Watford's sayings influence his playing

Watford’s sayings influence his playing
By Hugh Kellenberger331-4369 | hkellenberger@heraldt.com
February 13, 2011

Indiana’s Christian Watford reacts after being called for a foul against Michigan’s Tim Hardaway Jr. Saturday at Crisler Arena. Chris Howell | Herald-Times
ANN ARBOR, Mich. — Two shoes. Two sentences. A window into Christian Watford’s mindset.

On the left: “If it ain’t rough . it ain’t right.”

On the right: “What can man do to me?”

The origination of the first is unknown. Watford liked it because he found it symbolic of the Hoosiers.

“That’s what we’re going through right now,” Watford said. “We’re going through a rough stage. We need to get back to the right state.”

The second is from the bible, from Psalm 56. The full version is: “In God, whose word I praise/In the lord, whose word I praise/In God I trust and am not afraid/What can man do to me?”

He wrote both on his Adidas in November, and they have been with him as he has pushed and persevered through a trying sophomore season.

He has scored 20 or more points six times, but Indiana lost four of those games. Watford scored a career-high 30 against Iowa on Jan. 23, but all coach Tom Crean wanted to talk about afterwards was how many points Watford gave up.

He responded with the best week of his career, despite shooting 10-of-29 against Illinois and Michigan State. Watford was focused, driven on defense and did everything his team needed him to do.

He, it turns out, even played with a broken hand against Michigan State. Played 38 minutes actually — diving for a loose ball late, after the injury had occurred.

Thirteen days later, Watford suited up for the Hoosiers and took the floor at Crisler Arena Saturday. He had successfully fought through an injury that can leave you on the shelf for much longer than three games. With a pad and a large bandage protecting his left hand, Watford entered the game with 15:53 remaining in the first half.

In 22 minutes on the court, he was very good. Watford did not attack the rim as well as he would have liked, and the 83.5 percent free-throw shooter did not attempt one Saturday, but he was 6-of-10 from the field and had a team-high 14 points.

With 27 seconds remaining and the Hoosiers down five, Watford dribbled into the paint with his left hand, using his body to create separation and easily put up a basket that cut the lead to 3.

“He really wanted to be back,” Indiana coach Tom Crean said. “I think that’s a big part of this, because he rehabbed very strong. . He was tired early, but he really played hard and through it late. I thought it might be the other way around.”

Watford responded to adversity the way he has so often this season. He slips on occasion — the scouting report on Watford has long had “not consistent effort” under weaknesses — but he always seems to respond. Crean challenged him to have a double-double during the team’s second game: Watford had 17 points and 10 rebounds. Then Crean emphasized getting to the free-throw line: among players in the top 10 in the Big Ten in free-throw percentage, only JaJuan Johnson has more than Watford’s 133 attempts.

You cannot put too much into the magical powers of Sharpie on Adidas. But what Watford, or any player, chooses to write does mean something. When it matters, as those 13 words seem to for Watford, it tells you something about his character.

There are five regular-season games left in the 2010-11 season, one that has the Hoosiers in last place in the Big Ten. In the NBA, where Watford hopes to one day play, this is the time of the season in which stars on losing teams choose to sit back, “rest” and wear a suit during games.

So it says something that Watford did not choose that path. That he had to get back to the team.

The key word from Crean’s press conference was “combative.” The Hoosiers played hard against the Wolverines, but were not combative, Crean said.

That has been an issue for him — he walked out of practice Friday, Watford’s first back with the team since surgery on the hand. The team was better Saturday morning, but that was not the case later in the day.

But what is the difference between hard and combative? I work with words for a living, and it is not entirely clear. The difference left at least one other Hoosier stumped.

Watford had an answer, though.

“You can play hard, but we weren’t playing together,” Watford said. “We were playing hard, but trying to do too much on our own.”

Indiana has now lost three in a row, and the momentum gained from wins against Illinois and Minnesota seems to have dissipated. Maybe Indiana does enough to merit an invite to the CBI, but the season could just as easily be over in less than a month.

It would have been easy to pack it up and focus on next season. Watford didn’t. That matters.

“I wanted to help my team,” Watford said, “with whatever I could give.”

Article found at: .

INDIANA FOOTBALL
Chappell right at home at Indiana
What you see is what you get with Bloomington native, Hoosier starting QB

By Dustin Dopirak 331-4227 | ddopirak@heraldt.com
August 29, 2010

Indiana's Ben Chappell, a former standout on the Bloomington South football and basketball teams, is beginning his second season as the Hoosiers' starting quarterback. Chris Howell | Herald-Times

The question doesn’t seem that difficult, but no one seems to be able to come up with an answer.

What about Ben Chappell does Bloomington not already know?

The Indiana fifth-year senior has lived all but the first few months of his life here, and he’s spent a significant chunk of his 23 years in some of the more glamorous positions attainable for a young Bloomington athlete. He was the starting quarterback on Bloomington South’s football team for two-plus years and the starting center on its basketball team for three before moving up town to IU, where he’s heading into his second year as the full-time starting quarterback.

And yet in all that time in the hometown spotlight, it seems that everything that has been learned about him has fallen in the same impossibly straight lines. Bloomington knows that he’s a good-natured, smart, humble kid who stays out of trouble. That he’s a heady quarterback without a lot of speed, but a live arm. That he was a good all-around athlete and a great leader in high school, and that he’s becoming a great leader at IU now.

“He’s a golden boy,” said Drew Wood, his former football coach at South.

But doesn’t there have to be more to it than that? Doesn’t he have to have some secrets? Not necessarily deep and dark ones, but maybe just a personality quirk or meaningful anecdote known only to he and his family and friends? Isn’t there any interesting information about his life’s journey that hasn’t already made its way around town?

Perhaps, but Chappell himself couldn’t come up with much. The 6-foot-3, 240-pound redhead widened his eyes, pushed out a deep breath, shook his head and laughed when asked the question.

“Man,” he said, totally stumped. “There might not be (anything). I don’t know.”

Eventually, he mentioned his deep love for golf, but admitted that’s not that deep a secret, especially for anyone who plays Cascades.

But perhaps that’s just Chappell being his unfailingly modest and cautious self. Surely, his parents would have something new to add to the narrative, right?

There wasn’t much there either. His father Steve also pointed to Ben’s golf game as well as his closeness with family and friends. His mother Laura said Ben likes baby back ribs, onions and trips to Georgia to see her family and the beach but admitted there wasn’t a lot else.

“He’s pretty much an open book,” she said.

At least Tyson Weaver, who played football with Chappell at South and rooms with him at IU, had something worth a laugh.

“If you’re looking for something funny, it’s that he’s a terrible dancer,” Weaver said. “That would be the one thing. The kid’s got no rhythm whatsoever when he’s not on the football field.”

But other than that, Weaver said, the story of Ben Chappell is exactly what you’ve always heard it is.

“He’s the kid that every parent dreamed of having,” Weaver said. “That All-American boy. He’s the guy everyone looks up to, and he sets the standard for everything. He’s a role model for his friends. . He doesn’t keep anything in the closet. It’s all out there. Everyone who knows Ben Chappell knows what he’s about.”

It really is just that simple.


