Tag: Sports radio

49ers hold off Rams, 24-16, behind Jimmy Garoppolo’s 3 TDs; strong defense

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San Francisco 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo (10) gets the football away as he’s being rushed by the Los Angeles Rams defensive end Aaron Donald (99) and nose tackle Sebastian Joseph-Day (69) in the first half of Sun Oct 18, 2020 at Levis Stadium in Santa Clara (AP News photo)

By Joe Hawkes
Staff Writer

SANTA CLARA, Calif — In a game that many viewed was a must-win to salvage their season, the San Francisco 49ers was able to outlast the visiting Los Angeles Rams, 24-16, on NBC’s Sunday Night Football behind three TDs from quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo in the first half and a strong effort from the defense.

It’s the first win for the 49ers at Levi’s Stadium this season, after dropping their first three home games to the Arizona Cardinals, Philadelphia Eagles and the Miami Dolphins.

The 49ers (3-3) jumped on the Rams early, scoring touchdowns on three of their first four possessions. On San Francisco’s first possession, Garoppolo engineered a 6-play, 76-yard drive that was capped off by a 6-yard pass to wide receiver Deebo Samuel for the TD to put the 49ers up 7-0 in the first quarter.

Garoppolo was 4-for-4 for 69 yards on the opening drive.

After the 49ers’ defense forced the Rams to punt on their opening possession of the game, San Francisco took a 14-0 lead early in the second quarter on Garopplo’s second TD of the game. Garoppolo would find tight end George Kittle for a a 44-yard score after the 49ers faced a 4th and 2 from the Rams 44-yard line.

Kittle’s score punctuated a 10-play, 87-yard drive in 6:08 for the 49ers, who emphasized getting the football out of Garoppolo’s hands quickly and relied heavily on the running game which took a hit when running back Raheem Mostert left the game early in the third quarter with an ankle injury.

Mostert was off to a good start, carrying the ball 17 times for 65 yards before his exit.

Kittle led all receivers with seven catches for 109 yards and the TD, while Samuel finished six catches for 66 yards and a score.

After quarterback Jared Goff found wide receiver Robert Woods in the middle of the end zone on a 10-yard TD to get the Rams on the scoreboard and cut San Francisco’s lead to 14-6, following a missed extra point, the 49ers would put together another scoring drive shortly before halftime.

Garoppolo engineered a 13-play, 75-yard drive that chewed up 7:16 and found rookie wide receiver Brandon Aiyuk for a 2-yard score that gave the 49ers a commanding 21-6 lead.

Garoppolo was 17 of 21 for 215 yards and 3 TDs in the first half. Offensively, the 49ers had their way with the Rams, racking up 18 first downs and 291 yards of total offense in the first 30 minutes of the game.

Garoppolo, who was benched after the first half in last week’s 43-17 embarrassing loss to the Miami Dolphins at home in which he completed just 7 of 17 passing for 77 yards, two interceptions and a career-low 15.7 passer rating; bounced back this week with a better showing by completing 23 of 33 passes for 268 yards, 3 TDs and a 124.3 passer rating.

Oh yeah, he improves to 4-0 against the Rams all-time.

Coming into the game, the talk leading up to the showdown against the Rams was if Garoppolo could show that he’s still the right quarterback for the 49ers long term and could San Francisco’s much maligned offensive line withstand the dominating force that is perennial Defensive Player of the Year Aaron Donald.

San Francisco’s offensive line, which has been a target of criticism the last two weeks as they surrendered 23 quarterback hits and 10 sacks in the last two games, kept Donald off Garoppolo the entire night.

For the game, Donald registered just one solo tackle and one quarterback pressure after recording four of the Rams’ eight sacks against the Washington Football Team last week in Los Angeles’ 30-10 win on the road.

In the second half, the Rams (4-2) converted their first possession into a 42-yard field goal by kicker Samuel Sloman to cut the 49ers’ lead to 21-9.

Following back-to-back 3-and-outs by the 49ers, Goff drove the Rams down to the 49ers’ 2-yard line and looked like Los Angeles would finish off the drive with a TD but Goff’s pass intended for wide receiver Josh Reynolds was intercepted in the end zone by cornerback Jason Verrett.

Verrett thwarted a golden scoring opportunity for Goff and the Rams that could’ve changed the tenor of the game.

Goff finished 19 of 38 for 198 yards, 2 TDs and one interception as 49ers defensive coordinator Robert Saleh mixed up coverages that didn’t allow Goff and the Rams’ offense to get comfortable on Sunday night.

