However, Martinez was forced to withdraw because of influenza, and the fight was canceled.
This leaves the boxing challenge for 2024 complete as follows
TRS: 190 Points
Ramon Malpica 186 Points
Vince Samano: 116 Points
Tuesday, December 31, 2024
Boxing Challenge
Monday, December 30, 2024
Sad Browns sunk by Dolphins 20-3
Dorian Thompson-Robinson finished with 170 passing yards with an interception and a lost fumble.
Jerry Jeudy caught twelve passes and ninety-four to lead the position players.
Cleveland floats to a 3-13 record in a hopeless universe and will travel to Baltimore next Saturday to conclude a dreadful campaign.
Brownie Bits
1) Enough of this nonsense that Dorian Thompson-Robinson needs to play to "see what he has"!
I wrote last week about this but the fact was driven home again against the Dolphins.
They know what he has.
2) All of that said, it doesn't hurt anyone to start him in Baltimore.
The Ravens have a division title to lock down and are motivated to crush the Browns after losing to them in Cleveland, and it doesn't matter who the Browns start at this point.
The Browns can start DTR, Jameis Winston, or Bailey Zappe (who lit up the Browns in 2022), you can make a case for starting any of the three, and the Browns still aren't winning although I would rate Winston, Zappe, and then DTR if making a list of most likely to shock the world.
3) I complained last week about Jerry Jeudy's lack of looks (three targets, two catches for twenty yards) during the loss to Cincinnati.
In typical Browns fashion, DTR threw to Jeudy eighteen times, completing a dozen, which seemed a bit much but credit for trying to get Jeudy the ball at least.
4) The Browns look like the same listless team that dug a deep hole with DeShaun Watson.
No one gets down the field, and the quarterback can't get them the ball if they did and you get this weird offense that throws the ball a lot (47 attempts in the loss) yet never seems to get anywhere with the Browns longest passing gain of the day, a mere eighteen yards to Jerry Jeudy.
5) The loser in the passing game with the increased Jeudy use?
Elijah Moore caught one pass of five thrown to him for one yard.
6) The Browns tried fourth down on four occasions and failed on each of them.
7) Miami didn't light the scoreboard up but it had to be rewarding for their winning quarterback Tyler Huntley, who the Browns released following training camp to keep Dorian Thompson-Robinson.
Huntley completed twenty-two of twenty-six passes and threw a touchdown in a win.
8) Myles Garrett sacked Tyler Huntley twice and became the first player to have fourteen or more sacks in four straight seasons.
It's quite an achievement for Garrett but I could have done without the dancing considering the Browns were down ten points when Garrett dumped Huntley.
9) Entering the season, cornerback Martin Emerson was seen as a possible franchise cornerstone with an extension offering as a formality after the season.
Instead, Emerson has struggled and is easily the team's biggest disappointment on defense.
Emerson intercepted a pass against Miami but grabbed the ball by committing one of the worst pass-interference penalties, as he just eliminated Jonnu Smith from the play in the second quarter.
In the third, Emerson grabbed Tyreek Hill's facemask in another ridiculous penalty, indicative of his regression this season.
10) Good news department- Dustin Hopkins made a kick! Hopkins made his only attempt with a twenty-five-yarder in the second quarter.
Who says I am always negative?
11) I think the Browns have a bright spot in recent weeks as Isaiah McGuire has shown potential as a pass rusher.
McGuire played well against Kansas City two games ago and has collected sacks against Cincinnati and Miami.
It'll be interesting to see if the Browns give the 2023 fourth-rounder a chance for a starting position at defensive end in 2025.
12) This was an awful football game and I'm torn about which will be better to watch- the ineptness but reasonably close game as this one (the game was ten points or less until the middle of the fourth quarter) or the likely blowout game this Saturday vs Baltimore in which the game will be lopsided but you'll see some strong play from the Ravens?
Sunday, December 29, 2024
Cleaning out the Inbox
13th Dimension writes of the opening of the first museum devoted to the Batman 1966 television series.
Located in Logansport, Indiana, the museum possesses items from the show, reconstructed sets, and a theatre.
This is worth the stop for the photo ops alone from the photos in the article!
ESPN writes of former Oklahoma and Dallas Cowboys head coach Barry Switzer's life in Norman, Oklahoma as the unofficial "King of Norman".
Switzer, Jimmy Johnson, and Pete Carroll are the only men to win a Super Bowl and a collegiate national championship.
In recent years, Switzer discovered that he had a daughter that he had never known, and is spending much of his time with here among his many interests in the Norman area.
The Barry Switzer story has to be read to be believed and is the greatest sports biography documentary or scripted film waiting for someone to make.
The next three notes are all from The Athletic.
The Premier League continues to move further south with fewer and fewer teams from the North side of the country.
Other than Newcastle (the northernmost city in England), the three other teams nearest the Magpies have been relegated, Sheffield United and Burnley last year and Leeds two seasons ago.
For the first time since the Premier League began, there are only five teams in the Northern half of England, Newcastle, Liverpool, Everton, and the two Manchester squads
The Buffalo Bills and Detroit Lions played an epic game a few weeks back and this article deals with two Rust Belt towns still seeking a Super Bowl trophy along with some famous names in sports with connections to both cities.
Names such as Bob Lanier, Dominik Hasek, Pat LaFontaine, and Chris Spielman are among the many with a background in both areas with arguably the most influential person, former Bills owner Ralph Wilson, a Detroit resident who owned a minority share of the Lions but unable to gain controlling interest, purchased a charter franchise in the AFL and didn't know where to base his team.
Wilson picked Buffalo after he couldn't use the Orange Bowl for his team's home stadium and pulled out of Miami.
The final word from the Athletic writes of the school with the surprising lead in the best transfer portal class- the Texas Tech Red Raiders.
The article discusses the Tech NIL operatives, who and how they look at potential recruits, how quickly Tech moves on players they want to sign, and how the entire collective works together to energize the Red Raiders, who finished 8-4 this season before a Liberty Bowl loss to Arkansas.
TechSpot writes of a small Indiana bakery that is still using the Commodore 64 as its cash register!
The 64 RAM Commodore (hence the name) has more than enough processing power to run a cash register and was released in 1982 with updates discontinued in 1994.
Ryan sends word of a fire that burnt down the four-story Morrison Hotel in Los Angeles, which is famous for the backdrop of The Doors "Morrison Hotel" album in 1970.
The hotel had been vacant for over a decade and was being used by squatters and homeless and LA firefighters have used it as a training site.
The story behind the album cover is that a clerk had told the group that they weren't allowed to take photos but when the clerk was called away from his desk the group jumped into the lobby into place for the photo taken through the window by famed rock photographer Henry Diltz.