Success never slumps
Chappell has, more or less, always done what he was supposed to do, and his resume reflects it. There aren’t any epiphanies, turning points or plot twists. Virtually no drama. Just a string of achievements.

He’s been a star athlete since pitching and playing shortstop on his little league baseball team. He started playing football in fourth grade, when he had to play center because he was above the weight limit for ball carriers. Two years later he started playing quarterback and hasn’t moved since.

He was a three-year starter in high school, though the first year was cut short by a broken collarbone, and was named all-state as a senior. In the meantime, he was a three-year starter at center on the South basketball team, which reached the semistate in his senior year. He graduated high school with a 4.0 grade point average.

College has been the same. He’s already graduated from the prestigious Kelley School of Business with a bachelor’s degree in accounting and a 3.7 GPA. He’s taking classes toward his master’s this year as he enters his senior football season as the leading returning passer in the Big Ten.

“He’s that kid growing up that’s done everything right all the time,” IU tight end Brad Martin said.

And yet somehow, remained stunningly well-adjusted.

Chappell himself has developed no sense of entitlement or arrogance in all that time as a “golden boy.” He’s unfailingly polite and self-deprecating. His insistence on diverting attention to teammates and coaches in interviews would be unnerving if it wasn’t so genuine.

He hasn’t lived like a monk at IU, but whatever social life he has on Saturday night doesn’t keep him from making it to church on Sunday. And he’s kept close ties to those he grew up with, still keeping in touch with his former teammates, coaches and teachers. Every home game, there are hundreds of people he knows in the stands. His kindergarten teacher still attends his parents’ tailgates.

“No one’s perfect by any means,” Weaver said. “But he’s done everything right as far as putting yourself on the right position at all times and just to make sure you don’t get caught up in the riff-raff and all the things kids get involved with. . And he’s stayed true to his roots. No matter how popular or big his name’s gotten, he’s never gotten a big head over his celebrity status.”

What’s kept him on the straight and narrow? That question has a pretty simple answer, too.

“His mom taught him that,” Wood said. “If he even started to sniff like he was going to be cocky, his mom would call him out on it. His dad, Steve, too. They’re top notch.”

Said Chappell: “It definitely all comes down to my parents, and the way I was raised. My mom is awesome, and she’s such a good person. She taught me how to be a good person and to treat people with respect. My dad taught me how to work hard and support family, and I think definitely the way I’ve been is a direct reflection of the way I was raised by my parents.”

Steve, a salesman and former baseball player at Kentucky, and Laura, who works at Childs Elementary School, also succeeded in parenting through balance, keeping Chappell disciplined without being disciplinarians. They were never ultra-strict or overbearing but made sure he got the point.

“He’s been drilled from Day 1 that whatever he does, he represents first himself,” Laura said. “He represents his family, his God, he represents his school and he represents his team.”


Team leader
Team has always been a driving force for Chappell as well. He grew up playing football and basketball with mostly the same tight-knit group of South kids and came to realize early how much he depended on everyone else. That’s why he doesn’t let any interview stay focused on him. Every positive offensive possession requires the work of 11 guys.

Sometimes, though, he can be a tad too deferential, and if there was a critique of Chappell last season, it was that he was never quite completely in control. It wasn’t that his teammates didn’t listen to him, but that his comfort level with his position wasn’t absolute because it was his first year as the starter after splitting time with the departed Kellen Lewis the season before. He still threw for 2,941 yards and 17 touchdowns, but after a 4-8 campaign, he went into the offseason feeling like he could’ve done more to get IU back to a bowl for the first time since his redshirt freshman season.

So far this year, though, that hasn’t been a problem. Since the spring, players and coaches have seen a change in the way he commands the offense. He was recently named captain by winning a team election in overwhelming fashion.

“He’s really taken over the football team,” Indiana coach Bill Lynch said. “In the spring, to me, he was a different guy in the spring. You use the expression that it became slow-motion to him, or the game slowed down. You could just tell that he was out there, and he’s at the point where he can tell the tackle what to do, he can tell the left guard what to do, he can tell the wideouts, ‘Cheat your split end, go out.’ He can tell the back, ‘They’re going to blitz here, here’s your protection.’ Now all the sudden, you talk about trust, he’s got teammates that trust him, because they know he knows.”

Chappell’s made vast improvements physically and mentally. His understanding of the playbook has always been strong, and now he knows it cold. His throws are sharper than ever before, and he seems to be able to make all of them now, hitting receivers on the hands on out routes, in the chest on slants and perfectly over the shoulder on deep balls.

“He’s got every throw in the bag,” IU offensive coordinator Matt Canada said. “He’s making throws that people on Sunday are going to want him to make.”

There’s been talk recently about Chappell playing on Sundays. ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr., for instance, called him IU’s most draftable player.

But Chappell doesn’t talk about that much. He’s obviously set himself up well if a pro career never happens, and his focus of the moment is still Saturdays and trying to lead IU back to a bowl berth.

That’s what the rest of the Hoosiers are looking to him for.

“This year, he’s become that complete quarterback, complete leader,” Martin said. “He’s a lot more vocal, we all respect him. He’s just taken over the leadership role completely now. Last year, yeah, we all followed him, but this year, he tells us what to do and we all do it. We all respect him.”

Because like the rest of Bloomington they all know his story. There isn’t a lot of drama to it, but that doesn’t matter.

He’s Ben Chappell. The All-American boy. The one everyone looks up to.

Copyright: HeraldTimesOnline.com 2010

Webpage link: http://www.heraldtimesonline.com/stories/2010/08/29/iusports.qp-9289235.sto

Patti Haston's legacy lives on in her son

Patti Haston’s legacy lives on in her son
Former IU basketball standout trying to instill late mother’s values into his son, Kenner

BY LYNN HOUSER lhouser@heraldt.com
May 10, 2009

(from http://tmnews.com/stories/2009/05/10/sports.nw-922474.tms?1241994738)

Kenner Haston has never met his grandmother, but he has heard all about Grandma Haston.

His daddy tells him she was the best mother a son could ever wish for.

She raised him tall and straight, a gentle giant, a God-fearing man. She saw that he attended church on Wednesdays and Sundays, saw that he kept up on his studies, and that he said “Yes, sir” and “No, ma’am.” She was his best friend and his biggest fan. She didn’t think twice about driving seven hours to watch him play college basketball.

What a grandmother she would have been but for that terrible day, May 6, 1999.

That’s the day a killer tornado ripped her away from her loved ones. Ten years later, her son, Kirk Haston, has come to grips with it.

Kirk Haston needs no introduction to those who follow Indiana basketball. The 6-foot-10 center enjoyed three superb years at IU from 1998 to 2000. At the end of his junior year, he entered his name in the NBA draft and went in the first round.

It was just two years earlier, a couple of months after his freshman season at IU, that he received that unthinkable phone call. It came only hours after he had spoken to his mother, Patti Haston. Her final words to him were, “Love you.”

That next day, Patti and her friend, Hollis Hinson, huddled in his home, trying to ride out a tornado gauged at 200 miles per hour. Tragically, they were directly in the furious storm’s path, and all that was left of the house was the foundation. Neither of them lived to see their 50th birthday.

