Browns trade Amari Cooper to Buffalo

       Two days after Kevin Stefanski reiterated the team's stance to continue with DeShaun Watson, the Browns then made a move that makes sense but at the same time throws the towel in on a disappointing 2024.

Cleveland traded Amari Cooper and the Detroit Lions' sixth-round pick in 2025 to the Buffalo Bills for a 2025 third-rounder and a seventh-rounder in 2026.

Cooper leads the Browns in receptions (24), receiving yards (250), and touchdowns (2), where he is tied with Rodney McLeod but Cooper has dropped several passes this season, his chemistry with DeShaun Watson has been questionable, and his effort hasn't been as expected as Cooper appeared to be bothered by his name being mentioned in a potential trade in the offseason with the San Francisco 49ers for Brandon Aiyuk

The Browns reworked Cooper's contract in the offseason to make him cheaper under their cap and if the team decided to move on from him during the year, his contract would be easier for a trading team to absorb under their cap.

The Browns will carry twenty-five million of dead cap space for the 2025 season due to trading Cooper but felt the third-round pick was worth the dead cap hit.

If the Browns were 3-3, I'd wonder about the trade but at 1-5 for a player that isn't playing well for a team that would need a miracle to move into the playoff race, I'm ok with it.

The Raiders got a 3rd, that would become a 2nd if conditions were met for Davante Adams, so getting a third for Cooper is good value.

The problem is this- for the uneven play the Browns received from Cooper this season, he was still the team's biggest threat and most consistent pass catcher.

This moves Jerry Jeudy to the number one receiver spot, a role that he didn't flourish in for Denver, and someone who has played well in only one game this season and Cedric Tillman would move into the starting lineup.

Tillman is the player who dropped a pass thrown right to him that ended the Browns hopes of a late comeback against the Giants in the first of four consecutive defeats.

Elijah Moore has been invisible and rookie Jamari Thrash hasn't been active all season and they will be in the third and fourth roles.

This wasn't a good group with Amari Cooper, it's downright dreadful without him.

Another question is just what the Browns are thinking for the season.

If they are committed to winning and they say DeShaun Watson gives them the best chance to win, why would you move his most dependable (for what that's worth) skill player?

If you are committed to a rebuild, I understand the trade but if you aren't, it doesn't make sense unless you were convinced that a third-rounder was the ceiling for Cooper's trade value and were afraid that Buffalo would acquire someone else in the interim, which would reduce a potential return.

While I am usually in favor of non-contenders building their draft arsenal by moving players before the deadline, this time my thoughts are these.

1) Who or any of the Browns brain trust (and I use that very loosely) will be using these extra picks and could this be an attempt to sell Jimmy Haslam on giving any or all another chance to rebuild.

2) Do you really trust Andrew Berry/Paul DePodesta to draft well with these picks?

Considering the picks sent to Houston, this draft is extremely important to the Browns to bulk up the roster, and considering that Berry has drafted one offensive starter in his four drafts (the mediocre tackle Jedrick Wills) and only one impact player period (Jeremiah Owosu-Koahmoah in the second round in 2022), do you trust Berry and DePodesta to make these selections?

Berry has been fairly shrewd in his trades (not counting the awful deal for Watson), including the one that landed Amari Cooper to start with, but his drafting has ranged from average at best to awful, especially with his wide receiver and offensive line picks, do you trust him?

My answer for now is no.

Boxing Challenge: Japanese Super Cards!

     The two night boxing extravaganza from Tokyo with seven world championships at stake had a little of everything over the two evenings.

A dominant knockout from the best boxer on the card, two champions losing their titles in upsets, vacant titles were filled, and competitive bouts showcased the best fighters in Japan, except for the very best- Naoya Inoue.

The biggest star retained his title on Monday as Junto Nakatani blasted Petch Sor Chitpattana out in six rounds to keep his WBC bantamweight title.

Nakatani was the one prohibitive favorite of the seven championship events and he followed up with an impressive performance in winning every round before the stoppage.

The lean Nakatani could move up to junior featherweight and a mega match against undisputed junior featherweight king Naoya Inoue and that may have been sped up a bit after the result of the Sunday main event where the Monster's brother Takuma Inoue was upset by Seiya Tsutsumi and lost his WBA bantamweight strap along with a possible unification match with Nakatani.

Tsutsumi's aggressive attack reminded me of WBA featherweight champion Nick Ball and while Inoue was competitive, he was unable to slow Tsutsumi down and lost a lucrative potential fight with Junto Nakatani.

Tsutsumi scored a knockdown in round eleven for the highlight before the reading of the cards, which read 117-110, 115-112, and a surprisingly close 114-113.

My score for Tsutsumi was 116-111 and I'll be very interested in the new champion's first title defense.

The junior bantamweight division had only one title match and it saw a new champion walking away with a title-winning surprise as Phumelele Cafu upset Kosei Tanaka via split decision.

The fight was filled with exchanges and excellent stages for both men with the difference coming in round five with Cafu landing a punishing counter-right that knocked down Tanaka.

The knockdown made the difference for Cafu who won on two cards (and mine) at 114-113 with Tanaka winning on the other card at 114-113.

Had there not been a knockdown, Tanaka would have retained his title by a Majority Decision Draw.

I would not be against these two hooking up in a rematch soon.

Three of the four flyweight world titles were on the line over the two days.

Former unified junior flyweight champion Kenshiro Teraji won the vacant WBC title by battering former champion Cristofer Rosales into submission when the doctor stopped the fight before the start of round eleven.

Rosales was brave in taking his beating but Teraji's varied attack was more than Rosales could handle at this stage of his career.

Says here that I'd favor Teraji against anyone in the division, he's that good.

Seigo Yuri Akui retained his WBA version of the title by a split decision over Thananchai Charunphak.

Another tight battle that I could use close either way.

Scores for Akui at 117-111 and 115-113 with the dissenting score of 115-113 for Charunphak.

I scored 115-113 for Akui.

The WBO title held by Anthony Olascuaga remained with him after a first-round head clash opened a cut over Jonathan Gonzalez's eye, which resulted in a no-contest.

One junior flyweight title was filled when Shokichi Iwata won the vacant WBO belt by stopping Jairo Noriega in the third round.

Noriega won the first two rounds but Iwata knocked Noriega down twice in round three, the second knockdown dropping him face-first for the finish,

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica: 147 Pts (4) 

TRS: 141 Pts (5)

Vince Samano: 86 Pts (6)

Browns fall in Philly 20-16

      The Cleveland Browns didn't produce an offensive touchdown and as a result, the Browns lost another winnable game. this one to the Philadelphia Eagles 20-16 in Philadelphia.

