more, the pre-steroid era.

Life was never easy for Frank Robinson, a graduate from Oakland McClymonds High. He came from a family of 10-siblings, a family that had no father around.

He travelled the tough lonely road in the 1950s in the Jim Crow minor league south.

If Jackie Robinson broke the color barrier, and Willy Mays carried the next flag, Frank Robinson was the third link in the chain, and became a bridge to the next group of stars, led by Reggie Jackson.

He raged as s rookie, storming to the front of stardom as a rookie with the Cincinnati Reds, their first great black player in a city that had a history of being a borderline Southern racist city.

Think of that early Reds lineup, Ted Kluzewski, Wally Post Gus Bell, Ed Bailey, home run hitters everywhere, and then add Robinson and his volatile talents.

He crowded the plate, daring pitchers to hit him. They knocked him down, but he’d get up and his a bomb in response. On the bases, he was reckless, barrel sliding guys into left field as they tried to turn double plays.

He battled opposing pitchers. He was a warrior on the field, and in his own clubhouse, once bringing a handgun into Crosley Field to settle a dispute that had racial overtones to it with a Reds teammate.

History will always write about the worst trade of all time, the Cubs-Cardinals swap of Ernie Broglie for Lou Brock.

The Reds-Orioles deal, a 30-year old Robinson for picher Milt Pappas rates right up there as armed robbery.

Robinson drove Baltimore to World Series greatness. The relentless Robison, the ever demanding Earl Weaver, and a loaded pitching staff put the Orioles into the World Series time and again.

As that 2-decade career reached an end, he took the next step in his career, becoming the playing manager of the woeful Cleveland Indians

There was always drama in his career, and so was his opening day heroics, a pinch hit home run in Cleveland in his first game ever as baseball’s first black manager.

What drove him to greatness as an everyday player, did not translate to success, being in the dugout every day leading a team.

Robinson’s in your face approach, ‘why aren’t you as good as I was’ wore his team down. His surly approach with the media became old. Joe Tait, the popular Tribe broadcaster, openly questioned Robinson’s ability to manage the game he starred in, and handle the players too.

Robinson was gone in his third year. But proud as he was, he learned. He became a teacher and a motivator. He managed the Giants, went to the Baltimore, survived an (0-21) start one season, but got them int the playoffs.
He was asked to help transfer the near bankrupt Expos out of Montreal, to Washington DC.

The career record was (1,065-1,176) in three hopeless situations in Cleveland, San Francisco and then Montreal. He brought Baltimore baseball back to life too.

When his time in a uniform was done, he became a trusted advisor to both Bud Selig and Rob Manffed, serving at the pleasure of the Commissioner. He handled baseball discipline, he counseled young players, he advised rookie managers. He pushed hard for more minority interviews for all open MLB positions.

He did everything and anything, using his nearly 50-year’s experience as the manual, how to handle, cope,manage, play the game. His philosophy was simple. “Hear Something-See Something-Do Something’.

He played for keeps. His eyes flashed his never-ending energy. He was a trailblazer.

Frank Robinson was many things, to many people. He did so many things right.

He was a gem of an individual, a unique star in a game of stars, in baseball’s Golden Era.

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“NBA Trading Deadline-Do You Like What You See”

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We knew it was coming. We knew big names would be changing teams. We knew ridiculous prices would be paid.

And what we have now, is a players league, this NBA, where stars dictate contracts, dictate where they will be traded, and likely dictate the style of play teams will operate by.

It is a very different NBA.

When they got done at the Thursday afternoon deadline, there were 16-trades made, involving big stars, guys about to become free agents, names who would be rental players, a pile of young players, and loads of draft picks.

Once upon a time, draft picks were gold, but not now. Unless it’s a top fivge draft pick in the one and one lottery we see each summer, the draft picks wind up being a crapshoot. More washouts than stars. And second round picks have become nothing more than cannon fodder, here today, likely traded tomorrow.

There was no Anthony Davis trade from New Orleans. He still has a year and a half to go on his contract, and he wants out and off the Pelicans roster. It was thought the Lakers could engineer a deal that would give them two superstars, AD joining LeBron James.

Never happened for a number of reasons. Magic Johnson tried to off load tons of fringe players in five different scenarios. New Orleans said no. Then the Lakers came back with a mammoth offer, 2-first round picks and 8-players, including all their young stars, Kyle Kuzma-Brandon Ingram-Lonzo Ball and more.

