That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: The Niners have taken a knee and their fans have taken a nap

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Members of the San Francisco 49ers kneel during the playing of the national anthem before an NFL football game against the Indianapolis Colts, Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017, in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

By Amaury Pi Gonzalez

The San Francisco 49ers lost their game today 26-23 against their hosts the Indianapolis Colts and are now 0-5 in this 2017-18 NFL season. Maybe they should stand up for the National Anthem and maybe their luck will change. So far this season at the end of week #5 they have taken a knee and their fans have taken a nap. I have said before how I feel about the taking of the knee. I respect their rights to protest under the First Amendment, but disagree with that action. There is enough politics today as it is, fans pay good money to see football because they want to escape the real world. The National Anthem and the Flag are symbols of the country as a whole, not symbols of a cause, a specific person or group or any political party. They have been symbols that identify all of us, way way before Football was even invented. Football was invented in the 1880’s.

The NFL was founded in Canton, Ohio in 1920. The Star Spangled Banner was written in 1814 by Francis Scott Key. The American flag was sewed by Betsy Ross in 1776.

As Americans, the Anthem and the Flag should be something that unite all of us, millions have died defending those symbols for over 200 years. NFL Football is a game played by around 1,600 athletes in 32 teams, in a country of 330 million people.The least they can do is pay respect to these national symbols that allowed them to live in this country, and to all who made the ultimate sacrifice to give them the rights that allowed them to do such things. We are a unique country, if you were born outside the United States of America, chances are that the country you were born doesn’t gives you the freedom to disrespect the Anthem and Flag, in many countries today that is enough cause to “take you away”. Thank God the US is not like that, we all enjoy the freedoms, and nobody is holding us hostage in this country.

If you disagree with me, that would be fine, I respect your right to do so, and I hope that you do likewise with me.

Amaury Pi Gonzalez is the vice president of the Major League Baseball Hispanic Heritage Museum and does News and Commentary each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Ravens send Raiders to third straight loss 30-17

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Baltimore Ravens wide receiver Mike Wallace (17) runs against the Oakland Raiders during the second half of an NFL football game in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

By Jeremy Kahn

OAKLAND-After back-to-back road losses against the Washington Redskins and the Denver Broncos, the Oakland Raiders returned to what they thought was the friendly confines of the Oakland-Alameda County Coliseum.

Unfortunately, the Coliseum was not friendly to the Raiders, as Joe Flacco found Mike Wallace down the left sideline for a 52-yard pass play and the drive ended with a two-yard touchdown on a reverse from Vince Mayle and the Baltimore Ravens defeated the Raiders 30-17.

On the afternoon, Flacco went 19-for-26 for 222 yards passing, while Wallace caught just three passes for 133 yards. Wallace was only targeted three times on the afternoon.

Jeremy Maclin led the Ravens with six catches for 43 yards, as the Ravens improve to 3-2 on the season.

Asides from a great day from Flacco, and the receiving duo of Maclin and Wallace, the Ravens received big days on the ground from Javorius Allen and Alex Collins.

Allen, in his third year out of USC led the Ravens with 21 carries for 73 yards and Collins, who is in his second year in the league after playing his rookie year with the Seattle Seahawks, carried the 12 times for 55 yards.

With Derek Carr injured, the Raiders turned to veteran E.J. Manuel and the former Florida State Seminoles quarterback went 13-for-26 for 159 yards passing and a touchdown in his first start of the season.

Carr, who is reportedly out from anywhere from two to six weeks is already practicing with the team and could be ready for the next Raiders game, on October 15 against the Los Angeles Chargers at the Coliseum.

“Yeah, I have that feel,” said Jack Del Rio, when asked about Carr playing next Sunday.

Michael Crabtree in receptions with six for 82 yards and a touchdown, while Jared Cook hauled in three catches for 25 yards and Seth Roberts caught two passes for 34 yards.

The rut for Amari Cooper continues, as he was only targeted twice and caught one pass for eight yards.

“I wouldn’t say it was by design to have him not get more targets. The read went away from him a couple times. A couple of times, it went to him. I’d like to see him get the ball more. To me it’s about execution right now. I’m not going to sit here and get into how, why, individuals aren’t getting or doing. I don’t see where that’s going to help us,” said Del Rio.

Marshawn Lynch led the Raiders in rushing with 12 carries for 43 yards and a two-yard touchdown run that cut the Ravens lead down to 24-17 in the third quarter.

