Author: Sports Radio Service

San Jose State, Spartan football receives $2 million gift from SJSU alumnus

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By: Ana Kieu 

SAN JOSE, Calif. — San Jose State Spartans football had nothing much to cheer about. Well, that all changed Wednesday, as San Jose State University is pleased to announce that it has received a $2 million gift commitment from alumnus John Hopkirk and his wife Anne Murphy. Their gift will support a critical resource for the Spartan football program–a new state-of-the-art football operations center on the east side of CEFCU Stadium, Home of the Spartans.

“John and Anne have been long-time Spartan supporters and their gift to the football operations center demonstrates their love for San Jose State University,” said athletics director Marie Tuite. “They understand and support the priority of investing in football to provide Coach Brennan and his staff the tools they need to build a championship program.  In addition, John and Anne understand the value and impact their gift will have on changing the lives of the student-athletes we serve. We are so grateful for their generosity.”

The football operations center will include locker rooms, offices, a student-athlete lounge, an auditorium and premium seating options on the 50-yard line. The project will rebuild the stadium’s east side. The gift will add to improvements underway throughout South Campus, including the recently completed soccer, tennis, golf, and softball facilities.

Proud Spartans
John Hopkirk worked his way through school at SJSU while pursuing a degree in business accounting. Hopkirk’s love for Spartan athletics took off after he graduated and began his professional career as a certified public accountant. As an avid supporter of SJSU football and basketball, Hopkirk believes he may be the only fan who has seen every SJSU men’s post-season basketball game since he first enrolled at SJSU in the late 1960s.  

In 1987, John met his wife, Anne Murphy, a University of San Francisco graduate. Anne has embraced John’s passion for SJSU athletics and the couple has traveled all over the country to watch the Spartans play.

“I have been following Spartan football for over 50 years. It has brought me much joy, and we have made many great friends through our common love of Spartan football,” said Hopkirk. “I received a great education from San Jose State, and Anne and I thought we needed to give back to the university to show our appreciation. I hope our gift inspires others to do the same.

“San Jose State must have the facilities in place to attract the best and brightest student-athletes,” Hopkirk continued. “Hopefully our donation will enhance Spartan football’s chance to be a championship program andresult in many more talented student-athletes proudly earning their diplomas from San Jose State University.”

“This critical project will have a major impact on Spartan football and our entire athletics program, as well as the game-day experience for our students and all who attend our games,” stated Paul Lanning, vice president for university advancement and CEO of the Tower Foundation. “Building a modern football operations center that revitalizes CEFCU Stadium is our most urgent fundraising priorities, and we’re thrilled to see two of our greatest fans make such a generous commitment to this project.”

“I am so grateful for John and Anne’s tremendous commitment and generosity to support and build a championship football program at San Jose State,” added head football coach Brent Brennan. “Their gift provides us with a critical recruiting tool, enhances the student-athlete experience and helps SJSU compete in the Mountain West. I can’t thank John and Anne enough for their commitment to the program.”

To learn how you can support the football operations center, please visit www.sjsufootball.com or contact Joshua Thiel, deputy athletics director for Athletics Advancement, at (408) 924-1697 or via email at joshua.thiel@sjsu.edu.

About San Jose State University
The founding campus of the 23-campus California State University system, SJSU provides a comprehensive university education, granting bachelor’s, master’s and doctoral degrees in 250 areas of study–offered through its eight colleges.

With more than 35,000 students and nearly 4,370 employees, SJSU continues to be an essential partner in the economic, cultural and social development of Silicon Valley and the state, annually contributing 10,000 graduates to the workforce.

The university is immensely proud of the accomplishments of its more than 260,000 alumni, 60% of whom live and work in the Bay Area.

San Jose State podcast with Ana Kieu: Bring out the Crying Jordans for the football and men’s basketball teams

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On the San Jose State podcast with Ana: 

1. Saturday was just not a good day for San Jose State Athletics as the football team let Fresno State win the Valley Trophy for the second straight year after a 31-13 loss and the men’s basketball team lost to Santa Clara 71-63 for their fifth straight loss. 

2. The Spartans men’s basketball team hosted the Indiana State Sycamores last night inside the Event Center. What are your three takeaways from the game?