Killer tornadoes are all too common in Tennessee. Earlier this spring, on Good Friday, a storm swept through the state and claimed the lives of a mother and her infant daughter — a storm too close to home in too many ways for the son of Patti Haston.

“It forces you to think about it,” Kirk said.
Many reminders
Hardly a day goes by that Kirk doesn’t think of his mother, even 10 years later. Her picture hangs in the wing of the Tennessee elementary school where she taught for 26 years, a wing now named after her.
One of her students was Kirk, who has followed in her footsteps by serving as a staff member in the same school system.

“I go down that hallway, and her picture is there,” he said.

Memories sharpen each year, as Mother’s Day approaches. For Haston they are not your typical Hallmark moments. Not only did he lose his mother around Mother’s Day, he also lost his grandmother, Betty Kirk, in that month. She perished in a car crash in May, 2007.

“There is something about the month of May,” Haston said.

The toughest of times for Haston came in the first two years following Patti’s passing, his sophomore and junior years at IU. The 300 miles between central Tennessee and Bloomington did not keep Patti from attending every home game his freshman year. How elated she would have been to see her son blossom into an All-Big Ten center. How thrilled she would have been to see him beat No. 1 Michigan State on a last-second 3-pointer. How proud she would have been to see him play professional basketball.

“The toughest part for me,” Haston said, “came after those games, especially after big wins. Those were big moments in my life, not just in basketball. I always looked forward to that reaction from her. For me, the game wasn’t complete until I heard from her. It took a long time for me to find a new ‘end’ to the moment, because that was the ending to all my moments before. After that pattern for 20 years, I had to find a new ending. Not having that closure was the toughest thing.”
His faith unshaken
Losing someone so close might have shaken a lesser man’s faith, but all those Wednesdays and Sundays in church prepared Haston for that jolt.

“A lot of people wait for that one moment to get their life right, but I would like to think my faith has been about the same all along,” he said. “I can’t say I’d lived my life any differently before than after.”
If it changed Haston in any way, his teammates didn’t notice.

“I’m sure that when by himself, those ups and downs were there, but as a teammate you couldn’t pick up on it,” said Michael Lewis, who was a junior teammate at the time of the tragedy. Lewis and sophomore Tom Geyer accompanied coach Bob Knight to Tennessee to offer support during those anguished days that surrounded the funeral.

“I don’t know how to describe what it was like down there,” said Lewis, now an assistant coach at Eastern Illinois. “I didn’t know Kirk’s mother all that well, other than seeing her at games, but I felt I just needed to go down there as a teammate. It was just the right thing to do. Publicly, Kirk handled it really well. He knew he couldn’t change it. He knew had to deal with it and move past it.”

Even so, Haston still had his moments.

“You always have that ‘why me’ thing, but God never puts more on your plate than you can handle,” Haston says. “If it took me to experience this so other people could handle something down the line … well, there is nothing fair about life. We are all going to experience four or five difficult things. Once you’ve dealt with one, it makes the others easier to deal with.”
Leaving her mark
In many ways, Haston feels his mother has never left him. He notes areas of his life where she left a permanent imprint.

“The first thing is spiritually,” he said. “I never even thought about asking the question, ‘Are we going to church on Wednesday?’ I knew we were going. Even though she was a single parent with many responsibilities, and even after a long day’s work, there was never any question whether we were going to church. What she did for me there is immeasurable.”

Haston also talked about the influence she had on his athletic career. As a parent, Patti never lost her perspective, and that carried over into Kirk’s life. He has grown to appreciate that now as he serves as a volunteer basketball assistant at Perry County High, where he is still a central Tennessee legend for having led the school to a state championship in 1997. He also is the school corporation’s health program coordinator.

“I pray I’m as good a parent to Kenner as my mom was to me,” Kirk said. “I can’t believe how some parents talk to their kids during games. It’s so painful to hear. My mom had that mentality that you work your butt off, but when the game comes you let ’er rip. I’m glad I had that environment.”
Knight saw it in him
Throughout Haston’s red-shirt year and freshman year, Knight kept waiting for him to “let ’er rip.” Losing losing his mother so unexpectedly seemed to unleash that side of him. He averaged 15.3 points and 8.3 rebounds his sophomore year. Playing for Mike Davis his junior year, Haston led the Big Ten in scoring at 19 points and was named a third team All-American.

“Coach Knight was always pushing me to be tougher,” Haston said. “He said, ‘I know you’ve got toughness in you. No one can raise a child while keeping a job like your mom did.’ That was one of the great pieces of encouragement I got after Mom passed away.”

Drafted 16th overall by the Charlotte Hornets, Haston’s pro career ended after five injury-riddled seasons. In 2005 he married Kasey Foster, a homecoming queen from Freed-Hardeman University in Tennessee, the same Christian school where his mom was a homecoming queen her senior year. Last August the Hastons celebrated the birth of Kenner, named after a line of superhero toys that always fascinated Kirk.

“I guess I’m kind of a geek that way,” he said.

Now that he has a child of his own, Haston is trying to be the parent his mother was. As a single mother and an only child, they were inseparable. Haston’s father was never much a part of their lives.

“I just remember all the time Mom and I spent together,” Haston said. ‘The last day of school every year, we would always go to the movies. We went on vacations every year. She was always creative even if we didn’t have the means.”

Patti would have surely doted on her first grandchild, so Kirk was quick to visit her grave following Kenner’s birth.

“I gave her the rundown — the height, weight, everything,” he said.

The day has now arrived for Kenner to join his father on one of those visits.

“I think it would be neat telling him about the first time I took him out to where Gram’ was buried,” Haston said a few days before the 10th anniversary of her death. “I think it should be the anniversary of something big. I guess May 6th is that day.”

MLB, football, and basketball

Hello. I've got some extra time because of the snow and ice outside, so I thought that I would go ahead and post mid-week instead of waiting till the end. The first article I have to post tonight is about former Astros pitcher Trever Miller, who signed as a free agent with the Rays last week. Miller played with the Astros the last two years, but had played for the Rays for the two years before that. Here's a quote from him about returning to play for the team near where he lives in Florida:

"It's been a blessing to be able to play big-league baseball at home,'' Miller said. "I didn't think it would happen again. ..."

Here's the article: http://blogs.tampabay.com/rays/2008/02/rays-add-trever.html (originally found at: http://mlb.mlb.com/pa/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080208&content_id=2368504&vkey=mlbpa_news&fext=.jsp).

Here's a good article about Georgia football head coach Mark Richt and his son Jon, both Christians. On Signing Day last week Jon, a senior at Prince Avenue Christian School in Athens, GA, signed to play football with Clemson, whose head coach Tommy Bowden (also a Christian) is a good friend of Mark. Mark thought that there would be less pressure on him and Mark if he were to play for someone other than him. I thought that it was neat that Mark went to Jon signing day ceremony before going back to his office to check on his own recruits. Here's the article: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/columns/story?columnist=schlabach_mark&id=3234394 (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/233).

Next, an article about a group of Orioles fans, the Oriole Advocates, who have a neat program called "Cardboard to Leather". The group collects new and used baseball equipment (bats, balls, gloves, uniforms, etc.) to donated to kids in impoverished countries, like in Latin America. These kids would normally have to make-do with whatever they could find for equipment, like making gloves out of cardboard and balls out of tape. Here's the article: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080207&content_id=2367527&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp.

