Author: lleonardbw

Raiders don’t have a lot of margin for error

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Photo Courtesy Raiders.com

by David Zizmor

ALAMEDA–The Raiders have not won in the eastern time zone in something like seven or eight games they’ve had a rough go of it. That cross country trip for the west coast teams is always a difficult one and with the Raiders not being very good that makes it even more difficult. This is a game that the Raiders probably should have won.

They had their chances there certainly was no lack of opportunity in this one they could have won on a lack of occasions but you just can’t turn the ball over in these kinds of games. If your going to win on the road you have to protect the football and the Raiders didn’t. Quarterback Terrelle Pryor fumbled the ball he had an interception and Pryor wasn’t able to make a whole lot of plays in the passing game.

If your going to return an interception for a touchdown and make a couple plays on defense your offense has to support you and Pryor in the last couple of games has not done that. Against the Giants he was 11-26 for only 122 yards with no touchdown passes and really on the ground he wasn’t anymore effective he was only five rushes for 19 yards.

So when Pryor had been effective when he’s been running the ball and that’s opened up things for the pass and that’s made the Raiders successful as a whole. The last two games none of that has happened it might be the team that’s catching up to them. They’ve seen enough tape they know some of their tendencies, they know they’re going to protect against the run.

The Giants forced Pryor to run, they feel like if he’s going to pass the ball he’s not going to win he’s just not accurate anymore. It also didn’t help at the Meadowlands which is a tough place to throw the football because the winds are pretty crazy out there. I don’t think that was any help out there, with the Raiders they have to be successful.

On the ground with Pryor and through the air with Pryor they weren’t either of those and Raiders running back Rashad Jennings had a decent enough game with 20 rushes for 88 yards. That’s not a dynamic offense for the Raiders. They’re looking for playmakers they don’t have a lot of them in fact their biggest playmaker is Pryor if he doesn’t make any plays the offense is really in a tough spot.

The turnovers and the lack of play on offense really hurt them and if the Raiders are going to win these games they don’t have a lot of margin for error and they had a lot of errors so they lost this one to the  Giants.

David Zizmor covers the NFL for Sportstalk Radio

49ers faced a tough defense in Carolina

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Photo Courtesy 49ers.com

by David Zizmor

SANTA CLARA– It was a tough Carolina Panthers team that the 49ers had to face there at Candlestick last Sunday. Carolina is a surging team they’re on a long winning streak. Someone had to win, someone had to lose and you look at these two teams they both have excellent defenses and that’s what really dominated and dictated this game which is two great defenses.

The bottom line was that Carolina got the last score that’s what gave them the win 10-9 and the 49ers just couldn’t get anything going on offense but it’s not like the Panthers dominated either. There’s a lot of hand wringing going on in San Francisco about the Niners offensive game plan and there’s something to be said about that. The 49ers just ran into a defense that was really, really good and it’s tough to move the ball against a team like that.

Once you lose Vernon Davis and the passing game is still coming around it makes it tough to go up and down the field. It was not like the 49ers weren’t in this one it unfortunate because the 49ers played a great defensive game. They were just as strong as the Panthers were but the simple fact is the Niners offense couldn’t solve Carolina’s defense.

10-9 is not like anyone dominated but Carolina sent a message and said “We’re here you have to deal with us” the rest of the league had to be aware of this game and Carolina is a team that is aiming for the playoffs  and the 49ers really wanted that win but they got to brush it off and look ahead to next week’s game against New Orleans.

One of the strengths of the Carolina defense was the rush, they have a great front seven their linebackers and defensive lineman were all fantastic, you talk about a team that’s going to send multiple guys to the Pro Bowl they’re that good and the 49ers offensive line have been really solid as well. When quarterback Colin Kaepernick is under pressure he’s like any other quarterback it just becomes difficult to make a play.