The 49ers added a 49-yard field goal by Robbie Gould to push their lead up to 24-9 in the fourth quarter, but the Rams wouldn’t go down quietly.

On the Rams’ next drive, Goff hooked up with Reynolds for a 40-yard TD over cornerback Emmaunel Moseley. Moseley was called for a defensive pass interference call, but the Rams declined the penalty making the score 24-16.

San Francisco’s defense held the Rams to 4 of 12 on third downs and 311 yards of total offense. Much of those yards came on the Rams’ final drive of the game. Moseley, along with linebackers Fred Warner and Dre Greenlaw paced the defense with seven tackles each.

The schedule gets more daunting for San Francisco with games against the New England Patriots, Seattle Seahawks, Green Bay Packers, New Orleans Saints, and Rams again in the next five weeks.

For at least one night, the 49ers have quieted the skeptics with an impressive win over their divisional rivals from Southern California.

 

NCAA Football podcast with Michelle Richardson: Saban got the green light to coach Saturday night; So Carolina shocks Auburn; plus more

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Alabama Crimson Tide head coach Nick Saban was negative for the third consecutive day from Coronavirus and allowed to coach on Sat Oct 17, 2020. Here is Saban leading the Crimson Tide in a Black Lives Matter march on Aug 31st, 2020 (AP News photo)

On the NCAA Football podcast with Michelle Richardson:

#1 Alabama head coach Nick Saban was cleared to coach Saturday’s game against the Georgia Bulldog after testing positive for Coronavirus. Saban tested negative for the third consecutive day. Crimson Tide Doctor Jimmy Robinson said Saban was asymptomatic. Alabama got a big win 41-24 over the Bulldogs.

#2 Michelle, Auburn (1-2) got shocked with a 30-22 loss to South Carolina (1-2). South Carolina scored big in the second and third quarters which helped carry them to victory. Gamecocks quarterback Colin Hill was 15-24 for 144 yards and one touchdown and one interception.

#3 The Clemson Tide (4-0) clobbered Georgia Tech (2-2) 73-7 on Saturday. Clemson compiled 35 points in the second quarter. Tigers quarterback Trevor Lawrence threw for 404 yards and five touchdowns.

Michelle Final Thoughts

Join Michelle every Sunday night for a look at NCAA Football at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Headline Sports podcast with Daniel Dullum: Saban coaches for Alabama after being cleared for Covid-19; Dodgers force game 7; plus more

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Nick Saban head coach for the Alabama Crimson Tide returned on Saturday after he was deemed negative in three Coronavirus tests this week. (photo from USA Today)

Headline Sports podcast with Daniel Dullum:

1 Alabama Coach Nick Saban tests positive for Covid-19; cleared to coach against Georgia Bulldogs

2 Rays-Astros Game 7 of ALCS; Braves and Dodgers also playing a Game 7 in NLCS

3 Joe Thornton signs with Toronto; NHL free agency off to an interesting start

4 Vegas owner: ‘Without fans, many NHL teams can’t make it’

5 Billy Beane to leave A’s for new venture with Bosox owner John Henry

Join Daniel Sundays for Headline Sports podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Jeremiah Salmonson: McClinchey says watch the whole game before making a judgement of the O-line; plus more

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San Francisco 49ers tackle Mike McGlinchey (69) waits on the sideline during their against the Miami Dolphins last Sun Oct 11, 2020 at Levis Stadium in Santa Clara (photo from San Francisco Chronicle)

On the 49ers podcast with Jeremiah:

#1 The 49ers tackle Mike McGlinchey said that he’s pretty confident that’s he put together a pretty good season. The line that McGlinchey has played on had the fourth most sacks (18) in the NFL.

#2 McGlinchey said that he heard his share of criticisms and said that he doesn’t like the armchair quarterbacks who watch 30 seconds of a clip and makes a determination of how the offensive line should play but rather says you must watch the entire game to learn from the whole picture.

#3 In practice this week it looks as if 49ers quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo will get the green light to start this coming Sunday against the Los Angeles Rams. Garoppolo who had suffered from a high ankle injury is feeling good again and has participated in practice this week.

#4 Head coach Kyle Shanahan said that you never know with a high ankle sprain how Garoppolo will do but said that Garoppolo had a pretty good week in practice.

#5 The 49ers will be taking on a very tough Rams team from both ends of the football. They will face Rams quarterback Jarod Goff this Sunday night talk about how you see the 49ers defense going after Goff and how they match up?