Saturday, December 28, 2024
PPM
Last Week: 9-8
Overall: 150-80
College
CFP
Ohio State over Oregon 34-31
Boise State over Penn State 23-20
Texas over Arizona State 33-24
Notre Dame over Georgia 21-17
Fenway Bowl
North Carolina over Connecticut 32-19
Pinstripe Bowl
Nebraska over Boston College 27-17
New Mexico Bowl
TCU over Louisiana 45-28
Pop Tarts Bowl
Miami Fla over Iowa State 27-21
Arizona Bowl
Miami Ohio over Colorado State 41-35
Military Bowl
East Carolina over N.C. State 23-20
Alamo Bowl
Colorado over BYU 39-36
Independence Bowl
Army over Louisiana Tech 40-21
Music City Bowl
Iowa over Missouri 20-17
Reliaquest Bowl
Alabama over Michigan 35-17
Sun Bowl
Louisville over Washington 39-28
Citrus Bowl
South Carolina over Illinois 36-17
Texas Bowl
LSU over Baylor 29-24
Gator Bowl
Ole Miss over Duke 49-28
NFL
Dolphins over Browns 24-10
Dolphins over Browns 24-10
Games of the Week
Packers over Vikings 34-31
Commanders over Falcons 27-21
Thursday, December 26, 2024
I Tell Ya' Herbie
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
None of the first-round games were competitive, which might lead some to think that there aren't twelve teams capable of winning the national title, and they would be correct.
However, sixty-eight teams aren't capable of winning the NCAA basketball tournament either, and that hasn't stopped the tournament from expanding in size or popularity.
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
In fact, the next change in the field won't be shrinking the field, it will be increasing it to sixteen and will open the door to a change that would be great for the CFP.
The field would stretch to sixteen with the first and second rounds played at home with rotating bowl games hosting the semi-finals and the championship.
Moving the first two rounds to home sites would spice up the games and give teams an advantage in having better regular seasons.
It also would be easier for fans to travel to fewer games on the road as most of the home teams would be favored.
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
The biggest chuckle that I received from Bill Belichick's hiring at North Carolina (besides the joke of Belichick going to UNC because he was looking for an older woman, the coach is dating a young lady in her mid-twenties) came from the rumor mill after the Tar Heels fired Mack Brown and were rumored to be looking for a younger coach.
Belichick is one year younger than Brown.
I think UNC hiring Belichick would have been a massive coup before NIL began but Belichick's rings won't have the effect on high school players looking for the NIL number that it would have in the past.
Plus, Belichick is making a huge mistake in bringing Michael Lombardi as the general manager in charge of personnel for recruiting both high schoolers and transfer candidates.
Long-time readers may remember my opinion of Lombardi from his failed tenure with the Cleveland Browns.
I don't think Belichick will be a total failure and I wouldn't be surprised to see him take North Carolina (depending on the length of his stay) to the CFP but I don't see them as a true title contender.
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
I know the first-round games weren't close and I wonder how close the quarter-finals will be.
Arizona State finished the season red hot but drawing Texas might be more than they can handle and while I think Boise State could surprise Penn State, the Broncos will be underdogs as well.
Boise State did take Oregon to the wire on the road, so I could see Boise State surprising the oddsmakers but they will have to play with few mistakes to do it.,
Ohio State will be motivated to beat Oregon and talent-wise are capable of doing so but their inconsistency makes them dicey to count on.
Notre Dame is being touted as perhaps dropping Georgia but they seem one-dimensional to me and that might play right into the Bulldogs hands.
I think chalk will play predominately again in this round but I think at least one, if not two underdogs will win this week.
Wednesday, December 25, 2024
Merry Christmas
It's a strange one for me and I can't quite figure out why.
It hasn't felt like a holiday throughout the season and while I can't say it's been a bad holiday, it hasn't been a special one either.
I do have some things (nothing that is Earth-shattering) that I will be writing about soon and I have a post or two planned to review a few weekend trips to note some finds for the collection.
I hope the few of you who read this regularly enjoy your holidays and know that you are appreciated by your humble author.
Tuesday, December 24, 2024
Cleaning out the Inbox: Passings
Goodbye to Bill Melton at the age of 79.
The 1971 American League home run champion ad the first White Sox player to hit more than thirty homers in a season, Melton hit eighty-nine homers from 1969-71 and appeared to be a star in the making before a back injury in 1972 suffered when he attempted to break his son's fall from a roof changed his career.
Melton was out of baseball by age thirty-two and became a popular studio analyst on White Sox television broadcasts for years.
Melton was the White Sox's all-time leader in homers at the time of his retirement and currently stands eighth on the team's list.
Goodbye to Michael Cole at the age of 84.
Known best for his role as "Pete Cochran" on the ABC series "The Mod Squad" from 1968 to 1973, Cole would continue his career through 2008 as a character actor and stints on soap operas.
The Mod Squad featured three young people who worked undercover for the police in return for their previous crimes being forgiven and it was a popular program in the days of the counterculture.
Goodbye to Israel Vasquez at the age of 46.
Vasquez held the WBC junior featherweight title on two occasions and the IBF title once in an exciting career, but he is remembered more for his classic four-fight series with Rafael Marquez. Two of their first three fights were named the fight of the year, and the other fight may have also won had it not been in the same calendar year as one of the others.
The two fighters split the four fights but the fourth fight is usually overlooked as Vasquez suffered a detached retina in their third bout and should have retired before that fight.
Vasquez retired after suffering a third-round knockout loss to Marquez officially tying the set at two wins apiece and unofficially being rated as one of the most savage rivalries in boxing history.
Goodbye to Dick Van Arsdale at the age of 81.
A three-time All-Star, Van Arsdale played at Indiana with his twin brother Tom and made the All-Rookie team with the Knicks in 1965 after New York picked him in the second round.
Van Arsdale would play three seasons with New York before the expansion Phoenix Suns used their first pick in the veteran expansion draft on him and were rewarded with three All-Star appearances in the team's first three seasons.
Van Arsdale would finish his career with the Suns in 1977. He would later serve as general manager, director of player personnel, head coach for the final portion of the 1987 season, and the long-time color analyst on Phoenix radio broadcasts.
The Suns retired Van Arsdale's number five after his retirement.
Goodbye to Al Fitzmorris at the age of 78.
Fitzmorris spent most of his career with the Kansas City Royals, winning 31 games for the Royals in 1975 and 76, and was rewarded by not being protected in the 1977 expansion draft for Toronto and Seattle.
Toronto grabbed Fitzmorris and quickly traded him to Cleveland for catcher Alan Ashby but in a year and a half with the Indians, won only six games with an ERA of nearly six, and was released during the 1978 season.
Fitzmorris would sign with the Angels and after nine games to finish the season with California, would never pitch in the majors again.
Goodbye to Lemon Drop Kid at the age of 28.
The 2000 Eclipse Award as Older Male Horse, Lemon Drop Kid won the Brooklyn, Suburban, and Whitney Handicaps along with the Woodward Stakes as a four-year-old (all in New York) on his way to winning the Eclipse but notched two big victories as a three-year-old, winning the Travers and Belmont Stakes (Both in New York) .
Lemon Drop Kid's Belmont victory spoiled the Triple Crown bid of Charismatic, who suffered a career-ending injury in the homestretch and finished third. More attention was given to the sad injury than Lemon Drop Kid's victory.
Lemon Drop Kid spent his entire stud career at Lane's End Farm in Kentucky, siring over one hundred graded stakes winners worldwide.
Monday, December 23, 2024
Boxing Challenge: Usyk repeats win
It was similar to the first match as Fury banked some early rounds and Usyk slowly wore the much larger man down winning most of the final two-thirds of the bout.