Some teams Kaepernick’s been able to break out and get yards with his legs but Carolina has really quick linebackers just like the Niners do and it’s really tough too for a running quarterback to gain any yards. Kaepernick had that problem even when he was able to escape the pass rush there and there was really no field for him to rush.

Kaepernick couldn’t get any yards running and frankly when your being chased all over the place unless your receivers can come back and give you options it’s tough to make a play that way either. Kaepernick he has to work on a few things to be sure but also he’s not going to face a defense as good as that outside of Seattle the rest of the season.

David Zizmor covers the NFL for Sportstalk Radio

Michelle Richardson on the NCAA

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by Michelle Richardson

Texas A&M 51 vs. Mississippi 41 : Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel threw for 446 yards and five touchdowns, but he also had three interceptions and that’s something he didn’t do last year, he didn’t throw picks much. So I don’t know if that’s an advisement on him as a quarterback or his receivers and his communications between him and his receivers.

Manziel he didn’t have any picks last year he still is playing great that’s something that can turn when it comes to his performance. He’s not that guy he’s really smart with the ball, Still a great game last Saturday more so than Texas A&M playing great the fact that Mississippi stayed in over the past two years their recruiting got better.

It’s really starting to challenge other SCC teams that have talent but other teams are starting to come up you got a Texas A&M team and although Mississippi State isn’t ranked they’re 1-5 and 1-4 in the SCC but their just playing better ball. They’re being more competitive, so I can’t wait to see what happens in the future of the ACC and what’s going to happen.

Florida St 59 vs. Wake Forrest 3: I love Florida State and I was a Florida State alum and they haven’t been a champion in a long time. Florida State quarterback Jameis Winston is really giving Florida State something to be excited about but you have to take into consideration Winston is a really great quarterback but please understand he’s a great quarterback because he has some great players on the bench that are really making great catches for Florida State.

The defense is really, really doing their thing, Wake Forrest had seven turnovers and that reminds how Florida State went down to Clemson part of that was because Winston was managing the game and he was smart. That’s because the Florida defense made their move they went in there and they cleaned house. They cleaned house they let them know they were going to hit and hurt Wake Forrest and they made them cough up a ball.

You have to take a lesson from Winston he’s definitely the man as far as the Heisman Trophy is concerned, traditional Florida State was fantastic what can you say. This game was just a bludgeoning and they took it to Wake Forrest the fact they even got three points I’m surprised. For Florida State 21 points in the first quarter, 21 in the second, ten in the third, and seven in the fourth.

Charleston Classic basketball Nov 21st: I’m so excited about being able to cover the Charleston Classic starting November 21st, in this series you have Nebraska, UMass, New Mexico, Georgia, Davidson, Temple, Clemson, this match is going to be chalked full of talent. I haven’t seen Temple play in years. It’s going to be an interesting group of teams, you want to be the blazers of UAB.

UAB kills dragons, they are dragons, they know how to kill a dragon. UMass, Clemson this is all the beginning of the year, Georgia is there, this is going to be great, this is going to be a good way to start the season. New Mexico is in the top 25, they at number 23 this will be a good chance for them, Nebraska their the big kid on the block now in the Big Ten.

Nebraska got to go up against teams like Wisconsin, Indiana, Ohio State, who are perennial in the top 25 of NCAA basketball. In football it’s just as difficult, in basketball they got to deal with the likes of an Alabama, Arkansas, LSU, Kentucky, this is going to be a great tournament I look forward to seeing everybody a lot of new faces out there and a lot of old faces out there from some of my former alums.

One thing guaranteed it’s going to be a great time.

 

Michelle Richardson does commentary on the NCAA each week

Warriors new arena in S.F. has good chance to get voted down

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by Ken Gimblin

SAN FRANCISCO–After the defeat of San Francisco propositions B and C it was a clear sign to San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee that voters do not want to change to look of the waterfront at the Embarcadero at piers 30-32. Former San Francisco Mayor Art Agnos was an advocate of keeping the waterfront just the way it is with no changes.