Join Jeremiah each Saturday night for the 49ers podcast at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

Las Vegas Raiders podcast with Rich Perez: Raiders 3 sacks of Mahomes key to third quarter shutout last Sunday

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The Las Vegas Raiders Derek Carr looks for a target to throw to against the Kansas City Chiefs pass rush. Carr threw for three touchdowns on Sun Oct 11, 2020 at Arrowhead Stadium (AP News photo)

On the Raiders podcast with Rich: 

#1 How inspiring was Raider quarterback Derek Carr’s statement saying “I’m so sick of losing” after week 4’s game against the Buffalo Bills that he came out threw for 347 yards and three touchdowns against the Kansas City Chiefs last Sunday.

#2 For the Raiders it was their first victory at Arrowhead Stadium since 2012 and for Carr and the Raiders it was sweet victory and lots of relief.

#3 Two of the Raiders touchdowns came from the ground game and running back Josh Jacobs who also rushed for 23 yards for a total 77 yards he had quite an afternoon last Sunday carry the ball against the Chiefs.

#4 For Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes it would have been just another day at the office with his 340 yards, two touchdowns but it was his three passes that were intercepted and the Raiders defense shutting the Chiefs out in the third quarter that changed Mahomes plans last Sunday. 

#5 How important is it for the Chiefs coming off this loss to the Raiders to have signed running back Le’Veon Bell is it a message from head caoch Andy Reid and company that they don’t want a repeat of this kind of a loss again?

#6 The Raiders (2-3) will have a bye here in week six how important is it to get some of important rest before the Raiders prepare for Tom Brady and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sun Oct 25th at Allegiant Stadium for Sunday Night Football.

Join Rich Perez each Saturday night for the Raiders podcasts at http://www.sportsradioservice.com 

That’s Amaury’s News and Commentary: Billy Beane brought winning teams but no World Series

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Oakland A’s vice president Billy Beane is waiting for the final touches on a deal that would send him to be a owner/partner with owner John Henry and the Boston Red Sox (file photo from windsorstar.com)

That’s Amaury News and Commentary

By Amaury Pi-González

Hollywood made a movie titled “Moneyball”. The reign of Billy Beane and the Oakland Athletics. Since Mr.Beane became the A’s General Manager in 1998, the team captured seven Western Division titles, including this season, always making money. Doing it with a small budget.

Billy Beane reminds me of the famous line in the movie “Godfather Two”, when Johnny Ola said: “Mr. Hyman Roth always makes money for his partners”. Mr.Beane is leaving the A’s (or so it has been reported) to join Red Sox owner John Henry business endeavors. Many are in the soccer arena, as Mr. Henry owns the famous Liverpool club among other businesses. Liverpool Football Club is a professional football club in Liverpool, England, that competes in the Premier League, the top tier of English football. The club has won 19 League titles.

Nothing wrong with making money, at least not in a free enterprise capitalistic system as ours. Nobody goes into business to lose money. However he will be remembered by his philosophy for over 20 years with the A’s as he brought a lot of wins to the delight of Oakland Athletics fans, but like a good and fervent fan of the A’s who has followed the club since the late 60’s, recently told me (quote) “Yes, he has been good for the A’s, but he never won a World Series for us”. Those fans, which will remain nameless, also spend a lot of money through the years buying season tickets. He told me that he is not resentful, he will always be an A’s fan.

That reflects the feelings of a lot of A’s fans if Mr.Beane exits Oakland on his way to Boston. In the past Mr. Billy Bean has said “My job is to get us to the playoffs”. He is quoted on Michael Lewis book (Moneyball) quote: “My s**t doesn’t work in the playoffs”. So, Mr.Beane has been transparent on his style of management.

The Tampa Bay Rays, one win away from moving to the World Series as of today, are in very similar to the current Oakland A’s. A small budget team with relatively very good success on the field, a team that won the AL East over the New York Yankees with their typical huge payroll, and ironically, the Rays are a team with very similar problems to the Athletics, i.e. both franchises want to build a new ballpark

Stay well and stay tuned.

SJ Sharks report: Joe Thornton Signs with Toronto Maple Leafs

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Former San Jose Shark Joe Thornton joins the Toronto Maple Leafs after more than 15 seasons with the Sharks. Thornton who makes his home in San Jose in the off season left for Toronto Friday to sign with the Leafs (file photo from mercurynews.com)

By Mary Walsh

Joe Thornton signed a one year contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs Friday. The contract is worth $700,000. Currently, Thornton is in Switzerland, playing with HC Davos of the Swiss National League. He expects to be ready to go when the NHL starts the new season.