The problem that Tyson Fury has with Oleksandr Usyk is this- all of the skills that have made Fury an excellent champion are skills that Usyk possesses and better.
All three judges scored Usyk a winner 116-112, the same as mine, and I think this is the consensus score.
If you give every remotely close round to Fury, you might get to a draw but even that feels wrong.
Usyk was challenged by IBF champion Daniel DuBois after the fight and it came off especially classless, especially since Usyk knocked out DuBois last year and DuBois has a difficult title defense in February against Joseph Parker on tap.
Fury can always fight Anthony Joshua for a big payday and draw a stadium-sized crowd in the UK, so I wouldn't think his career is over.
In the other challenge bouts, promising heavyweight Moses Itauma impressively mowed down Demsey McKean in one round, and junior middleweight Serhii Bohachuk defeated Ishmael Davis when Davis's corner stopped the fight after the end of the sixth round.
Boxing Challenge
TRS: 190 Pts (6)
Ramon Malpica: 186 Pts (2)
Vince Samano: 116 Pts (0)
Bengals claw Browns 24-6
Alas, Don'ta Foreman fumbled before he reached the end zone to end the drive and the Browns would finish the first half with a little over twenty yards of offense (other than Ford's run) for the first half in a 24-6 loss to the Bengals.
Jerome Ford finished with ninety-two yards rushing and the Browns only touchdown to lead the Cleveland offense, which started Dorian Thompson-Robinson and was rewarded with a Watsonesque one hundred fifty-seven passing yards and two interceptions.
Cleveland slips to 3-12 in defeat and will play their final home game next week against the 7-8 Miami Dolphins.
Brownie Bits
1) During the CBS broadcast, sideline reporter Aditi Kinkhabwala reported that she had spoken with Jimmy Haslam before the game and that Haslam was overwhelming in his praise towards Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry and that the Browns won't be making any front office changes.
2) When you watch something this dreadful in such a painful season and that's the news that breaks?
It's just head-shaking in how utterly lost this franchise currently is.
3) Myles Garrett's sack of Joe Burrow was number one hundred for his career, which gave Garrett the honor of being the youngest player to reach that number.
Earlier this year, Garrett became only the second player (Lawrence Taylor) ever to finish with over ten sacks for five consecutive seasons.
4) I'm not against the Browns starting Dorian Thompson-Robinson in the final two games of the season.
The Browns need to earn draft position and then pray that Andrew Berry is somehow unable to reach the draft room in any capacity to do anything smart but the first step of the journey is be as bad as you can
5) Can we please dispose of the narrative that the Browns "Need to see what they have in DTR" now?
It's not hard to see what they have- a strong runner without a good arm, slight frame, gets knocked around easily, and tries to make plays with his legs which often results in turnovers.
DTR is the type of player that dazzles in pre-season against lesser talented opponents but his shortcomings are glaring when he plays in regular season games and with his style, I'm fine with him as a third quarterback if your wagon is hitched to a DeShaun Watson type passer.
If you don't use that type of quarterback, DTR, I hear Winnipeg is lovely at this time of the year.
6) The Jerome Ford run on the Browns first offensive play for sixty-six yards was over three times the number of yards the Browns would gain for the remainder of the first half.
7) Don'ta Foreman fumbled the football inches away from crossing the goal line to ruin the first Browns drive.
Interesting note on Foreman, he's been healthy and Cleveland had used him on the inactive list for the previous five games.
8) The constant talk about Jerry Jeudy's leap in production should now cease as Jeudy finished with only two catches for twenty yards but the takeaway for me was that Jeudy was only thrown to three times.
The common thread? No Jameis Winston.
9) The off-season extension to Dustin Hopkins continues to age poorly.
Hopkins, who was given last week off to work on his mechanics, had one attempt in Cincinnati and he missed an extra point.
10) The Browns did have one chance to get back into the game as Dorian Thompson-Robinson scored a touchdown on a scramble but Jordan Akins was called for holding to negate the score.
Thompson-Robinson was hit as he threw later in the drive, tossed up a floater that softly fell into the waiting arms of the Bengals Jordan Battle.
11) I'm looking for positives and I found one in the Browns pass rush as they sacked Joe Burrow four times but the real positive was the play of Michael Hall and Isaiah McGuire, who each collected a sack.
Hall had personal problems after Cleveland drafted him in round two this past draft and only now reaching the field with regular snaps while McGuire was a player I really liked after the Browns took him in round four of the 2023 draft.
Hopefully both will receive lots of playing time in the final two games.
12) Finally from the That's So Browns department.
The Browns have stopped the Bengals late in the first half and the Bengals are running the punt team onto the field, figuring Kevin Stefanski will call a timeout.
Stefanski doesn't and runs the time down to a few seconds.
Now the Bengals have nothing to lose on the last play of the half and send in Cade York (Yes, THAT Cade York) to attempt a fifty-nine yard field goal, which of course York nails.
That's so Browns when Cade York connects from fifty-nine yards and the guy the Browns extend misses his only kick on an extra point.
Ohio State hammers Tennessee in CFP Opener
The Ohio State Buckeyes may not receive a second chance to defeat the Michigan Wolverines this season. Still, they will have a revenge opportunity against the Oregon Ducks, as Ohio State dusted off the Tennessee Volunteers in the first round of the CFP 42-17 at the Horseshoe in Columbus.
Will Howard threw for over three hundred yards and two touchdowns to Jeremiah Smith (six catches for 103 yards) to lead the passing attack and TreVeyon Henderson ran for two scores and eighty yards on ten carries.
Ohio State will meet Oregon in the "Rose Bowl"/ CFP Quarter-Final on New Year's Day.
Olentangy Offerings
1) This game wasn't as close as the final score which says a lot.
Ohio State scored touchdowns on their first three possessions for a 21-0 lead and were on their way to another score before Will Howard's only interception of the game in the end zone.
2) I wasn't worried even as Tennessee closed the gap to 21-10 at halftime.
It took a few bad calls and breaks for Tennessee to score those points and their drives were so long that I didn't think the Volunteers were capable of multiple drives to cut into the lead further.
3) The call on the end zone interception by Tennessee's Will Brooks was questionable on two fronts.
The first is that Jeremiah Smith was clearly interfered with and should earned a penalty for pass interference.
The other is that I don't think Brooks had full control of the football when he landed with his foot in bounds.
Those are minor quibbles after a 42-17 win but they didn't feel minor at the time.
4) Tennessee's only touchdown drive of the first half, Ohio State appeared to have snuffed out the drive on an interception by Davison Igbinosun before a very light roughing the passer penalty on Kenyatta Jackson allowed the drive to continue.
Just a terrible call on that one.
5) Ohio State played looser and with abandon and it was easy to see from the start as the play calling was aggressive and kept hammered on Tennessee, no matter the situation.
Ryan Day coaches better when he is aggressive rather than timidly and it's my biggest complaint with Day.
6) Jeremiah Smith became the first Ohio State freshman to exceed one thousand receiving yards in the win.
More players will achieve this goal as seasons lengthen, so it was nice that Smith took this in twelve games.
7) Ohio State's offensive line had been maligned throughout the season but they bullied a Tennessee defense that was expected to stuff the Buckeye ground game.