Props B and C would open the changes for development building new condos and later a proposition at piers 30-32 and the Embarcadero waterfront that would have lead to a new Warriors arena. Voters on Tuesday resoundingly voted no on the props voting down prop B by 62 percent and voting down prop C by 66.5 percent. It was reported that the defeat of the condos called 8 Washington condos was not necessarily bad news for Lee but it could translate how unpopular the Mayor’s idea for development for the waterfront is.

Agnos had allied groups opposing the measure by the San Francisco Sierra Club, San Francisco Tomorrow and members of San Francisco Waterfront Alliance, they were on hand at the No on Props B and C campaign headquarters saying they were in it to win it opposing the condo development, “voters sent the overwhelming message that they don’t want to destroy 50 years of work on the waterfront, under no circumstances will we accept an arena on the bay” said Agnos.

The Warriors intend to develop for a new proposed arena at the cost of $170 million, the sell was that the condos were going to help for affordable housing with construction costs at the tune of $11 million but the point of voters was either mistrust of the Mayor’s proposals or as Agnos said voters want to keep the waterfront looking just the way it is.

Agnos suggested that development for a new arena may work near Candlestick Point or near the San Francisco Cal Train station at Fourth and Townsend Streets. Neither location would appeal to the Warriors who are dead set on building at piers 30-32, “Art Agnos just won a game of ping pong and now he thinks he’s a Wimbledon champion” said Warriors spokesman Nathan Ballard for the Warriors S.F. arena project in commenting on props B and C going down to defeat.

Lee who attended the San Francisco Bulls home opener at the Cow Palace on Friday night did not comment on the loss of the propositions but it was learned through sources at the Bulls that Lee wants Bulls team president and co-owner Pat Curcio to work with him in campaigning together with the Warriors in the construction of a new arena with the Warriors. If all goes to plan it would give the waterfront arena an NHL or minor league regulation size ice rink and a new basketball arena.

Ken Gimblin covers the NBA for Sportstalk Radio

Larry Levitt on Pro Hockey

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by Larry Levitt
DALY CITY–The off ice officials in the ECHL have a very difficult job and when your working behind the net as a goal judge it is tough because you get so immersed in the game you got to remember what your job is and that’s to watch that goal line and watch that puck. It is very exciting down there your right on top of the action I’ve done it a few times.
Any seat around the rink watching a San Francisco Bulls game your right on top of the action and at the Cow Palace your not too far away from the rink so come on down and enjoy the Bulls. Opening night on Friday night is always a good special time and Bulls owner, president, general manager, head coach Pat Curcio wears a lot of hats and I hope he’s ready for the home games after opening night.
Curcio has a lot of dignitaries here at the Cow Palace he’s got San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee here to drop the ceremonial puck and I’m sure some of the investors were at the game Friday as opening night was a big night. So Curcio has to be the general manager and head coach it’s tough just to coach a team but also to be involved in the planning with the parties and all of the events and all the dignitaries it’s going to be tough but Curcio can handle it.
The Bulls play the Stockton Thunder on Monday night and their an interesting team their coach got hired away from the team, the general manager got hired away from the team and half the front office staff got hired away from the Thunder. They did make it away from the ECHL finals against the west coast versus the east unfortunately they didn’t win the finals but they showed a lot of people how good they were.That showed caused a lot of people to turn their heads and look their way and to hire them away.
Tough run for San Jose: Starting with last Tuesday’s loss to the Buffalo Sabers, unfortunately with Buffalo they didn’t even start playing until the third period by then it was too late they did tie it up to get into overtime in the shootout but lost in the shootout and they had a weird goal taken away and not even credited to them.
The league made a huge mistake by not owning up to the mistake and saying “we missed that one lets move on” instead they used the intent of the whistle blow which is a way to cover your rear. Unfortunately it’s over, it’s done. They should have come out against Vancouver and played harder. They really had a flat game the puck was bouncing like crazy in that game.
It just wouldn’t settle down for the Sharks but if a Vancouver stick would touch it it could be as flat as could be and it could go right down the ice. Sometimes a puck would go misdirected but there were a lot of poor decisions. A lot of mistakes and bad passes in your defensive zone which turned it over right to the Vancouver Canucks.
He put it right in the net and Antti Niemi the Sharks goaltender and usually you can count on him to take over when you make those stupid mistakes he wasn’t there and he just didn’t show up. The two brightest things we could take out of that Vancouver game was the fourth line played exceptionally well. They controlled the pace of the play, they controlled the puck every time they were out there.
Larry Levitt does commentary each week on Pro Hockey

