Sports and Rants with Brett and Pants

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Wednesday, January 21, 2015

10 Years Since the Super Bowl... Where is the Eagles Offense today?

It has been 10 years since the Philadelphia Eagles faced off against the New England Patriots. It has been 10 years since Philadelphia fans had their hearts broken in that game. We decided to take a look at where the starters from the Eagles high powered offense are today.

Donovan McNabb

The six-time Pro Bowler Donovan McNabb, has been living a pretty good life after football. McNabb currently works for Fox Sports 1 as one of their key football analysts. Donovan can also be heard on some games during the season on Fox as well. McNabb was able to take an excellent career and jump start it into a future as a “football expert.”

Brian Westbrook

The Villanova alumni since his retirement has kept his roots in Philadelphia. Westbrook like McNabb has turned his past NFL success into a very successful television career. Westbrook is currently on Comcast SportsNet and works on Eagles Post-Game Live.

Terrell Owens

Who can forget T.O. one of the main reasons why the Birds were able to compete and become Super Bowl contenders that season. Owens had an extremely successful on-field career, however now he is trying to make an off-the field career. Since his retirement he has had several different shows, as well as being on other shows. T.O. is still trying to find himself without the NFL, and most recently was on The Celebrity Apprentice.

Todd Pinkston

Since his retirement Pinky has done several different things, but mainly he has started a coaching career. Pinkston is currently now coaching at a high school in Mississippi.

L.J. Smith

Smith has not been doing much since his retirement from football. He still resides in New Jersey to this day and he currently owns a Plato’s Closet Franchise. Smith has always wanted to work as his own boss and now he has the opportunity.

Josh Parry

Parry had an good 7 year career with tons of ups and downs. Parry now works with computer software, where he is the COO and Developer at Event Ready. Parry has turned a successful NFL career to a successful business career.

Tra Thomas

Thomas has had a good coaching career with the Eagles since his retirement. Thomas was on Comcast SportsNet for some time until he decided to get back into coaching. He is still currently a coach with the Eagles.

Artis Hicks

Hicks has been trying to make an NFL comeback for awhile now. The injury prone player most recently was in talks with the Dolphins. However, Hicks has made news over the last few months due to the fact that he brought up a lawsuit about painkillers.

Hank Fraley

The former Eagles Center has had a successful coaching career since his retirement from the game. Fraley is currently an assistant OL coach with the Vikings.

Jermane Mayberry

Everyone remembers the half blind OL Jermane Mayberry. Since his retirement he is still involved in the Eagles charities, however he has been living his life peacefully in Texas.

Jon Runyan

Since his retirement Runyan has worked in several different fields, including radio, tv, and politics. Runyan has most recently worked in the House of Representatives in New Jersey.

-Brett

itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sports-rants-brett-pants/id934063452?mt=2&uo=4

Thursday, January 15, 2015

The Friendly Jesuit Match-Up

Saint Joseph’s Hawks pulled away with a win against Fordham Rams. Phil Martelli said himself that if the game was played away, they would not have won. The Hawks broke their four game losing streak. The team stopped feeling sorry for themselves and kept their heads up after being winless the past 26 days. James Demery, Shavar Newkirk, and Aaron Brown earned their first Atlantic 10 win.

Chris Wilson had a career night with 23 total points. Most of his points came from behind the arc. With making five of nine three point attempts. Despite having a noticeable limp in the second half, Wilson scored 12 points. Both DeAndre Bembry and Chris Wilson were six for six from the free throw line, and as a team the Hawks were 19 for 22. Besides free throws, another that factor that separated Saint Joseph’s from Fordham was the amount of second chances. The Hawks had 17 more rebounds than the Rams, which helped them to have 14 second chances.

Recently, the biggest concern for the Hawks has been turning the ball over. Between the Fordham and VCU, the Hawks have 36 turnovers. St. Joe’s knows how to handle the ball. They may not have shooting skills, but they do have ball skills.

In conference play, James Demery is averaging 8.8 points per game. He is also making a positive difference defensively as well. James Demery will be an impactful part of the team moving forward. He has become a valuable piece of the team. Any fan can tell that his confidence has grown by the fact that he has become more assertive. The power that he attacks the rim at is why the initially Hawks offered him a contract.

James Demery can also contribute with strong perimeter defending. It appeared that Demery and Bembry took turns defending Fordham’s best shooter, Eric Paschall. They held him to 16 total points. Perimeter defending was supposed to be one of the stronger parts of this year’s team. The two wing guards have athleticism that St. Joe’s needs to take advantage of.

- Pants

itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sports-rants-brett-pants/id934063452?mt=2&uo=4

Tuesday, January 13, 2015

Athletic Freshmen: Newkirk and Demery

We have seen the Hawks go against top and sub-par Atlantic 10 competition. No matter who the opponent is, they have been out-played. The Hawks would fall to an early deficit, and then attempt a meaningless comeback. The team is forced to try to find their identity while attempting to comeback. Shavar Newkirk and James Demery are two freshmen that Hawk fans are seeing develop throughout this season.