Myles Garrett blocked a Jake Elliott field goal late in the first half and Rodney McLeod ran fifty yards with the recovery for the Browns only touchdown. Dustin Hopkins kicked three field goals to complete the Cleveland scoring.

The Browns dropped to 1-5 and will return to Cleveland next week after losing all three games of their road swing to play the Bengals.

Brownie Bits

1) There will be more talk from the press and the fans about the future of DeShaun Watson as the starter but Kevin Stefanski immediately stated following the game that Watson would be starting against the Bengals next Sunday.

I wonder about the crowd reception after these miserable three losses.

2) Watson did have a few highlights as his final drive bullet to Amari Cooper was drilled where it needed to be and he completed eleven of twelve passes in the second half but once again, Watson finished with less than two hundred yards passing.

3) I'm tired of writing this every week (but not as tired as I am of watching it)  but I still don't have a grasp on what the major factor is in why the Browns just aren't able to generate chunks of yardage.

Watson's inaccuracy, Watson's arm strength, wide receivers' inability to separate and their speed, and the offensive line's problems in protecting him, all contribute to this problem- I'm just not sure what can be fixed first.

4) The offensive line took another hit when center Nick Harris broke his fibula on the third play of the game.

Harris was starting in place of the injured Ethan Pocic and his injury forced Michael Dunn, who was starting at right guard rather than backup Zac Zinter, who had been ineffective in place of injured Pro Bowler Wyatt Teller, to shift to center and Zinter returned to the field.

5) Cleveland did receive some long-awaited help on the offensive line with the return of Jack Conklin at right tackle.

Conklin tore his left knee in the 2023 opener and hadn't played since.

Assuming Conklin can stay on the field, the line will be helped.

6) Myles Garrett didn't have a sack but he did have two tackles for loss and his block of a Jake Elliott field goal attempt led to the only Browns touchdown.

Garrett's athletic ability for a man of his size astounds me and it's always been reported how much Garrett loves basketball, which makes sense considering how he leaps!

7) Rodney McLeod's touchdown from the blocked field goal by Myles Garrett had to feel good for the former Eagle and it was his second touchdown of the season.

8) Rodney McLeod, a veteran defensive back, is tied for the team lead in touchdowns after six games.

That is how historically terrible the offense has been,

9) The Browns did use the running game a bit more than they previously had, finishing with one hundred yards as a team, forty-three of those for Pierre Strong.

10) The Browns lost Jerome Ford to injury after two carries but the Browns will return Nick Chubb to the field next Sunday, so the depth will not be affected. Ford is the most effective of the pass-catching backs though and would remove a target that DeShaun Watson looks for when he checks down.

11) I still can't believe the third quarter play call by Kevin Stefanski on a third and one.

After bringing Jameis Winston in for the QB sneak, which I have no problem with considering the size difference and the condition of Watson's shoulder, Stefanski called the number of wide receiver Cedric Tillman and on the replay, you hear a player screaming "It's coming to me".

That man was Brandon Graham, who was sitting in a spot where Tillman ran at him with Graham slamming Tillman to the ground for a five yard loss.

12) That play call resulted in a fifty-two-yard field goal try by Dustin Hopkins into a left-to-right wind that pushed the attempt wide of the goalposts.

13) If the draft was held today, Cleveland's first-round pick would be first overall as the Browns schedule is the third weakest in the league to date.

And they are 1-5.

Boxing Challenge: Beterbiev bumps Bivol

    The long-awaited light heavyweight unification match between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol may not have been a firefight but it was a fascinating technical battle at the highest level that the sport can offer and at the end of twelve closely-matched rounds, it was Beterbiev who emerged with the narrow victory and adding the fourth (WBA) title to his three (WBC, IBF, WBO) and the title as the undisputed best in the division.  

The fight's scoring has been criticized but I scored it 114-114 which agreed with one judge and the others giving an edge to Beterbiev 115-113 and 116-112.

Beterbiev threw over two hundred more punches and landed the stronger shots but Bivol landed six more punches overall for a higher percentage. 
I thought it was even but if I am forced to choose, I would lean towards the more aggressive Beterbiev.

Beterbiev went the distance for the first time in his career after twenty knockouts in his previous twenty fights, while Bivol suffered his first defeat.

I would not have an issue if someone scored Bivol a close winner and a rematch seems to be the main money fight for each man as neither is likely to move to cruiserweight and Bivol's loss may render him uninteresting for Canelo Alvarez, now that Bivol does not hold a title.

The undercard was pretty mundane with one exception as Fabio Wardley conclusively finished his rivalry with Frazer Clarke with a stunning first-round knockout.

The two hooked up in a sensational war in March that was scored a draw but this one ended when Wardley hurt Clarke with a right hand and sent him to a knee in the corner in no condition to continue.

An excellent win for Wardley, who will move up in the ratings after a spectacular victory.

Jai Opetaia retained his IBF cruiserweight title with a sixth-round stoppage of Jack Massey.

Opetaia was well ahead on my card when Massey's corner threw in the towel.

Opetaia is the top cruiserweight currently and I would love to see him against the winner of this fall's unification match between WBA champion Gilberto Ramirez and WBO king Chris Billam-Smith.

Middleweight Chris Eubank Jr, knocked down Kamil Szeremets three times before stopping him in the seventh round of a middleweight mismatch.

In Nagoya Japan, Masamchi Yabuki won the IBF junior flyweight title with a ninth-round stoppage of Sivenathi Nontshinga.

Yabuki, the former WBC champion in the division and the only fighter to defeat Kenshiro Teraji knocked down Nontshinga late in the eighth round and was dropped twice in the ninth round before the referee ended the fight.

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica; 143 Pts (6)

TRS: 136 Pts (6)

Vince Samano: 80 Pts (4) 

Not what Quacked up to be- Oregon 32 Ohio State 31

     The Ohio State Buckeyes came to Eugene Oregon with the reputation of an offensive machine that was able to outscore anyone.

They left with the knowledge that they were good enough to beat anyone but any team can be felled on a particular day, as the Oregon Ducks slipped by the Buckeyes 32-31 to end hopes for an unbeaten season.

Will Howard threw two touchdown passes and 326 yards but Howard's game will be remembered for the final play rather than anything else he did.

Jeremiah Smith caught nine passes for one hundred yards and a touchdown but his day will be remembered for an offensive pass interference call that took Ohio State out of field goal range and led to the eventual time running out for OSU at the Oregon 25.

Ohio State falls to 5-1 overall  (2-1 in the Big Ten) and will be off next Saturday before hosting Nebraska.

Olentangy Offerings

1) Here's my number one takeaway.

Ohio State took the best shot of an excellent team, complete with fluke plays (the onside kick in the first half) trick plays, that had home field three time zones away and lost by one point.

