Headline Sports podcast with Charlie O: Universities boycott SJSU’s Volleyball games with transgender on Spartans roster; Cal gets some love on Game Day from ESPN; plus more news

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San Jose State Spartans outside right side hitter Blaire Fleming (3) has been the focus of being a transgender playing on a women’s volleyball team. Three universities have boycotted against playing SJSU and did not disclose the reasons why. (SJSU photo)

On Headline Sports podcast with Charlie O:

#1 San Jose State Spartans volleyball has been in the spotlight over transgender outside right side hitter Blaire Fleming. Three universities have boycotted playing SJSU, Southern Utah, Boise State, Wyoming. The three universities did not disclose a reason for boycotting the games against SJSU. Fleming teammate Brooke Slusser has joined a lawsuit against the NCAA regarding safety issues after finding out that Fleming was transgender. How much of a conundrum is this going to cause the NCAA with teams boycotting and players filing lawsuits.

#2 Charlie, it was a special day for Cal football on Saturday as they hosted the Miami Hurricane. It was the first time in the school’s history that they host ESPN Game Day. The event went down as a big deal as Cal made the national scene. Cal had gone 3-1 previous to their game with Miami and got some love from the World Wide Sports Leader.

#3 Vice President Kamala Harris on her podcast “All is Smoke” expressed sadness about Oakland losing all it’s professional sports teams which included Golden State Warriors, Oakland Raiders and Oakland A’s. Harris was joined by former Warriors Harrison Barnes and Stephen Jackson on the podcast. Harris said “it breaks my heart.” The vice president said she feels sadness each time she passes the Oakland Coliseum when she flies in and out of Oakland Airport.

#4 It was mentioned on a local talk show that it’s 98% certain that the A’s will end up at Sutter Health Field but it’s the uncertain 2% that you have to look out for. The San Francisco Chronicle reported that A’s president David Forst said “I don’t think we have a 100% certainty.” even though renovations have been made in the dugouts the artificial turf has not been installed at all. The players of other teams behind the scenes have told their agents they do not want to play on artificial turf and using a minor league park would not be practical for big league players. According to A’s manager Mark Kotsay, “no decision (to go) from grass to turf has been made.” Charlie you were there on the last game in Oakland I know you said it’s a done deal in Sacramento but there is doubt about Sutter Health and the players really are leaning on finishing up at the Coliseum before moving to Vegas.

#5 The Arizona Cardinals (1-3) kick off against the San Francisco 49ers (2-2) at Levi Stadium. The Cardinals are a struggling bunch they had their heads handed to them by the Washington Commanders last week. Cardinal quarterback Kyler Murray was 16-22 for 142 yards, and one touchdown. The 49ers after losing two straight games defeated the New England Patriots last Sunday 30-13 and ran up the score on the Pats. Will the 49ers make easy work of the Cardinal today?

#6 The Las Vegas Raiders just got by the Cleveland Browns last week 20-16. After holding a 20-10 win the Raiders in the fourth quarter couldn’t get any offense going and the Browns returned a fumble for a touchdown but it wasn’t enough as Las Vegas came away with a four point win at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.

Join Charlie O for Headline Sports podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Sacramento A’s Relocation podcast with Daniel Dullum: Did AASEG really miss a Coliseum payment? and City Council is asking “where’s the money”

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Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao announces an exclusive negotiating agreement to develop the Oakland Coliseum complex in Feb 2, 2023. Fast forward to Oct 2024 Oakland City Council Jannai Ramachandran is asking where are the AASEG payments are for the purchase of the Oakland Coliseum. Lea Suzuki / The Chronicle file photo

On the Sacramento A’s Relocation podcast with Daniel Dullum:

#1 Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao this past week said that the missed payment on the Oakland Coliseum property payment by the African American Sports Entertainment Group would not trigger and budget contingencies.

#2 Oakland City Council member Jannai Ramachandran in a statement said the City has not received the $15 million payment for September from AASEG.

#3 Oakland and AASEG came to an agreement to sell the AASEG 50% of the Coliseum property meanwhile the Oakalnd A’s sold 50% of their half of the property. The cost to AASEG was $105 million for each of the 50% purchases.

#4 Ramachandran said that the people of Oakland need to know “where this money is and the impact on public safety.”

