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Derrick Rose: The Return?

Written by: Andrew Bowen (@andrew_bowen45) Derrick Rose, a name often associated with “tragic” or “unlucky” due to his injuries. The 2011 MVP was projected to be one of the best to ever play in the NBA. This was all cut short due to Rose tearing his ACL in 2012. He then tore it two more times and continuously was battling injuries, causing him to start bouncing from team to team. Rose is currently on the Minnesota Timberwolves and was having a pretty good season trying to bounce back yet again. However, on October 31st, 2018, something incredible happened. Rose scored 50 points, a career high for him, in the Wolves win over the Utah Jazz. Watching these highlights, you saw Rose looking like his old self again. He was scoring and shooting and making plays all over the court just like he did in 2011 with the Chicago Bulls. He revealed in several interviews that the reason he tore his ACL was that no one taught him how to safely land off of a jump shot or a dunk, thus leading to his injuries. Rose seems to have figured out how to land without hurting himself and this could be the start of something special yet again. Rose’s story has become a fan favorite nationally, especially in Chicago, as he is from there and played for the Bulls for most of his career. When Rose scored 50 points that night, he cried tears of joy in his post-game interview and was greeted to a standing ovation. The real question lingering after watching that amazing performance is... Is Derrick Rose back? Yes. Yes he is folks. Many don’t want to believe it and say that this [...]

Derrick Rose: The Return?2018-11-13T00:57:32+00:00

Does Zion Williamson Overshadow Other Talent At Duke?

Written by: Andrew Bowen (@andrew_bowen45) As college basketball gets started, one freshman has garnered a lot of national attention. Coming out of high school he was compared to Lebron James, the No. 1 power forward in the nation and had over a million followers on Instagram before his senior year. If you don’t know who I am talking about yet, I am referring to the one and only Zion Williamson. Now, going to Duke came as no surprise at all, but when his friends Cam Reddish, R.J. Barrett and Tre Jones joined the mix, things got pretty interesting. Now that Duke has all of this talent, the real question is, is Williamson overshadowing the other talent? You could say he is or you could say he isn’t. Watching some pregame footage of Williamson has shown that he is a post offense threat, but that is not the entire Duke offensive game plan. He does not overshadow the entire roster simply because of this, three point shooting. If Williamson had a consistent jumper and three point shot, then maybe he would begin to over shadow the others. However, Barret is a lethal three point shooter and a pure point guard who gets his teammates the looks that they need. Along with that, Jones and Reddish are huge three point threats and can drive into the lane when needed. Williamson is the big name on this roster that always jumps out at scouts and fans, but people need to realize that there is so much depth within this team that Williamson cannot be the sole star of this Duke team. For being this young of a team and having these high expectations, you should fully be expecting [...]

Does Zion Williamson Overshadow Other Talent At Duke?2018-11-13T00:34:00+00:00

Who Is The Saints Utility Man Opening Eyes Across the NFL?

Written by: Alex Abernathy On the New Orleans Saints first offensive possession of the 2018 NFL season they orchestrated a brilliant drive and marched right down the field against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. They where faced with 3rd down and two, from the five-yard line. It’s a perfect situation. With talent littered all over the field including, Rookie of the Year, Alvin Kamara, All-Pro wide receiver, Michael Thomas and let’s not forget, Super Bowl winning quarterback, Drew Brees, the Saints could do virtually anything they wanted to on the ensuing play. So, what did head coach Sean Payton do? He flags down his future first ballot, hall of fame quarterback and pulls him off the field. Over the loud speakers, Saints fans hear PA announcer Jerry Romig tell the crowd, “now entering at quarterback, Taysom Hill.” Who? Into the game comes a slightly more muscular looking Drew Brees wearing number seven. He lines up in the shotgun alongside Kamara. The ball is snapped. It’s a quarterback option. The stranger receiving the snap looks to his right and sees veteran defensive end Vinny Curry awaiting unblocked and ready to pounce. Hill reads it perfectly and hands the ball off to Kamara. The running back scampers up the middle untouched to the house. Touchdown Saints. Football fans across the country applauded the touchdown, but no one could help but ask themselves, “who is that guy?” Hill has continued to see action at quarterback in the last few games subbing in at odd times and running a multitude of different plays— some successful, some not so much. Eventually, in the third quarter of the Saints week five matchup against the Redskins, he subbed in on a first and [...]