The Raiders first series of the afternoon ended with a 47-yard fumble return for a touchdown by Jimmy Smith to give the Ravens a 14-0 lead just three minutes into the game.

Following the Smith fumble return for a touchdown, the Raiders drove all the way down to the Ravens 14-yard line where the drive stalled and Giorgio Tavecchio gave the Raiders their first points of the afternoon after a 32-yard field goal.

The Ravens increased their lead up to 21-3 after a 15 play 75-yard drive that took eight minutes and 10 seconds off the clock, as Allen scored from two yards out.

Manuel and Crabtree hooked up for a 41-yard touchdown that narrowed the Ravens lead down to 21-10.

On the ensuing Ravens series, the Ravens lengthened their lead up to 24-10, as veteran Justin Tucker nailed a 22-yard field goal that was setup by a 54-yard pass play from Flacco to Wallace.

Lynch cut the Ravens lead down to 24-17 in the third quarter, as he scored on a two-yard run that sent the Coliseum crowd into a frenzy.

Unfortunately, those would be the last points of the afternoon scored by the Raiders and the Ravens put it away, as Tucker nailed a 21-yard field goal and a 44-yard field goal.

NOTES: This is the beginning of a three-game home stand for the Raiders, as they will host the Chargers on October 15 and then on October 19, the Raiders will stay in the division, as they will host the Kansas City Chiefs.

Quote of the day came from Ravens head coach John Harbaugh, who said that he is not a doctor, but he plays one at the podium.

Harbaugh, who is in his 10th year as head coach of the Ravens was talking about Terrance West, who was forced to leave the game after the first series with a left calf injury and did not return.

Oakland Raiders: Another disappearing act from Amari Cooper

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Oakland Raiders quarterback EJ Manuel speaks at a news conference after an NFL football game against the Baltimore Ravens in Oakland, Calif., Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)

By Joe Hawkes-Beamon
Sports Radio Service Writer

OAKLAND — The season is starting to look grim for the Raiders, who lost for the third-straight week losing to the Baltimore Ravens 30-17 at home in Week 5 following a 2-0 start.

Coming into the game, Oakland had “W” written on paper, seeing that Baltimore was outscored 70-17 by their opponents in their last two losses following a 2-0 start of their own.

Oakland (2-3) did start backup quarterback EJ Manuel for the injured Derek Carr and Manuel did a good job, completing 13-of-26 passes for 159 yards and a touchdown. Manuel stepped in a ran the Raiders’ offense as best as he could on Sunday, finding a connection with wide receiver Michael Crabtree early and often.

Crabtree finished with team-highs in catches (6), targets (8) and receiving yards (82), most of those yards coming on a 41-yard touchdown pass from Manuel in the second quarter after Baltimore was already leading 21-3.

Crabtree leads Oakland with four touchdown catches this season after today’s game.

But where was fellow wide receiver Amari Cooper today? In fact, where has Cooper been this entire season?

Cooper didn’t record his first and only catch of the game until 12:35 in the fourth quarter, for eight yards. He had just two targets on the day.

After recording nine catches on 18 targets for 95 yards and a touchdown in Oakland’s first two wins of the season, Cooper has just four catches on 15 targets for 23 yards and zero touchdowns in the last three losses for the Silver and Black.

Cooper has posted back-to-back 1,000-yard receiving seasons in his first two years in the Bay Area and is considered to be Oakland’s best play-maker, but he has looked nothing like it or the ‘superstar’ every Raider fan believes he is this season.

Is it a mental thing?

Leading the league with seven drop passes according to Pro Football Focus can have that affect on a wide receiver. Maybe the drops are becoming a mental block for No. 89?

Oakland has played teams with good secondaries in recent weeks like Washington and AFC West rival Denver and better wide receivers than Cooper have had trouble this season finding success against those teams, but Cooper has to perform better if the Raiders have any chance of winning football games and making a run at the Super Bowl this year.

The Raiders are expected to get back Carr from his transverse process fracture he suffered in Denver (possibly as early as next week with the visiting 1-4 L.A. Chargers coming to town) and Cooper could reignite his season with Carr’s return.

If Carr and Cooper are on the same page, Oakland’s offense will take off without an issue.

For Oakland’s sake and their season, will the real Amari Cooper please stand up?