Any loss isn't a good loss but all things considered, if Oregon emptied the tank under those conditions, I like Ohio State's chances in a likely rematch in Indianapolis.

2) Will Howard played well and I'm going to not baste Howard over the scramble that saw time expire before using what would have been Ohio State's final timeout.

I understood what Howard was trying to do, get close enough to make a field goal attempt plausible, he simply made an error with the time.

3) BUT the problem is this- Ohio State brought Howard to add experience to the position from someone who had been in situations before, and he came up short.

4) Ohio State was moving the football and was in field goal range before an offensive pass interference call on Jeremiah Smith turned a nine-yard gain into a fifteen-yard loss.

While I did think Smith pushed off and the call was fair, one can question the call late in a game, considering the field position, etc.

The penalty was fair but I do question a little why the flag was thrown.

5) The surprising part of the game for me?

Oregon's speed at receiver was better than I expected against the Buckeye secondary.

It wasn't only the multiple big plays for touchdowns, it was how many additional big plays could have occurred if not for errant throws from Dillon Gabriel.

6) Oregon attacked cornerback Denzel Burke all evening with multiple receivers for chunks of yardage all night and the thought that I couldn't remove was Burke losing NFL draft status and money with each long completion.

Hopefully, this was a bad matchup or bad evening for Burke because if Oregon has discovered a weakness in Burke's game, it won't be bad only for Burke, it will be bad for the Buckeyes.

7) I'm still not sure if the first-half onside kick by Oregon was deliberate or not.

It was kicked very hard and could have been intended to get downfield as a squib kick with the Buckeyes unfortunate to have someone get in the way.

If it was a called play, it makes me question why more teams don't try the "bullet kick" more often.

8) Pro and Con on defense.

Pro- they needed a stop on Oregon's final drive and held them to a field goal, which placed Ohio State in a spot where a field goal would win the game, not a touchdown

Con- they needed one stop, allowing Oregon to move seventy-five yards for the field goal and win.

9) Classy move by Oregon's Traeshon Holden to spit over Ohio State's Davidson Igbinosun.

Holden was rightfully ejected.

10) Defense allowed over five hundred yards of offense, and didn't record a sack or turnover.

11) Ohio State took a loss on the offensive line with tackle Josh Simmons suffering a season-ending injury.

I always hate the term "next man up" because usually, the next man isn't as solid as the man down.

The offensive line was the biggest question mark entering the season and losing Simmons doesn't help.

12) Ryan Day is now 1-7 against top-five teams.

Just for the record, not that Day had a glaring mistake in this loss.

13) I'm surprised about two things on the day after.

The first is the glee that some media is taking in this loss, notably CBS in this article.

The other is from Buckeye Nation. Yes, there are things to clean up, and yes, this game was there to be won, but in the playoff era, one loss doesn't kill your hopes.

All things considered, a one-point loss to the third-ranked team in the country on the road isn't a devastating defeat.

However, the buffer is now gone- any loss from here on out will be a season-ending one.

Boxing Challenge

     Tokyo, Japan is the place to be for boxing on Sunday and Monday with two cards filled with world title matches that will hopefully lead to bigger fights in 2025.

This will be a just the facts version but the best of Japanese boxing (Other than Naoya Inoue) will be in action on these cards with seven world titles at stake, ranging from the junior flyweight to the bantamweight division.

Sunday Card

WBA Bantamweight Title. 12 Rds

Takuma Inoue vs Seiya Tsutsumi

Ramon Malpica: Inoue KO  10
TRS and Vince Samano: Inoue Unanimous Decision

Vacant WBC Flyweight Title.12 Rds

Kenshiro Teraji vs Cristofer Rosales

R.L and TRS: Teraji Unanimous Decision
V.S: Teraji KO 7

WBA Flyweight Title

Seigo Yuri Akui vs Thananchai Charunphak

All:  Akui Unanimous Decision

Vacant WBO Junior Flyweight Title. 12 Rds

Shokichi Iwata vs Jairo Noriega

All: Iwata Unanimous Decision

Monday Card

WBC Bantamweight Title 12 Rds

Junto Nakatani vs Petch Sor Chitpattana

R.L: Nakatani Unanimous Decision
TRS: Nakatani KO 4
V.S: Nakatani KO 5

WBO Junior Bantamweight Title. 12 Rds

Kosei Tanaka vs Phumelele Cafu

R.L and V.S: Tanaka Unanimous Decision
TRS: Tanaka KO 9

WBO Flyweight Title. 12 Rds

Anthony Olascuaga vs Jonathan Gonzalez

All: Olascuaga Unanimous Decision

Boxing Challenge

     It's a huge few days in boxing with perhaps the best fight in the game finally happening and then two cards from Japan with several title bouts over the following two days.

From Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, a fight that many thought may never happen finally will as light heavyweight champions Artur Beterbiev (WBC, IBF, WBO) and Dmitry Bivol (WBA) clash on ESPN+.  

The last unification fight that had been this awaited and was thought to be a pick 'em fight, was last summer's welterweight unification between Terence Crawford and Errol Spence and while that one was one-sided in the ring, I don't think this one will be.

Bivol is currently the favorite by the slimmest of margins but it's very even in the eyes of most observers.

Bivol is considered the more rounded of the two and owns the best victory with his decision victory over Canelo Alvarez while Beterbiev is the feared puncher who has won every fight by knockout and has unified three of the four titles.

I can imagine Bivol outboxing Beterbiev over twelve frustrating rounds and I can imagine Bivol building a lead and Beterbiev grinding forward and breaking Bivol down in a late-round knockout.

Two things that could decide this fight that aren't getting attention.

One- Beterbiev was a decorated amateur with an Olympic background, he's not a crude bomber and is a much better boxer than people think.

Two- I remember Bivol wobbling badly late in his fight against Joe Smith.

Smith is an excellent puncher but he's no Beterbiev, I think Beterbiec eventually gets to Bivol and takes him out - but I wouldn't bet on it!

The undercard consists of a world title, a rematch of a terrific fight earlier this year, and a squash match.

The co-feature is the worst of the three on paper as Chris Eubank Jr faces Kamil Szeremeta in a twelve-round middleweight pairing.

Eubank Jr. last fought in September 2023 when he avenged his loss to Liam Smith with a tenth-round knockout, while Szeremeta has five wins and a draw against non-entities since his back-to-back losses to Gennady Golovkin and Jaime Munguia.

The anticipated match on the undercard is the rematch between unbeaten British heavyweights Fabio Wardley and Fraser Clarke of their dynamic war that ended in a draw in March.

If the rematch is even close to the action of their first battle, we will have a great fight!