Who Is The Saints Utility Man Opening Eyes Across the NFL?2018-11-11T10:13:44+00:00

Tennessee vs. No. 11 Kentucky Football Preview

Written by: Jake Wallman (@WallmanE75) Tennessee hosts Kentucky on Saturn for the 114th edition of the rivalry formerly known as “Battle of the Beer Barrel”.   While the presentation of the barrel to the winner of the game ended in 1998 the hate these two have for each other is alive and well. When Kentucky makes its way into Neyland Stadium Saturday they won’t only see a stadium, but a house of horrors as the Wildcats haven’t won in Knoxville since 1984. Since then it’s been 16 straight losses with an average score of 37.4 - 16.3 in favor of Tennessee. But now it’s Kentucky who’s enjoying a 7-2 season with a bowl berth already in place who’s looking to take advantage of Tennessee while they’re down. A win would further Kentucky’s opportunities at two things: a New Year’s Six bowl appearance and an eleven win season which would be the first since 1950 when Paul “Bear” Bryant was roaming the sidelines in Lexington. A win would give them six wins in the SEC which would be the first time since the program went 6-0 in 1977. Tennessee on the other hand? Well the Vols are just trying to stay afloat and reach the six win mark to earn a spot in post-season play. Injuries, inconsistent play across the board and just overall being out-matched in some games have plagued Tennessee this season.   Now let's take a look at how Tennessee matches up with Kentucky and what the Vols need to do to reach win number five and stay on track for a bowl game.   When you look at the numbers on offense for the Vols, nothing really jumps out as an amazing stat. The offense is [...]

Tennessee vs. No. 11 Kentucky Football Preview2018-11-10T14:11:31+00:00

Tennessee Soccer vs. Louisville NCAA Tourney preview

Written by: Gus Tomazeli (@Gustavotomazeli) The Tennessee women’s soccer team, ranked No. 12 nationally, will start their NCAA tournament run at home for the second year in a row. The Lady Vols will face the Louisville Cardinals at Regal Soccer Stadium, Friday, Nov, 9th at 5 p.m. ET, as revealed by the NCAA Selection Show last Monday afternoon. After finishing the regular season as the second-best team in the SEC, with 13 wins, 2 losses and 3 draws and a heart break elimination at the hands of the LSU Tigers after tying the game in regulation and losing in penalty-kicks in the Quarterfinals of SEC Tournament. Tennessee has also been ranked in the Top 25 of the United Soccer Coaches poll every week this season and currently sits ninth in the RPI. As for UT's opponent, the Louisville Cardinals finished their regular season with 6 wins, 4 losses, no draws and a fifth place finish in the ACC. As for the ACC tournament, the cardinals were eliminated by Virginia in the Quarterfinals. The last time the two teams faced each other was in Nashville on Oct. 30, 1998, as the Vols routed the Cardinals 6-0. For Friday's game, the tickets will be $10 for adults and $5 for students and seniors and the first 100 UT students will receive free entry with a valid student ID. Also, Fans that attend Friday's soccer match will have the opportunity to obtain free tickets to the Tennessee men's basketball game vs. Louisiana, set for a 7 p.m. ET tipoff Friday at Thompson-Boling Arena. Starting after the match reaches 60 minutes in, UT Fan Experience will begin distributing vouchers for the men's basketball game upon exit from Regal Soccer [...]