#5 Mayor Thao’s office said the money is track. Ray Bobbitt AASEG founder said that they have met all payments. The group has said it paid $15 million in September and is scheduled to make a $10 million payment in early October.

Daniel Dullum does the Sacramento A’s relocation podcasts each Sunday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Clock Strikes Midnight On Upset-Minded Cal in 39-38 Loss To No. 8 Miami

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–At some subtle, hard to determine juncture approaching the three-hour mark of a lengthy, college football game, Cal lost its grip.

Miami coach Mario Cristobal sensed it, then framed it after his Hurricanes scored 29 of the game’s final 32 points to stun the Bears, 39-38 to remain unbeaten and squarely in the hunt for a national championship.

“I don’t know how many teams in the country would have come back against that defense,” Cristobal said of Cal, which held Miami to 10 points until 3:02 remained in the third quarter.

Damian Martinez’ 1-yard touchdown run and Xavier Restrepo’s two-point reception didn’t trigger an avalanche for the Canes. Instead, Cal proved steadfast and took another three plus minutes off the clock in increasing their lead to 38-18 on Ryan Coe’s 37-yard field goal.

Three Miami touchdowns would follow, capped by Elijah Arroyo’s 5-yard catch and score with 26 seconds remaining.

“We kept clawing and scratching, and the defense held up,” Cristobal recounted.

“How many people cut this off?” he said, touching on the fact that the Hurricanes’ comeback didn’t hit maximum thrust until after 1:00am in Florida.

What caused the television audience to rest was Cal’s defense. Nohl Williams picked off Miami’s Cam Ward, his fifth of the year, which leads the nation. Linebackers Cade Uluave and Teddye Buchanan combined for 23 tackles while Cal built a 25-point lead. But the experienced Ward played the waiting game, and the result was 35 completions, 437 yards, and two fourth quarter touchdown passes that sandwiched his 24-yard touchdown run.

“That’s two games straight we had to do that. We have to lock in,” Ward said. “It’s good to get a win. We’re not going to complain. An ugly win is better than a good loss.”

Ward improved to 2-1 against California with the first win and loss coming when the quarterback was with Washington State in 2022 and 2023. Conversely, the Bears missed a rare opportunity to upset a team ranked in the top ten nationally. The last time was 2017 versus the Cougars prior to Ward’s arrival.

Ward’s 437 yards passing gives him six consecutive performances of 300 plus yards passing to put him squarely in contention for the Heisman trophy.

Fernando Mendoza led Cal with 285 yards passing. Jadyn Ott made the most of a slow night with a 66-yard touchdown catch and run. That production helped the Bears build a sizeable lead, but 2 of 10 third down conversions left the Bears defense vulnerable to fatigue that surfaced in Miami’s comeback.

Coach Justin Wilcox didn’t appear to agree with a targeting situation that didn’t draw a penalty on Miami after a review. That non-call on third down forced Cal to punt and gave the ball back to Miami for their game-winning, six-play drive.

Wilcox was close-lipped regarding that play but was open regarding the game in its entirety.

“We had every opportunity to win that game, obviously,” Wilcox said. “We didn’t get it done, so every individual has to own it.”

The Bears travel to meet undefeated Pittsburgh (5-0) next week. The Panthers posted an impressive 34-24 road win over North Carolina on Saturday.

Luna’s late goal the difference in Real Salt Lake’s 1-0 shutout victory over the Earthquakes.

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The San Jose Earthquakes celebrated super fan Krazy George before their game against Real Salt Lake as George posed with the team’s starting 11 as part of the team’s 50th-year celebration at Pay Pal Park on Saturday OCT 5, 2024. (San Jose Earthquakes)

by Marko Ukalovic

SAN JOSE — Sunnyvale’s Diego Luna had a happy homecoming as he returned to haunt his hometown team.

Luna scored in the 78th minute was the only goal Real Salt Lake needed to defeat the San Jose Earthquakes 1-0 in the Quakes home finale of the season on Saturday evening at Pay Pal Park.

San Jose finished 4-13-1 at home including games at Levi’s Stadium and Stanford Stadium. The Earthquakes have lost three out of its last four matches with one match remaining in the season. With the win, Real Salt Lake has earned points in five straight matches and is tied with Seattle for third place in the Western Conference.

