random ramblings fred riecke, gamblersdata
……Chicago Bear wide receiver Sam Hurd has been arrested on Federal drug charges. The Dallas Morning News reports that the arrest took place in Chicago but relates to an attempt to purchase drugs from a supplier in North Texas, and that a Texas-based office of Immigration and Customs Enforcement is handling the investigation. Hurd played for the Cowboys from 2006 to 2010. Hurd allegedly had conversations with an undercover agent about receiving up to 10 kilograms of cocaine and a half ton of marijuana per week “for distribution in the Chicago area.” Hurd was willing to pay $25,000 per kilo of cocaine and $450 per pound for the marijuana. Hurd allegedly handled the high end deals and wanted the transaction to happen on “Mexican cellphones” because he did’t think the Feds could track those conversations. Hurd supposedly had told people he hoped to become the biggest dealer in Chicago.
…Word is that there are some very nervous NFL players out there since reports have indicated that Hurd has been under the watchful eye of authorities for some time. In fact, some sources say that Hurd’s phones have been tapped for more than a month. According to Fox’s Jay Glazer, the NFL has offered to cooperate with the Feds and share information.
,,,According to reports out of Tampa, Buccaneers head coach Raheem Morris was supposed to be fired last Monday but it was determined that the team’s coaching staff wasn’t big enough to function without him. To be honest, they haven’t functioned all that well with him. But it appears that Morris will join a growing list of NFL coaches looking for new jobs.
…According to reports, the Orlando Magic have ceased all trade talks involving their superstar center, meaning Howard will be wearing a Magic uniform for the time being…at least until the trading deadline. Most insiders think it is merely a negotiating ploy and that Howard will be elsewhere by Christmas.
…Chicago Cubs pitcher Carlos Zambrano has turned over a new leaf, or so he says. The rotund Zambrano, who has caused more headaches for the Cubs than Cub opponents, has embarked on a fitness regime. Here is what Carlos had to say about it: “I’m preparing like when I was a rookie, climbing mountains, running on the beach, and exercising hard so that I can arrive at spring training in optimal shape,” Zambrano told Joiner Martinez at Líder en Deportes, according to a report on MLBTradeRumors.com. “I want to stay in Chicago for the two seasons I still have with the team. I’m not a coward who would take the back door out of the majors.” That’s good news for Cub fans.
…The NCAA rule book devotes chapters to restricting player movement but nothing to hold back the coaches. Arizona State raised more than a few eyebrows on Wednesday afternoon when the school announced that Pittsburgh’s Todd Graham would be its new head football coach. Graham spent a lone year in charge of Pitt’s football program, guiding them to a 6-6 record before high-tailing it on the first train out of town. As it so often happens, Graham after convincing players to commit the next four years of their lives to him and promising he’d be around, left for supposedly greener pastures.
…Add Graham departure – Graham didn’t even tell his players face to face he was abandoning them. He sent a text message instead. Graham’s text read as follows: “I have resigned my position at Pitt in the best interest of my family to pursue the head coaching position at Arizona State. Coaching there has always been a dream of ours and we have family there. The timing and circumstances have prohibited from telling you this directly. I now am on my way to Tempe to continue those discussions. God Bless.” I wonder what he’ll have to say to the next group?
…Final add Graham – Graham had previously spent one year as head coach at Rice before moving to Tulsa. He has a 49-29 overall record which evidently accounts for his ability to find new jobs with relative ease. Pitt receiver Devin Street summed it up pretty well. Street commented “I’m literally sick.. That man pulled me in his office one on one and lied to me. I feel like dirt and I was just abused. For a year.”
…Penn State University will discontinue the licensing of any and all Joe Paterno-related PSU merchandise and no additional products will be produced.
…From www.losersbracket.com comes this fascinating story on Ryan Braun and his failed drug test. “There is a rumor floating around that the press won’t talk about. But hell, we ain’t the press that’s for sure. So, you can hear it here first. Some people are saying that Ryan Braun of the Milwaukee Brewers has genital herpes. And either the meds he is taking for them or the disease (virus?) itself caused the off the charts testosterone level he had. We have no factual evidence either way. 1. We ain’t no herpes Doctor. 2. We never had Herpes, although did have a case of the crabs after a little fun in Spring Break (ouch!) 3. We ain’t journalists. But it is intriguing and makes a ton of sense. Brauny has said there are “highly unusual circumstances” in this case.”