Tennessee Soccer vs. Louisville NCAA Tourney preview2018-11-09T14:24:04+00:00

Chicago Blackhawks Fire Joel Quenneville

Written by: Nicholas Hill (@Nickoverthehill) It is the end of an era in the Windy City as the Chicago Blackhawks have fired head coach Joel Quenneville after a disappointing 6-6 start to their season. This comes on the heels of the Blackhawks missing the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the first time in Quenneville’s tenure as head coach last season. Quenneville, nicknamed Coach Q by fans, won three Stanley Cups while coaching Chicago since the 2008-09 season, winning the Cup in the 2010, 2013 and 2015 seasons. However, since defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning in 2015, the Blackhawks have failed to win a Stanley Cup Playoff series losing to the St. Louis Blues in 2016 and the Nashville Predators in 2017 who notably went on a Cinderella run to the Stanley Cup Finals. The latter series was a sweep, which the Chicago Blackhawks have never seemed to recover from. Quenneville finished with 452-249-96 record as the head coach of the Blackhawks. Chicago announced that they would promote Jeremy Colliton to become the 38th head coach of the Blackhawks. Colliton was previously the head coach of the Rockford IceHogs of the American Hockey League, who are the primary minor league affiliate of the Blackhawks. He was able to improve the IceHogs from a 25-39-9 record the year prior to his arrival to a 40-28-4 record in his first season as head coach, a 15-win improvement. The IceHogs also made the semifinal round of the AHL Playoffs underneath Colliton last season. Prior to his coaching career, he was a NHL player for the New York Islanders off and on between 2005 and 2011, splitting time between the Islanders and the Bridgeport Sound Tigers of the AHL, spending a [...]

Chicago Blackhawks Fire Joel Quenneville2018-11-08T02:33:22+00:00

Falcons Move to 4-4 After Win At Washington

Written by: JT Jackson (@jtj1996) One month ago the Atlanta Falcons were 1-3 and looked like a team that would be nowhere near the playoffs. However, with a 4-4 record after a sound beating of the Washington Redskins in the nation's capitol on Sunday the Atlanta falcons now find themselves right back in the wild card hunt. The falcons are currently seventh in the NFC and at the midway point of the season appear to be playing their best football. On Sunday the Falcons had their best defensive performance of the season when the held Washington to only 14 points. Foye Oluokun led the defense with five solo tackles and was a consistent presence in the Washington back field. Safety Damontae Kazee recorded an interception with about seven minutes left to seal the game for Atlanta. This kind of showing against a division leader might be exactly what this injury plagued Falcons defense needed to propel them into the second half of this season. The defense was not the only part of this Falcon team that may have found their “mojo” on Sunday. As, Atlanta’s offense flexed some serious muscle as well. The unit was perfect on third down conversions heading into half time and was able to have success on the ground and through the air. Matt Ryan was 26-38 passing for 350 yards and 4 touchdowns. The only blemish came in the second quarter when Ryan threw an interception while trying to find Calvin Ridley in Washington territory on what appeared to be a mis-ran route by the rookie receiver. Sunday’s performance also marked Ryan’s 50th 300 yard game in his career which is the 12th most in NFL history. The real feel good [...]

Falcons Move to 4-4 After Win At Washington2018-11-08T02:10:44+00:00

Vols Weather Early Storm To Win Season Opener

Written by: Jake Wallman (@WallmanE75)  Tennessee played its second Southern Athletic Conference opponent in Lenoir-Rhyne on the season Tuesday night inside Thompson-Boling Arena and they would learn fast that this team was no Tusculum.  In the first nine minutes of the game things went back and forth with the teams trading some early blows. Lenoir-Rhyne even held a slim 3-2 lead when Djibril Diallo hit a three pointer just two minutes in. Every time it was the Vols hitting a shot, the Bears found a way to answer. KNOXVILLE, TN - NOVEMBER 06, 2018 - Guard Jordan Bowden #23 of the Tennessee Volunteers during the game between the Lenoir-Rhyne Bears and the Tennessee Volunteers at Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville, TN. Photo By Andrew Ferguson/Tennessee Athletics Tennessee hit a three to make it 9-3, but Lenoir-Rhyne hit a three of their own moments later and made it 9-6. The Vols went back down the floor and Jordan Bowden hit a three to bring the lead back to six, but then the Bears would hit another three of their own and it was back to a three-point game. It looked as if Tennessee was starting to pull away as the lead stretched to 20-12 when Lenoir-Rhyne came out of nowhere and made it a one possession game again. That’s when Rick Barnes had seen enough and called a timeout. “What we talked about the way we were playing defense, you know careless. We were playing hard, there’s no doubt I thought we were playing hard. But we weren’t playing smart, we were running guys off the line we weren’t supposed to when we didn’t have too,” said Barnes.    This was a timeout that the [...]

