sutomcat
No recent Cali or Iggy awards; Mr Irrelevant
- Joined
- Aug 15, 2011
- Messages
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Welcome to System Administrator Appreciation Day!
Your network is secure, your computer is up and running, and your printer is jam-free. Why? Because you’ve got an awesome sysadmin (or maybe a whole IT department) keeping your business up and running. So say IT loud; say IT proud …
Happy SysAdmin Day!
Thanks Tom!
SU News
Former Syracuse football safety Shamarko Thomas signs with Indianapolis Colts (PS; Bailey)
Former Syracuse football safety Shamarko Thomas signed with the Indianapolis Colts on Wednesday, the team announced.
Thomas, heading into his sixth professional season, is coming off a one-year stint with the Buffalo Bills in which he served as a core special teams player.
The 5-foot-9, 205-pound Virginia native has appeared in 60 career games and totaled 24 tackles, including one for loss, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery. Thomas played his first four seasons with the Pittsburgh Steelers after the franchise selected him in the fourth round of the 2013 NFL Draft.
At Syracuse, Thomas started 43 games over four seasons and racked up 263 career tackles -- sixth-most among defensive backs in program history -- two interceptions and four sacks. He was named first-team All-Big East after his senior season.
Thomas joins former SU linebacker Zaire Franklin and wide receiver Steve Ishmael in Indianapolis. Franklin was selected in the seventh round of the 2018 NFL Draft while Ishmael signed shortly after as a free agent.
2018 ACC football: Can UNC find its new Trubisky? (roanoke.com; McFarling)
The Tar Heels can’t be that bad again, can they?
Coach Larry Fedora’s controversial thoughts on concussions might have drawn the biggest headlines at this month’s ACC Football Kickoff, but North Carolina fans want the answer to that performance question more than any other.
The injury-ravaged Tar Heels stumbled to their worst record in 11 years last season, and the lack of offensive firepower was the most notable woe. Fedora, after all, is an offensive-minded coach, and he hadn’t averaged worse than 425 yards in total offense since coming to Chapel Hill in 2012.
Suddenly, the sting went out of UNC’s attack. The Tar Heels ranked 96th nationally in total offense (369.6) in 2017. During their six-game losing streak that began on Sept. 23, the Tar Heels never scored more than 19 points in a game.
“I would say probably the majority of our team played, even though they shouldn’t have played last year,” Fedora said. “So we’re going to take that and we’re going to build off of it. I don’t think that we’re going to have as many people out there on the field this year that are going to be wide-eyed in their first game that have never stepped on a college football field.
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Teel Time Episode 47: Clemson, Miami picked to win ACC divisions (dailypress.com; podcast; Teel)
On Episode 47 of the Teel Time podcast, David Teel and Jonathan Heeter discuss the media voting from the ACC kickoff media event.
Clemson was a near-unanimous pick to win the Atlantic Division, but how will the rest of the division shake out? Miami was the overwhelming pick in the Coastal Division, but Teel thinks four potential teams have at least a shot of winning the division even though he believes the Hurricanes are the heavy favorite.
We talk about the preseason all-conference team and discuss any oversights and the lack of a Commonwealth presence on the team.
The Colonial Athletic Association, Conference USA and Big South also held media days over the past week, so we digest those preseason polls as well. Can anyone knock off James Madison in the CAA? What must Old Dominion contend with to make a return to a bowl in C-USA?
Teel also talks about ACC basketball after Virginia Tech lost an assistant coach to a similar job at East Carolina.
And we wrap up with British Open talk, and Tiger Woods' grip on the attention span of sports' fans.
ACC Football Rx: UPDATE: BTN vs ComCast - 7/26/18 (accfootballrx.com; HM)
IMO, part of the uproar is attributable to the arrogance of Big Ten fans. Here's a twitter exchange which tells a lot; first a reasonable Big Ten fan, then one not so reasonable:
Michigan fan Greg gets it...