Warriors kick it up a notch as they trounce the Timberwolves in Shanghai 142-110

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Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry gestures during the preseason NBA game against the Minnesota Timberwolves in Shanghai, China, Sunday, Oct. 8, 2017. (AP Photo)

by Jerry Feitelberg

Shanghai, China- The Golden State Warriors won their first game of the preseason as they defeated the Minnesota Timberwolves by a score of 142-110. The Timberwolves scored early and often in the first quarter. The Wolves starting quintet of Andrew Wiggins, Karl-Anthony Towns, Jimmy Butler, Jeff Teague, and Taj Gibson torched the Dubs as the raced to an early 16-11 lead. The Wolves kept the pressure on as they could not be stopped by the Warriors defense. They led 35-31 with 1:44 left in the quarter and were able to increase the lead for the first twelve minutes of play to 44-36.

The Dubs kept pace with the Wolves in the second quarter. They were trailing by ten points when Steph Curry came back into the game. The Warriors were able to turn the game around, and they looked like the champions that they are. Steph and Klay led the offensive onslaught as they won the quarter 40-28 and led 76-72 at the half. The Dubs’ defense, fantastic last season, looked like they were back.

In the third quarter, Steph, Klay, and Kevin Durant wowed the 16,007 fans in attendance as they made several three-point shots and dominated play in the period. They outscored the Wolves 38-23 to put the game out of reach. Steph was done for the night, and he watched the game as he was sitting on the floor signing autographs for the fans.

The Warriors started Klay, Shaun Livingston, Andre Iguodala, David West, and KD in the fourth quarter. They increased the lead to twenty-six before being replaced by Omri Casspi, Patrick McCaw, and the rookie from the University of Oregon Jordan Bell. In the last six minutes of the game, Bell scored eleven points and blocked two shots. Bell’s play should get him some playing time when the season starts for real on October 17th.

Game Notes and Stats- Before the start of the game, Draymond Green and Jimmy Butler each thanked the people of China for the terrific week the players experienced. The crowd enjoyed the show the teams put on, and it appeared the fans were a little bit louder when the Warriors had the ball. There was a stretch in the third quarter when the Dubs made five three-pointers in a row to blow the game wide open. The fans roared every time Steph lined up for a three and went ballistic when he made the shot.

Steph Curry was a man on a mission as he knocked down forty points and made at least six three-point shots. Klay Thompson knocked down twenty-eight, and KD had twenty-two. Draymond Green tallied eleven, and he blocked three shots.

Leading scorers for Minnesota were Andrew Wiggins with nineteen, Towns had sixteen, Jimmy Butler fifteen, Jeff Teague ten, Gorgui Dieng and Shabazz Muhammad each had eleven. The Timberwolves finished the preseason with a 2-1 record. The next game they play will be the first game of the 2017-2018 season.

The Warriors are 1-2 and meet the Sacramento Kings on Friday, October 13th, at the Oracle Arena at 7:30 pm. This will be the final preseason game for the Dubs. They play the Houston Rockets in Oakland on October 17th.

Pence (and Trump) choose to politicize Niners – Colts game in Indy; Pence walks out on orders from his boss

Published on by Charlie O. MalloneeLeave a comment
niners kneeling in Indy
49ers players kneel during National Anthem in Indianapolis with Vice President Mike Pence in the stands Photo: Mike Conroy/Associated Press

by Charlie O. Mallonee

Vice President Mike Pence and his wife attended the San Francisco — Indianapolis football game in Indianapolis on Sunday. They did not stay long but they did make it to their seats.

As the former governor of Indiana attending a Colts game was a perfectly natural choice for the Vice President. He attended games as the governor of the state and was known to be a Colts fan. Pence was not at the stadium on Sunday to watch a football game.

The Trump Administration has picked a fight with the NFL and its players

The President made a bombastic speech where he called for NFL players to be fired if they “took a knee” during the playing of the National Anthem. The President has framed his argument that “the kneel” is showing disrespect to our troops, flag and country.

The players have consistently said that the protest is not against the military but against the inequality that is experienced by people in America on a daily basis. If the President was really concerned about the situation, he would invite protesting players to the White House and open a dialogue about their grievances.

That has not happened because the “Trump political base” would not like him sitting down with protesters. The President can say there were “good people” among the white nationalist who created havoc and ultimately the death of a young woman in Charlottesville, Virginia but evidently there are no “good people” among the NFL players who exercising their Constitutional rights to Free Speech and non-violent protest in the tradition of Dr. Martin Luther King.

Sunday was a show for the Trump “MAGA” base

Pence, the White House and the political handlers knew exactly what was going to happen before the game began. They knew members of the 49ers team were intending to “take a knee” during the anthem. The Vice President and his enterouage had their walkout already planned.