Here's an article on NC State women's basketball head coach Kay Yow, a Christian who is fighting breast cancer. This month is "Think Pink" campaign for breast cancer awareness with the women's NCAA teams, and several teams are wearing pink uniforms for one game to raise awareness. One of those teams was Yow's NC State team last week, whose uniforms all also had the name "YOW" on the back to honor her. Everyone at these games--players, coaches, fans, etc.--wear pink. Money is being raised for the Kay Yow/WBCA Cancer Fund, part of the Jimmy V Fund for cancer, named after the late former NC State men's basketball coach Jim Valvano who coached with Yow. He died from cancer several years ago. Here's the article: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncw/notebook?page=notebook/dish080207.

Also, an article about Cowboys linebacker Greg Ellis, a Christian, whose comeback this season from a torn Achilles tendon last season was punctuated by winning the NFL Comeback Player of the Year Award and being named to the Pro Bowl: http://news.aol.com/story/_a/comeback-led-cowboys-lb-greg-ellis-all/n20080208170809990011?ecid=RSS0001.

Here's an article about Kansas guard Brandon Rush, who tore his knee last summer which caused him to come back to college for his senior year this year instead of going on to the NBA. Here's a couple of quotes from his head coach Bill Self and him about it:

"There's no doubt Brandon's injury has been a blessing for the program," Self said. "No doubt at all. But I wouldn't go so far as to say it's been a blessing for Brandon. If he'd never gotten hurt, he'd be in the NBA right now, and that's his ultimate dream. But if he continues to progress, his draft status will be improved, in my opinion." ...

"'Blessing in disguise' _that's what my mama said. This might be a blessing in disguise," Rush said. "My mom always knows what she's talking about, especially about basketball."

Here's the article: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/02/08/sports/BKC-T25-Kansas-Rush.php (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/260).

Next, an article about Red Sox outfielder Manny Ramirez, who donated a custom car for a Boston children's hospital to auction off to raise money: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080209&content_id=2369324&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb.

Here's an article about Bengals linebacker David Pollack, a Christian, who has a big decision coming up about whether or not he's going to attempt to comeback after a serious neck injury or not. Here's a couple of quotes from him about it:

“Even if I can’t play football again, I feel blessed that I’ve been able to play a kids’ game this long,” he said. “The experiences along the way have made me a better person, a stronger person. You learn a lot about life and who really cares about you when things like this happen.” ...

Deeply spiritual, he says he prays daily, not to play football again, but for direction and strength.

Here's the article: http://www.ajc.com/blogs/content/shared-blogs/ajc/sportscolumns/entries/2008/02/09/pollack_talks_a.html (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/7).

Also, an article about new Royals manager Trey Hillman, a Christian, and his style of managing: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080210&content_id=2369800&vkey=spt2008news&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb.

Here's an article about former Diamondbacks 1st baseman Tony Clark, a Christian, signing as a free agent with his hometown Padres this week: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3240246.

Next, an article about another Christian MLB free agent Mike Sweeney signing to play with the A's this week after having spent his whole career with the Royals: http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=3240225.

Lastly, a quote from a Q & A article with IU center D.J. White:

Once you sign your first NBA contract, what's the first thing you're going to buy?

If I am blessed enough to sign a contract, that would be great, but right now I am focused on my senior season and leading my team to a championship.

Here's the article: http://www.bigtennetwork.com/blogs/blogs.asp?topic_id=170.

MLB, Super Bowl, football, etc.

Hi again. Here's the last of the articles that I have read so far. First of all, a wonderful article about new Rangers outfielder Josh Hamilton, a Christian, and the story of his comeback from drug abuse to the Majors and how important his faith was and is to that. I have read several articles about him, and this is one of the best. I guess the good thing about him being traded from the Reds to the Rangers this winter is that he has a whole new fan base in Texas to tell his story to. One thing that I was glad to read was that his friend and mentor Johnny Narron, also a Christian, was hired by the Rangers as a special assignment coach. Narron helped Hamilton last year with the Reds, and I'm glad to hear that he will do the same with the Rangers. Here's a quote from Rangers general manager Jon Daniels about the conclusion that he came to after doing a thorough background check of Hamilton before the trade:

"... I think there are two things that have played a part in why this attempt at fighting addiction has been successful: Family and faith."

And here's a great quote from the writer at the end of the article:

Because for all the amazing physical tools Josh Hamilton has displayed, the one that has made him a major leaguer is one everybody is capable of developing.

It's faith.

Here's the article: http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/spt/baseball/rangers/stories/012708dnspowebrangersz.218a1b6.html (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/121).

Here's an article about the celebrity charity basketball game that Tigers outfielder Curtis Granderson held last weekend to raise money for Detroit and Flint (Michigan) public schools: http://www.freep.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080127/SPORTS02/801270698/1050 (originally found at: http://mlb.mlb.com/pa/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080128&content_id=2357635&vkey=mlbpa_news&fext=.jsp).

Next, an article about Indiana Ice forward Will MacDonald of the United States Hockey League (USHL), a minor league team. Last summer, he and his parents were in a serious car accident where his father David was killed. A pickup truck driven by a 20-year-old guy hit them when he crossed the median. The guy was charged with careless driving. Here's what MacDonald, who is only 19 himself, had to say about the guy:

David was an accountant who stayed calm. Will is trying to show he has that level-headed composure, too. He is willing to forgive the 20-year-old driver who hit them and was charged with careless driving.

"We rode in the ambulance together and once we got out, I looked over and he was down on the curb of the sidewalk. He had his head down and was crying," he said. "I wanted to run at him and beat the hell out of him, but at the same time, I felt sorry for him.

"I've prayed about it. I hope, after all this, he can find peace within himself so he can carry on."

Here's the article: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080129/SPORTS/801290375/1247/NLETTER12.

Here's an article about Cowboys linebacker Greg Ellis, a Christian, being added to the Pro Bowl as an injury replacement this week: http://cbs.sportsline.com/nfl/story/10607089/rss.

Also, an article about Cincinnati quarterback Ben Mauk, a Christian, trying to get an extra year of eligibility after he was injured in the first game of the 2006 season and missed the rest of the season with a serious shoulder injury. He's currently waiting for the NCAA's decision on the matter, and here's a quote about what he's doing until then:

While he waits for the NCAA's decision, Mauk has been completing his graduate work. He's also working with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes to reach out to youths, using his experiences in football as motivation.

"If I can touch a life by what I say, football is definitely worth it," he said.

Here's the article: http://sports.yahoo.com/ncaaf/news;_ylt=AqhmpDG4CgtmCO6aM9wQ3t9.T4h4?slug=ap-cincinnati-mauk&prov=ap&type=lgns.

Here's an article about Illinois football head coach Ron Zook, who won the 2007 Liberty Mutual Coach of the Year award, which came with $70,000 for him to give out to the charities of his choice. Here's what he did with some of the money:

The charities include Crisis Nursery of Urbana, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Cunningham Children's Home in Urbana, the United Way of Champaign County and Restoration Urban Ministries. Each will receive $10,000.

Here's the article: http://www.bigtennetwork.com/news/article.asp?LIST_ID=1&STORY_ID=15157.