…According to Mac Engel of the Fort Worth Star-Telegram, Dallas Cowboys nose tackle Jay Ratliff almost got into a physical altercation with Cowboys beat reporter Calvin Watkins of ESPNDallas.com. Engel indicated that Watkins asked Ratliff about the news of Sam Hurd being arrested for selling drugs. Then before they knew it, both Ratliff and Watkins were being separated by Marcus Spears and Martellus Bennett. Later reports indicated that Watkins was really pushing Ratliff with questions about Hurd and Ratliff told him to “walk away” and of course he didn’t and that’s when the mayhem started.
…The Philadelphia Flyers Chris Pronger is the latest casualty in the concussion epidemic sweeping through the sports world. Here is the team’s statement – “After consultation with respected concussion specialists Dr. Joseph Maroon and Dr. Micky Collins, it is the opinion of both doctors that Chris is suffering from severe post concussion syndrome. It is the recommendation of Doctors Maroon and Collins that Chris not return to play for the Philadelphia Flyers for the remainder of the 2011-12 season or playoffs. Chris will continue to receive treatment and therapy with the hope that he can get better.”
…The Penguins Sidney Crosby is also out indefinitely. Crosby saw Dr. Micky Collins on Thursday and took an ImPACT concussion test, but the results showed no signs of trouble. Since then, the team has been on the road, splitting a pair of contests at the Flyers and Islanders. Monday, the team was back at CONSOL Energy Center practicing and Crosby did not take the ice. After practice, Crosby addressed the media to explain what has been happening. He said – “I’m not feeling bad. Just have to be careful and make sure I’m 100 percent before I return. No timeframe. You have to listen to your body. Passing ImPACT was encouraging but it’s not everything. Have had some symptoms.”
…Suffolk County prosecutors terminated the criminal case against Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman on Thursday. Edelman was arrested and charged with indecent assault and battery for allegedly groping a woman at the Storyville nightclub during a Halloween party. However, review of the video tape indicates that the physical contact between the two was fleeting, according to prosecutors, and did not meet the elements of any crime. According to the document written by the prosecutors, “After a thorough investigation of this case by the Boston Police Department’s Sexual Assault Unit … the Commonwealth has concluded that it would not be able to meet its burden at trial of proving each of the elements of indecent assault and battery beyond a reasonable doubt.”
…After the Panthers beat the Texans, Jeremy Shockey called out several Houston players for not putting their arms across their chest during the National Anthem. What did he think, that they were playing the Patriots?
…Tim Tebow may have lost to New England Sunday, but he was firmly responsible for the Chiefs upset win over the previously undefeated Packers. Kyle Orton, the same Kyle Orton that the Broncos dumped so they could start Tebow, was at the helm for the historic Chief victory against Green Bay. He would never have been there if it wasn’t for Tebow!
…Can’t really understand why the Knicks would want to sign Baron Davis. Having seen Davis up close and personal when he played for the Clippers, I can’t see him helping the Knicks on or off the court and mdefinitely not in the locker room.
…Reports indicate that the posting fee for Japanese pitcher Yu Darvish exceeds the $51.1 million fee the Red Sox paid for Daisuke Matsuzaka in 2006. We don’t know who won the rights as of now, but I’m think they have already overpaid. Just in – the Texas Rangers won the rights as announced Tuesday.
…Rick Doyle took some time to report on Mark Cuban’s interview with TMZ. And some interesting details emerged. Mark Cuban took some time to speak with TMZ recently, during which he touched on a wide range of topics — one of which was the prospect of a woman coaching in the NBA. Tennessee women’s basketball coach Pat Summitt, who has more wins than any other coach in the history of college basketball, was asked recently by TMZ if she thought there would ever be a woman head coach in the NBA. Summitt called it a “longshot,” and said that she wouldn’t consider leaving Tennessee if the opportunity were presented to her. Cuban was asked for his take on the matter, during which he revealed that he thinks it will happen someday, although it might not happen in the near future. Cuban was then asked about whether he thought there would be an openly gay player in the NBA before a woman head coach, and he said that he absolutely thinks that will be the case. Cuban said that he thinks a gay player will come out within the next three to five years. The Mavericks owner also discussed his team’s acquisition of Lamar Odom. And no, Odom is not likely the gay NBA player in question.