3. What are your thoughts on the Mountain West football teams in the playoffs?

Ana does the San Jose State podcasts each week for SportsRadioService.com

Oakland Raiders podcast with Tony Renteria: Raiders run into a buzz, saw with well-prepared Ravens and Jackson

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On the Oakland Raiders podcast with Tony:

#1 Tony talks about the Baltimore Ravens and their 2016 Heisman Trophy winner quarterback LaMar Jackson, who is making a lot of headway in the NFL. LaMar, before last Sunday’s game against the Raiders, had himself a career day on Nov. 18th, throwing for 71 yards, a touchdown, carried 27 times for 117 yards. Last Sunday, Jackson led the Ravens to another victory against the Raiders.

#2 Will there be a quarterback controversy in Baltimore between Jackson and Joe Flacco? That’s something that Ravens head coach John Harbaugh will have to decide, but the Ravens pounded the Raiders on offense last Sunday.

#3 Jackson, on Sunday, carried the ball 11 times and nine times in the second half.

#4 Raiders quarterback Derek Carr went 16-34 for 194 yards with a touchdown, but the Ravens defense got to Carr, sacking him three times.

#5 The Raiders, this Sunday, host the Kansas City Chiefs (9-2) a 1:05 pm kickoff at the Oakland Coliseum.

Tony takes a look at the Raiders each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Stanford Cardinal podcast with Jerry Feitelberg: Cardinal aim to keep Big Game win streak going; Game resumes after postponement on Nov. 17th

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On the Stanford Cardinal podcast with Jerry:

#1 The long anticipated Big Game with Stanford (7-4) Cal (7-4) has finally arrived after the originally scheduled date Nov. 17th was canceled due to the Camp Fires smoke that impacted Berkeley’s air quality. This Saturday’s Big Game kicks off at 12 noon.

#2 Sophomore tight end Colby Parkinson is second in the nation with seven touchdowns amongst tight ends.

#3 The Cardinal have clinched for it’s tenth straight bowl appearance. The last time Stanford had a 10-bowl streak dating back to 1933-35 with three straight Rose Bowls and an 11-year run in 1968-78.

#4 The Cardinal have won eight consecutive Big Games as they go for their ninth Saturday.

#5 Senior wide receiver JJ Arcega-Whiteside tied a Stanford record that ranks third with 14 touchdown catches.

Jerry does the Cardinal podcasts every Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa Walsh: Sharks now 0-3 on current five-game road trip; Look to rebound on Saturday in Ottawa

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On the San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 You just can’t keep the Buffalo Sabres and the Toronto Maple Leafs down as both beat the San Jose Sharks on back-to-back nights Tuesday and Wednesday. The Sabers with a 3-2 win Tuesday and the Leafs with a two-goal 5-3 win Wednesday.

#2 The Sabers on Tuesday got some key scoring from Jeff Skinner, who has a streak for scoring the first goal to start a game in which turned out to be crucial in the win.

#3 The Sabers are now 25-17-6 while the Sharks dropped their second game of this road trip in Buffalo. On Wednesday San Jose dropped to 12-9-5 in Toronto–the loss was San Jose’s third straight.

#4 San Jose’s Joe Pavelski scored #14 and #15 in the third period on Tuesday. On Wednesday, he scored one goal #16 , but no matter Joe’s efforts, the Sharks have come up short.

#5 This long five-game road trip continues to Ottawa on Saturday and in Montreal Sunday as the Sharks will give it a go to salvage the trip with a couple of wins.

Mary Lisa Walsh does the Sharks podcasts each Thursday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Stanford handles Portland State to the tune of a 79-67 win

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By Joey Friedman

PALO ALTO, Calif.—Stanford came off a disappointing the Battle 4 Atlantis Tournament (during which they could only pull off a single win) to face the Portland State Vikings on Wednesday Night at Maples Pavilion. The Cardinal beat the Vikings by a final score of 79-67.

Stanford’s return to their home court got off to a slow start; despite how they held Portland State scoreless of the first four minutes, their own offense was slow to act. The Vikings quickly regained momentum and jumped out to a 14-10 lead with 12 minutes left to play in the first half. Momentum swung back the Cardinal’s way out of a timeout with a Lukas Kisunas layup, Cormac Ryan three-pointer, and Jaiden Delaire dunk on consecutive possessions to give Stanford a 17-14 lead.