Real Salt Lake had the presence of their leading goal scorer Chico Arango who has been out with a hamstring injury he suffered during a 2-0 loss to the Earthquakes on August 24th when he was knocked to the ground by midfielder Carlos Gruezo. Arango came in as a substitute for Anderson Julio in the 55th minute.

The first half featured a scoreless deadlock. Neither team generated that many quality scoring chances. The best opportunity for San Jose came in the 20th minute when a shot from Hernan Lopez from the center of the box missed wide right of Real Salt Lake goalkeeper Zac MacMath. Quakes goalkeeper Daniel made a nice save on RSL’s best chance of the half, a shot off of the foot of Luna in the fourth minute.

Real Salt Lake (15-7-11-56 points) looked to have broken the deadlock in the 56th minute when Arango scored with a shot from point-blank range near the left post. However, he was ruled offsides and the goal was wiped off the board.

San Jose’s (6-24-5-21 points) interim head coach Ian Russell brought in a pair of fresh legs in the 63rd minute. Jack Skahan and Amahl Pellegrino came in for Jeremy Ebobisse and Paul Marie.

“Niko [Tsakiris] and Jackson [Yueill] broke the lines decently well, but I felt like after that, we didn’t have a lot of tempo change to get in behind them. I think Salt Lake does a pretty good job. They press pretty well, but I actually liked some of the combination plays with Niko, Hernán [López] and Jackson. But I think we were missing that next step to create a big chance,” Russell said.

The Earthquakes had a close call in the 70th minute when Nelson Palacio crossed a ball into the box where Dominik Marczuk’s header hit the crossbar and into the stands. Both players were subbed out a minute later by Matt Crooks and Emeka Eneli.

Real Salt Lake’s hard work finally paid off in the 78th minute. Braian Ojeda threaded a pass past two Quakes defenders over to Luna. The South Bay native dribbled out to the left before firing a perfectly placed shot off the right post and into the back of the net for his seventh goal of the season.

“It was a really good strike by [Diego] Luna. Good player. They had some chances early on, and then most of their chances came from outside the box. Unfortunately, that one went in,” Russell said.

San Jose had a golden chance to score the equalizer in the 90th minute but MacMath stopped a point-blank shot from Preston Judd from 10 yards out in the middle of the box.

MacMath finished with one save on one attempt on target to earn a clean slate. Daniel made five saves on six shots on goal in the losing effort.

GAME NOTES: San Jose finished with two corner kicks. Real Salt Lake had nine.

San Jose is 16-15-12 against Real Salt Lake in the all-time series.

San Jose split the season series with Real Salt Lake after defeating them 2-0 in Utah on Aug. 24. The Quakes also saw their two-game unbeaten home streak against RSL snapped after drawing 2-2 with them in 2022 and beating them 2-1 last year.

The Quakes celebrated 50 years with Krazy George, who has been leading cheers since the club’s first match in 1974. The first 5,000 fans through the gates received a Krazy George wig courtesy of Habbas Law.

Cristian Espinoza extended his run of consecutive MLS regular-season games played to a current league-high of 108 (Oct. 2, 2021 – present). The streak is not only a Quakes record but tied for fifth longest in MLS history. He now stands equal with Darlington Nagbe (May 1, 2021 – Apr. 6, 2024) in the all-time annals and second among all field players. Espinoza can pass Nagbe in the season finale on Oct. 19 in a road contest vs. LAFC. Goalkeeper Luis Robles holds the league record with 183 straight appearances (Sept. 29, 2012 – May 12, 2018).

UP NEXT: San Jose close out the regular season on the road against LAFC on Sunday 10/19 at 6:00pm at BMO Stadium.

Cal Says Emphatically, “We’re College GameDay, And You’re Not!”

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By Morris Phillips

BERKELEY, CA–Before things became fun and wicked smart along Memorial Glade on UC Berkeley’s campus, they grew dark and sinister in the middle of the night.

The Cal Bears fans gathered for the first-ever football ESPN College GameDay in Berkeley grew restless, and in a fit of rage, as noted by Fox News, and in the absence of sufficient security blew through the barriers to get closer to the ESPN production stage. The crowd’s actions were spiritedly defiant, unchecked, and entirely successful.

