Roy Jones Jr.

Born January 16, 1969 in Pensacola Florida, Jones began boxing at an early age.  In 1984 he won the United States National Junior Olympics in his weight class.  Then he won two National Golden Gloves titles before ending his ameteur career with a 121-13 record.  Jones won a silver medal in the 1988 Olympics, as he defeated every fighter without losing a single round, but controversy saw him lose in the gold medal match against South Korean fighter Park Si-Hun, although he destroyed him from start to finish.  As a professional, Jones fought the top competition early in his career with wins over Jorge Vaca, Jorge Castro, Benard Hopkins, and a convincing win over then champion, James “Lights Out” Toney.  Outside of a fight against Virgil Hill and Mike McCallum, Jones seemingly fought unfit opponents for years to come.  Often criticized for fighting “Cans,” and his pursuit for a secondary career in music and basketball, Jones stepped up on January 3rd, 2003 to win the Heavyweight title against John Ruiz.  But as the Light Heavyweight division started to become stacked with competition, Jones lost 3 fights in a row.  After winning a controversial decision against Antonio Tarver, which many ringside scored the fight for Tarver, the two fought in a rematch 6 months later.  Tarver knocked out Jones in the 2nd round with a devastating right hand and shocked the world.  In Roy’s comeback fight, he would be knocked out again, this time in the 9th by Glen Johnson.  In the third fight with Antonio Tarver, Jones would lose convincingly by a unanimous decision on October 1st, 2005.  He would then put together a 3 fight win streak, one over Felix Trinidad, before being dominated by Joe Calzaghe.  After a nice win over Jeff Lacy, talks between Jones and Hopkins began about a rematch.  The two woud have to win their upcoming fights, with Hopkins fighting Enrique Ornelas and Jones taking on Danny Green.  Hopkins dominated Ornelas in a 12 round unanimous decision, but Jones was knocked out in the first round after getting pummeled by a right hand.  With the Jones loss, the rematch all but may be over, as the stock in seeing this fight has plummeted.  And now one begs to ask the question, Is Roy Jones done?  Roy is 5-4 in his last 9 fights with two of his wins coming by TKO, but three of his losses resulting in knockouts.  Without a big payday ahead and the possible rematch of him and Hopkins losing its luster, this may be the end of Roy Jones Jr.  Personally, I do think we will see him once more in a fight in his home town of Pensacola, but it won’t be against Hopkins.

Roy Jones Jr.  54-6-1  (40 KO’s)

Big Wins & Bigger Losses – 11-30-2009

Big Wins

• Denver defeats New York 26-6

The Denver Broncos ended a losing streak by defeating another team who can’t quite get it together.  Effective on both sides of the ball, the Broncos gained 373 totals yartds with 235 in the air and 138 on the ground.  Matt Prater was a perfect 4 for 4 on field goals, while the defense held the Giants banged up running game to only 57 total yards and caused 3 turnovers.

• Philadelphia defeats Washington 27-24

Trailing by as much as 8 points in the fourth quarter, Donovan McNabb led his offense down the field in route to a Eldra Buckley 1 yard touchdown run.  Then they tied the game as McNabb hit McCoy with a shovel pass for the two point conversion.  With only 1:48 left in regulation, David Akers made a 32 yard field goal for the win.

• Indianapolis defeats Houston 35-27

The Colts’ perfect season seemingly was coming to an end as the Texans were off to a quick 17-0 lead.  But Peyton Manning, who was 27/35 for 244 yards and 3 touchdown passes, led his offense to outscore Houston 35-7.  The running for the Colts also cam up big as they rushed for 114 yards on 23 carries.  Clint Session had a key 27 yard interception return for a touchdown.

Other Notable Wins:

San Francisco over Jacksonville 20-3

Tennessee over Arizona 20-17

Baltimore over Pittsburgh 20-17

 

Bigger Losses

• Buffalo upsets Miami

Playoff hopes for the Dolphins may have been erased on Sunday as the Bills scored 24 fourth quarter points on a game where poor coaching decisions and even worse passing plagued the Fish.  After Ricky Williams was averaging over 5 yards per carry, Miami elected to throw the ball on first and goal from the three which resulted in an interception.  Henne, who completed only short passes all day, was picked off 3 times and Williams was also intercepted on a trick play for a total of 4 turnovers.