With 5 minutes left in the half, Stanford would grind out a 7 point lead with the score 30-23 thanks to some scrappy basketball from bench players of the likes of Kodye Pugh and Lukas Kisunas. However, the Vikings would go on a 12-2 run to crawl back to a three-point lead with a minute left. Viking junior guard Michael Nuga did most of the damage; He would finish the first half with 17 points. Nobody else on either team would finish with more than seven. The Vikings took a 35-34 lead to the locker room at the break.

Stanford and Portland State shot 46% and 34% from the field, respectively, in the first half. In the same time frame, both teams combined to shoot 3-24 from beyond the arc, while Stanford was out-rebounded 28-16 overall (specifically 14-13 on their own defensive boards). Stanford turned the ball over 11 times, while PSU did so 5 times. KZ Okpala, Stanford’s team leader in both minutes and points per game this, only received 5 minutes of action in the first half, despite making the expected appearance in the starting lineup.

Stanford would start the second half reenergized and they would jump to a 7-point lead and an 8-0 run with the starting lineup of Cormac Ryan, Daejon Davis, KZ Okpala, Oscar da Silva, and Bryce Wills leading the way. The Vikings tied the game at 46 points each when a free throw fell with just over 11 minutes to play, but Stanford would inch their way forward, eventually edging out an eight-point advantage over the next 3 minutes. At the five minute mark, Vikings’ junior forward Sal Nuhu and Stanford traded contested slam dunks to settle the score at 63-53. Stanford’s lead lasted to a 79-67 final.

For the Cardinal, sophomore Oscar da Silva finished with 12 points while freshman Bryce Wills had a career-high 10 points. Jaiden Delaire and Josh Sharma each finished with 9. Josh Sharma also had 7 rebounds. 

For the Vikings, Michael Nuga finished with 19 points and 9 rebounds, Sal Nuhu had a double-double of 15 points and 14 rebounds, and Holland Woods had 18 points and 5 assists.  

Stanford finished with a 54% field goal percentage, they shot 2-16 from beyond the arc, turned the ball over 9 times, collected 36 rebounds, and blocked 9 shots. Portland State finished by shooting 32% from the field and shooting 2-24 from beyond the arc. They also had 9 turnovers and 51 rebounds. 

What’s Next?
Stanford will be back in action on the road on December 1st against the #2 Kansas Jayhawks. It will be their third time playing against a ranked opponent thus far in the non-conference schedule. They are 0-2 against ranked opponents this season.

Portland State will face Portland Bible at home on December 1st.

San Jose State slumps to sixth straight loss, 86-57, to Indiana State

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By: Ana Kieu 

SAN JOSE, Calif. — After five straight losses, the San Jose State Spartans were hoping and praying for a win over the Indiana State Sycamores on Wednesday night inside the Event Center. 

Yes, home court advantage exists for a reason. The Spartans’ record may not reflect that, but Spartan nation was loud and proud as they sported the blue and gold. In addition, the Spartan marching band and Spartan cheer squad put on excellent shows to entertain us. 

Anyhow, ISU won the tipoff and SJSU’s home game went underway. ISU opened the scoring as Clayton Hughes hit the first 3-pointer of the first half. SJSU hastily responded as Noah Baumann hit a 3 of his own to tie the game. 

But ISU made themselves look like the tough guys. The Sycamores went on a 6-0 run before Oumar Barry made a free throw to help the Spartans pull within 5 at the 16:20 mark of the half. Michael Steadman followed up with a free throw of his own to reduce the Sycamores’ deficit to 4 just 10 seconds later. 

At the second media timeout, SJSU trailed ISU 13-8, which wasn’t too bad, but the Spartan defense could’ve done a better job at slowing down the Sycamore offense in the first 10 minutes of the half.

SJSU showed some more life in the second 10 minutes of the half. Seneca Knight made a layup and Steadman made a jumper in the paint.

However, ISU refused to back down. Allante Holston made a jumper of his own, which also happened to be in the paint. Tyreke Key then made two layups before Christian Anigwe responded with a layup in the paint to re-excite Spartan nation. 

The Spartans’ lack of scoring certainly didn’t look any better late in the half. At the final media timeout, SJSU was on a 4-plus minute scoring drought and trailed ISU 28-14 with 4:29 left in the half. 