I thought Wardley won the first fight but Clarke is capable of reversing that on Saturday.

The world title fight will feature the best cruiserweight in the world defending his title as Jai Opetaia defends against Jack Massey.

Opetaia defended his title in May against the fighter he won the title from, Mairis Bredis, by unanimous decision, while Massey earned the title chance with a mild upset over Isaac Chamberlain in June.

Saturday's fight from  Nagoya Japan will match Sivenathi Nontshinga against Masamichi Yabuki for Nontshinga's IBF light flyweight title.

Nontshinga regained the title in February from Adrian Curiel, stopping him in round ten.
Yabuki holds the only win over the sensational Kenshiro Teraji, defeating Teraji for the WBC title via tenth-round KO in 2021 before Teraji crushed him in three rounds in the rematch.

Yabuki has won his three fights since the Teraji loss, so he's rebounded well from the defeat.

I hope to do a preview of the Sunday and Monday cards from Tokyo but with Beterbiev-Bivol, Ohio State-Oregon, and Browns-Eagles, that may be a just the facts prediction post.

Boxing Challenge

Unification WBC/IBF/WBO- WBA Light Heavyweight Titles. 12 Rds 

Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol

Ramon Malpica and Vince Samano: Bivol Unanimous Decision
TRS: Beterbiev KO 10

Middleweights. 12 Rds

Chris Eubank Jr. Vs Kamil Szeremeta

R.L: Eubank Unanimous Decision

TRS: Eubank KO 5

V.S: Eubank KO 6

Heavyweights. 12 Rds

Fabio Wardley vs Fraser Clarke

R.L: Wardley KO 7

TRS: Wardley Split Decision

V.S: Clarke Unanimous Decision

IBF Cruiserweight Title, 12 Rds

Jai Opetaia vs Jack Massey

R.L: Opetaia KO 6

TRS: Opetaia Unanimous Decision

V.S: Opetaia KO 4

IBF Junior Flyweight Title. 12 Rds

Sivenathi Nontshinga vs Masamichi Yabuki

R.L and V.S: Nontshinga Unanimous Decision

TRS: Yabuki Split Decision

PPM

    After a crazy college football weekend last week, we move to another action-packed trip to the PPM. 

Last Week: 9-4

Overall: 63-21

College 

Ohio State over Oregon 27-17

Boise State over Hawaii 52-20

Louisiana Tech over Middle Tennessee State 21-18

Northern Illinois over Bowling Green 27-24

UTSA over Rice 34-24

Oregon State over Nevada 40-17

N.C.State over Syracuse 28-24

Georgia Southern over Marshall 31-28

Games of the Week

Texas over Oklahoma 35-24

LSU over Ole Miss 28-24

NFL

Eagles over Browns 27-13

Games of the Week

Ravens over Commanders 24-20

Saints over Buccaneers 28-26

I Tell Ya' Herbie

    After what might have been the craziest weekend ever for heavy underdogs defeating highly ranked favorites, we return with our notebook on college football- I Tell Ya' Herbie.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                            That was one crazy Saturday as four top ten teams lost, including number one ranked Alabama and three of the four losing to unranked teams, with the fourth losing to 25th ranked Texas A&M.

I'm sure that hasn't happened often and in the playoff era, none of the losses will eliminate any of those team's chances for the new postseason.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                            Both sides of the argument on the mighty SEC.

One side says the SEC is down with Alabama, Georgia, Ole Miss, Missouri, and Tennessee losing in the last two weeks and only Georgia's close loss to Alabama as a defeat that didn't come with a gasp and a question mark.

The other is the conference is becoming more balanced as Vanderbilt (Alabama), Kentucky (Ole Miss), and Arkansas (Tennessee) as middle-of-the-pack teams to bottom dwellers dropping conference blue bloods prove that there is some catching up going on in the SEC.

My answer? I think the lower teams playing at home are gaining a little bit compared to the past as only Kentucky's win over Ole Miss was on the road but you will still have to prove to me in crunch time that SEC teams not named Alabama or Georgia are head and shoulders over the mid-range schools.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             It'll be interesting as the CFP evolves to see how schools such as Ole Miss, Tennessee, Missouri, and Texas A&M are graded when the season ends.

I'd think 10-2 will be enough for most SEC ( and Big Ten) teams to get in but if you are 10-2, lack big wins, and lost to Vanderbilt and Arkansas, are you an automatic entrant?

I could see that happening more often than not but not always as time goes on.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                            This likely moved under most radars as two mediocre teams in Temple and Connecticut battled in Storrs, CT with an incredible ending.

Connecticut leads 23-20 with three seconds remaining but Temple has the ball on a fourth and goal from inside the Huskies one-yard line.

Temple tries a quarterback sneak, and just as it seems the Owls quarterback is going to break the plane of the goal line for a win, the ball pops up. UConn takes the ball ninety-nine yards for a score, giving them a 29-20 win.

The win moves UConn to 4-2 and in a position to make six wins for a bowl appearance.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                              Things are falling into place for the ACC for two teams in the CFP despite extremely disappointing seasons from Florida State and N.C.State.

Miami rallied from a huge deficit to nip California on the road to remain unbeaten, and Clemson has taken care of their business since their opening loss to Georgia.

Pittsburgh is still unbeaten and SMU has one loss, a three-point loss to unbeaten BYU.

The best news is for Miami, who doesn't play any of those three, and if they can get by Louisville this weekend on the road, the Hurricanes look to have a chance to win out.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             The Group of Five with the biggest surprise has to be the 5-0 starts by Army and Navy that have both at the top of the AAC.

Navy has the more impressive wins with a win over pre-season favorite Memphis and road wins over UAB and Air Force.

Both teams will meet Notre Dame later in the season, so it's unlikely that both teams will be unbeaten entering their season-ending clash in December but imagine the stakes for the game if both teams could manage to be unbeaten.

The December 14th game is the only game on the schedule, and should the dream seasons continue for both, the game could have not only the Commander in Chief trophy at stake, the game would decide the AAC champion, and perhaps put the CFP on hold waiting for who might receive the Group of Five automatic bid.

                            

                            

                            

                            

Road Trip: Florence

   The final day of the trip involved more antique stops for the collection, a stop for dinner, and another park checked off the ballpark passport. 

We started the day with a trip that hadn't been planned originally.

I had thought since we had until the 6 PM start for the baseball game, that it might be interesting to travel to Indiana or Kentucky to the nearest large antique mall and see what they had to offer.

Those two states were intriguing as I was hoping to find some ABA items as both states had teams in the league as well as looking for the usual that I look for.