Will the Raiders ground game help the offense against Giants?

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Raiders Report

by David Zizmor

ALAMEDA– I don’t think you could look at the Raiders and say they’re going to win any particular game I know that the Giants have had a tough season so far they’re only 2-6.The Raiders are just 2-5 this is a long road trip, it’s a cross country game at the Meadowlands for this Sunday it’ll be a tough one.

While New York is not having a good season the Raiders are not in a position to take anyone for granted the Giants might not be the best team in the league but they still have quarterback Eli Manning whose a two time Super Bowl winner. They still have some very good skilled position players most notably Victor Cruz. This is not a team the Raiders can take lightly no matter what their record is.

The Raiders are going to especially feel a little embarrassed by what happened last week by the Eagles at the Oakland Coliseum losing 49-20 you have to feel bad about it. You got to forget about it, you can’t let that carry over to the following week. The Raiders have to take this one as it comes and take their opponents that is in front of them and play those guys.

The Raiders go into this game and try to regroup, they’re perfectly capable of hanging with this Giants team and New York doesn’t have a great offensive line right now. The Raiders on defense have been pretty solid last week not withstanding. So the Raiders can take advantage of the Giants offensive line they could make some headway in this game this coming Sunday.

What got the Giants into trouble all year is Manning was forced into throwing bad passes and giving up interceptions. Last time I looked Manning had ten touchdown passes on the year but 15 interceptions which is just awful especially for a guy of his pedigree. So the Raiders can go into the Meadowlands and make some noise but a win is not guaranteed by any stretch.

The other problem the Raiders have is their offense is sputtering a bit Raider quarterback Terrelle Pryor had that great 93 yard run against the Steelers on October 27th at the Coliseum but the offense is struggling right now they have injuries up and down the offensive line. Running back Darren McFadden is injured, the receiving core has really not come together.

So it’s really Pryor, Running back Rod Streater and occasionally Denarius Moore shows up, that’s about it there’s really been no kind of offense and Rashad Jennings had a decent game last week but that was mostly garbage time. So a running game without McFadden is a question mark as to if Pryor continues to go to the playbook.