Ohio State outrushed Tennessee 156-152 beating the Vols at the game that was expected to be their best chance at victory.
8) TreVeyon Henderson ran for eighty yards and caught four passes for fifty-four yards as he continued his late-season push to surpass Quinshon Judkins as Ohio State's lead back.
Henderson's career started with so much promise but injuries caused a downturn in production.
Henderson's late-season play has revitalized his career and I bet he will be starting for someone in the NFL next season.
9) Jack Sawyer and J.T Tuimoloau dominated the Tennessee offensive line with Tuimoloau and Sawyer combined for three and a half sacks.
These two are playing the best football in their career at the right time for both the Buckeyes and the players just as they are ready to move to the pros.
10) Tennessee brought an estimated 30,000 fans to the game as Ohio State's ticket department had their discount code leaked early. Volunteers fans scooped up tickets happily as disgruntled fans from the Michigan loss were too slow to get started.
That combined with a drivable distance (357 miles) gave the visitors a major presence in the Horseshoe.
Give Tennessee's crew credit for their craftiness and for coming out but OSU caused much of that.
11) As happy as I am with the win, it's frustrating to think of just how easily this team could have cruised past Michigan had they played half as well on offense as they did vs Tennessee.
As hard as it is to accept that, the title is in reach and the Buckeyes will be motivated against Oregon.
Should be a good one.
Saturday, December 21, 2024
Boxing Challenge
The boxing challenge will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The main event will feature the three titles in the heavyweight division that Oleksandr Usyk was allowed to keep after his split decision win over Tyson Fury earlier this year.
Usyk held the WBA, IBF, and WBO crowns and added the WBC held by Fury with the victory but the IBF stripped Usyk about thirty seconds after the win for taking the lucrative Fury rematch rather than face Daniel DuBois, who Usyk knocked out in 2023.
Fury dominated the early rounds but was fortunate to survive the eighth round after Usyk knocked him down and had Fury staggering around the ring.
Usyk controlled the late rounds and deserved the decision but it was close enough to make a rematch intriguing.
Fury was thought to be the harder puncher of the two, yet it was Usyk who scored the fight's only knockdown. Fury never really used his larger bulk to try to wear down the naturally smaller fighter, so one can see how Fury could turn the tables and win the rematch, much as he did against Deontay Wilder in their second fight after a first-fight draw.
Still, I'd favor the more versatile Usyk against Fury, who may have been a little overrated as a boxer because he outboxed opponents who couldn't cope with Fury's skills but might have been outboxed by many top heavyweights.
The undercard isn't as dazzling as the usual cards from Riyadh Season with the co-feature a junior middleweight bout between Serhii Bohachuk and late replacement Ishmael Davis in which the winner will be the mandatory challenger for WBC champion Sebastian Fundora.
Bohachuk was originally scheduled to face former WBA champion Israil Madrimov but Madrimove dropped out when given a chance to face Vergil Ortiz in February.
Bohachuk lost a majority decision to Ortiz in his last fight despite dropping Ortiz twice in the match and a fight with Madrimov was highly anticipated but instead faces Davis, who lost his first fight in September to Josh Kelly by majority decision.
The remaining challenge bout is in the heavyweight division with talented prospect Moses Itauma battling Demsey Mckean in a ten-rounder.
Itauma won impressively in his last fight, stopping trialhorse Mariusz Wach in two rounds, and is thought of by many as the best prospect in the division.
McKean hasn't fought in sixteen months after losing for the first time in his career, being stopped by Filip Hrgovic in the twelfth round.
Boxing Challenge
WBA/WBC/WBO Heavyweight Titles. 12 Rds
Oleksandr Usyk vs Tyson Fury
Ramon Malpica: Fury Split Decision
TRS: Usyk Unanimous Decision
TRS: Usyk Unanimous Decision
Vince Samano: Fury Unanimous Decision
Junior Middleweights 12 Rds
Serhei Bohachuk vs Ishmael Davis
R.L: Bohachuk Unanimous Decision
TRS: Bohachuk KO 10
V.S: Davis Unanimous Decision
Heavyweights, 10 Rds
Moses Itauma vs Demsey McKean
R.L: Itauma Unanimous Decision
TRS: Itauma KO 3
V.S: McKean KO 6
TRS: Itauma KO 3
V.S: McKean KO 6
Thursday, December 19, 2024
PPM
Last Week: 6-3
Overall:141-72
College
CFP Playoffs
Ohio State over Tennessee 24-14
Notre Dame over Indiana 31-21
Penn State over SMU 24-17
Texas over Clemson 41-24
Cure Bowl
Ohio over Jacksonville State 33-26
Gasparilla Bowl
Florida over Tulane 24-21
Myrtle Beach Bowl
Coastal Carolina over UTSA 37-32
Potato Bowl
Fresno State over Northern Illinois 27-21
Hawaii Bowl
San Jose State over South Florida 29-21
Game Above Bowl
Toledo over Pittsburgh 27-23
Rate Bowl
Kansas State over Rutgers 38-19
Ventures Bowl
Bowling Green over Arkansas State 28-17
Armed Forces Bowl
Oklahoma over Navy 24-21
Birmingham Bowl
Georgia Tech over Vanderbilt 33-24
Liberty Bowl
Texas Tech over Arkansas 44-37
Holiday Bowl
Syracuse over Washington State 29-24
Las Vegas Bowl
Texas A&M over USC 35-21
NFL
Bengals over Browns 24-10
Games of the Week
Ravens over Steelers 20-14
Eagles over Commanders 33-27
Wednesday, December 18, 2024
Lefty Driesell
Lefty Driesell was all of those plus many other adjectives and adverbs and the Hall of Fame coach's recent passing at the age of ninety-two brought lots of memories back to me (perhaps even more if I hadn't somehow lost the first version of this).
Lefty Driesell was the originator of Midnight Madness, a master recruiter who landed the top player in the country three times (although Moses Malone turned pro with the ABA Utah Stars), and a man so beloved by his fanbase that the Maryland band would play "Hail to the Chief" when he walked onto the floor with Lefty returning the V for Victory sign.
Lefty came to Maryland in 1969 from Davidson, where he had reached the Elite Eight in the previous two seasons, vowing to turn the Terrapins into the "UCLA of the East".
Driesell may have fallen short of that prediction but he turned the DMV into a basketball area and set the stage for some of the best basketball that this area has seen.
Under Lefty, Maryland won its second ACC Tournament (1984) in program history, won its only NIT (1972) in the days when the NIT was more than a consolation prize, took Maryland to its only Elite Eight appearances (1973 and 1975) before the Gary Williams Final Four teams in 2001 and 2002, won the first two ACC regular season titles (1975, 1980) in program history, and won twenty or more games on ten occasions.
Driesell recruited the top player in the nation to Maryland three times. Tom McMillen and Albert King played for Maryland, and Moses Malone committed to the Terrapins before signing with the Utah Stars of the ABA.
Driesell also coached nine first-round picks in the NBA draft, including John Lucas (first overall in 1976), Len Bias (second overall in 1986), and Buck Williams (third overall in 1981).
