PITTSBURGH (AP)—Pittsburgh Steelers kicker Jeff Reed is in trouble with the police over some towels, but not the Terrible kind waved by his fans.
Pennsylvania state police say Reed threw a temper tantrum at a Sheetz convenience store in New Alexandria, a tiny borough about 35 miles east of Pittsburgh, because its restroom didn’t have any towels.
Reed has been cited for disorderly conduct and criminal mischief, offenses similar to traffic tickets that carry a maximum fine of $300 and 90 days in jail each. Police said he broke the towel dispenser then used profane language to an employee and also outside the store.
“Reed caused damage to a towel dispenser as he was infuriated at the fact that there were no towels in it,” according to a news release by Trooper Shawn Askins, who issued the citations. The incident occurred Saturday about 2:50 a.m.
A message left on an answering machine at Reed’s home was not immediately returned.
Steelers spokesman Dave Lockett said the team wouldn’t have any immediate comment.
“We’re still gathering information right now,” Lockett said Saturday.
Reed made 27 of 31 field goals and 36 of 37 PATs for 117 points in his seventh season with the Steelers, which was capped by Pittsburgh’s 27-23 win over the Arizona Cardinals in the Super Bowl.
Reed has made nearly 83 percent of his field goals (162 of 196) and scored 733 points for the Steelers in his career.
Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=ap-steelers-toweltantrum&prov=ap&type=lgns
Sunday, February 15, 2009
Saturday, February 14, 2009
Where will Michael Vick play football in 2009?
The Atlanta Falcons announced this week that they were looking to trade the rights to Michael Vick, who is indefinitely suspended from the NFL and currently imprisoned for his role in a dogfighting operation. In essence, they want somebody to give them something in return for their massively overvalued, damaged product. Good luck with that.
It's not even a guarantee that Vick will be back in the NFL in 2009. Roger Goodell has said he won't consider reinstatement until Vick's legal obligations are settled, and that might not be until July. Plus, it's Goodell and he likes to drag things out, so don't expect a quick decision on Vick's future.
If Vick does get reinstated, it is still difficult to imagine that there will be too many teams lining up to give away draft picks in order to get a guy who's been in prison for the past 18 months and is due to get $15 million in 2009 from his current contract. More likely, teams will wait for Atlanta to release Vick, thus enabling them to sign him to a new, more logical deal.
Assuming that all these things happen, what's the most likely destination for Vick in 2009? Shutdown Corner lists the five most likely spots:
1) Oakland -- Other locales might make more football sense, but Vick landing in Oakland make the most overall sense. The Raiders are irrelevant, Al Davis won't care about the negative press and a good number of Oakland fans can relate to Vick's status as an ex-con. JaMarcus Russell is already there at QB, but that's just semantics.
2) Seattle -- Former Falcons coaches Jim Mora and Gregg Knapp are now running the show in Seattle. With Matt Hasselbeck possibly on his way out, this could be a good fit for Vick.
3) San Francisco -- Shaun Hill and J.T. O'Sullivan may not be the answers.
4) Minnesota -- The Vikings are a quarterback away from being a true contender in the NFC, so they seem like the most logical landing spot for Vick. But Vick isn't a Drew Brees-type who can be easily dropped into a pre-existing system, he's the kind of guy whom the system has to be built around. Also, the team is in a battle to get public funding for a new stadium and bringing in a social pariah like Vick may not be the best way to win support for a stadium plan that's already questionable in this economy.
5) New York Jets -- The Jets have said they aren't interested in acquiring Michael Vick. They weren't interested in trading for Brett Favre either.
Honorable Mention: Washington -- If you think Dan Snyder hasn't called up Jim Zorn in the middle of the night at least once this month to bounce off some ideas about how Michael Vick could help the Redskins, then you don't know Danny.
Not listed: Detroit (even Michael Vick has standards), Tampa Bay (unlikely that a new coach and GM would begin careers with Vick at QB) and Kansas City (ditto).
Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Where-will-Michael-Vick-play-football-in-2009-?urn=nfl,141488
It's not even a guarantee that Vick will be back in the NFL in 2009. Roger Goodell has said he won't consider reinstatement until Vick's legal obligations are settled, and that might not be until July. Plus, it's Goodell and he likes to drag things out, so don't expect a quick decision on Vick's future.