David Zizmor covers the NFL for Sportstalk Radio

49ers looking forward to getting receivers back healthy

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49ers report by David Zizmor
SANTA CLARA–The San Francisco 49ers came off a long tiresome trip from London back on October 27th and then the next week they had a bye and then went to Nashville to play the Titans on November 10th and won that one. The bye week gave them a chance to get readjusted to the time change and not just day light savings time but the nine hour time difference between San Francisco and London.
More importantly the 49ers had a chance to rest and get healthy if you look at this team over the first nine weeks of the season they had a lot of injuries to deal with primarily in the receiving core where the bulk of their injuries occurred and it took a real toll on this team. Anquan Boldin did very little in the first half of the season.
Coming out of the bye week looks like Mario Manningham will return to the 49ers as a healthy wide receiver and just this week Michael Crabtree returned to practice and if he can return by the end of the month or even the beginning of December that’s a real feather in the cap for the 49ers. Nobody was sure if Crabtree would be able to make it back in the regular season.
In the playoffs Crabtree is ahead of schedule to make post season from his Achilles tear and it looks like he might play by next Thanksgiving. You get all these guys back it really starts to round out this squad and they’ve had a lot of injuries on the receiving core with Boldin being the only wideout whose been successful this season. Boldin and Vernon Davis have been the two main components of the passing game.
You could add Manningham and Crabtree to that mix and you will have a potent offense after that. For the last six weeks the 49ers have been relying on a rough and tumble ground games which they’ll continue to do no matter what. Once you get Crabtree and Manningham and Boldin and Davis altogether that’s a much tougher offensive passing team to cover.
That would make that offense that much more dynamic for 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick who will have lot more options for the passing game and it gives the 49ers a lot more play calling. They run that pass, they can focus on getting the ball to the receiver, rather than having to focus on new guys. They would have a lot more options and make it difficult for the defense in covering them.
Getting the wins in the last several weeks have been great, the 49ers have a chance now at getting healthy and to get that pass down field advantage hopefully. On the defensive side of the ball you have Glenn Dorsey recovering from an injury, he should be back and healthier. Aldon Smith is coming back from his rehab and he should be able to play this coming week.
The 49ers tangle with the Saints in the Superdome this Sunday.
David Zizmor covers the NFL for Sportstalk Radio

Michael Duca on Cal football

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by Michael Duca

BERKELEY–What was it that there are only 14 players on the Cal Bears squad from the last two years recruiting classes. You can not say that this is a Mother Hubbard situational where the cupboard was left totally bare but it wasn’t left Golden Bear that’s for sure.

The Bears are a work in process and I’m not sure it’s a work in progress but the Bears hope it is the spread offense the Bears knew from that Holiday Bowl a number of years ago that Cal couldn’t defend against and apparently based on going against the spread offense in practice every week their defense is pretty depressed about that whole concept.

The Bears have not been aggressive and their going to have to be on the defensive side of the ball, the offensive line is young and needs to develop and Jared Goff is their number one quarterback for the next number of years and he’s very well suited to the system, very well suited to the school, he had a full year of credits under his belt before he played his first game.

The Bears don’t have any issues on that side Brandon Bigelow has to develop a little bit more as a running back and that comes from the line developing ability to run block and in particular to pass protect it seems to me like I’ve seen Goff make a number of freshman like decisions out there on the field and it’s often because three or four non distinctly non freshman like human beings are trying to pulverize him.

One thing that people really don’t understand about the transition this why I kept focusing on the offensive line when I was talking is that former Bears head coach Jeff Tedford played pretty much a standard pro sets scheme and in that scheme your line blocks straight ahead or zone blocks within arms reach of you. When your playing the spread it’s not about zone blocking and it’s not about blocking straight ahead it’s about gap control.

It’s a whole different way of thinking about the offensive line responsibility it’s a whole different way of thinking of neutralizing defense in particular when you consider how inexperienced Cal’s own defense is it’s hard to imagine and being a very good scout team to train that offense in running the spread.

The last word on Cal is they have no place to go but up.

Michael Duca covers Cal football for Sportstalk Radio

Larry Levitt on the NHL

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by Larry Levitt

SAN JOSE–The Youth coming into the NHL now has such talent it’s really amazing to see there’s so many teenagers and 21 year olds coming in here in the first year and they are not intimidated by the game or the speed or the pace and they’re actually holding their own. Of course Tomas Hertl of the Sharks is also one them.

The Anaheim Ducks are near the bottom in penalty kills but the Ducks are on the move and are in first and statistics can be skewed a little. When you have a very bad penalty kill and your not doing well and yet your doing great five on five, your playing five on five more than your killing penalties hopefully so there are more full strengths than making it up on the other end.

The Sharks looked pretty good against Phoenix the other day in a shoot out loss 3-2 at SAP arena last Saturday night the way I would explain this game they have moments where they fall asleep and lose their focus and those moments are when good teams capitalize on you and the Coyotes are a very good team this year.