Big Wins & Bigger Losses 11-28-2009

Big Wins

• Alabama defeats Auburn 26-21

Trailing 14-0 early in the first quarter, Alabama’s perfect season seemed to be coming to an end.  But the Crimson Tide rallied to tie the game at 14 on a 33yard pass from Greg McElroy.  The Tigers answered with a 72 yard pass to Darvin Adams from Chris Todd to retake the lead 21-14.  But after two Leigh Tiffin field goals, Ray Upchurch caught a 4 yard pass from McElroy, who was 21-31 for 218 yards and two touchdowns, to seal the deal, 26-21.

• LSU defeats Arkansas 33-30

The Tigers got out to a 17-3 lead, and after it was cut to 4, they added another touchdown to bring their lead back to 11.  But Arkansas rallied to take their first lead of the game late in the fourth quarter as Joe Adams caught a 14 yard touchdown pass from top prospect Ryan Mallett.  But Josh Jasper hit a 41 yard field goal to tie the game and send it into overtime with only 4 seconds remaining.  Jasper hit again from 36 in overtime, and a missed field goal to tie the game gave LSU the win.

• Missouri defeats Kansas

Missouri’s comeback added to the list of teams making great comebacks for huge victories.  Kansas took a 21-10 lead in the second quarter only to find themselves down 33-28 heading into the fourth.  But a 74 yard Todd Reesing pass to Dezmon Briscoe, and a 39 yard field goal, gave the Jayhawks the 39-36 lead.  But a crucial safety, cut the lead to 1 and gave Missouri the ball back with 2:58 left in the game.  Grant Ressel then hit a 27 yard field goal as time expired to lift Missouri over Kansas 41-39.

Other Notable Wins:

Tennessee defeats Kentucky 30-24

Stanford defeats Notre Dame 45-38

BYU defeats Utah 26-23

Bigger Losses

• Georgia upsets Georgia Tech 30-24

The Bulldogs gained 415 total yards against a stingy Yellow Jacket defense with the running game leading the way.  Washaun Ealey carried the ball 20 times for 183 yards, while his teammate Caleb King rushed for 166 on 18 carries and two touchdowns.  Georgia gained a total of 339 yards on the ground, while their defense limited Josh Nesbitt to a 6 for 12 performance for only 135 passing yards and 41 rushing yards.

• N.C. State upsets North Carolina 28-27

Russell Wilson may have had his best game of his career at quarterback at the right time.  He was 20 for 27 while throwing for 259 yards and 4 touchdown passes to lead his team to victory.  The defense also came up big in this game as they intercepted a T. J. Yates pass with 23 seconds remaining as North Carolina was driving the ball.  The Wolfpack were outgained in both passing and rushing yards, but key conversions and long touchdowns were the deciding factor.

Other Notable Losses:

West Virginia over Pittsburgh 19-16

Oklahoma over Oklahoma St. 27-0

South Carolina over Clemson 34-17

Mississippi St. over Ole Miss 41-27

Francisco Rodriguez

Francisco Rodriguez was born in Mexico, but grew up in Chicago where he became a 5 time Golden Gloves Champion.  In 2004, Rodriguez advanced to the U.S. Olympic trials by outpointing opponent Teon Kennedy.  Years later the two would once again meet in the ring, but this time as professionals.  In the 10^th round, Rodriguez was knocked out by Kennedy and never regained consciousness.  He was taken to Hahnemann Hospital in Philadelphia where he was immediately rushed into brain surgery.  And although this is another tragic story, this one seems to have somewhat of a happy ending.  Rodriguez’s family donated eight of his organs, including one of his kidney’s to his own uncle who has been on the waiting list for several years.  Francisco’s Brother went on to say, “My family is desperately grieving the loss of Paco, but there is some comfort knowing that he will save at least eight lives and benefit so many families.   “My brother was so strong and healthy. … His heart and lungs were in perfect condition. It would have been a terrible waste not to share his life with others. How could we not help another family?”  This adds to a long list of boxers who have died due to blows suffered in the ring.  And although it is the risk one takes when entering into such a profession, it is comforting to know that others will benefit from the tragic and premature loss of Francisco Rodriguez.  Donations can be made to the Francisco Rodriguez Estate fund account #707331062 at any Chase Bank location.