Driesell also indirectly played a part in the gradual expansion of the NCAA Tournament when his 1973-74 Terrapins were a top-four team but due to the NCAA"s one team per conference rule, were unable to participate when they lost their classic 103-100 overtime game in the 1974 ACC tournament final to the eventual NCAA champions in N.C. State.
Lefty is also the only coach in college basketball history to win one hundred games at four schools, Davidson, Maryland, James Madison, and Georgia State, and to take each of those teams to the NCAA tournament.
Lefty wasn't known as a great X and O coach and that was a major criticism about him through the years as his teams lost more than their share of big games in crunch time.
Lefty finally won the title that he wanted most in 1984 when the second-seeded Terrapins caught a break when unbeaten (in conference) regular season champion North Carolina was upset in the semi-final round by Duke, allowing Maryland to play the Blue Devils in the ACC Tournament final, emerging with a 74-60 victory with Len Bias as tournament MVP as a sophomore.
While I can understand how Juan Dixon could be considered to be the greatest player in program history with Dixon as the star of the only national championship team, I'd make the argument that Len Bias was the best player with two ACC Player of the Year awards and it was Lefty Driesell who recruited him to Maryland.
Lefty Driesell's reign may not have been as successful as Gary Williams's as Williams won the school's first and only national title but some of his seventies teams might have won a national title if those tournaments played with sixty-four teams and it was the success of the Driesell era that is the foundation of the tradition of Maryland basketball.
I wonder if Lefty would have been elected to the Hall of Fame earlier had the Len Bias tragedy not occurred.
Maryland was still a consistent NCAA tournament participant under Driesell and my guess is he would have been at Maryland for another ten to fifteen years, so the numbers would have been large enough at the top level of the sport that they couldn't have been ignored.
And there are the memories I have of Lefty and his Terrapins that are so meaningful to me today because it was Maryland basketball that I shared with my father.
We rooted for different teams in sports except for Maryland basketball and those childhood memories of watching Lefty's coaches show on winter Saturday mornings and ACC battles with my dad or telling him the next morning of a game that he missed because he worked second shift the night before.
The highs and lows of Maryland basketball (and sports in general) were something that I could share with my dad to find common ground in a relationship that didn't have many common interests aside from sports and I always smile thinking of those twelve years of childhood rooting for Maryland with my dad.
From the crushing defeats to North Carolina and N.C. State to the euphoric wins over some of the best teams in the country, Lefty Driesell, and his teams helped me fall in love with basketball and share that with my father.
I'm sure Lefty would have rather raised a national championship trophy but somehow turning an entire region into a basketball-crazed area is a nice consolation prize.
I'm sorry this is being posted ten months after Lefty's passing.
I had an entire post written and ready over the summer but a snafu just before uploading caused the original to be lost.
Boxing Challenge: Munguia Vaporized!
Unbeaten and unknown Bruno Surace of France hadn't beaten anyone of note and had only fought a few ten-rounders before he traveled to Tijuana, Mexico to face super middleweight contender Jaime Munguia.
Few gave Surace a chance, and even if you thought Surace had a chance, with only four knockouts in his twenty-five wins, no one thought Surace could stop the durable Munguia. After the expected Munguia win, he would face Christian Mbilli in a WBC-ordered eliminator, which would be sure to be a crowd-pleaser.
Surace was better than advertised and despite losing most of the first five rounds and being knocked down in the second round by a Munguia hook, Surace was hanging around in a fight that he appeared to be overmatched.
That was before Surace bounded off the ropes with a pulverizing right hand that dropped Munguia to the floor.
Munguia bravely beat the count but couldn't continue as the fight ended as what will likely be named the upset of the year for 2024.
Munguia vs Mbilli will be delayed as Munguia will likely look for a chance to redeem himself against Surace as quickly as possible.
Monte Carlo was the site of the first of DAZN's two cards with their main event featuring former WBA and IBF junior featherweight champion Murodjon Akhmadaliev, who knocked Ricardo Espinoza down three times in the third round before the referee stopped the fight in that round.
Akhmadaliev is the best fighter in the division that has yet to meet the undisputed champion, Naoya Inoue, and in winning a WBA minor title, Akhmadaliev will hopefully receive his chance at "The Monster" sometime in 2025.
In the evening DAZN program, welterweights Alexis Rocha and Raul Curiel swapped punches for twelve exciting rounds with the judges deciding on a majority decision draw.
Rocha banked the early rounds by boxing a bit and keeping Curiel at bay from the outside but began to exchange more often, which made the fight more fan-friendly but took away Rocha's tactical advantage.
The scorecards were 116-112 for Rocha and two at 114-114, which is how I saw the fight.
Both fighters seemed amenable to a rematch; considering this fight, a rematch would be well received.
Unbeaten junior middleweight Charles Conwell continued his march to a title shot with a dominating seventh-round knockout of Gerardo Vergara.
Conwell should be in line for either a title chance or a final title eliminator next year.
On Sunday, heavyweight contender Dillian Whyte won a surprisingly entertaining slugfest over Ebenezer Tetteh when Tetteh's corner ended the fight after the seventh round.
Tetteh's only loss entering the fight came to Daniel DuBois via first-round knockout and most expected Tetteh to look for a way out as soon as Whyte hit him but showed plenty of heart in exchanging with Whyte throughout the fight.
Whyte hurt Tettah badly in both the sixth and seventh rounds and the fight was stopped at the right time.
Boxing Challenge
Ramon Malpica: 184 Pts(5)
TRS: 184 Pts (5)
Vince Samano: 116 (1)
Monday, December 16, 2024
Browns dropped by Chiefs 21-7
Jameis Winston threw three interceptions and was benched in the final quarter in favor of Dorian Thompson-Robinson.
Only a sixty-two-yard rushing touchdown by Jerome Ford dented the scoreboard for the Browns with Ford finishing with eighty-four yards on the game.
Jerry Jeudy caught eleven passes for one hundred-eight yards to lead the offense.
Cleveland dropped to 3-11 with the defeat and will travel to Cincinnati to play the also-unwinding Bengals next Sunday.
Brownie Bits
1) Starting with the worst news of the day, Nick Chubb suffered a broken foot on a play that saw Jameis Winston fake a handoff to Chubb and then turn to make a pitch only to find no one available.
Chubb broke his foot without contact and will miss the remainder of the season, not that he'll miss much in time or quality.
2) Nick Chubb finishes the season with three hundred thirty-two yards on one hundred and two carries with three touchdowns.
Chubb averaged 3.3 yards per carry and never seemed to find his stride after returning from his knee injury. While that was expected, it puts the Browns in a position to make one of many key decisions before the 2025 season.
Do the Browns re-sign Chubb and gamble that he returns to form with the money he will cost to please the fanbase?
Or do they risk allowing the most popular player on the team in years to leave town when he states he wants to stay and perhaps reverts to his past performance elsewhere?
It's a tough call and I don't envy it.
3) I think the Browns are going to start Dorian Thompson-Robinson at quarterback for the final three games, and while I don't have an issue with it in a lost season, I do disagree with the narrative that "The Browns need to see what they have in DTR."
They should know what they have because it's apparent to most that his slight frame and lack of arm strength makes him a backup at best, a situational gimmick QB at worst and if they think he is more than that, the Browns really need to reevaluate their talent evaluators.
