UNC Football: Players Suspended and the Hammer Drops

The Tarheels have departed for their big game versus LSU and 15 players were left off the trip. Word is that all but 3 have in some form been suspended from making the trip.

According to Mike Potter of Indyweek.com, the ineligible players  are defensive tackle Marvin Austin, cornerback Charles Brown, cornerback Kendric Burney, wide receiver Greg Little, defensive end Michael McAdoo and defensive end Robert Quinn. There were also 3 more players who will remain namless.

Those also being withheld include tailback Shaun Draughn, defensive end Linwan Euwell, safety Brian Gupton, tailback Ryan Houston, safety Da’Norris Searcy and safety Jonathan Smith.

The number of games those players may miss because of the investigations has not been determined. Earlier, UNC coach Butch Davis had announced that Austin was on an indefinite suspension for an unspecified violation of team rules.

“We’re obviously very disappointed to learn that the actions of a number of our student-athletes have resulted in their being unable to compete in Saturday’s game,” UNC athletic director Dick Baddour said in a statement released today. “It is important to note again that people should not make assumptions as to the nature of each student-athlete’s involvement with these issues.”

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The 2010 College Football Season Is Underway: Let The Games Begin

Its official, the college football season is underway and let’s be real, it was refreshing. We have been held hostage by preseason football games, baseball that hasn’t held up to it’s end of the bargain, and Favreapalooza.

When college football begins, it’s the culmination that fall is arriving and football fellowship is about to begin. I for one am elated that I was able to watch some college football live last night. With special thanks to North Carolina Central University, I was able to do color commentary for NCCU Radio last night.

It was ultimately pleasuring watching my alma mater destroy Johnson C. Smith University 59 – 0. It was also nice having the majority of the state hear how I really felt about the game as I was able to share it over the airwaves. I even missed my fantasy football draft last night to make magic happen. As my blogging brothers from the Midwest would say “In my own way, I was shocking the world!”

Don’t get me wrong, I love the NFL but there is nothing like going to a college football game with your friends, especially when it’s your old stomping grounds. It’s like going to a family reunion with 11,000 people you know and you all have one thing in common, the love of the game.

From painted faces to the smell of catfish frying in the air, you know you are in for a treat when you get to the game. The college game is a little different than most because you have to play it on pins and needles. See a loss at any time during the season can cost you your chance at a national championship. You enter your season with hopes and dreams of being successful and your goal is to play at a level week in and week out to keep the losses to a minimum to achieve the ultimate goal. 

Unlike the pro game, there is no playoff in college football so in essence every week is a playoff game and you can sense it in the atmosphere. Yeah that’s right, 11 playoff games in a year. The beauty of the game is that you have all these kids across the country putting their body on the line day in and day out with nothing financial to gain, unless of course they get a shot at the next level. They do it for the love of their team and the colors of their school. For some the only reward is to destroy the hopes and dreams of others. All the games are played with hopes of domination or pulling the ultimate upset.

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Will The Quarterback Position Ever Be Color Blind In The NFL

When I glance across the NFL, one thing is for sure, there aren’t that many persons of color starting at quarterback. It didn’t really dawn on me until someone brought it to my attention that in a league that is made up of the best athletes on the planet, so few people of color play the most dominant position on the field. His point was that the most athletic and exciting college quarterbacks end up playing another position in the NFL.

Let’s take a look at the numbers of quarterbacks of color in the NFL

• 2 out of 16 in the NFC are starters, Donovan McNabb and Josh Freeman
• 4 out of 16 in the AFC are starters, Mark Sanchez, David Garrard, Jason Campbell and Vince Young

The problem is that NFL general managers and owners do not like to take chances on quarterbacks who don’t fit the traditional profile. I’ll give credit where credit is due; some teams like the Titans/Oilers have had Warren Moon, Steve McNair, and now Vince Young. Also the Vikings drafted Daunte Culpepper to replace Randall Cunningham, and later took a chance drafting Tarvaris Jackson. Philadelphia gets credit as well for drafting both Randall Cunningham and Donovan McNabb while offering a home to Michael Vick during his troubles. For the most part NFL GMs shy away from the athletic quarterback unless they are drafting them to play another position or to run gimmick plays or the “Wildcat”.

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2010 The Year of the NCCU Eagle

North Carolina Central University, the home of the Eagles, is about to begin it's fifth season in Division I athletics. The transition to division I has been a rough one. Moving from Division II to Division I is daunting to both coaches and student athletes. Anticipation for the 2010 season has brought good news as the Eagles finally found themselves a home. The Eagles have re-entered the Mid Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) in which they helped found in the early 1900s.

MEAC competition is traditionally strong and the Eagles will get their fair share of physical battles. They can't officially win the MEAC this year but it is good to have competition on the schedule that you can become familiar with. Plus you can look in the background of the photo above and see that the Eagles fans love their football regardless of the competition level.

The past four years, the Eagles have had to play elite competition, mostly on the road,  and it was pretty obvious that these elite schools had a lot more in their arsenal than the school on the rise. The good news is that now they can play more home games and they will get to play their opponents yearly so there will be some familiarity with their opponents.

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The 5 Reasons the Dallas Cowboys Should Be Concerned In 2010

Updated on Tuesday, October 26, 2010 at 9:38AM by Joe Simmons

The Dallas Cowboys have looked like a very ordinary team this off season. They haven’t looked at any point in the pre season like a team that is ready to erupt. Of course it’s pre season, and of course they are keeping it as we say in coaching terms “vanilla”, but you should still see some signs of explosive capability in all three phases of the game at some point.

The Cowboys weren’t that active in preseason roster moves and the only major additions to the team were through the draft. As a lifelong Cowboys fan it pains me to see some of the things that I have seen this off-season. When I started blogging I said that I would call things the way I see them without any bias.

So here is my take on the 5 reasons the Cowboys should be concerned in 2010:

1. The Kicking Game is unproven. Letting Nick Folk go last year made since because he had lost his confidence and needed a change of scenery. The Cowboys didn’t address this issue in the draft or free agency; they chose to address it by promoting kickoff specialist David Buehler. He has not been a field goal kicker at any point in his professional career and has not had to even handle the pressures of clutch kicking in college either. Having an unproven kicker can cost you many games in the NFL.

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