Next, a Christian article about Patriots chaplain and former linebacker Don Davis and how he can connect to his former teammates because he was also a player and knows what it's like. Also, they've seen the way he's lived his life and walked his Christian walk during his playing career. He's also currently the assistant strength and conditioning coach. Here's a quote from him about how he's helped the players deal with the success that they've had this year in going undefeated so far:

While the Patriots haven't lost a game this year, Davis emphasized to the team that the fans' appreciation can be fickle at the first loss or first sign of faltering, but the players have to focus their lives on real importance, not on-the-field glory.

"You can't live for the applause of man, but only grow in the knowledge of God," Davis said.

Here's the article: http://www.bpsports.net/bpsports.asp?ID=5758.

Here's another Christian article about Davis, this one about the spiritual game plan that he devised with the goal of having the players that he works to tell every player on the team about Christ during the season: http://www.bpsports.net/bpsports.asp?ID=5759.

Also, a Christian article Giants team chaplain George McGovern, his role with the team, and what they've talked about. One thing that he's happy with is that the Giants haven't any off-the-field incidents for two years. One reason that he says is responsible for that is the good character that the team's owners and coaches have displayed since he's been there. One of the things that he does is have a coaches' Bible study. He's also the team chaplain for the Yankees. Here's the article: http://www.bpsports.net/bpsports.asp?ID=5760.

Here's an article about former PGA golfer and current Oregon golf head coach Casey Martin, a Christian. Martin has Klippel-Trenaunay syndrome, which makes his right leg weaker and thinner and doesn't allow him to walk very much at a time, which is bad for a golfer. He eventually won the right to use a golf cart during PGA tournaments. His leg is in such a condition now that he's contemplated having it cut off and getting a prosthetic one. Here's a quote from him about that:

"It's such a hard thing," he said, "but I've thought about how much happier I'd be if I just didn't have it. I'm almost praying that I go one way or the other, that it gets cured or it goes in the tank. The advances in a lot of these prosthetic limbs are incredible. You see people running marathons."

Here's the article: http://sports.yahoo.com/golf/pga/news?slug=ma-caseymartin013008&prov=yhoo&type=lgns.

Next, an article about new Bengals back-up quarterback Jordan Palmer, the younger brother of Bengals starting quarterback Carson Palmer. I know that Carson is a Christian, but I don't know about Jordan, but I thought that I would include the article anyways. If Jordan makes the team, they will be the first brothers to be quarterbacks on the same NFL team in many years. Here's the article: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news;_ylt=AosixJy8RW4NLHCpHq8bAT05nYcB?slug=ap-bengals-palmerbrothers&prov=ap&type=lgns.

Here's a blog post by IU runningback Bryan Payton, a Christian, about the team's winter conditioning beginning this week. What I wanted to point out was this quote that he included at the end of the post:

WORD FOR THE ROAD: "Hard work provides us with today's needs, prepares us for future uncertainties, and supplies us with opportunities for life." -Tom Ellsworth, Senior Minister of Sherwood Oaks Christian Church

Here's the post: http://insideiufootball.blogspot.com/2008/01/winter-conditioning-begins.html.

Also, an article about Falcons runningback Warrick Dunn being awarded the inaugural winner of the "NFL Neighborhood MVP" award this week, which is given to "a player making a positive impact through charitable programs and contributions". He was given the award for "his foundation's work to help single parents purchase homes". Here's the article: http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=345234.

Here's an article about former Astros/Padres 3rd baseman Morgan Ensberg, a Christian, signing with the Yankees this week to try and make the team as a 1st baseman: http://cbs.sportsline.com/mlb/story/10611471/rss.

Sticking with the 1st base theme, an article about Rockies 1st baseman Todd Helton, a Christian, having his baseball number retired at his alma mater, Tennessee, this week: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncaa/news/story?id=3224406&campaign=rss&source=MLBHeadlines.

Lastly, still staying with the 1st base theme, an article about Sean Casey, a Christian most recently with the Tigers, signing with the Red Sox this week: http://cbs.sportsline.com/mlb/story/10613070/rss.

basketball & football, especially coaches & SEC

Hi. Happy New Year! This will be my last post of the year.

First, a good article about basketball player Wayne Simien, a Christian formerly with Kansas, the Timberwolves, and the Heat. He was released by the Heat and is currently rehabbing a knee injury so that he can return to play with some team in the NBA next season. Simien and his wife and daughter are living in Indianapolis now while he's rehabbing. Here's a quote from him:

Simien said he was in no hurry to give up basketball and perhaps pursue a career as a minister. A man of deep faith, he’d said in the past that might be an avenue he’d like to explore someday.

“That was in my heart at the beginning when I first had a transformation in life,” Simien said. “One of the great things I learned to look into the last few years is you can be a minister in every area of life and not be ‘Pastor Wayne’ or ‘Preacher Wayne.’ I still have it in my heart. But it’s my main focus trying to live it out every day of my life and administer with people.

“I am working in the inner city, working with high school kids here in Indianapolis in one of the poorest areas around. It is really fulfilling that desire.”

Here's the article: http://www2.kusports.com/news/2007/dec/25/former_jayhawk_upbeat_despite_release/ (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/260).

Here's an article about Redskins head coach Joe Gibbs, a Christian, and how his style of coaching has worked through all of the years that he's coached in two different stints with the Redskins: http://washingtontimes.com/article/20071226/SPORTS01/238927720/1005/sports (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/32).

Next, an article about Dolphins wide receiver Ted Ginn, Jr., who struggled this year with the terrible Dolphins team after playing in the national championship game with Ohio State last year. Here's a quote from him about it:

"I think God just puts you in situations where he wants you to fight," Ginn said. "That's the only thing that I can take out of it ... You go from a 12-1 team (at Ohio State) to a 1-15 team ..."

Here's the article: http://news.enquirer.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071228/SPT02/712280358/1066/.

Here's an article about the wives of the head coaches of the teams playing in the Chick-Fil-A Bowl (CFA Bowl) tomorrow night in Atlanta -- Linda Bowden, wife of Clemson head coach Tommy Bowden, and Suzanne Tuberville, wife of Auburn head coach Tommy Tuberville -- who are all Christians. Here's a couple of quotes:

Q: How do you balance the demands of football and family? How do you get used to new towns when you move or travel?

LB [Linda Bowden]: My son was in three high schools. The first thing we do is get involved with church and Bible study. That’s been my rock and foundation. The people there don’t care about what happens on Saturdays. ...

Q: If you were going to offer advice to someone who’s new to the coaching life, what tips would you offer?

ST [Suzanne Tuberville]: If I was talking to a young woman who’d just married a football coach, I’d tell her to get involved in your church, your kids’ school, your community. You’re going to have a lot of time on your hands.

Here's the article: http://www.ajc.com/living/content/shared-blogs/ajc/social/entries/2007/12/28/catching_up_the_cfa_coaches_wi.html.

Also, an article about Mississippi State head football coach Sylvester Croom, a Christian, who turned around the football program at Mississippi State and lead the team to its first bowl game since 2000. They beat Central Florida in the Liberty Bowl last night. Here's the article: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/bowls07/columns/story?id=3170858.