Thornton’s absence will be noticeable in San Jose. Whether he wore the Captain’s C or not, Thornton was a leader in the Sharks dressing room. His play and his experience helped guide many younger players over many seasons. Fans came to consider him very much the face of the franchise, even if he was not drafted by San Jose. The Sharks team Twitter account said simply: “Going to log off for a bit. Brb. Maybe.”

Evander Kane tweeted : “Man I’m going to miss ya, but feel very fortunate to play with you and become great friends. So many fun memories in a short period of time. I’ll make sure to keep your seat next to me at the back of the plane vacant until you come back.”

Brent Burns tweeted: “Daaaamn…. going to miss a lot more then just laughing with this guy… ultimate teammate, friend and guy to learn from..@MapleLeafs got a great one coming!”

Joining the Maple Leafs is more than leaving San Jose for Thornton. A Toronto Sun headline today reads: “Greybeard Joe Thornton comes home to join Maple Leafs.” The Maple Leafs are iconic to the hockey world, but Thornton was born in London, Ontario, so Toronto means family and a return to his roots.

Thornton is the leader among active players in points with 1,509. He scored 1,055 of those with San Jose over 15 seasons. He won the Hart Trophy and Art Ross Trophy in 2006, for his performance during season that saw him traded from Boston to San Jose.

Patrick Marleau tweeted (by way of his wife’s account):

For more than two decades, Jumbo and I have been friends, with the vast majority of those years being teammates, too. I now consider him a brother. Toronto has gained a tremendous influence, and we will miss his presence here in San Jose. Good luck in TO! -PM

Marleau has just signed a one year contract with San Jose. Three seasons ago, he signed with Toronto and played two seasons there. According to NHL.com, Marleau said at that time that it was possible Thornton would sign with Toronto as well. Marleau had a three-year contract with Toronto, a deal that San Jose was unprepared to match.

One would think that the Sharks would have been willing to offer $700,000 for one more year of Thornton. Whether they did make that offer or not, Thornton’s absence signals significant changes to come in San Jose. After recent disappointments, that is probably a good thing in the long run. Whatever the future holds, the Sharks family will miss Jumbo Joe Thornton.

San Jose Earthquakes podcast with Marko Ukalovic: Earthquakes look for their fourth win in five games Sunday against Seattle

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The San Jose Earthquakes converge during their game against the Los Angeles Galaxy Wed Oct 14th, 2020. The Quakes say after going winless in nine straight games things are getting better after winning three of their last four games (photo from USA Today)

On the Earthquakes podcast with Marko:

#1 How big was it for the Quakes after coming off a 3-0 shutout against the Portland Timbers to throw a shutout themselves with a huge 4-0 win over the Los Angeles Galaxy on Wednesday?

#2 Nick Lima played a key role in the Wednesday contest scoring the first goal and the last goal of the evening.

#3 The Quakes have defeated any team named LA in their last three contest with LAFC and twice with the Galaxy.

#4 The Quakes have 23 points putting them tied with the Minnesota United for sixth place in the Western Conference.

#5 The Quakes next task is the Seattle Sounders this Sunday at 7:30pm at Earthquakes Stadium talk about the Quakes chances to pick up a fourth win in five games?

Marko does the Earthquakes podcasts each Friday at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

San Francisco 49ers podcast with Joe Hawkes: Sherman won’t be back Sunday night; Jimmy G could see action but how much?; plus more

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The San Francisco 49ers cornerback Richard Sherman (left) would like to get his game face back and return soon. Head coach Kyle Shanahan says Sherman will be on the shelf for this Sunday Night Football game against the Los Angeles Rams (file photo from San Francisco Chronicle)

On the 49ers podcast with J Hawkes:

#1 Joe, 49ers corner back Richard Sherman continues to rest his Achilles calf injury Sherman was floated as coming back for this Sunday Night Football game against the Los Angeles Rams. 49ers head coach Kyle Shanahan did announce during Monday’s practice that Sherman would not play on Sunday Night Football this week.

#2 The 49ers Dee Ford a brilliant pass rusher and a former pro bowler and had back surgery 15 months ago has missed four consecutive games so far.

#3 Shanahan is also watch the progress in practice of quarterback Jimmy Garoppolo who played only the first half of last Sunday’s game against the Miami Dolphins. Shanahan said Garoppolo most likely will start Sunday night but how long he can stay in is still a question.

#4 The 49ers on Tuesday acquired undrafted rookie cornerback Parnell Motley off of waivers from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers who will fill in for the need at the cornerback position. Last season Motley played for the All Big 12 selection at Oklahoma.