Vols Weather Early Storm To Win Season Opener2018-11-07T02:38:23+00:00

Vols Get Win Over Charlotte On Homecoming

Written by: Matthew Peterson Tennessee walks away with a win, but closer than they would have liked after defeating the UNC-Charlotte 49ers 14-3 in Neyland Stadium on Saturday. The Vols struck first with an 82-yard punt return courtesy of wide receiver Marquez Callaway halfway through the first quarter. Defensive back Nigel Warrior stressed how Callaway’s punt return set the tone for the team, “He set the tempo for us,” Warrior said. “He got us going.” Jarrett Guarantano added a 16-yard touchdown pass to Josh Palmer in the corner of the end zone before the end of the first quarter to extend the lead to    14-0. Despite getting out to a quick 14 point lead the offense began to slow down. Callaway believed that may be attributed to overlooking the opposition. “I think a lot of us underestimated Charlotte,” Callaway said. The 49ers would get on the scoreboard with a 20-yard field goal right before the end of the half. Going into halftime the Vols could not beat the sixth ranked run defense in FBS of the 49ers totaling zero rushing yards. Coach Jeremy Pruitt said the team was not surprised that the 49ers run defense was stingy. “We’ve struggled to run the football all year, so I don’t know why this game would be much different,” Pruitt said. The second half was a game of chess between both team’s punters flipping field position for the opposing offenses. The Vols punted on four possessions in the second half and missed a field goal to go with it. As for the 49ers they punted four times in the second half as well and had three 3-and-outs in the game. Through the air Guarantano was able to find [...]

Vols Get Win Over Charlotte On Homecoming2018-11-03T22:00:48+00:00

SEC Football Preview Week 10

Written by: Nicholas Hill (@nickoverthehill) The SEC has reached its tenth week of the season and the matchups this week will likely determine the winners of each division and who will play in Atlanta for the SEC Championship on December 1st. The current leader of the SEC West is Alabama at 5-0 in conference play and the SEC East has a tie between Georgia and Kentucky, who will play this week for the SEC East Championship. Alabama can clinch the SEC West Championship this week with a win at LSU, but it the Tigers win they would not clinch the division and Alabama would still remain in SEC West title contention. There are five SEC Conference matchups this week in addition to two non-conference games including Tennessee’s homecoming game against Charlotte. Vanderbilt and Arkansas are off this week. Here is a short rundown of the six matchups this week that involve SEC teams excluding Tennessee. Lines are as of Thursday, November 1st and the rankings are from the College Football Playoff Committee's pole. 20 Texas A&M (5-3)(3-2) @ Auburn (5-3)(2-3) TV & Time: 12 PM on ESPN Line: Auburn -4 Series: Texas A&M leads 5-3 Streak: Auburn has won 1 straight Last Meeting: Auburn won 42-27 in College Station last season. Synopsis: Texas A&M did win the meeting prior in 2016 when the two meet at Auburn as the Aggies outscored the Tigers 29-16. However, the A&M is coming off a 28-13 loss at Mississippi State, while the Tigers were off last week. Auburn did win their last game two weeks ago in Oxford against Ole Miss 31-16. While both teams are essentially out of contention for the division title, this game should go a long [...]

SEC Football Preview Week 102018-11-03T10:51:34+00:00