“Complete chaos in Berkeley,” Avinash Kunnath of “Write for California” reported at 12:30am. “There is not enough security to organize the crowd.”

Luckily, the playful crowd wasn’t destructive or menacing, just hyped. And that was the beginning of Cal’s triumphant appearance on GameDay, which peaked hours later as Marshawn Lynch displayed his curious driving habits, and the crowd demanded that coach Nick Saban remove his disgusting red tie.

After Cal was left scrambling by USC and UCLA’s pre-emptive move to the Big 10, and subsequently forced to join forces with the ACC for pennies on the dollar of the conference’s already determined television deal, the campus community was forced to get wise and money smart to find their way through the changing major college sports landscape. The Bears’ encouraging start to the season was the first step, and ESPN’s decision to bring its road show to Berkeley was next in Cal’s athletic department closing the gap on its financially positioned competitors.

Bear Backers started with the phrase “Calgorithm” and quickly built a full-fledged comedy review. From all the live reports and cemented by GameDay host Rece Davis, Cal aced the test.

“Cal is one of the best crowds we’ve ever had,” Davis proclaimed at 9:05am as the television lights were extinguished for the day and the crowd dispersed.

“Sometimes it’s about feeling good,” a University Library librarian said. “And clearly, people felt good about this.”

So good that people spent the night, characteristically did not use drugs, and maintained the exposure fever until shortly after sunrise when fatigue and the live broadcast vapors waned slightly. 

But the sunlight revealed a bunch of kids, families, young alumni couples, and a smattering of smugsters from the U who couldn’t have honestly said they knew what to expect. The mix was respectful even before security materialized, and new friendships sprung up all over the place.

“We’re happy to be in the ACC,” said Charles Karren, class of ’90. “It was that or death.”

Karren, whose son is also pursuing a Cal degree, was quick to mention chancellor Rich Lyons as an advocate and savior for Cal athletics. Undoubtedly, Cal has successfully navigated the gauntlet of NIL, the transfer portal and budget concerns from the top, with Lyons, on down.

Back on television, suddenly, and perfectly calculated, Cal’s Memorial Glade was like the Today Show with the bluster of network personality Pat McAfee at his zenith as the loud mouthed galvanizing force.

“You know it! You tell the story! You tell the whole damn world this is Bear Territory!” McAfee bellowed with seamless support from the crowd.

Sitting next to McAfee was Saban, fiercely determined to be his somewhat cranky self until the crowd demanded he yank off his Stanford red tie. Finally, the Hall of Fame coach relented and swapped in a traditional Cal rep tie that enriched his blue blazer. Was Saban prepared to interview for a graduate assistant position under Coach Justin Wilcox? He was.

The signs didn’t disappoint. Instead, they shimmered as every smart aleck grew biceps in displaying their humorous takes.

Woke vs. Coke (carried by an unsuspecting 9-year old. Cal parents do better!)

This Game Is Past My Bedtime (also carried by a 9-year old. This is better.)

We Do Lines Of Code

The Miami Playbook is Shorter Than My Syllabus

Hitting the Slopes vs. Isotopes

Bow To Oski

U People Were Blocking the Library

Sharks Beat Golden Knights 6-5, Score 3 in Final Minutes of Preseason

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San Jose Sharks defenseman Mario Ferraro (left) got a big hug from right wing Ethan Cardwell (56) after scoring a goal against the Las Vegas Golden Knights at the T-Mobile Center in Las Vegas on Sat Oct 5, 2024 (San Jose Sharks X photo)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks defeated the Vegas Golden Knights 6-5 in San Jose’s final preseason game of 2024. Jimmy Shuldt, Klim Kostin, Mario Ferraro, Luke Kunin and Ethan Cardwell scored for San Jose. MacKenzie Blackwood made 32 saves for the win.

Daniil Gushchin had five assists in the game. Pavel Dorofeyev, Alexander Holtz, Mark Stone scored for Las Vegas, wth Dorofeyev scoring a hat trick. Adin Hill made 23 saves for Vegas. Tomas Hertl had three assists in the game.

Pavel Dorofeyev scored the first goal of the game with a backhand shot at 4:19. Alex Pietrangelo set him up with a pass from the wing. Alexander Holtz also got an assist.