If Vick does get reinstated, it is still difficult to imagine that there will be too many teams lining up to give away draft picks in order to get a guy who's been in prison for the past 18 months and is due to get $15 million in 2009 from his current contract. More likely, teams will wait for Atlanta to release Vick, thus enabling them to sign him to a new, more logical deal.
Assuming that all these things happen, what's the most likely destination for Vick in 2009? Shutdown Corner lists the five most likely spots:
1) Oakland -- Other locales might make more football sense, but Vick landing in Oakland make the most overall sense. The Raiders are irrelevant, Al Davis won't care about the negative press and a good number of Oakland fans can relate to Vick's status as an ex-con. JaMarcus Russell is already there at QB, but that's just semantics.
2) Seattle -- Former Falcons coaches Jim Mora and Gregg Knapp are now running the show in Seattle. With Matt Hasselbeck possibly on his way out, this could be a good fit for Vick.
3) San Francisco -- Shaun Hill and J.T. O'Sullivan may not be the answers.
4) Minnesota -- The Vikings are a quarterback away from being a true contender in the NFC, so they seem like the most logical landing spot for Vick. But Vick isn't a Drew Brees-type who can be easily dropped into a pre-existing system, he's the kind of guy whom the system has to be built around. Also, the team is in a battle to get public funding for a new stadium and bringing in a social pariah like Vick may not be the best way to win support for a stadium plan that's already questionable in this economy.
5) New York Jets -- The Jets have said they aren't interested in acquiring Michael Vick. They weren't interested in trading for Brett Favre either.
Honorable Mention: Washington -- If you think Dan Snyder hasn't called up Jim Zorn in the middle of the night at least once this month to bounce off some ideas about how Michael Vick could help the Redskins, then you don't know Danny.
Not listed: Detroit (even Michael Vick has standards), Tampa Bay (unlikely that a new coach and GM would begin careers with Vick at QB) and Kansas City (ditto).
Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/blog/shutdown_corner/post/Where-will-Michael-Vick-play-football-in-2009-?urn=nfl,141488
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Jeremy Lusk dies at 24; freestyle motocross star
Nicknamed 'Pitbull' because of his tenacity on a motorcycle, Lusk is believed to be the first pro rider to have died from injuries sustained in an FMX contest.
Jeremy Lusk, star of a daredevil sport known as freestyle motocross and a popular action sports hero, died early Tuesday from head injuries suffered during a crash Saturday at a competition in San Jose, Costa Rica. He was 24.
Lusk, a Temecula resident, had been in a medically induced coma, with swelling of the brain, at Calderon Guardia Hospital in San Jose. A spokesman at the hospital said he suffered severe brain damage and a possible spinal cord injury.
Nicknamed "Pitbull" because of his tenacity on a motorcycle, Lusk was injured after failing to fully rotate a back-flip variation while soaring over a 100-foot jump.
He slammed headfirst into the dirt on the landing ramp's down-slope. It was reminiscent of a similar crash he endured while attempting the same trick during the 2007 X Games at the Home Depot Center in Carson, but Lusk walked away from that incident.
The trick involves extending the body away from the motorcycle and grabbing the seat as the motorcycle is upside down, then pulling back aboard as the motorcycle is righted before landing. Lusk clearly had trouble getting back on the seat, and some witnesses said swirling winds within San Jose's Ricardo Saprissa Stadium may have been a factor.
Despite the danger associated with freestyle motocross, Lusk is believed to be the first pro rider to have died from injuries suffered in an FMX contest, though several have incurred serious injuries.
Lusk, who was born San Diego in 1984 and had been riding motorcycles since he was 3, turned pro at 19. He was coming off his most successful year.
He won his first X Games gold medal in the freestyle motocross competition last summer at the Home Depot Center, and won a silver medal in the FMX best-trick contest.
Also in 2008, Lusk won two gold medals in an X Games Mexico competition; he finished third in the Dew Tour series standings, and he was never lower than fourth in a string of high-level international events.
The X-Knights competition Saturday in Costa Rica was not affiliated with the X Games.
Of Lusk, X Games General Manager Chris Stiepock said: "He was really starting to emerge as one of the premier freestyle motocross riders in the world.
"He was a great kid and a great athlete. I think he represented his sport very well. He was very passionate about what he did, and I think it's a great loss for the freestyle motocross community for sure."
Stiepock said he did not believe the increasingly risky maneuvers attempted by freestyle motocross riders have pushed the sport over the line. "I think there's a whole lot more that can be done with freestyle motocross, and we're going to continue to feature it strongly at the X Games," he said.