#5 The 49ers face the 4-1 Los Angeles Rams last Sunday against the Washington Football Team the Rams handled Washington without too many problems for Rams quarterback Jarod Goff 209 yards and two touchdowns. How do you see the 49ers matching up against the Rams on Sunday night?

Join Joe for the 49ers podcasts each Friday morning at http://www.sportsradioservice.com

 

Sharks Report: Sharks Sign Marleau, Other Familiar Faces

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Returning for the third time the San Jose Sharks Patrick Marleau is back after playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins last season. Marleau also played for the Toronto Maple Leafs after leaving San Jose the first time. (image from @SAPSports)

By Mary Walsh

The San Jose Sharks have been busy signing and re-signing familiar players. Patrick Marleau and Matt Nieto return from their 2020 pandemic playoff teams. Kevin Labanc and Stefan Noesen were resigned. The Sharks also added a goaltender, trading a 2022 fifth round pick to the Minnesota Wild for Devan Dubnyk and a 2022 seventh round pick.

Of Dubnyk, the Sharks press release said: “Over his 11-year NHL career, the three-time NHL All-Star (2016, 2017, 2019) has appeared in 520 NHL games, earning a 247-195-52 record with a 2.58 GAA, .915 save percentage and 32 shutouts. He has also appeared in 26 Stanley Cup Playoff games, all with Minnesota, earning an 8-18 record with a 2.72 GAA and .904 SV% with two shutouts.” Minnesota retained 50% of Dubnyk’s salary. This is the last year of that contract.

Sharks General Manager, Doug Wilson said: “Devan has been one of the League’s top goaltenders for many years and after playing so many years in the Western Conference, is someone our hockey staff is very familiar with. As we head into what will surely be a unique season, his acquisition gives us a high-quality and experienced tandem of netminders.”

Patrick Marleau resigned a one-year contract with San Jose after playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins from the last trade deadline through a 2020 playoff run. Last season, Marleau joined the Sharks after the season started and had a good start, which faded along with the rest of the 2019-20 Sharks team. Despite that, he reached a number of milestones in 58 games with the Sharks. The team press release ennumerated them:

“In his first game back in teal, Marleau scored two goals to become the eighth player in NHL history to score a goal in his teens & 40s with the same franchise on Oct. 10 at Chicago. On Dec. 12, 2019 vs. the New York Rangers, he and Joe Thornton became the first set of teammates in NHL history having 1,600 regular-season games to their resume to play in the same game. Marleau appeared in his 1,700th NHL game on Jan. 11 vs. the Dallas Stars to become the fifth skater to reach the mark and scored his 100th career game-winning goal as a Shark the same night. On Jan. 27, he collected his 1,100th point as a Shark, achieving his 22nd consecutive season of at least 10 or more goals.”

Matt Nieto has also returned after playing 70 games with the Colorado Avalanche, including a playoff run in the Edmonton bubble. Nieto as drafted by the Sharks in 2011. Of the move, Doug Wilson said in a press release:

“Matt’s a player we’re obviously familiar with having been here for our Stanley Cup Final run in 2016 and he plays with speed and energy. His quickness and defensive responsibility made him one of the top penalty killers on Colorado and we feel that those assets, along with his decision making and playmaking, will bring a lot of elements to our team. We’re excited to have Matt back in San Jose.”

Kevin Labanc was re-signed to a four-year contract. Per ESPN, Labanc’s contract is worth an annual $4,725,000. Wilson said of the young forward:

“Kevin brings a rare level of offensive skill and creativity to our line-up and has established himself as a top-six forward in our league. His Game 7 playoff performance last season is one of the most iconic moments in Sharks history and is a perfect example of the impact he can have on a hockey game. Kevin has shown a consistent ability to perform at a high level in both the regular season and the playoffs and he will be a big part of our club in the coming years.”

Stefan Noesen was also re-signed from last year’s roster. Last season, Noesen joined the Sharks December 19 after being claimed off waivers from Pittsburgh. In the foreshortened season with San Jose, Noesen scored seven goals and to assists, and took 32 penalty minutes. He was the first Sharks player since Timo Meier to score a goal in his team debut.

Of Noesen’s return to the team, Wilson said:

“Stefan came in here last season and made a pretty seamless transition both on and off the ice. He plays the game with a high tempo and energy and isn’t afraid to stick up for his teammates. We think he fits well with how we want our team to play and are happy he is returning to San Jose.”

One very familiar face is still missing from next season’s roster: Joe Thornton. He has not yet signed with an NHL team, but is playing in Davos, Switzerland to prepare. He has not ruled out coming back to San Jose, but it is far from certain at this time.