SJSU was happy to see Barry’s layup and Brae Ivey’s jumper, but ISU continued to pour in the points from all directions on the court. Ivey made a pair of free throws, but his efforts weren’t enough to help the Spartans, who trailed the Sycamores 44-20 at halftime. Baumann led the Spartans with 6 points, 1 rebound and 1 block. Ivey had 4 points and 1 steal. Barry and Steadman scored 3 points apiece, while Anigwe and Isaiah Nichols scored 2 points apiece. These stats were far from impressive, but Baumann was a bright spot for the Spartans.

The Sycamores remained hot in the second half. Devin Thomas made a pair of free throws and Key scored on two consecutive possessions to record 16 points by the 16-minute mark of the half. After a Devin Thomas score and a foul, ISU went on a 6-0 run to make it a 56-27 game at the 15:47 mark of the half.

Ivey ended the Sycamores’ run with a 3-pointer. Ivey’s 3 also signaled the start of the reduction of the Spartans’ deficit. Then, Zach Chappell happened. Chappell made two pairs of free throws–the first on the fastbreak and the other on the regular. But it was too little, too late, as the Spartans’ deficit increased to 30 at the 10:08 mark of the half.

Anigwe’s free throw and Barry’s pair of free throws brought the Spartans within 29 with 8:46 left in the half. Yep, Barry heated up, but this was still a tall order for the Spartans to complete against a Sycamores team.

SJSU lost to ISU 86-57. Steadman led the Spartans with 13 points, 3 rebounds and 1 block. Ivey had 12 points and 1 rebound. Barry had 11 points, 4 rebounds and 2 assists. Knight added 7 points, 2 assists, 1 rebound and 1 block. 

Notes 
Spartans’ starting lineup: Michael Steadman, Brae Ivey, Oumar Barry, Noah Baumann and Craig LeCesne. 

Up Next 
The Spartans continue their four-game homestand with game No. 3 next Thursday, Dec. 6 versus the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats at 7:00 pm PT. 

Headline Sports podcast with London Marq: Warriors coming back from string of losses; Fans want SF Giants owner Johnson to step down; How Foster release will impact 49ers; plus more

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On the Headline Sports podcast with London:

#1 The Warriors have certainly shown they can bounce back after losing three straight, they have on three straight as they prepare to face the Raptors in Toronto.

#2 After SF Giants owner Charles Johnson donated $2700 to Mississippi Senator Cindy Hyde-Smith who won her run off on Tuesday night. Johnson had donated the funds to the Hyde-Smith campaign after she posed for a photo with a Confederate hat and a Confederate civil war era rifle. Fans and sponsors have either pulled their support and will boycott or plan to leave doing business with the Giants. The NAACP President and former San Francisco Board of Supervisor the Rev Amos Brown has said that Johnson sought his donation from the Hyde-Smith campaign and the NAACP boycott against Johnson and the Giants is over.

#3 After the release of SF 49ers linebacker Ruben Foster on Sunday the team went out and lost to Tampa Bay. Will the Foster release have an impact on this team? Foster signed with Washington some two days later after being released by the 49ers.

#4 The Sacramento Kings are trying to avoid a third straight loss this time they face the Los Angeles Clippers at Golden 1 Center on Thursday night. The Clippers are in first place in the Western Conference.

#5 The San Jose Sharks lost their third in four games on Tuesday night in Buffalo 3-2. The Sharks really got taken to the cleaners on Sunday night with a 6-0 loss in Las Vegas to the Golden Knights.

London Marq does Headline Sports each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Seven San Jose State Spartans named to All-Mountain West football team

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By: Ana Kieu

Look, this San Jose State Spartans’ season was far from glamorous, but Spartan nation had something to rejoice about Wednesday, as 7 Spartans were named to the All-Mountain West football team in Colorado Springs, Colo.

SJSU tight end Josh Oliver and defensive back Dakari Monroe were named first-team All-Mountain West football players for this season in a vote by the conference’s 12 head coaches.

In addition, defensive lineman Bryson Bridges was a second-team pick. Linebacker Ethan Aguayo, return specialist Thai Cottrell, punter Bryce Crawford and defensive lineman Boogie Roberts were honorable mention selections.

The 7 Spartans named to the All-Mountain West teams were 3 more than the 4 players honored in 2017.