Big Wins & Bigger Losses – 11-23-2009

Big Wins

• Detroit defeats Cleveland 38-37

The Detroit Lions got their second win of the season with an amazing comeback and a touchdown pass with 0 seconds on the clock.  Matthew Stafford had a career game as he was 26 for 43 with 422 yards and 5 touchdown passes.  Stafford hit Calvin Johnson 7 times for 161 yards and one td, as all of his touchdowns passes went to different receivers.  A critical pass interference call on a Hail Mary pass, gave Detroit 1^st and goal, and Stafford came through with a 1 yard pass to rookie Brandon Pettigrew.

• New York Giants defeat Atlanta 34-31

The Giants had a 17-7 lead going into the 3^rd quarter, and then had a 31-17 lead in the fourth, only to see the game tied at 31 with 28 seconds left in regulation.  Eli Manning, who had 384 yards on 25 for 39 passing and 3 touchdowns, put Lawrence Tynes in range who drilled a 36 yard field goal in overtime to give the Giants a much needed win after 4 straight losses.

• Indianapolis defeats Baltimore 17-15

Peyton Manning keeps his Colts team undefeated with a huge win over the Ravens on the road.  Manning was 22 for 31 with 299 yards and 1 td, as he exposed a weakness in the Raven defense hitting Garcon 6 times for 108 yards.  The win now has the Colts at 10-0, with an even 5-0 mark both on the road and at home.

Other Notable Wins:

Miami defeats Carolina 24-17

Green Bay defeats San Fran 30-24

New England defeats New York 31-14

Tennessee defeats Houston 20-17

Bigger Losses

• Oakland upsets Cincinnati 20-17

Down 14-0 early in the second quarter, Bruce Gradkowski rallied his team for a touchdown before half time.  With only 33 seconds left in the game, Gradkowski hit Louis Murphy for a 29 yard touchdown pass to tie the game.  On the ensuing kickoff, Andre Caldwell fumbled the ball, which was recovered by Brandon Myers, who also caused the fumble.  Janikowski then connected on a 33 yard field goal with only 15 seconds remaining in the game which gave the Raiders the win.

• Kansas City upsets Pittsburgh 27-24

After a 97 yard kickoff return by Jamaal Charles  on the first play of the game, Kansas City found themselves down 17-7 at half.  After a touchdown pass to Leonard Pope from Matt Cassel and a 27 yard field goal, the game was tied at 17.  Mendenhall gave the Steelers the lead again with an 8 yard touchdown run, but Cassel connected for the second time to ties the game at 24.  In overtime Ryan Succop hit a 22 yard chip shot to give the Chiefs the stunning win.

Big Wins & Bigger Losses – 11-21-2009

Big Wins

• Texas Tech defeats Oklahoma 41-13

Taylor Potts led the Red Raiders to a crucial win over the Sooners as he threw for 388 yards and two touchdowns, while completing 35 of 53 passes.  They got a solid rushing performance from Batch who finished with 136 yards on 25 carries with two touchdowns.  The Red Raiders gained 549 total yards of offense against an above average defense and limited the Sooner’s running game to only 48 total yards on the ground.

• Penn State defeats Michigan State 42-14

This was a game where many experts were picking the Spartans to pull off the upset against a Penn State squad said to be overlooking this game.  But nothing could be further from the truth, as the Nittany Lions held Michigan State to only 333 yards of total offense and caused two key turnovers.  Darryl Clark, often criticized for his lack of passing accuracy, was 19 for 27 with 310 yards passing and 4 touchdowns.

• Oregon defeats Arizona 44-41

The Ducks may have needed double overtime to get past Arizona, but they came through on a Masoli 1 yard touchdown run to end the game.  Jeremiah Masoli was 26 for 47 with 3 passing touchdowns to go with his 3 rushing td’s as well.  6 total touchdowns for the Oregon quarterback who also had 284 yards passing and 61 yards rushing.