Greg T@GT_Blue
· 12 Apr
Replying to @jlhbrain and 2 others
Comcast: Big Ten states will still get Big Ten Network …. Question, so where do these 60 million viewers live? I would guess there aren’t 60 million people in Big Ten country. #blamedelaney
· 12 Apr
Replying to @jlhbrain and 2 others
Comcast: Big Ten states will still get Big Ten Network …. Question, so where do these 60 million viewers live? I would guess there aren’t 60 million people in Big Ten country. #blamedelaney
Colton Cunningham@CCunningham29
I don't think 1/6th of the country watches BTN. Just an educated guess.
9:47 AM - Apr 13, 2018
...not so sure Dr. J does:I don't think 1/6th of the country watches BTN. Just an educated guess.
9:47 AM - Apr 13, 2018
Colton Cunningham@CCunningham29
· 13 Apr
Replying to @GT_Blue and 3 others
I don't think 1/6th of the country watches BTN. Just an educated guess.
· 13 Apr
Replying to @GT_Blue and 3 others
I don't think 1/6th of the country watches BTN. Just an educated guess.
Nielsen reports 120M TV households in the US. Seems likely that 1/2 would have access to a sports channel providing programming for such a huge alum and fan base. They may not all watch regularly but 60M isn’t that hard to believe considering that it’s included in sport packages
10:02 AM - Apr 13, 2018
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ACCDN: NC State's Kelvin Harmon is the Best WR in the ACC - Pack Insider (packinsider.com; Bradham)
The ACC Digital Network released their top 5 wide receivers in the ACC yesterday heading into the 2018 season, and NC State’s Kelvin Harmon was #1.5) TJ Rahming – Duke – 2017: 65 receptions (9th in the ACC), 795 yards and 2 TDs. 12.2 yards per catch and 61.2 yards per game (7th in the ACC)4) Greg Dortch – Wake Forest – 2017: 53 receptions, 722 yards, 9 TDs. 13.6 yards per catch and 90.2 yards per game.3) Ahmmon Richards – Miami – 2017: 24 receptions, 439 yards and 18.3 yards per catch. 2016: 49 receptions, 934 yards and 19.1 yards per catch.2) Jaylen Smith – Louisville – 60 receptions (4th in the ACC), 980 yards (3rd in the ACC) and 7 TDs. 16.3 yards per catch and 98 yards per game (2nd in the ACC).1) Kelvin Harmon – NC State – 2017: 69 receptions (2nd in the ACC), 1,017 yards (2nd in the ACC), 4 TDs. 14.7 yards per catch and 78.2 yards per game (4th in the ACC).
Ricky Widmer and Brandon Swanson continue their ACC preview by looking at UNC Football for 2018.
ACC Preview: Will frosh QB lead Clemson to conference title? (chicagotribune.com; podcast; Russo)
Clemson is a heavy favorite to win its fourth straight Atlantic Coast Conference championship, and there is a real chance the Tigers could be driving for another playoff spot with a freshman quarterback.
On this week's AP Top 25 College Football Podcast , the ACC is previewed with David Hale from ESPN . Clemson could start the season as a preseason No. 1, but there is still intrigue around Dabo Swinney's team. Hale and AP's Ralph Russo discuss whether star freshman Trevor Lawrence will unseat returning starting quarterback Kelly Bryant.
Miami is a big favorite to take the ACC Coastal again, but Duke and Pittsburgh look like they could be dark horses to make a run if the Hurricanes slip.
Louisville and Florida State are wild cards in the Atlantic.
FSU Football: Top 3 most overrated teams in ACC (chopchat.com; Hunt)
FSU football will face some tough opposition in 2018 but some of these teams are getting too much love from the media.
It’s common knowledge FSU football isn’t afraid to play any team no matter where the game is.
The Noles have done themselves no favors the past few years playing ridiculously tough schedules while not getting rewarded for it.
After coming off a dismal 2017 season the Noles will again have one of the toughest slates in the nation. However, I’m not so sure it’s as tough as some would have us believe.
FSU football fans have been brainwashed due to last season’s anomaly and media constantly hyping up a select number of teams.
However, when you look at a few of these teams they have a ton of flaws and are being overhyped for whatever reason.