There is not much of a point in giving Chris Wilson additional senior minutes. Freshman point guard, Shavar Newkirk should be slowly gaining minutes each game in order to prepare Newkirk to start next season. If Newkirk improves each game, he should be starting by the end of the season. Maybe Chris Wilson will be on the bench to start the game, similar to Tay Jones. Number 1 for the Hawks is a tremendous team player. He has the second most steals for the Hawks with 12, behind DeAndre Bembry’s 26. Just like the team, Newkirk’s main issue is finding ways to score. He is too small to play under the rim. Newkirk made his first 3-point shot against George Washington and is now 1 for 15 behind the arc. The freshmen point could become an effective scorer if he develops a jump shot from within the paint.

Unlike Shavar, James Demery is a starter. Being a wing guard, Demery has a similar role on the court as DeAndre Bembry. It appears that at times Coach Martelli has taken James Demery out of the game because of Demery committing typical freshmen mistakes. Demery can be the most explosive player during a game. He attacks the basket with ease. As he gets the feel for college basketball, James will gain confidence. Hawk fans have seen him struggle from under the basket. As he develops, he will be able to play under the rim better. James Demery’s first 3 pointer brought the Hawks into overtime against LIU.

Both Shavar Newkirk and James Demery seem to be enjoying being Hawks. They were part of the past incoming athletic freshmen class. Martelli wants to build his team around athletic players that want to be Hawks. Coach should let Newkirk and Demery play through all of their mistakes. The team will only improve, when they do. Benching potential future Hawk stars will not benefit the team. Martelli has to learn to allow the players to play through their mistakes, especially Newkirk and Demery. These two athletic freshmen will not learn how to shoot on the bench.

The Fordham Rams will come to Hagan Arena on Wednesday. The Hawks and the Rams hope to get their first win in the Atlantic 10. St. Joe’s will not have an easy win this season. It is too early to call the season a wash. The team has talent; they just need to find ways to score.

- Pants

itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sports-rants-brett-pants/id934063452?mt=2&uo=4

Friday, January 9, 2015

Let Langsanity BEGIN!

Let “Langsanity” begin in New York City. The former Hawk has been finally given his opportunity to play in the NBA, and he made the most of it. Galloway who had been scoring 16.5 ppg in the D-League, has finally been given his chance to show his scoring ability. Langston has been given a 10-day contract with the Knicks, and it is now apparent that he will be staying in New York City for a long time. The point guard last night showed in his skill in his Madison Square Garden debut, scoring 19 points.

Langston Galloway in his first two games this season has put up 7 and 19 respectively. All Hawks fans knew success was coming for both Ron and Langston, but no one thought Langston would be getting his first NBA minutes before Ronald Roberts. Galloway’s chances of playing with the Knicks was very slim to start the season, however injuries and trades have opened up a chance for Lang to show New York what he can do. Will he be able to keep up scoring 19 points like he did last night, probably not, but don’t be surprised if this is a guy that is scoring at least 10 a game or more. Langston’s career is going to be based off his shooting ability, and as long as his shot stays pure he will be a success. If Langston keeps showing that scoring ability that St. Joe’s fans fell in love with, he will continue to have success in the NBA.

With Galloway’s pure shooting ability it has opened up many chances with the Knicks, now all he has to do is make it impossible for the Knicks to send him back down. If Langston continues to play the way he has he will have unbelievable success in the NBA. Langston said after last night’s game that “he was having fun”, Lang is truly living the dream in the NBA and hopefully his success will continue. This now becomes the waiting game, and we will have to see how he does in his future games with the Knicks organization.

-Brett

itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sports-rants-brett-pants/id934063452?mt=2&uo=4

Tuesday, January 6, 2015

Terrible..Terrible...

Terrible, simply terrible… That’s what Flyers fans are saying at this point in the season. No one expected this Flyers team to be in the category as the Sixers or Phillies. But, this has just been terrible hockey this season and embarrassing to watch. The Flyers have lost five straight games and have not shown any glimmers of potential. If the Flyers continue down this path they are going to be in the same boat as the Phillies.

The Flyers have not shown fans anything. This team is going downhill fast, and if nothing is done there will be no hope for them. Ron Hextall has not done much for this team, and I do not see him doing anything, anytime soon. If Hextall wants to turn this team into a contender he has to go one of two ways, go all in or go all out. Hextall has some good young guys to build around, as well as some very talented veterans. Meaning he can either trade some of these younger guys to bring in the talent that he will need to win a Stanley Cup or he can sit back and wait. These younger guys will be good, and do have the potential to win it all one day. Guys like Schenn, Laughton, Couturier; are all in their early twenties and have the ability to be key guys to build around one day. These players are the future of the Flyers, and Hextall should be building around. Giroux was thought to be the future of the Flyers but, injuries have hurt him this season as well as the Flyers chances.

It is hard to say what direction Ron Hextall is taking this team, and it is difficult to say if they are going to compete in the near future. It looks as if the Flyers are in the same situation as the Phillies, they are a aging team, plagued with injuries. If the Flyers decide to rebuild they have a great young core to build around, and have the potential to grow as a team.