4) Jerry Jeudy continued his fine play and moved past one thousand receiving yards for the first time in his career.
What will be interesting is if Jeudy's numbers drop off when Dorian Thompson-Robinson takes over at quarterback after he didn't perform well until Jameis Winston took over from DeShaun Watson.
5) The Browns released Kadarius Toney last week after he fumbled a punt against Pittsburgh.
Of course, his replacement, James Proche. fumbled the first punt of the game, which led to the Chiefs first touchdown.
6) The Browns turned the ball over six times, the Proche fumble, three interceptions by Jameis Winston (one wasn't his fault), another interception by Dorian Thompson-Robinson, and a Nick Chubb fumble.
Simply awful.
7) Kansas City didn't play well despite their easy win, and the Browns defense didn't play poorly and managed to keep the game close enough to not be humiliated.
8) The Browns made a silly decision on a fourth and one by going for it with a pass.
I could understand trying that but I can't understand why Jerry Jeudy, the only true weapon, is in the backfield as a decoy.
That alignment sticks the offense in a hole before the snap and the throw is going to anyone but the best pass catcher.
9) The Browns did have one big play, the long run by Jerome Ford, which was aided by several holds that weren't called but such is NFL life.
Ford will likely have the bulk of the carries now that Nick Chubb is finished for the season.
10) The worst news for this team came well before this game as Jimmy Haslam announced that Kevin Stefanski and Andrew Berry would return next season.
I still wouldn't think it is written in stone that either or both are sure to be back but if that is the case, I'm not sure there is hope for this franchise.
Saturday, December 14, 2024
PPM
The schedule isn't as large on the college side but it will boom for the next few weeks!
Last Week: 8-4
Overall: 135-69
College
Army over Navy 31-20
Veterans Bowl
South Alabama over Western Michigan 34-24
Frisco Bowl
Memphis over West Virginia 44-38
Boca Raton Bowl
James Madison over Western Kentucky 33-29
LA Bowl
UNLV over Cal 25-21
New Orleans Bowl
Georgia Southern over Sam Houston 31-24
NFL
Chiefs over Browns 28-17
Chiefs over Browns 28-17
Games of the Week
Packers over Seahawks 34-28
Lions over Bills 38-35
Friday, December 13, 2024
Boxing Challenge
ESPN+ and Top Rank bring back super middleweight contender Jaime Munguia in a homecoming bout in Tijuana, Mexico.
Munguia stopped contender Erik Bazinyan in ten exciting rounds in September and faces a question mark in unbeaten Frenchman Bruno Surace, who has faced zero recognizable foes, so who knows how good Surace is.
Munguia stays sharp in his hometown against an opponent he should shine against, which is fine with me considering he's fought Canelo Alvarez and Erik Bazinyan already this year.
DAZN will offer a day/night doubleheader with the opening card's main event pairing former WBA and IBF junior featherweight champion Murodjon Akhmadaliev fighting for a minor title against Ricardo Espinoza in Monte Carlo.
Akhmadaliev has won one fight since his stunning split decision defeat to Marlon Tapales, which cost him his titles and a unification match with Naoya Inoue, while Espinoza lost to his two best opponents in former champions Daniel Roman and John Reil Casimero.
Golden Boy takes over in the evening with a welterweight main event with Alexis Rocha and Raul Curiel.
Rocha was in line for a mandatory chance at then-WBO champion Terence Crawford or the vacant title before his surprising knockout loss to Giovani Santillan last October.
Rocha has won twice since and faces the unbeaten Curiel, who has stopped thirteen of his fifteen foes.
This shapes up as the best fight of the weekend.
Junior middleweight contender Charles Conwell continues to stay busy against unbeaten Argentine Gerardo Vergara.
Conwell should be in line for a title shot soon and an impressive win over Vergara would help make his case for a chance in 2025.
DAZN returns on Sunday from Gibraltar with veteran heavyweight contender Dillian Whyte continuing to rebuild his career after his 2022 KO loss to Tyson Fury for Fury's WBC title at the time.
Whyte has defeated Jermaine Franklin and Christian Hammer since losing to Fury and will meet 23-1 Ebenezer Tetteh, who is remembered most for his only loss, a one-round defeat to Daniel DuBois in 2019.
Boxing Challenge
Super Middleweights. 10 Rds
Jaime Munguia vs Bruno Surace
Ramon Malpica: Munguia KO 6
TRS: Munguia KO 4
Vince Samano: Surace Unanimous Decision
Junior Featherweights 12 Rds
Murodjon Akhmadaliev vs Ricardo Espinoza
R.L; Akhmadaliev Unanimous Decision
TRS: Akhmadaliev KO 9
V.S: Espinoza Unanimous Decision
V.S: Espinoza Unanimous Decision
Welterweights 12 Rds
Alexis Rocha vs Raul Curiel
R.L: Curiel KO 9
TRS: Curiel KO 6
V.S: Curiel Unanimous Decision
Junior Middleweights 10 Rds
Charles Conwell vs Gerardo Vergara
R.L: Conwell KO 7
TRS: Conwell KO 6
V.S; Vergara KO 6
V.S; Vergara KO 6
Heavyweights 10 Rds
Dillian Whyte vs Ebenezer Tettah
R.L: Whyte KO 8
TRS: Whyte KO 4
V.S: Tettah KO 6
Thursday, December 12, 2024
I Tell Ya' Herbie- The CFP
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
I would have done one thing differently with the CFP and it is already looming as unfair to the top seed and only unbeaten team in the tournament.
Looking at the brackets, top-seeded Oregon will face the winner of Ohio State-Tennessee, giving the Ducks a potential second-round matchup against a team equal in talent and one that they beat by one point at home or an SEC team that has just defeated Ohio State on the road.
The answer to this problem is to emulate the NBA playoff model, in which the seeding is created anew after each round.
Under the current format, Oregon would still play the Ohio State-Tennessee winner, if all four favorites won in the first round but it would give Oregon a deserved break if someone pulled a surprise.
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
I also would seed the teams differently and make a change that I have proposed for the NFL for years.
I would continue to allow the top five conference champions to have an automatic slot, even if they weren't in the top twelve teams overall but they would not be guaranteed to have a bye.
In the NFL, I would guarantee each division champion a playoff berth but I would seed the teams by record, avoiding a mess like 2011 where an eleven-win Saints team was forced to travel to Seattle to play the 7-9 division "winning" Seahawks and lose.
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
I may have ranked the fifth through eighth seeds differently but I don't have a problem with the committee's order of Texas, Penn State, Notre Dame, and Ohio State.
Those four teams have different arguments and all would be fair in any order.
My ratings for those? Notre Dame (has a horrible loss to Northern Illinois but it's their only loss), Texas( best win over 8-4 Texas A&M but both losses to number two Georgia), Ohio State (bad loss to Michigan but defeated Penn State on the road and playoff participant Indiana), and Penn State ( didn't beat a team that finished ranked in top 25 and lost to Ohio State).
I would have rated nine through twelve as the committee did with Tennessee at nine (toughest schedule, two losses), Indiana (lacking a good win but just one loss), SMU (two losses, regular season ACC champion), and Clemson (ACC champion but three losses).