Maybe they believe certain players are going to magically become Cam Newton? Or could it be some believe a defense that lost tons of talent and experience will somehow still be a top 10 defense?
Or could be they believe extraordinary turnover luck will continue year in and year out? Nevertheless, I’m not falling for any of it and will tell you why these three teams are the most overrated in the ACC.
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ACC Football Rx: Links, news and rumors - 7/27/18 (accfootballrx.com; HM)
From Sporting News: Big Ten halts talks of bowl game at Wrigley Field
The deal between the Cubs and Big Ten officials fell through when the Cubs asked the bowl game to feature the No. 3 or No. 4 team in the conference. According to the Chicago Tribune, when the conference asked the teams about that proposal, teams responded it wanted a bowl game in a warmer climate.
When asked if the Cubs would host a lower-tiered Big Ten team, they said they weren't interested. “The Cubs wanted to have a higher-placed team and a potentially more excited fan base,” a source told the Tribune. “The Cubs said they’re not looking for a lower-tier bowl game...”
Well hooray for the Big Ten coaches!
However, there's more:
According to the report, there is no bad blood between the sides and agreed to look into striking a new deal down the road. There is a possibility a bowl game at Wrigley could be held in 2020, with the opponent coming from the ACC.
This is why we can't have nice things.
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BC Football Preview: Recent History Against the Louisville Cardinals (bcinterruption.com; Caliguri)
Since joining the ACC in 2014, the Louisville Cardinals have displayed a herculean prowess that has made most of the conference view them as a team that somehow emerged out of the shadows to be in contention for a top 25 spot in the AP Poll standings. While this bit of dominance has been able to be seen across all lines of sports (scandals aside; although it is hard to ignore), most of the football program’s success has leaned on the shoulders of Heisman Trophy winner, Lamar Jackson. With a Michael Vick-esque physique and playing style, Jackson was able to carve up opponents up and down the field leaving all spectators in awe. After deciding to opt-out of his senior year to play for the Baltimore Ravens, Jackson set records that nobody could have fathomed a collegiate QB could be capable of doing. I mean, just look at these stats:
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Crete Bulldogs to celebrate 50 years as a football family of 4,000 (chicagotribune.com; Houlihan)
Imagine hosting a family reunion that could draw 4,000 people.
It’s a possibility when the Crete Bulldogs Youth Football and Cheerleading Organization hosts its 50th anniversary celebration, an Aug. 11 event open to the hundreds of former players, cheerleaders, family members, coaches and volunteers who have participated over the past five decades.
“There’s a real sense of family the Bulldogs have formed,” said Jim Orange, a former vice president of the organization who played Bulldog football as a boy. “But it’s not just some youth sports program. The coaches have known these players from the time they started. And about three-quarters of our coaches were players themselves.”
Sam and Betty Dunlap of Crete founded the Bulldogs in 1969 in memory of their son, Rick, after he was killed in a car crash on his way home from Indiana University. The community outpouring of grief and support for Rick, a former Crete-Monee High School quarterback, was enormous, and the Dunlaps formed the Bulldogs as a way to show their appreciation.
The Dunlaps were a football family. Sam had played at Syracuse University. Both Rick and his brother, Randy, played at Crete-Monee High. But the Crete Bulldogs have never been about winning, said Randy, who currently serves as treasurer, equipment manager and player safety coach.
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Other
Huge dragon to blast from new TCGplayer HQ in Syracuse; you can slide on its tail (PS; Moriarty)
A dragon's head will burst out the entrance and its tail will double as a slide for employees to quickly get from the second floor to the first.
Rooms will have themes from the Star Wars and Harry Potter movies and the Super Mario Bros. video game, as well as a pirate ship.
TCGplayer's new headquarters at the Galleries of Syracuse won't look like any other corporate headquarters in Syracuse - and maybe not anywhere else.
The company, which operates an online hub for trading card games and "geek culture collectibles," showed off plans Thursday for its 44,000-square-foot headquarters overlooking South Warren Street in the Galleries.
The company's 230 employees will move from three smaller offices in Armory Square to the Galleries after $3.3 million in renovations to the space are completed in November.
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