Other Notable Wins:

BYU defeats Air Force 23-13

Iowa defeats Minnesota 12-0

Ohio State defeats Michigan 21-10

Florida State defeats Maryland 29-26

Bigger Losses

• Northwestern upsets Wisconsin 33-31

The surging Wildcats added another big win to their resume as they defeated #16 ranked Wisconsin.  Northwestern racked up 437 yards of total offense with Mike Kafka leading the way.  Kafa was 26 for 40 with 326 yards and 2 touchdown passes, while getting no help from the running game who only could muster 73 total yards.  Stephan Demos, Northwestern’s field goal kicker, was also a significant part of their win as he was 4 for 4, including hitting from 45 yards in the first quarter.

• Syracuse upsets Rutgers 31-13

Rutgers came into this game as a huge favorite and left getting embarrassed by the Orangemen.  Syracuse was winless in Big East play before this game and outgained Rutger by 294 total yards.  The Scarlett Knights only gained 130 total yards on offense with Savage throwing for 66 yards and two interceptions.

Other Notable Losses:

Connecticut upsets Notre Dame 33-30

California upsets Stanford 34-28

Kentucky upsets Georgia 34-27

The End of the Wildcat?

Star running back Ronnie Brown, and the anchor of the Wildcat, has been placed on injured reserve and will miss the remainder of the season.  The Dolphins leading rusher suffered a right foot injury on Sunday in a game against Tampa Bay.  This will be the second time Brown will miss a significant amount of playing time, as he injured his knee and missed 9 games in 2007.  With the passing attack not helping this offense much with Chad Henne at quarterback, the running game which has made the Wildcat famous, has been the main focus for their success.  And now with Ronnie Brown out, the duel threat of him and Ricky Williams is null.  Williams will have to carry the bulk of the load now, and Henne will have to be more productive if the offense is going to contend for a playoff spot.  The question now will be whether or not will Miami be able to make adjustments and make the Wildcat still work, or will they rely on a more conventional approach to their offense with a straight running game and giving Henne more passing attempts.  Thursday night the Dolphins will take on the surging Carolina Panthers on the road, and some of these questions will be answered.

Pacquiao vs. Mayweather

With the recent destruction of Miguel Cotto, there is no doubt that Manny Pacquiao is pound for pound the number 1 fighter in the world.  The only test to his claim would be in a fight with Floyd Mayweather.  A dream matchup, rivaling that of “Sugar” Ray Leonard and Marvin Hagler, and without question out dueling De La Hoya vs. Trinidad.  But will this fight ever happen?  It has been long contested that Mayweather only fights opponents on his own terms and has “ducked” many of the top ranked fighters for years like Shane Mosley.  Pacquiao’s head trainer Freddie Roach, in the post fight interview, has stated that he wants Mayweather.  Floyd has been recently quoted as saying, “The thing is with Pacquiao I don’t see any versatility as a fighter,” Mayweather, the former pound-for-pound king who ended a retirement by easily outpointing Juan Manuel Marquez on Sept. 19.  ”He’s a good puncher but just one-dimensional. “I’m in a no-win situation. If I beat Manny Pacquiao you know what they are going to say? You are supposed to beat him, you are Floyd Mayweather, you are the bigger man.’ If I knock him out they’ll say, ‘You’re supposed to knock him out because he’s been knocked out before. I’m in a no-win situation and when I beat him no one is going to be surprised because he’s been beaten before. Whatever I do to Pacquiao has been done before. He’s been beaten on three occasions. And if I knock him out I don’t want the world shouting because he’s been knocked out twice before [as a flyweight in the 1990s],” he said.  Freddie Roach isn’t buying it as he responded that Mayweather’s resistance for this fight, and his demands for 65% of the revenue, is because he knows he can’t beat Pacquiao.   If the fight does take place, there is no doubt it can challenge or defeat the Mayweather and De La Hoya’s 2.4 million pay per view purchase mark.  Regardless if Mayweather thinks that Pacquiao is an easy fight or not doesn’t matter.  The people are now demanding this fight, and if any fighter in the world wants to be “The People’s Champ,” then it is the people who should see the fight.  For now, we’ll have to wait and see.

Big Wins & Bigger Losses – 11-16-2009

Big Wins

• Cincinnati defeats Pittsburgh 18-12

The Bengals came into this game as a 7 point underdog and came away with the outright win.  Cincinnati’s defense limited Ben Roethlisberger to only 174 yards and intercepted him once, while holding Mendenhall to 36 yards rushing.  In a defensive showdown, the Bengals benefitted from Benard Scott’s 96 yard kick return which was the only touchdown for either team the entire game.