The decision was Indiana and Exit 76 Antique Mall in Edinburgh, Indiana and I'm glad we had extra time because the GPS took us through about every farm road in the state, which meant we spent about an hour more than we would have needed to arrive via the highway!

This was another excellent Antique Mall and I found a few things that I was looking for - including one that was placed back for a Christmas present (I reserve the right to edit this in a few months to insert the item)!

I did find several programs with the jewel being a 1975-76 Indiana Pacers media guide from the team's final ABA season!

I liked the price even better at three dollars and I added two 1993 NCAA regional programs, several Pacers programs from the eighties, and a 1985 Indiana State vs Evansville basketball program all at fifteen dollars for the bunch.

There was one other thing that I saw early in our visit and was considering purchasing but I forgot about it and I wish I wouldn't have!

I did buy one other item as there were two drinking glasses from Shakey's Pizza with characachers of Richard Nixon (red) and George McGovern (blue) from the 1972 presidential election.

I was tempted to buy both but the Nixon didn't even remotely resemble him, so I only purchased the McGovern glass.

After leaving Exit 76, we stopped in Columbus, Indiana, just outside the state capital of Bloomington and the home of the University of Indiana.

The lunch choice was Jaggers, a regional fast-food chain.

I ordered a burger with egg and ham (I can't remember the name on the menu) with fries and the young lady behind the counter started raving about their chicken, which she claimed was "better than Chick-fil-A", so I ordered it as well.

Well, she was wrong as they were overcooked and scrawny to boot.

It was too bad because the burger was pretty damn good.

By the time we arrived in Florence, Kentucky, we had an hour to kill so I ran into a Target looking for a Cincinnati Reds T-shirt for Cherie.

They didn't have a wide selection, so I would stop and find her one at a Walmart after the game before we left town.

The Florence Ya'lls are a team in the independent Frontier League and are named after the city water tower.

The story goes that the tower had the local mall's name on it but the city changed it to Ya'll due to legal concerns.

The Ya'lls open their ballpark very early, so we were able to go inside and check out the team shop (no baseballs for sale, which was the second time this season that a team shop didn't sell baseballs) for a bit before the players come out to the field.

Thomas More Stadium was in nice condition but nothing stood out as particularly unusual and it seemed pretty typical of a stadium built in its time (2004) with one exception.

Florence, Kentucky is located on the opposite side of the Ohio River and is the location of the Cincinnati area airport, so there is the unusual slice of attending a Ya'lls game as you constantly see (and hear) airplanes taking off and landing.

It's pretty loud and even though it's been years since my concussion, loud noises like that still bother me and while the locals are used to it, it wasn't pleasant for me!

After a quick stop at a nearby Walmart for Cherie's Reds shirt, we headed home with only stops for stretching the legs and bathroom breaks until hitting the homestead.

Florence was the final stadium that I visited for the first time this year, bringing my total to 89.

New Stadiums this year included Worcester, Portland, Somerset, Omaha, Dayton, Cincinnati, Florence, and the new park in Hagerstown.

The trips for next year are unknown as it's becoming more difficult to find parks that are close enough to do in a day.

One trip in the works would add the final minor league stadium on the east coast, New Hampshire, and add it to Fenway Park in Boston.

Once I add New Hampshire, I would have every park from Maine through North Carolina except for two parks in the New York City area (Brooklyn and Staten Island) and I find it unlikely that I go through the hassle of NYC traffic for those two parks.

The nearest stadiums to the south that I would need would be (whichever is closer to these) a new park in Spartanburg, Columbia, Charleston, or Myrtle Beach in South Carolina, while the closest to the west would be one of these Indiana facilities- Indianapolis, Fort Wayne, or South Bend.

I still have one more trip to write about before concluding the summer road trip series and I'll be working on that in the future!

Boxing Challenge: Ball batters Rios

   Saturday afternoon in  Liverpool, England, Nick Ball battered Ronny Rios for ten rounds before Rios's corner stopped the fight in round ten to retain his WBA featherweight title.

Ball overwhelmed Rios with his normal tornado-like attack that the aging Rios tried to defend against but was unable to deflect the aggressive Ball's punches.  

Ball almost finished Rios in the third round when he knocked down the veteran and had him on the verge of a stoppage.

Ball would knock Rios down in the seventh before delivering a fierce battering to Rios in the tenth, knocking him through the ropes with Rios rolling under the lower rope and rising to his feet but his corner surrendered for their fighter.

Give Rios credit for an incredibly brave effort in his third and likely final chance at a world title, as he could have packed it in on several occasions but battled on and gave it everything he had.

As for Nick Ball, he has put himself in the Honorable Mention consideration for fighter of the year with his title-winning split decision over Raymond Ford in a great fight, a draw against Rey Vargas for Vargas's WBC title in which Ball dropped Vargas twice and this win over Rios.

Ball would make interesting fights against any of the other champions Rey Vargas (WBC), Angelo Leo (IBF) Rafael Espinoza (WBO), or Robeisy Ramirez, should Ramirez defeat Espinosa in their rematch later this year.

A fight against minor beltholder Brandon Figueroa would be an almost guaranteed war and Raymond Ford certainly deserves a rematch should he decide to stay in the featherweight division.

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica: 137 Pts (1)

TRS: 130 Pts (2)

Vince Samano: 76 Pts (1)

Browns wiped out in Washington 34-13

   The Cleveland Browns needed a win in the worst way as they traveled to Washington to meet the suddenly resurgent Commanders.

They leave town with their head down, a season in disarray, and with many questions, including the direction of the franchise after a 34-13 defeat.

The offense was terrible, receiving only one touchdown, a fourth-quarter garbage time pass from DeShaun Watson to Jordan Akins.

The standout for Cleveland was Jeremiah Owosu-Koahmoah, who finished with a sack, forced fumble, interception, and another pass knocked down.

The Browns drop to 1-4 with the loss and finish their three-game road swing in Philadelphia next week against the Eagles.

Brownie Bits

1) DeShaun Watson did throw the aforementioned touchdown as the game wound down.

He also finished with 125 passing yards without a completion of longer than nineteen yards.

2) Watson was sacked seven times and while he didn't throw an interception, Watson's refusal to get the ball out quickly continued to end drives before they began.

I seem to write this every week!

3) The offense is so broken that I could comment on several factors.

A lack of commitment to running the ball even a little, Watson's inaccuracy downfield, the receiver's inability to get open beyond ten yards, the problems with the offensive line (although Wyatt Teller's absence is a factor, and questionable game decisions all contribute.

4) The wide receivers are a major problem as for the second off-season in a row, Andrew Berry made a trade to add a disgruntled and disappointing receiver from another team and then stopped his work in place, thinking that he had improved the position enough.