The Pelicans had the brass to demand the Lakers put a combined 6-draft picks in the deal, not just the two first round picks. End of talks for now.

New Orleans is trying to set up a bidding war that could happen this summer before the draft, the Lakers on one street corner, the Celtics, with all their assets on the other.

Around the NBA road map, there were fireworks. The dysyfunctional New York Knicks moved star Kristaps Porzingas to the Dallas Mavericks, not liking his attitude, or scared off by his year long rehab from a knee injury. The Knicks moved so many players, they have cap space to get two superstars this summer. But then again, who wants to play for a team owned by Jimmy Dolan?

Memphis, giving up on it roster, sent big center Marc Gasol to Milwaukee. A good Bucks team just got better, but the real reason for the deal, the Bucks trying to load up and win, before they might be forced to trade their star Giannis Antetounkmpro before he becomes a walk free agent.

Milwaukee also added hi scoring Nikola Misotic, meaning they might have the best roster the Bucks have put on the floor since the days of Kareem Abdul Jabbar, Marques Johnson, Brian Winters etc.

The 76ers, tired of the injury riddle act of G-Markelle Fultz, gave him away to Orlando, though the Sixers had stunned the world 24-hours prior to the deadline, rolling the dice to bring in the Clippers budding star Tobias Harris, hoping to sign him to a future deal to keep him. The Sixers have 4-stars now, with Tobias joining Jimmy Butler, Ben Simmons and Joel Embid

Miami got Ryan Anderson out of hopeless Phoenix.
Houston did a 3-team deal to land Iman Shumpert of the Kings
Lowly Chicago picked up Otto Porter of Washington.
Dallas added Justin Jackson from Sacramento after the huge deal for the Knicks Porzingas.

The Clippers snared young center Ivika Zubac from the Lakers, to go with Wilson Chandler, who came from the Sixers in the Tobias Harris package.

The Lakers picked up 3-point shooters Reggie Bullock and and Mike Muscala in the final 24-hours.

It went on and on till the Thursday afternoon deadline.

End result, two things.

Alot of NBA games are unwatchable. Defense has become optional, that why we have teams scoring 149 points in games this year, or shooting 65% from the floor, or hitting 23-3 pointers in an outing.

And it’s very apparent too, that the star players and their agents are running the teams now, not the NBA boss Adam Silver, the owners like Jeannie Buss or the legendary GMs like Pat Riley, or coaches like Greg Popovich.

So now we have 5-to-8 super power teams, with the payroll and the stars in orbit. And we have another 222-or so teams, with no chance, but a a full season to play games and draw less that sellout crowds, to see substandard basketball.

Oh yes, everyone wants to see the Lakers and Golden State on a Christmas day. What about all those other games, with Utah-Orlando-Detroit and the really rag-tag teams the league has as members.

And what happens if the Lakers, who failed to get Anthony Davis, fail to even make the playoffs, even with LeBron James in the lineup.

Big picture, there are alot more bad NBA teams than there are good players, because the good players all want to wind up in just a couple of NBA cities.

Trade deadline day, pretty exciting. Stars move to new teams, but the game is suffering terribly.

It’s a very different NBA-not necessarily a good one.

And I don’t like what the game has become. The owners can’t like this. The fans shouldn’t either.

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“Aztecs Football-How You Fix It?”

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We saw things we had never seen before at San Diego State, in the football program Rocky Long raised from the ashes.

The one that has now gone to 9-bowl games in a row. Won big road games at Boise, Laramie, Fresno.

Beat Pac 12-teams the last couple of years against Stanford and Arizona State, teams that usually kicked them.

That’s why the destructive end to the Aztecs 2018 season was so stunning.

Five losses in the last 6-games. A beatdown by Ohio in a bowl game in Texas.

Assistant coaches leaving in season. Players getting suspended in season, and filing for the NFL draft.

Rocky Long spent Wednesday talking to the media after a month of evaluating his program, losing key players to injuries, and then seeing his team fall apart.

Brady Hoke is coming back to be the fire and ice to coach the defensive front, after his coaching career took detours from the head job at Michigan, to getting ousted at Oregon-Tennessee and a 1-year stint in the NFL with the Carolina Panthers. He will be a difference maker.

