UNC allegations
News broke Monday - and there was a lot of news breaking Monday - about the latest notice of allegations for the UNC athletic department.
This recent - and revised - list is staggering in its limited scope. The latest list of charges from the NCAA in what has been arguably the longest and most convoluted case ever was watered down by comparison, and did not have a key clause that included charges of academic benefits of athletes in the 2000s in certain African-American Studies majors. That is crucial because that's the circle of interest that could really hammer the basketball and football programs.
And not unlike Kentucky, UNC is one of the rare college athletic departments that cares more what happens to the hoops program than the football program. And without those clauses, it could work out that nothing happens to the basketball program, even though a lot of this investigation started because of the allegations levied by former hoops star Rashad McCants, who was the second-leading scorer on the 2005 national title team.
Moving forward, and since this is a topic we have consistently discussed this around these parts, this could very well be the first sign of the NCAA folding its cards against a Power Five blue blood. And that is especially true when it comes to hoops, because the NCAA only exists because of the NCAA tournament and March Madness. Period.
And if the NCAA hammers UNC, and puts the ACC on the clock, then it just takes one or two more shoes to fall for the Power Five to break away. And that's a global killer for everyone else in college sports as we know them.
Portland Trail Blazers guard Gerald Henderson, left, has the ball stripped by Los Angeles Clippers guard Chris Paul, right, during the second half of Game 4 of an NBA basketball first-round playoff series Monday, April 25, 2016, in Portland, Ore. (AP Photo/Craig Mitchelldyer) NBA playoffs
Wow, what a turn of events for the Clippers in the last 24 hours.
First, there was news that Steph Curry's injured knee would force him to miss at least the next two weeks. It changed the storyline for the Clippers, who now were considered a big-time threat to the Warriors without the game's best player in the conference semifinals. It raised the stakes, since the Clippers have kind of maxed out on their reach in a conference with the Warriors, Spurs and Thunder.
Matchups and chance appeared to smile on the Clippers.
Then Chris Paul breaks his hand late Monday night in a Game 4 loss to Portland that evened that series. Wow (sorry for this in advance), but what a bad break.
OK, let's update the series:
Golden State leads Houston 3-1. Up next: Game 5 Wednesday at Golden State.
L.A. Clippers and Portland tied at 2. Up next: Game 5 Wednesday at L.A.
Oklahoma City beat Dallas, 4-1.
San Antonio beat Memphis, 4-0
Cleveland beat Detroit 4-0.
Atlanta and Boston are tied at 2. Game 5 tonight at Atlanta.
Miami and Charlotte are tied at 2. Up next: Game 5 Wednesday at Miami.
Toronto and Indiana are tied at 2. Up next: Game 5 tonight at Toronto.
FILE - In this Oct. 24, 2015, file photo, Texas A&M defensive lineman Myles Garrett (15) is blocked by Mississippi offensive lineman Laremy Tunsil (78) during the first half of their NCAA college football game in Oxford, Miss. Tunsil is one of the top offensive players available in the NFL Draft, which starts April 28 in Chicago. (AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis, File) Draft
This year, to make the draft even more special, Press Row will be broadcasting live from 3-6 p.m. next Thursday from Beef O'Brady's in Ooltewah. That's right, get your pre-draft Co-Cola with Press Row blaring in the background.
We'll go ahead and throw out the rules to the Feeling the Draft (with a draught) Draft Contest, and we are ready to make our picks.
* Who will be Titans' first pick? Laremy Tunsil (after trading up with Jacksonville at No. 5)
* Who will be the Falcons' first pick? Darron Lee
* How many SEC players go in round 1? 8
* How many quarterbacks are drafted in round 1? 4
* Who is the 31st pick of round 1, currently owned by Denver? Connor Cook
We will have a draft chunk each day this week. Of course we will, we love the draft.
Today, let's look at some of the bigger early round sleepers. Here are five guys we really like that may be late first-round steals:
Darron Lee, Ohio State. His name is starting to climb, but we believe that the former Buckeyes star will be an every-down star and is the type of player that will become coveted in today's pass-first, pass-last game. He is a linebacker with safety speed, and a lot like Shaq Thompson with Carolina, has the skill set to rush the passer, play close to the line of scrimmage on run downs and the speed to line up over the slot. Yes, the future will be 4.4-40 linebackers wearing numbers in the 50s covering guys with numbers in the 80s.