Elijah Moore (Jets 2023) and Jerry Jeudy (Broncos 2024) haven't been awful but they haven't been difference-makers either.

Moore caught three passes vs Washington for a whopping eleven yards, while Jeudy caught one pass for sixteen and dropped a would-be touchdown pass in the end zone.

At least, the Browns can escape Moore, who is a free agent at the end of the year, Jeudy was signed to an extension by Andrew Berry before he had played a snap in Cleveland.

5) DeShaun Watson was sacked seven times as I mentioned above but the offensive line has to take some blame as well.

The Browns have been without Jack Conklin and Wyatt Teller, which certainly doesn't help, but they don't drive block on the run and or protect Watson well.

Dawand Jones has taken a step back after a promising rookie season and Jedrick Wills should be shown the door at the end of the year rather than be re-signed.

6) Jeremiah Owosu-Koahmoah's stats for the game are listed above but his interception at the goal line in the first half was the type of reception that you would expect from a tight end, not a linebacker.

JOK is one of the few Browns that is playing as expected in the first five games of the season.

7) Corey Bojorquez averaged over fifty yards on his seven punts and dropped two inside the five.

It's a long day when the punter was the top offensive threat.

8) The Browns rushing numbers were inflated during garbage time but Jerome Ford and D'onta Foreman combined for ninety-one yards on eighteen carries.

The numbers are deceiving but better than expected.

9) David Njoku returned to the field after missing the last three games and on the first offensive play, caught a pass for fourteen yards.

Njoku would not catch another pass in the game.

10) Myles Garrett was controlled by Washington as Garrett would not only finish the game without a sack, he didn't even notch a tackle.

When your best defensive player has so little impact on the game, it's always a tough day.

11) The wheels have clearly come off the wagon for the Browns.

The problem is this- what can really be done to stem the tide?

Kevin Stefanski could allow offensive coordinator Ken Dorsey to call the plays rather than Stefanski and the Browns could try Jameis Winston at quarterback and bench DeShaun Watson.

Neither of those is likely to happen.

Stefanski's ego won't allow Dorsey to call plays because Stefanski believes that's his domain and starting Winston will appear that the Browns are blaming Watson (fairly or unfairly) for all their woes.

And when you make the move to sit Watson, whenever that is, you have to be prepared to make the decision stick because if Winston succeeds, a situation develops (as in the Joe Flacco case) that any eventual move to return Watson to the lineup will be highly unpopular with the fans.

If Winston doesn't play well, going back to Watson wouldn't be appreciated by anyone, and even Watson would be unlikely to be thrilled by that position.

In other words, unless the Browns and DeShaun Watson as currently constructed can improve their play, The Browns are at checkmate. 

Buckeyes oust Iowa 35-7

    Emeka Egbuka caught three of Will Howard's four touchdown passes as Ohio State pulled away in the second half to earn a convincing 35-7 win over the Iowa Hawkeyes at the Horseshoe in Columbus.

Howard scored the only rushing touchdown to complete Ohio State's scoring.

Ohio State improved to 5-0 overall, 2-0 in the Big Ten, and will face their toughest opponent to date next Saturday night against unbeaten and third-ranked Oregon in Eugene.

Olentangy Offerings

1) Ohio State's defense was devastating against the Iowa offense, which isn't stellar but they have an excellent running back in Kaleb Johnson, who finished with eighty-six yards on fifteen carries.

Johnson's average was over five yards a carry but it's slightly inflated with one rush of twenty-eight yards.

2) Sonny Styles had a slow start to the season but I thought Styles played very well against Iowa and was a key player in holding Kaleb Johnson in check.

Styles is a work in progress as he learns the linebacker position but there are going to be some excellent times as he matures.

3) Ohio State led only 7-0 at the half even though the Buckeyes moved the ball consistently through the half.

4) That happened as Iowa stopped Ohio State on a fourth and one, Will Howard was intercepted once, and Jeremiah Smith fumbled after a long gain.

Those are little things that will need to be touched up but it did allow Iowa to stay competitive in a half that OSU essentially controlled.

5) Jack Sawyer's third-quarter strip-sack of Cade McNamara was the key play in the game.

Ohio State scored on the first possession of the second half and Sawyer's sack and turnover quickly led to another score and the rout was on.

6) And it's time for our weekly Jeremiah Smith highlight with full Dick Enberg "Oh My"!

Smith is in the corner of the end zone and as he leaps, the Iowa cornerback in great coverage, pins Smith's left arm against his body, so Smith just jumps into the air and grabs it anyway with his right hand.

Incredible!

7) Emeka Egbuka grabbed three scores and Iowa had their share of difficulty covering him as well.

Egbuka isn't nearly as spectacular as Smith but he's going to be a fine pro.

8) Really liked the grey jerseys.

Normally, I'm not a fan of the alternate togs but these were okay once in a while.

9) Yes, Will Howard threw an interception but he completed twenty-one of twenty-five and was involved in each score-I'm good.

10) Howard also has rushed for a touchdown in each of the last four games.

11) Oregon will be a tough out on the road and the Ducks are certainly capable of winning but I watched their game against Boise State, which went all the way down to the wire in a 37-34 Oregon win and Ashton Jeanty rushed for 192 yards and three scores.

Jeanty is a special back but Quinshon Judkins and TreVeyon Henderson certainly aren't plowhorses.

I think OSU runs the ball well on the Ducks and opens things up for the best wide receiver group in the nation and allowed them to notch a close win in Eugene. 

PPM

       Moving into yet another week of the PPM with football action!

Last Week: 11-5 

Overall: 54-17

College

Ohio State over Iowa 34-10

Arizona over Texas Tech 34-24

Boise State over Utah State 44-17

N.C.State over Wake Forest 35-19

Bowling Green over Akron 36-21

Oregon State over Colorado State 24-14

Tennessee over Arkansas 35-21

Games of the Week

Missouri over Texas A&M 26-20

SMU over Louisville 39-37

NFL
Commanders over Browns 28-17

Games of the Week

Chiefs over Saints 31-24

Bengals over Ravens 27-24

Premier League

Newcastle United over Everton

Championship

Norwich City over Hull City

Boxing Challenge: Alimhhanuly toys with Mikhailovich

   The build-up for the fight for the IBF middleweight title was fierce complete with threats to kill the opponent across the ring.

It didn't play out that way, instead, we saw one of the more vicious beatings in recent years as Janibek Alimkahnuly brutalized Andrei Mikhailovich for nine rounds in Sydney, Australia to retain his IBF title.

Mikhailovich landed a sharp right hand near the end of round one and it appeared that he was going to perhaps test the champion, who defended his IBF title and not his WBO version, on the evening.