Ron Caragher is elevated from football ops to become passing game coordinator, in what Long portrays as a new ‘spread formation package’.

The Aztecs signed 22-players in the just finished recruiting drive, including bringing in 3-JUCO transfers, and 2-starting graduate student starting offensive lineman from Oregon and BYU.

2019 features a really good home schedule that includes home games with BYU-Nevada-Fresno and Utah State.

Rocky Long had lots to say: his comments

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Things different in recruiting with two signing dates. We signed 22-and that includes the graduate transfers for next years team.

There’s a free agent market out there with the NCAA website and we are monitoring that. After spring football, it might go crazy. We might add a player or two.

Got help with 5-older players transferring in.

Early signing period helped us retain players who might have been signed late by Power 5-schools in the past.

We will have large sophomore and freshman class on the roster.

Going to spread formation, is not shown in our recruiting class. We are running the ball first and throw second. Makes blocking assignments easier…

We will line up tight ends in fullback spots..he will be a fullback at times…..they will show up as can I-formation.

We have lost offensive lineman. and have 4-seniors in defensive lineman-so we needed help there.

We needed experience in our coaching staff, and we hired Brady Hoke and Ron Caragher. They both know what they are doing. Ron brings great experience in formations. Our defensive front is so young, Brady is one of best defensive line coaches ever around.

End of season problems-we have team rules-abide by them-discipline is handed out. Young men make mistakes, 18-to-22 years. We have a standard to live with, if they can’t, then move on.

Hiring former head coaches helps a lot. Former head coaches know what current head coach goes thru. Younger coaches second guess….most time they don’t know what they’re talking about.

Hoke has great experience…how to handle things…think outside the box…when you get the chance to be a position coach again, it’s a lot of fun.

Hoke-Best defensive line coach ever been around…I was with him at Oregon State…and then worked under him at SDSU. He will embrace those kids and have impact on their lives as player and people.

Transfers….if JUCOs have played 2-years they are more mature and more physically developed ready to play than younger players.

We are moving offensive lineman to defensive line, just to build depth there…we lost four defensive lineman., .

QB….Ryan Agnew is our staring QB in spring ball, but there will be open competition when when Jordan Brookshire comes in for spring. We want competition at every position on this team….we might still add another transfer QB who might be a grad student…currently have 5-QBs on roster going into spring.

We will be the most competitive team on the field this year…toughest. too..don’t know how many games

We will have 6-players graduate early and not play this year. We could sign as many as 27 by time this is done.

The Oregon lineman Jacob Capra will be here for spring ball, is on campus. The BYU-tackle, Jacob Jimenez, will be here in summer school.. Capra has 2-years left……Jiminez will have 1-year left.

Hoke-Offered him the job a couple of times in the past, now is the right time…talked to him right before he went to Oregon…..right at end of Tennessee position…and just before he decided to sample the NFL..

Our offseason will be different. How we handled our coaches. How we handle offseason workouts, part of my off season critique..

You’ve seen the commercial….”OK is not OK” it is not, the way we have been. If you don’t want to work the way we do, you can be OK somewhere else. We will challenge them.

There are over 123-things that went wrong last year. You should see my list. . No lockeroom last spring…, no spring game, …injuries to QB-RB-FB-OL-NT……I allowed team to get away from the standards we had set for this program…It was on me.

Fun offseason, Rashad Penny been here. Players on San Diego Fleet have stopped by too. Great to have these guys. DJ Pumphrey and Calvin Munson got Super Bowl rings the last two years, and they are here working out and hanging with our guys.

We had lack of learning experience with spread passing games, and that’s why Ron Caragher hiring is important. His expertise with Jeff Horton history, make us better.

We have no egos on this coaching staff starting this year. They don’t compete to pound the chest the hardest. Our staff is not like that.

I will control the defense and continue to call all defensive plays.

OT-Zach Thomas won’t practice this spring-everyone else should practice.

We have 6-players leaving early who are graduating-won’t play next season-moving on with life after college…..Gerhardt….Chaney….Jeff Clay….Binkley….Moore…Ron Smith….each finished academic work early-good for them.

I am invigorated now, and believe having Brady Hoke and Ron Caragher on board makes a big difference.

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