Here's an article about Illinois head women's basketball coach Jolette Law, who became the coach before this season after being an assistant coach at Rutgers under C. Vivian Stringer for several years. She returned to the Midwest and the Big Ten after having played at Iowa. Here's a quote from her about taking the Illinois job:

It was the call of the Midwest and the Big Ten that were pivotal in Law deciding to take this job. With Rutgers' success, she'd had other opportunities to become a head coach.

"God had been wrestling with me for some time," she said, smiling. "And Coach Stringer kept telling me, 'You're ready, you're ready, you're ready.'"

Here's the article: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncw/columns/story?columnist=voepel_mechelle&id=3170965.

Next, an article about the IU football team playing in the Insight Bowl tomorrow in Arizona. They dedicated the season to their late head coach Terry Hoeppner, who died last June from brain cancer. Here's a quote about IU kicker Austin Starr and Coach Hep:

The program from June’s “celebration of life,” is still in Starr’s locker in Bloomington. It’s the only one he owns, so he didn’t bring it to Phoenix.

He’s memorized the details of Hoeppner’s face printed on the cover, as well as the Jeremiah 29:11 passage his late coach loved.

Here's the article: http://www.eastvalleytribune.com/story/105458 (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/222).

Here's an article about Georgia head football coach Mark Richt, a Christian, and about how he's been more involved with the team as a whole this season. In past seasons he ran the offense, but he gave up that job late last season. The move has seemed to help him and the team as a whole: http://www.ajc.com/sports/content/sports/uga/stories/2007/12/28/bowlricht_1229.html.

Also, an article about Tennessee quarterback Eric Ainge, a Christian, and about how winning their bowl game, the Outback Bowl against Wisconsin on New Year's, will define his legacy at Tennessee. However, he wishes that his legacy would be something else. Here's a quote about that:

"Wins, rings, championships, all that kind of stuff, obviously that's what everybody wants, and I understand how it works," Ainge said. "But at the same time, being remembered as a good person who grew up at the university in the great place of Knoxville and used the system to my advantage and being a good teammate. That to me is what is most important."

Here's the article: http://www2.tbo.com/content/2007/dec/29/sp-ainge-looking-to-define-legacy/ (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/401).

Here's an article about Georgia defensive lineman Michael Lemon, who has had to deal with the death of his best friend a few years ago and the murder of his mother last winter. Here's a quote about how he's dealing with the deaths from their team chaplain Kevin "Chappy" Hynes:

"Michael Lemon is a very quiet, very introverted young man," said Kevin "Chappy" Hynes, the team chaplain. "I wouldn't say he's handling it well. I wouldn't say he's not. I don't know. I do know he's internalizing it."

Here's the article: http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/12/29/sports/FBC-Sugar-Bowl-Lemons-Burden.php (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/233).

Lastly, here's the NFL Wild Card Playoff games schedule for next weekend, for your information: http://www.nfl.com/schedules?seasonType=POST&season=2007#Week.

NFL, MLB, basketball, etc.

Hello. First of all, an article about LPGA golfer Lorena Ochoa, a Christian, winning the 2007 Associated Press Female Athlete of the Year Award: http://sports.espn.go.com/golf/news/story?id=3164961&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines.

Here's an article about Broncos kicker Jason Elam co-writing a Christian fiction book, Monday Night Jihad, along with his pastor Steve Yohn. He's used what he's learned while studying about the world's major religions through Liberty University to write the book about a Christian in espionage overseas. Here's the article: http://www.sportingnews.com/yourturn/viewtopic.php?t=321194.

Next, an article about Colts tight end Dallas Clark, a Christian, and how important he's been to the team's success since the start of last year's playoffs: http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/nfl/colts/2007-12-21-sw-dallas-clark_N.htm?csp=34.

Here's an article about ESPN's Stuart Scott, who is currently undergoing chemotherapy after cancer was found during an emergency appendectomy. The cancer was removed, but he's having chemo as a precaution. He's continuing to work some on NBA shows. Here's a quote from him about it:

"Talk about a shocker," Scott said. "But I feel good, am in great hands medically and the doctors are confident they got all the bad stuff. I'm not the type of guy to let this eat up my life. I've got strong faith and family and friends who are tackling this with me. I can't find the words to express how much I appreciate everyone's thoughts and prayers. I probably won't be able to get back to you all; but know it means a ton."

Here's the article: http://sports.espn.go.com/espn/news/story?id=3163058&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines.

Also, an article about former Mariners community relations staff member Kristen Bushnell, who left the team to work for the Christian organization Children of the Nations. The Mariners are working with her and the organization, including their front office and some of the players. Here's a quote about outfielder Raul Ibanez and pitcher J.J. Putz:

Ibanez and Putz are among the most give-back-to-the-community-minded players on the team, giving their time and significant amount of money to charity. Both are financial contributors to the Children of the Nations, and Putz said he and his wife, Kelsey, plan to get even more involved next year.

The organization works with orphans or underprivileged kids in Africa, Malawi, Uganda, and the Dominican Republic. Unfortunately, the article doesn't mention that it's a Christian organization. I checked it out on their website (http://www.cotni.org/), and this is what their mission says:

To provide responsible care to orphaned and destitute children by the equipping of nationals, giving children every possible advantage available to grow in a stable, Christ-centered environment, empowering them to be the leaders of tomorrow.

Here's the article: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071221&content_id=2335850&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb.

Here's an article about the IU men's basketball team helping out a family in the area who recently lost their home to a fire (including video of the news segment): http://www.theindychannel.com/sports/14908711/detail.html?rss=ind&psp=news.

Next, an article about Reds outfielder Josh Hamilton, a Christian, being traded to the Rangers last week before his second major-league season. It sounds like he's just what the Rangers were wanting and that he'll get a lot more playing time there. However, I'm kind of sad because we get over half of the Reds games on TV here in Indiana, but hardly any of the Rangers. He became one of my favorite players last season and it was nice to watch him last season. I'll just have to start following the Rangers now, I guess! Here's a couple of quotes from him:

... Hamilton missed 3 1/2 years from 2002-2006 because of his drug problems while going in and out of rehabilitation eight different times. He said he has been clean for over two years and his arrival in the Major Leagues last season appeared to be in the end of a long, hard road.

"I've never met anybody who hasn't made a mistake in the past or wrestled with demons," Hamilton said. "The main thing is you learn from it and you don't repeat it. I've taken some steps in my life to put God and my family first. I have a good support system in place and I'm very comfortable in saying that the past is in the past and the future is brighter.

"Now I really want to show these guys what I can do." ...

"Last year was a dream come true," Hamilton said. "I took a very different road to the Majors than most players, and that made it even sweeter. Before I was taking things for granted and going through the motions. When I finally got back, everything I did made me realize how fortunate and blessed I was."

Here's the article: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071221&content_id=2336081&vkey=hotstove2007&fext=.jsp.

Here's an article about Mavericks head coach Avery Johnson, a Christian, having his number retired by the Spurs, the team that he had the most success with as a player: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/basketball/nba/12/23/spurs.avery.ap/index.html?eref=si_topstories.

Also, an article about Cardinals outfielder So Taguchi, a Christian, signing with the Phillies as a free agent today: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071223&content_id=2336269&vkey=hotstove2007&fext=.jsp.