Lusk was on a team of star FMX riders called Metal Mulisha, founded by the sport's most iconic figure, Brian Deegan.
Deegan was in Costa Rica and unavailable for comment but released a statement through his publicist: "Jeremy motivated me to be a better person; he was my best friend. The bond of this team is one that will never be broken."
Lusk is survived by his wife, Lauren, and his parents, who were with him when he died.
Memorial services are pending. The Jeremy Lusk Trust Fund has been set up within the Athlete Recovery Fund. Donations can be made via the website athleterecoveryfund.com.
Source: http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-jeremy-lusk11-2009feb11,0,848599.story
Here is an old Youtube video from 2007:
Jeremy Lusk crashes doing hart attack indian air backflip
Jeremy Lusk, star of a daredevil sport known as freestyle motocross and a popular action sports hero, died early Tuesday from head injuries suffered during a crash Saturday at a competition in San Jose, Costa Rica. He was 24.
Lusk, a Temecula resident, had been in a medically induced coma, with swelling of the brain, at Calderon Guardia Hospital in San Jose. A spokesman at the hospital said he suffered severe brain damage and a possible spinal cord injury.
Nicknamed "Pitbull" because of his tenacity on a motorcycle, Lusk was injured after failing to fully rotate a back-flip variation while soaring over a 100-foot jump.
He slammed headfirst into the dirt on the landing ramp's down-slope. It was reminiscent of a similar crash he endured while attempting the same trick during the 2007 X Games at the Home Depot Center in Carson, but Lusk walked away from that incident.
The trick involves extending the body away from the motorcycle and grabbing the seat as the motorcycle is upside down, then pulling back aboard as the motorcycle is righted before landing. Lusk clearly had trouble getting back on the seat, and some witnesses said swirling winds within San Jose's Ricardo Saprissa Stadium may have been a factor.
Despite the danger associated with freestyle motocross, Lusk is believed to be the first pro rider to have died from injuries suffered in an FMX contest, though several have incurred serious injuries.
Lusk, who was born San Diego in 1984 and had been riding motorcycles since he was 3, turned pro at 19. He was coming off his most successful year.
He won his first X Games gold medal in the freestyle motocross competition last summer at the Home Depot Center, and won a silver medal in the FMX best-trick contest.
Also in 2008, Lusk won two gold medals in an X Games Mexico competition; he finished third in the Dew Tour series standings, and he was never lower than fourth in a string of high-level international events.
The X-Knights competition Saturday in Costa Rica was not affiliated with the X Games.
Of Lusk, X Games General Manager Chris Stiepock said: "He was really starting to emerge as one of the premier freestyle motocross riders in the world.
"He was a great kid and a great athlete. I think he represented his sport very well. He was very passionate about what he did, and I think it's a great loss for the freestyle motocross community for sure."
Stiepock said he did not believe the increasingly risky maneuvers attempted by freestyle motocross riders have pushed the sport over the line. "I think there's a whole lot more that can be done with freestyle motocross, and we're going to continue to feature it strongly at the X Games," he said.
Lusk was on a team of star FMX riders called Metal Mulisha, founded by the sport's most iconic figure, Brian Deegan.
Deegan was in Costa Rica and unavailable for comment but released a statement through his publicist: "Jeremy motivated me to be a better person; he was my best friend. The bond of this team is one that will never be broken."
Lusk is survived by his wife, Lauren, and his parents, who were with him when he died.
Memorial services are pending. The Jeremy Lusk Trust Fund has been set up within the Athlete Recovery Fund. Donations can be made via the website athleterecoveryfund.com.
Source: http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-jeremy-lusk11-2009feb11,0,848599.story
Here is an old Youtube video from 2007:
Jeremy Lusk crashes doing hart attack indian air backflip
Sunday, February 8, 2009
14-times Olympic gold medal winner Michael Phelps caught with cannabis pipe
THIS is the astonishing picture which could destroy the career of the greatest competitor in Olympic history.
In our exclusive photo Michael Phelps, who won a record EIGHT gold medals for swimming at the Beijing games last summer, draws from a bong.
The glass pipes are generally used to smoke cannabis.
And after sporting chiefs announced laws which mean four-year bans for drug-taking, Phelps’ dreams of adding to his overall 14 gold medal tally at the 2012 games in London could already be OVER.
Those dreams seemed the last thing on his mind when he puffed from the bong during two days of partying with students last November, a quiet time in the swimming calendar when athletes would not expect to get tested for drugs.