Jimmy Shuldt tied the game at 8:01 with a shot from the point through traffic. Adin Hill was without a stick and the puck went under him. Assists went to Luca Cagnoni and Collin Graf.

About a minute later, Klim Kostin gave the Sharks a lead with a snap shot off the rush. Assists went to Danil Gushchin and Ty Dellandrea.

Alexander Holtz tied it again with a wrist shot at 14:38. Assists went to Tomas Hertl and Dorofeyev.

At the end of the first period, the teams were tied on the scoreboard and almost tied in shots, 13-12 Vegas. Each team took a penalty and each team killed it off.

Dorofeyev made it 3-2 with the lone second period goal at 5:12. He tipped a shot from Zach Whitecloud at the point. Brayden McNabb also had an assist.

The Golden Knights outshot the Sharks in the second period 9-6, despite taking two penalties while the Sharks took none.

Just 35 seconds into the third period, Mario Ferraro tied the game at 3 with a slap shot in the slot. Assists went to Gushchin and Dellandrea.

Less than three minutes later, Vegas made it 4-3 with a power play goal. Mark Stone tipped a shot from Shea Theodore. Hertl also got an assist.

Dorofeyev completed his hat trick at 8:46 of the third, making it 5-3 Vegas. Hertl and McNabb got the assists.

As hats were picked off the ice, the shot clock read 14-1 Vegas in the period. The Sharks stemmed the bleeding with a power play at 11:51. Though they did not score, they regained their composure and got some shots on net. They allowed no more shots from Vegas in the period and added ten of their own.

With the net empty for an extra skater, Luke Kunin cut the Vegas lead to 5-4 with a tip-in goal at 17:00. Assists went to Gushchin and Alexander Wennberg.

At 18:18, Kunin scored again to tie the game, another tip-in off a shot from Gushchin.

Ethan Cardwell scored the game winner for the Sharks with 12 seconds left in regulation. Assists went to Nico Sturm and Daniil Gushchin.

The Sharks will open their season on Thursday at 7:30 PM PT at home against the St. Louis Blues.

Bay FC can’t find the Bat Signal against Gotham FC get clobbered 5-1 at Red Bull Arena

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Bay FC’s forward Asisat Oshoala (below) scored Bay FC’s only goal at the 18th minute she celebrated with Rachel Kundananji (9) against the Gotham FC at Red Bull Arena in Harrison NJ on Sat Oct 5, 2024 (photo from Bay FC X)

By William Espy

Bay FC’s push for the playoffs continued as they went on the road to take on Gotham FC at Red Bull Arena in Harrison, New Jersey. Gotham had only lost once so far this season at home, meaning Bay was going to have a difficult fight to walk away with three points. Difficult indeed as the Bay were defeated 5-1 by Gotham FC.

Bay FC Starting XI: Rowland, Malonson, Menges, Dahlkemper, Dydasco, Boade, Pickett, Bailey, Oshoala, Kundananji, Hill

Gotham Starting XI: Berger, Nighswonger, Sonnett, Williams, Stevens, Martin, Davidson, Lavelle, Sheehan, Ryan, Carter

In the 7th minute, Gotham appealed for a potential handball inside the box. As a result, the video assistant referee advised the official to review the play. Upon review, it was clear that the ball hit the extended arm of Asisat Oshoala and Gotham was awarded an early penalty.

Jenna Nighswonger stepped up to take the penalty, and scored after hitting the post as the ball bounced into the net. Katelyn Rowland went the wrong way, giving her no chance to make a save. After the goal, Bay FC was clearly frustrated causing them to play overly aggressively.

Gotham meanwhile was creating more chances offensively looking to extend their lead. Ann-Katrin Berger saw her first action of the night when Dorian Bailey attempted a chip pass to Rachael Kundananji, but the Gotham goalkeeper came out to play the ball.

Oshoala got the equalizer in the 18th minute when a perfectly timed through ball from Kundananji got her behind the defense, leaving her with only Berger to beat. Oshoala had now scored Bay’s last four goals, and had four in five games.

Gotham’s dangerous attack immediately started generating more offensive opportunities, but Bay FC was able to contain them for the most part. Bay had another strong scoring chance in the 32nd minute, but a bit of a broken play led to confusion resulting in Bailey not firing a shot on what would’ve likely been a clear goal.