Lastly, Sports Spectrum has put on their website the Christian athletes that are in their January/February issue: Chargers runningback LaDainian Tomlinson, Hurricanes Dave Tanabe, Senators Dean McAmmond, Rangers Ben Walter, Boise State safety Marty Tadman, and Michigan State basketball player Allyssa DeHaan, among others. Here's their website: http://www.sportsspectrum.com/. Matter in fact, I'm watching Boise State play East Carolina in the Hawaii Bowl right now, and when they're on defense all I hear is Marty Tadman this and Tadman that. He's pretty good!

MLB, football, and more Tebow

Hi. I'm going to try and send two posts today, I still have so many articles left. First of all, an article about Pirates pitcher Salomon Torres, a Christian, being traded to the Brewers last week. We don't often think about how trades in sports effect the players and their families, but this article mentions how Torres is considering retirement over leaving Pittsburgh and either moving his family to Milwaukee or leaving them in Pittsburgh. Here's a quote from him about that:

"It's a giant move and I have to make a decision if I want to go forward," Torres told the newspaper. "This is going to change my life, my family's life.

"If I leave them here, they're going to have to be without me for a full year. If I take them with me, they're going to be affected."

Torres said he needed some time before making a final decision.

"I just need to talk to my family," he said. "I can tell you this: If I go to Milwaukee, I'm going to give my heart and soul to the Brewers."

Here's the article: http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=694529 (originally found at: http://mlb.mlb.com/pa/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071210&content_id=2322310&vkey=mlbpa_news&fext=.jsp).

Here's three articles about the Red Sox Holiday Caravan, which visited several Boston-area children's hospitals in three days. Those that took part in the caravan were pitchers Julian Tavarez, Bryan Corey, Kyle Snyder, outfielder Brandon Moss, bench coach Brad Mills, pitching coach John Farrell, and president/CEO Larry Lucchino. They also brought the World Series Trophy with them too. Here's the article from the first day: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071210&content_id=2322427&vkey=news_bos&fext=.jsp&c_id=bos, the second day: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071211&content_id=2322990&vkey=news_bos&fext=.jsp&c_id=bos, and the third day: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071212&content_id=2323758&vkey=news_bos&fext=.jsp&c_id=bos.

Next, an article about Florida State head football coach Bobby Bowden, a Christian, signing a new contract with indefinite one-year options last week. Also, offensive coordinator Jimbo Fisher will succeed him as coach, someday when Bowden retires. Here's the article: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071210/ap_on_sp_co_ne/fbc_florida_st_bowden_contract.

Here's another article about Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, a Christian, about him winning the Heisman Trophy recently and the possibility of him winning one or two more. Here's a quote about how winning the award won't affect him as a person:

The people that know him best don't think he'll have any trouble dealing with life as Heisman winner.

If anything, it will help him because it will allow the message he preaches to reach even more people.

"That's how we see it, as God's plan," Tebow's mother Pam said. "He's just had a plan all along, and Timmy's aware of that.

"All of us will sit on him if he does [have trouble dealing with the expectations]. We remind him all the time God gives grace to the humble. He's given you so much grace, don't blow it now."

Tebow is grounded by his faith, his parents and his boyhood idol, 1996 Heisman winner Danny Wuerffel.

Just listen to how he hopes people will remember him as the 2007 Heisman winner.

"You want people to remember you for the way you won it," Tebow said. "I don't think anybody besides [the media] will probably remember how many touchdowns he [Wuerffel] scored, but everybody remembers him putting his hands together and praying and always being humble and always with the utmost integrity."

Outsiders might be skeptical about Tebow's sincerity, especially when he talks about integrity and being thankful. But Howard is emphatic that Tebow, "is that guy.

"They always look for a flaw. I guess people don't want to have a real American hero. Tim Tebow is the real American hero and he's the real deal."

Here's the article: http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/121007/col_224212685.shtml (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/209).

Also, another article on Tebow winning the Heisman. Here's a quote from him about an interesting perk of winning the award:

Interestingly, now that he's a Heisman winner, Tebow has a lifetime vote and can cast a ballot for himself in 2008. Is it a definite vote for the Gator quarterback?

"It depends on what I do. I'm not going to be biased," he said without even a hint of a smile.

Here's the article: http://www.floridatoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071210/SPORTS/712100320 (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/209).

Here's a good article about Jane Hoeppner, the widow of the late IU head football coach Terry Hoeppner, including video of the news segment that the article is about: http://www.wishtv.com/Global/story.asp?S=7477445&Call=Email&Format=HTML.

Next, an article about the great season that Colts linebacker Gary Brackett, a Christian, is having this year, even though it hasn't been noticed in the Pro Bowl voting: http://www.indystar.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071211/SPORTS03/712110379/1058/SPORTS03.

Here's an article about new Mets catcher Brian Schneider's involvement with ALS fund-raising events, after his grandmother died from the disease: http://mlb.mlb.com/pa/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071211&content_id=2322759&vkey=mlbpa_news&fext=.jsp.

Also, a note from a blog post from Colts head coach Tony Dungy (a Christian) last week about his tight end Ben Utecht, also a Christian, and his part in a Christian Christmas concert:

On a note away from football, Ben Utecht is performing with Sandi Patty in her Christmas concert with the African Children's choir and is just great in a duet with Sandi. If you get a chance to see the show, it's tremendous.

Here's the post: http://www.mycolts.net/tonydungy/blogentry/de17ba18-1597-4f68-9a6b-ce6b005c5da2.

Here's an article about Reds outfielder Josh Hamilton, a Christian, being honored with "Josh Hamilton Day" in his home area in North Carolina last week: http://www.theledger.com/article/20071211/APS/712110868 (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/96).

Lastly, an article about Reds pitcher Aaron Harang donating money to the Miracle League in the Cincinnati area to help the baseball league for disabled children: http://news.communitypress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071212/NEWS05/712120342/1119/RSS1010 (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/96).

I'll try to post some more articles later to get caught up. Bye for now!

mostly Tebow, Tebow, and more Tebow

Hi. The one-year anniversary of my starting this blog was on December 12th, so this is the first post of my second year of doing this blog. I hope that you continue to enjoy my blog. I have several articles to post, so I'm going to divide them into more than one post. All the posts will include several articles on Florida quarterback Tim Tebow, a Christian, who won the Heisman Trophy last Saturday. Many of the articles I was able to find on the University of Florida page of the Total Sports Fan application on Facebook.

The first article is about the extra attention that Tebow's two brothers have been getting because of him. His brothers Peter, also a student at Florida, and Robby, the area director for The Fellowship of Christian Athletes, are both in the area and get mistaken for Tim. His two sisters, Katie and Christy, don't have the same problem, partly because they're both married and so no longer carry the last name. Also, Christy is a missionary in Bangladesh, so they don't know anything about football there. All of his siblings were able to join Tim and his parents in New York for the Heisman ceremony. Here's the article: http://www.jacksonville.com/tu-online/stories/120707/col_223504538.shtml (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/209).

Here's an article about Rockies infielder Jamey Carroll, a Christian, being traded to the Indians last week. Here's a quote from him about his time with the Rockies:

"I just feel blessed to have played here for two years," Carroll said. "I had the opportunity to play, then I had the opportunity to play in a World Series, even though we lost [to the Red Sox]. I wouldn't trade the time I shared with the Rockies in the clubhouse and with the fans for anything."