One party-goer who witnessed the star’s behaviour told the News of the World: “He was out of control from the moment he got there.
“If he continues to party like that I’d be amazed if he ever won any more medals again.”
Phelps’ aides went into a panic over our story and offered us a raft of extraordinary incentives not to run the bong picture.
It was on November 6, weeks after his Beijing triumph, that 23-year-old Phelps surprised students at the University Of South Carolina in Columbia by showing up unannounced at a house party.
He was visiting Jordan Matthews, a girl he was secretly seeing who was a student there.
Our source revealed: “Michael came to visit Jordan but ended up just getting wasted every night.
“He arrived with a group of girls hanging all over him. Jaws hit the floor when he walked in. You don’t get many celebrities in Columbia, so when Phelps comes to your party it’s a very big deal.
Obnoxious
“He didn’t know many people so you’d think he’d be a little shy. But he was loud, obnoxious and slamming beers from the get-go.
“Every girl wanted a piece of him and every guy wanted to be his best buddy. He couldn’t get enough of all the attention.”
As he basked in his hero status, Phelps knocked back beers and shots of spirits. And when a student offered him the glass bong engraved with red writing, he did not hesitate, says our source.
The 6ft 4ins athlete, in a white T-shirt and navy cap worn back to front, clasped the device in his huge hands and inhaled deeply.
Our source said: “You could tell Michael had smoked before. He grabbed the bong and a lighter and knew exactly what to do.
“He looked just as natural with a bong in his hands as he does swimming in the pool. He was the gold medal winner of bong hits. Michael ended up getting a little paranoid, though, because before too long he looked like he was nervous and ran out of the place.”
But the next night, Phelps was out partying again. The source added: “He was right back at it at Pavlov’s bar.
“Like the night before he was holding court, throwing back shots two at a time and pouring drinks to every cute girl.”
Drink has got Phelps into trouble before. In 2004, aged 19, he got 18 months probation for driving while under the influence.
His wild behaviour is in stark contrast to the grim regime which took him to the top of his sport.
He once described his life, saying: “All you do is eat, sleep, swim; eat, sleep, swim; eat, sleep, swim.”
Last night Phelps’ management team and the sporting world closed ranks over the scandal.
Taint
The US Olympics Committee, who have pledged to clamp down on drug use, refused to comment, as did USA Swimming and Phelps’ coach Bob Bowman.
More surprising still was the World Anti-Doping Agency’s refusal to comment, given that they introduced the four-year ban on sport’s drug users.
Phelps, who earned £4million last year in endorsements, has resumed training for the 2012 games.
But there were fears about his commitment when, weeks after the bong incident, he began dating former stripper Caroline Pal.
Phelps is represented by marketing giant Octagon, which works with huge brands such as Mastercard and HSBC. They admitted proven cannabis use would be “a major taint” on Phelps’ character.
Spokesman Clifford Bloxham offered us an extraordinary deal not to publish our story, saying Phelps would become our columnist for three years, host events and get his sponsors to advertise with us.
In return, he asked that we kill Phelps’ bong picture. Bloxham said: “It’s seeing if something potentially very negative for Michael could turn into something very positive for the News of the World.”
He stressed that the swimmer had taken 1,500 drug tests and never failed one.
Until now?
Source: http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/150832/14-times-Olympic-gold-medal-winner-Michael-Phelps-caught-with-bong-cannabis-pipe.html
Olympic hero Phelps issues apology over dope pipe photo
Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps has admitted “regrettable behaviour" and "bad judgement" after the News of the World published an exclusive photo showing him inhaling from a marijuana pipe.
In a statement released to The Associated Press, the swimmer, who won a record eight gold medals at the Beijing Games, did not dispute the authenticity of the exclusive picture.
“I engaged in behaviour which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgement,” Phelps said.
“I’m 23 years old and despite the successes I’ve had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.”
Source: http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/157299/Olympic-hero-Phelps-acknowledges-marijuana-pipe-photo-is-authentic-and-issues-apology.html
In our exclusive photo Michael Phelps, who won a record EIGHT gold medals for swimming at the Beijing games last summer, draws from a bong.
The glass pipes are generally used to smoke cannabis.
And after sporting chiefs announced laws which mean four-year bans for drug-taking, Phelps’ dreams of adding to his overall 14 gold medal tally at the 2012 games in London could already be OVER.