Laquan Treadwell, Ole Miss. He's kind of the opposite of Lee, in that his name is falling down draft boards because he's at the opposite end of the 40 spectrum as Lee. Treadwell clocked a 4.65 40 time and folks are wondering about his separation. That's understandable. The other side of that is a) Name the last time someone caught Treadwell from behind in the SEC, and b) kid made plays against a ton of defenses loaded with tons of talent.
Robert Nkemdiche, Ole Miss. Off-the-field problems and some admitted "laziness" last year with the Rebels have understandably dropped Knemdiche. That makes sense. What also makes sense is drafting arguably the most dynamic talent in the draft, considering he's 6-5, 300 pounds with an official 4.87 40 time at the combine. That's obscene. Is it a potential gamble on a guy who has bust potential? Yes, but don't all picks come with at least a little of that risk? What Nkemdiche brings is a ceiling that could be in Canton and very few picks bring that on the front end.
Reggie Ragland, Alabama. A true inside linebacker, which translates into "he is not that fast." That's OK for Ragland who simply makes a ton of plays and has had three-plus years in a NFL-caliber defense. If he falls to Green Bay late in round, it could be the perfect marriage of need and talent.
Jaylon Smith, Notre Dame. He blew out his knee in the bowl game, and comes with a real caveat that as a speed linebacker he may never be the same. But, and this is a monster 'but' - think Kadashian meets Nell Carter type of but - if he returns healthy after missing the 2016 season, he is a top-three player in this draft or next year's draft. That's a huge addition with a potential second-round (or later) pick.
FILE - In this Sunday, Jan. 18, 2015 file photo, New England Patriots quarterback Tom Brady has a ball tossed to him during warmups before the NFL football AFC Championship game against the Indianapolis Colts in Foxborough, Mass. A federal appeals court has ruled, Monday, April 25, 2016, that New England Patriots Tom Brady must serve a four-game "Deflategate" suspension imposed by the NFL, overturning a lower judge and siding with the league in a battle with the players union.(AP Photo/Matt Slocum, File)This and that
- Here's video of Tiger Woods swinging before playing five holes Monday - his first five of the year according to him - Monday at a club opening in Texas. Now, here's a quote from Alan Shipnuck, the golf ace of SI on a Yahoo.com roundtable discussion: "After I tweeted about that footage a top swing coach DM'd me a withering analysis of Woods's action, saying it was the worst swings he'd ever seen Tiger make. And this was on a driving range, at a private clinic. Tiger's back may be healed physically but his swing and short game still have serious flaws, and after last year his psyche has more scar tissue than his back. He should take his time and piece things together slowly. What's the rush? All of the major championship venues are tough, old-school tracks. What does he accomplish by rushing back and getting his teeth kicked in yet again?" Please do not rush back Tiger. Please.
- Tom Brady's suspension has been reinstated. We'll admit it: We're exhausted by this story and we're horrified that there's a real chance that a couple of pounds of air may be a real matter for the U.S. Supreme Court. (That said, a 4-4 split on the Court right now would be the perfect end to this amazingly tired story.) Please, Tom, thing of the children and take the suspension.
- Mike Tirico is reportedly leaving ESPN for NBC after his current deal is up this summer. It makes sense for NBC, which is looking for longterm solutions for aging icons Al Michaels on Sunday Night Football and Bob Costas in the Olympics. Tirico's talents at tennis and golf also fit into NBC's sports portfolio and his radio talents could help a struggling enterprise there too. It also really hurts ESPN. So here's a random question: Who should get the Monday Night Football play-by-play gig? Go.
- We're still positive about the Braves. (Insert: "We're positive they stink" joke here.) We're positive that 1-0 losses will be fairly common for an offense this limited. Today's bit of "good news" has to be that there's no way Freddie Freeman can be this bad for the rest of the season. So there's that.
- Speaking of rough starts, meet Tigers center fielder Tyler Collins. The Detroit outfielder is 2-for-20, which is a cool .100, which would likely land him the No. 5 spot in the Braves order, but really is not too sharp for everyone else. Then Monday, Collins loses a ball in the lights and reacts to the boos from the home fans with a panoramic bird-shooting that was less than wise. You stay classy Tyler.
Today's question
Today is the day a baby William Shakespeare was baptized. His actual birthday is unknown. There's a real argument that Billy is on the all-time Rushmore of famous people (non-religious division) of all-time.
Let's go for a two-for-Tuesday special here: Rushmore of writers and Rushmore of all-time famous people (non-religious division).
Does Billy make either? Does he make both?
Go, and remember the draft contest and the mailbag.