I Tell Ya Herbie:
I wrote earlier about Oregon's gripe about a second-round matchup and I'd go further than that- The fifth seed (Texas) and sixth seed (Penn State) have easier paths than the top overall seed.
Oregon gets a bye and then the winner of Ohio State-Tennessee.
Texas gets a home game against the only three-loss team in the field (Clemson) and then Arizona State and Penn State draws SMU in Happy Valley, and then Boise State, playing two teams that were Group of Five teams just a season ago.
Which path appears easiest to you?
I don't blame Oregon at all for any anger and I bet that is changed in the future.
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
All four first round games have solid favorites (Ohio State 7.5, Notre Dame 8, Penn State 8.5 and Texas 11) and I think it's somewhat important that one of the underdogs win.
If the argument over time becomes that the 9-12 seeds don't/can't win, why not just have an eight team playoff?
I don't know if I would bet money on any of the underdogs to win straight up but if I was given a free bet, I think I might go with SMU over Penn State.
Considering Penn State's lack of dynamic offensive weapons, the erratic play of Drew Allar, and James Franklin's questionable coaching in big games, SMU might be able to win a high-scoring game with their excellent passing game.
Tuesday, December 10, 2024
Boxing Challenge: Navarrete, Espinoza keep titles, Hitchins wins one
Top Rank and ESPN+ appeared to have two excellent rematches for championships after both original fights were good action fights. However, the best-laid plans can go up in smoke, and both fights were disappointing in different ways.
In the Phoenix main event, Emanuel Navarrete repeated his victory over Oscar Valdez in a far more dominant manner as Navarrete dropped Valdez three times (rounds one, four, and six) and won via knockout after a body shor finished Valdez to retain his WBO junior lightweight crown.
Navarette won by a clear but entertaining unanimous decision in their first fight over Valdez but had struggled to a draw against Robson Conceicao and a loss to Denis Berinchyk in an attempt to win the vacant WBO lightweight title and didn't seem to be putting the time in to prepare properly.
Navarrete was prepared for Valdez and stormed from the gate and never allowed Valdez to get started and won every round on my card.
Navarrete is rumored to perhaps face WBC champion O'Shaquie Foster in a unification match next year while Valdez might need a confidence builder or two after taking a shellacking from Navarrete.
In the co-feature, Robiesy Ramirez appeared to be building a lead against Rafael Espinoza in their rematch for the WBO featherweight title that Espinoza took from Ramirez by a thrilling majority decision last December.
However, seconds into round six, Ramirez ended the fight with a "No Mas" to allow Espinoza to retain the title,
Throughout the fight, Joe Tessitore and Tim Bradley stated that the Ramirez team had told the referee to watch for elbows from Espinoza, which they claimed was a major factor in the first fight, and sure enough, that's exactly what Ramirez complained about in the post-fight interview and used as his reason for quitting-double vision caused by elbows that the referee did nothing to stop.
Ramirez is reported to have suffered a broken orbital bone around his right eye, which lends some credibility to his surrender.
I gave Ramirez the first four rounds and while I gave the fifth to Espinoza, it was a close round.
The judges saw it closer with two judges scoring Ramirez up by one point and the other with an incredulous card of a three-point lead for Espinoza, which I don't see in any case.
On the undercard, welterweight contender Giovani Santillan rebounded from his first loss to Brian Norman, when veteran Frederick Lawson surrendered after one round, and unbeaten junior welterweight Lindolfo Delgado knocked out Jackson Marinez in five rounds.
Richardson Hitchins won the IBF junior welterweight title in San Juan Puerto Rico via a split decision over Australia's Liam Paro.
Paro started quickly but Hitchens dominated the second half of the fight and I thought won easily at 116-112.
Two judges agreed with me at 116-112 for Hitchins with a way out of bounds score for Paro at 117-111.
Hitchins called for WBO champion Teofimo Lopez after the fight, which I find highly unlikely with Hitchins's boxing style known for bothering Lopez, differing promoters, and Hitchins not bringing a large paycheck to the table.
Unbeaten junior lightweight Henty LeBron earned his biggest career win with a unanimous decision win over former world title challenger Christopher Diaz.
I thought the fight was close for LeBron at 96-94 which was the same as one judge with the other two scoring for LeBron 97-93.
LeBron scored well with counters against Diaz, who marched forward the entire fight and deserves future fights against young prospects after a strong performance.
A fun and entertaining heavyweight match between two veterans over forty for a minor title may not have been at the world-class level but it was worth watching with two former world title challengers hooked up in Sofia Bulgaria.
In the end, it was the hometown fighter, Kubrat Pulev boxing a bit smoother with the jab and Pulev's more active offense that earned him the WBA minor title by unanimous decision over Mahmoud Charr.
Pulev's scores were 117-11 times two and 116-112 with my score at 117-111 for Pulev.
The question for me will be this, will Pulev eventually decide to keep himself as the eventual WBA mandatory challenger for a title attempt? Or at 43, will he use the "title" to bring mid-level heavyweights to Bulgaria and earn Pulev larger paydays than he could dream of making anywhere else?
Boxing Challenge
Ramon Malpica: 179 Pts (11)
TRS: 179 Pts (11)
Vince Samano: 115 Pts (7)
Monday, December 9, 2024
Steelers KO Cleveland 27-14
In the defeat, Jameis Winston threw two touchdowns, one each to Jerry Jeudy and David Njoku, along with two interceptions.
Njoku led the Browns in catches with seven while Jeudy led in receiving with sixty-four yards.
Cleveland fell to 3-10 after the loss and will host the powerful Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday.
Brownie Bits
1) I didn't see the game live as I was on my final road trip in 2024 (I'll be writing about it eventually) and I scanned it quickly last night, so this is less detailed than a normal recap.
The biggest downer of this game?
George Pickens sitting out with an injury, two weeks after his fight with Greg Newsome and after both had built a bit of interest in a showdown between two talented but immature players, nothing happened.
2) The struggles of Dustin Hopkins continued as he missed two more field goals and is making the decision of Andrew Berry to give him a contract extension look extremely questionable.
Hopkins was a solid kicker for Washington and Los Angeles (Chargers) but Browns followers are seeing both the ceiling and the floor for Hopkins, who was never better than he was in 2023 and has never been worse than he has been this season.
3) The mantra of Kevin Stefanski has always been 'Smart, tough, and accountable', and rarely has it been taken seriously.
The Browns moved to the Steelers sixteen yard line for the first play of the final quarter for a third and one.
Jack Conklin moves too soon for a five-yard penalty, Jameis Winston is sacked to lose three more, and Germain Ifedi gets nailed with a roughness call to lose fifteen more to force the ball back to the thirty-nine and a punt.
4) The Browns used former first-rounder Kadarius Toney as the punt returner and Toney was hit with a taunting penalty and muffed a punt, so Kevin Stefanski didn't seem likely to try Toney again next week against his former team in Kansas City.
It's too bad those two mistakes happened because Toney was doing well before those errors, finishing the day averaging eleven yards on his four returns with a long of nineteen.
5) I hated mentioning Jack Conklin's penalty because the veteran has been playing so well of late.