Around that point in the match, Bay was bringing more offensive pressure than they had all night. Kundananji in particular was creating a lot of chances, but her runs weren’t being finished off by her teammates. In the 38th and 39th minutes, Gotham was trying to overload the box which led to chaos in front of Bay FC’s goal.

Although they weren’t able to score on the sequence, it definitely caused some scary moments for the defense. Ella Stevens and Oshoala collided in extra time, but after a short delay both would get back up with no issues.

Tess Boade immediately started the second half with an attack for Bay FC, but her centering pass didn’t find anyone in front of goal. The first 15 minutes of the half would feature quite a bit of end-to-end action, highlighted by Bailey nearly giving Bay a 2-1 lead when her shot went just over the crossbar.

Oshoala went down in some discomfort around the 60th minute. After getting some attention from the training staff, she remained in the game. Bailey had another chance from in close in the 67th minute, but once again got a little too much on the shot.

Stevens and Caprice Dydasco got tied up in the 68th minute, giving Bay FC a very dangerous free-kick opportunity. They were unable to convert, and Gotham gained possession launching an attack of their own. The ball would end up on the head of Rose Lavelle who gave the home team a 2-1 lead.

In the 72nd minute, Gotham would score another making it 3-1. This time, it was Esther Gonzalez who put it away. Esther got a second less than two minutes later, extending the lead to 4-1. It took less than five minutes for things to completely fall apart for Bay FC in a game that had otherwise been even.

It was very reminiscent of a few games from earlier in the season, and with a playoff push in full swing, these types of mistakes cannot happen. CeCe Kizer would add a fifth goal in the 84th minute. Kundananji left the game in the 88th minute and she was clearly upset and went directly to the locker room rather than remaining on the bench with her teammates. The game would ultimately end in a 5-1 defeat for Bay FC.

Cardinal hit with “Hokie-Doke” by VA Tech 31-7 in their ACC Home opener, on a HOT day on the Farm

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Virginia Tech Hokies cornerback Dorian Strong (44) has gone airborne in an attempt to intercept a pass intended for Stanford Cardinal wide receiver Ismael Cisse (84) at Stanford Stadium in Palo Alto on Sat Oct 5, 2024 (AP News photo)

By Michael Roberson

STANFORD, Calif. — A blazing 89 degrees was a contributing factor why the Stanford Cardinal (2-3, 1-2 ACC) realized hosting the inaugural Atlantic Coast Conference game at Stanford Stadium was Too Hot to handle, and lost to the Virginia Tech Hokies (3-3, 1-1 ACC), 31-7.

The visitors from the Old Dominion State won the coin toss, but graciously deferred the ball to the hosts. Unfortunately Stanford did not cherish the benevolent gift. They failed to convert any points on the scoreboard.

As the Cardinal took the snap on the first drive of the game, there was a chang under center. Backup junior QB Justin Lamson was the starter, as Ashton Daniels was out with an ankle injury, reportedly from the game last week at Clemson.

Lamson was sacked on a crucial 3rd down play, around the 10 minute mark, resulting in a field goal attempt To the team’s dismay, senior kicker Emmet Kenney missed a 53-yarder.. Despite good intentions during the initial possession, the Cardinal ended up with a “Goose Egg, 0-0.

The Hokies on the other hand, were determined to reach paydirt. More than midway though the first quarter, redshirt-junior QB, Kyron Drones hit graduate WR Stephen Gosnell for a 9-yard touchdown pass. Virginia Tech scored first and put seven points on the board and led 7-0 late in the quarter, However, Stanford still had time to deliver the equalizer.

Lamson tried a QB keeper with :12 left in the first 15; he was hit at the goal line with the opportunity to tie the game, consequently fumbling and turning the ball over to theards into the end zone, doubling their score. Two scoring opportunities thwarted for various reasons. After one quarter of play, 7-0 Virginia Tech.

In the second stanza, the Hokies went on a nearly 7-minute drive, culminating in another score just under the 2-minute timeout before halftime. Senior running back Bhayshal Tuten scampered seven yards into the end zone, doubling their score midway through the game, 14-0. That was their third halftime shutout of the year.