If you do not think this was a political stunt, look at Trump’s tweet concerning the incident.

From @realDonaldTrump

The President could not even let the action look like a strong move by his Veep. “I asked @VP to leave … “. Simply put — this was a political stunt orchestrated out of the White House and this is not “Fake News”.

In the meantime not a word about the protest in Charlottesville

Charlottesville nbc29
White nationalist protest on Saturday night in Charlottesville Photo NBC29

The white nationalist returned to Charlottesville, Virginia again on Saturday night with their tiki torches and vile speech. There were only 40-50 protesters but they were back. Their leader posted a “victory” speech on the internet.

Not word on Twitter from @realDonaldTrump or @VP about that protest and the on-going attempt to incite violence against minorities.

This is a diversionary tactic plain and simple

Plan

This “counter protest” by the President is simply designed to make people look away from what is happening in his house by getting people to look what is going on over there.

Thank you to every member of the military

military

Finally, let us all be thankful for our active military and military veterans who protect our Constitutional rights of free speech. Because of their work, we have the opportunity to agree or disagree and work for change.

MLB ALDS/NLDS Podcast with Daniel Dullum: Cleveland and Yankees have 2-0 leads; Dodgers the favorite in the NL; Dusty and the Nats might have something to say about that

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Los Angeles Dodgers starting pitcher Kenta Maeda, of Japan, throws Arizona Diamondbacks during the fifth inning of Game 2 of baseball’s National League Division Series in Los Angeles, Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)

On the MLB Podcast with Daniel:

1 AL Division Series – Cleveland-NY Yanks, Houston-Boston

2 NL Division Series – Arizona – LA, Washington-Chi. Cubs

3 Diamondbacks coach Ariel Prieto denies cheating with electronic watch

4 Twins’ OF Byron Buxton played in AL Wild Card game with cracked rib

5 Nationals ban Cubs fans ‘W’ flags, troll them with ‘L’ flag

Daniel Dullum does the MLB Post Season series podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Categories MLB

NCAA Football Podcast with Michelle Richardson: Michigan’s Speight looking at back surgery; Stanford’s Love carries for 152 yds; Wash coach Peterson says Pac 12 games scheduled too late

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Michigan quarterback Wilton Speight (3) is injured during NCAA football game action between the Michigan Wolverines and the Purdue Boilermakers at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana. Michigan defeated Purdue 28-10 John Mersits/CSM. (Cal Sport Media via AP Images)

On the Podcast with Michelle Richardson:

#1 Michelle can you shed any light on the injury to Michigan quarterback Wilton Speight who injured his back, it was reported that Speight will have his back evaluated in a month to determine his back injuries and if he will need back surgery. Quaterack John Korn has taken over the position for Speight.

#2 The Stanford Cardinal got by the Utah Utes in a close match 23-20. The Cardinal running back Bryce Love who had a record week last week against ASU did it again against the Utes with 152 yards and capped it off with a 68 yard run for a touchdown. This is the Cardinal’s second straight win.

#3 Washington Huskies coach Chris Peterson is not too happy about the late starts that are schedule in the Pac 12. The Pac 12 have seen a lot of 7:15 to 7:45 starts but ESPN whose heard about the start time complaints say any team should be happy about the kind of prime time exposure their getting and that ACC, Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 also are playing in that time zone too.

Michelle’s Final Thoughts

Michelle Richardson does the NCAA Football Podcast each week at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Jose Barracuda Saturday game wrap: Barracuda overcome two goal deficit in 6-4 win over Heat in opener

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sjbarracuda.com photo: San Jose Sharks forward Brandon Marhinter (53) battles for the puck with the Stockton Heat’s defenceman Josh Heatley (3)

By Marko Ukalovich

The San Jose Barracuda overcame a 1st period 2 goal deficit to roll past the Stockton Heat 6-4 in their season opener at Stockton Arena. Andrew Mangiapane blasted a slap shot past Troy Grosenick from the left wing on a three-on-two at 7:46 to break the deadlock. At 17:35, the AHL’s Rookie of the Year from a season ago Danny O’Regan evened the score on a backdoor tap-in after a perfect cross-ice feed from Filip Sandberg. 20 seconds later, Garnet Hathaway recaptured Stockton’s lead as he beat Grosenick with a backhand-to-forehand move on the breakaway.