It was round two that will be memorable as Alimkhanuly pounded Mikhailovich. On several occasions, the fight could have been stopped if the champion turned up the pace but instead, he would gesture and back off the gas, only to return to the attack to rip the challenger further.

As it was, the second round knockdown was the only one until the ninth, when Alimkhanuly closed the evening as the rounds in between were Alimkhnauly landing at will, Mikhailovich fighting bravely and landing the occasional right hand and little else.

Alimkhanuly called for fellow champions, Carlos Adames (WBC) and Erislandy Lara (WBA). However, both fight for PBC and neither would bring the attention or purse that would make PBC likely to work with Top Rank for a unification fight.

The best fight in the division would pair Alimkhanuly against unbeaten power puncher Hamrah Sheeraz, which could happen as Top Rank (Alimkhanuly) and Sheeraz (Queensbury) work together often.

Boxing Challenge

Ramon Malpica: 136 Pts  (1)

TRS: 128 Pts  (2)

Vince Samano: 75 Pts (0) 

I Tell Ya' Herbie

   Our weekly look at college football, I Tell Ya' Herbie starts (pause) now.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             One tweak that I would make to the college football playoff would be that the fifth conference champion (Group of Five) receives the fifth seed.

Most likely, the committee will place that team as the twelfth and last seed, which means that the team will likely wind up on the road as the second-best SEC team.

Do I think that putting that same game at home would change the result?

Probably not but the best at-large team wouldn't be the final seed, it would give the G-5 team a better chance and either the G-5 or last seed would be guaranteed to advance, creating the possibility of a Cinderella to the Final Four.

If that's too much to ask, I'd be willing to compromise and require the G-5 participant to be given no lower than the eighth seed, which guarantees their representative a first-round home game.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                            I don't think he has a prayer of winning but it would be nice if Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty would be among the participants invited to New York City for the Heisman announcement.

Jeanty has destroyed opponents, rushing for 845 yards and thirteen touchdowns in four games, which includes 192 yards and three touchdowns against a top ten team in Oregon and Saturday's 259 yards and four scores against previously unbeaten Washington State.

Assuming Jeanty keeps this level of production and barring injury, that should happen, he deserves that recognition by the national media.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             I didn't think the video review of the Hail Mary would have given Virginia Tech a walk-off win over Miami was conclusive enough to change the on-field call but you are extremely naive if you think that Miami playing at home had nothing to do with the change.

No one will ever admit that (as in the Pittsburgh-Oakland Immaculate Reception game in 1972) but it's true.

I didn't think there was evidence to overturn the call, mainly because there wasn't a good view of the ball, which I would have felt the same way if the review was to change from no-catch to catch.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             The best race for an automatic bid might be the Big 12, where the three teams who were favored in the preseason all not only have September losses, they have in-conference losses!

Kansas State lost to BYU last week, Utah lost to K-State on Saturday, and Oklahoma State has lost to both of the aforementioned teams.

This opens up the longshot possibility that if say the Big 12 has three losses, could a Group of Five team such as a one-loss Boise State or UNLV or an unbeaten James Madison or Liberty have any chance of grabbing a fourth seed and therefore a first-round bye?

It would take some luck but not out of the question.

I Tell Ya' Herbie:

                             The Mountain West added their seventh school bringing their conference in a tie with the Pac 12 in the league's race to eight members that would play all sports with the announcement that UTEP will leave Conference USA to join their league.

The Miners are an excellent fit for the Mountain West, having competed against several schools in the league when UTEP was a member of the WAC, the forerunner of the Mountain West but was left out of the new league.

UTEP re-gains some rivals from years past such as Wyoming and New Mexico and will save money on travel by leaving the far-flung CUSA.

Earlier in the day, The Pac-12 added Gonzaga in all sports but football, in which the Zags do not field a team.

While that is quite a coup in basketball, Gonzaga will not count toward the Pac-12's needed number of eight schools because Gonzaga doesn't play football.

Texas State has been approached by both leagues, according to reports but is rumored to prefer the AAC to either league as that conference has three Texas schools in their league.

Boxing Challenge

       The boxing weekend is sparse but there will be two world title bouts, one on Friday, the other on Saturday, and both on ESPN+.

Friday morning from Sydney, Australia, Janibek Alimkhanuly will defend his IBF middleweight title against Andrei Mikhalovich in a fight that was scheduled earlier in the summer but was postponed when Alimkhanuly was unable to make the weigh-in due to severe dehydration.

Alimkhanuly also holds the WBO championship but that title is not on the line as that organization does not rank the unknown Mikailovich, who hasn't beaten anyone that I've heard in his twenty-three wins without a defeat.

Alimkhanuly hasn't fought in a year since stopping Vincent Gualtieri in six rounds last October to add the IBF title to the WBO belt that he held entering the match.

Alimkhanuly has impressed in his title reign but this is a difficult fight to really choose because we know nothing about Mikhailovich, who is Russian-born, fights out of New Zealand but has fought often in Australia,  for this undeserved opportunity.

It's not unusual to see boxers who have fought in obscurity to make a spectacular world debut, so while Alimkhanuly deserves to be a prohibitive favorite, I'd be hesitant to give Mikhailovich zero chance due to the unknown factor.

Saturday's title battle is from Liverpool, England where Nick Ball will defend his WBA featherweight title for the first time against veteran Ronny Rios.

Ball almost won the WBC title earlier this year from Rey Vargas in a fight scored a draw in March but rebounded in winning the WBA title in June in a sensational battle by a split decision over Raymond Ford and could cap a terrific year with a defense over Rios.

Rios has fought only one time since he was stopped in the final round by Murodjon Akhmadaliev in an attempt to win the IBF junior featherweight title in 2022.

Rios has been knocked out in three of his four losses but always has shown grit, so this should be entertaining for as long as it lasts.

Boxing Challenge

IBF Middleweight Title. 12 Rds 

Janibek Alimkhanuly vs Andrei Mikhalovich

Ramon Malpica: Alimkhanuly Unanimous Decision
TRS: Alimkhanuly KO 6
Vince Samano: Mikhailovich Unanimous Decision

WBA Featherweight Title. 12 Rds

Nick Ball vs Ronny Rios

R.L and V.S: Ball Unanimous Decision
TRS: Ball KO 9 

Road Trip: Cincinnati

      Upon waking up for day two, I had a general idea of how the early part of the day would be spent.

The morning portion would be in Fairfield, Ohio.

If that sounds familiar, it should as it was the first stop on the Omaha trip earlier in the summer. 

This meant a return to Jungle Jim's International Market, which entails plenty of food shopping to bring home for myself and others.

I've written plenty about Jungle Jim's in the past and all I can say is- you have to experience it to truly understand just how massive the inventory at Jungle Jims truly is.