• San Diego defeats Philadelphia 31-23

The Chargers never trailed once in this game against the Eagles, even though they were out gained 462 yards to 331.  Donovan McNabb threw for 450 yards, but Phillip Rivers had two touchdown passes against no interceptions.  LaDainian Tomlinson carried the ball 24 times for 96 yards and two touchdowns.

• Indianapolis defeats New England 35-34

A critical call from Bill Belichek on 4th down late in the game, costed his team the win and gave Peyton Manning another shot.  The Colts scored 21 fourth quarter points behind Manning who finished the game 327 yards and 4 touchdown passes.  Two of his touchdown passes came in the fourth quarter with the game winner going to Reggie Wayne with only 13 seconds left.

Other Notable Wins:
New Orleans defeats St. Louis 28-23
Miami defeats Tampa Bay 25-23
Carolina defeats Atlanta 28-19

Bigger Losses

• Washington upsets Denver 27-17

The Redskins may have won this game because Kyle Orton went down to an injury and didn’t play the entire second half.  Nevertheless, the Redskins took advantage of Denver’s inability to move the ball in the second half and came back after trailing to score 13 unanswered points in route to the win.

• Green Bay upsets Dallas 17-7

The Packer defense came to play limiting the Cowboys to only 278 total yards of offense and causing 3 turnovers.  The Packers controlled the clock for 35 minutes and 58 seconds getting a passing and rushing touchdown from quarterback Aaron Rodgers.

Big Wins & Bigger Losses – 11-15-2009

Big Wins

• Ohio State defeats Iowa

Facing the 10^th ranked team in the nation, the Buckeyes led the entire game after trailing early 3-0.  Extending their lead to as much as 14 in the fourth quarter, Iowa rallied to tie the game, sending it into overtime.  The first possession belonged to Hawkeyes as the defense for Ohio State stepped up big with a loss on a run play and a sack driving them out of field goal range.  The next possession, Devin Barclay drilled a 39 yard field goal giving Ohio State the 27-24 win.

• TCU defeats Utah 55-28

Although the line didn’t suggest that this game would be close, many thought that the Utes would be able to bring their best and keep this game competitive.  No such thing happened, as the Horned Frogs mounted 549 yards of total offense with running back Ed Wesley rushing for 137 yards on only 12 carries and a touchdown.  Matthew Tucker had two rushing touchdowns with quarterback Andy Dalton throwing for 207 yards and 1 TD.

• Pittsburgh defeats Notre Dame

The Charlie Weis era in Notre Dame may be over as the Irish lose another critical game to the Panthers.  Pittsburgh took a commanding 20-3 lead before the Fighting Irish came back to close the lead to 5.  But a critical fumble, which was reviewed and overturned in the favor of Pittsburgh, ended any chances for a comeback win.  Running back Dion Lewis was the star of the game rushing for 152 yards on 21 carries with one touchdown.

Other Notable Wins:

Rutgers defeats South Florida 31-0

Penn State defeats Indiana 31-20

Oregon State defeats Washington 48-21

Georgia defeats Auburn 31-24

Bigger Losses

• Central Florida upsets Houston

Case Keenum couldn’t rally his troops this week for another Heisman like comeback, as the defense for UCF was up for the task.  Although Keenum had another good game, the Knights were able to stuff the run, limiting Houston to only 46 rushing yards.  Brett Hodges was 21 for 25, throwing for 241 yards and a TD, while the running game got a boost from Brynn Harvey’s 139 yards and 3 touchdowns against this weak defense.

• Stanford upsets USC 55-21

There is no doubt now, that not only does Stanford have USC’s number, but they also are a legitimate football squad.  For the 2^nd week in a row they are on our list with the win against Oregon and now against the Trojans.  469 yards of total offense with Gerhart rushing for 178 and 3 touchdowns on 29 carries.  Luck threw two touchdowns and was helped by their defense who picked off Barkley 3 times and limited him to 196 yards passing.

Other Notable Losses:

California over Arizona 24-16

North Carolina over Miami 33-24