Every team in the west is very well rounded but the team that the Sharks usually have trouble with the Coyotes being one of them is because of the great goaltending of Mike Smith. They took advantage of him in the first game when he was really off his game but when he’s on his game he’s a tough guy to beat. They could have beat him it’s the Sharks own fault they had some loses of focus and allowed some really cheap goals but it is what it is and they’ll take the one point out of it as a gift.

My biggest fear is Buffalo their an NHL team, yes they play in the east and their record is 2-13-1 so they’re really playing poorly on the stat sheet but their actually a pretty good team. They’re a young team they have four young rookies on their team that are doing actually quiet well. The problem is when the Sharks face a team like the Sabers you don’t want to mail a game like that in.

You need to go out there and play your game, the way the Sharks need to look at that game last Tuesday night and say “let’s use this as a real good fine tune to get our focus and get our system in place and get ready for Vancouver Thursday night” but you can not look past Buffalo. You got to play that game and you got to really bear down and if it happens to be a blow out then use your third and fourth lines.

If it’s not a blow out you really need to stay focus because they’re an NHL team and in any game, any team, can win on any given night. The Canucks are no exception but I don’t know if they’re buying into head coach Mike Tortorella’s system and it’s going at the one step that Phil Kessler and and the Sedin twins are one, two and four for forwards time on ice in the NHL. So the Canucks top line is logging a lot of minutes.

Larry Levitt does NHL and ECHL hockey commentary each week for Sportstalk Radio

Michelle Richardson on the NCAA

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by Michelle Richardson

USC considers Lovie Smith: It’s good move that the USC Trojans would consider hiring ex Chicago Bears head coach Lovie Smith. I was really surprised before the Chiefs hired Andy Reid that he was able to get another professional job. Smith did a good job with the Bears he took them to a Super Bowl. He lost in the playoffs and ran into a string of bad luck with player injuries.

I never thought he did a bad job at Chicago and I was surprised when they let him go and a few times prior I thought they might let him go. It’s a good move if he gets on with USC. He can be as good as former SC coach Pete Carroll and Lovie was successful as a pro coach with the Bears coming out of that Tony Dungy camp.

So this is a good move the only thing is he’s really going to have to surround himself with good consistent coaches that go out and help him recruit because he doesn’t know anything about recruiting players so he’s going to have to find some coaches around him that can help him produce this school. Smith is from Southern California he’s at the University of Southern California he going to be able to go after some of the best and brightest players if hired.

Crimson Tide going into week 10 perfect: Alabama and Oregon are one and two in the BCS poll ratings the red headed step child of the SCC was brutalized by Missouri and came off a heartbreaking loss to South Carolina where South Carolina was able to get the win as much as Missouri lost the game. The holder didn’t turn the laces on the ball therefore Florida State people always think wide right and he meant wide left.

It was not a good day for the University of Tennessee but hopefully the new coach will turn things around in the next year or two because it’s a shame that Tennessee is really not in the hunt this year for anything when it come to college football after they play their last game at the end of November that it’s literally over for them that’s really a shame.

NCAA Basketball season opened this week: This going to be an interesting year even though Kentucky is predicted to be number one I don’t see any clear cut number one. Kentucky lost a whole squad and they got up there with a entirely new squad but their still freshman. I’m going to go for the team that’s been together for more than a year will be the winner.

Kentucky probably won’t do it like they did two years ago that was an anomaly of course everybody is looking for one man out of Kansas Andrew Williams if this year goes like it’s expected to do this young man is going to be one and done. I hear so much about him and how great he is can’t wait to really see him play on the big stage.

Don’t forget about the young man out of Duke forward Jabari Parker he’s been touted as the next Benji Watson and for any old schoolers who remember Watson out of Chicago the young man was tragically killed in his senior year and really never got to play on the whole next level but if your from Chicago or if your from the midwest and your of a certain age you’ll know about Benji Watson and know what he could have been.

Michelle Richardson does commentary on the NCAA each week