Those dreams seemed the last thing on his mind when he puffed from the bong during two days of partying with students last November, a quiet time in the swimming calendar when athletes would not expect to get tested for drugs.
One party-goer who witnessed the star’s behaviour told the News of the World: “He was out of control from the moment he got there.
“If he continues to party like that I’d be amazed if he ever won any more medals again.”
Phelps’ aides went into a panic over our story and offered us a raft of extraordinary incentives not to run the bong picture.
It was on November 6, weeks after his Beijing triumph, that 23-year-old Phelps surprised students at the University Of South Carolina in Columbia by showing up unannounced at a house party.
He was visiting Jordan Matthews, a girl he was secretly seeing who was a student there.
Our source revealed: “Michael came to visit Jordan but ended up just getting wasted every night.
“He arrived with a group of girls hanging all over him. Jaws hit the floor when he walked in. You don’t get many celebrities in Columbia, so when Phelps comes to your party it’s a very big deal.
Obnoxious
“He didn’t know many people so you’d think he’d be a little shy. But he was loud, obnoxious and slamming beers from the get-go.
“Every girl wanted a piece of him and every guy wanted to be his best buddy. He couldn’t get enough of all the attention.”
As he basked in his hero status, Phelps knocked back beers and shots of spirits. And when a student offered him the glass bong engraved with red writing, he did not hesitate, says our source.
The 6ft 4ins athlete, in a white T-shirt and navy cap worn back to front, clasped the device in his huge hands and inhaled deeply.
Our source said: “You could tell Michael had smoked before. He grabbed the bong and a lighter and knew exactly what to do.
“He looked just as natural with a bong in his hands as he does swimming in the pool. He was the gold medal winner of bong hits. Michael ended up getting a little paranoid, though, because before too long he looked like he was nervous and ran out of the place.”
But the next night, Phelps was out partying again. The source added: “He was right back at it at Pavlov’s bar.
“Like the night before he was holding court, throwing back shots two at a time and pouring drinks to every cute girl.”
Drink has got Phelps into trouble before. In 2004, aged 19, he got 18 months probation for driving while under the influence.
His wild behaviour is in stark contrast to the grim regime which took him to the top of his sport.
He once described his life, saying: “All you do is eat, sleep, swim; eat, sleep, swim; eat, sleep, swim.”
Last night Phelps’ management team and the sporting world closed ranks over the scandal.
Taint
The US Olympics Committee, who have pledged to clamp down on drug use, refused to comment, as did USA Swimming and Phelps’ coach Bob Bowman.
More surprising still was the World Anti-Doping Agency’s refusal to comment, given that they introduced the four-year ban on sport’s drug users.
Phelps, who earned £4million last year in endorsements, has resumed training for the 2012 games.
But there were fears about his commitment when, weeks after the bong incident, he began dating former stripper Caroline Pal.
Phelps is represented by marketing giant Octagon, which works with huge brands such as Mastercard and HSBC. They admitted proven cannabis use would be “a major taint” on Phelps’ character.
Spokesman Clifford Bloxham offered us an extraordinary deal not to publish our story, saying Phelps would become our columnist for three years, host events and get his sponsors to advertise with us.
In return, he asked that we kill Phelps’ bong picture. Bloxham said: “It’s seeing if something potentially very negative for Michael could turn into something very positive for the News of the World.”
He stressed that the swimmer had taken 1,500 drug tests and never failed one.
Until now?
Source: http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/150832/14-times-Olympic-gold-medal-winner-Michael-Phelps-caught-with-bong-cannabis-pipe.html
Olympic hero Phelps issues apology over dope pipe photo
Olympic swimmer Michael Phelps has admitted “regrettable behaviour" and "bad judgement" after the News of the World published an exclusive photo showing him inhaling from a marijuana pipe.
In a statement released to The Associated Press, the swimmer, who won a record eight gold medals at the Beijing Games, did not dispute the authenticity of the exclusive picture.
“I engaged in behaviour which was regrettable and demonstrated bad judgement,” Phelps said.
“I’m 23 years old and despite the successes I’ve had in the pool, I acted in a youthful and inappropriate way, not in a manner people have come to expect from me. For this, I am sorry. I promise my fans and the public it will not happen again.”
Source: http://www.newsoftheworld.co.uk/news/157299/Olympic-hero-Phelps-acknowledges-marijuana-pipe-photo-is-authentic-and-issues-apology.html
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