-Brett

itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sports-rants-brett-pants/id934063452?mt=2&uo=4

Sunday, January 4, 2015

Hawks Improving

The Saint Joseph’s Hawks started conference play losing 64-60 to George Washington. From tip-off the Colonials played as if they had the game won. It appeared as if the Colonials put very little effort in the game. They played soft and let the shot clock run down each of their possessions. The Hawks did not play at a high-level the entire 40 minutes. It is a mystery as to what sparked the team, but something got them going in the second half.

Even with limited possessions and being down by 20 at one point, the Hawks played with hustle and desire. Character shows when a team is losing. St. Joe’s did not lose any tenacity while playing down throughout the entire game. SJU never gave up as they scored more points in the last 11 minutes, 32 compared to 28 in the first 29 minutes. The Hawks played better when they were pressing. Their passing was smoother on the run and they attacked the basket.

The Colonials are one of the better teams in the Atlantic 10. For the Hawks next match-up, they will travel to A.J. Palumbo Center in Pittsburgh to play Duquesne. Both teams are considered to be the weaker teams in the Atlantic 10. After playing Duquesne, Saint Joseph’s plays another top conference team, in VCU on Saturday. Playing these two tougher conference games early, will help the Hawks improve. We already saw the them improve throughout the George Washington game.

Isaiah Miles inconsistency is the Hawks biggest issue. His role on the team is to be the perimeter shooter. It appears as if Miles can only make an impact in a game when the team did not fall to an early deficit. He needs to learn to how to be part of the flow of the game even when the team is losing.

Right now, St. Joe's is a one man show. DeAndre Bembry is the only player the opposing team has to worry about. If DeAndre has the ball in his hands at the start of the game, St. Joe’s will not be trailing early. The team can feed off of his energy. Once the team has momentum, Bembry can act as a facilitator. The team needs to learn to play through him in order to play their best basketball.

Hawk fans can see the team’s potential. The team needs to learn how to play together as a team from tip-off and not when their backs are up against the wall. If pressure is how the team will score their points, then the quicker players should be on the court more.

- Pants

itunes: https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/sports-rants-brett-pants/id934063452?mt=2&uo=4

Saturday, January 3, 2015

Just the Start of Conference Play

Saint Joseph’s Hawks start conference play as the defending champions against the George Washington Colonials. Tip-off will be at 2:00 on Saturday, January 3^rd in Hagan. Even though it does not appear that the Atlantic 10 will have a strong presence in the NCAA tournament, the Colonials are likely going to be representing the conference. If St. Joe’s will play a competitive game against George Washington, they will need to play up to their full potential. If they do not do not play competitively, it is only the first conference game. It will not determine the rest of the season.

The Hawk’s success this season will be determined by how quickly they develop their potential. Once their full potential is developed, they will be able to compete with the top teams in the conference. The quicker they reach their potential, the sooner they can play competitively against the top teams in the conference. Every game’s outcome could change based on when the game is played. Each team has the opportunity to develop and worsen throughout the season.

Phil Martelli is often criticized for not developing his young players. Heading into the 2014-2015 season, the Hawks biggest issue was their lack of experience and developed players. In order for a player to develop, they need to experience in-game action. DeAndre Bembry and Chris Wilson were the only returning players that averaged more than 10 minutes a game last year. The two experienced Hawks have been consistent this season. Any young team needs strong leadership. Leadership brings the team together.

Aaron Brown and Shavar Newkirk are the only two players who have not started and have played every game. They are also the only two players to average more than 20 minutes a game. Besides Brown and Newkirk, both Jai Williams and Obi Romeo should play every game as well. Williams and Romeo are the Hawks’ bigs coming off the bench. Williams and Romeo should each receive at least 5 minutes. Those are valuable minutes that will not only allow them to develop, but also give other players rest.

Due to Papa Ndao sitting out for the season for medical reasons, Isaiah Miles has received more minutes this season than originally anticipated. Miles has developed his rebounding and shooting ability. The team plays their best basketball when number 15 is grabbing offensive rebounds and making three pointers. If he plays at the level that he ended the non-conference games at, he will soon be playing just as many minutes as Bembry.

Brendan Casper started to receive valuable minutes after he scored 9 points and grabbed 9 rebounds against Villanova. If a player were to play well during a game that lost its competitiveness from it being a blowout, Villanova would be the team to do it against. It is also an easy way to not only become a fan favorite, but a player Martelli would be comfortable bringing off the bench. Ever since the Holy War, Casper has been receiving valuable minutes. Brendan is a sophomore without a scholarship, and Coach Martelli is allowing him to develop.

The first game of conference play does not represent how well the team will play at the end of the season. Each team has their own potential, and St. Joe’s may not reach theirs until the end of the season. If Martelli allows each player to develop, the Hawks can reach their full potential this year. St. Joe’s may lose poorly against the Colonials to start conference play, but at the end of the season the hawks may be able to compete against them.

- Pants