The third quarter provided the Hokies the opportunity to triple their original score in only four plays and just under two minutes. Drones launched a 55-yard TD pass to graduate WR Da’Quan Felton, to give VA Tech a commanding 21-0 lead with almost 3/4 of the contest being over. However, the Cardinal had something to say and do before quarter’s end.

On a trick play, freshman running back Micah Ford tossed a 19-yard TD to redshirt sophomore WR Elic Ayomanor, with a minute remaining in the third quadrant, 21-7 VA Tech. That was all the scoring for the Cardinal, as the Hokies tagged on 10 more points in the final quarter.

Lawson threw an interception early in the quarter, in which the Hokies capitalized on the turnover. A few minutes later, Drones scores on a QB keeper for a 2-yard TD. The Hokies were up 28-7 and capped off the blistering afternoon five minutes later with a 46-yard field goal by redshirt sophomore kicker Josh Love. After 60 minutes of scorching heat, the Virginia Tech Hokies won the conference game, 31-7.

Stanford will next be in action Saturday October 12 in South Bend, IN to take on Notre Dame at 12:30 PM EST. on NBC. Virginia Tech goes back to Blacksburg Thursday October 17, to host Boston College at 4:30 PM EST on ESPN.

That’s Amaury News and Commentary: Charlie Hustle should be in Cooperstown 

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Former Cincinnati Reds hitter Pete Rose at the bat against the Atlanta Braves on Aug 2, 1978 at Fulton County Stadium in Atlanta (AP file photo)

By Amaury Pi-González

When I first arrived in the United States as a young teen in 1961, I remember people saying, “In America, everybody deserves a second chance.” Well, Pete Rose, as a player, never got that chance by the MLB Hall of Fame.

Charlie Hustle was banned from baseball in 1989 for gambling on the Cincinnati Reds team he managed; that makes a lot of sense. As a manager, he made the moves; some of them could win a game, and some could not, but he had absolute control throughout any match. Common sense tells us that for baseball, it was correct to ban him for life as a manager. But as a player?

In the United States of America, even criminals, big-time felons, go to prison, serve their time, rehabilitate later, and join society again. Example: O.J Simpson, and we know that story.

As a player, Pete Rose is the all-time Hits King, with 4,256 hits. #2 in Ty Cobb, 4189 hits; if we used today’s standards, Ty Cobb should lead a new Hall of Fame, “The Racist Hall of Fame, and ‘trust me’ he will have competition, even managers.

Today, the Hall of Fame’s various committees elect participants other than recently retired players. The most active is the Veterans Committee. I hope that for the sake of the great game of baseball and future generations, Pete Rose could be elected to the Hall of Fame as a player. Why?

Because he was one of the best baseball players ever to wear a uniform. Whether or not you like his personality, you do not elect people for their personality flaws but for the merit of their performance. With 4,256 hits, who could argue with a career of such magnitude, especially during this time in baseball history when the average batting average in baseball is a paltry .240. I covered Pete Rose as a player, and he should be in the Hall of Fame. Period.

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

San Jose Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa: Askarov might be on shelf until regular season gets underway

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Former Nashville Predator goaltender and current San Jose Barracuda goaltender Yaroslav Askarov did not travel with the Barracuda for pre season game in Bakersfield on Fri Oct 4, 2024 (photo from nhl.com)

On the SJ Sharks podcast with Mary Lisa:

#1 How surprising is that the San Jose Sharks have demoted their goaltender Yaroslav Askarov and was assigned to the AHL affiliate San Jose Barracuda.

#2 On Friday Askarov skated with the Barracuda during the Friday morning skate but did not travel to Bakersfield for the Barracuda’s first pre season game.

#3 The Barracuda have one more pre season game on Sun Oct 3 against Bakersfield before they open the regular season on Sat Oct 12th in Ontario. It’s quite possible without risking injury to Askarov he could see action once the regular season gets started.

#4 Askarov who was with the Nashville Predators last season asked for a trade after goaltender Jusse Saros was given an eight year extension and Scott Wedgewood would be the back up goalie which would most likely equate to Askarov having more bench time.

#5 There has to be very little doubt that Askarov looks at being in the San Jose organization as a second opportunity to get a chance to see more time and work his way up back to the Sharks.

Join Mary Lisa for the Sharks podcast each Saturday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com