We drove up the highway for a stop at the Ohio Valley Antique Mall, which Cherie and I drove by on the Omaha trip but we didn't stop so we could hit Hoosier Gym in Indiana.

Ohio Valley was top-notch and I saw a few things that I considered purchasing but walked away without buying anything- although I have some items in mind for my possible return this year!

We decided to drive back to Florence and our hotel but first, we stopped by a place that I had visited before on a trip with Ryan- the replica of Crosley Field, the home of the Cincinnati Reds until 1970.

The town of Blue Ash constructed a scale replica of the dimensions of Crosley Field including a replica scoreboard, an original ticket booth, and some of the original seats at one of their recreational areas.

I find it interesting that near the Crosley location is a field based on Riverfront Stadium to the dimensions of that former Reds home with artificial turf (or a lookalike) as its surface.

We slowly found our way across the Ohio River to Florence and decided to eat (since we hadn't all day) at a place close to the hotel, so we could rest a bit.

The pick was Ford's Garage, a chain based in six states, and one that I had never heard of before.

The motif is automotive with the wait staff wearing mechanics uniforms, and several cars around the building, and the chain has a licensing agreement with the Ford Motor Company to use their name and iconic logo.

I ordered a cheeseburger and they used a brand to place the restaurant logo onto the bun, which I thought was interesting.

After a short respite at the hotel, we drove back to Cincinnati for my first visit inside Great American Ballpark, the home of the Cincinnati Reds.

Ryan and I had stopped by on the mentioned trip earlier but only to check the outside of the stadium as there wasn't a game that day.

One thing that works against me going to major league games is the long walks to get anywhere near the ballpark.

Between my age and weight that gets harder every year but while the walk was lengthy, I don't think I did too badly and I didn't feel any pain from the walk.

When you walk up to GAP, the statues are all in front of the stadium, with a massive team store on the property but not as part of the stadium.

The stadium looms large in front of you as you walk up making it look even larger than it is!

Because we were only watching a few innings and wanted to get back before dark, we bought cheap seats in the upper deck.

I'm odd about heights, I don't mind once I'm at my destination but I'm uneasy about the climbing portion, I'm always worried about tumbling over, and that has been a concern of mine going back to childhood.

The Reds hosted the St.Louis Cardinals and hit three home runs, two by Spencer Steel, in a 6-1 win.

We didn't stay for the entire game as mentioned but we did see all three homers and all the runs that were scored in the game.

I liked Great American Ballpark, maybe a little better than Cleveland's Progressive Field but not as much as Pittsburgh's PNC Park.

The sight lines were good and I've always liked the right field stands overlooking the Ohio River from television viewing.

After we returned to the hotel and rested for the evening, we prepared for the final day of the trip which will include a stop at the independent Frontier League' Florence Ya'lls.

Cleaning out the Inbox: Passings

 Another edition of tributes to those who have recently left us is due, so let's get started.

Goodbye to Al Attles at the age of 87. 

Remembered by most for coaching the Golden State Warriors (in some of the loudest 1970s outfits ever) to the 1975 NBA title with a four-game sweep of the favored Washington Bullets.

Attles spent his entire career with the Philadephia/Golden State Warriors after being drafted in the fifth round in the 1960 draft from North Carolina A&T.

Attles played eleven years for the Warriors as a defensive specialist and point guard and was the Warriors player-coach for the final two seasons of his playing career.

Attles later served as the team's general manager and assistant coach and served the organization in various roles for over sixty years.

Goodbye to Richie Sandoval at the age of 63.

Sandoval was a member of the 1980 Olympic boxing team that boycotted the games due to the decision of then-President Jimmy Carter to protest the Soviet Union's invasion of Afghanistan.

Sandoval won his first twenty-two fights before upsetting long-reigning and future hall-of-famer Jeff Chandler for the WBA bantamweight title with a fifteenth and final round knockout in 1984.

Sandoval defended the title one time but his problems making weight led to him fighting his next four fights at featherweights in non-title fights.

Sandoval was weight-drained and took several attempts to make the weight in a title defense against Gaby Canizales in March 1986 on a pay-per-view card headlined by Marvin Hagler's final successful title defense over John "The Beast' Mugabi.

Sandoval was viciously knocked down five times in seven rounds with the final knockdown causing Sandoval to lose consciousness for three minutes and eventually needing life-saving brain surgery.

Sandoval was offered lifetime employment by his promoter, Top Rank, on the condition that he never fight again, to which Sandoval agreed and never fought again.

Goodbye to Kevin Long at the age of 69.

Long was the first player to rush for over 1,000 yards in a season in South Carolina history, accomplishing this in 1975.

After being selected by the Jets in round seven in 1977, Long spent five seasons with the Jets with 1978 as his career season, rushing for 954 yards and ten touchdowns.

Long moved to the USFL in 1983, spending all three seasons with the franchise that was in Chicago as the Blitz in 1983, the Western Conference champion Arizona Wranglers in 1984, and the league's final season in Arizona with the merged Wranglers/Oklahoma Outlaws.

Long rushed for over one thousand yards for both the Blitz and Wranglers in his seasons with those teams.

Goodbye to Joe Schmidt at the age of 92.

A Hall of Fame linebacker for the Detroit Lions, Schmidt played thirteen seasons, winning the two most recent NFL championships for the franchise (1953 and 1957), made ten Pro Bowls, and was named All-Pro eight times.

Schmidt was named the Lions head coach in 1966, just one season after retiring, and would be the Lions head man until being fired after the 1962 season.

Schmidt finished with a record 43-34-7 with the Lions and made the playoffs in 1970.

Schmidt was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1973.

Goodbye to Al McCoy at the age of 91.

The voice of the Phoenix Suns for fifty-one seasons, McCoy was the final NBA commentator to have his game calls simulcasted for radio and television as the league would no longer allow simulcasts in the mid-2000s and his Phoenix tenure is the longest in NBA history for a commentator.

McCoy is the only radio commentator who I would put in the same class as Cleveland's Joe Tait, as the elite of the business.

McCoy moved to the Phoenix market before the creation of the Suns franchise as the voice of the AAA baseball Phoenix Giants and would work for the Arizona Diamondbacks for the first four seasons of the Diamondbacks' existence.

Goodbye to Mercury Morris at the age of 77.

The three-time Pro Bowl running back won two Super Bowl rings with the Miami Dolphins and for the 17-0 1972 Dolphins, Morris led the NFL in rushing touchdowns, rushed for exactly 1,000 yards, and with Larry Csonka, the duo became the first set of teammates to rush for 1,000 yards in a season.

Morris finished his career with an average of 5.1 yards per carry which ranks in the top ten in NFL history as of this writing.