…That pillow talk can really get you in trouble. Kobe Bryant wasn’t caught by, soon-to-be ex-wife Vanessa Bryant cheating, but instead his LA Laker teammates were the ones who spilled the beans. It’s being reported that teammates ratted on Kobe to their own wives/girlfriends, who then went back and told Vanessa Bryant. The report also said Vanessa Bryant had caught her husband with “multiple women” over the years, but she felt the latest alleged incident was the final straw. What tangled webs…..
…Boston Celtics forward Jeff Green will have surgery to repair an aortic aneurysm and will miss the entire season, the team announced on Saturday as it traveled to Toronto for its exhibition opener against the Raptors. Green is scheduled for an operation on Monday at the Cleveland Clinic. Doctors have told him the operation “should completely repair Green’s condition and that he can expect to resume his NBA career next season,”the Celtics said in a news release.
… A Facebook page has been started to help raise money for the defense of Harvey Updyke, the man accused of poisoning oak trees at Auburn’s Toomer’s Corner. All you Auburn haters can contribute.
…Football coaches have been known to occasionally make some bad career moves. Here is one of the best of the worst. A year ago, Gus Malzahn, the Auburn offensive coordinator, turned down $3 million a year to coach Vanderbilt. A year later, Malzahn accepts the Arkansas State job at $850,000 a year, nearly a 35% cut in pay from the $1.3 million he was making at Auburn. Evidently he didn’t employ Cam Newton’s dad to help negotiate for more pay.
…This actually sounds like a good idea to me, which means the NCAA will never even consider it. Nevada’s Chris Ault is lobbying for players to get five years to play five seasons. “That would end a lot of schools trying to hide things,” he said. “That’s the first thing. It cuts out the medical hardships. You’ve got five years to play and if you get hurt, you’ve got four. A lot of schools do some things that are somewhat inappropriate to get a guy’s eligibility back. You don’t have to worry about that stuff.”
…I’ve visited Hawaii a few times and have often thought how nice it would be to live there. Apparently a few football coaches have the same plan. The University of Hawaii has an opening for a head coach. Utah offensive coordinator Norm Chow is one of 30 applicants for the head coaching position at Hawaii. Chow may be in the driver’s seat at this time.
…Bobby Bowden is taking Bama over LSU. LSU will have a tough time beating Alabama twice in the same season, former Florida State coach Bobby Bowden said Tuesday night during his first visit to campus since his departure two years ago. Bowden knows something about rematches of top teams. His 1996 club lost the national championship to rival Florida in a rematch at the Sugar Bowl just five weeks after the Seminoles had won the regular-season game. “We got beat pretty doggoned good that second game,” Bowden said during his talk to the Tallahassee Quarterback Club. “It wouldn’t surprise me for LSU to win — they are good as you’ve seen — but to me Alabama has the same advantage that Florida had on us. They got beat and they’re mad as you know what. They’re as mad as a wet hen. And if you’re not careful, your guys are satisfied.”
…No joke – the Clippers look good. Sometimes you can just look at a group of athletes and see that they gel. Such is the case with the Clippers. The only drawback is that Paul, Billips and Butler have histories indicating they won’t play a full season. If they do, they will surpass the Lakers for control of LA.
…According to the Dispatch, Ohio State has been placed on a 1 year bowl ban for the 2012 season. The penalty means Ohio State automatically is out of the running for any bowl, or a Big Ten or national championship next year, just as newly appointed head coach Urban Meyer is wooing recruits to the Buckeyes. Athletic Director Gene Smith said previously that while Ohio State has been declared a repeat violator that failed to properly monitor its football program, a bowl ban would be out of line with penalties handed to universities with similar violations. Methinks it could have been and should have been worse.
…Other penalties might include – Strip four more football scholarships over the next three years on top of Ohio State’s prior forfeiture of five scholarships over that span; add an additional year of probation to OSU’s self-imposed two-year probation for the football program, meaning any violations through the 2013 season could draw harsher-than-normal penalties.
…Final add Buckeye Blues – maybe athletic director Gene Smith could have done OSU a favor and self-imposd a ban on a bowl game this year. Might have been better for recruits knowing they are going nowhere next year.