Conklin again held T.J. Watt without a sack and Watt was motivated to do well after the media narrative from the Browns win in Cleveland.
6) After the defeat, the Browns were officially eliminated from playoff contention.
As the late Peter Tomarken used to utter on the game show "Press Your Luck"- Whammy.
Saturday, December 7, 2024
Boxing Challenge
Emanuel Navarrete returns to the junior lightweight division to defend a title that he had hoped to jettison, as he defends the WBO belt against Oscar Valdez in a rematch of their thrilling August 2023 war.
Since then Navarrete drew with Robson Conceicao and lost a split decision to Denis Berinchyk for the vacant WBO lightweight title, while Valdez nabbed the WBO interim belt with a seventh-round knockout of Liam Wilson, which most assumed would see Valdez elevated to the full title with Navarrete favored to win the lightweight title,
Their first fight was exciting and this one should be as well, the question is this- How motivated is Navarrete to return to the division to fight someone he has already beaten, and will the drop in weight drain the champion and cost him late in the fight?
In the co-feature, Rafael Espinoza will attempt to repeat his surprising win over Robeisy Ramirez in a rematch for the WBO featherweight title.
Espinoza entered their first fight unbeaten and untested and won a majority decision with both fighters scoring knockdowns.
The 6'1 Espinoza is extremely tall for a featherweight and holds a sizable advantage over the former gold medalist, Ramirez.
Ramirez did have distractions entering their first fight. His father, still in Cuba, was in serious condition, and he says he will be better prepared for the rematch.
This is an extremely close fight and I've been back and forth on my pick, it's that close.
Also on the card, unbeaten junior welterweight contender Lindolfo Delgado faces veteran Jackson Marinez and welterweight Giovani Santillan returns after his first defeat, losing via tenth-round knockout to Brian Norman for the then-vacant WBO title, against journeyman Fredrick Lawson.
DAZN takes the stage with a Matchroom card from Puerto Rico as IBF junior welterweight champion Liam Paro will defend the title against mandatory challenger Richardson Hitchens for the first time.
Paro upset Subriel Matias in June to win the title while Hitchens won a close unanimous decision over Gustavo Lemos in April to secure the mandatory position.
Unbeaten junior lightweight Henry Lebron returns from a thirteen-month layoff against former world title challenger Christopher Diaz in the co-feature.
Also from DAZN, a minor heavyweight title isn't the attraction but an evenly matched fight between two former title challengers past forty is , as Kubrat Pulev faces Mahmoud Charr in what could be fun or a bore.
Boxing Challenge
WBO Junior Lightweight Title 12 Rds
Emanuel Navarrete vs Oscar Valdez
All: Navarrete Unanimous Decision
WBO Featherweight Title. 12 Rds
Rafael Espinoza vs Robeisy Ramirez
Ramon Malpica: Espinoza KO 8
TRS and Vince Samano: Espinoza Unanimous Decision
Junior Welterweights, 10 Rds
Lindolfo Delgado vs Jackosn Marinez
R.L and V.S: Delgado KO 8
TRS: Delgado KO 5
Welterweights. 10 Rds
Giovani Santillan vs Fredrick Lawson
R.L: Santillan KO 5
TRS: Santillan KO 4
V.S: Lawson Unanimous Decision
WBO Junior Welterweight Title 12 Rds
Liam Paro vs Richardson Hitchins
R.L and TRS: Paro Unanimous Decision
V.S: Hitchins Unanimous Decision
Junior Lightweights. 10 Rds
Henry Lebron vs Christopher Diaz
R.L and TRS: Lebron Unanimous Decision
V.S: Diaz Unanimous Decision
Heavyweights. 12 Rds
Kubrat Pulev vs Mahmoud Charr
All: Pulev Unanimous Decision
Friday, December 6, 2024
I Tell Ya' Herbie
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
One of the things speculated about Michigan's upset over Ohio State is where it ranks in the rivalry's history.
I'm not going to answer that in detail (I'd rate it second to the 1969 loss) but I will pick the upset that it most resembles and it's not one against Michigan.
The 2015 home loss to Michigan State was the only blemish on the record of the defending national champions and cost the Buckeyes a chance to defend their title.
It reminded me of this loss as in both cases, the coach (Urban Meyer then, Ryan Day now) stubbornly refused to allow his best players (Ezekiel Elliott then, the wide receivers now) to decide the game, deciding instead to play into the opponent's strengths, losing a home game to an inferior opponent.
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
I wonder just how things are going to play out at North Carolina, which fired Mack Brown after finishing 6-6 and has several big-name coaches reportedly interested including Steelers offensive coordinator and former Falcons head coach Arthur Smith, UNLV's Barry Odom, Tulane'a Jon Sumrall, and wait for it... Bill Belichick?
I would have thought Belichick was mentioned by a writer attempting to grind out a column but it's being reported that Belichick has actually interviewed with the Tar Heels!
North Carolina has often been mentioned as a football-sleeping giant, if Belichick actually wants to coach college football (and I'm not sure he really will), UNC would make sense as a place where Belichick could be successful quickly and wouldn't have the expectations that many schools would.
I Tell Ya Herbie:
It will be interesting to watch who will earn the fourth seed and the first-round bye between Group of Five qualifier Boise State (assuming they defeat UNLV in the Mountain West Championship) and the Big 12 championship winner between Arizona State and Iowa State.
For now, Boise State would earn the bye but I look for plenty of lobbying from the Big 12 for that position because it would be humbling for the conference to be surpassed by the G-5 entry in the first-ever playoff.
Will this be decided on the field or in the boardroom, where there really wasn't a lot of interest in a G-5 automatic bid to start?
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
I was asked earlier this week how I felt about Michigan signing the top-rated quarterback in this recruiting class, Bryce Underwood. My answer was that I felt great!
First, if Michigan paid the rumored fifteen million for Underwood, good for Underwood and his family, and Michigan is playing by the rules, how often can I say that of late!
As much as I'll love responding to Michigan supporters about the "Michigan way" regarding NIL spending, what I am excited about is this- Michigan signed the top-rated quarterback in the class and he is a homegrown product, Ohio State inked the second-rated passer in the class, Tavian St.Clair, who is an Ohio resident.
For the first time that I can remember, Ohio State and Michigan will have two home-state players leading their team at quarterback, while Underwood could be the starter at Michigan as early as next season and St. Clair will be behind Julian Sayin for a while, that matchup could be very special when it happens.
I Tell Ya' Herbie:
I noted a few weeks ago that Neal Brown faced two games that could decide his future with West Virginia against Baylor and Texas Tech.
Two wins might get him an extension, a split could go either way, and two losses might mean his job.
WVU lost both, including a thirty-seven-point loss to Texas Tech and Brown is leaving Morgantown.
Former head coach Rich Rodriguez and West Virginia native Jimbo Fisher are being mentioned as potential replacements should the Mountaineers take a big swing but a Group of Five coach that I might think about hiring is Marshall's Charles Huff, who knows the state from his Marshall tenure, would not cost West Virginia a buyout since his contract is expiring, and has led the Herd to the Sun Belt title game this weekend.
I'm not saying Huff gets the spot but if the bigger names aren't in the picture, he would be a good choice to consider.
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