Oliver, a senior from Paso Robles, Calif., was one of the top pass-catching tight ends in the FBS. He was the first tight end to catch 50 passes this season and finished with personal bests of 56 receptions, a team-best, for 709 yards and four touchdowns. Oliver’s 709 yards and 4 receiving touchdowns were second best on the team.

3 times, Oliver was recognized nationally through the John Mackey Tight End of the Week awards program. He was an honorable mention choice after the UC Davis (Aug. 30) and UNLV (Oct. 27) games and the National Tight End of the Week for matching his career-best of 8 catches for a personal high of 158 yards and a touchdown, Monroe, a senior from San Jose, Calif., was the team leader in interceptions for the second consecutive year with 4. He returned 1 of his 2 interceptions in the UNLV win for a 50-yard return for a touchdown. Throughout the season, Monroe was ranked nationally in the top 20 and often in the top 10 either for interceptions or passes defended. At the end of the regular season, he was tied for sixth nationally with his 19 passes defended in 12 games.

The versatile Monroe also was one of the team’s most effective special teams players. He had a knack of downing team punts inside the 10-yard line. In the last two games versus Nevada and against Fresno State, he downed a punt at the 1-yard line in each game.

Bridges, a senior from Temecula, Calif., was credited with more tackles than any Mountain West defensive lineman. His 69 tackles were sixth best on the team and a personal best in his four seasons in a San Jose State uniform. Bridges was credited with a single-game high of 15 stops in the Oct. 13 Army West Point game at Levi’s Stadium.

Oliver, Monroe and Bridges were three of the team’s four captains. Roberts, the fourth co-captain, was in the group of honorable mention award winners. The senior from Los Angeles, was second on the team with 8.5 tackles for loss and had 48 total tackles. He led the team with two forced fumbles and shared the team lead with four quarterback hurries.

Roberts was 1 of 4 Spartans to force a fumble and recover a fumble in the same game from his nose tackle position. At Hawaii, Roberts picked up a Rainbow Warriors’ fumble and returned it 9 yards. The following week versus Colorado State, he was credited with SJSU’s first safety in 5 years when he tackled Rams’ quarterback K.J. Carta-Samuels in the end zone.

Since joining the Mountain West in 2013, the 2018 season marks the first time 2 SJSU defensive linemen were recognized as all-conference players in the same season. Overall, Bridges and Roberts are the second and third Spartan defensive linemen to be named an All-Conference Player in the program’s 6 seasons in the conference.

Aguayo, a junior from Mission Viejo, Calif., led the Spartans in total tackles with 106. He recorded his single-game personal best of 20 tackles in the Nov. 17 game versus Nevada. 5 more times during the season, he was credited with 10 or more stops.

Cottrell, a senior from Oceanside, Calif., presently ranks 19th in kickoff returns with his 25.8 yards per return average. He returned kickoffs for 96 yards at Oregon and 72 versus Hawaii early in the season.

Cottrell also was the Spartans’ primary punt returner. He returned 11 punts for a 9.4 yards per return average. Cottrell was ranked 12th nationally for combined return yardage at 670 yards.

Crawford, a senior from Frisco, Texas, handled all the kicking chores through the first 5 games of the season. He took over the punting duties when 2018 spring practice began and kept the job throughout the season. His 44.3 yards per punt average ranks 16th nationally for individual punting.

Based on available information, Crawford’s believed to be the first SJSU kicker to be named All-Conference in kicking and punting. Crawford was an Honorable Mention All-Mountain West pick as a placekicker in 2017.

San Jose Barracuda podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Barracuda dominating in Stockton series with fourth win Tuesday; head to Stockton Saturday

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On the San Jose Barracuda podcast with Marko:

#1 The SJ Barracuda scored four unanswered goals against the Stockton Heat at SAP Center in a Tuesday matinee scoring four unanswered goals to get the Cuda a 4-2 win over the Heat.

#2 The win snapped the Cuda’s two-game losing streak and moved them back on top in the Pacific Division.

#3 This victory was San Jose’s fourth victory of the season against the Heat and they know their playbook pretty well to achieve that.

#4 The Cuda got their first two goals from Jacob Middleton and Nick DeSimone and it was enough to get them past a battling Heat team who were playing desperate not to lose to San Jose.

#5 Next game up for San Jose on December 1st at Stockton. Once again, can the Barracuda dominate again?

Marko Ukalovic does the Barracuda podcast each Wednesday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com