In the second, the Heat extended its lead to 3-1 a minute and 59 seconds into the period as Mangiapane collected his third point of the evening by setting up Mark Jankowski on the power play. After that point, San Jose weathered four more Stockton power plays and O’Regan jammed home his second of the game to get the Barracuda back within one at 11:24. Rudolfs Balcers cashed in on a loose puck atop the crease at 13:15 for his first pro goal, tying the game on the power play after Gillies had initially denied O’Regan’s close-range hat-trick bid.

In the third, tied at 3-3, San Jose took its first lead of the night when Stockton failed to clear the puck from their own end, and Adam Helewka found Marcus Sorensen in the low slot at 6:07. At 5:43, Joe Cramarossa tied the score on a point-shot rebound, but Manuel Wiederer gave San Jose the lead back on the penalty kill as he picked off a pass and beat Gillies through the five-hole on a breakaway at 13:36. Helewka sealed the win with an empty-netter at 18:52.

Grosenick (1-0) earned the victory by making 23 saves on 27 shots, while Gillies (1-1) took the loss after allowing five goals on 26 shots.

NEXT UP: The San Jose Barracuda take on the defending Calder Cup Champion Grand Rapids Griffins in their home opener on Friday October 13th.

Cal’s offense shutdown in lopsided loss to Washington 38-7

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AP17281218904372
Washington’s Dante Pettis (8) is brought down near the end zone by California’s Camryn Bynum in the second half of an NCAA college football game Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017, in Seattle. Washington won 38-7. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)

By Morris Phillips

Cal’s offense was so meager on Saturday night at Washington, the numbers didn’t add up.

Literally.

After quarterback Ross Bowers was sacked seven times, Chase Forrest once, and the Bears’ running game featuring Patrick Laird got stuffed, the Bears rushed for minus 30 yards, the third fewest number of yards rushing ever allowed by a Washington defense.

Cal’s total offense was totaled, just 93 yards, the lowest figure posted by a Bears’ offense in 18 seasons.

And after the game’s final play–a botched field goal attempt that lost 41 yards when the ball was fumbled–the Bears were declared a statistical nightmare in a 38-7 loss to the No. 5 Huskies in Seattle.

Afterwards, Coach Justin Wilcox tried to tie it all together, but couldn’t get past how poorly his Cal team played.

“That’s a really good football team,” Wilcox said. “I think we have a chance. But when you go out and play like that, you don’t give yourself a chance.”

The Bears lost for the third consecutive week after opening 3-0. And the theme in all three losses was ineffective pass protection that left Bowers flat on his back 17 times over that span. But even that didn’t absolve the quarterback of a significant portion of the blame.

“There were some things that showed up tonight that he could have done much better,” Wilcox said of Bowers. “Then we’ll see on the tape; that will paint the clearest picture, but Ross has to continue to play better.”

As do Bowers’ teammates.

 

Love, Cardinal hold off No. 20 Utes 23-20

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Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News photo: Stanford Cardinal safety Justin Reid (8) intercepts the ball from Utah Utes wide receiver Raelon Singleton (11) in Salt Lake City on Saturday, Oct. 7, 2017.

By Daniel Dullum
Sports Radio Service
Saturday, October 7, 2017

Stanford held off a late Utah rally Saturday, and handed the No. 20 Utes their first loss of the season, a 23-20 setback in Pac-12 football at Rice-Eccles Stadium in Salt Lake City.

Bryce Love enjoyed another big day for the Cardinal (4-2 overall,3-1 Pac-12), running for 152 yards and a 68-yard touchdown run that put Stanford up 23-13 early in the fourth quarter.

The Utes (4-1 overall, 1-1 Pac-12) drove to the Cardinal 30, where Utah quarterback Troy Williams, trying to avoid a sack, threw wildly and his pass was intercepted by Quenton Meeks. Justin Reed picked off another Williams pass with 5:52 left in the fourth quarter.

Williams’ 18-yard touchdown pass to Darren Carrington II closed the Utes’ deficit to 23-20 with :44 remaining in regulation.

Keller Chryst, who was cleared to start after missing last week’s game with an undisclosed injury, threw for 106 yards and a touchdown. Chryst also ran seven yards for Stanford’s first touchdown at 9:35 of the second quarter.

K.J. Costello, Chryst’s backup, also played and threw for 82 yards.

Williams completed 20 of 39 passes for 238 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions. Carrington II caught seven passes for 99 yards and a TD, and Zach Moss led Utah runners with 79 rushing yards and a touchdown on 15 attempts.

Jet Toner’s 46-yard field goal with six seconds left in the second quarter gave Stanford a 13-10 halftime lead.

Next Saturday, the Cardinal return home to host Oregon (4-2).