Here's the article: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071207&content_id=2320861&vkey=hotstove2007&fext=.jsp.

Next, an article about Brewers pitcher Jeff Suppan and his wife Dana (Christians) hosting a party for local kids. Here's a quote from him about giving back:

"Dana and I have been very fortunate and blessed in life, and we are happy to be able to give back to the community in this way," Suppan said when the event was announced. "We can't think of a better way to celebrate the holiday season than to do so with a group of children here in Milwaukee."

Here's the article: http://mlb.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20071208&content_id=2321417&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb.

Here's an article about Tim Tebow winning the Heisman Trophy last Saturday as college football's best player, including video of both his great acceptance speech and ESPN analysts talking about him getting the award afterwards. Here's a quote from Tebow's acceptance speech:

"I am fortunate, fortunate for a lot of things," Tebow said. "God truly blessed me and this just adds on. It's an honor. I'm so happy to be here."

Here's the article: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3146714&campaign=rss&source=ESPNHeadlines.

Also, another article about Tebow getting the Heisman. Here's a couple of quotes from him, the first about his role model Danny Wuerffel, a Christian who was the last Heisman Trophy winner at Florida and went on to play in the NFL:

"That means a lot," Tebow said. "When I was young, my family was looking for a good role model and we found Danny Wuerffel. He was a great role model for me and I thank for him that."

The second quote is a neat fact about the three Heisman-winning quarterbacks from Florida: Tebow, Wuerffel, and South Carolina head coach Steve Spurrier:

Florida's Heisman winners have something in common other than playing the same position. Spurrier's dad was a preacher, Wuerffel's an Air Force chaplain and Tebow's a missionary.

Here's the article: http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?SID=1144&CID=748803 (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/209).

Here's an article speculating on Tebow's chances of winning one or two more Heisman's, since he won his first as a sophomore. Here's a quote from his high school coach Craig Howard and how getting the Heisman won't change him:

"If anybody could win a Heisman as a sophomore and not let it go to their head as a junior, it's Timmy. He's so grounded," said Howard. "Winning the Heisman may be a life-changing moment, but it won't change Timmy. Tomorrow morning, he'll be in church. Tomorrow afternoon he'll be watching film."

Here's the article: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2007/writers/stewart_mandel/12/08/tebow.heisman.ap/index.html.

Next, a good article about Tebow originally posted last summer and republished after he won the Heisman. Here's a quote about the family's missionary work in the Philippines and other work closer to home:

In high school, Tebow spent three weeks of every summer doing missionary work in the Philippines, talking at schools and marketplaces and medical clinics with church groups. They were close to his favorite three weeks of the year, particularly the time he spent at an orphanage his father helped start in the 1990s.

"Everybody who goes, they come back different," he said. "You think you're going over there to help them, and they really in turn help you."

The orphanage, called Uncle Dick's Home for a friend of the Tebows who helped sponsor it, began when a mother in the area died in childbirth and the father ran away. Her grandfather took the baby and threatened to throw it in the river because he didn't want it.

When Bob Tebow heard about the impending tragedy, he set in motion a long, complicated process that ended in the orphanage opening several years later. That baby, named Queenie, was the first resident. She is in college in the Philippines after graduating No. 1 from her high school class. The orphanage has grown to 50 kids."

The stuff they've gone through is unimaginable and just heartbreaking," Tim Tebow said. "They are satisfied with what they have and are thankful for it. Material goods are not what make them happy. It puts things in perspective. Every day you can get caught up in little silly things, worrying about this and worrying about that. But when you think back about being with them, they have nothing and they never complain about it."

Although he has not done any fieldwork in the Philippines since arriving at UF in January of 2006, Tebow says his experiences there help his performance on the football field. Why would he get rattled in front of a 104,000 fans at Neyland Stadium when he realizes life has bigger issues?

"I want to win so bad, but at the same time you realize there are things more important than sports," he said. "That really helps keep me focused and allows me to not get too discouraged when bad things happen on the field."

He didn't leave his good works behind in the Philippines. Tebow likes to visit hospitals in Gainesville to talk to kids, and he used Florida's open date last October to comfort a dying child in Jacksonville.

Here's the article: http://collegefootball.rivals.com/content.asp?cid=748732 (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/209).

Here's a good article about Tebow, his family, and his choice to play at Florida over Alabama. Here's a quote from his mom Pam about Wuerffel, part of the reason why Tim decided to go to Florida too:

Tim became a huge fan at about the time Danny Wuerffel started playing quarterback for the Gators (1993) and Pam tried to make sure Wuerffel, a humble star and devout Christian, would be looked up to as a role model by her youngest son. It worked. Wuerffel was and is Tim's favorite Gator, Pam said.

"Danny Wuerffel taught him a lot about humility," Pam said. "He always deflected the praise and he never acted like he was better than other people. Those are the kind of things we taught our boys. Danny Wuerffel was a hero for Timmy.

"Danny spoke at our church (First Baptist in downtown Jacksonville) a couple of times, and Timmy got his autograph. He was a wonderful role model and he never disappointed us."

Here's the article: http://www.gatorsports.com/article/20071210/NEWS/71209024/1016 (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/209).

Next, another article about Tebow, and a couple of quotes from Tebow, the first one is about him being Superman:

"No, I'm not Superman," he confirms. ". . . I'll always just be Timmy Tebow."

The other quote from him is about his sister Christy, a missionary in Bangladesh:

... His sister Christy is a missionary in poverty-stricken Bangladesh. On the night before the Heisman, Tebow seemed more excited about his sister showing up than he was about the award itself.

"Christy has always been a leader for me and my brothers and sisters," Tebow says. "She's extremely talented and extremely bright and could have been very successful in any number of professions, but she chose to give all that up to go to Bangladesh and serve. What an inspiration she's been."

Here's the article: http://www.orlandosentinel.com/sports/college/gators/orl-bianchi0907dec09,0,2072154.column (originally found at: http://apps.facebook.com/sportsuperfan/teams/news/209).

Here's a good article about East Carolina fans buying tickets to their bowl game at the Hawaii Bowl and then dontating them to members of the miliarty stationed in Hawaii because not many East Carolina fans can go the game theirselves: http://sports.espn.go.com/ncf/news/story?id=3148094.

Also, an article by IU kicker Austin Starr's trip to Orlando for the College Football Awards show where he was nominted for the Lou Groza Award as the country's best kicker, which he didn't win unfortunately. Here's a quote from him about his trip with his parents:

Having my parents with me Sunday through Friday was a blessing and I appreciate the sacrifices they have made.

Here's the article: http://iuhoosiers.cstv.com/sports/m-footbl/spec-rel/120907aaa.html.

Lastly, an article including a quote of the first part of Tebow's Heisman Trophy acceptance speech from the Christian Sports Blog:

"Thank you. I'd just like to first start off by thanking my Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who gave me the ability to play football and he gave me a great family and a support group and great coaches, and everything around me."

Here's the article: http://www.christiansportsblog.blogspot.com/2007/12/tebow-acceptance-speech.html.

That's all for now! More tomorrow probably.